It started with henna tattoos, oiling hair and balancing chakras. Practices that south Asians living abroad have been bullied for, for years. Things that were made to be ashamed of by caucasians soon became trends on social media by—yes, caucasians themselves. Any appreciation given to the culture of origin? None. This debate of repurposing south Asian customs and packaging them as “white girl” discoveries, making them popular online trends has been an occurrence for decades. And it has stirred up again; except this time south-asian girls are not keeping quiet but raising their voices on the internet.
With brands like Savannah selling bodycon dress with neck scarves and the most recent launch of Devon Lee Carlson’s collaborated collection with Reformation, south Asian influencers are accusing these brands of cultural appropriation. The scarves with the dresses are said to look eerily similar to the outfits that were popularised in early 2000’s in India with the scarves especially resembling dupattas. Some have even blamed the famous apparel brand “H&M” of the same with their “long camisole and trouser” set that seems to go after a salwar-kameez (a tunic paired with trousers).
Diya Pandey, an influencer with 19.4k followers posted a reel titled “this is a DUPATTA not a skinny scarf” to which others were quick to support with comments like “Of Course it's a dupatta, chunni, odhni, chunar” and “Don’t tell me it’s a skinny scarf now”.
The founder of “The Pakistani Bride” put up a satire reel in a sharara set with a heavily embroidered dupatta titled “What do you think of my Scandinavian bohemian skinny scarf” with the caption– “vibes high, chakras clear, crystals charged–Ibiza yoga calling”. This is simply the tip of the iceberg with several influencers and YouTubers putting up rant videos of how they were bullied in their high schools for the very things that white people are claiming to be theirs now.
What brands have to say on this?
All the brands being held responsible have refuted the allegations. H&M denied having used unfair means for their designs and said that their pieces “take inspiration from current fashion trends like dresses layered over pants and the popularity of sheer pieces, as well as various plays on transparency and movement.”
Similarly, Reformation too recognized the value of the wider discussion but clarified that the design in question was inspired by a 1990s John Galliano gown and scarf set that belonged to model Devon Lee Carlson, who collaborated with the brand on the collection.
Manisha Patel, a South Asian TikTok creator who addressed the issue on her platform, explained that much of the frustration within the South Asian community stems from witnessing elements of their culture—once overlooked, being suddenly rebranded as trendy or fashionable, that too, usually by Western or American companies.
(By Archisha Mazumdar)