First Female Indian Idol

I love this and just had to share. The star of the video below is Sourabhee Debbarma, winner of Indian Idol '09. She's twenty-four, the first female to win Indian Idol, and according to her wiki entry, she is of Twipra descent (the indigenous people of the Tripura region).

It's not until I actually see these that I realize how hungry I am for images like this, and also this--where brown people are not just in the picture to educate about race/racism, to be studied, to be tokens, or as a splash of colour in an otherwise all-white landscape*. I love seeing this young woman have her spotlight on a show that dominates the cultural airwaves the world over, and in a context where she can just BE.

She's beautiful, isn't she? Though if she'd grown up with someone like my dad, she'd have heard this her whole life: "EAT. Or we're going to have to weigh you down on windy days. Eat MORE. [headshake] You don't eat enough..."

*I know Indians have their own tokens and "to-be-studied" groups--plenty of bigotry, racism, and downright supremacy abounds on the subcontinent. No arguments there. However, this post is within the context of North American media and images - and PoC within those frameworks.

Noop Dogg in Tha Haus

American Idol has a new South Asian contender this year. And this one can actually sing. His name is Anoop Desai. Despite Simon's idiotic comment that Anoop looked too "IT" and like he "just got out of a meeting with Bill Gates" (can we say stereotype, Simon?), Anoop has been crooning with The Clef Hangers at UNC. He's cute, smart, he's fast becoming a sensation, and he's got some real vocals.

It amazes me the hunger out there for Desi images. Desis, in particular are starved to see ourselves on the big screen, doing things that represent our many facets and talents, rather than consistently being pigeon-holed into the "model minority," nerdy, IT sectors.

Bend It Like Bekham was a resounding success; Sanjaya -- as terrible a vocalist as he was -- had legions of fans, young and old alike; Born Confused is still selling phenomenally; and now Noop Dogg. His Facebook page already has over 8000 members and we're only in Hollywood Week.

I, along with all the squealing girls at UNC, will be watching his progress with great interest ;-).

Edited to add: I just saw on Mitali Perkins' Facebook page that Noop has his own webpage! Wow, his people move fast.