School of Visual Arts
MFA Products of Design
New York, NY
May 2024
We Too Belong Here
Author, Designer - Heba Jaleel Editor - Sam AllinghamUniting and Strengthening South Indians through Community Collaboration
Heba JaleelI have been an immigrant all my life. Even though I strongly identify as a South Indian, I grew up in the United Arab Emirates. Despite being away from my home country, I never felt alone. Apart from my family, I was always surrounded by a strong South Indian community from all parts of South India, which includes Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. All the South Indian festivals were celebrated in the city, even in schools, offices, cultural institutions, and so on. There was no difficulty in finding South Indian food, because you could find a restaurant that served this cuisine in every corner of the city.
In 2022, I moved to New York City to pursue my graduate studies. This was the first time I was away from home. I was extremely excited about starting a new chapter: a fully independent life. However, a couple of days in, I felt a sense of loneliness and emptiness—and it wasn’t just a feeling of homesickness. I did not feel like my cultural identity had a place in the city. I knew I couldn’t be the first to experience this condition. I started looking for other South Indian immigrants in the United States—people who moved here for job opportunities, educational purposes, better family life, etc.— and began interviewing them, in order to help understand their journey and find answers to my own questions. “We Too Belong Here: Uniting and Strengthening South Indians through Community Collaboration” is a quest to find answers to my question of why there isn’t enough representation of the South Indian community in the United States—and how we can bring a change to the narrative.
In an increasingly diverse American landscape, the establishment and nurturing of a cohesive South Indian community hold immense significance. This thesis asserts the importance of South Indian representation in the United States and advocates for the creation of platforms and initiatives aimed at fostering community building and cultural preservation. Through an exploration of historical context, demographic trends, and personal narratives, this work will mentions the necessity for advocates of South Indian representation and outline a comprehensive project aimed at catalyzing this movement. By engaging in meaningful dialogue, promoting cultural exchange, and leveraging digital platforms, I aim to spearhead initiatives that facilitate community cohesion and amplify the voices of South Indians in the United States. It is imperative that we initiate these conversations now to address the pressing need for representation and community building within the South Indian diaspora, ensuring a vibrant and empowered future for generations to come.
Bollywood: the name Bollywood is a portmanteau (a blend of two words), combining Bombay and Hollywood. The city of Bombay, which is known as Mumbai today, is where the Hindi-language Indian film industry is based — in other words, it’s the Hollywood of India.
Cinephile: a person who is very interested in and enthusiastic about cinema as an art form, and knows a lot about movies: There are movie fans; there are film lovers; and then there are cinephiles.
Content Creators: Referring to artists in the traditional filmmaking space that are involved in the creation of the film contents like scriptwriters, producers, screenwriters and so on.
Hindi: a language that is spoken by people in northern India. It is also one of the 300 official languages of India. Bollywood movies are made in Hindi.
Intercultural communities: describes communities in which there is a deep understanding and respect for all cultures. Intercultural communication focuses on the mutual exchange of ideas and cultural norms and the development of deep relationships. In an intercultural society, no one is left unchanged because everyone learns from one another and grows together.
Popular (pop) culture: is the set of practices, beliefs, and objects that embody the most broadly shared meanings of a social system. It includes media objects, entertainment and leisure, fashion and trends, and linguistic conventions, among other things. Popular culture plays a powerful role in how we think about and understand ourselves as well as others.
South India: The southern region of India, comprising the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu, as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry. These regions speak various languages, and have distinct cuisine and culture.
Stereotype: a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea or concept of a particular type of person, thing or even culture. It is a mistaken idea or belief many people have about a thing or group that is based upon how they look on the outside, which may be untrue or only partly true.
Traditional filmmaking: the conventional way of filmmaking, where a studio or production company hires in a professional union crew where workers have set jobs and are journeymen at those jobs.
My thesis started as an exploration of the underrepresentation of South Indian culture and community in the United States. My summer internship with the South Asian Design Educators Alliance (SADEA) helped immensely in finding experts to have conversations with on the representation of marginalized communities in Western countries. My initial research subjects were primarily educators and design practitioners; they not only provided me with some great insights, but also guided me through my design research journey.
Archana Shekara, Professor of Graphic Design at Illinois State University, co-director of their Ethnic Studies program, and creative director of Design Streak Studio, shared her experience living as a South Indian in the United States for 34 years. She serves as the Coordinator of the Graphic Design program partnership with the Wonsook Kim School of Art and the Tianhua College of Art + Design at Shanghai Normal University. She talked about how Indians are seen as a generalized community by Western people; in a similar fashion as African Americans and the
You had to give up these little things [South Indian food] in terms of food because it was so tough to find it anywhere. And so I had to give it all up.
- Archana ShekaraLatinx community, all South Asians are categorized into the same bucket, despite their cultural diversity and nuances. When Archana moved to upstate New York in the 1990s, she felt alienated, even among the Indian community. No one knew or spoke her mother tongue, Kannada; people around her assumed she was from a North Indian state called Gujarat. She could not find a single South Indian restaurant in the state, and none of the grocery stores sold any South Indian vegetables or spices. During our interview, she mentioned that “you had to give up these little things in terms of food because it was so tough to find it [South Indian food] anywhere. And so I had to give it all up.” Archana’s experience was one among the thousands of South Indian immigrants who have moved to the United States over the years. Such immigrants lose a sense of belonging and no longer feel empowered, because food is a tool that helps an individual to feel a strong connection to their cultural identity.
Apart from educators, I had conversations with a diverse group of experts, such as filmmakers, designers, artists, and journalists, ranging geographically from East Asia to South Asia, North America, and of course, South India. These conversations were crucial for my thesis topic, because it is important to understand the problem of representation of other non-Western countries in the United States. The interviews unveiled a common misunderstanding about Indian culture, where people are unable to recognize the nuanced differences within the regions of India, which is often perceived as monolithic, neglecting its rich regional diversity,
My conversations with Amrita Datta, a South Asian visual communication professor at the Herron School of Art and Design in Indiana University, changed the trajectory of my thesis topic. It evolved from “Representation of South Indians in the United States” to “Bollywood is Not the Answer: Challenging Representation and Stereotypes of South Indian Culture through Filmmaking for the Global Screen.”
In addition to these interviews, various cultural and educational articles, books, and podcasts helped me understand the problem space I was exploring in depth. In the book Intercultural Communication for the Community College by Karen Krumrey, she mentions that “from an intercultural communication perspective, popular culture is usually our first exposure to other cultures. It is the place that we learn about those who are different than us.” Because film is one of the most common forms of popular culture, this quote inspired me to look at film as a medium of communication and discussion.
From an intercultural communication perspective, popular culture is usually our first exposure to other cultures. It is the place that we learn about those who are different than us.
- Karen Krumreytheme title:
Before moving to New York, I did not think that going to the cinema for a South Indian movie would be such an inconvenient experience. While researching the commute to theaters that screened South Indian movies, I was shocked that in both New York and New Jersey the majority of South Indian movies were being screened at only four theaters. It would take me around two hours to get to all four theaters from Sunset Park, Brooklyn —and that was only one way; the full trip would take four hours. If you include the three hours of the movie, that is a total commitment of seven to seven and a half hours.
The problem isn’t much different when it comes to online streaming platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, and Peacock. Over the years, the number of South Indian movies being streamed on these platforms has increased. However, the difference between the availability of these movies in India and the United States on Amazon Prime Video, for example, is massive. Only a handful of movies are available on Prime Video US, as compared to the never ending scrolls on Prime Video India.
There are three hundred and forty seven spoken languages as well. For all the bewildering variety of geographical and cultural landscapes which find representation in South Asian Cinema, the Dominant Discourse tends to revolve around Indian and Pakistani films made in Hindi/ Urdu. There is a tendency to ignore the films made in other languages and regions.
- Alka Kurian
The limited and inconvenient availability of South Indian movies in the US is a challenge, making it exceedingly difficult for people to engage with and enjoy South Indian cinema.
Even if we overcome the accessibility and availability challenges, will people actively choose to engage with South Indian movies? The movie 2018: Everyone is a Hero is a South Indian movie made in the regional language, Malayalam: the native language of the state of Kerala, one of the six South Indian states. In 2023, it was nominated as India’s Official Entry for the 2024 Oscars. Despite being chosen for the Oscar Entry, it is unavailable to view on any of the streaming platforms in the US. It received global award recognition, yet the public engagement with the movie internationally was extremely poor due to the ease of access to watch the film. In her book Narratives of Gendered Dissent in South Asian Cinemas, Alka Kurian mentions how even though movies are made in 347 spoken languages in India, the dominant discourse tends to revolve around movies made in Hindi,
Professor of graphic design at Illinois State University, sociocultural researcher, and designer creative/art director at Design Streak Studio
and there is a tendency to ignore films made in other languages and regions. This means that around 62% of Indian languages are being ignored—out of which 45% are South Indian languages.
Why are movies important? What is the significance of movies from a socio-cultural perspective? As mentioned in Intercultural Communication for the Community College, popular culture and movies are a way to understand different cultures, their formation, and their cultural significance. In our interview, Professor Shekara discussed how her children learned all about the family structure and traditions of their South Indian culture by watching Kannada movies while growing up. “Movies were a good way to make them [my kids] understand about cultural expectations and carry on our culture to the next generation,” says Archana. For kids like Archana’s, who grew up in the United States with bicultural identities, films were the only medium to connect with their heritage culture and understand that Indian culture was not as homogenous as it was portrayed in popular Western media.
South Indian representation is null; in art syllabus and academia [at my graduate school in Chicago]. I had a class called “From Bhuddha to Bollywood” [where] no one spoke about anything South Indian. The professor didn’t know what to do when I brought up a South Indian art form. No one knows anything about the different South Indian dances or art forms.
- Harini
One of the consequences of homogenizing the culture of a country like India, which is extremely diverse and widely different from state to state, is the perpetuation of centuries-long misrepresentation of South India. This cultural generalization can be seen across various domains, such as entertainment and academia. Even in classes that are curated to teach about the history of South India, professors sometimes lack knowledge about the nuances of South Indian heritage. Harini, a South Indian dancer based in Chicago and a TikTok celebrity, spoke about her experience taking a class on South Indian art history at her university in Chicago. She mentioned that “South Indian representation is null; in art syllabus and academia [at my graduate school in Chicago]. I had a class called “From Bhuddha to Bollywood” [where] no one spoke about anything South Indian. The professor didn’t know what to do when I brought up a South Indian art form. No one knows anything about the different South Indian dances or art forms. Even in Pune [a city in India], you don’t learn anything about South India.”
When it comes to the film industry, the stories aren’t much different. When a South Indian character is portrayed, it is predominantly stereotypical and used for comic relief. “Rarely do we see a positive representation of South India without it feeding into the already present discriminatory ideas in the minds of the people. South Indians have been depicted as the “other.” Their culture and language is seen as alien and different,” writes Shreya Pathak in her article From ‘Masterji’ In Padosan To SRK Eating Noodles & Curd, Bollywood Has Often Stereotyped South Indians.
A primary reason for the poor portrayal of South India is lack of knowledge and resources, as well as the lack of South Indian participation in the film industry. Michael Chung, a filmmaker who has been working in the industry for over a decade, spoke about how he never got an opportunity to work with a South Indian, let alone an Indian, throughout his career. And even when these artists find an opportunity, the people at Hollywood “put all brown peo-
Rarely do we see a positive representation of South India without it feeding into the already present discriminatory ideas in the minds of the people. South Indians have been depicted as the “other”. Their culture and language seen is as alien and different.
- Shreya Pathakple in a box,” according to the experience of Sajata Day, actress, model and screenwriter. Based on my research, three questions emerged as opportunities in the early exploration space, which were explored through prototypes and workshops.
theme title:
During the early exploration phase, there were three main questions that I wanted to explore which were critical to understanding the current state of the situation. I have established that there is a lack of South Indian representation in the United States, but there is a major lack of awareness about this problem, as well. Raising awareness and shining a spotlight on this issue is crucial, but it was challenging to do so without seeming biased or causing division between communities and states within India. Hence, tackling the problem through a lens of curiosity and discovery is important. The goal of my thesis is to promote inclusivity and not encourage segregation. Therefore, the first question in my exploration phase is:
How might we cultivate a heightened curiosity and appreciation for South Indian culture in intercultural communities within Western society?
project title:
The Cultural Buzzer is a prototype whose objective is to encourage and start conversations about Indian culture through a gamified experience with your friends, co-workers, your graduate school cohort etc. This simple object can educate the people around you that there is more to Indian food than Butter Chicken and Naan.
As seen in the image, it has 2 buzzers, the N and S. The ‘N’ represents North India. You click on it to guess whether an Indian food item originates from the northern region, while ‘S’ signifies South India. You search up Indian food on any food delivery app and browse through the restaurants. You start quizzing your friend by asking them to guess if they think a particular restaurant serves North or South Indian food by clicking on the buzzer and see if they get it right.
It fosters meaningful discussions on Indian culture, enlightening those around you about the diverse facets beyond Butter Chicken and Bollywood, using this simple yet powerful prototype as a catalyst. This experiment showcased an opportunity because it helped in understanding that people were curious and eager to learn more about the culture.
There is a pattern in how people from the South are perceived. People from the Southern part of a country, like Spain, Philippines and even India are considered backwards, less sophisticated in a way.
- Anne QuitoMy second question revolved around Anne Quito’s quote about stereotypes regarding Southern citizens of many countries. She mentioned that people within the same country were perceived differently based on geographical location, and that people from the Southern part, not just of India, but also Spain and the Philippines, are considered backwards and less sophisticated.
After deeper research into the representation of South Indian cinema in popular media, I discovered that when a South Indian character is portrayed in Bollywood and Hollywood, it is purely done for comic relief—and this stereotypical pattern has been going on for decades. These challenges collectively contribute to the widespread misrepresentation of South Indian culture as a whole. This is why the second question in my exploration phase is:
How might we effectively challenge and rectify the stereotypical depictions of South Indian culture prevalent in Indian and US popular media?
project title:
The most effective way to get answers to this question was through a co-creation workshop. My co-creation was called Lights, Camera, Action! The goals of this workshop were to unravel stereotypes, break down bias barriers, and start a conversation on how to craft more authentic narratives.
The user group for my co-creation included people from intercultural backgrounds. Some of them were international South Indian students, such as myself. The other participants included second generation South Indians, non-South Indian students, and a few non-Indians as well. Making my user group culturally diverse was critical to understanding my problem space, as I wanted to learn more about how a non-South Indian, as well as a non-Indian, would perceive the stereotypical depiction of South Indian characters in popular entertainment media.
During the workshop, the participants watched a series of popular Bollywood and Hollywood movies and TV show clips of South Indian characters. Every participant was given a template with questions related to stereotypes; cultural depictions; what elements they found offensive; and which parts of the scenes they enjoyed. In the end, they were asked to recreate an authentic version of one of the scenes.
I believe the workshop was a success, because all the participants were able to identify a stereotypical pattern in the portrayal. Some of the major learnings from the workshop were as follows:
One of the participants spoke about how cinema is a form of art. However, while art is inherently open to interpretation, it should not be at the expense of any community, as seen in the often offensive portrayal of South Indian characters across numerous movie clips.
Most of the characters were exaggerated in terms of their English accent, traditional attire, eating habits and so on, generalizing it to an extent that isn’t relatable to most South Indians in today’s world. So making them more real and relatable to the audience is something that definitely needs to change.
Most of these stories were written by people who have limited knowledge about South Indian culture.
This shows that not only the film viewers or consumers, but also the creators should be included in the opportunity space.
The co-creation helped me realize that if we establish safe and educational spaces for intercultural communities to engage in conversations about stereotypes and cultural sensitivity, we have the potential to cultivate authentic South Indian narratives in mainstream media. There is a need for advocacy for the authentic representation of South Indian culture on global screens, where cinema can be used as a conversational tool to:
misrepresentation
Have open discussion about stereotypes and cultural appropriations
And help people recognize the stereotypical depictions on popular platforms
This brought me to the last and most critical question within my exploration phase, a question that paved the way towards my solution space as well:
How might we actively subvert and redefine the stereotypical narratives surrounding South Indian culture in contemporary media?
project title:
I used my prototype as an opportunity to explore this concept further. Entitled Reel Talks, it is a series of card games for movie nerds, film geeks, and cinephiles, designed to turn every movie night into a memorable conversation.
There are two categories to the game. For both categories, the players first have to choose a movie from the deck that is included in the kit. The first category, Blind and Speaker, involves two roles; one player takes up the role of “the Blind”, who is blindfolded and has to guess the race/ethnicity of a character within the film. The second player, “the Speaker,” describes the features of the character using words of their own choosing— but they aren’t allowed to describe any racial or ethnic features. The game is continued by passing it onto the next two players, until all the players have gotten a chance to participate. The goal of the game is to identify stereotypes while describing or guessing a character, recognizing biases, and fostering an open conversation about them—all within a safe space with friends.
The second category, the Matrix, is a group game. All players take up the role of a film critic. The idea is to analyze a particular movie in depth, rather than watching it at face value. The different quadrants are given witty names to create a less intimidating conversation space, while at the same time encouraging people to have open discussions about the values, themes, and ideologies portrayed in the film. The goal is to undertake a thorough analysis of a specific movie, delving beneath its surface.
theme title:
There are two key approaches in my design process: Empowerment and Education. The target audience differs for both of these approaches. Empowerment is pivotal when it comes to representing the South Indian community in the United States, due the lack of resources and platforms for the community to engage with. However, because of the lack of knowledge and statistics about the problem of South Indian representation,. the educational approach is crucial and effective, particularly among non-South Indians and non-Indian viewers.
My first target audience includes South Indians living in the United States. There are approximately 64.8M South Indians in America, which includes Americans whose cultural heritage is South Indian, second generation South Indians, and South Indians who moved for educational and professional opportunities. There are five primarily South Indian states: Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu. Out of the 64.8M, 17% are Telugu speakers and 11% are Tamil speakers. Telugu is the most used regional language in Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil is the most commonly spoken language in Tamil Nadu.
During each exploration phase, the South Indian user group gets more specific. The “Why, How, What” for each of these user groups will be explained in detail during the course of my thesis book.
For the educational approach, there are subsections of the target group. The first subsection includes culturally curious people: people who are looking for ways to learn and explore new cultures through the medium of food and movies.
The second subsection are storytellers: people who are responsible and involved in the process of conveying and screening South Indian stories and characters in popular media. Over the course of my interviews with subject matter experts and South Indian filmmakers, I realized that lack of knowledge among filmmakers, scriptwriters, and other decision makers about the characteristics and nuances of South Indian culture was the main cause of misrepresentation and stereotyping.
theme title:
The underrepresentation of South Indian culture and community in the United States isn’t just an issue of lack of knowledge and information, as seen in the system map in the next day. There is limited engagement and participation in the film world by South Indian filmmakers, due to the conspicuous lack of resources and platforms for South Indian artists to engage with.
Over the years, Instagram and YouTube have helped artists from all over the world gain viewers and increase reach for their creative content and has facilitated more collaborative work among artists with similar artistic style. However, social media isn’t the ideal platform for artists who want to work in mainstream media, especially for aspiring South Indian filmmakers in the United States. Film festivals are the best ways for these filmmakers to share and get recognition for their work. But it is extremely competitive and expensive to apply for the highly recognized film festivals, especially within regional language categories.
I think film festivals are the only way I can think of when it comes to sharing my work and films. Otherwise, you have to get the contact information through your friends because they will never come looking for you because there are so many people out there who are doing the same thing as you are.
- Ashique Shahir
Ashique Shahir, a South Indian film student at Syracuse University, spoke about how film festivals are the only way he can think of to share his work with professionals from the film industry, especially if you don’t have friends who can share the contact information of such professionals. This tells us that the lack of resources and accessible platforms have resulted in the limited engagement of South Indian filmmakers in the United States within mainstream media, such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, and other channels.
There is an opportunity to design a better way for aspiring filmmakers who face challenges in accessing opportunities and platforms to present their work to a wider audience, by creating a space that nurtures their creative voices. I envisioned Cine Connect and Kala Collective for this purpose.
project title:
Cine Connect is a digital platform designed exclusively for aspiring South Indian filmmakers to showcase their work and share their cultural stories, facilitate connections with creative artists from popular streaming services and enable collaborative opportunities with fellow South Indian filmmakers.
There are two functionalities to the application; one can either take on the role of a South Indian Creative or a Representative of an online streaming service like Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime Video. For the purpose of my thesis, I will be focusing on the South Indian Creative user journey.
Since the purpose of Cine Connect is to empower South Indian filmmakers by helping them find more work opportunities, it was critical to carry out various iterations of user testing along the way. I carried out three user testing interviews with three aspiring filmmakers who are at different stages in their creative and professional journeys, as well as one subject matter expertise interview.
Users: Ashique Shahir, Rishabh Vaidya, Haseeb Latheef SME: Amrita Datta
User testing round 1
1. 2. 3.
Feedback
The term South Indian educator is a little confusing.
It would be nice to be able to connect with the representative directly on the home page.
Both review and comment means the same so only one button is necessary.
4. 5.
6.
Feedback
I like that you can directly message and get in touch with the representative here. Is it possible to watch the movie through the app or not?
What if there are language barriers while talking to the representative?
User testing round 2
1. 2. 3.
Feedback
Clarifying what South Indian creative means is a good feature.
“In the create your own story section, can our portfolio and other works be linked?
The community hub is a great feature but I think there should be a moderator to check on the conversations to make sure the discussions are informative.
4. 5. 6.
Feedback
From the representative POV, it’s important to structure the conversation and make sure there is no rambling.
Collaborating with other creators is amazing, something I would definitely use.
Having different topic discussion boards within the community hub where amateur filmmakers can get help with specific skills could be really useful.
“Film festivals are the only way for new filmmakers to share your work. I have never seen or thought of a platform like this.”
- Ashique Shahir
“There are YouTube channels that stream indie short films. However, there isn’t a platform that is niche to the South Indian community”
- Rishabh Vaidya
“Designing the app that is completely fulfilling the needs of the South Indian artists is the most important part. Talk to a couple of nonSouth Indian artists to get a more well-rounded understanding of the problem”
- Amrita Datta
project title:
Kala Collective is an online platform that connects South Indian artists and filmmakers in the United States to support each other, share professional opportunities, and find various collaborative projects. Through Kala Collective, we want to help people appreciate the contributions and importance of South Indian film creators, as well as build a community for them, so that they feel seen and acknowledged.
The app has two main features, Collaboration and Networking. The collaboration feature resembles a dating app; you choose the creator or artist you want to work with. You can filter these artists based on fields like location, work expertise, and age, and you can skip until you find someone you wish to collaborate with. You connect with them and message them through the app, and your account page shows details of your ongoing collaborations. The networking feature focuses on events. The app provides a list of events, which appears on your network page, providing a list of details about each event, including time, location, and other information. You choose the event you like, and when you click to register the app takes you to the corresponding Eventbrite page to purchase tickets. The app tracks the events you have registered for, and the list also appears on your network page.
This platform addresses the glaring absence of dedicated spaces for South Indian creatives, facilitating collaboration and professional growth. A platform like this is necessary because the absence of such a dedicated platform for South Indian filmmakers in the United States has led to fragmented experiences, limited opportunities, and limited engagement.
Swipe until you find the right collaboration partner for your project. You can filter your partner based on location, age etc.
Once you find a collaborator, you can connect with them and message them through the Kala Collective app.
You can scroll through all the events in your area and choose the one that you are interested in to learn more details.
You register for the event through Eventbrite. All the collaborations & events are updated on the accounts page of the app.
There are websites like backstage.com that post listings for actors & film creators but you cannot connect with anyone through this website, especially being someone from South India.
- Rishabh Vaidya
theme title:
As mentioned in Karen Krumrey’s book Intercultural Communication for the Community College, popular culture like films and food are people’s first exposure to new cultures, where they learn about communities different from their own. However, South Indian culture in the United States is overshadowed by the prominence of Bollywood and other prevailing pop cultures that often get portrayed through popular media in contemporary American society. It is challenging to connect with South Indian cinema for entertainment purposes, as screenings are extremely limited and inconvenient. The problem isn’t limited to the South Indian film industry. Looking into the South Indian culinary landscape in the United States, there is a limited variety of options, as the existing restaurants lack diversity in their menu offerings. Food has the power to create a sense of identity and national pride within people.
There is an opening in the current market for a service that combines movies and food: one that empowers South Indians by instilling a sense of belonging and building a new collaborative community.
project title:
Spiced Stories is a subscription-based kit that seamlessly blends the richness of South Indian movies and delectable meal recipes crafted by the South Indian community within the United States. It is a South Indian twist on dinner and a movie. Each package is thoughtfully personalized based on the quiz responses of each participant, tailoring the experience to individual preferences gathered through user suggestions on the website.
Spiced Stories is created for a market that is hungry for authenticity and connection: young adults between the ages of 18 and 34, which in New York alone constitutes 2.5M people. It includes both working individuals and international students. It is also aimed at South Indians, both second generation and recent immigrants who are homesick for their own cultural traditions, in order to help them feel closer to home.
It is created by all South Indians in the United States who are looking for an opportunity to share their culture and stories with others.
Each package is thoughtfully personalized, tailoring the experience to individual preferences gathered through user suggestions on the website. Users are invited to participate in a comprehensive quiz covering their culinary inclinations, such as spice tolerance, dietary restrictions, and cooking comfort level, as well as their cinematic tastes, including preferred genres, mood, and desired movie length. Following completion of the quiz, users can easily log in or sign up and select from our flexible subscription plans, including weekly, monthly, and quarterly options. For added convenience, users can opt for a trial kit before committing to a subscription. The final step entails selecting the desired delivery date and location, ensuring a seamless experience from start to finish.
The Spiced Stories kit will be conveniently delivered right to your doorstep. Inside the box, you’ll find all the ingredients necessary to whip up the meal of your choice, accompanied by a handy recipe brochure. What’s more, we’ve included a QR code on the brochure, granting you instant access to both the recipe and specially curated movie recommendations.
Our Vision
Spiced Stories envisions a world where the South Indian diaspora in the US is united through shared stories, flavors, and melodies. By continually evolving and expanding our offerings, we strive to contribute to a more interconnected and culturally enlightened society, one Spiced Story at a time.
Our Mission
Spiced Stories’ mission is to create a sense of belonging and cultural pride:
We aspire to empower and connect the South Indian community in the US
Build a community that transcends boundaries Foster a deeper understanding and appreciation of the diverse and rich heritage
theme title:
I wanted to build upon the idea of building a community for the South Indians in the United States beyond Spiced Stories. Spiced Stories is a concept under construction, and I wanted to test this concept with a few tweaks and adjustments. By creating a series of experiences through food and movies, I wanted to instill a sense of belonging within South Indians who are in a faraway land. There are two primary reasons for why I approached this problem using food and movies as major components of the design experience. The first reason—food’s power to act as a source of identity and national pride within people—was discussed in the previous project.
The second reason is very personal. I grew up in a family where we loved to host our family members and friends for lunch and dinner for festivals, weddings, birthdays, family gatherings and many other instances. We would meet our close friends every weekend and have deep, meaningful, and emotional conversations over food while a movie played in the background. This wasn’t unique to my family; many South Indians had similar experiences. Food is a language that is shared by all of us. Hence, I wanted my experience to revolve around bringing people together through food and movies.
project title:
Away Together is a series of experiences for South Indians far from home that aims to make them feel part of a community by instilling a sense of belonging. The first experience in the series is a Cultural Potluck, which is a combination of a potluck, where people bring in home cooked meals; a watch party, where you watch a South Indian movie together; and a nostalgia circle, which is a safe space for the participants to share their stories and memories associated with food, family, and loved ones.
Each participant was given prompt cards with questions related to their association with food, culture, special occasions, and other cultural memories. At the end of the potluck, everyone was gifted a cookbook called “the new family recipe,” containing the recipes for all the dishes featured that night. Here’s a video of how the event went.
“Even though I grew up in Mumbai, it was my first time having food from Kerala and I am glad I got to try it the authentic way.” - Bhagya
“Having chicken biriyani with a group of South Indians took me back to my school days and it felt great.” - Rohith
“I only remember having Semiya Payasam at home during special occasions and having it here today, in the US, took me back home, so thank you.” - Sanjay
Some learnings from Away Together was that language wasn’t really a barrier when it came to the movie. Pretty much all the participants were invested and it in fact helped spark a lot of conversations.
Potluck served as a very welcoming environment where people felt safe to try dishes that they weren’t familiar with.
The use of prompt cards proved extremely helpful in fostering nostalgic conversations.
theme title:
While building a community, it is important to think about how traditions, practices and cultural values are going to be taken forward. It is critical to educate the next generation of South Indians living in the United States about their culture. As Archana Shekhara mentioned during our interview, “Movies were a good way to make them [my kids] understand about cultural expectations and carry on our culture to the next generation”. When her children were growing up, Archana would rent various South Indian movies from a store in the city and would watch them with her kids every weekend. It is no longer easy or convenient to rent movies in the United States. All movies, TV shows, sporting events, competitions, and other important cultural events are streamed on various online platforms. However, it is quite challenging to stream South Indian films in the United States, especially for a second generation South Indian child who isn’t familiar with these films. This posed an opportunity for my next project: designing a device that would make streaming of South Indian movies seamless and convenient for second generation South Indian kids based in the United States.
project title:
Talkies is the ultimate cultural companion for second-generation South Indian kids living in the United States. It is designed to bridge the gap between their heritage and their present environment. It is a portable tablet device that comes preloaded with movies and automatically updates each month, so kids always have fresh content to explore.
The name “Talkies” has a cultural significance, because it was the term commonly used in all South Indian states when referring to movies or films. The word became popular within the film industry after the introduction of sound in cinema. For my project, sound and language plays an important role, since there is an educational aspect involved in sharing South Indian languages with children.
Talkies is made for South Indian kids growing up in the US. It provides them with an opportunity to stay connected with their roots, explore their cultural heritage, and deepen their understanding of South Indian traditions, language, and values.
1. Spark curiosity - Kids are always excited to learn about objects that they are unfamiliar and look interesting to them. The retro feel of the product is meant to create curiosity among kids, since this style and aesthetic is different from what they are used to.
2. Boost cultural pride - South Indian culture is normally not celebrated [within the dominant cultural narrative, both inside Indian and in the United States.] As a result, associations with South Indian culture are not seen as something to take pride in. With Talkies, the goal is to change this narrative, starting with the next generation.
3. Help kids learn South Indian languages - The educational objective of Talkies is to reduce the language barrier that exists for second generation South Indian kids. Breaking down this barrier will also help build emotional connections between children and their grandparents and other family members who have difficulty conversing in English.
“We Too Belong Here! Uniting and Strengthening South Indians through Community Collaboration” serves as an initial step towards addressing the advocacy and misrepresentation of the South Indian community in the United States. By initiating conversations and highlighting the importance of representation, we have laid the groundwork for a more inclusive and empowered community. Through inclusive initiatives such as celebrating our diverse cuisines and vibrant festivals, we have fostered a sense of belonging and unity among our cohort. By centering the voices and experiences of South Indians, we have begun to challenge stereotypes and amplify our cultural heritage. Moving forward, it is essential to continue these efforts, engaging in ongoing dialogue and collaboration to ensure that the South Indian community in the US is recognized, valued, and celebrated. Together, we can create a more inclusive and representative society where every individual feels seen, heard, and embraced.
Akshita Bawa
Alexia Cohen
Allan Chochinov
Amrita Datta
Anastasia Gorski
Andrew Mg
Angelo Angeles
Anne Quito
Anterpreet Bains
Antya Waegemann
Archana Shekhara
Bill Cromie
Bernard Gibson
Brooke Viegut
Emilie Baltz
Evie Cheung
Gretchen McNeely
HK Dunston
Jeff Bernard
Julia Knoll
Julian Gonzalez
Kgothatso Lephoko
Krissi Xenakis
Kristine Mudd
Louise Sandhaus
Marko Manriquez
Megan Ford
Michael Chung
Milagros Montalvo
Neeta Verma
Pantea Parsa
Pierre Alexandre de Looz
Rachael Yaeger
Ron
Rob Harrigan
Sam Allingham
Sam Potts
Suma Reddy
Sinclair Smith
Timothy Cohan
Tim James
Weston Rivell
My Parents
Bassil & Zeba
Neetha
Farhan
Hima
Suhail
Riya
Vivek
Sanjay
Rohan
Rohith
Aishwarya
Punit Vas
Rishabh
Haseeb
Meenu
Eshita
Bhagya
Utkarsh
Harini
Rashmi
Cyntia
Patrick
Jacey
Vani
Shun
Ria
Nigel
Rora
Rohitha
Sama
Prerna
Rui
Wren
Brydon
Sherry
Sasha
Sejal
Rishabh
Ashique
Haseeb
Shreya
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Shah, S. (Host). (2020, November). Priya Krishna, Food Journalist. [audio podcast episode]. In South Asian Trailblazers. https://open.spotify.com/episode/0GJoVqhmomwYoczoO9cb3l?si=41b9457eb27842cc
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This is for you, Dileep Uncle!
Heba Jaleel is an experience and service designer based in Brooklyn, New York. She is originally from Dubai, where she completed her undergraduate studies in Design Management at the American University of Sharjah, UAE. Currently, she is a volunteer intern with SADEA, the South Asian Design Educators Alliance and the SVA Student Representative for the Women In Design (WID) NYC Chapter. After earning her undergraduate degree, she delved into the professional world, where she spent over 8 months as a Junior Brand Designer at Spinners Creative Agency in Dubai. While working, she specialized in crafting brand identities, designing brand guidelines and brand books for various telecommunication and aviation companies. She is a big food lover and trying out different foods in New York with her friends is one of her favorite things. Also, she is up for a movie night anytime!