dothead
hand of (to ward off all y’
f hamsa all evil ass spirits)
Intro
DotHead is a zine created from the huge resentment I have towards the portrayal of (South Asian) women and the apropriation of traditions. It explores the concept of sexuality, which is repressed, yet so distinct in its subtelty via pop culture and media. It also includes somewhat anecdotal elements from my own personal experiences and the ‘less glamourous’ side of Bollywood & south asian culture.
Fair & Lovely
Light skin/fairness has always been a very integral issue in Asia, more specific to the context here being South Asia. The media is always portraying us as light skinned, completely disregarding the majority of the population, whom are of a variety of different shades. This is because of the general societal view that fairness is synonymous to beauty and prosperity. Darker shades are supposedly associated with poverty. Lighter skinned people are always the protagonists, darker people being the antagonists (or more often side characters with minor roles.) The whole idea of fairness>darkness may have been more emphasised during colinisation, however, looking at old paintings, people were documented as a generic shade of light beige. Either way, the idea that people should be light or they will have less value was adopted ever since. If they are darker, they are less likely to have marriage prospects, and will therefore have less of a ‘dowry’ (money in exchange for a bride.) Bleaching and lightening products are therefore extremely popular in Asia, a very infamous one being “Fair and Lovely,” a brand which is endorsed by bolloywood’s most influential and popular celebrities. Not only do these products degrade and erase darker skin tones, but also damages the skin, putting people at more of a risk to skin diseases. For a large part of my life, as a young impressionable girl, I’d also succumbed to the constant condescending standards of my community and wasted a lot of time and money on lightening products. As you can probably tell, this whole period of my life had me feeling very insecure. The whole industry is very toxic and dehumanising. It needs to be shut down to allow space and equality for every skin tone to be celebrated and appreciated.
Sexuality in Bollywood Sexuality is a very taboo topic in relation to South Asian popular media. It has always been genrally quite censored and more implied, rather than explicit. They will often show sensual scenes between male and female protagonists, however they will never surpass a slight brush on the lips in more recent movies. You will rarely witness sex scenes in any of the biggest movies, if anything it will be hidden away and implied by their clever camera angles.
The sexual tension between characters is always prominent, however anything considered ‘lewd’ in the standards of South Asia will generally be censored or deemed controversial. So why is it that these sugestive scenes are allowed to be seen at all? My opinion is that they do not want to influence young girls and try to preserve their chastity. However, in recent times, with the change of views in the newer generations, they have become a lot more liberal with what they do and don’t show.You need a slight teaser of what could be. Though it will never really promote the idea.
lil asian hoe
This series is about my experiences as a young british-bengali girl trying to integrate both sides of myself into my daily life: my traditional south asian culture and western popular culture. It is about upholding a level of modesty and trying to fit in an environment where being a ‘hoe’ is unacceptable because of the eastern values that are enforced on women and because of slut-shaming and misogyny in general; both of which are widely accepted by society and expected as the inevitable response to sexual, or even non-sexual expression in women. It is also about the degrading and objectification of women which is constantly being tolerated and celebrated as being profound and/or humourous on social media.
Hypermasculinity
This is a comment on the gender roles in bollywood. The male protagonist is usually fighting the bad guys to get to the female protagonist, who is usually busy in the kicthen or in the middle of a seductive dance number.
These roles are still extremely ingrained and prevalent in the most popular bollywood movies even to this current day. The women usually being conveyed as a trophy for the hardships the man has encountered while attempting to woo her (with the permission of her parents of course.)
‘Hijra’ is the term used to address the trans community in South Asia. During ancient times, the sight of a Hijra was considered a sign of luck. However, like the global trans community, Hijras are extremely prone to health risks and attacks. Their mortality rate shockingly high. One of the main sources of income for these women are to become sex workers, meaning they are susceptible to STIs. As they are predominantly unaccepted by their families and general public, they are forced to create their own communities, where they are safe, accepted and can find sanctuary. Protect trans people. Trans lives matter.
Hijras
Cow’s Medicine
There is more demand for prostitutes in Bangladesh when they are thicker in weight. The easiest way to keep up this heavily desired weight, and pretty much their only option, is to take a kind of steroid called Oradexon. These pills are commonly used by farmers to fatten up their cattle to be sold in the market. Therefore, these tablets are very dangerous and life threatening if misused. People involved in the industry, especially owners of brothels, completely ignore and refuse to believe in the possible dangers of the drugs. The sex workers have no choice but to use these pills to support their children and survive; to keep the customers coming in.
Virgin Diaries, Edit
Let’s
A Persona
ion: 159
get it on
al Experiment on sexual expression
Fuck outta here wit yo bindhis and henna bitch. You aint asian.
Uzma Chowdhury
uzmachowdhury.24@live.co.uk