by Komal Thakkar – George Washington University I’m sure everyone has seen an advertisement to help a child with a cleft lip. Cleft lip is a birth defect where the tissues of the upper jaw and nose do not join correctly during the gestational period. While it is not known to cause health problems,...

by Sneha Goud – Michigan State – Graduate Last month, thirty-eight year old Nikki Haley won the GOP primary in South Carolina to be the first Indian-American woman candidate for governor. Haley’s parents are Sikh, and immigrated from India in 1973. Her childhood is peppered with incidents...

by Farah Mithani – Houston Baptist University From Pharaohs to Madonna, mehndi has been a form of expressive and cultural art.  Differing from each region, it has been around for years.  Made from a tall shrub called a henna plant, it is used to dye skin, hair, and possibility certain materials. The...

by Shivangi Ramachandran - University of Oregon Only a fellow brown girl knows how hard it is to make it. And by make it, I mean, strip ourselves away from the tensions and insecurities that arise from being immigrants, and turn it one of our biggest strengths. An emerging and supremely talented young...

by Jihii Jolly – Soka University of America My first time being called brown was in ninth grade. I’d just returned to school after a family trip to India over winter break – a week late as usual because how is a week nearly enough time to see two sets of cousins, uncles, aunts and grandparents?...

by Pooja Kansal – Indiana University Bright is the new black.  For the past few years, American fashion designer Rachel Roy has been tossing aside the fashion industry’s signature color in favor of vibrant hues ranging from cerulean to chartreuse. According to her official website, Roy aims...

by Neethi Srinivasan – University of Michigan Summer. It’s the time of year when you trade in your books for the beach and snow for some sunshine. Though most of you are busy with internships, jobs, and other extra-curricular activities, there are hundreds of people whose jobs (for our purposes)...

How do women feel about equal rights today? Are women progressing around the world in attaining better jobs and social standing? The NY Times  posted an article disscussing a new survey accross 22 countries that showed a large gap between the sexes when it comes to equality. Even in nations where equal...

by Shivangi Ramachandran – University of Oregon It’s too often that our own genes ruin our lives. Ask me – I know. I’m 5 feet tall because my 5’4 father and 5’3 mother decided to have me. My giant nose sits on my face because my grandmother’s genes decided it...

by Priya Patel – University of Florida Directed by: Radhika Bordia & Natasha Badhwar, Punjabi Kudi. 2008. 20 min. View this movie at cultureunplugged.com This short 20-minute documentary takes an expansive look into South Asian female music artists in England and how they personally relate...