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Meet Nimisha Bhanot, an Indo-Canadian artist who paints badass Indian woman with a dash of sanskaar.
“They’re (the portraitures) badass because they’re looking back at their viewer. This gaze maximises the subject’s confidence and that’s what my art is all about” – Nimisha Bhanot in an interview to Quartz Magazine.
A Canadian artist of Indian origin, Bhanot is in touch with her Indian roots but working hard against the ingrained patriarchy of the ‘Indian’ culture. She tells Buzzfeed about how the 2012 rape case of Jyoti Singh (Nirbhaya) sparked the idea of the pin-ups she did with south Asian women. Since then, she has been fearlessly painting subversive pieces of sanskaari Indian ladies owning the ideal bahu stereotypes. They have tattoos and henna on their bodies, they smoke, they show off that brown skin like no other, and those eyebrows and makeup are always on fleek. Total package.
Some of her work that went viral recently was from the Badass Bahus, Badass Brides and Badass Brides pin-ups. A few of the works from her pin-up series are below, and you can check more on her Instagram and Facebook page.
AND my personal favourite.
(Sources: http://www.nimishabhanot.com)
The only thing that I like MORE than these paintings are their titles. The amount of sarcasm and sass is enough to shrivel up MCPs and make them quiver in their homes. While simultaneously slamming shut the mouths of all those custodians of Indian culture who seem to dictate what a ‘real’ Indian woman is like.
According to Femina, ‘The artist has received a mixed response to her works. “I’ve heard that some think I’m objectifying women, but I don’t agree. If it were really that bad, my client base wouldn’t consist of a 9:1 female to male ratio,’’ says Bhanot, who is now working on a series called Complexion and Body Image.’
Nimisha Bhanot is a remarkable woman and her creativity is truly inspiring. I so hope to see more of her work in the future. You go, girl!
New Delhi, India I like to read, write, and talk. A feminist through and through, with a soft spot for chocolate. read more...
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UP Boards Topper Prachi Nigam was trolled on social media for her facial hair; our obsession with appearance is harsh on young minds.
Prachi Nigam’s photo has been doing the rounds on social media for the right reasons. Well, scratch that- I wish the above statement were true. This 15-year-old girl should ideally be revelling in her spectacular achievement of scoring a whopping 98.05% and topping her tenth-grade boards. But oddly enough, along with her marks, it’s something else that garners more attention – her facial hair.
While the trolls are driving themselves giddy by mocking this girl who hasn’t even completed her school yet, the ones who are taking her side are going one step ahead – they are sharing her photoshopped pictures, sans the facial hair, looking nothing less than a celebrity with captions saying – “Prachi Nigam, ten years later”.
Doctors have already diagnosed her with PCOD in their comments, based on photographic evidence. While we have names for people shamed for their weight – body shaming, for their skin colour- racism, for their age- age shaming, for being a female- sexism, this category of shaming where one faces criticism for their appearance has no name. With that, it also has zero shame attached to it.
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