#dancing-desi

[accioronwealsey]

Happy Birthday!! I hope you have a fantastic day!

I did, thank you very much <3

[desibabebeauty]

I'm doing research for prom makeup and I was just wondering - what would you recommend as a good drugstore contour for desi skin? Also, what's the best mascara you've come across?

Depending on how dark you are, you can use either an actual bronzer (NYC Sunny is a good one and I think it'll work for you based on your icon ;) or I actually use a matte brown eyeshadow 1-2 shades darker than me to contour so any pigmented shadow that you have. The Physician's Formula mascara is the best one I've used from the drugstore and in a close second comes Maybelline The Falsies. Hope this helps! 

[meri-zindagi-hai-tu]

Urain Ge Lyrics (with translation)

-

Haan thode se bikhre huey hain haare nahi hum Ye bereham zulmat ki tere maare nahi hum Yes, we are a little broken, we haven’t lost. 

We aren’t bound by this merciless injustice.

Haan zinda hain hum chaahe aankhein hai num Sahenge nahin hum koi sitam Jahaan ko dikha denge kaun hai hum Humein maaon ke aansuon ki kasam..

Yes, we are alive, even if our eyes are numb.

We will not stand any such pain.

We will show the world who we are. 

To us the tears of mothers are sworn upon.

Urainge uss aasmaan mein Rahenge aise jahaan mein Jahaan dard ka koi maara na ho Akela na ho be-sahara na ho Koi maa se bichhda dulaara na ho Siva ishq ke koi chara na ho…

We will fly in such a sky,

live in such a world,

where no one quivers in pain,

where no one is lonely or left alone,

no mother is stranded from her child,

where there is no option but to love. 

Urainge uss aasmaan mein Rahenge aise jahaan mein..

We will fly in such a sky,

live in such a world.  Khili si wahaan nikli ho dhoop Nikhra hua har su ho roop Gum ho jaayein taariqiyaan Aao chale milkar wahaan

There the sun will rise with more light, 

every being and soul will shine, 

we will lose the count of days..

come, let us all go there. 

Urainge uss aasmaan mein Rahenge aise jahaan mein..

We will fly in such a sky,

live in such a world.  Jahaan dard ka koi maara na ho Akela na ho be-sahara na ho Koi maa se bichhda dulaara na ho Siva ishq ke koi chara na ho…

 Where no one quivers in pain,

where no one is lonely or left alone,

no mother is stranded from her child,

where there is no option but to love. 

Urainge uss aasmaan mein..

Rahenge aise jahaan mein.. (x2)

We will fly in such a sky,

live in such a world. (x2) Note: Urdu is one of the most beautiful languages in the world. Many words used in urdu, and in this song, are untranslatable to the english language and therefore the nearest substitute is used. It loses quite a bit of its essence and meaning, but this is the best that can be done for this in english, the general idea always remains the same. 

I did this because I saw a couple requests for translations and some are available and partially done, but I couldn’t find any complete ones so I did it anyway… credit to anyone who has done translations, Ali Zafar and Urain Ge. 

[reclaimthebindi]

@dancing-desi: You may also want to explain the effect that a white person appropriating henna has on American society versus the effect of a desi using it in America. If you explain the power politics behind appropriation, it may become more clear. For example, you could point out that whites don't get hassled for taking exotic cultures but because desis get alienated for celebrating their own cultures publicly-- if you haven't already. I really think that whites don't *understand* their power.

^^^^

[reclaimthebindi]

I'm a Malayali girl living in America and recently I wrote a short paper on henna and its cultural and religious significance, but the reactions I received from the class were not very promising. Many people said they didn't get why it was offensive for non-desis to wear it (even thought that was what my whole paper was on) and it was saddening to me. Most concerning though was when my white friend told me that because henna is a plant, we can't just claim a plant as our own. How do I respond?

I'm sorry to hear that they didn't understand :( Tell them that yes, henna is a plant, but that doesn't mean the traditional designs that South Asians use that 'plant' to create are not culturally significant. The way that plant is used is immensely intertwined with South Asian culture and that they can't just go ahead and use henna to get a dreamcatcher 'tattooed' on their stomach. (And, technically, the making of it into a paste and using it for cultural purposes has nothing to do with it being a plant that no one can have claim over - how it's used can be appropriated). I guess try to differentiate more between the actual henna plant itself and how it is used culturally, which can be appropriated. I don't know if this makes any sense, but I hope it helps <3