9 Indians Share How They Experienced Racism In Their Own Homes

A couple of days ago, I found myself being part of a cohort; a group of people that were supremely happy to see Indians posting in support of #BlackLivesMatter. Some critics went ahead and proclaimed how could Indians do this, support racial inequality in another country and choosing to keep silent when their own homes burn.

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As the world becomes more sensitive, we would be foolish to deny that racism doesn't exist in India. Deny it all you want but it really does and is remarkably evident. Giving voice to how Indian racism is legitimate, we spoke to 9 Indians who recounted how they experienced racism in what we thought is the safest place: their own homes.

1. "My mom and I are dusky but she insists on wanting a fair bride for my brother." -Vedika Raj*, 28, Bangalore.

"For a long time now, I have always heard my mother dream of my brother's wedding. When my brother who is an investment banker in Australia agreed, my mother spread the word in search of rishtas. One day I heard her describing in great detail how she wants her future daughter in law to look like and the one thing my mother insisted on was that she has got to be fair."

2. "One night my father came running to my room saying how he has woken up from a nightmare. In that dream, I was marrying a black guy." -Sukanya Sen*, 24, New Delhi.

"A couple of years ago, I distinctly remember my dad waking me up from my sleep. I instantly woke up and got really worried thinking all sorts of bullshit like has there been a robbery or an emergency. Turns out my father's sleep had been disturbed because he had a nightmare. Over tea, I asked him to tell him what the dream was, and to my utter astonishment and now shame, he was so troubled because he dreamed of me marrying a person of colour."

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3. "Every day I would come back home from school and my mother would rub a Haldi (turmeric) face-pack on my face." -Anoushka Singh* 26, New Delhi.

"I used to hate going home from school. I would beg my teachers to take me home with them. The minute I would enter, forget food, my mother would put a turmeric face pack on me. If not haldi and besan, somedays it would be rubbing a slice of lemon on my face. For the longest time, I used to think she was obsessed with skin-care, later it hit me that it's unforgivable to raise a tanned daughter."

4. "Every fair girl is pretty." -Snigdha Chowdhary, 21, Punjab.

"I overheard my cousin telling his best friend that till the time she is fair is pretty. So no wonder in our country a fair-white skinned girl is automatically considered good looking."

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5. "I was beaten up by my uncle for being friends with a Nigerian." -Ronit Bajwa*, 27, New Delhi.

"A few years ago I became friends with a guy who had moved from Nigeria for his undergraduate degree to India. He was soft-spoken, warm, and intelligent. One day my uncle must have seen him picking me up from my house lane. All hell broke loose when I came back home. My uncle beat me up and warned me that if he ever saw me with that black man he would break my legs. When I contested, he said they are all drug dealers."

6. "How come she's dark when the mother and other 2 sisters are fair?" Navneet Singh*, 33, Gurgaon.

"I am dark. My mother and the other two sisters are fair. All my life I felt inadequate, not worthy or beautiful. They would be given pink dresses to wear and yellow would be reserved for me. Because dark people can pull off yellow but not pink. Fairness creams magically appeared on my dressing table. I hope no one dark is born in a house full of brown Indians who think they are white."

Abasi Rosborough

7. "A quick look at our family members bathroom cabinets revealed how afraid they are of getting tanned or darker."-Deviyani Gupta, 29, Dehradun.

"Racism doesn't need to intertwine with injustice for people to know it exists. There are racial undertones present in how most of us behave. If we weren't so scared of getting tanned or a little darker, why would we spend thousands on buying products aimed at skin lightening or tan removal? From the men to the women, no one has been spared."

8. "I bumped into my fair cousin sister at a market and my father asked me to talk to her more and get to know how she's fair." Akanksha Singh, 30, Mumbai.

"I was born dark. I think that's why my father detested me a little. I would never know this for sure and he would never accept it but its a feeling I have lived with all my life. One random morning we were buying bread and I bumped into my distant cousin who was fair and glowing. My father then and there asked my cousin to share some fairness tips with me."

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9. "My grandmother taunted my mother all her life for giving birth to a fair daughter but being dark herself." -Sapna Singh*, 46, New Delhi.

"I was a young girl when I heard my grandmother tell my mother that doesn't she feel embarrassed walking with such a fair child? The taunt was at her skin tone because my mother was darker. It hurts me to date."

*Names have been changed to maintain anonymity.