Is Ranveer appropriating queer culture? - Page 9

Originally posted by: TheMinion

Desi men love wearing jewellery, it makes them look and feel less ugly!

A LOT of people totally hate their culture being used as commodity or symbol.

For eg there is a HUGE issue among Sikhs if people wear turban, kada, carry kirpan or sport Khanda symbol for the heck of it or sport Khanda or Ik Onkar tattoos. It is considered disrespect and cultural appropriation. Jacqueline Fernandez wearing kirpan in an item song and dancing with Nihangs in background had created furore some years ago.

I have also seen a lot of religious Hindus dislike if someone wears sindoor or bindi or toe rings or alta, mehendi for heck of it without realising their significance for married Hindu women. They also do not like anyone chanting any mantra and believe one should be initiated to chant a certain mantra or chant only under guidance of a guru.

I had met a Tibetan couple in Dharamshala few years ago and they asked us to do our own prayers and rituals and did not even like us asking about their mantras or sacred symbols or art, artefacts or prayer wheels etc. I was genuinely interested and curious but the couple seemed to be offended why I and my parents even asked them anything about their prayer flags and prayer wheels or mantras.

I have also seen some conservative Christians dislike non Christians celebrating X Mas or attending Midnight Mass or coming to Church especially during Sunday sermons. They glared at me and my Sikh cousin who had simply accompanied our Christian classmate. We did nothing. We tried out best to look respectful and do nothing that hurts sentiments. But some people simply stared at us as if we should not have visited church at all.

Even among Sikhs, for eg, depending on sect, you will find people who do not tolerate it at all if someone else wears dumalla type turban without belonging to that sect.

I have seen a lot of diaspora people irked if foreigners wear bindi or saree or sindoor or chooda as fashion accessory or fancy dress. They find it cultural appropriation and reducing their symbols to fashion or something fancy.

Originally posted by: atominis

A LOT of people totally hate their culture being used as commodity or symbol.

An there are also people who complain when their culture isnt represented enough. Ya cant please everyone in era of Woke

Like your first line where you said 'I do not know what you think queer culture is'.

It sounded like you assumed I was taking offense on behalf of queer community or had my own notions or stereotypes about what queer culture is.

Also your part on subverting masculinity seemed like you were thinking I took offense at RS subverting masculinity, which I did not.

This is why I felt need to clarify.

I am sorry if I mistook your words and intent in previous post of yours.

They want to be represented but properly and with their own people who indeed belong to that culture.

It is not difficult to grasp that basic logic.

As a Punjabi and a Sikh I entirely detest how Bollywood and Indian TV caricature our community.

Though to others it seems as if desi films are mostly about Punjabis or show Punjabis too much.

And I am sure anyone who is Gujarati, Bengali, 'South Indian' or from UP or Haryana, also hates how Bollywood caricatures them and stereotypes them.

Or how Muslims are always shown as either terrorists or underworld dons in BW films since 90s.

Kashmiris too have never been shown normally at all. BW films almost always show them all as militants and anti nationals.

I am sure anyone from LGBTQIA communities would love representation but from their own and also without superficial caricature or stereotypes.

Ranveer is quite the animated character. I think he is quite playful when it comes to colour and styles and trying different things. I think he has a sport personality and goes with the flow. Cannot say all his decisions are good decisions. He is one of his own kind in own way.

LGBTQ awareness is being promoted everywhere and that is not hidden. Whether he is meaningfully and actively promoting it - I don't know, as I don't watch his stuff or follow anything on him.

But thats what acting is all about ? That doesnt make sense. They want to watch fiction to see realness ?

Originally posted by: sev.puri

Which fanbase? If you had to quantify, roughly how many people would we be talking? And as per your post, this said fanbase is up in arms against his representation. So what fanbase are they trying to increase, prey tell😆So what are we saying? LGBT should only be positive, happy go lucky people? They can’t be shown as a villain the same way straight people are? You’ve lost me dude

Increase fanbase would be to score brownie points among LGBTQIA groups, woke youth, global progressive audience, progressive or woke diaspora.

I am not saying entire LGTBQIA fanbase is up in arms against him.

I just said there is a section among them who fins him debatable.

He has incited DEBATE in sexual minority community.

In a country where there is already stigma against sexual minorities, it is not fair to show them as villains and evil lustbag.

Indian pop culture has always shown non cis het people as either comic caricatures or villains and something 'not normal'.

Imagine playing only one bisexual character all life and that too is an evil invader lusty villain with no ethics.

Yet dressing a certain way and then your PR goes on praising you for challenging heteronormativity and redefining masculinity.

Wah.

Manoj Bajpai and Rajkumar Rao atleast played normal and relatable gay characters who are neither criminals, ghosts or into black magic or possessed by spirits nor perverts or murderers or child kidnappers etc unlike others who have done either comic or villainous characters belonging to sexual minorities background.

Originally posted by: atominis

Like your first line where you said 'I do not know what you think queer culture is'.

It sounded like you assumed I was taking offense on behalf of queer community or had my own notions or stereotypes about what queer culture is.

Also your part on subverting masculinity seemed like you were thinking I took offense at RS subverting masculinity, which I did not.

This is why I felt need to clarify.

I am sorry if I mistook your words and intent in previous post of yours.

This is verbatim what I said.

"I am genuinely curious to understand what you believe queer culture to be and how Ranveer appropriates it. None of the examples you have stated seem cultural appropriation to me."

I genuinely do not have clarity on your stance. My response following this sentence is broad because I don't have clarity. That is why I will reiterate - quote, don't paraphrase. Provide context, not vagueness.

But yes, I do feel extremely strongly when folks who are not members of the queer community speak for or about our community without genuine consultation or partnership with members of the community. Isn't that what you are literally doing by questioning if Ranveer is appropriating queer culture? That does mean an assumption of a person's queerness or straightness on my part. So I guess it's a catch-22.

They want to see something that is atleast not caricaturing and stereotyping them.

Is it too much to ask for?

I see Muslims lamenting all the time how BW shows them.

They are not wrong.

Same for other communities, ethnicities.

Some caricatures are too much. And also affect your image and perception in real life.

I have seen people mock Sikhs and Punjabis or make assumptions about them or think all of them are druggies or violent or own lot of land or drink a lot or cuss at drop of a hat. I have seen people stare at Muslims in suspicion in real life. I have seen people totally detest sexual minorities in real life.

And I have no qualms in saying that entertainment industry caricaturing and stereotyping groups, has a huge role in solidifying these biases further.