For Mom, Mama, Anjali, Mansha and myself.
Our worth is not defined by our ability to be a good woman, wife or daughter.

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अच्छी औरत (Good Woman), अच्छी बेटी (Good Daughter) explores the Indian feminine in my family. Using collage, I re-contextualize our archive to reveal markers of femininity and suggest the emotions of the women pictured.I use bindis, mehndi (henna), and prayer fabrics—materials tied to femininity in Indian culture and my family. In addition to these materials, I incorporate text, both as a means of expressing the emotions of my family in the images, and as a reflection of my own struggle with the Hindi language. Growing up in Hong Kong, as an Indian woman, comes with it’s own challenges, such as a lack of knowing my mother tongue natively, and through this use of text, I aim to showcase my longing to connect more deeply with my cultural identity. The collages themselves become a pathway, linking me to my culture and ancestry, keeping me aligned with the women in my family and connected to my younger self. 

This body of work is a space for us to reflect, to express, and to exist without constraint.

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These are scans of the collages.