Two years ago, I wrote a blog post discussing why the representation of South Asians is so important. In my decade-long blogging career, it’s the blog post I’m the proudest of as I used my platform to talk about a topic which is close to my heart and resonated with my audience. Since I wrote the post, I realised how important cultivating a community is and planned to follow it up with a list of the UK’s top South Asian influencers. It took me a while but my list of British Asian influencers to follow is here!
In my post on representation, I discussed why it’s so important to see yourself represented in media. I read some psychology papers to understand the issue properly and came across a term called ‘symbolic annihilation’ which is the notion that if you don’t see yourself or people like you in media, you don’t matter in society, “representation in the fictional world signified social existence; absence means symbolic annihilation”. I also learnt that while traditional media is failing us, it’s much easier to find relatable British Asian influencers for the representation we need.
A recent study on representation in BBC programmes showed that South Asian people make up just 3% of BBC shows while we make up 5% of the population. While the amount of South Asians in TV shows is actually improving, we are often typecast as corner shop owners, taxi drivers or terrorists. While Bodyguard was the talk of the UK, I rolled my eyes at the whole white saviour and oppressed hijabi would-be jihadi storyline. And Informer started off promising until another brown person ended up as a terrorist.
This is not the representation I want and it’s not what South Asian people need. The issue is that these roles are clearly written by a white writing team and it just shows brown people through a white lens. South Asian people need the opportunity to tell our truth and be unapologetically ourselves, rather than being defined by our brown skin – which I touched on in this post on dating as a woman of colour.
I’m confident that the media’s portrayal of brown people leads to the issues I’ve encountered while dating. By reinforcing outdated stereotypes, they continue the ‘othering’ of those with brown skin. I’m desperate to see *real* representation of my peers, second-generation kids who are as British as they are Asian and embrace ALL facets of who they are rather than being compartmentalised and playing a role. I’m equally proud to be British and Indian, I have tattoos, worked in fashion and love solo travel. I love a good cup of tea as much as I love aloo parathas. Where are THESE brown people in the media? Not everyday oppressed, dowdy South Asians with accents.
This is where social media comes into its own. Traditional media is still focusing on stereotypical Asian tropes, I can actually find tons of British Asian influencers who I relate to on Twitter and Instagram. Here are my top British Asian influencers to follow:
Amena | Amena Khan
I’m sure you’re aware of superstar beauty and lifestyle YouTuber Amena Khan. She has amassed over 400,000 subscribers and landed an L’Oreal campaign as their first hijabi model in a haircare campaign. She also has her hijab and hoojab brand, Pearl Daisy, as well as a makeup company (Ardere Cosmetics) and lash company (Lashionery). I love her content as she’s just a cool woman who happens to wear a hijab, rather than being defined by it.
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Bejal | Be Lavie
Be Lavie is one of my go-to’s if I’m seeking travel inspiration. Her priority is really experiencing her destination and its culture and rather than focusing 5* unattainable luxury, as a result, she has one of the most authentic travel blogs I’ve read. I love her sense of adventure, whether she’s hopped over to Estonia for a short break or is exploring Guatemala.
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British Bindi
British Bindi is the brainchild of Amani, Kiran, Jasmeen and Tanisha, four best friends who wanted to create a space where they could express themselves as British Asian women. I love the breadth of their content, from what to do if your name is mispronounced at graduation to contraception-shaming in the British Asian community.
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Erim
I wrote about Erim in a post about supporting your girl gang but as a little recap, I first noticed Erim when she popped up on my timeline wearing an incredible Indian suit to her graduation. I love proud she is of being Indian as well as being British. I’ve learnt so much about my own culture through her posts and I pretty much want everything in her wardrobe too!
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Hannah | Coco Beaut Tea
I absolutely adore Hannah’s classic style. Her wardrobe is the perfect capsule of classic pieces and she’s one of the rare bloggers I see repeating outfits and wearing the same pieces multiple times. Her IG and YouTube are real rather than perfect and she shares a ton of styling tips too.
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Kaushal | Kaushal Beauty
Kaushal is also a beauty and lifestyle YouTuber who L’Oreal tapped up to be part of their influencer campaign. She has built up a loyal following of 2.1m subscribers and has worked with pretty much every beauty brand under the sun. Her videos are super fun and I’m pretty much addicted to watching her ‘get ready with me’ videos, just to see what products and shades will suit *my* skin tone.
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Kavita | She Wears Fashion
I met Kavita about 7 years ago, shortly after she started her fashion blog. Fast-forward a few years and she’s morphed into a leading travel and lifestyle blogger and has travelled the world as well as landing campaigns with the likes of Dr Martens and Bershka.
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Lima | Fashionicide
Award-winning beauty blogger Lima describes herself as “an oasis of colour in a sea of nudes” and I couldn’t think of a better way to describe her. Like Simran, she’s keen to break out of the box South Asians are put into and share a genuine look into her life. I love her bold, graphic makeup looks and an attitude which is unapologetic about who she is.
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Seetal | Savla Faire
If you love food, you need to read Savla Faire. Not only does Seetal write about the best restaurants in London and on her travels, she has a series of chef interviews which give you a real insight into what goes on in the kitchen. She has also bravely shared her story of IVF, which is still a taboo topic within the British Asian community.
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Shloka | The Silk Sneaker
I was following Shloka for a while before we finally met and I was thrilled to discover she was as sweet in person as she is online. She is one of my favourite fashion influencers and regularly influences my own wardrobe – the headband I’m wearing in this look was inspired by Shloka’s love of headbands. Her laidback luxury is both attainable and aspirational and I love how real and genuine her content is.
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Who are your favourite British Asian influencers?
Hairband – ASOS | Dress – Nasty Gal | Shoes – Topshop (past season) | Bag – Saint Laurent
Photography by Kylie Eyra Photography.
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