People You Should Know From Mason Ohio
In early lockdown in 2020, Keerthi Sekar and Sneha Ameya were back in their hometown of Stonemason and searching for something to practice amid the pandemic.
As start-generation Indian Americans in the largest city in southwest Ohio's Warren Canton, the 22-yr-olds grew up talking to each other almost questions of identity and civilisation. I day, Ameya suggested they record their conversations.
They released the first episode of their podcast, "Redefining ABCD," on Aug. 25, 2020, and accept released an episode every other week since and then. The podcast explores the multifariousness of South Asian identities and how to detect pride and a sense of community.
"Being Indian American, you're getting an American civilization that's 200 years old and Indian culture that'southward two,000 years former, and you're trying to figure out where you land or what y'all can resonate with," Sekar said.
Sekar and Ameya desire to use the podcast to say it'southward okay to have your own version of this hybrid culture.
The 'civilization shock' of leaving Mason
Sekar and Ameya didn't feel similar they were function of a minority until they attended college.
They grew upward together in the same neighborhood in Stonemason and attended Bricklayer High School, Ohio'southward largest high schoolhouse with an enrollment of 3,507 final schoolhouse year, where they were office of a tight-knit Indian American community.
Sekar remembers growing upwardly listening to Tamil music before she heard whatever American music. Ameya's parents hosted picture show nights every Friday with other Tamil families in the neighborhood. Both women'due south parents are involved with the Greater Cincinnati Tamil Sangam, a language school and nonprofit that serves Tamil speakers in the tristate surface area.
The Asian population in Mason more than doubled from 2010 to 2020, according to U.S. Census data. Asian people brand upwardly 18.4% of the population in Mason compared to 2.v% in Cincinnati.
Sekar said there'southward variety even with the Indian community in Mason. She and Ameya went to loftier schoolhouse with other Indian American students who spoke different languages and had different cultural backgrounds.
"Even if yous were just a little bit different, you felt similar you lot were part of a diverse group, like it was all right," Sekar said.
Sekar is in her final year at the University of Cincinnati studying for a available's degree in engineering. She said she was the only woman of color in her freshman year applied science classes at UC, which was something of a shock after her scientific discipline classes in Mason with other South Asian students.
"A lot of people came up to me my freshman twelvemonth, and said 'you lot're ane of the first Indian people I've e'er seen' considering they came from a small town in Indiana," she said.
Ameya also experienced that kind of culture shock. She graduated from UC's Higher of Pattern, Architecture, Art and Planning and at present works for an architectural firm in New York Urban center.
"I found myself explaining more little things about our civilization that I don't really think twice near. For case, prioritizing school versus hanging out," she said.
That's something they explore in the first episode of "Redefining ABCD," when Ameya and Sekar discuss moving beyond the "survivor mindset" their parents adapted when they immigrated and balancing that work ethic with their ain ideas most a fulfilling life.
Sekar said she wants to meet her parents' expectations and make sure they know she's succeeded, only also explore her ain ideas about what success means.
"My parents accept taught me 'any you practise, do your all-time.' So that really strong work ethic that the immigrant mindset has ingrained in us – nosotros're trying to residual that work ethic in what we want to do," she said.
Pushing back against name-calling
The podcast has 2 recurring segments: "Larger Than Us" and "Brown Art Network."
In "Larger Than U.s.a.," Sekar and Ameya speak openly nearly stigmatized topics in the S Asian community in an endeavour to "brand the uncomfortable comfortable." They discuss family unit expectations, interracial relationships, mental health, dealing with exhaustion, questions about cocky-worth and success and how to be allies to other minority communities.
For the "Dark-brown Art Network" segment of the podcast, they interview South Asian artists and professionals.
Ameya and Sekar chose the podcast's title because they desire to push back against the term "ABCD," which stands for "American-Born Confused Desi."
Information technology's a term that separates first-generation Indian Americans from their immigrant parents. Desi refers to a person, nutrient, civilization or thing from the Indian subcontinent. Some South Asians, especially those in younger generations, run across "ABCD" as derogatory considering it evokes 1 image of Indians growing up in America "confused" about their heritage.
In an interview with the Asian American Author's Workshop, Indian historian Vijay Prashad said "ABCD" was created as a counter to "Fob" of "fresh off the boat," a term Indian Americans sometimes used to distance themselves from immigrants.
"There's a lot of equivalent terms for this in other minority communities. I've heard people called 'Oreo', and 'Coconut,' " Sekar said.
Ameya wants "Redefining ABCD" to unravel that kind of name-calling and grouse within the S Asian community where she's alternately been told she'southward not Indian enough or non American plenty.
"I feel like it's important for our podcast to emphasize that it's a spectrum," she said. "You can land anywhere yous like on that spectrum. Information technology doesn't matter, nosotros've stopped caring."
Ameya said the podcast has helped her capeesh the cultural immersion she had when she was younger.
When their first episodes were released, they had 20 to 30 listens per episode. Now the podcast has a consequent audience of 40 to threescore listeners.
Sekar and Ameya expected their listeners to be their own age or younger. They were surprised to observe their give-and-take resonating with people in their late twenties and early on thirties and even neighbors.
"The biggest comment that resonated with united states of america was when an auntie, a friend of ours, came upwards to us and was like, 'it'south really exciting that you guys are putting this out considering I didn't realize that my own kid has feelings like this,'" Ameya said.
"Redefining ABCD" can exist found on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Google Podcasts.
Erin Glynn is the watchdog reporter for Butler, Warren and Clermont counties through the Report For America program. The Enquirer needs local donors to help fund her grant-funded position. If you desire to support Glynn's work, you tin can donate to her Study For America position at this website or email her editor Carl Weiser at cweiser@enquirer.com to find out how you can help fund her work.
Do you know something she should know? Send her a annotation at eglynn@enquirer.com and follow her on Twitter at @ee_glynn.
Source: https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2022/01/20/mason-natives-keerthi-sekar-sneha-ameya-explore-south-asian-identities-their-podcast/9158526002/
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