I had a vision in mind for a Diwali ball in London, a night of unparalleled, unapologetic South Asian glamour. It’s been three years now. The first year, I wore a white Falguni & Shane Peacock saree with intricate pearl and bead embellishments, and a touch of their signature feathers at the end of my pallu. The second year, I wore an icy blue and silver sequin dress from Manish Malhotracouturier of Bollywood’s biggest stars. Last year, it was Tarun Tahiliania designer known for dressing the wealthy sophisticates. Over my blush pink saree, she added an extra dupatta. I paired the sarees with Cartier jewellery.
What a great time to be an Indian in London, I thought, giddy with the excitement of hosting one of the trendiest (and fun!) nights in London. But then a few weeks ago, on September 14, just a month before Diwali, more than 100,000 people took part in an anti-immigration march in London, one of a series that has been going on since April this year. In recent weeks there have been a series of hate crimes against Indians in Ireland, including one against a six-year-old girl, who was punched in the face and genitals and told to “go back to India”. In August last year, British Asians and Muslims were targeted in racist attacks, sparked by the fatal stabbing of three girls in Southport, after false speculation that the culprit was a Muslim asylum seeker.
These cases undoubtedly weigh most heavily on British Asians who have grown up here; their memories of overt racism in the ’70s and ’80s return, belying the progress they were sure had been made in recent decades. For me, it is a hard blow. It is not the London I thought I knew. During and around the days of attacks and protests, I avoid the subway or being on the street; I take taxis home, cancel social plans at bars or pubs. Why take the risk? I wonder. It’s not a feeling I’m comfortable with. It’s not a feeling any of us should feel comfortable with. As anti-immigration rhetoric sweeps countries around the world, the question is: how should we react? How should we act?
