Nina Davuluri became the first Indian American to win the Miss America title on Sunday. The 24-year-old University of Michigan graduate performed a Bollywood fusion dance for the talent round.Unsurprisingly, detractors flocked to Twitter after the win, where Davuluri was (wrongly) identified as an Arab, terrorist, and even Chinese. Despite the maelstrom of negative chatter, the young woman has paved the way for challenging discussions on race, culture and beauty in America and globally. Here’s why America needed an Indian Miss America
1.) Her victory forces America to examine what it means to be American. Davuluri is American-born and educated. While her Indian cultural heritage is an important part of her identity, being American is even more so. For a nation of immigrants, built upon a land of opportunity, she epitomizes what “Brand U.S.A.” has become so famous for worldwide; a meritocratic society. It’s unfortunate she had to be the target in this conversation, but the fact is the definition of what it is to be American is ever-evolving.
2.) She challenges what it means to be Indian American. Indian Americans, like many other first generation Americans, face an ever-present cultural conflict. Indians have lived in America for generations. Through the years several stereotypes have emerged on what being Indian American means – nerds, techies, doctors, motel and 7/11 owners, to name a few. Even in the entertainment industry, Mindy Kaling’s “The Mindy Project” focuses on her being a doctor, while Kunal Nayyar in “The Big Bang Theory” is a science geek. Davuluri’s victory in a beauty pageant, challenges perceptions that Indians are only geeky, or only small business owners. Indeed, the uproar against her win is interesting – I wouldn’t be writing this if she had won a Spelling Bee or Mathematics competition.
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