It’s 1987, I am five years old. My parents and I live in a compound of townhouses, set in identical rows, in a town in northern New Jersey. From the balcony, we can see Manhattan across the water. So close but so far. We are generally liked in the neighbourhood, a welcome novelty, one of the only Indian families living within these gates.
The compound has a little playground, covered in wood chips and shaded with trees. There’s also a swimming pool that opens every summer, only three to five feet deep, and even though the changing rooms smell more like chlorine than the water, mothers complain of their kids developing foot fungus by the time August comes around. I swim poorly, resembling a float more than a fish, but it’s good to have a little respite from the blazing sun.
The other children go swimming every day, but I am not allowed to. When I ask why, my mother explains that my hair takes too long to wash. Once or twice a week to the pool is enough, she says. I sulk by the window, watching my friends disappear on their bicycles.
“Why don’t you let her go?” our neighbour asks my mother. My mother is incredulous. “Go to the pool? Every day? No, no. She’ll become black.” Our neighbour’s mouth falls open.
This story is from the January 2021 edition of VOGUE India.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the January 2021 edition of VOGUE India.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
The Real Deal
Triptii Dimri's unfiltered spirit shines through as she races ahead on her journey to the field of stars.
Mrs.Prada
Almost everyone refers to Miuccia Prada in the most formal of ways, but she herself has never been one to stand on ceremony. WENDELL STEAVENSON meets a designer who has built an empire in her own image: iconic, iconoclastic and enormously influential.
Happily ever laughter
South Asians have long clamoured for a seat at the comedy table. Now, Vidura BR, Sabeen Sadiq, Hari Kondabolu and Abby Govindan are in on all the jokes
Anchors aweigh
Having moved houses almost every year of her life, KALYANI ADHAV's experiences are proof that home is not a place, it's a feeling
Console sisters
India's female gamers are rewriting the age-old narrative that views women as objects of desire or damsels in need of saving.
Soft serve
His untimely disappearance from the big screen nine years ago may have caused serious heartburn, but Imran Khan is ready to pick up where he left off-with a few upgrades.
The end of olitter?
Or are we just at the beginning—of a new era of microplastic-free, perfectly-healthy-to-eat sparkle. TAMAR ADLER reports on glitz to feel good about
Smooth operator
Can retinol pack the wrinkle-reducing power without the irritation? Chloe Malle test-drives a new generation of kinder formulas rebooting the superstar skincare ingredient
The great gamble
At the Gucci Ancora showcase in Singapore, Vogue India got within a hair’s breadth of Sabato De Sarno’s debut collection. ROCHELLE PINTO reports on the new direction
Blue jean baby
LEE X Suneet Varma's collaboration featuring Sara Ali Khan merges classic denim with Indian couture.