CA in kpop is a sensitive issue. And today I am gonna talk about some Maang Tikka CA accusations in kpop.
And no, you can't cancel me if you disagree with my opinions cause I am Indian(Hindu btw) and I have more than enough rights to talk about this. If you are Indian too and you disagree with me then we can agree to disagree.
Recently some Maang Tikka Cultural Appropriation(specifically of Loona) have come out and I want to share my opinions on this.
Today I am gonna review a few cases of "CA". Specifcally Loona and Blackpink/the only maang tikka CA accusations I know of. Let's go light to dark.
For those of you don't know what a Maang Tikka is here you go.
So I actually forgot what you call a maang tikka in my language lol so I am just gonna call it maang tikka. And that pic is way too big but Shreya Kapoor is very beautiful so I will keep it.
For those who are wondering, right now I am more triggered by the fact that some people can't recognize what is obviously is not a maang tikka but call it a maang tikka.
If it isn't obvious enough the thing Rose is wearing is not a maang tikka, refer to Shreya's maang tikka in the picture I provided first.
#2 Jennie's maang tikka and Loona's maang tikka(sorry I don't know their name)
I am gonna do both of these at the same time cause they both have pretty much the same explantion
So......the thing with this is I don't know if all of these are maang tikkas or not. But I do know that they aren't a traditional one. Traditional ones are made of gold(or at least are colored gold) and these are silver.
Not only that they have a huge thing in the center(I am not sure what that is called). Regardless here is where I get to the tea. If these are maang tikka's, here is why this isn't CA in my OPINION.
Like I said before traditional ones look like the ones Shreya is wearing(the first pic I provided). Those are the types of maang tikkas brides wear to weddings, women wear to religious events, etc.
The ones that Jennie and Loona wore(if they are actually maang tikkas) aren't traditional and are used as aesthetics by Indians like me.
That's right, the reason why most Indian's wear the silver ones is because they look pretty).
If you don't see why in my opinion this isn't CA. Allow me to explain a little more. The main reason why people consider this CA is because it is used as an aesthetic by non-Indians.
But the thing is, I can't accuse someone of using this as an aesthetic when I do the exact same thing.
I don't wear silver maang tikkas because they have a cultural or religious significance(as far as I know, silver maang tikkas don't actually have cultural or religious significance), I wear them cause they are pretty and that is why most Indian's wear them.
You won't see a bride wearing a silver maang tikka to her wedding(a religious event, at least Hindu weddings are).
Basically, those silver maang tikkas are jewelry that have pretty much zero cultural nor religious value. If I cancel a non-Indian for wearing a silver maang tikka it is pretty much the same energy as me canceling a non-Indian for wearing gold earrings.
Thank you for listening to my Ted Talk and don't cancel me(I am not sure if you can though).
P.S- Keep in mind this is from my South Indian perspective(specifically Kerala). I don't know if other places in India have different customs.