An Accent Without a Punchline

Photo by Muhammed Nishal on Unsplash

I recently watched this show called ‘Not suitable for work’.

After I finished the show, I did what any normal person would do. I googled the cast.

One interview led to another. And somewhere in the middle of a youtube rabbit hole, I found myself watching an interview with Avantika Vandanapu, who played a South Asian girl — Abby on the show.

She was speaking to an Indian media outlet. And she had an Indian accent. Like.. my kinda Indian accent.

I don’t know why that stopped me.

Maybe because I’d never realized how rarely I hear one.

The South Asians I see in Western media usually fit into one of two categories. They were either born and raised in the West, speaking in American or British accents, or they had unmistakably Indian accents that existed mostly as a shorthand — for the immigrant parent, the awkward uncle, the convenience store owner, basically the punchline.

I’ve lived in the U.S. for years now. My accent has softened around the edges, but it hasn’t disappeared. It probably never will.

I don’t think I’ve ever wanted it to.

But I have spent enough time repeating myself, slowing down, or unconsciously changing how I pronounce certain words to know that I’m always a little aware of it.

Watching that interview, I realized I wasn’t reacting to an accent. I was reacting to the absence of it.

Or maybe the absence of people who sound like me simply existing without their voice needing to explain who they are. Is this what representation feels like?