Tawaif fashion is trending on social media, everyone is obsessed with the (kind of mediocre) tv show, but STILL, desi/South Asians hesitate to mention Heeramandi and tawaif culture in polite company.
Netflix’s new series on Heeramandi is Bollywood’s latest romanticization of the tawaif culture of Hindustan, a remnant of the culture of the royal Mughal court.
Growing up Indian-Pakistani, I’ve seen so many examples of the tragically beautiful courtesan in film and tv shows. Mughal-e-Azam is a treasured classic, as are the adaptations of Umrao Jaan.
As a kid I was curious and asked questions about this sub-culture within the larger heritage and identity of the Indo-Pakistani Muslim. And I was mostly told to shush, because in respectable families we don’t talk about the tawaif “dancing girls.”
Now Sanjay Leela Bhansali has once again brought the tawaif to the front and center of cultural discourse.
So being me, of course I had to delve deeper into the history of what Heeramandi is, who these women were and try to answer the question: why do we act like they never existed?
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If you’re new here, welcome! I’m Saira the Musafir, I travel full time with my husband and kids, and love to share about the history, culture (and food!) from places I visit.
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22 сен 2024