About Me. About this Blog.

Parchayi is the Hindi word for shadow. As a first-generation, low-income womxn of color growing up in a conservative Indian-American family, I have long been advised to live in the shadows. Dream big and your dreams will be broken. Speak up and your voice will be silenced. Resist the status quo and you will be resisted. I know that my loved ones wanted to protect me. I know they advised from a place of care, and from a history of experience with racism, classism, and the exploitation of their talents and labor. After all, they asked for nothing more than what this country’s constitution claimed they deserved - the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. But the short-lived and back breaking lives of my ancestors in this country has been nothing more than personal proof of the myth of the model minority. It has been evidence of the darkness – not the shade – that comes from living in the shadows.

I write to emerge from these oppressive shadows to recreate one that is a source of solace. Much like the shadows that journey with us through the sunlight, I want my shadow to be proud of its color, persistent in the face of challenges, and proactive in speaking up for truth.

I hope my writings in this blog – on navigating difficult questions of life, career, and desihood will inspire others to see and recreate their own shadows.

~Om.