#india-coded

@frauastra submitted:

hello! my fantasy novel is set in a country which is a hybrid between ancient egypt and india, so all of the characters are fully black or indian-coded with the exception of this one. he is mixed (norse and indian), so he sticks out a bit due to his appearance (he’s described as having ‘sand-colored’ hair and eyes, for instance) and family background. i feel like this might have some unfortunate implications at first glance, but i’m not sure. i wanted to describe him as feeling disoriented and outcast from the majority; his trying to find where he belongs is his main character arc as well. would it come off badly?

What does India-Coded Mean?

I’m always wary when someone says India-coded, as this tells me they don’t know much about the diversity in India or the subcontinent as a whole. Have you seen the ethnic diversity in India? One of the reasons we haven’t yet written a South Asian Ethnicity resource post is because the India section alone would take forever.  (This is not to say that other countries in the region are not similarly diverse, but most South Asian ethnic groups are represented within India in some capacity.) 

If this character is from Kashmir, he could very well look like your description even without the caveat of being mixed because to be South Asian often is to be mixed by default. If this is a fantasy world, what does being “Norse” mean in this context? How did his parents meet? Ancient Egypt and Ancient India had long, complex histories, so please consider the time periods you are drawing from.  In general, it sounds like you need to do more research and also to trace your logic about your approach to world-building.

Issues with Outcast Status

Why does this character feel like an outcast from his group? I’m going to give you the benefit of the the doubt that you couldn’t possibly be thinking of writing a reverse racism type story. Again, most people in India are of mixed descent. I highly doubt the character’s racial heritage would be a factor in feeling out of place. You had better come up with something more compelling in his backstory or characterization to explain this internal struggle.

- Marika.

To add to Marika’s notes, I’d like to double down on being extra careful you don’t veer anywhere near a reverse racism theme. If he’s the main character in a fantasy novel, be wary of any inadvertent “white savior” tropes here too (or in this case, a “light-skinned savior” trope).

Also, it’s been a while since I’ve done any deep Ancient Egyptian deep dives, but if I recall correctly, they had quite a substantial pan-Meditteranean trading setup, trading with a variety of different cultures and peoples. In a fantasy world, I don’t think it would be unreasonable if this was similar or even more common--why, exactly, would a mixed-race paler character feel so deeply out of place? I would advise writing with care, and definitely double down on researching Ancient Egyptian and Ancient Indian cultural diversity.