Avoiding Orientalist Stereotypes when Writing a South Indian Vampire
CW: very brief/non-explicit mentions of sex
My character is a Punjabi South Indian-coded woman who does not consider herself religious. She is a vampire NPC in a gothic romance/horror TTRPG. The game is set in an isolated demi-plane (an extra-dimensional space about the size of one of the larger U.S states) that pulls in people from other worlds, and is ruled by a corrupt vampiric aristocracy.
She is one of the few forces of humanity and goodness left in this demi-plane. She “feeds” on all kinds of love (romantic, platonic, familial, ect) instead of blood, and is the patron of a rotating group of performers and artists that provide sources of love for her while she takes care of them & protects them in return. Her relationships with them vary — some are romantic or sexual, some are platonic, others queerplatonic or familial, but all of them love her deeply in their own way. Some of the relationships aren’t always entirely healthy, as she is able to feed off of toxic love and devotion too (but she tries to avoid it).
Given all of this, I want to tread very carefully and avoid orientalist stereotypes of sexualization and objectification, and make sure not to reduce her to just an “object of desire”. I’ve also tried to make sure she isn’t presented as a “seductress” & I also have several other prominent Indian NPCs in this setting. Do you have any feedback about what else I can do to avoid these harmful stereotypes while maintaining her narrative role? Thank you so much for your help and time!
I for one would love to see more Indian/South Asian vampire characters in gothic romances–Armand, as portrayed by Assad Zaman in AMC’s Interview with The Vampire, is possibly one of my favorite fictional vampires ever! (Even though he is not exactly a force of humanity and goodness.)
Based on what you have described so far about your project, it looks pretty good, especially the fact that you have several other Indian characters–this can prevent the dangers of token representation. Here are some additional pointers to think of.
Is this character dark-skinned? And if so, is she the only example of a dark-skinned South Asian woman in the entire project?
India as such is very heterogeneous; even if you have, say, more than five major characters sharing the same nationality, they may look and sound entirely different. Given India’s rampant history of colorism, and social linkages of skin color to caste “purity”, it would be quite refreshing to have a powerful dark-skinned Indian female character with magical abilities, if she is not exoticized.
What you have described of her magic sounds like a mix of vampirism and succubus-like tendencies (“feeding off” love or desire). I would be slightly cautious about leaning into these powers if she is the only character, South Asian or otherwise, who carries out this type of feeding.
Are there other vampires in your worldbuilding who also feed off emotions instead of blood, and are any of them tied to the domain of “love” like she is? If not, you might want to trace your logic about why you have linked a racialized female character’s magical abilities explicitly to desire and sexuality, be it romantic or otherwise. I have always found the allotment of magical powers to be a fascinating area where our subconscious bias seeps through.
(Example: In the anime-manga Demon Slayer, there are only two female “Hashira” warriors, as opposed to seven male ones. While the latter’s powerful abilities are linked to elemental domains like water, fire, wind, et cetera–of the two women warriors, one is described to be physically weaker, while the other’s fighting style draws from the “love” domain. She is also the only Hashira depicted in a sexualized, uncomfortable outfit. Just something to think about.)
Also, mainly because I’m interested in Gothic literary/cultural signifiers–I would want to know why you chose to make this character feed off emotions and not blood. Is there an ethical implication? Clearly, from your description, she is not solely consuming negative emotions. Feeding off emotions is not morally neutral, just as depending on blood isn’t inherently immoral; both would ideally involve some sort of agreement or contract, related to bodily autonomy.
Does your character have a fair bit of significance in other plotlines too? For example:
Does she help with politicking or strategizing?
Does she assist other characters with magical rituals?
Does she have moments of bonding/friendship entirely removed from her abilities?
Does she have a rich inner life with a backstory, or a pressing issue she needs to overcome (say, maybe conflicts with the corrupt vampiric aristocracy in this universe?)
You have mentioned that you don’t simply want her to be a “seductress”, which is appreciated, but what are the steps you are taking to avoid orientalist/racialized sexualization, and to give her a full personhood beyond her magic?
Finally, here are some asks the WWC team have answered before, regarding Orientalist tropes and SFF, which may be useful for your character:
Praising Beauty Without Fetishizing POC
Orientalist Character Designs in Sci-fi/Fantasy Worldbuilding
Religion vs Vampirism Depictions: Islam, Judaism
Hypersexualization of WoC
I hope this was helpful. Here’s my kofi; appreciate a tip.
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