Unless you’ve been hibernating through the winter like we all wish we could, you’ve probably already heard Coldplay’s new song, “Hymn for the Weekend,” or are at least aware of the fact that Coldplay and Beyoncé are being accused of appropriating Indian/desi culture.
“Cultural appropriation,” as Huffington Post writers Reva Bhatt and Shreya Shankh state, “is when a dominant group cherry-picks what they like about a minority group, while simultaneously attacking and undermining that minority group on a systematic level.” I could go on a frame-by-frame rant of every detail that contributes to the “orientalist fantasy” image of India that seems to resonate with the west, but for the sake of brevity, I’ll focus on the main offenders.
Religion in India
It’s almost guaranteed that a video shot in India will have at least one Holi scene. Most people know that Holi originated from India, but are unaware that it's an ancient Hindu celebration that welcomes springtime, intricately woven with stories and symbolism from Hindu scriptures. It’s most certainly not a Color Run or an excuse to throw colored powder at other people while they sing about being “so high.”
And this may be a little surprising to some, but not all Indians are Hindus. India is one of the most culturally diverse countries in the world, but you probably didn’t get that from the one temple shot from the video. While Hinduism is the most practiced (80 percent of the population are Hindu), India is home to many religions from Islam, Sikhism, and Jainism, to Christianity, Judaism, and even Zoroastrianism.
Beyoncé
Queen Bey’s been getting a lot of negative criticism for her part in the music video, but only some of which is warranted. Many people are criticizing her for wearing “traditional” Indian dress because it’s appropriating desi culture. But let me tell you, nothing about that dress is traditional.
She did wear a sari, and while I can't say I like the costume designer's choice in jewelry all that much, I'm willing to admit that she pulled it off surprisingly well.
She was not appropriating Indian culture by wearing a sari, so we can all stop with that argument. Anyone can wear a sari, wear a bindi, and apply henna as long as they understand the significance within Indian culture and respect that.
The line was crossed when she appeared as a Bollywood actress even though Coldplay had already hired Sonam Kapoor, one of Bollywood’s highest paying actresses, to be a part of their video. Kapoor had about five seconds of screen time for an unnecessary cameo. And while she may be OK with her contribution to the video and access to “Coldplay VIP” for the rest of her life, I most certainly am not, especially when it came to choreography.
Indian dance is known for its complicated hand movements, and what Beyoncé did with her hands was anything but. Indian dance doesn’t just consist of random hand movements. Each motion contains a meaning and, together with the dance, tells a story. It takes years for dancers to master these moves. While Beyoncé is an amazing dancer in her own right, she’s still got about 12 years to go if she wants to learn classical Indian dance. If Sonam Kapoor, a classically trained dancer, had played Beyoncé’s role, then the character would have been more realistic.
A Surrealist and Psychedelic India 
Arguments can be made that they couldn't possibly fit all of India's rich heritage into one music video and that there might not have been any time to do more research in the culture. Since it's a valid point, I'll give you that one, and it'll excuse the lack of cultural representation and Beyoncé's unorthodox hand motions.
For me, however, the most unsettling part of the music video was the mystical and euphoric atmosphere of India. The overall vibe I got was that India was this ethereal land outside the reach of modernity. Yes, India is a breathtakingly beautiful country. Yes, spirituality is an important part of Indian culture. And yes, in the furthest corners of the country, there are places that may seem untouched by time. But that does not mean we have levitating sadhus draped in saffron colored clothes, people who breathe fire, or bright kaleidoscopic backgrounds that make it seem like the whole country's been tripping on LSD. These are all stereotypes that have been perpetuated by the west to undermine India as a sophisticated culture. The director of the music video, Ben Mor, (who, in my opinion, hasn’t been getting called out enough for directing this piece of blatant cultural appropriation) stated, “When you take a closer look at India, surrealism and psychedelia immediately come to mind, at least to mine! I tried to use the special effects in a way that just heightened what was already there. Almost trying to make the surreal real.”
India is not an out-of-time dreamscape. There is nothing surreal about it. India is -- believe it or not -- a very real place with real people that don't dress up as important religious deities in crude costumes. My culture should not be put in the same category as a Salvador Dali painting. When you label the country my parents were born and raised in surreal, when you associate my culture and beliefs with psychedelia, you are undermining a whole civilization that has thrived for thousands of years. So, Mr. Kor, I don't know what you meant by trying to "heighten" the psychedelia and make India "real," because the last time I checked, India is definitely a real place on the map. I don't think you need to climb into a wardrobe to get there.
