How Netflix Original Bridgerton Unintentionally Erased Colonialist History
With Season 2 of Bridgerton being released in late March, the romantic tale between Viscount Anthony Bridgerton and debut character Kate Sharma has been heavily discussed and adored on several social media platforms. Kate and her sister Edwina are portrayed as members of high society during the Regency era, with an unconventional addition: they are South Asian. However, there are two main issues with this ‘representation’. Netflix has the power to make countless originals, yet chose a pre-colonialism era period piece to represent an Indian character. Second, Netflix eliminated the need to focus on being historically accurate, yet still misrepresented a lot of cultural nuances.
When I first watched Season 2, it was a pleasant surprise to see a female protagonist who possessed a South Indian cultural background. However, the display of Kate and Edwina Sharma’s culture was flawed in some arguably important ways. First, Kate and Edwina respectively refer to their father as appa, an honorific term typically used by South Indian families. However, Edwina calls Kate didi, which is a North Indian term for one’s sister. Although Kate technically comes from different biological parents than Edwina and may use different terms for various family members as a result, it’s clear that a hasty attempt at representation was made without accurately capturing important dynamics, such as the terms used when the sisters share moments of displaying heritage together.
I won’t lie–seeing the cultural practices so rarely represented in the media was something I appreciated watching, especially while describing to my friends the way that I used to practice these cultural rituals in my own childhood. In the third episode “A Bee in Your Bonnet,” Kate rubs oil into Edwina’s hair before bed, a nighttime ritual I especially recall from my own adolescence. It’s endearing to see the similarities.
Nonetheless, it’s difficult to appreciate this representation to its full extent due to its history. During the Regency era, Indians were just a few years away from being subject to colonization, extraction of resources, and the erasure of several cultural practices. While Indian individuals face the aftereffects of these actions even today, it’s off-putting to see this culture being so accepted without any backlash in Bridgerton; in fact, the problems that Kate and Edwina Sharma face equate to the same ones as Anthony or Daphne Bridgerton, who are white members of society. The main issues in this season relate to romance, secrets, and infidelity. While these are problems applicable to various individuals, it feels like Netflix cherry picked a culture and plopped it into a country that originally erased it.
Not only does this have internal impacts on Indian people, but it exonerates white people, especially British people of their discomfort and/or guilt from colonization. Seeing a British Viscount being brought to his knees by an Indian woman as well as her living in harmony with high society in Britain reverses the dynamic between the two demographics. Indian culture and people are being represented in an equal manner, and placing it within this specific time period feels a lot like erasure. Had I seen this representation in a show based on the status of Indian people in contemporary white society, I wouldn’t have felt as misrepresented as I did with Bridgerton. This just feels like painting over the terrible acts that the British colonels committed against Indian citizens.
It is acceptable, if not important to acknowledge the effort that Bridgerton has made in representing South Indian culture in such a popular television show. However, if South Asian individuals wholeheartedly praise productions for the mere presence of representation without criticizing the accuracy and implications of the portrayal, it’s a nod of contentment. We will continue to see programs like Bridgerton get a slightly correct portrayal of South Asian culture without any real acknowledgement of struggle. Representation cannot only include the pretty, ornamental aspects of a culture, like garments, jewelry, and nicknames. There isn’t true representation if the hardships of those being represented simply vanish.