Happy Friday Reader!

I see you and love you for who you are

For many South Asians, conversations about dating remain private, complicated, and highly shaped by familial and cultural expectations. And for those whose relationships do not fit into the “ideal box” – whether interracial, interfaith, or same-sex – are silenced, excluded, and forgotten. Since June was Pride Month, I want to use this space to talk about the relationships we often do not discuss in the South Asian community.

As I worked on this write-up, I have been reflecting on what it means for me personally to talk about Pride. As a cisgender straight South Asian female in a long-term relationship with someone who does fit into the “ideal box”, my journey has been rather conventional. So I initially did feel hesitant to discuss this topic. But if you really think about it, identity, belonging, and love are not foreign to anyone, especially us in the South Asian diaspora.

As an immigrant myself, I have experienced what it feels like to be different. Moving to a new country and slowly discovering who I am here and how I want to express my identity has deepened my appreciation of how difficult it can be to navigate spaces where you feel misunderstood or like you don’t belong. Many of us in the South Asian diaspora know this feeling, yet many LGBTQIA+ South Asians continue to experience stigma, silence, and exclusion within our communities.

So I invite you all to reflect on your journey of self-discovery and acceptance:

How has your understanding of your identity evolved over time, and how has it shaped your relationships and interactions with others?

As you reflect on this, think about what you share with people whose experiences of love may look different from your own. What values, hopes, fears, and desires connect us? What assumptions shape our beliefs about which relationships are celebrated and which are not?

At its core, Pride is not only about visibility – it is also about creating spaces for people to live authentically and be accepted for who they are. That is something many of us, regardless of our identities, can understand.

Feel free to respond to this email if you'd like to share your thoughts or skip that step and take this conversation outside of your inbox!

Event Recap:

AMARD&V (Artists Mentoring Against Racism, Drugs, and Violence) is a youth program designed to encourage at-risk youth of New Brunswick to utilize various art forms as ways to express when faced with adversity. At the end of June, Reshika presented the benefits of Kathak to this year’s 2026 summer cohort of 50 students. It was extra special as Reshika had began her professional mental health journey working as a counselor for the program just three years ago!

Summer Sneak Peek Can you guess what type of event we have simmering for the summer?

Love,
Ritika
Aangan