Cultural appropriation in Bharat: The Gen Z reality check and Gen Alpha warning

Hans India

20 hours ago

In the globalised and hyper-connected world, we live in, culture travels at the speed of Wi-Fi. What once took centuries to exchange through migration, trade, or conquest now takes a viral video and a trending hashtag. Bharat, with its millennia-old traditions, diverse ethnic identities, and vibrant art forms, stands at the crossroads of a cultural renaissance and a cultural crisis.
The crisis? Cultural appropriation.
It's not just about foreign brands copying Indian designs for profit, or Bollywood 'borrowing' from regional folk traditions without credit. It's also about how our own younger generations especially Gen Z and the emerging Gen Alpha are engaging with, reshaping, and sometimes distorting what culture even means.
What Exactly is Cultural Appropriation?
In simple terms, cultural appropriation is when elements of a culture often a minority or indigenous one are taken out of context by someone from outside that culture, often without permission or respect, and used for personal gain, entertainment, or fashion.
In Bharat's case, it might look like:
• A luxury fashion label selling 'Bindis' as exotic forehead jewellery with no mention of their religious or social symbolism.
• A viral TikTok dance set to a devotional song, stripped of its sacred meaning.
• International brands mass-producing 'yoga pants' without acknowledging yoga's deep philosophical roots.
• Festivals like Holi being reduced to 'colour parties' with zero connection to their origin in the victory of good over evil.
Why This Hits Bharat Hard
Bharat has a civilisational space where traditions are woven into daily life. From the way we greet each other (Namaste) to the way we tie our turbans, every practice has layers of history, philosophy, and identity.
When these elements are lifted out of context and placed into a Western or commercial framework, they risk becoming aesthetic without essence.
For communities whose cultural expressions are part of their dignity and economy, this isn't just disrespect; it's economic erasure.
Gen Z: The Double-Edged Sword
Gen Z in Bharat is uniquely positioned with their digital natives, globally connected, politically vocal, and often the first to call out injustice. Many have championed causes like #VocalForLocal, revived handloom movements, and embraced indie music rooted in folk traditions. They can spot a fake 'Indian' aesthetic on an influencer's feed in seconds and call it out.
But here's the twist: the same Gen Z also consumes culture in bite-sized, algorithm-driven formats. In the race for relevance, even they sometimes reduce centuries-old traditions into 'Instagrammable' moments.
• Wearing a kurta only for 'ethnic day' at the office, not understanding the textile story behind it.
• Posting rangoli pictures without knowing its symbolism in welcoming prosperity.
• Using Sanskrit shlokas as captions for aesthetic appeal without understanding the meaning.
They might not be intentionally disrespectful but intent doesn't erase impact. If Gen Z doesn't dig deeper, their well-meaning sharing still risks turning culture into a surface-level commodity.
Gen Alpha: The Distortion Generation?
If Gen Z lives online, Gen Alpha will be online. Born after 2010, they are growing up in a world where AI can remix a Bharatanatyam performance into a Fortnite dance, where ChatGPT-like tools can rewrite a Ramayana story into a sci-fi fanfic in seconds, and where the first exposure to 'culture' might come from an influencer's content instead of grandparents' stories.
For them, cultural memory will be mediated through technology first and that's where distortion becomes dangerous.
Imagine:
• An AI-generated 'fusion garba' video that goes viral but erases the dance's devotional roots.
• Kids learning about Holi through a YouTube ad that markets it as 'India's Summer Paint Festival.'
• Regional folk songs turned into meme templates, stripped of language and meaning.
The risk isn't just appropriation by outsiders it's self-appropriation, where we distort our own culture for clicks, without realising what's being lost.
Cultural Appropriation vs Cultural Exchange
Some may argue: isn't sharing culture a good thing? Isn't the global popularity of yoga or Bollywood proof of Bharat's soft power? Yes, but sharing and stealing are not the same.
• Cultural Exchange:Mutual respect, collaboration, and credit. Example: a Japanese musician learning sitar from an Bharatiya guru and acknowledging the tradition.
• Cultural Appropriation:One-way extraction without context or credit. Example: a pop star using sitar sounds in a hit song and calling it 'oriental vibes.'
For Bharat, the line is crossed when the communities that created and sustained these traditions are excluded from the recognition, profit, and representation.
The Economics of Appropriation
Appropriation is about livelihoods, Bharat's handicrafts, handlooms, performing arts, and festivals employ millions. When a multinational copies a Warli painting for a t-shirt line without credit, it's not only disrespecting the tribeit's undercutting their income.
Gen Z's purchasing power can change this. Choosing original creators over knock-offs, supporting local artisans through platforms like India Handmade, and making 'authenticity' a personal style statement can hit cultural theft where it hurts — the bottom line.
Gen Z as Cultural Gatekeepers
If Gen Z steps up, they can become the firewall that protects Bharat's cultural integrity before Gen Alpha inherits a distorted version. Here's how:
1. Credit the Source –Whether it's a dance move, a recipe, or a design, always acknowledge its origin.
2. Educate Through Content –Pair the aesthetic with the authentic; make cultural knowledge go as viral as the look.
3. Call Out Misuse –Use the same social media activism energy to challenge brands or influencers who misappropriate.
4. Support the Custodians –Buy from artisans, attend local performances, and amplify voices from the source communities.
5. Document, Don't Just Display –Record elders' stories, regional dialects, and rituals; make the record as valuable as the reel.
Bharat's culture has survived invasions, colonisation, and globalisation. The threat of self-inflicted erasure through careless appropriation is one it has never faced at this scale. If we are to ensure that the next generations inherit not just the image of Bharat but the essence of Bharat, the work must begin today with a hashtag included.
(The writer is a Creative Economy Expert)