Brown Colored Glasses

As a bonus episode to all the listeners, this was a special live recording with the BCG hosts and Rizwan Mawani, a passion educator, author and researcher in the field of anthropology and religious studies. His work has taken him across the globe to address audiences from students to policy makers and BCG had the opportunity to host him and ask any questions from the live audience related to faith, identity and spirituality. On the heels of the last episode (For The Love Of God) and all the buzz and chatter, this episode serves as a linchpin to answer all those burning questions we have about our faith, as the next generation of South Asians living in a Western society.

Do you find yourself questioning your own faith and those of others based on how deeply they follow the practices of their faith? Do you wonder about the impact of Covid-19 on our beliefs and what this past year has meant for us in a spiritual sense? Do you feel that your sense of faith has evolved over time as you have begun to form your own identity and come to realize what offers you comfort and serenity? If you answered "Yes" to any of these questions or ponder about the intersection of our South Asian culture, our evolved identity, religion, faith and spirituality - this episode is for you! Come listen to the hosts share their personal perspectives on this topic and challenge each other on what it truly means to be a "person of faith".

As we continue to honor Women's History Month, this episode covers the all too familiar topic and ideal that we as South Asians struggle with quite a bit: body image. You will get to listen to heartfelt, personal experiences from each of the hosts and how they experienced body shaming in different ways and it's impact on them as individuals. We also discuss social media and "what's trending now" and its ramifications when it comes to internalizing body image as well as how as parents we can impact our children and infuse the right ideals when it comes to our relationships with our own bodies. Last but not least, we share and discuss the newest diet with you that's here to stay and that is to "embrace your imperfections".

In this second episode which delves into the notion of South Asians and colorism, the hosts discuss all aspects of our obsession with the lighter skin - whether it's the "Fair & Lovely" face cream, the tone filter on shaadi.com or our own parents telling us not to stay out in the sun for too long. What is also discussed is the why - where did this stem from and how as a society we ended up discriminating those with darker skin. How does this also parallel with the racism we see within the Western World, especially within this past year, and how and where we can begin to dismantle these belief systems and embrace all the shades of brown, because dark is lovely too.

This episode is the season finale for the first season of Brown Colored Glasses and features the host's daughter, Imaan, to reflect upon the topics of this season such as mental health, unconscious bias, gender and racial conversations and more - all from the lens of a child. Many times, as an adult, we succumb to an invisible threshold that society places upon us whether in terms of our personal or professional lives. What we really need is to be able to look at life from a childlike perspective - one that is free of bias, guilt, and societal expectations and rather filled with innocence, joy, passion and curiosity. "Unleash Your Inner Child" and listen to this dialogue which will evoke feelings of conquering the world, dreaming the impossible and living in that spirited feeling of complete freedom.