Publishing & Editorial Direction, No. ❷
April 2023 – onwards
Desi-gned Magazine
New England’s First Publication for the South Asian Diaspora
Founded with Mehek Gopi Vohra
Edited and Reviewed by Malini Narayan and Pradyumna Sapre
Editor’s Note
Being South Asian is much more than being from one of the eight countries that comprise the South Asian geopolitical area—it involves intergenerational legacies of human confluence and ingenuity.
Historically, from the Turks to the Europeans, the allure of the boundless topography of South Asia and its bounty was irresistible to all. Through centuries of migration, cohabitation, and innovation, South Asia became a melting pot of cultures and peoples. As such, being South Asian does not designate its descendents with a single religion, language or nationality, but rather bestows upon them a broader cultural paradigm.
It is in attempting to retell this diverse history—a history that has been largely oral and local—that so much has been distorted and homogenized, forgotten and lost. If South Asia is an anthology of human tales, then a majority of its tales have been unwritten.
We aim to conjure these sprawling cultural legacies of South Asia in the pages of this publication, but we cannot ignore the physical geography in which this work was conceived. Its pieces were discussed, written and edited in English, within the cloisters of two archetypical colonial-era institutions that have defined the character of New England. Bringing this to you is a product of our privilege, but a privilege that is coloured by colonial memory. Yearning to study the history and culture of the countries we come from, in the language that has supplanted our native tongue is our burden of colonialism. It is an inherited history that we grapple with every day.
Even in striving for authenticity, we are shackled by the demands of translation, in implicit dialogue with Western conceptions of our homelands. It is in longing for truth, for greater accuracy, caught between distinct cultural traditions, that we share in a traditionally ‘diasporic’ experience. In celebrating our homelands, we recreate rituals, histories and mythologies that feel more distant than we would like them to.
Here, we center native terminology as a movement in the reclamation of the histories, traditions, and identities that have endured generations of erasure; we act on reviving print and consider the contribution of physical knowledge archives in the persistence of information and memory in human spaces; we subvert conventional methods of knowledge transmission and creative expression by providing more accessible, equitable, and sustainable means for knowing; and we attempt to give you a glimpse of the marvel that is South Asia.
Now, I bring to you desi-gned: a humble compilation of these living archives of our peoples and places. This is a hand-selected compendium of ingenious craftsmanship, subaltern histories, and current contemplations, of untold stories that need to be shared.
I hope you derive as much joy from reading this labor of love, as we did in creating and curating it for you.
BOILERPLATE ❶
Mission Statement
desi is derived from the Sanskrit word “deśá,” meaning, ‘land or country’ and hence, desi means ‘of the homeland.’
desi is a self-appellation—an ethnonym used by people of the Indian subcontinent and its diaspora to describe their cultures, identities, and shared histories.
desi is widely used across South Asia, comprising Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.
desi transcends single nationalities, languages, or religions. It evokes a deep connection to the motherland—rooted in age-old traditions shaped by centuries of migration, cohabitation, and innovation. In attempting to retell this diverse, largely oral and local history, much has been distorted and homogenized, forgotten and lost. If South Asia is an anthology of human tales, then a majority of its tales have been unwritten.
As creatives navigating the complexities of being South Asian, we face a crisis of authenticity—one that calls for humility and a plurality of voices to confront the fractures of our globalized present. In bringing our stories into spaces marked by erasure, appropriation, and asymmetries of power, we center native terminology to reclaim silenced histories, revive print archives as vessels of human memory, and subvert academic norms to create more equitable ways of knowing.
desi–gned is our compilation of living archives—of ingenious craftsmanship, subaltern histories, and current contemplations—of untold desi stories that need to be shared.
Please note: This mission statement has been amended over the years of publication. This is the most current version as of May 2025. It was amended to include excerpts from the original editor’s note attached above.
BOILERPLATE ❷
Brand Identity
The pattern is a marriage of the traditions of kolam (floor murals made using rice powder) from the South and jali (Arabic inspired stone curtains that are carved into arches and windows) from the North—the two most dominant aesthetic cultures from South Asia that comprise a multitude of sub-cultures and identities.
BOILERPLATE ❸
Land Acknowledgment
This publication was created within the colonial structures of Brown University and Rhode Island School of Design—institutions that are located on the ancestral and contemporary homelands of the Narragansett, Wampanoag, and Nipmuc Nations. In studying and thinking about art and culture in English and within a dominant Western European academic tradition, we legitimize a global colonial power structure. These institutions and industries are responsible for many injustices, both past and ongoing, that include slavery and race prejudice. We are committed to work together to honor this past and build a future that champions greater acknowledgment, accessibility, and inclusivity towards peoples and perspectives from all cultures, backgrounds, and traditions.
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