Do Tamil Nationalists Fight to Cast Dark-Skinned Tamil Women in Tamil Movies?

Do Tamil nationalists fight for more inclusion of Tamil, dark-skinned women as heroines in Tamil films? 

Or do they fetishize Aryan, Caucasian, Anglo-Indian, and Brahminical fair skin on women in Tamil cinema?

This is an old meme created by me in 2017. The Malaysian Indian e-magazine, Varnam, featured the meme in their article titled: 5 Problems I Have With Amy Jackson Starring In Tamil Movies. 

I've always advocated for the acceptance of dark-skin on women, especially in my personal life. I scold my mom for her preference of fair-skin. I called out my aunt for searching only the fairest brides for her sons.

Although I am a non-Tamil, and not dark-skinned, I am all for diversity, inclusion and representation. 

I live in a multiracial country with Tamils making the majority of the Malaysian Indian community. I grew up listening to AR Rahman's magical compositions, and watching Tamil movies. 

I had very little exposure to Telugu contemporary culture. Although I speak Telugu, I am not as familiar with Telugu pop culture and Tollywood because except on Ugadhi - all entertainment from India and local Indians is Tamil. There are only Tamil vernacular schools as well.

So, I am more influenced by Tamil in this context. In Malaysia, it doesn't matter if I am Tamil, Telugu, or Malayali, I am classified as "Indian." 

However, recently, I came across Tamil nationalists from Tamil Nadu (TN) who only accept people with Tamil parents as Tamil. I also learned that they don't consider Dravidians as Tamil, so they won't accept the meme with "Dravidians" in it or the article penned by a fellow Malaysian Indian (She could be of any Indian ethnicity.).

They attacked me for being Telugu by accusing me of unfounded claims like affiliation with TN's Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Illuminati, and other historically unsubstantiated hogwash they discuss on Reddit.

It's unfortunate that I am caught between this battle of internal racism and separatism, being a "Malaysian Telugu" whose ancestors were working class. All because the Karuththu Kannamma page I started for the Malaysian Indian community got an unexpected influx of followers from TN.

However, most directors in Tamil cinema industry are the kind of Tamils these Tamil nationalists approve. In an interview with one of these Tamil fanatics, a Tamil director is criticized for casting Telugu, half Tamil-half Kannada male protagonists.

I am left with a question. Do those Tamil nationalists who attacked me for being Telugu lock horns with Tamil directors for importing and casting women from North India and even Britain in their movies? I think not.

At least Murali, Napoleon all look like Tamil people. Dark-skinned. What Kollywood did was bring a brunette lass with blue irises, slap brown contact lens on her and pass her off as Indian or half-Indian.

I don't see these Tamil nationalists taking issue with the fact that Tamil, dark-skinned leading ladies being non-existent in the Tamil cine industry.

In fact, they're perfectly content with Tamil girls or dark-skinned Tamil looking girls used as the background to elevate the imported, fair-skinned heroine's screen presence.

Another old meme of mine.

As a diverse person whose extended family consists of Tamils, Chinese, Malays, and Indonesians, I am all for diversity, inclusion, and representation. But these racist, hypocritical Tamil nationalists say that these are "clown ideologies," revealing their separatist mindset.

It's evident in this context that these Tamil nationalists have fair skin fetish. Even if they fight for Tamil women to be cast in Tamil movies, they'd still want those Tamil women to follow the Indian/Asian/African beauty standards for women.

I like everyone. And it's basic to include everyone of all colors, shapes, and sizes. I watched Encanto and how children felt represented by it was such a delight.

I want the same for Tamil movie industry (because most of my readers are Tamil-speaking and I live in a Tamil majority community with more exposure to Tamil ethos) - diversity of the ladies. 

I am neither ethnocentric like the TN Tamil nationalists nor do I support the fetishizing of fair skin.

All I advocate for is that no one is excluded - we can have sassy, bedazzling, fire cracker of a Tamil woman with Anokyai's skin tone and a vivacious, voluptuous, smart, tornado of a Bengali woman with Tamannah's skin tone.