# Sepia Mutiny > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Sepia_Mutiny > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Sepia_Mutiny.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sepia_Mutiny > Source revision: 1349878239 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|South Asian diaspora weblog}} {{Infobox website | name = Sepia Mutiny | favicon = | logo = Sepia Mutiny Logo.jpg | caption = Sepia Mutiny Logo | url = {{URL|http://sepiamutiny.com/}} | commercial = No | type = News, blog, discussion forum | language = [English](/source/English_Language) | owner = Abhi | author = Multiple (group blog) | registration = Optional | launch_date = August 2004 | current_status = Closed on April 1, 2012{{Cite web|url=http://sepiamutiny.com/blog/2012/03/15/mutinous-end-times/|title=Mutinous End Times | Sepia Mutiny|date=15 March 2012 }} | revenue = Not for profit }} '''Sepia Mutiny''' was a [blog](/source/blog) and discussion forum, initially conceived by a group of mostly second generation [Indian American](/source/Indian_American) students and young professionals in August 2004. The site had had an exponential growth rate and according to its [FAQ](/source/FAQ), as of May 2007 had amassed over five million readers since inception.{{cite book|title=Sepia Mutiny FAQ|url=http://www.sepiamutiny.com/sepia/faq.html}} The majority of the posts on the site were authored by its founding [bloggers](/source/bloggers), though many posts were also authored by "regular contributors." The site also functioned as a public forum on South Asian issues and boasted a wide range of commenters hailing from diverse geographic locations, although predominantly the [United States](/source/United_States) and [England](/source/England). On March 15, 2012, the site announced its closure starting April 1, 2012, citing diversified evolution of blogosphere and personal engagements of its writers as reasons for shutting down. The title is a pun on the [Sepoy Mutiny](/source/Sepoy_Mutiny), or [First War of Indian Independence](/source/First_War_of_Indian_Independence) in 1857, a violent widespread movement by [sepoys](/source/sepoys) against the [British Raj](/source/British_Raj) during the latter's imperialist rule in India. [Sepia](/source/Sepia_(color)), a shade of brown, was intended as a [tongue-in-cheek](/source/tongue-in-cheek) reference to the tone of [South Asian](/source/South_Asian) skin.[http://www.sepiamutiny.com/sepia/archives/004614.html] ==Social context== Sepia Mutiny discussed issues facing first and second generation immigrants from the [Indian subcontinent](/source/Indian_subcontinent). The goal of the site was in effect to capture the position of the Indian-American [diaspora](/source/diaspora) as it emigrates to foreign nations and primarily North America.{{cite book|title=Asian Indian Population in Metropolitan Areas in the US|author=India Network Foundation Incorporated|year=2000|url=http://www.indnet.org/census/metropop.htm}} Sepia Mutiny had become a focal point of discussion for [Desi](/source/Desi)s on the Internet in the United States and, to some extent, other parts of the South Asian diaspora.{{cite book|title=Alternet Mix the Message|author=Ahmed, Tanzila|date=September 9, 2006|url=http://www.alternet.org/wiretap/33078/}} Sepia Mutiny's emergence was part of the increase in mainstream diasporic Desi writing and creative arts outside the traditional genres — the effects of which can be seen in [Indian subcontinent](/source/Indian_subcontinent) and spills over to the [America](/source/United_States), [Canada](/source/Canada), and the [United Kingdom](/source/United_Kingdom), given the presence of Desis. A similar trend was seen at sites like [Badmash](/source/Badmash.org), an online comic that gained notice for its [Amitabh for President](/source/Amitabh_Bachchan) campaign, South Asian magazines such as [http://www.abcdlady.com ABCDlady], as well as the greater prominence of [Bollywood](/source/Bollywood) films in the United States. Crossovers movies such as ''[Bride and Prejudice](/source/Bride_and_Prejudice)'', ''[Bollywood/Hollywood](/source/Bollywood%2FHollywood)'' and ''[Monsoon Wedding](/source/Monsoon_Wedding)'' have helped the western audience understand the desi culture. The blog also addressed the growing prominence of South Asian Americans like [Bobby Jindal](/source/Bobby_Jindal), [Russell Peters](/source/Russell_Peters), [Sanjay Gupta](/source/Sanjay_Gupta), [Neel Kashkari](/source/Neel_Kashkari) and [Kal Penn](/source/Kal_Penn), among others, as they enter the mainstream of American culture. ==South Asians and American politics== Part of the focus of Sepia Mutiny was to bring attention to the expanding involvement of South Asian Americans as a political body in the United States, especially in the 2004 and 2006 congressional and presidential elections. A lot of attention was given to the controversy surrounding [Virginia United States Senate election, 2006](/source/Virginia_United_States_Senate_election%2C_2006), a scandal that erupted due to comments by former [Republican](/source/Republican_Party_(United_States)) [Senator](/source/United_States_Senate) for [Virginia](/source/Virginia), [George Allen](/source/George_Allen_(U.S._politician)), in which he used the word [macaca](/source/macaca_(term)) to refer to [S.R. Sidarth](/source/S.R._Sidarth), an Indian American aide working for his opponent's Senatorial campaign. Sepia Mutiny also drew attention to other public figures in America who have used racial slurs against Indians in the past such as Vice-President Joe Biden and major radio personalities in [Philadelphia](/source/Philadelphia) and [New York City](/source/New_York_City). The bloggers at Sepia Mutiny often focused on the emergence of Indian-Americans in the Western political structure. The site served as fertile ground for discussion regarding the actions of these politicians in the United States, ranging from [Bobby Jindal](/source/Bobby_Jindal) to [Nikki Haley](/source/Nikki_Haley) to [Shahid Malik](/source/Shahid_Malik). ==Violence against South Asians== Another focus of the blog had been to highlight violence against South Asians — a phenomenon which has become more common since the September 11 attacks on the [World Trade Center](/source/World_Trade_Center_(1973%E2%80%932001)).[http://www.asata.org/issue/hateviolence/content Hate violence | Alliance of South Asians Taking Action (ASATA)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070410011000/http://www.asata.org/issue/hateviolence/content |date=2007-04-10 }} The site, however, broadened its awareness of violence beyond simple [hate crimes](/source/hate_crimes). The recent [tragedy at Virginia Tech](/source/tragedy_at_Virginia_Tech) was discussed from a South Asian perspective with posts about South Asian shooting victims Professor [G. V. Loganathan](/source/G._V._Loganathan) and student [Minal "Minu" Panchal](/source/Minal_%22Minu%22_Panchal), victims the mainstream media failed to talk in depth about. They also were one of the few media sources that addressed the recent assault of a young Indian American [National Lawyer's Guild](/source/National_Lawyer's_Guild) observer Sanjukta Paul during the [Los Angeles May Day Mêlée](/source/The_Los_Angeles_May_Day_M%C3%AAl%C3%A9e) at [MacArthur Park](/source/MacArthur_Park) by a member of the [Los Angeles Police Department](/source/Los_Angeles_Police_Department).[http://accidentalblogger.typepad.com/accidental_blogger/2007/05/may_day_up_clos.html Accidental Blogger: May Day : Up Close and Personal]{{cite book|title=Police Terror in the Park|author=Leslie Radford|url=http://la.indymedia.org/news/2007/05/197899.php}} ==South Asian literature, music, and the arts== In the spring and summer of 2006, a number of Sepia Mutiny posts debated the allegations of [plagiarism](/source/plagiarism) in [Kaavya Viswanathan](/source/Kaavya_Viswanathan)'s novel, ''[How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild, and Got a Life](/source/How_Opal_Mehta_Got_Kissed%2C_Got_Wild%2C_and_Got_a_Life)''. Posts related to Viswanathan were widely cited by other blogs and the mass-media, including ''[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)''{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/01/business/media/01link.html?_r=1 |title=In Internet Age, Writers Face Frontier Justice |first=Tom |last=Zeller Jr. |work=New York Times |date=May 1, 2006 |accessdate=June 1, 2009}} and ''[The Washington Post](/source/The_Washington_Post)''. The site has also highlighted South Asian authors that have come to attention in the United States and abroad, including [Booker Prize](/source/Booker_Prize) winners [Salman Rushdie](/source/Salman_Rushdie) and [Kiran Desai](/source/Kiran_Desai), and [Pulitzer Prize](/source/Pulitzer_Prize)-winning novelist [Jhumpa Lahiri](/source/Jhumpa_Lahiri). There was considerable discussion about South Asians in the music industry, ranging from recent [Bollywood](/source/Bollywood) soundtracks to mainstream Western musicians, such as recent ''[American Idol](/source/American_Idol)'' contestant [Sanjaya Malakar](/source/Sanjaya_Malakar). The site also provides coverage of the long history in the music industry of fusing Eastern and Western styles of music, as can be seen through the work of artists like [Panjabi MC](/source/Panjabi_MC), [Raghav](/source/Raghav), and [Talvin Singh](/source/Talvin_Singh), and unique new niche genres such as [Desi Ska](/source/Desi_Ska) and [Hindu Rock](/source/Hindu_Rock).{{cite web|url=http://www.sepiamutiny.com/sepia/archives/003422.html|title=Going Multi-tone: Desi Ska Music|author=Amardeep Singh|date=May 30, 2006}} In addition Indian American film and television were highlighted on the blog. Be it mainstream releases to American audiences like [Harold and Kumar](/source/Harold_and_Kumar), [Salaam Bombay](/source/Salaam_Bombay), and the [Elements Trilogy](/source/Elements_Trilogy), or lesser known work such as the cult-classic [American Desi](/source/American_Desi), Sepia Mutiny bloggers covered it. ==South Asian Americans and the Indian subcontinent== In addition to being aware of issues faced by South Asians outside of India, Sepia Mutiny was also cognizant of current events within the subcontinent as well. Many posts discuss current events in India, including controversial topics such as [terrorism](/source/terrorism), communal tensions, [AIDS](/source/AIDS), and even the rapid evolution of the [Bollywood](/source/Bollywood) film industry. Sepia Mutiny's comprehensive international awareness served to highlight that the changing South Asian culture in the Western world is often mirrored by reciprocal evolution on the Indian subcontinent itself. ==References== {{reflist}} == External links == * {{Official website|http://www.sepiamutiny.com/}} Category:Internet properties established in 2004 Category:Asian-American issues Category:Asian-American mass media Category:Indian-American culture Category:South Asian–American organizations Category:American political blogs Category:American political websites Category:2008 Democratic National Convention --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Sepia Mutiny](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sepia_Mutiny) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sepia_Mutiny?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.