A first-generation immigrant, the Tamil influencer is known for her relatable content and humor who has utilized her heritage and culture to shine a light on body positivity, share beauty tips and bring further awareness to her Sri Lankan community. With over1.8 million TikTok followers (and over 2M across all platforms) she inspires others to embrace their beauty and celebrate diversity. Additionally, she is an advocate for anti-bullying, having spent the majority of her childhood and teens being singled out for her culture and looks in the area of New Jersey she grew up in.
It’s within this same, small community that she teaches the culture of Tamil (which holds the oldest language in the world). Additionally, she utilizes her resources and passion to raise money to fund teachers’ salaries back in Sri Lanka who work with small children. Her ultimate goal? To help change the education system here in the US – making it more accessible for all class types, cultures and families – all while asking how we change the bullying issues that are common in today’s society as well as find better paths to speaking with children about their mental health.
What elements of your srilankan culture do you hold closest to your heart to this day?
I think everyone’s experience with their culture is different and is highly influenced by their family. Hence why one of my favorite elements of Sri Lankan culture is definitely how family oriented most people are. My family drives me nuts but at the end of the day they are the foundation of who I am today. I also really love all the Sri Lankan food! If you are vegan, Sri Lankan cuisine can easily be adapted into your diet.
What’s the most important part of being a content creator and influencer these days?
One of the most important aspects of being a creator is definitely consistency . Cretors are posting faster and in real time more than ever and to be successful you have to. People want to keep up with your life in real time and see everything you do. If you don’t learn on how to keep up you’ll def feel behind
Is there a toxic element embedded in being an influencer?
There’s an endless list of all the toxic elements embedded in becoming a content creator/influencer: body dysmorphia, social pressure, toxic party culture, EDs, online bullying, in person threats, harassment and this list goes on. Sometimes we forget how much a person on social media can go through because we expect them to post about it if they did/do. In reality behind the scenes of the mommy blogger and/or fashionista are scary truths of how the world really treats them or how their social presence has altered their brain chemistry or how dangerous this job really can be. Creators addresses get leaked daily allowing anyone to harm them at any time, in a world of AI
What was it like being bullied so much as a kid?
Bullies definitely took a toll on me when I was growing up and made me think poorly of myself. I started to actually believe life wasn’t worth living because I was fat and I wouldn’t get anything I’ve ever wanted because of my looks. This led to years of depression, body dysmorphia , eating disorders and the list goes on. Looking back I feel so bad for the younger version of me. I was so alone and had so much self hatred and it was all because people made me think I should hate myself when in reality those people just needed to feel accepted and loved.
What’s the best way to cope with something like that these days?
Coping with something like this doesn’t happen with just one breathing exercise or workshop. Its years of work you have to put in to unlearn everything that has been engraved in your heart and mind. Every smart remark and comment needs to be acknowledged, rewritten and remembered in a better light. I’ve had years of therapy to see myself as worthy of life and even beautiful. And surrounding yourself with good people is so important especially because bullies don’t go away they just grow older. Small things like following people who walk with confidence in their own skin where they are dark skinned,fat,disabled, or anything that used to be deemed “ugly’
What’s the most fulfilling feedback you ever got from your followers?
I once asked my followers for critiques/things that they thought I could work on and this one person told me to stop complaining so much. That really struck a nerve at first. especially because I didn’t think I complained a lot but then I realized a lot of the times that I was on my stories I’m ranting and/or critiquing something for its flaws which basically is complaining and most likely than not it’s about something so minor. I came to realize how inconsiderate I was to my followers when my supporters have difficult jobs and real life problems. It could be so annoying . I had to understand how privileged I have become.
