Indian Dancer Survives Poisoning
by Zaina Brown
It's two in the morning in Uttar Pradesh, and the village wedding where I just bellydanced is wrapping up. I climb onto the backseat, ready to commence the five-hour journey back to Delhi. The driver, who is from Haryana state, pops a flash drive into the small LED screen by the rearview mirror. Watching videos is a great way for a driver to stay awake at night once the passengers fall asleep. The young, animated dancer on the screen draws my attention. She's flirtatiously lip syncing to a song, which turns out to be custom-made for her performances. Her moves are suggestive, but she's wearing a very decent salvar kameez, nothing like the revealing outfits I'm used to seeing on solo dancers on wedding stages. She looks like the girl next door, and therein, I assume, lays the appeal. The fast-paced music is distinctly Haryanvi, something I only hear on these car rides, never on the radio in Delhi, although the two are neighbors. The audience surrounding the dancer is entirely male. Someone is throwing money. That is resemblant of seedy dance bar shows - this performance, however, is taking place in broad daylight.
"Who is she?"
"That's Sapna Choudhary, she's famous in Haryana," the driver says. "Her brother tried to kill her with poison, she was just in the hospital".
I'm saddened but not shocked: so-called honor killings are not uncommon in the conservative corners of India. The driver and I lament the rough road of female performers. He explains that the general public automatically assumes a girl who dances like this is a prostitute.
"If she's going to be a prostitute, why bother to dance?" I protest.
"A famous dancer can charge much more."
In the court of public opinion, 21-year-old Sapna simply can't win.
The next day I google her to see more videos. "Haryanvi singer Sapna Choudhary attempts suicide," a headline reads.
According to the official version, Sapna was upset because of a lawsuit over some of her song lyrics, which were perceived to slander the Dalit caste, and subsequent online harassment. She had written a five-page suicide note, where she blamed the activist behind the lawsuit for her despair. Her mother and brother found her vomiting, and admitted her to hospital.
To have the clarity of mind to write such a lengthy, cohesive vendetta, and then drink rat poison, sounds unlikely to me. The Haryanvi audience at large isn't buying it, either. Sapna has since countersued the activist for online harassment, and he is now detained. Whether this was an attempted homicide or suicide, I suppose we'll never know. Either way, may this talented, young entertainer live long and prosper.
"Who is she?"
"That's Sapna Choudhary, she's famous in Haryana," the driver says. "Her brother tried to kill her with poison, she was just in the hospital".
I'm saddened but not shocked: so-called honor killings are not uncommon in the conservative corners of India. The driver and I lament the rough road of female performers. He explains that the general public automatically assumes a girl who dances like this is a prostitute.
"If she's going to be a prostitute, why bother to dance?" I protest.
"A famous dancer can charge much more."
In the court of public opinion, 21-year-old Sapna simply can't win.
The next day I google her to see more videos. "Haryanvi singer Sapna Choudhary attempts suicide," a headline reads.
According to the official version, Sapna was upset because of a lawsuit over some of her song lyrics, which were perceived to slander the Dalit caste, and subsequent online harassment. She had written a five-page suicide note, where she blamed the activist behind the lawsuit for her despair. Her mother and brother found her vomiting, and admitted her to hospital.
To have the clarity of mind to write such a lengthy, cohesive vendetta, and then drink rat poison, sounds unlikely to me. The Haryanvi audience at large isn't buying it, either. Sapna has since countersued the activist for online harassment, and he is now detained. Whether this was an attempted homicide or suicide, I suppose we'll never know. Either way, may this talented, young entertainer live long and prosper.
