8 Celebrities Who Faced Flak For Disrespecting Cultures

7 Jul 18 @ 1:33 PM

Is it flattery or mockery? The social media outrage against Coldplay's latest music video has been accused of misrepresenting India's culture and enforcing the stereotype that it's still a land of snake charmers and sadhu’s in saffron robes. This isn't the first time a celebrity has faced backlash for using familiar symbols to capture the essence of a foreign culture. We take a look at such celebs who incited criticism when they tried taking inspiration from other cultures.

Beyonce

The pop star was slammed for dressing up as a traditional desi-woman, sporting Indian jewellery and mehndi in Coldplay’s video. She played a Bollywood star, even though the video featured real film actor, Sonam Kapoor.

Sources: en.wikipedia

Beyonce
Rihanna

Pop star Rihanna was asked to leave a mosque in Abu Dhabi, after she was seen posing for pictures wearing her own interpretation of the burqa. The reason for her oust was that her outfit was `inconsistent with the sanctity of the mosque'.

Sources: en.wikipedia
Lady Gaga

Pop Star Lady Gaga tried trending `burqa swag' on the internet by wearing traditional Islamic attires on more than one occasion. Her extravagant interpretation of the ‘hijab’ wasn't appreciated and received flak every single time.

Sources: en.wikipedia
Gigi Hadid

The supermodel who casually shared a picture of her and her friends' hands decorated in mehndi tattoos on her photo-sharing account mentioning she was half Palestinian and hence the henna. Despite her accepting that she is part of this heritage, many netizens were quick to point out that she hadn't ever acknowledged her Palestinian roots in the past, or her stance.

Sources: en.wikipedia
Katy Perry

Dressed in a Geisha inspired cleavage-baring kimono, the singer was accused of misrepresenting Japanese culture and perpetuating harmful stereotypes of Asian women. She later justified her stance in a magazine interview, saying, “All I was trying to do is just give a very beautiful performance about a place that I have so much love for and find so much beauty in, and that was exactly where I was coming from, with no other thought besides it.“

Sources: en.wikipedia
Avril Lavigne

In the video of her song Hello Kitty, the Canadian pop star Avril randomly yells Japanese phrases alongside an army of Asian backup dancers, who have the same hairstyle, costumes and robot-like expressionless faces. It got slammed for being disrespectful towards Japanese culture, as the video marginalised Asian women and was, in general, racist.

Sources: en.wikipedia
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Khloe Kardashian

For her niece North West's first birthday bash, reality TV star Khloe wore the traditional feathered headgear to make a fashion statement. When her pictures circulated online, she came under fire from community heads who said it was insensitive of her to wear the sacred war bonnet.

Sources: en.wikipedia

Khloe Kardashian
Scott Disick

Reality star Scott Disick dressed as an Arab Sheikh for a Halloween party in 2014 and uploaded the picture on social media with caption, `Happy Halloween! We gettin' Arab Money tonight', which irked Muslims because it reinforced the ‘rich Arab' stereotype.

Sources: biography