'Never Have I Ever' tackles social and stereotypical stigmas using comic relief

Spoilers for 'Never Have I Ever'

Being a modern-day first-generation Indian American teenage girl comes with its own set of unique struggles. The series uses comedy to touch upon major stigmas across the Indian culture and how it affects young women trying to come into their own. Devi Vishwakumar, a sophomore in high school, has the mindset of most teenagers. She's curious about drugs, wants to up her social status with man candy and stray away from the identity of being "unf***able."

Born to cultural parents Nalini and Mohan, Devi was invested in the American world and grew up acclimatized to western culture. Moving to India in the year 2001, as the series says, is not a good time for brown people in the US. The series quickly touches upon the patronizing ideals that surround brown people in America, from them wanting to make it big in the western world but unable to completely let the west influence them. The coming-of-age narrative tackles social and stereotypical stigmas using comic relief quite elegantly — from its awkward interludes to the requirement of how an Indian woman should behave.

While comedy seems to rotate at the center of the series, it's obvious that the social and mental impacts of growing up young and brown are hinted at more than once. Devi's cousin Kamala is to go through an arranged marriage. Her colloquial Indian sayings annoy even Devi and her careerist western woman attitude is portrayed to be too much for her cultural Indian family to handle. Understandably, the series is meant for anyone that wants to watch but it will hit home for many young Indian women who are either going through this now or have gone through it already.

Having lost her father, Devi now lives in a household that is completely women-centric, which is considerably looked down upon. The series, in an excellent way, shows how Nalini tries to raise her daughter and Kamala in a way that would please her Indian roots and yet give them the freedom they seem to have a right to in the western world. From talking about how women are judged as marriage material based on if they can cook, clean and cater to their future husband to the fact that she had to explain to a westerner that smacking is acceptable in minority cultures — it seems that the series is not holding back on controversial topics. 

'Never Have I Ever' is currently streaming on Netflix.