Brown Girls is a web series written by Fatima Asghar and produced/directed by Sam Bailey for Open TV (an independent web distribution platform for entertainment centered on intersectional stories) that debuted in 2017. The series explores the friendship between two women of color: Leila, a queer South Asian-American writer, and Patricia, a sex-positive Black-American musician. In this scene, Leila comes out to her older sister, and her sister replies that she has known Leila was queer since she was a child. Leila’s sister tells her that she is proud of her and that “All that hiding is going to kill you.” The sisters then joke about how their aunt would disown Leila if she found out, but Leila’s sister reassures her that they have lots of non-biological family and that she is not alone. Leila is surprised and touched by her sister’s acceptance.

discussion

What does Leila tell her sister in this video?

How does Leila’s sister react to this news? Is she happy? Sad? Surprised?

Why is Leila surprised by her sister’s reaction? What can you infer about the
complexities of being a queer South-Asian American woman?

How does this coming out scene compare to other coming out narratives you have seen
depicted in the media? How might this scene be different if it were on a prime time
television show rather than a web series?