Being Creative in A Close-Minded Space

Artwork By: Rishi Kumar

To be different is to be difficult. 

That’s something that is ingrained in your brain from a young age. Whether you really register that lesson or not just depends on how easy it was for you to be taught. 

You enter society and immediately begin adapting to the rules placed upon you. You walk on your feet, not crawl, because that is the norm. Your education is in their hands; as you read the books they tell you. You are encouraged to question, but only enough to stay within the limits of what is acceptable towards society. Anything more, and you enter the realm of being well… difficult. 

Essentially, you are the perfect mold that is being shaped in the standardized way that everyone else is. The “they”, in this case, are those that fit the mold expected of them and conform, and pressure others to do the same. On the other hand, there are those that wonder, defy, rebel, or simply can’t, even when they are supposed to.

Yet, control only goes so far. 

What happens when these groups of people collide? When the “they” can’t control those who are “different”? What do you do when you’re the one seen as “difficult”, but you’re just trying to stay true to yourself in a space that refuses to understand? 

Think back to when you were a child, and you had the whole world in front of you to explore and endless opportunities to tackle. 

What do you want to be when you grow up? 

For me, my first dream was to be an author. I remember the English class that sparked this like it was yesterday. We were practicing creative writing and reading, and we were given these notebooks. The top half of each page was blank for drawings, and the bottom half was lined for words. I was building some world or another, and imagining an epic story in my head. I was so consumed with writing it all down, before it slipped my mind, that I didn’t realize I had filled 8 pages just with words. No pictures or drawings. 

I couldn’t have been older than seven, and I knew in my heart that writing was something that no one could ever take from me. It was a passion that I wanted to turn into a career. Yet, life happens and the dreams of your childhood stay just that… seemingly childish. 

Stereotypically, many South Asian diasporic families are characterized to push their children to lean towards more traditional aspirations. They tell you that success is ensuring wealth and future prosperity. Happiness is, of course, a priority, but not as much as logic is. Your creative passion can be a hobby, but not much else. I mean, you’re not gonna make some actual money or something out of yourself from doing that. 

At least, that’s what I was told.

So growing up, I felt like anything worthwhile I had to say, had already been said. Or worse, that I couldn’t write how I dreamed I could. Maybe that’s why I never actually took myself or my writing seriously. 

I still don’t. 

However, creativity is the root of every great innovation. Every powerful artist possesses the ability to influence. And, to influence is power. But, power is something that society wants to limit. Those that think differently or can’t follow the perfect formula that has been laid out to them are often ridiculed and feared by society. For, what society can’t predict is what they can’t control, and that lack of control renders them powerless. 

That’s a lesson that you learn later in life; the importance of your voice. 

I never considered the significance of my voice, and how the way I say those worthwhile things may be different, and just as important, not because of what is being written, but how. 

Maybe those things have been said before, but not heard. Or maybe it’s been said and heard, but my voice hasn’t, and that’s enough for me to keep writing. 

Your voice matters, and that’s enough for you to learn to define it and say what you need to say. Maybe someone needs to hear your voice or maybe no one does, but it’s still your voice, so shout it out to the rooftops. You may be different, and will probably be labeled “difficult” for being so, but if you don’t speak for yourself and be true to yourself, then who will? 

At least, that’s what I’ve come to understand.

And, that’s what Cosmos Creatives aims to do, to be a place for artists to define their voice and reach their fullest potential. A space where artists, writers, and creatives can shape their voices, own their narratives, and pursue possibility without permission. 

This blog is my first step. 

Remember, if being different makes you difficult, then so be it. The world needs more difficult people anyways, because it also makes them unforgettable. 

xoxo, 

Khushi Kumari