Anna Delvey + Immigrant Families - Why There is a Little Bit of “Anna” Inside All of Us

Did anyone else find Inventing Anna fascinating? I did. Despite it being a Shondaland show, I could not stop watching once I started. Who was this girl and how did she get away with everything she did? 
So I am not at ALL saying she was right about the way she went about things, but the line her attorney said really resonated with me. "There's a little bit of Anna inside all of us". While MOST of us do not steal money, con their friends, bounce from hotel to hotel, I could understand where her wide-eyed NYC dream came from and why she was fighting so hard. 
Being an immigrant myself, my family came here with nothing when I was three years old and my brother was a few months. We made a life for ourselves and we saw what it was like when my dad briefly lost his job, when we constantly moved around as young kids, and just remember the time where we just did not have a lot. From that stemmed our "American Dream" -- whatever we set our mind to, we can do it. 
And then I saw NYC and immediately fell in love. All of this to say, as an immigrant, I came here to have opportunities that I may never have had in Dubai, India or anywhere else. And seeing Anna, I kind of understood her hustle. I know some people can't see despite the cons but to me I feel like she was so determined with her vision that she could not see anything else. 
Let's think about it this way for a minute... in order to trick all these influential people she had to be super confident and she had to want it badly. Her business plan was not half-assed, it was fully developed from what we saw and her idea was not bad at all. I think the opportunity and the bright, shiny lights of NYC may have contributed to her decision making. 
Coming from an immigrant family, the pressure is always on to do "something great". You go to a family party, and all everyone talks about is what their kids are up to and how they can one up another set of parents. Don't get me wrong, I love my culture but I think the important part to note is how toxic and scary it can be to fail in this environment. You almost want to do anything else but fail. 
So thus, as immigrant children, there is a little bit of Anna inside all of us, fighting to do something big. I am curious to know what your thoughts were on this series! 
Want to write your own pop culture editorial? DM us on instagram or submit your own editorial on an influential character or film - email our creative director Swati, at swati.chakraborty@kahanidigital.com!
Previous
Previous

9 South Asian Beauty Brands You Should Know About

Next
Next

The Patil Twins: Cultural Performance in Harry Potter