On Dec. 29, American Girl Doll announced their newest Girl of the Year doll, set to launch in stores on January 1st, 2023. In a much-anticipated announcement, Kavi Sharma—the Indian-American, broadway loving doll from Metuchen, New Jersey—received praise from the American Girl audience, both young and old. She is the first South Asian girl of the year, a huge milestone for representation among young Indian-American girls.
Kavi represents both American and Indian cultural elements, as she loves singing, dancing, and playing the keyboard, as well as celebrating traditional Indian holidays and pursuing Indian classical dance. Her story—as written by Varsha Bajaj in the accompanying book “It’s Showtime, Kavi” coming out in March 2023—details her struggle to find balance between her various passions. She inspires girls to find a balance through yoga and leaning on family for support.
Bajaj expressed her excitement in helping craft Kavi’s background, saying she intended for Kavi’s story to shed light on representation among young South Asian girls. “Stories can be both mirrors and windows, allowing readers to see themselves and others who are different from them,” said Bajaj. Although Indian culture has so much depth, Bajaj tried to incorporate as much tradition into the story as possible through holidays, food, clothing, and various languages.
The Girl of the Year collection also comes with various accessories to display Kavi’s passions. She has a backstage set complete with everything she would need to prepare for a singing and dancing show, as well as clothing to show off her culture and interests: a Bollywood dance costume, yoga outfit, and performance outfit.
Raina Bandekar ‘23 commented on the release of the Girl of the Year, expressing excitement for the news. She noted how it was important to understand how American Girl is tailored towards young girls in America, and these dolls help to represent all the different passions and interests that the younger generation has. With the release of Kavi, Bandekar mentioned how Indian American girls could see themselves as truly American, even when they might physically look different. She said, “I know seven year old Raina would be so excited to see a doll that looked like her.”
While Kavi Sharma is a model for newfound representation in American Girl, she is not the first South Asian doll to come out. Sonali Matthews came out in 2009 as a companion doll to the Girl of the Year Chrissa Maxwell. However, Kavi is the first South Asian Girl of the Year, allowing people to truly shed light on her story which many young girls across America relate to.
Personally, when I found out about the news, I was ecstatic, as I grew up loving American Girl Dolls and always longed to see dolls that looked liked me and had the same culture as me. And while I did not get that experience then, I am proud that Kavi serves as the representation for young Indian-American girls now.
Sources:
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/american-girl-makes-history-first-south-asian-girl-year-doll-rcna63717https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/living/story/meet-american-girls-2023-girl-year-making-history-95729030