My theory is that they are indeed Indian, but have had so much time since Dios' fall that they could afford to spend a great deal of time in Japan and learn the nuances of culture and language. For Akio and Anthy, it wouldn't be as hard as it would be for normal mortals. I mean, we're talking demi-gods and demi-goddesses here!

But yes, generally, the heritage of the Himemiya family is left up to the discretion of the viewer.

Well I think it's something we just assume. There really isn't any way to prove it, nor is there a way to disprove it. The only way I could think of to get the real answer is to ask Ikuhara ourselves, though I really doubt I'd be the one to do that.

Akio and Anthy aren't the first Indian characters to appear in Saito's work, and as I understand it, she did the original character designs. Changes were made in transition to the series, mostly involving hair color and uniforms, but the original call was hers.

Given that, I think a lot of the motivation was just plain old 'this is exotic'. I would ignore the names, since it's rare that non-Japanese characters appear in anime anyway--the only example I can think of is Asuka, and most of her name is Japanese. They're definitely meant to be taken for Indian; a dark skin tone alone would be ambiguous but they specify it with bindi/tilak. When you think of how anime is put together, it becomes kind of necessary to use skin tone to create exotic--an American/European character won't look much different from a Japanese one in that animation or manga style, and indeed whenever that's done it has to be made a specific plot point or people forget the character's not Japanese. They could have made the characters black, but there again in anime style that usually requires changing how the faces are drawn and such. Indian just makes sense--the style can stay, it's exotic coloring, and the bindi is a tell-tale marking.

I think in the end it's just that and that they're mystical and shit.

lily.chou.chou wrote:

Here's a picture for reference: http://www.ohtori.nu/galerie/v/series/a … 6.png.html

I've got a question: Who actually drew that picture?

I think my very first Utena question ever was why they looked Indian, and this thread already mentions all the ideas I have ever heard. India has myriads of deities and demi-gods and one advantage with making them Indian is that the viewer would not spend time trying to figure out which Japanese deity they might be.

It may also be a way to signal that they are exiles and outsiders and also perhaps possess secrets that are simultaneously dark and profound. It may also be a shortcut way of saying ANCIENT and perhaps by extension ADULT and DECADENT.

I'm still floundering.

Fixed it.

satyreyes wrote:

The issue of the stereotyping is actually a plot point, and it's handled rather interestingly.  The show is light fare but tasty -- it's by Yoshitoshi ABe, who's better known for his similarly philosophical (but heavier) Haibane Renmei and Serial Experiments Lain -- and worth a watch.

Off topic, but ABe had nothing to do with Lain's storyline - he did nothing but character designs based on already existing descriptions. In NieA_7 he did some suggestions to the characterizations, but still had little to nothing to do with the script. The only series he has actually written plot to is Haibane Renmei. The only person present in making all ABe's series was the producer Yasuyuki Ueda, who deserves a lot more credit for the concepts of the shows, with the exception of Haibane Renmei which he produced as a personal favour to ABe.

As for the topic itself, I think that there's the straightforward explanation and symbolical explanation, both which may be correct. Namely that Indians simply are exotic to the Japanese, and Akio and Anthy are supposed to feel foreign and special. I suspect that the symbolical explanation may be the Indian-originated concept of Avatar, connecting to my belief that Akio and Anthy are supposed to be abstractions in flesh - the duality of male and female, sky and earth, Yin and Yang, Prince and Witch, but corrupted and incomplete.

not to derail the thread, but Integra is, in both manga and anime, very very British. And not at all Indian.

Actually her mother was Indian, if I remember correctly. Remember that India used to be a British Colonial Territory. She has duskier skin than the rest of the cast because of this.

Last edited by Lightice (09-13-2009 02:40:35 PM)

Lightice wrote:

not to derail the thread, but Integra is, in both manga and anime, very very British. And not at all Indian.

Actually her mother was Indian, if I remember correctly. Remember that India used to be a British Colonial Territory. She has duskier skin than the rest of the cast because of this.

.... wait, what? Hellsing trivia I don't know? Can you point me to this?

Granted, I don't believe that her 'duskier skin', if that's even the case (which I don't know for sure because I don't have immediate access to the manga or DVD's and I don't want to go searching right now), means much of anything.

I can't think of another anime which has Indian characters.

First Gundam's Lalah Sune


I kind of wonder whether or not certain aspects of Anthy's character design were in any way influenced or inspired by Lalah. Gundam's been a pretty big phenomenon in Japan since the mid-80's (though at first it was an unbelievable failure), and the large, pupil-less green eyes, updone hair, and ethereal, almost non-human and surreal natures they both share make me feel there might be more than just coincidence at work.

Plus like Anthy/some Utena stuffs in general, Lalah has been shown to "come back from the dead" in a way.

I never saw Skuld as Indian.

Lady Chani wrote:

Urd may be more construed as such, but I can see the confusion. They all have forehead markings, which may be alluding to the mysticism of India. Or something.

Nope. The facial markings signify divinity in anime - literally every time you see a god in anime, they have something on their face. It originates from Kabuki theatre, I think. Urd, Skuld and Belldandy (Verthandi) are supposed to be the Norns of Norse mythology, so they don't really have anything at all to do with India, but for some reason that pic brian linked has Skuld in Indian, or maybe Middle-Eastern garb, playing a sitar. I wonder if it's official or fanart.

I definitely think they are meant to be Indian, perhaps to make them seem more mystical, ancient, or exotic, and I think it has something to do with them both being so desirable to the opposite sex. I wonder if it's common in Japan for Indian people to be seen as attractive? Or maybe just the opinion of the person who made it.

Part of it might be stereotypes about dark skinned people. I remember reading an essay where the writer described how, in almost every romantic comedy or love story you'll see on film, the male actor is darker-skinned than the female one. Part of this is nature (women have naturally lighter skin) but part of it is that women are more attracted to dark skin than men, hence "the fairer sex" and "tall, dark and handsome." Or something to that effect. That's sort of a nice underlining of the double standard: while Akio's skin makes him sexy, Anthy's makes her "different."