Residence: Ghaverdasanna Townhomes, Southside
Affiliation:
- Rakesh and Aditi Iyer
- Abdul-Quddus and Falak Chopra
Appearance: Kamala is around 5'1 and weighs approximately 110 lbs. Her skin tone is a dark tan, or as she likes to describe it, the colour of milk tea. Her face is long and narrow, as is her nose, upon which she sports a simple cubic zirconia stud. Her eyes are large and a dark brown, with long eyelashes. Her black hair is thick and straight, reaching the middle of back. She usually has it open or tied in a ponytail.
She likes to wear Indo-Pak clothes like shalwar kameez and kurtis. Kamala also wears Western-style clothes like full sleeve tops along with long flowing skirts or jeans. She isn't too picky about colours or patterns, usually just picking what's in front of her and clean. For footwear, she tends to wears sneakers or slip-on shoes.
She wears a loose scarf (dupatta) over her head, but she isn't too strict about covering her hair.
Background: Kamala was born in India, though her parents and grandparents were in fact Canadian. Her great-great grandfather and his wife had moved with their son to Canada back when North America was the ideal place to live. No one would have ever believed that India would be the place the family would ever return to. However, 2035 was the year Kamala's parents Jameel and Hira decided they would return to their roots and settle down in India. It helped that things seemed to be booming there. Her father moved first, securing a house in Dightings, and thereafter called his wife, his three-year-old son Zaki, and of course, his old seventy-five-year-old mother. She didn't actually want to come along, but there was really no one else who would take care of the old woman if she stayed in Canada. Hira had suggested an old folks' home but Jameel was quite opposed to it.
November 2038 was when Kamala was born. Her name was neither of her parents' choice, rather an imposition from her grandma who had read of a certain Marvel Muslim superhero. As a child she didn't have to face any poverty, growing up in a supposedly wealthy family. Just a simple search of the internet would show her how much nicer her house was compared to what she would have lived in if she had been in Canada, or for that matter, anywhere else in India. It was hard not to let things get to her, especially when her father and grandmother would spoil her and give her whatever she wished for. Not to say she was a bratty child, rather she was a naive one.
Her first encounter with harsh realities of life was when she started high school. She had been homeschooled for her primary education, but her parents decided she needed to go to school for her secondary education, especially since neither of them could teach her what she required to learn. At first Kamala was quite happy at school, meeting new people and making friends. However, this was where she came in close encounters with those of other religions, namely Hindus. As her parents and grandmother were Canadian, she had been taught to be politically correct at all times from a very young age. Unfortunately for her, it seemed many of her classmates didn't seem to see things the same way. Dealing with personal attacks based on her beliefs was something she had never even thought she would face. It didn't help that her dear old granny passed away just a few months after she started high school.
One thing Kamala did realize, however, was that the world was not as she had perceived it to be. While she didn't enjoy being made fun or even verbally abused, she came to understand that she had been living in a bubble wrapped world. Her parents insisted that they would take her out of school and send her someplace better, but she refused, deciding she wanted to stay in one place and complete her high school there.
It seemed Kamala's bubble wrapped world was already tearing apart from the inside, however. Hira discovered that Jameel wasn't being very faithful and had a mistress on the side. Despite him begging her to stay, she was too devastated and demanded to be sent back home to Canada. She wanted Kamala to come along with her but the latter couldn't think of having to restart life once more, especially when she was just a year away from completing high school. Her mother left in a rather embittered state, refusing to answer calls, texts or emails from her only daughter.
Life seemed to spin out of control for Jameel. His mistress had left him soon after, and now he was left with no one. He began to slack in his duties, giving into depression and drinking. Zaki was already out of the house, supposedly studying in college, though by now Kamala knew that wasn't the case; he was busy being a delivery boy for some underground group in Dhaar. It was up to her to take control of the household, though as a seventeen-year-old who wasn't too good at counting money, this was a rather difficult and overwhelming task.
It wasn't long before bills piled up. Kamala urged her father to do something about them. She wasn't sure
what he did, but it seemed for the time being things were getting back to normal. That is until it turned out that her father had actually borrowed money from the wrong sort of people. Loan sharks were soon at their door. With no money to pay them, their house was taken from under their feet, and Kamala and her father were literally on the streets for a whole day until she finally managed to contact Zaki. He lived with a roomie who he managed to convince to allow Kamala and their father to stay there until they managed to find a place of their own.
With no way to pay tuition and frankly having a rather imposing mess on her hands, Kamala left school, searching for jobs. It hurt her pride, but the easiest job she could find was that of being a housecleaner. Her dreams of studying and eventually working with big cats in Africa were pushed to the side as she trudged off to work for the next few months, saving up enough money so she could rent a room for herself and her father. While it was nice to have her brother close by, she didn't quite like the look of his roommate, nor did she enjoy the looks that came her way. Zaki had offered her some of his money, and though it was very tempting, she declined his aid, determined to make it one her own... until their father passed away. Kamala didn't have enough money for his shroud or coffin, so she left the burden of that upon Zaki.
At present, Kamala is renting a room in a house in Southside, hoping to make enough money to eventually get her own studio apartment.
Outlook and Motivations: Once upon a time, Kamala had her entire life planned before her. However, all that came to an end with the downfall of her parents marriage and her father's disastrous money problems.
She know looks at life in a very glass halfempty view, not expecting much goodness to come in her direction. According to her, it's the safest way so that she doesn't build up her hoped only to have them break into smithereens. And if something good
does come her way, then it's a boon that would be appreciated.
For the moment, standing on her own two feet and being free of debts and money problems in general is her number one priority. If she can manage that much, she will be a very happy individual.
Member
AlteredTundra,
Spoopy Scary
