Kerala chief secretary Sarada Muraleedharan has raised her voice against “being labelled black”, asking why the colour is vilified when in reality it is the “all pervasive truth of the universe”.
Sarada Muraleedharan’s post on Facebook set off a massive debate on social media about the issue surrounding gender and racial bias, with support from various people pouring in for her.
In her post, she recalled how since she was a child, she felt like a lesser person due to her dark complexion, till her own children helped her realise that “black is gorgeousness”.
Who is Sarala Muraleedharan?
A 1990 batch IAS officer, Muraleedharan took over the post of Kerala chief secretary from her husband Dr V Venu in September 2024.
She began her journey by heading the Kudumbashree Mission of the Kerala government for six years, from 2006 to 2012. The mission focused on empowering women, reducing poverty and emphasising on human rights perspectives.
Later, she served as the chief operating officer at the National Rural Livelihoods Mission of the Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India, till December 2013.
From 2014 to 2016, Muraleedharan served as the joint secretary in the ministry of Panchayati Raj, wherein she was tasked with conceptualising and promoting the gram panchayat development plans (GPDP) that put a premium on citizen participation via gram sabha.
She has also served as Trivandrum’s District Collector and has held positions in scheduled caste development, commissioner rural development, directorate collegiate education. Muraleedharan held the position of director of Modernising government programme, secretary to government of Kerala cultural affairs and secretary to government of Kerala social welfare.
Additionally, Muraleedharan served as the director general of the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) for more than two and a half years.
What is the controversy surrounding ‘black colour’?
In her Facebook post, Sarada Muraleedharan said having succeeded her husband at the position of Kerala chief secretary, her supervision of that chair was being compared with that of her husband’s wherein someone commented, “it is as black as my husband’s was white”.
Having felt hurt by that comment, the chief secretary decided to post on Facebook and address the matter. However, she later deleted it after being “flustered by the flurry of responses”.
Later, she once again reposted the same post, saying that several of her well-wishers told her that there were things that needed discussion. After being re-shared, her post garnered more than 1,000 reactions, comments and hundreds of re-shares.
Though she did not name who made that particular comment, Muraleedharan said she wanted to call out this particular instance as she was hurt by it.
Ever since she has replaced her husband as the chief secretary, Muraleedharan said, she has faced a “relentless parade” of comparisons with him and has become quite accustomed to it.
“It was about being labelled black (with that quiet sub-text of being a woman), as if that were something to be desperately ashamed of. Black is as black does. Not just black the colour, but black the ne’er do good, black the malaise, the cold despotism, the heart of darkness,” she said.
She questioned why the colour black was vilified, describing it as the “all-pervasive truth of the universe.” Muraleedharan noted how black can absorb anything, how it is the most powerful pulse of energy known to humankind, and how it is a dress that suits everyone and every occasion, be it theoffice or an evening outing.
Sharing a memory from her childhood, Muraleedharan recalled how, as a four-year-old, she asked her mother whether she could put her back in the womb and give birth to her again as “all white and pretty”.
The Kerala chief secretary said that she has lived buried under the narrative of not being a colour that was good enough for 50 years now. She admitted that she herself bought into the stance, by not seeing the beauty or value black colour carries and by being fascinated with fair skin.
She said that having felt like a lesser person, she realised that there was a need to compensate for this somehow. But her point of view completely changed, thanks to her children, who “glorified in their black heritage”.
“Till my children. Who glorified their black heritage. Who kept finding beauty where I notice none. Who though that black was awesome. Who helped me see. That black is beautiful. That black is gorgeousness. That I dig black,” Muraleedharan wrote in her Facebook post.
Notably, VD Satheesan, Leader of Opposition in the Kerala Assembly, shared her post and wrote, “Salute dear Sarada Muraleedharan. Every word you have written is heart-touching. It deserves to be discussed. I too had a dark-skinned mother.”
(with PTI inputs)