Analyzing Natasya’s Journey to Revolution
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The film, Breaking Boundaries by Dina Burlis follows Natasya Generalova. In the middle of her high school career, Natasya Generalova, a young Black and Russian woman, paved the way for many in the world of dance gymnastics. With the echoing sounds of her mother's voice and judgmental parents, Natasya pushed past beauty standards of the norm, whether it was her weight or her race as a Black girl in a white-dominated sport.
To begin, throughout the film we see instances of body shaming. Natasya’s mother tells her that the dance “dresses” with cut-outs on the side of her body are preferable because they make her look “skinny.” Meanwhile, parents at the competitions praise Natasya but still tell her she would do better if she were skinnier. This body shaming seeps into Natasya’s subconscious. This is seen at the film's end, where Natasya states that she constantly compares herself to the other girls at the competition and that they are “prettier” and “skinnier.” However, Natasya pushed past this sentiment and says that she learned to look inward and not compare herself to others, paving the way for other young girls.
Being the only Black girl in a predominantly white sport, Natasya inspires many other children of color who want to join the sport. The film constantly emphasizes that Natasya’s race sets her apart, and there are implicit biases against her. At the film's end, Natasya calls out the sport for being discriminatory. Even so, Natasya states that if she left the sport, other little girls who are Black and Brown wouldn’t have someone to look up to. In another part of the film, we see how a young girl goes up to Natasya, saying she didn’t think she could join the sport, but seeing someone who looked like her (Natasya) motivated her.
Natasya’s story resonates with me as I have also experienced body shaming in my own family. Despite this, I learn to be comfortable and confident in my own body. I also have grown up without many reflections of myself in society. My mother and the Filipino community she curated for me serve as my inspiration, just like how Natasya inspired other young girls. Therefore, Natasya has become her goal to be the person other young Black and Brown girls can look up to for inspiration and the person who pushes past the societal norms of body shaming.
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