how anthony didn't swoon n fall flat on the forest floor when kate stepped over a log and showed a bit of thigh i will never know

re: your feelings on the name Kathani.

I agree that Kathani is not a real name -- in fact, that's my primary issue with it as well. It's not traditional by any means and the closest approximation I can find is "kathan" which literally means sentence in Sanskrit. So no, I don't like the name itself. I much prefer Katyayani (another name for Durga) -- if one wants to keep the "Kat" at the beginning -- or even Kalyani (in fact, I much prefer Kalyani).

But as to your point on it being an unsavory example of Indians having to assimilate in foreign countries like Great Britain, I don't find that aspect as troubling as it is historically accurate. Our ancestors were forced to give up their culture when they moved, whether out of necessity or desire for future economic opportunity. We still have to give up large portions of it today. My first and last names get mispronounced every single day, despite my best attempts to correct them (I live in the US, by the way).

Given that Mary in the show was raised by English parents and seems Christian, it makes sense that she would prefer to give Kate an Anglicized name, even if that name is not Kate's birth name. I find that aspect of Kate's upbringing interesting -- moreso than Edwina, it was Kate who was truly caught between two worlds. As an Indian immigrant, I heavily relate to that aspect of her character and I enjoy seeing it explored (respectfully) in fanfiction. It makes me uncomfortable when people arbitrarily dismiss it.

Was the Indian representation in Bridgerton good? God no. They completely fucked up the background of the Sharmas with the last name (North Indian), the terms they called their parents and each other (Amma/Appa - South Indian, Bon - Bengali, Didi - North Indian), and it seems like they know how to speak Marathi and Hindi which would point to a North Indian/Maharashtrian background but is supported by very scant information about the Sharma family background. Ultimately, it was culture soup and I hated it. But I don't understand why it's a crime to keep Kate's Indian name in fanfiction and have her background fleshed out more.

I want her to be a non-Anglicized Hindu Indian simply because that is what I am and being able to imagine her background makes me happy. Is that wrong?

No it's not wrong. It would just involve ignoring a portion of my family's history I'm personally not able to and would rather Kate have a white name and be from Somerset.

"Our ancestors were forced to give up their culture when they moved, whether out of necessity or desire for future economic opportunity. We still have to give up large portions of it today..." It's true to some degree (but not if say, you moved from India in the nineties vs. like, the 1800s where it would have been forced on you. And progress means that we wouldn't have to give up our culture in the name of economic opportunity), but do you not find that disheartening? I'd rather remain defiant to whatever degree I can rather than just be like "oh well we were bound to assimilate anyway". I refuse to give up my name, my religion, my culture, and my language and will do my utmost best to pass the more vital aspects of my culture onto my children. And I have the privilege to be able to do that while someone like Kate likely didn't, which is why I personally can't see myself in her.

Regarding giving Kate an anglicized first name and a part of the diaspora having anglicized last names because their parents gave it to them or they're Christian, yes, I mentioned that when I said in my original post "This is obviously discounting those who were born with "white" names for whatever reason...". But Kate was not given an anglicized name upon birth; her birth name is apparently Kathani.

And look, as a modern child of Indian immigrants, unlike you, I can't imagine myself in Kate's shoes because that would be ignoring my history. I know the history of women like Kitty Kirtpatrick and Helene Bennett who were forced to give up their names and religion upon moving to England. I know that in the year Kate and her family immigrated the British East India company were waging war against the Marathas, the Nepalese, and continuing to annex parts of the subcontinent via violence, genocide, and war in an effort to subjugate the Indian people. I personally differentiate myself from someone like Kate because and can't really see the my modern immigrant experience reflected when I watch someone like her on TV. I see Kate as a woman of the past, and someone whose background was not given the respect it was due. Rather than twist my mind into imagining a racial utopia I just can't bring myself to, and because this story was supposed to be primarily romance, I'd have rathered her be Kate Sheffield from Somerset, played by Simone Ashley.