Content warning: This article contains references to emotional and physical abuse as well as suicide. If you or someone you know needs assistance, please, contact your physician, go to your local ER, or call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255), or message the Crisis Text Line at 741741. Both programs provide free, confidential support 24/7.

Asian Americans and, in particular, Asian American women, are among the least likely to seek mental health support. Advocate, writer, and Mochi alumna Michelle Yang is one reason that might be changing. Not shying away from the stigma of mental health, Yang’s memoir is titled “Phoenix Girl: How A Fat Asian With Bipolar Finds Love,” and is the perfect read for May, which is both Asian American Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander Heritage Month and Mental Health Awareness Month.

Her story is uniquely intersectional and largely untold even as representations of Asian Americans continue to prosper. Being fat, bipolar, and desiring love is often unspoken about in our communities and in America as a whole. Yang’s writing is a salve for those who do not feel seen by current narratives that hide the mental and psychological pressures of being Asian American.

Starting by introducing her ethnically Chinese family with roots in Incheon, South Korea, the memoir follows her and her family as they immigrate to Atlanta, Georgia when she is 9 years old and as they move several more times across the United States until she finds herself in Phoenix, Arizona helping out at her family’s Chinese restaurant. The memoir explores her struggles as a teenager with her appearance and racism, as well as her father’s abusive nature, her eventual hospitalization, and, later, her adult dating life. Despite the subject matter, Yang always voices a hopefulness and a desire to be seen, to be loved, and to not hide who she is. 

Mochi Magazine talked to the writer and advocate about Asian American families’ silence around…

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Before Moana sang and sailed into the spotlight, there was Lilo — a misfit 6-year-old Hawaiian girl with a camera, a ragtag doll Scrump, and a whole lot of feelings.

I remember when “Lilo & Stitch” was released in the early 2000s: For a 7-year-old, it was so exciting to see a fresh Disney film with a new take on aliens and in a new setting like Kauaʻi, Hawaiʻi. It’s a place I had never been to; and although the islands are a well-known tourist spot, it is a place that many Americans and Asian Americans do not get the privilege and honor of visiting. 

To see Lilo — this little girl who is only 6 years old — struggle with social relations, her new family dynamic, and loneliness was really relatable to a homeschooled girl like me who didn’t seem to fit in and didn’t really feel like her parents understood her. Given that growing up, most Disney movies weren’t allowed in my house because they were about princesses and my mom didn’t like that, “Lilo & Stitch” was a great alternative (in addition to “Hercules” from 1997 — yeah, my mom really didn’t like Disney).  

For those who haven’t seen the original (come on now, where have you been?), the film follows Lilo who lives with her 18-year-old sister Nani after the loss of their parents. Understanding Lilo’s loneliness, Nani brings Lilo to a pet shelter to adopt a dog, not knowing that the new pet they have taken home is not a canine but actually an evil space genius’ Experiment 626, a genetically engineered alien life-form. Chaos ensues.

As an adult rewatching the animated film, I love the artistic style that feels very much on brand for Disney’s hand drawn 2D worlds, but just a bit more colorful with the watercolor backgrounds incorporated. As a single mother to a 6-year-old, I see the struggle of Nani, who is suddenly thrust into the role of caregiver, doing her best to keep her family together under the scrutiny of…

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“Rule Breakers,” a new drama film by Academy Award-winning producer Bill Guttentag, explores the remarkable journey of a teacher named Roya Mahboob, (played by Nikohl Boosheri), and the four determined Afghan girls, or “dreamers,” with whom she forms a successful robotics team in the war-torn nation. Mahboob, who became Afghanistan’s first female tech CEO, was named one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential People in 2013.

Since the decades-long war in Afghanistan ended a couple years ago, Afghan girls and women have been set back to the late 1990s when the Taliban banned them from school, making Afghanistan the only country in the world to enact such a ban. Before this happened, Afghan girls and women were attending schools and colleges, working in parliament, hospitals, the beauty industry, music, and other fields. 

Strict rules with harsh punishments have stunted the progress they made over the past decades when they held high-level positions in Afghan society, leading to “widespread reports” of depression, increased hospital visits for mental health, and recent suicides, according to the U.N.

From Vision to Victory: Building a Robotics Team Amid Conflict

As the film opens with volatile road scenes, the viewers are informed of the dangers looming around a landscape marred by war. 

Mahboob says, “We are looking for four girls who would like to learn about robotics and compete with teams from other countries. It’ll show Afghan girls in a new light.” With this invitation, an urgent search for just the right girls begins.

When the team is finally assembled after many visits to different homes, Mahboob gets to work teaching them robotics, a skill she herself painstakingly learned despite the challenges she faced growing up in Afghanistan. They learn quickly and respect their teacher. The girls overcome every obstacle that comes up in their journey — whether it is visa denials, cultural…

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On a sunny Fresno afternoon, a Hmong elder beckons and shows her daughter which plant in her garden is medicinal and how to best prepare it with chicken soup. With her guidance, the daughter learns cultural knowledge that has been passed down for generations through only word of mouth.

One day, the daughter may also pass down what she’s learned to her child in the way of oral tradition. This is one of the main cultural practices that the Hmong people grew up with in their communities, dating back over thousands of years from China and even after many had fled to Southeast Asia to avoid further political persecution and the banning of Hmong language.

From the mid-1970s to 2004, hundreds of thousands of Hmong immigrated from Laos and Thailand to the United States due to their part in the Vietnam War. The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency had recruited the Hmong to help fight alongside American soldiers against the North Vietnamese and communist Pathet Laos. Today, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, there are now about 360,000 Hmong Americans across the country.

“For the people who are not familiar with the Hmong people, we have a history that’s really tied with displacement, and, with displacement comes the inability for us to be in one place,” said Dan Yang, the director and camera operator for the media platform Across the Mountains. “That’s just woven into our history, but that also means that we place a really big dependence and big emphasis on oral history. And so, you’ll see that when written, woven into our paj ntaub.”

However, despite the increase in population count of Hmong residing in the United States, there has been an ongoing decline in oral tradition being practiced in Hmong American communities. 

What is Oral Tradition?

Oral tradition is a system for preserving and sharing cultural history, knowledge, customs, and beliefs through speech from parent to children and onward across family generations. Folklore indicates that the Hmong once…

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Content warning: This article contains references to suicide and eating disorders. If you or someone you know needs assistance, please, contact your physician, go to your local ER, or call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255), or message the Crisis Text Line at 741741. Both programs provide free, confidential support 24/7.

Unlike most Chinese families, my dad took care of all things in the household.

Every day of my early years began and ended with his cooking. I would come home from school to a rhythmic “chop-chop” on his wooden cutting board and the distinct smell of his meal-prepping: oily, but not unhealthy; generously seasoned, but never with MSG.

I remember picking at my dinner at home in Shanghai — a bowl of untouched rice, topped with neatly chopped cabbages.

“What are you doing all day, locked up in your room?” my dad had asked, in an obviously discontent tone. I dared not look up. Instead, I continued examining the uniform cut of each cabbage stem and counting pepper specks.

“What on earth do you want?” he raised his voice, slamming chopsticks on the dining table.

Tears rolled down my cheeks as I gathered the courage to respond.

“I want to kill myself, Dad,” I said. I was 17.

My dad cried with me, a rare scene indeed for an Asian family. His tears immediately dried mine. Ashamed of worrying him, I quickly regained composure, but I kept this a secret from my mom, who was away on a business trip. They were both doing the best they could, I thought; I needed to fix this myself. 

I ended up seeking help afterward, but an unprofessional therapist only worsened the struggle. I dreaded every session, where I was forced to unpack my psyche with sandbox toys and watercolor prints. I never knew what to say, but that didn’t stop her from making me.

A few years later, social media inflicted anorexic tendencies. For a while, I prided myself upon disciplining my stomach. I felt powerful, in control. I lied about having a tiny…

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“Night two, bitches,” Charli xcx yells as “365 featuring shygirl” bumps in the background. 

Fresh off of two back-to-back weekends at Coachella, the English pop singer of Scottish and Indian descent kicked off her 2025 Brat Arena Tour with two sold out nights in Austin, Texas. Producer and songwriter Finn Keane joined her to open the show. 

Though Charli’s album “Brat” was released nearly a year ago in June, its impact on pop culture has been immense. Charli describes the album as, “me, my flaws, my fuck ups, my ego all rolled into one.” 

More specifically, “You’re just like that girl who is a little messy and likes to party and maybe says some dumb things sometimes, who feels herself but maybe also has a breakdown, but kind of parties through it, is very honest, is very blunt, a little bit volatile, does dumb things. But it’s brat,“ she explains in a TikTok interview clip, 

In some ways, to be “brat” is to be human. And seeing a South Asian woman accept herself in this way feels particularly refreshing. Plus, the adoption of “brat” as an attitude, vibe, and lifestyle led to the “brat summer” trend that spawned off into many a meme and remix, and even the famous “kamala IS brat” post. The Brat Arena Tour began at the end of last year in the United Kingdom before extending to other dates, including the U.S. leg. 

A Seamless Show

At 8:58 p.m., “Bitter Sweet Symphony” by The Verve begins to play. As the song fades away a few minutes later, the lights dim and begin to flash as Charli’s introduction blares across the venue. 

The singer’s entrance isn’t grand. But when she lifts up the bright green “brat” curtain that’s dropped from the ceiling in between beats to loud cheers and steps forward into view, the crowd goes wild. For the rest of the night, the energy stays that way.

Even her exit at the end of the night is a little unceremonious. She stays on stage for her video outro, but quietly walks off as the…

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“Holy Night: Demon Hunters”

Movie
May 2, 2025

When a devil-worshipping criminal network in Seoul throws the city into crisis, the police beg a trio of demon hunters known as “Holy Night” to help. Armed with powers, the group is led by Ba Woo (Ma Dong-Seok), who has supernatural strength, whereas Sharon (Seohyun) detects and exorcises demons, and Kim-kun (David Lee) supports them both. When psychiatrist Jung-Won (Kyung Soo-Jin) finds his sister Eun-Seo (Jung Ji-So) is possessed by a demon, the demon hunters have to fight a powerful force to save her.

You can catch this South Korean movie in theaters starting May 2. 

“I’m Beginning to See the Light”

Movie
May 2, 2025

When former trumpeter Ezra retreats to a remote lighthouse in his grief, he meets and bonds with a troubled nomad and a mysterious woman. When tensions rise, the three of them must confront their unaddressed grief, jealousy, and even hope of redemption.

Featuring Jamie Chung, this movie will be out in theaters on May 2.

“Poker Face: Season 2”

TV series
May 8, 2025

“Poker Face” is a mystery-of-the-week series following Charlie (Natasha Lyonne), who has an extraordinary ability to determine when someone is lying. She hits the road with her Plymouth Barracuda and, with every stop, encounters a new cast of characters and strange crimes she can’t help but solve. 

Premiering May 8, “Poker Face” is streaming on Peacock. Check out these celebrity guest stars in Season 2: Lauren Tom, Awkwafina, Geraldine Viswanathan, John Cho, Kumail Nanjiani, and Sherry Cola.

“The Royals”

Limited Series
May 9, 2025

When Aviraaj Singh, the polo-playing, pleasure-seeking party prince, heir to the royal throne of Morpur, meets high-functioning, tightly wound, ace CEO Sophia Kanmani Shekhar, sparks and insults fly as they reluctantly come together to save his royally dysfunctional family from…

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