The Mindset of Judging Accents: What’s a “Fake” Accent and Why Do We Care So Much?

As someone whose accent isn’t quite Indian and isn’t quite American, I feel uniquely positioned to speak about this. Over the years, I’ve lost count of the times people have dismissed my voice with comments like: “Stop talking in that fake accent” or “Where are you from?” Instead of engaging with the message I’m sharing, they zero in on the way I sound.

It made me wonder, what is it about an accent that captures so much attention? Why does it become the filter through which people decide whether my message is worthy, or worse, whether I am worthy enough to be saying it at all?

Growing Up Between Worlds

I grew up in India, and like anyone raised there, I spoke with an Indian accent. At twelve, I moved to the United States and found myself in an all-white American high school. I was the only person of color, and whenever I spoke in my Indian accent, I was often misunderstood.

So, my twelve-year-old brain did what it had to do to survive: it adjusted. By rolling my Rs differently or softening my “Vs,” I increased my chances of being understood. Speaking in an “American” accent felt unnatural, uncomfortable, and even embarrassing, but the pressure to meet the most basic human need, to be understood, outweighed everything else.

The Accent That Became My Own

Nearly two decades later, I can’t say my accent belongs to any one country. I joke with friends that it’s just my accent.Some days my Rs roll, other days they don’t rather it depends on who I’m around.

Recently, I learned there’s a word for this: code-switching. It’s when someone shifts their way of speaking, behaving, or expressing themselves depending on the situation. At first, I thought my experience was isolating. But realizing that millions of people worldwide navigate the same thing helped me see that this isn’t a flaw it’s a phenomenon and a survival skill the brain adopts.

Our Obsession with Accents

Still, society’s obsession with accents is hard to ignore. Some are celebrated, even revered, while others are mocked or dismissed.

But what is an accent, really? From a biological perspective, it’s muscle memory. Babies develop speech by mimicking the sounds around them, and their palate and tongue (one of the body’s strongest muscles) form patterns that solidify into speech. That’s all an accent is; patterns of sound shaped by where and how you grew up.

So why does it matter so much? Because accents reveal cultural identity, class, and social background. And here’s where racism and colonialism creep in: western accents such as the American and British are still perceived as more credible, more “professional,” more worthy of being listened to. This is colonialism at work, hidden in plain sight that our conditioning strugles to look past.

The Real Loss

The tragedy is that when people focus on accents, they miss the message. A person could be sharing something deeply insightful, but instead of engaging, listeners get stuck on their “Ws” and “Vs.” I’ve seen it happen to myself: troll comments about my accent show up faster than thoughtful critiques of my ideas.

And that’s not just my loss, it’s society’s loss. When we filter wisdom through the narrow lens of an accent, we rob ourselves of knowledge that could have expanded our perspective.

Two Takeaways

So, why am I writing this? For two simple reasons:

1. Embrace Your Accent

Your voice, exactly as it is deserves to be heard. Whether English is your first language or your fifth, whether you code-switch or not, don’t let the way you sound hold you back from speaking up. Share your ideas in that meeting. Record that video. Start that podcast. Your voice carries insights only you can give. Don’t let self-consciousness rob the world of them.

2. Stop Judging Others

If you’ve ever laughed at someone’s accent or assumed you’re smarter than them because they’re still learning, pause and reflect. This mindset exists even within communities of color. I’ve seen South Asians belittle each other for it. But superiority based on speech is not intelligence.

Instead, try listening past the accent. Because your next breakthrough, your next life-changing piece of wisdom, might come wrapped in a voice that doesn’t sound like yours. So in fact, there is no such thing as a “fake” accent.

Accents are just sound patterns. Wisdom, truth, and brilliance don’t carry one.