The following content is purely a figment of my observation and is directly and intentionally connected to real life situations and people. So, if someone is offended, well....don't take it personal, relax, take a chill pill...
Ok, after that loosely-construed disclaimer, on which I took a painstaking, laborious, thoughtful, five whole minutes to come up with....on to the main topic.
I've waited for a while to ramble on what i've seen, heard and reasonably projected observations of my homeland and here it goes.
On a serious note...
- India can best be described as an old, rusty but still-working machine. Looks messy and cranky on the outside, but once you're in and get settled, one comes to realize that there's a vague sense of order and things do go in a strange, but definite pattern. I guess that's what keeps us going on and not disintegrated already into anarchy.
- A country that's only 63 years young has still a viable, democractic government, seems amazing to me. There's a lot more "direct freedom" here i.e you can do anything you want here, if you have the money or clout, even if that means flaunting rules or laws. Not an ideal scenario, but think it's way better than a non-democratic option.
- I find it surprising that the people:task ratio is quite high in India, even with so much talk of modernization. Construction sites, shops, restaurants everywhere, it's more labor-intensive and less mechanized.
- Women's rights have noticeably changed across the country, which is wonderful. Women in work place is not rare anymore, and there's considerable support from the family front. This tranformation has been quite rapid the last 10 years.
- One thing that saddens though that the "aping the west" syndrome can be found everywhere, especially the young, which has sapped the core and heart of what India is all about. We've not gotten out of the shackles of colonialism yet and are definitely losing our identity very fast. Not something I'm proud of.
- I love the fact that political news is actively followed by most of the population, urban or rural. The electorate is large and people are very cued in on who their local, state and central representatives are. It doesn't mean they have the will to change the political climate or situation, but the knowledge factor is much to be accounted for, both in literate and illiterate circles.
- Old age homes are alarmingly increasing, especially in cities. If parents are financially and willingly chose the option, not a bad choice given the crime rate for seniors living alone. But, hearing about abandonment, and the pain of parents whose children don't bother to visit or even turn up for the cremation and the last rites....it's cruel and inhuman behavior.
On a lighter note....
-This is a nation of 1 billion human inhabitants, so the possiblities of variations in human nature is mind-boggling. There's a wider net of what's normal behaviour and the really bizarre ones. What's accepted as a social norm and what isn't. Ah, somehow I feel very comforted by that thought.
- It doesn't matter if you're born and brought up here. If you've left India in your 20's and return after a while, it does feel different and takes sometime to get used to, partly because of the time warp that we're all stuck in. You'd think all those expensive and faithful vacations taken back home, the bollywood movies and songs, the Indian cultural associations that you've been a member would help, but sadly.....no. Worse, you might even get infected by a new disease called "homeland cultural shockitis".
- It's second to our nature to love talking, sometimes without any necessity to convey any message in the conversation. There's no urgency in getting to any point now or in the near future. We can look for subtleties and nuances all we want, but sometimes there's genuinely nothing.
- On the other hand, if there's any message to be given, it's never direct. The same kind of long-winding sentences are doled out, with lots of cues/hints dropped, to be picked up and acted upon. If not, a lot of egos get popped and you'll be left clueless as to what went wrong where, when and how.
- More on talking...we like to exaggerate things to what ought to be. Idealistic speech is most welcome and appreciated. They don't have to be followed through or practised though. For e.g, someone asks you to help them. Now, you have to say,"I wish, I want, I really want to do (blah, blah) for you." It's not expected that you have to or as if you're going to do it anyways, but.........you've to say it about a million times. Arrgh, this drives me nuts, really.
To be contd...
Ok, after that loosely-construed disclaimer, on which I took a painstaking, laborious, thoughtful, five whole minutes to come up with....on to the main topic.
I've waited for a while to ramble on what i've seen, heard and reasonably projected observations of my homeland and here it goes.
On a serious note...
- India can best be described as an old, rusty but still-working machine. Looks messy and cranky on the outside, but once you're in and get settled, one comes to realize that there's a vague sense of order and things do go in a strange, but definite pattern. I guess that's what keeps us going on and not disintegrated already into anarchy.
- A country that's only 63 years young has still a viable, democractic government, seems amazing to me. There's a lot more "direct freedom" here i.e you can do anything you want here, if you have the money or clout, even if that means flaunting rules or laws. Not an ideal scenario, but think it's way better than a non-democratic option.
- I find it surprising that the people:task ratio is quite high in India, even with so much talk of modernization. Construction sites, shops, restaurants everywhere, it's more labor-intensive and less mechanized.
- Women's rights have noticeably changed across the country, which is wonderful. Women in work place is not rare anymore, and there's considerable support from the family front. This tranformation has been quite rapid the last 10 years.
- One thing that saddens though that the "aping the west" syndrome can be found everywhere, especially the young, which has sapped the core and heart of what India is all about. We've not gotten out of the shackles of colonialism yet and are definitely losing our identity very fast. Not something I'm proud of.
- I love the fact that political news is actively followed by most of the population, urban or rural. The electorate is large and people are very cued in on who their local, state and central representatives are. It doesn't mean they have the will to change the political climate or situation, but the knowledge factor is much to be accounted for, both in literate and illiterate circles.
- Old age homes are alarmingly increasing, especially in cities. If parents are financially and willingly chose the option, not a bad choice given the crime rate for seniors living alone. But, hearing about abandonment, and the pain of parents whose children don't bother to visit or even turn up for the cremation and the last rites....it's cruel and inhuman behavior.
On a lighter note....
-This is a nation of 1 billion human inhabitants, so the possiblities of variations in human nature is mind-boggling. There's a wider net of what's normal behaviour and the really bizarre ones. What's accepted as a social norm and what isn't. Ah, somehow I feel very comforted by that thought.
- It doesn't matter if you're born and brought up here. If you've left India in your 20's and return after a while, it does feel different and takes sometime to get used to, partly because of the time warp that we're all stuck in. You'd think all those expensive and faithful vacations taken back home, the bollywood movies and songs, the Indian cultural associations that you've been a member would help, but sadly.....no. Worse, you might even get infected by a new disease called "homeland cultural shockitis".
- It's second to our nature to love talking, sometimes without any necessity to convey any message in the conversation. There's no urgency in getting to any point now or in the near future. We can look for subtleties and nuances all we want, but sometimes there's genuinely nothing.
- On the other hand, if there's any message to be given, it's never direct. The same kind of long-winding sentences are doled out, with lots of cues/hints dropped, to be picked up and acted upon. If not, a lot of egos get popped and you'll be left clueless as to what went wrong where, when and how.
- More on talking...we like to exaggerate things to what ought to be. Idealistic speech is most welcome and appreciated. They don't have to be followed through or practised though. For e.g, someone asks you to help them. Now, you have to say,"I wish, I want, I really want to do (blah, blah) for you." It's not expected that you have to or as if you're going to do it anyways, but.........you've to say it about a million times. Arrgh, this drives me nuts, really.
To be contd...