The importance and the wide usage of software systems in the USA has brought a steady influx of many Indian software professionals, since the Y2K. Most of them are from the southern states of India, with highly difficult to pronounce middle and last names. So much so that their names don't fit into the ten-letter box provided in their immigration forms. Most of them are from the smaller towns of India, nonetheless are the brightest brains in their nation. The allure of getting huge pay packets in the West brings them across the seven seas to try their sweat and luck in a foreign nation. Most of them tag their families along i.e. the ones who can, the rest just leave them back home and support them financially till the expiration of their visas or till their family is mentally prepared to live in an English speaking populace.
By 'mentally preparing' themselves I mean adapting themselves to the culture of a different world. Many Indians have a strong perception that speaking in English implies that the person is well educated (read in an English medium school). The possibility of speaking in a vernacular tongue is a curse as you are taunted and not perceived as being a COOL kid. I am writing this today because though we are well educated we are still blind to being open to our own fellow beings, in many ways and we still try to conform ourselves and everyone else to a BOX that we put everyone in. And we do not need a white skinned person to actually discriminate against us... YES!! .... Because
WE ARE CAPABLE ENOUGH TO BE RACIST TO OTHER FELLOW INDIANS!!
Lets see how :
That is because where marriages are involved we prefer color, money and status above the happiness of the couple involved.The bride sadly gets to choose just her trousseau and jewellery . And if you happen to be in love that too with a person who does not belong to your caste, creed or religion then Almighty Lord save you!
By 'mentally preparing' themselves I mean adapting themselves to the culture of a different world. Many Indians have a strong perception that speaking in English implies that the person is well educated (read in an English medium school). The possibility of speaking in a vernacular tongue is a curse as you are taunted and not perceived as being a COOL kid. I am writing this today because though we are well educated we are still blind to being open to our own fellow beings, in many ways and we still try to conform ourselves and everyone else to a BOX that we put everyone in. And we do not need a white skinned person to actually discriminate against us... YES!! .... Because
WE ARE CAPABLE ENOUGH TO BE RACIST TO OTHER FELLOW INDIANS!!
Lets see how :
- We advertise and wholeheartedly endorse fairness creams in hope for a better complexion.
It is human tendency to yearn for something that we do not possess and have a strong desire to obtain it. That is what the whole fairness circus is about. We long and yearn to be so fair that milk will get a complex after seeing us. Fair girls are considered to be beautiful. So if you fail to have any kind of good qualifications or are not marriage material your only saving grace is FAIR SKIN.. If you have fair skin then it doesn't matter whether you are short or tall, fat or thin. If you are in India and you are of a marriageable age you're safe if you have glowing white skin. And if not then may you be saved by your Gods.Or by your brains if you have any and if that is considered something!
Many Indian mothers fret the day they have to look out for a groom for their dusky (yet beautiful) daughter, because she does not conform with the Indian standards of Bridal Beauty. The mother tries out every possible beauty treatment on her girl with the everlasting hope of being touched by the magic wand of Fairness creams which guarantee you with milky white complexion as shown on television. These advertisements however fail to point out the use of lights, make up and most importantly Photoshop to brighten the faces of their models who are actually dusky dames. Or they conveniently choose models with fair complexions. However any amount of cosmetic use isn't going to make up your personality which is the very basis of your compatibility with your spouse. No amount of glowing skin will help hold the relation. Had becoming a better person been the focus of fixing up marriages there would be lesser cases of domestic abuse and sexual harassment.
Because when all that beauty is taken away with age what can't be taken away is PERSONALITY
2. Marriages are made in heaven ; but they are FIXED in India
India is among a very few countries in the world,(rather the only) where arranged marriages still happen. The process of an arranged marriage is as follows :
- The parents decide that the boy/girl is of marriageable age i.e. he has a job,is in his late 20s, well settled, aging and sick parents with no one to look after them, need a cook or a caretaker (for a boy) and she is in her early 20s, may or may not have a job, knows to cook and clean, looks matured enough(for a girl).
- The parents look out for a matchmaker i.e. a person who maybe a relative with great networking skills, the local temple priest, an agent(yes!! there are people who thrive on match making), marriage bureau,wedding receptions(they can be the best place to spot any bachelors/spinsters),internet sites (rarely used but growing fast in popularity).
- Credentials are exchanged. Aspects such as salary, height, weight, skin colour(has to be fair), hair colour, colour of the eyes, figure (preferably slim),virginity, marital status, age(girl has to be younger to the boy) are looked up and matched.
- A meeting is arranged by the matchmaker between the parents of both the prospective bride and the groom. It is mostly held at the girl's residence where the girl has to be decked up so that the boy can see her in all her revelry and decide if he wants to marry her. If you do not wish to have this program at your residence then either lunch or dinner can be fixed up at a restaurant where the same procedure can be carried out. The girl is asked many questions based on her housekeeping abilities whereas the boy has to reveal his fat pay package. The boy and the girl are given a few minutes to spend with each other within which they have to decide if they want to spend their lives with the other. It is a DO OR DIE situation for them (literally!!)
- If they have made their choice then telephone numbers are exchanged and an engagement ceremony is conducted as an agreement to the wedding where all the details of the BIG FAT WEDDING are decided.
- If step 6 does not happen then the steps from step 2 are repeated till desired results are achieved.
That is because where marriages are involved we prefer color, money and status above the happiness of the couple involved.The bride sadly gets to choose just her trousseau and jewellery . And if you happen to be in love that too with a person who does not belong to your caste, creed or religion then Almighty Lord save you!
In India marriages do not just happen between two souls but between two families
3. If you are a blue collared worker, then you are not HUMAN.
Dignity of labour is a term which has eluded Indians from a very long time. Take this incident for example. There is this friend of mine who I met while completing my Master's degree. She has been juggling many thoughts about her career for a very long time. After knowing her for a considerable period I have come to the conclusion that the income earned in the job is miniscule in proportion to the position she was willing to occupy. After completing MBA, it is very difficult in a recession driven India to find a job which actually pays you according to the course you have taken. It eventually boils down to how well you know people in the industry and how many reliable contacts you have which will lead to a job opportunity. In spite of having all of these, sometimes its still difficult to find a decent job. And that's all right. Because we have to work our way to the top.
The recession of 2008 stripped many Indians of their high paying jobs and robbed them of their income. Many were forced to take up jobs much lesser paying than their actual qualifications. Some of them were ready to do it for a steady income, some simply weren't able to bring themselves to do it.
A huge chunk of the Indian population come to Mumbai - the Hollywood equivalent of India,everyday,in search of high paying glamorous jobs in the glitterati of Bollywood. Very few of them have real talent and the rest want to just take up acting for the high life that it promises. I know of a young man who spent his youth waiting for some film director to lap him up in his new venture , than working hiss ass off for such a role.
When I completed my MBA, I couldn't find a job. The only way that my parish priest could offer to help me was a temporary post in his school. Knowing that that was my only source of income and the last resort to prevent me from going crazy sitting at home unemployed caused me to take up that job. And I am glad I did! I did realize that it was part of some DIVINE plan to help me out after I finished helping out the children who were left to fend for themselves after the teacher went on an unannounced long vacation. Fate works in strange ways.
However , we Indians fail to understand that
The recession of 2008 stripped many Indians of their high paying jobs and robbed them of their income. Many were forced to take up jobs much lesser paying than their actual qualifications. Some of them were ready to do it for a steady income, some simply weren't able to bring themselves to do it.
A huge chunk of the Indian population come to Mumbai - the Hollywood equivalent of India,everyday,in search of high paying glamorous jobs in the glitterati of Bollywood. Very few of them have real talent and the rest want to just take up acting for the high life that it promises. I know of a young man who spent his youth waiting for some film director to lap him up in his new venture , than working hiss ass off for such a role.
When I completed my MBA, I couldn't find a job. The only way that my parish priest could offer to help me was a temporary post in his school. Knowing that that was my only source of income and the last resort to prevent me from going crazy sitting at home unemployed caused me to take up that job. And I am glad I did! I did realize that it was part of some DIVINE plan to help me out after I finished helping out the children who were left to fend for themselves after the teacher went on an unannounced long vacation. Fate works in strange ways.
However , we Indians fail to understand that
Wish we empathized with the maid who works at our place and looked at her just as the way we looked at ourselves.....
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