India is the most frightening thing to have happened to this planet.Okay, now that I have your attention, let me save my life by clarifying I was just kidding. Actually, what people think about India is much more frightening. Surprisingly, many people out there do not know much about our country -- something that became evident to me when I moved to New York for a couple of months last year and was bombarded with questions about my origins.
India is poor. All Indians are Hindu. These are just some of the things I have heard in NY. And these are just two of the many stereotypes about Indian people and about India.
In one seminar , a friend once asked me if India was a land of "poor people." He had seen a video online that depicted the lives of people in India who were uneducated and under-nourished. My answer was a firm "no." I explained that although one can see poor people living on the streets, this was definitely not the case for everyone in India. India is full of smart and competent people who can rival the smartest in America. Not everyone in India is poor. There are many people who are very rich. India also has an influential middle class population. Poverty is more evident in India because it has one of the largest populations in the world (over 1 billion); if India had a lower population then it would probably have less poverty.
Another incident I recall was when I was reading in study hall and one of my best friend/colleague asked me if I could speak "Hindu." He was studying India in his history class and wanted to know more. It took me a while to understand what he was saying. I jokingly replied, "Yes. I can speak Hindu just like others can speak Christian and Muslim." He laughed and realised his mistake. I explained to him that Hindi is a language and Hinduism is a religion. I told him I am a Hindu but I speak Hindi. He looked somewhat confused and then asked me what the language "Indian" was. "No, 'Indian' is not a language," I replied. "Although there are hundreds of languages in India, 'Indian' is not one of them." That day I learned how little some people know about my country. They do not know much about the language and confuse it with religion. I wondered why the history teachers in my school neglected to teach the students about this aspect of India.
By now I thought I had heard it all; it turns out I was horribly wrong. I was eating lunch with my friends when someone from my previous class asked me, "Is it true that India has no electricity?" I must admit I was surprised. This was an unexpected question. I replied that some parts of India experience power outages often, but electricity is not a rare commodity. I told her that even though India has power outages the government is coming up with ideas to solve that problem.
"India has invested a lot of money into generating renewable power. It currently ranks as the 3rd largest wind energy producer and is advancing in other renewable resources," I added. She was a little shocked. I explained that I have been born and brought up in India and have noticed, over the years, that the number of power outages has significantly reduced in the capital city . Back then, the power went out many times a week, but now it is less frequent. In the end, she understood her views of India were wrong.
In three months of NY corporate experience, I have had some interesting experiences with my coleagues. Many people ask questions that can sometimes seem ridiculous, but almost every time it seems that something or someone had influenced their incorrect view of India. Whether it was a class or a video, the point is that India is not poor, has more than one language and does have electricity. Even though my classmates might have wrong views of India, I am glad they asks me these questions because I can quickly clear up their confusion that makes my country look like a 3rd world nation.
1 comment:
Dear the NGOs n all such organizations which thrive on the funds n aids frm foreign agencies like USA n other developed nations actually exaggerate the situation n show : "we are dying!! please help !"
Plus, our media ,though it shows the attractions india has, but never are the renewable energy n other such sectors highlighted to the international sector.Also they cannot understand Hindi.n thus cannot watch 90% of India's promotions.They are alien to it dear.
3rdly, its common to be ignorant about a foreign tradition n lifestyle. Like, taking an example of people in south Asian region, they at most know the traditions of those nations which are either adjacent to them or have an "in-depth connection" with them.. Like, People frm Pakistan know whats going on India. but, now even in this case u ll be surprised to know majority of Indians believe that in Pakistan women are supposed to remain in vail always; here are no schools and colleges.(Students from Delhi university when came to Lahore, in our campus, they revealed all the doubts their parents and families had while sending them here! ) The image is that all whats here is violence and insecurity. I have been living here since past 21 years .. am happy, never vailed.. i wear skirts and trousers in the streets n markets..i accept people do stare at you..but thats natural..whenever sth happens off the routine people notice. they notice Arabs roaming in markets too.. they are not wearing skirts and trousers..!
Images n false appearances,perceptions are always bound to flourish..every citizen is an ambassador of its nation..wherever (s)he goes..whatever (s)he does.people judge ur nation from ur acts..n ur personal values ! =) best of luck dear ambassador, the spokesperson. ;) lol take care of urself..its a long journey.. =)
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