The Great Indian Divide!


I have never felt like an outsider among Americans in US...but among Indians from South India i sure have felt like an alien.
As the software business is booming in southern India more and more and many more South Indians have been flocking to the US. All of them be it Andhra,Tamil Nadu,Karnataka ,Kerala ...bond instantly.And we folks from North India are outcasts.

Why?
Because we dont speak Telgu,Tamil,Malyalam. and speak hindi..which by the way is our National language and they look down upon it?...dosa,idli is not our staple diet and we are more open to trying out western food? Or is it that we patronise Bollywood more than Lollywood?

If both south and north are part of the same India then why is this divide so clearly visible in this alien land?

Its time to head home.....

This is the Naina Devi Mandir in Nainital....the temple i visited every week during my school days.......it didnt look like this the last time i visited Nainital three years ago.....

I think its time to head home!

Bye-Bye Swadesh...welcome Pardes!


Here in US over most of the social gatherings the question of the day is -So how long are u going to be here?Plans of settling down?
And the most common answer is -No ,man who wants to live here?Will go back soon.
Then why is it that inspite of so many people giving this answer , stay back here in the US forever?
Is it the money?
Is it the status symbol?
Or is it that life in India they feel is not good enough?

What is it that makes one say bye bye to Swadesh and welcome Pardes with such open arms?
I am still looking for answers....and hope i will have them when i bid bye bye to Pardes and head to my Swadesh!!

Little India

I have never felt so Patriotic in my life as i have felt over the past one year in the US. Not a day goes by without browsing through NDTV,Samachar,DeccanHerald sites!Any news about India on CNN is a point of intense discussion over lunch with Rajiv.
Yes i think its patriotic ! being so far away we do think of India everyday!follow every event closely!!Over social gatherings we discuss how Rani Mukherjee is a bettertmatch for Junior B as compared to Ash!and offcourse the theme of every second party is Traditional!
Most of the new born Indian kids have very traditional Indian names like-Krish(Lord Krishna),Mahati(name of a Raaga) etc.I have seen Indians in New York flocking to Indian grocery stores right before festivals to get a Coconut,Paan,raw turmeric.


I am glad there is a little India in the hearts of Indians living here in US in many little ways!

Present Perfect.....

Over the years i have come to realise there is nothing called a Present Perfect!
Its human nature to crave for more and more...more happiness,more job satisfaction,more money,more material things!! We never seem to get enough of anything!!

Knowing this eternal truth why are we struggling?

My favourute cartoon-Love is....

A worthy Pursuit....

Robin Sharma in his book-"The monk who sold his ferrari "says -Find out what you truly love to do and then direct all your energy towards doing it.If you study the happiest,healthiest and most satisfied people of our world,you will see each and every of them has found their passion in life....
Very facinating thought but on a very practical note you do need jobs that can pay you in order to fullfill your bigger goals...i have worked with the voluntary and non-profit sector...its rewarding definately .. but to be able to pursue my real and bigger dream (of starting a SHG)i do need money!Who can give this kind of money?...offcourse a MNC?
So it is worthwhile to work with a corporate and earn some bucks!!and then move on to your bigger goals!!

Tata Institute of Social Sciences-Mumbai

I still remember the day i walked in the campus very casually with my dad for an enterance exam and a group discussion.I was'nt very keen to do my PG from TISS as i was confident of getting through an International Relations course in JNU. But since i had filled out the from ...i thought of giving it a shot....and why miss a chance of looking around Mumbai!

I immedialtely knew i didnt belong there...Students(offcourse dressed in Khadi or Fab India kurta and floaters...carrying around jholas..) were sitting around in groups discussing some serious stuff...NBA,Child Labour, Demolition drive in Mumbai..etc..etc.They were so passionately involved..On the other hand i was dressed in a levis,UCB T!!i felt very out of place... i had to join my group for a mock practise of GD. People were desperate to crack the GD as it ensures your chance to make it to the final round of interview.

I happened to meet Vandy a senior from LSR who was studying at TISS. I very casually asked her if she was liking it here?She said"Feel s lucky to be here.This place has changed my whole personality..I have found a whole new meaning to life"!

God !!what was she saying?Is this the offical language people at TISS are supposed to speak...I knew of Vandy as a party animal in college..every weekend a new discotheque...going out with a new guy every month!I felt even more confused!

Anyways i did well in the GD round and reached the final round of interview and further was able to get admission in the Urban and Rural Community Development course .When i thought of dropping my seat at TISS people told me i was crazy..so under a lot of pressure from my parents and friends i decided to join in on the condition "if i dont like it there...i will come back!dont say anything to to me then"

So against my wishes and totally confused i took admission in TISS.I was happy to discover that i wasnt the only one in this state ...so many more were just like me.During the first month there were no classes but visits to different Ngo's trying to make us familiar with varied issues like-AIDS,Commercial sex,Child Labour,Community intervention and many more.

I felt even more burdenedand depressed.....god so many problems is our society...

But it did get me thinking...slowly i started looki ng forward to these visits.I was no longer sleeping through their presentations and had questions..many of them! i started participating in late night and evening discussions in the dining hall !!I too was now a part of a group who spend evenings seeking answers to serious issues. I was no longer a Levis and A UCB girl...i too started wearing clothes which did not make me stand out during a community or a hospital visit!and offcourse my johla where i carried my note book (I wrote down every observation ) and a modest lunch packed in TISS DH.

One evening my Dad called saying i had cracked the exam at JNU and if i wanted to go back to Delhi i could!

But it was too late ...i knew i belong here!