It's been sometime since I have written. Yesterday I read something in Sunday Times which prompted me to think. It's been a long time since that paper has made me think... its almost a joke now a days to read the papers. Anyway, let me not digress from the point. The article was about Obama (obviously as he is the current hot topic). It said how Obama, who is part black, part white, part Indonesian, part African, part American, stood tall to become the ultimate icon of America - apparently he is the penultimate American!
This was followed with tales of whether regionalism is relevant in the Indian society or not. Various people gave their views. I being one who rarely pays any heed to what others have to say, have my own opinion about the issue. I always thought the best thing about India was its diversity (translation - regionalism). Don't we brag about it all the time... unity in diveristy!!
It's the fact that we belong to different states, speak different languages, dress differently, have varied food habits, pray to different Gods, have innumerable customs and traditions which are poles apart from each other... its this that makes us uniquely Indian. But do we actually deserve this tag??? Most of us don't know our native languages, customs and traditions. I can thankfully speak Malayalam as my parents advocated the language at home. But I can hardly read and write to save my skin. I am clumsy when it comes to wearing a mund and veshti (our traditional garb), I know the names of all the traditional dishes, but can't cook any, and I have never made a pookalam for Onam or set up a Vishukani. I don't know the history of Kerala. Can I still call myself a Malayalee? I was born and brought up in Mumbai, Maharashtra. I can speak, read and write Marathi. I relish most Maharashtrian dishes (though the state of cooking these remains the same as mentioned above) and have partaken in more Ganeshotsav celebrations than Onam celebrations. So does that make me a Maharashtrian? Thankfully both my parents are Malayalees and both belong to the same community Nairs. So I think I can still officially call myself a Nair. What of those poor souls who have mixed parents say a Punjabi mother and a Maharashtrian father or cross religious parents say a Tamil Brahmin mother and a Manglorean Christian father? Whats to become of these kids? What language do they learn? What customs do they follow? As far as I know, they speak English and Hindi and they celebrate all festivals which are declared to be National holidays by the Indian Government. They celebrate Diwali, Christmas and Id with the same fervour.. they chillax... they have no clue what to do for either of the festivals. They call friends and wish them and if they still have a pure bred regional friend whose parents practice some sort of regionalism, they gather and hog the delicacies and then leave after thanking"aunty" for the lovely time they had. They are none the wiser after the event.
So in this scenario, should I say that if I get angry when someone says something detrimental about India, like Hayden callling India a third world country, or feel proud when I see an Indian acheive something, like Anand becoming the Grand Master or have goosebumps evverytime I hear Jana Gana Mana, I continue to be an Indian? An Indian without an individual identity? Is it necessary to retain that individualism? I think yes, when I have a child, I would still want him or her to know Malayalam, I would want them to be as big a fan for Avial and Sambar as they may be for French fries and burgers, I would want them to celebrate Onam and Vishu with the same enthusiasm that they show towards Valentine's day and I want them to be as comfortable in a mund and veshti as they would be in a pair of Levis, I want them to be as proud of being a Malayalee as being an Indian, but I would never want them to be a Malayalee first and an Indian later. I would never want them to put their regionalism before Nationalism. But them wheree do I draw the line? I somehow seem to have got it right. I am a proud Malayalee and an even prouder Indian. Maybe it's all in the upbringing.
