Well the Country that I come from India, is a very diverse country. India has 28 States and if we see almost each state is like a country by itself, meaning every state you will find has different culture, language, lifestyle, overall system. Majorly people in India behave very culturally so you can imagine the kind of diversity that exist in this place and since for that reason the people of each state to an extent has a different set of behavior.
Coming to the question:
What kind of stereotypes do people have about my Country - India?
To think of it there are many. But let me tell you with my own experiences a few of them.
- People think that India is a dirty country only filled with poverty and uneducated people and that Indians have no etiquettes and finesse. And this is the way they also look at us Indians when we travel to other countries. Let me tell you, India is among one of those countries that must be having maximum millionaires and billionaires. Yes I do agree that there is still a lot of slum areas in India in almost all cities but then people have not seen the other side of it.
When my friends come from other countries and I take them to clubs, they get amazed and can't believe that there is so much night life in India and India is just not about poverty and dirtiness. In India there are all the world best Hotel presence. If you want luxury you have it, if you want modesty you have it. Whatever you want you get it here. Rather I see that we Indians also have a more lavish lifestyle then many other countries. The only problem is there is a huge gap in the wealth distribution in the country and when foreigners want to visit they only look for visiting those slum areas, which is again not their fault because the movies and media have displayed in that way.
Most of the movies that are made by outsiders their focus has been on covering the not so very good side of India, because that sells, basically drama sells. If there is no drama their script will not sell enough. People who are already experiencing luxuries, showing them luxury does not mean anything, so they play the reverse psychology, in return tarnishing the image of the country.
- This one is very funny and I keep coming across this very often. I have a lot of visitors coming from other countries and I like to entertain them, take them around my city. Very funnily they say, I want to see an Elephant. Because they have seen that in movies, that elephants are moving on the road.
Haha, this is really hillarious, please let me tell you, there are no Elephants or Cows on the road. We have moved ahead using different modes of Transport, we have Cars, Bikes, Buses on the roads, so do not come with an expectation to see an Elephant on the road.
- All Indians do Yoga. This is one another thinking that many carry. Though I would wish that this is true, but no all Indians do not do Yoga.
- We Indians do not have knowledge of various cuisines of the world and have very poor eating habits. Another thing that I observe is when people travel to India, they get very finicky about their food, because they feel that they will only get all low grade, spicy and oily food.
This is not India, rather Indians are very diet conscious and more and more people are turning to it. More or less veganism, herbalism all of these across the world has been spread by India. You will get all variety of food here, if you want junk you will have your share of KFC, Mc D and whatever you want. If you want any world cuisines there is no lack of restaurants here. Yes street food is famous in India and people do savor it but that does not make the food bad.
- India is a country filled with rapist. This is a very sad part when people think of my country in this aspect. Just some days back I came across a post where one person was travelling and she was concerned about her security because she thinks that rape is happening in every street of India all the time.
That's not the fact. Because of some monsters, the whole of Country cannot be tagged as rapist. Our Men are respectful and they do not support rape.
I will not say that all of these are completely true or completely false. These things yes do exist. Like there is poverty here, there are slums, illiteracy also exist, rapes do happen, street food is at times unhealthy but these things do not define India.
If there is illiteracy in India, then on the other hand across the world in major multinationals there are maximum Indians sitting in the top positions.
Understanding the population of India these challenges are going to be there, but that does not take away the credit of India in all the other ways that it has rised up and in been in par with the most developed countries.
When Britishers left India, they left India devastated, they looted India to their maximum capacity, laid the foundations for religious conflicts and poverty to it's maximum. Rising up back from there has not been an easy task for the Country and the Political corruptions adds up.
Yes the few things I agree about India is that it is politically corrupted to the core. There is a lot of bureaucracy and it spreads through all levels.
And the other one thing is that Indian weddings are grand. At large yes Indians have always been into grand celebrations of any occasion. But here also it is changing now. the younger generation is getting out of this trend. They are getting into simplicity.
Like I said in the very beginning, that India is a very diverse land and a lot of things also happen culturally so one cannot generalize it for the whole of India.
I hope with my article, you all will have a good insight about what India is and what it is not. So next time when you travel here you know what to expect. Do not go on looks, dark skin and not westernly dressed does not mean the people here are illiterates or have no etiquettes. It's just about following our culture, but that does not make us backward in any way. India is a land of Beauty, Knowledge, Ancient traditions and overall people filled with beautiful hearts who will always be warm and hospitable. And this is not because we want to please anyone, but it is in our roots, where we are always made to understand that a Guest is next to God.
Thank you for visiting my blog. πΌπ»πΌπ»πππΉπΊπΈ
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As countries become more developed (or think they are more developed), if the people are decent, they often have this desire to βsaveβ the rest of the world, and it becomes a huge ego-trap. I think thatβs one reason why people always focus on the negative part. The desire to help is often really kind and nice but it can result in people not seeing the other side of the country. This is why I have always preferred grass roots effort, local effort, direct contact and direct collaboration between locals and foreigners.
Most countries are actually many many cultures. Even japan, which is one of the most homogeneous places on earth is now splintered into all kinds of different situations and cultures.
So when we talk about America, itβs important to ask βwhich America?β And same goes for India. I definitely hope to go soon!
I am from Austria and our stereotypes are a bit different.
Latest news from Donald Trump himself claiming that our cities are build in the forest and that we have explosive trees are one of the more hilarious ones though :D
We also don't live in the mountains (some do though) and no, there are no Kangaroos or Koalas in Austria.
One actually true thing is our passion for classical music.
Good post btw :)
Hahaha......like you are sitting on a bomb...Crazy Trump :-)
I guess they are mixing Austria and Australia.... :-)
Btw, why don't you participate in the contest, we would love to have your entry.
πππ Cross Culture Question: What kind of stereotypes do people have about your country? Do you think they are true or not?πππ
Good question :D
Why not? Let's do this :)
I love Trump.
I disagree with you.
I've not been to India, and had I not met a lot of Indian friends and colleagues here in the UAE I would say that the above were my first impressions too. Most of the Indians I know here are successful in their businesses, have huge investments back home, sending their kids to UK for university, etc.
I've come to appreciate most of the food too- man, I just told hubby this morning I'm craving for some biryani! π But yes, because of Indian colleagues, we need to have a vegetarian food set each time we have parties or just simple celebs.
Thanks for this wonderfully written post. It gives so much light about your culture, country and people.
True, Indians are spread out all across the globe and doing very well for themselves.
Hahaha....Biryani is my favorite too, specially the Hyderabadi Biryani is very famous and delicious.
You should participate in the contest, we would love to have your entry.
πππ Cross Culture Question: What kind of stereotypes do people have about your country? Do you think they are true or not?πππ
Ayayay! Yes! Hyderabadi Biryani. Super tasty! π
Yes, I'd love to join this new contest. Thanks!
The food is amazing though and wherever I go, I often visit one Indian restaurant which is very easy to find around here.
Great post - India makes me think crowds and massive population. Here in New Zealand there are 5 million people and lots of sheep.
Yes, that is true that we have massive population, but at the same time the length and breadth of our country is also massive :-)
You may wish to participate in the contest, we would love to have your entry.
πππ Cross Culture Question: What kind of stereotypes do people have about your country? Do you think they are true or not?πππ
I live in India but never visited Tajmahal.
I visited it twice and I must say it is worth a visit once in lifetime
Depending on the specific stereotypes, bias, ideas, etc, and other things, long story short, a particular stereotype can be not very accurate, very false, very fake, or a little accurate, a little truthful, or maybe even very accurate, and it partly depends on statistics. So, a stereotype can emphasize on a trend as seen in the majority of the people. The stereotypes of India are personifying things you can see in India and in people, that is thousands to millions and sometimes billions of people. Beyond that, we can look at history which you mentioned in this article. That can be an even longer story. Some stereotypes can be out of context and incomplete or circumstantial or coincidental. They say don't judge a book by its cover, but it can be wise to understand that a lot can be said generally speaking on the cover of people, normally speaking, and on the cover of some stereotypes. Of course, exceptions exist to these generalities. Of course, things can change. Of course, we should look at how things got the way they are in the first place via studying history, psychology, theology, etc.