Saturday, March 22, 2008

Indians are Hypocrites!

Last night, I heard that jarring speech again.
'India is the MOST beautiful country in the world! Our Indian values.. blah blah.. ethics... blah... multicultural, tolerant, blah, blah.. blah'
Balderdash! I wonder if the reason behind such jingoist claims is the fact that a lot of garbage is drilled into a billion brains everyday about so-called Indian 'tolerance'.
It's always fascinated me how almost every Indian I know - man, woman and child - lays claim to such moral high ground purely on the basis of their 'Indian'ness.

I've met people who are completely oblivious to their own narrow-mindedness, and yet speak as if they've inherited the mantle of virtue, hand woven by their noble ancestors.

Patriotism if all fine. But once it begins to distort the truth and diminish the lines between reality and absurdity, then it's time for a re-evaluation.

If there's one thing I can't stand, it is forcing 'patriotism' and 'Indian values' down our throats.

It's the same 'values' that cause inflamed mobs to create havoc over a movie that hadn't even been released. (The Bollywood movie 'Jodhaa Akbar' was successfully banned in at least ONE major Indian state over silly allegations.)
Zealots have poured vitriol on MF Husain, one of India's most celebrated artists - and forced him into exile. They accuse the painter of hurting Hindu sentiments by painting Hindu Godesses in the nude. These same bigots welcome Taslima Nasrin, the Bangladeshi writer, with open arms. though she's been accused of pretty much the same.
I remember hordes of nationalists crying foul over a work of art depicting a naked Icarus, of Greek Mythology, perched atop the Ashoka Pillar (adopted as the Indian emblem).

This is the land of the Kama Sutra, and the famous Khajuraho temples known explicit depictions of coitus - even bestiality. Yet, from the social taboos surrounding any mention or discussion of sex, GLBT relationships and public display of affection, you would think that the entire country's been religiously practicing abstinence for centuries (Which, of course, would leave a lot to account for, considering the burgeoning billion plus population!)
Sloganeering mobs forced a movie director Deepa Mehta, to abandon filming one of her movies, and successfully got another one dealing with lesbianism banned.
Shekar Kapur's Bandit Queen was banned as well. India was also perhaps the first country in the world to ban Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses over Muslim outrage.
Extremist, violent outfits like Shiv Sena, Bajrang Dal, etc go on a rampage every Valentine's Day.. attacking anything red and heartshaped.
What's even more nauseating is the fact that they attack media outlets, protesting against being labeled ' violent'!
A dozen lawsuits are filed in various parts of the country against 'issues' as monumental as Richard Gere's 'kiss' that landed on Shilpa Shetty's cheeks, or a dress that a certain Tamil actress wore in public, or a viewpoint about premarital sex that another actress dared utter in public.

There's a 'free media' that revels in the story of the day. While the Indian media is relatively free, the mushrooming of 24 hour news channels have forced them to sensationalize trivial 'issues' and engage in the ratings game. (Ever heard Spiderman say 'With great power comes great responsiblity'? Kids know that stuff!)
There is no real freedom of expression (ask Salman Rushdie, MF Husain, Khushboo etc..) What can you say of a country where a couple can't walk hand in hand in public without the fear of being attacked by a morally outraged, saffron branded fundoo? These self-proclaimed custodians of the Indian culture get on my nerves.
The aspiring superpower that India is, it still has no space for any real, free debate, but generously accommodates vitriolic, firebrand politicians, dangerous provincialism, and language feuds.
Secularism in India means the involvement of the Government in every aspect of the religion, rather than the expected hands off approach. Come elections, and right wing parties polarize the electorate along religious lines, with often violent consequences. Perpetrators of anti-Sikh and anti-Muslim pogroms still roam free, bandying about their 'achievements' - and yes, still retain power.

It's sickening to see bastards like Narendra Modi get elected by landslide margins, not despite their communal agendas and ideology of hatred, but precisely BECAUSE of them.
Everything about the present day India reeks of narrow minded hypocrisy. From protests about a designer wearing a dress depicting the national flag, to the major fascinations for renaming cities (Bangalore is the latest victim. Brand name Bangalore is being corrupted to Bengalooru... and Mysore to Mysuru and God-know-what-else to God-knows-what esluu!)

The discriminations based on languages, ethnicity, castes, colour, religion, communal politics, riots and the impunity with which openly violent extremist outfits operate, and the hostility and violence associated with them clearly shows how little India has to show for its much trumpeted claims of being a 'peace-loving, tolerant, democratic' country.
The absence of any notable public outrage against these mindless protesters, communal politics - and the failure of the courts, constitution, public or government to eradicate or inhibit such activities in the least speaks a lot for the nation's conscience - or rather, the lack of one.

Yet children across the country begin each school day with the pledge '.. all Indians are my brothers and sisters..'.
Empty words ringing with hypocrisy - just like the mainstream rhetoric. That's India.


Update: EVERY country in the world is beautiful.

34 comments:

anand said...

India is my country.all Indians are my brothers and sisters.i love my country and im proud of its rich and varied heritage.i shall always try to be worthy of it.i shall give my parents , teachers and all elders respect and treat everyone with courtesy......
JAI HIND

anand said...

no other country has a pledge man?

Yaamyn said...

hey anand. tell me the most admirable quality in Indians that you OBSERVED, and tell me the thing you hate the most about them. Honest answers please.

Btw, a 'pledge' doesn't have to be official for a country..

Me. said...

Your voice is clear and I really appreciate the way you put what you see and feel in writing in a fresh way. Interesting information too.

Yaamyn said...

Thnx.

anand said...

man i havent seen indains, i havent seen even keralites.i have seen only 'trivandrians'.another thing , i am very poor in observing , and even more , observing people.
admirable thing u mean , what i like about them?well , u may feel that i am a misanthropist.i dont see anything admirable in tvm ppl, in cities.
wat i hate abt them ..there are a lot.no time now to think.maybe i'll write abt it later

Anonymous said...

This picture (http://doubtengine.blogspot.com/2008/09/and-visuals.html) has been copied from the following site:

http://mutiny.in/2008/09/01/ban-the-vishwa-hindu-parishad-vhp/

Using this as a backdrop following comments are posted trying to pit religion vs religion.

"They'll blame Ghori and Ghazni. They'll blame Christian missionaries. They'll blame 'pseudosecularism'. They'll blame the 'Italians'. They'll blame ISI. They'll blame Pakistan. They'll blame the liberals."


Most posts in this blog have been either adapted or copied from the http://mutiny.in site and painted in religious fervour (precisely pitting MUSLIMS vs HINDUS). Hence, all INDIAN intelligentsia beware of this MALDIVIAN (Yaamyn) for he is a 'lunatic' with a keyboard trying to spread hatred and abusing your fellow countrymen.

Moses said...

I was seeing India in your words....

Anonymous said...

Very nice article. I'm an indian and I wish atleast half of the population in india has the guts to think like you.

Anonymous said...

You are a genius !
You said things that I wanted to tell

Vijay Padiyar said...

Very well written. This morality stuff sickens me too! India is the epicentre of hypocrisy.

Idlidosa said...

Loved your article. Indians are the biggest hypocrites ever!! I once went to a gathering in UK on the eve of or independence day....there was the national anthem, children performing our dances and reciting our poems...we were all given tiny indian flags to wave and by the end of the ceremony, most of the flags were on the floor and people were walking on them. No one bothered to pick them up from the floor. So much for patriotism! HA!

Anonymous said...

I totally agree, Indians are Fcuking hypocrits totally. So is their culture.

Anonymous said...

totally agree man, completely

Anonymous said...

I agree with you so much man!
Another thing, India has too many honor killings!

Anonymous said...

Some Indians may be nice but these freaking suppressed depressed women who come to USA in their husbands visa are fucking bitchy.You gotta hear them speak about themselves they were that this yada yada ,in india i was......then fucking go back bitch. dont you know while in rome do as romans do.
they are bunch of hypocrites too,back stabbing bitches. cant trust them ,full of drama just like their tv serials.

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Anonymous said...

I am an indian and absolutely agree with this frank and bold article.

Unknown said...

Good observations. I am an Indian and I can attest what you just said. Most Indians are present epitome or racism, lethargy, self righteousness, unjustified nationalism and stupidity. It all blended well and may be mixed in our "daily curry" so it runs in blood. People who can think sensibly , leave the country at first chance. Most intelligent people do not leave country because they do not love it rather they flee because there are about 1 billion stupid people obstructing their work and freedom of expression. It is a pseudo-democracy and one hell of a hypocrite nation.

-Vishal

Indian said...

Every citizen is proud of his or her country...so pointing that this country is better or worse is not correct....US has many flaws....Europeans are intolerant about people from other countries and so on....there could be many such examples...I am not saying india is great...but neither is any other country...some countries have good education systems...some have good infrastructure....some have good oil wells...its perspective...the important point is try to make yourself better and your country better and this world will be a better place

Anonymous said...

Excellent article but what you wrote is just the tip of the ice berg.i'm an Indian i cant wait to leave this god forsaken country.

shail said...

for once we all indians accept that we are hypocrites but does that not make us non-hypocrites that we at least accept.

Anonymous said...

Excellent write-up...i have a grouse against the majority of Indian men who're even bigger hypocrites...and equally to blame are most of the women who encourage such behavior of men toward themselves...

Anonymous said...

indian people are just freaking out being squeezed to the edge of their breaking point; in a way you can't blame them how the whole "culture-decorum" presses on them, all of them generally

Anonymous said...

I was running with this thought in my head for so long and just happened to google it ..........great to know there are like minded there . Imagine the plight of women in a country who calls its womenfolk godess os devi or she can only be a devi or a vamp nothing in b/w .

vinay said...

I am also from the country of Bharath and I can tell you that your observations stand true to a great extend.
-
Some of us haven't grown enough to take criticism positively. I admire you for the boldness you have shown in your words and I request you to continue writing. There will always be idiots who get offended easily.

mani said...

I completely agree, for last few years I have found very little to be proud of in this country

Anonymous said...

This is true. Being an indian I have experienced this.

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rk said...

While there is no doubt that there are many problems in India, your article as well as many commentators here (many are hiding their names, many are from Pakistan etc who don't want to identify themselves) are just India haters. We definitely need to take an inward look at our own country and fix the issues. But it doesn't have to be done in a way that spews hatred or pure vengeance that sounds like it came from bad personal experiences! A little more objectivity would get more respect/credibility for the article.

Tanya said...

So true!!!!

Anonymous said...

India is a country of hypocrites, it's so true and I appreciate your writing. Some so-called fanatics would say otherwise but there is no denying that India was, is and will always be a land of hypocrites.

Unknown said...

What a load of crap :D

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