Emily is one of my first blogger friends, and somehow very special. I have never met her or even talked to her, but I feel a connection with her. Even in the days when I am running super busy, I login into GR at least once in a day, just to get update from her, Canadian Saver, and Saving Savvy Pinky.
In one of her recent post, Emily mentioned how she finds Indians to be cheap when she is doing business with them. I am an Indian my self and after reading her post, felt bad because I kind of agree with her. I agree that Indians are miser people and sometimes lack the basic etiquettes regarding money and business. And no, this confession doesn't mean that I am not proud to be an Indian, I am still proud to be an Indian. I love India. In fact, I think only an Indian can take the genuine criticism so well and apologize.
But question is why Indians are like that?
My personal opinion on this:
Most of us have been kids to the generation who has seen partition. Our parents or grand parents used to be rich in Post-Independence India, but literally lost every thing and started from scratch in mid of their lives. Trust me; it's not the easy thing to do. They have seen the survival problem at a ground level. And you know what, when it comes to survival, there are no etiquettes. There is no mutual gain theory; it's only me that matters. That's a scientific fact.
After losing everything that they once owned, also some of the loved one's, these guys started from scratch. They literally were homeless, foodless and clothes less at one time and started from there. In this process, they saved every penny and tried to stretch every penny to its last level. That is why something that is free still salivates some of them.
But it doesn't mean that we all are like that. Indians are very warm people. They still value relationships more than money. And I am sure, as we grow out of this partition generation, we will be more etiquettes breed.
P.S. These are my opinions. I am not trying to make any judgment here.
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Pooji, I struggled with posting about that situation because I know so many Indians who are the exact opposite of the stereotype, both IRL and through the internet. You should have heard the sigh of relief that came when you commented on my post and didn't verbally slap me.
ReplyDeleteI've been raised with the moral that, if you're not using it for the purpose designed, then taking it will be stealing. Those people who swipe 20 ketchup packets from McDonalds and use them for anything other than McD's food are stealing. And I often wonder if those Indians who are outfitting their kitchen/pantry with my plates and napkins realize that someone has to pay for it, and that someone is ME!
Thank you for seeing the post as it was meant to be seen, and taking the time to think about it so much that you posted yourself on it!