One has to live in a western country - especially US to really understand where the Mom in this article is coming from. In the US, human contact is much rarer than in India - where you bump into someone or the other every foot of the way! People who have been born in India, but spent most of their adult lives in countries like US, tend to stick to their age-old impressions of India (some of which have not changed much) depending on the areas and walks of life they have originated from. Their kids are brought up in a very protected, constantly supervized and "sanitized" environment which is in stark contrast to the melting pot that is India. However, they fail to realize that kids are much more resilient and adaptive than parents and if they are mentally prepared to face minor challenges, they will do very well. What is striking for every western visitor to India is the "liveliness" that you find in the Indian environment, in general. People are ready and have time to talk if required (even if they may not greet each other - imagine what would happen if you started saying "hi - how are you?" to every one you meet on the road in India). Just the fact that you can stand on the road-side and chat with an acquaintance or the corner pan-wallah or have a cup of tea in a tea-stall. These are "luxuries" for people in the cold countries. Colourful clothes is itself a rare sight. So no wonder the westerners feel the "exhileration" of the human warmth which they are not used to. All th
What you have said bolsters my argument to a certain extent in my post below. Apparently, you have been exposed to life in the U.S and so have I. What about the readers who aren't? They are certain to take offense. The author has indeed a loving concern for her child, but she didn't have to portray India in a distasteful way to highlight her concern. I am 100% sure that the author will be equally concerned about her child if she were to stay away from home in any country in the world.
Parental concern is never overrated. But that is no excuse for belittling a country especially when it is your own. The author's last line reads "... putting up a mosquito net and dodging monkeys". Even when I lived in India around 10 yrs back, I did not have to dodge monkeys.My friends and relatives who still live in India have never had any problems with wild animals threatening their daily existence. Of course! if you live in a monkey populated area, you're bound to say hello to a monkey or two exactly like how one will encounter rattlesnakes or a friendly gator if one lived in Florida!
RE:Experiencing India
by Naveen on May 23, 2008 09:23 AM Permalink
Could'nt put it better myself, Shyam. I would have appreciated an article on parental concern - geez, I have seen my parents worried when I go some place 6 hours away. So ur kid staying some place half a world away can produce a really warm funny writeup. Ms. Banerjee gives an out-of-touch description of India instead
