The Indian Dream

Common Name: Indian
Proper Name: Non Residentus Indianus
Category: Immigrant, IT professional
Growth Rate: Physically sideways, financially upwards and mentally stagnant
Origin: The great Indian subcontinent
Main characteristic: Confused

Other Characteristics : This category of human species is rapidly growing all around the world, especially in conducive environments i.e. English speaking countries which happen to have fledgling immigrant (read Indian,preferably speaking the same language) communities. They tend to take root very easily and are always on the lookout for similar species. They try to make the space around them resemble their place of origin so as to minimize their interaction with the native species.

Most feared characteristic: They often tend to lapse into nostalgia and speak fondly of their place of birth or where they grew up. The signs of this condition beginning to set in during a conversation are glazed eyes, staring at nothing in particular, mouth setting into a slight smile and a slow,deep sigh. As soon as one or more of these signs are spotted collect your belongings and run for the nearest exit !!

If not: If you are one of the first timers, then you will have to sit/stand through at least 30 minutes of paeans being sung about their place of birth,school(s) they went to, their first friend and teacher in kindergarten,days spent running around in the hot sun drinking tender coconut water,eating aloo tikki and samosas, first,second and third cousins, aunts,uncles and in-laws being remembered with love although back home they fight over why they were not invited personally to their kids' birthdays, parents reaching 60/80 years, and why they weren't greeted for their anniversaries. You would also learn that this year would be their last year in that country.

Impact: If you are someone who has never visited India(or the subcontinent) then this nostalgic trip down the memory lane will prompt you to take the next flight and land on this magical,utopian land where everyone loves everyone.

How to resist: Talk to the same person the next day about any recent scam/terrorist attack/state of the traffic/population etc and see the Indian dream come crashing down and how suddenly nothing good can come to "that country" and "those people".

George Orwell and Indian temples

A completely chanceful stumble on this delightfully engaging essay by George Orwell “The Moon Under Water “ made my keyboard keys clutter after a very long interval on an entirely unrelated topic.

I would suggest to anyone who is reading this to read the said Orwell’s essay first (no, not to pick on this) to understand the trigger for this blog.

I love going to temples. I’m not one of the temple fanatics (if there is such an expression) who are obsessive about visiting every single temple in their vicinity. By a temple I mean everything from a grand,old,1000 year old one to the “ Theru mukku Pillaiyar Kovils”,  to the neem trees streaked with so much sandalwood paste that you wouldn’t be wrong in mistaking them for sandalwood trees. More the merrier they’d say!!

What irks me is when the same “more the merrier” idea is applied to the number of deities in a temple. I steer clear of temples with so many obscurely named deities whose names barely register in my mind. I stare in disbelief when somebody comes up to me barely able to contain his/her excitement  and rattles off the names of 10 different deities and say that there is a new temple around the corner with all of them and so one can get all the blessings at the same time.I think this trend started around the time when the idea of going to a temple changed from feeling peaceful to literally counting your blessings.  

Here is what most temples feel like. Some of them make me feel like I’m standing in a bathroom because the management decided that the weary old stone floor has to be replaced with shiny and gaudy bathroom tiles. Some others make me feel like I’m entering a zoo or a museum with their caged waiting rooms and queues enclosed within iron bars. Passing through the deities with their special powers advertised makes me feel like I’m in a detergent aisle of a supermarket. Finally a temple with 10 different gods with 100 levels of power makes me think I’m watching a Bollywood multi starrer.

If anyone knows of one temple that is old, with beautiful sculptures, with only the main god and goddess, a kind and pleasant priest who remains so no matter how much lands on his plate, which has a corner where I can sit ,close my eyes and lose myself to the mystery of the universe without the fear of being jostled , feels cool and smells divine no matter how hot it is and how foul it smells outside and makes me feel that not everything is wrong with the world after all, I should be glad to hear of it, even if it is situated in some far flung, remote corner of the country. The scene may differ, but the yearning is the same.