Staying Strong In The Roots

Note 😊: There are a couple of references to the proverbial "white man" in this article. I have friends of all races and colors, including white caucasian, all over the world and there is certainly no racial intent behind this usage. The intent is only to wake a people up. You'll see 😊...

Independence means different things to different people. But there's one thing we all must agree on: "There is no independence without a fierce sense of self respect."

Observe carefully: Even our architecture and built environment is no longer based on climatic conditions and aesthetic flavors of this part of the world. That's the first step to an independent way of living. The homes we live in and the buildings we work in. The very first step. And we falter.

Now please be assured that this post is *not* about resisting globalization. Neither is it about "promoting everything Indian".

I obviously understand and appreciate the value in enriching ourselves with every culture on the planet. I love my rock n' roll, cherish the fact that I can spend a whole week in one pair of jeans, and Sergei Rachmaninoff moves me as deeply with his music as does Pandit Nikhil Banerjee. I've spent eleven years in the USA where, among other things, I enjoyed Mexican tacos and Italian pizzas - culinary delights I enjoy as much as Mysore Masala Dosas, Makki Di Roti and Sarson Da Saag.

I'm also open to absorbing what's good culturally from all parts of the world and questioning what's not so good in our traditions.

But I've never let the west overshadow my roots and disrespected what my own culture has to offer! Globalization is one thing, getting uprooted and allowing your culture to get stamped out another. We need to understand and bear this difference in our mind!

The situation is beyond ridiculous today! Every step we take is filled with worries about where we stand in the American estimate and the British estimate and the French estimate and on and on it goes. We just aren't able to pull our heads out of the Euro-American moulds we've stuck them into.

I love these countries too, I have friends in different parts of the world too, but you will still never see me buckling under the burden of what everyone everywhere thinks of me. I think through things for myself and know what I should be doing - independently - and I'm doing it. Quite enough. I would like to think this has only deepened the respect I have received from my friends around the world. You may have the same experience. Try it.

You know why the west leads? Because they are just going about doing what they want to do. It's everyone else who's following. Thus making the west "leaders" by default.

And who stops us from doing just that?

Which ever part of the world you hail from, dig into your history a bit, know your roots, by all means reject whatever was negative, but revive whatever was positive (and there was enough!), try and understand that "ethnic" isn't a cuss word, discover your art, music, food, fabric, clothes, languages, literature, poetry, theatre, philosophy, relationship with nature, architecture, engineering, ... At least know what belongs to your culture. Who knows? You might find some of it beautiful and worth incorporating in your life!

Sometimes I feel that there are folks amongst us who believe that we were running around naked in forest caves and the white man came and saved us :). Which, of course, couldn't be further from the truth :)!

Talking about running around naked in forest caves, something comes to mind:

I'm a firm believer in personal liberty. As I have remarked repeatedly, globalization is welcome. If you are genuinely more comfortable wearing attires from other parts of the world and prefer that, that's entirely your prerogative. Then sometimes work and/or travel constraints may require us to dress a certain way. Mumbai local trains are an example. The sheer volume of people and the speed with which one has to board and deboard may make some dresses unsafe. But if you have biases in your mind against Indian dresses, or people wearing Indian dresses, you lack self respect. I suggest that we at least spend some time in finding out what the traditional dresses of different parts of the country were. Observe how elegant and beautiful our dresses used to be. Our fabric and clothes vary from state to state : so much variety! Did local climatic conditions play a role in their evolution? Try them out. If you feel comfortable in them, wear them with as much confidence as dresses from other parts of the world. Many of us do wear Indian dresses during festivals. Maybe we can wear them to work also? I also want to challenge the notion that the only possible formal clothes at work have to be western formals. Why should that be? Think about it. If the idea doesn't appeal to you, no problem. It's your life and you have all the right to live it exactly as you want! But if what I'm saying resonates with you, then you can give it a shot and see how you feel. And yeah, don't worry about what people will think or say. Life is short. Where is the time to worry about public opinion? [PS: Fellow north Indian men: We have more options in formal Indian clothing than just the kurta pyjamas that we wear while sleeping :)! Please do your homework! Explore!]

Here's something that would be cool in my opinion:

We are in our 75th year of Independence. Identify one aspect of India's heritage that *you* would like to see appreciated globally. It could be in the field of architecture, town planning, science and technology (40% global GDP and active trade didn't come without these 😁!), art, music and dance, philosophy, literature, poetry, martial arts, sports, mathematics, textile, theater, ...

And starting tomorrow, spend this year doing a little bit in your own way to revive this aspect. It could be through blogging, writing articles for a magazine, organizing an exhibition, putting together an event, presenting in seminars and conferences, presenting a program in a cultural event, or some other way that appeals to you.

Remember that your academics or other responsibilities and commitments stay your priority. They should not be hurt. Just add the above in your plans wherever possible gently.

Diversify, by all means globalize, but through it all: Stay strong in the roots!

Jai Hind 🙂!