AcceleratorX
Youngling
This may be a particularly sensitive topic, so I will not be defiant in case a mod thinks it is best to close the thread.
As a person who grew up in a particularly liberal and multicultural family, I have come across so many generalizations that it appears to me that people actually believe India has two distinct cultures - that of North and South. I'm not sure how much truth there is to such a claim, but the fact is we all have too many common traits to be called "different people".
I have family both in the North and the South. Each time I went, they had a few things....."southies are like this", "northies are like that", etc.
I am South Indian - by last name only (apparently....). Most people guess wrong unless they have seen it. They say I lack "south Indian traits and appearance". My brother had a tough time with his temporary stay in Hyderabad because a lot of people thought he was a north Indian. Wasn't too bad but people at his workplace were initially a bit reserved and scornful when talking to him (unlike the openness you'd get in a place like Mumbai). All was good in the end though (we are both quite fluent speakers in our native tongue as well as Hindi and English)
We've not had problems with places in the North but that probably has a lot to do with our appearance and being fluent Hindi speakers. Heck, these differences in thinking have even caused so much problem - arranged marriage becomes a problem because a lot of south Indian families look at us (I mean, our uncles/cousins/etc., not me
) and they feel we are not "south Indian" enough while north Indians have similar reservations (well, the name itself implies a south Indian, see?). As a result there have been many love marriages in my family (which is a good thing from my point of view) and my whole family is a mishmash of cultures.....
I mean, so many years have passed since Independence but we still have political leaders shouting out about language and culture issues (mainly Maharashtra and southern states). Are cultural differences really so vast that you can say there are two distinct classes of people?
Why do people still have an idea of what a "southie" or a "northie" should be like in terms of looks, traits or personalities? There's simply no effective way and people should look more at whether the personality and character are to your liking rather than saying "aey madrasi/mallu" and "arre bhaiyya".....
I would like constructive comments and a healthy debate in this thread. Please don't bash each other because we are all Indians and there is much more common between us than is different, in my opinion (even including North East people).
As a person who grew up in a particularly liberal and multicultural family, I have come across so many generalizations that it appears to me that people actually believe India has two distinct cultures - that of North and South. I'm not sure how much truth there is to such a claim, but the fact is we all have too many common traits to be called "different people".
I have family both in the North and the South. Each time I went, they had a few things....."southies are like this", "northies are like that", etc.
I am South Indian - by last name only (apparently....). Most people guess wrong unless they have seen it. They say I lack "south Indian traits and appearance". My brother had a tough time with his temporary stay in Hyderabad because a lot of people thought he was a north Indian. Wasn't too bad but people at his workplace were initially a bit reserved and scornful when talking to him (unlike the openness you'd get in a place like Mumbai). All was good in the end though (we are both quite fluent speakers in our native tongue as well as Hindi and English)
We've not had problems with places in the North but that probably has a lot to do with our appearance and being fluent Hindi speakers. Heck, these differences in thinking have even caused so much problem - arranged marriage becomes a problem because a lot of south Indian families look at us (I mean, our uncles/cousins/etc., not me
) and they feel we are not "south Indian" enough while north Indians have similar reservations (well, the name itself implies a south Indian, see?). As a result there have been many love marriages in my family (which is a good thing from my point of view) and my whole family is a mishmash of cultures.....I mean, so many years have passed since Independence but we still have political leaders shouting out about language and culture issues (mainly Maharashtra and southern states). Are cultural differences really so vast that you can say there are two distinct classes of people?
Why do people still have an idea of what a "southie" or a "northie" should be like in terms of looks, traits or personalities? There's simply no effective way and people should look more at whether the personality and character are to your liking rather than saying "aey madrasi/mallu" and "arre bhaiyya".....
I would like constructive comments and a healthy debate in this thread. Please don't bash each other because we are all Indians and there is much more common between us than is different, in my opinion (even including North East people).
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