UiD=Unity in Diversity, seriously ??

“Unity in diversity” was one phrase that was ubiquitous in all essays on India during school days. We read about how India is a cocktail of so many languages (1652 “mother tongues” to be precise), cultures and religions, all under one national brand. As a child I never ceased to be fascinated by the diverse culture. But taking into account the various events and advancements will make me think otherwise and hence I conclude that Unity in diversity is nothing but a dubious assumption which I been tricked to believe in.

The Indian demography is highly convoluted. The south Indians have more resemblance with the Sri Lankans, the North Indians are more similar to Pakistanis, and the east Indians are more like the Bangladeshis. So basically, we are extremely heterogeneous groups juxtaposed in a common piece of land which we call INDIA. India is the seventh largest country, and as we go from top to bottom there is a change, in the complexion, in habits and culture, with every state seeming like a new country. The fact that we Indians were diverse was used by the British to exploit us and hence implement their tried and tested “divide and rule” policy. But what’s sad is that even as we bid the British goodbye, the anti community loathing continued to flow through our DNA. Needless to say, the Hindu and Muslim equilibrium rests on the edge of a sword with minor altercations possessing potential of a nationwide massacre. But it is not just religion to which this hatred is constrained. Regional hatred also thrives among us.

The North Indians (NI) despise the South Indians (SI). The term “madrassi” which was coined by the British still finds its application among the NI masses. While NI are extravagant and ostentatious, the SI are humble and more education oriented. SI hate the NI because of their in-your-face attitude and lack of civil discipline (which NI fashionably call “tashan”) while NI people feel the SI (or kaale log) are overeducated and certainly lack “tashan”, hence the abomination. During the 1990’s Shiv Sena party of Maharashtra coined the phrase “lungi hatao pungi bajao” to ridicule SI languages, clearly citing the alarming levels of hatred and prejudice.

It is not just about SI v/s NI battle, discrimination and hatred is rampant, a huge chunk of Indians call the north east Indians “chinkies”, which is a term considered to be racist in parts of England. Many a times NE Indians (NEI) are asked if they were Chinese, deliberately to ridicule and make fun. Till this date NEI struggle to be a part of India and have developed a passionate aversion towards foreigners (Read: Indians). Irom Sharmila has fasted for more than 500 weeks, yet failed to receive any sort of attention until recently. In many parts of NE India law and order is haywire. A recent report showed LPG and petrol prices skyrocketing to unimaginable levels in NE India, yet the government refused to blink, perhaps it was busy solving problems of more important constituencies.

The discrimination does not stop with religion, region, caste or community. One of the most flourishing genres of discrimination is “complexion”. We Indians were fascinated by the British, no matter how badly they treated us we served them. We wanted to live like them and be like them someday. I guess this is the only plausible explanation of our obsession towards white complexion. INDIANS ARE OBSESSED WITH FAIRNESS! We outnumber white folks when it comes to skin color discrimination. Ostensibly beauty is a subset of Fairness in our country. There are numerous Ads endorsed by superstars which portray a dark complexioned guy whose life was completely screwed up (because of his color, of course!) until he used the whitening cream which brought pretty girls and success into his life. Choosy parents are always in search of a “potential” match for their progeny; hence they land up writing matrimonial Ads. The search ends when the desired level of fairness is achieved (we want our grandchildren to be fair/beautiful! they argue). Hence there is always a need to “see” the bride. White people are branded are the stalwarts of racism, but at least we find black models in the United Colors of Benetton billboard. There are black people flourishing in the Showbiz and entertainment sector in the west compared to India where we seldom see a dark complexioned model or actor doing well.

We Indians are pure Racists. But we will never admit it. We will always point our fingers towards the west and criticize it, while aspiring to be like the west. We say they don’t have culture. But what is our culture? Outsourcing? Fairness creams? Sadly, our culture died with the Vedas. We are today a culturally challenged nation. We are adopting cultures and practices which have been divorced by the west. It is high time that we look in the mirror and find our true self. Reminds me the song “Hey kaala Bandar, bahar hai ya andar?” After more than sixty years of independence what we need today is national integration to hold our country together. Perhaps, elimination of roaming charges is the first step.