Insolent Interfering Imbeciles

Nobody needs to be told how skewed the Indian society is. Amid tall claims of modernization and criminal charges of westernization, it is clear to any person how perversely orthodox and unbending this civilization is.

There are a number of examples wherein this backward mindset can be seen, heard and experienced in everyday life. It might not always become glaringly obvious, but that is only because we have accepted these things and taken them in our stride as things that ‘just happen’ in India. Is it such a surprise then that we have songs that go like, “It happens only in India…?”

One such problem of the Indian people is their indefinite problem with the youth of the country. They believe that today’s youth is irresponsible, useless, unemployed and indecent. What they apparently do not realize is that if they make such allegations, they malign themselves and not the youth, since their accusations revert upon themselves as to what morals they've passed down to this generation.

This however, does not mean that I’m pleading guilty to those charges. In fact, I believe that the Indian society’s problem is their fear of accepting change. They are scared of losing what they have been brought up to believe is true. What they do not understand is that their society will ultimately stagnate like the Sanskrit language, without the change that the next generation stands for.

The incident that has driven me to write this post is a classic example of the skewed morality that Indians posses and are incredibly proud of.

My colleague and friend, a woman, offered to drop me home after a very long day of film shooting and we were both half dead. The area in which I stay is pretty well developed and is near to some very reputed institutes of the city, there’s a lot of traffic and so she dropped me right into my lane. I had a couple packets of chips and so we decided to sooth our ravenous bellies before leaving for home. Now as we were eating and discussing the next day’s schedule, this woman in a night dress comes to the gate of one of the houses and asks us our business in sitting “near” her house in the night. We explain ourselves, albeit grudgingly but she still pushes on, mentioning that times are bad and the “things” that happen to woman nowadays. Ultimately, we had to leave before she woke up half the lane.

Image Courtesy: Google Images.

 This is what one means when they say, “People in India can piss on the road but they can’t kiss on the road.” Two people, mutually respectful of each other, sitting on government property and eating a packet of chips that is the only thing gone into their mouth since the start of day, are chased away by a by a half-naked home owner because it scandalizes her morality. Brilliant, isn't it? Praiseworthy even! She has proved herself to be the keeper of women’s honour and the guardian of Indian morality in this time of great evil.