Stupid Indian People
India has recently grabbed global headlines for disturbingly horrible reasons. Some publicity-mongering Indians have been all too happy to get the press to share their ignorance with the rest of the world. These people are fools, and I am not afraid to say it, even though I am myself an Indian-American. They give me and all Indians everywhere a bad name, and it embarrasses me to no small degree to read about this stuff in the media.
And now, although it pains me to do so, I am publicizing the three events in question: (1) Gangs of Indians, angry at the national cricket team’s opening loss to Bangladesh in the 2007 World Cup, proceeded to riot in cities throughout the country, burning effigies of the players, and destroying the house under construction of cricket team wicket-keeper Mahendra Singh Dhroni, who played poorly in the match. (2) Holier-than-thou Indians create a national uproar because Richard Gere, at an appearance for AIDS awareness in India, grabs Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty in a tango hold and kisses her on the CHEEKS. Indian court issues an arrest order and creates an international incident. (3) Holier-than-thou Indians create a national uproar because British actress/model Liz Hurley married some rich Indian guy in a Hindu wedding ceremony that wasn’t done perfectly right according to some Hindu fundamentalist clowns. The case is, of course, brought to court and sets off another international shit-storm.
I honestly don’t know which one is worse. It’s as if some combination of Hindu fundamentalists and nationalistic zealots have nothing better to do than keep their eyes open for some harmless act that they can scream and get violent over, or at least take to court and appear on television to delplore. Cricket team lost? Destroy the wicket-keeper’s house! He deserves it. An American actor kissed the cheeks of one of our own? The horror- arrest him! A British actress marries one of our own boys in a Hindu ceremony? Blasphemy- take them to court! While these people do not represent sentiments of all Indians, their opinions are prominent enough that more reasonable voices do not drown them out and expose them for the village idiots that they are, advanced legal degree or not. And of course, the media eats their crap up. Nothing like a little drama to sell the papers. And here we have it: Indians with their inferiority complex on display for all to see, shit-scared that their religion and culture, and even athletic prowess are under attack from the rest of the world. Where is the local outrage against this outrage? You can’t have enough.
Many people in India dread the influence of foreign movies, fashion, and music taking over the minds of the country’s youth. While this may be valid, there are probably other priorities the society should have other than public displays of cheek-kissing. Such as, doing something about the corruption that eats at Indian government from the highest level to the lowest. Or the 70% of the population that is starving to death- what good does freedom from Hollywood movies do them? How important can culture really be when your body is wasting away from preventable dysentery or AIDS? The moral majority frequenting the corridors of the Hindu power structure should stop bitching about whether Liz Hurley’s wedding was performed correctly or not, and do something about the AIDS problem- which is exactly what Richard Gere and Shilpa Shetty were trying to do. I understand many tenets of Hinduism, and central to the Hindutva philosophy is acting rather than talking. Acting to make sure the people in the community have enough to eat is far closer to achieving Hindu dharma than attacking the white visitors who are adding thousands of dollars into the Indian economy. What do you think Hinduism says in regards to taking care of your guests? Guests are to be treated like Gods. It does not say to arrest them or sue them, I can guarantee you that.
Of course, nothing will change. To understand why, we will get to the bottom of it all. Indians like to think of themselves as world players, especially with the recent boom in the IT industry and nouveau riche Indian billionaire businessmen arriving on the scene in their private jets, better than everyone else. Indians like to think that their way is the best way. I’ve got news for you: India will continue to be an ass-backward place as long as politicians continue to fuel sectarian hatred and violence at the cost of what is best for the country. Religious and political leaders, out to expound on themselves rather than really help people, are the ones who rile up the masses in protest of the cricket players, or the activities of foreign celebrities, or increase the Hindu-Muslim divide. The poverty rate is rising, not falling; the IT industry, even if it continues to boom exponentially, can only employ 1% of the adult population. India cannot afford to be a one-trick computer pony, ravaged by anti-foreign sentiment and religious fanaticism. Indians need to stop blaming everyone else for their problems (especially the Brits who left 60 long years ago), and start working to solve them. Nobody else is going to do it for them. With the way Richard Gere has been treated, I wonder if others like him will simply not bother to help, and rightly so.
