Some 60 years ago, when the British left India, they did not realise the blunder they had made during that time. They taught us English. I now wonder why Mr. Blair gets so upset about getting a sales call from Mr. Kumar in Bangalore. After all, Kumar spent a good part of his childhood education learning English so as to make a living by calling Mr. Blair. The British had created an elite class of English speakers during their rule in India to administer the empire. Even today in India, if you are good at making English jokes, you are a dude, otherwise a yarr (pal). However, over the last decade or two, there is another language that is flourishing, though out of frustration, among not-so-dude Indians. These youngsters, who have tried their best in life, but failed, to learn the nitty-gritties of English grammar, have created an indigenous English called Indlish.
Indlish varies across different regions in India based on the local language. In the north, it is Hinglish, a hybrid of Hindi (the local language) and English; in my home state, it is Punglish from Punjabi. The way ‘Indlish’ works is that when an Indian struggles to find the appropriate noun/verb/adjective to complete an English sentence, they finish it with an Indianized word. Sometimes, they use English words to complete sentences in their local language. However, it is now a common trend on college campuses to use such words.
Some words are quite common like ‘timepass’ (Kill time)or ‘timewaste’ (to not utilize time appropriately). I believe ‘tension’ is one of the most commonly used words by non-English speakers in India, like my grandmother who speaks Punglish, ‘Put tension hee te bimari di jaad hai’(tension is the root of diseases). However, there are some English words which she has had difficulty in pronouncing like inverter, a power backup system in India. She settled with an alternative in Punglish, hor-power (more-power). In India, you never address someone older than you by his/her first or last name or you could be badly scolded by somebody. It is considered very disrespectful. Every person who looks significantly older than you is called AuntyJi or UncleJi, where Ji is the most widely used suffix in North India. The Ji at the end signifies respect. If you are being extremely respectful to someone, you may call him/her SirJi/MadamJi.
In one of my courses during my first semester at Tech, a professor spoke, very fluently in a language similar to English; later on, a friend of mine told me that I was listening to the American English. I liked his style of teaching, cracking jokes in between the lecture to make it interactive. Because of his accent, I often missed the transition from his lecture to his joke, so lagged in laughing. Watching American movies (not porn) helps a lot in getting the hang of the American accent, but to my surprise, I found that even they have Americanized the Queen. There were many words, which I heard in movies and during my interaction with fellow Americans, I didn’t find in my Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. I believe it doesn’t matter if the Queen is in jeans or a sari (Indian woman’s dress). English is now the world’s local language. According to Stefan Bergman- it is the bestest.
Source:http://www.mtulode.com/feature/2010/10/21/culture-shock/
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Friday, December 10, 2010
Should you toss a coin?
Are you looking for a job? A job, for which you have studied for four years or more, or some of you have crossed oceans and spent time between unknown people. A job, for which most of you have stayed away from your parents, school friends, pet, or things that make you feel comfortable. A job, for which you married a bank for a dowry of huge loan. A job which you, your parents, friends, relatives, facebook friends, and everyone who cares about you, have been waiting for all these years to hear about. A job, which most of you will be doing for the rest of your life. But what if you decide not to have a job?
I am not saying to become an entrepreneur. It is risky with full of uncertainty. After spending all those rigorous years in college, you are not prepared to face uncertainty at such an early stage of your life. You want to be safe. You want to see the life through a lens that clearly shows you -your growth plans, retirement plans, and investment plans. You need to have a plan. But what if you decide not to have a plan?
Questions, doubts, credibility, and mental stability are questioned. Questions for which you don’t have satisfying answers. Doubts which didn’t even stike your mind. Credibility which was earlier unquestionable. Mental Stability which was stable before the question. It is the clear sign of an obvious reaction to an unobvious behavior.
How do you convince that you don’t want a big package? You want a big mission in life. You don’t want stability to closes all those paths. You want uncertainty to explore those paths. You don’t want to make Friday nights lively. You want to make every night lively. You don’t want objectivity at work. You want emotions at work. You don’t want 8 hours of daily work schedule. You want 30 hours of daily work schedule.
You don’t want a job .You want a purpose. A purpose that you realized after 16 years of your education. A purpose that doesn’t correlate with your the job, you, your parents, your pet, your friends, your teachers, the world you have lived in, always believe that you will get one day.
Should you toss a coin or you have an answer?
I am not saying to become an entrepreneur. It is risky with full of uncertainty. After spending all those rigorous years in college, you are not prepared to face uncertainty at such an early stage of your life. You want to be safe. You want to see the life through a lens that clearly shows you -your growth plans, retirement plans, and investment plans. You need to have a plan. But what if you decide not to have a plan?
Questions, doubts, credibility, and mental stability are questioned. Questions for which you don’t have satisfying answers. Doubts which didn’t even stike your mind. Credibility which was earlier unquestionable. Mental Stability which was stable before the question. It is the clear sign of an obvious reaction to an unobvious behavior.
How do you convince that you don’t want a big package? You want a big mission in life. You don’t want stability to closes all those paths. You want uncertainty to explore those paths. You don’t want to make Friday nights lively. You want to make every night lively. You don’t want objectivity at work. You want emotions at work. You don’t want 8 hours of daily work schedule. You want 30 hours of daily work schedule.
You don’t want a job .You want a purpose. A purpose that you realized after 16 years of your education. A purpose that doesn’t correlate with your the job, you, your parents, your pet, your friends, your teachers, the world you have lived in, always believe that you will get one day.
Should you toss a coin or you have an answer?
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Netrimony?
Before economic liberalization in 1991, middlemen in India enjoyed a very good time in business. Many bureaucratic hurdles could be leapfrogged through the middleman. Licenses for new businesses or contracts could be accessed easily through them. License Raaj(era) was boom time for them. However, there is another very important area where middlemen have played a vital role- getting Indians married.
Marriages in India have always been a big family festival. Just like getting through red tape in bureaucracy, there are many hurdles for a man or woman from a conservative family to get married. The caste, financial status of the family, the advice of family astrologer, and most importantly the religion should be the same. Then, comes the point of whether or not the man or woman actually likes each other. The middleman makes it easy for both parties. He informs both parties with the information and arranges meetings for them. I know many such couples who have been living happily together for years through this process-the best example of which are my parents.
However, over the last decade, the middleman is slowly disappearing from the scene. So, how are Indians getting married then? Well, Indian youngsters are now choosing their life-partners by themselves. In a country where ‘dating’ is a cultural taboo, how do they manage to choose someone? Thanks to Netrimony, a term used to describe many Indian matrimonial websites where one can create a profile and filter his/her search according to his/her caste, salary, astrological sign, religion and many other options. Glancing through the list, one can decide on the life-partner with just a click. I wasn’t quite interested in it until three of my friends got married through it in the past year. Now, I had to dig into it because according to India’s common cultural norms, 24years is the ripe age to get married.
My friends exchanged their phone numbers and finished most of the work of middleman without a slightest hint to their parents. One of the couples even managed to meet each other. It was a remarkable achievement in the history of Indian marriages that a couple could meet before their parents see each other. Surprisingly, parents can also create a profile of their daughter or son on that website. So, chances are high that you may be on the web without your knowledge. I guess, it would have been a big privacy issue in the US. Some call it westernization, others call it 21st century Indianization, but one thing is clear that India is not only developing economically but also culturally.
I searched through couple of popular sites and was impressed to find really good results as compared to Facebook. After spending couple of more hours, I started to realize the similarity of it with the dating sites like match.com, honey.com etc. After all, one in eight American married couples met online according to one YouTube video. Though, the business model of shaadi.com, a popular Indian portal, may differ in many aspects from match.com, their target customers overlap. One obvious difference to me was match.com offered to find you love before marriage whereas shaadi.com also offered ‘marriage before love.’
Marriages in India have always been a big family festival. Just like getting through red tape in bureaucracy, there are many hurdles for a man or woman from a conservative family to get married. The caste, financial status of the family, the advice of family astrologer, and most importantly the religion should be the same. Then, comes the point of whether or not the man or woman actually likes each other. The middleman makes it easy for both parties. He informs both parties with the information and arranges meetings for them. I know many such couples who have been living happily together for years through this process-the best example of which are my parents.
However, over the last decade, the middleman is slowly disappearing from the scene. So, how are Indians getting married then? Well, Indian youngsters are now choosing their life-partners by themselves. In a country where ‘dating’ is a cultural taboo, how do they manage to choose someone? Thanks to Netrimony, a term used to describe many Indian matrimonial websites where one can create a profile and filter his/her search according to his/her caste, salary, astrological sign, religion and many other options. Glancing through the list, one can decide on the life-partner with just a click. I wasn’t quite interested in it until three of my friends got married through it in the past year. Now, I had to dig into it because according to India’s common cultural norms, 24years is the ripe age to get married.
My friends exchanged their phone numbers and finished most of the work of middleman without a slightest hint to their parents. One of the couples even managed to meet each other. It was a remarkable achievement in the history of Indian marriages that a couple could meet before their parents see each other. Surprisingly, parents can also create a profile of their daughter or son on that website. So, chances are high that you may be on the web without your knowledge. I guess, it would have been a big privacy issue in the US. Some call it westernization, others call it 21st century Indianization, but one thing is clear that India is not only developing economically but also culturally.
I searched through couple of popular sites and was impressed to find really good results as compared to Facebook. After spending couple of more hours, I started to realize the similarity of it with the dating sites like match.com, honey.com etc. After all, one in eight American married couples met online according to one YouTube video. Though, the business model of shaadi.com, a popular Indian portal, may differ in many aspects from match.com, their target customers overlap. One obvious difference to me was match.com offered to find you love before marriage whereas shaadi.com also offered ‘marriage before love.’
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Indlish
Some 60 years ago, when the British left India, they did not realize the blunder they had made during that time. They taught us English. I now wonder why Mr. Blair gets so upset about getting a sales call from Mr. Kumar in Bangalore. Afterall, Kumar spent a good part of his childhood education learning English so as to make a living by calling Mr. Blair. The British had created an elite class of English speakers during their rule in India to administer the empire. Even today in India, if you are good at making English jokes, you are a dude, otherwise a yarr (pal). However, over the last decade or two, there is another language that is flourishing, though out of frustration, among not-so-dude Indians. These youngsters, who have tried their best in life, but failed, to learn the nitty-gritties of English grammar, have created an indigenous English called Indlish.
Indlish varies across different regions in India based on the local language. In the north, it is Hinglish, a hybrid of Hindi (the local language) and English; in my home state, it is Punglish from Punjabi. The way ‘Indlish’ works is that when an Indian struggles to find the appropriate noun/verb/adjective to complete an English sentence, they finish it with an Indianized word. Sometimes, they use English words to complete sentences in their local language. However, it is now a common trend on college campuses to use such words.
Some words are quite common like ‘timepass’ (Kill time)or ‘timewaste’ (to not utilize time appropriately). I believe ‘tension’ is one of the most commonly used words by non-English speakers in India, like my grandmother who speaks Punglish, ‘Put tension hee te bimari di jaad hai’(tension is the root of diseases). However, there are some English words which she has had difficulty in pronouncing like inverter, a power backup system in India. She settled with an alternative in Punglish, hor-power (more-power). In India, you never address someone older than you by his/her first or last name or you could be badly scolded by somebody. It is considered very disrespectful. Every person who looks significantly older than you is called AuntyJi or UncleJi, where Ji is the most widely used suffix in North India. The Ji at the end signifies respect. If you are being extremely respectful to someone, you may call him/her SirJi/MadamJi.
In one of my courses during my first semester at Tech, a professor spoke, very fluently in a language similar to English; later on, a friend of mine told me that I was listening to the American English. I liked his style of teaching, cracking jokes in between the lecture to make it interactive. Because of his accent, I often missed the transition from his lecture to his joke, so lagged in laughing. Watching American movies (not porn) helps a lot in getting the hang of the American accent, but to my surprise, I found that even they have Americanized the Queen. There were many words, which I heard in movies and during my interaction with fellow Americans, I didn’t find in my Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. I believe it doesn’t matter if the Queen is in jeans or a sari (Indian woman’s dress). English is now the world’s local language. According to Stefan Bergman- it is the bestest.
Indlish varies across different regions in India based on the local language. In the north, it is Hinglish, a hybrid of Hindi (the local language) and English; in my home state, it is Punglish from Punjabi. The way ‘Indlish’ works is that when an Indian struggles to find the appropriate noun/verb/adjective to complete an English sentence, they finish it with an Indianized word. Sometimes, they use English words to complete sentences in their local language. However, it is now a common trend on college campuses to use such words.
Some words are quite common like ‘timepass’ (Kill time)or ‘timewaste’ (to not utilize time appropriately). I believe ‘tension’ is one of the most commonly used words by non-English speakers in India, like my grandmother who speaks Punglish, ‘Put tension hee te bimari di jaad hai’(tension is the root of diseases). However, there are some English words which she has had difficulty in pronouncing like inverter, a power backup system in India. She settled with an alternative in Punglish, hor-power (more-power). In India, you never address someone older than you by his/her first or last name or you could be badly scolded by somebody. It is considered very disrespectful. Every person who looks significantly older than you is called AuntyJi or UncleJi, where Ji is the most widely used suffix in North India. The Ji at the end signifies respect. If you are being extremely respectful to someone, you may call him/her SirJi/MadamJi.
In one of my courses during my first semester at Tech, a professor spoke, very fluently in a language similar to English; later on, a friend of mine told me that I was listening to the American English. I liked his style of teaching, cracking jokes in between the lecture to make it interactive. Because of his accent, I often missed the transition from his lecture to his joke, so lagged in laughing. Watching American movies (not porn) helps a lot in getting the hang of the American accent, but to my surprise, I found that even they have Americanized the Queen. There were many words, which I heard in movies and during my interaction with fellow Americans, I didn’t find in my Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. I believe it doesn’t matter if the Queen is in jeans or a sari (Indian woman’s dress). English is now the world’s local language. According to Stefan Bergman- it is the bestest.
Saturday, October 9, 2010
Batch Year or Batch Number?
Whenever someone asked me which batch I belonged to for my bachelor’s degree, I had trouble answering because I used to think the year of admission was my batch year. After some enquiry, I found it to be the year of graduation. Now that I know, I wouldn’t have to be embarrassed again after my master’s in the U.S.
In India, it is a very popular notion that the U.S. institutions are the best in the world, and that a degree from a good U.S. university means plenty of opportunities ahead. No doubt about it; even I have found it to be quite true. But there are some very disappointing facts about the American education system which no one told me before. I had been very interested in knowing the history of education especially about the US education. Fortunately or unfortunately, I was introduced indirectly by a professor of mine to the work of Ivan Illich, John Holt, John Taylor Ghatto and few others names in American education reform movement.
The first disturbing thing I found was the fact that the present school model had been taken from the factory model of the industrial revolution in the 20th century, eliminating the earlier school house model where children learned from peers of different ages and where the teacher could cater material to individual needs. In a factory model, a teacher is seen as a worker and a student is seen as a product to be manufactured. Each year is like an assembly line sequence, passing from one class to next. Those students who don’t make it as finished products are called “drop outs.” Still skeptical about these radical views, I wanted to know if there were people in the 21st century who agreed with what I had read.
To my surprise, one of the well known names in the field of management (also education), Clayton Christensen, has reinforced the same point in his book ‘Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns.’ Daniel H. Pink in his book ‘A Whole New Mind’ describes the crises in education. Others have directly or indirectly hinted at the same underlying factory model. I was not prepared to digest all this, after all, I have grown up believing that good school education means a good job which means a good life, and if you are lucky enough, it could also mean a good wife.
Remembering my school days, spending 6-7 hours in the classroom, listening most of the time, writing important notes that could help me get an ‘A’ in the exam and in turn, earn respect among fellow students and praise from teachers. A single letter at the end of the year framed the perception of me in the eyes of my parents, friends, teachers and all those people who knew me. Things are not different here. After all, there is something wrong at the core. Though it sounds radical, it is not inaccurate.
During the career fair, everyone is busy researching the companies, practicing their interview skills, reviewing resumes. Even I had been waiting for this day. While working on my resume, one thing made me ponder for a while – the year of graduation. Does it represent a batch year or a batch number?
My Article in the Michigan Tech Lode
Link:http://www.mtulode.com/feature/2010/10/07/culture-shock-6-2/
In India, it is a very popular notion that the U.S. institutions are the best in the world, and that a degree from a good U.S. university means plenty of opportunities ahead. No doubt about it; even I have found it to be quite true. But there are some very disappointing facts about the American education system which no one told me before. I had been very interested in knowing the history of education especially about the US education. Fortunately or unfortunately, I was introduced indirectly by a professor of mine to the work of Ivan Illich, John Holt, John Taylor Ghatto and few others names in American education reform movement.
The first disturbing thing I found was the fact that the present school model had been taken from the factory model of the industrial revolution in the 20th century, eliminating the earlier school house model where children learned from peers of different ages and where the teacher could cater material to individual needs. In a factory model, a teacher is seen as a worker and a student is seen as a product to be manufactured. Each year is like an assembly line sequence, passing from one class to next. Those students who don’t make it as finished products are called “drop outs.” Still skeptical about these radical views, I wanted to know if there were people in the 21st century who agreed with what I had read.
To my surprise, one of the well known names in the field of management (also education), Clayton Christensen, has reinforced the same point in his book ‘Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns.’ Daniel H. Pink in his book ‘A Whole New Mind’ describes the crises in education. Others have directly or indirectly hinted at the same underlying factory model. I was not prepared to digest all this, after all, I have grown up believing that good school education means a good job which means a good life, and if you are lucky enough, it could also mean a good wife.
Remembering my school days, spending 6-7 hours in the classroom, listening most of the time, writing important notes that could help me get an ‘A’ in the exam and in turn, earn respect among fellow students and praise from teachers. A single letter at the end of the year framed the perception of me in the eyes of my parents, friends, teachers and all those people who knew me. Things are not different here. After all, there is something wrong at the core. Though it sounds radical, it is not inaccurate.
During the career fair, everyone is busy researching the companies, practicing their interview skills, reviewing resumes. Even I had been waiting for this day. While working on my resume, one thing made me ponder for a while – the year of graduation. Does it represent a batch year or a batch number?
My Article in the Michigan Tech Lode
Link:http://www.mtulode.com/feature/2010/10/07/culture-shock-6-2/
Friday, July 23, 2010
Thank You
I met him on a train to Delhi from Amritsar. It was a long 9 hours journey. Being brought up in military family, I can quickly identify a person if he is from Army or not. He was a Madrasi in Amritsar, so this guess was like a toffee. I saw my watch and thought about ways to kill next 8 hours. The very thought compelled me to start a conversation with him, sitting beside me. We were traveling in a general sitting compartment so it was quite obvious that he belonged to a lower rank. "What is your battalion?" I asked. Surprised but comfortable he answered," 47."
I was looking more like 'chikna'(cleaned-shaved) Delhi guy with good education. My neat Hindi even made him believe that I was from Delhi. He described, like any other constable's story,his part of story how he got into the Indian Army. Feeling of nationalism and doing something for the country fooled him for this day. An army where no one cares about his opinions, his family problems, and his emotions. "But they say one has to sacrifice somethings for doing such a great job for the nation," I said to make him feel good. "If it is the case, then why do those officers are not making any such sacrifices, why no one sees their corruption, why we have to responsible for any wrong doing of them" he backfired. I had no answer, I nodded in yes by keeping my mouth shut, may be because I didn't want to add any more petrol. I took a glance over my wrist watch and was happy to see only 3 hours left. I thought about changing the topic and wisely took it to the current education system that he said his children were victim of. He had saved 1 Lakh over last 2 year and saving each year for the higher education of his two children. Worried over the thought that how these small saving will pay for the education of his children in long run, I advised him to look into the option of education insurance. Now I had gained a lot of his confidence and sympathy, he looked convinced that I was a wise person.
I could see the filthy slums and smell foul smell from drains. There was no need to ask anyone- Bhaisaab Dilhi aa gaya?(Have we arrived at Delhi?). Well, I could not get any moral message from my 9 hrs of journey to tell you , so won't you, I believe, after wasting your time to read 300 words. But one thing did really made my journey special, it was the 'Thank You' from his side at the station.
I was looking more like 'chikna'(cleaned-shaved) Delhi guy with good education. My neat Hindi even made him believe that I was from Delhi. He described, like any other constable's story,his part of story how he got into the Indian Army. Feeling of nationalism and doing something for the country fooled him for this day. An army where no one cares about his opinions, his family problems, and his emotions. "But they say one has to sacrifice somethings for doing such a great job for the nation," I said to make him feel good. "If it is the case, then why do those officers are not making any such sacrifices, why no one sees their corruption, why we have to responsible for any wrong doing of them" he backfired. I had no answer, I nodded in yes by keeping my mouth shut, may be because I didn't want to add any more petrol. I took a glance over my wrist watch and was happy to see only 3 hours left. I thought about changing the topic and wisely took it to the current education system that he said his children were victim of. He had saved 1 Lakh over last 2 year and saving each year for the higher education of his two children. Worried over the thought that how these small saving will pay for the education of his children in long run, I advised him to look into the option of education insurance. Now I had gained a lot of his confidence and sympathy, he looked convinced that I was a wise person.
I could see the filthy slums and smell foul smell from drains. There was no need to ask anyone- Bhaisaab Dilhi aa gaya?(Have we arrived at Delhi?). Well, I could not get any moral message from my 9 hrs of journey to tell you , so won't you, I believe, after wasting your time to read 300 words. But one thing did really made my journey special, it was the 'Thank You' from his side at the station.
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