US Returned Indian
Last weekend,I was at home .It was late afternoon; the late hot sunshine ,filtering through my bedroom window, was sending trickles of sweat down my body,soaking the thin t-shirt that I had worn.As I lied on the bed trying to catch a wink of sleep, the doorbell rang.I got up to open the door,my mom who however reached it first,opened it.And behold!!,there stood my cousin who was recently back from the US.And,yes you heard me right US(USA -United States of America),my mother's expression changed to that of admiration-here was a person in our family who has returned from America(what an achievement!!!).My mom said "Yen paa AMERICA ka hogi bandi ?..antha yen namma na marta bitti yena?" in Kannada .It meant "You ,had been to America..so you forgot us or what ?" ,there was a special emphasis on America,it was given that special stress as if to show great importance to it.I was not shocked at my mother's bewilderment or talk .For similarly,there have been several instances of people who have returned from the US being placed on the pedestal of worship(as if they have won a war or something similar!!).For instance ,I heard my friend's mom speak to my mom saying "my son you know, is going to the US!!" ,another typical instance has been "Have you gone to the US??" -No?..then what you get is an expression of shock and disbelief!!!.Another very interesting instance that I remember,was when at a wedding(I rarely attend any, but it was good that I attended this, in the light of my thoughts on the US returned Indians),I heard the two middle aged men,besides me conversing- One said"Good for Sindhu,she is getting married into a good family",the other replied "Haa..the boy is also good..seems he had been to the US!!".I was very much bemused..and even more so when the guruji who had come to bless the couple.said that it was an honour for the people of the town as the daughter was getting married to a person who had been to the US!! man was I rolling down ?
My observation has been that ,our past generation ,considers the US to be the sky ,for the present generation though the feelings are mixed, but certainly not of honour and acheivement-for some -its a hip,for others its the heaven to earn money,for some more its the way to go!!
But have we ever thought ,is it that important to have been/visited the US, has any American considered himself great for having been in India-(bad example ,are you laughing ?!!)... lets say more developed regions like the UK,Europe etc..Certainly not ,correct me if I am wrong..but they would certainly have visited/been in these countries on a tour,business,vacation..but very remotely to earn respect and become great ,on being back to US!!.Greatness is in the deeds...we do..
I will agree that US is a great country....very superior, advanced..but it does not give me anything that can make me great..it certainly did not :)..atleast not to me in my very short visit there..I realize that it is upto us to do something that is worth being called exclusively remarkable!!Just going to the US isnt going to change you..I was still my ordinary self when I was there .. and there were no machines to change me :)
Concluding, I am pretty much sure that Americans don't consider that if a fellow American has been to India, then its an achievement.They just consider it as part of the business.
So certainly, one thing is in an onus on all of us Indians..to give each American a feeling of greatness for having been in India!!!!
posted by Amarnath Karwekar @ 9:19 PM
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