Desi.
The word with no malice in itself is soon becoming a slur
among desis. I live in the Bay Area, popularly known as
the Silicon Valley - the best haven for Indian dream chasers.
The past two years it is hard not to notice how Indian we
are no matter where we live. I am referring to it as Indianism
for the sake of discussion.
One of the lasting traits among us is our conformity to
the prevalent ways. To put it straight, when in Rome we
do as Romans would want to do. I see nothing wrong in embracing
the culture of the place where you live. Nothing suits your
body like local food; nothing excites you like local culture.
One may argue that you lose your identity by doing so. What
indeed you are doing is establishing your own identity.
The immigrant community that doesn't fraternize with the
locals, is considered as the greatest threat to their culture.
It is simply parasitic in nature. The Indian community can
never be seen in such a light by any scrupulous society,
considering the teeming contributions we made and still
make.
When it comes to socializing, I would admit that we are
far from novice. After all that is what the red hot kiln
called colonialism spits, when tilted after more than two
centuries of baking souls. Most of the desis we discuss
today would even have the veterans who fought for our precious
independence as grandparents. The fact reminds us that we
have only spent fewer decades able to decide our destinies.
We, the politically liberated Indians, strive harder than
ever to shackle the colonial cuffs that crushed our self-esteem.
We have spent centuries waiting for orders, permissions
and the too-unreasonable-to-expect acknowledgments. We are
victims of institutionalism. We still find it hard to do
what we do just because we want to. We are learning to acknowledge
ourselves and pat ourselves in the back for things we did
well. We have come a long way my friends. Let us take some
time to pause and look back the path we traveled and plan
for the miles to go.
I believe in the citizens of tomorrow as much I thank our
forefathers, for leading us to where we are today. My desi
neighbor's 3 years old daughter who proudly identifies herself
as an American-Indian, promises much more than what we wish
to achieve. She embodies the bold generation which is competent
enough to speak more than one language, mingle with friends
of different cultural origins and shrug the laments of ever
complaining grumblers. Trust me, we can do it.
Happy living!
I welcome any feedback on the topic discussed. Please send
your comments to jawahs@yahoo.com
