Being an Indian………South Indian……..Keralite………
What do all these means?
This is not just a research question……….though one day I might take it up as one. But just thinking about being associated with a region.
Lollakutty in Channel V, the foolish Madrasi in Hindi movies, the teashop vendor Neil Armstrong met in moon, the tech savvy professional, the cricket lover and movie buff, the beaf eater…………descriptions are endless!

Yes, I did visit Southindia.com.
Found it interesting to note that South India is defined in terms of IT, Arts, etc. Planning to take part in their discussion forum. Wondering if anyone else is interested in this topic!

2 thoughts on “Indian……….”

  1. sudeep
    9, February, 2006

    I don’t quite understand the term South India. Or I believe the term is racist in itself.

    Probably because there are no East Indians or West Indians in India. (There are Bengalis, Gujaratis, Oriyas, Rajasthanis, Mumbai-iites..) There are north Indians but well, they are Indians! “South India” is often refered to as some place that is not in India. And “South Indian” is someone who is not quite an Indian.

    I remember one my Japanese friend telling me, when he was in Delhi people used to ask him “are you a South Indian?” He would answer, no I am an Indian. He later left India and married a Japanese woman. They had two kids when I met them
    about six years back. He is now a Japanese. Narayanaswamy Ranganathan prefers being a dark-skinned Indian/Asian in France than being a South Indian in India (Racism Exists everywhere, in.rediff.com/news/2006/jan/12guest.htm )

    The people who make fun of the “southies” (or “Anna”, common in Mumbai, this one applies only to men) don’t really know a Malayali is not a Tamilian. They show a Malayali speaking Tamil accent in “Salaam Namaste”, and goes one step ahead and there is this Malayali (Menon/Nair) who actually speaks Tamil in Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Maara.

    It is not necessary that racists remain racists. Most of my friends here in Mumbai are Marathis, an for them I have become a Malayali, not an Anna or a Southie. Thankfully.

    [This one is getting interesting. May be I will work more on it and write about it sometime at my blog, sudeep.rediffblogs.com ]

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