Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Open Letter to a "madrasan"

Just came across a blog where the author has given her viewpoint on “Delhi boys” and “Punjabis”. A friend of mine suggested that I write about my own experiences in South, where I have been for the last 3 months but will that solve a purpose?


The writer in question has wrote a brilliant piece of writing if you consider how much it got read or how much it is being shared on facebook. May be that was the motive.

She has made a lot of poignant points like Punjabis’ obsession towards Punjabi music, our love for SUVs and blah blah. Is she right? Hell yea she is.

As a proud Punjabi, I do love Gurdas Mann but as an Indian, I respect each and every south Indian artist who is doing a good job. Just because I don’t get the languages doesn’t give me a right to disapprove of them. If some people do, that is because they are jerks or just because they are talking in good humour.

Would I want to drive a SUV, Why not! Do I love my branded clothes, Sure! Is it a crime to like good things in life??

And who said only North Indians form stereotypes!

I am a vegetarian & I don’t consume pan masala or gutka etc etc. And every person I tell this to down here looks at me with horror in their eyes. Does that give me a right to say South Indians are stupid?

I am a hindu and I am a Brahmin but how does it matter. But still half of the people can’t resist but ask me, “What is your caste?” Does that give me a right to say Southies are casteists?

Whenever I am with a bunch of kannadigas, more often than not they start ignoring me and start talking in Kannada. Whenever they laugh, I assume its a joke on me and I can’t even count the number of people who have told me, “First Learn Kannada and then work here.” Does that justify if I hate Karnataka or the language or the people here.

Priyanka Chopra is my favourite actress but then I liked Aishwarya more before Priyanka hit the silverscreen. Does that mean, I turned from being a “south of the vindhyas” guy to a north Indian?

Heard a name-Chetan Bhagat? He is a delhite, He did go to an IIT, He is one of India’s highest selling authors and ironically he is married to a “madrasan.” So what is he?

Heard a name-Kiran Bedi? The woman who has shaken the entire political and bureaucratic class in the country through her utmost bravery? She is a woman and the last time I heard, she was still a Punjabi!

I am not looking for answers to the above questions. We all know them!

I am sure the girl who wrote that stupid blog would have had a torrid time because she met some morons but there are others who face similar situations down south as well. It comes as a package when we live in country as diverse as India. But, what matters is our ability to accept the positives and reject the negatives. After all, someone said very recently, Hate doesn’t kill hate!

What really surprises me even more is that the article here came about from a girl who is talking about “being a writer” or “going to IIT” as a very important point in favour of South Indians. I think before talking about all this, you need to learn the concept of “India” and then you may be qualified to write!

36 comments:

Anonymous said...

I refrained my self from commenting on her blog.

But your reply is much more sensible ... than then other one i read on facebook ...

Anonymous said...

True having spent 4 years down south, I could've made a foot long rant, but I refrained as well.

DelhiBoy Only said...

Abeyaar who is this madrasan? She is writing bad things only. Im Delhiboy and Ive write a response
http://delhiboyonly.blogspot.com/2011/09/open-letter-to-delhi-boy-by-madrasan.html

Dipraj Nandi said...

Hi Adarsh,

Thanks for a restrained sensible reply.

It is such precisely such outliers who choose to represent some random 'community' and push a sword through the heart of another.

One should own a privilege of showing them the door and the royal treatment of extradition to a culture of their choice.

Cheers!

adarshs said...

thanks a lot guys...I had no intentions of hurting people sentiments, hence the restrained reply...we all face problems wen v r in locations outsides our homeland but rather than cribbing n insulting people of that place...serves no good purpose other than giving some stupid viral publicity...

Vipul Grover said...

I hope no one asked you, "Where is your turban?" when you told them you are from Punjab. I've been asked that atleast twice :p

adarshs said...

as a matter of fact, I have been which was accompanied by, "Aap punjab se nahi lagte, u r very soft spoken"...talk about stereotypes :P

Sushrut Padhye said...

'Solve the purpose' not 'Solve a purpose' - Being a IIM-grad doesn't make you error-proof nor does it give you the right to walk with a proud gait.Inform others,but make sure you are properly informed before doing so.Keep this thing in mind.

adarshs said...

well i dont know what you are getting at sir and I have no idea how you hav brought my education into it...I dont think good education gives any1 any rights, if at all it gives us a lot of responsibility...all i hav tried to say here is that i also hav exprerienced things that hav been a weird but I can't say they represent the entire community..we all have good n we all hav bad...

Raja said...

koi nahi dost...koi nahi...tera itna viral nahi ho paaya

onyx said...

WHICH one of the IIMs are you from? HOW is ur english SO fucked up?

god bless the 50 % reservation system.

Anonymous said...

Great to observe that you are ignoring the jackass comments . It is not about English here . It is about being mature and not using cheap and coarse methods to get publicity. Good Job Adarsh and Great Going :-) You have lived upto your claim of being mature in the face of some idiotic provocation. Maybe she will meet people like you and really eat her choleric words Punjabi Tadka laga Ke .

SM said...

The "madrasan" needs a helping hand from a psychiatrist at Apollo Chennai.

adarshs said...

thanks a lot mr anonymous :)

@sm...i just hope shes lucky enough to meet a real punjabi :)

@onyx...i wish i had u as my english teacher so that my 99.73%ile cud hav become 100...but sadly i ll hav to live wit it for the rest of my life :)

adarshs said...

@raja...dost i wud hav been worried had i been bothered about viral..i m happy with the limited readers that i hav as long as my views appeal to them :)

Anonymous said...

dude these so called open letters can be avoided (jst a personal opinion) coz honestly these are just a waste of time ,but then u would reply to this comment by saying that it was not me but that girl who started this shit.....but then it's just one person's opinion about a place what difference it makes.....at the end ur blog says u are an IIM grad ...so live upto that reputation try being the bigger guy that suits the IIM tag more.......
from
A BITS-PILANI future grad.(3rd yr as of now)

adarshs said...

Hey...I agree that I cud hav chosen a better title..rather I shud hav...otherwise, its just an article against stereotyping communities based on some1s personal experiences...but yes it all started because some1 did it...I cud hav ignored it but I didn't :)

Ritu said...

Hey Adarsh,
Good take on this unfortunate North-South war, reasonable n sensible..I found 'that' blog post entirely in bad taste...if you don't like someone just get over it n move, what's the need to retaliate using such strong language n that too stereotyping n generalizing n making fun of people for their physical traits/their choice of a particular singer!! Extremely immature & unnecessary

Sushrut Padhye said...

Many years ago a sage said this maxim : "Talk about your work and not your accomplishments,your work will automatically reflect your accomplishments." And from your comments and 'about me' you seem to be hell bent on flaunting your career statics ( 99 %ile,IIM-grad and blah ),while at the same time your work is no where close to your achievements.I suggest,you should stop glossing over such trifling things and rather concentrate on the 'real' thing,the thing that counts,that is the content or the material -- which is the only thing that matters.You seem to be quite a good-natured,perceptive and considerate bloke as it appears from your other comments,and you obviously are intelligent(which is obvious from your trackrecord);so,you should make the best use of these powers to make the world a better a place live for everybody.And see,marks are not enough;tell me frankly,is your article anywhere even close to IIM standards ? An affirming no ! Neither by content,nor by language ! And surely you would have done something to make it sort of 'viral'.So please,being such a decent guy atleast stop flaunting your stats and start honing your skills in the things that matter.Remember,your IIM degree won't get you too far,your subsequently work will(happened with Chetan Bhagat and most others).

And while you're at it in full-flow at it,I think why should I not give you a mouthful : Sushrut Padhye,three-time former Gujarat no.1 in Table Tennis,atleast 20 state titles,12 nationals,bronze-medallist at national level,Gujarat Rajya Ramatveer Award Winner,engineer,budding writer et al.Hope this should be enough !

adarshs said...

Thanks for accepting that I seem like a sensible bloke...as for my flaunting- if some1 tells me that I must hav gotten through to an iim because of reservations, I m nt among those who ll take it lying low...

I m glad that u hav done good for urself but as I hav never questioned ur credibility, I fail to understand how it is related...

I respect ur opinion on d quality of my writing n every critic gives me an opportunity to improve.But based on my knowledge, iims produce managers and not writers so let's not keep dragging that into d debate...

But still I thank you for taking out time and leavin ur comments..

adarshs said...

Thanks for ur comments ritu...can't agree more..

Ashu said...

Dear 'madrasan', you spoke about punjus bad english, darling being an Indian can you even talk proper hindi???

Anonymous said...

Hi Adarsh I am Ms actually Mrs Anonymous a northie married to a southie, approaching her 50s yes am an old person . I have met with a fair amount of racism , have been a called uncultured ,illiterate being form a society that lives in the stone age by people down south . Yes never take crap from anyone , but do not stoop as low as those people , be the change you want to see.. I also post a marriage met the most wonderful people deep down South and the compliments they heaped on me . One person ( and he is a general in the Indian army the most upright dashing and fearless person I have come across ) twenty years down the line actually said that he was glad my husband had married me and not someone from their small very distinct community . So should I be gloating over that that I am better? No way. I should be happy that he appreciated my efforts to understand adapt to and respect and love their tiny community. Just be a good human being . Creeps and bitches are in every society . What are you going to do rave and rant every time someone says something unpleasant . What is wrong with wanting god things in life . Sadly she has come across as the biggest stereotype narrow minded racist bigot . Well Adarsh you have truly lived up to the name your parents gave you. Just a question adarsh am I old fashioned .. or what .. the language so coarse the fodder for her humour .. ie autism and partition .. is this what is great powerful writing adarsh , I cannot believe how many have lauded her writing . Maybe I am too old and old fashioned , your anonymous northie southie anutie

adarshs said...

thanks a lot for your kind words mam..i totally agree with you that cribbing never helps...you always find people who will not be fond of you but you will also find people who just adore you and this is true no matter where you are..Just because she met a scoundrel doesn't mean every1 is...I wish she had your wisdom given how you have adjusted and have gone on to win over people down south...and no mam, you are not old fashioned...most people in their right mind despise her article, some consider it funny(personal opinion) and those who have appreciated her views are rare and better left untouched...

Harsh said...

Hi Adarsh,

Very dignified reply to not only Shahana but also to the comments that have followed your post.
I have had the fortune of staying in punjab, haryana, HP, delhi,Gujarat, maharashtra, TN and now Karnataka.
My unbiased opinion is that stereotyping is common in both North and south but what is worrysome is that I have seen this stereotyping getting transformed to hatred more often in the south than in the north.
I ve heard comments like "u r from punjab ...the state of plenty, why did u have to move out", "punjab is lovely, i ve seen ddlj and jab we met" to as ridiculous as "is it true that almost evrybody moves with a revolver in their pocket in punjab?"... i ve laughed off most of these comments as I did my friends' comments who would call me and tell "kya kar raha hai...nariyal tel me bani idli kha raha hai?"... there are so many stereotypes that it becomes impossible to take any of them seriously.
All I tell people is first travel to a place and meet people, u r sure to find freaks everywhere but at the same time we can learn so much from each other.
And by no means I accept the arguement only south indians performing in competitions..simple googling will tell YoY its been the West region for IITs and the north (UP and Bihar) for IAS.

Harsh Chopra said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Harsh Chopra said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
adarshs said...

hey harsh...thanks a lot for ur comments...i agree that we all meet weird people wherever we may go but we shouldn't stereotype people no matter what..every human being is unique in him/herself and has his/her positives n negatives so its just unfair...n to those who do this, just laugh it off :D

Kunal Khanna said...

My Dear fellow INDIAN ( who wants to relate herself just to southern part of our country),

Namaste!Sat Sri Akal! Namaskaram (whichever you think is not racist to you).
You say the Indian boys native to our national capital Delhi and state of Punjab got brains of a 3 year old.For your knowledge if you dont know, the country is being run by a Punjabi man,who's got a honorific of doctor with his name-Dr.Manmohan Singh(the most educated prime minister in the world).The Planning Commission's deputy chairman is a Punjabi again-Dr.Montek Singh Ahluwalia.I dont think the country's economy is doing bad under these two esteemed men who according to you,belong the region where boys got intelligence levels of a 3 year old.Our nation's biggest telecom company, Airtel's chairman is again a Punjabi.
You talk about discrimination against women-Delhi's got a lady chief minister on a second consective term.Is there any other place,where people have put faith in a woman to lead their state on a third consecutive term? One more thing for your knowledge,she was preceded by a woman, who is now the leader of opposition in Lok Sabha(the constitutional representation of whole union of India)-Sushma Swaraj.You still think we discriminate against women?
You got a problem with stone faded, ripped jeans, V-neck cleavage showing t-shirts.So you got a problem with the fashion sense of Delhi and Punjabi boys? I can just feel pity on your orthodox fashion sense which thinks only a man wearing a dhoti is worth wearing clothes.
We never had a problem with your colour or any such thing for which you are feeling offended.None but you is being racist to yourself.
No one cows down to the whims of their husband, I dont know which world are you living in.Grow up!
Being a fan of Gurdas Mann or Dharmendra is as dear to us as is to you being a fan of Rajnikant or Kamal Hasan, and we do respect all the artists be it Hema Malini( a Punjabi married her ) or M.S.Subhalakshami.
You talked about Priyanka Chopra-she was Ms.World,not a small thing i guess and as was Aishwarya Rai.
You just generalized your cheap,racist letter for everyone and wrote as if you put words to the heatbeat of every South Indian girl.
You forget the bravery of Punjabis.Not you but we got borders with Pakistan,we have been facing the aftermaths of Indo-Pak Wars since independence be it partition in 1947,1965 or 1971.You forgot 1984.We haven't.Punjabis been the biggest part of Indian National Army.
You forget the hard work of Punjabi 'kisans'( I hope you dont find mention of a Hindi word as a racist remark).
We respect the whole of India and love our fellow countrymen.Delhi's been welcoming people from all over the nation with open arms,irrespective of the state they belong to.
So,grow up and learn about the ground reality of things before writing the most idiotic letter ever written just because of your own inferiority complex over certain things and stop generalizing it as a public notice from your whole community.

Yours
Indian(state-punjab)

adarshs said...

@kunal...are you sure you wanted to post this comment here??

Narayani Karthik said...

A very well written post. And a pretty decent reply too.....

I have read that blog by that Madrasan and from humor point of view, her blog was very amusing, but on a serious note, could not agree to everything she has written. And your reply refutes her frustrated article in a very decent way. Every nook and corner of our country has morons. The only thing is not everyone has the time to write about it as this girl did. Nevertheless, I believe that girl must have read your reply.

BTW keep blogging :) Cheers and God bless...!!

adarshs said...

thanks a lot narayani...i will keep blogging as long as kind readers like you keep visiting :)

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