Stranded at a traffic intersection in India, waiting for the traffic lights to change, strangely gives you a small window of time. Time when you are not peering at your phone. It is eerily relaxing. Until your gaze follows to the roadside troop of hawkers, beggers and homeless children. As they go about their business with the agility of a superhero, you cannot help but wonder what happens after the day ends. Where do these people go? What kind of lives do they live?
For some reason, Indians are desensitized to the poor in a way that is very complicated to explain to outsiders. The truth is the middle class Indians perceive this in a different way - a kind of fear internalized inside them as they grew up - that they could end in poverty just like the infinite homeless on the roads. A fear that drives their dreams of a home, car, bank balance and a well paid job, that it makes them look at the poor in disgust and fear. And India has probably one of the fastest growing middle class population in the world.
Over the last couple of decades, the baseline expectations of middle class Indian parents have been roughly the same - a good college education, marriage at the "right" age, a job in a multinational company, a decent home for living and a healthy retirement plan. The path has been set in stone, from the time of birth till retirement. This kind of thinking is not new even in countries other than India. This is how the middle class milieu functions.
However, India thrives on a different tangent. A co-worker recently suggested how India is not truly democratic, secular, socialist or republic. We are a heady mix - a little of everything. Our policies and decisions are driven by an indecisiveness and our inability to take a stand. And that is a dangerous place to be in. Unfortunately, the middle class India survives unaware of the repercussions of such a dangerous phenomenon.
Take for instance a recent trend in the cities - the dream of living in a gated community. Billboards across the cities splashed with adverts of a high rise sanctuary, conveniences that rival those of the Western world - large pools, tennis courts, retail stores, 24/7 alarm systems and surveillance - the promise of an America within India.
"You wont even have to step out to buy groceries. They will deliver them to your door. We are also building mini movie halls and nightclubs for your private parties", said a building contractor to me once, trying to sell a high-rise apartment.
"But this place has the most acute water problem", I said in reply.
"That is everywhere madam", he replied almost instantly.
In that one instant, it all came back to me with amazing clarity. No matter how much money a middle class Indian makes, we are still very much a part of India that is plagued by power outages, water scarcity, deep-rooted corruption and a serious lack of security for women. You cannot avoid the filth and chaos of India by secluding yourself in a high rise building and working out of air-conditioned luxury cars or offices. These things will come back to bite you sooner or later. And you will not even know what hit you.
Like I said, this is a dangerous place to be in. This is a bubble of a different kind. Not recession, not technology bubble. But a bubble of inequality, ignorance and indifference that will pull us all in the path of a storm that threatens to destroy the pseudo Indian economy we are building. No amount of high quality graduates, high rise buildings or FDI boom is going to save us from this impending destruction.
We have forgotten what it is to be middle class. Middle class of the 60's and 70's was not just raising the income levels of families through hardwork. It was about hardwork with honesty, integrity and self-respect that no longer exists in modern day India. We used to live a life of values and cherish our sense of community and togetherness. If our neighbor's house was attacked, we stood up and said "No this is wrong and we will fight together". Now we don't even know our neighbors.
We now take pride in doing "wrong things" - like littering the street, driving arrogantly on roads, treating women like secondary people - and giving an excuse that "Why do we care when others don't?"
The problem lies in the way we have contorted our traditional values and culture.
If a woman wears a Western outfit, you brand her as a "slut". You say India is conservative and this is not "allowed" in Indian culture. But when the same woman is assaulted, it is her fault. Now imagine that woman was from your family. How does it change your perception now? Of what use are the great Indian values if you have forgotten to treat your own people with respect?
The problem lies in our infinite tolerance to everything and our negative digs at people who do the right thing.
Parents and teachers now teach you to do the "silent" thing. To pull yourself away from epicenter of problems. If it is not a problem that concerns you directly, you have no business getting involved. If you do, you will be victimized and demoralized by the very people who taught you to be "silent".
The problem lies in looking only at the big picture.
How many times have you heard the "common man" in India say - "Nothing is going to happen to this country. Our government is the most corrupt and our economy is dying". Now count how many times you have failed to do your job as a citizen? How many times did you toss that cigarette or paper or coke tin on the road? How many times did you fail to cast your vote? How many times did you manipulate your tax returns? How many times did you bribe your way through things that probably could be done the right way? How many times have you parked in a no-parking zone? We look at problems at the high level and fail to understand how little problems like these amass to become such big problems.
The solution does not lie in ranting about things in social media. We need to go back to basics, to our roots. About things that were written in our holy scriptures. About doing your duty, the right way. About treating people with respect and fighting tooth and nail for your community. About teaching your children the right values. About calling a spade a spade.
Forget the government, forget the local goons, forget the trash, corruption, crime, scandals. Own your roots, the true middle class way. And make a difference. This is going to take generations to make a real dent in the top. But forget even that. Your goal right now should be to do "the right thing", in whatever ways you can. Declare war on things you know you can set right.
Patriotism is not about celebrating a World Cup win or a war with Pakistan, it is about owning our civic responsibilities every single day. Anyone who is not doing his job is your enemy and is a threat to your community.
If you are overwhelmed by the gravity of this all - think about it. As a middle class Indian, we have always had hoops to jump. If we can navigate through a tedious process of acquiring higher education, arranged marriage, preparing and winning coveted jobs, getting a drivers license, taking house loans and making our way through the US visa process etc., why can't we do this?
Patriotism is not about celebrating a World Cup win or a war with Pakistan, it is about owning our civic responsibilities every single day. Anyone who is not doing his job is your enemy and is a threat to your community.
If you are overwhelmed by the gravity of this all - think about it. As a middle class Indian, we have always had hoops to jump. If we can navigate through a tedious process of acquiring higher education, arranged marriage, preparing and winning coveted jobs, getting a drivers license, taking house loans and making our way through the US visa process etc., why can't we do this?
There is only one thing standing in our way i.e failing to live by the values we have been taught. As the fastest growing population of young and smart minded people, we are frighteningly clueless when it comes to "core values" - the only thing that can and will make a difference to what happens in this country.
