The bizarre of OZ: Is Curry bashing any solution for Brain drain or to Recession or an act of racism?

June 13, 2009 , 33 Comments

Shravan Kumar was stabbed with a screwdriver by a group of teens and is still battling for life in a Melbourne hospital. Upkar Singh was allegedly murdered and his dead body was found on railway the tracks. Rajesh Kumar has been attacked with a petrol bomb and suffered severe burns. Baljinder singh and Sourabh Sharma were bashed too.

Over last fortnight, increased incidencts of Indian students being victim of racial assaults in Australia being reported in news and media. After “Banglored” a new word is added in our lexicon suggesting the movement as Curry Bashing.

For the uninitiated, the term-curry bashing means hunting down the Indians and beating them.
With over 20 such assaults reported, Question is who is next or how many more and how long?

Is it purely racist lobbying or mere an opportunistic robbery attack? Is it a cultural outcome of global recession or a sheer incident of degrading human values? Is it another blow on faith on our government or a fad that will pass soon? Is it that jingoism has found a new target or a new buyer in media?
Or is there more than what meet the eyes?

In recent years, Australia has become a preferred destination for Indian students seeking to study abroad. Especially after the 9/11 fiasco that lead to tightening of guidelines in USA. Nearly 97000 Indian students are studying in Australia which is a good percentage of Asian population in Australia.
Plight is that most such assaults go unreported, out of fear. Fear of further brutalities, fear of loosing opportunities and fear of fear per se. Indian students do not fight back like African, Chinese or Korean students. Some Indians claim that they are treated as the cash cows with the high entry fee they pay and slaughtered when required. [Well, I may not fully agree with that though]

If it is for recession than it must not be ignored that India is the 4th biggest export market for Australia and talk of free trade treaty is on. But only if that’s the sole underlying reason.

Xenophobia could be a strong contender though. This could also be contributed to the herd mentality of people who forms their own ghetto and do no assimilate. But have you ever pondered why they don’t?

What will be the outcome of this fiasco? Will Indian parents stop sending their children abroad for the fear of racist attacks? But then where would they find a place free from discrimination on this earth?
On our own national turf, home hoodlums periodically target a ‘chosen’ race to keep the electoral votes rolling. Then why is there so much of hullabaloo on Australia bashings? Or why blame UK for that matter? Racism is one big religion in our home turf. India a home to more than 100 languages, where after every 5 kms a new culture could be found, cannot help struggling good deal of racism and various other discriminations. From the skin texture to caste to language to gender to even physical disability, discrimination stands tall with its ugly head up.

But we can’t start disliking a country as a whole if such disgusting events happen there. Can we? The greatest woe of India is that it is so entangled in home discrimination that it has turned blind eye to the world discrimination. Guess what would the combined effort of Sri Ram Sena, Bajrang dal or the anti Hindu brigade have done for the country in its response against the discrimination minted to ‘their’ countrymen abroad.

There is no denial that despite our proven expertise, India is still treated as the “third world country”. Why? Because may be we are too busy to make India unsafe for Indians.
May be to combat such misanthrope some of the Mumbai dreams migrated to Australian skies. We thought that instead of having a forgetful and unrewarding death in Mumbai, its better to migrate to ‘Down under’ but we forgot “as we sow or let sow, so shall we reap”.
It takes a racist to catch a racist. It is like wearing black on white skin to make it look more beautiful especially on social events. But the same color black in social terms is far from beautiful and becomes inferior and undesirable.
Discrimination has splendored ugly personalities. From Apartheid to Marathi Manus Brigade to deriding reference of calling North east populace as “chinky”, people from UP-Bihar as “Bhaiyyas”, Africans as “Niggers”, treating Dalits still as untouchables, handicaps as social taboo, the list is endless. And why just India; around the world discrimination has gifted many dirty offenses to mankind and co-existence.

Open your eyes and you may find Pauline Hanson and Thackeray within. After Germany and Italy, Australia is soon going on the way of Hitler and Mussolini. Interestingly, a little colorless birdie chirped that Mr. Kevin Rudd is learning Cantonese language.

Brain drain is a bigger issue, bigger than being one of the most common topics for academic debates, elocution and works. Deep in my heart I believe that brain drain has important links to solve such acts of aggression. Can we create opportunities in our own geographies rather than running behind the ones created elsewhere? Why do I need to go to IIT only to be the world class engineer? Why can’t the similar quality be awarded to me at my local engineering college or new opportunities created?
It is high time for government of India as well as big industrialist like Mukesh Ambani, Ratan Tata, Rahul Bajaj, Anil Ambani or IT czar like Narayan Murthy, Azim Premji to open world class higher education institutions in India. This will surely help Indians who opt for studying in foreign countries irrespective of high cost involved, who may opt for getting admission in these to be opened institutions.
Whatever the reasons are racism as an outcome is highly derided. Whether in India, Australia, UK or any other place under the sun, it bears no right to discriminate people on basis of cast, color or race. Let’s not stoop that low. Let’s not, please!

At the end of the day, as somebody suggested, human race is a curry by another name. Call it Coconut curry, Macher jhol, Rogan josh or Rista. All of them are bashed, beaten & cooked to serve hungry machinations. And mankind seems to say “loving it”.
Relevant Reads:

The autor is half Human, half machine. Go Figure or just revel in what I write

33 comments:

  1. I have written on this subject in my blog.I suggest peoples action without expecting anything from the Govt.

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  2. a friend studying in australia says nothing of this sort is happening there..its only one-off incidents that could have happened with any other nationality student...
    v r all eventually 'realising' the Truth..this series of 'random/planned' attacks will lead us towards the Light

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  3. there are various other reasons other than the lack of higher education centers in India. Some fly abroad in search of new ,'better', stylish lifestyle .Some suggest pursuing higher education abroad is the best way to settle there. For some its just a fashion.
    I think that these animus incidents are a creation of racist/robbery, passivity of minority community and media exxagerations.

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  4. Cyrus Broacha presented a wonderful counterview in his "The That Wasn't"! The rest is boring!

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  5. Thanks buddies...

    @ BKC
    yeah you are right but sometime our govt is too slow to respond and it becomes difficult for ppl to keep up with such malices!!!

    @ Vinnie
    Agreed :)

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  6. Hey,

    Are you aware that excerpts from this post of yours have appeared in today's Mumbai Mirror in the blogger's park section?

    Here is the link

    http://www.mumbaimirror.com/article/41/2009061520090615033256836ae0c8ba5/24yearold-student-is-the-latest-target-in-OZ.html

    ReplyDelete
  7. @ Rahul
    I completely agree!!! A lot of it hold true and not a wrong thing. BTW visited ur blog, nice one..keep writing:)

    @ Shantanu
    Hey, thanks for writing in...Cyrus on curry bashing sounds interesting n intriguing too...will try to catch...keep visiting.

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  8. Hey Smita... That is too cool...I wasn't aware and am so glad that you found out. I just visited the link and it felt "oh wow".

    Many thanks buddy. many thanks. Take care and god bless!!! :)

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  9. Jigar15 June

    bashed, beaten & cooked to serve hungry machinations.....

    Thought provoking !!

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  10. Wow!!! wonderful!! How do you still manage so much of time from your kind of schedule? Its incredible!!!

    Pl pass some energy babes!!

    Mumbai mirror is such a revelation..Way to go girl!!!

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  11. Cool...neat blog!!!

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  12. @ Jigar

    Thanks...Finally ;)

    @ Sanchi
    Thanks sweetie...Time is a big constraint here :)

    @ Moi
    Thanks, welcome back :)

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  13. guys just relax....this is nothing new....these things have happened and will keep on happening......it not about austrialia or india....its about us...we humans....we all are like that at some point or the other......we ourselves and our society is racist....
    do u have any knowledge the way we have captured bussiness and behave similarly as so called australia or western countries with us...in places like nigeria....sieria leone...congo etc...they may be not attrictive coutires to make a note of...we are same when it comes to us...only diff is we moslty have been on the receiving end....we have been ruled for such a long time 1st by muslims and then british that we have lost our spine...with time we have become crying babies...any thing happens we start crying...burning candles... rather engage in finding long term solutions....EK dont worry too much about things,concentrate on ur work....

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  14. @ Ambrish

    Am impressed!!! Finally...welcome!!! He he

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  15. I really liked the analysis here. Best part was the way you stayed impartial unlike other posts I have read on this topic on the blogosphere. Good work. Valid points:). Liked the postive ending too..

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  16. Yea u know Apartheid and discrimination bring out the worst in humans.

    Racism sucks. Where NANA PATEKAR??

    Batah...batah saale konsa khoon hindu ka hai konsa musalman ka...

    bata batah saale, konsa khoon Indian ka hai konsa Australian ka...
    Lol.

    I liked this post. Rock on.

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  17. Good post...but whatever the logic, the aussie govt did not actually take steps against it intially which is terrible..but yeah we have enuf of discrimination within the country.

    Also the number of foreign women who are raped in India is rising. Why? Because they are soft targets like Indians in Aus?

    ..so mumbai mirror nd all ..this blog is going plcs!

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  18. @ PB

    Thanks a ton buddy!!! Looking forward to your new post. When is it coming? :)

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  19. @ Anand
    Well said. Nana patekar is missing!!! Hee he

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  20. @ Akshaya
    Hey it is true that we have many rape cases in India where women from foreign origins are made victim. But the reason is far beyong racism. It is all about opportunistic attack and the impish act of some stupid Indians...Well we both could write a whole new post on that together. isn't it? ;-)

    Hee hee Thanks for writing in...kee posted:)

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  21. Ya, you are right. Curry bashing would stop only if people really start appreciating the real taste of authentic indian curry. I mean, Look at roganjosh, Macher Jhol. Coconut curry, rista, they are so tasty, how can they bash the curry? This is so weird.

    I couldnt read your post, shall come back later, My boss is behind my arse, lemme satisfy him.TC:)))

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  22. hiya... well am not a big judge of what has happened there, but i have some friends working for Infosys there and they all say that there was only one/two racial attacks after which the proceeds were all as a result of Local aussies gettin mad at Indians because of all the news in Media.some of my friends say that the Indian Media Hype is onen of the main reason why it has provoked so many local aussies to think we Indians are ruling orders in their country...thinking they are very vulnerable.
    Whatsover the attacks cant be justified and am no better to comment unless experiencing it..

    Thanks for visiting my blog...have blogrolled yu :)


    Hary

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  23. Hey, Its an interesting writeup, you have summed up pretty much the scenario. The instances of Racialism is so prevailing at every other juncture that we have adapted ourselves to turn a blind eye. But i wonder if it ever would cease to exist. Its a old as human kind itselves.

    You have compelled me to write something similar. Tough not very similar. Ciao:)

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  24. @ Zillionbig
    Take your time :)

    @ Hary
    Thanks buddy...Yeh media bhi na...tsch tsch...

    Keep writing!!!

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  25. @ zillionbig

    Cool...write a post and let me know...cant wait to c it :)

    Thanks for showering such adulation!!! keep visiting!!

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  26. I dont think curry bashing is going to stop brain drain. As long as it remains financially attractive to go abroad, these incidents will not deter Indians going in droves.Recession abroad might stop it.

    It in our nature to degrade someone who looks and acts different from rest of the kind.

    The situation is not as worse as they show in the media most of my relatives and frnds living there they say its not that serious. But it is important for the Indians to make their greivances known in a peaceful way so these incidents dont continue unabated.

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  27. Hey Ekta !!

    Congrats yaar !! Keep up the good work..

    So far as this australian thing is concerned, it is very disheartening.I think everybody is envious about Indians and recession has added more fuel to the fire as we are famous for cost competitiveness, bright minds, low cost labour and bla bla..as Thomas Friedman has once said - "When we were young kids growing up in America, we were told to eat
    our vegetables at dinner and not leave them. Mothers said,
    'think of the starving children in India and finish the dinner.'
    And now I tell my children: 'Finish your maths homework.
    Think of the children in India who would make you starve, if you don't.'

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  28. After reading the blog and the comments I decided I will not comment, feels so hypo critic (No offence made to anyone. We complain about it and the next moment we do it.....and from commenting on write up point of you now you have such a great fan following........but then I saw "Remember the Titans" being telecasted on TV. A must watch for those who want to comeover racism. And then I thought let me share some of my experiences of racist abuse.

    1. I was born and brought up in colliery, people around were educated but with not with a city mentality, but whenever I went to see my cousins and uncles in Summer Vacations, sister & I were teased as "AA gaye Gawde se" ( Oh! came from village).......

    2. When bhaiyas and biharis were beaten up and run down from Mumbai, somewhere deep inside my heart, I felt great. When in engineering college we maharastrians were always in minority in Hostels, because most of Maharashtrians opted to stay away from Hostels. And we were a little submissive clad.....all Biharis.....Bhaiyas.....Rajasthanis....bullied us....beaten us up, both seniors and batch met saying....."Matthe Sale".

    However, I am not saying that in anyway I want to do anything of that sort to get my so called Badla....but during our walks of life, everyone of us in one or the other way has been a victim of racism, that hatred....that sour memories.....those actions.....somewhere or the other keeps popping in and out.....and now I feel its our responsibility that we keep the newer generations out of this .....Akhir "Apne Hisse Ki Kaynat Ko BAcha Lene ko Hi "Shaurya" Kehte Hain...........

    Cheers!!

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  29. we have too much of the same out here as well!!!
    its a global pandemic, in different forms n shapes!!!

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  30. @ Hemish
    Thanks for writing in…well said!!

    @ Amit Khandelia
    Thanks buddy!!! Agree to the core

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  31. @ Rahul
    Thanks for taking time to write at such length. I do agree with that colliery’ thing..i have often faced the same but after one point of time things improved and people came seeking to my advice than just mocking me.
    Mathe, madu, punju, mallu etc are made as sad abbreviations from fun abbreviations- blame it all on ostracism.

    @ CN
    Thanks Akash :)

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  32. Undoubtedly Brain Drain is one of the most serious issue affecting the country's economic and global growth.

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