Originally posted by: xyzzee
I see your point here. But i dont think it is a gap between being in India or in the West, it is good old generation gap. Older people are likely to find somethings offensive the the newer generation is more accepting of - and this applies to even a small gap of say 10 years. I dont feel that i am orthodox when i go to india nor do i feel outdated. However, i do see that the youth is more open about being "themselves"; about being Indian in culture and yet being able to keep in step with the rest of the world
What you call "Western" infudence is over-rated. Having observed westerners and their families in close contact for more than seven years now, i can safely say that basic morals are not different than those in India. The youth here is also going to the dogs, just as the youth in India.
Just as the westerners are used to thinking of India in terms of "slums of calcutta where mother teresa helped out the lepers" we Indians are used to thinking about the west as "the countries where women would do anything and sex is all that matters." These both points of view are media-created biases and it is a shame on us that while we strive to remove the biased image of ourselves, we forget to change our image of the "Wild West"!!!! - Krutilynn.
I see your points. However,whenever I visit India I tend to see only improvements in India in most aspects. As for Westernism in India - well, true that many more people wear Jeans, etc. but there are many many people who still dress in Salwars, etc.. As for the behaviour, etc. as I have mentioned before in some posts, the middle class and upper middle class there is still largely very Indian in terms of their culture, beliefs, etc. You see all kinds in a population of over a billion but the average middle class guy or girl there is still very culturally aware and are very balanced individuals. I do not believe that the culture has gone haywire, etc..Just my observations in cities like Hyderabad, Madras and B'lore from my frequent visits to India every year or every other year..
In fact from what I have observed I have only seen greater patriotism amongst the younger generation (college going or just graduated) in India today and a greater pride in being Indian than say 10-15 years ago..