Indian Culture

Ok, I saw an episode of this show yesterday for the first time. I didn't really care for it, nor did I hate it. Its just one of those things, I'm rather apathetic towards it. However, I decided to visit this forum and just see what other people have to say about it and what not.
I noticed Rakhi is the hot topic. Of course she is.
One thing I have noticed is how she gets bashed for constantly comparing herself to "Indian Culture". As I was skimming through some comments, I must say, some of them are so very ignorant, and I just wanted to talk about 'culture' and see what you guys have to say about it.

First off, I read a comment where someone said "she reads the bible" So? Your religious practice does not dictate your cultural views. India is a very diverse country, with many dialects and religions. Her faith has nothing to do with her 'culture'.

Umm....people dictate her way of dress. I don't think dress can dictate your "Indian Culture". For me culture is a mindset. Not wearing Indian cloths doesn't make you any less "Indian". I was born and raised here in the US, I don't wear Indian Cloths, but I don't consider myself any less culturally aware then someone who lives in India and wears a salwar all the time. I just don't think its justifiable to judge her based on the way she dresses.

Actions, however, I think are a morality issue as opposed to a cultural issue. Yes, Indian culture might be conservative, but that does not mean that every Indian must be. Social aspects of life in India are just given way to much importance, like having a BF and living with one ect. Rakhi does have one, and does live with him, but according to her its probably not wrong, However, I don't understand when she makes claims on being a Bharti Nari and all that.....

What is a Bharti Nari, what is Indian Culture? Time has changed, and cultural norms change along with them.

For me Indian Culture means- respecting elders, understanding your elders, respecting yourself, understanding where your values lye...culture isn't tangible. Its not about materialism. I feel that sometimes Rakhi lacks in the self respect issue, which I think is a big part of Indian Culture....

Sorry for the long post, just wanted to know what you guys think :)

Rakhi is unique. That is the reason for which people watch her with genuine interest. She proved to be a very good cook, best manager of her finance, down to earth rules and regulations in the house though she is a rich celebrity.. She is a dancer by birth. If she wore item girl dress it won't effect her as she knows and enjoys only dancing. It is god's gift for her. NOBODY CAN STAMP HER AS CHARACTRLESS BECAUSE OF HER ITEM NUMBERS.

I actually think that Indian culture is always changing, and people have different definitions of it depending on their upbringing and experience.

I really don't like when people use "Indian culture" as if it's one simple thing to judge others. I didn't like it when Rakhi did it (both in RKS and in this show when talking to Sakshi), and I don't like it when others cite it to bash or praise Rakhi.

To me, it's really not fair to use one person's definition of Indian culture and pretend that that everyone values that same notion. I am also frustrated when I think this double standard applies only to women. I have yet to see a topic on IF discussing a man's Indian culture because of his behaviour, etc. etc. I don't like that this concept is used to scrutinize women, their clothing, behaviour etc. but men have different standards.

Like Elesh is a bechara (why? is he really that innocent? he came to the show for publicity too just like Rakhi), or Sachin is a bechara because Juhi is a monster. She's moody, yeah, but so what? Anyway, I guess my point is that I don't like when culture is used to talk about women and to judge them. It's always easy to be moralistic, it takes a lot more to try to understand where someone is coming from and their pressures.

As for Rakhi, of course she's not perfect and I've criticized a lot of things she does, but at the end of the day she's a celeb, she has a major insecurity and complex because she has had to struggle a lot in her life, she is not refined (doesn't know how to speak etc.) because yes, she comes from a poor family. So what? Are people from families like her, who have struggled, and someone like her who has danced and worked for years not good enough? Think about that. She's a celeb and she does stupid things for publicity, but when big celebs do this, they don't get the same flak. That's what my point is. Why don't we treat her like just another celeb? Why does everyone love to rip on her, but they leave other celebs alone because they are supposedly more "classy." It's precisely because she is an anomaly, she is different that people love to scrutinize her, and focus on her.

I don't think Rakhi necessarily lacks self-respect.

I think she is an actress, and she is good at portraying herself as the victim. Probably because she has had to do that a lot in her life, and it works for her, and she gets publicity for all her nautanki. I personally find it annoying when she does this, but she profits from it so she does it I guess. At the end of the day, I think she is profiting from all the ways in which everyone watches her and comments upon her. Even in RKS, I always found her very strategic and a smart businesswoman. She knows how to get the ka-ching, that's why NDTV has her as their pet.

Think about when Sid said.. Rakhi starts jumping when the camera goes on 😆. I think everyone does nautanki in front of camera, Elesh probably does his own style of nautanki too. Rakhi's nautanki is just the most over-the-top so we notice it. We have to keep in mind that everyone knows a camera is 24-7 on them, and they are all trying to portray a particular personality to the audience.

I don't agree with some of your comments....Well Sure, about the Indian culture...I agree that "Indian culture" is not a single uni-dimensional thing, that can be judged, but it was RAKHI, herself who brought this up. Rakhi tried to preach to Sakshii about Indian Culture and values....Now that is extremely "double-standard" esp coming from Rakhi. I, personally will not comment on Rakhi's past or her previous relationship etc...but I just don't approve of the fact that Rakhi is being a hypocraite, here when she is preaching something, that she herself didn't follow.

Another item I noticed, was how Rakhi has been given some sort of a liberty to talk nonsense, just beacuse she is "uneducated' and hails from a lower middle class family. Rules are rules, Law is universal, Judges in a court of law don't change a punishment to a criminal based on his educational or family background....Similarly, here Rakhi can't be excused for her rude and crassy behaiviour...I understand that Rakhi has done as excellent job on PPAW, esp with the kids and now even with the elders....But the fact still remains that she has been very rude to Elesh..she doesn't give him a chance to explain himself......

Lastly, about someone's question about, "why don't we treat other celeb's that way" My only response is the way Juhi's behaviour on the show has been critisised....that just proves that any bad behaviour whether it is Juhi or Rakhi or anyone else should be pointed out....And ppl on this forum have been equally critical of Juhi as well.

BTW...I loved Rakhi on PPAW, except for this last part where she is dumping Elesh, for some flimsy reason, like language and culture.....If you want to make a relationship work...Then You will work towards it..However, if You don't care as much, you will find excuses to get out of it...Sadly Rakhi is doing this lately and I personally think Elesh has all the characters reqd in a decent life partner. My opinion...

I'm not going to comment on Indian culture..even though i know a lot about it but i'm not going to say anything because i'm not indian. As for rakhi, i don't think any of us have any right to question her decision. When ever a marriage breaks, a relationship ends..people ALWAYS assume that it's the girl's fault. And it's not just men, women do too..which is very sad. What ever the issue might be, what ever the solution might be..at the end of the day, THEY are the ones living together and will be living together. They know each other better and way more than what we see on t.v. People have had this image of Rakhi that she's good for nothing..all she does is nautanki and gains publicity. I was pleasantly surprised and i'm sure most of you are too. Who are we to question their decisions? From what we see, it might look like Rakhi is the one at fault but i'm sure Elesh is not innocent either. He's just as much part of the problem as she is. No man is going to take shit from his woman and put her above him, Elesh is no different. There are major red flags in the relationship..right from the start. Language and culture CAN play a huge role in making or breaking a relationship. Elesh has picked up on hindi and Rakhi has picked up on English too..that shows that both have tried. But culture..i can understand Elesh has been in Canada since forever..what ever he thinks is ok for him to do..is clearly not acceptable for Rakhi. Every person has flaws and habits that they can't change..and it's very difficult to do so when you have been living a certain way all your life for someone who has just become a part of that life. I'd blame both of them equally if they do end up breaking up. No one is bechara or bechari in this case. SHE IS A HUMAN BEING JUST LIKE EACH ONE OF US GOD DAMMIT.