Why at all we came here...we had a better life back home :-D

Have a little free time to think over and I run through all my memories while I was in the States.

Till 7^th August 2009 I had only heard that they drive vehicles other way round in USA…I actually learnt it when I entered US of A the other day. As soon as I reached home I learnt to switch ON electrical appliances by putting the knob down-to-up rather doing up-to-down which I had practiced since my childhood. After a long exhausting day I lay in the bed just to observe another unusual thing that the overhead fan rotated anti-clockwise than clockwise as I always observed it since childhood (I particularly remember this bcoz I have this weird habit of laying in bed, staring at the ceiling fan and thinking of the whole day-what I did what went wrong etc). All these are least important thing which should not make a difference, but I had to adjust with all of them. It was that moment when I got a feeling: “bachcha yahan sab ulta pulta hai, you have to make your way out otherwise you are dead!”

As time passed I got used to that very little racism that existed all-over places. There were hundreds of scholarships available in my university with basic eligibility criterion being a US-resident or US-minority. End of first semester we partied at a local club having all dance-beats desi songs loaded on the juke box. We made the club rocking that night just to know that next day all desi songs were taken off the juke box :-( Later every time we went to the same club we adjusted with this little fact and consolidated ourselves saying it’s a English pub :-P. Come next semester at the job fair, many MNCs had jobs to offer only for US residents and citizens.

We in India are used to celebrate every small festival in a grand way. While staying in the States I could only hear people saying “I miss my home, I miss my family”. Come Ganpati or Diwali festive, we spend half of the time talking to our loved ones back home and the rest half is spent only thinking about the preparations (food/decoration) they might have done at home. These are the days when my facebook news feed was all flooded with “oh, I miss you mamma” “I miss smell of Diwali” “I miss dancing at the ganpati beats” and what not…Though I mention here only about these two festivals, the story remained same on all other occasion including Independence day, holi etc.

Another very unusual thing I observed was with the settled desi families. They would join local religious mandal just to make themselves have a feel of their own religion. Their kids should not forget about our traditional stuff so the have local “shakhas” taking place. On the eve of celebration of their first anniversary/birthday of their first kid…they would just arrange a get-together with these mandals and celebrate it that way. I only see people at these mandals as a group of sama-dukhi (equi-sorrowed – I could not find any other synonym for this..hahaha…) people coming together to share their happiness or what I would call it as is to hide their sorrow :-P (majha Marathi mandal mhanje majha Maharashtra, tar US of A madhe kashala kashi ghalaychi?). You will have all great celebrations for the very small festival all over the city and even in universities the local “Indian Group” will arrange for such celebrations. All I want to say is, you dint go there to invade their country. Did you even realise the existence of all these celebrated fistaval when you were back in India? Instead of showing off your love for your country, religion why you don’t have to learn about American’s traditions, festivals, celebrate along with them? (now don’t bombard me with your Halloween and thanks giving celebrations when you only end up shopping for cheap deals) Even in the States you have to form groups of gujarathis, marathis, north Indians, south Indians ?? Why not join a American groups? (bcoz they don’t have such tradition right? Hahahha….dont fool yourself and just do a google search, and you will find 1000s of groups putting their efforts in exploring nature, social activities, animal welfare, nightouts, treking etc)

While having a bitter taste and experiencing all such dramatic stories around, I came to the end of my education and was in desperate look for a job. I went to logon to company website and first question they would ask is : Are you a US citizen/resident?. You answer NO and you get a sweet reply “Sorry, you are not eligible for this job”. My eligibility is decided with the fact from where I come but my talent, my education all go waste.

All I want to say is every small moment you are ready to adjust with things, accept insult, ignore you being treated as extra-terrestrial.

All this frustration is not bcoz  dint get a job there, rather I dint want to do a job in such a place where they don’t value me. All those who say that they will work in the States only for a few years, lets see how true you are to yourself.

This post is not targeting those brilliant mind doing outstanding researches at top class institutes. Rather such people are not even a part of all that bullshit mentioned above. This is rather for rest of the 95% Indians who internally regret somewhere in their mind for doing what they are doing !

-Ninad