intro

Aloha this is chitchat. 

I am half Bengali and half Tamilian, born and brought up in Kolkata, did my engineering here in Bangalore and am now settled here. I love books and dogs and water and debating and that is the most I can say of myself with any degree of certainty.

The uncertainty regarding most other things arises from the fact that my Bengali and Tamil sides are diametric opposites which is why my likes and dislikes frequently oscillate. Not my mood thankfully- but my opinions. Which I suppose is why I debate. Because I don’t just see both sides to an argument, I support both sides!

 Back in Kolkata I explored my Bengali roots and now that I m here I m exploring my mothers’ side. And in that exploration of cultures I’ve made some pretty interesting observations from my own family   which I propose to share with you all today.

Bengalis are basically  idealistic but laidback. And that’s one deadly combination- I’ ll give you an example- They envisioned the first metro rail in India and then took 20 years to set it up. They envisioned the first communist state in India and then stayed that way for 30 odd years. As my father so aptly puts it when requested to quit smoking- “I can..But I won’t!”

Tamilians on the other hand are viciously practical. They scorn anything unrealistic that doesn’t involve obscure scientific research or Rajnikanth. I once tried to explain to my 11 year old 3^rd cousin the virtues of reading poetry. To which she takes out her UNIX book and reverently says- ‘This IS poetry’.

Bengalis know how to have fun. They sincerely believe that a liberal and relaxed lifestyle is essential to get the creative juices flowing. Rabindranath (you may not know this) was a party animal. There are no restrictions in a Bengali household. No restrictions on food (they pity vegetarians) , drinks or (ahem) socializing.  I mean if I offer my grandmother beer she’d appreciate it you know?  

Tamilians on the other hand (no offence) are joyless. Or at least their joy beats my understanding. Barring their worship of movie stars and their amazing behavior during film releases, a typical Tamilian family restricts everything. The food only allows vegetable matter, the drinks (well anything other than water or buttermilk is regarded with suspicion) and the epitome of socializing is- ‘quality time with family watching Super Singer on Vijaya TV’. If I offer my Tamilian grandmother Red-Bull my mum would be shish kebab.

The ideal Tamilian kid tops Mathematics in school, gets a top rank from a top Engineering college, works in Google or Amazon and emigrates to the USA only to be miserable at the vast cultural difference. She then docilely marries an engineer from the same caste and same sub-caste that her family’s chosen, has kids and tortures her children into learning how to read and write more Tamil than she herself knows.

The ideal Bengali kid is born speaking impeccable English and barely survives Math. She studies English Literature or History, becomes a journalist or Mamata’s wing-woman. She marries a couple of men, divorces the couple of men and writes a bestselling novel about her experiences.

So you can well understand the fount of my confusion. All in all it’s pretty fun though. I get to understand two awesome languages and imbibe two different cultures. Diversity is a wonderful thing.