Reflection 1
During my first week in India I have had many amazing visits. We visited a digital marketing firm, The Glitch, they do the digital marketing for Netflix in India and they showed us a lot of very cool ads they’ve done for Netflix. We also visited the U.S. Consulate, which was interesting to see their perspective on India and learn a little about how they advance U.S. business interests in India. Our last major business visit of the week was to the ad agency Leo Burnett. The speaker we listened to had some really interesting insights about the marketing industry as a whole, and I think I’ll take those into account when thinking about the rest of my career. We have been learning a lot about Indian culture and history as well. We visited Ghandi’s Mumbai home, learned some of the history behind his Satyagraha movements, and also visited a few various temples in the area. Before that we took in some lessons about ancient Indian history – starting with the Ancient Indus Valley Civilizations and dating right before the Mughal Empire – from the head history professor at St. Xavier’s, a Mumbai university. On Saturday we got to visit the Elephanta Caves which are 6th century A.D. Hindu caves. I’ve really enjoyed all of the visits and these have been some amazing experiences.
During this first week I think the most stark cultural difference for me has been the status differences relative to the United States. Status and standing is important anywhere, but it is particularly visible and unavoidable to notice the differences in standing in India. In our site visits to The Glitch, and Leo Burnett there were workers – essentially servants – to get us coffee, drinks, serve us food, and open our doors. In the U.S., we have lower class workers working service jobs in corporate office buildings, but they’re not workers that do whatever we need and service our every wish. Another different aspect of this service is the feeling that these workers largely accept their lower status. Service is provided with a smile, the superior is never proven wrong, and any mistake made is followed by many sincere apologies. In the U.S., many lower service job workers do not put on this facade when providing service. An example for me are the cafeteria workers at Northeastern. There are certainly happy ones, but outside of the IV workers many rarely seem happy and often seem very displeased with their standing. This is displayed by their marches for higher wages, and displayed on a larger scheme in the U.S. with the 15 dollar minimum wage movement.
It’s amazing to me because the disparity in wealth here in India is so much more extreme and visible than in America. Now, how these workers actually feel is most likely very different than the way they are when they talk to me, but this just goes to show how much more status is valued – or at least displayed – in India.
It’s an incredible culture shock for me to see Dalits starving and begging on the ground next to high rise corporate buildings of incredible exuberance. And if they aren’t starving right next to the buildings then they are starving a block down the road – dirty, thirsty, and begging while I take a shower and use bottled water just to brush my teeth. It’s incredibly humbling for me. The things they dream of at night are the things I take for granted every single night. I never worry about where or how I’ll get my food, but instead when or why I might want some. I sit here and look at the Indian upper classes and wonder how they can allow their people to live like this while they sleep a block away in plush comfort, but in many ways it’s the same in America. Just because I live in a relatively well-off community and I’m segregated from the poverty that exists, doesn’t mean that it doesn’t exist. It just means I don’t have to face it, and it makes me think maybe I’m not any different from the people in the upper classes in India. Once again, it’s very humbling.
I go to the markets and kick myself because I couldn’t haggle down 300 rupees to 200 rupees, but what does it really matter to me? It’s a dollar. I misplace change in tens of dollars every semester. To the vendor I paid it’s everything though. Maybe that’s his family’s meal for tonight. Maybe he’ll go buy a bottle of alcohol and enjoy himself. The very things that I take for granted every single night. It really makes me think. I feel so grateful for the things I have, and the opportunities that my standing has provided me. I may be middle class in America, but that makes me amongst some of the wealthiest people in the entire world. I always think, “Oh, I wish I had this coat” or, “I wish my car was nicer” and I’ve always had an appreciation for the things I’ve had, but being here and seeing how people live has made me really understand just how nice I have things.
I’ve always heard the saying, “Finish your food because people around the world are starving” but I never saw a person starving. I never said no to a beggar just to go spend it on more food than I can eat. I just spent money on more food than I could eat. Out of sight, out of mind – and that’s what it has always been to me until now.
