Local reactions to lanky white guy in India

So after being criticized for my lack of cultural content I asked for suggestions as to what you wanted to hear about. I mean, yeah, I could write about what I think is interesting but then you'd have to hear me grumble about the SOB at Dominoes who doesn't understand English when I order pizza and forgets to include extra cheese sauce. Believe me, it's really quite frustrating.

I digress.

To my complete surprise, someone actually sent me a request! I'll admit I wasn't too hopeful when I opened up the floor for suggestions. I was sure this would be the end of the blog. I once made the mistake of taking requests while playing with a band in Bangalore and I had about 20 people ask me to play "Summer of '69." This time I was pleasantly surprised to find someone interested in the interesting cultural aspects of living in India, not the parts of living in India that have been borrowed from the West.

So Cassidy asked about the reactions I see from less-educated, average Indians when they observe my invasion of their country. Basically, what impact do I see resulting from my long-term presence in India?

Let me first explain a little about my experience with India before coming to India: I went to the consulate in Chicago to get my employment visa in June of last year. I was told it would be a one-day process and I'd be in and out in a few hours. Well after sitting there for close to 4 hours I inquired on the status of my application. They then ushered me into the Consular General's office where he told me that he would not be issuing me a visa. When I asked why:

"We have a policy against issuing employment visas to foreigners when we believe that an equally or more qualified Indian could fill the position."

Whoa, so you're saying that I don't have a job anymore? Isn't it IndiaIT's job to make sure I'm equally or more qualified? Of course it would make more economic sense for them to hire a native. But they didn't.

So what does this tell me? That I'm not welcome in India? That people will hate me for stealing a job away from an Indian person? This is all a bit unsettling when you think you're about to move to a country where all one-billion of the citizens hate your guts. This is obviously not the truth, but as nervous (read: petrified) as I was about leaving the US, this complication didn't exactly ease my nerves. I was clearly anxious to see the reaction to my presence.

When I first moved into Adarsh Gardens, the locals in the neighborhood really had no clue what to make of me. The hell was I doing in Jayanagar (the area in which I live)? Was it safe to allow their children near me? I swear, I saw many a reaction that simply conveyed, "There goes the neighborhood." I found a similar reaction, at least initially, when I started work at IndiaIT, but at least many of the 15,000 people who work on my campus have seen Americans/Europeans around campus before, mainly in the form of clients, international interns and visiting employees from abroad. People were definitely shocked that we were permanent and some still do not believe it.

"What?! You're gonna be here for HOW long?! Why would you do that?"

Here's an embarrassing story: I was sitting in a press conference that I had helped with for our annual earnings release. It was a big deal. In the last year we had reached over $2 billion in annual revenues and over 50,000 employees with 30% growth.... Our CFO was asked a question about global hiring initiatives and how IndiaIT hoped to diversify their work force. Well our very wise CFO, whom I have worked with several times and he knows my name, looks up at me as he begins to answer the question with a look on his face that said "Kid, I'm gonna make you a star!" He then proudly announced as he gestured towards where I sat (to a group of small time media, including CNN, MSNBC, AP) "We even have one of our international interns here with us today!" He was so excited to share the spotlight. I was so excited to punch him. Really hard. Right in the face. Luckily for my career I was able to show some restraint. Our CEO elbowed him in the ribs and whispered something in his ear that made him look up at me and mouth "I'm SOO sorry!" The damage had been done. Shit happens.

Point is that people are still surprised to find out that I'm a permanent employee, which can be frustrating. I think it's because nobody expects an American to live here for such a long time. This might seem trivial to you, but imagine working for a company where the only logical explanation for your existence was that you are an intern. Quite the uphill battle.

I still get stared at. A lot, but not as much as Winnie or Laura, who get harassed on a regular basis. We get charged more for simple things, such as rickshaw/cab rides. I'm also pretty sure that the guy that I buy mangoes from on the street charges me more than locals, but I don't complain because I get 8 mangoes for approximately $2. I spose that’s the trickle-down effect everyone seems to believe exists, but I’ll tell you one thing: the people in the bottom 20% of this country, in my humble observations, benefit almost nothing from the IT boom in India. Not like someone living in a shanty town can go into software design, but this is a conversation for another entry.

Well-educated people (college educated) are surprised to see me living in India semi-permanently, but they have a good idea of my story without even asking me. They obviously know I work for an MNC, which answers many questions. Children run up to me and say "Uncle! Uncle! Pen? Pen?" For whatever reason, these kids really get a kick out of receiving a pen from a foreigner. I couldn't tell you why, it's not like they can't get pens for a rupee or two. Other less-educated people will usually stare for a while, and occasionally one of the brave ones will approach me and ask "From which country?"

This puts me in an interesting dilemma. If I proudly say "the United States," it conjures up images of a very rich, very disliked George Bush. (Keep in mind this is the most pro-American country outside of the US.) What happens then? They know I have money. Some people think this is a stereotype, but even the poorest 20-year old backpacker has 10 times more money in his pocket than many of these people have in a month. Now if they hate the US, they might try to rip me off. Who knows, they might mug me, although that is EXTREMELY unlikely. They also might love me and treat me well. Just depends.

Now what if I say Canada? What does that mean to your average Indian? Let me rephrase: What does that mean to the average person from the US?! Absolutely nothing. Nobody knows if I'm especially rich. Nobody assumes that I'm from a hostile nation. I think you see where I'm going with this. They might not treat me wonderfully, but they won't treat me any worse than they would another white person. And there's really not much I can do about being white. I've tried.

One thing I will say is that the vast majority of the people in India take great care to ensure that I enjoy myself while in their country. People generally want to make sure I'm comfortable and that the food isn't too spicy. It's clear that these folks want me to leave India with a good impression of their country. That's one way I can really feel the excitement surrounding India. Although I haven't spoken to many of the uneducated locals (I don't speak Kannada, the local language), I get the distinct impression that even the portion of the population low on the socioeconomic spectrum who are largely unaffected by the economic growth in India understand how India is more prominent on the global stage. How do they know? They see more foreigners wandering the streets than they ever have before. That excitement is translated to visitors through the genuine enthusiasm shown by everyone from friends at work to the guys that clean my apartment and make sure that everything is to my liking.

I can honestly say that the American presence we provide has had an effect on the social environment around here. I don't get stared at in my neighborhood nearly as much as I used to. Most recently, the rude guy who runs the corner store next to my apartment actually smiled at me when I purchased curd the other day. The other employees on campus don't seem disturbed by my presence. And I think this has a larger impact than we might be willing to realize. They probably tell their friends that they live and work with Americans, and that the Americans are not as evil as the news makes them look. It sounds ridiculous to make that claim, that I'm affecting how an entire culture views people from the US, but you gotta start somewhere. Baby steps. The 130 Americans that come to work in India for 6 months will be the next step.

Cassidy asked another very important question: When do you come back permanently?

Well this depends on what you mean by "back?" When will I be back in the US? It's hard to say. When will I be back in the First World? Probably another 9 months, give or take. There are many opportunities to work for IndiaIT in the United States, probably California, but what fun would that be? Actually, it would probably be awesome. After all, that's the only region of the United States in which I have not lived. I have tons of friends in LA and tons of family in the San Francisco area. On the other hand, I had a conversation with a colleague yesterday that would lead me to believe that there could be opportunities in the UK. If was a betting man, I would bet that I'd be back in the US in about 8 or 9 months, but quite a bit could happen between now and then.

Like the CFO of IndiaIT says to me every time I see him, "Nathan, we'll get you to stick around longer once we find you a nice Indian girl!"

My experience thus far would suggest that this is impossible, but you never know.

Keep the suggestions coming if you got 'em.