A myth that it is..hey I’m not staring racism here with a second blog on Whites…..it’s just that this real incident came to my mind after reading a blog somewhere recently. A couple of years ago, when even I was in awe of the Whites…and influenced by the myth that all whites are not only rich but super rich, I had a relative’s friend from the US who wished to stay with us for a night. God, was I thrilled! When she arrived around the midnight, I was up and waiting with a dinner that included all that I cooked the best. She informed that the next day her boyfriend is arriving too and with him she plans to shift to a guest house..fine so next day I took them out for lunch after picking up her bf from the airport…mind you it was no less than a five star bouffet (same myth). I was told that this bf of hers plays saxaphone in a music group…and how could I associate him with any lesser-known groups but with the likes of Aeorosmiths or Air Supply….Wow! Well even after I saw his almost ancient overcoat, I didn’t want to change my views on Whites. Then came the bouffet…rarely had I seen anyone so hungry. I was glad they enjoyed the meal…no complaints of the food being ‘hot’ or oily. Great I said! And then before seeing them off to their guesthouse I took them to the Cottage Emporium (a ritual) because I honestly wanted to buy them some gift. It’s always easier to buy anything for a girl than for a boy…so after buying something for her I asked her what shall I buy for her friend..she asked me to wait while she’d pick-up something she’d already selected…I was dreading she might pick up a replacement for the overcoat but was glad to see her coming with something much smaller and there she comes with a Shahnaz Hussain’s Shaving Cream for men…’buy him this please, he always uses mine”….Well..the myth lost it’s first shade!!
And everybody said how lucky I was to have a vacation in the UK…on the contrary, there I was getting a flavour of racism supremacy, un-courteous behaviour and above all our own people greased with the same! Asmall incident…a show was going on in the grounds of the Warwick Castle and I was sitting on a nice place having a good view until a couple came and stood right in front of me. I quite audibly requested them to move a bit, then a little louder and third time got up to request and here’s what they had to say..”Your husband and your son blocked our views and so we’re blocking yours’ I countered that why didn’t they request them to clear their sight? To which they thought that they should’ve been considerate enough themselves. Anyways I apologised, however I wasn’t sure and honestly didn’t know that it was my husband and my son they were refering. To which the wife now says that they should concentrate on the show rather than wasting time with “these Indians”. Another incident we go out to have our lunch in a famous seafood restaurant in Brighton. Some of us drove and some of us took the train to reach there from London. Obviously those in car reached first and got the table, though not the one we wanted because on an eight-seater table a British couple was sitting who refused to move to a two/four seater. However no grudges from us! But what I could rate as first class uncourteous behaviour of the restaurant manager, was when he came to us yelling that we lied to him that more people were coming and since he waited for half an hour he’s lost a good chunk of money….and the last and the most disgusting one was by our own Asian girl, don’t know whether an Indian or Pakistani, but she surely had a British boyfriend twice her age tugged along..some status mind you! She gallantly came and occupied the table we were sitting on while couple of us went to pick up our food from the counter at Mc Donalds…and on a request to move to another table this is what she said’don’t you know that you can’t book a table in McD, it’s empty so it’s mine and now f*** off” Irony: this is Strattford, Shakespeare’s birth place, thank god he died before the beautiful changes in his beloved language.
In the ever stresses life of metros, one time that you’d like to have only for yourself is when you’re driving. You listen to music, you think, you converse with yourself silently and smile to the sheer amusement of the person in the car next to you…and suddenly this blissful moment is shattered to pieces by a knock at your window. You’re jolted out of tranquility and poise…a dirty individual either carrying a hopelessly sick child, or a sadhu with kamandal, or a small boy with monkey, or even a dreadful looking fellow with snakes peeping from baskets as if ready to attack…thankgod the windows are up. I don’t call them beggers because my definition of a beggar doesnt quite match the characteristics of these people. They demand!! They knock on your window ‘ haq se’ ( as if you’re carrying Priya gold!!). I’m not insensitive…and neither are you…but do you feel like giving a single penny to these people? I know it’s not their fault and their fate is not designed by choice, still why should we be exploited on grounds of sympathy? A coin or two doesn’t matter to any one of us I understand, but the feeling that it leaves us with is so disturbing whether we give it or not. We feel more guilty and deprived, guilt of having more resources than them and deprived of privacy. I’m not being judgemental whether begging/demanding is right or wrong, whether we should do something to curb it or wait endlessly for our sleeping government to wake up one fine blessed morning…since we all are here, I’m just thinking aloud……
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