What do Indians think of us? How can we avoid our national stereotypes? |
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Mar 28th, 2007, 11:12
| #1 |
| Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Beautiful Bondi (not Bundi!)
Posts: 1,610
| What do Indians think of us? How can we avoid our national stereotypes? This is inspired by a conversation in another thread in which I made the observation that living in a tourist destination (Bondi) tends to make you prone to broad (and often negative) generalisations about different nationalities. Partly because you just get fed up, and partly because people do tend to fit the stereotype quite often. So I wondered - what are our stereotypes in India? How should an Aussie like me NOT behave if we don't want to be tarred with the same brush as others in India - Are we bad tippers? Are we rude? Are we perceived to have good traits? How about other nationalities? |
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Mar 28th, 2007, 11:17
| #2 |
| a pain in the asana  Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: the India inside my heart
Posts: 7,066
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__________________ MY INDIA, 2005-2010 "Once you have felt the Indian dust, you will never be free of it." (Rumer Godden, 1975) |
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Mar 28th, 2007, 11:18
| #3 |
| Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Beautiful Bondi (not Bundi!)
Posts: 1,610
| Sad but true! |
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Mar 28th, 2007, 11:21
| #4 |
| Didn't You Use to Be Nick-H?  Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Chennai, India
Posts: 40,933
| It took me years to get over the stereotypical view that growing up near Stratford-upon-Avon gave me of Americans! |
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Mar 28th, 2007, 11:22
| #5 |
| Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Sydney
Posts: 138
| They think our Cricket team, while good, is extremely arrogant and rude. |
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Mar 28th, 2007, 11:25
| #6 |
| Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Beautiful Bondi (not Bundi!)
Posts: 1,610
| And that stereotype is wrong how? Are we allowed to agree with them or is that considered unpatriotic? I really have to brush up on my cricket before we go.... |
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Mar 28th, 2007, 11:34
| #7 |
| Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Sydney
Posts: 138
| It doesn't extend to the rest of us, as far as I could tell. There are more Australians than almost anyone else bar Israelis (from my experience, in our summer holidays), so they've probably met a variety of Australians. In certain parts, for instance Punjab, many have relatives who live in Australia (and England, Canada, US etc). Indians in general seem to like most Westerners equally - they certainly like our money equally. In short, they know where we come from and that we play cricket well. They feel they have something to talk to us about (though someone trying to compliment you by telling you you look like Glen McGrath (nowhere near it) is taking the cricket friendliness a bit far). They also know what our currency looks like and that the dollar coin has a kangaroo on it (that's what they mean when they ask you for kangaroos, or offer you a kangaroo when they have already acquired $AU from some other Australian sucker). |
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Mar 28th, 2007, 11:39
| #8 |
| Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Beautiful Bondi (not Bundi!)
Posts: 1,610
| As long as they don't think all our men behave like Warnie! |
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Mar 28th, 2007, 11:41
| #9 |
| Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Sydney
Posts: 138
| Ummm. I think Shane Warne would probably be an extreme feminist by street-level Indian standards. |
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Mar 28th, 2007, 11:43
| #10 |
| Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: New Delhi- national capital region
Posts: 250
| Best is to be yourself and take it easy, let the culture sink in you, & then take it fron there, personally i think Australians have a heavy accent, so might be useful to speak slow to begin with.. |
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Mar 28th, 2007, 12:00
| #11 |
| Maha Guru Member  Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Singapura
Posts: 631
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Mar 28th, 2007, 12:00
| #12 |
| Maha Guru Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Singapura
Posts: 631
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Mar 28th, 2007, 12:03
| #13 |
| Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Beautiful Bondi (not Bundi!)
Posts: 1,610
| So if someone points me to the crocodile enclosure I run right? |
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Mar 28th, 2007, 12:05
| #14 | |
| Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: New Delhi- national capital region
Posts: 250
| Quote:
Think at least Jennifer Hawkins, Nicole Kidman, Olivia Newton-John,are by no means 'unattractive'.. | |
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Mar 28th, 2007, 12:07
| #15 |
| Senior Member  Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: San Francisco
Posts: 163
| The new stereotype "Westerners try to act a certain way when traveling so we wont know who they really are." Or who they really arnt. |
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