Youth

Indian Culture fading in the English Language
May 14, 2010 @ YouthKiAwaaz → One Comment

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Rohan Gupta:
For a long time now (or at least what seems to be a long time) people in India ranging from intellectuals, authors, historians, teachers, parents, (disturbingly enough) students and even aficionados of ‘Indian culture’ have been worrying about the ‘cultural colonization’ of India. Various reasons such as a slight colonial hangover (which embedded in our social psyche makes us accept the cultural and intellectual superiority of the west unquestioningly), grave importance of the English language in the job market, etc have led many, specially the youth of the country, at least in metropolitan cities (Delhi, Mumbai, if not Calcutta too), to have a greater command over English than their native languages. Also along with various cosmopolitan influences they tend to grow up on English pop culture, embodied in shows like F.R.I.E.N.D.S, South park, and movies like Iron Man, The Hulk and artists like Jay Z, Eminem, Green Day, etc, more than ‘Indian culture’.
This trend is clearly visible in the clear distinctions of the profiles and target audience of various TV channels. While channels like Star world, Zee Café, etc telecast shows specifically meant for this ‘urban elite’ audiences who identify themselves more with the lifestyle of the west than India, Indian channels like Zee TV, Colours, etc have shows which are more specifically meant a slightly older audience but definitely not for the fans of shows like F.R.I.E.N.D.S. Certain channels may be seen as those representing the consciousness of the youth but are more reflective of their social conditioning than active in generating a cultural awareness. It is obvious that exposure to western media will lead to an understanding and acceptance of their culture and society which automatically distances us from our own indigenous cultural milieu. As a consequence a large part of the youth finds itself (well as...