7/22/2004: Crowd of Indian women

[Undertoad]

These Indian women are members of the Swadhyaya Parivar, or self-awareness community, listening to their leader during a "Women Self-Development Meet 2004" in Ahmadabad, India. This is described as a "spiritual and social movement based on human dignity, for the self as well as others". I think that's pretty cool, as evidence of how women are becoming empowered and liberated around the world.

But that's only partly why I saved the photo. It's the sea of faces that really does it here. It's interesting from many points of view, I'm sure only interesting as an outsider to the culture.

One interesting thing is how little diversity there appears to be - racial diversity, not diversity of thought of course. How makeup is about as used as it is in the US: so many different cultures change their appearance in different ways, but we all seem to do it, for one reason or another.

[Pie]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

One interesting thing is how little diversity there appears to be - racial diversity, not diversity of thought of course.

Actually, most Indians would see that as a 'diverse' group -- many different castes and socioeconomic groups there. A high-caste Indian usually sees more difference between himself and an 'untouchable' than he does between himself an a white man (or Chinese, Hispanic, black, etc.)
- Pie

[Kitsune]

I see diversity, too! Some have a dot on the head and some don't.

[Cyber Wolf]

I would expect that most of them are more or less from the same stock, and by that I mean most if not all are from Indian families that have only come from India (little to no mixed racial blood). Though that's the case, there's plenty of diversity within that group there, skin shades from light to dark, face shapes and hair texture. But it's that one woman in the middle-right who really stands out (pun intended).

[Carbonated_Brains]

I found Waldo!

[lookout123]

imagine the line they must have when there is a ten minute bathroom break

[Pie]

Originally Posted by Cyber Wolf

I would expect that most of them are more or less from the same stock, and by that I mean most if not all are from Indian families that have only come from India (little to no mixed racial blood).

What is an "Indian" family? Most ethnic lines in India haven't mixed in many hundreds, if not thousands of years. More than 75% of India lives in rural areas, aka "backwards" castes, and interbreeding is usually punishable by death. Not only is it impermissible to marry outside of your caste, you can't even marry outside of your "jati" or community. My parents got hell for getting married -- even though they're both of brahmin stock. You see, they came from different home towns.

It is quite possible that every Indian professional you have ever met in this country (doctors, lawyers, engineers, mathematicians, heck anybody with a college degree) is a brahmin. Brahmins represent just a few percent of the population, but get 50% of the college spots -- and the other castes get the remaining 50% only by government quota! Otherwise, the brahmins would get 99%.

India might just be one of the most fucked-up places on the planet.

- Pie

[hampor]

I was talking with two Indian co-workers talking about college, and one of them mentioned affirmative action. I quized them about this, and it turns out that in this case it is the practice reserving a certain number of slots for lower castes.

They also mentioned the backlash that occurred when this went into force and the occaissional pretender who wasn't really from that caste.

[DanaC]

"India might just be one of the most fucked-up places on the planet."
No I really think that dubious honour falls to the Sudan....or maybe the Congo....possibly the Ivory Coast. Lot of places waaaay more fucked up than India.

I have enormous affection for the Indian culture ( married to a sense of deep anger and frustration over such issues as the Untouchables and the practice of aborting girl babies or abandoning them.....acid attacks on girls by spurned lovers and honour killings ....railway children and the glittering lives of the burgeoning middle classes whilst the majority of the population do little more than subsist )..... I was raised on stories of India as my father was born there and lived there until the family had to leave ( just before the hand back whilst the sectarian violence was at a peak) .....Whilst from my Grandparents I heard the tales of a wealthy elite and was given a glimpse into arrogance of mindboggling degree, from my Father I heard the other tales. My father was a child and a rebellious one at that and as such his relationships with the staff who saw to most of his nurturing was very different to that of his parents. They were less careful around him and allowed him to see their world a little. I am glad of that because he passed some of those tales to me and left me with the fee,ling that in some small way I have a connection to that culture.

[Cyber Wolf]

Originally Posted by Pie

What is an "Indian" family?

By "Indian" family, I meant a family who lives and has its roots in that region of the world and has had little to no outside blood being mixed in. Pardon if I don't know all the subsects and subcultures of people there but they're all of that particular race, just as the Saxons and Celts are(were).

[Beestie]

Well, well, well - look who showed up...

[Undertoad]

I find that to be the most interesting - the differences that one can't even see if one is outside the culture! What kind of tip-offs are there that someone is in a different caste?

[wolf]

It's India. Don't they just pee where they stand?

[Promenea]

The stand out woman is the one with the teeth right?

She really is noticeable.

[lookout123]

UT photoshopped the teeth in.