During this winter break in India, I seriously felt the flaws in Indian behavior.
This has existed forever, and I have lived with this attitude since birth. But after spending almost
three years in the US, I can now see and feel it differently.
I watched a couple of movies in theatres in December 2025. Some observations were
mindblowing:
1. Adult movies (+18) had small kids, even infants, watching them.
2. People were not only talking on their phones but using the speaker during the movie.
This happened in all three movies I watched, even in high end premium lounges.
I could not figure out how four-year-old kids would understand Avatar , whose earlier parts were
released even before they were born. They were running, talking, and playing in the aisle as if
they were in a playground or at home.
We Indians have serious behavioral issues:
● We honk excessively.
● We do not believe in queues or personal space in lines.
● We ignore traffic lights and parking manners.
We are also one of the largest consumers of social media.
When the Prime Minister of India, in 2014, emphasized cleanliness and personally led by
example, his main aim was to help Indians understand that there is no shame in cleaning and
that we should feel proud doing it.
Indian Railways spends approximately $200 million every year cleaning pan masala stains.
There are countless videos, memes, and articles about Indian behavior online. There is no point
denying it, we all know about it.
The real question is: Why are we like this? Is it a symptom or a disease?
I believe it is a symptom of a deep-rooted, chronic problem passed down through generations.
The pan masala industry is one of the root causes. It is estimated to be a $5 billion industry.
It causes sewage blockage, cancer, and spitting on walls.
I feel the damage caused by the pan masala industry is far greater than the revenue it
generates. A serious study is needed.
Sometimes the Government of India takes half-measures:
Selling pan masala is banned, but manufacturing is not. There is a serious flaw in this approach.
After 12 years of government efforts, we have hardly moved forward.
Why?
What I think could be the reasons:
1. We are too lazy.
2. We are too arrogant.
3. We are educated but illiterate in civic sense.
4. We consider Socially Useful Productive Work (SUPW) beneath our dignity since we are
used to other people doing this work for us.
5. We believe we are above the law and do not fear punishment. This gives people a god
like feeling.
It feels like we have taken a line from the Bhagavad Gita and misunderstood it:
“To hell with etiquette… Aham Brahmasmi.”
