NRIs NEED TO UP REALISE HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO BETTER PRESENT THEMSELVES

Ok, before someone comes at me, I need you to know that everything i am about to write is based on my own experiences and those around me. Indians abroad need to realise that we represent a whole country which already is a victim of blatant racism atm. We don’t realise how even the littlest of things we do outside of our home countries gets scrutinised to bits, Add to it the lack of basic civility, the way we dress, groom ourselves, it’s a shitshow. I have a few points to address here- 1- FOOD - We know we’re Indians but we must keep our nationalism and love for curry limited to our homes.

I have personally had people ( other races ) mock other Indians who and carry their INDIAN foods to the office and eat it without cutlery, now I LOVE INDIAN food but like there is a time and place for everything? I’m not going to sit in my office canteen and eat with my hands in an already supremacist office? Please think twice before you act like that because it taints our already tainted reputation, add to that more judgement and lack of curiosity, viola we have a new reaffirmed stereotype.

2- NAILS, HAIR AND BASIC GROOMING- This is my least favourite one because it makes me sound elitist but i don’t care because I have seen how it works this side of the world. PEOPLE JUDGE YOU BASED ON THE AMOUNT OF TIME YOU SPEND ON YOURSELF WHEN YOU WALK IN A ROOM BEFORE YOU OPEN YOUR MOUTH, You could be a rage of an intellectual but if your nails are dirt caked and hair is greasy no one’s going to bother and you will have to work twice as hard to make yourself heard. We tell people how they should treat us by the way we treat ourselves, now i’m not saying spend all of your salary on clothes and makeup but at least organise your wardrobe, simple can be classy too! Then on a side note/ PLEASE STOP PLACING YOUR JACKETS AND CLOTHES NEAR THE KITCHEN AREA WHERE YOU COOK COZ THE SMELL STICKS TO IT AND WE SMELL.

AND FOR THOSE WONDERING “OH SO WE DON’T SMELL IN INDIA AND SUDDENLY OUTSIDE WE HAVE THIS DISTINCT SMELL?”

YES, IT STANDS OUT ESPECIALLY HERE AS IT IS NOT A CULTURE OF SPICES. THE SMELL IS DISTINCT AND ESPECIALLY INTOLERABLE IF COMES FROM A PERSON.

3- NOT TAKING UP SPACE WHERE YOU SHOULD Again one of the things that i’ve noticed is that Indians will yell and scream in public transports and streets but will not call others out if they’re being racist or mocking our accents like the colonial hangover is real, we have no sense of self, nothing it’s just yeah “ i’ll do as they tell me in front of them so i can be a part of them but when they’re not looking i’ll just act like an animal out the cage” they live in extremes they either are trying to force themselves into a white poeple group completely missing the social cues or being a complete recluse and exclusively only hanging out with indians???? why are we doing this ?

I say all of this not because i want to shit on my people but because everyday I have to think about everything and try to conduct myself in a way that would better represent my country and people but then another person comes and completely makes it all go down the drain by acting like they absolutely shouldn’t. We don’t realise but this is a big part of soft power, we can’t just only be hard working bunch of individuals with a shit sense of everything else, WE MUST MARKET OURSELVES BETTER BY SHOWING UP FOR OURSELVES. 🙏🏼