Life Outside My "Home State" - Life in the North

satchitananda · Aug 1, 2012

This forum covers so many states, many of which I have always wanted to visit, but have not yet had the opportunity to. Many of my relatives have lived in the North, the majority of them in Delhi. I have visited Delhi many times, but would really want to live in other states too, to get a feel of the culture, people, cold weather in the winters (I love cold weather) and of course THE FOOD.

Although I am South Indian, I was born and lived the first 30 years of my life in Pune. Very often when we talk of Indians abroad and how their children are caught between two cultures, I always think it has been similar for me, though may be to a smaller extent.

I always saw myself as a Maharashtrian - I speak the language more fluently than Tamil, I read and write the language which I can't in my mother tongue, I love the food, the culture, the plays, movies etc. I have a lot of friends there whom I have missed a lot over the years.

I would love to hear from others on this site who have lived in the North (but belong else where), their experiences and so on.

BandanaSen · Aug 1, 2012

Hi
I was born in Bengal. I have lived for varying periods in many states especially in North and Eastern India. At present I am settled in Delhi.
There is no doubt I love Delhi. A few years back, only Kolkata had the Metro. Now of course even Delhi has an excellent Metro. I love fish. Luckily, I get excellent fish in the C.R.Park locality of Delhi. The same locality also has shops selling typical Bengali food ingredients like masala and achar. Like Kolkata, Durga Puja is celebrated in almost every part of Delhi. At least 100 Durga puja pandals are erected every year. The puja period is the best time for me. I love to move from pandal to pandal, do Devi darshan and sample typical Bengali food on sale at the stalls. Winter is the best time in Delhi. You can visit the tourist spots, the malls and soak in the gentle winter sunshine.

satchitananda · Aug 1, 2012

Hi Bandana,

Staying in various places can be unsettling as well as an enriching experience. How was your experience living there? Did you get to form close associations with the localites? Are you still in touch with them? Did you ever feel like an outsider there or were you well accepted and integrated into their society? Would be interesting to know.

cutemonster · Aug 1, 2012

Nice topic satchi, but i guess I am not eligible for fb is im a north indian who has lived a lot of part of her life outside north:bonk

vjbunny · Aug 1, 2012

Dear Satchi
Wonderful discussion... I have lived in 5 different states in India... I have seen the difference between North Indians and South Indians because all these states I have been to are post my marriage... I hereby state that these are purely my experiences that I am stating ...
Each and every state is different while I find North Indians are eloquent if you understand Hindi well and they do help a bit if you dont but in South India people are not that conversant type if you happen not to know the regional language that will be tough you may feel bit lonely unless your nieghbourhood has good understanding people you may learn the language and enjoy the bonhomie of the state

satchitananda · Aug 1, 2012

Well Cutemonster, you can certainly post your views on how it is here in the South, outside your home state.

shaliniku · Aug 2, 2012

Hi
I liked Bandana Sen's account. Unlike Bandana, I am a North Indian who has lived 10 years of life at Kolkata. During that time it used to called Calcutta. It was under CPM rule then.
One thing of Kolkata, is the fresh vegetables you get from the villages. Since these are fresh, they have an altogether different taste. This was quite unlike the vegetables you get in Delhi. Once Bengalis get to know you, they are quite talkative and friendly. Another thing is that it is very easy to understand the language. This is because Sanskrit is the mother tongue and both Bengali and Hindi share many words in common. When I first saw a bearded Sardarji taxi driver speak in Bengali, I was quite taken aback. Bengali is very easy to pick up, and I myself was able to speak the language in a few months.
Calcutta used to be one of the cheapest metros of India - and I believe that the position remains unchanged.

satchitananda · Aug 2, 2012

How did you find the safety aspect? I had heard that Calcutta is a very safe city for women and that no one could dare to touch a woman without getting beaten up by the public. But the reports that we see these days of rapes and molestation of women in the city despite the chief minister being a woman is not only distressing but also surprising.

BandanaSen · Aug 3, 2012

Hi Satchitananda
Let me answer this for Shalini. I used to live in Bengal and still follow the news of that region on a daily basis.
Let me assure you that having a woman chief minister in Tamil Nadu or West Bengal makes no difference to the safety of the woman on the street. For example, it is said that the woman chief minister transferred a top woman police officer who cracked the Park Street rape case and caught the culprit. She was transferred because she had dared to contradict the Chief Minister. So much for a woman chief minister.!
In every state, there are men who think that they can get away with breaking the law and disturbing women on the street. A change in the male mindset ( I know that is impossible) is the need of the hour.
In general, Kolkata is much more safer than say Delhi or Mumbai. As like other cities in India, women too remain to be alert especially after dark.

satchitananda · Aug 3, 2012

Thanks Bandana. I would only say (although this is going a bit off the topic, sorry for that) that I would like to see the woman CM stripped of her security (which I am sure would cost the ex-chequer in millions if not in crores) and made to walk on the streets like the ordinary woman. I would certainly like to hear what she has to say then.