‘Those who have never been colonized can never really know what it does to the psyche of a people. Those who have been are often not fully aware of—or are unwilling to accept—the degree to which they have been compromised.’ Till just a few decades ago, much of the world was carved into empires. By the mid twentieth century independent countries had emerged from these, but even after years of political liberation, cultural freedom has eluded formerly colonized nations like India . In this important book, Pavan Varma, best-selling author of the seminal works The Great Indian Middle Class and Being Indian, looks at the consequences of Empire on the Indian psyche. Drawing upon modern Indian history, contemporary events and personal experience, he examines how and why the legacies of colonialism persist in our everyday life, affecting our language, politics, creative expression and self-image. Over six decades after Independence , English remains the most powerful language in India , and has become a means of social and economic exclusion. Our classical arts and literature continue to be neglected, and our popular culture is mindlessly imitative of western trends. Our cities are dotted with incongruous buildings that owe nothing to indigenous traditions of architecture. For all our bravado as an emerging superpower, we remain unnaturally sensitive to both criticism and praise from the Anglo-Saxon world and hunger for its approval. And outside North Block, the headquarters of free India ’s Ministry of Home Affairs, a visitor can still read these lines inscribed by the colonial rulers: ‘ Liberty will not descend to a people, a people must raise themselves to liberty. It is a blessing which must be earned before it can be enjoyed.’ With passion, insight and impeccable logic, Pavan Varma shows why India , and other formerly subject nations, can never truly be free—and certainly not in any position to assume global leader Becoming Indian
When you come across something which speaks the same language as you think it leaves you speechless and you admire it. Same goes for this book written by Pavan Varma.
It is undoubtedly the best non-fiction book i have come across till date. It is a mirror in which we can see ourselves and we must try to re-organize ourselves after seeing ourselves in that mirror. It talks a lot and lot. It starts from the time Lord Macaulay to the time Chandigarh was designed by a non indian after independence. It starts from time first british landed on indian soil till the time our first PM gave first speech of our independence in a language unknown to most of indians.
Some of us feel proud to be called English like but we must not take them as pride rather than a compromise on our part. Author also talks about our rich culture and also convinces with his amazing facts that all that happened during our freedom struggle has left us struggling till now. We are lost in an island where we have assumed everything around us to be best except the thing which we have. It has left us in a wild goose chase with no fruitful future.
This book is very well researched and the author presents some of the rarest facts about people and their behavior. I wouldn't call it a condemned act of abuse but it is a call for us to re-organise ourselves. 288 While the whole book is an interesting and informative read, I found the chapters titled Colonial Amnesia: A Tale of Two Cities, Creativity and Distortion and Within the Global Village: Asymmetry and Co-option to be most insightful. 288 Well written, though at time quite long winding and excessively indignant about British slights on Indian culture, architecture and literature. What defeats the purpose of the book is the author's recommendation that all children in India must be compulsorily taught Hindi, even those children whose primary language is not Hindi. Substituting one kind of cultural imperialism for another is hardly a solution to identity issues and regional issues in India. To summarise, Pavan Verma makes a very good case to empower our own cultures (not culture, cultures)rather than be perpetually in awe of western attitudes and opinions, but would lose an discerning reader's respect when he talks about how every Indian should know Hindi. 288 I loved the book for several reasons. As a nation, we do not appreciate the traditions we have inherited (linguistic, social, intellectual). He's making an important point here that Indians have come away with the feeling that everything western is somehow superior to what is Indian. The book is repetitive in some places, I noticed, but overall I think what he says is of great value. We've got to be grounded in our traditions and our culture before we figure out what to borrow from others.
From the point of view of writing and literature alone, this has cost India in a BIG way. Please know that there are fewer and fewer translators from our regional languages into English. What doest this mean for India? It means that average writers in English are being read across the country. But writers of eminence in the vernacular are not getting heard enough. Hello....!!! This means someone of the stature of Kafka or Dostoyevsky does not get read in English. That is a big loss for generations of readers. To one of the people who posted here, please, please read the book. It's not conservative; I don't think it's prescriptive either.
I think the man has made strong arguments a few of which moved me to tears; Shashi Tharoor's upcoming book (Nov 2016) is probably going to reinforce a lot of what is being said in this book. 288 This is one of the best piece of work on India for the beginners. Who want to know India in one book should read this book. And also those who are starting to know. I must say this book has changed my perception about India. Very big thank you to the writer. 288
Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. A must read for all Indians.............perhaps should be a part of curriculum in all the schools. This book is a notch above Being Indian and The Great Indian Middle Class (both outstanding books) by the same author. It is evident that the author is pouring his heart out. And how well he does it. One can relate to almost everything that has been written. The book is riddled with gems. It raises some questions as well. While commenting on the 1997 Commonwealth Summit, the author makes a pertinent point that begs an answer: why my prime minister, who represented the will of billion free people, acquiesced so effortlessly in an act of open deference in a conclave supposed to be of equals. However, there is no rancour. He concedes the point that Commonwealth has probably done more good than harm, and helped nations move beyond acrimonies of the past.
He defines mother tongue as a psychology, an environment, a source of cultural and cognitive sustenance, an emotion, a bond, and many collateral things. He doesn't deride English either as a language. In fact he recognizes English as an indispensable tool to interface with a globalizing world. What he advocates is the right balance between acquiring a working proficiency in the foreign language and accord respect, acceptability and pride of place to one's own language.
He even takes on Amartya Sen. He disagrees with Sen's assertion that identity can kill. He goes on to state that Diversity must not be trivialized and devalued....... At the end of the book he quotes President Sarkozy of France, A clash of civilizations will not be averted by forcing everyone to think and believe alike; cultural and religious diversity must be accepted everywhere and by all to drive home a pertinent point.. Varma rightly concludes that the clash of civilization will take place if there is a pressure to homogenize. 288 Pavan K. Varma’s most recent book, Becoming Indian, argues that cultural freedom has eluded formerly colonized nations, specifically India. He sees a need for a cultural revolution in India. Although it reads at times like an extended opinion piece, Varma makes convincing arguments highlighting the importance of reclaiming language, architecture, and art in a way that empowers indigenous knowledge rather than oppressing it. He examines concepts and examples related to language, architecture, and art with regard to modern Indian history, contemporary events, and personal experiences.
Varma believes that the real strength of empires lay in the colonization of minds, and he views modern history as one that has resulted in cultural and ideological consequences. He explores how English has become a tool for upward mobility and questions the cost, as the loss of one’s own language is seen as a gain in India. He uses the example of young people performing Shakespeare in English with no knowledge of theatre in their own languages to illustrate this pervasive ignorance. He also compares the success of writing in English to the sure failure of writing in Indian mother tongues to illustrate a flaw in today’s Indian value systems. Convincingly, he critiques the concept of providing important information, such as health and traffic signs on the highways, in English.
Although India has been independent since 1947, Varma argues that colonialism persists in the realms of language, politics, and self-image. Varma believes that globalization is leading to the desire for a homogeneous identity. To counteract this, he believes it is important to know one’s cultural roots in order to move forward into the future.
From a feminist perspective, it is interesting to note the ways in which the British have historically seen Indians as effeminate, and thus treated them with less respect. The power dynamics within post-colonial societies are especially tricky as colonization has already permeated people’s minds. According to Varma’s arguments, what may be necessary is not only a contemporary Indian cultural revolution but also one that involves all sectors of society, from the lowest to the highest castes and socioeconomic backgrounds.
Review by Lakshmi Saracino 288 Copies, however good, cannot be as valuable as original.
The book has definitely added dimensions to my thinking regarding identities, culture, homogeneity and diversity in the society. It has provoked me to ask myself some difficult questions and brought some things into focus which were lost in the background.
It also makes me question whether we as a country are adopting a better approach to resolve cultural differences among diverse communities than the western countries which are trying to co-opt all of them to become a homogeneous state.
I liked the book even though sometimes it reinforces the same idea again and again, which becomes a bit of drab. But when the matter comes back to my mind, it forces me to introspect & to learn. 288 A biting evaluation of the deep and continued impact of colonialism on Indian culture and psychology.
Verma laments the fact that Indian languages today are forgotten, mangled or cast aside as low class in favour of English. He talks about the lack of care applied to the preservation of Indian art, music, history and culture - although European style artistic sensibilities are in vogue in modern India. He characterizes many Indians - in the past and today - as sad parodies that mimic the very people that once subjugated them. He talks also about the deep rooted conviction that Colonial rulers felt about their inherent superiority (an attitude which prevails today).
I felt that there were many nuances of Indian history, culture, language that I could appreciate better after this book, because the author chooses to share a rich and interesting repertoire of detail. He also makes a lot of ironic observations about everyday India - which make you wake up to things that you already knew but hadn't perhaps thought about or stopped to question.
Some choice quotes:
dominant cultures consider their domination normal, even morally good and uplifting, and have the means to project this message globally ...everything that is precious to you must belong to one of two poles: exotica or spécialisés study. Everything precious to him must be a part of your normal education.
At times, however, this book does feel like an extended bitter diatribe which few practical solutions. (For example his suggested way of saving Indian languages is to educate kids solely in their native language until 6th grade which is when you can introduce English - not sure this would do much to ease the babel problem given 20+ official languages, and not necessarily conducive to Indians fitting into the globalisation revolution). Some sections also do drag as he has a tendency to list an overwhelming number of examples to illustrate every tiny point.
Overall Becoming Indian is an insightful and interesting read that provides much food for thought. Not particularly pragmatic, but does at least make us question the attitudes that prevail today.
288 Provocative. Extreme/over enthusiastic at points. 288
