Friday, March 20, 2009

BORDERS

As a student one of my finest memories before admission to JNMCH was that now I will get a chance to have friends in whole country...real friends in person and not just internet buddies...well when I got selected and was packing my stuff to move here the first thing my brother (who was already studying here) told me was that in Aligarh I will feel a demarcation between internal and external...and that I should mingle with the externals...So that’s how it began...
I had been never exposed to any such thing before and I don’t listen to my brother that much either...I was confident that I can make my own decision so ignoring everything I moved on...the examination day was a blur, there were rains, students everywhere, I and my dad got particularly mingled with a kashmiri family and we completed our formalities together...I was very happy...my friend list just started and the first person kashmiri...COOL !!!!!
My room in hostel was a mix of cultures... me typical UPite, one Bengali, one Bihari and one Singapore resident...I was happy again ...everything so perfect...time passed and I noticed that the word BIHARI was taken as a disadvantage...even people belonging to Bihar didn’t liked to be called that...and you were referred as bihari when actually you did something stupid...then there was another gang...KASHMIRI...Indians called them Pakistani...they called themselves free...they all always stayed together... and were so close to each other that at times you felt alienated...then comes mallu and chinki and Bengali and so on...even UP was not a single lobby...UP east UP west etc...etc...etc...
These things never ended...we were supposed to vote for people who belonged to our areas, people near or close to our homeland did us favours, asking allotment of only people of a particular place in a room...etc... etc... etc...
Really I had never realised that being born somewhere was my advantage, my identity...not what the person I am...being a UPite I was perceived as cunning and not trustworthy (one of my seniors told me that initially she thought I was cunning but with time I have proved to be quite the contrary with time)
I thought that the borders were only for well functioning of the country...I believed all the states to be pieces of a jigsaw puzzle which is incomplete without each other...but the borders are actually dividing us somewhere...and when generation Y thinks like that, it’s disappointing...how can you expect something out of a person who actually believes in such BULLSHIT...are we developing...we are becoming retards actually...
As far as I have experienced...BIHARIS who are supposed to be stupid and foolish are the most laborious, simple and trustworthy people I have ever met...if they are down to earth, they are not stupid...they are actually great...
And KASHMIRIS who are supposed to be back stabbers and mean are actually the most intelligent, most beautiful and so charismatic that all u can do is to feel jealous of them...they are great as friends , cool compatible and great...
BENGALIS are as sweet as rosogolla, easygoing and fun to be with...MALLU the cutest of all, no problem kind of people...I have no friend form northeast but I am sure they too must be wonderful...and lastly UPites too are not cheaters...
I believe that those people who say this, believe this are weak morally crippled... when they know that someone is better than then in any or many aspect they start ABUSING...I just wish that they use all this energy on themselves...they would turn into a new leaf...
So I am still struggling for a solution how to erase these borders...my honourable vice-chancellor tried by not allotting 2 people of same place in a room...yes it did worked to an extent...but what we need is something more substantial...some thorough self assessment kind of stuff...
So did my tryst to have at least one friend in every state ended...yes to an extent...well I had tried to be compatible...never taken these borders on my soul...initially it did hurt when they didn’t reciprocated...but with time they have changed...after all they all were going through the same conflict that I had been through...I now talk with everyone...help them when they need... and don’t expect anything back...the last line is the most important one....believe me because life is always not as you expect it to be, it turns out even better...

3 comments:

  1. I fully agree with this issue...u have raised an issue which is linked to every student studying this university...if u look in glorious past history of this university u can’t find such regionalism ...as my father told me that there was no difference between any senior or junior in jnmc .every one behaves like a friend whether its study time or leisure time. u were not allowed to pay if senior is with you. and during any festival, students are invited by the teachers.
    I think the main factor responsible for the decline of the status of this university is regionalism...lobbies are divided on basis of this. we can see in most of the department (m concerned more about my JNMC) lobbies are being created. in order to work together, they try to politicize the issues for their self gain. if any department is organizing any conference others never try to make it successful. As the time passes we are getting more woven up in this cheap Aligarh mentality. We must realize the vision of founder of this university at every point of time…he has given blood to buildup an institution.

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  2. Kudos!!! This blog is really a good one. Being a kashmiri, let me take this as an opportunity to clear the misconceptions regarding us. The main reason for kashmiris being considered as a separate lobby is that we dont prefer to talk in Hindi or Urdu in front of Non-kashmiris. This is really a mistake on part of kashmiris. The other person feels alienated by this irresponsible behaviour. There is nothing like Kashmiri Lobby. I know that viewers of this comment would not agree with my views. Anyways, perceptions vary. Some Non-Kashmiris even opine that kashmiris consider themselves superior to others and it is out of this superiority complex that kashmiris dont prefer to talk to others. There is absolutely nothing like that.

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    Check out this link. This is my blog. Unfortunately, i removed a blog about my college only 3 days back. I ll try to reload it asap.

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  3. great work...
    yeah you are right to a great extent... bt dis regionalism seed had been planted long back in late 70s n 80s... hats off to d administration n the students union...
    i dont know why they hav devided even d halls n hostels on d basis of region...
    d students of bihar n eastern up were one time d core of amu.. 90% of d whole strength came up from dem...
    its a natural thing dat u giv importance to those who r from ur home town.. bt d politics has sowd d seed of hatred n loobism among d students... its all v who created hatred... n its all v who has to dissolve dis...someone has to come forward and tak d initiative... n thanks at last someone has ignited d candle of love and brother hood again... which had been put off 30years back....

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