THE PARADOX OF INDIAN MIGRANT IN US

“They gulp some packed food calling it a breakfast, eat no lunch and the only time they cook is for dinner when they are totally exhausted after the days work. This is really pathetic” lamented the old man whom I met during my morning walk in the bay area of California. “Why do they come here and toil like this if they cannot eat two square meals a day when they can afford to live like a prince in India.” continued the old man, tears literally running down his cheeks. True, the migrant Desi is a confused lot and is being caught between devil and deep sea. They are being forced into a new culture and lifestyle in their new found home and retuning to their origin is not that easy.

The acronym “DCBA’ (Desi Confused By America), refers to Indian workers who migrated to the US since the 1970s in pursuit of the “Great American Dream” when everything was going well. Born, brought up and studied in India, they still retain some of their original culture and values imbibed on them when they were young or have at least made a sincere attempt to retain their identity. Another serious challenge faced by this community is taking care of their ageing parents in India. They cannot return to India as many are in the peak of their career and, even if they return, they cannot easily adapt to Indian work culture. They would very much like to take their parents with them, but the parents find it difficult to adjust to the new environment in their advanced age.

The children born to them (delivered in America, obviously a tested method to obtain American passport without hurdles) who are referred to as ABCD (American Born Confused Desi) know little of India and the only link between them and their erstwhile motherland is the occasional trip they make to their land of origin accompanying their parents during their visits. Torn between two different cultures, they are fast losing their original identity. Many of them marry outside their community into different cultures and the consequential cultural mismatch. Some marriages survive and some not.

Thanks to globalization in that it is fast producing a new Indian breed alien to their own culture. This is here to stay and is happening with change the world over. The older generation feels they have lost their sons and daughters to an alien culture and are depressed about it. But reality is different and we need to accept it gracefully.