Our culture is totally dominated by Indian culture. I think Hindi serials play a major role in Indian dominance in our culture. I don't actually like Hindi serials. Very unrealistic but Bangladeshis esp. woman folks are extremely crazy about Indian Hindi and Bangla serials. Now, I am assuming in near future we will be suffering from huge identity crisis in the world due to Indian dominance. We are not Crimea to Russia. We are a separate country but we have nothing particular left to be called 'Bangladeshi culture'. Its Indian culture all over Bangladesh.
EFFECTS OF HINDI SERIALS ON BANGLADESH
Effect On Our Culture
Cultural imperialism is rather widespread in Bangladesh. Rather than being proud of our own culture and heritage, nowadays, Bangladeshis are more prone to either adopting or blindly following foreign culture. This is common among the younger generation of our country. Earlier, Bangladeshis were greatly influenced by the western culture. Now, the dominance of Indian culture in our society is very much evident with introduction of satellite television in Bangladesh back in the early 90s. Bangladesh took a 360-degree turn from their previous first choice of western culture to a totally new and rather prominent culture.
The media is an effective way of influencing people. But unfortunately, in Bangladesh, always the negative side of all good things seems to influence people the most
Bangladesh Television, which actually aired really good US TV serials, the Bangladeshi people soon began to become addicted to the Indian culture.
They ate, drank, walked, talked, shopped, and slept like Indian people. They still do. As days passed, the number of Indian channels began to increase. Now there are more channels than there were channels on a TV set back in the 90s.
The strongest influence of this culture is on children and women. There was a time when teenage boys never watched a single Hindi movie. Nowadays, from child to men all watch Hindi programmes including movies.This success is not for the Bangladeshi culture, but for Indian culture.
Indian culture is eating up the creativity and productivity of many talented Bangladeshi individuals. Rather than expressing their own thoughts and ideas, they prefer to copy the Indian culture. The influence of Indian culture is uncontrolled everywhere. Even Bangladeshi weddings are the victim of hindi serials culture. Now there are Indian rituals involved with our weddings. Earlier when Bangladeshi weddings were limited to two holuds, a wedding and, a reception or maybe engagement ceremonies at times, now some people have wedding ceremonies which last for at least seven to ten days. There is a Sangeet ceremony, a mehendi ceremony, and some more such ceremonies.
The Indian culture has mixed with our blood. Children who have been growing up watching these Hindi programmes fail to understand the true value of our culture. They talk and dress like the Indian TV stars. Tailor shops are continuously getting orders to make dresses worn by some Indian actress. Same goes for beauty salons. Many people visit these places to want to get a haircut or a look like some actress. The once popular Benarasi saree is becoming nearly dead because Bangladeshi women want to buy Indian sarees which are worn by Hindi serial actresses. They do not want to buy these traditional sarees anymore.
EFFECTS OF HINDI SERIALS ON BANGLADESH: Effect On Our Culture
Identity crisis
So India has influence on pretty much everything we do. The way we dress, what we eat, what we buy, what we watch etc etc. . .the list goes on. That’s for the Bangladeshi population though but what about the rest of the world? Well, obviously India is known all over the world. .thanks to Bollywood and butter chicken! But how does what affect us? Trust me it does and no one knows better than me.
4 years living in North America I had to correct the people saying “I am NOT Indian, I am Bangladeshi!” Just because we have the same complexion and dress the same way does not make us Indian. Gosh! (ok, I did not overreact) but sometimes it was aggravating going all “National Geographic” and “Discovery” on people while trying to explain them where Bangladesh was located and that it was a different country.
I recall a conversation between me and my grade 9 Biology teacher. She was nicely bonding with me over a Bollywood movie and told me how much she loved Shahrukh Khan. I knew what she was talking about but at the same time I knew exactly what she was thinking- she thought I was Indian. I went on talking but I had to correct her, I told her I was Bangladeshi. She looked a little embarrassed (poor her, that wasn’t my intention though) and told me she knew Bangladeshis in her university. (Phew, at least she knew the country!) . At the end of school year most of my classmates and teachers knew where Bangladesh was (Yay! Mission accomplished) but I guess I celebrated too soon. On my graduation day, when they were reading what the graduates would do after school . .mine went something like this ” and Fariba will go to college in her homeland PAKISTAN!” (SERIOUSLY!) arrggg.
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Bangladesh,
India,
North America | Leave a Comment »
“Chipped” off
“You get full marks in math I buy you a packet of chips after school” my mother used to say. Gone are those days, full marks or no mark children nowadays get whatever they want.
The other day I was having a conversation with my 10 year old cousin. I asked him if he gets a “reward aka chips” for doing well in a test or exam. At first he gave me a weird look and completely ignored my question (ouch!) then he finally answered “yes sometimes”.
I got excited and shared my memories telling him how I would always go for Mr. Twist or Ring Chips. All he said was “eww . . Indian Lays are so much better”. I was heart broken. (Ok maybe not)
Remember back in the day when we were young we would buy Mr. Twist, Potato Crackers or those bright canary yellow ring chips? I have noticed that the children these days prefer Indian Lays or Kurkure over the local ones. If you ask them why they would say it’s because there is something wrong with the ingredients they use, it is not good for health and all that. Obviously this isn’t something they came up with, it’s what they hear from their parents. It’s true that in the past some foul content were found in some food products but now things have changed. These food products are made in a hygienic area with modernized equipments.
Therefore we shouldn’t discourage the children our scare them away rather encourage them to buy our own food products.
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Food,
Products | Tagged
Chips | 3 Comments »
Happy stylin’ new year
14th of April was Bengali New Year. A lot of
mela, concerts, (Dj party & Car rally?!) and different other events took place. Almost half of the city was on the streets wandering in the scorching heat looking for something interesting to do. While they were preoccupied in search of amusement I was busy looking at them! Why? Because of the clothes, the make up, the hairstyle.(Not just the ladies, even the men . .yes you men in your slim fit panjabi!) Some girls looked like they came straight out of the Bollywood movie Om Shanti Om! The Deepika hairstyle and eye make up is still in. Seems like we can’t get over the 07 bollywood hit.
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Beauty,
Bollywood,
Events,
Movies | Tagged
Bollywood,
Events,
Pohela Boishak | 1 Comment »
A concerned music lover
So many channels! What to watch? When to watch and what to follow?
In this hectic life of ours it becomes tough keeping up with what’s on television.
I personally enjoy watching videos on music channels because it doesn’t require you following a particular show just enjoy non-stop music. I was changing channels and I noticed that all 4 music channels provided by my cable operator are Hindi! (Indian)
There is so much influence of Hindi music in Bangladesh that I am pretty sure we know more Hindi songs than Bangla ones. It seems like Bangla music is being overshadowed by catchy Indian music.
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Music,
Television | Tagged
Bangla Music,
Hindi Music,
Music | 1 Comment »
Heritage, love and bathroom tiles!?
Ah oh . .looks like we have copied that mausoleum that is in our neighbouring country. (although it is nowhere close) My first impression when I saw it was “something Ken would build for Barbie . .only if they were still a couple”. Putting my crazy imagination aside I think we shouldn’t be even comparing it with the real Taj Mahal because that would be insulting it but let us not get too serious and critical as well. We know that in Bangladesh we don’t have that many places we can visit. This new “tourist spot” or “recreational spot” or however you want to refer to it gives the people of our country somewhere to go to with their families over the weekend.
A lot of criticism has been made by the Taj Mahal lovers primarily because of the colour (pink!) and the materials used (bathroom tiles!) but lets just think of it this way, given the present economic condition in the world, if Emperor Shah Jahan was alive now, he probably would have considered bathroom tiles over marble. Who knows?
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Bangladesh | Tagged
Pink,
Taj Mahal,
Taj Mahal Bangladesh | 5 Comments »
IPL fever
Indian Premier League (IPL) is in less than two weeks and the excitement can already be witnessed in almost every Indian TV channel. Well, us Bangladeshis, we are as equally excited because 1) its cricket 2) three of our National players are playing in the IPL. This year all eyes are on our Vice Captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza who is playing for Kolkata Knight Riders and is also one of the highest paid players in the IPL.
Bangladesh has a close connection with Kolkata since we speak the same language and share an almost similar culture. So, naturally we tend to support Kolkata and having our own player in a Kolkata team is like the icing on the cake.
Looking forward to this year’s IPL . . Can’t wait!
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The inseparable bond
Snow storm, cyclone, earthquake or any other natural disaster so be it! But you can’t miss a Bollywood movie on a Friday night. Let’s go thousands of miles away from Bangladesh somewhere in Europe, North America or any other part of the world. No matter where we Bangladeshis go Bollywood is there.
The longer the distance the stronger the bond is between Bollywood and the Bangladeshi community. I remember the maximum numbers of Hindi movies I watched was during my stay in Canada. Even in this hi-tech era, my friend’s mother in Toronto bought a VHS player just so she could watch those rented tapes of Hindi TV shows-a true fan! I don’t know the reason behind it but I guess when we are abroad we feel closer to home when we watch these movies and TV shows.
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Bollywood | 3 Comments »
Made in India
We Bangladeshis are highly dependent on Indian products starting from clothes & cosmetics to silly things like frying pan & mango pickle. That is probably one of the reasons why we like going to India- for shopping. During the wedding seasons, even before reserving a place where the marriage can take place we book our tickets to go to
Bharat. (Kolkata to be precise)Why? (if we ask our moms and aunts) they will say because sarees there are reasonably priced, they have the latest things etc etc.
Even if we are shopping here in Bangladesh we completely ignore our products and go for the Indian ones saying our quality isn’t good enough, the designs are common, not much variety blah blah come up with 1001 excuses.
I agree that when it comes to variety and quality of clothing the Indians are way ahead but we aren’t that bad either, our
tatis do a great job as well and as Bangladeshis we should support and encourage them. And about the cooking utensils, how much can one go wrong with a frying pan? I will ask my mom and aunts to buy our
deshi hari patil . . . you do the same as well.
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Bangladeshi products,
Indian products | 3 Comments »
Now they have our scissor and comb
I am one of those annoying people who read out loud or have to comment on every sign board, billboards just about anything on the road that has writings and pictures that are visible through my specs.
On Thursday, I noticed something interesting. I was somewhere in Tejgaon industrial area and I noticed HABIB on a billboard and it wasn’t our
Moina Go Habib, it was the Indian hair stylist. (Random right?) That’s what I thought. I mean it’s not everyday you come across a hair stylist posing on a billboard in Tejgaon. I think he has a salon along with one of our local beautician. Maybe his picture was up there for marketing and promotion purpose but I thought it was weird. Should I be flattered that now my hair is in the hands of a foreign expert or should I be worried that it implies Bangladeshi hair dressers aren’t good enough? Hmmmm . . .
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Beauty,
Hair Salons | 3 Comments »
. . . and how do you say it in Bangla?
Galad Ilzaam”(Hindi word) I said to a friend during one of our phone conversation. Then I asked her what “galadh Ilzaam” was in Bangla, as I pondered. There was this awkward silence followed by “ ummm . . .ahhh . . .hmm” and finally “I don’t know”.
Before I start, I have to admit my Bangla vocabulary is worse than that of a 5th grade student and that’s something I am really ashamed of. That is not the point though; the point is that there are a lot of Bengalis like me who often use these catchy Hindi terms in their daily conversations thanks to Hindi movies and soap operas. I have noticed this especially among the children, they watch cartoons in Hindi and they pick up the phrases and terms very easily. I have nothing against it, in fact I think learning new language is great but we have to keep in mind that we shouldn’t let another language replace our mother tongue.
(By the way, galad ilzaam means false accusation in English but I still don’t have a clue how to say it in Bangla.)
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Language | Tagged
Bangla,
Bengali,
Hindi | 2 Comments »
Eating,Sleeping,Loving Cric- The Indian Style
February 28, 2009
It makes me laugh, smile, cry, happy, sad, cuss (sometimes I throw shoes at the tv!) . . . . and that is CRICKET. I LOVE CRICKET!
Although
kabaddi is our National Sport we Bangladeshis are obsessed with cricket. If cricket is considered a religion in India how can we be far behind? Indian media contributed a lot in our new found love for cricket. The way they portray their cricketers as heroes, we want our cricketers to be the same. When I see Mahi (Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the Indian captain) along with his “boys” sporting their blue jersey on a Pepsi or Boost advertisement showing team spirit, I want to see our players doing something similar. When I see the Indian supporters waving their flags, singing, dancing, loud and proud, it makes me so patriotic that I want to paint and my face green and red, wave our flag and cheer for our team.
In my opinion I think that the Indian media does an amazing job in promoting cricket, not only in their country but in all the cricket loving countries around the world.
Photo Credit:
www.interweb.in
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Cricket | 1 Comment »
From Slums of Mumbai to Slums of Dhaka
February 28, 2009
Slumdog Millionaire or Slumdog Crorepati however you want to refer to it has been on the headlines for quite awhile now. The winner of 8 Oscars, the movie has created hype around the world.
The movie portrays poverty, discrimination and corruption in India. Similarly we, the people in Bangladesh are victims of the same three problems depicted in the movie. Slumdog Millionaire is now a symbol of hope for the underprivileged in the third world countries. The popularity of the movie made everyone else in the world realize the issues faced in India and the hardship of the poor people. This also puts Bangladesh on the map as it is India’s neighbour.
Slumdog Millionaire to third world countries is like the light at the end of the tunnel.
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Movies | Tagged
Poverty,
Slumdog Millionaire | 2 Comments »
In search of Shundori Komola
February 21, 2009
Like half of the Dhaka population I also attended a couple of wedding ceremonies during the winter. I don’t want to sound unsocial but I am not a big fan of all these ceremonies because of all the glitz and glam. Then again that’s just my personal opinion.
The interesting part of a Bangladeshi wedding is the Holudh ceremony. All the dancing and singing takes place in the Holudh. Despite of being blinded by the heavy decoration and the bright sequins I did manage to notice something else in these Holudh ceremonies and that would be the songs and the dance routine.
There were young boys and girls doing “bhangra” dance moves to a very popular Bollywood track mauja hi mauja and some other songs. It felt like I was in a Bollywood musical. That was when I thought to myself whatever happened to our traditional Bangla Holudh songs such as
shundori komola or
leela bali. Bollywood has completely taken over our Bangladeshi rituals. When was the last time you heard
shundori komola at a Holudh? Do you remember? I don’t.
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Bollywood | Tagged
Bollywood,
Weddings | 7 Comments »
Mirror Mirror on the wall . . . turn me into a Bollywood doll
I was walking by the beauty salons here in Dhaka and I couldn’t help but notice a life size portrait of Aishwarya Rai staring straight back at me. At first I was persuaded to walk into the salon and rely on the beauticians to turn me into the ex Miss World but all this lasted for the first 30 seconds or so till a feeling of aggression and anger took over my mind. Why does it have to be an Indian woman portraying beauty in Dhaka and why not a Bangladeshi woman? We expect others to appreciate the Bengali beauty but the irony is that we are ashamed of it ourselves.
So next time we look at the mirror, who do we really want to look like?
Photo Credit:
Chakpak.com | Your one stop shop for all latest news, views, gossip and inside juice about Indian films, celebs and filmy events | If it’s filmy, Chakpak it! | Chakpak
Posted in
Bollywood | Tagged
Beauty,
Beauty Salon,
Bollywood | 4 Comments »
the beginning
Indian products and media play a significant role in our society. This isn’t surprising because India is our neighbor after all. It amazes me to see how powerful their media is. From children to adult humming Bollywood songs, women and men follow the latest Indian fashion trends, people are glued to the television in the evening just to watch their favorite hindi soap opera etc etc . .the list is endless and I admit I am one of those people! Call it guilty pleasure; whether you love it or hate it, it is a part of our life.
During the next few months I will be sharing some of my opinions, experiences, facts etc about the impact of Indian media and consumer products on our society.
The Indian Impact
The Blacks and Whites in Southern Africa however are rather nice people. They are extremely hospitable to foreigners and regard those of their fellow citizens of different races as their brothers and sisters. I personally have too many friends of different races to be a racist. In fact I have many Pakistani friends here and in Durban to hold any malice against Pakistan. People are all beautiful. We can only experience their beauty when we interact with them. Whilst we don't know them, we fear them
we have come a long way to realise our infatuation
