What a place this is...
No life here...
Just a few years more...
No place for merit...
It’s only ‘Vaasta’ that matters...
Take a deep breath. Try to recollect as to how many times these statements have crept in conversations you have heard or shared...
There is no dearth of complaints by all of us, about the place; the people; the work culture; the overall environment and particularly about the attitude of the natives. We have a grudge against everything and everyone...
The traffic is bad; the weather is bad; the people around are not intelligent and hard-working; the opportunities for growth are almost non-existent; the roads are unsafe for women; this is no place for children to grow—they just become gadget-addicts...
Those who do not crib and complain are few. And yet, we are lakhs of us who have chosen to come and earn our livelihood here—some who are here for about 30 to 40 years, and some who continue to work here even beyond the retirement age.
We complain about everything back home and this habit looms large even overseas. After all, who has been brought here by force? The reasons may vary. And yet the underlying element is that we all seek our ‘bread and butter’ here. Some have simply come for a job; others for a better paying job; some for survival; and some for a tax-free hefty package. Whatever said and done, this is our karmabhoomi (place of work) and we continue to live because each one is able to fulfil that need for which we landed here. We owe a lot to this land; and to the people of this land who, for whatever reasons, have allowed lakhs of Indians to come and work and settle here peacefully. One may argue that manpower is needed here and hence we are needed. But we have to be thankful for that as well.
We all love our nation; the one where we were born and which nurtured us. However, has complaining not become a permanent part of our psyche? We complain there about shortages—of water, of basic amenities; of health care; of jobs; of housing; and of opportunities too. We complain that merit is not recognised here; but back home does merit triumph? It is suffocating there too beneath layers and layers of casteist, regional or other affinities. Those in public life betray the governed everywhere. It is neither unusual here; nor there back home.
We complain that Salmiya, Hawalli, Fahaheel, Abbasiya and some other areas where expats live in majority are ill-kept areas. But then we do seriously need to consider whether we are, to some extent, responsible for the filth or garbage. How much of what we see on the roads in the areas we live or in the gardens of our areas, is our own doing? We are also, to some extent, responsible for the stereotype images the natives or others have of us, we Indians.
There is no one, but three Indias that live here. One, the upper class that inhabits villas of Salwa or Jabriya and the plush apartments of Riggae etc. Then there is the middle class living in Salmiya, Abu Halifa, Jeleeb, and other areas. And then there is the huge army of labourers who are cramped either in labour camps or are living, sometimes 20 of them together, in dilapidated matchbox-sized flats. All the three broad groups have an agenda each of their own and reason their own as to why they chose to come here. One common thread of thought runs through us all, though. The focus is to save and take it back home, as much as one can. There are differing needs and circumstances that each one of us has to cope with, and nothing wrong either in wanting to save and take it back too. However, one must look at this scenario from the perspectives of the citizens of this country too.
We do not pay any tax and meagre amounts for utilities such as water, electricity etc. Then the majority of us do not wish to spend uselessly on tea, coffee, water or food etc outside. We are reluctant to tip; we choose to stay in dilapidated buildings despite having the means to live better. The mindset is ‘this is not our place and why spend here?’ We live frugally and sometimes really miserly. And yet, we complain that we are not treated well as the whites are, for example.
There may be issues of governance and attitude here but people of which country can understand the perspective of the natives than we? We come from a land where a few thousand from Uttar Pradesh are abused and threatened in Mumbai and the Biharis are considered encroachers in Bengal and Orissa and the Bengalis are threatened in Assam and so on. How can we complain about Localization when we are the champions of regionalism and reservation ourselves?
Road accidents... the gap between the rich and the poor... living in cramped houses... the fear of civil unrest or of war... the rude treatment at government-run hospitals... fear and insecurity of being harassed by the police or women honked at—which of these phenomena are we unaware of in our own country? Complaining about nations and particular nationalities is uncalled for. It’s just that human beings are of two kinds: those who contribute and those who destroy. Those in-charge of governance are also of two kinds: those who build and those who spoil it all. Is there a dearth of people in India who are lazy or who simply drink and gamble or live off others’ wealth? Does influence or vaasta not matter in India?
While enjoying the smooth roads... the long weekends... the lovely colour of the sea... the barbecues...the (subsidised)hot khoobz... the savings... the total variety of Indian food and Indian ingredients available here with ease... the services of maids and cleaners... the fabulous cars... let us live each moment that we must live here, as gratefully as we can. It is this place and the people who have, voluntarily or out of necessity, allowed us in their country, that we are able to fulfil our responsibilities; embark on international holidays with ease; honour our commitments; educate our children in the best of institutions and then marry them off well; and build sprawling houses back home.
Most of us do find idyllic time here. Ensuring that our children do not turn out to be simply gadget-addicts but responsible representatives of the India that is struggling to find a niche for itself could do us well. And then of course, take a deep breath the next time you get time to sit for a few minutes at the corniche... we live in a beautiful place...