Hybrid society: Emergence of a new culture in urban India?

Indian society is perceived to be a traditional one with strong family ties which are steeped in culture. Some may even call it a backward society and attribute poverty to it. There are others who are concerned with the rapidly changing nature of our society, particularly the educated urban society. They think that the country is fast losing its traditional values and family ties are no longer strong.

May be there is some truth in it. Or is it just the fear among the majority traditionalists who feel threatened by the newly gained freedom and empowerment of the young educated boys and girls who are influenced by the western lifestyle and literally imitate it?

There are many ways of looking at this issue. For one, things are ever changing. We see the change every day but we don’t internalise it. We feel upset when our near and dear ones do not conduct themselves like us. We don’t realise that if successive generations did not think and conduct differently than their parents, then we would not what we are today. Change, being part of the game plan of nature, must be accepted and not frowned upon. The question is whether the pace of change disturbs the society or not and whether the change is for a better tomorrow.

The post liberalisation and globalisation era has been witnessing a rapid increase in the employment opportunities for young professionals. During the last 20-25 years, young women professionals have also entered the job market, which has substantially changed the environment at work places.

Young professionals have also moved out of their home states and gone to all parts of the country carrying with them their own culture and traits which sometimes may cause a flutter in their work place and in their adopted cities.

A large number of students of professional courses have also been going different parts of the country for education. There are a number of professional colleges in small towns and some even in the rural areas. While such a trend is extremely good for national integration, it may, sometimes, cause a cultural shock to both the local people as well as the young boys and girls coming from other regions. I have been witnessing tension among the local people and the outsiders from the early 1970s when I was deputy commissioner at (then) Mangalore.

Sometimes, this tension is expressed through violence against the outsiders as we have witnessed in Bengaluru in the recent past. This needs to be condemned by all the right thinking people. There is no doubt that the process of cultural assimilation does entail reactions but with time, people settle down and start living amicably. Over time, the so called outsiders and the local people do influence each other’s’ culture and a new culture emerges. The signs of such a new culture emerging in Bengaluru are visible. The Bengaluru culture of 2015 is quite different from its culture of 1980s and early 1990s. It is also true of Mumbai, Pune, Gurgaon and many other cities and towns which have considerable presence of young professionals and students from other parts of the country.

It may not be out of place to examine what is so different about our young professionals, particularly those who are living away from their families and their home states. It needs no special effort to see what they enjoy doing, particularly in the evenings and during weekends.

Their entire lifestyle, which is more western than Indian, is on public display. The worst is that they look down upon their peers who do not follow their ways. May be behind all this outward show is hidden a great sense of insecurity and inferiority complex among many of them.

Material advancement

One should not be too harsh with the youth on such matters. They are exposed to many different things and experiences to which the earlier generation was not. In the age of information technology, internet and mobile phones, nothing - good or bad - is hidden from any one. Unfortunately, they are often obsessed with their sense of entitlement rather than their duties towards the society and the nation. Race for material advancement has pushed the human values and concern for the fellow citizens to the background. Another disturbing trend is the sudden rise in the divorce rate among the young professionals in urban areas. This is hitting at the very root of our culture and values and is a cause of worry among the traditionalists.

Are we witnessing the emergence of a new culture in urban India? I would think so. As we become more and more industrialised, our urban population will grow much faster. Urban areas give us much greater freedom to lead a restrain-free life. Unfortunately, it also makes us self-centred and selfish.

All these factors are very conducive to the evolution of a new society. It is only a matter of time that the traditional Indian society will give way to a hybrid urban society which will have many ingredients of a western society minus their positives like discipline, respect for law, consideration for the fellow citizens, national pride etc. These are essential requirements for development and orderly and civilised living in urban conglomerates. One only hopes that the emerging hybrid urban society also embraces these positives of the western industrialised society. Otherwise, we will have a culture, which may create serious disturbances and conflicts in our society.

(The writer, former Additional Chief Secretary, Government of Karnataka, is President, Policy Analysis and Action Research Centre, Bengaluru)