Now this is something we cannot deny. As Indians, we have been a victim of one or the other stereotype, agree?
India has always been a land of mixed cultures and customs. With these come a humongous amount of stereotypes, bag and baggage. There are religious stereotypes, mental, intellectual, and physical stereotypes.
Every person might have made (or been encountered by) some conclusions based on stereotypes. “The topper of our class might be such a bore!”, “that girl with those spectacles is surely a nerd”, “that boy doesn’t attend a single lecture, he is such a dull student”, “the student who is talkative might not be intelligent”, “the girl who appears to be listening to the lectures might be very intelligent” etc.. are the most common stereotypes we use in schools and colleges.
Why just in classrooms? Talk about regional stereotypes. If a person hails from South India, (s)he will not know Hindi and eats Idli-Sambhar at all times. People from Bengal are sure to love fish. If a person is Punjabi, he is very dim-witted. A person from a coastal area must love seafood. Goans are assumed to be alcoholics. Internationally, Indians are assumed to be lazy, uneducated, poor, and snake charmers too.
Coming to physical appearances. A fair girl is considered beautiful while a dark girl is not. A slim person is assumed to be fit and healthy. A bearded man is considered to be a Punjabi or a Muslim.
A person running an NGO is not supposed to use branded clothes. Doctors are not assumed to have a good handwriting. Thin girls are supposed to be on a diet forever. South Indians are classified as Madrasis. Indians are supposed to love spicy food and be superstitious. India is considered a land of Hindus alone. If the person ahead is driving poorly, it must be a woman. If the parents are doctors, the child must be interested in medicine, and so on.
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But are we really thinking beyond these assumptions? Have you ever tried to understand that “topper”? You never know, that person might be a good sport. That South Indian might speak impeccable Hindi and that North Indian might speak Kannada/Tamil/Telugu/Malayalam fluently. A slim girl might love chocolate cake! That girl dressed in western clothes may have immense respect for her roots. That writer might not be an introvert and might enjoy parties and socializing. Dowries are not prevalent in every part of India. Not all Indian movies are Bollywood.
We must come out of these stereotypes . In reality, they are quite monotonous. We should break this chain of stereotypes. Stop yourself from being stereotyped and stop stereotyping others. What matters the most is what you feel good at. Not what others expect you to be or do. As they say, not all fingers are alike.
The Soulful Nib 
We as a society have become so used to stereotyping. This post is very apt for the current scenario. Well written
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Thank you Akshatha. It’s high time people come out of these stereotypes.
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True Chinnu. Appreciate your thoughts.
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Thank you 🙂
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Very true chets. I’ve got to learn so much from this blog. At times its true in every persons case. So very good thought chets. Hats off😀
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Thank you Aishwarya! 🙂
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Very true…well written.chethana…thanks for sharing your thoughts ….We certainly need to come out of stereotyping….but then it is a mindset….so coming out of it would definitely take some time and effort…
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Thank you for your comments. It will definitely take time. But if we try to spread the message towards masses, I’m sure people will come out of it.
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Very true and well written. Really your thoughts change me a lot.We certainly need to change the mind set of the people. This is the right time for it. Stay blessed!
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Thank you Apoorva 🙂
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Chets ….It is so damn true! this stereotypical mindset is present in each one of us and it’s high time we come out of this so called stereotyping. Well written again 😀
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Thank you 🙂
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Wonderful.It’s all about lifting our consciousness and truly stripping all these stereotypes.
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Thank you Julia! 🙂
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Good message indeed. We need to change our mindset first and spread the message. Again, well written.
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Thank you 🙂
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Good thought chetus . I certainly agree with all your points…. ..especially”A person from a costal area must love seafood”…We must come out of these stereotypes. Well written:-)
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Thank you Shriya 🙂
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That is so true …high time we come out of it.
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Definitely. People should look beyond stereotypes.
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Nice thought Chetana. After reading this, I have to stop thinking that people in Mangalore love pejj (boiled rice, Niveditas favorite) 😃
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Hahahaha 😀
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Rightly highlighted….we probably use more stereotypes then we would probably care to admit…maybe thats how the human brain is built by default and we need efforts to be free or overide such behaviour..
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Well said. Thank you for your comments 🙂
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Good write-up, Chetana! Love all the topics presented here, simple yet thought-provoking!!
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Thank you for your encouraging words! 🙂
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So True Chetana. In some form or the other everyone has been a part of this Stereotype culture without realizing it. True mind opener to think and reflect back on our thoughts.
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Thank you Jayesh. 🙂
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