Still Free? Or Just Wearing a Fancier Collar?
We waved the flag, sang the anthem, and declared ourselves free from European colonialism decades ago. But look around—have we really broken the chains, or just polished them and called it “modern”?
1. The White-Skin Priority Program
Rajkot, reputed restaurant. I dine there often—good food, decent service. But one day, I bring a European guest. Boom. Half the staff and the manager swarm the table. Free dishes, extra attention, beaming smiles. For them, this was a VVIP. Same food. Same bill. But hey, colonial programming says: “White guest = superior human.”
2. The Blazer Obsession
Scorching Indian summer. 42°C outside. But walk into a meeting without a blazer and you’re “unprofessional.” We sweat buckets to look like 19th-century British clerks—because apparently comfort, culture, and common sense are less important than dressing like our former rulers.
3. English as a Status Badge
I love English. I use it. But I don’t worship it. Some of our celebrities, though, act like their tongues will catch fire if they speak Hindi or Gujarati. They parade their “only-English” act like it’s royalty. Newsflash: speaking your own language doesn’t lower your status—pretending it does just proves how small you are.
4. Tie = Modern, Tilak = Backward
Wear a tie and you’re “sharp.” Wear a tilak and suddenly you’re “outdated.” Funny thing—colonial rule is gone, but colonial judgement lives rent-free in our minds.
5. Bollywood’s Pretend British Club
Award shows. Film promotions. Entirely in English. Ask them in Hindi, watch them fake confusion. To them, “elite” means looking and sounding like a Western knock-off. And millions clap for it.
Here’s the ugly truth: our literature is shrinking, our native-language innovators are rare, and our pride is leaking away drop by drop. Not because we can’t do better—but because we’ve convinced ourselves that “better” means “more like them.”
We’re not mentally free. We’ve just swapped the British Empire for the British template.
The solution? Be proud, create in our own languages, set trends others follow. Learn from the world, yes. Copy them? Never.
We don’t need to be the second-best version of them.
We need to be the only version of us.
