Racism of a regional kind...

Okay. Picture this. Being called a "Bloody Indian" in a supermarket by a British guy and being called a "Bloody South Indian" by one of your own mates. If you ask me what sounds better ? I'd take the British bugger for the Indian mate. Simple. He's at least being sensible there and called me by my nationality than the friend because she's labelled me as someone from a place, she particularly doesn't like much or doesn't know about. As unfortunate as it may seem, this pretty much sums up my three weeks in London so far. As much as the racial taunt from the British guy doesn't disturb me much, as almost inevitably one expects it to be spat out, the Indian girl's jibes were a rude shock.

The question I intend to ask here is - Does India only belong to the North ? If it dows, I am sorry. I refuse to call myself Indian. Yes, I am a vegetarian. So what ? Is it worth being looked down upon ? I am a South Indian. Is that worth being looked down upon ? Maybe it is. Some of us ridicule each other on the basis of our regional identities and I am quite okay with that for now. A couple of weeks since that jibe, its hard to forget how it is to feel a "bloody South Indian" !