PDAs : a big cultural difference
I've been waiting to get the right picture to make this post since I first observed it. However, stopping to take pictures of men as they pass me seems to garner some unwanted attention! So this pic will have to do.
In the US when we think of Public Displays of Affection some of us think of slobbering teenagers (or perhaps a certain female friend who shall go unnamed!) making out in public places (bars). It's quite the opposite here. Couples, even married couples, never touch in public. I have yet to see as much as a hand-holding.
From Wikipedia:
In India, the Supreme Court of India - the seat of the highest authority of the law of the land - has described PDA to be in bad taste and an unacceptable act, which may be considered an act of public nuisance, and sometimes leading to conviction and/or fine from the involved parties.
On the other hand, where in the US some guy friends will actually sit with a seat in between them at a movie, men in India are very affectionate with their friends.
I was at first taken aback by the sight of two men walking holding hands, fingers actually intertwined as well as men with their arms around each other. Our connotations of these behaviors is quite different. In India, homosexuality is still quite taboo, and these are purely gestures of friendship.
Just another cultural difference observation from me to you!
posted by jojo @ 12:18 AM
5 comments
5 Comments:
neat, jo jo. intresting to learn about the cultural differences.
bentle
Took a minute to realize you weren't talking about Palm Pilots.
In most of Asia it is far more noticeable and prevelant with women than men.
latenightlarry?
In India it is pretty normal for a guy to walk with his arm in the shoulders of another guy, it’s definitely not homosexual gesture... it's to do with the fact that they consider good friends (as you have already mentioned). But holding hands (the finger tangly way you described) is certainly not the taste for most of the Indians... WE do draw a line at some point when it comes to good friendship ;-).
Oh yeah! PDA also exists in India, but not in a public street. In the places which are crowded by students, like a University region or some "not so famous" parks... you can see couples being intimate :-).
And this fact is for certain, most of the foreigners (especially females) cannot escape from the “unwanted attentions” if they are clicking pics of men. Most of the time, these (or some random passerbies) club it with sexual references, which is really sad! :-( But none the less there are a minority group of people in India who are open to the western culture. :-)
Good post, by the way :-)
njoyd ur blog, nice one...
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