Indian tourists, are we rude? I know it is better to stay away from generalizations but a few events in the past made me think about it; again and again. However, it started a long time ago, 2003 to be precise. And here I go, fasten your seat belts and enjoy the ride … err rant!
Can We Form a Queue?
I was boarding a flight from Zurich to New Delhi in 2003. I am very lazy to board. I already have an allotted seat, the plane is unlikely to leave me and go. I am usually one of the last people to board the plane, when the queue has dwindled down. So, I was sitting in a seat watching whatever it was, it didn’t even vaguely resembled a queue. I then heard ground staff muttering, “it always happens on flights to India!” I was new to traveling then, it took me by surprise. But really, I mean really are we that insecure or whatever else it signifies. Why can’t form a queue to board a plane? I was not traveling to Switzerland though, I was a transit passenger from Italy.
Aggression Will Solve All Our Problems?
This happened more recently on a trip to Thailand. It was a media/travel agent trip. We were having lunch at a five star hotel. It was in a smaller town. There was no Indian food but we had plenty of vegetarian options. Someone didn’t like the hotel’s way of doing pasta. OK so you didn’t like the pasta! Eat something else. Ask them to do another plate for you the way you want it, don’t recommend the hotel to your clients but no, it has to be a scene where a hotel staff is left in tears!
You Bought the Services, Not the Person
On every trip something might go wrong, however carefully it is planned. I have planned trips myself and I have never been able to plan a perfect one till date. The same is true, if someone else was planning it for me. But I bought the services, I did not buy the person delivering the services. I thought it was easy distinction to make, but I have been proven wrong, time and again! The amount of cribbing I have seen on some trips, it makes me wonder, why even bother to get out in the first place?
Dignity of Labor- Is it That Hard to Understand?
We are a labor surplus nation, we are a deeply hierarchical society. Should we assume the same of every other nation we visit? Heck if you arrive late, some hotels or hostels will not even have a check-in staff, forget about a bell boy!
Similarly someone who is waiting on a table is doing his/her job. If a lot of Indians are rude to them, they assume every Indian is, and they give me the same cold, indifferent treatment. Boy I resent it! It takes a long time for them to realize that I am not rude in spite of being an Indian. And I blame all of you who snap your fingers at them!
Is Being Nice Not an Indian Trait?
I have often been asked in malls in Asia, if I am Sri Lankan because I was nice to the shopkeepers. I joked with them, if I was alone I asked for their opinion about something I was planning to buy. I say ‘thank you’ when I walk off. So why do they presume I am a Sri Lankan? I don’t like it one bit.
Paying for the Minibar- Where is the Mystery in This?
If the mini bar is used, one has to pay. If it is a really big hotel, they will anyway put your credit card on hold. If a customer walks off without paying, the credit card gets charged, fairly standard procedure the world over I believe. I once stayed in a large hotel that was popular with Indians. It had a lot of other nationalities too, but a lot of us as well. They would physically verify every room for the items consumed. You can imagine the delay at the check-out. This was when they had put the credit card on hold too. My mind boggles at what might be the reason but why do I think that having a lot of Indian guests has got something to do with it.
And this is nothing compared to some of the stories I have heard about Indian men and their habits of answering the call of nature!
What do you say? Am I being paranoid? Or do you think we need to shape up?
You are not being paranoid at all and in fact you summed it up in a very dignified manner for all the disrespectful things that we Indians land up Doug abroad. Btw – another thing that I would like to add is the amount of noise we make and never ensure that our kids behave and remain silent on the plane atleast – especially when it is a long journey by night!! ????
That too Archana! You are right.
I had this experience while returning from Vegas to San Francisco… The Indians couples made such hue and cry when bus broke down and we all had to wait for half an hour. I actually told one Indian lady, a grandmother, to be patient coz in India hardly anybody is punctual. I was actually embarrassed by their behavior because it reflected on all Indians and Me!
Yes what works at home can be embarrassing I another nation! Thanks for sharing your experience Shoma.
On world tour we represents India and This behavior id really sick.
But common!
Great post, Mridula, and I agree with every point. But you know, sometimes I don’t mind the Indian tourists being aggressive at all. It’s good when people don’t tolerate nonsense. I remember I took a bus tour from Delhi to Agra and there were very dominating guides who took us to all sorts to shops leaving very little time for visiting temples and historical sights. I don’t think my objection would change anything, but when a group of Indian men from the bus got together and… well, let’s cal it “explained” to the guides what we were expecting from that journey, we really got to see much more 🙂
I know what you are trying to say Antonina but when this is the only response in every situation it becomes a problem!
A very good post that should give a lot of food for thought and introspection. Thank you Mridula for sharing! As for Antonino’s observation, maybe in India such behaviour may seem advantagious to get you way, but when abroad such behaviour sticks out like a sore thumb…
True Rajeev!
All true and the reason to rush in the aircraft is to take over the overhead bin space for the heavy handbags!!
Yes I know sir. And yet they are going to find a place on the plane, they can’t fly it without securing luggage 😀
I agree. I too wait till the line is dwindled; till that time I keep sitting, people-watching. 😀 And of course, most times I reach my seat to find no space for my bags; but again, of course, one always finds space, cos they will not take-off till all is settled. Dunno why they have to rush and run like that. Happens even at the Metro stations when coming out, to reach “sabse-aagey” of that line to swipe the card/token…it’s funny at times…
I so agree with you!
Very well summarized on the unfriendly tourist. Rude behavior to waiters are the most worrying of all.
And so unnecessary too!
I dont thing so Mridula ji,it differs from person to person
Yes Harshita, as I said in the post this works only t the level of generalization and not at individual level!
Truly said. I have heard stories from friends in the travel sector. Also brushing teeth in the aisle of international flights 🙂
Wow didn’t hear that one before!
So well put Mridula…we do need to shape up….among other things our phone manners need improvement….I have seen people talking with the speaker phone on in public places.
Yes Ranjana, that too!
Good post Mridula
Thank you Archana.
Very right points mentioned Mridula.. These corrections are sure required!
But I wonder sir when will they happen!
Hahahaha Mridula. You are so right. Unfriendly and entitled we often are. Perhaps travel we don’t really like to and hence with everything find fault. This is me in my Yoda avatar.
Yes kalpanaa it surprised me too, people paying money to take a vacation and then finding fault with everything, including the amount of shade on the beach! That actually left me speechless!
You have written a very good post and in a dignified way. Don’t know why we are like this.
Me too no idea, I only hope it changes!
The ‘queue’ point is valid even today, unfortunately!
True Indrani.
so well observed and jotted down. Patience, adjustment and basic courtesy, such simple yet uncommon virtues!
Let us hope it changes Divsi!
Sadly everything here is true. And I doubt things will change soon.
Let us hope it does change!
Interesting post Mridula, even I have met some really annoying ones who have set a bad trend for not just the Indian tourists but Indians in general. I guess it is a slight difference in the way they have been brought up and some need to learn it the really hard way. But some are really thick skinned. But then, I guess there are both kinds as well, the ones who behave in a dignified manner and the ones who do not. It is a shame that the thick skinned ones are more in number sometimes.
True Vinay and then the better behaved ones have to prove they are not one of the gang! I hope it tips in the favor of the better behaved ones soon!
I have never been to any other country ,so really have no idea what others are like or what others think about us ‘Indians’ .But i agree with you at every point coz i have seen this kind of behavior at many other places i visited in India . May be we lack the basic Empathy towards others or we are inherently insecure from core that we take offense at every trivial point
I only hope we improve Sadhvi! I agree it is the same within India too!
Q: Can We Form a Queue?
Ans: WHAT is a queue?
Piyu now that is some perspective! 😀
Oh yeah, I so agree about the queues. I don’t think people understand that even within India :(. And throwing trash in the bins and not sliding it into corners. 🙁
True Ami!
the inability to queue drives me crazy! whenever i am flying back-and-forth between the states and india, i get so irritated with this, and i hate that airlines and gate agents expect this from indian travellers. and on the flight, i get so annoyed with the indians who are on their phones until the last moment or who get up before they’re supposed to. there are reasons for the rules, so follow them!
and i very much agree with the note about snapping fingers at wait-staff in restaurants. it is one of my biggest pet peeves, and i am always embarrassed if i am with someone who does it.
these things obviously don’t apply to every single indian, but clearly enough indians have done this that people in other countries expect it of us. and that makes me sad.
True Veena not all of us do it but enough of us do it to give everybody a bad name!
While getting off a plane, its a normal practice here to let the seats in front of you empty first and then you enter the aisle. There was a family for 4 in the row behind mine. My husband walked off the aisle and next was me. But the Indian lady behind pushed through me, with her luggage and kids and all, and marched ahead while I waited for the whole party to leave and a courteous non-Indian let me pass. Quite frustrating.
I am so sorry that it happened to you! I sincerely hope we change in near future!
While there is a lot of truth in what you have written, I also feel that we are improving even as we speak.
One of the factors for this behaviour could be that it has been only a decade or so of affluence and travelling for pleasure (and that too this often to international destinations) for Indians. Like the noveau riche, we expect big-bang-for-every-buck. While this may explain why we expect freebies and feel being treated like royalty is what we paid for, it cannot be be an excuse for aggressive or rude behaviour.
We will get there 🙂
I also wish we get there. Even in the domestic circuit we are no shining lights!
Mridula – I know I was being extremely hopeful when I last commented. But, my recent experience on a domestic flight crushed my optimism unceremoniously 🙁 And all the while, I kept thinking of this post of yours 😀
While penning it down, I tried to give it a humorous touch, but deep inside, I was pretty frustrated and can now totally relate to what must have been going through your mind when you wrote this.
Yes Pradeep way too many instances when we let our-self down with impunity!
Well written Mridula…
Most of these things happen due to cultural clash. For instance in India its a norm to break the queue but in most european countries Queueing is sacrosanct. So what is a normal thing in one country might be rude or non-tolerant somewhere else… Like Peeing in public.
It is virtually non-existent in the middle east but you move towards indian sub-continent and its rampant.
Another example – In Brazil or US, its very normal to wear bikini or a simple short or t-shirt to a Mall whereas in Dubai (supposedly the most open and modern arab city) it frowned upon and there are specific signs requesting people to dress modestly.
Indian are not the rudest traveller around but I think the most meekest ( they follow the herd mentality).
Thank you for sharing you perspective Arnold, I only wish we were more civilized and polite to each-other!
during my college years , I had friends who were servers in restaurants. Whenever there were Indian diners , they hated it because they would be rude to thew waiters and leave no tip.. same thing in the retail industry. No sales person wanted to deal with Indians
How I hope this will change.
I am an Indian male. And I have seen my fair share of bad behaving Indian tourists in SE Asia. First of all: I really hate it when another Indian man stares at me. Sometimes they have that aggressive stare as if they wanne fight. In Singapore I almost knocked out a dude which kept staring at me. Luckily I could control myself.
In Thailand I saw groups of dudes talking disrespectful to the locals.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts!
My driver in Bali told me this story – he had a family from India who booked him to drive them to see the sunrise appearing from behind a volcano. Not actually going to the volcano, but seeing the view of sunrise over the majestic volcano from a hill cafe which provides a good view of the volcano. On that day, he drove them there as promised. But it was a rainy day, and very cloudy as well. So they were unable to see the sunrise. After driving them back to their hotel, they refused to pay the driver! Coz they didnt see the sunrise over the volcano, so the driver didnt deliver his services as required! Needless to say the driver reported them to the police and they eventually paid up 75% of the agreed fare “out of goodwill to the driver”. WTF??
As I keep saying, I can only hope such incidents will go down in future.
I’m Sri Lankan and what you wrote about being asked whether you are Sri Lankan made me smile 🙂 When I travel to India, people initially think I’m Indian (because I look like one) and when I speak to them and say thank you, they ask me where I’m from! This happened to me a several times in my last two visits. A vendor in Dharamshala told me: I was noticing how you speak to the next-door vendor, you can’t be Indian?
I actually really think rude people are everywhere, despite our race, ethnicity and nationality. I believe since India has a large population, it’s more apparent than the others. I’ve met both rude and extremely nice Indians, and same in Sri Lanka and other places I’ve been to.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I have been to Sri Lanka a few times and I so love taking vacations there. I agree we are a mixed bag but I sincerely hope we Indians shape up as travelers and as a nation!
What you wrote is so true. Not only this, I have found Indians staying abroad being impolite more than the original inhabitants who go out and out to help. In Amsterdam, a Dutch couple waited for me after getting down from the train to help me with my luggage on seeing that I was travelling alone. They showed me the exit lift as they thought that I could have trouble at the Schipol airport. I wonder if we ever bother to help tourists in India.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts Rajashree. I hope we will change for better!