Chenithung D Yanthan
My article here does not reflect any wrong intentions; it is strictly based on my personal views.
I want to share my personal opinion and I want you all to read it putting yourself in the shoes of a student. Here I want to bring out the hurdles and hardships that north-eastern person faces out there in mainland India. Nagaland is a recognized unit of India, but it is pathetic to know that it works only in theory or in a way “paper work”, as we know in reality it is appalling, and in fact it is remorseful to present the treatment meted to us out there by the general public. Most of our people go over there thinking that we are Indians and to have a great time out there but on the contrary we become victims in the gruelling hands of the Indians, we are mostly referred to as “chinki”, “Jackie Chan’s cousin” or the famous phrase “chow and momo”.
The other day i visited my friends living in north India and i was appalled to hear their stories, they told me that they were not even allowed to cook Naga delicacies at their apartment as their house owner threatens them direly, but being Naga they cannot resist those sweet delicacies and therefore they take the risk and cook it when the house owner goes out. One of them will stand at the gate and keep a hawk eye on the owner while the others cook it as fast as possible; they told me that sometimes due to the paucity of time the food does not get well cooked and they have loose motion and other stomach related problems. But still for the love of the food they do it, leaving aside all those ‘threats’. After finishing their story, with heaps of excitement they all turned their big round dark eyes towards me as if expecting something, i was under pressure at that moment and out of nowhere I smiled back at them and not to dissuade them I lauded them profusely for their efforts and even encouraged them to continue doing it.
Our girls out there face the heat of the Indians to the limits. They are not even allowed to breathe freely and are always looked down. They perceive girls as an object of sex and tease them to the limits. They also pass lewd remarks and at times even grab their hands. Bikers are another nightmares for the girls, they will zoom past them and push them down on the road or even manhandle them, this kind of malady happens every now and then, it is especially prevalent in North India. Most of these victims usually remains silent and even refrain from telling their parents, and therefore the fact remains hidden.
Three months ago I was on the way to Guwahati airport on a share taxi; as we reached the airport there were some northeast girls sitting there, instantly the driver turned towards the other passenger who was an Indian and told him in Hindi “yea lok harami hai”, the latter inquired “kaun”?, the former replied “saala yey lok saap loko ka sath chaal ta hai, flimo ma jaisa he ho ta hai, paisa tah na sae ek raat to mil jai ka”, the worst part aroused when the driver told his other passenger that he can arrange it if he wants; i felt like arguing back but ultimately decided not to. As I entered the airport I met those girls again and i started a conversation with them and to my utter surprise found out that they were from Nagaland. Our grievances do not end here. I personally have tasted this kind of treatment myself and it’s not “nice”, in fact it is very humiliating and puerile. The other day I was travelling on a city bus in Chennai and as I was getting late I forgot to take any change with me, as the conductor came to me and offered the ticket, I gave out a hundred rupee note, he looked at it vaguely and demanded me to give him change or get out of the bus, I then humbly told him that I don’t have any change with me, just then another passenger also handed out a hundred rupee note to pay for his ticket, I thought “saala aji toh baji shae”. But instead of scolding him they negotiated in their own language and he was spared, then the conductor turned towards me and ordered me to get down from the bus, he blew his whistle and the bus stopped abruptly in the middle of the city, I was infuriated and began to eye ball at the conductor, I began to give him a nasty look, as nasty as I could make .But before my nasty looks could attain its peak and scare him I was on the street all alone wondering what happened. It may sound funny now as I look back at it but the humiliation that I faced on that day was quite frustrating.
If you ask any students pursuing their studies in the mainland about this kind of cases, everyone will have their own story of this sort, ranging from unequal treatment, racism, discrimination and as such. For instance, Even if you travel by an auto you will be charged extra citing some excuse or the other, it is a daylight robbery where we are the “victim”. Getting a rented house is another trauma, here the house owner will try to exploit you to the fullest, keeping in mind the ‘broker’ who too will try his luck. If you happen to own a two wheeler over there, then it becomes a nightmare for you, the moment the traffic police sees you riding it you are good as dead. The traffic police will smile and literally dance with giddy eyes, then he will cook up stories from nowhere to exploit you, even the size of the tyre will be a matter of concern for him at that moment and he will force you to bribe him, it’s like a great magician performing his masterpiece. Again when you pass by a group of Indian guys they will scan you from head to toe, as if they are investigating some crime scene and this is a situation where women suffer the most.
The hardships that most north-eastern students experience in their daily lives is honestly quite heart aching. But here I don’t intend to give out any suggestion for reforms as it is a bigger picture that I could ever reach out to, all I can do is to bring it to light to my fellow brothers and sisters out there in Nagaland/Northeast. And for those out here in the mainland I want you all to be strong, pray to God and to remember that “UNITY IS STRENGTH”
Chenithung D Yanthan is Vice-President Naga Students’ Union Chennai
