Sunday, June 08, 2008

Don't they feel odd?

I'm just back from 'Kobe' in Salt Lake City Centre where I and two friends were having sizzlers. A family, probably Marwadi, were seated at the next table. There was a man, his wife and two young kids. There was another lady too, you may call her the nanny or the governess or the maid whatever you like. She was controlling the kids and helping them eat, while the kids' parents talked among themselves. What seemed odd to us was that the maid was standing beside the table the whole time while the family ate. If they don't think she is fit to sit down at the same table with them, why do they bring her at such a place?
After they were done eating, they put some leftover food on a plate and handed it to the maid. She held the plate in her hand and quickly ate it, still standing in a corner. I was so angry that I felt like taking out my camera and taking a photo of the family to go with this blog. I had decided on writing the blog post by that time and I could have taken a photo without them realising it. But then I felt they were not really worth that trouble. "Don't have an iota of education in them, suddenly seen a lot of money", my friend Avijit said. I only thought, don't they feel odd, treating a human being like a dog?

10 comments:

  1. This is disgusting,pathetic, ridiculous and heinous. I would have certainly asked that family about it. But our any reaction would have resulted in more agony to that maid. The only one to blame is the parents of the family who did not teach them how to treat a human being. I don't know if there are so less options in the city to work for. There must be some sound reason behind this without which maid will not continue there.

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  2. @abhijit: I could have intervened and asked the family, but I would have certainly been told to mind my own business, and they would have created an ugly scene. And on reaching home, they would vent their frustration on the maid. So there was really no point in doing Gandhigiri or something like that. We can only try to make the economic condition of our country people so strong that they don't have to work for such inhuman employers.

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  3. JOY said: We can only try to make the economic condition of our country people so strong that they don't have to work for such inhuman employers.

    Not intervening at that moment is fine. But the situation of somebody working for somebody else will remain for ever. But the treatment one gives to other will come from the background and off course through ones own experiences. That family earner should once be treated like this by his employer or anybody on whom he is dependent. At least then we can expect some introspection. I am just wondering that why maid is sticking to that family. I am sure such families will be 1 on 100 or so.

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  4. Hi ,

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  5. Hi,

    How are you? I read I felt little strange and angry. But I think these are exceptions. They are everywhere in world. Doing odd things. We need to be careful to generalize them. I know you have not done it, but you named community in the beginning. This is definitely not a community trait or behavior. Just ignore them.

    Probably we do not think that at least maid has job, and she is feeding her family.

    As long as humiliation is concerned we should ask ourselves we are not humiliated in corporate world?

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  6. Just to add, we are not living in perfect world dear. Unfortunately.

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  7. @abhijit: Well, people have reasons for sticking around... we are also sticking with the same employer for three years although we are dissatisfied in many respects. ;-)

    @ray: Thanks! I'll definitely check it out.

    @ken: I'm fine. I never generalise based on community. It is true that I stated that the family was Marwadi, but that is just a fact. I have no intention to mean that all Marwadis are like that.
    About us being humiliated in the corporate world... well, we all know the answer!

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  8. See the irony,

    We suffer, belong to range of cast and communities.

    Our bosses, who screw us also below to varied communities.

    Communities are neutral. I prefer not naming them. The problem is with human beings.

    :) No offense. I did not intend to blame you for anything.

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    ReplyDelete
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