A few days back I met someone who was quite pleasantly surprised, shocked will be a better expression when he realised that I was a Bong.
Ok I dont look like one for sure and my Bengali language skills are passable but his comment did make me think on how a Bong should be.
I did some research on my own, tried to read my family members, relatives, who don't shock people, and I realised that I am still far from being a pure Bong.
Its true that my parents are Bongs too but they were both born and brought up in other parts of the country where Hindi language influence is more strong. With that, even the culture is different. The same goes for me, I was born outside West Bengal and spent my childhood in different cities and towns across Bihar and by the time I reached Kolkata I was possibly too old to fully imbibe the Bangali in me. I may not look like an authentic Bong, I maynot behave or speak like one, I may have problems understanding certain words, I may not be a fluent reader and writer of the language, but that certainly doesn't reduce my fondness for the rich culture, tradition and my existence.
And yes, please drop that shocked look on your face cause I Am A Bong!
2 comments:
When I first time came across a girl whose surname was Choudhury, I thought she is north Indian..as this surname is very similar to Choudhary.. :)
Again, in bongs, you don't find names like vinita, tanvi etc ..instead, names like Samadrita, rutuparna are common :)
and yes..u don't look like typical bong..haha
Hence the declaration :)
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