Is there any such thing as a Middle Indian? Not the middle-aged or middle-of-the-road Indian, but just a simple Middle Indian? There may well be, considering the number of products of mixed northy and southy genes that you increasingly find nowadays. A species of people who can claim complete allegiance neither to the flamboyant north Indian style of living, with glitzy Rolexes and Rolls- Royces on perennial display, nor to the softer southern parts of the country, so proudly proclaiming their Kanjeevaram** silks, Bharatanatayam *graces and Carnatic music traditions.
Apart from the mixed species, I myself can lay claim to belonging to this variety of people, the Middle Indians namely, not by ancestry (being a pedigreed southy), but by virtue of having lived across the country, born somewhere in the middle, and having grown up in various parts, at different points in time. And therefore, imbibing what one hopes is the best of both, or all worlds, a veritable potpourri of culture, music, traditions, food, values and, most importantly, languages. But, considering myself to be modern, having rejected some of these as well, at least the traditions that seemed irrational, I could only hope to have filtered in what I thought was the best.
And today, being conferred the title of "Honorary member of the Rajasthani brood" inspite of my true blue southy blood, by none other than "hunny the hubby from the north indian hindi heartland " himself , I can finally claim to be a native of "the Real Middle India", and to have officially arrived as the ''Quintessential Middle Indian'. Hurrah for all the Middle Indians! Regards, Aina Rao, The amblingindian
