Ahhhh, the familiarity, the sales, the global phenomenon--In Orbit Shopping Mall in Hyper City Hyderabad.
It's all there: the upscale shops, the movie theater, the food court, the bargains. Whether I'm in China, Japan, Brazil, or Denver, I can find a mall where girls giggle, couples stroll, and children beg--for toys. India is no exception.
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| Oh yeah. It's everywhere. |
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| Food Court |
Ginea and I felt the familiar compulsion to flip through colors and styles, to compare prices, and to spend money at FabIndia, a sort of Banana Republic for contemporary men and women.
FabIndia
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| Online ad from FabIndia |
The crowd looked like a middle-class group of shoppers with kids in tow. Just as in the US, I noticed a few serious shoppers with big bags, but many people looked like they were enjoying an afternoon of window shopping with a few purchases for the fun of it. The middle class is a growing phenomenon in India. Currently only about 5% of the country (50 million people) are considered middle class, but that percentage is expected to jump to 41% in ten years, according to the McKinsey Report. The report also suggests that "spending on purchases that improve the economic prospects and quality of life--health, education, transport and communications will soar."
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| Shoppin' with the woman. |
The ethnicity of India is a topic of interest and academic debate, but the subcontinent may have originally been populated by a Dravidian civilization known as the Harappans who had their own language and were dark-skinned with black smooth or curling hair. At some point the Aryans came from Persia--what is now Iran--and introduced Sanskrit. Mongols from the far East also settled, as did Mughals (Persian Muslims). Today India is home to many languages and people of various religions and ethnicities united in their plurality.
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| Panda Express like |
I grabbed a bite at a Panda Express-type place and ordered stir fry and a water bottle. The stir-fry was spicy with chills and garlics but also contained a variety of spices which I have yet to identify that gave it an mid eastern flavor as well. More on the food once I figure out the names of the dishes and their ingredients.
Seeing these images really changed my perspective on India. I always thought they were more isolated, but now I find out they have a mall with companies that are in the US. It really showed how far they have come in technology and development.
ReplyDeleteI was surprised to see how alike their malls are to ours and how they have the exact same companies and restaurants as we do in are malls. This opened my eyes to how the US and India are a little more alike than many people realize.
ReplyDeleteThe world's view on idea can be changed if they just look at pictures of everyday life. Inspecting the images of crowded malls relate to me and our customs in america of shopping in mass. I would like to know more about what kind of stores are most common and what they are selling.
ReplyDeleteIf i was to see the images without the context of the pictures being from India, I would think they were taken in the U.S because of the familiarity with the store brands. Its interesting to see that its not much different from our own malls here in the U.S
ReplyDeletewhat surprised me is that the indians came from the Dravidian civilization known as the Harappans who had their own language and were dark-skinned with black smooth or curling hair. one thing that i reminded is that the spicy. in ethiopia we used to have to kind of spicy one is called "basbaas guduud" which was slightly spicy and the other called "midmida" it was very spicy. I wanna know how the middle class would grow like that.
ReplyDeleteThe abundant amount of ethnicity in India is so surprising to me. I never realized how much mixed culture has been migrated into India, the vast amount of ethnicities that have found home there has significantly shaped the overall culture(s) that now made up India. This reminds me a lot of many places in the US, especially like New York. Anyone who has visited can see all of the different culture and ethnicities that make it such a unique and creative place. I would like to learn more about all of the cultures that have shaped India.
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