Short clothes, wearing jeans, shades on eyes, being able to speak good english etc. etc. are parameters on which we judge modernization. But is this modernization?. Have you not met a single person who don’t exhibits any of above mentioned characteristics but is still modern? You have. And many I can assure you. Narendra Modi for example. In your mind you would be saying what? A man in Indian dress all the time, speaking hindi etc. etc. how cane he be modern? You say this because he don’t fall in our category of modernization. What’s the problem. We Indians are viewing modernization from angle of westernization. But in reality these both concepts are poles apart.
Lets dug a little deep. Nuclear families, burgers, pizzas, lust for white collar jobs, being able to converse in english these all are western concepts and have nothing to do with modernization. Than what modernization really is?
Accepting others regardless of what they are, what they wear, which language they speak, what skin tone they have, whatever caste may they belong to and many more. These are basis of modernization. WOH TOH BHUT MODERN HAI? And what image comes to your mind when you think about the person? A boy/girl wearing jeans, shades or may be a suit and talking in fluent english. We are so wrong.
In simple terms, Westernization is a process of imitation of western countries by non-western countries, whereby societies come under or adopt the western culture. … On the other hand, accepting or adopting the modern style or modern ways and ideas of thinking, living, etc is ‘Modernization‘.(Thanks to google for this definition). Now after reading this one may argue modern style, modern ways , modern ideas, modern standard of living etc. all are western derived only. Again we are wrong because here our mind have biased attitude. Attitude which have been formed by what we call Pavlovian conditioning. This is a process of behaviour modification by which a subject comes to respond in a desired manner to a previously neutral stimulus that has been repeatedly presented along with an unconditioned stimulus that elicits the desired response. Hence, being repeatedly exposing ourselves to pair of words (jeans-modern, western-modern) since british started ruling us our mind became biased without even knowing what modernity really means.
Now let’s see some examples of modernity in India. Some of south Indian are states are perfect examples of modernity. They eat with hand, they wear a lungi, they wear Sari, they know about hindu religion in true sense(just visit south Indian temples), yet they rank higher on HDI index, health index, education, etc., etc. Compare with our north Indian culture, its better not mention anything about it.
Riding a bicycle and then switching to mechanized technology when you know you can afford it and when you know you need it, is modernization. Adapting ourselves to change is modernity. Viewing a girl in Salwar kameez and in jeans through same lens of modernity is what we need. If in our subconscious mind was home to the correct definition of modernization then in traditional marriages if a girl is wearing western dress we might have not to question what is she wearing? she might have worn a traditional dress. Here our mind goes through cultural lag(do read it, amazing theory) i.e it takes time for a culture to catch up with laws, technology, modern styles. Because process of changing society is organic.Where as all other process are inorganic. Therefore society takes its own time to change.
At the end I would just like to say, don’t be swayed away by western ideologies. Love your culture, love your roots, change what is not necessary and keep that is necessary. Cut off the branches that are not required and grow that are required.