An Indian man visiting Bali has stirred an online conversation after calling out what he described as double standards in how people judge behaviour based on nationality.
(Also read: Indian tourists caught stealing doormat, utensils, hair dryer from Bali hotel)
Taking to Instagram, the man, identified as Vivek, shared a video in which he questioned why certain actions are criticised when done by Indians but overlooked when done by foreigners. In the clip, he said, “Hey boss, why aren’t you saying anything now? ‘Zero civic sense,’ ‘these people are just like this,’ ‘cancel their passports,’ ‘we all need to learn basic...’ The thing is, if they [foreigners] do it, you must think it looks very ‘aesthetic.’ And we Indians don't even have the right to feel tired? The truth is that some of our Indians have taken it upon themselves to decide what is right and wrong.”
Caption elaborates on Bali incident
Vivek further explained the context in the caption of his post, where he described an incident during a boat ride in Bali. He wrote, “Foreigners have zero civic sense. Recently, I was on a boat in Bali and saw that tired people just kicked it up and decided to put their legs up to relax. I was shocked to see none of them were Indians. I guess that if anyone one other than an Indian does this then it’s okay. Made me wonder how badly we have been brainwashed into believing that everything an Indian does is an embarrassment to society but if westerners do it then it’s not a subject of discussion.”
Watch the clip here:
{{/usCountry}}Watch the clip here:
{{/usCountry}}Social media reacts
The clip quickly drew reactions from users, with many weighing in on the issue of perception and behaviour. One user wrote, “This is so true, we judge ourselves more harshly than others.” Another said, “Civic sense should be the same for everyone, no matter where they are from.”
(Also read: Founder compares walking in India with 15,000 steps in Bali: ‘Stepping out feels like assault on senses’)
A third user commented, “It is not about Indians or foreigners, it is about respecting public spaces.” Another added, “People only notice when Indians do something wrong, but ignore the same behaviour otherwise.”
HT.com has reached out to the user for his comments, and the copy will be updated once his response is received.
(Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. HT.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.)