NRI ‘’Gen Z Kids’’ – identity crisis

A young boy introducing himself , ‘’Hi my name is Harry Dall ( original name Harvinder Dhillon ) and studying in Whitehall school.  I am from Leicester but my parents are from India.’’

 This is a standard example how a ‘’Gen-Z’’ Indian Kid born and brought up in foreign land have to adopt an English nick name for public use to tackle his  identity crisis. The Kids born after 1990 are called Gen-Z Kids . These Kids of generation-Z have no clue about what exactly is India , but their Indian roots bother them while adjusting with the local society. Foreign born children of migrated Indians do struggle a lot to establish their newly adopted western identity.

The similar phenomena called as ABCD ( American Born Confused Desi ) is a part of daily life struggle of young Indians born and brought up in USA . They usually get bullied in schools and are called as Coconut generation, Jalebi Boy or Browny by locals. Despite the facts that the Gen-Z tries to match their acts in line with local traditions and customs, they still have to face racial slur.

Some NRI parents who have adopted fully the local western culture and are matching shoulder to shoulder with the locals by following their life styles. Their kid lives in a western lifestyle and speak perfect English at home and school. They celebrate Halloween, Thanks Giving , Christmas,  National day , Flag day party more than Diwali . They watch Hollywood movies , wear western attires. Despite this ,few of these Gen-Z kids still do face racial comments in schools and in public being having a dark skin. They have no fault on their own but are being forcibly linked to an Indian identity against their wish.

Also there are NRI families who still stick to Indian culture in daily life and Indianans is strongly inducted to their kids. They wanted their son and daughter to follow Indian traditions inside and outside house. No outing, no partying, no late night stay from the home. They watch Indian and regional movies , wear Indian costumes and love India by core. As they do not mingle with the local community, they are more exposed to discrimination being an Indian ( Brown Boy ) . As they speak blended English , bullying in schools is one of the problem these type of Gen-Z desi kid face regularly.

In general , Gen-Z kids are not interested to visit India as it is not the country of their birth. They are clueless what the India exactly is ?.   Even if their parents pressurize to take them to India for a visit to the ancestral home, their queries start firstly from the availability of KFC , McDonald , Pizza hut , Burger King or shopping malls during vacation in India. Then the scare of Mosquitos & Flies. For them India is a tourist destination not a country of their origin as they have no much sentiments attached to India and its heritage.

The biggest questions in Gen Z kid’s mind is ,’’Where I am from ? ‘’. My daughter ‘’Sara’’ who also fall in this category Gen-Z is searching for right answer. Below is the excerpt from her remarks to my earlier blog on the same subject.

Sara Wrote –

‘’Experience of a daughter of an NRI / Immigrant parent.
Hi! My name is Sara and my father has recently started this blog which talks about the ups and downs of an NRI. I wanted to share my experience as the daughter of an NRI/Immigrant parent. I have been brought up in Dubai for the last 21 years of my life so this is what I call home. However, for my parents home is always India. It’s a place that gives them peace and security, a place where all their family and friends are. When I travelled to Canada for my undergrad answering the question “where are you from?” has always been confusing. I always say Dubai, but not saying India makes me feel guilty, I end up having to explain my whole life history of where I was born and brought up. Children of NRI/Immigrant parents are always stuck in a dilemma of where “home” is. It’s confusing but it is also something to be proud of that we have more than just one place to call home, different places for security, and a different place to get in touch with your roots. All in all, regardless of the disorientation, I am extremely proud to be the daughter of NRI/ Immigrant parents’’.

• Name – Sara Mehta
• City – UWO London , Ontario
• Country – Canada