The other day, I wrote the topic about the battle of Imphal in World War Ⅱ on this blog. As you know, Imphal is a city of not Myanmar but India. Then, today, I would like to write about Northeast India.
Northeast India (red area) located between Bangladesh and Myanmar.
Imphal is the capital of Manipur state next to Myanmar.
During my stay in Delhi City last year, I have learned about diversity in India. Before my arrival, I imagined brown skin and deeply carved face as typical Indian people. But actually, since India is a multiethnic country, many tribes live together there.
There was a professor of physics that I always met at every meal in the dining hall during my stay at St. Stephen College. He has white skin and looks like Japanese or Chinese. When I first met him, I asked. "Where are you from? Are you Chinese?" He replied. "No. I am Northeast Indian." Thinking about it now, it was a rude question. Because he was a genuine Indian, who was born and raised in India. I realized it was just a kind of the wrong stereotype.
He was from Manipur state, whose capital is Imphal. His mother tongue was Manipuri, but he speaks English very fluently. I saw he is a very clever and smart person. He is always fine and energetic. He has a wealth of knowledge not only in physics, but also in literature and history, and he has always enjoyed telling various topics. I also have always enjoyed talking with him at every meal. In addition, he can play the violin. Unfortunately, we do not have a chance to play with my clarinet. I am glad to have an acquaintance with him. I want to meet again someday.
In early November, I attended the Christmas carol concert "Adoremus" in the chapel at the center of the campus. The student choir's songs were very beautiful and unforgettable. At that time, I found that there were two fair-skinned girl students who look like Japanese in the student choir. Later on, I found that they were Indians from Manipur instead of Japanese. They were also smart students who were proud of being Indians.
Student Choir in Christmas Carol at St. Stephen's College
I realized that diversity is a kind of great virtue of India. It is well known that colonial India was discriminated against by white people. However, on the contrary, I heard that Indians with white skin were sometimes discriminated in independent India. Overcoming all the history, the present multi-ethnic symbiotic India was established.