"Prepone" is a bit of English Indian that Hamra, a Floridian-turned-Bangalore communications and computer instructor, is trying to curb. Improvised from "postpone," it means to warn of a foreseeable problem, as in, "I am out of my station and, as such, I will prepone the updations until today night," as one of his students wrote in an e-mail. It makes sense, but it's the kind of thing that can bog down a customer service call.
"I was a pain in the ass about grammar in the States. Now I am getting paid for it," Hamra explained.
Bangalore, India's reigning Silicon Valley, is the petri dish of the new world order. Multinationals and start-ups are rushing into the country to take advantage of low costs: Even with their double-digit salary increases of recent years, engineers here get paid about one-fourth or less than their U.S. counterparts. Indians, meanwhile, believe the country's strong history in math and science can transform it into the next South Korea or Taiwan.
Overall, it resembles what the Old West must have been like. One moment, you're walking past an open-air sewer and a pack of wild dogs in a dusty alley. Turn the corner, and the Yahoo logo blazes across a shiny office building that looks about 15 minutes old. The local newspapers are filled with career advice and stories about the rise of crime. The price of residential real estate has tripled in three years. Confidence runs high.
"We will be the back-office R&D facility for many companies," said Ramesh Emani, president of embedding and product engineering at Indian IT services giant Wipro Technologies, which grew from 19,000 employees to 42,000 last year. (Back in the 1970s, Emani helped create the first made-in-India PC at Wipro.)
Reaching global harmony is going to take some heavy lifting, however--which is where people like Hamra come in. The expatriates who moved here in the last few years serve as sort of an ad-hoc diplomatic corps, educating Indians about the ways of corporate America while developing informal how-to guides for the inevitable incoming wave of Westerners.
For those of you interested in making the jump, expatriate life does have its charms. Dinner for three at the Leela Palace, a luxury hotel with interior ponds and a lobby you could park a zeppelin in, runs about $50. "A lot of people come here on Sunday for brunch. It costs about $20, and there's unlimited champagne," said Cecilia Villalon, an Intel employee finishing up a tour of duty. "Hanging out in five-star hotels is not something I did at home."
Household servants also become an affordable luxury. A full-time driver can be hired for 10,000 rupees a month, or $220. Live-in cooks get paid less than half that much. A four-story, four-bedroom home in an upscale neighborhood can be rented for around $1,300.
Then again, it's a physically dangerous place. "It is not uncommon for people to be electrocuted by fallen power lines," said Ted Eugenis, a
Biography
Michael Kanellos is editor at large at CNET News.com, where he covers hardware, research and development, start-ups and the tech industry overseas. He has worked as an attorney, travel writer and sidewalk hawker for a time share resort, among other occupations.
See more CNET content tagged:
Bangalore, India, Taiwan, South Korea, Silicon Valley
hence:
preponere; pre (before) + ponere (to place, put)
In the article, you appear to mistakenly associate "prepone" with
"prepare".
Alright, prepone is bad. But the way americans use momentarily takes the cake.
Another beauty, my American schoolmates here would ask "So India is in Asia? Nah, its got to be in the Middle East!"
>> I have lived all my life in Bangalore and I know Brigade road intersects with many roads but never with itself. Who sold you this tripe?
However, what we must remember is that this booming Indian economy is primarily the work of the Private Sector(aided by favorable government policies)
The Private Sector by its nature is limited to a certain sphere of influence. When we talk about the basic infrastructure in India, I agree that a lot needs to be done to improve it. But then the onus of doing so lies essentially on the government! Of course the local companies can pitch in, but there is only so much they can do.
The fact that India, and Indians, are able to excel in spite of these teething problems is a true depiction of their spirit to fight and prove themselves on a global platform. It definitely is a case of NOT India shining, but Indians shining!
Maybe the westerners can learn a thing or two from the Indian Attitude!
cheers
Main Entry: prepone
Part of Speech: verb
Definition: to place in front of, to schedule for an earlier time; cf. postpone
You must be living in a small hamlet in Florida...time to explore the world...The world is not just US...
Sure prepone might be a true blue English word, and momentarily may make you tear your hair off...but I think that's just the point. India and US are as different as peach and pear. This article was directed at an American audience and I honestly don't think it was derogatory. Why else would 'Hamra' want to extend his two yr stint - something he hadn't planned - not preponed :)
And its not the problem of shopkeeper; how many languages do people speak in the US? and how many are spoken in India? the author should have been aware of the linguistic basis for the division of states in India. How many languages can you expect a normal shopkeeper to know? But nobody appreciaes the fact that the shopkeeper tries his best to communicate with his customers using his broken or whatever English.
Well, I think it goes on... so let me hold it on...
Wonder whether the writer of the article even knows that these languages exist?
In any case, in Bangalore schools and streets you are not in danger of being gunned down by some deranged teenager.
Like most of my friends and colleagues, I pay their drivers less than the 10000 he quoted, more like 4000-5000 rupees/month. But I'm not sure that the few drivers that are lucky enough to use their lord's internet connection will stumble across this piece and demand a raise.
And I just read a news article this week in Bangalore where a kid got shocked but not killed from a fallen wire, and I have read numerous stories, in the past two years, where people have been killed from electric wires. Traffic deaths ARE way up (Bangalore buses killed almost 100 people last year), and the pollution is supposed to worse than Delhi now.
Writer William Dalrymple - who ived in India for many years - states than some are oversensitive regarding comments about their culture. I think that can be applied to most nationalities, but I agree with Dalrymple in that I think it is more prevalent here in India.
Lighten up....the writers won't paint such a rosy picture when the doom of the boom makes Bangalore go bust.
-Mohan
http://www.garamchai.com/mohan
I think this is a good article in light humor. Having lived in both countries for extended period of times I can relate to the differences in perceptions. I think those who are lambasting the author for exagerating need to cool down. Like someone else said on this forum - Indians need to lighten up. I second that. yes I'm Indian. Yes I grew up in India. And yes from an American/Western perspective it does appear that "there is a high danger of being electrocuted by a power line". When was the last time you ever heard of someone being injured injured by a fallen power in the US ? The only trouble is the unaccostomed reader may may exaggerate it. Bangalore/india desparately need to upgrade its infrastrucure. Yes - one day I hope to back in India/Bangalore to help with the effort.
I think we should see the positive side of human nature. The people in USA were so very helpful. The fact that India gets projects is because of the quality of work being done here. I dont think Americans would want just cheap work and no quality. The work quality is excellent here and getting it cheap is a bonus. So enjoy and appreciate the cake!
- Easier way out
- by suchikapillai June 20, 2006 5:09 AM PDT
- I think that the entire concept of 'educating Indians about the ways of corporate America' is futile excercise. It would be much more feasible to instead train the "wave of Westerners" about the basics of bangalore culture. An Indian is equally lost in bangalore for the first time. It simply calls for the most recently updated maps to be kept handy.
- Reply to this comment
-
(21 Comments)