My Experience of being an Indian in Tokyo

Since I have lived all my life in Mumbai, Hyderabad, ad Delhi, I am habitual of limited space in such metropolitans.  However, being in Tokyo last year gave me a different perspective of congested spaces altogether. I was there in the city to eat out with friends because of obvious reasons of touring new places. It was astonishing for me to notice that the tables were placed so close that I could hear everything the adjacent people talked with each other, and vice-versa. The only relief was that they did not understand my language, and I understood only a bit of Japanese.

After a few minutes, we saw a group of 7-8 people entering the restaurant; they seemed to belong to the same office. Unlike India, the colleagues in japan often hang out with each other, more out of compulsion than their wish. All of them were native Japanese people, except two guys, who did not seem to be connected quite well with the rest of the people. Still, they were trying hard to gel up with them.

As the boss of the team introduced one Indian to the rest of the group, it became evident that even the two Indians had met for the first time. They applauded to welcome the new member in their team and started talking to them. We had already placed the order for snacks and drinks. As our order arrived, their table was also covered with a lot of food and glasses of alcohol.

Even though all of them were being too formal with each other in the beginning, they gradually started easing up as they gulped down more and more alcohol. Their occasional laughter and a few words in English would nonchalantly enter our ears and we could help but notice them often because of our proximity. We tried to ignore them and let them be, and concentrate on our food and conversation.

After about an hour, we heard a sudden yelp from their table. What I saw was truly hilarious; the two Indian guys were hugging each other and the rest of the group was smiling and laughing their heart out at them. They were happy that two people from one nation had bonded really well, and that the new member will soon be comfortable in office.

It became interesting when they started calling each other bhai, meaning brother in Hindi. And things became even more interesting when I heard the Japanese people calling each other bhai!

This encounter with that group was the best thing I had witnessed in Japan. When I returned to my city, I went to a road trip with my friends when we hired Self-Drive Cars in Hyderabad. I told them the incident and they had fits of laughter imagining the Japanese people calling each other as bhai. This was the time I actually noticed how it feels like being an Indian in a foreign nation. No matter where you belong, your nationality plays a notable role in your personality. Lesson learned well!