Indian Identities: Remaining Vocal About Being Local

Is it wrong for Diljit Dosanjh to project his Punjabi identity foremost? Identities are closely linked to roots. Across India, the community often comes before other connections

- HARISH BIJOOR

I am an Indian first and everything else later. Feels good to say that. I am proud that I am an Indian. I am a nationalist, and love to be one. India is in my DNA.

Not everyone needs to say that, or feel that for sure. This is something very personal. Nationalism and a feel for the nation must not be thrust upon you. You must feel it, if at all. And you don't need to feel it all the time as well. You don't need to wear jingoism on your sleeve, do you?

Even as I write this, there is noise around Diljit Dosanjh. Dosanjh is a star who represents Punjabi culture to the Indian and global audiences. He does say, at every show, that he is a Punjabi. He represents the culture proudly. How is it a crime to represent your roots, then? He is the first Punjabi artist to perform at the Coachella fest in the US. The first to make an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. These and his recent appearance at the Met Gala in New York are all personal milestones that put Punjab on the world map, in his own words.

At the Met Gala, Dosanjh presented himself in an ivory-and-gold sherwani paired with a tehmat (draped bottoms) and a sweeping cape embroidered with the silhouetted map of Punjab—not of India. His turban completed the look and around his neck hung a copy of the famed Patiala necklace. What's wrong with representing Punjab? What's wrong with wearing Punjab on your cape? Is Diljit a Punjabi first and an Indian later? And is that a crime of omission or commission?

Think about yourself, then. Who do you think you really are? And who do you pretend you are? The answer is personal and is different to every individual Indian. Are you an Indian first or a Malayali? This reminds me of a film that was a hit in Kerala and among the Kerala diaspora worldwide: