PVR Prejudice

Just a short note to record a negative incident last night. I went to see a film with a few friends (the new Narnia one...one to miss) last night at a branch of the well known PVR cinema chain near where I'm staying. We bought tickets, no problem. But when I approached the metal detectors to enter they stopped me because I was carrying a shoulder bag. Now, there is a sign outside stating that you cannot bring shopping bags into the cinema (a brilliant move considering that every single PVR is housed in a mall of some description), but that didn't appear to stretch to the white guy who breezed past security with a bottle of water and a similar kind of bag.

After 5 minutes of arguing they agreed to secure my bag in a locker for the duration of the film. They never admitted that they'd let the other guy in with the bag, but they didn't deny it either. What on earth they thought I was carrying, I don't know. They are well equipped with metal detectors and scanners; I was more than happy to let them search my bag as well.

My assumption is that because I look slightly oriental, they tagged me as an Indian from Assam and, as such, subject to the rule which the white guy wasn't. It's not something alien to me. If you're Chinese, you're Chinese; if you're white, you're white. But if you're in-between you're open to interpretation and people tend to see what they want to see because human beings hate complex ideas. We need to simplify everything.

However, what's more interesting than this is how some Indian people in Delhi will still willingly subjugate themselves before white people. 50 years after the British left and they're doing it voluntarily.