Indian Culture is one of the ancient cultures around the world. It makes India, the world’s most diverse nation in religions and ethnicity with deeply rooted culture and religious practices. In 28 states and 8 union territories of India, you may find diversity from the religion to food, to colour, to clothing and much more. In this article, we will talk about the Culture of India- 5 things you need to know. If you are planning to visit India, these things will surely help.
With a history that began in 3,300 BC, when the first civilizations began to emerge from what would become the second-most populous country in the world.
And it is not just because of the number of inhabitants that India surprises. In over 5,500 years of history, unique factors have developed, among the most well-known, their ancient traditions, such as religions and customs. During this period, the country underwent countless transformations. Starting with the establishment of nomadic tribes and, later, with the dynasties.
All the abundant cultural knowledge and wealth did not appear overnight. And Indian cultural plurality has been built up over the millennia. Let’s check 5 things you need to know–Culture of India
1.DIVERSITY IN RELIGIONS
With almost 1.4 billion inhabitants, about 80% of the population follows the Hinduism that came into existence in 1500 BC. It has more than 330 million gods, in which the three main ones stand out: Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. But despite being the predominant religion, there are other religions practised in India. Divided among the other 20% of the population, as religiosity is very strong in the country.
- 14.2% follow Islam;
- 2.3%, Christianity;
- 1.7%, Sikhism;
- 0.7% is Buddhist;
- 0.4% is Jain, and 0.9 follows other religions.
2. EATING HABITS
In Hinduism, animals are believed to be sacred. Therefore, about 30% of Hindus are vegetarians, about 420 million people. Every major fast-food chain, such as Subway, Mc Donalds and Burger King, there are several vegetarian options on the menu. And the kitchens are separate.
In the markets, all food products contain a brand informing whether that item is vegetarian or not. Many restaurants are exclusively vegetarian, and the menus have many options. It is worth remembering that egg is considered “non-vegetarian” in India. Hence, cakes, bread and etc. marked as vegetarian, do not have eggs in the recipe, only milk.
Another common practice in the country is fasting. Which can be complete (when absolutely nothing is consumed). Or partial (where only the consumption of some types of food is allowed).
Cutlery and plates are not necessary for Indians. They eat with their right hand directly. In case of street food, they even use a piece of newspaper to put food in. Although in the houses they use dishes normally. But when talking about food, India stands out for its Masala, or Indian spices, with lots of pepper. And, of course, a lot of flavours too.
In each region of the country, the food also changes. In some places, it is spicier, while in others a little sweet (Gujrati food).
3. CLOTHING IN INDIAN CULTURE
The colourful Indian clothes and the use of accessories are great highlights. Clothing with many details, sparkles, embroidery and lace are common in women’s clothing since women are always produced for their husbands.
Sari is a traditional garment for women, draped in different ways around the country. Women wear salwar kameez (baggy pants and long tunic) and dupatta. Bracelets, rings, anklets, necklaces and other accessories are also widely used by Indian women.
Among traditional men’s clothing is the use of dhoti (cloth wrapped like a kind of skirt), sherwani (long coat) and turban. Indian clothes and religious traditions are linked. And therefore vary widely according to religion, state and even caste.
4. INDIA IS RICH IN LANGUAGES
In the culture of India, languages are also an important aspect. In the north of India, people mostly speak Hindi. But India has several official languages, and there is no national language of India. There are 22 official languages.
In the south of India, languages change from one state to the other. And are older than 20000 years. Because of the Colonial period, English is widely spoken all over the country. In fact, it is considered a business language when it comes to multinational companies or big companies in India.
Because of languages, Indian Cinema space is also divided into several spaces. Bollywood, being the biggest in the world is mostly for Hindi or English cinema. Whereas, Tollywood or Telugu cinema is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Telugu language.
5. CHAOTIC TRAFFIC IN INDIA
Everyone has seen at least one image of the madness of traffic in India. Cars, motorbikes, bicycles and pedestrians circulate on the streets without worrying about traffic rules. Since they practically do not exist. Despite signs, traffic lights and pedestrian crossings, chaos prevails.
What Indians use most to signal the other driver is not the indicator or the rules that everyone should know before going out on the streets with a vehicle. It is the horn that establishes communication between drivers, which prevents accidents and makes traffic even more chaotic.
India being a fast developing country, the traffic in India is getting worse day by day. Traffic is one of the major reasons for mental stress and health disorders in metro cities like Delhi.
India is one of the best countries to experience in the world. If you have been to India, do share with us your experience and also tell us in comments if you liked our article – Culture Of India- 5 Things You Need To Know.
