Mistri, Munshi, and Sipahi

Dosent matter u r a sipahi, munshi or a mistri. If u r bringing home money every one will be happy. We were their NAUKERS when there was British Raj and we still are their NAUKERS when there is Islami Jamhoria Pakistan. Times have changed but their and our status and nature hasen`t changed. They exploited us before and we sold ourselves very cheap and we still are charging them few cents for every phone call we recieve in our call canters. There`s no point of regretting and discussing this thing except it, it runsin our blood

Re: # 27
antiobl.........what part of ``off-beat`` don`t you understand?.And, ask ``headine news` channel how they came up with the list.This is for those who don`t go to IIT`s et alia.With the profusion of dance clubs/ bars and corporate/private parties in India, DJ`s are in demand and there are a growing number of youngsters daring to explore alternate and exciting careers.All power to them.Bollywood rakes in a lot too and if you combine earnings of all indian cinema the figure runs in the 4-5 bilion dollar range.Textiles/fashion industry in india exports 12 -13 billion a year.Automobiles/auto components earned 2 billion dollars in 2003-2004.The expected earnings in this industry is expected to grow ten-fold by 2010.This essay is stereotyping at the very best and there`s nothing more to it.

excellent article !
I agree with Qazi ...she has done all justice with dividing the three countries accordingly ...
Chinesse : Mistris , Indians: Munshis , Pakistanis : Sipahis ...chinesse hv munshis , mistries & also sipahis , but they r known for their work labour , similarly the indians also hv all the three but they excell in office work i.e clerks , IT & bsn proffesionals & lastly the Pakis aslo hv all the three but they hv always been under the rule of Army , the sipahis in Pak make its history .

the writer tried to give the general outlook of these countries , which I agree with :)

Re: # 23 cayenne ``hottest .. careers in India are ..DJ-ing and a tie for dog-walking/tattoo artist!!!.I kid you not``

haha! you are funny. Are you trying to prove that India made $10 billion in exports last year from DJ-ing, dog-walking and tattoo parlors? I guess you want to say that all those graduates of IIT, and IIMs are walking dogs, shaking booties, and coloring skins?

$10 billion yearly income are from Munshis (IT, call centers) of India (total budget $110 b)
$100 billion yearly income for China, thanks to their Mistris. (total budget $280 b)
$3 billion income for Pakistan, all because of his Sipahis. (total budget $15 b)

All these numbers may be off slightly but the picture remains the same. Chinese Mistris, Indian Munshis, and Pakistani Sipahis are bringing home the dough.

#26 bongdongs, My essay simply talks about regional strengths (and may be weeknesses). It didn`t refer to religion, or race. Your great-uncle deserves all the praise. However he was among the tiny minority of British Indian troops.

#25 antibol,

We can sit here splitting the achievements/failures of the British Indian Army along communal lines. Doing so is rather distasteful to me and a disrespect to the memory of people who fought alongside each other.

Let me leave all such communal hair-splitting to you and your ilk.

What about a grand-uncle of mine who was an officer with the Baluch

was he mine or yours?

Re: # 7

Bobmbay, Ahmadabad, and Calcutta were all industrial centers. However they were not on par with Chinese areas. Example of Hong Kong clearly shows how quickly Chinese factory workers started to dominate Asia.

1915 Kut campaign is tiny compared to 1942 landings of British Indian army at Basra following by control of Shaiba, and Habania. 3 Divisions of this army was mainly from North Western India including Punjab, and Frontier.

Re: # 3

Thanks Ameena.

Re: # 22

This is not branding.This is stereotyping of the basest kind.Currently the hottest off-beat careers in India are , get this, DJ-ing and a tie for dog-walking/tattoo artist!!!.I kid you not.I got this from `Headline News` channel earlier tonight.Contrary to perceptions of the fighting punjabbans, the `maratha `and `madras` regiments are some of the fiercest in the Indian army.And, anyone south of the vindhyas is thought of as pacifist and weak.Yet, the Mughals had Chathrapathi Shivaji and south indian kings to contend with.

Stereotypes??? Not so fast guys!

Political correctness is good. However too much of good thing may not be good. This essay is all about ``branding`` and a lot less about ``stereotyping``.

Here is a statement for the PC crowd. Toyota and Honda make good cars! I call it branding their names. Another statement! Chinese and Indians make good grad students in US schools. Again an example of branding.

Chinese workers are branded as good factory workers. They have proven it over many many years.

Indians provide good office workers. Again they have proven it over many many years.

Pakistanis provide good defense contractors. Yes! They have proven it over the last 60 years. Much before 1947, the regions that now comprise Pakistan plus Easter Punjab has fought alongside Western forces since 1830`s. Afghan wars, may have started with Bangal Lancers. Care to explain how many Bangalis were in that force?

I agree that exceptions to all the assertions are always there.

Thanks again for kind replies. I`ll try to address individual comments as my time permits.

Regards

Qazi

Re: # 11

``But...we live in an age when historical stereotypes are being shattered - thus, 50 years ago the Japanese were the fighters and the occupation forces and Jews were the businessmen, and today it is the other way around.``

Jews are still considered stingy businessman. Aside from Israel where military service is compulsory I wonder how many Jews opt for army.
Japanese are still good fighters. Fortunately they don`t fight with guns. Wasn`t it the last world cup soccer when they came all the way to the semis. Also, last year in the olympics they had one of the best haul of gold /per capita. Kosuke Kitajima was particulary agressive.

Re: # 14 hindvi

The best soldier the British ever got from the indian subcontinent are the Gurkhas. Good fighters and steadfastly loyal. They still serve them. As a mark of respect and appreciation for their services the British have built a Gurkha statue some where near Parliament (?).

China was the largest manufacturing nation in the world until the 17th century. India was the second. You can have a look at their exports today and the picture painted in the article above will not be far of the mark. As regards Pakistan`s BOP I think they are dominated by remitances and aid, in short by neither manufatures nor services.

Re: # 16

The only economic connection of this article is that reason and logic have been used economically. Before the birth of Pakistan, the areas which make up today`s Islamic republic were backwaters inhabited by peasant serfs and unruly, uncouth buffons. Their lack of education and inability to stay in organized formations rendered them useless for military service. The munshi connection is also tenuous because Sindh has been a commerical centre since time immemorial. What is this factory nonsense, when Britons subdued Chinese they were farming rice.

#16 by hindvi

[But there is some truth to this article, atleast from an economic perspective.]

I agree.

Harish

offcourse its a stereotype, thats why I quoted it. (Though because it came from Auchenlik, who fought in two world wars and was CnC British Indian Army it is given weight by some).

PS: I am not Punjabi, just wanted to burst Mr LokRaj`s bubble.

But there is some truth to this article, atleast from an economic perspective.

#14 by hindvi

[Field Marshall Auchenlik used to say that the best soldier in India is the Punjabi Mussalman for he possess the three qualities of bravery, intelligence and loyalty one of which were missing in all the others (including sikhs).]

Isn`t that again a stereotype? And we all know that the Paki Army is predominantly Punjabi Mussalman, how come they haven`t been able to defeat India even once? Is it that they lacked one of the ``three qualities`` Field Marshal Auchenlik mentioned?