Rationale behind jokes. Sardar jokes.

For some time now (that would be about 5 minutes) I wanted to write on this. The reason why jokes are so popular. More specifically, why Sardar jokes are so popular. Ofcourse you might think that's because Sardars are furry creatures whose brains fire strange neurons which makes them act crazy when the clock approaches 12 o'clock and that's the reason there are so many jokes about them, but having known many Sardars, I can assure you that is not the case. They are pretty normal people. Some might act funny, but that's more to do with the fact that they are humans and not specifically because they are Sardars. So, then, why are jokes on them so popular? Why are these turbunated gentlemen (it sounds better than using "sardars" every time) made the butt of the joke so often?

To begin with, this has something to do with the way humans have evolved. Homo sapiens by default are social creatures. Their basic instinct is to remain close in groups with others who share some similarity with them or those with whom they can somehow relate to. The irony is that people unconsciously create some sort of mental barrier between themselves and all those who don't fit in their "group". This subconscious phenomenon got prominent as our society progressed and in the process became more diverse, resulting in the creation of more "sub-groups". Perhaps the most prominent amongst these was the formation of countries. We are humans, from the same ancestors (yes, even sardars too). We are genetically similar, look similar (I mean basic body structure at least). Yet we are somehow mentally cutoff from people of other countries. If we meet someone from our country in some foreign land, we automatically try to relate to them, that's human nature (*general* human nature). But that's not all. Within a country, especially one like ours, the society is further divided into zillions of sub-groups. We are geographically, linguistically and culturally segregated. We are divided on the basis of caste, creed, religion, sex (I know that sounds like a ripoff from high school civics book). The point is, just as somehow there is a mental barrier between people of different countries, there is a mental barrier between people of any different subgroups, however subtle the difference amongst them might be. And since people within a group perceive themselves as normal (because they have always been in that environment), actions and way of living of other groups seems strange, and is hence often made into a joke.

So, if we observe, Sardars in some respect are different, more precisely *look* different. They have beards and long hairs and wear turbans (I'm trying hard to avoid the word "judi"). So we have jokes on them. And not only them, any group which is somehow different have jokes on them, be it Madrasis, Bengalis or Biharis. There are tons of jokes on them too. The Madrasis have peculair accent, so there are jokes on them, the Bengalis also for similar reason. There are jokes on Biharis because, well, maybe because they are Biharis (it seems you don't need a reason sometimes). On a serious note, they also have somewhat different accent, are seen everywhere, and young Bihari boys hold hands and go for a walk during breaks (at Narayna Academy atleast).

So you see, that is the reason we have jokes on Sardars. Or Biharis or Bengalis or Madrasis. I've travelled to many parts of the country (owing to my dad's job) and have heard the same joke thousands of times, but the character changes every time. There was a famous joke on blondes. When a Bengali tells the joke, the blonde changes in to a Sardar. When a Punjabi, the same joke has a Bengali dick head instead of a Sardar. There are a million such jokes where the protaganist changes from a Sardar to a Bengali to a Bihari to a Madrasi, depending who the person is or where he belongs to. It appears the group which is immune to such things is the one which has no apparent marked difference in linguistics or appearance, like people of UP or MP (lucky bastards).

So, the next time you joke on a Sardar, remember someone might be joking on you!

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One-liner of the day:
Oh Lord, give me patience, and GIVE IT TO ME NOW!
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Plus there is this interesting homemade comic strip I liked:

http://img216.imageshack.us/img216/7277/image00001bu7.jpg
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