U.S. Payrolls Change Lives in Bangalore

As more and more Indian youths pour into the country's big cities like Bangalore to find jobs outsourced from the developed world, they are earning more and are becoming increasingly influenced by western culture. With 54% of country's population under the age of 25, says this article, the gradual cultural change of this generation is likely to lead changes to the larger Indian society. Many of the young people holding jobs at the numerous call centers and back offices in Bangalore came from traditional families in small towns, where their parents are still uneasy about, or in many cases, not informed of, what kind of lifestyle their children are having hundreds of miles away from home. These young employees are using American Express credit cards in the big shopping malls, drinking martinis in downtown pubs, dancing with western tunes in discos, and dating other young people from different religious beliefs and even "moving in" with their boyfriends or girlfriends. – many of these habits are unimaginable for families that used to impose a 9 pm curfew on their children. Despite the fact that the call center operators deal with customers in the US or Europe everyday on luxury goods and services, most of them do not even know what exactly these goods and services are like. Furthermore, due to the unusual 24/7 working hours, many are experiencing loneliness, says the article, and only by adapting to a more relaxed lifestyle can they keep up with the pace of life. – YaleGlobal