That said, going back to New Delhi, at least in the circles I travelled in, it’s incredibly taboo to ask about caste. (Comparable to Americans using the n word.)
But watching a Brahmin who really believes they are vastly better than Dalits act like as arrogant as the Goa'uld from Stargate SG1 was really something.
With all due respect, you’ve fooled yourself into ignorance.
Many Indians haven’t had a relationship with caste for generations, particularly in the cities or upper and middle classes. (Intermarriage and wealth have rendered it indiscernible.)
There are also something like 25,000 castes and subcastes. It’s not a system designed for anyone to get right. That convolutedness is almost the point. Moreover, there are tens of millions of Indians who have never had a caste because they belong to a different religion or sect of Hinduism.
That makes it sound like castes are professions (which IIRC used to be somewhat inherited in the UK, hence names like Smith and Cooper), but where people then tried to assign ranks to those professions (like the family names Bishop and King)?
I am almost totally ignorant of how it really works, but I'm an omni-curious nerd, if you want to enlighten me :)
Caste is VERY much alive in India and in indian-descended communities around the world. Please, for the love of goodness, stop repeating this lie.
People's surnames, the colour of their skin, where they live are all indicators of caste.
Here is just one piece of evidence showing that intermarriage across caste lines is still relatively rare - https://www.science.org/content/article/india-s-fragmented-s...
With respect, it is you who has fooled themselves into ignorance.
If you are open to having your views challenged (and proven wrong), please listen to The Seen And the Unseen podcast, specifically the episode with Chandra Bhan Prasad.
I worked in situations where things were outsourced and yeah the Indian experience was horrific. But that also was influenced by the nature of the relationship.... they didn't work "for us" in any real way.
I worked for a company where we (a Midwestern company) were acquired by a valley company and at HQ there was a clear divide between the Indian (US citizens, not H1B) folks and the local CA team. It wasn't bad, but you could see it socially and feel the vibe and such.
I traveled there a few times and I was just friendly and ... man they were great. Very friendly, very professional, and highly capable.
Sometimes I think the business relationships also creates the informal "working culture" too.