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Even if you haven’t read Shakespeare, you must have heard the phrase, What’s in a name? Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” tried to prove this by asking, “if we call a rose by any other name, it would still smell as sweet.” The name is just a label, and it doesn’t change the intrinsic quality of a person or place. Philosophically, this is absolutely true; however, it is also a bit utopian (imaginary or unreal) if we look around. In the century of supreme technological advances and unprecedented growth, your name may still decide how your life will shape up. (to clarify, it has nothing to do with astrology). 

Let us take a quick stroll outside our comfort bubble to see how a name is not just a name anymore but a ticket to privileges. 

Name Decides the Level of Privilege

I stumbled upon Anurag Minus Verma’s Podcast. Discussion topics are around caste systems, inequality and racism. In short, everything that is seriously wrong but deeply rooted within our society and all of us. When you hear how hard it is for someone to live a dignified life just because they were born in a particular household. You end up reflecting upon your own privileges. If you like hearing some genuine discussions. Do check out. You won’t be disappointed. You can also find Anurag on Twitter; his handle is @confusedvichar.

I believe no one should be made to feel wrong about their name or surname. Someone should think about hiding their identity only if they have committed a crime and are fugitives. Well, most offenders live a lavish life and aren’t ashamed of their acts, while Innocent struggle throughout their lives. Only because they are on the other side of the fence created by the so-called society. Now think again about “What’s in a Name?”

Minority Versus Majority 

It’s ironic how we feel and react depending on which side we are on. It’s easier to act brave and bold when you are part of the majority. However, things are not the same once you are on the other side. We are easily manipulated by the media and influential players and forget to question their acts. Coming back to the importance of names. Let’s say you are part of a majority group because of your name (read religion). However, the same name might make you a minority when you move out. Suddenly you start feeling the vulnerability. 

A decade ago, I got an opportunity to travel to the USA, thanks to my employer. Although I wasn’t alone, there were many colleagues. Still, the feeling of being an alien did cross from time to time. Suddenly anyone from South Asia seemed like a family. People from neighboring countries like Pakistan and Bangladesh were super friendly. I kept thinking, why is there so much hatred back home? that we are boycotting stuff and ready to die in the name of jingoism. (we will discuss it some other time) 

I’m sure most of us who travel outside the country do feel the change. So many people go out of India to work, study or settle for the rest of their lives. Now imagine if we are treated poorly in a foreign land, how would it feel? This is the feeling of a minority, irrespective of their name, caste, religion, or gender. It’s convenient to leave this feeling behind once we are back in our territory. We start doing the same with the minorities around us. Sadly it is deeply ingrained within us. In today’s world, we react to incidents by looking at the names of people involved. We proudly say “Black Lives Matter,” but we sheepishly ignore if something happens to minorities around us.

Changing names of places for strange reasons has always been in fashion in our country. We have seen Madras becoming Chennai, Bombay became Mumbai, Calcutta is Kolkata now; I wonder when Delhi will get lucky. If you have a fancy name suggestion for Delhi, do let a friendly politician near you know.

Name Change Is a Game-Changer for Politicians

We live in an era of headlines and quick short news bytes. It is super easy to divert our attention from pressing issues. One sure shot way is to change names. The latest in this long list is Jim Corbett National Park. Preserving heritages is difficult, but wait, changing names is a piece of cake. 

Here’s an analogy to explain why changing names is utter nonsense. Let’s say your name is “Ajay” you are living a happy life. You turn 30 and get married. Your spouse tells you, Hey, I don’t like your name. We will change it to “Vijay” it’s cooler. How would you feel? Isn’t your name not just a name but part of your Personality and Identity? Don’t even think about the hassles you will face in changing it in every single official record. It will cost you time, money, and peace of mind. 

Now, imagine the process of changing the name of the entire city. If we talk about cost, a few hundreds of crores only. Benefits, well you may say it’s about saving culture and heritage. However, we need to set the priorities right. Wouldn’t it have been better if Gurugram had stayed as Gurgaon? The money spent on renaming was utilized for other development work? We keep shouting about taxpayers’ money being wasted for this and that. Well, changing names is part of “this or that,”

Here’s a list of 20 Indian cities that were renamed. If you happen to live in any of these. Please share your experiences, if the name change made any difference or not? I have lived in Delhi for most of my life but never called Connaught Place (CP) Rajiv Chowk(except the metro station). I’m sure most of us won’t know that CP is officially called Rajiv Chowk.

Finally…

An interesting incident happened a few days back. While naming a newborn in the family, we decided upon a short, unique name. Obviously, with the initial letter “A.” After a few days, I heard that the parents were thinking of changing the name because it sounded “Muslim.” It was not their idea, but many relatives thought so, and that made them question themselves. I was both amused as well as furious by the logic. The divide is getting deeper and deeper with every passing day. This is how we plan to preserve our culture, religion and heritage?

Apparently, when we digress(stray) from the path of progress, a lot is riding on the name. We need to do a lot of unlearning to become better humans.

What’s in a Name? Nothing or Perhaps Everything.

The Shakespeare’s quote was never true.