Where I come from we have this distinct group of people labeled as Burgers. I believe the term was coined in the early 90's when a lot of expatriates returned home from the West to invest in their own country or from the Middle East because of the first Gulf War. Whatever their origin these people clearly had a different lifestyle from the rest of us. The word Burger brings to my mind the image of a guy in baggy clothes, jeans torn at the knees, wearing a cap backwards and Nike sneakers, thriving on imported chocolate and soft drinks and speaking with an accent straight out of a Hollywood movie. Some people envied them yet others disliked them. But I don't think the Burgers put any effort into it. It wasn't their fault. They were who they were.
From amongst the Burger enviers rose another group. The Bun Kababs. I still can not believe they actually wanted to be like the Burgers. The Bun Kababs dressed up oddly. They spoke even more oddly and faked that aura of snobbishness that usually surrounded the Burgers. They were phonies and were quickly recognized for that. It's like if a Quinqi tried to imitate my Khyber. You can tell which one is faking it.
Nevertheless, the Burgers and the Bun Kababs have one thing to their credit - their contribution to the economy. Whole new markets emerged to fulfill their need to look cool. Zainab market (for the clothes), Khori garden (for the imported crap in the guise of western pop literature), the fake branded shoes and sun glasses industry and most importantly - canned soft drinks.
As time progressed the distinguishing features of Burgers and Bun Kababs became less pronounced. Maybe the society finally accepted them or maybe the society became more like them. Perhaps only an outsider can tell.
Then I came to Germany. A country known for its resolute individuality; the sense of pride among its people over their identity. But one day when I was on my way home on the bus, I saw a bunch of teenagers wearing strange clothes and caps that said New York and listening to what was clearly an English song on their MP3 player. This was new. I was both amused and surprised. I call them, thanks to my Turkish friends who have popularized the dish here, Döners.
Don't know about Doner but a really nice (and what I can say I can relate to) comparison between the Burgers and the Bun Kababs. Which one were you, by the way? ;)
ReplyDelete'Doner' haha appropriately named. Btw this led me to thinking is there *anything* in bread+meat+lots-of-stuff (call it burger/bun kabab/doner) that resemble every smart lad in town! :P .... I mean why on earth in first place ppl started calling them 'burger'.
ReplyDeleteBurger is the Pakistani version of a phenomenon common to other countries of the sub-continent, dubbed as Confused Americanized Desi (CAD).
ReplyDeleteContrast this with American-Born Confused Desi (ABCD).
Come to think of it, thanks to Hollywood American culture has penetrated almost every other culture of the world, and you can find such people anywhere, be it Timbuktu or Tibet.
LOL! You've pointed out a very deep rooted sense of insecurity in our society in a very humorous manner.
ReplyDeleteI never knew a fake Burger was called a Bun Kebab. hahaha, what a thought! :D