Hi everyone and hope you’re all well. I’m Chinese and I’ve spent the past 30 years of my life in China. During this time, I’ve witnessed incredible changes that have taken place in the country. Having also traveled to many other countries, I’ve noticed that there can be a disconnect between the international media’s portrayal of China and the actual experiences of people living here.
In this post, I invite all of you to ask anything about China—whether it’s about daily life, culture, societal changes, challenges, or the negitive/positive transformations I’ve seen. I’m just an ordinary citizen, but I’m here to share my observations and experiences in the most honest and unbiased way possible.
Feel free to leave your questions in the comments, and I’ll do my best to provide insights into the real China as I’ve come to know it.
What is the opinion of the Chinese public with regards to India?
This is a really insightful question, and I’ve discussed it with one of my Indian friends before. It’s a bit complex, so I’ll elaborate a bit more.
Around 3 years ago, people in China were really friendly and held a highly positive opinion of India. This was mainly because they perceived India as another Asian country with which China shared numerous cultural similarities, like Buddhism. We introduced a lot of Bollywood movies (the former Chairman Jiang was a big fan of arts/movies/music, and I believe China had a strong fanbase for Aamir Khan). Additionally, Indian food restaurants were all over places like Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou, and they’re still around today.
Things took a little turn when China and India had a conflict at the border I think. I still recall that during that period, a lot of social media in China were promoting narratives that described China as the victim and propagated the idea that we wouldn’t take action until a certain point. Over the span of around 2-3 months, about 30% of the people (mostly ordinary citizens) became more aggressive towards India. Another 30% remained skeptical of the Chinese media’s narratives, and 40% remained relatively indifferent. Also I think economic interactions between China and India also decreased significantly after the Modi government.
At present, I sense a restoration of normalcy. However, due to a more constrained atmosphere in China (I’m sure you understand what I’m referring to, the political climate has influenced various aspects—like the reduced import of foreign films), India has gradually receded from the public’s attention. This might also be attributed to the decline in trade with India (my assumption).
In general, most CN people view India as the same large country with a population similar to China and Indians are perceived as skilled in programming, with many holding high positions in the Bay Area. Politically, many CN ppl don;t like the Modi government (many CN ppl dont like the current CN governmet as well).
In personal, I like Indian ppl. Given our shared cultural elements, during our time in the US, while others would split bills, we’d like more to take turns covering expenses. We can have rice every meal and share dishes that many Americans wouldn;t even want to try.
I think I have typed quite a bit and hope it covers things you’re interested. One thing I need to mention is that CN ppl are more knowledgeable to India than you might imagine, let me find my photo of making panipuris and I’ll upload it here sooner.
Here in India too it is the same. People used to have good opinion on China until the border conflict. Modi is not very popular either outside of the biggest states in the North. Before the Indian startup scene got the attention of North American and et al VC’s we had Chinese investors. Some Big names like Paytm were initially Chinese funded iirc. Now it is hard for Chinese investors as well as Chinese companies to invest in India. The only one that has found moderate success seem to be the Mobile Phone companies like Xiaomi. The Automobile companies especially seem to be having a hard time.
sad to know it. Those governors&medias did not do good things. Also I admit that the current CN government does have some issues… a lot ppl may not like it. Many of us think it may be the US and CN problem that affects the relationship for CN and India as well. We really don;t know why nowadays a lot public medias just let ppl hate each others. ;(
Thank you for the detailed answer. I have some more questions which I will ask after work 😄.
np np, feel free to ask anything.
homemade panipuris during the Shanghai lock down last year
Haha very nice. Have you tried any chaats? Samosa chaat is my favourite North Indian snack.
is that the fried triangle? I’m loving it!!! so many spice in it. ( if it’s not, then sorry, for it’s a hard time for me to map the food with their names. LOL.
Yes it is lol
LOL
Wow, even I don’t recognise some of those. It mostly looks like North Indian Cuisine (I am from the south)
I know Bangalore for north, the city of high-tech in india
Bangalore is actually in the south.
niceee, good to know. there are a lot of Indian restaurants in China, and we have no way to distinguish what kind of Indian cuisine they are.
In big cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen, I believe that around 80% of the younger generation might be familiar with panipuris, if you show the pics of it, they’ll say “oh i know it”. CN ppl call it “the Indian Crispy Ball”. It has gained significant popularity in China, following TikTok and live streaming shows. around 30% of them might have even tasted it. (I work in an international company and the number shall be even higher)
As for chaats, the familiarity might be about half of that for panipuris.
lemme find you a chinese Indian restaurant manu later. lol.