How does it even matter?

Whenever I am posed with a question about where I am from, my answers in turn lead to more questions which very often result in questioning about the social class of my ancestors. Thanks to my not so black hair and a mild deficit of melanin, I am often misconstrued to be a descendant of the area above the Tropic of cancer in the Indian sub- continent. I hate being questioned and I hate it more when the questions pertain to my descent.

Most of the time, I try avoiding such questions or choose to remain silent when I am asked these questions. The reason being, the clan to which my ancestors belong is immaterial to me and I think it shouldn't be of any relevance to anybody today either. Today we live in a world where origin and descent, just pertain to the country one belongs to and nothing more. Every time I refuse to answer such questions and I remain silent, my silence is associated with arrogance.

Here's the scene that unfolds every time I meet someone new at my work place.

New Person: Hi, Where are you from.

Me: I am from Adyar.

New Person: I mean, where are you actually from?

Me: I am actually from Indira Nagar in Adyar.

New Person : Which is your native?

Me: Chennai.

New Person: You are basically from here?

Me: DUH!

New Person: You don't look like you are from here. You look like you have descended from the borders beyond the tropic of cancer.

Me: Err!

New Person: What do you speak?

Me: I speak English.

New Person : Whats your mother tongue?

Me: Its Chennai's official language.

New Person: (Shamelessly) Are you higher?

Me: Silence.......... I studied in a higher secondary school.

New Person: (Doesn't realise I am evading his question): No I mean are you higher?

Me: I am no buyer.

I answer irrelevant things until the person forgets what he/she initially asked. I wonder why someone's descent is of any relevance or importance at the work place. Leave alone work place, I wonder what relevance it has anywhere. As we arm ourselves with technology and prepare to become Global citizens of the world, questions of one descent, or origin are irrelevant.

When we know these questions are irrelevant, why ask them at all. The sad thing is, it is against the HR policies of a company to ask one about his/ her salary. It is considered ill mannered to ask someone his/ her age. But we shamelessly prod into questioning one, about his/ her ancestral clan.The sad part being, the person who is questioning never realises that he is asking something that he shouldn't be asking.

Invariably, nine out of ten times it happens that every man I meet, would first question me about my descent, or try to decipher it by decoding my name. I'd prefer the man who's hitting on me to tell me that I look sexy ( trust me it makes my day) rather than ask me if I were higher or lower.  Higher or lower? Does it really matter?