Culture and Privilege in Capitalist Asia - Jurusan Antropologi ...

266 SALIM LAKHA
various journalistic and government reports. Such exercises indicate that there are
as many different estimates of the size of the middle class as there are
estimators. 19 Studies of this ilk have provided statistics on the production and
consumption of various consumer goods without illuminating much on the
distribution of these goods or the cultural meanings attached to them by different
sections of society.
A more rounded definition is one which combines incomes with lifestyle and
occupation. Such an approach is evident in an Australian government report which
estimates the Indian middle class at 120 million people, or approximately 14 per
cent of the country’s population. Those included in this category had enough
‘disposable income to rent or own their residence, hold bank or credit card
accounts, engage in holiday travel, own their own means of transportation, afford
restaurant meals, and work in white-collar, increasingly service-oriented, jobs’
(EAAU 1994:32). Another estimate suggested more than 150 million people
enjoyed middle-class status which was based on high educational attainment and
an annual family income of over US$4,000 ‘in local purchasing power’ (The
Economist 1994:78). These two definitions combine income, occupation and
lifestyle criteria, and entail considerations that are comparable to those applicable
to middle-class existence globally.
While these various attempts to position and quantify the Indian middle class
offer some analytical or descriptive insight, they do not adequately consider the
cultural processes and relations embedded in the construction of Indian middleclass
identity. And, as shown earlier, contemporary Indian middle-class identity,
particularly that of the influential new-rich elements, is largely constructed through
lifestyle practices and media representations centred on the consumption of
expensive global commodities. Associated with this, but having longer historical
roots, is the acquisition of an English-language-based education. These are the
major status markers of today’s Indian middle class. And they are not accessible to
all the social groups commonly included under the label ‘middle class’. Neither are
they characteristic of all who have money. For example, the rural rich, despite their
substantial wealth, are commonly seen in the cities as lacking the cultural
sophistication and taste codes associated with a globalised consumer middle class.
These attributes are associated mainly with the urban middle-class professionals,
who are in managerial positions in both the private and state sectors. Also sharing
these attributes are the new entrepreneurs, some of whom are of urban
professional background.
Yet, there is more to the cultural identity of the Indian middle class than
consumerism. There is also caste and religious differentiation. One of the most
noticeable features of the new-rich elements within the wider middle class is that
they come disproportionately from the upper castes. A high proportion of urban
middle-class professionals are from the upper castes as are many new
entrepreneurs, although amongst the new entrepreneurs there has been a
broadening of the social base in certain parts of the country to include those who
have middle-caste origins. Some Muslims and other non-Hindus are also