‘Time waits for none’, must be true for everyone on the planet…except Indians. We don’t follow the hands of the clock, it follows us!
‘When others wait to meet you, you must be really important’ is the #1 mental rationale Indians have which motivate them to be intentionally late. Being late = busy schedule = VIP. Power dynamics play out extremely well when it comes to punctuality and Indians seem to be at the top of this game. Now of course it’s also a matter of habit and mirroring. While most have been conditioned to add 30mins to the appointed time, others are habitual to this quirk and have adjusted their clocks accordingly.
A special lingo, adding ‘ish’ after the value of time, has also been created. Meeting at 9ish for example, would mean meeting between 9.15 to 9.45 (approx)…depending on the individual. This is easy communication to convey a rather complex notion.
In a country where time is seen as a ‘chakra’ (wheel) rather than a line (timeline) punctuality is definitely an ar