Indian Culture Essay: The Republic Of India

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Indian Culture

The Republic of India is located in South Asia. India is home to one of the world´s largest populations and is known to be one of the oldest civilizations. These two factors have contributed for the development of rich cultural heritage and diversity, making it a big tourist attraction. However, this diversity has caused serious problems among the people, especially with the different religious views and beliefs.
Religion
India is identified as the birthplace of Hinduism and Buddhism, the third and fourth largest religions worldwide. The main religion in India would be Hinduism, as 84 percent of the population is Hindu and this greatly affects the social norms and traditions in the country. Other influential religions in India
It is known for its large selection of food and unique use of herbs and species. Important staple foods are wheat, Bastamati rice, as there are over thirty recipes, and pulses with chana. The use of curry and spices like ginger, turmeric, and cinnamon is very common throughout Indian cooking. Even though a large percent of India's population is vegetarian, lamb and chicken are primary dishes. As to drinks, India is the world's leader producer in tea and chai tea is the most popular beverage.

Clothing
A person's social class can be easily determined by the color and folding style of the clothes. India's traditional clothing for women is a silk sari, a dress-like garment usually wrapped around the waist baring the midriff and worn around a shoulder. However, a sari can be worn in more than 80 different ways. In the other hand, men wear a dhoti, an unstitched piece of cloth tied around the waist, and a kurta, a loose knee-length shirt. In special occasions, like weddings, men wear a sherwani, a long coat that is buttoned up to the collar and goes down to the knees. In spite of most Indians being accustomed to the traditional clothing, India's fashion industry has begun to adopt certain aspects of the Western
Gandhi is one of the most influential spiritual and political leaders of all times and embodies the essence of peace. He is known as the "Father of the Nation" as he greatly contributed to India's freedom by founding the Satyagraha movement. Aside from national holidays, India hosts several annual festivals as well. India's primary one is Diwali, which lasts five days and consists in a series of light festivals to represent the light that protects the spirit from darkness. Another major celebration is Holi, the festival of colors or "festival of love", which is very popular in spring.
Art
When many people think of India, they might think about the Taj Mahal, one of the seven modern wonders of the world. The Taj Mahal is an enormous marble temple built by the Mughal Emperor, Shah Jahan, to honor his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It took over 20 years and it combines elements of Islamic, Persian, Ottoman Turkish and Indian architectural styles. India is also famous for Bollywood, the world's largest film industry. Many of these productions are musicals that revolve around a love story and have colorful dance scenes.

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