I just returned from India. I had gone on an internship to Bangalore, India. Bangalore is the Silicon Valley of India. It was my first trip back after coming to Penn State in fall last year. To be precise, it was my first trip in nine months. You don't expect a country like India, with thousands of years of heritage and culture, to
change much in nine months. Somehow I miscalculated. I couldn't identify with what used to be my home for 20 years.

Numerous coffee houses and pubs have sprung up like mushrooms covering a beautiful grass field. I shall not refer to these as poisonous though, as I do realize my poison is another's nectar. These "hangouts" were filled with teenagers. I could have done a survey and would have found the average age to be under 18. I spoke to a few and found that they visit these places after school every day. The music being played was Ricky Martin, and when I questioned a few about an upcoming Indian festival, no one had a clue. On further questioning, I found they had no exposure to drama, music, dance or even drawing or painting in their schools. They had electronics and computer science as there elective options.

I visited Gujarat, a coastal state on the Arabian Sea. I went to a 600-year- old well. In ancient India, huge wells were dug within the palace premises and this used to serve as a main source of water. Some of these were built with such elaborate detail that it wasn't just a hole in the ground. One such architectural wonder was the Adalaj Step Well.

My brother said something there that I will remember for a long time. He said that maybe we were born in the wrong era. Maybe it would have been nicer if we had been born a couple of centuries ago. We would have been painters, sculptors and great artists.

I am in no way criticizing this Internet-crazed world. I am one of its biggest campaigners. However, I do regret that I too have not taken the time to learn an artistic skill. I can't sing, I am flat footed beyond belief and my paintings are just not worth talking about.

Has science really overpowered the beautiful arts? Are today's kids losing touch with the culture that should be inculcated in them forever? I am as guilty as everyone else, but what good does it do to know that now?

I attended a cultural program at Penn State on Sept. 6, a classical dance performance by a renowned "Kathak" dancer, a popular dance style from India. Archana Joglekar was the artist and she mesmerized the audience with her technique and her expressions. There was dinner after the show. It was free I must add. I was saddened to see people walk in just in time for the food. A beautiful artistic performance lost in the sounds of a hungry stomach.

I read a front page article in this paper that reported the College of Arts and Architecture is no longer offering the dance minor and a student aptly said that so much money is contributed to engineering and technology that often the arts are lost.

I understand it is all a balancing act, but somehow I also get the feeling that the scales are tilted. I have attended many art shows here in the university and they have all been very poorly publicized and thus even more poorly attended.

Schools all over the world have to make a conscious effort to teach students history and culture. True, knowing that the Statue of Liberty was given to the United States by the French is dwarfed by the importance of knowing that "www" stands for World Wide Web, but in its own way, every little part of our history adds a lot more depth to who we are and what we are all a part of. Realizing that being able to play a guitar is far better than letting a computer synthesize it (they do come surprisingly close) is in itself a value adding truth.

Penn State is lucky to have students from varying cultures and ethnicities. Traveling on the Blue Loop I heard more foreign languages than I heard English.

This wide spectrum of students serves as a natural resource for being exposed to the cultural variety that the world presents.

Student organizations should promote cultural shows showcasing the richness that once was their nation and a small entry fee can be charged.

After all, if food is served it will make it all worthwhile.