Passing the courtesy test

In a recent survey, Readers Digest has ranked New Yorkers the most courteous, compared to residents of 35 other world cities - much to the surprise of many including New Yorkers! This was an unscientific survey based on certain tasks that RD's secret surveyors requested of all unwitting participants.

Here is the part that surprised me - Mumbai citizens are ranked the rudest. Now, you can call Mumbai and its residents a number of things - dirty, in a hurry, no sense of private space, etc. But rudest should not be one them. Though not exactly sweet, Mumbaikars (okay, Bombayites) are usually helpful in spite of their busy lives.

So it looks to me like there is a cultural issue here. What is considered an obvious form of politeness or rudeness in one country may not be so in another country. Holding the door open is the norm in most western countries, but it does not reflect your upbringing in a place like Mumbai. Similarly, expressly saying "thank you" or "please" is a norm in the west. As far as I know, these are often expressed in India by the intonation used in regular conversation. This does not mean rudeness.