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Globalization and Cultural Reassertion in Karnataka
“I do not want my house to be walled in on all sides and my windows to be stuffed. I want the cultures of all lands to be blown about my house as freely as possible. But I refuse to be blown off my feet by any.”
—Mahatma Gandhi
1. Introduction
Globalisation is a generalised term for a complicated series of economic, technological, social, cultural and political changes, seen as the ever- increasing interdependence and integration among people, societies and businesses in different locations. Such international links have existed for many centuries, but, having broadened, intensified, and changed the nature of these links many times; the modern world economy is unlike any previous international economy. Despite being in theory, in existence for centuries, the term ‘globalisation’ was first used in 1944, although its prominent use by economists commenced in the 1980’s. Globalization can be broken down into separate aspects: industrial globalization, financial globalization, political globalization, cultural globalization etc. Globalization is a process of something becoming global. It is facilitated by the media of communications. Through radio and satellite information can reach the whole globe almost instantaneously. Important events, whether social, political or sportive, have global audiences. Another aspect of global communication is the rapidity of movement. People can travel and move goods rapidly anywhere in the world. Communications is a means that facilitates globalization.
Globalization as an economic phenomenon is affecting today’s society and culture. It effects economies and politics of countries but also invariably affects the culture of people living in those countries. MNCs from all over the world come to sell and produce goods which are sometimes alien to the local culture. Therefore