Photo: Artwork: Anupriya Photo: Artwork: Anupriya Bowing her head in greeting, she says, “Annyeonghaseyo.” Perhaps the first word anyone who enters the world of Korean gets to hear. It could mean hello or hi, good morning or afternoon or evening, but it literally means “to be at peace” or, said with a question mark, “Are you at peace?” (from ‘annyeong’—peace in Korean—and ‘haseyo’, a standard ending for words that means ‘to do’ or ‘to be’). The 17-year-old wishing you peace is dressed in a ‘chima jeogori’, a skirt-top ensemble, and a ‘po’ jacket, patterned on the attire Koreans have worn since antiquity with the earliest visual depictions traced back to the period from 57 BCE to 668 CE. The men wear loose-fitting ‘baji’ trousers instead of the ‘chima’.
Ihina, who is not only adept in the language but has also imbibed other aspects of Korean culture such as K-pop, K-drama or K-beauty, says the style is called Hanbok, after the ‘Han’—the term Koreans started using to refer to themselves during the period of the Empire of Korea, beginning 1897—to distinguish Korean fashion from Japanese and Western clothing. In 1996 the South Korean government declared a Hanbok Day to popularise it, although people in North Korea—the country was divided in 1945, two years before the Indian Partition—have preferred to use the term ‘chosŏn-ot’ for what essentially remains the same style.
Keen Learners: Students dressed in Hanbok— traditional Korean attire—in the Korean language class at Patna’s A.N. College along with their teachers, Grace Lee and Sunny| Photo: Ranjan Rahi Keen Learners: Students dressed in Hanbok— traditional Korean attire—in the Korean language class at Patna’s A.N. College along with their teachers, Grace Lee and Sunny| Photo: Ranjan Rahi“Korean is not only pleasing to the ear but the Hangul script is also easy to learn,” says Ihina bang in the middle of Patna, Bihar’s capital city, where the K-wave or Hallyu (literally, wave or flow) has taken the locals, especially Gen Z, by storm. Chains like Tao Bao that sell Korean food and Mumuso, a Korean lifestyle brand, have opened their outlets in the city and ‘tteokbokki’, long, white, cylindrical rice cakes used to make a popular Korean dish, can be found in any decent grocery store.
Ihina is among 100-odd students learning Korean at King Sejong Institute, run by the Korean Culture Centre India at Patna’s Anugrah Narayan (A.N.) College. Almost every student here dreams of going to South Korea for a professional degree or a job. Thanks to K-pop groups BTS and Black Pink, Gangnam Style and movies like Train to Busan, they have discovered many similarities between Korea and India. “The two cultures have a lot in common, for example, how we value family ties,” says Ihina, who aspires to pursue a law degree in Korea. “There is also a strong historical connection. Around 48 CE Suriratna, the princess of Ayodhya, travelled to Korea and married King Suro, who had founded the Karak dynasty six years earlier. There she was known as Queen Heo. I heard this story when I was 10 years old. In fact, my uncle had lived in South Korea for a while.”
Six teams, namely India, Malaysia, Republic of Korea, Pakistan, Japan and China are participating in the Asian Champions Trophy 2024 and the hosts are the lowest-ranked (23) team in the tournament. India's next opponent, Japan are ranked 15 in the world.
Grace Lee, Ihina’s Korean language teacher who came to Patna with her husband and made the city her home, has much to do with popularising Korean here. “We came to Patna with our baby in 1997 as my husband wished to study public administration and community development,” says Grace. “He enrolled for the course at A.N. College. Initially, it was very difficult for us as the only Koreans living here. People knew about China and Japan but nothing about Korea. However, things have really taken a U-turn now. When the entire nation seems gripped with this K-craze, how can a city like Patna be left behind? People now know a lot about Korea. Sometimes, I feel they know many things that even I am not aware of.”
Some students wish to learn the language because they are in love with K-drama and K-pop, while others want to go for higher studies in Korea or make a living there.Grace, who proudly calls herself ‘half Bihari’ feels the Indian media played a very important role in popularising Korea and its culture across the country. There are 10 Koreans living in Patna now who call the city their second home. “Our aim was to give back something to Bihar and what could be a better way than to teach our language,” says Grace. “I started taking Korean language classes here. The number of students went up to more than 1,000, the highest ever, during the pandemic, due to the hybrid mode of classes.” Though she has returned to the offline mode of teaching, a lot of students from other places in Bihar have been showing interest in learning the language.
The students are also taught about the lifestyle, including, for example, the harvest festivals Chuseok or Hangawi as well as the songs of spring. Grace says some students wish to learn the language because they are in love with K-drama and K-pop, while others want to go for higher studies in Korea or make a living in that country. Many of her students are already in Korea or other parts of the world.
Yechan C. Lee, popularly known for his Instagram handle, @40kahani, says it is fascinating to see how the K-wave has changed the urban dynamics in Patna. He had come to the city as an infant, studying there. “Growing up in Patna was a very pleasant experience,” he says. “Getting so much attention was uncomfortable in the beginning but I started enjoying it later. People didn’t even know where Korea was. I was often asked whether Korea was in India’s north-east. But now people here address me as ‘oppa’ or ‘hyung’, which means big brother in Korean. The young people here know more about various K-pop bands than I do.”
Among the many similarities between Indian and Korean cultures, Yechan says the most prominent is the importance given to academic excellence. “As academic achievement is often seen as a pathway to success in both countries, our parents spend their time, energy and money on their children’s education. Like Indians, the Koreans, too, prioritise their families and show a lot of respect to their elders. Taking care of parents in their old age is a must for every Korean.”
Asked how the K-wave took the city of Patna by storm, Yechan says, “I recently came across an Instagram reel where someone described K-drama heroes as more sensitive, loving, caring and expressive…sometimes you can even see them crying for their love. This is in sharp contrast to many Indian movies and serials these days where the heroes are often portrayed as macho and non-expressive. Probably, that is what sets K-drama apart and people are able to connect with these characters more.”
While the K-craze continues to grip Patna with Mills & Boon romances now being enjoyed via K-drama, let us hope this fascination and love for Korean culture brings all things good for the city dwellers and fosters stronger ties between the two countries.
n9ne bet slotKaveri Mishra is an ex-banker and freelance writerwinph
