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It was meant to be a short movie break for a Delhi couple after a long week. With their seven-month-old baby safely at home with family, they decided to unwind with a film at the new Cinepolis in V3S Mall. But what began as a quiet, relaxing evening quickly turned into an unpleasant experience, a reminder of how easily some people forget basic etiquette in public spaces. The woman later shared her experience on Reddit with the post titled: “Do Indians confuse being ‘literate’ with being ‘educated’? My experience at a Delhi movie theatre.” “Yesterday, my husband and I went to watch a movie at the new Cinepolis in V3S. We usually avoid that theatre, but since they opened a new one with Dolby sound — and because we didn’t want to be away too long from our 7-month-old baby, who was in the care of my husband’s family — we decided to give it a try,” she wrote. The woman further described how the movie had just begun when a group of four to five young women sitting close by started chatting loudly, laughing and reacting to every scene. In her words, they were “talking as if they were sitting at home.” ‘Hum To Chillayenge’ At first, she ignored the noise in the hope that they would calm down. But after the interval, things only got worse. Finally, she turned around and asked politely, “Have you forgotten you’re in a public place?” The group didn’t take it well. One of them replied, “This isn’t a public place. We’re here to enjoy. If you have a problem, you can leave.” She stayed calm and said, “Why should I leave? I’ve paid for my seat too. You can enjoy quietly without disturbing others.” But instead of stopping, they became louder. One of them said, “Hum toh chillayenge, jo karna hai kar lo (We’ll shout if we want, do whatever you want).” In her post, the woman wrote that it wasn’t just about the noise anymore; it was about their mindset. “These were people who seemed educated, but clearly lacked basic civic sense or respect for others. It made me wonder — if this is how some behave in their own cities, how do they act abroad as tourists or professionals?” she said. The user also pointed out how such behaviour reflects poorly on the country’s image. “We often talk about how India’s global reputation is affected or why visa approvals get tougher — but behaviour like this also plays a part,” she wrote. The post concluded with, “Being literate is easy; being educated is about how we behave when no one’s watching. Sometimes, I genuinely feel we need civic sense lessons more than 3D glasses.” See The Reddit Post Here Do Indians confuse being ‘literate’ with being ‘educated’? My experience at a Delhi movie theater. byu/Aduitiya inindia Reddit Community Didn’t Hold Back In the comments section, fellow Redditors shared their strong views about the lack of basic manners in public spaces. One user commented, “What they really lack is not education but common sense and empathy. As the saying goes, ‘common sense is not so common.’” Another said, “What Indians generally lack is common sense and basic courtesy. You’ll be shocked to see the same behaviour in the US and Canada whenever a South Indian movie gets released — the same chaos repeats there.” “Error 404, social etiquette not found,” someone else remarked while a person wrote, “Then these same folks end up abroad and do the same things, and we wonder why Indians are being targeted in Western countries.” An individual thought, “I think this is purely an ego issue.” A Redditor explained how such behaviour often begins at home. “The culture while growing up has an immense impact on how we behave. Most of the time, children copy what they see — how elders treat others or behave in public. Monkey see, monkey do,” they wrote. The user further shared that parents should teach children about boundaries, respect and politeness from a young age without having to make them “overly submissive.”
