Outsourced movie is an interesting reference for Indian customs compared to those of

Americans. Although, it is quite impossible to compare and contrast every aspect of two different
cultures in a two-hour movie, the director and the co-writer of Outsourced have succeeded in
bringing up some very important cultural issues reflected on national and global scope. This
educative movie displays the impact of cultural distinctness on work, social affections and
romance. Also it shows the impact of global economy based on a national and individual level.
Everything takes a new direction when a Seattle call center is outsourced to India and its
manager named Todd is fired and sent to the new uncomfortable1 building to train his own
replacement. There are many scenes where Todds behavior reflects the high Individualism
(IDV) ranking for the United States (91) compared to a much lower ranking for the India (48).
He is confounded by the strong, integrated and extended family ties that Indians have. For Todds
trainee, Puro, who lives with his parents, is very surprising that Todd lives alone and almost
never visits his mother or his relatives. Thats why he invites Todd to stay with him, where
Puros mother cooks traditional food and embarrasses him about his eating manner (left hand is
considered to be unclean, she says). He also feels uncomfortable when she starts asking Todd
about his father, his salary, if he is married or not, his future plans, and etc. Also, an interesting
scene that shows how society interacts into others business is when Todd and Asha, the Indian
girl from the call center, are spied by an old lady while they stand by the river.
India has Power Distance (PDI) as the highest Hofstede Dimension for the culture, with
a ranking of 77 compared to United States (40). This indicates a high level of inequality of power
and wealth within the Indian society. Take for the example Puros big, beautiful and neat house
that is next to a very poor neighborhood where people wash clothes altogether, eat on the streets,
conduct their own electricity. (i.e. Todd jumps on the other side of the wall where he is welcomed
by those kind poor people).
Indias lowest ranking Dimension is Uncertainty Avoidance (UAI) at 40, compared to the
world average of 65. On the other hand it does not differ so much from the US (46). This means
that both countries are open to unexpected ideas and situations. These societies might have fewer
rules and do not try to control all outcomes. They are open to suggestions and new ideas, i.e. In
order to improve his employees minutes per-call-rating Todd asks them for suggestions and
allows them to create a comfort workplace.. He also explains to the employees what they are
selling and tries to teach them to sound American while they speak to the customers. Another
interesting situation is when they went to the roof of the building to continue working, since the
office was drowning. This is something quite impossible to the States.
Todd notices that his brightest and most intelligent employee is a young woman named
Asha, who becomes the assistant manager. He is the only one who believes in her regardless the
gender. You can do anything, says Todd to Asha, something that her parents would never
agreed. On the other hand, Puro must get the promotion in order to marry the woman that he has
always loved. As a man, Puro must have the house, the money and the job. These two examples
indicate the inequality between men and women and the gap between their values. Even though
US has a higher Masculinity (MAS) ranking (62) compared to that of India (56), Indian women
seem to have less job opportunities or benefits.

1 According to Todds face expression and his first reaction when he saw the
FULFILMENT

In order to survive and succeed in a society is to be practical, flexible and able to adapt
the host customs, language and culture. Todds trip to India and flight back to the states without a
job during his business trip, Todd goes through some creation, preservation and destruction.