Which of the following reflects the selling of vegetarian food during Navaratri festivals in McDonald's?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Glocalisation of Culture
Option (1) Globalisation of Culture — Incorrect. Globalisation of culture is the spread of the same cultural products across the world through global markets and media. McDonald’s coming to India is part of it, but changing the menu to suit a local festival is a local adaptation by the global firm, which is what the question asks about.
Option (2) Glocalisation of Culture — Correct. Glocalisation is the mixing of the global with the local. It is a strategy often adopted by foreign firms while dealing with local traditions in order to enhance their marketability. McDonald’s goes vegetarian during the Navaratri festival and sells no beef in India: a global brand bends to local custom.
Option (3) Homogenisation of Culture — Incorrect. Homogenisation is the contention that all cultures will become similar. Here the opposite happens: the global firm changes to fit Indian practice instead of making Indian food habits like those abroad.
Option (4) Heterogenisation of Culture — Incorrect. Heterogenisation is the view that global contact makes cultures more varied and different, as local cultures keep and sharpen their own ways. It describes diversity among cultures in general, not a global firm blending into a local custom.
Note: The concept in Option (4), ‘Heterogenisation of Culture’, is not in NCERT (2025-26); explained here for the benefit of the students.
NCERT (2025-26): “Homogenisation Versus Glocalisation of Culture … A central contention is that all cultures will become similar, that is homogeneous. Others argue that there is an increasing tendency towards glocalisation of culture. Glocalisation refers to the mixing of the global with the local. It is not entirely spontaneous. Nor is it entirely delinked from the commercial interests of globalisation. It is a strategy often adopted by foreign firms while dealing with local traditions in order to enhance their marketability. In India, we find that all the foreign television channels like Star, MTV, Channel V and Cartoon Network use Indian languages. Even McDonald’s sells only vegetarian and chicken products in India and not its beef products, which are popular abroad. McDonald’s goes vegetarian during the Navaratri festival. In the field of music, one can see the growth of popularity of ‘Bhangra pop’, ‘Indi pop’, fusion music and even remixes.…” |