Probably because there are no East Indians or West Indians in India. (There are Bengalis, Gujaratis, Oriyas, Rajasthanis, Mumbai-iites..) There are north Indians but well, they are Indians! “South India” is often refered to as some place that is not in India. And “South Indian” is someone who is not quite an Indian.

I remember one my Japanese friend telling me, when he was in Delhi people used to ask him “are you a South Indian?” He would answer, no I am an Indian. He later left India and married a Japanese woman. They had two kids when I met them
about six years back. He is now a Japanese. Narayanaswamy Ranganathan prefers being a dark-skinned Indian/Asian in France than being a South Indian in India (Racism Exists everywhere, in.rediff.com/news/2006/jan/12guest.htm )

The people who make fun of the “southies” (or “Anna”, common in Mumbai, this one applies only to men) don’t really know a Malayali is not a Tamilian. They show a Malayali speaking Tamil accent in “Salaam Namaste”, and goes one step ahead and there is this Malayali (Menon/Nair) who actually speaks Tamil in Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Maara.

It is not necessary that racists remain racists. Most of my friends here in Mumbai are Marathis, an for them I have become a Malayali, not an Anna or a Southie. Thankfully.

[This one is getting interesting. May be I will work more on it and write about it sometime at my blog, sudeep.rediffblogs.com ]