Is it remnants of opression by the Brits over centuries or a totally "internal" cultural thing?

I worked with a bunch of people from India in a corporate setting. But even though we were all peers, the Indians always behaved subserviently, never pushing back when it it was needed (even if they had the expertise). This made me very angry, because it lead to many stupid mistakes because someone didn't speak up in time.

I kept quiet because I feared it would come accross as racist but sometimes I felt like screaming "stop behaving like you're still slaves of the white man".