You may be missing India, when you ......

Sahaj Kaur

I must add:
You may be missing India, when you...

- have a setting on your watch still set to Indian time
- you periodically check to see what time it is there and imagine what your friends are doing at that moment!

Indiamad

...when you're reluctant to wash your hands because you don't want the beautiful mendhi reminder to fade.

India Edge

...when all of your white plastic microwave cookware is now stained a permanent bright yellow-orange from reheating your left-overs from Indian restaurants.

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PRIYA

You KNOW you're missing India when you...........

....Copy EVERY entry from this thread to read later. I wonder how many of you have snagged stuff from here to digest at a later date. Why does India have such a 'hold' on people?

When you.......Crack up laughing - feeling a real idiot sitting here on my own - remembering and identifying with sooo much that's been written here.


I've spent a brilliant coupla hours just reading - thanks everyone, it's been a great journey.

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Happiness is for those who cry, those who hurt, those who have searched and those who have tried. For only they can appreciate the importance of people who have touched their lives. (Anon.)

walrus

Interesting....here's 1 more (MEN ONLY & no offence intended PLS):

----pass urine/pee at midday at a nearby open wall in the crowded city area under full public glare and re-zip + quietly walk away as if "it's the done thing and nothing REALLY to b surprised about" !!

Hyderabadi

I miss India and esp Hyderabad when I read and re-read:
(BTW this has been around a long time and all true blue Hyderabadi (NRIs) read it and fall clinically homesick atleast once a month. I do atleast!)

You are a true Hyderabadi if:

1. Your address reads as 23-404-32/67A-43 (New MCH number 56-678/4A/B-22), while you actually live in the second house beside Zamzam cafe in lane behind Anand Theatre on SP Road.

2. You end up buying only a salwar kameez, whether it is a theatre workshop, food mela, consumer expo, designer jewellery show, science show or an automobile convention.

3. Your street has at least one roadside mobile hotel that serves Chai, Chinese delicacies such as Vegetable soft noodles, "Navrattan Kurma", Chicken "Manchewurea" or "American Chompsee."

4. Your answer is 'seedha chale jao' (just go straight) when somebody asks you for directions, whether it is to Malakpet, Masab Tank, Malkajgiri or Moosapet.

5. You come across tailors sporting the board:
“Immidiot delivery in two days onli. “

6. If you can speak Hindi, Urdu, English and Hyderabadi, except Telugu, fluently.

7. Your answer is 'mere jeib me tho nai hai' (not in my pockets) when somebody asks you 'Where is XYZ?'...and you also roll on the floor laughing at your own joke.

8. If you ask the waiter to get you some 'Mango pickle' even if you are sitting at a lavish continental banquet dinner with exotic Chinese, Mexican, Italian and Lebanese cuisines.

9. You order for a tea just after having had a Caramel Custard.

10. If you have at least one cousin, friend or acquaintance within six square feet.

11. If you have at least one cousin, friend, colleague or acquaintance in the US in software.

12. If everytime somebody gives you a piece of good news, the first thing you ask them is 'Dawat kab hain? (when's the party)'

13. You are reading this and secretly admitting that you are, after all, a true blue Hyderabadi.

14. If you refer to an event which happened 5 years ago as "just day before yesterday" (Parsoon ki bath hai )

15. If you tell your friend that you will 'just come back' ( abbhi aaya ) and your friend knows that either you will take a couple of hours or not come back at all.

16. If your friend is exaggerating and fibbing (phekh rah miyan; bolte jah, mei lachche maraun) and you are so used to it that and are not even raising and eye lid.

17. If somebody asks you what work you are doing, you explain him/her everything that's between the earth and sky except your work.

18. or tell him that you are leaving for Saudi or mostly Dubai, waiting for the immigration call (kal parsoon mein ane walla hai) for the past 7 years.

19. If you are repugnant and ugly and still feel as the most handsome/beautiful man/woman on earth which every girl/boy is waiting for and everyday you look in the mirror and convince yourself the same.

20. If you feel offended by someone looking at you (ghoor raa kyon )

21. If you never admit that you are just plain lazy/not capable and always complain of office politics and how unjustly the world is treating you.

22. If 'pinde ku bolo' and 'baigan mein mill gaya' suffices for almost any explanation and 'Nakko', 'Hou' ‘Kaiku’ , ‘hallu’ forms and integral part of your vocabulary.

23. If you do not eat rice at least once a day you will die.

24. If you consider eating Biryani, Nahari, Paye, Khatti Daal, Khichdi, Kat, Chakna made by any other person than a Hyderabadi, as ridiculous.

25. If you find it difficult to get up every morning and curse why the day had to start so early even though its 11 o clock and you always insist on sleeping for '2 more mins'

26. If you think its completely legal and your birth right to flirt with someone’s sister and not have anyone look at yours.

27. If you think everyone respects you and is dying to be in with your company even though they know you are not smart and intelligent.

28. If you dont complain, crib and lament about something during the day, you cannot sleep properly at night.

29. If you pronounce Electricity as 'Electric-city' and 'Bus Stop as 'buss-istop' and completely understand when someone says 'light le lo"

30. If you cannot understand how people can live without Chai, Paan and two movies per week.

31. If you are sympathetic and can relate to why people spend half of their life sitting in an 'Irani' hotel drinking Ek Chai Ek Empty aur ek pauna.

32. If you have to know whats happening and what’s new in each and every house in your neighbourhood and "Kis ka chakkar kis ke saath chal ra"

33. If you think life will not be the same if you don’t spend half an hour in the shower and half and hour in the bathroom.

34. If you receive the daily Urdu paper, which translates, English movie titles showing in nearby theatres into Urdu. "View to a Kill" ="Nazre Khathal"

35. If you think are more 'madun' (mordern) and abreast with all the latest happenings than any one else.

36. If you never miss a chance to embarass people (yaneeke mazakh udhana).

37. If you think you are a born 'Shayer' (urdu poet) and use some typical filmi batein in stylish urdu and crack some romantic jokes.

38. While someone does this, you say to yourself 'chubbe saale , mooh dekh aine mein, tere ku kaun pat thi, pataaney waala tho main hi hoon'

39. If by chance in the office or work place if a female/male co-worker starts speaking to some male/female person then you try to report this to everybody 'chakkar chalra baaap!'

40. If you go to the Petrol Bunk and say "Panch Point Single Oil" and hand over 15 bucks.

41. AND you are a Hyderabadi if you are reading this and saying, "Yes, this happens and is true. But of course, does not apply to me!


Cheers!
-Sekhar

rangss

You are missing India when....

...you find yourself breaking lane discipline
...you think the whole city is driving on the wrong side

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...and I took the road less travelled.

passingby

You are missing India when you...

do all the Indian things (movies, restaurants, etc) there are to do in your own town.

Dr Funkenstein

... when the owner of your local Indian takeaway visibly winces as he prepares himself for a barrage of poor Hindi whenever he sees you.

... when every time you hear Pakistan mentioned on TV you think someone's just sworn at you.

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Out There Somewhere : My Travel Blog.

India Edge

bilkul sahi hai!

Dr Funkenstein

What's that mean, then?

(Told you my Hindi was poor)

Digital Drifter

Absolutely, perfectly, correct!

Dr Funkenstein

Heh heh heh ...

torryquine

..when you spend a couple of hours glueing together the pieces of the "disposable" teracotta cup you had tea out of somewhere, and kept because you liked the shape....only it didn't survive the baggage handlers on the way home!

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http://werenotafraid.com/

soulfood

You mean the earthen pot you get in trains...? It's called Kullhad here.