20. Drinks and carries mineral water and always speaks of being health conscious.

19 .Sprays deodorant so that he doesn’t need to take bath.

18. Sneezes and says ‘Excuse me’.

17. Says “Hey” instead of “Hi”, ”Yoghurt” instead of “Curds”, ”Cab” instead of “Taxi”, “Trunk” of “Dicky” for a car trunk, ”Candy” instead of “Chocolate”,”Cookie” instead of “Biscuit” , ”got to go” instead of “Have to go”.

Says “Oh” instead of “Zero”, (for 704, he will say Seven Oh Four Instead of Seven Zero Four)

16. Doesn’t forget to complain about the air pollution. Keeps complaining every time he steps out.

15. Says all the distances in Miles (Not in Kilo Meters), and counts in Millions. (Not in Lakhs)

14. Tries to figure all the prices in Dollars as far as possible (but deep inside multiplies by 44).

13. Tries to see the % of fat on the cover of a milk pocket.

12. When he needs to say Z (zed), he never says Z (Zed), instead repeats “Zee” several times, and if the other person is unable to get it, then says X, Y Zee(but never says Zed)

11 . Writes the date in MM/DD/YYYY. On watching traditional DD/MM/YYYY, says “Oh! British Style!!!!”

10. Makes fun of Indian Standard Time and the Indian Road Conditions.

9. Even after 2 months, complaints about “Jet Lag”.

8 . Avoids eating spicy food.

7. Tries to drink “Diet Coke”, instead of Normal Coke. Eats Pizza instead of Dosa.

6. Tries to complain about any thing in India as if he is experiencing it for the first time. Asks questions etc. about India as though its his first visit to India .

5. Pronounces “schedule” as “skejule”, and “module” as “mojule”.

4. Looks suspiciously towards any Hotel/Dhaba food.

Few more important ones:

3.. From the luggage bag, does not remove the stickers of the Airways by which he traveled back to India , even after 4 months of arrival.

2. Takes the cabin luggage bag to short visits in India and tries to roll the bag on Indian Roads.

1. Tries to begin any conversation with “In US ….” or “When I was in US…”

I had to explain to them that this is a Hindu New year…then of course, follow the inevitable questions of why we have a different New Year?

I’ve read many different explanations, the most common one being that Lord Brahma the creator of the universe is supposed to have started creation on Chaitra Suddha Padhyami – Ugadi Day.

It is also said that Bhaskacharya (the Indian Mathematician) did some calculations and proclaimed Ugadi Day from the sunrise as the start of the new year, new month and new day.

I personally think that Ugadi is during spring time and spring has always been traditionally associated with new life and new beginnings – a New Year

Growing up , the most symbolic aspect of the whole festival for me was the traditional Ugadi Pacchadi (chutney) made of different tastes – salt, hot chili powder, mango, tamarind and neem leaves – each taste indicating the different aspects of life -  Sweet, salty, sour, bitter and spicy.

I also loved the ‘puran polis’ that were made to celebrate Gudi Padva.

If you are like me, you’ve probably forgotten and neglected your New Year resolutions. A time like Ugadi is useful to re-think or renew our New Year resolutions. It is also an auspicious time to start new ventures – so a good time to start anything that you’ve been procrastinating.

There is some confusion on which day Ugadi is to be celebrated because of the partial eclipse. Some people are celebrating it on March 19th and others on March 20th.

Whichever day you celebrate it, Happy Ugadi and Gudi Padva ! 

Master Blaster, a character based on Sachin Tendulkar will soon join Virgin Comics’ line up of Indian characters like Devi, Sadhu, Ramayana and Snakewoman.

The story of Master Blaster  is about a cricketer who not only fights the Australian and other cricket teams - but also an evil force that has re-emerged on Indian soil after 1,000 years. The cricketer becomes the reluctant superhero, after he is in possession of an ancient weapon called Master Blaster. The weapon bestows transforming powers on him and he becomes the saviour.

Most Indian kids are a little cricket crazy and look up to Tendulkar as a role model to follow and emulate. Imagining Tendulkar as a superhero is not a far stretch especially with the World Cup going on.

I’m sure the Master Blaster series will be as highly anticipated in India as Harry Potter is. I sure wouldn’t mind shelling out some cash to see how Sachin the superhero looks !

Photo sourced from ESPN

The first gift is STRENGTH. May you remember to call upon it whenever you need it.

The second gift is BEAUTY. May your deeds reflect its depth.

The third gift is COURAGE. May you speak and act with confidence and use courage to follow your own path.

The fourth gift is COMPASSION. May you be gentle with yourself and others. May you forgive those who hurt you and yourself when you make mistakes.

The fifth gift is HOPE. Through each passage and season, may you trust the goodness of life.

The sixth gift is JOY. May it keep your heart open and filled with light.

The seventh gift is TALENT. May you discover your own special abilities and contribute them toward a better world.

The eighth gift is IMAGINATION. May it nourish your visions and dreams.

The ninth gift is REVERENCE. May you appreciate the wonder that you are and the miracle of all creation.

The tenth gift is WISDOM. Guiding your way, wisdom will lead you through knowledge to understanding. May you hear its soft voice.

The eleventh gift is LOVE. It will grow each time you give it away.

The tweleth gift is FAITH. May you believe and grow in your faith.                  

Circuit: Bhai america mein address puchega tho kya bolne ka
Munna: Dhobhi Ghaat
Circuit: Bhai english mein bolneka tho?
Munna: Washington

Circuit: Bhai idhar aane ko kya bolna
Munna: Come Here

Circuit: Bhai phir udhar jaaneko kya bolthe hai?
Munna: Pehle udhar jaaneka phir bolneka come here.

Circuit: Bhai yeh kaisa bolne ka – chale hat hawa aane de
Munna: simple hain yaar – Hey u move sideways let the air force come in.

 :) 

Circuit: Bhai tum tho pass ho gela bhai
Munna: Yes bro i have just passed away

 :)   

Munna: Abhi tu bol eh mamu bheja mat phira
Circuit: Mother’s brother dont rotate my brain

Munna: Yeh bol idhar aa khajhur detha hun karcha pani {kajhur yaane date}
circiut: Come with me for a date i will pay you

Munna: Ab yeh bol apun ko bahut sardi ho gayi hai
Circuit: I got big winter in small nose

And more further enjoyment, here’s a link to more Munnabhai jokes.

I had no clue what to write and spent a whole lot of hours trying to remember even the slightest heroic act I had done. Having exhausted my “thinking” quota, I asked a friend of mine for help.

Before I share my story, let me share a little bit about myself. I’ve led the average Indian girl life – very innocent and sheltered protected from most harsh realities by my parents and then my husband - and most of my experiences with heroism are thru reading books or watching movies

But as I was strolling down memory lane with my friend, a long forgotten incident came up to the surface.  

Most evenings, when me and my building friends used to go for a walk, we used to pass a group of guys just hanging out , sitting on the building walls and wasting away their time. As soon as we used to get close, they used to start whistling loudly.  It was irritating and annoying but we tried to ignore it. Most days, we used to try to walk as fast as possible with our heads down hoping that if we didn’t acknowledge them, they would get fed up at some point eventually and stop troubling us.

But one day, I was in a bad mood – I don’t remember what set it off…I may have fought with my sister or argued with my parents.

As we were walking down the road, we heard the inevitable whistling. I was just so mad I didn’t even think before I said “Don’t you guys know how to talk? Is that why you whistle everytime?” . This took everyone by surprise. My friends started laughing and a passing neighborhood aunty started pontificating about how boys are ruffians and are always ready to harass any girl. As she was talking some of our other neighbors passed by, and of course they got the entire scene by scene replay with commentary from this aunty with fingers pointing at the now embarrased boys.

After that day, the tables had turned . Whenever those boys saw either me or any of my friends they used to put just put their heads down and ignore us.

Luckily for me, even though we were all a bit worried and scared after this incident wondering if the harrasment would increase , it was just a minor episode in our lives with a classic happy filmi ending and the “villians” didn’t bother us again. But unlike most movies, I didn’t need a knight in shining armor to ride to my rescue. I was my own hero and could take care of myself.

Most eve-teasers are just scared cowards who are taken aback when someone shows a bit of resistance. It doesn’t take much to bring a eve teaser down – just simple words can also do it.

It taught me that a problem cannot be solved by simply ignoring it. Ignoring something is also a form of acknowledgment – it is a implicit acceptance of defeat.

If I can be a hero- anybody can.  You don’t need to be physically strong or have any special heroic magic powers. Just your voice – speak up – and be a hero !

As an added bonus, they can also get bigger mirrors, a make-up kit with a nail polish remover and a magazine rack in their taxis.

A new taxi company called Forsche (a play on Porsche and “for she”) will start operating taxis only for women and driven by woman drivers. The taxis will be sleek silver and white with a blue and pink “Forsche” logo.

The founder Revathi Roy, a 47-year-old former amateur rally driver plans to start with 10 cabs and 18 women drivers.

My dad would have loved for this to exist about a decade ago when I used to come back late occasionally from college and he would be waiting impatiently for me downstairs at the building gate.

My friend definitely plans to start using Forsche. She uses the company car that drops everyone off at home whenever they work odd hours but she is usually the last to get off and she hates how the driver always adjusts his rear view mirror after the rest of the folks get off to leer back at her.

I’m sure this will be a bonus to the working women in Mumbai. Maybe not everyone makes enough to pay individually for the luxury of a taxi ride everyday, but if a couple of friends chip in – it would be relatively affordable and definitely decrease the stress of everyday travel…maybe they can even start enjoying late night travel and have taxi groups where they can play “antakshari” or gossip – like the many train groups that are found in local Mumbai trains J.

Here’s hoping that Forsche takes off in a big way in Mumbai which is one of the safer cities for women in India – so the women in the rest of the Indian cities can also start experiencing the peace of traveling home late at night .

Photo sourced from AP

Read more on This cab is for ladies only (The Times of India)

I just found out that Blank Noise is marking International Women’s Day – March 8th with a blog-a-thon.

When did you flip a situation so you could resist, when did you give back as hard as you got? When and how did you choose to confront? When did you become an Action Hero?

I’ll be writing my post on Action Heroes tomorrow. For more details, visist Blank Noise Project

Like most people, I do believe in a higher power and have my own personal religious beliefs and rituals.

I do call myself a “Hindu Mommy” because I am proud of my culture and beliefs . I would like my kids to grow up being proud Hindus in a country where it is a minority religion. But I’m slowly starting to hesitate categorizing myself as religious because being religious is (wrongly) getting associated with fanaticism.

Religion for me has never been a way of categorizing friendships.  It’s never been a way of proving my superiority.For me, being religious is a personal belief. It’s about the spirit of acceptance and sharing - It’s about celebrating both Diwali and Christmas.

I’d like to present a different side to religion from the one usually depicted on religious websites

The first is a story of a pujari in a small village deep in Andhra Pradesh

The pujari at the Durga temple a small village called Payakaraopeta in Andhra Pradesh is like any other pujari. The ONLY thing that sets him apart is his name – Sheikh Mira Sahib

Every Monday, over a hundred people from several nearby villages climb the unpaved steps of Seethamma hill to pray to the goddess. Mira Sahib guides them all in performing various rites and the worshippers acknowledge him as their pujari .
With a shaven head, bare-chested and wearing a dhoti, Mira Sahib begins his day at the temple at 7 am and spends his time till late afternoon in saying prayers and helping the pilgrims.

He then returns home and attends to his chores. His earning is the dakshina that is given to him by devotees

The other story is of Dawood Khan, who has studied Tulsidas’s Shri RamCharita Manas and is spreading secularism and preaching communal harmony across Raipur a step at a time.

In his own words,

“My teacher inspired me to appear for the Ramcharit Manas examination and I was declared the winner, attaining marks of first division. Since then I am preaching Ramcharit Manas. I am opposed by many orthodox people but I tell them that this is what I have been doing and I will continue to do,”

I love the way Dawood thinks…He maintains that service to mankind is the best religion one can practice and says he wants to continue his discourses on Ramcharit Manas till his last breath.

These  are just two examples that have been highlighted out of the countless that exist in secular India.

Everyday, there are thousands and more living examples of secularism in India and the U.S where people of all faiths interact and develop friendships regularly.

Let’s start practising Chinna Jeeyar Swamiji’s philosophy of “Serve everyone as service to God – Worship your own and respect all”