Indian in Bilayat (Amrika)


It is not funny how many Indians there are in the States. For instance, there are lots of Indian taxi drivers, who immediately start talking in accented Hindi and then switch the radio to stations which play old Hindi movie songs. I am not sure why, I have never listened to them in my life and I definitely don't want to. Ofcourse they keep telling me that NY is not a good place and people are struggling here and India is always a better place. Dude, have you seen the cab/auto drivers back home? They would love to trade places. Except the Bangalore auto guys me thinks, they wouldn't be able to fleece as much or break the road rules.

Then the other day, (let us not get into why) I went with a bunch of people to some 'Dusshera mela'. It was the day I landed in NY and I had the surprise of my life. I land from India and here was India again. I couldn't spot a single foreigner. It was like a whole city had just emigrated and decided to celebrate Dusshera. I even had dinner at an Indian restaurant, naan and chicken curry!

One other time, I had stopped at a Dunkin Donuts (ya ya what America runs on). On an aside, their food is quite yum. If I were to have a bacon, egg and sausage filled sandwich on an every day basis I would definitely want to be running. So back to DD. Here the people serving, cooking and manning the cash till were all Gujjus. And they were speaking to each other in Gujarati. We (the group of people I was with) even got a sandwich free because we couldn't make up our minds, ordered something and then wanted something else a few mins later. Yoohoo brown skin, brown skin bonding I guess.

I have come across Bongs (well being Bangladeshi should count a bit), Punjabis (they all drive cabs), Gujjus but not a single Mal. What a pity. I was hoping some steak house owner would be a Mal and would be giving me the finest cut at half the price. Hey, the bakery guy at the Bangalore office cafeteria gives me better service because I do Mal bonding.

To top it all, I had biryani at Times Square! Made by an Indian (or was he from Bangladesh). Touted (by friends around me who had presumably forgotten what biryani is) as the best biryani you can get, it really didn't whet my appetite and I was left wondering if this was the best, I really wouldn't want to eat some of the passable ones.
Location: 181 3rd Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11217, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

NRC, CAB and it always being US vs Them

It has been a crazy few days in India. Travelling keeps you away from daily news. You tend to follow the news dispassionately. It does not effect your day to day life and inteferes with enjoying the vacation. But deep down it bothers. The fact that a once all inclusive country which has been variously described as an amalgamation of cultures, a 'thali' with all its separate ingredients which will not mix but will form a perfect plate together is now being beaten and bull dozed into a porridge bowl where we will be a congealed mass of hatred and suspicion of the other. Us and Them. US vs Them.  The CAB, a bill passed by a majoritarian parliament where politicians are more interested in gerry mandering to their vote bank rather than looking at building an inclusive India. Along with the NRC, it is an attempt to keep one particular community (Muslims) out of the country. SO here are some details. The CAB says that all people who are either Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, Christi...
Read more

It is all about accepting differences - spoiler alert

I have never reviewed a movie, much less a series. In fact, there were a lot of firsts with this series, Made in Heaven. It is the first Indian web series, I have watched It is the first series, I have binge watched It is the first series, I have rewatched (all 9 episodes, no less) And now it shall be the first series I write about Quite a hard hitting series and so tastefully done! When you include ostentatious weddings, systemic misogyny, anti LGBT rhetoric, myopic views, current political climate, the complete lack of correlation between being educated and belief in superstition and the intersection of class with progress, you have a huge canvas to work on. To be able to do that, without coming across as preachy is a skillful act by itself. To be able to do that without judging is pure art. There were two scenes that stand out for me. The second (which I shall write about first) was where the male protagonist spends some time in prison under article 377 and comes out to mee...
Read more

Winning doesn't mean it is right

Image
SO the results are out. The 2019 general elections to constitute the 17th Lok Sabha that took place over a month culminated in this day - May 23rd 2019. The BJP (forming the NDA along with its allies), won a landslide victory. A party with its narrative steeped in virulent nationalism, focusing on an India which is a far cry from the ideals on which the nation was born. A country which was aptly described by Shashi Tharoor in his book, The Great Indian Novel as a thali where different items are not mashed up but come together as a meal rather than a porridge which is a mish mash of everything and individuality doesn't stand out - that is the India we know of and we strive to cherish. A country which is vast and resplendent in its diversity but is now under threat of becoming a porridge. A porridge of hatred towards the other, anger towards anyone who doesn't tow the official line that manifests itself in lynchings, right wing trolls threatening rape and murder and at its n...
Read more