Samiyaars views

..returned from a hectic 10 day trip to India. Went to Madras after the 2 week rains and before the next bout started. Madras had just dried out but Adyar and Couvum were still running full and were clean - although with flooded sewage water still joining them.

I went on the electric train, took a share auto, got down at a wrong place (those damned "Take diversion" boards), walked 3 miles, took 29C from Chetpet to Adayar. met poor, not so poor, and filthy rich relatives (this guy over the last 10 years developed three companies and sold them to US companies.). Visited the Jis as well.

1. Stations, the tracks, and even roads were cleaner than last year - NOTICEABLY. Did not see any paper or spit on station platforms.

2. A/C in train compartments were set to comfortable levels and not set at Arctic temperatures

3. Night sleeper buses - KSRTC - were clean and comfortable. Slept all 7 hours.

4. Toilet situation has improved. Went by car from BLR to Mangalore and gas stations on the way allowed us to use the not-so-dirty toilets. They may not oblige busloads of people but they do allow the few people traveling in cars - even if they dont fill gas.

5. From Hassan to Mangalore, saw scores of new mosques - all with glittering new green paints, every 3 to 5 miles or so. All these mosques are close to the main road. Surprisingly one would expect 4 times more temples (given the muslim/hindu population ratio) but hardly saw any new temples along the roads. If the muslims are so backward and poor, where did the money come from. Checked around.. Word is that much of the money comes from - where else - Saudis who also grease/fund the "tolerant" parties. Now you see why these tolerant parties are at the forefront in defending anything iSlamic. So the equation is well set.

6. Inter caste marriages are on the rise. If the status difference is not much, there is very little opposition. Attended a rich love-marriage between a Southie and Narthi. The two sides appeared like oil and water- with hardly any effort in mixing with each other. Even the younger generation stayed separate. Our prediction is this one will be a stormy marriage and the couple lives in India. The other one is an arranged one - traditional and the couple lives int the US. Same Cashtu and appear to blend in well. No issues foreseen.

7. Prices of common things rice Rs 50 / kg, dal, etc.. are high. But, those packaged foods and items that most middle and techies prefer - juices, MTR, chips, cakes, etc..etc... are almost 70 to 80% if the cost in US $. Not sure how the folks can afford them. Even a simple toy costs Rs 300 to 500.

8. Bought some antibiotics which were cheap - by US standards. Fox example Z-pak - which costs $25 in US - cost Rs 57 (80 cents) the same price as 2 masal dosais.

9. Oh...both marriages food was served in "Food Court" style - North India cuisines, South India Cousines, DosA corner and coffee corner etc... I was upset at DosA corner but just registered my protest by not eating dosai.

10. I still retained some skills in getting on the electric train and buses while in motion.

11. Ran instinctly down the street to meet my middle school teacher who had just left the marriage. Realized that I could still run. She was a very cute young teacher in the early 20s then. She was a great teacher and told her so. Saw another "science teacher" and told him he was one of the reasons for my turnaround. Missed seeing two others.

10. One of the friends - who had returned "permanently" to India after 3 decades in US - said he was returning to US. Says he could not live in India anymore - despite, car, flat, etc. Said no one gave any respect and it was a nightmare driving on the road.

12. Indian passport holders breezed past immigration without filling any forms whatsoever. Phoreners had to fill out a simplified form like the US form.

13. I had Rs 2500 when I landed and had Rs 150 when I got on the plane after 10 days. Yes, I lived all 10 days within the Rs 2000. Made my wife pay for the 3 day taxi. But, my Rs. 2000 was good for restaurant, medicine, Ola and Autos and buses. Hey, I ate at road side Idly/Dosai stalls as well.

14. There was absolutely no talk, hint, expression of any "intolerance." I even traveled with a muslim family for 8 hours and the Boochandi-clothed families were just as happy as the intolerant hindu passengers.

loved reading this... 2000 rupees  . And I feel happy when i spend just 14,000 out of the 20,000 dad hands me at the beginning of the trip.

"6. Inter caste marriages are on the rise. If the status difference is not much, there is very little opposition. Attended a rich love-marriage between a Southie and Narthi. The two sides appeared like oil and water- with hardly any effort in mixing with each other. Even the younger generation stayed separate. Our prediction is this one will be a stormy marriage and the couple lives in India. The other one is an arranged one - traditional and the couple lives int the US. Same Cashtu and appear to blend in well. No issues foreseen."

I wonder how many predicted this in our wedding... marathi <-> northindian mismatch. I know one of my friend's mom predicted that it's gonna be bad, she told me sorta indirectly. That friend recently called me 'tum bhaiya log(you bhaiya people)'. I finished that conversation feeling totally numb, and later i sorta cut communication with her. Racist! I supported her so much during her tough times, she would call me and i would listen to her woes for hours and amuse her. Only to hear 'tum bhaiya log hum ghaati log' nonsense now. Anyway, i am not sure what happened. she wished me on my b'day. i replied thanks, and some more exchange about missed-meeting chances, which i thought was nice. Then I wished her on her b'day i am sure... Just realized 2 weeks ago that she had deleted me from her fb. I sent her a message saying if i deleted it, was a mistake, and sent her a fb request. She didn't reply and I think deleted my request. I blocked her. bitch. Friendship since 6th grade. Tolerated her bigoted views for years and always laughed them off, but never thought she will label me too one day, and that too at this stage.

Anyhoos. just wanted to vent somewhere about it. I have a trip coming up too. Praying to god that my kids behave, and the flight itself is uneventful, and all our bags arrive safely. Praying that my acne situation resolves by then, and i am not bloated, etc. Ya I mean, we fat people learn to make excuses. 'Today I am looking fat coz of water retention coz of travel, you know. Once that goes down, i would look much better'.

oh, and i don't think i can catch a bus when moving. and no, i am not gonna try. I wonder what it's like traveling with you. must be adventurous for sure.

*read "marriage" as "Wedding" Otherwise our Constantly Constipated Unkil will give his oft-repeated lecture.

b-kiddo: why the sudden sensitivity to ethnic name calling? i thought you were totally cool with that given that you've been tossing out "thambis" and "thambinis" for years on this board. kya hua?

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:loved reading this... 2000 rupees  . And I feel happy when i spend just 14,000 out of the 20,000 dad hands me at the beginning of the trip.

"6. Inter caste marriages are on the rise. If the status difference is not much, there is very little opposition. Attended a rich love-marriage between a Southie and Narthi. The two sides appeared like oil and water- with hardly any effort in mixing with each other. Even the younger generation stayed separate. Our prediction is this one will be a stormy marriage and the couple lives in India. The other one is an arranged one - traditional and the couple lives int the US. Same Cashtu and appear to blend in well. No issues foreseen."

I wonder how many predicted this in our wedding... marathi <-> northindian mismatch. I know one of my friend's mom predicted that it's gonna be bad, she told me sorta indirectly. That friend recently called me 'tum bhaiya log(you bhaiya people)'. I finished that conversation feeling totally numb, and later i sorta cut communication with her. Racist! I supported her so much during her tough times, she would call me and i would listen to her woes for hours and amuse her. Only to hear 'tum bhaiya log hum ghaati log' nonsense now. Anyway, i am not sure what happened. she wished me on my b'day. i replied thanks, and some more exchange about missed-meeting chances, which i thought was nice. Then I wished her on her b'day i am sure... Just realized 2 weeks ago that she had deleted me from her fb. I sent her a message saying if i deleted it, was a mistake, and sent her a fb request. She didn't reply and I think deleted my request. I blocked her. bitch. Friendship since 6th grade. Tolerated her bigoted views for years and always laughed them off, but never thought she will label me too one day, and that too at this stage.

Anyhoos. just wanted to vent somewhere about it. I have a trip coming up too. Praying to god that my kids behave, and the flight itself is uneventful, and all our bags arrive safely. Praying that my acne situation resolves by then, and i am not bloated, etc. Ya I mean, we fat people learn to make excuses. 'Today I am looking fat coz of water retention coz of travel, you know. Once that goes down, i would look much better'.

oh, and i don't think i can catch a bus when moving. and no, i am not gonna try. I wonder what it's like traveling with you. must be adventurous for sure.

i almost hate traveling with anyone as I follow a lose and open schedule, take whatever minimum mode of transportation and eat my standard safe items but wherever I think clean enough. Most seem to be hung up on set pattern/status and they cringe at hearing my daily sojourns. I even saw a few of my dad's friends, and a 3rd/4th ILLEGAL cousin of mine - who look like belong to slum cashtu. Very few know about them and shun them. Ironically, the kid in the family scored first in school and all set to take on JEE and interested in genetics although took "computer science" in +2 due to peer and family pressure. Gave my usual pep talk to him, my 2nd and 3rd cousin (his mother/grandmother). I am waiting for this kid to be a star and see the look on my legal cousins. We both have the same great grandfather.

Oh...saw a couple of "girls" from my childhood and they were a bit shocked when I started talking freely with them without missing a beat. I continued as if I had seen them the day before...and they were not used to that kind of "freewheeling" communication style. One of them could not recognize me and when I gave my name said "oh..instead of giving your name you should have talked and I would have guessed immediately" Looks like I had established my reputation way back.

Finally, the street dog that would not let us leave last year seems to have reached middle age. This dog just guards our street and a great dog. I could see it had slowed down just a little bit. Looked at me and did not growl or bark and simply stood up and moved. I asked the dog "whats your problem now" next door "girl" saw me and asked me "Anna...does it rain in the US" hm... this one has a very sad life and felt bad. Still a few in the very well developed rich colony recognize me - but fewer and fewer. What i loved most is EVERYTHING - dept stores, pharmacies, doctors, dentists, autos/taxis, small restaurants, hardware store, temple, and post office right within 2 min. Although the main road is within a min, this house/ street is so quiet being "inset" feels like a resort house worth visiting every year for vacation.

MaxEntropy_Man wrote:b-kiddo: why the sudden sensitivity to ethnic name calling. i thought you were totally cool with that given that you've been tossing out "thambis" and "thambinis" for years on this board. kya hua?

ya i knew it will be asked. So here is the context. And some story.

This friend was already quite chauvinistic, kinda like Tambrams are. She was all about being certain subcaste marathi. There are some other complexities involved between our personalities and certain dynamics, and she was pretty aggressive about it, while I was pretty nonchalant about the same. But anyway, we stuck as friends.

There was a beautiful maharashtrian girl 3-4 years our senior. Smart and an allrounder. Was sort of a role model for most of us. She was in our school as well as college. She married a hindian brahmin, same caste as mine. This friend fumed for years, not kidding. 'She could have gotten any good maharashtrian boy, why marry a hindi guy?', she used to say repeatedly. We used to laugh, as we knew her chauvinism. At that age, guess things don't matter. By 'we', i mean a third maharashtrian brahmin friend in college. She went on to marry a muslim. Imagine this one's anger. We laughed it off too. We knew exactly how she felt, and we didn't care.

So 6 months ago i was talking to this friend. Before this conversation, seeing her distress, I had encouraged her to meet a psychiatrist. So in this call, she called me to tell she is completely normal, and i sensed that she was resenting why I even suspected her of having a mental locha. Anyway, I said all good. Then we were exchanging general news and laughing as usual. She asked who else I am in contact with. So I told her, 'Arre you know what, I added [that senior] on my fb recently'. In a way I was glad she remembered me from all those years ago and accepted my fb request. This friend asked me how she was. I said she and her husband do [stuff]... So she goes, 'Well, she went to bhaiyas, and you bhaiya came us ghatis. So hisaab barabar. We gave up one and took one in exchange'. I generally hate such an outlook on marriages and treating women like they are some objects that can be exchanged. This coming from someone my own age felt even more repelling. Then later, she made more racist remarks, forgetting now. She moved to Mumbai years ago, and hates our little Hindian town even though her parents still live there, so I ask her if she plans to go there, etc. She hates that I don't acknowledge Mumbai as her hometown, and thus directly attacking her identity, in her perception. During this convo, she burst at me saying why I keep talking about our city and her place in it when she has made it clear mumbai is her home. Well, go to hell.

Now, regarding me calling u thambi. I have explained that often. I first heard it here. I heard it being used all over, casually, just as often as gult. Telugus call themselves gult, Gujaratis call themselves gujju, Marwaris call themselves madu, I figured that's an accepted term for Thambis too. Funny how since I was new, only i faced a backlash, while others openly used the term. I used it later too. Not sure if I still do. Depends on what I am feeling. In my mind it's not a racist or derogatory term. And here, I don't care being called a bhaiya. Better or as bad as being called a jat, lol. that's what we were called back home. here we don't know each other and are usually talking in stereotypes, so it's taken in that spirit. But if my close friend of 20 years is using it in a context I already hate, yes, it felt bad. I have never and would never call her a ghaati, even if she calls herself so.

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:
8. Bought some antibiotics which were cheap - by US standards. Fox example Z-pak - which costs $25 in US - cost Rs 57 (80 cents) the same price as 2 masal dosais.
 

what about viagra/cialis generics? did you get any, they're cheap in desh too

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:

MaxEntropy_Man wrote:b-kiddo: why the sudden sensitivity to ethnic name calling. i thought you were totally cool with that given that you've been tossing out "thambis" and "thambinis" for years on this board. kya hua?

ya i knew it will be asked. So here is the context. And some story.

This friend was already quite chauvinistic, kinda like Tambrams are. She was all about being certain subcaste marathi. There are some other complexities involved between our personalities and certain dynamics, and she was pretty aggressive about it, while I was pretty nonchalant about the same. But anyway, we stuck as friends.

There was a beautiful maharashtrian girl 3-4 years our senior. Smart and an allrounder. Was sort of a role model for most of us. She was in our school as well as college. She married a hindian brahmin, same caste as mine. This friend fumed for years, not kidding. 'She could have gotten any good maharashtrian boy, why marry a hindi guy?', she used to say repeatedly. We used to laugh, as we knew her chauvinism. At that age, guess things don't matter. By 'we', i mean a third maharashtrian brahmin friend in college. She went on to marry a muslim. Imagine this one's anger. We laughed it off too. We knew exactly how she felt, and we didn't care.

So 6 months ago i was talking to this friend. Before this conversation, seeing her distress, I had encouraged her to meet a psychiatrist. So in this call, she called me to tell she is completely normal, and i sensed that she was resenting why I even suspected her of having a mental locha. Anyway, I said all good. Then we were exchanging general news and laughing as usual. She asked who else I am in contact with. So I told her, 'Arre you know what, I added [that senior] on my fb recently'. In a way I was glad she remembered me from all those years ago and accepted my fb request. This friend asked me how she was. I said she and her husband do [stuff]... So she goes, 'Well, she went to bhaiyas, and you bhaiya came us ghatis. So hisaab barabar. We gave up one and took one in exchange'. I generally hate such an outlook on marriages and treating women like they are some objects that can be exchanged. This coming from someone my own age felt even more repelling. Then later, she made more racist remarks, forgetting now. She moved to Mumbai years ago, and hates our little Hindian town even though her parents still live there, so I ask her if she plans to go there, etc. She hates that I don't acknowledge Mumbai as her hometown, and thus directly attacking her identity, in her perception. During this convo, she burst at me saying why I keep talking about our city and her place in it when she has made it clear mumbai is her home. Well, go to hell.

Now, regarding me calling u thambi. I have explained that often. I first heard it here. I heard it being used all over, casually, just as often as gult. Telugus call themselves gult, Gujaratis call themselves gujju, Marwaris call themselves madu, I figured that's an accepted term for Thambis too. Funny how since I was new, only i faced a backlash, while others openly used the term. I used it later too. Not sure if I still do. Depends on what I am feeling. In my mind it's not a racist or derogatory term. And here, I don't care being called a bhaiya. Better or as bad as being called a jat, lol. that's what we were called back home. here we don't know each other and are usually talking in stereotypes, so it's taken in that spirit. But if my close friend of 20 years is using it in a context I already hate, yes, it felt bad. I have never and would never call her a ghaati, even if she calls herself so.

Edit: Plus back then, she used to say 'hindi people'... so this was a new word that she had picked up living in Mumbai, and all the context behind that isn't pleasant either. I heard her say so for the first time, and realized the long hatred she may have been feeling for my kind, knowing she already was a bigot.

I never felt that hatred for any south indian just coz they were so. That's the difference.

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:

MaxEntropy_Man wrote:b-kiddo: why the sudden sensitivity to ethnic name calling. i thought you were totally cool with that given that you've been tossing out "thambis" and "thambinis" for years on this board. kya hua?

ya i knew it will be asked. So here is the context. And some story.

This friend was already quite chauvinistic, kinda like Tambrams are. She was all about being certain subcaste marathi. There are some other complexities involved between our personalities and certain dynamics, and she was pretty aggressive about it, while I was pretty nonchalant about the same. But anyway, we stuck as friends.

There was a beautiful maharashtrian girl 3-4 years our senior. Smart and an allrounder. Was sort of a role model for most of us. She was in our school as well as college. She married a hindian brahmin, same caste as mine. This friend fumed for years, not kidding. 'She could have gotten any good maharashtrian boy, why marry a hindi guy?', she used to say repeatedly. We used to laugh, as we knew her chauvinism. At that age, guess things don't matter. By 'we', i mean a third maharashtrian brahmin friend in college. She went on to marry a muslim. Imagine this one's anger. We laughed it off too. We knew exactly how she felt, and we didn't care.

So 6 months ago i was talking to this friend. Before this conversation, seeing her distress, I had encouraged her to meet a psychiatrist. So in this call, she called me to tell she is completely normal, and i sensed that she was resenting why I even suspected her of having a mental locha. Anyway, I said all good. Then we were exchanging general news and laughing as usual. She asked who else I am in contact with. So I told her, 'Arre you know what, I added [that senior] on my fb recently'. In a way I was glad she remembered me from all those years ago and accepted my fb request. This friend asked me how she was. I said she and her husband do [stuff]... So she goes, 'Well, she went to bhaiyas, and you bhaiya came us ghatis. So hisaab barabar. We gave up one and took one in exchange'. I generally hate such an outlook on marriages and treating women like they are some objects that can be exchanged. This coming from someone my own age felt even more repelling. Then later, she made more racist remarks, forgetting now. She moved to Mumbai years ago, and hates our little Hindian town even though her parents still live there, so I ask her if she plans to go there, etc. She hates that I don't acknowledge Mumbai as her hometown, and thus directly attacking her identity, in her perception. During this convo, she burst at me saying why I keep talking about our city and her place in it when she has made it clear mumbai is her home. Well, go to hell.

Now, regarding me calling u thambi. I have explained that often. I first heard it here. I heard it being used all over, casually, just as often as gult. Telugus call themselves gult, Gujaratis call themselves gujju, Marwaris call themselves madu, I figured that's an accepted term for Thambis too. Funny how since I was new, only i faced a backlash, while others openly used the term. I used it later too. Not sure if I still do. Depends on what I am feeling. In my mind it's not a racist or derogatory term. And here, I don't care being called a bhaiya. Better or as bad as being called a jat, lol. that's what we were called back home. here we don't know each other and are usually talking in stereotypes, so it's taken in that spirit. But if my close friend of 20 years is using it in a context I already hate, yes, it felt bad. I have never and would never call her a ghaati, even if she calls herself so.

Edit: Plus back then, she used to say 'hindi people'... so this was a new word that she had picked up living in Mumbai, and all the context behind that isn't pleasant either. I heard her say so for the first time, and realized the long hatred she may have been feeling for my kind, knowing she already was a bigot.

I never felt that hatred for any south indian just coz they were so. That's the difference.

bla blah blah. long answers short.
- it hurts when the shoe is on the other foot.
- when people like saamiyaar and suda dog don't care, who are you to object to usage of thambi.

Propagandhi711 wrote:

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:
8. Bought some antibiotics which were cheap - by US standards. Fox example Z-pak - which costs $25 in US - cost Rs 57 (80 cents) the same price as 2 masal dosais.
 

what about viagra/cialis generics? did you get any, they're cheap in desh too

Yeah..those run around 2 to 3 Rs a pill depending on the company. BTW, my engine still starts/runs good and dont need any starters.

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:
7. Prices of common things rice Rs 50 / kg, dal, etc.. are high. But, those packaged foods and items that most middle and techies prefer - juices, MTR, chips, cakes, etc..etc... are almost 70 to 80% if the cost in US $. Not sure how the folks can afford them. Even a simple toy costs Rs 300 to 500.

Petrol was always costlier in India but till 15 year back most of the stuff like milk, paruppu, rice used to cost a tenth of US cost. 5 yrs back 30-40%. now 80%.

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:

MaxEntropy_Man wrote:b-kiddo: why the sudden sensitivity to ethnic name calling. i thought you were totally cool with that given that you've been tossing out "thambis" and "thambinis" for years on this board. kya hua?

ya i knew it will be asked. So here is the context. And some story.

This friend was already quite chauvinistic, kinda like Tambrams are. She was all about being certain subcaste marathi. There are some other complexities involved between our personalities and certain dynamics, and she was pretty aggressive about it, while I was pretty nonchalant about the same. But anyway, we stuck as friends.

Is she a Konkanastha Brahmin - who think they are from whitie euro ancestrians ?

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:

MaxEntropy_Man wrote:b-kiddo: why the sudden sensitivity to ethnic name calling. i thought you were totally cool with that given that you've been tossing out "thambis" and "thambinis" for years on this board. kya hua?

ya i knew it will be asked. So here is the context. And some story.

This friend was already quite chauvinistic, kinda like Tambrams are. She was all about being certain subcaste marathi. There are some other complexities involved between our personalities and certain dynamics, and she was pretty aggressive about it, while I was pretty nonchalant about the same. But anyway, we stuck as friends.

Is she a Konkanastha Brahmin - who think they are from whitie euro ancestrians ?

this is another funny topic. i don't know her caste. at the time she used to say her mom's side was konkanastha, so I assumed they are brahmins too, konkanstha style. That senior girl was also that, I think. This friend used to openly look down on XH's subcaste. Yeah I was dumb enough not to pick up signs, or rather, it didn't bother me enough to take a stand. Many years later when she was here and i was helping her with groceries, she told me that they are voracious seafood and meat eaters - BY CASTE, she specified. So I took her to asian grocery stores for the same. Then she explained her subcaste which mostly went over my head, but now that I was more knowledgeble, I asked and she confirmed that they are from that MH konkan area that is shared with the konkans of KN. We have quite a few friends from that area. But I am still not sure if she is even half brahmin or not, and don't care. She had never told this all those years back home. I didn't care too coz i used to eat all that too. Majority of our friends were strict vegetarians, and that was the general flavor of the city too, so most times we ate out, it used to be veg food. Besides, at that level of friendship, how does it matter anyway.

Guess I was too much in my own world to notice what others were eating and why, unless they mentioned it themselves. My own hindu classmate kept rojas for 3 years, right under my nose, and I didn't know!! We used to eat lunch together daily, but half the time I used to be waiting for XH to show up. Never noticed she wasn't drinking water either. And we used to go to and come back from college together (I used to give her ride halfway), and spent literally every minute together in college, unless I was meeting XH. She told me this after we graduated. All i remembered was that she knew all the rules of ramzan, but i thought it was natural as her (then suspected) boyfriend was muslim. But to give her some credit, her own family didn't notice either!

PS: ok, story time over. Can't believe I am posting so much personal shyt all over again.

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:

MaxEntropy_Man wrote:b-kiddo: why the sudden sensitivity to ethnic name calling. i thought you were totally cool with that given that you've been tossing out "thambis" and "thambinis" for years on this board. kya hua?

ya i knew it will be asked. So here is the context. And some story.

This friend was already quite chauvinistic, kinda like Tambrams are. She was all about being certain subcaste marathi. There are some other complexities involved between our personalities and certain dynamics, and she was pretty aggressive about it, while I was pretty nonchalant about the same. But anyway, we stuck as friends.

There was a beautiful maharashtrian girl 3-4 years our senior. Smart and an allrounder. Was sort of a role model for most of us. She was in our school as well as college. She married a hindian brahmin, same caste as mine. This friend fumed for years, not kidding. 'She could have gotten any good maharashtrian boy, why marry a hindi guy?', she used to say repeatedly. We used to laugh, as we knew her chauvinism. At that age, guess things don't matter. By 'we', i mean a third maharashtrian brahmin friend in college. She went on to marry a muslim. Imagine this one's anger. We laughed it off too. We knew exactly how she felt, and we didn't care.

So 6 months ago i was talking to this friend. Before this conversation, seeing her distress, I had encouraged her to meet a psychiatrist. So in this call, she called me to tell she is completely normal, and i sensed that she was resenting why I even suspected her of having a mental locha. Anyway, I said all good. Then we were exchanging general news and laughing as usual. She asked who else I am in contact with. So I told her, 'Arre you know what, I added [that senior] on my fb recently'. In a way I was glad she remembered me from all those years ago and accepted my fb request. This friend asked me how she was. I said she and her husband do [stuff]... So she goes, 'Well, she went to bhaiyas, and you bhaiya came us ghatis. So hisaab barabar. We gave up one and took one in exchange'. I generally hate such an outlook on marriages and treating women like they are some objects that can be exchanged. This coming from someone my own age felt even more repelling. Then later, she made more racist remarks, forgetting now. She moved to Mumbai years ago, and hates our little Hindian town even though her parents still live there, so I ask her if she plans to go there, etc. She hates that I don't acknowledge Mumbai as her hometown, and thus directly attacking her identity, in her perception. During this convo, she burst at me saying why I keep talking about our city and her place in it when she has made it clear mumbai is her home. Well, go to hell.

Now, regarding me calling u thambi. I have explained that often. I first heard it here. I heard it being used all over, casually, just as often as gult. Telugus call themselves gult, Gujaratis call themselves gujju, Marwaris call themselves madu, I figured that's an accepted term for Thambis too. Funny how since I was new, only i faced a backlash, while others openly used the term. I used it later too. Not sure if I still do. Depends on what I am feeling. In my mind it's not a racist or derogatory term. And here, I don't care being called a bhaiya. Better or as bad as being called a jat, lol. that's what we were called back home. here we don't know each other and are usually talking in stereotypes, so it's taken in that spirit. But if my close friend of 20 years is using it in a context I already hate, yes, it felt bad. I have never and would never call her a ghaati, even if she calls herself so.

ah.. just on Monday I was listening to this npr show on Political Correctness and Its Impact on Our Behavior - scroll down to DEC 7th. While reading this post, I was reminded of the narration at 12:25 - 13:00.  Give it a listen, and also to the one at 15:30-15:40, which I think is depicted in the YouTube video below.

Uppili, my Chennai trips are fun and I have absolutely no trouble in speaking in any language there. Even my french works in some places . Chennai is becoming more culturally mixed, much to the agony of KVs, Maxs and Thomas' of the world. These folks are not in pace with Chennai.

Muslims are becoming prominent part of societies and are mainstream. I know a few who hate vote seekers in comunity. Some are distancing themsleves from such groups, but they are very few in number. The radicals have the money, the vote bank and "peaceful" parties are ready to dance in their tune. No wonder Aamir Khans of the world are bending forward more often.

Veeu wrote:

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:

MaxEntropy_Man wrote:b-kiddo: why the sudden sensitivity to ethnic name calling. i thought you were totally cool with that given that you've been tossing out "thambis" and "thambinis" for years on this board. kya hua?

ya i knew it will be asked. So here is the context. And some story.

This friend was already quite chauvinistic, kinda like Tambrams are. She was all about being certain subcaste marathi. There are some other complexities involved between our personalities and certain dynamics, and she was pretty aggressive about it, while I was pretty nonchalant about the same. But anyway, we stuck as friends.

There was a beautiful maharashtrian girl 3-4 years our senior. Smart and an allrounder. Was sort of a role model for most of us. She was in our school as well as college. She married a hindian brahmin, same caste as mine. This friend fumed for years, not kidding. 'She could have gotten any good maharashtrian boy, why marry a hindi guy?', she used to say repeatedly. We used to laugh, as we knew her chauvinism. At that age, guess things don't matter. By 'we', i mean a third maharashtrian brahmin friend in college. She went on to marry a muslim. Imagine this one's anger. We laughed it off too. We knew exactly how she felt, and we didn't care.

So 6 months ago i was talking to this friend. Before this conversation, seeing her distress, I had encouraged her to meet a psychiatrist. So in this call, she called me to tell she is completely normal, and i sensed that she was resenting why I even suspected her of having a mental locha. Anyway, I said all good. Then we were exchanging general news and laughing as usual. She asked who else I am in contact with. So I told her, 'Arre you know what, I added [that senior] on my fb recently'. In a way I was glad she remembered me from all those years ago and accepted my fb request. This friend asked me how she was. I said she and her husband do [stuff]... So she goes, 'Well, she went to bhaiyas, and you bhaiya came us ghatis. So hisaab barabar. We gave up one and took one in exchange'. I generally hate such an outlook on marriages and treating women like they are some objects that can be exchanged. This coming from someone my own age felt even more repelling. Then later, she made more racist remarks, forgetting now. She moved to Mumbai years ago, and hates our little Hindian town even though her parents still live there, so I ask her if she plans to go there, etc. She hates that I don't acknowledge Mumbai as her hometown, and thus directly attacking her identity, in her perception. During this convo, she burst at me saying why I keep talking about our city and her place in it when she has made it clear mumbai is her home. Well, go to hell.

Now, regarding me calling u thambi. I have explained that often. I first heard it here. I heard it being used all over, casually, just as often as gult. Telugus call themselves gult, Gujaratis call themselves gujju, Marwaris call themselves madu, I figured that's an accepted term for Thambis too. Funny how since I was new, only i faced a backlash, while others openly used the term. I used it later too. Not sure if I still do. Depends on what I am feeling. In my mind it's not a racist or derogatory term. And here, I don't care being called a bhaiya. Better or as bad as being called a jat, lol. that's what we were called back home. here we don't know each other and are usually talking in stereotypes, so it's taken in that spirit. But if my close friend of 20 years is using it in a context I already hate, yes, it felt bad. I have never and would never call her a ghaati, even if she calls herself so.

Edit: Plus back then, she used to say 'hindi people'... so this was a new word that she had picked up living in Mumbai, and all the context behind that isn't pleasant either. I heard her say so for the first time, and realized the long hatred she may have been feeling for my kind, knowing she already was a bigot.

I never felt that hatred for any south indian just coz they were so. That's the difference.

bla blah blah. long answers short.
- it hurts when the shoe is on the other foot.
- when people like saamiyaar and suda dog don't care, who are you to object to usage of thambi.

eh?

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:
1. Stations, the tracks, and even roads were cleaner than last year - NOTICEABLY. Did not see any paper or spit on station platforms.

2. A/C in train compartments were set to comfortable levels and not set at Arctic temperatures

3. Night sleeper buses - KSRTC - were clean and comfortable. Slept all 7 hours.

4. Toilet situation has improved. Went by car from BLR to Mangalore and gas stations on the way allowed us to use the not-so-dirty toilets. They may not oblige busloads of people but they do allow the few people traveling in cars - even if they dont fill gas.

Thanks Lord Narendra, right! You're such a homer.

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:
5. From Hassan to Mangalore, saw scores of new mosques - all with glittering new green paints, every 3 to 5 miles or so. All these mosques are close to the main road. Surprisingly one would expect 4 times more temples (given the muslim/hindu population ratio) but hardly saw any new temples along the roads. If the muslims are so backward and poor, where did the money come from. Checked around..  Word is that much of the money comes from - where else - Saudis who also grease/fund the "tolerant" parties. Now you see why these tolerant parties are at the forefront in defending anything iSlamic. So the equation is well set.

What was Lord Narendra doing? Again, stop lying please.

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:
14. There was absolutely no talk, hint, expression of any "intolerance."  I even traveled with a muslim family for 8 hours and the Boochandi-clothed families were just as happy as the intolerant hindu passengers.

I bet that was before 8pm.

kiddo - i read the long essay, didn't understand much of it and didn't find the answer i was looking for. thanks anyway.

southindian wrote:Uppili, my Chennai trips are fun and I have absolutely no trouble in speaking in any language there. Even my french works in some places . Chennai is becoming more culturally mixed, much to the agony of KVs, Maxs and Thomas' of the world. These folks are not in pace with Chennai.

Muslims are becoming prominent part of societies and are mainstream. I know a few who hate vote seekers in comunity. Some are distancing themsleves from such groups, but they are very few in number. The radicals have the money, the vote bank and "peaceful" parties are ready to dance in their tune. No wonder Aamir Khans of the world are bending forward more often.

oh.. i had a hell of a problem at malls and hotels in BLR....no one could speak tamil or kannada or english. these are all manned by bihRIS, NErs, and other language challenged.

in Madras and Coimbatore noticed bihars even in grocery stores and restaurants....God help Tamil Nadu.

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:loved reading this... 2000 rupees  . And I feel happy when i spend just 14,000 out of the 20,000 dad hands me at the beginning of the trip.

"6. Inter caste marriages are on the rise. If the status difference is not much, there is very little opposition. Attended a rich love-marriage between a Southie and Narthi. The two sides appeared like oil and water- with hardly any effort in mixing with each other. Even the younger generation stayed separate. Our prediction is this one will be a stormy marriage and the couple lives in India. The other one is an arranged one - traditional and the couple lives int the US. Same Cashtu and appear to blend in well. No issues foreseen."

I wonder how many predicted this in our wedding... marathi <-> northindian mismatch. I know one of my friend's mom predicted that it's gonna be bad, she told me sorta indirectly. That friend recently called me 'tum bhaiya log(you bhaiya people)'. I finished that conversation feeling totally numb, and later i sorta cut communication with her. Racist! I supported her so much during her tough times, she would call me and i would listen to her woes for hours and amuse her. Only to hear 'tum bhaiya log hum ghaati log' nonsense now. Anyway, i am not sure what happened. she wished me on my b'day. i replied thanks, and some more exchange about missed-meeting chances, which i thought was nice. Then I wished her on her b'day i am sure... Just realized 2 weeks ago that she had deleted me from her fb. I sent her a message saying if i deleted it, was a mistake, and sent her a fb request. She didn't reply and I think deleted my request. I blocked her. bitch. Friendship since 6th grade. Tolerated her bigoted views for years and always laughed them off, but never thought she will label me too one day, and that too at this stage.

Anyhoos. just wanted to vent somewhere about it. I have a trip coming up too. Praying to god that my kids behave, and the flight itself is uneventful, and all our bags arrive safely. Praying that my acne situation resolves by then, and i am not bloated, etc. Ya I mean, we fat people learn to make excuses. 'Today I am looking fat coz of water retention coz of travel, you know. Once that goes down, i would look much better'.

oh, and i don't think i can catch a bus when moving. and no, i am not gonna try. I wonder what it's like traveling with you. must be adventurous for sure.

did your owner not feed you today?

Propagandhi711 wrote:

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:
8. Bought some antibiotics which were cheap - by US standards. Fox example Z-pak - which costs $25 in US - cost Rs 57 (80 cents) the same price as 2 masal dosais.
 

what about viagra/cialis generics? did you get any, they're cheap in desh too

Wanker-gaaru's tragedy:

garam_kuta wrote:

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:

MaxEntropy_Man wrote:b-kiddo: why the sudden sensitivity to ethnic name calling. i thought you were totally cool with that given that you've been tossing out "thambis" and "thambinis" for years on this board. kya hua?

ya i knew it will be asked. So here is the context. And some story.

This friend was already quite chauvinistic, kinda like Tambrams are. She was all about being certain subcaste marathi. There are some other complexities involved between our personalities and certain dynamics, and she was pretty aggressive about it, while I was pretty nonchalant about the same. But anyway, we stuck as friends.

There was a beautiful maharashtrian girl 3-4 years our senior. Smart and an allrounder. Was sort of a role model for most of us. She was in our school as well as college. She married a hindian brahmin, same caste as mine. This friend fumed for years, not kidding. 'She could have gotten any good maharashtrian boy, why marry a hindi guy?', she used to say repeatedly. We used to laugh, as we knew her chauvinism. At that age, guess things don't matter. By 'we', i mean a third maharashtrian brahmin friend in college. She went on to marry a muslim. Imagine this one's anger. We laughed it off too. We knew exactly how she felt, and we didn't care.

So 6 months ago i was talking to this friend. Before this conversation, seeing her distress, I had encouraged her to meet a psychiatrist. So in this call, she called me to tell she is completely normal, and i sensed that she was resenting why I even suspected her of having a mental locha. Anyway, I said all good. Then we were exchanging general news and laughing as usual. She asked who else I am in contact with. So I told her, 'Arre you know what, I added [that senior] on my fb recently'. In a way I was glad she remembered me from all those years ago and accepted my fb request. This friend asked me how she was. I said she and her husband do [stuff]... So she goes, 'Well, she went to bhaiyas, and you bhaiya came us ghatis. So hisaab barabar. We gave up one and took one in exchange'. I generally hate such an outlook on marriages and treating women like they are some objects that can be exchanged. This coming from someone my own age felt even more repelling. Then later, she made more racist remarks, forgetting now. She moved to Mumbai years ago, and hates our little Hindian town even though her parents still live there, so I ask her if she plans to go there, etc. She hates that I don't acknowledge Mumbai as her hometown, and thus directly attacking her identity, in her perception. During this convo, she burst at me saying why I keep talking about our city and her place in it when she has made it clear mumbai is her home. Well, go to hell.

Now, regarding me calling u thambi. I have explained that often. I first heard it here. I heard it being used all over, casually, just as often as gult. Telugus call themselves gult, Gujaratis call themselves gujju, Marwaris call themselves madu, I figured that's an accepted term for Thambis too. Funny how since I was new, only i faced a backlash, while others openly used the term. I used it later too. Not sure if I still do. Depends on what I am feeling. In my mind it's not a racist or derogatory term. And here, I don't care being called a bhaiya. Better or as bad as being called a jat, lol. that's what we were called back home. here we don't know each other and are usually talking in stereotypes, so it's taken in that spirit. But if my close friend of 20 years is using it in a context I already hate, yes, it felt bad. I have never and would never call her a ghaati, even if she calls herself so.

ah.. just on Monday I was listening to this npr show on Political Correctness and Its Impact on Our Behavior - scroll down to DEC 7th. While reading this post, I was reminded of the narration at 12:25 - 13:00.  Give it a listen, and also to the one at 15:30-15:40, which I think is depicted in the YouTube video below.

Lol I have my own story of the n word.
Inspite of reading various passages about blacks when studying for gre, I didn't know anything about the n word and its background. The day after coming here, xh took us to see Statue of Liberty, etc. There when talking to him, I pointed out a black guy and said in Hindi, 'that negro is ....', and xh froze. Not kidding, he froze. Began hissing how can I use such a word. That guy was also staring at us and xh was sure he was going to get beaten up lol. I was like what? Isn't that what they are called? What's so offensive about it? And xh was like no it's a racist demeaning word, etc etc can't say it anymore, they don't like it.

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:


9.  Oh...both marriages food was served in "Food Court" style - North India cuisines, South India Cousines, DosA corner and coffee corner etc... I was upset at DosA corner but just registered my protest by not eating dosai.

very interesting thread (whole thread). will comment on other topics later.


MS -- buffet style -- that's what it's called here.

no chinese and italian sections? pasta, lajania, au gratin, peejjaa? is chennai still backward that way i wonder. did north indian section have tandoori stuff? seekh potatoes, paneer, tomatoes, capsicum? dal makhani and rumali rotis? chaat counter? or you did not venture?

10. One of the friends - who had returned "permanently" to India after 3 decades in US - said he was returning to US. Says he could not live in India anymore - despite, car, flat, etc. Said no one gave any respect and it was a nightmare driving on the road. 

i think your friend is a rare exception. haven't heard this happen among my friends (yet).

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:In my mind it's not a racist or derogatory term. And here, I don't care being called a bhaiya. Better or as bad as being called a jat, lol. that's what we were called back home. here we don't know each other and are usually talking in stereotypes, so it's taken in that spirit. But if my close friend of 20 years is using it in a context I already hate, yes, it felt bad. I have never and would never call her a ghaati, even if she calls herself so.

are we jaat bhais?

he he he, poor joke. :p

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:

garam_kuta wrote:

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:

MaxEntropy_Man wrote:b-kiddo: why the sudden sensitivity to ethnic name calling. i thought you were totally cool with that given that you've been tossing out "thambis" and "thambinis" for years on this board. kya hua?

ya i knew it will be asked. So here is the context. And some story.

This friend was already quite chauvinistic, kinda like Tambrams are. She was all about being certain subcaste marathi. There are some other complexities involved between our personalities and certain dynamics, and she was pretty aggressive about it, while I was pretty nonchalant about the same. But anyway, we stuck as friends.

There was a beautiful maharashtrian girl 3-4 years our senior. Smart and an allrounder. Was sort of a role model for most of us. She was in our school as well as college. She married a hindian brahmin, same caste as mine. This friend fumed for years, not kidding. 'She could have gotten any good maharashtrian boy, why marry a hindi guy?', she used to say repeatedly. We used to laugh, as we knew her chauvinism. At that age, guess things don't matter. By 'we', i mean a third maharashtrian brahmin friend in college. She went on to marry a muslim. Imagine this one's anger. We laughed it off too. We knew exactly how she felt, and we didn't care.

So 6 months ago i was talking to this friend. Before this conversation, seeing her distress, I had encouraged her to meet a psychiatrist. So in this call, she called me to tell she is completely normal, and i sensed that she was resenting why I even suspected her of having a mental locha. Anyway, I said all good. Then we were exchanging general news and laughing as usual. She asked who else I am in contact with. So I told her, 'Arre you know what, I added [that senior] on my fb recently'. In a way I was glad she remembered me from all those years ago and accepted my fb request. This friend asked me how she was. I said she and her husband do [stuff]... So she goes, 'Well, she went to bhaiyas, and you bhaiya came us ghatis. So hisaab barabar. We gave up one and took one in exchange'. I generally hate such an outlook on marriages and treating women like they are some objects that can be exchanged. This coming from someone my own age felt even more repelling. Then later, she made more racist remarks, forgetting now. She moved to Mumbai years ago, and hates our little Hindian town even though her parents still live there, so I ask her if she plans to go there, etc. She hates that I don't acknowledge Mumbai as her hometown, and thus directly attacking her identity, in her perception. During this convo, she burst at me saying why I keep talking about our city and her place in it when she has made it clear mumbai is her home. Well, go to hell.

Now, regarding me calling u thambi. I have explained that often. I first heard it here. I heard it being used all over, casually, just as often as gult. Telugus call themselves gult, Gujaratis call themselves gujju, Marwaris call themselves madu, I figured that's an accepted term for Thambis too. Funny how since I was new, only i faced a backlash, while others openly used the term. I used it later too. Not sure if I still do. Depends on what I am feeling. In my mind it's not a racist or derogatory term. And here, I don't care being called a bhaiya. Better or as bad as being called a jat, lol. that's what we were called back home. here we don't know each other and are usually talking in stereotypes, so it's taken in that spirit. But if my close friend of 20 years is using it in a context I already hate, yes, it felt bad. I have never and would never call her a ghaati, even if she calls herself so.

ah.. just on Monday I was listening to this npr show on Political Correctness and Its Impact on Our Behavior - scroll down to DEC 7th. While reading this post, I was reminded of the narration at 12:25 - 13:00.  Give it a listen, and also to the one at 15:30-15:40, which I think is depicted in the YouTube video below.

Lol I have my own story of the n word.
Inspite of reading various passages about blacks when studying for gre, I didn't know anything about the n word and its background. The day after coming here, xh took us to see Statue of Liberty, etc. There when talking to him, I pointed out a black guy and said in Hindi, 'that negro is ....', and xh froze. Not kidding, he froze. Began hissing how can I use such a word. That guy was also staring at us and xh was sure he was going to get beaten up lol. I was like what? Isn't that what they are called? What's so offensive about it? And xh was like no it's a racist demeaning word, etc etc can't say it anymore, they don't like it.

she claims ignorance to get away with her bigotry. just as how she claimed that her friends saamiyaar and suda dog are okay with usage of thambi so max shouldn't have a problem with her usage of the t-word.

brie wrote:

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:In my mind it's not a racist or derogatory term. And here, I don't care being called a bhaiya. Better or as bad as being called a jat, lol. that's what we were called back home. here we don't know each other and are usually talking in stereotypes, so it's taken in that spirit. But if my close friend of 20 years is using it in a context I already hate, yes, it felt bad. I have never and would never call her a ghaati, even if she calls herself so.

are we jaat bhais?

he he he, poor joke. :p

haha pretty bad combination. i try not to mention it (irl)... the other day we were out for lunch with people. this guy introduced his new wife and told us she's from haryana. XH goes, 'oh ya? cool. kiddo is also from haryana'. Silence, and shock, and I turn back to look at him, and exclaimed as a natural reaction. 'NO I AM NOT!'. love to protray a docile MP'ite image, that I truly am hehe.

Grandparents and some family on dad's side grew up in haryana. so when they moved, locals sorta associated haryana with jats, and hence the perception. also, the family's main occupation was land/farming I think, and lookswise too we fit that profile. When mom came over, she saw the grit and eccentricity of the folks within the family, and sorta propogated the lore further, so did pretty much any other man or woman who married into the family. As a kid, whenever I argued with my nanny, after a point mom would tell her, 'arre kaha is jatni se ulajh rahi hai. tu isse nahi jeet payegi kisi bhi ladai mein'. Then the two would empathasize with each other about how Dhethi (badi mummy of DheeTh) and Thas I am and would basically leave me alone.

brie wrote:

MS -- buffet style -- that's what it's called here.

no chinese and italian sections? pasta, lajania, au gratin, peejjaa? is chennai still backward that way i wonder. did north indian section have tandoori stuff? seekh potatoes, paneer, tomatoes, capsicum? dal makhani and rumali rotis? chaat counter? or you did not venture?

 

It was there in the "love marriage" they had Chinese and italian as well. But then, those are for desis to stand in line...I ate only the items that I dont eat on a regular basis. Means - no curd rice, or rasam. For some reasons, very few weddings in SI serve non-veg. Perhaps, they think wedding is a holy occasion...in a way, it is.

Just now heard that my cousin's flat in Porur was under 4 feet of water and the water has receded. But, the streets are still under water - some under knee deep. This area is right behind the airport close to the Adayar river. This is a well-to-do Lower Upper-class area.

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:

Just now heard that my cousin's flat in Porur was under 4 feet of water and the water has receded. But, the streets are still under water - some under knee deep. This area is right behind the airport close to the Adayar river.  This is a well-to-do Lower Upper-class area.

are these floods worse than mumbai one in 2005? sounding like it... or is it just that the social media is much more this time? I had escaped that 2005 one the same way you did this one. my flight was exactly between the two big rain episodes. was sunny and dry when i was there.

2-3 years ago, had experienced monsoons firsthand back home. it POURED that day, and my dad had surgery the same day. We made like 3-4 trips to hospital and back those 2 days, and it was so exhausting. Mom and I would chose to stay put in the hospital or home. But was a pain for bro and sil who had to drive. Saw so many vehicles stranded on roads. Easily took 30 minutes one way for an otherwise 10-15 minute drive. Our household help would still brave it and come, with their saris soaked upto their knees. Felt so bad for them, but guessing it was much better to brave it out and go to work than to sit in damp overflowing homes.

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:

Just now heard that my cousin's flat in Porur was under 4 feet of water and the water has receded. But, the streets are still under water - some under knee deep. This area is right behind the airport close to the Adayar river.  This is a well-to-do Lower Upper-class area.

any idea how the area around harrington road and m.c.c. school fared?

Merlot Daruwala wrote:

Propagandhi711 wrote:

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:
8. Bought some antibiotics which were cheap - by US standards. Fox example Z-pak - which costs $25 in US - cost Rs 57 (80 cents) the same price as 2 masal dosais.
 

what about viagra/cialis generics? did you get any, they're cheap in desh too

Wanker-gaaru's tragedy:

hey short fuck, I've had more free pussy than you've paid for in your entire life, and that includes the one where you paid bearded muslims to cornhole you in backalleys.

swapna wrote:

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:

Just now heard that my cousin's flat in Porur was under 4 feet of water and the water has receded. But, the streets are still under water - some under knee deep. This area is right behind the airport close to the Adayar river.  This is a well-to-do Lower Upper-class area.

any idea how the area around harrington road and m.c.c. school fared?

No idea. The day I visited the area Spur Tank Road it was all dry but the Couvum was running full. It is my guess that the torrential rains the following 2 days should have certainly made the river overflow that area. I have a relative right across on the College Road which was all flooded. I would be surprised if that entire area was not flooded.

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:

swapna wrote:

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:

Just now heard that my cousin's flat in Porur was under 4 feet of water and the water has receded. But, the streets are still under water - some under knee deep. This area is right behind the airport close to the Adayar river.  This is a well-to-do Lower Upper-class area.

any idea how the area around harrington road and m.c.c. school fared?

No idea. The day I visited the area Spur Tank Road it was all dry but the Couvum was running full. It is my guess that the torrential rains the following 2 days should have certainly made the river overflow that area. I have a relative right across on the ColCollegelege Road which was all flooded. I would be surprised if that entire area was not flooded.

thanks for the info.

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:

brie wrote:

MS -- buffet style -- that's what it's called here.

no chinese and italian sections? pasta, lajania, au gratin, peejjaa? is chennai still backward that way i wonder. did north indian section have tandoori stuff? seekh potatoes, paneer, tomatoes, capsicum? dal makhani and rumali rotis? chaat counter? or you did not venture?

 

 For some reasons, very few weddings in SI serve non-veg. Perhaps, they think wedding is a holy occasion...in a way, it is.

MS, yes, 'holy occasion," is the likely explanation. most marriages in the north (don't know about punjab and haryana -- speaking about UP, bihar, rajasthan) do not serve non veg or alcohol (as it is most are vaishnavites, jains or arya samajhis -- not counting brahmins). even those who cook non veg at home (like my wife's family) do not serve non veg in marriages. now they serve alcohol, some clandestinely, others openly, but no non veg.

Beatrix Kiddo wrote:

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:

Just now heard that my cousin's flat in Porur was under 4 feet of water and the water has receded. But, the streets are still under water - some under knee deep. This area is right behind the airport close to the Adayar river.  This is a well-to-do Lower Upper-class area.

are these floods worse than mumbai one in 2005? sounding like it... or is it just that the social media is much more this time? I had escaped that 2005 one the same way you did this one. my flight was exactly between the two big rain episodes. was sunny and dry when i was there. 

this is much worse and prolonged. mumbai was only a flash flood.

Propagandhi711 wrote:

Merlot Daruwala wrote:

Propagandhi711 wrote:

Marathadi-Saamiyaar wrote:
8. Bought some antibiotics which were cheap - by US standards. Fox example Z-pak - which costs $25 in US - cost Rs 57 (80 cents) the same price as 2 masal dosais.
 

what about viagra/cialis generics? did you get any, they're cheap in desh too

Wanker-gaaru's tragedy:

hey short fuck, I've had more free pussy than you've paid for in your entire life, and that includes the one where you paid bearded muslims to cornhole you in backalleys.

Haha..Wanker-boy, a stray kitten which wandered into your house is not "free pussy" (although given your lack of options, I wouldn't be too surprised if you did something bad to it).