Archive for 'Uncategorized'
A Fascination with Fairness Posted by Rachael on Nov 21, 2016
It wasn’t until I traveled to India for the first time that I fully realized how arbitrary beauty standards really are. While the United States was in the midst of a tanning craze, I discovered in Jaipur, Rajasthan (a state in the Northwestern part of India) that women (and men) were desperate to lighten their…
Save Grammar for a Rainy Day Posted by Rachael on Nov 15, 2016
Among some of my fondest memories of my stays in India are the “rainy days,” which would usually occur during the monsoon season (बरसात/barsaat, fem. noun). In North India, this season lasts from around June or July to September. But, it was not only during the monsoon season that rainy days would bless us with…
IST Posted by Nitya on Nov 10, 2016
If you’ve ever been invited to lunch or dinner in India, or if you’ve even arranged a meeting of sorts, you might have had a taste of IST or Indian Standard Time. IST is an inside joke that describes an Indian’s sense of time समय (sum-aye), or lack thereof. If you are invited to a party…
Hindi vs. Urdu, the Debate Continues Posted by Rachael on Nov 8, 2016
Many people have debated the differences (and similarities) of Hindi and Urdu. Some people believe they should be considered separate languages, while others are of the opinion that the two languages are essentially the same in terms of basic vocabulary and grammar; their differences lie only in their writing systems (Hindi is written in the…
Special Part 4, Indians in America: Popular Literature Posted by Rachael on Oct 31, 2016
Since my last post on Indian Americans in popular T.V. and film, I’ve had a nagging feeling that we have some unfinished business regarding our three-part (now four-part 😉 theme: Indians in America. Of course, it’s impossible to cover all of the topics that could fall under this umbrella, but I wanted to address one…
Part 3: Indians in Popular American T.V. and Movies Posted by Rachael on Oct 24, 2016
In this third and final installment in a series on Indians in America (the first and second parts explore Indian immigration to America and the many “Little Indias” to be found here), I wanted to talk about the contributions Indian-Americans have made to popular American television and movies. Mindy Kaling Also known by her original…
Part 2: Indias in America Posted by Rachael on Oct 17, 2016
नमस्ते सब लोग/Namaste sab log (Hello everyone)! As part two of the three-part series “Indians in America” (the first part looked at the history of Indian immigration to the United States), this blog talks about some of my personal experiences with “Little Indias” in the U.S.! These microcosms of different Indian cultures have grown up…