amreekandesi.com

Walking through the mall the other day, i was pleasantly horrified to see this:

WTH is a Dollar store doing in Delhi? First the prices everywhere seem to be directly converted from dollars, and now this?

Somebody please tell someone that people in India earn in Rupees, not Dollars.

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Last week your favorite blogger moved back to India after spending some many happy years in the United States, adding another dreamy returnee to the reverse brain drain statistic, assuming my brain hasnt evaporated already in the superheated Delhi.

You may ask – why? What the falooda is wrong with me?

I’d say I was missing the safeda mango too much. In the few days I have been in town, I have used up half the city’s supply of Mango. There have been days when I had Mango for breakfast. Only Mango.

Mango Mango king of fruits
How I have missed you.

You are awesome
You are juicy
Without you I was so messed up
I was turning all goofy

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So the Indian students stabbed an Australian with a scew driver, and have started patrolling the streets. Soon they will march up to their seat of government, acquire it, and proclaim Australia an Indian colony. WTBF!

I have been an Indian student in the US, following which i lived a happy few years before returning to India this past week. I never encountered any racist abuse or anything of that sort. As do so many Indians all over the world. The trick is to respect the country where you are living. You need to appreciate the fact that that country is hosting you and live by the local rules and customs.

If you don’t, then you will not be welcome anymore.

About the Indians suffering racist abuse in Australia, i don’t have a lot of sympathy for them.

From news reports, there is nothing to suggest that those attacks were racial in nature to begin with.

Indian immigrants very often live in substandard conditions in an effort to cut down on costs. Most reports i have come across mention the attacks as having occurred late at night in shady neighborhoods, perpetrated by rowdy teenagers/drug addicts. I fail to understand how this classifies as racist.

If violent muggings are a hate crime, then India probably has a million such incidents every night on secluded expressways and narrow by-lanes. India must be the most racist country on that count. If we cant even put our own house in order and live like a united country, what right do we have to go to a foreign country and label any violence as racism?

However I won’t be surprised if the attacks start getting racial now that the Indian students are acting the way they are.

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Manmohan Singh formed his second government following the UPA’s comprehensive win in the election. There was some drama over ministerial allocations with the DMK trying some hard bargaining for a few extra cabinet berths.

The beacon of change – Barrack Obama called up our Prime Minister. Maybe his inspirational effect will rub off on the new government, and we will see Manmohan Singh turn the economy around in 100 days like he promised before the elections.

Fareed Zakaria’s take on the Indian elections – he thinks the Indian voters got it right. Time has a list of 5 ways Manmohan Singh can do to make India a better place to live.

Horror of horrors – following their defeats  in the elections, Laloo Prasad Yadav and Ram Vilas Paswan may face a security downgrade. Imagine the shame if our VIP’s have to travel on the road without a hundred gun toting commandos protecting them.

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It’s time to start a new chapter in life
So after all these years
Lets go to India, i said to the wife.

In America there’s many a whistle and bell
But something’s missing
I cant even curse in the language i know so well.

India is nice. India is great
To get to India, i can hardly wait.

You may have never seen such a player
But the wait’s over India
Amreekandesi 2.0 is here!

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The great Indian elections of 2009 are over after five phases of voting spread over a month, over 400 million votes cast, several thousand candidates, and billions of dollars spent by all concerned.

The massive logistical exercise ended in a massive victory for the Congress, which gained plenty of seats at the expense of the left and other regional parties. The BJP came in a distant second. Manmohan Singh is all set for another term as Prime Minister, despite not bothering to contest the elections. His life should be easier now that there is no Left acting as a dampener to the economic reforms that he would (should?) look to implement.

Of course the Congress is elated at exceeding its own expectations.

None of the exit polls came even close in their predictions, but the news channels aren’t complaining. Their favorite party won the election, which is all that matters. Wonder how they would have reacted if the BJP had come up trumps.

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Rajesh, one of Akhil’s closest buddies from grad school, recently quit his job at a Midwestern technology firm to move to this top tier tech company in Bangalore.

Akhil managed to catch him on Yahoo messenger during one of his late nights at the office, and thought he’d share some news that would interest his old friend.

Akhil: Hi Rajesh! Whats up buddy?
Rajesh: Hey Dude! I am ok. Sup?

Akhil: I am doing ok. You tell me how’s India? Having fun?
Rajesh: It’s alright yaar. Life going on.

Akhil: Guess what, i am considering moving back to India!
Rajesh: hmm…
Rajesh: Frankly Akhil, don’t do that MISTAKE!

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Husain Haqqani, the Pakistani ambassador to the US was on Jon Stewart’s Daily show last night.

Started off a bit cocky with an uncalled-for dig at the guests on the show. Or did he mean the audience? Not sure.

“So how much of Pakistan does Pakistan control?”
“Pakistan controls most of Pakistan. The Taliban are a nuisance, just as some of your guests are.”

Maybe it had something to do with the Fareed Zakaria appearance on the show earlier this month where he lashed out at the hypocrisy of Pakistan, and how Pakistan has conned America over the past many years.

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Came across this fascinating video.

This is the story of Tripthi, an Indian girl who gets married to this NRI.

When she comes to New York, her Americanized husband starts feeling uncomfortable about her FOB-iness. Then when she tries adapting to a western lifestyle, he expects a traditional Indian wife. Eventually, after being shown a middle finger, he realizes his idiocy, and all is well.

That’s the way it is with us Indian dudes. We want to live here, but marry back home.

There are many cultural differences between India and America, and it can take time for newbies to adjust to the new lifestyle. Then there are people who can lose themselves in their new lives and look down upon others who aren’t as Americanized sophisticated.

All it takes is a look back at the days when you were in those shoes, and an open heart that accepts people for who they are, regardless of whether they know how to operate a dishwasher or not.

The Great Indian Elections of 2009. Four phases down. Voter turnout in the fourth phase topped 50%. Last phase coming up this week, and a lot of political manipulation coming thereafter as the results are announced towards the end of this month. Some analysis of phase 3 and 4 over at offstumped.

Good news for Indian politics. Of the over 6700 nominees contesting the elections in the first four phases, almost 5700 don’t have a criminal background. Just 1042 of the candidates are known criminals.

We have always felt that the media plays to its prejudices. BS Shantanu writes on how we must take anything the media says with a pinch of salt. WSJ’s story on how smaller news outfits will accept money to promote candidates was shocking, though not too surprising.

Mulayam Singh has made his political ideology clear. Others may go crazy over secularism or economic policy, but he will go with any government that will dismiss the Mayawati government in UP. Because that’s what happens in a democracy – elected governments getting dismissed on the whims of politicians.

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