29 Things You Can Do In India But Not Abroad
We often see people cribbing about the amount of things they can do abroad and why they love heading overseas. By abroad, we mean the Indian obsession with the US and the UK.
But hey, there are tons of things we Indians can do in India without batting an eyelid! And while some of them are pure cheeky, some are really surprising and interesting!
1. Cross a busy road.
In India, there's hardly any concept of a zebra crossing and people might stare at you like you're out of your mind if you wait for the pedestrian signal to turn green. While not the safest way to cross, an Indian can dash across a busy street any time of the day!
2. Play gully cricket.
Although cricket is not the national game of the country, nowhere in England will you find lads playing cricket with plastic balls, using bricks as stumps! You can find the fun 'gully cricket' on every road of India, whether it's an urban city or in the poorest of villages.
3. Head wobble.
The rest of the world shake their head up and down to signify a 'yes', and sideways to signify a 'no'. Indians however, wobble their heads in the strangest of ways while the other person is left wondering whether the response was a yes or no, or simply nothing!
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4. Live with parents.
People in most other countries move out of their homes the minute they are old enough. In fact, living with parents is generally looked down upon. However, in India, it is generally the other way around. The longer you live with your parents, the more 'sanskaari' you are.
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5. Know multiple languages.
Most Indians know multiple languages right from their childhood. While it is generally the mother tongue that is spoken at home, outside in society, it is the language of the state/region they are in. And in schools they learn English. Plus most kids have friends who speak a different language and they pick up languages very easily.
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6. Have a distinct term for all relatives.
Indians have a distinct term for all relatives and they are not all 'maternal/paternal aunts/uncles' or cousins.
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7. Bargain shamelessly and with ease.
Indians are pros at bargaining. They can bargain for anything, anywhere, anytime!
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8. Eat spicy food.
Indians are used to spicy food, and mostly find food of other countries too bland for their taste. Indeed, most international foodchains have had to Indianize their menu to suit the Indian palate!
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9. Be versatile with cooking.
Thanks to all their spice love and knowledge of traditional recipes, Indians can whip up the most versatile recipes and experiment with any number of ingredients with absolute ease.
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10. Know the joy of eating with hands.
Indians, except the "modern Indians" in urban India, generally relish all dishes with their hands. They also know the joys of eating sitting down, on the floor and in metal dishes/banana leaves instead of porcelain.
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11. Poop in the correct way.
This might come as a surprise to you but the Indian style of pooping, squatting on the floor, is actually the correct way of doing it. By sitting on the commode, you are only blocking your colon and setting yourself up for a world of poop-related pain. Don't believe us? Check this.
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12. Deal with traffic and large crowds easily.
You're a born traffic/crowd navigator. You've done it everyday for so long that even the worst of crowds will not faze you.
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13. Have the maximum number of festivals and public holidays.
Only Indians know the pain of having a holiday fall on the weekend. And thanks to the huge number of holidays, Indians know about the most random festivals throughout the country, whether they like it or not.
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14. Marry the person your parents have picked out for you.
Arranged marriages are the most popular in India, and Indians still trust their parents to pick out the perfect match for them. They not only get married, but even make these relationships work, not forcibly but genuinely enjoying the company of the person they are married to.
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15. Keeping clothes for centuries!
Even before all those Surf Excels, Ariels, and Tides came into the picture, Indian mothers kept clothes for their children's children. We bet your mom has still kept a couple of your childhood clothes for your kids. Hand-me-downs take on an emotional aspect in India.
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16. Have the best interest rates in banks.
Indians have amazing savings in terms of bank accounts, property, gold, etc. Also, very few other countries in the world offer high rates on bank savings and term deposit accounts. There are multiple saving options and the stock market is not the only way out. Also, many Indians do not rely on plastic cash and use cash as far as possible.
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17. Balance shopping between malls and roadside/small retail shops.
For many Indians, malls are still a place for window-shopping and they prefer to shop from the small roadside retail stores. There are thousands of advantages like unique designs, knowing the vendor personally, making friendships, etc.
18. Ask the neighbour for everything from 'doodh' to their son's homework.
Indians are extremely social and share a great rapport with their neighbours and friends. They work together perfectly and the neighbour is generally the go-to person for every need, whether it's a little sugar they are falling short of, or tips on dinner, or sometimes even cutlery if guests are coming over!
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19. Land up at each others houses without any appointment.
This can be a boon or a bane, but Indians hardly ever set up appointments before visiting their relatives or friends' homes. They just pay a visit as and when they want to.
20. Measure distance in time.
Ask any Indian about a particular place and how far it is and the response is generally "5 minutes" or "10 minutes" and so on, and hardly ever the actual distance. Even for longer distances, the response is "2 days by train" or "2 hours by flight".
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21. Have a mental navigator built in.
India is a maze of roads and streets and more often than not, it is crazy to navigate them. While there are navigational devices these days that work well, Indians still use the nukkad ka paan wala or the paper-wala as their personal navigational devices. Also, they generally have a mental navigator built in.
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22. Have names with deep meanings.
Every Indian name has a beautiful meaning to it. There are many rare and different Indian names and the first time you hear a new Indian name, the automatic response is, "What does it mean?". It's really a beautiful feeling to have a unique name.
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23. Learn things by rote.
That is how you got through school and probably even college. Admit it! Indians are perhaps the masters of rote and can learn anything "by heart".
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24. Just go for walks on the streets.
At any point in time, you will find people in India just walking aimlessly down the street or perched on a street corner and languishing. They are not beggars or the homeless. They are just out because they are bored.
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25. Know that there is always space for one more.
In an auto or a train or a bus, Indians know that there is never a space constraint. We can fit 250 people in a bus that barely fits 50 in other places.
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26. The concept of 'missed call'.
Indians use 'missed call' as everything from a message to informing our parents that we reached safely. Missed calls at night from friends or lovers are the highlight in the lives of college students!
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27. Love sex but are scandalised by even hand-holding in public.
The monument walls stand witness to how deeply Indians love. Clearly, a country with a population in billions loves sex. But just mention the word in public and people will stare at you as if you're an alien!
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28. Visit every possible scenery and monument in one country.
You can visit everything from beaches to mountains, deserts to orchards, Hindu temples to mosques, in India. Truly a country of diversity!
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29. Jugaad
Only an Indian can apply jugaad in his daily life for everything!
Desi Fukrey
An adventure lover and philosopher, her affair with words began at a young age. You can find her scribbling away at all odd hours of the day (and night) and if not with her head buried deep inside a book, she is generally romancing nature or ambling along through the maze of Indian streets. A carefree soul, she truly believes happiness lies within.
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