being indian. growing up with chota bheem and sinchan. slipping words of your mothertongue into english. Starbucks is cool but have you had ₹10 ka chai/coffee on a winter night? Branching out to listen to different kinds of music but realizing the best kind was always your own. dancing to balam pichkari during holi and coming to school with purple faces and pink hands. maybe you like pasta or pizza but comfort food is always maggi on rainy mornings. playing lagori on the streets and coming home with bleeding knees. Yeah marvel movies are nice but have you watched kuch kuch hota hai? wedding lunches on banana leaves and vanilla ice-cream after. holding hands in secret so that the neighbour wali aunties don’t see. ‘XOX’ and ‘bingo’ in the back of classmate notebooks. Festivals, festivals and more festivals. no matter how much you like wearing modern clothes dressing up in dhotis and lehengas is a different feeling. Watching every India-Pakistan match with a fervent intensity and uncles shouting that the umpire isn’t fair. eating golgappe under the shelter while it’s raining. being indian. and realizing that you love it.
