Breaking: College Is a Pretty Time Consuming

…but I still find time to miss blogging 😦

Today is Gurpurab! It’s the birthday of the first prophet of Sikhism, who was quite the feminist:

So happy happy gurpurab to all!

Other than that, I’m not sure if I have nothing to talk about, or so much to talk about that I don’t know where to begin.

Oh OMG.

I’m doing a talk on Sikhism in my World Religions class :O

WTH SHOULD I SAY EVEN. HELLO, I AM SIKH, HOW ARE YOU. BOLLYWOOD PORTRAYS US BADLY. NICE TO MEET U???

Jk, I have a pretty solid outline. I’m just afraid I’m going to bore people. Also I want to bring in Sikhi-related snacks?? Like I’ve been googling “Khanda Shaped Cookies,” and “Sikh treats??” All to no avail. I would make some but A) Idk if you’re allowed to bring in homemade things, and B) this one time I pranked my brother by making him think I was giving him a glass of carnation milk, but really it was a glass of water and salt. And I feel like whatever I make would probably taste something like that.

ALSO

I have been so into South Asian high fashion lately.

Some of my favorite stuff:

Neeta Lulla

Neeta Lulla

Malasa

Obviously these things would cost roughly my first child. But it’s fun to window shop! Also, I realized what I like about high fashion things compared to…not-high fashion things? is that they’re kind of more understated. But I’ve discovered that I can make knockoffs by pairing dresses from Forever 21 and salwars I have laying around 😀

Anyways, I have to write a paper I have Microsoft Word open and it’s literally glowing like “why aren’t you writing me you procrastinating failure” so imma go. BUT I’LL TRY TO BE BACK SOON, OK!?

I love u

M

PS- Thoughts on the new theme? I love the concept but is it too cold? Ok bi

1984

Guys. I live in North Carolina, right? The most Panjabi thing here is…me. We RARELY get Panjabi movies down here on dvd. We don’t even have Disco Singh yet. BUT TOMORROW. GUESS WHO’S DRIVING (5 hours) TO GO SEE 1984…IN AN ACTUAL THEATER????

 

YA GIRL. YA GIRL AND HER MOM. :DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

 

That’s right. Diljit’s new movie 1984 is playing a few towns over, and me and my momma, who has become a huge Diljit fan, btw, are going to go see it. I can’t believe we’re actually able to see a Panjabi movie in theaters. AHHHHHHHHHH.

Okay, so real quick, 1984 is a film based on the true events of the Sikh genocide of the 1980s and 90s. Thousands of Sikhs were killed, robbed, and raped during this time, mainly at the hands of the Indian government. For the past 30 years, we’ve been silenced about it. At the time, India banned foreign journalists from entering the country, to prevent the rest of the world from seeing the atrocities India was committing. Even today, Sikhs are denied visas into India for speaking up about the genocide. Only recently has there been some aknowlegement of what happened to us at the time, while we have been reeling from it for decades. The fact that movies like this one are starting to come out is huge. It’s long past time for our story to be told.

So if you live in a random place like me, hope is not lost! If there’s a showing near me, there’s definetly a possiblity there’s one near you too. I encourage EVERYONE to go see it, Sikh or not, Panjabi or not, brown or not.

To see if it’s available near you:

http://www.fandango.com/punjab1984_174015/movieoverview

 

-M

Gandhi tho :/

Ya girl ain’t got a whole lot of love for “the father of India.”

 

 

I’ve had this post in mind for a long time, literally years, but I know a lot of people look up to Gandhi, and if you’re one of those people, reading this won’t be that fun of a time. But so much about Gandhi that really irks me is never talked about, and I feel like it really should be. So here goes.

For one thing, he was racist.

Which makes it particularly annoying when people compare him to Nelson Mandela.

Gandhi regularly used the term “Kaffirs” when referring to black people, which is essentially as disrespectful as using the n-word. Additionally, on the status of Indians in South Africa, he is quoted as saying,”the Indian is being dragged down to the position of the raw Kaffir(…)whose occupation is hunting and whose sole ambition is to collect a number of cattle to buy a wife, and then pass his life in indolence and nakedness.” Also, “We could understand not being classed with whites, but to be placed on the same level as the Natives seemed too much to put up with. Kaffirs are as a rule uncivilized — the convicts even more so. They are troublesome, very dirty and live like animals.”

…

…..

……..

so….yeah. There’s that.

And I know a lot of people society tends to look up to are nowhere near perfect, but for someone put on SUCH an incredibly high pedestal, we certainly don’t talk about how racist Gandhi was enough. Like, it’s not like he committed arson as a kid, or had a drug addiction, or anything like that. He had a deep-seated, inexpiable hatred of black people. This wasn’t a mistake he made, or anything in the realm of things that could be forgiven, you know? Like Michael Jackson. Did he get plastic surgery? Yeah. Did he get more than he admitted? It’s possible. But does that discredit everything he did? Not at all. But Gandhi is known for his advocacy of nonviolence, which implies an appreciation for life. And so his racism is in complete contradiction of what he stands for in society’s eyes.

 

 

 

And the second reason I don’t look up to Gandhi is because of his view of Sikhs.

 

If you look, you can find positive statements Gandhi made about Sikhs. However, many people of prominence during Gandhi’s time were making positive statements about Sikhs, because, like how Muslims were given Pakistan when the British left India, the Sikhs were very close to being given their own state, Khalistan. Seeing this, and fearing the loss of land, Indian officials spoke favorably of Sikhs, to convince them that they did not need Khalistan. Promises were made to Sikhs, and ultimately, we decided we did not need a Khalistan. However, after we turned down the offer and decided to stay in India, the promises made to us were broken. You can gather Gandhi’s true opinion of Sikhs in statements he made more privately–

 

For one thing, he tried to devalue the Sikh identity–

“I read your Granth Sahib. But I do not do so to please you. Nor shall I seek your permission to do so. But the Guru has not said anywhere that you must grow your beards, carry kirpans (swords) and so on”

It is very clear to Sikhs that we have been commanded to maintain our identity, which includes unshorn hair and carrying kirpans. Like, we have a whole holiday dedicated to the anniversary of the day that our prophet made this commandment. If Gandhi felt that we do so unnecessarily, fine. That’s not what bothers me so much. It’s his almost hostile tone in the above quote that really gets me, when he feels the need to state he read the Guru Granth Sahib Ji, but not to please Sikhs. Like why you gotta add that last part? C’mon. Gandhi has also been recorded as saying that he does not acknowledge Sikhism as a religion. Which, as a Sikh myself, is pretty insulting. The man who people refer to as the father of India did not acknowledge Sikhs. He would not have acknowledge me.

I think Sikhs in general don’t have a whole lot of love for Gandhi, given the above paragraph. Growing up, I was never taught about Gandhi by adults in my community. The only thing I ever heard about him was that he called Sikhism’s 10th prophet a mountain rat. I haven’t been able to find this quote, but I wouldn’t really be surprised if I did.

 

I did learn about Shaheed Bhagat Singh, though. He was an atheist who was born into a Sikh family. Like Gandhi, he was pro-independence, and he made contributions to the independence movement. He even fasted in protest of the British government, just like Gandhi did. But it seems no one remembers Shaheed Bhagat Singh, at least not to the extent that they remember Gandhi. Shaheed Bhagat Singh was eventually killed in his fight for independence, and yet he is not seen the way Gandhi is seen, not by any stretch of the imagination. Maybe it’s because he was not against the use of violence, the way Gandhi was. Or maybe it’s because of his family line linking him to Sikhism, and what people like Gandhi have done to make sure that people in this category are seen in a different light in India.

 

 

So…I didn’t write this post to offend anyone. I just wanted to offer a fuller picture of Gandhi’s beliefs to those who might not know about all of them. Whether or not this has changed your view of him, if you ever come across someone who does not appreciate Gandhi as much as most people seem to, perhaps you will have a little more understanding as to where he/she is coming from.

Thoughts?

-M

 

 

HELLO

Listen, it’s been a week. I’m sure it’s been some form of a week for you too. So let’s do something fun this post. Let’s just chat. No. Even Better. Let’s chaat.

Anyone? Anyone? (K DO ME A QUICK FAVOR AND PLS TYPE “ANYONE” AND SEE IF YOU SPELL IT “ANYWONE” BC I DID IT LIKE 5 TIMES.)

 

Speaking of chaat…I miss food in India. And I miss how often people eat in India. When we were there, skipping meals was totally out of the question. In fact it was more acceptable to have 2 dinners in one night than no dinner. And I’m a 2 dinner type of girl NOMSAYN.

 

 

Oooh has anyone seen Disco Singh?

 

 

 

 

 

For those who don’t know, its a Panjabi movie that was just released and it’s said to be REALLY good, as it has a super talented cast and crew. I can’t wait to watch it, but until then I will be patiently waiting. Here in America…in the Bible Belt. Yeah it might be a while.

 

OH YEAH AND ALSO

HAPPY VAISAKHI GURPURAB EVERYONE!

Vaisakhi is a festival marking the beginning of the harvest season in Northern areas of the Indian subcontinent, celebrated by many religions–

 

 

 

But for Sikhs it’s also a religious holiday, because on Vaisakhi of 1699, our tenth prophet, Guru Gobind Singh Ji, gave Sikhs their identity (uncut hair, karas, kirpans, etc.) and established the warrior-mentality that Sikhs would use to fight injustice and violations of human rights. Jusreign explains it pretty well–

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHvZeo057jc

 

ANYWAYS. Yeah. That’s about…all I got? Idk. Listen guys. I have a lot of stuff I want to post about. Like deep stuff you know. BUT I JUST DON’T KNOW. I DON’T KNOW HOW IT’S GON GO. But obviously I have to because the posts tend to be dull these days, because I’m not talking about what’s on my mind–which is always when the interesting posts happen. So okay. This is my promise to you. Next Monday, I’m going to talk about something big. Something that’s been irking me. I don’t know what it’ll be, but it’ll be good.

 

See you then?

-M 🙂

 

AM I ACTUALLY INDIAN THO?

( I accidentally published this earlier in the day before it was finished, my B.)

Anyways, hey guys. I’ve been wondering. Am I actually “Indian?”

Because I think the answer is no.

 

Yes, Voice of Reason, really.

 

Well then you might have some revisions to make there, M.

 

Revisions? What do you mean revi-

 

 

 

Oh. Right. I’ll fix that. 

 

Also, what the heck, M?! What do you mean you’re not Indian??

 

It’s actually not as crazy as it sounds, I promise. I’ve just kind of realized that nothing about me is actually Indian. Let me explain myself in three nice and organized main points.

*AHEM*

REASON 1

Technically, I’m not Indian. Like, in technical ways. 

Think about it. My nationality is American, because I’m a citizen of the United States.

And my ethnicity is Panjabi.

So even technically, nothing about me is actually Indian. It’s not my nationality, and it’s not my ethnic group. It’s no one’s ethnic group, really. “Indian” is a nationality. Panjabis who live in India are Panjabi by ethnicity and Indian by nationality, Panjabis who live in Pakistan are Panjabi and Pakistani the same way, and Panjabis who live in the U.S are Panjabi and American. I’m a Panjabi-American.

So there’s that.

ALSO

  Reason 2:

Culture Confusion

I’ve always been friends with the brown kids in my school, most of them of ethnicity originating in India (see what I did there). And while I was always able to be pretty tight with them, and we’re always able to have a laugh, I noticed pretty early on that, whenever we talked about our cultures, there was always some confusion. They wouldn’t know what I meant when I said there’s a new bottle of Rooh Afza in my house. I wouldn’t know what they meant when they said they had a Bharata Natyam class to get too. I noticed my friends were able to connect over their cultures in a way I wasn’t. In fact, even after knowing some of them for a while, they would ask me if I was Indian, or, lol, just ask me what I was. Not in a rude way at all–they were sincerely unsure, because I didn’t do any of the “Indian” things that they did. There were occasions where they labeled parts of my culture, like Bhangra, as strictly Pakistani, and not Indian. Which is fine. I love Pakistan and I love that my grandparents were born in such a beautiful place. And it’s true, a lot of the traditions and customs my family is familiar with–like Rooh Afza, for example–are familiar to Pakistanis as well. But my friends saying this  just kind of showed how unfamiliar my Panjabi culture was to theirs, that they did not consider it Indian.

And they were kind of right. Panjabi culture is different from that of a lot of India. We speak a language specific to our region,we eat unique foods, we have different traditions, and most Panjabis in the world are either Muslim or Sikh, not Hindu, like the majority of India (even though there are some Hindu-Panjabis).

I know that India is pretty diverse, and many regions have traditions and cultures that are pretty unique. But there are a couple of factors that make Panjabi culture even more different, I think. For one thing, more than half of the Panjab region is in Pakistan.

This has allowed our culture to have some Pakistani influences, even for those of us who don’t live in Pakistan.

Additionally, because most Panjabis in India are of a different religion than the rest of India, religion has had a different influence on our culture. For example, Panjabis are famous for many meat dishes, including some with beef. Because Sikhism doesn’t ban meat, at least not as explicitly as Hinduism, Panjabis have developed a unique cuisine to reflect this.

 

 

And lastly,

 

Reason 3:

Politics and Stuff

India has always oppressed Panjabis, it’s just a fact. Sikhs and Panjabis have always fought valiantly for India, and they continue to do so today:

And yet, today, the Indian government channels over half of Panjab’s water supply to other parts of the country–an act which is prohibited in the Indian constitution.

Also, 30 years ago,  the Indian government attempted to wipe out the Sikh population of India, killing and displacing over 50,000 Sikhs and Panjabis.

India still denies visas to Sikh refugees who fled to different countries during the genocide 30 years ago, and to those who speak out against the government’s actions against Sikhs.

Additionally, over 73.5% of Panjab’s youth are drug addicts–not just users, but addicts. The Indian government has barely acknowledged this tragic and strange statistic, nonetheless done anything about it.

Not to mention Bollywood, India’s major movie industy, which almost never fails to portray both Sikhs and Panjabis as unintelligent, drunk, and irrational. (There are quite a few good articles on this, so the link is just to the google search. You can take your pick from there.)

There’s also the fact that Mahatma Gandhi, who is hailed as the Father of India, refused to acknowledge Sikhism as a religion.

As I learned about them, all of these unfortunate facts kind of made it harder and harder for me to identify as an Indian. And I’ve learned that this is actually not uncommon. Some Sikhs, particularly after the Sikh genocide,  find it hard to even identify as Panjabi, nonetheless Indian. And not just the crazy rebellious youths such as myself. 

 

So…with these three reasons, I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m not really Indian in any way. The last reason is kind of the kicker for me. Even if the first two reasons were still there, I might not have a problem calling myself Indian if it weren’t for the last reason, which is the lack of respect and fair treatment Panjabis and Sikhs get in India. I’m not trying be dramatic or anything here, really. Like, am I going to start correcting people when they call me Indian from now on? I don’t really know. I just know that this feels right. ” Panjabi-American” feels so right. It’s what I am, you know? I listen to Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan while eating hot dogs. I go to Starbucks in my Patiala salwar kameezes. I’m a blend of these two cultures, and I think they’re really all I need to describe myself when it comes to the culture that has surrounded me my whole life.

Let me know your thoughts?

See you next week 🙂
-M

I’M HERE. I’M HERE WITH A POST. SNOW QAWAALIS ETC.

Day 21 of M’s absence. Blog takeover is almost complete. Last step remains: remove whale background. Why is it still–

VOICE OF REASON!! BUDDY!!

M! WHAT…WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?

 

What do you mean what am I doing here!? I’m back! We got the laptop fixed!

Oh…well, I meant…why HAVEN’T you been here?? I’ve…missed you!

 

Really?

Yeah…of course…why wouldn’t I. 

I don’t know, V, I’m sensing some sarcasm…

Sarcastic, who me? NO. *slams door*

…

……

…………

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…………

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…

…

 

It’s good to be back 🙂

We got a new keyboard for our laptop! 😀 We spilled cha on the old one, lol. Silly brown people. 

And oh! Happy belated Valentines Day!! I was bummed that I didn’t get to post the week before Valentines Day. Ever since the V-Day post last year I’ve been kind of nervous as to how I was going to live up to it this year, since so many people seemed to like it. But now I think not being able to post was actually a good thing HEAR ME OUT. It kind of made me realize that I shouldn’t try to outdo myself like that on the blog. I wrote that post because I had had the idea in my head for a super long time to talk about Panjabi love stories, and I just thought Valentines Day would be a good day to do it. I didn’t know it was going to become my most-loved post. And so I think I should just stick to that mindset, and write posts that I really want to write because I really want to write them. Is that gucci with everyone?

Alright, speaking of posts and whatnot, I don’t have anything planned right now lol. So let’s just talk! Everyone grab some cha. And keep it away from your keyboard.

It snowed so much in North Carolina where I am omg. And when it snows here we don’t know what to do. This was literally us this past week.  AND ALSO. It snowed in Panjab this week! I’ve always been under the impression that snow in Panjab is rare, but I’m starting to suspect it’s just not recorded officially every time that it happens. Like, in 2012 it snowed in Panjab and it got a lot of media coverage, with claims that it was the first snowfall in Panjab, India in decades. But I’ve been checking out some videos on Youtube, and it seems like people have been uploading videos of snow and hail in Panjab every year for a few years back, including this year, 2014:

And of course it snows in Kashmir quite a bit:

As well as Himachal Pradesh, which is part of the Panjab region, and used to be part of Panjab state as well:

*Sigh* Snow in India, man. I can’t imagine anything more beautiful. When it snows here I pretend like I’m in Kashmir. 

Alrighttttttttttt. What else is new. Hmmm. Oh okay omg I stumbled on this AMAZING song on Tumblr:

http://www.tumblr.com/search/heeriye+faqeeriye

IT’S SO GOOD. YES, IT’S IN PANJABI. BUT I FOUND AN ENGLISH TRANSLATION: http://zouve.com/punjabi/heeriye-faqeeriye-satinder-sartaaj-lyrics-english-traslation/

Some parts are lost in translation, of course, but I mean hey. Even if you don’t know Panjabi, you can still enjoy this flippin’ song. Play it. Play it now. And turn it up loud. Annnnd close your eyes. You. Are. Welcome.

It’s by Satinder Sartaaj, who’s a pretty big Panjabi singer right now. I’ve always known he was pretty off the chain, but after hearing this I looked him up a bit more and it turns out he’s studied music in college, and has a Ph. D in Sufi music! That’s so insane to me! Like I didn’t even know you could get a Ph.D in Sufi music!! Sufi music, by the way, is like a type of music that’s popular in South Asia and I think some Muslim countries outside of South Asia as well. I’ve been listening to Sufi music foreveeeer, thanks to my mom. It’s just such a beautiful form of music. When I think of Sufi singers, I think of a bunch of dudes, and these days some awesome ladies, sitting on the ground playing various instruments and singing with all their heart.

A Sartaaj example:

A classic example:

A bollywood-ified example if you fast forward to 3:10:

And a parody rap/hip-hop version 🙂

  So there ya go. Those were all qawaalis, which is the more romantic branch of Sufi music. The other types are mainly religious, and just as beautiful 🙂

So yeah. I guess that’s it, guys. Idk what else to talk about. Actually I kind of do. But it’s late and this post is already long….man, I feel like there are so many things I’ve been wanting to blog about that I *still* haven’t blogged about. I need to get on dis. .Anyways, you should comment things! Down there! Do it. Do it now. Do it please. Also follow me on twitter if you want, idk

https://twitter.com/emkayjay

 

Aight, well see you guys next week 🙂 I promise I will be less all over the place 🙂

-M

MAKEUP TIPS FOR THE BROWN FOLK

Kind of a departure from the norm, but I thought I’d mix it up a little! South Asia is my biggest passion, but, fun fact about me, makeup is actually pretty high on the list too! I’ve learned most of what I know from Michelle Phan, but sometimes I find the things that work on her don’t work the same way on me, color-wise. I’ve also found that there are things that I LOVE doing that seem to work even better because of my color!  I share them wit u now. 

First of all, I want to make clear that there is a HUGE  range of skin tones desi people can have.

They can be dark and beautiful.

They can be light and beautiful.

And they can be anywhere in between. And beautiful.

Our skin can be darkest brown or whitest white. We can be born with black hair or blonde. Brown eyes or blue. Our physical features don’t define whether or not we’re brown. Trust me, I’ve seen everything I just listed on a brown person, naturally.

Okay, that kind of got off topic. But it’s just a pet peeve of mine when people are like “Oh, you don’t look Indian.” We don’t have to fit into some kind of mold to be classified as our ethnicities.

Okay sorry. Basically what I’m trying to get at here is that these tips might not work perfectly for ALL brown folk…but imma do my best! These are things that I’ve found have worked for me. And I would define my self as Sonam Kapoor-colored, in terms of skin, hair, and eyes:

If you’re Kareena-colored of Mindy-colored, you can still try them out, they could work for you too!

1) FILL IN YOUR EYEBROWS.

Okay. I have naturally thick eyebrows, and I don’t thread/wax/pluck them because of my religious beliefs. So I’m never in danger of having overly plucked eyebrows, but I’ve found that, just because they’re naturally thick, it doesn’t mean they don’t benefit from some filling in! I just make sure not to use something too dark to do so. I use something around this color:

And it just kind of fills in all the gaps! Some of my eyebrow idols include…

Olivia Culpo

Lily Collins

Kajol (obviously)

Lucy Hale

Lourdes Leon

And, of course, Brooke Shields. The Goddess of Eyebrows.

2) DARK LIPS

I was always under the impression that dark lips are a risky move. But once I actually tried it out for myself, I found that they’re actually pretty easy to pull off on my skin color. I soon realized that dark lips look amazing on pretty much every person of color.

(^^I think she’s technically white but still)

3) COLORED EYELINER/SHADOW

I’ve found it really pops! Especially turquoise!

4) WINGED LINER

We as brown people were made to rock winged liner.

And yeah! Man…I feel like I had more tips in mind when I was planning this post…which now escape me…I’m probably going to remember them all in a couple of days but I won’t be able to post them because I’ll be in India. Gosh dang it. Oh wait, okay I got it. I’ll just share them with you telepathically when I remember them. Keep your brainwaves loose.

Let me know if you have any tips, whatever your skin color is! 🙂

-M

The Moonlit Market

In Old Delhi, there is a market. In this market, anything can happen.

Cricket victories can be celebrated.

Muslim kids and Hindu kids can be BFFs.

Shaadis are finalized!

Rich people get afraid for their safety!

Bhangra happens in the middle of the street!

Shah Rukh Khan can pass through and enjoy the dancing!

And trip!

Rich people can realize they were right to be afraid!

More Bhangra!

Partays!!

And if you run fast enough…

You can suddenly be in Egypt.

M…you know that’s all from Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham, right?

Yeah, so?

That movie is fictional…

Umm no, Voice of Reason. Kabhi Khushi Khabhi Gham is for real.

It’s really no–

…I think we know who won here.

Along with everything, Chandni Chowk is cool for a bunch of other reasons!

First of all, it means “Moonlit Market.” I mean if that’s not a cool enough meaning, it’s literally a rhetorical device as well. If I ever made a market, I would be lucky if it even had a name, much less a name that is an alliteration! Like really! Does it not sound like something out of Aladdin??

Pretty much Chandni Chowk

And okay. Get this. It was established in 1650. And it’s still functioning! That’s amazing! It’s like antique that still works perfectly! Emperor Shahjahan’s daughter, Princess Jahanara, designed it.

I think one of my favorite things about Chandni Chowk is the places of worship in it. It has masjids (mosques), Hindu temples/mandirs (are temples and mandirs the same thing? I’m not sure…), a church, and a gurdwara. So Muslims, Hindus, Christians, and Sikhs all come to Chandni Chowk to pray ❤

Sunehri Masjid (Mosque)

Sunehri Masjid

Fatehpuri Masjid

Sri Digambar Jain Lal Mandir

Gauri Shankar Mandir

Christian Central Church

Gurdwara Sis Ganj 

Gurdwara Sis Ganj is actually one of the gurdwaras I’ll be visiting while in India. I think I mentioned this before, but it is where our 9th prophet was beheaded. I can’t believe I’m actually going to be at that place…

I don’t know how keen my grandparents will be on going to the shopping area of Chandni Chowk, but hopefully I’ll be able to convince someone to take me there! We’re going to be, like, right there. How can we not?! If no one wants to take me…I might have to slip away for a liiiiiiiiiitlee excursion when no one’s looking……..jk…….not really………jk………..or am i who knows

Alright guys, that’s all I got this week. In about 30 hours, imma be on a plane on my way to the mother land. It’s actually happening you guys. 🙂 Posts  will still drop on time during the coming Mondays, but I won’t be able to approve comments, unless I have wifi wherever I am. Also, just want to say that writing on here has been such a big part of me falling in love with South Asia. All of your questions and comments and likes and views have made it that more special. I’m so glad I’m going to get to share my first visit with you guys 🙂

Till next time,

M 🙂

PREPARE YOURSELF

(I apologize for the probable abundance of grammar and spelling mistakes and overall rachetness of this post. It is late and I am terrible.)

T-minus 9 DAYS until your girl’s taking off! And while I’m going to have posts while I’m gone, they mighttttttttt be on the slightly shorter side. Maybe. I don’t really know. 

😀

BUT in case they are, fear not. Imma hook you guys up. The following are some of my FAVORITE online desi Youtubers, bloggers,  etc., that are always there to fill my heart with joy and brownness. So if you get lonely while I’m gone, maybe you can check them out! Everything is all linked up and stuff, for your clicking pleasure 🙂

*AND NO, I AM NOT JUST DOING THIS BECAUSE I DIDN’T PLAN A POST THIS WEEK. I DON’T CARE WHAT VOICE OF REASON TOLD YOU…*

1) JUSREIGN

Okay if you’re Punjabi, you probably already know him. But if you’re not, or if you are and you haven’t checked him out, do so! He’s a hilarious Youtuber who constantly holds it down for the Punjabi/Sikh communtiy. His vlog channel is great as well. 

2) SUPERWOMAN

Again, I feel silly introducing her, because she’s so well known already. Another great youtuber, also holding it down. Plus she got that girlllll power! Oh, and she has a vlog channel too!

3) BROWNGIRLBLOGGIN

A Brief Anecdote:

For a long time I read her blog (and loved it every time I did) in silence. Then one day I finally plucked up the courage to comment, and I linked her here as well. I was kind of like OMG WHAT DID YOU JUST DO THAT FOR SHE’S GOING TO COME HERE NOW AND READ THE BLOG AND LAUGH AT ITS WEAKNESS AND MY NAIVETY. OR WORSE, SHE WON’T. But I was wrong. She came to the blog and commented, and even tweeted me, and it was the greatest thing.  :)))

ANYWAYS. BGB is a hilarious blogger. Definitely go check out her stuff, and bring a box off tissues, because you will laugh so hard you WILL cry. Also, sometimes you will cry actual emotional tears. Because it gets deep sometimes. 

4) BOLLYWOOD RECAPS

I think I told you guys about this blog before. It’s genius. The name kind of explains it all: it’s got a bunch of recaps of your fave Bollywood movies, done in a hilarious way. It’s even enjoyable if you haven’t seen the movies!

 

5) HUMANS OF KARACHI

Source: Humans of Karachi

Basically, this is part of a project that photographs average citizens of various cities across the world. In my search for South Asian cities in the project, Karachi, Pakistan, is the only one I’ve really come across so far. It’s soooo interesting and beautiful. You get a picture of a person, and, if you’re lucky, a bit of his/her story. One of my favorite things about Humans of Karachi is that it shows people from all walks of life. There are even some Sikhs and Hindus photographed!

6) KAURISTA

Another one you might know already, but it’s awesome nonetheless. Kaurista has kind of a polished blog/online magazine vibe, and it discusses issues brown people often face and whatnot. 

7) AYESHA AROUND THE WORLD

One of my Punjabi sisters BRUUUUUUUAH friends traveled a bunch of places in Europe this past summer and blogged about it! Okay this isn’t really desi…but she’s desi! Also, she went to Turkey, so almost desi? Yes? The Turkey posts were my fave 🙂

Okay, and last but not least…

8) Zayn Malik

The ultimate desi.

No but all jokes aside, HE WORE. AN UCHKIN. GUYS. ZAYN WORE AN UCHKIN THIS PAST WEEK AND IT WAS BEAUTIFUL. I KIND OF…SCREENSHOTTED IT…AND…EDITED IT…AND I MADE IT LOOK REALLY NICE, BUT MY PHONE IS IN THE CAR AND IT’S COLD OUTSIDE AND IT’S OUT OF BATTERY SO I CAN’T SHOW YOU. BUT I WILL SHOW YOU SOON. IT’S BEAUTIFUL. 

Ahem….I’m sorry, I got a little dizzy there, my bad.

M, what are you talking about?

I don’t know voice of reason. I feel like I totally just blacked out!

M…did you take your pills today?

What pills?

…*whispers* your fangirl pills!

OH! Oh gosh, I didn’t. Wait…did I just…fangirl?

…mhmm.

In front of them???

It’s okay, M. It’s okay. 

I’m sorry guys. I’ve been meaning to get my little…err…problem under control. But it doesn’t seem to be working. 

Have a great week! 🙂

-M

THESE ARE THINGS I’M PLANNING ON DOING WHEN I GO TO INDIA

And imma need those of you who have been to India to tell me whether or not these are terrible, terrible ideas. 

1) Speak Punjabi.

Like okay. My Punjabi isn’t the best, right? I mean I can have a conversation…but every now and then I….I say something in Spanish, okay? Idk why! It’s like I think brains store 2nd languages in the same compartment or something and therefore get them confused sometimes. I’ll be like “Oh Mummi, bohot frio hai aaj.” And so I’m afraid that when I’m trying to seem like a born-and-raised Indian in shops and stuff, I’ll be haggling, and start saying prices in Spanish. If nothing else, I will confuse the poor shopkeeper, if not give away my Amreekan-ness. But I don’t want to speak in English! I want to blendddddd. BLENNDDDDDD. 

 

2) Bump into my soulmate and have a song-sequence. 

 

This one is not up for debate, please proceed to number 3. 

 

3) Wear only salwar kameezes. 

 

I’m going to be there in the winter, so it’s not like I’m going to be hot (North India gets pretty cold in the winter. In fact, in Kashmir, it gets sooo cold that they have these self-heater situations that are like baskets with burning coals in them.

Source: Tribune Pakistan

They wear them under their shirts, I think. Dangerous? Maybe. Effective? Fo sho. 

). And I do get that a lot of kids my age in India wear jeans and t-shirts, so it’s not so much of a fitting in thing. But I’m finding that, out of everything, salwar kameezes, particularly Patiala salwars, are what I’m most comfortable in and feel the best in. I’ve been thinking about trying to make them my regular attire, so what better place to start than India?

4) Visit Wagah Border.

 

Wagah Border is one of the borders between India and Pakistan. At the end of each day there’s a border closing ceremony (you can read more about it HERE), and so there’s that. But the main reason I would want to go to Wagah would be to see Pakistan, even if it’s just a glimpse. As some of you may know, so much of my family history took place on the land that is now Pakistan, from Punjab to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Pakistan is the playgrounds my grandparents played on. It’s where they took their first steps, and spoke their first words. Pakistan is the homes and friends they left behind. I’m so thrilled to be able to see India this winter, but Pakistan is just as important to me. Hopefully one day I can visit there too, but for now, it would be amazing to just see it. (Speaking of Pakistan, have you guys seen this video? #tears

)

 

Speaking of tears…

5) Visit the Taj Mahal and not leave until I start crying from it’s beauty. 

Which shouldn’t take long. 

 

6) Go to Hamandar Sahib and…explore 😀

Listen. Obviously Harmandar Sahib is beautiful, right? But for some reason, I never even thought about the upper floor(s?) until recently. It’s like, there’s more?! WHAT’S IT LIKE UP THERE? IS IT GOLD? IS IT PEACEFUL AND GOLD?

Look at this girl! She made it to the upper floor!

Source: travelinda123

It looks gold and peaceful. 

A week or two ago I had yet another dream I was in Amritsar and I was in Harmandar Sahib and I went to the upper floor and it was comprised of a bunch of pink girly bedrooms like what even.

 

So is this a thing? Can people go to the upper floors in the Golden Temple? Also, will we be able to sit and listen to kirtan, or is it more like a quick in-and-out thing? Idek. 

 

 

Okay, so there they are. These are the things I want to do. What do you think? Good? Bad? Completely impossible? TELL ME. TELL ME SO I KNOW. 

 

I hope you have an AWESOME week! Remember that you are da bomb. You are Kanye West. 

M