A housemate of mine (and ardent hookah smoker) did his senior thesis on this -- and I think published it? -- and found the same thing. He felt like a total tool because folks had been saying it was "safer than cigarettes" for years. Wake up and smell the aloo gobi, people!

Thanks, ANNA :)

I dont know about that. There was a time when a man could repose his beefy rump on a suitably worn oak chair in a dingy dive in the middle of the day and pluck the dead fly off the froth on his drink before draining it down to where the cook's phlegm had congealed at the bottom of the glass. And then the smoking ban hit Toronto, and overnight, one's favorite haunt is converted to a fucksia salon with matching decor and hordes of fresh looking women with beefy calves trotting their youngsters in various stages of conception through the doors; which would all be ok, except that the smell of fresh feces is turning me from this freshly ground colombian dark with a hint of malt and a dash of vanilla. Cheque please.

O! Bring back the hookah!
And spare us this day from the ripe KaKa.

this is definitely one of those, "no shit, sherlock!" moments. Water, to the best of my knowledge, is not a total carcinogen filter. The hookah simply facilitates smoking by cooling it down--somewhat like the difference between a warm shot of Aristokrat rum and a chilled tumbler of Cuba's finest.

this 'purified by water' myth is alive and well in circles other than the shisha-smoking crowd too.

That hacking cough ain’t attractive, y’all.

Surely...but the dashing smoker's pose...you know, arms akimbo, cancer stick dangling from the corner of the mouth, making slow movements with it to illustrate a point.

I couldn't even begin to count the girls I've known who putatively DETEST smoking (and expresses this sentiment to the world and mummydaddy) but will tolerate a boyfriend that does.

but will tolerate a boyfriend that does.

Hmm...I smoke sometimes but I can't stand it when my boyfriend smokes...don't like to kiss someone with smoky breath. Don't even tell me that sounds hypocritical --- that's just how I am.

I never understood the sheesha craze. Apparently it is the cool thing among desi students. Do people get a high from it? Does it taste any good? Do people do it because it is addictive?

After months of offers from friends I finally accepted to go to one of these places after exams, only because the menu sounds delightful. Which is a good thing because I think the new rules in London say, any area where food is being served is a no smoking area. I think. Correct me if I am wrong, but a whole heap of new rules are starting in July. Mmmmm clean air!!

I wish you wouldn't use the word "Kundi" , it makes me feel plain dirty!

I really am not a hookah smoker but i got one as its a great excuse to get my date back to my place.."hey We should go back to my place, watch Office Space and smoke my hookah" She needs an excuse to come back to your place (without feeling slutty) and you are giving her one. Never fails people!

actually, you do get a high from it. too much of a high, in fact. i stopped my hookah smoking because i started to get really dizzy from it - it didn't feel good and a sure sign that it was not good for me. but i think a lot of people smoke hookah because of the social aspect -when i was studying in london, whenever were bored, we would head over to the lebanese neighbourhood for shawarmas, and then hang out for hours smoking hookah, drinking mint tea, and talking politics. even though i own a hookah, i never use it on my own. but hookah does actually taste good - the flavours make a huge difference, as compared to cigarettes.

You're dizzy, my friend, because you're being asphyxiated! (not sure if I used that word correctly; maybe we should ask the spelling bee folks on the Ask a Desi thread?)

I feel like flavored hookah is like flavored tobacco/cigarettes/liquor. It's supposed to make something unappetizing seem more tasty and less unappetizing.

PG, I feel you. Not into kissing someone who tastes like an ashtray.

She needs an excuse to come back to your place (without feeling slutty)

does the excuse really make a difference in her 'sluttiness'? i.e. she would be/feel like a slut if she was more open in her desire to hook up?

Smoke out of a vaporizer!

camille, i agree on the asphyxiation - but i have vertigo, which is really where the dizziness comes in for me, since none of my friends feel like that when they hookah.

"hey We should go back to my place, watch Office Space and smoke my hookah"

Smoke my hookah? Is that some kind of slang for a BJ? "Hey sweet thing, you wanna see my hookah? Maybe if you're really naughty daddy will let you smoke it."

Hookah? I don't even know 'er!

Stop Your Hooking

with all due respect anna, if someone wants to do a hooker, its between them and the hooker. what business do you...oh hookah. never mind.

:D

speaking of word plays...once upon a time, a chick who lives in sutton place nyc asked me to meet her at a restaurant near her place, which happens to be close the strip club scores.

chick: "have you been to the tapas place near my pad?"
manju" "Topless place?!"
chick: yeah, they have hookahs there.
manju: no way. my friends girlfriend works there, they don't do that.
chick: i just had one the other night
manju: what!!!???

Don't even tell me that sounds hypocritical --- that's just how I am.

It doesn't sound it. It is it.

in all honesty, if u were to smoke hookah or smoke anything for that matter, wouldn't u might as well smoke weed? not that i'm promoting the use of cannabis for purposes of entertainment than the strictly enforced medicinal usage, but if one were to hurt ones' body, one might as well hurt ones' brain and get some fun time in lala-land made from white chocolate w/ Reddi whip as clouds that come down and sweeten the ever so sweet chocolatey goods that float amongst the milk chocolate river. this is IF One is craving chocolate... undoubtedly who isn't? :D

I think it's a good thing that people are aware no smoking is safe smoking (I sound like some ad campaign from the 80's), but hookah is and always has been more about the culture aspect. Mind you, here in Jersey, the desi crowd only comes out after 9pm on weekend nights. But oh, when they do... let me say #1) Every boy (cause they certainly aren't men coming out) has to have his CD that he wants played with the latest in hardcore rap approved on Hot 97, #2) all the girls show up in outfits that you just KNOW they never left the house wearing and #3) for some reason, there is a ridiculous amoung of picture taking, especially with the smoke blowing around.

That said, it's a wonderful experience and a great way to get into Arab culture IF you go to the right places, not the fancy $20/ bowl joints like Fire and Ice who suck anyways. If you enjoy it, it's worthwhile as long as you know that it's not the "safe alternative" to smoking anything else.

Sometimes it's so much nicer to throw common sense to the wind and smoke a nice little Parliament. Just ask Regina Spektor.

Now hookahs are silly. I never could tell the difference between coconut and peach "flavors."

Regina Spektor? You hipsters are making smoking less cool for the rest of us...

An interesting out of place story: One late night at the University electrical engineering computer lab I took break from my programming assignment that I had procrastinated on to read SM. This computer lab is arguably the brownest spot on campus; Tamil is second only to C++ as the major language in this room. In a moment of caffeine induced enlightenment, I stand up and realize that all desis (ABCD and FOB alike) were reading the same thing I was...

i love shisha. i never figured that it was as good for you as people say, but i also relegated myself to the fact that it was only a once in a while thing. i own a shisha pipe as well, but i rarely use it anymore.

what is more interesting to me is the level of addiction. i don't really find myself fiending for a pull from a hookah pipe the day after i visit my local shisha spot.

Kyrial,
so true about jersey boys and girls.

That said, it's a wonderful experience and a great way to get into Arab culture IF you go to the right places, not the fancy $20/ bowl joints like Fire and Ice who suck anyways. If you enjoy it, it's worthwhile as long as you know that it's not the "safe alternative" to smoking anything else.

Kyrial and Jeet,

Are you talking about Fire and Ice in Fords, NJ? That place has always looked incredibly sketchtastic from the outside.

I love prince cafe..Chicken makhani and naan at 3am is orgasmic..ooh im guilty at looking(not gawking) at cute desi chicks at 3 am when i am drunk and trying to sober up..i dont think thats wrong..For a boy from KOP..im just amazed everytime i see so many desi's in one place...did i mention cute indian chicks..saavy DC desi..it rhymes ;-)

OK I have to say that in the past couple of years practically ALL my desi friends have gotten into smoking hookah in the Middle East & in Canada as well. They blatantly post up pics of the act too! Oh look at us we're so cool! Crazy people. And the thought that runs through my head: Isn't that just as bad smoking cigarettes? Nice post, Anna. I am going to foward this to all my hookah smoking friends!

its on Fords ave, route 1, is that Fords or Edison? I am not sure

Anna: Excellent Post. I smoked pipe for twenty years and have given up for the last 10 years or so. I baught a gorgeous antique Hookah from Ahmedabad back in Seventies, which just sits in our Living room - never used. Filtering of bad chemicals, as someone has already said is a myth. Last December when I went to Ahmedabad, Yo Mom, my younger son and his wife were sitting in a restaurant - walking distance from our new vacation home - place called "MOCHA". To our amazement they were offering "HOOKAH" whomever asked. For the first time in my life I saw young college boys and girls smoking HOOKAH. How sad!! Looking fashionable, hip and blindly imitating West with the severe risk of health, is not what I thought "India Shining" meant. Cigarettes, cigar, pipe, chillam, chiroot, hookah - in short Tobacco in any form - more so chewing tobacco - will certainly shorten lifespan. Thanks for the post

For the first time in my life I saw young college boys and girls smoking HOOKAH. How sad!! Looking fashionable, hip and blindly imitating West with the severe risk of health, is not what I thought "India Shining" meant. Cigarettes, cigar, pipe, chillam, chiroot, hookah - in short Tobacco in any form - more so chewing tobacco - will certainly shorten lifespan. Thanks for the post

how is hoookah imitating the west. isnt hookah an eastern thing?

Does anyone know if there are any stats or studies on the correlation of hookah and the unnaturally large amount of throat and lung cancer in India?

PiD- USA: DUH ! Indeed Hookah is probably Midlle-Eastern??. What I meant was I saw adults or aged folks smoking Hookah in India. Women smoking Hookahs is very "CHIC" in some metroplitan (such as LA, SF or NY, Chicago, etc..)area restaurants. I gather from your comments on other threads that you were born and/or raised in India- just like I was. Honestly, did you ever see "urban" college girls smoking hookahs (in private or public) since recently ?

PiD in USA: I meant "until" - not "since".

For the first time in my life I saw young college boys and girls smoking HOOKAH. How sad!! Looking fashionable, hip and blindly imitating West with the severe risk of health, is not what I thought "India Shining" meant. Cigarettes, cigar, pipe, chillam, chiroot, hookah - in short Tobacco in any form - more so chewing tobacco - will certainly shorten lifespan. Thanks for the post

Yeah in Indian villages I've seen alot of old men and women smoking from hookah. However, i never saw "educated", urban or semi-urban young or old men and women doing that. But I do see urban and semi urban young men smoking bidis or cigarettes in India. I've not yet seen urban or semi-urban young or old women smoking bidis or cigarettes in India. I'm sure lots in Bombay do though.

Once on a train in India a young Israeli woman started smoking a cigarette on the train and a middle aged small town Indian man asked me what her "dharma" was. I said "jew". He asked what is a jew and isn't it against her dharma for women to smoke? I asked him to show me any sloka from a Hindu dharma-shastra that says it's against Hindu dharma for women to smoke cigarettes.

PiD- USA: DUH ! Indeed Hookah is probably Midlle-Eastern??. What I meant was I saw adults or aged folks smoking Hookah in India. Women smoking Hookahs is very "CHIC" in some metroplitan (such as LA, SF or NY, Chicago, etc..)area restaurants. I gather from your comments on other threads that you were born and/or raised in India- just like I was. Honestly, did you ever see "urban" college girls smoking hookahs (in private or public) since recently ?

hookah

according to this is was originally indian...

I gather from your comments on other threads that you were born and/or raised in India- just like I was.

gathered wrong. grew up in upstate ny. ive only recently seen people smoke hookah here in ny. seems to be wanna-be hip young college students. mixed rate. people look at me like im some kind of old man when i say i dont touch the stuff. people act like "hookah" is somehow "not smoking". "i dont smoke. i just do hookah". I take that comment as the same as when people say "i dont drink. i just drink once a week". sounds crazy to me.

unnaturally large amount of throat and lung cancer in India?

really? I didn't know that.

Smoking is so terrible and I realize when I smoke it's stupid...and sometimes when I remind myself of the stupidity of it, it helps me not light up.

I'm 33 and now smoking seems so much out vogue...I remember clearly being in college and everyone smoked then... everyone. And of course there weren't any laws banning smoking.

HOOKAH. How sad!! Looking fashionable, hip and blindly imitating West with the severe risk of health, is not what I thought "India Shining" meant. Cigarettes, cigar, pipe, chillam, chiroot, hookah - in short Tobacco in any form - more so chewing tobacco - will certainly shorten lifespan. Thanks for the post

how is hoookah imitating the west. isnt hookah an eastern thing?

When I read this I took it to mean: that youth taking up smoking, going out, drinking..is imitating Western youth. Maybe "going out", smoking and boy/girl socializing wasn't the norm for Indian teenagers or college students - I know it wasn't from the area my family is from in Kerala. I think hookahs were mostly relegated to a home activity and mostly for men.

how is hoookah imitating the west. isnt hookah an eastern thing?

What Yo Dad meant is quite simple, unless one refuses to understand?

Hookah in India uptil recently was not a "urban, social, co-ed" activity, as seen in West. You see a lot of people smoking hookah - man, and woman, in rural areas, india's equivalent of inner cities, muslim neighborhoods but they tend to be older. Hookah as a urban thing was totally absent, sans once in a blue moon.

Often, older women smoke hookah in villages and muslim townships when they are slightly older as a public display of their clout, and independence - within their extended family.

So the conclusion is that hookah is Eastern but the way the West does it is what the youth in India are turning onto, not the way the old villagers in their country do it. Same shit, different toilet.

When I read this I took it to mean: that youth taking up smoking, going out, drinking..is imitating Western youth. Maybe "going out", smoking and boy/girl socializing wasn't the norm for Indian teenagers or college students - I know it wasn't from the area my family is from in Kerala. I think hookahs were mostly relegated to a home activity and mostly for men.

Are smoking rates higher in india, the US, or Europe? would the throat canccer prevalence in india be linked to smoking cigaretes/bidis or is it hookah. which is more popular? could it be genetic? do non smoker indians get a lot of throat cancer? do indians abroad get a lot of throat cancer? there are a lot of ways that could go.

would the throat canccer prevalence in india be linked to smoking cigaretes/bidis or is it hookah. which is more popular?

It is the use of hookahs by truck drivers. A recent study suggested this strongly.

This is also why Shilpa Shetty stopped with kissing Richard Gere.

Often, older women smoke hookah in villages and muslim townships when they are slightly older as a public display of their clout, and independence - within their extended family.

cool. i didnt know that hookah was an old man thing. thx.

KT: Thanks. You desribed very nicely - what I was trying to say.

would the throat canccer prevalence in india be linked to smoking cigaretes/bidis or is it hookah. which is more popular?

Oral/throat cancer in India is much more prevalent, because of chew (and the combined consumption of chew with betel leaves, and all the stuff they put on betel leaves in India).

When I read this I took it to mean: that youth taking up smoking, going out, drinking..is imitating Western youth. Maybe "going out", smoking and boy/girl socializing wasn't the norm for Indian teenagers or college students - I know it wasn't from the area my family is from in Kerala. I think hookahs were mostly relegated to a home activity and mostly for men.

Are smoking rates higher in india, the US, or Europe? would the throat canccer prevalence in india be linked to smoking cigaretes/bidis or is it hookah. which is more popular? could it be genetic? do non smoker indians get a lot of throat cancer? do indians abroad get a lot of throat cancer? there are a lot of ways that could go

huh? I'm not following your train of thought. The paragraph of mine that you quoted was a possibility to this question someone asked - "how is hoookah imitating the west. isnt hookah an eastern thing?"

That question is explained better by PG and Kush Tandon by the way.

Oral/throat cancer in India is much more prevalent, because of chew (and the combined consumption of chew with betel leaves, and all the stuff they put on betel leaves in India).

that makes a lot of sense. i rmeember everyone and their mom chewing that stuff. even the older crowd in the US is into it. i also remember something of a controvercy that pan paraag has some kind of carcinogen in it. not sure if thats true though.

huh? I'm not following your train of thought. The paragraph of mine that you quoted was a possibility to this question someone asked - "how is hoookah imitating the west. isnt hookah an eastern thing?"

oops. wrong paragraph quoted. was supposed to quote.

Does anyone know if there are any stats or studies on the correlation of hookah and the unnaturally large amount of throat and lung cancer in India?

Are smoking rates higher in india, the US, or Europe? would the throat canccer prevalence in india be linked to smoking cigaretes/bidis or is it hookah. which is more popular? could it be genetic? do non smoker indians get a lot of throat cancer? do indians abroad get a lot of throat cancer? there are a lot of ways that could go.

All really good points. This was what I've found so far, but it doesn't address all of those issues.

http://www.thehindu.com/2005/01/30/stories/2005013000961100.htm

"Similarly, the world's highest incidence of cancer associated with tobacco was found to be in the districts of central, south, and northeast India."

Jeet,

Yeah, it's in Fords/ Woodbridge (I forget the actual township addy)... I usually stick a little closer to home and go up to Edison for my nightly indulgence. As long as you're out by around 8:30 or so, it's usually not crowded and you can relax, play cards, backgammon, whatever. If it's too late, I'd all the more rather stick at home and smoke than be in the crowd that shows up.

I wonder how caste plays into hookah smoking in India? Do Tam Brahms do it?

I wonder how caste plays into hookah smoking in India? Do Tam Brahms do it?

i'm sure even the tam brahms enjoy a hot smoking hooker every now and then

I wonder how caste plays into hookah smoking in India? Do Tam Brahms do it?

PG,
No Tambrams do not do it.
The Tambram caste strictly prohibits oral ingestion of tobacco.Other prohibitions in the Tambram caste are:
- Dating
- Spaghetti straps
- Any profession besides law, engineering, medicine and astro-physics
- Rock music. Only classical Indian music is allowed( prefrably Carnatic music only)
- Watching any film star on screen besides Kamal Hassan, Hema Malini and
- Shanghai silk - only kanjeevaram will do
- California wine

You are welcome

PG, No Tambrams do not do it. The Tambram caste strictly prohibits oral ingestion of tobacco.Other prohibitions in the Tambram caste are: - Dating - Spaghetti straps - Any profession besides law, engineering, medicine and astro-physics - Rock music. Only classical Indian music is allowed( prefrably Carnatic music only) - Watching any film star on screen besides Kamal Hassan, Hema Malini and - Shanghai silk - only kanjeevaram will do - California wine

You are welcome

Don't forget no sex or even cuddling while wifey is menstruating.

Runa @ 51:

LOL.

We actually have a couple of hookah bars in NorCal, I know they're probably everywhere, but I thought it was interesting how this ancient (unhealthy, disgusting, etc.) Indian tradition is being commercialized here in the US, but then (according to Yo Dad) Indian youth are only interested in hookah when they realize that western youth are doing it. *Sigh*

We actually have a couple of hookah bars in NorCal, I know they're probably everywhere, but I thought it was interesting how this ancient (unhealthy, disgusting, etc.) Indian tradition is being commercialized here in the US, but then (according to Yo Dad) Indian youth are only interested in hookah when they realize that western youth are doing it. *Sigh*

Same reason why various publications of the illustrated Kama Sutra is regaining popularity in the bookstores of New Delhi.

What comes around goes around --- the world.

How dangerous is this tobacco?

This is not true im 14 and i live in russia i smoke hookah at least 3-4 times a week i prepare it my self at home hookah smoke is diffrent then ciggaret smoke you inhale ciggaretts but hookah u just hold the moke in your mouth and let it go...so it cant be as bad as smokeing its only bad if you inhale it most hookah smokers dont