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September 17, 2007

The Caption Game: "Ini Kamoze"-EditionCaption This

Here Comes the Hotstepper.jpg If it is Monday, then it is time to segue back in to Sepia timepassing gently. After all, you’ve had quite the weekend, I’m sure. Exercise your commenting skillz by playing the caption game! Don’t you know that working out without a proper warm-up isn’t wise? ;)

Many thanks to Paul, who guaranteed we’d be able to play today by sending in this tip (“a great candidate for a caption contest”); if any of you spot similarly interesting, “Brown” photographs, pass them along! This picture accompanied an article, some of which is available after the jump.

So, just what is going on here? I’m sure that a few of you already know (and may have witnessed the spectacle yourselves!), but if you don’t recognize the hotstepping, here’s the relatively-somber caption the L.A. Times gave this image:

A Pakistani guard, left, and an Indian counterpart march during a nightly border-closing ceremony. It’s an elaborate, almost comical, show of martial bravado and chest-puffing that has gone on for nearly 60 years. [LAT]

Not sure how to play? Peep these previous editions of captioning fun: Ondhu, Eradu, Mooru, Naal’ku, Aydhu, Aaru, EyLu

WAGAH CROSSING, INDIA-PAKISTAN BORDER — If nations rose and fell according to their camp quotient and funny hats, then these rivals would still be locked in a total stalemate.

Who doesn’t love CAMP!

Most every evening for nearly 60 years, a peculiar ritual has unfolded here on what has been one of the world’s hottest borders. As twilight approaches and the gates are about to close between India and Pakistan, the guards on either side face off in an elaborate show of martial bravado and chest-puffing that nonetheless includes that most basic of fraternal gestures: the handshake.
Hundreds of spectators from both countries cheer as their men in uniform strut, goose-step and stamp their feet like impatient bulls. Individual guards on either side break ranks and power-walk toward one another as if to collide head-on, but stop just short of the line dividing their homelands and glower fiercely through their mustaches.

I’m rather anti-facial hair, which makes me a bad Malayalee, but I must say, the final five words of that quote almost make me appreciate a good meesha. ;)

Patriotic songs boom through loudspeakers as the national flags are lowered at exactly the same speed and the gates finally swing shut.

Would that the craptastic filmi dances one has to sit through at every single “community” event were as well-coordinated. If you want to imitate Bollywood, do it properly and don’t be THAT girl who’s constantly two beats behind. Especially during the turns or the dramatic sinking to the floor. It looks awful. Take a lesson from the glowering moustaches, ladkis.

The tightly choreographed ceremony is part colonial pomp, part macho posturing and part Monty Python’s Ministry of Silly Walks. The rowdy tourist crowds eat it up.

If you ask me, there isn’t enough Monty Python in the world. Jai Hind! Er…and…Pakistan.

“Everything was just perfect,” Rajat Kalia, an electrical engineer who lives in Delhi, said after a recent viewing. “It’s impressive.”
It is also, of course, a manifestation of a very real rivalry that has produced three bloody wars since the twin birth of India and Pakistan in 1947.
For half an hour each evening at sunset, the decades of enmity are sublimated in a mostly good-natured, almost comical competition between the men in black, wearing headgear with fantails of the same color (Pakistan); and the men in khaki, whose hats are adorned with scarlet fantails (India).

They set up bleachers for this. They even have MCs to get the crowd hyped. No word on whether anyone does the wave or if either side is subjected to that stupid “right side/left side/who is louder?” game.

…Kalia, the engineer, found the event a good-humored, patriotic bit of fun, a friendly contest between two rival nations over pomp and circumstance. It wasn’t a competition in which national pride and prestige were really on the line.
“If it’s cricket,” he said, “then it’s a completely different feeling.” [LAT]

::

Silly title courtesy of this annoying joint. Like you didn’t know.

anna on September 17, 2007 01:03 PM in Caption This, History · T·r·a·c·k·b·a·c·k address · Direct link · Email post



199 comments

 1 · Puliogre in da USA on September 17, 2007 01:11 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
Previous editions of captioning fun: Ondhu, Eradu, Mooru, Naal’ku, Aydhu, Aaru, EyLu…

that made me happy. i miss home.


 2 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 01:14 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

"Mine is bigger than yours".


 3 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 01:15 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

"SWORDFIGHT! SWORDFIGHT!"


 4 · AL_Chutiya_for_debauchery on September 17, 2007 01:15 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Battle of the Scythian males!


 5 · Puliogre in da USA on September 17, 2007 01:16 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

its not the SIZE of your boot. its how you USE it..


 6 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 01:17 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

"And then Chuck Norris kicked the bad guy like THIS!"


 7 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 01:18 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

"And that, doctor, is how I got a hernia."


 8 · Amitabh on September 17, 2007 01:19 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
Battle of the Scythian males!

Apparently both countries do try to choose the tallest, most physically impressive guards for this ceremony.


 9 · nala on September 17, 2007 01:19 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

pakistani dude: "vat, no, i'm NOT indian! ve are a completely different race! that study last year that said that 60% of indian men are too small by international standards only applies to indians, not pakistanis!"


 10 · Dr1001 on September 17, 2007 01:22 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

"lets try out a roundhouse kick and while you're at it, check that fan on my head"


 11 · nala on September 17, 2007 01:24 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
Previous editions of captioning fun: Ondhu, Eradu, Mooru, Naal’ku, Aydhu, Aaru, EyLu…

that made me happy. i miss home.

werd, the words for 4,5,&6 are exactly the same in telugu. 1-okkati, 2-rondu, 3-moodu, 4 is more like naalugu but sounds similar enough, 6-edu
i love it! the fact that i can usually pick out what people mean when they are writing malayali or tamil words, based on similar words + context--well, that's cool. especially when i hear other southie languages spoken out loud and i can semi-understand them.


 12 · nala on September 17, 2007 01:24 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

oops, that should be 7 = edu


 13 · Amitabh on September 17, 2007 01:25 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
Last year...to create a more conducive atmosphere for peace talks underway between New Delhi and Islamabad, officials from India reportedly asked their border guards to tone down the aggressiveness of their antics. Satendra Kumar, resplendent in his khakis, said he and his fellow guards now no longer stand before the Pakistanis with their arms akimbo, as they once did. The Pakistani guards, however, still do that, he noted.

"This is our parade," Kumar said with a shrug. "They do theirs."

THAT SUCKS!!! What a typically Indian thing to do.


 14 · A N N A on September 17, 2007 01:26 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
THAT SUCKS!!! What a typically Indian thing to do.

I thought so, too. It seems like innocent enough fun.


 15 · nala on September 17, 2007 01:26 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

indian guard: "i should totally have gone into pro gymnastics instead of the military. at least then i can bring some glory to my people at the olympics. and get laid."


 16 · Karthik on September 17, 2007 01:27 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

 17 · Puliogre in da USA on September 17, 2007 01:30 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

the germans only THINK they can goosestep.


 18 · curisous on September 17, 2007 01:30 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Mine is bigger than yours.


 19 · A N N A on September 17, 2007 01:31 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Brooke, in LB: "You had the best high kick I’ve ever seen!"


 20 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 01:35 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

"Faster, higher, stronger".


 21 · ak on September 17, 2007 01:35 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

should have joined your army instead - do you see these nasty white stirrups they make me wear?


 22 · AL_Chutiya_for_debauchery on September 17, 2007 01:36 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

They have a similar dynamic on the Korean DMZ as well. Only the tallest North and South Koreans get to stand on guard at their respective borders. They stand there facing each other, chest puffed up, stomach tucked in while they stare down each other.

What about the Indian-Bangladeshi border? Do they get Bengalis to face down each other or do they have to import Non-Bengali Scythian males to do the staring?


 23 · HMF on September 17, 2007 01:37 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

"What's your wife do these days?

"Cook, clean, the us-, yours?"

"Shoot guns"


 24 · muralimannered on September 17, 2007 01:37 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Navdeep and Siddique demonstrate the cavalier disregard, shared in the spirit of cross-border harmony by both Indians and Pakistanis, of the possibility of developing a hydrocele.


 25 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 01:37 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

"Remove your foot from my airspace, cowardly dog!"

And that was how the cross-border kicking incident started.


 26 · ak on September 17, 2007 01:39 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
the fact that i can usually pick out what people mean when they are writing malayali or tamil words, based on similar words + context
wasn't the counting in kannada?

 27 · nala on September 17, 2007 01:40 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

ak, i don't know honestly, i assumed it was malayali. but kannada counts too, i just haven't heard it spoken as much in daily life


 28 · A N N A on September 17, 2007 01:44 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
wasn't the counting in kannada?

That's what I was trying for, but I have never learned Kannada, so I was worried I was wrong...especially once an Iyengar got homesick over my counting, upthread. ;) Why is EVERYTHING I try to do Tamilzhrz?

Also, the first person to think it's cheeky fun to substitute "everyone" for a certain word in that question is getting a nice set of addis with a branch from this tree outside, all old-skool-horrible-bruising-but-won't-break-the-skin-go-ahead-I-DARE-you-to-call-CPS style. Ya heard?


 29 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 01:47 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

"You go en pointe, the other leg en attitude, and you turn en dehors. Et voilà, une pirouette!"


 30 · Pravin on September 17, 2007 01:48 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

"You got served bitch!!!!"


 31 · ak on September 17, 2007 01:48 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

ANNA, i think you got it right - remember puli's tamil has kannada overtones, and since your counting was not in tamizhrhL, i assumed it was kannada when he made that comment. plus, i assumed it was kannada since it was very similar to telugu, but not completely the same...so now you know - it is possible to escape the tamils once in a while on SM ;)


 32 · A N N A on September 17, 2007 01:48 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Nala, I counted in Malayalam in this edition. :)


 33 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 01:49 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
especially once an Iyengar got homesick over my counting, upthread. ;) Why is EVERYTHING I try to do Tamilzhrz?

Given that Puli has said he is a Hebbar Iyengar, he may have been referring to the Kannada influence when he meant "home".

Puli correct me if I'm wrong.


 34 · Shalu on September 17, 2007 01:49 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

It's the South Asian Rockettes!!


 35 · Runa on September 17, 2007 01:52 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

No caption but this bit from the times :

It’s an elaborate, almost comical, show of martial bravado and chest-puffing that has gone on for nearly 60 years

makes me feel : I would rather that this show which the Times find "comical" happen everyday than another Kargil and the loss of brave soldiers (Yes - I mean on either side).If only all problems between countries could be solved like this we would not have twenty year olds dying half way across the world from home today.
Sorry for the off topic somber note.

SM Intern: Please feel free to delete


 36 · A N N A on September 17, 2007 01:54 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
SM Intern: Please feel free to delete

No need. I wistfully thought the same thing, as I was creating the post.


 37 · Puliogre in da USA on September 17, 2007 01:58 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
Given that Puli has said he is a Hebbar Iyengar, he may have been referring to the Kannada influence when he meant "home".

Puli correct me if I'm wrong.

that is correct.


 38 · maxdavinci on September 17, 2007 01:58 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
Nala, I counted in Malayalam in this edition. :)

Hmmmmm, now that means that tam n mallu number are pretty much the same...


 39 · Brij on September 17, 2007 01:59 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Hey isn't that a cool London bridge


 40 · nala on September 17, 2007 01:59 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

oh damn i feel stupid. for some reason i was saying 'malayali' instead of 'malayalam' to refer to the language. forgive me, mallus of the world!

to repent, i will share an awkward moment. the manager of an indian restaurant recently asked me if i was malayali; i said no, but i do get asked that all the time (seriously. ALL the time!). he'd asked me because he was mallu and apparently i 'looked just like [his] wife.' awkward. especially cuz i was with my mallu bf.


 41 · msichana on September 17, 2007 02:00 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

The turbanned saints, go marching in!


 42 · Sarah K. on September 17, 2007 02:02 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Er, someone ought to tell them aerobics went 'out' like a decade ago. I'd look more badass than them if I were doing pilates ... with a fan on my head!


 43 · Karthik on September 17, 2007 02:03 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
it is possible to escape the tamils once in a while on SM ;)

Ooh no it is not. :) We might be quiet, but we are the watching.

And just to jog your memory, She did start counting in tamil first.


 44 · nala on September 17, 2007 02:03 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

conclusion: southie languages sound very similar, at least when it comes to numbers.

hopefully this means that if i ever find my way to bangalore or chennai i can just speak in telugu and hopefully someone will understand me.


 45 · nala on September 17, 2007 02:04 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

karthik- i thought she said that she was counting in malayalam in that post?


 46 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 02:07 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
Er, someone ought to tell them aerobics went 'out' like a decade ago.

Fortunately not yet :P (play the main video). It made Tony Blair fall off his rowing machine.


 47 · maxdavinci on September 17, 2007 02:07 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
hopefully this means that if i ever find my way to bangalore or chennai i can just speak in telugu and hopefully someone will understand me

A lot of autowallahs n hawkers in Chennai speak what is called 'rickshaw-tamil' it is tamil with dollops of telugu interspersed. So you will find words like 'dabbu', 'chupistanu', 'ippudu chudu', 'donganakodakka'... They have been popularized by the Thalaivar and Vijay in their films....


 48 · Mr.Wise on September 17, 2007 02:08 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

#44, umm, actually not, Nala. You might be understood quite a bit in Bangalore, but not much in Chennai. And I say this because I'm speaking from experience. Beware the auto rickshaw drivers in Chennai, because if they hear you speaking in Telugu, they start seeing money dangling in front of their eyes. :)


 49 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 02:10 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Numbers in over 5000 languages display remarkable similarity to numbers in their linguistic relatives.


 50 · nala on September 17, 2007 02:11 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

i was joking; i wouldn't be so arrogant as to actually do that.

Beware the auto rickshaw drivers in Chennai, because if they hear you speaking in Telugu, they start seeing money dangling in front of their eyes. :)

really? are telugu people in chennai mostly tourists?

i have relatives who went to college in chennai, picked up tamil quickly... and never mentioned this to me!


 51 · Mr.Wise on September 17, 2007 02:12 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Maxdavinci, I would like to point out two things. Firstly, the autowallahs and hawkers know the Telugu they do because of their interaction with Telugu speakers in Chennai, of which there are quite a significant number. The movies also do play a part, I guess. Secondly, the last word you mentioned in quotes? I wouldn't mention it here in a public forum, because it isn't exactly PC. ;)


 52 · Pravin on September 17, 2007 02:13 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Madras used to be a Telugu-Tamil city in the 60s. In fact, at one point, I think there was some consideration, though it went nowhere, to include Madras in a Telugu state. Regardless, Andhra and tamilnadu were one state with Madras as the center until they made a separate Andhra state. I could be a little fuzzy on the timeline.

Not to mention, the Telugu film industry was based out of Madras until the 80s. So you got plenty of auto rickshaw drivers who knew good Telugu in the 70s and 80s. It is supposedly pretty much a Tamil city now.


 53 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 02:15 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
are telugu people in chennai mostly tourists?

Er, no. There are lots who have settled in Madras for some generations, there are also lots who visit them from native places in AP as tourists. Mr.Wise's experiences may not be universal.

That said, many of the more prosperous businesses in Madras (in their respective fields) are owned by Telugu people (Sathyam theaters, Naidu Hall, Nalli silks, Vummidi gold...). That is not to imply that all Telugu people in Madras are rich.


 54 · nala on September 17, 2007 02:15 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

i'm surprised there are no comments about the indian soldier's possible state of arousal yet.


 55 · Karthik on September 17, 2007 02:16 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
karthik- i thought she said that she was counting in malayalam in that post?

Nala, Malayalam is here or is it tamil. Dammit, now I am the confused.


 56 · Mr.Wise on September 17, 2007 02:16 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

I guess the majority are tourists, although I could be wrong. The thing I'm trying to say is that if you speak Telugu, you are identified as a tourist/out of towner, hence making you a probable target to rip off! And I say this because I went to college in Chennai, picked up enough Tamil to survive, and never, ever haggle in Telugu. ;)


 57 · maxdavinci on September 17, 2007 02:17 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
Firstly, the autowallahs and hawkers know the Telugu they do because of their interaction with Telugu speakers in Chennai, of which there are quite a significant number

Yep, that's how it creeps into vocabulary.....

the last word you mentioned in quotes? I wouldn't mention it here in a public forum, because it isn't exactly PC. ;)

Its not to be taken in the literal meaning but more of colloquial. I don't recollect the film, but thats the name of rajni's horse. Its used a lot in common usage and in not a derogatory way. its more like the hindi cuss word BC, which in the literal sense means sumthin but in the north is spoken even in households in the presence of elderly as well as kids.

All said, I apologise if i've hurt anyone's sentiments.....


 58 · Dasichist on September 17, 2007 02:19 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Youtube view from the Pakistan side here


 59 · Krishnan on September 17, 2007 02:19 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

"You think your socks smell ?"

"Look, no underwear"(The picture of the pakistani guard gives the impression he is unzipping)

"And this is how aasanas are done"

"Can I touch your plume ?"


 60 · nala on September 17, 2007 02:19 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
Dammit, now I am the confused.

tell me about it!


aside... no one i know has actually called it 'chennai' instead of 'madras' out loud. like, never ever.


 61 · Mr.Wise on September 17, 2007 02:21 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

#53 pingpong, you are correct in saying that a significant number have been around in Chennai for ages. Then I would be surprised if these people were to start haggling in Telugu instead of Tamil, which I am sure they would know pretty well by now. Therefore, my surmise was that the people who do speak in Telugu are likely to be tourists, or new in town.


 62 · ak on September 17, 2007 02:23 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
That said, many of the more prosperous businesses in Madras (in their respective fields) are owned by Telugu people (Sathyam theaters, Naidu Hall, Nalli silks, Vummidi gold...). That is not to imply that all Telugu people in Madras are rich.

he he - ve are yeveryvere! when it was all one state (madras presidency) madras was the biggest city, so naturally people from all over the state came here for better opportunities, and many of them ended up in business. obviously, the split into AP and TN made no difference for many of these people who had already established themselves in some way, be it professionally or socially. the type of telugu varies sometimes (e.g. the family that owns radha silks speaks pretty improper telugu, while nalli, vummidi etc speak proper telugu) but you can find telugu people all over madras and TN in general. and of course, as you move further towards the AP order in TN, the telugu gets better.


 63 · Mr.Wise on September 17, 2007 02:24 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Nala, I have been calling it Chennai ever since the name changed! Maybe this is because I'm not from Tamil Nadu? I don't really have any nostalgia or hankering for the old name. Besides, as the bard would say, what's in a name? :)


 64 · nala on September 17, 2007 02:25 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

ak, i'm curious-- what exactly is your family background? i've seen you mention telugu, but also tamil.


 65 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 02:27 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
Tamil, which I am sure they would know pretty well by now. Therefore, my surmise was that the people who do speak in Telugu are likely to be tourists, or new in town.

Yes, then we agree. I did not want to give the impression that any Telugu person in Madras is automatically a tourist! :)

BTW were you in Sathyabama/St.Joseph's/Venkateshwara by any chance? I ask because those three have large Telugu groups, something to do with "significant minority" status. Or IITM for that matter, though I don't think they had any minority consideration.


 66 · Vic on September 17, 2007 02:30 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

The Indian guy is showing more flexibility by keeping his legs straight, while the Pakistani one is cheating by bending at the knees. Yaay...my guy kick is more impressive than yours.


 67 · ak on September 17, 2007 02:30 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

nala - my family's mother tongue is telugu, but we've been settled in TN for so many generations that we have no (known) relatives in AP. also, my mother's family's telugu is so bastardized to the point that i usually just tell people i speak tamil. though most telugu families in TN are not like that - my mother' family grew up near thanjavur which, lingustically speaking, is somewhat the heartland of TN. on the other hand my dad grew up near the AP border and studied in telugu-medium chools, so his and his family's telugu is pretty pukka. i wish he had spoken to me in proper telugu - i'm hoping to one day study it formally (and in the meantime, there's NTR :))


 68 · Girish on September 17, 2007 02:31 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

PakAttack: Did you lose the bet too?
ChakdeIndia:Yeah what a biyatch!!
Twenty Twenty My Gaand!!



 69 · Mr.Wise on September 17, 2007 02:32 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Right on the money, pingpong! I was indeed in one of the three institutions you mentioned. :) However, although they may have had 'significant minority' status, the Telugu groups in them weren't really that large. There are certain other colleges where the Telugu groups are much larger. This probably has something to do with those colleges having the reputation of being boot camps.


 70 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 02:32 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
the type of telugu varies sometimes (e.g. the family that owns radha silks speaks pretty improper telugu, while nalli, vummidi etc speak proper telugu)

AK, is there a reason why you have been speaking with all the rich Telugu families in Madras?! :D


 71 · ak on September 17, 2007 02:33 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

mr. wise - did you get ragged on a lot because you were telugu? a family friend hates tamilians because of his school/college days...


 72 · nala on September 17, 2007 02:35 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
i wish he had spoken to me in proper telugu - i'm hoping to one day study it formally (and in the meantime, there's NTR :))

i'm not even sure what 'proper' telugu is anymore. my parents have a few friends who speak in the telangana dialect and it's hard to keep up with. and as my parents enter old age, they're slipping back into their village roots with their slang, the way they talk, etc. and to be honest sometimes i just BS how i speak... like i'm not sure if 'sit' should be 'kucho' or 'kurcho,' and if 'they came' should be 'occhaaru' or 'vocchaaru.' if i could still read telugu fluently i probably wouldn't be in the same dilemma!


 73 · ak on September 17, 2007 02:36 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
AK, is there a reason why you have been speaking with all the rich Telugu families in Madras?! :D

he he - sadly, pingpong, we are one of them (and some of us are actually related)...


 74 · nala on September 17, 2007 02:36 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
There are certain other colleges where the Telugu groups are much larger. This probably has something to do with those colleges having the reputation of being boot camps.

damn, so even among southern indians andhraites are the nerds who study slavishly?


 75 · Jeet on September 17, 2007 02:37 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

mr. miyagi? who?


 76 · maxdavinci on September 17, 2007 02:37 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
did you get ragged on a lot because you were telugu?

Did it come with the gulti tag?


 77 · ak on September 17, 2007 02:38 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

gulti was exactly what i was thinkking (but didn't want to rub salt and all that...)


 78 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 02:40 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
This probably has something to do with those colleges having the reputation of being boot camps.

Wait, by "those colleges", did you mean the three I mentioned or colleges other than the ones I mentioned? I find it impossible to believe that there could be a college more boot-campish than Sathyabama! [My earlier thoughts on Sathyabama here, and here is a real set of rules from there.]


 79 · maxdavinci on September 17, 2007 02:42 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
gulti was exactly what i was thinkking (but didn't want to rub salt and all that...)

I'm waiting for a reply frm Mr.Wise before I shed some light on the gulti-aravodu angle.....


 80 · Mr.Wise on September 17, 2007 02:42 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

#71 ak, not at all. :) There was very little ragging in during my time in college, and whatever little there was had nothing to do with my being Telugu. Unfortunately, I can sympathise with your college friend because it appears my coll was a lot more integrated than others. I did hear about a few places where the friction between Tamils and Telugu people was a frequent occurence, and I suppose here ragging of the sort you mentioned could have taken place. And #74 nala, I wouldn't know, because neither was I a nerd, nor did I study slavishly. ;) However, I think this was more of a parent preference thingy.


 81 · nala on September 17, 2007 02:42 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

damn, pingpong. 'boys and girl are not allowed to talk to each other.'

at least they don't have uniforms, right? i know some of the medical colleges in AP have those (not even for interning in the hospital, but for walking around and going to lectures)


 82 · SkepMod on September 17, 2007 02:43 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

AK, I am of similar avial stock too. My father's family settled near Madurai eons ago. Their Telugu is incredibly modified and mixed with Tamizh. My mother's family settled in Bangalore some three gens ago. Ofcourse, they believe their Telugu is "pure" - much to the amusement of their relatives from AP.


 83 · Puliogre in da USA on September 17, 2007 02:46 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
at least they don't have uniforms, right? i know some of the medical colleges in AP have those (not even for interning in the hospital, but for walking around and going to lectures)

there was a controvery in my high school about wanting to introduce school uniforms. i for one was secretly pro school uniforms, as there would be a bunch of grls in school uniforms walking around....


 84 · Girish on September 17, 2007 02:46 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Jeneral Naaledge 101 by Sosal Servis Guru

Tamil: Onnu Rendu Moonu Nalu Anji Aaru Ezhu Ettu Onbathu Patthu.
Malayalam: Onnu randu moonnu naalu anju aaru eezhu ettu onpath pathh
Telugu: OkaTi renDu mooDu naalugu aidu aru ehDu enimidi tommidi padhi
Kannada: Ondhu yeradu mooru naalku aidhu aaru yeLu yentu ombattu hathu

Ensoy,Thank you very much!!


 85 · Sarah K. on September 17, 2007 02:47 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

pingpong- That video was disturbing! Not only because of the outfits, but because of the outfits. And by that, I mean ... well, you get what I mean. I'm afriad I'll have to go with Tony Blair on this one.


 86 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 02:47 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
he he - sadly, pingpong, we are one of them (and some of us are actually related)...

Well, no need to be sad about it! :D I had partly suspected it from your previous comment about the families' Telugu-speaking skills.

The gulti tag can get thrown about a lot, but I have come to realize that whether it is offensive or not depends entirely on who is using it and in what context. In my college, the Telugu association used to informally call itself the Gult Association! That defuses everything. In most cases, if there is prejudice behind the usage, it can be judged in the tone and non-vocal cues.


 87 · nala on September 17, 2007 02:48 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

oh man this reminds me of something really stupid i said recently.

'auntie i don't eat aavakaya pacchadi. only mamudukaya pachhadi.' both pacchadis = mango pickle. i never hear the former b/c my family is from guntur district, whereas this auntie is from west godavari and they call it by that.


 88 · nala on September 17, 2007 02:49 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

wait wait... what is this about 'gulti'?


 89 · ak on September 17, 2007 02:49 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

nala @ 72 - though that makes me feel better, our telugu is really not telugu (despite my mother's protests to the contrary). we don;t even use the proper grammatical forms for verbs. and i was amused to find out (after watching a tamil movie) that some of the words we use are also used in 'ghetto' tamil.

skepmod - i sympathise. when my cousin had her son, my aunt insisted she teaches him telugu (i.e. our telugu) and my cousin has refused - she'd rather have him speak standardised tamil than some terrible form of telugu...


 90 · Mr.Wise on September 17, 2007 02:50 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

maxdavinci and ak, the 'gulti' word was mentioned a lot, but sadly nowadays it is passing into the common lexicon, so I guess it is losing whatever derogatory/insulting implications it may have had. And I have no wound to get salt rubbed in, thanks! ;) And pingpong, yes, there are other colleges out there more boot-campish then Satyabhama! I can't be 100% sure, but there were rumours floating around of the prison camp like conditions in certain colleges, namely Pratyusha and RMK. I do hope there aren't any of their alumni around. lol


 91 · SkepMod on September 17, 2007 02:52 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
standardised tamil

as if there is such a thing. I remember, a long time ago, pondering the differences between the Tamizh of my Tam-Bram classmates and that of the fishermen/vendors in Chennai


 92 · maxdavinci on September 17, 2007 02:53 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

I did my bachelors from hyderabad and was initially ragged a lot coz i was a tam(Aravodu as many call it). Thats when my dad told me the plight of 'gultis' while he was in REC Trichy.

During my masters however, anybody from the south was called a gulti......



 93 · nala on September 17, 2007 02:54 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
at least they don't have uniforms, right? i know some of the medical colleges in AP have those (not even for interning in the hospital, but for walking around and going to lectures)

there was a controvery in my high school about wanting to introduce school uniforms. i for one was secretly pro school uniforms, as there would be a bunch of grls in school uniforms walking around....

even if those uniforms were boring white salwar kameez? ones where the top goes past the knee?


 94 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 02:56 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
SarahK: pingpong- That video was disturbing! Not only because of the outfits, but because of the outfits. And by that, I mean ... well, you get what I mean. I'm afriad I'll have to go with Tony Blair on this one.

I myself encountered that video after reading about the Tony Blair thing in the news! Mercifully, the video is fairly short.

Puli: i for one was secretly pro school uniforms, as there would be a bunch of grls in school uniforms walking around....

Puli, you do realize that by school uniform, one does not necessarily mean an outfit out of a Japanese hentai comic? :D Indian school uniforms can get down to stuff like "long hair must be plaited neatly and tied with *white* ribbons only". Very exciting. Though I don't know what your schol was planning.

Nala & Puli, Sathyabama also had rules like "girls shall wear salwar kameez ONLY. and the kameez shall have no slits up the side or front or back. If the kameez has slits, they shall be stitched shut. blah blah blah. No revealing please, ve are crazy".


 95 · nala on September 17, 2007 02:56 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

just to clarify... i am not a fashionista by any means. i am actually a huge slob. but i think i'd be pissed if my parents sent me to a college where i'd have to live a lot of my youth in boring, unflattering clothes.


 96 · Cyrus on September 17, 2007 02:58 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

AL_Chutiya_for_debauchery on September 17, 2007 01:15 PM Wrote:

"Battle of the Scythian males!"

Which one is supposed to be a Scythian?

Shouldn't they be on a horse, then???


 97 · nala on September 17, 2007 02:58 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

uh, not that education isn't my number one priority in life :D


 98 · maxdavinci on September 17, 2007 03:00 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
girls shall wear salwar kameez ONLY. and the kameez shall have no slits up the side or front or back.

My school(Bhavans) had skirts for girls which had to be above the knee!


 99 · MG on September 17, 2007 03:01 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)


"So,i see that you tried the "vagaira" too. Should've heeded the warning on it. Just another 40hours to go"


 100 · ak on September 17, 2007 03:02 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
standardised tamil
as if there is such a thing.
true, but i meant it in the relative sense. i wouldn't say tam-bram tamil is standard tamil, as well as certain slang forms, but i would say most people in TN speak a form of tamil that is a closest approximation of a spoken standard, short of sentamizh...

 101 · nala on September 17, 2007 03:02 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
My school(Bhavans) had skirts for girls which had to be above the knee!

vaaaaaaaat? where is the sense in that?


 102 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 03:02 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
standardised tamil

as if there is such a thing. I remember, a long time ago, pondering the differences between the Tamizh of my Tam-Bram classmates and that of the fishermen/vendors in Chennai

SkepMod, you seem to have hit two extreme dialects! Generally "standard" Tamil (kodunthamizh) is often held to be the Tamil spoken by educated non-Brahmins in the Madurai area with influence from the Thanjavur dialect. [Harold Schiffman, "Standardization or restandardization: The case for ‘Standard’ Spoken Tamil". Language in Society 27 (1998), pp. 359–385]. "Standard" government-speak of course is the literary variant (senthamizh), which nobody speaks unless they want to get strange looks.


 103 · Puliogre in da USA on September 17, 2007 03:02 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
My school(Bhavans) had skirts for girls which had to be above the knee!

you NKOW the school admin that came up with that is a little drty...


 104 · Pravin on September 17, 2007 03:02 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Indian to the Pakistani "While we stroke our imaginary dicks, mine is apparently bigger than yours"


 105 · A N N A on September 17, 2007 03:03 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Didn't Puli go to school here? Which would make the hentai-look far more possible? ;)


 106 · chachaji on September 17, 2007 03:04 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

In the spirit of 84 (for which many thanks, Girish):

"Ek, doh, teen chaar,
Beta bano hoshiyaar;
Paanch, cheh, saath, aath,
Teray sar par mayri laath!" :)


 107 · Puliogre in da USA on September 17, 2007 03:04 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
Didn't Puli go to school here? Which would make the hentai-look far more possible? ;)

yes. that is what i was secretly hoping and praying for my entire adolescent life.


 108 · ak on September 17, 2007 03:05 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

pingpong - would the thanjavur dialect extend to mayavaram? i had a tamil professor who spoke somewhat odd tamil...


 109 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 03:06 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
Didn't Puli go to school here? Which would make the hentai-look far more possible? ;)

yes. that is what i was secretly hoping and praying for my entire adolescent life.

Puli was hoping and praying for a hentai-look?

A hentai I-banker is a little disturbing.


 110 · maxdavinci on September 17, 2007 03:07 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
vaaaaaaaat? where is the sense in that?
you NKOW the school admin that came up with that is a little drty...

well whoever came up with those rules, we surely aren't complaining!


 111 · nala on September 17, 2007 03:08 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
Didn't Puli go to school here? Which would make the hentai-look far more possible? ;)

yes. that is what i was secretly hoping and praying for my entire adolescent life.

d00d. you should've been born of my generation. girls in my high school were wearing itty bitty ruffle skirts, and dressing up as britney spears and tom cruise circa Risky Business for halloween, in the 10th grade. we are the ones, after all, who popularized the term 'whale tail.' (sigh)


 112 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 03:09 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
pingpong - would the thanjavur dialect extend to mayavaram? i had a tamil professor who spoke somewhat odd tamil...

I would say it does - the whole of the northern Kaveri delta area should not be different from Thanjavur: Mayavaram, Chidambaram, Sirkazhi, Poompuhar should all be the same. But I don't have a reference for this.


 113 · Puliogre in da USA on September 17, 2007 03:10 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
you should've been born of my generation.

now i feel like a decrepit old dinosaur.


 114 · Duniya Dur Darshan on September 17, 2007 03:10 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Madness?!? This is SPARTAAAAAAAAAAAAA!


 115 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 03:12 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
now i feel like a decrepit old dinosaur.

As opposed to a vibrant young dinosaur? :D


 116 · Puliogre in da USA on September 17, 2007 03:12 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

when i was in high school, the french maid outfit was all the rage (much to my delight)


 117 · dravidian lurker on September 17, 2007 03:12 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

"do my modaks look big in these pants?"


 118 · A N N A on September 17, 2007 03:13 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

I'll spare the other uncool kids the effort of looking it up, since only one of us should have to (nerds are efficient like that):

whale tail- the whale tail is the shape formed when a g-string rides up high over a womans trousers [UD]


 119 · Puliogre in da USA on September 17, 2007 03:14 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
I'll spare the other uncool kids the effort of looking it up, since only one of us should have to (nerds are efficient like that):

whale tail- the whale tail is the shape formed when a g-string rides up high over a womans trousers [UD]

thanks.


 120 · DDiA on September 17, 2007 03:16 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Caption: "Scissor brothers?"

Alternate caption: Sure, we've had our spats in the past.


 121 · A N N A on September 17, 2007 03:17 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Also, here's where my priorities lie-- to me, a "whale tail" will always be what's on the ass of a '75 Carrera. That's the only way I've ever used the term.


 122 · maxdavinci on September 17, 2007 03:17 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
whale tail- the whale tail is the shape formed when a g-string rides up high over a womans trousers [UD]

Thank you anna, UD being blocked at work, I was looking at other googleable sources, though wiki has some graphic detail.....


 123 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 03:19 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
to me, a "whale tail" will always be what's on the ass of a '75 Carrera.

Bah, even with cars you only look at their kundis.

/runs away


 124 · A N N A on September 17, 2007 03:20 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
Madness?!? This is SPARTAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

:D

Whenever I put up a caption post, I'm hoping someone will reference that. Makes me laugh, every time.


 125 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 03:22 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

So many of us searching the web for "whale tail", all because of one comment (#111). We are all old, I say.

Speaking of #111, I still don't know who dressed like a pantsless Tom Cruise. And how is a pantsless Tom Cruise different from a regular guy without pants?


 126 · goriwife on September 17, 2007 03:25 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Man, if I'd have known THIS was what the uniforms were gonna look like, I never would have tried out for Kickline...


 127 · A N N A on September 17, 2007 03:25 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
Bah, even with cars you only look at their kundis.
/runs away

Why you are running?

a) I'm a cripple so I couldn't catch you even if I wanted to

b) ITA with what you typed! The rear of a car is just as important aesthetically as the front.

To quote a great philosopher, I ain't mad atcha. ;)


 128 · Dercosyst on September 17, 2007 03:26 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Huh, a mustache statement. People would immediately guess I am a foreigner in mallu land thanks to the lack of a germ trap above my lips.


 129 · Vikram on September 17, 2007 03:27 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

"Due to budget cuts Indian & Pakistani forces are now reduced to unarmed combat"


 130 · Karthik on September 17, 2007 03:28 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
And how is a pantsless Tom Cruise different from a regular guy without pants?

You have to be exactly 4 feet tall to be TC. That is the difference.


 131 · A N N A on September 17, 2007 03:29 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
You have to be exactly 4 feet tall to be TC

and a douche.


 132 · Puliogre in da USA on September 17, 2007 03:30 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
I still don't know who dressed like a pantsless Tom Cruise. And how is a pantsless Tom Cruise different from a regular guy without pants?

exacty. its an excuse to not wear pants. haloween has always been a $exually charged holiday.


 133 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 03:31 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
I'm a cripple so I couldn't catch you even if I wanted to

Didn't you say you were out of the ace bandages?

Man, if I'd have known THIS was what the uniforms were gonna look like, I never would have tried out for Kickline...

I mixed up parallel threads and ended up with Indian & Pakistani soldiers in hentai outfits trying out for Kickline. Now I need bleach for my brain.


 134 · Shodan on September 17, 2007 03:35 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Follies ke peechhe kya hai.


 135 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 03:36 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
"Due to budget cuts Indian & Pakistani forces are now reduced to unarmed combat"

Ouch. Nice one! Un"armed" indeed.


 136 · nala on September 17, 2007 03:38 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
So many of us searching the web for "whale tail", all because of one comment (#111). We are all old, I say.

hee. now i shall send you on a mad search for the meaning of the term 'muffintop.' just to show you what kids today are like.


 137 · rudie_c on September 17, 2007 03:39 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

Puppeteer goes mad.


 138 · pingpong on September 17, 2007 03:41 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
now i shall send you on a mad search for the meaning of the term 'muffintop.'

Pre-empting this one: the Whale Tail article on Wikipedia already has this: the bulge of flesh spilling out the top of low-rise jeans.


 139 · A N N A on September 17, 2007 03:43 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
hee. now i shall send you on a mad search for the meaning of the term 'muffintop.'

Ha. THAT one I know. Go me. :) Er, maybe not...that confirms that I spend too much time watching style network.


 140 · Karthik on September 17, 2007 03:44 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
hee. now i shall send you on a mad search for the meaning of the term 'muffintop.' just to show you what kids today are like.

"They don't have homes, they don't have jobs, what do they need the top of the muffin for?" Try to guess before you click, will ya.[link]


 141 · Girish on September 17, 2007 03:45 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

114: Thats my Dorky Myspace Caption
129: LMAO..Good One!!


 142 · maxdavinci on September 17, 2007 03:47 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

thnx to SM, I now know what whale-tail and muffintop men.... I heart SM!


 143 · A N N A on September 17, 2007 03:48 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
114: Thats my Dorky Myspace Caption

If I were still on MyAss (vs. FB, which I lurve), I'd totally want to be your friend, just for that.

THIS. IS. SPARTAAAAAA! :D


 144 · nala on September 17, 2007 03:48 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

speaking of muffins...


 145 · Vikram on September 17, 2007 03:59 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

"Breaking News: Dance off used to decide location of Line Of Control between India & Pakistan. "


 146 · random on September 17, 2007 04:00 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)

I jsut want to comment that nala is very energetic


 147 · nala on September 17, 2007 04:01 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)
I jsut want to comment that nala is very energetic

haha.. what? i'm not energetic, i'm 'working on a paper'


 148 · maxdavinci on September 17, 2007 04:09 PM · Direct link · “Quote”(?)