CurrentAffairs:"Mereko Gaali deta hai? Haramkhor !"
The Mumbai blasts have rightfully ignited high passion among Mumbaikars. Mumbaikars were found mouthing choices expletives not just in private conversations but some times also in front of the protruding T.V. cameras (which are, it seems, omnipotent).
I am a great fan of the Mumbai edition of the 'Great Indian Gaali' Dictionary. No other city has contributed so much to the dictionary as has Mumbai. Expletives originating from Mumbai have come out truly unique, emerging from the melting pot of cultures that Mumbai is. Consequently, Mumbai expletives can often be a mind boggling mixture of all regional Indian gems, prominent amongst which are,Maharashtrian,Gujarathi Punjabi and Bhaiyya (from U.P,Bihar).
It is often said that you have learned a language only once you can hurl abuses using it. I agree. Serious research needs to be conducted on this integral aspect of Indian culture. Will some serious student of Indian Culture oblige and choose this as a topic for her dissertation? My own personal study says that following are the main distinguishing characteristics that any self-respecting expletive should have:
a) It ought to hit the recipient at a spot where it hits the most (Mother, Sister, Father are therefore integral parts of any expletive the world over).
b) Expletives need to not just BE DIRTY and FILTHY in terms of the word used - the art is in its DELIVERY. Diction and Tonality are not important only in Call-Centers, you see ! A badly delivered expletive can sound awfully tame when coming out from some one who is embarrassed when using an expletive. The rule of thumb is, the coarser and filthier the SOUND, better the impact.
c) Innovation is the key. There are any number of expletives available off the shelf in the market. A true connoisseur would not even dream of using readymade products like these. He would always come up with his own twist to these and make something truly unique. I once heard an expletive which twisted a routine expletive ( Ma******D) to (Fa******D). The recipient almost fell off his chair.
The more your unique patents are copied around and used, the better the Gaali. In this respect the inventor of an expletive operates in the true tradition of the 'Open Source' movement.
If you are as interested in studying the etymology of Indian expletives, I would invite the discerning reader to send me examples of gaalis which fit the above criteria to FunWuni@hotmail.com. If you want to send examples in regional languages, please also explain the meaning (briefly). Since this is a public Blog, open to all, I DO NOT wish readers to contribute with examples in the comments section. All such well meaning contributions in the 'Comments' section would be promptly deleted. You can skip to the end and leave a response.
I am a great fan of the Mumbai edition of the 'Great Indian Gaali' Dictionary. No other city has contributed so much to the dictionary as has Mumbai. Expletives originating from Mumbai have come out truly unique, emerging from the melting pot of cultures that Mumbai is. Consequently, Mumbai expletives can often be a mind boggling mixture of all regional Indian gems, prominent amongst which are,Maharashtrian,Gujarathi Punjabi and Bhaiyya (from U.P,Bihar).
It is often said that you have learned a language only once you can hurl abuses using it. I agree. Serious research needs to be conducted on this integral aspect of Indian culture. Will some serious student of Indian Culture oblige and choose this as a topic for her dissertation? My own personal study says that following are the main distinguishing characteristics that any self-respecting expletive should have:
a) It ought to hit the recipient at a spot where it hits the most (Mother, Sister, Father are therefore integral parts of any expletive the world over).
b) Expletives need to not just BE DIRTY and FILTHY in terms of the word used - the art is in its DELIVERY. Diction and Tonality are not important only in Call-Centers, you see ! A badly delivered expletive can sound awfully tame when coming out from some one who is embarrassed when using an expletive. The rule of thumb is, the coarser and filthier the SOUND, better the impact.
c) Innovation is the key. There are any number of expletives available off the shelf in the market. A true connoisseur would not even dream of using readymade products like these. He would always come up with his own twist to these and make something truly unique. I once heard an expletive which twisted a routine expletive ( Ma******D) to (Fa******D). The recipient almost fell off his chair.
The more your unique patents are copied around and used, the better the Gaali. In this respect the inventor of an expletive operates in the true tradition of the 'Open Source' movement.
If you are as interested in studying the etymology of Indian expletives, I would invite the discerning reader to send me examples of gaalis which fit the above criteria to FunWuni@hotmail.com. If you want to send examples in regional languages, please also explain the meaning (briefly). Since this is a public Blog, open to all, I DO NOT wish readers to contribute with examples in the comments section. All such well meaning contributions in the 'Comments' section would be promptly deleted. You can skip to the end and leave a response.
