Well, I’m comfortable in all kinds of clothes – Indian, Western, casual, formal. I shop for them wherever I go.
We’ve gone from the image of India as land of fakirs lying on beds of nails, and snake charmers with the Indian rope trick, to the image of India as a land of mathematical geniuses, computer wizards, software gurus.
Class does not mean huge possession of money. Mother Teresa was a classy woman. So is Manjula Bhargava, a great mathematician of Indian origin. The concept that you automatically gain class by acquiring money is an outdated thought process.
For so long, the world has viewed West Indian culture as semiliterate and backward, which it is not. In my work, I have tried to give that world an exposure so the world can better understand it.
Just like how you find players from different backgrounds in Indian cricket team, our Telugu industry is looking for talent, and it doesn’t matter where it comes from.
The food we ate was Indian, and both my mother and father were very deep into the ancient philosophy of India, so it could well have been an Indian household.
The conventional Indian movie industry is not for me: I cannot dance around trees or the water-fountain.
No one except Hollywood stars and very rich Texans wore Indian jewelry. And there was a plethora of dozens if not hundreds of athletic teams that in essence were insulting us, from grade schools to college. That’s all changed.
I don’t think one party has a bad vision over the other party. I have no doubts that every Indian and every Indian political leadership would like to see this country get to a much better level. We would all like to see inclusive growth.
For me, it is very important to believe in the kind of movies I do. ‘Rang De Basanti’ made me feel good about Indian cinema. The movie instilled in me a confidence so strong, that I wanted to be a part of the revolution in Bollywood.
I grew up surrounded by all types of cultures – French, Indian, Arabic – a melting pot of cultures, sounds, foods, people, and religions. It opened my eyes early, and I’m grateful for that. It’s not about success in one area; it’s about exploring the world musically and spending time in those places whenever you can.
My wife Neelam is a North Indian, so she will make North Indian food, while my mother will make Bengali food.
When I lived in India, I’d speak like an Indian to get good prices while shopping. I’m good with accents.
I think there are opportunities outside India as well as in India. In fact, some of the largest projects that most Indian software companies are doing are in India.
I have a thick skin, which comes from being a not-really-skinny, dark-skinned Indian woman. I haven’t fit in every place, and so I’m kind of used to resistance.
My all time favourite films – one is ‘Mary Poppins,’ and the other one is ‘Pakeezah.’ ‘Pakeezah’ was an Indian film. The beauty of ‘Pakeezah’ was that it had a soundtrack which was pure poetry.
It is not yet too late for the Indian people to decide on rapid, ordered progress. I can assure them that the British people are as determined upon self-government for India as they are themselves.
Indian weddings, visually, they’re so stunning.
I am a great believer in Indian entrepreneurship. There is a whole set of people doing so many exciting things.
I’ve not really watched too many English films. I’ve grown up watching Indian cinema, mostly.
If you’re in a business where Latinos only play Indian maidens and what I call ‘Conchita Lolita’ parts – the little fiery spitfires – you do what you have to do.
As I grew up, I always refused to cook Indian food very vehemently, and to this day, I don’t cook chapatis at home. I’d always say, ‘Why do I have to do it? Why don’t the men do it?’
How can you contribute towards building the Indian society and the Indian nation? No better way than to upgrade the quality of young people in school, particularly the schools which are run by the state government in the villages.
Indian writers in English are rank individualists. Even among the progressives, there is a strain of anti-leftism, or at least a suspicion of any organized politics.
My mother’s family came from the British West Indies. And my father’s family came from, well, my father’s father came from the Montana/South Dakota area. They were Blackfoot Indian.
I’ve got Indian looks, but there is nothing in my background.
I grew up around a lot of various religions, so it’s a part of my consciousness in a way. Everything from heavy Catholicism to followers of Indian spiritual masters to Unitarian universalists – all in one family. Though the family aspect was stronger than any particular dogma.
Indian president does not determine policy. Here President is not the policy maker. In the name of the president, the cabinet takes the policy decision.
Pakistani prisoners are safe in Indian jails. We are a responsible government.
There are still some terrible cliches in the presentation of Indian fiction. The lotus flower. The hennaed hands. In mainland Europe, people still slap these images on my books and I go bananas.
If I use the word ‘khichdi’ in my novel, I don’t have to get into the trouble of explaining that it is a dish of rice and lentils. My Indian readers know it.
The thing about India is that even if the economic backgrounds are different, the cultural background is the same. Somebody who is working as a tailor will also tie a black thread around his kid’s wrist; so will somebody in Bollywood. That’s the fun of being Indian.
Indian films are like our food or our sense of dress or our languages: there’s a great variety, and it changes every 100 miles, but there is something in common, a national Indian essence, that binds them all together.
Wrestling is rooted in the Indian soil, yet there isn’t enough scope for kids who come from poorer families, but have the talent, to join the sport professionally.
I’m sure I went through a stage when I resented being Indian because in every other manner, in terms of cultural reference points and vocabulary and all the rest of it, I was way ahead of everybody else – so the one thing that set me back was being Indian. And I couldn’t do anything about it.
I’m more comfortable weaving Indian flavors into American classics.
Indian cricketers need more exposure, and as cricket administrators, we need to beef up the domestic circuit. Only then will fresh talent come up.
The entire political elite has mismanaged the Indian economy for the last 50 years. You cannot solve a crisis that is borne as a symptom of mismanagement in just five minutes or in a week. It will involve significant sacrifices and pain, and I doubt that in India there is the political will to face the music.
You think of ‘Outlaw Josey Wales,’ you immediately think of the old Indian guy, Sondra Locke, the old lady with the glasses, beautiful old actress.
Me being a black girl in London, whose mom is first-generation African and whose dad is West Indian, gives me a different view. I’m coming at soul from my own place.
I was raised by the Indian community, and those families are still very close to us. We used to go to each others’ houses one Sunday a month, so we got to know everyone well. Also, we love Indian food and can’t get enough of it.
If the United States wants access to Chinese, Indian or Vietnamese markets, we must get access to theirs. U.S. protectionism is very subtle but it is very much there.
Playing an Anglo Indian was very easy for me because I have grown up in Kolkata, and I have many Anglo Indian friends.
It is racist, and it was racist when it was created. The Indian Act controls, or seeks to control, the lives of all indigenous people in a way that you and I would never accept.
I am comfortable in all kinds of outfits. I prefer Indian wear, but there are days I step out in a short dress. It depends on my mood.
Therefore reinforcing a stereotype, therefore thinking that the entire Indian culture is just made of people that are against their children’s decisions.
I had my own ups and downs in getting Indian citizenship. But, ultimately I got it and I am happy about it. I like India. My love is here. I am a proud Indian.
I know my Beijing medal has been a watershed moment in the history of Indian boxing, but personally speaking, I would like to better it in London.
I can’t resist South Indian cuisine, particularly what is prepared at home. My mom is my favourite cook. She can cook a variety of cuisines. I savour her cooking at home, and she’s undoubtedly the best.
You just feel a little odd when you don’t get your kind of food. Fortunately, there are Indian restaurants all over the world.
I am blessed with an active metabolism, which allows me to eat to my heart’s content. I prefer Indian food because it’s a balanced diet.
It is a great shock at the age of five or six to find that in a world of Gary Coopers you are the Indian.
I follow dancers like Jennifer Lopez and Beyonce, as they are in my zone, but when it comes to Indian dancing, I am a huge Madhuri Dixit fan.
I love Indian food.
I’ve met the Dalai Lama briefly, but I would probably say my grandfather was the wisest person I ever met. He was my mother’s father, an Indian, a family doctor, and very unlike me in that he was deeply religious.
With Indian migrants all over the world, money transfer is a big business in India.
