About Me Blog

Art: I am crazy about Elephants and Peacocks! I am a Resident Adviser and I make elephant door decorations and adorn my bulletin board with peacocks feathers. I don't know if this is an exoticism my Indian culture, but I have just fallen in love with them and collect them in every form. Hindu culture describes elephants as wise and patient and these are qualities that I value. I love cloth with mirrors and bhandini (an north Indian type of tie-dye). I will not wear or decorate animal products, like leather.

Food: I am definitely a foodie. Many times when I go home from college, my visit revolves around food: planning, making, buying, and best of all- tasting food. Just recently, I learned to roll and bake a flat bread (chapatti) just like my mother- I was quite happy! My favorite cuisines include Indian , Inchin , Mediterrean, and Japanese. I am a vegetarian but I don't eat eggs and do my best to only eat organic dairy. I have been raised as a vegetarian on Indian food and find the most satisfying meal a bowl of lentil soup and rice. Many times, my non-Indian friends say that there is a distinct scent of a mixture spices that they recognize upon entering my home which I cannot seem to pick up. I am used to topping soups and curries off with cilantro as a symbol of freshness and vibrance.

Religion and Books: I am a practicing Hindu. I consider myself more spiritual than religious. I have read the ancient Hindu texts like the Ramayan and parts of the Bhagavat Geeta, and aspire to eventually read and understand the Vedas. I have a difficult time understanding because I don't understand Sanskrit and am not sure how exact the interpretation is. At home my parents and grandmother read religious books that are written in Gujarati, a northern language of India.
Everyday, my mother wears a simple red bindi on her forehead to symbolize her status as a married woman and the wisdom from the precinct third eye. When attending Indian cultural event, she a wears more colorful and fashionable bindi.
Music and Dance: At home, my father is an avid fan on old Bollywood film songs. I have become accustomed listening to these songs as well as songs from new Bollywood movies. I think his interest in this music is because he wholesomely understands the Hindi lyrics and their cultural context. I enjoy listening and dancing to Indian drums called the Tabala. I have been trained in the Indian Classical Dance form of Kathak. When I dance I feel as though I experienced and displayed an essential, unadulterated quality of my culture.