Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with India

Charity for covid relief in India?

bluecore — Thu, 06 May 2021 13:41:57 -0800

What are some charities currently doing covid relief in India to which I could donate?

Seeking Book Recs: History of India

typetive — Wed, 03 Feb 2021 11:49:41 -0800

I am poorly educated when it comes to pre-colonial India and I would like to know more. I have a good handle on global history including China, but India is a big dim hole before the Dutch. I'm keen on books that help to put things in context, that are written in comfortable and accessible ways (not a text book) and hopefully on audio via the library (Hoopla or Libby in the US).

Other history books I've enjoyed, Amsterdam: A History of the World's Most Liberal City and The Island at the Center of the World by Russell Shorto, Empire and all the XXX [Philosopher] in 90 Minutes by Paul Strathern and the books by Sarah Vowell.

Mostly I'm looking for context about what was going on in India at the same time as all that other stuff I know well conceptually like the Bronze age, the time of the Roman Empire and the middle ages. But I need a big picture grounding on how the rise of religions informed their society and governments. Agrarian methods and feudal (or their version) systems. Language development. The Caste system. Technology.

Translation, please: Hindu Nationalist Edition

Rykey — Sat, 09 Jan 2021 05:47:50 -0800

Speakers of Hindi (I think?): what's going on in this video of a disruption at a stand-up comedy performance in Madhya Pradesh, India? Trying to piece together different reports surrounding this performance. Apparently comedian Munawar Faruqui was confronted by members of the audience accusing him of denigrating Hinduism, physically assaulted, turned over to the police, and is now being charged with a crime. This video appears to start after one audience member has interrupted the performance, but before any assault or arrest. What's the gist of the conversation between the people in this video? What are people in the audience yelling out?

Sending present to India -- how? what?

heavenknows — Tue, 08 Dec 2020 03:55:02 -0800

A friend who lives in India just had a baby. My ideal would be to send money, but I can't find a way to do that without him participating (he said flat out no when I suggested a cash gift transfer for the baby -- but trust me, that is politeness as I absolutely know he could use it.) What's the best way to send another gift -- is there a kind of Amazon equivalent that is reliable?

American abroad - should I return?

maya — Fri, 13 Mar 2020 02:32:53 -0800

I am currently in India. I have traveled significantly this year, but not to any areas known to be highly impacted (so far) by COVID-19. I do not have any symptoms. Should I return to the US right away? Here are the details:
- I am currently taking general precautions (handwashing etc) and enjoying my travels
- I have no current air ticket
- The original plan was to head onward to Central Asia
- My father (over 70y) is in San Francisco
- I would stay with him and help him
- It looks like good flights through Singapore are available next week

Options:
- Continue with the plan to Central Asia
- Stay put in India
- Return ASAP
- Return in April after an event I wanted to attend

I understand not all options will be necessarily available at any time. I have checked the WHO and CDC sites
for information. How do I make the most informed decision? What sources should I consult?

Indian academic life/etiquette

lollusc — Sat, 14 Sep 2019 19:19:28 -0800

I'll be in India for a month starting in about a week, as a visiting academic. I have never visited India before. I would appreciate information about academic culture and norms, and any info about how I should and shouldn't behave to be a good guest. I all coming at this from Australian academic culture but I am also familiar with European universities and North American universities so feel free to compare with those. I'll be at a smaller relatively low ranked university for the first three weeks and then a final week at a larger highly ranked institution. The first is in Tamil Nadu and the second in West Bengal.

I will be staying in on-campus visitor accommodation. I will be teaching a few classes for their masters students while I am there. One of my postdocs is coming with me. We will also be participating in (and I believe, helping organise) a one day symposium.

We are in the humanities. We are both white women. Our hosts and project partners on the grant that is bringing us there are all Indian men.

I would appreciate all kinds of information, from general descriptions of what Indian universities are like to very concrete things like how I should address colleagues or students there (first names? Professor/Mr/Ms X,? One of the colleagues there cc'ed me on an email to another colleague who he addressed as "Surname Sir". Is this a thing?), Or how I should dress to teach, or how I should expect meals in the cafeteria to work.

I can already tell I'm going to have to say no to some requests (mostly on behalf of my post doc who is very obliging but is being asked already to do unreasonable things like prepare a 12-hour course to teach at one week's notice when the terms of the visit did not have her teaching at all.) How does one politely say that something will not be possible in Indian culture without offending?

Also general tips for visiting India are welcome.

I have read a lot of online resources but they tend to be aimed at other kinds of business visitors or tourists, and universities can be so different. I have also asked some Indian friends and neighbours here, and other people who have lived in or visited India for advice but none of them have any association with universities.

Keep my IBS'd gut happy in Gurgaon, India

joan_holloway — Sat, 10 Aug 2019 17:06:10 -0800

I will likely be going to Gurgaon (India) next month for a work trip. I am looking for advice on how to protect and prepare myself for the inevitable gut distress, especially as someone with IBS-D. I'll have a generous enough expense account to look for safer food and drink, and have good insurance with international coverage. What I don't have is a lot of time to do extensive research on what to pack and how to assess my food options. Help me get quickly up to speed! I have IBS that manifests most often as diarrhea. I go through phases and right now it's dormant, but I know that almost every American experiences some amount of gut distress when visiting India. I will be working most of the time so I need to be able to prevent as much as I can, and get through the worst case symptoms enough to work afterwards.

I know some basics like:
* use hand sanitizer
* avoid food carts
* avoid ice, salad/raw veggies, and anything washed with tap water
* maybe avoid fresh juices?
* never ever drink tap water
* use bottled water for brushing teeth
* make sure bottled water is sealed before drinking

Any other food or drinks that I should avoid? Anything I should look for in restaurants to determine if it's safe to dine there? (and if you have recommendations of places to eat for dinner, I will take those too!)

I will have a decent budget for this trip so I will be staying in a well-regarded business traveler hotel and able to eat in nice restaurants or via hotel room service. I'm working on getting a driver so I can get around easily if there's an emergency.

Are there supplements or prescriptions I should get and start taking ahead of or during the trip? I have been told to take Pepto for a week before and all throughout the trip (not sure what dose and how often, though?), and to bring electrolyte powder and Immodium. I plan to visit my doctor for vaccines and will ask for an antibiotic and anti-emetic. What else?

Guide me through India!

vividvoltage — Fri, 10 May 2019 17:16:27 -0800

This is a dream trip for me!!! I'm going to study ashtanga in Goa from Mid September - Mid October. Due to practice schedule of Sun-Friday I'll be tied to that region for the month, save for potential overnight trips and day trips. Do you have recommendations for day trips, overnight trips and things to do in Goa?

I also plan to travel for a month, either two weeks before & two weeks after or 4 weeks after. I love fabric & textiles, food & spices, general exploration/adventure & probably want a day or 2 of panchakarma (or more if I can afford it). I need to travel cheap and will be a woman traveling solo. Do you have recommendations for travel destinations or experiences? Do you have any helpful tips?

Need some helping on best way to book travel in India

wooh — Wed, 24 Apr 2019 09:57:12 -0800

July 10th, land in New Delh. Then go to Taj Mahal, then {Rishikesh,Dharamashala}, then {Dharamashala,Rishikesh}, and lastly need to get to Kafri by June 20th. How should I get around? Any tips from people who've traveled around there? I've traveled plenty, but I usually just sort of...hang out in a city for a while. This is the first time I'll be hitting up a bunch of places in order. I'm not sure what the best way to book this all is! I think the ideal will be a mix of short flights and nice buses, if they exist. I do have some friends from India, but they're not sure themselves of the best way to go. Is there a good website to book this stuff? If you've been, any tips? If you have hotels/hostels to recommend I'd be open to that to :) Though I think that'll be much easier to figure out than the travel aspect.

My budget is not extravagant, but for example...if there's an option between the much longer, much cheaper local bus and the "luxury" bus with a bathroom that's faster and more comfy...I want the luxury bus.

I have some friends who hired a dedicated driver while in india, and it wasn't too expensive...so push comes to shove I suppose for legs where it was necessary I could probably do that, but then again, I'm not sure where to find a reliable driver.

Car decals internationally

kitcat — Wed, 10 Apr 2019 08:18:19 -0800

I need research help please - how can I figure out what car/scooter/bike decals are popular outside of the West? I'm specifically interested in the Philippines, India and Vietnam. One way to go about this I think is to get onto any English version of the relevant country's most popular online retailers, I'm assuming? But what even are they?

Need Medical Help/Advice for Mother-in-Law Visiting Kerala, India

MelanieMichelle — Tue, 08 Jan 2019 15:43:46 -0800

My 80-year-old mother-in-law is visiting a retreat center in Kerala, India, and she fell and broke her arm. We are seeking some advice/information/assistance. My 80-year-old mother-in-law is visiting a retreat center in Kerala, India, and she fell and broke her arm. With the help of my brother-in-law, who is also there, she visited a hospital, and her arm was placed in a cast. However, she has been unable to get good anti-inflammatories and other pain meds, and we're also not sure that the care she was given was sufficient. Her wife back in the US is trying to get on the phone with my MIL's doctors to get advice, but in the spirit of gathering as much information and support as possible, we are wondering:

1) Can anyone here connect us with a reliable medical professional, or someone who could help navigate the Indian medical system, relatively nearby to where my MIL is? Here's the retreat center: http://www.poonthottam.info/contact.html

2) I have images (x-rays) from before and after the cast was put on. Would anyone here (a medical professional obvy) be able to look at those images and advise as to whether the proper care was given? Or maybe as to what next steps should be?

Thanks!

What food should we try in India?

msbrauer — Wed, 05 Dec 2018 06:59:58 -0800

We'll be traveling to India soon and want to try food that doesn't usually show up in Indian restaurants in the US. What should be on the lookout for in Delhi, Rajasthan, and Kerala? We'll be in Delhi, Rajasthan, and Kerala for a few weeks and would love to try food that's hard to get in Indian restaurants in America. Meals, desserts, chaat, fruit and veggies that don't get exported, etc....we're interested in it all. We've got a few great Indian restaurants where we live, but there's got to be a ton of stuff that doesn't get brought over to the US. We'd love to try some dishes that are new to us, and we're adventurous eaters with no dietary restrictions.

Should I go to Kerala, India, if I don't want a beach holiday?

msbrauer — Sun, 18 Nov 2018 15:34:52 -0800

We're traveling to India in a few weeks. We're splitting time on the trip between big cities and then hopefully something different. We don't want to spend a vacation on a beach. Is Kerala a good destination? If not, where should we consider? The trip will be the latter half of December and the first half will be in Delhi and Rajasthan. We were looking for something different for the second half of the trip and Kerala has been recommended by a lot of people. But after investigating a bit, it seems like a very big draw is the beaches and beach resorts, and the absolute last thing we want to do on a vacation is sit around on a beach or go to a resort. We also are not looking for some secluded place; we like being around people but want something other than the huge cities where we'll be for the first half of the trip. Looking at the backwater boat experiences, for instance, the regular state-run ferry service is much more the sort of thing we like to do than chartering our own boat for a night.

Is Kerala the right place for us?

We're hearty travelers and like to go off the beaten path. We're most interested in food, culture, history, and exploring somewhere we've never been. Walking along beaches for days or the backpacker circuit is the opposite of what we want. Should we be considering somewhere else that will still offer a different experience than Delhi and destinations in Rajasthan?

I've spent a lot of time in Gujurat and Mumbai, so we're looking for somewhere other than those places, and somewhere relatively warm is preferred.

I'm very familiar with traveling around China, so if it helps, the closest analog I can imagine is starting a trip in Shanghai for a bit and then going to Kunming and spending a while making our way down to the Vietnam border through the mountain villages and smaller cities. We're looking for a similar sort of variation in experience in India. Conversely, we didn't have a great time when we went to Hainan and, especially Sanya; we're worried that Kerala tourism is more geared toward something like a holiday trip to Hainan than we'd like.

what travel tv show , shown in Seattle, went to Amritsar

metadave — Sun, 11 Nov 2018 23:41:54 -0800

A few months ago in Seattle I saw a travel television show ( probably on KCTS). I'd like to watch it again but my google skills are not good enough for me to identify it. The host was a man, perhaps in his mid 30's. Part of the show involved a train journey to Amritsar, India. In Amritsar, he visited the Golden Temple among other sites. Can anyone tell me what show this was? Thanks.

Grew up here, not allowed to work...what to do?

Ain — Sun, 14 Oct 2018 09:16:52 -0800

My friend "Anna" is twenty-two and in college. She was brought to the US from India (legally) when she was ten years old and has not been back there since, but neither she nor her parents are citizens. Her parents live across the country now and give her barely enough money to survive, but we all know about college's hidden expenses and she's not allowed to work on her student visa (campus jobs are unavailable). Now she's at her breaking point emotionally and therapy only helps so much. What can she or anyone do? I help her as much as I can since I make decent money, but I'm supporting a lot of people. Should I call my congressman? Start a GoFundMe for a lawyer? She feels trapped and I feel powerless to help.

What are the best Bollywood music videos?

mortaddams — Sun, 16 Sep 2018 09:01:48 -0800

What are the best Bollywood music videos of all time? I would love to watch some pop music from India.

Weekend trips in India during rainy season?

btkuhn — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 09:17:55 -0800

I'm in Bangalore, India for the next 8 weeks for work. This is my first time in India and I'd like to use the opportunity to see some other parts of the country. Unfortunately, I have to work during the week, so I only have weekends free. Which places are worth traveling to if I will only have 1.5-2 days to spend? I will have one 4-day weekend while I'm here, and I'm planning on using that for a whistlestop tour of the golden triangle. I'm also tentatively planning on a weekend in Hampi, probably Mysore, perhaps Kerala (but not sure if it will just be constant rain?), …and that's it. I can maybe manage an additional 3-day weekend, but I will only have Saturday and Sunday free during other weekends. Which other places would you recommend that are worthwhile visiting for a short amount of time? I'm thinking about Goa, Pondicherry, Sri Lanka, Singapore…but I don't know if it's worth spending the time/money to spend a day and a half in these places, and I realize that travel does not happen as quickly here given infrastructure constraints and weather during the rainy season. My interests are pretty varied, I like history, old architecture, new foods, different cultures.

Thanks for any recommendations!

What are these ?

y2karl — Sat, 21 Apr 2018 22:07:14 -0800

What are these ? From India, I suspect. Rummage sale finds.

A humanities-based school in India in response to STEM schooling

mecran01 — Thu, 05 Apr 2018 12:58:25 -0800

I came across a brief article once about a group of businessmen in (India?) who were sponsoring a humanities-based college for their engineers in order to foster creativity and thereby increase their competitiveness. Am I imagining this? Can you help me find it?

How can my dog honor his fans from the Indian subcontinent?

long haired child — Mon, 22 Jan 2018 15:09:04 -0800

I run a facebook page for my pet doggy. He recently gained several thousand likes/follows from people who live in India. I'd like to do a fun post to honor his new fans. Don't want to do anything offensive. Is there a cute costume I could put him in or character i could dress him as? Other ideas. I'm crafty. Thanks!

What was life like for sixth century North Indians?

insteadofapricots — Sat, 09 Dec 2017 12:16:11 -0800

If you were a North Indian somewhere in the middle of the social hierarchy in the sixth century, what would your life be like? What would be a reasonable profession for you? What kind of stuff would you eat? Would you be hungry? Beset by disease? Or more or less happy? What would your social life consist of? Looking for information both general and specific.

Delhi for 14 hours, what should I do?

keeo — Mon, 06 Nov 2017 18:53:48 -0800

At the end of a business trip I will have a 14 hour stop over in Delhi, next Sunday. I have never been to India before and I love museums, cultural landmarks and generally sightseeing and I'd like to go somewhere to pick up gifts for my family. Tell me where to go and how to get there! Possibly relevant: I am a woman travelling alone, and I get lost very easily.

What should I see?

What should I know about getting around Delhi safely?

What should I know about getting back to the airport in time for my flight at 1 am?

Is India for me?

jfricke — Fri, 20 Oct 2017 04:45:25 -0800

Should I go or should I stay? My company offered me the opportunity to go on a business trip to India (Bengaluru) next year. The business stuff would take one week and I can then stay for another week or two on my own. The decision whether I'm going there or not is absolutely up to me. I have doubts. I am a rather shy, introverted guy who has never been outside of Europe. I fear that India is more than I can handle and that I will hate the whole experience. On the other hand, I am afraid that I will have huge regrets and squander a great opportunity if I don't go. Any advice or India experience by introverted people? Any advice that could be helpful to make this decision?

where to begin: Indian history

Shohobohaum Za — Fri, 29 Sep 2017 14:11:00 -0800

I have the standard American liberal arts education. I have come to realize that it is pretty lacking in certain areas. I'd like to read more history, specifically of India. Where do I start?

Can I eat street food in India without becoming deathly ill?

insteadofapricots — Wed, 28 Jun 2017 09:59:14 -0800

I'm going to India, and I love street food. And I've heard that south Asian street food is, like, special. But I don't like getting terribly ill. Is there any way that I can eat like the locals do but avoid hellacious sickness, or at least favourably skew the risk/reward ratio? Just to clarify, I don't count "taking a few eventful poops" as terribly ill -- if a little getting-adjusted-to-the-cuisine diarrhea is an inevitability, that's fine. I'll just stock up on Pepto and rehydration salts and steel myself. I'm talking about insane parasites, vomiting for days, etc.

If locale makes a difference at all, I'd be interested to know, since I'll be all over, like, Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Kochi, etc. Also I've got a pretty strong stomach -- I ate almost everything I could in Bangkok without incident, as well as some slightly dodgy breakfast in Nepal.