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Glossary

While the meanings of most of the Indian words used in the text should be apparent from their context, a glossary may be of interest to some readers. The words defined below are, unless otherwise specified, from Hindi, the language of the Bollywood films featured in the novel.

abhineta—actor

adharma—unrighteousness; opposite of dharma

advaita — a system of Hindu philosophy

arreé[slang] “hey!”

bachcha — child

bahu—bride, daughter-in-law

beedis—small Indian leaf cigarettes

bété—son

beti—daughter

bhai, bhaiya—brother

bhajan—devotional song

bharata natyam—a popular system of South Indian classical dance

Bong—[Indian-English slang] Bengali

chakkar—[Hindi slang usage] business

chamcha—sycophant, hanger-on

chappals—slippers

chaprassi—peon, gofer

chawal—rice

chawl—slum settlement

chowkidar—gatekeeper

churidar—tight pajamas

churidar-kameez—outfit of tight pajamas and loose shirt

daal—lentils (an Indian staple). Daal-chawal is the Indian equivalent of bread and butter.

dada—[slang] tough guy

desi—domestic (in the national sense), indigenous

dhaba—roadside tea-and-snack stall

dharampati [formal usage] husband

dharampatni [formal usage] wife

Diwali—the Indian festival of lights

dry day—[Indian-English usage] a day when the sale and public consumption of liquor is forbidden

dupatta—a long scarf worn by women with the salwar-kameez and similar outfits

ganwaari—village girl

ghagra—Indian skirt

gherao—a form of protest picketing that imprisons the target, who is surrounded by demonstrators

godown—warehouse

gunas—good qualities

gurudwara—Sikh temple

jamaatkhana—place of meeting and worship for some Muslim sects

jee-huzoor—“yes, sir”

jhamela—mix-up

judai—a bond, a twinning

Kalki—Indian mythological figure, the tenth avatar of Vishnu, who will be incarnated on earth at the end of Kaliyug to destroy the world

kameenay—[an insult] third-rate fellow; scoundrel

kameez—loose shirt

kanjoos—miserly

karma-yoga—the yoga of action; one of the principal ethics derived from the Bhagavad Gita

khadi—homespun (worn by Indian politicians as a symbol of nationalist simplicity)

lakh—100,000

lathis—staves, usually of bamboo, used by Indian police in crowd control

maal—[slang] goods

maha—big, great

Mahabharata—ancient Indian verse epic

masala—spice

mastaan—hood, thug

mela—fair

moomphali-wallah—peanut seller

muhavrein—idiomatic expressions, proverbs

musafir—traveler

naraka—hell

neem—margosa tree, whose twigs are used to clean teeth

neta—leader

paan—Indian digestive of leaf and spices, chewed usually after meals

paglee—madwoman

pahelwans—wrestlers, tough guys

paisa—the smallest Indian coin (100 paise = i rupee, about 4 U.S. cents today)

pallav—the loose end of the sari, draped over the wearer’s shoulder

Patthar aur Phool—[imaginary film title] “The Stone and the Flower”

pau-bhaji—Indian snack

payal—anklet

Puranas—ancient Sanskrit texts

salwar-kameez—outfit of loose pajamas and loose shirt

seedhi-saadhi—[slang] straightforward, innocent

shabash—“congratulations,” “well done”

shastras—ancient religious texts

slokas—ancient religious verses in Sanskrit

Valmiki Ramayana—sacred Indian epic of the god Rama, as told by Valmiki

yaar—[slang] pal, friend

Ya Khuda—“Oh, God!”

zamindari—a feudal system of land tenure in which tenants tilled land for a zamindar, or big landowner

zindabad—“long live”