India
Some modern aunties want you to go to Harvard, or think you’re too thin, while others want to find you a nice rishta. Aviva Mehta lists ten harrowing moments every Indian teen goes through
Updated : Dec 23, 2016, 07:30 AM IST
Being an Indian teen is certainly not without its share of tantrums and overbearing relatives. Whether it is uncles, aunties or even our parents, we’ve all had to sit through these moments.
Just because some family member gives you a creepy glance and wiggles their eyebrows, it doesn’t mean you’re going to spill all your inner gossip to them. On the other hand, it is quite flattering that they think you’re attractive enough to have a new love interest every month.
No, random aunty at the raksha bandhan celebration, I actually do not remember you. And having four more aunties stare me down with fake smiles while trying to remember you actually doesn’t make this any more comfortable.
Thank you, random chacha. Now, I can get some more disappointing nods from my father and raised eyebrows from my mother. “Did you hear that? He goes to Berkeley. Tell her how many hours he studied everyday?” Why does every Indian kid have to have that one relative who goes to some kind of Ivy League? You have no idea how much your cousins have cursed you.
Actually, nani/dadi/chaachi I’ve put on like four kilos so if you don’t mind, I’ll be avoiding that. Why do Indian relatives think that the only way to show true hospitality is to fill someone up till they can’t even breathe anymore? Do they know how many calories one dhokla has?
Said every mother ever. And this just doesn’t make sense at all, because you actually did offer to help her, to which she said no. And now, she’s complaining about how nobody helps her and she’s just a maid. Also, just because you come back late or sleep in, how does that have any correlation to a guest house?
The worst part is when your family members add you on Facebook and you need to go through the pain of accepting them and then blocking them, and then trying to explain why you mysteriously ‘deleted Facebook’. It gets even worse when they try to be ‘cool’ and make Instagram/Snapchat accounts.
It is an impossible thing to even attempt meeting your family in ripped jeans. Like, one person will call you out for the holes and then some other aunty will say “Arre yeh toh aaj kal ka fashion hai” and then they’ll all laugh as if they’ve never seen anything funnier.
A grandparent buying an iphone is all fun and games until you have to do every single thing. From deleting messages to reading messages to downloading apps for them, it’s a tough journey. The only plus point is when you get those cute messages that you know they typed (e.g. “love you my kuttu from nani).
These are every father’s favourite words to their son, and every mother’s favourite words to their daughter, son, daughter’s boyfriend, house servants and most of her children’s friends. If aimed towards children, in good cases this comes with a slap and in the bad cases maybe a chappal or belan.
This is every girl’s life story. The worst part is you’re not even sure if they’re being serious about this. The best part is, that they don’t even choose your clothes, no way they are going to choose your husband.