Like a 'Bawse': Smriti Irani learns Superwoman lingo

There are moments when parents try and understand the language spoken by youngsters today. Take for example when a teenager uses the abbreviation of laugh out loud (LOL) while speaking. For example, "He cracked a joke and we all went lol, lol, lol.' Or when By The Way (BTW) is suddenly further abbreviated into Bee-Tee-Dubbs during a regular conversation.

So when BJP leader Smriti Irani was on the receiving end of teen lingo, she shared what millions of parents around the world experience: A momentary brain fade, follwed by, "What?" 

Irani's daughter, a fan of Lilly Singh aka Superwoman, used the word 'Bawse'. Irani in response tweeted this

You know you are old when your 13 year old says 'Bawse' and you say 'Whatttt?????' @IISuperwomanII pic.twitter.com/w7hVE7Wp2U

— Smriti Z Irani (@smritiirani) April 2, 2017

Singh is often known to use the word and its popular usage refers to strong-willed people exuding confidence while they make themselves and others feel good.

One of the users even suggested Irani a video showing Singh explaining the term “bawse”, probably so that she gets a better idea.

Singh's channel Superwoman, which has attracted two billion views and over 11 million subscribers,  often combine her Punjabi heritage with hilarious events from her everyday life—and her satirical How Girls Get Ready video from 2013 helped her go viral. Today, she's become a multi-million-dollar business: In 2016, Singh was ranked among the top-three highest paid YouTube Superstars, earning an eye-popping $7.5 million per year. She was recently seen on the Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon.

But what exactly is a Bawse?

Meanwhile, a number of individuals empathised with Irani's tweet, sharing their parenting woes

@smritiirani @IISuperwomanII Guess I am old. I had to google #bawse

— sk (@shelinakukar) April 2, 2017

@smritiirani @IISuperwomanII I am 32 n I hd 2 google for base.. seems I am oldie

— lalit (@ilalitb) April 2, 2017