What is Indian?This is IndianAnd So is This Yoga is now the stressed-out west’s favourite mode to relax. And no prizes for guessing where those fans and paans came from? Rumours of use of child labour may have checked the march of the little ciggies. But, make no mistake, we gave the world the beedi. Chess started off on our shores as Chatur-Anga, meaning four-bodied. And palmistry and mehendi is all in our hands. The Mulligatawny Soup, such a rage across the seven seas, has a Tamil origin. It’s short for Mulaga (chilly) and Thanni (water). This is Indian Is This Indian? Garv se kaho: the Kohinoor is ours, as are tandoor & kabaddi. Does any species, anywhere else in the world, reserve bus and train seats by remote by placing a handkerchief or a newspaper on it? From the land of Rig Veda, Ayurveda. As are those ultra-hygienic sip-and-smash earthen cups and Mulayam’s favourite sport. To all those who wail about our dirt and filth, ask them this: will you ever bump into a professional ear-cleaner on any other soil? The Epic | Kama Sutra | Thirukural | India: As They Saw It | Liff Laff Indiannama | One of Us | This Happens only in India | Cliche