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An evergreen story from 2018

Gifts for Desi Parents –

Hasan Minhaj & Lilly Singh have the solution!

The Indian-Americans  – Lassi with Lavina Video of the Day

What can you give desi parents who are frugal – even about receiving presents? Hasan Minhaj and Lilly Singh are the experts, having lived with desi parents all their lives. Here they share some great ideas for what will really thrill your beloved parents. And if you even merely share this video with your parents, they will love you even more because this being a Youtube video it doesn’t cost them – or you – a cent – and the laughs are for free!

 

One sharp insightful tip from these savvy experts is “Don’t get them the thing. Get them the coupon for the thing”. Indeed, immigrant parents looove coupons since frugality is part of their DNA. If something isn’t on sale it really isn’t worth buying. The thrill is in saving money and getting a deal.  ‘Coupons’ is a beautiful, nostalgic word that reminds desi parents of their tough early days in a new country and how these little clips of paper made everything more accessible and saved them a bundle. They were like free paper currency!

The Christmas video seems to have really hit the sweet spot with the children of desi parents – as you can see from some of these comments posted on Youtube.

As one commenter wrote: “You nailed this, especially the report cards. Haha, nothing made my Indian parents happier than straight A’s. But the funny thing? I’m sort of like that with my kids now too.”

Yes, this passion to be first, to excel runs in Indian blood too and surprisingly the younger generation is following in their desi parents’ footsteps  and  frenetically chasing good grades and the perfect score for even their pre-schoolers! I remember the sanctity of the report card from time immemorial in Delhi and my desi dad would keep all my report cards from kindergarten onward filed in his jewelry store – and that was decades ago! I still have them and in one of them, the teacher accuses me of ‘day-dreaming’ which was considered very, very bad!

As Hasan and Lilly suggest – the perfect gift for desi parents would probably be a medical degree with your name photoshopped on it!  Or a grandchild – or better still, two grandchildren!

What Hasan and Lilly have unearthed seems to touch a chord with many Indian-American kids – from the cheek pinching and pats by desi relatives to the hoarding of empty yogurt containers. All this seems a totally brown people’s almanac! As another fan wrote, “My parents are immigrants and I died laughing cuz this is so relatable.”

While the hundreds of responses were all in favor of this wise and witty video by two of Brown America’s favorite people – Hasan Minhaj and Lilly Singh – one commentator sounded a cautionary note: “Just because you might be an immigrant doesn’t mean you use the stereotypes and keep perpetuating them. Rise above the stereotypes, don’t validate them.”

True –  but surprisingly we Indians do love to laugh at ourselves as long as we are the ones making the jokes and they are OUR jokes! Here is another funny Christmas carol from Lilly Singh – it’s all about a phenomenon all desi families are familiar with: Auntyji is coming to town!
That’s when you have to clean your home from top to bottom and lose your room and your bed, your space and your peace of mind  – all in the name of desi hospitality. Desi auntyjis after all, are authority figures who can turn your life upside down

So let’s enjoy the chaos and have a very Happy White – er- Brown Christmas!