# What do Americans think of Asian-Indians? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 22, 2008, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610 "2008-09-22T00:29:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Springtime_for_Spacers)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/21 "2008-09-22T04:46:35Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Sikh [Dastar](http://goraturbantraining.com/), Arab [turban](http://goatmilk.files.wordpress.com/2008/04/khomeini.jpg). > > EDIT: [Wiki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dastar) article on the dastar. They seem to use ‘dastar’ and ‘turban’ interchangeably. Ah, now I see, thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Myrrajh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/87869e/32.png) [@Myrrajh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myrrajh)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/22 "2008-09-22T05:17:10Z")
> [@Green\_Bean](#): > > Boy oh boy, Indian women sure know how to dress! You really don’t see women walking around Target in saris unless they’re grandma-age, but the salwar kameezes they wear are so gorgeous. They just make the world a more beautiful place to be. Seconded. Some of those outfits are just glorious and I can hardly stop staring. I love that they dress modestly but so beautifully. I am confident in saying that the most beautiful women I’ve seen have been East Indian. And some very schweet looking guys, too. But I’m a sucker for dark hair and dark eyes. Indian food is the best, period. I worked for a Punjabi fellow many years ago, and most of his clients were Punjabi as well. I really grew fond of that lovely sing-song accent and when I moved away to a city with a much smaller Indian population, I missed hearing it. Negative stereotypes abound in Canada, too, but I don’t pay attention to them. I think I spent enough time in that culture, and I have a healthy respect for people as individuals, to not let the generalizations cloud my judgment of any one person. I’ve met some real buttheads from many cultures, and amazing people as well. Kinda the same wherever you go. ---
**Author:** ![Vox\_Imperatoris](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Vox\_Imperatoris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vox_Imperatoris)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/23 "2008-09-22T06:04:22Z")
[Anila](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDErgD9YNyc)[Mirza](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0aXY2pM2sA)is [hot](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BAfu2MBYEew). (Danish child of Pakistani parents.) Valete, Vox Imperatoris ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/24 "2008-09-22T06:10:32Z")
There are next to NO Indian women in pornography. Why this is, I don’t know. I’ve always thought that a lot of Indians were basically white people with dark skin and hair. By this I mean, their facial features are frequently the same as those of people of European descent, and the only thing that’s different is the tone of their skin and hair. Unlike, for instance, blacks, who have very obviously different nose shapes and other features that would give away their heritage even if their skin was somehow bleached. (Aren’t Indians technically considered Caucasians?) I have seen a lot of Indian guys who, if you were to somehow make their skin lighter, would look like British or French men. Especially the Indians in Indian movies - those people tend to look like people from Italy or something, and sometimes I’d never guess they were Indian if it weren’t for their language. I’ve always wanted to sleep with an Indian woman. At a party at my house a few months ago, there was a bisexual Indian chick who was coming on to my girlfriend. Talk about a missed opportunity. But my GF doesn’t do three-ways, unfortunately. ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/25 "2008-09-22T12:53:45Z")
[QUOTE= …nobody knows anything about Indians so there’s no opinion… [/QUOTE] I kind of have to agree with that sadly. For a country of that population and that power, India really has very little notice in standard America. When asked, most people would know only about India from the _Jungle Book_ and that Gandhi guy who was really nice. For some reason it just has virtually zero entrance into pop culture, which is the only culture for too many people. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/26 "2008-09-22T13:14:05Z")
I do have problems with their accent when they are telephone support. That’s no surprise. I have problems with accents from certain areas in the USA too. I don’t like the practice of picking males only for offspring and killing the girls, but that’s something the society as a whole will suffer from when none of the males can get a wife. It’s a very black mark against India as a whole this goes on. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/27 "2008-09-22T13:27:38Z")
What I hear more than anything is that damn turban thing. Most Indian men don’t wear turbans. In my grandfather’s time, it was a class thing. He was high-caste, and he probably wore a turban to denote that. Then again, the only [picture](http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v713/Elenia25/Family/?action=view¤t=Nanaji.bmp) I’ve ever seen of him was _sans_ turban. Sikh men wear turbans. Indian men generally do not, except maybe for a wedding. I also hear a lot of - “You’re Punjabi, you must be Sikh.” From Indians, sometimes! Nope, there are Hindu Punjabis, of which I am one. I’m surprised you missed the most obvious one. Indian people smell. That’s the biggest one I hear from everywhere, and sometimes right to my face. Thanks, asswipe. Ever heard of civility? I’ve had someone say “You’re Indian? Funny, you don’t smell like curry.” Fuck you, OK? The other thing I get a lot is people assume India is full of reeking poverty and ignorant people marrying their daughters off at eleven and _nothing else_. India has been independent since 1947! These things take time! Do you know much advancement we have made since then? ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/28 "2008-09-22T13:52:40Z")
I love the formality in conversation, especially with strangers (we in the West could do well to take note). And I must do the needful by stating that I _adore_ “Hinglish”. And I don’t mean that in a paternalistic “oh, isn’t that quaint?” sense either. Hinglish fucking rocks. ---
**Author:** ![Ro\_Carter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7feea3/32.png) [@Ro\_Carter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ro_Carter)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/29 "2008-09-22T13:53:00Z")
I think that they are people, and make the same assumptions about them as I would anyone else. Wait, one possible exception: I am generally worried about needing help spelling names correctly. ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/30 "2008-09-22T14:14:04Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > The other thing I get a lot is people assume India is full of reeking poverty and ignorant people marrying their daughters off at eleven and _nothing else_. India has been independent since 1947! These things take time! Do you know much advancement we have made since then? Wait–are you blaming the British Raj for a cultural practice that predates it? 😕 Here’s a source that contradicts that notion. [childbrides](http://www.stormloader.com/munaypata/India.htm) India still is a poor nation, but a rapidly growing one. Then again, most other countries come across as “poor” when compared to the US (and we have our poverty here as well–we just don’t like to talk about it). I had heard of arranged marriages, but not the child bride stuff. Child brides I associated with Mongols (sorry, can’t think of a more modern term). It’s too bad that there was no epidemiology back then–not that I am in any way sanctioning child brides. And I thought it was the Chinese who were killing their baby girls or at least putting them into orphanages, **Harmonious**. I’ve never met an Indian man (although I am sure they exist) that has not spoken of his daughter with pride and love. IM(limited)E, Indian people love their children very much (why wouldn’t they?)–both genders. Sure there’s sexism and perhaps boys are favored, but that’s the way it works here as well (or did in my family). YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/31 "2008-09-22T14:17:48Z")
> [@eleanorigby](#): > > Wait–are you blaming the British Raj for a cultural practice that predates it,(AFAIK)? 😕 > > Here’s a source that contradicts that notion. > [childbrides](http://www.stormloader.com/munaypata/India.htm) > > I had heard of arranged marriages, but not the child bride stuff. Child brides I associated with Mongols (sorry, can’t think of a more modern term). It’s too bad that there was no epidemiology back then–not that I am in any way sanctioning child brides. Not really. The British Raj did a great deal of good stuff along with all of the bad stuff. I’m just pointing out that it’s exposure to the way the rest of the world does stuff, as well as education, that makes a difference. India has only been a country for so many years, and we have leapt forward in that much time. It’ll take more time before we get much further. > [@](#): > > And I thought it was the Chinese who were killing their baby girls or at least putting them into orphanages, **Harmonious**. I’ve never met an Indian man (although I am sure they exist) that has not spoken of his daughter with pride and love. IM(limited)E, Indian people love their children very much (why wouldn’t they?)–both genders. Sure there’s sexism and perhaps boys are favored, but that’s the way it works here as well (or did in my family). YMMV. I could be cynical and say, no, we just wait until she does something wrong and then kill her, but mostly we just marry her off quickly. There is extreme sexism but at the same time girls are loved. It’s a weird dynamic. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/32 "2008-09-22T14:54:08Z")
Supposedly, when Koreans want to speak faux English jibberish, they say “shella shella shella.” When Americans make Arabic jibberish, it’s usually a bunch of random guttural, hacking and coughing noises or “durka durka Muhammad jihad jihad durka jihad Muhammad Muhammad”. Spanish jibberish is basically random one- and two-syllable sounds with everything ending in “o” or “a”. When I’ve heard people make Indian jibberish (yes, I know there’s hundreds of languages spoken in India), it sounds like “beedee veedee beedee beedee veedee veedee beedee.” ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/33 "2008-09-22T15:02:49Z")
> [@elmwood](#): > > When I’ve heard people make Indian jibberish (yes, I know there’s hundreds of languages spoken in India), it sounds like “beedee veedee beedee beedee veedee veedee beedee.” Like [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8oFX7IgLlDk)? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mahna\_Mahna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e47c2d/32.png) [@Mahna\_Mahna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahna_Mahna)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/34 "2008-09-22T15:25:48Z")
As far as Canadian-Indians go, I’ve got several close friends who are second-generation and they’re no different from your average Torontonian. They eat dim sum, go shopping at the mall, listen to indie bands, … different skin colour doesn’t mean much here (last census showed that visible minorities now outnumber caucasians 'round these parts). The only difference is that I come back from weddings with a tulle-wrapped wedding favour, and they come back from weddings with gorgeous henna designs on their hands. Also, I seriously covet their dressup clothes, which are much prettier than mine (I just don’t have the guts to pull off a sari, unfortunately). The only negative experiences I’ve had with Indians tend to involve the very recent immigrants, and most of the time it was just a matter of vastly different cultural norms. I have to agree on the habit of haggling over prices when it’s simply not appropriate - I understand that this is part of any shopping trip in India (and is still expected here if you’re shopping in a predominantly Indian neighbourhood), but it’s just plain rude if you’re holding up the line at The Gap trying to get a better price on a shirt. The other problem I’ve noticed is completely different notions of personal space. What the average Indian man thinks of as an acceptably friendly distance feels downright threatening to me as an average North American female. I consciously understand that’s not their intent, but it can be difficult to hold a conversation when my brain is fully engaged in fight-or-flight mode. As for Indian women being unattractive? Pffft. I think you’d be hard pressed to find any straight man on the planet who can resist [Aishwarya Rai](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0706787/). ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/35 "2008-09-22T15:35:42Z")
Ha, I’m Indian and I don’t like very recent immigrants. I’ve had somebody tell me I was a bad girl for buying cigarettes (I don’t smoke, I was picking them up for a friebd because I’m nice like that) and he told me “Good Indian girls don’t smoke”. Recent immigrants also disapprove of my relationship with a non-Indian. Oh, and Bollywood is seriously getting into mainstream, some how or other. I am amazed by the amount of people I know who have no other connection with India but watch Bollywood flicks. Psssh, Aishwarya Rai is a newbie. Look back at Madhubala, or Rekha. We’ve always had beautiful Indian girls. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/36 "2008-09-22T16:54:26Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Like [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8oFX7IgLlDk)? Twiki is so much a Desi. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mahna\_Mahna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e47c2d/32.png) [@Mahna\_Mahna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahna_Mahna)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/37 "2008-09-22T16:57:32Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > Recent immigrants also disapprove of my relationship with a non-Indian. What, you are being too high-and-mighty for a nice Indian boy? You will break your mother’s heart for being such an ungrateful daughter. 🙂 (the first-generation Indian women I’ve met seem to have an unique knack for finding any available opportunity to play matchmaker, though… it’s compulsive) > [@Anaamika](#): > > Psssh, Aishwarya Rai is a newbie. Look back at Madhubala, or Rekha. We’ve always had beautiful Indian girls. She may be a n00b, but I’d still go gay for a day if she asked. 🙂 Actually, she’s just the first name that came to mind since I’d just been talking about Bride and Prejudice with a friend. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/38 "2008-09-22T17:11:53Z")
> [@Mahna\_Mahna](#): > > What, you are being too high-and-mighty for a nice Indian boy? You will break your mother’s heart for being such an ungrateful daughter. 🙂 I already did. 🙂 ☹ Yes, that requires both a sad and a happy smiley. I broke everybody’s heart. Except mine. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/39 "2008-09-22T17:52:47Z")
[QUOTE=Anaamika] These things take time! Do you know much advancement we have made since then? [/QUOTE] Not as fast and not as much as Meiji. 😃 😛 On a more serious note…I ain’t exactly an “average” American, but I do think Indian accents are pretty. All the Indian _singing_ I’ve heard, on the other hand…not so much. I’m sure I’ve simply had the misfortune of missing the best and most beautiful examples, and for that I’m truly sorry, but most of what I _have_ heard was like jamming a standard screwdriver through my ear canal and scraping and skipping the tip against my skull bones. Less infuriating than Miley Cyrus, granted. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2008, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610/40 "2008-09-22T18:08:51Z")
> [@Aesiron](#): > > That sounds about right so far as stereotypes go, although I don’t think there’s any kind of well-known stereotype of Indian women. I find them beautiful on the whole because I tend to like black hair and brown skin, but I know of no one else who feels the same in person. I’ve never noticed that Indian women were any more or less beautiful than others. Culturally, it seems to me that modesty in dress is encouraged to a greater degree than in Western culture, which may cause them to slip under my radar in some cases. I can see where this might be a good thing, because it requires you to get to know the person first instead of just noticing the body first thing. A question for the OP if I may: In the U.S., “Asian” usually means East Asians such as Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese. Other countries are included as well, but they tend to be more or less strictly defined as the ones where the population mostly have the typical “Mongoloid” features such as the epicanthic eyelid fold, generally less pronounced noses, chins and brows with respect to Europeans, and so on. We refer to Indians usually as just Indians, since “American Indian” and “Native American” have come to be used for the native populations here. So, how do they refer to East Asians generally, in the UK? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-americans-think-of-asian-indians/464610.md?page=3)