What is this blog about?

I first started writing this blog to discuss issues surrounding parenting in general and include some challenges that immigrant families face in their day to day life in the US. But time and again I realised that there is a lot of parenting litrature out there including blogs about parenting. A topic which is even closer to my heart for 18 years now is the 'desi immigrant life' or 'Dil' for short. 

'Dil' means heart in Hindi. For those who know any South Asian language or culture will know what a 'Desi' means. For others here's a simple definition: Desi is a noun 1.a person of Indian, Pakistani, or Bangladeshi birth or descent who lives abroad. Wikipedia writes "Desi [d̪eːsi] is a loose term for the cultures, and products of the Indian subcontinent or South Asia and their diaspora, derived from the Ancient Sanskrit देश (deśá or deshi), meaning Land or Country."Desi" countries include Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Aside from the subcontinent, there are also large Desi populations in Trinidad and Tobago, Australia, Canada, Fiji, Guyana, Malaysia, Mauritius, the Middle East (Saudi Arabia and the UAE in particular), New Zealand, Singapore, Suriname, the United Kingdom, Caribbean, and the United States, among other regions".

Phew! Now you know who is a desi ! 

I will use this blog to share personal experiences of typical desis in the US, explore issues of culture shock, family dynamics, challenges adapting to the new country, barriers and hardships, cultural pet peeves and much more. Though I might generalise sometimes, remember that each person whether Desi or not, brings his or her own unique perspective to immigrant experience so if you agree with what I say or not, feel free to write back with your stories and anecdotes around each issue that we discuss. i would love this to be an interactive blog.

Happy Reading!