Awesome man just awesome. I share the same thoughts and views as yours on this matter, and I totally enjoyed your story.  Just a thought, would it be better to replace the word: one of the 'innovators' of pops songs, with one of the 'pioneers' of pop song? PS: Please let us know what happened later at her appartment  jk!   

jay-z · Oct 13, 2011 6:43 PM

Few days ago, I went to this Yak restaurant. The trio were singing mixed max songs including Hindi. There were two dhotis with a bottle of champaign but nothing else on their table. I was wondering why are they entertaining those two just over a bottle! Dhotis are cheap man.

casino · Oct 13, 2011 7:22 PM

@casino: u sure ur not 'the dude' from behoove's story?

jay-z · Oct 13, 2011 9:43 PM

Actually the Miss purple often overshadows Harish dai (although I was a big fan of his as a kid), so I can totally relate. What annoys me at Yak are not the mix of hindi/nepali songs being sung/played, it is the customers (mostly Nepalis) who get completely drunk and behave like they are in Nepal. One time I was there with a couple of  friends including a female, and this dude started not only hitting the Miss purple singer but also our friend. And he was so drunk to reason with. So we brought it upto the management, and the waitress is like "Hernu na! he's one of our regular customers, kehi bhannai man lagdaina." I haven't been back, but I hope they sort out these petty issues, cause I still often crave for Yak Food, though Bhim's dai's cafe is where I go nowadays for momos :) And beehove bro, your story cannot be a coincidence, you see this on a daily basis around Queens.

Pulsar_Beat · Oct 13, 2011 9:59 PM

behoove_me bro nice article but I have a slightly different view on this matter. I don't have any problem with Hindi songs. I do have same number of Hindi songs in my Ipod as I have Nepali and English songs. But i hate when people dance in hindi songs in a program which clearly states-'nepali cultural program'. I hate when our National (governmental) medias airs Hindi songs and movies. I hate when I go to a so called Nepali restaurant and all they play is Hindi songs. I could have gone to an Indian restaurant 5 mins from my house instead of driving 45 mins. Beside them, I dont have any hard feelings to Hindi or any foreign music. Music has no boundry!!

cajunboy · Oct 13, 2011 10:31 PM

robwin · Oct 13, 2011 10:32 PM

Was testing whether sajha allows null comments or not. Unit testing failed.

robwin · Oct 13, 2011 10:35 PM

 On a different note, how everytime a bunch of guys meet a group of compatriots (strangers), an argument or fight takes place when alcohol is involved? 

Footyfan · Oct 14, 2011 12:15 AM

@jay-z: I was visiting NYC dude. So, that ain't me! It was very nice upstairs though. I liked their business style. no fighting occurred & we even got some drinks downstairs even after the restaurant closed!

casino · Oct 14, 2011 1:59 AM

behoove ji,  I did take a cursory glance and I found some of your general obervations/comments pretty interesting. After a small time retrospection, I think that the dude could easily have been me back in the day. Such is the passion of hate for kids like us growing in Nepal that even a slightest spark could burn down the place, and I believe that it is the direct consequence of bullshits like Kalapani, direct political interference, cultural attacks (debate on Buddha's birthplace, the moniker "Bahadur" in commercials) etc endowed/thrown upon us by the Indian government. Quite astonishing is the fact that on multiple occasions this seems to unite Nepalese from different background, which reminds me of the saying "the enemy of my enemy is my friend". For example I have seen many Nepalese from different background discussing about their differences and how their culture/language are different and should have been different from the mainstream Nepalese culture. But as soon as somebody gets started with "Indian (more often called Dhoti) hate" everybody unanimously equivocal their mutual hate and it sort of acts as a glue that effectively bonds all the Nepalese peeps together in the name of nationalism.   With time we obviously wise up, and now I am tolerant and may be in a certain way indifferent too because people's attitude and personaliy cannot be stereotype upon. However I am honest enough to admit that even after a long time of interaction with fellow Indians, I haven't really had pleasent experience so far. I can safely say that at least 60% of the total Indians I have met so far were worth being slandered at due to their air of superiority that seem to hover over them. But again I have also met many good Indian friends, and have mutually helped each other.  Although the drunken madness seems to have played a big role in creating a nuisance and braggadouchery, I cannot alone blame the dude for his hatred and prejudice. If his feeling of hatred was genuine (meaning he was not trying to show up in front of your cute friend) I think that eventually one day he will wisen up and he will realize that hate can only bring more hate. Only experience will be his best teacher (like you tried to be rational and explain him, and you obviously failed as he can never be convinced). Also I believe it is not so abnormal for somebody to hate and still work for them. One time my boss was an asshole and I still worked for him for a year. So anybody is free to sneer at their bosses and still accumulate paychecks, as long as they remain professional. That was my rational interpretation. P.S. I have never even been to Yak, and it definitely sounds like an awesome place to be at. I still love that song "Aankha ko nani hau timi". I wish I could see Harish ji anytime soon............................................. And btw since I never heard about Norbu Sherpa out of curiousity and a genuine hope of finding a good Nepali hiphop artist I youtubed him. He had this KTMC thingy, and I almost puked over after playing a couple of mins. 50 cent (except for his debut album) sucks in general so I kindda agree with the generalization. Anyways keep it coming bro, I love reading random stuffs no matter how general they are. As a bonus it gives me an insight to other people's thoughts and opinions.

impro_urnoob · Oct 14, 2011 2:14 AM

Folks - excellent response. I am glad my post instigated arguments and was not decimated like few of my previous stories (having said that, not many have read this as compared to ‘sajha’s terrorists banned me’ which is okay, sex sells well everywhere, politics sells best in Nepal) Jay, As I had expected, you were the first one to reply to this post. And Great catch; I have come to understand lately no matter how much one tries to do it by himself, it always takes a fresh pair of eyes for editing. I have updated the post as you see. Thank you so very much. Casino, To each his own right? I believe it is how you prioritize what is important to you. You claim cheapness over only a bottle of ‘champagne’, I claim stupidity over flaunting top dollar sneakers and Calvin Klein Jeans working at a pizza joint or a gas station. Pulsar, I concur. There are many individuals, and unfortunately quite a few Nepalese who validate their swagger by imbibing alcohol at a very high quantity. I do not want to sound stereotypical, but not only in Queens New York, but during my visit to Boston few years ago, I saw a similar scenario in a bar in Cambridge where few Nepalese were jamming (San was there as well). Long story short, a guy (who looked and sounded like a student attending college) grabbed a sensitive body part of his female friend who ended up in crying (and he ended up consoling her). Similarly, in a party at self-proclaimed socialite and politician Mridula Koirala’s apartment in Queens New York, where I was unfortunately present, a 60 year old person , one of Mridula’s ‘political guest’ did something similar to a naïve fresh off the boat girl in her late teens who spent half hour crying inside the bathroom. I agree we have such individuals everywhere , any single person can be a pedophile, but I am appalled seeing why does a normal person ‘needs’ to lose it over few glasses of alcohol when he very well knows what transpires next. Cajun, I agree. And I completely understand your frustration. Believe me, I’d prefer to stick with Nepalese songs as long as they portray our tradition (again, things get a little iffy if someone starts rapping using a commonplace lyrics, you must listen to Nas’s underground rap someday – it has explicit sexual reference at its worst). Unfortunately it doesn’t happen all the time because of the popular demand for Hindi music. While it doesn’t unanimously validate that all hindi song lovers are pro-Indians, or traitors in that case, I acknowledge that in such place or atmosphere certain exclusiveness (playing only Nepali songs in this case) is advised. But the cornerstone of my post was not based on that, it was based on the evolving hatred we have over Indians, or just anyone who listens to Hindi music. Footy, Again, I’d like to reiterate that majority of us believe that our bravado is in peril when we retreat during an argument when drunk. It is a universal truth, but yes, I’d have to say it holds true most for our compatriots. Impro, Great argument – Kudos.  I am gratified that you took some time to read through my gibberish. And I empathize with you; it takes ample doses of generosity to overlook things we are not used to. And I believe it is okay to be stereotypical as long as there is a fair amount of credibility to it. Few examples of my Indian co-workers, friends, acquaintances and even strangers that many lead to resentment by many: 1.   My associate Lakshmi (changed name) never wears a deodorant and abuses the olfactory senses of many at work. 2.   ‘Are you an Indian?’ I have been asked at the mall by several Indian individuals at the mall, Movie Theater, Indian restaurants, or grocery shops. 3.   ‘Seventy dollars is very expensive for a pair of Jeans’ Exclaims an Indian woman. 4.   ‘My son is a doctor in Utah, he earns over 250K a year’ claims a proud father. 5.   ‘Smoking is not good for health, I do not smoke, also I do not eat beef because I am Hindu’ says a novice Indian grad student in America. So let’s ponder what is wrong with all these. As I took a step back and revisited these issues, they weren’t a subject for resentment at all. Because – 1.   It perhaps never occurred to Lakshmi that she needs to wear a deodorant, because in our part of the world, majority of people smell bad. That being a primary reason, and perhaps Lakshmi is less vigilant about how Americans dress or care about their hygiene, she never uses a deodorant. She was summoned by HR once and since then she started using a perfume. She is an excellent engineer, she has outstanding work ethics and meets every deadline. I ask myself if that one issue MUST make me hate her or similar Lakshmis throughout my life. 2.   So what if someone asks me I am an Indian? I perhaps look like one and I cannot help it. It is a simple question that could end in a NO. I ask myself if someone asks me if I were an American, would I feel as bad? 3.   Seventy dollars is indeed expensive for a pair of jeans when it could feed a family of four for a week in rural Nepal. Why do we have to HATE anyone if he or she wears a 20 dollar- jeans? Just like casino mentioned earlier, do we really need to tag few individuals ‘cheap’ just because they choose to drink a bottle of champagne and nothing else? 4.   We have no idea how our parents brag about us. My dad takes it very personally when someone claims his/her son earns a certain amount, not that he is angry over that claim, he cannot wait to tell them how much I earn. 5.   What is wrong with that statement? 70% of Nepalese in US still do not eat beef, and smoking is indeed injurious to health, maybe we’d learn to respect that statement when our Bagalamukhi visiting mothers tell that on our face. There is an excellent Indian writer called Pankaj Mishra (again, an Indian, so many of us could choose not to believe him) who fairly analyzed in one of his book ‘Temptations of the West: How to Be Modern in India, Pakistan, Tibet, and Beyond’. He has carefully browbeaten all our insecurities – as why listening to Metallica is cool while humming Mohammad Rafi is not. We Nepalese belong to the same clan, except that we do not live in an overly competitive population of billions, and our national pride is never at stake (unlike Indians who were ruled by Brit) so we do not have to brag about our well-being to overcome that insecurity. And you are very correct about our national pride despite our cultural differences. If we brag to be a Nepalese to hate every single neighbor that we have, shouldn’t we resolve our cultural differences first?

behoove_me · Oct 14, 2011 9:10 AM

Jay, Just realized you had inquired about something, haha. Although the idea was extremely enticing, I'd rather choose to remain friends than be one with benefits. It just reminded me of something my mother asked me when she visited United States back in 2000 and first thing she noticed in my apartment's living room was my room-mate and her friend wearing tanks and daisy dukes playing a video game. Her instant question was "Are they both your girlfriends"? :)

behoove_me · Oct 14, 2011 9:25 AM

Behoove_me, Perhaps your defending Indians here in terms of cunningness & smell because you went to school and/or college in India. BUT I TELL U WHAT, INDIANS ARE CHEAP AS HELL MAN.  Regarding top dollars sneakers & calvin klein jeans I do wear them but not limited to CK. My wardrobe is filled with top designers clothes including our own PRABAL GURUNG. And no, I dont work either at pizza joint nor gas station. Even if i worked at GS or PJ & wear a $100 Ralph Lauren's Jeans, what's the matter? 

casino · Oct 14, 2011 1:18 PM

Casino, I believe you, Prabal Gurung was a little too far to be plausible but I still believe you. I am sincerely hoping it is not a baloney like nagarikreport attending Ivy league school. Pray tell, Isn't anonymity a bliss? Having said that I believe in frugality as well, and I'd rather wear Dockers from T J Max and retire with a porsche than wear Versace and struggle to make ends meet. I am entitled to my opinion as you are to yours. And I do respect yours, shouldn't you respect mine?

behoove_me · Oct 14, 2011 1:33 PM

I don't think Behoove is trying to defend anyone here, he just presented a story loosely based on some true events as he mentions on his disclaimer. Its upto us to interpret the story anyway we want to. I've been around South Asia enough to realize that most Indians are not cheap, or crooks, or bandits or [insert your prejudice here], most Bangladeshis are not hungry, or poor, or live in huts submerged with water 6 months a year, most Pakistanis are not terrorist, or jihadis. Coming back home I see most Nepalis are not security guards, or watchmen, or cheap labor for foreigners either.  There are good people, and there are bad people in every race, nationality, color, and creed. It's upto you what you want to be. Behoove and I seem to have an open mind towards other people and take them as a human first and and Indian or Asian or Black or Mexican later.  As for me I would love to hang out with an open-minded Indian, or Pakistani or Hondurian for that matter rather than with a close-minded Nepali full of bigotry and hatred.

jay-z · Oct 14, 2011 1:41 PM

You stole my words Jay, That is exactly what I wanted to portray. I am not defending their cunningness (I call it insecurity) or their malodor and calling it is okay to have them.  I am only urging every single of us hate every single people from a different nation because of how they smell or how frugal they are. A little generosity is always better than an uncalled retaliation. Just a thought, wouldn't we be offended if an American national thinks similarly?  

behoove_me · Oct 14, 2011 1:56 PM

 dont take me wrong. I know what Prabal designs but I do have a T-shirt  by him. as far as lifestyle including what should one wear regardless of income is a personal choice. your free to wear TJ max clothes & save all those money for a porshe that you mentioned. Likewise, im free to wear whatever i like. but i'm not interested in porshe.  what i don't agree here is why should we nepalese people change our lifestyle just because the indian doesn't follow it? if that indian fellow is cheap you mean i should be cheap?? i ain't living my life looking at that fellow. this is a free country you can do whatever you like.  BTW, I don't have to struggle to make my ends meet or pay my bills. Please don't assume everyone here works at a GS or PJ just because you've some office job. 

casino · Oct 14, 2011 2:52 PM

Hey Beehoove. Its always nice to see the literary environment in sajha coming back to life again. After that Nas fiasco back in 2007 almost all writers left sajha except pop ups from Deep and Jira from time to time, which made me come back to sajha again and again ( Although I always enjoyed shoutbox of sajha rather than forum meanwhile). I hope you will write more anecdotes and make me wish to come back to forum to participate more often. Cheers for your wonderful skill as a writer. I always respected it and I always will. :) Casino bro You got it wrong. I am sure beehoove doesn't disrespect anyone just because anybody works in gas station or pj. It is just that I have seen with trend in nepalese youth to spend more than we can earn. Have you seen kiddos in Ktm wanting an Iphone or some touchscreen phone just to flaunt among the friends while their parents are working hard to keep the ends met. I think he meant that. And also if we don't want to be changed by others, why we want to change others? is it fair? I mean if you have certain beliefs and act with those beliefs and want others to follow them, won't others want to do the same? also if you respect others belief and u live with yours and others live with theirs with mutual respect wouldn't it be better?

Juggy · Oct 14, 2011 5:21 PM

Casino, My apologies if I did sound a little harsh, but could we please stick to the subject matter? I am only speaking of our hatred towards Indians based on their unkempt appearance and a little frugality, the one you term 'cheap'. I am not encouraging anyone to dress like them. Also, I did not mention you or myself doing odd jobs. You might be the vice president of Merill Lynch for all I care, but yes, I'd prefer a student on a visa who does an odd job and struggles to make ends meet in foreign land better stick to his convictions. For Pete's sake, we come from one of the poorest countries in the world. But I guess it is how one perceives it. Juggy, I am glad you are still around. My hibernation was a little too long. I am glad Nas has left (only to return again??), he did play with lots' emotion here incase neophyte sajha users who consider him a messiah do not know about his misdeeds earlier. He was the root cause why many quality sajhaites of yesteryears dissappeared. Ever since the fall out with him and few other belligerent users in 2005, I stayed away from Sajha as much as I could and finally called it a day in 2007. I wonder where great literary architects like Paschim, Nazar, Sitara, sum_off, netaz neta and many others are now. Let bygones be bygones, but worshipping Nas by many portrays shamlessly  how screwed up our mentality is.

behoove_me · Oct 14, 2011 11:42 PM