Thanks to Bollywood cinema’s portrayal of the Sindhi community, we are not all about papad and “adey sai“! And no, we are not refugees. Stop calling us kanjoos and assuming that we are all blingy and gaudy with all the generational wealth from our ‘pappa ka business’.
There are many false Sindhi stereotypes that we need to break free from. And here are some facts contrary to the stereotypical beliefs.
First things first. We don’t talk like, “adey sain, daadho sutho, daadho majo aayo“. No idea why Bollywood has created this impression that we dress and speak in a certain way. Perhaps they’ve done this to many communities, for some unknown reasons. But that isn’t the reality. Just as Punjabis don’t do ‘balle balle‘ all day long, we are also normal people and we don’t have a certain typical way of speaking.
Not every -ani is a Sindhi! If that was the case, Mukesh Ambani and Joey Tribianni would’ve belonged to our community! But that isn’t true. Not EVERY Sindhi has a surname with ‘-ani’ in it. All the Ahujas, Chawlas, Hindujas, Bhatias, and many more are also Sindhis. In fact, many Gujarati surnames also have an ‘-ani’ ending. So the next time you hear a surname ending ‘ani’, refrain from immediately assuming that the person is Sindhi.
Another stereotype is ‘all Sindhis are businessmen‘. No! Sindhis are beyond businesses and are ruling professions like singing, acting, fashion designing, and even politics. Think of Ranveer Singh, Lal Krishna Advani, Vishal Dadlani, Tarun Tahiliani, Kiara Advani, and the like. And we aren’t “born rich” with our fathers’ established businesses. In fact, we work hard with dedication to earn for our ‘expensive weddings’.
Nowadays, many young Sindhi couples are opting for simple weddings and lowkey arrangements. And, the youth is not only carrying forward family-owned businesses. We don’t deny opting for entrepreneurship most of the time, but many young men and women are also flourishing successful careers in good jobs and companies. It isn’t always ‘bana banaya business’ for us to run. Many of us are self-made too!
And since our money is hard-earned, we don’t simply spend it mindlessly unlike the popular beliefs. Not that we are kanjoos or something, but we also don’t spend too much money on unnecessary things to simply show off! You might think all Sindhis have big bungalows, expensive cars, and too much jewelry and cash lying around in their drawers. That isn’t true. In fact, we are too mindful of how to invest our money strategically. That brings us to other stereotypes, such as Sindhis being money-minded and having great bargaining skills.
Not all Sindhis can bargain well (me, crying in the corner because I can’t). And if they do, that’s because we are smart at money management and have a good convincing power. Maybe that is one of the many reasons, our dads have a flourishing business, as per y’all!
Plus, it’s high time we stop the papad jokes also! I mean yes, we do love eating papad but that isn’t our identity proof! Our food is not only about papad and Sindhi kadhi. We are foodies and we have more variety in our meals including koki, aloo tuk, sai bhaji, and whatnot. And no, Sindhis ≠ Punjabis! Yes, both the communities love eating spicy and oily foods but that doesn’t mean we are the same. Being a foodie is a trait we Sindhis are definitely guilty of. And yes, our celebrations are incomplete without good food and the biggest part of our big-fat weddings is also food (after gold). But that doesn’t mean we survive on koki and papad alone!
Talking of weddings, duma dum mast qalandar isn’t the only track we play as our community anthem! We love sangeet and dance parties but we do have a long list of peppy folk songs called Sindhi ‘laada’. And we even have a version of the Brazil song on that list! So, our music is not only about ‘Laal Jhule Laal‘.
And please, stop referring to our community as the blingy one! Ladies from our community no longer dress in shimmery outfits and loud jewelry as a display of wealth. That isn’t our dressing style anymore. What does it mean, “You don’t look like a Sindhi, bro!” What do you expect? How can one look Sindhi? There is this stereotype that all Sindhis are fair-skinned and they have a fashion sense like Ranveer Singh. But that’s not true! In fact, we believe in decent dressing and hygiene like most of you these days. So please don’t expect every Sindhi dressed in the costliest possible outfits in bright colors and brand logos all over.
Yes, we do like to indulge in quality clothes and accessories but they aren’t always loud and flashy. Gone are the days when you’d assume that Sindhi ladies would be all decorated with huge gold and diamond jewelry pieces. In fact, most Sindhi brides are moving to dainty jewelry and bridal lehengas without all that bling!
And no, we all don’t have an NRI uncle or cousin who gets us loads of branded accessories and electronics to flaunt in front of y’all. And even if we have relatives living abroad, we don’t wait for them to bring expensive gifts and gold to show off. They might as well be struggling there at times to make a mark while we also aim to be self-made rather than gifted.
We are in 2024 already and we better stop associating any community with these age-old stereotypes. No Sindhi goes talking like ‘addeeyyy saaiiiinnn’!! Ignore those typical Bollywood movies faking the accent to you. And please, stop calling us chindi Sindhi! We are much more dildaar than many of you. We just use money mindfully, we are not money-minded!
