We South Asians (indians) do have a sense of humour!

A westerner once asked how do we make indians laugh. And this was no trick question. He meant every syllable of it. But hey we indians sometimes poke fun at aspects of our own culture—such as the long names we carry. I am an exception of course thank goodness for that. Example:

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James Bond is on a mission. He ends up on a flight next to a guy from Andhra Pradesh who speaks Telugu.
Telugu Guy: "Hello. May I know your good name, please?"
James Bond: "The name’s Bond. James Bond. You are…?"
Telugu Guy: "The name’s Sai. Venkata Sai. Siva Venkata Sai. Laxminarayana Siva Venkata Sai. Srinivasa Laxminarayana Siva Venkata Sai. Rajasekhara Srinivasa Laxminarayana Siva Venkata Sai. Sitaraman Rajasekhara Srinivasa Laxminarayana Siva Venkata Sai…”
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This joke continues like this for a long time, but you get the picture. And now you know why there’s no Indian James Bond. The movie would be over before he’d finished introducing himself.

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Non-Resident Indians, better known as NRIs, often swap laughs on cultural treasures of their motherland, such as Bollywood movies. Example:

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If Titanic had been made by Bollywood:

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(a) There would be ten times as many people on the ship.

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(b) Kate Winslet would wear a white dress and sing in the rain.

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(c) The movie would be seven and half hours long.

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(d) Leo di Caprio would chase Kate Winslet around the ship, singing and dancing around pillars.

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(e) The hero and the villain would turn out to be brothers, separated at birth.

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(f) Leo would have a sister, brother, mother, father and uncle on board.

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(g) Leo would survive and rescue his villainous brother, and the film would end with a musical
family reunion.

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Actually, judging by the level of drama in it, I think Titanic probably was an Indian movie.

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Meanwhile, the humour of young indian people nearly always focuses on the generation gap. Example:

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You Know You Are South Asian If:

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(a) Your dad is an engineer or doctor.

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(b) Everyone assumes you’re good at math.

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(c) You have a 25-kilo sack of rice in your pantry.

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(d) Your father has the same amount of hair on his ears and chest as his head.

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(e) You have rocks, sticks, leaves and mysterious strange-smelling substances in your medicine cabinet. (herbal medicine)

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(f) You refer to all adults as Auntie and Uncle.

Indians often feel unfairly stereotyped, so some react against it with sardonic humour-heaps and heaps of sarcasm. Example:

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Westerner: Why do your women wear red dots on their foreheads?

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South Asian: So their husbands can use them for target practice.

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Westerner: Are you all vegetarian?

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South Asian: Yes. Even our tigers are vegetarian.

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Westerner: Do you speak Hindu?

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South Asian: Yes. And I belong to a religion called Hindi.

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Westerner: Why do you people walk on burning coals?

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South Asian: It makes our feet strong so we don’t have to buy designer shoes.

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Westerner: Why do you go around on elephants?

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South Asian: Elephants are what we use for taxis. There’s a meter behind the left ear.

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OK, so I don’t expect to see a stand-up comedian from India replacing Russell Peters tomorrow. But it is important to realize that people who live in Asia, and particularly South Asia, have our own sense of humour.

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And boy, do we need it. =D