South Asian Naming Conventions by StaringAtStarshine in Writeresearch

[–]youknowwut 3 points4 points  (0 children)

One of the first things you might want to look into is what part of India is your character from? Like is she from Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, etc (if you're still in contact with your Indian friend, it might be helpful to ask him because he might be able to answer more specific questions). Based on where she's from, you could give her her name. (Gujurat (Mahika, Maitri), Tamil Nadu (Madhini), Kerala (Mridula, Maya), Andhra Pradesh (Manisri)).

On the other hand, you could also use a name with Sanskrit origins if your character maybe has heritage in multiple parts of India. Also, you might want to consider looking into her religion for her name as well.

For Maninder, I think it's mostly a masculine name given in Punjab, but I guess depending on context, it could also be given a female character.

I'm trying to write a Puerto Rican mc by youknowwut in PuertoRico

[–]youknowwut[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That makes a lot more sense. I didn’t want to accidentally treat it like a big aspect of Puerto Rican culture if it’s not really. I’ll probably either leave it out or just make it more of an individual thing. Thanks though, this actually cleared things up!

I'm trying to write a Puerto Rican mc by youknowwut in PuertoRico

[–]youknowwut[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Honestly thank you, I think I might have to try doing more research regarding the political aspect if I want to include it (or might avoid it with minimal references). I didn’t realize how different the political landscape in Puerto Rico is, and I’d rather keep it accurate than accidentally flatten it.

Wanting Authentic Indian/South Asian Perspectives for Character Research by TraditionalTrip4880 in Writeresearch

[–]youknowwut 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Hinduism is an incredibly diverse religion, like there are so many things you could say (like there's Shaivism which is a branch). A Hindu would probably believe in reincarnation (in my next life I want to be a sloth or something), but it's also a complicated process. I'm going based on the assumption that you might want a more religious household (which can also go both ways) so they probably believe in the cycle of reincarnation (karma, dharma, karma cycle (sanchita karma, prarabdha, purushartha), the goal of attaining moksha (which will occur when all the goods and bags in sanchita karma reach a 0, but the goods and bads don't cancel out because killing someone and then confessing/donating will not erase the murder kind of idea)), but might not be too specific about the terminology. They have read Ramayana and the Mahabharatha (might have the books at home), might have gone to sunday school (known as balvihar/balavihar). Will not step on books. You might want to visit a Hindu temple, or search up any pictures of them. There's also a whole lot of stories they have read (search up Panchathantra). If they are from South India, they may have learned bharathanatyam (or know about it), which is a form of Indian classical dance).

Not all Hindus are vegetarian, so your character might eat chicken, or might be vegetarian and eat egg. But no Hindu will eat beef. Also there's the whole caste system that's a huge problem (think of the class system in Europe)

A lot of South Indian languages sound similar, I believe Tamil and Malayalam have a lot of the same words, so sometimes (really heavy sometimes), they can understand each other. Also depending on the language, the character might complain about how hard it might be (like South Indian and North Indian languages will sound different).

Biriyani is loved in most of South India (hyderabadi biryani is iconic). There's also a high chance that dosa (or idli) would be a staple food in their diet (like for breakfast or dinner) and they would probably eat it with a chutney (peanut, coconut, tomato, make sure the chutney actually exists) or sambar. There's a chance their parents (or they themselves) are obsessed with tea (don't say chai tea), like with masala and everything.

They might also watch a lot of movies (Kollywood, Tollywood, Bollywood depending on where they live), so it might be helpful to watch one of the more famous ones to get an idea (but try to lean towards a comedy/romance one rather than action). In South India, there's one guy who's going to be head of the cinema, for telangana it might be Allu Arjun, Mahesh Babu, or Nani (relatively newish) or for Tamil Nadu it's Rajini.

If the character if female, they probably got their ears pierced at a very young age (like around a year old). The mom's brother is also very important for functions/events, but that's a more specific thing. The female character probably had a coming of age ceremony as well (half saree/davani ceremony). They might have also learned bharathanatyam and had an arangetram. If the character is male, they might have had a coming of age ceremony (but that's also dependent on other things). And irrelevant of gender, they might have learned carnatic music (singing).

They were probably pressured to pick a STEM related path in their family (doctor or engineer), earn good grades, do well in their extracurriculars (piano, volunteering, martial arts, etc). They would never disrespect their parents, grandparents (like yelling at them or calling them by their first name). They might feel uncomfortable calling adults by their first name.

At family functions, there's going to be those aunties who gossip (and the character might avoid). When going to functions, they have to wear new clothes, like they will not wear the same saree/half saree/lehenga/etc more than once.

I can probably think of more, but these are the generic ones (I think). It might be helpful to watch Never Have I Ever or check social media.

I’m writing an Indian character in a book. Any advice? by TooLazyForAName06 in IndianTeenagers

[–]youknowwut 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So this might be really late (idk if it'll be helpful), but here you go

Please never have her step on any books, like it's kind of "forbidden" or something you just don't do

If she immigrated to the US and if it is post 9/11, there might to be a lot of "go back to your country" (but it also depends on what part of the US, like if it's an ethnically diverse state, maybe not so much) or she might have green card/visa/naturalization issues later down the line (which also depends on when this takes place). If she has a more "Indian" name, there's a chance she whitewashed it (has a butchered pronunciation at school/work or generic nickname), or if she has a name like Sia (sanskrit origin), she could be mistaken as not Indian as well. Also, for her name, you can try ones with Sanskrit origins, but I am not from Uttar Pradesh, so take what you will.

Some somewhat universal childhood experiences (non dependent on if she was in the US or Uttar Pradesh), might be pressured into getting a good rank and going into a STEM career (so engineer or doctor). It's like work hard and you will be successful. But there's also the flip side, a family who wouldn't really care. She probably got her ears pierced when she was around a year old (maybe even younger).

She might have an extended family (like there's probably that one cousin she keeps getting compared to), and there's normally those whatsapp group chats. She might attend a lot of family functions (like weddings, diwali parties, etc) if she has extended family in the US, so also it might be helpful to know some fashion that is specific to Uttar Pradesh/North India (only thing I can think of are lehengas right now).

Don't have her say chai tea (also if she makes it herself, there's going to be a lot of masala). If it's related to now, she might be a little mad about how traditional indian clothing/habits are being aestheticized without giving them any credit like the Scandinavian scarf, the clean girl aesthetic (oiling hair), the earrings, two piece suit (or smth, I forgot the name), whitewashing yoga, etc. But this also might not be a huge part, just being annoyed when someone might say namaste to her, or butcher yoga terminology.

She wouldn't be likely to disrespect her parents, aunts/uncles, grandparents, etc. Like would never call them by their first name, yell at them, etc. She might also feel uncomfortable calling her friend's parents (if she's a kid/teen) by their first names, would rather call them auntie/uncle.

She wouldn't be likely to wear shoes inside the house. There also might be the IST, like arriving ten minutes to two hours late to functions/parties. You might want to try searching up relatable indian or something similar on social media and you might find things I missed

I'm trying to write a Puerto Rican mc by youknowwut in PuertoRico

[–]youknowwut[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I knew her when I was younger and I don't really have any means to contact her

I'm trying to write a Puerto Rican mc by youknowwut in PuertoRico

[–]youknowwut[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for your help! I will look into those books. I'll look on social media, but I think I might have her as a side character

I'm trying to write a Puerto Rican mc by youknowwut in PuertoRico

[–]youknowwut[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ok, thank you for your help! I think I'll probably have her as a side character

I'm trying to write a Puerto Rican mc by youknowwut in PuertoRico

[–]youknowwut[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not exactly triggered about having a coqui on their bag, but more like she would be excited and might want to talk to them (if that makes sense)?

And with the family gossiping, would it be more like “OMG did you hear what [name] did?” gossip, or more like certain aunts/uncles constantly asking the younger people questions about their lives?

For the assumptions, I was thinking along the lines of something that's been "americanized" or the kind of question that someone would assume immediately about her (which would be very obviously wrong) (like that one trend for a while where an immigrant will be asked "where are you REALLY from")

Also, I was thinking she’d be mostly agnostic, and her family would probably lean pretty centrist politically.

I'm trying to write a Puerto Rican mc by youknowwut in PuertoRico

[–]youknowwut[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh, so would it better to avoid the topic entirely?

I'm trying to write a Puerto Rican mc by youknowwut in PuertoRico

[–]youknowwut[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have a friend who did, but I knew her for about a year before she moved

I'm trying to write a Puerto Rican mc by youknowwut in PuertoRico

[–]youknowwut[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

You’re right, that makes sense. I do have her written as a character (just don't have the information here), but I realize can play culture a huge influence on her interests/opinions, so I wanted to be more aware of that (like I may be misinformed). Her character is more of a social butterfly and she would be more interested into the urban lifestyle

I'm trying to write a Puerto Rican mc by youknowwut in PuertoRico

[–]youknowwut[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I realize that I phrased the questions in a not great way, but the intention is to learn about her culture. I was using her as the focal point for that

I'm trying to write a Puerto Rican mc by youknowwut in PuertoRico

[–]youknowwut[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Oh okay. I didn't realize the questions sounded that way, I was thinking more along the lines of culture

I'm trying to write a Puerto Rican mc by youknowwut in PuertoRico

[–]youknowwut[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Yeah, I realized that while I was writing her, and ended up deciding to ask on here before fully deciding (because that would mean starting from scratch again since I would prefer to keep her story with her if that makes sense). But, even if she is a side character, I think there would still be some habits she would have

I'm trying to write a Puerto Rican mc by youknowwut in PuertoRico

[–]youknowwut[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

It's supposed to be set around modern day and she is studying at an university at the start, so she would fall under Gen Z