Who am I?
Today I got a beautiful birthday card from Mom (A little in advance coz I will be in Mumbai on my birthday). She had addressed it as "Mrs. Sawani RKVS Raman" which brought back the memory of this amusing incident.
It happened a few months ago, when we had gone to the district collectorate in Indore for obtaining our marriage certificate.
The officer sitting behind the registration desk asked what my name is after marriage. She got four answers, one each from
My dad: Sawani Iyer
My mom: Sawani RKVS Raman
My husband: Sawani Bade
Me: Sawani Raman
:D
Needless to say she was pretty confused...So we stuck to Sawani Bade because it was the most convenient option requiring minimal changes at other places like bank account, passport etc.
But even today, all the mails/greetings that I receive from my parents are addressed differently...depending upon who seals the envelope ;-)
However, the question I asked in the subject of the post is not restricted to my name alone...Its an amusing identity crisis that I face many times while introducing myself.
A common exchange would be something like this:
xyz: Oh so you are a Tamil! (If I show any understanding of any Tamil being spoken around me!)
me: Nope. I am a Maharashtrian married to a Tamilian
xyz: Oh so your native place is in Maharashtra!
me: Nope. My native place is in Indore, MP.
xyz: Oh then how can you be a Maharashtrian if you are from MP?
me: My forefathers migrated from Maharashtra to MP
xyz: Oh I see...So were you born and brought up in Indore?
me: Nope...I was born in Indore but brought up in Bengal, Chattisgarh and MP coz my dad had transferable job.
xyz: Ohh! Very interesting! So were you working in Indore before coming to Bangalore?
me: I was working in Mumbai...
xyz: Aah..So see I was right! You are a Maharashtrian!!!!
I give up!
It happened a few months ago, when we had gone to the district collectorate in Indore for obtaining our marriage certificate.
The officer sitting behind the registration desk asked what my name is after marriage. She got four answers, one each from
My dad: Sawani Iyer
My mom: Sawani RKVS Raman
My husband: Sawani Bade
Me: Sawani Raman
:D
Needless to say she was pretty confused...So we stuck to Sawani Bade because it was the most convenient option requiring minimal changes at other places like bank account, passport etc.
But even today, all the mails/greetings that I receive from my parents are addressed differently...depending upon who seals the envelope ;-)
However, the question I asked in the subject of the post is not restricted to my name alone...Its an amusing identity crisis that I face many times while introducing myself.
A common exchange would be something like this:
xyz: Oh so you are a Tamil! (If I show any understanding of any Tamil being spoken around me!)
me: Nope. I am a Maharashtrian married to a Tamilian
xyz: Oh so your native place is in Maharashtra!
me: Nope. My native place is in Indore, MP.
xyz: Oh then how can you be a Maharashtrian if you are from MP?
me: My forefathers migrated from Maharashtra to MP
xyz: Oh I see...So were you born and brought up in Indore?
me: Nope...I was born in Indore but brought up in Bengal, Chattisgarh and MP coz my dad had transferable job.
xyz: Ohh! Very interesting! So were you working in Indore before coming to Bangalore?
me: I was working in Mumbai...
xyz: Aah..So see I was right! You are a Maharashtrian!!!!
I give up!