[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrmDo52NnTY]
The head bob. Widely seen across the Indian subcontinent (and first-generation immigrants in the States when they all reunite), the head bob is an enigmatic gesture. Does it mean yes? Does it mean no? Does it mean “sure, go ahead and rob my apartment?” Is that person thinking “this song is so good, SO GOOD yaar!”
The answer is E: all of the above.
The head bob is the Indian’s favorite gesture, and it shows. Heads bob to agree. Heads bob to disagree. Heads bob to show they love a song. Heads bob to show their chole is too good. Heads bob to show they can’t stand the traffic they are parked in.
I love the head bob. It is as familiar to me as my mother’s dahl, the smell of incense my aunt lights when she performs her daily puja, the dangle of jasmine flowers from a girl’s plait, the clank of glass bangles. It is one of my favorite things about India.
It’s also contagious. Whenever I’m speaking with someone who head bobs, I subconsciously begin to head bob as well. After landing in Hyderabad with a strained neck (never forgetting my neck pillow again), trying to head bob as I enthusiastically noshed on my aunt’s dhibaroti was excruciating. Now that my neck has recovered, my bobbing has resumed.
And bob I will, happily, for the rest of my trip.
