haraamzaadi the female variant of ‘haraamzaada’ or bastard
havaldar guard
hutt move
jhatka to get jerked
kameez a long shirt or tunic, worn by men and women
kattha catechu; it is the red paste used in paans
khuda-haafiz a term of farewell (literally, “may god be your guardian”)
khutt-khutt fuck
kurta long, loose shirt worn by women and men
kya what
lakh unit of measurement equalling 100,000
lungi a cotton garment worn around the waist by men and women
maar usko hit him
madakcho a variant of ‘madarchod’ or mother-fucker
mangalsutra a necklace of gold and black beads worn by Hindu women as a symbol of marriage
masjid Arabic word for ‘mosque’
maulvi Muslim preacher
memsaab term of respect for female employer
miya term of respect for a Muslim male
Moharram variant of ‘Muharram’, the first month of the Islamic calendar
morcha a protest march
mottee fatso
mowli-ali-madada term of greeting, literally ‘Oh Ali, assist!’
muezzin a servant at the mosque who leads the call to Friday service and the five daily prayers
Murgh-e-Aazam ‘murgh’ is the Urdu word for bird or chicken; ‘Murgh-e-Aazam’ is a variant of the Hindi film titled Mughal-e-Aazam
namaaz the Muslim prayer offered five times a day
namakool good-for-nothing
namaste a form of greeting often accompanied with a slight bow with palms joined together
paan an after-dinner mouth-freshener comprising various fillings wrapped in the leaves of the Betel pepper
paani-puri an Indian snack consisting of dough balls filled with chick peas and spicy sauce
paanwallah a paan seller
paratha a flatbread, usually made with whole-wheat flour
patni wife
puja prayer
Ram the dominant heroic figure from Hindu mythology, considered to be the seventh avatar of Vishnu
Ramazan a variant of ‘Ramadan’, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar
saab master
saala rogue
saali the female variant of ‘saala’ or rogue
salaam-aaley-kum a greeting used by Muslims (literally, “may peace be with you”)
shalwar loose pajama-like trousers worn by men and women
sherwani a close-fitting coat-like garment worn by men
shikari hunter
shyaa an expression of dismissal
sindoor a red powder applied by Hindu women to the parting of their hair as a sign of marriage
sixer derogatory term referring to eunuchs
tandoori a North Indian cuisine cooked in a cylindrical clay oven
thoo-thoo an expression of disgust
tonga a horse-drawn carriage
Tuntun the screen-name of the late Uma Devi, an obese Hindi-film singer and comedienne
Umaah the Muslim community
UP Uttar Pradesh, a state in northern India
uttha lein? should we pick her up?
ya-ali-madad a term of greeting, literally ‘Oh Ali, assist’
yaar friend
About the Author
ALTAF TYREWALA lives in Bombay and Mumbai. He has worked as a cashier, a telemarketer, a clerk, and an instructional writer. This is his first novel.
Copyright © 2006 Altaf Tyrewala
First published in the United States by MacAdam/Cage Publishing
Anchor Canada edition 2007
All rights reserved. The use of any part of this publication, reproduced, transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, or stored in a retrieval system without the prior written consent of the publisher—or, in the case of photocopying or other reprographic copying, a license from the Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency—is an infringement of the copyright law.
Anchor Canada and colophon are trademarks.
Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication has been applied for.
eISBN: 978-0-385-67332-7
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Published in Canada by Anchor Canada, a division of Random House of Canada Limited
Visit Random House of Canada Limited’s website: www.randomhouse.ca
v3.0
No God in Sight Page 13
