Vikram Chandra - Sacred Games

chikniya'Chikna' is 'smooth', like a girl's skin. So, to call a grown man 'chikna' or 'chikniya' is to say that he too pretty to be a man.

chillarLoose change.

chimtaA pair of tongs.

chingri macher curryA Bengali preparation of prawns.

ChinkiChinese.

chiroteA fried sweet-dish made from white flour and sugar.

chodoTo fuck.

choduSomebody who is fucked.

chokleteChocolate. Code used by the G-Company for dollars.

chokraLiterally, 'boy'. Used often for street kids.

chole-batureSpicy chickpeas and a bread made from white flour. A Punjabi dish.

cholisA choli is an Indian blouse, usually worn with a sari or a ghagra (skirt).

choolaStove.

chotta, chottiSmall, little.

chowkA crossroads.

chowkiPost, station.

chowkidarWatchman.

chunniA long scarf worn by women, usually with a salwar-kameez, or with a ghagra-choli.

churiKnife. Can also be used for someone who is sharp, sly. And is used as slang for a beautiful girl by the G-Company.

chut-chattoingCunt-licking.

chutiyaFucker. 'Chut' is 'cunt'. 'Chutiya' is often used as an epithet for somebody stupid. To say, 'He is a real chutiya' is like saying, 'He is a real moron'.

chutmaariFucked-up. Somebody who is an absolute ass.

CM'Chief Minister'. A chief minister is the highest elected official in a state in India.

croresA unit in the traditional Indian numbering system, equivalent to ten million.

daana, daaneLiterally, a daana is a grain or nodule. Used sometimes in a vulgar way for clitoris. Also, in the plural, Bombay slang for bullets.

dabba-ispiesChildren's game—hide and seek, or 'I spy'. Hence 'ispies'.

dadaTough guy, hoodlum.

dada-pardadaAncestral. Literally, 'Grandfather-great-grandfather'.

dak bungalowA traveller's rest house.

dakooBandit.

darshanLiterally, a sighting of something, to be able to see someone or something face-to-face. In a religious context, darshan signifies a 'seeing' that is touched by the divine. Pilgrims will travel thousands of miles for a darshan of a goddess in a temple, or of a guru. It is in the seeing of the guru, and in being seen by the guru, that the blessing is conveyed.

DCPDeputy Commissioner of Police.

dehatiSomebody from the rural areas, a country bumpkin.

desiFrom the Sanskrit 'des', which means 'home' or 'nation'. Is used to describe anything that is Indian-made, traditional, home-made.

DGDirector General (of police).

dhabaA very inexpensive, unpretentious restaurant, often built on the side of a road or a highway and frequented by truck-drivers and travellers.

dhandaTrade, work.

DhanwantriThe physician of the gods, and the creator of Ayurveda—he teaches it to Susrutha, the father of Ayurvedic surgery.

DiwaliThe 'festival of lights', which in north India is celebrated as the Hindu new year. All over India, the festival signifies the victory of good over evil. People wear new clothes, share sweets, decorate their homes with diyas or lamps, and set off firecrackers. Gambling—especially card-playing—is also part of the tradition.

diyaA diya is a traditional lamp—usually, a cotton wick floats in ghee or oil. The body of the lamp is made of clay or metal.

dudh-ki-tanki'Tank (or reservoir) of milk'. Used as a descriptive term for large breasts.

dumForce, strength.

dushmanLiterally, 'enemy'. In the Indian army, the word is often used among officers and men when they talk about the foe. 'The dushman is positioned along that ridge'.

ekdumAbsolutely.

elaichiCardamom.

FA'FA' stands for 'First Arts'. Passing the First Arts examination used to allow candidates to enter a university. (This system and nomenclature are no longer used.)

faltuWithout use or purpose, extra, good for nothing.

Flush'Flush' is another name for the Indian card game of teen patti ('three cards').

gaadiLiterally, 'car' or 'vehicle'. Therefore, something you ride.

gaandAss, as in posterior.

gaanduAss-fucker. Often used as a synonym for 'idiot'.

gaddaMattress.

gadhavGadhav is 'donkey'—a fairly friendly term of abuse in Marathi. You might say this to your best friend if he does something stupid.

galiLane, alley.

gana, ganasA category of divine beings who serve Lord Shiva, and his son, Ganesha.

gandugiriBeing a gaandu, doing something which constitutes gaanduness. That is, doing something idiotic.

Ganga Jamuna This is the title of a Hindi film released in 1961. The film is about two brothers; the older brother, Ganga, is framed for a crime by a landowner. He becomes a bandit, but educates his younger brother, Jamuna, in the city. Jamuna becomes a police officer. At the end of the film, Ganga is killed by Jamuna.

ganwarAn uncouth person, a bumpkin.

Gar ek baar pyaar kiya to baar baar karma… Couplets like this are often painted on the back of trucks, taxis, and auto-rickshaws:

If you've loved me once, love me

again and again. If I am late, wait for me.

Gata rahe mera dil…Tu hi meri manzil A line from a song from the Hindi film Guide (1965): 'My heart sings, and you are my only destination…'

Geet gaata hoon main Line from a song from the Hindi film Lal Paththar ('Red Stones', 1971): 'I sing songs…' The full line is, 'I sing songs, I hum them…'

ghantaA big bell. A small bell would be 'ghanti'. In Gaitonde's gang, they use 'ghanta' as synonymous with 'screwed up' or 'messed up'—instead of the usual 'fachchad'. In Bombay slang, 'ghanta' also means 'dick'.

gharala paya rashtrala baya This is a traditional Marathi saying: 'As the foundation is to a house, women are to the nation'. So the implication is that women should be firm, pure, virtuous.

ghavanA spicy snack made from rice flour.

ghodaLiterally 'horse'. In the underworld, it is one of the terms for 'pistol'.

ghodiMare.

ghotalaA mess. In the newspapers, the word is also used as a term for 'scandal'.

godownA warehouse.

GodrejA brand name for a steel cupboard. The company that manufactures these cupboards is part of the famous and very large Godrej Group.

golis'Goli' is derived from 'gol', round. A goli is something small and round, so 'golis' are testicles. The other word used for testicles is 'gotis', as in marbles.

gotraClan or lineage within the Hindu community. Gotras are generally exogamous, with some specific exceptions.

grahasthaA householder, someone who is engaged in the second stage of Hindu life, grahastha-ashrama.

Gudi-PadwaIn Maharashra, the day of the new year, which is a celebration of the coming of springtime and the harvest.