“Aatish Ali?” one said to me just a few months ago as I arrived in New Delhi. “Quite a name you’ve got there.” The subtext was: You’re not part of the Hindu maj

“Aatish Ali?” one said to me just a few months ago as I arrived in New Delhi. “Quite a name you’ve got there.” The subtext was: You’re not part of the Hindu majority, so not part of the deeper organization of caste. This is an incorrect interpretation. Aatish means a cracker and possible the office was being humorous. The sense of humor is a bit different in India and a little more crude (though harmless).