Shammi Kapoor—film actor
Shatrugan—Shatrugan Sinha, well known film villain
shayiri—poetry, typically in a recital or contest
sherwani—a fancy embroidered tunic
Siva—Hindu god of dance, music, etc.; he is also the great destroyer
supari—small pieces of betel nut, sweetened, used to freshen the breath
taal—lake
talaiyya—pond
tamaasha—hoohah, spectacle
tapori—a loafer, a spiv
tauba tauba tauba—prayer to Allah meaning “forgive”
thook—a spit
topi pehnana—to make a dickhead of someone
utar dena—to make someone else pay
Vilayat—Europe
vintage car—an older person who likes hanging around with the young
wah wah—wow, bravo, bravissimo
wali saheb—used of one who is simple-minded
Waqar and Wasim—Waqar Younis & Wasim Akram, Pakistani swing bowlers
X-ray—skeletal, how Zafar and Farouq looked during the hunger strike
yaar—friend, chum, used like the English “mate”
Yavanapuri—morning raga
yoga sutras—classical treatises on yoga, the most famous is Patanjali’s
zabri—prick, Lebanese slang Animal picked up who knows where
zapaat—long and thin, like Zafar’s nose, a kingsize conk
zari-work—intricate embroidery with gold and silver thread
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
INDRA SINHA was born in Bombay in 1950, the son of an Indian naval officer and an English writer. After attending schools in India and England, and reading English Literature at Cambridge, Sinha worked as an advertising copywriter in London before eventually leaving to write full time. His work of nonfiction, The Cybergypsies, and his first novel, The Death of Mr. Love, met with widespread critical acclaim. Sinha has for fifteen years raised funds for the medical relief of victims of the 1984 Union Carbide gas disaster in Bhopal, the events of which inspired Animal’s People. To learn more about Indra Sinha visit his Web site at http://www.indrasinha.com/.