Member-only story
About Me — Smith Shah
Why was this boy (born to Hindu parents in India) named ‘Smith’?
Not a Medium member? Click here to read for free.
“Smith! Are you a Christian?”
And I always say “No.”
“Shah! so must be a Muslim then.”
I disappoint them with another “No.”
To purge their curiosity, I mention that I’m a Gujarati. I’m born to Hindu parents living in India.
8 out of 10 times I get a puzzled face and the statement, “Oh, so you are from the land of Dhoklas, Fafdas and Theplas.” (These are traditional mouth-watering delicacies from the state of Gujarat in India)
With a smile, I always say, “No…… I’m from the steel city of India — Jamshedpur.”
“Hang on…. Your name is Smith but you’re not a Christian, your surname is Shah but you’re not a Muslim, you say you are a Gujarati but you’re not from Gujarat. Who the hell are you?”
It’s a loooong story, let me try to tell you in short.
“When I was about to enter this world, my bua’s (father’s sister) wedding was to happen. She had insisted that the name of every family member should be on the wedding card including the just born me.
