Thread by @shrikanth_krish

I really like "prepone"

Such an elegant word. Not sure why it has not caught on outside of India

"Out of station" is great too. Suggests a certain significance that is missing in "Not in town"

https://twitter.com/Ned_Donovan/status/1103561613758644224

Many Edwardian expressions still persist in Indian English. Especially among slightly older people

"I say" - this is v common in Southern India. "Come here, I say"
"My goodness"

I don't think these are used in England anymore. But I am sure were used in the England of 20s

Other early 20th century popular expressions like

"I beg your pardon" and "Pardon me" remain v popular in India.

However youngsters lately have begun to ape the West and started using "Sorry?" instead of "Pardon me"

Am one of those relics who still prefers "Pardon me"

Another word that remains popular in India (at least was popular in written English when I was young) is ":Thus"

"Thus, we conclude...."

After growing up, I woke up to the realization that the world had changed. And people hardly use Thus anymore.

A sad realization

"How do you do" also lasted much longer in India than it has in the West.

It was v prevalent in Urban India even as late as the 1990s

Whereas, in the West, "How do you do" sort of died post 60s, judging by my observation of movie scripts over the years.

One annoying habit in India which I don't like is the tendency to use the first name even when using the "Mr" prefix

So Rajesh Gupta gets addressed as "Mr. Rajesh" instead of Mr.Gupta

That's v annoying

If you want to keep things formal, you should not use the first name at all

On the other hand, as previously mentioned, India preserves some wonderfully vivid expressions, which have gone extinct in the west.

One such expression is -

"Don't make a mountain out of a molehill"

Very common in India at least till 90s. The West has forgotten this

Another widely used expression in India -

"Godforsaken place"

I like it very much. People unfortunately don't use it much in the West these days.

When it comes to letter writing -

India preserved many farewell addresses for much longer than the West.

"Yours truly"
"Yours sincerely"
"Yours affectionately"

I bemoan the disuse of these expressions. They conveyed the nature of your relationship with the recipient so v well

Today the West has replaced all these wonderfully evocative farewell expressions with

"Best"
"Regards"
"Cheers"

It's a shame.

They are of far less utility than those aged expressions

"Madam" (as opposed to "Ma'am") is a word that remains big in India. And I am thankful for it.

In small towns (esp down south), we hear Madam all the time.

In the West, I hardly hear "Madam:. It is used pejoratively sometimes to refer to a lady brothel manager

In fact in Urban India, it is a norm for males to address female acquaintances as "Madam"

It doesn't matter if the female acquaintance is 20 years younger or older. Or whether the setting is professional or casual

"Madam" is how she is addressed

This is changing though