Community ‘tips’ go viral on Facebook

“Every Bai is not a Maharashtrian. Every Maharashtrian is not a Bai,” states Tip No 12 on ‘Manoos Tips’, a Facebook page created by three young city professionals to provide “vishesh tipnis to all the aajis and ajobas of the soil”.

“Every Bai is not a Maharashtrian. Every Maharashtrian is not a Bai,” states Tip No 12 on ‘Manoos Tips’, a Facebook page created by three young city professionals to provide “vishesh tipnis to all the aajis and ajobas of the soil”.

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The page that has an overwhelming shade of orange sprinkled all over, has already garnered approximately 200 ‘likes’ since its launch on Maharashtra Day on May 1.

“From the way I sat on my chair without footwear to the way I spontaneously matched traditional ‘visarjan’ dance steps to every beat and tune, my friends had labelled me a ‘manoos’ years ago,” said Tanisha Deshpande, 24, lawyer and co-founder. “Last month, I called two friends, asking them if we could start a page to celebrate the idea of being a ‘manoos’. They immediately agreed.”

A new lot of young college-goers and professionals, have been using their time on social networking to indulge in self-parody and connect to other community members by celebrating their own quirks.

For instance, Apphia D’souza, 19, a second-year student, launched the official ‘Pao Tips’ page in March. “There’s a difference between Pav and Pao - one is a food item, the other is a way of life,” reads Pao Tip Number 33 on the page that is dedicated to all Mangaloreans, Goans and East Indians.

“Initially, I began tweeting and posting one-liners as status updates. The response was overwhelming and people suggested that I start an official community page,” said D’souza.

Keyur Shah, 19, wanted to explain to his friends that the Gujarati-speaking community had an identity beyond ‘kem cho and shu che’.

Hence, he launched the ‘Gujju Tips’ page. “We are a fun-loving community, who take great joy in eating and celebrating. By adding humour to our characteristics, we have carved a niche for ourselves,” said Shah, whose page has almost 30,000 followers. “To err is human…to err ra raa ra is Gujju,” he said, while recollecting a popular tip.