Do you ever look at your kids and think, "Their childhood is so different from mine," or shake your head when they roll your eyes at what you once thought cool? We've got you covered. Get your nostalgia on with this list of what childhood looked like Once Upon A Time.
1. Rooh Afza
Though the organic-grazing kids of today may cringe at this sickly sweet syrup, it was your favourite beverage back in the day, either mixed with milk for breakfast or stirred with water for evening refreshment. We'd say try it again, for old time's sake, but this is one drink best sipped wearing the rose-coloured glasses of yesteryear.
2. Chuppa chuppi and hopscotch:
Along with countless other games that involved hiding, searching, hopping, jumping, kaccha nimboos and time please -- which will all sound like Greek to kids today -- these were what occupied the evenings after school long before STAR World came along.
3. Calling out to your friends from below their windows
In the pre-cell phone and pre-intercom days, lung power was the only way to gather all of your friends in one place. It worked like this, remember? The first few kids to finish their homework ran around the building compound to create a ruckus loud enough to wake a corpse. Much more effective than a text message.
Brawls were fought over songs like R.E.M.'s "Losing My Religion". ("No, it's 'Let's pee in the corner / Let's pee in the spotlight'!" insisted your former best friend.)
4. Exchanging sheets of song lyrics
For a generation growing up only one Google search away from anything, it's hard to imagine the sense of helplessness that results when you just cannot decipher the lyrics of a song you love. Brawls were fought over songs like R.E.M.'s "Losing My Religion". ("No, it's 'Let's pee in the corner / Let's pee in the spotlight'!" insisted your former best friend.) The fact that you didn't own the cassette and had to run for a pen and notebook whenever it played on the radio made it even more hopeless. So when a friend handed you a sheet with all the lyrics, you treasured it. Or you got upset that you couldn't figure them out first.
5. Mix tapes
Audio cassettes were the gold standard of our youth, probably because they were only bought on birthdays or special occasions. And personalised mixed tapes? The best present anyone could ever give you. This was the way to show really cared.
6. Autograph books and slam books
Before sexting, we embarrassed ourselves with paper questionnaires asking "What do you think of me?" "Who is your favourite actor?" and a variety of other pressing questions. There were some standard answers, like "30 February" for your birthday and "Follow me" under the address section. Don't lie -- you still have yours somewhere. And you still think Karan is dreamy.
7. PCO time
Calling your boyfriend from a public phone so your parents couldn't eavesdrop is about as retro as it gets. But it had a perk that kids living in the age of caller ID will never experience: the ability to make "blank calls" to your crush -- just long enough to hear their voice before slamming down the phone. Some say it's stalking. We say: Facebook just doesn't have the same adrenaline rush.
Calling your boyfriend from a public phone... had a perk that kids living in the age of caller ID will never experience: the ability to make "blank calls" to your crush.
8. DD2
No matter how excited your kid is by the latest iPhone, it is nothing compared to the technological ecstasy we felt when DD2 arrived on the scene. From singing along with Chayageet, to gasping at the Chandrakanta babes, to watching the ads as avidly as the shows, this channel finally had something for everyone. While DD2 is technically still around, it's unlikely this generation will ever do more than flip past it.
9. The FLAMES game
Figuring out your compatibility with your crush based on the number of letters in both your names might seem like a questionable way to judge future happiness. But this shit was serious; relationships lived, flourished and died by this game (often without the people involved ever knowing). Believe it or not, there's an online version of FLAMES better suited for today. This may be your only chance to introduce your kids to this part of your youth before it goes the way of the dinosaur.
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