10 Warning Signs for "Overbearing Desi Parents" Syndrome

1. You score a 99 on a test and instead of congratulating you, either mom or dad asks “where did you lose the one mark?”
2. You manage to get a 105% in class and they wave their hand dismissively while focusing on the drama or cricket match on television.
3. Anything other than majoring in medicine or engineering is not good enough.
4. You must be No. 1 in all fields or else you are a failure. An A- is a failure and B+ is the end of the world
5. If something goes wrong in your life, it must be because you aren’t wearing the right colors or the right element rings on a particular day and it is YOUR fault.
6. If you get an injury or get into an accident, it is your fault and the expenses causes them more pain than the fact that you are hurt. In fact, you are afraid to call for help because you’d be scolded for being weak.
7. You are forced to listen to stories about their struggles to give you a (perceived) better life and how much better you have it today.
8. You have to constantly listen to how your uncle’s wife’s sister’s cousin (or some other distant relative you’ve probably never met) is so much better than you at just about everything
9. There’s no such thing as depression or dyslexia. Pick yourself up and keep going.
10. You are just not good enough. Ever. Repeat and recycle till you start believing it yourself and being harder on yourself than your parents.

And then people wonder why Indian kids are either OCD overachievers or lack self-confidence and underperform.