“We are humans” is a freelance project, with which Lundagård journalist Eleonora Kleibel and photographer Hauke Steffen aim to point out the great cultural variety the entire body of Lund University has to offer. This week we present a student of the university: Dhiraj Vaidya.
Where do you come from?
– I come from India. In the South of India, there is a place called Chennai, which is near to the coast and the second largest city in the South. So, I had a very good time at the beaches. It wasn’t really planned that I grew up in Chennai. My mom’s side of the family comes from the deep South, but my dad’s parents are from the region of Chennai.
– Since my dad gets transferred all the time for his job I somehow moved from the Central part of India to the Southern part to pursue my Bachelor’s degree.
Did you live somewhere else in India before?
– I was born in a place called Kanyakumari, at the very Southern tip of India. Later on, my dad got transferred to the North of the country, close to the capital. After five years, we moved back South, to Hyderabad, where we stayed for nine years. Therefore, I know quite a lot of languages, to be frank. Next to English, I speak three different Indian languages.
Where do you feel at home?
– Sweden seems like my second home, but my first home will always be Chennai. I really like Sweden a lot. The people, the rules, the country. But still, if you ask me where I feel at home it is always Chennai, no matter what.
How did you come to Lund?
– I happened to come to Lund by chance. I mainly wanted to come Sweden, not Lund in particular. Still, I happened to come here because of the reputation the University has. I wasn’t able to get accepted to my first priority program, but after all I am really happy that I am here. It is really close to Copenhagen, to Malmö, to big cities in general. I really like the student atmosphere here. Thank god I came to Lund.
What is the story of your name?
– My name means endurance, or patience. It is a very common name in India. When my mother was pregnant with me, I didn’t show any tendency of arriving any early. You could say, I already showed a lot of patience to stay inside the womb. That’s why they named me Dhiraj.
Does this reflect how you really are?
– Yes, and no. Sometimes I feel annoyed by it. People often say: “Oh, your name is Dhiraj, you must be really patient”, which I am actually not at all. I just act like it. Of course, I’m tolerant, yes. But patient, not really.
Do you have a favorite word in your first language?
– Since Tamil is my first language, my favorite word would be ‘Machi’. It is not really a word, more of a slang and not yet in the Tamil dictionary. The meaning would be ‘friend’, a close friend. If you call someone ‘Machi’, you instantly have a connection. Although it is originally a male word, even girls use it these days.
Do you call anyone ‘Machi’ in Lund?
– I would, but they wouldn’t understand and it would be a little weird. That’s why I stick to English.
