You know, I am actually more confident with translating real Hindi words than I am with Indian English! But I feel confident in these three at least, and hopefully folks will add on in the comments.
There’s two groups in India who speak Indian English. An ever growing number of people in India who speak English as a first language. They will speak primarily English and throw in a Hindi (or other Indian language) word here and there where there is no good translation. And then there’s a second group, the people who primarily fluently speak a native Indian language but use an occasional English word because it has come to have a specific meaning in India that cannot be filled by any native Indian word, and which is universal across India. A meaning which is not “grammatical” or correct or anything in any other place.
There’s also two groups who speak what I think of as “fake” Indian English. The ones who speak English so fluently that they have lost even those few words of a native language, but aggressively force them in when they want to prove they are “Indian”. And the ones who are fluent in English, but as a second language which leads to a strange flatness in how they speak/write it, and a forced “look how cool I am” quality when they try to mix it with a native language.
Anyway, these three words here have crossed from English to Indian languages so completely that the only people who will NOT use them are the ones who are being extra extra careful.
“Propose” as a verb
This is tricky because I can’t give you the native Indian words around it, but a sentence might be something like “I want to propose you” with every word but “propose” in a native Indian language.
In American and British English, “propose” means a formal statement offering a suggestion for the future that requires joint agreement. “I have a proposal for you” could be followed by “I suggest we resolve the land rights dispute by my offering you $1,000 and you promising not to graze your cows on my land in future”. One of those formal “proposals” is marriage. So, “a proposal of marriage” would be the full English usage. “Proposal”, in English, began as a noun. You give someone a proposal. It eventually became a verb only in the specific situation of proposing marriage, “I want to propose to you”. But it was still something being offered, a question asked requiring a response.
But in Indian English, it is something else! Related, but slightly different in a way that might confuse a viewer coming from North America or England. To propose someone is not a question requiring a response exactly, it is an action you do. Like kissing someone. They might or might not kiss back, you certainly hope they do, but the point is what YOU are doing.
And the action you are doing is not a proposal of marriage necessarily. To “propose” someone is to offer them a statement of your feelings. You give them a Valentine with “I love you” written inside. Or you take them aside on a school trip and say “I like you” and kiss them. Or you do a big elaborate song and dance number for them. They say “yes” or “no”, and then you go on your first official date. And, eventually, if your family agrees and life works out and jobs work out and everything else, you might get married.
Encounter
In British/American English, this is just a kind of old-fashioned way to say “I came upon something”. Like, “I encountered an obstacle on my way to work and that is why I am late”. But, in a logical yet impossible to predict way, in Indian English it means “police killing”.
I don’t know exactly when it started, but by the mid-90s when the Bombay gang wars took off the “encounter” idea was just accepted. The police would grab up a known criminal, tell him to run, shoot him, and then write a report saying “as I was going about my duties, I encountered so-and-so, he attacked me, I shot him”. Somehow the “encounter” part of the report became a standard part and the whole concept of picking up a criminal and shooting him in cold blood became summarized as “encounter”.
I should say, it’s not NECESSARILY in cold blood. It could be in tepid blood as well. That is, you know where the criminal is, you know they are going to fight back, you go in with your guns drawn planning to kill them in the inevitable shoot out. It is this semi-heroic version that people have in mind when they talk about “Encounter kings” in proud terms.
But again, coming at this from the perspective of an English speaker from anywhere else, it is every confusing to try to connect the word “encounter” with “hero killer cop”.
Aunties/Uncles
This one I have adopted myself since college when my roommate used to use it, because there really is no equivalent and it is just so USEFUL!!!! In American/British English, “Aunt” means a woman who is the sister of your father or mother, or married to the brother of your mother or father. And Uncle means a man who is the brother of your mother or father, or married to the sister of your mother or father. But in Indian English, it is a lovely collective term for older male or female busybody/knowitall/loving but pushy people around you.
So, for example, when I want a term for the old men who sit on the corners in my neighborhood and talk to each other and give me advice on how to walk my dog, I would call them “uncles”. Or when I need a term for the women at my church who have Big Opinions on the proper way to clean the kitchen or what food to serve after services, they would be “aunties”. And, on the other hand, the nice older man who comes over to give me advice and help while I am trying to fix my car would also be an “uncle” and the woman who comes up to me at the movie theater and tells me how nice my hair looks and that I should never cut it would also be an “auntie”. So, it’s a mixed bag of good and bad. But there is really no equivalent American English term for “older people who travel in groups and think they know better than you”.
Okay, those are the three words I am mostly confident about. But please, add on in the comments! Subtle meanings I missed in these three, or other useful Indian-English words you want to throw on the fire.
dontcallitbollywood 
The terms aunty/uncle are also often used as insults. It’s a way to say someone is too old, too unattractive and too uncool, unlike the person using those words.
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There was a controversy a few years ago when Sonam was newly signed on as Loreal ambassador. She had given interviews about how excited she was to go to Cannes and was preparing her clothes. Then some new articles came out that Aishwaryan had intervened and made Loreal keep her away from Cannes that year. Who knows why it happened but Sonam was not allowed to go that year. Sonam supposedly called Ash an aunty (aka, jealous old lady type) who didn’t want Sonam there. Abhishek had gotten offended about it or something like that. I don’t remember the details now.
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I think Aunt/Uncle is a more generic term than this. It would apply to everyone in the age group of say late 20s to early 50s. So, even if you want to address some random person you just “encountered” on the street you’d refer to them as aunt/uncle. Unless they’re the same age as you, in that case you’d refer to them as sister/brother.
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Maybe there is a difference between “aunt/uncle” as a title versus as a noun? That is, you would just generally call someone “aunt” or “uncle”, but if you say “all the aunties were gossiping about my cousin’s backless dress” that means something a little more specific.
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Another typical phrase that has entered the Indian languages is “missed call”…as in you call someone but hang up before they pick up. Mobile plans are priced differently in India…here you are charged (by the minute) when you make a call but an incoming call is free. Thus, everyone wants to receive calls but no one wants to be the person making the call and paying the rate. So it spawned a cultural phenomenon of “leaving missed calls”… aka I leave my friend a missed call so he knows I want to speak to him and then I wait for him to call me back…. it is also used in all sorts of practical ways…like “When you reach the place just give me a missed call”
P.S. It also shows up in the song “Fevicol”…there is a line “pataale saiyyan missed call se” (woo me with a missed call)
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This is so strange. I remember that era in America from when I was little, mostly landline long distance charges, like if my parents were calling their parents they would call and hang up to indicate they were ready, and then their parents (who had better long distance deals) would call back. But it went away with phone cards, and then with cell phones and the unlimited plans.
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In Indian English, you only say Aunty, you never say Aunt. And Aunty/Uncle is used like Madam/Sir in American English, to address or refer to anyone at least 15 years older than you, or if you are a child, to refer to or address any post-college adult. This is actually true throughout Asia (esp East Asia), not just in India or South Asia. (See the famous “Bus Uncle” video from Hong Kong that went viral on the early days of YouTube). And it’s not required that the addressee be nosy or gossipy, only that they are older. One difference vs Madam/Sir is that you probably don’t use Auntie/Uncle in a corporate workplace setting, though you would in a small-business setting.
This is a favorite topic of mine, so I could write pages of examples lol. But here are a couple others that show up in Indian film, or in reference to Indian film, or in subtitles (they tend to use Indian English in English subtitles).
To Wish someone = to greet them with the contextually appropriate salutation.
American English: it’s her birthday today. I called to wish her happy birthday this morning.
Indian English: it’s her birthday today. I called to wish her this morning.
You can replace Birthday with anything that typically gets a greeting, like Anniversary, mother’s day, new year’s day, or Indian celebration like diwali.
American English: Event
Indian English: Function
American English: Wedding
Indian English: Marriage
Usage example
American English: Their wedding had 3 events – rehearsal dinner, wedding ceremony, and reception.
Indian English: Their marriage had 4 functions – mehndi, sangeet, religious ceremony, and reception.
The educated or cosmopolitan elite might use Wedding to refer to the religious ceremony, especially in print on the wedding invitation. Everyone else pretty much doesn’t use the word Wedding at all.
When Indians ask me to explain the difference between Wedding and Marriage, my pat answer is a wedding lasts a week but a marriage lasts 30+ years, touch wood.
American English: knock on wood
Indian English: touch wood
Indian English : to expose (verb intransitive)
American English: to show too much skin, or to simply dress immodestly
Eg. One reason why North Indian actresses opt for careers in south Indian film industries is because South films don’t require actresses to expose. Their costumes are more modest and traditional.
Note – to expose doesn’t necessarily mean to show a private body part. More often it simply means showing more skin than regular people do in public. So, wearing a bikini, shorts, mini skirt, capris, or in Indian clothes, wearing an outfit without its chunni/dupatta/scarf, or maximizing torso exposure with a low-cut high-slung top/choli/blouse coupled with a sari/ghaagra worn low on the hips. So for example, people might say that Aish in Kaajra re, or Kareena in Fevicol se, were exposing.
American English: a student takes a test
Indian English: a student gives an exam
American English: passed out = fainted
Indian English: passed out = graduated. Could be school, college, certificate, or course. If no context is given, then the assumed context is college (or whatever makes age appropriate sense if you are younger than college).
Eg. She passed out in 2003.
American meaning: She fainted in 2003.
Indian meaning: She graduated college in 2003.
Indian English: just like that, or JLT
American English: for no particular reason, or because I felt like it, or why not
Eg.
Why did you choose spaghetti instead of dosa?
American response: No reason.
Indian response: Just like that.
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Not married =
American English: not currently married. So could currently be single, divorced, annulled, or widowed.
Indian English: never been married before. So you can only be Not Married if you are Still Single.
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THANK YOU!
And I have two more I need your explanation for: “Abuse” and “Adjust”
On Thu, Jan 16, 2020 at 6:43 AM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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To abuse
(Verb intransitive)
Indian English: to swear. to use swear words or foul language.
Eg. Please stop abusing. My mother can hear you.
—
To adjust (verb intransitive)
Indian English: to compromise. To make changes to fit into your circumstances. To not rock the boat. Usually told to a woman regarding any complaints sher had te her marriage or her joint family.
Eg.
Q: I’m unhappy in my marriage. Should we go to counseling?
A: No. You should learn to adjust. Then you’ll eventually be happy in your marriage, or at least resigned to the problems.
—
One more…
Homely
American English: ugly, unattractive
Eg. He’s very homely because of his very large nose. He gets teased a lot at school.
Indian English: enjoys domestic work, homebody, likes hobbies that you tend to do at home. Usually used in reference to a married woman or a potential bride.
Eg. She’s very homely. She can cook like her mom. She enjoys embroidery and gardening too. She spends her weekends having chai with friends and relatives in her living room.
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The “abuse” one is so confusing, because we use it in American English in almost the same way in a sentence, but with a totally different meaning. Although it can also be a noun, right? “He used a lot of abuses on me”?
Same with “adjust”, in American English, I would say “I adjusted my belt to be more comfortable” but I wouldn’t use it for an interpersonal compromise.
YES homely! Especially because that is one that has been used to describe ME. And it’s totally accurate for Indian English but, I hope, not accurate for American English!
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One that I see a lot in films and find really interesting is regarding coming to a decision.
American English: I’ve made a decision!
Indian English: Decision taken!
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Yes! One is crafting an object for yourself, one is reaching out and stealing a thing and now you own it. Very different feel.
My favorite Indian English saying that is so evocative: “you are eating my brains”. Reflects on Life? Or someone? Can you help translate when to use it? I’ve heard it in context but I’m not totally sure on the proper usage?
On Tue, Jan 21, 2020 at 10:37 AM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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Oh wow! I don’t know if I’ve come across that one. I would need context to even begin to take a stab at it. Is it similar to the American English “picking someone’s brain”?
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No, I think maybe like “this chemistry class is eating my brains”?
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When I’ve used phrases like that it is usually in a context of “this thing is so mentally taxing and requiring so much mental effort that there is nothing left and that is why I am not forming coherent sentences right now” or “I’m sorry I’m not making sense; that project today ate my brains”
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Yes! Except this is somehow an active in the moment statement, “[blank] is eating my brains”. And you can use it to express multiple taxing situations. I think.
On Tue, Jan 21, 2020 at 10:53 AM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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So it can be used for even non-mental contexts? Like “Ugh this spin class is eating my brains”. (Full disclosure, I do work out fairly regulary but once I took half a spin class and possibly almost died lol)
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I’m not sure!!!! We need an expert to weigh in.
On Tue, Jan 21, 2020 at 11:03 AM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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