అక్క ఆరాటమే గానీ, బావ బతకడు

This expression is used to describe a person who talks a lot about their desires, worries, or goals but fails to take any concrete action or put in the necessary effort to achieve them. It highlights the gap between mere wishing and actual hard work.

This proverb describes a situation where someone takes undue advantage of friendliness or intimacy. It is used when a person mistakes a polite or affectionate gesture for a weakness and responds with an inappropriate or overstepping demand. It highlights the behavior of individuals who lack boundaries and exploit a relationship's closeness.

This proverb highlights the importance of context and boundaries. While a relationship might be informal and friendly (calling someone 'Bava'), using that intimacy in a place where it could lead to suspicion or theft (like a garden where one might steal produce) is unwise. It warns that certain behaviors, though generally acceptable, are inappropriate in specific sensitive situations.

This proverb describes a situation where one person (like an elder sister) holds a grudge or is stern, while another closely related person (like the brother-in-law) is kind and accommodating. It is used to illustrate contrasting behaviors within a family or a team, often implying that the kindness of one might be a facade or ineffective due to the hostility of the other.

This expression is used to describe how people tend to exaggerate the qualities or potential of things that are already lost or projects that have failed. Just as a child who died at birth is often remembered as being exceptionally healthy or large, people often overstate the greatness of 'what could have been' in hindsight.

This proverb highlights the reciprocity and equality inherent in kinship and relationships, regardless of economic status. In Telugu culture, 'Bava' (brother-in-law) denotes a close relative. The saying suggests that blood relations or social bonds remain the same regardless of one person being rich (balisinavadu) and the other being poor (bakkavadu). It is used to emphasize that status shouldn't change how family members treat or address one another.

This expression is used to describe a person or a situation that is extremely suffocating or troublesome. It refers to someone who keeps others in a state of perpetual misery or limbo, where they are neither allowed to move on nor allowed to live in peace.

This proverb is used to describe a situation where one person puts in a lot of effort or shows great concern, but the outcome is destined to fail or the situation is beyond repair. It highlights the futility of effort when the core problem is unsolvable.

This proverb highlights hypocrisy or situational convenience. It refers to someone who wants to maintain a relationship or friendship in public but refuses to acknowledge it when there is work to be done or when their personal interests (like guarding a harvest) are at stake. It is used to describe people who are friendly only when it doesn't cost them anything.

This expression is used to describe a situation where someone has high status, titles, or pride, but lacks the basic resources or means to survive. It highlights the irony of being 'rich' in name but poor in reality, or having a prestigious position without the actual benefits or functionality of it.