ఎక్కడనయినా బావా అనవచ్చునుగాని, వంగతోట వద్ద బావా అనగూడదు.

ekkadanayina bava anavachchunugani, vangatota vadda bava anagudadu.

Translation

Call me brother-in-law any where but at the Brinjal garden. Unwillingness to acknowledge relationship when it would cost anything.

Meaning

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.

Related Phrases

You may face a royal tiger but you should not face a go- vernment official.

This proverb highlights the historical fear and unpredictability of government authority and bureaucracy. It suggests that while a wild animal is a known danger, the complications, legal troubles, and harassment one might face from officials or the state can be far more ruinous and difficult to escape.

The sister is ours, but is the sisters's husband ours also ?

This proverb highlights that personal relationships do not automatically extend to third parties or transfer ownership/loyalty. It is used to caution against over-relying on someone just because they are related to a close person of yours, emphasizing that their interests or loyalties might still remain separate.

When addressed affectionately as brother-in-law, he invited her to bed.

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.

Maybe, brother-in-law anywhere, but not at the brinjal (egg plant) garden.

When it comes to money or material, relationship is of no consequence. Some are extremely business-like in their relationships.

Like saying, 'Only in the brinjal field, don't call me sister-in-law.'

This proverb describes a person's hypocritical or opportunistic behavior. It refers to a situation where someone wants to maintain a formal or distant relationship in public or during a specific task to avoid sharing benefits or to hide a relationship, while being friendly elsewhere. It is often used to mock someone who pretends not to know someone else when it is convenient for them.

The eggplant gardener is blind, the betel leaf gardener is deaf.

This proverb describes the behavior of sellers who selectively ignore customers to get a better price. An eggplant gardener pretends not to see the customer to avoid bargaining, while a betel leaf gardener pretends not to hear them for the same reason. It is used to describe people who feign disability or ignorance for their own profit or convenience.

When she looked at him as a brother-in-law, he grabbed her saree hem saying 'wont you come?'.

This proverb is used to describe a situation where someone mistakes another person's kindness or respect for weakness and tries to take undue advantage of them. It highlights the behavior of people who respond to decency with disrespect or inappropriate advances.

Just don't call me sister-in-law at the brinjal field.

This expression is used to describe hypocritical or opportunistic behavior where someone wants to maintain a formal or respectful relationship in public, but wants to ignore those boundaries or rules when there is a personal gain involved (like stealing brinjals from the field). It highlights the irony of someone setting convenient conditions for their morality.

Call me brother-in-law anywhere, but do not call me brother-in-law in the brinjal garden

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.

The sister's anxiety is in vain; the brother-in-law will not survive.

This proverb describes a situation where despite someone's intense efforts, concern, or desire to save something, the outcome is already inevitable or the situation is beyond repair. It is used to point out that some efforts are futile because the core problem is terminal or unfixable.