నేనూ ఒక్కపొద్దే, నా మొగుడూ ఒక్కపొద్దే, పిండీ బియ్యమూ లేక పిల్లలూ ఒక్కపొద్దే.

nenu okkapodde, na mogudu okkapodde, pindi biyyamu leka pillalu okkapodde.

Translation

I am fasting, my husband is fasting, and for lack of flour and rice, the children are fasting too.

Meaning

This proverb is used to satirically describe a situation where someone tries to portray their forced poverty or lack of resources as a voluntary religious sacrifice or a choice. It mocks people who make a virtue out of necessity or try to hide their helplessness behind a mask of discipline.

Related Phrases

Like ruining a whole day's fast for a single betel nut.

This proverb is used to describe a situation where someone loses a great benefit or ruins a major effort for the sake of a very trivial or insignificant thing. It highlights the lack of foresight and the foolishness of compromising a larger goal for a small temptation.

An uninvited gathering and an unannounced fast.

This expression is used to describe someone who attends an event or involves themselves in a situation without being invited. It highlights the awkwardness or inappropriateness of showing up at a social gathering (perantamu) where one's presence was not requested, or starting a religious fast (okkapoddu) without prior commitment or notification.

An uninvited gathering and an unannounced fast.

This proverb is used to describe an unwanted or uninvited guest who arrives unexpectedly. It highlights the awkwardness of someone participating in an event or making a commitment (like a religious fast) without proper invitation or prior notice, often causing inconvenience to others.

Attending a feast to which you are not invited, a fast you are not asked to observe. Fidders' dogs an' flees come to a feast unca'd. (Scatch.)

This expression is used to describe someone who interferes in others' business without being asked, or someone who shows up at an event without an invitation. It highlights the awkwardness or inappropriateness of being involved in something where one's presence was neither requested nor expected.

Are steamed rice balls even a festive delicacy? Is a cross-cousin even a husband?

This proverb is used to express dissatisfaction or indifference towards something that is easily available or lacks excitement. In traditional Telugu culture, marrying a maternal aunt's son was common and expected, leading to a sense of familiarity that lacked the thrill of a new alliance. Similarly, 'undrallu' are simple steamed rice balls, considered plain compared to elaborate sweets. It describes a situation where familiarity breeds a lack of value.

After the jackal had departed, the hole lamented and wept. Great sorrow in a household.

This proverb describes a situation where someone takes action or seeks a solution after the opportunity has passed or the damage is already done. It is used to mock futile, late efforts that serve no purpose, similar to the English expression 'locking the stable door after the horse has bolted'.

Is 'Oodara' a grain? Are 'Undrallu' a delicacy?

This expression is used to mock someone who tries to pass off trivial, low-quality, or insignificant things as something grand or professional. It is used when someone makes a poor comparison or presents something mediocre as if it were an achievement.

I am fasting, my husband is fasting, and because there is no flour or rice, even the children are fasting.

This proverb is used to describe a situation where someone tries to disguise their extreme poverty or lack of resources as a voluntary religious or disciplined act. It highlights a scenario where everyone in a family is starving not out of choice or devotion, but out of sheer necessity, while the speaker tries to put a dignified 'fasting' label on it.

You are strutting as if the sun rose exclusively on your face.

This expression is used to mock someone who is acting overly proud, arrogant, or self-important without any actual justification. It suggests the person thinks they are the center of the universe or have achieved something extraordinary when they haven't.

When told there is no principal/capital amount, Subdakka replied, 'At least pray to one god'.

This proverb is used to mock someone who gives irrelevant or impractical advice because they completely misunderstood the gravity of a situation. It describes a scenario where a business has no base capital to start with, but a foolish person suggests a religious ritual as a solution, ignoring the fundamental lack of resources.