రంగడికీ లింగడికీ స్నేహం, రొట్టెకాడ గిజగిజలు.

rangadiki lingadiki sneham, rottekada gijagijalu.

Translation

Friendship between Rangadu and Lingadu, but struggling/writhing at the piece of bread.

Meaning

This proverb is used to describe a friendship that is superficial or only exists as long as there are no resources to share. It points out people who claim to be close friends but start fighting or showing their true selfish nature the moment food, money, or benefits are involved.

Related Phrases

The friendship of a poor man and the enmity of a king are both unbearable.

This proverb highlights the burdens of unbalanced relationships. A poor person's friendship may constantly require financial help you cannot provide, while a king's (or a powerful person's) enmity can lead to total destruction. It advises caution regarding the social and economic standing of those with whom we form deep bonds or conflicts.

If it becomes cheap, it comes to the market

This proverb is used to describe something that has become so common or cheap that it is easily available to everyone. It is often used in a slightly mocking or cynical way to suggest that when the value or quality of something decreases, it loses its exclusivity and becomes public property or common knowledge.

Friendship with a donkey leads to kicks to the legs

This proverb is used to warn that associating with foolish, uncivilized, or malicious people will only result in harm or insults. It implies that regardless of your kindness, a person with a bad nature will eventually hurt you, just as a donkey's nature is to kick.

A wage earner and a weaver have no death.

This proverb highlights the endless nature of labor for certain professions. Just as a weaver's work is never done because people always need clothes, a manual laborer or servant is always in demand and must keep working to survive. It implies that their toil is perpetual and they are constantly kept busy by the needs of society.

The prawn has a fathom-long mustache, while the brave man has a cubit-long mustache.

This proverb is used to mock people who boast about their outward appearance or trivial attributes while lacking true character or courage. It highlights that physical features (like the long antennae of a prawn) do not signify merit or strength, as even a small creature can have longer 'whiskers' than a hero.

Out of a billion Shiva Lingas, he asked to look for his bald one.

This expression is used when someone makes a ridiculous or impossible request for personal attention or recognition in a massive crowd or a very large collection. It highlights the absurdity of expecting something insignificant or ordinary to be singled out among millions of similar, or superior, entities.

When it is cheap, it comes to the bazar.

This proverb is used to criticize something of poor quality or low value. It implies that items are only readily available or brought to the market in abundance when they are cheap or inferior. It can also be applied to people or situations where someone shows up only when there is an easy benefit or no effort required.

The friendship existing between fire and water. They agree like cats and dogs.

This expression is used to describe a relationship between two people or entities that are fundamentally incompatible or are bitter enemies. Since fire and water cannot coexist without one destroying the other, it represents a state of constant conflict or an impossible alliance.

The wage laborer and the weaver have no death.

This proverb highlights that certain professions or classes of people are indispensable and will always exist as long as society functions. Just as a weaver's skill is always needed for clothing and a laborer's work is essential for productivity, these roles (and the people in them) will always be present in the world, metaphorically 'never dying' out.

For a widow who has cast off social norms, Veeresalingam is the savior; for a person who has become desperate or reckless, the stirring ladle itself is the deity.

This proverb highlights how people's perspectives and sources of refuge change based on their circumstances. Historically, it refers to social reformer Kandukuri Veeresalingam who supported widows, implying that those in specific distress look for specific saviors. The second part suggests that once a person loses all fear or becomes completely desperate (or reckless), they cease to care about formalities or sacredness, treating even a common kitchen tool (ladle) as a god. It is used to describe people who have reached a point where they no longer care about social consequences or traditional norms.