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It was my first time to attend an Indian Dinner Party. I had typical expectations of being served Indian food (veg or non-veg), being asked to drink Indian wine, hearing not only Hindi language but all sorts of state dialects (Tamil*, Marathi**, etc.), and being asked where is Philippines (pronounced as fee-lee-payns).

I was amazed at the similarities and differences.

I guess no matter where you are, the party will not start at the exact time stated on the invitation.
Girls would always like to dress up and it takes a long time for us to get ready for a party. (Especially since they had to drape the saree for me.)
Guys would always like to drink and smoke.
There's usually one office colleague who would bring his son or daughter in the celebration.

The similarities would stop there.

I was surprised when they started giving gifts to the hosts of the party. All of them stood up and clapped while the host opened the gift. Then after showing appreciation, the gift would then get passed for everyone to see.
When it's time to leave, you have to shake hands with everyone to ensure that you enjoyed the party.

PS.
I thought that it would be difficult to wear and carry a saree the whole night. Surprisingly, I felt comfortable wearing it (too comfortable that I'm looking forward to wearing a saree back home - hehehe).
I learned funny Marathi words (nalayek - useless; veda - mad/crazy; bawlat - stupid; dekna - handsome) and used them.
A woman wearing a bindi*** on the forehead signifies two things: (1) you're married; (2) you're highlighting your destiny because they say that your forehead is where your destiny lies.

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*Tamil - language spoken by people from the Tamil Nadu state (where Chenna is located).
**Marathi - language spoken by people from the Maharashthra state (where Mumbai is located).
***bindi - dot or jeweled accessory placed on the middle of the forehead