So, take off your shoes before entering the home. Drink the chai from the clay cup. And remember: In India, the destination is irrelevant. The jugaad is the journey.

Here is how the modern Indian lifestyle is rewriting ancient rules without losing the soul.

To embrace the Indian lifestyle is to accept the philosophy of —being natural, spontaneous, and at peace with imperfection.

Indian culture is loud. It smells of spices and sweat. It is frustratingly slow and blindingly fast at the same time. It will give you a stomach ache from the street food and a heartache when you leave.