Top 5 Manipal Myths

September 15, 2011 Tanmay Tiwari Miscellaneous 43
The Top 5 Manipal Myths Vs Facts
What are the Top 5 Manipal Myths?

Yes! Even a place like Manipal has its own myths! I have been living in Manipal for a good two and half years and now I know all the misconceptions of ‘North Indians’ about this place! Let me share you some of them:

The Top 5 Manipal Myths Vs Facts
What are the Top 5 Manipal Myths?

Manipal Myths 1: The Sikkim Factor –

Of all the Manipal Myths, no myth can beat this one! Hence the top spot goes to the most common accusation of shifting a complete town from one corner of India to another. No auntyji, Manipal is in Karnataka! There is a Sikkim Manipal University too but the ‘main thing’ is in Karnataka only! With a complete Facebook page devoted to this myth people are trying to raise their voice against the people with exceptional general knowledge who continue to believe in this: His name is Manipal and he lives in Sikkim.

Manipal Myths  2: The Food Factor –

When I got a seat for the Pharmacy course in Manipal everyone had their own suggestions about this place. And this Manipal myth really gave me sleepless nights! “You will get only rice and rasam to eat in South India” were the not so wise words of a friend. “You will come back in a month” he added. Well, now I can just say this: LOL! Manipal is a food heaven! From Dominos and Subway to Snack Shack and Saiba I never run out of choices. Manipal is a great place for foodaholics! Majority of my friends here agree with this. PS: The ‘Chapatti’ of FC sucks though.

Manipal Myths  3: The Drug Den –

Ok ok! I know that when it comes to substance abuse Manipal is a ‘little’ above the national average. But the fact remains that majority of the students in my own class are not into drugs! And I know that number of depressed people is much higher than the euphoric ones in Manipal! Plus the ridiculous ceremony of ‘Promise me Beta’ before I left for Manipal was totally uncalled for! I believe that anyone who wants to do something will do it irrespective of the place. There were drug addicts back in my hometown! Any educational town has its own minus points. To single out Manipal as a drug den is completely unfair and not true.

Manipal Myths  4: Manipal Girls –

‘Dude! Are you still a virgin?’ asks my friend during the holidays. If only he gave me some privacy and devoted such interest in his subjects, I am sure he would have invented a teleporter by now. But yes, many people who have heard of Manipal and not actually lived here think that all Manipal girls are like the Kardashian sisters. Obviously not. There are all kinds of girls in Manipal just as there are all kinds of boys in Manipal. There are a lot of Non-resident Indians and foreign nationals here. But if I start on the topic of ‘Indian perception of the Western world’ I would not be able to write a blog because then it would be a book. Summarizing this point: Girls are girls. In any part of this planet.

Manipal Myths 5: The Spoilt brats land –

Many people imagine Manipal as the land of stinking rich people. Not entirely true. Yes, the majority of us here are from well to do families but not all of us have a habit of driving drunk in our expensive cars and doing a hit and run every now and then. And being rich doesn’t mean that you have to be a spoilt brat! Sadly there is a tendency of many people to think in such a manner. There are students who go to temples/churches/mosques on their expensive bikes. I have seen a student giving away a 500 rupee note to a beggar in the joy of clearing all the subjects. It is very important for people to understand that good and evil are very different from being rich or poor. It is not a crime to be born in a rich family. And every student of Manipal is not a rich spoilt brat.

So these were the top 5  ‘Manipal Myths’ according to me. Hope you agree with these and if you have any more do let me know! Who knows there may be a ‘Part 2’ of this myth journey!

43 Comments

  1. 1. completely true! i’m fed up of all the explaining!
    2. the food is ok. eating out choices are WAAYYY too limited, though. seriously, where is my kfc, mcd, and dare i ask, taco bell?
    3. drugs are for real. people need to understand this. i could get my hands on ’em in delhi, and i can get them here. not much of a difference. only, hostel living makes it easier.
    4. never heard that one! instead many of my friends think manipal is full of nerdy, ugly girls. 
    5. i think this might have a grain of truth in it.

    nice little roundup!

    Reply

    • Thanks! 🙂 well the I love d food in here! but yes kfc nd mcd MUST come here! I agree that drugs are for real but that does not mean that one label’s every manipalite as a drug addict! nerdy ugly gals lol! 😀

      Reply

  3. I disagree on the second point, I’ve lost count of the number of people who started doping/ thought they were in wonderland because of Manipal’s drug culture…not just personal use but dealing. I’m not talking out of my hat, I know from personal experience (I don’t, but I know too many who do)

    The rest is absolutely spot on

    Reply

    • Thanku Karan! …the drug point is 3rd! And yes, peer pressure and environment do play a major role but exceptions like u and me are always there 🙂 and then if some1 looks at u as a druggie then it doesn’t feel great! And that DOES NOT mean that people who do drugs are bad people..its a stigma and it is those baseless accusations that piss me off!

      Reply

  6. But you can’t deny ‘khao, udao’ culture among students. The students are here ’cause of parents power. What have they done to deserve these luxuries?

    Reply

  8. when i go bac 4 vacations ppl still ask me ‘ beta ye manipal kidhar hai??’ dey stl think its da sikkim 1 n i always hav 2 clarify its nt!!!! sooo annoying…wn dey clearly mention in da ad dat sikkim manipal is a ”distance education programme” ……..y wud i need 2 go dn?? lol..

    Reply

  11. With all your commenting, my belief gets more firm that those who study in difficult circustances with limited resources, value their education more and are more sincere in their efforts.

    Reply

    • For starters, I don’t believe in what you call ‘education’. It is the most efficient way to kill a true person and make him/her dull and limit the scope of knowledge. And sorry to say bro, you are wrong. 

      Reply

  13. very honest. although i don’t agree with the myth 2. yet all other assessments were good. especially the 1st and  5th one. good job

    Reply

  16. I disagree on the fourth myth…..agreed many of them may not be spoilt but most of them are quite good looking….:D….better than most other educational places.

    Reply

  17. after the first 2 times i’d been targeted with the question” where is this manipal?? sikkim??” ..i changed my way of telling ppl where do i study!! now if some1 shoots me with the same ques, i would say ,i study in M I T , karnataka!! so the moral of the story is: ” na rahega baans , na bajegi baansuri

    *NOTE: successful till date 😉

    Reply

  18. Gr8 piece man!! Hit all the rght notes and would like to add to add two more myths
    1) As per most of the people I have met they think that all of us joined Manipal only coz our parents gave “donation” for a paid seat.
    2) The educational environment must be very casual here coz again coz of the above mentioned “donation”.
    What I have always wanted to tell ppl like these is that damn we have so many students getting backlogs because they don’t maintain the mandatory(and authoritarianly implemented) 75% attendance

    Reply

  22. Very nice compilation! You’ve nailed it. Just when anybody gets to know someone belongs to Manipal, there’s a list of stereotypical prejudices that people assume. Been through the wringer. The most funny comment that I came across was, “Oh you’re a Manipali? but you don’t look like a Manipali” (thinking Manipal is in North east and Manipalis are of Nepalis descent) LOL.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.


*


This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.