You cannot summarize India. You can only enter it—sideways, through a crowded local train, a cup of cutting chai , a festival of colors, or a grandmother’s story told by candlelight during a power cut.

The story of the Mishra family is not unique. It is every Indian family. The joint family is fading—Ankit in Canada, the niece in her new home—but the threads remain. A phone call on Holi. A box of pickles sent by courier. A WhatsApp forward of a Ganesha image every Thursday.

Here are the quintessential narratives that weave the fabric of Indian culture.