Summary:
Jugaad, a term from Hindi, Urdu, and Punjabi, embodies a mindset of resourceful and ingenious problem-solving, often using makeshift solutions when conventional methods are unavailable. While it is celebrated for its creativity and adaptability, jugaad can also involve circumventing rules for personal gain, reflecting a dual nature that mixes admiration with ethical ambiguity. Despite its potential for positive innovation, in practice, it often leans towards exploiting loopholes, making it a complex concept to morally reconcile.
Most of us have heard about the whole Soham Parekh saga by this point. Reading about all this reminded about an interesting word that we often use to describe something like this in India, called “Jugaad”.
Ask Perxplexity about the word and I think the answer it comes up with is a good place to start.
The word jugaad is a colloquial term from Hindi, Urdu, and Punjabi that refers to a resourceful, ingenious, and often makeshift solution to a problem, especially when resources are limited or conventional methods are unavailable. It embodies the idea of frugal innovation, improvisation, or a “hack” — finding a clever workaround or using what’s at hand to get something done.
Jugaad is more than just a word; it represents a mindset and approach to problem-solving that values creativity, adaptability, and practicality over strict adherence to rules or standard procedures. In Indian culture, it’s seen as a virtue and a way of life, often celebrated for its ability to maximize limited resources and achieve results through unconventional means.
In English, there is no direct equivalent that fully captures the spirit of jugaad, though terms like “life hack,” “workaround,” or “improvisation” come close. The concept has also found its way into management and business, where it is recognized as a valuable strategy for innovation and cost-saving
But the way it weaves into conversations in India is a little more than nuanced. While the description above makes it seem like it’s a word that only comes in a positive context this is far from true. Often we come across smart people who engage in “jugaad” not to achieve a noble result but to somehow circumvent the law to achieve something gives him more returns on his endeavour that he would have gotten the official way. Sometimes “jugaad” is employed to get something for free that you would otherwise have to pay something for even if it was a miniscule amount.
An example of this is something a friend of mine who had studied MS at a university in the US once told me. The university had a printer that required you to pay for it’s use every time you printed something with it. Somehow one Indian guy figured out a way to use it for free and shared it with the rest of our community. And as is culturally ingrained nobody had any qualms about doing this.
This unfortunately is the other side of Jugaad. All the smarts that the guy used to achieve this could have been used for a more positive practical purpose. Among friends in a conversation we might sometimes describe someone as a very “jugaadu” person. In our minds this instantly evokes the image of someone who will never do things the right way. However, it also comes with a modicum of respect that this person is no ordinary thief but someone who is actually smart and knows how to get things done.
Jugaad ultimately is an interesting duology of concepts that can sometimes be hard to morally reconcile with each other. But it remains a powerful way to describe something that dosen’t quite have the perfect equivalent in other languages. “Jugaad” when applied positively can lead to innovation. Unfortunately in my experience here in India that’s rarely the case.
