March 7, 2021

Is there someone in your life who is annoying you with the conversational tic "Do you know what?"

This hilarious man has hit upon the solution:
@sheenamelwani

@therealindiandad doesn’t really know what. #reaction #closethewindows

♬ original sound - Sheena Melwani

ADDED: I assumed this was a husband and wife, but I see from this CNN article that it's a father and daughter: "She sings. He interrupts. Together they've become a TikTok sensation."

ALSO: They have lots of YouTube videos — here. The father — knows as The Real Indian Dad — appears in a filtered animated form.

NO: I was right the first time! The man is the husband. If you read to the end of the CNN article, that's revealed. He's a dad because they have children. I'm glad to see that my intuition about a marital vibe was accurate. She's attracted to him — as he makes fun of her in a way that contains his love.

63 comments:

tim in vermont said...

When somebody asks me that, I invariably respond “Chicken butt.” Something I got from my kids in the ‘90s, I think.

Lurker21 said...

Funny dad.

Is it a conversational tic, though? Or more an opening gambit?

Will Cate said...

The "Do" part is never included down here. It's "Ya know what?" or the even-more-pithy "Know what?"

Fernandinande said...

“Chicken butt.”

You know why? Chicken thigh. I got those from Buckley.

tim maguire said...

I never occurred to me to be annoyed by that. These responses are funny, but were they inspired by annoyance?

tcrosse said...

What is the name of the guy on second. Don't know him.

Ann Althouse said...

"No need to proceed with the story. I'm fully aware." If you have something else, go ahead, but "not the first thing. That — I have full knowledge of."

So elegant and charming. Clearly he loves his beautiful wife and she loves him.

Scott M said...

Could be worse. You could be in the south and saddled with endless "Look here" sentence openers.

Mary Beth said...

I thought "Wait this one out... trust me 💀 #magic #reaction #closethewindows" was funnier.

"It's a boy...."

Ann Althouse said...

"Is it a conversational tic, though? Or more an opening gambit?"

I don't see the difference, but I do think there's an argument that since a tic can be a physical disability, it shouldn't be used metaphorically like this.

Yancey Ward said...

I have tried "No" when asked, "Do you want to know something?"

It doesn't work.

Will Cate said...

Scott M said... "Could be worse. You could be in the south and saddled with endless "Look here" sentence openers."

Can confirm

Original Mike said...

"No need to proceed with the story. I'm fully aware." If you have something else, go ahead, but "not the first thing. That — I have full knowledge of."

Yes, very funny.

MadisonMan said...

Is it the guy's wife or daughter?

Matt Barker said...

That's her dad, not her husband.

wild chicken said...

Well, they're young though. When I use an opening gambit like that the spouse gets all annoyed - just tell me!

But when I just start telling the spouse something he gets all wha-wha-wtf? Like he had no idea I could speak.

What am I supposed to do to get him to open the audio lines?

Ken B said...

Dad or husband? One of the hashtags refers to dads. Dad.
Freud 1 Althouse 0

Fernandinande said...

Clearly he loves his beautiful wife and she loves him.

That's her "real Indian dad" speaking.

rcocean said...

Do you know what? that 1.9 trillion CV-19 bill only has $500 Billion for US Citizens for CV-19 relief. The rest is graft, for foreigners, or is going to other Democrat pet projects. And notice how LAME McConnell and McCarthy were in opposing it. Never on TV, never saying anything. Never using parliamentary tricks to advertise what was wrong with the bill. Just Mumbles McConnell uttering a few bland words to a reporter. And where was Cheney, oh that's right, she spends all her time attacking MTG and Trump.

Jersey Fled said...

I get annoyed with people who start every sentence with "So,"

MountainJohn said...

I'm babysitting the great niece and nephew. Every sentence begins that way.

Bilwick said...

When I was a kid, it was considered the height of hilarity to ask, "You know what?" and then, when asked "What?" to say "That's what." Now it sounds like something Joe Biden would say, and not ironically.

dbp said...

Not everyone minds "You know what"? But I'm guessing that Bill Burr does.

The Vault Dweller said...

That guy's got some swerve. I really like that he is so playful with his wife, even though (i'm basing this off the next video I saw) they have a daughter that is in her early 20's. Guys could learn a thing or two from him. Also, that dame has either been blessed with amazing genes or has spent a King's ransom on skin care products. (or she had her kid at 12).

Freeman Hunt said...

I think that's dad and daughter. Aren't they the same people with the funny videos of the dad commenting on the lyrics of popular songs that the daughter was practicing?

Ice Nine said...

I guess if you've managed to get peeved over someone using this extremely common idiomatic opening line, it is an annoying "tic." I have somehow made it through all these decades without being thus affected by it so am having a bit of trouble understanding the issue here.

Lurker21 said...

I would think a tic would be something one said over and over in a conversation, while an opening gambit would be used once to start a conversation going, but if one starts every conversation with "Do you know what?" then it could be considered a tic.

It seems like it's something kids say much more than adults, and while it never occurred to me to get annoyed by it, I could understand if some parents felt that way or just wanted to have a little fun.

tcrosse said...

I get annoyed with people who start every sentence with "So,"

So what?

Fernandinande said...

Do you know what? that 1.9 trillion CV-19 bill only has $500 Billion for US Citizens for CV-19 relief. The rest is graft, for foreigners, or is going to other Democrat pet projects.

Chicken butt. Here's a clear list of the spending, dated Feb 18 2021, so perhaps somewhat different than what actually passed. I don't see any aid to Pakistani trannies, or whatever that was, like in the first version.

What's in the $1.9 Trillion House COVID Relief Bill?

Ann Althouse said...

I see that it's the father. Updated on front page.

Iman said...

Lookee here...

“What it is, what it was and what it will be.”

- Robin Williams

daskol said...

Althouse was right the first time. The "real indian dad" is actually her husband, and they have two young children. Very charming videos.

Freeman Hunt said...

Daskol, ah, okay. The early music videos and #realindiandad threw me off.

Dagwood said...

What a gorgeous smile.

In It Happened One Night, an inebriated Clark Gable makes an ass of a pushy bus driver (Ward Bond) who keeps saying, "Oh, yeah?".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kAtlL7cZOg



The Crack Emcee said...

I get "You know what I'm sayin'?" CONSTANTLY - and I NEVER know what they're saying.

Ann Althouse said...

"Althouse was right the first time. The "real indian dad" is actually her husband, and they have two young children. Very charming videos."

Yay! My instincts are good. I felt the marriage!

Ann Althouse said...

What I loved about it was the very funny teasing contained in a perfectly uplifting feeling of love. How lucky people are who have marriage like that!

Ann Althouse said...

"I get "You know what I'm sayin'?" CONSTANTLY - and I NEVER know what they're saying."

I feel like the people with the "You know what I'm sayin'" tic started out just saying "you know" a lot, realized that made them sound dumb and immature, so they lengthened it out into something that they imagined was more thoughtful... but then that just became a habit.

I think what people are doing is feeling that they need to avoid spaces between words, like speech requires that there always be a sound. Just get the confidence to pause. Believe that people will be patient enough to wait for the next meaningful word and realize that you're not holding onto them by making clutter noises. In fact, you're being annoying and you're showing your anxiety.

Tomcc said...

Very nicely done by the "dad". I tease my daughter in a similar way when she uses "like" in her speech.

Joe Smith said...

The lady is cute looking at the screen grab...good way to get clicks, but I won't be a part of abetting the CCP.

If you think they're not scraping date from Tik Tok servers then think again.

D.D. Driver said...

I love these videos, but I totally thought the voice was her Dad because of he has an accent and she doesn't.

Ann Althouse said...

"I love these videos, but I totally thought the voice was her Dad because of he has an accent and she doesn't."

Everyone has an accent, but these 2 have different accents. That often happens in marriages!

effinayright said...

When I'm asked "You know something?", I respond by saying,

"No, but you're going to tell me."

effinayright said...

Sheena can be Queen of *my* Jungle, any time!

Woof!

farmgirl said...

People are constantly opening w/ So, ....
My daughter went to a college in Buffalo- about 8hrs from our little farm. Suffered greatly for her choice. She had a roommate that was constantly asking: You know what that is, right? As if my daughter has lived under a rock because she’s from the sticks.

J L Oliver said...

I have a childhood friend who responds to many of my statements with, “No” and then goes on not to disagree but add information. I realized that I used to do it too. I trained myself to stop. I think it is an annoying regionalism.

Michael P said...

"Silly rabbi -- kicks are for TRIDs!"

I will spare everyone the rest of the shaggy-dog dad joke for which that is the punchline.

The Vault Dweller said...

I think this is more the difference between spoken language and written language. Every native English speaker knew what the lady meant when she said the phrase but the man turned it on it's head (err demonstrated the difference between the natural understanding of native speakers to what a person who only understood the literal meaning of the phrase would understand). It is just that playing out. I think the legal prrofession has a similar crossplay going on when there is a difference between a written transcription of a deposition and a video-taped recounting of the deposition.

Ignorance is Bliss said...

wild chicken said...

What am I supposed to do to get him to open the audio lines?

1) Get Naked
2) Explain to him that you have something to discuss, and that the festivities will commence after you are sure that he has heard what you have to say
3) Say what you have to say, and elicit feedback to ensure that he has heard what you have to say
4) Fuck His Brains Out

Note that step 3 might take some practice for him to focus in the face of a significant distraction, but after a few time the reward will win out

Also note this technique works for other things, such as taking out the trash or doing the dishes. The key is it has to be short term (short enough that you can remain naked throughout) No telling him he will get some if he does the dishes for a week.

One final note: steps 2 and 3 are optional. Just engaging in steps 1 and 4 would have a positive impact on many a marriage.

Ignorance is Bliss said...

Whenever someone starts with "Can I ask you a question?" I reply with "You already did"

(Yes, I'm that asshole)

Sam L. said...

I know What...and his brothers Who, Where, When, How, Why, and WhoDat.

farmgirl said...

Our priest, from India, will always ask: am I right? One woman will somewhat dialogue w/him during his homily. That’s a big no no, really. I feel bad for the silence given back to him when he asks questions. We assume they are for emphasis or rhetorical. It makes us uncomfortable to converse during Mass, but for this one woman.

I think it may be a cultural difference, but I suppose that makes me a racist.

n.n said...

That's what. A humorous parry. There were other social protocols learned in grade school, that, unfortunately, managed to evolve with adulthood.

daskol said...

He's definitely "doing" the accent. Sounds like a persona that started life mocking one of their parents/aunties/uncles, as it's dead-on with not just the accent but the idioms and mannerisms of an India-born native English speaker.

What I loved about it was the very funny teasing contained in a perfectly uplifting feeling of love. How lucky people are who have marriage like that!

Yes! My favorite video is when realindiandad teases her while she calls the "biryani shop" and asks ridiculous questions, and they're both laughing about it instead of getting annoyed.

daskol said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
tomaig said...

Interesting still for "related videos"...

Lucien said...

Q: “Wanna see something disgusting?”
A: “Always”.

AZ Bob said...

Who knew that the smart, straight guy would end up the funny one?

Jokah Macpherson said...

I've used this response before.

Reg Fife said...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfZjExf2y9Q

Anonymous said...

There is only thing worse than someone beginning a sentence by saying "Look."

When they do it in print. I would happily beat senseless anyone who does this.

Seamus said...

"What" ain't no country I've ever heard of. They speak English in What?

Ancient Mariner said...

I used to respond to my kids when they said that with "No, never met the man." That always made them giggle. (Dad humor!)