No Country for Beards

My beard has been a subject of interest for a lot of folks here. Many ask whether I grew it before or after I came to India. Everyone wants to know why I have it. Two days ago I was taking the train and a man made eye contact with me and came over to talk. He wanted to know if I was a Palestinian. He assumed that because I had a beard that I was a Muslim and figured that I was either Palestinian or Afghani. Only my friends and family can know how ridiculous this assumption was on his part. It seems, by and large in the south, that only Muslims sport beards, while Hindus go around with mustaches or clean shaven. Mustaches in fact are so common that a running joke between us exchange students is, "Hey you know who I'm talking about, he's got dark skin, black hair, a mustache..." While of course not all Muslims have beards, many do and also wear white caps indicative of their faith. As for Indian opinions of my beard, they will range from dislike, to approval, to confusion, to "you should shave." Regardless of the wealth of opinions here though, my plans are to go with the status quo. In case you were worried, that is.