क्या तकलीफ़ है? is the standard opening line and it means what is troubling you. कब से? will always follow, so have your duration ready: तीन दिन से, एक हफ़्ते से, कल से. This two-step exchange begins virtually every consultation in India.

Two patterns cover almost everything. [body part] में दर्द है for localised pain, and मुझे [condition] है for whole-body conditions. पेट ख़राब is the universal phrase for digestive trouble and is what you will need most often as a visitor.

Prepare for these five, because they come up nearly every time.

Answer briefly. Indian consultations move fast, and a long narrative will often be interrupted. State the symptom, the duration and any medication, then stop and let the doctor ask.

Indian prescriptions are usually handwritten and famously hard to read, but the chemist will decode them. The instructions above are what the doctor will say aloud, and repeating them back — दिन में तीन बार, खाने के बाद? — is a good habit that doctors appreciate rather than resent.

Family members routinely accompany patients into the consultation room and speak on their behalf, which foreigners find startling. Privacy expectations differ; a relative answering the doctor’s questions for you is normal, not an intrusion.

Two practical realities. First, injections are prescribed more readily in India than in many countries, and some patients expect them as a sign of serious treatment. You can decline politely. Second, antibiotics are often dispensed without a prescription at chemists, which is convenient and genuinely risky — asking यह किस लिए है? before taking anything is sensible.

Government hospitals are free or nearly free but crowded, while private clinics are fast and affordable by Western standards. For anything non-trivial as a visitor, a private clinic is usually the practical choice.

तकलीफ़ ends in a nukta f. बुख़ार has the raspy ख़, though a plain kh is understood everywhere. दिक़्क़त doubles the q sound and is often simplified to ‘dikkat’. ख़राश and ख़राब both carry that same throat kh. कमज़ोरी has a nukta z in the middle. Say these slowly at a clinic — clarity matters more than accent when you are unwell.

• Saying मुझे सिर दर्द है. The correct form is सिर में दर्द है.
• Giving a long narrative. State symptom, duration and medication, then stop.
• Not mentioning existing medication or allergies unprompted.
• Accepting antibiotics from a chemist without asking what they are for.
• Expecting a private consultation. Family involvement is standard in India.

1. Describe five different symptoms using both sentence patterns.
2. Answer कब से? with five different durations.
3. Prepare and memorise your allergy and medication answer.
4. Repeat back a dosage instruction to confirm you understood.
5. Role-play a full consultation from तकलीफ़ to prescription.