If you're one of those strange people who need to read the review of a movie before seeing it, even if it has great trailers, receives wide press coverage and stars Aamir select-few-movies Khan - hi there.
Now GO book your tickets before they're sold out!
Rang de basanti is the story of a group of friends coming of age and discovering their patriotic passion. The leader of the pack is, of course, Aamir as DJ. As you may guess by his nickname, he and his friends are the stereotypical Delhi-Punjus, spewing heavily accented Hindi and English and using expletives by the dozen. Being college kids, they seldom attend classes and drink lots of beer and engage in long drunken drives. (And I am not being sarcastic here - they are truly doing what you and I know we did and do!)
Change in their lives comes in the form a foreign film-maker, a young girl Sue, who casts them in her movie on Bhagat Singh. As expected, it impacts their sensibilities. But the awakening comes when a MIG 21 plane crashes, killing their friend alongwith. The change wrought in their thoughts, and the actions they take to announce their potency is the focus of the second half (also the better half) of the movie. There is a proper plot to the story - you will probably guess it as the movie progresses - but I won't spill the beans here.
There are a lot of funny short scenes along the way - helped largely by Aamir. DJ is kinda like the urban, middle-class version of Rangeela man. Humour is also extracted from the way the guys speak - but North Indians will probably not find that funny - especially as these are not-quite-perfect punju accents, or so my Delhi-trained ears tell me. Only Kiran Kher masters speech perfectly. Anyhow, by the second half of the movie everyone's speaking all right. (whether coz the actors improved their diction, or I got used to the way they spoke, can't say)
Songs are awsome. (Personally, I am delighted to see the return of Daler Mehndi in the title song)
And thankfully, dancers do not drop out of the sky without reason. Which is reason enough Rang de Basanti fits perfectly in the "different" movies genre that we've recently seen in Indian cinema. Moreover, the story-telling stands apart: it is partly first person, and partly a parallel narrative. And the filming is just beautiful - whoever did the location search for the movie did an outstanding job. Would make you want to go to the hangout places these guys had.
Rang de basanti is a movie with a serious essence - it touches sometimes subtly, sometimes stridently on many social issues, using the independence struggle as a synonym for what we need to do today. Yet, it is not your regular 'serious movie'. There is enough comedy and feel-good factor to make the evening a non-teary outing. And you will often laugh. Which takes us to what I think is the downside of the movie - it doesn't make you cry. It's a sad story of our times, and it should be touching enough to make one cry - even King Kong achieved that with me - but Rang de Basanti doesn't. For those who don't like tear-jerking movies or have OD-ed on Balaji telefilms will probably note this as a positive. But I would have liked to cry :S
Another negative: I really don't think Aamir fits into a college kid role any longer. Yes, his outstanding acting makes up for his mature face, and many would argue that without his screen presence, the movie would fall some notches. But I think the role didn't demand Aamir's look / persona. Moreover, this director - scriptwriter team could have pulled off a younger actor in Aamir's role with equal or even great aplomb. The narrative style, the social sensibilities - these are the things that work in the film for me. They would have worked with even a Vivek Oberoi, or Abhishek Bachchan.
That apart - casting is really good. The firang girl in the movie is a superb find: prepare to be shocked by her hindi. Even guest appearance guys - like Gaurav Kapoor - are well-chosen.
All in all - I would bet that this movie is going to do well and become a hit. So if you're going to book tickets, book tickets in advance.
Monday, January 23, 2006
Aamir gets married nearly every day !
If you're married
And you had a regular, Indian, traditional marriage
I'm betting you aren't planning to get married again
Coz ANYONE whose been on the stage saying 'Thank you' to a thousand guests, and smiling to a thousand guests and the photographer, and starving while he / she propped up the smile and kept up the voice, can never, ever want to do it again
According to me and Vipul, it is this shared misery of our wedding reception that has made us models of fidelity
And we are sure it is the dread of having to go through the ordeal again that keeps everyone from remarriage
Which is why, when we saw Aamir Khan yesterday at the premiere of Rang De Basanti, we felt realy sorry for him.
As he smiled and mingled around with the IAS and IPS officers (for whom this special screening had been arranged), he reminded me woefully of all the thousand weddings I'd seen. And I thought - he has to do it nearly every day! The premieres, the parties, the fans everywhere he goes... his choice is (more or less) between a never-ending marriage vs being home-jailed!
smile. Hello. smile. So glad you liked it. smile. Thank you. smile. you audience are the king. smile. you remember the dialogue! smile. Thank you. smile. Of course I remember you. smile.... amile... smile..
Wow
There's gotta be tremendous bottled-up repression inside the man.
I, in his shoes, would have killed by now.
But then, I am not in his shoes, and maybe am overestimating the impact of all the intrusion. Maybe it's all cool to him, and just a part and parcel of fame, and even a welcome, ego-boosting game.
Imagine meeting a thousand people who all know you, and claim they love you, and smile at you coyly, and speak to you adoringly, and vie for your attention, and demand that you say a few words to them, and then stand beside you for a photograph that they are going to frame... and they do this day after day after day after day after day....
hmmm
I hope Aamir's enjoying it, but the 'ad infinitum' part really makes it sound like a nightmare
Even in a single evening it becomes a nightmare
ask any Mr&Mrs
Coming up next: review of Rang de Basanti
And you had a regular, Indian, traditional marriage
I'm betting you aren't planning to get married again
Coz ANYONE whose been on the stage saying 'Thank you' to a thousand guests, and smiling to a thousand guests and the photographer, and starving while he / she propped up the smile and kept up the voice, can never, ever want to do it again
According to me and Vipul, it is this shared misery of our wedding reception that has made us models of fidelity
And we are sure it is the dread of having to go through the ordeal again that keeps everyone from remarriage
Which is why, when we saw Aamir Khan yesterday at the premiere of Rang De Basanti, we felt realy sorry for him.
As he smiled and mingled around with the IAS and IPS officers (for whom this special screening had been arranged), he reminded me woefully of all the thousand weddings I'd seen. And I thought - he has to do it nearly every day! The premieres, the parties, the fans everywhere he goes... his choice is (more or less) between a never-ending marriage vs being home-jailed!
smile. Hello. smile. So glad you liked it. smile. Thank you. smile. you audience are the king. smile. you remember the dialogue! smile. Thank you. smile. Of course I remember you. smile.... amile... smile..
Wow
There's gotta be tremendous bottled-up repression inside the man.
I, in his shoes, would have killed by now.
But then, I am not in his shoes, and maybe am overestimating the impact of all the intrusion. Maybe it's all cool to him, and just a part and parcel of fame, and even a welcome, ego-boosting game.
Imagine meeting a thousand people who all know you, and claim they love you, and smile at you coyly, and speak to you adoringly, and vie for your attention, and demand that you say a few words to them, and then stand beside you for a photograph that they are going to frame... and they do this day after day after day after day after day....
hmmm
I hope Aamir's enjoying it, but the 'ad infinitum' part really makes it sound like a nightmare
Even in a single evening it becomes a nightmare
ask any Mr&Mrs
Coming up next: review of Rang de Basanti
Friday, January 13, 2006
Pulling life from the jaws of death,... something like that
No No No
This is not about what Dravid XI have to manage to do in Pakistan. Sheeesh!
This is about what I have to do when I read the morning papers. Now I read loads of newspapers everyday, about 2 kgs at least, or so my raddiwalla tells me.
In case you're wondering why I'm spending all this money on all these papers, my answer is I am not. Coz if you're an Indian, your tax pays for half of them (Business Standard, TOI, Mid Day) and the rest are dumped free by Mumbai Mirror and DNA for the noble cause of their circulation statistics.
In case you're wondering why I'm reading all these papers, please refer to Wikipedia for Obsessive Compulsive Disorders.
In case you're wondering what anything I've written so far has anything to do with life and death and the pulling thereof, sorry, I digressed. But here goes:
reading news is mostly like reading an obituary of decent society. What usually makes the cut for news-worthiness is something appalling like murder, or something heinous like torture, or something disgusting, or something terrible, or awful, or saddening... you get my drift. Then there's the ridiculous aka Page 3 which is no news at all. The rest is boring stuff formally known as business news ;)
And everyday, therefore, I trudge my eyes to find out some damn nice story to remove the taste of death from my head.
It's a inordinately tough task to find Chicken Soup for the Soul in the papers, but I try, and sometimes I get lucky. One story that had me totally impressed was of a man named Navin who married Neha, a sex worker, in Indore. You can read it here.
Don't know how Navin and Neha met and where, but that and the ensuing events would make for a great feel-good potboiler. There's an evil sister of Neha, who along with her mother, was responsible for pulling her into prostitution. There are police chases across Nagpur and Bhopal, as the couple try to escape and get married. And finally, the sweetest part is that Navin's mom, a school teacher, is most pleased and supportive with her son's choice. What an amazing happy ending!
This is not about what Dravid XI have to manage to do in Pakistan. Sheeesh!
This is about what I have to do when I read the morning papers. Now I read loads of newspapers everyday, about 2 kgs at least, or so my raddiwalla tells me.
In case you're wondering why I'm spending all this money on all these papers, my answer is I am not. Coz if you're an Indian, your tax pays for half of them (Business Standard, TOI, Mid Day) and the rest are dumped free by Mumbai Mirror and DNA for the noble cause of their circulation statistics.
In case you're wondering why I'm reading all these papers, please refer to Wikipedia for Obsessive Compulsive Disorders.
In case you're wondering what anything I've written so far has anything to do with life and death and the pulling thereof, sorry, I digressed. But here goes:
reading news is mostly like reading an obituary of decent society. What usually makes the cut for news-worthiness is something appalling like murder, or something heinous like torture, or something disgusting, or something terrible, or awful, or saddening... you get my drift. Then there's the ridiculous aka Page 3 which is no news at all. The rest is boring stuff formally known as business news ;)
And everyday, therefore, I trudge my eyes to find out some damn nice story to remove the taste of death from my head.
It's a inordinately tough task to find Chicken Soup for the Soul in the papers, but I try, and sometimes I get lucky. One story that had me totally impressed was of a man named Navin who married Neha, a sex worker, in Indore. You can read it here.
Don't know how Navin and Neha met and where, but that and the ensuing events would make for a great feel-good potboiler. There's an evil sister of Neha, who along with her mother, was responsible for pulling her into prostitution. There are police chases across Nagpur and Bhopal, as the couple try to escape and get married. And finally, the sweetest part is that Navin's mom, a school teacher, is most pleased and supportive with her son's choice. What an amazing happy ending!
Tuesday, January 03, 2006
Report Card: Hong Kong
I had been dreading the onset of HK winters since last october. Previous experience had led me to expect a season overrun with gloomy, sunless, grey skies and over-wrought with muggy air and inspirational for suicidal tendencies. I was ready for it to arrive a trifle too early in November and then subbornly refuse to leave even past March. I Hated it.
But this year has been literally a pleasant surprise. Yesterday, and many days behind it, have been sunny enough for a tee and even a tan. Which is why I went off with friends for a day of hiking / picnic at Sai Kung. It was a beach we'd never visited before - Long Ke - and turned to be faaaaaaaaaaar more beautiful than we'd expected. Emerald green waters has see-throughness that let one spy the rocks and grains below. Marking the shore's boundary was powdery white sand that just sunk under our steps and made us wish we were carrying beachwear with us!
This hike essentially marks the last rounds I and Vipul are making of the places we love in Hong Kong. With 19 months in this country behind us and just two more days to go before we fly back, we have a last darshan agenda that we are carrying out. Our other favourites (already done) are Stanley, Shek O, and Avenue of Stars.
It is probably also time for me to do a countdown of the top-3 things about HK (in no particular order) that I'm going to miss:
The hills and hiking trails
Not that I was trekking often, but when I did, it was marked with green seas and sigh-ful beaches. And they were so accessible - some just three minutes from my place, and some half an hour of a bus ride away. The closest I'll get to doing this in Mumbai are the monsson treks, for which I'll have to get up at an ungodly pre-dawn 5am :(
Seeing my tax-dollar being spent and not wasted
HK is small, and HK is efficient, and though it taxes me much lesser than India, it gives me back much more. I've seen roads being repaired, and had Government officials help me out politely, got my tax clearances in a few hours, managed my PF through a website... it all adds up to an unbelievable convenience that my tax money is financing for me. I LOVE paying for it!
A month from now, I'm going to be subjected to the expecses of the renaming of another city and weep as 35% of my income (or more) will go into printing new letterheads, and direction signs, and all the red-tape-y things that result from a strategically inconsequential decision. And I'm going to be paying an MP oaf for attending the parliament to take an oafy decision that only increases my expenses!!! Yes, I am expecting a lot of frustration.
Peaceful traffic
Don't expect to explain this!
Of course, as I wrote in an earlier post, there are a thousand things in India that I miss in HK. And for now, I think they'll make up for all that's lacking!
But this year has been literally a pleasant surprise. Yesterday, and many days behind it, have been sunny enough for a tee and even a tan. Which is why I went off with friends for a day of hiking / picnic at Sai Kung. It was a beach we'd never visited before - Long Ke - and turned to be faaaaaaaaaaar more beautiful than we'd expected. Emerald green waters has see-throughness that let one spy the rocks and grains below. Marking the shore's boundary was powdery white sand that just sunk under our steps and made us wish we were carrying beachwear with us!
This hike essentially marks the last rounds I and Vipul are making of the places we love in Hong Kong. With 19 months in this country behind us and just two more days to go before we fly back, we have a last darshan agenda that we are carrying out. Our other favourites (already done) are Stanley, Shek O, and Avenue of Stars.
It is probably also time for me to do a countdown of the top-3 things about HK (in no particular order) that I'm going to miss:
The hills and hiking trails
Not that I was trekking often, but when I did, it was marked with green seas and sigh-ful beaches. And they were so accessible - some just three minutes from my place, and some half an hour of a bus ride away. The closest I'll get to doing this in Mumbai are the monsson treks, for which I'll have to get up at an ungodly pre-dawn 5am :(
Seeing my tax-dollar being spent and not wasted
HK is small, and HK is efficient, and though it taxes me much lesser than India, it gives me back much more. I've seen roads being repaired, and had Government officials help me out politely, got my tax clearances in a few hours, managed my PF through a website... it all adds up to an unbelievable convenience that my tax money is financing for me. I LOVE paying for it!
A month from now, I'm going to be subjected to the expecses of the renaming of another city and weep as 35% of my income (or more) will go into printing new letterheads, and direction signs, and all the red-tape-y things that result from a strategically inconsequential decision. And I'm going to be paying an MP oaf for attending the parliament to take an oafy decision that only increases my expenses!!! Yes, I am expecting a lot of frustration.
Peaceful traffic
Don't expect to explain this!
Of course, as I wrote in an earlier post, there are a thousand things in India that I miss in HK. And for now, I think they'll make up for all that's lacking!
Sunday, January 01, 2006
Have a happy new year, and other superstitions
Every year, I try damn hard to enjoy myself on New Year's Eve. Like that Indian advertisement jungle goes "It's got to be-e-e-e-e-e-e Perfect" (what product was it, anyone remembers?).
The deal is that whatever happens on the D-Day follows you around the whole year through. So they say. And so at least it happens with me. Three years ago, I travelled out to Goa for celebrations, and as is law in Goa, had a blast for many, many hours followed by consciousness late next morning and then some beach-bumming and food hogging. That's what I did for the rest of the year too.
Then two years ago, I travelled out again, to another location but with the same regimen. And I've never travelled in my life as I did in the year that follwed: went to some new city every month, and not on work (and when it was on work, I managed to not have to do any!)- Kerela, Jaipur, Beijing, Shanghai,... The point being, this Happy New Year achievement can really work wonders, and has never failed me.
Last night was a mixed bag though. Maybe coz I was avoiding the wine (intend to have a level-headed year) or maybe coz I'm getting old (unavoidable despite all attempts). At least made a lot of money on Poker with good luck which is a welcome sign of things to come! But had a really Bad Hair Day, plus husband became bankrupt, and well, this combination foretells certain tragic movie scenes.
So currently I am on repairment mode: hair oilling, and taking over husband's finances, etc. Am also doing all the things I hope to do regularly for the rest of the year. Friends must be called, and schedules must be easy, and cooking must be avoided, and gifting must be encouraged, and for starters at least, this blog has been written.
Hope you are having a great day too. Try harder!
The deal is that whatever happens on the D-Day follows you around the whole year through. So they say. And so at least it happens with me. Three years ago, I travelled out to Goa for celebrations, and as is law in Goa, had a blast for many, many hours followed by consciousness late next morning and then some beach-bumming and food hogging. That's what I did for the rest of the year too.
Then two years ago, I travelled out again, to another location but with the same regimen. And I've never travelled in my life as I did in the year that follwed: went to some new city every month, and not on work (and when it was on work, I managed to not have to do any!)- Kerela, Jaipur, Beijing, Shanghai,... The point being, this Happy New Year achievement can really work wonders, and has never failed me.
Last night was a mixed bag though. Maybe coz I was avoiding the wine (intend to have a level-headed year) or maybe coz I'm getting old (unavoidable despite all attempts). At least made a lot of money on Poker with good luck which is a welcome sign of things to come! But had a really Bad Hair Day, plus husband became bankrupt, and well, this combination foretells certain tragic movie scenes.
So currently I am on repairment mode: hair oilling, and taking over husband's finances, etc. Am also doing all the things I hope to do regularly for the rest of the year. Friends must be called, and schedules must be easy, and cooking must be avoided, and gifting must be encouraged, and for starters at least, this blog has been written.
Hope you are having a great day too. Try harder!
Monday, December 26, 2005
For the times, they are a changing
And I mean that quite literally - coz I'm shifting from GMT+8 to GMT+5.30; from Hong Kong, BACK TO INDIA !
So, good bye Jackie Chan
and so long, golden shoes
[you won't believe what passes for footwear in HK!]
Nariyal pani on nariman point - here I come !!!
Yep, am quite happy about getting back. Last trip to India was in Diwali last November... been a long time.
I quite love Bombay. And even if I didn't, I would miss it. Coz, home towns are home towns, and where else can you just pick up a phone and find someone or the other to sack out the day with? Where else can you venture out without planning a day in advance? Where else do you have 50 numbers in the phonebook at your beck and call? And if you are someone who has found all this in your new city, then I guess it is your new city that you consider home.
As for me, I've been missing all these options. And am looking forward to old company over drinks and dinners and sidey movies in the front rows. And should everyone be too busy for that, then just sulking alone by the sunset at Marine drive will be fine too.
Am already making plans to make the rounds of all my favourite places : Polly Esther. OMO. NCPA. Mondy's. Totos. Mocha. Colaba. blah. blah. blah. And if I don't visit all these places (for let's face it I'm getting old and losing all party energy) - it'll just be nice to know I have the option go there whenever I want to.
Moreover, it will be nice to hear people talk in a language that I know. Even though it will be disconcerting to find that people will understand what I'm speaking. Currently I can shout on the top of my voice in a bus about anything and anyone sitting next to me, and their lousy golden ballet shoes. Will have to really watch my tongue after next week!
But that's hardly an issue
Coz I'm getting to go HOME!
:D
p.s. Of course, after 2 months in India, don't be surprised if I start lamenting about India's roads and politicians and traffic jams and, well, everything. Cribbing's my hobby, and India provides great avenues for it!
So, good bye Jackie Chan
and so long, golden shoes
[you won't believe what passes for footwear in HK!]
Nariyal pani on nariman point - here I come !!!
Yep, am quite happy about getting back. Last trip to India was in Diwali last November... been a long time.
I quite love Bombay. And even if I didn't, I would miss it. Coz, home towns are home towns, and where else can you just pick up a phone and find someone or the other to sack out the day with? Where else can you venture out without planning a day in advance? Where else do you have 50 numbers in the phonebook at your beck and call? And if you are someone who has found all this in your new city, then I guess it is your new city that you consider home.
As for me, I've been missing all these options. And am looking forward to old company over drinks and dinners and sidey movies in the front rows. And should everyone be too busy for that, then just sulking alone by the sunset at Marine drive will be fine too.
Am already making plans to make the rounds of all my favourite places : Polly Esther. OMO. NCPA. Mondy's. Totos. Mocha. Colaba. blah. blah. blah. And if I don't visit all these places (for let's face it I'm getting old and losing all party energy) - it'll just be nice to know I have the option go there whenever I want to.
Moreover, it will be nice to hear people talk in a language that I know. Even though it will be disconcerting to find that people will understand what I'm speaking. Currently I can shout on the top of my voice in a bus about anything and anyone sitting next to me, and their lousy golden ballet shoes. Will have to really watch my tongue after next week!
But that's hardly an issue
Coz I'm getting to go HOME!
:D
p.s. Of course, after 2 months in India, don't be surprised if I start lamenting about India's roads and politicians and traffic jams and, well, everything. Cribbing's my hobby, and India provides great avenues for it!
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
My latest crush
With all my serious posts on democracy and protests and the like, you may think I'm going to wax forth over Nelson Mandela. well, no. For the heart wants what it wants, and what it loves at the moment is Sony's latest MP3 walkman.
Here, have a look, but bear in mind that this damn purple pic (the only one I could find on a quick search) does it no justice.
What I saw in their showroom was a sexy, black glob. No edges, just curves. You can't see the screen because its camouflaged well in the body of this walkman. Only if you press its buttons, neon green words just glow out giving it a look that's (and here I must resort to teen-speak) so cool and so awsome!
Very rare for me to fall for a gadget, but I guess the season and all the shopping is getting to my head. Also fell head over heals for iMac G-5 the day before. Apple really knows how to make white look so sexy! Thank God for an fast-track obsoletion rate in gadgets - am looking forward for my comp and MP3 system to become outdated [or my husband to get bored with them, very likely to happen even faster] and then we can get new goodies :D
Here, have a look, but bear in mind that this damn purple pic (the only one I could find on a quick search) does it no justice.
What I saw in their showroom was a sexy, black glob. No edges, just curves. You can't see the screen because its camouflaged well in the body of this walkman. Only if you press its buttons, neon green words just glow out giving it a look that's (and here I must resort to teen-speak) so cool and so awsome!
Very rare for me to fall for a gadget, but I guess the season and all the shopping is getting to my head. Also fell head over heals for iMac G-5 the day before. Apple really knows how to make white look so sexy! Thank God for an fast-track obsoletion rate in gadgets - am looking forward for my comp and MP3 system to become outdated [or my husband to get bored with them, very likely to happen even faster] and then we can get new goodies :D
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
Democracy - Is it Lollipop ?
Eighty thousand people or more marched for democracy in the Hong Kong streets last Sunday. It is, as you would guess from the turnout, a matter of much discussion in this country and a matter of much cover-up on the mainland.
It is also a matter of strange revelations, or at least, statements from the Chinese people that i find very strange. Its a disconcerting feeling, probably akin to how my husband feels in the fact that he will never understand me. For I think I will never understand the Chinese.
But that's not the point.
The point isn't about the goodness / badness / appropriateness of democracy either.
The point is at that quite a few people are saying how they are / aren't mature enough to have / not have democracy.
Things like: We are educated etc and that speaks volumes about our ability to handle democracy.
And rebuttals like: please lower those volumes, and we definitely lack the maturity, but maybe in 10-20 years we'll be grown up eough
Stuff like that leaves me queasy - even though I am no George Bush who thinks democracy should be clamped down everyone's throat, and nor as a non-citizen do I think I have the right to fight this fight.
It's just that the whole idea of being mature enough to deserve democracy is ridiculous!
Since when did one have to pass an exam to want or get democracy???
Does that mean that some people do not deserve democracy?
And what is this metric to find out who's deserving?
If the metric is education, then can politicians rubbish three-fourths of India into taking the right decisions for them? [happens a lot anyway - and not for the better of the uneducated!]
If it is appreciation of rights, then should George Bush just turn America into his dictatorship as half of his country fails to vote at all and use the oportunity. I mean, clearly they can't want democracy if they don't vote, he can say.
Do the Burmese deserve the Junta because after all, they are just rudimentary farmers?
After getting a democracy, would you shut down the voices of those people who prove themselves 'undeserving'?
This whole "deserving democracy" line is no different from a rationalisation of dictatorship. That's what all dictators have always said: you don't know well enough, and I know better than you.
Democracy is not an award. not a prize for good grades. Not something you deserve, in lieu of which you get a punishment called dictatorship! It is an entitlement. The question isn't 'are you good enough for it?', but 'do you want it?'. And THAT is the question HK should decide.
Coz the only disqualification for democracy comes from democracy itself - if people don't want it, then they need not have it.
The whole point of democracy is this premise: no man is more or less qualified to get the government he wants.
if that govt be communist, so be it
or a democracy, if that's what he likes
The only poplulation that doesn't deserve a democracy is one that doesn't want it, or finds itself unfit for it. coz that is the poplulation that will fail to be a democracy even when it is given a chance - it would elect the same old people one after the other, creating a pseudo-monarchy.
It is also a matter of strange revelations, or at least, statements from the Chinese people that i find very strange. Its a disconcerting feeling, probably akin to how my husband feels in the fact that he will never understand me. For I think I will never understand the Chinese.
But that's not the point.
The point isn't about the goodness / badness / appropriateness of democracy either.
The point is at that quite a few people are saying how they are / aren't mature enough to have / not have democracy.
Things like: We are educated etc and that speaks volumes about our ability to handle democracy.
And rebuttals like: please lower those volumes, and we definitely lack the maturity, but maybe in 10-20 years we'll be grown up eough
Stuff like that leaves me queasy - even though I am no George Bush who thinks democracy should be clamped down everyone's throat, and nor as a non-citizen do I think I have the right to fight this fight.
It's just that the whole idea of being mature enough to deserve democracy is ridiculous!
Since when did one have to pass an exam to want or get democracy???
Does that mean that some people do not deserve democracy?
And what is this metric to find out who's deserving?
If the metric is education, then can politicians rubbish three-fourths of India into taking the right decisions for them? [happens a lot anyway - and not for the better of the uneducated!]
If it is appreciation of rights, then should George Bush just turn America into his dictatorship as half of his country fails to vote at all and use the oportunity. I mean, clearly they can't want democracy if they don't vote, he can say.
Do the Burmese deserve the Junta because after all, they are just rudimentary farmers?
After getting a democracy, would you shut down the voices of those people who prove themselves 'undeserving'?
This whole "deserving democracy" line is no different from a rationalisation of dictatorship. That's what all dictators have always said: you don't know well enough, and I know better than you.
Democracy is not an award. not a prize for good grades. Not something you deserve, in lieu of which you get a punishment called dictatorship! It is an entitlement. The question isn't 'are you good enough for it?', but 'do you want it?'. And THAT is the question HK should decide.
Coz the only disqualification for democracy comes from democracy itself - if people don't want it, then they need not have it.
The whole point of democracy is this premise: no man is more or less qualified to get the government he wants.
if that govt be communist, so be it
or a democracy, if that's what he likes
The only poplulation that doesn't deserve a democracy is one that doesn't want it, or finds itself unfit for it. coz that is the poplulation that will fail to be a democracy even when it is given a chance - it would elect the same old people one after the other, creating a pseudo-monarchy.
Monday, December 05, 2005
Quidam!
Got to attend Cirque du Soleil's latest show - Quidam - on saturday. And spent the whole two hours or so with dropping-down jaw.
I was so spellbound with the cast - who were so lithe in their contortions, so comfortably adroit, and so grandiose in their choreography. The first act had a man standing within a ring - and with elf like movements he rolled it around as if it were a coin with a life of its own. He even maneouvered it to wobble near the floor, just as a coin does when it runs out of balance, and then picked it back all the way up again. Another act had a plethora of skipping ropes, and the cast was dodging swinging ropes within swinging ropes within swinging ropes. Delightful!
Then, of course, were the acrobats who twisted and turned with amazing sensualty. And when they jumped in the air, with a long, smooth step, I almost got the feeling that were flying. Their half-seconds in air seemed elongated in time - like a slow motion scene.
Even the mimes were extraordinary. They involved the audience in a couple of scenes, and managed to get such good performances out of them that initially I thought they had planted an acting cast in the audience!
As you can read, I am quite awestruck with the whole thing. The tickets weren't cheap, but worth every penny. And, if you are in Hong Kong, be sure to check out the asiaxpat website (classifieds for tickets) to get a good deal. I managed to get the 600-buck ticket for 500 only, and got great front-view seats :)
Njoy!
I was so spellbound with the cast - who were so lithe in their contortions, so comfortably adroit, and so grandiose in their choreography. The first act had a man standing within a ring - and with elf like movements he rolled it around as if it were a coin with a life of its own. He even maneouvered it to wobble near the floor, just as a coin does when it runs out of balance, and then picked it back all the way up again. Another act had a plethora of skipping ropes, and the cast was dodging swinging ropes within swinging ropes within swinging ropes. Delightful!
Then, of course, were the acrobats who twisted and turned with amazing sensualty. And when they jumped in the air, with a long, smooth step, I almost got the feeling that were flying. Their half-seconds in air seemed elongated in time - like a slow motion scene.
Even the mimes were extraordinary. They involved the audience in a couple of scenes, and managed to get such good performances out of them that initially I thought they had planted an acting cast in the audience!
As you can read, I am quite awestruck with the whole thing. The tickets weren't cheap, but worth every penny. And, if you are in Hong Kong, be sure to check out the asiaxpat website (classifieds for tickets) to get a good deal. I managed to get the 600-buck ticket for 500 only, and got great front-view seats :)
Njoy!
Monday, November 28, 2005
Coming soon to your telly... and my office's window
WTO's ministerial conference in being hosted in Hong Kong a few weeks hence (from 13-18 december). And my office is right opposite the protest grounds in Wan Chai.
But I've already had a sneak preview yesterday during a bus journey, as we passed the ferry terminal: a contingent from Thailand, marching silently with banners, was conspicuous in its members' fancy costumes. Some were in their native dresses, and some dressed up as farmers etc, to showcase their cause. They reminded me of the World Social Forum (mumbai 2004) that I had been to (and wrote about here) - where people from all over the world were airing their voices, and at the same time wearing, flaunting their local, personal attire and lifestyle with pride. It was a celebration of the indegenous, of diversity.
Of course, what HK is waiting for with bated breath is different. Some people, voiced in newspapers and even at my office, are worried that the coming "South Korean farmers" will be bringing their hot blood and violent dispositions to Hong Kong. Some bosses, around our business area though (sigh) not at my office, are handing out holidays in that week in worried anticipation.
On my part, however, there is no anxiety. At least, not yet. Maybe because I have never really witnessed violence, and do not expect it to take place outside my window. And also because I have a soft corner for protests.
I, for example, wish that I had been a teenager in the 60s. A flower child with heavy eyelids, hippy garb, lily in hair... and hope. Thinking, even believing, that I was a part of a generation that could, and would end all poverty, all cruelty, all war. That we were going to change the world. That we were saving the world.
If only I could feel that.
How heady that would be, how potent. So much better that the dull knowledge, the awareness, that like it or not, I am stuck in a world that holds too many horrors for too many people. And that I cannot make a difference, expect perhaps at some miniscule level. perhaps.
"What you do may be a drop in the ocean, but a drop that would be missed were it not there," said Mother Teresa (as I recall from memory).
But what if we are not drops adding up to an ocean? That instead we are just making up a small puddle in a street that is too dirty and too long for us to ever clean? And am I failing to add even to that puddle?
But I've already had a sneak preview yesterday during a bus journey, as we passed the ferry terminal: a contingent from Thailand, marching silently with banners, was conspicuous in its members' fancy costumes. Some were in their native dresses, and some dressed up as farmers etc, to showcase their cause. They reminded me of the World Social Forum (mumbai 2004) that I had been to (and wrote about here) - where people from all over the world were airing their voices, and at the same time wearing, flaunting their local, personal attire and lifestyle with pride. It was a celebration of the indegenous, of diversity.
Of course, what HK is waiting for with bated breath is different. Some people, voiced in newspapers and even at my office, are worried that the coming "South Korean farmers" will be bringing their hot blood and violent dispositions to Hong Kong. Some bosses, around our business area though (sigh) not at my office, are handing out holidays in that week in worried anticipation.
On my part, however, there is no anxiety. At least, not yet. Maybe because I have never really witnessed violence, and do not expect it to take place outside my window. And also because I have a soft corner for protests.
I, for example, wish that I had been a teenager in the 60s. A flower child with heavy eyelids, hippy garb, lily in hair... and hope. Thinking, even believing, that I was a part of a generation that could, and would end all poverty, all cruelty, all war. That we were going to change the world. That we were saving the world.
If only I could feel that.
How heady that would be, how potent. So much better that the dull knowledge, the awareness, that like it or not, I am stuck in a world that holds too many horrors for too many people. And that I cannot make a difference, expect perhaps at some miniscule level. perhaps.
"What you do may be a drop in the ocean, but a drop that would be missed were it not there," said Mother Teresa (as I recall from memory).
But what if we are not drops adding up to an ocean? That instead we are just making up a small puddle in a street that is too dirty and too long for us to ever clean? And am I failing to add even to that puddle?
Friday, November 25, 2005
Hotel California
Ever get the feeling that you could never stop?
That you could never resist?
That you wanted 'just one more'?
Of course you do
But just in case you don't - go get your addiction at www.isc.ro
That's where I get my daily, hourly, minutely fix of internet scrabble. Have been using it for over a year now, and simply love it! Playing against people beats playing against the computer any day. Plus the software (the game board) is fast and easy.
The site allows you to choose the time lengths of the game to suit your schedule / speed (for me, it is long games over the weekned, and short 6-minute matches for office coffee breaks). But the best part is that any time I need a game, there's someone, somewhere in the world ready to grant my wish.
Try it out! Your boss may regret it, but you won't :D
That you could never resist?
That you wanted 'just one more'?
Of course you do
But just in case you don't - go get your addiction at www.isc.ro
That's where I get my daily, hourly, minutely fix of internet scrabble. Have been using it for over a year now, and simply love it! Playing against people beats playing against the computer any day. Plus the software (the game board) is fast and easy.
The site allows you to choose the time lengths of the game to suit your schedule / speed (for me, it is long games over the weekned, and short 6-minute matches for office coffee breaks). But the best part is that any time I need a game, there's someone, somewhere in the world ready to grant my wish.
Try it out! Your boss may regret it, but you won't :D
Wednesday, November 23, 2005
Missing: Karma
India
the originator of the karma philosophy - each man must pay for his deeds
India
The one place where this principal just doesn't appear to apply
India
the place of frustrating, horrifying dichotomy which I wish we could get rid of
Recently read about the murder of Manjunath - a guy of my age (just 27 yrs old), having similar qualifications (an MBA), getting gunned down in Lucknow - for doing his job right. As an employee of the Indian Oil Corporation, he had been shutting down illegal activities of petrol pump operators in the city.
Here's an excerpt from the news report:
Manjunathan ... had become a “nightmare” for Sitapur’s petrol outlets, always dropping in for surprise checks as part of his company’s campaign against adulteration.
Unfortunately, the result of such integrity in India, when it comes face to face with rich and powerful interests, generally results in one of the two: a) getting framed; and / or b) getting killed. In Manjunath's case, it was murder. Six shots to the chest.
Till now, no politicians have been implicated in the case, so I have hope that justice will be served. But if people high in bureaucratic command chain are connected, chances are as good as none. After all, the last time national media covered a whistle-blower's murder - of IIT graduate Satyendra Dubey - there was widespread talk, and talk, and more talk, and by all - but no satisfactory result. His gunning down was ultimately attributed to highway robbers by a CBI probe.
Incidents like this make me wonder why people with integrity aren't entirely extinct by now. Given their lack of survival, and Darwin's evolution theory, those genes that make them stand up for everyone's rights are sure to go off the Indian race soon.
To pay your condolences to Manjunath's family, please visit http://manjunathshanmugam.blogspot.com/
the originator of the karma philosophy - each man must pay for his deeds
India
The one place where this principal just doesn't appear to apply
India
the place of frustrating, horrifying dichotomy which I wish we could get rid of
Recently read about the murder of Manjunath - a guy of my age (just 27 yrs old), having similar qualifications (an MBA), getting gunned down in Lucknow - for doing his job right. As an employee of the Indian Oil Corporation, he had been shutting down illegal activities of petrol pump operators in the city.
Here's an excerpt from the news report:
Manjunathan ... had become a “nightmare” for Sitapur’s petrol outlets, always dropping in for surprise checks as part of his company’s campaign against adulteration.
Unfortunately, the result of such integrity in India, when it comes face to face with rich and powerful interests, generally results in one of the two: a) getting framed; and / or b) getting killed. In Manjunath's case, it was murder. Six shots to the chest.
Till now, no politicians have been implicated in the case, so I have hope that justice will be served. But if people high in bureaucratic command chain are connected, chances are as good as none. After all, the last time national media covered a whistle-blower's murder - of IIT graduate Satyendra Dubey - there was widespread talk, and talk, and more talk, and by all - but no satisfactory result. His gunning down was ultimately attributed to highway robbers by a CBI probe.
Incidents like this make me wonder why people with integrity aren't entirely extinct by now. Given their lack of survival, and Darwin's evolution theory, those genes that make them stand up for everyone's rights are sure to go off the Indian race soon.
To pay your condolences to Manjunath's family, please visit http://manjunathshanmugam.blogspot.com/
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
Last weekend was luckier than many behind it.
For one thing, Vipul's no-discrimination policy in movies, which leads all sorts of bollywood trash to our DVD player, did not result in migraines. Saw 'Salaam Namaste', which was very funny depite Preity's hormonal screechings. Both Saif and Preity look ravishing, and even more beguiling is the beach-house where they live, that I have fallen in love with, and have been dreaming of my entire life.
Also saw 'No Entry', which is timepass material if one has rock-bottom expectations and past experience of movies such as 'Musafir'.
Then there was 'The Sweetest Thing' starring Cameroon Diaz amongst others (on Star Movies). It's a funny movie, with the friends-for-life-women backdrop that never fails to ensnare me into nostalgia. made me want to call up all my girlie friends. and made want to fight with Vipul about how come he never knows without my telling things like: I am offended with him, I am pissed with his movie choice, I am mad at his getting home late, I am giving him the silent treatment, etc etc etc whew. Men!
anyhow, as I was saying, the weekend was good, and we actually never got into any such fight on this topic. instead, we went to a nearby Island - lamma Island - where I managed to get some beautiful jewellery made of glass. Ran out of money buying it :D but will be back for more pretty soon when Vipul ditches me in favour of a cricket match next Saturday!
For one thing, Vipul's no-discrimination policy in movies, which leads all sorts of bollywood trash to our DVD player, did not result in migraines. Saw 'Salaam Namaste', which was very funny depite Preity's hormonal screechings. Both Saif and Preity look ravishing, and even more beguiling is the beach-house where they live, that I have fallen in love with, and have been dreaming of my entire life.
Also saw 'No Entry', which is timepass material if one has rock-bottom expectations and past experience of movies such as 'Musafir'.
Then there was 'The Sweetest Thing' starring Cameroon Diaz amongst others (on Star Movies). It's a funny movie, with the friends-for-life-women backdrop that never fails to ensnare me into nostalgia. made me want to call up all my girlie friends. and made want to fight with Vipul about how come he never knows without my telling things like: I am offended with him, I am pissed with his movie choice, I am mad at his getting home late, I am giving him the silent treatment, etc etc etc whew. Men!
anyhow, as I was saying, the weekend was good, and we actually never got into any such fight on this topic. instead, we went to a nearby Island - lamma Island - where I managed to get some beautiful jewellery made of glass. Ran out of money buying it :D but will be back for more pretty soon when Vipul ditches me in favour of a cricket match next Saturday!
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
Bird Flu and Cuckoo ideas
Apparently, china is going to vaccinate all its poultry, all 14 billion of them. The Agriculture Ministry's chief veterinary officer made this statement yesterday (read here).
But how on earth can they manage it?
Even if a hundred thousand workers were working on this project (which I cannot believe)
and finding the bird and vaccinating it takes just one minute each (which is way overoptimistic)
it would still take each man nearly 292 working days (at 8 hrs work/day) to get the job done!
Someone ought to tell him to prepare for the current flu scare instead of planning for the next one.
But how on earth can they manage it?
Even if a hundred thousand workers were working on this project (which I cannot believe)
and finding the bird and vaccinating it takes just one minute each (which is way overoptimistic)
it would still take each man nearly 292 working days (at 8 hrs work/day) to get the job done!
Someone ought to tell him to prepare for the current flu scare instead of planning for the next one.
Monday, November 14, 2005
And the Ostrich Award goes to...
George Bush
for his inane, incredible, invertebrate dialogue "We do not torture"
I wonder what the fine print is...
... WE DO NOT TORTURE. We just slowly kill or nearly kill as per our wishes
... WE DO NOT TORTURE. In our dictionary that term is usable only in relation to what Saddam Hussein has done / does / is capable of doing.
... WE DO NOT TORTURE. And by 'we' I do not include anyone who has met our Iraqi / Afghani prisoners face to face
... WE DO NOT TORTURE. My intelligence on this matter is as good as it was with respect to WMDs in Iraq.
"We do not torture", my foot!
Please visit http://www.planetdan.net/pics/misc/georgie.htm to congratulate the man senseless.
for his inane, incredible, invertebrate dialogue "We do not torture"
I wonder what the fine print is...
... WE DO NOT TORTURE. We just slowly kill or nearly kill as per our wishes
... WE DO NOT TORTURE. In our dictionary that term is usable only in relation to what Saddam Hussein has done / does / is capable of doing.
... WE DO NOT TORTURE. And by 'we' I do not include anyone who has met our Iraqi / Afghani prisoners face to face
... WE DO NOT TORTURE. My intelligence on this matter is as good as it was with respect to WMDs in Iraq.
"We do not torture", my foot!
Please visit http://www.planetdan.net/pics/misc/georgie.htm to congratulate the man senseless.
Wednesday, November 02, 2005
Trek, er, walk to Sai Kung
I am too lazy to write about it today, so I'll let the pictures speak their thousands of words!
Here are some pics from a hike I went on this sunday. It's amongst the easier parts of the McLehose trail in Sai Kung.
It's a beautiful trail around hills and beaches
Old man and the sea
The hills and Me
A beach worth hiking for
Which is why we are trekking
We are still trekking
We've been trekking for two hours now!
And meanwhile, the chinese are also exploiting the secrets of their slimness...
Tai Chi on the beach
Here are some pics from a hike I went on this sunday. It's amongst the easier parts of the McLehose trail in Sai Kung.
It's a beautiful trail around hills and beaches
Old man and the sea
The hills and Me
A beach worth hiking for
Which is why we are trekking
We are still trekking
We've been trekking for two hours now!
And meanwhile, the chinese are also exploiting the secrets of their slimness...
Tai Chi on the beach
Saturday, October 29, 2005
Once in a lifetime opportunity !
For the first time in my life, I was in the audience of an intenational cricket match where India actually WON !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Cricket Sixes
Hong Kong
October 23, 2005
Njoy the Pics :)
The ground
The cheerers
The claps
And the smiles
Cricket Sixes
Hong Kong
October 23, 2005
Njoy the Pics :)
The ground
The cheerers
The claps
And the smiles
Monday, October 24, 2005
An obituary for my 26 years
I kept it at bay for an entire year, and then found me ensnared, yet again. My damn birthday.
This time I left town to escape. Ran away to Singapore last week. But even there it caught up with me, turning me 27 against all my prayers. Taking me unawares. Right there, on the luggage conveyor belt at Changi. Damn.
Oh yes - this is moping time. As I always mope on every occassion worth its salt. Anniversaries, festivals, anything regular... they all seem like performance appraisals - demanding to know - what I have to show, for the years gone by. Bossy creeps.
Sigh
26 gone by
I need retail therapy
:(((
This time I left town to escape. Ran away to Singapore last week. But even there it caught up with me, turning me 27 against all my prayers. Taking me unawares. Right there, on the luggage conveyor belt at Changi. Damn.
Oh yes - this is moping time. As I always mope on every occassion worth its salt. Anniversaries, festivals, anything regular... they all seem like performance appraisals - demanding to know - what I have to show, for the years gone by. Bossy creeps.
Sigh
26 gone by
I need retail therapy
:(((
Monday, October 10, 2005
You've come a long way, baby!
source: http://tobaccodocuments.org/pollay_ads/Virg03.11.html
Here's an ad that marked a change in the way things were marketed - when in it's campaign, Virginia Slims asked women to smoke for themselves, to celebrate their own success in climbing up the social ladder.
Of course, increasing one's lung cancer risk is not quite the way to mark the femiminist leap of the '60s. Nevertheless, it's better than choking up to please some thoughtful male with undoubtedly lecherous thoughts on a billboard. But that's a different story. And my thoughts today centre not around the smoking, but dieting.
Coz dieting too has come a long way. Goodbye cabbage soup. So long, starvation diets. Hello, Eating. And by eating I do not mean throw up after eating, but just good old eating, even hogging.
Atkins, South Beach diet, and now The Warrior are littering the landscape with glimmers of hope for meatloaf lovers. And Meatloaf lovers - 'I would do anything for love, but I won't do THAT'. THAT, with all its contempt for exercise. and all the love for skinniness.
I know, I know - all of these diets do not just recommend eating, but also exercise. and sternly too. Dr Atkins demands a work-out along with all those stakes, and stakes, and uhm, some more stakes. But I am not very sure as to how many of those who follow his mantra follow the whole of it. Do they run and weight-train as religiously as they stuff their mouth with, er, the stakes?
Now before anyone gets high-strung and leaves testimonials on this page with 'before' and 'after' snaps (not that I am stopping you guys), let me clarify, I am not trying to discredit these increasingly bizarre eating recommendations. In fact, I have been sufficiently enticed to try to try them out myself. After I witnessed a Discovery channel documentary that took up Dr Atkins work quite seriously (yes, I was jobless and there were hardly any other channels worth watching on TV) I did try out meat - meal after meal for two whole days. May sound a paltry achievement to you, these two days, but that's all my Indian, vegetable-centric palette could stomach.
Which brings me to why I am writing this column at all... any nutritionists looking for a new avenue in the semmingly over-congested dieting market? I would be glad to hear an eat-all-you-want version plan with curries and vegetables. And am sure some Mexican somewhere is looking for jalapeno and salsa laden meals. While an irishman or many are looking for Guinness-full menus. There are many more untrodden paths ahead. So Help!
Here's an ad that marked a change in the way things were marketed - when in it's campaign, Virginia Slims asked women to smoke for themselves, to celebrate their own success in climbing up the social ladder.
Of course, increasing one's lung cancer risk is not quite the way to mark the femiminist leap of the '60s. Nevertheless, it's better than choking up to please some thoughtful male with undoubtedly lecherous thoughts on a billboard. But that's a different story. And my thoughts today centre not around the smoking, but dieting.
Coz dieting too has come a long way. Goodbye cabbage soup. So long, starvation diets. Hello, Eating. And by eating I do not mean throw up after eating, but just good old eating, even hogging.
Atkins, South Beach diet, and now The Warrior are littering the landscape with glimmers of hope for meatloaf lovers. And Meatloaf lovers - 'I would do anything for love, but I won't do THAT'. THAT, with all its contempt for exercise. and all the love for skinniness.
I know, I know - all of these diets do not just recommend eating, but also exercise. and sternly too. Dr Atkins demands a work-out along with all those stakes, and stakes, and uhm, some more stakes. But I am not very sure as to how many of those who follow his mantra follow the whole of it. Do they run and weight-train as religiously as they stuff their mouth with, er, the stakes?
Now before anyone gets high-strung and leaves testimonials on this page with 'before' and 'after' snaps (not that I am stopping you guys), let me clarify, I am not trying to discredit these increasingly bizarre eating recommendations. In fact, I have been sufficiently enticed to try to try them out myself. After I witnessed a Discovery channel documentary that took up Dr Atkins work quite seriously (yes, I was jobless and there were hardly any other channels worth watching on TV) I did try out meat - meal after meal for two whole days. May sound a paltry achievement to you, these two days, but that's all my Indian, vegetable-centric palette could stomach.
Which brings me to why I am writing this column at all... any nutritionists looking for a new avenue in the semmingly over-congested dieting market? I would be glad to hear an eat-all-you-want version plan with curries and vegetables. And am sure some Mexican somewhere is looking for jalapeno and salsa laden meals. While an irishman or many are looking for Guinness-full menus. There are many more untrodden paths ahead. So Help!
Tuesday, October 04, 2005
When I was new to Hong Kong - jobless, lazy and wilting away in a shoebox-sized serviced apartment that's so typical to this city - I became a TV addict for the first time. I watched anything that moved: ranging from Hitler on History channel to Chinese horror film monsters on cable to even the live camera relay from the building's entrance. And I didn't sleep through anything.
The vegetative state lasted for two months, maybe more. I became quite a potato all over except for my remote-tapping hand. But the bigger feature I am stuck with is the attraction of reality shows. Barring 'Growing up Gotti', it all works for me. I've even grown to like Simon (s)cowl. really. And I think Rockstar INXS is un-missable.
Of course, I'm hardly alone in succumbing to this genre. Zee TV (the only Hindi channel I get in my building) has polished its Saregamapa singing competition to reflect more competitivness and more rudeness (by pitching 'guru' music directors against each other, half of them coming across as fairly abrasive and one of whom is further ruder).
Of course, can't help but compare the American shows to their Indian counterparts. And the first thing that comes to my mind is not the participant quality, nor production values - it's the culture!
While the American shows treat their contendors as adults - lambasting them or praising them as potential singers, the Indian judges treat them, and even address them, as if they were kids. Imagine Paula Abdul telling Bo Bice "you are like our son" or Simon tell Carrie Underwood "I am criticizing you, but take it in the spirit of our teaching heritage... we are just teachers trying to make you children better"! Nope I am not making these dialogues up - these are straight translations from the show.
The difference just amuses me: why do Indians have children, and Americans sons and daughters? What do you think?
The vegetative state lasted for two months, maybe more. I became quite a potato all over except for my remote-tapping hand. But the bigger feature I am stuck with is the attraction of reality shows. Barring 'Growing up Gotti', it all works for me. I've even grown to like Simon (s)cowl. really. And I think Rockstar INXS is un-missable.
Of course, I'm hardly alone in succumbing to this genre. Zee TV (the only Hindi channel I get in my building) has polished its Saregamapa singing competition to reflect more competitivness and more rudeness (by pitching 'guru' music directors against each other, half of them coming across as fairly abrasive and one of whom is further ruder).
Of course, can't help but compare the American shows to their Indian counterparts. And the first thing that comes to my mind is not the participant quality, nor production values - it's the culture!
While the American shows treat their contendors as adults - lambasting them or praising them as potential singers, the Indian judges treat them, and even address them, as if they were kids. Imagine Paula Abdul telling Bo Bice "you are like our son" or Simon tell Carrie Underwood "I am criticizing you, but take it in the spirit of our teaching heritage... we are just teachers trying to make you children better"! Nope I am not making these dialogues up - these are straight translations from the show.
The difference just amuses me: why do Indians have children, and Americans sons and daughters? What do you think?
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