Monday, October 10, 2005

"My mind is filled with you..."

I watched this Telugu movie yesterday (WHY do I indulge in these 'dirty habits'?) on the bus that captured my imagination for a while after, to such an extent that I hardly slept on the bus after that. I sleep like a log on buses usually, and I sleep so well that sometimes, I ponder over the possibilities of creating a virtual reality world where I live all my life in the bus - a thought process that puts me to sleep immediately.

Now, this movie had these two main characters, who were neighbours and best friends in rural Andhra Pradesh as 10-year-olds. But then, the rich-girl-poor-boy divide strikes, and the girl's father is conveniently transferred to some urban location. They sing a separation song, and she gives him a timepiece that sings when opened. (Timepiece! Where are we - 1649?)

Then they meet again under weird circumstances after 18 years, don't recognise each other, then finally comprehending the situation by which time its too late - the hero's sister's marriage is in jeopardy for some strange reason, and heroine's engaged to an evil MLA's son. A bloody battle ensues where everyone beats up everyone else, and everything almost ends happily, but heroine's father with evil motives stabs hero in the stomach.

Hero dies. ('Yes!' I thought, 'A Telugu Film has the courage to kill a Hero').

Hero is resurrected! (A result of the heart-wrenching prayers of the heroine to Lord Anjaneya)

Then they live happily ever after.

***
I was struck by this movie - its oft-repeated storyline, its coreographed fight sequences, songs in exotic locales that have nothing to do with the movieand just the fact that it was such a horrendous movie! I have this theory now - a generalised theory that applies to everything in the world - you're always struck by / attracted to either the best or the worst, its the mediocre that suffer!

This explains why Ambarish (a fat, ugly Kannada Actor), Vijaykanth(a fat, ugly Tamil actor) have fan clubs with 50,000 members, and websites like these (http://www.indiadirect.com/captain/) in their honour! Also explains why I liked "Mansantha Nuve", "Hadh Kar Di Aapne", "A", "Baatsha" and "American Desi"!

posted by aandthirtyeights @ 12:17 AM 6 comments

Saturday, October 08, 2005

Common Heritage of Mankind

I have pondered for ages over a definition for CHOM - a word that I use more times than most other words, usually in a derogatory sense, for the word cannot be used in any other sense. I've heard that this word arises from the abbreviation of Common Heritage of Mankind, another curious term in international law, that has nothing to do with what a CHOM is, or what a CHOM does.

In defining a Chom as someone who has that cultural background, value set and appreciation of the finer aspects of life of an average Punjabi Hip-Hop listener with eighteen hundred and three Rakhi sisters, two real ones and twleve thousand other sisters-by-conduct, one confines oneself to cultural, religious or geographical variables. The fact is that a Chom does not necessarily have to be from a particular place, time period or background, though they do usually have similar such parameters.

Most characters (I cant think of any outside this desciption in fact) in Karan Johar / Yash Chopra movies are within the broad framework of 'Chom'. However, it is not necessary that one needs to live like a Kuch Luch Hota Hai character (with the 'COOL' chain around the neck, and fake Tommy Hilfiger bag bought from Palika Bazaar) to be a Chom. They come in all shapes, sizes and colours). It must be stressed here that there are lovable characters from these movies, just as there are lovable Choms (a small minority though)!

Chomness, or Chomity cannot be a cultural stereotype (its not really even a stereotype, if you ask me), or even an attitude; its a state of being - a State of Mind!

What stays in the Mind in this state is unfathomable, but its results are evident for all of us to see - "O yaar, Rock the Party!"

posted by aandthirtyeights @ 10:14 AM 5 comments