What is the appropriate response to stereotypes in cinema? Well, that depends on the kind of film, doesn’t it?
When I reviewed Imtiaz Ali’s Rockstar, an update on the Heer-Ranjha legend that situates its heroine in Kashmir, a Kashmiri reader wrote back in angst: “The problem (likely only for me)… is that no Kashmiri girl would be named Heer! As silly and petty as it sounds, this sort of cultural tone-deafness is one of the reasons I haven’t bothered to see the movie. I guess I’m just tired of Kashmir and Kashmiris being used as exotic props in Hindi films without even an attempt at truly engaging or reflecting the culture.” Going by the feedback to the teaser/trailer of the Shah Rukh Khan-Deepika Padukone starrer Chennai Express, an entire state (or at least, its tweeting population) appears to be up in arms. People are sick of the stereotyping – understandably so. Not every Tamilian is characterised by forehead stripes, a fondness for idlis and an accent that appears to have been gargled through a mouth full of sambar.
But then, does every Punjabi male start to shake his shoulders to the sound of an off-screen dhol as a chorus bursts into balle-balle? Is every Christian father a cheerful lush who trundles off to a portrait of the Virgin Mary after proclaiming “Hum God se baat karega, man”? Isn’t there another way to evoke a blue-collar locale of Mumbai than to depict the Dionysian revelries around a giant statue of Ganesha? Is every Bengali a dhoti-twirling egghead whose favoured mode of address is a musically rendered babu moshai? The answer, of course, is no – and the question, really, ought to be framed differently. Should we care about stereotypes in mainstream cinema? Perhaps at some level we should care that these templates, in films that are going to be seen by millions, are forever going to render us – as a community – a certain way in the minds of those from elsewhere. But is this worth getting worked up over?
The general outrage around Chennai Express seems to revolve around the fact that a Hindi film has reduced a Tamilian to this crude stereotype. I am not defending this. All I’m asking – rather, wondering out loud – is whether Tamil cinema is so blameless. (I take the example of Tamil cinema because I am familiar with it, but I suspect what I say is true of other regional cinemas as well.) For the longest time in Tamil films, Malayali women wandered around in tight-fitting blouses and mundus, tending to tea stalls and answering to pen kutty. Any North Indian was a seth, a Shylock who’d count his lent-out pennies until he ran out of breath – and he’d speak a strange, fractured patois. And Telugus are buffoons, goltis existing only to be spoofed. But forget the depiction of these outsiders and look at Tamilians – say, Tam-Brahms – and the exaggeration is no less. Not every Iyer woman is trussed up in a nine-yard sari, and neither is she always a Carnatic music expert.
Why, then, haven’t we seen many protests against these stereotypes in Tamil cinema? Probably not many from outside Tamil Nadu watch Tamil films, and we probably sigh at the inaccuracies but don’t do much else because we are making fun of ourselves. This explains the success of the Suryan FM show Kittu Mama Susie Mami, which saddles a stereotyped Tam-Brahm with a stereotyped Anglo-Indian spouse. No one’s offended. It’s just a joke. But when an outsider, especially from North India, makes fun of us, we erupt in rage. “How dare you?” we seethe. “What makes you so superior?” Do the extra-loud Punjabi characters in Hindi films make sardars equally angry? I doubt it. Because there’s a shared ethos. But we get offended because most of us have nothing in common with Hindi culture, and the stereotyping assumes the form of deliberate mockery: Deepika Padukone is no longer playing a character in a silly comedy – she’s the latest embodiment of the Other’s longstanding attempt to belittle us.
I have mixed feelings about stereotyping. On the one hand, I am annoyed when every Tamilian in a Hindi film makes his entry in a lungi, scratching his armpits and uttering aiyaiyo. But I also don’t take these films all that seriously, and I find the stereotyping in a so-called serious film like Mr. and Mrs. Iyer more galling. In the latter, I expect accuracy, pointillistic detail. In the former, I only expect entertainment, and the question – to me – isn’t whether Deepika Padukone is authentic, but whether she can make me laugh. In other words, it all comes down to the tone of the film. Mickey Rooney’s bucktoothed Japanese character in Breakfast at Tiffany’s is all wrong not because he’s offensive but because he’s playing it so broadly in a film that’s otherwise so subtle, so sophisticated. But when Monty Python, in their song I Like Chinese, tell us “They only come up to your knees/ Yet they’re always friendly, and they’re ready to please,” the only thing to do is laugh.
An edited version of this piece can be found here.
Copyright ©2013 The Hindu. This article may not be reproduced in its entirety without permission. A link to this URL, instead, would be appreciated.
aditebanerjie
June 24, 2013
Stereotyping has become so ingrained with Indians that we don’t bat an eyelid unless it affects us directly/personally. Both in films and in the real world. People from the North-east are called ‘chinky eyes’ and many more offensive names routinely in Delhi. And anyone south of the Vindhyas is a “Madraasi”. And this attitude is reflected in popular cinema too.
LikeLike
Denis Khan
June 24, 2013
Every movie ticket is a vote. Box Office (BO) earnings are the oxygen of movies. The old rural fan ratings by which films were judged for popularity have been replaced by NRI cash flows. Movies primarily cater to the mindset of the viewers.
LikeLike
Shvetal
June 24, 2013
I love reading your posts. You’ve touched on something that I’ve often thought about: how is it that one thing is funny, and another offensive, when both seem to be doing similar things? Why do I find the lyrics of Ijjat Papad (Aiyaa) funny, but the lyrics of scores of other Hindi film songs cheap? Sometimes I think it lies in the intention of the writer, but then intentionality is so relative. It often seems to me that I end up doing a “people like us” thing here, i.e. Sneha Khanwalkar, Amit Trivedi and Anurag Kashyap are good, therefore, when they use profanity or sexual innuendo, it is intellectual, whereas if the same kind of lyrics/dialogue/suggestion appear in a Tushar Kapoor or Sajid Khan film, they are inane.
You’ve given me another measure to think about: does it make me laugh? i.e. does it work or doesn’t? But who does it work for and who does it not work for?
Anyhow, why am I spending so much time thinking? Let’s leave that to the Bengalis, and this Gujarati should probably go make some money 🙂
LikeLike
Santa
June 24, 2013
I am not a Tamilian, but I too find myself thoroughly offended at Deepika’s accent and potrayal of a Tamilian. Not so much because of the caricature, but because of its inauthenticity. I have had plenty of Tamilian friends and roommates, and not one of them speak like her.
BR: You mention that you are looking for laughs, not accuracy here. But do the two have to be mutually exclusive? Could she (Deepika) not have been put through an accent training program so that she could sound remotely authentic? Or better still, could not an actual Tamilian actress have been cast in that role? I’m pretty sure that all the jokes and gags would still have been equally (in)effective either way.
LikeLike
ramitbajaj01
June 24, 2013
u r so open-minded. Proud to have read ur post(s). thanks.
I guess u would have felt offended after watching Lost in Translation, as the present Japanese culture is shown in a mocking way, but otherwise the film is very serious, very subtle.
LikeLike
ramitbajaj01
June 24, 2013
or perhaps galled, if offend is too strong a word..
LikeLike
sara
June 24, 2013
BR, I refer you to your own column on the Silk Smitha story of Vidya Balan’s which concurred with my thoughts on this topic, better than this column does.
If discounting the stereotyping makes for the same level of enjoyment as one unaware of the stereotyping, then there’s some substance that justifies forgiving the stereotyping. If it makes for a diminished experience, then it’s a cheap trick being deployed for pure entertainment.
LikeLike
brangan
June 24, 2013
Santa: We’re talking about the kind of film where a lone hero is able to send a dozen men flying in the air with a single punch? Is this really the place to be looking for authenticity?
sara: Exactly. In a so-called “serious film” like “Dirty Picture” the stupid stereotyping is annoying. This film is a silly timepass. Whether it delivers on that “silly timepass” promise is IMO more important that the “trueness” of the character. Everything is already so exaggerated here.
LikeLike
indianmalefeminist
June 24, 2013
I agree that stereotyping in more “serious fillums” like Dirty Picture is more annoying and off putting. I wouldn’t say Mr. and Mrs. Iyer was totally awful re: stereotyping, but it was seriously off putting and made me not like an otherwise watchable film.
But I have no idea how this remotely resembles Tamil accent – that’s why it pisses the hell out of me. I mean who the flip ever speaks like that in TN? At least SRK’s stereotype in RA One had some degree (albeit comical) accuracy when it came to accents . But WTF was this all about? Sounded more like Chunkey Pandey’s Nepali stereotype from Apna Sapna Money Money, if anything.
LikeLike
dinakaranonline
June 24, 2013
Its a very valid discussion but I think people’s outrage is based on who is saying what and who are target audience. Every film maker in India makes movies on poverty in India , but when Danny Boyle , an outsider ,made a movie Slumdog Millionaire ,people were outraged I guess because the movie is exaggerated at many places and people outside India will sub-consciously start believing in the stereotype until they meet some people who change their opinion.
If a tamil movie made with stereotype is viewed by tamil audiences , they know how much of it is true . But to an outsider , they cant distinguish which part is true or not true. And people tend to believe to some extend on what is shown on movies. After watching few hindi movies , i tend to believe may be Punjabi’s are loud and it’s easier to pick a girl from bar in US of A while both are not true.
Imagine my plight when few people from north seriously asked if people add curd in noddles in South India after watching Ra.One. Example of Tam-Brahm quoted stereotype quoted , we get a chance to meet those people in real and hence those stereotypes are broken . But for others, it stays for ever.
There is a difference I guess!
LikeLike
Shvetal
June 24, 2013
I just realised that my comment seems as if responding to some other post entirely! Here’s the connection. These stereotypes are mostly silly, and calculated to evoke laughter. How does one identify that line though, on one side of which lies humour and offence on the other?
LikeLike
Vasisht Das
June 24, 2013
BUT:
1. it’s a simple fact that the sheer quantity of South Indian films (across the four languages) that have continued to use stereotypes from the North (or any other direction) for ridicule is far, far lesser – through the decades – than the other way around.
2. no actors here made a career out of caricaturing a North Indian (a la Mehmood playing an ‘ayyo’).
3. the Hindi audiences continuing appreciation/tolerance of this cartoon of a (mostly Tamilian) South Indian as an ugly, loud fool in Hindi movies tempts one to almost believe in the cliche that perhaps there is a deep-seated need within the racist in all of us to insult the (so-called ‘brainier’, in this case) other to feel superior? even the otherwise most-PC film reviewers from the North Indian media have barely hidden their racist aesthetics in the context of their condescending words about Dhanush’s looks while reviewing Raanjhanaa.
cheers Dr.Rangan, am sure you know you’ve written one of those seasonal pieces which will provoke a landslide of divisive, garrulous responses?
butwaitminitforonenimit, we are now reduced to getting selectively offended by a…a…a… Amit….Ragul….err…Rogith Shetty movie?
and ‘discussing’ it ?
bhesh, naama ida ipdiye maintain pannuvom !
LikeLike
Ravi K
June 24, 2013
“We’re talking about the kind of film where a lone hero is able to send a dozen men flying in the air with a single punch? Is this really the place to be looking for authenticity?”
You’ve made some good arguments about why stereotypes and inaccuracies can be justified, but I don’t think this is one of them. Generally OTT fights, etc. take place in recognizable settings, unless we’re talking about Star Wars or something. So a character who is supposed to be from a real or real-ish place doing an utterly alien accent can be off-putting.
There’s definitely potential for a good fish-out-of-water comedy about a North Indian traveling through South India, and how strange some things must look to him, since I think North Indians seem to know little about South India, versus the other way around. But after Ra.One I don’t think SRK is the man to make that film. Rohit Shetty will make the fight sequences look good, but I’m skeptical about everything that doesn’t feature fists and cars flying through the air.
Also, please tell me that Deepika didn’t do a “ching chong” accent in Chandni Chowk to China…
LikeLike
sachita
June 24, 2013
This careless portrayal ( esp when no one behaves that way ever) just reflects the lack of respect we indians generally towards have other cultures within our country.
In general when we are as a whole community we dont have any problems making fun of indians from the rest of the India. (Though on a individual basis we seem to behave fine with each other.)
Do Bengalis get irritated with their portrayal? There is this slew of hindi movies based on bengali literature.
Tamilians, strike that, bollywood is so illiterate it thinks whole of south india speaks one language, but south indians have always got a raw deal.
And I really would like to see some characters atleast from north east India in our movies. There is whole overdose of Punjabiness. If I dont see one more movie based on Punjabi culture, I wont miss anything in life.
It annoys because more than half of the billion would believe south indians would eat noodles with curd.
LikeLike
raj
June 24, 2013
This particular case causes offence because
1. An abnormally large % of hindi-speaking population struts about claiming the entitlement of Hindi as a national language, and proudly displaying their ignorance of Indian constitution. They even come to Chennai and wonder why people dont speak Hindi here.
That being the case, it is not surprising Southies get offended at such “trivial” masala-cinema-based misrepresentations.
There is a larger social aspect to this than a 1-1 comparison between Tamilans in Hindi masala movies vs Seths in Tamil movies.
2. The misrepresentation in tamil movies – largely a past phenomeneon, mind – is limited to comedians and sub=plots. Which tends to minimise the impact it hsa
3. Things have evolved here, and even in a masala caper like Gemini, the heroine and her family speak propah hindi, plus some of them actually are shown assimilated and speaking proper tamil. (although the heroine lip-sync is a problem, that isa different issue to dow ith the professionalism fo tamil film makers)
4. Socially, a hindiwallah in even Chennai is unlikely to have met an arrogant tamil making fun of the hindiwallah’s tamil)or lack thereof) or showing the same level of beligerence about the hindiwallah needing to know tamil as it is the otehr way around. At any rate, the %s are likely much less in comparison.
5. Reg #4, for all the fanatic image on the avg tamilian over language, I have met a much higher % of Hindi folks who believe Hindi is(or should be) the national language than a beligerent Tamil. For all the political posturing, the average tamilian is very welcoming of otehr languages and cultures in TN, including Hindi
6. A today’s pop-movie in Hindi, say Ayan, has a Seth speaking much better Tamil than a aiyo Rama character speaks Hindi in a current Hindi potboiler. You have to account for the change in dynamics in the 2 industries now. The nambalki nimbalki defence no longer holds, in other words. I cant rememebr the last time I saw a popular movie in Tamil which stereotyyped a Seth as nambalki nimbalki.
Given all this, a hindi pop-movie doing the usual schtick on tamilians is not seen in isolation.
Therefore, the comparison b etween aiyo rama and nambalki nimbalki is superficial and not well-thought out
LikeLike
raj
June 24, 2013
“does every Punjabi male start to shake his shoulders to the sound of an off-screen dhol as a chorus bursts into balle-balle?”
(Obviously, forget balle-balle, how many ppl brek into song-and dance routines in real life. This is obvious so let’s ignore that aspect and take your argument in its spirit – namely, you mean to say “How many punjabi males conform to the bollywood stereotype”)
The answer is No, not every Punjabi male does but I’d wager a large % of them do. And at any rate, a larger % of Punjabis are likely to be Bhangra-loving leg-shaking stereotype than the corresponding tamil stereotype in Hindi Cinema. Why? The stereottype in Hindi cinema is a TamBrahm(as they/we like to style ourselves) and TamBrahms are but 2% of the populn in TN. So, the disconnect is much larger for the rest 98% and being a TB myself, even within the other 2%, a lot of us would feel disconnected from the portrayal.
So, yes, even though NOT EVERY punjabi male conforms to bollywood stereotype 1) A larger % of them would conform 2) the portrayal is not comic – otoh, the portrayal fo a Punjabi in bollywood is loving and full of characterestics that an average punjabi male would probably like to identify himself with even if he is not actually so.
OTOH, the way a Tamil is portrayed in Bollywood, 1) 98% of the population is straightaway alienated because you know, they arent brahmin 2) Even among the otehr 2%, some of us really wouldnt like to identify with that stereotype
There IS a difference.
LikeLike
raj
June 24, 2013
Another point reg #4 above is that, of all people I have met, it is the Hindiwallahs who are most belligerent about their “national” language and adamant that every other person who are of a different mothertongue should embrace their superior language.
We tend to categorise Tamils as fanatics about their language – but then, those Tamil fanatics only insist that Tamil people embrace and be fanatical about their language. It is only Hindi fanatics who expect the whole of India to embrace, acknowledge the superiority of and bow to the Hindi Language. Take that for liberal attitude of non-tamils, eh?
LikeLike
raj
June 24, 2013
Another anecdotal theory I have that, outside the hindi belt, Oriyas are the most fanatical proponents of Hindi. This is a horribly unresearched claim purely based on my small smaple size of people I have met in my life but I had it corroborated by another person based on his experience.
This may be because, for them, Bengali plays the function of big brother language trying to usurp the place of the local language.
My theory is that Hindi to them plays the role of English to South Indians, another foreign language but free of the “subjugation” threat of Hindi.
For Oriyas, my theory is that, Bengali s is the big brother and they take kindly to the indepndent foreign language Hindi
(Dont bother to reply to this seriously unless you have anecodotal evidence of the same 🙂 )
LikeLike
raj
June 24, 2013
Before we forget, a lot of the ‘offence’ on social media you have referred to is just regular social media jokes on the matter at hand.
Some of these are fuelled by a desire to quip something that catches attention and gets RTs. So, you have to measure the offence taken in Social media accordingly.
That reminds me of a Wodehousian character going for an interview for a media job(in Southern US)
Interviewer: Whatare you good at
Interviewee: Invective
Interviewer: What kind of invective?
Interviewee: General invective
Interviwer: You are selected.
A lot of those candidates speak on all issues these days on social media. That’s all about it.
LikeLike
Rahini David
June 24, 2013
Brangan: The original post was such a treat to read. You have beautifully put in words what I have often wondered about. But going through the comments section, I wondered something that I have quite often wondered about. By now you already know that anything you write on north-south divide or caste divide or rural-urban divide is going to be held against you and you are going to face some pretty hot steam. It happens however carefully phrase these things. How do you find the energy to click the post button?
LikeLike
plum
June 24, 2013
ha ha ha anotehr brangan acolyte goes and comforts him for steam faced in the face of just logically laid out arguments. I suppose only if everyone on the comment space says ataboy would the brangan acolytes believe there is no steam against them.
I dont see a single comment on this blog that is abusive or letting Brangan face ‘hot steam’
Seems like brangan acolytes are more sensitive than brangan himself and seems like they cannot tolerate anything otehr than total acceptance of the man’s views.
LikeLike
brangan
June 24, 2013
Rahini David: There’s a long, rambling philosophical answer to your (perhaps rhetorical) question, but the short version is that after a decade of blogging and receiving comments, you become somewhat of a master of the existential shrug 🙂 You know some people are interested in reading and engagement (even if they disagree). Some people want to prove they are superior. Some will do “readings” into my writing, and that’s always interesting. Some try to provoke. Some will use this space to further their own agenda. Some will walk in with massive chips on their shoulders and use this space to vent. It’s a motley bunch, and life would be quite dull if everyone smoked a peace pipe and sang Kumbaya 🙂
plum: I din’t think Rahini David was talking about this post — but in general. I think you are being more “sensitive” here 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
raj
June 24, 2013
So, educate us dear Sir of wisdom and knowledge, which comment in this blog is “provoking” you, “reading into your writing”, “furthering their agenda” etc
LikeLike
Shalini
June 24, 2013
Now, now my comment wasn’t “angsty” but more like resigned. 🙂 I don’t offend easily, so I personally find the stereotyping in Hindi films more tiresome than anything else. I think you’re right that the context and type of movie matters. So a Kashmiri girl named Heer in an Imtiaz Ali film is more jarring than Sharmila Tagore, equally implausibly singing, “balle balle” and doing the bhangra with Shammi in Kashmiri Ki Kali! 😀
LikeLike
raj
June 24, 2013
“The original post was such a treat to readYou have beautifully put in words what I have often wondered about. But going through the comments section, I wondered something that I have quite often wondered about”
Is this the generic comment(not on this particular post) you are referring to? Who is more “sensitive”?
“Original post” != this post?
“BUT…Going thro comments sectioN”(with “the original post” being the context for this statement) – not referring to comments for this particular post?
Wriggling out is not easy when someone has been so specific
LikeLike
Aravindan
June 24, 2013
“…….Because there’s a shared ethos. But we get offended because most of us have nothing in common with Hindi culture, and the stereotyping assumes the form of deliberate mockery”
Excellent perspective. Wonder why this line was edited out in the print !
LikeLike
brangan
June 24, 2013
Shalini: I’d send a royalty cheque your way, if I could 🙂
raj… er, plum: I’m not sure who I’m talking to, though you both sound the same… but I was talking about a decade of my posts, not any one single post (even if Rahini David was talking about this particular post). I’m allowed to do that, I think. And if you read that comment, you see the words “after a decade of blogging and receiving comments…” You do know that that means 10 years, right?
LikeLike
@sagittarian82
June 24, 2013
All blame must go to the thamizh audience for making Vijay films hits. I mean forget Deepika for a moment and the rest of the trailer looks straight out of a Vijay film. We all know which films Shetty watched before writing this.
LikeLike
Abhirup
June 24, 2013
Possibly the most well-written and balanced article I have ever read on the subject.
LikeLike
carla - filmi geek (@carla_filmigeek)
June 24, 2013
Such an interesting piece and discussion. I have been thinking about this topic lately, from the perspective of an outsider who, for better or worse, learns something about the varied cultures of India from these stereotyped portrayals. (The trick for me of course is to keep in mind that they ARE stereotypes and be wary of what I take away from them.) I recently rewatched Padosan, and was struck by how broad – and ultimately unfunny – Mehmood’s portrayal of the South Indian music master was. I even compared him, in my own recent post on the topic, to Mr Yunioshi, who is mentioned here in your post. But you make an important distinction, which is that Padosan IS a broad comedy over all, unlike Breakfast at Tiffany’s. That doesn’t make it unoffensive – also, doesn’t make it FUNNY. Whether you take offense at the portrayal or not, laying on a thick fake accent doesn’t really equal comedy.
It’s a delicate area for me, one where I have quite a bit left to learn still. I greatly appreciate pieces like this one.
carla (filmi geek)
http://filmigeek.net
LikeLike
Sudipta Bhattacharjee
June 24, 2013
Very balanced piece over-all. However, I tend to agree with the first comment from ‘Raj’ about the Punjabi stereotypes being more desirable/’cool’ and hence less offensive. I don’t speak Tamil but have several Tamil friends and I felt offended enough to forward the trailer with comments which may qualify as ‘rabble-rousing’ 🙂 I guess my problem was with the breadth of the stereotype. As a counterpoint, take the stereo-typing of Bengali vs Punjabi cultures in the marriage and allied scenes in ‘Vicky Donor’ – despite being stereo-typical, they were funny (for me) since it wasn’t too broad and had more than a germ of authencity. Of course you can say that ‘Vicky Donor’ being directed by a Bong (Shoojit Sircar) had a role to play in how I perceived those scenes 🙂
LikeLike
indianmalefeminist
June 24, 2013
And just to add – there are certain degrees to these stereotyping as well IMO. The punjabi girl stereotype, while irritating, isn’t remotely as annoying as the “Kahan se kharidi aisi ,bokwas dictionary” BS that Deepika was mouthing in the trailer. That’s just as irritating as Malayalee chechi/kutti nonsense (M Kumaran comes to mind, good god) IMO. And at least you could just ignore those parts, since it’s more or less part of the comedy track by Vivek/Santhanam et al. or minor part of the film in general. I don’t know if you can say the same about Chennai Express here.
LikeLike
Ganesh
June 24, 2013
Dear Rangan – The issue isnt with idli and sambhar, is it ? That is just an easy catch to stamp the character to a particular culture , which (even though there might be a lot of idli-haters or non -likers) will never be the cause of outrage. To try and acknowledge something that one culture doesnt do in comparison to another, to tag the character in context (although is the easy way out) doesnt hurt anyone’s sentiments. The issue is with noodles+curd isn’t it ? “Enna rascala mind it” isnt something any of our heroes have ever said (and definitely u cant escape saying its a tribute, thats even worse) … we never say rascala, do we ? … so when someone actually goes out of the way to modify what we do into something that we wouldnt, that is what hurts the feelings i woud presume. The only place we import north indians in kollywood is villain/heroines. But heroines play south indians. As far as villains, even if they cant speak good tamil, we voice-over. Maybe we show them having beeda-pan or samosa … and instead of panam they might say paisa(in hindi accent)/maal (and the likes), now that is something that just identifies with another culture … is it really abnormal twist ?
LikeLike
chhote saab
June 25, 2013
“raj… er, plum: I’m not sure who I’m talking to, though you both sound the same…” – Raj and Plum do sound like one and same ! By their definition, I would be ‘anotehr’ personal acolyte of yours but anyways – the piece was, as Abhirup said, well- written and balanced. The benchmark should be the kind of film and the mood in the film – realistic/artsy/serious films should have better researched characters and acted realistically (if it wants to taken seriously), while brain dead / exaggerated films should be not be taken too seriously in the realistic dept., as long as they entertain. One South Indian character depicted without making it a caricature was Abhay Deol’s character in “Shanghai”, IMO. But I’m not from south India so I can’t say for sure. Being a Gujarati, I should take offence at 1) that you even failed to acknowledge us in this piece 😦 and 2) the depiction of gujjus in movies like ‘Kal Ho Na Ho’. ‘Kai Po Che’ made up for it, though !
LikeLike
Santa
June 25, 2013
BR: “Is this really the place to be looking for authenticity?”
Not if one looks at it from a purely logical perspective, I agree. But for me movie viewing is much more of an immersive experience. If I’m going to watch an action-comedy, then outrageous action scenes are par for the course. My suspension of disbelief is not broken because I signed up to see that kind of movie. However, hearing that jarring accent does jolt me out of my state of suspension of disbelief. So, I guess what I’m saying is that I’m not looking authenticity not for the sake of authenticity, or because I’m otherwise offended by a certain stereotypical type of portrayal, but because it’s ruining the movie experience for me.
LikeLike
anuradha
June 25, 2013
Very intereseting article and voiced so well what I have been thinking.
While humour can work with caricatures, it is the finesse with which it does it that holds.Obviously this shetty film and the other terrible ra one really is just crassness packaged in a multistarrer ribboned by endless promotions and tacky one liner interviews!-Personally what really offends is when they take an ancient art form like kathakali and usetheform to promote a soft drink or a movie song that is supposed to represent the south..or then again maybe i just dont get the joke!
chennai express..giving this one a definite miss!-
LikeLike
Rahini David
June 25, 2013
Plum/Raj: The posts I meant were 180, NEPV Audio discussion, Adoor pandering to foreign audiences, Maniratnam related posts and also the post on body image where people took too much offence for not much apparent reason. I wanted to ask the question but could not step into the discussion. So I asked it here. This is also a post that has angry comments. Not attacking him in person, I can see that. But they are angry comments all the same.
Brangan: No, the question wasn’t rhetorical. I meant to ask and find out.
LikeLike
raj
June 25, 2013
“I din’t think Rahini David was talking about this post ”
This was the only comment you made prior to your last one (juxtaposing royalty cheque to Shalini and a mocking comment to Plum/Raj(which Iw ill come to later) ).
And then you mock me claimign that you were talking about a decade of posts.
The sequnce in thsi blog is this:
0. Comments on this particular post dont go the usual way of ad-hominem, and stick to the topic
1. Rahini jumps in and makes a holy swipe at commenters on THIS particular blog post claiming that while brangan made a medical miracle of a post, commenters are letting out hot steam
2. I declaim that
3. Brangan claims Rahini didnt speak about this post in particular so “you are being over sensitive”
4.I point out that Rahini unambiguously was talking about this post only
5. brangan now claims he wasnt talking about this post and was generally talking about his decade(which is as he helpfully points out 10 years, just in case you don’ know) of experience.
It is clear fromt eh sequence of events above wo wasover sensitive and tryiong to make up things.
This is not particularly importaqnt but I feel the need to point out since it is part of Brangan;s modus operandi against me in this post. a) ignore the points when I make my points in a measured tone b) once an acolyte jumps in and makes unfounded accusations, jump in and acknowledge it and pose like a martyr who has been sucking up hatred for a ‘decade'(which, if you have forgotten, amounts to 10 years. Before you read this, only brangan knew this fact in the whole world) c) Then when I declaim his pose, and point out the seuqnce of actual events that happened thereby pricking his moral tomfoolery, come with a generic “you are so sensitive or you are so evil” e) acolytes jump in and feed his ego
This is, ofcourse, his blog, and he has the right to do this (or even suppress my comments but he has the moral courage to publish them, mainly because he has the ability to ignore cold facts and wallow in his self-pity therefore he probably takes pleasure in his imagined moral one upmanship) but it is for people who have the faculty to think to see through that pose.
And in any case, this is not important to the discussion at hand itself – which was alwyays goign well until Rahini jumped in and tred to amke a martyr out of Brangan
LikeLike
raj
June 25, 2013
As for Plum/Raj, it is as simple as a differnt handle for a different wordpress blog, which auto-populats some times and I forget to change it here the first time when I return to this site after going elsewhere. Dont make a meal out of it. (by replying to Plum’s point as Raj, anyway I was implying it’s the same person. You are smart enough to recognise that)
LikeLike
raj
June 25, 2013
but I was talking about a decade of my posts, not any one single post (even if Rahini David was talking about this particular post). I’m allowed to do that, I think”
It’s your blog, do whatever you want. But if you respond to a post like Rahini’s which was alleging about comments on this particular post, with a generic answer, then you are intelligent enough to understand that you are, by implication, agreeing to her allegation on the comments on this post. A disclaimer would not go waste, there. And even if you dont have to be politically correct all the time, when pointed out, atleast an acknowledgement of that will help. Instead, you take the moral high horse.
LikeLike
raj
June 25, 2013
And before you forget, that particular comment of yours with a note to Rahini and one more note to me(the one where you theorise about commenters to Rahini, and then claim to Plum that Rahini isnt talking about this post) – when first published, it only had the note to Rahini.
You added the note to Plum in that comment only after the following comment asking your wise and learned self to educate us
What kind of jugglery was that? Was it to manipulate the flow of comments in the post to make yourself look good?
LikeLike
brangan
June 25, 2013
carla – filmi geek: See, but how do you define funny? In the radio world out here, there was a “gag” played by the RJ on a vegetarian caller. The RJ pretended to be from a restaurant and he asked the caller how the chicken was. (The caller had visited the restaurant the previous day.) The entire gag consisted of the RJ insisting that the caller had had chicken, and the caller progressively turning more apoplectic.
I got this, and I was appalled. I found this hideously insensitive and just not funny, because you’re making fun of someone’s cultural (and possibly religious) sentiments. But others around me felt I was making a big deal out of this and that I should take a chill pill.
And in this case, it’s the opposite. I’m the chilled-out one, and the others are angry. So it’s all subjective anyway.
Plum/raj: I posted a comment, saw yours had just come in, and then I added my response to you in that earlier comment by editing it. The content would have been the same whether I had added a new comment or done what I did. I do this all the time (and with others too), as I like having blocks of comments rather than one-offs, with just one response. But trust you to turn this into some mind-bogglingly evil act of chicanery. My God, what conspiracy theories you manage to unearth in the simplest of things. Get a grip, man. Get a grip.
LikeLike
Chandrika Anand
June 25, 2013
Interesting discussion
BR…… 🙂
LikeLike
Ravi K
June 25, 2013
Ganesh wrote:
““Enna rascala mind it” isnt something any of our heroes have ever said (and definitely u cant escape saying its a tribute, thats even worse) … we never say rascala, do we ? …”
“Mind it” comes from the Quick Gun Murugun promos which ran on Channel V, and were eventually made into a movie:
I think these are pretty funny, though the fact that SRK references this in OSO perhaps shows that neither he nor Farah Khan had only seen the promos or the movie instead of an actual SI movie.
“Enna rascala” is nonsense. But I do remember my dad sometimes calling me “raascal” when scolding me.
That’s it, I’m making a movie about a Punjabi character named Bhangrajit Singh who constantly plays a dhol and screams “aha aha balle balle” while riding a tractor through mustard fields, although I bet this film would be a smash hit and nobody would get that it was a joke. Anyone have Sunny Deol’s number?
LikeLike
Ravi K
June 25, 2013
I meant to say “…perhaps shows that he or Farah Khan had only seen the QGM promos or the movie, instead of an actual SI movie.” I have been up too late!
LikeLike
Narender
June 25, 2013
@raj man, i would like to be your acolyte too if you can engage me, at least, as well as BR engages with his articles. Are you an engineer or a scientist ? You got an inductive-deductive personality 🙂 .. but I must admit reading your posts made my day !
@BR One of my opinions regarding the stereotyping in such movies is that people are not much swayed by what is depicted on reel, they might get wrong information but it does not changes their attitude. People see what they want to see and that is the reason why they purchased tickets at the first place knowing fully well what they are in for. They might derive their pleasure by ridiculing the traits of a tribe which is not theirs but that is what their nature was before watching the movie and it cannot undergo a sea change during the course of a few hours.
LikeLike
plum
June 25, 2013
Narender man – I dont need acolytes – like brangan does. so Thanks but no thanks
Brangar – you chose not to respond to the careful dissection of the hollowness of your claims. I know what exactly you are trying for with that “get a grip” kind of response – but it’s not working since you have failed to respond to a cold, logical laying out of what actually happened in this blog and how you tried to twist it. You stand exposed, dear fella.
LikeLike
SR
June 25, 2013
Existential shrug, nope, more like ‘frisky kitten hunting paralyzed mice’ – no plum challenge. Appreciate your silence (on what’s not worthy of ripostes).
LikeLike
brangan
June 25, 2013
SR: Shush! Leave this place pronto before you’re called names. Like… acolyte. You may never live that down 🙂
Narendar: Another thing to consider, a bit similar to “does smoking on screen encourage smoking in real life”? If a few idiots believe stereotypes to be true (and not part of a fictional universe), is it the fault of the stereotypes or the idiots? 🙂
LikeLike
Kiruba
June 25, 2013
Is eating noodles with curd that obnoxious? Perhaps I don’t get the context, but what’s the big deal? As though its any different from eating idly/dosa with sauce/jam.
Would it have been any better for Tam Brahms if SRK was shown eating thayir saadham in RaOne? Or would that have created the same anguish too?
We are never bothered about revealing these stupid prejudices we harbour.
LikeLike
newtsriter
June 25, 2013
I hate to say this, being one myself, but plummy raj, you sure sound like you’re a lawyer.
You made interesting points, which i can say nothing about, having never watched a Tamil film in my life. What i really wish for, though, is a Babel fish. Now, THAT would really make life so much easier for everybody, wouldn’t it? 🙂 If we would be able to communicate with everyone, whether they spoke the same language as us or not, we’d be able to teach each other about our cultures, and there’d be world peace. Or maybe not. We’d fight about something else. But discussions lead to progress, often… Larger pictures are so hard to imagine!
LikeLike
Raj Balakrishnan
June 25, 2013
That idiot buffon mehmood started thispractice of caricaturing tamilians. And tamilians don’t speak that way, it’s actually Tamil Muslims who speak Hindi/Urdu in that atrocious accent.
LikeLike
venkatesh
June 26, 2013
Damn , i leave you kids for 2 days and bang , the whole place erupts into flames.
I actually have a different perspective on this – brought up in the North, more an Amitabh Bachchan fan before i discovered Kamal Hassan, saying anything now however would just unleash a torrent of ad-hominem attacks. So hey.
LikeLike
JPhilip
June 26, 2013
Nice one and a lot of incisive comments for a change.
My tuppence worth :Does it not occur to these knumbskulls that they are propagating these inane stereotypes about Tamilians?I was appalled at the scene in Ra One when SRK slurps his noodles with yogurt.They must have taken hours to can that whole scene and many more planning the lighting,costumes,call sheeting ,locations et al and the later dubbing.Did no one feel it stupid in all that time?Does it not reveal their complete ignorance and insensitivity?
Rohit Shetty is a Bunt,originally from Mangalore and therefore nominally a ‘Southie’:does he not see that his stereotyping (while offensive) is also -wierdly enough-incorrect?What were the Kalaripayattu fighters doing in the songs for eg??!!!
And oh Plum/Raj:tsk,tsk,tsk
LikeLike
oneWithTheH
June 26, 2013
“gag played by the RJ on a vegetarian caller”…..I heard this one. I didn’t care about it, didn’t find it funny either. My reaction was “it’s not real, all are acting”. I could apply that to Chennai Express too…
For a while now, I’ve been meaning to tell you that you should play censor to the comments unrelated to the nature of the post. Maybe, you actually enjoy sharing comments where your readers vociferously defend you 😉 ,although I must say you do post a number of them targeting you(the ad hominem types)
For people like me though who look for content, it becomes tough to mine for comments germane to the article with all the irrelevant banter going around. Not that it’s not spicy but for sure very diversionary for what I come to this blog.
Ohh whatever! Just a suggestion….
LikeLike
anuradha
June 26, 2013
The depiction of the Native American in the American films provides as much introspection and discussion-
I remember reading a funny story about Costener chastising his Indian extras to be more “indian” when on set of Dances with wolves.not cool that they were chomping on Mc Burgers and trading baseball stories!!-Johnny depp as tanto in the lone ranger has said that he wanted to subvert the stereotype in earlier Lone Ranger fims. As a viewer what I find interesting is when stereotypes are used in clever ways -to subvert, to shock, to jolt one from a comfort zone of viewing.The shetty ftrailer and ra one film obviously has not done any thinking!
And sometimes it helps..There is nothing like facing a group of bored adolecsents for a workshop and discussing Lady gaga’s lyrics as a form of poetry in a traditional cotton sari and bindhi..it really got their attention!!
LikeLike
brangan
June 26, 2013
Raj Balakrishnan: it’s actually Tamil Muslims who speak Hindi/Urdu in that atrocious accent.
Uh… that’s a stereotype right there.
venkatesh: Just say what you want to say. Out with it 🙂
oneWithTheH: I post all comments. The only comment I censored on this post was one where an anonymous commenter called everyone names (hindi gaalis, basically) — and even that I would have let through if he’d had made a point apart from the gaalis. You cannot be selective about these things. Like Kamal said in “Anbe Sivam”: Jananayagam-na idhellaam irukkum 🙂
But there’s been some excellent comments in the “Raanjhanaa” review, all pertaining to the post. Win some, lose some, I guess.
LikeLike
plum
June 26, 2013
More acolytes, more ass-licking of Brangan. You brangan acolytes are so predictable.
LikeLike
plum
June 26, 2013
The first ad-hominem comment on this post was Rahini’s. The steadfast pretence brangan and acolyte have maintained about is enough to damn them. No amount of “you scratch my back i will scratch yours” among yourselves is going to help validate your pretence that brangan made anything other than (typically) superficial take on the issue in this post, and that he has a bunch of ass-lickers who will consume any stupid article by him
LikeLike
vinjk
June 26, 2013
Plum: what is wrong with you?? Acolytes acolytes…aco-fucking-lytes!! WTF?! Makes me want to scream one of Jayan’s famous lines: “let it be the last time, if you utter that word once more, I will pull out your bloody tongue!”
LikeLike
Ashok
June 26, 2013
Hindi films,daily soaps,comedy shows have all milked Tamil mocking badly conceived stereotypes for a long time now…it is infact a brand of comedy there what with SRK emerging as a great exponent of it with despicable Ra one and now even more despicable Chennai Express inorder to save blushes from his dwindling returns..Goes on to say much about Bollywood and its sense of humour if not of its audiences’.Try doing it in Tamil Cinema mocking North Indian stereotypes as your main theme,you will fall flat coz audience here are discerning enough( or atleast have a better sense of humour) to rubbish it…..I agree we too use stereotypes,but they are used as mere fillers and bits & pieces characters in order to take the story forward…
@ Baradwaj Rangan – A responsible critic has to weed out ill intentioned bad stereotypes wherever they are by stern criticisms rather than endorsing them in the name of hypocrisy elsewhere.
LikeLike
chhote saab
June 26, 2013
Vinjk : Plum: what is wrong with you?? Acolytes acolytes…aco-fucking-lytes!! WTF?! Makes me want to scream one of Jayan’s famous lines: “let it be the last time, if you utter that word once more, I will pull out your bloody tongue!”
– hahahah. ROFL. You spoke for a lot of … er, acolytes. Though I doubt if that will shut PlumRaj up !
LikeLike
Shankar
June 26, 2013
Guys, truce please. It’s a waste of time mudslinging back and forth, let’s get back to the discussions. raj and others, I know you all are more than capable of contributing effectively to the comments space and having a good conversation. So, let’s get back to doing that, please.
With regard to the caricatures, there is no question that it does hit you somewhere, if you feel your type is being made fun of. Yes, we should take the moral high ground and ignore, accepting it as buffoonery, but it’s hard sometimes. Maybe as Baddy said, in serious films you take them to task and in these caricature films you let them pass. But doing so is tough because it brings in questions such as intent of the makers, the willingness of the audiences to lap it up (which again is questionable given the box office record of these films barring a few). Are the audiences really looking forward to these caricatured films? Growing up, I always used to get really frustrated when I mentioned Malayalam films to my tamil friends since the immediate reaction was “palana padam”. Here I am trying to tell them about Bharathan, Padmarajan, MT etc and they were just mocking me. It’s tough but you have to put it aside.
But as somebody mentioned, it is interesting that in the latter years, we haven’t had any seth caricaturing in tamil films for instance. Either the makers are not interested in it (though it can still happen) or the audiences have no stomach for it. Most of the stereotypes seem more organically ingrained..like for instance in Panchatantiram, the stereotypes are all part of the rollicking comedy. Atleast, we can feel better off about that saving grace…
LikeLike
Bette Jones
June 27, 2013
In the past month I’ve been in North India, at least ten people have looked quizzically at me when I say Tamil isn’t my mother tongue, despite being a Madrasi. “But, *eyes enlarged* , how is that even possible?!” is the usual follow-up question. I invariably enjoy giving a ( *wink*) synopsis of the historical exodus towards the promised beaches of namma Chennai. Looks like stereotypes on screen are just an enlarged mirror of the world below…. literally!
LikeLike
auroravampiris
June 27, 2013
Hang on, could someone tell me what was offensive about Mr and Mrs Iyer? Was there something offensive there beyond character details?
LikeLike
Vinay
June 27, 2013
Actually Raj here made quite a few interesting and thoughtful points. And BR, sometimes you do play this card of victimhood (though may be rightfully most times, but perhaps not, this time ).. 😉
LikeLike
brangan
June 27, 2013
Ashok: “A responsible critic has to weed out…”
You lost me right there. I have never claimed to be a “responsible” critic, or for that matter an “objective” one.
Bette Jones: Once, in Calcutta, someone who — after getting to know I was from Chennai — began a sentence with “You Mallu guys…” 😀 I was so taken aback, I didn’t know whether to be offended or laugh out loud.
Vinay: Yes, the first set of Plum/Raj’s points were interesting — I never denied that. The reason I didn’t reply to those was that this is an op-ed piece, an opinion piece — not a final word. It is written to express a POV at a point in time, and people are free to agree/disagree. That is why opinion pieces are written, so that writer and reader trade opinions. And that has nothing to do with the “fight” that followed, which erupted when poor Rahini David (who’s probably never going to comment here again 🙂 ) asked a generic question and Plum/Raj assumed she was dissing him and burst out…. Oh well, I guess there’s “victimhood” all around!
LikeLike
Rahini David
June 27, 2013
Brangan: Nothing of the sort. I will next comment when I really have something to say which incidentally isn’t that often. 🙂
LikeLike
plum
June 27, 2013
Chhote saab and Vinjk – right, that’s the sort of class one expects from Brangan acolytes, and right on dot; thanks for proving my point – you guys just know to pounce on anyone who criticises Brangan and throw invectives.
Brangan – ha ha Rahini DID NOT make a generic comment, She specifically meant this post. Even after catching you pants down on that and exposing you, you still maintain it. Which means you are extra-ordinarily logically-challenged or feistily shameless in trying to propogate your lies.
And I did not *burst out* – I just pointed the stupidity of her commetn adn then you and your acolytes *burst out* down to the Jayan dialogue spouters and others hoping that their ad-hominem will shut me up.
Just shows your class and your acolytes’ class.
LikeLike
plum
June 27, 2013
Shankar -before saying that to me, tell your friend that if he stops being lazy and actually researchs articles(rather than just theorizing based on some spur-of-the-moment random theory based on weak anecdotal evidence and dodgy logic), he might improve the quality of this site.
Secondly, if your friend and his acolytes can actually respond logically rather than as a mob, they might save themselves the injury they are facing now – because this particular mob is so logically challenged that they’d have trouble understanding basic set theory.
LikeLike
plum
June 27, 2013
“With regard to the caricatures, there is no question that it does hit you somewhere, if you feel your type is being made fun of. Yes, we should take the moral high ground and ignore, accepting it as buffoonery”
You’d do well to note, Shankar, that a lot of the “offence” that brangan so ill-researchedly talked about in this piece, was precisely mocking the buffoonery of SRK. It wasn’t like there was a twitter outrage consisting of Hindu Makkal Katchi type threats and dharnas. The response was a lot of twitter-humour(which I call tumour) – and the perpetrators were usual suspects who use every issue to generate tumour – be it political, personal or just general gossip.
LikeLike
plum
June 27, 2013
Which is why BR’s big lecture on “hey it is just comedy, stupid” doesnt wash much since a lot of the ppl whom he was addressing know it anyway, and infact, the joke is on BR, since for them, this was yet anotehr issue to generate tumour from, not anything particularly angsty about this issue.
In general, you’d find that a lot of response to the typical “hindi is national bhasha” posturing of a north indian is humour. It is not as if angsty south indians are curling up in their bed agonised by the north indian arrogance or buffonery about south indian accents and stereotyping.
LikeLike
brangan
June 27, 2013
Shankar: Yes, we should take the moral high ground and ignore, accepting it as buffoonery
Not “should.” That implies that this article is prescriptive. It’s not. It’s just MY viewpoint. I’m only saying “I also don’t take these films all that seriously” — which is a very different thing from saying “We should not take these films all that seriously.”
plum/raj: “Just shows your class and your acolytes’ class.”
Uh, I’m not sure that someone who accuses people who don’t have problems with this article as “ass-lickers” should be talking about class – but hey, whatever works.
LikeLike
SaambaarInASoup
June 27, 2013
After watching Ms. Bokwas shred the Tamil accent in Chennai Express, I decided to drown my lows in extra bowls of Saambaar…and then it struck me.. why not unleash Kovai Sarala on the “Indhi types” for some “harmless” fun, preferably after she has inhaled a healthy dose of Helium (just in case)?. Have her speaking Indhi in a movie, mouthing whatever pop culture up there considers pristine.. like maybe the dialogues from Sholay..the idli wielding rascalas will have the last laugh..
Time to head back to Saravanabavan…
LikeLike
carla - filmi geek (@carla_filmigeek)
June 27, 2013
Brangan: I concede that whether a joke goes too far is highly subjective. And yet, it strikes me as lazy and uncreative storytelling to think that exaggerating a fake accent for the duration of a movie is funny. I am talking about a different issue here than whether it is offensive, which is the issue you raise with your RJ story (which I find horrific also, for how personal it is, giving the audience a laugh at the expense of a particular innocent person). The fake accent might be offensive to a particular person; it might not. But either way, it’s also just not that great a joke. And I think at this point, in 2013, it is safe to say that about ethnic stereotypes generally – they’ve been done to death, they’re not that clever, and unless you are doing something more with one, it’s a rather pointless and weak device to put in your film, and just not that funny. Consider Ra.One, which was such a dire and dreadful film for many reasons, but in part because its first half relied on so many asinine “hahaha! He’s southern!” moments. Whether one takes offense or not, if those had been, instead, real characterization and thoughtful humor, the movie might have sucked marginally less.
carla – aka filmi geek
http://filmigeek.net
LikeLike
chhotesaab
June 27, 2013
Told ya he wasn’t gonna shut up . ( But I guess everyone knew that)
Shankar: Yes, we should take the moral high ground and ignore, accepting it as buffoonery
Not “should.” That implies that this article is prescriptive. It’s not. It’s just MY viewpoint. I’m only saying “I also don’t take these films all that seriously” — which is a very different thing from saying “We should not take these films all that seriously.”
– This is the crux of the issue – someone is just presenting his viewpoint and everyone can either agree or disagree. I happen to agree but then I don’t watch that much Tamil cinema so someone more immersed in Tamil cinema might very well have a different opinion and a more valid opinion. It becomes a problem only when ‘my way or highway’ kind of opinions come in. As long as everyone respects the others viewpoint, and that includes our new/old friend Plum/Raj, everything is fine and a fun, interesting discussion can be had. Doesn’t work out that way sometimes but hey, that’s ok.
PHEW, trying to be classy can be tiring ! 😉
LikeLike
Shankar
June 28, 2013
Baddy, not sure why you picking apart sentences that I wrote. That was just MY viewpoint. At no point did I attribute it to you. The next line very clearly quotes you. In any case I guess that’s what happens when people start going down that path, answering to specific words and sentences. See, I’m doing the same now trying to validate what I wrote rather than engaging in a conversation. And to think, I was calling for a truce and aiming to get a conversation going! 🙂
I’m outta here….
LikeLike
Kaushik Bhattacharya
June 28, 2013
Shankar: “Guys, truce please. It’s a waste of time mudslinging back and forth, let’s get back to the discussions. raj and others, I know you all are more than capable of contributing effectively to the comments space and having a good conversation. So, let’s get back to doing that, please.”
You’re clearly incredibly generous given you think Raj/Plum are capable of contributing effectively to the conversation. I would generally instantly dismiss anyone who uses a term like “Hindiwallahs” (whatever on earth that means) but I guess I’m fairly snobbish when it comes to such things.
@Brangan – given the track record that Rohit Shetty (and many others of his ilk) has built up, there’s clearly a large audience for his brand of humour. All he’s doing is being clever and taking advantage of this 🙂 More philosophically, human beings like to categorise everything and stereotyping of this sort is just a manifestation of that broader phenomenon in my opinion.
LikeLike
indianmalefeminist
June 28, 2013
@brangan re: the whole smoking/idiots thing, I don’t think it’s that trivial, though. Movies do influence people – when it comes to morality, romance or even smoking. I don’t think slapping on a textual warning is going to make much difference though. But generally, stuff that people already do, when promoted as “cool” through movies, doesn’t make it any better IMO. I’m not good at putting this into words, so I hope you get the gist of it.
Just to clarify: I don’t think TamBrahm stereotype in Ra One or Deepika’s accent is similar to what I’m talking about. It just ruins my movie watching experience, that’s all. Don’t think it’s a big deal otherwise, neither does it offend me. Irritates me to no end, sure.
LikeLike
Ravi K
June 30, 2013
I will admit I thought this scene from Dhamaal was pretty funny, because the joke is *somewhat* rooted in reality, and the actor’s recitation of the name is pretty impressive.
“Naam batate batate Goa paunch jayega” 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Praveen
July 1, 2013
You might like to read this
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?286457
LikeLike
Nathan
July 2, 2013
“All I’m asking – rather, wondering out loud – is whether Tamil cinema is so blameless.”
No, not at all. Deepika Padukone’s mannerisms reminded me of Asin in Dasavathaaram. At least from the trailer it looks like the same template: man with an objective, his journey intersects that of a tam-bram woman, the resulting humorless chemistry irritates the hell out of the audience regardless of which part of the world they belong.
LikeLike
Supreeth
July 3, 2013
Since we’re talking stereotypes here are a few from the kannada movie industry
1. The muslim character always look dishevelled. wears a net banian and is more often than not a butcher or is wearing a green get up akin to Abu from Arabian nights.
2. School teachers always wear glasses.
3. Software engineers/developers are always in crisp shirts and wear polished shoes.
LikeLike
Jai
July 4, 2013
@brangan: You’ve mentioned you found the stereotyping in Mr & Mrs Iyer galling… could you clarify which parts you found objectionable?
LikeLike
Tarun
August 11, 2013
I think it all boils down to a sense of humour. You either have it or you don’t. I think the author of the article has hit the nail on the head with the conclusion of the piece, although I have never let a movie get to me. I am of the opinion that if you don’t like a movie…you shouldn’t be watching it!
LikeLike
Pradipta
October 5, 2014
It’s a matter of perspective. I found the “stereotyping” in Mr. and Mrs. Iyer unique, pardon the oxymoron. I thought Konkona captured the nuances of the TamBrahm accent / mannerisms brilliantly – but then I am a Bong who grew up in Madras, and probably see things that a true Tamilian wouldn’t.
LikeLike