Okay. So for ages now we have been influenced by the West greatly. Understatement. Since I'm using a language that is not strictly speaking Indian, though in the years that have passed, post British Raj, we have made it our own. Added to it. Subtracted from it till bears little resemblance to Queen's English as it was spoken. Now there are umpteen versions of it. Hinglish. American Hinglish. Indian English. Hindi written in English. Gasp! Okay. Point made. We dress in designer western clothes no matter how uncomfortable they might be or how ill suited to our weather conditions; ( my favorite topic- so I'd better muzzle it instantly) so we have all men wearing jackets even in boiling weather; and women wearing dresses made of fabrics more suited to their weather than our own. Women wearing clothes ill suited to our body type. And in our houses we have wooden flooring discounting the fact that in our weather condition it merely heats up our houses more. We guzzle wine and alcohol like they do even though it raises our body temperature more. In their country they drink to keep themselves warm; therefore it part of their culture.
We wax lyrical about the sun as they do; though we are boiled alive in its heat unlike them who crave its warmth. Summer for them is their season of celebration; for us it is the cruelest season. Yet we copy them in its celebration.
We even install fireplaces in our houses though we have little or no use for them. Winters in North hardly call for fireplaces; in the East and South and West India they are totally redundant. Except for the hills where they are required. But have them we must.
Our Bollywood directors are ferociously 'inspired" by their Hollywood movies.
You must be wondering where exactly I'm heading with all this. Have patience dude. At last, at last a breakthrough in this copycat routine! Zoom in to the last episode of Mentalist on Zee cafe. A total take off on our Bollywood routine of tearful reunions at the airport. Sigh! Patrick Jane dithers till the last moment to declare his love for his partner and in true Bollywood fashion makes a mad dash to the airport in a police car, stops the taxing plane hops aboard and declares his love with all passengers watching agog. He even has a corny line which goes roughly like" Take care of this woman. I love her." Or something to that effect. Blame my failing memory.
And I was ecstatic. Not because I was awfully moved by his romantic prowess but because at last our Bollywood had made inroads. Our loud implausible kitschy Bollywood movies had at last found a copycat! We are going places dude! Even to America and American sitcoms. Hallelujah!
Ciao! Till next time!
We wax lyrical about the sun as they do; though we are boiled alive in its heat unlike them who crave its warmth. Summer for them is their season of celebration; for us it is the cruelest season. Yet we copy them in its celebration.
We even install fireplaces in our houses though we have little or no use for them. Winters in North hardly call for fireplaces; in the East and South and West India they are totally redundant. Except for the hills where they are required. But have them we must.
Our Bollywood directors are ferociously 'inspired" by their Hollywood movies.
You must be wondering where exactly I'm heading with all this. Have patience dude. At last, at last a breakthrough in this copycat routine! Zoom in to the last episode of Mentalist on Zee cafe. A total take off on our Bollywood routine of tearful reunions at the airport. Sigh! Patrick Jane dithers till the last moment to declare his love for his partner and in true Bollywood fashion makes a mad dash to the airport in a police car, stops the taxing plane hops aboard and declares his love with all passengers watching agog. He even has a corny line which goes roughly like" Take care of this woman. I love her." Or something to that effect. Blame my failing memory.
And I was ecstatic. Not because I was awfully moved by his romantic prowess but because at last our Bollywood had made inroads. Our loud implausible kitschy Bollywood movies had at last found a copycat! We are going places dude! Even to America and American sitcoms. Hallelujah!
Ciao! Till next time!
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