ali fights back: don’t blame the media, bitch!
Gasp!! I sat there in shock. And as the gravity of what had just happened became clearer, the shock turned to grief. The gasps turned into wailing. It couldn’t be. Life was not supposed to be this way. How could Amitabh get killed. He was ‘Muqaddar ka Sikandar’. He was the hero. Heroes don’t die. They always win. What would become of the world now that the savior lay dead. I would never get to meet him now. I was inconsolable. I was still in grieving next day in class 1C. During recess a cheeky bastard said Amitabh was just an actor and he was a fake. I kicked his ass. Sorry, Abdul Kareem Ice Cream (It was funny then). That incident earned a call to mom.
She concocted this whole story about Amitabh faking his death to trick the badies. This made some sense. But I needed solid proof. Mom had lied about the tooth fairy last year. That friday dad grabbed another pirated bollywood movie. Sure enough there was super cop. Talking smack and kicking ass. The world was going to be okay afterall. Faith was restored. Mom wasn’t such a big liar. For weeks after that I would sing ‘Rotay hoay aate hein sab’ while riding my bicycle to and from school. I would stand on the pedals, Hands off handles, Doing lazy Ss, the works. Good Times.
But dont let that story leave you with an impression of life bollywooded. Movies were a special occasion. To be enjoyed by the whole family. Once a month, maybe. And they were sources of material for the obligatory entertainment routines. We weren’t allowed in the drawing room with guests. Lest we embarrass our parents with our manners and gluttony. But at a certain point during the evening we would be entered to perform our tableau and earn our treats before being sent of to bed. I had a repertoire of numbers down pat. A good entertainer keeps his material fresh and is always ready for an encore. I specially liked doing “Aega Shehri Babu, tum dil pe rakho qabu”. Another favourite was “Jaanoo meri Jaan, Mein tere Qurbaan” and I would cheekily subsitute Pakistan for Hindustan in the next line to even greater applause.
Somehow, we managed to remain cute and not be the “prepubescent little dorks”, that rocky mentioned in her comments a couple of posts ago. We even grew up to be abnormally honest, sincere, even innocent. In later years, we saw a lot more movies and TV, even stuff we wish we hadn’t seen. We were raised by our parents though, and that seems to have been the dominating factor. I really believe children mirror the adults around, not just in words and actions but also in attitudes.
(guest post courtesy of the artist formerly known as alibhai)
i’m stumped.
the fact that you turned out okay kinda kills my theory.
then again, may be i wouldn’t have found you cute, doing your hindi dance numbers. or may be hindi dance numbers have just become so vulgar and senseless now that a kid mimicking those actions or saying those words just seems gross.
and may be the fact that i have a hard time finding kids cute in the first place makes it difficult for me to find a kid singing cheap hindi songs like “aaja meri garri mei baith ja” endearing.
or may be you guys were just brought up well and are exceptions…
like i said, i’m stumped.
and i hate you (for it)!
Comment by rocky — August 6, 2005 @ 2:33 pm
Don’t kid yourself. One thumka from me and you’ll be blushing and gushing compliments.
You remember a little while back Sin wrote something about seeing your evils in other people and attacking them. You are just seeing your bitchy self in the brats. Seriously though, I know what you mean by kids acting adult and losing innocence. That is what turns your stomach when you see children in beauty pageants. child actors! But if you look within yourself at that moment you’d see a very jaded person. You can’t let the loss of your own innocence cast a judgemental cloud over kids. Sometimes, I get sad when I think how little time these kids have before they are thurst into the evil reality of the world. But, I suck it up. Maybe, my playing along will prolong their innocence by a little while.
Kids are like dogs. Eager to please, no matter what. Take their actions in that spirit. Don’t judge them by adult sensibilities. You probably did something like that too. Come one people, fess up.
Comment by ali — August 7, 2005 @ 12:09 am
“we were raised by our parents though….” That should stand as a matter of reason. The fact that it is stated makes me think. Who are kids raised by now? Servants? semi-comatose parents? Or a 29 inch Sony Vega ? Great post. AB rocked then. How low hath he fallen now.
Comment by uberhomme — August 8, 2005 @ 8:29 am
The TV for one is doing it’s job in raising the kids. All we were allowed to watch was one half hour cartoon and that was it. On my last trip home I took sets of Barney DVDs for two families. Those two kids are reportedly hooked. Their parents are very happy that the kids are not constantly in need of attention. I am afraid I have caused irrepairable damage to two kids. The programming is not the problem. The problem is there is nothing else in the kids life. No other stimulation. No conversation with adults, no exposure to the outdoors.
I don’t know about comatose parents but a kid-on-barney is in a similar vegetative state.
Comment by ali — August 8, 2005 @ 3:12 pm
hehehehe… such a big AB fan, eh? so, do u watch KBC 2 these days?
(or, wait, - do they air KBC 2 in pak?)
Comment by rahul — August 10, 2005 @ 6:09 am
What is KBC 2? Maybe some real pakis can chime in. I was in pakistan for only a weekend last yr so I have no idea what is on TV. It seems though, that half the people are raging islamists, and the other half would rather be in bollywood itself, and the other half is caught between the two halfs. Wait. Nah never mind.
AB, Oh yeah. Without a doubt the greatest in india ever. Only Shahrukh seems to come close amongst the present actors.
Comment by ali — August 10, 2005 @ 3:40 pm
i HATE shahrukh.
i still go watch his films though.
Comment by rocky — August 10, 2005 @ 4:17 pm
Shahrukh Khan is the BEST!!!!
Btw KBC = Kon Banay ga Crore pati?
Comment by Mona — August 11, 2005 @ 3:31 pm
Since everyone seems to be in national nostalgia mode and I’m feeling left out who’s up for a ceilidh?!
Comment by Red Baron — August 12, 2005 @ 10:02 am
baron, ceilidh??
ok i just googled it (bless ‘em) - it’s a dance.
if you’re up for teaching me, i’m willing to learning.
and mona, darling, shahrukh khan SUCKS.
Comment by rocky — August 17, 2005 @ 10:29 pm