Slumdog Millionaire

I finally was able to see Slumdog Millionaire and I can't rave enough about the movie! I'm so glad that I was able to see it before I left on my trip. If you haven't heard by now, Slumdog Millionaire is the award-winning movie that tells the story of a slumdweller who wins Rs. 1,000,000 on an Indian game show and is immediately imprisoned under suspicion of cheating. The storyline develops as he explains how he actually knew the answers to the questions. And, like in any good Indian movie, there is a love story that goes along with it.


As you may or may not know, Slumdog Millionaire is loosely based on the book Q & A by Vikas Swarup. I want to emphasize the words loosely based on here because other than the rough outline of the story there are few similarities between the book and the movie. I read the book over the summer, and while I was entertained by the premise of the book, I found it a bit lacking in the way it was carried out. The movie, however, seemed to encapsulate the story a bit better.

Now that the movie is being nominated and talked about, it is interesting to see what criticisms are leveled against it. Even before I saw the movie, my eye was caught by a blog post titled Slumdog Millionaire Could Only Have Been Made By A Westerner. In the post, the author claims that only a Westerner could produce a movie that addresses the poverty that such a large part of India's population lives with daily. He levels sharp criticism at Bollywood for ignoring the poor and making only 'flimsy films about the lives of the middle class'. But is that really the issue with Slumdog Millionaire? First of all, director Danny Boyle loves India-he has admitted so and you can see it in practically every scene in Slumdog Millionaire. But, was the purpose of the film to address poverty in India? No, it was the rags-to-riches storyline that moviegoers love. Secondly, Bollywood does make stories that have a certain formula to them, stories that showcase love triumphing over all obstacles. But who do these movies appeal to the most? The same poor that the Bollywood elite is accused of ignoring. Movies in India are especially designed to be a fantasy world, in order to help the viewer escape the realities of their own life. We must remember that the relative cost to see a movie in India (vs. seeing one in the US) makes it an affordable escape for even those slumdwellers shown in Slumdog Millionaire. So, is Bollywood making mindless drivel while ignoring the majority of their countrymen, or are they catering to their largest market?

In my opinion, Slumdog Millionaire is a success because it brings to a Western audience the fantasy of a Bollywood movie in a format that they can appreciate. It will be interesting to see how it will continue to perform in India-whether it will appeal to the masses or merely the more 'Westernized' segment of the country.

Wicked Women of the Raj

Ever since I heard Liz' ringing endorsement of Slumdog Millionaire, I've been trying to see it for myself. I convinced a friend here to go with me last weekend, but, by the time we got to the theater, it was already sold out. We made the best of a bad situation by stopping at Half-Priced Books, where I found this gem: Wicked Women of the Raj by Coralie Younger.




*side note: I bought this at Half-Priced Books, right? Half-Priced Books. For $7.98. When I looked it over more after getting it home, I realized that this particular edition had been bound for sale in India. The price? Rs. 295 (about $6, currently). Ummm....not quite half priced. :)



I was drawn to the book by it's subtitle: European Women Who Broke Society's Rules and Married Indian Princes, and by the questions posed on the back: Who were these women? Were they gold-diggers, or hopeless romantics hoping to enact their own Cinderella fairy-tale? Did they live happily ever after? I especially wanted the answer to the last question-I was hoping that I might be able to use this as a study guide for my upcoming trip!!! :)


The book, however, was not highly encouraging in this respect. Of the 20 stories in the book, only about a quarter of the marriages actually ended happily. Most of the firengi bahus were unable to cope with the consequences of their marriage to their Indian princes. The consequences were often fairly severe, including: ostricization from British society (they often weren't allowed to be recognized by any British official), unacceptance by the zenana (the women of the family) and the prince's subjects, continual infidelity by the prince, and being forced to give up a Western lifestyle-not quite the fairy tale life that most people imagine.



Even though it didn't encourage me to find a rich Indian prince during my trip, I still enjoyed reading the stories in the book. The author, an avowed Indiaphile, took care to include details that helps the reader really envision the lives that these women led. I highly recommend it to those who want a different view of life in India during the British Raj.

Congratulations, Ratika!

Like Liz, I want to add my congratulations to Ratika for her write up in the Hindu's Metro Plus Chennai! Ratika designed and created most of the jewelry that I brought back from India. Even in the US, every time I wear something that I purchased from her, I receive tons of compliments from both friends and strangers. I am greatly looking forward to adding to my collection when we visit her in Chennai on this trip.

The Pirates from Uttar Pradesh

Now that I'm blogging again, I want to bring attention to a story that, even though is a little old, most probably got lost amid the breaking news of the Mumbai attacks: Novice pitchers from India sign with the Pirates. I admit upon hearing this back in November, my thoughts initially were along the lines of "how hard up are the Pirates that they have to go to a country that doesn't even play baseball to recruit players?" (For those of you that aren't baseball fans, the Pirates finished their 16th consecutive losing season, so it might not be that strange of a question to ask.) However, since I was asked about it recently, I decided to do a little research into the story. No wonder Americans are interested in this story-it's the ultimate rags-to-riches storyline! These two guys from small villages in Uttar Pradesh enter a contest to see if there are any Indians out there that can throw a baseball over 90 mph. The contest was sponsored by a baseball scout trying to determine if India could be the next untapped source for new baseball talent. (Think Roberto Clemente from Latin America.) These two guys - the articles seem split on whether they were bowlers from cricket or javelin throwers before - made the finals and impressed the scout enough to bring them for training in the US. They worked on their training and conditioning well enough to be signed by the Pirates in November.

Most articles I read state that it is unlikely that we will see either Rinku or Dinesh make it to the mound in a major league game any time soon, but the fact that they are the first Indians to be signed by a professional sports team in America, along with the recent successes of a few notable Indian-Americans, such as Bobby Jindal, Kal Penn, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, & Paul Varghese, may help begin to dispel the stereotype of the Kwik-E-Mart Indian with the thick accent. Then again, maybe not.

In any case, be sure to check out Rinku & Dinesh's blog to see how they are adjusting to their training schedule and to the US as a whole! (I'm waiting to see what they think of playing baseball in the cooler months up north!)

An Indian Fashion Show

Now that I've got to go back for a wedding, of course the big question is: what do I wear? Liz and I have been informed that there are 3 days of functions for us to attend-which means 3 separate outfits! Of course we have planned for a lot of time for shopping but what with all the accessories needed, I'm trying to decided if I already have anything that is appropriate. I decided to have my own little fashion show to see what I had that would do (Plus I was extremely curious to see whether I would be able to tie a saree still!) and I have decided to put it up for public opinion to see what I should wear. Here we go:

First the salwars...

Then the sarees...

And last, but not least, a gaghara:

A Return To India

One always begins to forgive a place as soon as it's left behind

-Paul Theroux, The Great Railway Bazaar, quoting Little Dorrit

After almost a year's absence from blogging and a little more than a year's absence from India, it is now time to stage a return to both. I had intentions of keeping my blog active after my return, but it seems that every time I thought about posting something, I had to struggle to keep the sarcasm and bitterness to a minimum. In short, I had issues with India that needed dealt with. So, I have spent the past year letting my emotions about India run their course. I can't promise that I'm completely 'better' but I feel more ready to talk rationally about India once again.

This is good because I now have good reason to return to India and thus start blogging again: my friend Z's wedding! Z was a fellow trainer at my company who introduced us to the wonder of homemade Hyderabadi biriyani every Eid (as well as a few other times during the year!) Thus, it wasn't hard for me to promise him that I would come back for his wedding. When, in late 2008, he told me that the date was quickly approaching, Liz and I eagerly began to make plans for a trip back to India.

Now, with the trip less than a month away, I can't wait to return to India and maybe (hopefully?) fall in love with it once again-or, at the very least, make peace with the country that held my heart and my imagination for so long...