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Saturday, June 26, 2010

How westerners look at us

As a film buff, I got interested and became a member of imdb.com. I used to discuss about the films in the discussion board of the web site. As people from different parts of the world participated in it, I learned few things... Among them is the effect of racism and ignorance.

Initially, I registered with my name but after seeing some racist remarks and abusive words by some 'dumpheads', I had to change my profile name to unrecognizable pseudonym - so that my nationality won't be revealed.
 
When the 'dumpheads' don't know to argue reasonably over a discussion, they try to use racist remarks and abusive words to win over the other. I first noticed it in the Slumdog Millionaire discussion Board. When the movie won Oscars and became famous, many watched the film including some 'dumpheads' who thought this is how the whole India is and commented as:
- Full of shit! I will never visit this country if I get a chance.
- How come people live in this condition? Yuck!!!
- Even children are cheaters?!
- Really, Indians are ready to fall into shit to see a cine star?
- Are there a frequent communal violence between different groups?
- Will Hindus go around killing Muslims for no reason

I still remember, a guy showed two pictures side by side - one is Jamal coming out of shit-tub to get autograph from Amitabh and the other is Sean Penn, who is gay in the film 'Milk'. He wrote some racist remarks and asked people to compare which is better...

Earlier were the days when foreign 'dumpheads' used to think India as a land of elephants and snake charmers and after this film, it became the land of junk and shit.

Reading the comments by some stupids, the ignorant people also supported it and wondered how disgustingly awful is our country.

As older threads and messages were deleted in IMDB, I'm can't able to post those links.
 
Though I'm a fan of Steven Speilberg and liked his Indiana Jones series, after seeing a thread on that day in the Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) discussion board about our country, I couldn't just ignore it. I argued to the messages.

{Those who don't know about this movie... This successful adventure film is directed by famous Steven Speilberg and yesteryear super star of Hollywood, Harrison Ford. It showed Indians performing religious extremism; Goddess Kaali as evil; people eating monkey's brain... Although these were made for fun, ignorant foreigners believed these as real.}

The following is thread of Indiana Jones, where I discussed with an American 'dumphead':
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087469/board/thread/135370628?d=136851916&p=1#136851916

...

by me (Thu Apr 30 2009)
Man, grow up! This is not just an insult, this movie made non-Indians especially westerners to think India as a country of jungle, elephants, and snake charmers...

by shaun3701-1
in 1935, it was.

by me
But not in 1984, thus making 'empty heads' believe this is India, even after 1984.

by shaun3701-1
The movie was set in the 1930s. Should we re-write history just so people won't be "offended"?

by me
Even in 1930s India wasn't like that, that was the period when freedom struggle was going on. That "jungles..." were before 1870. "Offended" also because of the depictions of the people, which made others to think weird of the country. I think you know what are those 'depictions' and won't ask me. 
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Should we re-write history just so people won't be "offended"?
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"re-write history"? This is what I said before, 'empty heads' watch and believe what is shown in funny commercial entertainment movies(and say that is "history"), they don't learn from books or other informative resources...

by shaun3701-1
who cares? If someone is stupid enough to take a Steven Spielberg movie as historical fact, then they're beyond help anyway.

by me
"in 1935, it was." "Should we re-write history"
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At last you get my point.

by shaun3701-1
why does it matter anyway? Nobody in the world gives a shit about India... at least they didn't until Slumdog Millionaire.

by me
1.
Heard these names in your life...Gandhi, Mother Theresa, Kalpana Chawla, Ambani, Lakshmi Mittal, Indira Nooyi.....? and know how many percentage of Indians work in NASA, Microsoft, Intel, Xerox, IBM, and as doctors in US? or know the origin of these predominantly used words in US/UK english around the world...avatar (recently James Cameroon), yoga, curry, bangalow, cheetah, cot, shampoo, loot, guru...?

Well, 'empty heads' don't. 

2.
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Nobody in the world gives a sh-t...
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ERROR! It's not "nobody", it's you. 

3.
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why does it matter anyway?
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I'll ask a simple question, if it doesn't matter, then why the hell did you care to comment on this subject about India?

by guer0071
Hahha, you've resorted to words, hahhaha We probably owe Indians for creating the numbers we use....but then again...honestly: 
http://matejicgangesproject.wikispaces.com/file/view/New_Image.JPG

by me
Millions of pictures one can find shot at few square miles in the land of 1,269,219 sq.mi - consisting of 17% people in the world; with more than 1500 different languages; with variety of religions; mosaic of cultures; with vast geographical diversity...... But ignorant people believe it's same everywhere in India, after seeing Slumdog Millionaire.

....

by nealnz
I would like to take this opportunity, on behalf of the Indian race, to apologize for . We're not all like him. Some of us are reasonable people who are not stuck and living in the past, looking for any old excuse to make up for whatever crap we have been lacking in our lives. Indians, and India, is a progressive and constantly evolving country and race and we're not going to let some twenty year old movie bring us down, especially when it barely damaged us in the first place and probably got us a whole new set of fans

...

Despite what I said is true, I was aware that I went over the top just for a film (I was angry after reading the Slumdog Millionaire's message board and that's what reflected in these arguments). But I was satisfied that stupid guys like "shaun3701-1" would learn to respect other countries and ignorant people would think different about our country after reading my messages, there. So, I didn't care to show myself as a reasonable man, any further.

If there is more load on one side of weighing device, other side also should be given more load to get a balance. That is what I did. That is what Arundhati Roy (writer and activist) does, I guess. She supports Naxalites despite being aware that they kill innocent people. As almost all oppose them, she talks in favour of their voices of struggles against injustice by the Government.

7 comments:

  1. twas a hell of a fight dude!! but as a matter of fact some parts of india are still in the same state.. And,u don ve 2 give a S*** abt wat an moron thinks abt tis country..

    Itz by developing our nation that we have 2 give an answer 2 these pricks and not empty talk... wishing you all the best 2 get into action :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. thank you anonymous, it's encouraging!
    IMDB is visited by millions of people across the world and my messages had been read by several non-indians. i'm happy that some may have changed their bad views about india. i'm sure shaun3701-1's view had...

    you are my classmate அப்பறம் பேர போடறக்கு ஏம்பா பயப்படுற?

    ReplyDelete
  3. i think this was the first time u r fighting wit a valid reason... imdb those are all the sites where we can show our nation beauty. many people have bad view on India by watching that oscar winning movie. although it gave good names to few Indians, but as a whole it brought bad views on India.

    we should do something to our country man....

    ReplyDelete
  4. unakaga d.m.d.k la ko.pa.se. post galiya irukuda.... just try to join...

    ReplyDelete
  5. unakkaga d.m.d.k'la ko.paa.se post galiya iruku da. poi join panniko.

    ReplyDelete
  6. //Anonymous said...

    unakkaga d.m.d.k'la ko.paa.se post galiya iruku da. poi join panniko.//

    கண்டிப்பா, நான் எதிர்பார்க்கற சம்பளம் தந்தாங்கன்ன...

    ReplyDelete

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