Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Vidya Balan.... and 'Dirty' ????

Let’s not kid ourselves….

26\11 has come and gone. Three years have flown by. Nothing has changed. Nothing is likely to. Mumbai remains an attractive and easy target for just about any terrorist organization that wants to attack our city. It can happen again, even as I am keying in this column on the grisly third anniversary that shook the metropolis. Mumbai can never be the same again…. no matter what sort of a brave face we put on , which mask we wear, or how hard we try to convince ourselves that we have ‘moved on’. No, we haven’t. We can’t. Much as I would like to go back to what was described as a ‘normal’ pre-26/11 life, the truth of the matter is, that particular life has disappeared forever. Which is another reason why I refused to participate in panel discussions on various tv channels this year. Discussions that sound even more meaningless and hollow today than they did three years ago,in the horrifying aftermath of the attacks. The only people who genuinely suffered and continue to express their heart-breaking grief are those who lost their loved ones – their wounds may never heal.Sure, life will go on even for these families, but each anniversary will become yet another ghastly reminder of a tragedy that took away someone precious. Scanning those poignant ‘Remembrances’ in newspaper advertisements, made me indescribably sad. Juxtaposed with the poems and quotations from the Bhagwad Gita and other scriptures, were interviews with bureaucrats and ministers uttering the same , stale, tired , fake platitudes that fool no one. It was almost sickening to carry on reading all that nonsense about the great measures that are in place today and all the various ‘improvements’ initiated to safeguard the city against future attacks.We know this is misleading and false, amounting to nothing but political propaganda. But what is the average Mumbaikar supposed to do? Which is why, we fall back on the few consolations that make us feel a little better – at least temporarily. We lap up inane quotes from movie stars, models and assorted ‘celebrities’ whose bravado lacks conviction (“ We must stand together and show the terrorists we are one. They can’t defeat our spirit. Mumbai is the greatest city in the world. Love, not hate is the answer.”). Total rubbish! The only real voices expressing genuine anguish and pain,were those of the innocent children of our brave policemen. It is the families of the less fortunate victims who have to live with their loss for the rest of their lives. For the rest of us, 26/11 will soon get reduced to yet another ‘date’ that is marked on the calendar.Even the numbness will eventually wear off… we will soon stop caring at all. Those cop kids will grow up. Other survivors will cope the best they can. Perhaps a new Headley will emerge from the shadows.Ajmal Qasab will grow into middle age inside some prison, and nobody will remember or bother.What will never change is the shamelessness of the leaders we ourselves have elected and supported all along.Perhaps, that’s really all we deserve?
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Monitoring Vidya (Ooh la la) Balan’s dramatic transformation ( all for the role, of course!), has been a fascinating exercise. The thing is, no matter what Vidya does, she can never be ‘dirty’. Her robust attempts at staying ‘in character’ (read: raunchy) before the launch of her ambitious film, are admirable. All those tacky sarees, cheap dance moves, even naughty, off-colour jokes during promotional interviews! My, my! Our ‘Parineeta’ is really gambling big with this one. Hats off to Vidya. I cannot imagine any other heroine attempting something as potentially dangerous to her image , no matter what the demands of the role. Even Kareena Kapoor didn’t take such daring chances during ‘Chameli’. Trust Vidya to go the extra mile. That’s what makes VB different.She’s ‘hot’. But sorry, she ain’t ‘dirty’. Or rather ‘dirty’ enough!
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Desi Gurrlz , are you ready for the Desi Boyz?What a fun film!Totally nonsensical,illogical and worse.But Rocko and Hunter are gonna get you!I know of two Mumbai socialites who want to hire these stud muffins (John A and Akshay K) as ‘escorts’ at their 60th birthday bashes.Chitrangada smoulders… and how! Steals the show with her animated face and super-sexy body-lingo.Gigolos get their due, finally!

13 comments:

Arjun said...

Call it the male testosterone being challenged by the female estrogen. We've all seen years of commodification of women in India through our movies, commercials, et al. With women empowerment comes a strong urge and demand from womenfolk to enjoy that liberation. Financial independence, stable careers, and new laws enabling progression of women have enabled them take on what has so far been the male bastion. Its resulted in a steady commodification of men to cater to the growing class of progressive women. I see demand for gigolos and male escorts rising in coming times, with women exercising their demand for fulfillment, lust, and desire; "Bharatiya Culture & Mariyaada" notwithstanding. Movies showcasing this very aspect is clear indication of changing times. The new age "superwoman" of the house sure is turning the tables on men.:)
Interesting times ahead for a changing society !!!

Harish said...

o de. mumbai is so shaken that it feels normal now. our braveness has been taken too much for granted. its almost like breaking up with your spouse and the world says - MOVE ON. our love affair with mumbai, rather rioting mumbai will never end.

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vidya balan is oomph personified. she might not be able to shed her sati savitri image, but she can be the slutty savitri of silver screen with ease. What a gutsy girl. Our boob-and-babe loving nation is already drooling over her.

Not just men, women too. The best thing about her is - people look at the dirty picture and say "wow. what a talented actress"...

I love the fact that Ms. Vidya Balan had to bloat up and become Ms. Vidya Balloon ... and she has done that with grace and poise.

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O! desiboys. we sometimes think only men have libidinal rights. For a change a treat for the chokri;s and boldly so.

but then.... Who doesnt like ToyBoys!!!

चंद्रमौलेश्वर प्रसाद said...

Things for Mumbai will change when Kasab is set free!!!!!!!!!!!

aayanman said...

Desi boyz - sometimes I feel Bollywood deliberately tries to shy away from making a good movie. here was a story which could ve been done sensibly and yet keep the humor since the story had some weight - when in desperation people can do weird things But second half went completely awry with candy floss.A new genre should be created for such movies - Timepass - and to that effect it is great.

Dirty Picture - Being un-apologetically hot is not everyone's forte, especially in our culture.We seem to be in eternal denial about sexuality around and within us.So kudos to VB for the attempt - whether it is a good movie is another story.

26/11 - is just a number as was 9/11 - the pain can never be branded, wished away or ignored.But as ironical as it is - commerce and emotions are strange bedfellows - the former takes control at all times.

Another Kiran In NYC said...

I am going to reserve my comments about how well or badly Vidya Balan did in the movie after I see it. Something about the marketing of this movie is so off.

It might be a really good movie. A story well told and may ask some serious questions or it might be total mindless and fun dhamaal. Who knows! But right now Vidya Balans rear end and bosoms heaving in my face in every photo are not exactly aesthetically alluring or titillating. The photos say something, the director's interviews say something else altogether.

Exactly what does the film want to be when it is grown up? Vidya Balan is grown. Only that much is obvious.

India needs 2 versions of every newspaper. One the politicians read and the other, the rest of us read. The stories will be so different.

Anonymous said...

I stand and clap for Ekta ji and her vision to make movies very nice to watch. Thank you Ekta ji.

Tsomo85 said...

Haha loved the description of those cheap outfits, moves, lines & yet she is still amazing actress. Love reading your review, it just comes right from heart. And chitrangada's animated face, no comments. Ha ha

Ashwini Sane said...

M'am, I agree with you on 26/11. M'am isnt it curious that they hanged Nathuram Godse quickly and Kasab is still alive? When there is a will there is a way, I suppose?

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Anonymous said...

Well expressed and apt view on the Mumbai attacks and their place in our lives and in the socio-cultural miasma, and then eventually in history.
Unfortunately by and large I think this is the case with most tragedies, people would not be able to live with themselves I feel, if they allowed the scope and emotion that it really takes. Its a kind of desensitization, an evolutionary safeguard to keep us thinking "thats horrible but wont happen to me, I feel bad but there's nothing for me to do but soldier on my own life".

If I may add, your mention of the people in power perhaps being what we deserve - its not far off from something that I've been telling people for some time now:
India has a world of potential in EVERY way (intellect, creativity, culturally, etc) but we squander it in pettiness and close off the best parts of ourselves in favour of the poorest and truth be told, as my boss puts it,"We are a nation of idiots!" - and the reality is that in a democratic setup more then any other, people get the leadership they deserve. Its that simple.

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Oh and regarding Vidya Balan, you may well be right - though I've always found her to be "hot" and very under-rated as a classy screen beauty (and one who actually CAN act...). I think though that she has the talent to pull this off, its the follow up to this that will be the real test however! :)

Cheers.

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