tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21366808.post2305296246386371410..comments2023-11-12T00:10:06.681+09:00Comments on Beliefs, Blackness & Bollywood: KANK Co-optiont-HYPEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754869629100022097noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21366808.post-23951796781617165872006-09-02T01:53:00.000+09:002006-09-02T01:53:00.000+09:00I so relate to what everyone's been saying here......I so relate to what everyone's been saying here... I've seen about a half-dozen Bollyfilms in the theater (without even knowing that T-Hype was there!) and have always worried that I was an intruder... In the one local theater that does show BW on rare occasions, it does seem as though it is also a cultural gathering since it has such rarity, and BW is such a clearly defined part of South Asian culture. But at the same time, I met several cousins (at a friend's Indian wedding) who were so tickled that I could pronounce and even spell their names because of my BW fanaticism, that I felt that my fondness for the films and culture was validated.Susaniahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04977938723351021767noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21366808.post-39557373785815109342006-09-01T04:02:00.000+09:002006-09-01T04:02:00.000+09:00I agree with lavanya. I think there's a big differ...I agree with lavanya. I think there's a big difference between saying something like "I LOVE Bollywood! I think these are great films and I appreciate the music and the cultural values!" or "I love everything I've encountered that has to do with Indian culture" -- and saying "You know, I <i>am</i> Indian because I've watched these movies, and let me explain to you (and to actual Indian people) what being Indian is all about, because I understand it better than you do." The second is what the farmboys in the documentary were doing. <br /><br />Just because I love the movies and am learning about India, I don't run around believing that I have magically become a better dancer than Sridevi. And I don't fool myself that I have any kind of insight into India beyond an outsider's perspective.<br /><br />but I have to admit -- I haven't seen a movie in the theater yet, even though there's one within an hour's drive of my house, and I do feel shy about it! What if I don't understand the theater-going etiquette or something?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21366808.post-62390312486309395742006-08-30T03:54:00.000+09:002006-08-30T03:54:00.000+09:00Hey guys,
I think there's a difference between co...Hey guys,<br /><br />I think there's a difference between co-opting Indian culture and being into bollywood. I don't think they're the same. Bollywood is already the biggest movie industry in the world, I would guess with a 50/50 split of Indian and non-Indian fans (although I don't have exact statistics). They're popular with non-Indians for reasons i obviously don't have to go into. Do you honestly think that the Russians, Algerians, and Indonesians who are obsessed with Bollywood are co-opting Indian culture? No, if anything Bollywood bridges cultures together. Hope that makes sense.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21366808.post-84938336333494533442006-08-30T03:16:00.000+09:002006-08-30T03:16:00.000+09:00"I can at least aspire to let my Bollyfanaticism g..."I can at least aspire to let my Bollyfanaticism grow without restraint. It is after all, dil se."<br /><br />Wah wah! That, I think, is what it boils down to.Beth Loves Bollywoodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05540154833326987567noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21366808.post-71803549033791941282006-08-30T00:31:00.000+09:002006-08-30T00:31:00.000+09:00lol Beth! No worries on the grad vocab. I studied ...lol Beth! No worries on the grad vocab. I studied Sociology which is a great way to spend money but not a great way to make money...<br /><br />I just try to remind myself that if <a href='http://www.illhindu.com/bio.html'>Siddhartha </a> aka <i>'Ill Hindu'</i> can be an urban music expert--his knowledge is baffling--I can at least aspire to let my Bollyfanaticism grow without restraint. It is after all, <i>dil se.</i>t-HYPEhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12754869629100022097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21366808.post-14745672211838234132006-08-29T21:57:00.000+09:002006-08-29T21:57:00.000+09:00So despite many, many semesters of graduate school...So despite many, many semesters of graduate school, I don't really know what co-option means and I haven't underlined any meaningful passages in articles about it. So keep that in mind when I say this: can disconnection from the home culture of the art form be overcome? Or is it possible that one somehow resonates with the relevant points of the home culture, even if one isn't from there? (I'm not saying I do, by the way; I might, I don't know, I certainly don't know enough about Inida to say. Although there are little bits of what I glean about India that certainly make me go "right on!" - and others that make me go "knock it off!") And if the answer is no, does that mean a person can only truly "get" the cultural products of their own culture? Which would explain why I like Prairie Home Companion as much as I do, but it's a distressing notion - I mean, I work in a culture museum, so if the answer is no, then I might as well ditch it and go be a university fundraiser or something.<br /><br />And then again, maybe it doesn't matter as long as you think about what you're (culturally) consuming. I think that's where I may ultimately stand on this issue. All we can ask of anyone is that they think, right?Beth Loves Bollywoodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05540154833326987567noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21366808.post-2547257924706137852006-08-29T21:45:00.000+09:002006-08-29T21:45:00.000+09:00That is a seriously good question. I worry about t...That is a seriously good question. I worry about that from time to time. Usually I'm too distracted by just how very much I love these movies, but in the cold light of day, when I'm outside and there isn't a musical number going on, or I've tried to get someone to watch one and they won't, I wonder just how crazy I seem - or, worse, offensive and/or ill-informed. But mostly I do what I can to be informed, and I try to think about why I like the movies (or don't), hence the website. I don't know. Let me know what you come up with. If it makes you feel any better, I was very worried about this while in India, but most of the time people there were benevolently amused at the least and just downright delighted at the most to find that the WASPiest memsahib they'd encountered since <i>Lagaan</i> had Bolly in her veins. As far as I know, no one ever implied I was a phony. But yeah, when I go see a movie in the theater, and I'm one of ten non-South Asians, I do feel a little stupid. Just for a second. But it's there.Beth Loves Bollywoodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05540154833326987567noreply@blogger.com