Pop Culture archive at Random Thoughts of a Demented Mind

Archive for the 'Pop Culture' Category

Thanking For Coming Again

Published July 15th, 2007 in Pop Culture and Racism. 86 Comments

Manish Vij of Ultrabrown has been covering, in detail, the controversy over the upcoming Simpsons movie where one of the Simpsons characters , Apu, is being used in the movie promotion in a manner that is being considered by some to be racist and stereotypical.

For those who are unaware of the Simpsons world, Apu is an illegal Indian immigrant, a graduate from Caltech (Calcutta Institute of Technology) who despite holding a PhD f~~rom Caltech (Calcutta Institute of Technology)~~ runs a 24-hours convenience store, Kwik-E-Mart where he speaks in a sing-song “Indian” accent, cheats his customers in various devious ways and is the last word in subservience/boot-licking saying “Thank you come again” even to people who rob his store. He also has eight kids, had an arranged marriage, worships “weird-looking” Gods—you get the picture.

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Yellow Very Yellow

Published April 26th, 2007 in Pop Culture. 53 Comments

“Welcome to “Yellow Very Yellow“, GBTV’s current affairs program where we analyse the most significant events taking place in today’s world: events that will shape your future as well as of your grandkid’s. Tonight our topic of discussion is the Abhishek-Aishwarya wedding and our panel consists of noted style guru Ritu’s Berries, historian Ramleela Thappad and socialite Bushel Seth.

First Ritu’s Berries. What the Bachchans do today, the Khans do tomorrow. So what is your assessment of the style quotient at the Abhi-Ash marriage? The hits, the misses and the blunders?”

Ritu’s Berries: “Dahling, it was one blundah aftah another.

Firstly look at the picture to the left….what gaudiness. I think they took that background off the sets of Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayana. I know that this is a Ram-Sita jodi with even a Amar Hanuman Singh being present but why this garish strip-club-ian dÃ©cor?

And what’s with the green jellybeans Abhishek is wearing? And the beard —was that to hide the double chin? ”

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The Return of Mandira Bedi

Published February 25th, 2007 in Cricket and Pop Culture. 60 Comments

Tis the World Cup season.

And that can mean only one thing: Bedi.

No not the perennially pissed-off Bishen Singh Bedi.

“Bedi” jalayi leh jigar se piya
Jigar maa badi aag hai

Mandira Bedi is here.

And this time she has, in her own words, “Dravid across my chest”.

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State of the Papad

Published January 30th, 2007 in Food and Pop Culture. 67 Comments

It was after many phone calls to assorted PR agencies andÂ after being given many a run-around (as they say: bahoot papad belna para) that I was ultimately able to get an interview with the famous Lijjat Papad Bunny, the face of the multimillion dollar Papad industry and together with the dancing Nirma girl and the Hippo of washing powder Hippolin, an icon of the 80s Doordarshan days.

Crunching into a spicy papad, Mr. Bunny appeared relaxed and upbeat.

“It’s been a good year for us”, he chortled “with Shilpa Shetty being called Shilpa Poppadum in the British Big Brother, foreign interest in papads or poppadums has never been higher.”

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Sharara Sharara

Published January 26th, 2007 in Pop Culture. 23 Comments

It takes an awesome amount of courage and moral conviction to go to another country, kneel at the doorstep of the family that you have hurt with your racial comments and beg for forgiveness. It takes even more courage if there is a whole Channel 4 telly crew recording every moment of your tear-soaked plea for mercy.

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Shilporama

Published January 17th, 2007 in Media, Pop Culture and Racism. 80 Comments

The “Rang De Basanti” effect on the collective consciousness of the nation was evident once again today as Gen X gadget-activists came out in full force SMS-ing, emailing and online-petitioning in support of Shilpa Shetty, the subject of vile racial abuse on UK’s Big Brother.

Neha Hingorani represents this new-age awakened citizen. A far cry from the khadi-clad Gandhi topiwala from yesteryears, we find her sitting in the lounge of a multiplex, working furiously on her Motorola Razr sending SMS-s to all her friends and to public polls on all the TV channels.

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Ash-Shek

Published January 16th, 2007 in India, Media and Pop Culture. 64 Comments

Unless you spend all your time reading books or watching the mating lives of walruses on the Animal Planet (as opposed to those of beautiful people), you surely must know that the “will they won’t they” Aishwarya-Abhishek relationship recently became “Yes they will” much to the joy of a whole nation. Rarely since Rama vanquished Ravana has there been such celebration in the world of monkeys.