Slumdog Millionaire ... what should movies be like

... as for the masadi-mills love affair ... 'andhay ke haath mein batair waali baat hai' ... he has found something to talk about, therefore he'll continue to say the same thing over and over like a demented parrot

... hard to know who is 'the blind' in the equation though

Re: # 218; hamidm sahib

I am a fan of Dawkins too ... most of his thoughts are 'my own' as it were ... only he expresses them much better than I ever could!

Religious indoctrination of children is a major issue in my opinion ... the so called 'search for the truth' a lot of people (especially from a muslim background) seem to do, often results in a 'reaffirmation' of the same (the ideology of their upbringing) in later life

... that is why we don't discuss anything to do with religion/god etc in our household ... and that hasn't led us to moral bankruptcy, as sometimes thought of in religious circles

the 'fight' has been difficult, to say the least, on many fronts though!

hammidm2...

http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/No-money-from-PoK-so-no-a pples-Kashmiris/419704

Sorry correction:

The correct count for Bakiland is 0.8 female homicide per 100K of population.

Same figure for India is almost 1/10 th of Bakiland.

Slumdogs are more in Londanabad and Washington-dad. Per 100K of population 232 homicides of women happened in 2008 in Washington DupliCity. Even for Bakiland the women homicide count for 2008 did not exceed 80 per 100K of population. Physician cure thyself first!

mr. Sant....
"Other film makers have thought and acted differently. Satyajit Ray being the most well known of them. He used films to portray the stark realities of Indian society – the poverty, the corruption and the decadence of a country in transition. Ray was a lot more than a chronicler of penury and hardship; his films made money, won praise and gave Indian films their first visibility on world stage...."
Satyajit Ray has picked up the novel from Bibhuti Bhusan Bandyapadhyay...Story about poor brahmin family is nothing new in India (if you have read stories from Purana)... Ray did not pick up the novel to show poverty,rather it was a literary masterpiece and he was successful to large extent in converting the movie in celluloid....

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article5621482.ece
Look, how paki beduinoid bast**** are damaging GB...
breeding like mosquitoes....

Re: # 228
VRV...
I can not speak about Mumbai slums, but most of the housemaids in Bangalore sends their sons,daughters in English medium schools than spending that amount on good food...and our Govt. charges 2% education cess to educate children of poor people!!!!

(1) Until the very last moments in 1945 ADOLF HITLER thought he was winning the war.

(2) The mindset of Punjabistan Terrorist Army (PUTA) and Punjabistan Terrorist ISI (PUTISI) is very similar. Rational arguments do not work with PUTA and PUTISI. They still think they are in charge and even worse they think they are even winning or making progress.

(3) Conventional wisdom has been that a stable Pakistan with current borders is good for peace in South Asia. Indies and Amrikis also have thought along those lines. But the reality is playing out otherwise. Thanks to #2 above, events seem to be in no one’s control.

(4) The activities of PUTA and PUTISI, more specifically their pursuit of terrorism and war mongering, are leading to unraveling of internal cohesion of Pakistan if there was any.

(5) The Republic of BALOCHISTAN which constitutes nearly 50% of land mass of Pakistan is the prime candidate. This is a new emerging country in South Asia, and is making Iran also nervous. The situation is likely to continue to deteriorate.

(6) Mr. ZARDARI -despite his past history of corruption- comes across as an emerging statesman. He speaks and conducts himself exceptionally well. Even though he had very little power to do anything, Punjabistanis are already blaming him for all sorts of failures….in no time of course.. What a friggin surprise. If MOHATARMA had been alive she would have met the same fate.

(7) PASHTUNISTAN is another sad story. Thanks to the propaganda of the PUTA and PUTISI, people elsewhere might have got the impression all Pashtuns are raging jihadis.

(8) The reality is there is NO PASHTUN NATIONALISTIC struggle against the foreign troops in Afghanistan. Rather a bunch of terrorists from Punjab, Arab countries, Central Asian republics etc are fighting for their own agendas and play havoc with the lives of ordinary Pashtuns. In the tribal areas all this is happening in connivance and collaboration with ….who else….PUTA and PUTISI..of course.

(9) USA and the international community have to think out of the box and start a new approach to solve the problems in South Asia.

(10) Strategic significance of Pakistan derived from its physical location should be severely undermined. Rapidly developing supply routes, economic lifeline for Afghanistan through Central Asian republics is critical to alleviate the choke hold Pakistan has had on Afghanistan for so long.

(11) Even though US has serious issues with Iran, India developing a supply route to Afghanistan through the new Iranian port will further help in achieving #10. US should not AND WOULD NOT discourage this development.

(12) Military aid to Pakistan should be entirely stopped. Aid to the civilian government should be tightly scrutinized to ensure it is strictly used for economic development and in installments based on how much Pakistan co-operates.

(13) The primary goal for the Afghan people SHOULD BE to establish a government in Kabul that truly represents the aspirations all the ethnic groups in Afghanistan. This is different from the goal of PUTA, PUTISI and Punjabistanis who primarily look at Afghanistan as their colony just like SINDUDESH, JINNAHPUR, BALOCHISTAN AND PASHTUNISTAN and would like to have some puppet government there even if that means they are Taliban terrorists.

(14) Finally, INDIES may not have much to gloat. They should be seriously worried about economy being affected by this holy mess. Indies should dramatically boost their technical capabilities, intelligence apparatus to fight terrorism and be prepared for the potential implosion of Pakistan into a mega-Afghanistan.

(15) MASADI. IN THE SERVICE OF AMERICA. IN THE SERVICE OF MASADI.

Dr. Masadi Moron
Director, Jihadistan Project
Co-ordinator, Under the Desk Delusion
CIA Headquarters
Langley, Virginia
EMAIL: moron_to_thepower_infinity@cia.gov
Ph-703-44-IDIOT
FAX-703-44-MORON

http://www.daylife.com/search?q=Slumdog+Millionaire

Rubina Ali in her new school dress - a transformation of kind for a slum kid. They see future in education. :)

Slumdog millions for little stars
- Plan to pump in ‘significant’ box-office profits into Mumbai slum

TIM TEEMAN

Rubina Ali, who plays the young Latika in Slumdog Millionaire, at her home in a Bandra slum. (Reuters)
London, Jan. 30: An ambitious plan to pump “significant� profits from the film Slumdog Millionaire back into the Mumbai slums where the film is set has been revealed by its director, Danny Boyle.

Boyle said investors, who are set to benefit from millions in box-office profits, were planning to meet in London next week to discuss how much money to put into a special fund and how best to distribute the cash.

“We want to set it up as soon as possible. What absolutely mustn’t happen is that the money disappears, or people think this is a PR stunt,� Boyle said.

Boyle and Christian Colson, one of Slumdog’s producers, revealed the plan after mounting criticism of the film’s alleged financial exploitation of its child stars and its portrayal of Indian slum life. The multi-award winning and nominated film follows the occasionally brutal rags-to-riches story of a slum dweller. Boyle insisted that the fund was not being set up in response to criticism of the film.

“This is our chance to give something back to an extraordinary city which has helped us produce an extraordinary film. We came up with it once we realised what a success the film was becoming after the Golden Globes,� he said.

Slumdog won four Globes: best drama, best director, best screenplay and best original score.

The aim of the fund would be to help underprivileged children, Boyle said. It would distribute money to projects in Mumbai and “perhaps� the rest of India.

The men denied claims in the press that the children, who still live in shacks alongside Mumbai’s railway tracks, had been exploited. Colson said Rubina Ali, who played the young Latika, and Azharuddin Ismail, who played Salim, were paid “three times the amount of an annual adult salary� for what amounted to a month’s work.

A substantial lump sum (the men would not be specific) would be paid to the children once they reached 18 and completed their studies. “It’s a carrot to encourage them to stay at school,� Colson said.

The feverish media interest in the children has meant that they have had to be removed from school in Mumbai and returned to their original village homes, he added.

Since the children began their education last June at the filmmakers’ expense, “the transformation of them has been eye-watering,� claimed Boyle, who added he was “determined to protect them from anything that might distort or harm� their future opportunities.

Colson said “a conscious decision not to shower� the children with money from the movie had been made. “They would not be able psychologically and practically to handle that. Our plan is to ameliorate their lives.�

The men also responded to the controversy over the film’s title. “Referring to people living in slums as dogs is a violation of human rights,� claimed Tateshwar Vishwakarma, an Indian social activist, who has called for effigies of Boyle to be burnt in protest.

“Protest is a way of life in India,� Boyle said. “It’s an extraordinary democracy. You just hope it won’t become violent. My concern is that it doesn’t hurt the kids and that my own children don’t see anything like that. It’s distressing.�

Boyle said the word “slumdog� wasn’t intended as an insult. “It’s meant as ‘underdog’, the romantic idea of a guy succeeding on his own terms against all kinds of adversity. We tried to reflect as much of the city as we could. It’s a place of extremes. The feel-good element comes from Mumbai having this extraordinary resilience and effervescence of energy. Like New York, it’s a city that grabs you by the throat and says ‘Welcome’. I am proud of it.�

Colson said: “Whatever criticism is levelled against the film, we made it in good faith.� Boyle claimed he had no expectations of Baftas or Oscars — quoting Benjamin Franklin’s “In this world nothing is certain but death or taxes� — but Slumdog remains a hot awards favourite.

Yesterday, at the Richard Attenborough Film Awards, it won film of the year, director of the year and rising star of the year for its lead male actor, Dev Patel.

THE TIMES, LONDON

Finally there's some positive outcome of the criticism that's mounted from all sides.

" Cut us some slack, ubermansch. "

You mean...dobermann(pin)sch(er)?

hamidm

"anil mian can get you a discount through his hindoo connections ....."

Hamid mia, something is "horrible"y wrong with your. You don't sound like yourself.

Re: # 223

tahmed mian,

... so you are suggesting that there might be a 'kernel' of truth in mills and that masadi is not a complete idiot ? ....... i beg to disagree - using that logic we would let all the looneys out of lunatic asylums ........

p.s. i heard that masadi escaped from bellvue psych ward? is that true?

#222 hamidm: i admit that the Quran was written by human scribes, not by some infallible source (like Mills or Dawkins or Marx or the Pope). but that does not mean one cannot appreciate the kernel of truth in what the Quran has to say (the "core message" of the Quran that I have been harping about on chowk). just as one need not be a Marxist to appreciate the kernel of truth in Marxism concerning the mode of production determining the socio-political superstructure of a society.

PS: now that you have mentioned the Quran, no doubt you have the ladduites of chowk itching. there goes this board...

Re: # 221

tahmed mian,

... i agree with your warning about masadiism, but haven't you accepted one single book as the source of your inspiration? .... a book that doesn't even have a known author and was edited by a goat .....

hamidm: be careful with this Dawkins-leaning daughter though. uncritically accepting the views of some "famous writer" or th other is the first sign of masadiism.

hamidm: being able to read signs in pakistan. that is indeed the one (and only) useful thing you learn through "religious education", pakistan-style!!

#190 Posted by philosopher

"Seriously.....sounds like a verse of the Quran.Is it?"

Hey, how did you guess it?

Man, You must be a maulvi!!

Re: # 217

tahmed mian,

.... i am glad to report that the poor mullah lost the battle and one of my daughters has declared herself to be an atheist who worships at the shrine of richard dawkins ...... the other one has adopted shopping as a religion and worships shoes ...... their religious education has had a positive effect in that they can read the urdu road signs in pakistan .....

....... as for masadi, i love him like the son i was lucky enough not to have .......

hamidm: you couldnt whip an egg to make omelette, let alone a son like Mr. Masadi as you say - you couldnt even stop a mullah from imparting his ignorance to your children in your own home, that is how much weight you carry around your house (much lighter than the weight you carry on your legs, in other words).

And Masadi is right - you secretly do want a son like him. An intellectual with a brain (or is it head?) the size of a small rocky planet. A writer whose works are plagiarized by Nobel laureates in every discipline. A real man who makes men envious and women lecherous when he walks into the room.

#213 i dont think masadi, for all his faults, gives a flying f about hindus. but dont let that stop you from this indian habit of seeking to draw attention to yourselves.

Re: # 213
Krishna...
When will we get the operationalized reactor? 2050 will be too late...I am not finding it in ITER site (www.iter.org)...

Rajni is THE Best...
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=phNelisqq4U&feature=related

masadi,

This is not fair. These "scientists", hated "hindoos" on top of that, are "inventing" stuff that already exists in the koran (encrypted, of course). I swear by the beard of allah, this is not fair!

Nuclear Fusion-fission Hybrid Could Contribute To Carbon-free Energy Future

ScienceDaily (Jan. 29, 2009) — Physicists at The University of Texas at Austin have designed a new system that, when fully developed, would use fusion to eliminate most of the transuranic waste produced by nuclear power plants.

The invention could help combat global warming by making nuclear power cleaner and thus a more viable replacement of carbon-heavy energy sources, such as coal.

"We have created a way to use fusion to relatively inexpensively destroy the waste from nuclear fission," says Mike Kotschenreuther, senior research scientist with the Institute for Fusion Studies (IFS) and Department of Physics. "Our waste destruction system, we believe, will allow nuclear power-a low carbon source of energy-to take its place in helping us combat global warming."

Toxic nuclear waste is stored at sites around the U.S. Debate surrounds the construction of a large-scale geological storage site at Yucca Mountain in Nevada, which many maintain is costly and dangerous. The storage capacity of Yucca Mountain, which is not expected to open until 2020, is set at 77,000 tons. The amount of nuclear waste generated by the U.S. will exceed this amount by 2010.

The physicists' new invention could drastically decrease the need for any additional or expanded geological repositories.

"Most people cite nuclear waste as the main reason they oppose nuclear fission as a source of power," says Swadesh Mahajan, senior research scientist.

The scientists propose destroying the waste using a fusion-fission hybrid reactor, the centerpiece of which is a high power Compact Fusion Neutron Source (CFNS) made possible by a crucial invention.

The CFNS would provide abundant neutrons through fusion to a surrounding fission blanket that uses transuranic waste as nuclear fuel. The fusion-produced neutrons augment the fission reaction, imparting efficiency and stability to the waste incineration process.

Kotschenreuther, Mahajan and Prashant Valanju, of the IFS, and Erich Schneider of the Department of Mechanical Engineering report their new system for nuclear waste destruction in the journal Fusion Engineering and Design.

There are more than 100 fission reactors, called "light water reactors" (LWRs), producing power in the United States. The nuclear waste from these reactors is stored and not reprocessed. (Some other countries, such as France and Japan, do reprocess the waste.)

The scientists' waste destruction system would work in two major steps.

First, 75 percent of the original reactor waste is destroyed in standard, relatively inexpensive LWRs. This step produces energy, but it does not destroy highly radiotoxic, transuranic, long-lived waste, what the scientists call "sludge."

In the second step, the sludge would be destroyed in a CFNS-based fusion-fission hybrid. The hybrid's potential lies in its ability to burn this hazardous sludge, which cannot be stably burnt in conventional systems.

"To burn this really hard to burn sludge, you really need to hit it with a sledgehammer, and that's what we have invented here," says Kotschenreuther.

One hybrid would be needed to destroy the waste produced by 10 to 15 LWRs.

The process would ultimately reduce the transuranic waste from the original fission reactors by up to 99 percent. Burning that waste also produces energy.

The CFNS is designed to be no larger than a small room, and much fewer of the devices would be needed compared to other schemes that are being investigated for similar processes. In combination with the substantial decrease in the need for geological storage, the CFNS-enabled waste-destruction system would be much cheaper and faster than other routes, say the scientists.

The CFNS is based on a tokamak, which is a machine with a "magnetic bottle" that is highly successful in confining high temperature (more than 100 million degrees Celsius) fusion plasmas for sufficiently long times.

The crucial invention that would pave the way for a CFNS is called the Super X Divertor. The Super X Divertor is designed to handle the enormous heat and particle fluxes peculiar to compact devices; it would enable the CFNS to safely produce large amounts of neutrons without destroying the system.

"The intense heat generated in a nuclear fusion device can literally destroy the walls of the machine," says research scientist Valanju, "and that is the thing that has been holding back a highly compact source of nuclear fusion."

Valanju says a fusion-fission hybrid reactor has been an idea in the physics community for a long time.

"It's always been known that fusion is good at producing neutrons and fission is good at making energy," he says. "Now, we have shown that we can get fusion to produce a lot of neutrons in a small space."

Producing an abundant and clean source of "pure fusion energy" continues to be a goal for fusion researchers. But the physicists say that harnessing the other product of fusion-neutrons-can be achieved in the near term.

In moving their hybrid from concept into production, the scientists hope to make nuclear energy a more viable alternative to coal and oil while waiting for renewables like solar and pure fusion to ramp up.

"The hybrid we designed should be viewed as a bridge technology," says Mahajan. "Through the hybrid, we can bring fusion via neutrons to the service of the energy sector today. We can hopefully make a major contribution to the carbon-free mix dictated by the 2050 time scale set by global warming scientists."

The scientists say their Super X Divertor invention has already gained acceptance in the fusion community. Several groups are considering implemented the Super X Divertor on their machines, including the MAST tokamak in the United Kingdom, and the DIIID (General Atomics) and NSTX (Princeton University) in the U.S. Next steps will include performing extended simulations, transforming the concept into an engineering project, and seeking funding for building a prototype.

Re: # 207
Masadi: "While reading Chowk he wishes he had a son with my character ."

With your character? You mean, a son with your delusional dispositions. Cut us some slack, ubermansch.

masadi mian,

..... if you were my son (god forbid!) i would have have whipped you into shape by now ..... i honestly believe that your diatribes against dr sohail are a cry for help - even though he is a quack, i am sure he can help you ...... actully dr shankar, the resident hindoo shrink, seems to be mre qualified since he is a licenced medical practitioner and can prescribe prozac .... in my opinion you need a full labotomy and shock therapy to jolt you into reality ......... you are one sick puppy!

...... i love you .......

Nice dog fight....
Santanu...
Movies should be like movies...for "unwashed masses", mumbai aardoo movies and cheap hollywood entertainers are OK......

masadi: Why? is there something wrong with chowk? Are the people on chowk not geniuses??

Tahmed, find another pastime.

Have a nice day,

TNITC masadi

Bubba writes "Hamid mian,

sorry to jive in, but what kind of love do you profess when you say [.. and i do love you ..] Is it one of those jesus' love? or a fatherly love? "

He secretly admires my writings and my stand. For once in his slavish existence he has looked past his subordinate identity and recognized that he too can be eqaul in stature to those who have proclaimed themselves to be his overlords. In other words I have liberated him, just as I was liberated.

While reading Chowk he wishes he had a son with my character .

Hope that answered your question,

TNITC masadi

masadi: i thought you were going to scalp this running dog of the evil capitalist system hamidm. instead you wimped out!! you are losing that special masadi panache!! soon you will be just another ordinary chowk poster, reduced to posting url's and issueing insipid rebuttals.
:-(

hamid writes ".. i recommend covey's 'seven habits of higly effective people' or you can go to one of deepak chopra's seminars - anil mian can get you a discount through his hindoo connections"

Or maybe I should visit the Chowk shrink sohail so that he can, after our session, splatter the details in a most unethical manner on Chowk FP. Moron, public issues have institutional causes and they do not only affect me but millions of other, no shrink or social worker can fix them.

BTW I did report Sohail to the CPA and they asked me to contact his local licensing authority and they thanked me in the letter for bringing it to their attention and for having concerns about their ethical standards. Sohail if you are reading this, next time you do something unethical, I will contact them. I am giving you this chance to improve your morality and ethical standards you hypocrite "humanist".

Have a nice day,

TNITC masadi

Re: # 202 Posted by hamidm2 on January 29, 2009 3:40:52 pm

Hamid mian,

sorry to jive in, but what kind of love do you profess when you say [.. and i do love you ..] Is it one of those jesus' love? or a fatherly love?

masadi mian,

.... i think it would really help your sex life if you stopped blaming the us elite for all your troubles ...... you need to do some introspection so that you can get rid of all this negative energy and anger ............ i recommend covey's 'seven habits of higly effective people' or you can go to one of deepak chopra's seminars - anil mian can get you a discount through his hindoo connections .....

Re: # 201

masadi mian,

... what other moron? ..... this was an original piece of writing inspired by you and you alone ..... i haven't had this 'amad' ( or vahee) since my gabby and gabriel days .... i don't mean to disparage your influence, but i had this particular vahee while i was seated on the porcelain throne .... i think i should start eating prunes like my friend tahmed .......

.... and i do love you .........

Hamid you did a bollywood trick (on copying Hollywood) by rewriting that third rate socialist yuppie article by that other moron.

Give up writing crap.

Hidden Holocaust, USA

http://www.michaelparenti.org/HiddenHolocaust.html

hamidm #198 masadi will have your scalp for this, you moron evil elitist!!

masadi's lament .........

.... in the corner of a dark and dingy room, on a dark and dingy street behind the lahore railway station, two men wrapped in moth eaten blankets sit hunched over their glasses of bhang and pass a k2 refilled with the finest chitrali ........ before the advent of islam, sometime in the late seventies, this dark and dingy room was a lively bar filled with rickshaw walas, college professors, marxists and trade unionists ....... here, in the seventies, these people plotted and planned the fall of the american elite and the demise of capitalism ................"

hamidm: masadi mian, don't hog the roach like a capitalist pig ......... here, give me a toke

masadi: you moron! .... don't you ever call me a capitalist pig - toose bastards don't drink bhang and subsist on low-grade chitrali like us; they are at the royal palm drinking single malt whiskey and snorting imported cocain while we, the proletariat, the people, the unwashed masses, huddle in misery and walk around to find ourselves dishonorable graves ........

hamidm: hey! isn't that shakespeare? .... are you plagiarizing again ..... look, my friend, this is a bad habit - it might work on lulu, but they don't like plariarizers in this joint - you know the guy who runs it was a professor of sociology at government college and a leader of the mazdoor kissan party ..........

masadi (taking a deep puff and slowly exhaling the sweet smoke through his flared nostrils): you moron! .... according to mills mkp was a front for the us elite and miraj muhammad khan was a turncoat ............

hamidm (taking a sip of the heavenly nectar): hey, masadi my dear dear friend, this stuff is really good .. almost as good as the stuff at the shrine of bari imam ......did you say, mmk was a cia agent? ..... have you been overdosing on mills again ..... look, man ... you need to take it easy with that book, it is getting to your head like the koran gets to folks like that imbecile tahmed and your cave dwelling friends urstruly and zeemax .........

masadi (his left eye fluttering with anger): you moron! ... don't you dare insult mills (pbuh) - he is god's greatest gift to mankind and if it hadn't been for him we would all be overwhelmed by the us elite and you would be walking like a hindoo trying to find a railroad track .......

hamidm (sighing): i am sorry, masadi ... but you seem to have a fixation on this man mills ... tell me, was he a homosexual?

masadi (a vein pulsating above his right eye): you moron! mills was a genius, a sociologist, a man who understood the evil american elite and dedicated his life to fighting the spread of free market economics ......

hamidm: what's wrong with free market economics? ..... this chitrali would be half the price if we could import good quality stuff from nepal and the wrong side of the border ..... by the way, i heard you were fired from the rabia begum college of home ecnomics for women in ichra ...... what happened? did you start foaming at the mouth again while delivering your lecture on the evils of the american elite ? ..... you, really should .......

masadi (foaming at the mouth): you moron! shut up! .... don't you now this is a conspiracy against me! .... these people have been hounding me from tuskegee community college to bronx community college to hamdard university to the jamia binoria, and now they got me fired from begum rabia's .....

hamidm (wiping a tear from masadi's cheek): here, take a toke and don't fret ..... these bastards don't recognize a genius ........ why, the other day they invited that hindoo, anil mian to give a lecture on entrepreurship at lums .... i heard they paid the miserable old man twenty thousand dollars for a four hour seminar and later he had his picture taken with razaq dawood .... why? just because he went to harvard? ..... you went to howard, but they treat you like fecal matter .... why?

masadi (sobbing): that ... that anil is moron, an idiot ... tha man can't write one proper sentence and just because he went to harvard doesn't mean that he is still not a hindoo ......

hamidm: yea, these damn hindoos are like cockroaches - you can stomp on them, but you just can't get rid of them ..... when the day of reckoning comes there will be two things left - cockroaches and hindoos

masadi: what about keith richards?

hamidm (smoke swirling out of his nostrils) : he too .....keith would like this chitrali, don't you think?

masadi:you moron! .... keith is a product of the decadent west ... for god's sake, the man snorted his father!

hamidm (sighing): masadi, my friend, i wish you would stop calling me a moron ... it hurts ... so was miraj mohammed khan a cia agent?

masadi: you moron! .... of course .... that is why bhutto sahib threw his arse in jail ...... i am depressed, i forgot to take my prozac ...... let's not talk about this any more .... give me a toke ......

hamidm (passing the roach and taking a sip): i love you man ..... i wish you would give up on mills and get over what happened between you and the dean at brroklyn community college ....... you know that you can't teach six courses on the evils of the american elite using the same book over and over again .......

masadi: and why not?.... you moron! ... like the koran, mills requires a life time of intense study to really understand and master ...... you are a fool, an imbecile and stop hogging that roach ........

hamidm (throwing his arm around his friend): come here, you knucklehead! i love you, man ....

masadi (his eyes drooping like a chief justice's) ..... i love you too man, even though you are a moron ....... let's sing :

gumbad-i-sabz pay, rehmat ki ghata chahi hai
penay walo chalo, beyaban mein bahar ayee hai
allah, allah, ghulaman-i-muhammad ki leya
janat see madiney mein uttar ayee hai

Re: # 196
pro-musla...
this is not hate...this is just ragging....

My, my, such hate. You're making masadi sound like a suga daddy, nkg.

Re: # 194
bloody beduinoid/GM arabs, who are you to "allow" indians to carry out.....?

Who am I? Not a baddu, not a Muslim, not a hindu, not a christian ... and so on. I am human. And I don't "allow" hindus to continue preying to elephants, I TOLERATE them, just as I tolerate a molvi banging his head on the floor.

Re: # 193
pro-musla..
what kind of animal this molvi is? I have not seen such creature in my neighbourhood (home town or bangalore)...

bloody beduinoid/GM arabs, who are you to "allow" indians to carry out.....?

Re: # 192
Nkg
Were you molested by a molvi, or something? Just asking, mate. Don’t get me wrong, I hate them as much, but I let him bang his head on the floor just as I don’t mind a hindu smashing a coconut on the torso of a strange looking stone elephant. Or is it a monkey?

Re: # 191
anil...
yoga is not meant for Geneticaly Modified Arabs (aka Paki muslas).......they are supposed bang their head on mosque floors shouting in arabic wearing skull cap and shout against every decent country- Israel, UK, USA, Neitherland, Swizerland,Thailand,India.....burning flags after listening to friday sermons from religious gurus...
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=U1CErW2egjI

Masadi:

You have made an unfounded allegation that in capitalism nothing evolves or capitalism. Do you call Mohammad, Marx and Mills to have evolved at the very least. They evolved of their thoughts out of, and in capitalist society. Truth may be very hard to you, but totalitarian systems are too restrictive to evolve and grow. Look at your own trajectory, you went to elitist of the elites school in Pakistan, and stood in lines to get into a buckle of bible belt college (your term), and then wrote whatever you wrote in capitalist society. Islamic societies, at least of late, Marxist societies demonstrated that evolution is stifled. You are a good example of such totalitarianism; you start shooting out abuses when you disagree. Others in power in totalitarian societies used guns to shoot out bullets, I wonder what would you do, if you had power.

Allow me to use your play on words, probably “Taliban Plus�.

Meri salah maane aur dimagi sehat ke liye yoga aur meditation shuru ka dein.

Re: # 177 masadi

(((sometimes truth get a brief chance to escape from their dirty mouths and minds....)))

Seriously.....sounds like a verse of the Quran.Is it?

Re: # 188
Yup, he's a Superman, alright. Nay, the Ubermansch.

masadi,

I have to say that it is quite obvious to any rational observer that you are a man of astounding intellect. The way you juggle these lesser intellects like tahmed (a George Bush clone), hamidm (who obviously is not much above the level of the apes) and other miscellaneous lowly creatures is quite spectacular.

Unfortunately, Pakistan today is not in a position to reward giant minds such as yours. But it will be soon. No doubt about that. I think you should not let these mosquito-like pests (I would have said cockroach-like, but I am trying to keep it civil) under your skin. Yours is a mission far too important. Maybe someday the world will finally recognize the boundless talent that has gone unnoticed in this iniquitious world. I hope that future generations will find inspiration in your books. Do you have in mind to publish your collected works sometime? Who's the publisher you have dealt with so far? Did you say it's available on Amazon?

These apelike creatures like Tahmed and Hamidm can only HOPE to be like you someday. But it's very obvious that they don't have what it takes. Just ignore these fools. Onward and upward!

Best Regards...

Re: # 181
And what are you, tahmed32?

Re: # 181
And what are you, tahmed32?

Re: # 135
Faruk...
If you create problem, who will solve it? You have to....Why India need to solve your problem (fascination with Kashmir)...?

hp/iamnew you are missing the point here.....three for one and one for three is the name of the game

iamnew: time wasting on chowk with is a fine hobby.

This is now working like the clock works.
As soon as masadi posts these three older gentlemen follow him with their posts..

I think this is harassment. Please find some other hobby...boys in this old age???Na na na!

Hamidm: and furthermore,

Masadi is an Intellectual Steamroller, and you are an Intellectual Lump of Dough that he can flatten into a pancake!! Masadi is an Intellectual Sledge Hammer, and you are the Nail!! Masadi is the Intellectual Nutcracker, and you are the Walnut!!

hamidm: why are you picking on Mr. Masadi?? Are you threatened by his intellectual prowess??

masadi mian,

...... do you think mullah fazlullah is an agent of the american elite? .........

Re: # 175

Masadi:

"...I am wondering where these morons come up with names like "prohuman" "truth seeker", "free thinker" "azad khayal" and other hypocritical buzz words..."

Now what kind of a thought is this, Masadi? A gutter thought, I presume. When someone suggests you to do yoga and meditation, you cry moron...

prohuman writes "You're a superman, mate"

sometimes truth get a brief chance to escape from their dirty mouths and minds....

TNITC masadi

Re: # 174
Thus spoke masadi. You're a superman, mate.

I am wondering where these morons come up with names like "prohuman" "truth seeker", "free thinker" "azad khayal" and other hypocritical buzz words invented by the West who has never lived up to them and these morons personify that in their person, their posts are full of hate for the vast majority of humankind and they equate the exposing of the barbarous elite as if it was "anti human", go figure..... but as their high priest GWB said, "bring em on" morons.....

TNITC masadi

moron #172 and #171. Knowing what an Arabic word means does not make one a descendant of Abu Bakr, otherwise those you worship would all be his descendants given how many semitic words have entered the English language.

Regarding how a person subjectively "feels" time, I wouldn't expect morons to understand that. For them external stimulation and slavery define the miserable time they spend on this planet.

Have a nice day and rent some morals if you cannot because of your dirty nature possess them,

TNITC masadi

Re: # 147
masadi: :The answer was "wrong" only if the teacher happened to be a worshipper of the white man like tahmed. Otherwise, scientifically speaking, masadi was dead on!:

Right. masadi stood up and let loose speeches about white crusaders when all the poor teacher asked him to do was to answer a simple arithmatic equation.
"Children, what is 9 X 7? Yes, Masadi."
"White! I hate white! And hindus and jews and christians too. And ..."

Re: # 107
masadi: "Ana writes "The way time's a flyin'"

Time is flying because life in a rationalized structure is meaningless and memory less, it is one long drag and so brain doesn't get memory impressions that are significantly different to gauge the passage of time.

I have the copyright on this explanation."

Right. You have a copyright to obbsessive cyber-phsychosis too and jihad-bin-keyboard.

Re: # 106
masadi:
::rf writes "Barack or Barak means 'lightning' in Hebrew." ::
As does Buraq in Arabic.

As does Bukkshit in masadi.
Cut us some slack, masadi. You are a subcontinental mammal, so stop always posing yourself as someone with familiy linkage to chalipha Abu Bakar.

truth_seeker #167-9: those were very profound posts. I am greatly impressed by the quality of indian education. "refreshed", as you would say.

#166 Posted by Pew_Research

" But the man is old enough to be a grandpa. Don't you think that he should be a bit more mature? "

I think that is how an average Paki behaves.

#165 Posted by tahmed32
" as John Updike put it: “A healthy male adult bore consumes each year one and a half times his own weight in other people’s patience�.

So John Updike is the source of your inspiration!! I thought it was Osama bin laden

#162 Posted by tahmed32

It just so happens that in India, people try to analyse whatever information/education that is given to them and follow their conscience whereas in Pakistan people are so dumb that they believe everything told to them by the madrassas and don't tend to differentiate between the right and wrong. They have their holy scriptures to teach them that type of culture.

You know, qu'ran is infallible.

Why?

Because qu'ran says so.

Re: # 159 Hamidm2

I think that Tahmed is naive. Around 9/11 and the Iraq invasion, he was head over heels in love with Bush that would have put Karl Rove to shame. Many moons ago he lapped up the nonsense that Musharraf dished out in Washington when he went to visit him at a Pakistani gathering. After that honeymoon was over, he was all for the 'droopy eyed one' (to borrow your phrase). Now it is Zardari, and I am beginning to notice, Obama. But the man is old enough to be a grandpa. Don't you think that he should be a bit more mature?

further to #164, as John Updike put it: “A healthy male adult bore consumes each year one and a half times his own weight in other people’s patience�.

#161 truthseekers: i have no problem with differences in views. it is just that chowk time is too precious to be wasted on dullards and bores.

Whoever is red-flagging truth_seekers posts below, please red-flag mine too. I need to be banned in order to stop wasting time on chowk.

truthseeker #160 In that case, I assume it just happens that chowk has more than its share of those students of Indian education who flunked out on these various courses on "Insaan Banega", "Sab Hain Bhai Bhai", "Paki Citizens are Good".

#156 Posted by tahmed32

"#155 pepe le pew: Excuse me if i have left any doubt in your mind that i have any interest in your views."

Next step for you would surely be to apply blasphemy laws.

Unfortunately for you, the blogs are meant for exchange of views. the REAL give and take. It is not YOU give and OTHERS take.

Grow up!

#157 Posted by tahmed32

"what do they teach you in india other than nursing grudges for 1947??"

You asked me? Like in Pakistan, they teach so many wrong things to us in India.

1. All Gods are one.
2. Tu hindu banega na mussalman banega, insaan ki aulad hai insaan banega.
3. Kafir is a non believer i.e. an atheist. It is not the one who does not believe in allah.
4. Eeshwar allah tero naam, tahmed32 ko sanmati de bhagwaan
5. hindu muslim sikh isai, sab ke sab hain bhai bhai
6. Bahadur shah zafar was a good king and angrez were bad
7. Paki politicians are bad and paki citizens are good. They are our brothers.
8. Survival of Pakistan is in the interest of India.

Re: # 155

stinky,

.... you have to pardon tahmed - he sometimes confuses zardari with thomas jefferson ...........

Re: # 139

ana,

... no, i was just friends with the bully and tried to stop him from pulling down masadi's pants during recess, but he wouldn't listen ...... i failed and masadi became what he is today - a raving lunatic! ...... you don't know how traumatic it is for a boy to be depanted in front of his mates ........

truth_seeker #154: the phrase is "that was refreshing". what do they teach you in india other than nursing grudges for 1947??

#155 pepe le pew: Excuse me if i have left any doubt in your mind that i have any interest in your views.

Re: # 140 Tahmed

"...and now with a democracy in place, their time is up...."

Sahib, you take democracy in Pakistan a bit too seriously. Really, we all know that it is a joke. The military still calls the shots and Zardari is a figurehead. He can't deliver peanuts! When your National Security Advisor spoke the truth on CNN, he was fired! Zardari tried to move the ISI to the Interior ministry only to backtrack. He promised that the ISI chief will visit India, only to backtrack. This kind of democracy is a cruel joke that you happily lap up!

#141 Posted by tahmed32

That was freshening!

#137 Posted by hamidm2

And the prophet said he was the last.

hamid mia

"if i was masadi, i would find a rope and hang myself from the ravi bridge ........."

Don't suggest such things to masadi. The chowk needs him.

#125 Posted by masadi

"rapes around 1 million"

Mercifully, you don't need bearded momeens to watch them being raped for getting them justice.

#125 Posted by masadi

PBUH

masadi: write 500 times - "President Obama Rules!"

ana #146 better yet, i shall agree to agree!! now that i am thoroughly confused, i think i'll have my dinner.

tahmed writes "Masadi was the fellow who always had his hand up when the teacher had a question, and always got the wrong answer when given the chance to respond."

The answer was "wrong" only if the teacher happened to be a worshipper of the white man like tahmed. Otherwise, scientifically speaking, masadi was dead on!

Have a nice day,
TNITC masadi

tahmed saab: hamid's lows are masadi's highs and vice-versa

*sigh* I have no maternal instincts. I think certain urges here vis-a-vis Masadi are misplaced.

let us agree to disagree here.

ana: your maternal instincts towards mr. masadi are admirable, but misplaced. hamidm's lows are masadi's highs.

Faruk #142 only in Swat (pop. 250k or 0.1 percent of the population). and only temporarily. indians cling to very thin straws when you dream of pakistan being run over by mullahs.

tahmed saab: in that case my money is more on the persevering masadi than on the miscreant hamid. At some point, masadi was to learn something. hamid never learned not to talk in class. :)

in your illustration, I personally relate more to masadi!

tahmed32 #140

What do you mean. Are you trying to suggest that you need the peoples permission to do Allah's good work.


The bearded folk are making laws and implementing instant justice.


Regards,


Faruk

ana #139 hamidm was the guy who was told to write "I will not talk in class" five hundred times after class by Katta (the late, lamented history teacher). Masadi was the fellow who always had his hand up when the teacher had a question, and always got the wrong answer when given the chance to respond.

#136 Faruk: these bearded ones are not voted into power by Pakistanis - they are thrust into power by ambitious military generals (Hamidm's corp commander cousin and so forth). and now with a democracy in place, their time is up.

hamidm:

[masadi is like that odd looking kid on the playground that everyone picks on ........ the odd looking kid usually grows up to be a serial killer, a homosexual, a pedophile or a sociologist]

and let me guess, you were the bully who was so full of himself, right?!

#134 and are you one of those ageing infants we have on chowk?

Re: # 134

lamnew,

.... masadi is like that odd looking kid on the playground that everyone picks on ........ the odd looking kid usually grows up to be a serial killer, a homosexual, a pedophile or a sociologist ............

re: tahmed32 # 131

We have a lot more than just the family law crap this side of the border. But that does not take anything away from the efforts of Allah's merry men to save you from the indo-american media conspiracy.

Regards,

Faruk

re: hamidm2 #117

"...... if india was like bollywood we would get along just fine ..."

But we have to solve the Kashmir issue first.


Regards,

Faruk

I find it funny that three really old men(anil, hamid, tahmed) have taken it upon themselves to follow masadi.

He may not be bad looking but I am kind surprised at the obsession here. At this ripe old age they still have designs on young guys.. Bad habit! give it up.

re: hamidm2#117
".... i really didn't know much about bollywood until recently ....."

Who says the Pakistani govt. can't enforce its laws. Their ban on Indian movies worked on one Pakistani.


Regards,


Faruk

Faruk #130 At least we dont have the Muslim Family Laws crap in Pakistan.

#129 hamidm: please..you are too kind with your compliments ("pompous self-righteous jackass"). Do I need to now take a bow and make an acceptance speech? Here goes: "Thank you O Lord for showing me the path to chowk, where where Jack the Ripper would appear more righteous and a jackass more smart than this spawn of the Pakistan Military Academy, the Totally Washed-Out Hamidm!

re: babua #101
"i hope the world realizes that hollywood and bollywood are coming together in an unholy alliance to dominate the world. "

Don't worry, the men with beards are out to save you. I heard they have banned movies and music.

Regards,

Faruk

masadi mian,

.... i apologize for my rude and cruel behavior ...... i thank you for beating up on tahmed mian once in a while - he is a pompous self-righteous jackass who needs to be smacked and you do a pretty good job at that .......

..... come here and give me a big hug!

.......... if i was masadi, by now i would have developed a full blown persecution complex, acute paranoia and debilitating schizophrenia ......... if i was masadi, i would find a rope and hang myself from the ravi bridge .........

masadi's song:

Why's everybody always pickin' on me
Charlie Brown, Charlie Brown
He's a clown, that Charlie Brown
He's gonna get caught
Just you wait and see
Why's everybody always pickin' on me

Re: # 123

Masadi:

Itna gussa. Can I suggest yoga and meditation for you, instead of sewer pipe inspection? Your outlook may improve.

Anil writes "Afterall you plagarized from Mills and may be numerous others."

Please learn the definition of plagiarism. I challenge you to provide even one instance of any plagiarism on my part. moron.

Things don't "evolve" under capitalism, they merely fit into the relationships predetermined by its structure, as do countries. They don't teach about the World System at HBS, rather keep to your rant of laissez faire and entrepreneurship..... moron

TNITC masadi

Pardesi writes "since i live in a civilized society"

A society that batters over 3 million women a year, judges them on a narrow image of sexuality, rapes around 1 million, destroys countries and kills millions of civilians over contrived fake claims and turns a blind eye when its sidekick is butchering hundreds if not thousands over two injured partisans is anything BUT civilized.

Have a nice day,

TNITC masadi

hamidm,

masadi abhi tau wapas aaya hai, and you don't torment tahmed sahib enough?! :)

I make one post and the jamadars are all over them like this anil fellow who doesn't understand a thing, and after the jamadars have left the thanadars appear and ban me for a week while absolving the BS of the jamadars....chowk a community of jamadars and thanadars and unethical shrinks.... great going

TNITC masadi

Re: # 104

Masadi:

"...Not coming together, coming together signifies some form of equality. Here the top and the slave are well separated..."

How many non-religious, non-Mills movies you have seen in your life to become expert on Hollywood and Bollywood? Or is it "chalta hai" Masadi talking as usual?

Please read how things evolve and how we live in connected world. Afterall you plagarized from Mills and may be numerous others.

# 115 tahmed

:)

Re: # 106

Masadi:

"...As does Buraq in Arabic..."

And in Masadi language, he means running dog of racist elites of America.

Wah Ji Wah, and it is not a chinese restaurant.

Re: # 111

Masadi:

"...The mainstream ..."

When you have been inspecting and make living out of sewer inspection, then your mainstream is understandably different from the rest.

chowk staff,

please ban masadi - he is bothering tahmed

Re: # 101

bubba mian,

.... i really didn't know much about bollywood until recently ..... to be honest - and i hope the horrible hindoos are not listening - i find some of their stuff rather good ........ the other day i saw this movie with preti zinta and one of the khans which was set in australia .... it was quite funny and entertaining .....

....... if india was like bollywood we would get along just fine ... unfortunately, india is full of banias, khatris and other assorted madrasis - horrible people!

Re: # 114

tahmed mian,

... so you are saying that restoring droopy is not important any more? ..... that's what zardari says

#113 Pardesi: please go easy on masadi. he tries to improve himself (as in TNI Masadi).

Hamidm #89 With wannabe-king musharraf carried out of office by the ear, it doesnt matter so much when the second shoe (i.e. restoration of the supreme court) drops. So, while there are many good reasons to visit Islamabad, participating in some demonstration or eating from pizza hot (not pizza hut!!) is not one of them.

# 111 masadi - since i live in a civilized society, i am not used to jerk talk like you and wont respond in your language.

Good bye!!!

#106, actually it is "Barq", Buraq was a derivative name for a fictitious ride attributed to the prophet not mentioned in the Quran.

pardesi writes "Vikram pundit, Indra Nooyi and numerous other Chinese and Indian executives who are running major corporations and research centers are well respected."

Well respected maybe but i) not because of their Indianness but how well they have molded themselves based on the "white" norm and ii)They are unknown with respect to their Indianness in the mainstream.

The mainstream racist culture of the US associates Indians with cheap motels and Chinese with restaurants that serve dog and cat meat as chicken.

Have a nice day and keep up the struggle for your right to be respected for who you are not how well you kiss the white man's a$$

TNITC masadi

105 masadi - "motel and restaurant operators"

Vikram pundit, Indra Nooyi and numerous other Chinese and Indian executives who are running major corporations and research centers are well respected.

Anyway, the book talks about a) future projections based on education and economic trends and b) economies in their home countries or their neighborhood. There is no doubt that Chinese and Indian future is bright and unless they screw up in a major way (always a possibility), their economic output, and therefore influence, will be substantially higher over next 10-20 years than other countries who are unable to join the race for one reason or another.

Re: # 106

Welcome back Masadi

I have stated the same, thanks

later....

Ana writes "The way time's a flyin'"

Time is flying because life in a rationalized structure is meaningless and memory less, it is one long drag and so brain doesn't get memory impressions that are significantly different to gauge the passage of time.

I have the copyright on this explanation.


TNITC masadi

rf writes "Barack or Barak means 'lightning' in Hebrew."

As does Buraq in Arabic.

pardesi writes "Indians and Chinese are considered future competitors in knowledge....."

You have it wrong, they are considered motel and restaurant operators respectively, no competition is involved in the equation, they are looked down upon based on racism which is endemic to the American structure.

TNITC masadi

bubba writes "i hope the world realizes that hollywood and bollywood are coming together in an unholy alliance to dominate the world. "

Not coming together, coming together signifies some form of equality. Here the top and the slave are well separated, before it was unwilling theft of story lines and ideas, now it is willing. In the end neither of them has any political depth and always present public issues in terms of personal moral failing to promote the status quo of a barbaric structure that is legitimized by moral slogans....

Did I cross the line again for chowk staff to ban me for 24 hours and then throw the key away for 7 days? Or did I cross Sohail by reporting him to the CPA which has asked me to report him to the local licensing authority, which I might do the next time he publishes his unethical pieces...

Have a nice day,

TNITC masadi

# 102 CA,

Ummahwallas have lots of oil money and could have owned all the studios and propagate their positives. Instead, they funded madrassas all over the world and the graduates are running around doing evil things.

bubba uncle, its called ownership. When you start buying up production companies and studios in the US, you as a paki, can also make movies lauding terrorism, throat slashings, burning of schools, etc. etc....you know shit pakis are known for. Until then...you can sit in Hmadim's godhi and watch Chandni Chowk to China

Re: # 97 Posted by hamidm2 on January 27, 2009 8:19:30 am

hamid mian,

the thing that surprises me the most is how bollywood is fanning the political fire. this despicable lot is nothing but mafiasos who are now collaborating with hollywood's warner brothers to take over the world wide entertainment business. it is frightening indeed. i hope the world realizes that hollywood and bollywood are coming together in an unholy alliance to dominate the world.

I thought I had posted this, but

arjun:

Slumdog Millionaire is out on DVD in late February. The way time's a flyin' you may not have to wait for long.

Arjun and hamidm,

There is bit of truth in what hamidm said - Americans do not like Indians that much - but for different reasons.

Indians and Chinese are considered future competitors in knowledge based economies while Arabs (and their lackeys) are just diverting USA attention and resources. This case is made by the following writer and he thinks that Chinese and Indians are building their economies (source of future wealth and power) and worst thing about it is that they do not allow us to hate them since they dont do stupid things like Ummahwalas are famous for. The message - longer term worry about these Asians :)

Ref: The war for wealth : the true story of globalization or why the flat world is broken / Gabor Steingart.

Re: # 97

hamid sahib

Slumdog Millionaire had a scene where a child was blinded by these thugs, most terrifying yet true depiction of how poor children are exploited and abused across the world. Next time u r in Pakistan on Eid, take a look at the kids begging for money, horrifying thought if they too are victims of such violent crimes.

Re: # 95

bubba mian,

....i would be more concerned if the dogs were protesting - unlike the hapless slum dwellers the dogs have powerful friends in the spca and the royal kennel society ........

Re: # 87

Dear sensitive one,

"obama didnt need to say that - the fact that he has retained his arab first name (barak = grace)"

Anyone with the rudimentary knowledge of Arabic would know meaning of Barak comes from baraka=blessings or barak=lightening.

Normally, I would avoid you but since no one is correcting your mistake, I find it duty bound to correct this grave injustice.

From Wiki:

Barack Obama's first name is the anglicized version of Baraka, which means 'blessing' in Kiswahili (aka Swahili), a language spoken by Senator Obama's Kenyan father.

The word "Barack" is shared among several languages. First, it is a word in the (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semitic_languages) Semitic family of languages. As such it mistakenly has been thought to have the root in Hebrew written as baruch, but since the word Barak in Hebrew exists independently, pronounced as Barak with no twisting of sounds, it is the true word from which any meaning should be taken. A version in Aramaic (berek), a version in Arabic (baraka). (See Strong's Hebrew Bible Dictionary, entries 1288-1294.) It also occurs as a loan word in non-Semitic languages that have been influenced by these Semitic languages, such as Kiswahili (the most widely spoken African language). As often happens, cognate words are similar in pronunciation. What appears in a later-appearing language may sound like something else in the earlier language. And in English we sometimes see words that are pronounced the same and even spelled the same, but that have very different meanings.

Baraka means 'blessing' in Kiswahili and comes from the Arabic spoken by the Omani Arabs that lived and traded along the coast of East Africa. Though it came to Kiswahili from Arabic it no longer has any sectarian connotations and is in common use amongst East Africans of all faiths. It is a common name for boys in Kenya and Tanzania.

Barack or Barak means 'lightning' in Hebrew. The name Barak is also mentioned in the Bible in the book of Judges. Barak was part of the story of the prophetess Deborah.

Hamid mian,

You can read some opinions on this site:

Don't call us dogs, say Slumdog protesters in cinema rampage

Armed police guard picturehouses after India's poor claim that hit film title violates their human rights

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article5597745.ec e

Re: # 91

arjun mian,

.........stop acting like a cheap bania and spend the ten bucks to see the movie at a theater like the rest of us ......... if you want, you can sneak in your idlee and bhaji roll to stink up the place

Re: # 91

arjun mian,

.... americans don't love you horrible hindoos as much as you think ........ your sorry h1-b arse will soon be on a plane back to keralaland, or wherever you came from ....... as it is, the quota for code coolies has been reduced by more than half since 2004 ..... on the other hand, paki cab drivers, who provide an essential service, continue to be welcomed in new york ........

Arjun, let me know by PM if you find one :).

#90 Posted by Pew_Research on January 27, 2009 4:08:44 am

What prophetboy forgets is that 2/3rd of americans have a positive opinion of india and 2/3rds of americans have a negative opinion of pakiland...

does anyone have a torrent site I can get this movie from? I don't think the DVD will be out before summer..

Re: # 87 Tahmed

"this name proves that the US is above such petty communal/ethnic hatreds that plague india and pakistan..."

Sahib, I know that you are keen to hyphenate India with Pakistan. Fact is, that India is closer (and perhaps ahead of) to the US ideals than Pakistan is to India's in some areas - especially when representation of minorities is the issue. India has had far more elected and appointed officials in high office of different religious persuasions and crossing religious/ethnic fault-lines than the US has. It took the US nearly 200 years to grant universal adult sufferage. India has had it since '47. Affirmative action in the US is a suggested public policy, in India it is enshrined in the Constitution.
Enough said.

Re: # 87

tahmed mian,

..... when hussein, the great black hope, came to detroit he made sure that he was not photographed with the two hijabi campaign workers .......... i think that was smart - i would have done the same thing ...... it is okay to patronize moslems, but you don't have to fraternize with them .....

..... by the way, you did not answer my question: are you going to put your butt where your mouth is and join the dharna on march 9? ...... like i said before, spring is a lovely time in islamabad and i will make sure you are supplied with nihari from committee chowk and pizza from pizza hut ........... you want to make sure droopy is back on the bench so that he can indemnify zardari's 18th amendment just as he did musharraf's 17th .... and while you are fattening yourself at the dharna, you might want to ask the chief tabalchi, aitizaz ahsan, and the harmonium wala, ali ahmed kurd, to get the story straight on their nautch girl's record ........ you should have seen ali ahmed dance around the questions on jawab deh - it was pathetic ..........

Re: # 81
bheen...
watch the movie Guru ( people say, the movie should be named Dhiru)....making of one of richest family on this planet...

#82 bheenagaram: obama didnt need to say that - the fact that he has retained his arab first name (barak = grace), his muslim middle name and his african last name proves he does not suffer from any complexes. and the fact that he won the election witht this name proves that the US is above such petty communal/ethnic hatreds that plague india and pakistan.

and the fact that al qaeda and masadi are making racial epithets against Barak speaks for itself about where they are.

Folio #49 true. i was merely attempting to annoy some of your countrymen here.

Re: # 81
Bheen...
You should not put cap on creativity. If it is derogatory to India,GoI should have banned the book...It is absolutely OK, if that fellow shows 5% of the movie complete absurd....Don't we watch 100% absurd movies like Indiana Jones and the last crusade and praise Spielberg....

At least homeless people in NY will get some solace....

#21 Posted by VRV on January 24, 2009 3:21:48 pm

I dont know why filtered it. The boy in the movie does that. Prolly Chowk admin guys didnt see the movie.

Re: # 82
bheen...
Oil demand has shrunk...

Obama: U.S. not your enemy
http://news.yahoo.com/s/politico/20090127/pl_politico/18016

"I have Muslim members of my family. I have lived in Muslim countries," Obama said, according to a White House transcript. "My job to the Muslim world is to communicate that the Americans are not your enemy."

The Al Arabiya interview, directed squarely at Muslims around the world, revived a vision of personal, symbolic international change that was in the air when Obama - with his far-flung family members, and complicated story - launched his campaign. It was a vision, and an aspect of his story, that the candidate buried when, in 2007, was forced to combat whispering campaigns about his own faith.

The US Iran negotiations after the Obama Interview!
Negotiating with Iran could be interesting.

US: Stop your nuclear weapons progam.
Iran: We don't have one and you know it.
US: Yes you do. We know it.
Iran: No, we don't (and you have proof).
US: I don't care! Stop it, or else!

US: Stop supplying the Iraqi insurgency.
Iran: Why would we promote an insurgency against our friend, the government of Iraq?
US: Because your're perverse and devious Iranians.

US: Stop supporting terrorism.
Iran: You mean terrorism like bombing hospitals, schools, ambulances and wedding parties?
US: No, we mean terrorism as in supplying Hezbollah and Hamas.
Iran: I see, so they can have their hospitals, schools, ambulances and wedding parties bombed with impunity?
US: You don't get it. Stop it or else we'll bomb your hospitals, schools, ambulances and wedding parties.
Iran: If you agree to lift economic sanctions and not attack us, then we'll consider it.
US: No deal!

Iran: So you have proof that we have no nuke program, we have no reason to support the Iraqi insurgency, and you can have a deal on the table for what you call terrorism. Could we just do a deal and be done with all this nonsense?
US: No.

Iran: What else do you want?
US: Can't say.
Iran: Well, then, we can't help you.
US: Yes you can! You know what it is.
Iran: No, please tell us.
US: No can do.
Iran: So are we supposed to intuit your desires?
US: HAND OVER THE OIL, DAMN IT!! Or we'll blow you to smithereens.
Iran: Like Iraq? How did that work out? Getting any more oil?
US: Shut up!!!

SDM is not a good movie. It is not fair to Indians.
Everyone wants to show 1 billion poor but no one wants to make a movie about the 5 billionaires we have. That is no joke. At partition we had none but poverty was still there.
They should show our Indian Billionaires more...

Re: # 73
Krishna...
Nice pic.....
Take out the CFL...it looks like a scene from pirate movie of 13/14th century...
Jinnah's mission is successful....he is successful in creating large farm of genetically modified arabs....

Re: # 34
lamnew...
I was knowing that this mal-practice is very much prevalent in bihar? it had spread to punjab too...
there was a joke about the state of education in bihar...

an old person war going from Kolkata to haridwar for pilgrimage. he was taking his dog along with him. On the way, close to Patna, he found one University...so, he is university graduade, but not his dog...he had thought of acquiring some degree for his dog from the university. He asked the registrar, "how much is required to get an M.A.?","200 bucks"," OK please issue the certificate in the name of my dog...", "Oh, no, this university is only meant for donkeys..."

laddu...
so far, I have not seen the movie.qualitatively european directors are better than 99.99% of hollywood directors...we can expect better movie than that of master of hollywood sh**, Spielberg (remember Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, where Shivaites were sacrificing human life!!! the height of sh**, which is not even entertaining like actions of Rajnikanth)...

Laddu...
Mumbai hosts world's largest slum and dirtiest place, Dharavi...no movie can show it in original form. it will make horror movie...a lot of mumbai ardooo/urdooo movies shows bits and pieces of this horror...there is no point cribbing about it....

if somebody is not driven by propaganda, let us accept it...I can remember that musla nautch girl come MP, Nargis even critised maestro Satyajit Ray for selling Indian poverty to the world...let us hope, many of the indians reach the intellectual level above Nargis....

Now, if Pakis demand that, British directors have to make movie on slums of Karachi too, let them do that...but then somebody in Karachi have to write the novel for the director.....

Re: # 46
hamidm2...
when have the pakis become so intellectual? using film etc.!!! isn't it forbidden to muslas?

I am not being sarcastic when I say I enjoy Paki mujra videos; they are so bad that they are actually good if you know what I mean

FINALLY ! Its OUT !! YEAHHH !!!

The CD whose release I’ve been waiting for ALL THIS TIME !!!!

WELCOME NARGIS – Volume 3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruOAKhxKT5g

From BBCNEWS.....

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/08/south_asia_enl_ 1232963427/html/1.stm

Arjun, if you have the the bypass for the hotlink-prevention software, maybe you can post this picture for the Pakis to see.

: )

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=QqisW6p6_5E

Some 120,000 people live in squatter settlements in Ibrahim Haidery on Karachi's coastline struggling to earn a living. They endure extreme weather conditions and survive on next to nothing

How about these slum-dogs of karachi.

they must be enjoying 5 star facilities that momeen brothers provide to them.......

SLUMS IN THE WAY OF KARACHI PROGRESS

Karachi is Pakistan's biggest city and greatest hope, with aspirations of becoming the next Shanghai. But in the way of its rapid progress stands Asia's largest slum.

Slums sits in the heart of the financial capital, but plans to transform it are being met with fierce opposition.

Every inch of the slum is occupied. Rows of corrugated iron shacks are packed with the belongings of the hundreds of families who live here. Young children play with stray dogs among the filth and rubbish. There is little sign of clean drinking water and the sanitation facilities are appalling - up to 80 people are forced to share one toilet.

Slums of Karachi like Layri, Akhter Colony, Korangi & others bears all the hallmarks of Pakistan's most crippling problems. Sixty-year-old Razman has been living in the slum for 10 years. He invites our group members into his tiny home. There is a small stove in one corner and a tired old fan, if we stretch our arms out we could touch both walls of the room that is home to the five members of his family, including two small children.

"We want change and for conditions to improve for the people who live here. There is nowhere for my grandchildren to play but I cannot afford to move from here," he says.



"My vision would be that it would be transformed into one of the better suburbs of Karachi - it will be forgotten as any kind of slum - there will be state of the art modern amenities and a lot of happy people living�, Karachi Government



But many of the residents have other ideas. They refuse to be transformed by international companies who have little or no idea of their community and what it needs.

Their neighborhood may be plagued by a crippling infrastructure but at the heart of Karachi is a bustling business district that generates up to $39m a year.

The tiny alleys that lead through the maze that is Asia's biggest slum are packed with small workshops. Here tanners thrash the hide of freshly cut leather and paint the square strips to be sewn into handbags. It's the kind of business that keeps half of the residents like Aslam Khan in employment.

"I would not be able to afford the cost of hiring a room outside Layri. If the plans of demolishing Layri of Expressway project goes ahead, we will lose so much business," he says.



Many are suspicious that the motivation to demolish Layri is purely about money. The slum is a prime location for the financial capital, which makes the land its worth to be weighted in gold.

Syed Ali grew up in Karachi's slums and now represents the slum dwellers in their fight against the government's plans.

"Selling this land to the global market and giving it over for commercial use - how will that improve our lives? Ninety per cent of the people here want a stake in their future and a say in how it is transformed. It has to work from the bottom up - not top down. They have tried to tackle Layri before and never been successful," he says.



Visitors to the slum are struck by the uniqueness of Layri - most describe it as being like a city in itself, with a community of people living and working together which many wish to preserve. In return for building tenement houses to shelter the former residents, the chosen developer will win the right to build on the rest of the land. The plans could be used as a blueprint to tackle poverty in the rest of Pakistan's slums. But the planners and the government face a fierce battle. Close to where the slum sits is the main railway track bringing trains from across Pakistan to its wealthiest city - and the slum dwellers threaten to bring it to a grinding halt

Syed Ali says if the plans are given the go-ahead "all we have to do is simply step out of our homes".

He explains: "We will completely block the railways. A hundred thousand of us will squat there and bring the whole city and the whole of Pakistan to a stop."



ADULT MORTALITY IN SLUMS OF KARACHI



OBJECTIVE: Cause-specific death rates are rarely available to guide health interventions for adults in South Asia. We report mortality patterns among Karachi's urban poor.

METHODS: We conducted verbal autopsies for adult deaths under active surveillance during 1990-1993 in five urban slums of Karachi. Two physicians (Dr. M. Amin Panawala & Dr. Irshad Ali) assigned underlying cause of death by consensus. Analysis included cause- and category-specific rates , 45Q15s and comparison with 1991 Japanese national statistics.

RESULTS:

* All 345 adult deaths (15-59 years) in the 5 slums (total population 415,389) were included.
* Male mortality exceeded female (4.4 vs 3.3/1000, p = .02).
* Noncommunicable diseases claimed 59% of deaths, communicable and reproductive 27% and injuries, 15%.
* The leading identified death rates (/100,000) among women were: circulatory disorders (66), maternal causes (33), tuberculosis (30), and burns (23).
* Among men they were: circulatory disorders (124) tuberculosis (30) and road traffic accidents (30).
* Overall Karachi adult mortality was 3.7 times Japanese rate. Compared to Japan, adults in Karachi had one to two orders of magnitude excess mortality due to maternal causes, tuberculosis and burns.
* Circulatory disorders and tuberculosis accounted for 47% of excess male mortality; these plus maternal causes and burns accounted for 55% of excess female mortality.

CONCLUSION: These mortality levels and patterns compel interventions and research for poor urban adults beyond maternal health. Women's health would equally benefit from tuberculosis control or burn prevention. Men need safer travel. Both need improved cardiovascular health.



DETERMINANTS OF CHILD MORTALITY IN SLUMS OF KARACHI



Pakistan has an infant mortality rate (IMR) of 90.5/1000 live births, and the country's child mortality level of 117.5 is worse than in other South Asian countries. Rapid population growth combined with rural-to-urban migration has led to the creation of urban slums in which morbidity levels are usually higher than in rural populations. A study was conducted in January 1993 in 6 slums of Karachi where the Aga Khan University has operated primary health care programs since 1985. Researchers recorded the deaths of 347 children under age 5 years old due to diarrhea and acute respiratory infections (ARI) during 1989-93. 235 mothers of these children were interviewed.

The following are discussed as risk factors for under-5 child mortality:

* the use of traditional healers
* poor nutritional status
* incomplete or no immunization
* the quick change of healers
* inappropriate child care arrangements, and mother’s literacy
* short birth interval, bottle feeding, and nuclear family structure



Maternal autonomy, appropriate health-seeking behavior, and child-rearing processes identified in the study point to the need for intervention strategies which go beyond the usual primary health care initiatives and involve communities in developing social support systems for mothers.

The role of family health-seeking behavior in under-five-year child mortality was explored through the combined approach of examining health-seeking behavior regarding treatment generally, and in specific in relation to illness before death. A population-based case control study was carried out during the period 1993–1994 using 222 deaths from diarrhea and acute respiratory illness (ARI) in children under five years of age in six slums of Karachi as cases, and 419 controls matched on age, disease (diarrhea and ARI) and slum. Factors significantly associated (p

hamid,
a former cop in pakistan told me that the most common excuse for tempo wallas in pakisatan was .... 'buddi any naal naeen lagan dena.....jay paisay naeen faRay.....reham karo...... and the cops would take pity".....so much for the macho male of pakistan

Re: # 65

Hamidm sahib:

Why mian, why do you teach wrong things to good boys, soon your daughters will be bringing their boyfriend / husband. Can you imagine he throws such tantrum and China on the wall right near you sit?

Lagta hai na aapki ammi ne, aur na hi aapki Mrs. Hamidm ne aapko durust kiya. Kaise bach gaye, secret kya hai?

hamid mian,

My wife does wear pants, I met her at a dojo so I am very careful with the things I try.

Regards,


Faruk.

re: truth_seeker54

"One thing I have reservations about him is that he is a beautiful guy (I would have preferred him to be handsome) I can't help imagining him in thick make-up and lip-stick."

I don't know what it is but something about rolly polly hamid mian jumping around singing I am so pretty I am so pretty grosses me out.


Regards,


Faruk

Re: # 63

laddu bhai

Have u considered seeking help? Please do yourself a favor and seek therapy. This is a sincere advice. My apologies if this offends, but its the truth.

Re: # 62

faruk mian,

.... i suspect you are an indian moslem, therefore i am not surprised by your ordeal ...... as i have always maintained, indian moslems are either terrorists or castrated cat-whipped eunuchs! ........stand up and be a man! ... here is what you should do next time you walk into the house:

...... as soon as you walk in the front door, kick the dog (a piece of furniture will do if you don't have a dog) and yell at your woman to bring your slippers ..... if she doesn't do so within three minutes, throw a plate or cup against the wall (make sure it is not wedgewood china ... although i suspect that because of hindoo influence all your utensils are probably stainless steel or clay) ...... next, sit down in a chair (unless you are a gandhian and don't have any furniture) and make her wash your feet (if you are a gandhi disciple you will know what i am talking about) ........ after she is done with that, have her bring you your runny dal and heeng laced bhaji with a chappati or two ........ make sure she swats the flies while you lick your fingers and smack your lips as you consume your supper .... burp .. if you find a grain of sand or hair in your bhaji smack her upside the head (lightly) ....... after you are done with dinner, tell her to go to the bedroom and get ready ..... once she is gone, turn on the discovery channel and watch the primates mating to get in the mood .......... good luck to you

p.s. if she already has a driver's licence and wears pants, it is too late ...... in that case, consult a bride burning expert .......

Slums in Karachi: Cause and Current Situation PDF Print E-mail
Written by www.daily.pk
Sunday, 16 November 2008 04:24
Poverty is not only having a low income but it is rather scarcity of essential capabilities and that comparative scarcity is related to income which can lead to absolute deprivation this is the argument which is placed by the Amritya Sen. He further says that income is not the only mechanism in extracting capabilities; there are many other social and cultural factors as well. He came up with the term 'instrumental significance' for low income whereas; he pointed out the various deficiencies as 'intrinsically important'.

These intrinsically important factors could be disability and old age which require a bread winner to spend more on that old person or it could unequal distribution of resources or any other socially important reason but the conclusion is capability deprivations and result in migration from rural areas to urban areas for better opportunities.

When these people migrate to urban areas they don't have proper shelter to cover themselves and they try to have their own shelters and which result in formation of new slum. The table below shows the population of slum areas in Karachi with respect to number of house holds




Population 1974 1986 2000

709,000 1,036,000 1,064,400

Number of Households


109,077 164,000 148,000

(Source: Mohib & Hassan. The Case of Karachi Pakistan)

Taking the year 1974 as a yardstick we can find out that, till 1986, the population augmented by 46.12% and the number of households increased by 50.35%, a little more than the population increase. Comparing this up to these last twenty six years from 1976, the total population increase has been 50.13%, whereas, the number of household in these slum areas have risen by 35.68%, having a low trend between 1986 and 2000. However, creating housing units is not only solution in accommodating the less affluent class of our society, rather maintenance issues should be sorted out before thinking of building new ones.

According to the survey by Mohib and Hassan, Karachi is in a need of 80,000 units per year but to negative feature of the uncorroborated problem is that the building permits is only to 27,000 annually. Often, the construction that takes place in the so called 'Katchi abadis', is sometimes undocumented and surface way to auxiliary densification. The housing units are developed or in other words maintained solely by the people themselves every year, government support or subsidies are not provided to them. Therefore, the residents of these units themselves pool in for maintenance such as sanitation, water and other necessities needed to make out their living and make both ends meet.

This has gone to the extent that they even have invested in the creation of schools in these slum areas. For instance, in Orangi Town, the population comprises of 1.2 million people and has schooling facilities as well, both private and public. Astonishingly, the private schools even in Orangi Town outnumber public schools. It has been found out that there are 509 private schools and 76 government schools, and out of these 71% of school age children are enrolled in private schools.

When it comes to the health sector, even here, the private clinics out number public clinics with them being 468 and the government clinics having as low a number as 18. They are being run by health visitors and qualified doctors who work both pro bono and for some pay as well. Other health facilities are run by NGO's in this area.

According to a survey of Ghaziabad (settlement in West Karachi) conducted by Mohib and Hassan, income of 20 households was verified, and it was found out that average income of these households was ranging from Rs. 4,500 to Rs. 6000 with average per capita income being as low as Rs. 500. Highest household income had been Rs. 28,000 and the lowest had been Rs. 1,500 was is extremely low not just as compared to the rising cost of living but according to being a resident of the slums.

This frequently turn into complicated situation to meet the expense of a life when on average the number of children in a residence is 9.5 as habitually families have four children and above. This is also shored up by the fact that the birth rate in Orangi is 40.8 per 1000 people. With this surged birth rate, there will be a need of more and more housing units to lodge these people without merely getting their living conditions improved. The sewage, water and electricity problems continue more often in these areas.

KAIRP has been a significant curriculum for the enhancement and regularization for the slums of Karachi. For the accomplishment of this curriculum, a loan of $ 7.3 million was taken from the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank in 2000 although the inhabitants would deny it. The governments representative have say that relevant work has been completed in slum areas and leases have been issued to 108,245 housing units as compared to a total of 415,000 units. However, there is no declaration of the particulars accessible for any work conceded out through these councilor/MNA/MPA funds because of the nonexistence of monitoring and there is a elevated weight age that these funds may have been distorted. These slum areas are not openly connected with the city infrastructure for the reason that of which improvement programs fail. Saeed Zaman Shaikh

The day Pakis can make a film like the slum dog about their under belly of Islamic madarassas , the hira mandis, the karachi slums like Layri, Akhter Colony, Korangi and ofcourse the horrible Qurbani and daily halal killing rituals ....I would consider that some signs of humanity exists in that na-paak land.

Re: hamidm2

Hamid mian I have developed a new found appreciation for your people as you call them. They are putting women in their place in swat and elsewhere. This independent women thing is highly overrated.

I have spent the last two months on what my wife calls a skiing vacation. I have aches and pains all over and I just returned from a six hour shopping ordeal. I should have married a good muslima.

Regards,

Faruk

Re: Article
I think this article says what I want to say about this movie. I liked the movie.

Regards,

Faruk

A sign of Indian maturity

By Rahul Singh

INDIANS — and I daresay Pakistanis as well — are touchy about foreigners commenting on them or their country, whether it is in the form of a film or a book.

Ironically, however, many of these very films or books have actually benefited India. I shall mention some (there are many) here to make my point.

The first is Richard Attenborough’s Gandhi, a magnificent film now recognised as a classic, on the founder and moving spirit of the Indian nation, the saintly Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. It was a huge critical and box-office success, winning several Academy Awards, including best actor for Ben Kingsley’s riveting performance as Mahatma Gandhi. It was also great propaganda for India (a film was also made on Mohammed Ali Jinnah, with the same intention, but it was not nearly as successful).

On my travels I have met many people whose main knowledge about India and Gandhi is through Attenborough’s iconic film. And there are others who have come to India only because they liked the film so much. So, India should be thankful to Attenborough. No such luck. Believe it or not, Attenborough almost never made the film, such was the opposition in India to a ‘foreigner’ depicting Gandhi on the screen. It was only Indira Gandhi’s support for Attenborough’s venture that saw the film through.

Ditto with Freedom at Midnight, a stirring account of how India got its independence, co-authored by a Frenchman, Dominique Lapierre, and an American, Larry Collins. How dare a Frenchman and an American write such a book, said the so-called Indian ‘nationalist’ critics, while picking all kinds of imaginary holes in the narrative. One reviewer even questioned the authenticity of the account in the book of how Gandhi’s assassin, Nathuram Godse, slept with the airhostess whom he met on his flight to Delhi — until Lapierre pointed out that this was based on a report by the Indian police which Indian historians themselves had not bothered to read!

The book sold millions of copies, was translated into several languages and brought tens of thousands of curious foreign tourists to India. If anything, the co-authors should have been honoured by the Indian government. Another book by Lapierre on Calcutta, City of God, got such a hostile reception from some Bengalis that it was almost banned, despite the writer having dedicated his royalties to help the city’s poor.

We Indians — and I suspect Pakistanis, too — are pretty ungracious and thin-skinned when it comes to outsiders depicting us, even sympathetically. Which brings me to the most recent controversy surrounding the film, Slumdog Millionaire. It is the biggest thing to happen to India since Gandhi won 10 Oscar nominations. Though the film’s director is British, its subject is very much Indian: the country’s financial capital and the recent victim of a terror attack, Mumbai. More specifically, it is Dharavi, the city’s — in fact, Asia’s — largest slum, a cesspool of poverty and crime, but also a beacon of hope for some.

Slumdog Millionaire, based on a book, Q&A, by Vikas Swarup, a diplomat who is currently India’s high commissioner in South Africa, revolves around the popular TV show, ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire?’. It tells the rags-to-riches story of a poor slum-dweller, Jamal Malik (played by UK-born actor Dev Patel), who overcomes adversity to become the winner of the quiz show. The female lead is Freida Pinto, a Mumbai-based model.

Apart from the film itself, it’s the music that has created the most waves. The composer is the painfully shy 38-year-old A.R. Rahman, whom Time magazine once dubbed as “the Mozart of Madras�. His is a remarkable story. Born Dileep Kumar, his father, a film music composer, died when Dileep was only 11. The family was thrown into dire poverty, son and mother trying to eke out a living and Dileep dropping out of school. Then, a Sufi pir visited the family and their fortunes changed for the better.

When he was 21, Dileep and his family converted to Islam, he taking the name Allah Rakha Rahman. The same year, director Mani Ratnam, commissioned him to write the score for his film, Roja. The music, with its magical blend of various influences (a major one being that of the late Pakistani singer and composer, Nusrat Fateh Ali) stunned Indians. A succession of successful scores followed. Today, Rahman is widely considered the best film composer the country has ever produced. More significantly perhaps, his music, with elements of pop, blues, African beats, jazz, Indian classical, hip-hop, rap, opera, sufi, Arabian sounds and folk, transcends national boundaries, making him universal. That is his true genius.

But there always has to be a spoiler in India and it came in the form of icon Amitabh Bachchan. In his blog, he said, “Slumdog Millionaire projects India as a Third World, dirty, underbelly developing nation and causes pain and disgust among nationalists and patriots�, while adding, self-righteously, “Let it be known that a murky underbelly exists and thrives even in the most developed nations.�

Bachchan has since then backtracked, saying rather defensively that his words were “misinterpreted� and blown out of proportion. Even more surprisingly, very few Indians have supported Bachchan, an icon otherwise. I find that to be a positive sign that India is changing for the better. Some years back, the film would have been widely condemned, perhaps even banned in India. Today, it is cause for celebration, “dirty underbelly� notwithstanding. Perhaps India has finally begun to mature.

The writer is a former editor of the Reader’s Digest and Indian Express.

singh.84@hotmail.com

Re: # 58 Posted by hamidm2 on January 26, 2009 6:28:27 am

hamid mian,

your attention to my post on Beena's site is desired, regarding why pakis have good looks.

also, i saw this slumdog movie, and i thought it was excellent. why are these horrible chowkies getting confused between facts as it exists on the ground in mumbai, and some fantasy conspiracy created in the NRI diaspora? actually, the washed and cologned civilized people of the world should unite to understand what is happening under the "shining india" rhetoric. i am just waiting on t. friedman to give a twist on this subject in favor of his paymasters.

what say you?

#57 Posted by Folio

"Our hamid2 is the gem of a person if u dont take his posts in literal sense"

Of course I do agree with you. however,if you bet on him, you are done for. I have seen him many times chasing horrible hindoos with some die-hard muslims and suddenly doing a somersault. One thing I have reservations about him is that he is a beautiful guy (I would have preferred him to be handsome) I can't help imagining him in thick make-up and lip-stick.

Second thing is his 'horrible' catchword. Just too horrible. I don't mind the number of 'o's he employs for any particular word.

tahmed mian,

.... forget all this nonsense about some silly film that has aroused the passions of the hajooj and the mahjooj ...... these hindoos are a disgrace to our common ancestors .......

.... are you going to take part in the long march and dharna to reinstate the droopy-eyed one on march 9? ..... according to his chief tabalchi, aitizaz ahsan, and harmonium wala, ali ahmed kurd, members of the washed civil society will camp in front of the parliament until droopy is reinstated .......... my fear is that droopy might be reinstated and then he might indemnify the 18th amendment (like he did the 17th) which makes zardari president for life ...........

......... you better park your butt where your mouth is and join the dharna ........ march-april is the best time of the year in islamabad and i can arrange for biryani or pizza to be delivered twice a day ....... if you want nihari from committee chowk, that can be arranged too .......

..... good luck with your dharna - just make sure you don't gain too much weight .........

truth guy,

Our hamid2 is the gem of a person if u dont take his posts in literal sense. He's meant to kinda injecting adrenaline to both Indians as well as Pakistanis from time to time. That's what I understood in 2 yrs at Chowk.

When he calls us scranwy bhaji eaters he just meant that we're under eaters. He admits to being the grandson his grandpa Gopinath, if u dont know.

hindoos riot on chowk over film that desecrates the holy city of bombay

.... i thought moslems were the only people who went nuts over cartoons of their bedouin prophet (pbuh and his camel) ..... but here we have a full fledged riot by crazy hindoos enraged over what they consider to be a isi-mi5-hollywood conspiracy against the public toilets in the holy city of bombay ....... grandpa gopinath might have been right after all when he decided to convert .......

#54 Posted by Folio

I have seen the full movie myself and I was not referring to the central character of the movie. The movie is set against the background of violence against muslims in response to the Godhra carnage. This is what I was referring to. This was in response to sarcastic comment #46 by hamidm and #47 by tahmed. I was only trying to say that in India you do not need anybody's sponsorship to depict truth.

truth guy 51,

The movie got recognition because of Bombay attacks, otherwise they were planning direct DVD release without theatrical release.

I am not resorting to conspiracies here.

As for Parzania, pl get it right.. It's the story of a Parsi boy Azhar who went missing - possibly lynched by Modi mob in Ahmedabad for his Muslim sounding name as he's too young to know the vicious nature of Gujarati society and susceptible to being naive in the days of carnage - during 2002 pogrom/riots. That's a a semi-documentary and part of history.

#52

Please read non-muslim instead of non-hindu

#42 Posted by Eklavya

"clearly, the movie touched on the plight of India's Muslim community and its children being orphaned in riots instigated by Hindus"

Too bad, rioters spare the children to suffer the agony for the rest of their life. It should have been like in Pakistan where the 15% of the non-hindu population has been reduced to less than 5%

#48 Posted by Folio

Mumbai underwent terrorist attacks recently. Bombay is very much on the minds of westerners. These fellows encashed all these factors.

C'mon don't show your mental age to the Chowkies. Mumbai terror took place in the last week of November, 2008. The film was released in Mid January, 2009. And the film was made in INDIA and not in PAKISTAN. (unless ISI, as per tahmed and another meem, had already tied up with the producer some 6 months ago.)

#46 Posted by hamidm2 on January 26, 2009 4:04:55 am
Re: # 43

There are many such films in India 'sponsored by ISI.' 'Parzania' is one of the latest. Only difference is that the producer/director of the film is still alive and kicking. If there were any films in Pakistan 'sponsored by RAW', the producer would have vanished from this world.

I remember a Paki film where it was shown that muslas fought with Angrez and snatched freedom from them. No Gandhi, no Gaffar Khan, no Subhashchandra Bose, no Bhagat Singh nothing. The hero a freedom fighter, romancing the fiancee of the villain, a fouzee, and, at last heroine sacrificing her love to save the life of the hero....what a muck!!!

tahmed32, Arre saab, Criminal activities are perpetrated by some persons or group of persons not by the whole community. That's true in ur/my country.

U r smart enuff to know that or else u r trying to heat up this board.

Sterotyping is very much part of the script. How else can we assume that Taj Mahal would be part of the movie though the original story was based on a Bombay slumdog?

Look @ this. They use the very very young kids to do dangerous feats like making them hang by rope on a running train and steal rotis & making them talk while sitting on head-on beams of moving train bogies. Govts in the west would put these directors in jail if they'd exposed white kids to such dangerous scenes.

Just to make India exotic Danny Boyle resorted to tricks.

As for awards I think they are like mercy fcuks to India as Mumbai underwent terrorist attacks recently. Bombay is very much on the minds of westerners. These fellows encashed all these factors.

hamidm #46 isi only financed the part about hindu mobs attacking the muslim women and children. the whole world of course knows that hindus dont do such things in india. is there no limit to this pakistani propaganda!! next the isi will be planting stories of hindu mobs raping nuns!!

Re: # 43

laddu mian,

.... i think this movie was financed by the government of pakistan and the isi to make india look bad ... what do you think?

Has anyone seen Danny Boyle's "Trainspotting" -- I haven't seen it but he's got a toilet scene in there too. I suppose one way of looking at it is if you're a Hitchcock fan, how Hitch inserts himself in every movie. A running joke if you will.

#41 nice movie. why they needed that toilet scene i dont know.

Latika was ceerrtainly NOt a muslim character......I would not have minded if instead of linking mumbai muslim victims of riots with Shri Ram they could have linked it with Jehad and Mohammad ............How about the Anil Kapoor asking question about " What was the sword of Mohammad called??" and then showing Momeens killing Laand raping Latikas family members!!!

However, it does show that the script writer had certain bias towards muslim characters by showing them as larger victims in the slums.........

as a matter of fact a lot of muslim gangsters run begging-racket in Mumbai.........apart from the usual extortion racket from their part of ghettoes.

neembu, clearly, the movie touched on the plight of India's Muslim community and its children being orphaned in riots instigated by Hindus. Latika could be a Muslim who had to take on a Hindu/unidentifiable name to protect her honor, or a Hindu who saw it her duty to help Muslims.

Re: # 40

neembu,

.... i don't know abiut latika, but the older brother, salim, had pakistani links ......... according to the horrible hindoos, he was trained by the isi

Any comment on two of the three musketeers being orphans of a muslim community? Was Latika a Muslim with an unidentifiable name?

My take on Slumdog in Dawn, Siliconeer and

http://www.pakistanlink.com/Community/2009/Jan09/23/09.HTM

Ras

Re: # 33
Mind it this movie is all about Bombay Muslas....LOL

Yes, Pakiland will go down the drain further, I admit that these Islamic funddos have just destroyed Pak land and they would continue doing , sad thing is they are in minority and they could easily be thrown out ,if, majority of the people raise strong voices against'em.

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Brilliant movie, highly recommended. Loved the characters, script, direction, camera work and the message of "hope".

Small budget movie made for $15MMM has already grossed $65MM and continues to be seen across the globe. Fantastic.

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India has education system? yes, it does!

Punjab students take Munnabhai route to MBBS

http://news.indiainfo.com/2009/01/14/0901140658_punjab_students_munn abhai _route_mbbs.html

Punjab: Hundreds of Munnabhai's have attained MBBS degrees in Punjab in the past few years, with assistance from nine gangs. The Punjab Police identified 35 persons who provided assured seats in medical colleges to students.

The police have sought arrest warrants for 27 persons involved in the operations, which were spread across Delhi, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, and Chandigarh.

The gangs lured aspirants with promised seats in medical colleges. They would hook up intelligent medicos to appear for the pre-medical entrance test on their behalf. IPS officer LK Yadav, who has been investigating the racket, said an aspirant would pay Rs 15 lakh-Rs 20 lakh for a seat in a medical college. An impostor medico would be paid Rs 5-6 lakh.

The names of members of the nine gangs were divulged to police by Balraj Singh, kingpin of one of the gangs, who was arrested last week.

This new film Slumdog Millionaire comes at just the right time for Indians.

With the growth in India and China's GDP, Americans and Europeans have been feeling increasingly insecure. There has been a general feeling of animosity towards firms that outsource, and Obama has used this feeling to good effect. Americans I have talked to generally fall into two broad categories. The more ignorant amongst them think that India is this high-tech and advanced country where babies are born with IT degrees. The more aware Americans know better, but they are small in number.

This new film will help lull the general American public back into a sense of security and complacency. India is, and will continue to improve on its strengths which will one day invariably make it a world leader - a sophisticated and age-old culture rooted in respect for knowledge and tolerance towards one and all that is unique in the history of mankind and a vibrant national spirit that has once again discovered a can-do attitude and confidence. India is investing, and has always invested in the basics - a strong education system, an inclination towards self-sufficiency and research, and a political identity that is not servile towards anyone.

We need more films like Slumdog Millionaire. While moronic muslas gloat, Pakiland will be falling farther and farther behind India every day.

Re: # 30

It is absolutely stupid to say that "Democracy is a joke" in India after watching slum dog...........just as it is to say "Chinese are more democratic" by looking at Shanghai!!

India needs to spend on Atomic bombs as well as on moon mission ..... it also needs to ensure that the lowliest of creatures in the slums are out of that place.......and the slums are converted to something more hospitable living for the poor......

The recent article of the Slumdog scriptwriter Simon Beaufoy
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2008/dec/12/simon-beaufoy-slumdog-millio naire/print

Eat your heart out Indians, He and the film sees and promotes the Indian caste system and the american dream in disguise.

So, I wander the slums apparently aimlessly, chatting to the children, community leaders, school teachers, beggars, rag-pickers, picking up gossip from the tea-stalls, snippets from the papers, gathering a patchwork of stories that might, goodness knows how, knit together. A gangster trial is never off the front page of the Times of India.

Hindu/Muslim tensions are bubbling up again and the gang of beggars at one of the road underpasses tell me as much as a Dickens novel ever could about the pay-scale of mutilation. Misshapen limbs good, blindness better. I am particularly fascinated by the men and women who sleep on the hard shoulder of the motorways, their heads on a bedding roll a heart-stopping three or four feet away from the wheels of thundering trucks driven by overworked, exhausted drivers. It would only take the minutest misjudgment of the wheel to annihilate entire families of sleepers - something that I later learn is not uncommon. I am wary of approaching them with intrusive questions, but as so often in this city, they are open, happy to talk and politely puzzled at my questions. Sure, they have a slum to go to at night, but it's an hour's walk: if they sleep here right next to the building site they get an extra two hours' work in. Isn't it obvious? To my questions about the noise and the fumes they give me that very Indian, side-to-side shake of the head, which means: maybe yes, maybe no, maybe you make up your own mind and stop asking stupid questions. It's certainly better than working on the fields in the countryside where they all came from and were slowly dying of malnutrition. As to whether they are worried that a truck will kill them, they smile and shrug. Whatever God wills.

Let me see...India spends a Gazillion Dollars on having Atomic bombs..It ignores that the Caste system is alive and kicking.Politicians ALL get into politics to take bribes for favours. People are starving and education is only for the non-poor.

The slums DO EXIST no matter how far the rich stick their heads into the sand or up their butts for that matter.Democracy is a joke.Racism is accepted .The first question asked when a child is born"Is it light skin?" I could go on but you get the drift..

........ here we go again! ...... the horrible hindoos are getting their dhotis all tied up in knots because they think that their beloved 'shining india' has been exposed for the outshouse that it really is .......... for ram's sake, calm down! ......... it is just a movie and a pretty good one at that - it is entertaining, the acting is good, the music wonderful and it just might win the oscar for best film (benjamin button was okay, but the titanic has already won) ..........

........ i am particularly surprised by dost-mittar ji who hasn't even seen the movie and yet chose to lash out in a knee-jerk fashion ........ i guess there is no such thing as a normal hindoo .........

Re: # 22 Sahib:

Perhaps, you are forgetting that the author of the book on which the story is based is an Indian. Also, AR Rehman has received 3 Oscar nominations for the music score. He too, is an Indian.

this movie is about lowest of the hierarchy in the slums - the slum-dogs........there is nothing to hide about it ..we resident Indians have to be ashamed about these lowly , orphan, street urchins in our midst.......and the fact that most of us do nothing about them and allow their exploitation on the streets by the criminals....

NRI-s should take it as an opportunity to understand this harsh reality of indian street children and intervene and donate to NGO-s who are doing good work for the orphans, street children, urchins and dis-possesed kids.......

and resident Indians must hang their heads in shame at not doing anything to improve their conditions...........

This is my type of a movie, must see.

These millionaires wish to hide this harsh reality under their carpet or in their big bins....they are unable to bear it......

Dear writer
I watched Slum Dog Millionaire's first premium show in a small cinema where nobody really goes except for some Indians because that particular insignificant cinema only shows Indian movies....

To my surprise, the hall was full with less Indians and more with Americans.....

To them movie was different than usual Hollywood or bollywood stuff with excellent harsh realities of real Indian culture and it's dark sides......

This movie came like a surprise to me, too. I must admit that this movie made me think and re think about all those harsh realities of third world countries .....I fell in love with this movie instantly and I had such a deep impact on me that I told my family , yes, this is the pinnacle of all movies....and this movie needs to be the best movie of the year....

this movie is absolutely not about negativity, it is about giving shock waves to those millionaires who're now criticizing this movie with their own negative propaganda of intolerance towards their own self created garbage....

This movie is a harsh reality and a slap to those who are unable to face it and just close their eyes.....reality bites and make them more miserable....

Same millionaires , if, wish can replace these slums with decent housings with basic human needs.....And average schools for these slums people...but, all they can do is to criticize on someone who shows them a mirror and they close their eyes, B/c mirror shows them their real ugly faces.....

anyway, overall this is an excellent movie which is worth seeing again and again.....

I have seen the under belly of Mumbai.......and it is really pathetic............it brings tears to my eyes.......

It is not that the slum dogs are the dominent reality....they are just a small part of the lowest hierarchy of these slums........people live in dharavi slums and earn more than a white collared management executive every month......but these people cannot think of using their money to 'develop' houses in the slums.......
it is time we punished these politicians and municipality commissioners , builder mafias and corrupt town planners for what they have done to Mumbai.....

kill them on the streets......

Begaani shaadi mein abdulla diwaana!

I can't understand all this rah-rah celebration in India over this film. The newspapers have been giving banner headlines to the film for several days and TV channels have been devoting special one-hour shows on the film. It's being touted as a great achievement and recognition for India. Why are Indians so pathetic about foreign recognition that they will take ownership of any achievement, even if it shows people falling into shit and feeling happy about it? (from what I have read, I haven't seen the film).

Films should not hide the ugly underbelly of a sosciety and Bollywood of late seems to be more about India Shining than projecting the lives of real people. But, if the reviews of the film and BJ's comments on this thread are any indicator, the film is far from realistic and is, in a sense, a well-made bollywood masala film with improbable coincidences. I have listened to the song "Jai Ho" which has been nominated for an oscar and it is not even one of the best compositions of AR Rahman.

Naqsh:

Indian cinema is an industry, not an art form. As an art, it's dismal but as an industry, it is a huge success and the livelihood of millions of people depends upon it. And to be kind to the film producers, they do make some good films once in a while but they almost always flop. Currently, there is a Naseeruddin starrer film Firaq which I understand is quite good but has not been able to find a good slot in the theatres.

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Indians specially NRI have a huge problem with anything negative shown in movies or in news abt India. They feel that people outside of India look down on Indians anyway and movies and stories like this hurt their ego even further.

There is a unique world of delusion in educated Indian people's mind that their country is as good as the western countries. Bollywood movies perpetuate this delusion. Bollywood movies create the illusion by shooting outside of India that India is rich, prosperous and a happy country. Even the Cable TV India has caught this bug and the middleclass Indians have closed their eyes from the rampant poverty in that country.

Slumdog was the most unpopular movie in NRIs very few Indian publications and websites carried reviews and commented on the movie. Most Chowkie Indians pretended that the movie did not exist.

Indians will talk about the Golden Globe awards but not the movie itself. I am not sure this movie will be a commercial success in India and if it is, it would not be because of the educated middle class but due to the people who live in the squalid conditions in India and can really enjoy the true pictures of their lives in the huge slums in pretty much every Indian city and village.

The poverty in SDM shud be seen in the way it's meant. The kid grows in the slum in early 90s (post-Babri riots) & participates 'Who Wants to be a Millionaire Show' now. So Danny showed both parts a) the worst slums of 90s b) the skyscapers that replace the slums.

The movie is more of a Hindi film than an English film. Even regular Hindi movies have more English dialogues than we saw in SDM (today I saw this Hindi movie 'The President is Coming' it has more English than SDM had).

The truth abt this movie is that if this is made by a Chatterjee or a Chopra or any Indian guy it'd not got this recognition.

More importantly Danny was never in India before this movie. He knew none of the Hindi dialogues of SDM. Loveleen Tandon did most of the direction as it requires knowledge of Hindi language & necessary dialogue modulation. So he used her for direction (nicely called as co-director) but when it comes to Oscar nomination he'd got all the claim. To me it's similar to Edmund Hillary taking the companionship of sherpa Tenzing Norgay to go to the peak of Mt Everest & claim the record of scaling her first.

This is white man's world.

Coming to the main point of poverty I agree with 'laddu' that we shud be ashamed of it than with somebody showing it.

which reinforces my point that british born (or american or anywhere-else-in the West-born) desis are culturally and morally and ethically much more like their host countries than they are like people actually brought up in indo-pak. even the most "liberal" or "maadarn" desi is quite conservative compared to most of us.

If you were born and lived all your life in those poor countries, you compartmentlize your brain to "not see" the poverty, since you are busy working to make more money or advancing your career. Besides, who wants to spend money and see poor folks and harsh realities of life that you can see all around you all day.

Only when you have lived in the west for many years and go back that you see reality that's staring at you. Only then you can see what foreigners are talking about - the sick and poor walking all around you in the trains, bazaars etc.

The elite in those countries simply do not want "that image" portrayed about us. Their pride is hurt since within four walls of their mansions they live better than most people here, and are very proud of their own standard of living.

warning though: skins has a lot of sex and nudity. even the indian guy runs around nude is some scenes.

slumdog is hot favourite to sweep the oscar's. the guy playing the slumdog is a british born indian actor who got his break in an excellent british drama series called Skins.
he played a pakistani teenager in that. the series is a very realistic and funny portrayal of 21st century UK teen life.

highly recommended.

Re: # 12

Naqshbandi:

I watched Ramchand Pakistani and I was disappointed. After watching it, I was wondering what was in it that was movie material.

Other Pakistani movies that I have recently watched are: Khamosh Pani, and Khuda Ke Liye.

I loved Khamosh Pani, and felt director and actors could not do justice to Khuda Ke Liye. Someone of Danny Boyle's caliber and A.R. Rahman's music talents should remake it, it is a powerful theme for a movie.

I went with my daughter to see. My comment was "beautiful", I could not think of anyother word to describe how I felt after watching it.

It portrayed so many aspects -

brother + brother relationship,
Jamal's absolute resolve and belief to get what he wanted whether it was Bachchan's autograph, his girl friend, Anil Kapoor's enticement to cheat, Irfan Khans interrogations;

Salim's fatalistic opportunism and intelligence.

Above all it shows people do have dreams and determination even if they are called slumdogs of Mumbai. What is lacking is right education to dream right.

My thought was going to Kasab, while watching it. I wished he was more like Jamal and not Salim. Evil people are around them to recruit for their cause.

bj sahib,

as a movie international gorrillay was awful. pakistan's film industry --that's being generous!--is even worse than india's although recent films like khuda keliye and ramchand pakistani suggest that things could be looking up.

ahmadmadani sahib i agree with most of what u say. amitabh is an idiot. not even the worst slum in any western country compares with the terrible conditions which avail in india. that's a harsh reality indians have to accept despite the tremendous economic growth in india. it is still a third world country where more than half the world's poor live.

I said this earlier on UP.

I must start with the disclaimer that it was not my idea to go see this movie – I was sort of drafted into doing it. But, having gone and done the deed – here are my two words on it.

I am not big on movies which try to make use of the “ethnic� angle to score brownie points with Western audiences which – thankfully a lot less now than in the past – take the events depicted through such movies as the Gospel truth. A good movie can leave a lasting impression without having crutches of the kind that were shown in this movie.

I found this movie to be a specimen of the typical “class-B� Bollywood formula concoction – except that it was made for Western consumption. If I were that member of the Western audience, I would be VERY puzzled by it. The events were highly improbable, the sense of injustice/outrage all made-up, the plot line totally artificial, and many of the scenes were made deliberately disgusting (which one would never run into in real life). And if all of that were not bad enough, the music and dialog were both too loud.

It was rather pathetic to watch a bunch of ABCD actors/actresses trying to sound more authentic than the Indian-born ones. I have no doubt where most of these “fresh� faces are headed – the dustbin of the movie world!

Frankly, if I were you, I would not waste my hard-earned ten bucks and my even harder-earned afternoon of rest/recreation watching it on big screen. In any case, it is my understanding that, typical of how it goes with many “new releases� from Bollywood – a pirated copy of the flick is already making the rounds!

Re: # 2
[I watched Chandni Chowk to China and have rarely been so insulted by a movie's sheer stupidity. I'd have walked out if it weren't for my wife!]

That's interesting, Naqshbandit miaN!

I never heard you utter such harsh words against the "International Gorillay" movie!

International Gorillay (1990)
Starring: Mustafa Qureshi, Babra, Ghulam Mohiudin, Javed Shaikh, Neeli, Afzal Khan
Director: Jan Mohammad
Synopsis: Sensational epic where dastardly Salman Rushdie sets out to destroy Islam

The movie was made by a guy who saw scotland through an equally gritty lens, so its consistent.

I thought it was actually a very charming portrayal of the underbelly we all know exists. People who havent lived thru that reality are offended, because by virtue of being indian they think its a comment on their life and hence they think its off the mark. Its not. If anything its too optimistic.

Re: # 2 You may have point in west , where most basic needs are met and with good amount of sexual content in social milleu. There may be true best acting is no acting. Where people will not be interested in seeing "nice life" style, good houses, sufficient food etc.
Here is different thing. Here physical life is hard and poor and lack of basic necessities are not met. Majority have no homes compared to west even for middle class. Real things on ground from karach to lahore is Kacchi abadi and slums, no power, no water, no sanitation and for many no food. That is real picture. Even well doing families do not feel best when they know that just few100 yards away is misery, heart breaking poverty, death.
So cinema tries to sell dreams and not real existing real nightmares. So people spend money to forget the present and slip in wishful dream world where all men and women are good looking and hero is poor but virtious and villans are rich and bad looking etc. If you go to any big city or small towns in Pakistan you will come across harrassement for women for many young educated, unmarried ( some times married)lonely, shy sex obsessed and sex starved men and talk filthy about women. For such huge class of men movie is good with full masala, romance and that leads to some sublimation and give chance to release all anger frustaration and become calm. Movie is doing that things successfully.
But it is always intrigueing to see all skakespears major plays that are survived are tragedies Hamlet, Kinglear, MacBeth, Othollo may be sorrow touches deeply our hearts than light funful things.
sorry for transgration about topic at hand.

"Can he name any developed country that has the kind of sordid underbelly India has?"

And even when they do, they have no problems depicting anything anyone likes in their movies. We need to develop that level of confidence.

(At the same time, we should also oppose wilful misrepresentation of the kind that has unfortuantely appeared in some of Mr Shantanu Dutta's own earlier writings on chowk.)

Re: # 5 Movies should be pleasant for mind and make happy so they can be "too" realistic. Why one should pay money to look at ugly actors and actresses. That is it self unrealistic. Art movie itself may be "elitist" thing. I do not know as had not seen movies for decades also can not see also. I always feel people are wrong and do not speak truth when they say looks does not matter. Or even more color complexion some say does not matter. One person criticised me many times as my bias for fair color. He once wtote childish like we should be color blind , myself and most will be colorblind when we are dead. Down with snobish art things.

Re: # 2 Movie production is money making business , economics. Producers know what can be sold. For him is very serious economic venture he has no much luxury. Those who do not put money on line has luxury to produce " art" movies unless govt or NGOs are under writing.If "art" movies can make money in large amounts they can easily do that. Market place decides what is made marketed.

Of course Amitabh is not incorrect when he says that “If Slumdog Millionaire projects India as Third World dirty underbelly developing nation and causes pain and disgust among nationalists and patriots, let it be known that a murky underbelly exists and thrives even in the most developed nations.�


Amitabh is an idiot. Amitabh is allies with the same political elite that perpetuates the very poverty depicted in the movie and he dares talk about murky underbellies in other countries. Yes, they do exist. So what? That excuses India or gives it a free pass? Can he name any developed country that has the kind of sordid underbelly India has?

Naqsh, Roddy Doyle is the Irish writer. The director is Danny Boyle.

Movies above all should be well made and intelligent with good scripts, realistic acting and good direction and cinematography. Indian films usually fail on all these accounts except for cinematography. They continue to churn out cheesy musical melodramas where the acting is so OTT as to be camp and they are as subtle as a sledgehammer. They do not give the audience any credit at all.

Of course Slumdog, Millionaire is a superb movie but Indian it certainly ain't. It's a British/US movie starring Indian actors which is something totally different. Roddy Doyle is the director.

I watched Chandni Chowk to China and have rarely been so insulted by a movie's sheer stupidity. I'd have walked out if it weren't for my wife! I later watched Revolutionary Road and the contrast--though a comparison is absurd!--couldn't have been sharper. Till India makes movies like the latter they don't have a snowball's chance in hell of having their cinema taken seriously as Art in the Western world. Chinese, Japanese, Mexican, Spanish and Iranian cinema have all learned this lesson.

Nothing wrong in showing poverty.....Indians should be ashamed of those slums......