Indian tv needs a face lift

whenever i watch Dexter or greys anatomy on star world all i can think of is when the remote will be snatched from me to watch...yeh rishtha kya kehlatha hai or what not.yes tv serials on hindi channels is basically ruining my life. I am sure many of you would express similar concerns.i know the pain of watching my mom cry through a particularly emotional episode of a popular hindi serial. my mom wept as the girl was sent out of her house. because she forgot to make ladoos! freaking ladoos! if you agree with me continue reading. if you don’t then also continue reading to at least sympathize with me.

when they first aired TV serials. The producers feared that serials will never gain their fame while movies still existed. But today we must all agree, despite the numerous theatres and the many movies.t.v serials have occupied an important part in all our lives. Housewives seem incomplete without them….oh no am not here to talk about the so seemingly monotonous Indian soaps depicting the stereotypical rude mother in law and the ever innocent daughter in law. English series have penetrated in to the Indian television too. be it the serious types such as breaking bad, Dexter and homeland. or the hilarious ones such as the big bang theory and two and a half men. With the wide variety of genres and seemingly endless no. of seasons. English television shows have surely captured the Indian TV viewer too. ..i have been hooked to them ever since i watched it for the first time. 
Though my mom still prefers to watch her silly saas bahu serials. which I find ridiculous, call it the generation gap or what not. The constant stereotypes of the central character who is almost always a woman. Her only job is being the perfect daughter in law; even if she is educated she will make seemingly stupid decisions almost exclusively. She will support all necessary social evils in the name of tradition and customs. Even though most Indian women have progressed so much and are making great strides in their personal and social lives. Such is the state of Indian television today. What do we need? Definitely a revolution. The mind numbing television serials that rule the prime television need to be changed. How many stereotypes do these serials show? The good main character wears saris whereas the evil antagonist wears way too much makeup and modern clothes isn’t this a very offensive stereotype.
 If this is what the young minds of today see. What will their ideologies and morals be when they growup.tv keeps corrupting generation after generation and we have done nothing to change it. i am not entirely supporting the American TV scene. Most of the shows there would have to go through some severe censor board cuts in India. but still i find lesser stereotypes in TV dramas there.atleast not ones which as an Indian audience i can relate to. 
The gay relationships, teenage pregnancy and what not...Indian serials still stick to the routine girl gets married and suffers at in laws stereotype. a very few tv shows have broken such stereotypes and given us meaningful entertainment that does not make us idiots..Very good talk shows have come in south Indian television and a few shows have broken new grounds in the name of entertainment but not all have been very successful. most of have been just blind copying from Hindi channels and English channels.
 But as long as you entertain the audience who cares.satyamave jayate was one such path breaking TV show.it proved to us that not just high on drama reality shows bring in a high trp. and that too a big star like aamir khan doing the show was all the more interesting. not just that even in Tamil TV shows neeya naana has often touched upon certain sensitive day to day issues and brings out the views of the people like no other show. 
There have been a few positive changes on the Indian television scenario but more and more youngsters who really want to change the face of Indian television are needed.as a media student i feel the responsibility to provide quality entertainment not just for the sake of entertainment. Don’t give the audience what they want give them something new and innovative in a way that they will like it

p.s. its been wo years since i wrote this and my opinion about said talk shows has plunged deeply. 

100 and still going

 Indian cinema had been or a long time just been about Bollywood. But off late we have made the country and the whole world notice us with our unique ventures, bold and controversial movies. Gone was the time when thiyagaraya bhagavathar sang acted and produced his movies in the black and white era, with the advancement in techni color and Eastman film. We saw mgr. fight with baddies and win the girls love and Sivaji brought tears to our eyes in almost every role he played. Then came Kamal Hassan and Tamil cinema entered a new level.
 And then came a man who was going to be idolized for decades to come.rajinikanth or should I say thalaivar or superstar. Call him whatever you want. Nobody has been able to replace him till today. Then came an array of actors who both worsened and improved Tamil cinema. And they keep coming…while I talk about the actors I definitely can’t leave out the technicians and directors and composers who keep reaching great heights. And making us proud constantly. We all did share Rahman’s double Oscar pride and we feel every inch of the pride when adukalam received both critical acclaim and commercial success across the world. It’s been a 100 years and this industry is booming as ever. If I mention the actor and forget to mention the technicians it won’t be fair at all.afterall they are the backbone of this magnificent industry. Without them all our great movies, cult classics would still be incomplete.10% of a movie happens on screen rest behind it.  Tamil cinema is a great influence on the people here, ever seen film actors go on to become politicians an even be elected as a chief minister. All this happens only in India. Not long before did commercial cinema rule the Tamil cinema world today contemporary movies, darker subjects are being explored people are enjoying that too.it does not mean we have forgotten to enjoy thalaivar rajnikanths complete paisa vasool movies. I would proudly say Tamil audience has become more refined. We accept all unconventional movies the same way we do to a commercial movie with our favorite hero. Talking of hero fandoms. 
With the advent of social media such as twitter and Facebook. Fandoms are growing wildly and they are becoming more and more aggressive on line often ,leading to social media clashes and fights between rival fan gangs though the actors in no way are enemies. the general hope is that people in such fandoms will soon realize how stupid they are being.one whole newspaper will not be enough to write about Tamil cinema because there is so much  and so many people to mention and all of it is definitely worth mentioning. Tamil cinema industry has really been fortunate for the wonderful audience it has, we are movie crazy people and if you have been anywhere close to a theatre during a superstar movie release you would agree with me. So what lies in the future of Tamil cinema is just more laurels and fame. 
We have touched all peaks but the younger crop of actors and the next gen directors will surely break new grounds and create history. Meaningful cinema which is both powerful and entertaining will alone sustain and as most recent releases have proved not even a certain leading comedian can save a movie like before. More and more people are looking for content of the movie and the most important thing is the audiences have started to appreciate even the technical aspects such cinematography and background score of the movie which is pretty impressive indeed. If Shankar introduced us to futuristic technology for his movies.maniratnam‘s movies still appeal to the audience today. We have made our impact in the world. People look forward to our movies. That is the kind of following we have created. 
With our overseas markets we have gone beyond boundaries to satisfy the common man who is a good movie enthusiast. Basically every movie is produces with the commercial idea only. And we pay money for our tickets. Off late producers actors and directors have been attacking online film critics who do reviews and give their take on the movie in a humorous way. this is highly condemnable… a movie is an art work. If you don’t want it to be criticized better not release it all. If a review can affect movies success.it can’t be a very good movie can it?

So it’s high time we coped up with the latest advancements. Earlier people believed cable TV signified the death of theatre business. How did that turnout. If you know the significance of the 120rs you know the answer for it. Today it has come to directly releasing a movie on TV for the audience through pay cable. We protested it today it may happen another day but that does not mean a downfall or Tamil cinema it only means that no matter what cinema will survive as long as there are people who love watching them and people who create them with so much passion are there.

                                                                         The name sake

                                                                                                       By jhumpa lahiri

For someone who doesn’t read a lot of Indian authors, this book was quite a surprise for the extremely interesting read it was. And it did not contain vampires or wizards or any blood thirsty murderers. It is a simple yet so beautifully told story of an Indian guy living in USA. His outlook on life his homeland , how time changes him and  his family. For better or for worse that is to be found out after reading. But the book will leave you with a little smile of satisfaction. That is truly the mark of a great book.

The author herself needs no introduction. She has a booker prize and is very well renowned Indian author. Her other very popular compilation of short stories “the interpreter of maladies” for which she won the booker prize. The book begins describing the life of a housewife an Indian woman, her life in the foreign land. Her longing for her home land. Just when we begin to think of the husband as a mean, insensitive guy. His past moves us. His trauma, his ambition and his desires are something we can all relate to. But the book is not about them. It is about their son, named Gogol. Gogol represents everything American yet so beautifully fits the role of an Indian. Initially traumatised by his name, he vows to change it and he does too but later on towards the end of the book he realises the significance of the name and that a name is not just something used to call somebody. It’s much more than just syllables.it has meaning and importance. We see Gogol in mainly 3 phases of his life. His rebellious childhood, his latter teenage years and finally we meet a matured Nikhil or should I say Gogol. His various love affairs how they change him. With Gogol we grow, learning acceptance and what actually matters in life. The part where Gogol understands that his father is not just someone who sucks away all the fun in his life. He has a story too.  The whole book is like a family portrait. Its intimate it’s emotional and at last lahiris personal style of writing makes this book highly endearing. It’s not one of those books which are so gripping adventurous and makes you wonder what’s going to happen next. This is more of a feel good book. The depiction of the characters, the changes they undergo and at last what happens of them. This is exactly why family sagas are still so popular. The part of the book that made me sit up was when Gogol’s father died. The reaction to his death from his family was completely different from one another. His wife simply refused to accept his death whereas Gogol was more of taking the responsibility. His reaction was subtle yet so powerful. Coming to terms with the death of the man who had given him this humiliating name, the man who had loved him more than anything…despite everything Gogol had done or perhaps not done for his father. The last few lines when Gogol understands his father, the things he has been through changes Gogol for the better. He understands there are some things more important in life than money. And so do us.

This book was released way back in 2003, I read it just now. This is probably my first Indian author other than certain highly popular author. And it was simply elegant and very refreshing from all those stereotypical movies and books I spend most of my time on. Name sake. Definitely worth the name.

This book was adapted into a movie by Mira Nair starring Irfan khan and kal penn. For those of you who find paper backs boring…. This is one book adaptation that lives up to the quality of the book.