been a while (yet again)...
firstly- Hindi movie Rehguzar is total CRAP. You know, even if the film followed some sort of formulaic plot, it would have been better, but, pretty much there was no CONFLICT in the film, thus no tragedies, just sudden twists of fate. the films plot surrounds a (very quickly and unrealistically upwardly mobile) working class indian immigrant in dubai who falls in love with an absurdly rich ("daddy, you told me you'd buy me a new car this week!" "Of course, would you like a porche or..."). the thing that strikes me as unique about this film is that the rich are portrayed very very VERY sympathetically.
i remember once upon a time when indian films (yes even mainstream ones) used to be critical of power and privelege- upward mobility always had corruption as a caveat, and wealthiness always had brahminical (sometimes islamic) patriarchal orthodoxy or western (often anti-patriotic) social darwinism as a caveat. Rehguzar, really exemplifies social darwinist ideal of dubai, by ignoring ALL of these basic tenets- which are pretty much how the average desi can relate to a character. Apparently though, nowadays films are no longer made for indians, but for wealthy NRIs in the US.
secondly- Hindi film "God Only Knows" is a right wing satire (again a rarity, in fact i think a first in india), but managed to make me laugh more than a few times. its about a politician who goes to swarg (indra's kingdom) and decides to organize the public against lord indra, so that he can take over. he forms a coalition government called "CROTCH", with yumraj (leader of narak, the underworld) and calls for elections.
if the fact that the producers of this film credit amongst their works, a music video set to poetry by Hindutvadi ex-PM Vajpayee doesnt make their right-wing orientation clear, the various swipes at pakistan, the existance of a white christian heaven, and a desi hindu swarg, but no muslim heaven, the transphobia/homophobia, and the anti-african racism should place the film in the pseudo-fascist (hey, they call leftists "pseudo-secularists") category.
what else- really getting into calypso nowadays... i love how easily this type of dance music goes with explicit calls for political change... researching the genre a bit, i figured out that calypso served the purpose in the carrebean (esp trinidad) of a popular news media since the 1800s, kind of the role hip hop served in american cities through the 80's and mid 90's. really into lord invader and sampson the lark. please send me recommendations if you have any!
also- work is going VERY well. the fact that my job has a trans-inclusive benifits package has made me put in four times as much effort into it. the first organizing meeting i put together went phenominally... i need to learn, though, about how to deal with working class white minority within a trade dominated by people of color. many are in actuality progressive- unlike bourgoise white leftists ive met over the years- whose ideology is based in guilt-reduction and an ambigious normalization of racism to the form of some imaginary "color-blind melting pot". i need to understand how ask the white leaders to step back so that the POC leadership can step up too. please reccomend any readings that might be helpful!
Countdown to hormones continues and i've been feeling very insecure due to anxiety about my body as it currently is- chicago people, this is why i havent been going out much! apparently this is normal.
My east coast trip is very soon! beginning of next month... i'll be in Washington DC, fourth to seventh, i'll be in Philly, and eighth to eleventh i'll be in New York! very excited about this.
Hopefully, i'll also be moved in before/after this trip with two new roommates, in an incredible apartment by Bryn Mawr and Ridge. my new roommates, if they agree on me, are two documentry filmmakers who are very serious about their work. i hope it will rub off on me- i've always dreamed of being a documentry filmmaker!
oh and finally- i start school on monday!
Thats all for now!!