With thirteen and a half hours between us, it was 6:30 AM on a Mumbai Monday when my cousin Manav updated his Facebook profile:
“…up n awake for the Oscars. Rooting for Rahman, Final Inch n Smile Pinki…”
As my cousin’s morning rolled on, the updates continued:
“…Rahman N Gulzar win for best song.. Jaya Ho….”
When Slumdog Millionaire took best picture? “What an incredible Monday morning.”
And so it happens. A movie not quite Indian, but more Indian than most, captures the attention of cousins in Mumbai, San Francisco, and who knows where else. Edmonton, Canada? Gold Coast, Australia? I don’t know how many in my clan were watching the American Academy Awards.
When you mom was the youngest of eleven, there are a lot of possibilities.
Once when I was in the 5th grade, a white kid in basketball camp asked me a question. I can’t remember the details, but it had something to do with my Hindu roots and the movie Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. You know the scene: members of an Indian cult, offering a dish of monkey brains to a disgusted swashbuckler played by Harrison Ford.
At least the kid in basketball camp had the sense to ask it as a question. But somewhere between his question, a neighbor’s epithets, and everything else, I quickly got the picture. Our family’s journey wasn’t necessarily one that every community member felt positively about. I’m not sure if anyone cared enough to ask my dad how it felt for him to come so far from a childhood in a poor Mumbai neighborhood, when class-conscious neighbors might not have let him play in their homes.
I always thought it a bit funny when Indians and Indian Americans got so excited about an Indian-American tennis star, scientist, or actor. But tonight, things seem a little different. The dominant culture in this dominant nation has celebrated a movie about a poor Indian slum kid who came so far.
This time, I’m not as wary about feeling moved. I’m not as resistant to the tightness around my eyes.
And I’m not afraid to sing, “Jai Ho.”
3 Comments
February 23, 2009 at 8:21 am
I’ve heard that there are mixed reviews of Slumdog in India. Apparently there’s a population there that doesn’t appreciate Slumdog as a representation of India.
I think this expectation is misplaced, but it’s present, non-the-less.
February 24, 2009 at 9:52 am
http://news.newamericamedia.org/news/view_article.html?article_id=6cfee826fdab84cfca31e92c42787d7a&from=rss
March 1, 2009 at 7:53 am
Just passing by.Btw, your website have great content!
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