Though the King of Pop is no longer living, he will always be alive in our hearts through his music. Michael Jackson leaves behind legacy of groundbreaking and influential songs making him immortal to the millions around the world who loved his music. His Memorial was filled with heartfelt tributes sang by adoring artists, many of whose careers would not have been possible with out the influence of MJ on the pop music industry.
While a few of theses artists wept with emotion at times when performing some of the King’s best known songs, there still are artists out there who don’t seemed moved at all by Michael’s music. One such ambivalent performer is Dr. K Chaudhary, a 64 year-old retired nursing home owner from Delhi who records self-made video karaoke of himself singing popular songs and then uploads them to YouTube on a regular basis. Dr. K renditions are a lot like a slow, unavoidable trainwreck. Though it’s hard to watch you are enthralled at the same time and can’t seem to turn away. At times Dr. K may look confused on camera, but something tells me he knows exactly what he’s doing and the fan base he’s creating. Take a look at his rendition of ‘Beat It’, and check out his other videos too. Don’t stop til you get enough.
It’s finally here! The much anticipated new ultra-compact car from Tata Motors was launched today in Mumbai with high praises for what this new class of affordable cars will mean to the Indian working class. As one might expect, this car with a base-model price tag of around $2,000 is going to lack quite a few features found in standard cars such as airbags and power brakes. But if the average owner plans to cram 12 people in it anyway, who needs such safety features when you have all that human cushioning? The Nano is also available in two slightly higher end models, but I think the addition of the following add-on options would help Tata capture the most market share:
Built-in Ganesh murthi
Choice of new-car-smell: sandalwood, fresh jalabi, or the smell that stays in your suitcase months after leaving India
Cow Avoidance System (C.A.S) that uses radar to detects bovine obstacles and warn the driver of a potential collision
Seating rack on the roof to hold four additional passengers
Mirror-tinted windows to deter those on the road that love to unabashedly stare at whomever is in the car
External speakers to facilitate impromptu dance sequences
Wedding package: roof-top saddle for the groom, flower garland decoration, and kickass barat sound system (via the external speaker system, of course)
On November 24th, history was made. The Pittsburgh Pirates signed two Indian players who had never even played baseball before. Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel, the first Indian athletes to ever sign on with a professional sports baseball team in the US, were discovered through the Indian reality TV show “Million Dollar Arm”. Interestingly, both players grew up in small towns and developed their pitching talents through throwing javelin of all sports. Talent scouts were immediately drawn to Singh and Patel’s throwing power, physical size, and interminable side-to-side head shaking ability. Neither player knew English prior to joining the Pirates but have since started an amusing blog about their experiences while training. This entry is probably the most entertaining thus far.
Just when Indian-centric movies are gaining worldwide acclaim with spellbinding films like Slumdog Millionaire, along comes a movie that could erase the positive mystique around Indian culture with one misplaced karate chop. Warner Brothers is releasing a new movie in January called “Chandi Chowk to China” which looks like a horrible combination of bollywood theatrics, comedy, and Crouching Tiger-style fighting. I’m really not sure what this movie is trying to accomplish but it is going to take some serious word-of-mouth praise to get me to see it. Unless I’m drunk.
If there is one thing Indian’s like, it’s fighting.Every Bollywood movie since the 40’s has consisted of a 25 minute fight sequence where nobody ends up dying. We all have heard the word Dashoom!! However, the fight scenes sound like two pieces of Halal meat being slapped together. Either way, the country that loves MG – Mahatma Gandhi, father of non-violence, loves their fight scenes extra hot and spicy. Check out this hard-hitting slap from an Indian reality show. Gold star for A. Patel for finding a tshirt in homage to this video.
The BBC reports that Warner Bros. is suing Bollywood film makers over the name of a new comedy about a boy who’s family moves to England and becomes involved with a clandestine microchip. At the center of controversy is the proposed film’s name, “Hari Puttar”. I’m guessing that the Indian film studio first came up with the film’s name in 1997, within minutes of hearing about JK Rowling’s “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone”. Since then, producers have been tirelessly brainstorming ways to Indianize this literary sensation. The film’s creative team reached a breakthrough last week when a young but brash intern brilliantly suggested centering the story around microchip – a device that Indian audiences know intimately well and one that is just oozes with comedy at the sheer mention. The screenplay could practically write itself.
A unique advertisement for condoms in India. Watch the whole way through for continuous surprises. With a population approaching 1.1 Billion people I don’t think the message is getting across.
I was just browsing around some and found some websites that sell t-shirts of Indian interest. Most of them I found were mildly amusing as they featured predictable subject matter like Gandhi, stylized Om symbols, and some reference to brown pride. However, there were several funny designs to which I’d like to call attention.
Though the King of Pop is no longer living, he will always be alive in our hearts through his music. Michael Jackson leaves behind legacy of groundbreaking and influential songs making him immortal to the millions around the world who loved his music. His Memorial was filled with heartfelt tributes sang by adoring artists, many of whose careers would not have been possible with out the influence of MJ on the pop music industry.
It’s finally here! The much anticipated new ultra-compact car from Tata Motors was launched today in Mumbai with high praises for what this new class of affordable cars will mean to the Indian working class. As one might expect, this car with a base-model price tag of around $2,000 is going to lack quite a few features found in standard cars such as airbags and power brakes. But if the average owner plans to cram 12 people in it anyway, who needs such safety features when you have all that human cushioning? The Nano is also available in two slightly higher end models, but I think the addition of the following add-on options would help Tata capture the most market share:
