Hollywood and its culture misperceptions: why can’t they do it right?

by Abha Malpani on

It amazes me how Hollywood can make fantastic movies that usually pay tremendous attention to getting facts right, but when it comes to the representation of distinctly different cultures, they often get it wrong. Seriously wrong. And what’s sad is that it’s intentional, and for pure commercial gain.

The latest such case is soon to be released Hollywood movie starring Mike Myers — “Love Guru”. Its release has strongly been protested against by religious Hindus across the US for lampooning Hinduism, mocking Ashram life and Hindu philosophy, and laughing at religious Hindu practices.

This movie releases tomorrow, so such protests have been made purely basis news and trailers; having watched the trailer and seen the website, I was pretty embarrassed at what I was seeing. An Indian “guru” being ridiculous and ridiculing various aspects of Hinduism that millions of Hindus consider sacred. One of his “sutras” encourages you to go to a fake porn site, the yoga positions are stupid, you can even find him spreading his “knowledge” on Facebook, MySpace and YouTube.

The movie revolves around the “second best Indian love guru coming to the US” and then you see various snippets of him:1) in a bar (drinking is not accepted in Hinduism, 2) hitting on Jessica Alba and getting a kick out of knowing she had a lesbian experience in college (homosexuality is taboo), 3) Making fun of yoga positions, the list goes on.
By birth I’m Hindu, but I’m not religious at all. I often criticize Hindu customs as I fail to understand them. But, unless it’s got to do with a man marrying a dog (a true exception), I will never mock religious faiths. At the end of the day, these things are deep rooted in history and tradition, and if it works for you, no one has the right to ridicule it.

As Rajan Zed, a California based Hindu pandit, most correctly said in relation to this comedy: “Humor is a part and parcel of Hindu society and our folk festivals, plays, stories, etc., are full of parody, satire, mimicry, buffoonery, etc. We are strong enough to take a joke. But there are certain convictions in every tradition, which are venerable and not meant to be mocked.”

Hollywood movies have such a large viewership globally that doing a movie like this and then defending it, is just completely out of line.

Thaipusam festival: Body piercing equals devotion and thanksgiving

by Jamie Rhein on

Thaipusam has passed and I’m wondering where I was. Back in November I planned to write a post, but it was too early. Now I’m late. But, considering that this festival is probably the most astounding event I’ve ever attended, consider this is a lesson in religion and culture–and perhaps some politics. The first year I lived in Singapore, one of the few countries where the holiday is celebrated, I blearily got out of bed 4:30 a.m. to head to Little India to catch some Thaipusam action. I had no idea how far people would go to prove their devotion. Intense is putting it mildly. This picture is just the beginning.

As with many aspects of Hinduism, this holiday, celebrated between the end of January or beginning of February, depending on the Tamil calendar, is a bit complex. Here’s the condensed version. As with many religious holidays, Hindu and otherwise, Thaipusam celebrates good winning over evil. In this case, the celebration commemorates the birthday of Lord Murugan (also called Subramaniam) the youngest son of Shiva and Parvati, as well as, his victory over the evil demon Soorapadman when he used the lance given to him by Parvati to vanquish the demon’s powers.

To give thanks to Lord Murugan for his banishment of evil, and for any good that has come their way over difficult times, some devotees will carry a kavadi a long distance to a Hindu temple. In Singapore, devotees start at one temple and walk three kilometers to another. In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, folks start off in the city and walk several miles to Batu Cave. At the cave, there are 272 steps to navigate to reach the entrance. (photo by nina.bruja, Flickr to right.)

A kavadi is typically a large metal frame decorated with colored paper, flowers or fruit. Some couple the carrying of a kavadi with piercing their bodies and/or faces with steel rods. Others will do things like hang oranges off their backs with steel fish hook like contraptions. Others will pull a kavadi that has been attached to their bodies with hooks. There’s more than one way to show devotion.

This festival is not just for devotees, others participate as well. There are food vendors, people selling trinkets, folks going to the temple to pray, and the devotees’ entourage of friends and family who offer support and help.

As squeamish as I am, I was amazed by the lack of bleeding by these piercings. Even when the steel was removed, I didn’t see any. People fast to purify themselves and to get ready for this, plus they psych themselves into a trance-like state in preparation for the piercing. Men are mostly the ones who go for major piercings. I did see some women pierce their cheeks.

It would be great to have a smell function so I could send the scent of the flowers, coconut milk, candles and incense your way. I can’t think of any other experience that is as much of a sensory overload as this one.

One detail I found quite interesting is that, although this holiday originated in India, it’s not widely celebrated there. The government, from what I understand, is not thrilled with it. One of the reasons it’s celebrated in Singapore is partly because of the large Tamil population there and the fact that Singapore believes in fostering religious freedom. Here’s a YouTube video that captures the essence of what happens in Singapore during th event. I’ve also been to Batu Caves, but months after Thaipusam. There were still remnants of kavadis.

Temples and churches to visit in New York City

by Jamie Rhein on

I have spent so much time in New York City since my brother has lived there for years, that I often forget to look for the new things to do. The tried and true are enjoyable, plus I’m visiting which suits a different purpose. Site-seeing is a small part of my trips. St. Patrick’s Cathedral is one place I head to often since it’s right across from Rockefeller Square and I like the way the candles smell.

Seth Kugel’s article, “Devotion in its Various Homes” is one that made me think, “Now, why didn’t I think of that?” as an article idea. It also presents options for my next visit to New York.

Kugel gives presents an overview of the various places of worship in New York City that visitors of any faith might find interesting. Here is his list. Do you know of others?

1. The Islamic Cultural Center

2. The Ganesh Temple

3. The Elderidge Street Synogogue at the Museum of Elderidge Street

4. The Buddhist Association of New York. Kugel suggests a temple that is near the synogugue. Here is a link to a site that marks Chinatown’s temples.

Read Kugel’s article for descriptions of each place. This could be a do-it-yourself type tour you could take in a day. The wonderful thing about cities like New York is that there are large enough communities of the various religions that their places of worship have had time to develop.