The other day I heard that Indians were burning effigies of Richard Gere and that a magistrate has issued an arrest warrant against him. At first I thought that India had finally imported the movies "Dr. T and the Women" or "First Knight" and people were outraged at how tragically poor both those movies were. Instead Gere, who is a longtime HIV/AIDS advocate, actually came to India to help promote AIDS awareness since India now has more HIV positive people than any other country. The protest happened because Gere kissed actress Shilpa Shetty on the cheek at the event. So Shetty and Gere allegedly violated an obscenity law against any public displays of affection or public acts that can be considered indecent. The kiss on the cheek was considered "beyond vulgarity" by the conservative Shiv Sena party who were the ones responsible for the protest. Thankfully not all Indians are calling for the heads of Shetty and Gere.
What makes me confused and angry is that if the Shiv Sena party is so outraged at this so called vulgarity then I wonder what frack they are doing about the countless number of people using the public streets as their own urinals. I am tired of seeing and smelling urine. The people doing this do not even try to be modest and spare the public the sight of them handling their dinks. It is really pissing me off (pun definitely intended). I have seen more penises in my six months here than Jenna Jameson has in her entire career. Where the hell are the flaming effigies and arrest warrants for these people! The people doing this are not all poor or homeless either. So the root cause is not one of poverty. Also I won't even get started on the public acts of defecation.
So anyone can essentially be charged with a crime for displaying any type of public affection and it doesn't matter if they are married, dating or friends. I wonder if it is even considered acceptable to hold someone's hand or put an arm around them. Are those acts, if done in public, also defined as vulgarity? Each of the three penal codes that Shetty and Gere allegedly violated can carry up to 3 months jail time. I guess the moral of the story is that public amorous behavior will not be tolerated under penalty of imprisonment but feel free to piss and sh*t in public.
Saturday, April 28, 2007
"Miles from Home", the "American Gigolo" kisses a "Pretty Woman"
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5 comments:
Hmmm, that sounds pretty reasonable to me. I don't detect any double standards or anything like that. Did you see the video? She looked horrified, Gere was essentially making out with her cheek. They had a field day with it on Best Week Ever. And of course America's favorite son of Indian descent, SANJAYA! Sorry, you guys may not be up to speed on American Idol, I doubt it is too popular over there. I think I even read that a poll showed no one in India has even heard of Sanjaya. We'll save this season on the DVR so you guys can catch up when you are over here. just kidding
Jeff,
Actually, we (okay, really just I, Eric is far too sophisticated for shows like American Idol) have been watching the show. Surprisingly it is aired here on one of the English networks and has also been adapted for Indian audiences as there is an Indian Idol as well. Too bad Sanjaya was so terrible, but yeah, no one here has heard of him (except us that is).
I am not too interested in televised glorified karaoke. I did have the unfortunate chance to hear Sanjaya sing though. The fact that he even made it that far further confirms that Democracy in American is fubar. I wonder if American Idol uses Diebolt to count votes.
I miss "Best Week Ever". I saw the kiss on the "Internets" and it looked just as ridiculous as when Wacko kissed Lisa Marie Presley. Gere and Shetty should just leaving the kissing to Hrithik and Aishwarya. Now that kiss exceeded all limits of vulgarity with their lips actually touching each other! Ewwwww! Cooties!!!
Shetty, however, later defended Gere by saying that it was probably a bit too much but they did nothing wrong and the public over-reacted. I still don't get why the judge issued a warrant for Shetty's arrest since she was the one who was kissed. Gere was an idiot for doing this in the first place but what did Shetty do? Anyway, this whole thing seems like a judicial stunt to rage against Westernization by punishing representatives of Hollywood and Bollywood.
I guess one can still find prudes even in the land that gave the world the Kamasutram.
You are right, it is glorified karaoke, but this is the very first time I've ever watched it and I've found it slightly less addictive than crack. Go Melinda! She is my favorite, Suzi, although Blake is close behind. I've already told Sandy this is the only year I'm watching it, consumes WAY too much time! Between you and me (and everyone else reading this!), and at the risk of you thinking far less of me, I am also watching Dancing With the Stars this season also. It is very entertaining, what can I say? Where else can you watch Laila Ali, Apolo Anton Ohno, Joey Fatone, Billy Ray Cyrus, Ian Ziering, and John Ratzenberger dance with world champions? Also highly addictive, and also the only season I'm going to watch. Scout's honor.
I've heard that there are several warrants issued stemming from similar situations as Gere/Shetty, is that true? The paper said that other Westerners had the same thing happen to them for reasons unbeknownest to me. And you are right about Sanjaya, the fact that he made it that far demonstrates America's intelligence. Then again, when you think about the demographic that actually vote on that show, it makes more sense I guess. The people who were the most appalled are the ones who would probably not waste their time voting, but I could be wrong. I am intrigued by your description of the Hrithik/Aishwarya kiss, what is that from? I gave Bride and Prejudice 15 minutes of my time once and decided that 15 minutes could have been better spent watching paint dry. So that is my only exposure to Aishwarya!
Hrithik and Aishwarya reference was from the Hindi movie Dhoom2. They got into trouble for their kiss in the movie.
As for it happening to other non-Indians there was an Israeli couple that was fined for kissing at their Hindu wedding in Rajasthan. In the Indian state of Rajasthan it is frowned upon for married couples to hug, hold hands or kiss in public.
In all of these cases it is the people's own fault for not being aware of local customs. When in Rome...
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