Bollyphobia : An Introduction
It has been more than seven years since I coined the term- bollyphobia (August 2010). It is quite clear by its name what it means. It is not a misnomer like homophobia, which often gives an incorrect notion of fear (phobos, the Greek word for "fear" or "morbid fear") for LGBT people instead of what it has actually been used for- hate, prejudice, violence, abuse and discrimination based on sexual orientation. Bollyphobia simply means a strong dislike of what Bollywood creates,
portrays, shows and also, understanding the monumental failure of Bollywood to influence generations after generations in a positive way and its overwhelming success to desensitize the masses about abuse, rape, eve-teasing, murder and avarice. Not only Bollywood finds the notion to have a sensible and rational mind offensive, it perpetually feeds and showcases all the hatred and discrimination under the cover of Comedy or "Villainship", which the successive generations have imbibed as the Next OK Thing. Let's face it, not only has Bollywood shamelessly glamorized rape, eve-teasing, stalking, stereotypes, it has also almost always portrayed different people (less fortunate?), i.e., people with dark color, gender, sexual orientation, transvestites, dwarfs, obese, etc, and many others as villains or worse, a laughing stock. Does anybody remember watching the hit movie 'Dil' starring Madhuri Dixit (as Madhu) and Aamir Khan (as Raja) on Doordarshan? Do you remember Miss Mini whom Madhu, although introduces as a "friend" but yet humiliates her appearance by betting Raja to kiss her in case he gets beaten in a wrestling bout? The bet doesn't end just here. Miss Mini has been showed eating like a pig, black and fat and not to mention like a cabbage whose sole purpose in movie was to kiss the 'loser' guy. Although the movie was released in 1990, and I watched it years later on DD, I have never been able to make peace with the fact that the likes of Madhuri Dixit and Aamir Khan once agreed to do shoot for such a scene. Another disturbing storyline in the movie is Madhu orchestrating her own rape and accusing Raja just for the sake of "get even" and tarnish his image. How many of you have ever personally known a girl, I ask you directly, who can do this- accusing someone for rape just to score some brownie points in college? And then we wonder why the society has turned so hostile to women, absolutely failing to take into account the constant supply of social poison, we all have been feeding on for decades and on which we all have been spending money in a heartbeat!
The "Get Even" Concept
The "Get Even" concept either from girl's side or from boy's side has been a prominent aspect of many a films' first half. Remember, Ishq, released in 1997, where Juhi Chawla and Kajol, perhaps more skilled than graduates from Mechanical Engineering, cause a "break-fail" to Ajay Devgn & Aamir Khan's car? In my two decades of consciousness, I have never been able to understand how and just how Bollywood characters accomplish "break failing a car" for the money, will, property, murder or for an evil of a lesser magnitude as shown in Ishq - to "Get Even". They all must have been moonlighting as Mechanical Engineers and they should totally patent the idea of "breakfailing" a car without worrying about FIRs under the section of 302 lest Hollywood should steal the idea! The Girls of Ishq just wanted to teach boys a lesson and " break failing" a car seems to be an innocuous act humans do to each other, over and again as far as Ishq is considered. Ishq was not the first movie to use the hugely popular method in 1980-90s of killing someone in a Bollywood flick by "break-failing" a car and unfortunately it won't be the last. But Ishq equated the murder attempt to a "Get-Even" concept like Dil equated rape attempt to the same. Just to get even.
(to be continued)
portrays, shows and also, understanding the monumental failure of Bollywood to influence generations after generations in a positive way and its overwhelming success to desensitize the masses about abuse, rape, eve-teasing, murder and avarice. Not only Bollywood finds the notion to have a sensible and rational mind offensive, it perpetually feeds and showcases all the hatred and discrimination under the cover of Comedy or "Villainship", which the successive generations have imbibed as the Next OK Thing. Let's face it, not only has Bollywood shamelessly glamorized rape, eve-teasing, stalking, stereotypes, it has also almost always portrayed different people (less fortunate?), i.e., people with dark color, gender, sexual orientation, transvestites, dwarfs, obese, etc, and many others as villains or worse, a laughing stock. Does anybody remember watching the hit movie 'Dil' starring Madhuri Dixit (as Madhu) and Aamir Khan (as Raja) on Doordarshan? Do you remember Miss Mini whom Madhu, although introduces as a "friend" but yet humiliates her appearance by betting Raja to kiss her in case he gets beaten in a wrestling bout? The bet doesn't end just here. Miss Mini has been showed eating like a pig, black and fat and not to mention like a cabbage whose sole purpose in movie was to kiss the 'loser' guy. Although the movie was released in 1990, and I watched it years later on DD, I have never been able to make peace with the fact that the likes of Madhuri Dixit and Aamir Khan once agreed to do shoot for such a scene. Another disturbing storyline in the movie is Madhu orchestrating her own rape and accusing Raja just for the sake of "get even" and tarnish his image. How many of you have ever personally known a girl, I ask you directly, who can do this- accusing someone for rape just to score some brownie points in college? And then we wonder why the society has turned so hostile to women, absolutely failing to take into account the constant supply of social poison, we all have been feeding on for decades and on which we all have been spending money in a heartbeat!
The "Get Even" Concept
The "Get Even" concept either from girl's side or from boy's side has been a prominent aspect of many a films' first half. Remember, Ishq, released in 1997, where Juhi Chawla and Kajol, perhaps more skilled than graduates from Mechanical Engineering, cause a "break-fail" to Ajay Devgn & Aamir Khan's car? In my two decades of consciousness, I have never been able to understand how and just how Bollywood characters accomplish "break failing a car" for the money, will, property, murder or for an evil of a lesser magnitude as shown in Ishq - to "Get Even". They all must have been moonlighting as Mechanical Engineers and they should totally patent the idea of "breakfailing" a car without worrying about FIRs under the section of 302 lest Hollywood should steal the idea! The Girls of Ishq just wanted to teach boys a lesson and " break failing" a car seems to be an innocuous act humans do to each other, over and again as far as Ishq is considered. Ishq was not the first movie to use the hugely popular method in 1980-90s of killing someone in a Bollywood flick by "break-failing" a car and unfortunately it won't be the last. But Ishq equated the murder attempt to a "Get-Even" concept like Dil equated rape attempt to the same. Just to get even.
(to be continued)
I know right ? Soooooooooo well written.
ReplyDeleteThanks sister. :* :)
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