This Week in Coimbatore

This week I’ve been out of touch with the intertron because I’ve been in Coimbatore, a city in the western part of Tamil Nadu. It’s up in the mountains and has a much cooler temp than Chennai. I thought I’d share some pics with you from the journey!

Me on the train- it was pretty cramped, I don’t think they’re made for a 6 foot guy, especially with luggage in your bed, look how close my head is to the roof!

They have us stacked 3 high as you can see. This is not like the sleepers cars you see in the movies with private rooms and the like, you are up close and personal with a bunch of other people, with no privacy at all. The morning was especially interesting- the best I can describe is starting at six there was an orchestra of “ccchhhhwwwahhttt” phlem coughing noises, farting, and cell phone ringing.

Coimbatore is in the Western Ghats and the mountains really are stunning.

The train.

These snakes were a good price. BTW, burger means chicken burger here.

MJ RIP. Love, Coimbatore.

Police have these little stations in the middle of intersections here. They kinda direct traffic but is seems like they just yell a lot through a loudspeaker. My friend said they were sometimes shouting slogans about driving safe and minding your speed.

Jesus is pretty big here but BABY Jesus is huge- seriously. In Chennai I’ve seen several Infant Jesus temples, I don’t know what the deal is. I guess they think similar to Ricky Bobby if anyone’s seen Talladega Nights.

Kollywood Kowboyz.


Coimbatore billboards- from left to right- Superstar actor Rajni, TN politicians, communist poster (see red hammer and sickle flag above it), rival TN politicians and an ad for a jewelry/gold shop.

This dessert is called Falooda and it is the BOMB! Top layer is ice cream, then dried fruit, then more ice cream, noodles, sherbet, rose milk and jello at the bottom. It was delicious.

Happy B-Day, USA!

My thoughts today are with the USA and want to wish it a happy b-day. I’m going to a party at the American Consulate here in Chennai today and am excited to meet some new people there. I can’t help but compare our independence with India’s for a minute while I’m here, for what it’s worth. In fact, India has a national holiday about a month after hours (August 15th) called Independence Day. I don’t think barbecues and fireworks are as big a deal as a flag hoisting ceremony but the spirit is the same nonetheless, kicking out the British and forming something new and better than colonial rule.

I think it’s fascinating looking at the differences in how we got our independence. This could be a novel and I need to get out so I’ll keep it short. We did it the American way, guns, militias and lots of booze (do some research on how Founding Fathers survived the summer heat with all those guys in a little room in Philly to write the Declaration of Independence or got uninterested townspeople to start the famous riots or recruited new soldiers if you don’t believe me). In addition, the leaders of our independence movement were almost exclusively military leaders and they were all actually English, non-native Americans. In contrast, India achieved their independence mostly through nonviolent means, although there was certainly bloodshed and militants involved as well. Their two most famous leaders were both lawyers, Nehru and Gandhi, both of whom preached nonviolence, and practically everyone involved in the Indian independence struggle were native Indians.

The basic reason for wanting independence is the same in both cases, we were tired of colonial powers mooching off us and not giving us the freedom that we deserved. Also, in both instances the colonial powers were replaced with democracy, ensuring that the people actually living in these areas get a say in what their rulers were doing. I guess this is the one silver lining in both of our independence struggles, although both countries had to fight (in one meaning of the word or another) to get their independence they both came out of it as strong democracies. In fact, India and America are the two most populous democracies in the world, although our 300 million does come in a distant second to their 1.15 billion… Just some thoughts, happy b-day USA, I hope everyone has a great day back home!

PS, They LOVE fireworks here, I've seen a ton, mainly for weddings I think!

A Day in the Life

Okay, so this video is an ad for The Times of India, one of the two major English language newspapers in India (the other being The Hindu). On the surface it’s about a day in the life of a cardboard cutout in Chennai but it’s actually about an actor turned politician (see the flipside of the cutout about 45 seconds in- he goes from movie star clothes to politician clothes). As I said in my previous blog, about every major politician here in TN since the 60’s has been part of the movie industry (Kollywood). The video also has lots of good views of Chennai and I really like the music! Don’t worry- things aren’t as crazy here as the video might suggest but passions do run high in this city when it comes to movies and politics!



It won a couple awards at Cannes this year, among other places. By the way, Naaka Mukka literally means ‘Tongue Nose’ in Tamil but it is also a saying for the taste and smell, of Chennai in this instance.

Keepin it Real in Kollywood

So, I’ve become fascinated lately with the Tamil film industry, which is based out of Chennai. I knew movies are a big deal in India but what I didn’t realize until I got here is that Bollywood (based in Mumbai and producing Hindi-language movies) isn’t the only game in town. In fact, Kollywood, as the Tamil film industry is called, (for the neighborhood in Chennai it’s based out of) is the second most popular in India. Kollywood also has a big following in many other parts of Southeast Asia. This is just another example of how HUGE and overwhelming India is- it is so large it has room for two (and in fact many more) separate film industries!
Here are some thoughts I’ve had about Tamil Film.

The posters are everywhere- I’ve included a couple examples for you to see above. You can’t walk down a street in Chennai without seeing at least a few. They follow a similar formula to Bollywood movies, with the formula of romance, violence, lots of singing and dancing, but according to my friends here, more shouting and yelling than your typical Bollywood movie. In addition, there’s always an intermission ½ way through, I think so the popcorn guy can make a little more money.

Just about any politicians who's anyone in Tamil Nadu (Including every elected Chief Minister since 1967, the equivalent of governor of the state here) have been involved in Kollywood, either as an actor or director. In this way, it is impossible to separate politics and movies here. Sound like California to anyone??

Here’s my favorite part about Kollywood though. Unlike Bollywood or Hollywood, what with their pretty boy actors, their six pack abs and the clean shaven look (or trendy five o’ clock shadow), people here like their actors to keep it real- a little heavyset and definitely mustachioed! This makes me happy to see actors looking like the common man, it’s very accessible and fun. I almost feel like it’s an analogy for Chennai as a whole, despite being one of the biggest cities and having a huge film industry, they like to keep things unpretentiously real!

Indian Fruit, Part One

Man, there is so much fruit here that I’ve never heard of. It’s totally boss! There are a bunch more I have yet to try but here’s the lowdown on three new (to me) ones I’ve had so far.

Jackfruit

I’ve seen these things growing on trees in Brazil but I never tried one. They can weigh up to 80 lbs and have been known to kill people when they fall out of the tree. From what I understand it’s minor surgery to actually get the fruit, you have to cut it 10 different ways to get through all the woody and starchy layers to the fruit. The pic I stole from the internet show it whole, cut open and then the fruit. As for the fruit itself-it kinda dry, it looks about the size of a slice of mandarin orange, but it’s way drier, the outside is almost fruit rollup consistency but it’s really sweet and kinda like a dryer pineapple. In other words- delicious! I’m not really describing it right but that’s the best I got!

Lychee

They kinda look like the shape and size of strawberries on the outside but the skin is inedible, like an orange rind- you peel it off to get to the white, fleshy and juicy inside (see pic). I’d compare it (kinda/sorta) to the consistency and taste of a grape, but again, that’s inadequate. They’re also supposed to be high in vitamin C, so they can help me stay healthy!

Muskmelon

Basically a cantaloupe but it has more seeds in the middle and its got a more spiky skin rather than the rough but non-spiky skin we see in the states. It might also be juicer but maybe I just had a really good one, so I’m not sure.

I like that all three of these fruits have an inedible outer layer, so that what you’re actually eating isn’t exposed to the elements and grossness of the outside world till you peel/cut it, I think this helps them be very friendly food to someone new to India!

OK, and they also are famous here for mangoes in all colors, flavors, shapes and sizes. I thought I knew my mangoes but I’ve never seen many of these varieties and they really are better here than any I’ve ever had before, but I think I’ll save that for another post. It’ll be a good excuse to go on an all-mango diet for a while!

Tamil Lesson #1

Vanakkam= Hello
Nandri= Thank You
Meesai Annkaluku Azhaku= Mustache is the Beauty of Men

I wonder if it's about time to shave the beard and keep the 'stache!

Getting Entertained- 80's Bollywood Style

I saw this in a movie on TV the other day and thought it was hilarious. The actual jam is good too, it's been in my head ever since (jiski biwi lambi, usska bhi bara nam hai). It's about the advantages of having a wife with particular attributes. His insights (translated loosley):
* If you have a tall wife, why would you need a ladder?
* If you have a fat wife, why would you need a mattress?
* If you have a dark wife in your eyes, why would you need mascara?
* If you have a fair wife, why would you need electricity?
* If you have a short wife, why would you need a child?


Offensive? Probably, but the song and dance is great and it's a funny idea. I'm curious to know what you think!