Catch 22 1/2

Brilliant! I agree. The so-called 70s left in India and Pak have equal blame to share to use religion to remain in power and ironically unleashing fundo forces.

I loved the leap of ambition you took with this one. I am not exactly conversant with popular culture. But have attempted to check in. I remember a good book, called A generation in Motion by David Pichaske, about pop music and its connection with the flower children.

The brush with beat literature clarified the instinct that propelled ``a generation destroyed by madness.``

And then, existentialism, born after WW I in France, unlike what you say here, and how that was pitchforked into the detente of the post-seventies...in our neck of the woods, and generally late sixties for the white world. That profound Nietzchian negativism...distilled through Sartre and Camus exchange philosophical exchanges on suicide. Myth of Sisiphus is still required reading, methinks, to every MBA classroom worth its name. Short. Profound. And to the point, as they prefer.

It might also make some in each class connect to that Dadaist call by Tzara...art against art. concept after Art for art`s sake...

I agree with you that there are very few movements now. Purity in instinct too is at premium. But, every new pure kid on the block has his/her history only to her last caretaker.

All in all, this was a seriously qualitative telescoping. More, from wherever it came.

Just to actually be relevant....that thing about Amitabh Bacchan. He was created by Salim-Javed, filmed by Prakash mehra....but Manmohan Desai made the maximum money out of that finished good called the angry young man. And, MD was what shall we call...a caricaturist who syndicated the AYM cartoon, and made it a national folk story.

At one stroke...

HN

I loved the leap of ambition you took with this one. I am not exactly conversant with popular culture. But have attempted to check in. I remember a good book, called A generation in Motion by David Pichaske, about pop music and its connection with the flower children.

The brush with beat literature clarified the instinct that propelled ``a generation destroyed by madness.``

And then, existentialism, born after WW I in France, unlike what you say here, and how that was pitchforked into the detente of the post-seventies...in our neck of the woods, and generally late sixties for the white world. That profound Nietzchian negativism...distilled through Sartre and Camus exchange philosophical exchanges on suicide. Myth of Sisiphus is still required reading, methinks, to every MBA classroom worth its name. Short. Profound. And to the point, as they prefer.

It might also make some in each class connect to that Dadaist call by Tzara...art against art. concept after Art for art`s sake...

I agree with you that there are very few movements now. Purity in instinct too is at premium. But, every new pure kid on the block has his/her history only to her last caretaker.

All in all, this was a seriously qualitative telescoping. More, from wherever it came.

Just to actually be relevant....that thing about Amitabh Bacchan. He was created by Salim-Javed, filmed by Prakash mehra....but Manmohan Desai made the maximum money out of that finished good called the angry young man. And, MD was what shall we call...a caricaturist who syndicated the AYM cartoon, and made it a national folk story...at one stroke...

Thanks for a seriously stimulating read...


HN

it is Sahira Kazmi, not Saira. and Waris did everything BUT glorify feudal lords. I don`t think too many feudals would want to be depicted as Chauhdry Hashmat, Mehboob Alam`s legendary character.

this is sloppy work really. you write about these guys and consistently get factual details wrong. I read the piece you wrote on Pakistani TV directors and enjoyed it a lot. but you got names wrong there as well. and they`re simple mistakes that a quick google search could`ve fixed. I don`t mean to nitpick (which I know I`m guilty of right now) but as a loyal and long-time fan of Pakistani dramas, I feel it necessary to point out these inaccuracies.

This was thorough. And those are very interesting points you make about Amitabh`s angry young man flicks set around Indra Gandhi`s diluted version of Socialism and how those so-called social films like Sangeeta`s Soceity Girl actually gave anti-Bhutto conservatives the symbols to attack his government.

ambitious thesis but in the end when u suggest that bjp was voted in by middleclasses who for market economics ignore hindu fundamentalism, what about now when congress is in power? And it true that many indian films now dont have socialist themes but i disagree when u say movies showing gangs are also entertainment for sake of it and nothing political because these gangs are reality and close linked with politics, but all in all very thoughtful article.

HN:
Great to hear from you again, Harish. Thank you for liking the piece.
I wasn`t commenting on the birth of existentialism but the moment when it started to be adopted by the various artistic and political expressions of modern popular culture.

Rgds,
NfP

PS: And stop scaring MBA students with your subversive literary suggestions!

samb:
If you seriously believe that Waris did not glorify feudal lords then I would certainly like to know the reasons. I respect your view but do not accept it. Either you were too young back in 1980 or are mistaking my point. I was not commenting on the direction, production and acting of the play but the way it handled the issue of feudalism. Because Chaudery Hashmat was every bit the kind of a man most Pakistani men aspired to become in those days; or the kind of men General Zia would have liked Pakistani men to be: Stubbornly regressive, apolitical, amoral and proud of it! Not the ``pensy liberals`` and ``foolish cummunists`` who were giving our mard-e-momin such a pain in the arse.

rgds,
NfP

[[Television plays pushed forward the image of apolitical (but highly patriotic) heroes and heroines, who drifted between being hip liberals and conservative faithfuls in a matter of a single scene! ]]

This true with most commercial indian cinema in last ten yrs but films like company, satiya and vastav try to break this trend, a trend you say was promoted by new capitalist forces.

LOLZZZ!!!!!! u missed the word count at the end.
Saaley kachre pe comments kar rahe hain.

Wait for the new year`s eve and see the clash of ``Shabab`` and ``Sharab`` or the Orthodoxy vs Modernism.

Amitabh`s angry man films may have gone outta fashion in 80s but NFP you are right saying that today heros are total opposites, but actors like Nana Patekar and Sanjay Dutt still follow rules set by Amitabh inb 70s.
This was a great read.

and enter nfp the sober teacher of political history and its effects on various aspects of society...

nice read ...

i personally am of a beleif that every trend on large scale is inspired politically (direct or otherwise)... do u agree nfp?

the mis-usage of religion has a long and painful history in subcontinent ( and the world over) .. glad to see that there r guyz like u who can let the young ones know of it...
as for the part where u suggest staring at liberally/westernly clad women is basically inspired by those loaded movies.. well thanxing for letting me know .. i never knew tat the few (old time) movies i saw could have such an impact on my thinking... however thanx to u, i can consider myself on the road to enlightenment ( or utter darkness, as a bearded friend of mine would confidently say ;) )..
u the man, nfp!

Strange that you say that films Society Girl contributed to symbolism used by reactionaries against Bhutto because Society Girl is considered a classic by our so-called liberal Paki film fans, especially those open-minded Karafilm people.

I must commend you on your interdisciplinary approach to your argument. Successfully identifying the political and historical causes and measuring their effects through popular culture. It is very rare that I get to see a sociologically sound argument. :)

Happy New Year !

Peace…

To all Chowkies:

Haiy tau yeh rasm-e-zamanah, lekan phir bhi
Ho mubarak tumhain yeh saal nya, meray rafiq

Happy New Year

Mohammad Gill

Great insights, NFP. You rarely dissapoint when it comes to fusing politics with popular culture.