Many people look better in the animal wax of nostalgia: dictators, drugrunners, Starsky & Hutch. But one never does: Peter Sellers, the British comedian who made a habit of playing mentally-challenged desis in brownface.
The original film [The Party] was a more-than-a-little-racist comedy with a white comedian playing ‘Hrundi V. Bakshi’ in brownface, sporting a degenerate imitation of an Indian accent. Sellers wandered around a film set for a sequel to Gunga Din, itself a landmark of racism featuring civilized British soldiers vs. naked Indian savages.
Yes, Mr. Birdie Num-Num just got an HBO biopic, which means that Glitter has lost its lock on the Razzies. Even worse, Dreamworks is remaking The Party:
The Party, a minor success in comparison to Sellers films like Dr Strangelove and The Pink Panther, was banned in India for some years. Some politicians protested the film caricatured Indians and showed them in absurd light. Only after editor Khushwant Singh intervened was the ban lifted.
The only saving grace is that they’re making the protagonist non-desi.
I saw “The Party” and found it immensely enjoyable. And yes I am Indian (as in Indian citizen). I think it is a lot lot better than “Padosan” in terms of caricature. And yes I am Tamil! Why shd desis complain about caricatures like “The Party” when we have absolutely no self-esteem ourselves? For us desis rationality, method, order, progressivism, analysis all comes from the West; and retrogression, superstition, chaos and data all are from home. We will wax eloquent about Achilles in Troy but can’t spare a moment or two for our own epic heroes – Certainly one can read Homer without ignoring Vyasa and Ezhuthacchan? “The Party” shows an Indian in Hollywood who doesn’t give a damn about his own lack of “Western” social skills and instead seeks to engage a foreign audience on his own terms – much like Dadabhai Naoroji who in the House of Commons as an MP decided he would have his chai the Indian way – by pouring it out of the cup into a saucer and then sipping it as it cooled. It is pity that “The Party” is being remade without its raw bits. I would have much liked to see something like “Mohanlal in Malibu” or “Hariharan in Hollywood”. All cultures aren’t the same and there are definitely so many things that some culture or the other is best at. That’s no reason to put on a desi veneer and get all hot under the collar with something like “The Party” while the larger question of the lack of any idea of rootedness is all but forgotten.
I am only eleven, but Dad bought “The Party” for 3 bucks from a Salvos shop and I LAUGHED MY HEAD OFF!!! ;D No seriously I think that if they remade the party, it wouldn’t be the same – but then that’s the case with most ‘re-made’ movies/programs isn’t it? Somehow, I think that most of the oldies or even – in general – those who have seen the original “The Party” and then went and saw the remade film, I don’t think they would enjoy it as much as the original. Peter Sellers really makes it THE movie! Catherine
Dear Catherine:
You are not alone in fans of the oldies, especially ones that one can enjoy with the parents. Of course, ‘oldies’ for me are a generation older than Peter Sellers :-). My personal favs feature Laurel and Hardy – “Here’s another nice mess you’ve got me into” – and the Marx brothers. Anyhow, thanks for posting. I especially enjoyed reading such clear writing from one so young. Your teachers and parents must be very proud of you.
Regards
I saw The Party many times, many years ago. It was a movie that has always stayed in my memory. At no time had I even associated the aspect of the main character being Indian and it being a put down on Indians. This was a comedian at his finest, if he had played an Irishman I am sure I would have enjoyed it just as much, however I am not sure how he would have got round the ‘Birdie Num Num’.
Thank you
The funniest movie I have ever scene, the driest of humour. The movie was so stupid that often thinking about it is enough to make me burst into laughter. Watch out for the scene in the middle of the movie when Bakshi runs into a kids room, and the kid has some sort of toy gun he shoots at Bakshi. Bakshi puts his hands up, runs on saying “You win partner, you win”. You win…. The scene typifies a complete idiot, something Bakshi is well and truly. But it is FUNNY !!!! Watch the movie for heaps of such scenes.
Of all the characters in “The Party,” Hrundi V. Bakshi is the least mentally challenged. The Anglo Cowboy, The Snooty Hosts, The Woman with a Chicken in her Wig, The cigar chomping studio head, his materialistic wife, the Drunken Waiter, The Sex Mad Hollywood Beau of the Heroine, The Zany Russians, The Mainstream Faux-Hippies….Hrundi is the Hero and is the only character with any words of depth. He is cooler than any man of any race. He is humble, inquisitive, sincere, and cares about the feelings of damsels in distress. The only problem he has in the film is that he is unable understand the superficial nature of his fellow partygoers’ communications. So be it. They are the fools–he is the master of the situation, leaving the Babylonian Party in tatters and soap suds. He gets the French chick and drives a three wheeled Morgan. HERO. Birdie Num-Nums!!!!
I agree with the poster(s) who stated that this movie was enjoyable at any level, and it also never entered my mind to think less of Indian persons as a result of seeing Seller’s portrayal of “Mr. Hrundi V. Bakshi.” The character was fabulous–another Sellers example of the ingenuous genius–as in the later film “Being There.” The movie does trail off in the end, with concession to the 60’s trend of pseudo-hipness, but in all it’s one of the most hilarious movies I’ve ever seen. I am appalled that someone would consider remaking “The Party” without Peter Sellers. Hello? has anyone endured “The Pink Panther” re-cast with Steve Martin? Ugh.
The Party is a classic comic masterpiece,even though flawed in some respects. Peter Sellers’ performance recalls some of the great physical comedic performances of film–including Chaplin, Keaton and Jerry Lewis. The Party is almost all sight gags, and so it fufills what film should be about–pictures, not excessive dialogue. In fact, next time you watch The Party, turn the sound off–it will be just as funny, and you will still understand the entire film.