Monthly Archives: February 2005

The things we take for granted…

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Sepia Mutiny’s favorite soldier, Lt Neil Prakash (aka Red Six), gives us a glimpse of the mind / heart / soul of a soldier thousands of miles from home –

2 things that break my heart: 1) SSG Terry promised his little 3 year old angel, Josephine, that he would be home for her birthday. So everyday when she wakes up at home now, she asks her mother, “Is it my birthday, today?” 2) Whenever I call my fiancee, I have to cut her off with “Baby, my 30 minutes are up.” I had no idea that she is on the other end, repeating to herself, Don’t say it. Don’t say it. Don’t say it. Someday, I won’t have to, Laura. But not anytime soon. Because you’ll be saying that to me when you come here. So I guess, “Now the rubberband is on the other claw!” to quote Dr. Zoidberg.

Good luck and Godspeed LT & Crew. If ever a group of men so richly deserved a simple hug & pat on the back, it’s you.

[Neil’s Blog, Previous SM Coverage here & his Silver Star] Continue reading →

Netaji last seen with Elvis (and not with Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and the Big Bopper)

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For some time, there has been controversy around the death of Subhash Chandra Bose. The official history states that Bose died in a plane crash in Taipei on August 18, 1945 en route from Singapore to Tokyo. Since no body was ever recovered, many Indians refused to believe that Bose was dead, despite three official investigations into the matter. One rumor claims that Bose died in Siberia, in Soviet captivity. The Hindustan Times claims that Bose returned to India where he lived as a hermit named Gumnami Baba (the man with no name) until 1985.

These conspiracy theories have recently taken a surprise twist with support from a most unlikely source, the Taiwanese government:

Taiwan has now told a Indian investigation that there were no plane crashes at Taipei between 14 August and 20 September 1945.

All of this should stir up further interest in the recent Shyam Benegal film Netaji: The Last Hero. For those of you in the Boston Area, the director will be screening his film at the Harvard Film Archive as part of a Tsunami fundraiser on Friday, February 11. Continue reading →

The Mile High Club

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While most news on Nepal has focussed on its recent political problems, we here at Mutiny HQ take a longer term perspective. We know what really interests our readers. You’re all asking yourself (a) does sex in the Himalayas qualify me for membership in the Mile High Club and (b) can I catch something? [I’m just breathing heavy because the air is thin]

Well, researchers from Scotland’s Aberdeen University have been wondering the same thing. They plan to examine “sexual behaviour of Nepalese trekking guides and tourists.” It seems that Nepal is becoming a more popular vacation destination (despite the Maoist insurgency?), Nepali men don’t use condoms (they are considered “socially taboo”) and (gasp!) “visitors have become `high-risk’ as they lower their inhibitions when abroad.” Foolish yet exotic vacation sex; it’s not just for Ibiza any more.

Dr Padam Simkhada, of the university’s public health department, said: “There is an urgent need to undertake this study to understand more fully the nature and extent of high-risk sexual activity among young Nepalese trekking guides. “Medical problems and health risks of trekkers or tourists are documented to some extent, but little information is known about the sexual activity of trekkers’ guides. ” About 500 questionnaires will be distributed to trekking guides and the companies which hire them. Researchers also plan to carry out in-depth interviews with guides. [BBC]

Ah yes. A study of STD’s contracted by Trekkers willing to boldly go where no man has gone before! Continue reading →

M.I.A. looked directly into my eyes!

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MIA.jpg

Last night I went to the Knitting Factory in Hollywood to check out M.I.A. (who we have profiled here before). Admittedly, I was not familiar with the lovely Maya Arulpragasam’s music BUT I am a fan of live music as well as beautiful women. I was a little bummed before the concert because all my friends had bailed on me and I would be going all alone. I resolved to turn tragedy to triumph by getting Maya to take pity on me and allowing me to be a groupie after the show. On my way to the venue I got a call from my friend Sanjay who was one of those forced to bail on the evening. I told him it was okay and then informed him of my new plan to win her sympathy. Then he told me something that would plant a seed of doubt into my subconscious and eventually ruin my night. Sanjay told me that if I got to meet Maya I should ask her why her website has a link to an organization (TRO) associated with the LTTE terrorist organization. Was Maya a Tamil Tiger sympathizer? “Boy, don’t you know that would completely ruin my game?” What? Could I be like, “Hey Maya…um…I think you are so very pretty and talented and I’d like to get to know you better…umm…do you support terrorism?”

Continue reading →

Desi iTunes

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Instead of having your desi tunes illegally copied @ the local grocery store, you can now get an online store to do it for you –

San Francisco, Feb 4 : A California company has launched what it calls the first online music download store dedicated to music from India and the Indian sub-continent. CrimsonBay offers music from premiere Indian labels such as Saregama India Ltd, Ishq Records, Yatra Communications and others. The online marketplace, which is similar to Apple’s hugely successfully music download business iTunes, carries over 40,000 songs. A company press release said currently it was offering Hindi content including memorable songs from films such as “Umrao Jaan”, “Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge”, “Aradhana” and artists such as Kishore Kumar, Lata Mangeshkar, Bally Sagoo and Rishi Rich. It plans to update its catalogue regularly.

As before, I suppose there’s a chance that music purchased from CrimsonBay will end up compensating the original artists, but call me a skeptic. Continue reading →

Twee, innit?

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Chila from Wolverhampton and Mr. Kiss My Chuddies got hitched in a small, private ceremony on Jan. 21 (thanks, Punjabi Boy). Coverage here, here and here.

[Goodness Gracious Me] started as a one-off stage show called Peter Sellers Is Dead… designed to indicate that the days of white actors blacking up to play Asians were over. [BBC]

The newlyweds are currently working on the movie version of another of Miss Syal’s novels, Life Isn’t All Ha Ha, Hee Hee. [ThisIsLondon]

A Mushie memoir

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Ever mindful of his legacy, the current dictator of Pakistan is ordering a soppy political memoir ghost-written about how he looked deep into the eyes of Dubya and saw a man he could do business with:

President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan is writing a political memoir, focusing on the war on terrorism and his relationship with the Bush administration as a key ally. The memoir is to be published by Simon & Schuster and will probably appear in bookstores next fall…

No word on whether it’ll bear any resemblance to Shame, Salman Rushdie’s jagged satire of Pakistani politics with a paper-thin fictional veneer to protect the guilty. Here’s what it will cover:

“He’s going to cover the war on terror from Afghanistan in the 1970s and 1980s up to the hunt for Osama bin Laden…”

Mr. Musharraf, writer’s block doesn’t last three and a half years. How about penning the ending to that story?

Indian Train Crashes into Tractor; Kills 52

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A passenger train near the N. Indian town of Kanhan crashed into a tractor that was trying to cross the tracks. The accident killed 52 & injured 10 others.

Now, in just about any other country, it would be safe to assume that those casualties were folks on the train. But, in India, they’re instead passengers on the tractor –

NAGPUR, India — A passenger train smashed into a trailer carrying wedding guests Thursday in western India, killing at least 52 people and injuring 10 others, a railway official and witnesses said. The dead included 30 women and 10 children. …Sudarshan Shende, who works at a nearby school, said at least three vehicles full of wedding guests had climbed the slope that led to the crossing, when the last vehicle, the tractor pulling the trailer, drove up and stopped. “They stopped for a while, and I could hear them arguing. Some wanted to cross; others wanted to wait. Then the driver decided to cross,” Shende told The Associated Press. “The tractor crossed, but the train rammed into the trailer.” He said no one was injured on the train, which did not derail despite the impact.

Sheesh. Continue reading →

Giving ’em the finger

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fingers.jpgIn a brilliant maneuver, Congressman Bobby Jindal of Louisiana sent an email to his colleagues in Congress before yesterday’s State of the Union Address, telling them that they should come see him for a dip before the speech [via a tip from Manish and SM reader Atul Patel].

In a letter to be circulated Wednesday among fellow lawmakers, Jindal, R-Louisiana, said he would have ink available for anyone attending the speech who wanted to make a gesture of support for Iraqis and “people throughout the world who seek freedom.”

Say what you want about him (I know I often do) but clever is clever. Some Dems seemed bitter:

Supporters stuck their forefingers in the air — not unlike college football fans declaring “We’re number one” — as the president spoke.

But most Democrats did not dip into the inkwell. Indeed, some thought it was the president’s prose that was purple.

“His rhetoric seldom reflects reality,” said Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas.

With a flesh-toned rather than purple finger to point out his disagreement with the speech, Doggett said that “the real problem is that Bush’s policies keep sticking our people in a barrel of red ink.”

Continue reading →

‘The Kumars’ video clips

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Video clips for The Kumars at No. 42 have now been posted. I liked the sketch format of Goodness Gracious Me better, but the interviews generate an interesting tension: being in character means you don’t have to lob softballs like Leno. Sanjeev Bhaskar’s running gag is to wear the most outlandish outfit possible. And Meera Syal’s granny character is just wicked:

To Helena Bonham Carter: In this country you are seen as the epitome of elegance and good manners. But I personally was very, very happy to see you in Fight Club playing a right old slut. Did you enjoy it?

To a female fashion consultant: Can I just say thank you on behalf of my grandson. That’s the first physical contact he’s had with a woman since he went to the doctor.

To an interior designer: If you want to do an Indian theme party properly, you have to put plastic over your sofas, lots of Tupperware in your fridge and preferably concrete over your entire garden.

I loved the Tom Jones and Helena Bonham Carter interviews. Check out the clips.

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