Cyberpunk Bollywood

Sci-fi novelist Bruce Sterling, a pioneer in the cyberpunk genre, is also a huge Bollyfan who designed this bumper sticker (via Boing Boing):

That’s Parineeta on the right, not sure about the one on the left. The guy’s got taste.

He’s also been blogging the ins and outs of various sex-lies-and-mirrordiscs scandals (Sanjay Joshi, Amar Singh) working their way through political parties and the Indian Parliament:

Sanjay Joshi was set up. Somebody videoed him inflagrante diplimatico with a schoolteacher — bad news if your job in a conservative religious party depends on a vow of celibacy. Days later, flamboyant socialist playboy Amar Singh, of the liberal Samajwadi Party, announced his phone had been tapped. A salacious CD of purported chats with Tolly- and Bolly-wood starlets soon began making the rounds (hey, he’s a flamboyant socialist playboy).

In quick succession, more than half a dozen prominent ministers and pols stepped forward with claims that they too had been filmed, shadowed and bugged. More than a few signs point to a dirty tricks arm of the ruling Congress Party, with rumblings of deep-pocketed corporate backing. A crew of snoops for hire, black-hat script kiddies and renegade telco underlings has been rounded up and are under the screws. Meanwhile, the Sanjay sex tape is the hottest DVD bootleg on the market, and rumors of many more discs compromising many more pols abound… [Link]

His blog posts: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21

Related post: One ticket for the clue train, please

6 thoughts on “Cyberpunk Bollywood

  1. The one on the left looks like Mala Sinha or Nargis & Parikshit Sahani or hmmm could be Raj Kapoor…1940’s genra. Cool. My dad has a collection of these movie posters from back then.

  2. Meanwhile, the Sanjay sex tape is the hottest DVD bootleg on the market

    This is an outrage. The good people of the largest democracy in the world shouldn’t have to suffer such pain and humiliation at the hands (and other extremeties) of their politicans.

    Oh and India needs waaaay higher-class pr0n. The though of pot-bellied babus and badun-ka-dunk-deficient schoolteachers do NOT make it easy to hold down one’s lunch. Thanks alot Manish…

  3. The same Bruce Sterling:

    Last week, sci-fi novelist Bruce Sterling got snarky about India’s hurricane relief offer. I’ll be generous and speculate he was criticizing the U.S.’ tardy disaster response. But get this — he did so by quoting Rudyard Kipling’s colonialist landmark, ‘Gunga Din’
  4. “…………flamboyant socialist playboy Amar Singh” – Amar Singh, a playboy?????? What’s the dude (bruce sterling, that is) smoking. Sure, Amar Singh Samajwadi (ASS)hangs around rich & famous folks but that does not make him a playboy. For pete’s sake, ASS looks like…….well, an ass!!! And no matter how much money you have, with a look like that I don’t think you can go far in the playboy game.

  5. For pete’s sake, ASS looks like…….well, an ass!!! And no matter how much money you have, with a look like that I don’t think you can go far in the playboy game.

    seriously! one word – nightmare. man…that just makes the milk curdle. ecchhhhhhh…..pardon me, whilst i….oohh that’s just nasty…