It’s Sunday night and I’m getting ready for the week, while not-really-watching the final minutes of Family Guy.
Hark- the faint pinging of my browndar!
It’s some new show on FOX, one which I don’t recognize; apparently, it stars someone from The Office and an actor who played one of Carrie’s love interests on SATC (“Carrie likes a JAZZ man!!”), plus two randoms, one of whom is vaguely brown. Now I’m paying attention.
I’m confused; this actor looks familiar, but I can’t place him…then I remember! He is Shaun Majumder, and he played Kumar’s snotty, perfect older brother! Back to my TV: on the show, the foursome are standing in line, outside a club. All I can think of is Amardeep’s post about Kumar/Kal and the question of accents for actors. I wonder where this guy will draw the line…
“This place looks like it is going off the hook!”
How odd…he barely has an accent, by Hollywood/Apu standards. He’s obviously playing someone desi. Within minutes, I discover that his character is a Doctor (that’s better than convenience store clerk/terrorist, no?). The show is funny, but I’m disappointed, because everything I hurriedly read about it during the commercial break positively references Seinfeld. Way to inspire impossible expectations, critics!
Some of you have no doubt been wondering where comic/actor Shaun Majumder has been for the last year or so, ever since he (fictionally) blew up Valencia, Calif., in the opening episodes of last season’s 24.
Not to worry. The boy’s been working. Working a lot. And now, as those labours begin to bear fruit, he’s popping up all over the tube. Indeed, it’s getting so you won’t be able to turn on your TV without Majumder’s grinning mug staring back out at you.
“Been a little bit busy here in the H-Wood,” Majumder allows, checking in by phone. “Things have been good.” [TheStar]
Unhitched made its mid-season debut this month; FOX has six episodes to try out.
The irreverent new series, in which Majumder plays one of four newly single friends looking for love in all the wrong places, is produced by the filmmaking Farrelly Brothers, best known for such balls-out funny feature fare as Dumb & Dumber (idiot buddy flick), Kingpin (a one-handed bowler), There’s Something About Mary (semen hair-gel), Stuck on You (co-joined idiot buddy flick), Shallow Hal (Gwyneth Paltrow in a fat suit) and The Ringer (rigging the Special Olympics).
In what may be a first for prime-time television comedy, they have carried that scatological, sophomoric sensibility to the new medium with them.
You know pretty much what you’re in for when, even before the opening credits of the pilot episode, series lead Craig Bierko is dry-humped by a horny monkey. [TheStar]
Well gosh, I’m sad I missed THAT!
The bar is thus immediately set – whether high or low is for you to decide. Majumder, for one, is thrilled. “You can’t help but think of all those screenwriting seminars. You know, ‘Grab ’em in the first 10 pages . . .’
” ‘Hmm. Okay then . . . monkey rape!’
“It does kind of set the tone for the whole series.” [TheStar]
You can watch Unhitched on demand, here, or you may tune in on Sundays, at 9:30.
::
My two favorite “American” brown fillums are Harold and Kumar and The Namesake; actors from both of those movies are now starring on FOX shows which are on my must-watch list. This post told you about Shaun, I don’t have time to delve in to how Moushumi, a.k.a. Zuleikha Robinson has a meaty role on New Amsterdam. Robinson doesn’t play a desi character, but who cares when the show is so appealing (see it tomorrow, at 9pm).
Also interesting: Shaun’s real name is similar to the fictional Moushumi’s surname- Mazumdar. Yes, it takes very little to amuse me. 😉
I didnt like “Unhitched”. The brown guy’s accent seems forced and thick. Stereotyped. Itunes has the pilot episode for free download. skip it.
1 · rax said
Interesting. That makes me wonder if there even IS an accent we could all find acceptable. I thought what Majumder did wasn’t that heavy, you thought the opposite…can anyone think of an actor who played a DBD with an accent that wasn’t forced or cringe-inducing?
I didn’t think the show was THAT bad…but
a) I did not see the pilot, I think this was the second ep
b) I’ve already gone on record as having ridiculously low standards for network TV. 😉
I heart New Amsterdam. The second episode sealed it for me.
The episode that is to air next Monday (March 10) deals with an Indian supermodel, according to Wikipedia.
rashida jones….
From what I remember of the pilot:
Majumdar’s first shot was of him examining his male friend’s butt. Nice. It went from there on to show that he basically did not have a life. If his friends did not encourage him, he’d have a sad existence! Its his birthday, and he goes out on a date with an, ahem, “escort”, coz ofcourse, he’s brown and no sane woman will date his ugly ass. Then he falls in love with her, with disastrous results, till his friends bail him out.
Is this what America thinks of a stereotypical single indian male from India? Ouch. I think I’ll cancel that date with a hooker this weekend.
It was simply horrific – both show and accent. Ye gods! I did note a Seinfeldish tone to the dialogue and situations, though. . . a sort of strange episodic randomness.
Majumdar’s first shot was of him examining his male friend’s butt.
MSM is not common in india???
fyi – mazumder is a newfie by birth and upbringing. the accent is of course fake. he used to do this really bad sketch as a desi news reporter called raj binder. sometimes tho it isnt so bad.].
This is a Farrelly brothers production, so expect equal-opportunity grossness as comedy. I don’t think Majumdar’s character was any more undignified than that of the others. The ass-examination was of the lead who had just been sexually assaulted by a chimp while trying to seduce his date with monkey noises, their best bud is a jobless idiot who feels good when he has sex with desperate, drunk women, and the woman’s date was a 4 foot tall guy who performed as a leprechaun during the half-time entertainment of basketball games. And Shaun was in no way portrayed as desperate or unlucky with women because he was Indian, nor were there the tired old gags about outsourcing, arranged marriage and so on. So, I think it is an overreaction to read this as some sort of referendum on the “stereotypical single Indian male”.
All that said, I didn’t think the pilot was especially funny, so I wouldn’t be surprised if it got canned after the trial run.
MSM is not common in india???
Download the free pilot episode from itunes for context. It was CSM or MSC. The chimp was hopefully not harmed in production.
His Raj bit is embarassing and racist. I guess they think since he’s half brown it’s okay? He’s a douche. I won’t watch Unhitched because I can’t stand him and that’s saying a lot. It takes a huge amount of douchebaggery to overcome Rashina Jones.
My main contention was with the fake accent. Its quite similar to the Simpsons Apu stereotype. If you’re going for a desi doctor’s character, whats wrong with trying Sanjay Gooupta for a change? Are desi actors so hard pressed for hollywood gigs that they cant refuse to act with fake accents? When do you stop and say “No Thankyou, come again!”
Imagine Parminder Nagra doing a fake accent just coz she’s brown.
Even if this had been some meta-hipster style accent providing oodles of double meaning in the actor’s portrayal, the entire show just seemed like someone scrunched up a modern day movie into 22 1/2 minutes without the comedy.
The worst part was it wasn’t funny.
Majumder’s stand-up act is not that bad. He was on Comedy Central once, and talked about how he tried to do a father-son activity by taking his dad to an S&M club. But the show is pretty lame.
Hey for those of you who live in Canada or who get CBC in the USA, isn’t Mohinder on “This Hour has 22 Minutes”, and more importantly made an appearance on “Hockey Night in Canada”? Anyway, this show is awful, not because the accent, because it is tremendously unfunny. I didn’t even know that the show existed because I don’t watch Fox (Lost is the only television show worth watching right now).
I meant Majumder, not Mohinder, my bad.
i thought the show was god-awful. turned it off after 4 minutes. i guarantee 100 to 1 odds it is canceled.
He’s dating Shelby Fenner. Everything else is icing.
How ’bout this quote: “I’m working hard, but at the same time I know it could all be gone in a heartbeat. So I’m working on the new house, putting in the stone deck, learning how to use a drill. If this showbiz thing doesn’t work out for me, hell, I look Mexican . . . get me one of those leaf-blowers and those big-ass headphones, there’s lots of work I can get in L.A.”
Hollywood producers hire desis mostly from the “Brown FOB Acting School”. You can see an ad for its older sister institution here from where they have hired graduates for years.
15 · Jay in the A2 said
Seriously, what network TV do you people watch? 🙂 It’s a huge deal if I can get myself to sit through an entire show, most of them suck so much. This show wasn’t THAT bad. It’s getting filed with Law & Order, Aliens in America, Lipstick Jungle…i.e. I’ll watch them if they’re on, since they are great to multi-task to. Law & Order SVU and Lost…now those I put down the laptop* for. 😉
*I’m really hoping New Amsterdam joins this list…I love time travel/history/the protagonist’s scowl…
::
Whatever, y’all. I’m happy to see brown (or in these two cases, halfsies) people getting decent roles on TV shows. Shaun’s Dr. Sahgal is the sweetest character on Unhitched, much like Raja is on AiA…ah, now I await the indignation over desis being typecast as the kind, good guy. 😀 Do we not have options beyond terrorists and DOCTORS? 😉 DO WE NOT?
Hos nobody seen the Big Bang Theory ?(in ABC i believe). The desi character is a PhD proff/guy(not sure), who is afraid to talk to women. It is not bad at all and his accent is not so bad either.
19 · Seahawks fan said
No one called him out on this yet? Rules must’ve changed about stereotyping fellow minorities. I remember Reggie White the packer/eagles great getting into hot water for bs like this. Or may be, no one gives a shit about what Majumder thinks/says.
Ok, its actually on CBS Info And the guys name is Kunal Nayyar What do you know, he is a DBD.
22 · Sno said
Hos? Now I have Gin and Juice stuck in my head. 😉 No, I haven’t seen it (I will neither confirm nor deny ho-dom). I’ll look it up and try to catch it this week. Thank you for the tip! 🙂
I have friends/relatives who are trying to make it in Hollywood. It’s so hard. They’ve been giving it their all for years (and it’s all the more difficult “to make it” if one is not willing to sound a certain way). I guess I see such shows/roles through that prism, since I know how elated my peeps are when they do get something, no matter how minor.
Seriously, what network TV do you people watch? 🙂
“30 Rock” is a damn fine show, and I’m willing to overlook Tina Fey’s shilling for HRC.
23 · Gruhasthu said
I didn’t include it because I had nothing to add to it; he seems to be part of that “obviously-offensive” group of stand-up comedians (Sarah Silverman, Carlos Mencia…Russell Peters) who are currently lauded, whom I do not find funny.
I refused to go see RP because of certain jokes he favors (about the deaf) and more than a few people I know informed me that I was wrong to feel that way (!) since “comedy is offensive”. Well, all-righty then. Chris Rock never offended me, and he is my favorite comedian (annnnd…now I’m sure one of you will be able to cite something mean he said, which I was unaware of, and my opinion of Chris will change by COB today). 😉
Isnt it wierd how nobody, including myself, ever cries about positive sterotypes?
I wonder if anyone ever saw a black dude that was looking depressed and when someone ask’s him why he look’s so sad he goes “Because I just saw this movie and there was this scene in it were all these really hot white women were banging all these black guys because they heard that they all had 10 inch dicks! AHHHHHH that makes me so mad!”
And I know what you mean in that comment, but there always seem’s to be someone who takes offense at a “Anna” post so I thought we should keep tradition. If only I could find a anti-hindu angle, then it would be perfect.
Seriously, that chick is hot. And not because she’s blond, blue eyes and has killer legs. I can see why he’s not trying hard. 🙂
Really it’s not his fault. The show’s writing style is for films not for 22 minute sit-coms.
This show and the return of Jezebel James were dumped in mid-season because something was wrong with the execution of the premise.
I watch Lost, Gordon Ramsey’s Kitchen Nightmares (UK version) and House.
28 · ShallowThinker said
😉
I watched both of the episodes so far. They both sucked.
speaking of browndar…the new Jewel video features an Indian woman freeing herself by throwing of her veil. Hurrah stereotypes!
On another note, I supposed I should check out this show. Once I get a TV. And cable (instead of stealing internet).
Shoe Show? Not a big difference…
34 · Kam said
🙂
Another urban myth, my friends, another urban myth.
In UP and Rajasthan it is not uncommon to find some married Hindu women with pallou pulled over their faces when in public or in the presence of male in laws who are considered “senior” to their husbands. There are a few different castes that do this.
Haven’t seen it in other parts of India though.
well doctor is the OTHER stereotype as seen in Harold and Kumar, and Heroes.
But alot of desis are doctors……. however, 10 inch black guys are hard to come by. No fun intended!
I just saw New Amsterdam. Not a fan of Zuleikha. The show was ok – the flashbacks should be less jarring somehow. I won’t give the suspense away, but the whole ‘he was once a famous poet’ thing was so cheesy. Cute, but very cheesy. Amsterdam himself had a high rawrr quotient, and the playing doctor scene was appealing. Verdict: Nice premise, but the execution could have been much better.
Yeah, the hook doesn’t seem to play much of a role, at least in the first two shows, and the police work wasn’t particularly gripping either so far. Seems pretty generic so far.
38 · portmanteau said
Now you know why I watch it. 😉 I missed it tonight, though. Left work late. 🙁 Sounds like it was worse than last week, so I’ll console myself with that.
ANNA- In reference to your question, “That makes me wonder if there even IS an accent we could all find acceptable?” —
In my opinion the actor who plays Raja in Aliens in America does a remarkably good and non-offensive accent. Much like you – I was multi-tasking away yesterday when I saw a brown face and stopped to scrutinize and assess the brown character for any hint of desi-ness. Well, once I heard the actor speak – there was no denying that he was playing a desi…and yes, every time the dude spoke – I got the heebeejeebees baaad. it really really really made me feel uncomfortable. to the point that i literally dropped all my work – to sit back and watch the show – convinced that at any moment – some horrific racialized – appu style joke would pop up. when it didn’t i was surprised. but the accent was enough for me. i really hope that the actor can learn to modify the accent as the series continues on…if he is allowed to do so…
Aliens is America is the best show among shows with a desi character. It might be because many of the shows are written by a Robia Rashid, who I assume is a desi. A google search of Robia Rashid did not produce much information. Anybody here know anything of Robia Rashid’s background?
But is his rawrr as cute as this guy’s rawrr? (jump to 1.00 and watch).
Is Rashida Jones finally playing a black woman? Doubt it. This show is full of antics. Cancel it now.
35 · Pardesi Gurgaon said
Just to let you know blacks did not make this stereotype up. The only sho I care to watch is lost myself Naveen Andrews is an ass kicker.
Perhaps not, but many black men are happy to perpetuate it, even if they come up short in the equation.
46 · Pardesi Gurgoan said
Uh ok right. sounds suspect to me real suspect.
UK programs these are, “mistressesâ€, (sex in the city, desperate house wives type thinggy) shows Brown faced actress shelly conn play feisty, man and women loving organiser of weddings and parties things. Bristol born actor Navin Chowdhry played immature teacher in the the highly successful “Teachersâ€. Once again UK show.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anwar_Kharral
Anwar from the UK teen dram Skins.
It is! Especially when you see them naked and it’s not how like they said! (wink, wink, winkedy, wink, wink)
the image of that skin tag still haunts me …. shudders
and yes, his accent is TERRIBLE!