Writer's Block/Unplanned Productivity
Thursday, May 21, 2009
I have writer's block and it is the most frustrating thing to experience. I want to write, but I don't know about what. I want to read, but I can't focus. It's scary and it sucks. I am going to resurrect this blog for my own personal use to vent, but in the meantime, I have decided to start a different blog with a little more focus.As a buildup from my own research project this past semester concerning South Asian American performance groups, I have decided this new blog (unnamed) will feature just that- SAA's who are involved in some sort of performance. I'll be happy to advertise anything, and I will regularly write features about whatever music I'm listening to, performers I've seen, articles I'm reading..whatever. Any contributions are greatly appreciated- I definitely don't want to be the only person writing. Thoughts? opinions? Have any ideas for a name? Holler.
Interview with Shamita Das Dasgupta
Friday, April 17, 2009
On Tuesday April 7th, Shamita Das Dasgupta, spoke at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign for the annual Balgopal Lecture on Human Rights and Asian Americans . Dr. Das Dasgupta is the cofounder of Manavi (New Jersey), the first organization in the U.S. to focus on violence against South Asian immigrant women. She is currently teaching as an adjunct professor at NYU Law School. The following are excerpts of a private interview with her for SAALT.
Addressing a group of around 80 students, faculty, and staff, Dr. Das Dasgupta spoke about intimate violence against SA women in the US. Dr. Das Dasgupta told us that, out of 160 South Asian women surveyed in the United States:
-35% claim current male partner physically abused them at least once
-32.5% claim such abuse has happened within the last year-19% claim their current male partner has sexually abused them at least once during their time together
-15% claim at this abuse happened within the past year
As she clarified, these statistics prove that domestic violence is not restricted to uneducated and marginalized community.
In a private interview, Dr. Das. Dasgupta discussed socioeconomic strata and domestic abuse in India:
"In the upper class, when a woman is raped outside of the home, it is assumed that it is because she is exposing herself. Women still feel as if the home is a safe place, and that sexual violence can only occur outside of the home. On the other hand, the poorer classes know that women must travel outside of the home. Also, oftentimes, their "homes" are shantytowns and are very exposed spaces. The poorer classes understand that sexual and domestic violence can occur anywhere. The whole issue is of a woman being isolated- upper classes feel that if a woman is isolated, she cannot be harmed."
Returning to her work in America, Dr. Das Dasgupta spoke to me about some of the narratives she has heard from the women she has worked with regarding religion and domestic abuse:
"There is this concept called sarwan saha which many people abide by. The concept is often interpreted as "You're the one who can change bad men into good men. Your responsibility, as a woman, is to endure", is how it is read. Women think that religious culture is to endure- "My husband is beating me because I am failing and he is teaching me what I need to know."
After hearing these narratives from many women, Dr. Das Dasgupta said that:
"I have actually found passages in Muslim and Hindu texts that really celebrate the strength of women. One particular Hindu text says "God is not in the home where the woman is not celebrated". When I find these empowering texts and show them to women, it is like they are awakening. I ask them- "Why is this passage invisible? Is it not also a part of your faith background? I really ask the women to challenge how and why tradition is created. "
As a second generation Indian American woman, I was curious to see what sort of advice she has for me and other second generation South Asian American women:
"For a lot of second generation women, I see that their parents are pushing them into marriages they don't want-often with men from South Asia, and often with men who are South Asian American. If they choose to rebel, divorce, etc., their parents tell them that "you are not our daughter anymore.". These women are told that they are betraying our community, [and that they are a] traitor to our culture. It often drives women away from identifying as Indian American or engaging with the community"
I wish they would not reject the culture but rather claim a space within the community. We are incumbent on the second generation to change us, and I would advise them to not let other people define what your generation consists of."
And, finally, as a bookwork, I asked her for a book recommendation- specifically, a book that has changed her life:
It is a Bengali book. Unfortunately, I do not think that they have translated it into English. It is called The First Promise by Ashapurna Devi. It is a wonderful story that discusses many issues women face- I read it when I was a young girl and still hold it very close to my heart.
Help me with my papers, please!
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Hello, friends! No updates in a while...classes, research projects, and interviewing for graduate schools has taken over my life. I'll be done with the last part after April 7th, though, so expect some more posts then!
As for now, I'm in the process of three research projects, all of which I could use some help on. If you have some cool blogs to check out, articles to read, or people to interview, let me know! Comments are cool, but so are emails/phone calls...just a plea to keep me in mind as you're doing your reading. My projects are below:
1.) An ethnography on South Asian American competitive performance teams at UIUC. Self-explanatory, but I could definitely use some supplemental reading if you have any recommendations :) I'm working with the Raas team, Fizaa, and Chai-Town, so if you know of any relevant articles about any of these performance styles, holler atcha girl.
2.) Media portrayal of "honor killings" in the United States and how they're racialized. I'm trying to find out about murder cases which have been labeled as "honor killings" by the media. Links to both news articles and academic sources would be greatly appreciated.
3.) Ways in which Bollywood films portrayed East Asian people/East Asia as an entity. Mostly I'm focusing on movies from the 50s-70s.
Yup. That's my life right now. :)
Globalization: Denied
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Karan Johar has been shooting his highly anticipated film, My Name is Khan, in LA for the past couple of weeks. The film, starring SRK and Kajol, tracks the experience of a young Muslim couple living in the US during 9/11/01.
I'm not sure why they're shooting in LA...I'm pretty sure I read the movie takes place in NYC. Meh.
Either way, the film costars Aamir Bashir. Aamir is Muslim. Uninportant...unless you're trying to get into the US. Aamir was denied a US visa to come shoot for the film for no good reason. This is crazy. Read more here: Muslim movie star denied access to film for Karan Johar's film
Dropping the F bomb
Currently Reading: Why Women Should Rule the World by Dee Dee Myers
Feminism is something I think about a lot. I first started composing this blog entry in my head while I was sitting alone in my friend's apartment while he dropped some friends off. After a wonderful evening with my friends was over, I was suddenly hit with an intense feeling of, well, loneliness.
This is something I have gotten used to. The random attacks, not the feeling. But the fact still exists that, even though it happens intermittently...the feeling is still there. Sometimes it's a fleeting thought, sometimes it turns into an all out emo show.
Usually (and this is no different) it somehow revolves around the fact that I haven't really had a romantic relationship. I know I'm not alone in this, and I don't want to pretend that I am. But- it's relevant to the point I'm going to make.
When I start to feel in the doldrums about my lack of dating experience, I always somehow justify it by telling myself that I am a strong, independent woman and that I do not need someone else to feel validated.
That's what I kind of thought earlier.
But I thought about it further. I don't agree with this. For me (and I stress, this is my own experience), being "strong and independent", whatever that means, doesn't cure loneliness. Sure, I can blame being socialized and blah blah blah, but it's biological too. Humans are social creatures. There's something to be said for that and for the need of having a monogamous relationship/starting a life with someone else.
I take pride in the fact that I can think for myself, make decisions on my own, etc. etc. But women who are in relationships can do that too. Why aren't they "strong" in the same way that single women are labeled? I don't understand it.
At the end of the day, I don't think that I take as much pride in being "independent" as I feel I'm supposed to. I believe there is something really beautiful about making yourself vulnerable to certain situations. What's life without that?
Also, why the hell are women being taught that "you dont need a partner to survive". I know that's true, but why are women who WANT a partner being viewed as compromising? That's a ridiculous double standard- men who marry are not viewed as any less manly than men who pursue a bachelor life. But that rant is for another day.
Of course, now my biggest worry is that I've spent the last 21 years - and still continue to- building up resistances to making myself vulnerable. I'm a victim of unrequited whatever (its never love, i refuse to believe that) for my entire life. I'm starting to feel the effects of it.
So, what do you think? What are your opinions on how "single" is viewed/interpreted/embodied? Independence? And, most importantly, does the song "Miss Independent" by Ne-Yo make you swoon, but "Single Ladies" by Beyonce make you want to tear your hair out? It does for me.
India's 9/11? aka wtfrk, media.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Quick plug to Rupa's coverage of the Mumbai attacks over at New American Media.
The events of last week are NOT India's 9/11. First of all, I think it cheapens the impact of what happened in Mumbai to compare it to something that happened in the United States- it's kind of an extreme case of cultural appropriation. This is India's tragedy and their experience needs to be heard and documented. Biju Mathew's article in Samar magazine highlights some of the unsung heroes whose faces will never be seen on our side of the world.
The shock in India is very different than what we felt in the US 7 years ago. Incidents of terrorism have happened in Mumbai before. In the past few years, there have been at least two train bombings and I'm sure theres many more that I don't know about. What we've been hearing from India is frustration, exhaustion, and disappointment.
The Western media is the one emphasizing shock. This is the first time "we're" hearing about things like this happening in Mumbai, and the only reason we're hearing about it is because they were "targeting Americans". Yeah, that was part of it. But what about the Indian citizens that died. We can't forget about them. We mustn't.
I wonder what it means that we're so desensitized to the violence in the middle east that nobody cares about the day-to-day terror there, and that the world comes to a standstill when the "terrorists" strike somewhere "new".
I have another huge gripe about the way media handled the situation. Folks, we still don't have any confirmation that they were Muslim or Pakistani. The constant riots in Gujurat prove that terrorists don't have to come externally from India. There's plenty of people IN India who insist on keeping the option open that these people were Indian citizens.
Also, why the hell does Western media automatically assume that this has to do with Kashmir? I think it's pretty ignorant that that's the only speculation I heard about these attacks. It seems that the possibility that these terrorists were not a.) Muslim and b.) Pakistani was not even considered by these so-called reporters/scholars. Anyone who follows world news knows that the Kashmir conflict has never reached such extreme levels as to arrange such a highly organized hostage situation. That's outrageous.
Overall, I'm just really disappointed about the way this situation was handled in the mainstream media in the US. They managed to take a situation that was very uniquely Indian and turn it into a uniquely American issue without actually hearing out what Indian people and government had to say about it.
Movie Review: Yuvvraaj
Saturday, November 22, 2008
First of all, Im not totally sure what the main story line of the movie was. Essentially, the movie was about three estranged brothers, but the sub plots and concurrent storylines (ie the love story between Salman and Katrina's character) made the experience of watching the movie feel a little bit schizophrenic. It was all tied together in the end, but the ties weren't all very neat. Like most Ghai films, I felt the ending was rushed.
Second of all, I thought the movie itself was pretty ridiculous. The characters, though battling for money, seem to have no trouble flying between Austria and London 6-7 times over the course of 40 days...all the while buying new cars and what not. The story lines in and of themselves are actually quite touching. The potential for complex characters that we could empathize with were there, but Salman and Zayed's performances were definitely lacking. I will say this, though- Anil Kapoor's performance was simply fantastic. He totally carried the movie in the second half...he's way underrated.
I remember in Yaadein when Ghai tried using special effects in song sequences for the first time- remember Jub Dil Miley with its weird fantasy sequence in space and the army of Hrithiks? I'm sorry to say that Ghai didn't learn his lesson- within the first five minutes of the movie he brings these wonderful low-budget special effects back- this time, with Salman Khan flying through some fields. Needless to say, the bar dropped pretty quickly for me.
The costumes in the song sequences were pretty outrageous too- some choice ones were: backup dancers pretty much replicating the costumes from Cats, men wearing goucho pants made of feathers, Zayed Khan in knee high boots with brass buttons down the side (no joke)...and there's a lot more.
Also, Salman Khan might be attractive if he played age-appropriate roles. There were WAY too many unbottoned shirts and short shorts in this movie for me.
Music:
I really love two of the songs from this movie: Tu Meri Dost Hain (a cute love song...cheesy, but definitely cute) and Manhini Morey. Manhini Morey has influence from Indian and Western classical styles and is a heartwrenching raga. <3>
Unfortunately, Manhini Morey was cut from the movie..that had me seething.
I didn't like any of the other songs. They were clearly filler music and, on the whole, I'm really not impressed with Rahman's attempts and making club music- Shano Shano might be catchy but sounds a little too mello to be a hot club track. Also, I think I might be influenced by the way the songs were picturised...the song sequences were all completely outrageous and not any fun to watch.
Overall, I'll give the movie 3/5 stars- mostly for Anil Kapoor's fantastic acting and for storyline potential. Also, I'm done watching new Salman Khan movies until he puts some freaking pants on.
I'd comment on Katrina's role in the movie, but all she really had to do was stand there and look pretty. Sigh.
Happy Thanksgiving Break!
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