« Racing roundup :+: Uber Malarial Videos: “Meet the Spartans” spoofs Sanjaya »

Culture

Its a bird,its a plane, its Hanu-man!

By: Runa :+: Under: Culture, Desi Ishtyle, Entertainment
On: ⋅ January 17, 2008 ⋅  Email this post ⋅  Print this post ⋅ Post a comment
Discuss in our off-topic forums

Looks like you are new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

When I was growing up in India, Amar Chitra Katha was an integral part of life. Through these quintessentially Indian comics, we learnt of the gods and goddesses, demons and myths. A favorite summer holiday pastime was to have “Amar Chitra Katha  quiz contests”, where my cousins and I would try and trip each other up with questions like : “Name three wives of Arjuna” or “How are Bhima and Hanuman related?”* I was the undisputed champ !

The kids growing up in India today of course, have  internet and cable TV. Along with the new media,the gods are getting a makeover, cartoon -style. In recent times, a plethora of films and animated series based on traditional Hindu gods have been released on Cartoon Network  in India ( tip :Santosh)  [link]

In these cartoons, the gods are thoroughly  “modernized”.

 The deities play the guitar instead of the traditional sitar, use the Internet and dodge bullets as if they were Neo, the hero of the U.S. movie “The Matrix.”

What is the world coming to? Instead of burning effigies, parents are thrilled .

To many parents, though, the “mytho-cartoons” are more than a novelty; they are a way to introduce the ancient tales to a generation that seems to be losing touch with its 5,000-year heritage.

Some of the upcoming cartoons are quite topical. Hanuman will soon star in”The Return of Hanuman”

Hanuman flies into space, watches over New York with a torch like the Statue of Liberty’s, captures Osama bin Laden and straightens the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Other characters speak to Hanuman using irreverent phrases such as “Chill, dude” or “Have you lost it, dude?”

Immensely plausible story line. Considering the time, effort, money and  sheer number of human lives spent in the fruitless hunt for Osama, maybe its time for divine intervention.

I think its a great idea to present the old myths and tales in a more modern format that appeals to young children. While there is nothing wrong with watching “Spongebob Squarepants ” (regardless of the gay agenda!) or “Pokemon”, its nice to know that desi kids can still keep in touch with Indian legends.  What do you think? Does this amuse you or offend you ?

* In case you were wondering:  Arjuna’s wives include : Draupadi, Subhadra, Chitrangada and Uloopi. Bhima and Hanuman are brothers - their father is Vayu or Pawan the wind god!)

« Racing roundup :+: Uber Malarial Videos: “Meet the Spartans” spoofs Sanjaya »
Discuss in our off-topic forums