All is not well in Disneyland – the place that is supposed to be the “happiest on earth”. Sukbir Channa, a 24 year old Sikh of Indian origin, has filed a lawsuit against Disney alleging that Disney refused to renew his employment because of his turban and facial hair, both of which are mandated by his religion ( tip: Chickpea via email) (link)

Mickey hates turbans?
img: via Blog Smith Media

The details of the suit indicate that Channa – an accomplished trumpet player- was told that he did not have the “Disney look” had. Bizarrely, Channa who had worked in Disney in 2006 actually had participated in the parade ( for the uninitiated- this is a twice daily feature and most anticipated by all the kiddies and their parents!). At the parade, his turban was hidden by the large soldier hat that he wore. Initially,Disney requested Channa to wear a red turban at work – in keeping with the general dress code guidelines for park employees. Fair enough. In 2006,however, Channa when reapplying for seasonal work was told that he did not meet the requirements for the “Disney look” ( What look is that? Anthropomorphic?)

If the suit is found to have merit, Disney certainly has some explaining to do. For a global corporation that has no qualms about marketing characters to impressionable kids around the world, the idea that there is a certain “look” that is acceptable is ridiculous! For the approximately two of our US based readers who have *NOT* visited Disneyland theme parks – on any day , the parks are teeming with people of all ages, shapes, sizes, nationalities.There is no logic that dictates that all Disney employees need to look a certain way. In fact, Disney prides itself on having employees from all over the world and from what I remember, the park employees wear badges with their names and country of origin displayed!

The actions of Disney may have been the product of a misguided or xenophobic hiring manager. Watch this space as we learn more and bring it to you!

I love dogs and so this story about India’s favorite kutta(Hindi for dog) makes the cut. [The Age]

Dog days are here for India’s favorite pooch
img: via The Age

Those who live in India or have been there in the last couple of years must be familiar with the Vodafone pug.

A TV advertisement promoting the mobile phone company featuring the dog has captivated millions of Indians.

Sales of pug puppies have soared as children, smitten by scenes showing a lovable pug playing affectionately with a pretty little girl, have forced their parents to buy one for them too.

Read the rest of this entry »

Mumbai’s mamus (cops) are now out to defend us from evil cheerleaders. [BBC link]

Deliver us from this evil, oh almighty Mumbai Mamus
img: via BBC

Says Ram Rao Vagh, the police commissioner for New Mumbai:

….. organisers could be fined for violating the norms of the entertainment licence they had secured for allowing performances in the stadium.
Senior officers would decide whether the cheerleaders had crossed the “lines of decency”.

Senior officers will drop all important matters to be there first hand to protect innocent Mumbaikars from those slutty cheerleaders, rest assured.

Says Siddharam Mhetre, Maharashtra’s junior Interior Minister:

“We live in India where womanhood is worshipped. How can anything obscene like this be allowed? This thing is meant for foreigners and not for us. Mothers and daughters watch these matches on television. It does not look nice.”

“It does not look nice”??? Me thinks the cheerleaders look just fine. Also, at this point it is unclear what “womanhood” is it that minister Mhetre worships. If he means he worships women, perhaps he should protect those women from this (see next paragraph):

There have been reports in the Indian newspapers of cheerleaders complaining of sections of the crowd jeering at them and making lewd comments.

Yes, it is “Indian culture” to harass women minding their own business. Just travel on a Mumbai local train and you will experience first hand this aspect of “Indian culture” in all its glory. Where’s the protection for these women? Oh, that’s right. They are at the stadium policing cheerleaders.

The Vijay Mallya-owned, Bangalore Royal Challengers, have roped in cheerleaders from the NFL team, Washington Redskins, for it’s first four games. [link]

Note: This image is photoshopped
img via First Post

The Redskins cheerleaders troupe is also expected to train Indian cheerleaders for Mallya’s team. Predictably, Hindu extremists have gone nuts over this move, “as they believe their act damages Indian culture and tradition”.

Bangaloreans appear less enthusiastic about the cheerleaders …

“It is completely alien to our culture to have young skimpily clad Indian girls sporting pompoms on their derrieres dancing around furiously,” The Telegraph quoted Bangalore resident Roshin Varghese, as saying.

…. not so, the Punjabis, ………

In Punjab, however, people are less critical about the idea of cheerleaders.
“It will be pleasing to watch the cheerleaders in all their glory,” said dentist Gurpreet Singh, adding, “They will add colour and impudence to the game.”

On a related note, Michael Strahan of NFL champions, The New York Giants, was recently quoted as saying that the Washington Redskins cheerleaders were the hottest among all NFL cheerleaders [link]. One has to commend Mallya’s choice.

Update: Mallya’s Bangalore team lost by 140 runs in the first match against Kolkata. [Score]
We did warn Mallya on the Washington Redskins cheerleaders being the most distractive force in all of professional sports.

Like all underground promotional campaigns do, the movie “The Love Guru” has created it’s own Myspace Page.

Among other things listed on here:
Under Interests:

Movies:
Arranged Wedding Crashers”. “Meet the Fakirs“.
“A Fistful of Rupees“. “Police Academy 3″. Guttenbuuuuurg!

Under Details:

Orientation: Straight (into S but not M)
Body Type: Sassy, Classy, with a nice high Assy
Ethnicity: American
School: Tugginmypudha Ashram
Occupation: Guru/life guide/Bikini inspector

Under Who I’d like to meet:

My Guru’s Guru, Guru Cheddafrumunda, his Guru, Guru Hathasmalvena, and Chris Gaines

Really? “Arranged Wedding Crashers”? “Meet the Fakirs”? Seems like they’re falling over themselves to recreate the Simpson’s brand of Apu humor. However, I must admit, as I’m thinking “are these the kind of jokes we’ll be exposed to in the movie?”, “Tugginmypudha” had me snorting my morning coffee across the keyboard.