Real Life Situations, Real Time Songs. Experience India - Bombay Style. Interview with podmaster Arun Krishnan

ICB: Where were you born Arun?

A.K.: I was born in New Delhi, India.

ICB: So you grew up speaking Hindi?

A.K.: Since I am Tamilian, my parents always spoke Tamil and English in the house. But our family did not have any animosity towards the Hindi language as such. We all loved watching Hindi movies in the cinema theater. Watching movies taught me much of what I know about the language, or at least the part which is useful, such as ordering tea and vowing to seek revenge.

I remember that we once sat through the famous Amitabh Bachchan movie Namak Halaal, even though the rain outside rudely made its way into the leaky roof of the theater drenching us all good and proper. It was an excellent movie.

ICB: Is this when did you came up with the idea for the podcast?

A.K.: No, I was very occupied during my childhood days Time flew by with cricket and field hockey without my even thinking about podcasts and such. Nowadays things are different – and learning to look busy is extremely important for survival. During one of my many idle moments, I thought it would be interesting to test the “film and music” inundation approach to learning a language, and I started this podcast.

ICB: Why the name Cutting Chai?

A.K.: Anything done in moderation is boring at first glance, but quite fascinating on a slightly deeper look. In Bombay, the tea stalls sell Cutting Chai. This is for people who don’t feel like having a full glass of tea, but are not satisfied with just half a glass. Cutting Chai is a three fourth glass of tea. It is a brilliant concept, and I was lucky to get the name for my web site before other Bombayites did. And yes, two three fourths glasses does make for more than a full glass of tea.

ICB: What are some of the subjects or situations you have tackled in your podcast?

A.K.: The podcast tries to maintain a mix of the practical and the philosophical. This is essential to survive in India. To give one example, this podcast will help you deal with the question - should I have killed the dishonest rickshaw driver? It will also help you with - now that I have done killed him, will my soul go to hell? Outsourcing, career, love, the weather and even Harry Potter, anything affecting our lives is dealt with in the podcast.

ICB: Does one just listen to the podcast to learn Hindi?

A.K.: No, this podcast is an excellent companion piece for someone learning Hindi. I would also recommend pursuing other and more conventional learning channels. But to really learn a language, one has to really hear people who live that use it as they would in their day to day lives. Also many words carry cultural baggage, and this podcast helps you understand that. For example, if you were learning English, it would help to know that saying “Go ahead, make my day” might have unforeseen consequences.

ICB: How do you come up with the ideas to keep it updated weekly?

A.K.: Most of the ideas are given by the listeners to the podcast. These are the good ideas. The “not so good” ideas are mine. So it always helps to have people write in.

ICB: You also have a group on Facebook.

A.K.: Yes. The group is at Learn Hindi from Bollywood Movies on Facebook. The group is really useful for people writing in with their Hindi questions. I check the group daily and try and answer them. With the internet, the cool thing is that we can have a global community of people learning something, and this group strives to do just that.

ICB: What are some of your favorite BW films?

A.K.: All the old Amitabh movies: Trishul, Sholay, Amar Akbar Anthony. The Amol Palekar and Hrishikesh Mukherjee movies: Mili, Golmaal and the lot are also excellent.

ICB: Who are your favorite BW stars?
A.K.: Amitabh Bachchan in his older movies. Also R.D. Burman has to be one of the greatest people who scored music. Kishore Kumar is a genius … if he had been a scientist, he would have been good friends with Einstein.

ICB: You’re in the marketing industry, do you think Indian cinema does a good job of marketing films abroad? If not, what suggestions do you have?

A.K.: No. I think the biggest problem with some Indians is that we try and think in Western terms. We try and define things as being Western or “non Western”. Some of the burning questions occupying our best minds are – should we label our movies as fantasies? Or should we call them musicals? Should our industry be called Bollywood – or is that not an apt name? In both cases, some of our opinion makers are trying really hard to win Western approval, or at the other end of the spectrum - to go completely “non Western.” India is India. It is not the West. And at the same time, the West is an important part of India.

The truth is that India has an ancient culture of story telling, where songs comedy, dance, et al are an inherent part of the narrative structure. Also, our culture has been inherently open to all influences – and that includes the West. So what is unique to India is its fluid way of thinking that is open to multiple influences. What India has in common with the rest of the world is an appreciation for good cinema. If we blend the two and focus on making consistently good and honest cinema that stays true to the Indian essence, it would really enrich the culture of the world at large in a meaningful way. And that is the best marketing of all.

ICB: Tell us about your book The Loudest Firecracker and does it have a connection with BW films?

A.K.: The Loudest Firecracker is a coming of age story set in Poona. It is being published by EastWest and Westland Books. The brilliant Indian journalist Nilanjana S. Roy is the chief editor of this publishing house.

In the novel, Siddharth, a young boy of seven, lights a firecracker in a vegetable market anticipating an Indian victory in the famous 1986 cricket match hosted in Sharjah (of Javed Miandad fame). Unfortunately for him, Pakistan wins the game at the last moment. The Hindus in the market arrive at the conclusion that the Muslims are celebrating Pakistan’s victory. Siddharth’s naive action sparks off a communal riot during which he suffers an immense loss. Learning to cope with this tragedy, Siddharth comes of age in the truest sense of the term.

Siddharth’s father is a Bollywood director who is making a transition from making commercial to art cinema. This narrative is woven throughout the story. Bollywood is a very important part of the book.

The book will be available in January 2008. You can view an excerpt of the book at The Loudest Firecracker

ICB: I found it interesting how you compare sipping tea to a BW film. Could you give us that quote from your blog?

A.K.: One event that creates the aesthetics of tea being sipped in the optimal way: Feelings experienced during the next to last scene of a particularly beautiful movie, where the audience wants to see the conclusion, and at the same time, doesn’t want the narrative to end. (for the other four events, see Tea)

ICB: Thank you for a wonderful and informative interview Arun. We look forward to more of your podcasts as well as reading The Loudest Firecracker.

A.K.: Thanks really for your time and for your interest.