Douse the Heat

After 2 straight weeks of non-stop work, it all came crashing down to an unglamourous pause with my throat infection today.

As I always like to whine, work at school somehow piles up and buries you before you could say “Nanta”. I was busy with two projects in the last few days:

One was an experiment for a quantitative methods class. We explored the impact of the use of Singlish on listeners’ perceptions of a speaker’s credibility and like-ability in a political speech.

“Whoa wait up, I didn’t get that,” you say. Righty, here’s a watered-down version of what my team mates and I did:

Get a local political speech (freely available) made by one of the MPs or grassroots dudes. Alter it to make a Singlish version (it was tough, but we did it). So instead of “The policies need changing” you’d have something like “The policy ah, must change lah”. Then, get a drama-trained dude to speak these two speeches and record it as MP3s. Then, get 42 students and make them listen to either of these clips and made them fill out forms that ask them how they found the speaker they had just listened to, in terms of credibility (“The speaker is an expert at what he does. Agree, neutral, disagree.”) and like-ability (“I like the speaker. Agree, neutral, disagree.”).

Results showed that yes! – The students who listened to the Singlish speaker found the speaker to be less credible than folks who listened to the English version, but No! There were no differences in how much they liked the Singlish or English speaker. So essentially: don’t use Singlish if you’re a politician, thinking it’s a social glue and stuff like that. Undergrad folks rather believe someone who speaks proper, good, nice, correct, nice, English. We presented the findings today in class and got a comment for using too small a font size in the Powerpoint slides (slaps forehead). Moving on.

The other study, as I had written about earlier, was a qualitative study that explored the identity dynamics a North Indian stall owner faced in a multicultural food court in Singapore. So we did interviews with customers and the vendors at China Square food court, and got a chance to see the world of food, exoticism, and The Other through their eyes. To summarize, there were several tensions, or contradictions, that the food vendor faced, being a vendor: he celebrated his North Indian culture through his food but had to resort to heating up frozen naan (for instance) to get the profit margin up, thus compromising the “authenticity” his culture; then, he felt at one with the general multiracial community most of the time, but felt like an outsider whenever he was rejected or singled out by his non-Indian peers, and he attributed to being Indian. Also, very telling was customers’ stereotypes of Indian food: they predominantly link Indian food with roti prata and rojak, so North Indian food, with its naans and tikkas, is really quite exotic for some folks. We presented this paper last week to good reviews. Probably sending it off for some conference later this year.

Well, that’s about it for what’s been happening. This week’s the week of “Last lectures” as the exams are in 2 weeks’ time, and I felt quite sad about the end of the media law and ethics class. I think anyone in the media line has to go through that course to see how to avoid potential pitfalls, and not to rub the authorities the wrong way. There’s always a way around things, dudes.

OK, back to me nursing my throat infection (scene of me nursing throat infection). By the way, I took the picture above near a tap in school, at high noon. It's "dousing the heat".

The Origin of me

The other day, as I was waiting for a bus at my place, a bespectacled Indian man with a “songkok” came to me and gave me the Muslim greeting of peace, “assalaamu’alaikum”, which I returned. He then began a conversation in Tamil about where I stayed, and introduced himself as a fund-raiser for an orphanage in India. (Earlier, I had seen this same man in my floor talking to another Indian-Muslim household, down the corridor).

And then came the question: “Yentha ooru?” / “Which town are you from?”

[a Basic Backgrounder]

For the uninitiated, Indian-Muslims in Singapore are not homogenous in their origins. There are different families (I don’t think “clan” applies here) that stem from villages or towns of South India, much like how Singapore Chinese may have roots in Hainan or Guangdong. I’d rather use the term ‘town’ to describe these places in India, as ‘village’ implies imagery of mud cottages and singing milk maids. Anyway: these towns, although having retained their natural settings like padi and sugarcane fields, have ‘modern’ structures like 2 or 3-storey bungalows that the town alumni build after their successful careers in Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, Brunei, or, yup, Singapore (more about The Lost Sons in another post.)

Going deeper into which towns Singapore Indian Muslims originate from-

Those from the Tanjore side, like Kiliyanoor and Kollapuram. My father hails from Kiliyanoor, and my mom, the latter. Many men from this part of South India came in the 1950s and 60s, often unmarried, to make a fortune here and live like a king in India. A lot of them did, and still do. However, some (like my dad) decided to make this country their home, and married in India and brought their wives here. However, the relatives don’t follow (the fellow townspeople who do follow prefer to lie low, make a buck, send it to India, and eventually return to India.) So a new ‘nuclear family’ is thus established in Singapore, that has little community or relational support.

Kadayanalloor is an Indian Muslim town in South India where many second-generation Singapore Indians Muslims find their roots. Same story with finding fortune, but the forefathers brought along many more of their fellow townspeople. Most folks in Singapore who can trace their roots in Kadayanalloor would know each other, because they’re a close-knit bunch, mainly through marriages. So although say Rizal and Shariff would probably have never met each other before, they could, if they spent a few minutes, find how they link up (“hey! You’re Uncle Rashid’s daughter’s husband’s brother’s ---- son!”). However, the current generation of Muslims probably has never stepped foot on Kadayanalloor soil in India. The Singapore Kadayanalloor Muslim League (or fondly known as SKML) represents Kadayanalloor Muslims’ interests, who number in the few hundreds. Thus Kadayanalloorians have a strong family and social support base.

Ditto for the Indian Muslim town known as Thenkaasi. About a few hundred in strength, the Thenkaasi forefathers came here and settled, and I have many 2^nd generation friends whose roots are in Thenkaasi. But most, if not all, have never visited the town of Thenkaasi.

Then there are folks who came from the town of Keezhaikarai, which is known for its scenic beaches. Several of my good pals are second-generation Keezhakarai.

Then there are those from Karaikaal, the town of merchants.

And we haven’t even started on the Pattani, Malayalee and North Indian Muslims. [Did I miss anyone?]

[back to The Present]

(Earlier, I had seen this same man in my floor talking to another Indian-Muslim household down the corridor).

And then came the question: “Yentha ooru?” / “Which town are you from?”

I replied that I was “Singaporean”, evoking applause from the corner of my cranium. The man then quickly asked what my father’s town was, to which I replied Kiliyanoor. After a few more niceties, the conversation stopped and the man went on his way.

I’ve encountered many such events, and this is a mild one: the desire of an Indian-Muslim to know the origin of another, when it doesn’t matter. This is despite the fact that both would look exactly the same, practice the same religion, speak the same language (minus the accents lah) and eat the same food.

There is a desire in all of us to look for differences and identify what cultural scholars call the “in-group” and the “out-group”. Someone who is identified as a member of a particular cultural group (meaning, to share common roots, practices etc) is a member of the in-group. One who isn’t, is from the out-group.

Of course, it doesn’t take a scholar to tell us that - this process of grouping is nothing new: we do it all the time. Having our own circle of friends, our (say) French class mates, our group of gym regulars etc.

But my problem is this: in a place where being Indian is already to be a minority, and where to be Indian-Muslim narrows it down even further, why do we further segregate ourselves into “origins from India”? It’s been an issue since my youth, and it’s very unsettling. This segregation mentality is the first step to stereotyping and prejudice. Each town of origin in India mentioned above has it’s own set of specialities, notorieties, and unique traits. These traits were founded in the socio-historic context of that time and place in India. To transplant those very characteristics to us born in Singapore is absurd, and outright dumb-assed. (For example, say Mohammed says he's from Town B, Jalees, who hears this, goes home and tells his folks that “Mohammed is from B, being from a town of potters, haha! Hey pass me a pot, haha!” - Just an example, it’s not factual.)

To make thing worse, the language of segregation is rampant: those who are not of a particular group of India-originated townspeople are labeled as ‘veliyoor’, or ‘foreigner’. Imagine being called a foreigner being in your own country.

I could choose to close my ears and shrug it off as “that’s the way it is” or “hey, let’s take this easy lah”. But I choose to take issue on this, as the segregation mindset inevitably spills over to the social fabric, where we are continually trying our darndest to maintain a harmonious multi-cultural society. And this is an issue that needs urgent discussion but hasn’t, to my knowledge, been articulated in any sense, anywhere.

Fortunately, this mindset is more rampant in the older generation. Folks my age are more sane.

I hope my generation is going in the right direction. And I hope one day no one has to ask me “Yentha ooru?” to be able to make small talk with or form pre-judgements of me.

If you have questions or want to share your views on this issue, Indian-Muslim or non Indian-Muslim, Indian or non-Indian, Singaporean or non-Singaporean, feel free.

*Note:

First-generation – of or relating to person(s) whose parents are immigrants
Second-generation – of or relating to person(s) whose parents are citizens, and whose grandparents are immigrants.

Just do it

I received it in my e-mail. Help if you can.

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A P P E A L
For Earthquake Victims in Pakistan

As you already been aware of the deadly earthquake in Pakistan on 8th October resulted in more than 20,000 deaths confirmed to date, and expected to be much higher as rescue workers are reaching the far flung northern areas which have been cut off from the rest of the country due to land slides.

We, the Pakistani students at Nanyang Technological University, appeal to the students, faculty and staff of NTU to please help and donate generously for the people who have been affected by the earthquake and are living without shelter and food.

This donation will directly go to the “Presidents' Relief Fund for Earthquake Victims - 2005” on behalf of Singapore Pakistani Association.

The collection will be made at the following locations:
Canteen-A and Canteen-B
Between 1000 hours to 1600 hours from Wednesday, 12 October 2005 - onwards.

OR you can deposit your donation directly into the following account:
Account Name: Singapore Pakistani Association Account Number: 052-900118-2 Bank: DBS

The proceeds from these donations will then be delivered directly to the victims and their families in Pakistan by Singapore Pakistani Association working in conjunction with the on-site relief agencies.

Your support is highly appreciated

Thank you
Sincerely,
The Pakistani students of NTU and Singapore Pakistani Association

Contact Information of Relief Fund Committee:

President Singapore Pakistani Association
Mrs Sophie Shaikh 96600665

Pakistani Students at NTU
Imran Ahmed (MAE)-Coordinator imra0001@ntu.edu.sg 81454660
Tanveer Alam (MAE) tanv0003@ntu.edu.sg 81663756
Fawad Ahmed Niazi (SCI) fawad.niazi@gmail.com 81271210
Zeeshan Iqbal Siddiqui (EEE) zees0001@ntu.edu.sg 81237145


****

Preventing a mess

Whoa, what a sentence. Jail for the two who wrote inflammatory and racist remarks on the Net. The one who posted these remarks on his blog was sentenced to a month in jail; the other, who wrote his comments in a forum, to a nominal day in jail. I say they asked for it.

I was expecting more of a huge fine and a severe warning. If anything, the jailing sends a stern message to folks who write stuff online (like myself) to stay clear of certain issues that are “eternal truths” as PM Lee Hsien Loong commented, like race, and it shows the very high premium the authorities place on such touchy issues. Whether online or offline, a very succinct point made during this watershed case in Singapore’s freedom of expression history was by the Senior District Judge Richard Magnus in his explanation for the ruling:

The right to propagate an opinion on the Internet is not, and cannot be, an unfettered right. The right of one person’s freedom of expression must always be balanced by the right of another’s freedom from offence, and tampered by wider public interest considerations. (ST, 8 Oct 2005, p. H7)

We are living in a very unique part of the world - whilst being surrounded by largely Muslim-majority nations, we have succeeded in creating a balanced multi-racial nation that has, to a large extent, been successful in seeing harmony, through the multiple discourses of meritocratism and “Asian values” of harmony and peace. Seeing examples of failing, anarchy-led societies where sectarian violence is the norm of the day (eg. Tutsis and Hutus in Africa; Muslims and Hindus in India; Sunnis and Shi’ites in an already war-torn Iraq; Arab militiamen and Sudanese in Sudan), what we have is priceless. Stability and peace are taken for granted in Singapore. So we need to balance our cries for freedom of expression with cries to maintain this rare peace.

Does this mean race matters, and politics for that matter, cannot be discussed online now? Not at all. The Internet is the final frontier (for now) in matters of expressing opinions that cannot, or will not, be heard in the offline world. So our blogs and our forums are very important tools in getting our views across – it’s how you get your opinion that is the issue. There have to be certain considerations when doing so, as for any argument, but more so for sensitive topics, which I will explain in a minute.

Implications

Will there be a ‘chilling effect’, which is the “thinking twice before venturing an opinion” nature of one who’s been bitten by such punishment, among the online community? Yes: among those who think they can get away with any vile, senseless things they want to say about others. No: among those who truly believe in voicing opinions in a logical, reasoned manner. If anything, the jail sentence reinforces the line drawn on how issues such as race should be tackled.

What the two who posted racist comments did something more along the lines of “flaming” – it was insulting, one-directional (giving no allowance for any dialogue) and showed total disrespect for the affected religion and race. So how should one go about presenting his or her point of view of a sensitive topic without bringing any potential harm to him or herself and avoid looking like a complete ass?

The point made about a touchy topic has to be –

Informed: If there’s an issue, it has to be thoroughly researched, backed up with facts and reasoned out, and has to pose a problem to public well-being.

Constructive: A solution has to be suggested to the issue raised at hand, or further points to look into. This would add value to the point raised, instead of being just another unhappy rant that helps no one and worse still, offends many.

Inviting dialogue: This is vital. Any party that is mentioned or zoomed in in any issue has to be given a right-of-reply or a chance to clarify and give its own interpretation of events.

So in trying to balance freedom of expression with consideration of societal harmony, these three broad considerations should be made by anyone wanting to raise thorny issues online, or offline, for that matter. Of course, all the above assumes the user of the internet to be educated, able to have a sense of responsibility in providing a balanced view, and proficient in articulating his/her thoughts. Is this too much to ask? I don’t think so. The Internet wields great power in the rich world. With great power – you know the rest.

Praying for the dead

As the situation in Iraq gets worse by the day, a new book by an ex-Marine, Jimmy Massey, may support existing reasons why the US has found itself in such a position.

Entitled "Kill! Kill! Kill!", the author explains that he and his fellow marines had killed dozens of civilian Iraqis due to a an "exaggerated sense of threat", and often they experienced thrills of a sexual nature when doing so. Apparently their training imbibed them with the sense that all Iraqis were terrorists. Massey said he published the book in France, in French, because no American publisher in his right mind would bring bad publicity to the US Marines and national pride. Massey was discharged from the Army in 2003 after being diagnosed with post-trauma stress syndrome. Read more here.

Obviously, any army would train its best to be most brutal and most effective during any war. This would mean dehumanising the enemy, so that killing of enemy combatants in a hostile enemy territory is swift, unthinking and effective. If not, the attacking force would be destroyed.

But the problem is, this was meant to be a war to rid the threat of Weapons of Mass Destruction that Saddam allegedly kept but somehow were never found. Then it became a war for democracy and peace to free the people of Iraq from a repressive government. It also sometimes became a war against terrorism. The war was many things, but not to decimate a country that was seen to populate aggressive individuals who would be patriotic to the old regime. But killing of civilians is happening now, by both US troops and anarchists (Shia/Sunni/everybody) who want power, any power.

In a time where technology is advanced enough to pin-point exact locations to be bombed, the threat that was Saddam could've been taken out smoothly. But troops were sent by the hundreds and thousands, and there have been too many casualties for what has been packaged as a noble cause.

The book "Kill! Kill! Kill!" will provide some clues as to why the US troops in Iraq are seen as an oppressive regime initiating anarchy in the first place. Michael Moore's Farenheit 9-11 also showed us examples of the mentality of the US troops, mentality that smacked nothing less than racism against a foreign people. The Abu Ghraib torture photos are a manifestation of the number of human rights abuses happening in Iraq.

These are the acts of terror in an invaded country that provide cold, hard justification for suicide bombers. A London bomber claimed he was shown video clips of US brutality towards Iraqi women and children. It's absurd that the US and coalition forces are fighting a war that they help to fuel - much like fire-fighting with kerosene in the hoses.

So there is a cycle of killing, revenge, and killing that results in a blood-filled quagmire of no-return. All we can do at the moment is just pray for the dead souls to be at peace.

Hunger pangs of renewal

4.30 am - Woken up from deep sleep to eat the pre-dawn meal (sahur). Prawn curry, rice, spicy fried potatoes and papddam are the items.

5.33 am - Enter Ramadan: the first day of fasting starts.

6.30 am - After eating and performing the morning prayer (swolatul Fajr), I feel full with food. It's a wierd feeling to eat rice in the morning. I go to sleep.

10.30 am - Fast forward to lecture in school. Hunger pangs strike. Head begins to ache. I'm pretending everything's fine and that it's a beautiful day.

12.30 pm - Hunger pangs are more serious. Head hurts like crazy every time I bend down. No good. Afternoon prayer (swolatul Zuhr) is a struggle.

3.35 pm - Lecture is unbearably boring and lor bloody sor. I feel nauseous, and even the lecturer asks if I'm fine. I reply that I have a headache.

5.23 pm - Home sweet home and a 1 hr nap. Still head hurts.

6.57 pm - Fast is broken. Sweet, carbohydrate-laden dates, kueh-kueh, and rice porridge from the mosque make everything disappear. No headache, no hunger. I'm back!

7.53 pm - To mosque for night prayers (swolatul 'Isha) and superogatory Ramadan prayers (swolatul Terawih).

And so begins the month of Ramadan in the Islamic year 1426 A.H. The days will get better; experience tells me that I'll feel healthier, 'lighter', and I'll feel as if I could make do without food for longer periods. It is a time of solitude, a time of contemplation, time of constraint, a time to forgive and ask forgiveness, a time for cleansing and renewal. It will be a different life for a month - a life of simple routine, of increased communication with oneself, of detachment for the normal things one holds so dear everyday.

Welcome, Ramadan.

Muruga Doss It

A slick and flashy commercial flick with a few brain-defying moments is what Ghajini is.

Surya’s much-awaited Ghajini hit theatres yesterday evening, tapping the shoulder of many Tamil cine viewers to sit up and pay attention.

Boasting audio, visual and narrative sophistication as impressive as Vikram’s "magnum aapus" Anniyan, Ghajini is an all-out no holds barred foray into the expensive world of mega-budget action-thriller masala movies.

No peek into the story from me: I don't like others to spoil movies for me, and the vice-versa is true as well. But broadly put: with a characterization inspired from Chris Nolan’s Memento in 2000, director Murugadoss (of Dheena and the well-executed Ramanaa fame) tackles short term memory loss his own style. Knowing fully well that remaking Memento in Tamil would lead to legions of Tamil cinema-goers losing their sanity, having convulsions, losing their memory and ultimately the death of Murugadoss’ career, he played it smart and merely integrated the persona of Guy Pearce in Memento, along with several plot devices, into Ghajini. I wouldn’t call Ghajini a rip-off: it takes skill to maneuver a known plot device into another context. Murugadoss has done a pretty remarkable job in transplanting the plot into Tamil cinema.

Surya has done excellent work once again. What Ajit rejected, Surya has accepted with glee and has shown his mettle again in Ghajini, complete with blow-dried straightened hair. His buffed up body lends well to the tattoos of an insecure man, while his eyes speak of a man desperate for revenge but languishing in pain at the same time.

Asin has arrived with Ghajini. She's a sultry queen, cutie pie and comedienne rolled into a petite, ravishing package. Her performance makes one wonder: what does Kollywood find with the staid Trisha Krishnan? After Jo(thika), Asin would be a clear runner for the top position among leading actresses, I hope.

In contrast, Nyantara appears in a badly written role. Her obese look is compounded with a horrible wardrobe that reveals too much skin, tip-toe-ing away from the sensual and treading into the vulgar. It's not her fault, I admit; but it was unnecessary. She does not act well, and she does not have that X-factor that makes even a simple smile an electrifying look.

Camera work and editing went along very well, with the Khaakhe... Khaakhe... team of Rajasekhar (photography) and Antony (editing) producing vivid, on-the-edge photography, and tight editing that gave a highly stylized dimension to the fast-paced narrative. Jump cuts, over exposures and the hand-held camera motions give the film a raw yet glossy feel.

The songs were excellently executed. My beloved "Rahatulla" showed Asin in a way I've never seen before, while "Oru Maalai" was absolutely spot-on with the overall picturzation and dance choreography (Caleb, you'll be a happy man). There is a strong hip-hop feel to both these songs, and it refreshes minds attuned to the pelvic thrusts of many masalas of yonder.

However, the movie suffers from certain holes and inconsistencies, demanding that the viewer make some unconditional leaps of faith. For one, I don't understand Nyantara's motives (or her costumes) in doing the totally ludicrous and annoying things she does. Songs seems to be inserted at odd times when clearly there are more appropriate moments. GV Yishun, I suspect, plans to make all patrons of Tamil movies deaf: the sound level was absurdly high. But it played to my advantage as the roaring sounds masked the incessant discussion groups all over the cinema, started by our over-enthusiastic expatriate/foreign worker brethren.

On the whole: this is Surya's big one, I hope one of many to come. Murugadoss, I've always felt, was a very under-rated director, and he's gotten the big one. Asin's in for the big league with this movie as well, and Harris (Rahatulla) Jayaraj might see his assignments increase after this. Go watch it, it'll work wonders after a draining week of assignments.