“English Vinglish”

The fourteen hour flight across the Pacific even in the luxurious trappings and services of Cathay Pacific and the time taken compared to those of the Mayflower, are still nothing to sneeze at.  It is arduous as one does not want to move around in the relative short and dull passages of the plane.  You will be asked by stewardesses if they do not recognize you as one from their division.  Cathay Pacific has the following classes: Imperial (first class with horizontal beds), Nobility (Business), Common People (Premium Economy) and finally the Slave (Economy).

Time was the greatest torturer for such long flights.  Luckily, after all the lengthy business discussions and gossips, a good choice of personalize movie channels can really make the trip a bit more bearable.  I cannot sleep on the plane.  Simply too noisy.

In the end, I watched three animations and one comedy drama:

1. Hotel Transylvania: Dracula throwing a party for this 118 year daughter.

2. Ant Bully, about a boy shrunk into a size tinier than an ant to learn that size is not everything.

3. Frakenweenie: How a boy brought his dog back to live.

4. English Vinlish (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_Vinglish)

It is this comedy drama, title of this entry, there are so many gems that I was enchanted and seduced.  I am truly at a loss for not knowing its existence until now.  It is an Indian movie with English sprinkled over here and there.  Without English subtitles, it would be an impossible movie to understand and if even if the gist was understood.  The salient and the finer points will not be fully enjoyed. 

I will not go into the summary of the movie.  You can read it from the link.  However, what I am writing here are my personal observation and views.  The point is that you do not know how the person feels until you are in his shoes.  You may think you are well educated and even though may know everything in your mind you will be viewed worse than an idiot by those who are able to express their thoughts, no matter how crude, to be understood by others in the local tongue.

Shashi, a beautiful and educated mother of two, struggles not only with the mockery of the English speaking people in New York City but also at home by the insensivities of her husband and teenage daughter for her lack of understanding English.

Some observations:

1. Of her husband, she asked of him: “Why did you marry such a traditional me?”
2. Torn between the forces of love, duty and honor for one’s family in the face of her own desires.

3. Indian male chauvinism – The husband explains to the wife that it was only a hug he gives to a modern dressed female colleague in the department store. He claims of a good working relationship and yet:

        a.  His wife accuses him of never hugging her even in private when they too

             have a good working relationship!

        b.  When the wife is late for a meeting, the husband immediately suspects her

             fidelity!

4. If this movie was made by some white American, the black community will raise their protest of portraying a black and rude counter help in negative light.  Why not a white rude woman and a black man coming to the heroine’s help instead.

5. Every foreigner, visitor and evenUScitizen hates the high and mighty arrogance of US immigration officers. They treat everyone coming in not only as cattle but some kind of a criminal!  The first question for those they think not fluent in English: “State your purpose of visit in theUS”.  In order not to spoil the plot, I shall elaborate more.

6. EveryUSnative born thinks that everyone speaks English.  (I’m sure it is the same of other races too).  I love the scene where a white US Embassy staff questioning the heroine in a very rude attitude of how she can cope in theUSwithout knowledge of English.  It was very heartwarming for me to see how he was retorted by his Indian colleague: “Just like how you get by in New Delphi without speaking Hindi!”

This is a very delightful movie which I recommend to anyone learning or teaching someone a foreign language.  Try to be in their shoes.  Just because they don’t speak the language well, it doesn’t mean that person is an idiot.  The movie tells us a story of how these “idiots” survive wonderfully with their own brilliant solutions.

As for me, now inHong Kong, I have not feel the language effect yet since English and Cantonese are spoken here and that I know them well.  Just wait until I am in the “Land of the Free” –Thailand!

Wednesday, January 16, 2013