Yes, we all watch American Idol. We all love watching American Idol. Some of us watch it to spot new rock talent ( :D - for everyone who knows me or Ali Yar Khan), some to compare ourselves with the American talent, some just for laughs and some, because everyone else is watching it.
But let me get to my point. The American society is supposed to be one of the most developed and educated societies of the world. Everyone knows their rights, and their rights to sue. But it is almost farcical to see many, if not most, of the participants of American Idol announcing to the world that they are going to be America's next idol, when they can't even sing one bloody note in tune. It is unbelievable! And what's even more bizarre is that when the judges try to punch some sense into these 'American idiots' (no pun intended), they brush it away and say, 'Simon is a *******!' Hello, you self centered freaks, you can't sing! Hear yourself! I laugh when I see them behave so arrogantly, but then again every time, I also feel a sense of irritation. There are a few decent, logical participants and they are the ones who usually win, or come close to winning.
Also, the producers of American Idols are the smartest television broadcasters ever. They show footage that we want to see, and what we want to see is all the emotion and the drama, and the crying and the abusing. Hell, this reality show is more like a soap opera. And I bet that these producers pay loads of money to Mr. Simon Cowell, just to continue increasing their viewer ship. How we love watching him bring people back down to earth - most of the times unsuccessfully though. Oh, and in the show there are also a group of people who overdo it just to be on TV. Would you do that? Well honestly, if I felt really jobless, it does sound like fun.
This show has been so successful that it has inspired almost all the nations of the world to start a similar show. So as a result, SONY started Indian Idol (which is supposed to be good, but I hate the fact that they copied every element of the American version, even the layout of the opening credits), Pop Idol began in the Middle East, and for that matter even 'The Best of the Best' started in the UAE, on a much lower scale though.
So in affect, what I am trying to say is that we(as in the non-west people) tend to imitate the west even when we consider them to be over-doers. A lot of the times, I feel, we lack originality, especially in the Indian cinema, Indian television industry and lots of other ideals. Well lets not get too much into that, I know what happened last time.
Ok, I am straying now. Well a lot of people are going to find points I have mentioned quite debatable and I want your views on this - so please do drop a comment.
30 comments:
Okay Anish, I get the gist of what you're trying to say...but im not really understanding whether you like the fact that Simon Cowell brings people back to their senses(or unsuccessfully as you said) or whether skeptical against the fact that the producers pay him big bucks for it.
As for Indian Idol, It is not a copy, and was not 'started' by Sony infact it is a universal franchise around the globe after the great success of the first competition "Pop Idol" in which Will Young was crowned the prestigious title. The format of American Idol is not copied, simply implemented since the said competitions have the rights. American Idol was launched after seeing that the american public had great interest in Pop idol. Due to high TV ratings it was started in the states.
Now on another level Best of the Best...
Anish listen.... Firstly, indian idol is not copied. The makers of American Idol have started the Indian Idol in India becoz of its huge population and blah blah... during the casting they mention their names who indeed started American Idol.
Secondly, current Indian idol is not all that bad... some of them like KARUNYA and AMIT DADTE can really sing and perform well.yea.. but the judges do tend to fight(copy) like simon, paula and randy
thirdly, Indian started all these singing shows and dance shows long ago with antakshri and sa re ga ma and booogie woogie.
yea Anish, india sometimes copies the west. But there are plenty of other shows and movies which are originally made in india. We generally tend to ignore them.
And as for american Idol and indian idol.. yea they only show people who are over reactive , terrible in singing and weird or too emotional or die hard wannabes to capture the sentiments and pleasure of the audience(us).
think before u speak dude
its not a copy.... indian idol is coproduced with the makers of american idol.
saying that the producers are smart, has a very positive sort of implication.
id rather say, that the producers are well, not stupid.
only idiots would show normal, ordinary, situations on a show like american idol. the entire purpose of a reallity show is entertainment. so deviating from that idea, would be quite stupid.
basically im just trying to say that they arnt 'extremely smart', theyre just not stupid. :P
as for the whole east copying the west..well i do agree with that. (maybe not in this case, since it is clear that it isnt a copy!)
but generally speaking, ideas are ripped off from the western cinema. n no matter wat ppl say about it being alright for the uneducated indians, its still a major drawback of indian cinema.
if indian cinema is infact is so great, then im sure they can come up with more movies like rang de basanti, lagaan and dil chahta hai, which are original!
its not only with movies, its with songs as well!!!! i mean 'final countdown'?!?! cmon!!
so please do not say its alright ppl, because its not! (especially u romit)
first of all..i apologize for the error - as in the fact that indian idol isnt copied...i humbly apologize.
romit - i never said that the indian idols singer are not good, in fact i feel they are much better than the english ones so dont jump to any conclusions there.
and also romit, antakshari and sare ga ma ...as in the shows which came before pop idol and american idol and bla...they never showed auditions and only the decent stuff..whcih many a times became draggy - thats where ali's argument also comes into contention - the american/pop/indian idol producers actually showed the auditions which illicited great response from the audience..causing it to be successful all over the world...i mean common..whcih other type of show would ever discover the talents of William Hung!
and again romit...there ARE NOT many hindi shows which are original..and there ARE NOT many shows in the world copied from HINDI movies! Hell Indian cinema failed to produce a decent film about Gandhi!...the Western film industry came up with the oscar winning film about an Indian revolutionary.
Yes romit..indian music is not bad..its quite good..i feel so..especially after my visit to india..but there are many copies....like ali said 'final countdown!'..and also nowadays many of the hindi songs have that cher wannabe effect...the one she used in 'I Believe'!
And romit, even the television industry lacks originality...i remember there was a series whcih was a hindi copy of friends..which wasnt very successful!
Also the indian television industry tried to come up with an indian reality show called Prisioner Of War - POW - which never actaully came out..they couldnt get it thru! - funding problems i guess!
and hagabalaga, whoever you are..thank you for ur comment - but hell at least have decency to reveal your name - i am not going to kill you for ur comments..this is not some revolutionary blog!
keep commenting guys..you learn..i learn (shit i dint know indian idol and american idol were from the same producers)..we all learn!
romit - sorry for bombarding u..but i think its high time you broaden ur horizons and thinkging..:P
no hard feelings!
CORRECTION: " and also romit, antakshari and sare ga ma ...as in the shows which came before pop idol and american idol and bla...they never showed auditions BUT only the decent stuff, which got a bit draggy/boring!"
anish and ali, if u guys haven't noticed, i have mentioned in my comment that Indians or non west do tend to copy the west sometimes. Sometimes, u can make it to more often. But all i am saying is there are many other shows and serials and movies which the Indians donot copy.they are home made.Which is far more greater in number than the copied ones. U guys are restricting ureself to only lagaan, dil chahta hai and Now rang de basanti.Anish, The whole concept of songs in Indian cinema is Unique. yea i knw they r coping songs now, but as u hav noticed, they r not appreciated by the indian public also.it is just a phase, which will pass soon. man.. directors like Karan Johar, sanjay leela bansali, vidhu vinod chopra and ram gopal verma do make brilliant and original movies. There r films that we may not like... but it is appreciated by the indian public. it works.
Listen, i have heard that Hollywood is tryin to make Muna bhai mbbs in English. That's like coping bollywood dude. (I dunno if its true not). pls tell me.
that it is my name. and i resent it that u think that thats unbelievable. y cant someone have a name like mine?
i dont think u got wat i was trying to say. im saying that the producers are not extremely smart, they just arnt frikkin stupid!
this is a pretty stupid thing to tok about, but still i honestly dont feel that the producers of american idol are exceptionally smart.
u ureself said :
"they never showed auditions and only the decent stuff..whcih many a times became draggy" (about sa re gama)
so only if the producers were extremely stupid, would they have not included the auditions, after gaining knowledge, by other peoples mistakes, that just the singing part, may SOMETIMES get a bit boring.
hence this does not make them any smarter than anyone else! it jus helps us to acknowledge that they arnt stupid!
funny arguement
bon jovi rules!!!
hu are you hagabalaga?....i like ure name but.
Your point about the American idol producers being "the smartest ever".. is rather dumb. As Ali previously stated....what else are they supposed to show? the normal "decent logical people"?
Which leads me to bring to your notice that if 2000 contestants tried out for american idol....the show only shows probably 50 or less than that. Those 50 are the 1's who say they are the next idol and blahblahblah, they are the 1's who curse simon , they are the 1's whoe the judges praise or completely shun.
And this is the stuff which we want to see.
You are not taking into consideration the other 1950 people trying out and blantantly condemned an entire nation on the basis of 50 people:S. ....whcih is rather stupid of you.
On the topic of simon..his comments are getting rather stale and quite boring as he constantly repeats them . American Idol need a change of judges possibly next season if it is too keep its grasp on the television industry.
Enough has been said on american idol not being like indian idol so no need to comment on that.
thts it for now
- gomezzzz
First of all, there have been good English - Hindi serials and remakes (Chachi 420). Secondly, whats wrong with remakes? Who cares about originality, as long as it serves the purpose of luring audiences, etc.
Staying with American and Indian Idols, do you think that the kind of talent that will come out will deteriorate. I mean, for how long can you keep discovering talent. If you notice, many people audition twice or more, and quite a few times this season, people have been sent through just because Paula wanted to get one over Simon (remember the crazy guy who jumps onto the judges table in Hollywood). Does this devalue the show? (Cmon, the goofing must stop after the first round.) Does it show the dearth of undiscovered talent?
I'm sure that people will argue that there are NUMEROUS people in the US and in India. But I'm not that convinced by this argument.
what's bon jovi?
firstly - hagabalaga i really apologize for not considering that to be your name. Where are you from? anyway great to hear your comment - even though it was a tad rude.
ali & aaron - i still think that the producers of American idol are extremely smart - because after its done, it seems all easy and not very smart. The whole concept of american idol, the whole idea of the nation voting for its next idol is outstanding. Also their approach to the show is commendable. The way they have gone about formulating each round, the organisation, the live coverage, plus keeping it fair all the while. Managing more than 200 people in hollywood is not easy. Plus worldwide coverage - everything about the show is laudable - atleast the management and teh production if not the participants.
it is always easy to assume and give less credit to hard work, but the professionalism of american idol, and the elimination techniques, etc are unbelievable. They keep the suspense going and thats what we want.
Gomezzz - i find ur frequent use of 'stupid' and 'dumb' quite aggressive and inconclusive. We are all giving our opinions and please place ur opinion without really assaulting someone's opinion. critisize it, go against it, but dont just insult or completely devalue it. About the self centeredness of some of the participants...from thousands and thousands of participants, only after the 1st round, the number was borught down to aboout 300, or around the hundreds mark...hell even less. so what that goes to show, is that of not everyone, most of the people trying out have ambitions of coming close to or becoming american idols. they all (or most think they are good). This is seen more than often and is not only about 50 out of 2000, its more like 500 out of 2000, or even more. There is too much of over-confidence prevailing in america and thats evident by not only singing, but other things too. They are often instilled with false beliefs.
romit - there is a difference between a hindi film being 'brilliant' and a hindi film working and being appreciated by the general public. A film might run, and be liked by the masses, but it doesnt have to brilliant. Yes brilliance is an opinion afterall, but today there has been a standard set to judge a film on its direction, accuracy, hell even believable fantasy. Let me tell you that harry potter is largely successful because eventhough it is unreal, it tries to make it seem that the wizarding world really exists and the magical world is constantly trying to keep itself hidden. yeah it is not true, but there is a sense of realism to it. thats what makes it brilliant - yeah i know its a book, but a comparison can be made.
So hindi movies maybe appealing to the masses, but brilliant, only a few - and those are why we keep bringing movies like RDB, Dil Chahta Hai, Lagaan, etc - because they are good.
Govind - the world would be no where without originality. if we werent original in our thinking, we would never progress. Copied films work in India because the masses arnt aware of the original versions, thus they feel it is original. it is us, who are aware of the remake, that critisize the movie for its plaguerism. it shouldnt be promoted, because with intentions of earning money, we should also keep in mind progress, honour and originalitly( honour in the sense accalades).
i like the healthy debate! keep posting - and please avoid redundant posts like 'Bon Jovi rocks'!
sorry for the usage of dumb and stupid:P...but i realy feel that , that particular point was in great need of being completely devalued!
We see so many shows on television these days being aired via sattelite..that the point about worldwide coverage is not valid. It has become a norm in hollywood...and excess praise cannot be given for that.
For the past 4 seasons the "formulation of the rounds " whcih you speak so highly about has remained the same. nothing has changed and a regular viewer for 5 years now is bound to be bored of it despite Idols efforts to make it seem intresting.
Keeping it Fair - is something that we cannot decide about. We do not know what goes on behind the scenes of American Idol. Just beczuse nothing has been brought up till now doesnt mean cheating hasnt occured. COrey Clark in Season 2 is a prime example. Which leads me to bring up your pint about the entire nation voting for their Idol. Sure, its a great concept but definely ..much of the nation is heavily influenced by Randy, Paula and Simons comments after the performance.
If this statement holds true then the Idol is determined by 3 soltary people. ..if Simon loves one contestant (Carrie) and hates another *Scott" ..then defintely as i just said Scott gets voted out... which is what happened in Season 4.
The people who are brought down to 174 from the many thuosands all definelty can sing! (otherwise they wouldnt be there in the first place) and each 1 has a right to say that they can be the next american idol. It also serves as a positive approach and one will not go far in this competition if they say on national Tv "Oh ...i dont think im goin to be the next idol but im just trying out coz i think ill come somewhere there" ...if they dont say it..people will not vote for them! please dont put this down to overconfidince.
anwyays getting tired of typing:P "{...and hafto go to sleep!!...gniteee
- gomezzzzz
Exactly anish.... u have said it. hollywood directors try to make the movie as real as possible for the supposedly over educated americans. Like wise indian directors try to make movies as real as possible keeping in mind family norms, illiteracy ,customs and religions in india.
Movies are made solely to serve the purpose of entertainment and to earn money. correct?
That's y indian movies are based on those factors which guide or govern india. Even the copied movies are altered to suite the public. Anish in bollywood, NRI movies and commercial movies are different. NRI movies like monsoon wedding, mr and mrs iyer etc. are generally made for people like us exposed to both west and east. they are original and have a good std.
Commercial movies are made for the middleclass Indians only. The directors have no option but to make those Govida type movies like coolie no.1 and hero no.1.
And anish dun talk abt harry potter and LOTR becoz Indian directors and producers dun have the technology enough to make those kind of movies.
But in the past few years, movies are changing. they are setting high stds. Swadesh for example is a mixture of both NRI and commercial.
the new directors are bringing new innovatives ideas .... so we just have to wait till more movies like rnb and swadesh come.
And Aaron i dun think simon is losing his touch. his comments seriously make me laugh. i think if there is a change in the judges, american idol would lose its popularity.
well they havent been entirely the same. the show has grown in its own way and there has been some differene, for eg, last year for the 1st round atleast, each state had some special judge and not only simon, randy and paula. That was different. Plus it is difficult to come up with a compleltely new platform and show in a few months, because after the end of one show, there is very less time for the preparation of the next one - only a few months and there is lots to be done, besides changing the format. And when its running so successfully and only becoming bigger, why change drastically so soon?
Also, Simon is a reknowned producer and what he says is very true. Maybe he is a little harsh, but thats needed to bring pompous people back to earth. And he doesnt only critisize, he lauds those are actauuly good and who he thinks can be the next american idol. And regarding people being influenced by the judges, (if that is so) it just shows the fickle-mindednes of the apparently 'educated' american society. But i feel, that america never lies, it is pretty accurate, and so is simon.
minions!! hear me well! you all belong to me! bow down and kiss my feet!
omg...these guys are getting worse by the day...no originality master bater?
oh im sorry i meant man
oops
'With intentions of earning money, we should also keep in mind progress, honour and originality' while making movies / shows.
Look, progress and originality need not be put in the same bracket. A lot of copied shows, movies have brought about progress, not necessarily in the field of 'originality'.
Honour?? Which world do you live in? I doubt if any movie / show is made with any reason other than the box office, TV ratings, popularity and money. This is the 'entertainment' industry. As the name suggests, its sole purpose is to 'entertain'. I'm sorry, but I don't think it is worth debating upon such a topic any longer. The entertainment industry is no reflection of a country's honour, originality, etc.
firstly, i never meant honour of the country, i meant honour as in 'reputation'. yes movies are made for the box office and stuff, but many movies are also made (atleast in hollywood) to set a standard, and well maybe to win accalades - because accalades earn you viewership, reputation and yes honour - in its own way.
Maybe honour wasnt the best word to use, but its context should be understood. And also lets not decide when to begin and end a debate, let it happen by itself. By asking for the topic to be closed, you are almost giving into it.
romit - i havent said anything of that sort. Indian movie producers produce melodramatic movies, which the masses accept as reality. the producers areent making real films, they are making films that seem real the masses, and we educated people who have been exposed to more real and entertaing movies, make a comparsion and deride the unreal nature of cinema. So in affect the producers are not helping the nation, they are stagnating it. I dont want to get eco into this, but i can, but i also need to study, so later!
enjoy!
Whatever American Idols' cons are, one cant argue that it's pretty much better than any Indian Show ever made (except for KBC maybe).
Indian soaps have no maturity and seem to drag on. Their main problem is that they try and westernize their soaps while still keeping them traditional - thus ending up with a load of shit.Indian soap producers/ directors have got to go original and modern.
Indian Cinema..Ah.. Indian cinema is brilliant - it's diverse, it's rich and the actors(thespians?) are just brilliant. Indian Cinema only faces two problems:
(1) The cheap young directors who make movies that they are not going to be hits .
(2) The other stupid diectors who think that nudity or teaser scenes might make their movie a hit.
Don't give me the bullshit about Hollywood being way better than Indian Cinema or having better actors, you know it's not true (they don't even have songs! gasp~).
And anyone who calls Indian Cinema 'Bollywood' is simply disillusioned. We aren't the Hindi Hollywood.
Cheers,
Manish.
~Coming soon - www.arsenalforever.blogspot.com
*Cough* Khanna you suck ..
"But i feel that America never lies"
Erm..Yeah right..
One more thing, not all hollywood movies are hits. Many of them just suck. They aren't all made to set standards - many of them (like family movies (Cheaper by the Dozen 2, etc)) are made for the masses. Directors know they arent gonna be amzing breakthrughs or stuff but they still make 'em..
It's Swades not Swadesh..Jesus
i think this is my first time posting on anish's blog so to everyone - Hello! i was going through what everyone was saying about this and i had some thoughts. american idol as a show is ingenius in terms of harnessing talent. the organisation and running of it is absolutely professional and i agree with anish on that. simon cowell is a man who speaks his mind. what matters isnt what he says and how witty it is, that i think is just a fun bonus. the man has worked with talent for a living and his presence as a judge is indispensable. the thing is, deep down we agree with the guy on whatever he says no matter how he does. he KNOWS his stuff! keep in mind he is funding that big record deal at the end of the competition so his judgements are of consequence to him. the american public, which to us, is that 2% we see in these reality shows whose entire scope on life is narrowed down to their image and the love for it! but then, what else are we supposed to know america as? we are shown that one portion of america who have that something to get on camera( E G O )and that is all we get to see. i realise a couple plays and debates barely makes you a performer, but i feel in what i have done, it isn't your ego that counts. it's your confidence! and when you lack confidence you back it up with ego! it's quite simple to see a confident person and someone who's not. what makes you confident, is your substance which is what propels people like you guys to give opinions so freely.
as for indian cinema, well to say movie making is about luring audiences is to say we cannot grow further because after you've got the audience where do you go? that is why originality, the emotion behind a movie, like rang de basanti, the thoughts of the creators, THAT is the essence of film. i believe a performance is a very personal thing because the effect of a good performance is not that you are paid. people have confused being paid with being appreciated. a good performance has an impact in the heart of a person. so deep, so penetrating it gets you thinking. those thoughts are what make you. to be paid at the end is a quick way of showing appreciation, but it is not the real thing. that is why when you see amir khan and the rest of the cast acting, you feel their presence and it hits you. when you see salman khan copy ben stiller knocking an ern over, all you think, is oh, remember meet the parents. it is so important that movies like rang de basanti keep coming out because THAT is the essence of indian cinema, just as forrest gump's emotion was hollywood's. blogs like this where we try and impact each other with thought shows our essence, so keep blogging!
hey harry...very very VERY WELL SAID - i am honoured to have such a comment on my blog - blog on!
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