February 26, 2007
All That Glitters Ain't (Banarasi) GoldFashion
Apparently the only surprise about Deepa Mehta’s Water losing out on the Best Foreign Film award last night was that the eventual winner wasn’t Pan’s Labyrinth, the consensus favorite, but rather The Lives of Others, by an impossibly tall German director with an impossibly aristocratic Prussian name. So there’s little gnashing of teeth or rending of garments in the Indian press today, simply matter-of-fact recognition that “India’s Oscar jinx” carries on. It’s also apparently a known fact (I never get to the movies, so I’m just repeating what I read) that the entire field for the foreign-film award was extremely strong. So no injustice here any way you cut it.
However, I am rather exercised at the Monday morning snub from the newspaper round-ups of red carpet fashion, which roundly ignore the gorgeous heirloom gold-threaded Banarasi sari in which Mehta graced the ceremony. Los Angeles Times, New York Times — no one paid the slightest notice, positive or negative, to the passage across the red carpet of the Water crew. Even my mellow Hank Stuever in the Washington Post — political, worldly, and queer as the proverbial three-dollar bill — ignored the desi contingent, his confessed ogling of Ryan Gosling affording John Abraham no residual love.
Oh well. Perhaps it’s all for the best that our peoples passed by under the radar, considering the standard-issue snark that’s become de rigueur in such coverage. Or perhaps coverage was the point — body coverage, that is: with so much exposed bosom and leg to take in — let alone Jack Nicholson’s creepily depilated dome — those who took cover in dignified, discreet outfits necessarily condemned themselves to oblivion in the morning news.
Deepa could have joined the flesh parade, had she wanted to match up against Meryl Streep and Helen Mirren in the “do they still got it?” division, a bit of a rigged fixture for a director against two actresses. The dresses were there for the wearing, but the sista had a much better plan:
They must have been throwing clothes at Mehta once the nominations were announced.
“Yes, they were,” she admits. “Chanel, Armani, Prada etc. … approached me. `No, thank you. I’m wearing my mother’s sari.’ For one thing, I’ll never wear a dress in my life: I’m more blue jeans and cargo pants. It was just a question of what sari.”
Her mother’s sari was part of her trousseau.
“My paternal grandmother gave it to my mom when she got married,” she recalls. “It’s gold but because it is so old (from the ’40s), it’s burnished. It’s very subtle. The gold thread is a weave not done anymore. It’s gorgeous and it’s personal. It’s Mom’s.
“And Bulgari wanted to do my jewellery. But I’ll wear my antique Indian jewellery because it goes with the sari.”
Read the full, friendly feature from the Toronto Star here. As for the Oscars, if you’re feeling the pain of desi exclusion, the Economic Times offers you here a kind of consolation.
siddhartha on February 26, 2007 08:00 AM in Arts and Entertainment, Fashion, Film · T·r·a·c·k·b·a·c·k address · Direct link · Email post
¤ uber desi dot com said: I see an elephant, on the red carpet, in NYC!
the best part of the red carpet was this.
too good.
ah.. that video is notfrom the oscars..but more fun than what went down last night.
I love the sari, but am sorry to say she didn't wear it very well. The blouse was a bit too retro and, uh, blousy, and the severe pulled back hair with the powdery aunty-ish makeup did her no favours. She should have walked on the red carpet with Lisa and/or John and posed with them, no photographer wants a picture with multiple fussily-dressed non-starts in it. Perhaps that's why there were lots of mentions of her outfit, but few photos.
Uh, that's "non-stars" - I refer to the daughter and other random woman who look right out of a Delhi shaadi.
Perhaps that's why there were lots of mentions of her outfit, but few photos.
But there weren't even any mentions! In fact there are more photos on Yahoo News showing the outfit than I could find mentions of it in the US press... Having said that, your point about the non-stars etc. is certainly well taken...
the scariest picture of miss mehta is here.
I was looking for photos and found loads of mentions on Google News...she had clearly spread the "my grandmother's sari/vintage" story far and wide because they all mentioned it.
The Biggest surprise / heartburn belonged to animation category. Happy Feet was foul. The best scenes in the movie came from Robin Williams. It was that bad. And I thought Shrek was a low.
Wowza, Chickpea. Is that a rose pinned above her ear?
If only the blouse had been fitted, and sort of cutaway neckline, and more like a shrunken kurti than puffy 1930s retro. She has great hair too, she should've left it loose.
How the Water crew ditched a little girl....
Sri Lankan actress not attending Oscars
TORONTO -- Sri Lankan child-actress Sarala Kariyawasam will not attend the Academy Awards in Los Angeles, where the movie ‘Water’ she starred in received a nomination for the best foreign film.
Earlier there was much expectation in Sri Lanka that Sarala would make history when she attended the Oscars, but she hasn't received an invitation, the Sri Lanka Reporter has learned.
http://www.lankareporter.com/Oscar_Night_Water.htm
she had clearly spread the "my grandmother's sari/vintage" story far and wide because they all mentioned it.
Well, the Canadian and Indian press did... :) But all of that was before the event. All I'm sayin' is that there is zero mention of the outfit, or indeed of anything to do with the Water posse, in the morning postmortems.
It so happened that last night ZeeTV had the Filmfare awards on. I cursed them for counterprogramming against the Oscars, which may have been purely unintentional, but went with their show anyway. I was richly rewarded with sights of, and speeches from, some of the oldies like Jaya Bachhan, Zaved Akhtar, Rekha, Amitabh Bachhan, Yash Chopra. Some of the picks I disagreed with - RDB over Omkara, for instance - but it was great fun and extremely gratifying to see the slick professionalism of an international Bollywood production. And oh, Ash looked like the perfect bahu basking in the warmth of the Bachhan family.
I will try to catch up on the Oscar news tonight.
Apologies for the digression but was I the only one who thinks West Bank Story in the shorts category had no business winning and could have other reasons for being given the Oscar (sure the Palestinian lady is quite hot)? Also, despite our bias towards a desi film, do people really think Water was that good a movie?
do people really think Water was that good a movie?
I haven't the slightest idea - haven't seen it or any of the other entries for that matter. I understand opinions of it span the gamut.
This Reuters story mentioned DM's outfit and perhaps this is what was picked up by all the Google news sources I saw.
Ardy - there was a lot of discussion of Water at SM some months ago. I was disappointed in the film because a) I had been looking forward to it for ages and b) the original Nandita Das-Shabana Azmi casting coup made me think it was going to be a seriously good film. But the film didn't do the powerful story justice, too much pretty posing and not enough acting (except for the brilliant Seema Biswas), and some very obvious gratuitous exoticising scenes that put me off. Still worth seeing, I'd say, just don't expect too much.
Sorry for the OT but, Floridian, have you seen photos of the Filmfare Awards online? My mother was watching this as well and she wanted me to take a look at the sari that perfect bahu, Ash Rai, was wearing, but I can't seem to find ANY photos of the event. All the news/photo sites are bursting with photos from the Oscars.
I am with SP ("I love the sari, but am sorry to say she didn't wear it very well.") Penelope Cruz stole the show last night with her amazing dress.
Well, its been a long time since I saw it or maybe my memory is just not worth much anymore and so I can't build a very good case of why I had not liked it much when I had seen it. I did go for the screening when Lisa Ray came down and she looked out of this world, but coming back to the movie - from what very little I remember I had come out feeling some of the characters could have been developed better. I also found some relationships being shown in a very one dimensional way like the relation of Abraham's character with his father and the depiction of his father's personality. I did not like the Gandhi scene as much either and thought it could have been shown better and maybe tied in better too or else not shown. Lastly in the end, I did not feel it did the issue as muych justice. But then, I don't remember that much :-(
This Reuters story mentioned DM's outfit and perhaps this is what was picked up by all the Google news sources I saw.
Ah yes. I did see that one floating around, you are right.
Does anyone know who is in the red sari blouse and white sari? Also, Joan Rivers interviewed the group on the red carpet and it didn't sound good. Deepa said (referring to the white sari) "it is a designer sari, Ritu's". I understand that she is referring to Ritu Kumar, but the majority of America wouldn't. Deepa then went on to say something like "John's achkan is also a designer piece" and Joan made some comment like "it's like the Nehru style we use to wear in America". Basically the whole thing made me cringe (although Joan was surprisingly nice about it all). The way Deepa was referring to the outfits reminded me of salespeople in the sari stores I was just visiting in Delhi. Anyway, SP was dead on in suggesting she should have walked it alone (or at most with John and Lisa, although I think alone would have been best). Of course, on an entirely separate note, I was very disappointed with Water. If an Indian film (whether from Canada or elsewhere) was going to be nominated, I thought it should have been Rang de Basanti.
SP was dead on
SP needs to blog. When she's not dead on, she's always thought provoking and insightful.
Last night I was flippin between the Oscars and Filmfare Awards (Bollywood equivalent) and the disparity in standards is mindboggling. One is a classy affair with fair nominations and the other one is giving awards to everybody (new categories are invented to accomodate)
Happy for Martin Scorcese for a much deserved trophy
Aww. That's sweet, NVM.
Ardy - I'd never even heard of the West Bank Story film before the Oscars and it sounds incredibly cheesy. But it's all political after all, eh? Historical films, esp WWII era, are gold if they have a feel-good message in them.
Question for the girls (or really hip fellows) - I've never seen a sari tied in quite the style that DM has it on, it almost looks more like a lehenga dupatta. Are saris worn that way in any region that anyone knows of?
Pan's Labyrinth didnt win? Well I havent seen the other movie so I can't comment but it won't stop me sulking and say it was a stitch up! What a travesty! Travesty!
Best movie of this year so far is Hot Fuzz -- very funny go and see it folks.
There was a mention on CTV.ca, though I suppose that's no surprise:
Canadian director Deepa Mehta, whose Hindi-language film "Water" is in the running for best foreign language film, turned heads in her fashion choice for the evening: an exquisite vintage red and gold sari."This sari belongs to my mother," Mehta told Mulroney. "She got it from her mother. So it's three generations old."
Joining Mehta were "Water" co-stars John Abraham, in a Nehru-collared coat, and Lisa Ray, who donned a gold satin gown with a plunging neckline.
"I hope my double-side tape isn't showing," Ray joked as she twirled for the camera.
[link]
SP - Well West Bank Story was in the short film category which generally tends to get neglected in the media. This place in Atlanta was screening all the Oscar nominated shorts and so I got to see all of them. And yes, West Bank Story was very very cheesy, it reminded me of a bad bollywood movie - sure it was all mock musical but I felt some of the other shorts were way better. My pick would have been the Spanish one. And since you are also into activism and adoption (is that right?), you should check out the other French/African nomination, it's a Unicef movie and talks about a lot of issues in Africa pertaining to education for women and girls and adoption. It's not a great film cinematic ally but I think you would appreciate some of the content.
On a side note, I think short films are a very difficult and if done right powerful form of cinema. I wish we had more of those being screened - maybe a short before a mainstream feature. I wont mind paying the extra 2$ for it.
Oscar show last night was dull and boring, it was better last year. Film fare show turned out to be better than previous years. SRK was good with his sarcastic humour, he made fun of everybody including himself. Javed Aktar's speech was good.
Question for the girls (or really hip fellows) - I've never seen a sari tied in quite the style that DM has it on, it almost looks more like a lehenga dupatta. Are saris worn that way in any region that anyone knows of?
In this photo, it looks as if DM has draped her Banarasi in the classic nivi style. I really can't tell what she's doing with her pallu in the photograph above.
Desi Filmmakers got hammered from another angle too:
http://www.razzies.com/history/06winners.asp
I can't say I entirely disagree with the choices though.
I likee Seema's saree. It's interesting how the hip hollywood crowd acts all Western in India and all Indian when then go abroad. Nice to see Lisa Ray and Seema Biswas not doing that naatak.
HMF regarding #29, we must think alike or something .... LOL
do people really think Water was that good a movie?
not me. apart from the bad acting (which is nothing new), and what SP said earlier, i also wasn't particularly in the mood to deal with the perverse curiosity from my american friends about child marriage, treatment of widows, etc. the production was nicely done though, i have to give it that.
Uh, that's "non-stars" - I refer to the daughter and other random woman who look right out of a Delhi shaadi.
Question for the girls (or really hip fellows) - I've never seen a sari tied in quite the style that DM has it on, it almost looks more like a lehenga dupatta. Are saris worn that way in any region that anyone knows of?
I'm neither a girl nor a particularly hip fellow, but that sari seems to be in the Burmese (or is it Myanmarese) style to me. Just memories of an old photo I saw somewhere. But to your other point, the other women in the picture, especially the one in brown on the extreme right - are stars in the truest sense, or at least, in the astrophysical sense, in that she's quite hot. Also, I thought DM's daughter actually acted in her movies, even if she's not a 'star' yet. Isn't she the one on the left?
PS to SP: I find myself reacting to your posts rather differently now that I know you're a woman!
I actually like Night's work, but Lady in Water was just bleah. The chinese girl was more or less narrating the story, saying, "ok mr. main character, now you have to do this next."
Pooja - yeah, the pallu looks classic enough but I was thrown by the lack of pleats at the waist - I'm guessing she pulled her pallu round the front and tucked it in like it was a lehenga dupatta?
Kurma - I don't think that's Seema Biswas with her, SB wasn't invited along (and that fussy sari would be uncharacteristic of her). I think it's DM's daughter in the orangey-red blouse.
If an Indian film (whether from Canada or elsewhere) was going to be nominated, I thought it should have been Rang de Basanti.
As I understand it that was India's official entry into the foreign movie category and it deservedly got discarded. Canada submitted Water under some trendy new rules that allows a country to submit a movie on the basis of funding regardless of the language it was made in. A few years ago the UK wanted to submit The Warrior for best forign language film (directed by Asif Kapadia from London), but they werent allowed to because back then the stipulation was that the movie has to be in the language of the submitting country.
India won't win best foreign language movie any time soon because the selection committee is pretty clueless most of the time, and barring the fluke nomination that was Lagaan, they won't even get to the nomination stage, which for a country with as strong a cinematic culture as India, is a little dissapointing.
They should be submitting urgent masterpieces like Black Friday , something with intelligence and artistry, rather than masala in which people spontaneously start wiggling their bums in a field in Punjab, which admittedly in Rang de Basanti is of some class compared to the 90% dreck that is commercial Hindi cinema, but in an international context, is just not doing it. If the Indian film industry wants to start getting awards and respect internationally the funding and selection bodies need to be looking at the raw talent that exists in the non Bollywood field, of which there is plenty, as Black Friday attests. Also, a Telugu movie called Vanaja just won an award at the Berlin film festival -- proof that Indian cinema can be original, sensitive, and have some artistry and aesthetic beyond the shrill pomp of *yawn* Follywood, uhh, I mean Bollywood.
So everyone, go and watch Black Friday if you get the chance!
Wait, stop press, just read that Seema Biswas WAS part of the Water contingent at the Oscars. My, my. I wouldn't have thunk it.
The woman to the left was wearing her sari very well.
Chachaji, the hottie in brown is Lisa Ray - pehchana nahin, do you live under a rock? ;)
Red Snapper, I agree completely. I really wish films like Hazaron Khwahishen Aisi, Amu, Pinjar, Mr and Mrs Iyer, Satya or even Dev had made it out on the international circuit. And what about Khamosh Pani, that should have been very popular with the political theme and Indo-Pak cooperation and all that.
Trailer for Vanaja
Trailer for Black Friday
Wow, you have listed so many gems there. Mr and Mrs Iyer is just amazing for Konkona though I thought Amu is ok. Hazaaron Khwaishein is one of the best political movies coming out in recent times, and all the three main actors have given amazing performances.
I love Khamosh Paani, Kiron Kher is so good in that and I liked the way they ended it. Amu is ok, the director spoke at the screeningn and she one passionate woman though. Yes, 90% of the movies out of Bollywood is trash, but unfortunately what sells is Karan Johar and his types.
SP - wow! Thanks for opening my eyes! Can't believe she's the same Lisa Ray from Bollywood-Hollywood, and I saw it so recently too. Or this Lisa Ray either.
Red Snapper, I agree completely. I really wish films like Hazaron Khwahishen Aisi, Amu, Pinjar, Mr and Mrs Iyer, Satya or even Dev had made it out on the international circuit. And what about Khamosh Pani, that should have been very popular with the political theme and Indo-Pak cooperation and all that.
SP --- all the movies you mentioned are really excellent. Khamosh Pani did win an award at a European festival and I believe that it was classified as a Pakistani movie, but your point is good. You know I read Satyajit Ray's biography a while back and did you know that at times, he was accused by some hideous philistines in India of peddling 'poverty' and 'squalor' to the West. All that typical Indian chippiness and insecurity. I believe Nargis came out with some lines like that. Anyway, maybe that philistine, defensive, ignorant attitude persists, and that is why movies like Amu and Mr and Mrs Iyer don't make the grade as far as the incestuous Bollywood arse licking selection committees are concerned, it wouldnt surprise me. Black Friday is just controversial so even though it is a brilliant urgent raw movie you might understand why it gets circumspect attention --- and movies like Vanaja probably wouldnt even register on their radar because they are just too crass and averse to a movie of that kind of quiet register.
Yes, 90% of the movies out of Bollywood is trash, but unfortunately what sells is Karan Johar and his types.
So are 90% of Hollywood movies, 90% of Hongkong movies, 90% of French Movies...
Yeah, I agree Mr & Mrs Iyer, Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi, Black Friday are all great movies. But the problem with good Indian Movies is that they are not marketed well compared to other countries.
Black Friday has a good chance of getting some Awards. Director of Black Friday, Anurag Kashyap blogs here
Why do you suppose Mani Ratnam movies, which bridge the crowd-pleasing and serious/political categories fairly well and have shown at film festivals in the US, have never made it onto the Oscar nomination list? As an aside, isn't it silly anyway that "national" boards get to select who represents "the nation" for foreign films? In an age where big new Hindi film releases are reviewed in the NYT, why can't Indian cinema just be entered in the usual categories - language?
The other woman in a sari is Seema Biswas who had a part in the film. Am surprised no one recognized her - granted she looked very different in the film but she's fairly recognizable if you know how she looks like.
Here is an advise for Indian film makers :Producer Graham King, whose 'The Departed'(he is the producer for Blood Dimond' also)won an Oscar for the best film, says India needs to spend more on promoting its cinema globally to up its Academy chances.http://in.movies.yahoo.com/070226/43/6ciap.html
Deepa mehta recently said that India dosen't provide her the creative freedom,like canada does.From the 'recognition' and coverage her team got from the media and the acadamy, it looks like she miscalculated her Candian connections and ifluence.
The above article futher says that "Even Deepa Mehta's 'Water', which failed to pick up an Oscar, was a loss for Canada and not for India as far as Hollywood is concerned".
Has anyone seen Being Cyrus, if you are familiar with Parsi culture in Mumbai, that movie is a hoot, and even if you are not it's still a great movie. Also, Dor is decent though it has its stupidities. Recently Bollywood has started seeing a few more movies which don't fit the usual mold and are still quite commercial. I can think of Rang De Basanti (RDB) as a very fine example of that. Its an outright commercial movie but still it does not pander like other mainstream movies and thats what I so loved about it. It's almost got an Mani Ratnam essence to it while still being stylistically Mehra. Other hardcore mainstream movies which actually weren't so bad in recent times though they had their weaknesses would be Omkara, Maqbool, Pyaar Ke Side Effects, Parineeta (ex the ending ham), Yuva , Waisa Bhi Hota Hai Part -2, Joggers Park or for that matter Eklavya (which some people I know hated).And the quintessential movie of our gen Dil Chahta Hai. Yes, Bollywood is not all bad, but a lot of it is.I think unlike the parallel movement of the 80s which was totally isolated from the mainstream, the new thing that has happened in recent times is a display of non mainstream themes in mainstream Bollywood which is a great thing since it can become self sustaining.
Ardy, "Being Cyrus" is entertaining as a slice of Bombay Parsi culture, but I found it rather amateurish and not really film festival quality. Haven't seen Dor yet, heard good things about it. You're right about the mainstreaming of non-boy-meets-girl films these days, though I'm not sure films like Arth and Umrao Jaan were considered truly out of the mainstream even in the 80s. There were lots of thoughtful films made in the "mainstream" in the 50s and 60s too - many Raj Kapoor films fall into that category. And there was Aandhi in the 70s. I think the 80s and 90s were the lost decades, actually.
There were lots of thoughtful films made in the "mainstream" in the 50s and 60s too - many Raj Kapoor films fall into that category.
Virtually all of Guru Dutt's films were thoughtful and made primarily for the "mainstream" too, wouldn't you say? They were all 1950s and 60s. My feeling is that "art" versus "mainstream" became an issue only in the 1980s and later.
Well I was not thinking of Being Cyrus as a filmfest movie :-) but more of a fun to watch kind, something out of the mainstream. Arth was definitely commercially successful but a lot of those movies never made it big. Saaransh, Ijaazat for example are such amazing movies but did only fair business (and they were some of the more commercially successful ones). There were a lot of movies from the parallel side like Hazaar Chaurasi ki Maa which did not do well. There were also the really nice Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Amol Palekar, Farrokh Shaikh+Deepti Naval movies which were not in the mold. But even they never became the norm and did well only in Urban pockets. Most of these were late 70s to mid 80s. I think the 90s were really the wasted decade, totally agreed on that.
The golden age of consistent good movies was probably the 50s/60s as you put it. Raj Kapoor for sure and then Guru Dutt, Bimal Roy, V Shantaram, Satyajit Ray, Mughal-E-Azam, Mother India, etc
Lets face it, Deepa Mehta is fugly and he clothes didnt really improve a thing.
"Water" was a crapshoot compared to Fire.
Even though jocularly, Ellen said, I paraphrase - 'Lets face it, without the blacks, jews and gays, there is no oscars'. Essentially, it is such movies that address issues affecting the society have a better chance of winning oscars.
I am yet to see a powerful movie from India addressing the real concerns of socially downtrodden in India. Until, they get that formula correct, a desi oscar movie is all air-castles.
I am yet to see a powerful movie from India addressing the real concerns of socially downtrodden in India.
There are many. Some examples:
a) Satyajit Ray's Pathar Panchali
b) Bimal Roy's Do Bigha Zameen
c) Shyam Benegal's Ankur
..........the list goes on.
I am yet to see a powerful movie from India addressing the real concerns of socially downtrodden in India. Until, they get that formula correct, a desi oscar movie is all air-castles.
That's ridiculous -
Practically anything by Bimal Roy or Guru Dutt and much od Dev Benegal or Jabbar Patel dealt, quite poignantly, with these issues. That the Indian nuance did not appeal to Western audiences, says more about the West than the state of Indian film.
Why does an Indian movie have to deal with the socially downtrodden to be relevant. And who cares about the Oscars anyway.
"Essentially, it is such movies that address issues affecting the society have a better chance of winning oscars."
are you referring specifically to foreign movies? because many of the movies that win oscars don't necessarily address deep issues affecting society. such as titanic, lord of the rings, my fair lady etc. whilst movies that address issues affecting society are necessary, unless they are really good (i loved will farrell's and jack black's song routine pokign fun at the academy for being overly serious at times), i don't see why they should be given preference over truly epic (not saying titanic was the best choice) or entertaining movies like ben hur, lawrence of arabia ( premiere magazine recently rated peter o'toole's performance as the best lead performance in any movie), cinema paradiso (a foreign movie that beautifully celebrates nostalgia, not any real deep social malaise). whilst india definitely needs more well-made socially relevant movies, it needn't give up on making truly world-class and entertaining movies as well (and there are very few of these as well in india).
...(and there are very few of these as well in india).
and should have added that there are very few world-class, entertaining movies being made in hollywood today.
Shouldn't the title have read "All that Glitters *is* (Banarasi) Gold"?
There were also the really nice Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Amol Palekar, Farrokh Shaikh+Deepti Naval movies which were not in the mold. But even they never became the norm and did well only in Urban pockets
Yes - I fondly remember Khatta Meetha, and Chashme Baddoor and Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi and all those Deepti Naval films. There was a window in the 80s for really entertaining and yet "real" films before wealthy-fantasy-land genres became hegemonic.
If a movie has to preach about the downtrodden in order to get noticed, isn't that an extension of the mango/curry/saree/cow exoticism that we're all so tired of?
And who cares about the Oscars anyway.
I was tempted for a moment to say that too. However, I guess it depends. We could very well have our own islolated Bollywood and it really won't matter but like it or not the Oscars are a big deal in the world of cinema and getting an Oscar for a desi movie would be nice. Plus the recognition would help showcase our culture in more Indian ways than being done say the ABC people in NY. The important thing is not to compromise on things that make our movies or showing what they want to see ours just to win an Oscar.
I mean, 'The important thing is not to compromise on things that make our movies ours or showing what they want to see just to win an Oscar.' Sorry for the typo...
The only hottie in this picture is Lisa Ray and mostly because she looked exquisite by herself, I wasn't too nuts about the shade of her dress but it turns out this years Oscars were filled with shitty colored dresses...pastel!!! Good lord we are in for some seriously hideous pastel colored fashions for Spring as result of last night. Pastels are so bad for so many skin tons, they make you look so washed out. Penolpe's Versace, Jada's gold/yellow number, Christen Dunsts grandma vintage dowdy pale gown, Gwenneth's ugly pastel orange dress...lord. There were a few highlights, Kate looked devine in the light Mint green, same color as Beyonce's dress and Nicole looked great in that red dress except for that huge bow as did Cameron Diaz. Oh and JLo looked like a divine goddess but I wish she'd stop doing the big hair! Rachel Weisz had the right pastel on, Champagne that complemented her dark eyes and dark hair.
OK back to this...sorry neither the sari, nor the whole ensemble or ALL of Mehta is doing anything for me. It's not pleasing to the eye, there is nothing exciting about her outfit or her to mention her. Even Abraham who is so super hot otherwise looked dull in that dark suit. And all the other aunties along, please let them trail behind. Notice how the stars walk alone or with a spouse and not as an entire entourage. Entourage's especially unattractive ones don't make for good photo ops or discussions.
This hero has plenty to say on the industry.
I wasn't too disappointed last night, except for the final award. I know many people love the departed, but I'm just biased towards any film with Nietzsche references and a self help egomaniac.
The Water crew would have done well to bring their own little girl to the show.
JOAT - yeah, most of the dresses were hideous (and you have to think - with all the money and all the designers at their feet, they still choose THOSE?) Cate's was nice, though. I read a little pre-Oscar interview of Deepa Mehta in which she righteously declared, upon being asked if she was going to doll up for the red carpet, that she had never worn lipstick and didn't intend to do so for the Oscars. Sure enough, super-ashy makeup, old-school black liquid liner, godawful "rouge," designer blouse, but our lady held on to her principles and did not wear lipstick. No wonder she looks so washed out.
I read a little pre-Oscar interview of Deepa Mehta in which she righteously declared, upon being asked if she was going to doll up for the red carpet, that she had never worn lipstick and didn't intend to do so for the Oscars.
Yeah the "natural" mantra seems to be such a desi thing at times but people forget that A. it's a formal event, please make some effort at looking like you didn't just wake up and roll out of bed and B. very few women especially Mehta, look good natural, I mean please for crying out loud use some gloss and with her dark circles she looked like an owl with that horrible eye makeup.
Have a look at the photo in this article (scroll down, to the right) in which all the women of Water are wearing white and look rather less stiff than in the Oscars one. I think it's much better. And Lisa Ray looks stunnning.
They totally should have had the little girl walk on the carpet as well, she was the real star of the film.
t so happened that last night ZeeTV had the Filmfare awards on. I cursed them for counterprogramming against the Oscars, which may have been purely unintentional, but went with their show anyway.
I'm hoping it was intentional...we'll have to wait for Ronnie Screwvala to mount a real challenge to Hollywood and the Oscars (an article in Business 2.0 January issue on how he's planning to update Bollywood financing, not online yet...
Even though jocularly, Ellen said, I paraphrase - 'Lets face it, without the blacks, jews and gays, there is no oscars'. Essentially, it is such movies that address issues affecting the society have a better chance of winning oscars.I am yet to see a powerful movie from India addressing the real concerns of socially downtrodden in India. Until, they get that formula correct, a desi oscar movie is all air-castles.
Ellen was talking about how "diverse" the gathering was, but didn't mention DM & Co. at all. I guess they were Canadian, and that would have been a puzzle for many people. When they went through the foreign movies montage to show what had won awards before, it was clear that apart from one or two forays into Japan, the committee's idea of the whole world didn't and still doesn't stray too far from France, the only country whose movie industry has presented a consistent challenge to Hollywood since day one. This is not all bad --at least they had Catherine Deneuve as a presenter, and she showed how women her age should dress. The Oscars have always been about navel-gazing, except they have great PR so all eyes are on Hollywood. There are plenty of people as yet walking who refer to Europe and the USA as "the whole world" and it did strike me that there were very many old white guys to look at-- sad to see Peter O'Toole so aged, Jack Nicholson apparently on chemo. Those plastic fuzzy-eyebrow-plus-nose-and-glasses gag items that used to do well for dressing as Groucho would do well now for a Scorcese Hallowe'en costume.
But Prasad, there should absolutely not be any prescriptive slant for a non-English movie to be good-- that is so old hat, the idea that the English- speaking world can just have fun while everyone else has to critique themselves to be any good -- and I certainly didn't see any more society-affecting issues in The Queen than in Water. Hey, this is the entertainment industry!
I agree with suede. The movie is pretty but problematic, and DM, with her Libber aversion to lipstick, is no oil painting. Plus the coverage is about the whole promo game of clothes, including PR people from couture houses and jewelry houses making sure they get covered and probably hair and makeup people too. I bet if our fugly had stretched a tad and worn a bit of or a lot of Bulgari, there would have been plenty of closeup shots and other coverage. I bet if Shilpa Shetty was there in her pharoah, she would have made a deal, say, with Chanel for her choli and with Cartier for plenty of bling, and gotten widely photographed.
as far as the water entourage goes: seema biswas and sarala kariyawasam, the true stars of an average movie (but their scenes were above average and saved this movie) should have been allowed to walk by themselves with the rest trailing :) lisa ray looks blah here (looked much better at the toronto opening. is this brown dress a sari or an "evening gown"?)
i think the lack of attention has much less to do with how they look (ok, if it was aishwarya in a sari she would have received more attention, both because of her looks and her name and face being more recognizable in the west now). but water really was a blip, hardly any buzz (other than in the nyt) and no one really gave it any chance of a win. most foreign film nominations and their actors suffer this fate at the oscars, unless it's a pan's labyrinth that scores several nominations.
as for the fashion, the oscars and the people who cover this sort of thing are notoriously myopic about what they consider "fashion". if it's not some western designer or a western design, they tend to overlook it. ken watanabe's wife looked beautiful and elegant in a kimono at both the golden globes and the oscars (hooray for her), but no mention of her either, even though her husband was a nominee (more visibility than a foreign pic nomination). only if an indian actress/actor is nominated in the acting category or is a well-known international face will their dress be noticed, and even if their sari or indian-style men's suit is amongst the most elegant there, it will receive less due than less worthy western wear.
not in her pharoah, just pharoah... you know what I mean.
B. very few women especially Mehta, look good natural
*sigh*
I bet if Shilpa Shetty was there in her pharoah, she would have made a deal, say, with Chanel for her choli and with Cartier for plenty of bling, and gotten widely photographed.
Absolutely. Even if Shilpa Shetty dressed in all Indian and wore traditional jewelry, she looks fantastic and makes for great pictures and is easy on the eyes, she'd have made it. I don't think the snub was intentional because nothing about that group would have caught my eye either.
i'm not sure why people expect the oscars to be international or diverse. it is an anglo-philic award and, more specifically, an american-centric award (nothing inherently wrong with that). even the english-speaking brits, who may have got lots of nominations, didn't do that well in the end. only helen mirren really capitalized. (a win for o'toole would have been fantastic but some actors (and directors and technicians) are beyond and above the oscars and he's one of them.
Trivia - When Helen Mirren came on stage to collect her award, they announced that an Indian hand reader had once told her she would peak late in her career.
Whats a hand reader?
If people didnt care for Oscars, then this post would'nt be there, correct?
Yes, there were so many movies (which unfortunately were considered parallel) in India, but they didnt have the technical markup to be presented at Oscars. At the same time, not all Oscar-ed movies were of such ultimate quality either.
All I am saying is, instead of treading waters about widows in Varanasi and child marriages (these are not that big of problems today, these are niche problems, IMO), people should make movies of travails of tribals or dalits in remote villages, which is the truth. Naxalite movement is a reality - many people disagree with it, but the reasons for its violent turn cannot be denied.
If you cannot be brave enough to deal with real problems, then you dont deserve glory either. Art is all about irreverance and truth and Indian cinema is anything but truth.
If you cannot be brave enough to deal with real problems, then you dont deserve glory either.
How about something chronicling Hindu fundamentalist politics? As a Guju, I've been getting intentionally burnt cups of tea at get togethers for badmouthing Narendra Modi.
Whats a hand reader?
Probably they meant palmreading and called it handreading.
'The west bank story' which won the OSCAR for the short film catogary.I heard the director thanking one Mr.Malhotra.Its Ravi Malhotra, one of the producer for this film.And some desi contributions for this film.So a desi won the OSCAR?
Here is the link.(http://www.westbankstory.com/new/bio.htm).
"Trivia - When Helen Mirren came on stage to collect her award, they announced that an Indian hand reader had once told her she would peak late in her career."
good catch. more indian influence on the oscars :) :
Peter O'Toole in Esquire Magazine (January 2007): "Listen, everybody was offered the part of Lawrence of Arabia: Marlon Brando, Greta Garbo, Groucho Marx. Everybody but me. They all turned it down for various reasons. And David Lean had banked his life on that picture. David's wife (Indian) was seeing a guru at the time, and this guru had seen a film called The Day They Robbed the Bank of England, in which I played a silly English officer. And the guru told her that he had just seen the man who should play Lawrence."
Just got up from the Vanity Fair bash. As I prepare to interview Lisa Ray on post-Oscar night, I have to say they ARE ALLOWED to walk by themselves. Publicists (a la me) do not tell you who to walk with. We tell you where to stop and which press person to speak with. Even at the after-party, the cast didn't mingle much with others. They simply did not fit it with the schmoozy crowd of Hollywood. John A. could have looked more handsome and dapper, but he chose to represent India with his style. Ash gets more attention because of her work. Lisa Ray is a household name in India (as she modeled for Lakme since 16), but in La-La land, no one knows her except for this film. And she doesn't qualify as a Bollywood actress considering her mixed heritage.
IMHO, they appeared visibly uncomfortable simply because they knew no one else. Imagine who would Gwyneth Paltrow speak with if she attended a Film Fare award show? apart from the obligatory "love your work" and "great dress" intermingling was minimal.
Ankur:
How about something chronicling Hindu fundamentalist politics?
I'd say, pick your poison, but make it sugarless.
How about something chronicling Hindu fundamentalist politics? As a Guju, I've been getting intentionally burnt cups of tea at get togethers for badmouthing Narendra Modi.
The upcoming Nasser movie, Parzania would probably touch upon the Hindu fundamentalist issue.
Ankur - you serious though? That is truly messed up...
Its Ravi Malhotra, one of the producer for this film.And some desi contributions for this film.So a desi won the OSCAR?
Not sure about Mr Malhotra's origins, but this made me think of a more general question. Everytime an ABD achieves something and sometimes a big celebration happens in India about his being Indian or of Indian origin though he is ABD, what do ABDs feel about that?
We watch because it's still hella fun to see so many movie stars at once and none of them acting, and it's still the biggest annual PR event in the world --butit's riding on its own coattails now-- I mean it used to be white tie when Sidney Poitier got his award and now people are wearing straight black neck ties like at a funeral. If one's particpating, it's only sporting to play the PR game and plug into the possibilities.....and no, no, a thousand times no, Indian movies don't have to address serious social ills to be good. Everyone needs comedy.
IMHO, they appeared visibly uncomfortable simply because they knew no one else. Imagine who would Gwyneth Paltrow speak with if she attended a Film Fare award show? apart from the obligatory "love your work" and "great dress" intermingling was minimal.
That's a real shame. I was thinking John Abraham would have left with a blonde on each arm. Maybe the Indians got mistaken for the taxi drivers at the end of the night.
very few women especially Mehta, look good natural, I mean please for crying out loud use some gloss and with her dark circles she looked like an owl with that horrible eye makeup.
Good golly, JOAT! I was going to suggest that the Ranjit Chowdhury character in Bollywood-Hollywood in his transvest-ed role represented a directorial catharsis of her suppressed alter-ego, but was biting my tongue, thinking it might be a rather harsh comment. But now, well, you've stiffened my spine. BTW, are you back from India now, or are you writing from the desh?
Even at the after-party, the cast didn't mingle much with others. They simply did not fit it with the schmoozy crowd of Hollywood. John A. could have looked more handsome and dapper, but he chose to represent India with his style. Ash gets more attention because of her work. Lisa Ray is a household name in India (as she modeled for Lakme since 16), but in La-La land, no one knows her except for this film. And she doesn't qualify as a Bollywood actress considering her mixed heritage.IMHO, they appeared visibly uncomfortable simply because they knew no one else. Imagine who would Gwyneth Paltrow speak with if she attended a Film Fare award show? apart from the obligatory "love your work" and "great dress" intermingling was minimal.
Saira, as a publicist, don't you find this not borrowing clothes and jewelry and not mingling no fun at all? John Abraham coulda shoulda worn electric blue or watermelonn colored silk with zardosi like the Banash brothers (esp the younger Bangash, who is every bit as gorgeous as JA) to represent his generation in india. What is he, Pandit Nehru mitout rose? And sorry to say, I must take issue with another thing-- Gwyneth is a well bought up New York girl and a Spencie, and I have no doubt she would mingle and charm people at the Filmfare awards...
Not only is is not fun, but not productive. John should have shown off his devastating looks with a suit to bring out his best ass-ets with a single breasted, bespoke suit from Valentino. But he wasn't my client for me to say. Their job is to let people know who they are in addition to smile and wave. They did a poor job of walking together. Even a glance at the images show how uncomfortable they all were. Perhaps "Chuiya" would have helped lighten their somber moods. I personally was offended by Ellen's comments in the opening monologue about diversity, mentioned Spain and Japan, but not a single glance or comment about India? That showed me just how involved they were in this process and vice-versa.
Gwyneth is a well bought up New York girl and a Spencie
Heh. You think too highly of Spence girls ;)
Good golly, JOAT! I was going to suggest that the Ranjit Chowdhury character in Bollywood-Hollywood in his transvest-ed role represented a directorial catharsis of her suppressed alter-ego, but was biting my tongue, thinking it might be a rather harsh comment. But now, well, you've stiffened my spine. BTW, are you back from India now, or are you writing from the desh?
OK maybe I was being a meanie but saying desis were snubbed is like implying undertones of racism and I don't see how anyone would have time to be racist when the subjects on the most ostentatious night were so hard on the eyes.
Yes I'm back. Thank you for asking.
I personally was offended by Ellen's comments in the opening monologue about diversity, mentioned Spain and Japan, but not a single glance or comment about India? That showed me just how involved they were in this process and vice-versa.
I felt the same way and quite possibly because no one told Ellen they were in the audience. Their publicist needs to be fired immediately for not schooling them on milking the red carpet, looking like hell on it and thinking not wearing lipstick on the most important night because you don't in daily life is acceptable when you look like Mehta. :-)
Even a glance at the images show how uncomfortable they all were. Perhaps "Chuiya" would have helped lighten their somber moods.
You know what? You're right. John and Lisa should have walked together looking very sexy and exotic together -- hot couple! And the rest of the aunties about ten steps behind. As it is this is like those freakin' Indian family outings when everyone has to roll together, freakin' aunties take it personally when the kids want to cut loose and look cool in front of the white people and don't want to be seen with sari-aunties. How many times have you seen it in Trafalgar Square or Niagra Falls? Exactly.
"Not only is is not fun, but not productive. John should have shown off his devastating looks with a suit to bring out his best ass-ets with a single breasted, bespoke suit from Valentino. "
i have to respectfully disagree. he would just have blended in with the rest of the males in their cookie cut western suits. i don't think you have to dress western to look dapper and handsome. i think your comments about how they carried themselves are more pertinent to why they were overlooked, and the fact that they were really "nobodies" (sadly) to the people around them. when aishwarya appeared for the premiere of her bride and prejudice in ny, i remember one hollywood bigwig correspondent saying that he came to see a true indian movie star but ended up seeing basically a copy of any western movie star (she chose to wear some sort of western designer dress and was styled very western, which usually doesn't bring out her very indian beauty). i don't think he was exoticizing her.
people are tired of the same old thing and appreciate confidence and pride in one's own style and traditions, and i wish indian celebrities were more confident about themselves when they travelled, instead of feeling they have to ape and blend in with the generic or feeling awkward when they don't blend in (and thus painting yourselves as self conscious about your differences, thus reinforcing other people's prejudices that you are somehow not "de rigeur" or "unfashionable") - they way they used to be. the first indian miss world won wearing a sari for the evening gown component (and there's a photo of her with bob hope entertaining american servicemen, in her sari. she was a big hit). nowadays the indian wear is reserved for the "national costume" section, even though the sari is hardly a "costume".
Saira, gotcha. Valentino for JA to be sure. maybe even an achkan by Valentino. Valentino's no slouch, you know, goes to Desh not just for embroidery but to mingle. Even if they were resisting Western dress and designers, they could have gone to Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla, who dressed Judi Dench another year, and made something out of that, but alas.
Brearley Boy, I have a Saint David's Girl (really) who turned into a Spencie, and afaik, they do mix and mingle and jingle their feet -- did a Spencie not jingle hop with you?
BB, I didn't mean to be harsh, but why be so partisan? I'm sure Téa Leoni would mingle too.
Speaking of "West Bank Story," the hot Palestinian woman is portrayed by Noureen DeWulf, an actress of South Asian descent.
Well, as I had wished, "water" did NOT get an Oscar. So one of my wishes came true in 2007, now if the Telecom infrastructure industry stocks start outperforming, than I will be able to claim that the year of the pig, has been lucky for me.
That Deepa Mehta looks like a witch if you ask me, and her films reflect this too ;). I for one am jumping for joy that this Canadian film didn't make it beyond the noms.
Perhaps the actors weren't just right...
Amrita -
Oh ho ho! I thought you were a Spence girl yourself. If you're the mother of a Spencie, I mean no offence. Spence girls have a reputation for being aloof and hoitie-toitie, but I'm sure it doesn't apply to your darling daughter.
Seemed like Mehta was wearing a Santiniketan-style blouse--block print, primary colors, modest cut--to tie in with her 1940s Benarasi tissue sari. I thought it was elegant and old fashioned; this seems the look she was trying to evoke: antique jewels, little makeup, hair in a bun, etc. Too true, she could have worn a bollywood backless blouse; more makeup; a sexier hair do, etc. but perhaps she just didn't want to.
Meanwhile, her publicist clearly sucks. I noticed the Mehta crew walking across the red carpet and I was pretty excited then disappointed that no coverage ensued. Total missed story that would have made great sceen time for 45-seconds: accents from far away lands, shimmery fabric and unusual bling. Stupid E! producers.
Japan and Spain. Wow. Excluding India from the divesity spectrum was not Ellen's fault as she probably has a staff that helps her develop her content. Who ever checked her monologue should have suggested she map out a bit.
A couple of comments:
Although it's nice that her sari is a family heirloom, I'm not really awed by it. It's not that unique. There are so many more beautiful, striking Banarasi sarees that show off the craftmanship of the weaver. However, I happen to think the blouse is a nice vintage touch. The outfit is maybe not striking enough for the red carpet. And that other red and white sari the other chick is wearing reminds me of the depressing afternoon I spent doing wedding shopping in New Jersey, going from one tacky sari shop to the next as they unfurled overpriced rhinestoned monstrosities and I longed for a classic Kanjeevaram. The whole concept of a "designer" sari is a joke. Handloom saris are unique individual pieces and finding the perfect one is far more of an achievement than having one designed for you by Ritu Kumar (whose other clothing designs I actually happen to like).
"very few women especially Mehta, look good natural"
I totally disagree with that. It's a matter of personal preference. I don't think most women NEED makeup to look presentable. Even cosmetics companies no longer try to sell that idea. Some are even built on the foundation (no pun intended) of looking "natural". I think Deepa Mehta projected the look she wanted to project, which is what fashion is really about anyway.
For the life of me I can't understand why the producers of WATER didn't hire PMK/HBH for this gala event..It would have made all the difference..they really dropped the ball on this. Any thoughts Saira?
DEEPA MEHTA WORE THE SARI IN THE WORST WAY POSSIBLE! One was seriously appalled! You go to kancheepuram, u get so many lovely saris. She chose this??! Anyone can teach a person how to wear a sari. All u have to do, is make sure nobody steps on it.
As for an indian movie winning an oscar, indians have to make movies about india, for india. Either they make movies that are made about foreign countries for india, or made for foreign countries about india.
Lagaan and Water are classical examples of the 2nd category. Nayakan, Thevar Magan are examples of the former.
Oh ho ho! I thought you were a Spence girl yourself. If you're the mother of a Spencie, I mean no offence. Spence girls have a reputation for being aloof and hoitie-toitie, but I'm sure it doesn't apply to your darling daughter.
Thanks BB, it really doesn't apply to them-- they party down, and we always see Gwyneth movies. Me, I'm
not-so-girlish-
PMK reps Lisa Ray, but the studios do the film publicity (i.e. Fox).
"PMK reps Lisa Ray"
I imagine she doesn't rank high on their list of priorities...**sigh** PMK just hasn't been the same since Leslee Dart was fired.
I don't think most women NEED makeup to look presentable. Even cosmetics companies no longer try to sell that idea
It's not about needing makeup to look presentable, it's about needing some makeup so that your features don't disappear in photos and on film. And DM did have makeup on, only it was harsh black liquid liner and some sort of ashy unflattering foundation and blush, and the lips totally disappeared because of her "principled" stand against lipstick (which is slightly ironic given that she was wearing Prada shoes and a designer blouse. It's like, honey, you're going to the Oscars, you know what the game is and you're playing it, marketing and all, spare us the faux highmindedness on lipstick for gods sakes.
And that other red and white sari the other chick is wearing reminds me of the depressing afternoon I spent doing wedding shopping in New Jersey, going from one tacky sari shop to the next as they unfurled overpriced rhinestoned monstrosities and I longed for a classic Kanjeevaram. The whole concept of a "designer" sari is a joke
YES! I've had very similar experiences, in Delhi. The shop guys were stunned that anyone should want an "old-fashioned" tanchoi or kanjeevaram when the glories of multicoloured rhinestones lay before them.
It's not about needing makeup to look presentable, it's about needing some makeup so that your features don't disappear in photos and on film.
I wasn't really defending Deepa Mehta, just responding to JOATs opinion that most women don't look good natural. Or maybe she was talking about on film too.
Is Mehta's dislike of lipstick really principled, or is it just that she doesn't like it? I can't imagine how it could be the former when she wears other forms of makeup. I don't necessarily think, though, that designer clothes and makeup go hand in hand. For example I spend a lot of time, money, and effort on my clothes, but own and wear very little makeup. Not a principled stand, just a personal preference.
YES! I've had very similar experiences, in Delhi. The shop guys were stunned that anyone should want an "old-fashioned" tanchoi or kanjeevaram when the glories of multicoloured rhinestones lay before them.I feel like it's a new phenomenon--when I was in high school in India it was considered quite hip to wear traditional fabrics. Now I see people in the US who in other ways dress normally and tastefully wear those rhinestoned getups whenever they attend a desi event. Obviously I realize this is a matter of opinion but I don't get it! I realize too that it makes me a hypocrite because I'm defending peoples' right to not wear makeup in the same breath I pick on their clothing :)
I wasn't really defending Deepa Mehta, just responding to JOATs opinion that most women don't look good natural. Or maybe she was talking about on film too.
My whole point was that I find some of the principled 'oh I don't wear makeup' a bit ridiculous when it isn't about needing to wear makeup as much as it is about looking presentable and getting noticed for an event that requires it. Not everyone looks good natural, Mehta is one of them. Very little bit of makeup would do wonders for her and yes NATURAL makeup. That's the whole point. No one is asking