Oh. That's why he was following Deepak Chopra around.

Link

quebec is going to secede for sure now.

BAM! Talk about a two-fer. I hit upon two topics with one comment (with obscure but apt references).

Dammit. Now I don't know whether to be offended by this movie, or to drool over JT in a speedo.

I had the tv on as background noise last night and heard "Dharak Dharak" from Bunty aur Babli playing and just about had a stroke--someone was playing one of my favorite movies! and on American television no less!--but instead, it was just this horrible horrible film trailer. I heart Mike Meyers too, but dude...no no no. After the Heather Graham/Jimi Mistry travesty, I can't watch a film with the word Guru in the title without some serious PTSS flashbacks. Unless it stars a Bachchan. Then it's all good.

Does anyone know what the name "Pitka" means in Sanskrit (or is it a real name from another region of India)? Also, it looks to me like his nose got made up to look "more Indian" or don't know if that is his regular unadulterated nose.

.

So then MM really should be able do at least a Peter Sellers. Okay, ready to be offended...

Myers tried out this role in a bunch of nightclubs (like this) and refined the Guru Pitka character over the last couple of years. Personally, I am looking forward to it, and hope that it reaches the ethereal heights of absurdity that Austin Power and Wayne's World achieve in their best moments.

This might be the closest Leafs will ever get to the stanley cup playoffs.

This might be the closest Leafs will ever get to the stanley cup playoffs.

LAMO, this is so funny, cause it is true. The sad part is that most of the non-canadian here will have no idea how funny this is.

What's the stanly cup? Does that have anything to do with curling?

"Pitka" means enlightened soul in Punjabi

Re: Leafs, Stanley cup--Myers has stated that the only way he would see the Leafs win the Cup in his lifetime was if he made a movie about it--it was a strong motivator for the project.

The funny thing is, michael myers knows it's satirical. The rest of America doesnt.

The funny thing is, michael myers knows it's satirical. The rest of America doesnt.

I wonder what kind of american you are talking about?

I'm surprised. I laughed a couple of times. And the accent isn't as racist and grotesque as I was expecting it to be. In fact the comedy doesn't seem to derive from some lame Charlie Chan type caricature of his voice. In fact the accent is quite a good approximation of an middle class Indian / American accent.

Thanks for the translation (Aruna #12).

I think that I would be more pissed if I didn't have full confidence in this movie failing completely.

And since when are the Leafs even moderately interested in the underperformance of their athletes? McCabe, Kubina, Blake.....hell they would have to send the whole damn team to India.

And why did the trailer say he was coming to America??? Isn't Toronto in........ummm......Canada??

Now this seems to be an interesting movie (besides Kal Penn) for the summer.

I thought Justin Timberlake's accent was reaching more toward the offensive than Mike Myers'.

Although I'm a little nervous about the film, I was amused by moments here. And really? The most cringe-inducing part of the entire trailer was Jessica Alba.

19 · Captain Umrica said

And why did the trailer say he was coming to America??? Isn't Toronto in........ummm......Canada??

Isn't Canada in .... ummm...... (North) Umrica??

The funny thing is, michael myers knows it's satirical. The rest of America doesnt.

Mike Myers is Canadian.

oh, p.s. LOVE that the guy from Weeds is in it.

22 · Vamsi said

19 · Captain Umrica said

And why did the trailer say he was coming to America??? Isn't Toronto in........ummm......Canada??

Isn't Canada in .... ummm...... (North) Umrica??

If you look at it that way the movie could've just as easily been set in Argentina.

Pretty disappointing. I really like Mike Myers, and thought that his riffs with Deepak Chopra on the Iconoclast series were funny and thoughtful. Based on that I am pretty sure that he did not mean to be be disrespectful here (maybe it was meant to be some kind of insider homage) but I didn't think it worked, at least based on the trailer. Maybe the movie will be better.

I guess Peter Sellers still holds the title on funniest non-desi desi portrayal.

Can't wait. This looks really funny!

23 · Rahul said

The funny thing is, michael myers knows it's satirical. The rest of America doesnt.

Mike Myers is Canadian.

And that is why he is so funny. Of course, Razib, being the Canada-hater that he is, will say something like "this correlation does not necessarily imply causality... the n is not sufficiently... and the chi squared blah blah blah... Soviet Canuckistani porn is weak..." ;)

The funny thing is, michael myers knows it's satirical

Mike Myers humor does have a sharp edge to it.

Mike Myers is Canadian.

And that is why he is so funny.

A Canadian who makes his entire living off the stupidity of Americans. What are you saying here? because he was born in Canada he has no responsibility for the actions he takes?

I've actually been to the magnet theater (where he and Deepak Chopra gave a joint discussion) and heard him speak, and I saw the iconoclasts episode as well.

the point is just as same as before, no counterbalance means that mr. average joe blo american will most likely not register the satirical nature.

OMG!
I saw the whole trailer and at the end wondered "Timberlake was there, but where was the hammock?" and then after a while my bulb lights up.
Oh My God! "Banana Hammock" i.e. hammock for his banana.

Gosh Anna, you are witty.

ok. 3 things.

1. i know this movie will be pretty lame.

2. i also know i will laugh my a$$ off occasionally, which is more than most comedy flicks will do for me these days. but then again, i am a drummer so my humour level is pretty sophomor(on)ic.

3. i'm kind of offended, but not enough to not check it out----only b/c its mike meyers, who is a genius (moley moley moley cracks me up. EVERYtime. much to the eye rolling of my wife. and his choice of dutch ethnicity for goldmember? genius.). anyone else, i'd probably be up in arms.

hopefully i can retain my brown status and not be downgraded to coconut.

21 · Lizzie (greeneyed fem) said

I thought Justin Timberlake's accent was reaching more toward the offensive than Mike Myers'.

Although I'm a little nervous about the film, I was amused by moments here. And really? The most cringe-inducing part of the entire trailer was Jessica Alba.

True!

oops i meant to quote all of what lizzie said

the point is just as same as before, no counterbalance means that mr. average joe blo american will most likely not register the satirical nature.

You are talking about the satirical nature of Toronto having a good hockey team?

You are talking about the satirical nature of Toronto having a good hockey team?

yea thats it, seeing that this space is one where correct sport representation is discussed at great lengths.

I think he just likes excuses to pretend to put his ankles behind his neck. First Golmember, and this makes two.

That is a dead on Deepak Chopra impression (the voice, that is). My mother loves the Chopra but he is just to big a ditz for me to get into. A rich ditz, but a ditz nonetheless.

Eh, MM's an equal opportunity offender so I don't really see the problem - it's not like he has problem making fun of any category of people, and if you can't make fun of the New Age self-help industry, who can you make fun of? It looks kinda funny, even if he is basically recycling all his old jokes.

12 · aruna said

"Pitka" means enlightened soul in Punjabi

That must be true in the the Finnish dialect of Punjabi;)

I kinda wanna watch it, but i am wondering to what degree they are gonna make fun of indian culture? For people like us its ok to see and get a good laugh out of it, BUT after seeing loads of stuff on Internet forums, Youtube comments, and Yahoo! Answers, ive come to learn that way too many people (Americans, etc.) don't really know anything about Indians or Indian culture. They think we're terrorists or voodoo freaks who eat monkey brains or something. This movie is not exactly helping.

Read this on imdb today. Outrage happening all over, apparently...

Paramount has reportedly agreed to screen its forthcoming Mike Myers comedy The Love Guru to a group of Hindu leaders in the U.S. in an apparent effort to quell growing criticism of th movie among Hindu organizations in the U.S. and India, Indian newspapers reported. Over the weekend, Lila D. Sharma, president of the India Heritage Panel in Chandigarh, India, said in a statement, "Hollywood is trying to make money by laughing at our holy men and in the process creating a stereotype." The Indian news website Merinews.com said in an editorial, "With all the ridicule showered at our holy men and women in the film The Love Guru, we should not only brace ourselves against Hollywood comedian Mike Myers, but also assert our rights to not let aliens poke fun at us when we revere our revered ones!" In the U.S., Raja Zed, president of the Universal Society of Hinduism, said that the trailer for the movie "appears to be lampooning Hinduism. ... It perpetuates stereotypes of Hindus." Paramount spokesperson Jessica Rovins responded, "It is our full intention to screen the film for Rajan Zed and other Hindu leaders in the U.S. once we have a finished print." The movie, she added, "is a comedy and the purpose is to entertain, and we are not making this movie to offend anybody."

In the U.S., Raja Zed, president of the Universal Society of Hinduism

Hey, that's Rajan Zed of Gayatri Mantra in the Senate fame! Zed wants the last word on what we watch too, apparently!

Maybe they should import Bal Thackeray and Narendra Modi to teach Paramount a message.

As this movie shapes up to be one of this summer's tentpole releases, and as CNN reported, the controversy around it is growing, I wonder just how bad they'll screw up. And if maybe that's just part of gaining acceptance into the mainstream.

In the bar scene in Love Guru, what phrase does Ronoake say when Pitka stares at his crotch??

Actually there is a similarity with his name 'Pitka' and how it's pronounced. In bulgarian language there is a word that means vagina and it spelled (only one letter difference) and pronounced almost the same way as his name.