Perhaps when we look physically orthodox, people might judge us as a person who prays all the time and only visiting masjids. Yes, I visit masjids and religious teachers to get blessings but I am not an angel. I am just a human-being and I look at others as human-being too. That is why I always lament my sins. Angels have no sins. They have no choice but only to exercise Lord's commands. I watch movies too and I am not only watching movies from Eastern Asia but also from South Asia.
I mingle also with ungodly people and also going in and out non-Muslim Chinese restaurants. I walked inside temples and churches talking with people there. I followed second sister to concerts before though I don't like her favorite singers, hehe. I listen to all sort of musics and also asked my ex-colleague about metal musics because I was ignorant about these kind of underground musics before. I also watch theaters and also brought my friends to cultural festivals when I was an undergraduate student. I just become like this because I am struggling to fit myself in the studies and the level which I found is not suitable for me. On the other hand, my paternal relatives mostly aren't observant Muslims as compared to my maternal relatives who are more traditional according to how close they are to their religious community. Some of them would come to the extend that they are Islamic than others due to that they actually take their culture as their religion in case of Malay descents relatives. This also happens everywhere around the world. Like yesterday, my senior Azren also talked to me that her mum didn't believe that the cuisine made by Chinese Muslim in China are halal though the person who prepare the cooking is a Muslim just because he looks Chinese and the cooking looks Chinese and in Malaysia most Chinese people are non-Muslim. I guess maybe Azren is referring to Rasa Halal Oriental program hosted by Farah. We always talk about this problem and stigma in our society. Ignorance about what is culture and what is religion is widespread.
I don't really mingle with other orthodox (traditional?) Muslims because I am way more open than them and I am afraid they will be affected with heart-attack if they see how I mingle with ungodly people because these people usually are not scared of me nor looking at me like a freak. We are in the middle of these areas of East and West and we are people in diaspora. This movie I would like to recommend to others who does not like typical Hindu movie. How I was introduced to Hindi movies? Let me tell everyone about how I know Urdu-Hindi and its movies or songs.
Introduction to Hindi Movies in Malayan Peninsula
During 1950's and 1960's, our state begin to have access with North Indian and Pakistani cinemas. Before that rich people (Arab descents) can watch Arabian movies (very rare) from Syria and from Egypt. Most of the time older people around this times listening to Arabian music. At this time Malaysia is still in the process. My state was included as apart of Malayan Peninsula and later Malaysia through a forced agreement with British in 1948. They forced our royalty and Sultan to sign the treaty with them through legal terms. My lecturer always say, Europeans using legal terms to trick others. I guess this is what they mean but this is our old stories.
This is from the biography of my dad. He was a writer and he wrote also for a Malay newspaper. His Malay language was quite poetic as compared to us who are his kids, hehehe. I am only good in our state language. Diaspora people have to survive in this way where we have to speak languages of people around. Just look at Indians or Bangladeshis in Mamak restaurants. How do they learn Malay language? It is not actually easy if we learn it through classes but these people could quickly speak in our national language and also understand slang and dialects without being provided with classes. I was introduced to Hindi-Urdu movies by my own dad. Though we are of Arab origin but our ancestors did not come directly from Arabia. They came from India and Pakistan before the lines were drawn to divide sub-Indian continent. The line was known as Durand Line and also Radcliffe Line. Radcliffe Line was drawn to separate India from Pakistan and Durand Line was drawn to separate Afghanistan from Pakistan. If we talk about India, we actually refer to pre-independent India and Indian states with sultans. Kedah Sultanate has relationship with Indian Sultanates and they exchanged artisans, architects and also receiving teachers from Indian Sultanates and states particularly from Gujarat since it was a post for Arab soldiers from Pakistan beside those from Arabia. We were also connected with Burma.
My dad loves many evergreen Hindi movies. He was largely influenced by Indians and his eating style is also like Indian. He takes curry and he loves Mamak restaurant stuffs. As compared to me, I and some of my sisters were largely influenced by Chinese community around us. When he always listen to Hindi songs and movies it also indirectly influence us although we do not actually know about all of these stuffs. Later, when we always listen and watch them through media, we grabbed the language. Dad even sings Hindi songs at our ears when we are going to sleep. If he do it now perhaps I will offend him by asking him why not reciting Quranic verses at my ears? LOL.
Many actors in Hindi movies and Pakistani movies are also of Arabian descent such as Amir Khan. I could recite all of their names without stop and I know Urdu poems and songs. When Tabligh kids bring me to their lectures, I actually can understand what has been said by the preachers in Urdu without any translation but I just don't tell them I know what has been said. I just can't speak it because I never speak in the language. However, I am familiar with the sounds. Urm I can speak it if I am forced too and might not be as fluent as when I was a little child.
The difference between peranakan people with native people, we are largely open to foreign atmosphere because of our foreign origin. We don't have to translate everything like in Thailand, Cambodia or Indonesia and that is why we see Malaysia is like today because it is also populated by peranakan people beside 19th century immigrants of British colonial times. British empire favors laissez-faire multiculturalism. People like us live in cities and urban areas disconnected from relatives. Some might move to villages if they encounter problem in cities but after that they will die early because they will experience pressure in the villages, hehehe. When I make friend with Aftab which was my neighbor and also Abdul Baqi from Pakistan, they actually speak to me in Urdu but my dad don't like me to mingle with Abdul Baqi because he does not like the Pashtuns. Only Abdul Baqi is good in Malay and speaks to me in Malay but I also didn't really mingle with that guy. I only played badminton with him. He thinks that he is good-looking and charming to the girls, hahaha. I just went to Friday prayers with them. I don't know why he does not like Pashtuns but its like their habit that Pashtuns being hated by other ethnics of sub-Indian continent. I look everyone as human-being. And yeah I am familiar with Hindu caste system because though we are Muslims we are also included into Hindu caste system as barbarians.
Synopsis
Now enough with the introduction. This movie is mainly about two characters just like other typical Hindi movies. One is Jay Dhingra played by Imran Khan. This guy is actually the nephew of Amir Khan. Another one is Simran played by Sonam Kapoor. Jay works in a Film company as an assistant director. He does not like his job because the producer or perhaps the director of the film love to produce romance movies like always in India. He feels the movies are typical and boring.
Jay met a girl at a cinema when he was ordered by his boss to watch some movies to get ideas on new romance films. He just forced to go there and he does not interested in all of those romance movies. The girl happened to be Simran who will be his future senior in the office. Both of this characters contrast each other. Jay hates love story and he believes not in love. He is also a playboy. In the beginning he talks with Simran, he thinks that Simran is not so interesting as she is obsessed with romance and love. Simran also thinks that Jay is too loud and bolt. Soon, they become best friends despite of differences.
Simran close bond with Jay brings problems in her love live with her dream fiance, Raj. She later feels that Raj is too perfect. He silently falls in love with Jay as his characteristic is quite cheerful and crazy. She tries to confess her feeling to Jay but after doing so, Jay explains that he never thought of Simran in that way. They are just friends. Simran was so heartbroken and she feels embarrassed of herself. She moves from Mumbai to New Zealand for further shooting of a film and its premiere. She does not tell Jay about her shifting.
Sooner or later, Jay finds that Simran's absence in his life upsets him. He realizes that he has also fallen in love with Simran. The the song bin tere (without you) being played, hahaha. He goes to New Zealand and plans a romantic dinner asking Simran to meet him. He admits that he loves her but this time, he was rejected by Simran, hahahahaha. I laughed at this scene with my little sister when we watched this in Astro Hindi channel. Simran says that she does not want to hurt her fiance feeling after giving him another chance. Jay was brokenhearted and disappointed. He had lost Simran to Raj who he always think as pathetic, hehehe.
However, Jay's friends and his mum persuade him not to give up on Simran. Jay tries to make Simran jealous by paying Giselle (Bruna Abdullah) to act as his girlfriend. Then, he realizes that manipulating Simran feeling is only hurting her even more. In the same time, Raj proposes Simran and she accepts it. Later, she realizes that she does not love Raj. He tells him the truth. She goes to movie premiere hoping to see Jay there but Jay already trying to leave to United States as he has given up all hopes on Simran.
Raj was scolded by his mum at the airport. His mum says: "I gave birth to a son, not a girl to cry over girl like this! Go and get her if you are a man!!!" So, mum actually encourages him to return back to the cinema at the premiere. He meets Simran there. They both express their true feeling to each other. It is a happy ending unlike in Tamil (South Indian) movies, haha.
About the Movie
I think it is only for me to relax. Some of the dialogue are actually quite dirty and talking about sex. I don't really feel or think anything misleading because I also talked about this with friends during undergraduate. My colleague and hostel mate also talk about masturbating when they take shower. Sorry girls, if you feel shy please dont read this part but it's already written, hahaha. This is just a fact. I also know what girls in girls hostel doing because they also talked to me. People would never ever expect that kids from Northern part of Kedah state are quite vulgar. I was born in Central Kedah and we usually speaking high-level and polite speech as compared to villagers who speak in vulgar languages. I love the part when they say: "Idhar udhar ki baate wagera wagera..." (walking here and there talking whatever... whatever) and also the song which sounds like koi humme pyaare karo koi jaane saare baate... ahaakkk... basically it means for the one that we love, we'll say/do anything to make him/her turn to you, lolllll.....
My colleague during undergraduate time also forced me to watch blue-porn videos a day before Ramadan. I guess when I was in my first year. I don't like it but they already locked the door and many people outside there after we chat among each other. I just stayed there praying in my heart for colleagues. After that I returned to my room and just praying repentance prayer service and not sleeping the whole night flipping myself with my belt. I also prayed for colleague. I didn't offend them because they are already grown up men around 20-21 years old. They also didn't fast. These are the people that I mingled with. I didn't mingle with Tabligh kids or Pusat Islam (Muslim brotherhood) students. These 'religious' kids also categorizing me as ungodly people and I am praying for these ungodly people and also for myself because nobody would ever try to approach them and I just accept them with open hands when they come to me because I know the feeling of being an outcast : )
What my little sister thinks? She only looks at the guy's face and dreaming, hahahahaha..... Girls.... I think people may watch this movie them selves. Just relax and find one with English translation. If no English translation, don't worry cause they also use a huge amount of English words, haha. This is one way on peranakan people entertaining themselves and the type of movies that they watch. Malay people also watch these because they mingle with us and marrying our people besides other North Indian ethnics of non-Arab origin also watch these. It's their culture, haha.
Sealed with prayers of mercy, peace and love, amin!
