movies | A Journey In Black and Indian Love

Long Time No See June 1, 2009

I can’t believe it has been so long since I’ve had the opportunity to write on the blog. I appreciate all of the comments and the outreach from people who like the blog.

This past Memorial day, M and the kids and I went camping with several other members of my family. Overall, the weekend was okay except for one major glitch. My youngest aunt called M, Osama as he was walking out of the RV thinking it would be a cute joke. Thankfully, M said he never heard her. However, other family members did and laughed. I immediately put her in check and told her the remark was extremely tacky. I also asked her how she would feel if someone from his family called her a derogatory name. She didn’t say anything but I got my point across very very clearly to her and the family members who laughed. I am thankful that M has such a cool personality. He takes everything in stride and never holds a grudge. I did notice that M and my mother had more camaraderie. Thankfully, despite the sporadic ignorance on the part of my family, he said he had a good time.

In more happy news, we booked our family vacation to Walt Disney later in the year. It’s going to be a busy year of travel because we just recently signed for some commercial property for our business and we have to take a trip to China and we’re thinking of combining it with the one to India. I think the kids are more excited about Disney than anything else. Here’s a tip for all of you who have been thinking about going to Disney some day.. Now is the time! Disney has some unbelievable package deals right now.

I don’t know if I mentioned this before but M is by trade a mechanical engineer with a concentration in automobiles. He was working as a process engineer when he was laid off a few months ago. Thank God we were preparing for something of this nature. It’s been months now and M complains daily about how nothing is panning out for him because of this economy. Thankfully, we were preparing for something of this nature. We’re hoping the opening of a brick and mortar wholesale business will be successful. In the meantime, I try to keep M’s spirits up. Not having a job is emasculating for him and I try to make sure he knows that I understand and I don’t hold anything against him. As far as me and my kids are concerned, he is still the head of this household. That being said, M now feels that because he’s not working he cannot take part of major money decisions. We have to go back and forth three or four times before he will finally make a decision on an issue related to money. It’s frustrating. I want him to remember that no matter what happens, he’s still the husband and father. That doesn’t change because of job status.

We live in an area that isn’t as open to racial diversity as it claims to be. I think being Indian is making M’s job search a little more difficult. The way I see it, is that those people who won’t hire him because of how he sounds or because he’s from a different culture are the ones missing out and if someone doesn’t want you for asinine reasons, it’s not the place for you anyway. I’d much rather work in an environment where people respect differences.

Sorry it took so long to post a new blog… more to come so until the next blog…

Blindian

Comments (4)

A Fresh Blog Post. Hot Off the Presses. May 3, 2009

I’m finally back with a fresh blog post. The week has been very very busy and I had not found the time to write. Hubby has been promising to guest write for me but so far that hasn’t happened. Every time I ask him about it, he says he’s still thinking about what he is going to write about. Let’s all collectively roll eyes on that.

After three years of trying to get M realize that not everyone in any one race is the same, twice this week when I was telling him about a negative situation that happened (one involving a check from a customer for our business), he automatically asked “was it a black person?” His question gave me pause and made me ask him why he automatically assumed it was a black person that was involved in something negative. He didn’t have an answer for me, other than to say “I was just curious.”

Now mind you, M and I have had many discussions about why crime rates may be higher in some areas than others or why there are so many black on black murders etc. We’ve talked about the socioeconomic connections and educational factors that contribute to downtrodden. But somehow, I don’t think he’s grasped it all. Even now after all of this time being here in the states, he hasn’t connected with many other blacks apart from my family (or Indians either for that matter…come to think about it.. he hasn’t connected with anyone). He needs to be able to experience people of all races from all walks of life so that he can see that there’s not just one type of person in any ethnic group. I really want him to get to a point where he recognizes that crime has no face and no racial group is immune from being the victim of a crime or committing one.

Shifting the topic to one more positive, on Friday the kids had their Spring Fling. I was so excited because I saw more mixed couples there than I had seen in the entire city we live in. Other than M and myself, there were at least four other couples I saw that night and they were all openly engaged with one another and small amounts of PDA. It shows the grand old south where we live is changing its guard a bit. I like that.

Okay guys, I’m going to keep this one short. I’m a bit under the weather and my bed is calling me for a nap. Until the next blog. …

Oh by the way.. some comments I haven’t yet gotten a chance to respond to yet but I will later this evening.

Comments (8)

The Real Reason Some People Are Against Interracial Relationships April 22, 2009

I recently made a post titled “Can’t We All Just Get Along?” The post got the attention of Tom, a white male married to an Asian woman. I was excited because Tom was not only my first male poster, but he also brought a fresh perspective to IR’s.

Today Tom made this comment “I know the people who say stick to your own kind are probably only stating it because they feel it will protect you from being hurt or rejected.”

Or… they say “stick to your own kind” because that is what they have always done; the reason being that they, themselves, are either too frightened or small-minded to venture out into the wider world.

People often subconsciously transfer their own fears and stigma onto others.” (the rest of his comment can be read in the original blog ).

When I read Tom’s words, it was like a light bulb went on. He worded my thoughts so accurately. Tom is very correct about how people subconsciously transfer their own fears and stigma onto others and how fear keeps people from venturing out. It’s like a social mania.

Unfortunately, society has screwed so many of us up. We seek validation and approval from others without realizing how detrimental it can be to us. It’s like we’re puppets in a puppet show being run by the man behind the curtain. How many times have we done something in our lives, not because we wanted to but because we didn’t want to face the retribution or harsh reaction from others if we went against the norm? This is why some people react so harshly to intercultural and interracial relationships. It goes against what others have told them should happen and THAT makes them uncomfortable.

Black women have so much baggage laid upon us about dating outside the race. The way some people act, you would think we were committing cultural genocide. I honestly think that some Indians feel the same way…that their sons or daughters being involved with someone of a different religion, caste or creed somehow dilutes their heritage. They don’t look at it as a new dimension or facet being added.

M and I are thinking about having a baby. We talk about it at least twice a week. M has no blood children and I am thankful he loves my twins as his own. I hesitate to have another child because 1) my twins are 8 now and going back to having an infant I feel would be difficult 2) my twins are a result of fertility drug treatments and even though they have been great kids, I am fearful of having another set of twins and 3) we travel a great deal and traveling with an infant is a whole new ballgame. I know these are probably selfish issues but I brought this subject up to say this. If we do decide to have a child, we know we will raise it to embrace both sides of their culture. There’s no one culture superior to the other (contrary to many twisted beliefs).

Tom’s comment made me realize that some people hide their racism behind the cloak of “love.” But if they really loved you, it wouldn’t matter who you were with and why as long as you are happy and treated with respect. Until the next blog…

Comments (16)

Indian Movies April 19, 2009

Faana

I mentioned in a previous post that M and I watch a lot of movies. Thanks to Netflix I can indulge in documentaries and foreign films that my local movie store doesn’t carry. I thought I would take the time in today’s blog to pass along some of my favorite documentaries and Indian films. If you’ve never watched an Indian movie before let me forewarn you that they are generally quite long. Usually they are over three hours .

Tonight we watched Kal Ho Naa Ho: Tomorrow May Never Come. In typical Indian fashion this movie was well over 3 hours long and it seemed to just fall apart at the end. Last week we watched Dil Chahata Hai starring Aamir Khan. It’s a great film about three guys who have been friends since grade school. It’s a film about life, love and friendship. We also watched Jhoom Barabar Jhoom. Let me just say BOOOOOO BOOOOOO. I threw popcorn at my own screen. If you like movies that rank a 10 plus on the cheese factor this is it.

Here’s a list of my favs so far:

Slum Dog Millionaire (excellent movie)

Sarfarosh (three and a half starts)

Salaam Namaste (four stars)

Water ( Part of the Deepa Mehta trilogy Five stars)

Salaam Bombay (five stars. A very touching movie about a little boy thrown into life in the slums of Mumabi. It’s directed by Mira Nair who also directed Monsoon wedding).

Monsoon Wedding (four stars)

Fire (Part of Deepa Mehta’s trilogy five stars. The movie touches on the subject of same sex relationships. I think this movie was amazingly done)

Arranged (Five stars…movie about an unlikely friendship between an orthodox Jewish girl and a Muslim girl)

Faana (three and a half stars. It’s long..almost like two movies in one)

Movies I could take or leave:

Kuch Kuch Hota Hai

Earth (Directed by Deepa Mehta and part of her movie trilogy, Earth, Water and Fire)

Beauty Academy of Kabul (documentary)

What are some of your favorite movies with a foreign slant and why? Until the next blog..

Comments (17)

To Stay or Not to Stay..That is the Question April 17, 2009

At least once a week M and I have the same conversation. I want to move back to India or at least spend part of the year there. M thinks I’m nuts and is concerned about trying to rebuild a life there. He’s also concerned about our son’s allergies and asthma. I can understand the asthma problems in Delhi (smog and air pollution) and even Kerala (various greenery) but in Goa he seems to do well and we’ve found that the allergy flair ups usually come in spring and summer. I think it’s possible, M isn’t so sure. We have this conversation at least once a week and it always ends the same-in non decision. It’s kind of like the should we have a baby or not discussion. We at least agree on that matter it’s just the timing of it all.

After spending so much time in India, I consider the country to be a second home for me and I miss the pulse and vibrancy of Delhi and Goa. I miss the quietness of Kerala at night. It’s very hard to explain but the country is in my blood now.

In addition to my full-time job, I have two businesses that can operate from virtually anywhere in the world. One is a voiceover business (if you’re interested, email me and I’ll send you the website link) and the other is a catalog and e-commerce jewelry and accessory business (www.paysonjewels.com) so I think we can survive anywhere. I understand M’s concerns. He’s over 40 now and finding a job in India at his age can difficult since the country’s population is so young.

One of the other reasons I want to move is because I want my children to have a different kind of life. Every day you pick up the paper or watch the news, there’s been another shooting or some random act of death that can’t be explained. As a mother, I am keenly aware of the kinds of things my children are exposed to when they are at school and no amount of piano lessons, soccer or scouts can remove some of the peer pressure they are and will be exposed to as they get older.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not naïve enough to think that we can move away from all things negative. However, say what we will about countries on the other side of the world but they have very different kinds of crime than we do here. We don’t hear about schools or hospitals being shot up the way we do here. And whether we like it or not, their kids are usually more educated than ours. There’s something to be said for this. As parents we want to give our children the best opportunities available to them. We want them healthy, educated and filled with integrity. We want them to hold on to the childhood innocence they have now before becoming stained with the negativity of the world. As parents, we are fighting like hell to do this with each passing day. We’ve got great kids.. we know it and we want them to remain so.

We have a great number of decisions to make in the coming days…Until the next blog.

Comments (8)

My Taste in Movies Sucks-The World According to M April 10, 2009

Tonight we watched “Seven Pounds,” the recent movie starring Will Smith. I thought the movie was poignant. My husband thought the movie stank. This is the life of me and M. LOL. Last month, after we suffered through the movie “Hard Candy” my husband turned to me, looked me dead in my face and said “your taste in movies sucks here lately.” All I could do is laugh. After “Hard Candy,” and the bomb “Jhoom Barabar Jhoom,” the day earlier, it was pretty hard to defend.

Thanks to our Netflix account, we watch quite a few movies. Last month we watched 10. Out of that 10 M liked 4, “Russell Peters: Red White and Brown” (if you haven’t seen this rent it. He’s a HILARIOUS Indian comedian), Madagascar 3 (yeah it was cute but he’s a 42 year old man and he seemed to enjoy it more than the kids. WTH? LOL), Street Kings (we both liked it) and “Mama Mia (Mama Mia?! OMG).” We also watched “Dil Chahata Hai” which he was pretty middle of the road on. Everything else he hated!

We are opposite in so many ways. He likes hard rock and country. I’m a R and B and jazz kind of girl. I like thoughtful and insightful movies (not girlie but just artsy) kind of like “Rachel Gets Married.” He’s a “Batman” kind of guy.” I’m Bridezillas and Clean House kind of girl and he’s a CSI and Law and Order kind of guy. I am a basketball love and during NBA season he becomes a basketball widower. M couldn’t care less about sports. You get the picture. We are opposites. There I said it. We are complete opposites but we make it work thanks to this little thing called compromise. I suffer through his stuff (the movies, music etc) and he suffers through mine. LOL.

Some people think that because we have an intercultural relationship that perhaps we live our lives a bit differently than others. I hate to disappoint the people that think this is some type of exotic lifestyle but it’s not. LOL. We do the same things that most couples do. We just happen to look a little differently doing it. I cook the same food I would in any other relationship, only with the occasional curry thrown in. We raise our children with the same values most parents try to instill in theirs- respect of others, integrity, honesty, and the importance of hard work and education. So not a whole lot in our lives is affected by the fact that my husband is Indian and I’m Black. I think the adjustment has been greater on my husband’s end than it has on mine. I chose to absorb myself into the Indian culture where I could and I personally think the negative stereotypes about blacks instilled a bit of fear into M. He will never admit this to me but I could tell he was really taken aback when he met some of the stereotypes face to face on his job. A few days into his job he timidly approached me to ask why the some of the blacks on his job has red, blue or blonde hair that was in strange styles and why the guys dressed with sagging pants and why they had to curse so loud.. or my favorite, why they had to sing and dance while they worked. His question made me think of this video where after he watched it, M said of the guy dancing style… “he’s got smooth legs.” LOL

I’ll be honest and say I struggled with the questions M had about the people on his job because some of them I couldn’t answer myself but I did compare it with Indians that are seen as being different in his society. It’s the same difference. Some people just choose to live their lives a bit more uniquely. Sometimes it goes against the grain of societal norms but it doesn’t make them any less decent. You may just have to dig a bit further. I will say this thought, –some of them gave my husband hell because of his accent or because he’s Indian. I explained to him that it’s just ignorance and the same level of ignorance exists in Indians who tease Americans.

Unfortunately, the only exposure M had to blacks prior to me was via the television (as he says Wesley Snipes and Louis Gossett Jr. LOUIS GOSSET JR?! Where does he come up with this stuff??). As I write this blog my poor husband is trying to prove to me his wordly knowledge of blacks. He’s throwing out names like Donna Summer, Miles Davis and- this is a quote (after I told him Michael Jackson didn’t count) “and that other black guy that sings.” OMG..my eyes can’t roll any harder.

One of the many things I love about M is the fact that he’s eager to learn about different aspects of my culture and American culture as a whole. I see him soaking the information in and comparing notes. He still has a lot to be exposed to and based on the names he threw out tonight….

I think after this blog, it’s time for me to take my husband through black culture 101 again. Until the next blog….

Comments (3)