Remember....Tuffy the dog

Lets face it, historically Indians haven't really liked dogs. The only mention of dogs in our epics is when Dharma takes the form of one to accompany the Pandavas to heaven, and its not because the Pandavas were the sort of guys who liked frisky puppies gambolling with them but because it was a test. Would they allow such an unclean creature to accompany them to heaven? Temple sculptures, Mughal miniatures, Buddhist thankas are full of imagery of animals, swans in flight, peacocks dancing, elephants entering the wombs of queens (long story), majestic lions, menancing cheetahs, lots of parrots, cows galore, there is even a rhinocerous that appears in the Jahangirnama, but very few dogs and no cats.

You could have a pet tiger or if you were plebian a pet cow, but dogs were really not an Indian thing. of course, colonization changed that. The British and their obsession with canines is well documented, perhaps its because they were the only company they had when they ventured into the midday sun. And naturally, if the British had dogs, so must we. So the pet dog appeared in middle class homes and in popular imagery.

Bombay heroes usually had Alsatians or Dobermans or perhaps a trusty mongrel at a pinch, usually called Moti or Tommy, who could attack the villain, defend the honor of the heroine, save children from drowning and catch any balls thrown at him.

Sooraj Barjatya soon put an end to that. Hum Aapke Hain Kaun deserves a post to itself, as it was an epochal film in many ways. Not only did it reshape Bombay cinema, it affected fashions, interior decoration and choice of pets.

The real star of HAHK for many people was not Madhuri or Salman (and certainly not Monish Behl) but Tuffy the wonder dog. Tuffy, the fluffy Pomeranian could play cricket with Salman Khan, bring fighting lovers together, bark at the menials and the villainess, run for help when his mistress fell down the stairs, receive divine messages from Lord Krishna, read letters and most importantly, reunite the lovers and save the day. No wonder the popularity of Pomeranians shot up amongst pet owners in Delhi. Imagine being able to do all that and fit into a DDA flat.

Remember..NTR and Lakshmi Parvathy

When Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao was promoting his film in the early 80's, he was apparently asked by a fan Ayya, memu mimmalni devudu laga adarinchamu, kani meeru maku emi chesaru? meaning Sir, we have treated you like a God but what have you done for us? Moved NTR decided that the best thing he could do for his fans was to join politics. NTR founded the Telegu Desam party. The TDP had only one recognizable leader, an unknown ideology and ran a campaign only on Telugu atmagauravam (Telugu self respect).




Within nine months they had wiped out the Congress Party in Andhra Pradesh which had been ruling since 1947. They also withstood the sympathy wave in favour of the Congress after Indira Gandhi's assassination and emerged as the largest opposition party in parliament. NTR dominated Andhra politics till 1995, dressing up like Swami Vivekananda, helped form the VP Singh government, imposed prohibition and sold rice at Rs 2 a kilo.

But in 1995 he fell in love. Lakshmi Parvathy, a young woman who was engaged to write his biography and who had nursed him after his stroke became his confidante and helpmate. NTR married Lakshmi Parvathy despite the protests of his twelve adult children. Lakshmi began to exercise great power from behind the throne. NTR faced a revolt from his party members led by his son-in-law Chandrababu Naidu. Naidu ousted an ailing NTR and became CM. NTR died soon after and despite her floating her own political party, allying with the BJP and winning some 10% of the popular vote, Lakshmi Parvathy was reduced to a peripheral figure in Andra Politics.

NTR died in 1996 and it was only in 2004, after the Naidu led TDP had been wiped out in the elections did Lakshmi Parvathy immerse his ashes in the Ganga.

Going to College

Going to college in the early 90's was fun. The rules were simple, the girls were haughty and spunky and wore frilly frocks, the boys were brash and lechorous and wore tight pants. Fat girls and dopplegangers always found employment as sidekicks. Academics were not very visible, most students appeared to be in their mid thirties and there was a whole lot of pelvic thrusting.

Student's wanted Romance Period and Love and Dance Period! (see evidence below)







Madhuri Dikshit wears the regulation scarlet off the shoulder frock with three layers of frills.



Akshay Kumar demonstrates that you live cheaply at University. Eve teasing gets you flour, eggs, tomatoes and chocolate. Ayesha Jhulka in a lovely yellow ensemble.



Prof Govinda takes Pelvic Thrusting 101



Vivek Mushran brings cricketers to the basketball court and Urmilla Matondkar leads her troupe of ballerinas.


But then something happened in 1998, Karan Johar reimagined Indian collegescapes. The college in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai was supposed to be a blend of Riverdale High School and the Brandon and Brenda's school in Beverly Hills 90210. Tommy Hillfiger replaced frilly confections and spiked hair replaced the mullet. No longer were girls asked to make beautiful mistakes, neither were they compared to naked electric wires, pillars, and firecrackers.




An Indian college experience was replaced by Johar's anasthetized Mcuniversity