Pashtun culture in Khuda Gawah: music videos
Here’s a somewhat informational music video from the movie Khuda Gawah (God is a Witness), a Hindi movie. The song has elements of Pashtun music, dancing, and diction.
Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-VSg1DpSes
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCUoZj-cPDs
The language is Bollywood Hindi; however, in certain parts words are pronounced the way Pashtuns would pronounce them. Some of the dressing is in Pashtun style (although I can’t comment on the women’s dressing style). There are a few phrases in Pashtu.
First time I’ve seen the incorporation of Pashtun culture in an Indian movie.
Nagin
Here’s a video to one of my favorite songs. I have been listening to the sog for a long time, but today was the first time in decades that I saw the video again. I saw move as a child and it absolutely fascinated and enthralled me. You can say it enchanted me.
Some background: Why is that poor woman writhing? She is a nagin, a snake that turns into a human, a supernatural being or being with supernatural powers (in addition to being able to shapeshift). In South Asia, is it believed that a sapera (snake-charmer) can control a snake with a been (the flute-like instrument you see being played in the video). The sound of the been is supposed to influence and enchant the snake. Otherwise, the snake (especially a nagin) can enchant the human. Upon hearing the been, she can almost not help but to fall and show forth her true nature.
The main sapera shown is no ordinary sapera: he’s a master of magic and occult and all that jazz. Indeed, she says, “aaya hai jogi banke lutera” meaning “a yogi (which can refer to anyone with abilities or knowledge related to the mystic arts) has come becoming a thief”.
The fact that she’s supposed to be really a snake would explain why she moves the way she does.
And now for something different: Mandarin
Switching gears for a second, I’d like to introduce a new topic: Mandarin Chinese.
A brief overview: Mandarin Chinese is the main language of the Chinese people. Mandarin is one of the few Chinese languages. Within Mandarin, there are a number of dialects. In order to alleviate this “problem”, standard Mandarin Chinese uses the Beijing dialect.
People often think Chinese is very difficult. It is difficult but is also easy. Once the tones are perfected, speaking Chinese should be a breeze. Grammatically, Chinese is very simple.
Characters, yes, are a challenge as well as the aforementioned tones.
More to come!
