Aussie fans threatened with jail
If this is as controversial as it gets during Australia's tour of India, consider ourselves lucky. Several Australian cricket fans were arrested for wearing offensive T-shirts and threatened with jail time. After a press conference where the fans thoroughly apologised for the shirt and promised to never, ever wear them again (at least while sober), they were released. The damning words on the shirts?
Beers with Mahatma, bets with Gupta, dancing with Indira and still getting the runs
I could understand Indians getting huffy at these words even if they aren't designed to offend. I could even see fans getting evicted from a ground although such a reaction is a bit extreme. But are these words so offensive, they warrant jail time? Is political incorrectness a criminal offense in India? I confess I'm having trouble understanding the depth of such a reaction.
Perhaps my confusion is because I just can't see something similar happening in Australia. For starters, I struggle to think of any famous Aussie as venerated as Gandhi that isn't involved in sport or movies. Whatshisname, the eye surgeon... Charles Kingsford Smith... Dick Smith... nope, drawing a blank.
But there is one crime that deeply offends Australians. Our batting in the 2nd Test. Our batsmen scraped and crawled their way over two innings to 460 runs while India amassed 783 runs for the loss of only 13 wickets. While some credit must go to the Indian bowlers, the pitch was as flat as week old coke and yet we made it look like a minefield. Now that's offensive. I'd be willing to entertain some jail time for our batsmen if they give a repeat performance in the 3rd Test.
| Posted by JC on Wed 22 Oct |  12 comments |
Indians... over-reacting??? Never...
In similar bizzarro-newsa, by all accounts that dill Harbhajhan got in trouble in his own town for dancing 'too provocatively' on some Indiani TV show...
Posted by virtualgaz on 2008-10-22 20:04:42
In similar bizzarro-newsa, by all accounts that dill Harbhajhan got in trouble in his own town for dancing 'too provocatively' on some Indiani TV show...
Posted by virtualgaz on 2008-10-22 20:04:42
Gaz, I thought you were joking but googled it to be sure and sure enough, Harbhajan-Mona Singh's Ravana-Sita dance upsets Sikh clergy. But hey, it doesn't take much to upset clergy so this should hardly be surprising. If he got threatened with criminal prosecution, that would be analogous to offensive-shirt-gate.
Posted by JC on 2008-10-22 21:40:27
Posted by JC on 2008-10-22 21:40:27
See JC! India is a very different country compared to australia or any european country. Some things are very highly respected. For example you cant use our national flag for any personal purpose. In some countries girls wear the dress of national flag. Its not possible in india. Similarly Mahatma gandhi is treated as the father of the country he is highly respected everywhere and indira gandhi is our first woman prime minister. So anything against these people or any religious people is highly offensive india. However we do maintain a lots of double standards as well our politicians are the most corrupted in this world. Most of them are uneducated our judiciary is not 100% independent plus the cops are completely in the hands of politics and so may things about india which you dont know. So you dont know what can happen here you can get away by doing even a murder and you can be caught for wearing a shirt! Thats india. There is a famous saying here. 100 main se 99 baiman phir bhi mera bharat mahan. Means 99 out 100 indians are fraud but still india is great.
Posted by jatinder on 2008-10-23 05:27:40
Posted by jatinder on 2008-10-23 05:27:40
JC,
The report you have linked to says
"The fans were then detained by the police and were asked to offer an explanation. The fans then offered their apology and said they did not intend to hurt Indian sentiments. They also agreed not to wear the T-shirt anymore for the rest of the series. "
Arrested? Jail time? where?
Cheers,
Posted by Homer on 2008-10-23 06:22:16
The report you have linked to says
"The fans were then detained by the police and were asked to offer an explanation. The fans then offered their apology and said they did not intend to hurt Indian sentiments. They also agreed not to wear the T-shirt anymore for the rest of the series. "
Arrested? Jail time? where?
Cheers,
Posted by Homer on 2008-10-23 06:22:16
Yes JC - humour is so personal and idiosyncratic. I think Australasian's (namely Kiwi's and Aussies) are able to laugh at themselves more than most - and as the saying goes: if you can't laugh at yourself, you're missing the joke of the century.
Throw in culture, personal icons, a dose of the mystical and the political - a pot-pourri of belly laughs!*%@
It was actually a healthy day for test cricket - the mighty Australia being toppled, while there was a fascinating contest between Bangladesh and NZ - with the Kiwis chasing down over 300 on the last day. Harry Potter with whiskers ie. Danny Vettori - showing the guts that Ponting usually gives us.
Looking at the bigger picture - it's good that the struggling (Bangladesh) did well, and the high and mighty (Aussie) got hammered.
It begins to create a more competitive group of playing nations - with hopefully more interesting test match cricket coming up.
Posted by Perky @ cricketmystery.com on 2008-10-23 06:43:19
Throw in culture, personal icons, a dose of the mystical and the political - a pot-pourri of belly laughs!*%@
It was actually a healthy day for test cricket - the mighty Australia being toppled, while there was a fascinating contest between Bangladesh and NZ - with the Kiwis chasing down over 300 on the last day. Harry Potter with whiskers ie. Danny Vettori - showing the guts that Ponting usually gives us.
Looking at the bigger picture - it's good that the struggling (Bangladesh) did well, and the high and mighty (Aussie) got hammered.
It begins to create a more competitive group of playing nations - with hopefully more interesting test match cricket coming up.
Posted by Perky @ cricketmystery.com on 2008-10-23 06:43:19
Homer, I got the jail info from Aussie cricket fans threatened with jail in India over shirts in the Courier Mail but linked to an Indian paper to get a different perspective.
Posted by JC on 2008-10-23 12:43:02
Posted by JC on 2008-10-23 12:43:02
a flair for the dramatics, the Courier Mail has :)
It was on all Indian channels and the story was the same - these guys were picked up and asked to change their T-shirts.
Which is why I was surprised to hear jail time :)
Cheers,
Posted by Homer on 2008-10-23 13:46:14
It was on all Indian channels and the story was the same - these guys were picked up and asked to change their T-shirts.
Which is why I was surprised to hear jail time :)
Cheers,
Posted by Homer on 2008-10-23 13:46:14
JC... over-reacting??? Never...
Posted by virtualgaz on 2008-10-23 17:43:52
Posted by virtualgaz on 2008-10-23 17:43:52
I know this is going overboard, But so many things are happening in the world outside cricket, that everyone can become sensitive about any topic under the sun.
@Jatinder - Its not Indian or Subcontinental thing. The 'Cartoon' issue and emotions provoked by the movie ' passion of christ' and book Da vinci code are recent example that cultural sensitivity is same everywhere, the Objects of reverence may vary from country to country culture to culture.
Another instance that comes to mind is few year back we had performed spoof on Indian Epic Ramayana out here in the US and some of my American friends who attended the show, made a point to mention they couldn't have done something similar using any biblical character for the fear of emotions that it would evoke among people.
Posted by unsuidojo on 2008-10-24 04:23:20
@Jatinder - Its not Indian or Subcontinental thing. The 'Cartoon' issue and emotions provoked by the movie ' passion of christ' and book Da vinci code are recent example that cultural sensitivity is same everywhere, the Objects of reverence may vary from country to country culture to culture.
Another instance that comes to mind is few year back we had performed spoof on Indian Epic Ramayana out here in the US and some of my American friends who attended the show, made a point to mention they couldn't have done something similar using any biblical character for the fear of emotions that it would evoke among people.
Posted by unsuidojo on 2008-10-24 04:23:20
Guys - I am Indian, and I subscribe to the view that that reaction to the shirts and the whole Bhajji incident (not the Symmo one, this one about the reaction to his dance moves) was completely deplorable, idiotic, and unnecessary.
If I was there, I would personally apologize for this behavior by my country to the Aussie fans - such actions discourage foreigners from visiting the country and emancipate the stereotype of India as a very conservative place - which is really not the case when you speak with Indians of my generation and younger (<30 yrs of age) and some older people who are broad minded. A major reason why these things happen is that there is a huge group of politicians who just sit around all day and look for issues to incite the people - yes, people should know better - but when you earn 100 bucks a week and some politician gives you 200 just to say that you were offended by something, you will say it if that means you can have a square meal. And then there is the Indian media that devours all the neegative stuff that is out there, and neglects the good news. Since cricket is so big in India, anything negative related to cricket is completely bloated out of proportion.
So, apologies to all of you Aussies - if you ever come to India, just remember all of us are not like this - such incidents do happen, but they are the exception and not the rule - please do not judge the whole country because of such acts, now that I have explained the context of why these things happen.
Posted by Jeet on 2008-10-25 14:37:38
If I was there, I would personally apologize for this behavior by my country to the Aussie fans - such actions discourage foreigners from visiting the country and emancipate the stereotype of India as a very conservative place - which is really not the case when you speak with Indians of my generation and younger (<30 yrs of age) and some older people who are broad minded. A major reason why these things happen is that there is a huge group of politicians who just sit around all day and look for issues to incite the people - yes, people should know better - but when you earn 100 bucks a week and some politician gives you 200 just to say that you were offended by something, you will say it if that means you can have a square meal. And then there is the Indian media that devours all the neegative stuff that is out there, and neglects the good news. Since cricket is so big in India, anything negative related to cricket is completely bloated out of proportion.
So, apologies to all of you Aussies - if you ever come to India, just remember all of us are not like this - such incidents do happen, but they are the exception and not the rule - please do not judge the whole country because of such acts, now that I have explained the context of why these things happen.
Posted by Jeet on 2008-10-25 14:37:38
JC, I understand what you "can't see" and find "confusing". Actually, Mahatma Gandhi not a political figure. He's considered the "Father of Nation" in India. Also, there's a tradition of respecting the father in India. That an Australian can't understand Indians' anguish over a suggestion of having beer with father and then dancing with the mother is completely normal. Just don't bother. Indians, and for that matter all non-Australians are a bit over-reacting lot:)
Just forget all that. Something more hilarious here...I hear that an Australian ex-cricketer is writing a book an honesty and integrity:)!!
Posted by Amit_Sharma on 2008-10-25 20:03:19
Just forget all that. Something more hilarious here...I hear that an Australian ex-cricketer is writing a book an honesty and integrity:)!!
Posted by Amit_Sharma on 2008-10-25 20:03:19
Seems it was just a matter of misunderstanding, and thankfully the issue has been laid to rest now.
""The t-shirts’ slogan "Beers with Mahatma, bets with Gupta, dancing with Indira and still getting the runs," was apparently misinterpreted by local fans. Warren Livingstone, the Fanatics’ founder, explained that Mahatma referred to the former Test cricketer Greg Ritchie’s “Mahatma Coat” Character; Gupta is Mukesh Gupta, the bookmaker in the infamous Shane Warne and Mark Waugh match-fixing scandal; and Indira is Indira Naidoo, a former Australian journalist of Indian origin, who they described as their “schoolyard sex symbol.” ""
So before we start digressing to culture, clergy, libertarianism and the like, a more engrossing topic would be the crucial Delhi test :-)
Posted by Ajesh Nag on 2008-10-28 04:08:42
""The t-shirts’ slogan "Beers with Mahatma, bets with Gupta, dancing with Indira and still getting the runs," was apparently misinterpreted by local fans. Warren Livingstone, the Fanatics’ founder, explained that Mahatma referred to the former Test cricketer Greg Ritchie’s “Mahatma Coat” Character; Gupta is Mukesh Gupta, the bookmaker in the infamous Shane Warne and Mark Waugh match-fixing scandal; and Indira is Indira Naidoo, a former Australian journalist of Indian origin, who they described as their “schoolyard sex symbol.” ""
So before we start digressing to culture, clergy, libertarianism and the like, a more engrossing topic would be the crucial Delhi test :-)
Posted by Ajesh Nag on 2008-10-28 04:08:42
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