Sharing roots with Russell Peters

"Somebody Gonna Get A Hurt Real Bad"

Everyone's favourite comedian is Canadian. You got it; I'm referring to Russell Peters, the first comedian to ever perform in front of a sold-out crowd at the Air Canada Centre. What makes this week's column even more special to me is the simple reason that I share similar roots with Peters: the only significant differences that come to mind is that he was born in Canada, I was born in India and he's a lot more famous than I am right now.

I'm going to take the similar roots aspect a little more in depth: How about I say the same city? That's right, for I grew up in Calcutta, the same city where Peters' mom was born. This YouTube sensation was in Calcutta as recently as 2008, but unfortunately for me, I couldn't be at his performance, although I do not remember the reason why. I do, however, know some people who did attend this show, and when the 5'10" brown skinned man eventually came out on stage a half an hour late (which, by the way, is normal for Calcutta standards), he said something I remember to this day. His reason for the delay? "I have always identified myself as an Indian. I am Indian. In fact, that has been my answer to every question I've ever been asked, whether it makes sense or not. 'What's your name?' I'm Indian. 'What do you do?' I'm Indian. 'Why are you late?' I'm Indian."

Funny story here, by the way: the reason I watched Breakaway was indeed Peters, where he plays bridegroom-to-be Sonu Gill in his own characteristic way. I also just recently came across videos from the 2008 and 2009 Juno Awards, hosted by Peters, and while I know he isn't everyone's favourite award show host, he certainly made it look easy, again in his own characteristic way. But the biggest reason why I look up to this comic is because he dissed 'Bollywood.' Bollywood, for those unaware, is India's version of Hollywood, and while I admit they do make some great movies from time to time, the film industry of late makes Indians "look dumb" (as quoted by Peters in an article on expressindia.com dated October 21, 2008).

I've also seen a fair share of critics for Peters, who mostly look down upon him as being racially insensitive, which for me is the prime reason why he has been so successful all these years. Coming from a minority background in Canada does help one see life in a completely different light. I should know, I'm seeing a whole new side to life that was unheard of back in India. "I don't make stereotypes, I see them," he said in one show in San Francisco. One of the first Anglo-Indian comics who made fun of South Asian culture, Peters is, in my opinion, just your average guy trying to raise awareness about stereotypes through wit and humour. I end, otherwise "somebody gonna get a hurt real bad."

Orignally Written for the Interrobang: http://www.fsu.ca/interrobang_article.php?storyID=8750&sectionID=2&issueID=210
Image Credit:http://www.leaderpost.com/7323457.bin
Video Credit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuYM-KZIczs

A Summer Of Fun

Summer 2012 Bucket List: Complete

I've always grown up as a person who hated summer. But before you judge me, I should make myself clear and say that summers for me while growing up involved near 50°C temperatures on a daily basis with unpleasantly hot and sticky weather, so naturally, I hated the sight of summer.

Of course, now, summer seems like a pleasant thing after all. I've just put my first Canadian summer behind me and while the joy of returning to school may haunt me in a few months, the summer most definitely will not. I've heard about the rage that barbecues create in this country and now that I am the proud owner of one myself, I'm not sure if I fall under the category of enthusiast or bandwagoner. Perhaps someone would like to clarify.

Jokes aside, I really looked forward to my first taste at a 'Canadian summer.' I was excited, naturally, and the suspense would kill me each passing day while I was holidaying back home in India: golf, baseball, barbecues, the possibility of meeting Corey Perry,  all of this was indeed in the cards back in April. And then it so happened that the London Knights won the OHL title and there I was, probably the only guy in India who was actually celebrating, which made me realize how out of place I really was. "Keep cricket to India and hockey to Canada," is what I told myself.

Fast forward a month and my dreams of becoming the next superstar on the PGA tour took a backseat. It seems like everyone in Canada, from businessmen to the biggest NHL superstars, all fancy their hand at golf, but alas, I've yet to discover why. Perhaps next summer, eh?

London has been great to me, it really has. It's been my home from over a year now and was also the place where I watched my first hockey, baseball and football games. But there is something that beats all of that combined: meeting Corey Perry at Labatt Park during Drew Doughty's charity softball tournament. I know some of you might despise Perry, but for a kid from well beyond the pond, I'd call that a pretty awesome and nerveracking moment; a moment that sort of makes up for the disappointment of being told that not being Canadian was the reason why I couldn't apply for a summer work study position at Fanshawe. I can now only imagine how much different life might have been if I had I been working at 106.9 TheX or for the Interrobang, but that's not something that really matters now that summer is gone and winter draws ever so near.

Summer 2012 is almost complete, and since it was my first Canadian summer, I can safely say that it will always remain special to me. It's interesting to see how people do things here in Canada, and yes, they are different than things we did back home. Studying abroad is a great learning experience, I'm glad I could do it. It's great to be writing for the Interrobang again, and I can't wait to meet new people in the halls of Fanshawe.

Originally Written for the Interrobang: http://www.fsu.ca/interrobang_article.php?storyID=8602&sectionID=3&issueID=206
Image Credit: Spencer Gowan

The Godfather of Canadian Music

Legendary Record Producer Jack Richardson

To be really honest with you, I was having trouble deciding what to write about this week. I was working on a story for the entertainment beat in my Broadcast Journalism program, which isn’t my strongest point by any means. Nevertheless, I happened to speak to John Young and Pat Maloney at the Fanshawe Student Union and I chanced upon the Jack Richardson Music Awards. Maloney is the Producer of the show, while Young is the Chair of the awards. I had never heard of Jack Richardson before, until I listened to a personality profile in class: a profile of Richardson.

Richardson shares his birthday with my brother, and that is probably the only connection I have with the man, but I did get a chance to speak to people who worked with him while he taught at Fanshawe. Richardson was an instructor in the Music Industry Arts program and his colleague, Steve Malison, has fond memories of him, “Jack and I were the morning crew, we would talk for an hour before class.” This went on every day, according to Malison. He went on to add that Richardson was not restricted to one genre, though many people thought he was. He had a vast influence on a number of musical acts and genres during his years as a record producer.

When Richardson passed away in 2011, Canada lost a legend. “I will never, ever forget how you changed my life,” were the words of The Guess Who frontman Burton Cummings on his blog. Richardson saw the music business from a variety of perspectives – as a musician, producer, advertising executive, record-company executive and college professor. His whole life was devoted to music, so much so that he took a second mortgage on his house to finance The Guess Who from Winnipeg to go down and showcase for a label in New York City. According to Maloney, who was in the last class that Jack taught at Fanshawe credits, that decision was “the start of the Canadian music industry as we know it today.”

In total, Richardson produced 14 albums for The Guess Who, five of which were certified platinum in Canada, with three of them reaching that mark in the U.S. He has received 38 gold and platinum awards for his production work. He also won the Walt Grealis Special Achievement Award at the Juno Awards in 1986. Such was his impact on Canadian music production that in 2002, the Juno Awards category for Producer of the Year was renamed the Jack Richardson Producer of the Year award. Richardson is also a member of the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. And that’s not all; he was also made a member of the Order of Canada in 2003.

Though Richardson has passed, his memory lives on among us. The Jack Richardson Music Awards are held annually in the Forest City. It carries on the legacy that created by the ‘Godfather of Canadian Music.’ Jack chose to live in London for a while, and every year at the Jack Richardson Music awards, local talent is given a platform to shine and stand out. This year will be the first time that the show goes on without the watchful and supportive eyes of Richardson. It should definitely be an emotional night and it all happens April 15 at the London Music Hall (185 Queens Ave). For more information, check out jrma.ca.

Originally Written for the Interrobang:http://www.fsu.ca/interrobang_article.asp?storyID=8374&sectionID=2&issueID=202
Image Credit:http://cashboxcanada.ca/sites/default/files/images/Jack%20Richardson%20at%20'the%20board'.jpg
VIdeo Credit:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xIUj8rVStIg

Canadian Music: It's an Art...

Canada Rocks?

Isn't music amazing? I thought so, too. Music is something that surrounds us in every sphere of life. Canadian music is something I've come across more recently during my six months here in Canada. Canadian artists are famous world over. Take Celine Dion and Bryan Adams, for instance: everyone as far as India know about these artists. They're Canadian and Canada can be proud of them.

The National Post featured an article I remember reading quite some time ago. The article featured Roger Faxon, CEO of EMI Publishing, and was speaking about the vast amounts of musical talent in Canada. It featured a long quote from Faxon, from which this is taken: "...most people in the world don't see Canada that way, they don't see it as being a distinctive universe of music. But it is." In my opinion, Faxon is correct, for my iPod has a number of songs by Canadian artists: Nickelback, Drake, Sam Roberts, Arcade Fire, a bit of Deadmau5, Bryan Adams and, more recently, the Arkells. Canadian music: that is the factor that unites all these artists together.

I've noticed many Canadians who are not the biggest fans of Canadian artists, Nickelback in particular. The other day in class when my alarm accidentally went off to Nickelback's "Rockstar" in class, I sensed a bit of scorn. No, guys, I'm not mocking those who were present in class that day, I'm just saying that that unfortunate incident opened my eyes and got me to do some thinking, the result of which you see in your hands today. In such a large country that has seen three distinct groups of people (the Aboriginals, the British and the French), one wouldn't be surprised at the vast musical heritage of Canada. With America as neighbours, it's no wonder that a fusion of ideas from Canadians and Americans has given rise to Canadian music.

I don't want to brag, but I've already managed to learn the Canadian national anthem (through the numerous sports broadcasts I've conducted), and I find it an interesting and apt anthem. Take "The Hockey Song" for example; it's amazing how one song managed to unite a nation for years. Unfortunately, I never got to hear it on Hockey Night in Canada, but I do enjoy listening to it on YouTube.

I'm guessing it's largely due to the fact that we never really enjoy something unless it goes away. Perhaps that is when more people will realize the rich, varied heritage that Canadian music has. I know the world would be a different place without some of the artists I mentioned above. Imagine a world without the song "My Heart Will Go On." I think I've made my point here with this example. Though frowned upon by some people, Canadian music is something I find fascinating – that is, unless it's by a certain teenage boy.

Originally Written for the Interrobang: http://www.fsu.ca/interrobang_article.asp?storyID=8148&sectionID=2&issueID=197
Image Credit: http://www.esquire.com/cm/esquire/images/canadarocks-esky-0407-240x3.jpg
Video Credit:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKc-kstjHrg

Food à la Canada

Canadian Staple Anyone?

Keeping in mind that this is the heath issue of the Interrobang, I thought I'd write something in tune with the theme. I had initially thought about writing on the health care system in Canada, but given the fact that I've yet to fall sick in Canada (which is a good thing, I might add), I don't have much to say on the system. Therefore, I thought that I would write something on two Canadian 'delicacies' that I've come across a few times during my four months here: poutine and back bacon. I use the word 'delicacies' because I feel that too much of it could turn us all into Homer Simpson!

Poutine was something that I was introduced to by my classmates at Fanshawe College. One Tuesday afternoon during our break, we stopped for lunch. Since everyone went for poutine, so did I. In fact, it surprised all of my classmates who were present that it would be my first-ever plate of poutine. It turned out to be pretty good, to tell you the truth. I've had it on several occasions now. Fried potato with cheese curds and gravy? It certainly makes the Belgian invention that came to be called french fries more interesting. On the flip side, I've overheard people cursing poutine, though I've yet to come up with a suitable reason why they do that. Jarrett Bellini, Video Producer for CNN who covers comedy, has said that "Poutine is going to slowly (and deliciously) kill Canadians one at a time in a long nationwide drum circle of exploding aortas." I wouldn't differ too much from Jarrett's point of view. Death from an exploding aorta due to too much poutine consumption probably wouldn't be all that bad.

Bacon: the name itself makes my mouth water. I've been eating a lot of bacon from my time in India. It seems a little strange, doesn't it? A few of my friends and I used to feel glad that we were Roman Catholic, the reason being that the religion didn't classify any meat as forbidden. This was unlike India's two major religions: Hinduism (which prohibited the consumption of beef as the cow is considered sacred) and Islam (which forbids consumption of pork). It is pretty sad that McDonald's in India does not serve the Big Mac burger. The reason they do so is the alleged ban on beef, but that is diverting from my topic a little too much.

I've always loved bacon. From a young age, bacon and eggs was a staple breakfast of mine. However, my decision to move to Canada introduced me to a different kind of bacon: back bacon. For some reason, it tastes so much better than streaky bacon, which is the prime cut of bacon available in India. I haven't really been able to come to a suitable explanation why back bacon tastes better, but I hope to have an explanation soon.

Food is something I've always loved. Even while on holiday in other countries, my mother and I were always game to sample local delicacies. That is something I'm thankful that my parents instilled in me. To quote newspaper publisher James Stuart Keate, "In any world menu, Canada must be considered the vichyssoise of nations – it's cold, half-French and difficult to stir." Food is something that brings people together, however fattening it may be. I'm glad I can cross poutine and back bacon off my list of foods to try: it does make me a little more Canadian.


Originally written for the Interrobang: http://www.fsu.ca/interrobang_article.asp?storyID=7877&sectionID=2&issueID=192
Image Credit: http://foodbeast.com/content/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/bacon_box.jpg