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A poster used in Bloggers for Shashi Tharoor Online campaign
Does the 2009 parliament election mark the autumn of heterosexual vote bank in Keralam? I think so.
The hundred thousand majority of Shashi Tharoor in the Thiruvananthapuram constituency could be signifying just that. A substantial number of that must have come out from various closets. It’s high time Yogendra Yadav and Mahesh Rangarajan sit up and take notice of these new arrivals on their turf.
Since the imposing curriculum vitae flaunted by Shashi Tharoor & Co had nothing for these uncharted minorities, his features and body language must have done the trick. Who could have not noticed how he always bothered to keep that glowing and flowing hair intact, just like the juvenile Romi played by Sharukh khan in that miserable and forgettable swansong of Mukul Anand, Trimurti; so unlike the Mallu male political tycoons. (One should also not forget that the foreign wife was conspicuously absent in the whole affair)
It’s not that Valluvanad Menon, Foreign University degree, English with accent, UN Under Secretary General et al. are not in vogue anymore. They will, until the seas reclaim Keralam.
While the campaign was in full swing my favourite aunt who lives in Thiruvananthapuram cried out over the phone, “but for his dull comments she is a woman!” The entire Bellevue Hotel must have heard it, maybe the entire Althanstrasse Street. The woman has got a remarkable soap operatic sensibility. (It runs in the family, in fact)
I understand now why that wonderful writer Manuel Puig has never been translated to Malayalam even though run of the mill writers from that part of the world such as Coelho get imported without delay. Our comrades might simply fall into the treacherous webs of melodrama, emotion and desire set by Queens.
“Funny thing, imagination,” says Comrade Valentin in Kiss of the Spider Woman.
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June 16th, 2009 at 2:28 AM
How can the writer be so sure of the gender of the spider. Tharoor must be kissable to many Kerala men also. In fact,he is cute in his own way and looks clean and health conscious compared to other politicians of keralam. He has clean teeth, nicely graying hair, aquiline nose, dreamy eyes. The poster is ambiguous, it shows the impression of red lips,but nothing signifies it’s gender. Like in some movies and advertisements the body is used as a site of pleasure production. The poster prompted me to go and put my finger in that column and mark on his symbol. The heat is on, the election over, I voted.
June 16th, 2009 at 11:20 AM
Dear Srividya
I feel that your portraying the characteristics of the features and body language of Sashi Tharoor is being stereotypical in nature.
““but for his dull comments she is a woman!” Are women in politics known for their dull comments?
Are you trying to say the feminity of his looks made the masculine gays come out of the closet and voted??
I just find your analysis to be reinforcing stereotypical notions.
June 16th, 2009 at 12:09 PM
Dear Srividya
I misread the statement on the “dull comments”.Im sorry. I take back my position on that particular line. Ill be careful while reading again. Sorry
June 17th, 2009 at 8:56 AM
Dear Tarun, my understanding of the article was that the author claims Shashi Tharoor won with men who voted for him (because they had a crush on him?)
It was difficult, but there were some clues in the puzzle. One was the statement about 'autumn of heterosexual votebank'. I wasn't sure about the meaning of that phrase, but the 'Tweets..' on the right side of this page suggested my guess was right. ('Sreevidya Thazhathu — it is ok to get the author's name wrong — writes about @ — I don't know what that symbol is doing here — shashitharoor and end of hetrosexual votebank in kerala'). Second one was the title itself, which is also refered to in the last sentence. “Kiss of the Spider Woman” is a famous old gay movie.
Bobby, I have tried so much translation. The rest of it, as claimed by the author herself, is pointless. Hope this helps.
June 17th, 2009 at 9:00 AM
Sorry it was not the author, but some Sridevi who said it was pointless. Srividya, Sreevidya, Sridevi.. I got lost. (I was already tired making some sense of the article). Sorry again.
June 17th, 2009 at 9:12 AM
Can someone translate this article for me into English or Malayalam (languages the author admittedly knows) – I really did not understand what the author is trying to say
June 17th, 2009 at 9:38 AM
Dear Sudeep,
The 'mallu' spelling mistakes in tweets are my contribution. The usage of @shashitharoor is for alerting the user shashitharoor in twitter about this article.
June 17th, 2009 at 11:15 AM
Voila! We have our first pointless fishpond article! Where tala, where vaal?
June 18th, 2009 at 3:38 AM
Dear Sudeep,
Thanks for the post. I would like to remove the first sentence from my early comment. I was in too hurry jumping and barking. A second reading of the post made me realise that, the author doesn't contradict what I said. I have ordered for a copy of 'the kiss of the spider woman'. I always thought it is 'some men, who dont get it'. But never included me. Well, then still some men don't get it, what to do.
June 18th, 2009 at 7:08 AM
i liked the film.
June 18th, 2009 at 7:40 AM
Men may have been attracted to Mr Tharoor but how does it mark an end of heterosexual votebank? I know women who are mad for his looks (and his literary works). And more than half votes in TVM constituency is women..
June 18th, 2009 at 11:49 AM
i felt this post condescending to the voters – why i asked for a translation –
I was wondering why the spider-woman kisses only Nairs and Pundits and in an oracular fashion announces the autumn of the heterosexual male vote-bank
I wonder where it remains where a Thirumavalavan wins or a Muneer wins (I find both of them sexy too)
June 22nd, 2009 at 12:04 AM
Manuel Puig,Yogendra Yadav, Mahesh Rangarajan.
now Samson & Dhoni. . .
Man u re giving in, I guess