Cho's Enge Brahmanan serial - Does it project the brahmins cause?

[sangom]

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There were one or two earlier attempts to start a thread on this very topic, but I find those got diverted and then were closed. I think we should consider the usefulness or otherwise of this serial (now running its second part for some months) without bringing in Cho, his political leanings, jj, mu ka etc. in our discussions and confining to the serial proper. I would like to have the views of our members many of whom may be watching this serial.

 

[AnanthaNarayanan]

i feel it is brahmins related stroy and in between sri cho`s explainations of brahminical or hindusim will follow in detail.

JANME BRAHMANAA KARME DWIJAA VIDYAATH WIPRAA

 

[Nara]

....I think we should consider the usefulness or otherwise of this serial (now running its second part for some months)

Dear Shri sangom,

First, I must confess I have seen only a handful of episodes. If I am erring in any facts I invite corrections.

This serial tries to present an idealized version of who a true Brahmin is and contrasts him with a run-of-the-mill caste Brahmin. This portrayal promotes the myth of a pure Brahmin motivated by truth, austerity and such elevating qualities. This, I suspect, leads the average TB towards a kind of chest pounding caste-jingoism.

The very idea of defining a "true" Brahmin as a moral and righteous person is wicked. What would a "true Pariah" be then, a lazy, ignorant sloth?

Also, in one of the handful of episodes I saw Cho narrated a story of a rishi leaving his wife in the care of his sishya explaining women are by nature weak willed to the entreaties of men. The story goes on to demean women more and more.

Because of these reasons, I think this serial does more harm than good for the TB psyche.

Cheers!

 

[kunjuppu]

nara,

i saw a few on the web.

do we really look and speak like this nowadays?

do folks who have sons and daughters in the u.s. dress with kudumi at home? how many under-60s wear madisar everyday life? do we all speak with such singsong accents of tamil?

i used to love cho for his light comedy satires of the 60s, 70s. i sort of rue, that this essentially gifted guy, waste his energy moving towards unproductive criticism. he could have used his gifts wiser and for the betterment of tamil community as a whole.

 

[Nara]

...i used to love cho for his light comedy satires of the 60s, 70s. i sort of rue, that this essentially gifted guy,

Yes K, he is a brilliant man. There is nobody to beat his political satire in India -- we have Jon Stewart who I think is better. He has the cache to make changes in TB thinking, but alas a complete waste.

Cheers!

 

[nachi naga]

cho is like any other biz man,trying to make money using the butt of tb's.actually i like the serial.quiet a nice serial for fun,even though none of us are that braminical maybe maniacal in some things.

 

[sangom]

Dear Shri sangom,

This serial tries to present an idealized version of who a true Brahmin is and contrasts him with a run-of-the-mill caste Brahmin. This portrayal promotes the myth of a pure Brahmin motivated by truth, austerity and such elevating qualities. This, I suspect, leads the average TB towards a kind of chest pounding caste-jingoism.

I also felt, after watching the first part of the serial which ended with the central character Ashok suddenly getting back to heaven (mercifully), for some weeks, that the serial did more harm than good in projecting a salutary image of the TB. This would arm the TNBs to belittle the TBs even more than what was happening till now. While there is so much of concern about the standing and welfare of TBs - particularly - in T. Nadu, in this forum, there is hardly any murmur about the disservice which this serial is doing to the brahmin cause. (I am located in Kerala and the general view of the non-TBs here will be "O, athu paTTammaaruDe katHayaa", and they will change to their favourite channel. They have a benign disdain for the Pattars, while some trace of the historical respect (awe) for the Namboodiris still exists in some areas.)

That is why I thought of starting this thread. Let me see how our TB members in TN feel about this serial.

 

[suraju06]

Hi Folks,
I would classify TBs into the following categories:

1)Those who are born TBs but because of their education, upbringing and their exposure to leftist and atheistic ideologies consider themselves liberated. This category would like to forget that they are brahmins and the word brahmin is a red rag before these bulls.Because of their strong ideological leanings they would grab every available opportunity to preach to the other TBs that brahmins and brahminism(this term is not yet defined by anybody) are the route cause of casteism and would strongly contend that if brahmins disappear from the scene the society will all be just heaven-like.

2)The second category is those TBs who believe that being a brahmin is 'something special'. They want to preserve that 'something'. As that 'something' is all about being good in life, they are fanatic about preserving it. This category believes that they have nothing to do with the discrimination that goes with castes. But they believe castes do exist just as the mental states exist as propounded by behavioural scientists(the child ego state, the parent ego state and the adult ego state) Just as there is nothing good or bad, superior or inferior, desirable or undesirable about these ego-states and they just exist in all human beings the castes also exist in the society whether you recognize it or not. As they strongly believe that castes are not to be tampered with they stick to their belief system and are not prepared to give it up.

3) The third category can be divided into two sub categories:

a) Those who are not aware of why they are TBs. Either because of the way they have been brought up by their parents or because of the kind of education they have received or because of the kind of society in which they live and the kind of exposures they have been subjected to, they have lost their identity, that special something that marks them as TBs, and either they are searching for it or have given up searching as they have failed in their efforts. This category is neutral in a way. They are neither fierce opponents of the idea of brahmin like the first category nor supportive of the idea as the second category. Whenever they see other castes closing ranks on social issues, these people also make a meek attempt to close ranks but it is only half- hearted without any serious commitment.

b)This category is business category. If it is brahminism they see an opportunity to make money by exploiting that. If it is anti-brahminism they see an opportunity there also.They will cry jay ho! to brahmins if that rakes in money. They will lecture eloquently about the ugly face of brahminism if again that pays. If a mixture of these two sells hot it is still excellent for these people.With TV it has just become a fight for mindspace which translates into money and TBs in this category are , as they are allways, masters in the trick of the trade.

Now I believe Cho belongs to the last mentioned 3(b) category.In one episode, when the friend who usually listens to his inane ranting, asks him whether as a TB he follows the nithyakarmanushtaanam, he uses all his advocate's skils (In a begone era they would have called him a 'kavithaarkika simham' for that) to wriggle out of the question and the viewers still do not know what the answer meant. Those belonging to the category 1 and 2 are those who contribute here writing about this midiocre TV serial while Cho belonging to the category 3b is making money. Cheers.

 

[sangom]

b)This category is business caategory. If it is brahminism they see an opportunity to make money in that. If it is anti brahminism they see an opportunity there also.They will cry jay ho to brahmins if that rakes in money. They will lecture eloquently about the dirty face of brahminism if again that pays.

Now Cho belongs to the last mentioned 3(b) category. Those belonging to the category 1 and 2 are those who contribute here writing about this midiocre serial while Cho belonging to category 3b is making money. Cheers.

Sir,

You have expressed your view that it is a mediocre serial, fine. Will you pl. also let us know whether you consider it to be in the best interests of "brahmin" as used in category 1 of your above post?

 

[suraju06]

Sangom Sir,
I take it that your question is this: Is the serial promoting the views of the category 1 TBs?

I think Cho is a clever businessman. If he openly supports any of the categories, it will be an open and shut case. There will be no scope to capture any mind-space of viewers. What more, he will also be branded as a leftist, atheist, anti-brahmin crusader which branding will affect his business interests. Neither can he support the second category because then again he will be branded as a sanatani (which is a term used by some kazhagam writers whenever they have something against him to write about). Cho is clever and avoids such situations to retain his constituency.So as I see it my answer to your question is Cho will never promote any view clearly. All his views will be neither here nor there , wishy washy category only. Cheers.

 

[sangom]

Sangom Sir,
I take it that your question is this: Is the serial promoting the views of the category 1 TBs?

I think Cho is a clever businessman. If he openly supports any of the categories, it will be an open and shut case. There will be no scope to capture any mind-space of viewers. What more, he will also be branded as a leftist, atheist, anti-brahmin crusader which branding will affect his business interests. Neither can he support the second category because then again he will be branded as a sanatani (which is a term used by some kazhagam writers whenever they have something against him to write about). Cho is clever and avoids such situations to retain his constituency.So as I see it my answer to your question is Cho will never promote any view clearly. All his views will be neither here nor there , wishy washy category only. Cheers.

Thank you. My intention was to know whether the serial serves the cause of Category 3A well, not Category 1.

 

[muthu]

There were one or two earlier attempts to start a thread on this very topic, but I find those got diverted and then were closed. I think we should consider the usefulness or otherwise of this serial (now running its second part for some months) without bringing in Cho, his political leanings, jj, mu ka etc. in our discussions and confining to the serial proper. I would like to have the views of our members many of whom may be watching this serial.

I think it is a useful serial.Because lot of viewers he continued
part -2 also.
It gives lot of informations about our brahmin community.especially
sambu sastrigal and vembu sastrial characters.

we should appreciate his effor and also one should read his various
religious articles in Thugluk.

 

[suraju06]

Thank you. My intention was to know whether the serial serves the cause of Category 3A well, not Category 1.

Sangom Sir,
I am sorry I could not get you correctly. I think your question has been answered already. Please read Mr. Muthu's posting above. Cheers.

 

[Zeitgeist]

Enge Brahmanan - positive impact

Greetings to all,
I would like to express my views with regard to this thread.

I have seen almost all the episodes of Enge Brahmanan part 1. But unfortunately, I have not been able to see all the episodes of part 2 due to certain personal constraints.

I would first like to introduce myself. By this I do not mean personal introductions, but on the contrary, where I fit in this whole picture and why I deem myself to be eligible to comment.

I am proud of our religion and culture. I am a learner and not a learned when it comes to our culture. I have an inexplicable curiosity to know the roots of our religion, where I (I can only speak for myself and hence the usage of I) came from, the richness, the message conveyed etc. I could go on. As a young girl, I wanted to learn about our culture and practices. I have a strong desire to know the reasons behind them as this will increase faith and be helpful in passing on the knowledge. for this, I did not know where to go - how to start - etc. This is because there is an ocean of knowledge and very very few boatmen to help us cross through a little portion of it. This is an effect of the present day situation (in accordance to what has been pointed out) as very very few people are interested in focussing on this as priorities differ from every individual. Many of us lead mechanical lives without trying to know our roots. we may be up to date with the technological advancements, but are we equally thorough about where we came from? This I feel, is a point to ponder upon. I have often wondered, how explanations given in Srimad Bhagvatam and other enormous works, are timeless in context. It amazes me how many people have found solace to woes and problems by reading a verse from Srimad Bhagvatam. My point is, what if we have all become (or are becoming) too skeptical and negligent of certain universal truths that is being conveyed to us by these scriptures? we have all become absorbed in a life circle and have become negligent of things due to ignorance. Mere existence of knowledge cannot be appreciated especially if we are ignorant of the existence of knowledge. This comes to the point where I was searching for where to look for and what to look for.

Coming to the point of discussion. In my personal opinion, I feel that the series Enge brahmanan is creating quite a stir. And I feel that the message conveyed is very much necessary for all of us as we need to know why certain rules were formed, and if they hold good today in Kali yuga or not. In my personal opinion, the intention of the writer is immaterial in the aspect of knowledge. If we wish to see the knowledge that is being conveyed and the interest that is being generated, we will see only that. If we begin to think whats on the mind of the other person who is delivering the message, rather than absorbing the message, we could easily point out who loses (knowledge). This series has generated great interest in me in learning about our culture and religion and following the auspices related to it. This is because I view the series as my starting point from where I could go and search for more information thereby enriching myself. I have interacted with many TB who also watch the series irrespective of what work they have at hand. And I have to admit that this is having an impact (positive) on the younger generation as well (from my personal experience). This is the need of the hour.

Thus I would happily say that Enge brahmanan is definitely having an impact, positive in my case. And what the intentions of cho are to make this, is not our burden to bear. However his intentions may be, it is evidently making people talk and discuss about our culture and religion. This itself is a healthy impact.

Thank you.

I would like to apologise for my digression, I felt I had to say a few things in order to express my views. Also my intentions were not disrespect or to hurt anyone. My apologies if I have.

Thank you once again.

 

[Nara]

..... Also my intentions were not disrespect or to hurt anyone. My apologies if I have.

The TB zeitgeist is to preemptively apologize for unintended hurt, if any. This is probably a very civil thing to do. But, doing may also reveal a certain callousness to reason, unintended of course.

Let me explain.

Those who care not to hurt must make sure they don't. If there is a chance something could cause hurt, then is not restraint better than intentionally taking that chance of causing unintentional hurt, albeit with a dollop of conditional apology on top?

On the other hand, if a reasonable and civil argument is presented, then why assume anyone who takes offense to it is deserving of an apology? Grownups don't have the right to get hurt just upon hearing views they don't like. They have a right to fight back, figuratively that is, but not to be a தொட்டாச் சிணுங்கி.

So, Ms. Zeitgeist, IMHO, I think you need to go for it, in a civil manner, and not be concerned about the fragility of our self-esteem.

Cheers!

 

[happyhindu]

zeitgeist and all,

I have seen almost all the episodes of Enge Brahmanan part 1. But unfortunately, I have not been able to see all the episodes of part 2 due to certain personal constraints.

is there a part 2?

someone had provided a link for one episode on vijay tv or jaya tv i don't remember long back.

on youtube there are some episodes but not all.

this is for those who do not have subscription to tuglak or some tv channels.

are there some blogs or non-subsription places where one can view the entire series? cud you please help in providing links ? if part 1 and part 2 episodes have been made into a CD can anyone suggest a shop in chennai where it can be purchased?

 

[nsiitm]

We are iyengars searching girl for Mr.S.Sapthagiri Govindarajan / 31 / 20000 / Chennai MNC / Diploma in automobile Engineering / Ashwini / MEsham /Srivatasam / chennai resident / Very fair. Contact Mr.V.Srinivasa varadhan 9791126681 / 9952022345 / 9962781728. We are looking for a good girl of +2 or any arts degree qualification. No expectations. Girl should be a good. Any brahmins is ok. People whomever reading this may please forward this data thru mails or phone or sms to your known sources and ask them to contact. We are searching for quite a long time and due to scarcity of brahmin girls we are unable to get. Can someone in this forum help us?

 

[Zeitgeist]

The inclusion was made to emphasize on the views expressed, rather than the method (which might be different). Thank you Nara :happy: I shall bear that in mind henceforth.

 

[Zeitgeist]

zeitgeist and all,



is there a part 2?

someone had provided a link for one episode on vijay tv or jaya tv i don't remember long back.

on youtube there are some episodes but not all.

this is for those who do not have subscription to tuglak or some tv channels.

are there some blogs or non-subsription places where one can view the entire series? cud you please help in providing links ? if part 1 and part 2 episodes have been made into a CD can anyone suggest a shop in chennai where it can be purchased?

I am not aware of any subscriptions, but try this link -
Enge Brahmanan Episode 1 14-12-09 |

 

[sangom]

zeitgeist and all,



is there a part 2?

someone had provided a link for one episode on vijay tv or jaya tv i don't remember long back.

on youtube there are some episodes but not all.

this is for those who do not have subscription to tuglak or some tv channels.

are there some blogs or non-subsription places where one can view the entire series? cud you please help in providing links ? if part 1 and part 2 episodes have been made into a CD can anyone suggest a shop in chennai where it can be purchased?

I am not sure whether you are located in Chennai. If you are in India and can get Jaya TV, this serial is broadcast Mon to Fri 20.00-20.30 hrs.

 

[muthu]

Missing serials

Dear All,

Those who missed earlier episodes of Enge Brahmanan and any other
serials etc can watch in the net following sites.

www.tamiltv4u.com
www.tamilo.com
www.isaitamil.net

enjoy

Regards,

muthu

 

[happyhindu]

Its kind of you to post the links. Thank you very much.

 

[Ramacchandran]

First WHO IS A Brahman?

A man who knows the Universe is a Brahman.

He should analyst the happenings around him and ask himself why it is happening? What are all the side effects and what will be result. He should analyst in such a way a business man penetrates in to business if he invest what will be the return.

The analysis will bring an yogin power in him and with that power he should help others and should not utilize for his welfare.

If I am correct Few Archakas in Temple do offer prayer for Rs2/= that we put on his plate he says Long Live with health and Wealth.

The Only Brahman is the temple priest.

Even the Stapathy who construct the Temple wish after seeing his work others should offer jobs with which he can live with money.
When all the people rush to temples for gain, only Archakas pray that the devotees needs are to be fulfilled.

 

[Nara]

First WHO IS A Brahman?

A man who knows the Universe is a Brahman.
[...]
The Only Brahman is the temple priest.

Dear sir, have you been reading the posts in the other thread?

Here is a partial list of people who think Brahmin is one who is born to parents both of whom are Brahmins by birth.

RVR, sankara_sharmah, Astrolger Sharma, Suryakasyapa ....

Cheers!

 

[RVR]

Dear sir, have you been reading the posts in the other thread?

Here is a partial list of people who think Brahmin is one who is born to parents both of whom are Brahmins by birth.

RVR, sankara_sharmah, Astrolger Sharma, Suryakasyapa ....

Cheers!

Definitely as per caste definition all of us are brahmins only. None of us are claiming as brahmins as per `varna' definition.

Government of India and State Governments recognise caste. Even if all of us declare that we are not Brahmins, they are not going to accept it. We don't expect any relief from courts also as they are not interfering with Governments views.

As long as we hold Indian Citizenship, caste is a factor which none of us can ignore. There are more than 5.6 cr people classified as brahmins throughout India. Only Brahmins are classified as Forward community throughout the country which is probably unique.

For example, I have an Ezhava friend. Ezhava is declared as a Backward caste in Kerala. But in Tamilnadu he is treated as a Forward Caste. But the same case is not applicable to Brahmins as he is uniformly treated as forward throughout India.

We cannot hide our caste within India as per Government records already declared us as Brahmins.

So let it be. We are neither proud nor depressed because we are termed as `Brahmins'

All the best.