Welcome to Fear of Stairs, Desi Films Decoded.
The podcast where four friends from different
backgrounds unlock the world of Desi cinema.
I'm Winnie the Desi who's never been to India.
Hey, I'm Kili. I'm from India. I love films and
I've never been to Pakistan. I'm Nikki and I've
never been to India and Pakistan. I'm from Thailand,
by the way. I'm Adam. I'm from America, by the
way. And I've never been to Pakistan. I have
been to India. And today I learned that Salman
Khan is a huge asshole. Oh, but he played quite
the opposite in this movie that we're going to
talk about. He was quite the charmer. You're
right, which is why I was surprised. But I just
want to briefly go into this. So that makes him
a good actor? Just don't sit on the side of the
street. If you know Salman Khan is driving on
the road, don't sit on the street. This was our
first Salman Khan movie, right? Yeah. Yes. And
yeah, it's good. He plays a nice guy. But when
I was bringing it up to our friends, they're
like, oh, yeah, man, he's such an asshole. And
I have completely unexplored this before. Yeah,
he has a weird murky past. Well, he ran over,
was it four people? One died. I don't know if
more died. His driver was the scapegoat at one
point. They were going to send him to trial and
stuff, but he didn't. Of course, he never got
in trouble for it. And not at one point. He's
the fall guy. Like, legally. In the court. I
heard, like, he kind of, like, was the... He
brought about, like... the body building kind
of style and image in india like we've seen a
lot of amir khan films and i heard like those
are kind of for like the nerdy intellectuals
and then shower khan is like the cool guy and
saman khan is like for like the gym bros or something
yes that's true because uh so he's the mega star
category right like like at par with amir khan
and sharukh khan so it's like three khans it's
like amir khan sharukh khan and salman khan and
okay so uh salman khan is the guy who used like
who started ball like getting ripped when the
other people were not now it's a standard like
everyone is usually ripped before and salman
khan is bigger than what used to be but uh when
no one was Looking into being super ripped, Salman
Khan was the person. And it's different seeing
him in this kind of role that we were watching
as well because he's so used to being this action
superhero, strong and aggressive. And here he
kind of plays a very well -mannered, sweet guy.
And he has a dad bod, right? I don't think he's
that built in this movie. Do we ever see him?
No, we do see him. He's, like, a big... He's
built. He's built. I know, but, like, so when
we were... And this goes into the intro anyway.
But, like, when he's all dancing around and fighting
and stuff, like, I was like, wow, this guy's,
like, a kind of, you know, not in the best shape
of his life. He's kind of, like, big and bulky.
I was, like, surprised he could dance. And then
finding out he was, like, the gym bro guy was
very surprising to me because he is, like, I
don't know. He had a big dad bod this whole movie.
I felt like he was just a huge... Kind of non
-ripped dude. I don't know what Adam's talking
about. He was still pretty hot. But let's do
a big reveal. We know the type Winnie likes.
Winnie, out of Shahrukh Khan, Amir Khan, and
Salman Khan. Amir Khan. Mainly because he's smart,
socially aware. Has fun eyebrows and stuff. And
he looks 20 at 50, 60, whatever. You think Salman
Khan looks good? It's hard to look past his real
life. I'll admit. So, no. I'd say like he was
way more handsome when he was younger. I mean,
not in a way that, oh, when you're young, you're
handsome. But he used to look like a bit smarter,
I guess. And he was like way, he has that boyish
look as well. And very pretty face and also well
built. Now he kind of looks kind of dumb. He's
a tall meathead for me. Yeah, that's what he
looks right now. So what film we are talking
about? Yeah. uh it's badrangi by john uh it's
actually in 2015 it's like a film that tries
to redeem salman khan's reputation i would say
but more importantly it deals with like this
uh shall we say uh touchy subject in terms of
like india pakistani relations yeah uh yeah it
involves like uh you know salman khan plays this
this devoted uh religious follower who like goody
two -shoes as one would say and he finds like
this mute uh young girl who's from pakistan and
you know he just has to has to help her find
her way back home basically that's that's the
gist of it but i think the the most important
thing about the movie is that you know it tries
to show that you know we should have peace among
your fellow countrymen Yeah, this was recommended
to us by our Pakistani friends. So, like, this
is, like, because one guy recommended it, it's
verified Pakistani approved by all of them. But
I think, like, I was kind of stunned watching
it because Salman Khan, I don't know how to say
this better, but he gives off, like, religious
blackface or something. Like, you know, like,
he's very dressed up in, like, the Hindu attire
and stuff. That's why I was first asking friends,
like, what is this? Because he's, like, a Muslim,
right? Like, in real life. Oh, yeah. And then
he's, like, being this, like, Hindu character.
And then he meets a Pakistani girl and, like,
learns, you know, he learns that Pakistanis are
all right, I guess. It's kind of like the blind
side in that type of way, right? Like, oh, this
person learns that this other is actually human.
But the Pakistani girl never talks. So I'm just
surprised because it's so leveraged towards India,
I feel, that I'm surprised Pakistanis like it.
I'm so surprised to hear you say that. I feel
like this has been the most balanced Bollywood
movie I've watched where they don't paint Pakistanis
negatively at all. Yeah, there was a huge character
who was a journalist. Right. Who was helping
him all the time. To be fair, I think what the
thing is, I didn't realize how racist. most people
were i guess because from a distance this looks
like super like wow he they made a pakistani
a journalist like that's surprising for me to
hear that that's like an amazing thing for them
to do you know no i'm saying like uh so they
had a huge like pakistani characters had a good
amount of stake in the film so first of all uh
the journalist and then the the molana from that
that school that madrasa school where he shelters
salman khan and hides him from the police looking
for uh indian quote -unquote indian spy so that's
that was one character and then the journalist
was that these two major characters played a
huge role like saving him from the police and
the um like military and stuff and also the the
army guy who would finally let him through the
border like going against his country's rules
and regulations so so they were i feel like they
were like pretty solid character characters from
pakistani side which kind of like were very human
and Actually, from the right -wingers, Indians,
I have seen the comments that apparently this
film paints Indians in a bad light and Pakistanis
in a good light. So they cannot... In what way?
I think you see more kindness when they go to
Pakistan and they interact with Pakistani citizens
than you did. Because in India, there was a mixed
bag, right? There's like the brokers who try
to... cheat them and then they try to sell her
off to like a brothel and when they go to pakistan
side everyone is trying to help them besides
like the authorities and i think that's also
done intentionally um yeah that's a good point
i will say like you know as a person that's just
getting started with all these like indian movies
like the portrayal of pakistanis in this movie
is a lot better than the lao singh chada of course
it's like way leagues ahead streets ahead Yeah.
I think another point was that Indians, so when
they were showing Indian, they were showing Indian
system is good. People are mixed bag, but Pakistani
people are good, but their system is bad kind
of way. That was, that's, that's a very, very
liberal Indian take. Like people who said, Oh,
Pakistanis are good people. Their state is bad.
Is the people are good. This is the, as. as pakistani
friendly indians can get they will never um i
mean for many political disturbance reason and
proven and whatever so they will never stand
behind pakistani state at all like ever but throughout
the movie you do see some pakistani authorities
also showing a very human empathetic approach
to them so yeah like towards the end and then
you know we'll get through the plot but i think
even though there are some authorities that are
very one side very blind they just want to make
you know paint a negative picture of him because
he's indian that isn't the minority and there
are authorities who also become flexible and
understanding of their situation but that's only
when happen when they get rid of their role and
going against their exactly order so It's still
the people are good, the system is bad. And it's
kind of promoting going against your system,
going against authority for the betterment of
Indian treatment. So you can be appreciated by
Indians more. So how does the movie kick off?
Yeah, we get to see this cricket game. Okay,
sorry. Immediately I wrote a note because the
first shot they show you is the cricket game.
A Pakistani is playing cricket in, like, a village.
And immediately I was like, oh, they want Indians
to, like, relate. And show that, like, oh, Pakistanis
like cricket, too, and we all like cricket, and
that's, like, our unifying thing. No, no, Pakistanis
are crazy about cricket. No, I know, I know,
but they have to kick off showing the Pakistan...
watching football. So they're like, see, look,
we all love cricket. Let's acknowledge that.
Shared love. It's emblematic of shared love.
That we are the same people. They're not barbarians.
They watch the same cricket games as us. That's
how I got it. Never took it that way. So yeah,
there's this woman watching this cricket game
and I guess there's a star player. I'm sorry.
Shahida Pridhi. That guy. Basically, he makes,
like, a decisive victory. And, you know, that
woman is about to give birth to a daughter. And
she names her sort of, like, after that player.
Her name's, like, Shahida. Which is the guy's
name then, right? So, that was a weird... Like,
that's a fun play that they were doing. So, there's,
like, okay, I'll name my kid after the player
as Shahid. Of Shahid, right? So... So in their
psyche, it was already a boy or something like
that. So I perceived it that way, that they thought
that it would be a boy and named him Shahid.
But like later when the character is in the little
girl introduced that we get to know that her
name is Shahida. So it's like... Well, the movie,
the character says, what if it's a girl? And
she's like, I don't know. And then boom, it's
a girl and they name it. Oh, okay. So yeah, they
did think it was a guy. Right. So I guess fast
forward and, you know, she lives in this like
very like... picturesque sounds of music hillside
kind of looking place cashmere cashmere we've
been talking about that place a lot yeah but
it looks like the swiss alps yeah it looks like
the swiss alps and you guys do you guys know
of this like uh cheese rolling festival in the
uk it's like it's like uh it's like where people
just roll down this hill somewhere in like uh
i think it's like uh it's called cooper's hill
okay okay yeah so basically she decides to partake
in that cheese festival and rolled up she rolled
down the hill and uh you know she kind of like
fell off the cliff and like because she's mute
she tries to okay i'm kidding basically she just
like was playing in those hills and then like
she rolled off the hill and you know because
she's mute you know she couldn't like call for
help and that's that's how we learned of her
character right that like this she's like she
has trouble speaking basically they were doing
a search party and then they managed to find
her right and then like they went to like they
they need to like figure out how to help her
and i think there was like some religious play
they had to go to like uh delhi to like a temple
to figure out like what to do yeah to fix her
to fix her uh side of the islamic school so it's
like the that kind of place and then the it's
a darga it's not a mall i mean it's just close
to the mosque but like yeah so the elder village
elders asks her to like take to delhi and then
because he said like oh he it was him or someone
he knew that he was that old person also was
mute and as soon as you take them there and then
it's like they can speak again and then people
tell him that oh that was before partition like
that was one country back then but now it's in
a different country we can go to u .s easier
than we can go to india so someone says that
so it's like yeah we are building up to the fact
that it's all already rolling the fact again
and again like the cricket that it's the same
people same group of people we're connected it's
just the border now that makes us different that's
the whole message of the film anyway so yeah
that's going on so they go on to India yeah so
yeah I think they went on a trip to that temple
to try and you know get her fixed and I think
that on the way back they were on a train and
it was at night time so basically the train stopped
for repairs and I think it was like Shia manages
to see this little lamb or goat that was stuck
in some crevice or something. And she decides
to go out and help out the poor little creature,
right? And then I think basically the train starts.
I don't know. I guess in true cinematic fashion,
the train just happens to, you know, go with,
like, continue. How do you say it? The train
just keeps going. Keeps going. They didn't put
the siren on. Usually a train before starting,
they have a siren in India. It was quiet. Everyone's
sleeping. They're like, no siren for this time.
Little baby's outside. So Shaira notices she's
scared that she's getting left behind. She manages
to run and get on this train. But it turns out
to be some other train that goes the opposite
direction. And it basically goes to India. basically
and that's the way you know that that starts
that sets off the entire uh plot of the movie
and you know her mother gets freaked out she
asked for help from the police who are of no
use to who have no use or of help whatsoever
yeah like the train crosses the border they're
like there's nothing we can do it's basically
on a planet away we can't do anything because
this wall or fence or something so good luck.
Your daughter's fucked. Yeah. No, so they're
like, we have to talk to, talking to Indian authority.
And so also Indian, Indian authority sends a
search party, but the, but Shahida already boarded
another train. So she's not there anymore. So
they don't find her. And the mother is like,
I want to go back, check. And she's like, you
already used your visa. You need another visa
again to enter India. And she's like, oh, so
yeah. So Shahida is just like walking around
India, right? Like, I think she like, comes across
like this restaurant and then we get we get introduced
to like salman khan's character where he plays
like this guy named pawan pawan yes and like
you know we get to find out that he's like this
devoted like brahmin uh follower oh is follow
the right word from my country we call it hanuman
so i guess i'll refer to hanuman yeah And basically,
he's so devoted that he puts his entire faith
into this religion. Things will work out the
way they are. He can't do any bad things. He
can't lie. He can't do things on the sly, as
the subtitles tend to say. So this brings me
to a trope I've been noticing in Indian films,
which is... the hero is a stupid person or something
like is he stupid well he failed his exams 10
times yeah but is this noble like is this aspirational
because he's supposed to be like a super competent
guy but he acts like he's a child that's like
never seen the world before and he looks he acts
dumb well i think the essence is just like you
don't really have to be smart you just have to
be a good person And he really embodies that
kind of like integrity, loyalty, honesty towards
life. You cannot deny he lives by very strong,
very, very strong moral values. But that's what
they want to impress, right? Not that he's like,
because I don't know, just American movies, the
heroes. if the hero was stupid like that like
that level of naive we wouldn't really buy it
maybe it's to make it more relatable to the general
audience i mean he's stupid just like me when
they make clever hero i think they they have
really hard time writing clever heroes like you
know like when they make clever hero in doom
like we no one none of us like none of us like
the hero i just think it's interesting like the
behaving childlike seems to be, like, the masculine
or hero trope. I don't know what you mean by
childlike, though, because I feel like he plays
a relatively, like, emotionally mature kind of
man compared to... He just seems always, like,
lost and confused and not put together and makes,
like, weird choices and is confused all the time.
Don't you get the vibe that he's kind of stupid?
Like, again, yeah, half the plot point is he
failed his test so much that his dad kind of,
like, shoved him out of the house. I think he
comes off as lovable, and sometimes being a bit
dumb helps with that. You know, not dumb, but
just, like, a bit aloof, let's say. I was gonna
say lovable goofball. Right. He's a goofball.
It's just not the first time we've seen this
trope, so I'm curious if this is, like, a common
thing. It's a very, I would say 50 -50. Like,
you know, like, it's very common, but it's not
always the case. I would like to point out one
more thing here, that, like, when... they were
showing like his uh his childhood so his father
was shown as a rss scatter like you know rss
scatter and i mean okay they show that the whole
thing very neutrally they don't show anything
bad or good exceptionally good or anything it
just shows that he comes from a very strict brahmin
family can you explain rss scanner oh rss is
like i mean yeah people it's just like a one
of the very kind of militant side of hindutva
organization that is like the backbone of the
political party that's bjp that's ruling india
right now so it's their non -political wing but
they're very politically involved and they had
a very marquee and very controversial history.
So it's really interesting that they add this
reference to RSS in a movie that is kind of showing
the harmony of coming together of India and Pakistan.
Yeah. Like, what is your take on that? Why do
you think that was put in there? I think they're
taking, like, one extreme of the Indians, like,
you know, like, because RSS would be staunch
against Pakistanis, like, you know, like, theoretically.
But the dad is. Yeah, his uncle. Yeah, yeah,
whatever. Yeah, so his dad dies. But whatever,
yeah. His uncle hates the Pakistanis. Yeah, I
think it's showing that coming from that background,
he has the heart to change. And so why don't
you? I think I read it as that. That's a nice
read of it. He comes from that. family that kind
of upbringing because i'll come to it like when
we talk about the story like how the whole hindu
caste system was kind of referenced the the hatred
towards meat eaters are kind of referenced throughout
but in a very light way yet very impactful way
like it's not making a huge commentary on it
but like it's just showing as a matter of fact
way yes but it's while doing it it's actually
showing like what goes on in this kind of culture
yeah like the attitudes towards pakistanis pakistanis
they were like very uh like aberrant attitude
towards meat eaters right yeah at the beginning
okay yeah we go on but i guess like the whole
movie it does this masterful way i would say
a masterful way of like uh this dispelling myths
that you have of other people you know yes i
think that's what how that's the best way to
explain it uh yeah it is funny sorry you're right
you're right it's interesting to point out like
the the indian uncle whatever is kind of the
villain in the movie a bit yeah yeah he he's
the reason that had things happened it happens
yeah it's kind of bold actually yeah so i'll
just quickly go over like pawan's like background
like he basically like like winnie already mentioned
like he he's this like dumb dumb that like couldn't
couldn't pass like his exams, and his father
doesn't, like, expect any better than that. And,
like, by the time he manages to pass the exam,
for, like, the 11th time, his father dies of
shock, basically. And, like, one thing that he
likes to do is, like, Salman Khan's character
is like this. He's not good at anything. Not
good at, like, wrestling, like his father expects
him to. Not good at maths, whatever. So his father
dies of shock the moment he passes the exam.
And then he finds out that he has to go to his
father's friend's house, which is like Uncle
Pandey, I guess. That's what we call him. Basically,
this uncle is basically like a devout follower
of Hanuman. And that's where his devotedness
to this religion comes into play, right? The
uncle also has, like, a daughter named, like,
Rasika, I think. Played by, uh... What was her
name again? Karina. Karishma Kapoor? Am I saying
Karina or Karishma Kapoor? Karina Kapoor. Karina
Kapoor. Just say Karishma Kapoor. Wait, wait.
Karishma Kapoor is her sister and a famous actress.
Even people not even near that name, he's like...
And so the main character's name is Karishma.
The uncle's name is Karishma. Yeah, so, yeah,
she, they, basically, like, yeah, she has, he
has a daughter, right, played by Kareena Kapoor,
and, like, you know, they quickly establish that
romance, like, he falls for her, and then, like,
I think that she was, like, arranged to be married
to someone else, but then Uncle Pandey notices
that they're in love. Like, both Pawan and Rasigar
are in love. So he gives Pawan a chance to make
something of himself so that he is worthy of
her love. And that is like buying a house, right?
Right, Kiwi? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay. Just making
sure. Fast forward to, like, the present day.
He finds the Shaida on the street. And, you know,
he has no choice but to... Kiwi's keeling over
and dying. Okay. If you end up dying on here
and you make sounds that ruin the editing, I
will be so pissed. Please die quietly away from
the fucking mic. He tries to get her back, but
because she's mute, there's no way of knowing
how to get her back, so then he takes her under
his wing, manages to bring... her back to uh
pandey's home and pandey is like a strict religious
guy like he i think at one point he makes sure
that it only devoted followers of brahmin lived
in that place it's like a like you said it's
a caste thing isn't it yeah also a religion and
caste both so what happens is like when when
salman khan comes to his house and he can oh
i can smell meat what's happening and then they're
like oh there is this muhammadan neighbors like
they eat meat all the time so just ignore like
we cannot do anything about it like this hatred
towards meat smell and then he's like i have
decided like the uncle says like i have decided
i'll never uh rent to anyone who is from other
religion but in the subtitle it says caste so
but It's most true because like, you know, even
the, I mean, Hindus eat meat, like different
caste. So he was kind of saying that whoever
eats meat, I will not ever rank them, but it's
just the neighbor who's cooking. So he's disgust
towards meat eaters is like comes again and again.
And that also comes from Pawan's character as
well, which he has to overcome gradually. So,
yeah. I did like, you know, in classic Bollywood
fashion, They had Chekhov's, like, meat. So if
you know they're going to talk about it a lot,
there's going to be, like, a song and dance number
specifically about eating meat later. That's
a good setup. There's a lot of Chekhov's. When
they sing about chicken the whole time? I don't
know. I might have voted through the songs. That's
fine. There's a whole chicken song about eating
meat. Oh, wow. Yeah. I mean, it was very hard
to miss. Literally all about chicken. Only. The
girl follows him back, and then, you know, he
starts noticing things about her, you know? Like,
he was trying to... So, like, they play a little...
Like, there are scenes where he's trying to play
a game with her, where he would, like, just say
Indian city names, right? And then, like, you
know, just so that he could deduce where she
lives, and he could not get it right. And basically,
like, throughout the movie, like, throughout
in this part, basically, like, he... I'm saying
basically a lot. Throughout the movie, he notices
these little things about her. Where it's like,
she goes to this Muslim neighbor's home to eat
meat. And then she goes to the temple to pray.
wearing the veil she moves to the Dargah like
Muslim place next to the temple yeah that's it
and then that's when and then also like you know
when there's a scene where like they're all watching
the cricket game and then like when Pakistan
won the game she was the only one that was like
cheering and that's how they're able to deduce
yeah able to deduce like super subtle he's like
i think based off the subtle clues of her worshiping
a muslim god like cheering on the pakistani team
and eating meat maybe maybe she's pakistani frames
it I'm sorry. I think it kind of unfolded in
layers. Yeah, exactly. First, she's like meat
eater. I remember that scene when first she's
a meat eater. So they cannot fathom, wrap around
their head that she can be Muslim. So he's still
like... oh she may be like a Kshatriya caste
like you know which is another top caste but
they eat meat so it's because she's quote unquote
fair like she's light skinned so she cannot be
from lower caste I love that scene because it
matter of factly shows like the thought process
of the casteist thought process of Indians and
like he's like oh she's maybe like Kshatriya
but look how fair she is she's definitely that
then and then She so that's one layer and the
next layer is when she goes to the Dargah Like
where the Muslims pray and then he cannot even
utter the word that she's a Muslim. She's like
She's that she's that like he can't even say
that she's Muslim. Yeah, he can't even go in
the temple He's like, yeah, he's freaked out
and then That's another layer. So like it's like
removal of layer of hatred. It's like first meat
-eaters. Okay she's meat eater okay next layer
she's muslim and third layer okay she's not even
muslim from india she's muslim from pakistan
so that's where like oh my god worst nightmare
this is a train terrorist baby i think there
was also a moment where she was like stealing
like a bracelet and then like he has he he like
pawan orders her to like pray and apologize to
god yeah right and that was another thing that
that uh you know that she didn't want to do and
then like The scene when he went to see her in
the temple, basically, she was reading the Quran,
I think. She was praying the Muslim prayer. Do
you remember the final test where he gave her
a pad of paper and a pen and was like, draw Muhammad?
And she's like, no. I think I know what she is.
That's a very... That's a joke. It's a joke.
Yeah. So he decides... remember then like once
he figures out she's pakistani he gives her some
money and she leaves straight into the brothel
right well yeah no no but he he gets like an
agency to take her across and it's insane that
he is gonna let her go by herself you know she's
like she looks like she's 10 or something right
like she's a young girl and he's just gonna send
her off with this old adult man and the whole
time you can see her like crying she obviously
had like negative instincts towards this and
it's really funny though because yeah he's like
i need to see you know i need to like send her
off or whatever and he sees that she's like in
the little carriage and goes straight to like
taj mahal hotel or whatever right in the seedy
area and he goes in and coming from salam bombay
you know where we're used to like all these like
realistic brothels and and shit and then he goes
and she's just instantly like boom in there like
She is, like, the prized version, like, prostitute
all over again. And this is where you see Salman
Khan become Salman Khan that we all know and
love. He does, like, Steven Seagal fights in
this one, though. He's not that active, I feel
like. Adam was not impressed. No, I was not,
dude. Before the brothel scene, there is a scene,
like, where he takes her to the Pakistani embassy.
Oh, thank you. They said, basically, like, she
can't get a passport. She can't get a visa without
a passport. And that I guess I don't know if
that process is like that. No, of course. It's
like it does take a passport. I mean, she if
she wants to go to Pakistan back, she needs her
passport, but her passport definitely with her
mother back in Pakistan. But like at that point,
the embassy shuts down because there is an attack
by the right wing Hindutva gang. So there is
the thing like, yeah, they never connected the
both dots. That is like the similar. thing that
someone comes himself come from but he's like
coming from that kind of family but he is saving
the little girl from that uh those goons were
attacking pakistan what was the riot about no
it wasn't right like i think something some some
like political thing going on between india and
pakistan at that point of time so these people
were like attacking pakistani embassy and closing
it down saying that like you know we don't want
pakistanis here or something but wasn't saman
khan the reason why it closed down no no no i
thought he was up he he was just there and then
at that point uh by chance that was the exact
time like when these goons like uh right -wing
goons attacks pakistani embassy so the pakistani
embassy says like they're closed for a month
so that's why he takes the asian route that where
he said like they're gonna deliver the kid to
pakistan and he believes that and he did use
all his savings right he was saving money to
buy this house so that he could marry marry karina
yeah and then he uses the most of it to gives
the most of it to this broker to take shahida
back what was he working as in six months like
without just with the college education he can
buy a house with six months education collecting
tied dude is is it that hard for to be an indian
go to pakistan is it hard to get a visa that
point was not hard but they were showing that
she cannot go because she doesn't have passport
okay cool let's let's skip to go and she's in
pakistan or something okay because because sending
the girl off to some travel agency ended up and
made her end up in a brothel he decided to take
matters into his own hands by bringing her to
pakistan himself okay and then like he he's on
the border right and then i think we meet like
a couple of smugglers on a jeep i don't know
how that is not like very like like they're standing
out or whatever but that's very realistic is
it realistic i think so on camels and shit you
see the do people ride camels around there too
yeah it's a desert yeah okay yeah uh and they
decided to like help him like and then i guess
through like this border like it's like a very
wide open desert right and then there's like
a like a huge barbed fence barbed wire probably
made of plastic Who knows? I have noticed that
every time now I see barbed wire, I'm like, huh,
okay, that's probably not real. Movie magic ruined.
And then, like, they have, like, these little
tunnels that they go through to get to the other
side. Basically, like, but, you know, like what
Winnie said, this is where his, like, devotion
to Hanuman comes into play. It's like he refuses
to step any further than after crossing because,
you know, he doesn't want to do anything shady.
So he has to wait. so he ends up like standing
there like a sitting duck and then getting caught
by like the the border border patrol basically
and like you have this like really long uh standoff
where he he's trying like pawan is trying to
get the border patrol to give him permission
to cross the border because you know once you
get permission it's no longer like a shady thing
Like, doing things on the sly, as one would say.
Even though, like, he doesn't get, like, written
permission, so who's gonna believe him? Like,
the Border Patrol said I could. He didn't get
his name written. It was more of a moral ground
than a legal ground, right? I get it. He just
needed permission. This is, again, the trope,
though, of, like, dumb idiot. Like, this reminded
me of such an Amir Khan scene where he's just,
like, honest to a fault, and he's like, I came
through with the smuggler. His name is this.
And then, like, I came through this tunnel, and
he, like, points at it, and just is, like, giving
away, like, exactly how he got there. poorly
might have been imprisoned by now oh he like
totally ratted out a guy that guy's life is ruined
they they closed up like the way for other people
to leave and escape like thanks dude yeah yeah
that was a very bad move yeah he fucking ruined
the lives of so many people just so many smugglers
no but it shows his devotion it shows his character
i guess in a very goofy extreme way yeah it's
showing he's does like things very unnecessary
things that like anyone with a little bit of
like intelligence would not do and he sabotaged
his own plan that he has to take the girl back
to her parents and he sabotages that mission
by just being very honest that that he's like
doing that again and again yeah and to be that
to be that level of honest you need to be a little
bit dumb right you're not going to stand at the
border and wait for her cards to give you it
isn't the other country's border it's the pakistani
border if more people did this i think we'd have
less problems oh i hope nobody tried this this
is a very bad i hope they all just stand at the
border waiting for ice to come And then the movie
also shows the Pakistani guards showing some
empathy and humanity and eventually giving him
that permission, which is very hard to believe
and paints Pakistanis in a very positive light.
That's why our friend likes it. Now enters into
Pakistani, some small town or village. So they
managed to get in after with all the permission,
the coercion to permission. Basically, they end
up in a town, right? And like, I guess like,
Shieda is like a kleptomaniac because she likes
to to like take bracelets and handcuffs and of
course she like manages to well I mean she's
Pakistani whoa whoa that just undid everything
the movie was trying to do shoot a character
guys they have to show her you know they can't
make her that angelic she's a child yeah that's
why it's her base instincts go on she nicked
like this she nicked this police policemen's
uh handcuffs and you know he it ends up with
pawan getting in trouble for it and he could
not like uh procure a passport even though he
keeps saying that he's in he's he's being honest
about it he wouldn't lie that he's indian and
shaheed is like a pakistani girl no they just
throw his ass to jail shaheed keeps telling him
to lie she's like shut the fuck up and he's like
no yeah he doesn't listen to the girl no at this
point she has more street smarts than he'll ever
have in his life at six years old and then this
is the point where we get introduced to another
major character which keely says has a connection
to some viral video his name is like chan nawab
and we get we get an introduction where he's
like standing and reporting on this like train
station and people just kept like walking through
his his uh reporting yeah so chandra is like
a real person uh he became like a viral viral
because of this weird video that he's trying
to shoot it's like a very local news news uh
journalist and then like tried to record this
news bite where he's getting like obstructed
by people walking and in the in the platform
So it was very funny, actually, the actual footage.
The actual video was funny. Yeah, it was very
funny. But they recreated it and I didn't laugh.
Yeah, because, yeah, it was, like, just a reference.
I mean, imagine that's actually happening in
real life and someone, and it goes on for long.
Like, he really tries to, like, make the news
in a very stupid way and then, like, he can just
record it. And people will be asking, like, why
is he recording? Why is he not going somewhere
else and recording? So that's a very weird viral
meme. That's why it was viral. So they just recreate
that scene again in the film. And without context,
it doesn't make any sense. That's why you guys
didn't laugh. But I think it worked in India
because that was already a very viral meme. So
it's like, okay, it's a tip to the viral meme.
The internet watchers. Yeah. I saw that scene
and I'm like, is this a deleted scene they forgot
to delete or something? But basically, like,
China Wang, he's this reporter who's trying to
make it big. And, like, he was trying to frame
that Pawan is, like, a spy. Like, a spy for India.
Like, spying Pakistan. So he tries to get into
the... He tries to get the scoop. And, like,
I think there was, like, a... They managed to,
like... Like, basically, Pawan manages to escape
from the jail. And I think there's a scene where,
like... the reporter was kind of, like, following,
stalking him into a bus. And, like, he starts
to notice how honest Pawan is and, like, there's,
you know, that maybe this guy isn't actually
a spy and that he wants to, like, get this girl
back home. So he decides to, like, assist Pawan
and Shaida to get her back home, basically. Yeah,
I thought... I don't know who the actor is, but
he was pretty awesome. Like, he just, like, I
think there was a lot of, like, I felt like,
I could feel like he, at first I thought he looked
like a jerk, but then, like, he managed to do,
like, a flip, change of character, like, change
of heart. He wasn't a caricature. He was his
own character. He was three -dimensional. Like,
and he was smart. He's smarter than, like, anyone
else in the film. He's a really amazing character,
actor. Nawazuddin Siddiqui, yeah. Is he Indian?
I think everything about this film was Indian,
casting -wise and location -wise. I think that's
why they never showed any city in Pakistan because
they never shot in Pakistan. It's basically like
you can find every place in India. So I think
it was just shot in India. I think a lot of this
was in Punjab, right? Yeah, it was in Punjab.
It was in Rajasthan. It's like in Kashmir as
well. So they escaped the police station, but
not leaving. They didn't leave without this calendar
that they had. And that calendar was showing
the Swiss Alps or something. And that was the
thing that made Shia get all excited. So that's
where our characters tried to find the location,
basically. And then I think at some point during
their travels, they ended up at a mosque. yeah
at a mosque where like they meet like these nice
uh holy men yeah those guys were fucking cool
yeah the guy with shades was rad yeah he's a
maulana like he's a it's a madrasa i guess like
a mosque adjacent school so so there is one another
change of character happens because in hindu
brahmin like his mindset like he cannot enter
a mosque right because it's like very exclusionary
that religion that like no other people cannot
come in it would be dirty by them but so he was
not entering and then that mosque people were
like no you can just come in doesn't matter if
you are not a muslim like you can just come here
it was everyone is welcome here they're very
friendly welcoming open he was like a cool uncle
i i wanted to go there yeah it was nice yeah
i think that's the thing that what what made
the movie great for me is like i start to learn
more about how you know indians view pakistanis
in general like stereotyping i guess and then
like the movie does this like like really nice
way where it's not really in your face but it's
just more like you know they tried to dispel
myths like what i said you know and i think one
of them is like you know pakistanis are kind
you know so ursa you're listening you're a kind
funny Shout out to our only Pakistani friend.
Despite all the hate you learned in school, I'm
glad that you can accept us as people. So anyway,
the people in the mosque, they decided to help
Pohan and Shahida escape by letting them wear
burqa, I think. Yes, Samakan's in a burqa. Gotta
get that joke in. Yeah. I think... I think he
feels weird about it, right? Like, he just didn't
want to be in a burqa. I think he made a big
fuss about that. He's a big baby. Yeah. And,
you know, they... Well, and let's say why, actually.
Let's say why. Because he lies so much that they
made him wear the burqa so that he'd be, like,
in the woman role and shut up. Because they...
He cannot lie. You said he lies so much. Oh,
yeah. Sorry, sorry. Because he's so honest, like,
to shut him up, they put him in a burqa so he
wouldn't talk and the other guy would talk and
lie instead. and throughout throughout the throughout
their travels right now the the journalists uh
same from chan chan yeah yeah he basically like
at first he wanted to pitch the story to like
lots of new news news outlets that you know this
guy's a spy but then as soon as he realized that
there's a touching story about you know reunion
and family like uh nobody wants it so where does
he turn to the internet youtube youtube the power
of the internet in an internet cafe internet
cafe wi -fi is fast i started thinking about
the wi -fi there this would be for cell phones
he has like a digital camera and he has to like
go to some old internet cafe and like plug it
in and there's like the slow uploading and stuff
yeah very advanced in a remote area i can still
like that yeah and you know he but so and then
they they figured out that like His cameraman
got detained by the police. So they're using
the cameraman as a guy to get the information
of where they are. So throughout the movie, they
were trying to deceive them by giving them false
information. And at one point, they realized
that they ended up at a place called... I think
it's like Sultanpur. Is that the actual place?
sultanpur sultanpur yeah i don't know i don't
know i think it was a place but like they were
they like almost brush like they came across
their uh shahida's mom through while documenting
right yeah yeah and then uh that's when they
realized that they're like close by She gets
down from a bus and then they go to the bus the
next morning and ask like what station, like
what, what, what villages or towns they're coming
from. Like all the, they ask the bus driver to
list all the names. And then as soon as Aida
hears Sultanpur, she goes like ecstatic. That's
my village. That's my village. Yeah. So that's
how they get to know finally. The whole movie
is like one big guess who for her. It's all yes
or no questions until they figure out where her
home is. So you get like the group splits up,
right? I think it was Pawan who tries to distract
the police while Chan manages to bring Shida
back home to the Swiss Alps. Far, far away. I'm
just kidding. To her home, basically. To the
Von Trapp family. But that doesn't stop there.
Even though she reunited and everyone manages
to see the documentary that Chan made on YouTube,
the only problem is that Pawan gets detained
by the police. and they want to continue framing
him that he's a spy which is a i think you know
it's weird it's a it's a very harrowing moment
i i don't know if police do that sort of thing
in real life all the time i just want to be hopeful
maybe accusing everyone of spying um yeah and
i think you get to see like uh like waterboarding
and like like uh It is. I'm sorry. I was, like,
laughing so hard because the fucking montage
was so funny when, like, he's getting beat up
and she's, like, hugging her family in the same
exact moment. It was, like, really hard to know
which emotion to feel because, like, happy for
her and then Samakash is getting, like, beat
up and tortured and stuff. Because of this Indian
man sacrifice. Yeah. Pakistani girl gets to read
that. Why won't the Pakistanis understand? But,
like, you know, the police was trying to deceive
the public into thinking that, you know, he's
a bad guy. But because of what Chan did, like,
putting out the story of him trying to return
Shida back home, you know, it moves the people.
People are not, you know, fooled that easily.
And then we get to see them, to see all the public
rally behind to get to let the police free Pawan,
right? Am I going too fast? No, we got to wrap
up anyway. I got to go. For the dramatic end
scene. So the dramatic end scene is, like, you
get to see this border at the Swiss Alps. This
nice border. Then you have one side India, one
side Pakistan. And, you know, like, Pawan comes
in, like, you know, a free man. Everyone rallies
to him. But not before, like, you know, Shahida,
you know, she sees. She sees Salman Khan and
wants to thank him for not running over her.
I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Don't laugh. That's
such a bad joke. Don't worry, that goes to the
top of the episode. Basically, she sees... Okay,
I need to be touchy about this. She sees Salman
Khan about to cross the border, but not before
yelling him... Yelling uncle, I think? Uncle.
Uncle, yes. Because some guy was, like, twisting
her arm, actually, and he just said, you have
to say uncle, and then she did it. It wasn't
about summertime. Well, no, her voice comes out
almost like megaphone -like. It's so dramatic
and loud and echoey, and she just repeats it,
like, three, four times. There's a thousand people
rushing through the border yelling, breaking,
like, through the fences, and this little girl
screams uncle, and he just hears it like a piercing
shot and turns. That's the... connection of her
yeah yeah it's also six years worth of voice
that never got out yeah so probably and you know
he turns around and you know they they just have
one freeze frame moment where they you know embrace
and yeah you know i think that's just i think
the message of the movie is that you know be
kind to one another well he's like throwing her
up in the air yeah and it just looks like another
like simba moment there's so many lion king moments
look i think i think the way i'm did you cry
i i cried the first time i watched it with my
mom in the cinema like when this was first released
in 2015 and i think we both cried back then and
cried and who like she wasn't she didn't understand
much but she understood that She was crying.
Shahida was not saying anything. She was not
listening to anything. Everyone was connected.
I think this is the kind of movie you don't really
need to understand. It's pretty easy. The way
I'm describing it right now, it sounds like it's
a bit rushed, but if you really take the time
to watch the movie, it's such a tear -jerking
moment. You want this girl to get back home safely.
You want Salman Khan to be absolved of his crimes.
In real life and in the movies. Yeah, it's great.
I'm just going to put it out there, but at the
time of recording, my country, Thailand, is going
through a very serious conflict right now with
our neighbors, Cambodia. All I can say is that
I hope there's a quick resolution to this conflict.
I don't want any more civilians to be hurt. And
I just think that when I watched the movie, I
thought of the conflict. I mean, I think it's
easy to say that when I see the conflict between
Indians and Pakistanis, I think of my country
and Cambodians. It's quite similar in a way.
I mean, our conflict has been running for centuries.
This is an ongoing issue. It just has escalated
and peaked to the point where you just see it
all the time now. Yeah, and Burma, too, like,
on the borders. Like, it's always some weird
border tension. Very unnecessary, you know? Yeah.
And we've been recording in this bunker the whole
time. And, like, we're running out of gummies.
And, like, it's been... I would like this to
stop as well, the shelling. But, like, going
back to the movie, I think it's so interesting
that this was released in 2015. When I think
that was also kind of when the Hinduva moment
was gaining a lot of traction. And BJP was kind
of, like, on the rise. They were getting more
support. And so... It's interesting that they
released this in such a positive light. And I
think it can have a very positive impact. I kind
of saw that with my mom. Growing up, we were
deeply impacted by the partition. I'm from Punjab.
So during the partition, our land fell on the
Pakistan side. And Muslims were basically persecuting
Sikhs. And so we had to flee. And that's why
I'm in Thailand also. So I wanted to go back
to my ancestral land. It's in Pakistan. So growing
up, I'd hear so many stories from my grandfather.
grandparents because they actively ran right
where like they were so anti -pakistani so anti
-muslims harbor a lot of sentiments that kind
of what we saw in the movie from the uncle and
so of course that passed down to my mom as well
and she gave me like a few rules to dating and
one of them was no muslims before i went to the
states like she would used to be very serious
about that and if anyone's pakistani she'd just
be like and when you watch this movie like you
know i kind of like she did tear up and This
was 10 years ago, so I don't remember if we talked
about it, but she kind of warmed up. I have Pakistani
friends now that I've introduced her to, and
she's very open and loving to them. She doesn't
really... It's probably not because of only this
movie, but I kind of saw that that moved her.
And I brought it up recently when I told her
we were going to record about this movie, and
she was really fond. She was like, yeah, that
was a great movie. I loved it. So I think this
kind of movie coming out from Bollywood is such
a positive sign. It leaves... you know it doesn't
create more hate which is already too much in
this world i think it was the one of the i think
it is the last film that came out like which
is like preaching friendship between india and
pakistan to be honest like in such a like a strong
way yeah so Those kind of films have always been
there, but they have stopped coming from Bollywood,
sadly. And then you have things like Laos and
Chadha. And now you have the most recent conflict
between India and Pakistan and Kashmir also that
has led to even more animosity, tighter border
controls, suspension of treaties. I gotta go
join a meeting. So it's okay. But I think that
summed it up really well. You guys can do the
fair shares rating without me, but I got to go.
You don't need it. It's fine. That was a good
wrap up. Okay. Is it a little too? Is there anything
more we want to discuss? I don't know. You can't.
I have to go though. I'm so sorry. I just feel
like we were just rushing it. So I'm just like...
No, you did fine. But continue without me actually.
It's fine. I don't give a shit. Just hit stop.
Is the volume okay? Yeah, yeah. Everything's
fine. Just carry on. Carry on. Fear of stairs.
Okay. Fear of stairs. Rejecting. Yeah. So...
It's like... Dad! Where's dad? You'll be putting
on Adam's pants. I don't remember all the...
Do you remember any of them? I don't remember
all the pointers, though. Regional heat setting,
dance numbers, we're upstairs moment. And the
first dance floor. Alright, bye. I give it a
5 out of 5. Okay. Staircase moment. staircase
moment i guess when she's pakistani for them
not for us as the audience but for them yeah
i think for me when like but i also was seeing
it like when she was sold to the brothel we all
kind of saw some shady shit coming yeah i was
i was guessing it but yeah i yeah it was extreme
i think yeah it's okay so staircase moment out
of five i don't think so I didn't think there
was a staircase moment. Yeah. I didn't feel like
there was any moment where it took a left turn
at any point. So for me, I don't know. I'd give
it like a... This is the edge of the hill moment,
though. Sorry. Edge of the hill moment? Yeah,
maybe that would be the... Yeah, maybe that would
be the staircase moment. What do you mean edge
of the hill moment? Like she fell down the hill?
Oh, that was so early. Dance floor claws. Oh,
there was quite a lot. The one that... The one
that stick out to me was the the dance I was
gonna say that's what the one that stuck out
to me was the one that establishes Pawan and
Rasika's relationship it they wrapped it up so
Quickly that I I just thought that was kind of
impressive That wasn't the dance floor number
though. But yeah, there was a very intimate nice
song, but I would say I would say like it's almost
five because like There were so many songs that
I like the chicken song. Yeah, I forwarded through.
But if you say there's a chicken song, I give
it a five out of five. Yeah. It's very creative.
And yeah, the dance numbers were pretty good.
And I remember the songs were pretty much big
hit as well. Okay. Yeah. Family Feud Factor.
Oh, that's a good one. This is a, I mean, like
the whole. uncle being having some animosity
towards pakistanis yeah yeah i'd say a five out
of five the whole the whole thing is about navigating
family dynamics getting them to accept them being
more conservative than he is to accept this pakistani
muslim girl and him doing everything he can to
marry the daughter spice level regional heat
shake i think it's a good one five out of five
maybe oh ten out of five okay yeah moral of the
melodrama no that that's pretty strong one yeah
it's a very moralistic film like you know love
everyone uh to see indians and pakistani that's
uh i think just similar people sharing same culture
and identity and it's just divided by border
i mean it's a very close one to my heart honestly
adam what do you think oh he's nodding in agreement
with keely i'm just gonna listen to this while
editing he's nodding in agreement i don't know
what's up yeah yeah no i think that sums it up
very well philly that was very nicely put so
yeah that's very good five out of five five out
of five yeah i highly recommend it's a great
movie i i really enjoyed it uh for me it kind
of like just shed light on this whole aspect
you know between uh pakistanis and indians and
i see parallels too with what i'm going through
i suppose yeah yeah i think that if i ever want
to like let people see understand the conflict
i would show this movie yeah that makes sense
i think this movie is so relevant especially
today especially with the political climate that
we're in the rise of nationalism i think movies
like this should be advertised more made more
i think in like at this setting i don't think
a movie would would be released like this in
bollywood like there's a reason these kind of
movies are not being made anymore okay so you
know we do need it more than ever as a little
reminder that we are just one yeah i mean salman
khan was making like all these like very meathead
action films all the time so i didn't like those
films much like i watched one or two of them
and i was like okay fine i've watched enough
so i kind of missed this film as well thinking
this was the similar film uh i remember people
are saying me it's not but Somehow I missed this
film, but this is the first time I watched it
and it's a really good film. Was there a film
named Tiger 3 or something? Tiger 3 means there
was Tiger 1 and 2 as well. I think Tiger... He
was in it, right? Yeah, Ekta Tiger. Yeah, there
was a tiger. So I think that film is also by
the same director. And I think there also he
plays a certain twist on ISI agent. Like ISI
is like the Pakistani... uh secure security secret
service so the heroine hearing is from uh like
the lead act lead hero the hearing is from pakistani
secret service and the hero is from indian intelligence
service raw so they fall in love so i think there
was also a twist of like you know pakistan is
not being inherently bad people in ekta tiger
as well even though it was like a spy action
film uh so yeah so this director has been putting
out had been putting out film like that before
i don't know what's happening now but yeah that's
really cool so they're actually producing a sequel
to this movie as well as of 2021 salman confirmed
salman khan confirmed that they were making a
sequel but then four years later we have not
heard any updates so unclear what's in the making
i also wanted to point out that this movie was
a big hit in china okay like A massive hit. It
released in the cinema in 2018. So it had already
gained a cult following in China when it was
released in 2015. And then after Amerikan's Dango
became such a big hit in China, they thought,
okay, let's release it in the theater three years
later after the original release. And it did
really, really well. But they shortened the film
to like two hours or something. So I think they
cut out some scenes. And I just want to mention
how the title was translated in Chinese. It was
basically Little Lolita Monkey Got Uncle. That
was the name of the movie in Chinese. I thought
it would be quirky and appeal to audiences. Bajrangi
is Hanuman. Bajrangbali is Hanuman. It's another
name. Bajrangi means Hanuman. They're making
a sequel, so what happens? She gets lost again.
Given her character, she's bound to get lost
again. Somewhere. She's always on her own journey.
and yeah kids these days okay we're done all
right thanks guys thank you for tuning in thank
you for joining in and please like subscribe
our podcast and let us know in the comment section
how you feel like feel about it if you want if
you have any movie suggestion please drop in
a comment and we might do it Bye. See ya.