This thread discusses the Content article: Before the Idiot Box

The other things on Indy-TV of yore I might rant about are the Satyajit Ray Presents series, other antho's like Kathasgar /Ek Kahani /Darpan, the better sitcoms...

Tell me you want me to [:p]. If you have other suggestions, bung them in here, and depending on my own recollection I'll try to talk about them.

Damn cool. Malgudi Days is especially timeless.

See if you also want to talk about:

Byomkesh Bakshi (I have it, I could send it all to you if you want)
Bharat Ek Khoj
Karamchand
Honee Anhonee
Ulta Pulta (Though I saw an episode on youtube and the stuff hasn't aged well)
etc.,

Plus you should also talk about the crap they put out.

Sigma
Uttar Ramayan
Bible Ki Kahaniyaan
Vikram Aur Betal
Hot Spot

I am deeply offended by the below and demand an immediate retraction from the author.....

"Actor Vishnuvardhan, normally known for being the typical Kannada masala hero (which alongside the Telugu masala hero is the most grotesque sort of abomination)"

SahasaSimha Dr.Vishnuvardhan is one of the few old school actors who has had a varied and very interesting career in Kannada films. His movies are very rarely your typical Kannada masala films and along with the brothers Nag was a very talented actor. He never slipped into the grotesquery of the average Kannada hero. I'd recco Mutthina Haara (String of Pearls) with Suhasini or even his movie from last year, Mathad Mathadu Mallige again with Suhasini. That episode of Malgudi Days wasn;t Vishnuvardhan being better than usual. It was Vishnuvardhan as he's always been.

Terrific write up though and forgive my nitpicking.

ravenus wrote:
This thread discusses the Content article: Before the Idiot Box
Tell me you want me to [:p].
Yes yes! Awesome shit.

Malgudi days owned. I had read the books before watching the show (tough to obtain nowadays) but I think they screened it again on television at some point of time on some local kannada channel. I have utmost respect for the Nags'. Shankar Nags' movies were friggin kvlt as well. Anybody seen Accident?

And heh, I agree with GK on the Vishnuvardhan issue - He was never a 'masala star' per se. His acting in Apthamithra was better than his counterparts, Rajnikanth and Mohanlal in the different versions of the movie IMO (and surely better than Akshay Kumar, I have to assume). Suryavamsham was a bitch-slapping movie too.

Apologies to Vishnuvardhan's offended fans. I have only seen him in crap like Inspector Dhanush and clippings of assorted rubbish Kannada potboilers, hence the generalization. I do realize that he was a talented actor with a theatre background, like the Nags (pun unintended).

What about Ambarish? Does he also have any kvlt stuff? And btw, does anyone have the Girish Karnad movie Ondanondu Kaladalli? I would really love to see this.

I thought, Vishnuvardhan's take on the Mohanlal original was probably the second best. It was marred by his stereotypical portrayal of a psychiatrist though, spectacles and the french beard. Overall the film couldn't match up to Manichitrathazhu but it was still way better than Chandramukhi.

I've only seen this malayalam movie which had Ambarish. My kannada film knowledge is piss poor.

Ei, very cool. I don't remember much tv before cable, just those Sunday morning Disney cartoons and half hour episodes of Street Hawk. My struggles with Hindi during school left me with a general dislike of the language, and I didn't bother with most films or shows that used it.

ravenus wrote:
Apologies to Vishnuvardhan's offended fans. I have only seen him in crap like Inspector Dhanush and clippings of assorted rubbish Kannada potboilers, hence the generalization. I do realize that he was a talented actor with a theatre background, like the Nags (pun unintended).

What about Ambarish? Does he also have any kvlt stuff? And btw, does anyone have the Girish Karnad movie Ondanondu Kaladalli? I would really love to see this.
I think the movie is there on the LAN in college. Will send it across somehow. Fucking AWESOME movie.

Ambareesh... eh. Don't like him all that much, he's one ugly moterfucker. Antha and Chakravyuha weren't all bad though. Later shit like 'Gowdru' and all that crap stinks.


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awesome write up!! Its such a pity all we get to see now are those pathetic reality shows and those shitty serials . oh and how many remember he-man on sunday mornings @doordarshan?

i remember having a huge crush on the guy who plays byomkesh bakshi :)

oh ugliest kannada actor has to be puneet rajkumar . mirror cracking material

Hell yeah. That nose is something else.

Onionheadmonster wrote:
oh and how many remember he-man on sunday mornings @doordarshan?
I still have my action figures. Heh. Skeletor, Beast Man, Mer Man, plus some of the goodies too, He-Man WITH Battle Cat, Orko, Teela...

And Puneet Rajkumar happens to be one of my friend's brother-in-law. Will be sure to pass on the general sentiment. Haw.

oh there used to be a 2 hour ducktales and talespin on sundays much later :D
and and dd2 was like the coolest channel to watch and all that heheh

yeah, I remember those. Talespin was immensely annoying. Plus duck Tales in Hindi had a intro song that sounded like they were using the word Fornication which was the most amusing part of that serial. It also featured one of Disney's last attempts at overt racism with a country full of 'peaceloving working class' pandas in possession of a nuclear bomb.

cant remember a whole lot of shows from that time besides the cartoons,alif laila and surabhi.used to thoroughly enjoy the latter two,one with an awsome theme song and butt ugly vampires and the other one telling why ice melts slower when covered with a blanket.