Jun 3, 2008

End of Season: On American Idol 2008

so, the IPL also came to an end. no cause for excitement anymore as american idol also packed up a few weeks ago. apart from the fact that i just wasn't motivated enough to write anything about the idol big night, i must also admit that i was a bit peeved at the results. considering the no. of times i've drooled abt captain cook on this blog, why should that be, u may ask? two reasons actually.

first, david archuleda definitely performed far better on the final night than cook. it's one thing for cook to say that 'i didn't want to do something i'd already done' & then screw it up by presenting a poor excuse of a song. the cookie even crumbled for simon ( an unabashed cook fan) that night when he ruled all three rounds in lil archie's favour. so, it's really a question of merit, of who performed better on that fateful day & it irks me that having done better, archie lost. :-((

second, the blogosphere & comments were crawling with profanities against archie a few minutes after the show ended & lines were opened for smsing. most cook fans had a problem with utterly inconsequential things like archie's father's behavior, his 'supposed' gay demeanour & lack of charisma. while i concede that the third point matters, especially in a reality singing competition, i am really uncomfortable with the amount of emphasis we adduce to the right kind of 'packaging'. is coming across as cocky or macho or witty or amusing a fair substitute for talent? not that cook was lacking in talent. that's not the point. and how does being a 'faggot' take away anything from archie's superb rendering of 'imagine' for god's sake? aaaargh!

before i forget, that old hottie georgie still manages to bring on unabashed tears with his 'praying for time'. it sounded especially good with the subdued arrangement where every enunciation, every despair, was so clear.

coming to IPL, nothing much to say. for starters, the final was the only match i had the privilege of watching, thanks to some kind friends who took pity on us poor cousins. also, i really don't understand enough about the game to form any original opinions. strike rates, batting & bowling averages pretty much sum up the game for me. of course, i will argue & google & cross check if i ever hear anyone questioning Dada's right to remain in the game or his captaincy. though i was supporting dhoni's men & screamed bloody murder every time yousuf pathan appeared, i have to concede the better team won. for me, the most noticeable difference was the way in which the rajasthan royals fielded. far superior than dhoni & co.

an interesting moment in the match yday was when pathan & watson were batting in partnership & the latter yells 'nahi nahi' waving his arms maniacally when he sees pathan readying to take a run. we actually rewound to make doubly sure that it was indeed watson. since pathan doesn't speak a word of english. think warne advised watson & others that they'd better learn the hindi equivalent of 'yes, no, very good' if they wanted to survive the series.

it hasn't been long since we read the aussie media bashing bhajji & then the media back home making a big deal out of it with accusations & counter accusations flying faster than rockets on a diwali night. yet, as i was saw warne patting pathan on the back & watson guiding his batting partner, i felt oddly hopeful in that moment. not for nothing do i keep saying, the free market is our greatest friend & will bring gifts that will far outweigh the obvious economic benefits we perceive. could anyone have foreseen warne command the same respect from a bunch of indian & paki players that he did as the captain of the rajasthan royals? naaah!

p.s. this post was written a while back & was discovered only today as i was sweeping the cobwebs from my drafts folder.

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