Lola Kutty

I chanced upon Lola Kutty on Channel V India yesterday and thought the show was hilarious.

With her typical Mallu hair-do and the deadly Malyali accent, she had me in splits and had the brat quite worried since he had not heard me guffaw in quite a while.

I can’t wait to see her side kick Alex who apparently wears fluorescent shirts, a lungi neatly folded upwards in half and rubber slippers to match the shirt. Apparently, he actually wore pink slippers to go with his shiny pink shirt!

The Lola Kutty series is as good as the Quick Gun Murugan spoofs that Channel V ran umpteen years ago. Its won a host of awards at the Promax/BDA India Awards both in 2004 and 2005. (I never knew this show has been around that long!)

This show is a must watch and the pity is I don’t know when it airs –vindia.com was not of much help.

However Lola is not a typical Malayali name. Biju, Bincy, Ciny, Jinu …… would have been more like it. But then after seeing the show you cant imagine Lola with any other name!

PS: And Google also threw up a letter in the Khaleej Times from a very aggrieved Mallu. Guess he can’t take a joke on himself or his brethren.

And Shobha De opines that with Lola Kutty the Mallus have arrived.

Enterprising burglers!

Rock star Luciano Ligabuie, Italy's best known pop performers was expected to perform at what was billed as one of Italy's biggest rock concerts.

While he was performing in front of some 200,000 fans his house was burgled by people sure in the knowledge he would not be home that night!!

No kissing - we are Saudi!

The King of Saudi Arabia has banned people from kissing his hand in greeting saying this gesture of respect is degrading, violates Islam and is alien to the Arab culture.

The monarch has asked his citizens to restrain from kissing the hands of anyone but their parents, adding only parents are worthy of such deference.

I am bit surprised about the 'alien to Arab culture' part. Grown men greeting each other with a kiss and a hug is so common here it is even part of protocol - two Emirs greet each other this way on the airport tarmac. When we were in Qatar the husband always baulked at attending the Ramadan dos because that's when he got kissed by a whole host of men!

Omanization & Vegetables

Apparently, business in Sohar is down.

In the days B.O. (Before Omanization) when grocery shops were run mostly by Indians, the shop keepers made regular visits to Sohar to buy fresh vegetables.

Since Omanization, the Omani shopkeepers have not been showing the same zeal towards fresh vegetables and so there is a glut and the farms in Sohar are feeling the pinch.

I am told the grocery shops are slowly getting converted into stores that sell just cigarettes, assorted snacks and soft drinks.

And I am told the main beneficiary of Omanization are the large supermarket chains because more and more people are forced to buy from them given the falling standards of the erstwhile grocery stores.

The result of this according to H is increased prices.

There is more to come, he mourns. Soon Omanization will apply to textiles as well. Be ready to fork out more for clothes.

H is an Omani who had leased out his premises and sponsored 2 Indians who ran a grocery shop. H got his monthly rations free of charge and a percentage of the earnings; the Indians made their money and all was hunky dory. Now with Omanization H is shutting shop. Omanization has hit H hard and H is an Omani.

Asked why he cannot continue with the same arrangement replacing the Indians with Omanis, the answer is an emphatic No. He does not trust Omais, he says!