In India no one asks me how it feels to be black: Beatty
Afro-American writer Paul Beatty, whose novel The Sellout — a satire on what racism has done to black Americans that brought him the Man Booker, feels more at ease in India as no one asks him how it feels to be a person of colour.
“One of the things that’s so nice here is we are not starting from square one. It could be me being brown, could be a bunch of stuff. But there is a nice comfort and I don’t find myself having to explain stuff unnecessarily. And (when) I do have to explain, it comes from a genuine place. I feel more comfortable here because no one says to me, ‘Paul what does it feel to be black’ (sic.),” said Beatty.
Beatty’s fourth novel, is a hard-hitting comic take on a young man’s isolated upbringing and the race trial that sends him to the Supreme Court. It challenges the sacred tenets of the constitution, the urban life, the civil rights movement, the father-son relationship and so on.
Asked about his views on humour, Beatty said the emotion is sometimes used as a tool to shield oneself from one’s own ugly reality and, in that way, everything that is funny and light is vulnerable.
“Sometimes you can use humour to shield yourself. So it’s everything else but yourself. So for me, things that are funny or good are very vulnerable,” he added.
Rapper Fazilpuria is on a high after his recent chartbuster song Goosebump was picturised on Jackie Chan. But what really gives him a kick is to perform in front of a live audience, and even better if it’s in the Capital. “Performing in Delhi is always a pleasure. The feedback that I get here is amazing; Kyunki Dilli hai dil walo ki. People love to party and know how to rock the dance floor. And since Delhi is adjacent to Haryana, people also understand Haryanvi and enjoy my performance, ” says the Haryanvi rapper.
Fazilpuria, who is from Gurgaon, is known to have put Haryanvi rap in the mainstream. He says that his favourite Bollywood actor is Kangana Ranaut, who has portrayed a Haryanvi character in Tanu Weds Manu Returns (2015). He says, “Haryanvi has fun undertones and is entertaining; sabko sunne mein achi lagti hai. Although the accent is not easy to learn, Kangana did a great job.”
The 26-year-old musician suggests that the state (Haryana) that is working on making sports facilities even better, should also have a film city to promote artists. “There are so many talented artists here, and it’ll be great if a film city is made in Gurgaon, since it’s a developing area with so much untapped talent.”
Meanwhile, the rapper is collaborating with American rapper Pitbull for a party track. He says, “Every project I do, I put my heart in it. Since it’s a big project I don’t want to compromise on anything.”