Digging for Meaning

Just saw this campaign from Unicef done by JWT. It is called Poo2Loo. Apparently its been running for more than a year now with major focus on digital media. Who is it aimed at? It is in English. the styling in international. The setting is urban. probably Mumbai. The nearly 3 minute long video does not tell you anything new - why is it still a problem? why do people defecate in open? How can one help? All it does in those three entertaining minutes is elicit a nod from the upper class Indian who feels disgusted living in Indian cities. It reinforces disgust, without telling what is to be done about it. ' take the poo to the loo ' doesn't count because it doesn't mean anything. It does not feature the people who defecate at all. Leave alone empathy, there is no recognition of the other class. It is from a point of view of a class which does not see the other class of people, only their shit. The video merely bolsters cynicism towards India. It talks to the g...

saw ' pom poko '. Its a story of how an able, happy community of tanukis face their extinction in the face of rapid urbanisation that causes the loss of their homeland, their lifestyle and their food. Its really amazing how Japanese movie makers so empathetically voice dissent while fully cognizant of the futility of it all. The sense of capitulation at the climax of many such movies are scripted in a way to invoke not a sense of loss, but a sense of preservation of whatever small life, pride and identity is left. Under the mask of laughter, there is a vigorous attempt at forgetting the loss and making the most of the present. I wonder how deeply has Hiroshima affected the Japanese psyche, or does this sense of 'interal triumph in face of imminent capitulation' goes beyond Hiroshima, in their amazingly rich culture? ____ while thinking of this, got reminded of the Japanese response to the Tsunami in march 2011. Had read about their belief of ' wa wo mottte toutos...