Hangover II: Hanging on Ribaldry

‘Never Cheat Your Audience….give them what they expect from you’….A maxim Manmohan Desai lived by…using his immortal lost & found formula….with mother in centre and Amitabh Bachchan everywhere else….and audience lapped it up again and again and again….but why am I talking about MKD when writing about one of the most ribald comedies I have come across. Hangover II delivers exactly the same fare as did Hangover I, but with different ingredients and needless to say a lot more spice.
It is the same story of a member of the ‘wolfpack’ getting married…a bachelor party….rather a pre-marriage bonfire drinks going wrong…and the protagonists piecing the jigsaw together, not under the glittering skyline of Las Vegas, but the seedier underbelly of Bangkok. The charm of the movie is not about the plot but the ingenuity the writers and directors have employed to unfold the same sequence of events with the same set of core protagonists. The plot is so identical….that the final piece of the jigsaw for the missing character and even the cathartic outburst at the climax is by the same character as in the first movie. Hangover is a classic example of a comic thriller genre….and takes the concept of ribaldry to a greater heights…though not as subtle as the Carry On Series did….but then subtlety is a British art….not an American sensibility. Although Hangover II managed to reinvent its staleness of a concept by increasing the grossness….it would surely be interesting to see if it develops as a franchise, without altering its basic premise of revelry going wrong and hanging on to its characteristic bawdiness.

Miracle on River Han: Soul of Seoul

For a country which is still technically at war with its northern sibling....they can only be called siblings...India and Pakistan may be cousins but Koreas are siblings divided by self aggrandising Geo-politics, than ethno-religious chisms...it is amazing to see how the country has galloped ahead economically looking beyond the insecurities of a conflicted situation, especially when one considers the deplorable conditions that the Republic of ...yes, that’s what the official name is, not South Korea...started its journey as a modern nation state...as a victim of the first of many skirmishes of the erstwhile and an impending superpower….its story is a miracle indeed.

An opportunity to visit this modern incarnation of an ancient city came knocking last year, as the first ever DTZ Asia Pacific Valuation Conference was graciously hosted by DTZ Korea. The Incheon airport, which is the international gateway of the country...and it seems Japan and China aren’t considered international, since some flights to these countries continue to operate from the old Gimpo airport which serves the domestic traffic...just overwhelms by its sheer size, as indicated by the fact that to move from the boarding platforms to the terminal building, one needs to take an underground Metro.

As it is true with most of the newly built Airports of these proverbial Tiger economies...the connectivity to the capital city of Seoul is multi-modal and supremely fast, however, the best way is to take a bus or if the overseas travel allowance isn’t a concern, then a taxi is suitable, too. This gives an opportunity to view and admire the entire riverfront of Han through the hinterland to the bustling metropolis, which is one of the most densely populated capital cities of the world. The serenity of open fields and desolate heights suddenly gives way to the clover-leaved bridges and streams of automobiles jostling to enter Seoul... all reminders of what the miracle on river Han is all about.

The city has multiple business centres, and not just the PBD/SBD variety, but very distinctly known by its administrative division. The pride of Central Business District going to area between Gwanghwamun and Seoul City Hall to Namdaemun, the old city gate, which like our CBD of NCR, is home to government offices as well as global and domestic companies, including financial institutions. Followed by the CBD, is the Gangnam Business District (GBD), known for offices of IT companies and large retail malls and flagship stores. Lastly, the Yeoido Business District (YBD) is the newly developed financial district, where the Seoul International Financial centre is being developed.

The trip to CBD is just not about the tall skyscrapers and the economic might of Korean Chaebols, rather two instances of the esteemed value in which the cultural heritage and history is held by the Korean society and administration. The amazing conservation work on the 600 year old Gyeongbok Palace, belies the massive destruction it had to endure at the hands of Japanese occupation forces during the early part of 20th century, with 40% of its original buildings having been restored by the end of 2009, a result of a 40 year restoration programme launched in1989 to rebuild structures destroyed during the Japanese occupation of Korea.

However, the rebuilding programme is not confined only to elimination of the signs of colonial exploitation but also correcting the excesses of economic growth, as evident by the restoration of the Cheonggyecheon stream. This 14th century drainage system got lost under concrete while developing the new elevated highway by 1976, a tell-tale sign of the rapid industrial growth and modernisation that Seoul witnessed on its way to becoming the proverbial economic miracle. The stream was restored to its lost glory and is now a sought after tourist attraction, with guided tour along the stream highlighting each of the twenty bridges, and the themes associated with them, like butterfly in flight and harmony of the past and future. All these in stark contrast to what we have allowed our Red Forts and Chandni Chowks to become.

The essence of restoration of Korean history goes beyond the sheen of a guided toruist destination to conservation of its spiritual heritage, too. In the bustling business district of Gangnam, next to the COEX mall and flanked by the manifestations of accentuated consumerism in form of casinos and luxury goods stores, lies the Buddhist temple of Bongeunsa, housing nearly 3,500 Buddhist scriptures. Every morning there is a stream of devotees who kneel down in one of the numerous prayer halls, chanting the scriptures in a rhythmic trance and meditating with the sole objective of connecting with the enlightened self. Just a mile away from a street famous for its cosmetic surgery outlets offering the Nips and Tucks of Pamela Anderson variety and the Korean version of Silicon Valley, the Tehran-Ro, boasting investment of more than half of Korea's venture capital approximately $200,000,000, presence of such a serene and spiritual island could come across as a perverted dichotomy, but this is what, may be, Seoul is all about....

....the soul of a city, uncorrupted by the glitz and glamour of a 21st century consumerist metropolis, deeply rooted into its cultural and spiritual heritage.