Badmash.org
Encyclopedia
Badmash is a Hindi
word that means "naughty". Badmash.org hosts animations, sketches and video clips. Their weekly email and print-media newsletters reach over a million people. Their works have a mix of political and social satire. It was started by three friends, Sandeep Sood, Nimesh Patel and Sanjay Shah.
Their weekly South Asian-themed animations — like an Indian spoof of The Simpsons
opening theme, nicknamed The Singhsons — draw millions of visitors to the website. Their success has helped them earn consulting work for MTV
, New Line Cinema
and Sony
.
Their comic strip features regular characters. The regular characters include Raju, one of the comic strip creators who is a Gujarati-American
Hindu, his sister Beti, his traditional grandmother, his mom, his belligerent dad and his Sikh Punjabi friend who is also one of the comic strip creators. Beti also has a Desi friend named Meena. Also, there is an old Sikh
taxicab driver and two culturally-removed young Punjabi-American party boys named Motu and Chotu and Raju's dark skinned friend named Vivek.
The comic strip deals with racial issues involving Indian American
s in the United States. Some strips deal with South Asians being accused of terrorism. Others involve White America's misconception and intolerance about India, Hinduism
, and Indian American
s which usually are confrontational. The misconceptions dealt with include negative stereotypes created by the Simpsons
and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
. A few have Raju and Beti's interracial relationships with whites of the opposite sex. Some strips involve Indian social dances and Indian social pressures to only marry other Indians. It deals with some larger political issues. It comments on Bobby Jindal
, Sonia Gandhi
, President Bush
, and Mahatma Gandhi
.
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
word that means "naughty". Badmash.org hosts animations, sketches and video clips. Their weekly email and print-media newsletters reach over a million people. Their works have a mix of political and social satire. It was started by three friends, Sandeep Sood, Nimesh Patel and Sanjay Shah.
Their weekly South Asian-themed animations — like an Indian spoof of The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
opening theme, nicknamed The Singhsons — draw millions of visitors to the website. Their success has helped them earn consulting work for MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
, New Line Cinema
New Line Cinema
New Line Cinema, often simply referred to as New Line, is an American film studio. It was founded in 1967 by Robert Shaye and Michael Lynne as a film distributor, later becoming an independent film studio. It became a subsidiary of Time Warner in 1996 and was merged with larger sister studio Warner...
and Sony
Sony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
.
Their comic strip features regular characters. The regular characters include Raju, one of the comic strip creators who is a Gujarati-American
Indian American
Indian Americans are Americans whose ancestral roots lie in India. The U.S. Census Bureau popularized the term Asian Indian to avoid confusion with Indigenous peoples of the Americas who are commonly referred to as American Indians.-The term: Indian:...
Hindu, his sister Beti, his traditional grandmother, his mom, his belligerent dad and his Sikh Punjabi friend who is also one of the comic strip creators. Beti also has a Desi friend named Meena. Also, there is an old Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
taxicab driver and two culturally-removed young Punjabi-American party boys named Motu and Chotu and Raju's dark skinned friend named Vivek.
The comic strip deals with racial issues involving Indian American
Indian American
Indian Americans are Americans whose ancestral roots lie in India. The U.S. Census Bureau popularized the term Asian Indian to avoid confusion with Indigenous peoples of the Americas who are commonly referred to as American Indians.-The term: Indian:...
s in the United States. Some strips deal with South Asians being accused of terrorism. Others involve White America's misconception and intolerance about India, Hinduism
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
, and Indian American
Indian American
Indian Americans are Americans whose ancestral roots lie in India. The U.S. Census Bureau popularized the term Asian Indian to avoid confusion with Indigenous peoples of the Americas who are commonly referred to as American Indians.-The term: Indian:...
s which usually are confrontational. The misconceptions dealt with include negative stereotypes created by the Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is a 1984 American adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg. It is the second film in the Indiana Jones franchise and prequel to Raiders of the Lost Ark . After arriving in India, Indiana Jones is asked by a desperate village to find a mystical stone...
. A few have Raju and Beti's interracial relationships with whites of the opposite sex. Some strips involve Indian social dances and Indian social pressures to only marry other Indians. It deals with some larger political issues. It comments on Bobby Jindal
Bobby Jindal
Piyush "Bobby" Jindal is the 55th and current Governor of Louisiana and formerly a member of the United States House of Representatives. He is a member of the Republican Party....
, Sonia Gandhi
Sonia Gandhi
Sonia Gandhi is an Italian-born Indian politician and the President of the Indian National Congress, one of the major political parties of India. She is the widow of former Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi...
, President Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
, and Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...
.