Mothers, Sons and Amru Sani…

So in lieu of an actual post here are two of the most compelling articles I read today. I’m grateful to my old friend Tejaswini Niranjana for the first one about Amru Sani, an Indo-Jamaican singer who broke through the sugarcane curtain to the metropolitan circuit in the 50s. Absolutely fascinating…would love to know more about her.

Second, a totally revealing article about Indian mothers and their sons, by a young, would-be Bollywood star, rehearsing for an audition as an Indian mother figure. The thing is you could probably substitute Jamaican for Indian and find that the piece pretty much describes the love affair many tough Jamaican men have with their mamas…

So here enjoy. trust me, these are two gems…

Evidently, Sani didn’t do much to clear up the confusion. In various interviews, she claimed to have been born in Panama, to have grown up in India, to have been educated in Europe, and to have served as an airplane mechanic in England during World War II because she was too young to become a female pilot.

Amru Sani in Bombay

Perhaps the most credible explanation of Sani’s origins come from the Gleaner, published in Kingston, Jamaica. In 1943, the paper noted that Sani “was going to England shortly” to join the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force. The article listed her as “the only daughter of Mr. and Mrs. M. P. Sani of 10, Lundford Road, St. Andrew”, Jamaica. That would mean that Sani was probably the descendent of Indians shipped off to the West Indies to work as indentured labourers on the sugarcane plantations.

Those humble beginnings didn’t stop her forging a very respectable career for herself. In addition to her music, stage performances in New York, Paris and Rome, she appeared in at least three films: a spaghetti Western called Maracatumba . . . ma non è una rumba (Italy, 1949), The Naked Maja (1958), and John Huston’s The Bible: In the Beginning (1966). She also made several appearances on the Ed Sullivan television show, including in the episode in which Elvis Presley made his debut.

For more visit Tajmahal Foxtrot….
And now, read all about the inexplicable bond between some mothers and their sons:

A few days ago, a male friend shared with me the tremendous unease he felt at the news of his mother’s impending breast reduction surgery. “It’s not that she wants her breasts smaller or firmer that bothers me—it’s the thought of the surgeon’s hands all over them!” he exclaimed. His mother, also very close to me, had discussed the same matter with me earlier: “I really want to wear pretty bras like you girls can. I want to be able to wear dresses and blouses rather than always loose kurtas. But I haven’t told my son yet. I don’t know why, but I just feel so shy to tell him.”

I am trying to establish myself as an actress in Mumbai, so it was charming to hear a story about breast reduction rather than breast enlargement. But more importantly, I happened to have an upcoming audition for the role of a young woman who, resenting her husband because of his relationship with his mother, redirects all her affection towards her son. While this premise is hardly original, being neither married nor a mother myself, I realised I would have lots to gain in terms of characterisation by paying close attention to the mothers and sons around me.

For the rest of the article go here.

So that’s it for now! back soon-