Japanese follows English/日本語は英語の後に記載
Hello, this is Nisreen!
I finally started my own podcast!
In this podcast, I will share my thoughts about different art forms, such as films, books, paintings, performing art, etc. in English and Japanese.
Please click the link below to listen to the first episode. If you have any thoughts and comments, please let me know from the contact form as well! The podcast is now available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, too! You can also read the full script below.
こんにちは、ニスリーンです！ついに私、自分のポッドキャストを始めました！
このポッドキャストでは、映画や本、絵やダンスなど、様々な形のアートについて、日本語と英語両方で、お話しています。エピソードは以下から是非お聴きください。連絡フォームより感想など教えていただけると、大変励みになります。Apple Podcastsからも聞いて頂けます。 Spotifyからもどうぞ。
<English>
<日本語>
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-English Script （英語スクリプト）
Hello, I’m Nisreen. Welcome to the first episode of my podcast.
I’m a dancer, and artist, and psychology student currently based in the US. I’m originally from Japan.
Today’s theme is, “How the film RRR changed my life!”
This topic is closely is also related to the reason why I started this podcast. RRR is an Indian Telugu-language action film set in 1920, directed by S. S. Rajamouli. It’s a fictional story based on two real-life freedom fighters. The film achieved has seen a huge universal success around the world; its music won an Academy Best Original Song Award 2022. My home country, Japan, wasn’t an was no exception to this sensation. According to Wikipedia, during since its release in Japan the film has collected ¥ one billion gross or approximately $ 66 million, thus becoming the highest-grossing Indian film in Japan.
To be honest, I’m usually not a fan of those huge commercial films. Why, then, has this blockbuster with the buff actors inspired me so much? I will explain five important changes RRR made in my life. No spoilers:, so don’t worry even if you haven’t watched the film.
1. It helped me handle life life’s unpredictable shifts.
The story of the film is rather orthodox,-- —two adversaries becoming friends. But the beautiful simplicity allowed me to wholeheartedly enjoy watching the charismatic two charismatic heroes. Yes! The two heroes- Ram played by Ram Charan, and Bheem played by NTR. Jr, are just dreamy and irresistible. They are literally ‘superheroes’, with supernatural abilities that allow them to do incredible things like lifting iron bars with their bare hands, or fighting off 100,000 people enemies alone.
Not only that; these heroes are extremely expressive. They freely shed big tears for their friends, and for justice. These pure emotions were truly moving, especially because the film borrows from India's two major Hindu mythological epics, Ramayana and Mahabharata. The mythic nature of the story made me feel totally engrossed and forget my day-to-day problems.
Some background,-- —I moved from Japan to the US in December 2022, only two months after RRR was released in Japan. As you may know, relocation is always stressful, even more so if it’s international. On top of that, I was also planning to have my wedding party right before I left. Between all these bits and pieces, I went to the cinema [to see the film?] four times in Japan, just to immerse myself in the spectacular entertainment. I know some enthusiastic movie fans would say ‘four times are not that many!’ But to me, especially at that time, it was a lot. Having those moments of to completely forgetting about packing and paperwork truly helped me handle the biggest life shifts I’ve ever experienced.
2. It encouraged me to engage more with visual art.
Painting has always been my second nature to me since I was small. However, after a while, I had slowed down my work a little bit, especially in terms of people portraits. I’d been painting more abstract and animals both for self-expression. And for commissions. On the first day of watching RRR, however, I felt the strong urge to capture the beauty of human emotions, such as Bheem’s kindness and Ram’s inner conflicts.
Since then, I’ve been practicing painting people more, and shared about 18 pictures about RRR online at this point. What was truly heart-warming was the amount of support I received from the fan community, especially from India. I was still on X, then known as Twitter in 2022. The official RRR account kindly reposted my fan art, which led to the warm responses from the movie fans worldwide. This reminded me of the simple joy of sharing art with others. Fan art may be exist in a different context to fine art, which I’d been more familiar with. However, there is an overlap in the core principles. It’s about sharing. This positive experience encouraged me to use my art for helping good causes as well, such as illustrations for a history lecture that depict friendship and rivalry between Chinese space programmes and the Japanese space project I did for a history lecture,. I also did and artwork that illustrates the legal issues Japanese women face for an UN conference. I also joined a local art exhibit in the US, which made me feel more included in the local community.
When I was an art university student in Tokyo, there were moments of burning out. Now I feel much more motivated to improve my art skills, not only for myself, but for sharing with others.
3. It allowed me to make friends across borders.
This is connected to the point 2. Through my fan art, I made friends with other fans in Japan, India, and other elsewhere! Thanks to the technology, I even had a made a You Tube fan girl talk chat video with a wonderful friend, Sumino in Tokyo. If you’re interested in the talk, please have a look from the link I share in the description! I think it makes extra sense that RRR is a film about a true friendship that overcomes any obstacles, because it also gave me more chances to enjoy beautiful friendships worldwide.
4. It encouraged me to participate in an Indian art form.
I started learning a beautiful classical Indian dance form called Manipuri last summer. The dance form originates in Northeast India. For more details, please have a look at my blog post about the dance from in the description below. Even before RRR, I’ve always been enjoying Indian dance shows, paintings, and books. However, I think the positivity I gained through the film fan community encouraged me to finally initiate the learning process of my favourite dance form before too late.
5. It made me go back to the cinema.
Even before moving, I had been alienated from the cinema since I graduated from the university. Maybe because I have been preoccupied with work, and I have been content with streaming services such as Netflix. However, RRR reminded me of the excitement you can only experience in the cinema. After I left the theater, I felt like I lived another time with Bheem and Ram, and witnessed their friendship in real life. I believe the exquisite music and cinematography allowed me to experience such intense emotions, not to mention the excellent performance by the actors.
Now living in a small town in the US, going to a cinema is an essential entertainment for my husband and me. I also realised that watching more films helps me have conversations with local people here.
That’s it! Overall. My life has become much fuller thanks to RRR, which has been a the great cultural bridge.
If you have any thoughts and comments, you’re more than welcome to let me know! Thank you so much for listening. I’ll speak to you again soon. Goodbye fore now!
Related Links(関連リンク）
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