From ‘Why pick on Indian accent for cheap laughs on radio?’ 7 April 2010 ST Forum
The (Class 95 FM) deejays seemed to find it very funny to mimic the way Indians speak (during Harvey Norman traffic updates). And they have done it lots of times.
In fact, for most of Singapore’s modern history, radio deejays who are not of Indian descent have enjoyed doing mock-Indian accents on English radio.
The defining factor is that I have never heard radio deejays on English stations mock Chinese or Malay accents.
Bold assumption, but it’s highly unlikely that the Chinese/Hongkong accent was never mocked on radio. Think of all the ads poking fun of kungfu masters or Confucius dispensing wise words. And is Ravi Veloo suggesting that it is fine if an Indian exaggerates the Indian accent but not other races?If laughs were cheap they would soon wear themselves out, like cross-dressing. Accent mocking, the bread and butter of comedy whether you like it or not, is here to stay. Unlike the scourge of mispronunciation, accent mimicking is relatively harmless.
What would Veloo think of ambassador to local music Dick Lee nonsense lampooning of the accent in the Mustapha video at 2:45?
And you don’t hear Chinese complaining about Chandhi Chowk’s mutilation of the kungfu culture either. It also doesn’t matter which race does it, as evidenced by the immortal parody that is Mind Your Language.
More accusations of discrimination over pastry here
Filed under: 2010, Advertisements, Fake accents, Local radio DJs, Racism Tagged: | Chandhi Chowk in China, Class 95 FM, Dick Lee, Fake accents, Harvey Norman, indian, indian accent, Local radio DJs, Mind Your Language, Mustapha, Racism, ravi veloo, stereotyping
