Is it possible to sell Nonsense? This is the question I have been pondering for a while now. Well, there are quite a few interesting aspects to this question-what might be considered as nonsensical by one person might make perfect sense for someone else. I remember seeing an interesting TV show in which there are two people walking around a pole holding a white placard and shouting "We Protest" and when onlookers enquired, they said they were protesting the excessive wages their employers were paying them...soon there was a small crowd gathered in the place...one half was watching the proceedings and incredibly, the other half was circling the pole shouting with "We Protest". The anchor concluded the show saying, if you say something and say it long enough there will be people to beleive it!!! That line is really captivating...isnt it? "Saying something and saying it long enough....". I guess thats what most advertisers have been doing since time immemorial to us;). Here I would add one more requirement to doing this-KISS-Keep It Simple and Straight-forward. Let me give you even a greater proof which will prove to you beyond doubt that nonsese sells like hot cakes. At the beginning of this entry I was going to write some real crap and make sure that people read it....and here you are at the last line...and why do you frown when I say "Nonsese Sells".
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Nonsense sells. How many of u know or realise the catch word "Hoodibaba" of some bike ad? Actually, "Uribaaba" changed to "Hoodibaba". In most of North Indian languauges, the word "Uribaaba" is used to express surprise or convey thoughts like, "Oh my God". For a more apt example, I can quote u this in "Devdas" movie(Starring Sharukh, Madhuri & Aish), where Aish says, "Uribaaba".
ReplyDeleteBut I find many people who even own that particular brand bike don't know the meaning. But many use this word. So if some nonsense(I mean something not exactly comprehendable by people using it) sells if it is made to stay long enough.
P.S: There can b other meanings for "Hoodibaba" also. May be people assumed it & I just dindn't know it. In that case, inform me.
Sharma,
ReplyDelete>>if you say something and say it long enough there will >>be people to beleive it!!!
This is what prominent regional parties in our state has done, to capture power, using its powerful speakers, who let loose a series of tales about our own state, language, religion and its attachment with the country. They kept repeating it so strongly that they came to power and ruined a quarter-of-a-century's development of our beloved state.
How about modifying the question a bit... Does Nonsense need to sell? Think of it as how selling nonsense affects human community in general. Let this be a no nonsense speak.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the actual topic, Arvind how many people you believe will read your blog in the month of January if you keep writing something really nonsense till 31st December? What I am saying is Nonsense sells... once... twice...probably for a third time... but not always. Prove me I am wrong :)
Thx,
Arun
This is a reply to Fathima’s response. I don’t know what “Hoodibaba” means. But “Hoodibaba” is CATCHY and that is absolutely no nonsense. You don’t need to know the meaning of it especially if it is related to music. How many of us like the song “Uyiren Uyirae” sung by Kay Kay in the album “Kaaka Kaaka”. I love it. But ask me what language is “Omakazeeya Vaahiyaala…” I say I don’t know and I will also say I don’t care to know what language it is or what its meaning is. That doesn’t mean Harris Jeyaraj has composed nonsense music and nonsense sells. Nonsense with respect music makes sense because
ReplyDelete“Heard melodies are sweet, those unheard are sweeter”.
Anything that’s catchy will attract ones attention. What I believe is this catchy concept can be blindly accepted in music. For others say catchy ideas, catchy promises etc. we need to think about the feasibilities and the consequences before terming them as nonsense or not. My point here is ‘nonsense’ with respect to music is not those that are catch/you hear it for the first time (I am talking about music that appeals catchy to oneself) because the chemistry in music is totally different for most other expressions. Music is more emotionally attached and more importantly it defies logic. So nonsense has a different meaning altogether in music. Correct me if I am wrong.
This is a reply to Arun K's comment. The meaning of nonsense differs depending on the perspective of each individual. Thats y I have clearly stated that, I meant " something not exactly comprehendable by people using it". But yes, music is an exception.
ReplyDeleteI dont understand...why is music an excpetion? Is it because nonsense sells in music or nonsense doesn't sell in music or nothing's nonsense in music or nothing makes sense in music..Arun and Fathima, clarify.
ReplyDeleteP.S : Non sense does indeed sell. U know, The Alchemist is a huge success, I am told ;)
Prasanna, nothing is nonsense in music. As the saying goes, "Anything is fair in war and love" , "Nonsense is fair in music".
ReplyDeleteAnd regard to Alchemist, it is something one will understand if they relate it to their own lives. Reading it detachedly, just like any other book, won't help.
Fathi,
ReplyDelete"Non-sense" - depends. No use in fighting over that.
Baghu,
I know music means more to you than Alchemist means to me. So forgive me if I, a music illiterate, have insulted you by attaching "non-sense" with music.
Thanks,
Parthi.
Parthi, I am not fighting.
ReplyDeleteIn music, even nonsense becomes sense. Such is the power of music.