Nostalgia and the Nineties Kid

Remember when…

Of course you do! You are a millennial, aren't you!

We spend so much time making fun of boomers who say “back in my day..”, it takes some time to realize that we are doing the same with our “Remember when..”

But who can blame us? Nostalgia is a heady drug, making us feel warm, cosy, and happy even when everything is burning around us. (An exaggeration... but is it?!)

Is it any wonder that nostalgia marketing is a big deal now? Every movie, ad, trailer, and product is trying to remind us of something from our childhood, and the saps that we are, we are just lapping it all up. 

And, to be frank, I love it.

I love nostalgia. There are things I do that make no sense simply because it reminds me of older days. But I am also capable of stepping back and looking at the larger picture, and I have a few observations.

The KTV hypothesis

You know how when we had no OTT, and CD shops were few and CD players fewer, we just watched what played on KTV? What movie? Who knows! 

We would start watching in the middle, guess half the storyline, and sit through ridiculous songs.

It wasn’t in our hands. And that was the BEST PART. 

One of the reasons why we love the “olden” times is because we didn't have to make choices constantly. Now, I have to choose a device, then an OTT platform, then a language, then the format, and then a movie/show. And I am already exhausted and my dinner is done. 

When we had Sun music and FM radio, they played what they wanted and we just went with it. Easy.

I want it that easy again. 

Can I please be allowed to not make a choice? Can I please just watch Anandam/Samudram* again? 

The Soan Papdi paradox

There was this soan papdi thing that was sold from a huge glass jar outside our school. You could get it for 2 or 3 rupees, a decent quantity of sugary strings in a paper cone. I have had this almost every day when I was in 9th standard. 

I can’t even imagine eating it now! 

It’s a great memory, but I don’t think I can handle that cloying sweetness anymore. It was a taste that was specific to that time. Great then, not so much now.

This is true for other (not so sweet) things too. 

For example, Padayappa is a movie I love - the sheer massyness - but nowadays when I listen to “Pombala pombalaya irukkanum” I just wanna rip my ears off.

There were just too many angry (but righteous) men and helpless (but sexy in the songs) women and, of course, rampant misogyny. 

This is not to say I don’t watch and enjoy these movies. I am just glad that we know better now. 

It's not just the films. Tom and Jerry were a family favorite, but when my kids watch it now, I realize there is a lot of hitting. A LOT. 
And why do the parents always die in Disney films? I spent the entire weekend after a Friday movie night helping my child wrap his head around the fact that Mufasa had died!

Here's a lil dose of trauma!

The Dial-up connection conclusion

Do you remember the sound dial-up internet made when it was connecting? Do you realize we are never going to hear it again?

I can get rid of my OTTs and just rely on a cable connection, but I can never experience Panchathanthiram again, and that is life! 

Nostalgia is so beautiful because some things are only in our memory and with each passing year, it becomes a little sweeter!

Like, imagine if I could tell someone, sorry, you can’t call me because I am on the Internet. It's a dream come true!! 

There were long train journeys I have taken immersed in my book because nobody could reach me to ask about my ETA, and if the train was late, and if I had checked the app yet. 

The best part about growing old is having memories to go back to. 

On the rare days that I take the local train, I don’t sit. I stand near the doorway like I used to when I was an intern visiting my grandparents. I have a playlist especially for that too. 

My legs hurt. They aren’t really a fan of this nostalgia trip, but my heart is happy! 

It says, remember when you were in college and didn’t know if your career or love life would ever work out? 

-----

*Do any of you have an easy way to remember which is Anandam and which is Samudram?

P.S. Admit it, Lakshmi was the real female lead of Padayappa.

P.P.S We also watched Finding Nemo (dead mom, lost child), Ice Age (lost child), Good Dinosaur (dead dad) and Tangled (locked up girl, evil mom). 😐

A final GIF to lay the nostalgia real thick!