Can you relate to me?

 

Eddie Murphy and Cliff Curtis in A Thousand Words ( Image via fandango.com) 

Personally, I have never been a big fan of movies starring Eddie Murphy. The last movie I remember seeing with him in it was Daddy Day Care years ago. However, I am pretty sure I will go watch A Thousand Words. Why? Because there is an Indian character in the movie! Cliff Curtis (who is Maori and not an Indian in real life) is playing ‘Dr. Sinja,’ the role of a spiritual guru who will have a Bodhi tree rise up in ‘Jack McCall’s’ back yard (Eddie Murphy). Same thing happened to me with Immortals and Planet of the Aps. I have no interest in Science Fiction or Greek Sagas but my husband was able to drag me to the movies for those films because, (yes you guessed it right) it starred the Indian actress Freida Pinto! That leads me back to the subject of what I call relate-ability, to be able to relate to or identify with someone in a personal way that you make an emotional connection. A lot of times, we do not make any friends or a connection with people who are different, especially culturally different from us because we have no relate-ability to them.

For instance, when my husband was stationed in Kuwait, he used to supervise Afghani and Pakistani cooks. After their work was done the cooks would cook their own meals. The curries they cooked reminded my husband of the Jamaican food and curries he grew up eating, especially the goat curry. My husband’s genuine interest in the Afghan and Pakistani cooks’ food made him more cordial and sympathetic in the cooks’ eyes and definitely improved their work relationship. Before he showed interest in their food he was just an American soldier supervising them with a superficial work relationship. Fast forward to a few years later, qua si the same thing happened again. My husband now working in America, only became friends with one of his colleagues after showing him my last name on an envelope. The colleague was very surprised to see a Pakistani/Indian last name there and even more so had overlooked the fact that his colleague (my husband) was married to someone from his region (btw I have a very common Pakistani/Indian name). And yes you guessed it right, the colleague is Indian.

So next time you are facing someone or something you think you have nothing in common or you cannot relate to - look closer and be open. You might just have something in common with them or something that will spark your or their interest. Or be the SPARK. And in the end you will come out with a deeper knowledge and insight about the other. It’s all about relate-ability! Even though, I resisted Science Fiction and Greek Sagas for a long time, Freida was my spark to go to the movies. Now, I at least know what the epic movies are about and I loved them both.

Can you relate to me?

 

Freida Pinto & James Franco in The Rise of the Planet of the Aps (Image via moviefanatic.com)

Freida Pinto in Immortals (Image via fashioncirqle.com)