Think Hadji’s a mystical character? He’s really not, and shouldn’t be thought of as such. Why? Check it out here.
- What was the inspiration for Hadji? Was he a paradigm of Eastern thought, or based on a friend in that hemisphere of the world?
I did have a great Pakistani friend at university, Tahir Attar. Educated in Europe at expensive private schools but retaining deep cultural roots. I believe, for example, that he entered an arranged marriage – quite happily. He was a perfect mix of East and West and I took a lot from him for Hadji. We did, of course, add an additonal dose of mysticism (for want of a better word), for dramatic reasons and in an attempt to keep the stories really open. (Minds, too, perhaps – but God forbid that we were proselytizing.) Yeah. Compare our Hadji with that moron in … oh, god, what was that silly robot movie? it will come to me. Or most of the silly sing-song morons which Hollywood makes of Asian Indians.
Clearly you have some knowledge of my own background – brought up in Zambia. (Tongue in cheek, Buzz, Stephanie and others said that I had a lot in common with Jonny – and, actually, I really did identify with our vision of him.) Not just in Zambia but deep in the bush. I grew up with Africans. I was an African, albeit white. When I went to Europe and, later, the US, I was stunned at the casual racism, the unthinking stereotyping, the sheer ignorance of other cultures. So, when it came to Hadji I was determined to make him real. Or as real as he could be in the context. Michael Benyaer really ‘got’ what we wanted to do with this character and that made it easier to ‘hear’ Hadji’s voice while writing. I wonder where Mike is now?
In fact, however pretentious it makes me seem, I wanted this authenticity in all the characters. That’s why we went for some rather ‘out there’ casting – and that’s why, of course, the succeeding producers undid everything and went safe. It’s pretty sad, and quite indicative of the xenophobia of our culture and the play-safe of the industry.
–JQ:TRA’s Peter Lawrence on re-developing Hadji’s character for the series
“[he] is one of the few roles for an ethnic actor that is not a bad guy. I mean, how many East Indian heroes have been on television? Hadji is for the sensitive kids out there. He is the outsider in all of us.”
–Michael Benyaer (Season One Hadji) on why he loved playing Hadji for the series
Articles
Maharajahs don’t live here anymore
What’s in a name, pt. 2 *or* Surnames have meanings, too
If only Sabu was still around…
Michael Benyaer on Hadji, representation in Hollywood
Magic and ethnicity *or* not every ethnic person has to be magical
Links
Wikipedia:Karnataka, government of Karnataka
Wikipedia: Jonny Quest (1960s)
I love this little shrine! ^_^
Thanks! Check back often; I’ll be diving into some heavy stuff
[...] seen through movies, cartoons, and comics. I already do this to a degree with a lot of my reviews, analysis, and essays on characters in books, comic books, movies, and cartoons. I plan on concentrating on [...]