Sunil Vijayapala, Oxley, Australia

With initial disinclination to watch this movie in a cinema hall as we, who live in this lucky country, ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ pay about 50-100% more for a movie ticket, (or to any other commodity) compared with other developed countries,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  we finally purchased the DVD and watch it at home.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Wonder how many westerners are aware that the Sanskrit word Avatar meansƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ‘descent from heaven’ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ but however the movie certainly did not depict this, rather it portrayed an astral body referenced in most eastern religions.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  As you watch along you realise the director has taken a BOLD step to expose the common theme of exploitation of technologically advanced powerful people over weak people and culminating in humiliation defeat and withdrawal of the invaders.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ IsnƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t this the story of the hegemonic Americans and the British in modern era exploiting land, resources, people, their culture and spirituality?ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  No wonder the movie did not win any top honours at Oscar night as it hit hard the souls of Americans.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  The Best Movie and Director Oscar awards went to a mediocre movie showing heroic Americans.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The story of Avatar ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ goes like this.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  A megalomaniac say we name him by an acronym GWBƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  goes on ordering his commander and foot soldiers, say we call them Salties, the pawns used for invasion, to plunder and destroy a habitat ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ of some primitive people living on a planet in a place called Pandora to mine a hypothetical mineral worth millions.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Constantly we hear words ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”SavagesƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢, ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”MonkeysƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ (sound familiar?) used by the ignomarous GWB and giving orders to kill inhabitants whoever who attempt to defend their territory.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  The plan of the invaders was to send a human who apparently is transformed by superior technology to mimic the primitive native peoplesƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ morphology, to study them and persuade them to leave the area where they inhabit so that the exploiters begin digging for the mineral.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Unfortunately the plan backfires as the chosen human realises the mistake he and his people are making and begins siding with the primitive people and eventually waging war against the invaders and win.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Ironically the commander is killed by not bullets but by primitive arrows piercing his heart.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Invasion of Africa, Asia, Australia, Middle East, Vietnam, Iraq and Afganistan in the last 200 years are written all over in this movie.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  The so called technologically advanced Americans and British waging war against less advantaged primitive people, going forƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Gold, other minerals and Oil, displacingƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  people, plundering the environment, killing and murdering children, women indiscriminately, destroying infrastructure, destroying their culture and spirituality and finally occupying land and in recent times withdrawing in humiliation after getting a battering from so called primitive people!ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  The movie is far closer to depict the carnage caused by Americans during the Iraq war than any other war.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Although the makers of the movie failed to win an Oscar for Best Picture/Director, they made a trillion and did laugh all the way to the bank.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Just to put on perspective, if a million is the distance from where you sit on a sofa to the ceiling light, a trillion is the distance to the moon and thatƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s how much they made, showing American lunacy!