The British royal family’s cuddly makeover has a lesson for our politicians

Kolkata is often referred to as the last outpost of the British Empire. Ian Jack once wrote Guardian that two things connect Kolkata and London – “the first is an expensive property and the second is the institution once known as the gentlemen’s club” with a dress code that “though they have stripped off the waistbands, visitors One has to think twice before setting foot in one.” A friend who belongs to a reputed gentlemen’s club in London is not as much at home as his counterparts in Kolkata. He can do Bengal Club, Calcutta Club and Tollygunge Club in one day and wear the right clothes for all of them. And the officials of these luxurious clubs KolkataTickling pink at the attention of a true Londoner, she never fails to roll out the frisky red carpet to welcome her.

It seems like a personal disgrace to Her Majesty that Kolkata Queen has been so careless about her Platinum Jubilee. This is a city that created the corona message during the pandemic and the football message during the FIFA World Cup. Kolkata has very few Big Bens and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has vowed to make the city another London. Even more famously, she became the only Chief Minister who could say like a nursery rhymes pussycat that she had gone to London to see the Queen. Technically she saw Prince Andrew but Buckingham Palace tea is Buckingham Palace tea.

message is missing

Prince Andrew has since hardened off grace. But it would be appropriate for the Culture Department of the Government of West Bengal to accept Platinum Jubilee anyhow. They could have made a short film where Rani meets a beloved Bengali comic character like Handa Bhoda or Jatayu and they give her a jubilee message. And she revealed that she always carries a little message in her handbag.

“Corgis have always been a part of Queen Elizabeth’s public persona. But a CGI bear can be manipulated to pull heart strings in a way a real corgis cannot”

It will certainly be a tribute to the hugely popular video of Paddington Bear at Buckingham Palace presenting a marmalade sandwich to the Queen and thanking her for serving her. Paddington is particularly bummed as he sips straight to the teapot. this is a wrong move but cute as opposed to off-color wrong move As the late Duke of Edinburgh was famous for, the death toll at Jallianwala Bagh was “exaggerated”. But it also shows a royal family eager to give their image a striking makeover rather than the cucumber-coolness that has been its trademark. Although it is not clear whether the real winner here is the Queen or Paddington. A Walt Disney executive told daily mail, “That skit was worth at least £200 million in free publicity (for Paddington), probably more.” A Queen cameo in 2012 with Daniel Craig’s James Bond caused a stir ahead of the London Olympics, but in 2022, after the devastation of a pandemic, Buckingham Palace was clearly required to be at Her Majesty’s service as something more and friendlier. was required.

watch movies of 2017 Victoria and Abdul I was intrigued by how Queen Victoria’s real job of scribe Abdul was finding a man-sized plush, fitting for a queen who could lift the spirits of a dismayed monarch. Now a real plush has been brought in to make the sun shine on the royal family, even as it has set over most of the British Empire.

Pets on Statues

It is well known that pets can soften the image of even the most scandalous dictators. Daisy Rockwell is in the news recently for winning the International Booker for the translation of Shree with Gitanjali Shree. sand tomb, is also an artist and a delightful series on dictators and their pets, the kind of fluffy Axis of Evil. In it, Vladimir Putin visits his poodle Tosya while Pervez Musharraf hangs out with his Pekinese. Apparently, Benazir Bhutto once told an interviewer that the biggest difference between him and Musharraf was that she was a cat person and he was a dog person.

Kolkata’s Big Ben

That’s why it became big news when Donald Trump became the first US president since Andrew Johnson (1865-69) not to have a pet in the White House. George Washington had a parrot named Snipe, Abraham Lincoln had goats named Nani and Nanako, and even the famous dour Richard Nixon had a cocker spaniel named Checkers.

Corgis have always been a part of Queen Elizabeth’s public persona. But a CGI bear can be manipulated to pull heart strings in a way a real corgis can’t. And therein lies a lesson for our own media-savvy politicians. Invite a sweet plush over for tea and for the price of a marmalade sandwich (or message) you can achieve public goodwill beyond your wildest dreams. It’s a lot easier than building giant statues and pouring soft power into them.

I at least expected the Platinum Jubilee Queen message.

Kolkata is often referred to as the last outpost of the British Empire. Ian Jack once wrote in The Guardian that two things connect Kolkata and London – “the first being an expensive property and the second being the institution once known as the gentlemen’s club” with a dress code that “while they wore waistbands”. yet make the visitor think twice before setting foot in one.” A friend who belongs to a prestigious gentlemen’s club in London, is not as much at home as his counterparts in Kolkata. He can do Bengal Club, Calcutta Club and Tollygunge Club in one day and wear the right clothes for all of them. And the office-bearers of these luxurious clubs in Kolkata, tickling pink at the attention of a true Londoner in London, welcome him. To lay the red carpet.

It seems like a personal disgrace to Her Majesty that Kolkata Queen has been so careless about her Platinum Jubilee. This is a city that created the corona message during the pandemic and the football message during the FIFA World Cup. Kolkata also has a small Big Ben and the state’s Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has vowed to make the city another London. Even more famously, she became the only Chief Minister who could say like a nursery rhymes pussycat that she had gone to London to see the Queen. Technically she saw Prince Andrew but Buckingham Palace tea is Buckingham Palace tea.

Prince Andrew has since hardened off grace. But it would be appropriate for the Culture Department of the Government of West Bengal to accept Platinum Jubilee anyhow. They could have made a short film where Rani meets a beloved Bengali comic character like Handa Bhoda or Jatayu and delivers her a jubilee message. And she revealed that she always carries a little message in her handbag.

It will certainly be a tribute to the hugely popular video of Paddington Bear at Buckingham Palace presenting a marmalade sandwich to the Queen and thanking her for serving her. Paddington is particularly bummed as he sips straight to the teapot. This is false, but lovely unlike the off-colour fox, the late Duke of Edinburgh was famous for such a wonder whether the death toll at Jallianwala Bagh was “exaggerated”. But it also shows a royal family eager to give their image a striking makeover rather than the cucumber-coolness that has been its trademark. Although it is not clear whether the real winner here is the Queen or Paddington. “That skit cost at least $200 million in free promotion (for Paddington), probably more,” a Walt Disney executive told the Daily Mail. A Queen cameo with Daniel Craig’s James Bond in 2012 caused a stir ahead of the London Olympics, but in 2022, but after the devastation of a pandemic, Buckingham Palace clearly needs something more to be in Her Majesty’s service. Friendly needed.

Watching the 2019 film Victoria & Abdul shocked me how Queen Victoria’s real job of scribe Abdul was looking like a man-sized plush, fitting for a queen who could give life to the spirits of a dismayed monarch. Was. Now a real plush has been brought in to make the sun shine on the royal family, even as it has set over most of the British Empire.

It is well known that pets can soften the image of even the most scandalous dictators. Daisy Rockwell, recently in discussion for winning the International Man Booker with Gitanjali Shree, is also an artist for her translation of Shree’s Tomb of the Sands, a delightful series on dictators and their pets, a kind of drunken spindle. of evil. In this, Vladimir Putin visits his poodle Tosya while Pervez Musharraf hangs out with his Pekingese. Benazir Bhutto once candidly told an interviewer that the biggest difference between him and Musharraf was that she was a cat person and he was a dog person.

That’s why it became big news when Donald Trump became the first US president since Andrew Johnson (1865-69) not to have a pet in the White House. George Washington had a parrot named Snipe, Abraham Lincoln had goats named Nani and Nanako, and even the famous dour Richard Nixon had a cocker spaniel named Checkers.

Corgis have always been a part of Queen Elizabeth’s public persona. But a CGI bear can be manipulated to pull heart strings in a way that corgis cannot. And therein lies a lesson for our own media-savvy politicians. Invite a sweet plush over for tea and for the price of a marmalade sandwich (or message) you can achieve public goodwill beyond your wildest dreams. It is much easier than building huge statues.

Sandeep Roy, Writer do not tell her, Likes to let everyone know about their opinion whether asked or not,