Page 239 - DAIS Insignia 2022-2023

In Defence of the Chick Flick Shattered Certainties The Dragon’s Bane

Why do people hesitate to say that they enjoy a movie that is a so- I watch from my ghetto at Khartoum I yearn for those days before the war. There he stood, his stance bold,
called 'chick flick'? In fact, what is a chick flick, and why is that term As the shouts of defiant rebels echo When we all could be together His ground steady, his eyes gold;
His hands gripped the sword of stone,
used to criticise a certain genre of films, many of which happen to be through the air. When we all could dream together
The villagers cowered, he stood alone;
some of my go-to favourite films? The firing of guns deafen the crowds When we all could celebrate together The innocent held him as their Esperance,
When I looked up the definition of a 'chick flick' on Google before All I see is red like the evening sky When we all could struggle together. His spirit ready, for the deadly dance.
writing this, it was defined as follows: “chick flick – Noun, Derogatory – It is evident Sudan is no longer at So here I no longer can be Behold the dragon's mighty form,
Informal: A film that appeals mainly to young women.” Now, while peace. For that time has passed Its shadow cast, the sun forlorn,
that certainly does not correlate with my definition of such a film, in I am an African tribal inferior to any I must leave for safety The dragon's breath, a fiery blast,
Its scales so thick, impenetrable at last;
general, most people call movies that are centred around women, Arab Following the well-trodden path to Egypt
The hero knew the task at hand,
dealing with themes of friendship, love and coming of age, 'chick So in the ghettos I must reside While my heart remains stranded here To slay the beast, to free the land;
flicks.' Tithi Agrawal Hungry must I forever be I escape with who once were He charged forth with all his might,
These films could range from periodic pieces that are centred around Last One on Earth My passion for education long The richest men of Arabia The sword of stone, a dim light;
women, such as 'Little Women' and 'Pride and Prejudice,' to modern suppressed. Before war invaded our lands The dragon roared, its claws unsheathed,
Rayna looked at the single lone candle on her cake. Slowly, her Thousand indignities must I suffer
classics such as 'The Devil Wears Prada' or 'The Intern.' They even Before war blinded our minds The hero fought, his heart unqueathed.
gaze drifted to the night sky, and she inhaled the cold air on a
include many of the cult classics from the 2000s like 'Mean Girls' and My loyalty and love forever pledged to Before war poisoned our hearts. For hours it seemed, the duo would fight.
winter night. She often expected this day to come, but not one The winner remained undetermined.
'Legally Blonde'. Sudan
like this. Glancing back at her watch, she saw the second hand Ishaan Surve The night approached, the dark flames burning,
As someone who has been an avid watcher of chick flicks for most of making its way at a steady pace toward the twelve o'clock mark, But I have been made an outcast now But the day stood, the light shining.
her life, I have noticed a lot of people call these films their 'guilty and she pulled a matchstick out of the matchbox. Her phone lay In my nation founded by my ancestors The hero's armour, badly gleamed;
pleasure,' while some refuse to associate with them altogether. I would beside her, bracing itself for the obnoxiously loud alarm it was Broken dreams weigh me down The dragon, snarled, its scales losing their sheen
like to argue that chick flicks have long been unfairly judged, and are a going to ring soon enough. Rayna sat there, thoughts racing in I must now live with shattered But he fought on, with his every breath,
valid, relevant, and empowering form of entertainment, not just for her mind, only one emotion filling her up to the brim. She shut certainties. To vanquish the beast, to bring it death.
her eyes, tears filling up, knowing this was the end, as the
women and girls. A study conducted by the Kansas State University My dream was to be an author The dragon weakened, its flames grew dim,
found in fact that men enjoy such movies, just as much as women do. second hand finally lined up and her phone blurted out the To create verses of peace and solidarity The hero saw, he started to grin;
happy birthday song in its desperate attempt to cheer Rayna up.
One of them being my father, even though he would not admit it To be the glue that binds the nation With one final strike, the sword did land,
“This is it,” she lit the candle, “one candle, one cake, under the The dragon fell, defeated at hand.
straight up. A lot of people are of the opinion that such films are Through strife and peace
one single moon, the only one person remaining on this earth. The sun shone bright, once again,
superficial, unserious, and stereotypical, and claim that they are After all, everything must come to an end, mustn't it?” She blew But now how will that be. The hero stood, triumphant in pain.
undeserving of even being called a genre of films when compared to out the candle, making one last wish as a tear rolled down her Every knock on the door But there he saw, on the mountain floor,
heavier genres such as Action, Thrillers or Mysteries. These films offer a cheek. She cut herself a slice, took a bite, and lay down in a Brings visions of angry mobs Two cracked eggs, laying in horror.
range of representations of women, from strong-willed and determined peaceful slumber, one which may last forever. Everyone had Vigilantes like the Janjaweed Tis was no unjust attack by him,
characters, to vulnerable and sensitive ones. They are extremely once thought about being the last one alive on the earth, about Mirrors seem to mock The dragon stood, to protect his kin,
entertaining and provide a much-needed voice and visibility to female the fun they could have by themself on the face of this planet, “You are not a true Sudanese” Of the darkness, who helds the greater part?
experiences and perspectives. everything in the world, literally belonging to you, available at And I believe them all. The dragon's shadow, or the hero's heart?
your fingertips. It's a rather exciting thought till you find your
The moment we label a film a 'chick flick,' it begins to lose a lot of its Shlok Agarwal
teenage self existing in a world where people made bad choices, Tithi Agrawal
audience. People look at these films through a very narrow lens, but in
and day by day you see people disappear, till one day it's only
reality, chick flicks can provide comfort and relatability. Universal themes you, till one day you realise what celebrating your birthday alone
like love, grief, friendship, and self-discovery are frequently talked actually means, till one day you realise how much you needed ग णत - “सव य लोचनं शा ।“ ल य
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about in chick flicks and audiences, regardless of their gender or age, your loved ones, till one day you are sobbing in your room
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can relate to these issues. It gives us a chance to look back and reflect hopelessly wishing for just another person back in this world, ाचीन काल स भारत म ग णत को व वान वारा सबस मह वपण शा सभी का एक ल य होता ह अनोखा,
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on some of our own feelings and experiences. But in short, chick flicks just like Rayna did, till she exhausted herself and finally shut her माना गया ह। आज का स वधाजनक, आध नक जीवन ग णत क बना मकसद होता ह वो मन का।
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are fun. They have a light-hearted stupidity which in all honesty, I love. eyes and dozed off. नामम कन होता। कसी का होता ह डॉ टर बनना,
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They are incredibly witty, one of my favourite examples being 'Mean Saanvi Agrawal तो कसी का दश का त न ध बनना।
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अ धकांश लोग इस म म ह क ग णत का द नक जीवन म कोई उपयोग
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Girls,' a film that provides a powerful commentary on the dynamics of ल य ह हमारा आख खोलकर देखा हआ सपना,
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नह ं, क त यह अस य ह। ु
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friendships and relationships, insecurities, and conflict, all in the setting ख़शी ु जो हम कसी भी हाल म है संभव बनाना।
of a high school. It is a film that resonates with its audiences to this day, आज क बड़ी-बड़ी कप नय क मा लक ग णत और साि यक व ान ल य सदव बड़ा रहना चा हए,
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despite being released years ago, not just because of its quotability and हँसत रहो, म करात रहो ( ट टि ट स) म सव ठ ह , िजसक कारण व यापर को ठ क तरह समझ अपने माग पर अटल रहना चा हए।
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nostalgia but because it provides an accurate depiction of how social जीवन क सख-दःख स लड़त रहो पात ह । इन मा लक क क़ामयाबी का कारण इनक ड ी नह , बि क इनक
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norms continue to plague our everyday lives. ख शया होती ह छोट -छोट काय मता और ग णत म नपणता ह। ग णत वशष होन क कारण ऐस अपनी राह को द खए, न द खए दाएँ-बाएँ

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ल कन उनस जीना सीखो। कोई आपको वच लत कर न पाए।
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Finally, the phrase "chick flick" implies that these films are only लोग हर सम या को अ छ तरह परख लत ह और क़ामयाबी हा सल करन म सबक ह भ न- भ न अ वतीय मंिज़ल,
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intended for female audiences and that men will not find them धन क मदद स तो खशी मलती नह ं सफल होत ह। मन य व भ न चीज़ क लए होत ह का बल।
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interesting, which respectfully, is a load of nonsense. It also implies that यार और स मान म ह छपा होता ह खशी का मह व ु
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ग णत स एक मन य क सोचने क मता बढ़ती ह और वह मन य मनीषी
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all women have the same taste in movies, which again is far from the दो त क मीठ बात , प रवार क साथ समय बताना अवसर का उपयोग करना, ऊचाइय को हा सल करना,
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व ववेक बन जाता ह। ऐसा यि त अपनी का ब लयत वारा सम याओ का
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truth. They are simply movies. In the words of Elle Woods from Legally यह तो ह जीवन क स ची ख शय का मलमं । मकाम पाने क हर हाल म को शश करत रहना।
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Blonde, "Whoever said orange is the new pink, was seriously समाधान करक आसमान क ऊचाइय को छ पाता ह। ग णत क संदरता स बाधाओ स न घबराना न ह हार स मायस होना,
अपने सपन को जीना सीखो स न होकर एक अवसाद त यि त भी आशावाद बन सकता ह।
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disturbed." And whoever said chick flicks are less important than other मसीबत का सामना एक म कान स करना।
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ख शय क तलाश म नह भटको
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genres, is seriously missing out on some awesome fashion montages आध नक काल म क म ब मता का भाव हर उ योग म दख रहा ह। हर हार क बाद कछ नया सीखो,
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हार और जीत को समान प स वीकार करो ु
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and spontaneous dance numbers. In a world full of explosions, car भ व य म मानव जा त का अ धकतर काम रोबोट वारा कया जाएगा। ऐसी
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जीवन क अनमोल ल ह को हमशा याद रखो। हर मौक पर ऊचे उठो।
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chases and gun fights, sometimes a good chick flick is just the वक सत द नया म कवल वह लोग आग बढ़ पाएँग, जो रचना मक व ल य हमार अत तल म बसा हआ पावक ह, ै
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superhero we need. ख शय स भर जीवन का हर पल उजाला हो अ वतीय ह ग। ल य तो हर हाल म पाना ह...
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हँसत े रहो, म करात े रहो, जीत े रहो।
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Eesha Gheewala ठ सरया तथी अ वाल
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आया ह अगरवाल
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