Damn!! i just need to discipline myself and write more often – but ive been happily distracted by a certain somebody ;P – so am excused…. kinda ?

Getting back to the promised series of posts on ‘the urban flavour’ -

Over the weekend i spotted a unique example of the previously mentioned ‘chutnification’ concept. One of the most striking evidence of this concept is apparent in the presentation and decor of tiny gas station restaurants that are popularly owned and managed by south indians living here. No other subculture has so successfully established itself in this market as restaurant owners and alongside established a unique sense of decor and design.

Located within residential colonies and on highways, these joints are notoriously well known for serving the most cheapest and appetizing sandwiches you could ever sink your teeth into ….. but ..whats more interesting is that over time they have established a rather hilarious practice of ‘naming’ in their menus…..observe –>

Computer, Club Nokia, Burj Al Arab, Hollywood, Internet are amonst the names that are well liked by these restaurants and you see them appearing over and over again on the menus of other such restaurants. I believe it was a few weeks back
when i spotted ‘ BUY TWO COMPUTER SANDWICHES AND GET ONE INTERNET FREE ‘ —– what a riot !! no ?

These fresh juices are more comically unusual… fruit cocktails called BIN LADIN !?? DISCO ??? and ROLEX ???? — omg!!!

From a design perspective, i find it apalling as to how these menu’s conveninetly exhibit the convention of stretching and squashing text to make them fit into limited spaces – whether legible or not…. Seeing something like this makes me want to scratch the wall !!!! eeeeks !!!!! WHAT AN ABOMINATION !!!!!!!!

but woooo-ooo-ssss-aaaaah ………… ive grown tolerant and grown to accept it as a unique characteristic feature of such restaurants, all contributing to the urban flavour.

The interior decor of these restaurants dont fall a measure short of their menu designs and i find this bit quite interesting. Numerous bottles of Ketchup, Mayonnaise and Fresh Fruits display themselves stacked on top of one another against a glass partition that seperate the tiny kitchen space from the dining area.

I asked one of the guys working there as to why they adopted such a peculiar ( yet unique ) signature style of decor… and he thought i was a little mad for enquiring … he’d rather give me a one dhiram discount on a shawarma than entertain my oddball curiosity … hmmpph!

In reality i knew the answer…. very practically put – these joints dont usually enjoy the luxury of space and making the best use of it – is vital. Nonetheless, what grabs me is the signature nature of the arrangement that is very Repetitive – very Warhol.

(image from University of Southern California Library of Images)

Realize this is a tangent here, however i can’t help but point out the uncanny resemblence between Andy Warholesque artforms and such decor. Its highly unlikely that these fellas were reading about Warhols art of mechanical reproduction or were inspired by his Campbell Soup Cans or had even remotely dived into unravelling his repetitive supermarket imagery … .. . .. . .. . ….. … but i’ll be damned !! there is a thought right there… somewhere.

What would have ol Andy said if he dropped in for a shawarma at one of these joints !??

Andy’s reply might have been: ‘ hmmmm….. its ineresting how the heavens can be represented by the repetitive arrangements of fruits and bottles.. the hypnotic rhythm not unlike a rosary suggests the extention to infinity, giving us a glimpse into eternity through everyday reality’ ;P

But on a more serious note .. lets face it, Warhols attempt to convey messages of social egalitarianism through his obsession for mass consumery imagery is a much complex thought that is hardly done any justice when paralleled to the arrangements of fruits and ketchup in a gas station restaurant in a country like UAE ….. or does it ??

*trying really hard to wipe a smirk off my face* but i cant stop thinking about a spoof of one of andy’s screenprinted pieces dedicated to this country .. that is lets say …ermmm not so egalitarian… mmm what would i use !??

*deep thought*