Korerang: the Success Story of Korean Drama in ... - Réseau Asie

KORERANG:KORERANGhttp://www.reseau-asie.comEnseignants, Chercheurs, Experts sur l’Asie et le PacifiqueScholars, Professors and Experts on Asia andd the PacificcLA SUCCESS STORYY DES SÉRIES TÉLÉVISÉES CORÉENNESDANSLE NORD EST DEL’INDEG: THE SUCCESS STORY OF KOREAN DRAMA INN NORTH EAST EINDIAGayatri Jai Singh RathoreCERI / SciencesPoThématiqueD : Créations artistiques et imaginairesTheme D: Artistic and Imaginary CreationsAtelierD 06 : L'impact de l'engouemelent pour les feuilletons télévisés Coréenssur larégion Asie en construction culturelleWorkshop D 06: The impact of the craze for Korean television series on the Asia incultural construction4 ème Congrès duu Réseau Asie & Pacifique4 th Congress of the Asia & Pacific Network N14-16 sept. 2011, Paris, FranceeÉcole nationale supérieure d'architecture de Paris-BellevilleCentre de conférencesdu Ministère des Affaires étrangères et européennes© 2011 – Gayatri Jai Singh RathoreProtection des documents / Document use rightsLes utilisateurs du site http://www.reseau-asie..com s'engagent à respecter les règles dee propriétéintellectuelle des diverscontenus proposés sur le site (loi n°92.597 du 1er juillet 1992, JO du 3 juillet). Enparticulier, tous les textes, sons, cartes ou imagess du 4 ème Congrès, sont soumis aux lois du droit d’auteur. Leurutilisation, autorisée pour un usage non commercial, requiert cependant la mention des sources complètes etcelle des nom et prénom de l'auteur. .The users of the website http://www.reseau-asie.com are allowed to download and copy the materials oftextual and multimedia information (sound, image, , text, etc.) in the Web site, in particular documents of the t 4 thCongress, for their ownpersonal, non-commerciall use, or for classroom use, subject to thee condition that any useshould beaccompanied by an acknowledgement of the source, citing the uniform resourcee locator (URL) of thepage, name & first name of the authors (Title of the material, © author, URL).Responsabilité des auteurs / Responsability off the authorsLes idées et opinions exprimées dans les documents engagent la seule responsabilitéde leurs auteurs.Any opinions expressed are those of the authors and do.notinvolve the responsibility of the Congress'Organization Committee.

clean houses” with pristine backdrops. “Desexualized” romance in the plot has become aselling point of the Korean Wave in Asia:“Korean dramas are very different from Hollywood films; Hollywood films are full ofbedroom scenes! Korean films are about platonic love and are not vulgar or indecent! Just aneye contact, a little touch, does the magic. I can watch it with entire family” (Liam, 27 years,Imphal, 03/07/2011)This absence of explicit sex has helped the spread of Korean culture in traditional societieslike Manipur and Mizoram, where displays of overt sexuality have often drawn censorshipand protests 1 . Lastly, the cross-cultural ethos involving “combinations of traditional andwestern elements” make Korean soaps a favourite among the northeast audience.Korerang: the birth of a new trend?The Korean Wave has created possibilities for Manipur and Mizoram to move beyondHollywood and Bollywood. It, for example, has prompted a broader reevaluation of Koreanculture, bringing Korean fashion, actors, and hairstyle into the homes of people. The influencehas been termed as “Korerang” (Korea + Arirang) by Manipuris. It is not uncommon to spotyoung boys wearing their hair long at the back and short spiked in the front and girls sporting“emo haircut”, eating ChocoPie 2 popularized by the film JSA in the streets of Aizawl. In therealm of cuisine, the surging popularity of Kimchi (pickled vegetables) is attributed to Koreandrama. Despite the fact that many have never tasted Kimchi, they dream of putting it on theirdinner tables. In Imphal, I came across a fast food centre in Yaiskul with low seating asusually seen in Korean homes, a toy store called Full House in Chanmari and a restaurantnamed Jeju Island in Aizawl. During a visit to a Manipuri family, we were seated on amattress placed on the floor. A poster of The daughter pointed out that her mother copied thesitting arrangement from Korean drama. Using common Korean phrases like “aniyo” (no),“saranghae” (I love you), “anyong” (bye), “eotteohke jinaeseyo?” (how are you?) is commonin teen conversations. Teenagers mix Korean words with their mother tongue or locallanguage and often use it as a secret language when talking to friends or boyfriend/girlfriendin front of the family. The youth dream of visiting Seoul and Jeju Island instead of New York,though they do not have money and some could hardly locate Korea on a map. Following thepopularity of Korean drama, the local Manipuri cinema is taking a leaf out of Korean or EastAsian music albums, especially in terms of clothing style and cinematography.The frequent and long power cuts in Manipur do not deter viewing of Korean dramas. It is infact interesting to note how people organise time in Manipur homes according to theavailability of electricity. A local doctor is a big fan of Korean series. “Due to my busyschedule I do not get time to watch TV during the day. Power supply in the city is irregular. Iam not sure of having electricity in the evening so I watch Korean serials in the night… nonstopfrom 10 in the evening to midnight or sometimes till 4 in the morning,” she tells me…Even if I sleep from 4-7 in the morning, it is enough to catch up my sleep.”A final year MSc student said she had to restrain herself from watching Korean serials. “Mymother does not allow us to watch Korean drama. It’s very addictive, my sisters and I get1 See also Emam, Amr. 2008. Korean wave brings drama to the Nile Delta. Korea Policy Review 4 (May): 33-35.2 A Korean snack made up of two layers of spongy chocolate dipped cookies with a creamy marshmallow fillingin between.Workshop D 06 / The impact of the craze forKorean television series on the Asia in cultural constructionKORERANG: The Success Story of Korean Drama in North East IndiaGayatri Jai Singh Rathore / 3

seriously involved in them, and even my mother is hooked. She wants me to concentrate onmy career, earlier I used to watch a lot.” (Sonia, Msc student, Imphal, 07/07/2011)And although people in Manipur and Mizoram are different from Koreans they always evokeshared cultural tropes. Identification through food: “cabbage, fish, bamboo and fermentedfood,” physical characteristics and culture: “Although we live in India you must have noticedwe do not look like Indians, we look more like Koreans or Chinese than Indians. We belongto the Mongoloid stock,” said a journalist in Aizawl.“Our society, its structure is closer to Korean model than Indian. Indian society is highlypatriarchal. Men have a higher status in the family; there is a code that you have to maintainin the family with respect to your brother or father. My sister studied in Nagpur, a hot place…we are not used to that climate. My sister went out wearing a sleeveless t-shirt and wasimmediately checked by her landlord who asked her, “Would you wear that in front of yourbrother?” Well, we do! There is no such restriction on the way you dress in our society. So inthat way we are different from Indians.” (Journalist, Aizawl, 19/07/2011)“There are similarities in our religion too. Their religion before the arrival of Christianity inKorea was similar to ours. 3 ” (Liam, 27 years, Imphal, 03/07/2011)“South Koreans have the largest Presbyterian Church in Asia and the majority of MizoChristians are Presbyterians. We also have a Korean Pastor, Reverend Kim living here inAizawl.” (Felly, College student, Aizawl, 15/07/2011)While there is some truth in most of the similarities observed, respondents often tried to find amaximum of similarities, sometimes exaggerating it clearly, or even making it up (forexample the claim that Manipuri and Korean language and script had some clear similarities).The parasocial identification could be linked to the search for unique cultural expressiondistinct from "Bollywood” and “Indian culture.”The Korean Wave: Localized PhenomenonIn spite of its success, Hallyu has been unsuccessful in sweeping the entire country which stilldepends on bollywood (Hindi cinema industry based in Mumbai) and Hollywood for mostpart of its entertainment. And yet the soaring success in the Northeastern states, Manipur andMizoram in particular, cannot be studied in isolation from the national frame considering thatthese states have had a very sensitive historical relationship with the government of India.Secessionist and insurgent movements have marred a few states especially Mizoram, 4Manipur, and Nagaland. While Mizoram currently enjoys the reputation of a peaceful state inthe region and is probably the only example of a successful peace negotiation and rapiddevelopment in the region, conflict still mars Manipur. 5 Although an integral part of India,these regions have long been ignored by the central government in India. Most parts of the3 The respondent was referring to the practice of Shamanism in Korea. Manipur's Hinduism is only about 300years old and coexists with the animistic, ancestor-worshipping, shaman-led Sanamahi tradition.4 Mizoram signed a Peace Accord with Indian government on June 30, 1986 ending two decades (1966-86) ofturmoil in the region, spearheaded by the Mizo National Front (MNF). It was granted Statehood in February1987.5 Manipuris feel that the Manipuri king signed into the Indian Union in 1949 against the will of his people. Thusinsurgent activity has existed for close on 50 years as separatist groups seek various degrees of autonomy fromIndia. The Government of India has deployed the Army in counter insurgency operations and imposed theArmed Forces (Special Power) Act, 1958 (AFSPA), clearly implying the external character of the conflict inManipur. The state has a Tibeto-Burman population, mostly tribal, and even in feudal Manipur there are about30 tribes.Workshop D 06 / The impact of the craze forKorean television series on the Asia in cultural constructionKORERANG: The Success Story of Korean Drama in North East IndiaGayatri Jai Singh Rathore / 4

egion are cut off from the rest of India due to lack of infrastructure and economicdevelopment. Geographically these states share more borders with neighbouring countries ofMyanmar, Bangladesh, and China than India. Economic opportunities have recentlydeveloped with Myanmar owing to the country’s Look East Policy. Culturally, the peoplebelong to tibeto-burmese or mongoloid race so they consider themselves different fromIndians. A vast majority of them do not speak the national language, Hindi. The generalresentment among the population against Indian governance is clearly reflected in the waythey addressed me as Indian and themselves as Manipuri or Mizo.At the same time, it has to be noted that, in terms of cultural exchange, it is one-directionalphenomenon which reveals the lack or imbalance of the local cultural industry. For themajority of the population TV is probably the only contact with the outside world 6 . AlthoughManipur is reputed for its sportsmen, apart sports the sources of entertainment are a few. Inthe absence of public parks and cinema halls in Aizawl, cable TV and Korea is seen as ameans of emancipation, opening to the world, alternative to the local environment, a newstyle and identity creation. As far as Korea is concerned there has been no significant bilateralexchange 7 with the local cultural industry.Specificity and appropriation of the Korean wave within the two statesThere are profound differences in the impact of the Korean Wave in the two markets. Koreanfilms were the first to hit Manipur in the North East following the ban, in September 2000 8 ,on Hindi films in cinema halls and on cable networks in the Imphal valley by one of the oldestsecessionist group, Revolutionary People’s Front (RPF). The ban was introduced to protectthe local population from the corrupting influence of the Indian cinema. In the absence ofHindi films people turned towards the local film industry. However, the youth foundManipuri cinema poor in content and filmmaking. They are labelled as cheap imitations ofHindi films. Korean channel, Arirang filled in the void created by the ban on Hindi films. Buthow do we explain the success of Korean drama in the hill districts of Manipur where Hindifilms were not banned? The hill districts are inhabited by tribal who have embracedChristianity. They are considered more western, and thus closer to Korean culture, than thepeople from the valley who are mainly Hindu.In Mizoram, local cable network owners initiated the Korean wave, when in 2006 one of thecable operators ZoNet aired a few episodes of Korean drama Full House in the afternoon.“It started with this TV station, ZoNet. Once there was a problem with the telecast, peoplestarted calling the channel to put it back on air. It is then that the cable operator realised thepotential of Korean drama. Since then there has been no looking back, Korean series are nowdubbed in Mizo which has also given the youth an opportunity to make some extra money. Ibelieve they are paid Rs 150 for 3 hours of dubbing.” (Journalist, Vanglaini Newspaper,15/07/2011)6 Due to conflicts, the region is closed off by New Delhi to foreigners. Till 2010, Indian visas are not valid formost of the Northeast, including Manipur. The only foreign nationals who visit are Christian missionaries andsome NGO representatives. Journalists from outside are not allowed.7 I was informed that the Korea government wants to help the Manipur government in the field of education.There are talks of opening a Centre of Korean Studies at the Manipur University.8 Source: Akoijam Sunita, Caravan Magazine, “Korea Comes to Manipur,” 01/10/2010. Accessed on30/07/2011 http://www.caravanmagazine.in/Story.aspx?StoryID=522&Page=1Workshop D 06 / The impact of the craze forKorean television series on the Asia in cultural constructionKORERANG: The Success Story of Korean Drama in North East IndiaGayatri Jai Singh Rathore / 5

In Mizoram, the romantic appeal of Korean drama is seen as a threat to the perception ofmasculinity and to the values promoted by the Church. These dramas and films have spawnedanti-hallyu sentiments. Young and middle-aged men, revivalist movements and religiousleaders react by saying “Korean films are not good.” These are precisely people whosemothers, sisters, girlfriends, wives and children are the most avid Korean movie watchers.While the actors in romance films seem to be different (sweet, caring and handsome) and aresetting new ideals for any girl, men not only find them effeminate but also refer to them as“gay”. In fact, revivalists like Young Mizo Association (YMA) and Church establishmentsfalsely 9 hold the Korean Wave responsible for the rise in the number of homosexuals inMizoram. Manipuri men on the other hand seemed more supportive of Korean style andopenly admit watching Korean drama and films, contrary to their Mizo counterparts. While,homosexuality is still not accepted and homosexuals are made fun of, they have found aspecial place 10 in the Manipuri society.It may partly be attributed to the gender relations between the two societies. Thoughpatriarchal, Manipur has had a long tradition of women’s contribution in the socio-economicand political 11 life of the state, whereas Mizo society is considered highly patriarchal. Indeed,the response to the Korean Wave in Mizoram reflects local anxieties about preserving Mizoculture: For revivalists like Young Mizo Association (YMA) who are striving to establish theofficially espoused definitions of traditional Mizo culture which grants more power andcontrol to men, the Korean Wave was not merely a pop-culture phenomenon but a challengeto patterns of "family, and gender constructions" 12 .Future Research on Korean WaveThis paper sought to analyze the Korean wave, its implications of cultural influence onnortheast India and also considered the impact of this phenomenon on perceptions of cultureand identity by comparatively analyzing Manipur and Mizoram. It can be concluded that theKorean wave is a cultural phenomenon limited to a specific region but it is still too early topredict its future. It has familiarised the local population with another culture but has notfundamentally changed the overall image of Korea yet. In the case of Manipur an affiliationwith Korean culture is used to emphasise on a distinct local identity and to supplant the Indianidentity. In the case of Mizoram, Korean influence is perceived as a threat to masculinity andthe beliefs of the Church, thus emphasizing on cross-cultural/gender difference to strengthentheir own local Mizo identity.Further, the central question is, What is Korean about the Korean Wave? Is the appeal of theKorean drama constant across different cultures or specific to local norms? Can sharedcultural tropes ensure its sustenance? Quoting an English professor from University ofMizoram, “What is Korean fashion? Fashion has no frontiers. What is Korean soap? KoreanTV producers have creatively imitated western TV dramas and have added a dash of localflavour to it. It is like watching The Bold and the Beautiful or Santa Barbara. It is a product9 The correlation was denied by the homosexual community. According to them the coming out can be linked toother national and international factors like gay pride in the big cities, law on homosexuality etc.10 They perform the Raslila during the Jagannath yatra festival. The community runs a number of famous hairsalon and beauty parlours in Imphal.11 Nupilan incident (women’s agitation)12 Creighton, Millie. 2009. Japanese surfing the Korean wave: Drama tourism, nationalism, and gender via ethniceroticisms. Southeast Review of Asian Studies 31: 10-38. p. 34Workshop D 06 / The impact of the craze forKorean television series on the Asia in cultural constructionKORERANG: The Success Story of Korean Drama in North East IndiaGayatri Jai Singh Rathore / 6

of globalization. It is globalization through Far East. Koreans are taking inspiration from theWest and we are looking at them for inspiration. It has come full circle.”Workshop D 06 / The impact of the craze forKorean television series on the Asia in cultural constructionKORERANG: The Success Story of Korean Drama in North East IndiaGayatri Jai Singh Rathore / 7