TV Dads

They are a fail-proof source of treats and pocket money, and can be your strongest ally when Mum is on the rampage. They can also give you pain about your clothes and scare off your boy/girlfriends. What would life be like without our dads? Well, if life were a tele-serial, then half the drama would be missing without these multi-faceted figures adding to the plot. TV dads are larger-than come in all shapes, sizes, and temperaments. Here's looking at a few of them:

The Buddy: Sandy Cohen (The OC) Here's one proof that your dad can be your best friend. Played by Peter Gallagher, this free-spirited surfer/lawyer is dad to his biological son Seth Cohen, as well as Ryan Atwood, the boy he adopted. The key word to Sandy is 'approachable'. Whether it's the matter of schoolwork, or problems with your flaky, whiny, attention-seeking girlfriend *cough*Marissa*cough* you can pretty much talk to this dad about anything, and know that he will surely see your side of the argument, even if he doesn't agree with it. Sometimes he'll even go along with your outrageous plans, and shield you from Mum's ire, but don't mistake him for a softie; cross the line, and he'll play hardball.

Dr Jekyll/Mr Hyde: Dan Scott (One Tree Hill)
Who needs an enemy when you've got a dad like Dan? Paul Johansson plays this evil dad, who's hungry for power...no matter what it costs. Whether he's out to win a basketball championship, or make some more profits from his auto-dealership, or even run for mayor, he's always looking for more, and everyone else, including his own family, takes a back seat to his wants, and he'll stop at nothing, not even murder. Just when you're ready to despise him, however, he does an about-face and turns into a nice guy, and you get the feeling that deep down, he does care.

The Hero: Noah Benett (Heroes)
Hell hath no fury like Jack Coleman in the role of this enigmatic agent, whenever someone threatens his "Claire-bear". There's nothing he won't do for his family, even if it involves what he calls making some 'morally grey" decisions like killing people, putting others in jeopardy, or even double-crossing his bosses. There are times when his decisions will confound you; times when you'll wonder if you ever really knew him, but at the end of the day, there's no denying that no one will ever love you like he does.

The Goof: Homer Simpson (The Simpsons)
Homer's definitely no role model anyone should take seriously, but he's got to be the most oft-quoted, best loved dads on television, a position held since way before any of the fathers mentioned above were even conceived. Stupid and lazy he might be, but he truly loves his kids. When he's not roosting in that darn couch, he'd do his damndest to support them. He decorates his work station with pictures of baby Maggie. When he's made temporarily smarter, he writes Lisa a note telling her his new intelligence has only made him appreciate her more. And when Bart threatens to jump Springfield Gorge on a skateboard, Homer shows up and ends up doing it for him. Accidentally, but still.

There you have it. Love them or hate them, these TV dads definitely make their shows interesting, and sometimes they make us appreciate our own fathers for being 'normal'. Here's wishing all the real-life daddies out there a very happy Father's Day.

By Sabrina F Ahmad

My chin resting on my hands, I stared at the guy squinting against mid morning sun, trying to make a basket. It passed through the ring easily. I smiled. And that was last may.

Crushes…there are times when you can't tell that you're even having one. At least that's how it was in my case! It had started with staring at him and that's how it went for months. Umm…as a matter of fact things haven't changed much. Oh who am I kidding, guilty as charged, I still do stare at him! All these months, I have shamelessly drooled over this certain guy at school, his name, well let's call him Sam.

Until recently, I didn't even tell my friends about my little crush. That's partly because I didn't know I was falling for him myself. So when they found out, a few weeks of teasing followed. Some friends went like “what do you see in him?” while others, especially Rudmilla, commented that he was, indeed, pretty cute.

Whenever anyone came across any news or tiny pieces of information regarding him, it was me who they would come to, like reporters bringing in a juicy story to the editor. Within weeks, I got to know where he did his classes, what a snob he was, that he played basketball for a team, also that he got pissed whenever he was in a rickshaw with his mother (a friend had spotted him in Dhanmondi). There were random, meaningless tidbits of information, fragments of his life that he himself probably didn't care about.

Then on a regular school day, this friend came after several weeks of absence (to her school wasn't cool anymore). So we all decided to fill her in. After a while she asked me, “Does he like you back?” I thought about it for a while, even thought the matter barely held any confusion. A few seconds later I replied, “He doesn't even know that I exist”.

The day after, the minute I walked into school, I was greeted by my close friend, Rayan. We chit chatted as the bell rang, declaring the beginning of the first period. “Oh you know, yesterday I heard your stupid Sam's voice,” he said with a snicker. “What was it like???” I asked, almost jumping. “He talks like this…ai chele ball eidike pass kor,” Rayan said supposedly mimicking Sam's voice. He so sounded like a cross between a frog and a squeaky rubber duck! I almost fainted.

I hadn't really believed that Sam could sound like that. One of the reasons was that Rayan had been amongst the friends who didn't like Sam. And secondly, Sam was too good looking to sound like that. If only I had known better. That very day, as I sat and watched Sam dribbling across the court, I wished I hadn't come to school at all. I heard it. I heard his voice. Rayan had been right.

If the crush was supposed to fly away and migrate to another country, it didn't. To Rayan's horror, it stayed. But Sam's voice and his snobbish attitude did make him lose some points, but I'm sure he didn't even care. Will I go after him? Am I really serious about this guy? No way! I just like looking at him, imagining him to be a person that I am certain he is not. And that's the fun part, its almost like dreaming.

By Nayeema The Reza

Apparently, if a guy doesn't bring a girl home by the age of 24, the desperate mom goes hunting for a girl with her fellow “bhabis of the para”….which consists of the remaining desi female population of that particular area. The sidesplitting part of the whole hunt begins at places like malls, road side fuchka stalls, weddings, desi gatherings and where not?

Recently, one of my friends where at a party and some lady walked up to her mom and inquired about my poor friend and the conversation ended up in a very orthodox manner where the lady was actually asking my friend's mom if they could have my friend's hand for the marriage of their son!

Ludicrous enough these women don't realize that marriage is a big deal enough. Their vigorous inquiry seems more like bargaining for an item from the market before purchasing it?!

Another wacky incident, where me and my bhabee were at a fuchka stall happily enjoying the scrumptious fuckha when we were interrupted and later on attacked by an unknown auntyjee who was with her hubby-dear, as she walked up to my bhabee and asked her if she was “single and looking”, and as soon as she figured out that bhabee was married to bhai, she immediately moved on to me......

Just to fill in those empty spots, later that evening that woman had to face severe consequences, because my mami had a good chat with her. By the way the mami was the mother-in-law of the bhabee. Huh?! Like, we didn't see that coming.

I guess this happens when you're growing up in a society like ours, but, it still is a wonder how these auntyjees can ridiculously make a “potential bride criteria list”, which usually entailed of the following: forsha, lomba, healthy not too fat, soft spoken, knows how to cook bhaat and bhorta with excess jhal, has to have a masters in “Muro-Bider Sheba Jotno”, must be either a doctor or an engineer and what not?

Facetious it is that these incidences are a part of our daily life in Dhaka. Nothing to be amazed about it anymore as these silly dramas actually fabricate our very colorful lives!

By Bushra Ahsan