Pure Chutney

Gyrating moves too rapid to capture in paradise

For viewers who may not be familiar with the popular Indian music called Chutney Soca, in Trinidad and Tobago, a few artists have turned to the medium of music videos to present their flair to the craft. Here are a few stills caught off television.

The starboy, Ravi Bissambhar is prancing to the lyric; “I am going to wine on you around the clock”. Set on one of few beaches in Trinidad, an assembly of his relatives, friends and extras are present to shoot, but most likely to fête, drink and maco. The woman dressed in blue seems to delight herself by entertaining a few of the sea bathers around her. But what stands out is the vigor of the lead singer’s gyrating moves which are in sync to his words, thus dispelling the fact that as thin as he appears to be, his appetite for Chutney can work to a 24 hours cycle.


A Caribbean wine to the bathers close by


Star in sweet T&T

There is a popular Chutney song about the pleasures of alcohol. “Rum till I die,” yet in this local video, a man laments about clearing the grass so his neighbour can pass. Filmed in a popular discothèque, a prominent Rum bottle is present on the table. This clue may indicate that an intoxicated singer can blur the lines of meaning. This musical composition really means fornication as he continues to chant about his neighbour; "I day you've be mine," gesturing with his fist, a "Bull" movement.

The rim of a Rum bottle and the trajectory of the disco lights cast at times on the singer's face

Leading the pack with her chutney melody

Dances out of control at a Chutney Soca tent fete

In the Caribbean, self esteem in large set women are much higher than say their counterpart in North America. The princess here is among her ladies in waiting. Her advice; if there is no blues in his wallet, then there be not blues for him.

Wow!


The Queen and her Harem. The video photographer has chosen an open municipality to shoot the dance sequence.


A rich hopeful

Some thought was taken in the making of this Chutney Soca video. It is broken into three segments with some artistic vision for sets. But the links are too abstract to connect each scene. What makes matters worse is that the lyric paraphrases in double speak; A snake in my bed where it can’t find a rat so it goes for my cat and further, her reference to the amount of bush in her yard where the snake lay in wait. Words not too thought of as to the other details in the video.


Filmed in the cane fields in central Trinidad, she is wearing a pair of black leather pants
in a hot tropical climate....Hot and cuts to a classic Billlie Holiday singing about a snake harassing the village as a galvanized backdrop which is a shanty house.




Footnotes:
1. Wining - a form of dance related to Trinidad and Tobago
2. Bull - Slang to the act of sex
3. Blues - denotes a Trinidad and Tobago one hundred dollar bill or Blues, an adult film
4. Cat - Slang to the female sex organ