Redeeming the Lost Decade

Some decades are best forgotten. Or at least that’s what they say about the 80s and 90s. This makes me realize one thing- appearances matter. I mean, these two decades were the cradles of some innovations and reforms that we completely take for granted, like satellite and wireless communication and globalization. I mean, if we didn’t have the 80s and 90s, we wouldn’t have cell phones or satellite television or McDonalds. But do we think about all that when we talk about these decades. Not at all. All we can talk about is how horrendous the fashion was, how cheesy the song-and-dance routines were and how unscrupulously Anu Malik ruined music.

That’s because the news clippings and Doordarshan infomercials regarding the good that was being done during the time have long been lost and forgotten. All that remains of the closing chapter of the last century are the movies and songs. And they remind us of not the good, but the bad and ugly (aka frighteningly unflattering and unfashionable).

So is entertainment really play that big a role in how we remember our past? And if it does, how do we redeem a decade that butchered its future reputation with bouffant hairstyles? Well, I don’t know if this is the answer, but I think maybe if we focus on the good parts of the entertainment, memories can be improved. So from today, I start my ‘Redeeming the Lost Decade’ Series. Since I wasn’t around for the 80s, I’ll primarily focus on the 90s. maybe I can get you to reconsider what those years meant to all of us, and why- even if it was for a small period of time- we really cared for them.