October 29, 2006

Borat

Since my adventures in the Kazakh steppe over the last few months, Kazakhstan has suddenly become world famous through Borat.

The common reaction I got from quite a few people when saying I was going to Kazakhstan was "Kazawhat?". Since a few weeks, and most notably at my parents' party the reaction has shifted to "Oh, isn't that where what's-his-name is from?".

I was quite surprised to realize that quite a few people think Borat is for real - and not just the alter ego of Sacha Baron Cohen. No wonder Kazakhstan is up in arms and protesting, although it's probably counteractive and drawing much more attention to Borat than they had hoped. It's quite a compliment to the comedian - to play someone so convincingly that half of the world is falling for it...




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