Why did I see Mahindra tractors in the movie, Minari?
I usually wait to watch a new movie until it comes out on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, or another streaming service to go ahead and watch it (which coming to think of I am loosing count of how many subscriptions I actually have). But this time, with the glowing reviews, I was tingling to watch Minari and didn’t have any patience to wait. Also given that this was an American film with the creative heads being Korean, I was very intrigued in the story and cinematography. I have been watching Korean tv shows and movies for a couple of years now and in my opinion, the Korean entertainment industry has proven to be one of the best in the world. The storylines and cinematography of many of the Korean movies and tv shows have gotten to be so entertaining and captivating to watch. To be honest, Bollywood can learn a lot, although the best content in the sphere of Indian films and tv shows seem to be from online streaming platforms (I am so tired of the extensively over dramatic television serials with poor dialogue that our parents indulge in for some reason on mainstream channels).
But I do want to make it clear, Minari is a classic American film. The story revolves around a first generation Korean family that moves to Arkansas to cultivate farmland hoping to make a livable income from selling produce, specifically Korean produce. It is that familiar storyline of the immigrant struggle, the American Dream and what it took for first generation immigrants to make it in a new country. Literally so American. The director is American, so are the producers and much of the cast.
Three specific aspects peaked my interest while watching the movie. First, was how much of the dialogue would in Korean. I was excited to “test” my sub par knowledge of the Korean language after watching so many tv shows and movies with subtitles and trying to imitate the cute way people would say certain things…LOL, this is a thing many non-Korean speakers do when they watch k-dramas, I swear. There is like a whole TikTok on it. Second, was because of Han Ye-ri. If you have seen the k-drama “Hello, My Twenties!” you are probably familiar with this actress. This k-drama has got to be one of the best ones ever! I am seriously waiting for season 3 but unfortunately, I don’t think that will happen. Third, was because it involved a farm. Do you have those wishes that you know are just going to be wishes because you’d rather them stay as wishes than for it to come true? Yea, I wish I can have a farm one day. But also not really because farms are no joke. They take a lot of time, effort and care. It is easy to forget the farms and farmers that grow the produce we purchase because we never see them or hear from them when we are shopping at the grocery store. But they go through a lot of hard work. I’ll be honest I don’t know much about the process between farms and supermarkets, I am pretty sure there is some kind of middleman, but it is on my list of “I Was Just Curious” topics.
As I was watching the movie, intrigued with the storyline, something unexpected had caught my eye. “Does that tractor say Mahindra?”. I had to pause, rewind and zoom in to make sure I wasn’t imagining it because it felt so random. Here I am watching a movie that takes place in Arkansas in the 1980s and I am seeing a brand that is so synonymous with India. When I think of Mahindra I think of the jazzed up lorrys, or trucks that I see when I visit India, Mahindra Finance (maybe because of the advertisements lol) and M.S. Dhoni. I got enthusiastically curious as to how relevant Mahindra tractors were in America during the 1980s. So even though this blog post may or may not have anything to do with food specifically, I hope you stay for the impressive general knowledge you can procure from this curiosity (I mean might as well, you’ve gotten this far).
Mahindra’s footprint in America begins in 1963 when it teams up with an American manufacturer, International Harvester, to develop tractors. According to Mahindra’s website, they shipped a couple of tractors to Houston, Texas around 1988 and thanks to a man named Rip Evans Mahindra was able to secure a market in the country. From here on out, Mahindra’s sales and growth has only progressed positively. They win multiple awards like the Japan Quality Medal or the Deming Prize which is one of the highest awards on total quality management. In 2010 they become the best selling tractor brand in the world. They even have a presence in the NASCAR scene! I was really curious as to why the director chose to use Mahindra Tractors in the movie. According to the timeline it was definitely feasible for there to be Mahindra Tractors in the South and Midwest during the time period of the movie but very few Mahindra tractors would have been available. I was so intrigued by this detail that I tried to Instagram DM the Minari page and even Steven Yeun…hehe. But, I doubt it they will see it or if the question will ever be answered.
The point of this blog post: Watch the movie?! & Can they please make a Season 3 of Hello My Twenties!!
Links to websites mentioned/referenced:
https://www.mahindra.com/global/the-america/usa
https://www.forbesindia.com/article/special/why-mahindra-wants-to-make-it-big-in-north-america/47561/1
https://www.mahindrausa.com/--why-mahindra
https://chiefexecutive.net/pandemic-america-is-fertile-field-for-mahindra-tractors/
https://www.tractorhouse.com/blog/fun-stuff/2018/10/rise-the-history-of-mahindra
http://www.juse.or.jp/deming_en/award/1026.html
https://www.business-standard.com/article/press-releases/mahindra-s-fes-wins-japan-quality-medal-107111501008_1.html