Outsourced

by Komal Thakkar – George Washington University

With autumn comes school supplies, colorful leaves, colder weather, and most importantly, a new season of television shows. September 23^rd will bring us an NBC Comedy called Outsourced.

It takes place at a call center in India for the company Mid-American Novelties where a young American, Todd Dempsey (Ben Rappaport), is sent to become the new manager. His task: transform this group of misfits into successful salespeople. The employees’ task: sell as many ridiculous items including things like fake vomit and cheesehats to the American public.

While the trailers look absolutely hilarious, I can already see the headlines of IndiaAbroad and other South Asian news outlets blasting the show for its offensive portrayal of Indian call centers and employees. In an era where political correctness is an absolute must, NBC will definitely face some backlash.

I’ll be honest, my friends and I are absolutely pumped. It was my Facebook status the minute my friend sent me the link to the trailer. Of course it isn’t exactly the most politically correct show out there, but I’m sure you could find something offensive in every television show.  Does that mean you can’t have a laugh at it? It wouldn’t be funny if there wasn’t an element of realism to it. I mean, it is true that many call centers have been outsourced to India. Of course, there will always be ignorant people out there that will believe what they want to believe, but will this show specifically perpetuate stereotypes?

NBC describes it as, “A comedy where cultural differences are a novelty.” After scouring the official website and watching every preview and interview I could find, it really comes across as a lighthearted comedy. As Sacha Dhawan who plays Manmeet describes it in an interview, “We’re not laughing at the East or laughing at the West. We’re kind of learning to laugh at each other. And even when Todd comes in to the call center, he’s got a real passion for what he does. But also, it makes him realize as well that some of the things he does when talking to those guys in the East…could be a little bit peculiar.”

Discussion boards show mixed feelings including many people who are not thrilled about a show regarding outsourcing jobs in such a job market. If those people could put aside their anger towards call center employees and direct it towards the businesses that outsource the jobs in the first place, they might have the opportunity to be entertained.

While I can’t say exactly how I feel about the show until it actually premieres, the trailers have left me pretty excited. I mean, come on, who isn’t inspired by the adorably chubby Gupta and his dance moves to the Pussycat Dolls? I know I am. Check out the trailer on NBC’s website, and let me know if you think you’ll even be remotely entertained.

http://www.nbc.com/outsourced/