For a country of a billion plus people, Indians are a sickeningly mediocre bunch.

Our desis win few titles and hold very few world records.

But one Indian has done us all proud.

And the champion is Ashish Sharma, the king of watching movies.

Pera Ketta Odane Chumma Athirudille (the name that sends a shiver down the spine of his rivals)?

In Bollywood-crazy India, Ashish Sharma, a native of Mathura in Uttar Pradesh, is the Guiness World Record holder having watched movies continuously for 120 hours and 23 minutes.

Defending his crown, Ashish will now square off against seven others at the Netflix Movie Watching World Championship in a plexi-glass living room in New York’s Times Square for the first Popcorn Bowl trophy.

The gruelling movie watching marathon starts on October 2 and concludes October 7 after Ashish’s existing record is broken.

Will Ashish break his own record and win the Popcorn Bowl or will we see a new champion?

Ashish has no doubts that he will leave his rivals in the dust:

I am the one who is going to win and India will retain this world record. I will put the fire in the heart of my competitors.

(Source: press release)

Besides the the title of World Champion, the winner of the movie watching contest will take home $10,000 in cash, a lifetime subscription to the online DVD rental service Netflix and the first Popcorn Bowl trophy.

To be sure, the movie watching contest is no walk in the park. 

According to the Guinness World Records rules, contestants must watch films non-stop without averting their eyes from the screen. The competitors get 10 minutes off between each movie, or approximately every two hours, to refresh themselves.

Eating, drinking, standing and stretching are permitted as long as their eyes are on the screen.

What about when they are performing their ablutions?

Apparently, medical professionals will monitor the contestants’ conditions throughout the event and assess if contestants are truly “watching” or are simply staring blankly at the screen.

Time permitting, SearchIndia.com will try and bring you pictures of Ashish Sharma in action at the Times Square.

Here are some of Ashish’s rivals for the crown:

* Former three-time movie marathon record holder Claudia Wavra of Germany who will attempt to reclaim the title she lost to Ashish Sharma in June.

* Suresh Joachim, a Canadian of Sri Lankan descent, who holds 32 Guinness World Records. Joachim is an endurance champion whose records include television viewing (69 hours, 48 minutes), dancing (100 hours), radio dj-ing (120 hours), and ironing (55 hours, 5 minutes), among other disciplines.

* Cheryl Jones of Portland (Oregon). who was a part of the team of Netflix members who broke the Guinness World Record for continuous movie watching in 2003.

* Dallas movie buff Jeff Jones who won $250,000 on the movie edition of the popular game show series “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire” in 2007.

* New York-based competitive eating champion, Crazy Legs Conti, who also happens to be a cinephile with a penchant for ’80s films, will join
the ranks of endurance enthusiasts for a shot at the title.

Ashish, India’s filmi honor rests on your eyes.

Go Ashish. Go.