Why I'm really excited about Trainspotting 2

I generally treat movie sequels with the same revulsion I hold for flying cockroaches and KFC's chicken. Sure, every now and then there is a Godfather Part II or Terminator 2 or Silence of the Lambs (I know what you're thinking and you're wrong).

However, for each one of these exceptions, there are hundreds of rancid franchises like Fast and Furious (we get it, you guys like cars more than a Punjabi rapper) or Paranormal Activity (we get it, you're stalked by a ghost that is less scary than a jilted Delhiite).

So before watching the recently released teaser for Trainspotting's sequel T2, a little part of me was pessimistic that perhaps, like many sequels that are lazy attempts to cash in on the legacy of their predecessors, this one too may end up being a disaster.

But when I saw the familiar faces of Renton, Spud, Sick Boy and Begbie again, suddenly my earlier cynicism was replaced with excitement. I haven't felt this good since Archie Gemmill scored against Holland in 1978!

There is something special about the film adaptation of Irvine Welsh's bildungsroman. You'll probably come across many people who'll insist that "the book is better, ya" but pay them no heed.

Yes, the book is better because the characters' inner monologues and the despondency of heroin addiction don't translate easily onto the screen. But, having said that, Danny Boyle perfectly captured the book's gallows humour and sneering contempt for British society and employed all sorts of visual boffolas that went beyond the novel.

Irvine Welsh is a raconteur like no other. The Scottish dialect he uses in his books is difficult to navigate through at first but, like the Nadsat of A Clockwork Orange, it grows on you when you catch the rhythm of the argot.

After watching the movie, I procured and devoured every single book written by him but Trainspotting still remains my favourite. Porno, on which the movie sequel is based, is equally funny but lacks the punch of the original.

Mark Renton (played by Ewan McGregor) is an anti-hero full of bombast and Machiavellian mischief. He makes Holden Caulfield look like a self-obsessed hipster.

Much of the book, and the film, talk about drugs in a way that some may mistake for "glorification" but the central theme running through is not heroin but the rebellion of youth.

Remember those times when you told your parents that you're studying trigonometry at a friend's but you were actually at a farmhouse rave dying from having too much Old Monk?

Set in Edinburgh, Scotland, much of the film laments the hollow consumerism of British life where leisurewear, matching luggage, electrical tin openers and fixed interest mortgage repayments run the show while people choose "rotting away at the end of it all, pissing your last in a miserable home, nothing more than an embarrassment to the selfish, f*cked up brats you spawned to replace yourselves". In an environment of such ennui, an addict like Renton appears to be the ultimate individualist.

The character's national identity is not in sync with mainland Britain and this results in a defeatism that arises out of their impoverished circumstances and generational poverty.

Renton hates being Scottish because, "We're the lowest of the low. The scum of the f*cking earth! The most wretched, miserable, servile, pathetic trash that was ever shat into civilisation. Some hate the English. I don't. They're just wankers. We, on the other hand, are COLONISED by wankers. Can't even find a decent culture to be colonised by!"

When Mark Renton walks into the sunset sarcastically telling us that he is going to be like us and will be getting himself "the washing machine, the car, the compact disc and electrical tin opener, good health, low cholesterol, dental insurance, mortgage, starter home, leisurewear, luggage, three-piece suite…", it makes one wonder if the trappings of modern life are worth the transition.

Many think that the film was overrated. Critics like Will Self have denounced it as being "an extended pop video rather than a work of filmic art".

Even if one were to agree with Mr Self, I think Trainspotting should be given credit for having one of the most memorable soundtracks to accompany a film.

What other production features artists as diverse as Blur, Iggy Pop, Pulp, Underworld and Primal Scream? The world could use more such pop videos.

Other critics have pointed out that the film is a voyeuristic exploitation of drug use but this assessment is not entirely fair. We certainly need movies like The Basketball Diaries, SLC Punk or even Udta Punjab to educate (read: sermonise) the viewer about the dangers of addiction.

But we also need movies like Trainspotting to attempt a more realistic portrayal because there is a thin line between glorification and exploitation and that line is common sense.

As Renton explains, "People think it's all about misery and desperation and death and all that shite, which is not to be ignored, but what they forget is the pleasure of it. Otherwise we wouldn't do it. After all, we're not f*cking stupid. At least, we're not that f*cking stupid".

Somewhere towards the end of Trainspotting, Renton's underage girlfriend says, "You're not getting any younger, Mark. The world is changing, music is changing, even drugs are changing. You can't stay in here all daydreaming about heroin and Ziggy Pop".

Also read - Let Udta Punjab fly. It has dared to look at the enemy within

Indeed, much has changed since we last saw Mark. Now, there are designer drugs that guarantee only ups and no downs, music is essentially free and Brexit has meant that Scotland is going to have a second referendum to seek independence from those wankers that Renton despised so much.

As the sequel will be set nine years after Trainspotting (as per Porno), it will be interesting to see how Danny Boyle treats these prodigal sons.

Perhaps the screenplay can improve upon the novel's shortcomings. The director wanted all actors to grow older to play their roles accurately.

If the teaser is anything to go by, the years haven't been kind to the boys. Nonetheless, all of them sport the don't-leave-us-alone-with-your-wallet grins that made filmgoers take a liking to their affable but dodgy characters.

I, for one, can't wait till the release of T2 in January next year. Like Mark "Rent Boy" Renton says in the movie, "This was to be my final hit, but let's be clear about this. There's final hits and final hits. What kind is this to be?"