Spotlight Su...!

BBBaarcelonaa, Here I Come..!

2009-04-12T21:55:00.000-07:00

The first thing that impressed me from Frame 1 of Woody Allen's latest film is the location. Is Barcelona really this, I mean THIS - this - tHiS - BeeyouuuttiiiFFFULL. The operational word here is FULL, which just about describes the film as well.

A journey in, on, at and among Love - this one is soooo NOT Woody Allen - in that its romantic to the extent of spoiling you with wine, women and this one man. It is passionate without showing too much. It is complicated - (aah! That's the Woody in the Allen aspect, right?) What a delight to catch this film on a saturday afternoon, when the house is quiet, too quiet...that I thought, for so many seconds, that my room transformed into one of the dens of the spanish painter Antonio (an exceptionally attractive AND non-attractive man, and when you see the film you will know why!).

Vicky & Cristina are best friends and similar in everything except their approach to love. On a break to Barcelona, Antonio enters their lives with a straightforward proposal of 'life is dull, why not make the most of it - some sight seeing, some wine and we (pointing to both the women) can make love!" While the romantic, always impulsive Cristina agrees readily to this adventure that is set to make her adrenalin throb, Vicky, the steady, committed one holds her own, until.... ....

And every breathing moment breaks into a spontaneous spell of screams and chatter with the un-announced arrival of Antonio's ex-better-half, Maria Elena (a truly Oscar deserving performance by Penelope Cruz - just watch her swallow the camera alive in her white dress, wine in hand...) I totally enjoyed every minute, as lines go out of control in this emotion and passion ride, steered with equal fervor by all the players. In this mix, writer Allen places the thin but clear line of real love that actually blooms but is unrequited ... No I'm not telling between who and who! Not because there is any suspense to this tale, as one would expect...but because... it is LOVE - Sigh! See what I mean, when I said this was NOT a Woody Allen film, but it IS. I mean, well, yeah...!

Rebecca Hall as Vicky and Scarlett Johansson as Cristina breathe life into their varying personalities. The reason why Allen cast a man with a face like Javier Bardem (who won the Supporting Actor (Oscar) for playing the cold blooded killer in No Country for Old Men) in a romantic tale of mutiple love, women and tender love at that, with one of the women being domineering - has to do with the fact that two different kinds of women must find him attractive and yet not so, and this being in and out thing (yes, it is almost like what it sounds!) needs a man with a face that will haunt you, tease you, linger on you and take you over, a face you wont forget, a face that spells exotic - and that is why Allen Genius has cast him in this narrative of cross-connected lovers.

The film has some soothing visuals (thanks to Cinematographer Javier Aguirresarobe), some awesome tracks with a Spanish band for music (specially the soundtrack focuses on instrumental flamenco guitar) - and some of the best settings for romance in recent times.

Some die hard Allen fans may not find his trademark lines, the dark humor etc - but watch closely, and you will find it in the many turns that this ride takes you on!

Did I hear a toast to that, anyone?!

Revolutionary Road

2009-04-09T02:12:00.000-07:00

Such an awesome space for silence! Thats the one thing that impressed me most about this film, apart from the complexity of emotions that engulf the lead pair. A total contrast to their earlier romantic flick on board the Titanic, Leonardo di Caprio and Kate Winslet, take you down all the way, yup, all the way down in Revolutionary Road.

Sam Mendes (married to Kate Winslet in real life) has given his wife a gift of her lifetime, in her role of April - the creative, spontaneous yet cranky and hysterical, impulsive woman, who so loves her husband that she goes all the way to hate him! Though I'm yet to see Reader, for which she won her Oscar, this one too is a masterful stroke of a deft artiste. Kate proves that her picnic in Titanic was just that - a small, outing by the sea. Whereas, in RR, she pulls you along as she drowns, dives, resurfaces for short breaths and then, almost abruptly sinks. And, no, its not the tear at the end of the last eye-lash kind of movie. It is smouldering, heavy discontent that rips up your heart, leaving no room for piddley tears.

Leonardo di Caprio has the more complex character actually, caught up in making a life for his family like a good, responsible man of the house. He is yet to find out what he wants to do with his life. Yet to find the time away from nosy colleagues, attractive stenos, demanding bosses...and a rigid work life that even keeps the social life in clock work schedule. But as he struggles so does he come to terms with it. A small suggestion to move to Paris, that tiny little paradigm shift in thought itself seems to be enough of a catalyst for Frank (di Caprio truly excels) to bring that extra 'zing' to his routine life. He, like all ordinary mortals is happy to live in his dreams, and reckon with his reality (read compromise).

April (an amazingly animalistic portrayal - watch her and then tell me you disagree!) on the other hand sees the futility of their programmed life and puts her plan of moving to Paris (used as an utopian concept here - brilliant!) in action - the disappointment of not actually doing so, has disastrous effects on the couple.

Mendes almost travels through the Sydney Pollock terrain - a little bit of drama, suspense, well etched characters but minimal in number, great tension in place of romance and mush, very adult points of view (the presence of the 2 kids makes no difference to the proceedings), a rather abrupt and impulsive ending. Mendes has made a film that actually made me think - am I really doing what I really wanna do in life? Am I living or simply existing?

Well...aint we all answering that one with every waking moment of our lives?

Dev D

2009-03-24T00:51:00.001-07:00

Life. Love. And DevD.
That could just simply sum up the experience of watching this film.

How the &**# can you make my throat dry when you drink?
Why the &**# are you pulling me into the seedy Delhi streets, where body and soul have distinct lines of control? Do I have the guts to take the ride - You taunt me endlessly through this!
How dare you make me empathise with people I hardly know, with people who act as if they don’t need my empathy at all, with people who exist despite my support? Why do you make me want to retch it all out of me…and still somewhere make me feel satisfied...clean?

Sigh. There, I’ve tried to sum up DevD. Tried.

Usually a good film is one that (as they say) leaves a lump in your throat. Or makes you shed that odd tear. DevD made me do neither.
Yet, this has become my favorite film, the most comprehensive, wholesome film I’ve loved in my adult years.

I was moved - To despair. To lust. To ego. To intoxication. To love. To life.
To hope despite all odds - Self inflicted ones at that.

The bloody pain of love wrought with ego. The glorification of the self – be it in pain or pleasure. The brash women whose words hurt – sting… who are more mature than this boy-man Dev. The love sans the usual frills. The passion that arrives with just a thought…

Such splendid unapologetic sex…! It just comes onto you from unexpected quarters – like a tiger leaping on an unassuming prey…tearing at your insides again and again and again…

DevD is all about the above. Yet it is also a film that makes me feel all of the above. And therein lies Anurag Kashyap’s victory.

This is a film for all of us who have loved a dream. Lost it. And still live on chasing it, as it appears before us, taking on different forms. In Dev’s case, it was Paro & Chanda (Mahi Gill & Kalki – excel) – and briefly so, Rasika.

This is a film where I do not identify with any of the characters but this is a film where the characters do all the things that I might have done. And therein lies Anurag Kashyap’s mastery over story-telling. Over visual narration.

And what a masterful stroke it is to have Chanda watch Maar Daala on TV, before she decides on her pseudonym or to swiftly move from a SRK’s Devdas poster to Abhay Deol (a wonder of a performance. Titles credit him with the concept of the film).

Song and dance is used in an ingenius manner, as they weave in and out of the frames and my senses, as much as Dev, Paro and Chanda languish in their emotions, largely fraught with passion and ego. The humor is left to the rest of them who have to deal with the trio. The lead characters just act out their stuff. The supporting characters react to their actions. How simple indeed?! And how novel!

More than appreciating the film’s craft, pointing to the nuances – be it in scene setup or dialogues or just that one pause here n there, I am shaken up by this film, because it has made me look inside it, and watch on...helplessly, as Dev sways between life & death; and makes me smile in relief, clap in joy, when finally Dev chooses Life. There is redemption. There is hope. See how cleverly the makers of this film have made me write something so emotional about something which is after all, a film?!

This film is personal.

Just how the &**// can you come up with something like Emotional Hatyachaar…?

If DevD be the food of love …. Play it on! And on…and on!
Who’s gonna say No to a chance to walk two feet above the ground…!

Dilli 6

2009-03-22T23:28:00.000-07:00

I liked Dilli 6 - much against a whole lot of my brethren.

To narrate a 'theory' and not a story per se is a task in itself, more so when you think of writing it all down in a screenplay format. I thought the snapshots of old Delhi which was presented both via the characters and scenarios (the clash of religious ideologies, the politcal in-correctness of our social system) ... it was all There! Rakeysh OmPraksh Mehra got it right with his experiment. The box-office failing the film is a different debate altogether.

Abhishek was at his most endearing best. It's such a delight to see him grow in stature as an actor, knowing exactly how NOT to wear his stardom on his shirt collar, and just BE the character! Waheedaji was the eternal epitome of grace & beauty. Sonam was in her impish, chutzpah self. A word on this girl - more than 2 of my male colleagues lamented on the lack of screen space for Sonam Kapoor - I mean, give me a break! This girl is all but 1 film old...and here we are wanting her to 'steal the scenes' away from the story! Arey, She was what she was in that setup. Nothing more or less was warranted. What crime did Mr. Mehra commit in keeping his characters to just the basics...? Why is there a need to romantacise relationships when the film is not about that?!

Now onto the Kaala Bandar thing - now, this is not mainstream cinema. However, to have mainstream stars embellish such symbolic euphemisms that exist in theory is a feat by itself. Not to forget the most wonderful Masakkali- both the pigeon and Rahman's awesome track (Maramat Muqadar Kar do Mere Maula - that lingers on far beyond the rolling titles!)... Where else have we seen Binod Pradhan's deft camera panning across the Jama Masjid, revealing multitudes in prayer or pushing itself over the rickshaw in the many gullies of Dilli Streets - (with the Jalebi intact!) - I mean this is a superb cinematic effort! The limbo-ness of the narration tempts me to put this film above the much loved Rang De Basanti.

I wonder why we are not even attempting such things in Tamil. Yes, we do have our own milestones in recent times...but ever since the Multiplex Films in Hindi shook us out of our routine, Hindi cinema is seeing some wonderful blossoms!

The most spectacular of 'em all is up for a post shortly ... It goes by a name followed by an initial without a fullstop in between... it goes by the name...

DevD

Lazy

2009-03-21T10:09:00.000-07:00

As Lazy as lazy can be.

That is my present status. In life.

Move.

Shake.

Walk.

Run.

Get. Set. Go.

Ya..right! But who is this who's telling me all this may I know?!!

Still. As still can be.

Let it be. Oh Let it be...

Letting Go...actually.

Yaavarum Nalam - Well, almost!

2009-03-06T19:41:00.000-08:00

Yaavarum Nalam - Good effort. Some trouble here n there, yes, with the dubbing, some of the closeups with mouths moving in all directions except Tamil - ... but these days a here n there can be overlooked. Give us a simple, easy to comprehend and good-enough-for-the-money spent on the a/c & popcorn - thus a hit is made! A rare, good script by the director.

Only I felt that the dialogues and some of the scene cut-to-cuts could have been better. The BGM also is a well...hmmmm - (missss an Ilayaraaja every now n then - yes, understand fully this is a bi-lingual and you need saleable Hindi names...but no dispute that Raja Sir would have added the more to this already good fare?!) But all that's a polish.

The basics - the story, suspense, thrills, drama, flashback narrative & visuals are quite competently handled. Take a bow Vikarm, this is his second film, if Im right! Atleast I am casting a shade of doubt on my fact, when so many reviews just plainly wrote this was his debut. No. Alai was his debut film.

Audience reaction and reviews have been phenemonal. So, all I'm saying is that - yeah, happy for those who made me sit with my fingers in my ears, my eyes nearly half closed and my tummy being forever on the jump up and down mode! Good show!

Happy for Maddy, Happy for Suresh & Georgie - the producers!

P.S: The one composition of the Madras Library in the background - imposing, rugged and almost looking down in its grand mystery over Maddy, as he rummages through newspaper clips, looming large in the foreground.... PC Sir, just how, just simply HOW do you ALONE manage such wonders?!

What a J(ai)oy!

2009-02-23T01:14:00.000-08:00

Was waiting for something interesting to push me from my sluggish self and put the finger onto the keyboard. But didnt quite realise that the 'something' will have to take Oscar proportions for me to put in a post. What a moment for India - Tremendous, as a director friend puts it! Yup - that's the word that encompasses all the moments leading to and all that followed India's thumping footprint on the Oscar stage.

Yella pugazhum iraivanukke - A R Rahman stole the show with that single line in Tamil - makin all of us Tamilians ever so proud of our Tamilhood. That man's success is a lesson in any talented person wanting to make it big - it takes loads of talent yes, but it also takes a lot of attitude - the right one of coz, to reach where A R Rahman has reached. Rahman is someone who will work with anyone who wants to work with him. You can hear his tracks for a Vijay film as well as a Maniratnam one. You can hear him on a Broadway musical as well as in a superstar introduction song! Rahman, I think, hardly says No - to work - and he does it single mindedly, not relying on any outside stimulus except his Music for inspiration.

Step by step, one day after another, simultaneously dealing with Tamil and Hindi filmdoms, Rahman rose from strength to strength. The sentence may convey a certain sense of strategy to his rise - but to me and to any discerning mind, Rahman's modesty, his choosing love over hatred and his deep respect for his mother - all come across as this wonderful mix that's made the man who he is... His music made him who he is to US, if you get what I mean.

A truly momentous day - I take the liberty to add on to what Mr. Pookutty rightly said, "...they didnt just give them an award, they were given a history!" This day, every year will be a historical one that has set the Oscar stage open to Indian film making talent. Are we upto it?

Yawn & a Four...!

2009-01-29T04:08:00.000-08:00

Yaaaaawwwwwnnnnn....! That should just about account for the last fortnight of silence.

Okay here goes...

Slumdog Millionaire - Well made, clever film. As for content - OK. This too is just a film. And Rahman has given us some wonderful scores in our very own Tamil films, Thank you very much... so the Oscar will be a recognition of his collective brilliance.

Subramaniapuram - Does anyone even wanna know what I think when the film has collected over 12 crores...? An excellent directorial debut, yes...but the film was toooo long and I felt the length. Very good BGM by James and good film-making standards. But hey, since when have we applauded for just the basics, I say?!! A good film, most surely not a great one. As I said earlier, good is also hard to come by these days.

Mama Mia - This film is a music video. And Meryl Streep is not my favorite actress for nothing! She is so very active - at this age...! Wow...watch her take a hop, leap and high jump into the lake - FIT is how she is...as FIT as her is how I will want to be at her age! Not much to say for the film though!

A Wednesday - Again late in the day. But I took my time with this one. Great Cast. Good acting. Good concept. Average execution. Excellent meeting point for Kher & Shah...! Wished the writing could have been better. Liked the shots that built up to Nasseruddin Shah's pov on the terrace and of course, his stupendous 'common man' act.

All of Me. . .!

2009-01-07T08:30:00.000-08:00

Last year I didnt have a blog. So even I had a tough time figuring how I felt on the eve of what's called a birthday..ya, ok, my birthday.

This year I have a blog. And it makes all the difference, right? Yes.

This year, Im driving. New car. Mine. Im driving...and its a beautiful feeling.

And as for my thoughts...well, time to indulge, eh?!

Most of it is rhetoric. I ask and answer inside my head. Oh, my poor head. Sometimes it is oh so burden-ed that I literally feel its weight. Parallel streams of thought lines fill up my head (I can see these things you know!). The punctuation marks are sometimes clear, at times just a blur.. sigh! Good, bad, ugly - thoughts are of all kinds....its the actions that maketh me a good/bad woman.

And last year Ive been soooo good...much to my own ire. I mean...isint good also read as boring?! Hmm? Ya...good is safe. Good is...well, how we are taught to be from LKG - but hey, being a lil' on the not so good side is not bad after all? Ha! How I love that line.

Self love also happened in large doses. Have a superb set of friends who guarantee that I dont succumb to self pity. So..the opposite had to happen, and I have gone in for some changes which will show as time steadily ticks on your cell phone (I dont remember wearing a watch in a long time, do you?)

So... sometimes the blanks inside my head is equated to a Junior level game of Anagram or Crossword or at best Text twist or Word Challenge on Facebook. Ah! FB - that was also not on my plate on a birthday eve last year...but this year...hope the Wall gets full!!

I look forward and forward alone. With a lot of practise, I have arrived at a small maths (yes, me and maths, I know U know...but still read on...!)...formula. Past = what went by the last 24hrs ONLY. Ok, so where is the maths here you ask. Didnt you see the equal to sign?

So, with the past being just a day ago and my future...just 3hrs away, I say Good night.

Jan 8th is also Happy Birthday to a lot of friends...so see you then. Ciao!

Happy 0 0 9

2009-01-01T02:30:00.000-08:00

How can I not post a post on Day 1? So here it is, my brand new post for a brand new year.

This year should see me keep an open mind (hope my brains dont fall out in the process!).

This year should see me un-whine (if you know what I mean). No complaints, shedding the Ms. Grumpy tag.

This year should see me loose weight (some 10odd kilos and a few happy flabs aka tyres).

This year should see me drive my I10 on the Chennai highways (!!!).

This year should .... Wait. You should actually read the above sentences thus -

"In 2009 I will...." (now read on...)

- Swwwwiiimmmmm.

- Travel - road, air, sea (ayei, this is way too much for me,,,...but as I said wont grumble about the tummy turns)

- And by Travel I mean 1 eastern country & 1 western (Ouch! that's my purse by the way!)

- Be just about right with my words.

- Listen to you with that special twinkle in my eye.

- Write my 3 unfinished scripts.

- Pump up the iron, work till I burn the midnight oil.

- Love & Laugh like never before.

And if I were to ever forget I wrote somethin' like this, nooo...I wont.

This is 2009. And it's Now or Never!............. ................................

Psst! The blanks are for the Maybes...coz there's nothing like Never, ever right! Ha!

Happy New Year.

Ghajini.. Rock On.

2008-12-28T06:13:00.000-08:00

What can I say about Ghajini which ace film critic Bharadwaj Rangan has not written down already? In case, any wandering soul wants to know the same, have pasted the link below.

http://www.desipundit.com/baradwajrangan/

The other film which I saw day before night, on an original DVD (waited quite awhile for it!) is ROCK ON. Now, did they name the film knowing the way twas gonna turn out or did they name it for the sake of it or just for the story around rock music etc etc? I mean...This is wonderful cinema. Jason West, Shankar Ehsaan Loy and writer director Abhishek Kapoor should take multiple bows - while Farhaan Akhtar can take a special walk on the ramp for producing this most updated film in India. The showstopper, however, goes to Arjum Rampal. Sexy!

Why am I going ga-ga about a film which already had its share of great run while on screen itself? Because I saw it just now Columbus! And being my blog, I have the right to go anywhere I want to on any film, people, animals and things...(ok the animal bit is an exaggeration, knowing my phobia..!)

Rock On - has some very real moments, fantastic onscreen chemistry between lead actors (I meant the Band Magik) and some great guitar playing and singing by Farhaan and Arjun Rampal - I need more time to delve deeper into the Making DVD - to know if these guys already knew to play and sing or was it all an Actor Prepares?!

In all, this was one film which completely entertained me.

And if you now go back to read the title of this post, you will notice the space between the names of the two films! Ahem.

Very Merry...!

2008-12-24T09:12:00.000-08:00

It's Christmas. It's December. Both favorite aspects of my life. Somehow for all the lethargy of this year, the month seems to whiz(zzzz..) past by!

Joy of Giving - sharing, all things nice and wonderful with all creatures great and small... I know, I know I'm being my cynical self, and I do know it's not so bad after all. (Just back from playing ChrisMa/Pa-Chrischild at office!)

The Holidays' as even we Indians now call it, is no longer the exclusive window of cheer meant only for the westerners! In Chennai, one can see the red, white and green (with a generous dose of cotton, white fabric or glitter for snow) and 'feel' transported to Santa's North Pole Village! Hark..! Can you hear the angels sing..?

Meanwhile, my mobile cracks up and acts funny now - like my year. Too many things to fix up. Gosh, the coming year's gonna be one of plain fixing up. People. Work. Home. Most important of 'em all, my mobile phone.

Finally, I was able to set up my Christmas corner - with all new dolls and just the trees and trinkets from the past. Mom just gave away my old ones - can't find them around she says. Swallowed that along with a tall glass of cold water.

A friend just refused to step out to take his Christmas gift from me. This whole year saw me see-saw-ing with people. Hmmm. All shades of grey - didnt have much to call for color. Sigh!

But the ones that stood by me - oh, how can I merely thank them for being around even when I could'nt find myself anywhere but rock bottom. They say this is the best time to do the thanking bit. And I do it with all my heart...which also has such nice feelings despite a whole year of setbacks. I was just listing out my bad days from the good - and did I tell you ever that 300 out of 365 were plain bad?! Shucks. To see what I've crossed gives me a new kind of strength - one that I didnt know I was capable of having. So that counts as a good thing, I suppose. The meaning of the 65 good days!

A whole lot of quite-titude (somehow solitude sounds so sad!) in 2008. A lot of putting on weight - I will need a double 2009 to get rid of it.

Movies. Music. My Blog. 2008 saw it all.

Hopefully, my one sole wish for Christmas will be answered way past midnight now...when the Chennai Churches ring their bells to herald the Birth of the King. Time to focus. And decide what that one wish is gonna be...

Will update this post when it comes true. (see no Ifs and Buts in wishing, ok!)

Merry Christmas.

Chaar Kabbadi - a How & a Wow!

2008-12-11T20:12:00.000-08:00

Yup! That's a four member act - some great under the skin kinda performances in a fun film. The WOW is reserved for Irfan Khan, Konkona Sen, Rahul Bose, SohaALi Khan and Rahul Khanna in that order. The HOW (along with the Wow obviously!) is reserved for Anil Senior- the writer and director of this true blue adult comedy.

An ode to Woody Allen from India. That goes for this film in totality, and that's like handing over this gorgeous bunch of roses to the writer-director!

Simple. Steady. Direct. That's the kind of filmmaking, which is easy on the eye and the mind.

Funny. Insightful. Intelligent. That's the level of writing, and that IS remarkable.

Life-like. That's the pace of the film, which makes for a very relaxed viewing. (No, a film need NOT be a slick flick for no reason!)

A natural blend of humor with whacko moments caused usually by emotional discomfort for and by the lead characters when they come into contact with one another. Phew! That's the screenplay, which is actually as difficult to put together as the sentence that describes it.

A wonderful mix of sex, spice and nothing nice. That's the emotional psyche of the lead roles themselves. (Whatta mix! Absolutely delightful.)

Aah...! What a relief from the stereotype formula which the south seems to be turning out (and burning themselves out in the process!) with every big hero. Here, anything village is a great film. There (in Hindi) all things urban makes a good film.

And I'm very happy with a good film, by the way. They are a rarity as it is! The greatness can be thrust upon them later on, during the numerous festival visits!

Breaking screenplay structure, allowing actors to talk to the camera on and off thus taking us back and forth into their lives; using characters as catalysts (Kaya played by Payal Rahtogi & Raga played by Saba) to unveil emotional changes in the characters of Samit (a very much in control - even when it's over the top act by Irfan Khan) and Rishi (a totally beautiful portrayal by Rahul Bose, yes, beautiful.); the complex passive aggressive type played to perfection by Konkona, the prudish yet I soooo need to be loved but wont tell you type played with uniformity by Soha - and of course, I wish I had a guy like that act from Rahul Khanna - all this makes this Kabbadi of Hearts, a very good 2 and half hours of clean, adult fun.

Did I say clean, adult fun? Ha! Need I say more?

Hard work

2008-12-07T08:20:00.000-08:00

Writing is hard work.

Good writing is a LOT of hard work.

Fauji

2008-12-05T02:27:00.000-08:00

Guess it started with Fauji. Remember one of the First Television Serials that caught our attention? The one that Introduced THE now Reigning Khan to us!

A wednesday evening was something I used to looked forward with great joy. One of the few things that would motivate me to doing my Maths homework ahead of time, so I could devote 30 minutes of undivided self to the Black & White Solidaire. I had the distinction of not missing even one Episode of the 13 Week Serial! It started there I guess, my fascination for the Men in Uniform. Abhimanyu Roy - played to perfection by Shah Rukh Khan - Sigh! Every single character in this serial endeared you. I was in awe of those guys. The ones in Fauji and the Real MEN guarding our nation, day and night. A few years later, when I moved back to Tambaram, stepping out of home during weekends meant catching a glimpse of the 'too Good to be true but nevertheless right there' Cadets (from the Air Force Station in Tambaram). Hmmm.

Again after a few years later, I met this absolutely Charismatic Lt. Col DD Pandey. The gentleman, Lt. Col R.S. Moorthy who introduced us to him was a lovable person too! But "Pandey Uncle", (as we HAD to call him, thanks to this silly nomenclature that goes with age) will always be special. I guess l can safely call him my first serious Crush! Of our ten day stay in Bangalore in Cariappa Colony, I would hope that Pandey Uncle would visit us each day! I would look forward to avidly 'tune in' as this real life hero spoke about life in the Army. Moorthy Uncle and Pandey Uncle would always have interesting things to share. I remember going to that Dinner party at the Officer's Mess on one of the Evenings. (draw in a breath or two here!)

I did meet more people like these two Charismatic Gentlemen, but Lt. Col Pandey (as I prefer to call him as against the regular Uncle Pandey) was different. And months after that trip was over, I wrote to him.

And...in a few days I had an envelope on our dinner table which my mom pointed out when I came back from school one evening. The from address read, Lt. Col D.D. Pandey - Service Selection Board. I still have that Envelope and the letter that was in it.

As I sit back and wonder.. Is my still "going strong" fascination for the Armed Forces, a mere remains of my past? Maybe partly, but there is a lot more to it. In a world where MY priorities, MY life, MY family, takes precedence over anything that is YOURs - the Armed Forces have people willing to lay down THEIR lives for people like us, whose names or faces they will never know (I don't even know if I can take a pin prick for someone else!)

In a world where we act tough even to do just two things beyond what's required of us, here are a set of Brave People whose Call of Duty includes dying for a bunch of namesless people just because they BELONG to the same country. What more reason do I need for justifying my fascination, my awe, my respect...for our Armed Forces!

I remain indebted like each one of you to every single Fauji..
Jai Jawan.

The above piece is written by Devasena - RJ/EP Radio Mirchi.
(Re)Produced here with permission (but of coz!)

Too serious Too cool

2008-12-03T23:48:00.000-08:00

Now Dont ask me why I came up with the title. I just did. Now I have to find the text for it. It's one of those totally 'un-reasonable' things. Yes. Sometimes such thoughts, like that nagging aunt from nowhere, arrive without reason. Like some stupid song you would have heard on radio this morning, and it just stays. STAYS. Refuses to vanish no matter how much you force your cold ridden throat to hum your other favorite number. The one that enters without reason just stays.

Thoughts...let's allow it to meander now.

Finding my foot I can say. In this whole new world. Now, this can be understood as a euphemism or as just a plain reference to a new phase of one's life.

A lot of my sentences these days are beginning with Sometimes. Hmmm.

And a lot of my reactions to what's happening around me is just...Hmmm.

Sometimes (there I go!) the Hmmm-s precede or come along with a sigh.

At others they just come out as they are. (Somehow that line makes me grimace - How could I do this, terrible!)

Ok, so what's the purpose of this post and why are we doing this at all? Does anything make a difference to anyone anymore? I know, I know the previous line was hugley over the top - but this is how I feel right now. Life goes on. Keeps going on. I dont remember the last time I laughed or cried and emptied my heart in the process. I dont recall ever having that wonderful 'connect' with a fellow human being, on the miracle of sharing space on the same planet. I have'nt in the recent past experienced kind-ness, like how I did when I was 7yrs old, when Sister Mona saw my hungry face and gave me three Marie biscuits during Interval (which is the break before lunch).

When the world is burning and nations are starving, how could you be so selfish and think about your own pitiable state? You may ask.

But...somewhere it's MY world. It begins and ends with ME.

Dont' make me out to be a monstor and you the angel. It is the same for you too. It's YOUR world. And the greatest love of all is....hey, Im sure you have heard the song!

Preserve the Self and present it to the world. Im sure the rest will follow. This Im telling myself now, hoping my share of Marie biscuits will come to me sooner than later.

Cheers.

(hmmm... The post covers the too serious part...now what do we do with the too cool?)

Sound of Silence

2008-12-01T09:05:00.001-08:00

Just when I thought I was having enough of being engulfed in all that's happening around me, in Mumbai, in a city just so many miles away - I am seized by a call that tells me to deal with another loss. H Sridhar, the God of Sound died this morning, Im told. Heart attack. Passed away in his sleep. In peace. Without a sound. First reaction - Nah! Gods don't die. Only us, mere mortals kick the bucket when still in the shower! As for the Gods, well, they are here to envelop us with their Divine presence, in whatever they do. Sometimes without much ado, but always there. Pervading our lives without our knowledge (that's why we are mere mortals!).

Sridhar Sir was (Was? Is becomes Was, just like that?) our God of Sound. For so many people, whose lives he has touched with his work - with his sheer magnetic smile and few words, this day will mark a loss so irreplaceable that my normally 19 to a dozen words fail to do justice to express my vaccum! A R Rahman, Maniratnam, Kamalhaasan, Shankar - to name a few of those Creators who will be thinking right now (and for many days to come), of their innumerable moments of post production at Media Artistes with Sridhar Sir. Sridhar Sir has also engineered and mixed albums for international artists like George Harrison of The Beatles, John Neptune Kaizan, Pandit Ravi Shankar, Zakir Hussain, L.Shankar and John McLaughlin.

I've had the unique opportunity of knowing him both as the impeccable professional he is (was?!) and as this totally fun loving, music loving, guitar strumming guy next door, thanks to our common good friend W.Vijaykumar. We brought in 2006 at Kamal Sir's house, singing to karoke bits on CD made by Sridhar Sir, and then later on singing to both Viju and Sir going ballistic with their Electronic machines - I simply thank my stars for the one of the most unforgettable and precious gifts of my life! Sridhar sir was (is?!) one of the few people who could bring me to an upright position even if he were to just go past me! The minute he walked into the corridors leading to his studio, the atmosphere would just charge itself up to create the magic that he is so well known for. He was also known to be quite a terror at work - but I've rarely seen that side of him, maybe because I had so many questions to ask, so many answers to know, so much to learn and I wanted to ask him ALL, and he did'nt lose his cool even once. Aah! It is so very tiring to deal with pain. With the loss of someone you've always admired and wanted to work with in a real professional way! The way some of the names I mentioned earlier in this post did!

A true genius, an awe inspiring trend setter (every single track ever composed by Rahman carries his stamp!), a tireless professional, the First and ONLY Sound Designer India ever had - Sridhar sir now sleeps in silence! But listen well and you can hear the walls of Media Artistes weep. How can we, who are but mere mortals escape it?!

November 27th 2008

2008-11-26T21:23:00.000-08:00

Slept to the scary lullaby of the Chennai Storm.

Woke up to the alarming wails of the Mumbai blasts.

- Innocent folks dying in anonymity, in abruptness, in silence, without a chance of seeing a loved one and with nothing but terror flash by their last moment of life.

- Brave armed forces walking into a hostage hall, knowing they may never come back; leaving behind loved ones and a heart yearning for just one more chance.

- Giving hearts that toil to clear-up the mess churned over and over by hate & terror; striving hard to heal the wounded, watching lives wither by.

- Sleepless eyes trying to bridge loved ones across oceans; being on call 24/7 just in case another needs help.

- A vengeful heart still roaming the city streets, waiting to strike when the good souls sleep...

Torn between hate and love is humanity!

If only - if only, love could conquer all...! IF Allah, Father and Vishnu could take form to save this warring world.

If such a miracle needs a sacrifice, let this be the very last, Oh, God - let this be the very last!

An Original!

2008-11-21T09:20:00.000-08:00

"...I don't like it when music directors use loops. It takes away the idea that the song is an original. Which is why I have a problem with most of the Indian music directors, barring a very few..." - well put, yes, but this also made me wonder. And since then I have begun to introduce Barbara Skoda - a good friend and a sound music colleague about a certain Indian Music Director named Ilayaraaja.

And the song I'm gonna make her listen to tomorrow is this one:

Nee Paartha Paarvaikkoru Nandri
Nammai Chaertha Iravukkoru Nandri
Ayaraatha Ilamai Sollum Nandri - Nandri
Agalaatha Ninaivu Sollum Nandri - Nandri
Uyire...Vaa..

Barbara is one of the most 'knowledgable' foreign minds when it comes to Indian and in fact Tamil and Telugu movie-dom! Hailing from Austria and working with SAE International, she is the Chief Technical Officer of SAE-Vienna. With a smattering of Hindi that she picked up from watching movies, Barbara stunned Surya with her quote unquote of his famous roles and films when they met at the recent Mirchi Special screening of Vaaranam Aayiram. Too cool to be true - Barbara will have her classes on Ilayaraaja the minute you're done with reading this post! Ha!

Naadagam Mudintha Pinnaalum
Nadippinnum Thodarvathu Yenna
Oranga Vedam Ini Pothum Pennae
Uyir Pogum Mattum Unn Ninaive Kanne
Uyire...Va..

Now...THAT's what we call an Original!

Vaaranam Aayiram

2008-11-19T22:27:00.000-08:00

This is one film so close to life that I forgot I was watching a film! Even the so maligned second half (just when will Indian cinema stop having intervals, so our directors can straight away make 110min movies!) is such a delight. For someone who sees life as a travel, for someone who sees life as love, for anyone who have ever lost love, for all of us who revel in family bonding and memories - Vaaranam... gives you not just a thousand moments but much, much more!

Beginning from the titles - you get hooked on. Voices singing to minimal music, sweet flow of letters on screen - and you know this is not the usual action flick that Gautham Vasudev Menon is by now so famous for! Enter Surya as this regular, real life Daddy - and you are prepared that there is something thats gonna ensue - a lifetime thats gonna unveil - and how! The son Major Surya reminisces on the influence of his dying father in every moment of his life. And then on, we relax...as we get into the drawing room of this real time family, as Malini (a simply outstanding and graceful Simran) takes you through a journey of their lifetime!

Vaaranam...is not just a heartwarming tale. Its also a brilliantly made film. Rathnavel shines in every frame, as his camera works well with faces and locations. The grungy Delhi sequence is one of the well executed action points in Indian cinema. Harris, of course is at his best, with every song getting the necessary reactions from the audience. Rajeevan has so wonderfully recreated the interiors of the family's house - as much as aligning the real time locations to suit the scenes.

So much of talk has flown under the bridge called Vaaranam Aayiram... most of it just plain 'it's slow', 'it's not dynamic', 'second half is not logical'...! What is so slow, un-dynamic and illogical about a guy who is on the verge of life? He goes about experiencing one bit after another, living life as it comes to him and takes the journey head on, getting into a deep pit of self pity and, like any mainstream cinema has, emerges a Hero (a sexy six pack one at that!) The druggie portions are told in such a true manner that a trained mind may wish for a hospitalisation of the addict. But, Rehab is not the only solution to an addiction. So many subtle things - be it dialogues or simple gestures suggest the strong bond between the parents and son, and that brings him back to Life. I was so GLAD that we FINALLY have a film that didnt belittle my intelligence to comprehend whats going on up there!

Surya is phenomenal. A class apart performance. Such a finely tuned in (and toned in!) mainstream actor...he makes you smile, laugh, cry (loads of it! Watch him in the phone booth scene as he talks to his parents from USA-WOW) and shiver (in the bedroom scene with Sameera!!) along with him. Now, HE is someone WE must be proud to showcase. He is such a Splendor on screen.

Now, There are movies he has made which are box office superhits. And then there is Vaaranam Aayiram which he has crafted - yes, that's the word... (painted, sculpted could be other synonyms). Gautham Menon enters that coveted league of filmmakers whose creative best shines through in every frame! For someone who has given 'fast paced' cinema, this film must have been so different even to conceptualise and moreover execute - to near perfection. To get that exact emotion right, along with getting the whole gamut of Art, Camera, Costume, Dialogue, Acting, Music - and not to forget the way he has picturised the hospital corridor moment between a much anguished Surya and Meghna's (an in sync Sameera Reddy) father, and the superbly choreographed (from an emotional end too) 'Anjaley' song, and the last scene in the film - the camera moving from the family at a top angle, with the father - a surreal figure walking away from them yet still 'being there' -

Gautham Vasudev Menon, please take a bow!

The colors, the images, the tears, the smiles - the wonderful women, this one superb dad, whose son most women will want to take home to Mom (Surya as this guy who falls and stays in love - guitar and all - totally YUM!) - Vaaranam Aayiram stays with you for a long time...and even then will make you wanna go watch it again.

Do we ever complain that Life is Long? Well, this film too is like life!

Watch it if you have a heart that's willing to hold more...love...!

Fashion

2008-11-04T03:18:00.000-08:00

Now that's word I love to hate. I'm someone who just swears by one fashion label that goes like Sujathaaaa...(smiles, giggles, whatever!) Vanity is also my middle name apart from being one of the most coveted fashion magazines. I mean, what in the world is this thing called fashion anyway?! But before we go into a debate for which there maybe little or no room in this post right now, let me delve into the movie Fashion, which is the real reason for this post.

Good film. Not a great one, and that is primarily to do with the fact that most filmmakers play to the gallery, instead of playing UP the screenplay. Cliche's come and go in the name of dialogues and scenes. What keeps our chin up is the under your skin performances by Kangana Ranaut and Priyanka Chopra. I am truly amazed at the level of acting standards that Bollywood is seeing, specially with the girls (The Guys can be reserved for another post - maybe a Season2, ahem!).

Gone are the teary eyed good girl lines for our leading ladies...now, we have in flesh and blood, girls with gut and glory. A sample line from Priyanka in the film: Mein sirf model nahin, supermodel banna chahathi hoon.
I shudder to think and somewhere I'm even ashamed to say that none of our south Indian girls could have or will even agree to do what Mr. Bhandarkar has pulled off with these two women! I mean, why is the south Indian heroine always interested in just being an on-screen eye-candy in recent years? Be it a Nayantara (Billa, Sathyam, Aegan) or a Trisha (all her roles till now) or a Shreya (the lesser said the better) - will any of them have the guts to do a film like Fashion in exactly the same way as narrated by the director? A counter arguement could be that such films dont do well at the box office and a stereo typed 'good actress' would only mean playing a village belle. I mean, when are we gonna see a slick, city chick walk away with the acting honors?!! Both our directors and heroines must buck up else, well, we will still be stuck with watching films like Aegan, which does not even merit a review by any standards! Cut to - where we were, on the ramp...

In Fashion, even the not so leading roles have been performed to perfection. A lot of models or Tv actors come out with fresh and realistic performances. That and the fact that this is a well crafted film, add several feathers to the director's hat. Costumes and lighting wonderfully blends in...specially in the fashion show moments (Just watch Kangana down yet another swig of her wine before it gets plucked out of her hand, as her face transforms into the super model she is; she sways onto the ramp like a Goddess, the camera going ahead of her, following her, surrounding her, as she sashays into the flashlights as the Show's Stopper. A true blue fashion moment!)

Yes, the film tends to get preachy and so many of Meghna Mathur's (Priyanka Chopra, whose story this is primarily) decisions are all HERs. Circumstance is depicted as a villain, when actually things could have been worse for her. It's her complexes or confidence that gets her to wherever she falls or flies. And behind every success IS a story. Otherwise, we can all very well be rolling out rotis in our daddy's backyards (If, we all hail from Chandigargh, like our heroine, that is!)

That apart, this film is surely the more watchable among the director's trilogy (Corporate, Page3). Watch it more for what happens on the ramp than off it! A special WOW to the fashion designers and models, who do appear here and there in the film, along with thier exotic creations. The clothes, do take your breath away. And that completely contradicts my beginning on this post. I mean, what in the world is this thing called Fashion anyway?! A movie, perhaps!

Body of Lies & Other Movies...

2008-10-28T10:15:00.000-07:00

The last few days have been quite interesting. New things to look forward to, new people, moments and of course Movies...!

Though I've two more films to cross this week with, the one that takes the cake and the icing among the other 4 just has to be Ridley Scott's 'Body of Lies'.
Just how the **** do these guys manage to pull off such a movie? A screenplay wonder from William Monahan and some brilliant vignettes of the Middle East shown with such aplomb via the camera of Alexander Witt, this film showcases Russell Crowe and Leonardo Di Caprio as the American beginning and end of a chain of people who fight against terrorism unleashed by the AlQaeda. The middle, as it conveniently sits well in the context of the story also, is the character of the King of Jordan-Hani Salaam, played with such panache by Mark Strong. More than a review of the film, what amazed me was the Housefull turnout at the theatre for a 16:15hrs show! And they say the film's been running this way (packed!) for the last 3 weeks. Wow! Watch it, you need no review from anyone for this one.

The other 2 films I picked up from my DVD library for one & only one reason alone - that they star Gerard Depardieu, who according to me is the Sivaji Ganesan of French/European Cinema. Small ones, long ones, thin ones, fat ones - give him any role and there you have Depardieu get into the skin of the character AND retain the charishma of a superstar! To learn how one can get beyond physical beauty or the lack of it when it comes to portrayal of roles, our modern actors must take a week off to study Depardieu. Of the two I saw, I liked the French film 36, for it had another French superstar Daniel Auteuil (& Depardieu) in a cop vs gangster story.

The other film, 'I am Dina' is a period flick, with large portions copied onto our very own Bansali's Black - yup, the wild natured girl child tamed by the Teacher, the difficult father-daughter relationship, the growing up into a complicated but talented girl - Black is a mix of this film and Miracle Worker. The shots, compositions, music, locales - are nothing short of Bravo!...in the original English film I mean. Touche'.

I also saw Richard Gere in a Jon Duvet average and rather boring film Red Corner, which my DVD man faithfully told me is the inspiration for the Tamil film Dhaam Dhoom. Both the original and the copy dont merit a review at all! My loyalties with Mr. Gere is more for my evening of interaction spent with him when we went to the Aids Awareness Star-Nite in Hyd, where I was translating the proceedings on stage (which was in Telugu and Tamil) to one of the sexiest men alive! Hmmmm...!

Movies apart, I have a very good reason to be grinning. Something I put an effort to do, something which has turned out not so bad after all...is a little something that needs a special post! I end this post here, as Kurosawa's Roshomon awaits me..! Ciao!

A Single & A Double...!

2008-10-19T07:53:00.000-07:00

Wonder why I’ve this fetish for Fonts?! I usually type directly into the Post, but the blog settings’ been acting funny with me recently. So, I first do a run on my faithful, yes, sometimes a pain in the you know where, Word document, which thankfully gives me that many more Fonts to choose from. What’s happened is this - my blog settings has taken off my Font selection Icon and without that, I’m like a sheep without wool. (There, some new metaphor!) More of a Goat, some of my friends will wanna add, but let’s just get on with this post and the explanation of it’s Title, shall we?

Anthony Minghella (see his pic) is the reason for my Double Delight. Without realising it, I had picked up two DVDs by the same director, along with this new age film from Turkey, which turned out to be my single scoop!

‘UZAK’ (Distant) is a masterpiece from Turkish Writer-Director & Cinematographer Nuri Bilge Ceylan. A winner in the Cannes 2003, this film has just two actors pitted along with & against one another – with both of them winning acting honors for this film in various film festivals. A photographer-artist uncle in Istanbul is visited by his long lost cousin from his village and life turns around for him, in more ways than one. Now a line like this can induce us to imagine dramatic moments, quick over the top scenarios and cuttings, major role for women, villains, comedy…! Ceylan’s film has all of this – not as high voltage drama but as Meaningful Moments. Brilliant visuals bring Istanbul to life – the POVs are from a distance, keeping in tune with the title. Minimal use of dialogue, maximum use of visuals take the scenes to a different high. The uncle has rules that the cousin flouts, without even realising it, of course. The cousin has inner agendas which the uncle unearths, without doing much about them (All through the film, the characters ‘behave’ – like we do in any given day of our lives!). The uncle (played by a uniquely nosed & immensely talented - a la ‘Depardieu-ish’, Muzaffer Ozdemir) is a stickler for cleanliness, is a moron when it comes to women, has zero attachments and lives a fairly king-sized life. The cousin (a very under your skin performance by Mehmet Emin Toprak, who posthumously received his Best Actor award for this film along with Ozdemir) has debts to repay, his mom’s toothache he worries over, has smelly shoes and doesn’t have what it takes to find a job in the city. Now, now, do I hear a slight burst of laugh already? Right. The minutes of the film will read SLOW. The content will read as DEEP. This is a film for a rainy, lazy and chuckling over popcorn afternoon. And music by the way is Mozart, with sound effects that pass off as superb background score. Try it!

Now for the DD- read Double Delight. ‘BREAKING AND ENTERING’ was the first film I saw in the Minghella series. A fan of his ‘English Patient’, I’ve always been intrigued with how he layers his characters and scenes with MORE…be it emotions, actions, richness of production/visual values and of course the popular cast, who come out with performances that range only between Good and Excellent. Set in London, the film is about an architect, Will Francis (Jude Law) whose life gets better actually (Mended, as he himself says) when he chases the boy who burgled his office more than once. With a high power girlfriend (Robin Wright Penn) who has an autistic daughter from her earlier marriage, Francis finds meanings to his equations within his life, his missing links so to say, when he befriends Amira (Juliette Binoche), the mother of his teenage burgler. The emotional alterations apart, the scenes of sexual tension where Francis and Amira are torn between their real passion and what they really seek from each other (He-his stolen things and justice and She-freedom for her son from prison walls)…will leave one silent and heavy for hours after the film. The teenager is a skilled Jumper (some breathtaking shots of the boy jumping over building tops), living with his single mom, hails from Sarajevo. Throw in the political backdrop and we immediatley understand the ‘why’ behind the boy’s abberation. Francis, loves his girlfriend and her daughter, but the lack of attention on him from Penn, cuts him deep. The issues which parents face as caretakers of specially challenged children is narrated in such a sublime way, that it says everything without saying much. There is the British humor, the chases, the court-room climax, and Francis’s emotional weakness with Amira .vs. his coming out clean and open with Penn. Touching. Beautifully shot by Benoit Delhomme, this film is a tight, gripping tale.

The second delight is a layered chase again, a Minghella wonder! A murder mystery – a saga of deep greed and actions born out of that greed which haunts a man’s life. The first part of a sequel that came thereafter, ‘The Talented Mr.Ripley’ has Thomas Ripley (Matt Damon) taking on a rich heir Dickey Greenlife (Jude Law - a Minghella regular, maybe?). One man taking another’s place for his own avarice. One lie leading to a lifetime of lies and deceit, one murder followed by another and another…one heart break leading to yet another (both Cate Blancett’s and Gwyweth Paltrow’s)–this spin around Europe is a bio-pic in the sense that it takes you ‘inside’ Ripley’s head! Now, who else but Anthony Minghella can help us achieve this unique feat?

Ok. I also went to work, shopped, fought with friends, made up with some, ate, attended meetings, read an Agatha Christie and slept while the rains lashed on my window panes. And now…while I wait for my Pizza to arrive…I hope my blog settings don’t go back to being funny again, when I sign in to post this.

I just don’t like blogs having a mind of their own.

Random Calm

2008-10-16T00:37:00.000-07:00

Something will work out. I’ve a feeling it will. Fate seems to be taking me in even stranger directions. As individuals, each of us is extremely isolated, while at the same time we are all linked by a prototype memory. I thank God for this opportunity. Somethings we can never assign to oblivion, memories we can never rub away. They remain with us, forever, like a touchstone.

It’s hard to distinguish between dreams and reality. Something to calm down. How he was able to unearth them, I’ve no idea. It was a moment frozen in time. I can’t get that scene out of my mind. It seems like forever – time, driving me to the edge of the world. Color had returned to the world around me. It was all too strange and all too sudden. I cried quietly, without making a sound.

It was as if these were things he had to get through, so he just did them. Inside himself. I feel like I left a part of my soul in those woods.

Nope. These are not words from my mind. These belong to Richard Bach. These are lines picked at random from one chapter of his latest book – Curious Lives (Ferrets Chronicles)

Though I must admit that I couldn’t get past even four chapters from this famous writer’s latest book on ferrets and a world beyond the ordinary! Im a huge fan of his Bridges Across Forever. I’ve pages and pages of text marked as one of the best examples of romantic tension and emotional dialogue writing. But somehow this book fails to deliver. So what did I do with it? Just picked out random lines and Voila! They seem to make sense, albeit in a lofty way – but sense…they make. If seen from a perspective of plain happenstance. Somehow those words above have a calming influence over my at-times hyper nerves. So for that and hoping it will bring you some solace too…these lines find a way into my blog.

Aah! The Wonder of Random-ness!

It's not Boring Biology - It's Quirk...!

2008-10-05T08:33:00.000-07:00

HAhaHAahhaaaHAa...
Keeekeeeeiiiiii Hooooohoho hoHOho ...
Wooooohoooooo.... Hahahaaa hahaa hahahahaaaa...

Yes. That was me laughing, at regular intervals in the wee hours of midnight reading on the birds & the bees (of actually every species on this planet!) by a self admitted non-PH.D (like Aristotle, so he says ahem!) biologist Joe Quirk (please click on his picture if you wanna read on his trivia).

It's Not You. It's Biology - is the single most wonderful piece of info-tainment that has possessed my senses in recent times. Read it. You will actually be tempted to read some paragraphs aloud (Including the Preface & Epilogue; And the author's Useless Index & No payment but Acknowledgment page/s). Hmmm...where was Mr. Quirk all this while. He talks with so much wit. Yup, his writing sounds like he's talking to us, alright. His website says he also writes copy (read poetry) for some niche brands, which is not surprising at all.

Believe me fellas when I say that post a reading of this book, you would wish you had him as your Biology (more Zoology) teacher than anyone you've ever known. Because he calls a sperm a sperm and an egg (well, obviously) an egg! And he also deduces at the end of his book that all organisms were in the beginning...hold your breath all ye faithfuls....F E M A L E.

Yes. You read that right. Which is why both men and women have traits from both genders. Which is why a normal single gender brain will have female flairs like color sense, endurance, better parenting skills, cognitive skills etc. If this is the end, the beginning is also equally interesting. Quirk writes that the reason for the male species to evolve into the men we know them to be now...is thanks to the Female Preference or as he puts it the Female Sexual Choice. The more nesting/preserving skills the male possessed the more he becomes attractive to the steady and stoic female. Females chose males who could protect no sooner than procreate. Hence power, social status and ability to keep her and her baby from outside harm becomes the single most wanted quality in a man. The womb is the center of all co-habitation in hominid (this is again a Quirk choice of word to describe us as against the familiar Homo Sapiens) pair-bonds (read male-female unions). And the only reason or rationale that has crept in thanks to the recent addition to the hominid brain is the neocortex (which is our head) to the constantly erupting, emotion rich hypothalamus (which is our heart). So next time you think it's your heart or head talking, listen well - it's all your brain, idiot! And what is the reason behind the hominid pair-bonding - it is LOVE.

To begin with sex and end with love is itself entertaining. Did you know that you & I share more of our traits with no, not apes but marine animals, predominantly the dolphins? Well, we got it right this time, if not in our 9th standard! Mr. Quirk's narrative is in your face. With no apologies. He almost sounds like how Robert Downey Junior does in most of his films, or as Quirk himself says in the chapter on Free Love Causes War, a la Jim Carrey in Dumb & Dumber. My most favorite line from the book is this one on adulterous copulation (We are all grown ups aren't we? So stop the hush-hushing & let's get on with it!), is when Quirk (how I just love to call him that!) talks of a research on adultery among birds...

...Among red-wing blackbirds cultures that are morally upright, 6% of the female copulation are adulterous, and 23% of nestlings are born from adulterous matings. Even red-wing blackbird females whose husbands have vasectomies are managing miraculous conceptions! (I want to meet the graduate student who gives a bird a vasectomy. For this, his mother sent him to college?)

Wait.There are lots more of such Quirk-isms in paranthesis that's guaranteed to throw you off your bed if you dont hold onto the sides, tight. Pick up any chapter at random and you will find the author's tongue firmly in cheek, so much so we will end up biting ours if we dont let out the loud laughter, no matter how badly you may want your neighbor to snore on...!

To Men on Wooing ... in Chapter 31 (Ok. I'd rather have you read the chapter titles like a Bible, Thank You for making me a Believer Mr. Quirk!)

... forget your butts and guts. I'll tell you what really gets you laid: Bullshit. If you can't talk up a storm, you'll die celibate. Here's my scientific proof. You know about 60,000 words. You only use 4,000 of them regularly. The other 56,000 account for 2% of your speaking. Pick a word from that extra 56,000. You use it about once every million words you speak. A million words is about 20 times the no: of words in this book. To function socially in this world, you will need fewer than 1000 words. Out of your bloated vocabulary of 60,000 words, 100 words accounts for 60% of your conversation. Then why did you memorize 60,000 words? You big show off! Whom are you trying to impress? Mates. Guys, I don't care if it does work for the gibbon, yelling 'woo' when you see a rump wont get you sex. We need wit to woo. Our peacock tails are human tales.

Ya, Ya. Don't forget to recall who told ya Quirk is so and so...in between your peals of laughter!

The reason why men and women are different, why men are afraid of commitment, why women want love first sex next (and men of course want it the other way), why men cheat and women nurture, why men became who they are, and women have a big role in shaping them thus - all these genetic theories, data, deductions, biological terms and understandings with cross species examples and cultural references from the history of human civilisation till date, with every single line or chapter or word that spells entertainment and wit, I take a moment to catch my breath - WOW...!

My favorite chapter is Why We Bitch? No. I wont tell you why. You read and tell me if you agree.

{For more on Mr. Quirk log on to www.joequirk.com or get your own copy of this book. I believe only in borrowing or buying books - not in returning or lending them.}

Music with the might of a 1000 Elephants...Vaaranam Aayiram

2008-09-30T22:58:00.000-07:00

"Yennodu vaa veedu varaikkum
Yenn veettai paar yennai pidikkum..."

By no means is this my invitation to anyone but by all means this is a line that has caught my fancy (and maybe yours too..). Some of Thamarai's (lyric writer) best works happen with Gautham Menon and Harris Jayaraj, whose tunes become hits even before they leave the recording studio (!). This team always weaves a certain kind of magic with music no doubt. The above lines are from the already popular (it's a melody folks, a MELODY) Nenjukkul Peithidum Maamazhai from the most awaited film of the year Vaaranam Aayiram. Sung by one of my favorite singers - Hariharan, this song, as the director puts it, is a love ballad. A guy telling a girl that she would like him more if she were to go with him to his house?!! How wonderful and TODAY is this thought! Delightful. It leaves you with a pleasant idea of the guy's relationship with his parents, his life at home etc...I mean if a girl can love him more after visiting his home, how lovely is that!?

The album boasts of other good lines that I picked up even on the first hearing of this 7-track musical.

"Yennakkaagave vanthaai Yenn nizhal poalavey nindraai
Unnai thottru nee yennai vendraaye..."

This is from the girl to the guy - it so soothes my female ego! I'm sure the girls agree with me. And the second line is all about giving up that ego to win over her heart! This, I thought was a very impressive expression of love between equals...but maybe, just maybe, the girl in this equation is a little more than the guy?! Aha! Sung by Shruti (a proper use of her rather non-conformist voice & style) & Krish, Adiye Kolluthey just accelerates the adrenalin.

"Santhithoame kanaakkalil sila muraiyaa pala muraiyaa...
Andhi vaanil ulaavinoam athu unakku ninaivillaiyaa...."

Rendered oh-so sweetly by Sudha Raghunathan, you can imagine the subtle seduction by the girl, calling out to this guy, who has momentarily forgotten to respond to her. I'm reminded of Rahman's 'Kannaalane...' from Bombay for it's tune & beat. On a closer enquiry, I'm told that 'Anal mele panithuli' is in fact a tribute from Gautham & Harris to that modern classical number. The lyrics however transport me to 'Paartha Nyaabagam Illaiyo..' from Puthiya Paravai. The fast paced lifestyle of daily life notwithstanding, here's a girl who talks of taking a walk in the evening clouds and meeting her lover in her myriad dreams...! Hmmm...close your eyes and open your ears & imagination to this rather haunting (the beginning may seem somewhat sad, but no...listen on..) refrain (Sudha is such an apt choice) and you will know what I mean.

Of course the radio channels are gunning for SPB Charan's version of 'Om Shanthi' - This song leaps up at you like a tiger on its prey - begins like a steady melody and springs into action, Charan's singing just superbly blends in. The Adiye Kolluthey & Yethi Yethi numbers are also on the 'A' list. Munthinam Paarthene is a classic duet that also has some very hummable lines and a peppy beat (a rather Harris-ish song if we can say!). The surprise number though is this 'gaana' by another favorite, Karthik (Just listen intently on how Karthik actually makes you feel he has a tear in his eye and fear for his beloved in his heart as he finishes each stanza with 'Thaniyaa Yenge Poanaalo..'). Ava Yenna Yenna Thedi vanthaa Anjale also has a chance of being overlooked in this 7 member (Read song) band right now...but guess this song is more to be seen as a tool taking the story forward than just another track in the album.

And for that and many things more, we need to wait for the film itself! I'm not stating the obvious here, but going by the 'realism' one saw in the trailers and songs, Vaaranam Aayiram leaves me with a lot of hope of good cinema given by some of the best box-office talents in recent times. The emotions felt real...and Surya just left one breathless...with his good looks and nonchalant screen presence.

So, are we saying that this album is ALL Good. Does that make it a review at all? To uniformly praise everything we know from everyone we know? No. That's not the idea.

Music Director Harris Jayaraj has a particular stamp (church choir, multiple violins/guitars, call it whatever) to his work. But nevertheless, his music does 'connect'. It lingers and does what a good mix of instruments and voice is supposed to do. To work with this stamp yet turn out songs to the extent one finds in Vaaranam Aayiram is a complete 'time to take a bow' for the Gautham -Thamarai-Harris team. This is their 5th film together in Tamil and to come up with tracks that sound so good (be it from your fav radio station or from the keepsake audio CD that has the lyrics for karaoke lovers like me!) is no mean achievement.

Vaaranam Aayiram's music has scored at a time when there are so many mind sets to judging film music like how a fast paced number has to be a kuthu paattu, or a melody today wont be as popular etc. Now if this film music album has managed to rise above such ground rules and break these mindsets, it IS quite a deal, don't you think?

Ode To A Murali

2008-09-26T00:40:00.000-07:00

"My heart aches and a drowsy numbness pains..."

But twas not the cuckoo's call. It was my mobile that rang with the familiar sparrow song that I've assigned to indicate that the call is from one of my Favorite People. One of them was calling to inform me about another.
The first couple of days were the harshest. Tears came in spurts, almost stealthily at un-announced intervals. It was because of Murali. WAS?

Less than 72hours ago, I was talking to my precious friend about things which only we talked about. And barely 3days later, Murali evaporates into the past?! Cruel. Hell is this. Earthquakes. Tsunamis. Holocaust. Think of every possible calamity that can strike the human race, surviving which is the biggest challenge for civilisations. Now how does one survive Murali's death? It's a colossal loss. A terrible blow. One swift slap of Fate on one of the finest people I know. How does one do a quick 'cut & paste' of a petal that's fallen off rather abruptly from my treasured Magnolia?

Like a solid punch in the solar plexus, we reeled and fell back as anuerism attacked Murali leaving him with a brain haemmorrhage in split seconds. A flow of blood in the wrong place at the right time of his life. A paralysing moment that cannot be undone anymore. An emptiness that cannot be filled. Sharing our pain did not take it away. It only made us aware that without Murali, things would never be the same again.

Murali is/was (I will never be able to decide) my 1am friend. From telling me how to get my driving license to discussing diamond jewelery with my mom; from giving an O P Nayyar tune for me to hum the lyrics to mimicking the background score for a Hemant Kumar song; from arranging weekend get-togethers for his large family to being there when my parents were hospitalised one after another...Murali did oh! so much, kept doing so much, for so many of us that maybe, just maybe, he fell down, exhausted? Maybe for him Life was enough? But alas, we had not had enough of him.

When I saw him lying there, up in this ICU, with tubes jutting out of his every pore, I whispered his favorite song, 'Tere Mere Sapne' from Guide...thanking him for being there for me always. I foolishly thought my singing will bring him back to life; will make him open his weak eyes and that his usually grim face would break into a smile. He had collapsed the night before with a very brief awareness of pain. He was, as I saw him that morning - peaceful.

Murali laughed rarely and never laughed loud. He was a buddy - a complete team-mate. A reliable un-selfish human being who always wanted things to work out well for those he cared for. I'm glad Murali cared a lot about me. We have had a whole bunch of memories with the other petals of my Magnolia, that it is so very hard to let Murali go. Maybe we never will.

Your chair will always be kept for you Murali, with your RC (no ice & just water). We will order from Sangeeta your favorite Kichchadi & Poori...and in the reverie of the rare evening rain, you will hear the refrain of 'Tum Pukar Lo'... that will transcend the clouds and reach you...shining bright, wherever you are!

"Forlorn! the very word is like a bell
To toll me back from thee to my sole self!
Adieu! the fancy cannot cheat so well
As she is fam'd to do, deceiving elf.
Adieu! adieu! thy plaintive anthem fades
Past the near meadows, over the still stream,
Up the hill-side; and now 'tis buried deep
In the next valley-glades:
Was it a vision, or a waking dream?
Fled is that music (Murali): - Do I wake or sleep?

A Whole New World

2008-09-19T00:10:00.000-07:00

What would happen if each day the world would just become anew? Of course that's just the way it IS - each day Nature ends and begins anew. Just look around at the little plants and the birds and bees in your balcony and you will find something new. No? Maybe it all lies in our eyes - in how we behold the magic of life! We are tuned to do so many things as a routine that we seldom see what's new, what's fresh and what's right in front of our eyes! Even the cells in our body renews itself and comes alive with each new morning - but can we say the same of our mind?

A single thought is enough to make or break our day. A single emotion does the winding up or winding down for us. How is it when we so boast of us being a superior race (and maybe this very minute one of us is using his/her strength to terrorise another in the name of a Fight for Freedom) that we become so fragile to a single thought/emotion? How is it that we fail to see the new-ness in each day and just decide to brood over what went and worry over what will come?

Why is it so difficult to let go and live well when it is seemingly so easy to hoard up and live with pain? An angry word, a thoughtless gesture, an act of ignorance are all so much more potent in its ability to hurt than deep setbacks or failure. And we are frail so we store these unhappy moments thinking that this world is the same as each day passes by. We fail to realise that the world is changing every minute and that every new day is just that - NEW. It's gonna bring its own moments but no, we will just sit with our yesterdays and tomorrows and forget that we have the ability to enjoy what's Today. What's with us NOW. Change is possibly the best thing on this planet. We can so resist it for eternity but bulldozing it's way right into your very sight is Change. Just Look.

And of course let me know what you think of this NEW 'Spotlight' on 'Su'!

"Be willing to surrender what you are for what you could become."

On a Red Roll

2008-09-12T00:01:00.000-07:00

A good thing always does its rounds. Like a feline, it will spring into action at the least expected moment. Just when I bought myself a Red handbag (A Marks & Spencers ok, of coz at a sale!) and was gifted a Red wallet to match (A Baggit one which even my Dad likes - Thank You, Devasena!) and matching Red slippers (A Kobler, gift from Shankar - Thank God for friends who indulge my Red fancy like this!) I was also gifted My Name Is Red - as in I picked it up at the all new Odyssey in Adyar but obviously a good soul paid for it! And my Red Roll continues to delight me and how...! Just when I was recommending this book to Priya, she says she's already on the 100th page! It's doing its rounds alright, all the way here in Chennai, when it began up there in Istanbul.

Orhan Pamuk has delighted me in ways more than just common. My Name is Red is one of the best works of historical fiction. With that cliche I have also pasted here Mr. Pamuk's genial photograph for those of us who might think of Orhan Pamuk as some long bearded Arab, who has reproduced a history of his clan for the rest of the world to absorb. Mr. Pamuk, as I was myself pleasantly happy to note, looks like this - and his calm smile on camera translates into some good philosophical humor in his writing as well!

With a Kurosowa-like narrative (meaning, telling the story from the each of the character's perspectives) Orhan Pamuk weaves a tale that puts medieval Istanbul in your face. Literally, this work spins a tale out of a seemingly boring field of art - minature painting. But for this book, I wonder if we would even bother about something so intricate and so intergral to Muslim culture as miniature art, which is to a large part, an important symbol of our Indian culture as well (check out any monument in Agra, not just the Taj & you will see what I mean!).

To call My Name is Read a murder mystery with a whodunnit climax is plain injustice to the extravagant canvas of the plot. To call this book as a high tribute to art, painting & painters along with highlighting the rich Muslim legacy of the Middle East is only one part of it. To call Orhan Pamuk a master story-teller, presenting us with a vivid tapestry of plots designed to accomplish a singular purpose of keeping us glued to its subject is the other part (of the adjectives we can heap on this book). And the last part of course, is that this book is so heavily and rightfully laden with such historical and cultural anecdotes and data, that our 7th standard knowledge of ancient Perisa and the Shah Rulers pale in comparison!

So is this book just a sum total of all of the above? Yes and No. The No is a compliment to Pamuk's phenomenal talent for novel writing, for a narrative that shimmers with craft and detail at every turn. For presenting a vision which even a blind man can see if this book were read out to him! The food for thought and imagination that Pamuk gives a reader; for the grey shades of the lead characters - all vying for survival, their actions motivated by either love or lust and all possible human frailities, yet each of them emerging with strong stand-points that differentiate one from the other. The characters come alive in these pages as and when you finish with their chapters each night - WOW!

The bold and brazen start of the novel itself, with a narrative from the point of view of a dying man and his dead spirit sets the tone, pace and candor of this brilliant master-piece of Middle East writing. To think that Pamuk has written this novel like a screenplay, should make it a most sought after material for the silver screen, more so for Indian filmmakers - maybe someone like Ashutosh Gowarikar, who took so much of care and effort to showcase a story out of nowhere in Jodha-Akbar - maybe he would've/should've done this instead, he still can, you know (quick, someone go and tell him)!

Orhan Pamuk conjures up images that you can smell, feel, taste and carry with you to bed. Yet there is no one place where he gets carried away himself! The elaborate paragraphs of miniature painting or the deep analysis of an artists's life, the Muslim painters and their ilk, is such a revelation of extensive research interestingly told, that the very lofty, kingly art becomes so reachable even for a commoner! And the nonchalance with which Pamuk ends this tale, the last line of the book says so much about Pamuk himself - his panache! Aah! It would be such a joy to see this tale unwind on screen too - to relish the unrequited passionate romance of Black and Shekure in the Hanged Jew's garden, to see the turmoils and travails of Olive, Stork and Butterfly, to delve into the artistic realm of their Sultan-Light of the World...! I stop.

If a translation can bring about so much excitement in me, I wonder how profoundly entertaining the original would be! And above all is the contextual use of the color Red - a subtle yet strong influence in this saga - Red - the color of life, romance, war, flourish, plenty, lust, art and more directly - Blood.

Orhan Pamuk, please take a bow.

SA-RO-JA

2008-09-05T01:56:00.000-07:00

The movie works and how! A brand Venkat Prabhu film -now, how does a director manage this with just his second film is a wonder by itself - but will save that for another post, now let's move onto the film.

Saroja is a lot of things...but Saroja is also all of this -

- A road movie, with tons of 'what will happen next even though I know what will happen in the end' kind of scenes'.

- A tale that begins yesterday and ends today with tons of great humor mixed with racy story telling.

- A mix of characters - all performed by real and endearing faces, who take you on a travel - their travel in this roller coaster of a night ride.

- A melange' of moments with the 4 lead players who ad-lib a la Monty Python, that's so new to our cinema.

- A film that spells entertainment with a capital E but is most certainly mind-full of the kind of entertainment served.

Attitude and panache rule Venkat Prabhu's Saroja - where nothing and noone takes themselves more seriously than what is required. This self parody of the characters is such a relief in a heroism driven market and to just drop down 4 normal, ordinary boys into a war-hole of extraordinary situations thus making them emerge as real life heros is a tremendous task and VP lives upto it in style! The interactions amongst the 4 guys, as raw as they are, lend a unique flavor to this speedy cocktail. An adventure comedy that keeps you glued to the screen, Saroja will make you come back just for the sheer laugh of it! And this is a step up for Venkat Prabhu, who has woven some very clever moments into the film, that makes it a highly worthwhile watch.

Not too much not too little but just right is Jayaram. The accident on the national highway is a wonderfully staged piece and so is the closeup frame of Prakashraj crying to himself, facing the mirror - one of the actors most honest to himself performances in recent times. Shiva stands out from the 4 as his Ajayraj is the character that crosses many emotions in this one night -Shiva getting the maximum onelines that keep us in splits anytime he even appears on screen. Premji is anyways funny and in this he is funnier. SPB Charan has greatly improved his acting skills as well and is so convincingly cast. Vaibhav shows great promise and screen presence - ditto for Sampath. The new girl Vega is a competent find, her voice on screen is Divyadharshini, who has done such a wonderful job of the same!

Still, if at all there is something missing - well, Saroja hardly gives you time to go look for anything else, so what's the point in searching for missing things anyways! Just one question for Venkat Prabhu though, will he ever make an all girl gang movie...giving them such dynamic moments as he has given the guys in a film with a girl's name?? Because if there is one director who can pull of a thriller comedy with women, it should only be Venkat Prabhu.

Watch Saroja and tell me you differ!

My latest Tarot reading says...

2008-08-29T12:20:00.000-07:00

You are Strength
Courage, strength, fortitude. Power not arrested in the act of judgement, but passing on to further action, sometimes obstinacy. This is a card of courage and energy. It represents both the Lion's hot, roaring energy, and the Maiden's steadfast will. The innocent Maiden is unafraid, undaunted, and indomitable. In some cards she opens the lion's mouth, in others she shuts it. Either way, she proves that inner strength is more powerful than raw physical strength. That forces can be controlled and used to score a victory is very close to the message of the Chariot, which might be why, in some decks, it is Justice that is card 8 instead of Strength. With strength you can control not only the situation, but yourself. It is a card about anger and impulse management, about creative answers, leadership and maintaining one's personal honor. It can also stand for a steadfast friend."

Now, how much of what we've read just now is true, will be true and has already, for the last 30odd yrs been true - well., GOK... so will bid adieu for now. Dont believe in Tarot or astrology as much as I beleive in star-gazing - yup! The ones that shine bright on a blue blue sky - that I've spoken to when I was a little girl, from up above my Mylapore terrace...when I've sent messages to unknown soulmates via the clouds....a la Meghasandesam! Now, whoever said only Kalidasa had the right to pen one???!!!

Kannadasan - King of Verse

2008-08-17T00:56:00.000-07:00

Yes it IS a Long post.

I've been wanting to do this for a really long time. Got down to it just now - thanks to an exercise which my film team has undertaken to find an apt title for our forthcoming feature. The 1st thing most of the directorial groups do to 'trap a title' is to browse through Bharathiyar Kavithaigal or Kannadasan's Collection of Songs to pick out a proper, Tamil list of words that lend meaning to their story. Such is the range and variety that almost every genre of film will find its title in any of the two books. What I was able to do in this process is to pick out my favorite songs/verses from Kannadasan's work and list them down here - each of the lines convey & carry a special meaning for me, I'm sure they will have a unique imagery for each one of us! It is most certainly not an exhaustive list, it may not have the usual hit songs (some lines may find themselveshere but to put down a popular list is not the motive for this post!) nor does this list spell out beginnings, middles and ends of each song.

My list is just a sample of the greatness, the ingenuity, the sheer flow of language & metaphor of a Master Lyricist/Poet, unsurpassed from 1948 and whose work spans nearly three decades of lyrical genius - from the MGR/Sivaji era to the Kamal & Rajini one - from historical to social themes & of course romance, right upto village folk...! There is only one line I can think of when it comes to describing Kanndasan's prowess, that too taken from his own lines from the film 'Karnan' - much like the great warrior (yes, Karna for me is superior to Arjuna!) who never said 'No' to anyone in need, Kannadasan also never said 'No' to any situation...

"Varigal koduppaar, vaarthai koduppaar; pothaathu pothaathu endraal...Innum koduppar Ithuvum Kuraiendraal Engal...Kannadasan"... Enjoy!

P.S: The wonderful thing is, with each of Kannadasan's verses, the tune springs up alive thanks to MSV...! What a contribution to Tamil cinema!

- "Aattuvithaar yaathoruvar aadaathaare Kanna...Aasaiyennum Thottililey aadaathaare Kanna..."

- "Neeyum naanum sernthirinthoam Nilavum vaanum poale...
Naan nilavai pola theinthu vanthean nee valarnthathaale...."

- "Ithukku poyi alattikkalaama..." (Just that line will do for me!)

- "Yezhu swarangalukkul yethanai paadal...Ithaya churangarkul yethanai kelvi...
Kaanum manitharukkul yethanai salanam...Verum Karpanai santhoshathil avanthu gavanam..."
(specially root for the last line)

- "Kondaattam palavitham...naan athiley oru vitham..." (Too much...!)

- "Idaiyaa...Ithu Idaiyaa...Athu Illaathathu poal irukkuthu..." (For all the size Zeros around...!)

- "Nilavukku enn mel yennadi kobam...Neruppai yerigirathu... Kulungum munthaanai sirikkum aththaanai virattuvathenadiyo..." (This is a masterpiece of a 'making up' song, the thots hold true till date...the words have power over any woman even now!)

- "Mugathai mugthai maraithukondaal paarkka mudiyumaa..?
Indru paarthu paarthu mudithuvittaal naalai vendumey..!"

- "Odi vanthathum thedi vanthathum...Paadi vanthathum paarkka vanthathum...
Kaadhal enbadhaa...paasam enbadhaa..Karunai enbadhaa...urimai enbadhaa...!"

- "Maalaiyum iravavum santhikkum idaththil Mangiya oliyinai poley, mana mayakkathai thanthaval neeye..."

- "Anubhavam puthimai avalidam kandean..." (With that tune, this song is for all First Timers...)

- "Valartha kalai maranthuvittal keladaa kannaa..." (My Dad even now hums this along a sunday afternoon...!)

- "Paravai paranthu sella viduvenaa..Antha paramporul vanthaalum tharuvena..." (A leaf out of Satyavan - Savitri, so aptly suits Nenjil Oar Aalayam too..)

- "Yaarukendru azhathapothum thalaivanaagalaam...Manam...manam...athu kovil aagalaam..."
(Can Man truly become God? - With this song Kavingar says it is possible..!)

- "Aayiram vaasal ithayam...athil aayiram ennanngal udhayam...
Yaaro varuvaar yaaro poavaar...Varuvathum poavathum theriyaathu...."

- "Kalaiye enn vaazhkaiyai thisai maattrinaai...
Kovil kandean angu dheivam illai
Odi vanthean ingu nee irunthaai..."

- "Azhagumiguntha raajakumari megamaaga pogiraal...Jarigai neliyum selaikondu malaiyai mooda paarkiraal
Pallam silar ullam ena yean padaithaan aandavan
Pattam thara theduginrean...yengey antha naayakan...."
(Pattam - title for Kannadasan, I have given...thought I wonder what his lines would be to the movies of 2008!)

- "Kanne kalaimaane....(the whole song)"

- "Yenna kodupaan Yevai kodupaan...Yendrivargal yennum munney...Ponnum koduppaan...porul koduppaan...Pothaathu pothaathendraal....Innum...Kodupaan...Ivaiyum kurivaiendraal...yengal Karnan... Thannai kodupaan...thannuyiraiyum thaan kodupaan....Dhayaanithiye..."

- "Theeraadha villaiyaattu pillai...Ivan singaara manmadhanthaan santhegam illai..."
(The sheer panache of the lines so well etched out for Rajini)

- "Aadai illaatha maeni...avan paer annaalil gyaani...Indro athuvoru hobby...ellorum inimael baby..."
(loud Ha, Ha, Ha-s for this one..!)

- " Kadhalukku eedu solla kaaviyathil yaarumillai..Naan ondru nee ondru thaammaa...
Manmadhan vanthaanaa....namma sangathi sonnaanaa..."
(This Singaari has outlived many generations!)

- "Oru Aathikka naayagan saathikka vanthaal Adanguthal muraithaane..." (Kamban yaemaanthaan - what a title!)

- "Kannaal sollu malai yeduppean...Rendu kaiyaaley atha valaippean..." (albeit from Bharathidaasan's poem...but a lyrical variation and how..!?)

- "Punniyam ithvendru ulagam sonnaal..Antha punniyam Kannanukey...Pottruvaar pottralum thoottruvaar thoottralum...Pogattum kannanukkey..."

- "Thennai ilankeettriniley thalaattum thendralathu...Thennaithanai saayththuvidum puyalaaga varum pozhuthu..."

- "Paranthu sellum paravaiyai kaettean....Paadisellum kaattraiyum kaettean...
Alaiyum nenjai avanidam sonnean...Azhaithuvanthaar ennidam unnai..."
(If I could be the lady described in this song, If I could be the one soul in love...wow!)

- "Yaaro solla yaaro endru yaaro vantha uravu...Kaalam seitha kolam ingu naan vantha varavu..." (Was the tune made for the lyrics or was it the other way round...however it was, this one rhymes just by itself, right?)

- "Thanimaiyil gaanam sabaiyiley mounam...Uravuthaan raagam uyirellaam paasam...
Anbukonda nenjil anubhavam illai..." (Can a woman know another woman this well? How did Kannadasan know?)

- "Andru sendrathum maranthaai uravai...Indru vanthathey puthiya paravai...
Yentha Jenmathilum oru thadavai...naam santhippoam intha nilavai..."

- "Pani illaatha maargazhiyaa...padai illaatha mannavaraa...
Inipillaatha mukkaniyaa...Isai Illaatha muthamizhmaa..."
(Kannadasan illatha thirai isai paadalaa..?!)

- "Ithu naalai varum endru kaathirinthaal oru naall allavo veenaagum..."
(What a thought!)

- "Pesuvathu kiliyaa...illai pennarasi mozhiyaa... Sendaadum seiyizhaithaanaa...Dheiveega kaadhalithaanaa..." (Me, me - the last two words...how I just wish!)

- "Siragil ennai moodi arumai magal pola valartha kathai sollavaa... (The whole song - Malarthum malaraatha...)

- "Maaperum sabaigalil nee nadanthaal...Unakku maalaigal vizha vendum..."
Oru Maattru kuraiyaatha mannavan ivanendru pottri pugazha vendum..."
(Yet to read a 'Commandment' like this one!)

- "Ennai konjam thoonga vaithaal....Vananguvean thaaye...Indru mattum amaithi thanthaal...Uranguvean thaaye..."

- "Thaaikku nee maganillai...Thambikku annanillai...Oor pazhi yettraaiyadaa...
Naanum unn pazhi kondeanadaa...." (The whole song actually!)

- "Kadaisi varai yaaro...." (The whole song again..!)

- "Inbam kanavil thunbam ethiril...Kaanbathu yean thozhi..."
(Do you dream when you are feeling intoxicated with the evening weather...? You would want to with these lines..!)
- "Aayirathil oruthiyammaa neee..." (But obviously...My Blog you see!!)

Chocolate Krishna

2008-08-10T09:27:00.000-07:00

Something I was made to do when I was 3 is something I've been doing willingly, till now...! And that is to watch Tamil drama. Crazy Creations and me go a long way...almost more than 2 decades now, and it has been one hilarious ride after another. I'm yet to meet a more positive and cheerful person than Mohan, who is so dear to me that writing a review is not the right word to describe this post! Its more a note to record my huge admiration and love for this man's abilties to make me laugh. It's a 'Thank You Note' to Crazy Mohan for having made me laugh the most in all my life, in all his plays!

Watching their latest play Chocolate Krishna and letting off some of the loudest laughs in the hall, I wonder how this team manages to do this year after year, in one city after another and still going strong with the same set of friends and an excellent HERO in Balaji. Madhu as he is known to tamil drama audiences is possibly the 'youngest' hero on stage, still playing husband, hero, lover, son, brother, friend across all their plays. Balaji's innate sense of dialogue delivery and quick reactions, his body language and fully tuned in timing of cracking the right joke or pun or expression...WOW - is the word for this man. In Chocolate Krishna, he is the Chocolate!

As for Krishna, played by Mohan - this must be the most taxing role he has ever donned. For a man who relishes his morning sleep (which stretches till noon), and who likes to sip his hot, black tea before each of his two or three scene appearances in his plays, Krishna in all his jewellery & peacock feather intact is quite a leap! And he actually gets himself hoisted up on stage and descends in style as Gods are supposed to...! After this play, the term 'Krishna Unconsciousness' is bound to take the spiritual world by storm. Mohan reveals such a simple, childlike approach to serious topics of Theism and Atheism, to Krishna's 'lifestyle' etc that even the best cynic will have a tough time in concealing his mirth at this gleeful comedy.

A normal, quiet sunday afternoon turns into a 'laughter-noon' thanks to Crazy Mohan and his lovely troupe. Highly recommended for anyone who's been sulking over anything - the laughter Chocolate Krishna generates will cure any depression - even the one in the Bay of Bengal. Just go for it!

Dasavatharam

2008-07-27T10:49:00.000-07:00

Ok I know this is kinda late in the day and the film is also on its way to touch the century mark, but seriously why did the world and its cousins condemn Kamalhaasan so much for Dasavatharam? By the world - I must say the media world, more particularly the press. The electronic media was kinder and rightfully so. I mean, who is doing whom a favor here by patronising or chiding a man who has been around for more than three decades...and still churning out super stuff for film goers and makers to be proud of, still achieving his goals, setting standards and of course entertaining us along the way. No surprise here with the not so flattering reviews, which were, I think essentially meant to evoke a response from K, maybe he would give them an exclusive interview if they trashed his film, but he gave them none whatsoever. So much judged yet so much un-swayed after it all - that's one more attribute that makes an Icon! And now coming to the film itself...

A second viewing of the film with my whole family in tow (after my First Day First Show with my Mirchi colleagues) was a revelation. My nephew is 13 and my dad is 68. Both of them understood and enjoyed the film equally. Despite my feeble attempts to try and explain a situation (like the much 'flagellated' synthetic bio weapon) was met with 'we know, we know' responses. My sister and mom grinned and laughed along everytime Balram Naidu appeared. My nephew cheered Shingan Narahashi as he punched Fletcher black & blue. My dad rooted for Rangarajan Nambi and Krishnaveni Paatti. And I was just wondering how the entire film rested and works so well because of this one man! The cash registers have'nt stopped ringing they say and any word or statistics circulating is not enough proof yet, as the film is still collecting!

Much has been said on the screenplay of this film. Happenstance has'nt happened to you or what? Coincidences dont occur? As one of my colleagues told me later, "We accept Artificial Intelligence if it is told by Spielberg, then why not Chaos Theory from our own Kamalhaasan? If not him, who will show us such things on screen?" The pace of the film has certainly helped the film run, some say. But hello, once a script is written the pace or timing of each scene is actually set (1page = 1 min of screen time), so if he can take a bow for all of his 10characters, then K can take an extra one for this as well.

Technically the best thing about the film is the interlinking of each character in different scenes - every scene has more than one K in it all the time. This has been achieved with remarkable clarity. Well, the lighting, camera, frames - is again all subject to this CG effect of having more than two KHs on location, right!? Hence, when we can call so many simpler films as experiments, why not this one for sheer technical extravagance and multiple narrative, which itself is new to Tamil cinema?! Ranjarajan Nambi and Balram Naidu score in acting, while the kicks are really provided for by Narahashi - slowly yet steadily, this one stands out. The lack of romance is not missed much as the shrill Asin (who is actually not so bad) is more in love with her Perumal than with the hero Govind. But the one who takes the cake for me is Boovaraghavan, who had everything going for him - makeup, body language, voice, diction, a cause to fight for and a sentiment to die for! He stays on even when we are trying to relive the Tsunami moment, which is so well captured visually!

And hey does George Bush throw his legs with so much style in real life as he does in the beginning of the 'Ulaganayagane' song...? Well, if Bush did see a print of this film, he would sure want to....and that is also one more reason why Dasavatharam is worth a repeat watch anytime - here we have HERO Kamalhaasan wave and cheer us onto cheering for him! The film didnt bore me at all the second time - and the next time, maybe I will watch it only for my fav characters, which is how most of the viewers were there in the theatre this time; almost pointing to the scene or dialogue even before it arrived.

With Dasavatharam, Kamalhaasan has proven one thing yet again - his critics & skeptics & all those who were waiting to watch him fall...he has proved them all wrong. I was waiting for this moment to be able to share this in my blog. Ample time has passed since the release, and this post like K's success is well worth it's wait.

URL

2008-07-26T00:18:00.000-07:00

www.authentichappiness.org

First I just typed the name, then added the www, only then did the blue color appear.

Hmmm...interesting site on assessing the levels of your happiness, depression, work and relationship outlooks etc. Scientifically developed and proven, this one's worth the try.

The last week I've been a little obsessed with just myself. Nothing new, I'm a self-confessed narcissist. I totally believe in the 'greatest love of all' and the 'best-est friend' one has is one's own self. The events of the last few months have left me in a bit of a quandary and I've been on this yo-yo mode, mostly yo-yoing in and out of myself. This post is essentially to tell myself that it's not too bad after all - this thing called life. This year saw me open a blog - it IS a big thing for ME. And here I am able to vent it, share it and call it by any name and still make it sweet or sour as I deem it. So thats a good feeling.

That apart, is this - I mean, this endless list of possibilties that just amazingly spring out of nowhere when I change my mood and attitude a lil bit - more happy, more positive and more creative visualitzation. And suddenly, I see the cosmos moving things in such a way that this Universe really seems to be giving me what I want. I should've known - by just looking at my past and seeing the milestones I've crossed both within myself and with my self! Attitude is everything. Happier and positive people progress far better than cynics or realists. Plain wishful thinking gets you a chance - hard work and cognitive action further enhances that chance and brings you where you want to be or what you want to do. Yes, you heard me right - if you keep thinking of something or someone, most of the time, be it in your conscious or unconscious mind, it will manifest itself sooner than later and you will be faced with dealing with the thing you thought of. So the trick is to actually spell out what you want and believe it will come to you soon - and wait, it also means you ought to be ready to receive it when it knocks on your door.

Hang on...the doorbell's ringing!

Mixed bag

2008-07-22T03:52:00.000-07:00

Ok for the first time (no, its actually been twice already!) Im typing this post without knowing what the next words gonna be. Power cut. It came back. Reading Happiness Hypothesis - shall ponder on it aloud once I'm done.

Saw two films - Ore Kadal (malayalam) and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang - obviously english, but hell, the film's language could just as well be WHACKY and thats all I can say about it. Liked it tho - such films dont require a review. Either you like it or you dont. Simple.

On Ore Kadal - I had so badly wanted to see this tale of burning love set in the most unkindliest of scenarios. A simple, married woman, mother of two (Meera Jasmine) having an affair with a much older, cynical, no strings attached economist (Mammotty). Passion and subliminal emotions rule this film - but I have issues with the climax. Specially with Mammotty's character - because as much as anything is possible in life, a change in thought process and behaviour patterns in a grown-up man is not so easy an ending to arrive at.

Yes, top of the line performances from the lead actors, good photography and lighting and music ( Alagappan & Ouseppachan) and some good writing as well. But...is love so quick an emotion for a man whose lived all his adult life with just one philosophy - and that is to stay away from all attachments? Specially, when he has nothing in common with this housewife, whose physical beauty and innocence alone attracts his carnal desires! Will an intellectual 'social scientist' find a lifetime of happiness with a woman who is just 12th class pass and who has no idea of the E of Economics? This is a mature declaration of love or so we are shown to believe, and its not like, one discovers love by chance - this is pure give and take, when the wife of a jobless man comes to see her neighbor, the seemingly better-off economist to help her out with small loans of money for everyday life and thereafter, he even recommends her husband for a good career break. They even discuss this aspect after making love and the economist tells her that this attraction has nothing to do with what he has done for her husband.

The film has some potent moments, like when Nathan (an effective portrayal by Mammotty) comes to see a depressed (read regressed by their affair) Dipti (a stunning act from Meera) and she in a gesture of placing her head on his chest, actually bites off a piece of his skin near his heart, a scar that stays with him for life - a very visual imagery of what she actually wants from him - a place for her in his heart, his love. And till the last few minutes, Nathan is shown fighting his feelings and is always arguing with logic on the kind of man he is and how love will never find its place with him. Its more guilt that he is shown dealing with rather than genuine affections for this woman.

The last 45minutes of the film sees Dipti get rehabilitated for her depression and blankness; Nathan is shown suffering with more guilt. Dipti's husband (Naren) and Nathan's intellectual & bedside companion Bella (RamyaKrishnan) represent two sides of the audience's mind - the conservative & the liberal. Bella convinces Nathan he is in love much as he does'nt want to face the loss that arises out of this attachment (attachment, suffering of facing responsibility for another person, and when death strikes the thought of being alone etc). The film is so convincing till this point - that one would want to cheer for the filmmaker (Shyama Prasad) for this new age story (a la french cinema!). Actually he does deserve a pat on his back for the very attempt! The story thereafter moves to Dipti getting pregnant with Nathan's child and the leadscenes upto the end - where Dipti comes to see Nathan with both her kids (the son from her husband) in a fit of rage of wanting to kill him - Nathan's turnaround with her is the climax - as he holds her against him, and explains how despite his many women, none had come this far in his life and noone had ever wanted to look him up as Dipti had done now - he actually talks about her love for him (selfishly so dont you think? more than speaking of his love for her, which is what it should've been, but we are dealing with an egotist intellectual here - ahem!) thus making her realise he is actually, finally taken her as a person beyond her body - something she had been wanting to see in him all long. So her Basic Instinct blade of glass is left in a corner and as the son comes into Nathan's apartment in search of his mother, we see a teary-eyed, full of compassion & love economist hold another man's child as if he were his own.

Ok - when put like that, the climax seems deserving of a standing ovation, but hey, the neo-realism of this sort of cinema, somewhere does not give room for the fantasy climax. Atleast in my mind. I had seen the film last week, but had the 'push' to put it on this post only now. Mulling over...!

My internet connection is ON, OFF at the sametime now and I've no clue why its behaving like my day. Somewhere, I feel that these days I'm best when left alone. I've the guilt of not meeting up with my school friends, one of whom had come down from the USA, twas her birthday too - but I was in some god forsaken moment in time, somewhere else - wish I had some luxuries of space and time. Now I have it - but somewhere instead of reaching out, I just want to reach within. Have you ever felt this way before? This sudden abruptness?

The Ever After....

2008-07-13T03:52:00.000-07:00

I seriously dont know what to write but I know I want to write. If only wishes were horses...we actually dont have to Sigh, but we can actually fly! I know, I know its totally blauh, this line, but it is 16:38pm on a hot sunday afternoon and well, what else do you except?!!

Anyways, to mundane diary like things for a wee bit - Filmfare came and went. And with it was one magical moment too. Sometimes, we think it will happen to us. Sometimes we make it happen to us - the magic, magic! But there are other times, when it just whizzes past us when we are looking the other side, so we dont even know whether the spell was cast or not! Have you ever had such a moment before? Any of the above three, I mean.

The exact sensation of a 'magical moment' would go like this. The first realisation that strikes you is when the 'it' actually happens, TIME stops. The second realisation is even if there are 50 people around you, NOONE exists - in cinema parlance, the motion is called FREEZE. Everything moves in high speed - read slow motion (ha! What a paradox!) The third realisation is even you will be doing things on auto-control, as if someone else is controlling your actions & reactions from somewhere else - all senses except the eye-sight is focussed and helps you to move about doing whatever this force in control wants you to do at that exact moment. The fourth (if any) realisation is THE THING itself - the magic. And that is an indescribable moment. So will save it for you to savour it soon. And of course, the Sigh that follows will only mean one wants the moment to continue like a fairy tale - happily ever after...!

I've had some exceptional magical moments in my life - the trick I guess is to actually treat most moments as magical so our daily life seems exceptional! Lofty I know, but here's a quote from one of my favorite people and Internationally renowned cinematographer Santosh Sivan on how he sees his everyday life.

"I wake up in the morning and look at everything as if they are all new!"

Brilliant, just like his work. Escapist the cynic would say - but hey, its attitude that determines which side of the net we are playing on, right?! So, here's to more of new-ness, to positively good times and of course, lots of magical moments that will end in a happily ever after...! After all, Snow White, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty had it that way, so why not us, eh?!

A Call away & yet...

2008-07-10T22:14:00.000-07:00

Last night was one of music - we drove, we sang and we laughed and cried. Presenting the lyrics of one of my most favorite songs. Hemantda at his very best - soulful, simple yet what a calling this one song is?! Strange that the name of the film has to be Khamoshi when the song is all about saying it all...! How many times have we felt the urge to say it but we dont...we stop, we ho and hum and one day let it go. A song in waiting for someone to do the calling. A unique emotional juxtapose that seeks yet is waiting to be sought.

Even though you're just a call away...

Tum pukar lo.......Tumhara intezaar hai......Tum pukar lo.

Khwaab chunrahi hai raat beqarar hai - Tumhara intezaar hai - Tum pukar lo

1. Honth pe liye hue dil ki baat hum - Jaagte rahenge aur kitni raat ham

Muqtasar si baat hai tum se pyaar hai - Tumhara intezaar hai - Tum pukar lo.

2. Dil bahal to jaayega is khayal se - Haal mil gaya, tumhaara apne haal se

Raat ye qaraar ki, beqarar hai - Tumhara intezaar hai.

Tum pukar lo.

Even though you're just a call away. Hmmm...!

JTYJN

2008-07-08T09:53:00.000-07:00

After titles like QSQT, DDLJ, KKHH, KANK, OSO - comes Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na. Now, whether you know it or you dont, how does it matter when you've really munched on well into the butter popcorn and cold coffee, with peals of laughter thrown in between?! Add some real good performances from what we can call an exact casting of artistes in recent times, and it really does not matter if you even come back without remembering the order of their appearances (which of course, they dutifully put in the end titles!)

Good debut by Imraan Khan. Genelia is finally getting her act together. Friendship or love is the focus but its not the only thing the lead pair are obsessed about. The brother sister act between Aditi and Amit is an equally enjoyable one to the rare mom-son scenarios shared between Savitri (an outstanding portrayal by Ratna Pathak Shah) and her son Jai (this boy has it naturally or is it some great training from a watchful uncle?!). Even though he is an over-exposed actor, he was always a wee bit under-utilised, dont you think? Im talking about Paresh Rawal who does a superb cameo in this film. The Khan Brothers provide the bit of suspension of disbelief - but as Aditi herself says when she sees them (along with the audience for the 1st time) "Is shehar mein kuch bhi ho sakta hai!". And with that line, you sit back and enjoy what can possibly be a good, Indian film for the makers of Sex in the City to take many lessons from, on How to Make a Rom-Com!

Some real lines for dialogues and realtime filming to register changes in emotion in the 'mind' of the characters (yes, not just the face as we are so used to watching in Indian cinema) - yes, some cliches are employed to make the predictable scenes run towards the climax but in all, Abbas Tyrewala has made his mark as one of the very best screen-writers we have! As a director, his staging of the scenes, the way he would open a scene from the book Savitri is reading to a wider frame near the Bay of Bengal, everything has its own charm and freshness. Maybe it also has to do with the 'sunshine' effect of the entire film as well - bright and breezy, with a generous dose of soothing colors for costumes and no overdose of anything remotely cinematic.

No, I didnt feel the need to compare this one with KKHH or Dil Chahta Hai (except felt that this one too is a movie for TODAY-much like its predecessors). I felt completely young watching this zig-zag, yo-yo love story, with less intensity and more fun. I mean, this is a film where parents enquire fondly of their children, "beta, aaj ki party kaisi thi?" instead of going ballistic over when, where and how (and in what dress) their under-21 kids were partying! Cool, huh?!

But then, the THIS in JTYJN is Mumbai and we ARE in 2008! But how many of our movies are made for our time? This one sure is - no matter how old you are, if you have a funny bone, if you've had deep friendships, if you've loved and been in love for a long time, this one is for you! Watch it.

Wait, how am I allowed to leave without talking about A R Rahman? Well, he is what he is for the film - the music director. He didnt try to take the film away from its makers. Happily Rahman has let the director be the Boss and has delivered the tracks and BGM to the orders of the script, hence, Rahman fits in so well, that we don't feel the need to look for him! ;-)

Pick Me Up

2008-07-07T00:19:00.000-07:00

If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door. - Comedian Milton Berle.

The idea in this cut & paste post is just to have a quick glance at these pick me up lines from real life, whenever Im down.

- The Beatles were turned down by ten recording companies before Capitol took them on as clients. They kept knocking on doors until the right one opened. Their music has now touched billions of lives.

- Albert Einstein did not speak until he was four years old, and didn't read until he was seven. His teacher described him as 'mentally slow, unsociable, and adrift forever in foolish dreams.' Einstein reshaped our perception of how the Universe operates.

- Before he was elected to the presidency, Abraham Lincoln lost nine public elections, declared bankruptcy twice, and weathered a nervous breakdown and the death of a fiancée. He is quoting as saying: 'You cannot fail unless you quit.'

- Babe Ruth, famous for setting a home run record, also holds the record for strikeouts.

- Harrison Ford played a bellboy in his first Columbia picture, 1966's Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round, and a studio executive told him, "You ain't got it, kid," the 'it' being star quality. Ford laughs at the story now.

- In the 1950's, one of the best ways struggling new talents could start on the road to fame and fortune was to appear on a nationally televised program called the Ted Mack Amateur Hour. A singer from Tennessee tried out for the show, but failed the audition. Today few people under 50 remember the Ted Mack Amateur Hour or any of the 'winners' of the audition the singer failed, but every year the legend of the young man from Tennessee, Elvis Presley, grows.

- Thomas Edison tried two thousand different materials in search of a filament for the light bulb. When none of them worked out, his assistant complained, "All our work is in vain. We have learned nothing." Edison replied confidently, "Oh, we have come a long way and we have learned a lot. We now know that there are two thousand elements which we cannot use to make a good light bulb."

- Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor for his lack of ideas. He also went bankrupt several times before he built Disneyland.

- The popular Chicken Soup for the Soul book was rejected by 140 publishers. One publisher said 'yes' and the successful Chicken Soup series was born.

Climb

2008-07-02T23:10:00.000-07:00

I wonder.

Thinking...till my head aches.

Crossroads.

Ways ahead, long & uphill.

Suddenly, the path reveals a road taken by very few.

In the hills, are flowers of varied hue.

A mighty vaccum - descends.

And the ear is struck by pain.

The feet are falling,

Eyes sore with tears mundane.

Darkness for a friend, stillness for oxygen.

Fingers find the walls - the moment is balanced.

In one, long, deep breath,

The foot finds its hold, step by step.

Huff & Puff, all the way UP.

Whoever said Climbing was meant only for the mountains?

Love

2008-07-02T22:58:00.001-07:00

Sex in the City has its fans. That's just about what I can say for the movie itself! The theme of the film is of course LOVE - the leading lady, is seen writing a book with the same title. She goes through the ups and downs with this one emotion, and finally 'it all ends happily ever after!' But is it in reality, really so?

LOVE - the universal word encompasses God & Man, known & unknown in one breath! Religion teaches you to practice it. Life tells you to live it. This thing called Love is apparently easy to do, but inherently the most difficult feeling to live by too. I shall explain.

Love is one emotion that reaches to ALL but is sometimes so elusive to ONE. It is that one emotion that seems easy to give & take, but at times the most difficult to obtain. An emotion called Love, which is like the World itself - deep & wide, long & short - all at the sametime. Love is like Time - still & moving, and waiting to find YOU. And when it does, the joy it brings...! When it leaves the sorrow that chokes. Love is within us and outside of us - always around but never quite...there.

Otherwise how else can we explain terrorism, domestic violence, harsh quarrels, squabbles and tiffs...? Love both heals and hurts. It all depends on what side of Love you're on!

Empty

2008-07-02T22:54:00.000-07:00

Empty pages.

Empty days.

Does Empty mean Vaccum?

"Maybe...somewhere in the Moon," said He.

"Maybe...somewhere in my Heart," said She.

To Each His & Her own -

Their Own,

Emptiness.

What's up with me?

2008-06-30T06:44:00.000-07:00

Ok. So its been quite awhile since I wrote. Since I even wanted to write. The reason my fingers go 'tch tch tch' on my laptop this morning is ...wait, I'm thinking. Hmmm...well, let's set that thought aside and dwell on more important things, shall we? Things I've been doing that's been occupying me, let me just list them out - a stock taking activity for the day!

- I joined driving class last week. For friends like Deva, Tsu, Priya and my mom, this is possibly the biggest step I could take next to jumping into the pool! I had driven earlier, many years ago, but didnt go beyond LLR since I wasn't too keen on driving as such...but behind this 'blog' reason is the real one - which is, my fear of being on the road. I've always been chided by my inner voice, which used to tell me that if the rest of the people drove properly then I can drive - but the first move has to come from outside, get it?! What a wrong perspective! Being confronted with some of the most excruciating circumstances in recent times, I've finally confronted that point of view. This step towards driving is also a psychological high-jump for me - to first, LEARN to drive through and within what I have around me - the big trucks & buses, the medium autos, the dozen and more varieties of cars and not to forget the cycles and fellow travellers on foot! I personally feel that the driving style of a person reveals a lot on their attitudes, patience levels, maneuvering abilities...much like how these traits determine the quality of our adult life in our personal & professional space! This is something I'm still learning to do and I hope I will be able to keep it up for real as well. My fears remain unchallenged till now, as I've some very experienced drivers telling me what to do...but one week from now, is the test! I breathe in & out at that thought, ahem.

- I joined drawing class. This has also been a lifetime dream to learn how to draw (like an artist, do you mind?!) and possibly have a collection of my own someday! Ranjit Sir is the best artist/teacher one can find in this part of the world. Despite his busy schedule and immense popularity with his ever growing student-list, he said 'yes' to teaching me how to use simple strokes to translate what I saw in front of me. A small mud-pot. Re-creating that image onto paper, I felt like...wait...I'm thinking again... let's say I felt like coming close to creation itself?! When I complete a drawing, and take it away from me to see if I've done justice to it, and when my teacher says I have - oh, my god..it most certainly makes me react like our beauty queens do when they win their crowns! Still trying to get some images right before my next class this week - still struggling to get the dimensions right, but its only been 1 class I say...! Chill.

- I saw one of the most brilliant works on celluloid - by the German filmmaker Werner Herzog. Aguirre - Wrath of God. The title of the film is the name of the hero or we should actually call him the anti-hero, played by Klaus Kinski (who pales the likes of Brando with his seething rage and simmering eyes!). Wrath of God is about a troop of Spanish soldiers who set out to find El Dorado. It's hardly an adventure flick - don't go for it expecting an Indiana Jones. This is Herzog's most famous film, one where he excels in drama, action and vivid story telling, if you know what I mean! Power and Fame being Aguirre's only goal, this commander's tryst with his maddening objective puts an entire race into oblivion. Recently, Mel Gibson made his Apocalypto - from the Spanish leader Pizzaro's point of view - of how they took over the Andes mountain range and with it the many Indians who were dwelling there. But I must say that Gibson's work is a poor cousin to Herzog's masterpiece. Both Kinski & Herzog had this unique semblance of rage within themselves that translates onto screen as well. The climax shot is a stand alone ovation point - where Aguirre, is left on a lone raft amidst the long-winding Amazon river, the poisoned arrows from the Incas hiding in the forests killing his small army & his 15year old daughter, Aguirre inspects the raft (Kinski with a lop-sided walk and twitching cheeks - wow!) that is now occupied by a pack of little monkeys, one of which he picks up tauntingly to tell the monkey who he is, 'The Mighty Wrath of God', a desperate sign of control and power - a trait that haunts him & his troop throughout this mis-adventure! Herzog made his film on man's search for the City of Gold (El dorado) from Aguirre's point of view. Mel Gibson just gave us a linear narrative of the entire history of the Spanish Inquisition. Herzog cleverly eschews the unnecessary details and zeros-in, on the travails of man in search - just that, still a searching race, we are - troubled by our own trappings of either emotional needs or materialistic ones, much like Aguirre himself! Herzog's film is a statement of a higher universal truth - well worded and superbly enacted by the unpredictable and most splendid actors, Kinski excels in every single frame - just see him do an about turn in stunned silence, when he hears the newly appointed Spanish King - (a thorough glutton whom Aguirre anoints in place of Pizzaro just to faciliate his decisions) grant 'cleansing' to the wounded commander (read shot at by Aguirre himself!) instead of ordering to execute him! Wow! What an outstanding piece of work! Anyone who sees this film, would not even want to attempt film-making! Herzog is a Master, before whom we all kneel in humble mercy!

- I liked Amitabh Bachchan's posts for day 66 and his follow up on it too. Particularly, his copy/paste of interviews is thoroughly enjoyable! Good move on his part to show how the media is mostly cliche'd in its approach towards our biggest star. Also, after many years of being so good at what he does - Amitji, still frets and worries over how he would perform the climax scene of an upcoming film. Fans wish him good luck, to which he reacts saying that one has to toil at it - everyday - for nothing in life comes easy! How simply said but how profound a line! I reflect on my own 'moments', and yes, nod my head and smile in agreement. Nothing came easy for me - even typing this piece is a fair amount of toil! I've noticed how this realisation does make a difference to our lives. Many of us fail to look into this simple fact and do not give our best to what we do. Well, life is a great teacher and to each of us, it will give us our lessons and its upto us to take from it or ignore the signs. But move on, life will, and if we fail, it will still move on leaving us behind.

Gosh, this has turned out to be one long post. Due to the fuel strike in TN, I'm up from 6am, driving class canceled for the day and still typing into my blog, thinking....ah, we are back to my one thought we began this with...! And...well, right now, BLANK is what I have for a thought.

The Bucket List & The Savages

2008-06-22T22:54:00.000-07:00

Either way you put it the combination of these two separate films make for a good title for another one, dont you think?! Of late, Ive gotten into this groove of moviewatching and thankfully, it has become a jolly routine. Out of maybe 5 movies from last week, these two most definitely stand out.

The Savages written & directed by Tamara Jenkins, is enacted by Phillip Feymour Hoffman & Laura Linney - two actors who stand out in every frame as the entire film is only about them. Playing siblings in the most realistically seen setup ever - the emotions, the jealousies, the wordplay - its all right in front of view! Here is a classic example of how good acting can make you forget you're watching an actor. Good acting, here, makes you relate only to their characters. Such true to life conflict, narrated in the most humorous and non-cinematic fashion - but before we delve deeper into that aspect, lets take a quick glance at The Bucket List.

Written by Justin Zackhman and directed by Rob Reiner, this film has stars doing what they know best. Making the audience relate to situations that happen around them is also an example of good acting. Jack Nicholson & Morgan Freeman complement each other and come off as people,whose traits we all possess - well, I mean in bits n pieces! Some terrific cliches transform into superb onscreen lines when delivered by Nicholson.The fun and fantasy part of the script is provided by him, while Freeman does the rooted in values routine.

Now - it is purely by choice that I picked up these two movies to watch 'em one after another. It is by no means an exercise in improving my patience levels...as there are no snazzy action or slick cuts to keep you glued to the screen. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed the slow pace of both these films which so reflect the non-dramatic existence of everyday life! To translate that humdrum-ness onto film is great screenwriting to begin with. Good direction and editing, specially when all the scenes involve one emotion or another, hence the cuts have to blend with the dialogue or close-up to denote the finishing line of a shot/scene; well thought-out BGM, interspersed with just the right levels of music that characters will probably have in their daily life - I mean this is not music for film, its music for those inside the film, if you get what I mean!

Recreate 'just like life' scenarios, take a journey that is not a cinematic one ending in a crescendo climax, put some wonderful 'isms' for dialogues and cast actors who reflect the characters, pepper it with some apt editing and music - and you have what we call 'the feel good' genre.If this can be called a formula, then both Bucket List and Savages are what your dvd rating will read as Two Thumbs Up!

I miss this kind of cinema here. And wait...thats not all. Jack & Morgan visit Taj Mahal as one of the things they wanna do before they kick their bucket. So there you have the dudes dressed in cotton/linen kurtas, standing by the Shah's tomb, dwelling on the 20,000 odd 'volunteers' as Morgan calls them...the Taj in the background looking more ravishing than the real one! If this Indian connection is not enough, we have Laura Linney place a bronze idol of Ganesha in her dad's hospital room as part of things she picks up to make him happier...! WOW - was what I felt to see India in Hollywood; it certainly is more refreshing than watching Aishwarya Rai doing the Indian bride act in English.

To Those I Really Love

2008-06-11T10:33:00.000-07:00

To those I really love
I do not know how to show affection.
I am afraid of excess.
Truth gets in my way - a clumsy dog.
Im abrupt with them - a minute later regret my abruptness.
And do it again.
Only now when Im alone, as now,
Hands stroke invisible hair.
Endearments break in a flood.

- South Asian Love Poetry

A R Rahman

2008-06-02T01:44:00.000-07:00

Ok. I was all this while just thinking....and thinking and still thinking for the right choice of words to describe my meeting with Rahman. A R. I'm yet to find my grip on the moment, hence the words fail to arrive in the right order. Rahman is a simple, sorted out dude. Yes, that is Rahman and lots more obviously. Charming. A white aura surrounds his presence. Very positive energy. He speaks his mind and does not cater to any image you may have of him on & off the record. Pretty much an example of how single minded pursuit of talent can take one to great heights - this pursuit will even keep you at that height if you keep 'at it' without giving up!

He says he went searching for things he couldnt get here when he started out as a musician - the search...! One look at Rahman and you will see a man's search for meaning in his life has met with it's Find. And that is truly a blessed state to be in. Lofty lines I know, but so was this meeting... Rahman, himself is a find indeed!

Classic Allen

2008-05-26T23:28:00.000-07:00

'Next Life' by Woody Allen

In my next life I want to live my life backwards. You start out dead and get that out of the way.

Then you wake up in an old people's home feeling better every day. You get kicked out for being too healthy, go collect your pension, and then when you start work, you get a gold watch and a party on your first day.

You work for 40 years until you're young enough to enjoy your retirement. You party, drink alcohol, and are generally promiscuous, then you are ready for high school.

You then go to primary school, you become a kid, you play. You have no responsibilities, you become a baby until you are born.

And then you spend your last 9 months floating in luxurious spa like conditions with central heating and room service on tap, larger quarters every day and then......Voila!

You finish off as an orgasm!

I rest my case.

3 Movies & Me

2008-05-25T11:50:00.000-07:00

12:22am. Home.

Musa - A Korean war epic. Blood(y) and serious historical drama, nonchalantly staged.

Autumn Sonata - Swedish - One of the most acclaimed works of director Ingmar Bergman. Will I, a mere mortal, have the audacity to type even one word on both the directorial & acting talents of the Bergmans'?! Ingrid Bergman simply stays with you long after the movie is over, with her award winning portrayal of a self-obsessed musician-mother 'Charolette'.

To Rob a Thief - Obviously the Spanish title is longer and totally alien to even read leave alone pronounce, hence I felt twas safe to key in the English title only. This film is a very simple, very 'noble' heist that addresses the issue of Latino Immigrants in modern day America in a subtle yet effective way. You know this one can easily be adapted to be remade with a good cast in Tamil/Telugu... Someone must recommend this to K S Ravikumar, as he would be able to pull it off with convincing our heros to co-star in a mastermind of a theft - yes, you need 6 guys & 1 girl - anyone interested ??!

These were the 3 Movies & ME (good, I finally have a post where I could justify the title, like our heros do in formula, masala films!) But self-admittedly No Sunday of mine was as entertaining! Actually, I'm wondering if I should take my Black & White German flick right now, switch ON the DVD and press PLAY. But good sense tells me to put a fullstop to this insomniac habit I've gotten into of late and switch OFF the lights.

After all, 'tomorrow is another day'! Good night.

God Who? Where?

2008-05-24T07:25:00.000-07:00

20:04pm. Deva's house.

Seems like a twlight hour or is it the effect of the yellow colored tubelight in her house? Twilight hour - they say if you pray at this exact moment, your prayer is answered. By whom? The energy that rules this Universe, I would presume? Because God has taken various forms and is currently a work in progress, much like me. Vanity? No. Reasoning. Yes.

How did this transformation happen to me? I've lived all my life in a Mylapore Agraharam; spent my teenage years in temples nearby chanting slokas day and night with my grand-mom; followed simple traditions like waking up early everyday of the Margazhi month (December) to do the traditional kolams on the streets of the family house that I shared with my many cousins...? The answer is simply...LIFE. Life teaches you to face everything - good, bad & ugly with a 'Why so? Why me?'

The moment I started questioning happenings, the minute I saw reason behind my setbacks, the moment I stepped on a plane and saw the cloud around it's wings - I knew my Mahavishnu's Vaikuntam was not a part of my real world. It was at best a lavish 'film set' from erstwhile A P Nagarajan's movies! The Milky Way (Paarkkadal) is far above aeroplane heights, yes, but I'm quite certain that Andal's lover & Lakshmi's husband could not defy gravity and 'live on' in a human form in a zone where oxygen is absent! My vision of my God, stops with a smiling N T Ramarao in his Vishwaroopam with more than four arms instead of the normal two.

So could my 'God' be someONE or someTHING, living/being elsewhere? 2000 and 8 years hence, we enter the New Age way of finding God Consciousness. "I'm not a religious person, but you can call me...well...Spiritual", one hears this from peers and colleagues more often now. Being Spiritual is IN. Self help books and incessant gatherings by white robed Gurus, seemed to hold the promise of showing God to helpless souls (my saamiyaar tales are for yet another post! Wait on...!) like me. But they all ceased to have that power once I interviewed them for one magazine or the other. 'Miracle' was more possible with my mind conjuring up images that in some state of sleep seemed real, than from any Guru who could conjure up lingams from cloth bags.

God, confused me; because as long as I plainly believed in 'HIM', I had no problems with HIM. The second I questioned creation/people/events, was when I realised the powerless-ness of the images inside the Perumal Sannidhi in my house! Even as a child, I went to temples to learn more about the history of that place or just be lost in the architectural splendor of the pillars and statues or willingly transport myself to another era of kings & kingdoms (Do re-read my earlier post on the Tanjavur Temple visit!). Yes, I will admit that as I grew older, God became more personal. (He always was actually; I remember saying I wanted to marry Srinivasa'r' in my Mylapore temple anyway!)

And from HIM - HE, God slowly became IT - THE FORCE. Prayer was more an exercise in affirmation that things will improve; if they didn't I always saw it as something I have'nt done right, hence it was not happening right. To abandon the traditional God as was shown to me by my parents, meant increasing the level of burden I had to shoulder. To look for a great deal of faith in myself; to accept more responsiblity for my words & deeds; to take corrective action for lost time. I dont wish to hurt anyone who has traditional beliefs in god and therefore religion, hence I abide with most of the 'things to do with God' when it comes from my parents/friends. I do somethings for them even if I have no personal faith in the practises of worship.

Be it Gravity or God, I do see a 'connection' between us and Nature; a kindred-ness in emotional moments (mostly in pain) and when I say Nature, it also includes places - how sometimes we dont have answers to phenomena like Deja Vu or ESP-like occurences even in our daily life. Science has answers to most queries and my humble research tells me that the human mind is a great workshop - it is capable of a travel beyond boundaries! Man has fought & killed in the name of God/Religion - the absence of which is actually a platform for discovery and invention or in most cases, even Art. A quick reading of Bill Bryson's A Short History of Nearly Everything & Richard Dawkins' The God Delusion should put any unquiet mind to rest. With time, I guess any person will make their peace with the 'knowledge' that we are our own God(s)! This thought comes from our scriptures, which mostly is mistaken to be just the Vedas. Much like how the Greeks left behind volumes on human life, our Indian ancestors have also left us with great works like the Upanishads, which is not a pro-God or religion treatise but is actually a philosophical/political/social set of insights for our everyday life!

Aham Brahmaasmi - Tat Tvam Asi. Naane Brahmam - Neeyum Athuvey. I am God-consciousness. So are you.
A film called Anbe Sivam well illustrates this theory. To see God in a child's smile, in one act of kindness to a fellow human being, in one moment of ecstasy, in that single second of running the extra mile for success, in the gratification of seeing a job well done, in even wanting to help another being - you can add more 'such' to this list. No one human being is higher or lower than another, except in intelligence or talent (which is also unique). Rich or poor, it is ultimately your attitude and who or what you take to be your benchmark in life that determines your success or lack of it in this planet.

Does God need veneration? Ritual? Tradition? I dont think so. Religion is a man made commodity that is used to stir up emotions to suit a moment's maddness. Humanity is a bigger religion than any man made one. The fact that we all possess similar DNA (Darwin's evolution theory links us to apes, birds, amphibians, reptiles, one floating amoeba)...this single thought from Science should tell us to stop any practice/differentiation in the name of caste/religion/color.

Of course, at work, I parade my Vadakalai Iyengar lineage in all glory - just for the many laughs and also to drill it into myself that I am NOT any name that religion accords me; I am just SUJATHA - a woman born and living in a geographically bordered city called Chennai, in a country called India.

Simply Amazing...!

2008-05-24T01:16:00.000-07:00

“In exploring the shared language and poetic sensibilities of all animals, I am working towards rediscovering the common ground that once existed when people lived in harmony with animals. The images depict a world that is without beginning or end, here or there, past or present.”—Gregory Colbert, Creator of Ashes and Snow

Gregory Colbert's Ashes and Snow is an ongoing project that weaves together photographic works, 35mm films, art installations and a novel in letters. With profound patience and an unswerving commitment to the expressive and artistic nature of animals, he has captured extraordinary interactions between humans and animals. His 21st-century bestiary includes more than 40 totemic species from around the world. Since he began creating his singular work of Ashes and Snow, Colbert has mounted more than 30 expeditions to locations such as India, Egypt, Burma, Tonga, Sri Lanka, Namibia, Kenya, Antarctica, the Azores, and Borneo.

The show first opened at the Arsenale in Venice, Italy, in 2002 and is charted to travel the globe with no final destination. The Nomadic Museum, the travelling home of Ashes and Snow, debuted in New York (March to June 2005) and then travelled to Santa Monica (January to May 2006), and Tokyo (March to June 2007). The show will travel next to Mexico City.

The title Ashes and Snow suggests beauty and renewal, while also referring to the literary component of the exhibition—a fictional account of a man who, over the course of a yearlong journey, composes 365 letters to his wife. The source of the title is revealed in the 365th letter. Colbert's photographs and one-hour film loosely reference the traveller's encounters and experiences described in the letters.

Colbert, who calls animals "nature's living masterpieces," chose to film animals in their native habitats in an effort to be true to each animal's voice. The film can be viewed as a work of art as well as a poetic field study. The film was edited by two-time Oscar winner Pietro Scalia. It is narrated by Laurence Fishburne (English), and Ken Watanabe (Japanese). Musical collaborators include Michael Brook, David Darling, Heiner Goebbels, Lisa Gerrard, Lukas Foss, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, and Djivan Gasparyan.

The Ashes and Snow exhibition includes more than 60 large-scale photographic artworks, a one-hour film, and two 9-minute film haikus. None of the images have been digitally collaged or superimposed. They record what the artist himself saw through the lens of his camera. While Colbert uses both still and movie cameras, the images are not stills from the film. The animal subjects of the photographs and films include interactions with both wild animals and also those that have been habituated to human contact. These mixed media photographic works marry umber and sepia tones in a distinctive encaustic process on handmade Japanese paper. The artworks, each approximately five feet by eight feet, are mounted without explanatory text so as to encourage an open-ended interaction with the images.

What is a...

2008-05-22T01:12:00.000-07:00

Blog? A diary? A personal Notes to Me and the rest of my world? A medium to campaign for pet causes? A movement?
What is a blog anyway? Those who wish to share thoughts are welcome...as always!
Hmmm!

Thanks To....

2008-05-20T05:51:00.001-07:00

18:20pm. Old home.

Fresh showers for this season. It has finally rained in Chennai. To smell the wet sand and feel the cool wind - in a city, where the evening temperature is nothing less than 37 degrees celsius, is something to be thankful for! Sometimes, counting your blessings as they say is a good exercise; it leaves one with a sense of all that has been seen and done, and therefore, a sense of accomplishment arrives! Still, there is that need to work towards a better life, hence we will also look at things we dont have and aspire for that list as well. Our very own 'Bucket List'!

Caught in a rather 'in between' time in my personal and professional life, I count my blessings which even on a single scan of thought, brings a smile! Apart from the regular list of blessings, I've also had the good fortune of facing adversities that have taught me lessons for life; left me well chiseled to sculpt my personality to manage myself in this wide world. My Thank-You List would read something like this:

- The disappointment of not going on stage, even though I was chosen and had practiced long & hard to sing a solo for our Inter-House culturals in school. A friend of mine was singing the same song, while I walked back home, clutching my school bag across my heavy heart.

- The feeling of 'falling in love' without knowing the end of that road, sometimes not having a road at all!

- The moment I was told my services were no longer required in my first job, despite having delivered a good track record, when I was all of 19. "Jealousies of a senior colleague", I was told later.

- Meeting 'Sivaji' Ganesan, Rajinkanth and Kamal Haasan for my maiden magazine competition (and winning it too); Meeting all my favorite and revered film makers/actors of this country thereafter, getting to know them on a personal level (someone quickly do the 'dhrishti' for me!) - thanks to Mirchi and to my own flair for movies!

- Anbe Sivam

- My 1st on air moment in Radio...and with it, Tapas, Shirty & Romen.

- Several moments in Mirchi's formative years that gave me my best friends. Specially the day when the email from Arvind did the rounds, and within minutes, the entire programming team rallied around me and sorted the issue before it could be escalated further. Have not yet thanked Devasena, Senthil, Jimmy, Mani, Pramod, Romen Sood and of course Arvind, who was the hero of the piece. Unforgettable cameos from Suchitra, Remy & Balaji made the scenes truly spicy...in keeping with our tagline, that day was Semma Hot Machi! That day also taught me the importance of having a 'team' that told me I'm not alone; how important everyday interaction in office is and how, when you're really lost and vulnerable, help will always come. Just keep the faith.

- The thrill of seeing my name on the silver screen in a succession of movies.

- The sheer day to day experience of managing men & women in cinema.

- My friends for life from this volatile medium of movies...most of them directors, some of them actors, who have the understanding & patience for this creature called Me!

- My Gurus in not just Journalism, but life - Rao sir & Madhan sir, who have taught me the importance of having a discerning mind; the relevance of keeping a high standard of excellence in work or be it in a simple matter of giving my opinion on anything.

- The esctasy of having friendships from school that traveled across 22years and the agony of having it all broken thanks to marriage and misunderstandings. Still...every excursion, every evening spent in Alsa Mall, Fountain Plaza, Sathyam Complex, Devi theatre, the Dabhas & Tic Tacs of Chennai are as fresh as this first rainfall! Not to forget the night-outs in the name of group studies; election and exam result times; Inter School Culturals; our gang's private trip to Kodaikanal; the day long time-spent in each other's homes with nothing to do save for repeated discussions of our own lives and the opinions each one had on it!

- My unique friendships with talented souls - be it a Psychiatrist in Chicago (This is your 5 secs of fame Dr. Ranganathan!), artists & painters of Chennai, my Art Director friend Prabhakaran, who opened his circle of friends to me, businessmen who always had me in mind for every new opportunity; media friends who have known me for several years and even now stand shoulder to shoulder for any professional deal I take to them; strange people who have met me only once and have kept in touch with the same warmth and comfort.

- Holding my dad when his mom died (I was 13yrs old); being the 1st person to hold Anand (my nephew) when he was born in 1995 - that kind of completes the circle of life I guess!

Hmmm...guess my Vote of Thanks is an endless one. This is by no means a comprehensive list; its what I can think of in one glance. Im sure future posts in this blog will talk of each moment/person in my life...in detail and with all honesty. As I said earlier, one scan of thought - one smile and I'm glad money or other materialistic stuff didnt make it to this list!

NEW

2008-05-16T23:16:00.000-07:00

11:46am. New house.

It feels like a new home. After many months of 'to go or not to go' we made the move. Mom & Dad & Me. Dealing with a set of rusted faucets; falling door knobs; faded curtains and a dusty kitchen sink. Nevertheless, the food felt tastier; sleep came in better intervals; lesser arguements over TV shows and better 'yes-s & maybe-s' rather than plain 'No's. Guess, this is what having your own roof over you head gives you?! Yes, after many years of living in rented apartments and checking out flats in sidelanes, this is a welcome change.

Secure is the word. Safe is the feeling. Of the many things, we wish to own - a house that is every inch 'your own' will occupy top priority I think. Still - a lot needs to be done around here. Slowly, things should fall in place. Once my sister and nephew arrive from their holiday in the Far East, things will go more helter-skelter, but should be fun. This change is new. Something we didnt expect would arrive this fast. Though this is precisely what we wanted. Confusing right?

How many times have you been in a situation like this? When you have prayed, waited, imagined how what you so aspire for will be - but - when the moment finally arrives, your a little lost - maybe because the reality doesnt match imagination (it rarely does!) or you're ill-prepared for the real thing, that you keep postponing the moment, until...the moment takes you over!

My thoughts on dealing with change...

Going with the flow is the I-Ching here. Be so. Do not aspire or try. Just be and let it be. Dont mess with events around you. Sometimes silence is also a sign of work in progress. Just because you dont see or hear anything doesn't mean its not happening.

One of my favorite thoughts for life came from A R Rahman at the Vijay Tv Awards function (after collecting his award for Best Music Director obviously) "Kadavulum Kaadhal maathri...kannukku theriyaadhu!" So basically set aside doubts. Isin't everything you throw at the Universe, every wish you so dream of coming true actually DOES come true? It's always the WHEN that's the big question. And of course, as curious souls, we want the HOW to be detailed as well. Because, if we KNOW we (think we will) feel safe.

To go on a path blindfolded, relying on just faith in an unknown power, that calls for courage. Like bungee jumping - someone's holding the rope, but fall you must, with all that you have! Coming to a new home - settling new issues, tackling new days - is well a change I've so dreamt of but so resisted as well. Falling in Love is similar right? You so want it - but are so wary of all that it brings.

Just Go with the Flow...Enjoy the Fall.

Vague

2008-05-14T08:00:00.000-07:00

8:30pm. Home.

It's been awhile since Ive consciously skipped this hour at home. Now, that my sister and nephew are away in Singapore, the house is quiet. The city is warm. This is a vague hour. Taking each moment as it comes. Unsure sometimes, clear at times. The oscillation continues. There are so many things I can learn - driving, swimming, singing - all of which I had taken up at some point earlier, but gave up half way. Why? Hmmm. Plain lazy. Plain disdain. Slothful.

8:41pm. Obviously home.

I look fwd to watching Polish director Andrzej Wajda's classic Ashes and Diamonds. It has Zbigniew Cybulski's best performance I'm told. A post WW-II, B & W saga - and the very first shot of a man falling off a jeep, as a bullet hits him has me glued to the screen. I pause the film. Resume this post to end it.

Wish a morning dream to come true...Wish a good night's rest to all those who need it. I'm speaking like Gabriel, the angel! One whoosh of my wand and all things bright and beautiful will happen....WHOOSH!

Good night.

To Be or Not To Be over a Song

2008-05-12T11:13:00.000-07:00

As I was reaching home after a pleasant evening in my Presidency Club, I found myself asking one of my very talented film maker friends, Bhushan, as to what was his favorite song. I quite like to sing while being driven on empty roads and hence this self-indulgent query! Twas a rare opportunity and we both sort of stumbled upon... 'Ye! Kya Bolti tu' from Ghulam. This was most certainly not one of our favorite songs, but the way Bhushan exclaims his 'Yei's is good enough to break into the one song that so established the Aamir-Rani chemistry on screen!

Suddenly, I broke off into my reverie, wherein I told Bhushan that the Ghulam number was like a reply of sorts to 'Abhi Na Jao Chodd Kar' from Hum Dono. He added that in between these two eras was this song from Aaradhana where Rafi croons for Rajesh Khanna - Baahon Mein Bahaar Hai...and Lata goes Na Na Na Na...! (We also spoke of how the most famous song in Aaradhana was the one where Rafi sang for dad Khanna, 'Gunn Gunaa Rahe Hai Bawarein Khil Rahi Hai Kalee Kalee' and that's why Rafi had to come back to sing for son Khanna in 'Bahoon Mein'...! DNA played a vital role in deciding a playback singer boss!!!).

I disagreed with Bhushan on the Aaradhana bit...because

a) the song was not a super hit by any standards, and,

b) the charm that Madhubala lent to 'Abhi Na Jao...' was left unmatched across many years, until Rani gave her presence to the impish, rich girl act in Ghulam.

Now, how many of you agree or disagree with me?

Celebrities & Them

2008-05-12T00:56:00.000-07:00

A recent reading of an acquaintance's blog got me thinking. It's content was indirectly directed at me or I can safely say, people like me, who work in the Film Industry. The post read like a gossip snippet, without mentioning names, just alphabets for reference and comments on 'kollywood' & obvious digs at souls like me who deal with it. It kept gnawing at my grey cells for across, say, 4 days now. My reaction Ladies & Gentlemen is after much deliberation.

People who love, hate, criticise showbiz are aplenty. Those that have access to 'those' who are behind the camera (which is a majority as against having access to those in front of it)...the former Those have a lot of questions to ask the latter 'those'. A sample list will read as follows:

"Hey, do you know when such and such a film is releasing?"

"Isin't so and so actor a real casanova?"

"I heard this actress really tried to cut her wrists over her boyfriend, is it true?"

"Im suchhh a BIIgGG fan of this singer, can you pleeeeaassseee make me speak to him once?"

Now, it is no big deal for me, who is and always have been dealing with people who make films for a living. But when hounded with questions as those above, at a non-filmy party or a coffee meet at a friend's house, I must admit, I scan a little to check the validity of the question and the interest of the interrogator. When I'm convinced that the interest is greater, I indulge. Spice my content up a bit, yes, as I try to keep anything I say or write less boring... but NEVER do I fib over film people/facts, as I value them a great deal.

Being with Mirchi as their Content Editor/RJ/Film Repertoire Consultant and tested film making waters as Executive Producer/Head of the Films Dept for over 2yrs, I think I have the right to say that it IS a big deal to be a success in showbiz (in any of the Bolly/Kolly/Molly/Tolly 'woods' as you please! First someone must file a petition to do away with these misnomers for each of our film industries!). A star or a technician has an edge, a triumph over strife, that has brought them upto a level of popularity/success, enough to be discussed at kitty parties or in college canteens and mostly, inside the walls of prominent media/broadcast houses! The initial 'wow' factor is always followed by a 'I thought so' refrain...as it's unthinkable for anyone to be told some facts which they (obviously) dont know about 'their' film stars (which is why they ask creatures like me!). But as I have observed, they will only believe what they wish to believe about anyone you mention. But the questions will always be posed as if they eagerly wait for an authentic response.

As a reporter/RJ, I'm always gunning for the untold story, explore the unknown facet of a celebrity. On unraveling that, my respect for each of them who I've had the chance to interact with has only multiplied. My personal views/experiences apart, my professional ones will always have a positive side to it. Therefore, when I'm asked about a certain film personality, I would always present them in a good light. And if its a friend asking me 'doubts', then I will give my personal take on people or my interactions with celebrities with real instances.

I had no clue how this was perceived until I read this particular snippet-post! It hit me that those who ask me questions on film stars do so to fulfil their voyeristic needs. I'm just (used, more likely!) a window, which they will open and shut on their whim 'n' fancy. The fact that I'm human, I spend time on such moments, I try to always give the real picture as far as possible is of no concern to the star-gazers! There is little or no interest to know the real stories of struggle even on their favorite actors. It is more an inherent disdain at mortals who actually happen to know their stars! Such Q-A sessions also gives them a side-kick (literally!) chance to heap insults thereafter at people like me, who, having said the truth, will be targetted by the very same lot who ask for such information! When something I say in good faith is translated as an attempt to show off what I do for my profession, it hurts. But as they say, it happens to the best of 'em!

"When you're discussed in absentia, that's the moment you've stopped being a commoner; you're on your way to being what we call - a Legend", I let Tapas Sen's (one of my favorite people & Chief Programming Officer in Radio Mirchi) words ring through this post. Adding to it was another publicist friend who said, "When your work is spoken of behind your back and when your words have been twisted to be presented in another light, rejoice, for you've become a star machaan!"

I take a bow!

Photographic Memory

2008-05-11T11:19:00.001-07:00

11:10pm. I can't decide between the alphabets on my laptop or the old fashioned pen and 'rough' note book, like we used to have in school. I had, just a few hours ago almost exhausted my IBM's battery, playing some games (with levels less than a 5th grader, a la Paanchvi Paas!) and I have this itch to switch-on this thing I have for a laptop! Reason: One chance glance at a single, old photo album brought back memories...and now that I have a blog to pour out, I simply HAVE TO!

"Keep updating yourself", is a mandate I have learnt & I practice. Hence, sometimes I'm guilty of updating too much that I forget names/faces from my past, that I most certainly have no business to go B L A N K on. But as they say, it happens. Some of these photos seem like they belong to someone I knew loooong ago! This someone is/was (Im confused!) ME. I wonder why I've kept pictures of those who are no longer part of my active life, of say atleast the last 6yrs?!

JUST that little a time has gone by and I'm already talking in past tense of faces I hardly see, people I no longer connect with, memories that have somewhere faded away, save for this one photo-album that's staring at me. Childhood snaps, with that of my very pretty sister and a surely sulking me occupy this album for most. I'm either melancholic in them or I'm dancing (posing, as if, that is). The advantages to keep such albums are a few:

1) Younger people pass off for my now 68 & 60, Dad & Mom.

2) If ever I need to design costumes for an 80s flick I will never run out of reference.

For in here,amidst all the various shots, is a set of snaps of me in different attires - (clicked by my dad's good friend, who must have visited us then and I would've bugged him royally to indulge my dream of becoming an actress and he made the mistake of saying YES to a precocious girl).

Mysore sandal talc passed off as pancake; our breadthwise small and lengthwise big Mylapore terrace was the location; the light was closer to 4:30ish in the afternoon, (if I remember right it was also drizzling-wow!) and the camera from Kuwait (Thank you Vichu uncle!) started to roll. Out came the Kanchivaram pattu pavadai/half saree, Chellarams striped skirt 'n' blouse, London Stores Jeans & Tops, our very own talior stitched brown Paddle Pushers (yes, three fourths were called thus those days! sigh!) and the homely churidar-kurta. Among this queen's wardrobe (!) was this green, velvet, knee length skirt & silk, white blouse with matching green buttons...! I must have been all of, say 12 when these photos came to life; and there I was posing like a Silk Smitha, I'm sure I must have hummed Neathu Rathiri Yamma, as I twirled, put my hands on my 'nowhere to be found' hips, and gave one 'left look' pose with my uneven, curly, hair all loosened out!

I mean just HOW did these adults manage a kid called ME?! Gosh, I feel like giving one tight slap to this brat in the photo...all starry eyed and doing those 'dance with a pot on your head' steps! For whose joy were these pictures taken? What in the world was I thinking? (DISCLAIMER: The Silk Smitha reference is given only for the expression, the meaning for the song and the 'mood' I came to know much, much later only!)

I remember being a crying bully, who would refuse to take NO for an answer. I also remember me being glued to 'Olliyum Oliyum' (meaning Sight & Sound) on DD, that came every Friday, with it's weekly film songs! Each photograph of mine can be likened to a famous song of those times. The classical pavadai one was a definite Vaanpole Vannam kondu from Salangai Oli; the Paddle Pushers & Jeans were Namma Ooru Singari from Ninaithale Inikkum; the velvet skirt was...God,never mind, we've gone through it once already...and the list goes on!

I also spotted my first love hidden amidst our 'summer holidays with daddy's friends & their families' set of pics. I must've been 9yrs old I think. He must've been 14. From the Mysore Palace pictures (I'm seen sulking even then) taken as this big, tourist group, flashed back many a memory of such holidays to Ooty, Kodai, Bangalore, Yercaud, Cunnoor...hmmm! The pictures move on to show me as this 17yr old to his 21yrs. This one was taken in one of the parties in Boat Club. My skin tone salwar matched his cream shirt. I recall that night.

T'was when I heard the phrase 'the night is always young' for the first time. And it surely was. His words reassuring me of my 'special-ness', moments that were endearing, yes, but I was like a Tamil film heroine then, shying away from anything called intimacy but always ready to sing a duet anytime...! Almost the same year I attended his engagement. An abrupt end to a childhood fairy tale, where the prince & princess didnt live happily ever after! When my mom told me the 'good news' I was having my morning shower. My tears washed my face that day.

To suffer a heartbreak when you are 17 is not unique. I know. But, when marrying this one guy was your life's best ambition then, well...it was quite a blow. If you had asked me what my dream was when I gave my 10 std exams, I would've simply grinned and told you it was to get married and settle down with my HIM. But something came out of that pain. The moment that dream got squashed, the one that always occupied my everyday life became clearer.

Movies. To get there, I needed to get into media. To get there, I had to become a writer. And I wanted to be in Tamil Movies, hence Tamil media, hence Tamil writing! But I didnt know to read or write Tamil, thanks to my double centum in Sanskrit. So that is how my adult life began...from learning Tamil on the job, when I was working as a Reporter for a Tamil magazine in 1994! I do a speed race from then and arrive in 2008 now.

Well....my journey's mostly laced with my own refusal to learn how best to lead life the easy way. Difficult is me. Or is it really so? That's my perspective; how I see myself and my life. Ask anyone who has been part of this travel with me and maybe they will have a different story to tell. But since this is my life and youre reading my take on it in my blog - hey, this is MY story! One that has me in my green, velvet skirt and one that also has a tale of having loved and lost.

"So what did I do thereafter?" You're asking about my subsequent love affairs, right? 'Coz it has been a decade and more since the first falling in love happened...I understand.

Umm...Can we talk about it soon...maybe in another half past 11pm session? ;-)
Good night.

Change

2008-05-10T23:34:00.000-07:00

The only constant in this world. As planet earth inches its way around the sun, each day is nothing but CHANGE. So, why am I resisting it so much? Why the many ifs and buts, hos and hums... I wonder and then come up with the answer. Because Im un-happy with the change... un-welcoming it. Im all 'Un' when I should just be... Let it be! Take a deep breath now, sporadic thoughts come and go. Actionless day. Mobile is free of messages. Of ringtones too. This silence is deafening. Peaceful? Dont know. Why this monologue as if the world stopped spinning now? Because...that 'extra zing', the 'special moment', the 'dhum' in each day is missing. From me? Yes. How do I get it back? Hmmm... Dont have answers to that one though. Do you?

Big B

2008-05-09T07:18:00.000-07:00

Only when my colleague and friend Devasena reminded me did I even think about it! The 'IT' here being this blog. Because unlike Amitabh Bachchan I dont have exciting stuff happening mornin', noon 'n' nite for me to keep updating this post. And neither is the world interested in knowing about MY mornin', noon 'n' nite. Hmmm... AB!!

Amitji's writing is so on the mark - his astute mind is a delight to unravel! Please note his time of entry for his posts...it is quite inspiring! Guess he hardly sleeps but is always on time for work, as he writes in one of his posts about how the film unit in Nasik gears up for the day's shoot. A frenzied account that's marked with his trademark, wry sense of humor. And his digs at media and retorts to Ramadoss are by now familiar, but it is a treat to know what makes each day work for a man like Big B! I mean if he can continuously do so well, what he has been doing for so many years...what are we complaining about working for our daily life?

This is what I keep telling my dad all the time. My dad's tryst with life is no mean achievement. He is just 3 and a half yrs older than AB and like him is still running the show at home and in his office - the only thing he values as dearly as us, for the last 30 odd yrs. Something more than just money must be the motivating factor behind these many years of hard work, dont you think? Something extra that makes people like AB or my dad or anyone you know who is 60plus and still at it - still going strong, handling day to day tensions, everyday hassles at work, monthly and annual financial hurdles, family matters that only get complicated with time and never once settle down (as you grow, those that you know are also growing up you see!) ... Phew!

Psst! Did you get the idea that I think of AB like my dad? Good, I did'nt think so! Because... Amitabh Bachchan is the sexiest 60plus Indian Actor alive! In fact, I hated the idea of Aishwarya playing his daughter in Mohabbatein. This was thankfully negated a little with Kajra Re, but to my dear misery, they have now become dad-in-law and bahu in real life!! Tch..Tch! To me, watching AB in Aks was an unforgettable experience... his seduction of Raveena Tandon was a class apart...(he should play these 'shades of grey' roles often)...! AB's zest for life is evident in him changing flights between Bangkok and Nasik covering a press meet at London en route, all within a span of 4 days! Despite his physical weaknesses, there is a huge force working for him in the form of his sharply honed IQ that comes up with an answer for every query/comment. How else do you explain the various 'things-to-do' that he so perfectly goes about doing in his span of 24hrs?! His energy & dedication to give each shot his very best is so there, even in the Dabur commercial, where despite the flailing dhothi, Amitabh Bachchan stands tall-er!

And all this is from someone like me, who re-started to notice her Icon-actor Amitabh Bachchan from, no...not Black but Dev and Virudhh. Yup, I've seen every one of AB's films including the Kaalias and the Toofans...so please save yourself the impulse to take class on one of the (few) actors, who have given me many a celluloid dream...and if I may add, because of whom I'm even part of this wonderful process of film-making! This re-invention of himself that Amitji did, is no mean achievement. He rose like a phoenix and is now here to stay, giving every young Khan his run at the box office! To have roles written for you even when you're a character actor; to take on as many assignments, stay in the public eye yet not diminish in star value; to make as many personal decisions yet manage a public life that's the envy and aspiration for many - AB's stock rises with every line you read!

No, I did'nt reckon with Brand Bachchan in Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham but I did relish his performance in the other K film where he appears in surprise intervals with his by now in vogue,black 'n' red shades. Amitji's Sam had so much panache' that it puts to shame Jack Nicholson's playboy act in Somethings Gotto Give. And...the name of the film springs up just when I'm winding up this post... Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna...!

And that's just what I (we!) wanna say to Big B anyways - Never say Goodbye, Mr. Bachchan!

Gamyam...a very good film!

2008-05-08T04:06:00.000-07:00

Im groggy. Just woke up from an afternoon slumber. I open my blog. I type.

Gamyam is one of the best efforts in film-making in recent times. This Telugu film has won my heart. It is an 'everything roled into one' kind of a film. Very balanced, simple yet deep. Watching it with a select few, I was there on invitation from my director friend Priya. The film met with an unanimous applause when the director's name (Krish aka Radhakrishnan, a new find for Telugu cinema) appeared in the end. The writing, the scenarios, the characters, the relationships were all so real yet so well set in cinematic moments, that it is both life-like and larger than life.

Breaking streotypes, giving us moments that are picked up from your life or mine, making the characters speak as they should - Gamyam is a coming of age film in Telugu cinema. The very fact that this is a road movie (reminding one of Sideways, Motorcycle Diaries) is itself a clever platform to set the tone and mood of the film. The music is apt (newcomers Anil & E S Murthy) and the director does a cameo as a Naxal leader - (he does have options of playing villain to any of our big heros, or sticking to his sure shot scripts and making better films out of it!)

The film is about a clash of worlds - Abhiram (Sharwanand is aptly cast) is the sole heir to a world of riches and Janaki (Kamalini fits in well here), a medico, social activist. The film is also about Abhiram and his road buddy, Kaali Seenu (played so very endearingly by Naresh, a la Bachchan in Sholay! In fact the two also do a bike jig much similar to Jai & Veeru that one can't but smile in sheer nostalgia. Very clever of you Mr. Krish...!)

Yes, the stage dance by Janaki could have been well shot - but it is a new, 'why not this way' visual. Yes, the party scenes where Abhiram and Janaki have a fall out is an extreme slap on Capital Consumerism - but one that gives the drama their break-up requires (Watch out for the dialogues between Abhiram & Janaki in the car - one of the many scenes in the film that rate as Good, where the sheer impact of the simple words, leaves you with a deeper understanding on the differences between their worlds). Writer- Director Krish has his cinema in his control - be it in his edits, his use of song 'n' dance situations (the village record dance number is a treat!) his Naxal episode and the gun fight thereon ... Krish simply refuses to cater to your expectation of a scene. But he does cater to you also, but he does it when and how he wants to... and that's what makes the film a highly watchable experience.

P.S.: True to the spirit of the film we saw, our brigade marched onto the nearest Andhra Bhavan for our midday meal! Much like the film, this was also a highly enjoyable eating experience! (Didn't know a dull vegetable like Zucchini could be made into a spicy, dark looking, truly tasteful pachchadi!?!)

Feeling alone?

2008-05-07T03:25:00.000-07:00

Something I picked from one of the mail fwds that made me run into my blog to post it. Take a look!

When you are feeling alone like no one cares, read this cuz its absolutely true:

- Every night, someone thinks about you before they go to sleep.
- At least fifteen people in this world love you.
- The only reason someone would ever hate you is because they want to be just like you.
- There are at least two people in this world that would die for you.
- You mean the world to someone.
- Someone that you don't even know exists loves you.
- When you make the biggest mistake ever, something good comes from it.
- When you think the world has turned its back on you, take a look.
- Always remember the compliments you've received. Forget the rude remarks.

Those that stay put.

2008-05-07T02:42:00.000-07:00

They say blogs are like a diary...something like Notes to Myself. Hugh Prather's first book of his own quotes is one of my much loved works. In it you will find 'isms' to match all situations and reading it at various times will give you the solace that is needed at that point of time. One of my all time favorite quote is:

"People are often proud of achievements. They are proud of the result not of the action!"

How so very true! You make a movie, and those at home, at work and in your personal life, are all up in arms at long working hours, bad pay, interference at work, so on and so forth. I mean, there are just too many issues that almost deter you from completing what you began. When you finish and the spotlight is ON - the very same bunch will cry out loud claiming you (and your work sometimes!) as their very own. Please note that this 'very own' moment comes after seeing the result. Not from appreciating the efforts spent on making the result possible.

Nothing equals success - its the best thing that can ever happen to an individual. But to get there is a task that requires the might of a giant. But most times, we are small, frail human beings with little to possess and much to grumble. Over and above personal affirmatives, we need outside stimuli, and often are left with none to believe in us.

Those that stay put no matter what your status is; those that hang on with you no matter how small your purse has shrunk; those that offer ideas and hold your hand when you bawl your heart out - Hold onto these folks...for they are the ones who will be proud of your efforts! To have more than one person who can stand up for you is a life well lived.

Guess, I'm lucky that way. Going through one of my worst phases in my career - I see the faces that are with me right now, proud of every step I take, unmindful of the result, but happy that I'm trying; sometimes being the very reason for me to try.

Back to the past!

2008-05-06T03:48:00.000-07:00

I refuse to call the PeriyaKovil in Thanjavur a temple...because it didnt feel like one to me. I felt more...familiar. Wait...before you guffaw at that line, Let me explain.

The minute my family announced a pilgrimage to Kumbakonam/Srirangam via Thanjavur, I perked up. I'm an agnostic who pushed an Iyengar group to take on this trip in full gusto. The only reason was the promised detour to a Saivite King's symbol of monumental glory! The very name Raja Raja Chozhan is music to my ears. It is, I know history - but it rings more like a name from 'my' past. I hope the guffaws have stopped and this piece is read with the attention it deserves! I continue...

I always felt a 'connection' with any historical anecdote, from when I was 12yrs old, mugging up dates of conquests to when I was in the 12th Std., writing long paragraphs on Kings and Kingdoms. History was the only subject where I won and my peers lost. Of course my teachers thought I was just plain brilliant at it. Only I knew the real reason! I clear my throat....

I would transport myself into racing along the Mongol terrain with Chenghis Khan as he conquered one Chinese territory after another. I would feel the seat on the Peacock Throne as that would've been a gift from Nadir Shah. I was the Rani of Jhansi staking my life to the welfare of her state. I helped Chandragupta Maurya plan his war strategies, sitting in his army tent. I held religious discourses with Akbar in Fatehpur Sikhri. I've played chess with Jahangir, romanced Shah Jahan in Taj Mahal (where else!), sang soulfully with KrishnadevaRayar, who was in hiding from his uncle and I would fall in love forever with Raja Raja Chozhan. Obviously because we spoke the same language! That was the only reason why I would score so much in History and almost fail in Maths, Physics and Chemistry (the rest of the subjects were quite ok!)

Back to the present: With this refrain of thought, I step inside the hot annals of Periya Kovil, camera in hand and quite a bit of family in tow.

In my dreams, this place was always cool - the corridors and compound was washed with fresh water from the well. The feet, bereft of sandals would soak in the cold rock slabs. The huge area would be an expanse of silence. This was a temple of Art - with sculptors working their way to polish their creations to the faint sounds of the veena and mirudangam. A group of musicians in one corner, providing the melody for the beat from every chisel that fell off the statues & pillars. Apart from the King, there were a few ministers who had come to see a performance that evening. Mine. A dance to remember.

{Raja Rajan was a dynamic and highly intelligent king, whose exploits were the crux of Ponniyin Selvan - an immortal classic by Kalki. My all time love for history came from this novel. And each time I read it, I would imagine myself in Thanjavur.}

The King and I were dressed in red. My dance - the only thing that moved me in this world, was appreciated by many but most profoundly by Raja Raja Chozhan. We were given a few minutes alone, one of the very many we were to have, within the very walls of this temple fort.I stop.

My flashback was interrupted by the sight of the temple elephant that was trained to pose with every passing visitor! 2008 - and I'm smiling and hitting my head on my travel back in time. I shrug myself out of this improbable imagery and walk on... to see the temple tower emerge. A sight to behold, this indeed is a testimony to the emperor's greatness! The Nandi, held court imperiously (a witness, perhaps?) and I clicked on from various angles. I walked further to the main temple...the altar of Lord Shiva, the biggest Lingam in all of India. At this point, RajaRaja Chozhan came back. And the veena resumed its tune.

This time, the King had the face of an actor, whom I had the privilege of meeting more than once before he died. Sivaji Ganesan, had enacted the role of the Chozha king in a Tamil movie. There was this scene in that film, where his daughter - the princess plans to elope with her lover, and she chooses the tunnel from the palace leading to the temple altar, to escape. When she reaches the altar, garland and lover in hand, she finds the king, standing tall with his sceptre, giving her a non-verbal order that she might have come this far but she cannot go further! The ShivaLingam acts as an ally to this 'kingly' moment. A powerful metaphor, where the roles of a mortal king and that of an immortal one are juxtaposed!

With this image in mind, I enter the queue of devotees, who unlike me, were quite immersed in drawing Lord Shiva's attention to their woes! I for one, stayed transfixed at the thought of being in the same room, as Raja Raja Chozhan... Imagine! The King and I have now walked these very steps, touched the same walls, treaded the same ground in and around this very location. This 'same-same' journey happened to two people - one a king and one a commoner in two different time zones, that's all! Wow...! I go back to my dream.

I'm by the King's side. He is saying something to me. I turn around to leave, and he just gazes on. RajaRaja Chozhan's gaze is deep, like a tiger, that amazes and scares you simultaneously. He waits, plans, catches you unawares and holds you captive for a lifetime!

2008-05-05T03:52:00.001-07:00

My blog has disappeared!

Or so I thought after trying to log in many many and many times in the last 3 hrs...!

Then it took me this post to bring it back to life.

Is this a sign of things to come? That which is not apparent but inherent, waiting for me to take the effort to tap it and bring it back to life!?! Hope so.

The mood is such and so is the food I just ate.

Forgive me people, for I know what I do!

And as the arguement continues...

2008-05-05T00:45:00.000-07:00

We at Mirchi celebrate our 5th year into the chennai airwaves! Hmm...for the 1st time in 5yrs, I'm re-living my going on air experience. May5th 2003, 1700hrs is a marked moment in my life. Nervous as hell, hectic at having the opening link changed five hundred times by everyone, thoughtful at the sight of the entire mirchi's who's who outside the on air studio...the clock tick-tocks and I feel the fire in my belly! The mike is switched on and red light in the onair studio burns bright. That was the only vision that stayed. Because once I opened my mouth to say the lines, I was on a different high. Asking the listeners of Chennai to mark this time and date as history was being rewritten that very minute, Sujatha (me!) went onair as the 1st RJ on the FM scene, almost unplanned!

Cut to: April 2003 (less than 3 weeks prior to launch), I walked into the 6th floor office to meet some people in this newly formed FM radio company, looking for a weekend, recorded show to do, so I could earn some pocket money. 2days later, I was signing the appointment letter to be the evening prime time RJ having been coaxed by Shirty and Prasad Swaminathan (apparently my audition was one of the best I was told later). There were RJs who were with the system for a longer time, having been trained better, but the very last person who joined the radio scene (me again!) went on air first!

Hmmm...the sigh gets bigger now. The learning curve took some very predictable turns, and some not so regular ones too. Every step, curve, bend, tollgates, steeps and slopes is worth it in this place. Right now, it is an uphill climb, but an enjoyable one nevertheless! 5years and my best friends are from here. Morning, noon and night, my world revolves around the big M - Movies, Music and Mirchi. So, whats the big thing in saying it's all fine - am I being politically right? No. However boring this reads, it comes from my heart. Radio is always Mirchi...!

Kuruvi

2008-05-03T02:18:00.000-07:00

A bird that is almost extinct in Chennai city today, actually in most Indian cities. Look carefully and tell me if you can spot a single sparrow in the metros and maybe we can celebrate by going to watch the latest Vijay movie by the same name! What a masala! Loads of fast action and Vijay at his best makes Kuruvi a biriyani meal mixed with the rarest of spices. Vijay - he reminds one so much of the film's director Dharani...! Of course, hisdancing is Vijay exceling at an art that is the envy of every hero in India today with the exception of Hrithik Roshan. Vijay looks 24 yrs of age - eternally. Vijay's expressions and the mannerisms along with his dialogue delivery is a treat to watch. The low angles and punchlines suit him best, in recent times. He mouths the most inane lines with sincerity, romances Trisha with the nonchalance of a masala hero, cries very little and only when something happens to his mom or dad, rises up in anger against any injustice to anyone in sight, bashes up heavy-weight baddies with this toned up lean six pack and the great part is that Vijay does this ALL with aplomb! If this reads like a pro Kuruvi review - it is. And why not? Its been really long since we celebrated a hero on screen and Vijay fits in so well with the hungama, that we feel happy with his every punch - be it the ones he delivers with his fist or verbally. And as for the romance, Trisha has never looked hotter! Guess we have finally decided to watch great looking women in Tamil cinema and Trisha has some real, good glamor to offer much like her bollywood cousins! Dharani has tastefully conjured up scenarios that give ample room for Trisha to just be bindaas and play the babe with style! Little elements make Kuruvi a mass delight - be it in the fight scenes or in the songs, the comedy with Vivek... yippee... this is one entertainer for which we can whistle non-stop!

So what's the big deal in posting this as a thing to do for the day? Its because I haven't really enjoyed a mass hero film in the recent past as much as I enjoyed Kuruvi. And that solely thanks to Dharani's and Vijay's hardwork. With lots of charm, effortless ease and a new glint of mischief in his eyes, Vijay makes Kuruvi soar like an eagle! I laughed (also grimaced). I felt sorry for the slaves in the Cuddapah mines (but didnt cry). I gleefully grinned along to all of Vijay's gimmicks with Trisha (also Tch Tch-ed disapprovingly at some moments). I tapped my fingers and dreamed of dancing for Palaanadhu & You know songs (also forgot the lyrics once I got out of the theatre). I clapped at every win of Vijay and every punchline he threw at the hapless villains (also knew how improbable these situations were). For every thing I enjoyed thoroughly, I also kept thinking, that such masala flicks will do phenomenally well in and around south india and maybe in the south asian countries. Yes. But is that enough?

That thought is for debate another day another time...but for now...
Kuruvi Kuruvi Kuruvi Adichaaa... Dharani adi!

Just Read...!

2008-05-01T04:11:00.000-07:00

Just

saw this pasted

in the wall post of my national prog head's facebook

Saved it up for reading in mine!

Click on the image to read on...!

If Life were to be like Facebook...!

2008-05-01T03:09:00.000-07:00

Imagine...! That word has immense possibilities right? That's why on a hot summer afternoon, I decide to write on my latest fad from the hotter square room of my dad's rented apartment. My fad goes by the name called Facebook. Sometimes, faces do read like a book, right? So must be some genius brain that thought of giving an internet networking site the name.

What if life were to be like Facebook? "It would be miserable," said my COO just the other day at one of the hottest outdoor parties that my radio company can ever organise (it was hottest due to only one reason and that's the 34*C Chennai weather at 10pm). Initially addictive, with its myriad cute things to do, images, little applications, questionnaires that keep you busy even when you're jobless, the giving and receiving of gifts, the keeping track of what's on the minds of those in your friends list - hmmm...looks like Facebook does have its good points. But as my COO continued to point out, "In the beginning I did run back to my Facebook like an eager,faithful husband everyday... then I kind of realised that you end up taking note of people who are not really your best friends, and those who are, you never seem to have time for them at all anyways!" Made sense at some level.

But...I'm in level 2 of this mother of a habit that I've picked up ever since I asked, "What is a facebook?" rather naively to a friend who is a decade younger than me on one fateful evening. After two months of being with it, I still wish life was like Facebook. Happy, naughty, lots n lots of good fun, free gifts, gratifications, wow! Gleeful! Gosh, THAT'S the word for Facebook.
Now... do I want my life to be just GLEEFUL. I mean what is that word anyway? Naaaah...!

Life has to be like...LIFE. REAL. Now, I'm into this emphasising mode and I will get into writing each adjective in BOLD with CAPS ON. Taking off from my last post, my mind is still B L A N K. I just erased a whole lot of smses from my phone, making it feel as light as a feather. I have this or used to have this habit of saving up good, nice, memorable messages from those who matter (ed?) to me. Now, in a state of calm (or so I think) that has recently descended upon my otherwise volatile self, I've deleted those msgs that had made me smile, given me hope, cheered me up. Have I erased memories? Maybe. Or maybe I'm trying to erase them with this one act because, people associated with those memories are no longer active in my life?

Why do human beings so relish to HOARD things, images, words, emotions... store, save, keep?! Why are we the only species that wants to look back, carry moments, keep baggages and thus we almost always remain as static beings in motion and not a work in progress that is improving with time? See, this is what hot afternoons in your parents' home does to someone like me! I began with the thought of what if life were to be like Facebook and now I end this post with some vague no brainer questions.
Much like the experience of being on Facebook or any new chat/networking site, right? Its all fun and addictive only in the beginning.. but with time...? Hmmm...!
Much like friendships, love...well, anything we attach our emotions to always finds a way to detach itself from us. We simply have no choice but to hit the NEXT button.

B L A N K

2008-04-29T23:02:00.000-07:00

Super state to be in! B L A N K seems to be the best and most convenient form of escape. Somehow, feels very low and listless too.
B L A N K is beautifully ignorant and if thats not bliss, dont know what else is!
Having no deadlines to meet, no worries, except to pen down these thoughts...as and when and more importantly, how the words flow. Hmmm..
You may wonder why the picture of this room is in this page at all. Its reflective of my thoughts currently. REST is much in need and somehow eluding me. COLOR is desired but far out of reach. COMFORT is so sought after but very expensive. This room represents all those thoughts and is an aspirational. But, we went to the moon and mars, hence with time everything is possible in life. Or so I keep telling myself. Somehow the tone of this entry is drab, right? Like myself.
Adrenalin is not flowing, nothing or noone exciting me to jump with that 'YES'!
I'm getting older??? Things that made my heart pump in that extra blood, people who set the pulse racing, events that brought that extra smile...where are they? Or am I not looking?
Dead.
Hmmm... is my favorite expression now.
And the ROOM and what it represents is the only thing I seem to, yes just seem to live for.

Nicole

2008-04-08T23:46:00.000-07:00

The day I landed in Nice and took the long winding road uphill to locate our Villa Mimosa - was far from Wow! Its been a year now and the feeling is yet to sink in. Twas the first night that brought in my homesick tears and the churning of the stomach as the taxi sped its wheels along the dark bends. In the days that followed, I simply wished I had stayed on...with some of my favorite people, of course!

Tanneron (pronounced Ta-neh-hon) is a sleepy Enid Blyton village with kids on bikes, cars parked in the village townsquare that has a landmark clock tower in the center and the 2 shops, 1 post office and 3 cafes located on either side of it. Going to Cannes was the idea with my previous bosses and a movie in tow. Thankfully since twas also a holiday of sorts, one of my best friends decided she will come too. We had 4 days to spend before the Film Festival took over our time, hence the stopover at the villa. (The villa houses some of the best moments of tourist delight, but that is for entry in this blog, on another sunny day.)

Nicole' was her name. God bless her! Hers was the only departmental store in the village, that housed veggies and yes, yogurt (yumm!). Nicole' in her french and us Indians in our English, somehow became friends enough for her to set aside fresh Croissants for our breakfast every morning. We had to walk down 'our' Villa Mimosa, upto the townsquare and collect our breads, after which was a quick round to the church. Yes, dogs were aplenty and well groomed ones that got me walking like I was on ice most of the time! Apart from us 5 people, we must have spotted 5 others in that town, and the word population had some meaning only when we neared Cannes.(Experiences in Croissette Bay, Cannes - the film watching, sometime even dozing off in one of the plush theatres is again reserved for another day, hopefully a rainy one!)

Somewhere in travel, places like Tanneron teach you that this world is as large as it is small. As deep as it is wide. I mean, we are from one of the most populated countries in the world, and there we were in a town with less than 50people in it (they even have a big community building for themselves with notices of events and issues posted on its boards!) and of course not a beggar in sight! So much of real peace, quiet and as my director friend commented, "Even a robber will stay away from this village as the houses are always closed with little or no human presence - there is no challenge in the steal!"

In that stillness, we could smell the aroma of freshly baked bread and the new bloom of Mimosa - a tender yellow flower that indicates the onset of spring and natural beauty! Something that will always remind me of Nicole'. Yes, Nicole' wore similar dresses of separate colors each day, with an apron to match. The one in this pic denotes that it is a thursday.

Something...

2008-04-07T23:40:00.000-07:00

Having something to do or having nothing to do? Which is better? Something or nothing? From nothing came something first, right? We know it by the name Big Bang...! How many times has time stood still and days remained similar to one another till that one phone call or one sms or one chance meeting changed the very pattern of our lives?! I turn around (I dont like the phrase 'looking back') to check out where my 'something' came from....hmmmmmm!

As the tortoise coil circles around and takes me on a flashback mode, Im assailed by my current nothing-ness too. The last 2 months have been just quiet. Its one of those phases in life when 'every call you make, every meeting you fix' is met with silence. That is, every something you do is met with a NO-thing! And just as any normal soul would, even I wondered why? The days were as still as the night. The nights seemed lonelier and longer. Books took more time to finish, blogs took l o n g e r to type. As for movies, suddenly the theatres were running out of current hot picks and youre left with just the oldies to go back to! Im in the center of the universe that seemed to just recede....till there was nothing left to hold onto, save a vast expanse of space. The louder I screamed, the longer it echoed. The tears seemed to fill imaginary buckets and the heart felt the burden of my 140/110 BP.

Is there nothing that will happen for me? Or was there something that I could do? Yup! I could change my Attitude - to stop revelling in this mode like the way we did in para2 - to stop eulogising suffering & waiting, to stop glorifying this "why me" sensation that in a way is a reflection of my ego. I mean "why not me". Who is this me that I require so much attention from the universe? Why should the entire system turn around and conspire things to fall in place just for ME..! What kind of narcissistic nonsense is this??!! Still.......this nothingness can change into something only if we value this thing called SELF. Only when you realise that youre better off doing something than nothing., but also realise that the something comes with a price tag, with working hours thats gonna bend your back and stiffen it up alright. Nothing in life comes easy. Didnt you know this when you gave your maths exam in classVI? Or when your first hope of true love came crashing down the college stairway? Or when you were unceremoniously fired from your first job? What came easy then for it to sway into our lives like a breeze now?

Im asking all these questions to myself. Learnings from my very own life and not some bio-pic of a filmstar or business magnate. The nothingness of it all, always paves the way for something - only if we let it. And only we have the power to shape that something into something good or something awful. The choice is with and within us.

This post is a self-read. Those who find it sermonising or admonishing please feel free to feel so. I find it as something that I can fall back on in future too! By the way, something good seems like happening from my nothing-ness. It just came to me NOW as I hit the publish post button!

FORWARD....

2008-03-29T04:03:00.000-07:00

The only thing I hate about fwds is when I have to fwd them. Still at times some gems do fall off from the various fwd mails that I get. Sometimes, I also scan through the mail ids to see exactly how many people would be reading the same mail all at once! At other times, I fwd the nice ones to a select few who I think have the brains to appreciate or they could be cursing me - who knows!!? In the virtual world, everything has to be taken for real. With that original Sixth Sense-like line, here are some more interesting ones that I picked up from my saved list!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dilbert's Words of Wisdom
1. I can please only one person per day. Today is not your day. Tomorrow isn't looking good either.
2. Am I getting smart with you? How would you know?
3. Someday we'll look back on all this and plow into a parked car.
4. There are very few personal problems that cannot be solved through a suitable application of high explosives.
5. Tell me what you need, and I'll tell you how to get along without it.
6. Accept the fact that some days you're the pigeon, and some days you're the statue.
7. Needing someone is like needing a parachute. If he isn't there the first time you need him, chances are you won't be needing him again.
8. I don't have an attitude problem. You have a perception problem.
9. My Reality Check bounced.
10. On the keyboard of life, always keep one finger on the escape key.
11. I don't suffer from stress. I'm a carrier.
12. Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
13. Never argue with idiots. They drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience.

Trying to be...

2008-03-25T20:24:00.000-07:00

Ya Ya.... Y'all heard me awright!! Chumma, that was just for effect. That was me trying to be Coooool - not the superstar way but my own, thank you! I was just plain 'trying to be' well...nice...! 'Trying to be' also has a very straight no-nonsense adjective - 'Wannabe'. Now (as I try hard to sound like a pre-interval Tom Hanks in Da Vinci code who has just laid out the mystery to whats her name?!) , arent we all wannabes? Before you raise your eyebrow and snarl your teeth at the thought, think again. Arent we all at some or various points in our lives, wanting to be something other than what/who we are? No? Think again.

At home, right from when you were told how to speak to a visiting aunt in a nice way when she had just then pulled your left cheek out of place and all you had wanted to do was to bite off her fingers, and mommy says, " ooooo&&&^^^%%$$$ (basically some endearing words which can very well be replaced with my name! But no, all 3yr olds must be addressed with munnu, babeeee, kutttyy and the worse sounding gibberish that just went by your eyes! Now back to mummy dear) ...ooo show aunty how you sing lovebirds, lovebirds....oh Lalitha, this one will even roll her eyes like Sarojadevi..! Yenga, konjam pannikaattu?!" Grrrr....!!

If this 'wannabee-ness' wasnt enough, we get into an even better zone in school. Peer pressure is one easy way to analyse why we did what we did, when we are no longer doing it. Right from a haircut, to the color of your pencilbox, to the special sticker on the schoolbag, to trying to order a new dish at a restaurant just because some friend ate it and said twas yummy, (and yes, how can I not put in the wannabe-ness of having a crush? Everyone in school had one - be it on the neighbors teenage son or a senior in school! How weird you must be if by 17 you didnt have a boyfriend...! How sad, when its the same when youre 22 and still single, when most of your friends have gone beyond the two flowers shaking their heads in front of the lead pair in Tamil movie songs...indicating that the couple have exchanged a kiss so unimaginable that they cant even show it!!) Everything that we think and do when we are growing up is an 'acquired' taste or habit and becomes our identity. It takes long and in most cases, a very hard personal life, where some kind of jolt, (usually ending in prolonged tears and a heart that remains heavy for years), to undo and break the acquired-ness of our personalities and arrive at the tip of the iceberg that we all become.

College can be even worse - but in my case, school was my zone of being like the others...of wanting to fit in. College - kind of saw me off on my own, because I dared to do things that my peer group didnt indulge in or didnt think twas cool to do. Like take part in an Editorial competition for a Tamil magazine. This, when I didnt know to read or write my mother tongue then - I learnt it completely on the job. No, not at all proud of it but as is the trademark of my generation, Im not overtly ashamed of it either. Even then, my wanting to do something different, wanting to break away from being a wannabe, was also 'wanting to be...' Right?!

My point here is that wannabe is not so bad after all. I mean, we have heard this being said about a new joint in the city or a new shopping mall - 'oh thats a boring place, only wannabes go there!' Whats wrong with a wannabe? Atleast they seem to have a purpose to be something....someone other than their existing selves. Isint that some cause for excitement, specially when we are growing up and school anyway takes a whole decade and more to finish, we have a lot of time to indulge in wannabe-ness. At its very worst, it does give us something to do with our TIME.

The one question that follows us from the minute we raise our heads from our babycribs to LKG - the one question posed by visiting aunt Lalithas, mom & dad, the one question asked by our moral science miss to Heads of Departments and Job recruiters.... WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE...?

So...being a WANNABE is not such a bad thing after all ... !???

The Blood Test

2008-03-13T00:44:00.000-07:00

Well - or so it seems ... ! Middle of the week and Im sighing into it, chugging along each hour. Quite eventful in terms of gaping wide at a man, staring into his eyes deeply, of course - and stretching my arms at him every now n then - wait...before we delve further into the details, Im talking about my DENTIST folks! Medicine and health care has come a long long way in India, and needless to say I am very proud of that. I didnt think that blood tests were this simple, because Im holding onto a long drawn memory of a needle hurting ma arm, ya, ya when I was a baby! And what strikes me in such places like hospitals is its people. This Lab that I went to one morning had this burlesque lady beaming a smile on every patient in the lab - she was almost hugging each one of us, as if she knew all of us from our diaper days! Next was this really good natured man, Bhoopathy was his name, who had to take the blood samples. His concentration had to be seen to be believed. He could be flying an aircraft with this level of dedication to the smallest of details. Mine was really 'an after all blood test'! He assured me in the kindest of tones, never once lost his patience with one of the most difficult and reticient patients he could have ever seen - ME! Its people like them who make me want to go and have my arms pricked everyday!! Of course I was joking - I will still run a mile, but Im sure the friendly nurse and Bhoopathy will catch up with me. I used to think that such small mercies were usually long gone from our fast moving world. To me, God lives in that warm smile, the friendly hug to a stranger, in that kind word and the only thing human beings know to do and seldom do - SHARE.

We are all one of a kind after all, arent we?!

Movies - the main course!

2008-03-09T08:26:00.000-07:00

Movies. Even before I knew what this word meant Ive been in love with it. My dreams ranged from technicolor to the current DI-ed double positive! Sometimes Ive played out whole 3hrs of filmstock in my mindscreen much after the film's run out of its theatres! The vaguest of dialogues have made the maximum impact, the most effective of scenes have left me wanting for more... ditto for the song n dance routines in Indian cinema, along with the dishum-dishum bits, without which Indian movies are stripped of their larger than life image! Yes...Indian cinema is possibly the only cinema in the world to have an image of its own, much like its actors, who would be replaced or retained in my silverscreen operas, depending on their 'on screen relationship' with me (wink!). I remember, lying down on the sofa, every morning for atleast fifteen minutes, weaving my celluloid fantasy, much to my mother's annoyance, as I would invariably be late for school.

Im so passionately in love with this medium that has the power to create and put out something so simple as just a story. I mean...our Moms & Grandmoms did that with ease & flair, so whats the big deal here?! And...the thinking mind always prefers books that makes us create our own visuals and whats more fun is that my visual will not be the same as yours...and hence the disparity makes it unique to both of us. Even if the story is one person's creative output, it is still customised in the reader's mind, much like Art, where interpretations differ. Painting gave us our perspectives - our different dimensions, to create and to comprehend.

And cinema, IS THE medium wherein an individual's creative vision/perspective of an idea/story is presented in such reality - touch & feel, for acceptance by another! The audience laps up or throws back ONE person's version of a story told in grandeur or simplicity. In other words, we watch and get entertained with a series of decisions for presenting a story that are made by the person called the Director. We think we like a particular scene/song because of our own sensibilities, but it is actually one person's ideas that we are rooting for! If Manirathnam's take on terrorism set against a backdrop of unrequited love gave us Chayya Chayya & SRK in 'Dil Se' - then the same outline made us put our hands together in an entirely different presentation and thought in Santoshsivan's 'Terrorist'. Same themes, different narrative styles and we simply dont realise that till somone points it out for discussion. Even then, the film is discussed in separate tones from the filmmaker. When in reality, we are just clapping or pooh-poohing the Director's ideas that have strung the film together. For cinema, he/she is GOD. And in a religiously rooted nation like India, its no wonder that cinema and its makers/actors enjoy godly status as well. And when one person presents something that has an universal appeal - it sets boxoffice records. To get that match right is I think, every filmmaker's tryst with this medium.

{I didnt understand any of this then - and maybe I dont even now as all of this maybe very idealistic or lofty or too simple, for this is again my version of cinema put out for you! So hey... I maybe completely wrong or illogical but this MY blog youre checking out and this is my clothesline, wherein I try to pinup as many clothes(posts) in as neat and as interesting a line as possible!!!}

Cinema - came with its Story, acting, music, dance, the tears and of course the laughter -and its only cinema that gave me ample scope to 'feel' all of this too. Its with cinema that I grew up, to one day, some day be a part of its making as well. And here I am....

Movies and its magical process of seeing an idea evolve, get tossed around and eventually retain its soul despite going through many transformations to what lies outside....and after 'all this is said and done', you put out the idea to the rest of the world, that just makes or breaks it as per their Will! OH...That agony and ecstasy is what makes this journey so tirelessly beautiful! To listen, see, and absorb great minds that have many a story to tell or have many ways of telling the same story sometimes... that bliss, taught me ONE lesson - that whatever we choose as the single most precious thing to do in our lives, that one thing will demand the maximum out of us. It will call for sacrifices from the deepest chambers, it will be the toughest master to please, it will goad us on a road of no-return and will also slowly, very, very slowly give us back first, ten fold and then a hundred and if by then, this lifetime still remains - a thousand fold! But it comes only if we persevere, only if we go with IT's flow.
The will to work in movies is a ride that's really From Here to Eternity...!
After all who can resist the reward of a long, neverending kiss in the end?!!

{From Here to Eternity holds the world record for the longest kissing scene shot on a beach between its lead pair}

Blogs to AamirKhan..!

2008-03-05T09:24:00.001-08:00

Some of the blogs read like a diary - sometime even that becomes interesting to the voyeur in us! At other times, it is the painstaking penning of thoughts that interest me. Some of my favorite blogs are as follows, the reasons are purely mine for keeps and for you to check 'em out and read on...!

http://www.teesutalk.blogspot.com/
http://www.kaajukatli.blogspot.com/
http://www.aamirkhan.com/
http://www.shekharkapur.com/blog/

AS of this minute, this is my list. Of which, Ive been following AamirKhan's blog, even before he began his website. Like many of us, its has been quite a revelation from the busy actor..! Much like his fabulous film 'Stars on the Earth...' - which Aamir really is!! Taare Zameen Par is mush at its best, in the right proportions, making you laugh and cry at exact intervals. A mastermind of a screenplay and a superb example of team effort that took precedence over stardom or the business of filmmaking! Kudos Aamir!

These are a few favorite things....

2008-03-05T02:33:00.000-08:00

THE BEST THINGS IN LIFE
-Laughing so hard your face hurts & the eyes shimmer with tears of happiness.
-A hot shower, without the fear of Norman Bates' shadow on the shower curtain.
-A special glance, specially when there is no formal declaration of love as yet.
-Getting mail from a place & person that you can 'smell out' from the envelope.
-Hearing your favorite song on the radio when youve just switched it on thinking of the person with whom the song has a special meaning.
-Lying in bed listening to the rain outside when its 7:45am.
-Hot towels out of the dryer that remind you of a being in the womb.
-Finding the exotic outfit you want is on sale for half price at not just 1 but 2 retail chains.
-Chocolate milkshake after a plate of hot dynabites.
-A long distance phone call at 10:30pm that will last as long as the night.
-Seeing your reflection in a soap bubble, holding it for as long as it lasts.
-Giggling in a seminar.
-A good conversation that leaves you more informed.
-The beach - the coastline beyond Chennai.
-Laughing at yourself, especially when such things as Blogs came into being to give expression to what lies inside (the mind!).
-Chatting with a married school friend after she has put her daughter to sleep, and interspersing the chat with laughs and tears.
-Laughing for absolutely no reason at all, even if its all by yourself.
-Friends, in all sizes, shapes and colors - at all moments.
-Waking up and realizing you still have a few hours left to sleep.
-Having a good hair wash and blow dried it well enough to step into a Saturday night 'do' even on a Tuesday.
-Dreams....; that come true.
-Chocolate - hot, cold, bitter, sweet - as a fudge or brownie, as a pudding or shake.
-Swinging on swings well past childhood - the small seated ones in children's parks or clubs.
-Watching a good movie cuddled up on a couch, with something to chill.
-Song lyrics printed inside your new CD so you can sing along without feeling stupid.
-Getting butterflies in your stomach every time you see that one person/do the most awaited task on hand.
-Making eye contact with a cute stranger in a restaurant or simply on the road.
-Seeing smiles from strange faces on an International flight.
-Holding hands with someone you care about, who is not necessarily your spouse.
-Running into an old friend and realizing that some things never change.
-Watching the expression someone's face as they open a much-desired present from you. And noticing how they retain even the wrapping paper.
-Watching the sunset with a smile, knowing that all's well that ends well.

A Rejoinder to Tagore

2008-03-04T22:28:00.000-08:00

Rabindranath Tagore is my all time favorite Classic Indian writer! The romance, the mischief and his ease of language in poetry and prose, though dramatic, endears him to me like none other. Yes, I know I'm talking about a Nobel Laureate, but I like his works for the contradictions in characters and the 'picking up moments from real life to elevate them onto a higher realm of thought'! To him goes the credit for penning down the most famous words on the Taj Mahal (even a google search will only give you his quote for at least 6 pages, followed by Urdu poet Sahir Ludhianvi's verse on how he would like to choose a place other than the Taj to meet his love!!)

"... the Taj is like a teardrop on the cheeks of time...!" - Tagore

As I sit here, musing over a heart searching for solace in the moonlight of the world's wonder, I couldn't but write some lines of my own. What audacity to say tis a rejoinder to Tagore! Am I forgiven if I say its nothing but an impression drawn from the great writer's lines?

The Taj - a wonder alright, but also a monument of pain, longing and love.
The Taj - a symbol of heaviness that comes with separation, which is common to the poor man and the King. The Taj - an expression of an emotion beyond the mundane - much like love, though un-welcomed, comes laughing by, enters every pore of the human form & mocks at the helplessness of the mind ... that falling... falling... falling... falls!

Its dark here, where I belong.

Tonight...

The Moon is partial to the Taj.

Your silent Teardrop looks on ... listens.

Awaiting its Time to fall.

Yes -

Its dark here, where I belong...

I'm awake - My palms open - a Cup.

IF I were in my English class and were asked to interpret these lines - this is how it will read.
He, with his chest heavy - full of sorrow, of separation, of losing someone very dear, awaits the exact moment to let go - to cry. He is in front of the biggest Teardrop - The Taj, hence his own tears swell up only in the corner of his eyes, which are looking on...at what else but the Taj Mahal!
She - is far away, aware of his pain, in the stillness of the night, opens her palms (like a cup) to hold his tears... to hold him from falling! The Taj - is the only witness to this moment, where Time stands still! The opening of the palms is also an allegory to the fact that this is a monument built by a Muslim King - the opening of the palms is the Muslim way of prayer.

This work of pure fiction - brought to you by Yours truly!
Those that wish to whip or worship the ground I walk on, are welcome to do so by all means!

The Baby Steps...!

2008-03-04T08:22:00.000-08:00

Hi...

My baby steps seems to be like that of a dinosaur so will kind of normalise it for the eye!

Aah...now that this is sorted out, life can return to normal. Normal and me is an oxymoron. Hence will succumb to the pressure of making my first blog as interesting as possible.

But hey, question here? Was it like this for any of you? This first time thing! I dont remember my mom leaving me in KG - dont remember bawling or sniffing through my tears. I DO remember my FIRST standard - Section B - and Ms. Bernadedt (was that how she spelt her name - God bless her soul!) and her floral frock! Thats when I decided that I will smile - for the first time again I think! Because she was kind and she was good with her alphabets, and somewhere made me better mine too!

So, in this nightly hour when a dear friend of mine just sms-es he is in Agra, near the Taj - I sit in front of the light thrown at my fingers from my laptop and type this post, wondering who in the world will want to know what I write? But, as I asked, was it like this during your first time?