Watched Delhi 6 during the past weekend. Came away thinking that its yet another self-indulgent movie - reminiscent of "AKS" in ways.
I came away disappointed... and will just vent away first,
- There are visual shots of Chandni Chowk that are repetitive.
- The story is such a non-starter. None of the characters are well developed. Not even that of Delhi or Chandni Chowk.
- Sticking to just one point and beating it to death is the movie's undoing. The "Kala Bandar"... It was like Rakesh Om Prakash Mehra, ( ROMP from now) wanted to make sure EVERYONE absolutely gets the point. So subtlety just went flying out of the window.
- Basically, ROMP takes his 'social voice' mantle ( given to him after RDB ) a bit too seriously. His story telling skills take a beating as a result. :(
- The movie could have as well been a play. The landscape or setting of the movie is so constrained. The characters are a little too stereotyical to work completely. Some of them at some places are endearing, no doubt. The point making too earnest.
- Rishi Kapoor is wasted. There was one hell of a great story there... in his character.
Ok..now the rah rahs.
- The cinematography is top quality.
- The background music soars. Its much better done here than in Slumdog. No doubts.
- Waheeda Rehman is a gem of a sweetheart. What a pleasure to see her work. She is so wonderful.
- It's a great concept. The "Kala bandar". Needed a riveting human story to weave it around.
The 'untouchable' angle would be unbelievable for younger city-dwellers of today I would think.
But I have seen these folks near my gran's place (old Bangalore parts) in my childhood. They were called "Vadru" and lived separately in a locality. They would come by to clean the toilets and perhaps collect garbage too ( am not sure).
And I have heard some passing comments about how someone or the other visits the "Vadru Guduslu" ( Vadru's huts ). Of course, in a dissapproving way.
So to me, the double standards around those folks is very believable. I can believe that such practises could have existed or continue to exist in old parts of Indian cities.
But overall, the movie : what a wasted opportunity. He could have scripted a great ravishing and passionate love story to Delhi. Rather than this bewilderment of a movie. I remember reading a quote of ROMP about the movie, something to the effect of, " I still dont know why I made the movie, or what moved me to make the movie".
Well, all I can say is - Yeah, it figures.
Tuesday, 3 March 2009
Sunday, 15 February 2009
In other rooms, other wonders
I just finished reading Daniyal Mueenuddin's "In Other Rooms, Other Wonders" . After a long long time, I read a book from a sub-continent writer that was simply un-put-downable.
Before I get into other stuff ... I am wondering, is Daniyal pronounced "Daniel"?
Anyways... a simply fantastic writer. The stories are so wonderful. Like I read @ Ultra Brown - the excerpts floating around don't do justice to the actual stories or the book at all.
Whenever I think of the book, I feel I just finished watching a movie - thats how vivid the whole thing is in my mind.
Last year, I spent 10 glorious days travelling across Punjab ( the Indian side ) and loved everything about the state - the sights, the smells, flavours, tastes, the stories. And to get a glimpse of the other side of Punjab through this book - was a treat. Absolute treat.
That apart, I have been meaning to write about a couple of movies I watched recently.
Starting with Slumdog Millionnaire. First of all, I must express the absolute frustration I had trying to pick up the music CD for Y. It took me about 6 trips to the various famous music stores of Bangalore - Music Planet, Planet M, Crosswords etc - before I could pick up the CD. A good 15 days after it was officially released.
So much for muscling out small gems of Bangalore like "Rhythms" and becoming the de-facto stores for music. The staff @ the store had not even heard of the movie when I went asking for it.
As for the movie itself, most of the people around me were wondering what the fuss was about. Most people caught on to the weakness of the script pretty quickly but I dont think that was the reason for the dis-enchantment or the surprise about what made the western audience take to Slumdog Millionnaire in such a big way.
IMO, the whole thing is visual. What we saw - the face of India ( no, am not talking about the slums or the crowds or the skin color in particular ) - is familiar to us. We have seen it in many ways - in hardhitting commercial, out and out commercial and artsy movies. The face, the 'visual' of India.
It was that familiarity with the face - that made us wonder about SDM's popularity I think. Whereas, for the western audience - this was a new visual treat on their screens.
I have been thinking of a better way of expressing this - but cant come up with anything better as of now.
And by the way, Anil Kapoor has done a fantastic job in the movie..
Next is Dev D and Luck By Chance.
Luck By Chance - was nice. Not great. But nice - engaging and interesting to watch. Agree with all of the review comments - the sudden ending, etc. And Y and I came away thinking that we want to see more of Zoya's films to decide if she is as gifted or better than her brother or some of the other young turks out there. Right now, I dont think she is. The movie seems almost like "All of us have this one great movie or novel in us" kind of thing. Only, she got to make it.
Dev D - like No Smoking - makes one thing very apparent. Long shadows of all the 'famous' directors across the world looms large over Anurag Kashyap. He is still posing in some ways about statement, making a point etc. This aspect takes away from his story-telling ability, quite a bit.
Anurag Kashyap needs to become a little more invisible in his movies. That will make his movies work better. The pace of the film will become more taut. The point in the making will be much sharper. The ending would not be so abrupt.
Having said that, the film is good. Abhay Deol shines. He is fantastic. Again - having seen Punjab, I can believe that Dev D can happen in Delhi/Punjab setting.
The music - thats all the rage - is also a poser in some sense. As in - there is so much variety and hint of ability. But - none of the compositions give one a sense of depth. But still - its a great set of songs. I like them!
Wednesday, 21 January 2009
My father.
I never really had a relationship ( the part-grown-up to a grown-up kind) with my dad. By the time I was in my teens, late teens actually, he was quite ill. His illness pre-occupied all of us as a family. And eventually, he died. When I was about 20.
I rarely talk about him. When he was OK - I was a teen. A difficult one at that - at least by normal middle class standards. I look back and feel, I was ok. I studied hard, conformed and didnt get into any major sort of trouble.
Yeah - to get back. The oldest I was - when he was ok - was a teen. And I remember fighting and hating. I remember being strongly disapproved of, being told about how to be, behave and who to hang out with and so on.
Over the past 8 years, I have learnt to relate to my mother and have a better relationship / equation with her. It is a great gift. I still recall thinking how much I hate my mum and how much I wanted to get away from her. And those thoughts were painful to have. So what I share with my mum today is really a gift I value.
When she or I move on, the regrets perhaps will be lesser and memories of times shared together higher. Certainly when compared to what I recall of my dad.
My memories are so fragmented of him. I remember the difficulties and inconveniences of his illness clearly - in terms of feelings and thoughts. Every now and then I remember incidents - but over time, specifics are fading away a little by little.
Regrets and memories. Regrets - I am sure I have. I still havent figured it out.
Memories - yeah. I have memories of him, or rather remember him in the most unexpected ways.
Chinu's innocent, trusting eyes. One of her eyes seem smaller and she tends to lightly wink it every now and then. They are almost like a doe's or a calf's eyes. Her eyes remind me of my dad. Everytime I look into them.
Indira Gandhi - He had strong opinions about her administration. I don't recall the details. But seeing a picture of her or reading an article about her certainly reminds me of my dad and face when he would talk of her or her governement.
Bharat Sinha of a serial Subah - when I see this actor in any other film, I am reminded of my dad. He disapproved of my interest in that serial - all the drug abuse by young folks! :)
And the latest today - The Man Machine. This is an album by kraftwerks. It was a tape with a bright red jacket cover - a photo of 4 robotic looking men.
We had this small tape recorder/player. There were these few tapes at home. Silsila, Star, Zoom, Satya Shivam Sundaram, Boney M and the Man Machine. I remember these were my dad's tapes.
We had other tapes too - devotional, other movie tapes.
But I kinda remember these tapes as my dad's. Like the James Hadley Chase and Perry Mason novels he used to read. He also read Arthur Hailey, Robert Ludlum I recall.
I just heard "model", "robots", "neon lights" on YouTube. And my dad came rushing into my head.
I used to love the tape and listen to it all the time.
Like I was saying, I get this sharp and vivid memories of him in most unexpected ways. I can recall almost everything of that memory - when its triggerred.
I rarely talk about him. When he was OK - I was a teen. A difficult one at that - at least by normal middle class standards. I look back and feel, I was ok. I studied hard, conformed and didnt get into any major sort of trouble.
Yeah - to get back. The oldest I was - when he was ok - was a teen. And I remember fighting and hating. I remember being strongly disapproved of, being told about how to be, behave and who to hang out with and so on.
Over the past 8 years, I have learnt to relate to my mother and have a better relationship / equation with her. It is a great gift. I still recall thinking how much I hate my mum and how much I wanted to get away from her. And those thoughts were painful to have. So what I share with my mum today is really a gift I value.
When she or I move on, the regrets perhaps will be lesser and memories of times shared together higher. Certainly when compared to what I recall of my dad.
My memories are so fragmented of him. I remember the difficulties and inconveniences of his illness clearly - in terms of feelings and thoughts. Every now and then I remember incidents - but over time, specifics are fading away a little by little.
Regrets and memories. Regrets - I am sure I have. I still havent figured it out.
Memories - yeah. I have memories of him, or rather remember him in the most unexpected ways.
Chinu's innocent, trusting eyes. One of her eyes seem smaller and she tends to lightly wink it every now and then. They are almost like a doe's or a calf's eyes. Her eyes remind me of my dad. Everytime I look into them.
Indira Gandhi - He had strong opinions about her administration. I don't recall the details. But seeing a picture of her or reading an article about her certainly reminds me of my dad and face when he would talk of her or her governement.
Bharat Sinha of a serial Subah - when I see this actor in any other film, I am reminded of my dad. He disapproved of my interest in that serial - all the drug abuse by young folks! :)
And the latest today - The Man Machine. This is an album by kraftwerks. It was a tape with a bright red jacket cover - a photo of 4 robotic looking men.
We had this small tape recorder/player. There were these few tapes at home. Silsila, Star, Zoom, Satya Shivam Sundaram, Boney M and the Man Machine. I remember these were my dad's tapes.
We had other tapes too - devotional, other movie tapes.
But I kinda remember these tapes as my dad's. Like the James Hadley Chase and Perry Mason novels he used to read. He also read Arthur Hailey, Robert Ludlum I recall.
I just heard "model", "robots", "neon lights" on YouTube. And my dad came rushing into my head.
I used to love the tape and listen to it all the time.
Like I was saying, I get this sharp and vivid memories of him in most unexpected ways. I can recall almost everything of that memory - when its triggerred.
Wednesday, 31 December 2008
Last Day Of The Year....
The papers and magazines I have been reading are capturing the moments with phrases like "New Year Blues", "Worst Year of Indian History?", "Thank God, Its Over" and so on....
I too spent some time looking back and came away less than encouraged. Mainly because I have a tendency to look down at things... specially when they concern me. So I decided that I will make a focused effort and talk about the good things first (no particular order),
1. I have blogged more regularly than I expected myself to.
2. Typical special days of the year have been well spent and properly celebrated.
3. Had a big work stint & holiday break in the US. Y was with me. Vegas, SFO. New York... fun oh fun!
4. Money scene improved. I actually have some savings and have been cautious about mindless expenditure. I feel in control.. which is a nice feeling.
5. Duties to mum, s, s, and n have been fairly nicely executed.
6. Work - did it well. Very well actually. good rating, decent hike - given the circumstances.
7. Home - nice and peaceful.
8. Y - good and nice. Next big step taken. It was easy. :) The build up is always the torture.
9. Obama, the elections were interesting. Got me interested in UN, UNHCR and a lot of interesting journalistic writings along the way.
10. Movies - Dark Knight, Ghajini, Oye Luck Oye, The Good Shephard, OSO, etc etc. Quite a few treats. Picked up most of the Merchant Ivory DVDs at a discount in the local store. Very nice. :)
11. Reading a lot more this year than the last. In the past 2 months alone - must have read 8 books. Nice. :)
12. Wining and Dining has been great as ever. :)
Hmm.. now the bad...
1. My fitness schedule. Has gone down the dumps. :( I can write a million worded blog post on this.
2. Stocks - thanks to the recession, I too have taken a HUGE beating on this. :(
3. Work - transition needs and anxiety. Tough times leave few options. worrying about what to do. What steps to take.
4. Me Time - has been a bit of a yo yo. I have rejuvenated whenever I got it. But not enough I think.
5. Restless. What Next? Bogged Down - feel less free, more constrained. Have tasted fearlessness fleetingly... its very liberating. Roadmap concerns - is all I can say on a open Blog.
6. Mumbai attacks. Affected me more deeply than I thought was possible.
See? When you put it down - seems like the good was more than bad. Work wise - it was not perfect - but hey thats life. Recession blues- its the pain with everyone - so I am in the bandwagon too. Guess cant complain much.
Fitness.. yeah - that bothers me like hell. It brings to fore - all the things that stop me from going forward. The reticence hidden behind laziness, bad self talk that slows me to inaction, not enough me time and so on.
As of now - today and yesterday - the interesting thing is how un-excited I am feeling about the occasion. How normal I am trying to keep the day. Eating regularly and catching sleep on time. And generally keeping it very low key.
Quite a contrast to the past years...when new year's eve meant *having* some plans..heading out.... *doing something*... :)
That perhaps I am aging did come to mind. :) But then again... I am bored - of anything that thsi city may have to offer - by means of new year celebration. Anything.
Maybe - quietly recharging my batteries for what promises to be the next 3 months of absolutely hectic work schedule is not a bad idea at all.
My New Year Wish? I have a set of goals. The same as last year. If I can maintain my equanimity, and one day at a time - work away @ the goals, I will achieve what I want. Just need to deal with or prevent the outside from messing up with my inside.
Happy New Year! :)
I too spent some time looking back and came away less than encouraged. Mainly because I have a tendency to look down at things... specially when they concern me. So I decided that I will make a focused effort and talk about the good things first (no particular order),
1. I have blogged more regularly than I expected myself to.
2. Typical special days of the year have been well spent and properly celebrated.
3. Had a big work stint & holiday break in the US. Y was with me. Vegas, SFO. New York... fun oh fun!
4. Money scene improved. I actually have some savings and have been cautious about mindless expenditure. I feel in control.. which is a nice feeling.
5. Duties to mum, s, s, and n have been fairly nicely executed.
6. Work - did it well. Very well actually. good rating, decent hike - given the circumstances.
7. Home - nice and peaceful.
8. Y - good and nice. Next big step taken. It was easy. :) The build up is always the torture.
9. Obama, the elections were interesting. Got me interested in UN, UNHCR and a lot of interesting journalistic writings along the way.
10. Movies - Dark Knight, Ghajini, Oye Luck Oye, The Good Shephard, OSO, etc etc. Quite a few treats. Picked up most of the Merchant Ivory DVDs at a discount in the local store. Very nice. :)
11. Reading a lot more this year than the last. In the past 2 months alone - must have read 8 books. Nice. :)
12. Wining and Dining has been great as ever. :)
Hmm.. now the bad...
1. My fitness schedule. Has gone down the dumps. :( I can write a million worded blog post on this.
2. Stocks - thanks to the recession, I too have taken a HUGE beating on this. :(
3. Work - transition needs and anxiety. Tough times leave few options. worrying about what to do. What steps to take.
4. Me Time - has been a bit of a yo yo. I have rejuvenated whenever I got it. But not enough I think.
5. Restless. What Next? Bogged Down - feel less free, more constrained. Have tasted fearlessness fleetingly... its very liberating. Roadmap concerns - is all I can say on a open Blog.
6. Mumbai attacks. Affected me more deeply than I thought was possible.
See? When you put it down - seems like the good was more than bad. Work wise - it was not perfect - but hey thats life. Recession blues- its the pain with everyone - so I am in the bandwagon too. Guess cant complain much.
Fitness.. yeah - that bothers me like hell. It brings to fore - all the things that stop me from going forward. The reticence hidden behind laziness, bad self talk that slows me to inaction, not enough me time and so on.
As of now - today and yesterday - the interesting thing is how un-excited I am feeling about the occasion. How normal I am trying to keep the day. Eating regularly and catching sleep on time. And generally keeping it very low key.
Quite a contrast to the past years...when new year's eve meant *having* some plans..heading out.... *doing something*... :)
That perhaps I am aging did come to mind. :) But then again... I am bored - of anything that thsi city may have to offer - by means of new year celebration. Anything.
Maybe - quietly recharging my batteries for what promises to be the next 3 months of absolutely hectic work schedule is not a bad idea at all.
My New Year Wish? I have a set of goals. The same as last year. If I can maintain my equanimity, and one day at a time - work away @ the goals, I will achieve what I want. Just need to deal with or prevent the outside from messing up with my inside.
Happy New Year! :)
Friday, 28 November 2008
Mumbai Meri Jaan.
My eyes fill up with tears when I see the picture of this little child in a policeman's arms - drinking water - clothes soaked in blood. Hers ? Her kins? Where are they? From the time I have seen this picture in the morning, I cant just stop the tears flowing from my eyes.
PICTURE 16 in this slideshow -
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/gallery/2008/11/26/GA2008112603190.html?sid=ST2008112701218
With her nose, mouth being covered by the plastic cup - she becomes anybody's child, everybody's child. What did she do - to be subjected to this terror?? What kind of a world are we giving our children? Oh god! Help us. :(
I am so angry, so helpless, so shocked and hurt and heartbroken at the tragedy caused by this senseless act of terror! I havent been able to think of anything else much today.
Oh yes, we are resilient, Mumbai will dust off the shards of broken glass and move on to another day of work. The rest of us in elsewhere in India will also.
But, when will we all get together and work together and STOP this? When will our leaders unite and take strong and firm steps to prevent such acts in the future?
When will we say that this is UNACCEPTABLE! When will we all look in the face of Terror and say that you are not welcome here!
Like Mr Bachchan says, tell me what I need to do - what can I do to help? To help and make a difference. To bring about peace and safety to our nation. To make the cities safer for our children to grow up in.
They should be able to walk the streets like I did when I was a child - carefree. Skipping along with friends - gorging on ice candies... not thinking twice before going into a crowded fair, cinema or exhibition.
My salutes to the brave men of the army, navy and police working to resolve tihs situation. My condolences adn respect to the brave men who laid down their lives fighting last night.
God bless.
PICTURE 16 in this slideshow -
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/gallery/2008/11/26/GA2008112603190.html?sid=ST2008112701218
With her nose, mouth being covered by the plastic cup - she becomes anybody's child, everybody's child. What did she do - to be subjected to this terror?? What kind of a world are we giving our children? Oh god! Help us. :(
I am so angry, so helpless, so shocked and hurt and heartbroken at the tragedy caused by this senseless act of terror! I havent been able to think of anything else much today.
Oh yes, we are resilient, Mumbai will dust off the shards of broken glass and move on to another day of work. The rest of us in elsewhere in India will also.
But, when will we all get together and work together and STOP this? When will our leaders unite and take strong and firm steps to prevent such acts in the future?
When will we say that this is UNACCEPTABLE! When will we all look in the face of Terror and say that you are not welcome here!
Like Mr Bachchan says, tell me what I need to do - what can I do to help? To help and make a difference. To bring about peace and safety to our nation. To make the cities safer for our children to grow up in.
They should be able to walk the streets like I did when I was a child - carefree. Skipping along with friends - gorging on ice candies... not thinking twice before going into a crowded fair, cinema or exhibition.
My salutes to the brave men of the army, navy and police working to resolve tihs situation. My condolences adn respect to the brave men who laid down their lives fighting last night.
God bless.
Saturday, 15 November 2008
India on the moon!
Yay!
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Lunar_landing_has_Indians_over_the_moon/articleshow/3716744.cms
Way to go, my country! Congrats to team that made us all proud!
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Lunar_landing_has_Indians_over_the_moon/articleshow/3716744.cms
Way to go, my country! Congrats to team that made us all proud!
Wednesday, 5 November 2008
Congratulations USA!
Congratulations on the presidential elections!
Way to go! Y'all made history today.
Yes You Can!
Way to go! Y'all made history today.
Yes You Can!
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