Havelock

Long back, I had written a short poem(you can call it whatever you like :)) on Havelock island ,Andaman and Nicobar islands. Recently, I stumbled upon this draft..so posting it here. I don't have a good picture to go with it though!

“On one side lay tropical forests,

And the other blanketed by silver sands smoothest

Beneath the white sand beaches,

washed by turquoise- colored waters,

blend colorful marine creatures

and amazing coral reefs…

It’s here that the time stands still...”

Hopefully one day I overcome my laziness and write a travelogue on it..truly a gem in Incredible India!

Vishwaroopam

The recent happenings surrounding the movie has really disheartened me. For someone who is a non-tamilian(tamizhan if you would like to call it) and even then took immense pride in hailing from Tamilnadu, i always thought that it had a good mix of free and open minded people. This is proving to be wrong again and again. And I am not saying this only out of frustration or just by listening to the news. I watched the movie on Sunday(in Telugu though i am pretty much sure not much is lost in translation) and can definitely say there is nothing offensive to Muslims in there.The movie doesn't even talk about Indian muslims(only from a point it does, but that too is shown in a positive light) so where does the question of offending them come from?  Many of them seem to have formed an opinion without even watching it. Now my question is if Vishwaroopam is not going to see daylight in Tamilnadu, why was Oh My God, which takes potshots on God and religions, released there? Didn't they find it offensive? It definitely mocked some of the hindu religious beliefs. That aside, its really bad to see that someone like Kamal Hassan( a man of great stature in Tamilnadu) who has been in the industry for over 40 years, has to face something like this. With due respect to the so-called democracy in our nation, seriously where are we heading to??

Picture courtesy : Maggie's Notebook

My Elixir

Filter coffee - A cup in the early morning is all I need to function properly!

Tamil Pulp Fiction

Sometime back, I happened to visit the Bangalore Literature Festival and chanced upon this book. I had read about it before so i thought 'why not!'. So i picked it up with absolutely no expectations! The cover picture may seen very lurid but that's what Pulp Fiction is all about, right? For the uninitiated, refer this. 

So the result ...was an absolute joy ride! A collection of short Tamil stories, translated into English to showcase this wildly popular form of writing, which began as early as 1950s. The publishing house has selected some of the best works from 10 bestselling Tamil authors. These authors are serious competition to the Sidney Sheldons and Dan Browns,must say! I don't know if there was something lost in translation and it really dint matter to me that were translated that too not by the original author! I was also surprised by the content of some of the stories considering the era in which they were written. Very bold, at least a few of them and some cheesy dialogues here and there but it was fun! My personal favorite among them is 'Sweetheart ,Please die!' which was a very riveting story and I couldn't keep the book down until I finished it. Each story has an introduction to the author and his writing style. The midsection has an illustrious set of pulp fiction covers which were published earlier showcasing the tamil pulp fiction art.
Overall, the stories cover different genres- suspense, love, reincarnation, sex, drugs etc. So there is something in there for everyone. Read it with an open mind and let it grow on you.If you are an English aficionado, please skip it since that is not the main intention of the book.

I cant wait to grab a copy of Volume II!

Life of Pi

From the time i watched this movie, i have been promoting it like nobody's business (maybe i should ask Ang Lee for some monetary benefits!). So if i have to jot down the reasons why i really liked the movie and why one should watch it then here it goes -

•  It would definitely be India - One of the fewer Hollywood movies where a beautiful India has been depicted. More so, India has not been shown with just a 'Taj Mahal ' or those extravagant palaces of Rajasthan. Aesthetically shot, this could join one of those 'Incredible India' videos for sure. 
• I would prefer the book to the movie any day but i think the movie did good justice to the book too albeit a whole part being eliminated. If you haven't read the book, good for you! Go and enjoy the movie.
• I thought the 3-D effects were brilliant in the movie and some of the scenes (Spoiler Alert!), especially the one where the ship sinks and Pi sees it inside water, are a class apart. This one will stay with me forever i think. Very touching indeed!
• It gives you a spiritual high . I am not joking ..but it really got me thinking(again!) about God, beliefs etc. Some of them i spoke to, dint understand the whole spiritual concept behind it and all that they thought was that the movie is a good visual entertainer. That's pretty sad!
• I sometimes really wonder if nature is as beautiful as they have shown..i am referring to the aquatic life, skies,ocean..splendid! I feel we are missing out on so many such things due to our mundane life. 

Finally, the beautiful journey of Pi with Richard Parker, the obstacles that they undergo together, the fear that they share..you have to see it to enjoy it.

Asura- Tale of the Vanquished

Almost done reading 'Asura' and i realize that everything depends on perception. Life is all about how you perceive things. The book has an interesting take on Ravana and his side of the story- Ravanayana as the author likes to call it. It has definitely opened a whole new world of thoughts for me..that everything has another side to it...true to the quote -  "There are three sides to every story: your side, my side, and the truth"

All through my life, i have been made to believe Ravana was the bad guy and his death is celebrated year after year across the world for all his bad deeds. After 'Asura', i am not so sure of the 'bad guy' part. If the author(Anand Neelakantan) has managed to bring in such a thought(however miniscule it may be) in his reader's mind, i think he has been very successful in completing his job i.e.putting across his side of the story. I would recommend this book just for its sheer audacity, albeit some grammatical mistakes, in a world where everyone grew up listening to only one side of the story - which was Rama's.

Happy Madras Week!

Of tart mango slices coated with salt and chili

and gazillion silk sarees woven with zari,

Of Hindu paper with strong suda-suda filter coffee

and worshipping godlike rajini even at sixty,

Of feisty elliots and marina beach

and not to forget the chennai heat :)

Of well-oiled hair with jathi-malli

and the alphabet 'zh' that caught my fancy,

These are just some of the endless memories,

18 years of my existence i owe it to you,

To you, Madras, with all my love :)

Photo courtesy - Wikipedia

Of beaches, sand and...

lying on a beach shore

with sand on my toes

basking in the gentle sun

i think, "oh..what fun!"

the waves, they come,

gently caressing the shore

roaring to tell a secret

about the sun and its planets

As i watch this scene with awe

i realize an innate respect for the blue

humbled, i allow the ocean song

to clear my mind of every wrong...

Midnight in Paris

This movie has definitely reinforced my love for Woody Allen movies. Such a beautiful movie, so wonderfully told. Each scene is like a beautiful poem and if you don't feel like visiting Paris at the end of it, something is terribly wrong somewhere!
Note- Just make sure you brush up your English literature before you watch the movie.. that should make it more enjoyable

Unfulfilled love..

Spoiler alert- the below post may give away the most important part of the movie "Ekk deewana tha". So if you haven't watched the movie and if you are planning to do so, please stop right here. Also, this is not a review of the movie.

Having watched "Vinnaithandi Varuvaaya" umpteen number of times for its simplicity in story-telling and also for its charm, i expected the same from its hindi counterpart "Ekk deewana tha". I was a tad disappointed and for a long time, i was wondering what went wrong(no, i am not talking about acting skills here!). The ending of the movie was revamped to "suit"  the Hindi audience. The lovers end up together which is a happy thing of course..only thing the impact seemed much less. Through the course of 2 and 1/2 hours, you are made to believe that they are never going to get together with all the differences in their attitude, religion,families etc. and when they finally make it, you are left to wonder what was the movie about..if the girl really ends up going against the family in the end, she might have as well done it before(could have saved a lot of time and patience!). I begin to understand why the tamil one was more successful. Apart from the realistic approach in the movie, it definitely strikes a chord in the end. You feel for the protagonist when his relationship fails, you feel his pain, you are angry with the girl for leaving him nowhere, you wonder why he still loves her. Well, sometimes(only sometimes) unfulfilled love gets more credit(lack of a better word!) than the successful ones. Take for instance, Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Had they gotten together in the end, would they still be remembered today and referred in every other love story or even closer home, Devdas , the epitome of break-ups, i am sure his story would have been a normal one otherwise(only fictional stories please!). With that inference in mind, i think "Ekk deewana tha" failed for me not even 'Aaromale' could save it.. call me a sadist if you want to :)

flower power

I wish i were you

bright and chirpy

moist with dew,

swaying in the breeze

with the birds and the bees

and a smell so sweet

to beat this summer heat!! 

life like a browser..

wish life was as simple as a browser...
where a new tab means an alternative,
where an address changes by the minute,
where a single click clears your history,
and an incognito window maintains the mystery!

wish life was as simple as a browser...
where you bookmark your favorites
and call them when you like,
and when you are stuck up,
just press the Ctrl+ F4!

Those were the days...

...when 2 Doordarshan channels were all it took to keep us away from boredom,
...when a sand pit and gang of friends were considered the most awesome,
...when the tinkles and archies were preserved like the holy grail,
...and letters were the only form of mail!

These days...
...even a 100 channels wouldn't suffice,
...playing in a sand pit, i would think twice,
...a Kindle is held in a higher regard,
...and its been years since i even saw a postcard!!

None

Have you ever felt direction-less in life.. like your life is going nowhere and you are stuck in an infinite loop and it is beginning to look like repeat telecasts of a boring show? The television series "Friends" title track best describes this situation- "Its like you are always stuck in second gear..and it hasn't been your day, your month or even your year..". what do you do then?

Revolution 2020

finally took some time off to post my thoughts on the latest Chetan bhagat book..I bought it on the first day of its release!I hadn't even heard or read anything about this book as i just happened to see it in a bookstore that day.so i read it with the least amount of expectations i must say!
As all his books, this book too was a breeze to read..since the language he uses is so "common man" types. Usually, Chetan has a central theme in his books and this book's was broadly the educational system in India. He did a good take on this, initially, talking about all the coaching centres, competitive exams, pressure on the students etc. Setting the story in an environment like Varanasi ,i thought was good, as he rightfully portrayed the mindset of people from the small towns or villages where they would really do anything to ensure that their sons earn that "B.E" degree. But somewhere the whole point is lost as the focus shifts to love.After a point, it is more of a hapless maniac trying to gain attention from his ever-confused girlfriend. Talking about the girl, Aarthi, i have never seen Chetan characterize a girl so dumb like her before. She seems ever confused with what she wants from life or a partner. Sometimes, she just gets on your nerves. Some parts of the book sounded a little far fetched too. Raghav's portrayal was good but required more depth. The ending seemed a little lame and quite filmy(I have seen such stuff in probably 'n' bollywood movies).
Pros - Chetan's language, bringing out the educational system in India, showing how corruption has reached every walk of life, some parts/lines which make you think and go like 'that is so very true'. This happens with most of his books.
 
 

To you, with love

I look out for you everyday, come what may
your sight cheers me up more than i can portray
I like you strong, i like you bitter
you give me the kick and make me feel better..

Without you, i would be so lost!
So here's a toast...

...To you, Coffee, with all my love!!

wish to watch this someday - Aurora Borealis

Peepli Live

Very few films in Bollywood actually portray reality without mincing words. Likewise, 'Peepli live' takes a direct dig at politicians, media and in general, attitude of the people who turn a sensitive issue like a farmer's suicide into a huge circus!
The movie begins at a slow pace, setting the context in a poor farmers' family trying to make ends meet, with indian ocean crooning des mera rang rez in the background. The dialogues between the protagonist Nattha and his brother are hilarious so much so that the seriousness of nattha wanting to commit suicide gets diluted. The portrayal of media turning everything into breaking news is brilliant (especially the saif-kareena part!). The attitude of politicians has been well captured, quite bold too.(where one of them actually says 'you just need to make tall claims..you needn't actually implement the scheme!'). The movie begins to falter in the second half with some repetitive scenes. Throughout the film, acting was brilliant; they all seemed apt for their roles. Though the theme was sensitive, emotional quotient were really low. while watching the movie, i thought the end was very shallow. But thinking over it again, i couldn't think of a better ending..
Not a theatre watch! it can be watched in a DVD.

I need a break, i guess, to clear my head off some lingering, unnecessary thoughts..maybe its time to backpack and go somewhere??

And Miles to go..

Sunrise @Kalavarahalli Betta - taken 2 years back.