4th Block complex

There may be many 4th blocks in Bangalore and many many more complexes ( BDA shopping complex ) , but when anyone mentions "4th Block Complex" it has only one meaning and location.Yup , its Jayanagar 4th Block.

Jayanagar 4th Block has been and will be my favourite "nagar" in Bangalore. This is the first locality I lived in when I came to Bangalore first, about 13years ago. I fell in love instantly , especially for the buzz around 4th block complex.

4th block complex is a old complex housing innumerable stores , market , eateries , hawkers to name a few. Its always buzzing with activity. You can get anything you need or want here.

Recently I took my son to this place and I hope it has made an impression on his young mind already. I believe this complex to be a miniature India of some sorts and I love the feeling of comfort and familiarity I get everytime I step in or pass by this place.

Dhobi Ghat ( Mumbai Diaries )

I was very lucky to watch the screening of Dhobi Ghat at the ongoing London Film Festival.

Dhobi Ghat is Kiran Rao's directorial debut , produced by Aamir Khan. Film stars Pratiek ( Smitha Patil's son ) as one of the leads along with Aamir Khan.

The story is quite simple , but the treatment is fresh and what impressed me the most is the texture of the movie and effective usage of various mediums like Photography , handycam footage and most beautiful of them all monsoon in Mumbai. These form integral part of the movie and help take the narrative forward.

Its a brilliant and well thought out movie and well shot with attention to detail. Acting is top notch and Pratiek is the star of the movie. He is very natural and I think has got a very good future. Aamir Khan is very good as usual. Amongst the two leading ladies I liked the Yasmin character. She has a great voice ( hope she has dubbed her voice herself ) and expressive eyes.
Shai is modern and chirpy and has done well in the character of an oustsider in the city.

Kiran Rao knows her stuff and the Q&A after the screening ( my first ) was very good in that , Kiran came out very clearly on the thought process behind the movie. I am sure she will be the filmmaker to watchout in the future.

Thank You Kiran. I really enjoyed watching Dhobi Ghat.

Jhootha Hi Sahi

A R Rahman's new album , released last week without much fanfair. Jhootha Hi Sahi is from director Abbas Tyrewala startting John Abraham and Pakhi Tyrewala ( Abbas's wife debuting ).

This is by far ARR's best album this year. Raavanan was good but wasnt great.

My favourites in this album are

1. Call Me Dill
2. Do Nishaaniyan - Sonu Nigam is at his lilting best in this song. I love the way he pronounces every word clearly and with the right feeling required. Music is very light and lets Sonu elevate this song with his voice.
3. Moonlight - Vijay Yesudas is amazing in this voice. He took his time but slowly and surely is becoming a very good singer. His pronounciations are pukka too.
4. Cry Cry - I love this song because of Shreya. Moment she joins in from the 2nd mukhda , it just gets elevated to a different level.
5. Hello Hello - Karthik is very good in this and his voice suits the mood of the song.

Overall Rahman proves again why he is the boss.

Raghu Dixit Project

I have been in love with Raghu Dixit's music , particularly his very energetic singing voice , unique attire ( colorful lungi's and a gajra , which he uses actively during singing ). I have been soaking up his numbers especially the compositions by 18th century kannada peot Shishunaala shariffa.

So when I read about Raghu Dixit Project , performing live in London., I did not want to miss this opportunity to listen to them live at any cost. All the videos of them performing live that I had seen online were full of energy and songs were fantabulous.

On Sunday , 11th September 2010 , it was the 2nd day of Annual Mayor's Thames festival.So I land up at Southbank and lo behold , I see Raghu Dixit and his band doing sound check. I could not believe my luck that day. And then they started performing and took the assembled crowd to a different level. Raghu Dixit is a true showman in his own right. He made sure everyone assembled got involved in the performance. Before every song he gave in intro on what the song is all about. And what songs they were - Gudugudiya Sedi nodo , Lokada Kaalaji , Kodagana Koli Nungitta - yes believe it or not , here we were standing in front of the famous tower bridge of london , with majority of the crowd being europeans and Raghu is belting out one after another Kannada song , but we could not care less what language it was in. All that mattered was the music and the I am sure everyone assembled there understood exactly what the songs were all about.
After the concert was over , by which time the crowd had swelled to a considerable size , I waited to have a chat with Raghu and his band. It was the best part of the concert for me, to have been able to talk to Raghu and tell him how proud he is making us all feel . He calls his music Indian World Folk Rock , and it truely is mesmerising.

At the gig @ Jazz Cafe , we reached there nice and early. Raghu Dixit comes in and I go to say hi to him, and to my surprise he remembered me and spoke to me and came across as a genuinely nice person. I think it is this quality of his , which is also endearing to his fans , as I could see he was going around talking to all the people who had met him at the Thames festival gig.

Concert started with a solo performance by Raghu of Soruthihudu Maniya Maaligi. It was a captivating performance showcasing the sheer range and power of Raghu's voice. For the second song all his band members joined him one by one and I should mention here special praise for the lead guitarist Vijay. He seems almost like he doesnt know how talented he is , when performing. There is also Karthick Iyer on the voilin , extremely talented , holding his own amongst all the wester instruments around him. Concert was truly awesome and we left totally on a high that day , promising to watch this band perform whenever we get an opportunity.

Some of my favourite songs of Raghu , are listed below. Go by the CD of his first album - Antaragni , today , give all the songs a patient hear and drop a note to me if you like them.

Kalmanje

Thats my hometown , a tiny little hamlet in Udupi district.

It has always been a place to unwind for me during my growing up years. To start with there are no modern day aminities like Telephone , Television at my home. Newspapers are few and far between , cell phone signals are pretty weak to the point of being useless. So one is virtually cut off from the all the rabble tabble happening around the world. Invariably you get drawn inwards.

My visit this time was even more special because of the monsoon. Day 1 when we took a happless maruti van cab driver down the treacherous road towards my home , I fell in love with this place all over again. What with lush green surroundings , pollution less air , crisp morning sunshine to add to the beauty of the place. There is a stretch of the road , which everytime I pass over I get a strange exhilarating feeling time and again. I do not know the reason for this , but beauty of the surroundings is definitely one of them.Idyllic settings , far away from modernity , simple people adds to the sheer enjoyment I get everytime I am here.

Amongst all the happiness I was getting out of this place , there was also a sad note. That of declining families in the village primarily due to migration to cities. Lot of houses have been abandoned or left empty , as there is no one living in them. Relatives/families from my generation have all moved out to cities for work , so some of the houses are all left with people from my grandparents generation. After them even those will fall vacant. I do not know what is the solution for this , but it saddens me deeply that this hamlet will not look the same when my son grows up. I can only hope that somehow all of this survives and retains its beauty.

Least I can do ( will do ) is to visit Kalmanje once a year with family and try to keep the setting as it is , wherever and whenever possible.

Marali Mannige ( back to home )

Yes , I am heading back home after a year and half being in London. Although I have been visiting home every year , this time its special. Special for one reason and one reason only , I have made up my mind to return for good.

Since the time I took the decision to return back for good , I keep dreaming about home , making plans for what all I want to do when I get back , what all I want my son to learn etc etc.

Its strange that we need to be far away from the most important parts of our lives to realise how much we miss them. This tendency of taking for granted all the things that are very important and what defines us as a person has been baffling me for long. But I am happy I did this stint outside , as I have realised how and why I have always been a proud Indian.

India , here I come :)

To Kill A Mockingbird

I got the opportunity to watch "To Kill A Mockingbird" recently. Movie is an adaptation of American author Harper Lee's novel of the same name. Its simply remarkable and remarkably simple story and movie.

The story is very simple story but with a lot of life changing thoughts especially on prejudices that one might have on certain aspects of life and how these affect a individual, family , community and entire humanity as a whole.

Even though the story is based in 1930's USA , in the southern region , I think it is still relevant in this day.

Gregory Peck is absolutely brilliant as the morally upright Atticus Finch. Its his children and their friend who are more endearing , more so since the story unfolds from the perspective of Finch's daughter Scout.

I dont think there is anything for me to say , more than it has already been said all these years on this masterclass of a movie. I cannot wait to own the book and DVD , as I am sure it is going to be one for the collection that will pass down to the next generation.

Raavan(an)

I took my time in posting my review of Raavan(a) [ bi-lingual ] album by A R Rahman.

Expectations were obviously sky high , what with the never failing combination of Mani Ratnam and Rahman , and with lyrics by Gulzar.

After careful and repeated listening , I can now say the album has lived upto its expectations.

Starting with Beera , as that is the first one I took to immediate liking.. is a rousing intro song of the hero. The beats are real good .. with a heady mix of African rythm thrown in. Its a short but high impact song.

Ranjha Ranjha , is the next best song in the album. Rekha bharadwaj is unrecognisable because of the high pitch nature of the song. Structure is complicated , but all credit to Rahman for making this work.

Behene de starts of with oriental piece and is powerfully backed up by Karthik's vocals. Needs atleast couple of hearing to get to grips with the changin flow of the song. Its worth the patience though.

Thok de killi and Khata Khata are fast paced numbers , but situational. Hopefully , if retained in the movie , they should be good to watch on screen.

Khili re , is good for Reena Bhardwaj's soothing voice.

All in all , a album worth the hype. I believe credit should go to ManiRatnam. People say Rahman reserves the best for Mani , but I think that is because Mani Ratnam has a very good ear for music and understands Rahman completely.

From the trailers the locales and picturisation looks awesome.

Can't wait for the movie.

Steig Larsson - Millenium Trilogy

Millenium Trilogy is a series of 3 crime thriller novel's written by Swedish author Steig Larsson. The novels were published posthumously and have become immediate success worldwide.

• "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo"
• "The Girl Who Played With Fire"
• "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest"

I have not had a chance to read the books , but have seen the movie version of the same. I must admit I have got hooked on instantly to "The Girl" Lisbeth Salander. She is unlike any normal protagonist. She suffers from aspergers syndrome, dresseses up as a Goth and computer hacker , expert in martial arts , has photographic memory. She teams up with a journalis Mikael Blomkvist and goes about solving mysteries and unearthing dark history.

I do not want to reveal more of the plot here , but what got me hooked on is the intensity of the protagonist. I ended up watching all the 3 parts back to back . It just gets you hooked on to the level of being addictive. I would like to add here that this is not for the faint hearted , as some of the scenes are graphic.

Highly recommended.

Rasarushi Kuvempu

Rasarushi Kuvempu is a biopic , releasing sometime soon.

I think it has been overdue for a long time and was surprised why no movie on Kuvempu's early life and his inspiration and motivation was ever made till this date. Anyways , was very pleased when I got to know this, during my usual search for new music releases.

Kuvempu is considered one of the greatest poets of 20th century Kannada literature. He was much more than a writer.

I never had the inclination or awareness to understand Kuvempu , neither read any of his works. My source of knowledge on this great writer and human being , have been through his songs. I have always liked the passion in the words of songs like " O nanna chetana , agu nee aniketana " or " Baa illi sambhavisu indenna hrudayadali nityavu avataripa satyaavataara " and one of my all time favourites " Tanuvu ninnadu manava ninnadu ".

I hope everyone watches this movie and will inspire people to read more about Kuvempu. In this day and age where local culture and its richness is slowly eroding , it is important to refresh the rich heritage left behind by such great thinkers like Kuvempu.

Ending the post with analysis of one of his works composed to a brilliant song by Mysore Anantaswamy , gives a hint of Kuvempu's greatness.

_________________________________________________________________
Baa Illi Sambhavisu - Analysis

Baa illi sambhavisu indhenna hrudayadhali nithyavoo avatharipa sathyaavathara
mannaagi maravaagi migavaagi khagavaagi bhavavadhi bavisihe bhavavidhoora

The poet says God is in different forms of nature on this earth. Soil, beasts, birds, trees etc. And is inviting God to take the form of his inner soul.

manthanake marathanake migathanake khagathanake
munnadege kannadha guruve baara
koodi bandhenna nara roopa chethanadhi
naarayanathvakke daari thora

This could be seen in two dimensions. He is talking about the evolution. First came soil, then animals etc., and finally human beings. Now I am in the final stage as a human being. Take the form of my inner soul and show me the
route to salvation.
Another way of looking at it is, "maNthana, marathana" etc., being the qualities of human being. "maNthana" - down to earth, swanthike etc., "marathana" - growing big and guiding others, "migathana" - cruel, the bad side of us, "khagathana" - being free etc., With all these qualities, we are formed. Show me the right qualities to be retained and those to get rid off to reach my final destination - salvation (narayaNathva)

andhu aramaneyalli matthe seremaneyalli
alli thurupattiyalli illi kirugudisilali
desaha deshadhi vesha veshantharavanaanthu
vishwa saarathiyaagi leela rathavanenthu
chodhisiruveyo anthe srusti lola

The poets gives examples of different forms of God who is driving this entire world. Andhu aramaneyalli - Lord Rama, matthe seremaneyalli - Lord Krishna, alli thurupatti - Lord Jesus, illi kirugudisalali - Shri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. In these forms, you drove the entire world. And just like you did that, drive me towards salvation.

_________________________________________________________________

C Ashwath

One of the doyens of that unique and special flavour of music Bhavageete , C Ashwath , is no more.

I have always loved Bhavageete in kannada, since good old doordarshan days. There used to be music videos , like this one
www.youtube.com/watch?v=5oUSphxJO1Y,
simple ones with meaningful melodious bhavageete as the background captivated me and boosted my interest in all forms of music.

C Aswath along with Mysore Anantswamy were my favourites. The music is always simple with emphasis on the lyrics and Bhaava. All those brilliant words and feeling in them were brought to life effortlessly by these two.

I was proud that in this age of western musicians ( all credit to them ) hogging all limelight with one after another concerts in Palace Grounds, Bangalore.. one of the biggest concerts was "Kannadave Satya" , an evening of Bhavageete , organised by C Ashwat.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpXg6T3B_XE

I hope artists like Ratnamala Prakash, B R Chaya , Pallavi Dattu keep the flame alive of this beautiful , unique form of music.

For me atleast it is end of an era.

TED

I bumped into a video recently and because of that discovered TED.

TED India - Pranav Mistry


" TED: Ideas worth spreading " is a non-profit user community bringing together people from 3 worlds - Technology , Entertainment , Design. The more I found out about this community , the more I am drawn into it.

To start with I think it is a brilliant idea to bring together best of the brains for different walk of life. TED conferences are excellent watch and leads to a lot of healthy discussions on burning topics around the world.

I leave you with 2 more clips.

Devdutt Pattanaik

Hans Rosling

Are Huzoor .. Wah Taj Boliye !!

Its been a long time since my last post, but I couldnt have asked for a better topic to write about.

Last week a colleague of mine sent us a link ( http://www.barbican.org.uk/music/event-detail.asp?ID=8961 ) which said "Zakir Hussain - World-renowned tabla virtuoso returns". We decided to go to this concert , discussed at length about how much we loved this Ustaad and just about forgot about it afterwards. I being me , thought of seeing the maestro live never left my brain.. so I resurrected the idea again and convinced couple of people to join me.
We booked tickets without any delay and waited eagerly for Friday evening.

Ustaad Zakir Hussain , needs on introduction I am sure. I have always enjoyed all his performances that I have watched in TV.He brings in something extra to all his performances. Who can forget the flowing hair from "Tajmahal Tea" advertisement - if you didnt know already my title comes from Ustaad's dialog in the ad).

Anyways.. we set off early from work and strolled casually towards Barbican centre. The auditorium ( its actually much more than that ) , looks typical victorian building from outside. Moment we stepped inside, it took my breadth away. There is something about this place , that oozes art. We collected our tickets , and got into the auditorium.

Lights dimmed out and Sitar strains started slowly. Ustaad took to the mike , paying tribute to demise of Sarod maestro Ustaad Ali Akbar Khan. It was impromptu I think , but the performance that followed , tugged our hearts and I thought it was a honest tribute from one musician to another. Ustaad and Nilaadri Kumar on Sitar gave a brilliant performance.

After a 20 min break, the actual concert started. What followed afterwards for about 2 hours was out of this world to say the least. Manipuri dancing drummers were rhythmic , athletic and graceful , Saarangi , tabla combo and Sitar Tabla combo was mesmerising. Doyra by Uzbek performing was enthralling and the finale were all 6 performers came together was brilliant.We didnt want it to end and couldnt get enough of this variety performance.

The whole program re-emphasised my belief in the sheer variety of Indian Music. I believe performers like Ustaad Zakir Hussain , Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma, Ustaad Amjad Ali Khan , Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia have done and are doing a great service in continuing the age old tradition of keeping our art forms alive. They have also not shied away from improvising and jamming up with western musicians , thus spreading our music to the world as well as keeping the yougsters intrested.

I can only say " Wah Ustaad Wah ".

Gulaal

Touted to be the best movie till date to come out of Anurag Kashyap , Gulaal is a powerful cinema.  Come to think of it , this was expected. Anurag Kashyap has given us Black Friday , No Smoking , Dev D, none of which are your run of the mill bollywood flicks.

At the outset , the story is about independence movement spear headed by KK in a fictional state. First half runs through briskly and requires complete attention , otherwise risking missing out on complex character relationships. Also another risk is missing out on powerful dialogs and songs with contemporary lyrics from Piyush Mishra.  This man is a powerhouse of talent , and bloggers are already going mad about how much we have lost in not getting to see him earlier.

Its important to get the context to completely understand the complex intertwining of politics, love , deceit , disenchantment. It seems Anurag was in lot of anger after trial and tribulations he had to go through to get Paanch released ( looks like it is going to release in 2009 ) and he had been listening to Pyaasa  song "Ye duniya agar mil bhi jaaye to Kya hai". All of that was poured out to a story and Raja Choudhary ( Dileep ) chipped in to provide the context ie Rajputana movement and added to that Piyush Mishra's music score. End result is a compelling watch.

Although I was bit letdown by 2nd half and especially the climax, there is no taking away the impact it has as you walk out of the theatre.  Gulaal is a must watch for any lover of pure cinema.

Go watch it today and make sure you listen to all the songs , if not for their tune but for their lyrics.

Sample this rejig of "Sarfaroshi Ki Tamanna" , which sadly is not part of the soundtrack. Hope Anurag releases a CD of just the dialogs.

Sarfaroshi ki tamanna ab hamare dil me hai
Dekhna hai zor kitna bazu-e-kaatil me hai
Waqt aane pe bataadenge tujhe e aasmaan
Hum abhi se kya batayen kya hamare dil me hai

Oh re Bismil kaash aate aaj tum Hindustaan
Dekhte ki mulk saara kya tashan, kya chill mein hai
Aaj ka launda yeh kehta hum to bismil thak gaye
Apni aazaadi to bhaiya laundiya ke til mein hai.

Aaj ke jalson me Bismil ek gunga gaa raha.
Aur behron ka wo rela naachta mehfil mein hai
Haath ki khadi banaane ka zamaana lag gaya
Aaj to chaddi bhi silti englison ki mill mein hai

Sarfaroshi ki tamanna ab hamare dil me hai…
….kya batayen kya hamare dil me hai

Bhavageete

Literally meaning "emotion poetry" is a form of light music , unique to Karnataka and it seems Maharastra. 

I first fell in love with this form after hearing a couple of beautiful compositions by late Mysore Ananthaswamy. He had been a pioneer in this form of music along with Kalinga rao and C Ashwath.

Lyrical qualities of the songs are outstanding , which is quite obvious considering the fact that notable poets whose works are composed to music include Kuvempu, D R Bendre , Gopalkrishna Adiga , K S Narasimhaswamy , G S Shivarudrappa, Nissar Ahmed, N S Lakshminarayana Bhatta etc.

The essence of peotry is not lost , which is how it should be. I believe Bhavageete is quite close to Ghazals in form , although the content covers a range of emotions in Bhavageete is vast. 

My favourites till date include "Ede tumbi haadidenu" , " tanuvu ninnadu ", " baa illi sambhavisu " , and all of Mysore Mallige compositions.

This is one form of music that hopefully will never be lost amidst all the competition from local film songs to western music imports. 

Allah Rakha Rahman

One more milestone for maestro , one of many many more to come. I get a feeling it means a world to him to be able to represent India and our rich musical heritage in the western world. 

I still remember the day when I first heard Roja songs. Chinna Chinna Asai was an instant addiction. Refreshing melody , great picturisation added to the beauty of the song. I had been a big fan of Ilayaraaja , but Roja's sounds were new and fresh. It took a bit of time to figure out the music director for the movie. I have this habit of finding to all possible details about a music score , starting with Music director, singers etc .. so it didnt take long to get the people behind the music score. Added to that this was my favourite director's movie , so I had to know everything about it.

Anyways, with a great beginning came great expectations. People wanted to write him off. Rahman refused to be bogged down either by praise or criticism. Music scores that followed proved everyone wrong, be it for huge hits like Kaadalan , Kaadal Desam , Gentleman or lesser fortunate ones like Kizahkku Cheemayile or Pavithra. Rahman's music was just getting better and bigger and versatile with every movie.  Songs like Urvashi or Chikku buku railey from Kaadalan or Mustafa Mustafa from Kaadal Desam were anthems during my Uni days. His romantic numbers were fodder for all the budding romances in College .. Ennavale or Anbe were just the right kind of songs to fall in love with.

And then Rangeela happened , that catapulted him to the larger audience. Who can forget Rangeela Re or Kya Kare kya na kare. There were also beautiful songs with not so beautiful lyrics from dubbed movies like Hum Se Hai Mukabla ( Kaadalan ) etc. Again people were wanting to write him off saying he will not make it big in Hindi and meet the same fate as other artists from down south like Ilayaraaja , SPB , Kamal Hassan. 

Trust Rahman to prove all his detractors wrong. Soundtracks to come out were again melodious and long lasting with Dil Se , Pukar , Taal just to name a few. Then came a slew of patriotic movie scores with The Legend of Bhagat Singh , Swades , Mangal Pandey and Bose The Forgotten Hero topping the list. I personally feel Rahman is the best when it comes to rousing patriotic feelings to the level of turning one into a jingoistic person. I get goose bumps when I listen to Desh Mere , Swades or Desh ki mitti. 

Chartbusting VandeMaataram , I believe is another milestone for the maestro. VandeMaataram, clarion call of our freedom fighters , got a re-birth because of Rahman. 

I am sure maestro is far from finished. 2008 was a fantabulous year that showcased the true talent with unmatchable variety that only Rahman can compose. 2009 has started with a bang with Delhi 6. 

Jai Ho!

Rahmaniac

I bumped into this term when scouting for release dates of Dilli 6 soundtrack. I must admit , it aptly describes my adulation for A R Rahman. 

It has been a slow transition from Rahman fan to a Rahmaniac. I must admit , I got hooked onto his music the day I heard Roja songs. The songs came like a breath of fresh air , complemented by Maniratnam's picturisation of the songs. From that day onwards , I am constantly on the lookout for new releases , reviews, award citations, rare interviews .. anything and everything to do with Rahman in a nutshell.

2008 has been a stupendous year for the Maestro ( Mozart from Madras ). With diverse tracks like Jodha Akbar , Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na , Yuvraaj , Ghajini to name a few. To cap it all Golden Globe for Slumdog Millionaire , could not have been more appropriate. He is going to be musical force for a long time to come not just in India anymore. My best wishes to this humble, shy genius :) ( You should see his acceptance speech in Golden Globe )

Coming to Dilli 6, what a soundtrack. He has got every genre possible into one soundtrack.. with pure classical Hindustani to Rap, lounge, kawwali thrown in as well. Just cant stop listening to the songs since friday. 

My favorite at the moment is "Arziyaan", a kawwali number. Its so addictive that I am running it in a loop since morning today. A uplifting number with meaningful lyrics by Prasoon Joshi. Superb!.

Next up is " Rehna Tu " , by Maestro himself. Tough song and takes time to grow .. but once in you are hooked on. Guitar strings in the interlude takes you to a different world altogether. Way to go Rahman, Way to go.

Then comes " Dil Gira Dafatan ".. highly romantic song sung by Brit Asian singer Ash King. Pukka romantic number , completely western.. good singing and subtle music with you blink she's gone presence from Chinmayee. A perfect song for a romantic soul.

"Masakalli " by Mohit Chouhan is another song that is catchy , with fab lyrics. Song is on air and already topping the charts.

With Rakeysh Om Prakash at the helm , I am sure most of the songs are going to be in the background. Hope couple of them do get to grace big screen with some stunning Delhi backdrop and some in NY. 

Go grab the CD now. Best way to start 2009 and You cant get a soundtrack that is so diverse and fantastic , for some time to come.

Thanks Rahman. Proud to be a Rahmaniac.

Oye Lucky and raise of independent cinema in Bollywood

By now lot of film critics have written a lot of stuff praising "Oye Lucky Lucky Oye". Its the latest offering by Dibakar Banerjee , maker of Khosal Ka Ghosla. A brilliant cinema , funny , dark and a great watch. All the actors are top notch, very natural. Its 

Last 2 years has seen a spate of such movies , brilliant ones , portraying the true India. A lot of them are equally entertaining as well, proving that entertainment and meaning can go hand in hand. It is very heartning that such movies are finding backers both in terms of producers and audiences , as more and more cinemagoers are dissulusioned with the escapist kind of movies. I am not saying we should not be making big budget , blockbusters , but just that we should equally support independent cinema. I am a firm believer that Cinema is a powerful medium and it should not just be used to show us unreal , escapist stuff .. but also true india in its raw form.

Also these cinemas bring to light so much of talent that is out there, as most of the the actors are from theatre background and very natural. We get to watch Deebak Dhobriyal in Omkaara, Abhay Deol in Manorama Six Feet Under , Rajeev Khadelwal in Aamir to name a few. Even technicians have been introduced in abundance. One name that comes to my mind is Aamir's music director Amit Trivedi. All in all , these cinema's are what is keeping legacy of Satyajit ray, Hrishikesh Mukherjee alive.

My list so far includes 

•  Oye Lucky Lucky Oye
  
•  Black Friday
  
•  Omkaara
  
•  Khosla Ka Ghosla
  
•  Manorama Six Feet Under
  
•  Aamir
  
•  A Wednesday
  
•  Ek chalis ki Last Local
  
•  Bheja Fry
  
•  Blue Umbrella
  
•  Yun Hota to Kya Hota
  
•  Evano Oruvan (Tamil) ( Dombivili Fast in Marathi )
  

On my to do list I have

 

•   Maqbool
  
•   Dasvidaniya
  
•   Tahaan
  
•   Mumbai Meri Jaan
  

  Thanks to Vishal ( bharadwaj ) , Dibakar, Navdeep , Anurag Kashyap , Nishikanth Kamath's of hindi cinema .. that we can keep our head high when people complain about Bollywood movies being just escapist and not good.

Another Day Another Tag!

1. When you looked at yourself in the mirror today, what was the first thing you thought?

    Need a shave

2. How much cash do you have on you? £20

3. What’s a word that rhymes with DOOR? SOAR

4. Favorite planet? Earth ( janani janma"bhoomi"scha swargadapi gariyasi )

5. Who is the 4th person on your missed call list on your cell? PA

6. What is your favorite ring tone on your phone? Airtel tune ( composed by Rahman )

7. What color shirt are you wearing? Light green

8. Bright or Dark Room? not too bright not too dark 

10. What does your watch look like? Rectangle dial

11. What were you doing at midnight last night? working :(

12. What did your last text message you received on your cell say? You have a missed call blah blah..

13. What's a word that you say a lot? alrite

14. Who told you he/she loved you last?  my son

15. Your worst enemy?  comfort zone

16. What is your current desktop picture? ruins of badami ( karnataka, india )

17. What was the last thing you said to someone? see you tomorrow

18. Do you like someone? yes

19. Would you move for the person you loved? yes

20. Name three things that you have on you at all times? wallet , mobile , wristwatch

21. What’s your favourite town/city? Bangalore

22. Do you have friends at work? yes

23. Apple or Potato Chips?  both

24. Favorite part of the day? Evening , so I can get out of work and go home

25. You tag? Krupa

Angry,Sad,Helpless

These were some of the emotions going through my mind since the tragic, fateful seige of Mumbai came to end.

My anger is mostly towards the politicians who put up hoardings advertising their parties commitment towards honoring heroes, as if they own them.. who have the take their sons and film directors to the aftermath site and defending it as if the whole thing is a movie tamasha. If not for the high profile nature of the places that were attacked , I am sure even this attack would have got a coverage of week or couple and then easily forgotten by all of us. An ger towards the media who cover the incident as if it were a scene from a bollywood masala movie.. eagerness to get first word from the terrorist himself !

I am Sad to see the kind of horrific torture my country and its common men/women/children are put through time and again, without having any hope of justice.

I am frustrated at the helplessness that most of feel against the perpretrators, and become mute spectators of the political tamasha such attacks end up being.

Atleast this time , the anger is palpable among the residents and wider public in the country. I can only hope this does not turn into a political mud slinging tool for the personal gains of the netas and their parties. Hope the costly price paid in terms of lives lost does not go waste this time.

I also think we as indians take these kind of situations for granted. It will be there in news for sometime and then "resilient" , "never say die" indian mentality takes over and we forget all that happened. I believe that its good to be resilient and all.. but it is highly important to keep the scars alive. This helps to bind us together during grief and make us more resilient. We seem to have lost a sense of pride towards our country and there is too much importance given to individual achievement and personal development.  

I am signing off with a thought provoking poem written by lyricist Prasoon Joshi ( RDB, TZP ..) on the tragedy. 

Is baar nahin

Is baar jab woh choti si bachchi mere paas apni kharonch le kar aayegi
Main usey phoo phoo kar nahin behlaoonga
Panapney doonga uski tees ko
Is baar nahin

Is baar jab main chehron par dard likha dekhoonga
Nahin gaoonga geet peeda bhula dene wale
Dard ko risney doonga,utarney doonga andar gehrey
Is baar nahin

Is baar main na marham lagaoonga
Na hi uthaoonga rui ke phahey
Aur na hi kahoonga ki tum aankein band karlo,gardan udhar kar lo main dawa lagata hoon
Dekhney doonga sabko hum sabko khuley nangey ghaav
Is baar nahin

Is baar jab uljhaney dekhoonga,chatpatahat dekhoonga
Nahin daudoonga uljhee door lapetney
Uljhaney doonga jab tak ulajh sake
Is baar nahin

Is baar karm ka hawala de kar nahin uthaoonga auzaar
Nahin karoonga phir se ek nayee shuruaat
Nahin banoonga misaal ek karmyogi ki
Nahin aaney doonga zindagi ko aasani se patri par
Utarney doonga usey keechad main,tedhey medhey raston pe
Nahin sookhney doonga deewaron par laga khoon
Halka nahin padney doonga uska rang
Is baar nahin banney doonga usey itna laachaar
Ki paan ki peek aur khoon ka fark hi khatm ho jaye
Is baar nahin

Is baar ghawon ko dekhna hai
Gaur se
Thoda  lambe  wakt  tak
Kuch  faisley
Aur uskey baad hausley
Kahin toh shuruat karni hi hogi
Is baar yahi tay kiya hai