Don’t protest via governments: give the westerners back in their own way!

Posted: January 29, 2012 in Uncategorized
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There have been a fair number of recent cases where Americans and Britishers have rubbed the Indian sensitivity, the wrong way.

This has come from different quarters. From the funny folks like Jay Leno, the VP Cheney, and then some others.

India, with all of it’s secular feelings, needing to ensure that no community, no caste, no group feels hurt, tends to protest at all of these jibes that the western world likes to take at it. This is more visible in election years, as the government can earn whatever brownie points that it can, with different constituencies of people!

And seeing these protests, the world is probably grimacing at us even more, poking more fun at us. As really, these protests are not going anywhere, and if anything, we look even more like a backward country, with no sense of humour.

So why not give it back to the Brits and the Americans, in their own coins? Let’s give it back to them, where it hurts most! And interestingly, from an economic point of view, we are at a point where we can actually poke fun at them. If only to get back at these digs that they are taking.

And the number of stand up comedy programs that we have now on Indian television, and the number of really funny characters that these have brought out, it should be easy to make fun of these westerners.

So what am I talking about?

- Why don’t we show a European beggar with a begging bowl, outside Indian embassy in Greece or Spain or wherever?

- We can show a Prince Charles lookalike English chauffeur driving his dark skinned Indian masters in a Jaguar?

- We show US techies lining up outside Indian embassy for a visa to Bangalore?

- We show employees in the US getting their pink slips, because their jobs just got Bangalored

etc. etc. etc.

Yeah, I know some of these are under the belt.

But hey, if they can make fun of our crowded streets, our Gods and temples, and holler away in pleasure, we can also give it back to them, where it hurts most. For a change, we have a few things we can use now!

And hey, it’s just for creating the balance in the situation, and for nothing else!

Far better than to have our Ministry of External Affairs write to the US government, about a Jay Leno joke. That’s such a waste.. !

Mixed Feelings about Agneepath: Film Review

Posted: January 27, 2012 in Uncategorized
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** Spoiler alert ** : There is some mention of the storyline here, and if you do not want to get any such hints, and you do plan to see the film, then you shouldn’t read this blog post!

I have little memory of the old Agneepath. Except for the legendary dialog that spoke, “Vijay Dinanath Chavan.. aaj maut ke saath apna appintment hai.. appintment!”, there is not much else that I remembered of that film.

Yet, the new Agneepath brought back memories of the 1980s, and the angry young man genre that Amitabh lived and thrived on. And while that was good for nostalgia sake, the genre: a) is out of place in today’s age of style and panache, even in thrill, and b) has Amitabh written all over it, whether you like it or not!

That seems to be the movie’s biggest challenge to overcome.

With no decent film releasing in recent times, and with the Hrithik magic, and the Agneepath remake curiosity,  full houses were ensured on the first day, which happened to be a national holiday as well. Whether the initial will convert into reasonable sustenance of a couple of weeks or not, is questionable?

So let’s look at the good parts first.

It is an out and out action film. To the point of saying that it is one of the most violent Hindi films released in recent times. Lots of blood, knives, bullets, punches.. in short, gore. Now, I put this in the good part, and also in the bad, I guess. Good, because as pure action genre, it is power packed. But beyond a point, it gets to be a little much.

Priyanka in her small role, does a good spunky Mumbai chawl, bindaas girl. Like K3G’s Kajol was from Chandni Chowk!

Sanjay Dutt looks a menacing Kancha. Yes, after a long time, a Hindi film has shown a truly villainous look. Compliments to the visualizer of the look.

It is nice to see Rishi Kapoor coming up with a good performances, every now and then. Also good to see him getting nice, meaty roles.

Another old timer, Zarina Wahab is seen on screen after a long time. But her role is miniscule, with not much room to emote!

Katrina Kaif’s Cheekni Chameli had become a hit well before the release of the film. Unlike a lot of other item girls who do not put much energy into their dances, but let the movement of the camera and the glamour of the look (think Deepika in Dum Maro Dum) make it happen for them, one has to grant Katrina full marks for hard work. With a Brit accent, hardly being able to speak decent Hindi, if she has made it to the top today, it is not just because of her looks, but also because of the intense effort she seems to be putting into her work. This song is an example of the same.

My only worry about this song is.. no, my fear in fact.. that this will be played a lot at parties. And I shudder to see socialite women making the moves that Katrina makes in this song. Oh my God!!

Finally, Hrithik is fabulous as an action hero. Quiet, intense, angry.. he brings alive the Amitabh of the 1980s.

So that said, what are the minuses then?

The extreme violence for one. It gets to be too much!

Also that where the storyline is based, is certainly not contemporary, and would not quite qualify as ‘period’. And which is where it hangs in the middle, sort of. We don’t know whether to view it as a ‘now’ story – it isn’t – and whether to view it as historical – which again, it isn’t.

Rauf Lala peddling drugs galore AND doing human flesh trade openly in Mumbai, and the police being aware, but unable to do anything, seemed strange. Unless I have NO idea of what the real Mumbai was / is like?!

Also where the protagonist, the angry man looking for revenge, attempts to get sympathy / understanding from the audience, that he is killing many with his cocaine trade (while he is shown to release the girls from the flesh trade of Rauf Lala) is questionable.

Finally, the way I see it, for a movie that has anger as an undertone throughout, the anger itself is not very visible. The storyline is not developed that well, or the emotions do not come out that strongly, somehow. Unlike say, a Deewar, where Amitabh’s anger is permanent virtually.

So all in all, if you can tolerate oodles of violence, do give it a shot. And if you can’t, then you must totally avoid this one.

Don 2?? Don’t you!!

Posted: December 24, 2011 in Uncategorized
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The dialog goes, “Don ko pakadna mushkil nahin..”

Yes, correct. On the first weekend, at the 7 pm show, the theatre was empty. So yes, it’s not difficult to catch Don 2.

Except nobody wants to!! And with good reason.. word has already got out that Don 2 is avoidable fare. It was my mistake to land up in the theatre, and watch it!!

Some thoughts on this film:

  • When Farhan Akhtar made the first Don, he used Shahrukh Khan as the hero, and Shahrukh was already a ‘senior’ by then; so when few years later, when Farhan makes the sequel, this hero has become even older! And just does not look impressive as the Don!
  • Maybe it was to overcome the age factor that Farhan decided to make SRK ultra thin. It just backfires. He looks like a wimp. Imagine that kind of a weak look, and yet he’s supposed to be taking on hulks in multiple numbers, with his bare hands! Just doesn’t cut. A clenched jaw does not make up for the weak looking body and the short frame!
  • Amitabh as Don was impressive because of the multitude of factors – deep voice, expressive eyes, the angry look, and of course, the height. SRK can’t come close, with his hee-haw, boring and monotonous style.
  • In fact, Priyanka looks far more impressive, including in her fight scenes
  • So Farhan does go all out in terms of the locales and the style and the cinematography. If the world had not become small, and if we were not seeing enough high quality Hollywood movies with similar or better style, this would have been enough to make for a good film
  • However, that is not the case now. Style is what we get in Hollywood flicks. And while it is good to have, it is not adequate to make a film successful. More substance is necessary. Which Don 2 is sadly lacking!
  • The plot itself is weak. An elaborate charade is planned, but just not tightly enough. Too much Bollywood-esque magic ultimately, rather than a well thought out and tight drama. Also at the end, too much of the story, just given as a quick ‘explanation’. When they see so many good Hollywood dramas that pack a ‘keep-you-in-your-seat-staring-at-your-screen’ drama, why can’t they write something equally engaging?! I am surprised..
  • Shahrukh Khan has been an amazingly successful star. But is he all of ONE style? The same hee-haw way of talking? Does he not have range?? I am just getting sick of watching him on screen. Or even watching his reruns on TV. I avoided seeing Ra-one, but somehow got suckered into the theatre for this one. But will think not twice, but 4-5 times before I go for the next SRK flick!!

Overall, Don 2 is a no-no. Avoidable. Don’t waste your time or money. I already did mine.. save yours :)

Walk to the Siddhivinayak Temple

Posted: December 13, 2011 in Uncategorized
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After many years today, we – my wife and me – walked to the Siddhivinayak Temple, from home.

It’s a kind of pilgrimage that many do and have done, and we have done too, but this one was after a while, and with legs and bodies that were not in the prime of fitness. By any means.

I have many friends who run half-marathons and full marathons, and my walk to a temple is trivial, compared to their routine achievements. However there are many other friends who are not into fitness and exercise as much, and neither am I, and due to which reason, this is a small achievement for me, at least!

So why did we do this?

Multiple reasons, I guess..

1. To do the darshan

2. To see if we could still do it. Meaning walk all the way to the temple. We had reckoned that if things really went bad, we’ll take a cab. So we were checking if we could manage without taking one.

3. To pray for the health of a dear friend

4. Finally, so I could come and write this post :-)

So few thoughts from the walk, to share:

1. I had a lot of hesitation about this last night when we were contemplating it. For various reasons. For the doubt whether we could still walk the distance and whether I really wanted to put myself through it. Also because there was enough work to do, and if I had to get up early, I may as well do the work that was piled up.

2. Well, finally I decided to plunge in. There is no end to work. But these opportunities to ‘dance on a chance’ are few. And I went for it.

3. Even so, as we started from Chembur, the vision of Dadar and Prabhadevi, seemed far away. And were almost depressing. If I had stuck to that thought, we’d have taken a cab sooner or later.

4. But I changed focus to smaller goals. Thought in terms of one target at a time. And suddenly it was not that bad. A back of the mind understanding of the larger goal at a distance, but immediate focus on the smaller goal which was not that far away, and always seemed achievable. This worked like a beaut. I guess we can see the metaphor to work and life goals, in this!

5. So these were the smaller targets and the time line that we took:

a. Residence (close to Maitri Park Bus Depot) to end of Chembur (Priyadarshini Bldg):

Start time 4-40 am, reached 5-15 am (35 min)

b. End of Chembur to Sion Circle:

Start time 5-15 am, reach 5-50 am (35 min)

c. Sion Circle to King’s Circle:

Start time 5-50 am, reach 6-15 am (25 min)

d. King’s Circle to start of Tilak Bridge:

Start time 6-15 am, reach 6-35 am (20 min)

e. Tilak Bridge to Portuguese Church:

Start time 6-35 am, reach 7-00 am (25 min)

f. Portuguese Church to Siddivinayak Temple:

Start time 7-00 am, reach 7-10 am (10 min)

Total from home to temple:

Start time 4-40 am, reach 7-10 am (2hr, 30 min).

6. I had carried my phone and ear plugs too, with an idea to catch up on podcasts, etc. I did not use them. I thought it was just great to walk without these disturbances, and observe things and life at that early hour. And spend some me-time. Yes, the wife was walking with me too, and we exchanged some words in between, but mostly we were focused on walking, and  the talking did not go that well with the walking. Observing and thinking was fine! So I observed and I thought.. :)

7. At 4-40 am, you feel quite safe in Mumbai. Perhaps even earlier. Thank God we live in Mumbai!

8. Post monsoons and post pot hole days, the roads in Mumbai are fine. By and large. We walked mostly on the roads, even where there were footpaths. Because with footpaths, every now and there there are the paths to enter buildings, and the footpath goes a little down and a little up, as you walk past it. With a longish walk, you don’t want those ups and downs. You may as well walk on the road, face the traffic and have a smoother walk. (A metaphor again??)

9. There were many patches where it seemed like we were on one of those electronic walkways. Where we were standing and the road moved us ahead. I mean, the exertion was minimum and the momentum took us ahead at a rapid pace. I guess, a lot of times in an entrepreneurial journey, we hit such patches. One has to make the most of these, move rapidly, and cover maximum distance!

10. One could have walked alone. But it is great to have a partner with you. To be with you on the rough patches as well as the smoother ones. To celebrate the intermittent targets reached, and then to be with you, at the destination! As you thank God there, for making it happen! Totally metaphorical, and so true for entrepreneurial journeys as well.. :)

I may add that this walk was also in celebration of another walk that me and my partner have been on, together, for last 23 years. We celebrate our anniversary tomorrow, and I am so glad to have a partner to share similar joys. Be it, of such walks, or to the innumerable movies that I insist on seeing, and which she gamely accompanies me to..

:-)

 

Aapne Thank You Bola Kya?? Are you serious, Retail Employees’ Day?!

Posted: December 12, 2011 in Uncategorized
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So did you guys notice this ad today?

I had to read it twice to understand that it was all serious.

And it was asking us, the paying retail consumers, to say thank you to the retail employees, when we go to shop.

Now I am all for dignity of labour and have nothing in particular against retail employees, but at this rate, next they will have a “PSU Bank Karmachari Diwas” and an “Excise Department Staff Day”, and we’ll have to say thank you and give gifts to them too.

I mean, it is a different thing to have a Doctor’s Day or something like that, but a Retail Employees’ Day, where we, the consumers, need to give them more respect and thank them, is a bit far fetched.. !

I appreciate the few examples given there – a Chotu who delivers tea with a smile, or the Tambi giving you nice steamed idli.

BUT…

a. These are the equivalent of kirana retailers, who perhaps have a stronger sense of customer service,

b. Also examples are often from the hospitality end of retail, rather than the product stores, and

MOST IMPORTANTLY,

c. The real association behind this, is of organized retail. The last place in India that you’d associate with good, friendly service!!

Because we do not have a Nordstrom in India just yet. And until then, without much exception amongst the other retailer brands, what we get is indifference, incompetence, gossipy check out counter clerks who are least interested in you, the customer, and the like.

Yes, I am generalizing to a large extent, but that is because, this is the general experience we have at stores in India!!

I appreciate the motives of TRRAIN, which I hope, include providing better training and getting retail employees to a better level, overall. But that process may have just started. As the process starts, you cannot jump in and demand that respect, on day one!! There’s a long way to go.

I am not clear what the objectives of this campaign are. If these are to show the employees, that TRRAIN is doing something for them, and letting the world know that as employers, they care, that is fine. Then, it is an internal HR exercise, and the outside customers don’t really matter.

If however, it was actually meant for the outside customers to feel like they have been enjoying favors for which they need to be grateful, then they’ve got it all wrong!

EARN THE RESPECT first..

Improve the service levels. Get the real smile on the retail employees’ faces. Let them be really helpful to the customer – not by exception, but by rule. It’s a long way to go. DO all that, and THEN come back to the consumer. And ask for our respect. We will be happy to say ‘Thank you’ and a lot more!

 

The Dirty Picture: about Entertainment, Entertainment, Entertainment

Posted: December 4, 2011 in Uncategorized
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Here’s an uncharacteristic (for me) Short review of The Dirty Picture: certainly brings alive the Silk Smitha days, Vidya Balan’s got an awesome role for herself and she does well (like she did in Ishqiya), certainly there’s a lot of oomph, story could have had some more depth (post interval, story meanders), awesome dialogs right through. Works reasonably well overall, because as the movie itself says, it’s all about Entertainment, Entertainment, Entertainment. Story no matter! One thing that intrigues me though: a lot of (80′s style, landline) telephone dialing is shown. And the phones connect each time. On first attempt. No.. that wasn’t how it was, in the 80s, was it?? :-)

P.S.: I could have used another (bolder) image here, but I am not about to use Silk to ‘sell my blog’.. lol.

 

“Mausam” kharab hone ke kaaran.. this film does not fly!

Posted: September 25, 2011 in Uncategorized
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Mausam is veteran actor Pankaj Kapur’s first directorial venture. 

He has delivered some great work as an actor, on television as well as on cinema. And as per perception, he does appear to be a ‘thinking’ actor. As would be the wont for a serious thespian of his kind, over the years, he may have had a lot of ideas, on the kind of cinema that he’d like to make. If he got a chance..

And then he got that chance. With Mausam.

And he went ahead and put all those ideas into the one and same film! Perhaps not being sure if he’d get a second chance (after seeing Mausam, I do have doubts – maybe he should just stick to acting).

And so we have Mausam where the story moves from and covers:

- Incidents like 1992 Babri Masjid riots, 1993 Mumbai blasts, 1999 Kargil war, 2001 US 9/11 incident, and 2002 Gujarat riots,

- Locations from small town Punjab, to Mumbai, to Scotland, to Switzerland, to Ahmedabad.

All of these are not mentioned in passing, but have a place in the narrative.

You’d think that packing so much into a feature film would make the film a fast paced one, right?

Surprise, surprise!! With so much that Pankaj Kapur covers, he still manages to play the story in crawl mode. Ultra slow..

Yes, the story seems to not be going anywhere often. So sitting in the theatre, I check my mail on the phone, I put out some tweets, check Facebook etc., even as the story is unfolding (well, “not” unfolding in fact…!) on the screen in front of me!

Some of you may want to stop here, if all you wanted was a verdict. Yes, its a clear no-no.

But for what it’s worth, let me share a few more thoughts on the film:

- I love the visuals in the film. Then I look at the credits. And I am not surprised. Binod Pradhan’s an absolute master cinematographer. And he’s done a brilliant job here too. From the visuals of Punjab (the best of the lot) to Scotland and the cement pipes, the camera and the lights have worked their magic.

- Small-town Punjab has been captured well. The prosperity on the one hand, the humor (the ‘musical chairs’ scene is funny), the global connections, the characters like the taangewala, the youth and their options in life, the girl besotted by the handsome neighbor, etc. capture the early 1990s’ Punjab well. We also discover how Atlas Cycles and others have built their fortunes!

- It is also interesting to understand how, in this modern world, in a single lifetime, a person could go through so much. Aayat (Sonam Kapoor) is born and brought up in her early years, in Srinagar. She gets uprooted from there and sent to small town Punjab, for a while. From there to Mumbai, then to Scotland, back to small town Punjab, then again to Scotland, to the US, and then, to Ahmedabad. And by this time, she’s still about 25-26 or so. Wonder what else she has coming up, in her life. While this does not happen to everyone, it is not something that is unbelievable either. This is the kind of world that we live in. Amazing, isn’t it? The kind of extreme swings that life can give, and how one has to keep adopting today.. very interesting!

- I guess it takes an experienced and successful Aditya Chopra or a Raju Hirani to follow their  gut, and stay close to the conviction that they have, about their narrative. All other filmmakers are subject to tremendous insecurity and fear of failure, due to which reason, they include ‘elements’ that are not really connected to the story, but which have commercial appeal. Is that the reason for introducing Scotland / Switzerland in Mausam, for example? Could those locations equally have been Mumbai or Bangalore, otherwise? Why not? But a) the visual appeal of those locations, and b) the Scottish and Swiss Tourism Boards bankrolling some dollars in return for the “product placement” would have found attraction. The dance item a the end of the movie also, had no relevance, but added to appeal to the Shahid fans. You never saw such gimmicks in good films of yore, and directors narrated their stories, and that was it!

- I am sure girls swoon for Shahid, and he looks good, and uniforms do create a special appeal. However, other than some smart dancing (I rank Shahid only next to Hrithik in terms of dancing abilities, on Indian screen today) and cute smiles, there is nothing great about his acting here. There are scenes where he literally acts poor and in others, he is average. Perhaps his father, the director, has also not given him any special histrionics, which could have been a distinct possibility, given that he was the central character, and on screen, perhaps for more than 80% of the time! Rakesh Roshan drew out much better juice from his son’s talent pool, than Pankaj manages to do here.

- Sonam Kapoor has to look pretty, hum a few “haanji / naji” kind of dialogs, giggle a bit, etc. She does all of that. Along with the Kashmiri carpets and the Atlas cycles, she’s part of the furniture on the sets! Her height actually makes her look ungainly in many scenes. Dressed in the typical loose fitting Punjabi salwar kameez, as a student earlier, and and also in the last scene, as a married mother, she looks very funny. I think they have purposely not taken too many side-by-side standing scenes of Sonam and Shahid. Else she’d come out looking taller than him. She does give a perception of being taller, which Shahid obviously has a small frame. Not a great pair, in that sense..

- I did not quite see the relevance of the title, ‘Mausam’. Of course, it is a passage of time. But most stories are. What might have been a better title is “Taalen”. The story if anything, is a story of locked doors!! If you see the film, you will know what I mean… :-)

In summary:

1. Amol Palekar did a terrible job as director of Paheli. Pankaj Kapur falls in the same trap now, with Mausam. Great actors, who when they have got their opportunity to direct a mainstream Hindi cinema with a largish budget, lose their original sensibilities of film making, and go overboard, trying to pack too many things. Also depend a lot on the main sellable actor (Shah Rukh in Paheli, and Shahid here). And end up making a dud. Mausam is a box office cropper. Pankaj will have a tough time finding backers for a second venture.

2. Shahid Kapoor is capable of more and has shown us too. He needs to put more into his work, and choose scripts that suit him better. His overall frame does not make him a convincing senior Air Force officer, no matter he thrown in a moustache there. Walking around inspecting the aircraft makes him look like a mechanic of the aircraft rather than an ace pilot!

3. Sonam Kapoor. Well, she’s fine. She’s not a fantastic actress, so she’s good to be in the glam face on screen kind of roles, make some money, have a good life. Yeah, she’s fine!!

It hurt more as the cinema had raised the ticket prices to 270/-. Was not worth the money. Hope the mausam changes and we get better cinema in coming weeks.. !!

Modern India and the Anna Hazare movement

Posted: August 22, 2011 in Uncategorized
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There are some very interesting aspects of the Anna Hazare movement, in the context of modern India. I add to the tons of material on the subject, with my 2 cents of thought, as below:

1. Modern India is shining:

A party may have lost an election on the India Shining tag line, but we cannot deny the fact that India’s doing well, economically, and the general standard of living has gone up, across the board. People have work, people are busy, people are making money.

So how does that impact this movement?

Well, ordinarily if you are doing good, you have less reasons to complain.

And yet, we have HUGE mobilization of people, from across all sections of society. Reason is that the economic growth has happened IN SPITE of this corrupt government, and not because of it. And as one more mega scam gets exposed after another, there is a sense of detest amongst the people. That with all things going well for us, why is there this pain point in life? And due to which reason, people are protesting.

But at the same time, it is this prosperity that makes the few “intellectuals” give their deep analysis and keep finding the little loop hole here and there. If India was not shining and life was tougher, even these so-called nay sayers would have joined hands in the protest. But sitting pretty, they can afford to do their analysis paralysis!

2. Modern India has Social Media:

Again, this has had dual impact.

The huge mobilization has happened with help of mainstream media, but also because of social media. In fact, mainstream media almost “had” to fall in line. The tendency of our media brands, and especially the English television kind, is to look down upon anything that is even remotely looking like right-wing. This was not. But still the tendency of the media was to keep pointing the “other” side of the story. When they sensed the groundswell, on ground as well as on Social Media, the media vehicles had to fall in line with the popular point of view.

On the other hand, Social Media also makes it easy for the “experts” sitting at home, in front of a PC (or whatever device) to pick the holes. And put out blogs and Facebook updates and what not. NONE of them has given ANY practical solution that I have read so far, but all claim to find issues in the present movement. Luckily, this one time, the groundswell opinion has drowned out the voices of these naysayers, and the movement continues to generate momentum.

3. Modern India is Young:

Not just in this movement, but in society in general, I find people on the other side of 40, being resigned to India’s “fate”, as it may be. I am also on that other side of 40, and there have been times (though rare – I try to find positive things in life, in general) when I have also felt a similar resignation of sorts. But these people I talk about, usually think in terms of ‘politicians will always be like this’, ‘corruption is the way of life’, and stuff of that kind.

These are also the people who felt many years back that we’ll just have to wait 5 years to get a car allotted, or phones will die in monsoons, or that we’ll always have to go with a begging bowl to the IMF.

Well, some things have changed. And others MIGHT. Who knows?

The modern India is young. It has not seen the license raj, except in a film like Guru. For them, it is a piece of fiction. And they are the Jaago Re generation. They don’t take shit. They want things their way. So while the smaller problems they deal with themselves, and get change to happen, when it comes to larger issues like nationwide corruption, they did not know how to bring about change. But in an old man Hazare, they have found a connect. Which is where you see the mass following from the youth, from college students, even from school students. They want the country of their dreams, and this man offers them a hope to get there. And they are willing to follow (Few days back, a lady was sharing the story – someone asked her teenage daughter who her ‘ideal’ was, and instead of the likes of Dhoni or Aamir Khan or an Anand Mahindra, she chose her grandfather; the youth today respect a person, irrespective of age!).

4. Modern India THINKS: 

This is not to say that we did not have thinkers earlier. But in a less connected, less literate, far more rural India of yore, personalities were bigger. The aura of Mrs. G worked just because it was Mrs. G.

Today every Indian has an opinion of his own. Equipped with knowledge and enabled with technology, opinions are shared and can convert to mass thoughts. Personalities will be rejected if they are not convincing in their thoughts. The reputation of journalists is as good as the stand he / she takes, and how well it resonates with the people’s opinions. A Barkha Dutt was soundly rejected when she made her plea in the Radia tapes case. In spite of her reputation. Same goes with a Rajdeep or an Arnab or a Shobha De.

Which also means that there are hundreds of views on a movement of this nature. Whether the approach is right, whether he should blackmail the government, whether the new proposal of the Lokpal bill are adequate, whether there are better ways to making the impact, etc.

The fact is that the issue is not trivial. If you ask for solutions to get World Peace, you think it will be a one-liner that everyone agrees upon? The current problem is not much different in complexity. And which is why, there will be many opinions, on parts or all of the solutions proposed. Also whatever Anna Hazare and his team have proposed is not perfect nor is it a panacea.

So IN SPITE of these holes being found in the proposals, IN SPITE of people not agreeing on everything, the movement has taken shape and has gained momentum. Because he is at least DOING something. And the thinking modern India agrees that while it is not perfect, it is a move in the right direction. It will hopefully stop the southward movement of governing value system, and will give a hope for a bigger change to emerge in time to come. Also as they say in Indian mythology, the current government pot of sins has grossly overflown, and people DEMAND a stop to this.

That is the view of modern India, and which is why it has wholeheartedly supported the movement. In spite of a few differing points of view. Also of course, due to the fact that Anna’s team has been very conscious of getting it right. They have made sure that there is no connection to parties, the people in the forefront are pretty ‘clean’ and in spite of Manish Tewari’s histrionics, there is little to find obvious and apparent fault with. Unlike say, in case of the Baba Ramdev attempt.

We could be witnessing history in the making. The turnaround of the nation. With everything else going for it, as a country, we are also resisting the corruption bugbear! Wow.. I am so excited. If we win this, can ANYTHING stop us as a country, then??

What do you think? I, for one, am in support of Anna Hazare. Salute the man, salute the movement.

One more film, one more boycott..

Posted: August 13, 2011 in Uncategorized
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It’s become fashionable to find faults in a film and protest till the film has to cut scenes (no matter what that does to the story) or have the producer apologize or pay-up! It appears that every other film generates some such reaction, from some part of our country.

Can anyone stop and think that the film is “fiction” after all?! That its a story line, and in a story, you can have positive and negative characters, and positive and negative emotions as well..

Why is it that people freak out, and take all films and film stories so sensitively?

What if this becomes a trend, and extends beyond objections to “Bombay” or about reservations, or about Karnataka…? What if ordinary people also get sensitive to the portrayals on screens?

Imagine the possibilities:

….

1. The ladies outside the theatre were shouting loud slogans. When the TV reporter put a mike in front of them, the leader said, “how can they have such scenes in the film? It is a complete insult to all of us. What will the world think of us?”

As she said these, the other women started shouting in chorus. “Yes, yes, this film must be banned. Down with the film.. “

After a lot of the sloganeering, finally the reporter was able to get the actual, final reason for the protest, from the leader…

“We hear that there are scenes in the film where a mother-in-law is shown mistreating the daughter-in-law. It so damages the reputation of all mothers-in-law. Seeing the film, no daughter-in-law will like to maintain relations with the m-i-l. In fact, they will take the son and walk away to stay separate. This film is having such dangerous connotations. We cannot allow this. They have to cut those scenes, change the story line, or we will not allow this screening… “

…

2. The scene outside Rahul Cinema was very strange. It appeared as if all the black marketeer ticket sellers were gathered outside the cinema, and were selling tickets only at this one theatre.

But wait, they were not really selling tickets.

The tight T-shirts, handkerchief bandana wielding “bhais” also had some posters and banners in their hands. In their typical language, they had the messages out “Is philum ko aapun nahi chalne dega, kya?!” and “Saala, ye philum laga to usko khalllas kar dega, samjha kya..?”

The petite TV reporter looked like a midget in between the bhais. But she managed to get her question in, amidst the loud shouting of “down with the film” that they were doing.

She said, “sir, but why are you asking for the film to be pulled down?”

Bhai: “ae taklya, ye kya bol rayli hai re? usko samjha, ye koi inglis gherao nahi hai. Bhai ke saath bambaiya baat karne ka, kya?!”

She gets it. And attempts “Sir.. ye film aap kyo rukvana chahte ho?”

Bhai: “Rokego hi na, saala.. apun ki bhi koi ijjat hai.. “

He continues: “Is philum me bhai logo ko comediyan jaisa bataya hai.. kya hum log itne ch**iye hai kya? Isko dekhne ke baad public aapun se daregi thodi? Mazak karegi aapunka.. ye pikchar ko to hum bandh karvake hi rahenge.. koi bhi is pikchar ko dekhne jaayega to usko hum khullas kar denge..!”

…

And scenarios of this kind.

What do you think? What will be the next protest?

It’s a little late. But I was thinking I could still protest against Rocket Singh Salesman. As a marketer, it was little insulting.. Maybe I can block the home video release? What say?

Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (ZNMD) is like Dil Chahta Hai (DCH) revisited

Posted: July 19, 2011 in Uncategorized
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  • After a very long time, we went for a movie on Sunday afternoon, and did not find tickets. Not in one theatre, but in two of them, in fact. Ultimately had to get tickets for a later show. That gave me the first indication that this may yet be something special!
  • And indeed, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (ZNMD) turned out to be a fun-filled, refreshing, enjoyable fare, amongst the best releases of the year so far.

  • First let’s get the comparisons with Dil Chahata Hai, out of the way. Yes, DCH was also a Farhan Akhtar film, though he had directed the same. Here it is his production, but his sister is the one who’s directing it. Could the siblings think so alike? Could their creative talents be so similar? Well, maybe. Why not? OR.. Farhan did have a hand in shaping this film , beyond being an actor and a producer?
  • So the resemblance to DCH is uncanny. Its a film about three dudes on a pre-wedding, last bachelor trip (in DCH, they were a little younger and marriage had not crossed their minds just then). To that extent, there’s a shade of Hangover also. So it’s similar to that extent, and yet its different in many ways.
  • I would still rate DCH a notch higher, more from the point of view of it being an iconic film, having just that little extra meat in the story, and the characters of all three protagonists being developed a shade deeper, and all of them going through some turmoil. And hence the story being that much more meaningful.
  • In ZNMD on the other hand, what we have is largely a slice of life. Rest of the mental anguish and other factors, are relatively superficial. The hunt for Dad or ‘is it the right time or person for marriage’ are relatively lesser issues, than what the characters grappled with, in DCH.
  • That apart, ZNMD is still a lot of fun, with a new kind of genre that I discovered recently, namely called “bromancing”. An interesting concept around male bonding, without elements of homosexuality.
  • So this is a bulleted review, rather a few bullets of my thoughts about the film. Here are things that I liked most..
  • I’m in love with Spain. Would so love to do the road trip these guys took. Certainly goes into my travel wish-list. (Travel destination companies – if you have something to flaunt, get folks like Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar interested to make a movie there, and you will not need to do any other form of marketing!)
  • Abhay Deol is not quite the stupid, funny simpleton that Saif was in DCH. But he is the quiet and cooler one of the three, for sure. But he shows he can act. After Sunny, he may yet be the Deol to carry the family name ahead. I also did not realize he was that tall. Or at least they make him appear to be tall enough!
  • We all know that Hrithik is the best dancer around, and all he needs to do is “Just Dance”. And I had heard that Farhan can shake a leg too. But was surprised again, to see Abhay Deol match them step for step. Good fun dance moves, over some decent Spanish style foot tapping music.
  • The philosophical aspects of the story are there. The quest to do some dangerous adventure sports, as per an old college pact, and the resultant overcoming of one’s biggest insecurities, is the underlying message. Works well. Fun to see on screen, the adventure sports are a great backdrop in all respects.
  • Farhan Akhtar has written the dialogues for the film too. And there is a snappiness in them. Quite like the cool conversation that dudes would have these days. And in the dialogues, and on screen, you can see that Farhan has an amazing sense of timing. Is that his guilt that holds him back, even as Hrithik (in the early part of the film) takes jibes at him? Perhaps. You can see him getting a little angry and then stopping short.
  • I don’t know about Kalki. Really, what is it about her that people see? She’s pretty ordinary looking, okay as an actor. So yes, she is just so-so.
  • Katrina on the other hand, is a surprise package here.

  • First of all, the intrigue that one may have felt on seeing the drop of mango drink, Slice, on the sensuous lips of Katrina Kaif, has now been demystified. For Hrithik and the audience. :-)
  • Second of all, Katrina shows that she can act well. She has a good role and she does total justice to it, and I mean way beyond that one kiss.
  • Of course, the film is a lot about Hrithik. Another power packed performance by the perfectionist. Well, they talk about Aamir Khan being the best in the business today. I think they are not giving enough credit then, to Hrithik. He also picks his projects well, and then packs a punch. This one is another fabulous work of his!
  • And finally, I think the piece-de-resistance of the film is its climax. The bull-racing scene. From daring to do that kind of scene, to the emotions that the actors show before and during the run, the fabulous picturization, what it means in life to all of them, it is truly pulsating. It is the kind of finish that leaves you grasping for more, as you get out of your seats and walk out of the cinema house. Totally brilliant.
All in all, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara is a great flick to see. Highly recommended. And just for the locales, the scenes, and that last scene, see it on big screen. A TV will just not do justice to it. And it looks even better from up-close, like we did from row 2. LOL.. thanks to the film playing to a packed house!!
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