Bloga Boo

Dombivli Fast

2006-10-30T17:36:00.000-08:00

October 29, San Jose, California: The California Arts Association (CALAA) had organized the screening of critically acclaimed new marathi movie “Dombivli Fast”. For all marathi arts connoisseurs this was nothing short of a festival. Watching a marathi movie in theatre is a rare event (shooting star) and that too in a foreign country (Halley’s comet)! The houseful turn-out at the theatre underlined this fact. The show started a little after 11 AM. I and a friend were one of the last people to arrive, so had to watch it from the second row. About 200 people filled the small IMC theatre.

I had read/heard a lot about Dombivli Fast in reviews and from friends/family in India. So I had a basic idea of the story. The movie didn’t waste time in establishing the plot. Within the first couple of minutes you could feel the mounting tension in the story, even before the name came on the screen. The story is about a middle class banker named Madhav Apte (Sandeep Kulkarni) living in the over-over-crowded (you have to visit it to believe it!) Mumbai suburb, Dombivli. For the last 15 years, his routine involves catching the crowded morning fast local train to CST (Bank Street of Bombay) and back. He is an upright man who is happy with his honest life in spite of limited income. He is unable to provide a decent education to his children or a comfortable living place for his family, which is a constant source of altercation between him and his wife (Shilpa Tulaskar). The movie shows the frustration of an honest man caught in the web of corruption, deceit and greed of human beings surrounding him. The situations are straight out of life: corrupt water tanker worker demanding bribe for a bucket of water, seemingly moral school principal asking for arbitrary sum of money as “donation”, bank managers violating standard procedures for their people putting common man’s interests at risk, corrupt cops overlooking blatant law violations for petty share, hospitals refusing sick patients for lack of money. We have seen this before, but for the first time it has been depicted so powerfully in a marathi movie. His wife chastises him for being gandhian in beliefs but not in action. The final breakdown of our marathi manus takes place when a shop owner asks more than the M.R.P. price (we never even think twice about it). He smashes his shop with a cricket bat and from thereon begins the crusade of this unusual warrior. He attacks the local corporator, cops, doctor and just about anyone who fails to do his duty. A similar theme was done by Kamal Hassan in “Hindustani”.

The movie packs some powerful performances from the cast. Sandip Kulkarni is outstanding as a common marathi manus. The scene where he vents his frustration on an empty Bombay street and pleads God to take his soul intact in his body is truly poignant. The wife and the cop have played their parts well. The cinematography by Sanjay Jadhav is eye catching, accurately showcasing the bustling Mumbai local train and suburb life. This is possibly the only marathi movie with a sad ending that I have seen. The movie creates a great impact on the audience and you could see people dazed as they walk out of the hall. Finally, full marks to Nishikant Kamat (Story, Direction) for handling a serious topic with élan. The new wave in marathi cinema is definitely something to watch out for!

The movie comes at about the same time when Sanjay Dutt (Lage Raho Munnabhai) is reviving the non-violence attitude dubbed as gandhigiri. It is interesting to watch both these perspectives. No idea can be perfect; you always have to weigh the pros and the cons and make newer, better ideas from old ones. I hope a relevant philosophy emerges that is able to effectively address the problems of post-modern India.

My Rating: Don’t Miss It!

DON'(t) do it !!

2006-10-22T19:53:00.000-07:00

Don ko firse banana, mushkil hi nahi, naamumkin hain…

That would be my advice to Farhan Akhtar (FA) and Javed Akhtar (JA).

==============

Diwali 2005, 11:31 PM, The Akhtar’s Residence. A loud explosion (sutali bomb) heard in the background. FA comes running to JA.

JA: Now son, it’s just a firecracker, you don’t have to be scared!

FA: huh? No, dad, I was just watching AB’s Don on cable tv, you know the one you wrote with salim uncle. Well I just thought of this mind-blowing alternate ending. Can I make it again? Please, please, please. (makes kid faces and prances around JA).

JA: Now son, lets just not get too excited here. Why should you touch a classic like Don?

FA: Ah! I wouldn’t go as far to call it a classic. Hell, Chandra Barot (director, Don 1978) did a lousy job with your ahead-of-the-time script! We could make it a modern day action thriller with explosions, special effects, over-the-top promotions and all that jazz!! Yeahh!!

JA: Hmmm. Sounds interesting son. Lets do it! (Flashes his nike shoes)

FA: Dad! You don’t have to do this offscreen ;) So forget the script. The actor playing don is all that is important.

JA: Bingo!! I can get SRK, he’s the only one who can step into AB’s shoes. The other’s are your call.

FA: Super!! That should guarantee a solid opening and not forgetting his charm at the overseas box-office ;)

JA: But son, having just a different ending won’t justify a remake. What would we tell the media? Fortunately, we have Taran and IndiaFM as our media partners (winks). Though, I ridiculed RGV last week for planning to remake Sholay! Damn, you should have come to me before that.

(Long Pause. Both thinking it over..)

FA: You are right dad. Well I have a plan. Let me get my laptop, I have made some notes (Gets the laptop). The formula is simple. Do everything exactly opposite as in the original don.

JA: Wow son. You are a genius!!

FA: (Shyly) Thanks dad. Chip of the old block, aye. (both laugh, as shabana azmi (SA) enters).

SA: Diwali ke din aap dono kya kar rahe ho?

JA: Far has got this great idea for remaking don, darling. Just finishing the final scripting. Shouldn’t take more than an hour dear.

FA: So, as I was saying. Let’s make it high-tech. I really liked Malaysia on my last trip there. That should a be good location. We can also make it look like an international drug cartel.

JA: Good!

FA: Lets make pran’s character, a computer expert who also steals diamonds when needed.

JA: Why not? That sounds believable.

FA: The movie will be filled with action and stunts. Lets get those crazy Chinese martial arts experts and go wild ;) When in australia for DCH, I did sky-diving. What an experience, it has to be in our new movie.

JA: Aww, all right dear. You can squeeze it in somehow.

FA: Umm, then we can get all these sexy chicks. You know priyanka is doing really well and so is kareena. With some decent wardrobe and sexy moves, they will light up the screen.

SA: (miffed) When will we stop treating actresses as eye-candy in our films?

(FA & JA ignoring her…)

JA: Soon, dear. (whispering to FA) I like that ;)

FA: Lets get my buddies shankar-ehsan-loy for music. They can easily rehash the old tunes using their new jukebox software. Wouldn’t have to pay them much (winks).

JA: Well, most of the things look in place. Let’s start scripting then.

FA: (Yawning) Dad, I am too tired right now. Here’s the DVD. Why don’t you write down the old lines? Don’t forget to make some changes, otherwise..you know (gives a sheepish smile).

JA: Ah don’t worry son. Your dad’s a pro after all!

FA: And yes. Don’t forget to put my name as co-writer. After all, I came up with the new ending :)

(12:30 PM)
==============

Thus, was born SRK’s don, 59 minutes flat. Sorry FA, I just watched the original to see what went wrong. You missed the bull’s eye by miles :( How we wished, you didn’t. You took a good action, entertainer and made a damp squib out of it. I also had a new found respect for AB, after watching SRK hamming his way through the new version. The only good thing about the movie was the twist. But that doesn’t justify spending crores in remaking a boring version, and that too from you FA (after DCH and Lakshya!). Worst, now you have started this crazy remake-the-old-films fad. Don’t know, how many cinematic mutilations will we have to sit through…

My Rating: **

Happy Republic Day + Rang de Basanti

2006-01-29T18:46:00.000-08:00

"Aaj bhi jiska khoon na khaula, khoon nahi wo paani hai

jo desh ke kaam na aaye, wo bekaar jawani hain."

RDB opens with the above lines, striking your conscience straight away and setting the tone for things to come. But what a brilliant cinematic experience it gives. Aamir khan resurrects himself after the independence day debacle (Mangal Pandey) with Rang de Basanti on republic day! And he must gratefully thank rake(y)sh mehra (director), kamlesh pandey (story) and prasoon joshi (dialogues) for giving him this wonderful opportunity. Actually all the cast members should!

So what do I like about this film?

The ending. (I see readers eager to "comment" me out of the blogging world!) No, its not the ending, but the message. And the makers have made a sincere effort to put it across with entertainment and emotion without being too preachy about it. The desire to awaken this "materialistic" generation and make them fight the situation, comes across.

The regural patriotic movie: It is based on the freedom struggle, where you see stories of great courage of heroes dying for India. And right at the end, some central character will curse you for turning it into a gutter. Point taken, but not too seriously.

RDB: It relates the youth of the freedom struggle and today. Bhagat Singh and Co. had an obvious motive: freedom. They were ready to give their lives for it. Whereas today's youth can't seem to fathom the need to correct the whole bleak scenario in our country (leave alone giving up their lives!) Those who can, cross the borders. Those who stay, adjust and become part of the system. RDB tells the story of such a group of youngsters, whose lives take a turn after their friend's death. And inspired by the documentary they are making, they take matters in their own hands. Relating the youth of these two different genarations in seemingly similar state of affairs is the masterstroke of RDB's script.

All the actors have done a marvellous job. Surprisingly its not an aamir khan film (as has been hammered onto us by the media). Its about the group of friends. The film boasts of some of the funniest lines heard in hindi cinema. The characters of DJ (aamir) and Sukhi (sharman) steal the show with their antics. Siddharth and Atul Kulkarni give power packed performances. Kunal Kapoor and Soha Ali Khan are good. The veterans do a good job as expected. Madhavan hams.

The film stands out owing to the technical brilliance of Rakeysh Mehra (Aks fame) and Binod Pradhan. The final product looks great on the big screen. Rahman's music is youthful, backed by some meaningful lyrics. (but I still miss those "telephone dhun mai hasne wali" days :D)

And finally, the ending. Critics have panned it for being outlandish and well, some other cooked up reasons. But let me tell you this, its a 100 times better than your regular grand fight scene at the end or rahul giving up pooja for raj.

Ratings are a must for film reviewing they say.

My rating: go watch it!

Mangal Independence Day!

2005-08-14T17:46:00.000-07:00

"Where history meets proud folklore; there legends are born"

The Rising begins with a screaming kailash kher determined to damage your ears with his agonizing chants of "Mangala Mangala ad infinitum". The song surfaces again and again and .... again as if the audience is going for a record for staying sleepless for the longest duration! As you can see, the songs are a big let down of this "Ballad of Mangal Pandey". And this one being the best of the lot!

The Movie begins with beautiful visuals of some riverbank (i assume ganga) and the deftly recreated barrackpore (great job from nitin desai as usual). Then comes to life the story of the first martyr of India's war of independence. The one paragraph from our history textbook has been stretched to the extreme to give this 3 hr story of Mangal Pandey. Something like when you add water so that 10 people can have a meal on the pavbhaji made for 3 people :D.

Not their fault though, the makers categorically state that the events have been fictionalised blah blah. Those 4 lines in the beginning are oh-so-crucial in this movie.

Nevertheless, Ketan Mehta and Farrukh Dhondy have woven an interesting albeit farfetched story on this lesser known figure. But overall the film fails to impress the audience. And again the songs play the villain's part. Never has rahman disappointed so badly + songs popping at the drop of a hat and slowing the proceedings of an otherwise good movie.

Aamir Khan, after 4 years, 18 months of grown hair and moustache, gavthi built and reportedly 7 crores in his dhoti pocket, brings the martyr alive. Hes the only reason you should see this movie. The work shows on screen and its great to watch this method actor. Toby stephens is first rate, though the hindi dialogues in british accent is a pain to hear after a while. Amisha, Rani are there for reasons known to a select few, sadly none of us is in that elite circle. The rest of the cast is seviceable.

Often touted as india's next big hope for the oscars, the rising fails miserably. To say the least its an ordinary film. Lagaan would be notches ahead from this patriotic affair. Ketan Mehta, famous for his thought provoking movies like Aar ya paar, Oh darling! yeh hai india and Maya Memsaab, puts one more feather in his cap! Though I liked the writers view; he shows mangal pandey being inspired by a prostitute (rani) and an untouchable, who by their scathing comments make pandey to think about his role in the company raj fueling his anger against it.

Also the references of rani laxmibai, tatya tope and other freedom fighters are nicely woven. The archive footage of gandhi and nehru hoisting india's flag after independence, acknowledge mangal pandey as the first martyr of India's freedom struggle.

Freedom... thats what we have taken for granted...more on that conscience-striken blog latter ;)

Happy Independence Day to all my fellow indians and a big thank you to Mr. Mangal Pandey !!

Cinderella Man

2005-06-05T12:03:00.000-07:00

"When America was on its knees, he brought us to our feet."

Cinderella Man opens with legendary boxer Jim J Braddock (Russell Crowe) fighting it out in the boxing ring. The ideal way any boxing movie should start! But this is more than a boxing movie...

Cinderella Man happens to be yet another fine "survival" movie by Ron "Happy Days" Howard (Apollo 13, A beautiful mind). Its such a joy to watch howard's inspiring movies which make you smile when you leave the theatre as opposed to million dollar baby which was sooo depressing.

The story takes place around the times of the great depression when millions of americans were jobless and on the streets. In such times, how one man fights for his survival and gives hope to others. Russell Crowe comes up with yet another studied performance. He plays the "humbling bull" with natural ease. With power packed performances in The Insider, Gladiator, A Beautiful Mind and Cinderella Man, hes way up there. Renee Zellweger does justice to the role of a supportive wife. Paul Giamatti fits the role of the swearing coach Joe Gould to the T. Hes an actor whose an absolute joy to watch. Shouldn't be surprised to see all three nominated for the academy award.

The era of 1920s and 30s is recreated impeccably. But with so much money pumped in the project, we should hardly expect any loose ends. The boxing fights are shot with style and give you more than a ringside view. Especially, the last championship fight between Braddock and Max Baer, which runs for about 30 mins, is shot beautifully. Craig Bierko makes an ideal villain in the face of menacing boxer Max Baer, the guy who killed two men in the ring.

Overall, Cinderella Man is worth a dekho. Critics are already calling it a classic, but critics always see things which we the common people dont. So doesnt matter, make ur own opinion! Some may find it slow at times, but the movie makes up for the lack in pace with some beautiful lines.

"I know these days not everybody gets a second chance. This time around I know what I am fighting for"

Wouldn't want to be ....

2005-03-30T21:36:00.000-08:00

... Sourav Ganguly, the indian (non-playing) captain.

The ignominious defeat against pakistan in the 3rd test match has generated unprecedented hatred for sourav. You can even send him hate mails here! Its hilarious to sample some of the forwards doing the rounds about sourav's recent batting performance :)

~~~~

Just 4 Steps to cook Maggi (Simple and Quick) -
Step 1: boil one cup of water
Step 2: as soon as ganguly goes for batting, put thenoodles in the boiled water and put the tastemaker.
Step 3: stir till ganguly is onfield.
Step 4: As soon as ganguly is back in pavilion, yourmaggi's ready to eat.
~~~~

Superb Puzzle...U can never solve it....Bet...... =))
What is the next number in the series
21, 12, 12, 1, 2, .....

Only Ganguly knows it. Because these are his scores in the Test series !!
~~~~

Tring Tring ...phone rings in the indian dressing room..
Caller: "Can I talk to sourav, i am his wife."
Wright: "O namaste bhabiji, ur husband's just gone out on the pitch to save us from pakistan. I will tell him to call you back after our 'draw' celebrations. is it ok??"
Caller/Wife: "Dont worry about it. I will hold the line."
Wright: :
~~~~

Some 10 year olds form a cricket team. They want a easy game for starters:
"Sourav dada, sourav dada, amchya shi match lava na" :))
~~~~

Sarcasm cannot get any vicious than this. Well, sourav I believe in you and I am sure you gonna comeback with a bang in the one day series.

O no wait, i didnt really mean it...i am from your side, i just wanted to cheer up the poor guy... stop, plz dont hit me... sourav u suck .... HELPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP

Return of the King

2005-03-16T23:19:00.000-08:00

After labourious attempts of overcoming inertia, I have sat down to complete this post. Dunno why, but blogging had just gone out of the system for a while. Still, there were so many occasions and musings which I wanted to appear here. And now they are all gone :( I will try my best to update this place from now on.

When do you realise you havent blogged for a long time:

obvious ->

- u forget blogger's username, password.

- friends say they are sick of reading "geet gata hoon main ...." (sorry ND ;)

- friends send notices on yahoogroup, some threatning enough :-ss (dont put an X on me dw!)

not-so-obvious ->

- ur girlfriend tells u, shes finding hard to understand and communicate with the inner u (???)

So whats been happening lately:

- had a gr8 india trip, met lotsa people, ate a lot, roamed a lot, caught up with old friends and places.

- moved to a new appartment overcoming domestic turmoil though its a good one.

- u know, how you want this list to go on, but thats all i can think of right now :D

Saw musafir after a long wait. Sometimes I wonder whether sanjay dutt is a fulltime bhai or what? Hes got all that figured out. The movie was very stylish as expected from sanjay "kaante" gupta, though the ending was a let down. Anil kapoor looked like a fag and Billa took the cake.

"Aadmi musafir hota hain hero, aata hain, jaata hain..tere jaaneka time aa gaya ..."

mere bhi :P

2004-12-30T02:37:00.000-08:00

Geet gata hoon main,
Gungunata hoon main,
Maine hasne ka vaada kiya tha kabhi,
Isliye aab sada muskurata hoon main .

Swades ...

2004-12-24T21:19:00.000-08:00

India ticket : $1165

India shopping : $523.50

The look on their faces when they see you after a year : Priceless

Mera des, Meri mitti ..... Main aa raha hoon .....

Musafir

2004-11-24T16:21:00.000-08:00

Zindagi main koi kabhi aaye na rabba,

aaye jo koi to fir jaaye na rabba,

dene ho 'gar mujhe baad main aaso,

to pehle koi hasaye na rabba ....

Dunno why I like this song from the upcoming movie Musafir.

But it just seems so right !

American Diwali

2004-11-19T20:43:00.000-08:00

It’s been awhile since I wrote anything and gave way to my thoughts. Was trying to study, but sometimes 3D projective geometry ain’t good enough to keep you interested over 49 seconds. So, what’s been happening since my last post? Not as if anybody cares, o well maybe some of you do :). There was a reallllly long pause before I wrote this sentence, nothing worth mentioning to the rest of the world it seems. O yes, had this fun ISA Diwali party last week. Desi parties are so much fun compared to sitting in a pub and sipping on a $4 vodka and listen goras harping on inane issues like election and the war. So glad atleast the first one is over, phew!
The party was neatly organized compared to the resources and time students have here. It started of with the hosts, some desi and some ABCD (has this acronym entered the dictionary yet?), espousing on the significance and history of the festival. The gist: “Diwali is the festival of lights, when ram (yeah its not rama) returned home blah blah, biggest festival in India, I love it too??!!??, more blah” With that “small” talk began the event with a dance performed by another 4 ABCDs, which was nicely done. It was followed by a medley of songs. I guess the singers got so excited that they began singing songs impromptu, which they hadn’t rehearsed. It went on for exactly 34 minutes !! Its funny how short it takes for the audience response to change from a thunderous applause to “ek,don,teen,char..band karo ye atyachar!!” Then came the prize distribution of the ISA sports events. I collected 2 trophies in table tennis, but my friends wouldn’t let me get on the stage, causing an unscheduled halt in the proceedings.
Finally, the time came to hit the dance floor \:d/. The DJ played some foot tapping music and within minutes the dance floor came alive. Its really fun to watch a bunch of Indians dancing, especially if its ursher’s “its getting hot in here” ;) No offense, but we guys can come up with some really wacko dance steps. To add to it, the facial expressions make it fun to watch too, though sometimes I was confused if the guys are in real pain or something ;) Some guys just don’t care what they are doing; they close their eyes and start shaking every possible part of their body (not literally). It’s said, dance like no ones watching, not, dance without watching anyone! Girls are a different breed of dancers altogether. They dance as in giving a performance. They will all gather up in a circle and have these intricate steps. Well, some of us were impressed, though a suggestion, its not a drill !
Some conclusions: 1- Nothing can beat bhangda with respect to the sheer energy and ability to get even the dullest person to get dancing. Its awesome fun to watch that bespectacled guy from the fluids lab explaining to you the fundamentals of fluid flow few minutes ago, doing balle balle on daler mehndi ! 2- Don’t try bhangda when a bunch of sardars are next to you. You will end up looking like a jackass. 3- Beware when you are dancing and when you are falling! There is a thin line between them. Overall the party was fun, though missed home and the entire diwali atmosphere. Diwali is just not complete without “the fullbajis, the laxmi bombs, the sutali bombs” and such assorted firecrackers. But guess, this is how all my diwalis would be for some years now. So I enjoyed it thoroughly :)

Balle Balle, ASU vs UCLA

2004-10-24T14:56:00.000-07:00

Date: October 23, 2004
Time: 12:30 pm
Venue: Sun Devil Stadium, ASU

The first american football game I saw turned out to be an exciting affair. It was the seasons first game against UCLA and it went "right down to the wire" as Harsha Bhogle would put it ! The International Students Association is very concerned about our feelings and hence to cheer us up, it had distributed 200 free tickets. As you would imagine 198 were scooped up by desis on day one. How do i know? Well, the 2 chinese guys were sitting next to me.
We entered the stadium at around noon and soon realised the importance of caps,hats,goggles,suntan,water,shorts etc etc. Now I know, why they call it the "sun devil" stadium. Anyway, our assigned seats were far at the top and after futile attempts of being "honest", we crashed into the nearest seats after the huge climb. Within minutes, I was wondering whether I was really in US, cause all the seats around us were now occupied by desis ;) (ofcourse not to forget our chini bhai bhai). So now we had a bunch of "desi devils", as we called us, cheering for the home team. The amrus looked at us appreciatingly.
The game began with the ASU band playing some cacophonous tunes or maybe it was just me who was trying to identify some song in them. Then came the national anthem and I was trying to remember what came after "vindhya himachal yamuna ganga" ... After all the american fanfare, the game began. The players looked more like gladiators ready to draw blood. The UCLA supporters were in sizeable number in there dull blue shirts (hey, thats a genuine color ok.), while ASUites were in M&G (maroon and gold).
So far so good. But why would you watch a japanese movie, if you cant understand it? Atleast you would look for a subtitled print. So I gave my friend a bored look and he jumped at the chance of showing of his knowledge of this game. Its quite interesting actually once you get the hang of it (thats paradoxical, cause you wud get the hang of it, only if its interesting !). Anyho, i watched the game with this new enlightened perspective and slowly got involved in it. I was surprised to see myself worried when we were almost sure to lose and elated to have finally won !! Yes, it was a close match, us winning by 48-42. Since, I am no expert in the game, I will refrain from making any "expert comments" about the game as such. But some observations :D
The game is nothing like the football we know and the name is a misnomer. You can easily see its been refashioned for the TV audience and can be classified as "sports entertainment". Gimmicks like background music(!), firecrackers after every ASU touch down, the noise-o-meter (where people in the stadium shout and cause the needle on the screen to jump, I seriously believe its fake ;), cheer leaders ofcourse, sparky (ASU's mascot) doing push ups equal to the score after each quarter, the band etc made it more of a live entertainment event, rather than some serious sport. Though it was nothing but serious, what with so much money being put into it by the big sponsors.

Still, some of the new desis were not so impressed. "Abe kitni baar rukte hain ye log" (dude, you watch cricket for 5 days with nothing happening at all for most of the time, that too with no result at the end !! but thats ok, cricket is cricket yaar ;). I was amazed by this guy's knowledge about the game. He was like explaining some of the very finer points of the game, which I doubt even the makers of the game had in mind ! He rattled about the rose bowl, orange bowl, the national championship, current favourite teams, ASU's chances, player performances, the mistakes we made, how we can improve, global terrorism (no that was yesterday) etc etc, till my brain couldn't make out the words from their sounds. But it was futile to stop him cause by now he had rapt attention of all the desis around him, who yearned to "talk" about the game like him and wouldn't miss this chance in hell to get some expert comments and details.
So the desi devils had their fun...we yelled and screamed, we cheered our team till our throats couldnt take it anymore, we did the mandatory photo shoot to tell our loved ones what we did on october 23rd and like that we left the stadium at 4:30. 3 hours of my life spent in watching my first football game (why am I giving it so much importance ??? dunno, mundane lives, mundane things maybe.)
And now we were hungry as wolves. oye papa da dhaba pass he to hain ;)) So some more discussion on other mundane issues like monday's exam and tuesday's project over papa's hot pizza. Bas life was fun on saturday :)

Presidential debate at ASU

2004-10-13T19:53:00.000-07:00

Just saw the presidential debate live outside ASU's memorial union. was quite an experience, so thought of writing it down real quick.

The atmosphere was charged with supporters of both men doing their bit to help their candidate win. But it was more of a fight to get themselves on TV. What with all the leading networks like CNN,CBS,NBC.. covering the debate, you wouldnt find a better chance to get your 2 minutes of fame! Most remarkable was this fight at the fag end of the debate, when all were bored with the same old statements and policies. 2,3 fellas from each side started arguing and shouting in the middle of the crowd about how the opposing candidate was a monster and electing him would be nothing less than supporting terrorism ! No wonder, the guys were surrounded by cameras and flashing bulbs in seconds.
And then there was this short guy, wearing a blazer and tie, an ordinary bloke ....god knows what got to him...started shouting " Kerry is a henchman " ......... ?? ok, whatever.
Not to forget the group of blondes wearing t-shirts that read " Shave Your Bush " ;))

Overall, it was a nice place to chill and have fun. The pleasant evening weather just made it purrfect. And how to forget the band of desis, trying to be one of the crowd and debating on the "issues" in hindi, marathi, tamil, telugu ...
Desi1: "yaar, kerry nahi aana chahiye. apni to vaat lag jayegi :( "
Desi2: " yes, yes .... maaan, is that chick wearing nothing ???? "

So there, the debate was fun. No matter whoever wins, i gotta get this stupid assignment done by tonite :((

laterz

Alfred Hitchcock Presents ..

2004-08-11T11:45:00.000-07:00

Its frustrating when you think of something ineteresting and dont have the time or energy or enthu to put it on the web. Well, having said that, I am not sure what to write in this post :) ..I have something on my mind which may sound "interesting" to me, but not to everyone or anyone!

O well, I read an interesting story in the book "Hitchcock" last night, which kind of
relates to my dilemma here.

So... there was this writer hitchcock knew of. He thought of great story ideas in the middle of
the night. But he couldnt remember anything when he woke up (but he could still tell that he
had great idea last night! ok read on..) So he decides to keep a pen and paper by his bedside and write down whatever he thought of in the middle of the night. The trick worked...and he scribbled something, half asleep, one night. So the great movie idea was on paper atlast!

The next morning, as he woke up, it struck him that he had a great idea AGAIN! last night
and started cursing himself for not remembering about his ticket to fame. But his frown
turned into a smile the moment he remembered of the pen and paper.So he walked to his table by the bed with excitement, to check out what the next big thing in hollywood would be...After reading the idea, his smile couldnt mask his embarrasment. The paper read:

" Boy meets Girl !"

Moral of the story: Things may not be as fascinating in broad daylight as they are in the middle of the night.

Come on..its just a blog...dont have to think that much before you type...its not like you are competiting for the booker prize or wooing any movie producer.

Well...

Meanings

2004-08-04T14:35:00.000-07:00

Standing for what you believe in, Regardless of the odds against you, And the pressure that tears at your resistance, ...... means Courage.

Keeping a smile on your face, When inside you feel like dying, For the sake of supporting others, ...... means Strength.

Stopping at nothing, And doing what's in your heart, You know is right, .... means Determination.

Doing more than is expected, To make another's life a little more bearable, Without uttering a single complaint, ..... means Compassion.

Holding your head high, And being the best you know you can be, When life seems to fall apart at your feet, Facing each difficulty with the confidence, That time will bring you better tomorrows, And never giving up ...... means Confidence.

To the question of your life, You are the only Answer, To the problems of your life, You are the only Solution.

- Anonymous

Pulp Fiction

2004-07-28T14:55:00.000-07:00

PULP (pulp) n.
1. A soft, moist, shapeless mass or matter.
2. A magazine or book containing lurid subject matter and being characteristically printed on rough, unfinished paper.

American Heritage Dictionary
New College Edition

Widely described as a cult hollywood movie of all time, Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction, explores novel ideas in film direction, editing and dialogue. The hallmark of the movie is the non-linear story telling, with three storied intertwined in each other leading to a great climax. Its a movie about gangsters, guns, drugs, thieves and all about talking. The characters played by actors like Samuel L Jackson, John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Bruce Willis, Ving Thames, Christopher Walken and QT are too good. They do justice to the dialogues and the story.

My favorite lines this time :)


(Uma Turman and John Travolta in JackRabbit Slim's, the diner)

MIA: Don't you hate that?

VINCENT: What?

MIA: Uncomfortable silences. Why do we feel it's necessary to yak about bullshit in order to be comfortable?

VINCENT: I don't know.

MIA: That's when you know you found somebody special. When you can just shut the fuck up for a minute, and comfortably share silence.

VINCENT: I don't think we're there yet. But don't feel bad, we just met each other.

(Sam, John n QT in QT's house)

JIMMIE:-- don't fuckin' Jimmie me, man, I can't be Jimmied.

See and hear it, to enjoy.

---Abhay---

2004-07-26T15:51:00.000-07:00

Movies imitate life. Or is it the opposite?

Movies are an extension of what a person feels or experiences in his life. It’s a story the writer, director wants to tell us through the visual medium. But are movies an exact reflection of reality? Of course not. They are “juiced” up in the process of commercialization for “more” entertainment. So we see dancing around trees, melodramatic dialogues, stupid love stories, mind blowing action and what not.
Its all based on the foundation of reality with a whole lot of wild imagination of some homo sapiens !!

But some people also want their lives to imitate that in the movies. That’s the magic of escapist cinema. People are tired of their day-to-day mundane existence. They need some spice in their life. So what do you do? You try to add excitement in life. You try to create situations: you pick up a fight? You try falling in love? You try to imitate your favorite actor?

So my question is: is it really what you want? Is it the way you should be leading your life “normally” ?
Well, I don’t know. But its sure is fun ;)

(Statutory Warning: Too much thinking could be injurious to health !)

I, Robot

2004-07-21T12:08:00.000-07:00

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
2. A robot must obey orders given it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

-Isaac Asimov

4- Laws are meant to be broken

- Will Smith(producer), Alex Proyas(director), Jeff Vintar and Akiva Goldsman(story)

Only if you keep the 4th law firmly in your mind, can you make some sense of this sci-fi shit.

The Plot:

Set in 2035 chicago, the story kicks of with the suicide of Dr. Alfred Lanning (James Cromwell), leading roboticist of US Robotics and creator of NS-5, a next generation personal robot. Did i say suicide, oh that would make a lame movie :) So detective Del Spooner (Will Smith, the fresh prince) is assigned this case and being a robot-hater he immediately puts 2 and 2 together to charge Sonny (voice by Alan Tudyk), a NS-5, with the murder. Inspite of claims of innocence by Dr. Susan Calvin (Bridget Moynahan), the robot psychologist(!), Spooner is assured that the three laws are bull shit. But why does he hate these helpful mechanical creatures??Cause one of them had saved his life in the past!! He says, robots dont have heart. huh? some people are difficult to argue with ;)

So the chase begins...
The fight scene on the freeway is outlandish to say the least, what with army of NS-5s attacking spooner's car, the car spinning at 150 mph and hitting the wall. Since, will played Ali in the previous movie, he survives the fatal crash??.
Anyway, we also realise that spooner has a metallic left hand. interesting.The robot is charged with murder. very interesting.

Meanwhile, sonny shows a range of emotions that would put a seasoned operra actor to shame.
Now, Spooner is really into the sherlock mode. So armed with clues like hansel and gretel, bread crums and the very cryptic hologram by the dead guy, he realises that the evil robots want to take over humanity. The perpetrator of crime, is an AI bot outrageously named as VIKI. I take offence to that name cause she was all of ours favourite little "small wonder" !

Anyway, so the predictable climax takes place, with spooner shooting randomly infront of a blue screen and the sfx people deftly making the robots blow up on the screen. exciting.
Also the lady doctor and sonny play an important role in this epic battle between man vs machine.

Why to watch?
for women: you get to see will smith's ass !
for men: you get to see bridget moynahan's silhouette in the shower (damn!!)
Though its worth a watch, if you have nothing to do on a weekend and ready for anything!Will smith's timing is amazing as usual. Ah! those were gr8 days back in bel air. Why is he wasting his time with "serious" movies like Ali n I,Robot?? O well I know why..
'I, Robot' tops box office with $52.2 million weekend hmm...makes sense.

Why not to watch?
If you are a purist and cant stand bull shit thrown at you.

For more about the movie and the original writer check out: http://www.asimovonline.com

This is part of a series of reviews to be published.
Keep reading and commenting at this space for more !!!

------ABHAY------

Death, Movies and the Song

2004-07-16T11:26:00.000-07:00

They say your whole life passes infront of your eyes when you breath your last. I wouldn't know, but I cant imagine what exactly would I like to see before I go. My school days back home, hostel fun in pune, my histrionics on stage, the amazing times in tempe or the times to come, better or worse! It would be probably like a hazy dream. I just hope its not a nightmare!

To give a rough idea about how we exactly go about visualising a period of time, consider the ending scene in American Beauty where Kevin Spacey gets shot. Hes smiling and before he dies he sees his life, which we see as a collection of scenes in quick succession. Thats the beauty of movies, we can see what we cant usually.

Or like Aamir's dream sequence in DCH...the director actually wants us to see what hes thinking, and its done as a fast sequence, just as we might think in a minute.

But my favourite is a scene in Notting Hill, where Hugh Grant is walking on the street towards his shop. To show a considerable lapse of time, we see seasons changing quickly from summer to spring, from snow to sunshine. At the start you see a pregnant woman and at the end of the scene you see her holding her baby. And the whole scene is set on a beautiful background song:

Ain't no sunshine when she's gone
It's not warm when she's away
Ain't no sunshine when she's gone
And she always gone too long anytime she goes away
Wonder this time where she's gone
Wonder if she's gone to stay
Ain't no sunshine when she's gone
And this house just ain't no home
Anytime she goes away

Great Scene.

And thats all I have to say about that.

What is love?

2004-07-15T10:08:00.000-07:00

Well Anish, your latest blog IV had me thinking about this pointless question. Pointless, 'cause, you cannot put in words whats a "feeling". You have to experience it to understand. Cliche !

You see we have been brought up on a full course diet of romantic hindi movies. The chopras and the johars have laid down some rules and explored all possible theories on love. Which are fair enough. Ofcourse, it wouldnt make any sense if we did some reality check. But the feeling remains, whether a movie or reality.
I know after DDLJ, it was an "in" thing to have a theres-no-such-thing-called-love attitude, thanks to SRK. See, i dont blame you here :p

what is love anyways? is it compatibilty? is it intimacy? is it passion?
All of it! Its like a complicated chemistry practical, at the end of which you do not remember what chemicals you put in. The "precipitate" is either happiness or heart break.
Wow! thats quite a definition ;)

About the commercialisation of love, its not the geniuses at hallmark or archies, but its common people like her and him and also that crazy guy in 11th std. who gave roses and chocolates to every second girl out of the parking lot !! They chose to do it that way. Love is not about a dozen roses, a box of chocolates, diamond rings, i-love-you cards, some ribbons, the sun, the moon the stars; its just a feeling, thats what it is...nothing more nothing less. Sometimes its a strength, though sometimes a weakness. Some people understand it, some take advantage of it ! Love is what you want it to be.
I guess its worth more than 2 paisas ??
The blog would be incomplete without our favourite song from that hilarious movie:

What is love ?
Baby don't hurt me
Don't hurt me no more
Baby don't hurt me
Don't hurt me no more
What is love ?
Yeah

My best wishes to your high school buddy.

Why am I doing this ?

2004-07-09T15:03:00.000-07:00

Why should I spend time writing in pathetic detail about what I think, feel, did, want-to-do .... Whos gonna read it? Whats the whole purpose of this futile exercise?
I know each one of you bloggers must be put off by my caviler attitude, but I cannot do something unless its totally justified.
Who cares?? some may say..we were never goin to read ur piece anyway...ok.
While, some of the inquisitive amongst you might be pondering over the question..

Fun,freedom and means of expression,boredom,communicating with the world,my friend has it-so must i !! The reasons are varied, but the purpose is the same - to give others a piece of our mind (pun intended ;).

Or maybe we want the world to remember us when we are gone ?!!? Its a way human beings have been passing on history for generations.
Eqyptians drew pictures, so did most of the civilizations around the world. Maybe, the electronic format is a way for today's human beings what the eqyptians did long time back !? These personal notes are depicting what someone, somewhere felt or experienced. They also give a glimpse of the kind of events and scenarios present at that particular time.

Suddenly, i realise its not totally futile ! Maybe, we all are playing a small part in a big picture we cannot see !! Maybe, what I am doing right now has a purpose after all !!!

As Neo would say, " ..Because I choose to.." ... so do I.

Then again, some may say...what a load of BS !!

Comments are required !

Blog Debut ...

2004-07-08T14:06:00.000-07:00

Stats:

Name: Abhay Paranjape
Date: July 8, 2004
Time: 1407 hrs
Location: Math Testing Center, ASU, Tempe, AZ, US

Thoughts and Time are a deadly combination, if you have both of them you can conquer the world.
Me, I have both, but I will "blog" you instead :)

Note of Thanks:
for Prajakta for introducing me to blogspot. I hope this will keep me occupied for a while !!

More Laterz..