The whole country cried with Mumbai during the terror strike from 26th - 28th November and they now stand united in their war against terror and power politics. What we saw last week was really ruthless and painful.
What followed is the resignation of few leaders at the centre and the opposition party trying to mould the situation in their favour for the upcoming general elections.
Can't we stand united as a nation at least during such a terrible situation?
December 03, 2008
November 17, 2008
Review - Dasvidaniya, AvakayBiryani
It was a busy weekend for me now that I have started looking for actors to act in my trailer and also somehow managed to watch two films - Dasvidaniya (Hindi) and AvakayBiryani (Telugu).
Dasvidaniya is a decent attempt to make a low budget film. Vinay Pathak (Amar Kaul) is the only face that stands out in this 2 hour filck. He acted really well, especially in the dumb charades scene where he expresses his love to Neha Dhupia in rain and also in the scene where he leaves Rajat Kapoor's (Vinay's friend in the movie) house at mid-night after overhearing Rajat's and his wife's conversation.
Neha Dhupia (Vinay's childhood friend) does not have a role to talk about - a blink and miss kind of role - and the director could have used anybody for that matter. The movie lacks in pace and you might sometimes also get a feeling of boredom. Kailash Kher's music is an asset to the film. Especially the first one and the Alvida song. The lyrics are pretty decent and hold your attention throughout.
Rajat Kapoor and Gaurav Gera (Vinay's brother in the film) have played their parts really well. On the whole, it is Vinay who carries the film on his shoulders.
AvakayBiryani, I must say, is a very slow movie. he director tried very hard to push the technical aspects of the film much more than he did to engage the audience at a stretch. The story revolves around Akbar (Kamal Kamaraju), an auto driver and Lakshmi (Bindu Madhavi), who sells avakayi (Pickle) in Vikarabad. The film also touches upon communal harmony and few rural issues. The plot could have been handled better. Cinematography by Shyam is good and music by Manikanth Kadri is average except for one song.
Kamal Kamaraju was good as Akbar, but Bindu Madhavi needs to improve a lot on her expressions. On the whole, AvakayBiryani might give a feel of telefilms aired on Doordarshan, but with good cinematography.
Dasvidaniya is a decent attempt to make a low budget film. Vinay Pathak (Amar Kaul) is the only face that stands out in this 2 hour filck. He acted really well, especially in the dumb charades scene where he expresses his love to Neha Dhupia in rain and also in the scene where he leaves Rajat Kapoor's (Vinay's friend in the movie) house at mid-night after overhearing Rajat's and his wife's conversation.
Neha Dhupia (Vinay's childhood friend) does not have a role to talk about - a blink and miss kind of role - and the director could have used anybody for that matter. The movie lacks in pace and you might sometimes also get a feeling of boredom. Kailash Kher's music is an asset to the film. Especially the first one and the Alvida song. The lyrics are pretty decent and hold your attention throughout.
Rajat Kapoor and Gaurav Gera (Vinay's brother in the film) have played their parts really well. On the whole, it is Vinay who carries the film on his shoulders.
AvakayBiryani, I must say, is a very slow movie. he director tried very hard to push the technical aspects of the film much more than he did to engage the audience at a stretch. The story revolves around Akbar (Kamal Kamaraju), an auto driver and Lakshmi (Bindu Madhavi), who sells avakayi (Pickle) in Vikarabad. The film also touches upon communal harmony and few rural issues. The plot could have been handled better. Cinematography by Shyam is good and music by Manikanth Kadri is average except for one song.
Kamal Kamaraju was good as Akbar, but Bindu Madhavi needs to improve a lot on her expressions. On the whole, AvakayBiryani might give a feel of telefilms aired on Doordarshan, but with good cinematography.
October 17, 2008
Mysterial Myth
Long long time ago.... someone used to write on this page - a spirited being, an awakened soul (?) - that it (read a person) created for itself to vent its opinions and feelings. People say the spirit has died down because it vanished all of a sudden after making few solemnly rare appearances for sometime. Now, nobody knows what the truth is or where the spirit has gone? Some call it the mysterial myth!
August 29, 2008
'Unpredictably life'
I was just wondering how life changes at every stage in life. Priorities change with passing time and more interestingly, you stop feeling bad about them (it) after a certain period of time. That is may be because you forget about it or get used to it.
Things which mattered to you a lot, now seem silly or at the least not so important that you could once break your silence for. I would rather say 'unpredictably life', if I have the liberty to consider life an adjective.
Needless to say more
Things which mattered to you a lot, now seem silly or at the least not so important that you could once break your silence for. I would rather say 'unpredictably life', if I have the liberty to consider life an adjective.
Needless to say more
July 03, 2008
So long ago...
...this blog used to be active and it has almost died down now. I cannot give any reasons as to why it took me so (soooo) long to come up with another post because there aren't any as such. Moreover, I was not at my writing best all this while, and I also had other things that preoccupied my mind and time! So many things have happened during this period that I may end up writing pages on it.
I will not make any promises as such again, but will definitely try to write something once in a while.
Have a look at this article which is really interesting and which deliberately projects the changing face of the Indian youth.
I will not make any promises as such again, but will definitely try to write something once in a while.
Have a look at this article which is really interesting and which deliberately projects the changing face of the Indian youth.
January 04, 2008
A Day Out : Part-II
We ran till the end of the road and finally found an autorickshaw. We told the driver in Hindi that we had lost the bag and need to chase the bus. When he didn't understand, I enacted the same to him as I spoke in Telugu. I showed him the bag and said that we forgot the bag in the bus and motioned my hand as if to show that the bus had left and we need to chase it. All this explanation lasted for a minute and the next minute we were in his auto racing in the 5E route (he said he knew the route) as he tried to show off his driving skills. After some time, I felt as if he was just running the auto all over the city just to make money. I might have asked him nearly three or four times if he really knew the route.
He stopped the auto at the intersection of three roads and said that the bus will have to pass through this junction and that there's no way it could have already left. Actually, what I understood from his Tamil conversation was that the road is like a rectangle, of which we had covered one side and came to a vertex and the bus had to travel the remaining three sides and come to that vertex (junction). So, logically we should have arrived first. He also said that if there was any problem we can go to the Vadapalani depot, which was the last stop and collect the bag.
We waited for the bus for nearly 20 mins. and still there was no sign of it. All the other auto drivers and people from a nearby tea-stall started discussing and consoling us. The tension in the air was mounting and my pulse was building at a fast pace. I asked my cousin to wait there with the remaining crowd, while I went with the auto driver in the opposite direction. We started reading every bus number that came in our way. After 5 mins., we saw the 5E bus in the middle of the main road. The driver slowed down his auto, butI didn't even wait for him to stop it. I jumped out and ran towards the bus and stood in the middle of the busy road waving at the bus driver asking him to stop the bus.
Stop!!!
He gave me a puzzled look as I walked briskly towards the door. I started looking for the lady through the windows. It was a great relief to see her sitting by the side of the window, holding my bag.
My bag...
She handed it over to me with a broad smile. I felt as if God himself was smiling at me. I checked the bag to see if the cam was still there, and yes it was there. We took the same auto and went to AshokNagar to an Uncle's place. We paid the auto-driver a hefty 200 bucks and thanked him.
The fun does not end here.
After spending some time at their house, we started for Koyembedu bus depot, where we were supposed to catch our bus back to Hyderabad. The auto driver whose auto we took, didn't know where exactly to drop us. He took us to the wrong bus stand which was nearly half-a-kilometre away from this place. We came on the road and asked a few people about the departure point of APSRTC buses and were shown a long road which leads to the actual bus-depot. My watch showed 7:54p.M. and the bus was at 8:00P.M. We had only 6mins. to catch the bus and that too we didn't know the route. We looked at each other.
Run!!! again....
We ran madly in that direction, puffing and panting. Were it any Asian or Olympic games, we would have definitely won a silver/bronze if not gold. :D.
2mins. were left and we were still searching for the 2020 service number. We asked a bus conductor about the APSRTC bay location and he pointed to the far end of the bay we were standing in.
Run... (What's happening???)
We ran as if it were the last day of our lives and as if we were asked to run to save ourselves - The more we ran, the more our life-span would increase in minutes!!! :-P We saw a bus that had just started and showed our ticket to its conductor.
Me: Number 2020 (still gasping for breath)
Him: This is 2020. And we are just leaving.
Me: Thank God!!!!!!!!!!!!
Him: You should have come early. What if we had already left?
(Now, that's what I call it- Free advice!!!) :D
We were so tired and so terribly out of breath that we didn't even feel like saying anything to him. We then bought some bread and biscuits, that could make up for our dinner, got into the bus and had a hearty laughter.
He stopped the auto at the intersection of three roads and said that the bus will have to pass through this junction and that there's no way it could have already left. Actually, what I understood from his Tamil conversation was that the road is like a rectangle, of which we had covered one side and came to a vertex and the bus had to travel the remaining three sides and come to that vertex (junction). So, logically we should have arrived first. He also said that if there was any problem we can go to the Vadapalani depot, which was the last stop and collect the bag.
We waited for the bus for nearly 20 mins. and still there was no sign of it. All the other auto drivers and people from a nearby tea-stall started discussing and consoling us. The tension in the air was mounting and my pulse was building at a fast pace. I asked my cousin to wait there with the remaining crowd, while I went with the auto driver in the opposite direction. We started reading every bus number that came in our way. After 5 mins., we saw the 5E bus in the middle of the main road. The driver slowed down his auto, butI didn't even wait for him to stop it. I jumped out and ran towards the bus and stood in the middle of the busy road waving at the bus driver asking him to stop the bus.
Stop!!!
He gave me a puzzled look as I walked briskly towards the door. I started looking for the lady through the windows. It was a great relief to see her sitting by the side of the window, holding my bag.
My bag...
She handed it over to me with a broad smile. I felt as if God himself was smiling at me. I checked the bag to see if the cam was still there, and yes it was there. We took the same auto and went to AshokNagar to an Uncle's place. We paid the auto-driver a hefty 200 bucks and thanked him.
The fun does not end here.
After spending some time at their house, we started for Koyembedu bus depot, where we were supposed to catch our bus back to Hyderabad. The auto driver whose auto we took, didn't know where exactly to drop us. He took us to the wrong bus stand which was nearly half-a-kilometre away from this place. We came on the road and asked a few people about the departure point of APSRTC buses and were shown a long road which leads to the actual bus-depot. My watch showed 7:54p.M. and the bus was at 8:00P.M. We had only 6mins. to catch the bus and that too we didn't know the route. We looked at each other.
Run!!! again....
We ran madly in that direction, puffing and panting. Were it any Asian or Olympic games, we would have definitely won a silver/bronze if not gold. :D.
2mins. were left and we were still searching for the 2020 service number. We asked a bus conductor about the APSRTC bay location and he pointed to the far end of the bay we were standing in.
Run... (What's happening???)
We ran as if it were the last day of our lives and as if we were asked to run to save ourselves - The more we ran, the more our life-span would increase in minutes!!! :-P We saw a bus that had just started and showed our ticket to its conductor.
Me: Number 2020 (still gasping for breath)
Him: This is 2020. And we are just leaving.
Me: Thank God!!!!!!!!!!!!
Him: You should have come early. What if we had already left?
(Now, that's what I call it- Free advice!!!) :D
We were so tired and so terribly out of breath that we didn't even feel like saying anything to him. We then bought some bread and biscuits, that could make up for our dinner, got into the bus and had a hearty laughter.
October 17, 2007
A Day Out : Part-I
I wanted to write about this long time back when it actually happened. A series of very interesting incidents occurred during my trip to Madras (now Chennai :D) sometime back. I was accompanied by my cousin. It was a very delightful and the most looked-forward-to journey for us, because that was the first time when we travelled on our own - with literally nobody(t he concerned elders or male members of the family). We were very excited and thrilled to be together, travelling on our own. It was a totally different and new experience for us altogether.
We boarded the train at around 4:15P.M and after an hour or so, exchanged our seats with the lower side berth of an elderly man. It was great to sit on the same berth facing each other and talking about almost every topic under the sun. The train reached Egmore at 6A.M. next morning. All the chaos and noise in the compartment woke us up and we were on the platform with our backpacks eagerly waiting for an uncle who had to come for us, ready to start a new day.
We went to his house and got ready soon. We were given a bucket of tea, some cookies and Idli/Sambar/Chutney in breakfast. After the heavy drink and light food (:D), we started for Adyar accompanied by their cook (He's an amazing cook, by the way). Adyar was a good place to be in. At Adyar, we gave that man money and asked him to go buy return tickets for us at bus depot. We finished our work, which hardly lasted for 20 mins. and went to some other place. After a good one or two hours, we took the tickets, bid farewell to him and went to IIT Madras, which was nearby. IIT Madras was also a nice, cool place with all the greenery around though we didnt see much of the place. We caught up with a friend of ours and chatted our time away through evening. Our lunch comprising a-supposed-to-be-called and spoilt 'Apple pie' and a cold coffee, was very annoying.
It was around 5P.M. when we came out of the IIT. We then had to visit few family friends at Ashok Nagar. The autorickshaw fellows demanded a fairly large amount to take us there - 95Rs. Believe me, travelling in autos for a week in Chennai is enough to drain out your income. They have no meters and are very costly. We started waiting for a bus at the nearby bus-stop and learnt that we had to take a 5E bus to go to the desired place. After a nearly boring wait, we got into a 5E bus which looked similar to a political party lorry carrying all the junta for promotion or for shouting slogans. It was that rush with varied kinds of people. We had to stand and were squeezed to the extent possible. We gave our backpacks each to two women in a seat. The best part of it was that the conductor was standing at the rear entrance (end) of the bus and everybody who got in from the front made it a point to buy a ticket. It was like everybody passing money from one side in a long chain and getting the ticket back through the same chain. I and my cousin might have passed over a hundred rupees and nearly fifty tickets all through the while. We almost learnt numbers in Tamil because that's what they tell you when they give you the money- Like they say anji rupayi ticket (5Rs. ticket) but not the place. After a certain time, it became so annoying that my cousin sat down when she got a seat and I tried hard to ignore this chain business for sometime, but couldn't because everybody makes it a point to buy a ticket no matter how they do it. And, that was something which I liked- the sincerity with which they buy tickets.
After some time, I recognized the street where this particular family lives and asked my cousin to get down immediately. I somehow pushed my way through the crowd and got down at the next street as the driver didn't stop there. I got down and saw my cousin still struggling to make her way out. Meanwhile, the bus started and left the place leaving me behind. And, there I was there standing all alone on the road at 5:45P.M. I started walking briskly in the direction the bus had left. I walked to the end of the road and took a left turn thinking about all possibilities, when I saw my cousin waving her hands at me from a distance. I was vividly happy to see her. We smiled at each other feeling quite relieved. Suddenly I realized that something was missing - my backpack was not with me and she was carrying hers.
Where the hell is my bag?
I don't know. I thought you took it from that lady.
Oh! damn it. The bag has my digital camera worth 15,000 bucks!!!! And, the bus might have gone somewhere now.
Don't worry. We will trace the bus. It shouldn't have gone far off.
Run!!!
(to be continued...)
We boarded the train at around 4:15P.M and after an hour or so, exchanged our seats with the lower side berth of an elderly man. It was great to sit on the same berth facing each other and talking about almost every topic under the sun. The train reached Egmore at 6A.M. next morning. All the chaos and noise in the compartment woke us up and we were on the platform with our backpacks eagerly waiting for an uncle who had to come for us, ready to start a new day.
We went to his house and got ready soon. We were given a bucket of tea, some cookies and Idli/Sambar/Chutney in breakfast. After the heavy drink and light food (:D), we started for Adyar accompanied by their cook (He's an amazing cook, by the way). Adyar was a good place to be in. At Adyar, we gave that man money and asked him to go buy return tickets for us at bus depot. We finished our work, which hardly lasted for 20 mins. and went to some other place. After a good one or two hours, we took the tickets, bid farewell to him and went to IIT Madras, which was nearby. IIT Madras was also a nice, cool place with all the greenery around though we didnt see much of the place. We caught up with a friend of ours and chatted our time away through evening. Our lunch comprising a-supposed-to-be-called and spoilt 'Apple pie' and a cold coffee, was very annoying.
It was around 5P.M. when we came out of the IIT. We then had to visit few family friends at Ashok Nagar. The autorickshaw fellows demanded a fairly large amount to take us there - 95Rs. Believe me, travelling in autos for a week in Chennai is enough to drain out your income. They have no meters and are very costly. We started waiting for a bus at the nearby bus-stop and learnt that we had to take a 5E bus to go to the desired place. After a nearly boring wait, we got into a 5E bus which looked similar to a political party lorry carrying all the junta for promotion or for shouting slogans. It was that rush with varied kinds of people. We had to stand and were squeezed to the extent possible. We gave our backpacks each to two women in a seat. The best part of it was that the conductor was standing at the rear entrance (end) of the bus and everybody who got in from the front made it a point to buy a ticket. It was like everybody passing money from one side in a long chain and getting the ticket back through the same chain. I and my cousin might have passed over a hundred rupees and nearly fifty tickets all through the while. We almost learnt numbers in Tamil because that's what they tell you when they give you the money- Like they say anji rupayi ticket (5Rs. ticket) but not the place. After a certain time, it became so annoying that my cousin sat down when she got a seat and I tried hard to ignore this chain business for sometime, but couldn't because everybody makes it a point to buy a ticket no matter how they do it. And, that was something which I liked- the sincerity with which they buy tickets.
After some time, I recognized the street where this particular family lives and asked my cousin to get down immediately. I somehow pushed my way through the crowd and got down at the next street as the driver didn't stop there. I got down and saw my cousin still struggling to make her way out. Meanwhile, the bus started and left the place leaving me behind. And, there I was there standing all alone on the road at 5:45P.M. I started walking briskly in the direction the bus had left. I walked to the end of the road and took a left turn thinking about all possibilities, when I saw my cousin waving her hands at me from a distance. I was vividly happy to see her. We smiled at each other feeling quite relieved. Suddenly I realized that something was missing - my backpack was not with me and she was carrying hers.
Where the hell is my bag?
I don't know. I thought you took it from that lady.
Oh! damn it. The bag has my digital camera worth 15,000 bucks!!!! And, the bus might have gone somewhere now.
Don't worry. We will trace the bus. It shouldn't have gone far off.
Run!!!
(to be continued...)
Patience
- Patience with others is 'Love'
- Patience with self is 'Hope'
- Patience with God is 'Faith'
(-Source unknown)
August 25, 2007
Thoughtful Imagination
It feels wonderful to have a good discussion. We had a very knowledgeable discussion sometime back.
“What do you think is the primary difference between an imagination and a thought?”
Each of us had their own answer. But, if there’s someone who can throw some light onto what the most logical answer could be, the work is made easy. We also talked about what an intuition could be, if a thought is something which evolves out of the process of thinking. And, these were the answers that surfaced after a very long yet a patient discussion.
As the description by a great person goes, you can never imagine something you haven’t seen, felt or heard about. And, this definitely seems true. An imagination is an end result whereas, thinking involves the steps one follows to achieve or realize the end result.
An intuition is something which could come true very often. In the sense, if I calculate something according to a formula and arrive at a value and say that this could be the correct one, then the real value may be decimally very close to what I obtain. Then, I say I intuitively arrived at that answer.
We also came up with many questions that had no answers because if there were any then the origin of the universe will no longer seem mysterious and beautiful. It goes something like this. Thinking constitutes a series of thoughts and one thought paves way for the next. So, when thoughts have a nexus with each other and if every thought depends on what you thought about a second (or a micro-second) before, then where does the first thought come from? What is the base for the first thought that strikes your mind? Any takes on it?
“What do you think is the primary difference between an imagination and a thought?”
Each of us had their own answer. But, if there’s someone who can throw some light onto what the most logical answer could be, the work is made easy. We also talked about what an intuition could be, if a thought is something which evolves out of the process of thinking. And, these were the answers that surfaced after a very long yet a patient discussion.
As the description by a great person goes, you can never imagine something you haven’t seen, felt or heard about. And, this definitely seems true. An imagination is an end result whereas, thinking involves the steps one follows to achieve or realize the end result.
An intuition is something which could come true very often. In the sense, if I calculate something according to a formula and arrive at a value and say that this could be the correct one, then the real value may be decimally very close to what I obtain. Then, I say I intuitively arrived at that answer.
We also came up with many questions that had no answers because if there were any then the origin of the universe will no longer seem mysterious and beautiful. It goes something like this. Thinking constitutes a series of thoughts and one thought paves way for the next. So, when thoughts have a nexus with each other and if every thought depends on what you thought about a second (or a micro-second) before, then where does the first thought come from? What is the base for the first thought that strikes your mind? Any takes on it?
August 15, 2007
New Hope...
Happy Independence Day to all.
May this year be more inspiring and fulfiling. I would resume writing my blog and try to be consistent at it. :D
May this year be more inspiring and fulfiling. I would resume writing my blog and try to be consistent at it. :D
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