Hannah and her sisters

"For all my education, accomplishments and so-called wisdom, I can't fathom my own heart. "

Spent the afternoon watching a lovely Woody Allen movie and was struck by how ordinary and yet brilliant the movie was. There is something about Woody Allen that just makes life seem worth it despite the ordinary. This is a story about 3 sisters - One perfect, One recluse and the 3rd trying to re-affirm her faith in herself.

Every character is random just like Woodey Allen likes them to be. Each with their quirks. The movie shows how expectations make imperfect people look perfect. How each of us just tries to play a role and keep the balance going. How, changing the balance and equations can cause chaos and while the mind craves change, the chaos is not something we all can really deal with. Be it in the form of the 'tumor' that never was in Mickeys life, or a fling between Hannahs sister and husband the balance of Hannah and her sisters life is broken. We often carry a lot of bottled emotions, pressures in us and one fine day the balance just tips. However, we all vent and finally want to go back to a state of balance. I guess the theory of relativity does truly guide our lives.

Look around - We all have role models and ideal people who are not really what they seem but have been subjected to play that role just because that is how the evolved. We find people chasing a dream and forgetting the essence of life and life can just pass you by. What you never wanted might just be what you were always looking for.

Hannah and her sisters just left me with an urge as was quoted:


"And you're gonna believe in Jesus Christ? 
I know - sounds funny. But, I'm gonna give it a try. "

I am determined to find a faith - maybe a new Woodey Allen movie!

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

What a movie! It took me a while to enjoy it simply because the first time you watch it, the mind needs to get aligned to whats coming. I loved the movie for it is

• Cool
• Brilliantly Shot
• Has a background score that will haunt you forever
• Has a message somewhere.
• Has some brilliant acting (Tuco!!!)

You might not enjoy this movie if you like realism, don't expect a few snags and if you are not looking for any macho-ism on display. This movie to me draws a parallel to Sholay. It would have set a precedent in its time and it is not so much Clint Eastwood but the overall experience that made this movie worth a watch a number of times. It is epic! I plan on catching up on my movie list yet again.

Disha- A simple movie that got me thinking

Watching a movie on a flight is a difference experience. It actually is a very up, close and personal encounter. I tend to focus more, listen intently and grab details which I might not have in a large auditorium with several other individuals sharing my screen space!

I watched "Disha" all over again after several years. I love this movie for it is a depiction of the true industrial revolution, urbanization and the impact it has had on lives of the "aam aadmi". It showcases beautifully and yet in detail the implications of the change and the impact of the failure of a democracy to have changed the life of a rural struggling farmer.

There are moments in this movie when reality hits you hard. It shows the frustrations of a man wanting to work hard, but having no means to work in a small village. He is at the mercy of chance to get work on a particular day. He then moves onto a city - Mumbai in the hope that the various employment options will change his life. He sacrifices his happiness by leaving a socially warm, rich life to struggle in a city away from his family. Mumbai the land for mill workers in the 70's and 80's attracted loads of rural folks and gobbled them up in ways you and I cannot even fathom. "Sone ki jagah hai lekin karvat nahin badal sakte. Sote hai shift mai!" This line pretty much describes the standard of living.

The madness of a man to change his fate is depicted brilliantly. He believes he can actually dig dig and dig to find water. He digs for 12 long years, most people call him crazy and one day he does strike water. The depiction of the scene and the madness captured is brilliant. The movie does not glorify anyone or preach change. It very realistically takes us through the lives of all these characters weaving a story around different kinds of realities that existed in the 70's and 80's. I loved the movie , the characters and the small details that brought about the depth of struggle and kept me glued to reality.
There is a scene where a couple wants to "make love" but need to drive their kids outside to sleep, there is a scene where a villager asks his wife to smoke a beedi and enjoy a few vices, there is a scene where dead machines showcase the redundancy of man! I recommend this movie to anyone who has an appetite for reality and social art house movies.  The movie has had a special impact on me and has made me want to understand more about the lives of people I rarely meet, individuals in rural India , individuals who are the majority of India! Someday I hope, I can make a film with this much depth, simplicity and brilliance.

I bow down Sai Paranjpaye!

Black Swan

There is something about the dark which is also perfect.

You unleash, you let go, you come to terms with your inner self.

There is something about black that makes the hue complete.

It stains, it covers, it tarnishes, daub it over and you erase the white!

I have in me passion that stems from ghosts of my own making.

I have in me desire waiting to unravel in a moment ripe in spite.

I have in me venom stemming from the marvels of the day.

I have in me a song unsung to shatter the noise inside my soul.

Take over and let me out of bounds;

Ignite me to burn into ash the dead inside me.

Let the beauty be raw and undesirable at show.

I promise I will stand all white waiting to live again!

Inspired by the movie Black Swan!

Anything I write about the movie will not do justice to what I felt when I saw the movie. Sheer genius comes live in the story, the telling and the performance. I know I will always watch this movie and go back to the dark looking for something, feeling like the dark sides of me are after all not an illusion. The movie kept me absorbed all through. The story has me thinking beyond my sleep, the performance was flawless, the direction and camera work simply perfect! I recommend you watch the movie. I know I will many a times again.

Daub me! When colours be perfumes!

My experiments with oil after 9th Grade

I have just too much going on in my mind. I watched a brilliant movie today - Dhobi Ghat. After long I actually felt that Indian cinema had arrived. I am a fan of abstraction and loved the abstract story which had no starting or ending and merely showed me reality which most of us hate because we want to define everything around. This was coupled with brilliant perspective and story telling. I mean some shots were just poetry! I could not have revealed feelings any better said some shots.

Loved the scene where "Amar" was filling up his drink with the rain water, or where the maid serves two distinct cups of tea portraying stature of some sort, saying so much and how shai picked the one that was not intended for her. The expression on Yasmins face in the last shot of the letter was just so heart wrenching. I loved the way Kiran Rao expressed! I save the review of this movie for another post, but this movie shook me up, taking me back to Mumbai, the rains, the maid pragya we had and the mindless rush through traffic on my scooter or in crowded locals. The kababs at bade miya and the discovery of a cafe "fiesta" a small little bakery in Malad. It reminded me of how much there was to take in that city just as I recall losing a lot of myself there too.

I got back and listened to some jazz music for a bit and suddenly was inspired to pull out my oil paints. Had a box of wood I had intended to junk away and decided to work my way with a broken brush, a frozen brush, knife and my fingers! I always knew if I ever painted, it would be abstract too just as the stories in my mind or life have been. It was the first time I experimented with colour. (I have tried black and white sketches a couple of times)!  It does not matter how the painting turns out honestly. What matters is that the process is just so amazing, I was lost for an hour or more almost like all my thoughts came together and expressed themselves in each stroke. There is something in creating with your hands... the same gush you feel when you drum or play table tennis?? No! This felt different! I could see the variation in what came out as the evening went past. I could feel a part of me take shape in colours. I knew a zillion thoughts, shades, stories, people came into my mind when painting. Though nagging thoughts of boredom just walked out succumbing to focus and intensity! I loved my hour with the paint. I felt the wood, the wet colours stuck on and I could smell the turpentine all over and for once it felt almost like the fragrance of a new perfume. A perfume I know, I would daub on myself many a times in the coming days!

12 Angry Men!

**Spoiler Alert!! If you have not watched the movie, it might reveal parts of the story!

There are a few movies that one watches, watches again and yet desires to watch it some other time again.

This is a movie essentially about a jury trying to decide if a boy is guilty of murder or not. It is a movie that makes me realize how easy it is to pass judgment. The movie is shot in a single room for most parts, is not so much about motion as it is about character building. Directors always have a challenge in condensing an entire story into 120 minutes of screen time. They take years to write a script build a character in their head and yet in that short span they have to convey it all. Few people do a fabulous job of it and this is a movie where the director has managed to do it with amazing finesse!

The movie starts off with one jury member disagreeing at the outset only because he believes death should not be decided without dialogue. He is not convinced and tries to keep a conversation going. Over time individuals who come with their own baggages start to see facts and doubt. The movie moves on to showcasing how individuals change their perception, let go off their personal biases and change their points of view.

It is not important how the movie ends, really! What was important was to watch how most of us in majority choose to agree. Sometimes because it is easy, sometimes because we do not want to put much thought. Sometimes because we love to judge, sometimes because it feels better to be in a camp with more people by your side. Maybe the boy eventually did kill his dad or maybe he did not. 12 men could have put him up on slaughter or salvaged his life and given him a chance.

I came to realize that being a judge after all is not very easy just as it is never easy being a doctor. However law and facts can be twisted more than scientific facts and emotion. I am judgmental even though I try hard not to be. Every single time I know my judgement of people and situations is driven by that moment, my past or my experiences. I rarely judge merely based on facts. I am sure a jury is equally challenged as I am to let go off all these influences when calling the shots.

The hindi version of this movie - Ek Ruka Hua Faisla is also well made and has brilliant actors from the TV world. This movie is also a case study taught in B schools .

Why did I bring this movie up today? I appreciate good story telling, good stories and wish some day I can be less judgmental than I am. I have in the recent past met so many of my friends from a very long time ago. 14 years, 10 years, 6 years, few months. What has been interesting is to realize how not judging really makes it easy and difficult. After all you are left with a context from the past and yet people have evolved over time. People change, we change and so does our judgment!

Do watch these movies if you like drama and theater! They are really worth their time.

Watching my way to glory!

Been a while, but more than writing I guess my weekends have been busy pursuing other boring pursuits. Playing the key board, bongos and watching a lot of movies and TV shows being some.

Hooked to " That 70's show"
Continuing to be desperate about "Desperate Housewives"
Caught up on:

Annie Hall: Made me realize how much I love Woodey Allen and his sense of humor
12 monkeys: An interesting but not very intriguing movie
Dabang: Aargh!
Anjaana Anjaani: Twice at that
Udaan: Just love this movie, made me feel for a movie after a very very long time

Few more, but can't recall.

I am sure when I look back in time, this would be one of those forced posts I got myself to write because I just felt like I owed it to my blog! Maybe I am outta ideas or maybe I am just forgetting my spellings. Whatever it is, I am happy that my blog would understand!

Visually stimulating - Movie weekend

After very very long, I have had the chance to just do nothing over the weekend, watch movies, read books and listen to some fabulous music. Not going into the philosophical dimensions of the effect this has had on me, let me start by recounting what I read and watched

Reluctant Fundamentalist:

Gripping read, finished it in 6 straight hours. I could relate to the character in several parts. Seemed more real than most similar books. The books about a Pakistani boy who aspired to have a fabulous career in the US, studies in Princeton, gets a dream job, falls in love and is yet seemingly shallow and empty in this land. The 26/11 changes his perspective and gets him to realize that he is constantly torn between his origin and the new camouflaged person he has become. He is torn for an identity. What adds to this, is that the only way he gets love momentarily is by becoming someone else. The narrative is strong, and the story telling is unique. It almost seems like the white tiger has kind of adopted this style of story telling.

The double life of Veronique:
What should I say, fabulous french movie. The more I watch, the more I seem to be in love with Krzysztof Kieslowski. This movie is a piece of art which you can watch over and over again and discover something new. The cinematography and music just add to its charm and give it a character so unique. You learn that you don't always need to say much to convey. As i rewind on scenes, I see how well subtle small things craft the striking similarity between two completely unrelated souls. There is a scene where you can see a cup with a tea bag- a beautiful shot! I would like it for each of you to just watch and experience the movie. No two experiences of watching the movie will be the same.
Cet obscur objet du désir:
Another fabulous movie by Luis Buñuel. One of the best movies when it comes to cast and story line which is obscure and yet well told. The movie keeps you gripped and one is still left wondering what might be even after the movie is over. Again a very fine use of backdrops to convey a message. Not an easy movie to understand, and not easy characters either. However this had me refreshed and in awe of the performance. The story is about a man in his figment of imagination interacting with a character, who plays two roles depending on the kind of interaction he chooses to have. The movie beautifully displays all emotions, love, teasing, war, anger, pain wonderfully.

In the mood for love:

Another fine piece of art, a little slow but amazing photography. The sets take you into almost real 1960's of HK. The struggle of how not to be what you despise is interestingly crafted. The music and the sets are really the best part of the movie.

3 idiots:

Okish watch, though got stretched and draggy. It seemed like another 5 point someone and evoked a similar reaction. Refreshing but not note worthy.

I guess this was a small subset of all that I did over the weekend. Hopefully these kind of times come by more often.

Jodha Akbar

**Had this review in my drafts for a while. Posting it out today.


After a long break saw a couple of movies and decided to post out a few reviews. Still in Yorkshire, battling the cold, and waiting to get back home.

Jodha Akbar:

A review can have several perspectives and I decided I should elucidate all perspectives rather than just write a review.

For the masses?

I guess the movie might lure the masses but does not have sufficient masala to get the auto rickshaw drivers to come


From a film makers perspective I am left completely confused wondering, what is it that Ashutosh set himself to make? A love story set in the 1700's? A tale to depict one of the most powerful rulers in history? A masala movie which has romance/thrills/villains/songs/dances and meant to entertain people? The movie failed to bring out its essence.A 4 hour love story is too long to handle and does not need too many facts built in which deviate you from the love story. The tale of Akbar the king did not need to have a romantic angle predominantly defocusing it. A masala movie needed a lot more. Some of the characters were built painstakingly and just left the story without much role to play. For eg Ila Arun, why did so much of the story focus on her and finally whoomph! she was just gone. Most of the supporting actors did not seem to play any major role in the movie and I was left wondering why 4 hours?? Now putting on my logical hat, I could not figure out how Aishwarya's brother was released and why did Akbar not make any attempts to explain the release as a mis-understanding when everything else had been sorted out? Why did dancers of pre-historic times have such harsh movements?

The movie had its positive moments. Ashutosh managed to build a soft subtle love between Akbar and Jodha. The sword fights, the torso scene and moments in the movie did a fantastic job of showing the king in love and in adding a classic touch to it. Hrithik as an actor performed well but possibly failed to fit the picture of Akbar in my mind. His grip on the character is amazing which was evident in the scenes where his minister was killed and he is angry, very angry something truly against the character of Akbar. I think he portrayed that scene really well where he got his brother thrown down on his head but at the same time could not pick up his sword and throw it down at him.He lacked to bring into his character the power that I had imagined for kings of those times.

A lot of people lauded the elephant taming scene. I liked the picturatization of it but it lacked thought and logic. What makes an elephant tame and was the ultimate goal just sitting on it? But like most people say, throw your logical hat out of the window when you go watch a movie.

All in all any movie that makes me look at my watch cannot be a classic and masterpiece. But if it still had me sitting, it surely had a story to say! Music from A.R Rehman was good but not a masterpiece. I dont find myself listening to these songs forever like the songs of Lagaan. Ashutosh has a lot of reflections of Lagaan in this movie, right from Amitabhs narrative to the characters chosen in the supporting role. The cinematography did not particularly have my attention. I thought the Mahal and the way it was shot did not seem grand( Sanjay Leela Bhansali is possibly to blame for my expectations here). There were places where the camera quality did not seem good. The choreography very average as well. The ajeeb-o-shaan shehenshah, I thought could have been picturised much better.Same goes with khwaja-ji. I think Sanjay might have made a grand love story from this epic. Anyways a decent watch, ok music and nice star cast.

A Streetcar named desire!

I just had to write about this movie. This movie was lying in my DVD collection for over years now. Finally I decided to watch it last night. And boy am I glad! I am just amazed at the brilliance in performance in this movie. Everyone!!! Specially Vivien Leigh and Brando were just out of the world. This is the first time I have seen a movie to be as powerful or more powerful than a play.

The movie is a simple story about how complicated we all are. Humans are a composition of complexes and differences of social class, past encounters, choices we have made. All of this is coupled with a constant need to seem happy, hide our weaknesses, fight, lie and please. I think humans are always driven by desire. Desire to be desired, desire to be accepted, desire to be liked, desire to be hated. As long as we desire we kind of exist, else we die. A brilliant line of the movie was- "Opposite of death is desire!" I liked the way this line was said it said "Opposite of death is desire", as opposed to "Opposite of desire is death!". It was from the death of a 17 yr old boy that desire stemmed in Blanche, one of the key characters of the movie. She hides her weaknesses, her loneliness, her age in complex ways. She lies so much to the world, that she stops to realize who she really is. She is so caught up in playing that happy, composed part that to her reality does not seem to exist. Her performance in the movie by Vivien Leigh was simply brilliant. She brought out the torn individual especially towards the end with such ease and was very convincing. Brando is the husband of her sister who is a crude individual with no social finesse. He almost hides his class complexes with his physical demeanor and power. He sees through Blanche's pretence, but is brutal as opposed to being understanding of the why. Loneliness, desire and unfulfilled kindness is what makes Blanche this complicated individual. The brutal treatment by Stanley(Brando) only makes it worse.

It wasn't the story as much as the performances that made an impact for me. It seems even more surprising to see that such boldness and characters depicted in the 50's. It must have been a bold movie of its time. I cannot end this blog without giving due credit to the Elia Kazan the director of this movie. I have not seen the play, but I am convinced the movie has extremely brilliant characters and they have more than done justice to this play. I know I will watch this movie several times over the coming years. Specially if I want to be reminded of what acting is all about.

Movies and Books

Watched a few movies that I thought I should jot down before I forget:

Children of Heaven: (Bachecha-Ye-Aasmaan - Iranian)

Beautiful movie, simple story that shows the intricacies of a lovely relationship between a brother and sister. Touches your heart with some brilliant moments. A movie, I will not forget, a movie that changed my perception of Iranian movies.

Mithya: One time watch. Loved Ranvir Shorey for his performance.

La Buche: A French movie which unfolds a family past, revealing insights into fidelity and the concept of a family. It is a Satire which is nicely done and yet again I think that the French just see life with such a different perspective. Refreshing movie.

Books I Read:

• White Tiger
  
• Manto Ki Kahaniyan(Hindi)

Both were a good Sunday catch.

Lights Camera Action and ...??

The last couple of weeks have seen a lot of movies released, watched and they have come in all sorts of packages.
Errr for instance the complete clueless, hyped "Dhoom2".Worked all night and went straight to watch a morning show. That might have been cause of the tainted view of this much hyped movie .But in retrospect...even in my woken senses, the storyline did not make sense. Abhishek looked pregnant and completely not there. Biphasha seemed like a prop used to give audience a view to bikini clad women and skin.She was optimized to play heroine for two of the heroes Abhishek and her twin sister for Uday.How original and innovative can Bollywood get Aishwarya with her "like" in all likelihood should do some serious thinking about her acting skills.Uday was a natural and brought in the few moments of laughter much needed in the 3 hour long ordeal Hrithiks performance was the only saving grace of the movie, albeit not enough to make your penny worth the watch. The story had so much scope for better twists and plots ..it almost seems like a shoddy job done and a waste of such a large and top heavy star cast!

Also watched "Don" and to my surprise it turned out to be not as bad as I had expected it to be for a remake.The original Don was completely an actors movie and this one a directors. SRK did not make the movie unbearable as I had anticipated him to. However Don would have been a success SRK or no SRK..It was out and out Farhan Akhtars movie. The movie was sleek and modified to changing times. Of course it had its flaws but the direction went to show again that Farhan can make some seriously good stuff,

Then came "The Departed". Brilliant performance by Jack Nicholson and goes to show that there is hope for good cinema. Loved the subtle digs showing how the world is hypocrisy and filth at every corner.Was violent though and language was kind of crappy:) But then despite that a movie I will remember for a long time.. This one prodded me to pull out my old collection and watch - As Good as it gets. Every time I watch the movie I tend to like it even more. Jack Nicholson only gets better each time I watch it.

"Dor" by Nagesh Kukunoor was another rare movies with unexpected performances by Gul Panag and Ayesha Takia. A movie about women's emancipation.What struck me most about the movie was purity of most characters . Just makes me wonder can purity ever be found like shown in the movie. Do people without any sort of Malice exist?

"Woh Lamhe" was also a good recount by Mahesh Bhatt. Arth has always been a movie ahead of its times and the story it said was a lot more true and non glamorous than the KANKs of today. Arth was a bag of brilliant performances from all accords- Smita Patil, Shabana, Kulbhushan and Mahesh Bhatt.Arth showed the effect of the affair from the wife's point of view. Woh Lamhe, if what is said is true, is about Parveen Babis angle to the story and amazing how Mahesh Bhatt has the grit to tell us his own story over and over again in different forms.Maybe life and its experiences are more inspiring.

Finally after much thought and with remakes being the theme of the year gathered my guts to watch the new "Umrao Jaan" and argh!! Lesser said the better about the movie. No comparison to the original and amen "Rekha" !

Cough Sneeze and Bangalore always manage to get me sick and tucked in bed around this time of the year. A good time to pull out my precious collection and watch , re-watch and find new dimensions to movies I have loved, performances which mesmerize and stories which leave an effect.

So some recommendations:

• Masoom
• Hazaron Kwaishen Aisi
• Before Sunset ( Before Sunrise )
• Ice Age:)

The Kite-Runner

Have been reading over the years..decided to just also put in afterthoughts of reading a book on this space...My weekend read was:

"The Kite Runner" - Khaled Hosseini

Just finished this book which was rather touching and well written ..left a marked impression on my day..
Set across two continents - the story is about two brothers, two friends , of love, betrayal and depicts in the words of the author - Afganistan across 3 decades. The book sort of redefined courage yet again and made me question integrity. How often do we as humans have the courage to face the truth, stand up for our beliefs and fight for fairness in the framework of our morals. Often it is easy to be honest and do things which are outside of our moral framework...and somehow feel good about the fact that atleast one was honest. Anyways on one end one has liberation and on the other end a restraining urge steered by what we call morals , beliefs and faith.

The book had a very touching storyline and was nicely narrated. The relationship between Amir and Hassan was beautifully described ..However what probably diluted the effect was the ending which stretched a little and ended up being rather "filmy". A good read,for it made my Sunday pass rather pensively - keeping in line with my blog identity:)

Some more recommendations are:

• Namesake - Jhumpa Lahiri
  
• Maximum City - Suketu Mehta
• Ladies Coupe - Anita Nair