Word play

Look Ma, I split an
At
Om

I free my mind de-liberate-ly

I make the light bow before the rain ........ seven times over

My achievements are CAPITAL

I can bend a sentence
------------------------- at
edges its

I CcOrNeSaUtMeE what I

The circle is my full world, I preside at the center, while the world comes a full circle

Is it me playing with the words or are the words playing me?

The August English

People who have been reading this blog regularly know by now that my blog titles are far more interesting than my posts themselves :-) This time, its no different. I thought of the title, did a little jig in my mind that went something like 'Smart title Parth, keep it up' followed by a few grins.

Now that I have indeed given a title, why not write something related to it? About what you say? Of course, our August English, the royals, our past mai-baaps, and the world's current fascination. Prince Charles is getting married to Camilla Parker Bowles. Now that's a love story. Prince has fairy-tale wedding, prince sires two sons, prince loses interest in princess, prince has an affair, princess has multiple affairs, princess dies in car crash, prince is widowered, prince wins public sympathy, prince defies mom's wishes, prince fixes a date to get married, prince postpones wedding because the Pope dies, prince should be collecting the souvenirs from the cancelled wedding because people are rushing to do so, prince will eventually wed tomorrow.

That's a Bollywood potboiler right there (in fact the upcoming movie 'Ada - Will Kill U' is loosely based on this theory). My problem however is with the relevance of the completely irrelevant monarchy in the current world. What have they done to deserve this importance? What purpose do they serve other than sit on prime real estate property and confer obselete titles like KBE and OBE? (I'd take Obi-Wan over Obe-Wan anyday). The media hype always surrounds them. Wonder what craze are the media feeding? Is it true that ordinary people need royalty to look up to?

What I find worse is the attitude of Indians towards them. They want to thank them for having ruled us, for having taught us English(Let me know what you think, I have seen people my age say the above on more than one occassion). Thank them? Why not thank them for looting trillions of dollars worth of riches systematically over the years? With that logic, shouldn't we be cursing those who drove them away?

The new monarchy are the people among us who make it big by virtue of their work and intelligence. The Bill Gates and Ambanis of the world. The Tendulkars and the Woods. The house of Saxons or Windsors or whatever they are called should be relegated to the back pages once and for all.

Enough venting for the day. Saw the disastrous 'Ring 2' over the weekend. Do not spend your money on it. On the bright side, I saw 'My Brother Nikhil'. A well made movie with tons of holes in the script. Still, the handling of the topic of an AIDS patient in Goa in the 80s is very good. Here's my music recommendation for the day : Lekin The brilliance of the Mangeshkars and Gulzar on full display. The national awards were well-deserved.

Miscelooney

End of a tiring day capped off with a meeting that lasted an hour and a half!!! By the time the meeting ends, you are wondering what you met to discuss :-)

I find writing for the blog a nice release, except that most occassions there is hardly anything substantial to pour out. Meditative, vegetative, same difference! So, here are some brain dead reflections

1. Yesterday, I saw a hailstorm for the first time in my life. Big pellets of snow racing each other in a hurry to reach the ground and perish. Beautiful beautiful sight. Amidst this splendor was a singular thought: I am so glad my car is parked underground. This, from a guy who thought that sitting on a beach and watching the waves is a thing that can be done till the end of time! The world forces you to grow up, doesn't it? :-)

2. Two contrasting music releases. Taj Mahal and Kaal. Taj Mahal marks the return of the grand-daddy of Indian music composers. Naushad. In the 50s-70s, there was no other who could match his exploration of Indian classical music when composing film music. Mughal-E-Azam, Baiju Bawra, Dil Diya Dard Liya, Mere Mehboob, the list is endless. Easily one of my favorite composers off all time. I was super-keenly awaiting the release of Taj Mahal's music for this sole reason. What't my take on it? Naushad has not sold his soul (like he did in Guddu) for this movie. He has tried to keep the essence of his music alive (with modern day orchestrations). The songs are really good and grow on you. I would say that the music will be enjoyed by lovers of Naushad's music, but can't guarantee the same for everyone. The songs are great by today's standard, but I don't find them matching up to Naushad's earlier work. Hariharan is good while seeing Preeti Uttam as a lead female singer made me pull my hair out in frustration. Please try to enjoy the songs despite her. Kaal on the other hand is a smart producer at work. Karan Johar is going with the times and coming up with a movie that is different from his usual work and the music is going with it (SRK is the co-producer). The songs are composed by Salim-Suleiman, the whizkids who are the current kings of giving background music(Bhoot etc) The songs are fast paced and at go with the mood of the movie. You will enjoy Nassa Nassa and Tauba Tauba (what's with repeating the same word twice? :-))

3. My cricket team has reached the semi-finals of the B league this time. One win and we will be onto the A league. Terrific performance this time, winning 5 out of the 7 matches. In fact, I got to captain the team on one occassion. The match is on Sunday. Let's hope it works out for us.

4. I went to this shopping complex called Globus in Bandra last year in Bombay. This is a multi storey shop with some theatres at the top. I saw 'Ek Hasina Thi'. That movie has a scene filmed, guess where, in Globus. I was watching 'Socha Na Tha' last night (light hearted comedy, watchable) and was surprised to see another scene shot in Globus

5. I seem to blog every 4 days on an average. If my blogs are shorter, the frequency of my posts increases.

India loses test series

The actual headline today morning was ‘Pakistan square test series’. To me, they are both equivalent. This is a shame, a national disgrace. A relatively inexperienced bowling attack like Pakistan’s ran through a ‘strong’ Indian batting lineup on a docile pitch on the final day of a test match. How come it happens to us? How do we let it happen to us? Until last year, we were anointed Contenders to Australia. Indeed, had we won this series 2-0, we would have also been listed as number 2 in the ICC test rankings. But contenders do not grovel like this, they register victories (a draw in this test match would have been akin to a win). We are Pretenders at best.

Look at the way the series went. We let Pakistan draw the first test match even though there were only four wickets to take on the last day of the match, somehow managed to register a win in the second test and were wholesomely humiliated in the third test. Sehwag and Dravid notwithstanding, the other batsman did not get going. Pathan was woefully out of form, and the other bowlers were good in patches.

I don’t personally care about the one-day matches. For me, the charm and importance is reserved for tests. In all probability, we might end up drawing the one-day series 3-3 as well. I feel angry and cheated by a team that shows promise and doesn’t live up to it.

There will be some fallouts of this test series. The test career of VVS Laxman will end. Ironical as it may be, the duo of John Wright and Ganguly will make way for the next coach and captain at the same time. Ganguly has done some great things for the team, but has outlived his nine lives. Of course, these are simply my predictions, and a lot may be forgotten if we do really well in the one-day series. That is how our selectors function anyway. In the meanwhile, I’ll wait, watch and expect better from my favorite cricket team in this whole wide world!

Featured, Flattered, Honored

http://indibloggers.blogspot.com/ featured me as Blog of the day for today. Its unexpected, pleasant and surprising. Thank you.


Hey, the page will change tomorrow!

The best condolence letter ever

True story from 5th grade at school. Our English teacher Mrs. Prabha Nair asked the class to write a letter of condolence to a friend who has lost his father. Here's what one of the geniuses in the class came up with

I am sorry that you have lost your father. I hope the police will help you find him

Touche'

The names people play

Here's a list of some interesting names on my MSN Messenger contact list (an example of an uninteresting messenger name being Parth). I am glad that people I know are more creative than I am. Ya, its that kind of a patch in my blogging journey.

Eternal sunshine of the clueless mind
Well Poised (hang-over from the 4th evening of the test match)
Dazzled by Reality
i hate 2 b dependent on others but human is a social animal
A-Bee-Shrek
~~Rho Rho Rho your boat! ~~
Altruisan
First thinks last
Living on a prayer
LN proves his MITTAL in Steel
The Dude Abides
The times, they are a-changing
Zephyr

Enough said

Time for some pictures. These are from my weekend hike to Snow Lake, WA near the Snoqualmie Pass. The trek was of moderate intensity and was 2.5 miles one way. What awaited us at the end was the grand view of the lake that my camera is well short of capturing. I hope to have better pictures of my hikes henceforth. Till then, enjoy the view.


View from the base of the trek

Some more mountains on the way

Sparse snow creates good contrast


Prize view at the end of the trek -> The entire lake was frozen!

Gymophobia

I took extra care to spell the blog title correctly. Gymnophobia is fear of nudity. Of course, that too surfaces depending on whom I am looking at!! I am referring to a fear of another kind. Its the place they call a gymnasium(from Greek gymnasion from gymnazein to exercise naked - weird, huh?).

I remember my first time. The rites of passage. Avinash, Sachin and Sushil had enrolled and I followed suit. Getting up at 6 to go and stretch my legs and pull a heavy piece of metal up and down 20 times was barely going to register as a favorite activity for me. The first day I was through with my exercises, I had trouble climbing a few stairs. However, at the time, the effort was aimed at a higher purpose. The sole motivating factor for going to the gym was to obtain a physique and impress girls as a result. Arnold Shivajinagar and Sly Stallone were role models, flexing my arms in front of a mirror was a thrice-a-day exercise and an unmistakable swagger set in to reflect my new found confidence. That was the time to gloat over gaining a couple of kilograms of weight, a tiny bulge in my biceps and adding the new expression to my vocabulary ‘I work out’. Then, the boredom set in. The ratio of time spent to gains achieved dwindled and the act of doing the same set of exercises over and over again got to me. Having paid 6 months worth of my father’s hard earned money, I at least ensured that half of it was well utilized. In the end, I quit after three months.

Cut to the interregnum. While my muscled friends muscled their way to pot-bellies and love handles over the years, I stuck to my flat-stomached non-muscular lean existence. I spent my time picking up and getting better at table tennis, badminton, cricket etc. I ate what I pleased, and it seemed to have no effect on me. Hanging out of trains and buses in Bombay was exercise enough. And I walked. Boy, I walked.

Cut to the present. The moment I started my sedentary work life, the pot belly appeared, I started feeling stuffed every time I ate, and a 3 hour cricket match made me huff and puff. I realized that perhaps being 26 is not the same as being 20. My job provides a few perks, including membership to a rather expensive sports club. I figured it was time to cash in. After several years, I finally ventured towards the exercise machines again. Things, as learnt quickly had changed. First, there was the ‘co-ed’ setup, unlike the gym I went to India. As a 15 year old kid, I used to feel like a dwarf among the big boys. Now, people of all shapes and sizes and sexes were panting and sweating in unison. Secondly, there was now a wide array of equipment to choose from. Treadmills, ellipticals, gravitron, steppers, you name it. I didn’t even have to lift a dumbbell and still feel drained out at the end of a session. With that also came the realization that the world was never meant to be for equals. There are the bawdy-builders, people whose bodies are more rotund than linear, enough love handles to hang onto if you are sinking, and enough weight to test the weight machines to the limit. On the other hand, there are the body-builders. They still make me feel like a dwarf. And then of course, there are the women. The ones in perfect shape dress up less than adequately to accentuate that. Are they mocking the rest of the ‘normally shaped’ men and women? Is this a media-fed image that they are attempting to confirm to? Do I really care? Hell, no. In the middle of all this, there’s me. Working out twice a week in a slightly purposeless quest. Sometimes, the Jacuzzi and the steam room seem to be the best reasons for going there.

I am probably not being fair on anyone who does go to gym for honest purposes. By nature, I hate the concept of running in one place for 20 minutes. Give me a competitive sport, any one of them, and I’ll jump right in. However, circumstances dictate that I can’t do that on a regular basis. Anyway, got to speed up work. I have to leave work a little early this evening. Any guesses where I am heading towards?

Currently reading: The rule of four by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason
Currently watching: American Wedding, Pulp Fiction
Currently listening: Mirza Ghalib by various artists
Current frustration: Inability to watch the Ind-Pak cricket series

The Rescue

Words drift closer
as worlds drift away
stringing phrases together
as relationships untwine

I construct a poem
as feelings deconstruct
I scramble my memories
as the images disperse

I salvage the past
from its present imperfection

Bride and Prejudice Redux

I wrote a piece on Bride and Prejudice when the movie released in India and UK. At that point in time, I had no clue on how the movie was going to turn out. My analysis was solely based on the reports that I had read on websites and a few trailors that I saw. Yesterday, I had a chance to catch the movie at an art-house cinema hall, the Egyptian theatre. Turns out my guess about it being a moderate critical and commercial success was bang on (Pat my back :-))

So, what did I think of the movie? It was actually enjoyable. Since most people are familiar with the story, I am just going to point out the pros and the cons.

Pros:
1. Seamless integration of a Bollywood concept into a Hollywood movie. You don't notice the song and dance too much.
2. English movie with Indian actors, but it never appears ackward.
3. Lush with colors, shifting locations from Amritsar to London to LA helps.
4. Nikhil Ganatra as Kholi (ya, that's how they spell it in the movie) is terrific as the settled NRI shopping for a bride in India.
5. You should see how each character in Bride and Prejudice has been given an equivalent name. If you remember the book, you'll make the connection. For exampl, the two balls in the book are replaced by dandiya and bhangra. Smart, huh?
6. Aishwarya Rai looks really good on screen

Cons:
1. Aishwarya Rai looks really good on screen. She can't act though. All points in my Ash rant make it worse to enjoy here.
2. Martin Henderson should be a Dudley, not a Darcy. Zero personality. I winced in pain as I watch him fumble a part that Laurence Olivier and Colin Firth have excelled in.
3. Music is a letdown. Barring a couple of hummable numbers, Anu Malik missed a golden chance
4. Story lacks pace in the middle portions. Could have been spruced up.

All important question. Is it a successful crossover attempt? I'd say 3.25/5. Yes, it has the right idea. I sat in a theatre where only 4-5 people were Indians. The rest were largely white Americans, and I could see them enjoy the movie in parts. I think the accents take time getting used to, the song lyrics are indecipherable, and the loud characters are not easy to identify with. But the humor was something they connected to, there were no grunts when the songs came on, and I heard some really positive comments in the hallway when we were exiting.

Did I enjoy the movie? Yes. Check out the reverential nod to Bollywood when they stroll on the Santa Monica beach with gospel groups and Baywatch babes singing 'Show them to love'. It was hilarious. If you are an NRI like me, you'll 'get' most of the Kholi jokes and trust me, they are funny.Gurinder Chadha does not deride Bollywood, but does caricaturize Indians at time in the movie. There is not much brain, not as much wit as the original book. But this is the 21st century anyway, right?

This is not a Bend it like Beckham because it was never meant to be one. I'd recommend that you watch this movie once. Don't expect too much and thou shall come out pleasantly surprised as I was.

Post Script:
This is NOT a movie blog. I should remind myself of this every morning. Namesake is terrific so far and I did not get a chance to see Cold Mountain. Next week, I am off to my alma mater: Texas A&M University, College Station to give a, ahem, lecture to the Computer Science Honors Society. Of course, Avinash is still there, so that is motivation enough to put together some powerpoint slides and talk incessentlty for an hour or so.

Cornycopia

Angels with arrows, large hearts, large chocolates shaped as hearts, red roses, orange roses (welcome to the genetic world), white roses, panicky boyfriends, perspiring husbands et al. The day is here. I saw the rise of the Valentine in India. The neighbourhood Archie's went from having a bunch of cards to putting huge cut-outs and tons of extra racks of cards outside their shop. You were bombarded with songs like 'Valentines day ke din main keh doon ankahi'. Corny with a capital K. Puppy love, yuppy love, mismashed into this consumerist exposition of affection. In fact, this whole 'imported' concept of 'days' is funny. Our outpouring of patriotic feelings seems to be limited to two days a year. Does the same concept apply here? Can you get romantic and flowery and chocolaty one day a year and be your normal grumpy, remote-turning, chip-munching self for the remainder? Apparently not. Then, why single out this day and make it harder for the poor souls. It gets worse with the other 'days'. With a day associated with each member of the family, it seems to be a scam purported by Hallmark to increase it sales, and stuffed down the throats of gullible Indians who'd be more than happy to adopt any Western traditions, given we don't have any of our own!

Rants aside, let me announce that we have got Lucky. Literally, the best music of the year so far has come through. Adnan Sami has scored the music for this Sallu movie called 'Lucky' with an Ash-lookalike 19 year old National College Bandra student. Five songs to absolutely check out if you like melody and have enjoyed his solos thus far.

1. Jaan Meri Ja Rahi Sanam (Anuradha Paudwal, Udit Narayan)
Refreshing melody, reminds me of some songs from Sahibaan.

2. Sun Zara (Sonu Nigam)
Composed by Adnan for himself, sung by Sonu. Good rendition.

3. Shayed Yahi To Pyar Hai (Lata Mangeshkar, Adnan Sami)
Class all over. Lata shines in this beautiful composition.

4. Chori Chori(Alka Yagnik, Sonu Nigam)
Not exceptional, but I like the beats

5. Lucky Lips(Asha Bhosle)
Very 80's rhythm. Asha rescues this from being a corny song to a terrific foot-tapper

While on the topic of Bollywood (my blog seems to be receding into becoming a blog exclusively dealing with Hindi movies), I saw the nominations from Filmfare this year. Wonder what set of dimwits work over there. Here's the list and here are the goof-ups. I read the nomination list before I read the other article and I thought I was looking at misprints till I read the analysis. These awards used to be an institution (not without their share of controversies, yet they did ok most of the times), but they are turning out to be a joke. I don't think we have even a single set of awards that are genuinely good in India. You might say National awards, but when Shobhana shares the award for her work in 'Mitr' with Tabu from 'Chandani Bar', you have to wonder.

Currently watching: House of sand and fog, Cold Mountain, Mystic River, Good Will Hunting
Currently reading : Digital Fortress, Namesake

'Aish'a bhi hota hai

I tried hard to resist. I thought of avoiding the cliched path. I thought this topic is best left buried. But I read about one more American TV appearance of Aishwarya Rai, and I knew that I had to write about it.

What's with this Aishwarya mania? I really don't get it. Agreed, she is considered undisputably beautiful in India. It is also understood that she has zero selling power at the box office by herself. She really hasn't had any hits beyond the Bhansali camp and the odd Taal and Mohabbatein here and there. I am one of her fans, but only of her looks. I'd like to reiterate that Aishwarya Rai in a saree is God's gift to mankind (pun intended). But really, she isn't paid the kind of obeisance in India as she is being paid abroad right now. When she made it to the jury of Cannes, that was a shocker. She has no body of work to talk about (neither did Meg Ryan, but at least she had Harry and Sally :-))

Is it because she looks beautiful and is urbane enough for the Western audiences? This is the age of Asia, say the Western TV executives. Let's promote people from India. Whom do we promote? Who is looking westward? Who can actually speak English? Lo and behold. There's the beauty queen from India. Why not call her over? Time Asia called her the Face of Bollywood (the crappiest article on Bollywood possible). On all Western shows, she is repeatedly called the most successful actress in India. Hello?

Then came the appearance on 60 minutes. For years, she has been accused of being fake, a plastic beauty. Well, she reiterated it on the show. Look at how she plays the slighted diva when she says the best compliment someone ever paid her was that she looks real!!! What's with all the giggling? You can see the obvious effort to appear smart. Oh, by the way, you can watch the appearance here. I also saw her appearance on David Letterman. She was irritating even more than on CBS. I guess she was trying to pander to the Nascar/NFL crowd, unlike people who watch 60 minutes. And what's the big deal about her doing a kissing scene? It has now become an international issue.

Alright, enough of the criticism. Here are some positives. I like the fact that she tries to sell India, and is a defensive mode when the interviewers feign ignorance about the country. I like the fact that she has been bold enough to think beyond the borders of India and is thinking of true international stardom. I guess I am just jealous that we might lose our beauty queen to the decadent western powers :-) I like the fact that she still looks a million bucks!

When I started the post, I mentioned another TV appearance, right? Here's the breaking news: she might appear on Oprah.

Black Magic

I caught the most anticipated movie of 2005, first day first show. For days, the poster of Black on my desktop was a testament to my excitement. There were several reasons to be have high expectations. I like Bhansali's work, despite the fact that most critics pan his movies. I was very happy that Amitabh was finally working with a class director after working with any and every director last year. This was a different genre that Bhansali was tackling, and it seemed exciting to me that a mainstream director worked with a mainstream superstar to make a movie that was anything but mainstream.

So what is Black all about? Black tells the story of Michelle McNally (Rani Mukherji), who is born to an Anglo-Indian family, deaf-blind after an illness at the age of eighteen months, is a bright, intelligent girl who lives in a world of black silence with no way of reaching out. Enter Debraj Sahai. An eccentric man, an alcoholic, a person consumed by his profession of being a teacher to the deaf-blind. The story revolves around how Debraj suceeds in helping Michelle connect to the outside world, to search for light through the darkness around her. He teaches her words and their meanings, and helps her make sense of the darkness that engulfs her. The movie is about her incredible struggle to earn respect among the 'normal' world. She and her teacher work through several hardships to get her close to the goal of graduating from a university with normal students. But as they work towards it, Debraj starts to suffer from Alzheimer's disease. He slowly forgets everything including all words and their meanings. The roles are now reversed! Can she achieve the miracle that he once performed for her? Will she achieve her goal and wear the black graduation robes?

A movie inspired by Hellen Keller, Black is vastly different from anything seen on this scale in Indian cinema. I hesitate to call it a Hindi film, because large portions of it have English dialogues. Is it an attempt at crossover cinema? I don't know, and I can't answer that question confidently after watching the movie. What is consistent are Bhansali's sense of melodrama, the extraction of great performances, touches of brilliance in his direction and an assertion that he is amongst the finest film-makers this country has at the moment. Is Black truly a great film? I don't think so. It falls a few degrees short of being one. Is it brilliant? At times, hell yes. Does it set a new standard in Indian cinema. Definitely. Should you watch it? Please do, and please do so in a theatre. Here are the pros and cons of Black

Pros:
1. The performances. Ayesha Kapoor, Rani Mukherjee and Amitabh give excellent performance. There are moments of brilliance from the actors. For eg. the scene when Amitabh first shows signs of Alzhiemer gave me the chills. We take the brilliance of the man for granted. The kid Ayesha as the young Michelle is superb, and Rani gives a mind-blowing performance.
2. The cinematography is outstanding. Ravi K. Chandran has created an aura of blackness to perfection.
3. Background score by Monty adds to the effect of the movie
4. Bhansali. The director's special touches are evident all throughout.

Cons:
1. The screenplay is a letdown. The selection of moments of struggle in the protagonist's journey could have been picked better. Somehow, the pace of the movie in the second half is uneven
2. Half the movie is in English, which excludes a lot of Indian audiences
3. The protagonist's triumph does not make you feel exulted as you expect to
4. The 'sex' aspect is ok to tackle, but could have been tackled better
5. This is a 'heavy' movie. It has little relief for the running length of two hours, which again, most impatient audiences find difficult to sustain.

I would be interested in seeing people who are dissatisfied with the regular Bollywood fare (hint hint, Avinash) to please see this and give me their unprejudiced opinion. It is an intelligent movie with good performances from a talented director. Black worked its magic for me, hope it does so for you too.

Sania Mania

I am a little late on the post. I wanted to sing my encomiums after watching Sania Mirza battle Serena live and late into the night. It was after a long time that I found myself rooting for an Indian tennis player. There were days when Leander produced absolute magic in his Davis cup matches. A player, who would lose most of his singles matches on any given days, went on to beat the best (including Ivanisevic) in Davis cup matches, almost spurred on by some invisible strength. As a kid, I followed the adventures of Leander Paes and Ramesh Krishnan on the Davis cup courts. There was a lull after that till Bhupathi came into the picture and the Indian express gained steam. It felt like we finally got a pair of world-beaters. And then came the split. I must admit that barring the odd occasion (the quarter-final loss in the Olympics), I had almost given up on Indian tennis.

There are two different challenges that sport offers. One being team games like cricket, where you may fail on a day but others might cover for you, while you may have to take upon yourself the burden of weaker team-mates (as la Sachin). Individual sports however are tougher. There is no one else to rely on, no one to shoulder your load, none to blame if you fail. That's what makes them so lucrative. Glory is not shared, it is yours and yours alone. That is why it is so frustrating to see Vishwanathan Anand do so well, and yet, not be the best. It is so sad to not see us getting any medals in athletics. For the cricket fanatic that I am, I miss rooting for other Indian sporting heroes.

Enter the country's latest pin-up girl, Sania Mirza. I had read a lot about her in the run-up to the Australian and after her first two victories. Yet, I wasn't expecting any great shakes, primarily because she was pitted against Serena. However, it turned out to be a good match to watch. I was very impressed by her attitude on court, and the aggression she showed in the second set. The condescending and mis-reportage by the Amerian commentators made me root for her even more. It was painful listening to Pam Shriver go 'Indian women are not allowed to play tennis'. Hello? You have this other commentator going 'She was born in the city of Bombay, formerly known as Chennai and now stays in Hyderabad' (she is a Hyderabad born girl in actuality who stays in Mumbai). Even though she lost the match, she put up a susbtantial fight in the second set and actually made Serena sweat.

Of course, she hasn't actually won anything substantial in the professional circuit, and if she doesn't improve he strength and fitness, might disappear faster than you can spell Kournikova. For the moment though, I am happy for her success. Her post-match interviews also bring her forth as a lass with class and some brains. Of course, the fact that she is a Sachin fan gets her extra points in my book :-)

Enough of the Sania chaalisa. I sincerely hope she lives up to her promise and becomes a sporting star in India for all the right reasons. If she does well in subsequent grand slams, I am sure to catch her matches. Go, Sania, Go!!

Main to King Kong ho gaya

Tumse mila to chakkar chala to, ping pong ding dong ho gaya
Ladki pati to aisa laga jaise, main to king kong ho gaya

Exasperated at work, I found a song with lyrics to match my current mood. What are these guys thinking when they write this kind of crap?

Peter Jackson, are you listening? Perfect song to have King Kong serenade Naomi Watts!! I don't see this song making it to my 2005 list. Do you?

For those who want to hear the song for themselves, here are the details

Song : Shaadi Kar Ke Phas Gaya
Movie Name : Shaadi Karke Phas Gaya Yaar
Singer : Sonu Nigam
Music Director : Sameer
Lyrics : Manohar Iyer

Awaiting life, or a life in waiting?

Kisi mausam ka jhaunka tha
Jo is deewar par latki hui tasveer tirchhi kar gaya hai
Gaye sawaan mein ye deewarein yoon seeli nahin thi
Na jaane is dafa kyun inmein seelan aa gayi hai
Darare pad gaye hai aur seelan is tarha baithti hai
Jaise khushk rukhsaaron pe geele aansu chalte hain

Ye baarish gungunaati thi isi chatt ki munderon par
Yeh ghar ki khidkiyon ke kaanch par ungli se likh jaati thi sandese
Dekhti rahti hai baithi hui ab, band roshandano ke peeche se

Dopaharen aisi lagti hai, bina mohron ke khaali khaane rakhe hain
Na koi khelne waala hai baazi aur na koi chaal chalta hai

Na din hota hai ab na raat hoti hai, sabhi kuch ruk gaya hai
Woh kya mausam ka jhauka tha, Jo is deewar par latki hui tasveer tirchhi kar gaya hai?

(seeli= moist,khushk=dry, rukhsar=cheek, munder=parapet , roshandan=lamp, mohra=pawn)
The brilliance of Gulzar at play from the movie Raincoat as he describes a life in waiting, halted at its footsteps, frozen in time, waiting for someone to urge time to move forward.

Ek Mocha aur de do thakur!

The storm in a coffee cup. Mornings don't start without it, evenings seem incomplete without one. 330 calories of it at times (that's what I read about the white chocolate mocha that Starbucks makes) will even fill my stomach for a couple of hours. My poison, my nectar.

Ok, that's overdramatic, but I do love my coffee. I was brought up with a family of coffee-holics. My Dad cut down to single digit cups of coffee a day after great effort, so I guess there was never going to be much restriction on me. I have gone from 2 cups to 5 cups and back to 2 cups a day. Oh, how I remember cup and saucer rather than fancy mugs, those 'cuttings' at the lorries, the plastic cups in which they served it in trains!!

Of course, before I left for the US, the 'cafe culture' was alien and you'd be treated to coffee or tea at people's places or spend three rupees at a stall. Spending 50 rupees in a place to chill out while sipping coffee laden with cream and having exotic tastes was beyond us at the time. I didn't know any South Indians too at the time, so filter coffee was a rare even t for me. Instant coffee was the way to go. Even today, I religiously go to the Indian store to get my favorite Nescafe'. Now that I am settled in the coffee capital of the world, the choice outside are varied. There's the usual Starbucks, Tully's, Seattle's best coffee etc. There is much more than the usual coffee too. There's mocha, latte and the like. Hmm, the many choices life gives us!

I used to joke at Texas A&M that 'Coffee and Rafi' are the best combination one can hope for during the evenings. Some things don't change. Even as I am typing this, I am listening to Jagjit croon 'Apne Haathon ki Lakeeron Mein' and sipping my third cup for the day. Anyway, kaafi ho gaya!

Its past 5 pm on Friday and I have almost cleared my plate to leave a mostly work-free weekend. Time to go fly some kites this Sankraant. Whom am I kidding? The FAA might actually have regulations for that too.

I have seen some people put up a section on the blog mentioning what they are reading and/or watching. I think it is a cool exercise and I shall post the info periodically. I haven't explored putting it in the sidebar yet, so am just appending it to the end of this post. In fact, if you ever have suggestions on movies/books etc. to offer, please feel free to do so.

Currently reading
Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky
The Poet by Michael Connelly
How Would You Move Mount Fuji? : Microsoft's Cult of the Puzzle -- How the World's Smartest Companies Select the Most Creative Thinkers -- by William Poundstone

Watched recently
Kashmir Ki Kali
21 grams
The sum of all fears

Hindi Film Songs: Best of 2004

I listen to a lot of music. Period. I listen extensively to Hindi film music and also try to follow the non-filmi albums (anything other than remixed). Since the songs have been become readily available online for the past few years, I had gotten into the habit of giving each album a decent ear before dismissing it. I have become a little impatient in that sense nowadays, and have become selective. I like also end up listening to the songs I like over and over again. I love to memorize the lyrics of songs before going to see a movie in a theatre and then sing along at the top of my voice (you should hear me sing to know why that is such a passion for me). Of course, my biggest passion will always remain old Hindi film music, and my music collection and choices reflect that. If only I could remember other things in life as well as I can memorize lyrics!!

One thing that is missing from the exercise is making a ‘Best Of’ collection. I want to try it this one time. I generally find it very difficult to condense a list from such a wide selection. I don't think I can honestly do it for the old songs, but it should be possible with new songs at least. Of course, I take a lot of pride in unearthing hidden diamonds, songs that most people wouldn’t have heard off but which I like immensely. Here’s a list of my favorite Hindi film songs of 2004. I hope you get a chance to listen to the ones you haven’t already. Let me know if you feel there are some that you liked and aren’t on this list. If I like this exercise, I might do it on a regular basis. The songs aren’t listed in any particular order. Some of the movies will be releasing next year (Kisna, Shabd etc) but since their songs have released this year, I am including them.

Song : Tujh sang baandhi dor
Movie : Dev
Music Director : Aadesh Shrivastava
Singer : Sonu Nigam
Lyricist: Saawan Kumar
Why is it on the list? : Sonu Nigam proved his versatility with this song

Song : Hum Tum
Movie : Hum Tum
Music Director : Jatin Lalit
Singer : Alka Yagnik, Babul Supriyo
Lyricist: Prasoon Joshi
Why is it on the list? : Because I am a sucker for lilting melodies, but Kumar Sanu should have sung it instead of Babul Supriyo

Song : Kitni Baatein
Movie : Lakshya
Music Director : Shankar Ehsaan Loy
Singer : Hariharan, Sadhana Sargam
Lyricist: Javed Akhtar
Why is it on the list? : Because it was placed so badly in the movie, I felt bad for it

Song : Jhin Mini Jhini
Movie : Maqbool
Music Director : Vishal Bhardwaj
Singer : Anuradha Sriram, Rakesh Pandit, Sadhana Sargam, Ustad Sultan Khan
Lyricist: Gulzar
Why is it on the list? : Risque, pure, naughty, innocent: the song covers it all

Song : Yeh Rishta
Movie : Meenaxi : A Tale of 3 Cities
Music Director : A.R. Rehman
Singer : Reena Bharadwaj
Lyricist: Rahat Indori
Why is it on the list? : A first time singer discovered by Rehman in London. Terrific rendition.

Song : Saaki
Movie : Musafir
Music Director : Vishal-Shekhar
Singer : Sukhwinder Singh, Sunidhi Chauhan
Lyricist: Dev Kohli
Why is it on the list? : The song rocks

Song : Khul Ke Muskurale
Movie : Phir Milenge
Music Director : Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Singer : Bombay Jayshree
Lyricist: Prasoon Joshi
Why is it on the list? : Prasoon Joshi is the most impressive lyricist this year. Bombay Jayshree is selective in rendering Hindi film songs. She selects well.

Song : Bolo To
Movie : Shabd
Music Director : Vishal-Shekhar
Singer : Shreya Ghosal, Sonu Nigam, Sanjay Dutt
Lyricist: Irshad Hamil
Why is it on the list? : Even Sanjay Dutt's rendition of a few shers doesn't spoil the beauty of this song. Picture Ash in the song, I remind myself :-)

Song : Yun Hi Chala Chala
Movie : Swades
Music Director : A.R.Rehman
Singer : Hariharan, Kailash Kher, Udit Narayan
Lyricist: Javed Akhtar
Why is it on the list? : One for the road

Song : Yeh Jo Des Hai Tera
Movie : Swades
Music Director : A.R.Rehman
Singer : A.R.Rehman
Lyricist: Javed Akhtar
Why is it on the list? : Lyrics do the trick, but I think the instrumental version is brilliant

Song : Tere Liye
Movie : Veer-Zaara
Music Director : Madan Mohan
Singer : Lata Mangeshkar, Roop Kumar Rathod
Lyricist: Javed Akhtar
Why is it on the list? : Need I say anything. Second posthumous filmfare after Panchamda got one. The other songs 'Do Pal Ruka', the Qawwali etc. are equally good. Best album this year.

Song : Main Yahaan Hoon
Movie : Veer-Zaara
Music Director : Madan Mohan
Singer : Udit Narayan
Lyricist: Javed Akhtar
Why is it on the list? : Song made-to-order for SRK.

Song : Dhoom Dhoom
Movie : Dhoom
Music Director : Pritam
Singer : Tata Young
Lyricist: Sameer
Why is it on the list? : I don't imagine Sameer wrote the English lyrics, but its ok. The song is here because the way Tata (its a Thai singer, and yes, her name is inspired by THE Tata surname) say 'Dhoom' in her Anglicized Hindi. Sunidhi rocks in the Hindi version too.

Song : Tum Abhi
Movie : Dobara
Music Director : Anu Malik
Singer : Alka Yagnik
Lyricist: Javed Akhtar
Why is it on the list? : Perhaps the least heard off movie on the list. Anu can still compose melodies, though this isn't among his best.

Song : Maine Jisko Chaha
Movie : Fida
Music Director : Anu Malik
Singer : Alisha Chinai, Sonu Nigam
Lyricist: Sameer
Why is it on the list? : What's a year without a typical Anu Malik song?

Song : Chilman Uthegi Nahin
Movie : Kisna
Music Director : Ismail Darbar
Singer : Alka Yagnik, Ayesha I, Darbar, Hariharan, Ismail Darbar, Kailash Kher, Rakesh Pandit, Shailja S
Lyricist: Javed Akhtar
Why is it on the list? : Three important things here. Comeback of the qawwali this year. Ismail Darbar doing well outside Bhansali's realm. Ghai is back with a bang

Song : Tumse Milke Dil Ka Jo Haal
Movie : Main Hoon Na
Music Director : Anu Malik
Singer : Aftab Sabri, Hashim Sabri, Sonu Nigam
Lyricist: Javed Akhtar
Why is it on the list? : As the DJ interjects in this song to inform us: "Wicked"

Song : Kaho Na Kaho
Movie : Murder
Music Director : Anu Malik
Singer : Amir Jamal
Lyricist: Sayeed Quadri
Why is it on the list? : I don't know what he sings in Arabic, but it sounds great

Song : Bheegey Hont Tere
Movie : Murder
Music Director : Anu Malik
Singer : Kunal Ganjawala
Lyricist: Sayeed Quadri
Why is it on the list? : R&B feel and lyrics not suited for kids and their grandparents alike. Believe it or not, this is one of the biggest hits of the year.

Song : Piya Tora Kaisa Abhiman
Movie : Raincoat
Music Director : Debojyoti Mishra
Singer : Hariharan
Lyricist: Gulzar
Why is it on the list? : Superb rendition by Hariharan. The other version by Shubha Mudgal is equally good, and is interspersed with poetry by the great Gulzar.

Song : Fanaa
Movie : Yuva
Music Director : A.R.Rehman
Singer : A.R.Rahman , Sunitha Sarathy, Tanvi
Lyricist: Mehboob
Why is it on the list? : Sympathy vote for Rehman-Ratnam. I was debating between Fanaa and Anjaana Anjaani (wicked vocals by Sunitha) and ultimately played safe

Angelic Swades, Demonic Waves and one exciting novel

I picked up 'Angels and Demons' by Dan Brown over the weekend and breezed through it. I have read 'Da Vinci Code' before and the structure of the novels is exactly identical. However, DVC is sharper in its execution and more to the point. I think the author's biggest problem is to achieve a fitting denouement after having built up the suspense till then. DVC was a letdown for me in that sense. I was expecting more bravura from the author. In that respect, at least this novel fares a little better. The best part however is that this is a genre of books which reeks of erudition and is completely new in its subject matter. The mystique and aura of the places mentioned in his novels makes me want to visit Europe. I am definitely going to read his other works, 'Deception Point' and 'Digital Fortress'. I read somewhere that he is writing a sequel to DVC as well.

I had to wait till I returned from my trip to see 'Swades'. Unusually long wait to see an SRK movie. I did put 'Angelic Swades' in the title of this blog, but that was only for effect. The points listed below list out my disagreement.
1. Music is good, but it has nothing new to offer. Has a definite Lagaan hangover. I could also trace repeats from Bombay and a couple of his other movies. As much as I like Rehman, he has got to innovate more to earn more respect from me. His 'Dil Se' was path-breaking and the second best album of the 90s after '1942: A Love Story'. But I haven't heard anything of that caliber since.
2. The tone of the movie was patronizing to say the least. I am not sure they want to hear that in India. For the movie to work in USA and UK, you need discerning audiences. To expect that would be a joke
3. SRK acting well worked against him. People like different avatars of SRK, not SRK in different avatars. That said, I don't think even avid SRK-loathers would thumb him down for this movie :-)
4. Gayatri Joshi had pretty good confidence, but needs to control that perennial frown on her face. Still, not a bad debut against King Khan
5. I am happy that Ashutosh Gowarikar tried his hand at a different kind of a movie. No one else had anything to prove in this movie except him. Lagaan was always going to be a tough act to match, and I think he redeemed himself only partially. Let's see where he goes from here. I don't watching this movie again, but I'd watch Lagaan anyday. Maybe patronizing is tolerable when it comes from an resident Indian :-)

Lastly, the tsunami tragedy has brought out the worst in nations and the best in people. America first pledged $15 million, which they raised to $350 million after severe media pressure. Such insensitivity from the world's richest nation is appalling. On the other hand, individuals have been pouring money generously for the cause. Around me, the NRI community has rallied well and a lot of money is being gathered for the purpose. I have had several people at work (Americans, Canadians et al) come up to me to see if any of my loved ones have been affected. We are even having a cricket tournament on the 22nd of Jan (a one day affair, 6 a side, 6 overs a side) to raise funds. I guess witnessing human suffering in a natural disaster does get bring out the sympathetic side in people. If only they did the same for all the millions who die in places like Africa every year. Do they need to wait for a tsunami or an earthquake to get our attention?