Thoughts

I always want to write something when I am in bed. I think that’s when I am not doing anything. Just lying and waiting to sleep. I have too many thoughts tonight. Thoughts that have become heavy enough for me to not to be able to carry forward.

My first thought is about the world’s or I should say the US’s perception of India. I was chatting with a colleague of mine at work. She is a lady who takes care of supplies and other administrative tasks. She is from some part of Africa (here comes my ignorance I did not ask her exactly where she was from). She said she never wanted to go back to her country because of safety issues and corruption and other reasons. She then asked me if I wanted to go back. I told her I definitely wanted to go back- “That’s where all the growth is – Wouldn’t I be missing it if I was here? In 5 years at least I want to go back” (I did not tell her how much more convincing I had to do to get my husband back to India). She gave me a picture of India – a place full of slums, unhygienic and so on. I don’t blame her – that’s what Mr.Slumdog millionaire has done to the world. A movie based on a book of one of the greatest ideas “Q&A” exaggerated to lengths to belittle India beyond anyone’s wildest imagination. The movie would have been total nonsense if not for the music – “A.R.Rehman” and the Indian actors. So if you remove all the Indian elements out of the movie, there is nothing left. Yet, these people got together to create a piece which would show India in its most ugly form. Is that because we crave international attention so much? India has a soul, a deep spirit – great values, which people in India themselves, are trying to kill by getting westernized every day. Why India- why do you want to get into this western trap ?
I think the arranged marriage is one of the best inventions of this world. After months of deliberation and thought I have come to the conclusion that love is non existant. All that exists are hormones and when the hormones wear out – there is nothing left for two people to stay together. So would you marry someone because the hormones are high when you see them? The hormones are secreted more if you see a symmetrical face with perfect features , a body that shows signs of reproductive capabilities. We as humans are constantly trying to procreate – either consciously or without our knowledge. That’s how we are made. So we think we like someone because the hormones are secreted more. WE also like or think we love someone when that person likes us. In sum, there is nothing called love – its all just pure HORMONES.
A few weeks back, I told a friend of mine – “ I made my marriage decisions with my mind and not my heart” - Might sound like a typical bollywood dialogue , but true. I think I have all the wisdom in my spirit, which led me to choose the path of arranged marriage. The path that surprises so many people of the west. I think it’s the safest haven ever. There is an old saying in Tamil – “Mind is a monkey”. I could probably say our heart is fickle , I am pretty sure everybody’s heart is . In this world nothing is permanent. One of my colleagues advised me to take up a less challenging career because I was a woman. HE said “ Jobs come and go, family is what remains.” IF my mother in law thought so when she got married, she would have been in streets with three children when her husband died five years into marriage.
So people , at least my Indian folks - Don’t give up your solid relationships that you have – your mother, father and everyone for these hormones. Let us all promote our eastern thoughts and spirit.

The Zahir

The Zahir

Zahir is the name of a book by Paulo Coelho . I read it years back but thoroughly enjoyed it. Zahir means “obsession” . The book is about a writer who is obsessed with his wife who just disappears one day. We all have our zahirs from time to time. I had one yesterday.

I don’t remember when I came across this book – “Two states” by Chetan Bhagat. I read some reviews about it and felt a great connection to the female lead. Actually I have always felt a strong resemblance to the female leads of his books – One night, 5 Point and so on. It is probably a very common story, but it would the first book of Chetan I would read after coming to US. One thing greatly refreshing about his stories is the fact that his stories are based in India.

From the time I saw this, I really wanted to read it. I went to an old bookstore near my work place to find it. One had to search through the numerous piles of old books (They do not have a database where you can search through – they sell books for $1). The best thing about New York is you can choose to spend $1 to $100 on anything you want. It is Mumbai – magnified 10,000 times. Mumbai has always been my favorite place and so will New York be. So I searched for this book and ended up spending about 1 hour and got a book I remotely wanted. The woman at the counter asked me “Did you find everything all right?”. I told her I was looking for a specific book. She replied, “We have a big sale on 14th of August and you could probably find the book you want”. All I could do was just sigh. I caught a subway back home and on my way back to the dorm, looked at every bookstore.

I got back home, made myself some tea and set out again. I found another bookstore that sold books for $2. I scanned through all the books and finally the guy at the bookstore suggested I could probably find the book in “Strand “. It turned out to be a really big bookstore with all kinds of books. (About 5 times as big as Barnes and Nobles). Luckily they had a database, a guy at the counter looked through and said he didn’t have any books of Chetan.

I thought I had come this far and could to buy something. My eyes caught on to something “Bhagavath Gita –as it is “. The price on it was unbelievable – 50 cents. They say good things in life come for free, but probably the best thing in life comes at 50 cents.

I came back home and ordered “Two states” for $8 on Amazon

Alone, yet together

New York made her more Indian than she was in India. Looking back she always adored India, north India more. She did not know the reasons. Somehow their culture looked appealing to her. They were westernized in a lot of ways (partly), yet had that Indian element. Women were respected more (She felt). She probably ate a lot of pastas, Chinese noodles, pizzas and sandwiches when she was in India, now her diet comprised primarily of curries (from the Indian restaurants in Lexington). Books she bought in India – Sidney Sheldon, Jeffrey Archer and Ayn Rand. Now she buys Bhagvath Gita, Hinduism and Chetan Bhagath.
This was her last weekend in NYC. Hmmm, what did she want to do? Shopping (which she did almost every weekend)! Yeah, why not? She got the attention that she had when she was in India. Her colleagues telling her – Nice haircut, nice shoes and nice skirt and so on. She wanted attention primarily in her life which she realized that when she was here. New York would be very special to her. Osho says “ You grow when you are alone” . She was alone in New York , yet she never felt that way. She felt more at ease than she was with people. She could do whatever she wanted, she need not find out what the other person wants and reach a compromise on what they wanted to do. Sometimes just doing what you want can give you lots of happiness and make you forget what you want. Was she a loner? Not really.
So her last weekend, she was sure she wanted to go to few places – Central park, have a mysore dosa, watch an Indian flick. She checked out the listings and found Aisha. She set out early to explore the city stopping at parks and enjoying nature at its very best.
Sometimes looking at your kind of people can give you a great feeling of connection. That’s how she felt when she got into the movie theatre that smelled of samosas.Seeing people dressed in salwar suits and sarees made her happy. She got the ticket and got herself a nice seat. She sat sitting and reveling in her new shoes and dress (that she got in a sale –she was a bargain shopper). She had her earphones on, as always. She heard a feeble voice near her “Is someone coming here?” .She looked up and saw a woman in her late fifties wearing a silk saree printed “Om” all across. Reminded her of her periamma. She said “No one”. The lady said “Do you mind if I sit here? “ Of course not”, said she! I will address the lady as “periamma” and her as “she”.
Periamma started talking “These seats are not so good as American theatres are!”
She “Oh, I thought they are a lot better after Ambani bought them”
Periamma “Obviously! But still they are not as good as American theatres”
She “Oh!”
Periamma” But they don’t censor the movies here, They showed Kites with all the uncensored scenes”
Is this what happens when traditional Indian women come to New York? She later found out that Periamma lived in Manhattan since 1974, had a son who was a doctor in San Diego, two daughters - One near her apartment and the other in New Jersey. Her children had all gone to attend a wedding in New Jersey.
Periamma said” I already attended the engagement. These weddings are so boring! I thought I wanted to watch a hindi movie today” She felt a deep connection, she thought would probably be like her in her late fifties. She hated attending weddings. She didn’t want one either. She wanted a register marriage “”alaipayuthey style”, yet her parents insisted on the wedding.
Periamma seemed a lot knowledgeable about Hindi film industry. Periamma spoke about the actresses and their politics and knew about almost all hindi movies.
“I read star dust”, It gives me a lot of info about hindi movies. I missed Raavan . How was it?” Periamma said.
“Yea, you are asking the right person, I thought”
The twenty minutes seemed like an eternity when she spoke about Aishwarya Rai and her lovers, Deepika Padukone and her father, Sonam Kapoor and how she was struggling – I enjoyed it. I like to know what the celebrities do.
As the movie started, she felt so connected to the periamma. Sometimes you have to be alone to bring new people into your lives. This is not about two people different coming together. Its about two people so similar bought together by fate. Sometimes you have to let go of your old feelings, thoughts , ideas , memories and people to make room for new ones.
When the movie finished, they thought “ we are all alone, yet together !”

Raavan review

When I finished composing the review, I logged into my blog and found that my last post was about Ramayana. What a coincidence.


Sometimes you just have to let it out! You have to stand for what you think even though the rest of the world is against you!
About a month back in Oklahoma, I was thinking of some of the best of Mani’s work to watch. I was shocked to find that there were only 3 movies that I adored – Dil Se, Iruvar and Mouna Ragam. Others were good, but were superficial and lacked the indepth element these movies possessed. I love Aytha Ezhuthu, alaipayuthey, agni nakshatram, guru et all. But the 3 movies shook me and grew on me every time I saw them. I had no such hopes when I took off to watch Raavan. I went with an open mind and was sure I would be entertained. The result, I have discovered another movie that I can add to the list and I feel with this movie Mani Rathnam has reached new heights.
Some of the things I truly loved about this movie.
1) Aby, Aby , Aby- I think he is the best. He has acted amazingly well.
2) The scene where they fight- Ranjha Ranjha background ( Reminds of a fight in Dil Se)
3) The scene after the fight where he asks her to stay with him
4) The scene near the idol where he talks about jealousy
5) The last scene where he tells her what he told Dev
6) The reversal of dialogue- Bak Bak Bak Bak
7) Not bringing up anything physical – IT seemed like pure eternal love
8) The idea of the movie – What if Raavan was indeed a good person and Ram had some shades of evil? Would Sita still have lived with Rama?
9) The background music – I think Rehman has got his magic back. I did not listen to such BGM in Kannathil Muthamittal, Guru, Aytha Ezhuthu. I heard it in Dil Se, Iruvar, Roja, a little bit in Alaipayuthey. The background music seemed to tell me about Beera’s love. The magic of Rehman and Mani- amazing.
10) The dialogues in the climax. They just melt my heart. I felt if someone loved me like this, I could just die.
11) The concept of love with a married woman. How intense must the love be to love her even after knowing that she cannot be attained. The love has to be ten thousand times more intense than falling in love with an unmarried. This love is not about lust. It is true love. The jealousy definitely makes the love more beautiful.
12) If Raavan had not died , the love would have been ordinary. Raavan dying seemed to have made the love so beautiful.
13) Music of Raavan. I did not like it the first time. But after the movie , I understand the depth of Behne De and Thok De Gilli. I love Khilli re, awesome choreography.
14) I liked Aby’s brother. Don’t know who he is, but he is great.
Things I did not like about the movie
15) I liked the title and the title song. The movie starts with an impact. Raavan burning the police men.

Things I did not like:
1) Typical Bollywood style revenge story
2) Priyamani’s part – total waste
3) Govinda’s character – unwanted except for comedy( Govinda did a great job though)
4) Unwanted analogies to Ramayan – Sniffing by Priyamani, Govinda going as a messenger, a brother like Vibishen.
5) The character of Dev.At times it seemed he did not love Ragini at all. Killing Beera’s brother would have definitely provoked Beera to kill Ragini(simple logic). He uses her to find Beera. The character need not be this evil for Ragini to dislike him.
6) At points dragging second half.

Most of all this movie got me thinking of the conflict between Ramayana and Bhagavath Gita. Bhagavath Gita says, “ What was yours today, will be somebody else’s tomorrow.” By that idea, Rama should have let Sita live with Raavana, it is not like Rama owned Sita. Why did they both suffer for 14 years? And Sita had to go back to the forest again. Ragini also suffers because of Dev’s profession. It is said Ramayana was written to show men how to live. I feel women all over the world live like Sita. Ultimately most of the women end up choosing men who are like Dev. What if they find someone like Beera after marriage?
Marriage is like a boundary the society makes for a woman. For the sake of the society should the woman let go of the more beautiful life? Or would the marriage make Beera another Dev? I would never get these answers. I am grateful that Beera is dead. I can think for life that he truly loved Ragini.
I love Mani, I am sure he is Beera. The creation of this love did not come out of vacuum. I rank this one of Mani’s best, next only to Iruvar.

Raavan review

The Perfect Relationship

As I read the Ramayana, I felt a multitude of emotions. As though I had experienced all the things the characters go through in it.It is strange , but once I thought that Ramayana was a fiction.But now deep inside me I feel all this has happened somewhere sometime....

I sat down to write about the relationship between Rama and Sita on Thursday when I was interrupted. From that time I have never been able to write. They say there is a perfect time for everything.When we look back, we feel the timing could never have been so perfect.Our life is woven perfectly ,though mysteriously.So many people have told this.One I can think of right now is Steve Jobs when he talks about connecting the dots.Our life seems to be perfectly thought about , yet dynamic.

Now , back to my topic of Rama and Sita. Their love is described as being so deep.Sita leaves a very luxurious life and goes to the forest just to be with Rama.She does not get tempted by the riches of Ravana to become his wife .Yet she is asked to spend her life alone later in the forest in Valmiki asrama by Rama.But they still love each other at a level we as human beings seldom experience.

We all in our lives hope for the perfect relationship. Conventionally we want a good looking, rich, well educated and nice guy or girl.But deep down what do we really want? We do not know until we are in the presence of such a person. The glimpses of such a person comes across in some of our friends, movie character, character in novel.Sometimes we might like somebody because we like the way they like us. Admist all this how do we figure out what we want? With what kind of person can we truly spend our lives with?

We all know when we meet such a person. We know this is what we have been waiting for all our lives. We feel like being in a trance.As we know that person he or she is all that we truly wanted. But then once that has been realized we think, Oh my god..This is too good to be true. Then we start looking around and find out small small imperfections. Then we are happy.

When I speak to some of my friends who are still in the dating phase, They ask me..Is it how you are supposed to feel?I sometimes think is the feeling felt the same way in all of us? We dont know.We just feel and we try to describe it as best we can . Because he or she felt the way I do, doesnt mean that is what he or she wants...Shahrukh Khan in most of his movies says,"Kuch Kuch Hota Hai" and blah blah blah....

The concept of soulmate-- is being intepreted in so many ways in movies and books, that we no longer listen to our hearts. But a soulmate exists for everyone and what he (0r she)wants you to do is keep your heart open to listen and feel.....

Do women change after marriage?

This topic came about when I was talking to a friend whose sister was about to get married....She did not want to, but had to because of her mom's compulsion...Why do a lot of us resist marriage? If it is just one of the events in our life? If after marriage, we are going to face the same day and night, but with another person why do we hesitate and try to postpone it as much as we can? Is it just a resistance to change? Or is it much more than that? A feeling of inability of having life in our own hands? Does our life change after marriage?

I was sure before i got married that marriage is just a part of life.My life partner would be one who would assist me in attaining my goals and I in turn would help him out in reaching his goals.So from the beginning I have never been afraid of marriage. I thought it was a positive experience. I have not reached a conclusion that marriage isnt a positive experience. But makes me wonder are we- women all the same after marriage?

Some of my old friends who are now married can talk nothing else other than cooking, their husbands , mother in law, father in law and their babies. A woman's life especially in India falls into the hands of not just her husband but also her father in law, mother in law..This does not mean her parents are not controlling her anymore. And she becomes pulled apart by all of them and does nothing she really wants to do.On top of it there are children? Why is there pressure in the society to have children and sacrifice our lives for the child? Is our life not important enough?When a child comes, he or she becomes the priority. The woman though making a lot of money would want to spend the money on or child's crib then her own fancy shoes.

As for me life was definitely not a big bed of roses. I did make small adjustments to live with my husband.And he made a lot more adjustments for me.But in the light of small joys I have seemed to have lost my sight on the "Big goals of my life".I want to plan my career admist family matters.

What is the ultimate solution for this? It is indeed tough for a woman to settle in her career and then get married(They say there is a biological clock - not to forget what the society will say about an unmarried woman at 30)

Is a woman's life just to sacrifice for her husbands and kids? Do we really change after marriage?

I am back

Today when i typed my blogspot name. I tried to guess when did i blog last?
My motivation to write almost dwindled with lot of things happening in my life. I guess its been more than a year now. But it has been a year where I have undergone a lot of spritual development and I have learnt a lot.

Being alone gives me a lot of peace.It is a great contrast compared to the noisy and busy Chennai where if u get a minute alone, it is indeed too much to ask for. In this year I did things I have wanted to do for long(Except writing of course).Tried to get a decent workout, read books, learn astrology , know more about fitness, spend time alone contemplating, think about my career , travel and what not? I came across the writings of Deepak Chopra. It was great and it is definitely something on my way to spritual enhancement.The DVD "Seven Spritual Laws of Success" was great and I could reflect on my past.I understand some of the reasons for my success and reasons for my failure.

I am right now reading "The Ramayana".It is the greatest story I have ever read. I got it in Oklahoma City Library with all the seven Kandas(Isn't that amazing?).It fills my with peace and I never want to put the book down.

I saw all the Oscar nominated movies, Slumdog(before the oscar),Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Vicky Christina Barcelona,The Reader. I loved the reader, Vicky Christina was fun,Benjamin was ok.I tried to watch Milk, but couldnt.Stopped like in an hour. Same was the case with Duchess.
I spend a lot of time here cleaning and cooking too. That is the disadvantage of living in USA. I really adore the servants we had in Chennai and I really equate them to GOD. To deal with dust day in and day out , it really gets frustrating .

I visited quite a few places, Pittsburg to my uncle's place, Washington-Prabhu's uncle , Nayagra, Dallas, We went on Cruise to Sandiego, Catalina Island ,Mexico, SanJose.

I watch a lot of re-runs here. "sex and the city","Everybody loves Raymond","Friends".They are all amazing serials. Good fun!

I am also trying to get back to work.Applied to B-Schools.Hopefully should go to school this Fall.

From being really neurotic ,I have transformed to a mature and collected person.Could not have been possible without meeting the love of my life..;)

RACE IS DEFINITELY ON MY MIND AND ON MY SOUL!

RACE

Movie about Power,Money and Jealousy!!!!! God, I almost lived through the experience of “The other side of Midnight”.How could such a movie be complete without Double crossing??? Yep!It has loads and loads of it! But this movie I am sure will give the viewers a lot of strength.Saif I felt was at his best.I feel he is the Hottest Hero in Bollywood! The character which stayed in my mind even after the movie was his!The movie was an absolute entertainer with a lot of twists.I would not say unexpected twists as Bips was describing in her interviews.

My expectation of the movie was not great.Probably because I saw Jodha Akbar before this ,which was one of the most sloppiest movies I have seen.

The central characters of the movie were of course Saif and Akshay.I don’t like Akshay at all.Infact he is the only Bollywood actor I really don’t like and in this movie he had not done anything exceptional nor was his characterization was cool! The next important person is Bips , who keeps you guessing on which side she is .Katrina seemed to have no big role , but the twist at the end is well brought about!

I infact enjoyed this movie better than the remix version of “Billa” which is again about Power and Money.Probably because this has more strong characters.I really loved the characterization of Saif ,” Mein Dhokha Dhene Walon ko Dhubhara Mauka Kabhi Nahin Dhetha”And his characterization is so gray, would call him an honest thief!!! In all wicked games there needs to be a little extent of fairness , I am all for it!

Anil Kapoor and Saimira you will feel have no big role to play other than the humor track.But even these characters provide a lot of twist in the story!

I really don’t want to reveal the plot of the movie which was its biggest plus.Well thought of and executed.I could really not find any fault with it!The music was awesome too.My personal Favorites being Allah Duhai, Race is on my mind,Zara Zara.

This movie is something I enjoyed as much as “Jab We Met”.Again I could not find anything about this movie I did not like.Abbas Mustan - great going.But I seriously feel it is a remake of some Hollywood Flick.Do any of you guys know???????Do let me know…

a chapter from my novel

Long since i posted chapters from my novel.


A lovely chapter!!! when meghna meets him after long years of break up... Enjoyed it a lot as i wrote.. Thanks to Meghna.. really love her !!!For making me go through all her experiences as she narrates it to me....
Enjoy

She got up bored! Yet another day, the same routine!She brushed, bathed and got ready.Her mind blank and yet filled with thoughts of everyday activity. She did not know how to get out of it and even if she got out she did not know what she should do.She fought a battle within herself on why she felt this way! Was she missing something? Was this a feeling of void?What was missing?She tried to avoid the thoughts but in vain.She got dressed and checked herself in the mirror! She was wearing a brown and yellow salwar, loose hair and slight makeup! She took some sheets and walked out of the house after locking it!

It was autumn with brown leaves everywhere and her dress kind of complimented the environment! She walked slowly enjoying the weather with boredom out of her mind for sometime!

Suddenly a very strong wind blew her sheets away. One by one she tried to catch up. Someone caught the sheets from behind and came in front!. She did not notice who it was as she was too consumed about the sheets.One moment she looked at his face, the music that had lingered in her ears years back seemed to come back. A kind of elated feeling filled her spine.

What she had thought impossible happened today! She did not have the time to think if it was due to destiny or her intense desire that she saw him .The music of happiness was at its full volume at her ears when she saw the look of longing and happiness on his face! Did he then really love her?

She seemed to be out of the world and she wanted to freeze the moment forever.She wanted to see him like this as if it was the first time she saw him.She felt she needed nothing else in her life other than his presence.She wanted the music to be heard all through her life for her boredom to vanish!

She could not hold herself any longer.She went forward and hugged him.Tears welled up her eyes! She was experiencing the most beautiful feeling of her life as if she had got back her lost priced possession.The sense of security and warmth she felt grew strong as he hug her.She did not want to think what she was doing was right or wrong.She wanted to enjoy the moment!

JAB WE MET REView

JAB WE MET


Now where do I start? It was one of the most amazing movies I have seen in my life! Even though I have not written anything for a long time , I could not stop myself from writing a review of this awesome movie.Seriously awesome is the word because the core of this movie speaks the philosophy of my life” Zindagi me Insaan jo real me chahtha hai wahi hotha hai”.The moment Geet spoke this I was happy that my philosophy is being shared by someone else and that is being watched by so many other people.

I really love men who really wholeheartedly love a woman. A man cant see a woman he loves in pain and if someone else hurts her he cannot stand it!The way he consoles her when Anshuman hurts her is very touching. I could not stop myself from falling in love with the characterization of Aditya .Shahids expressions in the “Nagada”song and other instances when he blushes I am sure will steal any womans heart.He reaches the pinnacles of acting in “Tumse Hi”.The music, lyrics, acting and charactereization of this song are “Direct Dil Se”Aankhon me aankhen theri, baathon me baathen theri, mera na mujhme kuch raha, hua kya? This was what I felt at the end of the movie.Shahid was awesome in this movie.


Kareena s role is one of the most important in the movie as the director tries to instill a philosophy or a way to live through her.It is one of the sweetest roles I have seen in any of the movies and kareena fits in perfectly.

Aditya Kashyap(Shahid) is a devasted young man after his girl friend ditches him.Faced with continous hardships in life-his dads demise, his mom s elopement and their companys shares crashing,he becomes highly pessimistic about life and runs away from it in a train.Now the wheel of fortune in his life turns up and he meets Geet(Kareena) who is a chatterbox on her way to Bhatinda.Irritatted by her garrulous nature he gets down from the train.But she misses her train and blames him for that and forces him to drop her at Bhainda. On their journey they learn a lot about each other.Geet is in love with Anshuman and has made elaborate plans of elopement.On reaching her place she comes to know that they have fixed her marriage.So she decides to elope immediately,Shahid accompanies her.He drops her at Anshumans place and gets back to business and makes it go places.Meanwhile Geet has not returned.What happened to Geet and Anshuman and what Aditya does remains the crux of this story.I loved the train scenes and the scenes till they reach bhatinda.

The music and lyrics are the USP s of this movie.They were in sync with the movie, very appropriate.My personal favorite is “Yeh Ishq Hai”.Any woman can relate to her love when listening to this song! Next comes Tumse hi , it becomes the core song of the movie.The Punjabi settings were highly colorful.I feel like visiting some Punjabi household and know if their household is so much fun all the time.So undoubtedly I loved Nagada and Mauja hi Mauja.”Yeh raaste” is also a favorite for me because I love traveling and seeing two people enjoy traveling appealed to me . Even Aaoge Jab is my favorite as it talks about the depth of pain in love.

I think this is one of the pure and out and out love story I have seen.The train sequences are very hilarious and the characterization of Geet doesn go out of place even once.She behaves exactly as how a girl of her type would.Filled with innocence and optimism which is actually the need of hour.Every human being today needs a lot of these two to succeed in life.Worrying or forseeing a problem is not going to help anyone today.What is going to happen only will happen.

Well, I have been thinking what I did not like in this movie. Honestly Nothing! And what I loved? Well, the list is pretty long.Definitely it takes a place in the list of my favorite movies.

GURU

Guru- a movie of Mani I had awaited for so long! I would say I liked the first one hour of the movie very much! The pace at which it was moving.I loved the way the guy who played Abishek Bachan’s younger version. The way the title was being put was amazing, as if it were being printed.The first scene where in Abishek Bachan starts by saying”My dad used to say don’t dream, dreams never come true”.

A few days back in an interview aby had said it’s a movie about hope. People who hadn’t known Dhirubai Ambani’ story would have enjoyed the movie better.Probably that was why I found the touch of Mani missing.Or because of the dialogues.

Of course the movie also had very good dialogues.In Istanbul when he gets a promotion he says” I am not taking up the promotion. When you like my work why should I work for you? I would work for myself”And when the contractor says” What was your name?”

Guru says “Mera naam tha nahin, hai or rahega, GuruKhant Desai.” And when Madhavan says “Guru ek bhimari hai, jine jail me dalke Chabi kho Deni chahiye.” And for which Guru says”IF you want to fight Guru, become Guru and fight.”

Mayya Mayya’s picturization was amazing.The song also exceptional, I should say Mallika Sherawath has done very good dancing in the song.And what to say about Ash? Her introduction with barso re bring about a new josh.But I still feel she was not as good as she was in Iruvar and I feel Iruvar was a better movie than Guru.Probably the language plays a major part in me coming to this conclusion. I felt”tere bina” came at a wrong point and it s picturization was a disappointment.He should have definitely not included “EK lo ek mufth”.It gave a feeling as if the movie was dragging.

But the best parts of the movie were the first and last scenes.And of course the court scene where he gives reasons for taking shortcuts in business is also well framed.

In a lot of instances the movie reminded me of Nayagan.The small house in Bombay where he lives with Ash and the way he fills the contractors room with his goods.

I usually expect romance in Mani’s movies.The chemistry between the lead pair was very good .I even liked the romance between Vidhya and Madhavan.Vidhya Balan’s song was very good, think it was added in the last moment.She has done a good job.Two people who I thought could not act that well took me by surprise.Mithun played his part pretty well and Madhavan for a change has acted very naturally in this movie.I felt he had done full justice to the role which was a very important one in the movie.

I was expecting amazing background score for the movie, But alas! Except for the “Dum Dara” nothing else is worth mentioning.”Ay hairthen” which is a favorite among many people was not picturized fully.Lot of them would be disappointed about that!

Finally what I feel the message of the movie is “Anybody who dreams big and has a lot of hope, can make it.In the process he strives for other’s happiness it makes his job a lot easier.”

In a scene where he says toMithun”Everybody has a weakness and I take advantage of it and move ahead.”

And Guru definitely proves the point “Where there is a will , there is a way”, by saying he can never listen to “NO” for an answer.

With a lot of support from his “50% Bujiness Partner”,Guru Khant Desai Rocks!

My reading Experiences

I don’t remember when I made Reading a part of my Lifestyle. I have faint recollections of reading a weekly magazine called Gokulam.”The Undir Story” was my favorite. The story was about a rat family who lived beneath a Banyan tree. At that time it was fascinating for me to know that rats could live a life like human beings. It used to trigger my imagination in a lot of ways. I used to read the entire magazine, all the poems and articles. But poems used to bore me that time. I was more fascinated by story telling. I used to write small stories in my diary that time.I was some six years old that time.

I cant forget a book called “ My Giant fairy tale book” my dad got for me. I had the book for a long time. I loved the stories of Mermaids, Alladin and his wonderful lamp, magic ring and so on. Even now given I am sure I will read that book (If I found out where it is!)I would have read that book at least half a dozen times to make up for my boredom at Dungargarh.Yeah, at that time I was studying my fourth standard in a place called Dungargarh in Rajasthan.It is still one of my favorite places.

In getting me interested in reading I should thank two people in my life and one of them being my father. Seeing me read the same book so many number of times, he got me few Enid Blytons which I thoroughly enjoyed at that age.I remember two books very distinctly,” malory towers” and “treasure Hunt”.I read a lot of Enid Blyton’s.Then my dad got me Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys which I did not enjoy at all .I can faintly remember reading one or two books of those authors.

At about the age of eleven I came across “ Mills and Boons”.Even at this age sometimes I like reading MNB, me being a real hard core romantic.I read quite a few of them then but the monotony in the stories got on my nerves sometimes.

Sidney Sheldon has been one of my most favorite author till date even after reading so many different genres of book . Probably one of the reasons being he makes reading a very light and enjoyable experience. I would relate his books to Indian masala movies .I found myself crying with the heroine and being proud about her when she achieved what she wanted. When I was around twelve I accidently found “Best Laid Plans” in my uncle’s Almirah.(He is also a very big fan of Sheldon) .I am yet to meet someone who has started reading a Sheldon book and stopped it in the middle! .By the time I became sixteen years old, I had finished reading all of Sheldons and till date I have read all his books except “The other side of me”.I heard the book is about how he took up writing as his profession, his true life story.

I would have got stuck with Sheldon and not have read any other author if not for Sarada,my first close friend in college.She introduced me to Archer who I totally adore.I saw in his writings the power to inspire.The two books,”Kane and Abel” and “ The Prodigal Daughter”, I will always treasure in my life.I am yet to read a book which radiates so much of positive energy to the reader. I have almost read all of his books except the prison diary .I am sure he is one among my favorite authors cause he shares my attitude of life.Unlike Sheldon who ends most of his novels tragically,Archer always brings great unexpected twists at the end which are for the better. In his recent novel “False Impression” , the story takes a very good twist at the end and the woman of his novel wins.

I should again thank Sarada and Ayshwarya for letting me know of the existence of an author called “Ayn Rand”..Heights of Philosphy and Deep thinking, I am sure only a woman writer can do! It took me one whole year to read that book. But the everyday experience of it was phenomenal. The Deep emotions of a woman in love with an eccentric architect is the story of “Fountain Head”.I still feel I am not matured enough to read “ Atlas Shrugged”. Still I cant deny the fact that I am an ardent admirer of the style of the woman writer.

People in the meanwhile kept suggesting me books, Robert Ludlum,Erle Stanley Gardener and a lot more. It did not evoke any interest in me. That time I started reading a little of Swami Vivekananda’s writings.I did like it. It was informative in a lot of ways. But the day I spotted “ the Guide “ in my library has been one of the most unforgettable days of my life.R.K.Narayan has been God to me since then.Can someone combine humor and romance? This man has done. His writings are so simple. Just the way he starts his novel with Raju wanting idlis for breakfast.It sounded to me like our carnatic music after listening to all rock music.What else do I say about this man? Undoubtedly he is the best writer I have ever come accross! After that I read” Swami and Friends”,”Bachelor of Arts”,”English Teacher”,”Vendor of Sweets”.All his books are amazing.When you have had a hectic day, you read his books you feel so refreshed.

When I had lost all interest in reading, RKN rekindled them.Then I read Ken Follet,”the third twin”.Ken Follet is definitely a page turner.The third twin was my kind of book.(a typical masala book).I have heard he writes a wide range of topics..

Harry Potter, the whole world celebrates.Somehow I had read half of the first book “ Philosphers Stone”.I did not really like it.But then I started reading from HP2 and I have liked it.The best one was “The Goblet of Fire”.I am yet to read books HP5 and HP6.

After reading RKN books, I have been searching for Indian authors. It was when I came across Chetan Bhagat.No doubts both his books are very interesting , page turners.But I would say he definitely has RKN’s influence.I loved both “Five Point Someone “ and “ one night at the call center.” I have been trying to read lots of Indian authors. But could get hold of Shoba De only.Read her “ socialite evenings”, not a great book but still liked her writing style.

Of late I have been reading a lot of non fiction.Brain power,subconscious mind etc.The latest book I have read has become my favorite.” The Alchemist” is a simple book about the philosophy of life! Life is beautiful if you dare follow your dreams.It is said in a simple way. I just could not stop memorizing certain lines in the book.

“ When you wish for something, the whole world conspires so that your wish comes true”

It is indeed true. When you truly want something you get opportunities to get it.But most of us feel that we will achieve our dreams after we get settled in life.Paulo Coelho says that you need not wait for anything to realize your destiny.

He says we wish for something because that desire is invoked in the soul of the world and it is our responsibility to realize that wish.

And of course even I don’t believe in the worlds greatest lie

“and at some point in our lives we start thinking our life is controlled by fate”

long time baby!

It has been really long since I sat down to write. It was really disturbing that I stopped doing something I am so passionate about. Voicing our opinion does give one a lot of pleasure.

Life has been good. People always frighten saying life gets tougher as you get older but not so for me! My life as the years go by seems to get better and better.

I once read somewhere you can always remain happy if you take every incident of your life as a lesson.Success teaches you how to do a thing and Failure teaches you how not to do a thing!

I read so little in this four month time span. I read a book by Shoba De “Socialite Evenings” which is a story of a woman whose married life is a mess! All the miseries she goes through and how finally she finds out what she wants to do with her life is exactly the story.I liked the book because of its Indian touch and simplicity.There was no plot and hence the story was not so gripping.I tried so hard to read books, but I never seemed to get interest.I have Ken Follet’s “ Eye of the Needle “ with me, but it doesn’t seem to evoke any interest..

And to talk about movies, I did watch a few ones but really don’t re collect what all! Yesterday I saw Don. I seriously feel the King Khan should stick to romance.I had a feeling the Junior B would have done better in that role.I had wanted to watch Umrao Jaan too! But no one is ready to come with me to watch it .

I am very excited to watch “Guru”.Mani Rathnam s movie after two years.I can remember how excited I was to watch Aytha Ezhuthu and this time it is the combo of my two favorite people .I am sure Aby would have done full justice under Mani.The music of Guru reminds me of the old Hindi songs , the “Mere Sanam” kind.The song “Hey Arathe” is very romantic! Some of the web pages say the movie is the story of Dhirubhai Ambani whereas the others say the movie is a mature love story.There is this page in wikeapidea ,http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guru_(2006_film),where I fell in love with Ash’s character (Sujatha)

She says

Sujatha - I hated my father for forcing me to marry Guru. But I was sent away to Bombay to live with my unwanted husband and my anger in a one-room chawl. I don’t know when I stopped thinking of him as a stranger and started calling him Guru. I was too shy to say things like I love you, but love was perfume I wore everyday. Some people call him God, some say he is evil, but for me he is the man who has to just enter the room and I can feel that perfume waft its way across and settle on me... that perfume called love.

And Guru Says

There’s a saying in our village, if people say bad things about you, you must be doing something good. Sounds true, doesn’t it?

I feel the movie is going to be very inspirational like his old ones and I just can’t wait to see it!

hmmm, time up!

i have had one of da best holidays ever.. n now on friday i have to join work, i tried my best to complete my novel, but alas there are so many loose ends.. n jus now actually i have entered into the actual story, ..i seriously need a laptop, half da time wen i m in great mood 2 write, my dad or sis r in da comp, sometimes it gets v frustrating tat m not able 2 write the great idea i got..n by da time i get comp, i loose interest! god, y do i loose interest these days on quite a number of things..
i read some books, read hp4, it was great, seriously one HP i reeally liked, den read a KEN follet n man i never expected it to be this good...the book was called "the third twin", and it was about how two twins who have da same DNA, brought apart still have da same characterestics.. it was a psychological thriller n da book was so gripping, after a long time read such a book..
saw few movies as well! i loved oceans eleven, man wat a plot it was... den saw this movie "black",it s da best movie i ve ever seen, it was so touching and the story was very well told, amithabh bachchan amazing,he s jus superb....
hmmm, time s up for all my enjoyment, got 2 join siemens on friday n leaving for mumbai on saturday....hmmm, hope my career s fine...he he..

long time..

it has been ages since i sat b4 my comp n tried writing somethin..my science fiction short story is jus in da first paragraph, da idea still fresh in my mind.. and for those blessed people reading my blog now, sorry i really feel like blogging, but there s no exact thing i wanna say. it is again gonna be some random thoughts in da most horrible language possible,, but i really wanna do it now...
hmmm, 4 yrs of college.. engineering seems to be an achievement to me...looking back i feel i have had a blast at college. i never bothered about wat people wanted, wat they thought about me, in short gave a damn, inspite of tat i feel i have some people around me who like me for wat i am.. wat ever i have thought has been wat i have said, which would have hurt few people, but that is me, and how ever hard i try to change it doesn really happen.. with tonnes of advise from my parents, scoldings, i never seem to stop doing it, that is hurt people.. but i love most of the people around me, yeah! me a lover of mankind(read it, man!!he he), i love life, i wil live every part of life with no regret about it, i wil watch every single movie, read every single book, talk wat ever i want to, write wat ever i want to, learn wat ever i want to.. but ultimately i wil make it BIG, yeah real big in life.. i haven told it to many people, but i have my life planned for another 10 yrs.. but i contradict myself, i feel one has to take life as it comes, yeah i wanna do tat too,, but at the end of ten yrs i wanna reach where i ve always wanted too.. three things i have always wanted to get MONEY, FAME AND POWER....
in between al des, love and romance.. they seem like some joke words to me.. having known so much about love never in my life wil i experience al tat i think people wil experience in love...i love myself, .. yeah, i do...i can think ,infact i think a lot, (mostly unnecassary), but not many people understand it.. rather i put it that way for al da stupidity i convey. infact a lot of unleased potential in me, lot of strength in me which has to come out!! how wil it? needs more planning.. tats how my tenyrs plan comes into picture... well! but then i wil still be taking life as it comes.. wait and see, wat my life has for me...

kavidhai kavidhai padi.......

one of my school friend annamalai has been writing amazing poems of late,, cant believe he can write so amazingly well,... for those who understand tamil.. here is a super duper poem... enjoy..
en kangal un kannai thedudhey,
kaanum vizhiyellaam unadhendru ninaikka thonudhey;
idhu dhaan kan thirandhey naan seyyum kan-moodi thanam !

unadhu kar-kandu kan kandu,
enadhu kan ennum siru vandu,
thulli irandu thaen undu,
poothadhu dhaan nam kaadhal.
yaar sonnadhu kaadhalukku kan illayendru

one of the most memorable days of my life......

april 12th.. and even can say 11th were two beautiful days in my life.....but nothing can touch april 12th.. man.. it was so damn good..
the day started with going to cols in da morning, we were supposed to have our final review n demo today.. but as yo all know v haven completed our proj yet...i had neither excitement nor fear, cos the reviews r so normal in da dept, no fuss or anything...
once i reached, our batch head ms.saradha nandhini sethuraman realized v were supposed to bring some report print outs..so, da HIT JODI starts.. v tot vll get it from otteri.. v started marchin along the shady pathway, with our usual laughter sound accompanying us.. wow man!!!! have i ever stopped laughing when i was priya???? v share such a rapport... the way she gives nicknames, duplicate kurshid, amazing.. so where was I?. ya,,we started marching towards otteri... we managed to find where v would get printouts, we went to that shop n wow, know wat???? the female complains that they have had no current for the past one hour, we laughed for that even,, then pri decided to call up our batch thalai... she left her mob in the labn so she with so much of enthu picks up my mob n dials thalais no .. but alas, instead of sarada's voice she hears a recorded voice saying that there is no balance to make a call,, yeah, my balance was.23 this morning n even now...
so we go to a pco n i spend around some10 minutes readin da procedure to dial in that huge fone..
then, finally cald up thalai n da kind of ideas thalai gets... so unpredictable,, with review in some time she suggests that v go to tambaram to take da printouts...
n my more unpredictable friend pri said"polame" so enthusiastically to thalai, i was stunned.. finally she says it will be v adventorous.. travelling from otteri to tamabrAM at 11 in this hot sun in a dabba ptc is adventorous for my best friend...
i know ppl readin this blog ll be cursing me now,.. no matter here.. jus some memories... cos i jus feel this day to be damn memorable man,, every second of it i enjoyed...
on the way wen i saaw the train pass by so fast, i had a weird feelin.. even my life seemed to move so fast, like how every carriage seemed to disappear, my memorable college days were getting over....
then we went to tambaram, n crossed da road thru a small hole, tat pri almost sprained her back, n then in da xerox shop i got bulb wen i was opening the door for a woman who never wanted to enter.. the cocunut water n da juice v drank .... i dunno wat was funny but we were laughing our hearts out.. even when v were waiting for our guide to come for the review v were laughing... n finally, da grand review arrived.. as usual it went, no fuss , no excitement.. normally...
i read a few of my slam book entries n was touched.. it was great fun man, on da whole.. april 12, 2006.. amazing day...

plz read it..

http://prabhukrish.net/category/he-she/



plz check tis blog, absolutely hilarious... naan vizhindhi vizhindhu sirichen.. don miss it..

hmmm....

first time i am posting some one else s writing on my blog... i felt this is an important msg for todays youth at the same tims funny and humorous.. so here it goes story of bubba,
by my friend and class mate PRAVEEN.J.VACKAYL

BUBBA, THE BRAVE

This is the story of a brave young hero and his friends (yes, you can call them his fellow heroes or whatever).
His name is Bubba.
To his parents’ eyes, Bubba was a devoted, sincere chap that knew his good from his bad, his left from his right, his a from his b and so on. That’s about everything any parent needs, to tell everyone what a good little child God has blessed them with, and sure enough, Bubba’s parents were no exception.

But once he left the conservative confines of his home every morning and entered the Nungambakkam station to take a train to college, Bubba’s personality took an entirely different turn. Bubba was a top member of the infamous Foot Boarders Inc. (F.B.I)-the legendary guild of heroes with its members all over the country.

Gaining membership to the F.B.I was anything but easy. A glance at some of the membership requirements will make the jaw of any incompetent “happy with a nice seat in the train” sissy drop all the way down to the South Pole.
.
* Thou shalt never ever have known of the existence of the seat in the train.
*Thou hast to demonstrate thy foot boarding skills by jumping off and onto fast moving trains, AND make sure the girls’d seen thou do it.
* Thou shalt get off at every station with acrobatic expertise and comb thy hair. (All members have a reasonable sense of fashion consciousness expected out of them.)
*Thou shalt by no means fall asleep while on the footboard. (for heaven’s sake.)
*Thou shalt never stretch thy arms out in elation a la Titanic_ “ Uh! I’m flying” scene on the footboard. Defaulters will be severely punished (if recovered alive).
*Thou shalt acknowledge that being a member of the F.B.I is akin to being a gallant soldier for it causes death to look thee in the eye, and yet thou shalt have no fear. In case of death in action, it will be seen to it that thou shalt have died a true hero.

Cool no? Getting back to Bubba and how he’s doing, we find him (cat?)walking on the platform. He’s got his moves all well rehearsed, so he looks as much of a hunk as he can. You’ve seen it all before…Hair gelled up nice n neat…Levi’s low rise …He pulls his stud from out of his pocket and clips it on an ear…Ooooh!! Bubba’s so in and with it.

He takes out his cell phone and seems to be checking something important on it. Scrutiny reveals, however that he’s only fiddling aimlessly with the keys, the actual intention being (as always,) to impress the girls with his new Nokia 6670 as he walks past. (with no apparent success…as always, again. )

Bubba finds his buddies- DryBrain and RustHead (top executives of the F.B.I) and they go about with their `Yo mans!’ and `Wassups!’ with their faked accents. The train arrives. Everyone gets in, except of course for Bubba and his buddies.
Aw, man!!! Just the cool way in which they stand by the train door after passing their bags through the window to someone already seated (AND who, by the way happens to be a beautiful girl), would make any (senseless) girl go weak in her knees!!

The train’s started to move. The boys walk casually with it, still apparently busy with their conversation (actually crap). The train’s picking up speed and the boys start to jog with it. They jog and they jog, but they just don’t get in. You’d think they were going to jog to the platform’s front end and jump off it onto the ground.

Au contraire!!
Just as the train is about to skim off the platform’s head, the boys glide in smoothly with the swiftness of a cheetah and the accuracy of an eagle swooping down on its prey (and may I add, the brains of a baboon). They check out of the corners of their eyes whether all girls present have observed and marvelled at the display of their manly skills…and dismiss the lack of the anticipated amazement as something that can be remedied by another more daring performance.

Wow, don’t you think?? No? Well, if you’re looking for conviction, (ohhho?) you’ve got it.

Listen! These are no ordinary boys. They are boys with a mission. Their mission is to advocate the name and spread the fame of the F.B.I. And as every mission goes hand in hand with a plan, so does theirs…and their plan is by no means simple. It involves the execution of complex stunts and the exhibition of rare skills in the art of foot boarding, performed all along the journey, with no breaks in between. (In case you didn’t know, repeat performances at all stops are only to keep reiterating the acrobatic proficiency possessed by members of the organization.)

Forty minutes of performance sans applause goes on till they finally hit Tambaram station and get off the train. “Man!!”, Bubba is heard ridiculing DryBrain and RustHead. “You guys are bad at this stuff…bla bla...and DryBrain, for heavensakes, man, you...bla bla.”
…and they dissolve into the morning crowd.

More than three years of going to college by train has had me observe quite a good many `members of the F.B.I’, and trust me, you really can’t help wondering at their attitude to life… or their lack of it, rather.

They might not know it, but somewhere in the country, people die on the footboard every single day. There’s a hundred Bubbas among us with nothing to keep us from risking our lives every single day…in so many ways… like all we lived and stood for is worth giving up for thirty minutes of thrill …thrill that can kill…and does.




You know, I can talk about this cos I’ve seen what this is like. We’d lost one of our friends from school in an accident; he fell off a bus. I could see the pain his parents felt in the tears they shed for their son, and you’d better not ignore this: You DO NOT want ever, ever at all to have your parents doing that.
The pain it gives having your child die is so heart wrenching, I can’t describe it.

So people, I implore you- One life’s all we’ve got! Give it all the respect it deserves!