Here's some readers' takes on the new movie Sawaariya :)... these are not my reviews, I haven't even seen the movie...I just received them over mail... and frankly I don't think I will see the movie in future as well

"Sawaariya is one long song with some breaks for dialog. And by dialog I mean girly giggling by the chic and some punch-me-in-the-face ex-pressions accompanied by pig-like grunting by the hero. One wonders if all the actors are the props and the set is the real star in this movie. I came really close to concluding that the bridge-over-the-fake-river is the central star of the movie, because everyone of the other actors looks like they were made of rock. And the rocks had moss growing over them. And the rocks were painted blue."

"To say Saawariya is a crappy movie would not be correct. Horrendously Ridiculous comes close, but it doesn't really capture the essence of the absurdity that this movie is. After watching this movie I felt like tying up Sanjay Leela Bansali alone in a room, forcing him to watch a cockroach chase a spider round-and-round a water fountain for 3 hours. That too in blue light. Because seriously, that's what this entire movie is. It's two grossly untalented kids, who probably got kicked out of college for lack of attendance and ended up on this set to spend the rest of the day. And for the love of God, I can't figure out why the whole movie is in blue! Maybe the director was trying to get every frame half-black half-blue so that the WinZip compression would work better to save some electrons, what with all the global warming and all. That's the best explanation I could come up with, because nothing else can explain the lack of daylight (or plain light, for that matter) in this movie."

Wishing all the readers of this space a very happy Diwali :)

Infinitea

I Visited this restaurant (or shall I term it as a bistro??) called “Infinitea” on Saturday…Its located dead opposite Sigma Mall on Cunningham Road…A real neat place to hang out with friends and family…The atmosphere was really chic and was unusually buzzing with an assorted crowd of youngish and middle aged people…The food was good and the smell would have been appetizing if not for a bunch of twenty something’s chain smoking at the next table…Its basically a tea bar with a small menu which is mix of continental and oriental food…I guess the tea would be their strong point but it was lunch time and the portions were big enough and left no space for tea after the meal…Good food though :)...They could use a change of scene where music is concerned…Some redundant music track from Titanic was being played the day I visited the restaurant…But nonetheless a great place and is absolutely worth a second visit…

Harry Potter, Runaway Jury, To kill a Mockingbird

To begin with I have read just three books in the past two months and that seems kind of distressing for an avid book reader like me…But I guess commitments on both the professional and the personal front seem to have pushed "hobbies" to the back seat... writing blogs being the other...


The latest and the last narrative from the Harry Potter series (Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows) was personally a big let down...I was not really impressed by the ending…And the story seemed to drag in some places...The end of the previous book promised a brilliant and dramatic ending to the series...To sum it up in few words "JKR fails to deliver"...I was very disappointed by Snape's story as well :(..

The second book was relatively alright…This one being "the Runaway Jury" by
John Grisham... I have watched this movie earlier and liked it so, decided to
take up the book...It’s the usual Grisham tale about lawyers, juries and trials...This one being about tobacco litigations and fixing of juries by the tobacco companies…And the strangely behaving jury that protests at every chance it gets, etc...Probably since I have watched the movie the ending sort of lost its surprise element…

And finally a book that seems to have held my interest for more than a day :)...This one being the all time classic "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee…I have heard a lot of positive reviews about this book and I must tell you that its well worth all the time you would spend reading it... This book told from the point of view of a small girl called Jean Louise Finch (better known as Scout) deals with racial prejudice in the American south and the impact that racial hatred can create in the simple and playful lives of two kids when their father is assigned the case of a black man raping a white woman…But what really stands out in this book is the brilliant characterization…

Harry Potter

• The Harry Potter season is here again with all its hype and hoopla....
  HARRY POTTER seems to be the topic of most conversations...kids to adults; everyone's jumping in the bandwagon...
  Be it television, radio or the newsprint everyone wants a piece of the action...bookstores are making a bumper, what with the books selling like hot cakes (with or without the discounts)...

Suddenly all everyone's talking about is either the Harry Potter movie being released or the latest Harry Potter book being unveiled...
People speculating as to how the series is going to end...

• Is Harry going to survive the ordeal of meeting Voldemort once again?
  
• Will Voldemort die? (Good always triumphs, doesn’t it?)
  
• Is Snape the good guy or the bad guy and why did Dumbledore trust him so much?
  
• Will Dumbledore come back from the dead to help Harry?
  
• Will Ron and Hermione get together? What about Harry and Ginny?
  

Have you observed how conventional this marketing strategy is?
First rumors about the contents of the latest book... then the statements made by the author as to how dear the characters have become and how deeply saddened she is, by the step she has to take and finish off the main characters since the script demands it...
Then the speculations...and for months together unto the date of the release the rumours spread until it becomes a frenzy...rumors about the leaking of the book's contents…the heightened security around the books...and the number of copies being booked in advance (setting record of sorts)...
But this form of marketing actually works like a charm since, who wouldn’t want to buy the book with such hype being created?

I agree the Harry potter series as such is really well written and makes for a very interesting read…
I would also like to say that to me, Tolkien is still the master, where the fantasy genre is concerned and Ms.Rowling has borrowed heavily from the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy...
But all said and done I am still a big Potter fan and I can’t wait to read the last book to see how Ms Rowling is planning to conclude this spectacular series…

I have been veering off short stories for a long time now...
I seriously don’t know where I developed this deep aversion to trying out short stories...and being a book lover who can digest just about any genre of writing, I feel I have missed out on some really great reads by keeping off this particular facet of English literature...
I guess it was mainly due to starting off with Agatha Christie...no offense but even though I am one of her biggest fans, I feel her short stories are less than awe inspiring...I have absolutely no complains against her mysteries though, they are marvelous, especially Hercule Poirot...
Then following a suggestion by a friend, I finally decided to settle on a book called "A Quiver Full of Arrows" by Jeffery Archer...
Its an absolute treat...its humorous and serious at the same time... the stories are well constructed with twists in between (that's probably Archer's signature)... and he conveys his feelings convincingly... I have read most of his books and I can say with certainty it ranks amongst his best...
There’s one story I liked in particular… its called "Old Love"...a really nice love story...really inspiring and well written...
I feel this book’s going to put me back into the "reading short stories" track...

Aren’t you amazed at how the simplest of things can give you more pleasure than all the material wealth that you think is all important to enjoy life to the fullest [at least they do for me :)]...
Sometimes I am surprised at the happiness I derive from a simple thing like an early morning walk...the air's crisp and you can hear the birds singing [?]..And see the sunrise :)... absolutely fantastic...it actually gives me the goose bumps to see all of god's creations…
Then there are some smells that are an absolute treat to the senses - eucalyptus oil, smell of mud that arises with the first showers of rain, henna, amma's vengaaya sambaar, jasmine flowers and that distinct smell that you get when you hold babies [clean ones, I mean]...
A really neat beach with the white sand and the surf…the sea being a mix of green and blue [turquoise]...nature in all its glory... usually makes me want to go all wild :D...
Flowers, waterfalls, snow and greenery...nature in general... NGC being a favourite channel :)…
Couples in love...they always make me want to smile…all their blushes and shyness and those special smiles meant exclusively for their loved one to decipher...
Naughty kids...so much fun to hang out with, even if they actually drive their parents totally nuts with all that energy :D
Dads putting babies to sleep...I feel it makes the cutest picture ever…
Watching the sunset especially at some hill station or the other...
Getting dripping wet in the rain…
Eating ice lollies during summer holidays…
Getting hold of the next issue of your favourite comic book, you have been dying to read…
I am getting kind of nostalgic with summer holidays and the rest...I seriously miss those carefree days...just holidays and no worries…no deadlines to meet and no meetings to attend…
Ok!! I must stop this piece at this point; otherwise I will just bore you to death…if I haven’t done so already

I read an article on how to be annoying...a really funny piece...Here are some of them :D -

1) Leave your indicator on, for the complete duration of the ride.
2) Repeat everything someone says as a question.
3) Holler random numbers while someone is counting.
4) Invite lots of guests to other's parties.
5) Drum on every available surface.
6) Change channels 5 minutes before the end of the show.
7) Forget the punch line to a long joke but assure the listener it was a "good one".
8) Follow a few paces behind someone spraying everything they touch with room freshener.
9) Never make eye contact or never break eye contact.
10) Signal a conversation is over by clamping your hands over your ears.

This is the chapter of my life where I am extremely happy and where everything seems to be going just right on the personal as well as the professional fronts...there are so many things that I can actually write about, in my blog...but there still seems to me to be a dearth of ideas...I am seriously concerned as to whether I am losing the battle to stick on to a hobby for more than a month :(...

I have always wondered what inspires people into asking certain questions and saying certain things.
Here are some questions that annoy me to the core of my being-

Wassup??
How are you supposed to answer such a question?
There might be a million things going on in my life at the point, at which, this question is directed at me...am I supposed to give a summary to that effect?
Or am I supposed to just say a plain "nothing much" even though I know that’s a lie?
Or I ease up the situation by asking a silly question like "do you want me to say the sky or the ceiling?"
People actually laugh when I say that...
Sometimes I ask this question ( I mean “wassup??”) just to bug others, but I am surprised as to how I am the only one who seems to get irritated by this question...others just say "nothing much" and move on with the conversation...

Howz u doing??
Come on!! When you can say it in proper English with a simple "how are you doing?" why use some stupid "howz u"... as far as I know there is no word called "howz" in the English language? and please don’t say," I use it because it’s cute." It’s definitely not that...

Where do you see yourself 10 years from now?
Or its variation like- what do you think your achievements would be, say 10 years from now?
I feel like bashing the person who asks me this question...
All I can do is grin and bear it and say," I am a person who takes life one day at a time. But, I want to be successful in whatever I do." how much more predictable can that get?
But what I really want to say is-" Why are you being so nosey? How on earth am I supposed to know where I will be in 10 years time? I can hardly predict what is going to happen tomorrow, and you expect data regarding the next 10 years of my life? I am sorry I am just too short sighted (literally and figuratively) to do justice to this question.
And why is it always 10 years? Why not 5 years or 15 years? Is it some kind of a lucky number or something?"
The person who directed this question would probably run away by the time I finish my tirade :)

Look at you; you are all grown up.
Do you want me to remain a dwarf throughout my life or something?
By the way I look at myself in the mirror everyday and you don’t have to particularly tell me to look at myself.

Wish your mom/dad/sister/brother/neighbour/dog/etc/etc/etc from my side.
Seriously how is it going to matter to the concerned person whether I wish them from your side or not?
They don’t even know you.

Sindhu Bhiravi

I have been listening to the songs from this really old Tamil movie called Sindhu Bhiravi...and all I can say about my reaction to it is, that I am floored...
The songs actually make my hair stand at end...
All the songs have a strong classical base and the lyrics hold a lot of meaning...no peppy numbers here..
Pure melody...not like the nonsense that is being churned out now a days in the name of music...
Seriously, you will start loving Carnatic music if you listen to these songs..
Illayaraja and Jesudas seem to be at their best...
Jesudas renders the songs so effortlessly that you think, its so easy, i can sing it just like that..but when it actually comes down to it, the songs are really complex and very difficult...
a true maestro...
And I have noticed that which ever old song I like in Tamil is composed by Illayaraja and sung by Jesudas.. a truly remarkable combination methinks...
if you can get hold of the songs from this movie listen to them, they are amazing

I wish anyone who is reading this page a very happy new year... in Tamil- Puthaand nal vazhthaakal (spel?)

Yeah!! April showers are here...i coudnt have taken another week like the last one...it wasn't like bangalore at all...but all's well that ends well..

Started watching 2 new shows on Star World-Heroes and Prison Break
As most English serials go, both seem to have incoherent series of events…but the issues tend to get sorted out after the initial few episodes and you start understanding the storylines...
My take on both-

HEROES

Bunch of people from different countries (mostly from the US of A) who aren’t connected in anyway...thing they have in common- possess some kind of special power....

sample this- a guy who can read other people's thoughts, a guy who can absorb special people's powers, a guy who can fly, a cheerleader whose cells regenerate (that means- she can live through life threatening accidents without a scratch), etc.

anyway one of these people is a painter who paints the future under the influence (drugs!! of course)..And he comes up with a painting of a nuclear explosion and all these people have a part to play in saving the world from the explosion...
The Indian guy in it is really HOT :)... my favourite character though would be the Japanese guy who bends time and space (time travel) he is really funny...
There is one character though who suffers from MPD…I don’t know how that’s supposed to be a special power...
Its very reminiscent of X-MEN...you tend to compare the characters in the 2 but X-MEN was slicker and made on a larger scale and budget...

Rating: 3 and 1/2


PRISON BREAK

If you don’t mind watching violence on TV, then this is a good pick...
Guy kills vice president's brother…does not confess to committing the crime but security tapes show otherwise…convicted and sentenced to death...

younger brother trusts him...pulls of a false heist and is thrown into the same penitentiary....has the whole prison layout tattooed on his body so he can get elder bro out...
Some characters thrown in include, murderer's former girlfriend (lawyer) who is searching for evidence as to who actually committed the crime...and a bunch of prisoners who can’t seem to keep out of trouble and can’t wait to get a share of killing younger bro...
The show is getting kind of interesting...difficult to understand the dialogues sometimes because of poor sound quality and dominance of the background music…but holds your interest for most part...

Rating: 3

P.S- ratings are out of 5 (obviously)

Do you find the neurotic need to do something over and over again, till it gets to the point of being really annoying and all you want to do is to get as far away from it as possible...but its like this vicious cycle that never stops..
For me these obsessive things (or habits more like) would include
Clicking the blocks in minesweeper over and over again...pointlessly… more often then not I just keep playing till my hands cant take it anymore..
Or humming the same song the whole day...till I get so annoyed, that I never want to hear it ever again...but the song if its really stubborn, usually gets stuck in my head weeks at end and I cant put a stop to it...
Or doodling away to glory on a piece of paper and only stop when the ink gets over…
Or sitting on the exercise bike and pedaling away even though I know I shouldn’t be losing anymore weight...
I sometimes wonder if these are just some quirks of mine or if it’s some kind of obsessive compulsive disorder or something... I am gonna go with quirks :)...

Now that I am actually getting time to read the newspaper, I find a compelling need to criticize each and every section of the newspaper we buy...
Isn’t the first page supposed to carry the major news making headline the world over??? Or at least is in some way relevant to someone (read the general public)???
But no...the editor of this particular newspaper has to have the most annoying and the most unworthy bit of news on the first page and rest assured this godforsaken bit of news will surely make the headlines...
When there is a union budget, don’t ask ( I am rolling my eyes at this point)...everybody who is anybody (or even a nobody..) in the film industry, has to be interviewed and their expert comments(?) have to appear on the next day's issue...yeah I have got that right (film stars and budget?? what are these people thinking???)..
Then there is the sports section...geeezzzz!! This is like a 4 pages advertisement for the "Indian Cricket Team"...it either talks about their "latest spoils" in the game or, its some veteran giving his expert comment as to why the team is doing so well...
Hello!! there are other games besides cricket that we would like to hear about once in a while...
And if I start talking on the supplementary that comes along with it, I can go on and on...
The most annoying sheet surely has to be the page 3...with the pointless parties that the latest to make the page 3 crowd (the "it bunch") have been attending wearing the most dreadful costumes they could find in their closet...
The restaurant review will only feature the hippest of hip joints...and is sure to leave a big burning hole in your pocket if, you bother to visit any of the restaurants featured in this section…
And make sure you don’t watch any of the movies raved about for their excellence and fine acting...you will surely rue the day you took the reviewers take to heart and decided to watch the highly recommended movie...
A few good points though...
The sections on education and property are pretty good...so are the book reviews and a few good articles which might appear once in a blue moon...my personal favourite is the comics section though...(imagine the quality of this newspaper)...
Of course I could go the Tam Bram way and read "The Hindu" but I just can’t take the monotony either...

p.s- sorry for the large number of unnecessary question marks that appear in the blog

I dont have anything productive to do right now so I decided to be industrious and write some nonsense piece...[I guess the first line just about testifies to that]

Here is the imperfect weight loss program for you...it works like a charm for me.

WARNING-your office must start at 7.00 am if this program's to work (don’t know if this diet will work for non vegetarians though)...if you are a late riser then I am sorry, this piece is not for you… and if you are on the lean side, you had better not read this either or just plain look for a new job..

Ok, here goes...
-> Get up anywhere between 4 and 5.30 am…depending on how far your office is from your workplace...
->have a pro-pah English breakfast [that’s corn flakes, a fruit and a cup of tea...no coffee]
->get to office and walk the 2kms from the gate to your actual workplace...
->keep at your work without any tea break till 11.30 am...that's when lunch is served...
->walk about 1km to reach the canteen...and make sure there are absolutely no trees on the way to protect you from the sun…
->eat about 1 roti and a cup (small cup) of rice...
->walk back to your workplace…by the time you reach your work station I assure, you would have digested most of what you have eaten...
-> Then work without the tea/coffee break for the next 5 hours...
->walk the 2kms back to the gate.... from there it’s your choice of transport to reach home (I take the bus)
->at home drink a glass of juice and eat some biscuits...
->have dinner at about 7.30...your choice…
->go to bed by 11pm...
And the whole process has to start all over again the next day and to be followed from Monday to Saturday...you can take a break on Sunday...
I guarantee you a weight loss of at least 2 kgs at the end of 2 weeks…

Yesterday’s team outing was a time to reflect and a time to mourn the end of an era...it was, I feel, the final touch that went into closing of the project (my very first one), the one on which I have worked for over a year now...
Even though the project ended a fortnight ago, the finality of it did not strike me till yesterday's get together...
You might think me an emotional nut for mourning the close of a project like mourning a person but putting it simply, my project and the people I have come to know thanks to it, have become dear to me in a very special way
I know I am going to miss my team the most; they are more like my family now then anything else
They have come through for me and guided me through ups and downs like I would have never expected when I joined the team as a fresher (thanks guys!!)
The invaluable lessons (on the professional and personal front) I have learnt from each and every member in the team will always stay with me
I am seriously going to miss the team outings, the fun we had everyday (I have never laughed so much in my life) and our very own snack bar [;)]...
What I am not going to miss are the CEO meetings we had every Wednesday… I think my parents will be the happiest of all to hear that I won’t be torturing them with my apprehensions about how the meeting for that particular Wednesday would go...
It was about bidding adieu to our project manager...he is such a great person...I will miss him and the support he provided to the group (the back bone of our team)...
I can safely say I have grown tremendously as a person the past year...
But I guess change is a part of life and I have to accept it for better or for worse...
and I am happy in a way that its time to move on to greener pastures and I am excited about the prospects the new project is bringing along with it...though for now I don’t have much to write about on the happy front of the transition, hopefully I will come out of this phase of my life having learned something priceless..

Even as I join the ‘club’ of bloggers, I wonder if my getting into blogging is such a good idea....
As has been with most 'hobbies' (or shall I call them passing fads), I have taken up at some point in my life, I don’t know if blogging will stop being a challenge to me after the initial days of excitement?
But after procrastinating for about two weeks, I have decided to take the plunge...and I look forward to rendering my thoughts to a wider audience (besides my friends)...
And I presume it would be a great challenge writing online... for one thing I have to worry about my spellings ,which I haven’t had to do since my last English exam in the 12th std [but then there was no Microsoft Word for my English exam :)] and I will have to continuously come up with a wide variety of topics to talk about, so I don’t bore my readers to death...Anyway I am praying for divine intervention (God, give me a bit of luck please!!), so, I can keep this interest of mine going for a long time and I hope people read my blogs...I know for one, my friends would have to definitely read them (my .22 is always on the ready, if you guys don’t)..