Thalaivar birthday celebrations 2009

This was the fourth year we are celebrating thalaivar's birthday @ Bangalore. And I had to travel from my client office to our office just for the celebrations! Anything for thalaivar....We got a huge 3 kilo cake done (thanks to naadas, kuruvi, parachute and dumkaa) and cut it in front of a huge crowd. Here is a video....

Funny to think that I have celebrated thalaivar's birthday everytime in Bangalore than Chennai....:))

Oh! I was a kid then..

Oh! I was a kid then

awed by her presence

Friends we were

With boundaries blur

Years took us apart

Cattle in different cart

Still we were stuck

Mails and some luck

Time tried its best

Somebody did the rest

Cracks came in

And it never was the same

Maybe God made me grow

To become what am now

Maybe Time got bored

And wanted some more

Grow up, I did - a little

and became brittle

Still the Hugs I shared -

Smelt of her

Time kept its due

The day rain made a hue

The door bell rang

and there She stood.

Oh! I was a kid again

awed by her presence

With her smile - that made

the wait worthwhile

She spent moments

And bid goodbye

Days after that

My heart still lags

Time did not want

To take us apart

Rather to tell me

What it was I lost.

Thevar Magan - Magic of Kamal and Ilayaraja

I never get tired of watching the climax scene in Thevar Magan.

The point where Kamal wails in agony, when Nasser's mom cries out that all the milk she gave is spilt as blood now. Right there, Ilayaraja adds his chorus into the proceedings producing sheer magic for the next couple of minutes till the end credits roll.

Touching finish...

Flora and Fauna @ Elangadu

When spending the first few days on my return from US in Elangadu, I captured some of the flora and fauna there. Ramya captured the squirrel busy with the coconut. Elangadu is a sleepy little village along the banks of Cauvery river. Coconut groves and paddy fields dot the landscape with banana trees thrown in. Fauna is typical Indian tropical with lot of squirrels, crows, sparrows, goats, dogs, an occasional woodpecker, kingfisher, etc.

Diwali 2009 @ Bangalore

This was the first time that I spent Diwali weekend in Bangalore.

It was a good one with driving all the way to Salem for crackers; lots of shopping in Hosur; a totally vegetarian but very delicious Diwali (topped with sweets from four states!); spending quality time with friends.

This weekend seemed too long and happy.

J

Valaigaapu Kavidhai

this is what i wrote for ramya's valaigaapu aka baby shower

கரம் கொடுத்தாள்
கை பிடித்தேன்

வரம் கேட்டாள்
உயிர் தந்தேன்

சிறை வைத்தாள்
பத்து மாதம்

பிறை விலங்கு விலக்க
வளை அணி விழா

மார்கழி ஐந்தில்
மேட்டுபட்டி சந்தில்

கரம் கூப்பி
அழைக்கின்றேன்

உண்மைகள் பொய் ஆக
உங்கள் மொய் - என்

வங்கி கணக்கை
நிரப்படும்.

Good Trailers I came across..

I leave the stories for the trailers to tell...:)

Pandorum

Capitalism

Law Abiding Citizen

The Men Who Stare at Goats

En Thaai Pirandha Desam

I have known this song for a long time and its one of the songs close to my heart. When I listened to this now, I can relate this to the lost cause. I have just given the verses which I felt were directly related to the lost cause. The movie is Siraichalai (Kalapaani in Hindi) and music by Ilayaraja. The songs starts as 'Idhu Thaai Pirandha Desam...'

வீரனை குண்டுகள் துளைக்காது
வீரத்தை சரித்திரம் புதைக்காது

நாட்டை நினைக்கும் நெஞ்சங்கள்
வாடகை மூச்சில் வாழாது

இறந்த உயிர்களோ கணக்கில்லை
இருமி சாவதில் சிறப்பில்லை

இன்னும் என்னடா விளையாட்டு
எதிரி நரம்பிலே கொடி ஏத்து!

நிலத்தடியில் புதைந்திருக்கும்
பிணங்களுக்கும் மனம் துடிக்கும்

தாயோ பத்தே மாசம் தான்
அதிகம் சுமந்தது தேசம் தான்

உயிரும் உடலும் யார் தந்தார்?
உணர்ந்து பார்த்தால் தேசம் தான்

இந்த புழுதி தான் உடல் ஆச்சு
இந்த காற்று தான் உயிர் மூச்சு

இன்று இரண்டுமே பறி போச்சு
இன்னும் என்னடா வெறும் பேச்சு?

Religious Rants

If you are an atheist, there is just one religion for you. If you are a theist, then God save you! Half the problems in today's world are either through religion or religious men.

I am a theist. I am not religious.

I do not want to get into whether Religions came through God(s). All I make out is that there were some very clever men behind the framework of each religion. Generation after generation, these men moulded the framework. They thought of all the problems in society at that point of time and tried to address them in the framework. They also thought of all the natural disasters and calamities they did not understand then and again fit them in the framework. Add to it, things they did not like happening in the society and lo! they are the most important part of the framework.

The end products, as we see today, is the work of so many people. But what we fail to understand, across religions, is that they were still human made. Tell me one product made by humans which is infallible and irrefutable?

The question is not whether I need to follow a religion. The question to ask is whether I, as a human, need to follow another human blindly? If some human, who just by living a few thousand years before me has the advantage of giving a path to God, why can't I find my own new path to reach my God? What makes someone who lived before special and me ordinary? Nothing!

So, are religions bad? No. Are there good things in religious? Yes. But can they be better? Certainly!

I don't care about people who practice their weirdest path as long as they do not harm others.

More importantly, my heart bleeds for a few people caught in some religion who cannot break the shackles. They are those who hate some customs in their religions but can never come out or talk about it. What wrong did they do? Can't they have their freedom?

God made Man. Man made religion. What is religion fast making? End of Earth.

Am back..

whewww...it took three weeks to get back to blogging. Am still caught in my day to day things. Guess, back here in India, you have more things to do, more friends to catch up with, etc. Time flies....:)

Ramya is doing fine. Still in Tanjore. Am busy hunting a home in Bangalore. I suddenly realize that I have more friends in office in Bangalore than Chennai. :)

Will start writing very soon...

:)

Back to India

will be in by 25th......out of internet for 2 weeks....:)

my mobile num will be +91-9941684251

Muncie's Thiruvalluvar

You read the title right...thats how I call him. And boy...look at his beard....how else can I call him?

But it was not just the beard that is fascinating about Stan......He owns the Heorots Bar....He owns two wolves as pets....He has a beer named after him and with his figure on its label...(see inset)....the beer is called ard ri...

It was a pleasure to meet him.

Tamil Street Dance aka Kuthu dance

Here's a You Tube Playlist of Tamil Street Dance...This dance is done at any place and every place...whether its a marriage or a death.....we just love this dance...:))...I will try to give a few words on the situation in each song...so that you can appreciate better...i have written it down in the order they come up in the playlist...

Saro's Kuthu Playlist

1) Anjale song

This song is where the guy is all drunk and sings about his lost love (the girl dies earlier in an accident)......the dance is casual....Chennai is captured nice in night....

2) Padichu Pathen song
This song is where friends go and dance about in one of their friend's sister marriage.....the dance is full of energy and life....look out for the dance bit at 2:02...rocks!

3) Kathale Kanale song

This is like a bar song with an amazing choreography......the rhythm is simple and catchy.....the moves are good!...the girl dancer has a real charm!....

4) Kannadasan song

I call this Brian's song....he liked it when I played it on my car audio....:)....again, a bar song with a simple rhythm...the dance movements are slow (as it is all drunkards!)....there is one line which when translated goes like this "Drinking is like snake's poison...but when u do it with all others, it becomes socialism'....now, hows that?...:)

5) Nakka Mukka song

This was so popular among our youth last year.....it was like their anthem.....nice beat.....and amazing dance!.

:))

Aadi 28

Here's a collage of Aadi 28.

Now, the name will sound different to non-tamilians. The name means 28th day of the tamil month of 'Aadi'. Usually comes around 13 or 14 August.

Its an all exclusive family festival in our village Mettupatti in Trichy. Its been happening for 3-4 generations before us. All our family members come together and feast! I missed it this time though Ramya went and had fun.

As Sivaji says in Devar Magan, "5000 varusham munaadi vetri vel, veera vel'nu vel kambu veecharuvanu thookitu suthuna kaatu payyaga dhaan naanga" (we are still the same in spirit like our ancestor nomads who went about with spears and sickles 5000 years before)..

:))

Chicken Curry and Chicken Biriyani Recipes

Here are my own recipes on Chicken Curry and Biriyani. ...:)

Chicken Curry Recipe

Chicken Biriyani Recipe

And I fully understand that cooking is all about improvisations. So, if you find something that you can tweak and make better, do let me know.

:))

Cookout at Tim's place

Keeping up a promise to Tim and Karen, I went down there this Saturday and cooked two South Indian dishes. Chicken Curry and Chicken Biriyani. It was such a fun filled and satisfying experience. I learnt a lot from Karen on parenting and keeping the family happy and fit.

Both the dishes turned out well and left the Scofield family hot while eating!...:)

District 9

Aliens.

This is as real as it gets.

No second thoughts.

Watch the movie wherever you are.

Not recommended for girls and kids.

50 years to the legend Kamal!

Today (Aug 12th), Kamal completes 50 years of on-screen acting. Below was my take on Dasavatharam movie when it released in 2008. To a person who has been a trend setter always, here's my salute:

Off late, Kamal is always racing against himself. None seem to be up there racing with him. When a man has seen so much in his field, I wonder how is thought process will be. Will he be thinking cinema even in his dreams? Maybe. But as my better half quipped "When he can 'act' in ten different ways, why does he don ten different make ups?". I had no answer to that question. But this question very well could be the answer to how Dasavatharam fares (how is when you watch the movie). Not that the man himself would worry about. The box office hype and marketing strategies (something he missed out for Aalavandhan) will certainly carry the film across.

But as a fan, what do I get?

Kamal in all his brilliance. Period.

The body language and dialogue delivery of all the ten roles will blow you out. The tremendous effort put in for each role are evidently seen and will be appreciated. There is subtle humour around every corner and the constant poking of Kamal's atheist-in-him is beautifully done (aka Anbe Sivam's character). The graphics are good. Background score is done well.

Maybe they did this film in a hurry but some of the make ups could have been done better. They seem way out of place and artificial. The story is loosely based on Chaos theory and is woven beautifully to accomodate the Tsunami in a way we would not have imagined. But some of the characters that Kamal plays seem thrusted upon the story. Its almost like 'heyyy...i am done with 8 characters.....now, where do i fit the 9th one...'.

All said and done, its worth a watch once to see the greatest actor of our times to put himself in unfamiliar grounds once more and come out with his glory intact (albeit with a few scars).

Hairy Tales!

See Chris Rock (a stand up comedian in US) get to Chennai in quest of ....he he he..

(its a Youtube Video link)

http://tinyurl.com/mlx9jm

Now, that's a hair raising tale!...:))

At least Chennai gets its due ...:)

Jagermeister

Am from the school of thought..sorry...'bar' of thought that Tequila is the drink for instant kick! Until, I tried Jagermeister (pronounced 'YAY-gur-MAIST-ur').

Its a shot drink from Germany tasting like a cough syrup (ughh!). One shot in a bar made all the girls/ladies around me look so beautiful! he he he.....

So, ...:)

Wooo...

Now, in Freak Teaky Friday, there was a person walking around with a German Shepherd (albeit a close cropped one with very less hair and a gray/black one at that). It was very obedient and playing with onlookers. When the band stopped playing, I was watching it play around and suddenly noticed that something was not right.

It's eyes.

They were different.

Mel looked at me gaping and said "That's not a dog....it's a wolf'.

That moment, I dropped all ideas of going near it.

Freaky Tiki Friday

Last Friday, on an invite, went down to downtown for Freak Tiki Friday. Local bands play to a crowd in front of the bars. The bars alternately sponsor this event to attract crowds and hence its free to the people. I call this the 'Follow the Money' business model. Nothing is free in this world. You just got to follow the money.

Anyways, Mike and Mel had invited me over and I got introduced to a couple of their friends. Mel was my boss' sis. After a couple of beers, I found that there was no college crowd around. One of the persons at my table was a former bartender and she gave an interesting insight. College kids hit the bars around their campus only. There, everything comes cheaper than anywhere outside. Hmm..

The band was good and I personally met the lady singing. Mike had actually been a former drummer and had helped compose some of the songs the band was playing. After that, we hit another late night bar; another band. It was like 12 midnight when I left.

MIT Moments - 1

Today's conf call with my college friends triggered something else in me. I was laughing aloud when I was narrating it to Ramya. Here it is:

It was the first year, I think. We were in NSS camp somewhere near Chengalpattu (behind those small hills that neatly line up along GST). Murali, Pyma, Dhana and me used to stick around those days. Mornings will pass with doing some activities in the village and the evenings will go with some fun games and stuff. We were like 80 people and divided into groups. Each group took turns in staying back at the camp and helping with cooking and serving food.

Now, there was a girl that I used to 'sight' those days. She was in Pyma's group (I think). So, when it was their turn to serve food, it was all arranged that Pyma will make her take the exact food that Murali or I wanted or atleast note what she has. So, she was all the time at our end serving something or the other. She suddenly got wind of it and went the other side. As you know, in a South Indian meal, you eat curd/buttermilk rice after rasam rice. So, we were like in the curd rice and she was having the rasam bucket with her. Thats when I became extra bold and called 'Rasam, please'. She came with a frown on and asked 'heyy...think you are already having curd rice'. I still don't know how I did that. But I simply pointed to Murali and said 'he likes rasam in his curd rice, you know. So, if you can...'. She just poured the rasam hastily and left in a huff.

:)

Offbeat movies 2 - Apocalypse Now

At the end of this, some people might say that am talking blasphemy here. But I will stick to it neverthless. I consider Apolcalypse Now to be the greatest movie made than Godfather. Yeah..you heard it right.

Francis Ford Coppola made this movie (as he did Godfather) in 1979 (the year I was born!). Its about a US captain going in search of a colonel in the Vietnam war. His mission is to get into Cambodia up the Nung river and get to him. The boat crew is as bizzare as the captain and the happenings along the way (in the height of Vietnam war) and their journey to find the colonel makes up the movie.

Its a fairly long movie. A very intense and depressing one. The real picture of war opens up before you. The landscape is amazing and the camera work/direction is astounding. To think that this movie was made in 1979 beats me! I would recommend this movie to all who enjoy war movies. Not for people who get easily depressed or upset. If you can, try to catch the redux version of the movie (made in 1991) which adds extra scenes (and hence extra time) and gives an altogether more intense view. To see this movie, I would suggest that you free a day in advance; get the DVD and watch it in the morning itself. Plan some outdoor activity in the evening with friends. This will give you enough time to get over it by night. I watched it some night and ended up depressed the next day!

Some moments will just take you away. As you get deeper and deeper into the movie, you will agree more and more on how the crew feels and what the captain undergoes. By the end, Marlon Brando's appearance will freak you out and you would just wish you were away somewhere else!

As I said, I consider this the greatest work of Francis Ford Coppola. I met a Vietnam war veteran in US and asked him whether he has seen this movie. He said he sat for 10 min in this movie and walked out.

As the movie begins and ends, The horror...The horror..

Humour at office - 1

Was talking with my boss today and he said 'Saro, do you know the only word which will fit in almost every grammatical position in a sentence? Like a verb, noun, adjective, adverb, etc....'

I did not.

f**k!

:)

Ughh...

Am a guy who totally gets into all psycho movies with glee (along with panki and biku). Anything crazy works with us. But man....did I hit the limit yesterday? Saw a movie with one of my favorites Naomi Watts (ohhh...i love her!). And boy.. was I sick!

There was nothing remotely pleasant about the movie where a family (husband, wife and child) are taken hostage by two teenagers (within the first 10 min). The whole movie was about how each one is killed in their own sweet time.

And the sick part was when the lady takes a gun and shoots one of them down. The other teenager searches for the TV remote. And while I was wondering why the hell should he be searching for the tv remote, the director comes up with a blinder! The guy presses the rewind button and the whole movie rolls back to the point when the wife shoots. When it replays, the guy pulls away the gun from her just before she shoots! sigh....

I wish the director dies in the exact same way in real life.

Rib Fest in Muncie

Am a voracious meat eater. So, was more than happy when I heard of the rib fest this weekend at Muncie. Restaurants/families in towns and villages around Muncie get together yearly in Muncie and make what they are best at.....pork ribs. Aaaah...the smell that hangs in the air....hmmmm....makes your taste buds go berserk! The pork ribs are barbecued and given right away piping hot! And with Heorots beer to accompany, you never want to leave that place. Add to it, a lots of music bands playing music all around. It was a carnival, guys!....:)

I had ribs from two of the best places (had to wait in the line too long but worth it!). I also had elephant ears and funnel cake. The former is so close to our channa batura and the latter is almost like one of the snack we get in India. Both were delicious!

At the gun range

Aug 1 turned out to be fun. I caught up with one of my childhood passion (though it was more toys then). Cliff took me to a gun range with his pistols and rifle. At 25 yards, I fired his semi-automatic pistol and 1949 0.22 remington long range rifle. aahh....the smell of gun powder (similar to our fire crackers) and the boom...boom will melt the heart of any man! And for a first timer, I did not fare bad. I hit the target 98% and most of it were in the circles! Fired like 70 rounds with both. Personally, I like the rifle more (the pistol is too noisy and is more a short range).

I managed to pick a bullet I shot and the target sheet as souvenier.

Indian Music

I just played 'maanguyile' song to my American friend here and he loved it! Raja rules!

My friend wanted the youtube link. I had a better idea and told him that I would compile a playlist of compilations which would give him the spectrum of Indian music.

Help me with suggestions!

:)

Offbeat movies - 1

As has been asked often of me by a lot of people, am starting this section of writing a list of offbeat movies that I catch up on DVD or TV....and a short review with it. These movies are not going to have any of the mainstream releases that happened recently. So, it will be something that you can pick from a DVD shop...:)

The Ruins (2008) (Horror)

I am one who avoids horror at any costs but this seemed offbeat and hence I got hooked on. I wish I dint!I was completely freaked out on seeing this. On the lines of tourists-get-to-unknown-place premise, this one is too real and you will feel as if you can encounter something like this in a day-to-day life. And believe me..there are no ghosts! Its something more...:)

New Jersey Drive (1995) (Drama/Action)

Now, am a big fan of black movies. I like their style; the way they talk. Bro, am hooked! This movie is about a group of young black car thieves set in Jersey City in 1995. Its kinda slow movie with no big stars but its an interesting watch. And you can catch a lot of slang that might help you to throw around some air!...:)

The Hammer (2007) (Comedy)

This is a very simple and funny movie about an aged boxer who tries to get back to the ring. A guy named Adam Carolla plays the boxer and his straight face humor is a treat to watch. He has a Nicaragua friend who is like that uncle from Borat guy in terms of his comic sense. The scene where Adam wears the ipod and tries to show off before a girl is hilarious! And the girl in this is a next-door-girl and you will like her definitely!...:)

Event Horizon (1997) (Sci Fi/Horror/Thriller)

Lawrence Fishburne stars in this and I don't know how I missed this one earlier. This is an edge-of-the-seat thriller. A space ship gets lost for 7 years and when it suddenly appears, all is not what it seems. The idea in this movie will scare the s**t out of you!...:)

Water fountain

Here is a night shot of the water fountain in a pond in my Muncie apt complex. And do you see a peeping head? no no...thats no Loch Ness monster. Its a harmless duck! There are about like 40 ducks out here and when I walk there in the middle of the night talking with Ramya, they will rush to my side thinking I have something for them to eat! ....:)

Intimate Strangers

Brian and me had been hitting the Heorots pub every Thursday now. It takes its name from the Beowoulf character and I learnt later that the owner of the pub does own two wolves! I have seen him around with a long beard (he was gracious enough to give us a free pitcher once!) and he has a beer named after him (I will get the name later).

Heorots sells like 400 to 500 beers from around the wolrd. So, there's a tradition in Heorots that if you get to 100 beers, you get your name plaqued to the wooden bar and if you get to 200, you get a T-shirt with Heorots name. Today, Brian reached 200 after three years today and it was a good thing to celebrate.

Anyways, the whole thing about writing today was about meeting this stranger Tony who is a teacher at a nearby high school. I was pounding him with questions and learnt the following

1) US Kids after high school are taking to technology more now than medicine or finance

2) Bright kids are not taking to teaching (he was worried about it!)

3) Kids are taking to agriculture engineering more to do effective farming

Tony had been much thru Europe and he was talking about an interesting country called Liechtenstein which is like just over the size of the town Muncie I live in. So, Tony was down there in a pub (where else) and was talking to the bartender who was from Austria. Tony asked him whether he is now a Liechtenstein citizen. The bartender said that there is no way to become a citizen here since there are no immigration laws. What that means is that the bartender can work there but has to leave every night and get to Austria! No other country's citizen is welcome there. Interesting!

Life aka Casino (The Gita way)

What are you born for?

Imagine.

You walk into a casino. The guy who opens the door gives you a set of chips (aka money aka friends aka relatives aka whatever-f**k-you-can-think-about). There is only one rule. You got to spend every damn chip in the floor. Nothing goes with you when you walk out of the casino!

So, what do you do?

Some play fast; lose all chips.

Some play slow and steady; eventually lose all chips.

Some do not play at all and keep watching others play; eventually are forcefully emptied.

What is the loss? Chips, you think. Nothing! What did you f**king own in the first place to lose?

Till the above statement, it is very clear in Gita.

The only new thing I can think of which is not covered in any holy book is that you are not only playing with the chips but you are a/the f**king chip for someone else. That adds a new and profound meaning to your life. So when someone rolls a dice somewhere, chances are that you are going to be tossed around! Exciting life, eh!

:)

Elusive Rabbit

Like Tom Cruise behind Rabbit's foot in MI3, I had been keeping a watch for this elusive rabbit that keeps playing in the lawn in front of the apartment. Ramya wanted to see this in a picture and everytime I tried to get the camera out, this would disappear. At last today, I was able to slyly catch it on a pic...:)

Tandoori Chicken

Here is the Tandoori Chicken I made today. :) I started getting nostalgic about the Idylwoods days.

Compare and Lose

In the felicitation ceremony for AR Rahman, it was Ilayaraja's turn to speak. When he came up to the podium, there were like two mikes twisted around. He pulled them closer together and made a hand gesture clasping both his hands together! He went on to add that there were two musicians Madan Mohan and Roshan in the Hindi film music world who never met. Roshan, 32, died early and Madan went over to the funeral and asked angrily something like 'What will I do without you? Whom will I compete with?'. That sums up the feelings both Rahman and Raja have for each other.

When I go through some internet content; listen to some heated discussions at workplace/college/schools; even movies (Sarvam), I find the comparison factor despicable. Understanding that it is an inherent character of a human to rake up the comparison factor in anything and everything, I just request to look at the mirror and ask yourself "What do I want?"

Its like this: if everything had to be compared and rated and only the best needs to stay, then how about a hotel/home that sells/makes only its best item day in and out? Would you like to stuff in that item day in and day out? Won't you feel nauseated?

So, feel good that you got the best of both and get immersed in that. After all, they are there creating music for you to enjoy. Why fight over who wins? Why dont you let go of that thought and you win for a change?

At my boss place

It was an evening to remember, last Friday. I took off early in the afternoon. Made some good pepper chicken; went to the Conconnan's and got pasteries; shopped at Borders for a book; and finally got a Napa Valley wine. With all this went down to my boss Tim's place. Karen, Dan and Greg were there. Tim's place is a lovely home with a beautiful backyard. Tim had soaked beef fillet in the seasoning and was just about to grill them out when I went in. Karen topped with baked potatoes and corn. So, there we all sat outside in a rather chill evening for a summer and feasted. Tim's wine was good; the fillet was awesome and the company was the best. We talked about this and that and ended with some watermelons for dessert. It was 10 pm when I left with a feeling of having visited home away from home.

'Adam' Laptop

Yeah ...you read it right....last week in the factory, came across a laptop made in 1987! In perfect working condition. It was a Zenith 181 laptop running on DOS. No hard drives...just those two floppy drives that you see. One for booting and the other for running programs! And what programs....I saw a graphics program that works like our initial screensavers...cool! The laptop weighed heavy. The one thing that I noticed is that the keyboard has not changed much even from then.

To think this was one of the first laptops to come into being and still running....wow!

Of Valiant Men and Valentine

I wrote the below post on Valentine day, 2007 when I was in Buffalo, NY:

The only verdict is vengeance; a vendetta, held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous.

- V

As every Valentine runs by, in the last twelve years, the net sum feelings in the heart is given by the above rather crisp message from the movie 'V for Vendetta'. The protaganist in the movie utters the above in a way different context but heyyy....that fits me. And the phonetics of 'V' gives a comfort feeling.

It started on a bright summer day in Chennai. Year 1995. The phone rang and I picked it up. The other end said 'Happy Valentine..'. The ball started rolling. It took me four full days to confirm and reconfirm with my friends (those ^&&^**&&*) that only people in love utter those magic words. Oh my God....and I did not even respond on that day. From that moment onwards, the phone bills went up; guys became enemies (oh...the ones who say that this is not love); vijay became my favourite hero (those one sided love story movies!); computer classes became hot (my father lost Rs. 35000 there...hey....not me!); white shirts became staple (she liked white). Once after seeing one Prabhu Deva - Kajol movie with her and mutual friends, I waited an hour outside the movie theatre to wave to her as her car goes out. Later, found out that she had taken the other exit and long gone. Hmm...one of the first waits. It took me ...hold your breath...five years to find the courage to utter the response to her. And the reply was..."ok....hmm....heyy....i never thought you in that manner....heyy...heeyy....where r u running?"

I never looked back. Strangely, did not cry also. Now, one thing here which I have never given out till date: I did eat Biriyani that day (this is for you....MITians!). Few days back, one of my friends who studied in those computer classes and me were catching up. Suddenly that guy said 'machan....those days...when I used to feel a bit low...I used to wear whites". I was trying hard to recollect the connection when he finished, "....you know she likes whites...". It was sort of poetic hurt when I surmised that it was not me wearing whites that had her approval...it was white wearing guys....Goddd!

Came out of college; joined a company. And there she enters (heyy...this is a new entry!). I started taking a liking (when did I not?) and this time did not hold out for long. Six months later, told her. Negative. Again, Muniyandi Vilas (Tamil Nadu ethnic restaurant to have Biriyani!). Somehow, we became good friends for two years. And one day, strictly out of curiosity, had asked her the Q...'heyy....was there even a ...hmmm..chance that time?'. And know what her #$%%^&* reply was?..."you know...if you had stopped talking....I would have agreed in ...two days...but you were a gem". I almost fainted. My fair lady....I would have happily been a piece of coal then, seriously!

I thought that was the end. I was wrong.

Then came my love. The one which I can never write in the same humorous way as above. Took away my breath. And this time....she did like me (my #$$#$%$% God....at last!). Villian came in a different form. Love. Period. Hurt. Period. Muniyandi Vilas.

Today, looking back, seems like I lost something along the way. Maybe my innocence. But gained immensely from my encounters. What? Weight, you @##$$%%^ idiot...all the #$%$%$$% beer went inside me only na...

As I write, I overhear my early-twenties-roomie excitedly discussing about the Valentine day specials!

I...no no...

V for....Vendetta.

Naan Kadavul (I am God)

Watched 'Naan Kadavul' again. To people who do not follow Tamil cinema, this is a tamil movie directed by Bala. Came in the beginning of this year (Feb 2009). Here is the review I wrote then:

I was studying 6th or 7th standard then. My parents had left me and my brother in my mama’s place in Tanjore for the annual holidays. It was a very big house with lots of vacant rooms and a big garden. Since there were no kids to play, I usually spent my time loitering around. Watching movies on the VCR deck was another favorite pass time. One day, there was a movie called ‘Panic’ which was about an epidemic spreading around a city. People who catch that disease start biting other people and the disease spreads. That was the first time I saw a gory picture with lots of blood and zombies. Haunted by those images, I got very disturbed and it took my three full days to come out of it then.

Next time, I got that disturbed was when I read the fiction ‘Desperation City’ and ‘IT’ by Stephen King. This was during my college days. The former was an out of the world depiction of horror in a desolate city and the latter was about how a ‘thing’ in clown makeup goes about destroying a city. In both cases, I was haunted for a week and pushed to a depressing mood.

Now, two days after watching ‘Naan Kadavul’, am still making up my mind as to what is disturbing me in that movie. Bala has carved a hole in the world we live in (as we know) and made us peep into worlds which according to us don’t exist (or do so on newspapers as we sip our morning coffee). What will strike us more is that till date we have not made that attempt to see these worlds. Believe me all that talk about the aghoris being the main plotline of this movie is crap. That world is just an aberration to bring justice to the brutal world of begging. And as with all Bala movies, the humor elements will spring from the most uncanny places you can ever think. I think that part did me in. I am left wondering as to how such people can be humorous given their way of life. But without it, I guess, they are as good as dead. Or maybe I do not understand the ever fighting and resilient spirit inside a human. Whatever…it shook me too much, I guess. I could not eat that night at home.

I heard this climax was actually planned for Pithamagan (another Bala movie). It was a good way to end the movie. And I think we are now mentally ready for a Bala movie climax such that it does not surprise us much. Some of the dialogues mouthed by Arya are simply out of the world (for example, when Arya tries lighting up a ganja pipe in a temple fire, someone says “koil nerupa neenga asutham panniteenga..(you have made the temple lamp impure)”. Arya replies back “neruppuku edhu da sutham asutham?” (How can you make fire pure or impure?) !!. Thanks to Jayamohan for such crisp dialogues. And I think I need not mention the music part. There is no one else who could have done justice to this movie than Ilayaraja. Cinematography is very good (Arya’s intro and the shots of Arya in early dawn with the udukai are really awesome).

This movie is a definite ‘no-no’ to anybody below 21. And to lots of girls too, I think. I am surprised they got a U/A certificate. Also, there seems to be too many cuts in some places which make it a difficult viewing. And I don’t understand why the dialogue goes blank with a sound at a lot of places. If those are adult dialogues, then what are the scenes in any normal Tamil movie focusing on the girl’s not-to-be-mentioned parts or for that matter all those double meaning comedies? Sigh…..people at censor board, look at your Hindi brethren and learn a few things.

Some two weeks back, on a hot afternoon on Mount Road, I was walking after a very good lunch. All of a sudden, I saw a queer sight. A deformed lady was sitting on the tar road (along the sides). She was sitting with her legs (or whatever you can call as legs) completely exposed to the sun above and tar below. And she was not even sitting on any makeshift paper or anything to give her even a small comfort from the ruthless Sun. I felt bad and dropped a note to her. I asked her “Why don’t you sit up on the platform where there is a shade?” She looked straight at me and replied “In that case, I would not have got this note”.

Makes sense to me in a strange way now.

Archived mails

Archived mails - geee....they like give you the glimpse of who you were, say, 5 years back.....And my my.....I have been the best hypocrite ever always trying to grab attention.

For all those who tolerated me, a big thanks!

:))

With Thambi in Newport, Jersey City

First thing you will notice about Satz aka Sam aka Sathya is his energy. Always on the move, I think he sleeps like 5 hours a day. Thats it! So, when I landed in Newport, Jersey City, I knew that my thambi (little brother) would be around to make my next three days happy. And to add to it, Satish, Ashraf and Arun. And a beautiful skyline view of Manhattan across the Hudson river from their 10th floor apartment. Hmmm...I was set for a date!

Most of the time went went in me going around Manhattan, the place I love most in America. Man made jungle of steel, glass and concrete. I was there in daylight; I was there in moonlight. I was there on Wall Street. And this is my fourth visit to Manhattan but I never never get tired of the place. :)

The Hudson river walk overlooking Manhattan saw my footprints almost everyday. Blessed are the couples who walk in that romantic path! I walked Sathya to office most nights and walking back along the river walk with Manhattan blinking across is a blissful sight. Nights at home went with a lot of chatter with Ashraf and Satish. Forgot to click a pic with them though!

Jim, Carol and the Hound of the Baskervilles

Going to Buffalo back rekindled a lot of memories. For one, staying with Raj brings back the best days out. And there is beloved JK, Singh and Prasad. What more can I ask?

So, the first two days went in Niagara, Chippewa street and Lewiston Whirlpool Jet Ride. What started as a 'strict one margarita' at Lewiston village pub went onto 15 drinks with 7 shots in it. By the end of it, we were hooting to the local band playing and calling quite a few people in India over phone(he he he!). The last day went in Beaver Island Park with us sipping on beers and playing volley! That was when Raj came up with the idea of partying at Jim's place.

Now, Jim is Raj's friend. In his 50s. Lives up in East Aurora village in a place which is like the village limits with the forest on one side. When we landed up at his place, it was around 10 pm. Jim had setup a perfect partying place with a fire, standup lamps, chairs, tables, beer and what not. The setup was in his backyard touching the woods. Just to the partying place, a road led up from the back to nowhere. When checked, it landed in a house decorated in lights with a ranch that we could make out in that poor light. Nothing else around. Just the two houses and the woods. And it was very cold for a summer night.

We were around 8 guys who were overjoyed with the party settings and partly scared with the surroundings. I mean what were we like one day before ...partying in Chippewa street with all that glitz and glamour and crowd...and here we were in a setup straight out of Ram Gopal Verma's mind.

Anyway, the beer flowed and kept us in senses. Some Spanish songs followed by Hindi songs set the crowd in a dance. Jim's definition of Indian dance was to run around his house with his hands flailing up in the air! Deepak and Praneet grooved with Singh. Prasad and JK caught up now and then in it!

Me was sipping beer and sitting near the fire. That’s when I saw those legs on that road half hidden in the dark and the shrubs. One second....and they moved. Still, could not make out the figure except that it was a lady. I crept upto Raj and told him and he passed it on to Jim. Idea was that Jim would be able to figure out and we could get over it. Nopes...either the beer got to him or he never expected someone, he had a creepy look which was worse than ours! Anyways, we called out 'whoz there?' and out stepped Carol!

Carol is the loner in her 50s who lived up there in the house with lights. You heard it right...a loner in that lonely house up the drive next to a ranch (a straight rip off from the Hound of the Baskervilles). No hounds but....horses. We couldn’t avoid the question and asked "how do you live alone in this scary setting?” Her answer summed up what we missed to see "I don’t see anything scary here...it’s beautiful". Imagine...the woods...two lonely houses...a ranch with horses...moonlit night...a party....now, that’s what we read in a fairy tale, right?...:) We missed the pic at that point. When the above thought was settling and we were about to smile, Jim and Carol added "ohh ...a coupe of bears do turn up here." So much for a fairy tale...sigh.

Carol and Jim sang and danced together. We all stood up and sang our National Anthem (that’s the common song we all knew...Indians!). Later, it got too cold outside. So, me walked into Jim's house. Everything in there was antique...in the real sense. Jim was not a collector. Its just that he never changed to new things. So, instead of a cd music system, we found a tape recorder. TVs (small tv, medium tv, tiny tv) in all rooms. Old gramophone player. A bird in a cage which will whistle if you whistle. A painting of Mark Twain (yeah..u heard it right) which looked more like Stapleton (again from HOTB). His attic was filled with weird things like a head made of plaster of Paris in a glass bowl, old horror movies, etc. Someone said that Jim used to have a snake as a pet. That’s when all of us walked quietly and quickly out of the house. Enough for one party to freak you out…free beer or not.

When we started from there, it was like 2 am in the morning. Jim played the perfect host and acted like an air traffic controller when we backed out our cars. That is still my image of Jim whenever I think of that night!

Road Trip

The last 10 days had me drive 1700 miles all alone with just my ipod and that NPR radio. I went and saw a lot of my friends; met strange, interesting people; made new friends; whiled away time in the way I always wanted; went through Manhattan like I always wanted to; stay at Idylwoods, Buffalo (my home away from home).

I have a couple of interesting incidents that I will cover in the next few blogs. More than anything, this time alone gave me a confidence of discovering myself. I understand that I need to have such breaks to see 'within' and add yet another perspective to the kaleidoscope called life.

Incidents to follow...first, its about Jim, Carol and the Hound of the Baskervilles.

:)

waitieeees...

will be back with a bunch of stories.....:)

Kungfu Panda

I love this animation movie too much......simple story, good animation and great stunts!....:)

R for Rajni

am a self declared thalaivar fan. I wrote this below article in Aug 08 when Kuselan released.

read on...

There is only one sun...

I will complete the above riddle at the end of this mail. Now, back to what I wanted to write about. After marriage, I was a bit reluctant on bringing out my Super Star mania to her. Well...not that I felt bad about it but its like...you know...hmm...how will a girl look at somebody who adores a cinema star and goes berserk on his new movie release days. Seemed like a hard sell. Anyhow, it eventually needed to come out and it did. Surprisingly, she was cool about it when I told.

Finally D-day arrives. On the day before Kuselan release, I gently tell her that I will be up by 5:30 am next day so that I can drive to Hosur (about 25 km) to catch up with the exclusive fan's show (thanks to naadas!). She does not believe that I will get up and takes it light. Hmm...girls!....:) ....So, next day dawns and I do it for the first time ever in Bangalore...get up by 5:30 am without the alarm...Quickly dress up and get going along with three other friends. First drink of the day is ...he he he....wine in the car.

7 am.

We reach Hosur Raghavendra theatre by 7 am to the sound of Fireworks. The celebrations and hoardings are toned down (since this is not a pucca Rajni movie). Yet, the place wears a festive look. Something strikes me quick. Most of them present are over 30. And well behaved (believe me....I have been to first day shows in Albert theatre in Egmore and the crowds there are really crazy!) The worn steel grille gates could not hold the mad rush of people trying to get inside. The theatre guards start shouting and an aged person (some 40 years old) comes up with something I have never ever heard before.

Guard : deii...#$#%^^..olunga varisaya pongada (hey....#$#$%^....go in a line)

Aged : thambi....naanga kadavule paaka porom....idhu (points to theatre) enga koil...onnum panna maatom!....(bro..we are going to see our God...this theatre is our temple...nothing will happen)

Guard : (gives a puzzled look and moves away)

Aged : (says to the crowd in general) naan inga 25 varushama varen..hmm.. (am coming here for the last 25 years)

The crows jostles and me lands inside the theatre with a big shove! Wheww.....We quickly occupy the wooden seats and wait for the darshan (he he..). No AC in the theatre. No fans where we sat. We sweat and wait......It happens in the sixteenth minute. And everything else is forgotten!....The last 20 minutes of the movie rocks us. We make out of the theatre straight to office.

7 pm.

This is an entirely different world. Forum mall is one of the happening places in Bangalore (bomb or not...:). The crowd is hep; you smell Australian cookies. The might of Indian economy: the rising middle class is amply seen. Am again with a larger group of friends and my wife. The PVR theatre ambience is real good. Once inside the theatre, the crowd dynamics is typically the same for Thalaivar!. The 16th minute...the same excitement!

I witness

Two worlds;
Different types of people;
Same behaviour.

There is one scene in the movie where Vadivelu on seeing Super Star goes wierd and starts acting mad! That was the act of the day and I could fit any fan in that scene and see the same result....:)

As we come out and slowly dissolve into reality, she asks me....'When did you become this big a fan?' Am puzzled for an answer. When? Why? Was it his on screen or off screen presence? Was it his struggles and eventual success? Was it his simplicity? I don't know.

I only know

There is only one sun...
There is only one super star.

Nacho Libre

I always wanted to write about this movie. I watched it in 2006. A tale with funny things happening in an average man's life and a simple message driven home. Jack Black excels in his role as the monk-turned-wrestler and Ana De La Regura (Mexican actress) does her role beautifully.

Watch out for
1) The way Jack Black howls 'Nachooooooooooooo'
2) The lean guy who fights with Jack
3) Chancho - the kid at the monastery
4) And Ana ...sigh....what a beauty!....she will melt your heart! ...:)
5) The songs in the movie are fabulous! Feels like a tamil movie..:)..
6) The song that Jack sings in the end and the letter he writes to Ana...:)
7) The walk that Jack takes Ana and his antics with those pants...:)

There are some fine moments in this feel good movie that will leave you smiling. Catch it up on DVD. Its worth it.

:)

Present Day Problems....Present Day Solutions

Imagine.

Two kids are fighting out. You walk to them and find out that its about having a chocolate. What will you do?

1) You sit down with each one of them separately; find out about their families; find out their lineage. You look at the chocolate; make out the manufacturer's name; trace him down; find out the manufacturing process; see if the above kid's ancestors had a hand in it somewhere. Additionally, you look at neighboring kids; assess their importance. Look at neighboring chocolate manufacturers; assess their importance. With all these mind bewildering data crunched in your skull, you make the all important decision of handing over the chocolate to one kid. In the process, you perennially make enemies with the other kid who will, after 10 long years, still wait with a stone hidden in his pocket to nuke you or the other guy out.

2) You split the chocolate into two and give it to the kids.

What should you do?

Now, all the solutions are not going to be as easy as option 2. Problems are not as simple as a chocolate. But the point to note is that you look at a problem as a present day problem and give a present day solution.

In a way, my analogy to humans as kids stands true if you consider the evolution of universe vis a vis humans. Now, here we are a race who are not the first to arrive in earth; who do not know where we came from; who do not know where we are going to end up. But still in that tiny weeny time in between, what do we do? We focus our energy to wreak havoc. Smell something?

You cannot and never will be able to do justice to any party if you look back at history and try to address grievances. This will result in prejudiced views and the sect powerful in that point of time is going to drive you nuts here. Am not saying that immediate past needs to be ignored. But you cannot keep forever going back.

When you drive a car or a bike, I agree that you do use the rear view mirror. But heyy...you look back for what...say the past 50 feet?...not all the way back from where you started!...Got it?
Saro

Getting Ready...

...for a 1600 mile drive in 10 days.

Muncie, IN - Jersey City, NJ - Buffalo, NY - Muncie, IN

hmmm...the first one is the hardest with 685 miles. Hopefully, I still have that thing in me to drive....:)

I will be meeting a lot of friends. Can't wait...:)

Fooled

Thinking of my teens and follow up years, I clearly see that I got fooled by the sweet nature of girls. I mean, not trying to be finger pointing at the fairer sex, guys tend to fall for that part of the girl which seems like a fairy tale. A smile here...a look there....a small fight....the list goes on. Those small moments take away a guy far more often than a girl.

So, what am I trying to say?

Get fooled, guys. Its sometimes good to have wounds in a battle field than a clean slate.

nooru roova notta paatha, kaadhal varum keluda
ooru poora suthi vandhen...paathedhelaam jaalam da.

:)

Sleep songs

nowadays, i cannot sleep without listening to 'ullathil nalla ullam' from karnan and 'pitchai paathiram' from naan kadavul

The Dark Knight

Its been awhile since I wrote about movies. This short period of solitude has given arise to such an opportunity. Now, to the movie which has been haunting me for quite sometime now. Also, as a statistic, I have now seen this movie more than any other movie in my lifetime yet. Its The Dark Knight. (Virumaandi and The Prestige are a close second).

Am not going to cover anything about the story or the actors. No...am writing more on what struck me after these multitude of viewings. The below thing might make sense only if you have seen the movie once.

1) In the whole movie, there is not even one shot of the Sun nor there is Sunlight shown. Gotham (as in the comics) is always portrayed gloomy with overcast skies.

2) In the climax, after Harvey's death, Gordon and Batman discuss on what will happen. Now that Harvey is dead (that too with a bad reputation of killing cops), Gordon tells Batman that 'people would lose hope', Batman looks up (to Gordon's kid above who is not shown) and says 'They won't'. He means the kid (analogy : young generation) who believes on Batman.

3) Batman and Joker share a lot in common. At least if you look at the way they think: - When Bruce Wayne throws a party, the moment he enters, he throws the question 'Where is Harvey Dent?'. When Joker enters the same party at a later point of time, he throws the same question. - Batman revers Harvey Dent. For Batman, Harvey is the symbol whom he can never be. Joker sees the same (that Dent is the best among Gotham city inmates) but looks at destroying such a symbol.

4) Only in two ways, Batman and Joker differ. First, Batman plays by one rule and Joker never does that. Another is Joker thinks alone and does things whereas Batman keeps consulting with Alfred and Lucius. We have to acknowledge that Joker is far intelligent.

5) In the hospital, Joker tells Harvey that he (Joker) is a guy without plan. He tells him that he is like a dog chasing cars. In a way, Joker plans things right from the start. Everything goes to a plan for him (for e.g., he getting arrested to get Lau and hence the money location). But the thing is that he does not care about the results of how the plans actually go.

6) When Joker escapes from the prison, he is shown sticking out his head outside the police car. Note that he is not driving. This is one of the scenes that shows us that he has police accomplices.

7) In the climax when Batman throws Joker out from the top of the building, you can actually hear Joker laughing. Thats because he is happy that he broke Batman's one rule. Later, Batman catches him and Joker groans....:)

8) Joker predicts way ahead in the movie how Batman will be treated in the end. In the prison interrogation scene, Joker tells the Batman that the people, once they dont have a need for him (Batman), will throw him out like a leper. This happens in the end when even though Batman finds Joker and ends the menace, people still treat him to be a cop killer.

9) What do you think would have happened if the people or prisoners (on two separate boats) pressed the button to blow the other boat? Trying to think like the Joker, my guess is that their own boat would have been blown up!

Why do friends leave me?

Is it because they think I show less interest in them? Have I?

Is it because I pick new friends? Do I?

Kan moodinaal, Irul edhu...neeye therigerai.
(When I close my eyes, I don't see darkness. I see you.)

Happily 'friend' after?

No.

There are no second thoughts about this.

Friendship is not destined to last forever. Sometimes, its best to move on with the sweet memories safely tucked inside. Priorities change; People change. Whats wrong? nothing. Do we still love the same toys we treasured in childhood? Do we still visit our college or school we thought we can never ever leave and cried hard on the last day? Do we still treasure our bicycles in front of our bikes and cars?

As we grow up, its more responsibilities (read miseries). And a friend might not be able to pitch in for each of your problems or share your joys the same way as before. And add the new relations you pick up along the way and their complexities....its best that you don't bring them on board.

So, is there something wrong about this whole thing? About losing friends whom you thought you can never ever part for a moment? No. Its the way of growing up. Funny...when I was young, I used to think why do my father and mother spend less time with their friends? Now, it dawns on me. Nice good way to make something clear to you...:)

A casual mail or a phone call to that long last friend sometimes tries to rekindle those old memories. I savor them for that moment and lock them up again....:)

Same Sh*t...Different Game.

I borrowed the subject line from one of Stephen King's novels. So, why this? You will understand at the end of this mail.

Indian Elections 2009.

From the early 90s, India has seen more of coalition governments. In my opinion, coalition governments are one of the trajectories of a true democracy. It gives the regional state governments more power at the center.

But am not here to talk about that.

Back till the 90s, India had a two party system fighting out at the center. The regional parties used to support one of the parties' candidates. Later, it changed to the regional parties entering into pre-poll alliances with the center parties and fielding their own candidates (first with a small percentage and then growing into large percentages). This has been the story all along till this year.

Now there is a new game in place.

No regional party wants a truck with the center parties just yet. And vice versa. The idea is to go it alone in the elections (with their own promises and manifestos). Get as many seats as possible. Then, post-polls, look at which center party has the largest number (or which alliance can fetch the largest number) and start talks with them for forming the government. Believe me....this is the jackpot of all ideas with so many benefits.

One, there is no incumbency factor. Even if a party was in an alliance with the erstwhile ruling party, they can say that they are not there in that now alliance and all along they have been vehemently opposing it from within. If you carefully listen, verbage such as moralilty, conscience, back stabbing, etc. will figure in their speech. Ohh....its just the cream whipped up your ****....:)

Two, there are a string of loose alliances formed now. But no party is committing to stay in the alliance post-polls! How is this great idea?.....:) Wonder of sorts, all the parties seem to like this idea. When I think over it, it seems to make sense in this manner - When I walk into a store to buy something, will I be acceptable with money or without money in there? With money, of course. Now, do the store people worry how I get the money?....:)....does it make sense now? Same pinch.

Three, the parties are now going to kindle a lot of passion and get the votes. But don't be surprised if they realign with the same parties they would have foul mouthed before the elections. Can you go and wipe out your vote then? nopes, I don't think so.

Four, whom will the people vote for or against? They don't know if some X regional party is going to support Y or Z center party after the polls. This must be the only elections where the people are the confused lot going to vote to some party believing that
Hmm.....sometimes, the twists in a horror movie are far less, I guess. Oh boy....I can't just wait for this roller coaster ride. Being one of the common man, am going to sit back; read the papers; listen to speeches; argue over tea with friends; make a decision; cast my vote and.....wait for the fun to start....maybe to be fooled.

All in the game. But wait...

Same sh*t....Different Game.