Freewill

Rang de Basanti: Cute color combination

2006-02-02T15:53:00.000-05:00

Source:Indiaglitz(picture)

Some people say history is boring. But sometimes walking through the lanes of the past can be enjoyable and gratifying, especially if you are guided by companions as spirited as Aamir Khan, Siddharth, Kunal Kapoor and Soha.

It is not a patriotic film that bores you by glorifying the past. Instead, it meticulously draws a line between the past and the present, both of which move in parallel lines. If the past shows a group of young martyrs sacrificing their lives to uproot the British from the country, the present has a bunch of college pass-outs clueless about their future. They simulataneously undergo a transition form being chill outs to concerened citizens as terror strikes them in the form of a dear friend's loss.

After watching the movie in AMC(with the best of sounds), I defintely feel its not a "run of the mill movie". In contrast , it guides u through the path of bitter realism in a relatively light hearted way.

The cast has been well etched out and there is no point in saying that one did better than the other. Although several moviies like RDB have come in the past(Aayutha ezhuthu, 4 THE STUDENTS), the treatment is what makes it special and worth watching.

Rahman does wonder to the script by giving some nice songs that adds mood to the occasion. Maybe a BGM could have elevated it to greater heights.

On the down hill side, the screenplay was a bit shoddy towards the end of the movies. The whole climax sequence was a bit bizzare IMHO, rather in other words, I was not completely convinced with the finishing part.Secondly, i hate to say the following sentences. "The movie will not be a great money grosser as it was classy for our audiences". There it comes again, CLASSY, Is the term relative??, I don't know???, Is it subjective or objective???, Well, i am not sure of that either???

i do not claim as everybody claims , but i go by trade facts, It stands to loose in chennai and mumbai even though it is doing well as it was sold for a huge price. Also, It is not doing well in interiors and rural areas. So , i claim , it is not doing well as expected from the money POV.

Still, it's a cute rainbow during the monsoon!!!!

THALAI ON TOP!!!

2006-01-20T18:45:00.000-05:00

Source:Indiaglitz

My brother says he looks more like himself in SOORASAMHAARAM , I would say the attire is more on the lines of KAAAKKKA KAAAKKA, Inna smart'aaa kiraaru namba thalai!!!!

Lots of pictures have been uploaded for VV, Kamal plays a cop nearly after 10 yrs.

let's see!!!!!

Spoofing a sardarji!!!!

2006-01-12T14:01:00.000-05:00

Right from your childhood days , U would have heard numerous jokes mocking a sardar.I seriously do not know how this notion started , but it seems to have prevailed with people located throughout india. But on the contrary, These people have turned out to be channelised and work worms in real life. Be it US or UK, u could find these people scattered in every step of the economical ladder. Be it a taxi driver or a Texas instruments employee , U could find them in numerous numbers.

My friend had sent me a file of sardarji jokes which made me smile wholeheartedly,They have been treated stupid when they perform even the smallest of tasks. Imagine how a sardarji would feel ,if he reads all the sily jokes imposed on their breed. Anyway , a sardar is always cute in his jokes and we have to love them just for the sake of it . Let me give u a story where the sardarji is clever for the first time in history.

A Sardarji and his wife are traveling by car from Key Westto Boston.
After almost twenty-four hours on the road, they 're too tired to
continue, and they decide to stop for a rest. They stop at a nice
hotel and take a room, but they only plan to sleep for four hours and
then get back on the road.

When they check out four hours later, the desk clerk hands them a bill
for 350. The Sardarji explodes and demands to know why the charge is
so high.

He tells the clerk although it 's a nice hotel, the rooms certainly
aren 't worth $350. When the clerk tells him $350 is the standard rate,
the man insists on speaking to the Manager.

The Manager appears,listens to the Sardarji, and then explains that
the hotel has an Olympic-sized pool and a huge conference center that
were available for the husband and wife to use.

But we didn 't use them", the Sardarji complains.

Well, they are here, and you could have," explains the Manager. He
goes on to explain they could have taken in one of the shows for which
the hotel is famous. "The best entertainers from New York,
Hollywood and Las Vegas perform here," the Manager says.

But we didn 't go to any of those shows," sardarji complains again.
"Well, we have them, and you could have", the Manager replies. No
matter what facility the Manager mentions, the sardarji replies "But
we didn 't use it".

The Manager is unmoved, and eventually the Sardarji finally gives up
and agrees to pay. He writes a check and gives it to the Manager.

The Manager is surprised when the looks at the check. "But sir," he says,
"this check is only made out for $100."

"That 's right," says the sardarji, "I charged you $250 for sleeping with my wife."

"But I didn 't!" exclaims the Manager.

"Well," the Sardarji replies, "she was here, and you could have."

Rang de Basanti:Ravishing

2006-01-06T18:55:00.000-05:00

This is one of the cooolest promos i have seen for a movie. Looks slick and trim and people have an amazing screen presence. This is my defintion of a slick movie.The cast looks neat and the music sounds fantastic.

Immaterial of whatever the script promises to be , the promos automatically allures u to see the movie.AAmir khan looks young and madhavan is like cooooooooooool.This is what makes me jealous and also proud. The former for the fact that i expect tamil movies too be in the same league and latter for the fact it puts us in good stand on the international arena.

Even more, The movies which ended up amazing just by peeking at the promos.Movies that fall into the slick category.

1. KAAKKKA KAAAKKKA , the police
2. DIL CHAHTA HAI
3. COMPANY
4. AAYUTHA EZUTHU
5. KURUTHIPOONAL

hope VV & R d B FULFILLS MY EXPECTATIONS

Have a loook at this site , http://www.rangdebasanti.net/

Burger, Fries & Coke!!!!

2006-01-05T16:46:00.000-05:00

This column has got nothing to do with eatables, Since i am thinking hard to blog, i am contradiciting myself,
beleif is such that i should never think and write about a topic for the sake of writing,So here are some latest munching news

Vettayaadau Villayadu is supposed to be made super slickly which is a very good sign. Kamal is working outside his banner with a class director.

Australia should hopefully clinch the test series against south africans, But it never was a cake walk for them, The proteas for sure put up a tough fight.

Is Puthupettai audio so good?????, I do not know, I am yet to hear the album!!. But people are going gaga over it , especiallly the song sung by kamal haasan.

Weather in chicago is suprisingly good considering the season at present. Hope its not a DHRISHTI!!!!

Classes start next monday for us , pLanning to take a course, lets wait and watch

No restroom fights with dushy as of now, He leaves early for his work which gives me ample time for taking bath.

The novel PELICAN BRIEF that i am reading is related to law but is not a trial case novel as such .It's more of political bureaucracy and assasinations.

Dushy was asking me about renting a car this weeknend(he wants to get a license badly) , WELL u know the rest!!!!!!!

Welcome 2006

2006-01-02T21:36:00.000-05:00

Coming back after a short hiatus, Christmas and new year weekends were good, We had been to dells , skiing for the weekend, The new year was more of a movie mania for me,Three consecutive movies out of which two were good,

This is the first time we came back from aurora without eating there , It was so crowded that we were nearly chucked out after the darshan,But we compensated it by going to our lab mates apartment , We were served with sumptuous vadas and dosas with which we made total merry

We watched CITY OF GOD yesterday nite which was again very good,

So ,It was not a eventful new year as such , Yet another year comes by, we'll see what it has for us

Behind the Songs

2005-12-16T17:06:00.000-05:00

AS i keep repeating and ofcourse will repeat in the future. Anything goes only with an inspiration. IMHO every action u do would have been triggered by a thought with or without your knowledge.Thanks to vish anyway,

Now coming to our topic of concern, How the lyrics is vital for a song to get into my mind??. AFA tamil songs are concerned, lyrics count a lot to me. Even a mediocre song could keep repeating in my play list if i am addicted to its lyrics.Now, since i listen to songs of different genre , Its very difficult to do justice if i compare a romantic song with a "KUTHU" song.Still , let me list some songs which go into my "FAVORITES" where lyrics play centre stage.

1. "MOONGIL KAADUGALE": A great description of nature, I was allured to the song because of its cinematography,

2. ORU MAALAI: A Cute description of your girl friend, Again song picturisation enhances the overall mood,

3.SRIRANGA RANGA NAATHANIN: It is just a coincidence that they are talking about srirangam, As a person i didn't have much contacts with the town as such,But the lyrics of vaaali certainly makes u feel if u were connected with THIRUVARANGAM , A GOD'S paradise

4.ENAKKORU ORU GIRL FRIEND: Shankar's team does a wonderful picturisation of the song. he started the era of asking the lyricist to write in "TANGLISH". P , Vijay fullfills the expectation, A gr8 song for youth, BINGO!!!!!!!!!!!!!

5.KALYAANA MAALAI:The music is a masterpiece of course , Still whats make me mad is the lyrics, A song which exposes emotions of a celebrity who has everything except happiness!!!

6.YAAR YAAR SIVAM: When it goes , ANBIN PAATHAI SERNTHAVRUKKU MUDIVAE ILLAYADAA , MANATHIN NEELAM ETHUVO ATHUVE VAAZHVIN NEELAMADAAA, I was trapped plumb in front especially when it is bowled by kamal, BULL'S EYE!!!!!

7.ENGENGO KAALKAL SELLUM:A true pathos!!!The emotions of a kid who is taking life as it goes has been portrayed brilliantly,

8.THIRUNELVELI HALWA DAA: U might wonder , what the heck???, The answer is mind always fluctuates, Its not that i am averse to kuthuu songs, A gr8 introduction to a hero, A simpleton's THATHUVAA PAADAL, everybody can enjoy the lyrics, I somehow crawled into one among them.

I was planning to list 10, Then i thought should i have 10?.I have 1000 more ,and there are others where lyrics is immaterial. So, the list goes long, Maybe,I'll follow up this list after 2 yrs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CASI(A)NOVA!!!!!!!

2005-12-14T16:35:00.000-05:00

I should have written about this last year , But never mind , Its late than never,
I've been to vegas and now this one in INDIANA named HORSE SHOE.

The world of casinos really left me gaping at their constituents.The place were people born with silver spoons dwell for time pass, the place were lazy gooses thrive to become a millionare one day(in the future).Ofcourse,there are a few intellectuals tring to earn the nuances of money making to upgrade their status quo.

Now if u ask me , which category i fit in ?????? , NONE, I belong to a mind which gets awed watching these people hoping to make it big one day.You know what runs in my mind, I am tempted to think sadistically in terms of these people turning paupers and quiting this so-called gambling. But ,my opinion or my hope doesn't have any significance in our context of interest.

Its just a bigger version of our SOODHAATTAM, Just that we have lot at stake. We just happened to see a guy who lost 7000$ and still was playing to retrieve what he lost. I personaly think he is a "NINCOMPOOP".Let him be a guy who swims in dollars, let him be a guy who is desperate to the core to spend money.There are umpteen ways to have fun.Ofcourse, this is the only way where ur return on investment doesn't have an equation fit. Still, I am not bale to digest how he lost 7000$ and still continues to play(His brother lost 9000$ in the upper deck)and mind u , he was a DESI.Well, well well, we have a situation here , don't we!!!!!!.

Men Vs Women

2005-12-08T19:24:00.000-05:00

Men have always been simple people with simpler needs and basic instincts, Now when i am talking about basic instinct , what strikes ur mind instantly??????(Sharon Stone cross-legged pose),

NO idiot!!!!, I am not talking about that pose , I am talking about ur human instincts.THis is why we are dumb heads.

Men know that for the sake of balance and maintaining equilibrium on the planet, it's essential for them to let the heart rule. This is where the so called better half came into picture. Men let women take the role of proprietorship as far as family is concerned.

Besides, most women believe they know it all. They believe they are grown up, lady-like and take upon themselves the responsibility of raising a child as a mother or a man as his wife.This is "good and bad: to put it in single word i would call it a anomaly or rather ambiguous.

Women simply love to believe that they are in control of their life. They like to believe they are grown up.So men simply let them believe so. Anything that makes her happy. Because unless she's happy, how would he get his basic needs fulfilled. That is when his weakness is getting exploited.That is when he succumbs.

Of course men like sitting back and letting women take charge. It makes their own lives so much easier. The thing is, women don't mind taking over.But the problem comes when the women complains that he is letting her take charge and is escaping the household responsibilty. What the heck??, I thought u were fine this. NOPE!!!, Women always think one is better than the other.IT STARTS AGAIN!!!!!!!

Sometimes, U have to use ur brains my dear!!!!,

Pot(ter)pourri

2005-12-07T16:23:00.000-05:00

Wingardium Leviosa!" causes an object to levitate. Once the caster has an object in the air, it can be moved around with the caster's wand acting as a navigator.

"Welcome to the world of potter". Eventhough i am not a great fan of potter , I developed an urge to read potter in favor of LOTR.Maybe i didn't want to get serious at that point of time. The movie itself is a great visualization of JK rowling's book and i feel that the latest film is the best among the series.

Now this post is not going to review the movie as such.Its just a passage which prowls on to why kids and teens became "POTTER MANIACS". i sincerely attribute it to the narration ,portrayal and casting of the characters that the author has scripted.

The concept of this so called "WIZARDRY" might resemble a AMBULIMAAMAA or a VITTALAACHAARIYAA movie, But innovations and cinematography overwhelmed and acheived what the others coudn't acheive, It gets u entangled in this world and u disbeleiveingly realise that u are slowly allured by the magic of potter.

IMHO i don't think that HP.... is just for kids, Its just like a normal movie sans the normal world, We enjoyed "THE MATRIX" because we accepted the so called concept.So, If u somehow squeeze yourself into HOGWARTS then i think u'll have a wonderful time throughout the odyssey that this world takes you through.

IF LOTR needed execellent cinematography , HP... is nowhere below, To give life to the book , YOu need great innovations and acumen. To make u spell bound with the spells and charms that one pronounces, You have to have a brilliant technical background to carefully extrapolate and magnify the book to the BIG screen.

I go to watch HP... 4 in AMC , But i defintely feel , it would be a gr8 experience to see movies like this in IMAX,

"Petrificus Totalus"

The Wedding Wheel

2005-11-21T23:08:00.000-05:00

The term "WEDDING" creates a sense of deja'vu inside me. Some of my friends (of my batch) have got engaged in the past few days which makes me wonder about a lot of factors associated with this term.

Why should we marry on the first basis???.
1. Coz everyone does?
2. Because we want to give life to our manhood??
3. To make sure that someone else is along with us for the rest of our life to take care of us????

A marraige is when you accept a long term commitment with a person with whom u are goin to create a synergy so that it lasts throughout your life to keep you happy.!!!

This is the closest definition that struck me as i am typing, But mind you ,the three factors that i listed previously are strong subsets. You do marry because you come from a strong cultural background, Your parents also make sure that someone is there to take care of u after their life time(hopefully)

Now coming back to the bond that we create, It better be good and strong!!!, You cannot just return the product and claim your credits after 45 days of usage.
What the heck dude??? , I am in US right now , I can divorce her and move on and blah blah stuff!!!!!

No mate!!!, Its chimerical from a practical stand point!!!,Whatver u argue , this culture is never goin to suit us and even if it does , Your relationships will not be healthy!!!

You can flirt with umpteen girls , But when it comes to commitment , You better make a good choice as it is difficult to turn back!!!

Now , The next question is , what is the right age for marraige???, WEll, It depends on your family status and your own maturity, IF u feel, u are prepared for this ship at 24-26, I suggest u to think again coz , Once u go out of your bachelors territory, U are accepting "SACRIFICES" as your close BUDDY and responsibilities as your "CHUMMY", If u are mature enough to take that at a younger age, Dude!!!, neenga THERETEENGANNU ARTHAM!!!!

So,how about this concept of living together?????, Infact if u are mature enough , It is far better than falling in love , getting married , loosing ur happiness after the threemonths of marraige. Even in and around UIC, I see a lot of desi's who are so called LIVING TOGETHER,But god only knows whether they really are?????

Finally , Should you go for a love or a arranged marraige?????, There is nothing like u gofor it !!! ,Its not that u have a choice and u fall in lovewhen u think!!!! , It happens or SHIT happens , that's what it is, Meeting some one for a couple of months and claiming that "U FELL IN LOVE WITH THEM" is trash, Instead of that , u marry someone ,get to know her and u fall for her , that is when love happens!!!!

Interestingly, arranged marraiges have always worked out fine for us(Statistically),So its a safe bet IMHO, But u never know the future!!!

Technically a "THAYIR SAATHAM"

2005-11-16T15:53:00.000-05:00

Neolithic peoples probably discovered yoghurt around 6000 B.C. Legend says that a Turkish youth grazing his sheep on the slopes of Mount Elbrus in the Caucasus discovered that the milk in his sheepskin bottle had curdled but tasted good nevertheless. The Turks called this semisolid food "yoghurt", and the name has stuck to this day. (SOURCE : HINDU)

South inidan people have always relished eating curd rice extensively. I realised how unique we were only during college days . Most North indians do not accept the concept of mixing curd with rice. Ofcourse they take lots of curd( as sweet yoghurt and lassi), but eating curd rice makes them think that we have some chaos in our digestive system.

Especially, when they see us eating curd rice with pickle(which are quite contradictory in their nature), They really get amused. But till date , i am not able to imagine a southindian surviving without curd rice. I can clearly assure them that they have missed something in life.

Being in chicago really hasn't changed my food habits. Even at -16 C , i have the urge to take CR on a regular basis. Being in the US, I see a bigger difference between us and the west INTERPRETING this concept of YOGHURT.

Most south Indians end a meal by eating rice mixed with curd and some pickle(lemon or vadu mangaa would be JALSAAA). In the West, yoghurt is a dessert usually eaten frozen or with fruit, and yoghurt made from low-fat milk is a health food for these people.

So they would really be suprised by our way of eating yoghurt.Also, these people are not used to our kind of spice. I feel they would have a run , if u serve them with curd rice and red hot GULT AAAVAKAAI OOORGAAAI.

The taste of sweet vs salt yoghurt makes a lot of difference to me. A tinge of sweetness in our curd rice could foil the whole feast and the combo with pickle would never work out. To have a sumptuous grub, i would say ur yoghurt should be a bit sour with a tinge of salt. That's when pickle comes in and takes it up to the fifth gear for "DIL CHATA HAI"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Nonetheless, being a thayir saatham is no shame and i am happy that i easily fit into the parade.

IYER THAAN IYER THAAAN , IYER MANDAYILAA ...... THAAAN, AVAN OOTHI SAAPIDRA THAYIR THAAAN ..........LA LA LAAA

The Godzilla Scare

2005-11-11T12:09:00.000-05:00

A newfound ancient sea creature looks to be part crocodile, part T. rex, and 100 percent terrifying.

The sheer strangeness of the "Dakosaurus andiniensis", found in South America and announced today, led its discoverers to call it Godzilla after the huge, amphibious, dinosaur-like movie icon.(Source : msn)

Its is presumed to be a very rare species when u compare it with other marine crocodiles found around the same time frame coz of its physique . a short snout, and large teeth with serrated edges and definitely a predator of large sea creatures.

Recent researchers have shown that dinosaurs are pretty much closed to birds(in comparision with reptiles) owing to its behavior and instincts, I even remember a comprehension section on "Dinosaur being close to birds" in my GRE verbal section.

"Science and tech taking the Godzillian steps"

APPA'vin ACTOR

2005-11-08T18:41:00.000-05:00

It's a gr8 coincidence that thalai and dad's b'day fall on the same day.Interestingly ,all three of us(appa, big dog and small dog) are gr8 fans of kamal and we are proud to declare that he is one among the " best actors" (OTHERs BEING OMPURI and mohanlal).

But when it comes to being a "SAKALAKALAA VALLAVAN" , i think he vehemently scores better than the others.

I have to admit here that many of his movies(especially the comedy ones) are mere remakes of hollywood flicks(add on the tamil masala and crazy mohan),But I like kamal when he gives a hey ram or a mahanadhi or a thevar magan. That is when he shows that he is the "thalai". But my dad on the contrary enjoys kamal's movie mainly for his sense of humour. He enjoys watching an MMKR and vasool raja (umpteen times)

So here am i giving two shades of topt ten kamal movies for my dad and for me

Appa's top 10 ##### My top 10

1.Vasool raja ##### 1. Thevar magan
2. MMKR ##### 2. Anbe Sivam
3.Sathyleelavathy ##### 3. Naayagan
4. Nammavar ##### 4. Mahandhi
5.Punnagai Mannan ##### 5. Pushpak
6. Varumayin Niram Sigappu##### 6. Kuruthipoonal
7. Naayagan ##### 7. Moondraam pirai
8. Unnaal Mudiyum thambi##### 8. MMkR
9. Mahandhi ##### 9. Virumaandi
10. Thevar magan ##### 10. Hey Ram

Just that these movies don't follow any order

and wait , u might have some reservations, Some of the movies i left out , still needs a mention

RAAJA PAARVAI: kamal's first home production failing miserably at the BO , But again , it was one of the best performances given by kamal,

GUNAA: A movie ahead of time is the only flaw u can find about this one, other than that , Its a true masterpiece, Secondly , since it came along with THALAPATHI , (which i think was one of the best movies of rajini) it easily outcompeted this artisitic one.

SIGAPPU ROJAAKAL: a top notch barathi raja , kamal combo . The first movie to discover the negative shades of a protagonist. With sridevi around , u can't miss it

Saagara sangamam and (swaathi muthiyam): kamal's greatest quality, a multilinguistic fellow ,this movie by vishwananth proves it to certainity, what more can u ask for ? It's kamal , kamal all the way!!!!!!

For all the movies metnioned above, the background score needs special mention and without IR , kamal's success is never complete

When it comes to rajini or vijay , their fans relish on one aspect, "Mass appeal"

But people like IR or kamal have one common factor , "Versatility" , Being different is what is so repetitive about them .
So a very happy b'day to both appa and thalai, Hope he gives good movies in the future for us to relish and cherish

Creating the synergy

2005-10-25T16:21:00.000-05:00

Niru(Gujili) was telling me about this Anti AIDS campaining where i finally noticed "thalai" along with richard gere and kalaanidhi maaaran

It's really good to see the crew of well-muscled actors that oomph on your TV screen prove that they aren't just a bunch of pretty faces — even if they do get their noses powdered between photo calls before they wipe out the bad guys with some fancy wrist work. Because, today, the country's creative community is enthusiastically throwing itself into the work of The Heroes Project, a three-year initiative seeking to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS by awareness education. Given life by richard gere and and socialite-activist Parameshwar Godrej, the project is taking on one of the most deadly villians ever — AIDS — by mobilising Indian heroes, both the everyday variety and the ones from the tinsel world

It was unbeleivable when they said that 10% of the world's HIV population are indians. Before u recover from the shock , the second fact seems like "there are 500,000 new infections reported every year. At this rate, at least one Indian is getting infected every minute even as you read"( Source HINDU).

Such a conservative(WELL, IT USED TO BE!!!) country loading itself with heaps and bounds of infection inspite of education and sophistication taking giant leaps.

That is wny a synergisitc effort like this is always needed AFA india is concerned.

So people, give a good round of applause for this team!!!!!

Toiling for a success

2005-10-21T11:22:00.000-05:00

Yet another season of cricket commences for the indian team ,a bright and sunny day in banglaore helped the Indian team strode out for some match-simulation exercises at the the National Cricket Academy (NCA).The whole practice seesion was videotaped and closely scrutinized by Greg Chappell ,

Cribbing about indian cricket has been made legal says a source from hindu , people back home have acclimatized themseleves for a loss in the shorter version of the game, Our success rate in onedayers have been "poor to the core" for the past 2 yrs. The important thing being that we have successfully managed to loose 16 of the 18 finals we have played.

With dressing room politics creating further havoc to the mentality of the cricketers , their performance is sure to take a beating in the forthcoming series.Nonetheless , if they do perform , it is sure going to be some individual brilliances. India as a team has a long way to go

The most worrying thing is our bowling attack, nowerdays , we are not able to defend a total of 270. After batting first scoring 270-280, we have lost 70% of matches played in the past three years . I mean , what is happening to our repository?????? , I don't see any fire when our bowlers bowl , i tune myself to see them getting them murdered by the opposition

Anyway , ezutharatha ezuthatumm , naaga ippdi thaaan velayaaduvom nuu sonaaa, U CAN'T DO ANYTHING ,ATTITUDE IS WHAT COUNTS!!!!!

Sanctuary Spotlight

2005-10-16T13:57:00.000-05:00

Its 1414 planning time to go together for a trip in US during the december hols . while many suggestions came to the party, We still haven't decided the proper venue.

Yellow stone national park is a gr8 place to explore , Imagine a unique ecosystem formed by the mouth of a great river , comprising swamps, forests and the largest widlife sanctuary of the world

It will be truly scintillating to explore the woods and the wildlife ranging from the jungle cats, wild boar, and the mongoose to the estuarine crocodiles ,king cobra, the rock python and the salvator lizard.

In addition to this we have wide ranges of birds like Heron, egret, cormorant, fishing eagle, white bellied sea eagle, seagull, tern, kingfisher, migratory birds like whimprel, black-tailed godwit, little stint, eastern knot, curlew, sandpiper, golden plover, pintail, white-eyed pochard and whistling teal. (Source : yellowstone googling)

Still winter i think is not a good time as i heard its frigging cold out, A huge mess to a great build up

Anyway other places are in consideration, lets see where we discover the odyssey

GHAJINI marches successfully

2005-10-09T13:49:00.000-05:00

Alas , i was able to watch a flick which was made slickly for most of the time, surya and asin have come out with such a cute performance that their on screen chemistry does wonder(even though it is slightly illogical), Both are sure to go places

What i don't understand is the ineptness of our directors to handle suspense thrillers, murugadoss makes a damn mess of what otherwise could have been a superbly made flick. A damp squib of the villain characters and a pathetically scripted climax

Surya still ropes in with a cool performance eventhough AR murugadoss tries to screw him .His amazing screen presence as "SANJAY RAMASWAMY" and his romantic scenes are cute. i feel this movie has catapulted him to the league of "SUPER HEROES"

The best part about ghajini being its technical aspects , I could see great talents in editing and cinematography at certain places, Songs picturisation were really cool

More imporatnce should have been given to the short term memory loss concept and they have should have shown how surya manages to tackle it ,
something like what happens every 16'th minute , BRINGING IN MORE CHARACTERS in front of surya and creating a nice plot which could have got unwinded towards the end
that was totally missing, maybe the director thought it was too high a concept for our tamil audience , as i always say , Thriller movies need the punch towards the end which was totally missing

The background score was too loud and was found deafening at several instances. The hummings also reminded me of "STRANGER IN BLACK" theme of anniyan

On the whole , a movie which deserves recommendation for THEATRE VIEWING once!!!!!!!!!!!

Experimenting with Innovations

2005-10-08T18:58:00.000-05:00

One of my friend from IIT chennai reminded me of shaastra ( an educational fest) that happens during the first half of the acdemic year. The last time i went there was in 2003 and i was greatly impressed by their presentations

Shaastra could easily qualify as the melting pot of some of the best available technical and engineering talent in the nation and is also the only student-organised event to be given an ISO 9001 certificate for its quality management programme. It is a great place to witness a confluence of ideas from the technocrats-in-the-making from all over India, with a record number of outstation participants, including enthusiastic participation from students from non-engineering disciplines such as medicine buisness and economics.

Immeditalely my mind scurries to compare the event with my college science fest APOGEE, but it so happens that BITSians fall slightly short in several aspects when compared to the IITans.

Shaastra usually has an eclectic mix of lectures, demonstrations and video conferences, including special lectures commemorating a century of great findings. eventhough we do the same , i feel they were a bit more professional than we were,

The best part where they outcompete us is the recognition part,The winners of industry-defined problems are rewarded with internships at prestigious research centres like IISc and even in abroad universites, So all in all , shaastra will definitely be a ravishing gourmet for tech-savvy minds.

Synthesising Time!!!

2005-10-05T17:44:00.000-05:00

It so happens that ur work schedules are some time cool and u have lots of other things to do, But the situation here is that i do not have the time even to do the things THAT MUST BE DONE , So i am seriously involved in culturing time(somehow) so that i can tackle this hectic schedule of mine

Anyway , blogging is just the way u feel about things ,Since i don't have the time to feel about anything at present, I am leaving a short hiatus

will be back soon

adios

How not to write a review

2005-09-23T10:49:00.000-05:00

Movie websites grab the oppurtunity of reviewing a movie as soon as it is released, After browsing sites like rediff, sify, cinesouth and indiaglitz for quite some time , I have come to a firm conclusion that , None of them do a review of a movie but give the summary of the whole plot or script

They begin the review by a ONE LINER , which comments on the overall verdict of the movie folllowed by the summary of events that take place thru the entir 2.5 hrs , The only thing that most of them omit is like , "WHAT HAPPENS FORMS THE CRUX OF THE STORY?????", bUT TRULY speaking , its actually the climax that they are talking about and they would have already narrated the rest of the movie!!!

Second thing is that , only when a movie is bad to the core , they use the term named avoidable , But it doesn't mean , all the other movies they review are watchable , U have movies which are FAIR , POOR , BAD AND WORSE!!!!, If u beleive these reviews and choose any of the movie , Most of them seem to fall in the four categories mentioned above, So u r sure to get really disappointed!!!!

The latest example i could give is the review of movie A AAAH!!!, As soon as i saw the first scene , I knew this movie is going to be torture, But the review given by most of ths sites says its "FUN And TIME PASS"

When u actually write a review for a movie , U have to discuss about the technical aspects involved behind the making of the movie , Something like , How a song is taken, How a particular scene is set(against what backdrop) , How the characters in the movie were etched? and some other aspects like editing , sound mixing BGMs and stuff , All these aspects are just mentioned in their review in just one word which is not a right way to approach if u are trying to write a review!!!!

The last and foremost , If u have a great star (like rajini or kamal or amitabh or srk or aamir or vikram) in the movie u review, It doesn't mean that u have to BOOT LICK him all the way ,I saw a rediff movie review on MAIN HOON NAA appreciating SRK'S performance . On the real sense , it was total nonsense movie where SRK was the protagonist of the nonsense stuff ,

Chandramukhi had rajini giving a mediocre performance , But the media hyped it too mucn and started celebrating the movie as if its a classic , Some of my mallu friends had a GR8 LAUGH after seein chandramukhi it seems , They told me that they have made a real mockery of the classic MANICHITRATAAZH!!!!!!

Most of them mention about the screenplay being slow and dragging (phrases like the film is slow and dragging in the second half), If a script demands patience , I don't see why a movie shoudn't be slow , If its dragging, then its another issue , It means the sentiments and the emotional scenes were engineered and not a requirement for the actual script.Movies like swades , page 3, or RHYthm , were taken slowly because thats how it has to be , U cannot pinpoint it as a flaw in the screenplay

http://www.tamizhan.com/item/694, This is the review given by a blogger , It is a very breif review , but i though it was one of the best crisp reviews written about the movie, So If u r writing a detailed one , it doesn't mean that u have to narrate the entire script to the audience (I think its the directors job)

Nowerdays , Its better to stop reading reviews and choose a movie , rather opt for the "word of mouth" whcih works out well for most of the time!!!!!

Going with the Trend

2005-09-16T11:30:00.000-05:00

Action films seems to entice tamil audience off late ,and no wonder heroes are goin behind action oriented subjects, But should they always adopt the "NO BRAINS" masala stuff?????. I mean , look at the above photos , we have seen umpteen superheroic movies, What adds to the burns is when people make movies like THIRUPACHI , PAZHANI, THIRUTHAANI blockbusters, Boycott these kind of movies and i am sure , u'll get movies of good value!!!

Now ajith has also started goin the VIJAY way , both were posing together for a movie inaugral(the frcition between them has been solved), he is acting in a movie named THIRUPATHI which is directed by PERARASU (the director of thirupaachi), Even before the start of the movie ,everyone knows whats cooking inside,

An introduction song either praising the hero or the hero giving advice , A mother or a sister sentiment, neighbor door heroine wooing behind the hero and ofcourse plenty of action and stunts!!!!

Can't u think something innovative ????, i know that movie makers are goin by the commercial value of the movie. Still, Do u think our people won't accept meaningful movies!!!!, (I know in some occasions , they didn't), But that doesn't mean that u have to repeat the same old style again and again!!!

Eevn though i am screaming here like a fool , Hum saaath... kind of movies in hindi, Allari bulllodu... in telugu and the thirupaachi, virupaachi , stuff in tamil are never stoppable coz thats what people enjoy the most

Hope these people change!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sarkar, A decent tribute to "The Godfather"

2005-09-13T17:21:00.000-05:00

Comparisions are always inevitable when u get inspired from legendary movies and I think RGV's sarkar has done it decently, thanks to the gr8 charisma of the BACHANS!!

the first scene of the movie reminded me of NAAYAGAN(where the comissioner comes to kamal to avenge his daughter's sexual assault), and several other places when the BACHANS meet seems to have been inspired from the GODFATHER himself!!!

RGV'S portrayal of violence has always been realistic. He usually doesn't beleive in these NONSENSE masala fights where hero bashes umpteen henchmen and gets away from a near to impossible situation. His fights have always been through guns and he has stuck to the same here(except for the place where ABISHEK escapes from the villains , it looks highly cinematic)

I was very much disappointed with the background score , Some GOVINDA GOVINDA chanting during serious scenes were really stupid!!!!,
Many scenes were done without conversations , So BGM during these scenes should uplift the scene , Not degrade it (as in this case)
Importance should have been given to it as u don't have any songs in the movie!!

Hooligans were really cool in this movie , NO shouting(YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEI!!!!!) stuff and no self proclaimed dialogues , Silver MANI , ( KOTTA SRINIVASA RAO, a madrasi in the movie , but basically a GULT) was really cute!!!

I didn't expect too much this time coz i knew its is really difficult to match the original (for any inspiration) . I did also read an article in hindu comparing GODFATHER , NAAYAKAN AND SARKAR which stated that sarkar was just an ok movie.

Amitabh bachan's costume and make up evidently resembled BAL THACKERAY(even a childwould say that), So i don't think it was coincidental resemblance as the statement during the titles suggested

On the whole , Its a movie which is not A MUST SEE , but definitely worth watching!!!!!

Classics

2005-09-08T11:06:00.000-05:00

How dou term a movie to be a classic????, Based on its commerical success????, Based on the star cast or based on the budget of the film!!!

Big budget films often fail to impress audience(like BABA) and star value seems to contribute only to a commercial success(like chandramukhi and anniyan), But when it comes to critical acclaims , these movies fall well short

We christen a movie to be classic by its theme and emotions it portrays. Not all classics are a success at the box office , but these movies remain in our heart for a very long time!!!!

A good example of that being sethu , no one knew about vikram and bala that time and theatre owners refuse to screen that movie owing to its theme , Ultimately after a gr8 struggle , it emerged to be one of the best movies that tamil cinema had produced,There was nothing special about the story , but the screenplay,treatment and the way in which the characters were carved was really different and appealing.

If bollywood people call sholay a classic, I can proudly say naayagan is an epic!!!, I consider it as a tribute to mario puzzo's GODFATHER and it was one of the best inspirations i have seen, I still could see kamal emoting marlon brando's manners at some points, Still it was one of the top notch performances from kamal and mani. The greatest aseet of the movie is to have a brilliant crew. Kamal , illayrajaa , maniratnam , P C sreeram and thottaatharani!!!, I hope they get together again(hoping for a sequel to naayagan or anbe sivam)

And finally kANNATHIL ..... , a MANIRTANAM SPECIAL, Said to be inspired from a true story (in US) where a 10 yr old girl is taken to her biological mother by her foster parents, GR8 music by rahman and not to forget the exemplary cinematography by RAVI K CHANDRAN ,Although it was not a commercial success , It goes into my bag of one of my all time favorites

My list of classics goes long ,STILL among them i have just picked a few (they don't follow an order). Its not that i am biased and i pick most of the kamal movies , I feel they deserved to be mentioned here and very few other people portray emotions as good as he does. So here are the top 10 classic movies IMHO.iTs just that they don't follow any order and each movie is excellent in its own virtue

NAAYAGAN, MOUNARAAGAM, KANNATHIL MUTHAMITAAAL, SETHU, MAHANDHI, ANBESIVAM,HEY RAM,THILLU MULLU,THEVAR MAGAN, AND please please, I'LL FIT IN THIS ONE KAAKKA KAAKKA

ciao!!!!!!!

Future Proche of kamal!!!

2005-09-07T17:06:00.000-05:00

Kamal Hasan has carved a unique identity for himself in the Indian Film industry with his amazing acting talents. While anti kamals claim that he gets inspired from US and british films, his talent is unmatched as far as indian cinema is concerned, being both multifaceted and versatile,this amazing performer has almost single handedly given recognition to Kollywood eleswhere in India and also across the globe

Lets come to the contemporary actors of tamil cinema, Just one or maximum 2 come to my mind ,iF i have to compare their acting talents with kamal, one being vikram and the second being surya

both have had stumbling starts, shy and immature acting performances in the early stages, But its how they mature with time counts , and i feel both have excelled in their recent performances

Nanda was surya's turning point, and then the series followed reaching the pinnacle at "Kaakha Kaakha", While SETHU revived a gr8 actor that tamil cinema would have lost.

its just a COMPARISION owing to their recent successes,They still have a long way to go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Break the rules

2005-09-01T10:42:00.000-05:00

What do u call "a penchant disciplinarian education move", Banning cell phone use in college and becoming stringent on wearing casuals.

Well,COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING ,GUINDY (as they call it) has just done that and made life messier for students, I could atleast agree with first move ,I personally don't think cell phone is a need during college days , but since times are changing , u never know!!!!!,

Implementing tough rules on the dress code(that too for youth) is "too bad a rule" for college students. "Certain outfits detract from the seriousness of academic pursuits" is what the management feels about this issue,but distractions are part
of college life , isn't it, Already people are singing "APRIL MAYILA PASUMEYE ILLA KAANCHU POCHUDAA", If u impose such rules on youth , they sure are goin to be left heartbroken.I was just imagining such a rule in my college(BITS), We'll definitely have a strike or none will bother about these rules , we'll say ""DENGUTHAAAMRAAA" IN A CHORUS fashion.

If u can't wear casuals for college , when the heck do u expect the people to wear them???, Tights podaaathaa girls , ATHA PAAAKA MUDIYAATHA boys , Collge life becomes a total waste then!!!!

Student bodies have come out strongly against the dress code , Hope u SUCCEEED guys!!!!!!

Becoming Bedridden

2005-08-26T15:33:00.000-05:00

Hospital days have always given me the "scare of my life". Two major diseases have ruined me in the past five years. The first was when i was struck by hepatitis infection in 2000 and the most recent was the "god onlly knows how to spell" Filarial infection.

I was doing my industrial training at KCP thiruvotriyur(north madras) when i some how picked up jaundice. The initial symptom was that i developed itching throughout my body. The mistake that we made was that , we never tested for hepatitis at that time , we were thinking that it could be due to a insect bite and i was taking medications like a fool , As time went on ,I started getting weak and i finally landed up in the hospital for 8 days(getting 5 bottles of gluocse per day)

INCIDENT 1
Now , whats so interesting about it , well , I experienced some funny moments (which was not funny back then) which are definitely worth sharing. Two nurse trainees , were put up at my hospital and they had to take some blood samples for my liver function test. Both of them coudn't get a vein in my body for say 10 minutes and so literally they were playing with my hand. Here i was (Coincidentaly , mom and dad were at work that time) like a BEKKU lying hopelessly and unable to scream. After some time i got really frustrated and i asked them , "Ponnungala , munna pinna blood sample edithirukkeeengala , pathu nimishamaa blood edukkureengala illa en ( i had to give a chuckle here). Finally , i pressed the bell and asked the nurse(the proper one) to take the blood.Thinking of it now , I felt it was a moment to nourish , but i was goin nuts during the scene

INCIDENT 2(a more tragic one)
I had a flight to US that night and by noon i was admiited to the hospital for my gr8 FILARIAL PICK UP. This time , i bet the previous record of 8 days , i managed to get a double score, My father had to call up THAMES(naren) and tell him , i am not coming for the flight with him.

The fun part started then , 10 days of ultimate torture, They gave me some IV , WHICH MADE ME PUKE 2 SECONDS AFTER IT WENT INTO MY BODY.I was swallowing 15 tablets a day.My biggest problem is , i am allergic to medicines(not in the literal sense), FRom chilhood , i used put the pills under my sleeping pillow,

I was supposed to take lots of sugars as i was terribly weak ,Disaster struck me when they put lots of salt instead of sugar(A small mistake).Again like a CHAMATHU BEKKU , i WAS DRINKING IT without a tinge of conscions, to put it in technical terms , "Without suya ninaivu",.Then i realised something was fishy as i coudn't take the second gulp, I asked the nurse, What is this , she said , "Think its milk"

I gave it back to her without saying anything, and pointed at the Salt kept at the corner . She then apologised to me (Very sincerely),But after goin out , I think she defintiely shoud have had a good laugh,

The picture above is a good imitation of how i was posed during my second experience. Still, Documentations of gr8 acheivment are not to be missed and i have succesfully passed those with distinction

gr8 going

Infatuation----------->Love

2005-08-25T15:11:00.000-05:00

Love is a crazy thing; it'll make you dizzy and sober, all at the same time. But love is the most misunderstood feeling,Infatuation is most probably misunderstood for love almost every single time and thats the reason why most of the relationships cease as soon as they begin.

Lets look at he movie watchers in Indian cinema(especially the rural ones). They think movies are actually 100 per cent based on reality, especially the love scenes. But "dude" , It never happens that way, What happens in BOYS or THULLUVATHO ILLAMAI, maybe admirable on screen , but when it comes to reality , No idiot can quit his family and education for his love and still stage a POP album sponsored by SONY , That is what u call the height of fantasy!!!!

A lot of boys want to know if it's love they're feeling towards the girl in their class who borrowed their pen. When u think of it after 10 yrs ,u think, WHAT THE HECK ??? it wasn't love but they could work towards a relationship either as a friend and then later let fate take its course. Don't get hurt or rejected or embarrassed, here's how to tell the difference. You really like this girl. She's all you're thinking of, day in and day out. You can't eat, you can't sleep, she's becoming your very life source, but she doesn't even know you exist. Sorry kid, you're not in love, you're infatuated.

To be honest , I seriously doubt this concept of love , "VIZHYIL VIZHI MOTHI ITHAYA KATHAVONDRU THIRANDATHE!!!!!!!" , GR8 LINES FOR POETRY , but its nonsense from a practical standpoint. Maybe people in love might argue that u should be a part of that feeling to comment on it , Maybe YES and maybe NO!!!!!!!

Maybe this could happen, when you've been with the same person for quite some time and both of you see a mature future in your relationship. When there's truth, loyalty and those little annoyances that need to be worked out. That's when you're in love.

So dudes and dudettes , please sit back and relax , have fun throughout your youth ,Flirt , woo girls and have fun (don't ever have feelings MACHI!!!!!)

The Trigger Efftect

2005-08-19T19:04:00.000-05:00

WRATH

Nature has its own mood and a very vibrant behaviour. In the past few weeks, there hasn't been a day when nature's wrath didn't make headlines. No matter how developed and powerful mankind becomes, there is not one soul on earth who can predict accurately when a natural calamity will strike,

Mumbai, the metropolitan that India has ever been so proud of for proclaiming developments in every field, was left half submerged when the sky cracked open last fortnight. And what was urgently needed was disaster management.

It's not just about being best prepared for natural calamities but for man-made disasters as well. "Crash course" may not be a happy term in the circumstances, but that's what's needed at this moment in the basic principles of disaster management. It's not just size, but speed that's important.

Nature takes its own course in haunting people and as far as india is concerned , two catastrophes have tormented our habitat in the past two years

to add a quote from THALAI'S movie

ENGEYUM SAFTEY ILLA !!!, YAARUKKKUM SAFETY ILLAI!!!!!!

Metro Massacre

2005-08-12T12:04:00.000-05:00

Shameful

The Cosmopolitan Capital(so we call it) was shaken by yet another case of gang-rape . The victim was a 16-year-old girl who was criminally assaulted by six men in a stationary bus in South-West Delhi. Our reporters have done a finessed research on sexual assaults happening in delhi and have come up with some ghastly figures .

The year 2004 accounts for the highest gang rapes cases in and around the city.In a conservative place like india where sex in considered taboo , these facts displayed are really astonishing to be true. Maybe this is a result of keeping the desires confined in our society .Our culture and traditons deter us from exhibiting our sexual desires towards the opposite sex.

The question is whether the outlet witnessed above models us as sexual perverts and maybe even sadomasochists.If India is assumed to be a country inherited with rich culture and traditons , then these aspects are defintitely taking a beating in the hands of these nincompoops.

It is interesting to point out the story of "VIRUMAANDI", which states that death penalty should be removed from our country. Eventhough i like the movie very much , I certainly disagree with the concept. If a crime like this is commited and the sentence given by the judge is going to be 15 yrs of imprisonment(maximum), the bar grpahs are bound to evolve into skyscrapers. Like middle eastern countries , sexual assaults and child molestations should be punished not only severely but cruelly so that people never dare to even think of commiting a crime.

Many cases shown in the statistics still remain unsolved suggesting that crimes of this genre can occur unnoticed and the convicts have a bright chance of fleeing from the scene(infact they can just walk away).The police department has to seriously take a look over this issue and take some drastic measures. Afterall , human tendency is to take precautions only after a debacle is felt and we indians are in the top notch.

It is shame on us people who go gaga about our culture back home and claim that western infiltration is spoiling us .Western infulence does bring about some good things(eventhough bad things also seep through). If it had to be truly speaking , indicents like this would have never occured on the first basis. It is depressing to see such horrifying statistics in a metro, then imagine the plight of uneducated rural women throughout india . God only knows how many people have experienced the same situation and have gone unreported.

RISING - On the Rise!!!

2005-08-10T15:05:00.000-05:00

Rising

Aamir khaan movies have always done well in chennai, His "Lagaan" still holds the Chennai city record of Rs. 43 lakhs distributors' share, the highest grossing Hindi film in the past five years, It has suprisingly overwhlemed srk's K3G and KHNH

He is right now in chennai promoting his forthcoming release "MANGAL PANDEY", and he seems to be really enjoying his "saravana bhavan" suppers(SOURCE : hindu)

I read somewhere about mangal pandey being viewed by critics here in US and UK(don't remember where) and feedbacks were not all that positive(not negative either),If thats the case , our chance of making it to the oscars this year is definitely difficult

They still could be rumours and one never knows until the movie is released.If k3G is released in IMAX , then rising should definitely get a place in IMAX without any reservations!!!

still continuing my lazy dumbness with TIS & RISING audio

god help me !!!!!!!

Yet another night out!!!!

2005-07-28T22:06:00.000-05:00

The trip to phoenix was not all that exiciting , mainly for the fact that i was travelling at odd times and secondly i was alone ,

Travelling alone is not that boring if its comfortable ,Sadly , my flights turned my trip into a tedious one where i had to spend the full previous night watching movies and then catch the early morning train to the airport

Again to my fate , both my flights were pretty cramped and we were travelling to full capacity ,there went my desire of stretching out in the flight from chicago to denver( presumed to be a fool to catch the flight at morning 6.20 . but luckily there were several other fools with me ),

Even the transit time in denver didn't bring any sleep inside my body as the airport was very noisy and again all the seats next to me was full

Landed in phoenix like a zombie with devils's hunger

Ate like a glutton when i reached my cousines place,Had a good sleep and planning to go out somewhere for dinner

atlast , the fun part starts.............

Entha!!!!!!

Tidbits

2005-07-22T11:05:00.000-05:00

Picture of the day

Well Well, this just caught my eye and i felt that it definitely should be made part of my blog , It was during the launch of "PARUTHI VEERAN" movie that these titans met. Heard some rumours that mani is planning on a sequel to nayagan where surya plays kamal's son(hope it's true)

meanwhile in england , Aussies are having a merry go round at lords where they are in a very commnading postion now , Seems they are goin to draw first blood in this test series. I also read about the ban on sourav bein removed(bad news for india)

I am yet to hear thiruvaasagam symphony as well as the songs of mangal pandey , I am waiting for the copy that sullaan is gettin from india

Absence odf sullaaan hasd created a dearth in movie watching , his arrival is eagerly awaited

Signing off for now

A Marvel on its own

2005-07-15T13:11:00.000-05:00

Fabulous

The National Institute of Technology here has undertaken an initiative to document the architectural and cultural richness of Madurai Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple for staking its claim as a `Wonder of World.(Source : hindu)

Its a pity that i failed to submit my presence to such a great marvel that our legendary kings have created during a time when technology and sophistication were taking a back seat. Some weeks back , I did register in some site(which i don't remember)asking to nominate some great monuments created in india for the "Wonders of the World", This temple was the first of those nominations

Actually NIT is doing a comprehensive research on architectural significance behing the carvings depicted on the walls of the temple .Tamil poets have agreed to decipher information on the lifestyle of Tamils during the period of construction of the structure from the songs of Sangam literature. Meanwhile NIT would undertake a study of the surroundings of the temple simultaneously to record tangible tell tale evidence of history.

All my folks are higly religious(be it my dad , mom or bro) that I see them visiting temples whenever they get the chance(Not me!!!) .Monuments like these have more to it other than just being religiously significant.Their amazing creativity and architectural brilliance should definitely be admired. Its really pathetic that eventhough i went to madurai for a couple of times , i coudn't witness it!!!

Strange Honors

2005-07-13T13:06:00.000-05:00

Suprise!!!!!

Looks like the national awards for the year 2004 are out and i could see some bizarre results displayed , Saif ali khan getting the best actor award for HUM TUM(Isn't that seriously a typo), In that case SRK should have got a best actor award for K2H2(what crap)!!!!!!!

The most popular film is shared by VEER ZAARA and autograph. Now atleast the former could be accepted(although its a useless movie), it should have had a wide reach with the indian audience , But what about autograph?????,The film got recognised only in one state(TN and maybe kerala) and u give a national award for being it popular, Among what audience (bombay and delhi) , what nonsense is this!!!!!!

I heard from my friends that page 3 was a well made film and i am yet to see it , So i do not have any reservations against the movie!!!!, and the best director award is again for a bengali movie for which i have no clue!!!!

Now let us come to the background score and music(Source: rediff), I don't see any award for the music director (maybe they forgot to mention in rediff!!),I feel it should got to either swades or bose, the unforgotten hero,(It had an amazing soundtrack), But they have mentioned about male and female playback leads!!!!!(Udit and chitra)

Many people would have definitely got addicted to OVVORU POOKALUME(eg: lazy geek and my dad, they kept raving about that song), But i have never tried to listen to that song whole heartedly. Still, I am happy because , its for a tamizh movie and its been sung by my favorite female playback singer.

Atleast music, acting , direction(all technical aspects) are language free , So they can be bought under one scale , But giving an award for popularity is really stupid . How can u call a regional film popular and give it a national award. (PS: In that case GILLI should get an award because it was the most popular film among our audience in 2004. hahahahha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

There should be an award for "best story " and "original screenplay",Not some NONSENSE AWARDS. I know that its very difficult to normalise the movies. Its better to have awards for departments which is common for all and which deal with the technical nuances and expertise of film making .The rest awards should be given regionally(best lyrics, popular film, best regional film) . That should be a fair distribution as all these departments (maybe more) are confined to their respective language

I was happy to see RAINCOAT getting an award (for the best film in HINDI). It would have been atleast reasonable to have SRK for best actor in SWADES, I also read the news about sharmila tagore influencing the censor board's decision. It could be a hoax for sure. If so i feel that the censor board should be blamed for making a such a useless decision in context of an award which has a great repertoire for the indian movie industry.If not , then we have to blame ourselves for failing to honor real talents and eulogise people who don't deserve those recognitions!!!!

Fear over the city

2005-07-08T12:25:00.000-05:00

Terror

Britishers were in a state of shock on Thursday after a series of blasts ripped through London's underground train network,killing around 40 people and injuring more than 300 hundred people. Media speculate that there could be a sure participation of Al-Qaeda as the incidents that occurred seemed to fit their "pattern" of attack.

These arbitrary killings have to be stopped at any cost and we certainly hope that the british government take some serious concern into this issue. Meanwhile in chicago , all subways and buses were put into sever scrutiny yesterday(thats what i heard). I also got a mail which said that the patrols in the public transit system is goin to be increased(good news for us)

Me and dushy were having a long arguement about terrorism , How things need to be designed , Dushy gave some Chimerical suggestion while thames as usual after the thursday night fever slipped in with his suugestions. The discussion was goin on till 2.00 am in the morning , Vish got so irritated(he was sleeping in his room) that he had to call me and stop our babblings ( me and dushy extended our talk in my room after vish intervention)

Anyway, Just discussing between us is never goin to help the cause , Rapid action is what counts!!!!!!!!!!!

A Cellular Obsession

2005-07-07T11:23:00.000-05:00

Connecting Dushy

Dushy has been raving about his new mobile right from the day he placed his order, people do get excited when they go mobile for the first time , and dushy definitely isn't an exception

Lets see why he is stuffed with pride on his latest technology

The phone features include
Integrated handsfree speakerphone , Recording conversations, and sound clips,Integrated camera with 640 x 480 pixel resolution; standard, self-timer, and night mode, 2X digital zoom plus hella lot of things which might take another blog to complete

He also has 450 roll over minutes and he cribs that he doesn't get that many calls during day time, He has been conducting sincere research on his cell phone features and has been exploiting them one by one

Expolitations include taking numerous pictures and videos , trying out several movie ringtones and finding which suits him and what not!!!!

Its a good thing that he uses his mobile for everything except communication (mainly using it as a digicam)still !!!!!!!!!!!

He went for cingular rather tmobile(which we all have) because it offers better reception , but i do feel it is no better or no worse than t mobile,but anyway thats not the issue , the thing is how dushy maneuvers his mobile!!!

Usually dushy sits in fron of our desktop and keeps starring at it(daydreaming) for god knows how many hours, Since technology keeps adding to the cart , i think the daydreaming is goin to be PROLONGED further!!!

cheers

Thiruvaasagam : A Path to Realization

2005-07-01T12:28:00.000-05:00

A Quest

The symphony was officially launched today , Several bigshots including rajini and kamal were present at the felicitation function. Music has always blended with cinema in our indian culture , in contrast to americans or any other country where music is given an altogether different recognition. The banal music that comes in our present movies do not offer us anything more than entertainment. But composers like Ilayaraja feel that there's more to it. It is a known fact that raja is a highly spiritual person, this entire album comes as a dedication to the famous poet MAANIKAVAASAGAR and his poetries on lord shiva himself. Adding to it, he said it should be a perfect mix between western and indian classical music

In fact i did not have a good fervor for soundtracks and symphonies till 1998, I listened to raaja's NOTHING BUT WIND & HOW TO NAME IT during college when i felt i had missed such a gr8 composition.Each track had its own mood and it was too good to hear when u are alone.I definitely feel he would have surpasses his previous ones in his latest release.

This project should have released earlier , but due to some financial reasons it was a bit dealyed .
ANYWAY HERE IT IS , one of the best compositions from one of my all time favorite composer. Definitely expecting a different journey through music

THIRUVAASAKAM - A TRIBUTE

Ullam Ketkume : A cool campus caper

2005-06-28T17:19:00.000-05:00

Ullam ketkume

This is what i meant by a decent movie , It need not have those bamboozling fights and lavish songs set against rich backdrops, No emotional sagas and stuff like that, Some movies are just for time pass and this proudly fits into that category

Infact this movie is a good blend between being both commercial and casual

I think this movie was first named as PEPSI(owing to the five characters) and then changed due to controversial reasons. This has been lying in the cans for a long time and has come as a welcome breeze for SHYAAM especially , who was having a series of flops

Nothing to say specifically about the movie , the songs have come out gr8(thanks to harris), The characters have been scripted casually, It is dramatic at certain scenes, still u can get away with it!!!

Laila's character resembles more of kajol's K2H2 , still ,she has done a pretty decent role, Ofcourse i would never go to a theatre to watch this movie , but i can sureshot see it once for A GOOD DVD RIP

adios

ANNIYAN: Definitely not a stranger

2005-06-28T14:42:00.000-05:00

Anniyan

One of the most awaited movies of this summer finally got released . Eventhough i got to see the movie in theatre , I was a bit disappointed as the theatre "SUCKED BIG TIME"

Coming to the movie, Shankar has come up with yet another perception of corruption , this time blaming the citizens, But most of the screenplay(related to the corruption part) seems to be a rehash of indian, So offering the same food in the new package did disappoint me

Vikram as the sincere protagonist "AMBI" has given a mind blowing performance.He fits like a T in all the three roles and It would be difficult to imagine any other hero playing the lead....

Some killings portrayed in the movie do not a have good backup reason/cause thus failing to create a punch among the audience.

The character "REMO" seems to exhibit a "YO YO" kind of guy,(u could see his dialogue delivery) Still, It was enjoyable!!!!!

The best offering came from vivek, who keeps u riveted to the seat for the first LONG HALF, Sans him, people would have lost interest in the story during the first half an hour

Songs usually are slickly picturised in a shankar's movie , but in this case , few songs were unnecessary and the rest did not live up to th expectation. Only "kaaathal Yaanai" and "iyengaaar..." impressed me. The shankar-rahman combo's absence was felt in many places and i am sure rahman's presence would have elevated certain scenes and songs !!!!

Vikram is found to have a great screen presence , and the climax MPD act was really fantastic, I was reminded of SD's TELL ME YOUR DREAMS, as soon as i saw the three MPD characters , Shankar for sure should have got his inspiration from sheldon!!!

Even though freezing techniques were used in stunts , The stunts were found dragging(except for the climax). I've always liked stunts which portray a bit of realism(say , a KK or company or kuruthi poonal) in contrast with these masala ones.

The rest of the crew did not really have a significant part to play and they were passable.

The intentions were pretty good as he emphasised on the fact that small mistakes are the backbone for any major disaster, So they should be stopped at the roots. But the screenplay should have been fine tuned and improved in certain places.

Again , to have the compulsion to satisfy all grps of audience , shankar has done a pretty decent job, But on my side , i expected more!!!!

Anniyan creates a sense of Dejavu among the viewers and the success of the movie is entirely attributed to Vikram,So my verdict stays "GOOD"

Opting for Disaster!!!!!!

2005-06-22T20:19:00.000-05:00

Couple of days back , Me , dad and sulaaan started talking about the german hatred over the jews and the topic slowly shifted to WORLD WAR II and the bombing by the americans on japan

I personally felt that it was the greatest blunder commited by the americans , On the contrary , sullaan argued that the americans had no other option coz they had to put an end to the war. Eventhough they achieved their aim , The question is at "What Cost?????" , Lives of 200000 people and the suffering of generations that came after!!!!

The Same thing is happening now in IRAQ, many have shown their contempt over BUSH, even the american soldiers in iraq are frustrated,But they r helpless at present as its their job!!!!

Its a known fact that some civilians get killed in war , But how do u agree with this deliberate bombing (H& N in japan)??????

Americans may have their own reasons to have carried out this operation , but the soldiers did not know the actual consequences of this bombing(the scientists knew it),

We were debating on this issue for a good period of time and sulaaan was still firm on his point, But i was still not convinced on this regard

If we summarize

"War may bring about victory and power , but not happiness!!!!!!!"

An Extravagant dream

2005-06-15T15:54:00.000-05:00

Kushi

This could be even an exageration in a dream, A show called NETRU INDRU NAALAI , masterminded by mani ratnam and given life by Rahman is all set to blaze chennai in the month of august and GUESS the people performing , (kamal,rajini,vikram , madhavan and much more)

The noble cause that these people are dedicating this show to is still uknown , Interesting when i read hindu followed by lazygeek , both mentioned about this event , i am just adding to its expectation!!!
They still are to get a "firm yes" from rajini for performing although he has already agreed for participating

Its is goin to be a visual treat for the chennai audience , But if it's conducted in koyambedu, Who is goin to control our city traffic , GOD ONLY KNOWS!!!

The good news is that ANNIYAN is releasing in chicago (on june 24), atleast we'll be able to see the movie in theatre, Vikram is also starting is new movie on the same day when anniyan releases!!!Too much expectation always plays spoil sport, Hope anniyan doesn't spoil the game!!!!!

Stupidity Personified!!

2005-06-13T14:40:00.000-05:00

Some deeds cannot be explained once they are carried out,But u can defintely take some precautions so that they don't affect either u or the others with you.

There is no point in repenting after the action is done , With a bit of COMMON SENSE and Instinct , such actions could have easily been avoided and U have to blame yourself for acting like an asinine asshole!!!!

Well , no Philosophy guys , but it was neither funny too!!!!!

Subway:"We care for people"

2005-06-10T15:07:00.000-05:00

Work was a bit hectic today , but we managed to come early and wrapped it up soon, , Me and thames went to our food court for lunch , He wanted to have a "WENDY'S" burger for a change

I wanted to go to SUB coz i had some stubs with me , As soon as i entered i heard a chorus voice from them which said "WE'RE CLOSED" , So I went to SBARRO and got a cheese pizza (which i just had on monday) and GARLIC BREAD for lunch ,

Gathering my food i walked past subway when i heard one of the chorus KARUPPI calling me , Seems they have opened and she asked me to get a SUB

I reacted instantly by showing the food i got from SBARRO and shouted SORRY!!!!

The things i described happened in a span of few minutes(maybe 2-3), I was extremely annoyed coz i could have used my stubs for a "free six inch", Instead i had to pay cash (no cc with sbarro in our food court) to get a mediocre pizza

The sub people could have just told me to wait for a minute , I would have happily done so , rather they behaved as if they are shutting up and the next moment they were serving people, GR8 CUSTOMER SERVICE!!!

Whatever be the reason , She could have atleast said , It will take us 10 minutes to serve u , I would have said FINE , i'll go somewhere , But doing this really did not exhibit even an iota of customer care

When she shouted , she said "HEY WE HAVE A DEAL" , I said to myself "**** THE DEAL"

Pakistan Strike again!!!

2005-06-07T16:10:00.000-05:00

Dejected
They are following a pattern these paks, Loose the starter and finish it on a high note!!!. The performance against india displayed it , Now against the windies ,they have proved their might,

Not that the windies played badly , They succumbed to the pressure applied by pakistan,A brilliant century by both lara and inzamam set the tone for a exciting finish , but sadly , there wasn't any excitement when windies started their chase.

Danish kaneria played center stage as he ripped through the windies BATTING ORDER . He struck thrice in three overs(sarvan, lara ,chanderpaul) thus demolishing the windies chance of winning the series

Their one day performance has always been good , Now they have improved their test performances offlate

Another gr8 series for paksitan as they move up day by day

Still , way to go!!!!!

Seize Smoking!!!!

2005-06-06T14:42:00.000-05:00

Stop Fagging!!!
This the logo preached by our politicans off late.Starting this august , all movies are goin to released devoid of smoking scenes. Films made before the ban have to run a series of health warnings across the bottom of the screen

Do u think it's a radical move to change the society ???????, Frankly I don't think so, Had smoking beeen banned in india , well thats a different issue (and for sure they won't because it is one industry that is bringing maniacal profits), But why in movies????? , Coz people plagiarize or adapt the protagonists mannerism!!!!. Then do u see people imitating the goodies played by the hero???(TOTAL NONSENSE)

Imagine people who have already taken the movies with smoking scenes in them.They have to either reshoot them or remove them which inturn could incur hell a lot of money!!!!

So if a character in the movie is so violent or rude and it demands smoking , How do u expect the director to project him???????, Put some vermillion on his forhead and show him eating CURD RICE!!!

U may ask me ,why should violence be mapped with smoking????? , Well nearly 30% of indian population smoke , So If u visulaize a character in the movie to smoke, Bloddy he has to smoke , What THE HECK!!!!!!!

This has created a ripple among the film makers , I am not sure how they are going to handle this , After the "TAMIZH TITLE NONSENSE" , politcians have come up with yet another stupid theory!!!!

I think these politicans need something or the other to chew and be in limelight, If u want to bring a change truly ,Change the censor certificates , Instead of having just (U,U/A,A), bring in R ,PG , or put a caption which says something like , there are some innappropriate scenes for the viewers and hence BEWARE!!!(CAN'T U HAVE HEALTH WARNINGS IN MOVIES IF THEY HAVE SMOKING)

I don't comprehend this move as a "STRIDE FORWARD ONE" , and the only outcome is that the process of FILM MAKING is goin to be even more strenuous!!!

Ephemeral Environment

2005-06-03T13:03:00.000-05:00

Iyarkai
Oxford University Press has come out with Environmental Studies: From Crisis to Cure by R. Rajagopalan. This is a textbook meant for undergraduate students

Beginning with the global crisis, it goes on to cover concepts such as eco-systems, biodiversity, energy sources, pollution and what not

In addition of having ECONOMICS as one of the compulsory subjects(especially for engineering students , I feel this course could be a lucrative offer for the students.Not that i am favoring this book because i am in this field, this could be more than just a book ,It creates awareness and hence preserves life!!!

This subject has great scope in terms of visual appeal, It could give u a distinct idea of how our environment is getting spoiled due to our day to day activites and how drastic changes happen if we make small adjustments in our habits and charcteristics

I am not sure whether people have seen a serial in cartoon network named "CAPTAIN PLANET". This has got nothing to do with our "dear CAPTAIN", It is just a fun serial of how five people who have supernatural powers preserve our environment from getting destroyed , I use to watch it during my high school(It comes before JOHNNY QUEST which was one of my favorite cartoon serials)

NATURE IS OUR GOD , We keep it clean , we sure will be safe , IF not............

The Californian Crash

2005-06-01T13:53:00.000-05:00

DISASTER
A landslide sent six expensive homes and a section of street crashing down a hillside Wednesday and damaged a dozen or more other houses near laguna beach which is 50 miles southeast of los angeles

An interview with a spectator was something on these lines
"The pipes started making funny noises and the toilet sounded like it was about to explode.

California always gives the scare of these natural calamities , be it HURRICANES, or volcanoes or these land slides

Infact the whole downtown of LA is built on a volcano.The downtown i saw was constructed in a unique pattern.

US offers such drastic varations in natural habitats. Still, People prefer to settle down in california coz the weather is good throughout the year unlike(chicago or new york)

BEWARE BEFORE THE NATURES STRIKES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A Win for W'indies

2005-05-30T13:24:00.000-05:00

Celebrating
West indies finally managed to win a test at last, thanks to a stunning century by chanderpaul, Their last test victory was against srilanka in june 2003,Its taken them two years to pull up this comprhensive win.

They were given a scare by afridi , who made bowling look as if he was playing club cricet, Still, the target was huge and everyone knew that it was just the question of time before the paks were confiscated

Pakistan were always a better one day side on any given day ,Its their test record that they have to worry about, Their brilliant fight back against india last march should still be in our minds and they have every chance to bounce back to into this series

We actually had an idea of buying the series , but because of the fact that the timings doesn't suit us, we dropped the plan and just stuck to cricinfo

Mystic River : Review

2005-05-29T16:43:00.000-05:00

Brilliant
Its never late to see a classic isn't it?. I have just prolonged it for 2 yrs . One of my friends told me (BITSIAN), dei "ATHU ORU THRAAVAIPADAM, paaru paaru", It turned out to be one of the classic ones (its in the top 250 of IMDB rating)

Taste just differs is what i can say, It was a portrayal of brilliant screenplay and cool acting.Without knowing that it was a thriller and seeing it made it even more interesting.

The cast has been selected efficiently and they have done absolute justice to the characters.I think this is the first time i am seeing a clinteastwood directed movie , AFter seein this one , i am urged to watch the "MILLION DOLLAR BABY"

One thing that was bothering me was that i just coudn't agree with the directors POV towards the ending , 1414 had a long discussion and we came to a conclusion that it is with the audience to comprehend it the way he feels about the ending!!!

Note: We just filter english movies, select the classic ones , and watch it(the other choices for yesterday were "FINDING NEVERLAND & SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION"), we just went ahead with this movie........,

I was trying to imagine the same plot being made in any indian language , I feel they would have made a total mess of it by adding a reagent named "MASALA...."

Sujatha's Katrathum Petrathum

2005-05-27T14:47:00.000-05:00

Genius written all over

I specifically asked my dad to get lots of sujatha and sidney sheldon novels,

But to my badluck , seems he coudn't lots of suajtha that i've asked for, His 70'th b'day has just passed by and he stays ever youthful with his writing

I am reading one his novel named "VANNATHUPOOCHI VETTAI " right now and i am impressed with his way of narrating a simple story, My friend vish told me u cannot term it a "CLASSIC SUJATHA" , but i have to hold my judgement till i finish it

I became a fan of him after reading a novel called "EN INIYA IYANTHIRA" followed by "MEENDUM JENO", Its a a scifi set in chennai(It came as a serial in 1988-1989)and i got a chance to read it in the early 90's , HIs visualisation and description of a future set chennai was scintillating and he ended the novel with an absolute punch

I know that he has written a lot of novels before that and had won gr8 accolades but i got a chance to admire this genius only after the 90's

His short stories has also been amusing and a series named "SRIRANGATHU THEVATHAIGAL" was a feel good type, SINCE my dad was born and bought up in srirnagam , he would tell me that some characters that sujatha describe did exist in real life , Maybe its difficult to appreciate that series if u don't have the feel of "the thayir saatham environ".

Sujatha himself has discussed writing short stories is a very difficult task and he says he spends more time to script them(say 2-3 of them) as compared to novels

My favorite of his was "NIJATHAI THEDI" which came out in 1980, The "point of view" of two persons was narrated brilliantly

His novel named vikram that came out in 1985 was a good one to read but was not given the proper visual treatment by kamal. (Maybe kamal and sujatha might laugh at that movie if they see it now!!!!!!!!!!!)

I never miss his "KATRAHTUM PETRTHUM" in vikatan, It was one of the best informative articles that i have read in my lifetime

His IQ is clearly exhibited even in movies for which he writes dialogues,

I still have a long way to go thru his entire literature ,still ,I found him astonishing with just a glimpse of his work

The golden age

2005-05-25T23:17:00.000-05:00

b'day

A snap of me gettin special treatment on april 22 , 2005. The make up was done by one and only dushy(maybe sulaaan joined later).Still my b'day celbration was nowhere near to the fun we had for dushy's b'day

good and the bad

2005-05-25T20:52:00.000-05:00

chamathu

Just a glimpse of me and maaamma during vish b'day , MAAMMA wanted to pose as if he is threatening me , so here i am , the always CHAMATHU GUY!!!!

Potpourri!!!!!

2005-05-25T17:00:00.000-05:00

Dushy's b'day was awesome , I haven't seen dushy getting this fanatic and wild in recent times , He was too jubiliant that he made a total mockery of his own personality, I am not offending him by saying this , but u need guts to do that!!, gr8 going DUSHY!!!!!!!!

The photos have come out gr8 ,me and vish had toal fun playing our part as photographers , If we had a camcorder , it would have been ecstasic,,

people of 1414 are in a dilemmma as this blog is being read by seniors, Some tried to stage gr8 drama and presentation which won't work out any more , Hope they atleast get a bit of respect hereafter , Let me pray to god for that(NO NAMES PLEASE!!!!)

Ultimate
I was very happy to see "nayagan " getting into the "all time top 100" of TIME'S rating , Its a gr8 honour for our thalai, I still would like to know the criteria they have used to judge the movies

The other movies that i am happy for are "PULP FICTION AND SCHINDLERS LIST".PF was a real cool movie and i love that movie for one and only SAMUEL L J.

SL, an epic
There is nothing really to say about SL , it gets the no 1 in the top 100(ANY TIME BABY, ANYTIME!!!!!)

We were talking about US DCOTORS & INSURANCE. Vish was telling me that if a surgeon was getting a salary of 200k per annum , he pays 80k for his insurance(in case he makes a mistake in operation , prescribes a doubtful medicine........)

To check this out , i took google's help and i found out that it was true indeed, Surgeons nearly pay 1/3'rd of their annual salary(more for neurologists and heart specialists), and in case there is a bungle in practice , insurance company pays if the doctor gets SUED!!!(hmmmmm!!!!!)

Sullan was telling me that chennai would become hitech in 2050 , we might have metros equivalent to US ONES. But to be frank , i think it's a mighty job to get there . Sure that we will be in full update with current technology, but to get to what US IS THERE NOW(2005), (SSN , mapquest , walmart,interstates blah bLAH BLAH), I feel it would take a bit longer(maybe 2100 or 2125).Again everything is in our hands !!!!!

If u feel on the contrary , i am open for a healthy debate!!(I will be very happy if i am proven wrong)

BAD news!!

2005-05-23T13:17:00.000-05:00

I just got a message from my cousine today that my paternal uncle back home expired . He actually got a stroke coz of chennai's blazing heat.Made me totally upset. He had lots of affection for me and my brother.

MAY HIS SOUL REST IN PEACE!!!

SAW: A must see

2005-05-19T19:30:00.000-05:00

Do see

Me and vish were just discussing about not seeing english movies off late and I am still kicking myslef as to how i missed such a gr8 movie like this in theatre

WEll , If u are afraid of blood , wrath & violence , I suggest u to get as far as u could from SAW. But if u want a real thriller with gripping scenes , then i definitely would recommend u this movie

I am not goin to give even a outline of the movie , coz if u haven't watched , beleive me , U HAVE MISSED SOMETHING!!!!!(go to blockbuster ASAP)

We watched it around 11.00pm in the night which made it even more exciting and the director walks away with full kudos as he kept us guessing after every scene

Seems like i may give u what i didn't want to .Overall it's is one of the best thriller movies i have seen in my life and its in par with "IDENTITY & SIXTH SENSE" .

SAW .......ROCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Renaissance of mind with time and age

2005-05-18T20:03:00.000-05:00

It was a perfect sync of thoughts i should say when dushy was telling me his taste for movies has changed over the past few years.Coincidentally it has happened for me too!!!

From a guy who has adored "KAADHALUKKU MARIYAAATHAI" and "K2H2", My fervor has progressed towards movies like RHYTHM ,IRUVAR,KANNATHIL MUTHAMITTAAL &ANBE SIVAM

KM
Masala movies are omnipresent i should say , The question arises whether they entertain u on the whole!!!, Not that i didn't enjoy DHOOL , SAAMY , GHILLI , when i first saw them , but these movies no longer fascinate me when compared to 10-12 yrs before when i saw movies just for fun, I was jubiliant to see heroes bashing umpteen villains, BUT NOT ANY MORE

god

Times have changed where i have started exploring for good sensible cinema, I like to see characters in the movie to be in tune with normal life.Take an example of maddy's charcter in anbe sivam , or a surya character in "KK" or a srk character in swades.Those characters evoked sense and are not larger than life portrayals

The best example i should give is SCHINDLERS LIST.I was so moved by the movie that i watched it 3 times(I still would love to watch it).It made me too emotional and dushy caught me crying towards the end of the movie . Last time i did it was when i saw CHANDINI BAR and ofcourse MAHANATHI.I have begun to develop a taste for these serious movies provided they follow logic . Please don't include K3G,"vaanathai pola"...... Sentiments in those movies irritates me to the core when i see some mongrels trying to evoke tears in the audience eyes.

Who knows ,Maybe even i would have cried if i saw those karan johar , vikraman movies during the early 90's but thankfully that didn't happen .

I am still wondering why movies like "anbe sivam , iruvar ,rhythm ,KM and swades" were not recieved by our audience ,They are not commercial is the explanation. It definitely won't do any good to your thinking if these kind of movies are discouraged. I agree that people come to the theatre to have fun and entertainment and not moan over some serious rigmaroles, Still !!!!!!

I am proving no point to project me as an intellectual and educated guy but just trying to encourage sensible movies which will definitely elevate the mentality of the audience .It would be gr8 if these kind of movies fare well at the BO , IT WOULD BE A WELCOME TREND TO INIDAN CINEMA

Its not that hollywood movies are flawless , they always manufacture some shit movies (lots in the list).But regularly they provide movies like SIXTH SENSE & ROAD TO PERDITION, If we are "trying" to compete with them , movies that we discussed should do well at the BO .

Finally time and age has played a dictating factor in maneuvering my taste for cinema ( and also company i should say). I mention again that it is relative , what pleases me might not please u , still on a broader scenario , I hope these kind of movies pleases JUNTA!!!!!!!

The Weekend Scare

2005-05-15T13:11:00.000-05:00

We were all geared up on friday night coz IIT pals asked us to join the party that was hosted at their residence.I didn't have much work in lab that day and came around 7.45pm(that is early for a friday).All these people were busy dressing coz they wanted to got to a dance floor after the party.

Sullaan was busy wondering how jeans and formal shoes would suit him . Dushy with his as usual axioms said that he always wore formals to school and casual otherwise. SO he was swapping with these two attires. Thames dog wanted new hair style (please note he was close to mottai)so he was also busy moulding his personality.

The suprise package that day came from vish who usually is normal today joined these people and was pretending like a movie star(U SHOULD SEE his dress code , his hair style !!!!!!!!!!!!!),It would have flattered NUCH CHICKS!!!!!

We all went there , celebrated by cutting the cake , had the food(which was oily)and as usual started with "dappaaaangs songs"

I was bowled over by the people's dancing style. Especially dushy and sullan , WHAT grace and elegance (thames joined later)????.I am a good fan of vijay's dance . these people overwhelmed him with just a single step(That was the only step they did , still it was amazing. Vish joined at the last and put some amazing koothu dance to finish the show

The booze party followed and the show was stolen by one fellow named BAALAN , shit , how eloquent??, It was just pouring . HE was in total thanni , so people thought , let him perform and everybody took audience seat. When we planned to leave around 12.30 AM, i went to him and said , DUDE , it is difficult to make 35 people laugh continously , u did it, HATS OFF TO U!!!!!

ME and dushycame home while the rest went to dance floor ,I am just writing about events i witnessed , so the dance floor drama is skipped here

LET me come to the topic now , the scare came when we got up the next morning . Our stomachs went berserk as people rushed to the toilet and were making a living out there, Sulllaan led the show by marching 6 times , me 5 times , radha krishanan 4 and thames 3. Thames donkey went to india house after that ,had thanni and chicken in the night , I am still wondering how he managed to do that

WE all callled up IIT people , smothered each of them and they replied saying that even the other people who came to the party were captious about the food.

With ransacking hunger yesterday , I fasted for the whole day and had thayir saatham and garlic in the night . I was also explaining sulaaan about my nightmares during hospital days (THAT WOULD COME AS A SEPARATE BLOG!!!)

I am still repenting about how irresponsible i had been with my food habits. Still , a lesson was learnt with a bitter experience. Me and sullan swore not to eat out in restraunts like this , WE'll see how long the promise holds strength!!!!

Promoting PAHELI

2005-05-11T18:59:00.000-05:00

Rich

SRK is in full swing with his new rural movie , Its again a multistarrer with lots of big guns in the artillery ready to fire

The music director is MM kreem , I was wondering who it was when i googled and got some interesting info about this guy, He is the same guy who calls himself keeravaani in telugu and maragathmani in tamil(I am instantly reminded of VAANAME ELLAI!!!)

THE MOVIE IS SUPPOSED to be a remake of some 1971 marathi film( i am not sure but!!!)

One thing with bollywood is that they market their product well, which i feel the southindian film industry lacks.With the few exceptions of shankar and mani, i feel not many do a good job in promoting their stuff, take the example of KAAL , i heard this time they have made a story out of the title of an english movie named (GHOST AND THE DARKNESS). All reviews i read about the movie spit at it , still it is doin well at the BO. So marketing and word of mouth definitely helps in the commercial success of the movie

Coming back to paheli , the costumes and the backdrop makes us surmise that the film is set in rural rajasthan!!!, SRK plays a ghost in this movie and this time its a GHOST WITH A MOUSTACHE

SRK himself is trying to break his masala tag and is experimenting with an offbeat film (following swades!!).I welcome this move as he is a good performer when it comes to character roles.

The term "ENTERTAINING" has always been relative to me ."Anbe sivam, company,azhagiya theeye ,KK" were better entertainers to me than saamy , dhool and ghilli . People may object me ,still einstein theory rules!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Swades was one of the best movies of srk that i have seen and hope he follows paheli on those lines!!

Whether paheli sells in bollywood or not is altogether a different issue , but what definitely sells in bollywood is SEX & SHARUKH!!!

Using Science to Slaughter

2005-05-10T13:55:00.000-05:00

Well It is amazing how technology has grown at a such a galloping pace especially in the past 50 yrs , We have got accustom to it so much that sometimes we fail to appreciate its presence

Take an example where u have to search through a journal in the 1960's , before 10-15 yrs what u would do is to got to the library and spend thw whole day doin it , Now you just use the web , give the title , get the PDF , how simple!!!!!!!

One of my profs was telling me that my univ is paying one tenth of its budget to (sciencedirect.com)(Thats some money i tell u!!!)

take any stuff from mobile to mp3 players , WE HAVE scurried for a easy and a lazy living

One the contrary , all the progress that has been made can also be put to bad use (if we want to), Imagine having a biological warefare instead of our tradtional ammunition , Like a robin cook novel , Culture tons of EBOLA and fire it at your enemy .No big investement , no manpower , but maximum yield with total CATCLYSM!!!!

HORROR
There was an article in cnn where they were discusing one these lines , as to use BIO weapons in war field (i think it was in bulgaria). I got shocked when i read this!!!!. To be frank i love to see VIOLENCE only in movies , i enjoy the blood , the goriness , only because i know that they are made up . But if it happens in our real world , i 'll be the last perosn to support it

Having a biowarfare is as bad as having a nuclear warefare, U might not see arson followed by terrific explosions and chaos , what u will witness is slow and steady demise of human race .

Imagine using Pneumonian and leukemian bombs in warfront , NO WAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Researchers predict that the whole world might get affected (even if this kind of war happens in the opposite end of the globe), the future (generations power n) will suffer .One consequence could be that the anatomy of GENERATION NEXT could be different from now , DEFORMITIES AND DISABILITY will be strictly designed in our reproductive cycle , U have to accept it as natures design!!!,IYARKAIYN NIYATHI as our thalai says!!!

So one the lines of "KP" , please donot prolong this episode of violence and try to freeze it ASAP!!!!!

Mumbai Xpress : Review

2005-05-08T12:58:00.000-05:00

MX

Well , this is the first time i am highly reluctant to write a review for a kamal's movie . Usually kamal's movie offers something to the audience, but sadly MX leaves u with a feeling of whay u sat through the entire cinema!!!

I cannot even think of one postive note regarding the film , nor there was any logic.
If u argue that the movie team is trying to make u laugh and in the process have erred in logic , I am sorry "TEAM MX" u have just irritated us for 2.5 hrs

Ofcourse there are some funny moments in the movie but u cannot make an entertainer just with some minutes of fun stuff

Manisha look like a whore in the make up and thankfully her character resembles one too...

IR's music is ok but there wasn't much scope for him as the script lacked the punch!!!
I am not goin into the details of the movie as i don't want to

Finally the film could have been named "MUMBAI SUCKSPRESS" as it does BIG TIME!!!!

ANNIYAN the magnum opus

2005-05-04T13:32:00.000-05:00

Stranger in the mirror

"Anniyan" is all set to release this month end , Count me in as one of the eagerly awaiting lads for this one!!!. Not that shankar is a classy director in my perspective , I feel he is best at what he does , to make "GRAND COMMERCIAL CINEMA"

This time he joins with VIKRAM and i hope that they don't disappoint, The music was released last week and the overall album is passable, Shankar always tries to incorporate a folk and a carnatic number in his movies and this time its IYENGAR VEETU AZHAGE ...., the voices of (hariharan harini) gives u a soothing feeling

Comparing the music director's with one another will never work out , each Have their own style , Rahman combo with shankar was thumping throughout and in that context maybe , songs here don't live up to that expectation

It will also be better if they let us know whether the lyrics of the songs are in tamizh before they relase the audio coz , both the fast nos are difficult to comprehend, still "kaathal yaanai" seems to be working well......

The visuals have always been good in shankar's movies , so they should hopefully lift these songs!!!!!

Sujatha has also taken the job of penning the dialogues for the movie which pushes me even more to see it in theatre,(Sujatha himself was was talking about a scene where vikram chases sada inisde nehru stadium , the scene was shot with more than 100 cameras,. He said it would be mesmerising to see the visuals in theatre )

Vikram as "THAYIR SAATHA MAAAMMAA" looks bizarre i should say , still passes as one

Why the heck do they need sada as heroine is my biggest doubt??? , They could have gone for some better choice!!!!

After the CHANDRAMUKHI downpour , It is a good season to release such a big budget movie and people say it is one of the costliest movie made in indian cinema(hmmmmmm!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!).

So ,The hype is always there for any big banner movie , some fail to keep it intact , Some live up to it!!!!

We'll see where ANNIYAN stands!!!!!!!!!!!

Exam fever

2005-05-03T19:46:00.000-05:00

education

TNPCEE , public , lab comprehensive............, difficult to forget those days

there was a time during my teens(for 3-4 yrs) where i had to encounter exams frequently,During my high school times , i had to write nearly one test per day.We had weekly exams , midterms during school days , plus tution classes blah blah!!!!!!!!

Exams never bothered me actually and my college life taught me how to have fun amidst academics . I take EXTREME care to do easy questions right (especially during college) coz i hate it when i falter in those questions , It was also important to get them right coz they decide the average for each test i take and ultimately puts me in the zones of A's and B's

The most horrible exam i've ever had was my GRE verbal part. It pricks me till date coz i prepared so well for that but to my fate ,i got terribly nervous and made a mess of the whole !!!!!!I still feel i could have screwed the shit out of that paper

Coming to the best part , there was a course during my 3'rd year named OPERATIONS RESEARCH ("OR" as we call it), i attended the classes regularly, did all my assignments properly , but still was not able to get marks in the tests because all exams were pretty lengthy and that was a math course where,u fumble anywhere in the problem ,u go nuts to decipher the error, rather u can just fold the paper , give it to the invigilator and walk out of the hall

My life
I was 30 marks below average prior to the comprehensive and the final was out of 120 (3 hrs exam) ,
I did the exam , but refused to see the solutions(i rarely discuss after the exam), I went on to make 101/120 in that course and scraped through into A( the average of comprehensive was 60)

,To be frank, i was worried whether i would make it into A . One of my friends who already did that course saw my face and started consoling me by saying that , "don't worry kuppu , C vaangiduva". He got the paper from my hand and as he rolled through , his face changed

He instantly started shouting , "DEI THAYOZHEE , PETER'AA VIDRAA ,ONAA VECHU OKKAREN IRUnnu solli" , he called all my wingies and..... the rest was history , BUT nice feeling to nourish!!!

TEACHERS generally advice u to read the full qn paper before starting , but , I don't even see the questions , I see the first , If it doesn't strike , I skip and move on

The blog is gettin to lengthy, Let me cut it out , MY policy before exam is to eat , sleep well(prepare ofcourse!!)have a good fountain pen , titan sonata watch ,do a minute meditation

U R SURE TO CRACK THE SHOW

NOTHING GOES WITHOUT INSPIRATION:

http://www.hindu.com/edu/2005/05/02/stories/2005050200230100.htm

Medley

2005-05-02T14:30:00.000-05:00

Sure shot draw between windies and southafrica , GAYLe rockets himself to 300(batting)

Maaama sending me mails with lots of psenti, He says he misses chicago and us very much , we miss him too!!!!!!!!

One of my friends who is a gr8 fan of vikram has sent me some photos of anniyan, SOME STILLS have a good scenic (cultural i should say) background

Amma , anbu thollai continues , thames dog vathivachufying to amma about me not taking juices and stuff!!!

appa says aaayutha ezuthu is full of violence , THEN IMAGINE HIM SEEING VIRUMAANDI (dei kothaaaalaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) and the gory PITHAMAGAN

Weather continues to be cold here in chicago , hope it gets better during the next weekend so that we can play cricket!!!

Plight of tamizh cinema

2005-04-28T14:36:00.000-05:00

SeemS lazy geek is pretty upset about the critical report in outlook , So he just stated the article and expressed his contempt over it

But to be frank , that article hold some truth in it , U still have kamal and rajini hovering around 20 yr old heroines in the scenes , It would be better if they choose a role according to their age (like kamal in ANBE SIVAM)

Because of his sperstardom , rajini's acting capibilty gets masked, People still
want him as an hero, He can do roles like what AMITABH does in his cinemas nowerdays
(i know its not gon happen , it is just what i seek!!!)

Vijay follows the pathway laid by rajini , so allocate him for masala movies in B & C centers)

Nowerdays , we have some good actors(like vikram , surya , maddy) compared to 80's where it was just rajini and kamal predominantly!!

I saw an article showing the queue in fornt of shanti theatre at morning 3.30am for advance booking of CHANDRAMUKHI, i rellay don't undersatnd the craziness of these people but still have to admit about what impact rajini creates with his movies!!

It also said some movies like Thullovahto illamai goes unoticed (BULLSHIT!!!), IS IT A SUCH A GR8 MOVIE????, sorry sir , U should have switched off your brains when u wrote that article(But "kathal " i would say was decent , not EXCELLENT)

In my opinion, let me suggest some , say AZHAGIYA THEEYE , ANBE SIVAM,RHYTHM!!!

WERE GOOD MOVIES , which i think didn't get the recognition it deserved,

So u never know , they appreciated "pithamagan" but dumped the above stated movies

So try to make cinema a BIT INFORMATIVE and welcome movies which have some sense in it(U ALWAYS HAVE YOUR CANDY FLOSS , MASALA, BLAH BLAH MOVIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

ANBU THOLLAI

2005-04-26T14:22:00.000-05:00

Hum

For the past two days , i have been showered with loads of affection and that can be shortly termed as "anbuthollai". Mom watches my complete routine and keeps on pricking me all the time. Dad just "JINCHAKS" to what mom says, Mom is always concerned about my health and keeps on insisting me to take lots of nutritious stuff like juices , fruits(which i generally avoid)

Still i have put on a lot of weight ( don't know how!!!), The gr8 burden of cooking has been shleved off our shoulders and we have been getting some sumptuous grub for the past two days.

Dad has got heaps of novels that i have asked for , i think it will take me a year to finish reading the set!!!

Thames and maama have to operate covertly to carry out their operation

I have tried to control my langugae in front of them, still people aaround are trying to provoke me and shatter my image

Mom and dad are very impressed with vish , they tell us to be like him, I would say , only if the situation demands i will change , else SOMBERI THAAN

sullaan always kottai baad, Glued to his seat

DUSHhy thirruttu payan behaving obediently in front of them . He gets up well before time and does sandhi, FRAUD!!!!

On the whole my mom says , boys are all obedient , only girls nowerdays have become diabloique & NOTORIOUS

How amazing to be true!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Kuttu .. kuppu ..BigaL... thalai ... turns 24

2005-04-22T12:41:00.000-05:00

It seriously amuses me as to how time proceeds at such a rapid pace. I still remember playing cricket in the street like a stray dog (early 90's), suddenly ,i am in US doing higher studies, This might seeem a cliche'd statement ,still there's some astonishing truth under this.

B'day
Childhood days were fun and i enjoyed every second of it , It is seriously boring to get old , as u have to get more responsible( Do we have to!!!!), still , The occurence cannot be delayed and time runs like hell!!!!!!!!!!!

Yesterday night was total celebration where MAAMA occupied center stage and entertained us all, He was totally drunk and started giving us lectures about some censored topics which was aesthetically captured by thames and shell!!!

Dushy made "paruppu keerai" yesterday(Again!!!), Interesting note regarding my last blog , when dushy pointed out the items mentioned me were all generally cooked by him and he thought i was pulling his leg, But frankly, i just typed whatveer came to my mind and it was purely coincidental and sadly true!!!!

We might got to MUMBAI XPRESS to celebrate this occcasion , but being a kamal fan , I am not motivated to see this movie , This maybe because of the reviews given by my friends and ofcourse websites!!!. Stilll , my exprience is to never judge a akamal movie by feedback !!!!(doesn't work that way usually...........)

Srirangam Family in Chicago

2005-04-20T13:58:00.000-05:00

R

Mom and dad are landing here on 23'rd saturday(12.05 pm CST). Its been nearly 2 yrs . Mom will be especially happy to see me coz i was very sick when i left chennai(sept 2003). I was recovering from the treatment and was just having bread as my meal for nearly 20 days. She loves cooking for me even though i am very selective.I love to "PAATHI KATTUFY" with mom's food, the best being PARUPPU SAATHAM , "vadivudai amman ghee" (source : triplicane) along with "sepangkazhangu" fry.

Nowerdays , the concept of being selective does not exist. We buy vegetables which are mostly frozen coz its easy to cook them. I am mentioning this because , in my life of 22 yrs at chennai , i have never had "TOMATO DHAL" , " PARUPPU KEERAI","MIXED VEGETABLE"............(THE LIST GOES ON...)as main course for my
dinner.

In 2 yrs of my cooking exprience ,I have learnt to cook food which is edible( i won't say tasty!!!).My dad used to pull my leg , when i tell him , i made rasam and TINDORA , he would comment ,"KUTTU, , don't call it rasam , call it "TAMARIND WATER"
......

When my dad was working in trichy (i was in chennai for my project) , my mom used to shuttle around , when she comes back to chennai , she'll make sure , my dad's refregirator is stuffed with (idli maavu , thosau maavu and many other instant items...) , when i call him every
night from chennai , he used to say ,DEI i made idli , rasam blah blah blah....,(what he means by cooking is "boiling the rasam taken out from fridge ").

Now i realise how difficult it is to stay on your own , but since , we r 5 together , it is a bit easy for us , coz we take turns !!!

The other thing is that our fridge is stuffed with many non veg items and ofcourse. "THANNI" . imagine my mom opening it in the morning when she touches KOZHI without her knowledge !!!!!!., i'll hear a big scream(moslty i'll be sleepin , coz , she gets up at 6)

Or imagine my dad goin out of the main door , where he sees THAMES & MAAMA dhumming , avlothaan pasangala kooppittu oru periya lecture nadakkum , NAAAAN ESCAPE.........................................

OVERALL , its goin to be nice fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Desi Team Strikes Disaster

2005-04-18T10:28:00.000-05:00

Crushed

Only india can pull off a gr8 end to a series like this . Having won the first two games , it is very difficult to loose 4 matches in a row , India have done it with minimum effort , HATS OFF!!!

I do not have words do describe the effort displayed , It would have been more fun if ganguly had played the last two matches

The next team touring india i think will be bangladesh(after 6 months i beleive!!)
Good chance for sourav to get back into form.I don't think there is a need for a renaissance in the team structure . Let them be what they are, give them some time to regain their confidence , hope they come out of the pit!!

till then,TEAM INDIA , take rest for some time , enjoy and have fun!!!!!

Pakistan down under

2005-04-16T11:48:00.000-05:00

Its not easy to win 3 matches in a row especially after being 0-2 down in the series.But pakistan have pulled up a victory thanks to a blistering knock by shahid afridi shutting the slightest chance of an indian win

The toss was crucial in this wicket and due to some early movement, india had lost four wickets under the first 15 overs.Some good and sensible batting by dravid and kaif helped india reached 250. But the way afridi batted , even 350 would have seemed wanting .He made bowling look pathetic(which was actually not).Even the edges fromm his bat flew over the rope and u could imgaine the power that he creates with the swing of his bat. That is why i keep saying that his knocks are always a bonus for the team,coz there are plenty of batsmen to come after afridi and shoaib malik

Pakistan are now in a undefeatable position and the indians have to play really well to level the series!!!!!!!!!!!!

Chandramukhi : Review

2005-04-16T00:24:00.000-05:00

Thalaivar

It was fun and frolic right form the word go in the theatre at bloomingdale and this is the frist time i am seeing a thalaivar padam on the first day( and its the first show). This wouldn't have been possible in chenai coz
1. You have to struggle to get a ticket on a tamil new year day
2.You wouldn't hear a shit in the theatre for any given scene
3. But the most important , i would have never tried!!!!

The plot of the movie is taken from the movie "MANICHITRATAAZH" incorporating subtle changes in the screenplay to suit rajini's image.The first half of the movie certainly evoked laughter in the theatre thanks to some timely dialogues by vadivelu( who usually justs shouts, but here he does his job in a decent way)

The story unfolds only in the second half giving a series of twists and turns and finally ending as expected. The plot evloves around jothika and she has done justice to her role. The rest of the cast just come and go without making any impact..

I personally feel that the screenplay of the second half could have been better, but having the compulsion to make rajini the pivot, I should say the director has done a fair job

The choreography of the songs have been done pretty decently and my pick of the lot is RAA RAA...( both JO and Vineeth have danced pretty well)...

Rajini usually has an amazing screen presence (THALAPTHY, JOHNY........) ,It was a bit lacking in this movie , but still has done his job neatly and given us some good entertainment(ESPECIALLY THE WAY HE SPEAKS TAMIZH!!!)

Ultimately it all boils down to the demi-god of tamizh cinema, Sans him , u would have never even had a thought of goin to the theatre !!!!

Reviews are not Encouraging!!!

2005-04-14T14:03:00.000-05:00

I opened sify.com/movies today morning when i caught a glimpse of chandramukhi's and sachin's review. I did not go through the review coz they write the complete screenplay and claim that they have written a review

I just read the last lines of both the movies , Sachin seems to be a candy floss entertainer and CM seems to be just ok, it also said that rajini looks droopy and lacks his usual command onscreen

lazygeek.net gave me a review on MX , which states that the movie is just above average , and there was a desperate need for crazy mohan's dialogues in many scenes(note: crazy did not work with kamal this time)

My expectations for sachin and CM were never high , i knew that however rajini and vijay grind and churn , they woudn't come up with a new flavor, still i expect them to give a typical masala movie where u switch off ur brains and just have fun in the theatre

Kamal on the other hand always brings something fresh for the viewers ( be it comedy or his serious movies). We have to wait for a week and see how MX turns out to be!!!!

Its too early to predict about the success of these movies and there is a lot of chance for CM and sachin to have a cake walk at the box office!!!!

Friiday night ENTHU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2005-04-13T22:30:00.000-05:00

Tommorow is tamil new years day for all of us , the main thing during this occasion is "MOVIE RELEASES"

CHANDRAMUKHI is relasing in chicago on april 15'th ,6 of us have booked tickets for the same , planning to rent a car and go for the movie(we'll see how it works)

I hope that chandramukhi is not of the same genre as BABA( BUT THE TRAILER DOESN'T IMPRESS ME , THALAI JUST SWINGING HIS HAND AND FOUR PEOPLE FLYING IN DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS, please no!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

hope we don't get a big KELA at the theatre!! or i am goin to kick maaammaaa(sanjeev's) ass...................

GR8 comeback by pakistan

2005-04-12T11:16:00.000-05:00

A thriller

It was a thrilling finish to a wonderful onedayer between india and paksitan , Again a bat dominated game, the top order of both sides made merry

After posing a target of 316 in 48 overs , india would have thought they were through , But thanks to some brilliant batting by the paksitanis , their hopes of taking a lead was completely shattered

Sachin played a gr8 knock and was well supported by dhoni &yuvraj(in the end),Still the total was chased with minimum of fuss!!!

Inzamam with his pretty cool head made sure that he was there till the end to wrap up a comfortable win without any HICCUPS!!

The best part about the paksitan chase was that there was not even one big score and all the batsmen contributed. This clearly shows that pak don't beleive on individual brilliance !!!

Ultimately it was a good game of cricket where india played well , but PAK BETTER

Debate won!!

2005-04-12T11:10:00.000-05:00

I just got a mail from lazy geek today stating that i was right , seems he checked some other internet source and got the info that the last simultaneous release of MASS & CLASS was (muthu ,kp) , BINGO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

i think he has corrected that mistake in his site,

Meanwhile gautam menon has started his new project with kamal (VETTAIYAADU VILAIYAADU) , THE still looks some what like "aalavandhaan"(not the mottai) kamal

VV

Heard its a racy entertainer set in the backdrop of newyork , chennai and some remote village in tamilnadu, (Pretty Interesting huh!!!!)

Wishing the team , the very best

An Interesting debate with Lazy Geek

2005-04-11T17:58:00.000-05:00

I was just reading guru subrmaniam's article(www.lazygeek.net)about the two stalwarts of tamil cinema when i happened to see his quote about the last simultaneous release of rajini and kamal.He had said , the last was during 1992(DEVAR MAGAN AND PANDIAN), but i was certain that it was MUTHU & KP (1995 diwali release)

KP

Muhtu

So i mailed him asking to correct the mistake , He replied to me stating that it was I who was wrong . Seems ,he checked out the IMDB website and they have given that muthu was released during 1995 and KP during 1996

I am sure that KP coudn't have released in 1996, because kamal won the national award for the year (BEST ACTOR :"indian" which got released on may 9 1996) , and i am sure that kp was released before indian(note:KP DIDN'T RELEASE DURING PONGAL 1996 too!!!))

I AM DAMN SURE of this coz , i still remember james vasanthan of suntv giving same rating(1) for muthu and kp , HE also said that these two films were at par in quality, so suntv had no other choice( MUTHU ON PAR WITH KP , what bullshit!!!!!)

I have replied to lazy geek stating the above , we'll know when he responds

Still it was fun to argue with another MOVIE BUFF like me ...

lets roll...........

Its Receving time ... for the INDIANS

2005-04-10T13:20:00.000-05:00

Indian collapse

THE third one day between india and pak was pretty much one sided when pakistan put 320 on board , thanks to a good century by salman butt,and a blistering 43 by youhanna

It was a good toss for inzamam to win and he opted to bat without any hesitation,our bowlers were pretty mediocre in such a good batting wicket amd i thought only ZAHEER bowled better of the lot

Our chase started miserably when sehwag forced a cut straight into the hands of afridi who deosn't miss many,RANA followed it up with a superb spell getting 6 wickets on a bouncy wicket and thus was judged MAN OF THE MATCH

Indians should seriously know how to play short bolwing coz none of the short balls were played comfortaby, I seriously have a doubt how these people will play in the bouncy wickets of SA and AUS

Its high time people other than sehwag and dravid contribute with their bat( EVERYBODY KNOWS THE PERSON I AM REFERRING TOO)...

Ultimately pakistan gave indians the taste of their own medicine( a stronger dose i should say)and ended up winning comprehensively

hope india don't slump from a position where they are 2-1 up and still end up loosing the series....

Keeping up the TEMPO

2005-04-08T12:47:00.000-05:00

Grippy

BC

Thrillers have always fascinated me ( be it movies or books) and i feel its very difficult for the author to keep the suspense and pace till the end

I am currently reading ROBIN COOk's "ABDUCTION",which is about ocean exploring , the novel had started in a different way and it is shaping into a completely different story from what i expected. RC's books are mostly medical thrillers and i expected this book to be in the genre , but suprisingly it is not....
It doesn't mean that i like the story or i don't, my opinion about the book is completely mixed(some might say the book is bullshit!!)

Occasions where i expected a lot(the climax) but ended up biting the dust was when i saw "BONE COLLECTOR" and the most recent "RAM"

Talking about BC, it was one of the best denzel washington's thrillers that i have seen , the suspense was mindblowing till the climax which was completely incongruous..

RAM offered something when it started, a series of interstingly happening events with bizzare characters made me lift my eyebrows, but the director miserably failed while unravelling the mystery towards the end, and the climax is what i would call HORSE SHIT

What happens here is that movies of this sort create the hype inside u and drop it drastically towards the end which totally changes the opinion about it...

Books are slightly better in this case coz u just have to visualise , but the latter creates a lot of impact based on how the screenplay is....

So, all the more, I feel that thrillers require a nail biting and credible climax to stay in your hearts!!!!

The Foolishness of Desires

2005-04-07T13:39:00.000-05:00

Me and thames were coming out of CCC after having our lunch at subway, this fellow was having a DHUM when a lady approached us and asked whether we were free , THAMES eagerly said yes , while i was on the phone with my brother .I slowly slipped away from them sensing that it should be some bullshit marketing stuff

when i came back to him and asked him what it was about , i had guessed correctly, seems there was some free IPODS in the taking after sitting through a 10 minute presentation, and most of all , they had refreshments!!!

IPOD'UKKU AASAI PATTU we went inside the hall , and immediately sighted the REFRESHMENTS,the marketing people gave us a "stub" sort of thing which had a random number(like a thambola game)

The presentaion was about a firm named NGA(forgot the expansion) ,it was a GEOSPATIAL FIRM(geological analysis,imagery..trying to promote internships and job oppurtunities)) .The presentation finished well before 10 mins , but what perplexed us was the qns shooted by the people therafter,

Most of the questions asked by the people were highly specific , and the marketing people coudn't provide the details, ( their answer was "WE CAN'T REVEAL THAT INFORMATION COZ WE DON'T KNOW)

ONE LADY directly suggested that this was some secret miltary organisation tryin to gather students for a war. This led to total commotion and the marketing people had to really pull the noose and get the situation in control!!!

after all this drama , they started calling the stub nos one by one , our faces gaped eagerly before each call hoping that we would hit the prize , but sadly , we had to just see people getting up and collecting the prizes

The whole program went for 1 hr and while leaving , i grabbed a COKE & SPRITE and "thames fool didn't take any"(atleast he could have grabbed as much as he could!!!)

We blamed each other for the whole episode after coming out, but to be frank , we both were two "dumb asses" longing for a OSEE IPOD...

ithukku thaan thalaivar rajini sonaaaru

ATHIKAAMAA AASAI PADRAA AAAMBLAYUM....(PLEASE COMPLETE THE REST)

SPB , A Legend

2005-04-06T11:03:00.000-05:00

Gift

I was just seeing some photos (www.indiaglitz.com) of suganya's music launch AZHAGU when i saw a picture of SPB chatting with suganya .At first glimpse ,i thought it was "balakumaran" ,the writer(he usually has a very long white beard) ,Only after taking a closer look was i able to know who it was............

"DEVUDA ,DEVUDA....." , somgs like these can be made popular by only one man!!!SPB ...., A pretty ordinary song acquires greatness when SPB renders his voice for it.. (especially in the stanzas' HIS MODULATION his excellent!!!!)

I have always liked SPB solely for his melodies(eventhough , he is equally good in any given song).The combination of SPB and IR have given us some superb songs which i keep hearing all the time

for eg....
1. Idhyam oru kovil...
2.idhu oru ponmaalai pozuthu....
3.Poonkaatru un per solla...
4.Poonthalir aadaaa...
5.engengo sellum....
6.unnai ethirpaarthen....

THERE ARE MANY MORE , . this is just what i keep listening to all the time!!!!

I recently saw him performing in chicago(sep 2004), he had to cater to a variety of audience(tamil , telugu , hindi...), so his choice of songs were quite restricted. We were a bit disappointed coz he didn't choose the songs that we thought he would.....

He has done some gr8 songs for rahman too.., songs like MINALE NEE VANDHADHENADI..., KAATHAL ROJAAVEE, still keeps echoing in my heart!!!

Its a pity that the so called BOLLYWOOD has failed to use his brilliance. they have said that his voice is too SOUTH INDIANISH!!!! and only"MOOKAN KUMAR SAANU's" voice will suit their movie heroes!!!( WHAT A COMPARSION.............)

Even though he has sung the max no of songs in tamil, He got the best playback (national award) in tamil after all the other languages he had sung.....

he has also composed music for "sigaram", in which yesudas had sung a song ," agaram ippo sigaram aachu", INTERESTING point is that , whe he composed his song , SPB JUST gave a demo to KJ by singing the full song ,

after hearing to that ,KJ first refused to sing the song saying that he coudn't do more to what SPB had done .SPB said that he composed this song keeping KJ in mind and so the song came out with KJ'S voice(source: SPB'S INTERVIEW)

Maybe he has stopped singing nowerdays (owing to his health conditions), He still is a LIVING LEGEND in the field of music.............

Vaizaag , A Batsmen's Paradise

2005-04-05T20:10:00.000-05:00

Dhoni

It was another scintillating one dayer between india and pakistan at vaizaag, where batsmen made merry on a gr8 batting track

When i saw the pitch report, it looked as if 250-260 was a good score on this track, but when the run chase began , We found it to be on the contrary

The day was completely dominated by the toporder of both the teams,

Be it sehwag or razaaq, they relished the batting conditons, eventhough the weather was not all that conducive

Sachin missed a gr8 oportunity to regain his form ,There was absolutely no single for the ball he pushed to midon as youhanna struck TIMBER

Dhoni was tentaive when he started ,by edging some balls for boundaries, but as the game progressed he became more comfortable with the shots and he was well supported by THE WALL as usual

Any score over 330 is difficult to chase even on a good batting wicket , credit should be given to paksitan for putting up a fight till the end

At one stage when youhanna and akmal were batting , they just required 95 of 12 overs , but they had lost ONE TOO MANY wickets

Disaster struck ,when inzamam got himself runout and i felt that was the turning point of the game

One coudn't complain about the bowling coz both teams were taken for a ride as the bowlers were smashed to all parts of the stadium

there was no hesitation for the "man of the match" as DADA again masked his batting performance by highlighting his captaincy, we'll see how long he continues like this !!!

April 14, the HYPE & HOOPLA!!!

2005-04-05T20:08:00.000-05:00

It has always been one of the most important days for tamil cinema , we used to have releases every year , BUT the occasion this time that we have kamal and rajini's movie relasing together( the last occasion was in 1995,MUTHU AND KURUTHIPUNAL)

So , its been 10 yrs and there is a huge expectation for both the movies

CHANDRAMUKHI:

CM

AFTER the disaster of "B TO THE A TO THE B TO THE A" , rajini is taking care not to hype the movie too much, the songs for the movie has come out well(eventhough they seem to be rehashed from the songs of RAJA & ARR), the movie has been completed and is being viewed by the censorboard at present...

MUMBAI XPRESS

ME
KAMAL AND RAJA are coming together again after VIRUMAANDI, so the level of alacrity is high again and i have no doubt that they will put up a good show,

I am not sure about the HINDI version ,hope kamal has taken care to suit their nativity!!!

In addition to this we have SACHIEN( not sachin , that is what i saw in raaga)
This fellow has got a huge fan following after rajini(really don't know how)

SH
APART from dancing well , i don't think he has any other traits of being a good actor, still HE has MADE IT BIG (thanks to mahesh babu , coz his recent hits were mostly remade from the telugu star blockbusters,

NOTE:I also read that he is trying to get the rights for "ATHADU" , the next movie of MB which is still in production!!!

Personally being a kamal fan ,I don't think his movies overwhelm his competitors COMMERCIALLY !!, (that too rajini and sachin , NO WAY!!!), but if u talk about good cinema , i think the others are not even in the same league

Still, the race is on and we'll see who wins it............

Party time ,,,IT People

2005-04-05T20:04:00.000-05:00

My friends back in india working in software industries (infy,wipro....)say FUN is part of their schedule , they have sports , CULTURAL FESTS(call it KADALAI FESTS) and what not !! as part of their working curriculum

Interesting , when i was reading an article in hindu(http://www.hindu.com/mp/2005/04/04/stories/2005040400030300.htm)
i just thought i would write on this stuff

SEEMS they offer what u would call a DATING ALLOWANCE FOR every WEDDING ANNIVERSARY of any employee(hmm!!!) , people are allowed to work with shorts and tracks at office hrs and .....(seems like , we are having a cultural shift here!!!!)

But, on the other hand , its actually a tactical ploy by the industry coz , this is one field where "BEING MONTONOUS" bothers you and u'll have people moving in and out of the company frequently

This might be convienient in the "EMPLOYEE POW" but for the employer IT SUCKS !!!

Ultimately , THE CLAIM THAT they work towards enhancing employee experience in all spheres so that they develop and sustain a long term relationship

HOPE U SUCCEED!!!

From Chennai to Chicago

2005-04-04T20:19:00.000-05:00

Its been 2 yrs in chicago ,AND EVEN THOUGH the weather out here sucks , i still feel i've landed in one of the best places in US
The best part about chicago is its AMAZING DOWNTOWN , and i feel so lucky to stay very close to downtown,

Downtown

Secondly, the public transit system out here is awesome , the network beween the buses and trains is amazing and having a vehicle on your own is not a complusion

Having seen three metroplitans in india(not Calcutta) , chennai has been my favorite place ,being there for 20yrs , i've had TOTAL FUN,

Chennai
Its too evident that i am being biased ,but my hometown CHENNAI ROCKS

travelling has been a pleasure for me both in chennai and chicago albeit there is no comparsion between the two, but for indian standards , CHENNAI has a decent public transit system

Me and my dad have always had altercations when we start talking about CHENNAI vs bangalore , he feels bangalore is a blessed city with gr8 weather and clean environ(i do have to admit that sometimes)

but the bangalore i saw when i went in 2003 has completley changed to what it was in 1994,

what i saw was TRAFFIC,TRAFFIC AND..............TRAFFIC, it was congested for sucha small city, even my dad got pissed off when he went there recently and he said he struggled to travel from KORAMANGALA to INDRANAGAR, it seems it took 1.5 hrs(PLEASE TRUST ME) to do so

Mumbai
talking about mumbai , it can be mapped with newyork , Such a big and crowded city

New york

Delhi
As far as delhi goes , the best part of delhi looks really gr8 , one example
is LAJPAT NAGAR, it was just like a US LOCALITY , such beautiful roads ,organised traffic , it was like a KADHAL DESAM SET in mahabalipuram , NO SECOND THOUGHTS about DELHI BEING OUR CAPITAL CITY

and finally LA , when i was about to land there around 7.00 pm , i was mesmerised by its NIGHT VIEW,but the drving out there was really scary WITH VEHICLES really speeding up , the traffic was just looking out of control

LA

so , when it comes to living , I ALWAYS ENJOYED big cities in contrast to vilages like LEXINGTON (where my brother lives) where i can visit for a couple of days but do not wish to continue....

WHO knows, i might end up in such a place if i do a get a job in the vicinty

A Comprehensive win

2005-04-02T18:10:00.000-05:00

Sehwag on fire

when india started out with 4/2 and the transmission creating problems , We thought we'll go to bed early on a friday night (Chicago time),BUT sehwag and dravid had other plans

Even though sehwag was dropped on the first ball of the day and given several other chances ,he walks away with the credit for changing the tempo of the game and swinging the game completely in india's favor

What one always forgets is to commend dravid's performance , as previously in umpteen occassions , whenever dravid scores a big innings , there will be another person who've played equally well and walks away with the "man of tha match",

he may not entertain you with BURGEONED bat as sehwag does , but plays the classy cuts and whips to keep the score board ticking and thus holds the innings

Its becoming a CLICHE to talk about sourav's batting ,his batting was downtrodden, high time he sits down and thinks about it

i thought we could have done a bit more towards the end of the innings, still credit should be given to the pakistan bolwers for bowling well

The second part of the innings was dominated by Sachin , IT GOES without saying that one cannot rule him out of the game if he fails with the bat

pakistan should have opened with shahid afridi as he has a very good record against india and while chasing a score of 280+, A BLAST from afridi plays a key factor

Once pakistan slumped to 64/4 , they had no chance of getting out from that

One the whole , india played better cricket than pakistan , and with 5 matches left, the series is still wide open and we have a lot SCOPE TO IMPROVE

happy b'day raja

2005-04-01T19:56:00.000-05:00

BIG DOG
now today is april 1 , apart from mentioning that its fool's day , its my brothers B'DAY TOO

Now, he claims that EXCEPTIONS do occur on april 1 , but if u ask me I WOULD SAY .......

JUST KIDDING

way to go ..........

curtain riser

2005-04-01T14:15:00.000-05:00

well , just don't know how to start a blog, but becoz of the fact that my friend naren said , "NEYELAAM BLOG EZUTHINAA .......", just gave it a thought & i am just scripting this one

lets start with cricket,(we'lll plunge into other issues later)
THE FIRST ONE DAYER between inida and pakistan starts today (for US PEOPLE), after our demoralising defeat in bangalore , i feel pakistan stand favorites and ofcourse they are a better one day team(considering the number of allrounders they have)

its high time , our captain contributed in both the forms of cricket , his batting has been PATHETIC as i keep repeating

PLEASE REMIND HIM when he says "OUR BOYS PLAYED WELL" that he is part of that "boyz" team

we'll see how things go for us today

foot note: thanking my roomate naren alias THAMES for giving me the trigger to start one