Movie Review::Midnight’s Children

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I was really looking forward to this movie right from the day it was announced. After having watched Deepa Mehta’s triology (Fire, Water and Earth) I really believe she is one of the most prolific movie makers of our times who has a unique style of her own. Add to her story-telling the zest of Salman Rushdie’s story and screenplay you have nothing short of magic. Agreed that not many movies have done justice to their novel counterparts as cinema has its own shortcomings of time but with someone as seasoned as Deepa Mehta you expect her to go that extra mile.

Midnight’s Children tells the story about children born at the stroke of Indian independence and how their lives are tangled at various points. We hear the story through the eyes of the main protagonist Saleem Sinai and his journey across the Indian subcontinent. It beautifully stitches the historical events of India post independence to the fictional characters who form the protagonists in the movie.
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Of Rapes, Guilt and Fear

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I was late by 20 minutes and thus missed the shuttle which was supposed to take me to the studio. So they put me in the same vehicle which was carrying the men for whom the “event” was being set up. Though it was not perfectly legal but they had no option, I was the only person from the technology field who was asked to air his views on the rape-rage that the nation had caught on to. Initially I was quite hesitant to share the vehicle as I did not want a media mob to gherao the vehicle and send out wrong signals when I get down from the same vehicle. When I spoke the officer in-charge of the media association about this, he smiled and said, “Dont worry sir we would be taking the back gate where no cameras are allowed”. Though it did relieve me a bit my mind was still processing multiple thoughts which were randomly flowing. Finally I sat 3.5 feet away from the men who were accused of the most brutal crime in recent times. One was accused of raping a young physiotherapist(A), the next one  for raping 4 year old toddler(B) and the last one for sexually assaulting a mentally challenged female(C). The Indian Media Association had decided to carry out open media trial with some members of the judiciary taking over the judgement part and rest managed by facts which were dug out by various sections of media. To have views from the “mango man” or aam aadmi they had asked a group of 15 people from various sections of society and age groups to speak about what they feel is going wrong and how the rape incidents were denting the Indian culture.

Movie Review:: Ek Thi Daayan

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In the past few years Bollywood has not quite cashed in on a supernatural flick. Except for Ragini MMS and Haunted 3D even I think there were no good  movies which actually managed to hold the attention of the viewers but instead they scared them away from the screens. What do we have in store now? Combination of two producers i.e Vishal Bharadwaj and Ekta Kapoor one known to have been a lover of Shakespearean literature and other a belligerent producer who has produced variety of movies right from slapstick comedies(Kya Kool Ha Hum) to serious drama(The Dirty Picture and Once Upon A Time In Mumbai) and add this a set of actors who have been associated with “different” kind of cinema.

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My fear..had never seen it so deep..and so close..[From the archives]

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I remember it was a Thursday evening and it was quite a dull day or may be I felt it was dull because whole day I was busy bidding good-bye to my relatives in my home town Belgaum. For a person who has stayed in a place for 18 years the bond is pretty much a strong one. Although my decision of pursuing an engineering course baffled many of my relatives and family friends; the choice of choosing MS Ramaiah Institute of Technology in Bangalore was also a shocker of a news as it came from a guy who s father is the chairman of a 30 bed hospital in the city. But somehow it was quite a digestible one because my non medical inclinations were very much evident.

I reached Bangalore the next day and waited 2 more days for my Mom to come over to help me get settled in the hostel. And thus begun my journey which I never knew would change my life so much and change me into a person which I am today writing this blog entry. Certainly from my thinking to the rationality of my decisions everything has undergone massive evolution. Atleast for the past one year I was living a dream of a lifetime in this college. From being a part of team which won the VTU Annual fest to visiting Oxford UK for a debate and not to forget the first time I tried behaving like an engineer by carrying a project.Time just flew off amongst various activities like tech fests..organizing department events and moreover being with friends.

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Movie Review::Chashme Baddoor(2013)

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Let me be clear about two things before I start writing this review.1. I do not believe in comparing remakes with originals if remade in a different era to suit a different audience.2. When you see David Dhawan s name on the director s label you must remember to leave your brain outside the cinema hall. I have not seen the original and by no means is this review biased.
Chashme Baddoor is a remake of Sai Paranjape s movie of the same name. It talks about three friends Omi( Sadak Chaap Shaayar), Jai(Filmy Chakkar) and Sid(Mr. Goodie Good) all vouching for the same girl Seema who falls for Sid. Add to it some interesting characters like Rishi Kapoor as Mr.Goa and Lillette Dubey as Ms.Single-ready-to-mingle, you know a madcaper is on the cards. Rest of the story is all about how the friends try to foil Sid’s relationship and later mend it. Coming to the performances Ali Zafar manages some of the scenes well where is actually required to act. Siddharth does justice to his role with some absolutely over-the-top scenes. Divyendu is the real show stealer with some absolutely superb one-liners. Whenever he says “arz kiya hai”, you know something is gotta give! Tapsee Panno is strictly OK just because she has limited scope. To be honest I dont think she can act as much as Nisha Kothari can. Rishi Kapoor is refreshing as Joseph Furtado with tattooed arms and shoulders. Lillette Dubey does an extension of her role in Kal Ho Na Ho. Music by Sajid Wajid is absolutely horrendous with no track that you can remember.Dialogues(sply one-liners) are really noteworthy even though some of them seem stale or may be present in your inbox as fwds.

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