For all those who've seen the latest series of TVC's of the leading mobile and fixed telephony company and one of India's most popular brands by the blog's title, please tell me honestly - do you really stand in attention every time you hear our national anthem as you casually flip channels munching on something? Isn't that what you're exactly supposed to do when you hear the national anthem - stand in rapt attention, paying your respects to your motherland?
I felt outraged the first time I saw this darned series - for Godssake - I can't pay respect while finishing my meals and licking my fingers?!Am I missing something or has someone not realized that this is, indeed, our anthem and not one of AR Rahman and Bharatbala's (& Kanika, btw) creative experiments? Moreover, the makers had the nerve to give credit to the gifted Mr. Rahman for the music of the anthem. Are we not taking the 60-year celebrations and the whole, India-in-a-new-youthful-avatar bit, a little too far? Your comments please!
Monday, September 03, 2007
Realised that the title is too frivolous for what I want to write about.. the latest blasts in Hyderabad. Sad but true - was laughing my heart away with Ratatouille at I-Max while Lumbini Park and all the innocent souls sitting there were rocked by the blasts - few miles down that very road.
Its quite pathetic as to how it all barely matters to us anymore - beyond 10-15 mins of tch-tching and another 30 mins of discussion at the coffee machine in office the next morning. Its just another blast for us - unless of course, you've lost a dear one or have had to see someone you know maimed and marred for life. I am lost whether to laud this as Hyderabad's (and my own) indomitable spirit or to hang my head in shame for being so selfish and having got on with life. It really did go back to normal for us, with a good friend's wedding the next day and all of us dancing on the roads, while somewhere down that very road, someone would be carrying his loved one for the last time, to his final abode. Is this being insensitive or strong? Hard-hearted or lion-hearted? I'm torn in strife, as ever - whether at the end of it all, I will remember any of this beyond a day or two or why, even after I post this blog probably.
Its quite pathetic as to how it all barely matters to us anymore - beyond 10-15 mins of tch-tching and another 30 mins of discussion at the coffee machine in office the next morning. Its just another blast for us - unless of course, you've lost a dear one or have had to see someone you know maimed and marred for life. I am lost whether to laud this as Hyderabad's (and my own) indomitable spirit or to hang my head in shame for being so selfish and having got on with life. It really did go back to normal for us, with a good friend's wedding the next day and all of us dancing on the roads, while somewhere down that very road, someone would be carrying his loved one for the last time, to his final abode. Is this being insensitive or strong? Hard-hearted or lion-hearted? I'm torn in strife, as ever - whether at the end of it all, I will remember any of this beyond a day or two or why, even after I post this blog probably.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Since everyone who has a blog to his name and claims to be a movie buff has been writing about it, I thought I would sing my story of the phenomenon called ‘Chak de India’.
When I went to watch the movie last week, thanks to the not-upto-SRK & YRF-standards’ promos and the ugly-beard sporting, aging Shahrukh, my expectations of the movie were rock bottom. Little did I know that I was in for a surprise, a shock, if you will. 30 minutes into the movie, and it dawned upon me that this was not going to be one of those now-you-see and now-you-forget flicks. It was here to stay, awhile.
Chak de India is more than just a potrayal of a sportsman's will to play - and play to win. It is all and more of this – the modern day Indian woman’s ardent effort to show the men as to who wears the ‘knickers’ today and as to who can kick some ball (flick it, if you please) – her anguish to prove to the world (which probably still doesn’t go beyond her family, neighborhood or fraternity) and sometimes, to herself, that she too – can, and she will. A Muslim’s plea and cry to be recognized as a Indian – and just an Indian – who has the right to belong to this country and feel for it as much as anyone else, majority or no, does. A certain, neglected geography of the country’s humble and polite request to being seen, treated and respected as a citizen – and not a guest. A classic case study of what team building, team work and team effort is – of how a common goal is all that the team needs, with the will to fight and not necessarily just the means (needless to say, all our management professors’ must be burning midnight oil to come up with a team work case study, on the lines of Lagaan, for all those hapless b-school students to lap up). Shimit Amin, has proven that Bollywood (sorry Mr. Bachchan, but this is convenient!) is beyond dancing-around-trees and kissing-behind-flowers and has arrived –grandly.
Some moments are there for you to savour and re-live – a Northie’s understanding of South India – the ubiquitous ‘Madraas’ is anything that’s South of Bhopal idea, the sad-but-true fact of how Jharkand is nothing more than a misnomer to most of us, the lovely pot-shots at cricket (my personal favourite – "kyunki hamaare hockey mein chakke nahin hote"), and many many more which even a not-so-discerning eye can spot and enjoy.
Not to say that the movie doesn’t have its downsides – the slackened first half of the second half, the out of work, Ray-Ban toting, immaculate white-shirt sporting Kabir Khan (who, incidentally, wears his helmet on his arm rather than his head – so much for a self-righteous national player), the unnecessary and very Yash-Raj-ish ‘maine-bhi-gaddaar-dekhna-hai’ sequence, and a few glitches which a die-hard SRK/sports’ fan could choose to ignore.
Much as I hate to admit, SRK does prove, a little too long after Swades, why he still is the ‘baadShah’ of Bollywood. As Kabir Khan, he awakens the long lost ‘once-smitten, twice-coy’ yesterday’s-teenage girl-turned-woman in you (to put things in perspective, I grew up watching Rahul woo all the Simrans, Poojas and Riyas of the world). SRK surely has come of age – and maturely at that. Would, however, like to remind him of the latest cola-commercial where he is referred to as ‘uncle’ by a youngster – stick to that and you’ll surely reign for a while to come Shah!
Shimit however deserves the most credit – a cherry picked cast (pray, tell me who else would fit into Komal Chautala and Balbir Kaur’s shoes better?), a strictly situational background score and music, a near-perfect choice of playback singers (who better than Sukhwinder Singh to touch that patriotic nerve?) and the bringing back to life of our very own ‘Wagle ji’, as the disdainful and loathsome Chairman of the association. He had me cheering and clapping (and wanting to whistle!) after a long time – the first and last being for Lagaan.
For all of you who thought Deepak Dobriyal (Rajju of Omkara fame, for the uninitiated) was up there, make way for these ladies – for we see more than one contender for the Special jury Recognition Award this year. Watch out men in blue – the ladies are out to give you a run for your money!
When I went to watch the movie last week, thanks to the not-upto-SRK & YRF-standards’ promos and the ugly-beard sporting, aging Shahrukh, my expectations of the movie were rock bottom. Little did I know that I was in for a surprise, a shock, if you will. 30 minutes into the movie, and it dawned upon me that this was not going to be one of those now-you-see and now-you-forget flicks. It was here to stay, awhile.
Chak de India is more than just a potrayal of a sportsman's will to play - and play to win. It is all and more of this – the modern day Indian woman’s ardent effort to show the men as to who wears the ‘knickers’ today and as to who can kick some ball (flick it, if you please) – her anguish to prove to the world (which probably still doesn’t go beyond her family, neighborhood or fraternity) and sometimes, to herself, that she too – can, and she will. A Muslim’s plea and cry to be recognized as a Indian – and just an Indian – who has the right to belong to this country and feel for it as much as anyone else, majority or no, does. A certain, neglected geography of the country’s humble and polite request to being seen, treated and respected as a citizen – and not a guest. A classic case study of what team building, team work and team effort is – of how a common goal is all that the team needs, with the will to fight and not necessarily just the means (needless to say, all our management professors’ must be burning midnight oil to come up with a team work case study, on the lines of Lagaan, for all those hapless b-school students to lap up). Shimit Amin, has proven that Bollywood (sorry Mr. Bachchan, but this is convenient!) is beyond dancing-around-trees and kissing-behind-flowers and has arrived –grandly.
Some moments are there for you to savour and re-live – a Northie’s understanding of South India – the ubiquitous ‘Madraas’ is anything that’s South of Bhopal idea, the sad-but-true fact of how Jharkand is nothing more than a misnomer to most of us, the lovely pot-shots at cricket (my personal favourite – "kyunki hamaare hockey mein chakke nahin hote"), and many many more which even a not-so-discerning eye can spot and enjoy.
Not to say that the movie doesn’t have its downsides – the slackened first half of the second half, the out of work, Ray-Ban toting, immaculate white-shirt sporting Kabir Khan (who, incidentally, wears his helmet on his arm rather than his head – so much for a self-righteous national player), the unnecessary and very Yash-Raj-ish ‘maine-bhi-gaddaar-dekhna-hai’ sequence, and a few glitches which a die-hard SRK/sports’ fan could choose to ignore.
Much as I hate to admit, SRK does prove, a little too long after Swades, why he still is the ‘baadShah’ of Bollywood. As Kabir Khan, he awakens the long lost ‘once-smitten, twice-coy’ yesterday’s-teenage girl-turned-woman in you (to put things in perspective, I grew up watching Rahul woo all the Simrans, Poojas and Riyas of the world). SRK surely has come of age – and maturely at that. Would, however, like to remind him of the latest cola-commercial where he is referred to as ‘uncle’ by a youngster – stick to that and you’ll surely reign for a while to come Shah!
Shimit however deserves the most credit – a cherry picked cast (pray, tell me who else would fit into Komal Chautala and Balbir Kaur’s shoes better?), a strictly situational background score and music, a near-perfect choice of playback singers (who better than Sukhwinder Singh to touch that patriotic nerve?) and the bringing back to life of our very own ‘Wagle ji’, as the disdainful and loathsome Chairman of the association. He had me cheering and clapping (and wanting to whistle!) after a long time – the first and last being for Lagaan.
For all of you who thought Deepak Dobriyal (Rajju of Omkara fame, for the uninitiated) was up there, make way for these ladies – for we see more than one contender for the Special jury Recognition Award this year. Watch out men in blue – the ladies are out to give you a run for your money!
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