Top 20 Tamil Songs of 2007

Here is MY list of top 20 songs for this year. The songs which I had in my playlist looping for long time. Mind you, these are MY choices.

1. Para para pattaampoochi - Thamizh M.A, Yuvan Shankar Raja
Rahul

2. Akkam pakkam - Kireedom, G.V. Prakash
Sadhana Sargam

3. Unsirippinil - Pachaikili Muthucharam, Harris Jeyaraj
Gauthami Rao, Robby

4. Athiradee - Shivaji, A.R. Rahman
A.R. Rahman

5. Pesukiren - Satham Podathe, Yuvan Shankar Raja
Viva

6. Kadale Kadale - Ammuvagiya Naan, Sabesh-Murali
Mathangi

7. Arabu naade - Thottal Poo Malarum, Yuvan Shankar Raja
Haricharan

8. June pona - Unnale Unnale, Harris Jeyaraj
Krish, Arun
(*Album released in Dec 2006)

9. Intha Nimidam - Pallikoodam, Bharadwaj
Srinivas, Janani

10. Mudhal mazhai - Bheema, Harris Jeyaraj
Hariharan, Mahathi, Prasanna

11. Alaigalin osai - Rameswaram, Niru
Haricharan, Kalyani

12. Vizhiyil - Kireedom, G.V. Prakash
Sonu Nigam, Swetha

13. Manasu maruguthe - Pallikoodam, Bharadwaj
Narayanan, Subiksha

14. Neeye sol - Polladhavan, G.V. Prakash
Ponni, Sunitha Sarathy

15. Thamizhselvi - Koodal Nagar, Sabesh-Murali
Haricharan, Sadhana Sargam

16. Unnai saranadainthen - Ammuvagiya Naan, Sabesh-Murali
Harish Raghavendra , Kalyani

17. En jannalil - Mozhi, Vidhyasagar
Karthik

18. Idhu enna maayam - Oram po, G.V. Prakash
S.Mahadevan, Alka Yagnik

19. Pogathe - Deepavali, Yuvan Shankar Raja
Yuvan Shankar Raja

20. Perunthil nee - Pori, Dhina
M.Balakrishna, Madhushree

The Kite Runner

The Kite Runner is a stunning first novel by Khaled Hosseini. It is about innocence, friendship, betrayal, guilt and redemption. It is about Afghanistan's culture, history, politics and truth. Unforgettable, touchy and powerful. A striking debut by this Afghan-born writer and a must-read for all readers.

Evano Oruvan -Trailer

Evano Oruvan is a remake of Marathi movie 'Dombivli Fast' directed by Nishikanth Kamath. For the first time in his career, Madhavan has written dialogues for this movie. This is the movie which I am just waiting for.

Polladhavan - A quick glance at the reviews

'...dark and disturbing tale, throwing light on the bad and ugly underbelly of Chennai underworld ...Polladhavan is racy and worth a look.'
Verdict: Good (see full review)
-Sify.com

'Director Vetri Maran’s non-linear narration and packaging style are unique...shows promise but still has a long way to go as far as finesse is concerned. '
'...there is certainly going to be a section of crowd who find the narrative good.'
Verdict: Strictly for the brave hearts! (see full review)
-behindwoods.com

'...captures the daily life of the local goons in north Chennai to near perfection.'
'A movie for action-lovers, Polladhavan is a filter coffee served with the right Chennai flavour '
(see full review)
-newstodaynet.com

'The script is obviously tailor-made for Dhanush but it is no different from gangster movies, which make audiences feel jaded. ..'
'...The movie falls short of expectations of even the fans of Dhanush.'
Verdict: 2/5 (see full review)
-nowrunning.com

'‘Polladavan’ is a clear winner with its reality, style, and performances. '
(see full review)
-moviesyndrome.blogspot.com

'As a debutant director, Vetrimaaran's sincere efforts and Dhanush's hard work makes the film watch worthy.'
Verdict: Watchable (see full review)
-oneindia.in

'இவ்வளவு வேகமான திரைக்கதையுடன் கூடிய படம் சமீபத்தில் தமிழில் வந்ததில்லை...'
'...இந்த தீபாவளிக்கு அழகிய தமிழ்மகன் விஜயையும், வேல் சூர்யாவையும் கைவிட்ட நிலையில் பொல்லாதவன் தனுஷ்க்கு வெற்றிக் க்ரீடத்தை சூட்டியிருக்கிறது.'
(see full review)
-madippakkam.blogspot.com

Evam and Me so far

It was a blog (which I don't even remember now) through which I came to know of Evam when I was surfing one day. From then, I just waited for these people to perform in Bangalore and to my surprise they visited very soon. What follows here are my experience with Evam plays I have watched so far. Mind you, these are not the reviews.

The Odd Couple (Rangashankara, Bangalore)
The first experience was just amazing with the perfect ambience of Rangashankara. It was my first visit to Rangashankara and stunning would be the least to say about the auditorium. It has the perfect theatre setup and I was surprised that I didnt know about this place being in Bangalore for years. I was so excited then when I entered the auditioruim as it was my first English-theatre-play experience. The play was a laughter riot and all I could remember was laughing for every dialogue and every scene of the play. Karthik and TMS(?!!!) were simply superb with their performances. It was fun, fun and fun watching Odd Couple except that music they had before the play. It really sucked.

Hamlet – Original Spoof (Chowdiah Hall, Bangalore)
With so much expectations after Odd Couple I went to this play and it was little disappointing. The Python chapters thrusted before the play were more funny than the actual play on that day. Hamlet- Original Spoof just fell short of being a great entertainment. But the Python chapters were hilarious.

Python Hyssssssteria Side A (Sivagami Pethachi Auditorium , Chennai)
This was great even though few chapters were repeated from the Hamlet-Oringinal Spoof show. All of them were funny and the show was full of laughter. Some chapters were awesome.

Always look on the Bright Side of life (Alliance Francais, Bangalore)
This was just a repeat of what was titled as Python Hyssssssteria Side A in Chennai and this time with a different title for Bangalore. Bleddy marketing gimmicks. I wanted to hate this people but in the end I just loved watching all the chapters again. Whatever, I would have enjoyed it more really if it were some new play or at least some new chapters in Python style or atleast an announcement that its the same would have been better as this turned out to be a disappointment for me. Did I mention about that mattress seating arrangements?

Five Point Someone (Music Academy, Chennai)
This being the much awaited play and they announced it months before, I was just wondering how the play is gonna be. The guys who played the characters Alok, Hari and Ryan were just perfect with their performances. The play was a perfect adaptation of the novel. I enjoyed every bit of it and very sad in the end when they announced that it was the last show performance of a guy who performed the role of Hari. It was huge crowd on that day and we had a great difficulty in parking area after the show :)

And now, waiting for their next visit...

The Terrorist - Review

The Terrorist is about a young girl who is on misssion to assassinate a leader as a human bomb. This is not the usual suicide bomber movie as the incidents of this movie relate to the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi but it stays to be non-political as no reference is made throughout the movie. It starts off with the mission directly without wasting much time. The director is not much bothered to explain about what the group is or what their moto is. It just sticks to the main plot of the movie where it shows how a suicide bomber is trained, their beliefs and their duty. The movie ends with suicide bomber changing her mind to peace with the rose petals over her hand and the screen goes blank.

All the characters whether it is Malli (Ayesha Dharker) or small boy Lotus or the suspicious old man Vasu gives away some remarkable performances. The understated cinematography by the director and veteran cinematographer Santosh Sivan takes this movie to a different level. This could be one reason why I am watching it again and again. In the end, I would have enjoyed this more with a open-climax.

Recently I watched

(Order: Recent on top)

Persepolis
La Sconosciuta (The Unknown Woman)
The Fountainhead
Alvin and the Chipmunks
Omkara
Life in a ... Metro
Rope
Om Shanti Om
Chung Hing sam lam (Chunking Express)
Buffalo '66
Taare Zameen Par
Stardust
Kallori
Rameswaram
Jab We Met
Vel
Polladhavan
The Bourne Ultimatum
Father
Pachaikili Muthucharam
No Smoking
Apur Sansar
Katradhu Thamizh
Volver
Pan's Labyrinth
Satham Podathey
The Terrorist
Aparajito
Pather Panchali
Rashômon
Ammuvagiya Naan
Illusionist
Babel
Good Will Hunting
Zodiac
Dirty Pretty Things
Charulata
À la folie... pas du tout (He loves me ...he loves me not)
Chak De India
Pulp Fiction
12 Angry Men
Awarapan
Cheeni Kum
Le Million (The Million)
Sivaji
Munich
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
The Last King of Scotland
A Clockwork Orange
Mou gaan dou (Infernal Affairs)
Bheja Fry
Chennai 600028
Sideways
Caché (Hidden)
Zhou Yu de huo che (Zhou Yu's Train)
Spider-Man 3
Out of Africa
Jing ke ci qin wang (The Emperor and the Assassin)

À la folie... pas du tout - Review

À la folie... pas du tout ( He loves me...he loves me not) is another movie which has Audrey Tautou as Angélique in the lead role. For people who dont like spoilers, continue reading at your own risk.

This Rashômon styled French movie takes the screenplay in two different perspectives. The narration of the first half is from the protagonist Tautou's perspective where she is deeply in love with a doctor who has a pregnant wife at home. Tautou, a college student and a neighbour of that doctor gets more possesive and she gets into the extreme of killing a lady when she sues the doctor on sexual abuse and harassment. When Tautou tries to commit suicide, this story takes a twist and starts the narration in a different perspective from the first scene of the movie. But this time, its from the doctor's perspective you come to know of the real truth of how you got cheated and forced to believe from Tautou's perspective.

The screenplay is at its best where you dont get the repetition feeling when watching the scenes again. Audrey Tautou makes yet another stunning performance where she just makes you feel for her, cry for her even when she causes the miscarriage for that pregnant wife. Samuel Le Bihan as the doctor just does the role to its perfection. This short French romantic thriller will stay in your mind for sometime for the innocence and intelligence of Angélique.

The climax of the movie and the shot where she leaves the hospital is what I believe it to be inspired in Vallavan when Reema Sen does the same in the climax(atleast that single shot). 'Simbu sir, where did you rent this DVD from?'

Dirty Pretty Things - Review

Dirty Pretty Things is all about the survival of a Nigerian doctor and a Turkish girl in London life. Okwe (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and Senay (Audrey Tautou) work in a hotel where the doctor finds something in lavatory which leads him to discover more about the illegal activities in the hotel and the secret life in London.

This Oscar nominated movie(Best Original Screenplay) shows how the life of illegal immigrants and asylum seekers would be in London. It takes us into the darker side of the city's life where the immigrants degrade themselves so much to survive for their living. Ejiofor as a kind doctor or as hotel worker gives a remarkable performance whereas Tautou with her innocent New York dreams or as chambermaid pulls out convincingly on her first(!!?) English movie . This movie casts with mix of cultures such as a Nigerian doctor, Turkish girl, Spanish hotel manager, Chinese friend of the doctor and a hooker from West Indies. Though the movie has got some flaws(didn't want to tell more on that as it take away the suspense), it gets unnoticed when the movie maintains its unpredictability till the end. Altogether this movie is unpredictable, romantic and a thrilling documentary.

Kireedom - Review

Kireedom, a remake of Malayalam classic is not that bad as everyone says it to be. The idea of remake should have popped up in early 90’s as the original came in 89. If this had been made then, it would have been a roaring hit. Now it has come almost after two decades, the story being inspired in parts by many Tamil movies (such as Sandaikozhi) looks very old and simple and usual.

This is all about the relationship between a father and a son and the father’s aspiration to make his son a police inspector before he retires. Ajith plays a role of a sincere son who in every aspect wants to fulfill his father’s dream. The role he has chosen here looks like he s keen in making a comeback with a bang. Rajkiran pulls out a convincing performance when the text book for this role was already scripted by Thilagan years back. In a movie which deals with father- son relationship, you can’t afford to have a big role for heroine and Trisha is more convincing to what has been given to her. The newcomer Ajay being very tall just screams out in the movie. Vivek’s role is a dud whereas Santhanam makes his presence clear with his wits. Vivek, who made a remarkable appearance in Sivaji fails miserably here and his scenes in the second half with Haneefa looks like the director wanted to apply some cine-formula into this. The water-tank and market scenes are unamusing and the theatre scene is a cliché.But why does he want to end Vivek’s role in a villain note.

GV Prakash’s ‘Vilayadu …’ is very bad in music and choreography and everything it related but he impresses with ‘Kanavellam…’, ‘Vizhiyil...’ and ‘Akkam Pakkam…’ He has to get special training for the BGM score from his uncle. Thiru’s cinematography is attractive and pleasing if you are person who observe this department in a movie.

The newcomer Vijay though not making an impressive debut here but just scores for making a Tamil remake living up to its expectations for the first time. This remake does more justice to the original than Chandramukhi did for its Malayalam original. This is not a usual Ajith masala-flick where he plays a local goon and his heroism but a movie where a hero turns out to be a loser in the end. If you have the mindset that Ajith films are crap and a flop, then please save your bucks else this is a ‘wokay’ kinda family entertainer and far better than many recent movies. This ‘Kireedom’ is worth watching once.

Sivaji - Review

I watched it twice in first 4 days of the movie release and I will be watching it few more times. This should say all about the movie.

The story is more similar to Shankar’s earlier films where the protagonist plays the Robin Hood role to uplift the society. But this time, the director deals with the black money in the society.

This costliest Indian movie starts with an unconventional introduction of Rajni, you had ever seen in your life.The introduction song of the hero comes a few scenes later but with a glossy Nayantara touch. Vivek, who pulls out a remarkable performance of his career with his one-lines saves the dragging first half and a weak screenplay. Every single dialogue he delivers fits into the genre of comedy so well. He is at his best when he delivers the punch in music shop. Shreya, who plays the coveted role of this film does show her acting skills where needed. Suman, the villain of the movie is the best of villains in recent Rajni movies. With Rehman’s music, Sujatha’s dialogues, Thotta Tharani’s expensive sets for ‘Sahana..’ and ‘Vaaji..’ and KV Anand’s cinematography, this movie had everything to become the blockbuster of the year but it all needed one name to just carry it with STYLE. The one man, which Indian cinema had failed to recognize.

No matter it’s a scene with Vivek or Shreya or Suman, its just one-man show all through the movie. The dialogue delivery in the tea-stall scene after the interval is just to prove a point that he didn’t reach this position in industry by luck but by his acting skills early in his career. Yes, people can’t afford him to do some ordinary roles. We want him to be always a larger than life character in his movies.

The first half of the movie shows Rajni in comedy and romance. The second half of the movie takes Rajni into aggressive role of taking revenge against villain that we always wanted him to do. The gimmicks of coin and chewing gum are incomparable. The scene where he imitates Sivaji, MGR and Kamal are the best you would witness in this movie. In the end comes the bald character, MGR that sets the theatre with whistles and whoops. This would be remembered forever like his Alex Pandian in Moodru Mugam. What a surprise package it would have been, if the images of ‘mottai boss’ were never leaked.

The fight in music shop would have been perfect if comedy was not forced into that. The fight in drive-in theatre is a bit too much but the end of it is just ‘wow’. I liked it. The small fight in the farmhouse is the best in this movie. The song sequences are just a proof that it’s an expensive movie and the painting to everything around sets the trademark for Shankar. ‘Athiradee…’ song is a visual masterpiece and a treat to watch Rajni dance.

Though Shankar had failed to make an impact with the story and screenplay, he had just got everything what every Rajni fan would have wished him to be. Only for the first time, you will go for this movie expecting Shankar to do something. But the second time and from then, it is just for the one man you would hit the theatre again and again.

For a general viewer, if you had liked Shankar’s Gentleman and Anniyan you will like this even more and for Rajni fans, “THE BOSS ROCKS”.

“Six ku appuram seven da, Sivaji ku appuram evanda”

Life in Chennai Metro: FAQ

This FAQ is just another humble retaliation to all the Chennai-bashers and non-Tamilians who live in other parts of the country and have no idea of how great is life in Chennai. This would also serve the purpose of answering all those myths about Chennai.

Is Chennai a costly place to live?
No. It is very cheap compared to Bangalore, Mumbai or New Delhi. The house-rent was not even into my consideration in my monthly expenses when I lived happily in midst of that busy T-Nagar crowd.

Is Chennai very hot?
Yes, Chennai is hot and humid as it lies on thermal equator and also on the coastal side. Every different place has got different climatic conditions. This isn’t worth an argument if an IT guy asks this as we sit inside office throughout the day without having any knowledge of what is happening outside. But there are beaches where you can go out in the evenings to get fresh air. I miss those night walks in Besant Nagar beach after 10pm.

Do we get north-Indian food in Chennai?
Yes. You get to see more north-Indian restaurants than the number of Tamilnadu restaurants in Bangalore, Mumbai or New Delhi. I would rate the taste of Chennai ‘kayyendi bhavans’ (road-side shops) more than a high class sagars in Bangalore. I really miss those ‘podi-dosas’ near Natesan Park.

How can I communicate in Chennai as people over there don’t speak Hindi and they are all Tamil fanatics?
Yes, you will have problem with language if you know only Hindi. But the people are not Tamil fanatics, they just don’t know Hindi. If Chinese or Japanese does the same, you admire at them but when it comes to Chennai, they are fanatics huh?
By the way, Hindi is not our official language but English. If you argue that Hindi is our national language and you can speak in India, so do we. Tamil is our regional language and we have all the rights you claim to possess to speak Tamil in our region. Also why single out Chennai? It is the same condition in Kerala but no one makes a fuss about that.

Do we have night life in Chennai?
If you refer to the availability of food after 9pm as night life, then yes we do have. Or if you are talking about pubs and discotheques, yes there are few. But it is not life in night is all about. FYI, the closing of pubs by 11 in the night is not the most horrid thing in our country to happen.

Do we have multiplexes in Chennai?
Sathyam. This one word should answer all your queries on this. This Cineplex is far better than PVR and Inox. I still remember the sound of that pop-corn munching in a Bangalore multiplex when watching Harry Potter.

How do we get to travel inside city?
You have buses and local trains to connect all parts of the city.

I heard that Chennai auto-rickshaw drivers loot your money. Is that true?
Not always. Yes, there is no meter-system in auto-rickshaws. They charge you based on their mood and not the distance. But if you know the place, you can get a better deal out of them. But lately the problems I have been facing in Bangalore are all the same with meter system. They start the 11/2 meter at 8 in the night which is supposed to be after 10. Even worse, they come to only places where they get customers returning from that place. But I have not received a single mail (even a hoax) saying that Chennai drivers threatened an IT guy and looted the credit cards and money which I receive often about Bangalore.

How bad is traffic in Chennai?
You get jammed in traffic signals. (I think that’s what signals are for.) You get hardly struck in roads unlike my daily episodes of traffic jam here in Bangalore.

Is Chennai a very conservative place?
People in Chennai have other better work to do than making an issue for your skimpy clothes and other stuffs.

PS: I lived in Chennai for 4 years and living in Bangalore for 3 years.

Mayakkanadi - Review

Cast : Cheran, Navya Nair, Radharavi and others.
Language : Tamil
Music : Illayaraja
Director : Cheran

Summary:

• Cheran and Navya work in saloon.
• Navya’s family is a typical middle class family where buying a new slippers and tuition fees for children are put into serious consideration. But Navya is least bothered but to hang around with her boy friend Cheran.
• Cheran’s aim is to have some lakhs to spend it lavishly.
• They both join as LIC agents and approach all their customers in saloon. They fail miserably by getting only 3 policy holders.
• Cheran gets inspired to become an actor.
• Cheran loses his job as hairstylist. So he starts trying for movie chances full-time.
• He is offered a work from a business tycoon who deals with peddling drugs and makes use of our hero. After knowing this, he quits the job.
• Navya’s parents come to know of her affair (phewww!!! Finally) and demands Cheran to earn 2 lakhs to marry her.
• Cheran’s mother is admitted to hospital and the operation expense is some lakhs.
• He approaches the business tycoon for money and gets caught for peddling the drugs.
• He spends 3 years in jail.
• He rejoins the old saloon and works peacefully after listening to a big lecture from Radharavi.

Watch out for:

• Cheran’s dialogues like “Aye vaa pissa sapidalam”, “vaanam poligirathu …” where he can’t even pronounce the ‘zha’ properly.
• The FM channel in background playing a song from Mayakkanadi composed by Illayaraja when they approach as LIC agents.
• The change in straightened hair to curly hair when he comes out of jail.
• Guest appearaces of Malavika, Sarath Kumar, Arya and director Rajkapoor.
• The old Nayagan dialogue from the business tycoon.
• Pudupettai movie house-full in mayajaal on a weekday. J

My Cut:

• Cheran should get the point clear that people cannot bear with him as hero if he says that main hero is the story line and not the cast of the movie. Yes, true but not always.
• @Cheran: Stretching the movie with the duration of approximately 170 minutes doesn’t make it a good movie.
• Why on earth did he think of having the rape scene? Where did he get that guy to act in that scene? I hope he is not the main character in his next film.
• Illayaraja’s music is the sole convincing part in the movie.
• Navya throws up an over-acting performance in the scenes to show up her curiosity over Malavika’s life or in the place to show her interest in the bride’s jewels.
• What made Cheran think that people will not identify his inspiration of Nayagan dialogues?
• Cheran who made the perfection to brought realism in his earlier movies had failed this time to bring something even close to perfection.

Mayakkanadi (-) Cheran (-) clichéd scenes = an average movie

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang...

Celebrity Big Brother winner Shilpa Shetty is back in the news again for her kissing act with Hollywood star Richard Gere at an AIDS awareness event ‘Seena taan ke’ organized for the truck drivers.

The Hollywood star Gere held Shilpa’s hand and kissed it. He hugs her and bends over her and kisses her on her cheeks. No this is not a scene from any stage play or from any Richard Gere’s bollywood flick. The kiss act was a part of an AIDS awareness event organized to highlight the importance of safe sex. This happened when Shilpa appreciated Gere and this Hollywood actor responded it in a style for which he would regret. She giggled “Ye thoda zyada ho gaya tha”(this was a little too much) with an embarrassment.

“An attack on our cultural ethos”, the protesters claimed. In other part of the country, students burnt the effigies of Gere and demanded him to go back from the country. (Did he ever apply for a visa to stay with Shilpa? :P). “Such a public display is not part of Indian tradition”, cries another political party.

The Big brother winner in replying to this issue said, “I understand people's sentiments, but I don't want a foreigner to take bad memories from here”. What is this supposed to mean? Did she really think that this is an attack on cultural ethos but she didn’t want to refuse the kisses from People magazine’s Sexiest man Alive (1999) /one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world(1991)?

Shetty tried downplaying the event saying “it was not so obscene”. And finally she made one sensible statement saying “this was not such a big thing for people to over-react in such a manner”. Yes, it is not. After all, we want something else on news channels and newspapers and not your romance with any actors.

Anjali Gopalan, head of Indian Aids prevention group says, “I think he responded as an actor. He was playing to the gallery. I don’t see anything bad”. You are right. This isn’t too bad.

Every news channels had the kissing scenes played regularly and the next day morning all the newspapers carried the picture on their front pages. Are there any sms contests around the country to report the count of the kisses he planted on her cheeks? :P I thought news channels are only to give a minute by minute update on Bollywood’s biggest wedding of the year and the details of bride’s saris and mehndi designs.

But in the end, the fortunate ones were the 4000 truck drivers who were part of this ‘Seena taan ke’ event and also audience for this entertaining show. Lucky you J

World Cup Fever- THE END

Mission-2007, the magic phrase which was a faith and belief of millions on Indians failed miserably when India lost to Srilanka in the world cup first round match. Most of the hearts were broken after Bangladesh won the match against India. It says all about Team India’s performance in this World cup. Three deaths were reported all over the country so far. It was waiting for a chance to get into the second level of tournament depending on another team’s win/loss. How disgraceful it could be? It was a shameful exit to the title favorites and runner-ups last time. The fact remains that a team which boasts to have the best batting line-up in the world couldn’t reach 200 runs against Bangladesh. If Bangladesh had lost to Bermuda, it would have been embarrassing entry for Indian team to the Super 8. Thanks to Bangladesh for winning that match. Luckily we were not in the same pool with Australia or South Africa. Team India would have had a humiliating defeat. There is nothing wrong in the Team selection or the players. This was the team which reached the finals in Johannesburg four years back. So what went wrong this time? Are those Greg Chappell’s experiments? Or the new entries of players like Dhoni or Pathan? No, but it’s a back foot drive of team effort from the players. The confidence in every player was the missing factor. It was very clear in the match against Srilanka where no one had the intention of staying in the middle to have a partnership to score runs.

The fans deserved something better than this. We had every right to demand a victory. At least for the angry fans back at home they should have won the Srilanka match. But none were interested in the game. It would be less if we say that their hard work on modeling and acting in advertisements had taken away their skills in the game.

Here are my opinions on few concerns of the fans:

Should Rahul Dravid continue as Captain?

Yes. He had always done his role perfectly. His role as a captain had no impact on his batting skills where his predecessors failed to do so.

Should Sachin quit?

Yes and No. Yes, he should quit from the one day version of the game before the board drops him. But he should be in the test team as he does play a vital role there.

Did Ganguly do justice to his comeback? Should he be made captain?

Ganguly, since his comeback was more interested in making runs for him and not for the team. No, he should not be considered again for the captain role. We are happy now with what he is scoring.

Should we drop Sehwag?

Yes, definitely. A century once in 3 years and that too against Bermuda isn’t worth a consideration.

Should Dinesh Karthik replace Dhoni?

Yes, we should give more chances to Karthik. We need a player who is more consistent than a player who can hit once in a year.

And last but not of the least concern, should Chappell go?

YES. He made the team worse than what it was before.

Rest all players wouldn’t make much difference if the key players perform their best as they used to.

PS: Now am supporting Australia in this world cup. I don’t want to end up supporting another losing side :-P

Yipppeeeee!!!!

My review on Paruthiveeran got published today. In other words, my first post in merinews.com got approved and published. I am so elated. Thanks to merinews.com editor and other people behind the screen who made this happen. A special thanks to the team who made the corrections and modifications and added the description for the review.

For more details, click here.

Review: Paruthiveeran

Finally I got to see this movie last Friday in Hosur. If your question is why Hosur, then the answer is no Tamil movies in Bangalore theatres after the Cauvery verdict.

I would say that this movie is the best in Tamil film industry since ‘Kadhal’. This movie opens well with a shot of a fair in a village near Madurai. From then the movie takes you to a trip to the Paruthiyoor village where you live in for the rest of the movie.

The story is nothing new to our industry. It’s all the about the relationships in a village and a small love story in that. But the way it has been taken shows the hard work of the whole team. Ameer has led the team to its success. Karthi has made a remarkable debut with a splendid performance. I don’t think that any actor in Indian film industry had such a debut. Anyone watching the movie without any prior information about him would never believe that this is his first movie.

What to say about Priyamani? I can’t think of anyone in our industry in her role. She fits in the Muthalagu’s shoes perfectly. No voice could have been better than her voice. (Trivia: No dubbing artists used. Everyone had their own voice). The other special character is of Saravanan’s role in the movie. I didn’t know that he can act like this. Where did he hide his talents all these days? I should also mention about the roles of Ponvannan, his wife, the two old ladies. Ameer had the perfect cast for his script.

The songs and background score of Yuvan would take of him to the next level in his career. With his first village film in which his father ruled the industry for decades, the son’s composition has come up really well. The cinematography of Ramji is the best, our industry had seen in its recent years.

In the end, it is a team work which worked. TWO THUMBS UP.

Abbas Kiarostami’s Close-up and Taste of cherry

Last weekend I got a chance to watch Kiarostami’s two movies Close-up and Taste of Cherry. I always have the zeal for Iranian cinema ever since I watched Children of Heaven.

I would say Close-up is more of a special report of a true story happened in Iran. It is about an individual who claims him to be a director Mohsen Makhmalbaf who directed Cyclist and gets in touch with a family. But when I got the DVD I didn’t know that this is such kind of movie where I was expecting something of Majidi Style. In the end, it is a different way of depicting an individual’s mind and his feelings.

I was more hesitant to watch this Taste of Cherry due to the effect of watching Close-up as I didn’t want to watch documentary kinda movies back to back. But you would get the feel of different taste in it. It is all about a man who wants to commit suicide and he is finding for someone to close the ditch which he had already made so that he can go and sleep having the sleeping pills. In the end, I didn’t get what he is trying to say in the climax. I had to do some research on that movie and found something here. Kiarostami refers to this style as “Unfinished Cinema”.

You get a different feeling after watching these movies that you would not get it in any other commercial movie. I got it after watching it. I would recommend it as a case study for all the movie fanatics.

Thamirabarani- A disaster

Iif you are worried that this is about some natural calamity to do with the river Thamirabarani, please don’t panic. This has got nothing to do with that. This is all about the latest movie in Tamil from the director Hari which I was destined to watch it yesterday night. I had few questions in my mind after watching this movie. Is this movie worth at least a little to be written over? Do the makers of a movie ever watch after taking it? Why Hari has to show his anger in this way to people? Is this his way of taking revenge for not making his previous ‘Aaru’ film a hit?

The story is the most creative story I had ever seen in Tamil cinema. Forget about Tamil cinema. It’s the first ever movie of this story line we ever had in world cinema. The story is about two families and its rivalry between them in a village in Southern Tamilnadu. A love story from the two families, and later they come to know that they are cousins. Everyone turning out to be good in the end and a happily lived ever after end. Wow. !!! How creative a director could go in Tamil cinema? Are there any standards set for that? If so, Hari has broken all the heights, limits whatever and set a new height for creativity.

This movie should be made as case study for all the students involved in film studies. Hari should be selected as Juror for all the film festivals happening around the world. C’mon he deserves more than that.

He should be given a ‘Life Time Achievement’ award and sent back to his native. The reason it has to be made the case study is so that the students should realize that they should take better movies as an act of condolence for the viewers who watched it.

In brief, one more disaster from Tamil film industry.

Simple facts about me

This is the list of some simple facts about me. I do not guarantee that all the facts mentioned here are true :-)

1. I am passionate about few technical stuffs like Linux and Vim text editor . If I had powers to control the whole IT industry I would force everyone to use only Linux, Vim and Firefox browser. This is just a wish and I don’t have any personal feelings either against the world’s richest man or with his best company. But I seriously don’t like working in an operating system which a normal person hears of it's name can only think of as a fitting for his house.
2. I am a movie geek. I watch movies in all categories and all languages (with subtitles). The list of my favorite movies is a big one.
3. I am more interested in Photography nowadays. This has turned out to be a disease after buying the close-up kit for Canon powershot.
4. Soy de estudiante de español. (Am a student of Spanish). I completed Basic and Intermediate-1 levels from Instituto Hispania, Bangalore. I will do the next level Intermediate-2 soon. Italian language is in my list next.
5. I do read novels but a very slow reader. Fountainhead tops my favorite list. I still think that Ayn Rand should have more concentrated on Gail Wynand than on Roark in the novel. Don't ask me reasons for that.
   
6. I belong to the category of people who think that mobile phones are just to make/receive calls and messages. If you want a camera or a audio player go for a separate device with better features.
7. You can spot me anywhere with my Honda Unicorn or with my Orange Footloose bag (iPod nano and my Canon Powershot inside). If I miss it somewhere please hand it over to me. Thanks in advance.
8. I live alone in a 2BHK house in Kasturinagar, Bangalore. No, it’s not as boring as you think to stay alone if you have your own things to do. Trust me.
9. Above all, I am more pious in my religion and am a Muslim by choice and not by chance.
   

I came, I saw, I conquered

These 3 ‘I’s became very popular since Julius Caesar succinctly described one of his victories as “veni, vidi, vici” (in Latin). After many years another set of ‘I’s are making a wave but this time in the field of science and technology. These are nothing but Apple’s iMac,iIPod and its latest sensation iPhone. They launch everything at the right time when people are in real need of something which should be the best in the market. Some may claim that their stuff is expensive but if there are people ready for that price why would they bother about others who cannot afford high-end devices. This may sound harsh but its not in that tone. They are coming up with fully featured devices which cannot be priced at low cost. In a long term, I can see only Google and Apple standing tall in the IT industry with their innovative ideas and products.

So it is iMac, iPod, iPhone

Anatomy of Indian cinema-I

Plagiarism can be of two types. One is copying a piece of writing from somewhere else and presenting it in his own work. The other form of plagiarism is copying someone’s ideas as if there were own which exactly is an act of plagiarizing. This is not a blog about a novel of Indian-American in Harvard University where the author’s fairy tale turned into a thriller with ups and downs. This blog is all about the second form of plagiarism in which ideas of someone are plagiarized. This is about Indian cinema which instead of taking a stand in the stage of world cinema is taking everyone’s ideas. This is all about how far a cinema can demolish the style and all the techniques which were possessed by the original.

The idea of making movies from the world cinema in Indian film industry is applaud-able when the beauty of the original remains the same. After all it’s a step to make every movie-goer in our country get the vision what others are getting in western countries. But in the process of converting them into Indian versions, its loses its original style, the technique and everything. The conversion process is not an easy task as it includes the commercial value.

What happened to the creators in our own country which had produced some legends like Ray, Mrinal sen. Yes, there are few who are seriously concerned about parallel cinema in India. They are very few, at least to my knowledge like Adoor, Padmarajan(though I haven’t seen their movies),Aparna Sen and also Blessy(making a great impact in his movies). But the question is, how many of us know that there are some serious cinemas made in the streets of the God’s own country or in some corner of this country. Do we get easy access to their works like the other commercial works?

Someone may boast that there are many good directors like Maniratnam, Selvaraghavan, Cheran, Sanjay Leela Bhansali. But I feel like they are missing out something in their films. Even they do have ideas plagiarized from other foreign cinemas in their movies.

Do you call these ideas as the inspired ones?? Then where are the credits to the originals? What is stopping them from revealing us the architects of the original?

Update: Check my other blog for more on plagiarism and Indian cinema.

(To be contd..)