Friday, February 24, 2006
Hello Hello 123 123 Mike testing!
The add comments section on my last post has disappeared! So, am testing whether it was a one-off case or a permanent problem.
Testing over. Apparently, it is a problem with that particular post only. Being technologically challenged, I really have no idea why its happened, but as a stop-gap solution, anyone who wishes to comment on my previous post can do so on this one!
May the Force be with you.
Testing over. Apparently, it is a problem with that particular post only. Being technologically challenged, I really have no idea why its happened, but as a stop-gap solution, anyone who wishes to comment on my previous post can do so on this one!
May the Force be with you.
Have money, will kill, and the law be damned!
I think it all started with Puru Raj Kumar, the son of former Bollywood star Raj Kumar. I used to have a deep faith in the law, and the old saying 'Be you ever so high, the law is above you.' Unfortunately, its just a saying...
A few years ago, Puru Raj Kumar ran over 2 pavement dwellers. The exemplary punishment meted out to him - a fine of Rs. 35000/- and no, I haven't missed out on some 0s!
Around the same time, Sanjeev Nanda, son of a retired admiral (and current international arms dealer!), and his friends ran over 6 people, including 3 policemen. The case ran for a long time, and I really don't remember the accused having been punished!
Priyadarshini Matoo, a college student in Delhi, was raped and killed by Santosh Singh, who is the son a senior IPS officer. At the time of acquitting Singh, the judge clearly said that he knew that the accused was guilty, but was being forced to acquit him due to lack of evidence presented by the police!
I do not even want to get into the various offences of Salman Khan, the list is just too long!
And two days ago, the final straw on the camel's back. All the 9 accused in the Jessice Lal murder case have been set free. Of course it was a very complicated case, with 'just' 90 people present in the Tamarind Court when Manu Sharma shot Jessica Lal because she refused to serve him a drink, then ran away. It took 7 long years for the court to pronounce its judgement, after all, the accused included Manu, the son of an ex Union Minister(and now Punjab cabinet minister), Vikas Yadav - son of UP Don-turned-politician(actually aren't the two words interchangable?)DP Yadav, two executives of Coke, and a relative of former president Shankar Dayal Sharma! Actually, why blame only the accused? Look at the star witnesses for the prosecution. Socialite/Designer Bina Ramani, who owned Tamarind Court alongwith her daughter. She first identified Manu and later said she was not sure if this was the same man! Model/actor Shayan Munshi, the first signatory eye-witness on the FIR, who later said that he didn't know Hindi and so had no idea what he was signing. Of course we totally believe him that he didn't see anything!
Bottomline: Kanoon ke haath lambe hote hain, but only for us ordinary people. A different law exists for the high and mighty of the land. We are not a democracy, because common citizens of this country can be trampled upon by anyone who has enough money and muscle.
A few days ago, a lot of us saw 'Rang De Basanti' and came out of theatres full of enthusiasm to change the world. Today, I am not sure whether we can do much about it. But still, I'll tell you what I am going to do - I am never going to watch any movie with Shayan Munshi in it. I am never going to buy any clothes designed by Bina Ramani, or be be associated with any activity/cause in which she is involved. I am never going to drink any Coke product, because the company stood by Amarjit Gill, the guy who drove Manu's car away from the pub in the morning.
And finally, I am not going to let these people affect my life so much that I lose my faith totally. May the Force be with all of us!
A few years ago, Puru Raj Kumar ran over 2 pavement dwellers. The exemplary punishment meted out to him - a fine of Rs. 35000/- and no, I haven't missed out on some 0s!
Around the same time, Sanjeev Nanda, son of a retired admiral (and current international arms dealer!), and his friends ran over 6 people, including 3 policemen. The case ran for a long time, and I really don't remember the accused having been punished!
Priyadarshini Matoo, a college student in Delhi, was raped and killed by Santosh Singh, who is the son a senior IPS officer. At the time of acquitting Singh, the judge clearly said that he knew that the accused was guilty, but was being forced to acquit him due to lack of evidence presented by the police!
I do not even want to get into the various offences of Salman Khan, the list is just too long!
And two days ago, the final straw on the camel's back. All the 9 accused in the Jessice Lal murder case have been set free. Of course it was a very complicated case, with 'just' 90 people present in the Tamarind Court when Manu Sharma shot Jessica Lal because she refused to serve him a drink, then ran away. It took 7 long years for the court to pronounce its judgement, after all, the accused included Manu, the son of an ex Union Minister(and now Punjab cabinet minister), Vikas Yadav - son of UP Don-turned-politician(actually aren't the two words interchangable?)DP Yadav, two executives of Coke, and a relative of former president Shankar Dayal Sharma! Actually, why blame only the accused? Look at the star witnesses for the prosecution. Socialite/Designer Bina Ramani, who owned Tamarind Court alongwith her daughter. She first identified Manu and later said she was not sure if this was the same man! Model/actor Shayan Munshi, the first signatory eye-witness on the FIR, who later said that he didn't know Hindi and so had no idea what he was signing. Of course we totally believe him that he didn't see anything!
Bottomline: Kanoon ke haath lambe hote hain, but only for us ordinary people. A different law exists for the high and mighty of the land. We are not a democracy, because common citizens of this country can be trampled upon by anyone who has enough money and muscle.
A few days ago, a lot of us saw 'Rang De Basanti' and came out of theatres full of enthusiasm to change the world. Today, I am not sure whether we can do much about it. But still, I'll tell you what I am going to do - I am never going to watch any movie with Shayan Munshi in it. I am never going to buy any clothes designed by Bina Ramani, or be be associated with any activity/cause in which she is involved. I am never going to drink any Coke product, because the company stood by Amarjit Gill, the guy who drove Manu's car away from the pub in the morning.
And finally, I am not going to let these people affect my life so much that I lose my faith totally. May the Force be with all of us!
# posted by Obi Wan @ 7:05 AM
Monday, February 20, 2006
A 100 smiles... and counting!
The Comic Project has turned 100 today! The 100th comic has been posted on this amazing blog. And the celebrations begin...
For the uninitiated, The Comic Project is a unique and unprecedented venture for posting Indrajal Comics (primarily, though there are one-off cases of other publications) on the net. Started a few months ago by someone we just know as tcp, this project has today become a 100 comics old. I have said this before on my blog (though in not so many words), and am now saying it again - "If anybody deserves a Noble Peace Prize, The Legion d' honor, and the Bharat Ratna, all rolled into one, it is tcp, for touching the lives of so many people, by returning our childhood to us!
May the Force be with him (its them actually, as tcp is now a team of contributors)! Looking forward to seeing the remaining 900 or so Indrajals on tcp soon :-)
Anybody who visits my blog is hereby tagged, to visit TCP's blog and post a comment, we are aiming for a 100 unique comments for the 100th comic. This is the least we all can do folks, so pls get cracking!
For the uninitiated, The Comic Project is a unique and unprecedented venture for posting Indrajal Comics (primarily, though there are one-off cases of other publications) on the net. Started a few months ago by someone we just know as tcp, this project has today become a 100 comics old. I have said this before on my blog (though in not so many words), and am now saying it again - "If anybody deserves a Noble Peace Prize, The Legion d' honor, and the Bharat Ratna, all rolled into one, it is tcp, for touching the lives of so many people, by returning our childhood to us!
May the Force be with him (its them actually, as tcp is now a team of contributors)! Looking forward to seeing the remaining 900 or so Indrajals on tcp soon :-)
Anybody who visits my blog is hereby tagged, to visit TCP's blog and post a comment, we are aiming for a 100 unique comments for the 100th comic. This is the least we all can do folks, so pls get cracking!
Thursday, February 16, 2006
Of television debuts and Delhi marriages!
Ladies and gentlemen, today is a red-letter day in the history of mankind. Ok, thodha zyaada ho gaya, but still...
I make my television debut today. Its a huge and very important role in the teaser promo of the movie 'Malamal Weekly'. Directed by Priyadarshan, this movie is scheduled for release on March 10. The teaser TV promos of the movie, starting today across all channels, feature a series of individuals trying to suppress their laughter, but failing. The idea being that watching MW will have this effect on you. Now for my role - I play one of the guys laughing away to glory, and am on screen for exactly 1 second. But as a friend told me, "1 second means 25 frames", which is a much bigger number than 1! Hope all the biggie directors will be watching the promo, and notice a star in the making :-)
Amongst other things, I leave for Delhi in the evening to attend a friend's wedding. I can distinctly visualize my mom telling me, "Hamesha apne doston ki shaadiyaan karwaane Delhi aata hai, tera no. kab aayega?" My whole gang will be assembling for the wedding, which is on Sunday, and I'm sure we'll all have a blast!
Hope all of you also have a great weekend. May the Force be with you!
I make my television debut today. Its a huge and very important role in the teaser promo of the movie 'Malamal Weekly'. Directed by Priyadarshan, this movie is scheduled for release on March 10. The teaser TV promos of the movie, starting today across all channels, feature a series of individuals trying to suppress their laughter, but failing. The idea being that watching MW will have this effect on you. Now for my role - I play one of the guys laughing away to glory, and am on screen for exactly 1 second. But as a friend told me, "1 second means 25 frames", which is a much bigger number than 1! Hope all the biggie directors will be watching the promo, and notice a star in the making :-)
Amongst other things, I leave for Delhi in the evening to attend a friend's wedding. I can distinctly visualize my mom telling me, "Hamesha apne doston ki shaadiyaan karwaane Delhi aata hai, tera no. kab aayega?" My whole gang will be assembling for the wedding, which is on Sunday, and I'm sure we'll all have a blast!
Hope all of you also have a great weekend. May the Force be with you!
Friday, February 10, 2006
Movies I will never watch again!
In my post on the nine quartets tag, I'd listed 4 movies that I could watch again and again. But these are not necessarily my favorite movies, they're my favorite movies that I can watch again and again. Let me introduce you to another of my quirks...
There are 3 kinds of movies that I know I will never watch again.
1. The really bad ones, right from the B/C grade 1990s Mithunda type movies (I loved his '80s stuff, but his southern stint is quite unwatchable) to the A category big-budget duds like Mela (this will turn-off even the die-hard Aamir Khan fans), Shabd, Kisna, Kaal etc.
2. Horror flicks like Bhoot, Pet Semetry, Vaastu-Shastra etc. Confession time: I seldom watch horror films, get totally scared, and my over-active imagination ensures that the after-effects continue for at least 2-3 days. So, I know I won't be watching again the few that I've watched!
3. Movies that have made a deep impact on me, movies that are beautiful works of art, movies that touch my core, movies that make me cry. There are some movies that have affected me so powerfully when I watched them that I simply don't have the courage to watch them again. Moreover, each of these movies is stored in my memory as something special, associated with a unique period in my life. The minute I try to revisit these movies, I fear that those movies might not remain that 'special' anymore. E.g. Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa is one of my all-time favorite movies. I watched it in 1994. I'm sure I have changed in the last 11 years in terms of exposure to good cinema, technique, camerawork etc. Today, if I try to watch it again, I might not find the movie to be as great as I thought it was when I saw it. Don't want my memories of these films to be shattered, hence I will never watch them again! Here are a few of them:
Khamoshi: Asit Sen's classic with Waheeda Rehman in possibly her career's best performance. Hemantda's music was haunting (Tum Pukar Lo, Woh Shaam Kuchh Ajeeb Thi, Hamne Dekhi Hai Un Aankhon Ki...), and when I saw it more than a decade ago, it brought tears to my eyes.
Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa: Again, possibly SRK's best film ever. This low-budget movie failed to find distributors when it was ready. Shah Rukh believed in the movie so much that he decided to distribute it himself. It was the story of every young man, and so I fell in love with the movie.
Anupama: Hrishikesh Mukherjee's masterpiece with Sharmila Tagore and Dharmendra. This too has one of my all time favorite songs(again by Hemant Kumar): 'Ya Dil Ki Suno Duniya Waalon...'. One line in the antara of this song kind of defines the concept of the movie: 'Ye phool chaman mein kaisa khila, maali ki nazar mein pyaar nahi...'(What flower is this in the garden, that even the gardener doesn't love it?). Anupama's mother dies while giving birth to her, her father brings her up blaming her for her mother's death. _
Hazaaron Khwaaishein Aisi: Too powerful for me to handle!
Rang De Basanti: When I came out of the hall, my intial reaction was that I've got to watch it again. But when I got the opportunity a week later, I realized that I just couldn't!
The Usual Suspects: What can I say about this Bryan Singer legend? It left me so amazed that I want to retain that experience forever!
A Clockwork Orange & Natural Born Killers: An open invitation for mind-effing! If I watch either of them the 2nd time, the society will see another sociopath rebel being born! I really don't want to go out that way!
May the Force be with you!
There are 3 kinds of movies that I know I will never watch again.
1. The really bad ones, right from the B/C grade 1990s Mithunda type movies (I loved his '80s stuff, but his southern stint is quite unwatchable) to the A category big-budget duds like Mela (this will turn-off even the die-hard Aamir Khan fans), Shabd, Kisna, Kaal etc.
2. Horror flicks like Bhoot, Pet Semetry, Vaastu-Shastra etc. Confession time: I seldom watch horror films, get totally scared, and my over-active imagination ensures that the after-effects continue for at least 2-3 days. So, I know I won't be watching again the few that I've watched!
3. Movies that have made a deep impact on me, movies that are beautiful works of art, movies that touch my core, movies that make me cry. There are some movies that have affected me so powerfully when I watched them that I simply don't have the courage to watch them again. Moreover, each of these movies is stored in my memory as something special, associated with a unique period in my life. The minute I try to revisit these movies, I fear that those movies might not remain that 'special' anymore. E.g. Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa is one of my all-time favorite movies. I watched it in 1994. I'm sure I have changed in the last 11 years in terms of exposure to good cinema, technique, camerawork etc. Today, if I try to watch it again, I might not find the movie to be as great as I thought it was when I saw it. Don't want my memories of these films to be shattered, hence I will never watch them again! Here are a few of them:
Khamoshi: Asit Sen's classic with Waheeda Rehman in possibly her career's best performance. Hemantda's music was haunting (Tum Pukar Lo, Woh Shaam Kuchh Ajeeb Thi, Hamne Dekhi Hai Un Aankhon Ki...), and when I saw it more than a decade ago, it brought tears to my eyes.
Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa: Again, possibly SRK's best film ever. This low-budget movie failed to find distributors when it was ready. Shah Rukh believed in the movie so much that he decided to distribute it himself. It was the story of every young man, and so I fell in love with the movie.
Anupama: Hrishikesh Mukherjee's masterpiece with Sharmila Tagore and Dharmendra. This too has one of my all time favorite songs(again by Hemant Kumar): 'Ya Dil Ki Suno Duniya Waalon...'. One line in the antara of this song kind of defines the concept of the movie: 'Ye phool chaman mein kaisa khila, maali ki nazar mein pyaar nahi...'(What flower is this in the garden, that even the gardener doesn't love it?). Anupama's mother dies while giving birth to her, her father brings her up blaming her for her mother's death. _
Hazaaron Khwaaishein Aisi: Too powerful for me to handle!
Rang De Basanti: When I came out of the hall, my intial reaction was that I've got to watch it again. But when I got the opportunity a week later, I realized that I just couldn't!
The Usual Suspects: What can I say about this Bryan Singer legend? It left me so amazed that I want to retain that experience forever!
A Clockwork Orange & Natural Born Killers: An open invitation for mind-effing! If I watch either of them the 2nd time, the society will see another sociopath rebel being born! I really don't want to go out that way!
May the Force be with you!
Monday, February 06, 2006
Somebody Stop Me!!!
All right, its official now. I AM totally crazy! I need to be restrained, institutionalized... basically, stopped, because I am my own worst enemy. But wait, let me start at the beginning (a very good place to start)...
Some 3 months ago, I'd recd the 'promise' of a sum of 16K as an incentive for the last half year that I'd worked at my previous company. I was so happy on receiving this 'promise' that without waiting for the actual money to come in, I went ahead and bought the complete Calvin & Hobbes collection for 6.5K (I wrote about it in one of my earlier posts in November)! As if this was not enough, I also purchased a 29" CTV in the same month, 'using' some of the money from the 16K. The cheque for the amount came in only a couple of weeks ago, so it was 'new money' now. Couldn't resist the temptation, went online and bought the complete Asterix collection for 9K! Its just been delivered to my office!
As usual, my colleagues are completely shocked at my extravagance and are saying that I'm mad, but I really couldn't care less. The way I look at it, I'm slogging my ass off so that I can do stuff that makes ME happy. So, anything that goes towards fulfilling this objective is a perfectly reasonable decision! So, maybe, just maybe, I'm not that crazy after all! What say???
Some 3 months ago, I'd recd the 'promise' of a sum of 16K as an incentive for the last half year that I'd worked at my previous company. I was so happy on receiving this 'promise' that without waiting for the actual money to come in, I went ahead and bought the complete Calvin & Hobbes collection for 6.5K (I wrote about it in one of my earlier posts in November)! As if this was not enough, I also purchased a 29" CTV in the same month, 'using' some of the money from the 16K. The cheque for the amount came in only a couple of weeks ago, so it was 'new money' now. Couldn't resist the temptation, went online and bought the complete Asterix collection for 9K! Its just been delivered to my office!
As usual, my colleagues are completely shocked at my extravagance and are saying that I'm mad, but I really couldn't care less. The way I look at it, I'm slogging my ass off so that I can do stuff that makes ME happy. So, anything that goes towards fulfilling this objective is a perfectly reasonable decision! So, maybe, just maybe, I'm not that crazy after all! What say???
