Passion Inc.

Ever wondered why we lag behind so much in spite of all the talent we have? Why do in a country of over a billion people we have a few medals,a solitary world cup, a FIFA rank of 144, a tennis player ranked 31. Why is that countries irrespective of their economic condition or size continue to dazzle while we happily cheer our mediocrity? The answer is that we lack passion, the passion to perform, the passion to excel, the passion to win. We ask too less of ourselves, one moment of glory lasts us a life-time.They say that O'Eight is gonna be a big year, Sania aims at top 20 (while the Serbs and Russians of the world start at that) , Indian cricket team is finally winning overseas against major opponents, the salaries at IIMs are sky-rocketing, economy is booming. It's all hogwash .The truth is we're still the same, happy doing what we do the best, bask in the glory of our half baked achievements. So what is passion? Passion is what makes Janko Tipsarevic think he can beat Federer, passion is what India showed when it won the T20 World Cup, Passion is what helps one beat a better opponent, Passion is what flows through your veins every time you compete. If you've ever wondered why your half talented friend is at a better place then you, the answer is because he/she is more afraid of loosing than you are. Unless we do something about our innate desire to sleepwalk through our roles, to do everything just as we are expected, unless we start challenging our self a little more, we would never get where we deserve. India would continue to be a factory producing surprisingly similar people capable of random moments of glory, which will be too spaced to be remembered beyond the next failure. After all you never win a silver, you loose the gold!

Obsession!

Roughly translated obsession means a persistent idea dominating a person's mind. On closer observation we can notice it sounds like recession and borders on regression. Yet even though we know what there is to it, we still obsess. From our hair cut, to our salaries, to the colour of our undergarments, we obsess about something or the other. What drives this madness, is there any method to it? Psychologically obsession can most certainly be classified as a disease, you can't seem to get out of a particular thought, it seems to control your actions, and occupies almost every inch of your head. Though the description will be oversimplifying the emotion which is so strong that it makes you weak. Obsession can take many forms. The most common type of obsession is 'obsessive love'. This is accompanied by a negative feeling and low self esteem, where you find yourself dependent on the other. The irony is that it pushes the other person away. He/She is repelled because he/she cannot understand the love, to him/her it is madness. So how does love transform to obsession. It is when we cease to separate the other person from our self, it is when we forget that the other person has a life, an idea of living which he/she has conceptualized. It is when we think that the other person has to like us because we like ourselves, when we believe that our looks, our certificates or at least our salary can win us love. Obsession blurs love, and throws it into oblivion. What is left is madness, the madness to win, the madness to control, the madness to get everything we desire. Unfortunately this is the end, a sorry end, where so much of love is wasted, where emotions get overboard and where every one looses!!

Brevity is the soul of wit

We speak too much. Every time anybody asks us any question we answer in the most complicated manner, we fill it with so many words that the other person ceases to understand the logic. Is it true, that simple means common and complex means esoteric? We all read, understand and appreciate quotes. They have so much to say, in so little words, yet when it comes to expressing ourselves we rely on endless gibberish. The most witty, crisp yet penetrating comments are always short. The other day I was reading a man’s review on Saawariya, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s magnum opus. It summed up everything in just one line “ Sanjay Bhansali did the impossible, he made a boring ‘blue’ film”. I thought the effect this had on me was much more than thousand word reviews written by other critics. Why is it that we believe in complicating things? Writers of the yore used to believe in writing for the masses. Never did they use complicated words, yet they brought out the emotions beautifully, the characters were understated yet effective.
Pretense has become the order of the day, we have all sorts of rules with fancy names, pyramid rule, the five point theory , et al , essentially what they say is simple but of course they are garnished with the fanciest words and logic. Both students and teachers alike dig at them.
What the end result of all this is that people who know the art of simplicity are lost amidst all the chaos in the name of the complex. They are considered dumb, or plainly stupid, while self assuming Einstein(s) of the world enjoy endless admiration from dumb witted people who have no clue of what they heard or read.
One can only hope that some sanity is restored, the content is given its importance, and that people recognize substance over style. I hope against hope. May be some day the world will again be simple, we’ll again learn to smile and laugh freely, not have any pretensions. May be just may be…!

Taare Zameen Par!

As a critic I find it extremely difficult to write about movies which touch me, cause it is impossible to be detached. You tend to forget the follies and focus on how you loved the movie rather than providing a critique.In the same vein reviewing TZP is not easy, the topic is sensitive, the script quite powerful and the performances quite flawless. But after watching the movie I feel compelled to write about it. TZP is essentially about an 8 year old dreamer who is branded a looser by the big bad world obsessed with results. The story focuses on his plight and how hope in form of a teacher resurrects the kid. Essentially a very simple story, where Mr. Khan excels is the way he has treated the subject, the way everything looks so natural that we begin to laugh and cry with the characters.To lend such credibility to a story is indeed a herculean task. It helps that the songs are spot on and are almost poetic flowing seamlessly through the narrative. Performance wise Aamir Khan as Ram Shankar Nikhumb acts with full honesty and becomes the character with effortless ease. The scene where he looks moist eyed at the disabled is worth his weight in gold. The angst and the helplessness he shows through his eyes makes one feel claustrophobic and bound. Every time you feel SRK is improving Aamir Khan reinvents himself. With Shahrukh Khan you see Shahrukh Khan, with Aamir you see DJ, Ram Shankar Nikhumb or the numerous character he portrays.The show stealer is of course Darsheel Safary as Ishaan Nandkishore Awasthi. With Ishaan, he does a remarkable job in performing a very complex character so effortlessly, that one can't help but marvel. He speaks through his actions, he speaks through his eyes, he is always conveying something. Pain, anger, disgust. His ability to show twisted emotion of feeling the pain yet not wanting sympathy is something very rare to see in someone so raw. His presence is so overwhelming that other characters just serve as fillers. One can just hope that he doesn't randomly pick up movies. Darsheel has immortalized himself as Ishan Nandkishore Awasthi with this one performance.It will be a benchmark performance for years to come. Other characters are well etched and perform ably. The scripts has a few cliches like the painting competition and the final predictable victory but they don't put you off. You are addicted. You don't notice. You are blinded. Even after the movie ended I saw nobody moving, everyone was watching the end credits rolling silently. Almost everyone wiped a tear or two and silently walked out. They must have promised themselves to be a better person,better parents,to be more understanding, to be more human! Do yourself a favour watch Taare Zameen Par. Not tomorrow, but today, not later but NOW! Highly recommended!

Feeling Blue!!

01/01/08
As another new day dawns upon me I wonder what's so different about today. Why does it seem so different from yesterday. Why does eternity separate the two. Yesterday was beautiful, today is gloomy, yesterday was 2007 today is 2008, yesterday was anticipation, today is the day, yesterday was forests and wilderness today is a dingy compartment. So as I prepare myself for the journey called life, I want to answer the all important question, Why isn't the time after the meal as good as the wait. Why do we feel all kicked 'bout celebrating the new year but once it's on us we feel low. Why do we find it so hard to come to terms with the 'morrow. The reason is that we never expect the future to be as good as the past, we're scared of ageing, we feel something in us is killed every second. When I look outside the train I see life moving so fast and so away from me. Then there are stoppages asking me to relax and then the train speeds up again . Then one moment it'll stop and not move, it'll be the end of the journey, the so called destination and then eons later it will be time to board another train, may be as another being. Till then let us all find time to smell the flowers once in a while, look at the sky, the stars, the moon, let us not run so fast lest we reach the destiny too soon!!