Ok, so it is confirmed. The economy is under severe recession. So what? ‘You, me and hum’ are safe. Of-course only inefficient and non-performers get fired. Nothing will happen to me. Or so I thought.
Until it happened. The axe fell. And now I am without a job. Could this really happen? I had always been the best. I attended the best of institutes, got the best grades; my boss said I was his support system; his back bone. How can one throw away his back bone with such disdain?
My brain has started conjuring scary images. What now? How do I tell my friends? What about my parents? What about my wife, my children?
This was not how it was meant to be. I was supposed to have my first car by the time I was 26. I was supposed to move into the 4 BHK South Ex flat before I completed 10,593 days on planet earth. I was supposed to direct my first movie by the time I was 33. Pray, why me?
Am I doomed to die in poverty? Was I destined to be a loser?
Suddenly it starts to rain. There is a deafening noise. An image slowly appears.
Image: My child, I am God. Why are you so upset?
Man: You are asking me this. You brought it on me. Why me. I always studied. I never did anything wrong. Why this?
Image: My son, when I conceived the world, I decided that I would let a man make his own destiny. But this was too much power in the hands of certain people who ended up making their destiny and deciding it for the others. It corrupted the world. So I introduced the concept of luck/chance. The way I distributed the luck -bucket was random and hence was fair. To make it a little more fair, I gave every human some special powers. The power of optimism, the power of hard work, the power of goodness. This way if luck eluded him; he could still redeem himself through these powers. Those who could recognize these special powers enjoyed life; a life which presented challenge, but was still a lot of fun. Those who did not choked themselves to a meaningless existence.
Recognize these powers my son. Do not despair.
The image disappears…..
Man: God, where are you. Don’t go, talk to me…..Gaaaaaawdd!
You and i in this beautiful world,
green grass....blue sky in this beautiful world
Man wakes up…..Hello. ..Yes this is him. What I got fired… (laughs) You bet I did. Don't worry, I have the power.Thank you and have a great day….!! Bye
Hangs up the phone
(To himself) Wow, I never felt better!
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Random Ramblings Part One and Half (The Mourning After)
Scene: Next morning after the wedding
Yash takes out his Vertu mobile and starts dialing a 10 digit number
Yash: Hey dude, it’s me
Man on the other side (MOTOS): Hey Yash!
Yash: Dude, you wouldn’t believe it, I got turned down by a woman.
MOTOS: Whatttttt! You kidding me, whooo, whatt, when, how!
Yash: Stop it dude. I am feeling terrible; she mocked me as if I was some perverted bastard.
MOTOS: (Smiles) Dude, you are one perverted bastard
Yash: Motherf#$%#
MOTOS: Ok, ok, tell me what happened.
Yash: No I won’t. You are a pig. May you die a virgin!!
MOTOS: That I will anyway. Achcha tell me yaar, please.
Yash: So I was there at this wedding looking at prospective targets. Then I saw this female. She looked like an easy lay, what with her dress, and her low neck top. She was even smoking, the classic sign of a women being easy.
MOTOS: And then…
Yash: Like a man smitten, I went up to her and used my finest line
MOTOS: Ok, the “fail to notice how beautiful you look.” one
Yash: Yeah that, but then she acted as if she had heard it all her life.
MOTOS: Was she hot or something
Yash: No man, she was below average, just an easy lay nothing more
MOTOS: May be she was the intellectual types. Did you use the IIT line?
Yash: I did, nothing worked man. She even told me that being an engineer she thought I was desperate. I mean how did she know….In fact she was herself an IIT admit.
MOTOS: You’re kidding me. (Laughing) Then she must have been smart
Yash: Stop it yaar, you know girls are not smart. It’s just that she knew how to act smart. Wait I need to attend a call….
Hello…Hi Neha, I mean Sneha..Ya baby, we’re on. Ya I was missing you last night. I realized I was being a pig by not picking up your calls…yes I love you…No I am never going to cheat on you….You know how much I love you…Yes sure…Please wear that dress I brought you…yea..tht one….Baby, I need to go right now…I am in a meeting. Of course I couldn’t avoid your call. Yea see you then.. Buh Bye. I love you!
Ya dude, I am back
MOTOS: Who was it?
Yash: Yea a cranky bitch. So where was I?
MOTOS: You were telling me how the girl knows how to act smart.
Yash: Yea, so the bitch didn’t even tell me her name or her number. Can you believe it?
MOTOS: This is your true test. You’ve found your match. Find her, tell her how rich you are, how big you are, ouch I mean big hearted. Tell her that you love her. Tell her how you get 10 grands as pocket money
Yash: (sarcastically) Yea, now I need to take advice from you
MOTOS: Stop acting like you’re God’s gift to women
Yash: But I am, atleast that’s what my previous girl friends told me.
MOTOS: ok, here’s what you’ll do. You’ll find her, act all geeky and humble. Ask her to give you another chance, then take her to a small quite restaurant and get her to drink. You know the rest…
Yash: I guess I can do that, but let me first see her….This is terrible. I hate her….
Lame girl, here I come
MOTOS: All the best, by the way, if you manage to score, can I get Sneha.
Yash: You bet! Ok then dude, will see you sometime. Buh Bye!
MOTOS: Yea. HAPPY Humping.Bye!
Exeunt!
Yash takes out his Vertu mobile and starts dialing a 10 digit number
Yash: Hey dude, it’s me
Man on the other side (MOTOS): Hey Yash!
Yash: Dude, you wouldn’t believe it, I got turned down by a woman.
MOTOS: Whatttttt! You kidding me, whooo, whatt, when, how!
Yash: Stop it dude. I am feeling terrible; she mocked me as if I was some perverted bastard.
MOTOS: (Smiles) Dude, you are one perverted bastard
Yash: Motherf#$%#
MOTOS: Ok, ok, tell me what happened.
Yash: No I won’t. You are a pig. May you die a virgin!!
MOTOS: That I will anyway. Achcha tell me yaar, please.
Yash: So I was there at this wedding looking at prospective targets. Then I saw this female. She looked like an easy lay, what with her dress, and her low neck top. She was even smoking, the classic sign of a women being easy.
MOTOS: And then…
Yash: Like a man smitten, I went up to her and used my finest line
MOTOS: Ok, the “fail to notice how beautiful you look.” one
Yash: Yeah that, but then she acted as if she had heard it all her life.
MOTOS: Was she hot or something
Yash: No man, she was below average, just an easy lay nothing more
MOTOS: May be she was the intellectual types. Did you use the IIT line?
Yash: I did, nothing worked man. She even told me that being an engineer she thought I was desperate. I mean how did she know….In fact she was herself an IIT admit.
MOTOS: You’re kidding me. (Laughing) Then she must have been smart
Yash: Stop it yaar, you know girls are not smart. It’s just that she knew how to act smart. Wait I need to attend a call….
Hello…Hi Neha, I mean Sneha..Ya baby, we’re on. Ya I was missing you last night. I realized I was being a pig by not picking up your calls…yes I love you…No I am never going to cheat on you….You know how much I love you…Yes sure…Please wear that dress I brought you…yea..tht one….Baby, I need to go right now…I am in a meeting. Of course I couldn’t avoid your call. Yea see you then.. Buh Bye. I love you!
Ya dude, I am back
MOTOS: Who was it?
Yash: Yea a cranky bitch. So where was I?
MOTOS: You were telling me how the girl knows how to act smart.
Yash: Yea, so the bitch didn’t even tell me her name or her number. Can you believe it?
MOTOS: This is your true test. You’ve found your match. Find her, tell her how rich you are, how big you are, ouch I mean big hearted. Tell her that you love her. Tell her how you get 10 grands as pocket money
Yash: (sarcastically) Yea, now I need to take advice from you
MOTOS: Stop acting like you’re God’s gift to women
Yash: But I am, atleast that’s what my previous girl friends told me.
MOTOS: ok, here’s what you’ll do. You’ll find her, act all geeky and humble. Ask her to give you another chance, then take her to a small quite restaurant and get her to drink. You know the rest…
Yash: I guess I can do that, but let me first see her….This is terrible. I hate her….
Lame girl, here I come
MOTOS: All the best, by the way, if you manage to score, can I get Sneha.
Yash: You bet! Ok then dude, will see you sometime. Buh Bye!
MOTOS: Yea. HAPPY Humping.Bye!
Exeunt!
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Random Ramblings Part 2
Time: 5 years later
Scene: Hyatt Lobby
Man: Hey, aren’t you the same chick I met at the wedding 5 years back
Woman: Huh! No I am not.
Man: Don’t lie to me
Woman: I am not lying; really I am NO CHICK you met at a party
Man: Ok, I get it. I am sorry, are you the same lady I met at the party
Woman: You haven’t changed one bit. You are beyond repair and totally not worth my time. Anyway how may I help you?
Man: I am here for an interview. What brings you here?
Woman: What interview?
Man: Ah, you know I got through IIM Ahd (with characteristic smug), am here to interview for McKinsey. What about you?
Woman: I am here to interview you for McKinsey.
Man: Holy cr$%!
Woman: Well that’s a good start. I am here for a smoke. Will see you in some time, till then why don’t you comb your hair, and may be wash your face as well. You hardly look like you’ll make a good impression otherwise.
Woman exits
Man (to himself): This can’t be happening. How can she be with McKinsey? Is she playing with me? Let me check.Shit, I don’t even know her name. What should I do now? May be wash my face first.
(Rumbles) This will also pass. This will also pass
Exeunt!
Scene: Room No. 69, 20 minutes later
A smartly dressed woman is sitting. She calls the reception
Woman: Please send the next candidate in.
3 minutes later.
Man: May I come in?
Woman: Yes, please. Have a seat.
Man (Shivering): Hi, I am Yash.
Woman: Good to have you here Yash. I am Shivangi. I am an Engagement Manager with McKinsey. So let us start with your brief background.
Yash: Errr…Ummmm. My nnamme is Yash Johar, no I mean Yash Gupta. I am a ….
(To himself) I can’t do it. This can’t be happening. How can I be working under her? Lame girl, with a thick accent and no brain.
…………………….I am a team player. My biggest strengths are my team skills….. I love …………
I believe my 2 years at IIM Ahd have………………
……………………………………………
Shivangi(smiling): Ok, that was impressive. So you are a national level debater. Why don’t you speak for 2 mins on “Women make better manager than men?”
Yash: (to himself) Yes of course. Bitch!
That’s a nice topic. Let me just recollect my thoughts.
1 minute later. Ok here I go:
Women have been at the forefront………..
………………………………………….
…………………………………………
Therefore I believe women make better managers than men.
Shivangi: That was pretty convincing. Ok let us get to a case now. A case study is a critical component of our recruiting process. Case studies are descriptions of real or hypothetical business problems. Candidates are expected to understand, analyze, and recommend solutions to these problems. So are you ready?
Yash: Sure!
Shivangi: A client of ours, a small flower chain store has asked us to evaluate the potential of setting up a store, near a famous banquet hall (booked almost 200 days a year). They believe that a lot of men who attend weddings/parties look out for their prospective partners there. What factors will you consider while accepting or refuting the clients’ hypothesis?
Yash (to himself) I can’t believe her, is she trying to target me for what I did 5 years ago.
Ummm..Shivangi that’s an interesting case………………….
……………………………………………………………….
……………………………………………………………….
So I would recommend the client to reconsider his decision.
Shivangi: Well the client asked you to evaluate the potential. So there is no question of reconsidering. Anyway I guess that’s it from our side. Do you have any questions for me?
Yash: (in a trance)
Shivangi: Yashhhh. Do you have any questions for me?
Yash: Yea, sure. If I may ask. What did you do after NIFT?
Shivangi: Well nothing specific really. I worked with Ralph Lauren for 4 years and then went to HBS and finally chose to work with McKinsey.
Yash (Surprised): But weren’t you in NIFT 5 years earlier? The timelines don’t make any sense.
Shivangi: Yea..at that time I had already graduated from NIFT. Any other question?
Yash: Are you married?
Shivangi: You may go now Mr.Gupta. You will be informed of the next steps in an email. Please be patient for a few days. Thank you.
Yash: Thank you Shivangi
Exeunt!
Disclaimer: The events mentioned in the scene are fictitious. Any resemblance to real events is coincidental. McKinsey interview process may differ radically from what is mentioned in the scene.
Scene: Hyatt Lobby
Man: Hey, aren’t you the same chick I met at the wedding 5 years back
Woman: Huh! No I am not.
Man: Don’t lie to me
Woman: I am not lying; really I am NO CHICK you met at a party
Man: Ok, I get it. I am sorry, are you the same lady I met at the party
Woman: You haven’t changed one bit. You are beyond repair and totally not worth my time. Anyway how may I help you?
Man: I am here for an interview. What brings you here?
Woman: What interview?
Man: Ah, you know I got through IIM Ahd (with characteristic smug), am here to interview for McKinsey. What about you?
Woman: I am here to interview you for McKinsey.
Man: Holy cr$%!
Woman: Well that’s a good start. I am here for a smoke. Will see you in some time, till then why don’t you comb your hair, and may be wash your face as well. You hardly look like you’ll make a good impression otherwise.
Woman exits
Man (to himself): This can’t be happening. How can she be with McKinsey? Is she playing with me? Let me check.Shit, I don’t even know her name. What should I do now? May be wash my face first.
(Rumbles) This will also pass. This will also pass
Exeunt!
Scene: Room No. 69, 20 minutes later
A smartly dressed woman is sitting. She calls the reception
Woman: Please send the next candidate in.
3 minutes later.
Man: May I come in?
Woman: Yes, please. Have a seat.
Man (Shivering): Hi, I am Yash.
Woman: Good to have you here Yash. I am Shivangi. I am an Engagement Manager with McKinsey. So let us start with your brief background.
Yash: Errr…Ummmm. My nnamme is Yash Johar, no I mean Yash Gupta. I am a ….
(To himself) I can’t do it. This can’t be happening. How can I be working under her? Lame girl, with a thick accent and no brain.
…………………….I am a team player. My biggest strengths are my team skills….. I love …………
I believe my 2 years at IIM Ahd have………………
……………………………………………
Shivangi(smiling): Ok, that was impressive. So you are a national level debater. Why don’t you speak for 2 mins on “Women make better manager than men?”
Yash: (to himself) Yes of course. Bitch!
That’s a nice topic. Let me just recollect my thoughts.
1 minute later. Ok here I go:
Women have been at the forefront………..
………………………………………….
…………………………………………
Therefore I believe women make better managers than men.
Shivangi: That was pretty convincing. Ok let us get to a case now. A case study is a critical component of our recruiting process. Case studies are descriptions of real or hypothetical business problems. Candidates are expected to understand, analyze, and recommend solutions to these problems. So are you ready?
Yash: Sure!
Shivangi: A client of ours, a small flower chain store has asked us to evaluate the potential of setting up a store, near a famous banquet hall (booked almost 200 days a year). They believe that a lot of men who attend weddings/parties look out for their prospective partners there. What factors will you consider while accepting or refuting the clients’ hypothesis?
Yash (to himself) I can’t believe her, is she trying to target me for what I did 5 years ago.
Ummm..Shivangi that’s an interesting case………………….
……………………………………………………………….
……………………………………………………………….
So I would recommend the client to reconsider his decision.
Shivangi: Well the client asked you to evaluate the potential. So there is no question of reconsidering. Anyway I guess that’s it from our side. Do you have any questions for me?
Yash: (in a trance)
Shivangi: Yashhhh. Do you have any questions for me?
Yash: Yea, sure. If I may ask. What did you do after NIFT?
Shivangi: Well nothing specific really. I worked with Ralph Lauren for 4 years and then went to HBS and finally chose to work with McKinsey.
Yash (Surprised): But weren’t you in NIFT 5 years earlier? The timelines don’t make any sense.
Shivangi: Yea..at that time I had already graduated from NIFT. Any other question?
Yash: Are you married?
Shivangi: You may go now Mr.Gupta. You will be informed of the next steps in an email. Please be patient for a few days. Thank you.
Yash: Thank you Shivangi
Exeunt!
Disclaimer: The events mentioned in the scene are fictitious. Any resemblance to real events is coincidental. McKinsey interview process may differ radically from what is mentioned in the scene.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Random Ramblings
Scene: Wedding party
Man: Hi! Can’t fail to notice how beautiful you look.
Woman: Do I know you?
Man: Well, even if you didn’t it wouldn’t change your beauty.
Woman: Ya, I know guys like you. Nice try.
Man: Hey hang on; see I know you are getting bored. Let’s have a harmless conversation. Please don’t run away from me as if I am one psychotic dude. You can check my background; I come from an honorable family.
Woman: (Laughs), Alright. But I have a few conditions. You will not ask me my name, and you will not even try to get my number. Deal?
Man: Deal. You are one hard nut to crack. Anyway so what do you do?
Woman: Well, I am into fashion designing.
Man: Ah! Classic, you know I have always wondered that women who are into fashion would make the best combination with engineers like me
Woman: Too bad, I think the opposite. So you are an engineer (sarcastically)
Man: Yeah and this is bad because…?
Woman: Quite clearly you would be desperate. Desperate for attention, desperate for women, and generally money and stuff
Man: Wow, some opinion yaa..Well can’t blame you…It’s easy to judge..! But I still maintain my stance.
Woman: (ignoring) Anyway which college
Man: (as if waiting for the question) IIT Delhi
Woman: Hmm…you think that you are quite smart don’t you?
Man: Well not really. Why would you say that?
Woman: Could get it from the smugness in your face when you answered my question. Anyway I got admitted into IIT, but a change of heart took me to NIFT.
Man: (Surprised) Wow!!!
Woman: Anyway, cut it. What do you do in your free time except hitting on girls?
Man: Umm…I just don’t do anything. Just sit and relax!
Woman: Don’t you get bored?
Man: I love myself too much to get bored in my own company.
Woman: You know, you remind me of my ex-boy friend. I hated that guy!
Man: Ah! Joker. Good one
Woman: No I mean it!
Man: You know throughout the conversation, you did not leave one opportunity to put me down. But strangely enough, I am loving every moment of it!
Woman: Yea, I can understand, engineers and desperation go hand in hand. OK, tell me your count?
Man: Count?
Woman: How many women have you slept with?
Man: (Surprised) And that is important because?
Woman: Generally..
Man: Well if you must know I am a recycled virgin
Woman: Recycled virgin, and what is this supposed to mean?
Man: I mean, I believe virginity can be cured; you just need to understand the symptoms.
Woman: You know I can’t believe that I am even talking to you, you are so not my type
Man: And what is your type
Woman: For starters, he has to be unpretentious.
Man: Haha..I have got to know you better…I have never been so humiliated in my life..you give me a challenge, and I am loving it.
Woman: I am not your Mt. Everest Mr. I am leaving, I guess I have had enough of you
Man: Don’t go
Woman: Sorry but I need to
Man: Could you at least tell me your name, or give me your number
Woman: You’ve forgotten the deal.
Man: Ok, please grant me this: If I meet you again somewhere, some other day, you will talk to me.
Woman: Granted. Take care, and please be yourself!
Man: I will!
Woman exits..
Man (to himself): I love this girl. If only I could meet her again.!
Exeunt!
Man: Hi! Can’t fail to notice how beautiful you look.
Woman: Do I know you?
Man: Well, even if you didn’t it wouldn’t change your beauty.
Woman: Ya, I know guys like you. Nice try.
Man: Hey hang on; see I know you are getting bored. Let’s have a harmless conversation. Please don’t run away from me as if I am one psychotic dude. You can check my background; I come from an honorable family.
Woman: (Laughs), Alright. But I have a few conditions. You will not ask me my name, and you will not even try to get my number. Deal?
Man: Deal. You are one hard nut to crack. Anyway so what do you do?
Woman: Well, I am into fashion designing.
Man: Ah! Classic, you know I have always wondered that women who are into fashion would make the best combination with engineers like me
Woman: Too bad, I think the opposite. So you are an engineer (sarcastically)
Man: Yeah and this is bad because…?
Woman: Quite clearly you would be desperate. Desperate for attention, desperate for women, and generally money and stuff
Man: Wow, some opinion yaa..Well can’t blame you…It’s easy to judge..! But I still maintain my stance.
Woman: (ignoring) Anyway which college
Man: (as if waiting for the question) IIT Delhi
Woman: Hmm…you think that you are quite smart don’t you?
Man: Well not really. Why would you say that?
Woman: Could get it from the smugness in your face when you answered my question. Anyway I got admitted into IIT, but a change of heart took me to NIFT.
Man: (Surprised) Wow!!!
Woman: Anyway, cut it. What do you do in your free time except hitting on girls?
Man: Umm…I just don’t do anything. Just sit and relax!
Woman: Don’t you get bored?
Man: I love myself too much to get bored in my own company.
Woman: You know, you remind me of my ex-boy friend. I hated that guy!
Man: Ah! Joker. Good one
Woman: No I mean it!
Man: You know throughout the conversation, you did not leave one opportunity to put me down. But strangely enough, I am loving every moment of it!
Woman: Yea, I can understand, engineers and desperation go hand in hand. OK, tell me your count?
Man: Count?
Woman: How many women have you slept with?
Man: (Surprised) And that is important because?
Woman: Generally..
Man: Well if you must know I am a recycled virgin
Woman: Recycled virgin, and what is this supposed to mean?
Man: I mean, I believe virginity can be cured; you just need to understand the symptoms.
Woman: You know I can’t believe that I am even talking to you, you are so not my type
Man: And what is your type
Woman: For starters, he has to be unpretentious.
Man: Haha..I have got to know you better…I have never been so humiliated in my life..you give me a challenge, and I am loving it.
Woman: I am not your Mt. Everest Mr. I am leaving, I guess I have had enough of you
Man: Don’t go
Woman: Sorry but I need to
Man: Could you at least tell me your name, or give me your number
Woman: You’ve forgotten the deal.
Man: Ok, please grant me this: If I meet you again somewhere, some other day, you will talk to me.
Woman: Granted. Take care, and please be yourself!
Man: I will!
Woman exits..
Man (to himself): I love this girl. If only I could meet her again.!
Exeunt!
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Dev OD'ed
Well Not Really! I have always held Anurag Kashyap in very high regard for his visual flair, choice of subject and conceptualization. Somehow between the abstract one could see the man's intelligence, his clarity. His problem, as is with such individuals is ‘hubris’. Somewhere he loses it; over indulging where subtle would have been the best. Yet there is something about him, which tells me he'd be remembered for his cinema.
I have a habit of watching a movie for the merit of its director, so a Tarantino film always merits a watch, a Nikhil Advani film is always a convenient avoid. This rule though changes with Abhay Deol; he is the only current actor who has an amazing knack of picking up different scripts. Scripts that might not please the pundits, but almost always find a cult following. So I set out to watch Dev D for two reasons, Abhay Deol and Anurag Kashyap, two minutes into the movie I found a third. Ladies and gentleman let's put our hands together for the most killer soundtrack in ages. Amit Trivedi has used exceptional creativity in composing music that merges seamlessly with the narrative. There were times when the characters were quite and one could still decipher what was going in their heads. That’s the power of music. Full marks to Anurag Kashyap for cleverly using the 18 tracks very intelligently for character and the story development.
Anyway back to the story, Dev D is a modern interpretation of the novel Devdas, but in a lot of ways it is completely its antithesis. In Dev D the characters are not black or white, the situations are not melodramatic and the tragedy is not tear-inducing. Here life’s a bitch and characters are ‘sluts’. You can see Dev making out with a chick before getting worked up on Paro’s supposed affair with another man. Here Paro is an all abusing female, not ready to take shit from anyone. She is not crying but gyrating on her wedding. Here ‘Chanda’ can speak English in an accent and can turn on a man with her voice. Here Dev uses sex to get over Paro and most interestingly one never gets to know whether Dev truly loves Paro or was he pushed into depression because he thought someone else would ‘do her’ and not him.
Dev D takes Devdas and turns it head on. Especially interesting is the fact that assuming that Dev and Paro would have wanted to get married, there would have been no family opposition. In fact Dev’s father wanted Paro to get married to Dev. Anurag Kashyap cleverly changes the story line to make it a tragedy of the situation rather than the characters. It’s here that he develops pathos. When Paro questions Dev’s manliness, you cringe, cos you understand how it would hit a man’s ego. When Dev enters the brothel you see ‘Maar Daala’ playing on the television. Dev D is about such in-jokes.
Performance wise Abhay Deol has enacted the role quite well, save for certain scenes where he tries too hard. Mahi Gill is exceptional as Paro, while Kalki Koechlin looks very much the character she is portraying.
The only portion which disappointed me was the ending, which looked too rushed and too forced. It kind of killed the built-up to the climax. Even though I liked the positive ending, it did not look too convincing. Leave that aside and Dev D rocks. It is an extremely visceral experience, filled with humor and characters true to life. When one of the side-kicks asks Dev ‘iski abhi tak nahi li aapne sir’, a friend quietly chuckled, probably reminiscing the last time he asked someone a similar question!
I have a habit of watching a movie for the merit of its director, so a Tarantino film always merits a watch, a Nikhil Advani film is always a convenient avoid. This rule though changes with Abhay Deol; he is the only current actor who has an amazing knack of picking up different scripts. Scripts that might not please the pundits, but almost always find a cult following. So I set out to watch Dev D for two reasons, Abhay Deol and Anurag Kashyap, two minutes into the movie I found a third. Ladies and gentleman let's put our hands together for the most killer soundtrack in ages. Amit Trivedi has used exceptional creativity in composing music that merges seamlessly with the narrative. There were times when the characters were quite and one could still decipher what was going in their heads. That’s the power of music. Full marks to Anurag Kashyap for cleverly using the 18 tracks very intelligently for character and the story development.
Anyway back to the story, Dev D is a modern interpretation of the novel Devdas, but in a lot of ways it is completely its antithesis. In Dev D the characters are not black or white, the situations are not melodramatic and the tragedy is not tear-inducing. Here life’s a bitch and characters are ‘sluts’. You can see Dev making out with a chick before getting worked up on Paro’s supposed affair with another man. Here Paro is an all abusing female, not ready to take shit from anyone. She is not crying but gyrating on her wedding. Here ‘Chanda’ can speak English in an accent and can turn on a man with her voice. Here Dev uses sex to get over Paro and most interestingly one never gets to know whether Dev truly loves Paro or was he pushed into depression because he thought someone else would ‘do her’ and not him.
Dev D takes Devdas and turns it head on. Especially interesting is the fact that assuming that Dev and Paro would have wanted to get married, there would have been no family opposition. In fact Dev’s father wanted Paro to get married to Dev. Anurag Kashyap cleverly changes the story line to make it a tragedy of the situation rather than the characters. It’s here that he develops pathos. When Paro questions Dev’s manliness, you cringe, cos you understand how it would hit a man’s ego. When Dev enters the brothel you see ‘Maar Daala’ playing on the television. Dev D is about such in-jokes.
Performance wise Abhay Deol has enacted the role quite well, save for certain scenes where he tries too hard. Mahi Gill is exceptional as Paro, while Kalki Koechlin looks very much the character she is portraying.
The only portion which disappointed me was the ending, which looked too rushed and too forced. It kind of killed the built-up to the climax. Even though I liked the positive ending, it did not look too convincing. Leave that aside and Dev D rocks. It is an extremely visceral experience, filled with humor and characters true to life. When one of the side-kicks asks Dev ‘iski abhi tak nahi li aapne sir’, a friend quietly chuckled, probably reminiscing the last time he asked someone a similar question!
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Leave Memento alone: Hai Guzarish!
The worst mistake you can do while watching Gajini is to compare it to Memento. It would be as asinine as comparing Sholay to The Seven Samurai. Yes the movie is inspired but it has its own soul to make comparison mindless and a futile exercise in general.
Gajini is a revenge drama with dollops of violence thrown in and some light moments intercepting the non-linear narrative. For a revenge drama to appeal, it is important that the lead character can make the audience feel empathetic to his/her crisis. This can be achieved through a mix of great acting, a ghastly villain, some truly spine-chilling moments and a touch of irony. This is where Kill-Bill made its mark. Gajini does falter on a few parameters, but has enough meat to keep it going for three hours.
Sanjay Singhania is a businessman with dreams in his eyes and heart in his head. A twist in the tale introduces him to the lovely Kalpana. Alas it was not meant to be and she is savagely murdered, while Sanjay is brutally hit on his head trying to save her. Though he survives the blow, he contracts a typical condition called anterograde amnesia short-term memory loss, where he cannot remember anything for more than 15 minutes. How Sanjay gets his revenge with the handicap forms the crux of the movie.
There have been a lot of negative reviews about the movie being over-the-top and masala in its approach. How I see it is, that Aamir Khan was due for a movie which was over-the-top and mad-cap like Andaz Apna Apna. The fine actor in him refused to play a character which he has done before, so he chose to do something which he has never done before. Play a Sunny Deol and more convincingly at that. You can see the actor in him genuinely having a ball. He punches, he gyrates, then he punches some more and then he gyrates some more. The point I am trying to make is that there are certain movies, which are beyond reviews because simply they are expected to be blockbusters. Where you are expected to whistle every time the hero makes an entry, where you enjoy his punches without questioning the logic. And before we talk of expectations which we have from Aamir Khan, the actor, let me tell you that every actor deserves this kind of fun. Amitabh Bachchan did it in Amar Akbar Anthony, Agnipath, Shaan and numerous movies. And we loved it. He fought crocodiles, killed tigers and we looked in awe. The challenge here is not whether a human can do it but it is whether Mr. Bachchan can make us believe that he could do it. And this is where I feel Aamir Khan did really well. So when he punches a guy and his face turned 3600 , I believed in it, reveled in the action and looked in awe. Call me stupid, moron, but there where atleast 150 odd people in the audience who felt the same. I heard no laughter, no chuckles.
Anyway I had a lot of fun watching the movie simply because I didn’t carry the baggage, that some of us might have.
And yes, as I said initially as well, the movie has its flaws, there are a lot of inconsistencies in the movie. I choose to ignore them simply because I see no point in nitpicking when I got my hour’s worth.
So my final verdict is, if you can just sit back and not question every scene, you’ll have fun, because Aamir Khan has carried the movie very well on his shoulder. But if you would want to analyze every scene, question every character and actions, it would be in your best interest to steer clear of Gajini and pick up a DVD of Memento. This is NOT an intelligent movie. This is Aamir Khan genuinely having fun. And this is what he wants us to do as well!
Gajini is a revenge drama with dollops of violence thrown in and some light moments intercepting the non-linear narrative. For a revenge drama to appeal, it is important that the lead character can make the audience feel empathetic to his/her crisis. This can be achieved through a mix of great acting, a ghastly villain, some truly spine-chilling moments and a touch of irony. This is where Kill-Bill made its mark. Gajini does falter on a few parameters, but has enough meat to keep it going for three hours.
Sanjay Singhania is a businessman with dreams in his eyes and heart in his head. A twist in the tale introduces him to the lovely Kalpana. Alas it was not meant to be and she is savagely murdered, while Sanjay is brutally hit on his head trying to save her. Though he survives the blow, he contracts a typical condition called anterograde amnesia short-term memory loss, where he cannot remember anything for more than 15 minutes. How Sanjay gets his revenge with the handicap forms the crux of the movie.
There have been a lot of negative reviews about the movie being over-the-top and masala in its approach. How I see it is, that Aamir Khan was due for a movie which was over-the-top and mad-cap like Andaz Apna Apna. The fine actor in him refused to play a character which he has done before, so he chose to do something which he has never done before. Play a Sunny Deol and more convincingly at that. You can see the actor in him genuinely having a ball. He punches, he gyrates, then he punches some more and then he gyrates some more. The point I am trying to make is that there are certain movies, which are beyond reviews because simply they are expected to be blockbusters. Where you are expected to whistle every time the hero makes an entry, where you enjoy his punches without questioning the logic. And before we talk of expectations which we have from Aamir Khan, the actor, let me tell you that every actor deserves this kind of fun. Amitabh Bachchan did it in Amar Akbar Anthony, Agnipath, Shaan and numerous movies. And we loved it. He fought crocodiles, killed tigers and we looked in awe. The challenge here is not whether a human can do it but it is whether Mr. Bachchan can make us believe that he could do it. And this is where I feel Aamir Khan did really well. So when he punches a guy and his face turned 3600 , I believed in it, reveled in the action and looked in awe. Call me stupid, moron, but there where atleast 150 odd people in the audience who felt the same. I heard no laughter, no chuckles.
Anyway I had a lot of fun watching the movie simply because I didn’t carry the baggage, that some of us might have.
And yes, as I said initially as well, the movie has its flaws, there are a lot of inconsistencies in the movie. I choose to ignore them simply because I see no point in nitpicking when I got my hour’s worth.
So my final verdict is, if you can just sit back and not question every scene, you’ll have fun, because Aamir Khan has carried the movie very well on his shoulder. But if you would want to analyze every scene, question every character and actions, it would be in your best interest to steer clear of Gajini and pick up a DVD of Memento. This is NOT an intelligent movie. This is Aamir Khan genuinely having fun. And this is what he wants us to do as well!
Monday, December 22, 2008
Almost Famous!
It’s that time of the year again. The time to evaluate the year gone by and wait in anticipation of the coming year. As I sat down to complete the meaningless exercise, I realized this was not a normal year. I just turned 25 this year, a quarter of a century, and from what I experienced this time passed in ‘no time’. It is then my mind realized the importance of the day; the frightful day.
This is a particularly frightful day that comes in the life of everyone of us. The day when we realize than potentially everyone who is famous is younger than us. It is that day it dawns upon us that life might become frightfully common for us. The acceptance speeches that we had prepared for the Grammys, the Oscar, the carefully maintained shelf we kept for all the Man of the Match awards all bite the dust, and we woefully start the preparation for a quite journey ahead. The journey where everyday would be the same, the day where the similar faces would surround us for the rest of our lives. We would get up at 7:30 in the morning, our wives would serve us coffee (which would be too hot or too cold for consumption), we would enter the bathroom only to realize that the geyser is still to be repaired and would finally ramp up the morning proceedings with a light breakfast; a breakfast full of nutrients to prolong our ‘wonderful life’ to eternity. The day would be full of files and reports; quietly laughing at us; after-all they never took themselves as seriously as we did. Finally after a day full of keyboard punches and random ramblings, we will reach home en-route cursing traffic nineteen to the dozen. Oh! I almost forgot the vegetables. Anyway once we’d reach home, we’ll look at our wife, throw a painful smile at her and before we can even sit, Mr. Sharma from the neighborhood would come and complain about our wonder kid who has slapped his son. After flipping the zillion channels endlessly for an hour, we’d head to the place where we’ll lie motionless for the last 1/3rd of the day.
Wow! I just defined the most horrible life I can ever think of living. The life, where we wait for the weekdays to speed, endlessly enduring Mondays through Fridays, just for the prized weekend. The weekend, which of-course would be spent worrying about the looming Monday.
But before I could put my pen down in frustration, my mind conjured up the images of an everyday man saving the life of 10 odd people in The Taj. Extraordinary, methinks comes in an ordinary package. Perhaps, life gives everyone a chance to break the ordinary, to perform the divine duty that we ought to perform, if only we would dig deeper into ourselves. Perhaps, we in the garb of the ‘Common-man’ can still break the shackles and redeem ourselves. May be we don’t need the media to tell us that we are extraordinary. A quarter of century can never summarize one life. Still a long journey to cover, still a long life to live.
May be there is another achievement in the pipeline. Nobel Prize anyone!
This is a particularly frightful day that comes in the life of everyone of us. The day when we realize than potentially everyone who is famous is younger than us. It is that day it dawns upon us that life might become frightfully common for us. The acceptance speeches that we had prepared for the Grammys, the Oscar, the carefully maintained shelf we kept for all the Man of the Match awards all bite the dust, and we woefully start the preparation for a quite journey ahead. The journey where everyday would be the same, the day where the similar faces would surround us for the rest of our lives. We would get up at 7:30 in the morning, our wives would serve us coffee (which would be too hot or too cold for consumption), we would enter the bathroom only to realize that the geyser is still to be repaired and would finally ramp up the morning proceedings with a light breakfast; a breakfast full of nutrients to prolong our ‘wonderful life’ to eternity. The day would be full of files and reports; quietly laughing at us; after-all they never took themselves as seriously as we did. Finally after a day full of keyboard punches and random ramblings, we will reach home en-route cursing traffic nineteen to the dozen. Oh! I almost forgot the vegetables. Anyway once we’d reach home, we’ll look at our wife, throw a painful smile at her and before we can even sit, Mr. Sharma from the neighborhood would come and complain about our wonder kid who has slapped his son. After flipping the zillion channels endlessly for an hour, we’d head to the place where we’ll lie motionless for the last 1/3rd of the day.
Wow! I just defined the most horrible life I can ever think of living. The life, where we wait for the weekdays to speed, endlessly enduring Mondays through Fridays, just for the prized weekend. The weekend, which of-course would be spent worrying about the looming Monday.
But before I could put my pen down in frustration, my mind conjured up the images of an everyday man saving the life of 10 odd people in The Taj. Extraordinary, methinks comes in an ordinary package. Perhaps, life gives everyone a chance to break the ordinary, to perform the divine duty that we ought to perform, if only we would dig deeper into ourselves. Perhaps, we in the garb of the ‘Common-man’ can still break the shackles and redeem ourselves. May be we don’t need the media to tell us that we are extraordinary. A quarter of century can never summarize one life. Still a long journey to cover, still a long life to live.
May be there is another achievement in the pipeline. Nobel Prize anyone!
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