How did I get into the world? Why was I not asked about it, why was I not informed of the rules and regulations but just thrust into the ranks as if I had been bought by a peddling shanghaier of human beings? How did I get involved in this big enterprise called actuality? Why should I be involved? Isn't it a matter of choice? And if I am compelled to be involved, where is the manager—I have something to say about this. Is there no manager? To whom shall I make my complaint?
taken from the book, Repetition, Kierkegaard's literary character Young Man laments..
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Life in a Metro - My views...
That modern India has become mature enough to make and positively accept movies that are a reflection of the current state of society has come as a pleasant surprise to me.
Yes, movies like Mother India and Zanjeer did depict the malaise that was prevailing in India at that time. But that was yesteryear. Movies like these have been few and far in between – Rang De Basanti being the most recent example.
Being such an integral part of the “metro” culture, it was possible for me to understand the characters pretty well – and I felt that given such a huge starcast, the director did an excellent job of etching the characters, played by an exceptionally talented star cast - Irrfan Khan and Kay Kay being the obvious standouts. Sherman Joshi was also given reasonable screen time to prove himself yet again. Need I mention Konkana Sen? She, Irrfan Khan and Kay Kay have become brands of quality cinema in India. Shiney was superb too…I only wish he starts doing roles which showed other sides of his acting skills. He seems to be stuck in the I-am-always-so-screwed-in-life roles.
The music is excellent and the way the band (Pritam) keeps appearing sporadically throughout the film is very stylish and entertaining. Someone mentioned that this was inspired by Woody Allen movies. Maybe, but this is inspiration in a very positive way. The camera work was decent, but then such films are not made with an emphasis on cinematography. One of the critical success factors of such multi-story movies is the editing. And full marks to this film for this. The editing was extremely crisp and the stories were seamlessly bound together.
But let me to cut to the chase (whew!), the film shows what’s happening in metro India – infidelity being the most pervasive theme throughout the film. It’s not as if infidelity is a new phenomenon, but yes I tend to think that current lifestyles make it easier, which is alos what the fim implicitly shows - the heavy workloads and crazy ambitions are causing people to enter a vicious cycle where people spend more time at their workplaces, and lesser quality time at home, disrutping their relationships and making them look for other avenues...
The film ends on a happy-happy note – but let’s not kid ourselves; do relationships in real life necessarily see the light at the end of a dark, tumultuous tunnel? You take the call!
Yes, movies like Mother India and Zanjeer did depict the malaise that was prevailing in India at that time. But that was yesteryear. Movies like these have been few and far in between – Rang De Basanti being the most recent example.
Being such an integral part of the “metro” culture, it was possible for me to understand the characters pretty well – and I felt that given such a huge starcast, the director did an excellent job of etching the characters, played by an exceptionally talented star cast - Irrfan Khan and Kay Kay being the obvious standouts. Sherman Joshi was also given reasonable screen time to prove himself yet again. Need I mention Konkana Sen? She, Irrfan Khan and Kay Kay have become brands of quality cinema in India. Shiney was superb too…I only wish he starts doing roles which showed other sides of his acting skills. He seems to be stuck in the I-am-always-so-screwed-in-life roles.
The music is excellent and the way the band (Pritam) keeps appearing sporadically throughout the film is very stylish and entertaining. Someone mentioned that this was inspired by Woody Allen movies. Maybe, but this is inspiration in a very positive way. The camera work was decent, but then such films are not made with an emphasis on cinematography. One of the critical success factors of such multi-story movies is the editing. And full marks to this film for this. The editing was extremely crisp and the stories were seamlessly bound together.
But let me to cut to the chase (whew!), the film shows what’s happening in metro India – infidelity being the most pervasive theme throughout the film. It’s not as if infidelity is a new phenomenon, but yes I tend to think that current lifestyles make it easier, which is alos what the fim implicitly shows - the heavy workloads and crazy ambitions are causing people to enter a vicious cycle where people spend more time at their workplaces, and lesser quality time at home, disrutping their relationships and making them look for other avenues...
The film ends on a happy-happy note – but let’s not kid ourselves; do relationships in real life necessarily see the light at the end of a dark, tumultuous tunnel? You take the call!
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Working Class Hero
Note: I came across this poem on a blog of my friend Mr. Jindal (http://zombieworld.blogspot.com/)
Had to put it on mine too...
A tribute to the working class hero by the one and only Johnny Lenon!
As soon as you're born they make you feel small
By giving you no time instead of it all
Till the pain is so big you feel nothing at all
A working class hero is something to be
They hurt you at home and they hit you at school
They hate you if you're clever and they despise a fool
Till you're so fucking crazy you can't follow their rules
A working class hero is something to be
When they've tortured and scared you for twenty-odd years
Then they expect you to pick a career
When you can't really function you're so full of fear
A working class hero is something to
Keep you doped with religion and sex and TV
And you think you're so clever and classless and free
But you're still fucking peasants as far as I can see
A working class hero is something to be
There's room at the top they're telling you still
But first you must learn how to smile as you kill
If you want to be like the folks on the hill
A working class hero is something to be
If you want to be a hero well just follow me
Had to put it on mine too...
A tribute to the working class hero by the one and only Johnny Lenon!
As soon as you're born they make you feel small
By giving you no time instead of it all
Till the pain is so big you feel nothing at all
A working class hero is something to be
They hurt you at home and they hit you at school
They hate you if you're clever and they despise a fool
Till you're so fucking crazy you can't follow their rules
A working class hero is something to be
When they've tortured and scared you for twenty-odd years
Then they expect you to pick a career
When you can't really function you're so full of fear
A working class hero is something to
Keep you doped with religion and sex and TV
And you think you're so clever and classless and free
But you're still fucking peasants as far as I can see
A working class hero is something to be
There's room at the top they're telling you still
But first you must learn how to smile as you kill
If you want to be like the folks on the hill
A working class hero is something to be
If you want to be a hero well just follow me
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