The Test Series is done and dusted with India losing its number-one ranking. No bones about it but India was outplayed in all departments by England. The Enforcer - Stuart Broad and Ian Bell with his great knocks ensured that whenever India had a slight edge, the edge would blunt and rust.
India won all three of its practice matches courtesy some good knocks by the young ones in the team.
The single T:20 tomorrow may swing either way. With the list of injured players in the Indian team going up like the price of gold in the international market it needs to be seen how the team manages to perform in the ODIs.
Varun Aaron India's fastest bowler comes in with a lot of hype, not sure how much pace he will generate. Praveen Kumar and Vinay Kumar together with R.Ashwin hold the key.
Let us see how the matches progress.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Tuesday, August 02, 2011
Wake-up call for DHoni & Co
A familiar sight of the team crumbling and Sachin waging a lone battle. Indian bowlers being hammered all around the park the last two test matched in England have been like a rude flashback from the 1990s.
Unless some drastic measures are taken and a few 'made it large' players are dropped, there is no hope for victory.
Assuming Viru is back for the next test, expecting him to fire right away will be foolish.
Let us see what happens!
Unless some drastic measures are taken and a few 'made it large' players are dropped, there is no hope for victory.
Assuming Viru is back for the next test, expecting him to fire right away will be foolish.
Let us see what happens!
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Quick Movie Reviews
Three Kings – Malayalam
A multi-starrer comedy with Jayasurya, Kunchako Boban, Jayasurya, Ann Augustine (the new heart-throb of Kerala), Samvrutha Sunil and ‘Kaadhal’Sandhya who needs a new costumer desperately. She looks hideous in some sequences, don’t know what happened to the young and innocent school-girl who fell in love with Bharath in ‘Kaadhal.’
The movie is about three cousins of a royal family who are on hard times. One is an aspiring cricketer, the other a reality-show participant and the third one an actor. The ‘Paara’ song that keeps playing in the background when each brother tries to foil the others plans to become rich is funny and foot-tapping. The movie ends in a treasure search/reality show. Watch the movie to find out if the ‘paaras’ get the girls. This is one movie were each heroine tries to be dumber than the other-Samvrutha is a mega-serial maniac, Sandhya is besotted by Indrajith and Ann keeps asking stupid questions?
Verdict - Time-pass no brainer for the masses!
Arjunan Sakshi – Arjunan – The Witness – Malayalam
Passenger was a surprise super-hit with a great script. The director’s sophomore offering does not disappoint as a case of mistaken identity and assumed identity are brought out well by Prithviraj who plays an architect who lands in Kochi to take a new job. He is mistaken to be Arjunan the lone witness to the former collector of Kochi (Mukesh’s) murder. Ann Augustine plays a reporter with ‘Mathrubhumi’ who receives the anonymous letter from Arjunan. The story progresses well with the mystery behind the murder linked to the scrapped Kochi Metro Rail project. A bit-overboard with the hero unmasking the villains, but it is more believable when one hero overpowers four villains instead of one hero bashing up 20 villains with flying kicks and CGI.
Verdict – Good script, mystery element runs for a while! Prithvi on his way to challenge the superstars.
Janapriyan – Man of the Masses/Man loved by All – Malayalam
With its heart in the right place a feel-good movie starring Jayasurya, Remya Nambeesan and Manoj K Jayan. Manoj plays a director who keeps trying to get Jagathy to finance his movies with half-bakes scripts and is on perennial leave from his government job. Jayasurya comes in as his replacement and wins hearts of everyone including Remya’s who is the rich man’s daughter fooling Jayasurya as a housemaid Complications arise when Manoj accepts failure and wants to return to his job. Jayasurya starts writing a new script and persuades Jagathy to produce a movie. Rifts arise between Manoj and Jayasurya through Jagathy’s offer to make Jayasurya the director. All things are sorted out at the end and everyone goes home happy.
Verdict – Feel-good movie, simple comedy scenes. Jayasurya still in hunt of that one career-defining blockbuster!
The Velveteen Rabbit – English
The simple joy of discovering a great movie that one has never heard of before from the usual bunch of ‘hit-movies’ is something that cannot be explained easily. Velveteen Rabbit is based on a popular children’s story. It is about the fable of a love that a child has for toys, which brings the toys to life. Directed by Michael Landon and a mix of animation and real cinema. The story narrates how a young boy is left at his grandmother’s (played by Jane Seymour – The Bond girl in Live and Let Die). Grandmom looks elegant and some ladies do age with grace! The child longs for love as his mother is dead and his father too busy to bother. The boy discovers his father’s old toys in the attic and chances upon a velveteen rabbit. The boy creates his own fantasy world with the rabbit, a swan and an old horse. His grandmother also softens and bestows her affection on him.
The boy falls ill with scarlet fever and the doctor orders all old clothes and toys to be burnt. The boy tries to save his beloved rabbit but of no avail as his father bundles all the old clothes and the rabbit in a bonfire. As the flames build slowly, surprise of surprises the old fable comes true as the velveteen rabbit comes to life and runs into the wild.
Verdict – Love makes all things true and everyone deserves our love – A truly lovely movie made with great skill and passion a must-watch for both kids and adults.
X-Men First Class - English
Based on the Cuban missile crisis the X-Men series goes back to the story of how the popular mutants joined together and how the good and the bad mutants were polarised against each other! Magneto and the Professor and how their rivalry began!
Verdict - CGI – CGI and more CGI!!!!!
Fire of Conscience – Mandarin
A cop who is lost his wife and mourning her death, another cop who has something shady on, a prostitute who is dead, a robbery, a terrorist outfit who plan bombings, 100 kgs of cocaine confiscated by the police, an innocent man whose pregnant wife is kidnapped; all these threads merge into a fitting climax. Chases, shootouts, interrogation scenes, bomb-blasts and fights – all there!
Verdict – Enough potential for someone in Bollywood to rip it with an item song by Munni, Sheila or Jalebi Bai:)
A multi-starrer comedy with Jayasurya, Kunchako Boban, Jayasurya, Ann Augustine (the new heart-throb of Kerala), Samvrutha Sunil and ‘Kaadhal’Sandhya who needs a new costumer desperately. She looks hideous in some sequences, don’t know what happened to the young and innocent school-girl who fell in love with Bharath in ‘Kaadhal.’
The movie is about three cousins of a royal family who are on hard times. One is an aspiring cricketer, the other a reality-show participant and the third one an actor. The ‘Paara’ song that keeps playing in the background when each brother tries to foil the others plans to become rich is funny and foot-tapping. The movie ends in a treasure search/reality show. Watch the movie to find out if the ‘paaras’ get the girls. This is one movie were each heroine tries to be dumber than the other-Samvrutha is a mega-serial maniac, Sandhya is besotted by Indrajith and Ann keeps asking stupid questions?
Verdict - Time-pass no brainer for the masses!
Arjunan Sakshi – Arjunan – The Witness – Malayalam
Passenger was a surprise super-hit with a great script. The director’s sophomore offering does not disappoint as a case of mistaken identity and assumed identity are brought out well by Prithviraj who plays an architect who lands in Kochi to take a new job. He is mistaken to be Arjunan the lone witness to the former collector of Kochi (Mukesh’s) murder. Ann Augustine plays a reporter with ‘Mathrubhumi’ who receives the anonymous letter from Arjunan. The story progresses well with the mystery behind the murder linked to the scrapped Kochi Metro Rail project. A bit-overboard with the hero unmasking the villains, but it is more believable when one hero overpowers four villains instead of one hero bashing up 20 villains with flying kicks and CGI.
Verdict – Good script, mystery element runs for a while! Prithvi on his way to challenge the superstars.
Janapriyan – Man of the Masses/Man loved by All – Malayalam
With its heart in the right place a feel-good movie starring Jayasurya, Remya Nambeesan and Manoj K Jayan. Manoj plays a director who keeps trying to get Jagathy to finance his movies with half-bakes scripts and is on perennial leave from his government job. Jayasurya comes in as his replacement and wins hearts of everyone including Remya’s who is the rich man’s daughter fooling Jayasurya as a housemaid Complications arise when Manoj accepts failure and wants to return to his job. Jayasurya starts writing a new script and persuades Jagathy to produce a movie. Rifts arise between Manoj and Jayasurya through Jagathy’s offer to make Jayasurya the director. All things are sorted out at the end and everyone goes home happy.
Verdict – Feel-good movie, simple comedy scenes. Jayasurya still in hunt of that one career-defining blockbuster!
The Velveteen Rabbit – English
The simple joy of discovering a great movie that one has never heard of before from the usual bunch of ‘hit-movies’ is something that cannot be explained easily. Velveteen Rabbit is based on a popular children’s story. It is about the fable of a love that a child has for toys, which brings the toys to life. Directed by Michael Landon and a mix of animation and real cinema. The story narrates how a young boy is left at his grandmother’s (played by Jane Seymour – The Bond girl in Live and Let Die). Grandmom looks elegant and some ladies do age with grace! The child longs for love as his mother is dead and his father too busy to bother. The boy discovers his father’s old toys in the attic and chances upon a velveteen rabbit. The boy creates his own fantasy world with the rabbit, a swan and an old horse. His grandmother also softens and bestows her affection on him.
The boy falls ill with scarlet fever and the doctor orders all old clothes and toys to be burnt. The boy tries to save his beloved rabbit but of no avail as his father bundles all the old clothes and the rabbit in a bonfire. As the flames build slowly, surprise of surprises the old fable comes true as the velveteen rabbit comes to life and runs into the wild.
Verdict – Love makes all things true and everyone deserves our love – A truly lovely movie made with great skill and passion a must-watch for both kids and adults.
X-Men First Class - English
Based on the Cuban missile crisis the X-Men series goes back to the story of how the popular mutants joined together and how the good and the bad mutants were polarised against each other! Magneto and the Professor and how their rivalry began!
Verdict - CGI – CGI and more CGI!!!!!
Fire of Conscience – Mandarin
A cop who is lost his wife and mourning her death, another cop who has something shady on, a prostitute who is dead, a robbery, a terrorist outfit who plan bombings, 100 kgs of cocaine confiscated by the police, an innocent man whose pregnant wife is kidnapped; all these threads merge into a fitting climax. Chases, shootouts, interrogation scenes, bomb-blasts and fights – all there!
Verdict – Enough potential for someone in Bollywood to rip it with an item song by Munni, Sheila or Jalebi Bai:)
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Terror Strikes Again
Yet another series of bomb blasts,some more innocent lives lost, yet another round of blame games between police, security agencies, state and central governments. Television channels going mad with the same sickening visuals of death, destruction, blood and media-persons shouting themselves hoarse about Islam, RSS, terrorists, Pakistan... Is there no end to this? When we all know very clearly who the damn villain in the piece is? Pakistan!
Cannot the Indian government take a firm stand and hang the sole terrorist Kasab who was captured during the horrifying attacks in Mumbai orchestrated by Pakistan. Is the government so ashamed and impotent that it continues to treat terrorists with food, shelter and clothing in a high-security prison on tax-payers money.
When are we going to take a stand about anything at all?
As innocent lives are lost, a section of the country only worries about aging superstars, pregnant movie divas and why Dhoni did not chase down the last innings target with 15 overs to spare.
We cannot nuke-out our neighbouring country, but can't we attempt an operation similar to the U.S. Operation Geronimo to destroy terror-camps in Pakistan?
Too far-fetched, we don't even bother to hang Pakistani terrorists in India, who is going to hunt out radicals in the Hindukush mountains!
God save this country and my prayers to the people who were injured and lost their lives in yesterday's bomb explosions in Mumbai!
Cannot the Indian government take a firm stand and hang the sole terrorist Kasab who was captured during the horrifying attacks in Mumbai orchestrated by Pakistan. Is the government so ashamed and impotent that it continues to treat terrorists with food, shelter and clothing in a high-security prison on tax-payers money.
When are we going to take a stand about anything at all?
As innocent lives are lost, a section of the country only worries about aging superstars, pregnant movie divas and why Dhoni did not chase down the last innings target with 15 overs to spare.
We cannot nuke-out our neighbouring country, but can't we attempt an operation similar to the U.S. Operation Geronimo to destroy terror-camps in Pakistan?
Too far-fetched, we don't even bother to hang Pakistani terrorists in India, who is going to hunt out radicals in the Hindukush mountains!
God save this country and my prayers to the people who were injured and lost their lives in yesterday's bomb explosions in Mumbai!
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
MBA
Well folks after two years of hard work, classes on weekends, studying on the train journey back and forth to office, lots of internet research, and spending some money on management books instead of fiction and comics I am a certified MBA-degree holder now.
MBA in Project Management with a first-class(score of above 60%).
Now let me see if prospective brides and their family members are interested in my horoscope :)
Image source - The internet!
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Till Yesterday
Till yesterday, I hoped,
Hoped that I still,
Still had a chance,
A chance to secure-
A place in your heart.
But today I know,
I know for sure -
That I am no where near -
Near your heart.
A fool have I been,
All this while.
To have chased you
With childish passion.
Harbouring desire in my heart.
Well now I know you shall never be mine.
All I can wish you is -
Good Luck and Good Bye.
As I recollect those days
Days in the past,
Where I would wait for you
To speak to me
The many conversations,
That we had about
A 100 different things
Music, Books, Life.
Now all reduced to memories
Of a yesterday
That's lost forever!
Farewell!!!
Hoped that I still,
Still had a chance,
A chance to secure-
A place in your heart.
But today I know,
I know for sure -
That I am no where near -
Near your heart.
A fool have I been,
All this while.
To have chased you
With childish passion.
Harbouring desire in my heart.
Well now I know you shall never be mine.
All I can wish you is -
Good Luck and Good Bye.
As I recollect those days
Days in the past,
Where I would wait for you
To speak to me
The many conversations,
That we had about
A 100 different things
Music, Books, Life.
Now all reduced to memories
Of a yesterday
That's lost forever!
Farewell!!!
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Shopping, Blood, Cinema and Marriage
It has been a while since I wrote something on the blog. Lot of events have taken place, a short visit by sister and my nephew, shopping for them till late into the night a mid-night drive to reach home at 2 AM, taking my mother to Express Avenue and Citi Centre - my mother's absolute surprise at seeing obscenely-priced shirts and sarees, lots of stuff.
In between, I had time to fall seriously ill with the doctor not able to diagnose my condition properly. I spat blood for a couple of days and ended up with complete bed-rest for four days effectively ruining a weekend and taking sick-leave for two days. By God's grace I am better now and back to work albeit still weak.
A huge good news is my classmate from college Ashwin getting engaged in Bengaluru! As I propheised on his blog earlier this year my friend is hitched and will be getting married early next year. Congrats Ashwin :)
Being ill and lying down in bed gave me time to see some movies.
Bodyguard - Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston in a romantic movie with some good songs thrown in - timepass stuff.
Unknown - Liam Neeson ages like fine wine and after the phenomenal success of "Taken" last year returns as a professor facing memory-loss in Berlin. Great stuff with an interesting twist. Good car-chase sequences shot in Berlin's busy streets.
Urumi - Prithviraj's maiden production venture is an absolute mess of history, but is good fun with special appearance songs by Tabu who continues to entice another generation of movie-goers. Prithvi and Prabhudeva play friends who plan to kill Vasco da Gama. Amole Gupte as Thampuran and Jagadhi as the effeminate minister excel in their roles. Genelia as warrior princess Ayesha does a good job too.
404 - A medical college hostel - a room which witnessed a suicide, ragging by seniors, spirits and ghosts, a professor who researches on the paranormal, a student who is haunted by the spirit. Good movie, no gimmicks, script-driven and great performances. Worth a watch!
Last Tango in Paris - Sick and nauseating, porn disguised as art-house cinema - Marlon Brando whom movie-lovers can only view as the Godfather reduced to a middle-aged sex-maniac of sorts. Hated the movie for its nudity and titillation!
KO - Jeeva gets a hit. K.V. Anand packages stunning visuals, well-shot songs, fight sequences to give a blockbuster, but personally I felt the movie was just average. Ajmal gets a good role as the idealistic young politician who is the real villain.
Limitless - What would you do if you got a magic-pill that would let you use the full capacity of your brain? Bradley Cooper and Robert de Niro in a decent comedy. Nothing exceptional! Wish Bradley Cooper gets to play a homicidal villain of sorts in his upcoming movies. He has the dramatic potential and is not experimenting enough with his roles all stuck in a comic-rut.
Rango - A fascinating revisionist Western in animated form with Johnny Depp voicing Rango a chameleon who saves a desert town from the unscrupulous Mayor who diverts the town's water supply. Great fun!
Animals United - Animation not on par with Pixar and co. but a good story-line about man's uncontrollable greed for developing forests into tourist resorts and how animals unite and reclaim their land and water.
The Lincoln Lawyer - Nothing great Matthew Mc Connaughey plays the wise-cracking lawyer who defends a murder-accused. Is the accused guilty? Watch the movie for answers. Run-of-the mill movie nothing great.
In between, I had time to fall seriously ill with the doctor not able to diagnose my condition properly. I spat blood for a couple of days and ended up with complete bed-rest for four days effectively ruining a weekend and taking sick-leave for two days. By God's grace I am better now and back to work albeit still weak.
A huge good news is my classmate from college Ashwin getting engaged in Bengaluru! As I propheised on his blog earlier this year my friend is hitched and will be getting married early next year. Congrats Ashwin :)
Being ill and lying down in bed gave me time to see some movies.
Bodyguard - Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston in a romantic movie with some good songs thrown in - timepass stuff.
Unknown - Liam Neeson ages like fine wine and after the phenomenal success of "Taken" last year returns as a professor facing memory-loss in Berlin. Great stuff with an interesting twist. Good car-chase sequences shot in Berlin's busy streets.
Urumi - Prithviraj's maiden production venture is an absolute mess of history, but is good fun with special appearance songs by Tabu who continues to entice another generation of movie-goers. Prithvi and Prabhudeva play friends who plan to kill Vasco da Gama. Amole Gupte as Thampuran and Jagadhi as the effeminate minister excel in their roles. Genelia as warrior princess Ayesha does a good job too.
404 - A medical college hostel - a room which witnessed a suicide, ragging by seniors, spirits and ghosts, a professor who researches on the paranormal, a student who is haunted by the spirit. Good movie, no gimmicks, script-driven and great performances. Worth a watch!
Last Tango in Paris - Sick and nauseating, porn disguised as art-house cinema - Marlon Brando whom movie-lovers can only view as the Godfather reduced to a middle-aged sex-maniac of sorts. Hated the movie for its nudity and titillation!
KO - Jeeva gets a hit. K.V. Anand packages stunning visuals, well-shot songs, fight sequences to give a blockbuster, but personally I felt the movie was just average. Ajmal gets a good role as the idealistic young politician who is the real villain.
Limitless - What would you do if you got a magic-pill that would let you use the full capacity of your brain? Bradley Cooper and Robert de Niro in a decent comedy. Nothing exceptional! Wish Bradley Cooper gets to play a homicidal villain of sorts in his upcoming movies. He has the dramatic potential and is not experimenting enough with his roles all stuck in a comic-rut.
Rango - A fascinating revisionist Western in animated form with Johnny Depp voicing Rango a chameleon who saves a desert town from the unscrupulous Mayor who diverts the town's water supply. Great fun!
Animals United - Animation not on par with Pixar and co. but a good story-line about man's uncontrollable greed for developing forests into tourist resorts and how animals unite and reclaim their land and water.
The Lincoln Lawyer - Nothing great Matthew Mc Connaughey plays the wise-cracking lawyer who defends a murder-accused. Is the accused guilty? Watch the movie for answers. Run-of-the mill movie nothing great.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Job-opening for content editor/writer
Hello folks there is a job-opening for a reputed UK based-company operating a number of websites in the educational/higher-studies domain. The requirement and job-description are as follows:
• This role provides an exciting opportunity for someone who has experience in content writing, journalism and third media.
• Candidate will work across a portfolio of over 20 websites, liaising with educational institutions and advertising agencies in UK, USA, Australia, Malaysia, Singapore and New Zealand to create content and provide an excellent standard of customer care.
• Working in our friendly and outgoing team, candidate will be responsible for writing content to a high-standard and loading interactive web media on our websites which would in turn lead to generating the highest possible number of enquiries to institutions who are our customers.
• If the candidate has studied abroad then that would be a distinct advantage.
• Excellent communication and organisation skills are a must along with a good eye for detail, an excellent grasp of the English language and a confident telephone manner.
• Experience of managing a small team and knowledge of html and Photoshop would be useful.
If you are interested do fill in the comments box with your email id and contact number and I will get in touch with you at the earliest. Please note that the company is looking for people with at least two years of relevant writing experience and applicants should have completed their graduation. This is a full-time job and the job-location is CHennai. Please note no shifts, regular working hours from 9:30 AM to 6:OO PM.
• This role provides an exciting opportunity for someone who has experience in content writing, journalism and third media.
• Candidate will work across a portfolio of over 20 websites, liaising with educational institutions and advertising agencies in UK, USA, Australia, Malaysia, Singapore and New Zealand to create content and provide an excellent standard of customer care.
• Working in our friendly and outgoing team, candidate will be responsible for writing content to a high-standard and loading interactive web media on our websites which would in turn lead to generating the highest possible number of enquiries to institutions who are our customers.
• If the candidate has studied abroad then that would be a distinct advantage.
• Excellent communication and organisation skills are a must along with a good eye for detail, an excellent grasp of the English language and a confident telephone manner.
• Experience of managing a small team and knowledge of html and Photoshop would be useful.
If you are interested do fill in the comments box with your email id and contact number and I will get in touch with you at the earliest. Please note that the company is looking for people with at least two years of relevant writing experience and applicants should have completed their graduation. This is a full-time job and the job-location is CHennai. Please note no shifts, regular working hours from 9:30 AM to 6:OO PM.
Tuesday, May 03, 2011
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Ampa Skywalk Mall
This was a long-pending visit!
Managed to make it to Ampa last Sunday.
Spent a couple of hours in the mall and was impressed. Spencers Plaza has been my hunting ground for books, chats and "hanging out" for a long time. City Centre and Express Avenue brought in a refreshing change with the added benefit of a movie-experience!
In all the noise on development, "big-is-huge syndrome", mega-brands, parking-space and all that, the developers and promoters forgot the common man. Remember Irrfan Khan in "Mumbai Meri Jaan", what is it that one gets without paying for in a mall?
I know "eye-candy", window-shopping and the occassional glimpse of a B-grade heroine or a forgotten cricket-star etc can be optional answers. How about the basic need "A glass of clean and cold purified drinking water" - the elixir of Life.
Ampa and the folks behind it, a salute to you!
Ampa offers purified drinking water and clean well-maintained rest-rooms with signs for a wet-floor. The big brands are there - Landmark, Westside and the usual electronics and designer boutiques. Great dining area with a number of brands selling their food. PVR with its movie-screens seems to be exciting!
Star Bazaar, Tata's answer to retail stores seems to be a huge success with seemingly endless rows of stuff from fruits, vegetables, food and provisions, clothes, cosmetics and perfumes. They definitely seem to be better organized than Big Bazaar.
All-in-all a great Sunday at the mall! Looking forward to seeing more outlets which can cater to the lower middle-class income group.
Managed to make it to Ampa last Sunday.
Spent a couple of hours in the mall and was impressed. Spencers Plaza has been my hunting ground for books, chats and "hanging out" for a long time. City Centre and Express Avenue brought in a refreshing change with the added benefit of a movie-experience!
In all the noise on development, "big-is-huge syndrome", mega-brands, parking-space and all that, the developers and promoters forgot the common man. Remember Irrfan Khan in "Mumbai Meri Jaan", what is it that one gets without paying for in a mall?
I know "eye-candy", window-shopping and the occassional glimpse of a B-grade heroine or a forgotten cricket-star etc can be optional answers. How about the basic need "A glass of clean and cold purified drinking water" - the elixir of Life.
Ampa and the folks behind it, a salute to you!
Ampa offers purified drinking water and clean well-maintained rest-rooms with signs for a wet-floor. The big brands are there - Landmark, Westside and the usual electronics and designer boutiques. Great dining area with a number of brands selling their food. PVR with its movie-screens seems to be exciting!
Star Bazaar, Tata's answer to retail stores seems to be a huge success with seemingly endless rows of stuff from fruits, vegetables, food and provisions, clothes, cosmetics and perfumes. They definitely seem to be better organized than Big Bazaar.
All-in-all a great Sunday at the mall! Looking forward to seeing more outlets which can cater to the lower middle-class income group.
Wednesday, March 09, 2011
600 and counting
600 posts and a number of friends who continue to read and post comments, have lost out on a few who have distanced themselves away from me, but I am sure they still read the blog but their massive ego prevents them from emailing me or posting a comment on my blog.
I thank each and everyone who still continue to spend some time and read my blog, SMS me asking when is the next post, or suggest ideas about potential topics to write.
Thanks to everyone:
Ashwin - college-mate and dear friend.
Antony - Social networking king :)
Priya - former colleague and friend who writes on a wide variety of topics.
Kavitha - former colleague and friend whose blog is a delight for food and photography lovers.
Rajesh - former colleague and very good friend.
Neha - former colleague and a very good friend - do post comments :)
Nithin - Who's blog sparked this pursuit.
Shiva & Sudha happily wedded in matrimonial bliss now.
Revathi & Sukumari at SFY whose early reviews and encouragement were of great help.
Life goes on and I hope I get the time and energy to maintain and monitor this blog.
Thanks again to everyone !!!
I thank each and everyone who still continue to spend some time and read my blog, SMS me asking when is the next post, or suggest ideas about potential topics to write.
Thanks to everyone:
Ashwin - college-mate and dear friend.
Antony - Social networking king :)
Priya - former colleague and friend who writes on a wide variety of topics.
Kavitha - former colleague and friend whose blog is a delight for food and photography lovers.
Rajesh - former colleague and very good friend.
Neha - former colleague and a very good friend - do post comments :)
Nithin - Who's blog sparked this pursuit.
Shiva & Sudha happily wedded in matrimonial bliss now.
Revathi & Sukumari at SFY whose early reviews and encouragement were of great help.
Life goes on and I hope I get the time and energy to maintain and monitor this blog.
Thanks again to everyone !!!
Wednesday, March 02, 2011
A splendid tie
Any team that does not manage to defend a total of 338 runs in an ODI match, has some serious soul-searching to do. Dhoni's captaincy was absolutely pathetic. Two wickets when Dhoni simply forgot to appeal. UDRS decision that was over-turned. A lot of pedestrian fielding, too many negatives for India.
Sachin's century and Yuvraj's batting form where the only positives. Piyush Chawla bowling the 49th over was a wrong decision. Why did not Pathan get more overs to bowl? Munaf is a new-ball bowler and his quota should have been completed in the first 30 overs.
I hope Ashwin gets to play the next match and opens the bowling with Munaf at the other end. Team India - buck up or you will be bowled out by the real opposition not the minnows.
All credit to Strauss and Beresnan and Shahzad's six!
Sachin's century and Yuvraj's batting form where the only positives. Piyush Chawla bowling the 49th over was a wrong decision. Why did not Pathan get more overs to bowl? Munaf is a new-ball bowler and his quota should have been completed in the first 30 overs.
I hope Ashwin gets to play the next match and opens the bowling with Munaf at the other end. Team India - buck up or you will be bowled out by the real opposition not the minnows.
All credit to Strauss and Beresnan and Shahzad's six!
Sunday, February 27, 2011
The Oscars for 2010
An interesting choice of movies this year. "The Social Network," "The King's Speech," and "True Grit" lead the race. Can "The Fighter" and "The Winter's Bone" make a surprise win. "Black Swan" is a bit gloomy but Natalie Portman end up all smiles with a Best Actress trophy. Or will "The Kids are all Right" throw a big surprise?
David Fincher is my bet for Best Director. Though Christopher Nolan deserved a nomination for Inception.
Christian Bale is not likely to win an Oscar for his crack-devouring Boxing Trainer role in "The Fighter". Geoffrey Rush as the language and speech therapist deserves the Best Supporting Actor award. Colin Firth is also likely to win the Best Actor award for "The King's Speech".
India's connection A.R. Rahman is highly unlikely to win an award for his song for 127 hours. Let us wait and watch.
David Fincher is my bet for Best Director. Though Christopher Nolan deserved a nomination for Inception.
Christian Bale is not likely to win an Oscar for his crack-devouring Boxing Trainer role in "The Fighter". Geoffrey Rush as the language and speech therapist deserves the Best Supporting Actor award. Colin Firth is also likely to win the Best Actor award for "The King's Speech".
India's connection A.R. Rahman is highly unlikely to win an award for his song for 127 hours. Let us wait and watch.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
India start on a winning note
Sehwag's heroics and Kohli's cool-headed performance ensured that India's loss at WC 2007 to Bangladesh was avenged.
175 runs from Sehwag and 100 by Kohli and a 4-wicket haul by Munaf Patel and India have a great beginning.
Let us hope for the best.
175 runs from Sehwag and 100 by Kohli and a 4-wicket haul by Munaf Patel and India have a great beginning.
Let us hope for the best.
Friday, January 28, 2011
In the Shadow of Gotham - Book Review
In my earlier post, I had written that I picked up two books from Odyssey. I finished reading one of them.
"In the Shadow of Gotham" by Stefanie Pintoff
The book won the Edgar Award for the "Best First Novel" by an American. It is set in 1905 in New York.
The protagonist, detective inspector Ziele is assigned the task of solving the murder of Sarah Wingate a doctoral student of Mathematics, who is working on the Riemann Hypothesis.
Who murdered her?
Ziele is assisted by Alistair Sinclair a researcher who analyses what drives people to commit crimes. He says that one of his case-studies Michael Fromley might have committed the crime.
The story progresses as more mysterious happenings take place and Fromley's dead body is discovered.
Read the novel to discover who the real villain is?
A good mix of history and crime. Interesting and definitely a good read.
"In the Shadow of Gotham" by Stefanie Pintoff
The book won the Edgar Award for the "Best First Novel" by an American. It is set in 1905 in New York.
The protagonist, detective inspector Ziele is assigned the task of solving the murder of Sarah Wingate a doctoral student of Mathematics, who is working on the Riemann Hypothesis.
Who murdered her?
Ziele is assisted by Alistair Sinclair a researcher who analyses what drives people to commit crimes. He says that one of his case-studies Michael Fromley might have committed the crime.
The story progresses as more mysterious happenings take place and Fromley's dead body is discovered.
Read the novel to discover who the real villain is?
A good mix of history and crime. Interesting and definitely a good read.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Pongal, shopping, books and malls
Well Murphy's Law really worked for me this Pongal!
First the water purifier stopped working, then the Tata Indicom Walky's battery died, the gas cylinder delivery rules have changed and the delivery van stops 100 metres away from our house. Imagine carrying one empty cylinder down the stairs and then carrying a full one up the stairs. The biceps really cracked:)
The Tata Indicom helpline was an absolute mess as I did not get any reply at all. Guess all the folks at the call-centre or support centre were relishing hot sakkarai pongal.
The water-purifier repair guy came in at 10 AM thankfully and after examining the purifier said that the internal purifying chambers had to be replaced. Rs 3000 washed away right in the morning!
Because of a couple of deaths in the family none of the usual celebrations were there! I had already visited this year's book fair; even worse than last year! Same complaints - I want more translated Tamil fiction or at least audio books in Tamil. Not everyone can read Tamil. The massive English-reading public should not be deprived of the literary genius of Kalki, Sujatha, Jayakanthan,and many more giants of Tamil literature.
I spotted an English translation of the scripts of Parashakhti and Manohara by our dear CM M.Karunanidhi. But Rs. 350 was a bit to steep for a badly printed book without any photos from the films. So I skipped it.
When are the publishers going to wake up!
Arrangement of the stalls was haphazard. In the past 10 years that I have visited the book-fair I have never ever won the daily lucky draw. This year was no exception!!! God knows if it is a sham:)
I then decided to visit the Express Avenue Mall at Royapettah.It has been close to two years since the mall has been opened but I had not visited it so far.
The mall is massive, parking area needs to be made smarter. Approach roads and pavements are filthy with dogs and humans making a mess of the area! Pan juice, gutkha stains, human and animal shit! All kinds of filth! Once again proof of the massive difference between the haves and have-nots? No, probably it's more to do with civic sense and lack of public lavatories in the country!
There are a number of international brands and ample space to window-shop! There are a number of toilets and specially designed toilets for the physically handicapped. Unfortunately a number of them are locked. You know its festive shopping time and nearly 30,000 to 45,000 people are expected to enter the mall, why are the damn lavatories closed?
Girls, girls and more girls, dressed in bright fluorescent colours,figure-hugging jeans and high-heels, in groups giggling away to glory! Guys in tight jeans and tee-shirts showing of their muscles, harried husbands tagging behind wives carrying shopping bags from Marks and Spencers and Westside, young kids with their parents pestering their parents to buy icecream and chocolates. An entire cross-section of society. Tatooed foreigners buying Tantra tee-shirts and organic food, a couple of blokes in full formals probably part of some international delegation digging into pizzas at Pizza Hut.
Odyssey store with its 15% discount on all books; had Rs. 500 earmarked for books and I spent an hour trying to get two books by authors whom I had never read so far. Found two books, reviews to come soon!
Big Bazaar with its discount on fashion was fun. Picked up a couple of tees for Rs 249. By now I was famished and I visited Pit-stop in the basement area. Rs 109 for a small Garden-Margherita pizza (6 inches) an orange soda-slush drink for Rs 65 (absolute mess, will never waste my money on such indiscretions again) Pizza was undercooked and not warm enough! Service was poor, 25 minutes to serve an undercooked, luke-warm pizza with two pieces of onion, two pieces of capsicum and one olive sliced into bits-daylight robbery!
Overall a hectic day, expensive day but fun and satisfying! I still wonder why that girl in the pink tee and black jeans kept staring at me in Odyssey and hung around the same book-shelves as me!
Hmmm!!!! :)
First the water purifier stopped working, then the Tata Indicom Walky's battery died, the gas cylinder delivery rules have changed and the delivery van stops 100 metres away from our house. Imagine carrying one empty cylinder down the stairs and then carrying a full one up the stairs. The biceps really cracked:)
The Tata Indicom helpline was an absolute mess as I did not get any reply at all. Guess all the folks at the call-centre or support centre were relishing hot sakkarai pongal.
The water-purifier repair guy came in at 10 AM thankfully and after examining the purifier said that the internal purifying chambers had to be replaced. Rs 3000 washed away right in the morning!
Because of a couple of deaths in the family none of the usual celebrations were there! I had already visited this year's book fair; even worse than last year! Same complaints - I want more translated Tamil fiction or at least audio books in Tamil. Not everyone can read Tamil. The massive English-reading public should not be deprived of the literary genius of Kalki, Sujatha, Jayakanthan,and many more giants of Tamil literature.
I spotted an English translation of the scripts of Parashakhti and Manohara by our dear CM M.Karunanidhi. But Rs. 350 was a bit to steep for a badly printed book without any photos from the films. So I skipped it.
When are the publishers going to wake up!
Arrangement of the stalls was haphazard. In the past 10 years that I have visited the book-fair I have never ever won the daily lucky draw. This year was no exception!!! God knows if it is a sham:)
I then decided to visit the Express Avenue Mall at Royapettah.It has been close to two years since the mall has been opened but I had not visited it so far.
The mall is massive, parking area needs to be made smarter. Approach roads and pavements are filthy with dogs and humans making a mess of the area! Pan juice, gutkha stains, human and animal shit! All kinds of filth! Once again proof of the massive difference between the haves and have-nots? No, probably it's more to do with civic sense and lack of public lavatories in the country!
There are a number of international brands and ample space to window-shop! There are a number of toilets and specially designed toilets for the physically handicapped. Unfortunately a number of them are locked. You know its festive shopping time and nearly 30,000 to 45,000 people are expected to enter the mall, why are the damn lavatories closed?
Girls, girls and more girls, dressed in bright fluorescent colours,figure-hugging jeans and high-heels, in groups giggling away to glory! Guys in tight jeans and tee-shirts showing of their muscles, harried husbands tagging behind wives carrying shopping bags from Marks and Spencers and Westside, young kids with their parents pestering their parents to buy icecream and chocolates. An entire cross-section of society. Tatooed foreigners buying Tantra tee-shirts and organic food, a couple of blokes in full formals probably part of some international delegation digging into pizzas at Pizza Hut.
Odyssey store with its 15% discount on all books; had Rs. 500 earmarked for books and I spent an hour trying to get two books by authors whom I had never read so far. Found two books, reviews to come soon!
Big Bazaar with its discount on fashion was fun. Picked up a couple of tees for Rs 249. By now I was famished and I visited Pit-stop in the basement area. Rs 109 for a small Garden-Margherita pizza (6 inches) an orange soda-slush drink for Rs 65 (absolute mess, will never waste my money on such indiscretions again) Pizza was undercooked and not warm enough! Service was poor, 25 minutes to serve an undercooked, luke-warm pizza with two pieces of onion, two pieces of capsicum and one olive sliced into bits-daylight robbery!
Overall a hectic day, expensive day but fun and satisfying! I still wonder why that girl in the pink tee and black jeans kept staring at me in Odyssey and hung around the same book-shelves as me!
Hmmm!!!! :)
Tuesday, January 04, 2011
New Year 2011
Folks hope all of you had a great new year!
You might have spent your new year at a temple, with friends and family, at a pub or discotheque. Lucky folks:)
I was banging my head in frustration looking at my project management question paper in the exam hall.
1 more paper to go in this semester. Hope I clear the papers :)
So folks may God bless you and provide a safe, fun-filled and prosperous New Year 2011 to all of you.
Cheers :)
You might have spent your new year at a temple, with friends and family, at a pub or discotheque. Lucky folks:)
I was banging my head in frustration looking at my project management question paper in the exam hall.
1 more paper to go in this semester. Hope I clear the papers :)
So folks may God bless you and provide a safe, fun-filled and prosperous New Year 2011 to all of you.
Cheers :)
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Can India win the second test at Durban?
Laxman's pain-stakingly crafted 96, is it enough?
A target of 303 and the Proteas are 70 for 1 when I type this.
Can India win this match???
Down Under Trott's marvellous knock and an Aussie batting collapse ensure that the Poms will retain the Ashes tomorrow.
A target of 303 and the Proteas are 70 for 1 when I type this.
Can India win this match???
Down Under Trott's marvellous knock and an Aussie batting collapse ensure that the Poms will retain the Ashes tomorrow.
Monday, December 27, 2010
X-mas cake
Inspired by kavitha's marvellous images and cooking my humble attempt at baking a cake.
A combination of refined flour, drinking chocolate powder, milk, a bit of orange pulp and peels, cashew nuts and cherries topped with strawberry wafers.
Came out brilliantly. 12 minutes in the microwave and great fun to eat.
Merry Christmas!!!
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Hitlist 2010
So folks it's that time of the year again when I make a list of the movies, which I enjoyed watching this year. So here's the list without much further ado:
The English Club
Shutter Island and Inception
Power-packed roles from Leo, one helmed by the old master Martin Scorcese and the other by the modern genius Christopher Nolan. From playing a psychologically disturbed cop to a thief who implanted dreams and stole stuff from you mind absolute mind-benders.
The Social Network
David Fincher's take on the creation of a modern phenomenon that the world's hooked on - Facebook. Pre-dominantly dialogue but still interesting. The truth behind intellectual property theft, how an idea got modified, stolen and became a billion-dollar brand.
Despicable Me
The world's greatest villain plans to steal the moon and is assisted by three little girls and an army of small yellow creatures. Excellent animation and a good story.
The Ghost Writer
A thriller of a different sort, Pierce Brosnan playing a disgraced British PM, Ewan Mc Gregor a failed novelist, war-crimes and death. Excellent stuff from Roman Polanski.
Toy-Story-3
With Woody and Buzz and Andy a lovely saga that sadly got over. An overdose of emotions but one of Pixar's most loved creations comes to an end.
The American
Slow, moody and a look into the mind and actions of a specialist gun-smith and assassin. Splendidly shot with a lovely actress in tow George Clooney shines.
Salt
Angelina Jolie kicks bad ass in a role originally written for Tom Cruise. Possibilities of a sequel in tow.
Tamil Hits
Nandalala
Mysskin's take on Takeshi Kitano's Kikujiro. A heart-warming tale of a mentally unstable man and a young boy's road-trip in search of their respective mothers. Excellent stuff and it takes lot of courage to make a movie like this.
Angadi Theru
Visiting and shopping in T. Nagar will never ever be the same again. A tale of dreams and the struggle, which the thousands of young men and woman face while working in the huge super-stores of TN's shopping capital.
Aayirathil Oruvan
Selvaraghavan remains the rebel with his mix of history, Mackenna's Gold and a metaphor on the plight of Sri Lankan tamils. Splendid acting by Parthiban, good job by Karthi and Reema. Movie could have been edited better to make it more interesting. A truly different attempt.
Irumbukottai Murattu Singam
Tamil cowboy Lawrence, funny adventure with liberal spoofing from Simbudevan. Clint Eastwood beware, Singam is here.
Nan Mahan Alla
A revenge movie shot unconventionally with four menacing villains. One being the kid who played junior Surya in "Nanda". Karthi does a great job and excellent chemistry with Kajal Agarwal.
Vamsam
Vilage-setting, revenge and a sweet love-story. Great debut by Arulnidhi.Nice comedy by ganja Karuppu and Arulnidhi too. Imposing role by Jayaprakash and Kishore.
Vinnaithandi Varuvaya
Gautam Menon resurrects Simbhu's career and image with a love-story with great songs. I enjoyed the songs not a great fan of the movie though.
Enthiran
Money, money, explosions, robots and a fantastic looking Aishwarya under layers of make-up. Rajnikanth the phenomenon under Shankar's direction makes a lot of money for distributors and theatre-owners.
Mynaa
Super-stuff, a romance, a village tale told with passion, excellent cinematography, decent inspired-music score, great acting. Amala Paul a name to watch out for in the future.
Boss engira bhaskaran and Madrasapattinam
One a light-hearted comic-caper, the other a period saga. Arya shone in both roles. Santhanam's comedy in Boss with his "Nanben da" and "Thala Thalapathi Saloon" was excellent. Nayanthara for a change looked good in her salwars and sarees instead of her idiotic skimpy outfits. Amy Jackson had a great debut with Madrasapattinam and is acting in Gautam's Hindi remake of VTV.
Hindi Hits
Peepli Live
Aamir Khan's production, a black comedy about politics and farmer suicides. Nathu's travails and a song on rising costs that became a chartbuster.
Dabanng
Salman as Robinhood Chulbul Pandey, gorgeous Sonakshi Sinha in a dream debut and of course "Munni Badnaam Hui". Sphagetti Western meets Indian cop saga. Funny stuff, great fights, foot-tapping numbers. The biggest hit of the year.
Do Dooni Char
Rishi Kappor and Neetu Singh on screen in a heart-warming comedy of Laxmanesque proportions. A Maths teacher who almost accepts a bribe from a rich student to buy a Maruti car. Disney's Bollywood venture won many hearts with its simple tale.
An update I would also like to add Udaan, Rajneeti and Ishqiya to the list.
So folks wishing you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Praying for sensible, interesting and original movies in the coming year.
The English Club
Shutter Island and Inception
Power-packed roles from Leo, one helmed by the old master Martin Scorcese and the other by the modern genius Christopher Nolan. From playing a psychologically disturbed cop to a thief who implanted dreams and stole stuff from you mind absolute mind-benders.
The Social Network
David Fincher's take on the creation of a modern phenomenon that the world's hooked on - Facebook. Pre-dominantly dialogue but still interesting. The truth behind intellectual property theft, how an idea got modified, stolen and became a billion-dollar brand.
Despicable Me
The world's greatest villain plans to steal the moon and is assisted by three little girls and an army of small yellow creatures. Excellent animation and a good story.
The Ghost Writer
A thriller of a different sort, Pierce Brosnan playing a disgraced British PM, Ewan Mc Gregor a failed novelist, war-crimes and death. Excellent stuff from Roman Polanski.
Toy-Story-3
With Woody and Buzz and Andy a lovely saga that sadly got over. An overdose of emotions but one of Pixar's most loved creations comes to an end.
The American
Slow, moody and a look into the mind and actions of a specialist gun-smith and assassin. Splendidly shot with a lovely actress in tow George Clooney shines.
Salt
Angelina Jolie kicks bad ass in a role originally written for Tom Cruise. Possibilities of a sequel in tow.
Tamil Hits
Nandalala
Mysskin's take on Takeshi Kitano's Kikujiro. A heart-warming tale of a mentally unstable man and a young boy's road-trip in search of their respective mothers. Excellent stuff and it takes lot of courage to make a movie like this.
Angadi Theru
Visiting and shopping in T. Nagar will never ever be the same again. A tale of dreams and the struggle, which the thousands of young men and woman face while working in the huge super-stores of TN's shopping capital.
Aayirathil Oruvan
Selvaraghavan remains the rebel with his mix of history, Mackenna's Gold and a metaphor on the plight of Sri Lankan tamils. Splendid acting by Parthiban, good job by Karthi and Reema. Movie could have been edited better to make it more interesting. A truly different attempt.
Irumbukottai Murattu Singam
Tamil cowboy Lawrence, funny adventure with liberal spoofing from Simbudevan. Clint Eastwood beware, Singam is here.
Nan Mahan Alla
A revenge movie shot unconventionally with four menacing villains. One being the kid who played junior Surya in "Nanda". Karthi does a great job and excellent chemistry with Kajal Agarwal.
Vamsam
Vilage-setting, revenge and a sweet love-story. Great debut by Arulnidhi.Nice comedy by ganja Karuppu and Arulnidhi too. Imposing role by Jayaprakash and Kishore.
Vinnaithandi Varuvaya
Gautam Menon resurrects Simbhu's career and image with a love-story with great songs. I enjoyed the songs not a great fan of the movie though.
Enthiran
Money, money, explosions, robots and a fantastic looking Aishwarya under layers of make-up. Rajnikanth the phenomenon under Shankar's direction makes a lot of money for distributors and theatre-owners.
Mynaa
Super-stuff, a romance, a village tale told with passion, excellent cinematography, decent inspired-music score, great acting. Amala Paul a name to watch out for in the future.
Boss engira bhaskaran and Madrasapattinam
One a light-hearted comic-caper, the other a period saga. Arya shone in both roles. Santhanam's comedy in Boss with his "Nanben da" and "Thala Thalapathi Saloon" was excellent. Nayanthara for a change looked good in her salwars and sarees instead of her idiotic skimpy outfits. Amy Jackson had a great debut with Madrasapattinam and is acting in Gautam's Hindi remake of VTV.
Hindi Hits
Peepli Live
Aamir Khan's production, a black comedy about politics and farmer suicides. Nathu's travails and a song on rising costs that became a chartbuster.
Dabanng
Salman as Robinhood Chulbul Pandey, gorgeous Sonakshi Sinha in a dream debut and of course "Munni Badnaam Hui". Sphagetti Western meets Indian cop saga. Funny stuff, great fights, foot-tapping numbers. The biggest hit of the year.
Do Dooni Char
Rishi Kappor and Neetu Singh on screen in a heart-warming comedy of Laxmanesque proportions. A Maths teacher who almost accepts a bribe from a rich student to buy a Maruti car. Disney's Bollywood venture won many hearts with its simple tale.
An update I would also like to add Udaan, Rajneeti and Ishqiya to the list.
So folks wishing you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Praying for sensible, interesting and original movies in the coming year.
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