THE END

He stood on the beach, silent and sad, he took another swig from his bottle of rum, the drink felt bitter, it was his third bottle of the day, and he was drinking to forget her. He stared at the sea and thought of the evenings the two of them had walked together hand in hand, admiring each other discussing a common future.

All those were just memories now; she had left him, gone. Not even a hint, that she was leaving him, no message, no e-mail, no goodbye, she had just dumped him. A colleague said that her marriage had been fixed and she had left for her native village.

He had been devastated when he heard the news, even mulling suicide. Then he comforted himself-“Let her out of your heart man, maybe I didn’t deserve her.”

He finished the bottle of rum, walking dangerously close to the sea, and flung the empty bottle into the sea.

He cried out loud, “Have a great married life.”

He collapsed on the sand exhausted and intoxicated.

Three days later some fishermen found his body that had washed ashore.

One more love story that ended on a sorry note.

REPRESENTATION OF WOMEN IN INDIAN ADVERTISING

“A pretty face almost always sells a product.”

This perhaps is the sole motto on which the Indian advertising industry runs. If it is a premium bathing soap that is your product, get a young actress, throw in a waterfall or a lake, a ‘just about there’ dress, pulsating music in the background, and get the pretty young thing to prance in the water; and hey presto! You have got your advertisement. Does the summary ring a bell? That was a description of the Lyril ad that launched Preity Zinta’s career; she captured the imagination of millions with her dimpled smile and cute looks. Sadly the rumored botox treatment has made her smile artificial today. Then all the Lux soap ads with the beauty queens of each era-Dimple Kapadia, Karishma and Kareena Kapoor, Aishwarya Rai, and then they did a complete U-turn and had Shahrukh Khan surrounded by a bevy of beauties selling Lux soap! Yuck! The height of metrosexuality.

The soft drink ads-Aishwarya started with Pepsi then endorsed Coke, now we have Deepika Padukone endorsing Pepsi.

Then we had the ads for detergent powder, washing soap, and dishwashing soaps.

Some ads that remain fresh in mind are:

The Washing powder Nirma ad.

Ariel ad where in the lady says, “Daag dhoondte reh jaooge.” The small boy who appeared in that ad is none other than Kunal Hemu who is a Bollywood hero now, with three or four movies to his credit.

One particular ad that brought out the wonderful relationship between an old lady and her grandchild was the Borolin ad, I do not know how many of you remember it. It had a wonderful jingle that went “Antiseptic cream Borolin, Borolin, ting.. ting.. ting”

The Rasna ad where the chubby little girl says “I love you Rasna.”

An all time favourite ad would be the one for Woodwards Gripe Water, three generations of ladies describing the merits of TTK Woodwards Gripe Water-

"Are kya hua?"
"Bachcha roraha he"
"Tum use Woodwards gripe water kyu nahi pilathi? Jub tum bachchi thi, toh me bhi tumhe wohi pilathi thi"

These are all examples of some of the good old stuff of Indian advertising. The current trend of using women for products not related to them at all isn’t healthy.

Why do you need women in an ad for men’s underwear?

The Lux Cozee underwear series of ads is extremely insulting and the Regulatory Authority was correct in its decision to ban it. A woman is shown washing a brief and fakes sensual pleasure in her action as other women stare at her. Downright cheap!

Similarly I do not understand why you need a woman in an ad for a Gillette Mach III razor.

Women continue to be used as glamourous accessories to sell a product. It is the same sorry story with the Bollywood film industry. They used to run with the hero behind trees, now they wear swimsuits and run on a beach in Bali or Phuket. They are very few movies that give women a solid author-backed role and give them a chance to showcase their talents. A bit of a lengthy role and 9 out of 10 the lady gets to play a negative role.

The government has to take strict action against producers who portray women indecently. A movie is branded as adults only, but what about ads that are broadcast on television. Some ads border on sexuality and make veiled comments. Remember the rediff ad. “Is it really big?” Or Bipasha’s Panasonic mobile ad, “I will dance with the man who has the smallest?”

Somehow I find the ads for all the sanitary napkins strange. Do we need them to be advertised, same for underwear, people know what essential to buy and use.

The consumer is not going to be coerced into buying a product because a beautiful woman or for that matter if a hunk endorses it. They might try it once but if they do not find it satisfactory they are not going to use it.

It is time that sensible ads were made with women being given respect.

I guess that will not be accepted by the ad gurus and celebrity endorsements won’t work, so things will remain as they are now. :)

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday my dear blog. Three years in the blogosphere.

Thanks to all the readers and friends who make suggestions and comments.

Bye for now!

Musings

Lines for Her.....

Your silence continues to haunt me;

Why this silence?

I do not know.

Have distances created barriers?

I do not know.

Are you angry with me?

I do not know.

Have you been forbidden to speak to me?

I do not know.

Have you forgotten me?

I do not know.

All that I know-

Is that I love you.

Nothing less, nothing more.

All I know is that "I Love You."

I want to hold your hand,

Walk on the beach,

In the golden sands.

Enjoy the sunrise and the sunset,

With you by my side.

Is it too much to ask?

I do not know.

Will you ever realize,

How much you mean to me?

I do not know.

***********

Perhaps I am too late!

That is life!

Another chance perhaps.....

I do not know.

Somewhere, sometime, maybe in another life and another time-

You will be mine.

©Mahesh 2008.

Orissa Burning

The violence continues as incidents of burning of churches and assaults on Christians continue to be reported by the media. The VHP or the RSS or the Bajrang Dal whichever organization doing this has to be punished. In 1999, Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two sons were burnt to death by Dara Singh. The accused was sentenced to death but the punishment was commuted to a life sentence. It is indeed shameful that a judiciary and an overzealous media ensure that a leading actor accused of shooting a deer is given the proper punishment, but someone who kills people or rapes women, manages to get away with life imprisonments and hefty fines.

The Orissa government is a mute witness to the atrocities happening across the state. Yesterday 45, 000 Christian organizations observed a token strike and prayed for the people who were killed in the violence.

Is there no end to communal violence in India?

Either it is the Gujjars in Rajasthan, or the attack against North Indians by Raj Thackeray and his sainiks in Maharashtra, or it is the killing of migrant Biharis in Assam. One incident after the other heightens the communal tension leading to violence and destruction.

Hope sanity prevails and the perpetrators of the violence are arrested and punished properly.

Waves....

The waves kissed my feet and returned to the ocean, I stood there on the beach all alone, lost in thought. In the distance the fishermen were returning with their catch of fish. I continued to stand in silence reflecting on life. I do not know how long I am going to go on with this charade. Each time I think isn't this the correct time; and each time something or the other pops up to ensure that this isn't the time!

Come September and lots of things are lined up; of which the fate of very little is in my hands. There shall arise some clarity in the way my professional career is going to shape. I think that enough has been written and spoken and it is time to take the plunge and time to send the "white envelope" with the "letter" to all concerned. Let me see what life is going to present....

On the personal front, well no more dilly-dallying, once the third week dawns perhaps there shall be some light at the end of the dark tunnel of my confused heart.

Some lines might appear cryptic, some pure rubbish!

You are young and life is long

And there is time to kill today

And then one day you find that

Ten years have got behind you

No one told you when to run

You missed the starting gun

Courtesy-"Time" by Pink Floyd.

But hey dude life has to go on:)

Jai Hanuman

Our locality is being troubled by a troop of monkeys for the past two weeks. Earlier we would have rare visits by the naughty troop, say once a month, but this time there are about 20 monkeys, who have decided to disrupt the normal flow of life of the residents of our locality. Yesterday the monkeys destroyed our garden. The guavas have been plucked and eaten, the unripe bananas are eaten, the jasmine plants destroyed beyond recognition, it is an endless tale of havoc and destruction.

The tenant living on the first floor cursed the monkeys when she discovered that the monkeys had eaten the vethal/vadams that were left to be dried on the terrace.

Tommy and Jo Jo the two dogs that stay in our compound have got a severe ego-bashing from the monkeys. The young ones are extremely mischievous they sit on the fence and dangle their tails enticingly, Tommy and Jo Jo try to bite them but the clever monkeys pull their tails up, at that moment another monkey comes from behind and pull the ears or the tail of Tommy and Jo Jo.

Some people tried bursting fire crackers to drive the monkeys away, but they keep coming in increasing numbers every day. It seems we will have to call the Forest Department and ask them to catch the monkeys and release them in the woods.

Expressbuzz

The Hindu and The New Indian Express are fighting a battle with The Deccan Chronicle and The Times of India in Chennai. In the battle for popularity and garnering audience, lots of strategies have been applied. The Hindu reduced its price to Rs 2.50 on weekdays and Rs 3 on Sundays.

The one thing that the newspapers were not focussing on was maintaining their Web sites. Most of the time they would not be updated, or there would be glaring errors and omissions, overall a lack of importance to the whole concept of an informative news Web site.

All that is set to change as The New Indian Express unveiled its Web site http://www.expressbuzz.com

The Web site is in its Beta phase and looks cool. Hope this sets a benchmark for the other newspapers to follow. The Times of India faces stiff competition from Expressbuzz.

Let us see how the newspapers fight it out on the Internet.

India Victorious...

Captain Courageous M.S. Dhoni led by example and guided India to a 46 run victory over Sri Lanka to win India its first ever bilateral series victory in Sri Lanka. Dhoni won the tos for the fourth time in a row and had no hesitation in electing to bat first. Virat Kohli scored 56, then Raina and Dhoni consolidated the innings even as Yuvraj got out for 6 and became Chaminda Vass's wicket number 400 in ODIs.

Raina scored 76 and Dhoni scored 71; and then it was a sorry tale for India as the last seven wickets fell for 33 runs. Thushara got 5 wickets for 47 runs.

The Lankan chase started on a shaky note with Warnapura out for a duck. But Jayasurya went hammer and tongs supported ably by Jayawardene and Team India began to feel nervous as the left handed crusader belted the ball to all corners of the ground. A tactical bowling change by Dhoni was the introduction of Harbhajan into the attack, which bore fruit immediately as Jayasurya nicked the ball and Raina taking a fine catch to end the superb knock of 60.

Bhajji got 3 wickets and Yuvraj got 2 wickets to ensure that India won the match comfortably.

Good show guys!

Be prepared for the next series!

I think Australia is visiting India. India might play a couple of matches in Pakistan as the Champions Trophy has been postponed.

Let us wait and watch as the BCCI and PCB sort things out.

TAGGED!!!

Finally someone tagged me, after three years in blogosphere, and resisting a temptation to tag me on my own; priloza finally tagged me.

So folks here comes the list:

Last movie seen in a Cinema hall?

"The Lives of Others" a German movie, seen as part of a movie festival. A bit on the serious side, with powerful performances by all.

What book are you reading?

"The Fire Engine That Disappeared" by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo.

Favourite board game(s)?

Battleship

Favourite magazine?

"National Geographic" and the now defunct "Target."

Favourite smells?

The smell of freshly ground coffee early in the morning(cliched stuff!). The fruity fragrance of the mild perfume, used by someone very special:).

Favourite sound?

The sound of the birds that chirp in my garden early in the morning and the music of the violin.

Worst feeling in the world?

When someone whom you trust with all your heart cheats you.

What Is The First Thing You Think Of When You Wake?

I thank God for everything that has been given to me and pray for a safe and happy day.

Favorite fast food place?

Vellore's Gyan Vaishnav Punjabi Dhaba-Mount Road and T.Nagar. The Amber Hotel in Kolkatta.

Future child’s name?

Neha(girl) Moksh(boy).

Finish this statement. “If I Had A Lot Of Money I’d…”

Still love her, perhaps get married to her right away.

Do you drive fast?

No. How fast can one go on a mountain bike.

Do you sleep with a stuffed animal?

(No.

Storms - cool or scary?

Cool, I have always been fascinated by lightning and thunder.

Do you eat the stems on Broccoli?

Yes.

If you could dye your hair any color, what would be your choice?

I prefer not to dye my hair.

Name all the different cities/towns you’ve lived in?

Pune, Kolkatta, Tiruvallur, Chennai.

Favourite sports to watch?

Football, T:20 cricket, and F-1 racing.

One nice thing about the person who sent this to you -

Priloza is the finest illustrator I have ever known, a good friend, extremely witty, and independent.

What’s under your bed?

I sleep on the floor :)

Would you like to be born as yourself again?

I choose to answer this question twenty years later

Morning person or night owl?

Schizoid owl

Over easy or sunny side up?

Sunny side up!

Favourite place to relax?

All alone on the beach with a book to read, a bottle of lemon soda to drink, and my Sansa E-250 for company.

Favourite pie?

"Death by Chocolate" the taste remains in my mouth even after 12 long years.

Favourite ice-cream flavour?

Butterscotch with nuts.

Favourite movie?

It's a Wonderful Life

You pass this tag to?

Ashwin

RECENT TRENDS IN THE INDIAN ADVERTISING SCENARIO

“Any fool can make a product; it takes brains to sell it.”

This is a line that is quoted in many contexts; but it was first used in the context of advertising. So how has Indian advertising changed; this essay tries to present an unbiased summary of the changes and recent trends in the Indian advertising scenario.

The eighties brought Doordarshan and the television set to the common man. The early advertisements were simple and tried to convey their message with simplicity. It took a while for the public to move away from the commercials aired on the radio. There was a time when programs like “Jai Jawan” and “Binaca Geetmala” on Vividh Bharathi had a mass following across the nation. Placing an advertisement. in these programs ensured that the public would be aware of your product.

Television serials like “Buniyaad,” “Humlog,” “Nukkad,” “Karamchand” etc… and film-based programs like “Chitrahaar” and “Rangoli” created their own fan-base and the loyal audience would regularly watch these programs. Thus TV ads. became a big source of revenue for the national broadcaster and innovative ads selling various products were born. Remember the early ads-“Washing Powder Nirma,” “I Love You Rasna,” “Congratulations and Celebrations”{For Cadburys chocolates, "Lifebuoy-tandurusti ki raksha karta hai lifebuoy.."

The advent of cable television and the arrival of international channels brought in a wide variety of foreign ads to the Indian viewer. The blossoming economy and removal restrictions on foreign imports and a liberal industrialization policy, saw the arrival of lots of foreign brands like Coke, Pepsi, Hyundai, Sony, Daewoo, etc.. in India.

The ads became more creative with the emphasis on humour. The boom in the automobile sector saw the creation of lots of ads for bikes. Remember the “Hero Puch ad with Aamir Khan”

We also had ads created by the government to celebrate national unity. Remember the cute ad with the song-“Ek tithli anek tithliyaan..” “Ek chidiya anek chidiyaan…” It had simple animation and blending a fable from the Panchatantra it exemplified the importance of staying united.

The “Mile Sur Mera Tumhara” ad, which had luminaries from all fields like Bhimsen Joshi, Amitabh, P.T.Usha, and a host of others was an immense hit and fostered national integration.

The nineties saw the arrival of sports stars and cine stars raking money with lucrative advertising deals. Remember the Aamir-Aishwarya ad. for Pepsi. The Sachin, Azhar, kambli ad for Pepsi. Actresses like Juhi Chawla, Shikha Swaroop and a host of others selling everything from soft drinks to luxury soaps.

Today the television advertising circuit faces a big threat from the Internet. Pop-up ads maybe irritating to the reader, but at least three out of ten people will click on it to see what the ad is all about. The TV ads of today are shot in a grand manner with the most famous movie or sports personalities and shot on location in Europe or Australia. At times it appears to be a criminal waste of time and money; but who cares; it is a case of my ad was more expensive to shoot than yours!

Another trend that is becoming really popular is in-brand advertising in Bollywoodie up with production houses to promote their products in a movie. Ex-Mountain Dew soft drink in Mission Istanbul -“Dar ke aage jeet hai. Hritik sipping Coke in a movie, Shahrukh using a high-end Nokia mobile phone in a movie, Aishwarya Rai flaunting a particular brand of diamond jewellery, Rani Mukherjee wearing a costly designer wristwatch by Titan, the list continues.

The modern consumer has a wide range of products to choose, a good advertisement may not necessarily transform a bad product in to a good one, but poor advertising can definitely kill a good product.

India vs Sri Lanka ODI Series

India defeated Sri Lanka by 33 runs to take a 2-1 lead in the five match ODI series. The day-night match played at the Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, saw a battle of wits between the two captains. The Indians started disastrously losing Gambhir and Kohli quickly. Dhoni and Suresh Raina played sensibly and brought stability to the Indian innings. Raina was run out for 54 and Dhoni scored 74. India ended their quota of 50 overs and scored 237/9.

The Lankan batting order collapsed again as Zaheer Khan and Praveen Kumar bowled in tandem to reduce Sri Lanka to 90/6. Mahela Jayawardene played a brilliant knock of 94 and almost snatched victory from India Finally the run chase proved taxing and the lankans were bowled out for 233.

India should try their best to win the fourth ODI on Tuesday to win the series. Let us see what happens...

Uppuma and Pongal

The two things that I positively detested were uppuma and pongal. I used to hate the mornings when Amma used to prepare these two dishes for breakfast. Somehow she never managed to entice me into savouring her culinary expertise with uppuma and pongal, all other dishes that she made were demolished in super quick time by me; but uppuma and pongal-no way sir-those mornings I would manage with corn flakes or oats.

It is poetic justice today when in my great company I get uppuma or pongal three to four times a week for early morning breakfast. I have no other choice but to eat the gooey preparation that is a cross between porridge and homemade gum. The only compensation is the crispy vada and the generously coconuty{a new word:)} that accompanies the uppuma or pongal.

When I try to force the uppuma down my throat I long for the uppuma that Amma would make> Damn! you never know how Fate takes its course of action for the seemingly careless blunders and idiosyncrasies of childhood.

My all time favourite uppuma joke is from an old Malayalam movie starring Mohanlal.

Mohanlal plays the role of a fake English teacher teaching in a primary school. A student asks him-"Sir uppuma inde English enda?"{Sir what is the English word for uppuma?}

Mohanlal thinks for a while and replies-"Salt Mango Tree":)

[Uppu-Salt, Maavu-Mango tree.]

Hope that the canteen serves idli tomorrow:)

Second ODI

India won unconvincingly when they defeated Sri Lanka by 3 wickets to win the second ODI against Sri Lanka. Buoyed by a brilliant spell of swing bowling by Zaheer Khan who took 4 wickets the Lankans were restricted to 142 in 38.2 overs. Praveen Kumar got 3 wickets, Irfan got 2 wickets, and Harbhajan got the last wicket. Tushara's anchor-knock of 42 brought respectability to the Lankan total.

India's chase started on a disastrous note when Pathan and Kohli opened the batting; I do not understand the persistence of the Indian think-tank to experiment with Pathan as an opener every time there is a low target being chased; he is a bowler who can add valuable runs lower down the order, a couple of good knocks do not mean that he becomes a regular opener.

Irfan, Raina, Yuvraj all departed in quick succession. At 75 India had lost five wickets. Badrinath and Dhoni played sensibly to ensure that India reached home safely, Dhoni scored 35 and Badri was unbeaten on 27 as Zaheer scored the winning runs and deservedly won the man-of-the-match award.

The batting better improve by the next match; do not expect the Lankan batting to collapse every time like it did today.

Come on India you can win this series.

Some Phobias...

We all have our private list of fears/phobias. I am listing a few of mine:

1-Fear that I have walked into a ladies' restroom; this started in seventh standard, we had been to another school for a competition, and one of my friends walked into the girls' restroom by mistake, it created a near scandal. Thankfully the incident was not reported, I always double check that I am entering the mens' restroom.

2-The fly is open:) Well this is something that all men can relate to; no further explanations.

3-The trousers getting split; this started during a local cricket match, in my over-enthusiasm to catch the ball, I tried to leap like Jonty Rhodes-I tore my trousers, thankfully I caught the ball, and more importantly I was wearing shorts inside.:)

4-Being asked to pay the bill at the restaurant, and suddenly realizing that someone has picked my pocket or I have forgotten to bring my wallet.

5-The fear of lizards.

6-The fear of Maths teachers.

AN EVENING IN T.NAGAR

Saturday afternoon I was bored and on a sudden impulse decided to visit T.Nagar. There is something, an aura or charm about the place that draws thousands to it everyday. T.Nagar is the textile and jewellery hub of Chennai, there was a time when T.Nagar signified just three big names GRT Thanga Maligai, Saravana Stores, and Kumaran Silks. Today the consumer has unlimited options. The crowd of people that throng the narrow roads never diminishes, from Mambalam railway station a sea of humanity rushes to Ranganathan Street, another crowd jostles for space as it makes its way from the T.Nagar bus depot. It is extremely difficult to walk at one's own pace as the crowd pushes you along.

Sathya Bazaar is a string of shops similar to Burma Bazaar. Small shops dealing in electronic items, perfumes, clothes, footwear, and movie DVDs. You never know what rare classic you might find among the pirated movies kept for sale. The footwear available in a couple of shops is really good and one can get fantastic bargains on leather shoes and belts.

I took a bus from Broadway to T.Nagar-10A-that went via Egmore and Sterling Road. The bus took the new flyover that was inaugurated a few days back and I reached T.Nagar at about 5 p.m. I walked along Burkitt Road, took a left turn and walked further to reach Venkatnarayana Road. The Tirupathi Devasthanam Temple was crowded to the maximum; hence I prayed from outside and walked to the Crossword Bookstore. I am always on the lookout for new bookshops; I have mostly been a Landmark-regular while buying new books, otherwise it has always been the pavement bookshops and Moore Market. The bookshop is on the first floor of a shopping mall, the ambience is similar to that of the Oxford Bookshop on Haddows Road. There is a good collection of books, though not exhaustive as Landmark. The big plus point of the place is the genuine inclination of the store attendants to help customers in finding books. At Landmark barring a couple of attendants most of the folks have trouble in trying to spot a book that one is searching for; that reminds me, it has been two weeks since I placed an order for a book at Landmark; and they are yet to contact me regarding the status of my order.

There was a discount sale at the bookshop, and I was tempted to splurge, but I decided to restrict my temptations to Rs 500 as I had already spent about Rs 2000/- this month on books and DVDs. I purchased two books; "The Fire Engine that Disappeared" by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo and "The Art of Acting" by Stanislavski. I also became a member of their Rewards program and got a card which entitled me to dicounts and offers. The lifetime membership costs just Rs 150/-.

Then I returned to the bus depot to find absolute chaos, all the buses were full, and not a single bus to Central railway station was in sight. Then a direct bus to Tiruvallur came; I boarded it without delay; it took a full twenty five minutes for the bus to exit T.Nagar. The bus travelled via Saidapet, Guindy, Porur, Poonamallee, Velavedu and I finally reached Tiruvallur at 8:20 p.m. I discovered that the share autos were not running as there was a shortage of diesel, no bus was also in sight. I got a lift from a good samaritan on a bike, and finally reached home at 8:45 p.m.

INDIA TODAY

I woke up in the morning,

And I realized it is August 15–Independence Day.

Does it make me happy?

Does it make me sad?

I do not know!

A few thoughts that I want to share-

There is pollution everywhere,

There is corruption to the core,

Terrorism and violence everywhere,

A bomb blast here, a bomb blast there;

No value for human life anywhere.

The martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the nation.

Cry in their graves looking at the sad situation.

Once upon a time,

We had leaders like Gandhi, Nehru, and Subash Chandra Bose.

Today we have a bunch of crooks that are no better than horse-traders,

Changing their parties for the colour of money.

In spite of all these problems,

The common man continues to fight,

To struggle and succeed,

In this land of dreams and opportunities,

Hoping for a better tomorrow,

That is the spirit of the true Indian-

To hope against hope-

And persevere to succeed.

Here is a prayer for all the martyrs.

Another prayer for an India undivided.

An India without casteism and communalism.

An India where everyone is happy and free.

An India where everyone is respected and leads a life of freedom and dignity.

Let us hope that India Tomorrow,

Is much better than India Today.

Results Out

Well folks my name does not figure in the list of candidates who have cleared the Prelims of the I.A.S.

I was sure I would clear the exams. I had got a decent number of questions right; perhaps it was not enough.

I do not know if the caste quota affected my elimination.

Anyway there is always another day.

So Prelims 2009, watch out here I come.

Results..

It is not writing an exam that worries me, it is waiting for the results that troubles me. The results of the IAS Prelims can come out any day now. If I am not screwed up by the quota basis, I believe I might have a fair chance to make it to the next round and write the Mains.

As God wills....

Kuselan

As expected Kuselan has flopped. All the hype and hoopla surrounding the movie is dying down as worried cinema hall owners are desperately trying to usher in the audience.

The usual mammoth opening for Superstar's movie ensured that the movie had a fabulous opening. The truth is that P.Vasu has raped Srinivasan's classic "Katha Parayumbol" in which Mammooty had a cameo, to produce a remake in which the story focuses too much on Rajnikant.

If copy cat P.Vasu had stayed faithful to the original I am sure the movie would have been a hit. Pasupathi the hero of the movie hardly gets any place in the posters. It is all about boosting star egos, if Dashavatharam showcased Kamal's vanity, Kuselan unwittingly parodies Rajnikant. In "Sivaji" it was the horrendous blond wig, here it is outlandishly colored costumes, figure hugging jeans.

Acting wise the movie showcases the talents of Pasupathy and Rajnikant. Meena overacts and Nayantara titillates the masses with her dare bare rain dance act.

The last twenty minutes create emotional mayhem; the movie could have been much much better.

G.V. Prakash after a brilliant show in "Veyil" disappoints in "Kuselan." The music gives the impression of "I have already heard this."

Once again as for Dashavtharam I refrain from rating the movie.

The biggest joke is Priyadarshan another copy cat commenting on P.Vasu's failed attempt at trying to copy the magic of "Katha Parayumbol."

The pot calling the kettle black.":)