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May 18, 2004

Black Monday

The fact that the stock markets can react so violently is an ominous reminder that all is not well with them. – quoted from The Hindu’s editorial dated 18th May, 2004.

While the media makes hype out of the millions lost due to stock market crash, The Hindu‘s editorial was mature with a lot of respect to the coming in governement and also without denouncing the outgoing government.

Thats a quality and unbiasedness required in this declining standards of modern day media. With headlines and coverstories discouraging every single prospective investor, the media is racing towards rock-bottom honesty.

It’s not the reporting of such news is getting on the nerves but transforming the news as nail-bitting thrillers to grab eyeballs of the viewers is sickening. Sickening. Read The Hindu’s editorial named Black Monday, that clearly explains the way of putting things.
May 16, 2004

Nammavar – Was Mahesh Mahadevan the inspiration ?

Got a chance to watch Kamalhassan‘s College drama Nammavar , yesterday in Sun TV. I even watched Bala’s Sethu last night. However, If I choose to talk about it, I’ll be blamed for being biased. So, Ghup Chup.

Nammavar was an extraordinary film in many cases. Kamalhassan seemed to have been normal with out any make-up. Just a 10 day beard and that thick geeky spectacles personified a modern day Proffesor. I wished to have one like him. Couldn’t find though.

Anyway, the point is, Mahesh Mahadevan‘s music for Nammavar was breathtaking. Watching the movie again after a long time, I felt that Mahesh wasn’t praised critcally at the time of Nammavar release. Especially the Waltz music was amazing and still resonates. What a find he was for tamil cinema ? During the time when Rahman was unfolding his musical genius, Mahesh was also doing the same without much notice. Kudos to him. Though he is no more, I wish his music be researched and followed for some quality findings.

Just when I finished watching the movie, I realised that there was a co-incidence of Nammavar and Mahesh Mahadevan. Mahesh could have been the possible source of inspiration for this film. Kamal’s character suffers from Blood Cancer. He comes around with a cool attitude of life. He understands that he has cancer yet he isn’t willing to budge for it. Also he hates someone who pities him for the disease he carries. Interviews with Mahesh’s friends like Mani Ratnam and Kamalhassan have told before that Mahesh was also such a person who was willing to fight the cancer he carried with him and never allowed anyone who would pity him for that. Probably Kamal’s character was directly inspired from Mahesh Mahadevan.

Nammavar was also Kamal’s extravaganza. Be it the scene when he comes with a hi-fi sunglasses or the scene when he pleads to the students to forgive Karan’s mis-behaviour, Kamal proves that he is a self-taught genius. The second-half however went bonkers as it was Kamal Vs Karan. Also in the final scene, the senti stuff went overboard as Kamalhasan says that his ashes be laid in the gardens of the college. Very Artificial. You too Kamal !!
May 13, 2004

Chennai gears-up for Mani Ratnam’s Aayitha Ezhuthu and Yuva

As I bike across the stretch of GST highway from guindy to tambaram, Aayitha Ezhuthu hoardings and banners keep springing up slow and steady. It is not that I am amused for the first time about Mani Ratnam‘s strategy on his film’s promos. I’ve always liked the strategy of slow approach that he takes to keep his audience guessing. Be it Thiruda Thiruda which flopped heavily in Box-Office or be it Roja which sweeped the Box-Office like the Andra Pradesh election assembly results, his strategy has never changed.

Aayitha Ezhuthu’s teasers were out a month back. What has to be conveyed through the teasers are done. Now it’s time to set the ground for more expectations as the movie opens up next week (May 21, 2004). Even the second level of trailers are out on TV Channels. It shows a much detailed description of the three characters and the conflict that happens in the Napier Bridge. Of course, the conflict could me heard and not seen. If you are blinking about what the conflict is wait and watch the movie or read Amores Perros’s synopsis.

Madhavan as Inba Sekhar seems to sweep the Aayitha Ezhuthu trailers with his cool attitude as he appears before the mike in a gathering and says Vote for Inba Sekhar. Many of my friends feel Madhavan and Bachchan will be the best among the six characters of Aayitha Ezhuthu and Yuva. From the trailers it looks like their assumption is right but it’s too early before the release to ignore Surya.

When I was in Satyam theatres to watch Main Hoon Na, I could see the Aayitha Ezhuthu and Yuva posters drawing huge crowds and if you lend your ears there for sometime, you might even get some cool assumptions of the movie. Someone said, that Madhavan liked the character of Inba Sekhar which prompted him to debate with Mani Ratnam for the same role in Yuva too. The other common statement was that Isha Deol looked very old as she pairs Surya in Tamil and Ajay Devgan in the Hindi version. Well, I only wish Mani and his team would endorse these assumptions/facts (??).

And as I watched the new Yuva trailer during the break of Main Hoon Na, I could see Kolkatta shining in Ravi K Chandran’s camera.

You can find some more pictures on my photoblog on how Chennai gears-up to welcome Aayitha Ezhuthu and Yuva.
May 13, 2004

A Gem on the Mother’s Day

Celebrating Mother’s Day isn’t a big deal. I have my own personal apprehensions just like millions of others in this country on this issue. Mothers’ day and other celebrated days are just children of this commercialization era. That’s however an old story. Its been spoken, written and debated all over since the peep of such customs into Indian society. This blog post isn’t about it. Here is a gem I found over the media on the mother’s day.

– Visu’s Arratai Arangam in Sun TV deserves a mention. Rather than just being a yet-another-talkative-show, it has elevated to a forum of outcry of social and economic issues. Often you find people being pompous about their public speaking skills. Instead on focusing on the issues for which they are present to talk, they brag in Ethugai and Monnai like T Rajendar. Thats a huge diversion from the main topic.

This lady, who was talking in favor of parents being the single most important source of social sense for someone, uttered some genuine experiences. She said, during my childhood, I used to come home after classes and a tough play hour. My mom comes out of the kitchen, greeting me. As I hug my mom I could smell oil and other spicy smells from my mom who used to toil in the kitchen from dawn to dusk. Now, in this Singapore, as I can smell a plethora of perfumes around me, I am still in search of that oily, spicy smell of mom. I couldn’t find that.

What a way to put it. Hats off that lady who was genuinely longing for her mom like many others who settled in foreign countries, leaving their mom behind in India.
May 12, 2004

Happy Birthday, Mr.Feynman!

Guest Blog 8 – Anand Chandrasekharan

Richard Feynman (1911 – forever)
Member of the Los Alamos Project.
Inventor – Quantum Electrodynamics.
Physicist.
Professor at Caltech.
Nobel Laureate.
Bongo drummer.
Safe-cracker.
Painter of still life.
Reader of heiroglyphics.
Poet.

Here’s my favorite Richard Feynman quartet:

I wonder why, I wonder why,
I wonder why I wonder…
I wonder why I wonder why,
I wonder why I wonder.

Happy birthday, Mr Feynman! Your lectures in Physics continue to inspire as much your poetry will…

Black Monday

Nammavar – Was Mahesh Mahadevan the inspiration ?

Chennai gears-up for Mani Ratnam’s Aayitha Ezhuthu and Yuva

A Gem on the Mother’s Day

Happy Birthday, Mr.Feynman!