The Devotion of Suspect X: Book Review

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I am not a fan of crime thrillers and since I've read Dan Brown's novels I've become wary of picking one randomly. So when Blogadda announced their this week's book for review, it took me a while before signing up for it. 

The Devotion of Suspect X is a crime mystery written by the award winning author Keigo Higashino who is also the President of Mystery Writers of Japan. 

The crisp whodunit plot is like a game of Chess where two masterminds; a mathematician extraordinaire and a physicist cum unofficial detective play their moves and constantly keep outdoing each other. The writer gives clues throughout the story but its only in the end that the reader is able to put the pieces of the puzzle together.

Yasuko lives a modest life with her daughter Misato in a Tokyo suburb and works in a lunch shop. She has completely let go off her past life as a nightclub hostess in order to escape her blackmailing ex husband Togashi. But her comfortable life is shattered when Togashi turns up in her apartment and ends up dead. Yasuko's neighbour Ishigami who is a mathematical genius comes to her rescue and out of his admiration for her helps her in covering up the crime. He uses is logical brain to mislead the police and asks the mother daughter to keep following his instructions.

He creates a perfect trap to deceive detective Kusanagi who is investigating the case. The hiccup in Ishigami's plan comes in the form of an old classmate and brilliant physicist Yukawa who also is a friend of the detective. Yukawa starts his personal investigation trying to solve the problem that Ishigami's mathematician mind has created.

Why does Ishigami who is devoid of all the emotions has such a devotion towards Yasuko that he goes to the extent of risking his own life? Why does he create a scenario where all the paths lead to Yasuko suspecting her of the murder? And above all, what is more difficult; to create an unsolvable problem or to solve it? The story got me asking many such questions and the answers to all of them lie in the last few pages.

The Devotion of Suspect X is a great one sitting read and did keep me interested till I flipped the last page.

Book : The Devotion Of Suspect X
Author: Keigo Higashino 
Publisher: Hachette India
Price: 350/-

Pages: 374

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Kahaani - A mother of loopholes

Now that almost everyone has seen Kahaani and sung praises for the film I can take the liberty of pointing out the loopholes in the movie. No, I am not acting like a Hollywood loving snob here whom no Hindi movie can please. I liked Kahaani because it maintains the suspense till the end, has filmed Kolkata beautifully and above all has given us Bob Biswas. But despite the good things I couldn't ignore those mistakes that stood there, in my face, asking to be noticed.

Caution: There are spoilers so please don't read if you haven't seen the film, yet.

My first issue with the movie; why is there a need to show Vidya Bagchi's history? I am sure a lot of people would agree with that. Why doesn't the movie ends with a mysterious air around her character? Sujoy Ghosh could've given clues in the movie and let the audience find out her true identity. The flashback in the end is a complete killjoy.

The ex IB chief who has trained Milan Damjee, trains Vidya just in a year or two. The Ninja like moves that she makes in the end does not look like a work of two years' training. My logic is, why did Sujoy Ghosh show Vidya as the wife of the slain IB agent. She could've been an agent who was secretly being trained by Darshan Zariwala's character. No one learns to be a spy in a year.

In the scenes where Vidya is alone in her room, why is she still sporting that fake belly? I am sure that it wasn't convenient to carry it around and the super spy wouldn't mind putting it away for a while. Sujoy should have just shot her neck up.

Rana who is with Vidya like a shadow all the time doesn't even for a moment doubts her, accepted. But suddenly at the end he has a happy realization that she was using them to get to Milan Damjee. Rana's cute face made me ignore his folly for a while but then again, a folly is a folly.

When Khan sees Arnab Bagchi's resemblance to Milan Damjee why isn't he alarmed? Why doesn't he do a background check on Vidya? After all, she would've been married to Milan. Why aren't even Milan and his people interested to know why is she carrying his photo? Probably every one is too sure that he is just a look alike.

Spies don't randomly go on a killing spree. They won't kill a person until he is completely useless. Here a mastermind like Milan and the IB chief are not interested in getting the information out. They just killed Agnes for no reason at all. Was she that big a threat?

When the current IB chief is himself involved with the terrorists why does he himself go to Zariwala's house to pursuit him to join back? I am sure he didn't want him to. It could've just been a brief conversation over the phone.

I am sure that the counter to all these points would be 'don't think too much, just watch the movie.' But if I have to leave the logic at home why should I go and watch Kahaani instead of a Housefull 2? Think about it.

Urban Shots: Book Review

They say that don't judge a book by its cover but you might hesitate to pick Urban Shots going by the cover. A pretty girl in red with sleepy eyes posing for the cover definitely repels me. The book landed in my hands courtesy blogadda.com when I registered for their book review program (well, who doesn't like free books?). I am generally a slow reader but the challenge was to finish the book and review it within 7 days. So my journeys from home to work and vice versa were dedicated to Urban Shots: a collection of 31 love stories by 27 authors.

Written by amateur writers and bloggers the book gives a feeling of reading a blog. All the stories talk about love and its meaning in the urban life. The stories thankfully are not tear soaked tales (except few) of boy meets girl. They are more mature here and don't always have a happy ending.

The first two stories 'Written In the Stars' by R. Chandrasekhar and 'Rishta' by Ahmed Faiyaz didn't give me any hint of love in the urban life. Rather, they focused more on the small town sensibilities.

I am not a fan of regular love stories per say so Kailash Srinivasan's a little off beat 'High Time' humored me especially because of its South Indian stereotypes. It is about a Tamil mother looking for a suitable match for her son, her bickerings, excitement of seeing the girl and inhibitions after finding out that the girl is no miss goody two shoes. '32 B' by Varsha Suman had an undertone of lust and was an entertaining read.

'Pause,Rewind,Play' by Shoma Narayanan and 'Twisted' by Lipi Mehta focus on Gay love, both in a way question the acceptance of homosexuality in India.

'Beyond reasonable Doubts' written by Sneh Thakur (who is also the editor of this book) is a mature take on extra marital affair and a couple drifting apart. Most urban couple who lead a busy life can relate to the story. The last one from the collection 'Sleepless By Night' is about a man dealing with his girlfriend's death. written by Mona Ramavat, this story is a good pick to sum up the book.

Rest of the stories didn't excite me much. The flimsy editing in few of them does disrupt your flow. If not  a great read it is a decent coffee table book and you can pick it up if you are sucker for love and wouldn't mind an occasional light reading.

Book : Urban Shots – The Love Collection
Editor : Sneh Thakur
Publisher: Grey Oak/ Westland
Price: 199/-
Pages: 226

This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program at BlogAdda.com. Participate now to get free books!

Bombay Duck is a Fish: Book Review

My recent liking for Indian authors took me to the 'Indian Fiction' section in Crossword. I picked up the book 'Bombay Duck is a Fish' by Kanika Dhillon hoping to read some crazy stories about the city I've lived in and experienced since past 7 years.

To wrap up the plot in few words, its the story of an aspiring filmmaker Neki Brar who comes to Mumbai; "the city of dreams" and lands a job as an assistant to a famous choreographer turned director (no prizes for guessing who she is). Despite of finding the right kick to start her career she keeps running into troubles. The book is about all that Bollywood is infamous for; bloated egos, sleaze, wicked co-workers etc. And a not-so-subtle mention of Shahrukh Khan whom she (the thin line between the author and the character is smudged here) obviously idolizes.

When we first meet our heroine Neki she is sitting on her terrace, wine bottle in hand. While contemplating suicide she flicks the pages of her diary where she has documented all the accidents of her life. As we continue we find out that our aspirant director left a lucrative job to follow her dreams but the problem here is that I didn't understand her motivation. She looks star struck from the very first day and is already kissing (or rather being kissed by) the hot supporting actor Ranbeer Khanna within the first week of her job.

As per her diary she is hated by her co-workers because of the yellow shoes that she wore on the day of her interview. Now, I know that film industry is full of shallow people but I have yet to meet people who'll judge you from your shoes, that too good shoes.

She has moved to Mumbai for the love of it but makes a fuss when a colleague (who also has a crush on her) takes her on a tour. Her life in Mumbai revolves between the studio, Ranbeer Khanna's van and Ranbeer Khanna's house, resulting in pregnancy and attempted suicide. In short, Neki looks shallow to me and never for a single moment gains my sympathy.

The film industry that Kanika has created in the book is a tale that parents tell their children to scare them off from the unimaginable path. If you are an aspirant filmmaker, film writer or actor don't let your folks lay hand on this one. However, in this hell hole where everyone is ready to bite the only people with a heart of gold are either the extras or Shahrukh Khan and the super successful director.

'Bombay Duck is a Fish' indeed but a sukkha bombil with not enough meat.

Book: Bombay Duck Is A Fish
Author: Kanika Dhillon
Publisher: Westland
Price: 195/-
Pages: 317

Paan Singh Tomar: Movie Review

this article was first published on burrp!
http://bit.ly/zi5cTC
 
Director: Tigmanshu Dhulia
Cast: Irrfan Khan, Mahie Gill, Zakir Hussain, Nawazuddin

Rating: ***

There was a time when actors like Sunil Dutt made dacoits glamorous. Their larger than life characters had a heart of gold underneath the tough bodies. The time changed and ferocious Gabbar Singh took over. The almost animal like daaku terrorized Ramgarh for the longest time. Years later Jageera in China Gate attempted a Gabbar Singh but ended up being nothing more than a mockery. Shekhar Kapoor helped shed the glam quotient with his true-to-life depiction of The Bandit Queen.

With the latest release in the same genre director Tigmanshu Dhulia (Haasil fame ) has taken Kapoor’s legacy further and told us an unheard story.

Paan Singh Tomar joined the army in the 1950s. He hailed from Chambal and according to him the dacoits are actually good people who turned rebels. In his own words, “beehad mein baagi hote hain, dacait toh Parliament mein hote hain”. Afraid of his rebellious instinct and seeing his exceptional running abilities his seniors shift him to the sports department. He runs for the country till he plans to take a voluntary retirement to take care of his kheti.

Rest of the film is a transition of an Army Subedar to a national level athlete and finally a dreaded name in the valleys of Chambal. What triggers this transition is the cunning cousin who wants to take over his land, destroys his crop and tries to kill his family. The police and the system offer no help leaving him with no choice than to take the matters in his own hands. The man who was denied the opportunity to fight in the war (because he was a sportsperson) picks up the gun for revenge.  The rebel in him who is suppressed comes out in the second half of the film. Paan Singh is no Robinhood, he kills for revenge and kidnaps for money.

The film also throws a light on the poor conditions of our national level athletes, the unsung heroes who died an unknown death.

Irrfan Khan is Tigmanshu Dhulia’s lucky charm. He was a thunderbolt in Haasil and is nothing less than that in this one. All those who have seen him grow from Banegi Apni Baat should be extremely proud. His Paan Singh Tomar commands respect and makes you sympathize with him just through his expressive eyes. Nawazuddin appears in a small role but after his critically acclaimed role in Peepli Live this one doesn’t do justice to his acting abilities.

What makes this film special is Tigmanshu Dhulia’s love for the raw appeal. He inspires you to look beneath the polished layer. His characters, locations and language are crude. He does not try to refine them for your viewing pleasure.

Paan Singh Tomar with all its shortcomings (read stretched second half, off sync dubbing, occasional dramatic dialogues) is a film that should be watched mostly for Irrfan Khan and also for its story.

The Artist - Movie Review

This article was first published on burrp!
http://bit.ly/AfLUDt

Director: Michel Hazanavicius
Cast: Jean Dujardin, Berenice Bejo, John Goodman
burrp! Says: ****1/2



When was the last time you watched a movie in the theatres that had the good old title cards, was black and white and silent. Let me guess, never? Book your tickets for The Artist first thing.

George Valentin is a silent movie star of the 1920s; the time when a perfect smirk and a stylish walk was enough to win over hearts. While George rules Hollywood, the talkies slowly creep in and he finds himself unfit for this new wave of cinema. He makes his own silent movie which falls flat on its face against the talking film. The sun sets on his career as he goes broke and further into oblivion. The current reigning star Peppy Miller, with whom Valentin once had a fling keeps a watch on him and tries to help him out.


In times when a film has various dimensions, making one without dialogues is a risk. But for Michel Hazanavicius, the risk is well taken and puts him instantly in the bigger league (read Oscar nomination). Despite the lack of voice and colors, the story and its treatment keep the audience thoroughly interested. The scene where Peppy seduces Valentin’s tux by putting her arm in it is imagination at its best.

The build up towards the climax keeps the audience at the edge of their seat and that is when you realize the beauty of silence. Full marks to the art director for recreating the flawless classic era. The soundtrack is continuous and in perfect sync with the emotions on screen.

Jean Dujardin is stellar as George Valentin with his mid parted hair, trimmed moustache and charming smile. It seems he has traveled in time, straight from the 20s to act in this film. His chemistry with his pet dog is funny and endearing at the same time. Berenice Bejo portrays the bubbly Peppy Miller and keeps the character true to its name.

Although there are various movies based on the rise and fall of an artist but what’s special about The Artist is its treatment making it worthy of all the acclaim.

Moneyball - Movie Review

This article was first published on burrp!
http://bit.ly/wccR7o

Director: Bennett Miller
Cast: Brad Pitt, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Jonah Hill
burrp! Says: ****


Unconventional, that’s how the truth is. And when you don’t meddle with the facts you make a film like Moneyball.

Upset at Oakland A’s defeat by New York Yankees, the General Manager Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) tries to put together a new team. Oakland being the poorest club of all, the biggest challenge for him is the financial constraint. He hires Peter Brand (Jonah Hill), an Economics graduate from Yale who has radical ideas on how to assess players based on their statistics. Through the computer-generated analysis Beane and Brand put together a team for 2002 season.

After initial hiccups the team goes on a winning streak with 20 games in a row making a record. But unlike most of the underdog stories this one doesn’t end with a major win. Oakland A’s loses the finishing game but Beane changes the game by creating a successful team with the least resources.While it’s inspiring to see the hero winning, the realistic end keeps the film grounded.

Moneyball is based on true events and is more about the statistics of Baseball rather than the real game itself. It will keep you hooked whether or not you are a fan of the game. If Baseball is not one of your favorites relate it to any other game you like and the story will fit right in.

Six years after his acclaimed film Capote, Bennett Miller has once again churned out a masterpiece. Brad Pitt makes most of the film a one-man-show running it on his strong shoulders.

With numerous Oscar nominations (including Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor) already up its sleeve, Moneyball is worth losing few bucks this weekend.

I dare!

We all have our fears, most of us conquer theirs' while the rest just learn to live with them. I belonged to the latter group (until recently). I vowed never to as-much-as going close to taking on my biggest fear; the fear of height.

I have always been fattu when it comes to going on roller coaster rides (yes, that include Giant Wheel too). The whole point of hanging in the middle of the air scares me to death and I can feel my guts coming out through my mouth when the wheel descends. On my visit to Essel World I witnessed only 3 rides, one of them being the flimsy Bhoot Bangla or whatever they call it. Given to my plight the more adventurous sports like para-sailing and paragliding have always been a far cry while bungee jumping doesn't even stand a chance.

So, on my recent trip to Goa when the whole group decided to go for water rides I conveniently opted out of the para-sailing part. While one by one all my friends took their turn and came back beaming with joy I shivered in my seat still stuck to my decision of not trying it out. Suddenly everyone in the group decided to pump energy in me and motivate me to try it once. I declined, panicked, held my stomach but no amount of drama could deter them. While I was reasoning with them, the harness was thrust on me and I was being pulled towards the edge of the boat, dialogue from the movie Rangeela looping in my head 'life mein daring karna mangta, daring!' I shut my eyes tight and let time take its course. A minute passed, I opened my eyes and looked around. I was already in the air, sailing over the beautiful ocean, looking at the sprawling Calangute beach. That was my moment of enchantment.

Before

After

I don't know whether I'll take the next step and try paragliding or sit on those crazy roller coaster rides but I can proudly say that I dared to fight my fear for once. And, it felt great.

Chaalis Chauraasi Movie Review

this review was first published on burrp!

http://know.burrp.com/arts-entertainment/chaalis-chaurasi-movie-review/35241

Director: Hriday Shetty
Starring: Naseeruddin Shah, Kay Kay Menon, Atul Kulkarni, Ravi Kishan, Zakir Hussain

Burrp! says: **

Look closely at the cast of the movie. Does it attract you? Call you to the theatres? Yes! Victim no 1 is none other than me. And now I am looking for Hriday Shetty with pain in my heart and questions in my head. How can you get away with committing such a crime? How can you cast Naseeruddin Shah, Kay Kay Menon and Atul Kulkarni in an excuse for a film?

Moving on to the story, a professor turned wife-murderer turned driver (Naseeruddin Shah), a pimp (Atul Kulkarni), a drug peddler (Ravi Kishan ) and a car thief (Kay Kay Menon) hatch a plan to steal money from a gang that supplies fake currency notes. They dress up as cops, steal a police van and are headed to Kalyan for the big night when a real cop stops them. The second half is as the song suggests, ‘a crazy night, a hell of a ride.’

The script that looks good on paper turns into a disaster on screen. At certain points it reminds you of ‘Ek Chalis Ki Last Local’ but the direction isn’t as crisp and edgy. The flashbacks are craftily created to throw item numbers at an unsuspecting audience. The first one hits you within 10 minutes in to the movie and by the time the third one arrives you’ve already sunken low in your seats. However, there are some funny lines in between and for the rest of the film you are laughing because it does not make any sense at all. The climax does remind you of the crazy laugh riot ‘Pineapple Express’ only that it’s badly done. The leading men walking in slow motion like ‘Reservoir Dogs’ has been repeated till you finally scream, “Move it faster, dude!”

The director/producer tried creating a buzz by getting the 90s Pakistani popstar Hassan Jahangir to sing his then hit ‘Hawa Hawa’. My one suggestion to such creative geniuses; please let that music stay in that era. It’s good the way it is, don’t kill its essence with those stupid remixes.

Coming to the cast; the director managed to get the cream of the industry but as they say, wild cats don’t work in packs and these actors definitely are the tigers. We’d rather watch them separately in different movies than all of them getting together and making a mockery of themselves. While we loved Naseer Sir spoofing the 80s heroes in ‘Ooh la la’ (The Dirty Picture) we definitely didn’t like the site of him gyrating hips on a ‘Munni’ like number. Kay Kay plays the street smart car thief with as much ease as he plays a cop or a military person. Atul Kulkarni looks odd in funky t-shirts and dyed hair and the discomfort reflects in the performance as well. Ravi Kishan is decent and flexes his muscle too many times probably to shift focus from his jiggling belly.

To sum it up, Chalis Chaurasi is a bad product packaged well. I recommend you watch The Dirty Picture, Gulaal and Natarang back to back if the star cast of this movie lures you.

Inko (Abbas-Mustan) buddhi do bhagwan!

Film: Players
Director: Abbas-Mustan
Cast: Abhishek Bachchan, Bipasha Basu, Sonam Kapoor, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Bobby Deol, Sikander Kher, Omi Vaidya, Vinod Khanna
Rating: It's so bad that it's good!

I haven't realy understood their (Abbas-Mustan's) motivation behind making this movie or any other as for that matter. Let's get into the whole process;

The Burmawala Bros. have money and they have no idea what to do with it. So, they plan to make a movie. Story is not their concern at all since their are many, piled up in a video library. They take out their check list which goes like:

• Story from a Hollywood action thriller - Check
• Innumerable twists - Check
• Macho hero - Check
• A side hero who'll die - Check
• Bipasha Basu's hot number - Check
• A love triangle or sometimes quadrangle - Check
• Inane dialogues - Check
• Pritam's music - Check
• A car chase - Check
• A not so slick desi style dhishoom-dhishoom - Check
• Johny Lever - Check
• White clothes - Check

Going by these ingredients Players is a perfect film. It insults your intellect to the point that you are left with no other option but to enjoy it. The story goes like this; Charlie a CA who also is a smooth criminal steals necklaces from big stores and talks about the robberies in a most profound manner. He plans to steal the gold that's been taken to Romania from Russia in a train. He gets a team of the best players with the help of his guru Victor Dada (an old and tired Vinod Khanna). So Charlie gets a Bipasha; a motor expert who can seduce the living hell out of any thing that moves, Sikander Kher; a bomb expert who is deaf, Omi Vaidya; a prosthetic expert with the weird 3 Idiots' accent and Bobby Deol; an illusionist with broody expressions. The only player that's left is the 'best hacker of the world' Spider (Neil Nitin Mukesh) whom no one can trace. Well, not really cos he is traced by Sonam Kapoor who incidentally is Victor's daughter and an ethical hacker. They execute the robbery and are double crossed by Neil who tries to kill them all. Post interval the rest of them form a team against Spidey and take the revenge.

Now, logic doesn't play much role here. A robbery timed for 10 minutes time stretches itself to 15 good minutes. The Russian general is seduced by Bipasha and dances on 'mera joota hai japani' with his pants off. Strangely he doesn't find anything odd the next day when he wakes up from his unconsciousness. The most absurd part comes where Johny Lever, a car mechanic creates cars from the stolen gold within half an hour. If only Tata could hire a guy like that their production will increase 10 folds.

Acting department completely relies on Neil's shoulders and he impresses with his mean act. He has a potential to fill the void in Hindi films created after villians like Amrish Puri and Gulshan Grover. Abhishek Bachchan looks...well...ugly. While Bipasha looks hot even in drabs, Sonam Kapoor tries hard to match up with her. Her seduction dance for Neil Nitin looks more of a mockery. 

The film is an insult even to the masala genre. If you still want to watch it I recommend you go with cynics who would laugh at every scene and make you forget that its an 'action thriller'.

The newsmakers of 2011

The article was first published on www.burrp.com

http://know.burrp.com/loose-ends/the-newsmakers-of-2011/32713

Year 2011 was eventful with lots of scams, controversies and news courtesy a lot of newsmakers – some we liked but most we hated. Here's the list of the most talked about people of this year.

Kapil Sibal:

He saw, he spoke, he got hash-tagged. #IdiotKapilSibal became the talk of Twitter when he demanded the pre-screening of content on Facebook, Twitter and Google. The brouhaha was over an objectionable image of Congress president Sonia Gandhi on a Facebook page. We won’t say much on it but here are some tweets from angry social media enthusiasts:

SatanBhagat Satan Bhagat

If the UPA is a tube of Pond's white facewash, Kapil Sibal is the self-appointed activated carbon.

PritishNandy Pritish Nandy

If we had a Hyde Park, Kapil Sibal will want to censor the speakers there.

kafila Kafila

Say #IdiotKapilSibal before he prevents Twitter from letting you say it

hankypanty Sorabh Pant

"I love Sonia Gandhi. She is awesome. She is God. And never wrong about anything, ever." (This msg is approved by Kapil Sibal's cyber cell.)

bangdu soumik sen

What was Kapil Sibal doing surfing for offensive pictures of Sonia Gandhi? #LonelyMan

stupidusmaximus Ashish Shakya

Maybe Kapil Sibal will back off if we agree to rename the internet as 'Shrimati Sonia Gandhi Antarrashtriya Computer Mayajaal'.

NigelBritto Nigel Britto

I think on December 5 every year from now on, Google will have a middle-finger doodle in tribute to #IdiotKapilSibal's stupidity.

maps4aid maps4aid

Kapil Sibal has become the standard on which all other future idiots will be measured ~ #idiotkapilsibal #FreedomOfSpeech

Anna Hazare:

The 74-year old social activist went on a fast to get the Jan Lokpal Bill in action. The nation joined him instantly. Protests were made, debates happened and thousands of FB pages were created to support the cause. As the fast continued, the janta kept getting furious. But even after a cat-mouse chase between the government and Hazare, umpteen fasts, talk shows on news channel, rallies and Baba Ramdev fiascos, the future of the Anti Corruption Bill is still dark.

Sharad Pawar/Harvinder Singh:

‘Thappad se darr nahi lagta saab, sardar se lagta hai.’ The famous dialogue from Dabangg made rounds of Twitter when Union Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar got one on his ‘kaan ke neeche’. Harvinder Singh became a national hero for doing a deed that every Indian had been dreaming of doing. With a record of slapping two ministers in a row (Sukhram and Sharad Pawar) we wonder who’s next on this serial slapper’s hit list. Kapil Sibal, maybe?

Julian Assange:

The Australian publisher, journalist and “internet activist” founded the website Wikileaks in 2006. The site did not do much harm to India till he leaked the information on Indian accounts in the Swiss banks. Our politicians (read Congress) shivered in their air-conditioned chambers and almost had their foot in mouth by making statements that backfired. With Assange kicking their butts, Hazare sitting on their heads and Harvinder Singh slapping their faces, all we can say is, ‘ye to hona hi tha!’

Indian Cricket Team:

They broke the 28-year long curse by winning the World Cup and dedicated it to master-blaster Sachin Tendulkar. Since then the team always stayed in the news whether it was for Rahul Dravid’s retirement or Sachin’s 100^th hundred which he still couldn’t make.

Baby B:

Can a baby become a celebrity even before its birth? Sure, if the surname is Bachchan. There were chants of Baby B in the air as soon as Aishwarya Rai Bachchan became pregnant. We heard congratulatory messages in almost every episode of KBC and somehow dada Bachchan looked more excited than papa Bachchan.

Media went berserk zeroing on the gender of the child and the date of birth. The so called auspicious 11.11.11 came and went and while the whole nation was undergoing labour pains Aishwarya experienced none. Finally a girl was born on 16 Nov and soon the name changed to Beti B. Twitter handle @BaybeeBachchan a.k.a Ghar Ki Lakshmi cracked PJs till the whole news died a natural death. Social media was relieved of Beti B hash-tags and so were we.

Chetan Bhagat:

For those who missed Rakhi Sawant this year, don’t be upset. We have Chetan Bhagat who made it in the news for reasons other than his books. Be it a literary event or a television show, CBag was everywhere. @PollyesterParo trashed him on TV for his ghastly English and typos and his alter ego @SatanBhagat took his case on Twitter almost every day. Whether it is for his books or his ‘I am so funny’ act, we definitely Luv2HateHim!

Dhanush:

Better known as Rajnikant’s son-in-law, Dhanush took a leap of success with his song ‘Kolaveri Di’ written and sung by him and composed by Anirudh Ravichander. The catchy tune and Tanglish (English with a Tamil accent) lyrics made the video an instant hit. Youtube gave the video a Gold Award for getting the maximum number of views. The song reached its highest point and got played on BBC Radio. From Hitler getting furious with its success in a meme video to Sonu Nigam’s son singing its milk version, the song grew on everyone and trended on Twitter for almost a week. ‘Lovvu’ it or ‘hate-u’ it, you can’t ignore it.

Shahrukh Khan:

He made Ra.One and then he was everywhere. Attending reality shows, launching Youtube channels, creating games and promoting almost all the products you can use in a day. ‘Chammak challo’ was played on TV/radio till it started looping in our heads. After watching the movie we think that all the marketing gimmicks combined would have made for a better watch.

Delhi:

The capital made sure that it stayed in the news for reasons not so pleasant. The Delhi boy got thrashed by a Mallu girl in an open letter. Metallica’s opening concert in India went for a toss due to management issues and the Delhi crowd went berserk. Delhiites were mocked by the Bangaloreans who attended the concert in their city, repeatedly. Mumbaikars did the same when Delhi’s attempt for a flash mob failed miserably. What do we tell the residents of a 100-year old city? Grow up!

Gaddafi:

After more than 30 years of dictatorship, Libya finally broke into a civil war. While Gaddafi’s assets were seized he remained at large. On the October 20, he was captured in Sirte and killed putting an end to the chaos. But not before we found photographs of his “darling” Condoleezza Rice.

Hina Rabbani Khar:

Pakistan’s pretty foreign minister who visited India recently became the talk of town. She made a style statement with her Birkin bags and Roberto Cavalli shades and put many Indian ministers to shame with her grace and vibrancy. It’s time that our old and slow politicians take cue and step down.

Vidya Balan:

From a coy girl next door in Parineeta to a scheming and sexy woman in Ishqiya, Vidya Balan came a long way. She went a step further by deciding to play the sultry south siren Silk Smitha who was well known for her flabby body and wild sex appeal. Vidya gained weight for her role in ‘The Dirty Picture’ and proved that size (zero or 10) doesn’t really matter as long as you have the acting abilities to go with it.

Steve Jobs:

On August 26, 2011 the mastermind behind the best looking computers in the world retired as the CEO of Apple Computers. The news became a trending topic with jokes like ‘iPod, iPhone, iPad…iQuit’ doing the rounds. The ailing Steve Jobs handed over the reins of the company to Tim Cook. As the world and Apple fanboys were recovering from it, there came another blow with Jobs passing away on October 5.

Kanimozhi:

M Karunanidhi’s (Tamil Nadus chief minister) daughter made her way to the Tihar jail for her said involvement in the 2G scam with *ahem* special friend A. Raja. She appealed for bail citing the reasons that she was a woman. Well madam Kanimozhi, after seeing the outcomes of your womanly powers we don’t find the reason good enough.

Kiki:

We watched a graceful and white Simi in ‘Rendezvous with Simi Garewal’ few years ago. She came back this year with ‘Simi Selects India’s Most Wanted’ botoxed, graceless and less white. Her alter ego Kiki embarrassed Ranbir Kapoor and made Abhay Deol uncomfortable. With the first season already over, we hope she thinks better of it and doesn’t come back with her most haunted…err…wanted list.

 And while the rest of them made news, Arnab Goswami made sure that he highlighted them: loud and clear!

New Year’s Eve – Movie review

What did Garry Marshall do after directing the beautiful Pretty Woman? He made Valentine’s Day and New Year’s Eve in quick successions and ruined it all. There can actually be a contest; spot 10 differences and win prizes. The two are almost replica of each other with even the posters looking same.

Apart from the excess amount of sugar, love and hope the movie has a story which is set in the bedazzling New York city on the new year’s eve. The stories of different individuals begin or end at the strike of midnight hour. As the big ball at The Times Square drops, speeches are made, wishes are fulfilled and kisses are exchanged. Read more...

Manto…Ismat Haazir Hain!

Why did two of Urdu literature’s best writers face a court case for their stories? I watched the play Manto…Ismat Haazir Hain! by Motley Theater Group at Celebrate Bandra to find out.

Manto…Ismat Haazir Hain! features two short stories by Saadat Hasan Manto and one short story and essay by Ismat Chugtai. Naseeruddin Shah has picked up two of the most controversial stories of the writers which almost put them in the prison. The slice-of-life stories revolve around a memory or an incident. What makes them beautiful is the word play. Read more...

In the lap of luxury @ Le Meridien, Coimbatore

On 11.11.11, Starwood Group of Hotels launched their 100th Le Meridien brand of hotels in Coimbatore. I attended the grand opening and explored this luxurious hotel in the middle of a small town in south India.

If you are surprised what this French brand is doing in Coimbatore, don’t be. The city is on its way to become an IT hub in South India and truly deserves five-star luxury. It’s also in close proximity to Chennai (about 8 hours), Bangalore (about 6 hours), Kodaikkanal (about 4 hours) and Ooty (about 2 hours) and with Le Meridien opening here it’ll soon become a favourite weekend destination. The hotel has hosted numerous corporate events within a year since it started operating in phases. Read more...

Deool - Movie review

Incase you are wondering whether or not to watch the latest Marathi release Deool, here's my review for the film. I watched it during the Mumbai Film Festival. I am not a native Maharashtrian nor do I understand the language still I absolutely loved the movie. For me a good movie is something that goes beyond the barriers of language. However, the length of Deool is something that bothered me because when you are making a film for the International audience you have to keep it tight (which it is) and short. 

Marathi cinema is several notches ahead of mainstream Bollywood. This has been proved time and again with films like Shwaas, Dombivali Fast, Harishchandrachi Factory and Natrang. Deool, which premiered on the second day of Mumbai Film Festival, can easily be listed in the same category.


The story is of a simple village youth called Kesha (Girish Kulkarni) who has a vision of Datta (God) under a tree. What follows is how the local netas publicise this for their own political benefits. A temple is built instead of a hospital. The village becomes a pilgrimage centre and gets crowded and dirty. The temple’s committee starts raking in money from the devotees and splurges on alcohol and celebrity dance shows read more

All Off...

Short hair rocks...this is the message I got from a fellow blogger in a recent bloggers' meet and I quiet agree to it.

The short hair look wasn't always a part of me. As a kid my sister and I had long hair. Our annual visits to the salon happened when we visited our maternal grandparents in summers. Nani used to take us to the parlour and get our hair chopped because she could not deal with all the inhabitants in there. Yes...Yes...I mean lice. Speaking of which I should remind you the old jingle that said, 'jahan mile do sar, juon ko mila naya ghar' and as kids we really din't know how to stay away from those heads.

All the chopping and snipping stopped when I went to the senior section i.e 6th grade. It was an all girls' convent school and we were supposed to tie our hair in neat plates as part of our uniform. For 6 good years my hair weren't touched. Sometimes they grew so much so that I could just fold my plates into double. Those with thick rimmed glasses made me look like a crazy nerd. A time came when people (read parents' friends) started assuming that I was the eldest of the three sisters.

One day I just folded my hair to make them look shorter. The very next day my elder sister drove 5 kms on a freezing winter afternoon and took me to a parlor to get my hair shortened. The rest of the incident was pretty much like a scene from Roman Holiday. Remember when Audrey Hepburn asks an astonished barber to chop her long tresses? 'All Off', she says and the hair dresser furiously cuts them. Well, my dresser didn't get that angry but yes, she was pretty amazed. Finally, I chopped my hair from waist length to small blunt and regained my position as the younger sister.