ENGLISH VINGLISH

                          

                       Subtlety without preaching...

Film makers ought to be creating trends in film making with their way ahead thought process and acute perceptions of the changing times. Let us not forget that film making is a very serious business as it is the religion in india. This is done by very few film makers and Gauri has shown lot of promise in her very first movie. I am told she asked her husband , balki to keep away from any kind of involvement in the movie . But we can’t help making positive comparisons with his movies like cheenikum and paa.   The comparison probably ends in the film treatment but the theme, story, and presentation is just mind blowing. 

The movie is hardly about English and the way the story leads into the heart and mind of woman who is supposedly conventional is amazing and leaves one wonder in the end.  Many films have dealt with the trepidation of woman who has chosen to be a home maker. Quite a few have shown the indifference of men and family towards women who are modest, sacrificing and silently suffering taking all the family chores all their life on their head. But not as subtle , as fantastic as this movie. 

This is a journey of a typical Indian average, neo rich woman who hasn’t given anytime for herself and is happy with little attention that she gets from husbands acknowledgement of her good cooking and her general presence for his lustful needs.  A chance journey to the far land lets her discover herself and her confidence to handle things on her own. But she is grounded and lets only things go the extent of seeking clarity for her. There is no moral policing, no judgements passed about anything. It is a simple story of a simple woman who wants all simple things to feel happy. 

The beauty of the movie is the success of bringing on that simplicity to the core and life seems so cool and easy when you watch this movie. I am not a big fan of sridevi but i am forced to compare her to Amitabh. My god, what nuances she brought to the character and she essayed the role to the perfection. Many a times the heart missed the beat, especially for that romantic angle with the French guy.  Even the clichés are handled well enough not to get boredom. Music by amit trivedi needs a special mention..

The last 15 minutes is the highlight of the movie and one keeps wondering at the conclusion and it seems so perfect. One cannot avoid tears when Sridevi emotes so beautifully and she deserves a national award for this , as she has out classed Kareena in Heroine and Priyanka in barfi. 

At the end , there is a rare fulfilment of having a good decent movie which not touches you deep inside but throws a rare perspective of looking inside women.  Just to be emotional, may be, we have forgotten to respect their simple sensibilities.  A subtle message but with total entertainment, light heartedness and easy going format is what makes a stamp in our heart. 

If you like good cinema , want to get touched inside and want to feel good, want to subtly correct yourself, and can appreciate subtlety , please do not wait.. just go and watch now , and with entire family..

                                                                                                        

KAREENA .. THE GREAT HEROINE..

First things first.. Kareena kapoor is sure to bag the national award and there is no doubt that she will walk away with all the awards next year. She has excelled herself in performance and there is so much to deliver for her in this movie. She has grown into a complete actress. She went into a different league after Yuva, Jab we met and Chameli. But this role in the movie is a dream for any actress and she has accomplished to the full in this.

 One has to give Just Simple kudos to Madhur Bhandarkar. He did not go wrong anywhere in the movie. He always attempts to mirror life and society through all his movies and in this movie he totally succeeded. He achieved this by sheer objectivity and detachment in handling the complicated and often attempted subject. In fact one must appreciate his courage in handling such a sensitive subject with élan being from the industry himself. His research is impeccable, his screenplay is flawless and his narration bereft of any contradictions. The movie is completely honest in depicting complex realities of film celebrities. It delves into deeper layers of complexity, to what appears very flashy, colourful and rich from outside.

There is a deep rooted philosophical touch to the ending and without being preachy. The characters are beautifully etched and he does not blame anyone squarely and covers all aspects subtly yet boldly. HE made a statement on media hungry gossips and how the entire glam sham world is actually so much of dirt and filth. He takes us into the journey of triviality of celebrity life and the deep stresses and contradictions they go thru in handling success and sustaining the same. The tough life of celebrities is properly highlighted with no value judgement. Every role in the life of a celebrity is structured well by director and his casting is accurate.

Arjun Ram pal never got his due recognition and he is one of the finest actors. Even in this all performances will be over shadowed by Kareena kapoor. When good things has to happen, history and world drama has a way to choose characters. Despite being my most favourite actress, i can confidently and without hesitation say that, AIshwarya rai would not have done so much justice to this role. Her pregnancy paved way to kareena and the rest as they is history.

There is no pretension in the movie and there is no exaggeration of any reality.  There is no underplaying of any characters of real and reel life.  There are no clichés and stereotypes like in Dirty picture. There is no making villain of a man or a woman. It’s a visual treat, and also has good songs and background music.

There is no vulgarity despite having to show so much of skin and dialogues are also decent. It is understandably A certificate movie and children have to avoid this movie as the complexity of the entertainment world can be understood when they become adults. Honestly it is a relief from several beat n tracks, clichéd, boring telugu movies. Also relief from tear jerkers, like barfii or any beautiful, devotional and love story, horror ( horrible) movies.

WORDS , EMOTIONS, MEANINGS, REALITY AND LIFE

From quite some time i was thinking of few concepts / words/ meanings that are affecting most of us in this life.  Basically, not having privileges, not achieving wanted things, not being important/ powerful are broadly the key issues that affect us all and we can all derive several situations, realities , meanings out of the above few things stated. But what makes people totally impoverished of the essence of good living according to me are 1) Dishonesty to oneself 2) Contradictions 3) comparisons 4) Loss of self..  and compromises to get meet the peripheral needs of the self like lust, greed , etc

Dishonesty to one self ...  this according to me is one killing force of the modern society, or this ultra modern society. More than what i can talk about others, i face this very blatantly and very overtly every day. We are forced to be dishonest to our self. We do several things that we do not want to do or believe otherwise. Each one of us can give several examples to our self as to why do we involve in the dishonesty of the self. Basically we are forced to follow a system that is not alright to us,  as we are compelled by needs, of which money is most determinant factor.  We follow people and agree to them knowing that they do not deserve to be there. It can be a politician, a parent, a teacher, a boss, a management etc. We just keep compromising for the fear of losing something that we keep getting for sustenance. In the process we become dishonest to our self without being conscious or accepting the fact. One way to test this,  is that, if we are able to sleep well, eat well and not feel guilty or uncomfortable with ourselves, then we are not dishonest. 

The only way to be happy is not by achieving something or having something or working to attain something but being happy with one self. This state will ensure that you derive more happiness eating a corn stick than eating something exotic in an expensive place. You will sleep well on floor than in an AC and comfortable room. Being happy with one self is to be honest with one self and this will only happen if we know our self. Spirituality is not beyond this point and this cannot be challenged. But the catch in getting there is very difficult and hence several schools, thoughts, processes and methods to learn.

CONTRADICTIONS... Oh my god, this is the order of the day these days. What we think, should be what we mean, what we mean should be what we talk and what we talk should be what we do in actions. Any deviation from this is contradiction and modern world seem to be allowing only deviations. At any given situation, we are able to think, say and act the same way, we would lived honestly in all situations. After that, there is no good and bad. We would have done justice to all moments and set the truthful trend in society. This is very much needed today.

Loss of the self comes from many reasons and one of them being the comparisons with someone or something. This can give endless suffering like dishonesty with oneself and contradictions.

Finally, like my daughters presentation at her school which highlighted among many points that she made, that language gives way to words and words to labels of emotions. If there is no labelling to our several emotions, then what remains is whether we are happy or sad. According to all scriptures and learning, happiness in only inside us and lets dig it out by being honest with the self, no matter what pain it might cause temporarily. 

We will only strive to be happy and not sad and stop thinking about so many words, feelings, thoughts as finally they come out because we know the language and use of words( no matter how loose it may be) . SO the point is to unlearn everything and become zero with the all the acquired knowledge. Difficult but not impossible and one way is to become a child in mind and heart.

VERY VERY SPECIAL LAXMAN

Very very special laxman............

I think a person can be called successful if he or she shows consistent character in professional and personal life with equal elan as it reflects the essence of what they are. In every field and virtually everywhere the success is determined by what they achieve in the field they are known for and have expertise in. There is no doubt that, to reach a zenith in any field and make a mark, people should have many superb qualities which are known like commitment, sacrifice, integrity, discipline, and several characteristics which help people reach what they set to. But to remain immortal, successful people have to show exceptional quality and highest character in crucial times.

There are several examples in war, sports, politics and public life. The recent ones which stole our heart was the hanging of boots by Rahul dravid and he showed remarkable character as a human being and one had no choice but salute the man in deep admiration. The absolutely latest is our Hyderabadi VVS Laxman.. What can we say of this person? He has arrested the moist eyes of thousands of people like me by his unparalleled exceptional humane quality of sacrifice and terrific character.

What he has done by announcing retirement just before the match in the home ground is beyond the understanding of the rational, logical human beings. Life is not just based on logic and rationality. He will go down in the history as someone who has added great inexplicable values to the game. In my mind his retirement which came as a shock is much bigger than the historical match that he won for us with Australia in 2001 with his splendid innings of 281... 

Just imagine the other way round. He was already selected for the team to play 3 matches in India with New Zealand. For all we know, he would surely have made a mark in Hyderabad and by virtue of that he would have continued for another 2 matches and he would be the automatic choice for the tour of England and Australia later this year. This is most likely thing that would have happened. This is turn means that, he would have easily extended his innings by another 2 years easily. Isn’t this too much of a sacrifice? 

Why would he have done this? According to me, its ridiculous to think that he was hurt by the comments of senior cricketers who thought he was occupying the place and not giving chance to youngsters? Sports is never about young or old and it is all about performance, grit, success and fitness. You don’t  expect non controversial and soft laxman to have negative qualities like bitterness, revenge, hurt etc..

He did because he conquered himself; he won over the basic dominant qualities of the human. He has Shown the world what letting go means. He has reflected of what is the meaning of complacency and what it is to be not greedy. He has set an example of exemplary characters that is required in a competitive world. To me , he is most spiritual than the most who are ostensible. He is very inspiring as a human and more than his performance on the field.

 He never showed aggression on his face or body language like the most. He allowed his bat do all the talking. His strike rate in tests is much better than sachins of the world. His aggression is the mild but very strong character that he displayed by hanging his boots. 

I will forever like millions of people wonder as to why he did not play in his home ground in the very next match and then retire. We wonder and he is only wonderful. I salute him as a leader and then as a cricketer. For me that 2001 match holds great value in life , but today his decision has surpassed that.

Hats off VVS and love you.. Let you be the inspiration to thousands like me on how to let go and achieve most in life.

MERA BHARAT MAHAAN

AUGUST 15^TH...   Was very important for me in school days as there would be a competition in essay and debate and most often the topic would be how independent we are? What is the need for India today etc.. Most of the participants including myself would often talk the same lines every year with references of sacrifices made by Mahatma Gandhi and several other leaders. We also looked forward to the flag hoisting as few of us got a chance to speak in front of the entire school and then there was some common feeling running in all of us and that was patriotism, the blind love for the country. Most of us did not know what it meant but we knew that all of us need to be united and contribute to the development of the country. Many subtle values got imbibed into us. One of the most exciting aspects was going on my terrace of the house and count the number of flags that were hoisted and also pin up the flag on the shirt pocket. There was a huge pride being an Indian and we all looked forward to going to the school this day, of course not to forget the jilebi that was given to us whose enjoyment cannot match even if i eat the best of sweets from best of places from the world. 

Today it was different.  True but sad, there was no interest even to know or follow or even try to watch the proceedings in the New Delhi, Red fort. I did not bother to check on the message by president or is it Prime minister on 15^th August? Sorry for this attitude arising out of some hurt. There is this sad cynicism and helplessness at the way our country, individuals and I are placed. The priorities, the value systems, the commitments are hardly common and for the general good. We are all only looking just inside for the benefit and aggrandisement of wealth for our own self. IT saddens me deeply like several thousands of Indians and the helplessness kills each of us.

I subjected myself to torture by watching a mindless movie in the morning. Probably the soldiers ready to sacrifice their lives would feel less torturous than me today.  But what surprised me was that, the theatre played our national anthem and everyone stood up instantaneously. That was a very good feel and the only other good feel was listening to my all time tear jerker high emotional 2 patriotic songs.. 1) Swades song  2) yeh mere watan ke logon of Lata Mangeshkar ji.  Apart from that, there is nothing i did which contributed to the nation or co human beings.

But what i wish to scribble here is some profound and deep felt experiences, thoughts and feelings of my dear friend SVS from dallas and me. He, unlike many Indian Americans is least fussy and does not have any attitude and hence travelled in Auto rickshaws several times despite warnings from me and another good friend Surya Kumar. But i am glad he got very sensitized to the auto driver’s lives and trepidation. He went about checking many auto drivers’ lives and each of them had a sad story and they all lead a very helpless and miserable life and there is no joy, relief and development in their lives. One such man in fact confessed to my friend that, he is just waiting for the death to happen as their lives are so meaningless. This shook us up and i am sure, so it does to thousands of people. What do we do? How can we help them? Do we have time? Let me answer this after few more lines please.

Both I and SVS went to one vegetable vendor in Abids where i used to buy vegetables regularly when Grusha was studying in Rosary convent. I and SVS were just discussing on how the loss of spouse is one of the highest pains in humans as per some American research. Just after that, i was making some polite conversation with the vegetable vendor lady and to my total shock she said she lost her husband suddenly one day few months ago. He was very young and now this lady has to bring her son up and give him good life. What suffering, what loss and what pain she may be undergoing.

After that, i started looking at more faces on the street and the majority seem either lost, or in pain or just suffering from some deprivation or some basic need or helplessness. All of us, surely all of us who has access to the net and are on social networking, encounter at least ten such vulnerable poor people every day in our lives. They all need 2 things and DO NOT need one thing. They will need some support (most often few hundreds of rupees) , smile, care, respect ( all these mean the same ) and what they do not need  is  your indifference.

We may not want to help them, we may not be in a position to help them but we can at least hear them out and be empathetic. This gives them great tremendous strength. It is not a bad idea to set aside 10 percent of our income to be able to help such people in distress, for education, medical and why not even recreation. We are all born equal and we only become more equal as we are fortunate. We encounter several needy people with small needs and they need us. I am sure many are doing much more than what is said here but let us not stop doing this. If we are not doing, we need to please start. Sharing is caring and this is known, but doing the same with the unknown is the great virtue and not just doing this to the known and for the recognition.

Our Desh can become mahaan only if each of us makes people around us; get rid of their misery and helplessness. Let us be generous. The least help that all of us can do is monetary. Money is the smallest thing that can be sacrificed to get happiness to someone and also to get solutions for many issues.  Even if this writing is repetitive and known to all, like flag hoisting on 15^th August, i feel like reminding all of us once again about poor who live with us and around us. Let us be liberal to liberate the poor from their misery. Let us make difference to one person per week at least. Jai Hind .

WE LIVE ONLY SO LONG

like most people, even i often hear the following...  1) We only get what we deserve 2) Everything is predestined and based on karma philosophy 3) whatever happens is for the good. 4) Truth always triumphs 5) good wins over the evil.  And so many such good, proved, tested theories, philosophies and practises and i respect each of them and try to adapt them to my everyday life and succeed far lesser times than i would have wanted to.  Hence, none of them are either questioned or criticized here nor even discounted.

I always remember, trust and believe the lines from Kabhie Kabhie... The greatest lines from Saher the immortal lyricist.. Mujh se pehle kitne shayar aaye aur aakar chalegaye.. kal koi mujh ko yaad Karen, ..... This song, among other things, also communicates that, what is said is important and not who said this..In other words, thoughts, ideas, are immortal and not men and people. Hence what is being written here is already said, known, practised and understood by many and difference is the perspective that occurred to my mind.

I feel that nature/ god/ science (what’s in a name) has given us or implanted in each of us some quantity of breath and oxygen to live and we live only as long as we finish utilizing that quota and we cease to live once that stock is consumed.  Hence the pursuit for all of us is to ration that quota, plan the consumption and have a proper balance sheet of oxygen consumption and regulate the breathing, so as to enhance living long and living good.

Some of us keep an account of calories and try to maintain the same in terms of food consumed versus energy expended. What is said here is beyond this and slightly difficult than the calorie management. The question that comes to everyone’s mind is, how we know how much oxygen and breathing is allotted to each of us. Believe me, there is a known formula and quota and we tend to ignore the same.. The simple formula is 72 x 60 x60 x24 x 365 x 100 and that comes to 6220800 x 36500... This is the highest that anyone can give to anyone. Only nature is so magnanimous to give so much to all without fear or favour. Not even the richest will ever have more property than this. Now comes the toughest challenge of how to utilize this, optimize this and use this for long and sustain this.


   

We need to apply physics, mathematics and intuition riddled with common sense.

It is very simple..  Normally we are designed to breath 72 times a minute ( most accepted standard) . We either have the  choice to maintain this all the time and hence live 100 years or extend this by consuming in the systematic manner.  But our life style, ambitions, society, etc will not allow us to be stable and balanced all the time.  We go thru stress all the time and hence we breathe faster and consume more breath and oxygen, thus breaking the rhythm of life. Hence we pay the price of living shorter as we exhaust the quota or upset biorhythm and cause disturbances.

Typically in Himalayas, the sage consumes less and hence it lasts longer for them and they live longer. Simple mathematics.. Less ambitious and more contented will consume less and are able to spread the given quota properly and so they too live longer. For some people luckily, it happens by default, let’s say for people who live their lives in a simple environment close to nature or simple people who don’t take stress or less ambitious or have the best attitude to success and failures. 

But the choice is entirely ours as we can still be ambitious, set goals, strive for it, but balance it with honesty, integrity, meditation, health related exercises. In other words, one should know to learn to balance the 72 x 60 x 60 x 24 breathes per day.. Calmness in the mind, silence in the heart, positive attitude and absence of greed, lust, ego, attachment, pride will help achieve this on day to day basis.

But there is one caution... we cannot try to maintain monthly balance, yearly balance, or correction after 40.. Sorry. Rules Oppukovu, means  “divine rules have no postponement.” (this dialogue  should be made part of Mahesh babu movie for better impact like guns don’t need agreements) .. only daily corrections are allowed at best or in some exceptions, weekly also is ok.

To stop the “sodi” ( in telugu  it means , boring story) and come o the matter ( as in telugu movies .. the way they use the word matter) ..  All of us need to decide on how to manage our quota of oxygen and breathe to live longer and happier. The issues that need to be dealt are 1) Life style 2) Attitude 3) health 4) food. And all of these come from 1) Spiritual outlook for correct understanding of life 2) good routine in the day 3) proper plan of ambition 4) constant monitoring of the self.

Again for the above 2 areas, one needs to do the following everyday 1) something for the soul like Meditation of any technique 2) something for the body, any exercise that suits the body 3) something for the mind like reading, playing, working etc and 4) something purely for the pleasure which can be anything but not harmful to anyone or nature, directly or indirectly..

Do i practise? I attempt , to practise this every day but fail on 50 % but the attempt, knowledge and the need constantly is on the back of the mind... think about this principle of oxygen and breathe quota and work your way , provided you want to live longer, healthier or happier. Or at least decide on how you want to live and use the quota given accordingly. Nature just gives and we need to know how to use the same.. All the best and thanks for reading..

DO not go with the communication here but go with the idea and brood for a while and trust me, this will make huge sense and start practising whatever suits you , to extend the happiness quotient of life and also longevity , peace and healthy living .