And the Oscar went…..

February 28, 2012 Leave a comment

…clearly to a person who deserved it more than everyone else in that category. Right? No, as most would claim.

Guess that is the irony of any movie award show. Everyone knows that it is highly irrational to be objective about an art form because art in itself is so subjective. Yet, year after year, glitz after glamor, actor after actor, they clamor to the Kodak theater.

So they did last night too.

For weeks, I had been cajoling my whole family to go watch “The Hugo” in theaters with me. Unfortunately, I couldn’t convince them and now I am reduced to watching it in my home theater. Finally, I will have a good reason to put that 3D TV to use. I am not that disappointed that I didn’t get to watch ‘The Artist’ in theaters. I am sure I would enjoy it but then I wouldn’t probably think of it as Oscar worthy. Remember it is all subjective?

While at the topic, see a pattern here – An  Englishman (ok..King) who struggled with his speech won an Oscar last year and a French man who didn’t speak at all won it this year. Makes me wonder if it would be a German who doesn’t have a tongue who would win it next year!

By the way, Billy Crystal is the kind of Oscar host you could get for minimum guarantee. He is not going to ruin it for you. He is not going to create controversies for you. He is not going to Gervais it for you. So, what we got yesterday when compared to the previous year was definitely better. But would the academy ever dare inviting Ricky Gervais to host the show? Probably Never.

There were some refreshing changes last night in the format. The main one being around musical performances. With the academy struggling to find even 5 suitable nominees for the Original Song category, it was only expected that they do something different. I was pleasantly surprised to see AR Rahman having a part to play along with the legendary Zimmer.

Finally, Angelina’s leg stunt was overshadowed by how skeleton like she looked. And yes, the JLo – Diaz stunt was funny and worth it. But Cohen took it too far and he lost a few fans.

Filed under Uncategorized

Maalai Pozhudhin Mayakkathilaey (Tamil Music)

February 15, 2012 Leave a comment

(***Before I start this post, I have a confession to make. My personal preference is to write தமிழ் in English as “T-H-A-M-A-I-Z-H”. I feel this is the most accurate way. But thanks to the British, this was one of the many Indian words that have been heavily anglicized and widely acceptable. So, in spite of my trying, every now and then, I slip and type T-A-M-I-L or I do it purposefully because of the audience or the context. ***)

In this information overload age with me constantly wired (figuratively speaking of course), I cannot recollect an experience like this in the recent past. For the first time, I was totally blown away by a music album about which I had not read anything till I actually listened to the album. I wasn’t even aware of such a movie being made (which is to say something because I follow all Tamil movie related news very closely with a mouse and a click). As is normal, I check out new music releases on Raaga periodically. I sample all the songs & if I like the album, I hang on to it till I either like it, fall in love with it or get over it. On Monday, I found this new album, which honestly in my mind registered as “Achu” at first. I was at the gym and listened to the entire album without skipping a single song , one by one till the end. When I had time again later that day, I remembered this experience from the morning and decided to listen to the album again. That’s when I learned that the movie is “Maalai Pozhudhin Mayakkathilaey (மாலைப் பொழுதின் மயக்கத்திலே)” and the music director is “Achu”.

The next day, I read a review of this album on milliblog. Now for starters, I follow milliblog for Kartik’s most objective reviews. Unpretentious and to the point. And also, his reviews are normally unadulterated by others’ opinions because he does his reviews as soon as an album is released (in most cases) and has always been the first one to review amongst all recognized reviewers that I am aware of. I was pleasantly surprised to read a 200 word review for this album (which per milliblog standards is the equivalent of getting 55+/100 on Ananda Vikatan movie review scale). And it was also here, where I learned that Achu, the music director of MPM had actually made his debut in a Telugu movie in 2008 (Nenu Meeku Telusa) and MPM is actually his second release.

Now, I can see you squirm in your seats waiting to ask me what exactly excited me in this album. Please be known that I am not going to do a song by song review of this album as that was not the purpose of this post. Rather I thought I would quickly share what impressed me the most.

  • All 3 versions of “En Uyirae” are simply out of the world. Of course Karthik’s version is my personal favorite.
  • “Yaen Indha” steals the show for its revolutionary and stereotype bending music. Would call it the “Aromale” of 2012. Brilliant fusion of melody and rock riffs. Rush meets Van Halen sort of rock.
  • There is absolute freshness to the album. Freshness, which I can’t describe using my keyboard.
  • I would also attribute the heavy influence of guitar that makes this album special. Guitar sounds have been used just right and they quite enhance the feel. Needless to say, Achu seems to use Piano sounds well too.
  • The overall treatment to the album, in combination with some romantic lyrics which by themselves also stand out could have added to my experience.

Well, this was one of those rare experiences… which is why I decided to write about it while I have it fresh in my mind.

Go check it out. Listen to MPM if you can. Here’s hoping Achu has a great musical future.

Filed under Music - General

Social Media – Explained

February 6, 2012 Leave a comment

Before you look at the picture, here is something I posted in July – when G+ was introduced.

Now that it is a little over 6 months, guess this picture pretty much summarizes where Google + stands in terms how people view different social media platforms.

Ha..Ha..!

Social Media Explained

Filed under Humor - General, Pictures

Look-back

February 6, 2012 Leave a comment

Last week was quite extraordinary in the sense that I hit upon 3 different ideas that I wanted to blog about..here. This hasn’t happened in a while and I was thrilled. But then, I was worried that I would overshoot my January quota and end up with a drought filled February. So, I thought I would table those ideas for the time being. And here I am, trying to recollect those 3 ideas. Never mind.

Quick round-up:

Books:

The Calcutta Chromosome  - Amitava Ghosh

I would say I was pleasantly surprised to read a sci-fi from this brilliant writer. A writer, some of whose sentences sometimes need multiple readings to understand. The best part about this book is that you could finish it in one sitting although I finished it in 2 sittings (2 plane rides followed by some late night reading).

Movies: 

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo – David Fincher

Ok. I was not that impressed with Fincher’s handling of this story. I liked the original Swedish version better. Although, there were some brilliant lines in the Fincher version which were enough to make the trip to the theater worth it. Rooney Mara was brilliant. And Trent Reznor – Take a bow! (no pun intended).

Sherlock Holmes – A Game of Shadows

I have watched a few Guy Ritchie movies in the past and have liked many of them..(Snatch, LSATSB, Sherlock Holmes I). But this movie may have made me a slight fan of his style. I can’t imagine anyone else pulling off a Sherlock Holmes story in such a classy, novel and glitzy way. Downey had outdone himself from Part I.

Band Bajaa Baraath (Hindi)

Heard that this movie in general generated lots of positive buzz. Not a bad movie. Mostly clean Rom-Com. But I wondered what was so different in this movie compared to a few others that came out around this movie’s release. Overall – a good time pass..

Music:

Kadhalil Sodhappuvadhu Eppadi – S Thaman

A very different Thaman album. So Bravo to him for accepting to do this. Nothing extraordinary in the album except the fact that it is a genuine attempt to make a youth album with a Romance theme. From that stand point, Thaman has succeeded (7/10).

My picks – Parvathi, Parvathi (Brilliant tribute to “Viswanathan Velai vendum”) and Azhaippaya…

Talsamayam Oru Penkutty – Sharreth Vasudevan (Malayalam)

Sharreth once again hits a home run. I have been following his music only in the last 3-4 years but whenever I have time, I try to listen to some of his old work as well. What a composer! One of a kind. A kind that singers apparently are scared of when they get a call from his studio.

My picks – Ponnodu Poovai, Kannaran Thumbi and Enthe Hrudyathalam

Sports:

What an epic match the Rafa-Novak match turned out to be. Watching the match was exhausting enough. Rafa gave everything to hold that trophy is an understatement. I don’t think there were will be another epic grand slam final like that in the near future. Salutes to the two brave & strong men.

That pretty much sums up my last few days. Oh, yeah, by the way..I almost forgot – The Giants won!!

Filed under Books, Movies - General, Music - General, Sports - General

A Reluctant Roger

January 27, 2012 Leave a comment

Nadal-Federer - Aus Open 2012 Semi-Final

Today was exactly like the story that hardcore Roger Federer fans by now should be used to.

The story begins with a first round match which brings out some tentativeness in Roger. Then he paddles along with some impeccable tennis – almost reminds you of his era of invincibility. Before you realize it, he marches into the quarter final where he gets to meet his first real opponent. An opponent who is in the Top 10 or something. Roger brings out his best tennis and elevates his game to a level that makes you believe that this indeed is the grand slam that he is going to win because there is no way anyone could beat him in this form. He makes it to the semis.

It’s Rafa Nadal that he gets to meet there in the semis. And then it all ends. Dreams shattered. For Roger and for his millions of fans..

It is not that Rafa is better on the court than Roger in general but on this given day he plays into Roger’s psyche. So easily. Like a shrink working through a patient’s mind walking through the inner chambers to retune everything the patient believes about himself. Roger gets into a self-destruction mode. None of his forehand winners work. His backhand shots are as terrible as you have ever seen. His first serve % starts going down and ends up close to 50%. Meanwhile at the other side of the net, Rafa continues to play to Roger’s weaknesses consistently. Rafa doesn’t do anything extraordinary except keeping himself highly charged up and motivated to beat Roger at whatever cost. He keeps playing aggressive shots but doesn’t try anything new he hasn’t tried before. He knows exactly what works under the circumstances. Roger on the other end, starts losing it. He gets into a mode of series of unforced errors. Errors on shots he had comfortably played even in the first set. Sometimes he tries some new shots only to miss those too.

Then, it is only a matter of time for Rafa to prevail. It is only a matter of time for Roger to recoup and pack his bags to walk back to the dressing room in an elegant manner only he could do. It is only a matter of time before Roger during the post match conference starts telling everyone how he has had an incredible run getting into the tournament, winning a few minor titles here and there and how he has played spotless tennis till the semis and how he was unlucky on that day to miss out a few points, which eventually cost the game & the match for him, all the while making it sound like luck was not in his side even though he played better tennis….

A reluctant Roger, who continues to live in a state of denial marches onto the next grand slam.  And as a highly-not-so-reluctant Roger fan, I don’t think I can take this denial much longer.

Filed under Sports - General

Reconciling with the pigskin

January 23, 2012 Leave a comment

13 years and counting. That’s how long I have been exposed to “American Football” and yet, I have never gotten around to enjoy the sport so much that I see myself playing it with the same passion that I do with other sports. And then there are sports that I don’t play because I can’t – but those are ones which I always have had a “Why couldn’t I play this sport?” angst associated with them. Football is not one of them. In fact for the first 7-8 years, I was a fierce advocate of calling the sport “Gladiatorial”. Not that much of my opinions have changed since then, but I have reconciled.

Here are the five reasons (not in any order) why I have decided to reconcile with the pigskin in spite of all my reservations:

  1. It is not just a sport in this country but a socializing medium.
  2. My son and his lack of choices in growing up with any other sport. He is limited to Football and Baseball (yes, there are others but the environment doesn’t promote them with the same passion)
  3. A good family pastime – Better than watching sitcoms or movies that may deem unfit for kids, I find sports to be a perfect thing to watch together as a family on TV. Again with very limited choices on what sports we get to watch during primetime, Football and Baseball rule the charts. So.
  4. My son and his knowledge of the sport – Not to be far left behind, I am catching up on some statistics (much to my own surprise) and some history, etc. In the process, I have a better understanding of the sport (not necessarily appreciation of all aspects).
  5. A safe bet – With my son’s growing interest in the sport, discouraging the sport forcefully and not making him watch or follow the sport, I figured, may do more harm. Hence I decided that it is better to understand the sport and not label it “bad” blindly as it will only make him like the sport ‘blindly’. Also, I feel it is safer to encourage him to focus on some “sports” than Nickelodeon or Disney stuff while slowly letting him know the dangers of playing this particular sport in the long run.

And finally – yes, I still think this sport is not something I would want kids to play – especially the way in which the rules are framed currently. But I have learned a lot in the last 5-6 years about the sport that I no longer consider this just as a physically dominating and mentally demeaning sport.

So, with our local NFL franchise team, the Detroit Lions doing better this season than they ever had since I started following football and with so much discussion around the games that happen everyday at home, I guess it was only natural that I had to reconcile with the pigskin.

I don’t care who wins on Feb 5. Yet, one has to pick a favorite. So I will be rooting for the Giants because that’s what my son would be doing.

Filed under Sports - General

A Healthy array

January 14, 2012 Leave a comment 

A Healthy array

Slithered almonds to seduce and shriveled grapes to cry sour;
Frittered cheese to fatten and flavored yogurt to stay fit.
Battered broccoli to bite into and brined apples to chew onto.
Crispy onions to neutralize  and cold edamame to whet it all.

An array to confuse, befuddle and weaken my mind -
Again, served for me with choices that no one will mind.

Filed under Poem

In Trivial Pursuit…

January 6, 2012 Leave a comment

As I type this post, I am being told by several people who seem to care so much about this record that it has been 302 days since Sachin Tendulkar hit his last century in any form of cricket. I have to confess that this record that Sachin has been made to chase has been bothering me as well, even though at the outset I consider this as the most ridiculous statistical record in Cricket you can think of. So to me this is as irrelevant as trying to cross 10000 total miles (or some such number) by driving a car and a bike combined over a period of time. Yes, there is some sense of accomplishment. But trivial. Because driving a car and riding a bike mean totally different things.

Yet, here we are.

What I can’t figure out is why this man is chasing his 100th century in test matches? Why did he opt out of the ODI series against WI when he had all the ammunition he needed to score a 100 because he would have opened the batting? And his record in scoring centuries as an opener is spectacular.

Of course, I love his batting. Who doesn’t? But I am neither a fan of Sachin to the point that I appreciate everything he does on & off the field nor a critic that I do the exact opposite by calling him a selfish player (which seems to be the most common accusation). So I feel I have a fair view in presenting my armchair punditry.

The biggest ailment in Sachin Tendulkar’s batting since he scored his last century on March 12, 2011 vs South Africa (Nagpur)  is his mental state. Contrary to what all his admirers think that he is doing a really fantastic job of carrying the expectations of the entire nation on his shoulders without much of a mental strain, he actually has been carrying a big monkey around his shoulders for the last 300 odd days because is a human being. He is not “God” (of course – I mean God in a traditional sense..not in a Higgs Boson sense). Beyond this 100 100s monkey, every time he has gone out to play for India in a game, I am sure he goes through enormous amount of pressure & mental stress that none of us will ever know of. By dehumanizing him, the Tendulkar fans have only made it more difficult for him to be what he really is.

Notwithstanding the superlative form he has been in since his last hundred, especially if you look at the series of 60s, 70s and 80s he has made, I can’t help but conclude that this monkey that he has been made to carry is taking its toll. Even though he has come out positive in most of the above knocks when he started off the innings, he had invariably gone on the defensive mode once he crossed 60 runs or so. This is a problem. Sachin Tendulkar shouldn’t think he has to score a 100 which makes him cautious once he inches closer to the mark. It is all easier said than done. But then that is what armchair punditry is about right?

I hope he works on this aspect of his game. Of course he can never get rid off the monkey till he actually gets rid off it by scoring a 100. In the meantime, at least he should tell himself that the monkey is harmless and it doesn’t do much other than just sit on his shoulders. If he can somehow tell himself that, may be..may be..he will not go defensive after he crosses 60 runs.

Having said that, in all honesty, I don’t think he is going to score his 100th 100 in Australia in the test series. I will be glad if I am proven wrong. His best chances were against WI in India. Now he has got to wait for another home series and more importantly, he should be willing to play the 50 over format games to increase his chances.

As the little master continues his trivial pursuit, so do we..

Filed under Cricket Tagged with ,

Brushes

January 4, 2012 2 Comments

My first attempt with Brushes..(a finger painting app on iPad).

Hellboy..:)

Filed under Cartoon

Happy New Year

December 31, 2011 2 Comments

And this is exactly how I spent my last Friday of 2011..

Happy New Year folks!

Filed under Humor - General, Videos

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