Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Disco dance karenge Shava! Hum to gentleman hai Shava...



Have you heard folk songs especially Punjabi folk songs? I simply love them..they are so beautiful..the songs are naughty and bring out the fun element..I am not able to understand the lyrics at first..only after repeated listening and with the help of mom,I am able to understand tidbits of what it is saying :) but somehow, we are losing this heritage.. only our daadis/naanis know these songs but what will happen after them..how do we preserve this when we can not even converse in our mother tongue? it is this diversity that makes India so culturally rich.. anyway I love this song from monsoon wedding called Madhorama pencha.. just see the excellent video॥I tried to find the meaning of lyrics from mom and also the internet..it is so cool..watch it :)
The song is about Madhorama and what kind of bride he wants..just like the song jiski biwi moti from Lawaaris where Amitabh Bacchan plays a transgender..
The parantheses denote the meaning of the songs :)
Madhoram Pencha Veran Kedi kariye ( Madhorama pencha, which girl should we pick?)
Shava Vera Kedi kariye (Which girl should we pick?)
Madhoram Pencha Ve Hun Toh Moti Kariye (Madhorama pencha, now let's pick the fat one)
Moti Run Di Ki Salia Ki Salaiye (what will we do with the fat one? )
Kali Manja Male, Darda Nede Ave (she takes up the mattress all on her own, her fearful husband doesn't come near )
Dooron Pakhiyan Chale (batting his eyes from far)
Isko Khadi Rain Do,
Shava Hum Toh Aur Karenge, (we'll pick another)
Shava Isko Chhod Chalenge,
Shava Hum Toh Babu Log Hain,
Shava Shava Sha Jawani
Shava Jawani Badi Mastani,
Shava Bude Pa Bada Laneti, (?????????)
Shava Main Koi Jhoot Boliya,
Koi Na Main Koi Kufar Toliya (did I look for bad thoughts )
Koi Na Koi Na Koi Na
Madhoram Pencha Veran Kedi Kariye (Madhorama pehncha, now which girl should we pick?)
Shava Ve hun Gori Kariye (Madhorama pencha, let's pick the fair one )
Gori Run Da Ki Salai Ki Salaiye (what will we do with the fair one?)
Yun Makhan Da Pehda (she's like a pat of butter )
Gori Chadh Chobaare Suti (she climbed up and sleeps upstairs )
Aashiq Chautha Gehda (her lover keeps waiting)
Isko Le Chalege, Shava
Humko Yahi Pasand Hai, Shava
Hum Toh Byha Karenge,
Shava Disco Dance Karenge, Shava
Hum Toh GentleMan Hain,
Shava Shava Sha Jawani
Jawani Badi Mastani, Shava
Bude Pa Bada Laneti, Shava
Main Koi Jhoot Boliya,
Koi NaMain Koi Kufar Toliya
Koi Na Koi Na Koi Na
Bule Bule Bule

Monday, June 29, 2009

Idiot of first order..


Akshay Kumar says
"I don't want to get into logical films... I am happy doing films where one can keep discussions around logic at home"

Has he ever done any logical film as yet? I have never liked his slapstick irritating films.. I somehow never feel a craze for an Akshay Kumar film.. some of my friends go berserk for his movies.. I don't know why? Perhaps the above statement is why I do not like him.. most of our films are illogical however there are some exceptionally good quaity cinema has been coming for the last few years that we can be proud of..

And then he cribs he doesn't get best actor awards and even if he does win, he returns to the more deserving candidate making a mockery of the jury, these are not your awards that you can give to anyone although grapevine has it Akshay was miffed at Best Actor Popular category as he wanted Best Actor!!

Illogical films.. I hope Kambhakht Ishq flops! Idiot of first order..

Sunday, June 28, 2009

Vacuum...


I don't really know that should I be putting up this post or not? I am a very very private person and do not like to share my personal life to everyone..I had thought of making this blog private or start a new one where I would only write about my crappy life but I am too lazy to start a new one :/ so what the hell I will write whatever I feel and let anyone think of whatever they want to say about me..

Ever since college has ended, I don't know things have changed.. earlier I did not feel that my college has ended and I felt like that it was another semester break but about a month has passed and slowly I am coming to terms to reality :(

Almost everyone I know has left Delhi or is leaving soon in search of better avenues.. Calcutta, Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, US, Europe and I feel totally left out..my job starts in October in Noida and till then I am as people say vella :(

Seeing friends leave and you sitting at home gives a very very terrible feeling.. on my chat list, earlier I used to see everyone online but these days hardly one or two people come online..but they are busy and whenever I buzz them they say 'ttyl' talk to you later :( I know they are busy.. theek hai I won't ping anyone..they have more important things to do in life..

I had also made so many plans but one by one everything is flopping :( I had wanted to learn Spanish or German but there are no good institutes or the course timings don't suit.. I don't want to leran French..it is a good language but everyone learns French.. I wanted to do art appreciation at the National Museum but admissions closed in May :(

I wanted to do social work and had applied to a lot of NGOs but none of them replied but today only I got slected in an organization called CURE which works to prevent ragging..its office is in Gurgaon..so from tomorrow i would join them..I just hope that I am able to do the work they give me :(

I still haven't joined the test series and don't feel like doing the same thing again with my kind of brainsI know what would be the result this time also..

You know I had planned to write abook also during this time (don'tlaugh)..I have thought a lot about it and a lot of ideas have come to me but the problem is am not able to execute the ideas properly.. I started writing and wrote a page and then cut it..I hope kuch ho.. I will write something good someday *hopefully*

I also wanted to do some film apprecaiton and critic courses also.. I saw this on the site on Venky but blody they haven't updated their courses since 2006..which age are the living in? Do you know any places for this?

I don't know.. I am just feeling a vacuum.. a void in my life.. I am not carefree these days.. the situation being made worse by the extreme heat and no rains..frequent powercuts..low voltage.. a torture this weather.. it is just like Revolutionary Road..I could relate to the hopeless emptiness that April feels..

Oh! I have never written such a post before (according to my standards)..

I hate change but what can we do...the only thing constant in this world is change.. life goes on.the show must go on... theek hai koi baat nahi..ab kya karen..some people are born like this to foreever crib.. haath to aya muh na laga :(
Stop this crap..

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Popcorn and Cola Time...


Since my holidays have started, the first thing I did was that I joined Bigflix. I can now watch any movie I want, I just have to order it :) 300 Rs. per month and you can rent a dvd. So, obviously, the last few days I have been watching movies which i had always wanted to see but could never get them. And the picture quality is so clear that I have started to like watch movies on my PC which I absolutely hate. I keep on adding the movies that I have watched to list on the side gadget and I hope the list goes on increasing :)

Which ones did I watch?
Salaam Bombay
Amazing film by Mira Nair, liked it much better than Slumdog Millionaire. This film shows the underbelly of Mumbai way better than Slumdog. Was nominated was Oscar but did not win.
8/10

Gandhi
Excellent.
9.5/10

Boys Don't Cry
Great story based on real life.
7.5/10

Ankur
Shayam Benegal's film and Shabana Azmi's debut film. Too good again :)
8/10

Dev
Govind Nihalani's film based on the communal riots with stellar performances by Amitabh Bacchan and Om Puri. Loved the song sung by Kareena.
Jab nahi aye the tum..tab bhi mere paas the tum..dil main dhadkan ki tarah..tan main jeevan ki tarah..Meri dharti mere mausam..mere din raat the tum
8/10

The Kite Runner
Nice film. The essence of the book is kept alive by the film. For you a thousand times over. There's a way to be good again:)
7.5/10

Dharm
Another film based on the communal harmony, probably the best I have seen. The film touches your heart.This film should have been sent to the Oscars ( I still haven't seen Eklavya though which was sent in its place)
9.5/10

Honeymoon travels Pvt. Ltd.
The first non serious film that I watched and liked it again. With Anurag Kashyap as dialogue writer, it was one hell of a fun. it is about six married couples on a honeymoon with elements of fantasy in it.Kay Kay Menon and Raima Sen were too good though I did not like the abrupt ending and some stories were left midway. I wanted to see Sandhya Mridul and Amisha Patel's story taken further. Tango by Abhay Deol and Minishha Lamba was so cool :)
7.5/10

I have made a big list and will watch more and more :)

Monday, June 22, 2009

Judge the Judge...


Seema Goswami writes in her weekly column Spectator in Brunch:

It is okay to be judgemental about people who hate those who belong to other faiths, who treat those less fortunate than themselves with contempt and cruelty? Nobody in his or her right mind can deny that the Taliban is one of the greatest threats to humanity in general and womankind in particular? But isn't saying so an instance of exercising our judgement?

The truth is that all of us have a moral compass that guides us through life. Needless to say, this moral compass doesn't point the same way in every human being. But to say that we can never use it to exercise judgement is to deny us the very humanity that defines us.

At first, I was too taken aback by what she had written. A few days ago someone had called me judgemental and I wanted to contest the argument that I am not and told him that by calling me judgemental, he himself was judgemental about me !! But as I read her article, I began to have second thoughts about it. Yes, I agree it is none of our business that how a person leads his or her life but at some point, we knowingly or unknowingly do judge people's actions, their behaviour, their conduct and what not, though we might not be candid enough to say that and keep it to ourselves. So, there is nothing wrong in being judgemental say and you are free to judge me by whatever means you can though I know everyone thinks of me :-(

But to be judgemental you have to know facts and not be guided by gossip. Else that is just hypocrisy. If you do not like a movie, you have to first see it and then say that you did not like it.. The book The Satanic Verses written by Salman Rushdie which was banned because it was offensive to some community but it was ridiculous that people who wanted a ban had not even read the book. Then how can you be judgemental about the book and the author whose Midnight's Children is one of the finest pieces of literature I have read. How could anyone protest against a film like Fire or Jodhaa Akbar before it has been released? It is just publicity stunt and lunacy. You watch a film and you have every right to judge it if you have paid for it. You eat at some restaurant and you have full right to call it good or bad because you have paid for it. So, IMO, be judgemental but don't be a hypocrite which we all are in some ways :-(

Friday, June 19, 2009

Cut off - From Reality...


The cut off list for St. Stephen's College has been released and I cannot believe it. Have a look!
Economics (Hons.)
Science 95.75 % BFS Commerce 97 % BFS Humanities 95 % BFS
History (Hons.)
Science 95 % BFS Commerce 97 % BFS Humanities 91 % BFS
English (Hons.)
Science 96 % BFS Commerce 97 % BFS Humanities 92.5 % BFS
Philosophy (Hons.)
Science 84 % BFS Commerce 96 % BFS Humanities 85 % BFS
B.A. Programme
Science 94 % BFS Commerce 96 % BFS Humanities 88 % BFS
Mathematics (Hons.)
Science 94.5 % BFS Commerce 94 % BFS Humanities 82 % BFS

It is shocking. 97% for getting admission into a college. Whose fault is it? Frankly,I don't know. The students do their hard work and put in their best. The Board has become more liberal in awarding marks, to ease out the pressure on the students. The Colleges take out their cut off list according to the applications they receive. Where are we heading that a student getting even 96.75% marks has to sit out? I think it is Class 12 Board system that needs to be evaluated. The CBSE should not be that liberal in giving cent per cent marks in subjects like English! What we require is not mindless rote learning.

I know a person W. He is supposedly called 'intelligent' on the basis of the marks he scored. He scored 95.4% in his Class 12 examinations. PCM 95 % & BFS 95.75%!! Everybody was so shocked when they heard it and always used to say that IIT is a cakewalk for him. Now, what happened in IIT exam? He didn't even qualify for the Screening test, let alone cracking IIT!! AIEEE a terrible rank of 20,000!! and DCE a rank of 880. Everyone was like how could he get such low ranks. It happened mainly because of his poor analytical skills. He sucked at common sense and logic. Somehow, got through DCE. Given the rote learning culture in the college, it was not that difficult. Time came to give CAT. Again, everyone thought it is a cakewalk for him to get a good percentile. So, what happened. QA and VA were fine but in DI he sucked terribly getting a disastrous percentile score in that section. For the uninitiated, DI means Data Interpretation which involves common sense and everyday logic. So, this proved that the marks we score are absolutely not the right way to measure a person's capability.We need to bring some change to our strained education system if we want to keep pace with the world. These bizarre cutoffs won't mean anything if we do not tap the right student for the course.But I don't see anything changing as of now.India needs a big change!

P.S.- W is no one but yours truly :(

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Bond James Bond.....


I came across this very funny photo manipulation site... I tried some and could not stop laughing at some of the bizarre results...will add some more tomorrow ..hahahaa :D :D




You're obviously not their favourite pet..


I want to writ a crib post and that too a really long one... it was a terrible day today.. I just feel like the Smelly Cat of Phoebe (can call me Smelly dog :/). but unlike the cat who was loved by all inspite of she being too smelly, I get this negative vibes all around me..I don't want to talk about it..period!

Smelly Cat, Smelly cat what are they feeding you?
Smelly Cat, smelly cat it's not your fault...
They won't take you to the vet.
You're obviously not their favorite pet.
You may not be a bed of roses,
And you're no friend to those with noses.
Smelly cat, smelly cat what are they feeding you?
Smelly cat, smelly cat it's not your fault!

Gandhi : An Epic Masterpiece...


I watched Gandhi today by Richard Attenborough and it is an epic masterpiece. Ben Kingsley as Gandhi has given a stupendous performance and as soon as I finsihed watching it, I knew he must have got the Academy Award for his stellar performance.This is one of the must watch films and everyone should watch how a man almost single handedly helped India to achieve independence without any violent means. We, as Indians, perhaps are too used to the sainthood status that we see more of his flaws but he will remain an icon for the entire world. There are many movies that have been made on Gandhi but I would rate this as the best without any doubt. Somehow, I did not like Lage Raho Munnabhai at all. I don't know why but it was too caricaturish (if this is the right word? ).


While reading some reviews on imdb I came across this comment:

For those who keep mentioning that Kingsley is "English," well, yes he is, but he is also "Anglo-Indian." His father is from India. In fact his father was born in the same small sea-coast town as Mahatma Gandhi! While filming the movie in the small towns of rural India, there were those older people who actually remembered seeing the original Gandhi who collapsed in shock when they saw Kingsley in his makeup. Hundreds became convinced that he actually was the Mahatma, returned! Also interesting is that Kingsley was born just after the asassination of Gandhi. I mean that's just a tad spooky, no....?

Saturday, June 13, 2009

If...



The above video is of the poem If by Rudyard Kipling read by Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal for Wimbledon 2008 promotion. Over the player's entrance to Centre Court at Wimbledon, two lines of this poem are inscribed, and indeed, in the opening frames of the video, we see those two lines etched into stone:
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
and treat those two imposters just the same;

I loved the video :)

Information Courtesy : Bookends and India Uncut

These are the wordings of the beautiful poem inspite of the criticism it might have received over the years.One nice thing was when Federer was reading, Nadal's shots were shown and when Nadal was reading,Federer's.

If you can keep your head when all about you

Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,

But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,

Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,

And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;

If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;

If you can meet with triumph and disaster

And treat those two imposters just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken

Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,

Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,

And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings

And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,

And lose, and start again at your beginnings

And never breath a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

To serve your turn long after they are gone,

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;

If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute

With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -

Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,

And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!

Friday, June 12, 2009

Lakshya!! yes, that's the word...


I was just surfing the channels and voila! Lakshya is being telecast on a channel. Lakshya is one of the most inspiring films that I have seen. Though it didn't do well, I still cannot fathom why? Probably because of Ms. Zinta's funny hairstyle! Anyway, there is this scene in the film when the Officers take the oath to serve the Union of India and put the nation above their life. I have watched that scene so many times but every time I watch it strikes me like a thunderbolt and gets goosebumps by that powerful scene. How much pride you and your parents would feel watching while you take the oath to become an Officer of the Indian Army? How noble one would feel if you are called Lieutenant Karan Shergill. That scene brings a tinge of sadness in me. The word Lakshya as we all know means an aim to get something in life. I am surrounded by such great people that they all have found their Lakshya. But I am still looking for my own. I am not talking about the career, job, blah blah (though I don't know my aim in these things also). But a Lakshya..what do you want from life..what is your ultimate goal in life..how do you see yourself a few years later..what is your passion.. these questions have been haunting me for the past few days.. and I have no answers...and watching Lakshya made me even more terrible. You have seen that ad featuring Sachin Tendulkar of, I think, Aviva Life Insurance where he asks the guy what does he want to do in life? He says that he wants to open a bookstore and then Sachin replies "Kab Karoge?" When you are forty and then something like that..I feel just like that guy.. a hypocrite :(

If you have that Lakshya, no matter what happens, you would strive to attain that..just like Michelle McNelly did in Black. She took twenty years to become a graduate and then she could finally say "Aaj main garv ke sath keh sakti hun ki main ek graduate hun!"

I hope I could also say when my Lakshya gets fulfilled, "Main ek graduate hun!"

Monday, June 8, 2009

Of Career Slam,Streakers, My Friend Sancho and Delhi6...


So, finally Federer won the French Open making him only the sixth person in the history of the game to win a Career Slam.He is now tied with Pete Sampras for 14 Grand Slam titles.I hope he does win more. After Nadal lost to Soderling in fourth win, all hopes were raised that this is his chance to win and he could easily win it. He played a great match though he got a bit nervous at the end. He is serving for the Championship and almost gave a break point at 5-4 in the third set but anyway he won.So happy :)

But there was one disturbing moment during the match. There was this fan who had come and put some cap or flag over Federer and then he ran across to Soderling. And the security people were just not able to prevent him from reaching to the players. It is a very scary thing. Yeah, for the crowds it may be a fun thing and for the audience something amusing, but what if he had been a disgruntled Nadal fan? He could have done harm to both Federer and Soderling. Monica Seles, we must remember,had an on-court attack in which a German spectator stabbed her in the back with a 10 inch long knife and she was unable to be consistent in her career after that attack. The attacker was labelled mentally unstable but that act ruined her whole career. Streakers, pitch invasions,etc. should not be laughed off.


Meanwhile, I read My Friend Sancho by Amit Varma of the India Uncut fame who is rated among the top 50 most powerful people in India by Business Week. I loved the book because of its humour. It is a contemporary novel and all of us can easily relate to it. One could finish it in 4 hours. I had a smile on my face all along while reading and at some places it was simply too much fun (Vyjantimala!! those lizard conversations and his superb one liners Okay I didn't :D ). I liked it and would recommend it :)



I also watched Delhi6 after a very long time it has released. I hate watching movies at home. I feel that if I like a film 70% in a multiplex I would like it 50% at home. Movie watching is an experience in itself but I watched Delhi6 at home :( it was too boring in the second half. I loved the first half. Delhi has been shown beautifully but in the second half, the movie loses its plot. The film has its heart in the right place but the execution could have been better. It is not a superb watch and it was really irritating at times. The songs were put haphazardly.Favourite Dialogue- " Jalebi, hame mard bana do " OMG that was one hell of a scene.A nice time pass. My rating - **1/2.

Friday, June 5, 2009

Vini Vidi Vici...




Well, the election results were out on 16 May and Dr. Manmohan Singh made history by becoming only the second Prime Minister after Jawahar Lal Nehru to be elected for a consecutive second term. Though much has been said about the results and thousands of articles written about the analysis of the results, I am writing it now taking just a little more time than the govt. took for Cabinet formation :P

1. For me, the biggest surprise of the election has been the state of Uttar Pradesh. The Congress, which had no organisational base in the state and decided to contest elections on its own without any alliances, won 21 seats!! It became the second largest party in the state defeating Mayawati's BSP which won the Assembly elections by a stumping majority. So why did Congress win? I think the Varun Gandhi factor played a huge role. The Muslims vote to keep the BJP out and they knew that Mayawati would align with the BJP to fulfill her own ambitions. Moreover,the SP aligning with Kalyan Singh also pushed some votes to the Congress and the biggest of them all the Rahul Gandhi factor (more on it later).

2. The BJP is in tatters, the internal tussle going on between the party members, the leadership crisis within the party, the dalliances about Modi being a PM material, the negative campaigning against Manmohan Singh, the Varun Gandhi hate speech and more importantly the selection of wrong candidates helped the BJP to lose. They have been wiped out in all metros except Ahemdabad and Bangalore. All 7 seats in Delhi went to the Congress. They should have given the tickets to some better people. Like Arun Jaitley from New Delhi, Sushma Swaraj from South Delhi or Madan Lal Khurana from West Delhi.. at least then they wouldn't have been wiped out so badly. Wherever they presented a development agenda they have won, like in Jharkhand, Chattisgharh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Bihar. They focused on the wrong issues.

3. More than the BJP's defeat it was a decisive verdict against the Third Front. The Left Front has been mauled in their bastion of West Bengal by Mamta Bannerjee and in Kerala by the Congress. The egoistic positions that Prakash Karat took on the nuclear deal and the ideological compromises they made did the party in. Ironically, he said that Congress was living in a fool's paradise..now see who is living in a fool's paradise. What does the Left have in common with the AIADMK? There were no prospects of stability that is why the Third Front did so terribly. The TRS attended an NDA rally after joining the Third Front!!

4. The Modi factor- Narendra Modi's charisma did not work. He was not allowed to campaign in Bihar by their own ally.What will happen to him now? It would be foolish to write him off.. Much surprises await us..

5. The biggest factors that worked for the Congress were the clean image of Dr. Manmohan Singh, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. Dr. Singh's stand on the nuclear deal showed that he is not a weak PM and he would not compromise India's interest. Yes, he may not a person who gives inspiring speeches like Barack Obama but he works and people saw that work. Rahul Gandhi, who was called a fool for going alone in UP and Bihar and was accused of political naivete at his press conference emerged as the star campaigner. People saw his honesty and his work. Yes, he may be a dynast waiting to be PM some day but as he says just because he is a product of the system that doesn't mean he cannot change the system. The Youth Congress candidates put up by him won everywhere. His magic worked in UP. He is trying to bring inner party democracy to the Congress. It was a vote for stability and a vision that he tried to bring to the people. But now the Congress has to deliver.This election no doubt marks the emergence of Rahul Gandhi and possibly we will see a 2014 battle between Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi.

The Indian voter always always surprises and nobody can take him for granted. "Eventually the people know what is best for them" said Sonia Gandhi after the results. I couldn't agree more :)


Monday, June 1, 2009

Weird....


It was a weird day today.

1. While going to Rajouri Garden today, I saw a man playing in mud alone at about 3 pm... Holi thori hai?..he was probably drunk but at 3 in the afternoon?? Weird!

2. At CP, I saw a man abusing a 2 year old boy who was probably asking for alms and that idiot man said "pehle b******* bol" ? How senseless people can be? Weird!

3. At CP again, I saw this traffic police..he caught two guys on a motorbike entering the NO ENTRY zone and as soon as those guys saw him, they started running and that police guy obviously wants to show who is the boss ran after them! Why did the two guys run? They should have talked to him rather than running. Weird!

4. While I was in Rajouri, a woman who was selling something came to me and started asking about my birthmark and started telling her own remedies..she said "kahin likh lo".. Now how do I write on the middle of the road and anyway I don't care anymore, I am used to it.. but the most funniest part, she asked my friend V, " yeh pet se hai isko" hahahaha..how will she know? and my other friends thought that I stole something from that aunty! Weird!
5. An uncle in Metro kept staring and staring and staring and staring..Weird!

6. I was wearing sunglasses in a restaurant..and people thought I am, yes you guessed it, weird! :P but I love to be weird..that is why I love Phoebe :) Weird!

7. Why am I writing such a post? Weird!