Far from the madding crowd - Thomas Hardy Book

To start with, I never thought I would be interested in a olden day English classic which is not fiction.

Far from the madding crowd is a lovely tale of love, betrayal and submission. The story is set up in rural England in the times of 1800. Its about Bathsheba, an intelligent woman exploring world all alone. She inherits her familial property when she is very young.

Gabriel Oak is a shepherd who falls in love with Bathsheba at first sight. He proposes her. She refuses.

Bathsheba gets in contact with her neighbour William Boldwood who admires her charm. William is an old man yet to find his lady love. He finds Bathsheba very lovable. Bathsheba sends him a valentine in a playful way sealed in red velvet box with words "marry me" embosses on it. Boldwood eventually proposes a marriage but she refuses again.

When story picks up pace, Bathsheba is again in love with a handsome looking sergeant Troy. Troy dumps a woman he loves to marry Bathsheba. Troy is a wrong man and Gabriel who is a shepherd at   Bathsheba's farm warns her on many occasions. Gabriel continues to love the same woman without conditions.

Troy is a gambler and has no interest in farming. He and Bathsheba are confronted with Fanny on the streets one day. Fanny is the old lover of Troy and she is pregnant. Troy tries to hide his excitement and desperation to meet her in front of Bathsheba. He later meets Fanny and gives her money. Fanny reaches a charity home and dies during the childbirth in a few hours after meeting Troy.

Mother and the baby are sent to Bathsheba's house in a coffin. Gabriel who knows Troy's involvement with Fanny tries to conceal child's identity. But Bathsheba finds out. Troy reaches home and kisses Fanny's corpse. He says Fanny was more to him than Bathsheba could ever be. He self loathes and leaves. He walks in to the sea in an attempt to end his life.

Troy is presumed to be dead. Boldwood renews his interest in Bathsheba and gifts her expensive things. On Christmas eve, Boldwood holds a party. Troy is not dead and visits Boldwoods house.

Bathsheba is taken by shock. She is snatched by Troy to go along with him. At this point Boldwood shoots Troy and he dies. Boldwood is convicted of murder and sentenced to death. Bathsheba buries Troy in the same grave as Fanny and her child.

All through the course, Bathsheba relies on her old and real friend Gabriel. Gabriel is leaving Bathsheba's employment as people of the village start to gossip that he is going to ask Bathsheba for marriage. Bathsheba at this point says its too soon but its not impossible. Gabriel asks her hand and she agrees. They are married.

Review: You will definitely fall in love with gabriel for his simplicity and love he bestows on Bathsheba. Throughout, Bathsheba holds her honour high and never gives away her stature. The book brings the psychological insight about human nature and how we often make wrong choices based on superficiality. The book is good spirited and cheerful and ends in a satisfying way though one could predict the end.

Godi Banna Saadarana Mykattu

This movie hosts Anant Nag as protagonist and Rakshit Shetty. Its about the father and son relationship and how busy lives of youngsters impact the elderly in the metropolitan cities like Bangalore.

Anant Nag loses his wife and looks after his son all by himself. Son played by Rakshit Shetty grows up to be a successful engineer and moves away to a foreign land putting his father in a old age home. There is a doctor in the old age home who the father is deeply attached who also begins to fall in love with Rakshith Shetty.

On a eventful day, Anant Nag is lost due to his dementia. Rakshith Shetty and the doctor set out the mission to search him. The movie goes on with various search hunts by different people in different places.

There is a huge role played by Achuhut Kumar. He offers shelter to Anant Nag and treats him as his own father. Achuth Kumar's house is occupied by a goon finding a hide out.

The goon puts all including Anant Nag in cuffs. The house becomes a jail. After much of negotiations with his bosses, goon decides to end his life freeing the house occupants. Anant Nag is finally found by Rakshith Shetty and the son realizes how much he loves his father.

There are many good thoughts communicated by the movie to the audience like its essential to love our parents, One who sins will always be punished etc. The acting of Anant Nag is commendable. Rakshith Shetty plays good in the serious role as well.

The movie does not seem to have the grip as expected. It loses the audience in the middle with people wondering whats going on. A good climax is what makes it a good movie.

Lucia - movie

It starts with a man lying in coma. He has been under the influence of lucia - a sedative drug which makes people live their dreams for real. The only condition to live the dream is not stop being under its influence. 

Nikhil is a famous film star who finds a girl friend in his industry. He advises her to stay away from film industry as it's a dirty one. He dreams of becoming a simple man like the one who ushers people to their seats in cinema theaters. 

Nikki is a straight forward village boy who dreams to become a famous film actor. He works in a cinema theater ushering people to their seats using the torch light. He gets a girl friend who works at a pizza center. 

Nikki works in a theater owned by his God father Shankaranna. Shankaranna owes few goons a big amount of money. Goons demand that theater be given to them for free. Shankaranna and Nikki both resist this. 

Shankaranna dies in the hands of goons. Nikki continues to work in the theater and releases shankaranna's movie. Nikki a girl friend agrees to marry him.

Nikhil on the other hand is confused. He sends off all his staff and his girlfriend away. He is dreaming and hallucinating. He jumps off from the building in an attempt to kill himself. But he is saved and kept in coma. 

With the help of a detective from Mumbai crime branch, we get to know that it was the story of Nikhil dreaming to be a common man and becoming Nikki and not the other way round.

This movie is directed by Pawan Kumar, one of the best directors in kannada industry. The plot is not linear and one needs to watch it more than once to understand and appreciate the plot. The acting of Ninasam Satish is commendable and Achyuth Kumar in the role of Shankaranna is too hard to miss. 

This movie proves to be the best of the best movies Kannada industry has seen. Lets even call It the Kannada version of inception. 

Arjun Reddy

Its one movie I would go back to watch.. its unlikely of any contemporary movies that it drives cinema goers again and again towards it.

The movie is about Arjun who is a mbbs intern. He is the best out going student impeccable record. He is expelled from college for having tantrum with neighbouring college. At this time he falls in love with a fresher at his college. 

The love story continues and due to a small confusion the lovers get seperated. The girl gets married within her caste when Arjun is deep in his mental mayhem. Hero gets mad, depressed and alcoholic. 

He performs a surgery when he is drunk and passes out. There is legal medical enquiry on him. His family tries to help him but Arjun confesses to have been drunk when performing surgery. His license is cancelled for a year. 

He loses his mind and everything else that he possessed. He falls in to the streets when he hears the news of his granny passing away. 

He goes back to his home to support his family. They accept him and ask him to go on vacation. He gets to see his girl friend on his way who would be full term pregnant. He comes back and meets her. He wins her confidence and brings her home. She reveals that she is pregnant with the baby of Arjun. 

They all live happily ever after.

The story is very simple and common. But the way its depicted is very sweet. Arjun for sure wins the viewers hearts with his amazing acting. 

The Origin - Dan Brown

This is the latest book by Dan Brown. The book is about how the technology is impacting the behaviour of homo sapiens.

The book begins with a business tycoon and a technologist Edmond kirsch intending to declare to the world his latest research on future of human race and the past. He creates an intrigue by asking questions like "Where we came from and where we are going?" in media. He invites the world's renowned people in every industry for this announcement at a museum in Guggenheim, Bilbao.
Each guest is handed over a head set that gives the instructions through robots. Langdon is given with Winston who is also the personal assistant of Edmond. The guests are ushered to an artificially made  meadow like space. Just when the declaration is about to be made, he shot dead. Robert Longdon who is Edmond's mentor and friend is handed to task to find the killer and reveal to everyone what the technologist intended to say.

Langdon is accompanied with the museum curator Ambra Vidal -who is the fiance of the prince of Spain. There are special police forces trying to protect the curator when she is escaping with Langdon on every capture attempt. 

The killer is found to be ex naval officer who mistakes his killing assignment to the revenge of killings of his family members. Langdon finds the laboratory where his Edmond has the server on which Edmond's presentation is stored. With the help of Winston, Langdon succeeds in making the presentation public. The message in it being that we should embrace technology for the good will of our future generation against all the odds created by the religious institutions. Technology is going to occupy us and we eventually become techno sapiens.

Winston self deletes himself, Ambra finds peace with her prince and Langdon is up for the next adventure.

The book is definitely a page turner as usual. The depictions of cities of Bilbao, Gaudi, Barcelona are so fantastic that we feel like visiting them for real. Thanks to Dan Brown for always coming up with promising thrillers.