Sunday, February 24, 2019
Aleph By Paulo Coelho
Thursday, February 7, 2019
URI
Its a movie about the surgical strike India did on Pakistan as an answer to Pakistan's attack on URI base in Kashmir.
It starts with an attack on the Indian army in the India-Myanmar border where the militants kill a dozen of army men. The government as well the nation is troubled. The retaliation comes from the protogonist - Capt Vihaan Shergill that heads a deadly ambush on the NSCN militants.
Vihaan has a ailing mother who needs his support and help. He takes the desk job at the high end office instead of borader line. He loses his brother in law in the Uri attack. Vihaan is emotionally moved.
When the surgical strike is planned, Vihaan personally meets the army general requesting his presence in the strike. He successfully completes the surgical strike.
The movie is a thriller in parts. There are punch dialogues like "Unhe Kashmir chahiye and hame unka sar", "Yeh Hindustan ab chup nahi baitega, Yeh ghar me ghusega bhi aur maarega bhi", etc, where one feels high and mighty about the nation.
The role of Govind which models the national security adviser Ajit Doval is interesting. Kaushal playing the Capt Vihaan role has given the movie the adequate invigoration. Yami Gautham plays the role of intelligence officer. Other characters are played well too.
Good for short lived one time watch and high kick.
Monday, January 14, 2019
A hundred little flames
The narration is by a young man called Ayan who loses his job and joins his grand father in Kerala. Ayan sets off to Kerala to tend to his muttacha(grand father) who would have had a fall and broke his leg.
Much of Ayans life incidents are controlled by his father Jairaj. Jairaj is a devious man planning to sell the house - thekke modem that muttacha lives in.
To Ayans surprise, he starts liking the village his muttacha lives in. It's called poongavanam. He enjoys playing football with local team. He starts loving every aspect of thekke modem. There would be a care taker for muttacha as well as the thekke modem by name velu. Ayan loves being with velu. Ayan explores every nook and corner of the house to see if muttacha has kept those toys that he used to play with when he was kid along with his cousin Nitya. He speaks to Jairaj and aunt shaila on regular basis from thekke modem.
Muttacha is angry as both his children don't come to visit him. But incidentally once when Ayan has gone for a job interview, Jairaj visits thekke modem. He convinces muttacha to go and see a doctor for regular checkup. But muttacha is actually shoved in to asylum by Jairaj and looks like only Jairaj is the legal visitor to visit muttacha. When Ayan returns home from interview, he learns from velu that Jairaj has put muttacha in a mental hospital. Velu and Ayan are spell bound about Ayans father behavior. All that Jairaj want is to put muttacha away and sell thekke modem.
Ayan gets help from his friends and the local football club in finding out where muttacha is admitted. He succeeds in getting till muttacha posing as a journalist and documentary maker. He promises muttacha that he will release him out of the hospital soon. That is when muttacha asks Ayan to read his diaries to understand that Rohini is not any imaginary person.
Ayan reads all the diaries that grandpa has kept and understands what truly to love someone means. He gets muttacha back home the next day. He suggests to muttacha he go find Rohini to which muttacha agrees.
Ayan goes to Pondicherry where he find Rohini and calls muttacha. Rohini and muttacha are reunited. Ayan takes muttacha to Pondicherry from poongavanam and sees muttacha pass away when he and Rohini see each other.
The book a nice fable about true friendship and love. The chronicles of muttacha has made me believe and realize that love does not need to have a relationship to express, experience and enjoy. Love is a form we all need to surrender to.
The description of thekke modem is really appreciable as I started looking for thekke modem in every random village building that looked like a home. Muttachas character is simply good and one could feel the loss when he finally passes away.
What I had thought as a time pass book really kept me going till the finish. It inspired me to experience true love at some point. After the initial reluctance, it captured me and made me see scenes from book every where I went.
Thursday, December 27, 2018
Far from the madding crowd - Thomas Hardy Book
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.
Tuesday, July 10, 2018
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.
Wednesday, March 14, 2018
Lucia - movie
Sunday, March 11, 2018
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.
Friday, February 23, 2018
The Origin - Dan Brown
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.
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.
Tuesday, April 11, 2017
Malegalali Madhumagalu(book) - Kuvempu
Tuesday, April 4, 2017
The Mountain Shadow - David Gregory Roberts
Its the sequel to the legend of a book - Shantaram. Shantaram is a super duper book with a lot of spirituality, philosophy and referable quotes. It dealt with a criminal who ran from a prison in Australia and settled in the slums of Bombay to make a living by selling drugs and waging gang wars.
The sequel too deals with the same man - Lin and his girl friend Karla. Plot is also a continuation of the Shantaram story. There is Abdullah too who reappeared after being thought as dead for long. Lisa is married to a different man - someone famous in media industry. Lin has a bisexual girlfriend who is later murdered by Lin's enemies. Lin and karla are very much in love with each other - to the extent where they are married to different people but still think of each other's safety 24/7.
Tariq - only heir of Khader Khan dies after his house is set on fire. Gang wars become the main scene in the book. Lin leaves the gang this time as against taking significant role in Shantaram. Karla divorces her husband and goes to live in an ashram of Idriss along with Lin. There is a lot of unwanted philosophy here. Adbullah dies again due to an ambush between the police and the terrorists at Khaleed Ansari's Ashram.
Vikram, Didier, Jonny Cigar, Kavita Singh, Lettie all continue with their roles as in Shantaram even in this book. Leopold cafe holds the important stage to the plot from beginning to the end.
There are a lot of other threads like some huge family looking for a treasure in their house, a goonda police, zodiac georges, Lin's friend befriending and safeguarding a daughter of a rich Mumbaikar, a drugged young girl whose boyfriend committed suicide, Madam Zhou, a disguised waiter from Srilanka who joins Lin in Mumbai, a woman in blue hijab etc.. These stories take the intensity away from Karla-Lin main stage.
While reading, at times you feel like lost as the author seems to confuse as to what he wants to convey. There is ambiguity in many areas of philosophies and the lines are not very appealing. Idriss gyaan is not easily understandable. As such the story drifts with no conclusion or you feel there is no point the author wants to make. As a whole I was a bit disappointed as I started the book with Shantaram in mind.