The Good Wife's Guide

This may get me divorced but I still couldn't resist the temptation......lol..imagine it getting published today instead of 1955...aaj kal good wives kahaan milti hain...

KENYA SINGS FOR INDIA

Leading film-makers are seeking to change the way we think about other countries. This is one of a powerful series of films to be shown on Pangea Day, May 10, "the day the world comes together through film".



See all four anthems. Then visit http://www.pangeaday.org

Here, set against the backdrops of Nairobi city and the beautiful landscape of Uhuru Park (Maasai country), a Kenyan choir sings the Indian national anthem.

The director has chosen the Indian anthem because Kenya is home to a sizeable Hindu population (including Sikhs & Jains also) of approximately 2.5 million, most of them descendants of the East African Railways labourers who were brought over by the British during the late 19th and early 20th centuries when the British colonialists ruled Kenya and the rest of the East African region.

A movie blogpost was long overdue as I have seen a lot of movies in recent past, so here are few that I can still recall, I have seen atleast 10 times more then I can actually recall :-)

Warning : Long Post but I'll try and write as few lines as possible.

Before Sunrise (1995) and Before Sunset (2004) ****1/2

A movie that touched my soul, it's the most intelligent romance I have ever seen. It's a movie about two strangers who meet on a train (Jab We Met ishtyle) and decide to spend some more time with each other, ending up falling in love only to be parted in the End. The second part "Before Sunset" gives you more hope and ironically it was made 9 years after the prequel, a must watch for all romantics.

10000 BC **

What a waste of time, a friend of mine rightly said Dus Hazaar B@$#n C#$d, you can’t like it specially after you have seen Apocalypto.

Jodha Akbar ***

I'll direct you to best review of the Movie "Boka Choda Akbar" here. As of me I found the movie a passe, Aishwarya made my day ;-)

Mithya ***1/2

I love it when I get to see such kind of movies from the stable of Bollywood, Indian movies have come of age and it's a treat to watch such movies. It's a movie about a struggling actor whose face resembles to an underworld Don. Obviously the next thing would be role reversal like DON, but this movie has it's own set of twists and some really bizarre characters. A must watch for Hindi cinema lovers.

Into the Wild ***1/2

Remember Cast Away in which Tom Hanks gets stuck on a island after a plane crash and has to spent years away all alone, the only difference is that in "Into the Wild" the main character casts away from Human Civilization by choice. After finishing graduation top student and an athlete Christopher McCandless abandons his possessions, gives his entire $24000 savings to charity and hitchhikes to Alaska to live in the wilderness. It wasn't hard to me to believe that the movie was based on a real character as I have met few men and women who love being away from the world. A very well made movie and has got it's share of Oscar nominations this year.

American Gangster ****

A true story about a black Gangster who beats all the odds and climbs to the top by finding a unique way of smuggling drugs inside American territory, a domain dominated by Italians . Denzel Washington is as usual at his best and Russell Crowe does a good job in being the Detective in pursuit. Unfortunately the only Oscar nomination this movie got was for Art Direction.

No Country for old men ****1/2

What would you do if you accidentally reach the site of a Gang war where every gangster is dead and there's a bag full of money for taking, if you need it you'll take it of course. But then what if there is an assassin at your tail, someone who enjoys killing, who is the best at what he does and never gives up. You have no choice but to end up Dead in the end even after giving a hell of a fight, it is a very well made movie and keeps you at the edge of your seat all along. The sociopath killer Javier Bardem ended up winning Oscar for the best supporting actor in this movie, this movie also took the best direction and best movie award for this year.

We Own the night ***

Another movie that brings the business of drugs into the limelight but with a twist, it's about a night club manager played by Joaquin Phoenix who while trying to help his family of cops catch a drug lord gets trapped into the game and puts his life in danger. Eva Mendes plays his girlfriend and looks hot as usual (remember Hitch), it's definitely a good one time watch.

Juno ****1/2

Juno O Juno, well if you ask me this is the best movie that was made last year and I just loved it. The main protagonist 16 years Juno played by Ellen Page gets pregnant with a child fathered by another 16 year old Paulie Bleeker. Although she initially opts for abortion but a last minute change of heart makes her find a suitable couple for adoption. The way the plot and characters are defined make the movie fun. Ellen got herself nominated for the Best Actress category but the only award Juno got is for the Best Screenplay, this movie definitely deserved more.

Meet the Spartans **

A filthy, shitty, worthless piece of crap movie. An utter waste of time, a rare Hollywood movie that can be compared to Ramgopal Verma ki Aag.

Bee Movie ***

A silly animation movie that's made to make you laugh and that's what you do or at least it makes you smile.

Balls of Fury ***

It's a funny n crazy movie about a former Table Tennis champ who gets an opportunity to become the greatest player ever and with Kung fu style of teaching and inspiration in the form of Maggie Q even I could've done wonders if I could get her on my team;-)

Resident Evil: Extinction ***1/2

Boy O boy Milla Jovovich is back again with her Guns blazing blades swinging action and for all the Zombies...go into hiding if you want to survive. Another amazing movie from the Resident Evil series, I am eagerly waiting for the sequel to this one and rumor is that it may be called Resident Evil: Afterlife.

Atonement ****

This movie is based on the book by Ian McEwan that goes by the same name and was nominated for the bookers prize. The story is set in three main areas, an English country house in 1935, war torn France in 1940 and London 1940. Keira Knightley and James McAvoy have done amazingly well while playing the passionately in love couple and obviously she looks great :-) .. Funny part is due to my bad English vocabulary I didn't know the meaning of the word Atonement before the movie got over, what an apt title for a delightful movie.

The Kite Runner ****

Yet another favorite book of mine made into a movie and a rare one that did justice to the book. It's a very intriguing story about Amir and his servants son Hassan who is the best Kite runner in Kabul, the story changes when Amir is unable to stand up to protect Hassan from getting raped by a bunch of rowdy kids. Due to the Russian invasion Amir and his father leave Afghanistan for America and the twist comes when Amir had to return to Afghanistan to rescue Hassan's son from Taliban militia some 25 years later.

Superbad ***1/2

One of the better American sexual comedies I have seen in a long time, the situation involving buying booze with the fake ID that says "McLovin" is priceless (find picture). Definitely the funniest movie I have seen since Borat.

Knocked Up ***

It is a nice situational comedy where an idiot Ben Stone played by Seth Rogen knocks up gorgeous Katherine Heigl on a drunken first date. The situation is forgotten once she realizes her mistake in the morning only to worsen when she realizes that she got pregnant that night. Though Ben is all wrong for her in every way she gives him another chance, the movie is fun from there onwards and even though all your practical sense says they should not be together there is a happy ending in the end.

The Golden Compass ***

Like a true fan of this genre of movies I liked it, I loved the bear fight, I loved the concept of your souls/spirits walking besides you in different shapes instead of residing in your body like in our world, I loved the imagination and creativity of the makers, I loved the costumes, the visuals, the city, the streets, the landscapes and the amazing special effects. They could've done more justice to the story though as it feels patchy. Waiting eagerly for the next installment.

Alvin and Chipmunks ***

I guess it all started with Space Jam at least that's what I remember as the first movie with Real and Animated characters side by side and it got perfected with Stuart little. Now everyone including me just loved the chipmunks and there songs, nice fun movie.

The Warlords ***

Though this movie had all the action a Jet Li movie promises it was a bit of a let down for me, the story was interesting and action scenes were exciting but the character development was not done properly. The only character developed to an extent out of the three was Jet Li's character who gets driven by war and other lusts and creates a mess in the end.

Wedding Daze ***

It's a movie about a guy whose girl friend dies of heart attack as soon as he proposes to her. After drowning in sadness and to escape his weary life he randomly proposes to a waitress as a challenge who immediately says yes to escape from an unwanted proposal she received last night. The awkward romance between them with some wacky relatives and friends thrown in makes this slapstick comedy a good one time watch.

Rambo IV ***

What action movie series comes to you mind when you think of your childhood, well I think of Terminator, Rocky, Predator, Die Hard, Robocop, Lethal Weapon, Aliens, Star Wars, James Bond Series and somewhere at the top RAMBO. I loved the mindless fighting and the strange accent of Sylvester Stallone, though Rambo never had a story line this part disappointed me in the build up of the climax…... the excitement just wasn't the same though the action was the goriest I saw in a long time guts and blood flying everywhere. But for a die hard Rambo fan like me it was still a treat to relive my childhood :-)

Technology of the future.....

http://www.nokia.com/A4879144

A rose is a rose every day, every night
You too are the same, except different in my sight



Closeup of fishes @ home



Rail Track @ 100 kms /hr


Mysore Palace, Mysore


Isn't she a beauty?


Sab pink pink hai...

St Philomena Church, Mysore

The Inscrutable Americans -- Anurag Mathur




I guess I read this book a bit late, as it's based in early 90's when a guy named Gopal from a small town of Jajau sets his foot in America. His complete ineptitude in understanding the mysterious creature called "American Female" (even the willing one's ) was hilarious, also how he interprets the American lingo's is interesting ;-) . Some of the Indians may not like this book as in todays world of outsourcing and MTv they are definitely more aware of American culture.

All in all a hilarious read...best part is those letters that he wrote home :-)

Photoblogging begins....

Here are few pictures that I clicked...I know I have a lot to learn but then the start ain't that bad.... ;-)


View From my roof...

MY FunWall.....


Yummy.....

Canon EOS 400D


Ladies and Gentleman I am now part of the playground, my latest buy is a Digital SLR, well one of best in the market, now I just need to learn how to operate it :-)
There will be lot more Random clicks on this blog for sure ;-) May be I'll convert it to a photo blog if I turn out any good with this piece. Yipeee!!!!!

It's not about the bike: My journey back to life -- Lance Armstrong


Where there is a will there is a way, Lance Armstrong a cyclist at the age of 25 was diagnosed with testicular cancer and was given just 40% chance of survival and no hope of being an athlete again. A person like me may not be able to understand what Lance has gone through, the worst i had was Dental Surgery. But this guy takes the cancer challenge head on, he fights with the disease in the same way he used to plan his races.
So beating all odds he recovers from cancer and goes on to win the toughest challenge for an athlete and world biggest cycle race "Tour De France" not once or twice but seven consecutive times.

Raised by a single mom in a small town fighting his way through cancer and becoming one of the most coveted athletes of all times. His life is an inspiration for people who loose hope due to small setbacks (including me), today he is working as a cancer activist and has a cancer foundation called LIVESTRONG , he also conducts inspirational talks. You can find all about it here

Even though the book is not the one of the best written books I have read but the reality of the story and what a human being can achieve with determination and hard work is truly amazing.

A must read :-)

Oscars List is out...check it here

One of my favorite movies of the year Juno makes it for Actress in leading Role, Direction, Writing and Best Picture nominations.......let's see how many it gets.....

Letterman's Top Ten W.Bush moments.....

Mr. Bush was watching hence a conservative list....find more of Bushism.............. here and here.

Inkheart and Inkspell --- Cornelia Funke



Yet another magic fantasy series and yet again I get bowled over by the authors imagination, Imagine you are reading Cinderella and she juts pops out of the book and stands right in front of you, looking as beautiful as the author portrayed her in the book. This series is all that and more, it's a story of a father and daughter who are blessed with this magical tongue and what happens when they start reading a particular book called Inkheart.
Where Inkheart leaves you thirsty for more, Inkspell takes you to the virtual world of this book. The adventure expands manifold and just when you don't want the book to finish and the story to carry on the author intelligently makes sure that you are left thirsty for the last part of the series......the story continues and now I have to wait for two books....last part of Inheritance series and this one.....

Inkheart is also being made in a movie and the trailer looks really exciting...check it out here....

Keynote - Bill Gates' Last Day

Across the universe....

One of the few musicals I liked.....beautiful story beautifully and psychedelically told...naaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa...na na .na nana nanana Hey Jude........naaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa na na nananana nanana Hey Jude.......

BTW Evan Rachel Woods who played Lucy in the movie is the same girl who starred in one of my all time favorite music videos by Greenday "Wake me up When September Ends".....click on the link to check it out she definitely knows how to make you cry....

My rating ********** :)

A good friend of mine reminded me of one of my all time favorite movies --Jerry Maguire....you may remember the line "Show me the money"

A really really beautiful video....I bet it will make you smile and go aaawwwwwwwww..........

That's what you call attitude......

I definitely don't wanna wake up to this one

The Gathering --- Anne Enright



I have no idea why I can't agree with the panel that award Bookers...why year after year I waste my time in reading this stuff. Words almost fail me while describing how boring I found Gathering.
The almost non-existent story revolves around a really boring Veronica Hagarthy who is sibling to equally boring 11 other Hegarthy's....the whole clan is so uninspiring and so ordinary that you just can't find reasons of anything interesting about there lives.

Then there is Veronica's obsession with imagining her grandmother making out with Lambert Lugent and her own stupid issues of getting distanced from her husband for reasons a normal human mind can't understand and yeah the crooked explicit sexual overtones were just too much.

On the other hand the author has amazing writing style and there are some memorable passages like how Veronica is not surprised when she finds out that Liams dead body was found without any socks and underwear as she knows Liam is fastidious tidy and won't like to be drawn out of the water with dirty undergarments.

The best thing about this book is it worked like a sleeping pill for me....kind of reminded me of those boring history books in school ;-)

Wow...Evanescence brings me to life with this one ;-).......Amy Lee ROCKS!!!!

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