Painting exhibition with a difference

The Family of Disabled conducts regular exhibitions of its members and I was awed seeing the paintings. These differently abled people had the extra zest to put their thoughts on the canvas beautifully.

Age of Scams

What times to live in! People held on high pedestals have now got their faces rubbed well and truly in dirt and muck. Politicians, Administrators, the Defence forces, Entrepreuners, all blackened. So where does the common Indian go?
Every day I am now curious about hearing of a new scam and learn how crores and crores of rupees have been laundered. At least we aren't a poor country!!!
So Kalmadi, Raja and Yeddyurappa are on the loose yet. The ex-chiefs of Army are yet to be brought to book. A lot of anti India proclaimers have a free rein to express themselves. Incidentally, today another such anti-India mongering was put to an end in Chandigarh. So, the moot question once again - does Democracy allow such freedom? Is there a line that can be drawn somewhere? And yes, Lalu has met his fate, which I suppose, one saw coming.

Wonder How It Feels

Wonder how it feels
to die every moment you live
while you watch
your loved one die slowly.

Wonder how it feels
to do the best you can
to see that smile
one more time

Wonder how it feels
to watch helplessly
the loved one spewing blood
in agony

Wonder how it feels
to see the empty bed
to collect all those memories
and stuff them in bags

Wonder how it feels
to watch the army salute
the uniform and the flag
paying the last respects

My friend faced all this
as did her sons
while I watched teary eyed
Wondering how it felt.

Delhi Diary 8

CWG

Things get more and more interesting. Rs 70,000 crore, unfinished work in the games village, muck in the toilets, dogs roaming freely in the rooms and the campus, water logged, mosquito larva breeding merrily, bridge and roads collapsing, tiles falling, snakes crawling.... Need we add anymore??

The world's best ever games, so said the Chairman of the OC of CWG, Suresh Kalmadi.
Today it was rather heartening to see on the news that the games village after a massive cleanliness drive is filling up with athletes and delegates who are going on record saying they are not disappointed with the arrangements. Then Kalmadi in an interview to CNN-IBN says if he is found corrupt he is willing to be hanged!!
This gets more and more interesting...

The latest is the tussle between the President of India and Prince Charles to open the games. So who is the rightful opener??

As a true and patriotic Indian, I hope and pray that the CWG happen smoothly and well. And then May Heads Roll.

Udaan

A movie close to the heart. The story centres around a creative 17 year old abandoned in a boarding school by his tyrannical father, Bairam Singh. The boy, Rohan has a 6 year old half brother, Arjun, who is regularly beaten into subnission by the dad. Rohan, along with three other friends, is expelled from school and lands up at home. Dad puts his son to work in his factory and gets him admitted to an engineering college. Rohan continues to write , fails his engineering exams and works at the factory half heartedly. He has in the meantime gotten frindly with three young local goondas and spends time drinking, smoking and fighting at pubs. This he does at night when he takes his father's car out. His uncle (younger brother of dad) and his wife are very fond of the two boys. Finally, Bairam decides to get married once again, this time to a woman who has a daughter. He decides that Rohan will work in the factory full time and Arjun will go to a boarding school. The uncle pleads with Bairam to think again but there is a fall out between the brothers. Rohan gets a call from his friends from school who are in Mumbai and are now working in one of the friend's dad's cafe. Rohan comes to a decision. He writes a letter to his dad telling him of his decision to leave home and also about taking care of Arjun who he says will grow into another Bairam Singh if left in the care of his father. The movie ends with Rohan and Arjun walking down the road happy with their new found freedom.:)

Delhi Diary 7

CWG 2010

Is there any common man who has not yet passed a sarcastic remark about the coming Commonwealth Games?? No, there can be none. Crores have been pumped into it and what do we have to show for it? Zilch! Today, speaking on the readiness of venues for the CWG, Badminton World no 3, Saina Nehwal at a press conference said that we are really not ready to host games of such prestige. She said she had seen international venues and found Delhi sadly lacking. An hour later, Saina goes ahead to retract her statement saying she apologises for making such statements which could hurt her and the country!!! Had she been threatened? Are we living in a democracy or what?? Can't we speak our minds any more? Who are these bigwigs who have pocketed all the moolah and are trying to make a show of running a defunct CWG 2010?

P.S. Why was Rahman paid Rs 5 crore for composing a song for these games? The song, it turns out, is a damp squib. (I haven't listened to it yet). So what now? Does he return 50% of the fee?

Of Friendships...

How do you feel when you meet a friend 21 years later -- from your undergraduate days to today when you are a professional and running a family? I think the feeling is indescribable. I was in Chennai for a day and I decided to meet Sumathi, my friend from college. We hadn't quite been in touch for over two decades!(though both of us are on facebook!) But when we met, all the years in between melted and we were back on the college stairs sitting and marvelling and wondering at the world and its ways... I think with close friends time is a non-issue as are the years of maturity and life's experinces in between. We understand what the other is trying to say instinctively taking the conversation to another level.
Thanks Sumathi, the tiny table for two at Radisson and your treat has now been awarded a special place in my life till another table at Delhi comes up next to it.

Inception

Christopher Nolan’s Inception is a film about dreams, but nowhere close to giving you a nice sleep. This one shakes you awake with the possibility of what one can do with dreams. Sometime back I watched Leonardo in Shutter Island and was shaken by the story. I am shaken now too but differently. I loved the concept of Inception, dreamcatchers , who could enter your mind and plant an idea there so as to make it seem like your own and this could have repercussions of any kind. And as we move from the first level of dreams on to the next and the next, we actually start getting confused and the excess action does not help much. But in the end, it is exhilarating. The totem which is the key to reality keeps spinning and we wait with bated breath for it to fall so we know Cobb is in the real world, but the screen black out leaving us to wonder…

Delhi Diary 6

They are there everyday - at the corner of the Malviya Nagar crossing from the Aurobindo Marg side. The mother plays the drum while her son, not more than seven years old, begins his acrobatics for the benefit of the passengers in the vehicles waiting for the red light to turn green. The boy wears a cap with a stringed yo yo kind of a thing attached right at the top of the cap. He swings his head in a circular motion and the yo yo moves around him. He then stretches his arms clasps his hands and takes them behind him and takes his legs through the space between the arms. As a third item he draws up a tiny hoopla and goes in and out of it. Then he comes to beg. But every time he begs, he gives his head a flick and the yo yo rotates. His sister, a little older, does somersaults on the streets.

Delhi Diary 5

I couldn't have escaped it anyway. Yesterday, the autorickshaw I was travelling in on my way to office met with an accident. A car hit it from behind and the auto hit another vehicle ahead. Well, I had quite an escape, just a little shocked out of my wits. The driver was a little hurt. This happened right opposite my office and so I walked towards it when one of the bystanders called me back. I was wondering if the police had arrived at the scene so quick when I was told that I had forgotten to pay the driver!! Must blame it on my head which was hit slightly on the back and had formed a nice lump. So guys, how much ever careful you are, accidents happen just like that...

Rhythm of the Rain!!

The rain gods were rather too merciful yesterday. It rained from around 2 pm and continued till about 7 pm and Delhi turned into a huge lake of sewer waters. People stranded, waiting, trying to negotiate through the murky water, buses and autos and cars and bikes stalled in the middle of the road, leading to enormous jams and more. The auto rickshaw I flagged, stalled four times but I sat on and the driver did not give up. I managed to get off close to my place but had to cross a very busy road where no vehicle wanted to give way (God knows where they were headed coz there was a huge jam right ahead anyway. Make you wonder how the authorities take on huge projects like the Commonwealth Games??!! One bout of rain and the Games will be washed away. Think Ms Dixit! You need to plan better for the sake of India's name. Water collected on flyovers and under construction metro stations have given away and sunk further down. God help Delhi and its populace.

Kill for Honour???!!!

There are hardly any sentiments to describne the recent spate of honour killings in the northern belt of the country. One after another, senior family members and so called caretakers of society are indulging in it, all in the name of keeping our heritage intact!!! So we honour our gotras, do we? When were these gotras formed and why where they formed? Is marrying in the same gotra akin to incest? I wish these learned men of the society would explain and justify why they need to take lives to protect the society? Is our heritage so fragile that it cannot withstand the onslaught of new blood? How is it possible for mothers, fathers and brothers to kill one of their own. And here we were crying ourselves hoarse when the atrocities of the Taliban came to the fore in the Swat province. Are these honour killers any different?
I do hope the young ones rise in rebellion for love and give a fitting reply to this incomprehensible fanaticism.

Delhi Diary 4

So I am in my new apartment in a lovely locality overlooking a lot of greenery. Calls of the peacock rouse me from sleep. But hey! All is not hunky dory. There is a problem of water shortage and water leakage. Yes, both. But it's a proper house. Now I look forward to creating my space and that is very important for my own sanity. If you are wondering where exactly I'm live, it's between the ring road and the outer ring road behind the DU South Campus. Now looking forward to some lowering of temperature... Am sure you are too if you are in Delhi. Another great thing - Reaching my workplace in 30 minutes instead of an hour and more!Good thing coz the autos are going to hike their rates to more than double!

A home once more!

I've been in Delhi for 10 months and have been staying in Dwarka with family. Well, this was a temporary arrangement. Now, we're shifting to a permanent house (which means 3 to 4 years). It has been like living on a railway platform, almost everything each one of us wanted to do was pushed behind for later, when we would shift to our permanent house! Aaaaah! Have boarded the train and am fast tracking towards my destination which happens over the next week, and settling down of course takes more weeks. But that's fun and that's what I am used to, having been born in such a milieu.

So, do houses mean anything to me?? No they don't pull at my heartstrings, since I've moved in and out of so many. What I remember vividly though are certain memories, scenes, dejavu, scents, colours, views...Also it's a challenge to put our entire belongings into four rooms and then arrange them once more into a one and half suite!

Will definitely post the view from my new home. Wish me luck!

Delhi Diary 3

Back again to the topic of temperatures soaring… It is a humane gesture to fill bowls of water and keep them out in the balconies or terraces so that the birds could drop by and cool themselves. At my house, both the pigeons and the squirrels who satisfy themselves.

The heat is catching on perversely. During this week, I witnessed two cars totally burnt out. I suppose these happen if you have a short circuit or an LPG cylinder installed. Be careful, guys.

Water is getting scarce in the capital. My maid is now on the lookout to buy a pump to pull out water since every household in her area possesses one and there is no way she can draw water from taps in her house normally. New schemes have to be thought out to prevent the water levels from going further down. Doomsday has to be kept at bay!

The rains finally came on 29 April and what a display! All hailstone and water and wind whipped together to present a cooling mocktail to the environs of Delhi.

The Heat is On!!! Delhi Diary 2

Temperatures are soaring in the Capital. It has crossed the 42 degree mark already and this is only April! The last time this happened was eight years ago! But hey! How then do we account for the rise today? Is it not due to global warming? I hope not, sincerely. This extreme heat also brings with it a sense of gloom – what does lie ahead? I can almost see myself roasted in the heat and it is not just me…So why not harness this terrible heat through solar batteries and utilize it to run some more ceiling fans or coolers. Yes, fans and coolers, mind you and not ACs. Aaaah, for a glass of cool water...

Delhi Diary 1

I am starting with this new column which I shall be updating almost every day. At least will try to. I’m calling it Delhi Diary coz there is a lot to observe in this madness of a city.

I am on the roads of the capital four days a week. Going to office at around 11 am and returning around 6 pm. Now, the returning time is ok as far as the outside temperature goes. But while going to office, I am baked slowly but surely in the auto rickshaw for an hour.

The road from Mahipalpur till the end of Vasant Kunj is a nightmare. Cars, buses, two wheelers, people, shops, everything to negotiate. Not to forget the noise that break sound barriers and the stench that makes me wish for my cologne bottle.

The flyovers on outer Ring Road which I negotiate at times, while returning home, serve little purpose in reducing traffic snarls. The more space created, the more the number of vehicles. (He got two cars, why should I not have three? is the philosophy here.)

So, I was on the outer ring road the other day when I saw a cow with a bloated stomach lying dead on one side of the road – at the Rao Tula Ram crossing. Must have consumed plastic, trying to fend fro lunch coz where is the grass??? Tree covers are coming up, but green pastures are a thing of the past now. And if we cannot provide their fodder, why do these bovine beauties loiter among the i10s, Accords and Mercs?? If not food, the smoke will most certainly kill them.

The Commonwealth Games has given us the dream of a cleaner developed city. Well, the way things are going, doesn’t seem like it. Hopefully, there will be games held here. But will the venues be ready? Already there is talk that school students will attend classes till the end of May so that they can have an extended autumn break during the Commonwealth games. Tell me, is this humane? Already temperatures are soaring to 41 degrees now. God bless the thoughtful Government.

Of Saigon, War, Snake Wine And The Mekong

All Billy Joel fans have heard of the song "Goodnight Saigon", one of the most well-known songs about the Vietnam War. The song, penned and sung by Joel, takes us through the situation and attitude of United States Marines during this war and the utter hopelessness of it all.

Today, however, Saigon or Ho Chi Minh (HCM) City is a different story altogether.

Ho Chi Minh City, the largest city of Vietnam, is located in the South of the country and is the heart of Vietnam. Throbbing with great energy, it carries everyone with it. The streets are not unlike Kolkata with teeming traffic, crowds, shops and vendors. Traffic jams there reminded me of what we face everyday back home. Two-wheelers seem to rule the roost here. It was interesting to see pylons on the main streets with wires dangling from them. Many shopping malls, restaurants and pubs line the streets. The French influence, since the 19th century, can be seen quite clearly in the city’s wide boulevards, architecture and the Catholic population.

The fall of communism and the end of the Cold war in the early 1990s, brought about a period of rapid political and economic change with large scale construction and opening of private enterprises.

Knowing the local language helps though, as we tried to find our way from the Ben Thanh Market to our hotel, just next door. Thankfully, our hotel manager had thoughtfully provided us with a road map which got us back to our destination which was a medium budget motel with clean rooms, free internet facility along with the provision for a hearty breakfast.

As expected, most of the places of visit at HCM City have a bearing to its war marred history. Some city spots are definitely worth a visit.

The Reunification Palace

Once the Presidential Palace of the Republic of South Vietnam, the Reunification Palace is a five-story grand building with about hundred rooms and a basement complete with tunnels, a telecommunication room and war room with old Vietnam maps. The grandeur of the

state rooms is evident in the decor of the rooms. The tanks exhibited on the Palace grounds are the ones which gate crashed on the fateful day of April 30, 1975, marking an end to the Vietnam War.

War Remnants museum

The War Remnants museum tells the cruel tale of what a war is all about. The photo galleries, prison cell models and the weaponry hold out the story in graphic detail. Though the effect is

depressing, it is quite an eye opener.

Cu Chi Tunnels

Situated more than a two hour drive away from HCM city are the famous Cu Chi Tunnels. Used by the Viet Cong, these secret tunnels infiltrated US base camps at HCM City during the war. They covered a length of more than 200 metres in hard soil and comprised hospitals, sleeping areas, kitchens and war rooms. Think twice before you decide to go underground because the trip can be scary for claustrophobics, with the closing walls and ceiling, and the minimal light from the torch to guide you.

Notre Dame Cathedral

Built by the French in the late 19th century, the Notre Dame Cathedral is located at the city centre. Surrounded by the city square and lush greenery, this red brick neo Romanesque structure has two 40-feet bell towers and a huge statue of the Virgin Mary outside. In fact, the towers clearly dominate the city skyline which helped us locate this cathedral.

Hanoi is the capital of Vietnam and the second largest city situated on the North. It is also its cultural capital with more than 600 pagodas and temples and a large number of museums.

If you are in Hanoi, there are some must-see places for you.

Hanoi, also known as the city of Lakes, has one of the most spectacular lakes called the Hoan Kiem Lake or the Lake of the Returned Sword. Legend has it that Emperor La Loi was granted a magic sword by a giant tortoise living in the lake. After his victory, the king had to return this sword to the rightful owner. The Tortoise Tower at the centre of the lake is dedicated to that turtle.

The Water Puppet Show at the Thang Long Water Puppet Theatre

Ha Noi is known for its water puppetry which is a skill that is uniquely Vietnamese. The colourful wooden puppets are operated using poles underwater while the puppeteers conceal themselves behind a screen. Vietnamese folk tales and history are woven within the antics of the puppets with traditional music playing in the background. Though you might not understand a word of dialogue since it is in Vietnamese, the overall impression leaves the audience asking for more.

Ha Long Bay

UNESCO has listed Ha Long as a World Heritage sight and you will know why when you take a ride along the bay. It comprises more than a thousand monolithic limestone islands rising majestically from the ocean, covered with vegetation. The smaller islands have wonderful beaches. Several islands have huge caves with stalactites and stalagmites. You also see floating villages of fishermen whose livelihood depend on their catch.

The Perfume Pagoda

Located about 70 km away from Hanoi, perched on the Huong Son Mountain, is the Perfume Pagoda. If you have lived with the dream of Vietnam meaning sprawling green paddy fields where Vietnamese women in their hats are hard at work, a visit to the perfume pagoda is a must. The only way to reach this destination is by boat which takes a little less than an hour. The narrow stream is bordered by green paddy fields and needless to say, the beauty is breathtaking. It is an hour’s uphill trek to the Pagoda and is worth the visit.

If possible, visit this country anytime between January 19 and February 20. The seven day Spring Festival awaits you. The Lunar New year falls at this time and for the Vietnamese there is no bigger event than the seven-day Tet. This includes festivity with fireworks, drums, gongs on the one hand, and meditation on the other.

Vietnamese Cuisine

Those hooked on to TV cookery shows would recognize chef and author, Anthony Bourdain anywhere and would know of his adoration for Vietnamese food. In his book, A Cook’s Tour, five of the book’s 17 chapters are based on Vietnam. Bourdain’s introduction to the food culture begins at Ben Thanh market in Ho Chi Minh where "everything is brightly coloured, crunchy, exotic, unrecognizable and attractive." He sidles up to a food stall, orders a spring roll and watches "as the owner wraps freshly hacked cooked prawn, mint, basil, lotus root and sprouts in rice paper", which he promptly eats and then devours "a shrimp cake wrapped around a stick of sugarcane and grilled. It's a wonderland of food here.”

Bourdain’s account of the restaurant's famous traditional rice baked in clay pots is like jazz in motion –

“When you order a rice side, a waiter retrieves it from the kitchen, smashes the crockery with a mallet, the pieces falling to the floor, then hurls the sizzling-hot rice cake across the dining room, over the heads of customers, to another waiter, who catches the cake on a plate, flips it, sends it up in the air a few more times like a juggler, then cuts it into portions tableside, dressing it with fish sauce, peppers, sesame, and chives ... Every few minutes, searingly hot disks of rice go sailing by my ear.”

Passionforcinema.com

For all those of you passionately involved with Cinema in any way, there is a blog to satisfy you; its called passionforcinema.com or PFC. One look and you will be involved with the write ups and the discussions. Big and respected names write for this blog, director Anurag Kashyap being one of them. But not everyone has to be a big name to write here. If cinema runs in your blood (very filmy line that!), you can report an event, send in a movie review or talk about a cine personality. You could also share your thoughts on film craft or the movie industry; in short, you could write on any aspect related to your favourite subject.

The home page is a no nonsense page with the interesting tabs News and Popular besides the Contact and Write tabs.

Being an open source has proved to be its USP. Today, PFC has moved away from being an interacting platform to a networking platform, helping young talent find a place in the movie business. If you are on the look out to make it big as a writer on cinema, this is your chance. Take a look at the All About Us section for details and get started.

The PFC One Minute 2008 film festival is also underway and has a long list of entries. So, if you haven’t already latched on to the passion, “Picture abhi baki hai mere dost!”

Little Eyolf

It was a joy watching the drama unfold in Little Eyolf's life. This play was the Punjabi/English version of the play by Henrik Ibsen. Neelam ManSingh Chowdhry's direction simply created magic on stage. The folk singers occupying one part of the dais were an added attraction as was the performance by the gypsies. The cast was quite up to the task with Ramanjit, Taranjit, Rocky and Hitender giving their best. Raman insisted that we watch the play, a part of the12th Theatre Festival on January 19, 2010 at Kamani auditorium. Good thing Roohi and I went.