Disgusted after watching a good movie

Quite often, after watching a movie, I am left with a very bad taste in mouth. This happens almost every time I go to a theater for a Hindi movie but sometimes, this is the case even after watching a good English flick on my laptop. And then I start hating Hindi movies even more.

Kramer vs. Kramer is one such movie which was spoiled for me because years ago I had seen a hyper- emotional, melodramatic and a bad remake of it (Akele Hum Akele Tum). Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep have given excellent performances but still I didn't enjoy the movie as I could predict almost every scene, such has been the blatant frame by frame copying done by director Mansoor Khan for Akele Hum Akele Tum.

Every now and then, we see a Bollywood movie earning 100+ crores within a few weeks of its launch. A classic example of "You don't need to make a quality product as long as you have monopoly". A majority of theatre goers either don't have access to Hollywood cinema or find it too difficult to understand English. That's where our Bollywood directors come in. Who would like to work hard on a novel idea when you already have a story tailor made for you by the foreign writers? All you need to do is add a few songs and item numbers here and there for which you already have the likes of Anu Malik and Pritam  at your service with a rich repository of tunes lifted from musicians across the world.

It is disappointing when you are not able to appreciate the original because you have seen a cheap copy. Few movies at the top of my head are 12 Angry Men (Ek Ruka Hua Faisla), French Kiss (Pyaar To Hona Hi Tha), The Usual Suspects(Chocolate), Man on Fire (Ek Ajnabee)...the list is endless. Even more disgusting is that you find the likes of Aamir Khan and Amitabh Bachchan working in them.

Who wants a copy when you already have the original?

Indians do, especially when it comes to cinema.

Playing It My Way by Sachin Tendulkar: A book Review

I got my copy of Playing It My Way, the autobiography of Sachin Tendulkar a few days back. And I am thoroughly disappointed with the book. Not that I had high hopes earlier either, but this book falls well  short of what even a decent autobiography should be. 

All these years, we have desperately waited for Sachin to come out in the open and reveal the person within. He has guarded his private life zealously, has seldom spoken against anybody and has always been politically correct. It was the best thing to do in his playing days and he always let his bat do the talking. 

But autobiographies are not meant for that. He seems to be playing to his public image, cautious enough while writing lest it may offend someone or cause a controversy. The book contains a useless litany of his performances in matches but haven’t we read all that countless number of times? We already have the match reports of Cricinfo or Wisden for that. 

Apart from the incidents in which he was centrally involved, he has skirted away from most of the controversial issues of his times, most notably the match fixing saga. Mike Denness affair, Greg Chappel’s coaching stint, and the Monkey-gate scandal find their mention in detail but there should have been more.  There is no mention of  Vinod Kambli’s slump and it is impossible to believe that Tendulkar didn’t have an opinion on this. Did he counsel Kambli? If yes, did or did not Kambli heed to his advice? 

BCCI has been praised almost everywhere, apart from his tiff with selectors when he was the captain. BCCI, as we have all seen in recent times, is far from an honest organization. More often than not, it has started acting as a bully off the field. Why doesn't he use his image and influence to improve India's standing in the world as an efficient and just leader which is not just greedy for money?

Autobiographies are meant to reveal the inner thoughts of a person, his view of the world, and his opinions of the circumstances and people around him. There’s hardly any mention of any mistakes that Sachin might have committed on or off the field which he regrets, neither any apology towards anybody. In a 24 year long international career, it is simply not possible. 

As has been the case with most highly awaited and hyped movies and books, this book has failed to live up to its expectations. This book could have served as a source of inspiration to many youngsters who look up to him and want to emulate his feats. Instead, it disappoints on almost all accounts. It will sell because it is Sachin’s autobiography. But if you want to read a genuine sports’ autobiography, I would recommend Open by Andre Agassi, and Beyond A Boundary by CLR James. 

Book Review of Muhammad: A Prophet For Our Time by Karen Armstrong

As the title suggests, this book by Karen Armstrong is about the life and times of Prophet Muhammad. It’s not a heavy read and can be finished in 5-6 hours by an average reader. The author treads carefully and mostly maintains a neutral tone (though tilting towards praising) about the life and times of Muhammad. The book is meticulously documented with a lot of references from Quran and the early historians. A number of concepts are explained in brief which might be common for a Muslim but are largely unknown to the people of other faiths.

It is important to understand that Muhammad’s life should be seen and judged in the context of the times and the places in which he lived. It is easy to dismiss him as a war hungry, pedophile, and delusional individual if his actions are seen in isolation. Karen Armstrong provides that context by painting a picture of the era when Arabia was divided into warring factions and needed a strong leadership which was provided by Muhammad.

While I have serious reservations about the divinity of Prophet Mohammad (or of any prophet for that matter), there is no doubt that he was a great leader whose life has significantly affected the course of mankind over the past one and a half millennium. Karen Armstrong regularly maintains that he was after all a mortal, and thus had his fault like other men. 

It's a good history primer which will introduce Islam and its founder to the Islamophobes who are largely ignorant and distrustful of the religion. It might be quite helpful in reducing the fear and anxiety that the western world has towards Muslims. 

Do read it if you are interested in the history of religions, especially Islam.

Books...more books

I've been reading a lot these days, finished 6 books in the last 20 days. These phases come and go. In my current state of inaction, I try to fill up the void with books, to occupy my mind, to divert it from more disturbing thoughts, and sometimes to learn as well. 

On the big billion day by Flipkart, I went on a book shopping spree. So I bought about 20 books in the last month alone. I am not sure if I will read them all, but I hope that they'll be a part of library I plan to build some day. This library will contain books mainly on India, Cricket and Mythology. Here's the list:

1. Delhi by Khushwant Singh
2. Twilight in Delhi by Ahmed Ali
3. City of Djinns by William Dalrymple
4. White Mughals by William Dalrymple
5. The Last Mughal by William Dalrymple
6. Return of A King by William Dalrymple
7. Age of Kali by William Dalrymple
8. Our Moon Has Bloodclots by Rahul Pandita
9. Curfewed Nights by Basharat Peer
10. The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
11. Short Stories by Anton Chekhov
12. Short Stories by O' Henry
13. The Picador Book of Cricket by Ramachandra Guha
14. Beyond a Boundary by C L R James
15. Playing it My Way by Sachin Tendulkar
16. Indian Summer by Alex Von Tunzelmann,
17. Rashmirathi  by Ramdhari Singh Dinkar
18. Arjuna: Saga of a Pandava Warrior Prince by Anuja Chandramauli
19. The Brave by Rachna Bisht
20. Finance Quiz Book  by Bijay Bhujbal
21. The Hindu Young World Quiz Book
22. Business Standard Quiz Book by Gaurav Srikrishna

Suggestions for the library are more than welcome. This library will probably take years, but I hope to keep going on :)

Manan: A review

Manan is the debut novel of Mohit Parikh, my senior from MNIT. Published by HarperCollins the book captures the predicaments and dilemmas of a teenager attaining puberty. Written in a beautiful way, this book can be the story of any teenager from a middle class family who grew up in a town in '90s. It evokes happy memories of an age when the internet was still knocking on our doorsteps, when kids used to watch WWF (now WWE, but do they still watch it??) and played Mario on their TV sets.

We all were kids once whose noses leaked, shirts got untucked and the post office in pants was always open, ready to take in letters.  

Manan, a topper of class (the first ranker) day dreams as often as others, something I didn't know then that toppers did. He dreams of a giant evil eye, imagines a Version II and Version III of himself competing against each other. Mohit is reminding us of what we used to be, rebuilds a dream world which is long forgotten but will always be there, a part of us. 

There are Tenthies and Ninethies, there is The Missing Mail by R.K. Narayan, there is Geotropism, there is Poshamba bhai Poshamba, there are PT Sirs and Skit Ma'ams.  And there is Hriya, the girl whose name you used to write in your text book, whose name you murmured every time you needed luck to be on your side, whose initials you wrote with your own in a heart shape you drew out in the mud. 

But Manan is more than that. I suspect that Manan is the story of Mohit Parikh himself. Knowing him from my college days, it seems that Mohit is telling his own story, a bright and intelligent kid who relates everything in the world around to what he has read in his Science Text book. Manan is a thin and lanky fellow who feels insecure about his physical appearance but is a heavyweight when it comes to studies and extra curricular activities like debating. Is it a co-incidence that Mohit Parikh has used flow charts in the book to explain his thoughts, when one knows that he excelled at Digital Electronics, Microcontrollers and Computer Architecture (subjects taught by Rakesh Bairathi. You'll understand  what I am saying if you are from MNIT)? Or that many characters in the book share their names from actual people who were students at MPS, the school Mohit hails from. 

"And I am going to be what I want to be, nobody else will decide it for me. Neither you, Mummy, nor you, Papa. "

Mohit Parikh quit a lucrative job which used to pay a handsome salary to be what he wants to be. Because he indeed, is the Pride of Jaipur :). 

Read Manan if you were a teenager in '90s and especially if you are from Jaipur. You won't be disappointed.  

Real Satisfaction

comes only when you create something...

I keep coming back here once in a blue moon. The charm of blogosphere has faded off probably. Most of my friends who used to write are now busy with their lives doing more important things like making money and getting married. Or they just got bored of this place. 

As you can see the links on the right of this post, many blogs were updated months back. Some of them I used to circulate around. Not any more. 

Wise people often say that the key to happiness is to not to look for it. Then how am I going to find it, pray tell me. They also often advise to travel, meet new people and search for new experiences. Aren't the above mentioned things supposed to make one feel happy. There's an inherent contradiction in what they preach.You realise that you have grown too old when you post lines like these. 

 

I am reading this book called Manan, written by Mohit Parikh, a senior of mine from MNIT. Will post the reviews here soon. Not that anybody is going to read this page anyway :). 

I miss Lucknow, and MNIT.  

1. I often laugh at people who think highly of people who graduated from IIMs or from any B-school for that matter.
2. Apparently marketers have this pressing need of being everywhere, trying to be omnipresent, telling the world that about every cool thing they have ever done. I find it extremely irritating.
3. Recent realization: When one is sad, one becomes insensitive to others' feelings; often one starts behaving like a jerk.
4. People just love Roger Federer. Many people hate Sachin Tendulkar, or think that he is overrated. I am yet to meet people who feel that way about Federer. He is such a gentleman. Him being "Greatest of All Time" might be debatable, that people want him always to win is not. (Yes, Nadal has his share of fans, but the number is minuscule when compared to that of Federer).
5. Trying to be happy can be tiring. Pretense takes effort.
6. I often dream about building a city where every occupation of people would be related to sports. It will have multiple stadia, coaching facilities, academies, medicine, all dedicated to different disciplines of sports. India will produce great olympians from this city. Soon there will be 4-5 such cities in India. People from all over the world will send their children to these cities to become world class athletes.
7. Why aren't we taught more literature and history in our schools? (Yes, I know the answer. It's just a rhetoric).
8. I read the books "Timeless Steel: Rahul Dravid" and "Sachin Tendulkar: The Man Cricket Loved Back". I realized that I want to be like Rahul Dravid in my life. Sachin Tendulkar is all (and only) about Cricket. Rahul Dravid is about Life.
9. I am absolutely disgusted by people who take advantage of others' innocence and use it to their own benefit. Brokers and salesmen top the list.
10. Why do people make such a big deal about drinking and smoking? I find most of them to be hypocrites. (I was one of them once)
11. Gifts are meaningless. Showing concern and care is important.
12. I am trying to read a book titled "Idea of India" by Sunil Khilnani. It takes effort to understand the depth of his writing. One of the most difficult books  I have laid my hands on. ( after Tata McGraw Hill book of Mathematics for IIT-JEE). Or maybe I am just a lousy reader.
13. How are people able to tolerate The Times of India?
14. Even though I don't believe in God, I find Hinduism to be the coolest religion around.
15. US is a strange country. It's all about money, prosperity and growth. But are they happy? I mean, is an average American happier than some other country's people. (No, I am not comparing it with India)

Identity Crisis

The other day I was having this conversation with a friend of mine. She told me that she identifies herself with the city she comes from. She is extremely fond of it and anything said against it would offend her to no end. Many Muslims identify themselves with their religion, many Hindus with their castes, most notably Brahmins and Rajputs.
This got me thinking. I am not proud of where I come from. I don't identify myself with any of the following things.
1. Being from Jaipur, Rajasthan or India.
2. Studying from St. Anselm's, MNIT, or IIM Lucknow.
3. Being an engineer (former) or a Management student. (I am still confused about either of them).
4. Employed at Samsung or Emerson.
5. Working at Noida or Mumbai (Thane actually )
6. Being a Kayastha (Shrivastava) or a Hindu.
7. Son of a doctor and an engineer.

I am not passionate about any of the above mentioned stuff and am proud of none. I don't belong anywhere.

I have a family, friends and some people I am extremely fond of, some of whom have influenced my life a lot, in a number of ways. I have learned from them, love them, admire them, respect them and look up to them.

These people make me. Probably that is my only identity.

Never quite understood why helpers in malls , high class shops and restaurants try to speak in English even when the customers start conversing with them in Hindi. They sometimes make absolutely no sense, garbling up words and pronouncing words in a way that make you cringe for the English that you learned in school.
It also makes customers who don't understand English look like fools. Shouldn't it be changed?

It's been a year since I graduated, and one of the worst and least productive ones that I have had. Moments of happiness have been few and far between. Mostly disappointments, total lack of activity,  and a complete lack of ambition have filled this year. There is a huge void that has been created after leaving Lucknow, a void that cannot be filled. I wish I could go back in time.
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There is too much hate and negativity surrounding AAP and Arvind Kejriwal. I was in Delhi for a day where I interacted with few people asking them about Kejriwal and they were all praises for him. Now he didn't do anything extraordinary in his 49 days but government offices actually started functioning, the police officers stopped taking bribes and there was an atmosphere of hope. My father's (who is a government official Rajasthan)  department was instructed by the MLAs to pull up its socks because the government wanted to look good in the eyes of public and avoid the fate of Sheila Dikshit. Is this not a welcome change?  Too many people have been complaining about the unconstitutional means adopted by AAP. I wonder how many of them ever went to the polling booths in their life time.
There are some pressing questions that need to be confronted. Suddenly BJP is the new saviour of India. How easily the people forget the corrupt practices of these leaders. It would do a great deal of good if people started using their brains and questioning everything, every fact that is thrown at them.
Same people who used to lament the degrading quality of Times Of India and India TV are now posting links and Youtube videos that condemn AAP. I am tired of this hypocrisy.

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Quora has been a discovery. It's a great site to learn a lot of good stuff. I realized that I feel extremely happy when some people 'upvote' my answer on Quora. More so, when a lot of time was spent researching for the answer and the 'upvote' comes from a person you respect on Quora because of his/her great answers.

Lost Love, Maybe

I watch a lot of old cricket videos these days, lots of them. Modern Cricket fails to impress me. But now, the desire to understand the game and its nuances has taken the precedence over watching the usual hit and run show the game has become of late. There are no great players around, except maybe Dale Steyn who evoke admiration and awe at the same time. There are close finishes no doubt, but the joy of watching the game is amiss. (Hashim Amla is an exception though).
So I try to turn back the clock. Read about some game of cricket, some player, some innings, some piece of bowling on Cricinfo and then watch its video. And try to understand what made Shane Warne the master of Leg Spin, why Sachin is such a great player that he is, what made Lara such a delight to watch, where do the technical faults of Graeme Smith lie and so on.
Until recently I used to pride myself in saying that I understand the game. Hardly. I still don't understand why Shane Warne is rated higher than Muralitharan when statistically the records of Murali far outweigh those of others. Why Glenn McGrath evoked fear in batsmen with his consistent bowling in the "corridor of uncertainty". Yes, I can repeat what commentators and news articles say but that is not the understanding of the game. That is just plain repetition. However, there is a desire to develop that insight in the sport now, much beyond the statistics. It's like a poem recitation of William Wordsworth in class 3. The poetry doesn't change, but over the years the feeling and understanding does.  I crave for the "Ahh! That's why David Gower was such a treat to watch."
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Bill Lawry is a commentator for Channel 9 in Australia. He is not as popular as Geoffrey Boycott, or Tony Greig, or even Harsha Bhogle. But it is such a delight to listen to him purely because of the passion of the game that he has. Earlier I used to hate Hindi commentators. These days I have started hating listening to most of the English commentary as well. There is so much mediocrity around. Even after almost 20 years Ravi Shastri hasn't grown up as a commentator or added new words to his woefully limited vocabulary. His platitudes are as predictable as the continual losses of West Indies team in test cricket.
On pure aesthetics, I would rate the team of Bill Lawry, Richie Benaud and Tony Greig much higher than any other commentary team. These people made Cricket much more interesting than it actually is. And on the other end of spectrum you have jerks like Ramiz Raja, Laxman Sivaramakrisnan, Arun Lal, Danny Morrison and so on. The list is endless.
IPL and T20 is killing not only the beauty of the game, it is also killing the art of commentary.