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.