Memories

Today was the first day of India v/s England test match at Wankhede. I last went to see a Cricket match 3 years ago at the same venue when Sachin played his last game. I have fond memories of those 3 days, the only instance I went to see a test match. I remember having goosebumps when he walked in to bat and my eyes getting moist when he gave his farewell speech.

There are some good, probably great batsmen out there viz. Kohli, Joe Root, KaneWilliamson, Steven Smith. Ajinkya Rahane is a delight to watch, Amla's batting is like poetry in motion and there is Alastair Cook threatening all batting records in test cricket.

I still follow Cricket. Cricinfo is always open in the internet browser where I follow the scorecard of every match that is being played. But I hardly remember anything. If you ask me against whom India played the last test series, I'll have to take few moments to tell you the answer. But, I can tell you in exact sequence the matches India played 14-15 years ago with the venue names. Sometimes, I can even recall the final scores that the teams made some 20 years back.

But I don't like watching Cricket anymore. It doesn't excite me in any way. Unless India is losing very badly or consistently, I don't care who wins or loses. I don't even check the score cards once the match is over. Virat Kohli's heroics don't cheer me up. 

Something's gone. There's no Sachin any more. 

Year So Far

I missed out on what people usually call their new year resolutions. Didn't even come close.
Another year about to end.
Full of anxiety, insecurity, and restlessness.
Learned a lot about myself.
Not really enjoyable, but learning all the same. 

Things to Learn - Investment

I think Investing is an art which everybody should try his/her hand at. More than anything else, it requires a deep learning of human behaviour, patience, psychology, philosophy, statistics, and not to mention, business knowledge. A lot of investment principles can be applied to all walks of life.

My boss in my company gave me the following two part advice : 

1. If you have to read one book, only one book on investment, read "The Intelligent Investor" by Benjamin Graham. If you ever feel like reading another book, read "The Intelligent Investor" again.

2. All the wisdom lies in the financial statements and annual reports of the companies. It's good to read books, but one can learn a lot more from the financial statements.

I've bought  "The Intelligent Investor" and am wondering why I didn't read it much earlier. More than about making money, it's about how to stay disciplined and act on the basic principles. The principles, though simple in theory, are very difficult to implement as they require patience and deter us from following the herd.

Even if one doesn't make money after applying the principles of Ben Graham (though I doubt that), one stands to gain a lot from the book regarding human conduct and how to take decisions. 

I don't know how to invest, but I want to learn and I have been making efforts in that direction. It will take time, but I hope to get better in due course. 

We’ll Always Have Paris

I first saw Casablanca some 6-7 years back, a movie that is considered a landmark in the motion pictures history. I remember that I didn’t enjoy it much then, was even bored at certain points and at its completion, I was wondering why it still captured the audience's imagination.

Yesterday, I saw it again and this time, the movie touched me deeply. One of the best things about great pieces of art, be it books, movies, songs, paintings, sculptures is that they will change as you do. Every now and then, I found myself nodding in agreement to what Rick (Humphrey Bogart) or Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) expressed, feeling their emotions when Sam sings the song “As Time Goes By”, understanding the predicament of Ilsa regarding her departure. It is difficult not to get lost in the story of the characters, which somewhere reminds us of our own dreams and unrequited love. 

It’s not that the movie is the greatest piece of art that there is, but Bogart and Bergman stand out because of their performances. Bogart was in his 40s when the movie was released and it was only from his late 30s that he produced some of his most famous works (The Big Sleep, The Maltese Falcon, The Treasure of Sierra Madre, Casablanca etc.). But there was a certain charm about his suave mannerisms; the way he held cigarette, his baritone, and the manner his eyes expressed the underlying emotions. I had missed all of this in my first viewing. 

There are few actresses who appear as enchanting as Ingrid Bergman has in the movie. The only other I can think of is Joan Fontaine in Rebecca and in Suspicion. There’s much pain in her voice and a deep longing for the old times when she asks Sam to play the song. (Play it once, Sam. For old times' sake. Play it, Sam. Play "As Time Goes By."). I can watch the movie again for this one scene alone.

The movie scores big on almost all the fronts. It has some of the best quotable dialogues; “We’ll always have Paris”, “Here’s looking at you, kid” which I have been hearing from people since time immemorial without knowing their exact origin. There is tension between the old lovers beautifully depicted by Bogart and Bergman. Much humour was provided by the witty dialogues of Capt. Renault who is on the lookout for his interests alone, but deep down despises the Germans. Then there are scenes like the one involving the playing of German and French anthems simultaneously which gives goosebumps to the viewer. And the music. I have been repeatedly playing the songs "As Time Goes By", and "Knock on Wood" on Youtube. 

However, I have one grouse which perturbs me a lot in the old movies, whichever language they belong to. Here in the movie are people from all nationalities (German, French, Czech, Norwegians, Russian, even the locals of Morocco) in the movie and they all speak with flawless American accent. To come to think of it, the waiter in the movie seems to be making fun of a German couple because of their lack of understanding of the English language. I found this joke to be outright dumb. 

Barring this aberration, I found the movie to be thoroughly enjoyable. It has stood the test of time and it still enchants the viewers because of the wonderful acting, iconic dialogues, soulful music and above all a story that was given wonderful treatment by all those involved in its making. I will watch it again soon.

Little Sleep's-Head Sprouting Hair in the Moonlight

If one day it happens
you find yourself with someone you love
in a café at one end
of the Pont Mirabeau, at the zinc bar
where white wine stands in upward opening glasses,

and if you commit then, as we did, the error
of thinking,
one day all this will only be memory,

learn,
as you stand
at this end of the bridge which arcs,
from love, you think, into enduring love,
learn to reach deeper
into the sorrows
to come – to touch
the almost imaginary bones
under the face, to hear under the laughter
the wind crying across the black stones. Kiss
the mouth
which tells you, here,
here is the world. This mouth. This laughter. These temple bones.

The still undanced cadence of vanishing.

-- Galway Kinnell


Picked from "When Breath Becomes Air" by Paul Kalanithi

Movie Review : Mary & Max (2009)

Director : Adam Elliot

Genre: Animation, Dark Comedy, Drama

Cast : Toni Collette, Philip Seymour Hoffman

IMDb : 8.2/10, Rotten Tomatoes: 95%

Mary & Max is a claymation movie based on the lives of two pen friends, Mary, a lonely eight year old girl growing up in Melbourne suburbs and Max, an autistic 44 year old obese jew in New York. It's a dark comedy where two people living across continents become friends through letters. They have a lot in common as both love chocolate, enjoy watching a cartoon show called Noblets, and are without friends. 

Max is struggling with obesity, depression and Asperger's syndrome, while Mary suffers from neglect of her parents, and is teased by her peer group at school because of a birth mark on her forehead. They exchange letters (and chocolates) offering support and advice to each other and are brought closer by their isolation and adversities. Over the years we see a beautiful and complex friendship develop which goes through its ups and downs as the characters move ahead in their lives. 

Most of the movie is narrated by Barry Humphries, except the scenes where the characters read the letters. It is unique not only in terms of storytelling but also in the visual appeal, colour scheme and animation style. I doubt if the kids can enjoy the movie as the issues discussed are real life, and the witty narrative even though humorous has a dry gloomy tone. Throughout the movie I laughed a lot, as well as felt sad. A lot of wisdom is hidden in lines like the below one.

Max : [to Mary] Dr. Bernard Hazelhof said if I was on a desert island, then I would have to get used to my own company - just me and the coconuts. He said I would have to accept myself, my warts and all, and that we don't get to choose our warts. They are part of us and we have to live with them. We can, however, choose our friends, and I am glad I have chosen you.

This sweet tale of unlikely friendship is dark and grim, yet full of life. The movie took almost five years to complete and it shows in the great attention to detail in the way New York and Melbourne suburbs are depicted (I read it in the reviews by Americans and Australians). It's a refreshing departure from the usual Disney, Dreamworks and Pixar animation flicks and stands out because of its novelty and the depth of the story. 

प्रयत्न

आज इतिहास के विषय में कुछ सोच रहा था. याद कर रहा था कि दसवीं कक्षा में  इतिहास में क्या क्या पढ़ा था. सहसा  दिमाग़ में एक प्रश्न उठा कि syllabus को हिन्दी में क्या कहते है. पुरज़ोर कोशिश की लेकिन याददाश्त ने जवाब दे दिया. Google पर देखा तो याद आया कि syllabus का अनुवाद हिन्दी में "पाठ्यक्रम" होता है.

तभी ये एहसास हुआ कि अब मेरी हिन्दी काफ़ी कमज़ोर हो चली है जो बचपन में अच्छी हुआ करती थी. मेरे परिवार में अधिकांश लोग अच्छी हिन्दी बोलते हैं. इसका श्रेय मेरी दादी को जाता है जो हिन्दी की अध्यापिका थी. मैं बचपन में प्रेमचंद का साहित्य और हिन्दी के अख़बार काफ़ी पढ़ा करता था. स्कूल के अध्यापक कहा करते थे कि यदि हिन्दी सुधारनी है तो राजस्थान पत्रिका पढ़ो और अँग्रेज़ी सुधारनी है तो Times of India. इस बात को कोई 17-18 साल हो चले हैं.

आज न राजस्थान पत्रिका में अच्छी हिन्दी पढ़ने को मिलती है और न ही  Times of India में अच्छी अँग्रेज़ी. कुछ खिचड़ी सी लिखते हैं दोनों. बोलचाल की भाषा में भी अब हम अँग्रेज़ी का काफ़ी प्रयोग करते हैं और अच्छा हिन्दी साहित्य भी पढ़ने को नहीं मिलता.

इस साल कोशिश करूँगा कि कुछ किताबें हिन्दी की भी पढ़ूँ. प्रेमचंद के कुछ उपन्यास रह गये हैं , शिवानी की भी एक भी किताब नही पढ़ी है. आगे से इस blog पर थोड़े बहुत post हिन्दी में लिखूंगा. इसी बहाने  मेरी भाषा जो काफ़ी भ्रष्ट हो चली है, शायद थोड़ी सुधार जाए.