Grahanam - A review!

It has been quite some time since I penned something on this blog, and even longer, since I wrote a movie review. But there is no good time like the present to kill 2 birds with one stone. :)

We watched ‘Grahanam’ over the weekend. This movie is the brainchild of our close friends, Devika and Anand, who have put their heart and soul into its making. And it clearly shows. Grahanam is a thriller movie and it certainly lived up to its name.

When Grahanam started playing, the first few minutes was like a feeling that I find hard to describe. Seeing your friends and people whom you know personally, on the big screen was a surreal experience. The added effect of watching it in a theatre was even better, considering it was the first movie we were watching outside post the pandemic lockdowns. And it was well worth it! Without giving much away, for me Devika and Anand were the true stars of the movie. Devika carried the film on her shoulders, ably supported by Gibu, Binoop and Jayaram uncle. There is this one scene, where she is crouching atop a ledge, her body in a trance, hair disheveled and a frantic but frenzied look on her face! It was one of the most defining moments on the film for me, it showed her range of acting and how much effort she has put into the role to pull off a character that is clearly the backbone of the film! Btw, have you heard her sing?  If not, please ask her! Multitude of talents, this girl is!

Gibu, as the hero, did a commendable job and I really liked the way his character shaped up towards the second half of the movie. I really enjoyed watching him play the man-with-the-upper-hand in the second half. Binoop and Jayaram Uncle, while their roles were not too lengthy, were crucial to the plot. The Sambavams were a hit and their chemistry was undeniable. I really enjoyed the few moments where they provided the laughs.

But to me, the star of the movie was the director himself – Anand. As the villain, he gave an extremely chilling performance. His calm and composed demeanor with a hint of psychotic tendencies was enjoyable to watch. And I must say, he had an amazing screen presence. I think between him and Devika, they are a powerhouse of talent. Kudos!

And last but not the least, the cinematography and the camera work. Never before did I realize how beautiful some places in Singapore were, until I saw them through Vimal’s camera. Some shots were ethereal, and some simply magical. Oh, and also, the songs! While all three are now chartbusters I heard, my favorite has to be Venmukilay! Something about that song, that keeps me humming it quite often.

When Devika and Anand gave us an outline of the story early on in the conceptualization stages, about 2 years back, I must admit, I had my doubts. Plenty of movies had been made in this genre and I was wondering how different this would be. Of course, at that point, I did not know how serious they were about this. I figured that this was one of those ideas that we all keep discussing, and then it would fizzle out. How wrong I was! And I cannot tell you how glad I am about that. Because from that point on, the carefree, fun-loving Anand vanished and metamorphosized into a meticulous, hard-working and knowledge thirsty man who was keen to get his hands on to this project. And he went about it methodically. He made a few short films, learnt the nuances of direction, camera work, angles and how to write a screenplay. He understood how to engage the audience and keep them curious enough to watch the next scene. He learnt as much as he could in the few short films he made and then put all those learnings into Grahanam. And it shows!

Kudos to the team and wishing them many many more successes!

 

 

 

 

 

30 things that make me smile! :) :)

I like today’s prompt … it makes me feel all nice, warm and fuzzy when I think about these things and trust me it was no easy task to think up of things that would make me smile… I am sure I would have a lot more if I dredge up the energy to think, but some of these materialistic and not-so-materialistic things should do for now…

And therefore, in no particular order ...

“Traditions that I have formed or those that have been followed for ages at home. Going back home for a vacation and checking out each nook, cranny and corner for familiar smells and things. Black and white photographs. Random hugs from the back. Dancing and sweating it out and having an ‘endorphin’ high! A very well made cup of coffee with just the right amount of milk and very little sugar. Drizzles on the face while taking long walks. Songs, places, things that bring back bitter-sweet memories. Surprises when you least expect it. A long road trip. Bike rides or car drives where the window is open and the breeze is on your face bringing with it those stray droplets. The smell of old books. Road-side tea and samosas. Visiting temples just in time to see the deeparadhanai and listening to the legends of what made these temples special. The smell of chembakam flowers that brings back memories of Kalam and elaneer! Soft cotton sarees which fall just-so-right. Vatthakozhambu and potato fry. Babies and that baby smell that pervades the room when they are around. Sunsets and sunrises (whenever I get a chance). Subtle word plays. A good book that keeps me thinking about it for the next couple of hours or days. Walking barefoot on morning dew filled grass! Early morning quiet. Big furry dogs. Adventure sports and the high that comes with it. A feel-good movie or a well-choreographed dance performance or a well-sung song! Unexpected compliments. Traveling to a new place, soaking in the sights and the culture. Decade old friendships and the memories associated with them. 

A post well-written.”

Are you a book re-reader? Tell us about a favourite you have read many times.

Guilty as charged on the book re-reading aspect. I always end up reading any book that I buy at least twice.

“If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all.”

― Oscar Wilde

And on that count, the books that I have read the maximum number of times, would have to be ‘The Godfather’ and ‘Harry Potter’ series. I have written about both these books, plenty of times in this blog.

‘The Godfather’ has been and will be my most favourite book ever. I must have read it at least a few times short of 100. :) It heralded my reading into the dimension of serious and better books.

I started reading the Godfather when I was laid up in bed after a very eventful appendicitis operation. With nothing to do and not being able to climb the stairs to my bookshelf, I had asked mom to pick up books and give so that I could at least read. Until then, my repertoire was only filled with Sidney Sheldons and Mary Higgins Clarks. Reading ‘The Godfather’ was a revelation. The character and their arcs, the strategies and the mind games, and the final few chapters were simply mind-blowing. And the best of all, MICHAEL CORLEONE. For the longest time, he haunted my dreams ;-). The minute I think about Michael Corleone, the first words that come to my mind are “the delicious icy chillness that filled his brain”. Phew!! Enough said. Michael Corleone, the fictional character, will always be my top most love! :) :)

About the Harry Potter series, enough has been written in this blog about how I started reading the series and how it has influenced my life. Whenever I tell people that one of my favourite series is the Harry Potter series, I am almost always met with a sense of scepticism. Probably they think that it’s a kids’ book. Or that since its fantasy, it is no way connected to our world. Or maybe it has been portrayed as “a book about magic”. Lot of life lessons in there, subtly hidden as part of the overall storyline. Its written much better here, by this blogger.

If you haven’t read either of the books, please do. You will definitely like them, if you read them with an open mind.

I guarantee it! :)

10 words to describe a 30-something me!

So, the prompt today asked me to describe myself in 10 words.

Tough task that is!

A long time back I had written this blog post – THIS IS ME.

Of course, over the years it has seen a few iterations and over the last couple of years plenty more, though they haven’t been updated on that post. But most of the stuff in that post, still holds true, even if it does come across as narcissistic, bordering on false perfection.

Describing myself in 10 words is by far one of the hardest posts I have ever had to write.

The below are the top 10 words that would describe me NOW at this point of time.

Dancer. Reader. Closet Writer. Pragmatist. Stubborn. Travel-holic. Trivia Addict. Pluviophile. Materialistic. INTROVERT.

The top 4 are the ones that I identify with the most. The first 3 have now become my individuality.

The 5^th one, I’d rather prefer what Amma says about me. She says I have a lot of will-power when I need to get something done, but of course, that something has to be something that I need / want / desire / must-have. And I always disagreed with her until recent times, when I see myself doing things that I really really want and seeing the stubbornness reflected.

The 6^th one is a recent addition, thanks to the privilege of being in a place that has access to visit most of the South-East Asian countries, at a reasonable price. And I hope it increases in fervour as the years pass by.

The 7^th is as a result of my something a good friend of mine told me in MBA. Of course, me being me, took it a little too harshly, but once I started doing those random readings, web-hopping, it caught on like wild-fire. Suffice to say, I thrive on trivia these days.

The 8th I have expounded on enough here. :-)

The 9th of course is something that is inherent in me. I hate change. I like my things how they are, and how they have been for years. Force of habit you could say, and in that sense alone, I am extremely materialistic when it comes to my comfort zone.  I like comfort, I like security and I definitely need to know where the next paycheck is coming from to keep my creature comforts.

The 10^th is something I realized when I reached my wise old years – the 30s. :) It was brought on by a conversation I had with a very good friend. We were discussing mutual friends and who was an introvert and who was an extrovert. Up until that point, I was under the impression that I was an AMBIVERT. You know, it sounded cool so to say and being an introvert is almost always looked upon in a negative connotation. This is now changing thanks to social media. So all along, while my heart knew that I was an introvert and that I regained my energies in solitude, my ego never let me admit it. And when he told me that I was an introvert, for a long time, I tried to defend it. But like I said, in my previous post, acceptance is the first step to everything. When I accepted, and embraced the fact that I was actually an introvert, it didn’t really seem so bad, you know. So, what?  We have our good qualities and our moments, except that most happen in solitude or with a very small group of people. Quality over quantity you see! ;)

So that’s me in a nutshell, as of now, for you ;)

And for some reason, I hope these qualities of mine never change. And that I will keep adding more as the years go by.

One can, of course, always hope can’t they ;) 

Because you can't really make me stay away from a tag about books :)

Do you have a certain place at home for reading?

Nope. I have a few favourite places but I read almost everywhere :D

Bookmark or random piece of paper?

Used to be bookmarks. But now as much as I hate to admit it, dog ears :(

Can you just stop reading or do you have to stop after a chapter/a certain amount of pages?

Depends on the book honestly. If it’s highly engrossing, I keep saying to myself – just another chapter. Just one more! But otherwise I can just stop mostly after a chapter though.

Do you eat or drink while reading?

Yes! Yes!

Multitasking: Music or TV while reading?

Nope. No TV definitely. Mostly none. Sometimes music in the background.

One book at a time or several at once?

Used to be a stickler to one book at a time, but now several at once.

Reading at home or everywhere?

Everywhere :)

Reading out loud or silently in your head?

Silently in my head.

Do you read ahead or even skip pages?

I don’t ever skip pages or read ahead, but I may skim the content.

Breaking the spine or keeping it like new?

Keeping it like new of course. Breaking the spine sounds too gruesome to hear! :-/

Do you write in your books?

Sometimes.

If you could invite one author and one of their fictional characters to lunch, who would you invite and why?

Mario Puzo and Michael Corleone. Without a doubt! :) Can you imagine the conversations that can take place.

Godfather has been one of the most engrossing and one of my most favourite books of all time! It kind of heralded my start into reading bigger and better novels.

What book do you wish the author would write a prequel for?

Harry Potter. I would really like to know more about James, Lily and the gang.

Which two characters (not from the same book) would make a good couple?

Ok, I will go with my top 2 favourite characters, but I don’t really want them to be a couple.

Lisbeth Salander and Michael Corleone.

If you ran into your favourite author on the subway and only could say one sentence to them, who is it and what, would it be?

Err. I have so many of them. But if I have to go with one, I’d pick Steig Larsson and at the risk of sounding flabbergasted, I’d ask – “Lisbeth Salander?  How did you even think up of such a character! Whoa!”

What book made you a reader and why?

Oh plenty, starting right from the Tinkles, Gokulams and Champaks to the Enid Blytons, Nancy Drews, etc.

Gives me a nice escape into another world!

Incendio!
Your bookshelf just caught fire. Show the book you’d save.

Don’t you mean books? And don’t you mean shelves as well!

Which dystopian world would you want to live in if you had to choose one? Why?

The magical world of Harry Potter :)

What is your most epic read of all time?

Can’t bring myself to think of just one. I’ll go with my top 5.

Godfather – for taking me into worlds beyond Sidney Sheldon and Mary Higgins Clark

Steig Larsson – The Millennium trilogy!

Harry Potter – for providing me with an escape into a world quite unlike and unusual.

Kane and Abel – For being the first ever book I couldn’t really put down, in spite of having my board exams at the time!

Palace of Illusions – for showing me different perspectives of an epic I have come to love.

Bangalore Naatkal - A review!!!

Today's blog post is a review of 'Bangalore Naatkal' - the remake of the acclaimed 'Bangalore Days'.

Straight up, let me tell you that I have seen Bangalore Days umpteen times. It was one of a kind movie in Malayalam and I regard it to be a classic. So huge huge fan right here. I think that the casting was perfect in that movie and I loved every little bit of it. Every single nuance and dialogue and scene.

When I heard about it being remade in Tamil, I wasn't really very enthused about the entire thing. Why take something already very good and try to make it better. But then I had seen Paapanasam, the remake of Drishyam and I was very impressed. So I thought OK.  This should be good as well.

Unfortunately for me,  and please don't think that I'm being biased here, this one is quite annoying. Quite a lot of things  were annoying.

1) Bobby Simha's wig. And why would they choose him to play Nivin Pauly.  Total miscast right there.

2) Arya's selfie stick. Very very annoying.

3) Lakshmi Rai or Raai however she writes it. The reason that Isha Talwar with Nivin Pauly worked was because of their earlier pairing in Thattathin Marayathu. There was a history there that the director utilised so well. This one is a total total failure. Plus she looks OLD.

4) Basically the only good thing about the movie was Parvathy who reprised her role as RJ  Sarah.

5) Prakash Raj was wasted in his role.

I think I have said enough. I now shudder to think what the state of Premam would be. I hear that Shruti Hassan is playing Malar. I don't think I am going to watch it.

Honestly why twist a tried and tested formula!!!

Now am planning to watch Bangalore Days again to get over this !!!

Ramblings on a Wondrous Epic - Mahabharata!

I am a mythology buff. Indian mythology to be precise. The traditions, the folklore, the little known legends, the trivia, and the facts – they fascinate me to no end. I love reading them over and over again and I haven’t yet found another culture such as ours that is so rich in traditions, myths, customs and legends.

And my most favourite of them all is the epic – MAHABHARATHA. I have lost count of the number of times I have read this, watched this, the number of viewpoints on this and the underlying and interconnected backstories as well as the intricate strategies employed in them. And always it is interesting to read the lore, albeit from different viewpoints or just the story as such. So far, one of the best versions that I have read has to be “Jaya” by Devdutt Patnaik.

I recently read 2 more versions of it. One was a story written from Karna’s second wife – Uruvi’s viewpoint! (I didn’t even know Karna married twice. I always thought he was married only to Vrushali.) and the other was a story from Duryodhana’s viewpoint. Both interesting and thought-provoking in their own way. Out of all the various versions of the epic that I have read (which is a little over 7 versions), as well as all the articles that are minutely related to the saga of one family, I have always been fascinated by the lives of Karna and Arjuna.

2 heroes, one glorified and the other vilified.  Countless verses have been written about these two protagonists, each mighty in their own right. There are stories that champion the cause of how Karna is a better archer than Arjuna and there are others that say that Arjuna was better than Karna, citing examples even.

Back when I read this epic for the first ever time, I was drawn towards the character that was Karna. A kind of empathy for the way his life had turned out. Loyal friend, victim of circumstances, wronged from birth and always misunderstood. However, subsequent versions have led me to believe that there is no one who is fully right or fully wrong in this epic. Each one is but a victim of circumstances. I have read snippets of how Duryodhana was actually named Suyodhana and the “Dur” prefix came in much later thanks to the histrionics of Shakuni and his vile ways!! How much ever, we dissect situations and say that this one did right and that one did wrong, ultimately, there is an underlying reason for the same.

Suyodhana’s love for Subhadra, Karna’s generosity, Draupadi’s lust / love for Karna, Krishna’s strategies and why he brought about the war… the deaths of Ghatotkacha, Iravan and Abhimanyu, etc.. The stories of course are never-ending… but reading through a multitude of versions throws up a lot of questions… and a lot of ifs and buts.. 

The picture below by Molee Art symbolizes my perception of the Mahabharata precisely. 

Krishna as a master puppeteer and everyone else under this master strategist.

                                                  [Pic Courtesy: Master of Puppets, Molee Art] 

Would the war even have happened had Kunti declared and accepted Karna as her son at the exhibition of the princes’ skills and prowess?

Would Duryodhana have hated Karna after knowing that he was a Pandava?  Or would he have agreed to give away whatever was rightfully theirs, because he valued Karna’s friendship over all?

Did Draupadi really love Karna? Was it only because Krishna told her to that she insulted him at the swayamvar? 

If Karna knew about the curses on him beforehand, why didn’t he do something to overcome / neutralize them, over the course of the years? 

Who was the better archer in fact? Karna or Arjuna? And then what about Ekalavya? What happened to him? 

Is Ashwatthama still alive and roaming about pus and sore-filled somewhere in the world? 

Why did Gandhari choose to suffer alongside her blind husband instead of being the eyes he didn’t have?  Wouldn’t that have been a better choice? 

The one thing that is evident in the entire epic is the cycle of Karma.

If one's action bore no fruit, then everything would be of no avail,
if the world worked from fate alone, it would be neutralized. - Mahabharata

No one becomes a villain without any reason and everyone is a stranger until you give them a chance! As you sow, so you reap!

Disclaimer: This post initially started out as one just about Karna and Arjuna. As it happens most of the time, it became totally something else. Call it my ramblings about a wondrous epic! And expect many more ramblings in days to come! :-)

PS: If you are interested in reading Mahabharata, do read the following for a different perspective. You should know by now how much I am hooked on to this.

Jaya – Devdutt Patnaik, Palace of Illusions – Chitra Divakarunni Banerjee,Ajaya – Anand Neelakantan, Karna’s wife, the Outcast’s Queen – Kavita Kane, Mrityunjay – Shivaji Sawant, Arjuna  - Anuja Chandramouli, Yuganta – Iravati Karve, Bhima, The Lone Warrior – M T Vasudevan. 

Masti, Marriages, Mayhem, Milestones, Mangoes and Much More … The Month that was MAY!!!

Yes! That’s how cool we are these days! Because, a title is all I can come up with at this point of time. The self-induced plethora of blog posts on the 100 happy days has bitten the dust long back. Very very long back, in case you guys didn’t notice! Which is to say, have you all disappeared from here like I have? :-/ 

Anyways, the story, bottom line, the point of it all, is THIS. I came up with that cool title about a week back and was wondering what to write on those very topics (we are diligent, if not anything else!) so that it qualifies for a readable post. After breaking my head over which, I gave it all up and decided to churn out whatever got in the way of these fingers while typing… which translates to, you may have to end up reading some nonsensical stuff – if you’re reading this that is! :P

So we settle back to old usual random way of spilling out all those thoughts that have taken up space in my mind… de-cluttering it is gonna be my dear friends!

Where were we? Oh yeah! The 100 Happy Days Challenge. Right! I am very happy to inform you that this has bitten the glorious dust like a lot many of my projects. Again! Not because I was / am not happy most of the days. They were eclipsed by this other factor called PROCRASTINATION of which I am a master! Either ways, I did get some super awesome feedback from some very kind people and if I ever get the feeling that I will want to start a blogging spree, I may just take it up on again. I actually did want to do that A to Z blogging challenge which a lot of my co-bloggers have picked up, but then considering I did not finish the earlier challenge, I thought it was safer for me to stay away from challenges for a while. But to those of you who are doing it, KUDOS! I end up reading all of those blog posts, and then feel jealous that I am not able to write like that!!... Hmmmppff!! Oh and before I forget – remember this post on HOPE and Britto words… I got one for myself!! :D this one in the image right below… Kinda symbolic you think! :D :D Hehehe!

Have I ever told you, that the month of MAY is my most favourite of all months in the year?  December comes a close second, but MAY is right up there. You ask me, why? I say, because it’s my BIRTHDAY Month! And this MAY was simply awesome… whole lot of celebrations, a trip back home, temple visits, farmhouse visits, mangoes, reading and lazing about at home… the best 2 weeks and 3 weekends in a long long time. The vacation this time started off with a close one’s wedding, the associated celebs, an almost finger-removing car door slam (a lil’ exaggeration if I may!), the long drive back to Home Sweet Home (which I was visiting after more than a year!!!), the hot humid weather, the blessed showers, a milestone birthday, the folks’ anniversary, a new car, temples, the mango & jackfruit season, the gorging on amma’s cooking, catching up with all the besties, and so much of reading, sleeping, gossiping, shopping and all that jazz…  BLISS!!!

This pic below is from the farmhouse. Clicked and edited on my phone, it calls for a whole new blog post all by itself. I love this one spot at KALAM and the fact that it has a statue of one of my favourite gods makes it even more enchanting.

Coming back to work, after more than 2 weeks means VACATION HANGOVER. Which is what happened. And what also happened was that, I forgot the password to unlock my system!!! After a couple of futile tries, it opened up! Thank god for predictability!! :-) And then it was back to square one! Putting out fires and getting rid of the to-do pile and then adding more to the to-do pile. Just another few routine days! :-s while that was going on, I noticed something weird. I was kind of getting tired of MAY. I mean, yeah! It was still my favourite month and all that but god! How long was this month in any case??  It felt like it was never getting over!!!! :-/ probably all that work stress! ;-) but we did have some good times at work like a drinks get together, some cake cutting and general silliness with the girls on and off! Solid team I have here I tell you!! Touch wood! :D :D

Also caught up on a few movies, including the much hyped ‘Kochadaiyaan’, which frankly in my opinion did not feel like a Rajini movie at all, sorry! The only relatable part was his voice and dialogue delivery which remotely made me feel I was watching a thalaivar movie! None of that mass hysteria or that jaw-dropping and silly grins ever happened. But then all said and done, was one heck of an attempt by the crew. Could have been better though, I have to say! If you are going to be shooting a movie for more than 2 years, I am going to expect something better than a game of guess-who-that-hero/heroine-is! And for a thalaivar movie, those expectations are well warranted, if you ask me.

Watched X-Men and drooled over Hugh Jackman unabashedly. Also loved the movie. New characters, new plot line which completely derails all that ever happened until X-Men: The Last Stand, and a devilishly brilliant action sequence by one of the most inspired characters ever – Quicksilver set to Jim Croce’s Time in a Bottle. Stand out scene!! The best scene in the entire movie, if you ask me. Evan Peters with that roguish grin of his is someone I want to see more of in the upcoming X-Men movies.

And the IPL madness has ended, with the team that I supported getting trashed in the qualifier – 2, thanks to some recklessly stupid shots by a seasoned player. I also got to know that my cricket knowledge is half-baked when the best friend was kind enough to point out in some not-so-good-words, that Dwayne Bravo was a medium fast pace bowler and not spin like I had always thought!! Gulp!! Don’t ask me why I thought he was spin bowler! :( I half dozed through the finals yesterday. I so badly wanted Punjab to win, which obviously didn’t happen. Anyways, now that has ended. KKR has won and SRK is a happy man, on his way to becoming the richest actor in the world!

Over to the milestones part now.

I turned 30. And I am somehow feeling very glad about it. Weird right! I always feared growing older and now I find that I am actually looking forward to the 30s. I think I am finally becoming wisdomous in Joey Tribbiani’s words! So ladies and gentlemen, the milestone birthday was brought in amidst folks, after about 5 years and with all four of us under one roof. Low-key all the same but one of the most relaxing big moments ever. Gone are those days where one could pull an all-nighter and still show up to work fresh and dewy faced. Now if I don’t get my quota of 6 hours, I am a grumpy soul solely walking straight thanks to copious amounts of coffee.

The other milestone is that I completed 5 years in this ‘Lah-Lah’ land! Funny how time flies. And when I think back, I can’t believe I have spent 5 years here. And I don’t know whether to be happy or sweet about it. I think I will settle for BITTERSWEET!

MS Word tells me that I have typed 3 pages already.

I think I should stop on this note. J

I wish I could say that I will blog more religiously and fervently from now on, but I don’t want to make promises that I can’t keep! :P

Oh god! This wisdomous thing is sometimes a pain! ;) :P

Peace out…  

Movie Review - Queen!! Probably the 1000th review or so! ;)

How long has it been since I wrote a film review on this space?

I think the last one has to be somewhere in the month of May last year around my birthday.

So why the gap all these months? Not because there were no good movies that I watched... On the contrary, there were so many good and awesome movies that I have watched over the last few months. But none that I really felt like writing a review about!! Okie! Let me rephrase that, I did feel like writing about a few of them, some really good ones, but then lost the interest somewhere between the time the thought struck and the time it took me to get to a system! :) :)

But now, there’s this movie that I want to review here. Ok! Not so much a review, as much as an appreciation for the feel-good factor that the movie spread.

We went and watched QUEEN a couple of days back. Yes! This in all probability is the 1082438923587^th article that you’re going read about QUEEN.

But seriously how good was the movie? :) :)

I am a very big supporter of these films where the women walk away with the film in the end, no surprises there yes! But also very few of those movies around! :) English Vinglish was one; but much as I loved the whole way the subject was dealt with, it did not leave an imprint on me.

The tagline of QUEEN should have been - ;-)

 “I love to see a young girl go out and grab the world by the lapels. Life's a bitch. You've got to go out and kick ass.” – Maya Angelou

QUEEN was so so good. I had a smile throughout. Kangana owned the movie. And I thought she was good only in those Fashion / Gangster kind of movies. But with this one, I have to say, she has come into her own! And what a way to take the world by storm! :) Most of the time, it’s those little things / nuances in movies like these that give weight to the entire film and carries it forward. There were a lot of those in this gem of a movie.

Before you second guess it, yep! Spoilers ahead! :) These are in no specific order… just moments that I really liked from the movie!  

The instance where Rani’s younger brother Chintu shakes his fist at the hero for making his sister cry! He doesn’t really know why she is crying, she doesn’t tell him of the marriage being called off. All that mattered to him was that his sister was crying. Oh, that fist-shaking was a very good touch! :)

Lisa Haydon as a perfectly cast Vijaylaxmi. :) She even got the accent down pat. Such a carefree attitude to life! Would love to emulate that!

The last scene in the restaurant where Rani meets Vijay, and she addresses the waiter as Roche. Simple yet subtle to show how much she has evolved from being a wallflower to the person she has now become. Actually the look of surprise on Vijay’s face said it all! Some other glimpses, like when he asks her in a previous scene if she had had alcohol and she corrects him saying that it was champagne and not ‘sharaab’, where she drives the car for the first time, navigating the roads with a map, and she thinks about the time where her then fiancé gets impatient with her for not driving properly. She is so engrossed in the driving that she ignores the phone ringing incessantly (call from Vijay!) obviously.

There is this one other scene that I thought was usual but not so much. She goes on to try a dress that is a little revealing, clicks a selfie and then I am not sure if accidently or not, the pic gets sent to Vijay. He sees it, he is stunned of course. However, she suddenly realizes that it has been sent to him, and then thinks about it for a second and completely puts it out of her mind. This can be seen of course in two ways. One, she wanted to make him jealous and see what he was losing out on (all pun intended), two she doesn’t care anymore, what he thinks or what he doesn’t. I prefer to think it was the second one! :P :P

The beginning scene – the marriage preps -  the thoughts flowing through Rani’s mind, about her mom still not wearing the new saree, that her friend was not yet there dancing at her sangeet, where her brother had disappeared to when she had entrusted him with her phone to take pics to upload to Facebook, and then an affectionate recollection that her fiancé is back from London and how he had put on some weight but in the right places :) – and all through these, the expressions on her face, the fleeting glances, the involuntary smile that lights up her face… I thought that the scene was very nicely done. :)

Kangana devoid of makeup is one beautiful girl. An untouched innocence that is so compelling that you just want to shield her from the big bad world.

And the best of all (this has been done to death in all reviews I am sure!)… That she said NO to Vijay. Yes! Glad. Very glad about that. There’s a whole world of learning in there! Also, the fact that she thanks him in the end for calling the marriage of. Very nicely done. The guy was dumbfounded to say the least! ;-)

Oh! And I am so so glad that she kisses the Italian chef. :) I was so hoping that she would – the guy was striking ;-)! Very heartening to see that! I would have been a wee bit disappointed if she hadn’t done that. The moment called for it and thankfully she delivered. Yay for that! :)

Bonus points for the FB timeline track at the end credits. And also for calling the hero a ‘kuttaaa’ ;-)  :P

Vikas Bahl, way to go!!!

Definitely a must-watch. Don’t miss this one!

Getaway Weekend - Day 18, 19 and 20 of the 100 Happy Days Challenge :) :)

Right!!

15 days since my last post on the 100 happy days challenge!

If you count today as well too!! But then I am going to post today (as you can well see) so that means that effectively its only 14 days.

And I am going to post about the last 3 days which is Friday, Saturday and Sunday (Jan 31, Feb 1 and Feb 2) which means I only missed the last 11 days!! And since I am posting for the last 3 days today and there will be no post for today... It means I missed 12 days.. Or not? :-/ 

Did you get my math? You didn’t? Never mind neither did I!!! I got confused myself... Oh well! I never was any good at math!!! :D :D

So let’s just say, I missed the last 2 weeks, and I am re-kick starting (if that’s a word!!) the challenge again!!

Attempt number 2!! Bring it on!!

Before you ask me why I missed the last few days… I can cite any number of reasons… laziness, bad mood, lots of work, lack of time, no energy, etc etc… but it all boils down to the one thing that I didn’t feel the mojo to write anything. Not that I wasn’t happy any of those days I missed… but that somehow, the effort to put the happiness down into words was lacking. And now after a super duper getaway, I have found the mojo again (or so I hope!!) … and this time I am going to relentlessly stick onto this and see how far it’s going to take me. :D :D

So yes.. Last 3 days.. It was a long weekend here, and off we went to Bintan in Indonesia.

And what did I do these 3 days…

• I slept. A lot. Like a log.
• I started a new book. The book thief by Markus Zusak. Of course didn’t make too much progress but I still did read about a 100 pages. :-)
• I ate. Properly and to my hearts’ content.
• I sat by the beach with the rest of the others, soaking in the deep salty air and enjoying the wind playing havoc with my hair.
• I did archery. For the first time. And got a bruise to show for it as well. :-) :-)
• I rode an ATV. Another first. That’s an All-Terrain-Vehicle. Something that I came to know of in this trip. And can I tell you that it is really hard for midgets and weaklings like me. Phew!! But it was still fun!!
• Got a traditional Balinese massage done. Idyllic. And so very relaxing. :-) :-)
• And the finale was the experience on the jet-ski. This wasn’t my first on a Jet Ski but it was the first in terms of a very thrilling ride ;-) :-P quite enjoyable if you ask me… ;-)

And in all this time here, I clicked just the one pic that you see below.

This was my most favorite spot of the entire time there. We didn't exactly stay here though we spent most of the time the last three days around here. 

The waves. The wind. The color of the sea. The blue skies. And the company. :-)

That’s what is called a perfect vacation. :-) :-)

Here’s to many more of those this year! :-) :-) Cheers…