Mourn for your Money day

Today while searching the web for my work, I came to the site of 123greetings. There I found that Tuesday, the 1oth of June'08, is "Mourn for your Money day". That kept me thinking – why do I need to mourn for money any particular day when this mourning is part of my everyday routine (not very apparent though, but yes, deep down somewhere!!). Perhaps the same feeling applies to many of you. Why is that we always seem to want more and are never satisfied with what we have (Ja chayechi ami ta paina, ja peyechi keno ta chaina – remember this song?)

It was long ago when the great saint Swami Ramakrishna Paramahamsa said :Taka maati, maati taka (referring to the fact that wealth is short lived and we shouldn't pine for it). However, clever souls of the present consumer driven age have added one more line to this philosophical saying :Taka baadey jibon faanka (life is empty if you don't have enough money to buy and splurge on things). Wonder what my readers think of the craving to earn and have more and more.

Kolkata's favorite B word

Yes, my city is again entangled in the dreaded B word-Bandh. Today and tomorrow, two different political parties have decided to bring the city to a standstill. The reason? Rising prices of petrol, diesel and cooking gas. The big question-will all this make any difference? Well, of course not. In the past, bandhs have not helped the common man's cause. The situation doesn't change now. It will just give the political biggies a chance to flex muscles and prove their power. For us-the hapless souls, we will have to bear the heat of the rising price index.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Good ol' Indie is back on the silver screen, this time with the support of Steven Spielberg (director) and George Lucas (story).

Though I have never been a fan of the Indiana Jones movies, I could not resist the temptation to check it out. Like the previous three Indie movies, this one also turned out to be a fast action packed film.

In this film, the famous archaeologist Dr. Henry "Indiana" Jones (Harrison Ford) comes back to the action scene when some Soviet soldiers led by Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett) force him to uncover the mystery surrounding the Crystal Skull. As the story proceeds, we come to know that whoever returns the skull to the original temple will have immense power to control the world. With a sci-fi edge given to an otherwise action packed flick, this Indiana Jones movie is a roller coaster ride. I enjoyed watching the film but at the same time, after coming out of the cinema hall, nothing remains with you. I mean the film has got no repeat value and there isn’t a scene that stays with you long after the viewing is over. Nevertheless, it is a good time-pass movie.

Jannat-the film on cricket betting

The meteoric rise of a common man having a sixth sense in cricket betting and his eventual downfall- that’s “Jannat-in search of heaven” in a nutshell for you. Actually, I have been hooked to the song “Zaraa si dil mein de jagah tu” (sung by K.K) from this film for the past few days and was wondering if I could watch the movie just to see the song’s picturisation (yeah, yeah ..I know you would be telling….kya bahana hai film dekhne ka), a chance invitation from a friend came my way. I just can’t stand Emraan Hashmi and was dilly-dallying whether to go or not. Finally, I decided to go for this movie. I won’t say that I loved the movie but it was an interesting presentation nevertheless. In fact, films by the Bhatt Camp have always something to offer the viewers. Even if it is a stale story or situation, their intelligent presentation makes all the difference. Jannat also belongs to that genre. Some witty one-liners, good acting (of course Hashmi would have better got a hair-cut with all that moollah coming into his pocket), an insight into the world of cricket betting-all keep the viewers engaged. Though the climax was somewhat cliché, there would not have been any other way of ending the story. My verdict-go if you want to but stay back if you’ve better things to do.

Prince Caspian:Film Review

Prince Caspian is a better and much bigger-canvas film than its predecessor. As with all other sequential stories on the reel (like Harry Potter series, Spiderman etc), the first Narnia film (The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe) was a slow one, justifiably so because the characters needed an introduction as did their background for the build-up of the story. Prince Caspian on the other hand had no such responsibility and started much breezily. From the very beginning, the tone of the film is set when Prince Caspian’s professor helps him flee from being murdered by his uncle Miraz (played by Italian actor Sergio Castellitto). As he is pursued by the soldiers of Miraz, he escapes into the woods and blows the magical horn (which was given to Susan in the first film by Santa; Santa told her that blow this horn whenever you’re in danger and help will come). The horn transports the Pevensies from an underground train station to Narnia. The only difference this time is that the Narnia the siblings left had changed a lot (1300 years had passed in the Narnian time-frame).

From here events unfold rapidly. Though the central character of the first film, Aslan-the mighty lion, appears only towards the end, there are many new characters. Apart from Prince Caspian (played by Ben Barnes, the British stage actor)- the rightful heir to the throne, there is Trumpkin- the dwarf (Peter Dinklage), Reepicheep - the mouse who is a brilliant sword fighter (voiced by Eddie Izzard) and several non-human creatures like centaurs, dwarfs, minotaurs, flying gryphons and mice with quick reflexes in this episode who fight against the troops of Miraz (called the Telmarines). I loved Reepicheep who is believed to be one of the descendants of those mice who cut the ropes of Aslan in the first film when he lay dead on the Stone Table.

Prince Caspian employs a huge cast and crew counting almost 2,000. The numerous special effects (over 1,600 CGI shots) also form a major chunk of the film. There are two important battle scenes-one inside the castle and one beyond the woods, which form a significant part of this 2 hour & 18-minute film. I liked the one inside the castle fought in the dead of night. Everything was superbly planned, getting Caspian, the Pevensies and their troops via flying gryphons (taking the aerial route, which will be monitored by no-one), Edmund’s torch signal, the valiant fight, the retreat and then the miscalculation resulting in the death of many brave hearts. The pain in the eyes of Peter (William Moseley) when he can’t do anything to stop his troops (trapped on the other side of the castle gate) being butchered by Miraz’s men and instead has to flee was a touching shot.

The second battle scene is also done beautifully though I would vote for the one-to-one fight of Peter with Miraz. Apart from its fast pace, this film is also different from the first one with respect to sibling bonding. The first film saw Edmund switch over to the team of the White Witch but finally coming over to fight with his brother and sisters. In this film, the Pevensies are a close-knit family. All the siblings have grown up and Susan (Anna Popplewell) even gets bits-&-pieces of romance with Caspian though there’s not much time to let love blossom between the two. Her kiss perhaps makes amends for it.

In brief- Prince Caspian is a better movie than “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” and the more polished effort shows in every frame of Prince Caspian. As Aslan told Lucy- “Things never happen the same way twice, Dear one”, don’t expect hangovers of the first film. However, old characters like the Pevensies, The White Witch (appears for a short while in this film) and Aslan help maintain the continuity. Only that this time, the story unfolds on a much bigger scale. I am already waiting for the next Narnia film, shooting of which has already begun. My verdict for this film- you won’t regret watching it; instead, you may be tempted for a second dekko just as I did. And yes, if you can get a DVD of the first film, it would not be a bad idea to see that as well.

The Chronicles of Narnia:Prince Caspian

I've already seen the film 2 times. I don't feel like writing today, so will put the review in a few days' time here.

Contemporary Indian Short Stories in English

This book published by the Sahitya Academy and compiled by Shiv K. Kumar is a compilation of 24 short stories by eminent Indian writers (including some lesser known authors, as well). Each of the stories is rooted in Indianness and is unique in its own style. In brief, the book presents a collage of contemporary India, its values and culture, albeit in a language that some still feel is an alien in this land.

Though it is difficult to pick the best of the lot, I do have my favorites in this book. Some stories that I loved are (in their order of appearance) The Betrayal by Sujatha Balasubramaniam, The eyes are not here by Ruskin Bond, To nun with love (yes, the title reminded me of the much loved story To sir, with Love penned by E.R.Braithwaite) by Shiv K. Kumar, A Pinch of Snuff by Manohar Malgaonkar, Absolution by Dina Mehta and Green Sari by R.K.Narayan. Khuswant Singh is at his raunchiest best in The Bottom Pincher. The stories that I disliked and was quite bored to read are A Fable by Raja Rao, Martand by Nayantara Sehgal, Letters/4, 5 and 6 by Anita Mehta and Not to be loose shunted by Ashok Srinivasan (this last one totally went above my head).

All-in-all, getting to read so many different author's work under the same cover was an interesting thing to do in order to overcome my otherwise bored holidays.