Rx

Very often people rush to the nearest drug store in anticipation of some quick fix solution or some sure cure, before they knock on at the doctors' doors. As often I find myself in a similar situation this act is not without any merit! Now since I am a pharmacist myself, and have had loyal customers come by my store what potions and pills would I serve, offer to pull them away or may be jolt them from their blues?

In the past I have sold Piya Haji Ali (Fiza 2000), Do Kadam Aur Sahi (Meenaxi 2004), Lukka Chuppi (Rang De Basanti 2006), Jaage Hain (Guru 2007), Aye Hairathe'n Aashiqui (Guru 2007), Khwaaja Mere Khwaaja (Jodhaa Akbar 2008).

Now don't take this for a paucity in my store. My store abounds in loads of such drugs in different concentrations and dosages. Every customer who has had come by has gone back happy and has more coming my way with his recommendation. I am happy seeing a smile on their faces. It makes my day. Do Kadam Aur Sahi, I am told, takes most of them to a different world, and they have trouble beating a retreat. I am not surprised! I am bombarded with requests to stock up more like them. Added to this is the frequent request to give them that something which will have them asking for more. The current ones, they feel, have outlived their best by dates.


What do I do? I cannot run the risk of having my stores closed. I have waited, and here it comes. An absolute cracker of a drug carrying no dosage restrictions, suitable for all ages, but best enjoyed by those with years behind them.


What do I call this over-the-counter panacea?


Dil Gira Dafatan (Delhi 6, 2009)



Thrice a day with no meal restrictions.

Pop Quiz Hot Shot

What would a stereotypical Telugu movie director's team be called?

Caste & Screw

ab dilli door nahin

sach mein, AB bilkul nahi!

Dil Se

I am extremely happy for A.R.Rahman on his Golden Globe; irrespective of the veracity of awards in general this is no mean feat.

But I hope he doesn't become inaccessible to the mainstream makers back home who bring out the best in him. A Golden Globe today, and possibly an Academy tomorrow shouldn't take away the child in Rahman.

I hope he doesn't feel burdened or obliged to come up with heavenly, heavy weight music each time only to justify these prestigious awards in retrospect. India is not short on cynics who will pounce on him every time his score fails to attain instant popularity.

I hope he remains true to himself irrespective of any accolades that come his way or otherwise.

I hope he continues to dish out fare with the same child like enthusiasm as ever. As such he is away from the regional film music for a while, these awards shouldn't distance him further from the local breed at least the Tamil directors who supposedly milk him the best. Make no mistake all his regional scores with their immense local flavor have helped him push the envelope gently but surely before acting as the precursors for more dramatic Bollywood fare painted with larger brushes and painted with larger strokes.

I reckon he makes more sense in terms of commerce than some of the so called stars and actors in the fray. The awards and all the hype that follow shouldn't make him more inaccessible, and ergo expensive. Small, intimate cinema needs him as much as the monsters with gargantuan casts.

I hope the cynics who had utter contempt for him earlier do not start quoting these awards to quantify Rahman's genius now, saying we said so, this was expected. He has always been a pleasure, and he himself would be cognizant of the fact that he has churned out better fare before.

I hope people do not grudge this just a jingle maker, machine whiz kid, his well deserved success and fame.

I hope he remains true to himself on course to achieving all his goals, music and otherwise.



That is the true hallmark of a genius.



Insha Allah

a n ikon in the making?

The wait is over.


It is definitely a step forward.


I hope I find a newer me.


She arrives soon.

as good as it gets

Lakshmi and I had been meaning to catch up on a good flick for a while now. Though we had had a few decent outings in the form of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and not so decent in a Valkyrie, we had been longing to check out one in the cozy confines of home on a large screen. It never materialized owing to our hectic schedules and my erratic sleeping patterns.

Until today.

The day started fine; bright, cold yet warm, sunny. After running a few errands, I headed straight to the Mitchell Memorial. Now visits to the Mitchell Memorial have been more for their DVD collection than the academic resources at least for a while. Formalities taken care of, it was home beckoning me. What an organic, fluid, warm start to the day just like the movie that was to follow.

Jack Nicholson at his very charming, charismatic best, shows what good acting of high caliber could do to a seemingly simple script. Everything about him; the mannerisms, the behavior, the act, the costume design was absolutely water tight. It felt as if the director had them measured to the last ounce, and with the needles pointing to the right balance served them on a platter.

The goddess a.k.a Helen Hunt's Carol Connelly just had asking me for more. Women like Helen Hunt make movie watching an absolute pleasure which at times cannot be described to the fullest. Supple, graceful, witty, and vulnerable Helen Hunt is one of those rare movie personalities that make you want to know the person more in real life beyond the characters they get to enact. If I said Jack Nicholson takes the seemingly straight, simple narrative to an altogether different level it is not without the support from Helen Hunt. It happened to me earlier in Balki's Cheeni Kum where going by the chemistry between the lead pair I had naughtily wished for them to be a real life item too. The same happened here as well. The fact that this was repeat viewing never mattered.

Simple, classy, unpretentious, sexy, warm, organic the film and its title, I didn't know, would actually symbolize a perfect Sunday afternoon spent in absolute joy, and calmness after a long time together.


Just like "good times, and noodle salad" of Melvin Udall.

underdog millionaire

Take a bow, A.R.Rahman!

Dus

With the world around me indulging in some kind of retrospective lists it is only incidental that I chanced upon this page.

So this is also looking back; I had heard about it long ago but never got to see it in its entirety. I let the legendary BBC fonts (my favorites for long) on the page distract me, I let the colors take over me but nah! this was a definitive list, so it claimed. A list of songs supposedly culled from the umpteen out there, questioning its actual requirement. I wish I had known the rest of them, I was willing to read, know, and admire.

But then 2, 4 and 9 were just too overwhelming for me to do that.