Carpe diem

Carpe diem

Would like to share two quotes which struck me while reading books recently.

One is from the famous book ‘The Secret’ by Rhonda Byrne
“Your life is in your hands. No matter where you are now, no matter what has happened in your life, you can begin to consciously choose your thoughts, and you can change your life. There is no such thing as a hopeless situation. Every single circumstance of your life can change!”

Incidentally, I found the core idea of the whole book very similar to that of Paulo Coelho’s ‘The Alchemist’.  That wallpaper quote — "when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”

In ‘The Secret’, it discusses ‘the law of attraction’. Two sides of the same coin?

Another quote is from a speech by JK Rowling which was published as a book later. The book is 'Very Good Lives: The Fringe Benefits of Failure and the Importance of Imagination’. In the speech, she quotes Seneca, “As is a tale, so is life: not how long it is, but how good it is, is what matters.”

This is also similar to ‘Carpe diem’ or ‘seize the day’.

No need to explain more. LIVE…LAUGH… AND LOVE…

Bookspotting

Bookspotting

There are many sites which recommend, or give information about books and authors.
But what to read next is always a baffling question for me.
I try to pick books in many ways.
One of which I will try to explain.

I hadn't heard about an author named Gore Vidal until I saw an interview of Aamir Khan.

No, he was not speaking about Vidal. The interview was done near his study table and there were some books on it. This was the name I could read from it. And recently, there was another photo of Aamir in an airport. The first thing I noticed is the book in his hand. Tried to zoom on it and read the title. It is SAPIENS - A Brief History Of Humankind.

So now, I can say Aamir Khan has recommended two books for me. Don't know when I will read those or will I like them.

Ever since, I watched Vaaranam Aayiram, I wanted to read the book Illusions - Adventures Of A Reluctant Messiah. In the movie, the heroine gifts this book to hero when he is going through a period of personal crisis.

Another example is Kaiyoppu. The movie is about an avid reader who is penning his first book. So there are many discussions on books and authors. When the hero hears from his ex-girlfriend after a long time, they discuss about a title they both loved during their college days - My Life by Isadora Duncan. That too is a recommendation.

There are many books out there recommended for you, some hidden in the background, some in a dialogue or in some other way. I try to spot it and try to find more about it. Being a slow and lazy reader, don't know when I will get hold on those books and finish it. I also don't know if it will suit my taste. As they say, "You can't judge a book by its cover".

TAMASHA - Wake Up Don

TAMASHA  - Wake Up Don

First things first. Tamasha is NOT a super movie. It has its flaws. And I heard many fell asleep watching the movie and many hated it.

I loved Imtiaz Ali's previous movies. But I went for Tamasha without much expectations and I enjoyed it. I am here not to praise him or criticise him. 

I would like to share some thoughts I had while watching Tamasha. Yes, it is a thought-provoking movie with many ideas that can be absorbed by the viewer.

The movie opens on a stage with a play featuring a robot and a clown. The robot has a heart and is introduced as a common man who can be seen in any office or bus. The show begins and we are taken to 'Shimla, Flashback'. A kid who likes to spend his free time hearing stories from a raconteur.  He hears half of a story a day and the next day the raconteur tells the continuation of some other story. Then the boy starts to think about the similarities of all stories. It all sounds the same. Be it Sita or Juliet, the separation and the tragic ending  are all the same.

Then new story begins. And where does all the love stories begin? When the boy meets the girl. The hero lends a helping hand to the damsel in distress in a foreign land. They both don't even know the other person's name. She doesn't have an identity, she has lost her passport. But, why do you need a name during a vacation. You are totally a different person when on a vacation. You indulge in all adventures. You feel free. You enjoy every moment. No control, no inhibitions and no strings attached. That's what Don and Mona Darling does in Corsica. Not even bothered about the dressing or manners. In a morning, when he plays football in the street with other boys, she comes down in a her shorts and top with a coffee mug and sits on the floor and watches the game. He speaks to the mountains, narrates stories to a group, she picks up another guy, they drink water from a stream... Together they have a blast.

The vacation ends in 6 days and they part ways and enter their own worlds. Back to normal. Now they are Ved and Tara. Let me tell something about Tara. She is from a high class family who are into tea manufacturing business. She is a normal girl with dreams and ambitions. She gets the idea of visiting Corsica after reading Asterix during her childhood. She may have led a life according to the rules of her family and she may not have had much choices. She enjoys her freedom in Corsica to the full. She has her own doubts. She first sets to leave from Corsica without telling him. Then goes back to his room.

Reaching back in Kolkata, she starts to miss him. But she has no clue about him. Heer Toh Badi Sad Hai. Even after four long years, she can't forget him. She thinks she is in love with him. When she gets a lead, she tries to find him. And when she finds him, she turns doubtful. She gets down the stairs, stops, climbs back, stops, gets down and then goes back to him.  And the person whom she meets is a project manager. A decent, gentleman who gives flowers to the girl on a date. She finds him totally different. But that is the real Ved. He is not Don in real life.

He is a kid brought up to fulfil his father's ambitions for him. He has no choice. He becomes that average guy, mediocre, for his parents. He is very well-behaved, polite and finishes his assignments on time.

But she fell in love with Don and so she dumps Ved.  

Now Ved, with a broken heart, sees a rickshaw driver who wanted to become a singer but set his dreams aside for his family. Ved slowly realises that he has turned into a robot with his mechanical life.

He loses his job and reaches his hometown. He goes in search of that old raconteur and asks him to tell the continuation of his story. He rebukes him and calls him coward. "How can you ask me to tell what happens next in YOUR story? YOU have to take your story forward," he says.

That's a wakeup call for him. A similar idea was the themes for Rockstar too. Jordan is advised that in order to have great creativity, you need to have a broken heart. Here Ved, who has a broken heart,  puts it back in right place and follows it. He is happy. The smile comes back to him.

He starts telling a story to his family. About a grandfather, father and son. The son is running a race which he doesn't have a clue about. He is running because everyone else is running. He keeps running, running and one day he dies. Then Ved says, the ending is not good. But it is his own story. He can always change it. His father understands what he means. This father is similar to Farhan's father in 3 Idiots. And also Simran's father in DDLJ. When the train is leaving, he frees her and tells, "Jaa beti, jee le apni zindagi."

And now Don returns. The 'vacation' begins. He finds her and they are free again.

 

At the end of the stage show, Ved bows to Tara. He owes it to her. She set him free. Without her, he might have been the same robot.

I recently read an article about vacations. An average working person takes a vacation for 5-10 days in a year. In 25 years, it may be around 100-200 days. That is the only time a person is really free. So why not live your life as in a vacation? Enjoy your leisure time. And let it set you free. Seize the day. 

Prithviraj’s next three films will see him in cop avatars

Prithviraj’s next three films will see him in cop avatars

First, Rosshan Andrrews’s Mumbai Police in which he teams up with Rahman and Jayasurya.

The movie scripted by Bobby –Sanjay will hit the screens in May.

His second film in Bollywood film, Aurangzeb, is scheduled to release on May 17.

Prithviraj plays a Haryanvi cop in this crime drama in which he shares the screen with Arjun Kapoor and Rishi Kapoor.

His next Malayalam movie is Jeethu Joseph’s Memories in which the actor plays an alcoholic cop.

Prithviraj’s back-to-back cop films is just a matter of coincidence. In fact, he signed Mumbai Police two years ago and the project was delayed as Rosshan was busy with Casanova. He began shooting for Aurangzeb even before his first film in Hindi, Aiyya, was released.

Unfortunately, most of the films in which he played a cop have not fared well at the box office.   His last two cop outing s in Malayalam, Masters and The Thriller, were not accepted well. Raavanan, his magnum opus with Mani Ratnam also failed to rake in the moolah.  His most memorable cop role in Malayalam is M.Padmakumar’s Vargam which got much critical acclaim.

His fans are waiting to see him break this jinx, that too after winning State award and receiving acclaim for his last two films.

Fired!!! Just Like That!

Fired!!! Just Like That!

One of my favourite scenes of the movie Kaalapani is the execution of Mukund Iyengar, portrayed by Prabhu. Govardhan(Mohanlal) and Mukund are chatting in the cell. An officer informs Mukund that the jailer would like to see him. While going with him, he turns to Govardhan and says, “I am not sure about the return.” Then we see from Govardhan’s point of view in utter silence. Mukund speaks to the jailer. He is taken somewhere and then a gunshot. Mukund’s body is carried away by two officers.

This scene was playing in my mind yesterday when I came to know about two of my colleagues. They were, as usual, working near me. HR Manager came and called one of them. After some time he returned, took his bag and left. The other, said goodbye to all. I couldn’t believe they were fired and there were some others too in the list. You come for work in the morning and return home jobless. What will you tell your wife, kids and friends?

Cost-cutting, recession, whatever they name it. For me, these were things that happened in some other world. But it hit me yesterday, to make me realise that ‘You may be next.’ Don’t know how others on the office will react to this situation. May be they will look for other options. Don’t know how sincerely you can continue your work. Anytime the gun can be pointed at you. They say live your life as it’s your last day. Now it’s like, work as it’s your last day in the office.

We can say, better opportunities are waiting for you, this is not the end, blah blah… Hope for the best and be prepared for the worst.

PS: Up In The Air is still one of my favourites.

Stranger in a train...

Stranger in a train

It’s been one year since I identified ‘the traveller’ inside me. Instead of asking leave for a month, I preferred to quit my job and began my journey. It’s a blessing to have friends across the country.

Ahmedabad was my first destination. It was Diwali day. My friend picked me from railway station, freshened up and he took me to his travelling gang. We began a road trip to the coastal area of Gujarat. I was surprised by the variety of topics we discussed. Everything under the sun came in our conversations and I was a silent listener. Others had opinions and views about everything. All well informed. Walk in the sea in low tide, sleep in the beach camp, boat ride to see dolphins, etc were first time experience for me. And the main mantra I learnt from them is ‘journey matters, not the destination.’

From there I went to Goa to meet another friend. I carried e-ticket and a checker asked for my id proof. I showed copy of driving license. He asked, “Can you travel in flight if you show copy of your passport?” I said no. He said he want an original proof. I showed him my press id. He didn’t mind it. He was ready to put fine on me. Most of the money I had in hand ended to him. A family next to me knew my situation.

Later in the night I had no money to buy food. I bought some cheap popcorn. A man in that family asked me whether I had any food. I said I am on a diet. He laughed and went to the pantry, came back with rice and chicken curry. I couldn’t say no to it. I was hungry and didn’t feel to reject it. Next day, when I was about to alight in Goa, he asked me whether I had money for auto/taxi. I said yes. The good thing was he and me never asked names. To give food, or offer help to an unknown person is not a small thing. That stranger in the train taught me a lesson of humanity.

So a headline turned my head’s line (thala vara)!!

So a headline turned my head’s line (thala vara)!!

By completing 8 months as unemployed (actually I was waiting for another call) one day I suddenly felt to make an enquiry. I was earlier informed about arrival of a leading English newspaper to Kerala. I just googled and tried its office number and asked about it.

“You are very late. Interviews are going on,” was the reply. But he gave me contact number of HR and asked me to try (thank you Mr.anonymous).
I called HR Manager, introduced myself and asked about recruitment. She asked me to reach Kochi next day with CV. When I boarded train, the only lines played in loop in my mind was, ‘an idiot bargained for an elephant. He may lose a word, but may gain an elephant.’

So I went to get my elephant and asked to take a test. Some usual ‘name the followings, prioritise the given news items, etc’. Then came my favourite section. Give suitable headlines to the following news stories. Out of that, one caught my special care. The question goes like this: “A Bollywood actress secretly undergoes abortion in a hospital in Europe. Her co-star in the previous movie is rumoured to be responsible for this. The heroine and hospital officials denied this.”

What should I write for this?? Suddenly some old filmy lines came to mind, thanks to Farah Khan’s Om Shanti Om. Then I wrote, ‘Main tumhari bachche ki maa nahin banoogi..’ I enjoyed writing that line and started giggling. I decided to keep it and went ahead.

The interview began after the test. After usual introductions, they were evaluating my answer sheet. Why I chose this, Why I wrote like this, etc. Then they came to my HEADLINE. When one person read it others started laughing. I joined their laugh. I didn’t realise whether they were teasing me or praising me. Then another person said, It’s the best line they got for this question. I felt ‘OK’.

Two days later, I got my offer letter to join the company as trainee journalist. An offer I couldn’t refuse at that time.

After a month, I was sent to Chennai for training and went to meet the Resident Editor there. I then realised he was the same person who praised me for that headline during my interview. Later, he came to my workplace. Unexpectedly, he started to describe that ‘headline story’ to my colleagues. I wondered how he still remembered it and started feeling embarrassed. He added, that headline made your entry to this company.