tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47582414297315543732024-03-07T01:09:22.874-05:00Naa Oru Dhadave Sonna....Why leave Peter? I am more than meterMambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.comBlogger189125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-80768926286180813112010-11-07T23:23:00.003-05:002010-11-07T23:34:38.663-05:00Indha kodumaiya en vaayaala epdine solven?Thalaivar very rarely (meaning never) grants such <a href="http://www.newhqpadam.com/2010/11/diwali-special-interview-with-superstar.html">interviews</a>. Most likely, Kalanidhi Maran would have told him that in order to produce this movie he would require Rajini's dedicated involvement for marketing too. Sun TV, even though it is a powerhouse of wealth and supposed technical expertise has some of the worst shows and comperes. Vijay Saarathy is a prime example of the kind of boot licking, kozhanjufying oafs that forms that lot and why he would be given an opportunity to interview Rajini for more an hour is anybody's guess.<br />The interview could have been at a different plane had it been handled by someone more adept at such things. But lets leave it. We all know nincompoops can only deliver sub par quality. But the wtf moment is the last scene of the interview. My God. Can any one of the lorry drivers in Chennai do everyone a favor and run this guy over the next time he is seen on the roads?Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-66987378605746437062010-09-29T21:49:00.000-04:002010-09-29T21:50:12.723-04:00<div id="id_4ca3ec856d1d7169e8ac3" class="text_exposed_root text_exposed">People make fun of TamilNadu as the state to have built temples for actors like Kushboo. What they don't realize is TN people have found clever ways to work around issues of religion and still build temples that 'unite' everybody instead of getting into <a href="http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article802996.ece">quagmires like this</a>. <a href="http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article802996.ece" onmousedown="'UntrustedLink.bootstrap($(this)," rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><span></span></a><br /><br />Idhela<span class="text_exposed_hide">...</span><span class="text_exposed_show">am chonna nambala paithiyakaaran nu solraanga...</span></div>Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-65548113255485429912010-09-17T21:33:00.003-04:002010-09-17T21:45:29.632-04:00Kanna, paneengadhaanda pathinoru peroda aadum, chennai singangal pathu peroda aadi win pannumda..Dhoni has picked up this strange habit of always persisting with one player in the team whom everybody wants out. But he would have none of that. While the rest of the World threaten, swear, plead and cry he continues to pick that wild card player in his team - even if his performances continue to redefine the word abysmal match after match.<br /><br />In that context, Hayden: CSK::R Jadeja: India. Unless, our <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bw8tPZdJQoc">Namakkal Anjaneyar</a> drops himself we are going to see more embarrassments.Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-68946745232199477772010-08-19T09:27:00.003-04:002010-08-19T09:34:37.561-04:00What most of us do is complain, fume, rant, write a blog post (the lazier ones just tweet) when we experience the lumbering behemoth that is our Indian system of governance and politics. But we can <span style="font-style: italic;">verala vuttu ennify</span> the number of people who actually do something about it. Here is <a href="http://vikraman.blogspot.com/2010/08/new-journey.html">one person</a> I can at least have the pleasure of claiming to know who went that extra mile.Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-31637288337611113072010-08-08T23:21:00.004-04:002010-08-08T23:31:06.062-04:00Short FilmsRecently, I came across a slew of short films most of which were part of this show called <span style="font-style: italic;">Naalaiya Iyakunar</span> in Kalaignar TV (yes, even they make some watchable shows apparently). Many of them were impressive. The way the amateurs have packed some concept within 10minutes is highly commendable. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeAjce3mEQQ&feature=related">Some are light hearted</a>, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XchsU_dJ_mQ">some deal with the kind of emotions only Indians can empathize with</a>, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fHOYo1yMx0&feature=fvw">some deal with a social message</a> and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=spkxWbDt-bQ">some pack a real punch</a>. Great stuff.Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-53373344178562085042010-08-06T18:27:00.001-04:002010-08-06T18:27:53.993-04:00A lucky friend of mine is moving to California tomorrow. Dammit, I am so jealous as he has already started taunting me about the better place, weather blah blah etc. Ok, back to my dreary life now.Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-55382226077936549252010-08-01T11:01:00.004-04:002010-08-01T11:05:13.641-04:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtjpFQsAIgWV2_zVSEWWQ_VLa_7n1PowTwH4jG5uE07er1uF5ekghfGnugyOiB8M-3oOIsTVhCztTZeVTHNxfT2HHrtXZvlkhcWbii3d1d7-n7yJDFSOAsmQ5rKQVsnGKi_3IdiMzlxzM/s1600/training.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 238px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtjpFQsAIgWV2_zVSEWWQ_VLa_7n1PowTwH4jG5uE07er1uF5ekghfGnugyOiB8M-3oOIsTVhCztTZeVTHNxfT2HHrtXZvlkhcWbii3d1d7-n7yJDFSOAsmQ5rKQVsnGKi_3IdiMzlxzM/s320/training.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5500457252192818834" border="0" /></a><br />What a karuvaad!!<br />Caught this screenshot during the pre-movie ads from a local desi theater.Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-76122809528957356772010-07-31T10:30:00.001-04:002010-07-31T10:32:02.494-04:00<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNpqS1sHtcc&feature=youtube_gdata">Brilliant composition</a>. Very techno and some interesting instruments in the BG. ARR is opening this supposedly intro song for thalaivar, followed by his daughter and then only SPB starts singing!Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-25211306744228365622010-07-30T23:27:00.004-04:002010-07-30T23:38:48.565-04:00Public EnemiesJust finished seeing Public Enemies. Have been wanting to see it for quite some time especially since it had two of my most favorite actors in the lead roles - Johnny Depp & Christian Bale. The movie is about a gangster in the Midwest during the 1920s, John Dillinger. He embarks on a series of Bank robberies that prompts the police force in Chicago to hunt down John along with his accomplices. The movie spans the states of Ohio, Indiana and Illinois and makes a good viewing. Johnny Depp & Christian Bale deliver as would be expected of them. The Direction is not top notch and I did feel my attention wandering away at times. But the movie has some real good BGMs and it adds to the cinematic feel which the Director had striven hard to bring, with some success.<br /><br />The surprise package was Marion Cotillard, the french actress who must be famous by now for her role as Leonardo DiCaprio's wife in <span style="font-style: italic;">Inception</span> (aahh, there is a movie that deserves some special mention!).<br /><br />Meanwhile, I chanced upon this <a href="http://www.cine.gr/film.asp?id=714250&page=8">teaser video</a> for <span style="font-style: italic;">Pirates of the Caribbean 4: On Stranger Tides</span> and some<a href="http://www.getthebigpicture.net/blog/2010/7/29/depp-cruz-and-rush-on-the-set-of-pirates-4.html"> leaked photos from the shooting</a>. The news here is that Penelope Cruz is starring in this edition as well. Awesomeness!Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-75346188304654691752010-07-15T09:51:00.004-04:002010-07-15T10:18:47.263-04:00Unna naanga varasolli kooptoma?There is this guy in my office. I talked to him because I was told he is from Chennai. Apparently, he is one of those pseudo chennaiite (Bombay roots, Kannadiga stem etc.). This fellow got American Citizenship, thinks he was born in Ohio and talks like he studied at MIT (not <span style="font-style: italic;">Muthukumaran Institute of Technology</span>, mind you!). I was forewarned by others that he is a psycho and one of those desis trying to assimilate with the Whites by berating <span style="font-style: italic;">Indianism</span> (any act or stereotypes associated with an Indian, basically). Still I got to talk to him, mainly because he takes a smoking break every half hour and the designated smoking area happens to be near the labs where I work. To quote a colleague, he walks like Sid the Sloth in Ice Age; slow with drooping head as if he is ready to drop down any minute.<br /><br />Anyways, so this sloth went to Chennai for 2 weeks after complaining loudly a 100 times how he doesn't feel like going, and he is forced to go only because his mother is there and his wife wanted to go visit her parents, and how the company stock prices are going to crash in the two weeks of his absence. After two weeks of granting bliss to people in my office with his absence he returned recently. I avoided him by taking all the preplanned routes out of my labs so I really didn't get to hear his horror stories, except for the one time when he complained how sewage was literally running everywhere in Chennai's roads and how Spencer Plaza and all the Mega malls and Mini malls were baaaddddd and uaaackkk.<br /><br />Anyway, I ignored all these nonsense because you know that story about throwing <span style="font-style: italic;">kallu</span> on <span style="font-style: italic;">seru</span>. But soon my colleagues started coming to me one by one and asking, "Is this true? Is there garbage everywhere in your city?", "Is your house situated amidst a huge pile of trash? Because this guy just showed me pics of his trip and there were houses right next to garbage","There were dirty cows on the road. He said they are everywhere in the city, is it true?" and the kickass "he said it touched 125F when he was there it must be horrible".<br /><br />Ok, there are dirty cows, garbage heaps but they aren't everywhere. This guy found immense pleasure in saying how dirty his city and country was and had tried to tell them he never wants to go back. And I am damn sure it didn't touch 125F in the last two weeks for sure. In fact for the first time there were a few days during which it was hotter here than in Chennai! So I couldn't hold back anymore and gave a long lecture to my colleagues on how this guy has been exaggerating many things, and how temperatures never touch 125F unless you are in Sahara desert. Anyhow, at the end of it all I felt angrier than ever.<br /><br />Ivana elaam paduka vechu Asok Leylaand lorry aala yethanum. Raascal.Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-58143863512723569742010-06-28T23:09:00.001-04:002010-06-28T23:11:28.733-04:00கண்ணனுக்கே அழகூட்டிய <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKdHPCw3K9c"><span>ஒரு</span> <span>பாடல்</span></a>!Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-23028590578899789522010-06-27T22:49:00.003-04:002010-06-27T22:52:35.080-04:00The best part of this video is at 7:30 <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzmFkbNcfQw&feature=related">when Rahman removes the Oscar statuettes from his <span style="font-style: italic;">potti</span></a>, carefully wrapped around with a <span style="font-style: italic;">vellai thundu</span>.Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-51441640693965398992010-06-24T09:15:00.004-04:002010-06-24T18:51:53.751-04:00<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBQJv5L_lzE">Thiru Krishnan, Thiru Muthu avaragalai medaiku vandhu</a> thanga chain matrum thanga modhiram petrukollumaaru azhaikirom! <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/mobile/06/24/iphone.4/index.html?hpt=C2">Thiru Krishnan, Thiru Muthae!</a><span style="text-decoration: underline;"></span>Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-61188283028525248502010-06-19T09:00:00.006-04:002010-06-20T15:14:19.683-04:00Raavanan aanda enna, Rahman aanda enna..aaga motham padam mokkaiOk, the movie sucked. Really. Neither was the Direction good nor was the screenplay coherent. There is no point in narrating the story because the movie was so blatantly lifted off from Ramayana I really got bored after a while and could predict what would happen next. For me such adaptations doesn't reflect the prowess of the Director at all. It was a very run of the mill kind of story/screenplay which was tailored to reflect a well known epic. Maybe the audience are supposed to shriek in ecstasy when they relate to characters resembling <span style="font-style: italic;">Hanuman</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">Vibheeshanan</span>, but I most certainly was put off by that. There was no elaborate build up to the story. The movie begins with Veeraiya (Vikram) kidnapping Ragini (Aishwarya Rai) and her husband Dev played by PrithviRaj prepares to mount an all out attack on Veera. BGMs sucked because there were no true BGMs. The bits and pieces from the songs were just rehashed to form the BGM. What happened to the good old days of our Ilayaraja when people actually spent as much time on BGMs as they did on songs?<br /><br />The first half moves slowly. I mean so slowly that it feels more stagnant than all of Aishwarya's facial expressions can muster. The Director is only focused on portraying the love sprouting in Vikram's heart for Ragini. It is not a bad concept if it had been handled well but he had gone overboard with the Screenplay part. The scenes were too jumpy; in the sense there was no smooth flow. Yet the same scenario was being shown for one hour; Ragini falling down the cliff for some five times in Vikram's mind. There is actually no good characterization in the first half except for Vikram's. Suhasini has written the Dialogues for the movie and I couldn't help but laugh during those 'typical' one liner exchanges in the first half when Dev was told his wife was kidnapped. It went something like this:<br />Hemanth: siiirrr, river la oru accident<br />Dev: Eppo<br />H: Ippodhan sirrr<br />Dev: Enna aachu<br />H: sirrr, inoru boat idichu....adhula vandhu...<br />D: enna?<br />H: unga wife...<br />D: solunga Hemanth..<br />It reminded me of that classic spoof in Thamizh Padam of <span style="font-style: italic;">that</span> 'Thalabadhi' scene where Mammooty visits his injured henchman in a hospital.<br /><br />Karthik gets totally wasted by ManiRatnam. I felt great pity for such a talented actor reduced to doing buffoonery just because one of his 'mentors' asked him to act in the movie. His intro scene when he does some '<span style="font-style: italic;">Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon</span>'isque jumping around of trees looked so bad and made no sense. Later, in the movie Kartihk gets to be the Hanuman of the story and if those initial tree jumping scenes were intended to give the audience a clue about that, then I am sorry to say ManiRatnam but Perarasu would have done a better job of it. If his role was intended to be that of a comic relief with his monkey acts, then somebody like Vivek etc. would have done a much better job of it. Same is the case with Prabu. The continued references to the epic was also irritating. People should have been left feeling a resemblance to the epic. Instead, ManiRatnam makes sure that the audience have no doubts whatsoever. Somebody should count the number of times references are made to the numbers 10 and 14 in that movie! We all know Raavanan had ten heads, Sir. Please. No need to remind us again and again. Also, we all know that Ramar went to <span style="font-style: italic;">vanavaasam</span> for 14 years. No need to give not so subtle hints such as 'she will die in 14 hours', 'she was supposed to be held for 14hours but now she should be held for 14 days' etc. Maybe you were making this movie for an 'international' audience who have no idea what Ramayanam is about and probably you would give a quick guide to Ramayanam along with the movie tickets to those audience so that they can croon in delight when they see those cross references making sense.<br /><br />Amidst all this drudgery, there are two things in the movie that is spectacular. Firstly, the Cinematography. It is just indescribable. It was not just one or two scenes but the entire movie that was shot in vivid colors and some breathtaking camera angles. Some do stick to the mind: Vikram's standing on the cliff edge and doing a 'will he jump or won't he' kind of thing, the scene where the officers cut through the dense forest and the camera focuses on a dragon fly perched on the branch and slowly pans out to the bunch of people (the dragonfly looked totally like a toy though), the waterfalls, the final scene in which Vikram is shot and falls down in a SloMo. Breathtaking is the only word that justifies all this.<br /><br />Secondly, Vikram. The story was not just centered around his character but his performance in the movie is so towering that all the other flaws seem more magnified because of that. Seeing Aishwarya's banality of expressions and PrithviRaj's stonyfaced reactions (thanks to ManiRatnam's idea of a steel nerved Police I believe) Vikram seemed to really possess ten times the prowess of the other actors! If Vikram hadn't captivated the audience enough till the end of the movie then he definitely delivers the sucker punch in the climax when he realizes the trap he has fallen in. Even his expressions as he falls to his death lingers in the mind. As a friend of mine said, his performance in this movie is like watching Sachin score a century in a losing cause!<br /><br />If I see this movie again it would be for the Cinematography and Vikram. And I hope this refocuses his immense acting abilities and makes him a better chooser of movies in the future!<br /><br />P.S.: It feels so good to say, <a href="http://mambalamstand.blogspot.com/2010/04/mani-ratnam.html">I told you so</a>!Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-51808833028592713322010-06-13T01:50:00.005-04:002010-06-13T02:08:21.211-04:00Adraa SakkaI saw two videos well after midnight and I still have trouble sleeping because of them. First one was <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2kDOML7ukA&feature=player_embedded">this</a>. The way she imitates the Singh, the Patel and the Italian and her emphasis on <span style="font-style: italic;">Vasantha</span> was awesomely funny.<br /><br />The second video was this - <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWvoRjwZfKE&feature=player_embedded#%21">Our very own TR</a>. Earlier in the day I was seeing some of the videos of the internet sensation Wilbur Sargunaraj and read about how he had become popular in the US as well (with well known movie critic Roger Ebert mentioning <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TojTlYNNm9w">this video</a> in one of his twitter message). I was wondering if this is guy really like this? I mean, does he have a secret identity which is his real life that is hid behind this character? Surely there has to be. Having said that it is really hard to believe when someone actually are just the way they appear to be - like our TR. Whaat a maaannn (as Abbas says in Padayappa). Not only does he have the gumption to render his version of an African beat for more than a minute but he also says it would become an internet sensation. And the way he ends the call - "Ellaa pugazhum iraivanuke, inshah allah".<br /><br />Ada Raama....Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-59637996206943420882010-06-06T00:26:00.004-04:002010-06-07T10:17:35.797-04:00Prince of Persia: The Sands of TimeNothing beats seeing a good movie in a awesome theater. Except, of course, if you get to see an awesome movie in an awesome theater! I saw Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time and I thoroughly enjoyed it enough to think about going for a second time!<br /><br />The movie is about the famous Prince who most of us would have known when trying to take him to the Princess through the dungeons with the help of 4 keyboard buttons. Later, came the gaming consoles etc. that popularized the franchise enough to merit a movie out of it. But unlike ventures that were made into poorly made cheesy movies (ala Tomb Raider), PoP is a perfectly served blend of action, magical forces and stunning visuals.<br /><br />Prince Dastan, the protagonist, is played by Jake Gyllenhaal. I had some serious doubts on the credibility of the movie once I saw the trailers: the trailer was more of a select scenes of action without much insight into the story itself and moreover Jake seemed a total misfit for the role. Strongly lingering images of Jake playing the young guy trying to escape the snow in the <span style="font-style: italic;">Day After Tomorrow</span> & the boyish ranch hand in the <span style="font-style: italic;">Brokeback Mountain</span> made him a suspect for this role, in my opinion (Jake is the younger brother of Maggie Gyllenhall, in case you din't know it!). But to his credit, at the end of the movie I could not think of a better person for the role.<br /><br />Dastan is an orphan who gets adopted by the King of Persia after showing courage in the face of adversity. This makes him the youngest of the three Princes in the line to the throne - Tus & Garsiv. When the King is away from the city, news reaches the Princes about the treachery by the sacred city of <span style="font-style: italic;">Alamut</span> which is selling weapons to the enemies of the Persian empire. The two Princes decide to invade the city aided by the counsel of their uncle Nizam, against the suggestion of Dastan. This leads to a trail of events during which the King, on his return to the city, gets killed and Jake is blamed for his death. Jake escapes with Princess Tamina (played by Gemma Arterton, and she is Hot!)of <span style="font-style: italic;">Alamut</span>. Tamina is the guardian of the Dagger of Time which she safeguards from falling into the hands of evil men. The rest of the story is about how Dastan proves his innocence and also helps Tamina in returning the Dagger to safety. The strength of the movie is the realization by the Director that a story like this would abound with cliches during movie making: the culture of Persia has to be showcased in a way that everyone identifies with but yet must not be too banal, the hero has to be agile and fight many kinds of enemies yet there must be no poorly placed wise quips etc. The Director has walked this fine line and never let the movie drift away. The focus and packaging keeps the audience riveted. He has cleverly avoided pitfalls of loud mouthed villains (if you see <span style="font-style: italic;">The Mummy</span> movies, you know what I am talking about), unnecessary number of mushy scenes with the female lead, sidekicks etc.<br /><br />The film editing is by a trio that includes the legendary <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0434883/">Michael Kahn</a> who is one of my all time favorite and he has done a fabulous job in this movie. The movie has some stunning visuals that includes panoramic scenery and intelligent graphics. Soundtrack is a big plus for the movie too. I am a big sucker for multi-channel audio tracks and a movie with a storyline like PoP provides ample opportunities for it and the way it is has been smartly interspersed and employed, I just fell head over heels for it.<br /><br />One of those movies that I would probably end up seeing many times over.Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-47466728534773032932010-06-01T13:52:00.005-04:002010-06-01T14:06:00.262-04:00Minute by Minute Commentary<span style="font-weight: bold;">Friend</span>: Why are you not updating anything on Facebook?<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Me</span>: I don't know. What is there to update anyway?<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Friend</span>: So many things! Like that trip you went on 2 weeks back, India's T20 matches etc. You have to let people know what you are thinking by writing on your wall.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Me</span>: Why would I write on my wall? I always like my walls to be clean and white! In fact, I am going to see if I can prevent others from scribbling on my neat wall as well..<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Friend</span>: Loosu..seri leave it. At least you can twitter, no?<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Me</span>: What am I? A sparrow?<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Friend</span>: But everybody twitters now. This is how people share their thoughts and opinions.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Me</span>: But I already write a blog for that. If I want to force my opinion on people who refuse to read it then I will call them and let them know what I think. Who is going to be interested in where I ate lunch, which place I went to last night and how I "<span style="font-style: italic;">Juz feel lazy to go 2 work 2day</span>". If Sachin tweets "I should have blocked instead of trying to drive that ball", it is worth reading. Who would be interested in knowing what a nobody like me feels looking at the sunset on a lovely summer night!<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Friend</span>: &*$#%@Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-80388053761103636542010-05-29T11:45:00.005-04:002010-05-30T09:19:55.827-04:00<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSP0dxLymcM&feature=player_embedded">First look of the Semmozhi video</a> for the Ulaga Thamizh Maanadu. Impressive track from Rahman, though I feel it has a much more contemporary feel to it than it should have in terms of the instrument used as well as the singers. Especially considering the fact that the conference is<a href="http://www.ulakathamizhchemmozhi.org/content/%E0%AE%86%E0%AE%AF%E0%AF%8D%E0%AE%B5%E0%AF%81%E0%AE%AA%E0%AF%8D-%E0%AE%AA%E0%AF%8A%E0%AE%B0%E0%AF%81%E0%AE%A3%E0%AF%8D%E0%AE%AE%E0%AF%88%E0%AE%95%E0%AE%B3%E0%AF%8D"> meant to serve as a point of discussion on the 'thamizh kalaacharam'</a> (that includes the contemporary relevance of literary pieces such as Tholkaapiyam & Thirukkural) and spreading awareness to the current diaspora).<br /><br />Gowtham Menon has tried to do a <span style="font-style: italic;">Mile Sur Mera Thumhara</span> with the video but there lacks a distinct flow to it. I have no idea why Shruthi Hassan and Blaaze are even there in the video.<br /><br />But anyhow...Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-73994726078723889502010-05-18T13:25:00.003-04:002010-05-18T13:27:38.647-04:00Like the saying "<span style="font-style: italic;">Ennadhaan naaya kulipaatti naduveetla vechaalum, adhu vaala suzhatindu therukudhaan odum nu</span>", <a href="http://www.detnews.com/article/20100516/AUTO01/5160337/1148/GM-wants-more-subpri">ivanunga ennadhaan adipaatalum thirundha maatanga polarke</a>!Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-82235820445683827782010-04-27T21:51:00.004-04:002010-04-27T22:04:48.228-04:00Mani RatnamI like Mani Ratnam's movies a lot just like many others. Some of his earlier works are real masterpieces, with each subsequent movie of his exploring different genres with no similarity in the stories that would have made any Director predictable <span style="font-style: italic;">ala</span> Shankar.<br /><br />But what I don't understand and what makes me recoil with confusion bordering on hate is his obsession to simultaneously direct a version in Hindi. Why does he want to do that? Imagine filming two movies at the same time. Irrespective of both having the same storyline you still have to manage different cast, schedules, slightly modified screenplay to suit different audiences, etc. Why this masochism? What does he get out of it? Is the recognition and pleasure of seeing the movie run successfully in Tamil too small to satisfy his <i>über</i> sized ego? He wants his 'art pieces' to be applauded by all of India? Is the desire for wider recognition driving him to do this crazy stuff? Wasn't he recognized as a great director till <span style="font-style: italic;">Iruvar</span>? Then why does he have to bend backwards to cater to a bigger audience? I myself can think of 10 answers to this but still none of them make sense.Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-71282182294644987812010-04-26T17:43:00.002-04:002010-04-26T17:48:22.998-04:00"..more than the game, there was more pressure from my friends for passes. i had never felt so much pressure before...." - MS Dhoni during the toss interview. One reason why Chennai won. The other reason being of course Mumbai sucks which was why they cleanly took Hayden's catch while dropping Raina's.Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-9865142999661654022010-04-25T00:20:00.007-04:002010-04-25T09:56:31.888-04:00Kaasedhan Kadavulada"Dooode!! Are you ready to be thrashed? Bewarrre". The threats from my colleague, who is from Bombay, only increased in frequency since that first call. He seems more excited that Chennai made it to finals than me. Immediately, plans were made to watch the finals together duly accompanied by more threats of 'thrashing', 'clobbering', 'smashing' and other superlatives that only war-mongering American Presidents can think of.<br /><br />Soon after our PC offered to resign following the Maoists attack, which was categorically rejected by our Honorable PM, a member of Twitterati (which is no way related to the Illuminati, lest Dan Brown gets all too excited about writing a book in which Robert Langdon reveals the truth behind the covert operations of the BCCI/IPL with trip to exotic locales such as the <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsxzz_wHjU6Ip7V5UR_74RHw-nf_oLtNTv5dDL5lCO89HZ5ODKehk-521rUsY77dxldAN0dwHd3sQi8-2mqrNjts9zPsEcsbpWaV8tLEQtJKfMfNk6giofQbLlUZDFjH1vW352kVg8W4I/s1600/blimpsale.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsxzz_wHjU6Ip7V5UR_74RHw-nf_oLtNTv5dDL5lCO89HZ5ODKehk-521rUsY77dxldAN0dwHd3sQi8-2mqrNjts9zPsEcsbpWaV8tLEQtJKfMfNk6giofQbLlUZDFjH1vW352kVg8W4I/s320/blimpsale.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463926616911010082" border="0" /></a>BCCI's head office in Mumbai aided by cutting edge technologies such as the MRF blimp) has been asked to resign. My glee at the guillotine that has been falling can be expressed only to some extent through words. Scenes of Modi's head & hands wedged between the wood waiting for the guillotine to fall (even as he tweets from his Blackberry "@unsuspectingmedia: i wonder how individuals & companies had so much money to spend on ipl teams. fishy isn't it? ;) " ).<br /><br />As this year's edition of the grand circus draws to an end, Modi has redefined the very definition of commercialism. The viewers have been caught unawares with the modern technological marvel that the blimp is. The sheer awesomeness of it is mindboggling. I, like million other viewers, was wondering after the first few matches what is so special about the balloon suspended 100 feet above the ground. But the organizers cleverly withheld the secret till the semi-finals. After impatiently scratching around for 3 <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZMJlgeBKS6BCbTlf7fpjWakdpdLpj2r0wl9OJlCdjuRW2XDHmugAxgSR9v17u207onfu3NPyoSi_jSPi9HuWx22qbT02T-utacJpCkkDS3RpsyIBFuCSG8uQpS-yK2vYjdepANlolBh4/s1600/Untitled.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 248px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZMJlgeBKS6BCbTlf7fpjWakdpdLpj2r0wl9OJlCdjuRW2XDHmugAxgSR9v17u207onfu3NPyoSi_jSPi9HuWx22qbT02T-utacJpCkkDS3RpsyIBFuCSG8uQpS-yK2vYjdepANlolBh4/s320/Untitled.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463934006980960418" border="0" /></a>matches and 12 time-outs, it eventually dawned on me. It is amazing. The MRF blimp is the first ever object in the time-space continuum to be there at a location; yet not quite there. The camera kept panning out to the giant screen on the ground which shows the blimp every now and then, even as Sivaramakrishnan and Danny Morrison croon in unison with ecstasy on sighting the blimp. Obviously, the blimp is over the ground as per the assertions of all the commentators yet it can be seen only on the giant screen! Awesomeness. In fact, the blimp is so popular that people are flocking stores to get a model that can float around their living rooms.<br /><br />Meanwhile, as the Overlord of the IPL sinks deeper and deeper into the quagmire, there are great expectations that the entire cricketing structure is going to be revamped. By cricketing structure, we are referring to the people who can make the big bucks and rub shoulders with Mukesh Ambani, Siddharth Mallya (No, it must be Vijay Mallya, I think, because Siddharth <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOBqr3HmTj7gTsQa2dJqoQhwnfKfEeFojm5UuggcaLp9YoeRuTK92Z2hbyzv0HPVe4FHUWeAIAEHQqau2HKBzU78xW6_LeO6K2VKeUCg09fWxMKWySzviKIidOIPeYqqZPsGJPd8_alao/s1600/116418.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 261px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOBqr3HmTj7gTsQa2dJqoQhwnfKfEeFojm5UuggcaLp9YoeRuTK92Z2hbyzv0HPVe4FHUWeAIAEHQqau2HKBzU78xW6_LeO6K2VKeUCg09fWxMKWySzviKIidOIPeYqqZPsGJPd8_alao/s320/116418.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463920800114430194" border="0" /></a>Mallya is only seen rubbing shoulders with Deepika Padukone) etc. There are even some preposterous rumours that Ravi Shastri would be given an important post. Maybe a good thing. If he can shout at the franchise owners half as much as he shouts during the toss then running the IPL would be a piece of cake. But Modi is reported to be unfazed as of now, <a href="http://www.cricinfo.com/ipl2010/content/current/story/457118.html">challenging the BCCI</a> to try and sack him as the IPL commissioner. With nobody seeing any light at the end of this tussle, the prescient Sachidhaanandha Swamigal (now that he doesn't have to attend training sessions till the finals because of injury on his hand, suddenly finds that he has lots of time on his other uninjured hand) <a href="http://www.cricinfo.com/ipl2010/content/story/456947.html">has predicted that the IPL will overcome the crisis</a>. But there are reports that Modi is showing no signs of let down. In fact, for the closing ceremony of the game (which would be yet another grand ceremony that usually begins with pledging for green, blue, pink and all other color coded environmental benefits and ends with spectacular fireworks display and 1 million kW of electricity consumed for the lights and the show) it is believed that Modi will make a spectacular appearance by descending from the 'Technological Marvel' MRF blimp (complete with a cape and everything thereby laying to rest all doubts of his perceived superhuman qualities) and would declare the entire tournament a grand Citi 'Moment' of Success.<br /><br />So amidst all these distractions the focus shifts to the DY Patil stadium (which is staging the 10,347th match in the last 3 years) after the bomb blasts in Bangalore stadium 'forced' the organizers to shift the venue to the safest city in the world where the spectators known for their knowledge of cricket will come in full attendance for the neutral matches (Take that you dumb Chennaiites). Here is hoping Sachin is fit to play (otherwise even if Chennai win all the bloody Mumbaikars and Maruticars will be saying 'only because He wasn't playing') and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UN4MurrEuKw&feature=player_embedded">Chennai thrash them</a> and execute on Mumbai all the other forms of mutilations that my Mumbai (or Bombay. Whatever dude! It doesn't sound half as cool as Madras) friend talks of inflicting on the CSK team. If not, then I would have to wear that stoic face only a 'rathathula <span style="font-style: italic;">Chennai</span> oori ponna' people can pull off and say "Its ok dude, it was a good game, I am happy that we came to finals, so many positives, Vijay, Ashwin, etc." and then to quote Dhoni's "from the semis it is just a lottery..".<br /><br />P.S.: Watching people like Gavaskar, Shastri and even Bhogle struggle between the by-now well honed instinct of praising anything Modi-sque and then refraining because of the controversy he is in right now is amusing. Bhogle <a href="http://www.cricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/456901.html">'aathu aathunu aathifies a sorpozhivu</a>' on Cricinfo where he half assails Modi and then retracts to shower praises on how Modi single handedly made IPL into a behemoth etc. Only because he is still on the payroll of you-know-who. All hypocrites, I say.Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-6521100914779771672010-03-24T08:26:00.004-04:002010-03-24T08:32:54.475-04:00In today's <span style="font-style: italic;">Read as</span> section:<br /><blockquote>Car manufacturer Daimler AG <a href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iyN0NVBA6ApPNOEwJrIV6LBAK3vQD9EKJ5400">will pay $185 million to settle a criminal investigation</a> in which the company is accused of paying tens of millions of dollars in bribes to officials of at least 22 foreign governments..</blockquote><br /><br />Read as, "Car manufacturer Daimler AG will pay $185 million as compensation to the Justice Department & the Securities and Exchange Commission to appease them after pleading guilty on charges of not adopting a universally fair standard of bribing."Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-82699264717325892382010-03-21T21:17:00.003-04:002010-03-21T21:47:57.201-04:00Alice in WonderlandI have been wanting to check out the nearby IMAX theater for quite some time. Not because I have never been to <span style="font-style: italic;">an</span> IMAX before but just that I have not been to<span style="font-style: italic;"> this one</span> before.<br /><br />The movie was really amazing and worth being seen in a 3D IMAX if you have one near you. The story was nothing great. The end is totally predictable and so are quite a few scenes in between. But seeing some of the legendary characters such as the White Rabbit and the Cheshire cat (and the Mad Hatter, of course) with some top class animation made the movie special. The story is a take off from Lewis Carroll's original <span style="font-style: italic;">Alice's Adventures in Wonderland</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">Through the Looking Glass. </span>Alice is 19 years old and about to be asked for marriage by a Lord. Finding these sudden rush of events difficult to handle, Alice tries to bide some time by running away from the party thrown out for this occasion. She sees the White Rabbit and follows it to the burrow of the tree that is the entrance to the Wonderland.<br /><br />Johnny Depp plays the Mad Hatter and Anne Hathway plays the White Queen. Johnny Depp really doesn't have to do anything different than what he did in the three editions of the <span style="font-style: italic;">Pirates of the Caribbean</span> movies. The swagger in his walk, the lilt in his talk and the animated gestures are quite familar to everyone and fits the role perfectly. Anne Hathway doesn't have much role to play and other than grinning wider than the Cheshire cat. And oh, there is the Cheshire Cat.<br /><br />Easily, my favorite character of the movie which is saying something as it beats my default overwhelming favorite, Johnny Depp. The cat's character is quite...hmm...what is the right word for it...yes, magical. The fluid appearances and the disappearances, the way it saves the Mad Hatter and its mystical dialogues makes it the star of the movie. Only later did I realize that the voice for it was by Stephen Fry! The voice for Absolum, the dreamy yet wise old Blue Caterpillar, was by Alan Rickman (of Severus Snape fame).<br /><br />It is a movie worth seeing if seen in an IMAX. Not sure about its impact on an ordinary 2D screen.Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758241429731554373.post-71680503426201720252010-03-16T22:19:00.004-04:002010-03-16T23:01:31.886-04:00Quote of the dayநான், ரொட்டி என்று சொன்னால் உதடுகள் ஒட்டாது; பரோட்டா, சப்பாத்தி என்று சொன்னால்தான் உதடுகள் கூட ஒட்டும்.Mambalam Manihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03758942835278267670noreply@blogger.com1