Ramblings-4

One more week............another milestone in sight
Sleepless days and nights........so much to accomplish...so less time in hand

My driving force:



Current craze that sees me through:



Almost there........... :)

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Main paagal toh nahin!!!!!!

Magar aye Thesis...
Jab se likha,(shuru kiya)
hai maine tujhko, mujhko,

pagliiiii bulaayein sabhi!!!

:P :P :P

Paul the Oracle

Ok...I am not a BIG football fan....but do occasionally follow matches and enjoy them too. For instance... the Germany-Spain semi-final.
It was then that I heard of PAUL - the ORACLE OCTOPUS :D :D :D

A BBC news article said 'A "psychic" octopus in Germany, which appears to have correctly predicted every World Cup game involving the national team so far, has picked Spain over Germany in the semi-final.'

Watch this video where he "chose" Spain over Germany as the winner of the semi-finals http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/10521867.stm

He has an overall "success" rate of 83% till date and 100% for the FIFA 2010 :)

and has received death threats!!! that was when he predicted Argentinian loss :P

What a life :D

and here's a funny quote.....
The Director of SeaLife...the home of our oracle....said "There was something about the way he looked at our visitors when they came close to the tank. It was so unusual, so we tried to find out what his special talents were."

and on his Wikipedia page, his occupation is defined as "Oracular animal"
Pardon me...but "his" gender needs citation :P but considering that we call the Oracle PAUL, I by default assumed "him" to be male :D
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_the_Octopus

Wonder if he is only a German oracle or has "worldly" insight!

UPDATE: Paul has competition.... MANI the psychic parakeet from singapore !! :D
It can only get funnier......
And guess what...they gave opposite views on the final, Paul vouches for Spain, Mani for Netherlands
All I can say...."May the best team win!!!
P.S: spain spain spain spain spain ;)

Ramblings-2

Ok, I have this self-imposed ban for quite some time now....need to finish work fast, need to write thesis, need to wrap up PhD and THEN move on.
Result....alienation from social circle...
WORST PART: no one calls you anymore, no one pings you anymore..... OUT-OF-SIGHT-OUT-OF-MIND types eh! :(
I want my friends back, I want my life back ...... so I earnestly pray that this phase gets over soon.

Photo: By my NOKIA 6300, OKD-Smita's home in B'lore

Woohooo :)

Need I say ANYTHING?
Awesome......Fabulous.......Wow !!

The full-screen version on the official website is even better.
Check it out here.

Apna Mithunda

Yesterday, along with the hyped I Hate Luv Storys, another movie released which surprisingly got more coverage than expected. I say "surprisingly" because it is a Bengali movie, and usually non-hindi movies that release do not get much coverage.
This one's called "Shukno Lanka" or "Dry red chillies". Till now, I have only heard/read good things about it, including good performances.....

Take a look here:

http://www.washingtonbanglaradio.com/content/7913910-shukno-lanka-2010-bengali-movie-review-aditya-chakrabarty

or here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1ObCvqK-Kc

TOI says "For those who still remember Mithun Chakraborty's sterling act in Buddhadeb Dasgupta's Tahader Katha, here's another chance to discover the true colours of the thespian actor who has the ability to grab eyeballs with something more than his disco dancing abilities."

The trailer does not say much...but with the praise as above...I would like to go watch it (let's see if I can make it).

'Un Certain Regard’

First-time director Vikramaditya Motwane’s film Udaan was part of "Un Certain Regard" at the Cannes Film Festival this year and was the only Indian film at the festival. Now that's great accomplishment. The story, that of a young Rohan, who was in a boarding school for 8 yrs and has now returned to his strict father and half-brother in Jamshedpur, is written by both Vikramaditya Motwane and Anurag Kashyap. The music is by Amit Trivedi. Have not heard it yet, but have heard some good reviews about it. Going by Amit's past record, I think i'll like this one :)

Here are some posters of the movie, which are quite well done in my opinion.







And, I quite liked what I saw in the trailer too. Considering that this movie made it to Cannes, I guess that was to be expected ;) :)
It releases here in 2 weeks' time...and I am looking forward to it. hopefully by then my thesis will be almost done and I can watch it without any guilt ;)

Have a look....




Ok UPDATE....these you must listen to :)

the THEME SONG... (video in 5:40 mins long but the song is actually only 2:47min)



and this one....

Pottermania-The Grand Finale

Watch the official trailer here:



All Potter-fans have high hopes from this 2-part movie. The movie is going to be highly action-packed no doubt, but as Brangan puts it..."they better not rob us of the myriad sentimental moments"

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BAAAAAAARISHHHHHHHHH !!!!!!

Finally...some respite from the scorcher. Even if it was only for 30 mins! AND I got wet :) yayyyyyy.... AND spoiled my suit :( not so yayyy

Why do colors that bleed from clothes....never get washed off when they stain other clothes??? That has always been a mystery to me. Why not dye a rough cloth with these colors that may "bleed" and then wash them with the main clothes of interest that need to be dyed...in this manner the color of final product will never bleed!!

Tandy bought a new phone today. It's totally khourrll! Though I would have liked the handset in Blue...she went for the Red one...which I agree is totally "her color" :)
With my pyaara set giving problems....I was a teeny weeny bit tempted too...but I guess I'll hang on to this one for a month or two more.....and then Rahul to the rescue :) :) :)

And I am now in a major do-or-die situation!!!
The WRITE-A-THON begins.
With a deadline closing in, it would do me good to gear up and fast (which kind of means right now) :P

PS: 10 days of home food, AC and good internet...inspiration enough to work :)

Zimbly lowe it :D

Some time back, Rahul had sent me this Tee from the PHDcomics stores :)
Well, I am happy to flaunt it around these days and "zimbly lowe" it :D

Hail the Rain Lord!!!

Dear Rain Lord,

I know whenever I was in Bangalore and you made your presence felt galore, there were times when I cursed! What was I to do, when all my favourite chappals broke, had almost nothing to wear as most my clothes were wet, and suffered from allergies because the room went damp harboring fungal spores??!!!
But, then again, you must also remember, that it was the same me who also enjoyed dancing in the showers, jumped with glee in puddles and marveled at your lightning bolts. And I do admit that I had more fun with your presence felt than not.
Well, too much of anything is bad, as were the showers at times!!
Don't you miss me??? You know I love listening to rain patter on walls, windows, roofs and everywhere else; and I can spend hours just listening to it while staring into oblivion, letting my mind flow freely; or cuddle up in a corner with my favourite book, or if I am in an altruistic mood, maybe make some hot chai and goodies to eat for everyone around me :) then everyone will gather and amidst all the hullabaloo, keep repeating "Oh how wonderful is this weather!! How wonderful!!"
People have claimed that I am crazy to walk in the rain....but you and I know better.....don't you??
So, come visit me in Delhi soon....I am waiting!!! I promise not to complain and have lots of fun ;)
As a reminder, I am putting up this picture I had taken capturing your essence on a wonderful day...... do hurry :)

Waiting eagerly,
Pescy :)

Of Brilliant Actors, Directors and Story-tellers

Very recently I went and watched Shutter Island in theaters. It was a good movie. The setting, the background score, the acting, the effect on the audience...it was all there. All-in-all...a really good watch. And then I went home and watched Mystic River. Another riveting plot, acting and screenplay.

What's common between the two movies?

Well...firstly, both are based on novels written by Dennis Lehane. I am sure, the novels on their own would be awesome...this I can say based on the strength of the plot portrayed on screen. The emotional turmoil, scary in the former and distressing in the latter....it is there in both.
Secondly, both novels were picked by the "Awsomest" directors ;) Shutter Island boasts of Martin Scorsese and Mystic River of Clint Eastwood. They may not necessarily be the best works of each directors but then, they are nothing short of being really commendable.
Thirdly, the choice of actors has been great and they have respectively, done great justice to their roles.
I am no great critic or observer..... but both movies successfully evoke the right responses and feeling from audience at the appropriate places with the combined effect of music/acting/direction/camera/screenplay.

Highly recommended by me :)

PhD Blues

Well...the D-Day is almost here.
40 hrs to my Colloquium. Can't believe it is actually happening....on the other hand relieved too that the culmination of 5 yrs' worth work is taking place.
Am happy its happening, and nervous its happening, and tense for what is about to follow. But as always i guess......one step at a time....we'll take it as it comes.
Three cheers for 5-yrs of hard work and all the in-between masti :)

And yes....check this out :)

Sand Art

Have been off-blog for a while....have loads of pending posts...but when I saw this...I could not stop myself from posting it here.

Watch this:



and read about it over here

Awesome talent.....she would have practiced a lot for art such as this...but even then....it is simply WOW!! :)

More songs today.........

Two more songs today........Rajneeti this time.

I Hate Luv Storys Music

The music is out........... :) and personally I really like 4 songs from this album.
Bahara is very good, the title track qualifies for the "good-bad song" category :P i.e. it has some funny rhyming lyrics but music that is good to hear, Jab mila tu and Bin tere are also quite nice.
Here are the youtube links:

:D :D :D

Heh! I so like this!! :P I guess due to thesis blues!
Source: http://www.phdcomics.com/comics.php?f=1323

Iron Man 2

"I am Iron Man" :D Tony Stark....as conceited, egoistic and narcissistic as ever! A really good movie, or rather, a deserving sequel. I would still rate the first one higher, but this is not bad....not bad at all :) and thank god I did go for it......saw a nice movie in theater after a loooooooong time! Scarlet Johanessen is looking hot and sexy....and you can't help but smile when Tony tells Pepper "I want one" :P Good graphics, some cool action and lots of attitude....it's all there. Not without its loopholes and some unbelievable stuff...but all the good things override that. Definitely worth a watch.

Shrek-Forever After

Being a big fan of Shrek and Donkey, I was disappointed :( I knew the reviews weren't that great (as was the case with Shrek 3), but on the spur of the moment decided to go for it. It does have its good moments....but that's about it....they are just moments....the story is average as is the screenplay.
Shrek 1 and 2, however, will always be among my favorites :)

Cheeky program in controversial soup

Freshmen of the College of Letters and Science at University if California, Berkeley have a unique thing in their welcome kit this year....a cotton swab!

On the Same Page program of this college gives new students something to talk about and discuss, say something like a book or a movie or an idea. This year, they’ll be exploring the theme of Personalized Medicine—the set of emerging technologies that promises to transform our ability to predict, diagnose, and treat human disease. Therefore, the cotton swab. Students can choose to return a sample of their cheek cells to be analyzed for three genes that are identified as "useful" for daily lives......the genes that help regulate the ability to absorb folic acid, tolerate lactose, and metabolize alcohol. Results of this nutritional genomic study will be confidential, however the sample donors through secret codes can access results of their samples.

Professor Jasper Rine, in-charge of this project, says “We want to get people to appreciate that there are things you can do that enhance your health based on the genes you have. There are concrete, actionable, specific steps that do enhance quality of life. This is the message of the post-genomic era.” Students will also get the chance to enter contests of creativity and talent and winners will be offered a more complete genetic analysis of their ancestry and health, with compliments from the personal genomics company 23andMe.

Medical science and biotechnology post the "Human Genome Project" is aiming towards better health care and effective clinical solutions. Though today, personalized medicine seems like a Utopian dream, hopefully someday it will be cost-effective and bring therapeutics suited to individual needs and responses.

This project, however, is not without it's share of controversies. Following a ban by FDA on retail selling of personal-genome-testing kit by Walgreens ( a US based drugstore chain), a Berkeley-based public interest organization is calling for the suspension of the UC project. They say "If selling genetic tests directly to consumers is a problem in the eyes of federal regulators, how can the University justify pushing them on thousands of eighteen-year-olds?"

The kit with the swab includes a consent form and details of the study to be undertaken, the advantages of the program and a confidentiality statement assuring prevention of misuse of genetic information. Where is the abuse??? If the donors consent to give samples for research, understanding what they are signing-up for....then why not?? Surveys and sample collections anyway take place for various research programs across the world...then why not this?? People can, for a minimal fee, send their DNA samples to laboratories for testing and genetic analysis, so why not allow the sale of these kits? Is it not up to the customer to think what they want, need, require and find useful??

I am Sam

Incredible acting, especially by the father-daughter duo!! and high on emotions...... lovable movie :)
But of course there are loopholes that you can point out to and say .... "hmmm....that wasn't necessary". I would still recommend it!

6 months !!!

19th November 2009, exactly six months ago, all dressed-up, I was super-excited.....the day of my wedding with Rahul :) . In this age of virtual connectivity, I wasn't too scared/nervous about leaving home etc. etc. (well maybe a little about gelling with the new family members and all...) but was happy that it was the day of my wedding, and with a person with whom I was totally in love with :) (Rahul said I was happy with the idea of being in love and not really in love and blah blah blah!!! but for me that was the truth.....and still is).

Before the shaadi I had written a few lines on Rahul which were to go into our wedding website, but they never did for various reasons. Here they are:

What can you say about a guy who is cute, a genius and in love with ARR :D................ well...that’s my Rahul. I am glad our paths crossed and that they did in such a manner that now they run parallel. In the short while that I’ve known him he has brought me so much joy and happiness..........I love to listen to him talking, be it his passionate monologues for hours or discussions on just about anything under the sky (even beyond it for that matter :P ), love to hear him sing, hear his stories........and of course love the innumerable ways in which he can make me smile and laugh. I love the whole bundle that is Rahul.....he brings out the best in me........and I would like say.........

“Life is a road and I want to keep going............ Love is a river I want to keep flowing.......... Life is a road now and forever a wonderful journey .........I'll be there when the world stops turning ...........I'll be there when the storm is through............. In the end I wanna be standing at the beginning with You.”

:) :) :) Six months later, with a big smile on my face, I wouldn't change this above para one bit. Maybe only add on to it! I sorely miss his presence around me and wish we were not on different continents. I am very very thankful to science and technology for providing us internet, phone, webcams, Skype, Gmail/Gtalk, cheap calling rates and everything that makes us as close as you can get while staying so far apart :P :).

On one hand I feel the time has flown past me....six months already!!! but then, on the other hand it cannot move slower and I can't wait till we are together again....

Some pics :









Luurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrv u :)

Gravity defying ramp

Found this in a news article in Nature where they talk about the Best Optical Illusion of the Year. The winning illusion makes downward-sloping ramps appear to run uphill :)

Watch it here:



The competition, hosted by the Neural Correlate Society, is the "Oscars of perception," says society president Susana Martinez-Conde. The trophies are themselves visual illusions — wooden sculptures that look vastly different depending on the observer's point of view.

Now, isn't that cool!!!

I like what one finalist says..... "Illusions are cool and fun, but they're important because they are mistakes of the visual system that give us clues about how the underlying processes work when they're functioning properly."

Funny workings of the brain!

An Education

A wonderful movie and beautifully enacted!!!
Loved Carey Mulligan in the role of Jenny. She was brilliant, very alive and perfect. She makes you feel the joys of a teenager exploring the adult world secretly, shares the excitement with lights in her eyes and a radiant smile, makes you feel her agony when the sophisticated world around her breaks down and makes your heart go out to her when in spite of everything she stands up to face her future.

The story is a simple one (and the plot nothing new), but the great screenplay and minimal melodrama (as one would expect in such a story worked upon in bollywood) make it a wonderful experience. All characters have done a great job, be it the loving, protective, bored parents of Jenny who fall into the charms of David too, the charming and graceful David, the sophisticated and happening Helen and Danny, the naive boyfriend from school the giggly girlfriends, the strict, dreary and ambitious school teacher or Jenny herself. And importantly, in the end, the message does go home.

Here's the trailer:



Enjoy!!

Hrithik on Fire

Just watched this song promo on TV from the movie Kites.
Love the feel of the music and Hrithik's dance moves are awesome. He has always been a good dancer; this video re-affirms it!!

Take a look:



Looking forward to the complete dance sequence :)

and here's the full song if anyone's interested:

Gerald Durrell

I love reading books. One of my favorite styles of writing is one where the narrative is a first-person account of events and people. It gives you a feel of being in the author's shoes and trying to see the world as he/she describes it.
Currently I am reading Gerald Durrell's "Marrying off mother and other stories". This is the third book by Durrell that I have gotten my hands upon other than the most famous "My family and other animals" and "Birds, beasts and relatives". I was first introduced to the author during my school days.....the English reader had a very interesting humorous account of a boy and his pet donkey in "My donkey Sally". Besides being in the autobiographical style, Durrell's books have this subtle "fun" element in them. Because he is describing real-life events involving himself and his family (including poking fun at them and the absurdity of situations) there is this sincerity which touches you. His ability to delightfully put into words the simplest of events is definitely worth a mention. Additionally, I admire his ability to recall so many of his childhood events, especially in My family and other animals and Birds, beasts and relatives. He claims to have semi-fictionalized some of the stories but most anecdotal accounts involving his brothers Larry and Leslie, sister Margo, mother, Roger the dog and the driver Spiro are true. They are a delight to read, and I must admit I enjoyed them more in comparison to his stories which narrate events of his adult life and his adventures around the world.
One thing that I find interesting about him is that he has not written these lovely books and accounts out of his love for writing; instead, in his own words "they were simply a means to make money to enable me to do my animal work"!! His love for animals definitely shows up in his work and stories.
For anyone who enjoys simple, fun, light reading, Gerald Durrell's works are highly recommended by me. :)

You got to be joking.....!

Seriously, would someone please assess the science reporters of Times of India before hiring them! or maybe just hire editors who make sure that the news reaching out to masses is not a distorted truth!!??
Here's an article from today's paper:

"Eat breakfast to have a baby boy"

The article boldly claims "Want a baby boy? Well, then eat full breakfast and fatty diet during early pregnancy, suggests a new study ", but very conveniently forgets to mention that what the scientist is actually saying  is that their hypothesis is that diet, either directly or indirectly (e.g. through hormonal changes in the mother), influences the nutrient conditions within the reproductive tract of an early pregnant female. These changes in turn could alter the relative abilities of either X- or Y-sperm to effect fertilization. Alternatively, an altered uterine environment might lead to preferential survival of embryos of one sex over the other. Also, that these preliminary studies have been carried out only in mice! and several experiments need to be done to decipher the actual mechanism!

Normally I would have brushed away articles such as these labeling them as "preposterous" or search articles giving scientific evidence for their claims (if there is any tiny curiosity as to what the original claimant really wants to say). But, a conversation with a non-science/biology background person involving discussion on the various "health" articles led me to wonder how much such "half-truths" influence people's thinking.

Eat breakfast and high fat diet for a baby boy!! Maybe we should leak this news to television mom-in-laws, their bahus will have a good time eating! :P

"The Empire on which the sun never sets"

As you know, the title phrase of this post refers to the global empires set up by Europeans between the 15th and the 19th centuries.
Imperialism or European colonisation was heralded by the Spanish and Portuguese explorers in the early 15th century, a period known as the "Age of Discovery". We have all heard of Columbus and Magellan; there were many many more of them who spread out to discover "new lands"...the Americas, African coast, Middle east, India, eastern Asia and even Australia. Soon after, they were joined by the British, the French and the Dutch in direct competition in exploration (they actually started as pirate attacks on Spanish fleets loaded with riches obtained from the new lands...but soon they developed their own expeditions and settlements).
The Spanish colonialization was primarily for bolstering their economic status by trade and religious conversions; on the other hand, the British colonization was mainly aimed at "making new societies" as per the whims of the colonists and then began the enslavement of "native savages". British Imperialism, as it turned out, flourished over all others especially after Napolean's downfall and its span across the globe ensured that the sun was always shining on at least one of its numerous territories.....!!
Decolonization began in earnest only in the 20th century. This interesting animated link here shows the rise and fall of British Empire. Over the hundreds of years of colonization, millions of people moved to and from the British colonies. There have been pros and cons of this Imperialization; on one hand spread of technology early on was one of the advantages, on the other, tension and discontent between the native and non-native settlers continues till date.

So now you may ask...why this discussion on the history of colonization, especially British Imperialism :)
Well, yesterday I watched this movie called Pocahontas (animated Disney movie) where the story backdrop is an English governor who is seeking gold and riches in the "new land" and is ready to sacrifice the savages inhabiting the land which is now "His".
What the discussion between me and my friend led to was......... human settlements evolved and developed at several places simultaneously across the globe... why was it then that the European settlements progressed and developed much faster than the others?? The civilizations may have arose across several parts of the world and grew too, but technological development was much faster here which empowered them to dominate the world....why was it so? I have not yet been able to find an answer to that yet. So....help!!!! :) and if you think that I have got some points wrong...feel free to point them out.



Update: Rahul said...

Jared Diamond has written a whole book to analyze that question! "Guns, Germs and Steel" is exactly about this question! Almost exactly, actually. Because I don't think he answers "why europe and not India?" He answers, "why Eurasia and not Africa/Americas/Australia?"
His basic thesis is based on the fact the Eurasia has the longest extended East-West Axis among all the continents. The cultural/technological manifestations of this simple geographic fact led to Eurasian culture dominating the world today. Basically, it is easier for technology to transfer along a latitude rather than across one, because the climatic conditions change much faster along a longitude. This means that any new invention/discovery that happened anywhere throughout the most populous areas of asia soon spread throughout the other regions unlike, say, Americas, where A Mayan invention would hardly travel more than a couple hundred miles due to constraints imposed by geography/climate.

I guess I'll have to read this one soon..... :)

The Magic of Enid Blyton

"Parp, Parp" :D Anyone who has read stories about the wooden little boy who stayed in Toyland would know this sound. Yup, I'm talking about Noddy and his bright red and yellow taxi.

Now where did this suddenly come from? Well, the other day my friend and I were talking about all the different types of books that we have read over the past many years, the variety of genres, and the importance of reading books other than those of course which are a part of school curriculum. She suddenly asked me which was the first book that I remembered having read as a non "school book". I promptly (well, perhaps a moment's hesitation was there) answered Noddy!! in Class I :D I have no memory of "book-reading" before that, but I definitely remembered this because starting from Class I to X we have always had a "library period" once a week. There was this large stack of Noddys in our class cupboard to be rotated amongst us and I remember eagerly waiting for that period. That was the time when I entered the wonderful world of BOOKS and discovered the Magic of Enid Blyton :)

It is not that I didn't read books by any other author or enjoy them as much; considering, however, that Enid Blyton has written over 600 books for young children, it is no surprise to me now that every other book that I could get my hands on (via school library or collections from friends' homes) was an Enid Blyton. Be it the Adventures of the Wishing Chair, The Naughty Children series, The Magic Faraway Tree series, Famous Fives, Secret Sevens, The Five Find Outers and the Dog :D or Malory Towers and St. Clare's....I was always in the possession of two or more ( no less, mind you ;) ) of these books. I did have my share of hindi books too...Panchatantra, Heeray-Moti, Nanihaal mein Guzre Din.....but being in an English medium school the ease of access to these books was more.
The world that was woven by her pen was so very enchanting! Anyone who has grown up on these books would know exactly what I mean. Vivid descriptions of the colourful scenery, characters, the delicateness of fairies, wit of the pixies, cunning of goblins and gnomes, power of magicians and wizards and not to forget the portraiture of the scrumptious food :D Toadstool houses and Blue cup cakes!!! I was soooooo fascinated by the thought of it! Funny animals, creatures and plants that could walk and talk!! There were of course lessons to be learnt too from these stories, the rewards of being good, brave, courageous and consequences of being otherwise. Then there were stories of these young children (at least one of whom you could completely identify with) and their adventures, escapades and secret clubs. I remember spending a lot of my holidays with friends pretending we were camping (a bed-sheet tent on the terrace/garden) or having a secret meeting (under the bed) complete with passwords and all :D It was a lot of fun. I sometimes used to wonder why I don't have access to a forest or a river or a haunted castle or caves! Whenever mom couldn't find me/see me/hear me in the house, it would be obvious that I am in "my reading corner" absorbed in one of these books oblivious to whats happening around me :P And what would be a perfect birthday gift for me would be no secret either!! As much as I used to enjoy getting lost in her books, I do owe a lot of my knowledge and development of vocabulary to her too.

If I went into details of the details of what was so great in each of her book series or description of the characters that I find so interesting etc. I would probably be writing a reallllllllly long article :P But I do believe (as would any other person who has grown up reading Enid Blyton books) that those who did not read her books in their childhood have indeed missed something, which unfortunately cannot be caught up with now. I am convinced that reading and immensely enjoying her work developed the "reader's bug" in me and I gradually moved on to other types of books. The kid in me still admits that I would love to flip through pages of her books anytime even today! No prizes for guessing what 5yr olds around me will be reading ;) Thanks Enid for all the magic and joy.

My take on Raavan music

After listening to the album at least 10 times now (in one day) I would say
Beera 9.5, Behne de 9.3, Kata Kata 8.8, Khili Re 8.2, Ranjha Ranjha 8.0, Thok de Killi 6.0

As of today Beera tops the album, but there maybe days or moments when I think Behne de will be a shade above it. Both of them are gems!! Its a pity Beera is only about three minutes..... but I am guessing (rather hoping) that it will be kind of the background song that plays at intervals in the movie situationally so that by the end of the movie it is topmost on your mind (like Omkara from Omkara :P ) (I have also heard that this song is sung by ARR himself in the Tamil version.....can't wait!!). The intro music in Behne de is heavenly, a really really fabulous song.
Kata kata is a lovely and fun song, I like the teasing feel in it. Though Rahul may be right in saying that it was composed in Tamil first; we can only wait and see. These three are definitely going feature regularly in my mixed playlist.
Khili Re is a nice, sweet, melodious song; but I feel it needs a bit more "growing" :P as does Ranjha Ranjha.
The beginning of Ranjha Ranjha was very good, but the rest of the song (in my opinion) did not match up to that and I need to get that out of my mind before I really form an opinion on this one....working on it ;). Also, I think in this case the visuals will definitely help me.
Thok de killi is worth listening only for the interlude music, the song per se does not work at all. One of those situational songs I guess which will sound ok on screen, but will definitely not stay on my playlist.
Overall, a nice album, but did not rise as high as were the expectations....but then again, it is ARR/Mani ratnam/Gulzar that we are talking of.

The CD cover of the album, however, is unimpressive compared to the fabulous movie posters. The one for the hindi album definitely looks like it is from a horror movie :P the color tones, the expressions on both Aishwarya's and Abhishek's faces do not hit any chord. The one for the tamil version is still better. Looking forward to it too as well as the movie (which seems a bit far still) :)

How to train your dragon

Very cute and well made, ain't as great as Kungfu Panda but gooooooood nevertheless :)
Or maybe that's because I have not seen it as many times as KP...while KP scored high due to its really awesome dialogues this one scores in its visuals and Hiccup-Toothless friendship. Maybe if I watch this a few more times (which I hope I will) I'll find it equally great!

Definitely worth a watch :)

Forgotten tune........

Was listening to some albums from Rahul's ARR-Tamil collection today when for no reason at all I felt like listening to "Indian". I think because a few days back we were discussing the funny lyrics of the songs "telephone dhun" and "latka" in the hindi version that I felt like listening to them again. The tunes lingering uppermost in my mind were obviously the most famous ones...the above two and "maya machindra" :P :D
And then this song started playing in the list.....



I was totally caught by surprise!!!!! :)
and a nice one too...........

I had completely forgotten that this song belonged to this movie and such a wonderful one too.....!! I can't remember the last time I heard songs from this album and as is with most things they had buried themselves deep down somewhere in my brain. But maybe not quite..... for the first few seconds of the song "tandaa na re taaa naa re aananda-maye" (and ONLY that part) used to sometimes out of the blue re-surface in my mind subconsciously. I used to hum this and then try to remember where I had heard this music piece and not quite place it ..... perhaps in some music class? friend's recital? movie? couldn't place it.... and as stealthily as it used to re-surface, with equal discretion it used to go back in :)
As soon as this part played today I was like....oh WOW...this is THAT music!! and the moment the beats of the song started I was even more astounded.....it is THIS SONG!! how did I forget!! :D :D Loved listening to it again sooooo much today that rest songs were all forgotten.....play-repeat-play-repeat..... :D and here's the post :)
I don't catch properly the lyrics of any song that I hear the first time (also true for several other times too) and it is the music that catches my ear and what really plays in my mind when a song plays. It is perhaps for this reason that I sometimes like several songs which have completely useless/absurd lyrics but wonderful music (at least I find it nice :) ). Precisely for that reason I loved hearing this song today in its original form (don't know what it means :P) and not the hindi version (who's lyrics I have forgotten). The "feel" of the song is good....its great :)
Listening to it for the umpteenth time while writing this :)

Oceans

Just came across this trailer of Disney Nature's Osceans on Apple trailers (watch it on Apple here).
And I was simply awed by it. Its magnificent, its beautiful, its superb!!!!!!
It may have been the combined effect of a) being a water baby myself, b) watching it on HD, c)watching it 6-inches away from the screen creating an "eye-max" effect and d) high volume on cool headphones :P
Watch the Youtube version here....
I wish I could catch it in theatres... :(




Watching awesome stuff like this sometimes makes me wish I were an explorer or had a job in a field or place which involved such amazing exploration, adventure, travel and fun. Of course I understand that it would have its own share of hardships and problems.....but that doesn't stop wishful thinking... :)

La vita è bella

Buongiorno Principessa ............. :)

Watched Life is Beautiful after a long long time today........it is one masterpiece!! Roberto Benigni is simply awesome, both as a director and as an actor in this gem of a movie. Not a single dull or over-dramatic moment.....you simply glide with the flow of the story. Great screenplay and wonderful enactment. If I ever list out my all-time favorite movies this one definitely has a spot in there :)
Those who have not watched it, go rent/buy it today...definitely worth more than a single watch and most certainly worth a keep :)

The meaning of I, Me, Myself....

"If there is anything about your “self” of which you can be sure, it is that it is anchored in your own body and yours alone. The person you experience as “you” is here and now and nowhere else."

Under certain circumstances, however, the statement mentioned above can be questioned.

Check out this interesting article by V.S.Ramachandran "Hey, Is that Me over There?"

Changes in the front parietal lobe of your brain can actually cause the sensation of disembodiment creating an "out-of-body" experience. It is amazing to note that in such cases you can actually see yourself doing things and not feel physically anything at all as would be the case when you watch another person in front of you. There are also these interesting conditions of several patients described in the article where it is observed that damage to this part of the brain, depending upon the extent and region of damage, creates different illusions.

One of the more fascinating illusions is the description of a patient who actually believed to have a twin attached to his body on his left-hand side who mimicked his actions with a very slight time delay!! I can't really imagine how these conditions would actually psychologically effect the patients.....it must be difficult to live thinking and believing that you have a conjoined twin who is with you all the time, watching you, mimicking you......I also wonder in such cases if it is also reported that the "twin" talks to you??? But they do not mention any such thing in this article of course.
They mention that the sense of ownership of material things by humans is an extension of the sense of "self" ownership. Ironically, I can imagine "hating" my beloved car when it doesn't start or gasping when my favourite coffee mug breaks...but I cannot imagine myself, or anyone else for that matter, hating one's arm for being a communist!! (The condition described for a patient in the article).

Always a treat to read about and ponder over the mysteries of the working of "our" brain. :)

The Japanese Wife

I remember, in 2008, when the book first released, I wanted to read it....had heard so much about the author from my friend Sharmistha. After hearing me tirelessly ranting about the author, his up-coming book and how much i wanted to buy it.....Smita and OKD obliged by gifting it to me on my Birthday :) I was thrilled...... and it did turn out to be a nice read. But, I had not expected it to be a short story and a part of a series of short stories in the book......nevertheless it was good. Then I heard that Aparna Sen was so intrigued by this simple and beautiful tale of two lovers that she had decided to make a movie on it which was due to be released in late 2008. Well, I was curious how she would play with the story to make a full fledged movie out of it....and was disappointed to hear that the release has been delayed. Very recently when I found out that it is finally going to release I secretly hoped that it would go down well with critics :P Any small hint that it is worth a watch and I would definitely do so.....and thus I end the movie spree of last week (5 in a row....two reviewed already plus The Hurt Locker and Good bye Lenin).
I must say....it was definitely worth it......a beautiful movie, wonderful cinematography, lovely and soulful background score and great performances. Though there were two places where I thought things went a little awry.....the kite flying scene (a bit vague and stretched) and the fleeting flirtation between the widow and the protagonist (the transition in characters was not smooth).
Some scenes are just fabulously shot..you have to see it to find out.
I watched it with two bong friends and they are of the opinion that some witticism was lost in translation from Bengali to English.... but that's true for any movie in a language other than what you are well versed with. One point though.....I wasn't too happy with the person who did the voice-over for Miyagi, the Japanese wife, but maybe that's because I have not heard any Japanese people speak in English at close quarters. Snehamoy's Bangla accented English however is superb :)

Here's the trailer:

Saturday Night Fever

Ok......another dance movie......FINALLY got to watch it....I don't know why i chose Dirty Dancing over Saturday Night Fever yesterday....no regrets or anything...just wondering because this one is the more famous of the two and i can say after watching it....for good reason too... :)
John Travolta rocks!!!! or should I say boogies! :P :D
Right from the first shot (Tony walking down the street in his shiny shoes and prim dress in-sync with Stayin' Alive) till the end the movie is engrossing....unlike the story of DD. DD had a simple story true to the early 60's kind of girl-boy relationships.....on the other hand SNF's story is based in late-70's and in some ways still relates to the kind of dilemma young boys and girls go through even today. It is a more mature story with small sub-plots to it that move together. Certain scenes also very subtly leave things to your imagination. And of course....how can I not say anything about the dances........they are great...as is the music. The solo piece by John Travolta is awesome. I would have liked the dance competition part to be a bit more lengthy than it was.... but it was good nevertheless......especially the small piece by the Puerto Rican couple.... I wish i could dance as well as these people!!!! I wish i wish i wish i wish...... :)
This movie takes you through more ups and downs emotionally as compared to DD .... you can feel the joy, the sadness, the dilemma, the frustration and the helplessness of the characters......a well made movie I must say. Great dances.... great music..... :)

Dirty Dancing

Just watched Dirty Dancing.....was one of the movies in the long queue of "have but need to see yet" :D I guess the dvd just got lucky that i was in a mood for a light, up-lifting movie!!
As far as any serious critic would probably go to say....the movie in itself, the plot is a drag....typical cliched stuff. There is this predictability about the whole movie which is very disappointing.The individual performances of the two lead actors in the movie are however worthwhile.
The biggest plus point of the movie....which makes me go as far as saying that i can probably watch this movie again......are the wonderful dance sequences and lovely music :) Thankfully, they make a large chunk of the entire movie!!!
The scene where Patrick teaches Jennifer the dance moves in the wild and in the water are very cute and so is the scene where finally they get together as a couple......aaaaahhhhh i know i'm being a romantic here ....looking on with dreamy eyes :P but then thats the way it is :)
Favorite songs: Be my baby, The time of my life, Hungry eyes and She's like the wind
Overall the entire album is worth a hearing in my opinion.
So anyone who loves dancing and would love to see some good sequences....go watch it!

Fun and Food Village.........

It is that time of the year again when Boss is far far away across continents and taking advantage of the fact the lab-mice (us...the poor tortured souls of students)are free to dare to step outside the institute premises. Okay okay......I don't mean that literally :P
I miss the old IISc lab-gang where it was mandatory to leave for a short trip/trek the night boss decided to fly away. I had a great time for the first three years of my PhD. But I am sorry to say that the current lab group is soooooooooo lazy and un-enthu that I have almost forgotten how much fun these trips are and can be.......
Last week I floated the idea of a one-day outing (long weekend...would have preferred a short trip outside delhi...a trek or something...but definitely no takers for that!!) and got about 12 people to visit this amusement park near delhi-gurgaon highway....the Fun and Food Village.....
Guess what...by the eve of the outing when I was giving out the deadline for taxi-bookings...the number had fallen down to a measly 5 people!!
I was in half a mind to cancel it out but then thought...what the heck......the 5 of us might as well go and have fun....opportunities such as this do not come everyday!!
And I am glad that we did go...... of course every trip has to start with me hitting a temporary red zone.......WHY CAN'T PEOPLE EVER BE ON TIME!!!..... I H.A.T.E waiting and also at the same time keeping someone else (here the taxi-waala) waiting. But the moment the journey starts ...all is forgiven and forgotten.....probably just because there is this thankfulness ki we are actually now having a trip? Anyway.....we did manage to reach quite early while the amusement park was not so crowded. It was a good place....lots of water rides and a big wave pool. Plus points for the water rides...minus points for not having the dry rides open before lunch. Plus points for providing swimwear at nominal rates...minus points for the tiny lockers. I am a water baby :) and had a great time splashing around...so did the others.... 3-4 hrs in water and of course we were exhausted and hungry.... the food zone though limited in variety made up for it in its taste (I do wonder though if it would have tasted as good if we weren't so famished :P anyway....it did serve its purpose well at the time required..so no complaints there). There was this mini-water bar kind of place in the lazy river zone which became our niche post-lunch ......simply floating there and chatting away......we dared not try out the rides for the fear of emptying out our meals :P !! The dry rides were limited but ok ...the Columbus was good and the hooting was the fun part....but as is always the case...once you have spent so much time playing in water you get really tired and don't enjoy other rides much....that's why I prefer to get over with the dry rides first and then enter the wet-zone. Was a fun-day overall :)
May have been my last "lab-trip"....not too sure....secretly wish it is and I leave soon.... :P

Hate mail.........

Stay put, deal with it, don't run away, it's all a part of life ......... i know i know i know...

But i wish i could at times just zap out all people around me and turn off completely all the voices in my head.....

I need peace .......... but not quiet .....

I wish i were atop a mountain....the breeze flowing fiercely all around me.... water gushing below....... scream at the top of my voice....just let go and flow....with the wind...or the water stream..... flow and flow and flow ..... tire myself out physically......till i lose the turbulence within and regain the tranquility.

Open your eyes....back in the world
Move on .... deal with it.....................

Books Books Books ..... !!!

Today I visited the International Book Fair at Pragati Maidan. Made it finally!!! This is one of the times when I actually did not miss out on the announcements of the fair and actually saw the announcement pre-commencement of the fair....but in the mad rush of everyday things to do finally did manage to squeeze it into my schedule on the very last day....had to sacrifice my weekend trip home (mum's complaining a bit :P ) but it was definitely worth it. Come to think of it......any trip to a book-store, exhibition or fair is always worth it for me :D I think I need to be prevented from time to time from visiting book stores....I invariably end up buying something even if I have some pending unread stuff with me.
I had given up hope of visiting the book fair this time due to my busy schedule and then consoled myself saying "I have enough books to keep me occupied for quite some time". But unexpectedly, yesterday when Tanu (my labmate) suggested a visit, I half-heartedly said yes and being exhausted almost cancelled it too....but finally did keep my promise. A step into the hall full of books and the smell of fresh untouched pages of brand new books was all it took to make me feel really glad that I did come :)
Books...books...books....everywhere....and all kinds.... it was simply wonderful.......some stalls bring back such wonderful memories.....MacMillan, Longman, Orient and you think of all your school readers.....all the children's books....those that I used to look at longingly back then and didn't buy...and all those that I would love to buy for kids (I think I will make a nice storybook mom-aunt :P ) Cambridge, Wiley, Pearson etc. ....and it reminds me of all the exams that I have given :D
Then of course the favourites......Penguin, Rupa, Harper Collins.....aaaahhhh..... so much to read and so many constraints! Well, I did empty my pockets...and so much more than what I had anticipated :D (but I had the reassurance from Rahul....they could count as my b'day gifts..yayyy :D ).

Today's loot included "Open" Andre Agassi's autobiography, two books by Shashi Tharoor, Cyrus Broacha's latest and a collection of George Orwell books. And I get a book free for buying so many!!
Visited several other publisher stalls too and returned all happy and satisfied (well...almost....you leave with the hope of returning again and re-visiting the joy of being lost among the books). Four hours well spent!! And the first attack has been made already....target Agassi :P :D
I promise to be good and finish all these before I buy any more books ;)

It's a conspiracy!!!

It is just so frustrating that you come to lab early morning (esp. with the thought that today feels like a bright new beginning) and find that the internet is not working!! and that too only on your port....you shuffle the connections, check if the proxies are right...re-check if everyone else's is working and re-re-check everything on your pc/connections.....finally you decide that it's time for the computer center guy to come and have a look. What is most embarrassing is that all he has to do it touch your comp and lo!! the internet is working!!! What were you thinking!!
Three days ago me and a colleague of mine were working late into the night. At about 2am when we were done, we simply couldn't find the keys to lock the lab......2 pairs of eyes are better than one..I'd heard.....but all to no avail. We looked everywhere, even at the most unlikely positions....and finally had to leave the lab open. Next morning the keys were miraculously restored (not just in some shady nook and corner) at their designated position....and we got looks of "how could you have possibly missed them!!!" At least in this case I had a witness that we really did search "everywhere"!
It's all a conspiracy I tell you!!!

Discovering the Tamil world of ARR :)

Well....being around an ardent fan of A R Rahman has its advantages :D
I enjoy both Hindi and English music.....and can say that my taste ranges from classical to fusion, pop, blues, rock, trance, country etc. "Music has no language" but I must say.....I have not ventured into listening of songs composed in a language other than these two very often and even if I do, and also like them, going back and listening to them repeatedly is only a temporary phase.....after a while they find a place in my playlist only occasionally; exception being some instrumental version of them or exceptionally likeable beats (in my personal opinion that is :P ). Time changes.... :D I can only say that I am glad that there is someone around me who has introduced me to a world of the LOVELY, AMAZING, BEAUTIFUL songs :) I don't think I can add anything to the beauty of these songs by saying something....they speak for themselves! I have only just started to listen to a few of them...and hope that many more are in store.... :)

Universe at a glance...

This video from the American Museum of Natural History is simply amazing!! How big (or small) you actually are..... I have no words to describe the awe I feel upon watching it!!



well....maybe not that small when you see the second half of this.... :)

On other Albums...

Hmm....besides Ishqiya (mentioned in the previous post) the other albums that i listened to recently are My Name Is Khan, Veer, Rann, Pyaar Impossible and Chance Pe Dance. I must say....none of them come close to Ishqiya. Most of them are regular come-and-go type. But I will place Veer above the rest. It does have some good songs which will last a while...for instance this (nice and peppy)



and this ....



and this...



As for Pyaar Impossible and Chance pe Dance, I think most of the songs will be enhanced only by the visuals and the situation (at least i hope they do.....!!) Very regular and monotonous. Maybe after regular bombardment on radio, TV and cellphones i might end up enjoying a few of them....:P especially the dance numbers...kya pata!!

Rann...... well not the type that will regularly feature in my playlist.....and i detest the "remote ko bahar phenk". They may go well with the "feel" of the movie as is typical of RGV movies.

My Name Is Khan..... well...I am a bit disappointed with the music considering it is a Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy album!! But then as Rahul would say....."After all they are not ARR!!! " :P Passable album with a few temporarily listenable good songs...say Sajda and RangDe............Incidentally....3 of the six songs by their name do remind of other older songs....Tere naina, Sajda and Rang de !! :P

Thats about the latest songs............ :)

Ishqiya......lovely start for 2010

Yesterday I finally got time to listen to some new songs ...... Ishqiya (recommended by Rahul), My Name Is Khan, Chance pe Dance and Pyaar Impossible. AND I am so glad for Ishqiya.......it is simply the best album....door door tak no comparison at all!!
4 songs.....each with a class of its own. I have already listened to the album 6 or 7 times (ok...that may not seem a lot to some...:P but considering the time i get to actually listen to them 6-7 times in 2 days is good).

Dil toh Bachcha Hai Ji: This song has a wonderful waltz feeling to it. I can't help but dance around in my room like I am in a ballroom :) Close your eyes...and the music takes you to the era with large halls...tuxedos and flowing gowns....I guess watching the song in the movie will change how i perceive the song later...but filhaal...I am loving this wonderful feeling of flowing across the hall :) plus the flamenco-like clapping beats gives it a very beautiful latino rhythm. Music ke baare mein zyada pata nahin.....but all i can say that it is a wonderful song and rahat fateh ali khan has done a wonderful job with the vocals.



Ibn-e-batuta: Well..... 3 days ago Rahul asked me if i knew who Ibn Batuta was....and I didn't know...nor had i heard the song!! Now I know who Abu Abdullah Muhammad Ibn Abdullah Al Lawati Al Tanji Ibn Battuta is :D (thanks to Wikipedia) and have also listened to the song which is clearly the most lovable song in the first hearing of the album. It is a complete FUN song!! I can't help but gyrate to its foot-tapping music....hats off to Vishal and Gulzar! Plus I must say that this is the first time that I have listened to a Mika song in its entirety and several times too!!!! :D Well...that goes to show what wonders the "right" kind of opportunities can do (that is not exactly how i want to put it...but can't think of better words... :P ) Sukhwinder has as usual done a great job ( i love 80% of his songs) :)
Here you go...phurrrrrrrrrr :D



Ab Mujhe Koi: Hearing this songs makes me feel that i am in some "Mehfil" with a live performance going on. The subdued music and smooth vocals gives it a very soothing feel. A very enchanting romantic song....the guitar piece in the middle of the song is simply beautiful!! A perfect choice for listening on a quiet evening in your cosy den with the special someone :)



Badi Dheere Jali: One of my favourite genres of music......classical-fusion!! Rekha has done a delightful rendition!!! The song has a certain erotic feel to it....dimly lit atmosphere in a golden glow....and silhouettes....oooh :) I love the way the song gradually fades towards the end.....leaving so much to imagination.



Once you hear such lovely songs.....the idea of remixes is off-putting. It is definitely the case with the Ibn-e-batuta remixes....but i must say that the "dil to bachcha hai ji" remix is not all that bad! Clinton Cerejo has done a good job of not spoiling the rhythm of the song while adding the remix flavor. It is definitely hearable and the other two definitely skippable :P

Overall.....a wonderful album which will stay on my playlist for a long time!