February 25, 2009

Fleeting thoughts!

*I felt a bit uncomfortable when A R Rahman won the Oscars. On one side I was happy that he got what he deserved but then on the other side I was a bit jealous. I don’t know the ABCD of music and I am in no way his competitor – but still I was unsure about this funny feeling inside me. It was much later I understood that it wasn’t because of the awards he won but it was because of the mass attention he as an ‘individual’ attracted. Not all are born with this kind of destiny!

*Someone sometimes is successful in breaking the demographical and religious barriers to such an extent that people want to get associated or connected with them in one or the other way. A R Rahman is one of them. No one calls him a Chennaite or no one remembers that he is a Muslim. He is just referred to as an Indian.

*I am totally pro-Muslims, but I know a lot of educated people who are completely anti-Muslims- they are so because they want to be so. Maharashtrians who are born anti-Muslims I am sure this time cannot prefer to bring the Muslim factor while celebrating A R Rahman’s glory. Rather they cannot afford to.

*It is quite possible that in future the Bollywood crowns A R Rahman as a Mumbaite - completely ignoring or forgetting that his base is from South India. The power of North India-centric media I should say. Hence one good thing A R Rahman did to prove his base was he spoke in Tamil after being awarded the Oscar and not in Hindi.

*The credit for Rahman’s success in fact goes to the filmmakers of Tamil Nadu (completely ignored by the media) who trusted him and nurtured his talents for decades. And the Bollywood cannot snatch it overnight.

Posted by Kenni at 07:07 AM | Comments (0)

August 01, 2008

I have lost a bit of respect for ‘Rajini Kanth!’

One of my clients - who knew that I watched Rajini previous flick ‘Sivaji’ first day, first show, first row – buzzed me to ask whether I have already watched Super Star’s latest release ‘Kuselan,’ and I said, “no.” I will wait, and I am in no hurry.

From the day I understood movies, I am an ardent fan of Rajini, but then I think I should just look at him as an actor – and nothing more than that. I think attributing super human personality to Rajini or any other actor for that matter is mere foolishness, and it can affect the society adversely in the longer run.

I knew a bit about the story. It is a remake of Malayalam movie, and the main story line is lifted from Krishna - Sudama mythology where the poor Sudama - a childhood friend of Lord Krishna - comes to meet Krishna, who is a king now. I think Sudama is called Kuselan in Tamil.

I sincerely purchased an audio CD of the movie and saw Rajini’s photo in all its glory. But the picture of the real hero - Pasupathi - was completely missing! Not even a thumbnail of the hero was seen anywhere! I personally think it can be considered as the height of ‘humiliation’ any actor could possibly face.

Of course Pasupathi is a no body in the movie industry, and cannot stand a chance near Rajini – but still – you cannot ignore someone so uprightly. It simply means that we haven’t understood the importance of Kuselan as a character. If the movie makers wanted just Rajini to be seen they could very well cast Rajini as Lord Krishna and made him talk to someone who does an Arjun!

No wonder Pasupathi didn’t turn up for the music release. I sincerely feel every actor – big or small - deserves respect in the best possible way.

I know the CD thing wasn’t Rajini idea, but then I am sure he should have intervened. If he can intervene into Karnataka politics, send apology letter to the leaders, and then come on the Television to publicly apologize for something he thought he did right for Tamil Nadu, then he surely should have given Pasupathi some respect.

And moreover with this apology drama he has made it very clear that he not only is a good actor but also a good businessman where his only motive happens to be - ‘profit maximization.’

I am not saying I won’t watch Kuselan, I surely will. But then I have lost some respect for Rajini Kanth already.

Posted by Kenni at 03:00 PM | Comments (0)

July 14, 2008

Mayajaal – motherfuckers!

This time it was completely my mistake. A couple of days back I called the same Chennai-based multiplex a group of cheaters. And this time I call them a group of motherfuckers. My mistake isn’t in calling them what they deserve to be. But my mistake is to have gone to the same multiplex once again to watch another movie!

The movie was ‘Subramaniyapuram’ directed by the assistant director turned director Sasi. The movie is completely set in the 80s, where you notice all the cast in hippy hairstyle wearing those funny bell-bottoms. I think even Mayajaal wanted to take their viewers to the 80s.

After the tickets got over, and the movie house was full this bloody Pentamedia asshole sold extra tickets off the record and made latecomers to sit in the corners of the theatre by pulling extra chairs from the cafeteria!

So there were some 50 people more in the theater than the allotted number of seats, completely blocking all the pathways – even the emergency exit! I really wished that there should have been a fire emergency, and few people got charred to death so that press came into the scene and made this human folly known internationally! We still haven’t learnt anything from Kumbakonam school mishap or Delhi theatre mishap.

Last time I had fought enough with the fucking Mayajaal’s manager, hence this time I didn’t wanted to see his ugly and irresponsible face. Instead I walked towards a guy who was more than happy to have gotten ticket on the sides. I told him, I am from the press, and how come you are sitting here? He said we had a friend who booked it for them, as they were late for the movie. I asked which firm are you from? And he refused to tell me. From the face it was visible that he was educated, and also should be working for some MNC. I told him we are educated, and we should not be doing this. And he smiled at me – and I never understood what he really meant by that smile.

I went back to my seat, watched the movie silently. Came home, thought about it for many hours, and took a decision. I will never visit Mayajaal again in my life – and it is a complete fullstop. In fact I think I will stop visiting any multiplexes - till people stop talking in the theatre as if it is their drawing room, till people stopped fiddling around with their flashy mobile phones being least bothered about the person sitting next to them, and till multiplexes stop selling stuff at more than MRP prices.

Posted by Kenni at 08:36 AM | Comments (0)

July 11, 2008

Subtitles – a blessing!

In spite of being educated in English medium institution right from childhood, I never understood most Hollywood movies for the simple reason that I never understood what they tried to converse. It remains the same till date. Today probably the only difference is I can understand 10 per cent of what they mumble. For this very reason, I never had any inclination towards Hollywood movies, and thought watching Jackie Chan’s would suffice. I could have never understood the power of Hollywood movies if I had not met this client of mine.

In the very first conversation about Hollywood movies we had - my friend (client) warned me not to watch Hollywood movies. Out of curiosity I asked why, and he replied – you will lose respect for vernacular movies. I refused to agree then.

I am a movie freak myself, and should have watched 70 per cent of all the Hindi and Tamil movies that have released so far in India. And I thought we make good movies.

I told him, I never understand their dialogues, and he said sub titles are for people like me. I asked him a list of Hollywood movies, and he sent me one. And from that day, I collected one movie everyday from a DVD library, and started watching it.

He was very right. After watching them I have lost a lot of respect for Indian moviemakers. I am not saying they are bad. They are in fact too good. They are good at copying, they are good at lifting the plots as it is and say they got influenced, they are good at not acknowledging the source, and they are good at taking home credits and awards by using someone else’s original idea.

Our movies don’t win Oscar Awards - not because we make bad movies, it is because we don’t make original movies. We don’t experiment. We always want to work with plots that are used and that which are safe to handle. Moreover 90 per cent of Indian movies are tailored made to target the unintelligent auto drivers. No wonder actors like Vijay in Tamil Nadu is a star now, with zero potential or ability to perform.

I happen to watch 1983 release Al Pacino’s Scarface yesterday. And I didn’t like the movie. Not because the movie was bad, but because it was like watching some 15 Hindi movies, and some 20 Tamil movies together. Scenes, plots, sub plots, and dialogues have been picked so many times in so many Indian movies, that the original movie looked so boring, and guessable.

Here are few well-known Indian movies, which went home with credits after being lifted from the West. I have discovered very few, and I am sure I will find many in days to come…

Remembering the Titans - Chak De (if you watch both compare Shahrukh and Denzel you will know the difference yourself)

Godfather – Sarkar, Sarkar Raj, Nayagan (I know it is an old comparison)

Scarface – Agneepath, Nayagan

Memento - Gajini

And if you watch them closely you can see many plots, and sub plots being lifted as it is. Kaka Kaka, which made waves in Tamil Nadu has a scene which is lifted as it is from the movie Se7en of Morgan Freeman. And I thought Guatam Menon was original.

So I pass on the warning to you. Don’t watch Hollywood movies, you will only lose respect for Indian moviemakers.

Posted by Kenni at 03:09 PM | Comments (0)

June 25, 2008

Dasavatharam – the debate goes on!

This is my third blog on the movie Dasavatharam. This time I got another mail, which explains the movie better, and from an altogether different angle. In fact I am not sure if Kamal himself thought about the story in these many angles, or it is just his intelligent interpreters who keep giving more and more meaning to his not so good movie. I think the final verdict about the movie could be – a good story, a good screenplay, a good direction, but a bad movie.

Interesting observations mentioned in the mail -

*The 1st scene is perfectly connected to the climax, remember what Kamal says in the 1st scene, that he will not say "Om Nama Shivaya", but Asin tells him to chant it, but still Kamal refuses , (in this Kamal in his story tries to tell that) Nambi believes in his God more than anything, but Asin feels "Its ok if we change the god or chant other god's name, its life thats most important."

Now if you see the climax its JUST OPPOSITE.... Kamal doesn't believe in God much and values lives of people the most.... but Asin deeply believes in God and that too this dialogue comes when both Asin and Kamal's hand is on the God which came from the sea , and it also means that they are getting united from the place they departed hundreds of years back (Kamal and Asin).The connection between the 1st scene and the climax in the movie shows the generation circle combined with supernatural powers of GOD and destiny..... !!!

*If you watch it closely you can also find another actor who has done double action other than Asin and Kamal. Asin's father Sahasranamam [12th Century], in the beginning he says to Nambi "Panchatchira manthirathai sollitu vaango mappillai" and at the End [After tsunami] he says "Avar enna jathiyo inga vaanga paati ".Another Eg. of Chaos Theory and circle of life.

Nambi’s explanation -

Okay, this is slightly outside the chaotic system driving the film as a whole. From what I could gather he says that this story is about ideologies like God, the madness surrounding such ideologies and decides to tell the story of the Shaivite-Vaishnavite conflict to show how people go crazy in the name of God as an example.

As a loose end, it gets tied up in the end, when the Ranganathar idol is thrown out of the sea due to the Tsunami, which highlights the cyclic nature of life. Actually the Nambi character highlights both Chaos and Karma which I explained. That is the brilliance of this film, there is so much to see and understand.

Another explanation (and this is slightly far fetched--- as explained earlier) is that Govind is in fact the reincaranation of Nambi. As Nambi he couldn't protect God and died in the name of God. In order to fulfill his Karma, he is reincarnated as Govind Ramasamy who ultimately saves the world from destruction. The idol in the end somewhat hints to this theory; his story began with the idol and it ends with the idol.

As far as the connection with Nambi character and events in 12th Century goes...The connection is based on the "Butterfly effect ".

*When Govind and Andal go to the bury the idol in the sands, Andal stumbles on a particular stone couple of times...This is the same stone as the one from 12th Century hen Kothai rips her Thaali and flings it at Kulothunga Chozan...it will end up hanging on the stone. So, the implied message here is Andal is Kothai reborn in the 21s century.

*During the encounter with Santhana Bharathi in the sand quarry, it is repeat of the incident from 12th century. Instead of Kulothunga Chozhan, it is the Sand Mafia who tries to inflict damage on the land. This movie is a brilliant juxtaposition of independent characters whose paths cross, if only briefly, which is stunning example of Chaos Theory.

*The idol that is drowned in the sea along with Rangarajan in 12th century by Chozha king results in a fault being developed at the bottom of the ocean and creates tremors more than 800 years later. These tremors result in the Tsunami. This again is a classic case of Butterfly Effect wherein a seemingly inconsequential event (the drowning of the idol) saves Tamil Nadu from being wiped out off the face of the earth.

But actually Kamal has not left anything for our imagination .. Explanation struck the right chord, Kamal does tell to Asin in a dialogue that idol which gets sunken back then gets struck between the tectonic plates under the sea and causes Tsunami...

Many people missed this dialogue I guess. Kamal's accent was so very perfect Tamil, that many people missed it.... Being perfect is a problem by itself !!! :)

Although the explanation is a least possible theory, that is what "Chaos Theory" and "Butterfly Effect" are all about. Its not just the statue that caused the Tsunami, but it just started a large chain of effects which kept multiplying exponentially and finally lead to it after 800 years....!!

The story line is that things going wrong are made to be right which involves many people and countries knowingly or unknowingly.

Knowingly

-Bush, Manmohan Singh, Govindh, Fletcher, Balaram Naidu, Mallika Sherawath.

Unknowingly
- Nambi's drowning to death with the heavy statue causes simple changes to the seabed that causes a devastating tsunami 800 years later [Acc. to Chaos theory it is possible.... although it is least probable... It is possible.. so nothing TOTALLY WRONG About it ]

- Poovaragan (actually saved Kamal unknowingly- --when Poovaragan enters Kamal and Asin were caught by those manal kollayargal. There Poovaragan distracts the gang helping Kamal to escape),

- Avatar Singh(gave way to Fletcher to escape in the airport unknowingly),

- Japanese (saved govind from Fletcher, he knows he is saving but he doesn’t know about the play and was there only for revenge),

- Kallifulla and family (saved Govind unknowingly) ........
- Vincent is a dalit leader of a lower caste but saved an Iyengar Girl ......and at the end becomes the son of the Iyengar Paati !!

- If Shingen Narahashi's sister was not killed, Fletcher could have killed Govind and used the virus for wrong purpose..

This is based on Chaos Theory..!!!!!

Posted by Kenni at 05:25 AM | Comments (0)

June 22, 2008

Dasavatharam – an interesting analysis!

I got this mail from one my clients, where someone explains Dasavatharam in a more meaningful manner. I honestly never watched the movie, keeping all these factors in mind….if that was so, then the movie is an interesting attempt.

The mail was….

One thing we had noticed is why people didn't get the real subtext and reason for the various roles and hence the title. If you knew the real dasavatharams of Lord Vishnu and their characters you can appreciate the script more.

Let me explain, starting with the best adapted role:

1) Krishna avatar - Vincent Poovaraghavan Lord Krishna is actually a dalit, he is dark-skinned (Shyamalam)]. He saved draupadi when she was being violated and he was the actual diplomat in Mahabharatham. Lord Krishna dies of an arrow striking his lower leg. Now look at how Vincent was introduced. He appears when Asin is about to be molested and he saves her like Draupadi.
Vincent is the dalit diplomat, fights for land issue [soil issue to be exact] and dies from the metal rod striking his leg. Oh even five of Vincent's men are drugged at P. Vasu's.. sounds familiar???

2) Balarama avatar - Balarama Naidu This is an easy given. As the name suggests and the role personifies you can easily get it.

3) Mathsya avatar - Ranagaraja Nambi Nnambi is thrown into water in an act of trying to save lord from being thrown into sea, though vainly. What more clue do you want?

4) Varaha avatar - Krishnaveni Paatti. During the Mukunda song, Krishnaveni Paatti does Varaha avatar in the shadow puppetry. The frame freezes on it for a second. there is the clue. Moreover, in varaha avatar lord actually hides earth so as to protect life forms. Here too Krishnaveni hides the germs - life form inside the statue so as to protect.

5) Vamana avatar - Kalifulla Khan remember in Vamana avatar, lord Vishnu takes the Vishvaroopa, that is the giant form! Hence the giant Kalifulla here symbolizes Vamana avatar.

6) Parasurama avatar - Christian Fletcher. Parasurama is actually on an angry killing spree and killed 21 generations of the particular kshatriya vamsa. Hence the real KILLER... Guess what thats what our Fletcher is! He comes around with the gun [modern upgrade for axe] and kills everyone around. I have to check if he kills 21 people though. :-D

7) Narasimha avatar - Shingen Narahashi first of all the name itself is a play on the words Singam [means lion in Tamil] and Narasimha [the avatar being symbolised]. LordNarasimha manifests himelf to kill the bad guy and he also teaches Prahaladha. In the movie, he shows up to kill the killer Fletcher! and is also a teacher.. Lord Narasimha had to kill the Asura with bare
hands and hence the martial arts exponent here.. get it?

8) Rama avatar - Avatar Singh Lord Rama stands for the one man one woman maxim, kind of symbolising true love.. Here Avatar portrays that spirit by saying that he loves his woman more than anything and wants to live for her.

9) Kalki avatar - Govindaraj Ramasamy As you know, the hero in kaliyug can be none other than the Kalki avatar!!!

10) Koorma avatar - Bush This is the most loose adaptation I couldn't clearly comprehend. But if you look at the real Koorma avatar, the lord is the turtle/tortoise that helps in stirring the Ksheera Ssagara and bringing out the amruth. This essentially creates war among the devas and asuras.

Similarly today Bush facilitates war between you know whom... May be Kamal also indicates that this avatar is a bit dumb like the tortoise...


Posted by Kenni at 10:33 AM | Comments (0)

June 19, 2008

Dasavatharam – my view!

The story is simple. It is about the chaos theory – which states that no event in this world takes place without a reason. And all those events, which happen – how much ever small or big they may look – have a cosmic purpose. A butterfly fluttering in the remotest part of Africa can be reason for the downfall of stock market in the US. And also you reading this particular blog need not be a mere accident, but it could be a part of a bigger divine plan, which we will understand better in the future.

As said previously - the story is simple, but then Kamal Hassan and his team have complicated it to the extent - beyond repair. The story begins with a 13th Century incident where a Vaishnavite (Kamal) is drowned alive on the orders of a Shivaite King. 1st character.

A scientist (Kamal) in the 21st Century is working on a virus, which could kill people in millions. His boss wants to pass it on to the wrong hands for few crores. The scientist runs away with the virus sample, and the chaos starts. 2nd character

An American (Kamal) agent is recruited to chase the Scientist (Kamal) to get the virus sample back. And rest of the movie is all about how the American Kamal chases the scientist Kamal – right from the US to Chennai. And in between there are 7 other Kamals who are introduced one by one in different roles and characters. But for Mallika Sherawat’s butt nothing is noteworthy, and Asin is too loud in the second half. The sad part of the movie is – post interval the movie takes a Crazy Mohan twist, where it looks like a comedy flick.

The whole of movie gives you a feeling that you have come to see some mela - ‘exhibition.’ May be Kamal Hassan’s obsession towards of self-exhibitionism. Both Kamal and K S Ravi Kumar probably thought that they could walk home with credits for a bad story and a bad script, by keeping people busy in Kamal’s make up, which end of the day make him look like rubber dolls.

I didn’t understand, what was the necessity for Kamal to take up 10 roles on the first place, where you don’t look like yourself. It is like you wear a mask of monkey, and say you acted like a monkey in one movie, you wear a mask of Amitabh Bacchan – and say I acted like Amitabh Bacchan in another movie. I think characters are all about you looking yourself, and enacting someone you aren’t.

The movie left me with few questions to ponder too –

*How is the 13th Century Kamal connected to virus and also Tsunami?
*Dr Kamal wants the people to believe in God or he doesn’t want to?
*Who is more powerful – Lord Narayana or Lord Shiva?

My verdict – after a long time I got a headache after watching a movie. I am an ardent fan of Kamal Hasan – but still the movie is badly made.

Posted by Kenni at 02:44 PM | Comments (0)

April 10, 2008

What did I do on my birthday!

Getting into the movie industry has been one of the passions I always had. That doesn’t mean I want to struggle for years together in the entertainment industry to taste success. When success has to come, it will come on its own – we need not struggle for it. Rather we just need to have the patience to wait. I always mention the example of the great composer Naushad, who stayed & struggle in a slum opposite Mehboob Studios for 17 years before he could get into the studio for composing music for his first movie. I would rather say, he could have celebrated life till 16th year, and then tried getting into the Studio in the 17th year – he still would have got the offer! Where you reach in life doesn’t depend upon your effort, it depends upon what time you are running!

Well yesterday, I wanted to do something different, and hence was exploring the movie editing software – Cyberlink Powerdirector. I had few ‘still’ pictures of a trip to Mahabs I had gone with my friends a couple of years back. And I tried weaving a story around it…well there is ‘NO’ music in the video, but there is something interesting for the men at the end ;).


Posted by Kenni at 04:26 AM | Comments (0)

September 07, 2007

Chukde or F@&# De?

I recently watched ‘Chakde India’ and this was the 3rd movie in my life, which I wasn’t able to sit through. The other two were Mani Ratnam’s Iruvar and Dil Se. Chakde India’s story is simple and also very predictable. You know what is coming all through the movie, and there is zero suspense maintained. Shahrukh Khan has performed well rather he has not performed at all – hence he is tolerable.

There are some 16 women hockey players, and 1 Shahrukh Khan. Every woman is from a different state, and every woman has a peculiar behaviour, characteristic, and also a problem. These get highlighted in the practice sessions, and these problems get rectified one by one as they move towards the finals. The last problem gets rectified in the final match.

In fact there are not much difference between Aamir Khan’s Lagaan, and Shahrukh Khan’s Chakde India.

The similarities –

Problem - England (Lagaan), Pakistan (Chakde India)
Players – 10 Men & 1 Kachra (Lagaan), 16 women - all kachras

Differences –

Hero – Aamir Khan (Lagaan), Shahrukh Khan (Chakde India)
Game – Cricket (Lagaan), Hockey (Chakde India)

Of course the movie is a hit, and I could see most men in the theatre whistling and clapping all through the movie. May be they had come with their wives and / or girl friends, and had no other go but to prove their non-MCP attitude by showing themselves excited about how women can surpass men if given a chance.

The movie is a must watch for all those patriots, who still harness the hope of India toping the medal charts in Olympic games (hum honge kaamyaab ek dinnnnnnn). It is always good to see something on reels, which otherwise looks impossible in real life.

Well if someone who has watched the movie already, kindly let me know what is wrong with Sharukh Khan’s scooter? Why is he not able to start it when he leaves the house, and why is he not able to come on a scooter after 7 years? Why is he pushing it all through?

Posted by Kenni at 07:33 AM | Comments (0)

June 15, 2007

First day, first show, first row!

The much-awaited Rajni’s new flick ‘Sivaji’ released today and I had the golden opportunity to watch the same – first day, first show and that too sitting in the first row. What more could a Rajni’s fan ask for? Honestly life cannot get better than this. The show timing was 7 am, and three special shows were shown for fans alone. Thank god my brother- in-law had been a Rajni fan club leader since the childhood days I know him, and getting the ticket wasn’t a problem at all.

I had postponed my Tiruppur trip from 3rd to 13th so that I can fulfill one of my long yearned desires of watching Rajni Kanth’s movie on the Silver Screen before anyone could comment on how the movie was or before anyone could review the movie. And as expected – the experience was electrifying!

Rajni’s movies in Tamil Nadu are not just movies. They happen to be more important than any festival, where in every member of any family – children, women, men & the elderly – join the celebration with utmost joy and expectation.

I got up at 5 am, got ready, and reached the theatre at 6 am. The crowd was unbelievable, and the traffic was already jam-packed. The colourful posters and the huge cut outs of Super Star can only make one wonder – what could be the possible magic that Rajni possesses which makes him an entertainment God in India (now in Japan too).

The screen opened, and Rajni appeared on the screen. I turned around to have a glimpse of how the crowd reacted. And the celebration mood was 100 times more than when Sachin Tendulkar hits a four or a six of the last ball!

The whistles, the claps, and the applause filled the air with prolonged euphoria, which hardly came to still all through the movie. I am yet to see a movie - English, Hindi or Tamil - with so much of excitement from the viewers’ side, and I don’t think it will ever happen in years to come.

Rajni is undoubtedly the ‘Super Star’!

I don’t want to write anything about the story part now. The movie is excellent, and as usual a must watch. Rajni looks awesome, and you can hardly take your eyes off him. His style and punch dialogues are unparalleled. Director Shankar has done his job, and his magnanimous is seen in every scene!

Padam summa adurudhuleee!


Posted by Kenni at 04:00 PM | Comments (0)

November 14, 2006

Will ‘Guru’ do good at the box office?

This is my first attempt in documenting a prediction about how a particular movie will do at the Box Office before its release.

Someone who is in a way associated with Abhishek Bacchan-starring Mani Ratnam’s latest flick ‘Guru’ met me recently. The person’s major concern was, whether the movie will do well at the box office? And this gave me a chance to predict about the performance of a movie, which otherwise I have never done before.

I don’t have Mani Ratnam’s horoscope, but here I have tried to predict the performance of his next movie using his life pattern. He ran a very bad period since the year 2002, where two of his highly proclaimed movies bombed at the box office. Madhavan-Simran starring Kannathil Muttam Ittal, and Ayude Ezhuthu (Yuva in Hindi) were neither appreciated much by people nor by the media.

Moreover he was hospitalized in the same period for mild chest pain, and top of it, he lost his brother GV, who eventually had committed suicide due to high debts. GV was believed to have sponsored most of Mani’s endeavours.

Saturn transited in the month of November 2006, which should surely bring Mani some good news on his career front. The period between November 2006 and January 2007 will be ideal for him to release the movie. And I heard from my sister, that she saw a poster at Satyam Cinema, announcing the release of the movie in the month of December 2006, which astrologically is an awesome period for Mani Ratnam.

I also checked my Tarot Cards to answer the client query about the movie. And the cards that flashed were the Sun, and 9 of Pentacles - based on which it can be astrologically said that that the movie will do really well at the box office, will make high collections, and also will receive international acclaim!

Abhishek Bacchan is already running an awesome time, so his luck should favour the movie too.

Pray God for the movie and also for my predictions and me!

Posted by Kenni at 11:36 AM | Comments (0)

August 31, 2006

So much for a movie?!

The much-awaited Kamal Hassan starring ‘Vetaiyadu Vilaiyadu’ written and director by Gautham released last week, and I wanted to watch the movie before I read any reviews. I am an ardent fan of Kamal Hasan, and never miss his movies. Mayajaal, my favourite multiplex in Chennai, ran some 10 shows in a day, and we got the ticket for the 11.55 pm show! After college days, this is the first time I have been outside home in the nights with a woman (my wife) and this time I had my 2 kids with me too.

The movie was awesome. The characterization of Kamal will surely inspire a lot of youngsters to become cops in their lives. In fact after the movie was over, even I was thinking about the age limit to enroll as a policeman. I guess I am already too old for it.

The background score by Harris Jayaraj rocks, and creates the right mood at the right time. The story is excellent, and has impressive twists and turns. The pace of the movie is well maintained, and there are many scenes that will give you goose bubbles. Kamal is admirable, right from his body language as a middle aged DCP to the wireless stunts he performs, and Jyothika is watchable in the romance sequences.

The movie got over at 3 am, and we reached home at 4 am. It was quite an experience to ride bike at that hour on the ECR. We thought we were the only cranky people around to take such a risk. But then the hall was full! I am sure if they had run another show at 3 am – even then people would have flocked. The charisma of Kamal Hassan I should say.

Verdict – A must watch!

Posted by Kenni at 07:41 AM | Comments (0)

June 24, 2005

Anniyan Thought provoking!

Since childhood we are trained to be good & obedient. We are asked not to indulge in other peoples problems. We hate violence, thanks to M K Gandhi. And we have this attitude of sab kuch chalta hai (enna nadanda numekku enna) inbuilt in our system. We usually dont mind bribing the traffic police, or crossing the lane, or being fooled by spurious products. We usually dont consider them as mistakes or sins, which probably could affect Indias over all growth. The only thing we do to prove our love towards the nation is emptying our cupboard of old clothes when there is a natural calamity like that of earth quakes & tsunami!

What if a person who refuses to stop his vehicle to help an accident victim is killed in a cave by few thousand buffaloes stamping on him? What if the contractor who provides stale & tasteless food on trains is fried in boiling oil like chicken 65? Or what if the owner of a brake company who sold fake brake wire is killed by using live leeches sucking all his blood? This is what Shankars movie Anniyan is all about.

Ambi is a lawyer from an Iyangar family who hates to break the rules. Anniyan is an extension of Ambis mind or thought that wants to clear the society of scum. Remo is a self generated character by Ambi, who wants to win the heart of his beloved. And all the 3 characters are splendidly performed by the one and only Vikram, and there are no triple roles!

The movie isnt about narrating a story. It is about a thought or concept that has been picturized in the best possible way. Shankar, known for his munificence, style & graphics has used his creativity to the best. And his thirst for minutest perfection is clearly visible in each & every frame of the movie. Shankar of course needs accolades for the effort.

The first half of the movie is full of characterizations, events & murders while the second half is about how Shankar justifies or convinces the audience about the first half. Of course there are sequences where boredom strikes you, but still the movie is worth a watch.

Vikram looks ok as Iyangar, great as Anniyan & cool as Remo. He is awesome, and at his best of course - especially when he juggles between the characters. And the costumes & the outlook even men would fall in love with him!

The only thing that wonders me is if Shankar has any special soft corners for the Iyers & Iyengars. Gentleman revolved around Brahmin subject, and now Anniyan. To be honest in real life I have found them to be the first to run away from others problems. No hardfeelings - Anniyan still is a must watch!

Posted by Kenni at 09:18 AM | Comments (0)

October 22, 2004

Movie ideas!

I used to play with plastic toys, till I was 14. Guerilla was the hero, and the toy holding 2 guns in his hands was the villain. I had motorboats for the villain to kidnap the heroine, a bicycle and a string attached to the guerillas head to help him swing to save the heroine. Eveready batteries, empty nail polish bottles were stacked in villains den, as they stack empty drums in the movies. I supervised story, screenplay, direction and stunts and my mom was the producer as she was the one who never refused to get me those toys. My stories never had songs, and the only viewer was myself, as my sister always refused to sit with me as I never gave her any of the responsibilities I handled!

As time passed by people at my home started worrying about me. My mom thought I was not growing, while my sisters started thinking I was turning into a psycho. But I was content with what I was doing. I had my own world of fantasy, and I was completely happy with it.

As I grew up, I realized that I have intense love for the process of movie making. And I wish I could get associated with the movie industry some day in my life. The experienced say that the movie industry is a sick area and that lot of struggle and compromises are required to make your own name. I am honestly not interested in going through all that hardships, would rather take the short cut to success.

Here are few story ideas I contemplate to make movies in the future. Just waiting for someone to get in touch with me who can trust my potential, and also fund my project!

Vamsee Vardhan Ko Ladki Chahiye (bi-lingual) - comedy

This story revolves around 4 characters, who are corporate employees of different ages working for the same firm.

Rajan is a lover boy, happy going, in love with Rekha but not sure whether he will marry her!
Rekha a Keralite, sensitive, extremely in love with Rajan, hardworking, and fun loving.
Kennedi married with 2 kids, philosophic, talks and thinks more than his age
Vamsee is a new associate, young, impulsive, dynamic, and in love with the concept of love

Vamsee instantly falls in love - not with 1 but with 3 girls - the day he joins. He doesnt have any hidden motive, but then he wants SOMEONE desperately and that too urgently.

The rest of the story is about how Rajan, Rekha and Kennedi help Vamsee in making his move in letting those girls know about his feelings towards them and how he fails in all the attempts due to his Extra Intelligence Syndrome.

Finally, a 4th person enters Vamsees life and changes his perception about love, and they get married.

Biwiyaan ho ti aisi! - comedy

Suraj is in his late 20sa middle-aged and a very successful man at a young age. He is intelligent, he is rich, he is smart and he loves women but just for momentary relationships. He is a non-believer, and 2 major things in life he hates are the concept of God and marriage. He has valid points to support his views about not getting married. He says, by nature you wont get a person who suits your likes and dislikes, and also why should a man compromise in life when he has so many other women providing the same service.

One fine morning God appears in front of Suraj, and gives him a boon. And the boon is Suraj can program is wife as he wants, and he has the liberty to change the program 5 times!

Suraj decides to get married, and he already has programmed an ideal girl he always wanted - very beautiful, very sexy, very intelligent, very confident and very caring. Everything goes fine till he finds the blend a bit boring and problematic. He keeps changing the program to suit his need, which keeps changing with time and finally realizes that the change has to brought from within and seeking happiness outside is mere foolishness.

Story ideas to follow -

Agar? - thriller

What if the Prime Minister is dead, and the media keeps him alive?
Agar is one mans struggle to let the world know the truth!

Posted by Kenni at 07:32 AM | Comments (0)

June 28, 2004

Lakshya – aimless!

The difference between a good movie and a super hit movie is its repeat value and Lakshya lacks it completely. Farhan Akhtar, of the Dil Chahta Hai fame, has done everything but has failed to impress the audience.

Hrithik Roshan is living in an acute phase of life where he has a girl friend for romance, a rich dad to sponsor his expenses, and servants to look after him, and the million dollar question he needs to seek answer for is – what is he gonna do about his life?

His girlfriend Preity Zinta, like any other career oriented woman of today’s age, is clear about what she wants in life. She wants to become a reporter and she becomes one.

Hrithik decides to join the NDA impulsively, just to support one of his friends’ viewpoints and gets totally dejected when he ditches him. Hrithik’s aspiration for joining the NDA becomes intense when his father warns him that he should not join the army, and that he has to live his life as his father wants him to!

The army training sessions are shot well, and it brings chuckles to few. If this is one story about a useless brat who succeeds in finding his aim (Lakshya), there is another story that runs parallel – the Kargil war. When we get busy in the flow another subplot pops up – who is better, men or women!

Preity Zinta breaks her engagement (this seems to be her prime job in Akhtar’s movie), as she finds career more important than personal life. If so, why she gets busy in gaining Hrithik’s attention at Kargil when audience expect some dare devil reporting stuff from her is quite debatable. Barkha Dutt of NDTV, who did an amazing job of reporting from Kargil in 1999, inspires Preity’s character - not to forget that few soldiers were killed in saving Barkha’s life.

Amitabh, Om Puri & Amrish Puri - the golden team of Dev are wasted royally. Amitabh’s name casts first in the title, and that is the only solace he would get out of Lakshya.

Prabhu Deva’s choreography is excellent, the picturesque location is a real treat to the eyes, but the filming of Kargil war is a bit immature - makes one wonder if only 20 Pakistanis and 20 Indian soldiers fought the whole of Kargil war!

Verdict – Ek baar dekh sakta hai (can be watched once & only once)

Posted by Kenni at 09:27 AM | Comments (0)

June 21, 2004

Movie making – one of my dreams!

Farhan Akhtar’s ‘Lakshya’ is a hit. Would you believe if I tell you that I told the same story to my sister 5 years back! I am not trying to say Farhan stole my story just that he is in the right place at the right time and that happens to be the secret of most successful people.

I would use this new section of my blog to talk about movies, my movie ideas, few gossips about celebrities and my association with film stars.

May be someday I will be in the same place where most filmmakers are today.

I learnt few important techniques of story telling from my spiritual teacher, which gave me an insight about how to stitch scenes around the main plot.

The vital factors of a movie story –

Main plot
3-4 main characters
3-4 sub plots
3-4 twists
Characterization
Pace of the movie
Entertainment value

I personally don’t give much importance to the entertainment value alone. I feel film as a strong mass medium has some social responsibility and providing the audience with a good time should not be its only motto. Every movie should make few think and should be able to transform few. My movies are going to be with a message (ie when I make them :P).

Here is an example how story is stitched around a concept.
Main Characters – Ram, Sita, Ravana, Lakshman, Hanuman
Sub characters – Dahsrat, Bharat, Kaiki, Vali, Sughreev

Ramayan’s one line concept – ‘Ram rescues his kidnapped wife from Ravana’.

This is the single line concept Valmiki would have thought about, and rest of the epic is sub-plots that are stuck to the real one.

Who is Ram – son of Dashrat, who is Dashrat – a King with 3 wives, who was Sita – daughter of King Janak, where did Ram meet Sita – in a swayamvaram, how could Ravana kidnap Sita – because she was alone in a jungle, why was she in the jungle – Dashrat had asked Ram to go, did Ram and Sita go alone – no Lakshman joined him, who took care of the Kingdom then – Bharat, who helped Ram to rescue Sita – Hanuman, who was Ravan – the king of Lanka, what made Ravan kidnap Sita – his sister’s insult by Lakshman, who made the process easy – Vibhishan.

This is how subplots are built around the main plot. And then the mood of the movie is decided on - whether it is a romantic movie, or a thriller, or a masala packed movie. The pace of the movie, cinematography, the background score and the music are set according to the mood of the story.

Keep checking this page for more details in the coming days…

Posted by Kenni at 04:27 AM | Comments (0)

June 14, 2004

‘Dev’ leaves a lump in your throat!

The screen opens with a disclaimer – “All the characters and incidents in this movie are fictitious and any resemblance to people living or dead is mere coincidence,” and wish that was true. The bomb blasts, the killing of pregnant women, misguidance given by police officers, politicians’ direct indulgence in gruesome killing of minority community and setting people on fire alive doesn’t sound like Govind Nihalani’s imagination.

The movie reminds us of the gruesome incidents, which took place in Gujarat under the disgraceful supervision of the bureaucrats, judiciary and the politicians.

The movie reflects the disgusting animal side of human beings who can get more heinous than the wildest of species just because a sect of people follow another system of religious practice.

Amitabh Bacchan, Dev, and his family friend Om Puri, Tej, are police officers who differ just on one thing - their ideologies. Dev is a sincere cop, and is under the strong conviction that only unwanted weeds should be eliminated to preserve the field, while Tej feels the whole field should be eradicated so that there is no sign of weed whatsoever. The weeds are few Muslim terrorists while the field is the whole of Muslim community!

Fardeen Khan (Farhan Ali), a lawyer, comes back to live with his father after his education only to see his father getting killed in a police shoot out. Farhaan starts nurturing a hatred towards Dev as the firing order is given by him to control the morcha led by his father, which gets violent midway.

Kareena Kapur is a bold Muslim lady in love with Farhan and the only woman to come forward first to file the FIR against prominent politicians and the rabid police officers who are seen motivating rioters.

Om Puri is appointed by the CM as an officer on special duty to take control of the situation in the riot stricken area and is given clear instruction that on any day the number of Muslims killed should be more than the Hindus! Om Puri knows his job well. He delays to give curbing orders to Amitabh, who reports to him, so that the Hindus succeed in killing the Muslims and also waits till the Hindus manage to lock the Muslims in their houses and succeed in setting the whole building on fire. Women and kids get charred to death while few jump from their corridors.

The movie isn’t just about sets, screenplay and cinematography. It is about the essence of human civilization and humanity.

The performances of Amitabh and Om Puri are one of the best with special applause to the debates they have during their drinking sessions.

The movie is a must watch, but see to it you understand Hindi perfectly well. Few Urdu dialogues could go overhead and also don’t assume your friend to translate the dialogues for you. He might miss the whole thrill and the pace.

Verdict – Salute to Dev

Posted by Kenni at 05:45 AM | Comments (0)

May 24, 2004

Ayuthe Ezhuthu – 6 stars out of 5!

One thing I realized after watching Mani’s new sensation Ayuthe Ezhutu (Yuva in Hindi) is that never go by what the reviewers have to say about any movie. The heading read ‘Yuva disappoints’ on rediff and also few other movie sites, which readers tend to take seriously. Probably the reviewer left their 5 senses at home, and went with memories of Mani’s yesteryear movies to do a comparison business. Mani is known for his experiments and I am sure this is the best one he has ever undertaken so far.

Three important characters who run the show are..

Madhavan belongs to the poor class who makes a living by being a local gunda. Hitting his wife, and also getting into instant romantic sequence on the streets are part and parcel of this life. He is stubborn, uncompromising and inhuman who graduates into a hit man for a politician.

Surya is a diehard student, who thinks fighting for the right is the only reason for his existence. He turns down the offer of going abroad, just to find himself a place in the assembly so that he can clean the society from the scum of corrupt politician. When it comes to power he equals Madhavan.

Siddharth’s life revolves around ONS (one night stands), instant romance and coffees, discotheque and his dream of going to the US for further studies. The only thing that could affect him is his GF’s words and the delay in getting the Visa. Nothing else matters to him.

A single story is wisely spun across these three characters, which brings them together not for a single cause but for a common message.

Mani has tried to keep the movie as realistic as possible, and hence has not used any foreign location, no foreign group dancers (no local too) and no old women either. The songs are scintillating, and the background score too good. The cinematography is clean and is a visual treat.

Madhavan - realistic
Surya - aggressive
Sidharth - reasonable
Meera Jasmine – natural
Easha Deol – cute
Trisha – bubbly
Bharatiyaraja – perfect

I am as such not an ardent fan of Mani Rathnam. I still feel Iruvar was bad, Dil se (Uyire) was worse; Kannathil Muttam Ittal was not needed. But take my word Ayuthe Ezhutu is fantastic and is a MUST WATCH!

Do post your comment after you have watched the movie, and not before that!

Posted by Kenni at 03:42 AM | Comments (0)