Bigg Boss 8 Live

We got passes to the live weekend shoot of Bigg Boss 8, and while I am not a big fan of the current BB8 participants, I was very eager to see Salman shoot live. It was awesome - Salman shot non-stop, without a make up or refresh break for 3 hours! Without a cut. That guy is truly something!

Movie Review: Gone Girl

Gone Girl is an excellent crime thriller for the first 100 mins, and then decends into complete chaos for the next 49 mins, leaving a very bad taste in the mouth by the time the end credits roll. I needed the mindless entertainment of Shaukeens to get out the after taste...

Movie Review: John Wick

John Wick is an ex-hitman who flips when someone kills his dog. Yes. A dog that's a farewell gift to him from his just-died girlfriend. Oh, and yes, they also steal his beloved Ford Mustang.

Reason enough for John to come out of hibernation and let mayhem reign over town, taking out half a million henchmen, while going for the dog killer. And his father. And a bunch of other assorted contract killers.

May be a decent watch for Keanu Reeves fans, but at 101 min, it was about 100 min too long for me.

Movie Review: The Shaukeens

Shaukeens is a remake of the 1982 film, the story of three men in their 60s who go to Mauritius to try and get some "action" in the sunset of their lives - KD (Annu Kapoor), Laali ( Anupam  Kher) and Pinky (Piyush Mishra). They rent the house of a very hot Aahana (Lisa Hayden), and lust for her, while she goes through a painful breakup on Facebook. Aahana, meanwhile, is more than happy to use them to meet her heartthrob Akshay Kumar, who plays himself in a lovely little cameo.

The music is forced, and while the movie has its moments, the only redeeming factor is the lovely Lisa and some moments of brilliance from a very good looking AK.

Avoidable.

Colors of Holland

Here are a few pics from my recent trip to Holland... some more are being processed; will upload as I get time to do so. For better versions of the pics, please do visit my Flickr page.

Mesmerizing Amsterdam

A mirror reflects our canal boat

A houseboat in Amsterdam

At the beautiful village of Marken, an erstwhile island

At a clog factory in Volendam

The Poezenboot (cat shelter on a houseboat in the Singel canal) is a must visit in Amsterdam

Colors of winter!

The most amazing mini pancakes in all of Holland!

Lonely

At Delft, the home of the iconic blue pottery in Holland

The parliament buildings at The Hague

The Dengue Chronicles

Mon evening: I leave early from office, feeling a little weak and feverish, typical symptoms of exhaustion and a burn out. A friend drops me home - 530 is unusually early, and my bai is very happy at getting an early time out. I catch a nap, getting up for dinner and Bigg Boss later in the evening. My daughter is also reporting body ache.

Tues morning: I decide to skip office for the day and work from home. Daughter has a holiday at school, wifey also decides to stay back for the day. It's an impromptu family day out, but we are too tired to venture out of the apartment.

Tues night: My daughter and I have a restful night, but wife reports extreme body ache from head to toe. The bones are hurting, and we get our first warning signs of dengue - it's called bone breaking fever for a reason!

Wed morning: While my daughter and I feel fairly OK, wifey isn't doing too well. We decide to wait no longer and go for a blood test. By early afternoon, the results are out. The lab technician asks me to write my full name and address - and that confirms it. The PMC needs records of all dengue cases. Are we positive, I ask. Yes, all 3, he smiles sympathetically. The NS1 test, which is a quick and dirty check for dengue is positive for all 3, although the dengue antibodies test is negative.

Wed afternoon: We met the doc and she asks us to carry on with the regime she had started in the morning. Dengue doesn't have any specific treatment - the treatment is only symptomatic - an antibiotic, something for the stomach, and vitamins. Most important, a tablet to keep the fever down. Interestingly, none of us have really had high fever.

Wed evening: The PMC heath department makes a visit. They ask lots of questions - where have you been in the last few days, when did the fever come, which school does your daughter go to, what are your office timings? They spray pest control all over the house - a colorless liquid they promise me will dry off and is harmless to humans. You don't have high fever; it's not dengue; they assure me. They also give us a lot of general knowledge - the dengue mosquito breeds in fresh water; not in the gutters. And it bites in the day time, not at night!

Wed - Fri: Rest at home, and Googling - each attempt only making it worse. While none of us are getting worse, the worrying element is the way dengue advances. Fever goes down after a couple of days, and along with it, the platelet counts go down. The normal is 150,000 to 450,000. At 50,000, you need to get hospitalized. At 20,000, you can start bleeding and go into shock. Fatalities are not unknown, though rare, and Pune itself has already seen a dozen this year. We start eating kiwis (we hate those fruits), which is reputed to be an excellent way to get platelet counts up.

Fri morning: The time of reckoning has come. We have a blood test. And it's bad. Our counts are down under 100,000. It's normal, smiles the gentle doctor. Nothing to worry  about, she assures us. You all look fine! Just carry on with the meds and take lots of fluids and rest, and you should be fine, she says. But we are not happy. Not at all.

Sat afternoon: Huge relief. My sis and bro in law arrive from Goa. The change of scenery is fantastic. We finally have something else to talk about. Sister is also an excellent cook; our spirits rise. My sister also starts us on twice a day papaya leaf juice - it tastes horrible, but is reputed to do wonders to platelet counts. Two of my friends are generous enough to get us as many leaves as we will ever need!

Sat evening: Another visit by the PMC, this time with a fogging machine that blasts heavy, thick smoke throughout the house... along with foul diesel fumes. We have to get out, and take the chance to get out for a small drive.

Sunday: Things are looking up. While wifey is still weak, the two of us are feeling fine. We go out for some local shopping in the evening. Not as tiring as Sat, and we are all feeling very relieved. Our next blood test is scheduled for Monday morning, and we are confident as hell. Will we make it back into the high 200s?

Monday morning: We go for the blood test. We are feeling great, and are confident we have beaten the dengue. My bro in law and sister plan to leave for Goa in the afternoon, once the doc gives us the all clear.

Morning afternoon: The big shock. In spite of everything, all the terrible papaya leaf juice and the kiwis, our platelet counts have dropped further. While my daughter and I are around 75,000, my wifey is at 51,000, requiring hospitalization. We have a decision to make. I can still manage one hospitalization, but what if my counts drop too, the next morning? Then what?

Monday late afternoon: We make the decision. We will move to Goa, along with sister and bro in law. Doc gives wifey a steroid injection and blood pressure tablets to stabilize her. We 2 are better, although I am already starting to feel a little light headed. Don't know if it's just psychological, but there is no time to rest. We come home, and pack up. My cat looks forlornly at us - she simply hates when we are away, and she has just endured a long 8-10 day period of loneliness and terror during Diwali. My heart is breaking; and the cat is the least of my worries. By the time we are ready to leave, it's past 5 pm. We have a long drive ahead of us; and we have never done a night journey over such a long distance before. Will we make it safe? Will wifey be able to take the stress?

Mon evening: The journey isn't off to the best start. A drunk in a bike tries to take unnecessary panga; obstructing our free drive on the highway. Thankfully, a few kms down the road, we reach a tool booth, and talk to a cop. He graciously gives us his mobile number and asks us to call him if the man troubles us again. But that's the last we have seen of him.

Mon night: Things start to look better. We don't have much traffic, and make good time. We stop on the way for a quick soup from the thermos. We feel positive. I even take the wheel for around 90 mins. By 900, we are close to Kolhapur, a critical milestone. We stop at our usual truck stop, Hotel Sai International, for a light dinner - the hotel graciously allows us home food in the restaurant hall, and even provides us plates and spoons. We decide to press on, reaching Belgaum by 1030. By 1130, we have crossed the well-maintained but twisty and isolated Chorlem Ghat, and touch down into Goa. At 12:07, we are in Panaji. We get down. We are in Goa. The worst has to be over!

Tuesday morning. Things are looking up, better than ever before. The blood test is all important - the lab sends the technician home. By 12.30 - it's bingo! The platelet counts are going up. Wifey is close to 90,000, and the 2 of us are well into the 120s. We see the doc - nothing to worry about, he says. You are gonna be fine. It's been a worrying week, but Goa is working its charm. No diet restrictions, he assures us. For the first time in over a week, we eat well - delicious prawn curry rice and some fried fish.

Tues - Thurs: We relax in the lap of Goan hospitality. Great food, caring relatives, and the sounds and smells of the sea. Our snap decision to get to Goa has paid off handsomely.

Thurs morning: The final blood test. All good! We are back in the 200s. We have beaten the dreaded dengue.

Fri afternoon: With a heavy heart, yet, with relief that life is gonna be normal again, we catch an Air India flight to Pune. Goa looks beautiful from the sky, the light rain adding a surreal touch - and it's tough to let go. As we fly over Miramar, the clouds take over - blanking out the view, and 30 mins later, we descend over Pune. It's a perfect touchdown. We are home again.

Movie Review: Haider

Based on Hamlet and set in modern day Kashmir,  Haider is a hard hitting movie about a son's search for his father,  missing after the Indian Army picks him up during an anti terror operation. But it's not really about the army or the insurgents,  although that thread plays strongly in the background. It's about raw human emotions, about love and betrayal, misplaced sympathies, about our greed and our mistakes, and about redemption.

Shahid and Shraddha Kapoor put in strong performances,  ably supported by Tabu and Kaykay Menon. But the real star is the screenplay and the camera work,  which evokes the poignant beauty and loneliness of this paradise on Earth, torn between politicians and separatists and the army...

Surprising to see the Indian censor board allowing such a movie,  we are really coming of age in India,  I guess!

Movie Review: Bang Bang

Jimmy Shergill walks in looking absolutely dashing in the opening scene. Hrithik can safely claim the legacy of James Bond in India, with his blonde curls,  white blood stained shirts and air brushed and enhanced body shots. Katrina looks amazing even when she puts on weight,  speaks ridiculous dialogues,  and wears clothes that seem to have been stitched for Alia Bhatt. Prague and Greece,  and exotic desert and island locations transport you to a mesmerizing world. It's a treat for the eyes. So much, that you can safely shut off the dialogues, ignore the silly and predictable plot, the blatant copy of Knight and Day, and let your eyes soak in a Swacch Duniya.

Namoste America

A decade or so after having been denied a Visa, Modi is taking over America like no other leader has ever done in the past... here he is addressing a mammoth crowd at Central Park, a couple of hours after wowing the world with his statesman-like speech at the UN GA, in Hindi! Today, he will talk at a filled-to-capacity Madison Square Garden, with thousands more watching him live at Times Square.

What a sight to behold, irrespective of one's political inclinations!

Syrian Cats

Continuing with my efforts at posting some happy and heart warming news form the world....

Breaking Bad: Beetle Mania!

Look closely! This isn't the Amazonia - this cluster of beetles were hatching on the papered wall of our living room...!

By the way, while my attempts at marco photography with my Canon and an array of macro lenses are yet to be analyzed, this particular pic was clicked on my Samsung S5

Movie Review: 3 A.M.

For the uninitiated, the movie (the Hindi flick which borrows its name from the 2001 Hollywood gig) starts off with an explanation: 3 pm was when Jesus came to Earth, so the evil spirits mockingly use 3 am to unleash their worst behavior.

MTV Roadies heart throb Rannvijay plays an avatar of himself in the movie - a reality show anchor who embarks on a new show around the paranormal after his girlfriend is found mysteriously hanging in the abandoned Rudra Mills, while researching on its haunted character. And no surprises, he decides to start right from where it all started for him - the same Rudra Mills. We are not here to trouble you, he announces, imploring the spirits of the workers who were killed in a major mill fire years ago to show themselves. But has he accounted for the dreaded Rudra, the last owner of the mill, who continues to terrorize his workers?

A good horror movie relies on atmospherics, and that's where 3 AM fails. Incessant loud chatter and (intentional?) comic situations never allow the audience to really start feeling the chill. While a couple of scenes are effective, there are too many false starts, too many acoustic pointers, and some pretty amateurish SFX. There is an element of a surprise twist towards the end, but if you are a real fan of suspense horror movies, you will guess it right from the first scene!

The female lead Anindita Nayar looks interesting, while Rannvijay continues to woo with his good looks. Salil Acharya and Kevin Dave round up the cast.

If you really had nothing to do, this is a good one to curl up with your girl friend, given how empty the theatres are likely to be!

Movie Review: Khoobsoorat

A successful physiotherapist is roped in to help a Rajasthan royal in modern day India, but her young and bubbly personality clashes with the strict disciplinary rules of the royal household. Predictably, she not only manages to cure her non-cooperative patient, but wins the love of the handsome prince and brings smiles and joy back into the palace.

A typical Disney film that leaves you with a warm & fuzzy feeling. Sonam Kapoor looks ravishing, and has a great sense of humor, and will win your heart. The Pakistani actor, Fawad Khan, will leave his fans swooning over him for a long time. Kirron Kher, Aamir Raza Hussain and Ratna Pathak Shah round up the cast, which is pretty perfect.

The songs are passable, and eminently forgettable. But the beauty of Rajasthani heritage, the royal palace and its grounds, and Sonam's wardrobe (which almost always leaves her pretty long legs out) is a treat to the eyes.

A good family gig for the weeekend.

Three Days From History

India's maiden mission to Mars, the Mangalyaan, is three days from creating history. On the 24th, when ISRO scientists fire off her engines to coax her into Mars' orbit, scientists will be hoping to succeed in the first attempt, something no other country has achieved earlier.

Just so you know,  the spacecraft is currently around 225 million km away from Earth. And at 70 million,  it cost around 1/10th of other similar spacecrafts from America.

Movie Review: Daawat-E-Ishq

A pretty, educated Hyderabadi girl and her honest father endure the humiliation of being rejected by prospective grooms repeatedly over dowry, until the girl decides to take matters in her own hands. Along with her unwilling father, she cooks up a plan to ensnare a rich, dowry-seeking groom under India's anti-dowry harassment laws, blackmailing him into parting with enough money to take care of her dreams of studying abroad.

They arrive in Lucknow as super rich Dubai-based NRIs, checking into a royal suite, and "interviewing" (with a hidden cam) prospective grooms. By a twist of fate though, she selects the heir of a rich Lucknowi kebab establishment, who wants not a single penny from her.

Will she still go ahead with her plan? Or will she simply fall in love?

DEI is a simple, honest movie about a topic that even today, results in a woman dying every 5 minutes in India. Parineeti is absolutely believable and lovable in her portrayal of the educated, helpless Gulrez Kadir, who hatches a ridiculously simple plan, and almost pulls it off. Anupam Kher, as her father, is subtle and amazing, as always. Aditya Roy Kapoor puts in a genuine attempt, and is pretty likeable too, showing a lot more spunk than I saw in his earlier movies.

While a little predictable and slow/stretched at the end, the movie totally deserves a dekko! All in all, it's a nice entertainer, with a lasting social message.

Twitter Horror

Terrifying horror stories wrapped up in two sentences or less:
1.
I woke up to hear knocking on glass. At first, I thought it was the window until I heard it come from the mirror again.

2.
The last thing I saw was my alarm clock flashing 12:07 before she pushed her long rotting nails through my chest, her other hand muffling my screams. I sat bolt upright, relieved it was only a dream, but as I saw my alarm clock read 12:06, I heard my closet door creak open.

3.
In all of the time that I've lived alone in this house, I swear to God I've closed more doors than I've opened.

4.
A girl heard her mom yell her name from downstairs, so she got up and started to head down. As she got to the stairs, her mom pulled her into her room and said "I heard that, too."

5.
My wife woke me up last night to tell me there was an intruder in our house. She was murdered by an intruder 2 years ago.

6.
I always thought my cat had a staring problem - she always seemed fixated on my face. Until one day, when I realized that she was always looking just behind me.

7.
There's nothing like the laughter of a baby. Unless it's 1 a.m. and you're home alone.

8.
I begin tucking him into bed and he tells me, "Daddy, check for monsters under my bed." I look underneath for his amusement and see him, another him, under the bed, staring back at me quivering and whispering, "Daddy, there's somebody on my bed."

9.
You get home, tired after a long day's work and ready for a relaxing night alone. You reach for the light switch, but another hand is already there.

10.
There was a picture in my phone of me sleeping.
I live alone.

Movie Review: The Maze Runner

It has shades of the hunger games. A bunch of young guys,  stranded in the middle of a strange,  dangerous and massive maze from where there seems no way out. They have spent three years there,  mapping out the maze,  but no closer to getting out. Until,  one day,  a new boy arrives,  and questions their rules. Can he lead them out,  or is he going to invite terrible consequences unto themselves?

What starts with some great promise,  soon gets stretched,  without the action really taking off. The promise is left unrealized.

And of course,  there is no Katniss to light up the dull greys.

Watchable, but not a must see!

Heavenly Sunset

From a friend's apartment...  Just so beautiful!

 

College Of Engineering, Pune

Had the chance to visit COEP yesterday to meet and interact with Mansoor Khan,  on his book, The Third Curve,  which completely changed my outlook about the way we define growth,  and the effect on consumption on resources of the earth. I heavily recommend you to read it.

 

By the way,  in case you didn't connect it,  Mansoor Khan is the same gentleman who directed blockbusters like QSQT and Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikander.

 

He spends most of his time now at his beautiful farmhouse in Coonoor, making cheese and tending to Mother Earth. Amazing story.

 

But coming to what I actually started this post with,  check out this absolutely beautiful building,  wonderfully restored to a glorious edifice. It was so heartening to see, and such a perfect venue for the talk.

 

Modispeak

So this Teacher's Day was very different,  right? Our very own PM hooked up with millions of kids all over the country,  sharing anecdotes and advice,  answering question and having a great time.

A lot was made out of it,  and dozens of invited experts sliced and diced it on those "intelligent" debates at prime time. The questions were planted,  they smirked. He is ignoring the plight of teachers,  others complained. The spokesman of a national party was even ignorant enough to attribute an oft-quoted saying about teaching to him.

But next day,  when I went to Crossword,  and saw half a dozen kids, including mine, with their parents,  searching for autobiographies to read, because Modi Sir had asked them to,  did the impact of this exceptional leader become crystal clear to me.

For those who missed the speech, do check it out in YT. I am sure its there. And pick up some messages we all need to pass on to ourselves,  and then our children...

Love the environment.
Help your parents save on electricity bills.
Stay clean,  don't just throw around your school bag.
See the sunrise and the moonlight.
Get sweaty at least four times a day.
Do your bit for the country by being good students.
Be naughty,  don't lose the child in you.
Read.  Read.  Read. Anything.

Hats off to you,  Modi sir!