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Krishna, Dharma, and the Mahabharata I Thought I Knew

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Krishna and Arjuna at Kurukshetra When I was growing up, I used to listen to so many stories from our epics and mythology—whether it was reading Amar Chitra Katha books or listening to my paati narrate tales of bravery and valor, the purpose of the divine, and the importance of adhering to dharma. Stories of Shiva and Vishnu found their way into my life through various forms. As a child, it was fascinating to see the power wielded by the Gods. And the message I took away was very simple: if you are devoted to the Gods, no harm can befall you. The Mahabharata, Ramayana, Nala-Damayanti, tales of Muruga and Ganesha, Draupadi, the Pandavas, the Kauravas—the army of characters was endless. To say they fascinated me would be a big understatement. I have read the Mahabharata many times, through various authors, and listened to many narrations of it. Every single time, I walk away with a new meaning. Kri...
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Lara and Tendulkar

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On a day when one of the world's best batsmen, Brian Lara faced yet another delivery from one of the world's best bowlers, Glenn Mcgrath, history was meant to be rewritten. The fascinating duels between these two has been a treat for the billions of viewers worldwide. It is a different matter that Mcgrath has dismissed him most number of times in Test cricket(15 in total) and it is altogether a different issue that Lara has dominated the Australian bowling attack many a times in the past decade. It is sheer destiny that Lara had to break Allan Border's record for most test runs in Australia against Australia, and by clipping Mcgrath for a single on the onside. Lara's feat today is a result of his stylish dominance over almost all bowlers in the world. The class and style evoked by the master is evident by that stylish backlift when he pulls the fast bowlers through the on-side piercing the gaps with ease. Lara can be attributed to have been gifted with a priceless sense...
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Eden Gardens clean bowls India

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A big match in Eden Gardens, Calcutta is generally a moment to savour. But what happened on 25 November, 2005 is really hard to take. Most of the Indians would like to forget what happened that day not because of the terrible all-round performance by the Indians but because of the way the crowd pulled its weight in South Africa's favour. Come on! One can't support the opposition just because your state player is not playing for the country. The truth is Sourav Ganguly did not deserve a placed in the one day squad going by his current form. Current form! He has been going through a bad patch for the last two years. What more does he expect from the selectors? But, what does Calcutta do? It shows its disappointment by ridiculing the home team and applauding the visitors. There is definitely nothing wrong in applauding the opposition's performance but why turn hostile to a team that you have been supporting for the last how many ever years. It is a funny story. Calcutta turns ...
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Salaam Namaste - Offbeat

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A subject that has not been dealt effectively finally finds its way into the folds of Hindi cinema. It depends on the viewer's take on live in relationship. A simple story of a couple(not a married one) staying together just to find out whether they can be compatible in the future or not forms the backdrop of this movie. Writing a review on Salaam Namaste at this point may not serve a lot of purpose for others, since I guess most of them would have watched the movie by now. But I had the opportunity to watch it after a considerable time thanks to the India Association here. As always, my punctuality deserts me at such moments and I arrived at the Physics seminar hall a good fifteen minutes late. But the good thing about Indian movies is that the viewer can follow the story from any given point. It doesn't matter whether one is fifteen minutes late or an hour late! It is about two people, Preity Zinta and Saif Ali Khan , who have divergent set of views and though both of them le...
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Comedy unplugged!

Five days of holidays to look forward to is great, considering the kind of crammed schedule we have to put up with. We decided to spend the evening watching one of everyone's alltime favourite movies, Michael Madana Kamarajan . It was a long time since I had watched this movie and it was real fun to catch up with the old times again!! On any day, it is better to watch an old movie than risk watching a new meaningless movie and so we decided to go ahead with this entertaining Kamal classic.
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A laugh riot

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Seeing Michael Madana Kamarajan for the nth time does not give the viewer the chance to change his opinion on the movie. One Kamal Hassan is more than enough in a movie, but what do you do when you are put up with four Kamal Hassans for three hours. You just put up with him in glee!! There are some movies where you just hope the movie ends within the first ten minutes of the start, but MMK is totally different. At the end of the movie, the reaction is Oh! The movie has got over! This movie was released in the year 1990, but almost 15 years later, the movie can still be glorified for its comedy. I will not be delving into the details of the movie. Obviously, everyone should have seen the movie more than once. It is about four sons Michael, Madan, Kameswaran and Raju who get separated at birth due to a conspiracy hatched by their father's brother. The movie basically deals with the tryst of the four brothers in various situations and how they come out unscathed to get together in t...
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The divine being

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I sat back today on a real sleepy afternoon not knowing what to do. The film songs and the western musical appeared to fade away in pale insignificance. I wanted something different to recharge my batteries. A gloomy weather is no sign of an active mind. Lethargy grasped firmly in my mind, not allowing me to come out of its clasps. Then, I decided Why not listen to MS? By the way, I assume that everyone knows who MS is, because even a kid ought to know who she is. M S Subbulakshmi of course!!! A half an hour's worth of ethereal music transferred me to the highest echeleon of happiness and peace. Hanuman Chalisa , in praise of Lord Hanuman and Vishnu Sahasranamam , in praise of Lord Vishnu left me spellbound. That was divine incarnation singing. I can still recollect the face in my mind - the large kumkum on her forehead signifying the very embodiment of compassion and peace. She had captivated the billions of people around the world with that magical voice that could lighten your ...
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Rahman(was) at his best?

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On a cold saturday evening, just before going to the University, my friend and I were shuffling with the IPod hoping to hear some good music. The speakers came to life with one of Rahman's greatest muscial Pudhu vellai mazhai from Roja. That's when we had the discussion - Can Rahman ever recreate the magic of Roja? Roja was his first musical and this prodigious talent was identified by another versatile genius - Mani Ratnam. The combination has worked magic ever since, but inspite of a host of other movies for which they joined together - Iruvar, Thiruda Thiruda, Dil Se, Kannathil Muthamittal, Alai Payuthey and Ayutha Ezhuthu, none could come upto the expectations of Roja. Of course, these movies have fantastic music compositions and some of my favourites. Rahman has always delivered the best for Mani Ratnam, but the problem is that his first movie has surged ahead in such dynamic proportions that anything else from Rahman is only considered not even a close but a distant seco...
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