For Soup Boys-u Only !

Concept Design : Kolaveri Tee Shirt

Ok so EVERYONE, Southie, Northie, Japanese, American, European and other crazy nutters around the world (including me) are hooked to the song! All of us are so hooked that even Big B Sr, Big B Jr, Beti B,  why even oBama are mumbling "boysu, skinnu, cowu" and stuff!

And so, i thought how cool would it be if i had my own kolaveri tee!? You may think its the heights! But hey, come on! IT IS a rage. 10 Million views in 10 days is no mean feat! Thanks to every media channel, including MTV, V and our own social networks for making it so viral!

But i do have to admit that its a silly silly song! But i guess that's the simplicity of it! One doesn't have to analyse the complexity of the music as one usually does for an ARR song..Just play and enjoy! That's what it is!

So would i print this design for an actual tee? Maybe :)

Cheers!

Tintin : A Wild Fantasy Ride!

Cross Posting from Extreme Close Up

Great Snakes!!

Billions of Blue Blistering Barnacles !! Just got back from Sathyam, and still reeling from all the on-screen awesomeness that is "The Adventures of Tintin - The Secret of the Unicorn" !!

Where do i begin?? You know i've probably read all the Tintin comics atleast a 100 times! I was introduced to the world of Tintin at the tender age of 6 by my mother, and by god what an adventure it was! Be it "Tintin in Tibet" or "Explorers on the Moon", each and every Tintin comic WILL draw you to its world! Herge, the creator of the Tintin would have never anticipated the longevity and the influence Tintin had or has on the people of yesterday and today! My parents grew up reading it, i grew up reading it and so will my kids and their kids!

But, my favorites of all the 23 comics that have been published is "The Secret of the Unicorn" and "Red Rackham's Treasure" which has so beautifully been brought alive on the big screen.

What do we get when one of the greatest and pathbreaking filmmakers of all time and one of the best known comic characters of all time come together? We get this one helluva movie that will surely be remembered in the years to come for faithfully sticking to the original plot, yet craftfully narrated with an engaging screenplay backed by the industry's best motion capture techniques!

So what's all the hullabaloo you ask? Just imagine this. Tintin and the other characters look so bloody real you could actually mistake the movie as a movie with HUMANS. Visually stunning, Tintin would leave you crave for more, what with its spectacular sets and complex camerawork! You have to hand it to Steven Spielberg, even a simple comic book can be made on such a magnificent scale!!

I being a Tintin fan, am absolutely delighted! Commercial cinema can't get better than this! Action, Adventure, Humor and Awesomeness, what more can one ask?!

All the memorable characters, Snowy for instance draws the "awwws" , Captain Haddock entertains you with his bumbling demeanour, the Thompson Detectives with their idiotic antics and ofcourse, the crème de la crème, Tintin !! Smart, agile and one brave sonofagun! He will floor you!

The best scene would be the chase scene in Bhaggar! Tintin can sure teach a thing or two to Ezio (Assassins Creed) and Drake (Unchartered) about high flying stunts!!

Bottomline: It is the BEST animated movie i have EVER seen!

What i love about the film is that there is something fabulous in each frame! Be it the particle effect in Marlinspike Hall's Cellar or the Oasis in Bhaggar or Glass Shatter by Castafiore, it just makes you go AHHH!

I envy my IMAX counterparts..i was stunned by its impact on 70mm 3D, i can only dream how it would be on IMAX! I'd advise you to not miss this masterpiece, the effect is just not the same on DVD or on the computer! Period.

Well, i can't control my excitement for the second part in the series! Steven Spielberg and Percy Jackson are sure to surprise us!

As Haddock would say it, "My thirst for adventure is Unquenchable!"

So is Mine!

V for Vendetta : Freedom! Forever!

Cross Posting from Extreme Close Up

Vi Veri Veniversum Vivus Vici

"Remember Remember, the fifth of November, the Gunpowder Treason and Plot,
I know of no reason, why the Gunpowder Treason, should ever be Forgot"

I remember watching this movie when i was 16 years old..right about the same time the movie was released! And i could not understand head or tail of it! And now 5 years later..i decided to revisit this Wachowski Brothers product with hope that i would be blown away! And was i blown away or what!! Back then, i did not even know that the Protagonist of the movie was played by Hugo Weaving (Agent Smith of Matrix) and i must say, he is such a brilliant brilliant actor!


The Year is 2038, Britain has become a totalitarian society, run by fascist leaders. Just when everyone thought that the country had gone to the dogs, enter "V" , a freedom fighter with a stormy past, vowed to remind the people what it means to live for a cause!

A Guy Fawkes mask, 16 inch knives, Zorro like clothes, an addicting persona, some extremely cool martial arts moves, "V" is out to eradicate the vermin of the society. At first glance, you would expect a cheesy plot, with cheesier situations, typical to most super hero movies.. But this film, works because and only because, it tries not to be something it is not.

The film sets the Gunpowder Plot as V's inspiration, and having escaped a cruel past filled with torture and imprisonment, V spends 20 years preparing to take his vengeance on his enemies. A Vendetta.

But the most striking or important part of the film is the fact that we are not told anything about V as an individual, but rather the film dives into V being an embodiment of an idea! How deep is that huh? V does not have a identity or a face. All we get is an extremely convincing body language as when V speaks. Hugo Weaving's deep and sophisticated voice lends character and strength to the man behind the mask.

The Wachowskis gave us the path breaking Matrix Series and they do justice to "V" with both soul and spirit! The action sequences are nothing less than Jaw Dropping! Believe me, there is nothing sexier than "V" using his deadly knives to gracefully kill his oppressors! The final battle is so EPIC!

Natalie Portman as Evey somehow stumbles into V's life as she is saved by him during an attempted rape by the "Finger men" (secret police). As fate would have it, she is drawn into the enigmatic world of V and learns to face her fears with V as her mentor! No i'm not talking about a Karate Kid style training session!!

There are just so many things about the movie that i loved!! I just loved V's alliterative speech when he introduces himself to Evey, and you must see it too!! (Sorry there are no embeddable videos on YouTube for that scene!)

Be it the hard hitting flashback scenes, or the subtle emotions of "V", or the eventual relationship that Evey develops with a Man who has no face, or the buildup to the climax, V for Vendetta strikes on all chords for me! There are many who would classify this as an action movie and would shy it away! NO! Spare 2 hours and i assure you that you will not be disappointed!

In short, the movie is a masterpiece, extremely inspiring and at the end of it all, the movie by itself is more than a Guy Fawkes Mask, it is an idea.

As "V" would say it, Ideas are bullet-proof! "V for Vendetta" is solid bullet-proof!!

P.S: Watch the trailer, and you will want to see it instantly!!

X-Men - Point Between Rage and Serenity

This post is from my movie blog - Extreme Close Up. Do comment here/there if you liked it!

We Are the Better Men

Hey!! How's October treating you all?! I've had a hectic 30 days since my last post..but time just flew! I guess that's how relative time is!

You know, when i started this blog..i told myself i would not talk about any movie that hits the screen! I made a solemn oath that i would not be a movie reviewer, but id rather be a Extremely-Movie-Addicted-Junkie who would only rant about the movies that impressed/impacted me a lot!

X-Men First Class hit me with so much force, energy, adrenaline and excitement that i did a Banshee during every exciting scene in the movie! After having seen three disappointing X-Men films with the only shimmering light being Magneto and Wolverine, i wondered if any of the movie makers of today would get the Superhero concept right!

It is about presenting the characters onscreen and utilizing the limited time to bring out the best in each character! And Michael Vaughn (Kick Ass fame) has done just that! Be it Magneto (Michael Fassbender), Professor X (James McAvoy), Mystique (Jennifer), Shaw (Kevin Bacon) or any other character introduced as the first of the X-Men Clan, each person's emotions have been delved at satisfying levels..

I'am so blown away by the new Magneto and Prof X, that am already craving for a sequel!!

So what sets apart X-Men you ask? Just about EVERYTHING!!

Brilliant performances, jaw dropping action sequences, multitude of super powers and an intense plot! The extremeness between Erik Alias Magneto and Charles Alias Prof X is simply electric..James McAvoy as Prof X brings a new dimension to the character! Being a telepath has never been so cool!

Michael Fassbender as Magneto never ceases to amaze me with his performances (Watch Inglorious Basterds). Erik (Michael) born Jewish undergoes the cruelty of the Nazi Reich, separated from his parents, experimented upon,but with an awesome gift to generate magnetic fields, he is one person you do not want to mess with! Erik battling his own demons and haunted by his past is shown the path by Charles,thus harnessing his seemingly untapped power source,turning him into an unstoppable force!

Erik's character is dark, subsequently complemented by his rage and desire for revenge. While Charles is the suave, calm and practical person, who in the real sense has not been exposed to the world that Erik lived in. Together, they light the screen on fire!

X-Men is set against the backdrop of the Coldwar during the 1960's, the atmosphere just gets to you, be it the concentration camps, or the high voltage tension between two Super Powers, X-Men does it all!!

X-Men is a wonderful prequel as it REALLY sets the pace going! It is the legendary story of how two gifted persons became friends, and how certain events make them the worst of enemies forms the core of the film.

And being a lover of Movie Soundtracks and Epic Scores, the soundtracks "First Class" and "Sub Lift" go waayyy up my personal charts!! Henry Jackman! Beauty i say!!

My favorite scene hands down would be when Erik (Magneto) lifts the submarine from the depths of the ocean below using his magnetic powers. EPIC. JUST EPIC.

I've seen that scene atleast 23 times, and every time the feeling is the same.

INDESCRIBABLE..

As you watch the sub rise and the strained determination on Erik's face, you just can't help clapping your two hands and pumping your fist in the air! So much adrenaline i tell you!!

Go watch X-Men First Class. It WILL surprise you! Personally i think, its way ahead of Thor, Captain America, Green Lantern and every other Super Hero movie that has been released off late. X-Men has soul, it has a STORY, it has intensity, and most of all it has some awesome Mutants!!

As Charles would say it, Focus is between Rage and Serenity. and X-Men hits the spot right from the beginning!

That Someone..

Hey you all!..am not really in the fun fun mood! Am not here to narrate to you about the funny incident that happened to me..neither am i going to talk about something that i'd usually do..No... that's not it..More like the "gaze at the star, dreamy eyed, la-la land" mood...

You know, its 11.20 PM in Chennai, the time when usually i develop schemes to take over the world, BUT, it is not a scheme am thinking of..its raining heavily..the Gods seem to be celebrating..dancing..singing..and their joy flowing over all of us as i speak...

In situations such as these, i either get all nostalgic or i get all emotional..life has become such a rat race, that i never stopped, sat back and appreciated the finer aspects of life! You know!..and so...lost in the cool breeze that traversed hundreds of miles with the sole aim of pleasing me and the gentle, yet heavy pitter patter of the rains that sings a lullaby..i began thinking of...That Someone... although my mind strains to express a hundred different emotions, waiting to pop the cork..i am still lost for words..with whatever words i can think of...this is my ode to That Someone..

That Someone, who was always there
That Someone, who always cared
That Someone, oh who is full of love
That Someone, who is a beautiful dove
That Someone, who is all heart
That Someone, to whom i said "il never break apart"
That Someone, who stood by me
That Someone, who just has me
That Someone, who makes me smile
That Someone, who makes me cry

That Someone, who means the world to me

That Someone, who just hugged me
That Someone, who asked "what do you want?"

And i said.. "Just you my love"....

That Someone.......................................................

The Brain Button !

Hellooo...its an awesome Sunday evening, nothing to do but just sit back and reeelax..! Before you start wondering about what i have to say this time...am sorry to disappoint you that it won't be me doing the rambling today! Nope. Uh uh.

At the same time, am very happy to introduce to you all a very very close friend, who believes this:

"My idea of fun,
Is good conversation.
My drug of choice, my poison,
Is good conversation.
My mental peace, my salvation,
Is good conversation.
Love, I’m certain,
Is good conversation."

And the person who said it...is Meghna Kannan! At first glance, she comes across as a person full of energy and crazyness! An awesome artist, she lets her hands and words do the talking! And so the day before she left to France (last week), i said "Megz why don't you write on my blog?! and she was like "ummmmm..." After numerous attempts to convince her to write, she finally said "Ok Ju, i'm not really sure about this, il think about it!"

But am happy that she came around, and this is what she has to say....

..........................................................................................................

.....Sitting at Frankfurt airport is as good time as any to start working on my “guest” post on friend’s blog. I honestly have no intention of bragging about the fancy-ass airport, but this is the first thing I thought of doing to kill the 2 hrs time I’ve got till I catch my bus from here to my destination.

An Indian at an airport is always a peculiar sight to people here. I’m not generalizing our infamous habits of being the only one with 3 HUGE bags or our legendary white sneakers-blue jean style statement, not at all. We can be cool too. But I do generalize our quality of winning raised eyebrows, 2^nd looks and occasionally a jaw-dropped gawk.

So I perched myself on this sort of maroon marble blocks, randomly placed to form a seating area, which I swear is no different from our kitchen thinnai material, surrounded by coffee shops, a mobile charging port, money exchange counter, information desk, ATM, escalators starting and ending erratically from all directions and directly across the exit gate from where I catch my bus. I started off by being just some regular colourful-attired person sitting there until my Indian-ness started crawling into me. There’s only so much I can sit with my legs dangling before which my legs automatically fold into a chaplaankuti.

And then of course this is followed by the very scrupulous procedure of finding that comfort zone. Mine involved a mini bag fort and changing my slightly greasy pinnal into a kondai. As I carefully remove my DELL, like it’s worth its weight in gold from my very cool broken-zipped, strapless HCL bag, I well up looking at the water stains on the top, clearly a fruitless attempt of Amma’s to keep my laptop dust-free and open it to find 3 of Tulsi’s (my dog) hair on my keys, just a few zillion finger prints and a neat layer dust on the keys. Trust me, I needed to literally lift my computer to chin-level and blow, like one would do with an old book! When I looked up I found three people gaping at me like I was some sort of performing monkey. I pretended not to notice and dug my head into my laptop.

The transition slowly begins. From loose, airy salwars to snuggle-fit jeans, chappals to sneakers, from Vodafone prepaid sim to the French sim, (10 paise/min to 1€/min), from blaring noise to absolute deafening silence to the point where I can hear my anklets ‘jill-jill-jill’ echo while I walk the streets at 10 am! Before I continue, for the record, I do love Europe and I actually am slowly getting pumped to get started with the new year (also ‘cos the sooner it begins, the sooner it ends ;)) Only that my love for this place is sometimes, ok yes, more often than rare, clouded by my love for home. I’m not calling it homesickness, nope not this time. It’s just going to take a few days* to tune my brain to Europe. I wonder whether there’s a neuroscience theory to it. When love can be explained as a simple chemical reaction, desiness to non-desiness might just be switch-on/switch-off mechanism. All it takes is will power as I’m told!

* subjected to change without notice

I was just passed by a Tulsi replica and I was ignored!!! (Oh the heartbreak of not being slobbered over, getting muddy paw-prints and hair all over my clothes) Ok so this switch on/off thing maybe more complex than I thought!

*DEEEPPPPPPP BREATH*

So, welcome to the first of its kind, a Guest blog! Before you begin judging, give me a chance to defend this silly idea. For a person like me, who’s always thought of blogging but never broke out of that “personal writing” shell, I think this is a perfect start. And for people like Jayanth Kashyap, who could use the publicity of an awesome blog entry, its pretty prefect too! C’est parfait! :P It’s a wonder that I haven’t been kicked out of France for raping their language!

Switching Homes

Well, apart from the language murder, I recently realised I have done total injustice to this beautiful place I’ve stayed in for a year already. Last year’s lonely, gloomy gullies are today’s gorgeous cobblestone pathways decked with lush green canopies dancing to the gentle chilly breeze, with the sun playing hide and seek with the whipped-cream like clouds in the baby blue skies. It’s no wonder whichever tiny gully in some remote Indian village our bollywood/kollywood heroes hail from, and however localll they may be, they dance with their heroines only in European gullies. I honestly felt like bursting out into a song and was hoping for a hero to appear suddenly from behind a tree and twirl me around, with our costumes constantly changing as we danced.

Evidently, last year’s nostalgia-inducing songs on my playlist, where every song had its own history, are today’s regular sing-along songs. Last year’s committed, undeterred relationship with my computer (or rather skype) is today’s relationship with this place. Last year’s grumble-filled, whiny, polambifying foreign oor-kadhais are today’s overseas adventures and alien-land escapades. Last year’s loneliness is today’s individualism. Yes, it did take me a LONG time to find my “switch”.

For example – Me being highly loyal and unfalteringly biased to my mother’s mouth-watering food, the separation was initially unbearable. My first ever saambar was literally emosanal attyachar and I blamed France for it! *SWITCH* Meghna’s Special Sunday Saambar. All you need is patience and adaptable or better yet dead taste buds. :D

At the French grocery store - “3,90 € for a watermelon??! –brain gears start grinding... processing... 3,70 × 65 = Rs.253.50??!!!!- beep beep *curse* how will I gullet the fruit?”  *SWITCH* At the roadside besant nagar chappal shop, “Uncle, woh chappal kitne ka hai?” “Beta, woh chappal, 320 rupees, with 20 rupees discount, final rate Rs.300” “300??? –brain gears start grinding... processing... Rs. 300 = 4 € “Bas? Teekh hai Uncle”

In this ever-changing world and the sheer unpredictability of life, circumstances and situations, the magnitude of the “switch” is fascinating. The comfort of familiarity is beautiful, no doubt. But the weird and wonderful adrenalin-rush and the challenge of new, however daunting and overwhelming can be quite enjoyable when “switch”ed to discover the comfort in the unfamiliar.

Short circuit those hard-wired habits! *SWITCH!* ♪Wayyy ay ay way ay ay! Turn it over now, turn around now! ♪ ♫

For the uninitiated,

Glossary:

Thinnai – Table top
Chaplaankutti – Seated with folded legs
Pinnal – Braid/Plait
Kondai – The hair rolled into a bun
Salwars – The baggy Indian style pants
Chappal – Flip-flops
Polambifying – complaining
Oor kadhai – Story
Saambar – A south Indian delicacy (like a vegetable-lentil broth)
Emosanal attyachaar – emotional brutality

I am a Criminal !

[Jayanth's room..Dirty Harry playing in the background...]

Harry Callahan: "....this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world, and would blow your head clean off, you've got to ask yourself one question: Do I feel lucky? Well, do ya, punk?..."

[Jayanth realises that your staring at his blog, quickly pauses the movie..]

Jayanth: "...click..click click! ...Mute."

.................................................

Hey there!! That was one of the greatest Clint Eastwood quotes of all time..! So do i feel lucky today? Absolutely not..and why? you will soon know!

Almost 21 months into my job...and i've developed a really bad habit..staying awake till my  granma's ghost scares me to sleep and sleeping till my dreams become a reality..Vicious circle you see...Sleep late, wake up late and you end up doing everything late the whole day..take my work for example..today although i was prepped to leave early i still reached  the work place at 11 AM.

It was one of those days where one wonders "which side of the bed did i awake from?!"

As all of you would be aware, namma Chennai traffic will scare the pyjamas off of even namma Superstar Rajnikanth! He can do anything in this world, except avoiding/weaving through our traffic. And it always so happens that i had to get caught in the busiest of days - Today.

Thankfully, my faithful beast - Yamaha R15 - never lets me down. I hang my bag  on the two rearview mirrors so that it straddles my petrol tank (to avoid sweating you see), wear my helmet and the journey from my place (Saligramam) to my workplace (MRC Nagar) is a loong journey. I get to play road rash with my other late going office buddies, give evil stares to aunties standing in the middle of the road, try to act brave in front of the bus drivers, avert near certain death a couple of times and ofcourse, bask in the glorious Sunshine. Gives an awesome suntan you know. Try it out!

In the middle of all this, just 3 KM away from work, i get pulled over by namma traffic police. The usual scene - Sergeant with his humongous left thigh on his even bigger bike, seriously fiddling with something god knows what. The constables trying to catch every miserable sod on a two wheeler - ones not wearing helmets, overspeeding, riding with two pillion riders, and ofcourse the ones who obey traffic rules most of the time.

Maybe it was my bushy goatee or i dont know what exactly. The constable caught me reaching the signal and instantly jumped in the middle of the road and said -

"..Orama Va Pa Thambi!"

And so, confidently with the knowledge of and pride that i always carry my bike papers, i quickly slapped my license onto the waiting constable's outstretched palm alongwith my insurance papers. And he looked at me, pointed his finger to my bike's ass and said -

"Number plate fancy a poda kudathunu theriyadha pa??" (don't you know that wearing a fancy number plate is wrong?)

My mindvoice told me "F**K, i'm done for". Whatever precautions one may take, the smallest of details go unnoticed. I learnt that. Although i have immense respect for our Traffic Police and the responsibilities they undertake, i couldn't help but laugh at what was happening. Knowing that i was at fault, i voluntarily asked what the fine would be.

The Sergeant, with a smile said - "100 rupees kudunga sir, receipt bill tharen" Under the scorching heat, my already fried brain told me that i had forgotten to draw cash from the ATM. Sheepishly i told the officer that i had only 60 rupees in hand. And smack came the answer! "ATM pakathule iruku, poi draw pannitu vaanga sir!"

How lucky could i get? The nearest ATM was 2 KM away..and so i walked, jogged, drew cash and came back like a wet donkey. I signed the electronic receipt-churning machine and lo came the offence sheet. And what i saw shocked me!

I had been fined under two sections:

• Defective Number Plate - Sec 177 - Rs.50 (my fault, hence i can live with it)
• Disobedience to orders/abstraction/refusal to give information - Sec 179 - Rs.50   (What the hell!? when did i do that!?)

So what did i do upon seeing this? NOTHING. Why? Because its a waste of time.

So what sort of recklessness was that? I DON'T KNOW. Disobedience to orders? Me? I had practically handed out even my older insurance papers to these cops! Then why was i fined under that section?

What sort of disregardful behavior and brash violation was that? I will never know..! Worst part was i had even signed on the receipt unknowingly accepting a crime i never committed! Irony.

What i know is this...Just enacting a bill will not change anything. We are humans. Humans with emotions, thoughts and a very powerful gift of making our own decisions. Ultimately, a person who is inclined to cheat or take advantage of others, will stop at nothing.

Ink on paper doesn't sound very convincing when its actually an issue of changing the underlying moral values of us humans.

Given a chance to cheat, we will cheat.
Given a chance to fight, we will fight.
Given a chance to rob, we will rob.

After all, we humans place ourselves above anything else. These are the precious words coming out of the newly branded "Criminal"

So do i feel lucky punk? No.

Until next time, safe riding (and please do change your number plates, if its one of those 007 or BOSS type plates)

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