Desicritics Category: Media: Video

Follywood Sooperheroes

RukmaniRam — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 08:32:36 EDT

Can you imagine the powers their kid will have?

Now Spiderman is probably furious after watching this! Not only does his rip off not have to wear the mask (its got to be sweaty and icky in there man!) but she also got to fly! He only lost his mask halfway up his face to facilitate kissing and he had to get beaten up! Spiderwoman here didn't even throw a punch even when the dedicated duo chose to fight crime in between their song and dance. (by the way, what were the thugs trying to do anyway???)

If they can dance in the sky, why land in the middle of a filmy park to do the same?

Did Superman and Spiderwoman not have enough fun that they had to join a lakeside dance party that looked like the late 80's imitation version of MTV Grind? It has got to be.. those guys are so hammered, they don't seem to mind SUPERMAN and SPIDERWOMAN descending amidst them, and they even gave those two center stage!

And finally, does this qualify as some sort of superhero incest?

P.S: I've decided to ignore the amateur "special" effects. Especially how they become slightly ethereal when they're airborne. AND the fact that superman is wearing the wrong colored boots. And a slightly off-color tight-suit

YouTube, Idol Worship and Fanaticism

Desh — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 00:32:13 EST

Pakistan's government does not want its people to watch Youtube. Why? Because it has some videos on the Prophet cartoon story. So, they think their youngsters shouldn't be seeing anything on thevideo site including some of the most wonderful videos that can be informative.

The madness in closing your mind seems empowering in immediate term but is debilitating thereafter.

I am not sure why the Muslims over the centuries do not want to see an image of their Prophet or their God, but I assume its genesis would have been in the negatives of idol worship. And that, in turn, would be in the principle that if you start "capturing" a God in an idol you are basically negating the boundless-ness of God-consciousness.

However, who ever came up with this Islamic formulation did not understand another side of the idol worship story: form and name are immaterial - characteristics that you associate with the form or name are more important.

Another way to look at it: Name and Form are NOT different either. If you have a name for something.. you have already created a form in your mind. Description preceeds a name. Description is the verbal FORM of a physical representation. So if someone has a name for God and asserts that he does not want to have a "physical form" is, politely putting, hallucinating!

Then, does form - idol, painting or just a name or description matter? Our thoughts have already restricted the "God" in any case.

In fact, a person who creates an Idol and worships the deity by nevertheless saying that notwithstanding the restrictions of my small mind - You are boundless and Infinite - is probably more honest in his acceptance of an Infinite God than a person who tries his best to restrict that Infinite Entity by ascribing motives to "His" actions and extrapolating to "Him" the weaknesses of a human mind and still seeking to destroy the idols with a vengeance!

At least the Idol Worshipper who - mindfully - interacts with his God by ascribing Infiniteness is pointing to the obvious problem that human existence brings along - we cannot possibly "imagine" Infinity" in the real sense. He is admitting it to start off with but has found a "workaround".

Of course, the issue occurs when this workaround becomes the sine qua non of holiness and God realization.

But this is the problem with religion, priests, prophets and saints. They come up with "Philosophies for Dummies" series by trying to come up with simplified stuff and that simplification, instead of being "cues" becomes THE reality for the followers. So, while the beginnings of "not recommending" Idol Worship were probably more spiritual in intent, banning it and being fanatic about such a ban took on a decidedly superstitious route.

Similarly on the other hand, using an idol for a concentrated session of meditation may be extremely helpful, while you chant - knowingfully - verses describing the infiniteness of the entity's reality; but restricting the same entity to just that idol can be very debilitating and another route to superstition.

Therefore, in my book, both are superstitions - unmindful Idol Worship and Fanatical opposition to it.

A fanatical and a restless mind can never be at peace with itself or be one with the infinite. A mind that has an ideal or a belief to live upto has to constantly measure itself against the pole of an arbitrary prescription as opposed to the boundless-ness of the Infinite. That noise of constant, restrictive and useless evaluation creates fanaticism and restlessness taking the person FAR away from where the Truth really lies.

Blogging and Journalism: Amongst the Best the Line is Blurry

temporal — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 05:56:21 EST

With easy internet access and free blog hosting sites many people are sharing their thoughts on different topics. Some share their special interests and form groups. Others publish their creative writing. But the biggest beneficiary of blogging has been journalism - specifically citizen journalism and its impact on professional journalists.

At this time let us get some descriptions out of the way.

Journalism: reporting, writing, editing, broadcasting, as an occupation.

It flows from above that a journalist is a paid reporter working for a media organisation or as a freelancer for several media organisations. He may directly report on news or may interpret news and write view points and investigative reports. He is usually a specialist who covers a specific field or interest.

The journalists are covered by a code of conduct by the media organisation that employs them or it could be self imposed. They are team players.

A blogger could be any person who has access to a PC and internet, has a host blog and writes entries in it. They are the solo fliers. Generally, there is no compulsory code of conduct, though this distinction is increasingly getting blurred as journalists working for major media organisations are encouraged to have have their own blogs.

What is this code of conduct for journalists? Broadly it covers accuracy, objectivity, truthfulness, fairness, and impartiality. For a more detailed examination you can read the codes for Al Jazeera, CBC and BBC in order of complexity and depth.

The fault line is ever shrinking between Blogging and Journalism. Blogging - specially News and Political blogging has come of age. Gone is the period where it was words and opinions essentially unsubstantiated and based on murky half baked thoughts or hearsay borne out non-conviction and lacked clarity, vision and conviction.

Journalists - serious journalists - even if they are freelancers abide by a code of conduct, keep slant or bias to a minimum, language straight forward and error free.

In the earlier days bloggers were deemed to be free of any constraints. It was their blog, they could write whatever they wanted, they thought.

I once rejected a shoddily written, plagiarized article. The writer submitted another atrociously written article the next day. I patiently pointed out the deficiencies and errors in detail and suggested a serious re-write. He submitted a third article that was also filed under G. He complained.

In his defense the writer claimed all those articles were found acceptable and published at another site and provided a link to it. It was another site that hosted member blogs and his "articles" were "published" on that site under his blog! He was subsequently caught for plagiarizing, sacked and all his articles deleted from that site.

Today, bloggers have matured and an increasing minority is serious about their writing. And their efforts are being recognized. Read this: A Landmark for Bloggers -- and the Future of Journalism.

The journalist also has a distinct advantage over the blogger. He has support of the organisation - editors, fact checkers, proof readers all help in delivering a good copy.

The blogger in most cases is on his/her own. That makes the job not only arduous but also more interesting and gratifying.

As the lines get blurred between good journalists and good bloggers, the bottom lines becomes clearer - the best among both are those where the writing is well grounded in facts, clear, lucid, precise, objective and geared for the target audience.

Movie Review: Jodhaa Akbar

Amrita Rajan — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 11:21:59 EST

Jodhaa Akbar, Ashutosh Gowarikar's sixteenth century epic about the political marriage between a Rajput princess and a Mughal emperor, is a must-see if period romance peppered with a dash of violence is your cup of tea.

There are extravagant spectacles, pretty people in elaborately lovely costumes, stirring battle scenes, evocative music, and a lead pair who turn in their career-best performances. And for all its eye catching splendor, Jodhaa Akbar manages to shine most bright in the more intimate moments - be it between husband and wife or swordsmen squaring off against each other on the battlefield.

We begin with Amitabh Bachchan's voice giving us a little tour through the early Islamic history of Northern India, where the Mughals are the latest in a long line of invaders. With Nasiruddin Humayun's untimely death, a meaningless crown passes to his young son, a somewhat squeamish Jalaluddin Mohammad. His father's general, Bairam Khan (Yuri), takes it upon himself to serve his young liege lord's cause. By the time Jalal reaches glorious manhood in the well-muscled person of Hrithik Roshan, Bairam Khan manages to cobble together an empire for him to rule.

A newly masterful Jalal begins to take over the reins of control by sending the ambitious Bairam Khan off on a pilgrimage to Mecca (a polite way of saying "exile" as such a trip in the sixteenth century would take years) and expanding his empire. But the Rajputs, Hindu warriors of the northwest, refuse to bend knee. Jalal manages to subdue some of them but there are still too many holding out. This isn't a state of affairs that a man who wishes to call himself Emperor of all Hindustan can allow.

Enter Raja Bharmal (Kulbhushan Kharbanda) of the Rajput state of Amer. Circumstances have made it necessary for him to seek Imperial protection and he indicates that he is ready to swear allegiance to the Mughal crown - if the Emperor would take his daughter Jodhaa (Aishwarya Rai) to wife.

Once the stars have aligned to put Jodhaa and Jalal in close proximity to each other - a process that roughly takes an hour - Jodhaa Akbar gladly puts its political pretensions aside and turns into a charming love story.

There are still a number of sword fights and a lot of talk about court/political intrigue, but the movie's heart isn't really in it. The only bit of intrigue Jodhaa Akbar is really invested in, is the one between its principal leads.

Apart from a bravura turn by Ila Arun as the jealously possessive Maham Anga, every character except Jodhaa and Jalal have about as much depth as a wading pool. The villains, including the hilariously portrayed Hemu (a Hindu king who captured Delhi for a brief period of time after Humayun's death) who looks like an escapee from a Ramsay Bros. film complete with greasy hair tossing, aren't just villainous but also rather stupid and given to showing their hand rather easily. And the "good guys" like Akbar's birth mother Hamida Banu (Punam Sinha) sort of glide about and make dutiful noises from time to time. The only bit of interesting dialogue afforded the talented Suhasini Mulay (Rani Padmavati, Jodhaa's mother) is when she offers her newly betrothed daughter some poison on the sly - "Death is surely better than suffering insult," she tells her shocked child.

As for Rai and Roshan, they haven't been this good in quite some time. Roshan, in particular, gives his overworked facial muscles a little time off and taps into that well of talent that stood him in good stead in movies like Lakshya. Rai proves once again that all she needs is a director who isn't awed by her physical perfection to turn in a performance that hits all the right notes.

However, I do think that the makers copped out on making a truly fantastic film by not allowing the more psychotic side of medieval royalty (witness the scene where Jalal has his injured foster brother dragged up the stairs just so he can have him thrown down once more) more screentime, but the tiny moments wherein Jalal and Jodhaa try their best to understand each other and begin to fall in love, make up for it.

So does it take liberties with historical facts? In several places. But as a movie, it works very well.

Movie Review: V-DAY, Until the Violence Stops

Blokesablogin — Mon, 7 Jan 2008 06:12:11 EST

Eve Ensler, the creator of The Vagina Monologues along with Abby Epstein, has chronicled the advent of V-Day into communities around the world, in this film. When I first heard about the Vagina Monologues over 4 years ago, I dismissed it as a sort of "feminist-oxidized-jewellery" type (the kind who wear Orissa handloom saries with backless cholis, and silver jewellery from Janpath co-ordinated with solitaire diamond earrings) little realizing what it was about, until today.

Be it female circumcision in Africa or domestic violence in the United States, women and girls are coming out and breaking the silence. The best part of it was the inherent humor and the lack of finger pointing (penis pointing?). This is about speaking up, sharing and healing- together. This is not erotica.

It was harder for some groups to even find words to express themselves, like the Filipino women who serviced the Japanese army during WWII and the Lakota women from South Dakota.

Stirkingly absent from the chronicles, were Indian women. I went to the V-day website and discovered that they had a spotlight campaign in India in 2004. All the Mahila groups did not let the actual catharsis to happen, the way it has freed women in several parts of Latin America, Africa, Europe and North America. It was a typical "oxidized" event. The groups highlighted dowry torture and deaths over everything else. The local Mahila groups that networked with V-day simple got some free money to do more of their protests. I believe female infanticide is a more grave problem that needs immediate social attention.

Dowry has now become a hoax. (I personally know of two incidents where the girls complained to their parents and therefore the authorities within 6 months of the marriage and squeezed the "in-laws" of all they were worth. This is a new crime that is going undetected thanks to the overzealous mahila groups.) But I digress.

Personally, I can make a case for both scenarios as to why India did not take off in a huge way with V-day as many other countries did: We have a hoary tradition of elevating the woman to goddess and therefore find it superficial to do the Vagina monologues, on the contrary, it is blasphemous. The other one is that the Indian woman is so suppressed she has absolutely no thought let alone voice it. Of course, we have to allow her birth in the first place for her to think and then speak up!!

Coming back to the women in the film, the silent abuse perpetrated on one half of the human population, not necessarily by the other half, has found release. Blind customs, war, religion have all played their part in making the women silent and accepting their "lot". The Vagina Monologues changes that.

Some women from more traditional cultures are finding themselves being ostracsized from their communities and families as they speak up. This could be yet another reason why Indian women have not stepped up to this form of disclosure.

I personally have my limitations in coming up with a monologue. For one, I was so sheltered, that I neither faced incest, nor rape nor abuse. When I was 5 or 6, a servant boy tried something funny and told me to shut up, but something told me that what he wanted was odd and I went and told my parents. Right away, he was dismissed. It is situations such as these that make me truly believe in the theory of Karma. Even though I was not directly violated, there is a part of me that cries everytime I read a report on rape or abuse.

This film is not about feminism or being a woman. It is about respect. Of giving respect and getting it in return. It is about honoring the woman, about celebrating her presence on this Earth whose womb is the beginning of all human life. Let us honor the opening to that womb- the garba griha.

Rakhi Sawant Loses Competition and Whines

Amrita Rajan — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 01:58:29 EST

Did the Rupert Murdoch-owned Star Plus play dirty with everybody's favorite motormouth Rakhi Sawant?

To begin at the beginning, there was a show called Nach Baliye. The Indian version of Dancing with the Stars, it went one up on the American show and upped the irritation and must-see quotient by eliminating the trained dancing partners (copyright issues with the format might also have been a consideration) and substituting real life couples instead. So at the end of the day, nobody’s fiance ran off with their dancing partner but there’s a lot of high school clique-ry going on.

Typically, the show is full of TV ’stars’, both real and imagined, culled from a vast line up of daily soaps mass produced by the House of Ekta Mata or knockoff brands as may be the case. However, this nepotist little family of pure, virginal daughters-in-law and dastardly vamps can get old pretty fast, so the producers like to throw in some variety - like Sandhya Mridul (who, incidentally, lost to a bahu) on Sony’s Jhalak Dikhla Jaa… and Rakhi Sawant on Nach Baliye.

Now, I’ve never seen this show and I am so incredibly sorry I haven’t. Never have I regretted a snobbish impulse more than right now. Clearly, reality TV is the only saving grace of Indian television. I stand chastised. But I do know somebody (make that several somebodies) who has seen the show - every single episode - and recapped it all: the always awesome Aspi & Co. Here’s what went down in the final four hour episode as the favorites to win geared up for the grand announcement:

As the results were about to get announced, Rakhi shed copious tears. Abhishek clasped and read the Hanuman Chalisa under his breath. Someone next to Rakhi’s mum looked about to keel over a statue of Mary she was holding. Both the dancers looked like they were winding themselves up for an “Oh my God! I won!” type of release.

But bhais ki pooch if it wasn’t the competition that was announced as the winners. For a whole minute, it seemed, neither Abhishek nor Rakhi moved. They didn’t even glance at the winners – let alone make a gesture to congratulate them. And when they did move, they stormed straight off the stage.

BWAHAHAHAA!

Er, I mean - FOUL! “Milard, I object!” This cannot be! Yeh paap hai! Gabbar Singh called and said, “Bahut nainsaafi hai!”

Forty-eight hours have passed since that awful day. A day when hope died. When an angel lost her wings. Since someone pricked a baby’s balloon, brought a tear to a mother’s eye, kicked a man when he was down, stole a blind man’s wallet and generally showed us that yeh duniya agar mil bhi jaye to kya hai?

And one woman has risen from the ashes to fight injustice in the TV world. That woman… is Rakhi Sawant.

“This was fixed! Abhishek and I got to know about the illegal software that the winning couple used. It is called PC SMS tool kit. Apparently, the other couple had roped in 3-4 cyber cafes for the purpose. With the help of this software, they polled 200 votes per second and that got them a lead of 5 lakh votes over us. Yeh cheating hai ! And when we tried to send a vote for ourselves, our voting lines were closed. Humne unhe vote bheja, woh chala gaya… hamara nahi gaya . Our votes bounced. We also found out that the software was purchased in the name of the winning contestant’s brother.”

And so, Rakhi said, it was the duty of the Mumbai police to play Santa (Claus, I presume) and help them out by investigating this showbiz chicanery. The police said they’d overshot their costume budget for the year but they’d look into it in the new financial year. Nooooooo! Of course they didn't say that. They said they’d investigate in due course.

Meanwhile, Nach Baliye winner and Rakhi’s significant other’s rival (in the strictly dancing sense) Aamir thinks the best couple won and he finds it a little suspicious that Rakhi knows so much about rigging votes. He further added that Rakhi needs to look up sportsmanship in the dictionary. He can explain this unique point of view to her at length when she joins the daily soap circuit and hangs out with all the other soap stars at the billion and one programs they typically meet up at.

That’s right, folks, Rakhi Sawant has read the writing on the wall and understood that one needs to be a soap star to win stuff around this turf. Look at Aamir’s partner Sanjeeda who plays a vamp and still won, “PC SMS” or no “PC SMS”. Rakhi had talent (hey, the girl can't do a lot but she can dance), a beefy partner who knew the Hanuman Chalisa, a mother with a statue of Mother Mary, fake bobs, fake lips and fake everything you can think of. What did Sanjeeda have? She had Ekta Mata.

So now Rakhi wants Ekta Kapoor as well. But she doesn't want to play a vamp. No sirree. She says she's getting on in years and PYTs keep trying to hog the limelight she doesn’t want to let go of, so she’s planning on a career change: a dutiful daughter-in-law. This way she can get fat and nobody will mind. They’ll just fast forward the show a couple of decades and give her a couple of kids to make miserable.

Can she do it? Can the woman best known for her pout, her attention-getting antics, her reconstructed body poured into itsy bitsy outfits switch gears and throw herself into the arms of Coy and Demure?

Come on, Ekta, give her a chance. If nothing else, do it just to find out how much you can screw with your audience and still get away with it. It'll be a guaranteed ratings buster! For the first week at least.

New Movies: Sweeney Todd, Charlie Wilson's War, Taare Zameen Par & More

Amrita Rajan — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 10:03:21 EST

If you thought the Diwali fight between the Shahrukh Khan starrer Om Shanti Om, the Sanjay Leela Bhansali directed Saawariya and the Robert Redford directed Tom Cruise starrer Lions for Lambs was a mega weekend at the box office, watch out for this Friday.

This December 21, as American studios rush to release their last batch of award-material movies and Indian filmmakers try to cap a rollercoaster year with a bang, you have no fewer than seven star vehicles headed your way. Here's the list in my order of preference:

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street - Johnny Depp is framed and convicted by a judge who has less than wholesome designs on his wife and, later, his daughter. Depp returns years later as a bitter barber who seeks revenge not only on the judge who ruined his life but the whole city of London. As an added bonus, his grisly method of exacting vengeance gives a shot in the arm to his landlady's (Helena Bonham Carter) flagging meatpie business. Based on a Stephen Sondheim musical, directed by Tim Burton, and starring half the Death Eaters from the Harry Potter movies, it's opening to rave reviews.

Charlie Wilson's War - Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams and Om Puri star in this Aaron Sorkin-written, Mike Nichols-directed dramedy about a bumbling US Congressman who fuels the Taliban movement in 1980s Afghanistan to fight the Soviets. As the tagline says: "Based on a true story. You think we could make all this up?" There is, of course, always the fear that this could end up as a huge turkey - Reese Witherspoon and Jake Gyllenhaal's Rendition, Brian de Palma's Redacted and Lions for Lambs have all failed miserably at the box office this year - but I have hopes for this movie because A) I like politics, B) I love Mike Nichols and C) I have never yet been bored by Sorkin's writing. And yes, I've seen Studio 60 a.k.a. Why Doesn't Kristen Chenoweth Love Me Anymore, Goddammit? The entire season of it. So there.

Taare Zameen Par - I want to love this movie but... I don't know. Everything about it feels more like obligation than a pleasure. The promos and the write ups seem to follow this line of thought: you like Aamir Khan + he makes good movies - therefore you're now contractually obligated to watch his directorial venture about kids with special needs. Special needs, people! How can you be against a movie about kids with special needs? Or is it just kids who hate school? It's a bit difficult to tell. Unless hating school is now a special need. And that clip of Aamir dressed up as a clown and, well, clowning around with the kids - it just tries too hard. And every Aamir fan on the planet knows that he doesn't need to do that. Sigh. I really hope I'm wrong and this movie turns out to be one of those rare, special little movies that doesn't sound like anything much on paper but turns out to be a complete and utter joy. Fingers crossed but this is one of those flicks where I won't go to the theatre without reading a review or two.

Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story - Did you love Talladega Nights and Superbad, not to mention Knocked Up? In that case you probably don't want to miss this R-rated Judd Apatow-produced, John C. Reilly starrer. It gets fourth place because it doesn't have any kids with special needs in it. It does however have adults with special needs in it - like drugs and alcohol.

Welcome - Akshay Kumar and Paresh Rawal make a funny movie. Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar and Feroze Khan give additional heft. Katrina Kaif looks pretty. Mallika Sherawat plays a vamp. In other news, the sun rose this morning and the sky is still blue. Good to know. I'll get the DVD or something.

National Treasure: Book of Secrets - I distinctly remember a time when Nicholas Cage used to make good movies. No, I really do. Hmm. Well, anyway, he has a kid now and I guess he needs a paycheck. Thus, we all get to suffer. Say hello to your in-flight 'entertainment' for the next three years,

P.S. I Love You - Here is the reason why National Treasure came second last instead of dead last. It was a really good try to squeeze in some Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Gerald Butler but unless the movie shows us some of that red carpet action, I'm really not interested. Calling all Hillary Swank aficionados - come weep your heart out.

Akshardham and Sonu Niigaam Symbolize Unity in Diversity

Kavita Chhibber — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 00:58:48 EST

Its beauty and majesty inspires an awed silence, the serenity and good vibrations that emanate in its interiors make the few hours that you spend there truly an experience unlike any other you may have had at an edifice of this stature. I have always felt that when commercialism rears its ugly head, divine structures become devoid of celestial vibrations. Mercifully Akshardham so far seems to belie that observation.

On a beautiful morning in September when I stood outside this majestic edifice in Delhi, I thought to myself that Akshardham must be the most beautiful divine dream anyone could have dreamed.

Today, the majestic Akshardham temple stands on a 100 acre property symbolizing how the diversity of Indian culture, its architecture, its knowledge, and the bhakti bhava-this deep desire to give and to serve, within its portal can become a unifying force.

He is perhaps the most outstanding young singer to emerge out of India in recent times, and when Sonu Niigaam walked onto the stage to perform his fresh new interpretation of Mahatma Gandhi’s favorite hymn Vaishnav Janato, as part of the inauguration ceremonies to honor Drew Faust, the first woman to be installed as the 28th President of Harvard University in 371 years, it was the first time in the 371 years of Harvard history that any Indian artist had been invited to perform at the installation ceremonies.

I had written separate pieces on Akshardham and the historic event at Harvard, but in a strange way they feel interconnected-the beauty and grandeur of Akshardham and the beauty of the moment when Sonu Niigaam stepped on the Harvard stage and sang Vaishnav Janato, it became a surreal moment not just for him perhaps but also for all South Asians world over. Sonu Niigaam is a brilliant singer and while off and on he gets negative press, the more I get to know him the more I discover a very genuine, warm hearted, extremely bright man. There are very few singers with either his versatility or range of voice in his age group, and when he stepped on the Harvard stage, he became a symbol of a transnational world, that Drew Faust talked about in her inaugural speech.

There has always been a group of people who are critical of millions of dollars spent on building yet another temple, and I have been among them. Like many others, I feel that the same money could have been used to help the poor, living in the slum areas in India, and for better purpose for the thousands of underprivileged South Asians here in the US than building the umpteenth temple.

So I went to Akshardham with a skeptical mind. I thought it would be yet another commercialized tourist spot that Tirupathi in the south had become. It was the grandeur of the place that first strikes you obviously and pretty much takes your breath away. Millions and millions of man hours were devoted to building Akshardham, which is a modern miracle not just because of its splendor but also the record time in which it was built.

You walk in and very soon you start feeling the vibrations, and a sense of peace just embraces you. In a discussion with the founder of Isha Foundation Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev, I had been told about the scientific way ancient temples were built and what the vibrations emanating from the temple did for meditators who went there. Akshardham is one such temple. The grandeur of all temples erected by the Swaminarayan organization is submerged by the amazing love and volunteerism that seems to pour from the million devotees world wide. The organization does outstanding work in so many areas.

Akshardham has become a symbol of the united diversity of humanity, as people from all over the world visit and mingle lovingly there. Artisans from all regions of India have donated their services and their craftsmanship to create this modern wonder. I wish we could be as loving and inclusive outside such serenity invoking monuments, in a world that seems to be filled with hatred and fear.

A full-length feature on Akshardham, including exclusive video footage: CLICK HERE

Will This Cyber Revolution Fly or Fizzle?

temporal — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 00:25:04 EST

Utho meri duniya ke ghareeboñ ko jagaado
Kaakh-e umara ke dar-o deewaar hilaado

Rise, awaken the poor of my land
Rattle the palaces of the rich men’s band
– “Allama” Mohammad Iqbal Link

Khomeini’s cassette revolution that he launched from Paris suburbs to oust US backed Shah opened a new era in mobilizing the masses.

The ‘free’ electronic media in Pakistan turned its guns on its benefactor. It refused to be silenced even when it was locally muzzled. It spawned another cyber movement, this one led and aided by bloggers.

The western media co-opted it and gave it further impetus. BBC, NYT, Slate, WP et al appealed for their help and contribution.

Benazir is sensing a kill without thinking it through. Nawaz Sharif is marginalized. JI and other parties in opposition act impotent.

Electronic Media is brimming with righteous indignation. Lawyers’ protests seem to have been over shadowed by those of the Press. Students have confined their shouting on the campuses only.

How much of this flow of information and views filtered down to where it really mattered? How much of the aftermath of protests affected the ordinary Pakistanis?

This raises two important questions. Can the political parties effectively mobilize any street power? Or are they in collusion with the Army and prefer back door negotiations for power realignment and share in the pie?

If the citizens refuse to come out no real change of power structure will occur. Street power is the only force that can effectively take on the occupying army. In ’88 Asia’s best equipped army refused to come to the Shah’s aid when it confronted the street power of the Iranians.

The other possibility is what Pakistanis have experienced previously and seemingly refuse to learn from. The pressure is brought on but merely results in a change of face. Sweets will be distributed and everyone will go home with a smile.

That is what happened when Ayub was removed – and Yahya, Bhutto, Zia, Benazir, Nawaz, Benazir again, Nawaz again and Musharraf. And if things are not calculated wisely perhaps the past will be repeated with another Khaki face.

The ‘upright, professional soldier’ will take over and make the right promises – free and fair election - in 30 days, 90 days, one year, next year! And in another ten years, if Pakistan survives, the dissatisfied elites would again band together to demand freedom and justice and free and fair elections.

Who will make the citizens rise?

Movie Review: Om Shanti Om

Aditi Nadkarni — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 19:45:25 EST

The film begins with a quick reference to the 70s film Karz where Rishi Kapoor is prancing around the stage looking as adorable as ever, tapping his feet to the memorable notes of "Om Shanti Om". In the cheering crowd is a bell-bottom clad Om Prakash Makhija (Shah Rukh Khan), his eyes brimming with dreams of becoming a superstar in Bollywood.

He is, however, only a junior artiste, living in a small shanty near the studios with his very filmy mother Bela (Kirron Kher). While Om's fun friendship with Pappu (Shreyas Talpade) keeps his spirits high, the highlight of his young life is his love for superstar Shantipriya (Deepika Padukone).

The good-hearted and sentimental Om wins Shantipriya's friendship while rescuing her from a fire on the movie set and thus begins a love-story that somehow trickles into the after-life.

In the first half of the movie, Shah Rukh Khan does as good of a job as his ridiculous costumes would've allowed of playing an awkward, dreamy eyed and even comical junior film artist. Something tells me that not only were the art directors going for a 70s Bollywood look, the sets and gawdy costumes were probably meant for a theatre musical. Shreyas Talpade as Pappu and Shah Rukh Khan compensate for the flawed and utterly humorless script with their comic timing and spontaneity.

Kirron Kher goes back and forth between playing a very filmy mother and trying to salvage a neither-here-nor-there, undeveloped character which teeters dangerously at times towards being annoying. The villain Mukesh Mehra (Arjun Rampal) lacks the sleazy and wicked countenance that would've been fitting for the bad guy of a film showcasing a typical Bollywood masala. That being said, I would rather have Arjun Rampal be a quiet and scheming old man with a pony tail or a painfully thin moustache than a lover boy hopping around in chick flicks.

The first half of the movie has some very funny moments. The parody of South Indian cinema, references from old Bollywood and Shah Rukh Khan's naive and unaffected persona made for some very entertaining episodes. Somewhere along the line however the audience is left wondering whether director Farah Khan couldn't make up her mind about whether she wanted to make a Bollywood masala parody, a homage to Bollywood hits of the 70s or an actual contemporary commercial film that would belong to any of today's Hindi cinematic genre. As a result at times during the film when one is laughing, it isn't really at the well-written dialogue or at the humor shown by the characters but more or so at the farsical depiction of 70s Hindi cinema.

The first half unwittingly mocks some of the biggest stars of the yesteryears and while that is minimally funny, on scrutiny seems like a distraction from the film's lack of an original plot.

Debutante Deepika Padukone is undoubtedly the star of Om Shanti Om. Her astonishingly restrained, graceful and confident performance as both Shantipriya the 70s heroine in the first half of the film and her look-alike Sandhya a.k.a Sandy in the second half. While Ms.Padukone bears some resemblance to Aishwarya Rai and Priyanka Chopra in terms of looks, her acting skills thankfully puts her several glorious notches above both these contemporary heroines. Very few actresses manage to hold their own amidst the melodramatic performances, theatrical dialogue and crazy dance numbers that define practically all mainstream Bollywood films.

Stealing the show from the flamboyant King Khan also is no ordinary task. Ms.Padukone accomplishes all this with remarkable ease in her very first Bollywood endeavor. It is safe to say that with Deepika Padukone's arrival Bollywood's commercial scene has a new swiftly rising star on the horizon.

The scene where female fans will finally be able to ogle at Shah Rukh Khan's well-toned body and get to see a masculine form flaunted instead of the usual heaving bosoms, is oddly refreshing. His comic timing in this film is vaguely reminiscent of his uninhibited performance in Chamatkar all those years ago.

Shah Rukh Khan's own dazzling success in an industry teeming with starlets is an inspiration to many a struggling Bollywood actor who arrives in tinsel town without a Bolly-baap to usher him in. And hence the periodic cracks about having to be a Kapoor or a Kumar to be successful in Bollywood are apt.

The music is lilting and pleasant and quite a happy distraction when the plot stagnates at times. Particularly meoldious are Ankhon Mein Teri and Agar Main Kahoon. My personal favorite however was the picturisation of Dhoom Tana which uses some very nifty graphics to incorporate actors from the golden years into Deepika Padukone's foot tapping dance sequence. The numerous and noteworthy guest appearances in the catchy title song Deewaangi were very welcome sights and reminded one of the immense talent in the industry and sadly how little scope at times there is that calls for it.

The second half of the movie is dragged to a point where the recurring dialogue Yeh picture abhi khatam nahi hui starts to seem like a malicious jab mocking the worn audience. A masala Bollywood package should not have to compromise on entertainment value just to make the three hour stretch. While the 70s film Karz fit right into the times, Om Shanti Om sorely sticks out for having an obsolete “rebirth” storyline. Also, it is about time Farah Khan demonstrated some directorial prowess instead of letting King Khan deliver the film from flopsville. A quick comparison between the song and dance routines versus actual sequences within the film will reveal that Farah Khan in spite of donning the director's hat is still more of a choreographer than anything else.

A very rich Bollywood history generously allowed plenty of scope for the director to borrow from for this film and while originality is not one of its strongest areas, entertainment most definitely is. In the end, that is probably what tipped the box office in Om Shanti Om's favor.