Queen is what the Queen does!

I bring to you opinions of a guest on my blog - Anupriya Karmakar. She has some special observations to share on Queen! (the Movie). Here is her post:

This year saw several woman centric movies. Some struggled at the box office and were off the cineplexes in a jiffy (Gulab Gang, Bobby Jasoos, Revolver Rani), while others managed to garner rave reviews (Highway, Mary Kom, Mardani). For me this year belonged to Queen.

What I loved about this movie was that it was such a simple story made with sheer honesty. A perfect blend of emotions, fun, and serious messages said in a moderate tone. Never did I feel it was trying to preach anything yet it left a great impact. While many of you may have different memories from the movie, I personally have kept a few with me. Forever.

Go on a trip alone: Rani, the protagonist, decides to go for her honeymoon all by herself. To many of us it may seem bizarre but that’s what we all need – a trip alone. Being a woman, especially in India, we all are warned even to think of travelling alone. No matter how liberal our parents are. ‘Akeli ladki’ (Lone woman) are just some words that have been haunting us for ages. All we end up doing is calling up a bunch of disinterested friends who have unending excuses.

Make your backpack your companion. Whether going through a tough phase or not – just head out!

Let first impressions not impair your judgments: During her trip to Paris and Amsterdam Rani meets and befriends new people. Not only she gets close to people from different cultural backgrounds but makes new ‘male’ friends – something she would have never thought of.

At times we are quick to form an opinion about a new person. Our actions are ruled by what we think of that person. But we forget it’s not always the time that decides how well we know someone.

Don’t wash dirty linen in public: There’s just one instance when Rani gets sloshed in Paris and bares her heart out to Vijaylaxmi. However, when her friends in Amsterdam get into a brawl with her ex/fiancé, she clearly tells them to stay out.

No matter how much damage a person does to your feelings, it’s more dignified when you choose not to humiliate or try giving them a dosage of their own medicine in front of others. Respect is something that can elevate or tear someone apart with equal intensity.

Unleash the wild within you: Rani is a naïve girl, who even after being in a relationship is shown to have never French-kissed. She meets a stranger,Marcello, in Amsterdam and accepts his challenge to prove Indian style of kissing is the best by kissing him. She goes out to night-clubs and dances her heart out – something her fiancé had forbidden her from indulging in.

It’s sometimes good to let your hair down and just have a good time. The point made is not getting intimate with a stranger. That’s at your own discretion! ;)

Give your passion a chance: Thanks to Marcello that Rani gets to explore her hidden culinary skills and impresses the visitors at a fair with her desi Indian snack – GolGuppa. At first what it seemed as a failure, turns out a huge hit among the foreigners.

There’s no such thing as the perfect time to do what you like doing. It’s therapeutic when you want to break from the mundane.

The movie holds a special place in my heart. For starters: It’s my first movie alone in a theatre! Being a person conscious of the way I conduct myself in public (well, most of the times), the thought of watching a movie and reacting emotionally, all by myself, was nerve-racking. What if the stranger sitting next to you thinks you’re a retard? For me movie-watching is an experience that’s best enjoyed in the company of others. That’s just my personal viewpoint. I need another post to state the reasons. Anyway, thanks to a friend who ditched me at the last moment – for vaild professional reasons, of course (obviously I would never buy a ticket for just myself in the first place), I got to enjoy a wonderful piece of cinema, irrespective of who sat beside me that day.

As Rani took her final majestic walk after meeting her fiancé in the end, that’s how I felt on my way back after watching the movie – in my own little way with my own little achievement!

Author's Note: I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Shine for sharing her space on the blog with me and, most importantly, for encouraging me to write a blog post after ages.

P.S.: Thank you Anupriya! I hope you be a recipient of happy hospitality on my blog. You deserve a double thank you - for writing the post and helping with quite a few images - that makes me want to visit the movie again.

Photo Credit: Google Search

Five reasons not to #BoycottHaider

To me bashing any piece of creativity is unjustified, be it fatwa against Salman Rushdie for his work, censor board's stalling Deepa Mehta's Fire, or Tweeples talking #BoycottHaider. Just for the records the movie garnered 8.9 IMBD rating and people in my circle, who have watched the movie, have liked it. So to me all that criticism and Boycott talk is coming from people who have boycotted it already - most of the participants in the #BoycottHaider drive have not even watched the movie!

Source: Google Search

Here is my observation about the claims made on Twitter. I will refrain from sharing the story line, but I will pick up points that you will be able to relate with once you watch it!

1. The story is about the struggles of a Muslim family. It shows that Muslims in Kashmir are vulnerable, the ones who spread violence are those who are across the border. They mislead youth and use them as a tool to spread disharmony in India. People follow the wrong path for a reason - mostly for sentiments not for big ideologies.

2. I do not see Army's role is not in a wrong light - it shows that Army is no clairvoyant - they go via the messenger route. The movie indicates that Armed Forces Special Power Act (AFSPA) is a draconian law, and if you do a little google search you will find reasons why is it called as a tool of state abuse, oppression and discrimination. Even UN has stated that AFSPA is against international law. The act is applied in the state of Kashmir and North East to protect India from terrorists, but any law - like Dowry Law or Rape Law - is susceptible to misuse. Irom Sharmila has been on a hunger strike from 2000 to get this act out. She has been fed through a pipe attached to her nose. So there are protests against AFSPA for quite a long time - the movie in fact brings this to light.

3. It does not in any way bring Kashmiri pandit into the picture. No talk about Hinduism. The movie is not about them. It is about the struggles parents of Muslim who do not want their kids to fall in the trap of terrorism. Parents who want their kids to move out in other parts of India and experience real freedom.

4. The movie reminds that plebiscite for People of Kashmir was promised by Pt Nehru. The issue has been raised time and again - shows that politicians should not deliver big speeches if they cannot stand upto it, it creates resentment. There is a scene in the movie - that indicated that it is not about freedom of Kashmir but about slavery from across the border.

5. Haider, he was not a hero, but a protagonist, fighting complexities of loss, betrayal and revenge!

Author's Note: Why does a piece of art haunt people? It is just an opinion, and not a holy book! Listening to the other side of the story only makes you human. Young Muslims in Kashmir are being misled by an organised set of terrorists. #HaiderTrueCinema. The movie is based on facts!

Highway or Her Way: A-to-Z Challenge [9 April 2014]

Pulled out from the womb of a city,
Handcuffed and mouth-wrapped shut.
Right from a lavish splendid palace, 

Source: timesofap.com

Loaded in a truck, with stench and rut.

As she gave up retaliation and fuss,

Her clutches were untied, one by one.
As she accepted and embraced the present,
The wind kissed her every now and then.

She found the real freedom,

Under the vast sky and an endless journey.
The journey that had no aim,
A journey that had no name.

A journey that allowed her to scream.
On an endless road, that spanned through farms.
She released piled up hills of screams,

Ones which were so far suffocated.

On a highway she realized that,
All her life she was abused in the name of life.

She found real monsters,

Badge : A-to-Z Challenge [April 2014]

In the name of guardian.

On a highway she found her way,
She flew, without wings.
She found a real saviour,
In the face of an abductor.

Author's Note: Through this post, I wanted to bring the emotions and suffocation suffered by the central character Veera Tripathi (Alia Bhatt) in Imtiaaz Ali's 2014 release Highway.

 P.S.:  This contest would have not been complete without a mention of Imtiaaz Ali.

Madras Cafe - Review

One man's terrorist is other man's revolutionary. 

This topic has never been spoken about in the Bollywood space, and thus I wanted to watch it. The movie revolves around the assassination of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, the LTTE (referred to as LTF in the movie) connection and the role played by RAW. It captured the sentiments of an Army Man's wife, it carried the message about how businesses run countries' national policies, it can become a nasty game. Politics is nothing but the information game and reinstating who is powerful in a region.

West wanted a strong hold in Indian subcontinent and India wanted to avert it, thus decided to intervene in Sri Lankan civil war during the 1990s. It showed failure of Indian military power, world's 4th largest military power to a revolutionay, Anna Bhaskara.

An army man confessing that the killing could have been averted. Although it was not clear to me how could it be averted?

Nargis Fakri role as a war correspondent, Jaya, was real, and her acting was far better than it was in Rockstar. Although I liked her in Rockstar as well.

John Abraham as Major Vikram Singh was naturally a hero. The movie was projected from his narrative perspective. I find John picking up on serious roles as a great decision. Even in Shootout at Wadala, I liked his role.

The songs are just great, I changed my hello tune to one of the songs from the movie Madras Cafe, Mera Kaun hai...

Author's Note: If you can see blood bath, become a war correspondent, and if you will puke when you see blood bath become a romantic novel writer. This though might be reflected in later posts.

P.S: I still have the image of Rajiv Gandhi's assassination intact, as we watched it on TV. And for a 7 years old me, it was something thrilling, full of horror.

P.P.S: This reminds me of an incident about one of the top business houses in India. There was a negative story about the business house carried by the Forbes Magazine. The Corporate Communications head was being targeted at by the company management for providing sensitive information to the media. Based on mere acquisitions, he was house arrested for 2 months, and threatened by the mafia. He ended up committing suicide. This is not an old story, happened recently, something like 2 months back. But there is no action that can possibly be taken against the company, because there is no proof.

Kai Po Che - Checked!

Many a times you come out of the theatre, wondering if this is what you expected of the movie. For Kai Po Che, I knew how it would shape - It was a revival of Chetan Bhagat's Novel - The Three Mistakes of My Life. However there is difference in my visualisation and the way a director projects it when a novel is scripted in a movie.

There was a revival of one more thing from the past. It being Abhishek Kapoor's directorial venture, and coming from my experience of Rock On, I had high hopes from this movie, which were met. Movies around sports mostly do well in our country, remember Chak De, Iqbal, Lagaan, and.... please go on to google search for more.

Kai Po Che has a pinch of everything: friendship, love, hatred, violence, enmity, loss, passion, aspirations, risk, entrepreneurship, regret, and much more. All in all, this is more than a one time watch, yes because of the story line and for the visuals captured. I simply wanted to jump off the cliff with them when the three best buddies had a gala time on a Sunday and yes not to forget mentioning a car drive on a wagon (''o). You have got to watch it to know it. However, the only thing I did not understand was why this name?

On a serious note: While we keep calling a neighbouring country as a source of infiltrating terror, which obviously is wrong, there is a more serious situation here - terrorism breeding in the name of Hindutva. And now with the elections coming in 2014, BJP is on an image cleaning spree, I am happy if the political party has learnt a lesson, for not been able to come to power during the last two General Elections.

P.S.: I wish after watching this movie people will stop justifying violence during the Gujarat riots, as a counteraction for sympathising with those who were killed in Sabarmati Express attack (official count 40). People who were killed in riots (official count 2000) were not the ones who attached the train.

Author's Note: Stop Religious profiling, and it will start with neither BJP nor Congress but you!