Iron Maiden: Flight 666 The movie

Those who have seen Iron maiden's Rock in Rio 1985 live concert video won't have any doubt if they are asked the question, 'Which is the religion having most number of followers in the world?". The concert which happened 25 years ago was attended by 3 lakh die hard fans. And when they came back there in 2001, they still had 2.5 lakh fans waiting there. The band which started 34 odd years back, when our parents were still in college has now grown into a worldwide religion. There's not a country on the face of the earth without a sizeable population of Iron Maiden fans. All this was achieved with not even a single article in mainstream newspapers or a single song of theirs being played in any mainstream radio station. So, when they started their latest world tour titled 'Somewhere back in time' with songs from their heydays in 80s, they decided to visit previously unvisited places like Costa Rica, Colombia and Puerto Rico. And, following the band on the first leg of this world quest is Sam Dunn and Scot McFadyen, the guys behind those path breaking documentaries 'Metal:A headbanger's journey' and 'Global metal'.

The route of the tour

Maiden with their Boeing-Edd force one

The documentary starts off with the staple concert starter 'Aces high' and halfway through it cuts back to the preparations prior to that. The first leg of the tour itself is hectic and mammoth, covering 23 cities around the world in 45 days. And, this almost impossible schedule is made possible by their own Boeing 747, titled 'Edd force one' and with that magic number 666. They also needn't pay for the pilot because Bruce Dickinson, their brilliant vocalist is a man who rides boeings for fun. The plane carried all their equipments and stage props. The tour starts off from our own Mumbai. Its looks as good as any international rock venue. From there, its a whirldwind ride as they travel around the world to play for their fans. Their versatality is proved in the scenes where they are shown engaging in sports as varied as tennis, golf and football in their spare time. And they have guys like Wimbledon champion Pat Cash to play along. Compared to the other 2 documetaries of his, Sam Dunn has relegated himself to the background and let the band run the show. The narrations are few and far in between. The band comes off as a down to earth, easy to approach bunch of gentlemen who stays away from drugs and doesn't booze much. Posers who do drugs and drinks just for the sake of that age old slogan should try to learn from these seasoned campaigners.

The allrounder-Pilot and Vocalist Bruce Dickinson

Bruce doing what he does best-Commanding the crowd

The real spirit of what Maiden means to the fans is revealed in the South American leg of the concert. There were crowds matching Rio De Janeiro in Mexico city, San Jose and Bogota. The scene in Columbia where the fans came and lived in tents near the concert venue even 1 week before the concert made for great viewing. It was a country where Maiden was banned sometime back for their supposedly Satanic lyrics. Only the fans know that its anything but supporting Satan. A guy called 'Father of Iron Maiden' with 100s of tattoos all over his body amused everyone. It was also a great sight to see legendary artists like Kerry King, Lars Ulrich and Tom Morello queuing up like fans to meet them. Life on the road touring is not as easy as we think whatwith these people having to brave injuries, ill health etc and come on stage with all their energy as usual. Talking about energy, I don't think there's a more energetic band that too at the tender ages nearing 60.

Watching Maiden in a movie theatre was a different experience though it was nowhere close to being in a concert. Only a handful of people were in the theatre and most of them were swaying their heads when the songs were being played. This docu made me understand the enormity of the historical concert we all watched live some months back in Bangalore. It was a fitting finale for a well made documentary with 'Hallowed be thy name', a song which has served as an introduction to many of us to the phenomenon that is Iron Maiden. I sometimes wonder about the people who have never listened to a Maiden song or seen a Maiden concert. How many have died without ever hearing their name. Aren't we all fortunate enough to be able to enjoy the magic of Maiden? So, if any of you who is reading this, have never experienced what Maiden is, its time. You been losing out on something. Get in the bandwagon before its too late. Even if you don't, its ok. Because, as Sam Dunn says, 'We all are doing just fine without you'.

PS- The journey to the theatre was an eventful. Me and Nikhil rushed from office to home, jumped on the bike and sped to Fun cinemas, the location of which was still a mystery to us. We made it a point to get stuck at almost all the red lights in between our home and the multiplex about 15kms away. At a point, we almost gave up hope. Then I told him, 'Bruce God(Maiden vocalist Bruce) will help us'. It was a miracle that we reached the theatre right in time just as the screen flashed the name Iron Maiden. Before that, I had to hastily answer a security lady who asked me, 'where did you get that Iron Maiden T shirt?'. An Iron Maiden poster was given free with the tickets and it is now waiting to adorn the walls of my room.

your crusader Praveen

Assbook,Farkut and Shwitter-Networking unleashed

Year 2049 ( not taking 2050 because everything is uncool after Harman Bhaweja uses it)

"I saw my grandmother for the first time today"
- Raj, a 50 year old's status message on the popular social networking site 'Assbook'.

"I never knew my house had a door through which I can get outside. Hey, I never knew there existed a world outside my home. But, I didn't see anyone alive outside."
- Samir, a 20 year old's status message in the networking site 'Farkut'(the 2nd vowel and the alphabet preceeding it is silent in the name)

"God, I just heard about a hurricane that lashed all over a country called USA. I feel sorry for the people there. Thank God, am in America."
-George, a 30 year old's latest message in the micro messaging site 'Shwitter'. This happened to be his last message there.

"Daisy said its safe because she's on pills"
-Shanth, a 5 year old kid famous for his anger, puts this message in the site 'Parending'


Nowadays, many people spent half of their life in on or the other social networking sites. When the orkut fad started way back in college, I thought everyone's excitement about the new medium will die down in a few days. But, it has only increased manifold with even sites in local languages catering to the kuttappans and thankappans of social networking. Facebook overtook orkut in popularity. Then came the path breaking micro messaging service, twitter. All of a sudden every filthy celebrity worth his/her salt is seen on twitter, creating records with the number of followers. Its a syndrome of 'Oh-u-r-so-uncool-if-u-r-not-on-twitter' all of a sudden. People have started updating the status of whatever they are doing right then online, to be read by their friends as well as millions of others on the net. With the convenience of updating status even from a mobile phone, we have some really wonderful realtime status messages to view everyday. Some samples.

"Right now having a hard time at the loo. Hope to finish this by EOD(End Of Day, for the uninitiated)"-Software engineer updating from the nearest restroom.

"Sending this update under trying cicumstances. Girlfriend has got one of her legs on my chests and a broomstick in one of her hands."

"The patient is crying out of pain. Forgot to give him the anaesthetic. Anyway its late, so thought I would let you all know this"- update from a doctor.

"Just baffled the interviewer with my quick wit. He's waiting for me to finish this tweet update"- youth at an interview.


Its all going to a point where people can never even think of living without this. Every small thing you do is paraded before the world as a soap opera. People talk more to the PC than their immediate neighbour. As the world shrinks, people are also shrinking inside. I may sound pessimistic. The Orwellian fan inside me makes me think that the whole internet is a big thought control mechanism where slowly your mind is made a slave without you even knowing it. A 6 pack body with a slavish mind is useless and slowly but completely you fall under the control. You become the addict. You get withdrawal symptoms when you stay away. You submit fully to it. More and more people fall into the trap. The world will be full of thought controlled zombies who call themselves humans. Then, the real dark villain will arise and call himself the owner of the internet and thus in a way the owner of your soul too.

The previous para was a doomsday scenario which occurs in my brain right after 12 AM everyday. The reality may not come much close to this. But it can never be ruled out. A generation of social networking slaves who have never seen a human alive in real life...

image courtesy-contrib.andrew.cmu.edu

Skandagiri Revisited

Old readers of this blog might remember the post which I wrote after a tiresome day time trek to the Skandagiri hills near Bangalore last year. That time, we heard a lot about the joys of night time trekking on a full moon day. This saturday(a boring working Saturday) night, me and my 3 roomies set out from our home at 11 PM. Though it was just the day after full moon, the cloudy and almost rainy atmosphere made sure that the moon was nowhere to be seen. And unlike last time, we had a big vareity of food stuff with us. The new airport road at night time is even more beautiful. The whole stretch was all washed in a white glow. After the airport, the width of the road began to decrease till Chikballapur. Me, being the only one among the group who visited this place previously, was expected to know the route thoroughly. Me, also well known for my excellent memory power, was helpless in that respect. After a round of confused riding and asking to equally confused locals, we somehow reached our destination. We were surprised to see a lot of bikes there. By this time, the full moon was out in full view to guide us through the trek.

my scary roomies

Lonely day ahead

The local guides were at hand to give us scary details of wild animals roaming about in the hills. But we turned a deaf ear to them and said 'No, thanks' to their offer to guide us. We shined all the four torches and started the trek. A little into the adventure, we understood that we had begun at the wrong place and was actually stranded at a not so safe place. Added to that, we were going up the wrong hill. We saw snake pits at some places and thorny bushes all around. The bravest among us, my roomie Praveen did the honours of clearing the thorns and leading us. And now we were well on our way up the right hill. We could see torches shining at the top of the hill. The trek which started at 2 ended at 5.30 in the morning. Even while reaching there, we were travelling through a bushy thorny path used by nobody. The place was already a bit crowded with tents and lots of people on view. The wind was so powerful that we found it hard to balance. Taking decent snaps was a pain with added effect of the biting cold. To our disappointment, the clouds were not on view. Later, we came to know that its usally seen around January. Still, we savoured the awesome view from the top. The trip downhill was easier and took less than half the time of the uphill journey.

mera roomies..resting on top

Myeeeeeee

walking back

The most eventful part of the trip took place on our return journey in the bike. We were all feeling sleepy by the time we started from there. I had slept only about 6 hours in the last 48 hours. As we rode on, I almost fell asleep 2-3 times and Praveen who was sitting behind me, sensing this began singing songs and tapping on my shoulder to keep me awake. At a point, he stopped this excercise and made fun of Manu who was sitting behind the other bike and sleeping to glory. The next minute, me, Praveen and the bike were lying on the road. Yes, I had fallen asleep in a gap of just 2 seconds. Thankfully, there were not much vehicles on the road and we were not going at a high speed. We escaped with minor cuts and bruises. From there, Praveen took control of the vehicle and ordered me to sing songs non-stop else I fall asleep. So, it was a virtual on the road concert for the next 2 hours and he endured some of the worst moments of
his life. After a point, even I couldn't bear my singing but he won't let me stop. After reaching home, we slept the whole of Sunday. It was a short weekend, well spent..

your crusader Praveen

Motherjane with kids:Rocking for a Cause

There are some gestures which mean a lot to the ones who receive it, much more than that is intended by the ones who give it. This Tuesday, me and some of my friends were witness to one such touching gesture. Motherjane, India's premier rock band took time out of their busy schedule and visited Snehadan in Bangalore. They came here as part of a promotional video shoot for the organisation. They spent a whole day there and in the end decided to do a special show for the kids. When we reached there in the evening, the concert had just started out.

The kids, most of them less than 8 years old were sitting right in the front slowly swaying their heads and clapping along with the song. Vocalist Suraj Mani interacted superbly well with the kids, even calling some of them by their names. Some of the kids started standing up and jumping. Thats when Suraj invited them to come and dance on stage. From that moment onwards, the concert changed its character. There was Motherjane on stage belting out their best numbers, surrounded by a big bunch of kids getting their first taste of rock music. All of them were rhythmically dancing and swaying in accordance with the music. Never in my life have I seen such a rock concert were the kids enjoyed with so much fervour. Its a glowing tribute to motherjane's genre bending music that they were able to connect with these kids who are alien to this brand of music. The joy on the kids's face is worth remembering for a long time to come. Some of them went close to Baiju chettan's guitars and watched intently as he jumped around the frets with absolute ease. The real brave among them actually touched the guitars. Another thing worth noting is that their attention didn't waver for a single moment during the whole concert. They eagerly lapped up song after song and kept on asking for more so that they can dance again.

I've been to a hell lot of Motherjane concerts but not a single one of them matches up with this one. This concert in a small hall with a normal sound system was better than many other biggies for the joy they spread, the cause for which they played and for successfully connecting with such an young audience.

PS- More than all this, my rock hater roomie who was dragged along just because we were one bike short, actually loved the show and today reluctantly accepted that he loves Motherjane's music. Now, Motherjane can add that to one of their greatest achievements :D.

Calicut sings 'Jai Ho Rahman'

The Ticket

AD 1498- Vasco Da Gama set his foot on Calicut. History was created.

AD 2009- Rahman arrives in Calicut. 1498 deleted from history books.

The land of Zamorins is no stranger to music of the highest class. Right from the Vadakkanpaattu to the popular mappilapaattu, this land has reverberated to the strains of music of the highest order for the past many centuries. And, when the emperor arrived here this Sunday, the land and its people welcomed him with open arms. A.R.Rahman, fresh from his double Oscar victory, announced his 'Jai Ho' world tour some weeks back giving rise to days of speculations on everything related to the tour. The 5 year long tour kicked off from God's own country, a place where he hasn't done a concert till date. The concerts are done as part of a charity initiative for the benefit of AIDS affected children.

We, the gang from Trivandrum landed in Calicut at 6 AM on the day of the concert. Our first destination after settling down at the lodge was the Corporation stadium, the venue of the concert. As we walked along the roads of this city with an old world charm, some big banners of the concert were on view at either side. We had a small peek inside the gates and caught a glimpse of the big stage. Then it was an impatient 4-5 hours for the gate to open as we explored different parts of the city. There were youth roaming around wearing 'Jai Ho' and 'ARR' T shirts. At around 4 O Clock, we came back to the stadium and was greeted by the sight of serpentine queues and a huge crowd outside the stadium. Luckily, we got into a small queue and soon we were trotting up the gallery. The crowd was beginning to build up. We settled near the top gallery a little left to the stage so as not to be blocked by the mixing and video consoles in the front. Diehard fans with banners were on view. The sun was beating down hard. Slowly, the noise began to increase. Then, it all came out synchronised as chants and cheers for Rahman. By 6 30, the stadium was full to the brim. The gallery was the happening place with innovative slogans, mexican waves and the truely awesome mobile waving excercise. The sounds were being checked and the background props arranged. The show was supposed to start at 7 PM and there was no sign of ARR even at 7 30 PM. This delay, as I came to know later, happened because of some last minute problem with the feedback system. Even with the delay, the crowd frenzy didn't die down. We started the soccer style 'Jai Ho' chant which was later heard reverberating from the whole gallery. Catchy Rahman tunes were used as slogans by many. It went on..

The crowd at 6 PM(Pic courtesy-My Mobile cam)

At 7 45 PM, the lights dimmed. The stage alone was shining amidst the darkness.The beats of 'Shano Shano' were heard. Soon, Sayanora, the Kerala girl came in welcoming the crowd to the upcoming musical extravaganza. The step like pedestal at the centre turned on its centre to reveal Asad sitting with a Sitar on his lap. The strains of the brilliant track 'Mausam and escape' were heard. Sanjeev Thomas and Rashid Ali on guitars gave him company. But, still there was one problem. None of us could hardly hear it. Yes, the sound system sucked to the core. And then came the very moment we all were waiting. The train beats of 'O Saya' were heard and in came into the spotlight the man, his music and the magic. We all let our throats on a free run as we screamed, jumped and cried out his name. Sayanora came back to sing 'Athiradi' with him. Then came the first surprise. Rahman started singing the first lines of his wildly popular malayalam song 'Padakali'. And from both sides of the stage came 2 men in Kathakali masks and dummy swords. Geore Peter and Benny Dayal breezed through the song. Hariharan came on stage to sing 'Roja Janeman' without taking his mic and he shared Sadhna's mic as he effortlessly displayed his improvisational range. 'Masakali' from Raja Hasan was a treat and he almost sounded like Mohit. Next was 'Jiya Se Jiya', the free hugs song from the maestro himself. Its from this song that we began to realise how much Sivamani's drumming was missed. I hate IPL for robbing Siva from us. By this time, the songs were audible everywhere but still the mixing and overall quality were pathetic. Its to be noted that this is ARR's first concert after the demise of the man behind all his sonic perfection, H.Sridhar. So, the quality of sound output was below par compared to his usual concerts.

Rahman singing 'O Saya'(Pic courtesy-Rediff)

One of the most noteworthy points of the concert was the visuals that were shown at the background for each song. Each song had a separate visual that went with the theme of the song. Also, the lighting was superb. The stage was designed in 2 levels with a revolving step like structure at the centre. Even with all this, the most important flaw remained- the poor sound quality. Blaaze rocked the audience with 'Style'. The choreography was well synchronised and well presented for most of the songs. Chitra filled in well for Sujata in the song 'Netru Illadha'. Still, Sujata was sorely missed. 'Malargale' had both Chitra and Hariharan in rocking form with a hell lot of improvisation going in. Rashid Ali sung a beautiful english intro song before venturing into 'Kabhi Kabhi Aditi'. ARR was back on stage with 'Rehna Tu'. We were in for a surprise as we waited for that 2 minute piece played on a continuum in the end. There was no continuum. Instead Rahman hummed it beautifully well. The opening beats of 'Taal Se Taal' morphed into 'ringa ringa', sung and danced to by a ravishing Neeti Mohan and Sayanora.

In the middle of all this, politicians were at hand to play spoilsport. A guy came on stage and said 'We are gonna have a small program without any speeches.' Then, we saw all those VIPs trotting on stage to get a share of the spotlight. The function was supposed to distribute money to the AIDS affected children. Instead it stooped to the level of a self congragulatory excercise on the part of the local organisers and politicians. Anyway, the concert really blasted off after this short break. Blaaze and Benny rocked with the 'New' title track. There was a superb medley of 'Azeem-O-Shan' and 'veerapaandi kottayile', sung by ARR. Suzanne regaled with 'Dreams on fire'. Then, there was the highlight of the evening. A.R.Rahman, Javed Ali, Mohd Aslam and Raja Hassan sat down on the floor with harmonium and tablas in traditional sufi wear. ARR rode his finger effortlessly on the harmonium as they proceeded on to treat us to a medley of 'Khwaja mere khwaja' and 'Arziyan'. Rahman's sister Rehana came on stage to talk about their father and to introduce the song 'manasu manassinte' composed by R.K.Sekhar. The fire dance during 'Jiya Jale' went well with the song. Guitarist Sanjeev Thomas was flown over the crowds as he improvised some stuff which led to 'Mustafa'. The whole crowd was seen waving mobile phones. It was a sight to behold, too good to describe. There were some goof ups on part of ARR as well, like the instances were he forgot the lyrics or where he went slightly out of pitch. The songs that came up later were all foot tappers and the crowd lapped it up with constant dancing and singing along. The show ended with the superb medley of 'Jai Ho' and Vande Mataram'. Am sure there was not a single throat that didn't sing 'Jai Ho' with him there. This was accompanied by fireworks. As the show ended, it was a sense of accomplishment of having fulfilled a long standing dream of watching this man live in concert. Even after meeting him personally, this was one dream I carried all through and yes, now its fulfilled.

The song list(courtesy-Gopal Srinivasan of arrahmanfans yahoo groups, a blessed soul with loads of memory power)
1. Opening Act (DJ Medley) - Shano shano
2. Mausam and Escape - Asad on Sitar; Sanjeev Thomas, Raashid on guitars and Keith on bass
3. O Saya - ARR, Chorus
4. Athiradi - ARR, Sayonara
5. Padagali Chandi - George Peter, Benny Dayal
6. Tu Muskura - Sadhana Sargam (Bit)
7. Roja Janeman - Sadhana Sargam, Hariharan
8. Masakali - Raja Hassan
9. Jiya se Jiya - ARR
10. Style - Blaaze
11. Liquid Dance - Tracked
12. Guzarish - Javed Ali
13. Netru Illatha - Chitra
14. Malargale - Chitra, Hariharan
15. Kabhi Aditi - Raashid Ali
16. Rehna Tu - ARR, Chorus
17. Taal Se Taal ( western ) - Tracked
18. Ringa Ringa - Neeti Mohan, Sayonara
19. Kala bandar - Benny, Blaaze (Medley)
20. Gangster Blues - Blaaze, Tanvi (Medley)
21. New - Blaaze, Benny, Chorus (Medley)
22. Azeem O Shaan - ARR (Medley)
23. Rukumani - Chorus (Medley)
24. Veera Pandi - ARR, Chorus (Medley)
25. Latika's theme/Dreams on Fire - Suzanne
26. Khwaja mere Khwaja - ARR, Javed Ali, Aslam, Raja Hassan
27. Arziyan - ARR, JAved Ali, Aslam, Raja Hassan
28. Manasu Manasinte - Chitra (from Chotanikkara Amma, composed by RK
Shekar)
29. Kannalane - Chitra
30. Jiya Jale - Chitra
31. Aye hairaten - Sadhana Sargam, Hari
32. Vaaji Vaaji - Hari, Sadhana
33. Mustafa - ARR
34. Dhaka laga bukka - ARR (Bit)
35. Pappu Cant Dance - Benny, Chorus
36. Aye Bachu - Suzanne
37. Urvasi - ARR
38. Taxi Taxi - Benny, Blaaze, Chorus
39. Humma - ARR
40. Jai Ho - ARR, Tanvi, Chorus
41. Vandemataram - ARR, All artistes

PS- They should allow cameras inside the concert venues. What do they think? We are gonna broadcast it to BBC? I sorely missed clicking pics at the show.

PPS-A load of insults to the ones who did the sound settings for this show. You guys suck bigtime. Also, reputed newspapers like Mathrubhoomi should stop writing pure rubbish just to hype up the concert. For example, the news that Rahman will fly close to the audience in a bullet proof glass case. Also, the news of hollywood and Bollywood celebrities turning up(Thank God, they didn't). Then, the news that Rahman won't be doing a concert in India in another 5 years. And for the info of the guys at Mathrubhoomi, Rahman's next concert is scheduled on May 31st at Pune. Yes, Pune happens to be in India. Come on guys, how could you even think of printing such rubbish on your front page?

For more pics, check this link-Kerals pics

your crusader Praveen

Pick This Flick 15-The Boy in the striped pyjamas

Remember that brilliant airtel ad where 2 boys from neighbouring countries play football on both sides of an international border? I was among those who were completely bowled over by the beauty of that ad. And so it was a pleasant surprise to see that concept being used in an entirely different setting in a movie. 'The boy in the striped pants' directed by Mark Herman is an adaptation of a novel by John Boyne. The movie is set in the horrible times of Nazi Germany. It is the story of friendship between 8 year old Bruno(Asa Butterfield), the son of a Nazi army officer and a Jewish boy Shmuel(Jack Scanlon), who is inside a concentration camp. Bruno and his family moves from their city dwelling to the countryside. The new mansion is situated in a lonely picturesque place with a 'Nazi concentration camp' nearby, where Bruno's father is the commander. Bruno feels lonely in the new place. He sees the concentration camp from his window and mistakes it for a farm. He wonders why the strange people there wears 'striped pyjamas'. The explorer that he is, he finds a way to reach the fence separating the camp and his mansion. There, he strikes up a friendship with the Jewish boy Shmuel.

What makes this film standout is the innocent viewpoint on such a horrible thing as a concentration camp. The scenes where the Nazi tutor teaches Bruno and his sister provides many such occasions of innocence. When his sister reads a lot about the troubles caused by 'the jew', Bruno wonders, 'I don't understand. One man caused all this trouble?'. Also, the way he describes the smoke that rises from the gas chambers doesn't make you think that people are actually being roasted inside those chambers. Bruno's mother Elsa (Vera Farmiga) fits in easily into the role of a wife who disagrees with her man's inhumanly work. Another cameo role is that of Pavel(David Hayman), a Jewish man who's treated as a slave in Bruno's household. The scene where he treats Bruno's injury and reveals that he's a doctor is notable. The scenes between Bruno and Schmuel are the highlights of the film. There is another scene where Bruno happens to watch a propaganda film on concentration camps, which shows the camps as heavens on earth. Bruno later realises thats not the case. All this builds into a shocking climax. Don't miss watching this gem.
Other Recommendations
1. October sky
Are you short of inspiration at any point in your life? Then, October sky is the perfect pill. Directed by Joe Johnston, it tells the real life story of Homer Hickam(Jake Gyllenhaal), the son of a coal miner who ends up as a rocket scientist. Coalwood is a town in US where all the male population works in coal mines. They don't have dreams or aspirations beyond that. Its around this time that the Russians launch the Sputnik satellite. The sight of this moving gracefully over the october sky stirs up big dreams inside Homer Hickam. He joins hands with the geeky Quentin(Chris Owen), a guy whom everybody else keeps at a distance, and plans to make a rocket himself. He has his 2 friends Roy Lee and Odell for company. Their venture hits a lot of roadblocks at first but they persist and in the end succeeds in building a flyable rocket. Their science teacher provides them with constant support. At this point, Homer's dad comes into picture. He wants his son to end up as a miner like himself and finds Homer's pursuits worthless. The emotional tussle between dad and son are beautifully picturised. Infact, it reminded me of those classic scenes between Thilakan and Mohanlal in the malayalam movie 'sphadikam'. The rest of the film chronicles how Homer and his friends pave their road to victory. The climatic scene will uplift you with its sheer warmth.

2.Following
After Memento and The Dark Knight, Christopher Nolan is now a world renowned director who is known to make his movies with a reasonable load of intelligence. But, the first flashes of brilliance occured way back in 1998 in the small film called 'Following'. Just over 1 hour in length, this film is also non-linear in character much like memento. Its about a young writer who follows strangers whom he find in the streets so that he can get ideas to write his new novels. He has set certain rules for himself on who all should he follow and till when should he follow. He gets into trouble the day he breaks this by following a strange man in a black suit. The man confronts him and asks him about his intentions in following him. The man then introduces himself as Cobb, a thief. Cobb takes him as his protege and takes him for house break ins. There are some interesting scenes at this part where Cobb reveals that he steals not for the sake of stealing but to help his victims to have a re-think on their lives. So he messes up with their personal items without actually stealing it. And underneath all this lies a shocking mystery which is revealed bit by bit in Nolan's trademark non linear way. This sure is one hell of a thrill ride. Its shot on a shoestring budget with the actors and crew having regular weekday jobs. Even the balck and white was an idea for cost cutting.

PS- Going home morrow. Sunday's the big day. A.R.Rahman Live in Concert in Calicut. Woohooooo!!!!!!!

your crusader Praveen

Tasty Avial @ Bangalore!

Njaan Aara-The quest for identity

The rain Gods seems to be rocking to Avial's rain song 'Karukara'. The heavy rain that lashed Bangalore as a sort of welcome to Avial on Friday does tell us that. The song has impressed the Gods so much that the rain continued well into the night thus delaying the concert til 10 PM. The atmosphere in PESSE college was electric with the students dancing and head banging in the rain during the rock competition that preceeded the Avial concert. Then some big sound glitches and half of my friends left. At last, it started much to the pleasure of a patient crowd waiting there. All the hits from the first album were belted out with 'aadu paambe' and 'Nada Nada' receiving real crazy response from the crowd. The scream for encore was so loud that the band were soon back on stage to belt out the snake song once again. And yeah, it was the first rock concert for my 3 roomies. They were threatening to beat me up when the concert was on the verge of being cancelled. But much to my relief, it happened. And, they did like the first taste of a live concert. Hope I will have more company in the future.

Rex on song!

Mithun-high on concentration

Avial was back again to rock Bangalore on Saturday. This time it happened at the Le Rock pub in Brigade road. The relatively small pub was jam packed with not even enough space for a breath. The overflowing beverages made sure that everyone's spirits were 'high' even before the concert started. The band's podium was so small that the cramping up was evident during the show. Still, the show didn't suffer a bit. Tony's Malayalam dialogues had the whole house screaming. It was funny when he replied with a 'we don't have' for screams of 'we want more'. Mithun's precise drumming and Rex's funky guitar work complimented each other well even in those short jams that they did between songs. I enjoyed this show more as I concentrated more on the music than the photography. Yes, a sore neck is an obvious casualty. Well, the news is that they are currently working on their next album and it will be out next year.

at Le Rock

Tonykuttan rocks :P Crowd on a 'high' at Le Rock

PS- I did miss the new Avial song 'Chi me sape'(a collaborative effort with French band A67) in the concert.

India's future horrible PMs

Lately, People of India haven't been very lucky when it comes to its Prime ministers. A seat which was once adorned by the likes of Lal Bahadur Shastri has recently become a magnet for some spineless, sleepy and even brainless souls. The exotic line of not so good PMs started with Morarji Desai, whose mansion reportedly didn't have a urinal. Obviously, such a facility doesn't serve a purpose other than space wastage in a house where the official drink is produced by humans themselves. Then there was the infamous V.P.Singh who rivals our current HRD minister Arjun Singh in implementing stupid rules. Next in line is the one and only Devegowda who was never seen in public with his eyes open. He's famous for sleeping in a vareity of poses in every public meeting that he attended. Then comes a certain puppet who always obeyed the 'mistress of puppets'. So, who's the next in line to join this illustrious company? And what will happen when they take charge...Here are 3 probables and 3 improbables..

1.Rahul 'empty head' Gandhi
A name which is on every lip(each of those lips were paid Rs.1000 each) these days. His educational qualification is still under a question mark. He had successfully sued and made quiet an allegation by a reputed magazine that his harvard degrees are fake. And, now he has surrounded himself with some real Harvard MBA graduates to give him sound advise. Still sometimes his loose tongue brings him bad name on occasions like when he claimed India's independence as his family's achievement. The day he becomes PM, India's fake degree holders will replace the real degree holders in all jobs. All public department heads will be given an opportunity to fill the new job vacancies with unworthy candidates from their own family.

2.Maya 'statue' wati
I can't help but shudder at this thought of her becoming PM. Famous for her opulent birthday
celebrations, the amount spent for which runs to 100s of crores, she has also managed bridge the caste divide in gaining support. Recently, she started a mega project to fill the state with statues of leaders like Ambedkar and herself. When she becomes PM, January 15(her birthday) will be declared a national holiday. Birthday bash collection slips for a minimum amount of 1 lakh will be sent to every Indian citizen's house, failing to pay which you will be brought to justice by a high speed court(read-her goons). Every city centre will be adorned with a statue of the lady and a blue flag.

3.Na'no'rendra Modi
Pre-Nano, he was a demon for the media. Post-Nano, he's a saviour for the media. We have the India Inc singing praises of this man whose long list of achievements boasts of one of India's worst riots. The surge in the developmental side in Gujarat is being praised all over but many are turning a blind eye to the selective development happening there. There are certain places where development is stunted purposefully. Hitler must be turning in his grave and wishing that there was a 1944 model Nano. I better stay away from the task of writing about India's state under the Nano boy.

4.Sanjay 'Jhappi' Dutt
This is not a 'Vaastav' situation, just some imagination. His story is a perfect case of how films can blind common man and create a hero out of a villain. With just the Munnabhai series, he managed to wipe off the stain of arms that he possessed. The 'Jaadu ki jhappi' was accepted happily by atleast a section of the public. After marrying Manyata, he was also affected by the loose tongue disorder. But I still wonder why the 'Jaadu ki jhappi to Mayawati' dialogue evoked such harsh responses. Anyway, I purposefully kept him away from Mayawati to avoid a 'jhappi incident' in my blog. When he becomes PM, a new law will be enacted so that common man can keep 'harmless' weapons like AK-47 and AK-56 in their homes. Munnahai will be screened in Doordarshan as part of national integration every week. Khal Nayak will be screened every alternate week for national disintegration.

5.Lalit 'IPL' Modi
The IPL man is riding high on the 'commercial' success. Obviously, he will have 'power' dreams in the near future. The day he becomes PM, he will come up with a rule to conduct the Indian general elections to be shifted to south Africa, whenever it clashes with the IPL schedule. Postal ballot facility will be provided for those who can't travel till South Africa. Cheerleaders will accompany those who are travelling to South Africa.

6.Rakhi 'dumbo' sawant
This is the depths of far fetched imagination. She's currently in the news for a reality show in NDTV imagine which will conduct a nationwide search for a perrect husband for her. The day she becomes PM, all newspapers will be asked to keep the 'page 3' news in front page with banner headlines like 'Rakhi again slaps husband'. The IIT entrance examinations will be done away with and will be replaced by a Dumbness Quotient(DQ) test.

your crusader Praveen

Madrasas,flying shoes and cutting hands

Its election time and its the only time the voters (are made to)feel like king. Its the time the politicians come back to earth after a 5 year trip to Mars. The folded hands, smiling faces, hollow

speeches all make their customary appearances. The silent brick walls have to bear with the ultimate shame of carrying some filthy politicians posters. Open jeeps make an appearance too with the neta holding the ear shattering mic. If the mic doesn't work properly, you can see the neta slapping the party worker standing beside him, as happened last week during Captain Vijaykanth's election rally. If you are unlucky enough, the shameless soul will surely land up at your doorstep for some small talk and a request for votes thrown in between. And then there's the usual distribution of money, sarees, tv, rice etc. Above all there is the dirty game of attracting voters using policies and manifestos aimed at appeasing certain communities. All the parties compete with each other in this regard.

The first such case is the announcement from the HRD ministry some weeks back that Madrasa education will be equivalent to CBSE education. Also, the Government came up with pension plans for Madrasa teachers. Barring a few well managed madrasas, a majority of them are ultra orthodox stoneageic institutions which impart only religious teachings. Science and maths are unheard in most of these institutions. Coupled with that is the proven cases of 'terrorism classes' being conducted in these elite institutions. After the recent spurt in terrorist activities, there were recommendations to keep an eye on what's happening in the Madrasas. And India's one and only truely secular minister Arjun Singh decided to do something on this. What better way to do it than continue in the same vein as his brilliant quota policy. If you thought only the congress does such things, think again. Yesterday, the left Government in West Bengal allocated more than 500 crores for the upgradation of madrasas in the state, a clear move to win some support from the minority communities. And, all this money is given by sacrificing the allocation for higher education. By equating madrasa education and CBSE education, Govt aims to bring the madrasa students to the mainstream. But isn't this a segregation of a different kind? Also, what significance does religious education has in the context of the nation? Are there any more such plans, for example replacing IAS with IRS, the Indian Religious Service and CVS, the Communal Violence Service?
No discussion on voter appeasement is complete these days without a mention of the honourable Varun Gandhi. He seems to think more on the lines of Hitler than the man in his second name. Hate speeches, a speciality of Hitler is adopted with all sincerity by the latest useless scion from the Gandhi family. He strayed into Aghoric territory when he talked of cutting the hands of members of certain communities. Such immature and highly unpardonable comments could've been dismissed as the ramblings of a demented guy. But, the BJP had other ideas. It played a clever game using him. Infact, it all looks like a drama carefully planned by some talented script writers in the party itself. After that farcical arrest drama, he's given the stature of a hero and above all a young national leader of the party. If all that is not enough, you have the party's manifesto which rekindles the old Ayodhya temple issue.
PS-Amidst all this was the funny shoe throwing incident by Dainik Jagran journalist Jarnail Singh at finance minister PC Chidambaram. It was almost similar to Muntazer al-Zaidi's attack on Bush last year. Jagdish Tytler, the Congress leader accused in the 1984 anti-sikh riots now walks free after being given a clean chit. And added to that is the election ticket being given to him. And when Jarnail raised a question on that regard, Chidambaram deftly got out from it. The rest, as they say, is history. I really wish Tytler was there to receive the shoe on his face.

Pic courtesy-IBN Live

your crusader Praveen

Launch of new Photoblog

Announcing the launch of my new photoblog Myopic lenses. You can expect to see a photo a day dealing with some aspect of life around us. Myopic lenses brings you the world around us, as seen through a pair of myopic eyes armed with an equally myopic lens... It can make you smile, it can make you cry, It can make you think...It all depends on how myopic your own eyes are..

Been away from the blogs for quite sometime. Was enjoying the last weekend at home. Give me sometime to catch up with your blogs. And don't forget to bookmark and visit this new photoblog of mine everyday- http://myopiclenses.blogspot.com/