I am the law

Make way for me
Act shy for me
Here I come to get you
guess, who am I?

I go mad at the modern
Its a fad I picked up at the godown
Here I run to beat you
guess, who am I?

short skirts, go to hell
rock shows, shut up well
late nights, not at all
Now dont shout that I didn't tell!

Still thinking, who am I?
I am hip, am happening
I am in the news, am everywhere
I am the custodian of Indian culture.

I can slap you, I can rape you
No one questions, no one answers
I make the rules, I define morals
No one dare question, cos I dont have an answer.

......Now, one question from me to these custodians of Indian culture. What is Indian culture?

I know I would never get an answer from these cultureless organisations like Ram sena, Bhajrang dal and the rest. The scenes from Mangalore were shocking to say the least. And still the perpetrators walk free. Hope 5 years down the line, we don't have to see a local taliban in Mangalore.

PS-Heard that the chief sucker of Ram sena Pramod Muthalik was arrested.

I am you

They say, there are 7 people in the world who look exactly like you. Even if there's one person like that, it can be a problem. And, if the one who shares your appearance is a hardcore criminal, things can't get worse. The old classic Malayalam movie 'Aparan', directed by the legendary Padmarajan deals with this subject. Its such a well-written film that the climax blows you away. This song which I wrote yesterday after watching this movie is inspired from it. The hero who is good at heart lands in big troubles because his look alike is a criminal. Forgive the lack of rhyming and utter disregard for rules of poetry. One thing is I don't know the rules of poetry. And my stock of rhyming words is almost exhausted. I just wanted to convey the idea.

*****I am you******
I am staring at me
I doubt if its me or him
Is it the mirror?
Or is it the real horror?

my shadow is scared
my shadow is confused
whom to follow?
whom to avoid?

I stare at the clear water
I shoot at the reflection
another bullet wasted
like a line drawn in water.

Sacrifices land me in jail,
murders shower him money like hail.
whats the use of a life well-lived,
when the believer dissolves into the criminal.

Fed up of this dual life
I seek the oneness of heaven
Alas! am breathing when am dead
As I read my name in the tombstone,
The life of a dead criminal
is left for me to hide and live.

PS-Will be out of station till next Wednesday.

your crusader Praveen

Aghoris:The reliogionistic cannibals

Warning-The things that you are about to read are not for the weak hearted. It can be highly disturbing. Reader discretion is requested.

Aghoris, I first heard this word some months back from a video that I got as a forward. Aghoris are a sect of Hindu sannyasins who are mainly found in Varanasi around the banks of the sacred river Ganga. They call themselves as the worshippers of the 3rd eye of Lord Siva. What sets them apart from other religious sects is one horrible ritual which is an integral part of their belief system-eating corpses. Now, you know why that warning was put up there on top of this post. The sight of an Aghori itself can scare you no end. They cover themselves with the ashes that comes from the burning of dead bodies. The whole body of an aghori including the face will be covered with this ash and that gives them an eerie albino like whitish appearance. The hair and beard are grown to great lengths. The Aghori sect is very few in number but all the existing members are staunch followers who are prepared to carry out all the gory rituals required of an Aghori.

In Varanasi, many of the dead are not burned or cremated. Many of the poor people prefer to immerse the body in the Ganges. The water of this holy river is believed to have purifying powers which will remove all sins from the dead man and provide him moksha. These bodies which are immersed in water usually flow downstream. The Aghoris are settled in such places. They wait for days on end for a dead body to flow downstream. Once they spot one, they jump in to take hold of the body. Usually the Aghoris operate as single. The body is brought ashore. The items for an elaborate pooja are set. The divine lamp is shined. Now, the Aghori will proceed to sit on the stomach of the dead body. The chantings will start. After this elaborate ritual starts the gory part. The Aghori takes a knife and cuts the body parts one by one. Then he proceeds to bite off and eat it. In the video that I saw, an Aghori eating the hands of the dead body was shown clearly. It was so intolerable that I could hardly eat something peacefully for 2 days.

An aghori drinking water from a skull-another of their strage rituals

I was left wondering on what's the basis behind this ritual. The video didn't utter a single word regarding that. I did a short research on the net and checked out some old NGC videos too. From all those sources, I got the following reasons for their shocking rituals. The Aghoris don't have a concept of pure or impure. They believe in the oneness of things. So, they never distinguish anything as pure or impure. A rose in full bloom and a smelly corpse are given the same status by the Aghoris. One of these is not given a higher pedestal just because it appears beautiful or is pure than the other. So, to disprove the popular notions of purity, Aghoris accept such disgusting things like corpses and consume alcohol, behaviour which are considered unacceptable by normal people. They believe that since everything on the face of the earth is created by God, rejecting a particular creation of God is same as rejecting Him. Some members of this sect are even accused of practising necrophilia, the meaning of which am not writing here explicitly.

The American Aghori Kapalnath

Of the very few followers of this sect, a man named Kapalnath is the most famous. An American by birth, his original name is Gary Stevenson. He's popularly known as 'American Aghori' and there are many scary stories going on around about him, many of which he himself has denied. Whatever be the case, its a wonder that such things exist in the civilised society around us. A thing to note is Aghoris are found not only in India but at other parts of the world too. Many people are seen defending this sect by saying that they are not commiting any crime, they are just eating corpses. Not a crime by the books of law, but a crime in the true sense if the word called 'morality' still exists.

If you are not very weak hearted, do checkout one of the video clips here.

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=W0bGrvKVxac

PS-Due to my recent researches on the Aghoris, my roomies have started calling me an Aghori :(

PPS-Forgot to mention about the upcoming Tamil move 'Naan Kadavul' being directed by Bala. It deals with Aghoris. Checkout the awesome soundtrack by Ilayaraja. Especially the song 'Om Siva Om' which captures the mood of the subject. The album is also lyrically excellent with some though provoking lines. My favourite lines are from the song 'Pichaipaathiram'. Waiting for the movie to do the rest of the research work.

Your crusader Praveen

Farewell to Bush: a message from hell

This is George Bush's last week as the President of America. He leaves behind a legacy of invasions, inhuman killings and a mountain of stupidities. So, as a farewell to him am posting a few lines which I wrote some years back when Saddam Hussein was hanged by the US government. This song is in the form of a letter written to Bush by Saddam from hell.

******From hell, with love*************
... a message from Saddam to Bush...

I looked death, right in his eye
The black cloth din't block my sight
Your men of false valour dint scare me a bit
Their valour clouded by darkened veils
As they abused a soul on death's bed.

How fast the journey here was, I forgot
Its not as bad as I thought
The life down here in Satan's lair
with less of the bloody unfair..
Than bear your words in that tiny cell.

The irony of it all, I laugh at
You butchered them in millions
While I was trying hard for a thousand
Yet, It was your own rope that took me here.

Waiting for you, my cruel friend
Praying for you, for a scary end.

You are busy building a legacy of homicide
When will you be here, by my side
Am busy counting the dollars, for my deeds
Wondering who's gonna count for you, Mr.millionaire.

The fading hope warns me that you would never come
But, this is the place you could call real home.
The satan here is scared of taking you
He knows his throne's beckoning you.

PS-For your kind info, am in no way supporting the dead dictator. The idea is just that his crimes pales in comparison with that of the Bush administration and yet, its they who executed his death sentence.

PPS-The PS was needed because, of late I been a target of anger and harassment which arised out of misunderstanding. Not in blogs, but in real life. Can't post more details right now as it can invite more trouble. But, I assure you that story will appear here in this page one day for sure.

PPPS-Was not able to access net for the past 4-5 days because of a virus attack. So couldn't read many of your blogs or reply to your comments. So, gotta get back to all that soon.

your crusader Praveen

A.R.Rahman:The Golden Globe man

Rahman has done it again. He becomes the 1st Indian to win the Golden globe award, for his path breaking work in 'slumdog millionaire'. It is by no means his best work till date. He had given far more better works in many other Indian movies, but the fact that this one came in a hollywood movie made all the difference. In a way, this is a debut award for him in Hollywood as this is his first film there. The soundtrack of 'Warriors of heaven and earth' was not considered some years back because it was a chinese movie. His crossover started with the broadway musical 'Bombay Dreams'. He took it to the next level by composing for the mammoth stage adaptation of 'Lord of the rings'. Then his songs were featured in a couple of movies, most notably 'chaiyya chaiyya' in the spike lee movie 'Inside man'. Around that time, 'Roja' was selected by the Time magazine as one of the 10 best soundtracks of the last century. He conducted the Birmingham symphony orchestra some years back. The video of 'Pray for me brother' won wide critical acclaim. At the same time his Indian soundtracks were also getting wildly popular in the west. Most notably, the 'Bombay theme', which was used in more than 20 ADs across various countries, the most famous one being the French one featuring Zidane. His international concerts were sold out affairs with the foreign crowd merrily singing along the Hindi and Tamil lyrics. Then came the underdog film 'Slumdog Millionaire' and along with it a new legion of fans the world over waking up to the brilliant tunes of this short man hailed as the 'Mozart of Madras' by none other than Andrew Lloyd Webber. And, a truckload of awards followed, in which the Golden globe is the 6th one. Many more are to come soon. The young guy who made us all go 'WOOOOOW with 'Roja' has grown into a worldwide phenomenon. Today he finds himself in the same league as the legendary composers John williams, Ennio Morricone and Hans Zimmer. Its another matter that he has sold a million more records than all these men taken together. He's featured in the list of the top 25 all time greatest selling artists, above the likes of Metallica and Iron Maiden. Wishing this one man army great success in the future too. Hope he churns out more slumdogs. Now, lets all wait for the elusive '1st oscar for India'. And yeah, let me scream out once more...'Rahman Ki Jai!!!!Jai Ho!!!!'

The way he ended the acceptance speech by dedicating the award to "the billions of Indians" was heartening. Today is a great day for diehard Rahmaniacs like me to see their idol as part of the headlines world over. Morrow, we can see his smiling face on all the national newspapers. What more can a Rahman fan ask for?

your crusader Praveen

Travels:Sangama,Mekedatu & Chunchi Falls

a 'welcome' message at Sangama

It was an uncharacteristically early rise on a cold saturday morning for me. But the purpose for which I was sacrificing my morning sleep made me energetic. Yes, me and my roomies were heading for a trip to Mekedatu, Sangama and Chunchi falls. Five of us ser out in 3 bikes braving cold winds at about 6 'O Clock. The Kanakapura road had little traffic. So it was perfect for a zip-zap-zoom ride. Though it was bumpy and pot holed at many places. Kanakapura was a much smaller town that what I expected. From there, the road to Sangama passed through many a villages. At many places we really doubted if we were travelling on main roads or through some small 'gali'. There were some dry crops laid out like carpet on the roads to separate the chaff. Cows, sheeps and goats were roaming freely on the roads that sometimes we had to ride on the non existent foot paths. We saw the board to Chunji falls on the way but we decided to visit Sangam and Mekedatu first. There were a couple of really dangerous hair pin curves along the road which are said to have caused many accidents. So, after a ride of 100Kms and 2 hours, during which we spent a lotta time photographing and resting, we reached the Sangama.

the bumpy ride to Mekedatu after crossing the river

posing to glory

Sangama is the meeting place of rivers Arkavathy and Cauvery. What greeted us was the big red board screaming 'Danger!' It gave us scary description of the danger posed by crocodiles and strong under currents. Also, the board was dedicated to the memory of someone who lost their life at that very point. Can you ask for a better welcome message? Anyway, the really shallow water didn't seem much of a threat. After walking through the water for sometime, we settled in a small island under a tree to eat the bread, biscuits and chips that we carried with us. At some distance from there, we saw a sculpture of some Goddess with only the head portion above water. To get a closer look, we had to walk barefooted through waterbed covered with stones, broken beer bottles and all. Near this sculpture was another full lenth sculpture of a Godess with the hand severed. We guessed this might have come there after it was immersed in the river after some festival. We couldn't find any other possibility.

the unwanted sculpture in water at sangam

Mekedatu

From Sangama, we proceeded to Mekedatu. We could've taken a bus but we decided to go by bike. For that, first we had to cross the river in the bike. The 2 others did well whereas I sank my poor unicorn deep in the water on both onward and return trip. We had to pay 50 per bike just to enter the the Mekedatu road. The road was not tarred and it was one of the bumpiest ride we ever had. For about 4 Kms, we had an enjoyable ride along the river through the dusty road. The first look at Mekedatu from the top took our breath away. It was a long rocky gorge, through the centre of which the river was flowing rapidly. The same river which was silent and calm at the Sangam was unleashing all its fury at this place and it had changed its colour too considerably. The rocks were shiny as well as slippery. At the other side, we could see mysteriously shaped holes on the rocks. We went down along the rocks to the farthest and lowest point possible until we could touch the waters. We realised how dangerous it was only when we looked at couple of snaps at home and also read reports of many lives lost at these places. After a pretty long stay at the place, we decided to return. As we were getting out I was in for a surprise as I met Panky and his gang getting down from the bus. But unfortunately, we had only time for a Hi n Bye. Hope to see the awesome snaps from his camera soon.

looking down upon U

Mekedatu-the narrow gorge

We crossed the river again and set off to Chunchi falls. It didn't have much of water to speak about. Its best to visit the place during monsoons. The sculpture like rocks and the sheer size of it made up for the lack of water. There are a couple of really dangerous points at the top, which can deceive you. We realised it only when we had a look of it from the bottom of the falls. After another eating session and an hour of rest, it was time to bid goodbye. The sun was starting to go down as we started our bikes. As we rode on through the villages, the cattle were heading back home after a day of worriless grazing. The sights and smells of the villages were one to savour for a long time. The picturesque mountains seemed even more beautiful under the rays of the setting sun. As darkness fell, a full moon came into view. It guided us for the rest of the journey till Bangalore.

Time to rest on the rocks, by the raging river

Travel info- silkboard-BTM Flyover-Bannerghatta road-kanakapura road-deviation to left from Kanakapura-Sangama-cross the river-bus/bike/walk to Mekedatu.

2 hours journey from Bangalore. About 100 Kms. Very few shops along the road. So better to carry food and water. Roads are dangerous at some places. Also don't venture too much into the waters. Rocks are slippery at many places.

your crusader Praveen

Dev D's Emosanal Attyaachaar

Been listening to a lot of new music this past week. From the desi scene, the soundtrack of 'Dev D' had me hooked from the time I listened to the track 'emosanal attyachar'. The movie is supposed to be a modern version of devdas. Curious on what it was all about, I caught hold of the soundtrack and was surprised to see the track listing of 18 songs, which includes some background themes too. The music is by Amit Trivedi, a newbie in the industry whom we last heard in the movie 'Aamir'. The opening track 'Aankh Micholi' itself gives a glimpse of what to expect from the soundtrack. Most of the tracks have rockish or clubbish elements thrown in with loads of experimentation going on in the background too. The opening beats of the track 'Dhol Yaara Dhol' reminded me of a song from Rahman's classic 'Meenaxi'. But thankfully the similarity ended there and the soung turned out to be a melodic treat with a folksy touch. The 2 Dev chanda themes are enjoyable, especially the 2nd one with a nice whistling tune accompanied by some evocative work on the keyboards and cello. 'Dil Mein Jaagi' sounds like a 60s easy listening track and its sure to make you nostalgic. 'Emosanal attyachar' is the star track of the cd. The brass band version is sure to make you laugh with lyrics like

'Bol Bol why did you ditch me,
Zindagi bhi lele yaar kill me, ...
Tauba Tera Jalwa,
Tauba tera pyar,
Tera Emosanal Attyachaar!'

The rock version gives the song an entirely different feel, a more serious one. I loved it more. 'Ek Hulchul si' is a track in the good old classic rock mode. Also loved the veena work in the melodic 'Paayaliya'. Many more songs are there in this cd. These are the ones which impressed me after 3 listenings. The singers credits also has surprises. Most of them are newbies. And most of them have done a good job too. Overall, in this soundtrack I can see a lyricist and composer going wild with experimentation. Its sure to have you hooked. Hope movie is as good. Anurag Kashyap being the director, we can expect something revolutionary.

Other music Recommendations
1.Voyage-Rajhesh Vaidya
A fusion work by keyboardist and veena exponent Rajhesh Vaidya. Have some nice reworkings of carnatic favourites like 'Raghuvamsa Sudha', 'Nagumomu' etc.

2.Namaste-Karnatrix
Karnatrix is a well known fusion band started by guitarist John Antony. Those who have heard the classic 'Ponveene' from the malayalam movie 'Thalavattom' will identify him as the one who played those wonderful lead guitar parts. This has also reworked versions of 'Nagumomu', 'Namaste' and 2 other original compositions. The sarangi and guitar provide a perfect blend which can take you to heights of ecstasy.

The Honour of Proximity!

Been awarded again. The honour of proximity comes from Usha, the blogger poet who been very kind with me by giving me another award. The citation reads,
"The voice that speaks up for those without one, adds more to those who do have one, instigates one to go on forward, and be an Indian :)."
Thanks a lot for that. I would like to award this to the same people whom I awarded the brilliant blogger award, butterfly award and Free spirited & independent blogger award.

your crusader Praveen

Happy Birthday A.R.Rahman

Its my idol A.R.Rahman's birthday today. And as been the ritual every year, am gonna post a blog on him on this special day. Its been a great year for the maestro's fans with a handful of releases keeping them busy all through the year. In his 16th year in the industry, he proved that when it comes to all round brillaince, there's no one above him. He crossed boundaries not only within the nation but also international with equal ease. So, in Tamil he gave us the sweet 'Sakkarakkatti', which contained the soothing melody 'Marudhani', the fun song 'Elay' and the dance floor hit 'Taxi Taxi'. In Hindi, the vareity he dished out last year is just mindblowing. In 'Jodha AKbar', he gave us tracks of epic proportions like the tribute to Akbar, 'Azeem O Shehanshah', the romantic ballads 'Jashne Bahara' and 'In Lamhon Ki Daaman Mein'. My favourite from the album is the heavenly 'Khwaja Mere Khwaja', which is easily one of the best songs of the year.

When we thought Rahman has gone into the history mode, out came the young and peppy 'Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na'. 'Kabhi Kabhi Aditi' ruled the airwaves for a longtime with its instantly catchy tune, a thing not normally associated with a Rahman song. He experimented with pure jaaz in the track 'Tu Bole Mein Boloon'. 'Nazrein Milana' saw him at his youthful best. Mind you, here is a man who just turned 43. Another notable track was 'Kahin To Hogi'. Close on the heels of 'Jaane Tu' came the yet unreleased movie Ada's music. Its an album which been in the workshop for about 4 years. So it is aptly titled 'A.R.Rahman's musical journey' and you could notice the change in the vareity of songs. He came up with an idea in which he let the song 'Gulfisha' to be remixed by the public and the best ones were given prizes. My picks from the album would be the melodic 'Hawa Sun Hawa', Chitra's 'Tu Mera Hai' and 'Meherbaan' sung by Rahman himself. P.Jayachandran, the malayali singer did a good job with his first hindi song 'Milo Wahan Wahan'.

Next up was 'Yuvvraaj', a great soundtrack wasted in an utter crap movie. To tell the truth, I still hate the song 'Shano Shano' from this movie and wish Rahman had never done that song. Except for that minor aberration, the album provided a parade of Rahman's class. The hindustani tinged 'Manmohini Morey' is the pick of the album. Its been a long time since he did something in this mould. 'Zindagi' sung by Srinivas creates a pleasant mood. Then there were
the chart toppers 'Tu Meri Dost Hain', 'Tu Muskura' and 'Dil Ka rishta'. Cellos, orchestras and western choruses were used a lot in this album. Its the 2nd time, after 'Taal' that the so called 'showman of Bollywood' Subhash Ghai is wasting Rahman's songs with his inept movie making.

Then came the soundtrack of the year for Rahman, Slumdog Millionaire, about which I wrote a lot here. Hope a lot more will be written about it in the future. The year ended with 'Ghajini'. Comparisons with Harris Jayaraj's Tamil original were inevitable. Rahman did match the brilliance of the Tamil version, in his own style. The best track is of course 'Kaise Mujhe'. 'Guzaarish' garnered a lot of airplay and the video added to the effect. 'Bachchu' had rockish elements. 'Behka' was another experimentation spree especially with the peculiar vocals starting at about 1:32. And I loved the way the song changed completely with the introduction of the drums at 2:13. 'Lattu' didn't impress me much. Towards the fag end of the year, we were treated to the video of 'Jiya se jiya' from his new album 'Connections'. The video featuring A.R.Rahman and Sivamani has the 'free hugs' campaign as its main theme. Eagerly awaiting for the release of this album. In between, Rahman did short jingles like the theme for Hyderabad airport and also the one for T20 Champions league.

Yes, this all happened in the same year. Now, did I hear someone telling he's losing touch? Yes, its the same as someone saying the same about Sachin Tendulkar. Have to use this cliche, 'Form is temporary but class in permanent. And we are talking about a man who oozes class. Hope he'll bring us more gems in the coming year.

Previous posts on Rahman
My meeting with Rahman
Glimpse of Rahman
Rahmantic day
Rahman's unknown masterpieces
Rahman 2005

your crusader Praveen

Pick this Flick 11:Slumdog Millionaire

“Everybody likes the underdog, because everybody feels like the underdog. No matter how successful you are, you always think, No one's being nice enough to me!”-Kate Beckinsale.

We all love to see the underdog win. Its the reason why I wanted Bangladesh to win that thrilling test match against SriLanka two days back, when they came up with an awesome fightback but eventually lost the match. Its the reason why filmmakers rehash this old formula over and over again and we cheer on shamelessly for the umpteenth time. We did it with Lagaan, Chak De India, City of God and many more. At the same time, if not handled carefully this very formula can be the filmmaker's doom. We've seen how not to use this formula in so many 3rd rate masala movies. Danny Boyle, the man who gave us the drug classic 'Trainspotting' is a guy who knows his art. He redefines the underdog formula, packs it in the attractive wrapper of 'slumdog' and delivers a powerful product which will leave you spellbinded by the end of 2 hours.

The plot minus the spoilers reads like this. Jamal Malik(Dev Patel) is one question away from winning 20 million rupees in the "who wants to be a millionaire" show. But everyone suspects he's a cheat and he ends up in the police station. There, he narrates his life story and clears the air on how he knew the answers. There is this core message underlying in the movie that inorder to succeed in anything in life, you needn't be a genius, you just need to learn the lessons from your own experiences. This may seem like reading too much into the film, but once you look under the surface you'll feel it. What attracted me most to this movie is this very own message. He answered all the questions on the show with the help of various situations in his life and also with loads of luck. The luck factor is best embodied in the scene Where Irfan Khan asks him whose face is in the hundred rupee note and he is ignorant of it. At the same time, he answered a similar question on the US dollar on the show. He says, "Its not my fault that they din't ask me whose face is on the Indian rupee".

I read so many criticisms levelled against this movie, the prominent one being it shows only the bad side of India. After watching the movie, am sure that its not a deliberate attempt, its just that the story needs that. Yes, its not deliberate bashing like the famed 'White Tiger'(about which I'll write soon). So you will see a ringside view of life in the Mumbai slums, the life amidst rotten waste, smelly shit and what not. The way the camera captures the innocent kids is just superb. Latika, Jamal's lady love played by Freida Pinto is a well etched role. Dev and Freida have done their roles full justice. Irfan Khan did good as usual in the small role that he has got in the movie. Anil Kapoor din't impress me much. All the kids played their parts to perfection.

Now, I've to speak about the star of the show-our very own music maestro A.R.Rahman. If Jamal and Boyle carries the movie with visuals, the sound of the movie is carried by Rahman. The soundtrack blasts off from the title with the beaty 'O Saya'. Rahman's high pitched vocals and MIA's popish singing give this track a different feel. The impact of almost every scene is magnified by the larger than life score going along in the bankground. My favourites of the BGM tracks were 'Latika's theme' and the high speed sitar blast titled 'Mausam and Escape'. There's 'Ringa Ringa', the raunchy rework of 'Choli Ke Peeche kya hai', which is many times better than the old song. 'Paper planes', which accompanies Jamal and his brother's train escapades is a real fun track and MIA rocks with this one. There's an innocent quality to this track. 'Jai Ho' which accompanies the end title could've been picturised better. The choreography looks straight out of an 80's bollywood movie. Was that deliberate? I dont know. With the soundtrack of 'Slumdog Millionaire', Rahman has well and truly arrived in Hollywood. Though its certainly not his best, it will go a long way in making him a part of mainstream world music. At last count, the number of awards Rahman won for this stands at 5 with many more nominations awaiting final results. The awards that he won till now are LA Film critics award,Newyork film critics online award, IPA Satellite award, Black Reel award and San Diego Film critics soceity award. The Golden Globe and couple of other nominations are awaiting results. Hope he wins an oscar too. Its unbelievable that he finished this soundtrack in 2 weeks.

PS-As with trainspotting, we have a really disgusting scene involving the toilet and a load of shit in 'slumdog Millionaire. Seems like Danny Boyle is obsessed with this. Strange obsessions indeed.

PPS-Belated Happy new year to all.

your crusader Praveen