Bourne and others...

Holiday time, lots of pending leaves and super cold weather... What better recipe for hoards of movies... 


S and I decided to catch up a lot of movies which were on our watch list for a long long time... 


1 - Bourne trilogy -- Each one is good, although they follow a similar pattern... Still, the movies are worth watching... The way he manipulates the system is kind of unbelievable, but still, its best kept outside the realm of this movie... What happens when a super-trained spy turns (or is suspected of turning) rogue, how they overwhelm the creators... All this is depicted nicely in these movies... 


Somehow, seeing these movies reminded me of how it is difficult to tame the forces of nature... We humans think that we have wind, water and fire under our control, so much so that we think that we have created them... The day these creations of god decide to prove who is their master, we know how wrong we are... Probably, CIA went through the same thought process when they could not curb Bourne's movement... 


2 - Spy Game -- How spies do not lose their sharp mind even though they turn old... How difficult is it to leave your emotions for your job as a spy... And to what extent can a spy go for their loved one... Or to what extent a senior spy can go to help out a junior spy, even on the last day at work... So so good... Worth a watch, atleast one watch...


3 - Duplicity -- If you want to be confused, confounded and surprised every 15 minutes... And shocked in the last 15 minutes, this is the movie... Only 1 word, amazing... 


4 - Tees Maar Khan -- One word... Useless... if I meet Farha khan, I am going to demand my $20 back... And then sue her for mental torture... 


8 more days of vacation and cold weather until 2011 dawns... Wait to read about more flicks here... Watch this space... 



One more step...

A few days back, I was checking out a website when I found out that a local doctor, who is also a connoisseur and a aficionado of Marathi literature, has donate 250+ Marathi books to the regional library. A quick glance on the list and I jumped our of sheer excitement... There were so many Marathi books which I had virtually given any hope of reading... There were many other books which I had wanted to read once again... There are a few things that can get me really excited and finding 


The first one was Radheya, suggested by a very good friend... This book is Mahabharat from Karna's point of view... After having read this and this, I wanted to read Mahabharata from Karna's point of view... Karna is the most tragic character of this epic and one of the most illustrious of the lot, so it made it so much more necessary to see this story from his point of view... 


And though it was not great, it was a very good perspective... Someone who has always been on the misunderstood side of life, someone who has always been defaulted to be at fault, someone who was always doomed to be slapped with the blame... Thats Karna for us... 


He was the bravest of the lot, but he was also the most loyal of them all... He was the most talented of the lot, but he was the most fateful of the lot... He was the most understanding of the lot, but he was the most misunderstood of the lot... 


How he was insulted umpteen times by different individuals... how he was denied what he deserved at crucial junctures of life... How he justified his righteousness to each one of those plaintiffs... 


There were umpteen memorable such passages in the book, but the one which really captured the essence of Karna was -- when Kunti  comes to Karna and tells him how she wants her eldest son back more than anything... and how he can be the king if he defects to the Pandava side... At that time, Karna rejects the offer stating that he craves Duryodhan's friendship more than the kingdom... And as far as Kunti needing her eldest son, she can get it if she defects to his side... 


This is quintessential Karna... Someone who chose righteousness over comfort... 


Radheya, the book, is all about this choice... Dont miss it... 

Good bye Ajji...





I never had the luxury of a maternal grandmom, she passed away a few years before I was born. My paternal grandmom passed away exactly 2 days before my 21st birthday.


I remember that day very well because I had my 8th semester engineering exams going on then. After the exam, Dad and I went to Nasik to perform her last rites.


When she passed away, I was very sad because from that day onwards, there was no one who would run behind me on the stairs with a cup of milk. From that day onwards, there was no one who would make potato chips for me with the same enthusiasm 3 times a day. From that day onwards, there was no one who would read Shravan katha every day of Shravan month and from that day onwards, there was no one who would tell my mom to not scold me just because I was still a kid.


But somehow I did not miss my grandma that much. Because... 


The day I came back from Nasik after completing the last rites, my neighbor Ajji was standing right in the door. She told me - "I know you must be sad after your loss, but I am here for you... I want you to know that you still have an Ajji"... 


My home and her home were exactly opposite each other. So I used to call my grandmom just Ajji and I used to call the neighbor grandmom -- samorchi Ajji (the Ajji from opposite home)... She used to get really angry with that word "samorchi"... She felt alienated and ostracized by that word... But after my grandmom passed away, the word "samorchi" just vanished... 


She was just Ajji from then onwards... Not just me, but my sis, my parents, the entire neighborhood used to call her Ajji... She was the Ajji of the entire 300 apartments in our residential neighborhood... And I just realized, I dont know her first name even today -- she was just Ajji... 


She knew pretty much everyone in the area and everyone knew her... If a baby is born somewhere, she would know the weight and the gender of the baby... She would be there on the street with a bowl of curd for every student going for his/her 10th or  12th standard exam... And she would know the percentage of every student -- right on the day of the result and the college where the kid got admission -- right on the day when the kid got it... She would be there to tie the sari for every girl if an alliance was coming home to "see" her... And she would know the moment the wedding was fixed -- and the wedding date... If someone was sick and admitted to the hospital, she would know the hospital, ward number and the visiting hours timing... If someone died, she would be the first person in the deceased home saying what she told me that day -- "I know you must be sad after your loss, but I am here for you... I want you to know that you still have an Ajji"... 


She was with my mom in her cab on her way to the hospital for her first delivery... My sis was too small for a woolen garment purchased from a store, so OVERNIGHT she knitted a ultra small woolen cap / sweater / socks to keep her warm in the January cold... When my family suffered a severe bout of food poisoning, and the entire family was hospitalized, she cleaned and sanitized the whole house and attended 7 ppl for 4 full days at the hospital -- all by herself...


I loved her Valachi Khichdi (beans and rice) and even now, every time I visited Mumbai, my mom never prepared breakfast on the first day, because without fail, 2 servings of Valachi Khichdi used to be ready at 8 am... The day she knew that my nephew is coming home, his favorite fish curry would be ready... And on my dad's birthday, a special pomfret curry used to be waiting on the dining table... 


But all good things have to come to an end... Today, she passed away after a brief illness... She was admitted but even on her way to the hospital, she was telling my mother - J, just see, I will be perfectly healthy in a few days and will come back very soon... but somehow, that was not to be... 


Today, I really feel how it is to be without a grandparent... It has been particularly hard on my parents because my dad has spent 40 full years with her and my mom has spent 35 years... My mom has actually spent more time with Ajji than with her own mom... Not a soul today returned from her home without a teary eye... 


I can not wish anything more than a special place in heaven for Ajji... May your soul rest in peace Ajji... Keep your smile and blessings showering on us from up there... 

Weird things from life

1. A friend finishes his graduation and a couple of days before the graduation ceremony, his mom suffers a mild heart attack. He chooses not to go and see his mom (stays very far away btw) and instead chooses to go on a pre-planned vacation. BTW, he has to take along (and pay for) a friend along on that vacation, and that means that the credit card company is richer.


2. A friend's grandfather is very serious and might pass any time. She is waiting for the news to strike so that she can go home for the funeral.


3. A young man wants to get his Swastika tattoo removed. Its fine, except, he wants to get rid of the tattoo because he wants to create a good impression on the jury. The jury has been convened to meet justice on a double murder committed by this guy. Whats worse - the jail authorities are paying for the tattoo removal procedure.


There are so many weird things all around and the only one that bothers me is -- 
I take my wife to show my office and she starts cleaning my desk. She gives me tips for keeping it clean. I get a -- see how fat you have become -- instead of gratitude for keeping our beautiful picture on the desk.