First things First!Happy Birthday Mr.Bachchan. Janamdin ki Haardik Shubhkaamnaye!!
Secondly, this post has no religious inclination whatsoever, and I am not comparing Mr.Bachchan to any religious figure period. So, please don’t send me any hate mails or threats to take this down. This is just one of those fandom posts which have been churned out, out of immense pyaar and bhakti of the onscreen personification of innumerable and yet memorable avatars of Mr. Bachchan [ I'll from here on refer to him as Mr.B]. So what is this post all about? This is about the ten maha-charitra-fication of Mr.B in his long film career in Indian cinema. It is not about the charitra [ the character] in the sense that I will not be focussing on the characterisation i.e. the behavioural and interactive side of the avatars. [ That'll be covered in the 2nd part of this series, so keep watching this space]. This post has got to do more with the outward appearance and somewhat “larger than life” image that Mr.B has brought to celluloid. It’d be unfair to praise Mr.B’s avatars without mentioning the various film-makers, make-up artists and simply put ideators who originally pre-conceived these images, before they were made into screen legends. I think we are clear with the concept of this post so far, so let’s countdown. [ Disclaimer: This has got more to do with my tastes than anything else ]
#10: Subhash Nagre-Sarkar
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My coursework on Management Resources and Operations, was to do a case study on a Major Project and reflect upon it from a Project Management perspective. The questions were released in early April (actually 1st of April) and I had the entire Easter holidays to do it. But as usual, I lazed around, and then some more. Quite predictably like my classmates, I was skimming through different websites and journals looking for case-studies and research papers on “Major Projects”. And being an Indian, the typical ones that caught (read blinded )my attention were Delhi/Mumbai/Bangalore/Chennai Metro rail Project and Bandra-Worli Sealink project. I started reading journals and every piece of information that I could lay my hands on (only after having recovered from the hangover of the Easter holidays i.e.), but quite unsurprisingly, I could not get through the first question itself, which was to write about the project’s scope definition, its importance in terms of the business context, and its Work Breakdown Structure. There were 5 other questions, all with equal weight, and a maximum word limit of 3000. For me the problem was, I could not get through the 100 word mark.
And when I was just one week before the deadline, on the 15th of April, while watching numerous YouTube videos on the Bandra-Worli Sealink project, and still scratching my head over the possible stakeholders of that project, my enqueued playlist on Winamp started playing Ghanan Ghanan. (Oi, don’t accuse me to be so dramatic about it; I am just stating the facts) And then, right in front of my eyes, I could see my life flashback. I had seen Lagaan on 15th Jun 2001, Friday Matinee, in a theatre called Devdoot in Silchar. I saw the packed theatre get converted into a cricket stadium. By now, I had seen Lagaan so much that I knew the script backwards. I had seen Satyajit Bhatkal’s making documentary “Chale Chalo” and loved it for bringing out the “lunacy of film-making”. And I could see through all my questions getting answered, pretty much like it was all common-sense. The stakeholders, risk analysis, causal mapping of risks, project management processes, and project network; all came easily and naturally. With the occasional reference to PMBOK and Harvey Maylor’s “Project Management”, I was ready to roll.
***After the Jump, The Case Study Paper*** [Continue Reading…]
Well, can you squeeze in a whole jukebox to a single CD? Forget compression technologies. I am talking about A.R.Rahman, arguably one of India’s greatest music composers. From Carnatic to Qawwali, Blues to Bhangra and from Bollywood to Broadway, Rahman has conquered all. From his first album Roja, which was released in the year 1992, to the latest Hindi Album released:- Ada, Mr.Rahman has indeed scaled new heights, invented and reinvented new sounds, broken borders of genres, and made a brand for himself.He has to his credit,the most recognisable ringtone of India (the Airtel ringtone) and above all, he features in the list of TIME magazine’s most influential Asians (alongside Freddie Mercury). Mr.Rahman deservingly stands at a position where many musical stalwarths envy to reach. And with every new composition, every new note, we get to experience a nano-portion of the musical genius, Rahman .And it has indeed taken me sleepless nights and intense brainstorming and repeated playing on my Winamp to compile this list of the Top 10 songs from A.R.Rahman’s ever expanding, self-challenging discography. It has been a strenuous and mind-numbing process and I know at the end of it, I have succeeded to narrow down to the Top 10. In many ways, some will totally agree with me on these 10. And some will totally disagree.
The rules are simple-
1.Only one song from one album [with one exception, I make the rules, I break them 
].
2.Only Hindi soundtracks [I couldn't possibly go for the other languages in which Rahman composes. Although I would specially like to mention the Boys soundtrack which is in Tamil]
3.From Roja to Ada [I don't have a sneek peek into the future]
4.No remixes, no Bombay Dreams
Please let me know what did you think of this list. Do post your comments of your own favorites or your own additions at specific positions. Of course, you need not agree with me completely, but well, we Indians have never managed to reach a 100% consent ever. Anyway,so here we go.
10. Saathiya -Saathiya
Forget Rani Mukherjee. Don’t even mention Vivek who. Okay, we can applaud Shaad Ali’s compelling cinematography with the snow caped hills, the yellow fields, the glimmering sun and the gurgling water. But the real magic with this song is when you close your eyes, and in the ethereal sound of Sonu Nigam and lively lyrics of Gulzar, the words roll out-
Hastee Rahe Tu Hastee Rahe, Hayya Ki Laali Khilti Rahe
Zulf Ke Neeche Gardan Pe, Subah Shaam Khilti Rahe
and as the chorus builds in to-
Saathiya,mm…hmm..Saathiya , mm..hmm…Madhyam Madhyam Teri Geeli Hasee
Saathiya,mm…hmm..Saathiya , mm..hmm…Sunke Humne Saare Peeli Hasee
‘Nuff Said
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Let’s put a smile on that face!
I had plans of writing a post on the anime feature: Gotham Knight before I wrote this review, but the last two days were spent in anticipation over the wait for the Dark Knight. And having seen the movie today on the big screen, I don’t remember what I saw on the anime. Hell, I don’t remember what I saw in the previous Batman movies and once I walk out of the cinema, I get this feeling – that might be the best superhero movie, ever, if not the best movie ever ( Lee thinks so !!). And it is totaly worth all the hype, all the viral marketing, all the fanboism and hoopla at Comic Cons et al, coz it delivers. No that is not the correct word choice. Coz it overtakes your expectations, by glueing you to your seat, grabbing your collar and make you WATCH with your eyes wide open as the Joker giggles and the Batman glides.And guess what? Anyone who enters the theater with great expectations would leave the theater without the desire of doing so, wanting desperately to watch it a second time, a third time, or even more, with the stark realization that the word “great” in one’s expectations earlier is SORELY inadequate! There are reasons why movies like these need to be 2 hours and 32 minutes long. Because there is only one Dark Knight. [Continue Reading…]
