My Name is Karan.. and what was I THINKING!!??!!

Yes, you probably guessed it right, we just got back from watching the so-very hyped "My Name is Khan", not to mention that we drove one hour to the theater for it! That did give us all the time to try to dissect what the hell was wrong about the movie !?? After much argument/discussion the conclusion is too much stuff crammed into one movie is never a good idea. It felt like Karan Johar created a shake "falooda" taking the husband-wife-son from K3G and put them into the midst of a crisis (9/11) while adding a natural disaster thriller into the mix, not to forget that the protagonist is autistic and there is a whole lot of melodrama. While I have no intention of giving a detailed review of the movie here (many people have done so already) I must say that according to my husband the best character of this movie was "weird haired Joe" !

Here is a tweet posted by Karan Johar apparently in response to the praise about this movie :
"Am overwhelmed and moved to tears with all the support our labour of love is getting...thank you..thank you...your hand on our head makes us" ... REALLY?? I am certain many people were moved to tears too .. by the sheer torture of sitting through the movie..

Yes, lot of people have faced severe hardships due to the prevailing prejudice and misconceptions against Islam. We have seen some wonderful movies such as "Khuda Ke Liye" and even "New York" in recent years that handled this same topic in a much more realistic and convincing manner. That goes to show that a big banner + superstar + popular on-screen couple + all the hype +... for any movie is not an indicator of it being any good. That being said, it does raise expectations which in this case led to huge disappointment for us. All of those who craved for a Kajol-Shahrukh romantic comedy (including me), they must now be wondering wouldn't it have been wonderful if Karan Johar had just remade Kuch kuch hota hai ... { sigh }

Maybe next time Karan : Hum honge Kamayab...

Ye Raatein Nayi Purani...

Impulsive thought to write something that describes the immense beauty of the great voice of Lata Mangeshkar. Started to realize how hard it is to put in words the feeling you get when you hear her voice, as wonderful as the sight of a smiling baby, as painful as the heartache of being separated from your beloved, as innocent as the eyes of a puppy, all the lovely things in the world that just make life so worthwhile... i wish i could reach out and touch this voice and embrace it forever

So proud that she will be featured along with the equally great Asha Bhosale in NPR's 50 Great Voices : http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=114013402

Fanaa for u...

"Meri saanson ko tere dil main panha mil jaye.. Tere ishq main meri jaan fanaa ho jaye..."
Just two short sentences .. that just pierced right thru the heart and left quite an impression. So here is my own personal review of Fanaa.. I was waitin for this movie quite eagerly.. number of reasons A) because Kajol was there in it! Kajol is terrific, so just having her in the movie was a gud enuf reason for me to watch it B) Chand sifarish.. i heard the first line and it struck me instantly that this thought was soo sweet, a very ordinary song otherwise, still creates a beautiful picture. C) seemed to me like this was going to be some sort of an eternal love story, so that is something i love to watch..
I saw the movie knowing that i would love it no matter what it turns out to be(quite prejudiced that way ;) ) ! However, here is a very honest opinion.. the movie starts... paints a sweet innocent picture of Zooni and her very endearing parents.. a very adorable loving ammi and a sensitive emotional abba, you just cant help fall in love with them. The chemistry between the two of them is so appealing, it's pure love. Then there is this bunch of chirpy gals who are Zooni's friends, they are a cute lot. I dont remember a movie lately where the actress' friends are so noticeable. They cannot be ignored. Especially "fatty", her character of a protective freind is very unique.. it's too sweet. Infact, all the characters add a special touch. Anyways.. so to move on.. enters Rehan.. and then begins the shayari.. which girl wont fall for a guy who is that gud with words!! No kiddin, shayari is goin to be in fashion.. ! Undoubtedly, aamir plays his part to the perfection, kajol satisfies all expectations and more so reinstills herself as one of the best performers in the history of India cinema.. she is as lovely as ever, absolutely uncomparable.. zooni and rehan captivate the audience.. their bonding is evident.. it creates that feel of "someone somewhere is made for u" ..like when zooni's ammi tells her that her shehzada will fall at her feet when he sees her.. just out of the fairy tales. The movie moves on well in the first half.. in the second half, the bonding between zooni and her child is fantastic, kid rehan is too lovable, "aap rehan se utna pyaar nahi karti, jitna rehan aapse karta hai", hear that from a kid, how does it feel?? Somethings that dont make sense.. Fanaa upsets me little as it fails to create the eternal love story that i was expecting.. the recognition that the guy who zooni loved so deeply and had believed had died is there infront of her eyes, I thought would have been a more emotional moment than shown, the last scene where zooni shoots rehan does breaks ones heart, but at that point Rehan's character has been defied enough unnecessarily (cozed the death of zooni's dad, killed his friend, no remorse for his activities as an IKF activist etc.) that one stops symphathising with him.. and the climax doesn't leave a big impact.. so one leaves feelin a little unsatisfied by the way the love story was potrayed.. :(
For me.. i take back from Fanaa the wonderful dialogue between ammi and zooni at the train station where zooni asks her what should she say to her shehzada and Kirron Kher shouts out the two beautiful lines.. its a treat to the eyes the way she looks at that point. I take back the love story of zooni's parents. I take back zooni's relation with her kid Rehan and with fatima. I take back the feel of the song "mere haath main", these lyrics rock! Last but certainly not the least, i take back zooni's character that has been so perfectly been given life by kajol. the audience will fall in love with her all over again!

Dream to reach higher...

Some dreams live on in time forever
Those dreams, you want with all your heart
And I’ll do whatever it takes
Follow through with the promise I made
Put it all on the line
What I hoped for at last would be mine

If I could reach, higher
Just for one moment touch the sky
From that one moment in my life
I’m gonna be stronger
Know that I’ve tried my very best
I’d put my spirit to the test
If I could reach

Some days are meant to be remembered
Those days we rise above the stars
So I’ll go the distance this time
Seeing more the higher I climb
That the more I believe
All the more that this dream will be mine

Some dreams live on in time ..forever.. so special and so close to the heart. Imagine what happens when they come true!

Spirit of a song…

what is it.. sometimes I think .. there are these songs that I listen to and I want to listen to them again and again.. hmm.. the song juss creeps into my heart.. sweeps me off my feet.. and I am transported to some different world where I can actually feel the music.. the words .. everythin.. its not juss a song nymore.. it is alive ..as if livin thru me.. breathin..i can feel the heartbeats of it.. strange isn’t it? But it is true… for me.. as true as our existence.. listenin to them gives me such a sense of achievement… as if this is it..nothin cud be more true.. more satisfyin.. more complete.. they juss seem to express my feelings.. as if its made for me.. it understands me perfectly….hope this song transforms into my dream.. and the dream takes form of the person that I will spend my life with…….

Madnessssss

O God… What an experience………..thinkin of it now! I wonder what made me do it! Do what?? Go for the early morning Thanks Giving sales! 25^th Nov, its thanks giving day.. and this is what we were waiting for since I came to US.. kept hearing about Thanks Giving Sales… amazing deals…amazing stuff at take-away price!! But all this not without any efforts.. u got to go early morning to the stores.. and wait in the queue! Queue..?? What big deal..we are desis afterall.. standin in queues is nothing new for us..right?? That wont be tough…well read on… So what happened was that a couple of my (very smart) frenz made this wonderful plan.. of going to NY city in the night.. freak out all night in the city that never sleeps and then line up outside the stores and get the most amazing bargains…sounds fun?! Cmon said rachna.. what do we do otherwise…sit at home and sleep and do nothing fun.. so lets go!! Well good reason! (But stay up all night????!!) Anyways, get set n go-ing we were! 11 in the night left our dearest Harrison.. all enthusiastic and excited…and bundled up..(it was verrrrry cold yaar) .. …(Thanks giving sales here we come!!!) Out on the NY roads…not many people seemed to be as mad as us.. when its freezing cold outside and u are sleep deprived.. even the dazzle and glamour of Times Square doesn’t excite you. I mean it was fun to begin with.. we were a crazy bunch of people as if just arrived from Jhumri Tallaiya.. posing infront of every building and every shop window and every Billboard! The real fun was when we reached the Best Buy store at 3 am( Yes, we had not slept and we were on foot since the time we left home).. there was already a line (Are we in US?? Or is this some Langar?? ) Time seemed to have come to a standstill… every 10 min we checked the watch and it just had moved 1 min since the last time we saw!! Wat the hell!! Someone had a very sad sense of humor to play such a prank! What we were not aware of was that there was something better in store for us. In order to kill time we were day dreamin about all the wonderful things that we would get once we are inside.. and each one of us were making this shopping list in our minds! What a sleepy chilled out (literally) bunch of zombies we were now. It was finally 6 and we were let in.. we seemed to have regained all the josh ..

Wat happened next.. was quite an anti climax…don’t even want to think of it now.. too frustrated!! More never ending queues and bloody free stuff that is actually not FREE! We even had to argue for half an hour till they finally agreed! Have mercy guys..we are already too tired ..now don’t put us thru this!! Got back home at 11…(after 12hrs of torture!!) and slept! Still too sleepy … No more early morning thanks giving sales for me!!! All said and done..it was an experience that none of us would forget (not after all those snaps!!) Moral of the story…
” There is no such place as my cozy bed… n NO (absolutely NO) Thanks giving sale can keep me away from it!!!!”

smooth sailing....??

Peaceful, tranquil, smooth.... just some antonyms for what any relationship soon becomes! I wonder why? Do the protagonists become any less fond of each other or maybe get a little bored ?? What happens to the understanding & the caring? Or is it actually the other way .. more expectations as you get closer, u start understanding each other so much that now you think you can make out what was said was actually meant THIS WAY and not THAT WAY! Well, why am I writing all this? What happened was I just heard a perfect example of "Fight of small things"... and i tell you one thing, its no laughing matter.. this is serious! Now as I think a bit more, it seems to me that this is actually a side effect of love, and such situations serve to add spice to a monotonous sweet smooth sailing relationship. Hold on, is it needed?? Hey, do you have an option!? Tiffs are bound to occur. How they are sorted out determine your future together. Its never HIS fault or HER mistake, so why play the blame game? Its all about Love.. and that should win.

enigma

"Today is what it is.. live it like it is all you have & make the most of it."