Its been an eventful Deepavali this time around for, I did something late in the evening that, I had never done before and, left to me, would never do again. That's watching a movie on a thursday evening before it actually releases the next day!!!!!
Let me tell you how it all happened. I was, as usual, roaming around Gandhi Bazaar with a friend, when I got this call from another friend of mine. He told me that he had 2 tickets for a pre-release show of Om Shanti Om in Urvashi(a movie hall in Bangalore) and asked me if I would want to join him. I agreed even without giving it a slightest thought. You may call it "The Deepika Padukone Effect". I met him at the Basavanagudi filling station and the both of us proceeded towards Urvashi. We then collected the tickets from another common friend's sister(they had booked around 20 seats) and the rest, as they say, is history.
Now, about the movie. After watching it, I now realise why SRK is, kind of, over promoting the movie. I didn't find anything in the movie as such which will bring the audience to the movie halls, like the kannada block buster Mungaru Male is still doing. I think as a movie maker, you should be having some message somewhere to be conveyed to the audience. What is OSO trying to tell its audience? Where is the story? What are SRK and Farah Khan trying to do? But then, this is a SRK movie. It is supposed to be a pure entertainer and that's exactly what it is. People throng movie halls and multiplexes just to see Shahrukh and not to see him act. Isn't it? For the acting part, watch out for Shreyas Talpade and the superb filmy maa Kiron Kher who have made acting look so easy. The brightest spot in the movie is, without a doubt, Deepika Padukone who is doing her bollywood debut in this movie. I liked this dimple on her cheeks when she smiles and that, along with that hour glass figure and a charming face, makes her that stunningly beautiful , drop dead gorgeous young lady that she is. Even her acting skills and dialogue delivery were not bad for somebody in her 2nd movie. Now, if you ask me whether I would recommend this movie, yes I would. Watch it for Deepika, for Shreyas and Kiron Kher, for those sound tracks which feel good on your ears and for those one minute cameos by Akshay Kumar and Bachchan Jr.
This movie should either have been a take on the hindi cinema industry of the 70s or a straight forward attempt to make a movie inspired by the Karz storyline. Only then OSO would not have needed SRK to imitate a Tamil Hero or for that matter do a out of sequence dance number by taking his shirt off.
PS: Don't be surprised if Gouri Khan is launched as a lead actress shortly. I wonder why anybody hasn't had a good look at her. She looks awesome!!!!!!!
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Energy and Climate Change
As all of you know, the Nobel Peace Prize for year 2007 has been jointly awarded to the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change (IPCC) which is incidentally headed by an Indian, R K Pachauri, and the former American Vice-President Al Gore. If you look at what these guys have been doing, it’s been mainly the study of the effects of the activities of the mankind on Earth's climate with Al Gore, especially, doing a lot of work in the area of global warming. One thing that I feel worthy of mention here is the kind of post presidential and post vice-presidential activities Bill Clinton and Al Gore have been involved in. While Clinton is very much into his foundation which works with various governments/ governmental institutions and the leading pharmaceutical manufacturers to support HIV+ patients throughout the world, Al Gore returned to his environmentalist roots and is leading a movement against global warming. This leaves me wondering, when will we have leaders, who'll involve themselves in such noble causes?
When I think about climate change, I see that we are affecting the climate in 2 ways when it comes to energy - inefficient usage of energy and inefficient generation of energy.
When I look at the using of the energy, one thing that comes easily to the mind due to its wide usage, and my area of focus in this write up is the (incandescent) bulb. As everyone knows, the very concept behind its working is 'heating'. The filament is heated to get the incandescent light. This result in usage of more electricity and also more heat for the amount of light it gives. Till recently, there was no popular alternative to the bulb. But, recently we have seen the emergence of CFL as a very viable and energy efficient alternative to the bulb. It works on the concept of fluorescence (our traditional tube lights), emitting light without generating heat and also consumes lesser electricity and thereby, is more energy efficient and is also long-lasting and therefore, cost efficient too. It too has its drawbacks. It contains mercury in a very small amount and so, proper care needs to be taken while used CFLs are disposed off. So, I think that with more research on mercury content and competitive pricing, CFLs will lead the way in energy efficient, climate friendly and cost efficient lighting solution. One thing that I would like to mention here is that, an organization called GREENPEACE has launched a campaign in India called 'Ban the Bulb' and one of its major victories has been that Mysore Palace authorities have reportedly agreed to replace all the 96,000(yes, ninety six thousand... you have read it right) incandescent bulbs used for that grand palace lighting with CFLs. I, at this point of time, will leave out the other major contributors for climate change namely, automobile emissions and industrial emissions/wastes for future write ups.
Now, when we look at the energy generation, the major contributors of energy generation in India have been, I guess in the same order, Hydro(water), Thermal(coal) and Nuclear(fissile grade uranium U-235). All these three have their own effects on nature and climate. In case of hydro electric power generation, we can see that dams are built; rivers are diverted causing submergence of huge amount of forest land among others. Thermal power generation has its ill effects with the emission of carbon gases to the atmosphere and to talk about the problems we can have with nuclear power generation, one word - Chernobyl, will give us the account of the kind of damage that an accident in a nuclear power plant can be caused. So, a lot of work needs to go into these power generation techniques as to make them more efficient and safe. Also, if readers have not yet observed, I have not mentioned solar power and wind energy as they are not yet popular power generation techniques owing to their higher costs, but I must also mention that they are nature friendly. So, we also need a lot of research on these energy generation techniques to make them more cost efficient.
To close this write up, I would like to reiterate my stand of having lots of research on thorium based nuclear reactors as we have one of the largest thorium reserves in the world and only try to import uranium as a short term arrangement instead of opening up major power reactors to IAEA and American inspections and allowing other countries to have a say in our effort to have a minimum deterrence. More on my views about the Indo-US nuclear deal will be coming up shortly.
When I think about climate change, I see that we are affecting the climate in 2 ways when it comes to energy - inefficient usage of energy and inefficient generation of energy.
When I look at the using of the energy, one thing that comes easily to the mind due to its wide usage, and my area of focus in this write up is the (incandescent) bulb. As everyone knows, the very concept behind its working is 'heating'. The filament is heated to get the incandescent light. This result in usage of more electricity and also more heat for the amount of light it gives. Till recently, there was no popular alternative to the bulb. But, recently we have seen the emergence of CFL as a very viable and energy efficient alternative to the bulb. It works on the concept of fluorescence (our traditional tube lights), emitting light without generating heat and also consumes lesser electricity and thereby, is more energy efficient and is also long-lasting and therefore, cost efficient too. It too has its drawbacks. It contains mercury in a very small amount and so, proper care needs to be taken while used CFLs are disposed off. So, I think that with more research on mercury content and competitive pricing, CFLs will lead the way in energy efficient, climate friendly and cost efficient lighting solution. One thing that I would like to mention here is that, an organization called GREENPEACE has launched a campaign in India called 'Ban the Bulb' and one of its major victories has been that Mysore Palace authorities have reportedly agreed to replace all the 96,000(yes, ninety six thousand... you have read it right) incandescent bulbs used for that grand palace lighting with CFLs. I, at this point of time, will leave out the other major contributors for climate change namely, automobile emissions and industrial emissions/wastes for future write ups.
Now, when we look at the energy generation, the major contributors of energy generation in India have been, I guess in the same order, Hydro(water), Thermal(coal) and Nuclear(fissile grade uranium U-235). All these three have their own effects on nature and climate. In case of hydro electric power generation, we can see that dams are built; rivers are diverted causing submergence of huge amount of forest land among others. Thermal power generation has its ill effects with the emission of carbon gases to the atmosphere and to talk about the problems we can have with nuclear power generation, one word - Chernobyl, will give us the account of the kind of damage that an accident in a nuclear power plant can be caused. So, a lot of work needs to go into these power generation techniques as to make them more efficient and safe. Also, if readers have not yet observed, I have not mentioned solar power and wind energy as they are not yet popular power generation techniques owing to their higher costs, but I must also mention that they are nature friendly. So, we also need a lot of research on these energy generation techniques to make them more cost efficient.
To close this write up, I would like to reiterate my stand of having lots of research on thorium based nuclear reactors as we have one of the largest thorium reserves in the world and only try to import uranium as a short term arrangement instead of opening up major power reactors to IAEA and American inspections and allowing other countries to have a say in our effort to have a minimum deterrence. More on my views about the Indo-US nuclear deal will be coming up shortly.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Happy Onam
Today keralites at home in Kerala, elsewhere in India and abroad are celebrating Onam. It falls during the month of Chingam, the first month of the malayalam calender(solar calender, wherein the months have been named after the constellations through which the sun passes).
This festival is significant for two reasons. Firstly, legend goes that Bali granted Vamana(Vishnu in form of a dwarf - fifth of his dhashavathara) three foot lengths of land as desired by him. Vamana then enormously grew in size, covered the whole earth in one step, the whole sky with the second. For the third, Bali asked him to place it on his head. With this, Vamana places his foot on Bali's head and suppresses him to Patala(one of the fourteen worlds and one of the seven hells according to Hindu scriptures) granting him a wish that he would rule Patala and would return once every year to visit his subjects on earth. Onam is celebrated as the day when King Mahabali returns to meet his subjects. Secondly, it is also celebrated as the harvest festival in Kerala.
The specialities for Onam,that I am aware of, include a traditional elaborate feast, Sadya and a multi coloured floral decoration(with, sometimes, a lamp in the middle) on the ground called Pookkalam. Competitions are held for the best pookkalam designs. I watched one such competition on a TV news channel yesterday and I must say, they were pretty innovative and beautiful. The other activities include a vibrant elephant procession, Pulikali performers painting themselves as tigers, performances by Kathakali artists, women performing Kaikotikalli, a traditional clap dance and the very popular snake boat race called Vallamkali.
The most important part of this festival is that it is celebrated by keralites across all religions depicting communal harmony and a sense of oneness which is at a premium today and it needs to be appreciated and emulated.
Wishing everybody a Happy Onam!!!
This festival is significant for two reasons. Firstly, legend goes that Bali granted Vamana(Vishnu in form of a dwarf - fifth of his dhashavathara) three foot lengths of land as desired by him. Vamana then enormously grew in size, covered the whole earth in one step, the whole sky with the second. For the third, Bali asked him to place it on his head. With this, Vamana places his foot on Bali's head and suppresses him to Patala(one of the fourteen worlds and one of the seven hells according to Hindu scriptures) granting him a wish that he would rule Patala and would return once every year to visit his subjects on earth. Onam is celebrated as the day when King Mahabali returns to meet his subjects. Secondly, it is also celebrated as the harvest festival in Kerala.
The specialities for Onam,that I am aware of, include a traditional elaborate feast, Sadya and a multi coloured floral decoration(with, sometimes, a lamp in the middle) on the ground called Pookkalam. Competitions are held for the best pookkalam designs. I watched one such competition on a TV news channel yesterday and I must say, they were pretty innovative and beautiful. The other activities include a vibrant elephant procession, Pulikali performers painting themselves as tigers, performances by Kathakali artists, women performing Kaikotikalli, a traditional clap dance and the very popular snake boat race called Vallamkali.
The most important part of this festival is that it is celebrated by keralites across all religions depicting communal harmony and a sense of oneness which is at a premium today and it needs to be appreciated and emulated.
Wishing everybody a Happy Onam!!!
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
India@60
Well then... my thoughts are finally coming online:)
In the past week, we celebrated 60 years of Indian independence and it's time to look back as to how we have fared over this period.
I believe we have done pretty well as a democracy given the fact that British left us with hundreds of princely states and two colonies controlled by the French and the Portuguese. The then great leaders of our country had a tough job of not only integrating the smaller princely kingdoms into a democratic state, but also repair the damage caused by the partition. Looking back, I must say, they have done a wonderful job overall except in the case of Jammu and Kashmir which is hurting us even now. We became a full republic, in little over two years later, with the world's lengthiest written constitution with 395 articles and 12 schedules.
We've had 4 wars with Pakistan and one humiliating military encounter with China. We dismembered pakistan which led to creation of Bangladesh in 1971. We also tested nuclear devices in 1974 and then again in 1998 which led to our nuclear isolation till very recently. On the negative side, we had to experience emergency from June 1975 to January 1977 and also various communal riots which will remain as a blot in the history of our country.
Economically, we were always a closed economy till the early nineties when we had reached a stage that the Chadrashekar led government had to pledge India's gold temporarily. We had no other option, but to open up and liberalize the economy which the next government rightly did. Now, we are among the top economies of the world with almost 9% growth rate. So far, so good.
Now, we also need to look at as to how we have fared socially and one must admit that we have fared pretty badly when it comes to poverty alleviation, employment generation etc resulting in a huge divide between the haves and the have nots. This, I feel, must be the focus of our establishment in the next 60 years. Only then will this beautiful country of ours really become what Mohammed Iqbal wrote - 'Sare Jahan Se Achcha Hindustan hamara'.
In the past week, we celebrated 60 years of Indian independence and it's time to look back as to how we have fared over this period.
I believe we have done pretty well as a democracy given the fact that British left us with hundreds of princely states and two colonies controlled by the French and the Portuguese. The then great leaders of our country had a tough job of not only integrating the smaller princely kingdoms into a democratic state, but also repair the damage caused by the partition. Looking back, I must say, they have done a wonderful job overall except in the case of Jammu and Kashmir which is hurting us even now. We became a full republic, in little over two years later, with the world's lengthiest written constitution with 395 articles and 12 schedules.
We've had 4 wars with Pakistan and one humiliating military encounter with China. We dismembered pakistan which led to creation of Bangladesh in 1971. We also tested nuclear devices in 1974 and then again in 1998 which led to our nuclear isolation till very recently. On the negative side, we had to experience emergency from June 1975 to January 1977 and also various communal riots which will remain as a blot in the history of our country.
Economically, we were always a closed economy till the early nineties when we had reached a stage that the Chadrashekar led government had to pledge India's gold temporarily. We had no other option, but to open up and liberalize the economy which the next government rightly did. Now, we are among the top economies of the world with almost 9% growth rate. So far, so good.
Now, we also need to look at as to how we have fared socially and one must admit that we have fared pretty badly when it comes to poverty alleviation, employment generation etc resulting in a huge divide between the haves and the have nots. This, I feel, must be the focus of our establishment in the next 60 years. Only then will this beautiful country of ours really become what Mohammed Iqbal wrote - 'Sare Jahan Se Achcha Hindustan hamara'.
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