Film conversations: Baby

Just watched Baby.  Neeraj Pandey, who gave us the exquisite A Wednesday, revisits the terrorist theme in this fast moving action film.  

Very rarely do we get espionage genre right in Hindi films, but it appears that Pandey is on the right track with this one.  Baby is a refreshingly gutsy effort that says it as it is, without mincing words.  One hears that a sequel to Baby is being planned, which can only be good news.

I do not want to go into the specific details of the plot, because I would like to encourage those who have not yet watched this film to watch it.  Anybody who is interested in the secularism and unity of India should watch this film.  Yes, it has got Muslim terrorists, yes they come from Pakistan, but it is not about mindless bashing of either of these religious/national groups.  

There are some characters who are Muslims who help break the terrorist nexus, in addition to Pakistani actors who also feature in the star-cast.  Mostly, judging by the messages left on the film website message boards, it seems that people have realised that this film is about terrorism, and not about hating any particular community or country.  In fact Baby does not take sides, or justify the actions of any group; it cuts straight to the chase.  At least, it does not indulge in partial religious bashing the way PK did.

But as always there are those who take exception.  The Pakistani government banned it.  The film has not done well in those circuits where expatriate Pakistanis live - such as in some parts of the UK.  Just compare the earnings of Baby in the UK (Rs 1.24 crore) with PK (21.63 crore) or Kick (13.2 crore), and you will see what I mean*.  

Leave aside foreign circuits.  It is a travesty that this film struggled to reach 100 crores in our own market (it eventually stopped at 95.56 crore).  It is ridiculous that we do not seem to value movies made with substance and a message.  It seems our audience is very much in love with superstars-led, nepotism-filled brainless entertainment, running around trees, and item songs.  

How else can you explain the huge success of a crass and ludicrous film such as Happy New Year?

Looking forward to the Baby sequel.


*[source: bollywoodhungama.com]
Image source: http://st1.bollywoodlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/baby-2508141.jpg

ICC World Cup 2015: boring cricket, but interesting sideshows

Despite what N Srinivasan had to say, it was a very boring world cup.  

More than 90% of the matches were one-sided.  The preliminary stages were dominated by minnow teams whose desperation to stage an upset is in itself very boring.  Happens in every edition of the world cup.

 

Chris Gayle scored a whirlwind century.  Yawn..!

Even the knock out stages were boring.  

The tragedy of South Africa losing in the semis.  Yeah, that sounds familiar.

India lost to Australia in semis.  Yeah, we know that one too....all too familiar for us!

And the result?  Less said the better.

It was same old Australia.  For the fifth time.  Ho hum...!  Like you didn't see that one coming.

Great for the Aussies, but very bad for the game of cricket... and the world cup.  

A new winner in the form of New Zealand would have somewhat salvaged the 50 over game's reputation.  

This world cup will perhaps be remembered for some other reasons...

While congratulations are in order for winning the cup, the Aussies' behaviour on the field puts them in contention for winning the sledging world cup as well.  Every member of the team sledges.  If you are that good a team, why not let your batting and bowling do the talking?  Why do you have to spew out venom, even at the New Zealanders who did nothing to provoke anybody throughout the tournament, and yet made it to the finals?  What is the point in Haddin apologising to the Kiwis after the tournament is over?  It is this sort of ugly behaviour that ensures that the Aussies remain the most disliked team in the world.

And there was Imran Tahir's celebrations.  He will need a bigger ground if he keeps running away each time he takes a wicket.

And what about Rubel's celebration...if you can call it that.  It was more like a boorish assault on Kohli - a clear case of an empty vessel making more noise.  For once, it would have been better had Kohli let loose his tongue and used his bat not to hit a ball, instead of walking away sedately.

Yes Riaz's bowling to Watson was very good.  But again, why all the verbal venom and close-to-his-face hand clapping when you were already making the ball talk so effectively? 

And not to forget, there was the curious case of the ICC officials conspiring to steal Bangladesh's foregone victory over India.  The people were angry.  The team was angry.  The ICC official from Bangladesh was angry.  And, get this... even the leader of the country said that India had conspired to deny Bangladesh their rightful victory.  A case of collective paranoid-persecutory delusional disorder.  

Please, during the next edition of the world cup, keep it crisp and short.  Let the minnows have a qualifying tournament.  Do not restrict the bowlers too much.  Use the technology available to get better decisions.  Let the pitch aid both pace and spin.  Do not count the sixes.  

Please ICC, also enact a few special laws...

• Australia should be presented the alternative world cup separately.  After that the other teams can participate for the main world cup.

• If they have to be allowed in to the main tournament, the Aussies should take the field with their mouths taped.

• Chris Gayle should bat right handed and blindfolded.

• The South Africans should have a reserve match if they lose the semi-final in the first attempt.

• The point or square leg fielder should trip Imran Tahir after he takes a wicket to stop him from reaching the pavilion.

• The umpires should be ready with shackles to restrain Rubel should he take a wicket.  

• The refreshments served to the crowd should be laced with anti-psychotics should Bangladesh take on India again.  

• And yes, the government should issue a disclaimer before every India match - that it is only a game; there is no need to cut off your tongue or jump from buildings should India lose the match. 

In the meantime, roll out the IPL!

Image sources:

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/d/d2/2015_Cricket_World_Cup_Logo.svg/1200px-2015_Cricket_World_Cup_Logo.svg.png

https://s.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/rsHg00kFaBdmBDaM.CW.zA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9aW5zZXQ7aD03MjA7aWw9cGxhbmU7cT03NTt3PTU4Mg--/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/47192fcedb7107086f0f6a706700c5c1.jpg

http://s.ndtvimg.com/images/content/2015/mar/806/brad-haddin-vs-new-zealand-wcfinals.jpg

http://img.cricketcb.com/i/news/fw/600x500/stories/2015/mar/20/prv_8df7b_1426841905.jpg

http://ste.india.com/sites/default/files/2015/03/18/336521-imran-tahir-odi-celeb.jpg

Film conversations: Cinderella (2015)

Okay, this one I watched because of my daughter.  The exams were over, and we were out in the mall. There was a 10 O'clock show in the multiplex; we made an impulsive decision to see the film.  

And we were not disappointed.  Going with low expectations - the same old story; been there done that kind of a feeling - might have helped, because we came out thoroughly entertained.  My daughter, of course, sat riveted.

Actor/director, Kenneth Branagh does a sterling job of making this story an interesting one, with a few clever deviations from the original.  In this story, Cinderella - or Ella as she is first called - sees her mother die after giving her a message: have courage and show kindness.  Her father remarries and subsequently dies during one of his travels, leaving Ella with the evil stepmother and her two daughters.  

The gradual deterioration of Ella's status in her own house is well depicted, and we learn that it is actually her stepsisters who come up with the name Cinderella, after they see Ella's face blackened with cinder from all the cooking that she does.  Her attic friends are all mice, and the birds only come towards the end.  

Unlike the original, Cinderella meets the prince during a horse riding session, although she does not know his identity.  The king dies before the prince marries Cinderella, and the prince himself unravels the plot hatched by the stepmother and the grand duke to prevent him from seeing Cinderella again.  The stepmother smashes the glass shoe on the wall, instead of tripping the footman carrying the shoe.  However these deviations - apart from the fast pace of the narrative - add charm to the story and keep one glued to it.

Although she lacks the comic book Cinderella look, Lily James displays the affected yet restrained look of the character very well.  Richard Madden is charming as the prince, as is his father the king, played by Derek Jacobi.  Cate Blanchett, a seasoned actress that she is, brings a level of sophistication and controlled cruelty to her role as the stepmother.  The bungling sisters, Drizella and Anastasia are hilarious, while Stellan Skarsgard is suitably villainous as the grand duke.  Ben Chaplin plays Cinderella's father, and Nonso Anozie is the good captain.   

Helena Bonham Carter continues her streak of playing oddball characters with her role of an atypical fairy godmother - or 'hairy godfather' as she puts it.  The setting up of the carriage and its subsequent disintegration into a pumpkin, mice, lizards and a goose, is a treat to watch.

Overall, a highly enjoyable fare.  Watch it with the whole family.

Image sources:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c2/Cinderella_2015_official_poster.jpg
http://www.hellomagazine.com/imagenes/film/2014120322267/cinderella-posters-lily-james-richard-madden/0-117-196/cinderella-2--z.jpg

Cricket, unstable minds and hatred

Okay we lost badly.  Perhaps we did not put up a fight in the semi-finals.  

But that does not mean that we riot, break TV sets or burn effigies.

It does not mean that we should cut our tongues, or jump from a building, as two cricket fanatics with unstable minds did after the loss.

Actually if anybody had suggested before the start of the world cup that India would be playing in the semis, we would have laughed uproariously.  

But they did make it to the big stage, and that in itself is a considerable achievement.

Leave aside our post-loss lamentations for a moment.  

Somebody else would be extremely happy about our exit from the world cup: the Bangladeshis.

Ever since the quarter-finals, they have been baying for our blood as they believe that we won the match by bribing ICC officials and umpires!

Everybody from the average fan, to the current ICC President (who happens to be a Bangladeshi), to the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, sincerely believe that the officials were hand in glove with us in fixing decisions - all this in spite of several evidences to the contrary!

In the picture above, the Bangladeshi bowler would have probably assaulted Kohli had he not been restrained by his colleagues.

All these are symptomatic of the underlying hatred that they harbour towards India. 

This appears to be a feature of many smaller nations surrounding India - Pakistan, Nepal and Sri Lanka being the others, apart from Bangladesh. 

Insurgency, illegal immigration, terrorism, border disputes and shooting fishermen, among other things, are the issues/tactics that these 'friendly' neighbours throw at us.

Is it because of our country's large size?  

Is it because of our economic progress?  

Is it because of our flourishing film industry, that people of these countries are so fond of following?

Is the reason for their hatred envy?  

Who knows?

Anyway, it is alright.  We still love them.  Peace and happiness to the people of Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

Coming back to the Men in Blue, they had a terrific run in the world cup, but came up against the familiar and seemingly insurmountable foe, Australia.  

If you leave out the last edition, we have never been able to break the Aussie jinx in world cup matches.

Probably it is to do with mindset - intense pressure gets to our players, and fear and lack of confidence set in.

How else can you explain winning 7 matches on the trot and then thoroughly under-performing against one team?   

So it is actually not surprising that they lost - Anushka or no Anushka.    

Yet, we still love our cricket team.  Better luck next time guys.  Think of what usually goes wrong with Australia, and work on improving it.

Now we can move on to IPL.  At least India can't lose in this tournament!  



Image sources:

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/d/d2/2015_Cricket_World_Cup_Logo.svg/1200px-2015_Cricket_World_Cup_Logo.svg.png
http://p.imgci.com/db/PICTURES/CMS/208900/208949.jpg
http://s.ndtvimg.com/images/content/2015/mar/806/dhoni-aus.jpg

Where is our beloved sparrow?

Where is the sparrow?

This is the question most of us who have been brought up in Bangalore are asking ourselves.  These lovely, harmless, brown-white birds are nowhere to be seen.

I have some personal relevance in this matter of the missing sparrows.  When I was a child, we had two little holes in a wall on the terrace, complete with a little curved ledges on the outside for birds to perch on.  Both the holes - which rather looked like large 'commas' from far - were occupied by our winged tenants.  It also helped that the terrace was canopied by the spreading branches of a large tree from across the road.  Several types of birds - crows, mynahs, sparrows - would sit on the branches, chirp their raucous symphony, and swoop down on the terrace if there were any sandige (homemade crisps) spread out for drying.  

Because the holes were too small for a larger bird, they were exclusively occupied by sparrows.  I have spent many a childhood hour watching the parent sparrows descend on to the ledge with food in their little beaks and feed the hungry chicks in the hole cushioned with straw and leaves.  I would put a stool to climb up to the level of the hole and peek inside to catch a glimpse of the delicate pink chicks.  Sometimes, a few adventurous chicks would attempt to come out of the hole and fall down, only to be swooped up by a bigger bird or a cat.  Whenever we found one outside, we would try to put it back in the hole, but they were often so delicate that they would not survive.  

Several reasons have been proposed for the disappearance of the sparrows from our urban landscape.  The most obvious reason would have to be the rapid and unchecked urbanisation that has taken place in Bangalore over the last two decades.  There are apartments everywhere, rising into the sky, with hardly any breathing space between two buildings.  Trees in residential areas have dwindled as every inch of the available space has been used up in building concrete homes.  We have allowed other pursuits to gain prominence compared to conservation of flora and fauna.

We don't find bird holes in the wall such as those in my childhood home any more.  That house, in which we stayed as tenants for several years, has sadly been demolished since.  In its place, commercial establishments have sprung up - shops selling food and tyres.   

Increasing pollution levels may be another reason for the diminishing sparrow population.  Some believe that the staple of the sparrows; certain larvae and grains have also disappeared from our houses making it difficult for sparrows to sustain themselves. 

It is in this context that the heart warming news of somebody taking up the cause of restoring sparrows to their habitat appeared recently in the paper.  The Citizen Sparrow project aims to conserve these birds by inviting information and stories on sparrows from all.

More such initiatives are needed to restore the presence of sparrows in our midst.  Or else, the sparrow might just go the dodo way, and we will be left with another species that we would have to introduce to our children only through pictures.




Image sources:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/Indian_Sparrow.jpg
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Sparrows_India.JPG/1200px-Sparrows_India.JPG

Article on World TB Day 24th March

My medical educational article on eradicating tuberculosis on account of World TB Day - 24th March...

http://www.mapsofindia.com/my-india/health/education-and-awareness-key-to-eradicate-tuberculosis

Book conversations: Baby Makers

As infertility levels rise in India, fertility centres are mushrooming all over the country.  Franchises of hi-tech fertility centres, equipped with the best of technologies, and skilled manpower dot the urban landscape.  Cash laden professionals make a beeline for these centres, as no expense is spared in getting their coveted bundle of joy.  Those that are not contented with having a girl child, even opt to go out of the country, or resort to shady deals just to get a male baby, as sex selection is illegal in India.  Some even opt for postponing their motherhood to a later convenient time.   

If the couple remain issue-less even after expensive IVF and related procedures, the last resort options come into the picture.  These include egg harvesting from an unknown woman, and surrogacy - commissioning gestation in a hired woman.  In all this, the option of adopting one of the millions of orphans living in care homes is almost never considered, as nothing less than having one's own flesh and blood in the little one would suffice. 

But what is known about surrogacy?  Is it simply a case of 'commissioning' babies?  As easy as renting a room for nine months?  What happens to the woman who agrees to be a surrogate?  Who are the agents who would arrange surrogacy for you?  How much does it cost?  What are the legal tangles that one could get into in the process?  Ever wondered what ART, GIFT, IUI, ICSI, TESA and ZIFT stand for in the fertility parlance?

These are just a few of the questions that Aravamudan addresses in her book, through touching real life stories of people involved in the surrogacy industry.  Apart from the strong subject of the book - one about which very little information is available - the other winner in this book is the format and the way it is edited.

Aravamudan presents six stories simultaneously; of people from different places across the world - New Jersey, Bangalore, Kathmandu, Mumbai, Anand, and Chennai.  They all have one thing in common: the Indian surrogacy industry.  These are stories of couples commissioning babies, women entering the field to become first time egg donors or surrogates, their managers and recruiters, their families, and their travails. 

The stories are presented in five clusters with five interludes in between.  The interludes look at unconnected real life scenarios of surrogacy gone wrong, questions about legality of the process, differences in international laws, issues of non-biological motherhood, and artificial reproduction without the requirement of the male gamete.  

This structuring of narrative non-fiction with interludes of interesting case scenarios and essays enlivens the narrative, and keeps one hooked on to the book till the very end.  Each of the five stories is presented simply, without going into the unnecessary details of the characters' experiences.  Yet each story is highly engaging, and you can't help getting involved in the characters' affairs and hoping that each one of them goes on to have a happy outcome.

Surrogacy is here to stay and it is high time that clear-cut guidelines and laws are created to reduce the ambiguity, and the air of illegality that surrounds it.  The fact that there are so many foreign nationals coming to India to employ surrogates - despite the lacunae in the guidelines and laws - shows that regularisation and preserving the interests of those involved in the industry is the need of the hour.  

Aravamudan highlights these issues effortlessly in her revealing and charming account.



Image source: http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51uOcb2Y8DL._SY344_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg