Aayirathil Oruvan – some thoughts

I was zapped when I walked out of the theater after watching Aayirathil Oruvan. The movie is far from perfect in terms of screenplay or acting and had lots of loose ends & discrepancies in storytelling. But there was one thing that mirrored through very clearly – one man’s passion to make a difference. It takes a lot of courage to make a movie like this in Tamil. This movie’s got an A certificate, which by default eliminates family audience. Whatever said, the movie going experience is still a family exercise for most theater going audience. The trailer also made it quite obvious that this is not going to be a regular masala flick.

Period films are grueling to make. And historical fiction is definitely no joke. My knowledge of Tamil history is limited to my history text book. So I’m not in any position to comment about the authenticity of the facts mentioned. But I guess once we’ve established the genre as ‘fantasy,’ it comes with that extra space for creative license. I loved the movie simply for the way it was presented. The first half of the movie is very interesting and moves at a breakneck speed. It is one of the most seamless narrations I’ve experienced. Just when you’re unsure about how the plot’s going to move forward, you have Un mele aasadhaan which is the happiest song I’ve heard in a long time. I LOVE Dhanush’s rendition!

This is where the movie begins to almost become weird. There are loads of moments that make you go wtf! The biggest one of them to me was the depiction of the Cholas and their king. He’s shown as a tyrant who walks on the blood of those who dare to dispute him and can’t be bothered to hear his subjects out and almost immediately is shown as someone who shares a drink with his people and dances with them. The amount of gore is a bit much after a certain point. Just as i was recovering from this shock, the very weak flashback followed by the erotic sequence with the most explicit dialogues in Tamil cinema ever. Only it sounds highly unbelievable when Reema Sen is unable to even mouth them to perfection.

Actually, there are so many twists to the plot in the second half that at one stage I stopped trying to guess where the story was progressing. And the archaic Tamil didn’t make it any simpler either. I honestly feel they must have had subtitles in Tamil. But I guess that would also mean explaining the erotic sequence between Reema Sen and Parthiban which is probably why it was left out. The war sequence in the end is almost comical with the kind of costumes Reema Sen and her Pandian dynasty folks are seen wearing. That to me was the lowest point of the movie. Did I like the ending that followed? Again, way more gory details than I would’ve liked, but this is the only ending that makes sense.

In his first movie, Karthi made people sit up and notice him. He’s again proved that Paruthi Veeran was no fluke and he’s definitely the next big thing in Tamil cinema. The man’s got an irresistible charm. Even the crassest things he says don’t seem so crass! Reema Sen, who plays the most important role in the movie, has come a long long way since her completely blank expression Minnale days. But her acting still leaves a lot to be desired. To begin with, she could’ve at least picked up some Tamil during the long long production! Andrea has done what she had to do quite well but that really isn’t too much. Parthiban has almost unlearned all his mannerisms for the movie and has lived the role! I felt bad for Prathan Pothen. He has no role. You didn’t need him for that.

Some highlights of the movie other than Karthi and Selva are Ramji, the cinematographer and GV Prakash. I can imagine how this movie would’ve sounded with Raja’s RR, but GV has done a good job. In some places, the kind of music is so starkly contrasting to the period its set in, that this has worked wonderfully. Especially, the entry of Parthiban!

Definitely must watch in spite of all its flaws!

Raja rajathaan! Part 2

Here’s the next installment of my favorite Raja hits!

Kodai kaala katre

Prathap Pothen, Mohan, Ramarajan – these are heros who got wonderful songs from Raja even if their movies turned out to be crappy. Not to say that this a crappy movie. Actually, I’ve watched this movie only once and all I remember is the songs. In this movie, it’s very tough to pick between this song and Aananda Ragam. I wanted to include this song cos I feel its one of those less known gems of Raja that was simply overtaken by a more popular song from the same movie.

When I listen to this song I fall in love with Raja’s orchestration and harmony all over again. Not to mention the wonderful prelude that just transports you to another place in your head. The slightly off sounding Malaysia Vasudevan only adds to the beauty of this wonderful lilting melody.

Un Parvayil

From Kaalai nera poonguyil to Namma kada veedhi, this movie has both the quintessential Raja melody and typical folksy beats. This one is however my favourite. A combination of Yesudas and Chitra, this song has a very breezy melody. Every time I listen to this song, it gives me the feeling of a pleasant evening walk on a foggy mountain!

Thamthana

This is a typical case of a great song with a crappy video. Both Rathi and Baghyaraj look horrendous. A typical Bharatiraja type set up with many aimless girls in white running all over a field. Even if I make my peace with the girls and the horendous lead pair, I just can’t get over the random pose striking through the song!

However, its an evergreen favorite of mine just for its complicated sandham and melody. I do wonder, however, how this song might have turned if sung by another singer like, say, Janaki.

Andha Kandamani

Kamal haasan – Ilayaraja always turns out to a formidable combination. This movie, Virumandi, came out at a time when Ilayaraja was largely believed to have crossed his prime. But he made everyone who said that eat their words and how. Even though I love Unna Vida from this movie, this song ranks a little higher.

And this is why. The arrangement in this song blows me every time I listen to it. This song could’ve been another “thiruvizha” song with just jang-jang type violins in the middle to convey the grim mood. The way he’s used voices including his own here shows that the man is capable of reinventing himself after decades of excellence.

Ye Aiyasami

First things first, Karthik looks gorgeous in this movie. I think in this movie, he showed glimpses of Mano from Mouna Ragam. I feel no one has been able to pull of this sort of boyishness with such style and charisma in Tamil cinemas since Karthik.

I love the way this song progresses from a teasy tone to a rendition brimming with love and beauty. It not only makes this transition but manages to end with the same boyishness it started with.

More of my Raja favourites to follow

Old ads

These old Nescafe ads triggered off some good memories of advertisements from the pre-cable days. We used to look forward to the ads more than the actual programs. I remember, when my sister was about 1 or 2 years old, she was a very fussy eater. My mom had a very tough time trying to get her to open her mouth for food. Of the many many techniques devised by my parents to distract her, the most effective was advertisements. My mom used to shoveful food in her mouth while she was totally absorbed in the ad blissfully oblivious of everything around here. Because, we couldn’t wait for ad breaks to feed her, my dad recorded a video casette of advertisements on our VCR!

I’ve posted some of my favorite ads here. Get ready to smile!

I’ll start with my most favorite one! I think everyone who’s seen this ad, loves the jingle. There is an extended version of this ad, which I was unable to find.

I remember this complan ad’s jingle much better in Tamil where Ayesha Takia says “naan valargirene, mummy.” This was one of those super famous like “kalakare chandru!”

This ad is evergreen for 2 reasons, the ARR’s jingle and the oh-so-yummy Arvind Swamy. It is after this ad that Mani Ratnam is supposed to have picked both ARR and Arvind Swamy for Roja. There is a newer version of this ad with Andrea and Radio Mirchi Shiva which doesn’t have the charm of the original.

I remember this old ad that used to be used around pongal! I watched this ad today after many many years but I remember the exact sequence including the surprised expression on the mother’s face when she sees the son I just found out that the jingle for this ad has been done by ARR. This jingle has been sung by Malaysia Vasudevan and if you listen closely, it sounds like Then Kizhakku Seemayila from Kizhakku Seemayile!

This ad I think was the first one in the series of Dad-daughter wedding gift ones. And I also think this is the sweetest.

Hamara Bajaj, one of their most memorable campaigns

This was Aishwarya Rai’s big break. I think this is also her first Pepsi commercial. And Aamir Khan can’t look any yummier. And my sister’s name is Sanju

There is an entire series of Cadbury’s ads in my list of favorites. This one tops it! I LOVE this girl!

Another extremely sweet Dairy Milk one!

Yet another classic Dairy Milk one!

I love the cheek and glee on Priety Zinta’s face!

Tell me who doesn’t remember this jingle, or this drink for that matter? I want to drink Gold Spot

There is another ad, I totally was in love with but couldn’t find anywhere – Namma Ooru vandi, TVS Excel! Can anyone send it to me, if you have it?

These ads totally made my day! I hope they bring a smile to your face too

Are any of your old time fav ads missing here?

What was I thinking

8 posts in 20 days. That is what I call hopeless stats. Epic fail!

This is how it all started. I woke up one day to realise that I had had no “me” space in a long long time. I had completely lost touch with so many things that I enjoyed doing. Like this blog for instance, was lying in a corner with absolutely no attention from me. I hadn’t clicked a picture in a very long time. I even had no clue when the subscription on my Flickr pro account ran out. I logged in one day and found out it had expired. It made me very sad. I wanted to do something about it. This putting up a post a day was an effort to reclaim something of what I felt I had lost. The few posts that I put up made me feel nice. Just when I was beginning to feel like I could finally write something again and make some sense of it, I lost the flow.

I tried to do too much at the same time. I was trying to regain my virtual life when my physical life it self was non-existant. Last couple of weeks have been very demanding both physically and emotionally. I have woken up almost everyday wishing I could go back to sleep for another few hours when I know I have to drag my feet and get going. Weekends haven’t exactly been very rejuvanating either. I have been staring at my computer screen so much that I even stopped lurking on Twitter over weekends. With what little enthusiasm I have left during weeknights and weekends, I have hung out with the husband and some friends and tried cooking something tad more interesting than my unexciting everyday cooking.

I now I have new found respect for working mothers. My mother used to wake up every morning, pack 4 dabbas, send 2 kids to school, pack off a husband to work and then leave to work. She always had the energy and time for everything we wanted. In fact, she even had time to do her own thing! One big difference is the fact that my mom had a job that was strictly 9 to 5 (at least when we were growing up). No one’s job is strictly 9 to 5 anymore. Even my mom’s job stopped being that when she decided to go for those promotions she missed out on when we were growing up. There are days when I feel like none of this worth it. Today is just one of them.

Raja rajathaan! Part 1

My love for Ilayaraja’s music is nothing new. I want to hear the man, live, at least once. Hopefully, it’ll happen sooner than later.

This week is Ilayaraja special on Airtel Super singers. Some of these kids have been doing such a wonderful job! Its got into this total Raja mood. Today, I woke up and played some of my favourite Raja songs while I made some yummy badam kheer! It put me in such a wonderful mood for the rest of the day. I’ve always wanted to make a list of my favourite Ilayaraja songs. But I have so many favourites that its hard to pick out only a select few. So I want to list some of my favourites by genre. Today, I’m going to list my favourite love songs of Ilayaraja. I only wanted to post 10 songs but I could not get the count down from 15. So I’m going to be posting this as a 3 part series. So, here goes my favourite 15, part 1 in no particular order.

Kadhal oviyam – Alaigal Oyvathillai

This song oozes innocence. It does what it is supposed to in a very soul stirring way, celebrate love that is young and pure. It starts with a hymn and a lovely veena prelude. It then progresses in a very unconventional way with some interesting beats and chorus that reminds you of choral singing in a church. Fascinating to see how even the tune and arrangements blend in with the story line. Jency voice teases you with such sincerity! She may not be a very versatile singer, but the honesty in her voice is something I love! Though Ilayaraja is an unusual choice for the male lead voice in this kind of a song, he brings a certain rough edge to an otherwise innocent song.

Sundari Kannal oru sedhi – Thalapathi

This is yet another song that has my fav pair, SPB – Ilayaraja! What starts of as a slow song of yearning slowly weaves into it a lovely interlude that tells you about the struggle in the hero’s mind. You can clearly make out the conflict between the two emotions in the song, duty and love, even if you have never seen the video or not know anything about the movie.

But if you’ve seen the video you will know how stunning Shobana looks! She easily looked her best in this movie if you of course, discount Suhasini’s rather irritating dubbing.

Thulli ezhunthathu – Geethanjali

This is not one of those extremely popular songs of Ilayaraja. Again, this song has a appealing honesty about it. Its one of those uncomplicated simple flowing songs that sounds just right after a long hard day. Ilayaraja is partial to the guitar. He arranges the most beautiful preludes and interludes on the guitar. This song is one such example. Many people have a problem with Ilayaraja the singer. I agree that is not the best of them. But there are songs, like this one, where I can’t imagine any one else doing justice to the rendition.

Partha Vizhi – Guna

This is not even a full length song. It is one of those tiny little songs that completely steal all the thunder away from even some of the proper 4-5 min songs. Yesudas’s voice with the chenda (?) beats sounds just mesmerizing. This song another one of his songs that has a lot of chorus very predominently. This man doesn’t need great singers to make his songs work!

Maankuyile – Karagatakaran

This is one of Raja’s best movies. I love all the songs in this movie cos it redefined the perception of folk music in everyone’s mind. It wasn’t just loud melam and nayanam and mindless beats. This song especially was a trend breaker cos it was unheard of for folk songs to be slow and melodious. Again a masterpiece by SPB. If one can ignore the Ramarajan’s heavy pink lipstick and Kanaka’s fake drawn eyebrows, this song is a pretty enjoyable one even to watch!

I will continue with part 2 next week!

Ek gaon mein ek kisaan..

I stayed at a PG in Hyderabad for a few months when I was house/roommate hunting. It was the first time I live in a hostel like setting and had to share a room. I used to keep to myself most of the time as I didn’t know any of them and most of them had lived to together for a while then. Most of them only spoke Hindi. I was very concious of the fact that I was replying to them in English everytime they spoke to me in Hindi. Though I had a fair idea of what they were saying to me, I could hardly speak 3 sentences confidently in Hindi. In my defense, some of them spoke Hindi like Telugu. After a point it really annoyed me that my knowledge of Hindi or the lack of it became the general topic of conversation. It put me off so much that for as long as I stayed at that PG I plainly refused to speak in Hindi.

A couple of years and a really supportive roommate later, my Hindi actually got way better! In my smug moments, I think it is pretty good. But there are somethings I still don’t get about the language.

• I can’t fight in Hindi! The words just don’t come out right. There have been times I burst out laughing at my Hindi in the middle of a fight.
• I don’t know numbers in Hindi. I can say 10, 20, 30, 40 type numbers but 58 and 74 and the likes are beyond me. I just don’t get it!
• I don’t know what vegetables and some ingredients are called in Hindi. For that matter, I don’t know what some vegetables are called even in English. So I sorta gave up trying to learn their name. I just go to the shop and point and say – ‘yeh kitne ka hai’ or ‘woh ek kilo deejiye.’
• Last week when I went grocery shopping, I wanted to buy ‘ghasaghasa.’ I had no clue what it was called in Hindi and the shopkeeper didn’t understand English. The husband had no clue what it was any language. So I went online and searched for ‘poppy seeds in Hindi’ on Google!
• I can’t swear in Hindi. I find it extremely eeky.
• I definitely don’t get this Hindi poetry type stuff.

In spite of all this, the last time I was in Madras, I sat in an auto and started giving the auto driver directions in Hindi! Ouch

 

The weekend that was!

Last weekend, I wanted to do three things. Stay away from my laptop, sleep like a log and cook lots of yummy food! I’m very glad to report that I managed to do all three.

I slept straight for some 14 hours on Saturday! I was fully awake only by 8 in the evening! By the time I was completely awake on Saturday, other plans were made, which eliminated cooking. So I decided that Sunday was going to be marathon cooking day.

My current obsession is Nutella! Nothing is better that Nutella and Peanut butter on warm toast on a bluesy blah morning. I wanted to make another favourite dish of mine with Nutella, Crepes! I discovered these in Paris when there was a derth of anything vegetarian. The small stalls all over the place served these hot from the tava! I never got around to trying any of the other flavours of crepes cos I was completely in love with these and couldn’t get enough of them. I was tempted to try them at home when I saw them again on the menu at Crepe Station, Bandra one day.

Warm Nutella and banana crepes on a lazy morning is so filling that you can laze around some more without thinking for food for one whole morning.

This is how I made it

Recipe courtesy

1 cup maida

1 cup milk

2 eggs (get the husband to break them if you’re as eeky as I am around them)

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

1/4 cup of water (made mine a li’l watery so you may want to eliminate this)

3 tablespoons sugar

1 big blob of melted butter

I put all the ingredients in the mixie and nicely whisked it and strained it. I put the batter in the fridge for an hour after covering the vessel with foil. After an hour, take a ladle full of batter and put it on a buttered non stick pan and swirl it around to get a nice big circle. When I took it out my batter was still watery. So my crepes were all shapeless when I tried making them. So to get better shape, I used my usual tadka pan (even an apam pan would work, i feel), which gave me better shape but my crepes became super tiny. I sorta like the tiny crepes as well!

When the crepe is still hot, spread some nutella generously and arrange pieces of banana on one half and close the crepe. Dust it with some powdered sugar if you want to and eat it when its hot!

So, if you want to see how it looked finally, here you go.

After an extremely filling breakfast, the husband had had too much of foreign food and wanted to eat something punjbai. So it was chapathi and channa masala for lunch. I was too tired and hungry by the time I finished making that, so no pictures. The channa masala was quite yum except for the fact that there was a li’l extra tomato puree in it that made it a li’l tangy!

So that was the Sunday food line up!

So, what was your Sunday brunch?

 

My favourite mokka!

All the  para mokkas making its rounds  its rounds on Twitter’s Mokka Mondays made me dig out my favourite mokka comedy!!

 

This movie has some super mokkas! It was on TV on Saturday and I was rolling in laughter. The other comedy that has me in splits every single time i watch is this one

No better way than this to start the Monday morning!

One missed!

After just 3 days of posting, I missed a day. In my defense, I don’t think it counts as one day missed as a bunch of us were in office up all night fighting a deadline. I went to sleep at 5.30 am. So technically my body clock is still stuck at yesterday! So refuse to count this as a slip.

In spite of the racing against time sort of deadline, yesterday was a fun day and this is why

• it was my first ever night out at work!! I thought I was going to dead by the end of it, but surprisingly I was bright eyed and bushy tailed at 5 in the morning and could’ve gone on without sleep. I totally surprised myself.
• Dal Kichchdi is my latest comfort food!  Its best eaten pipping hot with ghee and pappad. Sabari, a small joint at Santa Cruz makes the best Dal Kichchdi ever. Last night I finished almost an entire portion all by myself. Any more and I would’ve definitely slept off at the table.
• Went home and woke up the husband who was fast asleep to show him the T-Shirt I had bought him from the InkFruit sale at work. They have a really funky T-Shirts. Must check it out if its your kind of style. These are some of my favourites.
• Woke up this morning to find out that the husband had made some yummy Nutella and Peanut butter sandwich for breakfast!

So far, lack of sleep has not been an issue. So I hope to post once more today to make up for the missed day!

When 2 stalwarts meet!

I discovered Ilayaraja when I was in my 9th or 10th std. I heard ‘Kalyana Thennila’ one day and fell in love with his music. Since then, my love for his music has only grown immensely. Raja become a integral part of my life. I have a Raja song for every mood, every emotion and every situation. The more I listened to his music, the more I realised his sheer genius. His arrangements and preludes and subtelty play with you so much that his songs as fresh the zillionth time as it did the first time it took your breath away. It could be as simple a tune as a ‘Maanguyile’ or as complicated as ‘Isayil Thodanguthamma’!

SPB was my mom’s favourite singer, he is my favourite singer, and I he will, in all possibility, be my child’s favourite singer! He singing tease you, plays with you, talks to you and whispers to you in a way that is so personal that you feel a connection. His voice feels just as fresh to me today as it did in Ayiram Nilave vaa. I can’t imagine Sakalakala vallavan, Sippikul Muthu, or even Muthu without this genius.

When these two stalwarts come together, can it be anything but sheer pleasure!

I have posted 2 songs that are among my favourite SPB – Ilayaraja combination. Both these songs have a similar tune and feel. Even though they’re years apart, they’re just as wonderful. The song from Rajakumaran is one of their less known gems. What is your less known SPB – Ilayaraja favourite?