blog shifted

I have shifted my blogging activities to wordpress: thequark.wordpress.com/ Luckily the migration was smooth so I have migrated selected posts from here to the new one.

Avatar, Avtar, Bindiya and Collective Memory

Latest blockbuster from James Cameron has created vehement supporters and detractors and I am in no mood to put 10 things to love/hate the movie. There is a hilarious comparison of the plot with Hindi cinema's hackneyed exploitation and revenge stories, though the title of movie taken: Roopa ka Badla sounds more like exploitation,female revenge stories like Bindiya aur Bandook). Celebrated movie reviewer Roger Eberts who don't find novelty in the movie yet loved it. And then there is Great Bong (Random Thoughts of a Demented Mind) , one of very few people who can take dementia to an art form. He posits Avatar is just our beloved Kaka's (our Pusspa lover Rajesh Khanna sahib) classic Avtar with an extra 'a'. Something I totally agreed to.

I loved watching the movie, period. Obviously it had a totally unoriginal plot but Cameron's way of seeing things in the movie was what engaged me. Never for a moment did I wonder that I am watching an oft repeated story. This apart from the 3D experience did it for me.

After reading Ebert's view on rationality of the Na'vi one point in depiction of Pandora's culture intrigued me. That was depiction of collective memory. Conflict of development society vs tribal culture is obvious, if one has progress as its goal then other has harmony. If one has corporate as its collective then its community for the other. That many ancient cultures have ancestor reverence/worship is also nothing new in movies. The list to compare the two cultures is endless and have been depicted in numerous Hollywood flicks & Hindi cinema. The contrast of collective memory is shown subtly when trees are shown to be uprooted and it is claimed it will destroy ancient memory in them. I think this is an allusion to History vs Mythology. Myths and mythology are a form of collective memory where in each generation reinterprets and retells them in their own way thus adding (and even forgetting). Tribal/ancient cultures all over the world rely on mythologies to understand their past, origin and even future whereas development societies always have history to understand their past, science to understand origin and predict future, so in a sense Big Bang Theory and Theory of Evolution are indeed two mythologies.

History with its linear notion of time, textual culture (what is written is true, what is true should be written) and objective reality (what really happened) always conflicts with mythology which always has a jagged if not circular notion of time, oral culture (believe in whatever has been said since time immemorial), A small case in example would be controversy on Adam's Bridge or Rama Setu. People on mythology side had nothing else to claim than invoke the sacred whereas people who had to take sides with history questioned historical authenticity of Rama and the whole conversation went down to dogs.

Well I had hoped if Cameron could have delved more into this part rather than make a typical Hollywood grandeur story, where win/loss takes over delving into nature of things. And that is why I love Charlie Kaufman's movies.

3 Idiots or Rancho B.E. or Lage Raho Rancho or Hirani's Crusade against the System

Being a Unix enthusiast I was constantly doing a diff between Rajkumar Hirani's previous creation and his latest presentation titled 3 Idiots. Though an engaging watch but it seemed like he morphed Munnabhai into Rancho but you can not change the entire picture with morphing. After tackling a crusade against a system which dehumanizes doctors in "Munnabhai M.B.B.S" and rereading Gandhi in his "Lage Raho Munnabhai" he has turned his knights towards engineering colleges and the system which dehumanizes students.

Though I did not had great grades in Linear Algebra but the concept of vectors and dimensions still intrigues me. The role of basis is much important in this vector toy world, by a simple change of basis one can change the entire game and make millions too. The same vector appears novel or as a popular saying goes nayi botal mein purani sharaab. The coordinates in Rajkumar Hirani's vector space are the chief mercenary, the patriarch, the patriarch's daugher, the message, the miracle, the lesser mortals.

The chief mercenary of the crusade is Rancho who's sole motto in the movie is to convert every non-believer in his do-as-your-heart-says sect. There is nothing wrong in it, the message is good, it is presented well but it permeates every pixel of every frame in the movie. The whole movie looks like an advertisement in which motto is the product itself.

Each frame is a fight between towering but evil-because-he-doesnt-know-what-he-is-doing patriarch (played by Boman Irani in all three editions) and chief mercenary, who by the end of the movie has to make the patriarch realize mistakes in his ways. Patriarch's daughter has to revolt against father, set free by chief mercenary for psychoanalysis of which I am sure Sudhir Kakkar or Ashis Nandy are better suited.

But how are the non-believers converted to become faithful asks the jeering crowd. How are they shown the true light. First there has to be a heart wrenching advertisement line. Jadu ki Jhappi in 1st edition, Gandhigiri in 2nd and now its All ij well. The non believers are not only hankered with proselytizing one-liner message but are shown a miracle towards the end to convert the patriarch.

If healthy dose of Jadu ki Jhappi cured Anand Bannerjee and converted Dr. J.C. Asthana in Munnabhai M.B.B.S. then Munna's Gandhigiri saved Lucky Singh in Lage Raho... version. It was Rancho's engineering and studying-for-knowledge message which opened Veeru Sahastrabudhhe's eyes to the true message. I am not elaborating on the miracle in this post to avoid spoiling reader's movie viewing experience.

But those are just few elements in a movie says jeering crowd. So let the crowd notice that patriarch is final frontier, before claiming victory on him there are lesser mortals to be converted. And converted in the same fashion I say to jeering crowd. There has to be a non-A list actor (Jimmy Shergill in 1st two editions and Sharman Joshi in 3rd) who has his life issues successfully resolved by chief mercenary. Lesser mortal has to be a poor lad from minority community (Zaheer, Victor and Farhan) respectively. There is nothing new in the minority angle, Manmohan Desai used it pretty deftly in his movies. Barring the first edition lesser mortal actually has daddy issues with dad played none other than Pareekshit Sahni (and this is ironical because he himself is a deeya tale andhera). People say movie makers are artists I say they are pop psychologists.

I urge the readers not to think I hate the movie or this is some sort of review/appraisal/derision of the movie. There is neither any claim of go watch the movie nor will I claim do not set eyes on the movie nor will I give some stars to rate a piece of work like many movie reviewers of Hindi cinema do. If you have followed my analysis well you will realize the movie is actually not based on Chetan Bhagat's Five Point Someone - What Not to do at IIT but yes the man should be given some credit. It is just my thoughts put together which distracted me while watching the film (and if you haven't watched 3 Idiots then why should only I suffer the fate, I leave these coordinates to bother you too).

Rocket in Pocket: Or why Rocket Singh Disappointed Me

Having heard excellent views from many fraands and movie reviewers I finally did watch Rocket Singh. I have been quite selective in watching new Hindi cinema releases these days. Gone are the days when I would visit Rajshree in Gandhinagar for the pure bliss known as Jani Dusman: Ek Anokhi Prem Katha or had stamina to watch Sonu Nigam's thriller suspense Love in Nepal. Gone are the days when I would eagerly go for a mind bending experience known as The Hero: Love Story of a spy or how to kill a man by plumbing a nuclear dravya filled test tube inside evil forener.

Rocket Singh was indeed a massive let down for me. First of all there was no Punjabi number with a healthy dose of Soniye, Manmoniye, Baliye, Mahiye sprinkled all over it. Seriously a movie with a Sardar protagonist and no Punjabi number! You gots to be kiddin me. No stereotypes! No making of tandoor-shandoor, lassi wassi or chak-de-phatte moments.

Secondly there were no grand speeches like Chak De India's 70 minutes (Hawww even Coelho Kaka takes 11 minutes). I mean there has to be a rousing speech by the hero about fate, destiny towards the end of which people get excited like a lynch mob and do the undoable, Baaliwood ishtyle.

Most importantly there was no revolutionary step taken by the hero like pissing on the carpet of enemy by devGUN like Halla Bol and no magical hugs by apun ka Sanju bawa (which has been the biggest factor in the spread of swine flu epidemic, FYI).

What kind of a movie it is when all the characters have a significant role! A hero has to stand out from rest of the crowd from area occupied on the screen to lines in the total script. Don't you think this kind of cinema is threatening. What shall happen of the likes of Johhny Catch-My-Lever, Anupam Kher, Tikku Talsania? Who shall do slapstick comedy or play small so hero could look big?

No plot diversions like the hero teleports to Swiss Vaadiyan, does a quickie dreamy song and comes back in a jiffy. Or better the frustrated hero decides to visit a bar where Payal Rohatgi or Mumait Khan is indulging in burlesque dancing of the highest order which has some deep rooted philosophy in it, like Aa khushi se khudkashi kar le, Love mera HIT HIT mat kar khitpit khitpit. Where would the item grlz go?

No back stories of revenge or past mishappenings? The grandfather dude was humiliated as a salesman in the past so he doesn't want his puttar to face the same fate. There you go fill another half an hour with Daddu's story.

I say Dhawans, KJos, Ghais should unite and raise their voices against such a pathetic movie. No one should be allowed even 100m close to the cinema playing it, it is dangerous for people's mind no! They could get easily weaned from all the junk that is being peddled around.

खाओ गगन रहो मगन

हमारे प्रोफेस्सर साहब पड़ा रहे हैं की आने वाले सालों में सब काम रोबोट से होगा | रोबोट और artificial intelligence और भविष्य उससे होने वाले उत्पात का नज़ारा तो हमें श्री आर्नोल्ड शिवाजीनगर सालों पहले बता चुके हैं | यहाँ पर बात चली vacuum cleaner, lawn mower वगैरह से और पहुंची इंसानी शरीर में जगह जगह चिप घुसेड़ने की | ये सब देख के तो हमारे रोंगटे खड़े हो गए |

अब automatic vacuum cleaner रहेगा तो बाई का क्या होगा ! खैर वो सब छोडिये हमारी तो एक ही दरख्वास्त है की automatic नाई मत बनाइएगा | इस भागदौड़ के और मशीनी customer care की दुनिया में कुछ ही जगह तो बची हैं सुकून की, उन्हें बक्श दो |

एक महाशय ने वो कर डाला जिसको सुन के हमें कहना ही पड़ा की "ढाक के तीन पात" | पहले तो उन्होंने अपने ही अन्दर RFID चिप डाल ली फ़िर उससे मन न भरा तो अपनी और अपनी पत्नी की नस में एक और ऐसी चिप लगायी जिससे एक में हरकत होने से दूसरे को पता चले | अरे मियां ये सब के लिए तो हमारे हिन्दी फ़िल्म के हीरो सिर्फ़ इश्क फरमा लेते हैं और गाते हैं "जो हाल दिल का इधर हो रहा है, वो हाल दिल का उधर हो रहा है" और ये महानुभाव electronic और surgery लगा रहे हैं | खैर उनका काम वही जाने हमें तो एक ही जुमला याद आ रहा है "को काहू में मगन तो काहू में मगन"

कहानी दो कुक्कुर की

भाई जो भी कहो ज्युरिख्पुर और ज्युरिख्पुर के कुक्कुर का हमारा कुछ तो नाता है | जहां public place में बच्चों और कुत्तों की आवाज नहीं सुने देती वहाँ एक ही हफ्ते में दो मजेदार वाकये हो गए | पहले तो एक सवा किलो के कुत्ते ने हमपे भौंका | कुत्ता भी ऐसा पिद्दी सा की छींके तो खुद को दस्त लग जाये | हमारी जर्मन कक्षा जर्मन लोगों से बात करना तो सिखा रही है पर कुत्तों के बारे में अवगत न कराया | अब हम कुक्कुर महाशय को हिंदी या अंग्रेजी में दुत्कारें और उसे समझ में ही न आये तो क्या फायदा !

खैर दूसरी घटना ये हुई की भरी दुपहरिया बीच बजरिया हमने एक औरत को अपने कुत्ते की गन्दगी उठाते हुए देखा | कुक्कुर महाशय ने तो जहां मन आया कर डाला अब बेचारी मालकिन को साफ़ करना पड़ा, समझ में न आया मालिक कौन है दोनों में | हमें लगा की किये कराये पे पानी फेर देंगी मैडम पर कुक्कुर-मल उठाने के भी special दस्ताने आते हैं | और मैडम भी मेधावी थी, अब इतना बड़ा कुत्ता पाला है तो एक दस्ताने से क्या होगा , अब हम इंडिया टीवी \ आज तक तो हैं नहीं की आपको आँखों देखा और कैमरा कैद विवरण दे दें | पर हाँ ये आश्वासन देते हैं की कैमरा होगा भी तो हम अपने पाठकगण को ऐसी वीभत्स छवियों से त्रस्त न करेंगे

नाटकीय रूपांतरण

बहुत कम ऐसा होता है जब आपके कॉलेज के अनुभव आपको पाठशाला की याद दिलाये | जिस lecture में मैं फिलहाल बैठा हुआ हूँ वो शिक्षिका पड़ा तो रही है innovation के बारे में किन्तु पड़ रही हैं एक पहले से लिखे मूलपाठ द्वारा किसी नाटक के अभिनय माफिक| यह देख कर अपने पुराने रसायन शास्त्र (chemistry) के शिक्षक की याद आ गयी जो एक guide book से पढाया करते थे | बच्चों को पता न चल जाये तो सन सत्तर के किसी अख़बार का cover लगा के आते थे | पर आप तो जानते हैं, बच्चा भगवान् का रूप होता हैं और इतने सारे भगवानों से कहाँ कुछ छुप सकता है, एक चतुर बालक ने सारी किताबे छान मारी और वो किताब खरीद कर क्लास के एक कोने में बैठ जाता| बस फिर क्या शिक्षक महाराज दनादन, line by line किताब से पढाते रहते और लड़का line by line underline करता रहता :D

Pyar ke Perspective

Hindi cinema lyrics have always pondered on the notions of Pyar, Ishq Mohabbat etc. lets look at some unique perspective from the eyes of our lyricist.

http://thequark.tumblr.com/post/217044941/pyar-ke-perspective

ChiLoPy

No it is not an exotic dish but Chichi, Lolo's song expressed in Python. On Desi's request here is the python code for the song "Saton Janam Tujhko Pate"

SWOT Analysis of Bharatiya Sanskriti

Go with the flowchart

A true test of Chichi Lolo fans. Look at the flow chart and find out which Chichi, Lolo song is it about?

http://thequark.tumblr.com/post/197369317/go-with-the-flowchart

Hint: The movie was directed by David Dhawan :D

Finite State Morons

Ever wondered how Indian National Media pounds on an issue which requires serious discussions but instead it resorts to politician bashing and blaming the "system". Or worthless issues become breaking news and length debates are carried on for example Rakhi Sawant's wedding and Shashi Tharoor's tweet controversy. Here is how I see it:

http://thequark.tumblr.com/

समलैंगिक कुक्कुर और बाबा बामदेव का उपचार (प्रहार)

सुनने में आया है की विदेश की कलाकारा geri haliwell के कुत्ते समलैंगिक निकले! तो अब आधुनिक ख्याल के लोग कहेंगे इसमे क्या बड़ी बात है | पर हमारी संस्कृति ये सब allow नही करती | समलैंगिकता एक विदेशी विकृति है और हमारी संस्कृति को खा जायेगी अगर इसको रोका न गया| दरअसल भारतीय संस्कृति हिन्दी फ़िल्म के हीरो की उस बहिन के समान है जिसकी अस्मत लूटने को फिरंगी लुटेरे, भ्रष्ट नेता और दुष्ट गुंडे सदा कोशिश करते रहते हैं और बचाने वाले हैं समाज के तमाम ठेकेदार जो भारतीय संस्कृति को "बचाने" का कोई मौका नही छोड़ते | एक पुरूष दूसरे पुरूष से प्यार करे ये हमें गवारा नही क्यूंकि ये natural नही है | हाँ बड़े बड़े बाँध बनाना, सैकडों मंजिलों की इमारतें बनाना ये सब natural है | अजी साहब जब हम एक पुरूष और स्त्री के प्यार को ही नही झेल सकते तो पुरूष-पुरूष (या नारी नारी) का प्यार क्या चीज़ है

मैं सुश्री halliwell से आग्रह करता हूँ की अपने प्यारे टामी (या जो भी उन कुक्कुर श्रेष्ठ का नाम हो) को बाबा बामदेव के पास ले जाए | बाबा बामदेव जब अपनी योग विद्या से बड़े बड़ों को straight रस्ते पे ला सकते हैं तो क्या कुत्तों का योग से भला नही हो सकता? (सुश्री पैरिस हिल्टन यदि आप सुन रही हैं तो कुत्तों के कपड़े के बाद कुक्कुर योग धाँसू आईडिया है)| after all man ij aalso e sosal animal

कायावती को पत्र

प्रीय जगत बहन सुस्री कायावती,

आपकी माया और काया दोनों महान है | रक्षाबंधन का दिन आया और चला भी गया और आपके अनेक भैय्यों में किसी ने आपकी सुध भी न ली | यों तो इस पर्व पे बहने अपने भाइयों की सलामती की दुआएं मांगती हैं पर आपके सब भैय्ये इस दिन आपसे सलामती की दुआएं मांगते हैं | पूरा देश राखी के स्वयंवर में इतना मशगूल हुआ की आपके बारे में किसी ने न सोचा, आख़िर आपके लाल हाथों को पीला करना आपके भैय्यों का ही फ़र्ज़ बनता है| जगत कल्याण और शिलान्यास से आपको समय नही मिलता और इस बेदर्द दुनिया और जालिम समाज ने आपके 'मुलायम' दिल को कठोर बना दिया है जो आप अपने बारे में सोचना भूल गई| राखी के स्वयंवर के बाद भारतवर्ष को एक और सच का सामना करना चाहिए, कौन होगा वो बांका 'सुवर' जो हाथी पर सवार होकर आयेगा और बहन कायावती के चरण पकड़ के हाथ थाम लेगा? मैं माननीय टीवी चैनल वालों से आग्रह करता हूँ की एक और वास्तविकता शो बनाया जाए - "कौन बनेगा कायावती का पती"

आपका
क्वार्क

सोफिया का स्वयंवर

तो बात ये है की हमारे पड़ोस में एक आंटी जी हैं जिन्होंने guinea pig और खरगोश पाल रखे हैं जो बाग़ में खूब अठ्खेलियां करते हैं | खरगोश थोड़ा नई है तो guinea pig उसका तिरस्कार करके भगा देते हैं, तो अब उस अकेली बेचारी मायूस खरगोश के लिए एक जीवन साथी ढूँढा जा रहा है, जीवनसाथी डाट काम पे क्या इंसान छोड़ा और जानवरों का भी मेल होता है? होता हैं तो वहाँ तो देखा ही जाएगा पर पाठकों से निवेदन है की उनकी नज़र में कोई सुंदर, सुशील, अच्छी कद काठी वाला झबरीला बांका नर खरगोश हो तो एक ठो फोटू (और bio data) सहित हमे contact करें|

आपके लिए सोफिया की फोटू हाजिर है



अंकल जी की कितनी सेवा करती हैं ये तो पता नही पर खरगोश के दिल की धड़कनें तो आंटी को दूर दूर तक सुनाई दे जाती है, उसकी वो सूनी विरह की वेदना से लिप्त आँखें बर्दाश्त के बाहर है| जब उनके रख रखाव और साफ़ सफाई के बारे में पूछा गया तो पता चला मादा खरगोश तो बहुत साफ़ रहती है, guinea pig भी वैसे तो साफ़ ही रहते हैं पर कभी कभार आंटी को उनके पिछवाडे पानी से धोने पड़ते हैं! क्या विडम्बना है आदमी अपने पिछवाडे तो सादे कागज़ से पोंछता है और अति प्रीय guniea pig को मिलता है सिर्फ़ पानी! खैर राखी को तो उसका जीवन साथी मिल ही गया है देखते हैं बेचारी मादा खरगोश को उसका मन चाहा वर मिलेगा की नही

Update:
पाठकों को ये बताते हुए बड़ी खुशी हो रही है की सोफिया का जीवन साथी ढूँढ लिया गया है, गोरा चिट्टा सा एक handsome नर खरगोश जिसकी आँखें नीली नीली हैं और नाम है सिम्बा, विडम्बना का कोई अंत नही खरगोश का नाम सिम्बा! सोफिया और सिम्बा दोनों आधुनिक ख्यालों के हैं तो पाठक अभी शादी की आस न बाधें अभी उन्हें एक दूसरे के बारे में जानना है, शादी तो होती रहेगी

जर्मनी में बाल कटाई बड़ा रंग लाई

तो भई मियाँ क्वार्क पहुंचे बाल कटवाने वो भी किसी ऐरे गैर नउव्वेसे से नही एक जर्मन barber से | स्विट्जरलैंड में तो बाल छूने के भी पैसे, पैसे नही फ्रँक लगते हैं और बाल कटवाने हो तो पता नही कितने फ्रँक ले लेते हैं | इतने तो लगते ही हैं जितने में आप अपने देस में साल भर बाल कटवा सकते हैं (चम्पी सहित) | इसका कारण सिर्फ़ forex रेट नही है पर इन देशो में जहाँ manual labor की कमी है जिस भी चीज़ में परिश्रम की जरूरत पड़ती है वो यकायक महंगी हो जाती है | खैर economic ज्ञान छोडिये, हम तो सपने ले कर गए थे की इतने सारे पैसे दे रहे हैं जरूर सोने की कैंची से बाल कटते होंगे | कमबख्त हमे क्या पता था की सब काम मशीनी होगा | जिस खोपडे को देसी कैंचियों, चमाटदार चम्पी और सुगन्धित तेल की आदत थी उसे तो मशीनी कटाई गुदगुदी ही लग रही थी |

पर मरता क्या न करता भई बाल बड़ा के भालुओं में गिनती भी तो नही करा सकते, किसी extinct होती species से मेल खा गए तो जू में बंद कर लेंगे वो भी जर्मन जानवरों के साथ | तो बैठ गए कुर्सी में चालु हो गई कटाई (जी हाँ कटाई सही शब्द है किसी खेत की कटाई से कम नही थी हमारे ज़ुल्फिकाओं की कटाई) | जब style के बारे में पूछा गया तो हमने मुहँ से बोल तो दिया की "छोटे" पर मन ही मन कहा की ऐसा काटो ऐसा काटो की २ महीने तक फ़िर तुम्हारे यहाँ कटवाने न आना पड़े | मजेदार बात तो ये हुई की कलम अर्थात sideburn की कटाई में हमसे पूछा गया की क्या १ cm काफ़ी रहेगा ! "अरे क्या फट्टा लगा के काटा जाएगा ?!" यही सोच के हमने मन ही मन ठहाके लगा लिए और अपना कपार barber के हवाले कर दिया, समझो की तुम पिकास्सो या डा विन्ची जैसे कोई महान कलाकार और मैं एक खाली कैनवास भर दो जिस रूप रंग में एक महान कृति बन जाए (बस बाल छोटे काटना) | बाकी सब तो ठीक था पर अपने देसी नउव्वे की तरह न तो मुफ्त की फिल्मी मैगजीन पड़ने को मिली और न ही समाज और राजनीति की संगीन चर्चा | बस थमा आए दोनों - euro और बाल एक मीठे से दांके के साथ|

इम्तिहान की घड़ी

तो जैसा की पहले भी होता आया है आज फ़िर एक उबाऊ इम्तिहान की तैय्यारी के बीच में एक पोस्ट लिखा जाएगा| अब कोई नया विषय तो मिल नही रहा तो इम्तिहान पे ही ब्लॉग लिख देते हैं :) | हिन्दुस्तानी में जिसे इम्तिहान कहते हैं उसका अंग्रेज़ी शब्द बड़ा अच्छा है examination अर्थात आपको examine किया जा रहा है| Laboratory के किसी चूहे या मेंडक की तरह आपका test या आपके ऊपर test किया जा रहा है जिसका जानलेवा नतीजा जल्द ही पता चल जाएगा |

Exam में भी अपने देश का कोई टक्कर नही है भाई | जब इम्तिहान का मौसम आता था तो मानो यूं लगता था की पूरी कायनात का exam है, दस कमरे छोड़ के भी कोई गाना चला रहा हो तो उसे बंद करा दिया जाता था| किताबों, कॉपियों और कलम का बाज़ार गरम हो जाता था और तमाम प्रकार के टोटके लगाये जाते थे, जैसे कौन सी shirt lucky है और कौन सी कलम करामाती| जिन्होंने ने कभी मेहनत कर मटकी न फोडी वो इम्तिहान फोड़ने की बात करते थे | गणित की परीक्षा न भी हो तो भीषण गणित लगती थी, किसने assignment में कितने अंक बना लिए हैं, अव्वल दर्जा पाने के लिए कितने और की जरूरत है| मेहनत करने का कोटा तो सीमित है तो किस विषय में कितना समय ख़राब किया जाए ऐसी ही रणनीतियों और अटकलों की गर्मी हर तरफ़ देखी जा सकती थी |

पर एक महाशय मेरे कमरे के करीब ही कहीं रहते थे और रोज परीक्षा को 'फोड़ने' के बजाये परीक्षा से फूट के आते थे और फूट फूट के linkin park का एक ही गाना बजाते थे - I tried so hard and got so far. अरे मियां हमे बताने की क्या जरूरत है हम कौन सा कद्दू में तीर मार के आते थे| जिन छात्रों ने साल भर कुछ पड़ लिया होता था उनकी मांग सेंसेक्स की तरह बढ जाती थी और मुहँ छोड़ सब रातें काली करने में जुट जाते थे |

स्कूल में तो इम्तिहान का सीधा हिसाब होता था की भाई कॉपी और किताब उठाओ पहले से आखरी chapter तक अभ्यास कर लो पर college में तो अलग ही रंग देखने को मिलते थे | विषय छोड़ के लोगों प्रोफ़ेसर के चरित्र और मनोविज्ञान का विश्लेषण करते थे | कौन सा प्रोफ़ेसर किस प्रकार के सवाल देता है उसके कैसे जवाब लिखने होंगे और यदि जवाब नही आते हो तो क्या लिखना चाहिए ये सब सोचने में पड़ने का वक्त किसे मिलेगा | सबसे बढ़िया छात्र होते थे जिन्होंने जन्म तो मनुष्य योनी में लिया पर आसार काम देव के वाहन की तरह थे - अर्थात तोता| एक महानुभाव तो एक धार में ऐसा रट्टा लगाते की शब्दों सहित comma, full stop. diagram number और यहाँ तक की appendix भी घोंट के पी जाते थे |

अब इस स्विस नगरी में भी इम्तिहान हैं, laboratory ke चूहे समान परीक्षण है पर हॉस्टल वाली वो बात नही है जहाँ आपको अपने साथी चूहों को इम्तिहान फोड़ते हुए देखकर कोफ्त हो सकती थी, या बगल वाले दडबे के चूहे की हालत देख कर आप ये सोच सकते थे की चलो चूहा दौड़ में मैं इसके तो आगे हूँ | छुरी के नीचे काटना तो है ही तो साथ में कौन कौन कैसे काटने वाला है ये जान के ढाढ़स बाँध नही पाता| तो बस इस ही बात पे एक पुराना गाना याद आ गया - "तुम पुकार लो":

दिल बहल तो जाएगा इस ख्याल से
हाल मिल गया तुम्हारा अपने हाल से

Brazil vs Nineteen Eighty Four

Recommendation from a friend and the tag dystopia prompted me to watch the movie, Brazil and it was worth every frame of it. People compare it a lot with Orwell's classic novel Nineteen Eighty Four but I beg to differ. Comparison of a movie and a novel is futile as both of them are completely different media of expression but nonetheless one can look at subjects and themes they delve in. If put a gun on my head I would any day say Nineteen Eighty Four is a far greater work than Brazil. How can I not choose a novel, after reading which I hated to wear my office badge!

The comparisons rely on a totalitarian, anonymous, unwieldy, inhumane bureaucratic system which plays a major role but not definitive role in Orwell's classic. Brazil gives one aspect of the anomalous system, burden of innocence where a bug (literally a bug) in the system sucks in the protagonist in an absurd whirlwind classifying him a terrorist. The notion of guilt reminds me of Kafka's The Trial but the two works are quite different as in guilt is much more emphasized and central in Kafka's work. Nineteen Eighty Four goes beyond a government system and paints a horrific picture of a perversion that seeps in every aspect of society. From a language which is being continuously "simplified" to remove all shades and ambiguities of a natural language to schizophrenic doublethink to abolition of family and orgasm, 1984 is an all engrossing quagmire of a system.

Brazil on another hand is an absurdist satire on a consumerist self obsessed society so disconnected to reality that after witnessing a terrorist bomb attack high society ladies still discuss their beauty treatment! Life in the world is a game of rules with individuals as pawns pushed and pulled by obscure forms. This where Brazil limits itself and probably Terry Gilliam would have added more depth if he had read the novel. Protagonists in Brazil unlike 1984 are neither too villanous nor heroic, they are just doing their jobs - playing by the rules or trying to get a way around them like Sam Lowry (contrast his intent of helping a loved one with defiance of Winston Smith of 1984 and you will get the idea)

Nonetheless Brazil stands as a brilliant piece of work in itself. The overpowering buildings remind me of Orson Welles rendition of Kafka's The Trial. Welles used geometrically aligned compositions in his frames to create an overpowering surrounding but both of them use behemoths, shadows to get that eerie feeling. Background score esp. Acquarela do Brasil (Watercolor of Brazil) is haunting but only discerning audience would find the relevance and meaning of the song in the movie and hence the title. The dream sequences are a visual treat and the climax uplifts the movie. Few users of IMDB term aspects of the movie as surreal but I won't beg to differ but simply differ. If you want surreal go watch Luis Buñuel (note: start with "Diary of a Chambermaid" his most accessible movie). The movie clearly demarcates the real from the imaginary so I won't classify it as surreal but absurd yes. Do watch the movie if especially if you like dystopia.

Shatranj ke Khilari (The Chess Players)

Based on Munshi Premchand's story of the same name this masterpiece from Satyajit Ray brilliantly depicts accession of the kingdom of Awadh by East India Company. Premise of the story is comparison of the accession to a game of chess. A game of chess is a war where troops are deployed, strategies are laid out but no lives are lost and no blood is shed. And so was the accession.

The movie goes beyond just a description of historical turn of events and shows the bafflement of the British with Indian ruling class. General Outram who has to oversee the annexation is ignorant of India and is venomously contemptuous of its culture and practices. He is amazed at debauchery of ruler of Awadh who dances with "bells in his feet like a nautch girl", "also dresses up like a Hindoo god" and has 400 concubines. And yet despite being so engrossed in worldly pleasures still is a pious man who prays five times a day. Patronage of singers, artists and performers and even indulgence of the rulers in these activities used to be a source of bemusement for East India Company officers for a long time.

General Outram's distaste and disinterest of Urdu poetry is not matched by Captain Weston (who else can play a indophile British with impeccable accent better than Tom Alter) whose mere presence dilutes the polarity of two cultures. The character shows not all Britishers were disdainful of Indian ways. It is a pity that despite Alter's histrionic skills and command in Hindi as well as Urdu he got the evil foreigner roles in numerous Indian movies.

The story is quite sympathetic towards Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, so sensitively portrayed by Amjad Khan that you can't believe he is the same guy who played the hideous dacoit Gabbar Singh in Sholay. On one hand he loves worldly things, songs, dances [a beautiful thumri choreographed by Shree Birju Maharaj], flies kites and yet he is a god fearing pious man. He acknowledges his shortcomings as a ruler yet is resentful of the British for dethroning him and having to give his crown to a mere General of East India Company. Despite his flaws he is loved by the masses and British know this so a violent takeover is out of question and here lies the key of the story, this is the point which makes annexation similar to a game of chess.

The movie juxtaposes the power play of aristocrats with life of two nabobs, portrayed by Saeed Jaffrey and Sanjeev Kumar, who are avid players of chess. The noblemen get so engrossed in their game of chess that they forget responsibilities, neglect their households and even start playing chess near their lawyer's death bed in the pretense of visiting him!The two have inherited their wealth and status by inheritance due to bravery of their ancestors. Though they boast of courage yet they escape to a nearby village for a game of chess towards the end when rumors of annexation are rife.

The intricacies of the game of chess also highlight cultural differences between Indian subcontinent and the British. Any chess enthusiast from South Asian subcontinent would (should) know there are vernacular versions of the game in terms of placement and movement of chess pieces. The queen in formal, international (and British here) version is called a Vazir (minister to the ruler) in Indian version. This fact is highlighted at the end after the British armies march peacefully to take over Awadth one of the nabobs claim that the time of Vazir is gone and now its time for the queen to rule. And the ultimate difference between the two ways? Well the English way is faster, which is a take on rapid industrialization brought by British.

Other noticeable performances are from Shabana Azmi as wife of Mirza Sajjad Ali (Sanjeev Kumar) and Victor Bannerjee as the Prime Minister of Wajid Ali Shah. Victor Bannerjee doesn't has a long screen presence but he just captures the moments without even speaking, notice his expressions during the thumri and you will get something ugly is going to come.

Art direction gives really transports you to the that era and Musical score though is used so well throughout yet stands brilliantly at some places like when the two Mirza play chess in lawyer's house or at the starting.

Some of my favourite moments:

The starting scene has two nabobs playing chess and there is a black background but the beauty of this comes to the fore when Mirza Sajjad Ali's servant emerges from the darkness for hukka refill thats when role of the background comes into play, depicting how there is nothing other than chess in their universe. The same technique is used for Wajid Ali Shah's introduction too.

The use of animation and Amitabh Bachchan's narration in his rich baritone sets the mood and places the story in right context which shows narrative capabilities of Satyajit Ray.

Such is the madness of the chess players that when Sajjad Ali's wife steals the chess pieces they use vegetables in place of the pieces!

Wajid Ali Shah resigning to his fate by reciting 'Jab chhod chale Lakhnou nagari...'

Here are some of Wajid Ali Shah's words:

सदमा ना पहुंचे कोई मेरे जिस्म-ऐ-ज़ार पर
अहिस्ता फूल डालना मेरी मजार पर

हर चंद ख़ाक में था मगर ता फलक गया
धोखा है आसमान का मेरे गुबार पर

Wound not my bleeding body,
Throw flowers gently on my grave,
Though mingled with the earth,
I rose up to the skies,
People mistook my rising dust for the heavens

Genius and Intuition

Following is an article I had written for Petals, a portal for self expression at my first job

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Intuition though quite an inexplicable phenomenon yet attracts attention from scientists, mystics and laymen alike. I will take intuitions in the context of geniuses with specific reference to Ramanujam as portrayed in a biography aptly named "The Man who knew Infinity".

The book attempts to take a holistic view of Ramanujam's life, his early years, dominant yet caring mother, his leaning, place in which he lived, the soil on which he walked on. It attempts to describe an oriental mystic and genius meeting the renowned eccentric mathematician Thomas Hardy. This is a recurring theme and comes up in subtle ways, clearly chalking out a line between east and west.

Second aspect of the book is the chasm in which the book is written. This chasm is the view of phenomenon of intuition as seen by the Orient and the Occident. The divide overshadows any other perspective of events described in the book.

Where did Ramanujam's magical intuition come from? Was his work a fluke (though a string of flukes, if this is true)? Was it because of his religious beliefs as he used to claim? We are not answering these questions, for the questions and asking of these questions is what matters to us here.

In his prolific book "The Argumentative Indian" written by Nobel laureate Prof. Amartya Sen also discusses this aspect in a different manner and slightly different context. Prof. Sen takes example of Indian mathematician namely Aryabhatta and Varahmihira. Their work and source of inspirations in some or the other ways were always likened with their religious beliefs. The point is not whether their religion beliefs made an impact or not. The point which he puts forth is why this question is asked only in cases of oriental thinkers.

In Ramanujam's case, the interest in mystic gets accentuated because he himself told appearances of goddess Namagiri, who informs him all the solutions which became humongous feats in mathematical intellect. He had a deep interest in astrology – not as an amateur, nor a practitioner, but as a serious pursuit which is evident in the prediction of his early death made by himself.

Ramanujam was a strange dichotomous character for the west. A religious, mystic genius in mathematics who worked on intuition rather than rationale, his works were flights of fancy. Flashes of intuitions, boisterous mathematical claims without a proof at hand were commonplace with him. Though many of his claims finally proved to be wrong, the ones that were right, proved to be prolific.

His life also gave a picture of colonized India, where a genius of his stature had no formal education to make him eligible for research work. His brilliance was scoffed off in his own land and would be recognized truly, albeit with apprehension in west.