Avatar

Just when the Sci-Fi scene was starting to look bleak, along came James Cameron (the great soul that blessed us with the Terminator) after a decade long hiatus to deliver "Avatar". I had the privilege of watching it in IMAX 3D format and believe you me, this movie was made for this format. Two broad reasons why I just loved this movie.

The first one is the amazing story. Much like Star Wars, despite the film being set in another time and in another galaxy (not exactly "far far away", the star Alpha Centauri is pretty close), the story is but a reflection of what we see around us right here today. We as humans, recklessly abusing nature, without realizing what is really precious. In the year 2154, humans have set out to take over the moon Pandora of the planet Polyphemus, orbiting Alpha Centauri, the "oil" being the precious mineral unobtainium (the pun is intended I guess). The planet's indigenous population, the Na'Vi stand in the way & in their greed, the humans are even ready to go to war with them. Jake Sully(played by Sam Worthington), a paraplegic US Marine, is entered into the Avatar Program, after his brother's death. An Avatar (the term derived from Hindu Mythology, meaning the manifestation of God in a human form) is a biologically engineered human-Na'Vi hybrid body, that acts as a surrogate for a human to use to move on Pandora, the air being unbreathable. Each Avatar is remotely linked to a human, who can control it using his mind and allows the human to move and sense as if he were truly in place of the Avatar. Jake manages to gain the trust of the Omaticaya tribe of the Na'Vi, who are usually apprehensive of humans and are now at the brink of war with them. Though initially part of the plan, Jake realizes & sympathizes with the deep love and respect that the Na'Vi have for nature. Through Jake's journey, we are also reminded that we are destroying what's precious here on Earth too. I absolutely loved the concept of the Na'Vi way of communing with Mother Nature. Apart from the title, the director seems to have borrowed a lot more from Hindu Mythology. The ways of worship and respect towards nature are concepts deeply entrenched in Hinduism and other ancient religions, which are otherwise dismissed as "Pagan" in modern times. Ultimately, the Na'vi are the manifestations of pure beings that humans will hopefully still strive to become, so our Earth, more vibrant,diverse and beautiful than Pandora will continue to shine.

The second major reason is the technical aspects of this film. First being the ground-breaking CGI, that has rendered this wonderful environment. Whats so "ground-breaking" is that unlike other forms of motion capture (meaning capturing movements for animation using human models), the digital rendering can actually be seen live as the capture is being done, and changes to the environment can be done on the fly. The true test of animation is not its level of detail in an isolated environment (face it, those Japs cant keep harping about Final Fantasy all their lives, its now become pretty much common), but its ability to fuse in effortlessly with the live-action world. And thats where this new technology surpasses all else. You just have to see the realism of the Na'vi and other creatures on Pandora, and their seamless interaction with live action humans and objects. And being the geeky Sci-Fi fan I am, who has by now learnt of the Star Wars universe as if it were a history-geography syllabus in school, the other awesome aspect for me is the creation of this new fantasy world. I am now eager to catalog all this fictional wildlife, from the Titanothere & Thanator to the Banshee & Leonopteryx. Plus also hope to learn more about the other Na'vi tribes apart from the Omaticaya in the sequels. (Cameron has said there will be a trilogy if this movie is a success, and by the looks of things, well.... bingo!!!)

So, to end things all I have to say is Sci-Fi fan or not, geek or not, everyone will absolutely love this movie.

Long Live the Na'vi!!!!!!

Like Reflections on a Page

"Solitary Shell" by Dream Theater

He seemed no different from the rest
Just a healthy normal boy
His mama always did her best
And he was daddy's pride and joy

He learned to walk and talk on time
But never cared much to be held
and steadily he would decline
Into his solitary shell

As a boy he was considered somewhat odd
Kept to himself most of the time
He would daydream in and out of his own world
but in every other way he was fine

He's a Monday morning lunatic
Disturbed from time to time
Lost within himself
In his solitary shell

A temporary catatonic
Madman on occasion
When will he break out
Of his solitary shell

He struggled to get through his day
He was helplessly behind
He poured himself onto the page
Writing for hours at a time

As a man he was a danger to himself
Fearful and sad most of the time
He was drifting in and out of sanity
But in every other way he was fine

He's a Monday morning lunatic
Disturbed from time to time
Lost within himself
In his solitary shell

A momentary maniac
With casual delusions
When will he be let out
Of his solitary shell

An Inspiration

Being a fan of war movies, Ridley Scott's 'Black Hawk Down', based on the US Somalia operations, undoubtedly ranks among my faves. The soundtrack, like the movie, is equally superb. One song that stands out for me is the one that plays on the end credits. The tune just hit me when I was watching it for the first time leaving the movie theatre. Once I checked out the lyrics, I was truly inspired. Named 'Minstrel Boy', it is performed for the movie by Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros. But originally, it is a poem written by the Irish poet Thomas Moore in the early nineteenth century in remembrance of his friends who had fought & been martyred in the Irish Rebellion of 1798.

The lyrics:

The minstrel boy to the war is gone,

In the ranks of death you'll find him;

His father's sword he hath girded on,

And his wild harp slung behind him;

"Land of Song!" cried the warrior bard,

"Tho' all the world betrays thee,

One sword, at least, thy rights shall guard,

One faithful harp shall praise thee!"

The Minstrel fell! But the foeman's chain

Could not bring that proud soul under;

The harp he lov'd ne'er spoke again,

For he tore its chords asunder;

And said "No chains shall sully thee,

Thou soul of love and brav'ry!

Thy songs were made for the pure and free

They shall never sound in slavery!"

Footnote : Once I did listen to the entire soundtrack, I was disappointed to learn that my favourite composer A.R. Rahman has directly lifted tunes from it (viz. a song called 'Barra Barra') for the songs 'Khalbali' and the opening sequence of Rang De Basanti. :(

In case he has mentioned his inspiration, I stand corrected, but I am truly disappointed.

What I Know Now

A few things I have discovered since coming to the USA:

1) RULES. You wait for signals to cross the road on foot too. Its irritating for someone who has spent his life in Mumbai.

2) SMOOTH ROADS. An 8 hour bus journey from NYC to Buffalo is less stressful than a 1 1/2 hour busride from Kandivali to SEEPZ.

3) POLITENESS. Despite the tales of American brashness, they actually greet everyone on the street. Dont even get me started on the 'Thank You's and 'Have a nice day's when you go to counters at stores or information desks.

4) DESI. Yup, that’s what you become when you come here.

5) HOTPANTS. Need I say anything more?

6) WOODEN HOUSES. They can actually withstand all the weight.

7) CHEAP ELECTRONICS. Will Airtel or Hutch ever give you a Sony Ericsson 760 for Rs. 4000 because you took their postpaid connection?

From Mumbai to Buffalo

Well, here I am in the U S of A. Almost a week here, and still getting used to it. It is so different here. The roads, the traffic rules, the houses, the people. Some of the stereotypes I had in mind sure turned out right. The African-American brothers here do like to groove to the hip-hop beat while driving, and talk with that same Will Smith/ Chris Tucker swagger.

But speaking of Buffalo, it turned out to be a picturesque countryside. It might be the second biggest city in NY state after NYC, but the two are poles apart. Just spent an hour or so in the Big Apple, but it had the madness of Mumbai written all over it. The traffic, the crowds, the hustle-bustle wow!!! Here in Buffalo, its calm, quiet and peaceful. Ofcourse, the odd police siren goes off every hour or two, but hey its USA baby.

Now, about the SUNY Buffalo campus. I am impressed. Its divided into two actually, the North and South campus both connected by the "UB Stampede" buses that run at 10 min frequencies. It also has its own metro station(yay!!!!). The campuses are filled with halls, Starbucks Coffee/ Burger King et-all outlets, parking lots. Right now, with no work to do, I feel like being in a park. Guess it will all change real soon, but I'm looking forward to it.

Overquoted Quotes

First of all, Jai Maharashtra!! My beautiful state is now 49 years old. Thanks to those 105 brave souls who gave up their lives for realizing the dream of "Sanyukta Maharashtra". You will forever be remembered as we remember the great Shivaji Maharaj himself. 

Now, moving to my topic. After all the confusion the IPL 2009 has turned out just fine. Its good to see the Mumbai Indians doing good as well. 

While watching the IPL, I noticed a quote being used over and over by almost all the commentators : "City Moment of Success"(or so I thought). It is being used to describe every single event in the match - a wicket, a sixer( oops.. a DLF Maximum!!). Turns out, the quote is actually "Citi Moment of Success". Since, Citi Group is one of the official sponsors of the IPL, the commentators are supposed to use this term presumably as often as they can. And they all seem to be following orders: Mark Nicholas, Robin Jackman, L Sivaramakrishnan et al. From what I noticed, the little master Sunil Gavaskar is the only person who has avoided using it. And thats a good thing as well, his amazing repertoire of words makes him a treat to listen to. Now back to this quote: I guess the commentators can't help it if they are asked to do something by the sponsors. But give me a break, hearing one single quote over and over again every single day!!!

I wouldn't be surprised if some of the commentators get so used to saying it, they continue it in other tournaments. And wouldn't it be fun if that would turn out to be one sponsored by say... Standard Chartered!!! :) :) :)

गर्व आहे मला मी महाराष्ट्रीय असल्याचा :)

Just watched a Marathi movie in a theater after a very long time. The movie - Mi Shivajiraje Bhonsle Boltoy. Directed by Mahesh Manjrekar, and also starring him in the title role(but not the lead!!) of the pride of Maharashtra : Chhattrapati Shivaji Maharaj. But the movie belongs to Sachin Khedekar, who plays the middle class 'Marathi manoos' to perfection. 

The movie brings out the angst of the Marathi manoos through the story of Dinkar Rao Bhonsle(Khedekar), how he feels lost in his own Mumbai. But rather than indulging in some sort of 'outsider'-bashing, we are taken the root of the actual problem. It is the lack of ambition and drive to succeed that is making him lose his hold over his own city. As a Maharashtrian(oops Maharashtriya) watching this movie, it is full of scenes which look straight out of one's daily life experiences. We follow Bhonsle as he is converted from a push-over to a hero with the help of the spirit of Shivaji Maharaj, who is distressed that someone who shares his last name should feel ashamed of being Marathi.

The supporting cast is awesome too. Makarand Anaspure as Maharaj's trusted man provides the necessary comic relief. But another comedian Siddarth Jadhav, does a complete turnaround playing a ruthless don Usman Parkar. Me and my friend have rechristened him "The Indian 50 Cents" after seeing him in this movie. I was also quite impressed by the beautiful Priya Bapat who plays Bhonsle's daughter. And famous adman Bharat Dabholkar played an amazing cameo as the evil Mughal Afzal Khan. That particular part of the movie which describes how Maharaj killed the deceitful Afzal Khan was truly inspiring to me. 

The way Bhonsle single-handedly fights the builder mafia is a bit far-fetched, but I guess its permissible cinematic liberty. The inspiring message that this movie sends out to the people of Maharashtra overshadows all else. Especially at this time, with the elections around the corner, with people desiring leaders who will truly represent Maharashtra at the Centre. 

On a different note, it was truly heartening to see full houses for this superhit movie. It has made me believe Maharashtra will rise again.

असेल हिम्मत तर आडवा!!!!!!