tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-129799122013-06-14T12:23:18.747-04:00Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.comBlogger312125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-16505215422880455632013-06-13T21:44:00.003-04:002013-06-13T21:45:21.213-04:002013-06-13T21:45:21.213-04:00

....A post I forgot to publish! James Bond movie ‘Skyfall’ was quite the disappointment. Not having watched a James Bond movie in the last so many years, I was looking forward to some classy entertainment. Sadly, it wasn’t. The plot was tenuous with some glaring loopholes such as Bond carrying a detection device despite and after being patted down by the guards to the bad guy den of Javier

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com0http://iditis.blogspot.com/2013/06/skyfall-what-fall-it-was.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-82333666115373764842013-06-03T22:21:00.001-04:002013-06-03T22:26:43.833-04:002013-06-03T22:26:43.833-04:00

                                Ben Bernanke at Princeton. R.Schultz/AP McNally at Columbia via Columbia Spectator   I thoroughly enjoyed Terrence McNally’s keynote address at the Columbia Commencement Ceremony this year, but I think Ben Bernanke’s Commencement Speech at Princeton where he made “Ten suggestions, or maybe just Ten Observations, about the world and your lives after

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com0http://iditis.blogspot.com/2013/06/2013-commencement-speeches-what-would.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-18516786707269170162013-03-26T19:14:00.003-04:002013-04-06T15:57:20.663-04:002013-04-06T15:57:20.663-04:00

Easy food at break of day! Manna for my wretched wings, wintered out with desperate flying to find some food and prey.     A surge, a measured swoop to grab the rim n hang on to it. Tentatively balanced, to feast on every seedly bit.   The sparrows wait the cardinals hover, as I feed feverishly till I can hold no longer.   It is now the cardinal’

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com5http://iditis.blogspot.com/2013/03/bird-feeder-showcasing-hunger-rules-in.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-47413527141103685372013-03-21T21:50:00.001-04:002013-03-21T21:53:34.768-04:002013-03-21T21:53:34.768-04:00

What could be more enthralling than to watch the 321st Metropolitan Opera performance of GiuseppeVerdi's Otello,  from 'grand tier' box number 18 of the Lincoln Center?  This was an unforgettable experience for two reasons. First of all, I had never watched a Shakespearan Opera, let alone one of Verdi, and then getting to watch it from the center parterre premium seating at Lincoln Center was 

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com1http://iditis.blogspot.com/2013/03/verdis-otello-at-metropolitan-opera.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-78034314760562893692013-03-13T18:20:00.002-04:002013-03-13T18:20:55.695-04:002013-03-13T18:20:55.695-04:00

Much as I didn't want to watch another cinematic version of Leo Tolstoy's classic novel Anna Karenina, I did.  When the movie was released in 2012, I was intrigued by the fact that the vast landscape the novel rides through was to be captured in a theatre mould.  However, the movie did not make waves after its release, and I soon forgot about it until the Oscars this year where Anna Karenina

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com0http://iditis.blogspot.com/2013/03/anna-karenina-stoppard-and-wrights.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-17072445719124367462013-01-27T18:20:00.002-05:002013-01-27T18:23:39.894-05:002013-01-27T18:23:39.894-05:00

For some reason, I received several of Paul Theroux writings as Christmas gifts this year. In the past, I've read short essays and articles of Theroux in magazines and newspapers, but The Elephanta Suite is the first book of his that I read. The Elephanta Suite consists of three novellas, in all of which the protagonists spend some time at the Elephanta Suite in Mumbai. The title of the book

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com1http://iditis.blogspot.com/2013/01/paul-theroux-captures-changing-india-in.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-12140641896424335932013-01-21T09:56:00.002-05:002013-01-21T10:04:58.763-05:002013-01-21T10:04:58.763-05:00

"A happy vicar I might have been Two hundred years ago To preach upon eternal doom And watch my walnuts grow; But born, alas, in an evil time, I missed that pleasant haven, For the hair has grown on my upper lip And the clergy are all clean-shaven. And later still the times were good, We were so easy to please, We rocked our troubled thoughts to sleep On the bosoms of the trees. All ignorant

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com3http://iditis.blogspot.com/2013/01/george-orwells-dilemma-remembered.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-52215358435602500052013-01-02T22:07:00.002-05:002013-01-03T16:59:46.497-05:002013-01-03T16:59:46.497-05:00

The failings of the flesh are clearly more powerful than the refrain of religion, or so Ang Lee’s movie “The Life of Pi” appears to suggest.  A story within a story, the movie is definitely a must see, but I felt the movie, despite some brilliant acting by newbie Suraj Sharma playing the young Pi, did not hold up to Martel’s award winning novel, "The Life of Pi.".  Ang Lee’s captures the

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com9http://iditis.blogspot.com/2013/01/ang-lees-movie-life-of-pi-illustrates.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-47691266896789768902012-12-24T16:40:00.000-05:002012-12-24T16:40:26.415-05:002012-12-24T16:40:26.415-05:00

I cannot resist a Junot Diaz write up, and those close to me know that; so within the first week of its release, I had  gotten a copy of Junot Diaz’s “This is How You Lose Her”, a collection of short stories with the most predictable Junotesque theme of ‘infidelity’.  Having lived in and around New Brunswick, the favored setting in most of Diaz’s writing, for more than ten years, I feel a

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com1http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/12/this-is-how-you-lose-her-by-junot-diaz.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-42933244725135198272012-09-24T18:13:00.004-04:002012-09-25T17:33:00.768-04:002012-09-25T17:33:00.768-04:00

"..why are you making a museum out of what you’ve already written a whole book about? Don’t you believe in the power of words and in readers’ imagination? Don’t you believe in literature?” - A question almost every reader of Orhan Pamuk's novel The Museum of Innocence' would ask of him? Why did Pamuk feel the need to actually build and create a museum in Istanbul containing all the objects 

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com0http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/09/orhan-pamuks-museum-of-innocence-novel.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-15549061153054762272012-09-15T18:49:00.000-04:002012-09-15T18:49:54.272-04:002012-09-15T18:49:54.272-04:00

In this collection of short stories titled, The Artist of Disappearance, Anita  Desai, besides telling three engrossing stories, makes evocative use of language to transport readers into unique settings like the cicada buzzing government bungalow of a staid civil servant in post colonial India, and a glade in the Himalayas that is strewn with  "pebbles worn to an irresistible silkiness by the

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com0http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/09/anita-desais-artist-of-disappearance.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-36282772354234176692012-08-27T18:44:00.000-04:002012-08-27T18:44:20.269-04:002012-08-27T18:44:20.269-04:00

An affront to the art of novel writing! Whoever calls 'Fifty Shades of Grey' a novel does a disservice to the creativity and writing prowess that goes into the making of a novel.  'Fifty Shades of Grey' is a poorly written,  loosely strung collection of episodes coined by someone lacking creativity. The fact that the book has featued on the NYT for twenty five weeks is a reflection on the poor

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com2http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/08/fifty-shades-of-grey-is-el-james-female.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-62696130019862282922012-08-02T13:29:00.000-04:002012-08-02T13:32:08.089-04:002012-08-02T13:32:08.089-04:00

Yes,  I was in New Delhi during the 'blackouts' that occurred on two consecutive days this week and left 10% of the world's population without electricty! The world labels it the 'biggest blackout in World History'; yet, there were some in New Delhi who were oblivious of this catastrophic shut down, and then there were some who did not let out a cry or even a whimper, but simply sufferred it

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com2http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/08/visiting-india-blackout-of-century-yet.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-37161564976802968322012-07-18T13:23:00.002-04:002012-07-23T06:42:06.464-04:002012-07-23T06:42:06.464-04:00

The River Ganga, one of the largest and longest rivers located in the upper half of India,  is the heart beat of every Indian, especially the Hindu who considers it sacred and gives it the title of ‘goddess’ and ‘mother’.    Hindus worship ‘Ganga Jal’, the water of the Ganga and place it in their public and personal places of worship called the ‘mandirs’. Before a Hindu breathes his last

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com0http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/07/visiting-india-ganga-water-obsession.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-71110855535234600272012-07-14T00:26:00.001-04:002012-07-15T10:26:32.841-04:002012-07-15T10:26:32.841-04:00

India remains an enigma! It is a queer bundle of contradictions that somehow mesh together and appear to keep the nation going. This bank in New Delhi, India's capital, exemplifies the phenomenon. Today I had a first hand experience of the Indian banking system, and I couldn't help but share what I witnessed and felt. It was a sweltering 115 degrees outside when I walked into a nationalized

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com2http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/07/visiting-india-banking-encounter-in-new.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-31840971404498618572012-06-03T20:17:00.000-04:002012-06-03T20:58:24.834-04:002012-06-03T20:58:24.834-04:00

I was eagerly awaiting this week’s copy of “The New Yorker’ as it contained Junot Diaz’s short story titled ‘Monstro’, and it was worth the wait! I read all of its eleven pages in less than an hour and in one sitting. Junot Diaz claims he’s “been fascinated by end-of-the-world stories, by outbreak narratives, and always wanted to set a world-ender on Hispaniola”, and so he did in 'Monstro'. 

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com5http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/06/junot-diazs-monstro-compelling-short.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-43338606169824832242012-04-30T22:12:00.001-04:002012-04-30T22:12:39.222-04:002012-04-30T22:12:39.222-04:00

I am; when I am told,   from another’s point of view. And then I'm penned only to rest on a 'to-read' list.  My shape and size are not my own.  Delivered and designed I am by one who thinks I am his to own. I am set, evolved, and dissolved   - in a city, barn, café, even on a star, in bygone eras and countries afar. Embroiled and embedded in conflicts that I'd rather disown.  

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com2http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/04/story-protests.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-67341262106394850062012-03-27T20:45:00.001-04:002012-04-02T18:51:24.747-04:002012-04-02T18:51:24.747-04:00

video platformvideo managementvideo solutionsvideo player What Dharun Ravi did was wrong, but will justice be done if this young man serves a ten year prison term for the wrong he did, is clearly debatable! If punishment accorded to the guilty in a court of justice aims to improve society, then the Dharun Ravi case does not appear to qualify. By definition, society is a

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com7http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/03/dharun-ravis-sentence-will-justice-be.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-32096963676940452812012-03-18T14:27:00.000-04:002012-03-18T14:37:55.670-04:002012-03-18T14:37:55.670-04:00

Another leaf falls. A testimony That I am. To what end? I know not. I continue to be; absorbed. In a charade, of chores, until.. another leaf falls. A reminder that this too shall pass like it did the day before. Forget I will, like I did the day before. While another leaf falls. A fear Will another be? Just as green? With flowers for company? And then what? A

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com1http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/03/on-fall-of-leaf-can-i-kill-time-without.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-56885099086926462832012-03-17T19:30:00.000-04:002012-03-17T19:35:49.445-04:002012-03-17T19:35:49.445-04:00

I have watched one too many Indian movies churned out of the Bollywood film factory where one size fits all, and one story reads all! 'Kahani' broke the status quo!  Indian cinema seems to be coming of age.  Sujoy Ghosh's two hour Indian movie, with English subtitles, had me glued to my seat enthralled. The female lead, Ms. Balan has done a remarkable job! She is a very versatile actress

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com2http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/03/kahani-sujoy-ghoshs-classy-thriller.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-38667879950897442582012-02-25T17:56:00.000-05:002012-02-26T18:50:47.461-05:002012-02-26T18:50:47.461-05:00

st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } "Half of a Yellow Sun" is both a love story and a story of war, and I’m not certain which of the two makes more of an impact on the reader.  I decided to read this novel after I listened to Chimamanda Ngozi Adichi's speech at Narratives for Europe in Amsterdam.  A very entertaining and natural speaker, Ms. Adichi, in the most affable manner, cut President

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com0http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/02/biafra-unacknowledged-holocaust.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-25782315185483907182012-02-15T19:04:00.000-05:002012-02-15T19:25:24.992-05:002012-02-15T19:25:24.992-05:00

I like movies that transport me into a world distinctly different from mine, and Taylor Tate’s The Help, based on Kathryn Stockett’s novel, did.  It took me to Mississippi during the 1960s when the word ‘Negro’ was not a slur, and when all a black woman could hope to achieve was to be a maid in a rich white home. I also liked the movie because it presented white and black America of the time

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com2http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/02/help-decries-yet-distances-racial.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-50929811859832823482012-02-05T18:57:00.001-05:002012-02-05T19:01:21.546-05:002012-02-05T19:01:21.546-05:00

Having watched and posted on Ayad Akhtar's movie "The War Within" a few years ago, here was no doubt that I would read Akhtar's debut novel "American Dervish" some time soon.  Besides, American Dervish had received several favorable mentions in the news media,  so when I found the novel sitting on the coffee table at my sister's place, I asked her if I could borrow it. My sister who had "

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com0http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/02/ayad-akhtars-american-dervish-sufi-tale.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-53463272462587717432012-01-29T17:27:00.001-05:002012-01-29T17:46:46.417-05:002012-01-29T17:46:46.417-05:00

I have my brother to thank for suggesting and then buying me this very informative and entertaining read by Stephen Kinzer, titled All the Shah’s Men.  My brother and I had been discussing how Iran seemed to be making headlines in US media of late, and that is when he mentioned “All the Shah’s Men".  He recommended I read it to better understand Iran’s wariness of the United States

Id it ishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10933156607975500727noreply@blogger.com0http://iditis.blogspot.com/2012/01/stephen-kinzers-all-shahs-men-documents.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12979912.post-53694175603294388122012-01-21T23:16:00.000-05:002012-01-21T23:17:12.641-05:002012-01-21T23:17:12.641-05:00

Is nostalgia becoming a modern day epidemic? Nostalgia for... a place that once was, a country one left behind,  a people we once were, a lifestyle that once was, the person you once were, the friends you once had; the list is endless! If indeed nostalgia has taken such mammoth proportions, one wonders why that is so, and what it will lead to. Mohsin Hamid a  renowned writer of "The Reluctant

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