Ramana's

Anthargange - A Trek

2009-11-11T00:19:00.009+05:30

AntharGange - Photos from the Trek

For the past few weeks, i desperately wanted to get out of the city for a weekend and that wouldn't happen with someone or the other being busy or getting lazy over the weekends. Every Friday, Sreeni and I would make plans to go to Bheemeshwari for a day trip on Saturday and i would end up waking on mid day. This Friday, while i was peddling in the gym, Puppy turned up and when i brought up the trip, he seemed interested. But instead of Bheemeshwari, he was more inclined towards 'Anthargange', a trekking spot near Kolar.

Jayanth and Venky were willing to come along and at At 9:30 in the night, we rushed to Spencers to buy the essentials for the trek. Water bottles, nutri bars, bread, jam, bananas, juice and other snacks. All for a two hour trek. Forcing ourselves to sleep before 12, we woke up in the early morning at 5:30 to the call from Puppy and were out on the road by 6:15. After picking up Jayanth and Puppy, we drove out of the city through the traffic just emanating on to the roads. With the sun behind the clouds and the slight drizzle along the way which slowly began to turn heavy, we weren't sure if we chose the right day. During breakfast at Kamat, we were even thinking of turning back but decided to try our luck with the destination being only 20 km away.

The trek started almost from the outskirts of Kolar. Parking our car at the foot of the hill, we filled our backpacks with the necessary stuff. Beginning with cemented road, we quickly veered into the thicks after seeing a path that seemed to have been walked before. Meandering through the slippery rocks and the thick vegetation, frequently doubting the destination, we walked along. After 15 minutes as we approached the temple, the path became more clear. The weather that threatened our trip has become a boon. It was pleasant and the Kolar looked like a spread out google map as we reached half way through the trek. Soon, we reached the village that's on top of the hill. There's a bus route to this village from Kolar but it was advised to trek for a better experience and so we did. From here, it's another hour of trek in search of caves among the hills.

Having known that it would be impossible to find the caves without the help of locals, we approached the local guy working on a farm. He kindly walked with us to the village and pointed us to a kid named MuniRaju who was familiar with the place. He along with another kid Ganesh agreed to guide us and so did they for the rest of our trek. Upon their advice, we bought few candles and matches to make our way through the caves. With another 200 mts of walk and little crawl down the adjacent rocks, we were at the entrance of the cave. As they said, it was pitch dark inside and carrying lights is must. With candles that gave out a feeble light, we carefully walked through it while the kids seem to just sail through it. In the middle of the cave as were fighting for the way, the two kids sat a little ahead on the rock and asked for snacks from our bags.. :) They were nice, a bit eager. Coming out of the cave, we climbed up the rocks and continued to move ahead. As it started drizzling MuniRaju started complaining about his goats and he left leaving us with Ganesh. Ganesh walked us through the rest of the trek. The wet rocks and the algae gathered on some of them made the trek a little risky one but the weather and the view compensated for everything. Instead of feeling tired, i actually felt refreshed as we went on. If i were blindly dropped into the place, i could have taken it granted for any hill station. Such was the atmosphere there with the mist and the occasional drizzles and adding to it, we were the only one there in that serene location. Only when walking down the hill, we saw people making their way up. After going through couple of caves and skipping a couple of risky ones we started down the hill. With careless walk down the hill, i slipped and fell down thrice, luckily making a safe landing every time. After lunch at Kamat, we were back in Bangalore by 4 P.M.

If it was just another sunny day, it would have been a totally different one. We wouldn't know how it would have been, but this one, we totally enjoyed the whole trip. The only complaint is with Jayanth who would either walk well ahead of us or fall far behind us whenever he feels like taking a bite of the nutri bars from his back pack :) Amazing thing about Bangalore is it's presence in the middle of all these beautiful places that can quench the thirst of anyone looking for their perfect weekend trip. This one is just 70 km from Bangalore on the outskirts of Kolar and is a good destination for a day trip when accompanied with cool weather though it is generally preferred for a moon light trek.

Jayeebhava - Movie Review

2009-10-28T01:30:00.012+05:30

'Heroism anedhi anukunte vachedhi kaadhu.. Blood lo undaali..'

Am miffed listening to this sort of dialogues on screen and i seriously question the integrity of the actors in using the glory and the legacy of their fathers and grand fathers to glorify themselves on screen. On the other side it tells how the industry (and the viewers too) has become biased over years making survival a difficult one for the real talent.

I reluctantly walked into the theater to watch this one. The whole first half of the movie looks so stupid with the inane expressions of Kalyan Ram. He seems such a miss fit to the love track. Am at least glad that he does not approach the heroine with the dialogue 'Maa thaatha NTR'. The only saving grace here is Hansika who looked ravishing on screen.

The second half is however better.. Made in the lines of ready (not as good though), it entertains with the troupe of comedians (Ali, Raghu Babu, Brahmi..). The comedy starts well but becomes too predictable as it goes.. Ali's portrayal of the bride's role towards the end appeared little vulgar and unwanted.

If you don't walk out of the theater before the interval bang, you will have few laughs post interval. If not for that second half, this movie would have been a forgotten one by now. In fact, i struggled for a minute to recollect the name. :)

Life In The Last 20 Days

2009-10-27T10:11:00.007+05:30

I was lazy.. I was enjoying the new luxuries. It was a chicken and an egg game between these two.. All owing to the new lcd and the awesome Bose speakers coupled with the lethargy that usually follows a vacation to home.. That was enough to let the excitement and the laziness take control of me for all these days. My life was just confined to the remote.. With newly born interest on the lcd and the hdmi, i googled for hours on these subjects and for days lived in a state of self proclaimed expertise and an enthusiast.. Nothing would interest me more than someone making a mention of these. Not anymore.. Thanks to my 'ready to fade' memory, am back to being a novice..

On Oct 17th, i turned four years old to my company. While the company conveniently ignored it, the whole world celebrated Diwali on the day. It was indeed my first celebration of the festival in Bangalore. It was Subba, Manoz and me on the top of their house with this little bag of crackers owing to their unbelievable prices.

Finally after almost 2 months of it’s release, I find the opportunity to watch Magadheera.. Having already heard too many opinions am not sure if I would voice my opinion now, even if i do.. I have enjoyed the first half more than the second one..

I was watching some song from the movie 'Chirunavvutho' and this lady Laya appeared to be very young on the screen. She never appeared so young before.. Never.. Someone's aging... Someone needs to feel young..

What's in a name?

2009-10-24T03:53:00.006+05:30

This property belongs to Mr. Koneti Ranga. Trespassers will be prosecuted.

Everytime i see such a sign board in one of those vacant (if not for the weed that try to shout out) sites in the middle of those beautifully architecture'd buildings of Bangalore, i wish to buy one, one day. That aside, what amuses me are the names on the boards. I don't really understand what they serve? Wouldn't just 'Private Property' suffice? Why do people have to carve out their names at every opportunity?

Same with the names on the vehicles. My roommate has his name stickered on both sides of his bike in that proud font and every time i see it, i feel this mad rush to rip it off. And on one of these sleepless nights when there are no dogs on the road wagging their tongues out, i will do it!!

Ok. It's your property.... But what's with those scribblings on those trains, the back of the bus seats, the loos, the bridges, the walls, the college benches, the hills and those temples.. Is there a place where a person doesn't want to do it..

What do you really love? Yourself or your name? It seems such a thin line between the two.

Anyway, just one last thing. This blog belongs to me as emphasized in the title. Trespassers are very much welcome though.

Baanam - Movie Review

2009-09-19T01:48:00.006+05:30

Just came back from PVR. The plan was to watch Magadheera but when i was saw this movie playing in PVR, i couldn't resist booking tickets for this one. Subba, Manoz, Venky, Jayanth and Puppy came along. This probably is one of the rare times where we reached PVR 30 minutes before show time. With time to kill, we walked into Kalmane coffee shop. The filter coffee that it serves is far better than the best of what Coffee Day offers.

After all the good talk this movie has gathered and the reviews in it's favor, i walked in with huge expectations. It's the story of a naxalite's son (Nara Rohith) who wishes to become an IPS officer. The role of naxalite is played by Shayaji Shinde. After being away for years, he returns to his son by surrendering to the police. His is just a supporting role. Vedika plays a Brahmin girl deserted by in laws the day after her marriage. In her first scene, she is seen waiting alone in a railway station and it is from this point the movie becomes engrossing. The arise of conflict with the villain is slowly established in the first half and it's interestingly built up from the thread between the lead pair. The second half is all about the conflict between hero and the villain.

Nara Rohith's main strength lies in his voice and he looks handsome. Playing a role, that aspires to become an IAS officer, he would looked even better if he worked out to reduce the flab around his waist that shows up when he runs on the screen. His walking is rigid. Otherwise he looks good in all other shots. He has very few expressions to show on screen but he looks great when he smiles. With him walking or running on the screen for most of the time, i wondered how he would look if he shakes his leg which he never does in this film. If it was his conscious decision to choose this story, he must be very much appreciated and i hope he does more such films. Vedika suits very well to the role of a Brahmin girl. She perfects her role. In a scene where she says the chatni is hot while eating her dosa, Manoz(sitting besides me) instantly reached out for the water bottle!! That was the funniest moment. Every other character performs well. No one disappoints.

The movie is set in 1989 but the period wasn't captured well on screen. When the vegetables cost 5 bucks and the tea costs 75 paise, i was shocked until i got reminded of the movie's setting. That doesn't anyway harm the movie a lot. The story and direction by Chaitanya Dantuluri are main assets for the film. Music by ManiSharma, especially the background score is perfect. Dailogues by Gandham Nagaraju are good.

The interval bang leaves the audience with a happy feeling and also builds up expectations for the second half. The second half does not totally reach these expectations and the approach the hero takes to end villain isn't very convincing. Overall, a different and a good movie for the audience.

My Rating - 8/10

All With A Call

2009-09-17T00:26:00.005+05:30

"Hello Sir, am i speaking to Mr. Phani Kiran".

"Yes"

"Sir, I am calling from Airtel. Did you receive your land line bill?"

"Not sure but i guess i got it. I never had any problems with it"

"The amount is 1317 and the due date is 16th. Please make sure you make the payment".

"Ok"

"Sir, you can even pay the bill before the due date".

"Ok"

As soon as i said it, it just occurred to me that there's a hint of sarcasm in what the guy said and that kept coming back to me. I don't remember making a payment before due date and he probably knows my payment history. I have had numerous of these calls and i have ignored them all. But this time with his line, he got me running to Airtel office.

Am not Phani Kiran. I had to live with this name for all the airtel calls. My laziness. It's been almost 2 years since Kiran has moved out and yet the bill still keeps running on his name. Who would want a transfer when it all works fine.. Unless of course, there's another call..

Josh

2009-09-14T23:09:00.005+05:30

It's been more than a week since i have seen this movie. It was Venky, Sreeni and me in the Urvashi theater near Lalbagh that had almost half the seats empty for the 2 P.M show on the movie's release date. It appears that most of the people are not aware that Telugu movies are at times screened in this theater.

The movie starts with Naga Chaitanya staying in Vizag wanting to move to Hyderabad in the middle of his degree studies. It becomes apparent that he is moving away for a reason but that suspense element is maintained through out the first half with a subdued character played by Chaitanya. Living along with Sunil, he frequents to a canteen near by MGM college. It has students frequenting the place and there obviously are few of the heads looking for trouble. Instead of fighting with them as in any other movie, he walks away feeling pity and sympathy for the students. The reason has to do with his college life that will come on to the screen in the second half. His role of mute spectator doesn't last longer as he tries to bring reform among the students.

If the movie didn't reach the expectations of the masses, it doesn't either shatter the expectations. If one walks into the theater expecting a row of fights, high voltage dialogues, then yes, this movie disappoints. People seem to compare this with Chirutha, the debut movie of Ram Charan that tries to showcase every ability of the hero. This movie isn't so. It doesn't try to put the hero on the top at every opportunity. It almost strictly follows the script with director working on it rather than on the hero. Saying so, this is not so different from other movies speaking in absolute terms. It's just that it ain't easy to take this path with the debut film of a star's son. It attempts to bring out a message. Producer Dil Raju and director Vasu Varma should be appreciated for this. This is also the debut for Karthika, daughter of yester year's heroine Radha. She does deliver a good performance but she isn't very appealing with her looks that matter the most for Telugu industry. The director could done better with the role of JD. Sunil and Brahmanandam are apt for their roles. The romance between the lead pair isn't carried properly into the second half making it look unfinished.

With his acting, Naga Chaitanya almost meets the expectations. There are scenes in the first half where he goes expression less. The script might have demanded it but he wasn't very convincing. He does better in the second half. It looks as if he matured a lot and has become more confident of himself as the shooting progressed. His voice is good and he looks very young on the screen. With all the support he has got and the decent skills he showcased in his first movie, it ain't very difficult for him to be seen among the league of big stars in the Telugu industry.

My Rating - 7/10

What's the word?

2009-09-09T22:27:00.004+05:30

Why i do always end up doing different from what i always wanted to do. May be not always, but most of the times. This moment's just one of those times. For the last few days, the only thing that's been on my mind is to paint something. That's about it. I don't do a thing about it.I haven't even reached to the brushes that are at an arm's distance from me. Literally, even now, at this moment as am typing this message, i could have done it. But i wouldn't. I just watch the 'Calendar Girls' on television.

But the thought, it never leaves and the hand, it never goes beyond the remote. If i really like to do something, what's stopping me from doing it. What's the word? Why do i revel in just keeping the thoughts alive?

The Week That Was

2009-09-07T23:48:00.007+05:30

The untimely demise of YSR - While i am the one who isn't very fascinated by any of the current political parties (LokSatta being exception) and the leaders, the news still come as a shock. He surely has taken up some of the commendable projects. His focus on agriculture, his reach to the poor, his everlasting smile, the value he gives for friendship are just some of his qualities that took him closer to his people. I can't believe that we got together to drink on that day. It wasn't for any celebration though.

Josh - Watched the much awaited debut movie of Naga Chaitanya on Saturday.

The Get Together - Being planned for several weeks, it finally happened this weekend. It was supposed to be a treat from me but it happened to be dutch in the end. On Sunday afternoon, we(Pradeep & Pallavi, Sunil & Pramukha, Ravi & Athula, Manoz, Subba and me) went to the biriyani place in JeevanBheema Nagar. As Sunil & Pramukha drove away to 'Josh' after lunch, rest of us walked into Corner House.

Change of cook - We had to let go of the cook who had been with us for the last 3 years. An old lady(am still to ask for name) is now in his place. Good that she speaks fluent English.

Walkathon

2009-08-31T11:50:00.002+05:30

Image source: Aashayein Foundation

It was few days back that Jayanth informed me of the Walkathon being held by Aashayein foundation. Saturday night, he was here to handover the entry tickets. With the event to start at 7:30 in the morning, i woke up at 6:30 and drove to Indiranagar to pick up Manoz. Together, speeding across the deserted streets of Bangalore, we were at the Kanteerava stadium in time. There were already a huge number of people gathered over there. Mostly students from colleges and people from the software firms. After an introduction from the Aashayein founders, the Walkathon started at 8. Walking along the road by the stadium and through the Cubbon park, we were back to where we started after a four kilometer walk.

Paintings by the kids

The Aashayein foundation aims to educate the kids from the economically weaker sections of society and this Walkathon was to generate awareness as well as to raise funds to meet the monetary requirements for educating kids.

Quick Gun Murugan

2009-08-29T11:42:00.001+05:30

28th Aug - At 5 P.M on Friday, as Subba was about to leave home for the weekend, he prompted me to watch 'Quick Gun Murugan'. Logging immediately into rediff, i saw very favorable review for the movie and I have already heard of huge praise for the film coming from Ameer Khan's blog. That was enough to get me started. Looking at all options, Manoz, Ravi and me decided to go to for the movie on the same day. After hitting the gym for a quick workout, i started for the movie at 6:45 P.M. With heavy traffic on the way, we reached Symphony just in time for the movie. With time running out as we got stuck in traffic, we were worried about finding a parking for the car on MG road but to my pleasant surprise, there's ample parking space for the theater, unexpected on MG road. The last movie i watched in Symphony was Swordfish and that was long time back. In fact, that was my first film too, in Symphony. Now, the theater is totally renovated after being taken over by Fame Cinemas.

Coming to the movie, a quick review here. Ameer Khan likes it. Few other bollywood biggies liked it and few are craving to watch it. Some even for the second time. But it wasn't a fascinating ride for me. It's a spoof of Indian cinemas, especially South and supposedly developed from a popular character on Channel V in the 90's. There's Quick Gun Murugan, the cow boy who's karma as he feels is to protect the cows and there's his rivalry with Rice plate Reddy(played by Nasser) who keeps on turning all the hotels into pure non vegetarian and who also wishes to sell the best dosa in the world.

The first half runs smooth while the second half seems to drag at times even for such a short movie. There sure are funny moments but very few. There seem to be people who enjoyed the movie, especially the one sitting besides me who couldn't stop laughing for the whole run. Hmm.. Watching a movie after reading the best reviews never seem to help with soaring expectations..

Yercaud - The Hill Station

2009-08-26T18:04:00.011+05:30

22nd Aug - Waking up at 5 A.M to the call from Rambabu, i walked down the stairs to the corner of the street. He was there standing at the next cross waiting for me to pick him up. Coming from Chennai for the weekend, he immediately slipped into sleep and so did I. Waking up at 9 A.M we went for breakfast to 'Krishna Cafe'. That's the only restaurant i know in Koramangala area that offers breakfast to my taste.

At 12, it was Subba, Rambabu, Venky, Govind and me sitting in my room and chatting about the college days. Ever since Rambabu booked tickers to Bangalore, i was insisting on going out for the weekend while Subba was little hesitant. With Govind and Venky ready to get out for weekend when no tickets were available for Magadheera, Subba agreed to join. With the relentless talk over the college days, the time flew by and adding to it the cook arrived late delaying our trip by few hours.

Starting at 3:30 P.M, it was almost 5:30 by the time we got out of Bangalore fighting out the traffic at the flyover under construction near the electronic city. Past that, the road was pretty good. With a single stopover at 'Anand Bhavan' for refueling, we were in Salem by eight and the ghat road to Yerkaud began almost from it's outskirts. With twenty hair pin bends to reach the top and a splendid view of the Salem city by lights as we ascended the hill, we reached the Grange resort in the middle of coffee plantations. The resort was good, the rooms tasteful but there was no restaurant attached to it and they weren't even willing to lend plates and spoons. Returning back from there, we checked into the Shevaroy Hotel. For the prices they charged the rooms could have been better. However, the food was great and that was all we needed to go along with the drinks for the night. Again, it was all about the college days. With Subba, Rambabu and Govind there's always so much to share.

Waking up at 7:30 A.M on Sunday morning, we were out of the hotel in an hour to get the feel of the morning weather before it gets washed out by the sun. Coming down from the hotel to the lake at the center of Yerkaud, we couldn't resist following the directions to the Kiliyur water falls. Driving through the hills we stopped for a while as we reached the side of the hill. With the clouds that capped the surrounding hills, it was a breathtaking view, the one that was totally unexpected for this place. So beautiful that we were guilty for leaving Rambabu locked up back in the hotel room.(He was just unwilling to wake up). After dropping others near waterfalls, i was back to hotel to pick him up and reached back to waterfalls as the sun started to show up. The half kilometer path to the waterfalls was a steep muddy one down the hill. Most of the times, it was just difficult to walk down without the support of rocks and the roots that lay across. With scarce water and a little dangerous path there were none at the falls. We five were the only one there. For just that half kilometer, we were totally exhausted by the time we reached the top.

After a relaxed breakfast back at the hotel, we drove up to Lady's seat and the Gent's Seat. These are the view points. Totally covered by clouds it was just difficult to see through more than few meters from where we stood. However with the moving clouds, there were times when they cleared up to offer a panoramic view of the distant hills and the the rows of houses built upon them. Skipping the rose garden, we went to Pagoda point that again offered a view of the clouds moving beneath us and a few brushing past us. Even past mid day, the weather was almost the same as the one on early morning.

There were botanical gardens and few temples that were of interest to the tourists. We were however not very excited about them. So, we checked out of the hotel and started back home by 1:30 P.M. The drive from Salem to Krishnagiri is uninterrupted and awesome with the hills lined up along the horizon and the weather resembling that of an approaching rain when seen from behind the shades. Back in the city, we stopped at the samosa point for a while. When they weren't yet ready, we moved on to Sweet Chariot next to it. After a shower and a game of cards we rode to Meghana's for dinner. From there on, we went to Indiranagar's Corner House from where Subba parted his way home. After Rambabu took the auto to the station, we were back to our room tired and exhausted after a long day.

For reasons unknown, Yercaud isn't heard of like the Ooty or the Coorg. Only because Kslp talked high of the place after his recent trip, we opted for this one. At a distance of 220 kms, this is a perfect place for a weekend getaway from Bangalore with it's pleasant weather through out the year.

Yelagiri Hills

2009-08-25T15:01:00.010+05:30

8th Aug - With no tickets for the movie Magadheera, we were in our room laid back in front of television on a Saturday afternoon wishing that we had at least gone out for weekend. When Venky suggested that it's still not too late, it was Yelagiri that popped up in my mind. That's where some of my colleagues have gone recently for their team outing. Sreeni was willing to come along with his friend Baachi.

The plan was to start out on early Sunday morning and it was 8:30 A.M by the time we were out. Getting out of the city through the traffic that just started to surface, we stopped for breakfast at Anand Bhavan near Krishnagiri. This seem to be the only decent place for snacks between Bangalore and Chennai and so was it bustling with people. After fighting it out at the counter and waiting for the food to arrive, we stuffed ourselves with dosas before we hit the road again. It was a pleasant drive for a while before we started to wrestle out for the diversion we got to take for reaching Yelagiri as the GPS failed. After few inquires, wrong turns and a couple of about turns we were on the right road. We reached Yelagiri by 11:30 A.M driving through the ghat roads that offered a view of the world beneath..

Our first stop was at the lake on top of the hill. With the sun right on the top, we avoided boating and whiled away the time beside the lake and in the park that was adjacent to it. All the fun that we had was with the swings and the slides that were meant for kids. Strolling around the park for a while we we out looking for a restaurant with little money in our pockets. Roaming all over for a decent one, we luckily found an ATM that filled our shallow pockets. Walking into Yelagiri restaurant that looked grand from outside, we were to realize that it's just an ordinary one. After lunch, we walked into another park. With Sreeni and Baachi choosing a shady tree for a nap, we rested for a while before taking a walk. When nothing seemed to be of any interest, we started back to Bangalore.

For a hill station, the place didn't appeal to me with the weather being no better than Bangalore's. In fact Bangalore is far cooler than that. It could be because we were there on mid day. Heard it's totally different in the evenings and early mornings. A night stay at the place could have proved better than being there on midday. Anyway, it was a good ride. On the way back, it rained heavily for a while forcing us to move at snail's pace but that didn't last long.

Yercaud is a much better place than this one.

Catch Me If You Can

2009-08-19T19:58:00.003+05:30

I was there sitting at my desk on this morning, sipping my coffee, starting at the laptop and lost in thoughts over the changes to be done for demo in the evening. I see the skype message flickering in orange and i open it. Coming from Sreeni sitting across a few desks from me, it was a jpg file. With most of the recent discussions being about the marriages, i could think of nothing but the image of a girl and very much eagerly opened it up. Instead, it was this one that got be laughing at it. Good to know that am worth something. :)

The Kite Runner

2009-07-31T20:42:00.007+05:30

July 10th - After a really long long time i sat myself to read a novel in a single stretch. Surprisingly even after almost 7 years from the last time i did it, i did it again.

Every time i read a book, i can't stop comparing the opening line of it with the one from The Fountainhead. Among all the books i have read i think it's 'The Fountainhead' that's got the greatest opening line to intrigue the reader. Might just be figment of my imagination but i think it tells everything about the character.

Coming to the Kite Runner, i started on it soon after i came back from my office on Friday, the 10th. It was only at 3 A.M that i kept it aside after i flipped over the last page. The story of a friendship.. The story of betrayal.. The story of repentance.. From where it starts, the plot moves to more unrealistic set of sequences towards the end.. Worth a read..

Few days before i read the book, the movie was screened on Star Movies (or HBO ?) but i had hold back from watching it. Would certainly like to watch it the next time..

Hearing Ourselves

2009-07-31T20:29:00.004+05:30

July 19th - This is only my second time. That is if there is nothing buried in my forgotten memory which at least relents to surface at this time. The first time was an year back. It was awkward, uncomfortable.. It made me be aware of every word i spoke out. But that wasn't the last time i listened to my recorded voice.

A couple of weeks back on a Sunday, after watching movies all the night, i lazily made my way to Indiranagar. Afternoon was well spent as Manoz and me went out for lunch with Pradeep to a new biriyani place(?) in Jeevan Bheema Nagar. After dusk, as Subba and me chit chatting in front of television, Manoz just came back totally pumped up after his workout. Not sure what struck him, it was him who started recording our voices on laptop. This time it wasn't awkward. There was no hint of inconvenience. It was pure fun.. What you hear when you speak in not exactly what is heard by others. And we were totally bursting out in laughter listening to ourselves.. More than the laptop, it was the cell phone that recorded our true voices as judged by others.

The walk to corner House for a DBC or a Cake Fudge becomes mandatory every time i am there at IndiraNagar. This time, health conscious Manoz accompanied us.

When I lost my wisdom...

2009-07-30T20:51:00.007+05:30

...tooth!

A visit to dentist was scheduled for last Thursday, to get rid of it. I was fine till that morning. That's when one of my colleagues explained me of the pain associated with it. I called up the place and there's no change to schedule. I was wishing for a postponement even as i waited outside the dentist's chamber. There was no magic and i was on the dentist's chair. Luckily, there was no pain associated with the removal. With local anesthesia applied, the whole jaws wet numb and was out of the place in an hour with a tooth less.

One thing that brought me joy was the suggestion by dentist to have nothing but ice cream and juice for the day. That was a chance to make merry without having to feel guilty while skipping the gym. So, i drove to the Corner House to pick up Cake Fudge besides few cornettos, kulfi and a juice on the way back. It was good to binge upon the stuff while sitting lazily in front of the television.

Next day morning i surprisingly woke up to no pain. In fact, when the much looked for pain didn't hit upon me, i felt denied :). For breakfast, I finished up the lone cornetto left back in the fridge. All good again except that i was damn hungry by lunch time and the only choice for me was idli. By evening, i walked out of office looking something to fill in. Everything seem to entice me. The hot mirchis on the roadside, the samosas, the kachoris and even a hot cup of coffee would have been awesome. But, all that was acceptable was coconut water. By night, i started to defy the rules as i took a small portion of rice with dhaal. It was awesome.. The taste of rice..

On the next day i.e the Saturday, the much awaited pain knocked upon the doors. It was gentle knock though.. When i take in something cold or when i try to open the mouth to take in a scoop of rice or a piece of idli.. It was difficult to get used to taking in small portions than what i am used to. In spite of all that, there was eagerness to eat everything and there was joy in it that was otherwise a routine activity.. On Sunday, we even went to the food street in VV Param to feast upon the Pav Bhaji, idli, dahi puri, mirchi, lassi, rabdi and a sip of masala pepsi.. The taste of rubdi brought back the memories of the banana rabdi in BITS redi..

It's been a week now and am almost relieved. The yawn is no longer a strain.

PS: No blaming me for the stupidity in the title. I listened to Manoz... must have really lost my wisdom..

Andhaala Pasipaapa...

2009-07-19T01:33:00.003+05:30

A beautiful old song that gets played on Gemini Music just as i was about to switch off the TV on the last night..

To the Lal Bagh

2009-07-18T23:39:00.000+05:30

As i walked in to see the temple standing on top of a small rocky hill, the first thing it reminded me was the Nagarjuna and Vijayashanthi's movie Jaanaki Raamudu. I think that's the kind of place that reminds them of their past life in the movie. Just like that, it reminded me that i have been on it once. Once in the past five years that i have been in Bangalore.

While i might have circled around the gardens for hundreds of times on my way to office and home, it was only once that i went to Lal Bagh. I certainly don't remember when and why. Today afternoon after lunch, as we were waiting for the power to come back, Sreeni reminded us of the wine festival that was going on in Lal Bagh. A lame reason but was enough to get the three nothing-to-do bachelors out of the house on a Saturday afternoon. After a couple of hours there in the middle of trees, shrubs, herbs, flowers and the seemingly couples on almost every desolate corner, we were out of the place. Back home but not before a little detour to Jayanagar 9th block for the mirchi bajjis.

Here are some photos of the place with mostly me vying for attention..

No. It Ain't Over Yet

2009-07-16T00:51:00.006+05:30

I thought i am done with it, had enough of it, too much of it. For almost 7 years now. From the fourth year of college. But that's not true. Now, in middle of the night, i realize that it still can come back to amuse me.

For the last few months, i had an aversion to it. Every time i see it, i would turn to something else. I was really tired of it. Or that's what i thought. There were times when i thought that it's only thing and nothing can get better that that. That assertion without even taking a look at anything else. Watching it over and over i was tired at some point and when the opportunity knocked i left it for others. Was difficult but i did. Others are no less amusing. Some were even better.

Now, as i get ready to sleep, it comes back to me to tickle my funny bone as i turn on to Star World. The episode was the one where Joey comes to know of the relationship between Monica and Chandler. Very hilarious. While there are sitcoms like Seinfeld, Everybody Loves Raymond, That Seventy's Show and all others, Friends always has that special place. I know. It's not just me.

Gopi Gopika Godavari

2009-07-12T20:46:00.011+05:30

"Nuvvakkadunte nenikkadunte praanam vila vila.. Nuvvekkadunte nenakkadunte mounam gala gala.." This is the song that has been playing on my car stereo for a long time. It was only for this music that i went to watch the movie in spite of the reviews thrashing it.Gopi(Venu) is a singer heading an orchestra in Hyd and Gopika(Kamalini) runs a mobile hospital that serves to the villagers on the banks of Godavari river. When Gopi finds a cell phone that is misplaced by Gopika's friend, their acquaintance beings as Gopi picks up Gopika's call. Gopika asks Gopi to return the cellphone to her friend but he finds her dead (no.. that's not the movie about). Anyway, they get to know each other over their conversations and when they were to meet each other, he is hit by a group of thugs and he loses his memory. All the while, Gopika's mother wants Gopika to marry a fellow doctor. The rest of the story is about how they unite.

I entered the theater expecting a nice comedy and a good romantic story with Godavari background. Well, that's the movie about except that none of it worked. Establishing romance between the lead pair over the death of a friend is little weird and even shot in an unconvincing way. The new actors chosen for comedians are pathetic and so is the script. It left me wondering if am watching a stale stage drama that tries to entertain with all the comic forwards that we see everyday in our mail boxes. Adding to that the camera work is hard to digest at places. Too close shots or the shots from the taken from the top doesn't work well.

It does not bring in the expected reactions. The comedy scenes with weird mannerisms don't evoke any kind of laughter while i see the people laughing out to the tragic scenes in the end. More than the actors, the movie seem to have failed because of the director whose ways does not seem to fit well for the movie. Unlike Sekhar Kammula's Godavari movie, this doesn't even capture the beauty of the river.

As the story moves on a dull note, even the songs fail to enthrall. The background music is appealing at places.

My Rating - 5/10

Blues Again

2009-07-11T21:52:00.003+05:30

To an old friend..

Blue Hills

2009-07-07T19:20:00.004+05:30

Ok. It's a lake. May be a river. It's the birthday of my brother and i had to do a painting for him. Not very typical of me. There were many years that passed without me even taking a notice of the day. Anyway, this time i had the urge to do something and sometimes when you really want to do something, it gets really tough to do it. Same is the case today. The mind was blank and i couldn't find any reference. When i almost gave up, i found a snap from our Sankranthi trip that i could roughly use as a reference. So here it is..

Kishore, i wish you many happy returns of the day. Have a good time..

Trip To Tirumala

2009-07-07T15:46:00.014+05:30

4th July - With little sleep on Friday night after the movie Oy!, we (Subba, Venky and me) woke up to Saturday morning at 7 A.M. By 8:30 we were on the roads headed towards Tirupathi. Just outside the city we stopped over for breakfast at Kamat. The article on Michael Jackson left me wondering on the amount of material published on him in the last few days. It also left me an urge to buy his hits though that never happened in the trip. The sun was little easy on us for the whole journey. That ensured a comfortable ride expect for a minor detour into the villages as the traffic got struck on the main road with protests over hike of fuel prices. The detour was however a nice experience driving among the greenery and the narrow banks of the river with a minor stop at a farm. By 2 P.M, we were in tirupathi to join our friends from my native place Saagar, Seshu and Indra.

Like most others this was very much an unplanned trip. However, one good thing we did was to get the contacts to procure tickets for early morning darshan. I mean good if we ignore the fact that we paid the double the cost for them. After lunch in Woodlands and a little rest, we went up to Tirumala to collect our tickets and to check the availability of cottages. The drive through the ghat roads in the teasing rain was a nice one with the distant mountains playing hide and seek in the mist formed by the rain. As we were inquiring for the tickets standing under a tree, a mango fell of the tree right beside us. Got to mention that it was tasty one. We got the darshan tickets but not the accommodation on the top. The recommendation from M.P didn't help a bit. When we saw people waiting for long hours with similar letters in hand, we just drove down the hill and were back to our hotel.

The darshan was scheduled for 5:30 A.M. Irrespective of certain guys waking up at 3 A.M, it was past 5:30 by the time we checked out and started up. On the way we made a little stop at the petrol pump. The usual lethargy in the early morning to get out of the car and check the meter cost us 200 bucks. I hate this robbing at the petrol pumps. I hate these souls and i wonder if they do it at the instructions of the owners. Anyway, leaving that behind, we were on the top by 6:30. Quite opposite to my predictions, the queue was still open for us. Four of us finished our darshan in an hour but with our little mistake the other two who were to join us at main entrance weren't allowed in. We had to wait for another 3 hours for them to get in as everything came to a halt to make way for Anil Ambani's visit. Meanwhile Subba went missing. After looking for him at the exit for almost an hour we walked back to the car to find him sitting there with the newspaper and the laddoos beside him. Once Saagar and Seshu were into the temple, they were out with in half an hour and we started down the hill.

After dropping Saagar and Indra at tirupathi bus stop we were on our way back as the songs from Kick, Gunde Jhallumandhi, Gopi Gopika Godavari, Pournami, Chirutha and Bujjigadu played on the stereo. With one stop after Chittoor for mangoes and another one for lunch under the mango trees, we were to back to Bangalore by 7 P.M as the trip meter touched 620 km.

Oy!

2009-07-04T01:53:00.009+05:30

Yeh.. That's what she likes to call him.. Adhi vinagaane mana hero gaariki zack zack mani guitar tho rock song play chesi natlu vuntundhi.. That's how he puts it..

An extremely rich guy who lives life to the fullest falling for a relatively poor girl struggling to pay off her home(splendid one by the sea) loan installments. It's a formula that can rarely fail. Let's see. Sandhya(Shamili) lives life on certain principles and has a list of attributes that she looks for in her partner. Needless to say, our hero Uday(Siddharth) is made of everything opposite and the whole first half is centered around him trying to charm her as he shrouds himself in the attire she is looking for. Siddharth is his usual self in the movie and from the moment he utters his first dialogue, you know what to expect from him. His acting has become very much predictable but that doesn't mean it does not appeal. It's just that you expect more because he is capable. The movie starts on a dull note and takes off with the above 'zack zack' dialogue before the second song. Sunil's introduction after the second song starts spilling laughs in an otherwise serial like flow. From there on, the movie entertains till the end of first half where our hero confesses his love and also comes to know of her terminal condition with cancer.

Concealing the truth from her, he takes her on a week long trip to Kaasi fulfilling her other wishes along the way. Unfortunately, the movie also starts heading in the same direction as the comedy fails to spill the laughs, as the scenes lack the energy and connection seems missing between the lead pair. Casting of Shamili for the character seem to be a wrong choice. She looks heavier for Siddharth and totally fails to bring in the energy to the character. I wouldn't be surprised if this becomes the last movie for her. The second half of the movie runs flat except for few scenes that evoke laughter. There is a lost connection with the story as they progress through the trip.

Songs in the movie are appealing except for the first one in the second half. Costumes chosen for Shamili could have been better.

My Rating - 6.5-7/10