golden phoenix

Audacity of dreams and capriciousness of reality Dreams and reality most of the times seem like yin and yang. For one to exist the other must be let go of. Sometimes they just seem like parallel lines. Forever destined to travel together but never to meet or cross paths. At times, things just don’t seem worth it. What I am doing here ? Why I am doing this ? Is this what my heart really wants ? At times the chaos and madness of it all just seems to defy belief and sometimes just plainly astound. The utter senselessness of it all sometimes makes one to chuck everything away and be done with it. The dreams that you had in college, in school, the times when everyone around you seemed not so self obsessed seem like a lifetime away. At times you feel cold... You just want to get into a small corner for a few days and curl up and be away from it all. Just let your thoughts run completely wild and just be disconnected from it all. Just you and your 5 feet * 5 Feet empire or kingdom that ...

Haider, even by Vishal Bhardwaj’s incredibly high standards is a master piece. In a topic that is extremely touchy in India, Bhardwaj manages to present an extremely balanced view of the ground situation. The delightful interplay of the various characters is riveting and the intensity never lets up always keeping the viewer on edge. At the same time it raises uncomfortable questions for the all the stakeholders concerned: the Indian army, plight of the Kashmiris and the Pakistani agenda. The most credible part of the film is that does justice to both Indian army and the Kashmiris and does not take any sides. The film’s dark shades are present throughout the film and convey the gravity through subtle nuances. Even, the scenes with laughter in them, always serve to convey something serious than to provide moments of comic relief. The epic monologue of Shahid “Hum hain ki hum nahin” beautifully puts across the existential crisis faced by the everyday Kashmiris. Caught between Paki...

Balanced on a knife’s edge Not too long ago we celebrated our n th independence day. We waved a few flags, sent out customary greetings to our friends and family, enjoyed a day off and forgot all about the real issues that face our country today. Make no mistake: India is at a precipice today balancing itself at a knife’s edge. Currently, the entire social fabric that weaves India together is about to be destroyed. And nothing can be more appropriate, more illuminating than the current crop of movies that are being churned out by Bollywood and are rip-roaringly successful. Bollywood as a mirror of Indian society Traditionally, Bollywood has always reflected India’s broader sentiment at large. In the 50’s and 60’s it was Manoj Kumar singing “Mere Desh ki Dharti” and Lal Bahadur Shastri saying “Jai Jawan Jai Kisan”. The era when the farmer issues dominated the on screen cinema personified by “Mother India” In the 70’s it was the angry young man, Amitabh fighting against esta...

As I was sleeping on the lower berth of the train, a voice rang out “Beta thoda side de dena jara”. As I opened my eyes and tried to adjust to the dizziness of my broken slumber, I saw the face of an uncleji with a huge grin of expectation stretched across it. “What the hell” I thought and gave him space enough to seat 2 folks. To cut a long story short, that ‘little space’ soon turned into his entire family belongings (of all generations, I think!!) coming in my compartment and eventually almost my ouster from my own seat. In the night when it was the time to sleep once again, I told him to go somewhere else. “Beta, adjust karlo. Ek raat ki hi toh baat hai. Itna toh chalta hai”, pat came back the reply. Eventually after a heated argument ‘the gentleman’ relented to move 3 of his family members so that I could sleep comfortably instead of a foetal position. An endearing phrase showing our true spirit of resilience and generosity?? But after that encounter, the phrase “Chalta hai...

What Makes Current Barca This Good – The Mental Aspect Some telling statistics from Phil Ball’s article : “These are 3 (Xavi, Iniesta, and Messi) of the 442 players who have gone through the Masia system since it was inaugurated some 30 years ago ; 41 of them have gone on to make their debuts with the first team, and 38 others made it to top-flight status. That leaves 363 who fell by the wayside, although I don’t know the figures for those who made it professionally outside of the Spanish first division. Two of the most prominent are Cesc Fabregas and Mikel Arteta, but that still leaves 361 to account for . ” These are just the statistics of those players who have actually ‘graduated’ from La Masia, that is, those who played there till they were deemed to be too old for the youth team and not good enough for the senior team. Several more would have fallen by the wayside even before this. These statistics show how much heartache and heartburn is there in ‘La Masia’ for those who do no...

THE PRICE OF JUSTICE? LET’S FIX IT!! Justice is sold nowadays. That is the sad truth. Before I begin my views on “Justice”, let us see some telling moments and their timelines in world of justice (both India and worldwide). January 23, 1996: Priyadarshini Mattoo raped and killed allegedly by Santosh Kumar Singh. Delhi Police registers FIR. Oct 30, 2006: Santosh Singh given the death sentence by Delhi High Court. August 12, 1990: S P S(A high Ranking police officer) Rathode then IG allegedly molests Ruchika in his office. May 25, 2010: Rathore's sentence enhanced to 18-month jail term and fine of Rs.1000 (~$20). 2007: Goldman Sachs earns approx $3 billion from subprime crisis Jul 2010 ... Goldman Sachs Pays $550M Civil Fraud Fine . April 29-30 1999: Jessica Lal shot and killed in public at a party in Qutub Colonnade restaurant in south Delhi . April 19, 2010: Supreme Court upholds conviction and life term of Manu (Son of a famous poli...