It's been more than 10 months since I watched a Hindi movie in theater. So 3 Idiots it was! More of my thoughts on the film below.
Warning: Spoilers ahead. Please do watch the film, it's worth it if you still haven't seen it.
10 Things I liked about 3 Idiots:
Sharman Joshi's acting - his emotional scenes and comedy ones were great. How he took the jokes about his family lightly and didn't let them affect his mood. How he was not afraid to speak the truth about himself. His love and respect for his family. The scene where he gets the job. The scenes where he appreciates Rancho and his ways. This guy makes you fall in love with him because of who he is at heart.
Aamir Khan's acting - where to start? I think he portrays it in his character - go after perfection and success will come to you. 400 patents! (okay, that was a bit unrealistic but it's forgiven for you can't improve perfection :D) Go Aamir! Loved his dialog in the beginning where in introduces "aal izz well" and tells about heart being fearful in general and that it needs to be fooled. Did you see how cute he looked at the end in glasses?
The message it conveys about our schooling system. Ratta lagaofying - rote memorization isn't the only thing, it is the understanding of the subject that is needed more than that.
The message it conveys about expectations of parents and teachers from students. That it is about what one truly enjoys doing than to do what earns more. That grades aren't everything.
Kareena's charachter Pia and her acting - how she is all that a girl is - silly, confused, adorable, cute, lovable, caring and strong. Loved the scene where she finally confronts her father about her brother's death. The scenes where she disagrees with Rancho and is upset, but listens to him nevertheless. How she acts when she has to do a doctor's job: deciding about Raju's father's condition, her sister Mona's delivery, etc.
R. Madhavan's acting - the scene where he convinces his dad and also when he and Raju frantically search for their college pal/roommate Rancho. He looks oh-so-handsome, specially with this geeky-glasses look as well as macho-mustache look!
Omi Vaidya's acting - this dude can truly act! He was annoying and made everyone mad... even in the audience. It was hilarious when he receives a call from Wangdu. His best scene would have to be the one where he gets upset with Rancho and Farhan about messing up his speech on Sept. 5. Also him honking the car horn loud to disguise his farts was hilarious.
Millimeter's character - scenes likes when he knows exactly what ViruS is going to say as well as the one where he gets tipped by Farhan and he returns the favor by suggesting they wear good underwear tonight. He reminded me of Bholu from Hungama.
Boman Irani's acting - only he could have done justice to the character of Viru Sahastrabuddhe. Well, may be Paresh Rawal would have but he did it! The guy came across as the oh-I-hate-him disciplinarian who thinks only his ways are the right ways. He was the most annoying when he makes Raju write that letter and then when he refuses to give an extention to Joy for his project. Also, when he gets upset with Rancho when he tries to tell him what's wrong with our education systems.
The little things: The inventions at Wangdu's school in Ladakh and the long drives to Shimla, Manali and Ladakh. Oh, these places are gorgeous!!! I also liked the font used in the titles - as if it was written on blackboard with chalk. :) The way the shirts/clothes of three boys were color coordinated. The songs and music were nice too... my fav songs are "give me some sunshine" and "zoobi doobi".
10 Scenes that made me laugh out loud in 3 Idiots:
A drunk Pia (Kareena Kapoor) describes Gujarati food items - dhokla, fafda, handwa, thepla, khakhra, etc. What was the dialog? Something like "Bush ne Iraq pe do dhokla gira diya" as if they were missiles. :D
Chatur Ramalingam/Silencer's speech where chamatkar became balatkar and dhan became stan. The Sanskrit shlok was just outrageous!
Raju forgetting his pants when he frantically leaves to meet Rancho and his wife's reaction to it.
Farhanitrate and Prerajulisation scene along with how an induction motor starts and not to forget "aap ko pata hai hum kaun hai? hamaare naam, roll numbers?" and they mix up their papers with the rest in stacks, and then the not-so-simple definition of books.
Suhas (Pia's fiance) comes out of his room in robes and fluffly pink slippers looking for "kaun phere le raha hai?"
The ragging dialog "tusi great ho, jaahan-panaah". Well, most of the times, but I think they overdid it a bit in the beginning. Reminded me of "dola re dola re" ragging scene from Munnabhai. Chatur being James Bond ha-ha-ha funny.
Raju and Farhan come with Rancho to Pia's place at night where he is going to propose to her and Farhan removes the alphabets from the name plate and makes it "ViruS buddhe".
When Farhan, Raju and Rancho invite themselves to Pia's sister's wedding and Rancho spills chatney on shoes of Pia's boyfriend.
When Raju and Farhan try to flush down the ashes of Shamaldas Chanchad in toilet and real Ranchhod tries to save them.
When the man (I forget his name) shaves off Virus' mustache because Raju got a job and he comes home feeling naked. Reminded me of my fav film, Golmaal (1979) and Bhavani Shankar's world-famous mooch.
10 Things I didn't like about 3 Idiots:
The name of the film
Virus' phone call to Joy's father and his suicide
Raju jumping off Virus's 3rd floor office after he forces him to write the rustication letter
Virus' attitude and beliefs and discipline (of course, this is a major role and it contributed a lot towards the story blah blah blah, but still...) Him telling Joy how he was back to work the next day after his son died.
The peeing (it was too much) and undie-showing
Rancho and Farhan breaking into Virus' office to steal the exam paper
The delivery scene - it wasn't needed
Pia agreeing to marry Suhas after what all happened? That just made her look stupid.
Many scenes were similar to scenes from other films and that made them kind of not-so-original. e.g. Farhan running out from the flight/airport reminded me of "Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na", the graduation scene at the end reminded me of the drawing competition scene from Taare Zameen Par and there were many more scenes like this.
The butt-chairs, okay I guess they aren't so bad, but I couldn't find the last item to add here so... :P
I leave you all with this fun video of a cricket match between the cast and crew of 3 Idiots. Enjoy!
This came as a forwarded mail to me a while back. Some of the thoughts are really nice and made me think.
Soldier: Sir, we are surrounded from all sides by enemies. Major: Excellent! We can attack in any direction.
Every one knows about Alexander Graham Bell who invented phones, but he never made a call to his family. Because his wife and daughter were deaf. That's life "Live for Others".
The worst thing in life is "attachment" it hurts when you lose it. The best thing in life is "loneliness" because it teaches you everything and when you lose it, you get everything.
Life is not about the people who act true to your face. It's about the people who remain true behind your back.
Egg broken from outside force... a life ends. If an egg breaks from within... life begins. Great things always began from within.
It's better to lose your ego to the one you love, then to lose the one you love... because of ego.
A relationship doesn't shine by just shaking hands on best time. But it blossoms by holding firmly in critical situation.
Heated gold becomes ornaments. Betted copper becomes wires. Depleted stone becomes statue. So the more pain you get in your life you become more valuable.
Why we have so many temples, if God is everywhere? A wise man said: air is everywhere, but we still need a fan to feel it.
Toleration is the greatest gift of the mind: it requires the same effort of the brain that it takes to balance oneself on a bicycle.
When you trust someone trust him/her completely without any doubt. At the end you would get one of the two: either a lesson for your life or a very good person.
Winter is here and so is snow!!! And since it's cold and chilly all around, I figured it's a perfect time to cozy up in a blanket with hot chocolate (with marshmellows if you're like Calvin ;)) and enjoy these funfilled snow songs of Bollywood. Majority of them are super fun playing-in-the-snow, sliding-in-the-snow, skiing, throwing-snow-balls-at-eachother songs; some are picturized with snowy mountain backdrops and then some on ice-skating rinks as well. Btw, please do feel free to add more if I have missed any.
I think, the actor who got the best snow songs in HFM is none other than Shashi Kapoor! In girls it would have to be Sharmila Tagore. What do you say?
Happy Holidays everyone!
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In a random order:
door bahot mat jaaiye... naazneen bada rangeen hai wada tera, Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon Picturized on: Joy Mukherjee, Asha Parekh
Talked to Mama at length today after so long. It was wonderful. We spoke of so many things, one of them being your values. The things you learn from your parents, the things that you learn/not learn as you grow up (experience life), the things that make you who you are. The thing that makes you.
It is the thing that stops you from doing wrong or permits you to accept that it is alright to do a wrong. Sometimes, they make us realize it after the deed is done. and often never. We often call it "ethics".
Our values are something personal and each of us has a different set depending upon our personal, good or bad experiences.
When two people have similar values, they will get along more than say someone who has completely different values.
Values bring us closer to certain people and they are the ones that take us miles away from the person standing in front of us.
Values make us behave the way we do, when no one is watching us.
Having wordly discussions with Mama makes me think about individual words quite often now. So when I was watching Lage Raho Munnabhai the other day, this scene caught my attention.
The word is "fear". The thing that begins in our mind with "what if...".
Why do we fear?
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Updated: December 28, 2009
It is because sometimes we are afraid to lose what we have... our people, our freedom, our comfort, our material happiness, our possessions, etc.
It is because we are too comfortable in the given situation and the new change seems impossible thus prevents us from moving forward.
It is because our thoughts are influenced by someone else, we trust the fears of people around us and go along with believing them. If 9 out of 10 people said I could learn how to ride a bike, I might. If 1 out of 10 people said I could NOT learn how to ride a bike, I will never. Of course, this is if and when I listen to this one person.
It is because we don't know what future is going to bring, there is the fear of unknown. It is easy to be doubtful and it is difficult to trust, specially when there is no or less familiarity. We have imaginary fears.
Over the past couple of months, I've realized that I've learned so many positive things about India in last three years than I can ever imagine...
India is constantly improving and so are her people. That only makes me feel more proud. Clean Green Originally uploaded by kananj
The malls are so much fun and some of them even better than the ones I've seen before in the US/Canada. The best part is, you can get all decked up in jewelry and a glittery saari and go to the mall without being stared at! ;) Shopping mall Originally uploaded by kananj
When it comes to jewelry and clothes, no other country/place can beat India. Bangles Originally uploaded by kananj
When it comes to food, no other country/place can beat India. fafda & chatney Originally uploaded by kananj
If you feel like eating things like "paapDi no loT" you don't have to wait till mom or the aunty next door makes it, you can just stroll down to "Saasumaa Nu Khichu" and grab a bowl-to-go with a spoon and toppings that make it only more delicious. "Saasuma nu khichu" stall Originally uploaded by kananj
The recycling process has started! There are garbage cans almost everywhere. (Oh how happy I was to see this) Way to go, India!!! Recycle bin Originally uploaded by kananj
That people here are ever adjusting, to everything in life. Sharing the ride Originally uploaded by kananj
That people here don't get annoyed with traffic jams. Traffic Originally uploaded by kananj
That people here still work very hard to earn a living. At Chauki Dhaani Originally uploaded by kananj
Last but not least, I have realized what India truly is only after being away from Her. Jai Hind! janani janmabhoomishcha swargaadapi gariyasi... Tiranga Originally uploaded by kananj
I had been wanting to type up the lyrics of this Ramayan Choupaayan ever since I listened to the track jai gauri maa of Vivah. Finally, was able to do it! (with a lot of typos and mistakes in the words, I am sure). In any case, simply fabulous! that's how I'd like to describe it.
Every time, I listen to this 1-hour long track that has the entire story of Raamaayan, it makes me feel happy and emotional; it also stumps me to realize what an ideal human-being should be like and inspires me to be more like Him.
I remember as a kid, we would start all the preparations long before uttarayan day came. Buying all kinds of good kites, good strings on firki, pilla (string wrapped around in a little round ball shape); to make "patang no maanjo" at home with glass and colors was something we did ever year - Papu, GKaka, RFuva, all of us kids and the uncles living next door along with the neighborhood kids. Every couple of years, SKaka would visit India and the ardent kite-flying fan that he is, he'd make sure he was there on Jan 14th so that made the festival even more happy and exciting with more family members and more cousins.
During these days, the ladies of the family would be busy making all kinds of sweet snacks like tal-ni-chikki, mamra-na-laadu, sing-ni-chikki, daaLiya-na-laadu, etc. Ba would also put little coins inside the laadu for gupt-daan to little kids roaming on the streets. Us kids loved that the most, to get a 10 paisa or 5 paisa coins in laadu was like a real special treat and we'd jump up and down to find such a laadu from a huge pile of laadus. To have sherdi (sugarcane) and aambla (gooseberries) for breakfast was the usual thing that I adored the most and looked forward to so much. I enjoyed peeling off the outer sides of sherdi with teeth and enjoying them till the whole 4-5 feet sherdi was gone. Sometimes we'd get spoiled by mom and aunts as they'd cut the sherdi with suDi (a sort of cutter) for us and we just get to chew on to it until the sweet juice drained in our mouths. To sit on the floor bundled up in a sweater and warm woolen hat, making little holes on kite with agarbatti, tying the kinna or the strings to kites in the right place and making sure the little knot was made at the right spot was an important skill to have and the men of the house taught them to us kids so we had literally mastered that art. It was so much fun and so very exciting because we'd compete to see which of us kids made maximum kites ready. Ba would make some rice with a lot of water so it's almost like glue so that we can use it to plaster up the kites to make them more sturdy and stronger. The rice glue was applied on torn patang's thin papers that were precut in square or rectangle shapes and applied on the sides of kites to ensure the kites would be able to handle heavy winds while they were up in the sky. The soft rice glue was better than the brown tape (gundar patti), because the tape actually made kites much heavier and made them tear apart faster. All of this was done days before uttarayan so that the kites are ready to be flown during the uttarayan days; wasting a moment of daytime for things like these was considered bad as every moment of the day was to be spent enjoying flying the kites on the terrace.
The hope was that on the day before uttarayan and day of uttarayan along with vaasi-uttarayan (the day after) the Wind Gods would have mercy and blow like crazy so that we won't have to give too many "thumka" to the kites in order for them to get up in the sky. So often, Papu and Kaka would have a pair of strings connected to the patang instead of one just so that it can handle the heavy winds and it can last longer than usual. To run after a loose patang was a strict no-no as it could endanger you or injure you in various ways so there was always more than enough supply of kites and firki for everyone. Still once in a while we enjoyed running after a kite that was just passing by our terrace. The trees would sometimes catch them and then to get them off a tree was real pain and disappointing. Sometimes trying to get them out of a tree caused injuries too so we were not to do that.
I got to learn the techniques of flying the kite right way with least amount of damage to our kites and hands from Papu. He'd teach the tricks to all of us kids and show us how it was done. Not everyone was keen except for a few of us who actually ended up flying our own kites later on when we were teenagers. The elders would give us the kites to hold once they were high above in the sky and steady for us to hold on. And often, it was so hard to see our own kite as it usually was much higher above than where the string actually was. The art of holding the string of a flying kite without hurting ourselves or getting cuts on the fingers was also important. Some of us had the brown tape wrapped around our fingers and the others with leather strap things that they custom made for kite flying, which would prevent the cuts.
We would get super happy when one of the grown ups would let us attach an extra-long puchhada (tail) to one of the kites. The tails were usually made from old newspapers cut into long stripes and the stripes were attached with rice glue. Those tailed kites looked so beautiful, sometimes like a face with two eyes and a nose and a tail on the bottom. The tailed kites didn't really last longer as the tail would make it more heavy and there was the risk of the tail getting entangled with the string.
The terrace being one for the whole apartment building made the whole experience even more fun. We all had sort of a custom that we don't cut each others' kites and if by mistake the pech had happened the two people holding the strings would switch places to untangle the pech. Best part was that at any given time there were at least five to six kites flying from our terrace and when one of ours got cut by some other kite, the other kite-flyers on our terrace went to take a revenge. It was sort of a silly rivalry, but it brought a sense on unity in all of us. As the day passed, the ladies would show up on the terrace wrapped up in shawls and scarves with more food for everyone, and thaaLi-velaN (used for beating and making noise when we cut someone's kite).
Eventually, as we grew up the custom of playing loud filmi songs became the tradition, which I didn't enjoy much as it defeated the purpose of screaming our heads off when a kite was cut. The whole day would pass like this and then the ladies would be shouting for us to come down as it was much after sunset; Eventually we'd give in to go grab some food before we come back again at night to put up some tukkal (a lit candle in a paper jar sort of thing) on a kite and fly it again. One would get to see so many of them around, sometimes seven or more on one string, which were probably flying on one big kite (dhaal) or two kites at the same time. Tukkal were a lot of fun to watch and eventually the candle burns out and the kites are brought down, until the next morning, when we are up again flying more kites.
Those were the uttarayans in Ahmedabad! Oh so fun, so exciting and full of colors and life!
The times have changed significantly and so have the uttarayans in Ahmedabad but it still remains a fun place to be in during this festival and more. I leave you all with some Uttarayan time photos of Ahmedabad from my collection. They're not as great as Darshit's but they do show different side of Ahmedabad during these days.
What? You still haven't heard that dialog? Go watch Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, right now!
I really enjoyed watching this film despite of it being so bad like almost everyone says. It's one of those movies that falls under it-is-so-pathetic-i-love-it category. There's quite a lot of nice things in this one and one just has to sit there and ponder upon them before moving on to the next scene. What did I like about it? Here goes:
First and foremost, SRK's acting. This man's work just gets better with time, I think. I used to not like him as much but eventually have grown to like him for who he is on-screen and off-screen. SRK truly rocks!
How Surinder and Bobby love each other and would do anything for each other... their friendship is so close, they even say "I love you" to each other!! If you are a man, it takes guts to say "I love you" to another man.
The music, because it includes songs such as "haule haule" and "phir milenge... chalte chalte". I like the others too but these two are more fun songs than the others. And I totally adore the background music by Salim-Sulaiman. "Tujh mein rab dikhta hai" is one of those that you start liking after listening to it like a gazillion times and Sunidhi is awesome is "dance pe chance" though I admit I don't understand all of the lyrics but Labh Januja's voice haunts me day and night, in a good way of course.
How in the first half you just keep laughing at almost everything about Surinder - the way he combs his hair, the way he walks, the way he dresses, the way he receives phone calls at work, the way he talks to himself, just about everything he does.
The mucchad, chashmish, shy, quiet, innocent, adorable, pure-at-heart Suri.
How this movie reminds me of good ol' Golmaal. There are so many similarities, it's unbelievable. (1) our hero has the mooch-munda and mucchad versions!! (2) one super cool alter ego and the other "mucchad buddhu" like how Urmila would call him (3) the heroine falls in love with the "luccha lafanga" hero and hates the seedha-sada hero (4) the dad loves the "mucchad buddhu" but the daughter doesn't (5) the sidekick of the hero - Deven vs. Bobby (6) the cool hero gives lessons (study vs. dance) to the heroine (7) the frustration that our hero goes through... I am sure there's more to add to this list.
How Suri says on phone: "Punjab Power... lighting up your life ji".
How the movie shows that it's the nice little things, little acts of showing our consideration towards the others that wins people's hearts.
How simplicity is portrayed along with the theme that God is great and that no matter what the end result is in His hands for everything.
Did I already say SRK's acting? Yeah, during scenes like Taani walks in and he's working on laptop and gets up all of a sudden only to realize he has the string of his pen-drive around his neck, his fight with the sumo wrestler, how he tries to hide his brand new wedding, how he requests Taani to come out and greet his coworkers, how he accepts the lack of love from Taani and continues to love her and be nice to her.
Btw, this becomes the first movie ever that I watched in theater TWICE! :D
So now you know what to do, right? If you haven't seen this one already, it's totally worth a watch. Mostly because you won't need to use your brains. ;) Enjoy!
Happy New Year 2009, my fellow bloggers! Hope you all have a fantastic year ahead.
As usual, no resolutions for this year. :) But I did want to share something fun. While I was reading some old emails I came across this one - sent to me by a sweet person I know. Though I don't agree with each and every one of these instructions, I do like most of them and I think it is a good idea to follow some rules like these in life.
Life's Little Instruction Book
Have a firm handshake.
Look people in the eye.
Sing in the shower.
Own a great stereo system.
If in a fight, hit first and hit hard.
Keep secrets.
Never give up on anybody. Miracles happen everyday.
Always accept an outstretched hand.
Be brave. Even if you're not, pretend to be. No one can tell the difference.
Whistle.
Avoid sarcastic remarks.
Choose your life's mate carefully. From this one decision will come 90 percent of all your happiness or misery.
Make it a habit to do nice things for people who will never find out.
Lend only those books you never care to see again.
Never deprive someone of hope; it might be all that they have.
When playing games with ! children, let them win.
Give people a second chance, but not a third.
Be romantic.
Become the most positive and enthusiastic person you know.
Loosen up. Relax. Except for rare life-and-death matters, nothing is as important as it first seems.
Don't allow the phone to interrupt important moments.It's there for your convenience, not the caller's.
Be a good loser.
Be a good winner.
Think twice before burdening a friend with a secret.
When someone hugs you, let them be the first to let go.
Be modest. A lot was accomplished before you were born.
Keep it simple.
Beware of the person who has nothing to lose.
Don't burn bridges. You'll be surprised how many times you have to cross the same river.
Live your life so that your epitaph could read, No Regrets
Be bold and courageous. When you look back on life, you'll regret the things you didn't do more than the one's you did.
Never waste an opportunity to tell someone you love them.
Remember no one makes it alone. Have a grateful heart and be quick to acknowledge those who helped you.
Take charge of your attitude. Don't let someone else choose it for you.
Visit friends and relatives when they are in hospital; you need only stay a few minutes.
Begin each day with some of your favorite music.
Once in a while, take the scenic route.
Send a lot of Valentine cards. Sign them, 'Someone who thinks you're terrific.
Answer the phone with enthusiasm and energy in your voice.
Keep a note pad and pencil on your bed-side table.Million-dollar ideas sometimes strike at 3 a.m.
Show respect for everyone who works for a living regardless of how trivial their job.
Send your loved ones flowers. Think of a reason later.
Make someone's day by paying the toll for the person in the car behind you.
Become someone's hero.
Marry only for love.
Count your blessings.
Compliment the meal when you're a guest in someone's home.
Wave at the children on a school bus.
Remember that 80 per cent of the success in any job is based on your ability to deal with people.
Don't expect life to be fair.
ps. Please do share if you know the source for these.
