Tag Archives: Delhi

Tuesday Talkies – Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania

Image July 22, 2014 jcisnowjs 2 Comments

This weekend, I attended a wedding…. and what a wedding it was. 🙂

Cutting short the drama – I watched “Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania”, movie starring Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt, Ashutosh Rana and newbie Siddharth Shukla. Produced by Karan Johar and directed by Shashank Khaitan, this should be titled “A Tribute to DDLJ”. When you watch the movie, from start till the very end, this movie has every scene reminding you of the Bollywood classic – “Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge”.

Story revolves around Kavya aka Alia Bhatt, who is getting married to Siddharth Shukla, a NRI doctor, who is chosen by her father as the perfect groom(btw, he is Perfect…. Just too good to be true). She is all happy and content about the marriage, except that she wants to wear a designer Lehnga, just like Kareena’s, in her marriage. Chirpy girl from Ambala, heads out to Delhi, to buy the Lehnga of her dream. Poor girl didn’t knew that she may or may not get the lehnga of her dreams, but she will fall in Love for sure.

Kavya meets Humpty; Alia meets Varun; and sparks fly. They do some naach gaana, and then the bride to be, returns back to her reality, her home. But, love knows no boundaries. So, our Humpty Sharma aka Varun too runs to Ambala along with his two best friends; to woo not only Kavya but also her parents, specially her Father, Ashutosh Rana.

I am not going to spoil the suspense more for you, but if you know Bollywood movies, and have watched DDLJ, then you know there is n suspense here. 😛

I really liked the movie. Even though it has the same tried and tested, boy meets girl, they fall in love, someone in family opposes, they try to convince…. kind of repeated theme, but the treatment given to this story is very refreshing and modern.

It is a tribute to DDLJ, but if you put this movie in today’s context, then “Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania”, is a better version of DDLJ, atleast more practical.

What works for the movie?

Chemistry…….. Alia and Varun being the super catalyst of this Awesome Chemistry. They look so perfect, fresh and electrifying together, that you can not take your eyes off them. Both of them are just a few movies old, but still they don’t look novice when it comes to their acting capabilities.

Alia specially in that Gurudwara scene has enacted the whole scene with such emotions even though when she is not speaking a single word; and Varun in the scene at Railway Station, where he confronts Ashutosh Rana; Marvelous. Both of them have a very good screen presence and they complement each other.

I am seeing Ashutosh Rana after such along time in a good movie, with a well defined role, and he has used this opportunity to the best of his caliber. His role is such, that every girl would want him to be her father, and every boyfriend would have nightmares of having him as his father in law.

Varun’s friends Shonty and Poplu are fun to watch. Every scene they are in, they have made me laugh. Witty dialogues delivered by them effortlessly, just like a pro. There is one eye candy too…. no, I am not talking about Alia. It’s Siddharth Shukla, television actor, debuting first time on big screen. More of his six pack debut, as he do not have much dialogues. Not that I am complaining. I am pretty content with just a towel scene. 😛

overall it’s a fun movie which you should watch if you want to relive that love and romance long gone, since the time of DDLJ.

Go enjoy wedding of Humpty along with “Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania”.

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What Kind of Government We Want?

Image June 11, 2014 jcisnowjs Leave a comment

I was watching a television series yesterday, where the dethroned Queen asks one of her Knight, “People of my Land must be waiting for me to return”. Knight replied “My Lady, People do not care about who is ruling them and who is not? What they care about is that do they have enough to eat, or shelter, and safety”.

We say all big things like corruption, world peace, global warming, woman empowerment, while choosing our governments but the basic reality does not change. We all want our basic necessities to be met first, only after that, we would care about global warming and world peace.

Recent posts that I am seeing on facebook, from my friends belonging to U.P(Uttar Pradesh), India, makes me realize that those who were fighting before elections taking sides are now all on one side.

One side which is complaining about huge Power cuts. In the scorching heat of Delhi and U.P, there is no relief whether you are outside or inside home, due to power cuts. Now some may ask what it’s got to do with politics?

Actually few days back when I was debating with a friend about the scene of Indian Politics, this point arise where he said that “I can not believe that an educated person can say that people of Amethi are more concerned about the basic things like roads and power, and not see the corruption done by Congress party over the years. How can they choose Rahul Gandhi over and over again?”

He was right, but to some extent. Point that I made was, people of Amethi are not bothered about corruption as they do not see it directly affecting their lives. What is affecting them more is poverty and lack of infrastructure. They are not electing a party, they are electing an individual, Rahul Gandhi, Golden Prince. Why they are electing him?

If you visit Amethi, and could be able to chat honestly with the people there, they will say, “we know congress didn’t do anything here, but last year they gave a government job to my little brother. Our whole family is feeding because of it.” Or, “my old mother is getting pension because of them”, or, they gave me quota work for making this road, which I may or may not make”. Congress has not taught them fishing, but they are provided with Fish to eat, from time to time.

My point being they are feed only that much, which is enough to fill their stomach but not for long, so they will come asking for it again. Their desires are simple. Their needs are limited. Lets take a totally different scenario now. Lets ask a person living in USA, what does he need from his government?

Will he say that he wants power supply, or good roads? No, he doesn’t need them, because he already have them.

A girl living in Delhi, may or may not say about better roads, but she will sure say safety on roads as her biggest concern. A small businessman may say less tax on his business, or a youth for more job opportunities, or a housewife managing her household on a minimum budget may say, ability to buy more in less.

Each one of us has different priorities and these change based on what we already have and what we aspire to have next. So, basically we want our government to give us everything, but we need all the basic necessities first.

As they say in hindi “Bhooke Bhajan Na Hoye Gopala”, meaning “You can not pray on an empty stomach”.

Movies

You are The Queen Kangana

Image March 28, 2014 jcisnowjs 1 Comment

Spoilers Alert : “Queen” Movie Review

When I watch a strong Female lead based movie, I expect a lot of drama, emotion, tears, bad men, lots of lecture and a depressing but at the end suddenly gone inspiring movie. Holds true for most of such films.

“Queen” was different. Firstly all the crying and tears that were shed in the movie was done while female lead was at her drunkest best and the way whole scene was conceptualized, it just made my day. A Punjabi girl gotten drunk for the first time, in a foreign land, with a friend that she just made friends with, and pouring out her heart first time, after her fiance dumped her, just before the wedding day. It was revolting and funny and so casual at the same time.

Queen is a story of a Punjabi girl from Delhi’s Rajouri garden, who has fallen in love with a suitable match, after his much persuasion though, that too in full filmy style. She was about to get married in a day when her foreign returned fiance declare her not fit enough as per his new found upper standards, so, they can not marry. That was a marvelous scene. A subtle yet powerful performance by both Kangana and Raj Kumar Yadav. What happens next, no points guessing but she was devastated, still surprisingly she decides to go on her honeymoon, alone.

Honeymoon in Paris, every girl’s dream, and Kangana was living her dream, only difference it was a nightmare being alone. Journey started. She discover herself, what she actually liked and what she was told to like, what she likes to eat and having courage enough to tell an Italian chef that she can cook better than him. By the way, she had a cute little crush on him. Now, if this being any other Bollywood masala movie, he couldn’t be an Italian, and she can never ever have kissed him.

What I like most about this movie and portrayal of Kangana’s role was that the character never turned revengeful or negative. She was content, she was complete in her own. In the end, it just looked like that she is saying to her ex fiance that I don’t need you for my happiness. I am Happy.

This is what I have taken from the movie. You can choose to be happy no matter what your circumstances are.

I am happy.

Life, Movies

Lovelace on a Highway

Image March 3, 2014 jcisnowjs 5 Comments

Warning: Spoilers ahead, in case you haven’t watched the movies “Highway” and “Lovelace”.

A Sunday well spent is, a Sunday spent on a couch watching some random movies and instead of burying them somewhere in your mind, have something to write about them. This Sunday I watched Highway then Lovelace and then a show “Satyamev Jayate S2”. Surprisingly, all three of them were connected to a single theme – Abuse of Women. Here I am not writing about “Satyamev Jayate”, because I believe it would require a separately dedicated post.

So, here comes my review along with my thoughts on the two movies I watched this Sunday.

Highway:

Highway is a story of a posh and high class young girl, who somehow seems to be trapped in that high culture aristocracy of Delhi. But inside she is a child wanting to explore the world, to know what it feels like to be free for a single day. This feeling can be understood by her state of mind as she was getting married the very next day and she decides to have her last freedom drive with her fiancee That is when she got kidnapped by some haryanvi rustic kidnappers. She was taken through a bumpy ride across north India, where by the passing days of her ordeal she discovered that she is tasting freedom for the first time in her life. She is free to go but she is longing to go away further in her journey. She realized that she is actually falling for her kidnapper,(this transition is very badly represented though), a man who has a rough exterior but who respects her and treats her with realism. She is no longer living a fake life of etiquette and good manners. That’s when she breaks down and share her tormenting past of child abuse to her kidnapper. How she had to behave like nothing has ever happened just because they are living in a society where child abuse is not considered a good word to hear. How she was facing her rapist uncle everyday at her home, and still she was behaving normally in front of him, as if the whole thing was not real but some nightmare.

Lovelace:

Lovelace is based on a real life story of girl, Linda, who got famous as a porn star by doing a porn movie once. She was just a regular teenage girl who feel suffocated by her over controlling church going parents and decided to move away with her recently found love interest Chuck. Chuck, who seems to be true gentlemen, soon marries Linda. They hit a financial rough patch and that’s when Chuck decides that the most easy way to earn money would be to have Linda work in a porn movie. She was scared and felt devastated and runs back to her mother, who only sends her back saying that a woman should always obey her husband, and do whatever he desires. She obeys. But Chuck was no gentlemen, not anymore. Beatings started and soon to earn more money he sells her last dignity, her body. Not to a single man but to a group of monsters.

After watching these two movies I realized the condition of women is not different in any part of the world. They may seem progressive sometimes but still many of them are sacrificing their freedom and dignity for their loved once. Sometimes by them and sometimes for them. Only thing that makes a difference in a woman’s life is when she starts listening to herself. When she decides to live her life on her own terms. In both the movies, the protagonist finally stands for herself and that’s when she break this circle of abuse and move on to live a life of dignity and worth-fullness. In Highway, she decides to move away from her parents and live alone her life, working independently. In Lovelace, she decides to leave her abusing husband. She marries again, become a mother, and writes about her “Ordeal” so that she can help other girls who are going through marital abuse.

Reflecting point is that no matter who you are or where you belong to, until and unless you stand for yourself, no one is going to respect you for who you are.

Be yourself. Be strong.

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Delhi Election 2013: Best thing that has happened to congress so far.

December 10, 2013 jcisnowjs 4 Comments

Elections for five states are over, results are out, and what a performance…..

BJP: Pass,

AAP: Distinction;

Congress: Fail (actually, if there can be anything worse than failure, then that).

Celebrations, sorrows, amusement, anger, disappointment, excitement; so many emotions are there on social networking sites. If we leave Mizoram results behind then it’s a really poor performance by the congress party. Lost 3 ruling states Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Delhi, with a big margin to opposition and couldn’t even shake the throne of Shivraaj Singh Chauhan from Madhya Pradesh. Most intriguing were Delhi’s results, with AAP ( a completely new party/ideology) emerging second largest after BJP.

I am not really comfortable calling AAP a party, it’s more of an ideology. Ideology of Anna, which was hijacked and then carried forward by Arvind Kejriwal. People have voted not for AAP the party but for the ideology that AAP stands for, for the values that AAP has shown, and for the honesty that people were craving for in the political system. It’s a whole new world. Who could have thought that a party which is actually just a year old will rattle heavyweights Congress and BJP with their marvelous victory of 28 seats. I bet, even Kejriwal hadn’t thought of winning by this much. But, this is not an easy road, It’s easier to talk about good and honest governance but it’s a totally different ballgame to actually provide one. With rumors of re-elections, it is not clear whether AAP or BJP will form the government in Delhi. But, my wish is to see AAP as the ruling party. I don’t want Kejriwal to sit in opposition and call out media conferences every time they do not agree to ruling party decisions. I want them to rule, and deliver every promise that they have made for winning election. I want them to provide transparent and good governance. I want them to prove that they are not just an ideology, but party with a working and practical ideology.

Our very own party with difference:BJP, is gaining momentum with each passing day, courtesy none other than Mr. Modi. But, if the current election results are any indication then other than Modi there are two major factors that are favoring BJP. These factors are poor governance of congress on national level and good governance of BJP in BJP ruled states. It was the good governance of Shivraaj Singh Chauhan in MP, which has proved once again that there is no other alternative. It was the anti incumbency voting in congress ruled states, which has translated into success for BJP. To top it all, BJP has a charismatic leader. A leader who has proved his governance, his decision making abilities, his motivational and inspiring persona and above all a leader who is not heir to a popular dynasty but rather has risen from somewhere within us. Narendra Modi. Right now, he seems like the only leader who has the vision and a will. But, is it enough for BJP, enough to come to power? I am not very sure. I do believe that there is a “Modi Lehar” but BJP will need a “Modi Aandhi” to actually sweep away all the big and small obstacles (regional parties) and come to power in center. Till then “Dilli abhi door hai”…..

Coming back to from where I started – The Congress. Oh my dear Congress, what can I say about you. It looks like that you have seen the worst in Delhi elections, but believe me this is the best thing that has happened to you. Why I am saying this? Well, to start off, you needed it, you needed that big jolt, a thunder lightning or a “zor ka jhatka”, just so that you can see the reality. Just so that you can see where are you headed to. This is the best thing happened to you, because now you can open your eyes to see. Look around, you are surrounded with parasitic Yes-Men.

I feel amused when I hear some of them asking to declare Rahul Gandhi as congress PM candidate for coming elections. Why? Do you want to end his political career? It’s too late now, there is no option other than defeat, then why do you want to make Rahul Gandhi a face of failure. Spare him this time. Think about what you can do to minimize the margin of your defeat. Make some changes, drastic one. Do something, or at least pretend, that you are doing something. Exercise your PR, not through media but through social media. We all know media is paid, we don’t believe in journalists as much we believe in trolls on twitter. If you can’t do anything futile, at least try to be humble, show some respect to voters. India does not live around 10 Janpath anymore. Shifting is in progress, you better book your movers and packers. See you at the other side……