Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Friday, October 14, 2011
Why ARR for Rockstar
When Imtiaz Ali announced Rockstar with A R Rahman to be the music director of the movie, many eye brews raised – some with disbelief, some with appreciation, some with criticism, some with annoyance and some with happiness (that’s me :)).
It was difficult to believe that Imtiaz Ali would ever come out of his hit pairing with Pritam Chakrabarty. But he did. Many people said that he ditched Pritam, some said that he’s cashing on A R Rahman’s international success and some even said that he is trying to make an impression that he is different that he is not stereotyped and some said that he is mistaken.
I didn’t say anything. I was waiting for the audio to release. From the name it’s obvious that the movie is about a person who sings Rock music. I was keen to hear ARR composing some hard rock. But I remember I was fairly disappointed 5-6 months back when I came to know that Rockstar music is ready and the music is Sufi.
But ever since I have started listening to Rockstar, I have understood why Imtiaz Ali asked ARR to compose this movie. I always like Imtiaz Ali, and now I respect him and his judgment even more. It’s difficult for me to explain why I feel so but I can only say that Rockstar music is a continuation of Rang De Basanti and Delhi 6 combined. So, all those people who liked these two albums, they will find a treasure in Rockstar. Thanks to Imtiaz Ali for asking ARR to compose this movie.
It was difficult to believe that Imtiaz Ali would ever come out of his hit pairing with Pritam Chakrabarty. But he did. Many people said that he ditched Pritam, some said that he’s cashing on A R Rahman’s international success and some even said that he is trying to make an impression that he is different that he is not stereotyped and some said that he is mistaken.
I didn’t say anything. I was waiting for the audio to release. From the name it’s obvious that the movie is about a person who sings Rock music. I was keen to hear ARR composing some hard rock. But I remember I was fairly disappointed 5-6 months back when I came to know that Rockstar music is ready and the music is Sufi.
But ever since I have started listening to Rockstar, I have understood why Imtiaz Ali asked ARR to compose this movie. I always like Imtiaz Ali, and now I respect him and his judgment even more. It’s difficult for me to explain why I feel so but I can only say that Rockstar music is a continuation of Rang De Basanti and Delhi 6 combined. So, all those people who liked these two albums, they will find a treasure in Rockstar. Thanks to Imtiaz Ali for asking ARR to compose this movie.
Mohit Chauhan
It was 2006. The audio of the Rang De Basanti (RDB) movie had released when I was in Silchar. After six months when I went to Delhi, the movie had released and it was a huge hit and so the songs. I used to be very active in the A R Rahman Yahoo Fan club then. All members of the group used to rave about the songs of RDB and the hot and most favorite topic of discussion used to be Naresh Iyer. Naresh Iyer had a fairy tale story to tell. He was picked up by ARR from a channel V reality show and he had sung three songs in the movie and all were hits. So, people would not just stop gushing about him. I also liked his trained and very romantic voice.
But somehow the mostly unnoticed ‘Khun Chala’ was my more favorite in the album. It was by Mohit Chauhan. But no one seemed to notice the beauty and passion of his singing. I remember I had sent two mails in the group pointing out Mohit Chauhan’s brilliance and also saying that ‘I think Mohit will go long way’, and I had not received a single response to that!
There was something that I had found very unique about Mohit’s singing, which most singers lack now a days and that is his control over breathing. He had a little untrained flat voice then but his tremendous control over breathing in and out while singing was something shocked me.
Though Mohit Chauhan didn’t receive any immediate fame with RDB, but his next song was a huge hit - Tum Se Hi in Jab We Met. And then started his long success story.
Now the more I hear Mohit Chauhan singing one after another hit song, I become pleasantly surprised at my own judgment.
PS: Khun Chala from RDB was not the first song by Mohit. He used to be member of the group Silk Routes and Dooba Dooba Rehta Hoon was the first and also first hit song by him. I remember I had instantly recognized him to be Dooba Dooba singer when I heard Khun Chala and I had a tough time making people believe that.
But somehow the mostly unnoticed ‘Khun Chala’ was my more favorite in the album. It was by Mohit Chauhan. But no one seemed to notice the beauty and passion of his singing. I remember I had sent two mails in the group pointing out Mohit Chauhan’s brilliance and also saying that ‘I think Mohit will go long way’, and I had not received a single response to that!
There was something that I had found very unique about Mohit’s singing, which most singers lack now a days and that is his control over breathing. He had a little untrained flat voice then but his tremendous control over breathing in and out while singing was something shocked me.
Though Mohit Chauhan didn’t receive any immediate fame with RDB, but his next song was a huge hit - Tum Se Hi in Jab We Met. And then started his long success story.
Now the more I hear Mohit Chauhan singing one after another hit song, I become pleasantly surprised at my own judgment.
PS: Khun Chala from RDB was not the first song by Mohit. He used to be member of the group Silk Routes and Dooba Dooba Rehta Hoon was the first and also first hit song by him. I remember I had instantly recognized him to be Dooba Dooba singer when I heard Khun Chala and I had a tough time making people believe that.
Coincidence or Deliberate?
Chetan Bhagat’s novel Five Point Someone was the main inspiration for the blockbuster movie Three Idiots. Initially the announcement was like that Raju Hirani is making a movie on Five Point Someone with Amir Khan as lead. But after the movie released, there was no credit given to Mr Bhagat and it lead to many interesting articles in newspapers while Chetan Bhagat claimed being ditched.
Some days back, I found one article in news paper where Mr Bhagat is posing proudly and the article is about him and Hong Kong. Then I came to know that Mr Bhagat used to work as an Investment Banker in Hong Kong before turning a full time writer. It instantly rang a bell. Isn’t Chetan Bhagat a pass out from IIT? That means he is an engineer. And he used to work as an Investment Banker? Wasn’t the comic guy in the movie Three Idiots who was Kareena Kapoor’s fiancé also an Investment Banker and wasn’t he also an engineer? Because I remember Amir Khan saying “Agar bank mein hi kam karna tha to engineering kyun kiya?” about the guy.
I don’t read Chetan Bhagat’s books simply because I don’t like his soap-operatic conversationalist storytelling. So I never bothered to complete Five Point Someone after reading 5-6 pages of it. So I never know what are the similarities and differences between the novel and the movie. Then I checked out with my brother who has read the novel Five Point Someone (yes, full novel) if this character was there in the novel. He said that he wasn’t.
Ok. So is that a mere coincidence or something deliberate?
Some days back, I found one article in news paper where Mr Bhagat is posing proudly and the article is about him and Hong Kong. Then I came to know that Mr Bhagat used to work as an Investment Banker in Hong Kong before turning a full time writer. It instantly rang a bell. Isn’t Chetan Bhagat a pass out from IIT? That means he is an engineer. And he used to work as an Investment Banker? Wasn’t the comic guy in the movie Three Idiots who was Kareena Kapoor’s fiancé also an Investment Banker and wasn’t he also an engineer? Because I remember Amir Khan saying “Agar bank mein hi kam karna tha to engineering kyun kiya?” about the guy.
I don’t read Chetan Bhagat’s books simply because I don’t like his soap-operatic conversationalist storytelling. So I never bothered to complete Five Point Someone after reading 5-6 pages of it. So I never know what are the similarities and differences between the novel and the movie. Then I checked out with my brother who has read the novel Five Point Someone (yes, full novel) if this character was there in the novel. He said that he wasn’t.
Ok. So is that a mere coincidence or something deliberate?
Common Sense is most Uncommon
Today after much adventure, I got into a bus at Silk Board. My destination Jayadeva Flyover. Since I don’t come to office by bus usually I was not aware of this bus’s route. I got the ticket and then I thought “I have to get down under the flyover, so what if the bus takes the flyover?” So I decided to ask the conductor.
Me: Sir, bus flyover ke upar se ya neeche se jayegi?
Conductor: Upar se janeka road hai kya madam?
True. The Jayadeva flyover is one-way. Only people coming from Bannerghatta and Jayanagar can take the flyover to come to the Silk board side of the flyover, but vehicles from Silk board can’t take the flyover, they have to take the road under the flyover. For last six months everyday my cab takes the flyover but still this common knowledge was not visible to me until now.
Me: Sir, bus flyover ke upar se ya neeche se jayegi?
Conductor: Upar se janeka road hai kya madam?
True. The Jayadeva flyover is one-way. Only people coming from Bannerghatta and Jayanagar can take the flyover to come to the Silk board side of the flyover, but vehicles from Silk board can’t take the flyover, they have to take the road under the flyover. For last six months everyday my cab takes the flyover but still this common knowledge was not visible to me until now.
Monday, October 10, 2011
Lost and Found – Part II
It was supposed to be just another cash-draw from the ATM machine near my house. But it wasn’t.
I had drawn some money from the ATM and started walking towards the departmental store from where I had to buy some 15 odd different types of stuffs like – butter paper for book covering, zipped plastic pouches, Colgate Total paste, dustbin bag, etc.etc. As I was walking, I could hear ‘some lady’ was calling ‘some another lady’ saying “excuse me ma’m”. I was sure that no one was calling me as hardly anyone knows me here. But after some seconds when I turned around I was surprised to found out that the ‘some another lady’ was none other than me and the ‘some lady’ was calling me on her top of her voice while waving my debit card in her hand. I stopped and the lady came and gave me my debit card saying ‘Is it yours ? You forgot it in the ATM’. I was speechless, scared, relieved and hugely annoyed on myself, all at the same time.
I thanked that lady and accepted the card. Next few minutes I was cursing myself for doing such a big blunder. I was also shocked thinking how I could do that! It’s been more than five years I have been using debit cards and this was the first time I did something like that. I always used to think how I would face the day when I would forget my debit card in the ATM machine. I used to think that I would do that if I ever go through extreme and unbearable mental tension. But ironically, though I have already passed through extreme and unbearable mental tension, I never did something like that then! Compared to that time, I am quite easy and relaxed now. I even dug up my thoughts as what I was thinking at that specific moment but that also turned out to be my regular thoughts on my brother’s wedding plans, my poor bank balance, what to wear the next day at office and about two characters of the novel I am reading (to be precise, about Spikes and Kirin from the novel The Unwaba Revelation by Samit Basu).
I kept on thinking for few moments while doing the shopping in the departmental store (Thankfully I had made up a list of what all I had to buy or else I would have come back not buying more than half things!!) and then came up with a considerably logical explanation to my disastrous activity. It’s so that, I generally draw money from the ATM in my office which is of ‘swipe’ type where I get back the card immediately after swiping it. But the ATM near my house is an ‘insert’ type and which swallows the card during processing the transaction and gives back at the end. Might be my continuous use of ‘swipe’ type made me to forget to collect the card at the end while using an ‘insert’ type ATM. But having said that also, I believe that this is no excuse for what I have done.
I had drawn some money from the ATM and started walking towards the departmental store from where I had to buy some 15 odd different types of stuffs like – butter paper for book covering, zipped plastic pouches, Colgate Total paste, dustbin bag, etc.etc. As I was walking, I could hear ‘some lady’ was calling ‘some another lady’ saying “excuse me ma’m”. I was sure that no one was calling me as hardly anyone knows me here. But after some seconds when I turned around I was surprised to found out that the ‘some another lady’ was none other than me and the ‘some lady’ was calling me on her top of her voice while waving my debit card in her hand. I stopped and the lady came and gave me my debit card saying ‘Is it yours ? You forgot it in the ATM’. I was speechless, scared, relieved and hugely annoyed on myself, all at the same time.
I thanked that lady and accepted the card. Next few minutes I was cursing myself for doing such a big blunder. I was also shocked thinking how I could do that! It’s been more than five years I have been using debit cards and this was the first time I did something like that. I always used to think how I would face the day when I would forget my debit card in the ATM machine. I used to think that I would do that if I ever go through extreme and unbearable mental tension. But ironically, though I have already passed through extreme and unbearable mental tension, I never did something like that then! Compared to that time, I am quite easy and relaxed now. I even dug up my thoughts as what I was thinking at that specific moment but that also turned out to be my regular thoughts on my brother’s wedding plans, my poor bank balance, what to wear the next day at office and about two characters of the novel I am reading (to be precise, about Spikes and Kirin from the novel The Unwaba Revelation by Samit Basu).
I kept on thinking for few moments while doing the shopping in the departmental store (Thankfully I had made up a list of what all I had to buy or else I would have come back not buying more than half things!!) and then came up with a considerably logical explanation to my disastrous activity. It’s so that, I generally draw money from the ATM in my office which is of ‘swipe’ type where I get back the card immediately after swiping it. But the ATM near my house is an ‘insert’ type and which swallows the card during processing the transaction and gives back at the end. Might be my continuous use of ‘swipe’ type made me to forget to collect the card at the end while using an ‘insert’ type ATM. But having said that also, I believe that this is no excuse for what I have done.
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