Saw these guys randomly at Union Square subway station in NY and decided to grab a clip. Outstanding musicians.
I hope they get discovered!! :)
Friday, February 22, 2008
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Flights of Fancy
Flying east long distance is always an unusually awe inspiring experience. The sun always seems keen to meet you. From the darkness of the night with the twinkling of a few lights 11,000m below you on some obscure island or forgotten city and a yellow jagged moon yawning horizontally at you, to an orange hue appearing on the horizon lighting up one solitary face of the sometimes-rocky-sometimes-covered-in-a-soft-bed-of-fresh-snow Alaskan Range, representing the eagerness of a brand new day, to the bright sunshine - the pomp and glare of high noon - it all happens quickly.
It's a new day. A new start. A new world. A new hope.
No - I haven't gone nuts. Just very inspired by my Executive Economy window seat on SQ22 from Singapore to NY!
The landscape is mind-bogglingly (sic!) beautiful. At sunrise, we're over Alaska, revealing the contrast of jagged, mean-looking rocks and the purity of untouched snow. As the sun gains in strength and permeates everything, we have flat white expanses of what would be beautiful cold blue steel river. The kind you'd expect to see on a postcard from Vermont.
At this point I'm being chided by the stewardess for keeping my window shade open. They want to keep the cabin pitch dark so passengers won't wake up and ask for things!
I still sneak a peek every so often.
It's a new day. A new start. A new world. A new hope.
No - I haven't gone nuts. Just very inspired by my Executive Economy window seat on SQ22 from Singapore to NY!
The landscape is mind-bogglingly (sic!) beautiful. At sunrise, we're over Alaska, revealing the contrast of jagged, mean-looking rocks and the purity of untouched snow. As the sun gains in strength and permeates everything, we have flat white expanses of what would be beautiful cold blue steel river. The kind you'd expect to see on a postcard from Vermont.
At this point I'm being chided by the stewardess for keeping my window shade open. They want to keep the cabin pitch dark so passengers won't wake up and ask for things!
I still sneak a peek every so often.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
The battle between the long beards and short skirts
Sania Mirza (the only Indian female tennis player to have broken into the Top 30 on the ATP tour!) has taken a stand. She is not going to play anymore tournaments in India.
Attagirl! For what it's worth, I'm behind her all the way! She's had enough of the self acclaimed moral police telling her that she's baring too much skin and that she should play with a hijab or a burkha on, failing which, she should be duly punished, which in this case would be pelting her to death with stones (since we're still living in the 12th century.... BC). On top of that she's been embroiled in a controversy about the flag. Only because she had her feet a few feet from it!!!! No one's saying she was stamping all over it like a child that's been denied her candy. She was sitting. Her feet were placed a few feet away from the flag. And effigies were burnt!
For fuck's sake!
She's representing our country! She's the best we've ever had. Her booming forehand has left many more prominent opponents stunned. She could inspire a generation of Indian female tennis players. Leave her be. Nurture talent, don't use it as a platform for your jingoism and cheap publicity.
But this right wing funda-fucking-mentalists are not the only one's to blame. Next up is the media. Switch to any news channel in India (even the "respectable" NDTV), this is their sensational news for the day. They'll run polls, vox-pops, panels and the like asking everyone and a stray dog whether they think Sania's skirt is too short. The fat Gujarati businessman, who probably gets his rocks off watching women's tennis, takes what he thinks is a moral highground and condemns Sania. Another fat aunty gets interviewed on the street while trying to get the poor vegetable vendor to shave 2 Rs off the tomatos she just bought. And she thinks it's not in line with Indian conservatism. Then they have the gall to cut to an interview with some FUCKING religeous expert who claims this is against the will of Allah!!!! WHAT???!!!!!! Allah, I'm sure, has more pressing matters to deal with - like a bunch of lunatics killing in his name! Something tells me he's a tad upset about that.
Who gives a fuck about what a fat Gujarati businessman, the haggling aunty or the dated bearded dude think? None of them have ever played tennis or done anything that would make their parents proud (leave alone an entire nation).
Therein lies the 3rd set of people who're pissing me off. The common man - and thats a big bug-bear to carry. The NDTVs of the world carry this sensation through the day only because people want to hear about this. People revel in other people's misery (Mahogany had a very interesting post about this wrt Britney Spears). Get over it. Get on with your life. Cheer her on and be happy there's someone doing our country proud in sport. And be prouder that it's a woman. Salute her spirit and egg her on. Reject this nonsense from the media.
While all of this goes on - I hope Sania keeps her spunk intact (that sounds so wrong), works on her serve, and more importantly, continues to inspire the next generation of Indian tennis players.
On a separate note - where do effigy burners come from? Who makes the effigies? How do they have the time in the middle of the day to get together and burn an effigy? Don't they need to be at work or something? It could be a great business idea! Effigy makers. 3 hours delivery at a prominent junction anywhere in the country - guaranteed!
Attagirl! For what it's worth, I'm behind her all the way! She's had enough of the self acclaimed moral police telling her that she's baring too much skin and that she should play with a hijab or a burkha on, failing which, she should be duly punished, which in this case would be pelting her to death with stones (since we're still living in the 12th century.... BC). On top of that she's been embroiled in a controversy about the flag. Only because she had her feet a few feet from it!!!! No one's saying she was stamping all over it like a child that's been denied her candy. She was sitting. Her feet were placed a few feet away from the flag. And effigies were burnt!
For fuck's sake!
She's representing our country! She's the best we've ever had. Her booming forehand has left many more prominent opponents stunned. She could inspire a generation of Indian female tennis players. Leave her be. Nurture talent, don't use it as a platform for your jingoism and cheap publicity.
But this right wing funda-fucking-mentalists are not the only one's to blame. Next up is the media. Switch to any news channel in India (even the "respectable" NDTV), this is their sensational news for the day. They'll run polls, vox-pops, panels and the like asking everyone and a stray dog whether they think Sania's skirt is too short. The fat Gujarati businessman, who probably gets his rocks off watching women's tennis, takes what he thinks is a moral highground and condemns Sania. Another fat aunty gets interviewed on the street while trying to get the poor vegetable vendor to shave 2 Rs off the tomatos she just bought. And she thinks it's not in line with Indian conservatism. Then they have the gall to cut to an interview with some FUCKING religeous expert who claims this is against the will of Allah!!!! WHAT???!!!!!! Allah, I'm sure, has more pressing matters to deal with - like a bunch of lunatics killing in his name! Something tells me he's a tad upset about that.
Who gives a fuck about what a fat Gujarati businessman, the haggling aunty or the dated bearded dude think? None of them have ever played tennis or done anything that would make their parents proud (leave alone an entire nation).
Therein lies the 3rd set of people who're pissing me off. The common man - and thats a big bug-bear to carry. The NDTVs of the world carry this sensation through the day only because people want to hear about this. People revel in other people's misery (Mahogany had a very interesting post about this wrt Britney Spears). Get over it. Get on with your life. Cheer her on and be happy there's someone doing our country proud in sport. And be prouder that it's a woman. Salute her spirit and egg her on. Reject this nonsense from the media.
While all of this goes on - I hope Sania keeps her spunk intact (that sounds so wrong), works on her serve, and more importantly, continues to inspire the next generation of Indian tennis players.
On a separate note - where do effigy burners come from? Who makes the effigies? How do they have the time in the middle of the day to get together and burn an effigy? Don't they need to be at work or something? It could be a great business idea! Effigy makers. 3 hours delivery at a prominent junction anywhere in the country - guaranteed!
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Kite Runner - Reviewed
If you've read the book, watch the movie only if you're able to watch it as yet another film (not a book adaptation). If you haven't read the book, watch the movie and THEN read the book.
I'd read the book. But I watched the movie for what it was worth as a film. And I was not disappointed.
Kite Runner is a poignant story about a young Afghan boy who is raised by his rich anti-communist, mustang-driving father in the pre-Russian invasion days (think late 70s, early 80s). They have helpers at home who've worked with them for 2 generations. The child of the helper and this young boy are the deepest of friends until one day, while exercising his loyalty to his friend the poor helper boy gets raped. The rich boy is a silent witness but is afraid to intervene. Plagued with guilt, he cooks up a story to get the helpers driven out of their home so he doesn't have to face up to his guilt of being a silent spectator to an inhuman act on a friend who was standing up for him.
Years go by. The Russians invade Afghanistan, the rich boy grows up and his father grows old in the US. Circumstances bring the rich young boy back to Afghanistan - back home where he is forced to deal with the past he so avoided.
It's a must-read and should-watch.
The cinematography is outstanding. The acting, brilliant. The locales - heart breakingly beautiful (note that the film was shot in China given the security hazards in Afghanistan) and the kite flying scenes - stunning.
Check out the trailer below...
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Thank you for the Music!!
There are many universal truths. One of them is that everyone has songs that remind them of a certain someone, a certain occasion, a certain time of life... you can tell the story of your life in songs. With my iPod on and my uber cool sound eliminating Sennheiser headphones cutting me off from my otherwise silent and super cold (thanks to the air con servicemen) study, I was thinking about mine - in songs... this is an excerpt of what I came up with... (warning - embarassing confessions ahead) -
The Early Years...
Two very memorable tunes come to mind - "Rage in the Cage" by the J.Geils Band (1981). My aunt (mum's younger sis) would play this and I'd do one of those crazy uncontrolled and uninhibited jigs that only kids can pull off (when you're a kid is about the only time you can heed the advice - dance like no one's watching). And "D.I.S.C.O"... not the remixed one. The original one - I don't even remember who did it - and it's kinda hard to google it. You can imagine how one might get side-tracked with a search for "DISCO". My uncle (Bob - he prefers being called cousin and does frequent this site) would play this on vinyl back in the day (Sad fact is that I'd be lucky if a lot of people I work with have ever seen a fucking audio cassette!) and I'd get the spelling wrong (I wasn't a very bright kid).
My First "own" music
My brother and I would get a bunch of Sony CF90 blank tapes and record a whole lot of crap on them - over and over again. Including our voices (it's weird how your voice always sounds so bad when played back!... or maybe it's just mine!!). Some of the more memorable tapes had tracks like "The Final Countdown" by Swedish band Eurpoe (1986) and "Axel F", the instrumental piece from Beverly Hills Cop (1984). Briefly, there was also an African Music phase with stuff like "Mori Kante" and "Yeke Yeke" thrown in. But that was more my brother than me!
Puberty Blues Stage
And then the tough years... fur for facial hair, pimples, a cracking voice and other things that generally tend to conincide with puberty! This is when I bought my first 3 pre-recorded tapes, all in 1987 - the La Bamba soundtrack, the Bad album (Michael Jackson) and the Faith album (George Michael). Yes I'm cringing now. At that time, I thought Father Figure was a very raunchy song (won't elaborate on why). Also got into Madonna (Papa don't preach, Back into the Groove etc) and there was a very hot video there that I can't remember (It wasn't the banned Justify My Love - that came later).
The First CDs
We got our first CD player around 1991-92 (I remember we went to Lamington Road in Mumbai paid Rs 15,000 for a Sony 500W PMPO system with a double tape deck and CD player in it). Our first CDs were Snap - World Power, Enigma, Paula Abdul (CRINGE!!!!!!)
Outta School, Into College - the Love Song Phase!
After a brief hiatus where no major musical highlights come to mind, next came college. Just a quick clarification here - in Mumbai, we go to college at 16! I wronged my first real crush (now married, a very dear friend and has the lovliest daughter) in a big way. I kept playing "Please Forgive Me" by Brian Adams... to myself! Then my first girlfriend (think she's getting married soon or just got married). Our song was "Annie's song" by John Denver. Whenever we had a fight (which was wayyyyyyy too often), I'd play this over the phone and we'd be fine... for the next 10 minutes. When I broke up with her, I thought I was going to die. I played "All Outta Love" by Air Supply over and over and over. In hindsight, death might have been easier on me.
Coming into my own....
All this while, in the background I had been exposed to "better" music. My mum is a Beatles fan, my uncles played Abba, BeeGees and other 80s classics (there's no proof better than this that "better" is a relative term indeed!!). Got into the Beatles in a big way. Then into some classic rock - Floyd, Led Zep etc during my years in Calcutta. Comfortably Numb and Creep and Smoke on the Water are 2 songs that will always remind me of the Calcutta daze! Might give you a clue about what went on there!
If you're STILL reading this, take a minute and leave a comment with a song and a memory. The more incriminating, the better! :)
The Early Years...
Two very memorable tunes come to mind - "Rage in the Cage" by the J.Geils Band (1981). My aunt (mum's younger sis) would play this and I'd do one of those crazy uncontrolled and uninhibited jigs that only kids can pull off (when you're a kid is about the only time you can heed the advice - dance like no one's watching). And "D.I.S.C.O"... not the remixed one. The original one - I don't even remember who did it - and it's kinda hard to google it. You can imagine how one might get side-tracked with a search for "DISCO". My uncle (Bob - he prefers being called cousin and does frequent this site) would play this on vinyl back in the day (Sad fact is that I'd be lucky if a lot of people I work with have ever seen a fucking audio cassette!) and I'd get the spelling wrong (I wasn't a very bright kid).
My First "own" music
My brother and I would get a bunch of Sony CF90 blank tapes and record a whole lot of crap on them - over and over again. Including our voices (it's weird how your voice always sounds so bad when played back!... or maybe it's just mine!!). Some of the more memorable tapes had tracks like "The Final Countdown" by Swedish band Eurpoe (1986) and "Axel F", the instrumental piece from Beverly Hills Cop (1984). Briefly, there was also an African Music phase with stuff like "Mori Kante" and "Yeke Yeke" thrown in. But that was more my brother than me!
Puberty Blues Stage
And then the tough years... fur for facial hair, pimples, a cracking voice and other things that generally tend to conincide with puberty! This is when I bought my first 3 pre-recorded tapes, all in 1987 - the La Bamba soundtrack, the Bad album (Michael Jackson) and the Faith album (George Michael). Yes I'm cringing now. At that time, I thought Father Figure was a very raunchy song (won't elaborate on why). Also got into Madonna (Papa don't preach, Back into the Groove etc) and there was a very hot video there that I can't remember (It wasn't the banned Justify My Love - that came later).
The First CDs
We got our first CD player around 1991-92 (I remember we went to Lamington Road in Mumbai paid Rs 15,000 for a Sony 500W PMPO system with a double tape deck and CD player in it). Our first CDs were Snap - World Power, Enigma, Paula Abdul (CRINGE!!!!!!)
Outta School, Into College - the Love Song Phase!
After a brief hiatus where no major musical highlights come to mind, next came college. Just a quick clarification here - in Mumbai, we go to college at 16! I wronged my first real crush (now married, a very dear friend and has the lovliest daughter) in a big way. I kept playing "Please Forgive Me" by Brian Adams... to myself! Then my first girlfriend (think she's getting married soon or just got married). Our song was "Annie's song" by John Denver. Whenever we had a fight (which was wayyyyyyy too often), I'd play this over the phone and we'd be fine... for the next 10 minutes. When I broke up with her, I thought I was going to die. I played "All Outta Love" by Air Supply over and over and over. In hindsight, death might have been easier on me.
Coming into my own....
All this while, in the background I had been exposed to "better" music. My mum is a Beatles fan, my uncles played Abba, BeeGees and other 80s classics (there's no proof better than this that "better" is a relative term indeed!!). Got into the Beatles in a big way. Then into some classic rock - Floyd, Led Zep etc during my years in Calcutta. Comfortably Numb and Creep and Smoke on the Water are 2 songs that will always remind me of the Calcutta daze! Might give you a clue about what went on there!
If you're STILL reading this, take a minute and leave a comment with a song and a memory. The more incriminating, the better! :)
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