Me in 2007

OK, First off, i should tell you that i DONT make new year resolutions and so, this post is NOT about broken resolutions. *flashing teeth*

Don’t you think “Past-Year Retrospection” is a far more prudent MO? You cant break retrospections, now, can you?

So, heres my own PYR 2007 – off the top of my head, in no particular order…….

In 2007, these are the books that i read and still remember (:D)
The Name of the Rose – Umberto Eco
Journey to the River Sea – Eva Ibbotson
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – J K Rowling
Cry, The Beloved Country – Alan Paton
Thud! – Terry Pratchet
How to be an Alien – George Mikes
plus lots and lots and lots of chick-lit and several mindless advneture novels(hehe)

In 2007, i watched the following movies and still remember them:
Donnie Darko, Casablanca, to Kill a Mockingbird, Crash, The Departed, The Seventh Seal*, Brokeback Mountain, 300 *grin*, Capote, A History of Violence, Casino Royale, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Heat, Chak De India, Akira Khurosawa’s Dreams*, Taare Zameen Par, Om Shanti Om (i grudgingly admit i liked more parts of it than i hated), Arabikkatha, Mozhi.
(WOW! that is a LOT of movies….)
On TV, i mainly just followed Grey’s Anatomy. Have stated watching The Closer too, though.

*Of these, I caught The Seventh Seal and Dreams at Lakeside Campus’s very own film festival :) “KALEIDOSCOPE“, which was a small but delightful event. Too bad i couldn’t catch the other
films that were screened.

In 2007, I mostly listened to these artists/singers/bands:
The Beatles, U2, Alexi Murdoch, Queen, Dire Strits, Counting Crows, John Lennon, Sting, Bruce Sprinsteen, Bob Dylan, Moby, Dido, Sufjan Stevens, The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, Mukesh

Other sweet things in 2007-

Spending a lot more time with the 4R’s (you know who you are :)…) truly delightful thing, this!!
With all the reminiscing, movie-watching (accompanied by movie-pausing and middle-of-the-movie-discussing), gossipping and above all, the silliness that has carried on over the years. Love you guys!!

Attending an impromptou NPSK Reunion early in the year. We had a mellow and happy time, around 20 of us. That was nice :)

Turning 21. It felt profound for a while. That wore off, of course… but i thought i should mention it…..

Celeberating Onam like never before!
Sounds odd, i know- Seeing as i’ve lived my whole life in Kerala. But this years Onam Celeberation on campus was an awesome 2 day affair. It was well organised, un-lame (i know thats not a real word) and fun with traditional games, good natured contests, a delicious sadhya and genreal cheer. What i have to say about Onam this year could fill several posts, actually. You get the idea though – FUN ONAM!

Installing Ubuntu Fiesty all by myself on my PC and having a lot of fun with it. Then updating it to Gutsy without glitches :D

Working on our final year project – getting on a boat, collecting our samples, the whole hoopla.
Most people would hate sieving the mucky sediments, filtering the plankton and frantically taking physico-chemical readings….. but i LOVE IT! :D….. I love walking around carrying the thermometer, salinometer, pH meter and even the lux-meter all at once and recording data at a frenzied pace while people try to knock you off the boat. lol.

The following things/people really grew on me over 2007 -
A certain paraniod, crazy fraud mallu chick; Lakeside Campus; Hindi and tamil movies (both to a very small extent); KIOS; Dr. Gregory House

Regrets 2007 (no, this is NOT the same as making a list of broken resolutions)
Didn’t travel much……….
Didn’t finish many books i started reading……..
Didn’t loose much weight………..
Didn’t conqour any part of the world in my quest for absolute power….
Didn’t *BEEP: THE REST OF THE REGRETS HAVE BEEN BLOCKED since they’re none of your business :P*

Happy New Year Everyone!

Filed under: books, list, movies, music, my li'l life

Taare Zameen Par

When I started working on this blog, I asked myself what my first post should be about. Then I went to watch this movie, “TZP” as they are calling it. I found my answer……..

Now, I’ve seen enough hindi movies to know that you must NEVER go to one with ANY expectations. In fact, I tend avoid hindi movies altogether. But watching the promos and knowing Aamir Khan had made this movie, I walked into the theatre hoping and praying that this one would be worth it …… hoping I wasn’t wasting an entire evening.

My prayers were answered by a brilliant script, a delightful cast and and insightful direction.

I could easily summarize by calling it an “emotional rollercoaster” or “tear-jerker” or use other phrases that crop up in movie reviews. I’m not going to do that. I’m not going to type out character sketches or a plot summary, either. I don’t beleive I need to.

The message of this film is simple – “Every child is special” and its on every poster. This message is bought to us in an absolutely honest yet subtle and sensitive way. There isn’t a single thing in this movie that stands out like it doesn’t belong. Every character, incident and emotion is genuine.

TZP hides nothing and makes no excuses. It is not a sad movie. It’s not a feel-good movie. It just is……

The animation, music and lyrics deserve special mention. But more importantly, there is no part of this movie that you have to ignore or block out in order to give it 5 stars – and that is saying something for a hindi movie.

Honesty and boldness apart, it is about finding your own silver lining. This is what makes it a true gem of a film.

It’s clear that this movie comes from the hearts of everyone involved. Taare Zameen Par is not meant for just parents or children or teachers – just people. Watch it.

I dedicate this first entry in my blog to Aamir Khan, the perfectionist. :) If he ever reads this, he should give himself a hug.

Filed under: hindi, movies, review