Student of the Year - Movie Review

Karan Johar's 'Student of the Year' was a huge let down. Not that I expected more but it was a bigger let down than I thought because he had some fine raw material in his actors, to work with. The three young actors did a good job and could have carried off a better story and made it much better - if Johar had more faith in them and not stuck to his comic-book fantasies, his gay themes, his wink-wink private jokes and an obsession with superfluous drama that does not penetrate an inch emotion-wise. Drama does not work, romance does not work, slick production values do not work. (But having said that, this is a forty five year old's review of a youth flick, so discount it that much.)

So we have St. Theresa's school that looks like a European public school and school children that look like they are out of western comics (say Archie...). Only thing is that these kids are not looking like kids (save Alia Bhatt). The two schoolboys Rohan Nanda (Varun Dhawan) and Abhimanyu Singh (Siddharth Malhotra) are full grown hunks with rippling muscles that no school kid can ever grow. They travel in their Ferraris, designer clothes, kiss and hug bikini clad schoolgirls - well life's like what it is in every school like it is. Add a gay Dean Vashist (Rishi Kapoor) who has the hots for his football coach (Ronit Roy), who secretly lusts after John Abraham's pics hidden in his draws (funnily Rishi Kapoor also makes faces just like Archana Puran Singh does in 'Kuch Kuch Hota Hai'), the fat and sensitive Parsi boy, the fan boy who pretty much carries all the stuff for the rich boy, the heroines chasme wali and Ayn Rand-reading chamchi and other stereotypes and you know that the cast is complete.

Anyway the school kids gather around in the first scenes to see the Dean who is ill, ten years after they all left school, obviously with a bad taste in their mouth. As they all speak into the camera and try to convince us that a lot of drama happened since they left which is very unconvincing we realise that the bad taste is the 'Student of the Year' competition conceived by the gay Dean. In this competition all the students are pitted against one another in the most amazingly stupid  competition ever conceived - a treasure hunt, a dance competition and a triathlon. Of course all students get competitive and fight against one another. In the end at the prize giving ceremony the fat Parsi boy gets drunk and shouts at the Dean publicly (you fatty...) for coming up with such a hare brained scheme that mucked up their strong friendships. Anyway less said about it the better. The only thing that we want to know is who gets the girl perhaps - but even that is not our concern anymore because no one seems really keen to get her. In fact the scenes between the two boys are more hot and romantic and caring than they are with the girl. I am willing to wager a bet that there are more scenes where the two guys hug each other than they hug the girl! Things like showing off Rohan's butt cleavage, jokes of guys telling each other 'kiss karoge kya', of 'Dean highway type ka nahi lagta hai..', of a coach not being able to smell a urine sample from ganga jal (what happened to our culture protectionists?) and actually sprinkling it all over his wife and son - and passing it all off as good humour shows a steady decline in Johar's sensibilities.

All in all, this movie is not worth a review this long. Johar strikes one as intelligent and one does not expect this sort of pandering for skin deep flicks from him that are so irresponsible and so lacking a central theme. What are you trying to say? What is the central conflict about? I can even understand a feel-good film far removed from reality which is what Johar is good at but here he fails miserably as he tries to cloak all sorts of far fetched ideas and behaviors in a movie targeted at the youth. Typically the youth does take a lot of inspiration from its role models (and Karan Johar is one) and it disappoints me to see that this is all he could come up with considering the resources he has at his disposal. Commerce is fine, and I believe that if you make an honest film for the audience it would still work. The problem comes when you think you know everything and you can pass off all kinds of  half baked, inchoate ideas in slick packages and take the audience for granted. The movie to me is best described in one of the dialogues in the movie - the fat Parsi man (he can never pass off for a schoolboy) says to his deeply venerated gay Dean in a public function at the end of the movie - 'Student of the Year, my a...'


  

And let there be light - Great pic by Satish

Just found this pic while rummaging through some old pics. Great shot Satish.

Pic courtesy Satish

The pot is on the wall and the morning sunlight is streaming through a small gap on the first floor balcony.

Cocktail - Movie Review

I watched this movie by Homi Adjania sometime ago on video. Since the story is by Imtiaz Ali (and Sajid Ali) it added some more interest to the movie. But what I saw fell short of my expectations and 'Cocktail' ended up being another movie that half-tried an interesting theme. Imtiaz Ali did the same with 'Rockstar' and I do wish he'd go all the way with his themes instead of pulling back and playing it safe. The theme for Cocktail - what if 'real' love really happens to those who do not know it? So we have Reggie, Veronica and Betty in a love triangle.

The movie revolves around Gautam (Saif) the flirt, Veronica (Deepika) the good time girl and Meera (Diana Penty) the salwar-kameez, namaste-aunty girl. Considering that I saw this movie only about 2 weeks ago there is no excuse for me to forget why Meera goes to London to meet her abusive fake husband (no love) Randeep Hooda (forget his screen name and don't want to find out either). I also forgot how Gautam and Veronica meet and how Veronica and Meera meet. But this much is for sure - Gautam the flirt who flirts with everyone, meets and flirts with a the fresh-in-London airport Meera too. Another scene - Veronica finds Meera in a ladies loo, all depressed after a break up with her fake husband from a hoax marriage for a visa to UK, and takes her home. Veronica the big-hearted also has pots of money to spend which she spends on booze and having a good time.

Once while walking on the road with V, Meera sees Gautam in a restaurant and tells Veronica of the incident at the airport. Veronica decides to have some fun and in a  totally unimaginative manner walks into a serious business meeting and acts the jilted lover. Anyway to cut a long story short the flirt and the partyg girl end up in bed. But the flirt likes the desi girl. Soon the desi girl likes the flirt. With all this liking going on even the party girl starts liking the flirt. Enter some unnecessary parents who are looking for desi bahus and some corNy twists there and finally Meera decides that she cannot like Gautam because Veronica is sleeping with him. Veronica feels that its ok since she has no real feelings for him. But soon she discovers her feelings and then its a free for everyone's feelings. It's a real cocktail this one.

But no fizz really. I felt that if that mother angle was avoided and if the characters had stayed true to themselves and let the feelings come by more naturally, it would have made a much better story. Somehow it never descended to that level of intensity and everyone works at a superficial level. The one scene where Veronica yells at Meera for taking her boyfriend away shows up like its real. But otherwise Gautam and Meera never worked for me as if they were sharing any serious magic between them. It appeared more like the flirt was looking for another conquest and the poor girl was looking for another shoulder. A marriage of short-term want than one of long-term intensity, of real love, which would have elevated the movie. Anyway, they never claimed much as the title says. Probably works for those who love mushy triangles - but did not work for me.

Taken 2 - Movie Review

Watched 'Taken 2', the sequel to Liam Neeson's action packed thriller 'Taken', at Prasad's today and it certainly was worth it for me. Kony is a great fan of 'Taken' and it was at his insistence that we quickly made it to the movie and settled down, popcorn and all.

Simply put, the relatives of the sordid chaps that Neeson kills in the first movie while saving his daughter from a prostitution ring in Europe that kidnapped her, vow to take revenge on him in the very first scene. Rather too dramatic those dialogues, about getting his back to that village and making his blood flow in those graves etc, but well, they set the tone! The revenge gang, a serious bunch that loves its football, sets out from Albania and finally zero down on Neeson (after stabbing a guy in the thigh). Neeson is in Istanbul on a security mission with an Arab sheikh. Even as the revenge driven Albanians come for him, he finds that his ex-wife, for whom he still feels, and his daughter, have also arrived in Istanbul as a surprise visit. Wife gets kidnapped, daughter escapes bad guys and the rest of the movie is about how Neeson tries to get them both safely out of danger and also handle a blood thirsty gang. I liked the way he goes with this dialogue - the one thing you should not do when a dog has found a bone is to try and take it away from it (referring to the gang trying to take his family away from him).

'Taken 2' as with the first, relies on slick and fast paced action sequences and Neeson looks brilliant in those. I thought the first one had a couple of sequences that were better (this one had one sequence of an SUV flying off and exploding and another emerging behind it just like a Telugu movie action sequence). Overall good value for your money and even though its all rather predictable, the director still manages to make it worth your while. If you're the action movie kinds you'll love it. If you're looking for good entertainment you'll love it. But if you're looking for deep engagement, you may not find it.

Thought for the Day - Am I fully here?

It was while walking in the park (a place where I get most of these thoughts) that I caught myself asking this question - how much of me is in the walk? I was not fully there obviously, as my thoughts kept flitting here and there, and only with great difficulty was I able to get my focus on the act I was in. (I was at best 20% in the walk and had no awareness of my breath, my body until I drew my focus on it.)

The question then is this - if we engage superficially in every act, we may not get the greatest results - because our focus and concentration and involvement is just not there wholly. Only when we learn to be fully in the act can we expect ourselves to merge with the act, to flow with it. That is the state that makes the act most interesting and productive. That is also the state that makes the act most natural and unique.We can ask this question of ourselves in whatever we are doing - writing, painting, accounting, playing.

To get the best out of whichever job you are handling, or more specifically to find that 'you' in that job, you must ask yourself this question as you do it. How much of me is right now in this job? And if it is not fully there, try and practice getting your focus on it fully. If we merge with the act, immerse ourselves fully, then we are creating what we were meant to.

Zorba The Greek - Movie Review

Saw the movie adaptation of the classic book by Nikos Kazantzakis. It was apparently made in 1964. One remembers the many stories that one has read about the way Anthony Quinn portrayed the role of Zorba the Greek over all these ears and finally I got to see that performance. He fully deserves all accolades and if there was someone perfectly made to play Zorba, it was Anthony Quinn.

The movie made me appreciate the book so much more - it's a classic in every way. (No wonder Osho keeps referring to Zorba so often in his books and discourses.) As the movie unfolded I could see myself remembering small incidents in the book, the small sequences, the little idiosyncracies of Zorba and the way he comes across with his crazy but wonderful philosophies. Alan Bates plays the soft Basil, the introverted English writer who has returned to Greece to run a mine he inherited. He is joined by Zorba who walks into his life and changes it - and with it ours too. Zorba's approach to people, to women, to love, to work, to passion, to music, to dance is all too original and it will only make us wonder at the Zorba we could all have been, we could all be, if we were more truthful to ourselves.

If you have read the book, the movie is a fair representation of it and Quinn pours life into Zorba and makes him walk and talk and dance. However the book had more depth and content. But having said that it was not an easy book to read - but the movie is lovely to watch. Pleasing on the eye, an easy flow to it and a smooth, feel good ending. It's in black and white and certainly one to watch.

The Art of Captaincy - Mike Brearley

I searched high and low for this book for a long time and finally found it on Infibeam. 'The Art of Captaincy' (Channel 4 Books, 279 pages, Rs. 399) comes with high recommendations and from one of the players who was acknowledged by one and all as a great captain. In fact they say that Brearley, a practising psychoanalyst, did not really find a place in the English XI at times on his batting alone but played for England because of his captaincy skills. I do believe that the captain can make a 30-40% difference to the team's outcome and wanted to know what Brearley had to say.

Written in a nice, very English way, with several anecdotes that provide insights into how the cricketing world and players function at the highest level, Brearley's book is a thought provoking book with great content. It is not an easy read mind you, and for the non-cricketer may appear confusing because he deals with several technical issues such as pitches, rules, weather, field placements etc. But for the aspiring cricket captain it is simply superb stuff. Though much has changed in the game from the time that Brearley wrote the book, it has enough to take away.

Broadly Brearley mulls over captaincy in action, choosing a captain, picking ends, selection issues, pitches and other conditions to understand on the morning of the match, batting order, field placements, strategies and tactics, aggression and team work. There are many references to the England team which he captained with distinction - players like Botham, Willis, Greig, Chappell, Lillee, Thomson and other contemporaries - and several other Middlesex players that included Gatting, Roland Butcher, Wayne Daniel and others.

I will quote some lines that I found highly interesting in the book.

On the leader - "A leader has to be able and willing to take in and think about the anxiety of those who work in the team. Sometimes it is a mater of getting to the bottom of the anxiety that has already been covered over. It has then to be conveyed often subtly, to those in the team that their predicament and anxieties are bearable.'

A Captain and his players - 'The captain....should be interested in what makes people tick.' 

And '...It's up to the captain and the coach to help players with self-defeating attitudes that arise individually or collectively as a result of their anxieties..should respond to a player.'

Take the pressure - 'The captain has to take on the pressures of the team collectively or individually, be shrewd, be tenacious and have tactical flexibility'

Common task or goal orientation  - '...must have the capacity to bring people together in a common task so people come to take pleasure in their joint and individual work.'

Paradoxical Qualities of the ideal captain - '...ingenious, energetic, careful, full of stamina and presence of mind...loving and tough, straightforward and crafty, ready to gamble everything and willing to have everything, generous and greedy, trusting and suspicious...'

On getting the best out of people  - '...Must know how to deploy whatever skills the players have at their disposal... must enable them to widen their range, to have the confidence  to experiment...in short he must get the best out of his team by helping them play together without suppressing flair...'

On believing his players - 'A captain is more likely to bring the best out of a player if he believes in that player.'

The team and the captain - '...team members are entitled to expect from the captain a respect for their ability, and even more, a respect and consideration for them as people.'

'Never ask of another what the captain is not prepared to do himself.'

Getting the best out of Bowlers - 'To remind and teach bowlers that they have more resources than they give themselves credit for.'

'...can never please all his bowlers all the time.Must know his bowlers. Bowler should feel he will dictate to the batsmen and not vice versa.'


On the field - 'Constantly keep thinking of alternatives. Must encourage all the team to think about the game from a tactical point of view.'

Team work - '...insist that each member of his side plays a part in encouraging and motivating others.'

Willis would ask if his hand was behind the ball in delivery, whether he was falling away, and whether he was moving in too fast or too slow.


On strategy - Brearley starts with a fine story of a lion keeper in England who never lost a lion. When asked how he said - no two are alike.
On strategy - 'Captains must have a strategy in place but approach each situation afresh. Needs a plan.'

On tactics for bowlers and fields - 'Be flexible about pitches. Bowl all bowlers on unpredictable wickets. Field placings depending on bounce on wicket.'

On tactics against batsmen - 'Pressurise the batsman. deny runs, get into their minds.The captain should continuously try to figure out what the batsman would least like of the available possibilities.'

For example Dennis Lillee said he '...bowls bouncers to hit the batsmen and thus intimidate them. Make the batsmen apprehensive and less confident.' Roberts bowled two bouncers in succession - one slower and the second faster.

More interestingly Brearley says how the English batsmen were '...secretly unnerved by the image of Australian toughness.'


Fight till the end - 'The team and the captain in particular, must never give up.'

On intuition - 'Do not mistrust your intuition.'

Captain to express - 'Certain amount of heat is required from the captain. Aloofness is not a quality that goes down well with the average cricket team.'

Player mentalities and fear of success - 'Some players are afraid of prominent success.If one sets one's standards high, one has to live up to it.' 

Brearley himself found it difficult to motivate himself and constantly undervalued himself.

On ruthlessness - 'Don't let the opposition off the hook. Don't take pity on the bowlers.'

Dealing with different players - 'The most crucial part of captaincy is in treating individuals differently.' - K. Fletcher

'Different players need different treatment. Some rise to the big occasion. Some wrap up the tail. Some need needling. Some need carrots and encouraging words.'

Team and the individual - 'Team success is indeed the product of personal successes.'

Discipline and humour - 'Discipline and creativity. Take it easy a little. Don't be too anxious.'


'A cricket captain is engaged in a co-op physical endeavour with the rest of the players and he is likely to get the best out of them by being to a considerable degree spontaneous and direct himself.'

Set high standards - 'A good captain will set high standards for everyone. A captain who settles for too little - the team subsides into mediocrity.'

Hallmark of good teams - 'Good teams have very few sessions where everything falls apart and they are resolute in putting the situation back together at the next opportunity.'


It is a book that must be read again and again and revisited every now and then to grasp it fully. Wonderfully written and with lots of content that makes for great man-management and leadership insights. For all cricketing minds, a must read. But even for those looking to get the best out of the team it has tonnes of value. Definitely recommended.