Mechilpuram

An image of my hall, with people erased from it Here goes a tale from childhood, when Thursday meant the world for me as a kid in Dubai Skipping the morning ritual of going to school, we would be back by 2:30 pm or so back home. Stowing the schoolbag away under the desk-table - never to be seen until Saturday morning was written in the story, though Amma never approved of that The best part of the day at school, would be having Art or Music classes, where we would be engrossed in drawing a line or two or singing out of tune to leave my music teacher Mr.Tully red-faced. The art teacher Mr. Geoffrey, was a strict person - so there would be no way out of this, though art was'nt my forte. Huddling together to fill in the dotted lines or coloring the pre-drawn picture never meant much. We had to take Faber Castell coloring sets to school! Losing one of them color pencils would be unthinkable After having a rice lunch consisting of Thursday-special chicken curry (courtesy of Amma). The n...

Musings  One of my recent pet peeves has been taking a track that I've been grooving on and focusing on the coordination and steps put forward by the background dancers in them Growing up, they were like invisible - there, but not there. We must remember that this was an occupation in a field that fed thousands. One misstep, and you could be costing immeasurable amounts in production costs to retake the dance scene As a general observation, Malayalam Cinema eventually weaned off background dancers by the late 2000's. This is to say that Ensemble dances sort of lost their charm in the calm wave of Malayalam Cinema - with character centric plots and performance trumping visual treats. Looking back, those were some memorable times. Two tracks that come to mind at this time, are Ente Ulludukum and Kadamizhiyil . Both choreographed dances are a contrast in visual treats to each other, while retaining the same setting , which makes us think how much thought goes into make the dance ...

I wanted to share this capture of a lighthouse that I took yesterday  As we locked eyes; in the dark, she stood tall and majestic in the distance, in it’s own right. Lighthouses may have lost their relevance over time, but people still stop by when they see one and take in its grandeur for a wee moment, even with the hubris behind them. Armed with a will to weather even the strongest of storms and disasters, it maintains it's robustness, thwarting away each challenge and standing unperturbed. It's a beacon of hope, a navigator for the men of seas during choppy weather and a marvel in its own right. She was like a lighthouse, yet so impressionable. Someone who liked to hug the waves, but stood lonely during the nights - with a fire blazing within.  This piece is for her, even though we might never cross paths again. I hope that this lighthouse gives you the hope that you seek for.

Musings It's Thursday night in Al Satwa, Dubai and you don't want to do anything better than curling up on your setee with a BluRay disc playing the movie that came out two years ago, alongside a bowl of crisps and some cold orange juice to wash it down with. Thursday night signaled the start to the weekend.   How simpler were those days? You either caught the hottest movies at the theater during their run time or just sat patiently, waiting for it's disc to hit the neighborhood video store. It was pure ecstasy to catch a Mohanlal movie sitting there on the shelf, just waiting to be picked up. At this point, I’d like to recount an incident from 2006–2007, when renting a CD happened once in a blue moon. It was a cool weekend night, and we were all cooped up in front of the TV to watch whichever movie Acha had brought home. Mind you, it was an unofficial CD, with just the movie’s name written in blue marker pen. **Drumrolls please** we ended up watching Thanmathra that night...

I came to know about this movie in recent days and can’t really wrap my head around what is going on. Went in expecting a raw, straight to the point movie. Closed the laptop with disappointment, with the realisation that Jayaram got mislead again for a project With the word "mislead", I want to express Jayaram's need of the hour, then to accept roles out of his comfort zone. That did come to fruition in Ivar, but the script totally let this movie down, despite it's technical excellence - in the cinematography and editing department, and the effort put in by the cast. Rajeev Kumar is one director that I respect, but this movie looks really bad, starting from the script.  Devi Ajith’s character was pointless. Me10, Biju chettan and Balachandran chettan looked handsome, but left me wondering why everything was conveniently falling into place to reach the climax  Anoop Menon’s character lets slip of his undercover identity easily, Me10 slaying an elderly dude while th...

  Source : Justdial Random Musings Imagine this. It's the dawn of 2004. At a time when internet cafes, Splendour bikes and polo striped t-shirts were in vogue, Jayaraj decides to tell the story of 4 vigilantes.  Armed with Iqbal Kuttipuram's script, and the nostalgia that frames from 2003 - 2004 Kerala brings us, Jayaraj crafted one of the best thrillers, that made people stop and think about how determined people can take law in their hands to avenge inequality and corruption. At a time when Malayalam Cinema was going through a less than stellar phase, we got some real gems that aimed to explore themes beyond what was the norm. Aparichithan, Kalachakram, Athbudhadweepu, Black and Kadhavaseshan are notable names. 4 The People is another pick that falls snugly into that select basket.   In the state of Kerala, where politics is a common tea-time topic of discussion, and SFI goons disrupt businesses every other week, vigilantes were an unexplored topic. Sure, Communist...

Sunday - meant Church A soundtrack that I would like to associate with Sundays, is that of Varnapakittu’s.  It’s tracks are beautiful and I remember returning back from church on rainy Sundays to watch it on Asianet, as the sky grew dark and getting ready to eat freshly made breakfast after church, riding on our Maruti Alto. It was all smiles back then, when the kid would flick the TV on and lounge on the couch, carrying my frame to watch some frames. After breakfast meant a short siesta for the elders. After lunch meant a royal siesta. Young me would be on the couch tuning into Asianet Movies and other random programs that Asianet used to air during it’s non-peak hours on Sunday afternoons. It's bliss to recall the names of movies that I was able to catch during those time slots - Thoovanathumbikal being an example. Just tuning in to be dazed by the frames. Nothing to worry about. The scene between Jayakrishnan and Madhavan, in the temple courtyard is one frame that still lives re...

Listening to “Eniku Padanoru” from Ivar Vivahidarayal right now. One of my favourites, but my mind goes woozy while singing along, with some memories that I have associated with this song My unpleasant memory with this track is that, it is played in the wedding CD of one of my uppapans (right when the groom leaves for church), who got divorced like 10-11 years later. This track was included then, because it was a hit  - Another thing is that the singer of this track, T.T Sainoj passed away like a year or so after this track was released. RIP Sainoj Pleasant memories - my previous relationships and envisioning lives lived with my crushes What’s the track that holds memories (both pleasant and unpleasant)?

Source : TheMovieDB 'Oru Chembaneer' has been a part of my playlist since last year and since Unni Menon acted in this film, I finally decided to give it a watch, a week ago. The film wasn't engaging enough, but the frames are cosy looking for a no-brainer watch. The frames are therapeutic to put your mind at ease, and travel back in time. It's fascinating to see how Kerala's economy has grown from 2003. Chena priced at Rs 7/- and renting a pucca house in the heart of the city for Rs 2000/-? Still from a scooter ride on Trivandrum's Streets in 2003 Source : Oru Chembaneer (Evergreen Film Songs) Interesting middle-class family dynamics. The director has displayed that beautifully as the family grapples with day to day expenses. Politics has been blended in well, with another side of a government job explored - pay cuts for the state's financial crisis, which is relevant even today. The abrupt ending of the movie didn't sit well with me. I was curious as t...