Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak

Andaz Apna Apna

Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar

Sarfarosh

Lagaan

Rang De Basanti
And Now,
Taare Zameen Par!
We have been fascinated by the bubbling young boy in QSQT and delighted by the stomach-aching comedy of AAA. The ultimate spirit of competition and the riveting climax of JJWS have thrilled us to the core. The honest and dedicated ACP Rathod of Sarfarosh is still fresh in our minds. We have loved every moment of Lagaan – cricket and otherwise. Then we moved one gear up into the RDB mode – A watershed movie in Bollywood. And, now TZP!

These are just a few magic spells – courtesy the majestic wizardry of Aamir Khan. Magic: because they hypnotise us like nobody else can.

I still remember the RDB era, when the spirit of nationalism reached its pinnacle. The period preceding it as well as the aftermath of RDB was marked by that “Kuch Kar Dikhana hai” attitude. We all wanted to “Be a Rebel” against the corrupt political system.

So what sets apart Aamir Khan and his movies from the rest of the pack? Why do we feel that adrenaline rush and sense of enlightment during those unparalleled cinematic treats? Well its simple! Its because the characters, the storyline – cause and effect are not taken from an alien world. The AK show is to the people, by the people and for the people. For once, the real and reel world metamorphosis into each other. The 8mm world frame displays our world – feelings, emotions and passions. Couple all this with some breath-taking performances and the ‘magic spell’ is complete.

And then AK decided to put up the Director’s shoes and we all were mesmerized again! For TZP can’t be described by one single adjective from the vast English vocabulary. Well, I atleast could not find one!

2007 has infact been one of the better years in Bollywood. ‘Life in a Metro’ (7/10) and ‘Bheja Fry’ (7.5/10) were two special movies this year. And if ‘Johnny Gaddar’ (8/10) was an outstanding edge of the seat, fast-paced thriller; then, ‘Jab We Met’ (8.5/10) was entertainment at its best. A pleasant surprise and a welcome change from the other insipid Shahid-Kareena ventures. A perfect case of ‘Jab They Clicked’! “Chak De! India” (9/10) was the front-runner for the ‘best movie’ crown for most part of the year (till 21st December to be precise). Infact, this rare masterpiece has already been blogged here! But, then the ‘jaadugar’ wielded his magic wand for the umpteenth time.

“Taare Zameen Par” has been exquisitely reviewed and then reviewed again, quite a few times already. And it deserves all the accolades too.

Ishaan Awasthi’s portrayal of a dyslexic kid, under the perfect direction of Aamir Khan is a treat for the eyes, music for the years, an emotional saga for the heart and food for thought for the mind.

Well, we are all mortals living on planet Earth. But, some of us manage to dodge the universal truth – ‘To err is human’! Because these chosen few rarely put a foot wrong. They are all around us. Like the Sachin & Lara’s of cricket, the Federer’s of tennis and Schumi – formula one etc.

And now the time has duly arrived, to hail the greatness of the man who continues to amaze us over & over again – for more than a decade now!

If there was ever a slightest doubt about the quality, meaningfulness, the sense and sensibility of Hindi cinema – Then this ‘enigma’ erases it for once and for all. For until the moment the ‘one and only’ Aamir Khan graces the reel world with his esteemed presence – film industry in general and Bollywood in particular would never be worthless!

Remember Aamir Khan and his genius! And be thankful that we all lived in the era of ‘The reluctant star”…

Let his magic show continue till eternity…

“Beh Chal Kahin, Ud Chal Kahin,
Dil Khush Jahaan, Teri to manzil hai wohi”…

This post is dedicated to all my dear friends who are indeed the wind beneath my wings! (As one of my dearest pal once pointed out)

6 days to go: Well I don’t have a best friends list in particular. But if I had one, ‘Sid’ would top it any given day! No I would not go waxing eloquent about him. His orkut testimonials serve that purpose. So as we met in gurgaon, there was a surprise awaiting me. My first B-day wish in advance with a special card and barista cake!

3 days to go: An email from China office, wishing me in advance… No points for guessing who had mailed dear buddy!

2 days to go: I was in office. And then my phone rang, a good old Thapar friend calling… after quite some time… A soft & refreshing voice that brought an instant smile on to my face. “Happy B-day in advance”. Before I could ask why so much in advance, bang comes the reply: “Because I know you would be at home and I am sure you wont pick up the phone on roaming!”. If only she had known, the roaming blues that lay ahead!! I reaffirm that this wont be the case and she promises to call me again.

7 hours to go: The standard EVS B-day mail hits my inbox! And this time I am also in the hall of fame. What follows is a sudden rush of B-day wishes mail and office colleagues wishing me ‘in advance’. The eternal “When is the party” question is next! I had already prepared for the answer. I am going home and party will have to wait till at least next week!

45 minutes to go: I am on my way back home, trying my level best to catch up with some sleep. But the B-day excitement has gotten over me now. And I just can’t sleep in that luxurious AC coach deluxe bus. My mobile starts ringing again. Its Harpreet@infy calling... from Mysore! She had a bad habit of forgetting things! But this time around, she more than made up for those forgotten times… With this call, I was completely on my heels now, for the ensuing callers…

20 minutes to go: This time its happy b-day wishes via written communication, as a sms beep has my cell ringing again!

5 minutes to go: An EVS-Doon friend calls up to wish me in advance, lest she sleeps after 5 minutes!!

22nd December, 2008 (12 am IST): Phew its my Birthday now!!! And another of my sweet friend calls, bang on time: Bingo! Piyush: He is always at the right place at the right time!

And then follows a flood of calls…
7 in the next 45 minutes: ranging from as small as 20 seconds to 16 minutes!! They come from everywhere: from RJ, left stranded in ambala (now that is another story) to Devein calling from Kolkata, from ‘Sid’ wishing many many happy returns of the day! to Vikas wishing in true Punjabi ishtyle! In between few sms also make their way amidst huge rush! Then the longest call till then (16 minutes), from the lady that gave me the idea to write this article. Thanks yaar :-) I will discuss that amazing trip some other time! 4 missed calls on my cell when the call ended: from my dear cousin@faridabad! Its 12:45 am now…

I wait for half-an-hour more anticipating some other well-wisher taking the pains to call me up at this weird time! Well my other friends are sane enough I guess, no more calls then. So, I finally slept!

6:50am: Once, twice, thrice… No I am not going to wake up. Well, I am sleeping in my cosy bed at home sweet home! So hold-on guys…

7:45am: Ha.. this one does wake me up! Maybe its because from a far-off place seeking urgent attention. A call from Jamshedpur: crisp & concise. Happy B-day!

9:00am: Now this one is special. Because its MJ calling from Chicago,USA. Its still the night of 21st there…

9:15am: “She” calls me again. And I do pick-up the phone on roaming!

The calls keep coming! And I also unfailingly receive all of them! They are all from different zones of India…
In between, I also swap wishing roles. Its Karan’s B-day too! And I take-up the honour to wish him in the afternoon…

From my chemcool batch to the EVS group, all my close buddies: call me, sms me or scrap me!!
There are some nostalgic college days conversations and some funny office ones too! I listen to everyone with growing amazement… There are talks of screwed up jobs and there are ramblings of being unemployed still! There are some unexpected wishers too and some friends who forgot the all-important-day!!

I had to charge my cell twice in the day and almost lost a fortune on roaming! But these things just did not matter… What mattered was how some people not only remembered me, but also those small things in our relationship! And how they made my B-day full of wishes, unforgettable…

The final caller was My flat mate Dheeraj at 10:50pm, making the cut just in time! (Otherwise I had planned to call him at 11:55pm, his b-day is on 23rd, and to make him feel guilty!)

So as the clock ticked 12 again, completing a fascinating B-day, I had perfectly understood the nuances of this very special occasion in everyone’s life!

Many Many Thanks to all my dear friends for making the 22nd December so special for me :-)

Do you like Music?

And

Do you like to Dance?

If the answer to both these questions is NO, then please don’t read on. (It’s not worth the pain!)

But if you answered YES, then: Let the Music play and Dance to the tunes of MAD in a trance…

The atmosphere is Rocking! Sound levels are hitting maximum decibels. Lights are at their flickering best. On the disc floor: Body is moving at top speeds. The head is banging up and down. The hands are in perfect synchronization with the leggy mechanics. The bends are rotating and the curves are revolution(ary). The heart is pounding and the pulse is racing. The Dance Club is freaking out, the floor is creaking and the shrieking crowd is going crazy. The adrenaline rush is on: For the last 300 minutes!!!

Welcome to the M A D world of “Music And Dance”…

This was a scene taken out from the M A D parties, which serve as the ultimate stress buster from the workaholic world! Because when you dance, you let go everything. The mind is in a state of absolute relaxation. It is a matter of spirituality redefined, the MAD way. The everyday monotony is broken, paving the way for an all-out fun and enjoyment! The ideal tonic for the upliftment of the soul.

In this MAD world, there are no boundaries of formalization. There are no rules to be followed and timelines to meet. And most importantly, it gets people connected! There is instant interaction amongst seemingly unknown souls, irrespective of your hierarchal status. It units one and all. There are no racial overtones and cultural stigma attached in this carefree world.

Looking for a companion and bondage with opposite sex: MAD time is again the best time!

A win-win situation for everyone.
So guys, it just does not matter if you have no clue about which song is playing in the disc or you have never ever stretched your body, let alone dance.

Just go Mad about MAD and everything would fit in smoothly! Put your dancing shoes on, in this musical world and rock the party…
Aaja Nach Le…

“Good-Bye”

And with that one last word, she was gone…

Around 2 months ago:

I was stumped by that one-liner flashing on my computer screen. It read- ‘Would you like to be a buddy, Jitin?’ The question was asked by my manager. On first thought, I took it as some sort of mistake. So, I reconfirmed and to my amazement, it was intended at none other than me. I thought for a split second and then answered in the affirmative. How I relish that decision now!!

Miss Patricia Wang (or ‘Pat’ as I call her) graced India with her presence on the night of 15th October. My colleague and great friend ‘Sohail’ accompanied me for her pick-up from the air-port. I knew her face but carried a sign-board with ‘Patricia’ written on it, just in case! Suddenly a cute girl walked out of the airport with an intriguing expression on her face and a yellow bag on her back. Both of us shouted: “Patricia”!!! Our eyes met and there was instant recognition. Something told me that the next 45 days (the duration of Pat’s stay) are going to be fascinating. This time around, I was right!

We had already developed a great rapport, even before meeting. This was courtesy: Instant Messaging (IM) service. What followed were some amusing conversations…

Now, Pat is an interesting character. She can be quite serious at times (read: 1 out of 10) and almost notoriously funny at other times (read: 9 out of 10)! But her biggest asset is: Adaptability. Even after couple of days in India, she was completely at home. So much so that, she had chosen her home-town also: Chandigarh! And it was this quality, which made Pat’s stay all the more enjoyable. Infact, she loved anything and everything about India from day one:
The food was spicy for her taste, but she made it look delicious…

She was unawares of the Hindi language initially. But in no time she had learnt many good words. (The best ones being: ‘Theek hai’, ‘Accha Accha’,’ Haan Haan’(with that trademark neck movement :-) and her favourite one- ‘Chalein’).

Before stepping on the Indian soul, she knew only a handful of people. After one week, she was friends with everyone!

And then came the exhilarating weekends…

We went to the Malls of new gurgaon and also checked out the small shops of its old counterpart. Patricia tried everything for commuting: the rickshaw, the auto-rickshaw, the cab and what not! Yes, she was fond of exploring all the new things…

Then came the Delhi trip which simply rocked!! (My best weekend to date here). Steve and Rishabh joined us for this rendezevous with the Capital of India. The ‘Fantastic Four’ explored the heights of Qutab Minar, the markets of Delhi Haat, the handi-crafts emporium, the spicy restaurant of Connaught Place. The best part was the visit to India Gate. This all-out fun ride culminated with the glorious Rashtrapati Bhavan (President House). We had the times of our lives.

The following days were even better: We had this night-out party (sponsored by Manish and Rachit) with Adi’s show being the icing on the cake ;-)

Then our dearest Sanjeev sir invited us to the Lotus temple. And this ‘terrific trio’ performed a total hara-kiri there. We had lunch at an outstanding South Indian restaurant with Sir treating us :-)

Miss Pat also surveyed the International Trade Fair, Delhi and the wondrous Taj Mahal etc!!!

And then came the D-day…

A befitting farewell followed, with cake, sweets and gifts pouring in… All of us penned down our best wishes on the farewell card!

The journey back to the airport was next. Life had come a full circle!

At 1.30 am in the night of 30th November, she checked inside the airport and waved us…

I was assigned as a buddy to her. And in the end, we were the Perfect Buddies!!

Take care Pat and stay in touch :-)