UNDER-APPRECIATED CINEMA - I

As I have come to understand, a movie doesn't really have to be "good" to be "awesome". With the right amount of audio-video and special effects, huge landscapes and sets, and mind-boggling stunts, an otherwise ordinary movie becomes a top box-office grosser. The intrinsic characteristics of the movie are seldom sized up. I do not speak of the artsy-fartsy flicks here, but of the subtle yet riveting onez, that have gone unsung for want of more glitz and glamor, publicity or maybe publicity stunts.

But should we miss a great movie just because we haven't heard of it?

TEEN DEEWAREIN (2003) : Very few have heard of this movie, fewer have seen it, maybe because it wasn't released in many theaters across India. Nagesh Kukunoor, writer-producer-director of the movie, belongs to a new cadre of film-makers who use new innovative ways to target the new urban audience. The movie is a story of 3 prison inmates on death row- Jackie Shroff, Naseeruddin Shah, and Nagesh Kukunoor, each for having killed a woman. Gulshan Grover plays, ironically, the humane prison warden and Juhi Chawala an amateur filmmaker, making a documentary on their lives. The three convicts could not be any more different in character and in their responses to the death sentence. The film is not just a human interest story or a polemic against the death penalty but also a suspense thriller. The story has an unpredictable twist in the end where we see how a single incident connects 3 different people forever, like the 3 walls of a room. With outstanding performances by Naseeruddin Shah and Juhi Chawala, and an exceptional plot, this movie could certainly make the biggies of Hollywood jealous!

THE MAN WHO WOULD BE KING (1975) : This is one of the very few movies that I have watched on TV, and perhaps the only one that I watched in the middle of the night. Not only is it adapted from a Rudyard Kipling story, or directed by John Huston, or set in the British ruled India, but it also has Sean Connery and Michael Caine in their finest performances. The two are officers in the British army who find themselves at a loss when their services are no longer required in Asia. While blackmailing a local Raj, they are exposed by author Rudyard Kipling and eventually get him to witness a contract for their latest plan – to become kings of a small country by training a village to conquer the rest of the villages and then leave months later with riches. 'Flawless', is the word for it as it couldn't be closer to perfect. Interesting trivia about the movie is that it is about a real place- the then 'Kafiristan' is now 'Nuristan', a place located in Eastern Afghanistan.

The Great 10 of all Time

I have been toying with the idea of writing a blog for many weeks now. After much procrastination, insistence of friends and lot of sincere and random reading, here I am joining the bandwagon of blogging. And as I do so, it’s only fair that my first entry is dedicated to the Great writers and thinkers whose works I have admired, revered and followed in the last few years, and who have influenced the thinking of many others like myself.

The Great 10 of all time (in no order) :-

George Orwell- I began my serious novel reading with ‘Animal Farm’, so it remains very special to me. It had this brilliant analogy, which contained my interest throughout the book and stirred up my interest in reading literature further. My second book was therefore 1984, and it only got better. Orwell’s books connect, very effortlessly, to the real world and lend an indelible impact on the reader's mind for a long time after they have been read.

Fyodor Dostoevsky- Despite reading only 2 novels by this legendary Russian writer- 'Crime and Punishment' & 'The Brothers Karmazov', I stay challenged to state that he is one of the most phenomenal philosophers to have ever lived. His grip on human psyche, seen in the context of the 19^th century Russian society and influenced by the socio-political rhetorics of the same, puts him in the league of the most profound psychologists of all time as well!

Ayn Rand- Path-breaking writer, and in my opinion the most misunderstood too, Ayn Rand invented the ideals of objectivism and opined that ethical egoism and rational self interest will lead to a perfect world. Despite meeting with fierce critics of Rand’s philosophy, I have relished reading her books for the true heroism they seek to portray in otherwise ordinary people.

Oscar Wilde- I had been forewarned about reading the Picture of Dorian Gray, as it was supposedly too much to grasp! The great thing about Oscar Wilde’s works is that they are anything but one-time reads. They keep getting better with every read ! Wilde’s sharp witticism and self-conscious contradiction is truly unmatched. Unfortunately I have been able to read only 2 works by this great author, who dared to write about being gay in the 1800s !

George Bernard Shaw- His works show great verbal wit, rebellious attitude and disregard for (English) conventions, and are a pure treat to read. Very few know that Shaw also won an Oscar, along with the Nobel prize for literature. I’m a mad fan of his quotes too, so concise yet so profound!

Charles Dickens- All of us have grown up reading stories from his plays and despite his archaic turn of phrase, so far there hasn't lived a soul that has been as humourous as Dickens. Pip, David Copperfield, and Oliver Twist have almost become historical figures!

Leo Tolstoy- When it comes to "realist fiction", nothing compares with 'War and Peace' and 'Anna Karanina'. I had to slow down my reading to fully savour every word and each phrase of these books. The grandeur and enormity of his books is overwhelming.

P.G.Wodehouse- He has written the best modern-day comedy I have come across so far. The elegance and humour in his writing is class apart, i feel everyone should read a Wodehouse in his/her lifetime. I wouldn’t think twice before calling him the funniest writer of the 20^th century!

J K Rowling- Okay I have to be biased about this one! As a die hard Harry Potter fan, I am obligated to admire the genius behind it. J K Rowling isn’t the most successful modern day writer for no reason- she has created a magical yet consistent and believable world! Her narrative genius and extensive character descriptions have made the books worldwide classics, besides making whopping sums of money for the makers of Harry Potter movies.

Mahabharata- There is never-ending controversy about who wrote this great epic. Ved Vyas is credited with it, but I believe those who say that it isn’t the work of a single person. Truly, it can’t be. Mahabharata is the greatest work of literature to have ever existed, capable of spawning hundreds of novels out of itself. Even the abridged, translated version of this epic holds you in awe for many days. It is rightly said about Mahabharata- "What is found here may also exist elsewhere, but what is not found here does not exist".