Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Rockstar - A Review

Firstly, where the hell are the rocks at?! Let me make this easy and summarize the entire review of this movie into one word - CRAP. Well that's just my humble opinion, this movie was such an utter and absolute waste of time. I literally had to take a freaking break every 10-15 minutes of this movie. I'm really disappointed with the fare Imtiaz Ali has come up with this time. 'Jab We Met' was a whole lotta fun, I didn't really enjoy 'Love Aaj Kal' all that much, it was entertaining but nothing to write home about...but in all honesty, looking back 'Love Aaj Kal' was waaayyyyy better than this torturous movie. This movie definitely goes into the crap bucket of 2011 movies.

As much as I'd like to give you a preview of the story, after watching this movie I'm not quite sure what the main premise of the story is supposed to be. Before watching the movie I assumed it was supposed to be a look into music, the passion, the turmoil, the angst, the very notes that make music and a musician rise and soar. I thought it was gonna b a look into the life of a Rockstar, well in this case an Indi-rocker and the whole love, sex, drugs aspect of the rockstar life, from the Hindi film industry's perspective. The rock genre of music is something that's thriving in the Subcontinent, and you'd be quite amazed and impressed with the rock bands you find out there. I haven't really immersed myself in that scene yet, mostly due to being critically and permanently traumatized by my brother's live shower-time performances from the bathroom...those things kinda tend to have a lifelong impact on you.

There was way too much the screenplay was trying to achieve and I found it to be highly disjointed, disruptive and irregular. Imtiaz Ali would've definitely had a fantastic script and movie at his hands, if it hadn't been for the way the entire damn screenplay was organized or in this case disorganized. For a movie about music, it is quintessential that the story have soul, because music is nothing without soul...if music had no soul then it would be like burnt toast, charred and far beyond comprehension for any of the senses. The beauty of music lies in it's ability to seep and soak through each and every single pore of your mind and body, without considering or paying any attention to trivial things like language. This entire movie though, seemed to be filled with horcruxes, with pieces of the story's soul dispersed here, there and everywhere.

As far as the soundtrack of the film is concerned, well hey it's by A.R. Rahman so the expectations will always be high and people without batting an eyelid will tell you it's AWESOME. The soundtrack is a'ite for an A.R Rahman fare, there were very few songs that caught my attention. Maybe it's one of those soundtracks I need to listen to more often or something in order for it to have any impact. There's probably 2 or 3 songs that I probably like from the entire soundtrack, like I said I might have to give the rest a more patient sit through. That being said though, I am disappointed with the soundtrack of Rockstar...Somehow since 'Rang De Basanti' and probably even 'Guru' there's been a bit of a plateau that the maestro seems to have hit with his compositions. No I did not enjoy the 'Slumdog Millionaire' soundtrack, all though we all love saying 'Jai Ho' at any given moment or occasion,  nor did I think the movie was outstanding (that's a whole other issue though). There's something amiss from this track, now I don't know if it's cuz of a Mohit Chauhan (whose songs I do love listening to) overdose or not, but it just feels like a very incomplete and abrupt soundtrack. None the less, my song picks from this soundtrack include,

- 'The Dichotomy of Fame'
- 'Nadaan Parinde'

In terms of performances, they were strictly okay to grating on the nerves. Ranbir Kapoor was a'ite, he was bearable and at times was irritating, I don't know I didn't see the whole 'OMG it's his career best performance yet!!' that people seem to be harping about. I do feel bad for the chap, it would've been great if the movie had a great and solid storyline. Nargis Fakhri...oh boy, well she's got a ways to go that's for sure, she definitely has to work on a few things...perhaps working on those facial expressions and easing up on the dialogue delivery in future films will be fantastic, and not screaming so much. Don't want to over-criticize her in her first film, but I think she just needs a few more projects to get a tad more comfortable in front of them cameras.

Best things about the movie? Well first of all...my FAVORITE thing about the movie was seeing the awesome and amazing Late Shri Shammi Kapoor sir in this movie. Next in line would probably have to be the publicity posters...they are pretty awesome in terms of art concept and all. Yet another cool thing shown in this flick, which I think is a first of it's kind, is portraying and showcasing a Kashmiri Pandit wedding. It definitely was one of the coolest things I've seen! You get to see and learn a few new things I guess.

Well I had to share my take on the 2 hours and 40 minutes of my life that were lost over a span of a day just to watch this movie. Well that's that from the 'Thot Facktoree', here's to optimism and looking forward to substantial entertainment and not half baked goods in the name of entertainment, and those of you who watched this flick do let me know what you thought about the flick. I'd love to hear what you have to say about the movie! Thanks for tuning into another bullet review!



Disclaimers w.r.t copyright laws and schnazz goes in here, I do not own these images, Shree Ashtavinayak, T-Series, Imtiaz Ali and Eros International own the rights to this flick and the posters and everything else...except my opinions.


Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Resonance

I had quite a sobering thought yesterday/last night, and perhaps I should've acted on it then and posted it on here right then. It was a battle between exhaustion and writing, clearly the z's won out. That's probably why my thoughts are currently a little more diluted than it was last night and so it doesn't have as much of a resonating effect on me as it did last night.

Just how honest are we being with ourselves or with life for that matter, if there's this absolutely huge hollow space within us, a void, an abyss of nothingness that's been shrieking, crying and screaming for years on end? Those screams set every molecule on fire, and get your hairs to stand on end, yet all you can do is either choose to ignore it and let it live long and prosper or cave in and handle what happens when you fall into the abyss. Either way, are you living a complete and fulfilling life? Or have you just mastered the art of compromise? This hollowness within can swallow you whole, drive you insane and give you insight...it's a brand whose burden and weight apparently only the bearer can withstand.

Which leaves me with that quandry, is this entire thing that's happened so far a lie, where my neuronal networks have just fired together and learned to compensate and now respond to various visual, auditory and tactile stimuli on autopilot as a result of all the compensation that's happened over years? Or are my responses individual and novel and not generated on an autopilot basis? The mind is a real fantastic and freaky place, it's power of suppression is beyond comprehension, in my humble opinion, as to date. We haven't even been able to tap into that aspect yet...I think if we did we'd have some novel forms of therapy for those of us broken beyond repair, and in general probably rebooting our entire mental framework. It would be a breakthrough, but then again like everything in life there are pros and cons. You'd either end up with people hell bent on mind control and zombies/droids or you'd end up with a world of thinkers and doers, people who would be given that chance to move on and achieve whatever they're capable of.

But then again...all that's suppressed and repressed always finds a way out, and when it does...well I guess that's something for you to imagine...For my part? Well...been there and done that.



Oh and one more thing, by ways of copyright laws, these images don't belong to me, they're end results and by-products of other creative people. I'm just borrowing these images to add some colour to these posts, so please don't be offended oh mighty creators.

Friday, November 11, 2011

Journaling the Journey

Wow...re-reading that subject line makes me question the spelling of journey, actually more than questioning the spelling, it makes me wonder about the origins of the word. This has definitely got to be a record since the blog started...I don't think I've dished out as many words on my virtual canvas on here, than I did back in first year. Of course at that time, the sole intent and purpose was to find time in my ever changing crazy schedule, so I could give you guys a glimpse into the life and times of me, myself and I. You never know when all this verbal carnage will come in handy...Can you imagine it? Me conquering the world, the way I deem fit? Don't worry there should be a minimal chance of stage fright, on my part at least, and also a very slim chance of a corny speech, but I hear corny speeches happen regardless of whether you want them to or not, 'cuz you're overwhelmed by the shock factor of being recognized and awarded. My mirrors (oh and trust me I have quite a few at my place, no it's not really my vanity that's the cause...and believe me I tried the whole 'Mirror mirror on the wall' thing, didn't really work, the mirror chose to be silent....maybe it's 'cuz I asked it in the wrong language...चलो अगली बार हिंदी में पूछ लेती हूँ.) Have I told you just how much I LOVE having that option of using Hindi on here? It just makes my day!

When I first started this blog, I wanted it to be an almost daily reflection of my adventures, trials and tribulations on this fantastic and adventurous journey I've embarked on. To be able to walk the first few steps of that path to the biggest dream you've ever had is something close to a reverent feeling, it's a momentary feeling of being one with the world...well if you've never really felt that I highly recommend you start picking up some meditation techniques. Not that meditation is something I indulge in these days, I find the quiet to be quite noisy, there's a shriek to the silence that defies and pretty much belittles all other shrieks and screams. The quiet just gives rise to more thought processes being stimulated and I kinda lose focus on the most important thing 'bout meditation...i.e gaining and maintaining focus. Initially I was able to share a few interesting adventures via this outlet, but then with time...well especially last year blogging wasn't exactly something I had the time for, and when I did have a little time, trust me it was well spent on sleep and recuperation. Recuperation being quite the quintessential component to maintaining one's sanity...then time passed by and I metamorphosed into a wall or rather a cavern of disappointment and bitterness. I found it highly ridiculous and ludicrous that unethical bullshit, unfair advantages & linguistic advantages were something that played a greater role in the success stories of quite a few people, so far, in the same program I was in, while a few of us believers in that old adage of 'fair and square' quite literally got screwed over. You might think it to be a case of sour grapes and all, but trust me kids, be in my position for a milisecond and you'll sure as hell know the difference between sour grapes and being consumed by a blackhole of rage. There is a deep, dark pit that some people completely overlook in these cases....you see it's one thing to feel the things you feel when certain things happen during a moment and then to let it go when the moment passes, and, it's something else when you clinch on to those things for life. It's extremely toxic to do so, it's not just toxic in terms of a social life but it eats away at your mind, and the most important thing that will help you survive and overcome the general BS of the world is the power of the mind.

I mean c'mon who gives a damn 'bout a social life? A social life and circle is only as existent and dominant as you want it to be. People cannot make or break you, but you on the other hand can definitely make or break them, sounds like a buncha paradoxical bullshit doesn't it? People think they can own you, it's funny the ways and means in which they try to do so, it makes me laugh when people try to exert their control/charm (please it makes me roll my eyes and makes me wanna gag) over me...the best part is waiting for the right moment and zapping them with a sizzling answer...BAZINGA! Aah nothing feels b8r than shooting down a jerk...try it, it's quite therapeutic...oh and when you do add a nice dollop of sarcasm to it too, it gives things a tangy flavour, if not it definitely adds a zing/spice factor into the conversation, and best part, people won't mess with you, unless they're dumb as doorknobs.

All I can foresee for the current, inevitable future, is a journal mostly 'bout the leaps and bounds I've made, from that fresh outta Uni undergrad with a gazillion dreams, hopes and visions in her eyes, to that quiet spectator with a few more years of wisdom, a shorter fuse but with those very same eyes that see those same old dreams and visions (of course some of the visions and dreams have tapered down, on the basis of logic and rationality...I mean c'mon how can I get a unicorn any time now? Unless I knew what would convert stone to life, then that would be a different thing all together). Yes in case you haven't realized...it IS all about me! I'm not sure of my growth as a person, no unfortunately I stopped growing vertically a while back (curse you growth hormones for not doing a more efficient job while I was a blossoming teen...you shattered my dreams and wishes of being 6 feet tall *sigh*) and the horizontal growth is always a work in progress. The more I see on this journey, the more I wonder as to which disillusioned idiot came up with a list of noble traits and characteristics as prerequisites for one of the most noble professions in the world...I wonder what they would have to say if they saw the current bunch of nobilists sullying the very noble profession unto Kingdom come. I've rolled my eyes far too many times, that I think I'm a living, breathing, eye-rolling specimen. Which is not to say the ride so far has not been a fun one, oh trust me it's been a rip-roaring entertainer so far....there are lessons you won't ever forget and then there are people...Oye vey, the people you meet on this journey are unique, special and absolutely priceless in their own way. I'm actually contemplating doing a character sketch of each person I meet/have met over the past few years/months/weeks and posting it up on here. I'm sure you guys must have bumped into similar people while making your way through your respective journeys.

Well I'm gonna end things rather abruptly on this note, I had an incessant need to spew my verbalage out...it's been a super trying day for me and while I would like to rant and bitch about the idiotic morons all around me that make up for a majority of the population, I'm still in the process of modifying my language and diction control so I can try and stay and neutral and diplomatic as possible....though I'd be surprised to know just how long that neutrality is gonna last.Well have a great weekend folks and please take a moment or two to pay your respects to those who sacrificed love and life to save and protect our rights and freedom. They will never be forgotten, they will always be our heroes and most importantly their lives were never lost in vain...they will always be our brightest beacons of hope, justice, peace and freedom. Remember...remember...this Remembrance Day., all that we lost for all that we gained.


Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Scaling Down

Allo allo and wats goin on folks? Keeping in line with this post's subject line, let's just see how much I can scale things down by alright? I've been warned, informed & educated about my exhuastive use of words in emails, posts, stories and things of the sort. However, I do have my reasons...I'm not that expressive a person when face-time is brought into the equation, a person's silence isn't something people care too much about, it's either disregarded, ignored or considered to be something the individual excels in. Yes this does make me a quiet person by nature, which I'd like to think I am, but apparently that's also just another theory that I single handedly believe in. I've been told those days of long meaningful letters seems to have left the building, and you know what?! It was most definitely rude on their part for not letting me know while on their way out. Apparently emails should be the equivalent of tweets, subject to character and word limits...how was I the last person to know 'bout this? I just thought it was another way to substitute snail mail, you know minus all that waiting and all. Besides, isn't it a tad more endearing and personal when it's a bit on the longer side of things? Okay maybe with the advent of Skype and what not things get re-defined, but even then, isn't it nice to get a long email every once in a while? Guess I'm in a time warp as far as that's concerned huh?

I guess before I start my email editing and text modifying exercises, I'd rather exercise that task here with this post...which I know is a fantastically amazing source of entertainment for those of you who wander & stumble through here. The rest of you, who are regular readers, you can heave a sigh of relief, but then again that depends on how long this turns out to be. So let's get started already shall we? It's been an interesting week of developments and fizzle outs. For one I've been pretty much announcing this to all and sundry, well especially to those ppl. closest to me so technically yes they are my all and sundry, but, none the less, I've finally finished my first short story in a really long time. The last few happened years ago, let's not start tracking dates, that's just going to make me feel a little outdated and disjointed. None the less, it hasn't undergone any editing yet, perhaps it's something I should do...On the other hand though, I'm one who is always hungry for feedback!! It's an all consuming sorta hunger, so the head's contemplating between Wattpad and the blog in terms of exposure of said story. So yay, check that off of my 'Things to do' list for 2011. It was my greatest wish to finish at least one story this year and it tickles me pink knowing I did something along those lines. No it wasn't a New Year resolution, I personally believe that resolutions are made to be broken, so I stopped making 'em.

These past few weeks, besides being filled with the fun filled, ever energizing, mind altering magick of Pharmacology, I've had a little time to indulge in a few things I personally love indulging in, such as books, flicks, shows and things of the sort. Of course, I've been a lil' behind as far as the shows are concerned due to time constraints and I really do hate having to wait a whole darn week before a new episode arrives, makes things so much easier when one can do marathons. Bam, wham, kazaam it's all right there, none the less the only show I've been watching fairly regularly has been Castle, and, so far it's been interesting...last week's episode was pretty cool. I feel with all the filler stuff and the theme setting for this Season, I have a feeling that they're gonna hit the viewers with an action packed, crazy 43 minutes of television some time soon. So the tele aside, I did watch watch a few movies I wanted to and, as much as I would like to spend some time reviewing them, I'm not gonna get into a detailed review just yet. Instead I'm gonna dazzle you with a bullet review of these flicks I watched. So with the flicks let's start with the superhero ones...2011 has been the year of Superheroes, from both Marvel and DC comics. This is what I thought of them, now correct me if I've missed someone from this superhero list....

-Thor - was meh, usual fare, hot gorgeous brawny dude belonging to another world, exiled by papa dearest, throws tantrums and fits 'bout the ridiculous world he's in, and then has his 'With great power comes great responsibility' moment (yes I know that's from Spiderman and I know the difference) and becomes all superhero-ly and gets his cool weapons 'cuz he earned 'em. Yeah okay, it was 'ite, nothing great.
-X-men First Class - FREAKING AWESOME movie!!!! This was a fantastic take by the writers w.r.t the origin story and laying the foundation/basis for Professor X and Magneto. Bloody brilliant...LOVED IT! A must watch!
-Green Lantern - Ranges between meh and sucked. As much as Ryan Reynolds seemed like a visual fit for Hal Jordan, the movie wasn't all that great. The animated Lanterns were more captivating than Hal Jordan.
-Captain America, the First Avenger - I actually enjoyed this one, it did take me by surprise, I thought it was going to be rather disappointing, but it was pretty good. I'd rate it 2nd in line to X-Men.

Other non superhero related fare that I watched recently, mind you they span back a few years, time hasn't exactly been something I've had a lot of...what with those fun loops, hurdles and commitments life feels almost obligated to toss your way and all.

-Tangled - Haha was freaking amazing as well, had such an awesome time laughing my guts out. It was a fantastic choice after my partial, and it helped me with the sickness blues.
-Tron - Man did this movie suck, it was wayyyy below all my expectations and I smacked myself wondering why I wasted time watching thsi movie. Well the special effects were cool and all but that was 'bout it...I felt as though the dude who played Sam Flynn was trying to win the McBroody award. Oh look how much I brood and pout, jeez kid, if you must learn how to brood perhaps you should've watched the Angel series and picked up a pointer or 2 from David Boreanaz's 'Angel'/Captain broody pants.
-Mausam - Well there's an entire post dedicated to that movie, so if anything check out the previous post.

Well kids, that's all the time we have for now, trying to keep with the new mantra I guess, but we'll just have to see how long that lasts, seeing how I do value my words and how I do value meaning and understanding and all that stuff most people consider mushy and excessive. For what would the world be without words? Nothing but bricks, sands, paintings and mere memories seen through one's eyes, with no way for anyone else to live to see or relive those memories. I'm in the business of words people, and I'm not in the habit of shortchanging anyone, but a little change always goes a long way. So here's to change!!


Saturday, November 5, 2011

Mausam - Flavour of Seasons

Alright first things first, for those of you who don't know Hindi/हिंदी Mausam (मौसम) means Season(s) and in an immediate sense means weather, but, we Indians love things that occur over long periods of time, so in the broader and wider sense it means Season(s). Following this, this also happens to be the title of 2 movies, one that came out back in the 70's, which the 2011 version has nothing to do with, just so we're clear about that...I'm sure the word Mausam has been used in a variety of other movie titles, and it has most definitely been a part of many song lyrics. C'mon people, seasons play an integral part in our love stories, our dramatic scenes as well as fight scenes, how else can you sit there and mock us for running around trees and singing songs? Khair koi baat nahin. Now, I would like to toss in a disclaimer here, just 'cuz I love doing so, and also because, this one I feel is important that you readers are entitled to. I'm not great at reviews, they aren't exactly my forte unlike my supremely talented creative twin, who writes amazing reviews. Check out his link, it should be listed on the right side of my blog page :)...Blank Page Beatdown, check it out, it'll be the best read of your life EVER!

Since I just finished watching this movie, I guess you're being served up with a tawa fresh review. So...when I first watched the theatrical trailer for Mausam it definitely did pique my curiosity. One of the main things that the trailer and the film's tag line emphasized was the classical, eternal, timeless love story between the main protagonists in the movie, portrayed by Shahid Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor. When I first saw the 'First Look', that's where they unveil the poster of the movie, I half groaned at the timeless love story aspect...yes my generation is a lost cause, our concept of love is defined by it's own set of categories, so when you say timeless and classic and all this other schnazz it actually makes the eyebrows get all quirked up and...well you get the point. This movie had it's fair share of troubles to finally be released to the general public, and, throughout the making of the movie shots on set were posted and you see a very dashing Shahid Kapoor in a military Uniform, and then in subsequent snippets it was revealed that he's an Officer with the Indian Air Force. So it got me thinking, wait what? Oh no a military love story? Oye vey...I hope he didn't fall in love with the General's daughter leading to a court martial 'cuz that would not be cool at all. 

With the theatrical trailer you catch a glimpse of quite a lot of things that gets your mind spinning and reeling at the possibilities of just what the plot of the movie could be. You see this young carefree dude and chick (Shahid Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor) and suddenly the next shot of her, is in some dance studio and him all dressed up in his wrinkle & crinkle free uniform watching her dance and fun things of the sort. Oh and there's also the music accompanying it that absolutely adds on to the curiosity piquing factor. The first bit, that shows them as young, carefree individuals has the beautiful and lilting beginning of "Rabba Main Toh Mar Gaya Oye" playing in the background, and as you see the shift towards I guess adulthood and a not so naive time the music picks up the pace with the intro bit of the beat worthy, heart pounding, emotionally charged "Aag Lage Us Aag Ko". Initially, I wasn't too stoked to watch this flick, but then once I saw the theatrical trailer I definitely wanted to watch it, it looked attention and performance worthy, and most importantly the movie was directed by Pankaj Kapur...well some people may know him as Shahid Kapoor's father, but, most people know him for his sensational acting skills, he's one of the most renowned actors in India, he's a very distinguished actor in the theatre and film circuits and add the fact that he's one of India's most prolific TV stars. I remember when I was younger, I used to watch this show of his on Zee TV where he used to play a detective/PI on this show called Mohandas B.A.L.L.B. and he was quite a quirky P.I haha...my Mom and I still recall a few lines from that show.

So with these expectations I waited until the movie was released, and all those movie reviews came out to see what the verdict on the movie was. Unfortunately the news and reviews weren't all that great, and while I do take the word of a bonafide film critic for whatever salt the critic might be worth, I still like being able to formulate my own opinion 'bout the flicks I watch. So after probably a month or two? I finally watched the movie, well actually I started watching the movie a while back, but life had more pressing matters that needed to be taken care of as opposed to watching Mausam. Now as some of you might not know, I'm not a huge fan of divulging plot lines, but if you really want to know what the story is and then decide if the movie is worth your time, then hey definitely hit Wikipedia up, it will most definitely give you everything you're looking for. 

Before I get all snarky about things I didn't like with regards to the movie, I'd like to laud the Director's efforts into attempting a story of this sort. I definitely liked the incorporation of some of the darker moments from India's recent past that served as the backdrop or rather the springboard for this story to grow and progress on. However, the folly with doing so is that you open up too many story angles, and too many areas of interest that you'd like to focus your energies on and in the process the main plot-line seems to lose it's momentum. The moment you find out the girl is Kashmiri Muslim, and the boy is a Punjabi Sikh fella who prefers the anglicized version of his name, 'Harry', the first thought that pops up is 'Oh crap this is gonna be a religion face-off and it's gonna be a never ending drama between both sides, where either the girl's family hates the boy for his religion and it's all a no-no or it's the other way around, and you have their relatives piling on to the street with an assortment of weapons ranging from pipes to hockey sticks. Thankfully, we've progressed in that area as far as our movies are concerned, and the movie thankfully doesn't waste a whole bunch of time on going through the religious backgrounds and all complications associated with it. Shahid Kapoor's character Harry sums it up very nicely in one of the scenes, when his lady love tells him that her father doesn't think it's the right thing for either of them to be in this relationship, to which Harry says he's right and wrong and ends up telling her how we're all human and in essence the same and follows it up with a very simple yet deep question 'What were we before we were born?' It's the simplicity of such moments that makes the movie almost endearing in far too few sequences. I wish the Director was able to flesh out a more concentrated storyline, the parallels he used were beautiful, and it would have been absolutely poetic, unfortunately instead of a balance there was a lot of displacement that tends to throw the viewer back and forth and wondering about a lot of things. In addition, there was something absolutely beautiful that I learned from the film as well, the meaning of the name "Aayat", it's a very pretty name, and for those of you who like me have no idea what the name means, it means 'Holy couplet'. 

So where shall we start with the flaws? For one I'd say the running time of this flick. It definitely could've been shortened by sooooo much more. There were some scenes that were plain unnecessary and just worked to hinder the storyline rather than enhance or establish it. Also, this whole reunion and separation problem between the main protagonists gets really frustrating. The part that got me all frustrated was this whole affair of how one is searching for the other but they just don't know how to get a hold of them and never seem to find a way to know where the hell the other person is. Yeah I understand the internet wasn't the greatest thing in the mid 90's but honestly by the late 90's pretty much anyone and everyone had a freaking e-mail address and everybody and their uncle found their way into your address book even if it was an old classmate of yours from kindergarten. Their lack of communication and their inability to keep in touch had me absolutely frustrated, I was yelling at my laptop 'What the HELL DUDE?!? Call X, Y and Z and you will know!!! It's India ve, especially the village, anybody and everybody living around your house and a few houses down from your house know where you, your immediate family and your distant relative are at and also know what each one of you does for a living and what you do as extracurricular activities!'....yes clearly I put a lot more thought and yelling into it than necessary, as my advice just didn't help *sigh*. Isn't it frustrating when people NEVER listen to you? 

In terms of acting, well Shahid Kapoor was brilliant, that guy just keeps moving from strength to strength with each of his films, I guess he's one of the most underrated actors in the Indian movie Industry, and I sincerely hope he has an absolutely bloody brilliant  mind blasting mega super-duper blockbuster. I felt bad for the guy, you can tell he's put a lotta effort into the movie, from playing the carefree young punk to the polished and smart Army man, and then some. You can see the transition in his body language, and his facial expressions and you wish for his sake that the movie had been a hit just for his efforts. Sonam Kapoor...now there's someone interesting. She's an a'ite actress for most part, I mean I don't find her mind numbings amazing or anything of the sort. Sometimes she ends up being a tad bit annoying on screen but that is to be expected, I think most actors go through that, but I think she needs to work a little more on her emoting abilities, especially during highly emotionally charged scenes. She either tends to overdo them or underdo them, I'm sure with time she'll figure it out. Her delivery in the emotional scenes was a mixed bag throughout this movie, in some scenes she actually pulled off quite a convincing performance but then of course those scenes were overshadowed by the under or over performance. I must admit that she does have a beautiful smile, and she's one helluva tall chick, but she definitely needs to work on the emotional aspects of her acting and needs to loosen up just a bit with her delivery of such scenes. Oh and she needs to stop giggling unnecessarily 'cuz that really does seem fake and put on lol. In terms of the lead pair chemistry, there was something poetic about it, it is one of those jodis/pairs that has immense potential, but if the narrative hadn't kept hitting so much turbulence I'm sure the director would've been able to fully tap into said chemistry and exploit that potential. However, that being said, I think other directors should try giving this lead pair a shot in the future, there definitely is something there that the audiences will be able to connect to and resonate with.

Oh yes another beautiful aspect of the film, besides a few of the locales and a few camera shots, is the music of the film. There are some absolutely beautiful songs in this movie...yeah no guesses for which one my fav song from the soundtrack is...that's right 'Rabba Main Toh Mar Gaya Oye' and to pep up my mornings quite a bit there's the other groovy shoovy number 'Sajh Dhaj Ke' which just has a remarkable effect on your neurons and your feet, they start tapping to a beat of their own. It's true, I have 2 left feet and they go off on their own tangents when this songs comes on....it's almost insane. I also loved the way that despite having controversial and violent religious upheavals, that unfortunately India has weathered, never is there any finger pointing nor is there a blame game that holds one faith more responsible than the other. When asked who were the ones responsible for the death or loss of a loved one, I found the response to be quite poignant. Aayat asks Harry who those people were who were responsible for all those who died, and his response to her question was, (mind you I'm translating the lines here,) 'Fearsome/scary shadows, who have no names nor faces.' These scenes have been handled with such maturity and finesse and have been painted into the backdrop to the central theme/plot, namely the epic love story, without spending more time than necessary on analyzing the hows, who's or whys to the situations. Topics like the communal riots India has faced and been subjected to, are very sensitive issues, and need to be treated with the utmost care, and all I want to say is hats off Mr. Pankaj Kapur, thank you for not making this movie a religious propaganda.

In conclusion, I wouldn't recommend Mausam as the first movie to go rent out on DVD, it's one of those movies you watch just to kill time or like the popular usage goes, it's just a timepass movie yaar. Of course you would have the advantage of fast forwarding things as well, which will make the proceedings move along just a tad bit faster. If anything watch it for that poor lad Shahid Kapoor, bechara, but only if you've exhausted all other movie and entertainment options, or if you're having a random insomnia episode. Well...that's it for now folks and I'll catchya on here soon, there are a few minor updates that I have to confound y'all with! Cheers, and I hope all is going sensationally and exceptionally well with each and every one of y'all.