The seamless way in which the show was organized, co-ordinated and executed was a treat to watch on the television. Danny Boyle said to the organizers on winning the Best Director’s award, “…I wanted to thank you for that and also for an extraordinary, what a beautiful show you’ve done. I don’t know what it looks like on television, everybody, but in the room, it’s bloody wonderful, really. So, well done, everyone…” It looked beautiful on television too Danny. It was just stunningly well-coordinated. The opening sequence by the charming Australian Hugh Jackman was probably one of the best live performances I have seen. I admit I haven’t seen many (live performances) but if you have seen it you will agree like the audience in the Kodak theatre did. They gave him a standing ovation. He deserved it. Among his witty ways of introducing the key people, I really liked the part about himself the best – “An Australian, who played an Australian in a movie called Australia” and the next one was about Brangelina – “I don’t have joke on them. But I am contractually obligated to take their names atleast five times on this show”.

The first category to be awarded was the “Best supporting actress” one and I was absolutely amazed by the way they announced the nominations. Oscar awards are meant to signify excellence and the nominations are supposed to be the litmus test through which you actually qualify to be the best among the best. And the entire event lent itself to excellence right from the way the stage floor was done, the display screens coming together and splitting away, the curtain made of a chain of Swarovski crystals added a touch of grandeur, the lighting heightened the excitement and I was personally floored with the sensitivity of their mic and sound systems – I could hear Anne Hathaway breathe when she performed with Jackman. Coming back to the award, it was when Penelope Cruz gave her acceptance speech is when I realized how big a deal it was to win the Oscars:

“I grew up in a place called Alcobendas, where this was not a very realistic dream. And I, always on the night of the Academy Awards, I stay up to watch the show and I always felt that this was, this ceremony was a moment of unity for the world because art, in any form, is and has been and will always be our universal language and we should do everything we can, everything we can, to protect its survival”.

I will not lie. I had tears in my eyes when she said those words. It was just so damn touching. I didn’t quite know who exactly she was till now, from now on I will ensure I watch her movies with the same intensity as she has chosen to act. She sees this stage as a moment of unity and here back home we have people saying “Oscars mean nothing”. Penelope spoke words that defied her age. She has my undivided attention henceforth!

Then came the first Indian moment. In fact when the Sound Editing award went to ‘The Dark Knight’ I thought it was only obvious that the Sound Mixing one also went the same way. But no, it was meant to be a ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ sweep which started with this. Resul Pookutty made a moving speech about how it was not just an award but history being handed over to him. So true I thought. My mind was racing ahead – I was already thinking about Rahman.

Then came many awards. Each of them making moving acceptance speeches. Everyone of the award presentations blended so beautifully with each other. I would say it was flawless. While I was sitting amazed at the way it was organized, the original score nominations were being played out. An orchestra played out the themes of each of the nominations – I could only identify ‘Latika’s theme’ from ‘Slumdog Millionaire’. Rahman was backstage because he was due to come on next for his performance for the nominations of the best song. As it was being said, “And the Oscar goes to….”, and the envelope being opened, I guess my heart rate increased to equal Rahman’s and every other true Rahman fan. Simultaneously the maid servant of my house made an entry and the presenter announced “A R Ruhhman for Slumdog Millionaire” and that was it. My maid servant must have thought that I had a heart attack or something because I shouted so loudly that it would have blown anyone away. Irrespective of me, she just walked across the TV calmly and went on with her work. Here I was almost dying of happiness and she walked as if nothing had happened. Quite ironically, Rahman also walked as if he had won just another Filmfare or some such award. It was just such a simple thing for him – it was another award. For me, his true fans, Americans and the rest of the world the Oscars are like the pinnacle of excellence and Rahman did it like he always knew how to do it. In fact that’s true – he was always at the pinnacle of excellence in every film that he gave music to. Each one is a masterpiece. I sat numb through his acceptance speech.

In fact I think I was numb through his performance also or I don’t know if I didn’t like it. That guy who came in towards the end just made the whole thing sound so out of tune. I had to see the video repeatedly to confirm my feelings. Rahman himself was a little out of tune I guess for “O… Saya…” but I don’t blame him. I wouldn’t have been able to get a sound out of my throat! And then came the “Jai Ho” award. It was written I guess. And this acceptance speech literally swept me off my feet. Wow!

I could go and get ready to get to office finally. I got a message from a colleague “Dude, don’t come to office without sweets”. So I went with the auspicious Tirupathi laddoos that my wife had got from there a few days ago. No, she didn’t go there to pray for Rahman. I am the only guy who is so much in love with this man! The world now has opened up a possibility of letting Rahman berserk on a global scale. Now more people will fall in love with him. Till now, it was just me and my Tamil friends and then it was Hindi friends and now it is going to be everyone. Just about everyone. Rahman’s world was written already; looks like the time has come now when people like me will have to let go of him so that billions of others actually have the option of making the maximum out of him. Rahman’s music is available to those who are willing.

Those were Rahman’s words on winning his second Oscar (for Best Original Song – “Jai Ho” alongwith Gulzar) of the day. This is his full acceptance speech [Link]:

I just want to thank again the whole crew of Slumdog Millionaire, especially Danny Boyle for giving such a great opportunity. And the whole, all the people from Mumbai. The essence of the film which is about optimism and the power of hope in the lives, and all my life I had a choice of hate and love. I chose love and I’m here. God bless.

When he one the first one too he was quite at ease with the whole situation. This is what he said when he won his first one [Link]:

Before coming, I was excited and terrified. The last time I felt like that was during my marriage. There’s a dialogue from a Hindi film called “Mere paas ma hai,” which means “I have nothing but I have a mother,” so mother’s here, her blessings are there with me. I am grateful for her to have come all the way. And I want to thank the Academy for being so kind, all the jury members. I want to thank Sam Schwartz, I/D PR, all the crew of Slumdog, Mr. Gulzar, Raqueeb Alam, Blaaze, my musicians in Chennai and Mumbai. And I want to tell something in Tamil, which says, which I normally say after every award which is… “God is great.” Thank you.

If you didn’t know he won two Oscars today, then you have been living on the Moon or something! What a day! Thanks to all those who passed on their congratulatory wishes on the win! Really value each and every of those calls, sms’es and mails! Thanks guys! Thanks!

Source: http://www.goldenglobes.org/nominations/index.html

And this:

It was just a matter of time. If you followed the American press you would have predicted this easily. But for me, I was still doubtful because I thought ‘Water‘ was good enough for an Oscar nomination atleast. Anyway, here we are today. While the press is glossing over the first Indian to be presenting an award at the Golden Globe awards ceremony, here we have a fellow Indian citizen winning one. You know who means business!

And I hope the comparisons of ARR with the other Indian music directors stop now atleast. I am in this mood to take these infinite potshots today! Let me let that instinct be for now…

Photo courtesy: Arijit, fellow ARR fan.

This is my moment. This is every Indian’s moment. Let’s celebrate!

Parents, some of them, do not realise that they are overstepping their roles under the garb of ‘caring for their children’. In fact overstepping would be the wrong term to use. They would cease to be parents when they don’t understand what’s the best interests of their children. There are some parents I know who always are with their children, physically present I mean. As absurd and practically impossible as it might sound, I know some of them who do this. A manifestation of this is seen in the mentality of the parents while deciding on sending their children out of station for studies. That child has to make a living on his/ her own and you need to give him/ her the best possible education. If the best means outside the city you are staying in, then so be it. What is the big deal? The kid will stay outside your shelter during his/ her formative years and will learn to deal with the world on his/ her own terms. This will help the kid become a much better person. Why can’t parents understand this?

I know a father of two who had to send his younger daughter for her MBA to a city that’s around 300+ kilometers away from his home city. He reacted as if the daughter was being pushed into the dungeons knowingly. It took me quite some time to convince him and then his wife started off with her usual “She is a kid, will she be able to manage?” kind of stuff. Well, I told them, its precisely why she should be sent there so that she will learn to manage. Manage herself, her friends, her stuff, and pretty much everything that relates to her. Hostel life is something that teaches you what you need to do yourself to become successful in life. And such overprotective parents really affect the development of the child. Today the child can walk into a railway station all alone, spot her train, get into it and reach the destination without any pangs of pressure. Just ask her mother to do it – she cant travel alone even to save her life! Even her dad (the mother’s dad) is not sure if she will reach the destination for which she is seated in the train! And she wants to bring her daughter up to become like her.

Some parents just take it as their right to direct their children even after marriage. This is specific to parents of daughters! They want their daughters and their families to stay with them for the rest of their lives. The reason that they will give you if you ask is that they want to play around with the grandchildren. Oh sure, but why is it so difficult to go over to your daughter’s home and do the same? But they won’t do it. They would prefer it if their daughter and the family go over to their house. The underlying thing is that they believe that their daughter will be more ‘comfortable’ in their house than in her own house. First of all they will bring up their children as if they were made of butter or something and would melt if they ventured out under the sun and they want to keep them inside the refrigerator for the rest of their lives. Great! Don’t get them married please and ruin the life of the spouse. The spouse might not be a refrigerator person you know!

Then there is this trend of dropping and picking up the child from college! Please note I said College. The word in itself is synonymous with freedom for me. But here the father will go himself or if he can afford a car and also affords a driver then the child will be picked from there and brought home safely. Don’t you know there are hundred accidents happening on the roads of our cities every day? How ignorant of you! Has the child heard of the thrill of driving? Well, yeah sure to learn driving you need to kiss the road once or twice. But after that phase have you ever realised how much independence driving gives a person? This independence really makes the child kiss the sky! How much does it take for the parents to realise that independence can really help their child grow? Become more responsible. If you think he/ she is going to use it to go down the other side of things, then that reflects on the upbringing and the atmosphere in which the child is growing up. There is a definite check required then. But please don’t use that as a pretext to shield your child so much that the child can never open its eyes when exposed to the sun. The child should learn to face the sun knowing what it is.

Picking this one from the trend shown in the movie – the father gives the son what he likes and not what the son likes. Generally, as far as I have seen, this happens with a slightly different twist. The father gives the son more than what the child requires even before the child can ask for it. This gives rise to two things: The child never understands what its wants/ needs are. And two, the child will assume that it will always get what it wants and more. The latter can be very high-cost damage when life decides to expose reality to the child. Life is not always giving – it takes away more than what it gives – why would you die otherwise?! :) And the first point leaves the child in an extremely confused state of mind for the rest of its life trying to decide between what it likes and also how it will come to him/her or how much… So many questions will pop up in the mind that the child will stop thinking about it. And this act of the parent also screws around with the value system majorly.

I guess I have used the movie as a good platform to put my views out on these select topics. Don’t know whether they are right or wrong. Feel free to add/ crticise in the comments section.

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Comedy has always been a part of Nagesh’s cinema. He has not consciously used a seperate track for comedy except for Shreyas’ role in ‘Dor’. Even in ‘Hyderabad Blues’ the comedy was sewn within the situations of his usually strong storylines. ‘Bollywood Calling’ was entirely tongue-in-cheek. This time round he has gone ahead and entered the genre of the season – comedy with ‘Bombay to Bangkok’. Will it work? Let’s wait and watch.

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Let us look at who takes away the honours for the 2007 Hindi film awards as decided by me!

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The rumours are that the collections of “Sivaji” have crossed Rs. 250 crores whereas the highest grossing Indian movie was somewhere near the Rs. 100 crore mark and that too was a Superstar Rajni movie. The nearest in collections by a non-Rajni movie was Rs. 60 crore. Imagine a single man churning out two movies that combine for revenues of about Rs. 350 crores. There are crores of companies with hundreds of people trying hard to generate that kind of revenue per year. Here, you have one man single-handedly ensuring that the movie will attain blockbuster status.

And people ask me why does it make front page news whenever he signs a new movie, ha!

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I feel like celebrating this moment by posting the lyrics of the song which won Naresh the Award:

aye saala
abhi abhi hua yakeen
ki aag hai mujh mein kahi
hui subaah main jal gaya
suraj ko main nigal gaya
ruu-ba-ruu roshni

aandhiyon se jhagad rahi hai lau meri
ab mashaalon si badh rahi hai lau meri
naamo nishaan rahe na rahe
ye kaaravaan rahe na rahe
ujaale mein pee gaya
roshan huaa jee gaya
kyon sehte rahe
ruu-ba-ruu roshni

And you can listen to it here:

http://odeo.com/audio/1839256/view

Ok ok ok. Let us come to reality. Our trusted mechanic, a former mechanic of the Superstar, helped us get tickets to the second day night show at Baby Albert theatre in Egmore. So I actually got myself to watch Superstar earlier than I thought.

In fact the first time I watched it, I agreed with him and him too. But then what happened means you know there were three tickets available for Monday at Mayajaal. I had this secret desire to go and watch it again in a good theatre with a good audio system to enjoy the music! So I went along for the Mayajaal show too.

My friends who watched it with me for the first time praised my courage. But I was clear in my objective you see! ;) But I couldn’t believe it when I started enjoying the movie like hell. I found myself whistling and clapping at the same moments I had found repelling a couple of days earlier. I have never experienced this before. Probably the Superstar magic! I not knowings! :) But super enjoyment! And finally the result was this!

PS: This also proves my theory that where you watch a movie matters!