Review: The Nothing Man

Would not call this brilliant piece- but certainly well worth a read and good value for Time. Personally it came as a rain for parched earth for me, since i was desperately looking for a break from the 'bhagatish' breed of novels ( am still reeling under the numb onslaught of R2020) Must appreciate the author, for bringing in the stylish and interesting narrative of 'back and forth'- i think this is was what kept me hooked to finish the book in one go. Also- the basic premise of the book was fresh and cheeky- the author himself capturing the gist with the analogy of ' a painter in search of his muse to finish his masterpiece'. Minimal characters which were etched out to the reader's satisfaction. I liked the wickedness, laziness, loser,  introspective, and ballsy nature of the protagonist- something which each of us would have experienced at some point of time or other.  The language was simple and genuine that it just solely conveyed the thoughts of the author to the reader, and nothing else. ( Reason i stress this- it is unlike again the 'bhagatish' breed where every third sentence is forced down with an analogy so that language does the holy ritual of converting more 'non-readers' into 'readers'!! enough of this shit !!)
Well if i need to complain for the sake of a review- i only have the grouse regarding few aspects of the plot. The premise of a current husband entertaining and budding up to an ex - seems improbable and unrealistic. What was the destination point ? I understand its was to complete to novel, BUT why had it to take a 'scandalous' route of finding a way to the ex-wife skirt ? Author could have served us with bit more 'creative liberty' here. The aspect of the ex-wife getting into depression and eventual marriage break-up was not well justified- would  have liked to know what triggered this - seemed too hurried and simple in the narrative. What happens to Brandy's boyfriend ? How often does one risk losing a boy-friend on a train just because you meet someone 'talkative' uncle on the train ? Seems surreal again. Well, at the end - i acknowledge e are reading a fictional novel, isnt it ? and hence i have forced to accept it under 'creative liberty' well exploited. To sum up- though the situations are dreamy- there are strung together with moments of emotions and feelings which every reader would have experience at some point or other in this life. I think thats the strong point of this book.
Out and Out - amazing first attempt, and I confess that i would look forward for the author's next book. 

MindStrain

Weeding out deficiencies, desperation to outgrow your flaws, Peer-pressure, fighting procrastination, challenging mediocrity, chasing the sweet carrot of excellence....well- all of these easily put qualify for the 'Necessary Evils' of daily life. And the extent of strain it causes on your mind, and eventually your mood is too impactful to be true. It changes a bright sunny morning to a gloomy overcast day in a matter of few seconds...forcing jitters and impaled edginess. Phew !! on the hindsight- without these 'Evils', not sure if I would be able to survive for even for a day, instead succumb to normalcy within no time. So the fight continues- Work critiques, moods swings, Sleep deprives, caffiene increases, Family sulks !!!! But with a Hope, that these are crutches upon which Path to Glory, need to be treaded on.................

Weather

Perfect weather to snuggle to those fluffy fluffy pullovers or mattresses.
Amazing Weather to grab a bite a nice tender Tandoori chicken or a well-ma(i)d Gosht shorba.
Romantic Weather to forget the world.
Lazy weather to rock on a recliner with God of Small Things
Right weather for a stroll on the beach with the sea-breeze threatening to tip you over.
Awesome weather for a bike ride on the highway and some masala chai.
LOUSY WEATHER to sit in office and blog !!!!

MOment of despair

That uncanny feeling came true. Just realised been robbed to a tune of atleast 12 k. Right from my room. First experience for me, nasty enough to screw up the festive mood. I am in state of despair for couple of reasons. one, the money was hard earned and belonged to my firm. Then, sick of my care free attitude, when it comes to things like these , almost bordering on laziness, and lastly on a philosophical note, did the money really belong to me ? One of my guiding values makes me live by the addage of ill got ill spent. Was I a victim this timeel around ? Though a fiesty session of confrontATION has been lined up with the suspect, the maid- I have no hopes of money coming back. It's gone for good.
Will take a day or two to get over the phase of denial to acceptance.

.:: B J:.:...:. :o.n:::d.:: :...m:ove.:: :: .. :.::

CARS 2 : SIMPLY BRILLIANT

Man- just beats me. How do animated movies get it right in EACH and EVERY time, in ALL aspects ? It is undoubtedly the 'fastest' animated movie i have watched so far ! With the screenplay make u flip at a considerable speed, along with 3D sumptous effects- u better strap yourself on for a speedy drive.

Well, the take-away point: ATTENTION TO DETAIL. You can stop rolling over and laughing- when the Japanese and the British are so openly taken a shot at. Can u beat this- Two Jap cars in a Sumo ring. Landrovers guarding the Queen- who herself is a Car !!, an Italian F1 racing car- with an accent and attitude to die for. Its just keeps on coming.

I have no comments on the Plot, Concept, Music, Emotional connect et all- cos its simply getting futile - as all of the animated movies are getting it right.

I am so glad I experienced Drive !!

Acquaintances

Just bagged an assignment from my ex- company !! Has been an amazing feeling and journey!! More reasons to stay positive and motivated ! 12 out of 16 projects has been through my ex-office acquaintances. Thats some contribution. Reflections immediately put a smile onto my face. Great !!

::BJ:::::... :::::...:on...:::d::...m::ov..e

Pirates of the Caribbean: Doomed Journey

Meeting Cancellation-Impulse-Loss of Choice of other movies : were the key reasons, why i embarked on this so-called 'adventure'. Easily the worst of the all the franchises so far. No doubt about it. Stretching over two hours, it was quite an 'adventure' to sit through.
To start with- 'Fountain of Youth'!! is this what the Disney wanted to sit us through- seriously questions their Concept Creativity. Even if you overlooked it, there was none of the elements- montages you associate the previous POTCs to relish on- sea fare, sea fights, ghouslish creative creatures, amazingly deconstructed ships, and faces, Costumes, man!!! there is so much to it. Sadly ,  mermaids !! Mermaids was Disney's givings for you in this- ordinart ,,,absolutely nothing. Well, i would bet on 'Ariel' anytime!! And- there is so much talk for nothing! It was like those old '60's adventure movie- where you used to FF all the conversations in motion- to jump to action sequence. Worse- neither did i have this option nor was compensated with any adventure .
Depp was like seeing a sad shadow - sleep walking !! No chemistry at all between him and Cruz ! No visual excitement because of 3d - it was cheap gimmick fad and am angry i fell for it ! the background score was a big let down ! To sum-up my experience, would like to quote Masand here, as this is how exactly i Felt - "In an early scene in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Judi Dench makes an uncredited cameo as a British aristocrat in a horse carriage, whose ear Jack Sparrow nuzzles mischievously before taking off on a new adventure. Clearly disappointed from getting less than she’d hoped for, she asks: “Is that it?” Good question, and one that you find yourself asking at the end of this underwhelming fourth installment of the Disney franchise that clocks in at an excruciating 2 hours and 16 minutes."


On the positive note, thinking of the reasons, I made it to the movie-i think it could live with it.

Mediocrity

How often do i find myself- in muted chaos of all the things happening around- like standing right amidst the traffic in total isolation. The question that stares at me!! Well, is this it ? Is this all ? Is this what defines my life ? Aahhhhhh!!! Sudden jolt and all the cacophony floods your ears and you are transported back to reality. The more you at it- the more subjective things gets,- more the things which come under the subjective category. I guess 'mediocrity' is the new member to get in there. I feel the key thing is TIME..more on that next time..