Bollywood On Strike? So What…

The wolf just got greadier and wants a bigger share in the kill. Well, I’m talking about the producers’ strike that’s about to start any minute in Bollywood. Now why they’re going on a strike just when there’s a slump only they would be able reason out. Looking at the conditions that they’ve laid out to the multiplex owners, 50:50, it looks like we, the audience, are in for a long dry spell without any major releases. Many may tell it’s time to hit the couch and park yourself in front of the idiot box and watch IPL. Well, if at all you’re hitting the couch you may as well do it in style and watch movies. “DVDs at your service, sir,” says one of the DVD rental services. Why not, I mean, they’re bringing movies right at your doorstep and save you the trouble of going out. Oh yeah, moms would be complaining that this is just another tool in making their already lazy offspings even more lazier. But what the heck, it’s making my life easier. So why not?

Ok here’s the thing, why would anyone want to pull the plug out of the “near to death” film economy when all they should be doing is make sure that more and more projects earn money what with Bollywood dishing out total, complete duds since the starting of this year? Shouldn’t they be understanding that even a Nagesh Kukanoor movie like 8×10 Tasveer has been trashed? What hope do they have, when they give out dampners like this and expect a lion’s share? Looking at the quality of the movies, do they even deserve it when they’re not able to give a decent hit. All I’ve got to tell these producers is that you’re losing out, cause if you think that the audience is sitting and waiting for the releases to happen, then think again. In this day and age, entertainment is not restricted to just theatre. And I, as a viewer, can give you five very good reasons as to why I’m not bothered about this strike…

1. I’ve got a huge collection of DVDs to chose from with DVD rental companies like Seventymm.
2. I don’t have to go out, cause I can opt for home delivery. Lemme leave the hassle of dealing with Bangalore traffic to those delivery boys. (My sympathies for them but, hey, it cuts out my travel time and hassle)
3. I would be spending just about Rs.250 or something like that (Cost of a single ticket in a multiplex) and watch more than 5 movies. (Though Iwould still say that movies with special effects SHOULD be watched on big screen)
4. I’m not at the mercy of the producers to release movies. I can catch up with the “multiplex released” movies since they’re already out on DVDs.
5. And I still get to watch those Hollywood movies that aren’t released in Indian theatres and some movies which were not allowed to be screened. The best of all classics.

So shouldn’t the producers be thinking/knowing that they can’t really dampen the spirit of a movie crazy soul like me? Instead they’re losing out on money.

 Whatever it is, here’s my list of movies to watch on DVDs should the producers be going on an indefinite strike…

1. Kung Fu Panda - My favorite genre, animation. If I miss out on this one, it’s a total crime. come on, you’ve got to watch it, just for Jack Black. He’s unbelievably hilarious.
2. The Dark Knight - Of course one of the movies to watched on big screen but very entertaining on small screen as well. A tribute to Heath Ledger’s Joker, which was once played by Jack Nicholson. And of course a posthamus Oscar for Ledger
3. Billu Barber - It didn’t really drag me to the theatre. One of the movies which I reserved to DVD watching. Let’s see how it goes, though the reviews weren’t really positive about this one.
4. Dil Hain ke Maanta Nahin- One of the best romantic movies that Bollywood has given us. Rich girl, poor boy, love story. I don’t really mind all the mush that’s there in this. In fact I love it.
5. Made of Honor - A modern day My Best Friend’s Wedding. Only with a slight twist. It’s not the girl who’s out to wreck her boyfriend’s wedding but a man who’s out to get his best friend back. Would love to watch this Rom-Com the earliest.
6. Raaz 2 - Fizzled at the box office but nonetheless a good horror flick to watch at home. Hope it’s entertaining enough and scary enough.
7. Pretty Woman - My all-time favorite. I’ll never get tired of watching this movie. Richard Gere’s the ultimate romantic hero in this. And Julia Roberts? Beautiful. Loved that scene when she’s thrown out of the boutique just because she’s unaccepted by the high society and she just returns back, polished, sopisticated and loaded with her shoppings bags and tells that shop manager, “You people work on commission, right? Big mistake. Big. Huge. I have to go shopping now.” A bag of pop corn, loads of tissue to wipe the tears would go for this without saying.
8. A Fish Called Wanda - Man, this is what they call dark, sarcastic humor. You need special kind of sense of humor to enjoy this one. One of the best movies I’ve seen. And Kevin Kline is mind blowing. It’s a tale of murder, lust, greed, revenge and seafood. That’s the tag line of the movie, BTW. It’s so full of double crossing that it’s impossible not to laugh at each and every scene.
9. Roman Holiday - Another mushy movie but a classic. Wanna watch it even if it’s a Black and white movie.
10. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid - The origin of the Sundance Film Festival. One of the best Western movies I hear. Paul Newman and Robert Redford. A big, big, treat.
11. Madagascar - Come on guys, how can anyone miss this one? I like to move it, move it… A MUST watch.
12. Khatta Meetha - What happens when two different families are forcibly brought to live together as a family? You got to watch it. This is the Indian version of Brady Bunch for you. Nevertheless it’s not to be missed. What’s fascinating is that when Indian cinema looked at teenyboppers for love stories, this one looked at an aged Ashok Kumar and Pearl Padamsee for a very refreshing story.
13. Chashme Buddoor - Ok by this time you would’ve guessed that comedy is my weakness and I tend to pick and choose movies of this genre. Another of the ’70’s gems.
14. Dostana - Abhishek Bachchan and John Abraham are a hoot…
15. Sleepless In Seattle - Best for the last, it would be a sacrilage if I don’t watch this one. So beautiful is the romance in this movie that.. Oh, yeah let’s get back to bag full of popcorn and cartloads of tissues. Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks are just too beautiful.

This is my list of movies which I want to watch, some which I’ve already watched but still want to watch again… If you have any more to be added to this list, feel free to do so, it would make the “dry spell” time all more better…

 

Oh, oh, and before I forget, here’s my customery video… Total mush but beautiful…

 

I like to move it, move it

I like to move it, move it… Said Sacha Baron Cohen, King Julian of Madagascar. I wanna move it too. I just finished watching Madagascar and related to one thing over there, no actually four of them since there are four characters which were diametrically opposite to each other but the values they represented very pretty much the same, that of sticking to each other, friendship, a hypochondriac and the wanderlust in a person who is cooped up in his enclosure for a very long time. All these four characters were same in this respect. They all had this wanderlust thing in them.

I mean, you really don’t have to be locked up in an enclosure to feel claustrophobic. You could be out there in the open space or a road or anything and still feel like everything’s closing in on you. You can actually feel the voices ringing in your head when you really don’t want to hear it. And even something as beautiful as a bird’s chirping sounds jarring and harsh. And you get this itch to break free and run away to some place which is totally, completely free from all these material trappings that we’re surrounded by in our daily life.

We’re trapped so deep in this circle of earning, saving, amassing all those things which would bring us on the top of everybody’s list, that we’ve forgotten or some of those unfortunate ones haven’t even had a taste of freedom, what it is to be free.

One might say that this is nothing but escapism, trying to run away from things that we’re not able to face. But the fact remains that every one of us, every single one of us wants to break free, without a worry in the world, enjoy the bounty Mother Nature has given us.

Sitting here at my work, on a sultry day, I’m actually daydreaming of just packing my backpack, just getting into one of those horrid buses and just travel to one of those places which is as close to nature as it can get. Mountains, trees, ponds, rivers, wild animals in their natural habitats, the birds chirping… Ah, what bliss. Ok, all those who call this slumming it, well, too bad. You’re missing something. Just imagine the morning when you don’t have to hurry to catch that bus, or haggle with those annoying rikshawallas. Just imagine the taste of food which you savor every morsel and not cram it into your mouth in a hurry and don’t give a dime’s worth how it tastes. Do you even remember how your last breakfast tasted? Naah, I don’t think so. Imagine the day when you don’t have to lose your cool and wouldn’t want to rip the throat of the guy who is honking his head off without bothering about the noise pollution just because he wants to go before you.

Sounds like a different world, ain’t it? Oh, yeah that’s what it is a world within a world. I know that we can’t actually go away on a stretch for a long time, since some of us have to work for a living. Heck, we even need money to go to those places. All I can say is fortunate are those who can take some time off, even if it is a week (which incidentally is a luxury for most of us) and go as close to nature as possible.

And here some places which you could go – Coorg, Manali, Bandipur. If you have any more places, you could add it to my list. Till I can actually go and fulfil my wish… I like to move it, move it…

Now before I go sign off you might be wondering where the whole thing of nature, breaking free, etc, etc is related to Madagascar… Well, here it is, Marty the zebra turns 10 and he hasn’t seen the other side of the zoo wall. And this bothers him enough to want to get out of his enclosure and want to see the wide, wide world and the wild. Oh, he does escape, which is a visit to the Grand Central Station, which is grand and which is central. His other friends, Alex, the star lion, who loves New York and his zoo, Gloria the hippo who’s game for all things that her friends do, the peaceful and sensible one, and the hypochondriac giraffe Melman (David Schwimmer is amazing) who all wanna stick to their friend zebra. Now they accidentally land up in a forest of Madagascar and experience for the first time, the beautiful wilderness. But at what cost you’ve got to watch the movie. And a special mention about King Julian. Whoa, man!!!! The guy’s too good. And just to show how good, look at the video… I like to move it, move it, Ya like to move it, move it… Move it, move it, move it…