hmmm.... great visuals, great background music, but perhaps too much hysterics? I'm getting a sinking feeling about this. I think I'll go for the Tamil version first, if it releases in Austin the same day.
And what are they doing? They have released so many trailer so early! It is as if the movie were releasing in 3 weeks. We still have almost 2 months!! tab tak log excited hoke bhool bhi jaayenge!
Friday, April 30, 2010
While we are posting videos....
Ok, it's the video posting day I guess. So I decided to post the one old classic song I always think of when I think of old classic songs.. :) Ladies and Ashish (considering that Raja doesn't seem to show up much, and Palash at all :P ), presenting... Gene Kelly.. Singing in the Rain.
Gene Kelly - I'm Singing in the Rain
Uploaded by goldrausch. - See the latest featured music videos.
And while looking for that I ran into another amazing video from this movie. What physical talent, this O'Connor!! see this if you haven't seen the movie (starting from about 2 min, I think, if you don't have those extra 2 min to spare).
Singin In The Rain Donald O'connor Lyrics, Make Em Laugh
Uploaded by musical-films. - Click for more funny videos.
Gene Kelly - I'm Singing in the Rain
Uploaded by goldrausch. - See the latest featured music videos.
And while looking for that I ran into another amazing video from this movie. What physical talent, this O'Connor!! see this if you haven't seen the movie (starting from about 2 min, I think, if you don't have those extra 2 min to spare).
Singin In The Rain Donald O'connor Lyrics, Make Em Laugh
Uploaded by musical-films. - Click for more funny videos.
Feed the birds
After Pescado's post about Sound of Music I heard a bunch of Julie Andrews' songs on youtube. Here's a nice, soft and sweet song I had not heard before... Not sure if I would read too much into the meaning and get all cynical about Mary dearest.. Let her do her thing I guess.
Listen, listen.. how sweet is her voice!!
Listen, listen.. how sweet is her voice!!
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Do Re Me...... Surprise!!!
I was surfing through Youtube videos to listen to songs from one of my favourite musicals...."The Sound of Music".... and I found a video of a live performance that some one had uploaded.
More than 200 dancers were performing their version of "Do Re Mi", in the Central Station of Antwerp (Belgium). It was a promotional stunt for a Belgian television program, where they were looking for someone to play the leading role in the musical of "The Sound of Music".
I just wondered how lovely it must be to witness something like this. Maybe someday while moving around in a mall somewhere, out of the blue, the people around you would break into a song-dance sequence like this....not just any song...but something funny and nostalgic. Maybe something like "Sar jo tera chakraye"..... a promotional sequence for Shehnaz's latest hair product perhaps!! :D
Here's the video....
More than 200 dancers were performing their version of "Do Re Mi", in the Central Station of Antwerp (Belgium). It was a promotional stunt for a Belgian television program, where they were looking for someone to play the leading role in the musical of "The Sound of Music".
I just wondered how lovely it must be to witness something like this. Maybe someday while moving around in a mall somewhere, out of the blue, the people around you would break into a song-dance sequence like this....not just any song...but something funny and nostalgic. Maybe something like "Sar jo tera chakraye"..... a promotional sequence for Shehnaz's latest hair product perhaps!! :D
Here's the video....
Grandfather paradox....
Found this story in the current issue of Nature.
Started out to be an interesting read...but got lost towards the end :P
Somebody help!!
Grandfather paradox
Paapi Politicians
Recently I remembered about an interesting photographs. I was capturing something else and did not notice this particular banner till my brother brought into my notice.
This image was captured on 24th June last year on Marine Drive near Pizzaria. Last year monsoon was late, which later converted to drought like situation in most parts of India.
Mumbaikars, who are used to heavy showers after first week of June were sweating in hot Sun even during June end. So someone put this banner. After all someone has to be blamed for monsoon failure ;)
This image was captured on 24th June last year on Marine Drive near Pizzaria. Last year monsoon was late, which later converted to drought like situation in most parts of India.
Mumbaikars, who are used to heavy showers after first week of June were sweating in hot Sun even during June end. So someone put this banner. After all someone has to be blamed for monsoon failure ;)
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Film Lovers in Mumbai, alert!
http://passionforcinema.com/satyajit-ray-film-festival/
Satyajit Ray film festival. The society itself isn't bad at all.
Rahul
Satyajit Ray film festival. The society itself isn't bad at all.
Rahul
Posters!!
Look at these. Some REALLY good posters. Perhaps not for the purpose of publicizing the movie, since they don't make any sense to anyone who hasn't already seen the movie. But if you have seen the movie, these are pretty good. :) I love the Kill Bill posters, specially. :)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/gallery/2010/apr/03/film-posters-ibraheem-youssef
http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/gallery/2010/apr/03/film-posters-ibraheem-youssef
Somebody help him!
Bal Thackeray is having trouble finding the marathi word for Terminus... :D
http://www.ndtv.com/news/cities/cant-stand-the-station-being-called-cst-says-bal-thackeray-21158.php
so, no, CST won't do anymore. Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminusinmarathhi it shall be.
http://www.ndtv.com/news/cities/cant-stand-the-station-being-called-cst-says-bal-thackeray-21158.php
so, no, CST won't do anymore. Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminusinmarathhi it shall be.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Trailer 2!
This is pretty good! Definitely seems to live up to Mani Ratnam's reputation for great picturized songs.
50th post... Potter post..
Pesc suggested that since the blog name is inspired from HP books and none of us seem to write anything about that, perhaps the 50th (and maybe the 100th, the 150th etc.. ) post should be about HP. Well, it is difficult to come up with a good post about a given topic on such short notice (at least I now know how difficult it is for journalists.. always finding new angles to the same old stories and doing that on hard deadlines). So, here is a quick list (my favorite pastime! making lists!) of some quotes/excerpts from HP books that I find really funny. They aren't necessarily the funniest bits; one would have to make a list while rereading the whole books for that. But they are some pretty funny ones that I found on Mugglenet.
Non HP fans, if you decide on reading some of these, understand that they are much more funny when you know the context/characters etc. :)
HP fans, enjoy! (I am looking at you Pesc and SS :) )
--
Dudley looked a lot like Uncle Vernon. He had a large pink face, not much neck, small watery blue eyes, and thick blonde hair that lay smoothly on his thick, fat head. Aunt Petunia often said that Dudley looked like a baby angel. Harry often said that Dudley looked like a pig in a wig.
--
"Fred, you next," the plump woman said.
"I'm not Fred, I'm George," said the boy. "Honestly, woman, you call yourself our mother? Can't you tell I'm George?"
--
"Now, you two - Behave yourselves. If I get one word that you've blown up a toilet or - " [Mrs. Weasley]
"Blown up a toilet? We've never blown up a toilet."
"Great idea though, thanks, Mum."
--
Speaking quietly so that no one else would hear, Harry told the other two about Snape's sudden, sinister desire to be a Quidditch referee.
"Don't play," said Hermione at once.
"Say you're ill," said Ron.
"Pretend to break your leg," Hermione suggested.
"Really break your leg," said Ron.
--
"Well...when we were in our first year, Harry-young, carefree, and innocent-"
Harry snorted. He doubted whether Fred and George had ever been innocent.
--
(Harry, just being greeted by Percy) "Harry!" said Fred, elbowing Percy out of the way and bowing deeply. "Simply splendid to see you, old boy-"
"Marvelous," said George, pushing Fred aside and seizing Harry's hand in turn. "Absolutely spiffing." Percy scowled.
"That's enough, now," said Mrs. Weasley.
"Mum!" said Fred as though he'd only just spotted her and seized her hand too. "How really corking to see you-"
--
Hermione sat down, laid the things she was carrying in an empty armchair and pulled Ron's predictions towards her.
'Not going to have a very good month, are you?' she said sardonically, as Crookshanks curled up in her lap.
'Ah well, at least I'm forewarned,' Ron yawned.
'You seem to be drowning twice,' said Hermione.
--
'Her acne's loads better lately - and she's really nice!'
'Her nose is off-centre,' said Ron.
'Oh, I see,' Hermione said, bristling. 'So basically, you're going to take the best-looking girl who'll have you, even if she's completely horrible?'
'Er - yeah, that sounds about right,' said Ron.
--
'All the good-looking ones taken, Ron?' said Hermione loftily. 'Eloise Midgen starting to look quite pretty now, is she? Well, I'm sure you'll find someone somewhere who'll have you.'
But Ron was staring at Hermione as though suddenly seeing her in a whole new light. 'Hermione, Neville's right - you are a girl...'
--
"Yeah, someone might slip dragon dung in it again, eh, Perce?" said Fred.
"That was a sample of fertilizer from Norway!" said Percy, going very red in the face. "It was nothing personal!"
"It was," Fred whispered to Harry as they got up from the table. "We sent it."
--
Dudley had done the thing he was threatening to do since age three: He had become wider than he was tall.
--
Ron: "Who're you going with then?"
Fred: "Angelina."
Ron: "What? You've already asked her?"
Fred: "Good point. Oi, Angelina!"
Angelina, who had been chatting with Alicia Spinnet near the fire, looked over at him.
Angelina: "What?"
Fred: "Want to come to the ball with me?"
Angelina gave Fred an appraising sort of look.
"All right, then," she said.
--
"What are you working on?" said Harry.
"A report for the Department of International Magical Cooperation," said Percy smugly. "We're trying to standardize cauldron thickness. Some of these foreign imports are just a shade too thin - leakages have been increasing at a rate of almost three percent a year--"
"That'll change the world, that report will," said Ron.
--
"Mr. Crouch!" said Percy breathlessly, sunk into a kind of half-bow that made him look like a hunchback. "Would you like a cup of tea?"
"Oh," said Mr. Crouch, looking over at Percy in mild surprise. "Yes — thank you, Weatherby."
--
"You’re not by any chance writing out a new order form, are you?" said Mrs. Weasley shrewdly. "You wouldn’t be thinking of restarting Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes, by any chance?"
"Now, Mum," said Fred, looking up at her, a pained look on his face. "If the Hogwarts Express crashed tomorrow, and George and I died, how would you feel to know that the last thing we ever heard from you was an unfounded accusation?"
--
Harry’s got a long way to go before he finishes this tournament," she [Hermione] said seriously. "If that was the first task, I hate to think what’s coming next."
"Right little ray of sunshine, aren’t you?" said Ron. "You and Professor Trelawney should get together sometime."
--
A week after Fred and George's departure, Harry witnessed Professor McGonagall walking right past Peeves, who was determinedly loosening a crystal chandelier, and could have sworn he heard her tell the poltergeist out of the corner of her mouth, "It unscrews the other way."
--
"Well, we were always going to fail that one," said Ron gloomily as they ascended the marble staircase. He had just made Harry feel rather better by telling him how he told the examiner in detail about the ugly man with a wart on his nose in the crystal ball, only to look up an realize he had been describing the examiner's reflection.
--
"Er - thanks very much, Ernie," said Harry, taken aback. Ernie might be pompous on occasions like these, but Harry was in a mood to deeply appreciate a vote of confidence from somebody who was not wearing radishes in their ears.
--
A slightly stunned silence greeted the end of this speech, then Ron said, "One person can't feel all that at once, they'd explode."
"Just because you've got the emotional range of a teaspoon doesn't mean we all have," said Hermione.
--
The fireworks continued to burn and spread all over the school that afternoon. Though they caused plenty of disruption, the other teachers did not seem to mind them very much.
"Dear, dear," said Professor McGonagall sardonically, as one of the dragons soared around her classroom, emitting loud bangs and exhaling flame. "Miss Brown, would you mind running along to the headmistress and informing her that we have an escaped firework in our classroom?"
"Thank you so much, Professor!" said Professor Flitwick in his squeaky little voice. "I could have got rid of the sparklers myself, of course, but I wasn't sure whether I had the authority..."
--
Hermione drew herself to her full height; her eyes were narrowed and her hair seemed to crackle with electricity. "No," she said, her voice quivering with anger, "but I will write to your mother."
"You wouldn't," said George, horrified, taking a step back from her.
"Oh, yes, I would," said Hermione grimly. "I can't stop you from eating the stupid things yourself, but you're not giving them to first years."
Fred and George looked thunderstruck. It was clear that as far as they were concerned, Hermione's threat was way below the belt.
--
Mrs. Weasley let out a shriek just like Hermione's.
"I don't believe it! Oh, Ron, how wonderful! A prefect! That's everyone in the family!"
"What are Fred and I, next-door neighbours?" said George indignantly, as his mother pushed him aside and flung her arms around her youngest son.
--
"We shouldn't have taken up that stupid subject in the first place," said Harry.
"Still, at least we can give it up now."
"Yeah," said Harry. "No more pretending we care what happens when Jupiter and Uranus get too friendly..."
"And from now on, I don't care if my tea leaves spell 'die, Ron, die' -- I'm just chucking them in the bin where they belong."
--
"...Little Ronnie, a prefect...Oh, I'm all of a dither!" She [Mrs. Weasley] gave Ron yet another kiss on the cheek, sniffed loudly, and bustled from the room Fred and George exchanged looks.
"You don't mind if we don't kiss you, do you, Ron?" said Fred in a falsely anxious voice.
"We could curtsy, if you like," said George.
--
"And that's Smith of Hufflepuff with the Quaffle," said a dreamy voice, echoing over the grounds. "He did the commentary last time, of course, and Ginny Weasley flew into him, I think probably on purpose, it looked like it. Smith was being quite rude about Gryffindor, I expect he regrets that now he's playing them - oh, look, he's lost the Quaffle. Ginny took it from him. I do like her, she's very nice..."
--
"I know I messed up Ancient Runes," muttered Hermione feverishly. "I definitely made at least one serious mistranslation. And the Defense Against the Dark Arts practical was no good at all. I thought Transfiguration went all right at the time, but looking back..."
"Hermione, will you shut up? You're not the only one who's nervous!" barked
Ron. "And when you've got your eleven 'Outstanding OWLs...'"
"Don't, don't, don't!" said Hermione, flapping her hands hysterically. "I know I've failed everything!"
--
Harry gaped at him. He had not expected this and was not sure he wanted to hear it. Friends they might be, but if Ron started calling Lavender "Lav-Lav," he would have to put his foot down.
--
How d'you spell 'belligerent'?" said Ron, shaking his quill very hard while staring at his parchment. "It can't be B - U - M -"
"No, it isn't," said Hermione, pulling Ron's essay toward her.
"And 'augury' doesn't begin O - R - G either. What kind of quill are you using?" "It's one of Fred and George's Spell-Check ones..but I think the charm must be wearing off.."
"Yes, it must," said Hermione, pointing at the title of his essay, "because we were asked how we'd deal with Dementors, not 'Dugbogs,' and I don't remember you changing your name to 'Roonil Wazlib' either."
--
"There was a clatter as the baskilisk fangs cascaded out of Hermione's arms. Running at Ron, she flung them around his neck and kissed him full on the mouth. Ron threw away the fangs and broomstick he was holding and responded with such enthusiasm that he lifted Hermione off her feet.
"Is this the moment?" Harry asked weakly, and the when nothing happened except that Ron and Hermione gripped each other still more firmly and swayed on the spot, he raised his voice. "OI! There's a war going on here!"
--
When he straightened up again, there were six Harry Potters gasping and panting in front of him. Fred and George turned to each other and said together, "Wow -- We're identical!"
--
"Mind you, if all the alleged sightings of him are genuine, we must have a good nineteen You-Know-Whos running around the place." [Fred]
"Which suits him, of course," said Kingsley. "The air of mystery is creating more terror than actually showing himself."
"Agreed," said Fred. "So, people, let's try and calm down a bit. Things are bad enough without inventing stuff as well. For instance, this new idea that You-Know-Who can kill with a single glance from his eyes. That's a basilisk, listeners. One simple test: Check whether the thing that's glaring at you has got legs. If it has, it's safe to look into its eyes, although if it really is You-Know-Who, that's still likely to be the last thing you ever do."
--
Non HP fans, if you decide on reading some of these, understand that they are much more funny when you know the context/characters etc. :)
HP fans, enjoy! (I am looking at you Pesc and SS :) )
--
Dudley looked a lot like Uncle Vernon. He had a large pink face, not much neck, small watery blue eyes, and thick blonde hair that lay smoothly on his thick, fat head. Aunt Petunia often said that Dudley looked like a baby angel. Harry often said that Dudley looked like a pig in a wig.
--
"Fred, you next," the plump woman said.
"I'm not Fred, I'm George," said the boy. "Honestly, woman, you call yourself our mother? Can't you tell I'm George?"
--
"Now, you two - Behave yourselves. If I get one word that you've blown up a toilet or - " [Mrs. Weasley]
"Blown up a toilet? We've never blown up a toilet."
"Great idea though, thanks, Mum."
--
Speaking quietly so that no one else would hear, Harry told the other two about Snape's sudden, sinister desire to be a Quidditch referee.
"Don't play," said Hermione at once.
"Say you're ill," said Ron.
"Pretend to break your leg," Hermione suggested.
"Really break your leg," said Ron.
--
"Well...when we were in our first year, Harry-young, carefree, and innocent-"
Harry snorted. He doubted whether Fred and George had ever been innocent.
--
(Harry, just being greeted by Percy) "Harry!" said Fred, elbowing Percy out of the way and bowing deeply. "Simply splendid to see you, old boy-"
"Marvelous," said George, pushing Fred aside and seizing Harry's hand in turn. "Absolutely spiffing." Percy scowled.
"That's enough, now," said Mrs. Weasley.
"Mum!" said Fred as though he'd only just spotted her and seized her hand too. "How really corking to see you-"
--
Hermione sat down, laid the things she was carrying in an empty armchair and pulled Ron's predictions towards her.
'Not going to have a very good month, are you?' she said sardonically, as Crookshanks curled up in her lap.
'Ah well, at least I'm forewarned,' Ron yawned.
'You seem to be drowning twice,' said Hermione.
--
'Her acne's loads better lately - and she's really nice!'
'Her nose is off-centre,' said Ron.
'Oh, I see,' Hermione said, bristling. 'So basically, you're going to take the best-looking girl who'll have you, even if she's completely horrible?'
'Er - yeah, that sounds about right,' said Ron.
--
'All the good-looking ones taken, Ron?' said Hermione loftily. 'Eloise Midgen starting to look quite pretty now, is she? Well, I'm sure you'll find someone somewhere who'll have you.'
But Ron was staring at Hermione as though suddenly seeing her in a whole new light. 'Hermione, Neville's right - you are a girl...'
--
"Yeah, someone might slip dragon dung in it again, eh, Perce?" said Fred.
"That was a sample of fertilizer from Norway!" said Percy, going very red in the face. "It was nothing personal!"
"It was," Fred whispered to Harry as they got up from the table. "We sent it."
--
Dudley had done the thing he was threatening to do since age three: He had become wider than he was tall.
--
Ron: "Who're you going with then?"
Fred: "Angelina."
Ron: "What? You've already asked her?"
Fred: "Good point. Oi, Angelina!"
Angelina, who had been chatting with Alicia Spinnet near the fire, looked over at him.
Angelina: "What?"
Fred: "Want to come to the ball with me?"
Angelina gave Fred an appraising sort of look.
"All right, then," she said.
--
"What are you working on?" said Harry.
"A report for the Department of International Magical Cooperation," said Percy smugly. "We're trying to standardize cauldron thickness. Some of these foreign imports are just a shade too thin - leakages have been increasing at a rate of almost three percent a year--"
"That'll change the world, that report will," said Ron.
--
"Mr. Crouch!" said Percy breathlessly, sunk into a kind of half-bow that made him look like a hunchback. "Would you like a cup of tea?"
"Oh," said Mr. Crouch, looking over at Percy in mild surprise. "Yes — thank you, Weatherby."
--
"You’re not by any chance writing out a new order form, are you?" said Mrs. Weasley shrewdly. "You wouldn’t be thinking of restarting Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes, by any chance?"
"Now, Mum," said Fred, looking up at her, a pained look on his face. "If the Hogwarts Express crashed tomorrow, and George and I died, how would you feel to know that the last thing we ever heard from you was an unfounded accusation?"
--
Harry’s got a long way to go before he finishes this tournament," she [Hermione] said seriously. "If that was the first task, I hate to think what’s coming next."
"Right little ray of sunshine, aren’t you?" said Ron. "You and Professor Trelawney should get together sometime."
--
A week after Fred and George's departure, Harry witnessed Professor McGonagall walking right past Peeves, who was determinedly loosening a crystal chandelier, and could have sworn he heard her tell the poltergeist out of the corner of her mouth, "It unscrews the other way."
--
"Well, we were always going to fail that one," said Ron gloomily as they ascended the marble staircase. He had just made Harry feel rather better by telling him how he told the examiner in detail about the ugly man with a wart on his nose in the crystal ball, only to look up an realize he had been describing the examiner's reflection.
--
"Er - thanks very much, Ernie," said Harry, taken aback. Ernie might be pompous on occasions like these, but Harry was in a mood to deeply appreciate a vote of confidence from somebody who was not wearing radishes in their ears.
--
A slightly stunned silence greeted the end of this speech, then Ron said, "One person can't feel all that at once, they'd explode."
"Just because you've got the emotional range of a teaspoon doesn't mean we all have," said Hermione.
--
The fireworks continued to burn and spread all over the school that afternoon. Though they caused plenty of disruption, the other teachers did not seem to mind them very much.
"Dear, dear," said Professor McGonagall sardonically, as one of the dragons soared around her classroom, emitting loud bangs and exhaling flame. "Miss Brown, would you mind running along to the headmistress and informing her that we have an escaped firework in our classroom?"
"Thank you so much, Professor!" said Professor Flitwick in his squeaky little voice. "I could have got rid of the sparklers myself, of course, but I wasn't sure whether I had the authority..."
--
Hermione drew herself to her full height; her eyes were narrowed and her hair seemed to crackle with electricity. "No," she said, her voice quivering with anger, "but I will write to your mother."
"You wouldn't," said George, horrified, taking a step back from her.
"Oh, yes, I would," said Hermione grimly. "I can't stop you from eating the stupid things yourself, but you're not giving them to first years."
Fred and George looked thunderstruck. It was clear that as far as they were concerned, Hermione's threat was way below the belt.
--
Mrs. Weasley let out a shriek just like Hermione's.
"I don't believe it! Oh, Ron, how wonderful! A prefect! That's everyone in the family!"
"What are Fred and I, next-door neighbours?" said George indignantly, as his mother pushed him aside and flung her arms around her youngest son.
--
"We shouldn't have taken up that stupid subject in the first place," said Harry.
"Still, at least we can give it up now."
"Yeah," said Harry. "No more pretending we care what happens when Jupiter and Uranus get too friendly..."
"And from now on, I don't care if my tea leaves spell 'die, Ron, die' -- I'm just chucking them in the bin where they belong."
--
"...Little Ronnie, a prefect...Oh, I'm all of a dither!" She [Mrs. Weasley] gave Ron yet another kiss on the cheek, sniffed loudly, and bustled from the room Fred and George exchanged looks.
"You don't mind if we don't kiss you, do you, Ron?" said Fred in a falsely anxious voice.
"We could curtsy, if you like," said George.
--
"And that's Smith of Hufflepuff with the Quaffle," said a dreamy voice, echoing over the grounds. "He did the commentary last time, of course, and Ginny Weasley flew into him, I think probably on purpose, it looked like it. Smith was being quite rude about Gryffindor, I expect he regrets that now he's playing them - oh, look, he's lost the Quaffle. Ginny took it from him. I do like her, she's very nice..."
--
"I know I messed up Ancient Runes," muttered Hermione feverishly. "I definitely made at least one serious mistranslation. And the Defense Against the Dark Arts practical was no good at all. I thought Transfiguration went all right at the time, but looking back..."
"Hermione, will you shut up? You're not the only one who's nervous!" barked
Ron. "And when you've got your eleven 'Outstanding OWLs...'"
"Don't, don't, don't!" said Hermione, flapping her hands hysterically. "I know I've failed everything!"
--
Harry gaped at him. He had not expected this and was not sure he wanted to hear it. Friends they might be, but if Ron started calling Lavender "Lav-Lav," he would have to put his foot down.
--
How d'you spell 'belligerent'?" said Ron, shaking his quill very hard while staring at his parchment. "It can't be B - U - M -"
"No, it isn't," said Hermione, pulling Ron's essay toward her.
"And 'augury' doesn't begin O - R - G either. What kind of quill are you using?" "It's one of Fred and George's Spell-Check ones..but I think the charm must be wearing off.."
"Yes, it must," said Hermione, pointing at the title of his essay, "because we were asked how we'd deal with Dementors, not 'Dugbogs,' and I don't remember you changing your name to 'Roonil Wazlib' either."
--
"There was a clatter as the baskilisk fangs cascaded out of Hermione's arms. Running at Ron, she flung them around his neck and kissed him full on the mouth. Ron threw away the fangs and broomstick he was holding and responded with such enthusiasm that he lifted Hermione off her feet.
"Is this the moment?" Harry asked weakly, and the when nothing happened except that Ron and Hermione gripped each other still more firmly and swayed on the spot, he raised his voice. "OI! There's a war going on here!"
--
When he straightened up again, there were six Harry Potters gasping and panting in front of him. Fred and George turned to each other and said together, "Wow -- We're identical!"
--
"Mind you, if all the alleged sightings of him are genuine, we must have a good nineteen You-Know-Whos running around the place." [Fred]
"Which suits him, of course," said Kingsley. "The air of mystery is creating more terror than actually showing himself."
"Agreed," said Fred. "So, people, let's try and calm down a bit. Things are bad enough without inventing stuff as well. For instance, this new idea that You-Know-Who can kill with a single glance from his eyes. That's a basilisk, listeners. One simple test: Check whether the thing that's glaring at you has got legs. If it has, it's safe to look into its eyes, although if it really is You-Know-Who, that's still likely to be the last thing you ever do."
--
"You two," she went on, gazing down at Fred and George, "are about to learn what happens to wrongdoers in my school."
"You know what?" said Fred. "I don't think we are."
He turned to his twin.
"George," said Fred, "I think we've outgrown a full-time education."
"Yeah, I've been feeling that way myself," said George lightly.
"Time to test our talents in the real world, d'you reckon?" asked Fred.
"Definitely," said George.
And before Umbridge could say a word, they raised their wants and said together, "Accio Brooms!"
Harry heard a loud crash somewhere in the distance. Looking to his left he ducked just in time -- Fred and George's broomsticks, one still trailing the heavy chain and iron peg with which Umbridge had fastened them to the wall, were hurtling along the corridor toward their owners. They turned left, streaked down the stairs, and stopped sharply in front of the twins, the chain clattering loudly on the flagged stone floor.
"We won't be seeing you," Fred told Professor Umbridge, swinging his leg over his broomstick.
"Yeah, don't bother to keep in touch," said George, mounting his own.
Fred looked around at the assembled students, and at the silent, watchful crowd.
"If anybody fancies buying a Portable Swamp, as demonstrated upstairs, come to number ninety-three Diagon Alley - Weasley's Wizard Wheezes," he said in a loud voice. "Our new premises!"
"Special discounts to Hogwarts students who swear they're going to use our products to get rid of this old bat," said George, pointing at Professor Umbridge.
"STOP THEM!" shrieked Umbridge, but it was too late. As the Inquisitorial Squad closed in, Fred and George kicked off from the floor, shooting fifteen feet into the air, the iron peg swinging dangerously below. Fred looked across the hall at the poltergeist bobbing on his level above the crowd.
"Give her hell from us, Peeves."
And Peeves, whom Harry had never seen take an order from a student before, swept his belled hat from his head and sprang to a salute as Fred and George wheeled about to tumultuous applause from the students below and sped out of the open front doors into the glorious sunset.
--
(This last one is easily the funniest sequence in the whole series for me :) )
Jaa.. Ud Jaa Re...
Wow! This might be the best song in the album, and they left it out! It is difficult to judge with such bad sound quality, but I think this will easily be the most haunting song of the movie.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Could not think of an idea for blog..so posting my research work :P
Just wanted to show a very nice picture of my proton wire.
The pentagons are imidazoles (They are present in important
amino acids in our body too) and they are all hydrogen
bonded here and that is why it is a proton wire.
This is a preliminary stage for condensed phase proton
exchange membrane in fuel cells :)
Gist is my system in the Angstroms scale works very well
(in transporting protons) and ppl collaborating with us
are going to make large scale version of these!! (which
will not be this simple but tangled 3D versions)
The Magic of Enid Blyton
"Parp, Parp" :D Anyone who has read stories about the wooden little boy who stayed in Toyland would know this sound. Yup, I'm talking about Noddy and his bright red and yellow taxi.
Now where did this suddenly come from? Well, the other day my friend and I were talking about all the different types of books that we have read over the past many years, the variety of genres, and the importance of reading books other than those of course which are a part of school curriculum. She suddenly asked me which was the first book that I remembered having read as a non "school book". I promptly (well, perhaps a moment's hesitation was there) answered Noddy!! in Class I :D I have no memory of "book-reading" before that, but I definitely remembered this because starting from Class I to X we have always had a "library period" once a week. There was this large stack of Noddys in our class cupboard to be rotated amongst us and I remember eagerly waiting for that period. That was the time when I entered the wonderful world of BOOKS and discovered the Magic of Enid Blyton :)
It is not that I didn't read books by any other author or enjoy them as much; considering, however, that Enid Blyton has written over 600 books for young children, it is no surprise to me now that every other book that I could get my hands on (via school library or collections from friends' homes) was an Enid Blyton. Be it the Adventures of the Wishing Chair, The Naughty Children series, The Magic Faraway Tree series, Famous Fives, Secret Sevens, The Five Find Outers and the Dog :D or Malory Towers and St. Clare's....I was always in the possession of two or more ( no less, mind you ;) ) of these books. I did have my share of hindi books too...Panchatantra, Heeray-Moti, Nanihaal mein Guzre Din.....but being in an English medium school the ease of access to these books was more.
The world that was woven by her pen was so very enchanting! Anyone who has grown up on these books would know exactly what I mean. Vivid descriptions of the colourful scenery, characters, the delicateness of fairies, wit of the pixies, cunning of goblins and gnomes, power of magicians and wizards and not to forget the portraiture of the scrumptious food :D Toadstool houses and Blue cup cakes!!! I was soooooo fascinated by the thought of it! Funny animals, creatures and plants that could walk and talk!! There were of course lessons to be learnt too from these stories, the rewards of being good, brave, courageous and consequences of being otherwise. Then there were stories of these young children (at least one of whom you could completely identify with) and their adventures, escapades and secret clubs. I remember spending a lot of my holidays with friends pretending we were camping (a bed-sheet tent on the terrace/garden) or having a secret meeting (under the bed) complete with passwords and all :D It was a lot of fun. I sometimes used to wonder why I don't have access to a forest or a river or a haunted castle or caves! Whenever mom couldn't find me/see me/hear me in the house, it would be obvious that I am in "my reading corner" absorbed in one of these books oblivious to whats happening around me :P And what would be a perfect birthday gift for me would be no secret either!! As much as I used to enjoy getting lost in her books, I do owe a lot of my knowledge and development of vocabulary to her too.
If I went into details of the details of what was so great in each of her book series or description of the characters that I find so interesting etc. I would probably be writing a reallllllllly long article :P But I do believe (as would any other person who has grown up reading Enid Blyton books) that those who did not read her books in their childhood have indeed missed something, which unfortunately cannot be caught up with now. I am convinced that reading and immensely enjoying her work developed the "reader's bug" in me and I gradually moved on to other types of books. The kid in me still admits that I would love to flip through pages of her books anytime even today! No prizes for guessing what 5yr olds around me will be reading ;) Thanks Enid for all the magic and joy.
Raavan Day 1 - disappointing
Ok, let me be clear. Disappointing only because this is Mani/Rahman/Gulzar. Disappointing in the same sense as Guru's music was a disappointment. After all, a Mani/Rahman album has no business having "Ek lo ek muft" and "Baazi laga" in it. Then again, every other song except those two were thoroughly deserving of being there. It is somewhat similar with Raavan too. I must say, though, that this is just the first day impressions. Chances are that a week from now I'll be posting "what was I thinking? Raavan! disappointing?"
Anyway, here is a mini-review.. just some thoughts on the songs...
1) Beera Beera : Fabulous song! The shortest song in the album, but carries the maximum punch. They thought of putting an "african" song for a maoist's introduction! well, maybe the "jungle" connection is there. The reason I call it "african" is because if I filter the lyrics and pretend that I am not listening to something in Hindi I can clearly hear something from one of the south african countries. :) The vocals by Mustafa Kutoane add so much to the song. Can't wait to hear this in ARR's voice in Tamil.
9.5/10
2) Behne De : Starts with a background of music that feels just heavenly. And then Karthik starts singing. wow! pretty good soft, slowish romantic song. The only drawback, if you can call it that, is that it seems to follow pretty much standard ARR soft song script. Makes me think of Bhoola Tujhe .But then that's not a bad thing. Also, I have absolutely no doubt that when I listen to it with more attention, I'll find little instrumental/melodic gems throughout that will be completely uniquely of this song. This IS the sort of song that ARR seems to "polish" a lot to satiate his thirst for innovation.
9.2/10
3) Thok De Killi : This is the "Ek lo ek muft" of this album. perhaps better than that, but still doesn't work for me at all. At least not till now. I noticed some instrumental turns etc that were engaging but overall this is what the cliche "situational song, will work in the movie" is used for. The song talks about this group (maoists) talking about "Dilli" thinking them as "pichhda huaa" etc. I don't see how something like this will work in the form of a song. Then again, perhaps a better song would've made it work. After all, "Chale Chalo" is such an anachronism for the time in which it is set in, yet it works beautifully because it is such a great song. This is just disappointing. I don't see it improving even in Tamil, but I hope it surprises me.
5.5/10
4) Ranjha Ranjha : Do I like this so much because it comes right after Thok De Killi? :) I don't know why, but I find it really seductive. Not that it is terribly original, just like Behne De. Reminds me of Taal's songs. Something in between "Ramta jogi" and "Kahin aag lage". And from recent songs, very reminiscent of Blue's "Yaar mila tha". It has something to do with the structure (female and male voices alternating... conversing in the song), but it's not just that. There is something to do with the way rhythm seems just that bit off-expected lines and the way words seem to follow the contours of the rhythm. Needless to say, Rekha Bhardwaj gives the song her own unique flavor. And it is always a pleasure to hear Javed Ali's silk-smooth vocals. As for my 'not terribly original' comment, that doesn't apply to the instrumentals going on here. ARR seems to be having a lot of fun playing around with things in this song. Then again, even THAT isn't unexpected. He can't help it. :D Good for us, I say! :)
8.8/10
5) Khili Re : Remember what ARR did to Ghazals in Tehzeeb? The singer is singing a perfectly "Ghazalish" Ghazal and ARR just adds modern instruments in the background that seemed so awkward in the first hearing. It definitely grew on me later and I actually liked what he had tried to do there. I think this is exactly the case here. Try to filter the instruments, and this seems another of his devotional melodious numbers that I have a weakness for. "Man mohana" didn't engage a lot of people but I thought it was really amazing. I could never resist its charm even though it is really such a simple bhajan. That is also true for "O paalanhaare". Trouble is, the instruments are doing something completely different here. This is ARR's Tehzeeb moment in this album, though much more subtle than that album. What that does is it makes the song seem ok, but there seems something awkward about it, something amiss. That's why what I think as of now is that it is 'sweet, but not nice enough'. However, I think there is a very good chance that this one is going to grow on me later. As of right now, the rating is..
7.9/10
6) Kata Kata : The start is absolutely wow! It is almost as catchy as Beera Beera! I have caught myself singing the first line of this song almost as much as Beera Beera since I heard the samples for the first time 3-4 days ago. But then, it sort of derails. And I suspect it has a lot to do with the lyrics here. Not the meaning of the words, per se, but the flow. Something tells me that this one was composed with Tamil lyrics first and they just couldn't do a good enough job of writing lyrics in Hindi that'd have gelled well with the flow of the song. If that's the case, this will gain a lot from a hearing in Tamil. in any case, i have noticed that I don't particularly care for hindi songs with "aunty ji chorus" :D Basically all the wedding type songs where some women are teasing the bride/groom. There is something about it that I don't like. But this only happens in hindi. I can think of a lot of tamil songs that haven't been dubbed in hindi which have similar chorus but I don't mind that at all. I am really hopeful that this song will gain a lot in its Tamil version. Like I said, overall, the rhythm is really, really good/catchy. It might catch on with junta. then again, it seems that this will be picturized like Ek lo ek muft, with the whole village dancing around (Mani seems to like this a lot). I don't see that being particularly junta-entrancing. Hopefully I'm wrong.
7.7/10
So, that's the first-day impressions. The reason i said it is disappointing is because one of the songs is just a complete let-down and two others are, as of now, not Mani/Rahman level. While the other three are really good, I think the sum of Barso re megha, Tere Bina, Ae Hairate, Jaage Hain and Mayya Mayya has to be higher than these. AND Guru wasn't even close to being one of ARR/Mani's best albums. So....
Anyway, here is a mini-review.. just some thoughts on the songs...
1) Beera Beera : Fabulous song! The shortest song in the album, but carries the maximum punch. They thought of putting an "african" song for a maoist's introduction! well, maybe the "jungle" connection is there. The reason I call it "african" is because if I filter the lyrics and pretend that I am not listening to something in Hindi I can clearly hear something from one of the south african countries. :) The vocals by Mustafa Kutoane add so much to the song. Can't wait to hear this in ARR's voice in Tamil.
9.5/10
2) Behne De : Starts with a background of music that feels just heavenly. And then Karthik starts singing. wow! pretty good soft, slowish romantic song. The only drawback, if you can call it that, is that it seems to follow pretty much standard ARR soft song script. Makes me think of Bhoola Tujhe .But then that's not a bad thing. Also, I have absolutely no doubt that when I listen to it with more attention, I'll find little instrumental/melodic gems throughout that will be completely uniquely of this song. This IS the sort of song that ARR seems to "polish" a lot to satiate his thirst for innovation.
9.2/10
3) Thok De Killi : This is the "Ek lo ek muft" of this album. perhaps better than that, but still doesn't work for me at all. At least not till now. I noticed some instrumental turns etc that were engaging but overall this is what the cliche "situational song, will work in the movie" is used for. The song talks about this group (maoists) talking about "Dilli" thinking them as "pichhda huaa" etc. I don't see how something like this will work in the form of a song. Then again, perhaps a better song would've made it work. After all, "Chale Chalo" is such an anachronism for the time in which it is set in, yet it works beautifully because it is such a great song. This is just disappointing. I don't see it improving even in Tamil, but I hope it surprises me.
5.5/10
4) Ranjha Ranjha : Do I like this so much because it comes right after Thok De Killi? :) I don't know why, but I find it really seductive. Not that it is terribly original, just like Behne De. Reminds me of Taal's songs. Something in between "Ramta jogi" and "Kahin aag lage". And from recent songs, very reminiscent of Blue's "Yaar mila tha". It has something to do with the structure (female and male voices alternating... conversing in the song), but it's not just that. There is something to do with the way rhythm seems just that bit off-expected lines and the way words seem to follow the contours of the rhythm. Needless to say, Rekha Bhardwaj gives the song her own unique flavor. And it is always a pleasure to hear Javed Ali's silk-smooth vocals. As for my 'not terribly original' comment, that doesn't apply to the instrumentals going on here. ARR seems to be having a lot of fun playing around with things in this song. Then again, even THAT isn't unexpected. He can't help it. :D Good for us, I say! :)
8.8/10
5) Khili Re : Remember what ARR did to Ghazals in Tehzeeb? The singer is singing a perfectly "Ghazalish" Ghazal and ARR just adds modern instruments in the background that seemed so awkward in the first hearing. It definitely grew on me later and I actually liked what he had tried to do there. I think this is exactly the case here. Try to filter the instruments, and this seems another of his devotional melodious numbers that I have a weakness for. "Man mohana" didn't engage a lot of people but I thought it was really amazing. I could never resist its charm even though it is really such a simple bhajan. That is also true for "O paalanhaare". Trouble is, the instruments are doing something completely different here. This is ARR's Tehzeeb moment in this album, though much more subtle than that album. What that does is it makes the song seem ok, but there seems something awkward about it, something amiss. That's why what I think as of now is that it is 'sweet, but not nice enough'. However, I think there is a very good chance that this one is going to grow on me later. As of right now, the rating is..
7.9/10
6) Kata Kata : The start is absolutely wow! It is almost as catchy as Beera Beera! I have caught myself singing the first line of this song almost as much as Beera Beera since I heard the samples for the first time 3-4 days ago. But then, it sort of derails. And I suspect it has a lot to do with the lyrics here. Not the meaning of the words, per se, but the flow. Something tells me that this one was composed with Tamil lyrics first and they just couldn't do a good enough job of writing lyrics in Hindi that'd have gelled well with the flow of the song. If that's the case, this will gain a lot from a hearing in Tamil. in any case, i have noticed that I don't particularly care for hindi songs with "aunty ji chorus" :D Basically all the wedding type songs where some women are teasing the bride/groom. There is something about it that I don't like. But this only happens in hindi. I can think of a lot of tamil songs that haven't been dubbed in hindi which have similar chorus but I don't mind that at all. I am really hopeful that this song will gain a lot in its Tamil version. Like I said, overall, the rhythm is really, really good/catchy. It might catch on with junta. then again, it seems that this will be picturized like Ek lo ek muft, with the whole village dancing around (Mani seems to like this a lot). I don't see that being particularly junta-entrancing. Hopefully I'm wrong.
7.7/10
So, that's the first-day impressions. The reason i said it is disappointing is because one of the songs is just a complete let-down and two others are, as of now, not Mani/Rahman level. While the other three are really good, I think the sum of Barso re megha, Tere Bina, Ae Hairate, Jaage Hain and Mayya Mayya has to be higher than these. AND Guru wasn't even close to being one of ARR/Mani's best albums. So....
Friday, April 23, 2010
Sun rise
It was about 4-5 days ago. This was an unusual day. just because I woke up at 6:30AM ;) . I looked out of my balcony and found this wonderful sunrise.
Though I was quick to react and gather my Nikon D60 to shoot but Sun had already crossed the crane. So here is the pic which I captured finally. Generally we don't notice it, but sun (and for that matter moon and other stars as well) travel very fast across sky.
Since then I am thinking to get up early and catch the Sun below crane. But if unusual things happen regularly, why would they be called unusual.
Though I was quick to react and gather my Nikon D60 to shoot but Sun had already crossed the crane. So here is the pic which I captured finally. Generally we don't notice it, but sun (and for that matter moon and other stars as well) travel very fast across sky.
Since then I am thinking to get up early and catch the Sun below crane. But if unusual things happen regularly, why would they be called unusual.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Ye muh aur masoor ki daal!
At the risk of seeming to have completely taken over the supposedly "team" blog, here is the result of my latest experiment in cooking. Masoor ki Daal (and daal chaaval).
not much to write home (or on blog) about, I know. But junta ki demand hai ki khaana banaana seekho to photo shoto bhi lo aur doosron ko dikhaao. :)
not much to write home (or on blog) about, I know. But junta ki demand hai ki khaana banaana seekho to photo shoto bhi lo aur doosron ko dikhaao. :)
Tamil ARR songs for a non-Tamil.
A friend of Pesc asked her to get me to send her some Tamil songs that she might like. She hasn't heard many Tamil songs before and Pesc tells me that she tends to like Slow/Soothing/melodious kind of songs in general (not that she doesn't like any fast paced ones.. just that if I have to make a small list, I'd do well to choose slowish songs).
So, I spent half an hour browsing through my ARR tamil albums and making a list of about 25 songs. That sounded too many, specially for someone who might not have heard many songs in a language she doesn't understand. So, Pesc suggested pruning it down to about 10, and sending the list in a mail with some comments about them. I had to take some gems out because of various reasons. I didn't wish to include any song that has already been dubbed in Hindi as there'd be a high chance she'd already have heard them. (Still, one of them is in the list... ). Also, there are some songs that I find it difficult to decide whether the movie/picturization etc add a lot to my love for them. If I suspected that, I struck them out too.
So, here are the 10.... well, 11 actually, since I added one right at the end probably because my media player decided to play that one right when i was about to send the mail and I just could not get myself to ignore it!! :) The resulting mail follows..
The youtube links are posted below, if anyone is interested but too lazy to find them him/herself. :)
Close your eyes for this next one. that is probably a good idea for all of these if you just want to enjoy the song without being distracted (positively, or negatively) by the video, but this one is actually not even the real video of the song. Someone took a song video of Anniyan and added the ARR song with it!
So, I spent half an hour browsing through my ARR tamil albums and making a list of about 25 songs. That sounded too many, specially for someone who might not have heard many songs in a language she doesn't understand. So, Pesc suggested pruning it down to about 10, and sending the list in a mail with some comments about them. I had to take some gems out because of various reasons. I didn't wish to include any song that has already been dubbed in Hindi as there'd be a high chance she'd already have heard them. (Still, one of them is in the list... ). Also, there are some songs that I find it difficult to decide whether the movie/picturization etc add a lot to my love for them. If I suspected that, I struck them out too.
So, here are the 10.... well, 11 actually, since I added one right at the end probably because my media player decided to play that one right when i was about to send the mail and I just could not get myself to ignore it!! :) The resulting mail follows..
Nice... Soft.. Soothing... Melodious...
well.. almost all.. some of these are fast/non-soothing. But ab list mein daal diya to daal diya.. :P
So, here is the list, roughly in the decreasing order of priority.. i.e. listen to the top one first.
1) Vellai Pookal from Kannathil Mutthamittal: very soothing. Awesome song from a great movie. one of the best songs sung by ARR himself, and that's saying a LOT.2) New York from Jillonu Oru Kaadhal: very melodious. "All time favorite Rahman song" of my roommate. Again, ARR keeps an awesome song with his own voice. :)3) Elay from Sakkarakatti: not slow/soft/soothing. reasonably fast, but great fun.4) Ithuthan Kadhal Inbada (female) from Pudhiya Mugham: you might have heard this already in hindi. But even if you have, well worth a revisit in its original form. A beeyouuuutiful song.5) Ennuyir Thozhiye from Kangalal Kaithu Sei: absolutely heavenly piano in the interludes. That part itself makes this a great song.6) Sonnalum from Kaadhal Virus: I think I especially like songs with slight Carnatic classical touch. and ARR obliges with a lot of melodious songs that have just that tiny classical touch to them yet seem so far away from classical finally. And the chorus here is to die for.7) Enna Solla Pogirai from Kandukondain Kandukondain: Not slow/soothing but one of the most popular songs from one of his greatest albums. Shankar Mahadevan got a national award for singing this song. I could've blindly chosen almost any song from this album actually. went for the most catchy/popular.8) Udhaya Udhaya from Udhaya: In many aspects it is like Sonnalum. a soft soothing duet.9) En Veetu Thotatil from Gentleman: They lifted 3 songs from Gentleman without crediting Rahman, and left this gem. Perhaps because they thought it has too much of a "southie touch". They didn't know, of course, that soon that "southie touch" will take the nation by storm in Bombay/Hum Se Hai Muqabla etc... :)10) Evano Oruvan from Alaipayuthey: Alaipayuthey was remade into Saathiya and they kept all the songs except two. One of them is this. I was aghast when I heard that they have composed a new song for this situation because, again, this is too "southie". Didn't mind in the end, because that new song was "Mera Yaar Mila De... Banjar hai sab banjar hai... ". Doesn't hurt to get another good new song, does it? :) But this one is definitely as good, if not slightly better. the female voice just melts me.. and the flute!! wow!!11) Theekuruvil from Kangalal Kaithu Sei: Bonus song. not slow. not soothing at all. very fast actually. and perhaps a little difficult to like initially. But just keep an ear for the female singer's vocal acrobatics. What singing!!! very fun song, but really, it's the singer that makes this a must-listen.
I can see that I have written more about the songs that are actually lower in the list. :) Doesn't mean that the top ones weren't worth talking about. Just that I got into the flow of discussing in depth later in the list. :) sorry.
By the way, standard conditions apply. You are not allowed to hear any of these songs unless you are able (i.e. have the time) and willing (i.e. have the enthu) to give it 3 hearings. continuously. i.e. hear 1, then again hear 1, then AGAIN hear 1, before moving on to 2. Take as much time as you need before this condition can be met, but don't break it. Please.
And, no laptop speakers, of course. not even external speakers. good earphones/headphones are a must. :D
The youtube links are posted below, if anyone is interested but too lazy to find them him/herself. :)
Close your eyes for this next one. that is probably a good idea for all of these if you just want to enjoy the song without being distracted (positively, or negatively) by the video, but this one is actually not even the real video of the song. Someone took a song video of Anniyan and added the ARR song with it!
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