The Reader - MyView

I just finished watching an Oscar nominated movie "The Reader".
I had earlier preferred against watching "The Milk" for its homosexual content.Pardon me, I am not that narrow-minded but I was just not very comfortable. But on the other hand, Curious Case of Benjamin Button absolutely blew off my mind.So, I had great expectations from this movie too. Dircted by Stephen Daldry, it is based on an award-winning novel by German law professor and judge Bernhard Schlink.

Set in the backdrop of the holocaust times, the movie deals with a wonderful relationship between Hanna Schmitz(Kate Winslet) and Michael Berg(David Kross).Hanna, isolated by her existence, finds this young guy, sick and dull. It wasn't that she was attracted to her. But as time flew by, and they happen to meet consistently and make love to each other, and they develop
a special chaste yet emotional bonding between them. It was like a symbiotic relationship. Michael used to read her books, many books and the relationship was something he had begun to identify himself with. It was something he couldn't live without now. It sort of filled the very gaps in his own life. It was like a fantasy escape for him.

But Hanna leaves one day and the whole dream ends for young Michael. They lead their lives in a disparate fashion. Michael moves on to study law and had almost left his past behind, till one day he visits a trial being a law student. And one among the accused is Hanna. The case is of a Jewish genocide and ultimately she confesses to writing a report that could prove her guilty. This was when Michael realises that she never knew reading itself in the first place. The ulterior motive though,is not very clear, it is undoubtedly the burden of guilt that had taken toll on her.

The next part deals with how they get into touch with each other. Michael(Ralph Fiennes) finds a way to read her books-tapes.He would tirelessly record tapes of his favorite books and send it to her.Meanwhile, Hanna decides that she would learn to read, and to write. She teaches herself listening to the tapes and lookin at the books.She writes several notes to Michael. This part is the part I liked the most. It so wonderfully potrays sacrifice and bonding in a relationships sans a name, sans any meaning yet with a profound effect that it leaves behind for both.

By the time she finishes her life term, she teaches herself how to read and write.
On the day she was meant to be released, she gives away her life. A calling perhaps that an important purpose of her life, being literate was accomplished coupled with the fear or intimidation of having to face a world as a perpetrator of 300 lives.
She leaves behind some money for the lone survivor of the fire, that Michael wishes to donate by her name.

Kate Winslet's role as an illiterate woman, who has to bear the guilt and shame of being responsible in a mass murder of Jews, as a Nazi gaurd for women prisoners, is challenging but she has done full justice to it. She emanates pathos, yet exudes her human side so vividly. It is the characters more than the story that actually lures one into the movie.

For some time into the movie, it seems to be dealing with maudlin story between a guy and a woman of varying ages. But as the story unfolds, there is every relevant emotion portrayed very wonderfully weaved into the scheme of things, in the best possible and most realistic manner.


I would rate it 7.5/10.

For more comments -

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0976051/usercomments

Scribblings on a high

A long run into fantasies
and things wild, things unknown
dreams of a rosy life
resting all on a flower-spread couch
inebriated of sorts
by gallons of sensual teasers
Life rests on a velvet cot,
her legs numbed and heavy cracks;
the vignettes of life
percolating,
and some chemical attacks
the entire reaction is
smothering rough,
a likely sour taste on my
interminable sweet tooths
Yet..
a sweet glance into realities
a talk with my soul frees
weird traces of the psychedelic kick
and unfound zions
thad had me sick..
Still..
the mystery of this
unsung tutelage of life
though to every man does
preach the basics to strive,
points and often punches
straight on your face;
and 'watch out'
it says..
that's when u mend
sort your life better...
to get another high
to slip another time..
and yet not to lose..
but to rise ...
and to rise higher ..
another time !!!
---

The Year Gone By-

As time ticks on, a year has gone by,
yet unlike always,
'twas not in the wink of an eye,
the year I felt was long,
for mama and for me-and for many of her sons
we all are happy; we are all strong;
but 'twas unlike the usual song-

it had its moments; of pride
of passion, of joys, celebrations,
and mama held her head high,
basked in the glory of her successes.
but not for long..

shocking elements crept in soon,
predictable yet unanticipated,
nations crippled, economies suffered
she tried - she struggled,
yet as inevitable it was, it was rude
and I limped alongside,
struggling to stand;
out and loud.

as men fought men; distinctions arose
unity in diversity, mama broke to tears
silly she thought, silly it was
the very fabrics of her existence
bent to unleash wrath,
sabotaged her
to a caricature of ridicule,
and she stood helpless
gaping in shame, and utter disgrace.

she was recovering though,
from her wounds;
affairs were in real bad shape
yet we were strong, we were hopeful,
but destiny had for us,
some real ugly turns.

all the pending notes,
of the tumultuous song-
had pathos, had cries,
imbued through out...
marred by fateful events mama was
'serenaded by the terror bird'
a quilt of love and brotherhood
so easily burnt to ashes....
as in horror,she watched,
the death macabre; and
it made her heart bleed.

she pledged vengeance,and
to eliminate the perpetrators
retaliated,yet has held her own,
and the values of peace and truth,
she has so well exemplified !

hence for the forgettable year gone by,
Its adios, sayonara, bye bye
The time is not just to be with friends,party;
But to swear truth and honest service
realize our destinies;
coz its the same second at
the stroke of midnight,
that announces the new year
yet it brings new hopes, unlike any
hopes on us, and hopes are many

and as she looks forward to
the new dawn, the new year,
to mama - we all wish
a year of prosperity and bliss
of victory of truth and right
over the evil might;
and 'cause we are all strong
we will all be happy
and for times long..
we will write the most melodious song
for mama, and all of her sons ....

-- 2008 - It was a year that witnessed the worst economic crisis in decades. The credit bubble burst and mortgage crisis followed and along with US, all of her dependencies saw their economies crippling and indexes plummeting. India was a major in that list. Investors, businesses lost money and tightened up. Lay-offs and cost cutting measures ensued, and it was not good news for job-seekers.

-- It was a year that witnessed the most horrendous terror attacks in the nation's history. It not only cost the nation many lives and property but most important of all undermined her sovereignty and integrity by holding her captive for around 60 hours. It also unearthed major follies and lethargy on the government's part in curbing terrorism and building a strong anti-terror mechanism.

I was deeply grieved by the Mumbai terror attacks and take this opportunity to extend my condolences to the victims and their families.It is really a sad day in the history of the nation.And hats off to all the NSG commandos, the Mumbai police, the VT terminal employees like the announcer, the TAJ hotel workers,etc. All of them played their part selflessly in the success of the entire operation.

-- The terror attacks are enough provocation for any nation to break lose, yet government has taken strategic steps by trying to influence the international community to impose political and economic pressures, and force Pakistan to curb and root out terror bases from its own soil. Because war clearly implies MAD(Mutually Assured Destruction). Hence the nation has held her principles in high regard while retaliating and protecting itself. Yet, in face of continued diplomacy and double talk by Pakistan, air strikes on terror bases and camps seems inevitable.

As a result of the ongoing tension between the nations, the gas-pipeline deal with Iran is most obviously dead. Though Pak might swear allegiance but its ulterior motives can never be trusted, not at least now.

-- Amidst a cauldron of conflicting politics, the ruling party is shaking. The year witnessed the least number of Lok Sabha sittings this year. Till the completion of 11th session there were 49 sittings held so far. And on 23rd Dec, while BJP and Shiv Sena were demanding the sacking of Minority Affairs Minister A R Antulaya, as many as eight Bills were passed in a span of 17 minutes!! I am not authorized to comment much on that, but many of them needed serious discussion.

-- Yet there were victorious moments, the N-Deal success, the Olympic Medals(esp. Bindra's gold), etc. Meanwhile, on personal front it was not a very good year, though it has got many cherishable memories on the pages.

-- So let us not just hope but work for a better, prosperous and happy year 2009.
Adversity breeds genius, and genius breeds contempt. These are testing times for all of us, and we must exude courage and strong will.
"Kyunki dar ke aage jeet he "

WISH YOU ALL THE BEST AND A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR 2009

Both of us -
downed by fatigue and tire
one has to wake up, rise higher... egh !!!

Playing - Boulevard Of Broken Dreams -Green Day

CAT fever and silly opiums !!

(click for a better veiw)

Hi friends ,

CAT is a true test of one's character rather than just solving problems and bubbling circles .Any one who has ever attempted to bell the cat must have realised this over and over again.

The idiotic and apparently philosophical poem you see above is a stupid vent after many inconsequential hours spent in shallow contemplation of what lies ahead for me !! Infact, the first stanza took form on the back-side of an OMR sheet! This is what happens with me being bogged down, sabotaged and marauded my the ruthless paws of the feline CAT. One week to go, irresistible and invidious spurts of anxiety and apprehensions so well avoided till now, seem to peep in through the inchoate crevices of my 'Fort Knox' and goad my tempestuous self with a look of disdain. A hazy image of glory is still palpable and tempting enough to keep slogging !!

All the best for CAT '08 - Tame the goddamn animal !

Poetry !!

"I believe that poetry is an action, ephemeral or solemn, in which there enter as equal partners solitude and solidarity, emotion and action, the nearness to oneself, the nearness to mankind and to the secret manifestations of nature. And no less strongly I think that all this is sustained - man and his shadow, man and his conduct, man and his poetry - by an ever-wider sense of community, by an effort which will for ever bring together the reality and the dreams in us because it is precisely in this way that poetry unites and mingles them."

“The poet didn’t scare off when they said he was a rebel. Poetry is rebellion. The poet was not offended when he was called subversive. Life transcends all structures, and there are new rules of conduct for the soul. The seed sprouts anywhere, all ideas are exotic, we wait for enormous changes everyday, we live through the mutation of human order avidly and spring is rebellious.”

- (Pablo Neruda)
Nobel Prize For literature(1971)
Pablo Neruda (July 12, 1904–September 23, 1973) was the pen name and, later, legal name of the Chilean writer and politician Neftalí Ricardo Reyes Basoalto.
With his works translated into many languages, Pablo Neruda is considered one of the greatest and most influential poets of the 20th century.read more about him.

You can also go through his Nobel Lecture. Get Inspired nerds !! http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/laureates/1971/neruda-bio.html

Beach Lessons

In just two vital visits to a sandy (of course !) coastline beach nearby, I have begun to understand why people feel like returning to the BeachBaba every time some sort of extreme turbulence freezes their brains( Wat ! No, it wasn't one of those Australian nude beaches where scantily clad skimp mangoes run to ripe!!).

If you are an ambitious runner, weiried down by deliberate attempts of subversion by peers or otherwise, the mighty waves splashing hard against rocks, retreating back, gathering energy and gushing down again teach you perseverance and the preponderance of work(or Karma) against apparent glories of their results .Do not hedge your bets, run harder.

Throw anything light it gets back to you. The resilient sea wouldn't readily get into debts. But if the shit you throw are heavier than the waters, they spoil the waters and at times to an irreparable extent. The sea gets coarser on the outer though it might be ethereal pure-blue at its core. Her tertiary arms suffer the bruises, but she fights on with an inspiring endurance. Her tolerance should not be miscued to be her weakness because we have all witnessed the aftermaths of her rage.Though ultimately we have come to realise the painful reactions of our actions with a part of the sufferings closing down on us and our coming generations.

If you are stressed, the rejuvenating fresh breeze on the beaches infuse in you a new leash of life with all sorts of hopes and aspirations, love and affection, happiness and purpose,blah..blah.And certainly, I bet the amazing tranquility in the darkness of the post-sunset beaches is far more intoxicating and refreshing than any opium you may have tried.The silence and isolation of the beaches together with the melodious sound of beating waves is soothing to one's heart and soul and certainly wipes of all bitter thoughts or nerve-wrecking and revolutionary ideas clogged down in your humble brain. Pure unalduterated harmony of nature.

Well if you are one Schmaltz bomb, the natural beauty and romantic ambience might be the perfect trigger for an unprecedented explosion. Please do not let the splinters spoil the moment, try being happy like all the merrier people on the beach !! Coz, things happen for a reason and a better purpose. Hopefully, BeachBaba's vibes will be re conciliating.

The might and the volume of the sea exemplify greatness in humility.

And for the ever jovial characters, a perfect place for merry-making. Plan a trip, sleep down with your buddies, and enjoy the Ashram. BeachBaba's tutelage is all the more helpful for all you young guns. One thing you will certainly take off with you are cherisable memories of the blissful moments. Hope everyone's in this category.

And lot more life lessons to discover. It is up to you. You might not get any lessons at all, but you cannot certainly ignore the energy of the place.

Happy learning and have fun.