2.0 – A technology show!

One more post – my thoughts on the movie 2.0.

A movie that has been expected for quite some time now. And finally, was released - without any major pomp that usually precedes a Rajinikant's movie.

2.0 - is a sequel to Endhiran. Directed by Shankar and the roles of Robot 2.0 and scientist Vasigaran are being played by Rajini once more. The heroine role is filled up by Amy Jackson - a female robot made by Vasigaran.

Vasigaran’s girlfriend/wife – Aishwarya Rai (Sana) who was the crux of Endhiran, was now miniscule(d) to a jealous and harping girlfriend over the phone.

The selling point of this movie are the graphics and the 3D. You experience the 3D starting from the titles. The letters in Rajini's name shooting close to you was good ☺️

I am not getting into the storyline in detail here. mmm...to think about it, there is not much of storyline either.

The movie starts with "Paksheeraja" - a 80-year old ornithologist committing suicide on a cell phone tower.

Why? Because of the cell phone tower radiation and the number of birds vanishing because of it! He has taken his cause to the Government and his efforts are in vain. His case in court is closed due to lack of concrete evidence that the birds are vanishing due to the radiation from cell phone towers.

Good point raised by Paksheeraja! In fact is this something we witness too? The disappearance of sparrows from our backyards?

Now, Paksheeraja comes back as a ghost and fills his “Aura” with the souls of the dead birds too. And LO! He becomes devilish! Oops! How did the soul of the dead birds add on to Paksheeraja’s and become devilish! Can’t digest that these poor chirping dead birds can become evil!

And then, Robot 2.0 is brought back to life to encounter Paksheeraja and deactivate his soul!

Mmmm… sci-fi movie or a “Kanchana”- type ghost movie? 

Confused story, shaky logic, and misplaced hero-villain character-portrait.

According to me, the hero is Paksheeraja and the message is “Lessen the use of cell phones; monitor the radiation levels of the cell phone towers; reduce the number of cell phone players, thereby reducing the number of cell phone towers; love and feed the birds. Because only when birds are protected, worms and other insects are eaten, and only if these insects are eaten, humans will have food…”

Makes sense, doesn’t it?

For the sake of graphics, logic and humane nature towards our partners in this Earth seemed to have taken a flight.

• Or are we getting into the era where technology is taking more importance than the matters of the heart or matters of health rather?
• Or maybe I am looking into this more than what is needed.
• Or maybe I am getting old and longing for the face to face interactions more than the communicator pings 😊

This movie is a one-time watch for the graphics and the technology used! And like the vanishing birds, the movie disappears from your head too after a very brief period of time!

Dreading a 3.0! 

Kalps

96 - As the years pass by...

After a long lull of around 8 years, I have resumed my writing and what better way to start than to write about a movie that lingered in my thoughts for some time! 

“96” – the year when a batch passed-out from their 10^th standard. These batch-mates decide to meet after 20 long years in a hotel in Chennai and with it, bring together a man and a woman, a boy and girl, who were swept away from each other in the tides of time.

The man – Ramachandran is played by Vijay Sethupathy and the woman, Janaki played by Trisha.

Ramachandran  - a travel photographer, a teacher of photography, a man who is on his own, travelling, eating what he loves, sleeping when he wants to, doing the things that the married folks are jealous of.

Janaki – a lovely lady with flawless skin, sharp nose, and a brisk gait.

The movie starts with an introduction to Ramachandran - a character portrait of this nomad. Begins with a visit to Thanjavur where Ramachandran has done did his school studies, a visit to his school and a trip down the memory lane with the school security guard Janakaraj. How nice it was to hear Janakaraj's laughter once more! 😊

Ramachandran initiates the interest of meeting all his school pals to one of his school friends and WhatsApp spreads the word and network to all the class mates instantly! Makes me wonder about our lives without WhatsApp and how it was ever possible?!

The classmates meet – the once lanky boys and girls with plaits and ribbons, now a set of bulky men and women in sarees and crying babies. But yet, the laughter comes back in an instant, hugging and glowing at each other when they meet face to face.

Ramachandran meets Janaki – with that opens up a trip back to their school days. A leaner Vijay and a cuter Trisha – of course a different set of actors playing these roles. A kudos to the kids playing these roles! Refreshing!

A nice blossoming of friendship, shyness, affection and love starts between the two. Makes you smile when Ramachandran’s heart does a loud thud-thud when he sees Janaki after their love has blossomed. The talking boy becomes mute with love – the effects of love washing over him showed very well on the young lad’s face. But before their 10^th is over, Vijay’s father shifts his family overnight from Thanjavur fearing the money-lenders from whom he had taken loan. Janaki comes to know about this a few days later and with no phones or any form of e-communication, the couple split. Physically but not emotionally….

Life has moved on – Janaki marries and settles in Singapore with a child. Ramachandran becomes a photographer and remains single.

When they meet at the gathering, it is as if life didn’t move on. The gathering ends but Ramachandran and Janaki spend the night roaming in Chennai – travelling in metro, having tea in a restaurant, and spending the night in Ramachandran’s apartment, looking at the little trinkets and reminders of Janaki's that Ramachandran has saved with him in a box – a hair clip, a dupatta and many small things that only people in love can steal and savor 😊

A few other scenes deserve special mention too:

• When Ramachandran sees the Janaki’s mangalsutra hanging around her neck when Janaki is asleep and when he quickly does a gesture of touching it to his eyes. A short stop signal to his desire…

• When Janaki wants Ramachandran to cut his hair like as is he was in his 10^th standard and the way Ramachandran looks once his hair is cut – sheepish, vulnerable, boyish

• When Janaki says “You can love someone and you can marry someone else too and be happy” to Ramachandran’s celibate status

• When Ramachandran’s heart still does a thud-thud even after 20 years on meeting Janaki. Janaki touches his chest to feel the “thud”, “thud” falls Ramachandran to the floor, swooning on the touch. Makes you roll with laughter on seeing the expressions 😊

Janaki doesn’t want to lose sight of him that night after having met him after 20 long years and knowing that Ramachandran has always been loving her.

Why didn’t they find each other in their college days? Why did they remain silent and not seek out each other?

Janaki’s flight back to Singapore is the next morning. Does she take the flight back to Singapore? Or does she stay back to relive the lost years? Watch the movie to know this 😊

For some, it might seem like the movie “Autograph” repeated. But it is not so. While Autograph was good during its time, 96 gets its well-deserved slot in the heart of lovers and friends. Little emotions captured well - a walk, a wait – weaved out in a manner that makes you stop and watch. This movie has been one among the few where the man is shown as a vulnerable, forever lover who stays alone thinking about his love. A shift again from the stereo-typed male dominated movies where the man is always a macho with no place for mushiness.

Vijay Sethupathy – accolades aren’t needed for him anymore. He competes with himself with every movie. Be it the man with a salt and pepper beard, a stern teacher with the intent of teaching perfection to the art, a lover who transforms his face into a heart, wow! He has marked the new era for heroes!

Trisha – She brings a smile onto your face. "Bold and Beautiful" is how you can describe her. Looking forward to seeing her more in Tamil movies.

And of course, the friends and school mates – ‘Bugs’ and Devadharshini need to be mentioned for their natural acting and for bringing in the needed laughter to us.

The Director/Story teller takes the crown here. Only a few Tamil movies are made in the same genre as 96.

Movies like the peacock feather hidden amidst pages of a treasured notebook 😊

Soft….

Kalps

Fig and Honey

The character I like the most in "Finding Nemo" is Dory, the little blue fish. Dory is the fish with short term memory loss. She sometimes forgets who you are after a couple of minutes.

Dory's problem might seem worrying to most around. But to me she was able to live life every moment. She gets introduced to the same person time and time again. Every relationship is experienced newly every moment.

Oh! now why am I talking about Dory here?

It's because I am becoming more and more like her. I never had a great memory for remembering people and their names. It does hit me vaguely that I have seen this person before. But I can never recollect the name most of the times. This problem has increased manifolds now.

I, in fact, goofed up on some introductions I had to make at work. Took a newcomer to a team lead to introduce her to him. But I always have been confused with one more person there who is the same height and who speaks in Tamil. So, I walked right into the wrong cubicle, not stopping for one moment to read the name tag attached to the cubicle, made him stand up with a Hi, stared at his shaven head for a brief moment thinking that something was strange, and made the introductions. He looked baffled. But nice enough not to get furious at being pulled out from a brief meeting in his cubicle and introduced to a person whom he was not having a clue about. After making the introductions, I got intelligent enough to verify his name. Lo and behold! He pointed to another cubicle and said that the “he” whom I was looking for was the "him" out there. I apologized profusely, grinned sheepishly, walking stupidly, and made the introductions again to the right person-name combination.

Later, I sat with my hand on my head worried about my fading memory. A colleague asked me with concern what happened to me. I told him I goofed up with the introductions and was worried that I was forgetting faster. He just laughed and said "You are growing old Madam"! I gave him a stare and then smiled. It's okay, I told myself.

Is it really the age? Do people start losing control of their memory cells when you near the forties? A smart doctor replied, "Mam, you are multi-tasking". He joined my gang narrating that he thinks of another patient when he is treating one and he starts losing track of what medicines he prescribed too. Dangerous for a doctor! Anyway, he did not bring the age factor there. Sweet enough to earn a sugary smile from me :-)

I know I get mixed up with directions. I get muddled up when I am bombarded with too many questions at the same time. I alter names, I forget dates, and I don’t remember addresses or phone numbers.

Ram tells me that my mind is selectively forgetting. But am I? Sometimes I do wonder if I am stepping into the world of the forgettors (club of like-absent-minded people). Though I am scared, I am happy too. I will forget incidents that bothered me, people who hurt me, experiences that scared me. But I will also forget the moments in my life that tasted like honey, people who made me feel like a princess, and events that made my heart burst with joy.

So this why I like Dory. One day, I might stare at you and ask you if I knew I before. Don’t be hurt. Start introducing yourself to me all over again :-)

Forgetting the taste of my favorite ice cream, Fig and Honey...

Let's keep swimming,
Kalps