Movie review - 22 Female Kottayam (Malayalam)

In the early hours of morning  an angel appears to Ashiq Abu and reveals: Dude, Mallus are very much a movie loving kind of species. But they have no 'New-Gen' movies to meditate on. From now on you take the mantle of messiah of Mollywood.

On hearing this Abu gets up and goes to the library. He hunts for the latest Tamil and Hindi flicks. Then he picks up a few old popular ones. Abu puts the old wine in the new bottle. Here is your new-gen movie.

The movie works because Abu hits your raw nerve. It fills up the theatre seats and pages of the publications. None bothers if its the same old heady story.
The pure, innocent girl is brutally raped and sent to jail for attempt to rape. She befriends the bad women there and they teach her out to be an underworld don. Yes, she comes out and sets the world on fire.

Now how is it shot in the new-gen method
1. The whole movie is shot in very dull color tones. There will be plenty of slow-mos, a few closeups . There will be someone singing in husky, high pitch voice, constant jarring of guitar.

2.  The new Indian movie symptoms where even the jobless hero lives in the posh apartments, wears designer outfits, hits the swankiest pubs, dates the hottest girls. The new movie makers are reluctant to show the drudgery and decadence through the lens. How much we miss the portrayal of realism.

3. Mr. Fazil , the king of sugar candies , introduced his son, Fahad , long time back. The media made sure they welcomed him with much fanfare. As usual the Fazil movie sank without a trace. The cute, handsome, wooden faced wonder was a phenomenon who was doomed to ignominy.
But years later he comes back without much ado in a characteristic bald and stubble. He's the epitomization of new age anti hero. In this movie he even displays his hairy chest and jockey underwears.

Still the wooden face stays on.

To be fair to him, except for the few yesteryear actors , none display the panache for the slick dialogues or the under played  style of emoting. But the great part is director kneads skilfully metal music into places to make up the sad acting.

Seeing a bunch of guys from the golden era of Malayalam cinema was wonderful. They are an ageing and fast fading breed.

4. Abu trumpets the era of the new age Mallu women. She comes out of closet onto the bright world carrying with her all the sensualities and absolutely no emotional baggage. She curses, pass lewd remarks, wear a miniskirt , spots a bold hair do, happily sleeps with bosses to migrate to Canada.

Abu hints regularly Kerala has changed and its women too. But then you Google for Mallu Masala- the same portrayal in a different light can be seen. What the fuck are you conveying ,Mr.Abu.

In my line of career I have seen a lot of nursing graduates in the past few year years. It's so very unfortunate that such an inaccurate portrayal is made. I wonder if the director ever thought of how the lowest paid people can afford a swanky flat. Is just sleeping around a ticket to USA?

Sights and sounds of Mumbai Ch:2

As I mentioned, the class war changed the face of the city- gradually but surely.

I stepped out of the airport expecting an onslaught from the auto wallahs and taxi wallahs. But I was in for a surprise. There seemed to be no rush. The taxis were arranged in neat queues. There was no hard bargains. The drivers carried a fare card which he shows you before quoting the charge. This is a luxury compared to any other city in India.

The drivers might have been taught passable English. They mumble thank-you and welcome. May be its to please the angrezi customers. Once we learnt there's a place with fabulous sizzlers. We asked the driver to watch out for a sign board 'Yokos'. He said 'padna likhna nahi atha' . We had to rely on our Google maps.

The old black and yellow Premier Padminis, with sofa inside, were another landmark which is giving way to stylish Santros and Nanos.

Still the driving in Mumbai roads are atrocious. So is the pedestrian crossing. But I never ever heard people losing their temper when a fat Bhabhi jumps in front of your vehicle or when someone unnecessarily takes a rash turn. Living dangerous is a part of life and they have peacefully accepted it.
I found it out while  crossing over to the Marine drive. My bro simply jumped into the speeding traffic. The fast traffic gracefully brushes you by. If you fear and take a step back the speeding car will hit you.

The so called resilience is inbuilt in a Mumbaikar from childhood. Where in other places, you have your mothers hovering over you, dropping you to your classes, feeding you quality food ; here the an average kid might not get these luxuries.

One morning I walk into a hotel and see a bunch of kids in their school uniform munching on their breakfast. Personally, the dried Idlis there are a horror. I couldn't figure out how these kids could stand them, and that too at a time when they had to have the best meal of the day.

The famously overcrowded suburban trains were another stark example. No considerations were given for your age or sex. It's your responsiblity alone to jump in or out of the train in time.  You absolutely have no privilege for questioning the intention of the man smothering your ass or the guy standing on your feet.
Life's a struggle and there's no place for pseudo moral science classes

Sights and sounds of Mumbai Ch: 1

The aircraft floated for a couple of hours, surrounded by feathery clouds.  Then suddenly it fell down into earth below. First it was the brown earth, then we saw the tiny boxes on the brown earth.
Another careful look and you realize its the famous slums of Dharavi , the once famous landmark of the city. But now the slum is surrounded by high rise buildings, threatening to gobble it up. From the outset, yes it is a good sight.

Mumbai used to be the promised land for a generation. It was a place where things happened. Although Mumbai might not have made you rich, it helped you to put the bread and butter on your table. May be even marry off your siblings.

Back then the city lived at mercy of the mafia. They held the keys of wealth and death. They went on to acquire the invincible status. There were a handful of dynasties. They controlled everything from films to politics to crickets.

But then the liberalisation came in. The city no longer needed its para law makers, since the country did away with many of the laws. What the state needed was licensed law breakers and then the corporates stepped in.
Slowly the bhai logs were encountered off. The corporates took over the reins. The roads were widened. More trains came in. Better law and order. Shopping malls, eat outs , multiplexes...what boy. The big boys went on to make it into world's richest lists. Being rich, being greedy were no longer sin , but a virtue

.....(continued)