story of sayuri

from the desktop of the 'other' bojangles:

for those of you who have seen the kamaal amrohi epic 'pakeezah', memoirs of a geisha will come as a hollywood rendition of it. an underdog goes on to become the most happening geisha in the town and in the end gets united with her childhood love. loads of plot twists like, a bitchy rival, a dedicated trainer and wwII happen in between. the high points are mindblowing cinematography of the oriental and moving background score by none other than john williams . all in all a visual/musical delight.

i havent read the book to comment on the quality of adaptation but 'time has told us' that the latter is usually weaker.

ps: sayuri is her 'geisha' name.

craaaash!

from the desktop of the other bojangles:

many plots, 2 days, 1 city and racism in US...that in a nutshell is the plot of this multiple oscar nominee. the execution, remindful of previously seen smart flicks like magnolia & traffic lays bare the deeply embedded racism prevalant in the US society. some great acting specially by don cheedle & matt dillon and a brilliant background score makes this movie a must see!

though the nation keeps bragging about the egalitarian, humanitarian society that they have, the reality is that something like racism is still very much around. but its only a country like US where you can talk about it so openly!

..anything

you say
or do
can and will be used
against you.

But I finished!!

All of 21.097km!!! (these spirit fellows don't know a thing)
It took me 2 hours and 40 minutes - knee gave way when there were about 3kms left, so I had to slowly walk to complete.. now for 2007.

Straight from the horses ear:
'Milind Soman! Milind Soman!!' (he overtook me twice!)

'Dude we have to be smart - see that guy with the frizzy hair with that short chick. They sprint for a while and then walk - yet they catch up with us every time.'
'Keep running or I'll tell Shivani you wanted to walk behind a babe.'

'prrrrrrrrrrrrrr. Excuse me.. sorry..'

frizzy haired guy to short chick, 'I was..'
short chick, 'shut up!'
(when I crossed them half an hour later)
frizzy haired guy to short chick, 'I..'
short chick, 'just shut up!!'

'Abhi nahi, race ke baad mein donate karo!' (the organ donator cheering group - and there were lots of cheering groups in all sizes)

'Aunty, aap ko toh fashion-show mein hona chahiye.'

'Abhi toh ho jayega. Aate waqt kaise hoga!' (DHL guy on running up the peddar road bridge)

When we started out at 7, the full moon was still up over the sea..
and there was a navy brass band playing really well - the guys actually used sheet music!
and there were lots of these small yachts with uniform light blue sails..
and for a long long while I ran with a big white baloon having a UV water purifier ad - till I gave it to a street kid at Haji Ali..
and the Mousey did the 7km dream run - even with her terrible cough that kept her up most of the night..
and the dream run looked a Carnival - there were kathakali dancers, people in all sorts of costumes with things on their heads, even a Yamraj (with two guys dressed as skeletons) doing an anti-tobacco campaign!!

Mumbai rocks!
(The Bombay festival has begun - trilok gurtu playing tonight by the gateway - but the knee demands his rest)

Another brand new day!!

So there I was, coming back up after my jog, thinking how I no longer have time to watch the VH1 classic hour, that apart for being able to read very simple pieces I have nothing to show for my 7 months of practice, that something's really wrong with today's education-career thing..

Got home and slid open the drawing room window.

Pre-dawn skies, the calm sea, the sweet morning breeze.. mom leaving for her morning class saying she'd left me some tea (and that sugar was added twice by mistake).. the mouse still in hibernation (and she's better now) - who was I kidding?!!!

'No need to run and hide
it's a wonderful, wonderful life.' - Wonderful wonderful life (Black)

last working day of the year!

Straight from the mouse's mouth:
when car's there - "Here's the car, now where are the keys?"
when car's towed - "Here are the keys, now where is the car?!"

Ran 7km this morning. If my knee holds, I think I can go on and on.

bub bye 2005

Had my last class of the year (and I played on his Fender nylon string!!)

'What's this symbol?'
'That's a breve.'
'A breve??! Never heard of that..'
'Come on, if there's a semibreve, there had to be a breve!'

(also got formally introduced to mr. hemi-demi-semi-quaver)

thus spake

'They ask on why they need different, and to why they are not as easily pleased as before. Yet they easily accept (and expect) all change in physical form. The growth is everywhere.' - Swami Something

sweetie

The happy guy reached VT. Rush hour was long past and the station was clearing up. He put the book in his bag and took out his mobile, 'Reached VT. Be home soon. Switch on geezee baba.' He checked on his wallet - twentyfive rupees - the ATM trip could be postponed to the next morning. But that meant he'd have to leave home a few minutes earlier. Shaking his head, he walked towards the ATM in the dark of the dark, dark night.

A couple walked ahead. She commenting on how he should change his shoes. He replying on how they cost money. She reminding him of the new chappal's he'd aquired. They weren't suitable for work, he said. She wouldn't understand his work.. she couldn't understand his work, he said. So an argument began and it was growing. The happy guy overtook the quarreling couple hoping he knew she meant well.

'Sweetie?'
Happy guy looked around. There were four guys (all to his left).
'What do you want Sweetie?'
He remembered later that he began walking faster and faster and faster still (though in reality he may have even run). And he could hear them all through the while, 'Yes, Sweetie. Sweetie??'

(And when he walked out of the vestibule, they were gone.)

Drizzled this morning!

Am so happy,
happy happy happy..

..and you don't need a reason to be glad!!

barren

'..how you answer the questions of God's existence will impact your relationship with others, your commitment to integrity, your attitude toward morality and your perception of truth..'

But I've always needed to find out for myself - a deaf ear to her, a deaf ear to him.. a closed door to them and all the voices within. 'Then how did it all start?' Something from nothing. (wonderings on the beginning of life and matter, knowing nothing of the beginnings of my own life or even workplace - and which has more relevance!) I don't know. I don't know.

And if he did exist, he's made himself redundant.

Watching the wheels

Saw a guy having an epileptic seizure right outside the main entrance of VT. It was rush hour - the crowd continued moving, avoiding him.

Watched a couple having a long conversation in sign language. They were on the platform opposite mine.. five minutes.. or a little less. Sometimes she got irritated when he didn't understand.

Had vada-pav for breakfast in office this morning. Was expecting the usual idli. So nice!

'I'm just sitting here watching the wheels go round and round,
I really love to watch them roll,
No longer riding on the merry-go-round,
I just had to let it go.' - John Lennon (Watching the wheels)

nag nag

(so what did you do memorable yesterday?)

saw the lights as my local entered VT (had just shut the book and come to the door). Was lifted, taken far far far away. As with listening to Nicola Hall. Or reading Dostoevsky. I know many who search for that beautiful place (only) to get lost. I know am fortunate to be surrounded by them!

'..that the sacrifice of life is, in many cases, the easiest of all sacrifices. They fail to understand that to sacrifice five or six years of their seething youth to hard and tedious study, if only to multiply ten-fold their powers of serving the truth and the cause they have set before them as their goal, is utterly beyond the strength of many..' - Fyodor Dostoevsky (The Brother's Karamazov)

chikoo

the gates of the forbidden city is open now, so that mr bojangles can walk in and tell what the gypsies sang to him and others, one friday evening.

so there we were..me, my twin, the sis, and a bearded fellow with our 500/- pass outside the gates of the place where the gypsies were going to be with their guitars

Ganesha says

take the day off work
make up for lost sleep
get in shape for friday's class
(un)dust the computer and bring it into the bedroom
replace the busted tubelights
go kitchen-tile shopping

Will do.

'Cloulds are stalking islands in the sun, I wish I could buy one, out of season..' - Peter Frampton