Goodbye IIMB

It may sound "un-cool" to a lot of people, but it is a little hard not to get emotional when you realize that you have to let go of something that has been an integral part of your life (infact, that has been your life itself) for as long as you can remember. As my airport-taxi pulled out of the gates of the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore(IIM-B), probably for the last time,  it was almost as if I was leaving a part of me behind.

Although I wasnt fortunate (and/or accomplished) enough to study at IIM-B, I was lucky to be associated with the IIM-B community for 28 years, 5 off-campus and 23 on it (I am counting years only from the time I was old enough to understand what was going on around me). During this time, I met and interacted with some amazing people and was part of a culture and environment that has influenced me in many ways, professionally and personally. 

But all good things must come to an end. It was a good 28 years and, hard as it is to accept, its time to move on. I wish the institution and every member of the IIM-B community nothing but the best in future. I will miss IIM-B

Barfi - A breath of fresh air

There are movies which are pure, mindless entertainment. There are those which try to build awareness about societal issues. There are those which portray cruel reality for what it is. And then there is Barfi. It is difficult, almost impossible, to box this movie into a genre. So I wont attempt to. I would just describe it as an goofy, funny and extremely endearing portrayal of  the twists, turns, emotions, challenges, situations and circumstances that life is full of.

Whether its the charming deaf and mute Barfi, the autistic and extremely sensitive Jhilmil, the portly inspector getting the wind knocked out of him chasing Barfi, or Shruti who is at war with herself multiple times...they all strike a very unique chord. There are quite a few instances in the movie where it becomes a little difficult to hold back a tear or two (and I saw a few people who actually couldnt). Even so, whats wonderful is that it doesnt leave you feeling melancholy.

What I liked best about the movie is that, despite the protagonists playing characters which are deaf-and-mute and autistic respectively, it doesnt focus on the whole "differently abled" cliche. That is just another fact in the movie. While there is no deep message of any kind being conveyed (atleast not overtly), the movie does, in a very touching manner, tries to bring out the fact that 2 people who truly love each other will always be happy in life, regardless of the external circumstances, difficulties  and  personal shortcomings.

I always liked Ranbir Kapoor as an actor. Ofcourse, the Kapoor genes in him have played their part of endowing him with a performing ability that comes with charming ease. That said, there is a versatility about his acting which is quite refreshing. As far as Priyanka Chopra is concerned, I think this is her best performance to date. I dont know too much about autism and cant comment on the accuracy of character she has portrayed. All the same, she's come a long way since Fashion which was her other decent performance. Leana D'Cruz has also done a good job, although I think Priyanka ultimately stole the show. There are subtle bows to Charlie Chaplin and Raj Kapoor which make the whole thing all the more appealing. Music is wonderful.

The only negatives that I can think of is that its a little too long and sometimes just a touch too confusing with all the flashbacks. Other than these, its a movie that is very very hard to not like.

Hats off to the entire Barfi team and hope Anurag Basu has a few more aces like these up his sleeve

Its only after watching grey's anatomy did I truly wake up to the fact that what i am doing for a living is complete crap. But the fact is, its crap that pays me decently. So there are 2 things I can do

(a) Keep cribbing about the fact that I am doing complete crap for a living
(b) Treat this as something that I need to do for money....and do what I really like on my own time.

Im going to try and work on option (b). Its not gong to be easy. There are enough people I know who will make it difficult. To be fair to them, they do it in complete innocence...rather, they do it because its what they do. But I think I can do better. And Im surely going to try