Good website for Bollywood? What about Tollywood?

Is there a website you can zero in on all the block-busters right from Sholay to Maine Pyar Kiya, from Ghajini to Guide, from 3 Idiots to DDLJ? Go to http://www.boxofficeindia.com/ for a low-down on all block-busters. They may not be inflation-adjusted, but they give a way out of the maze of figures thrown in by media reports - whether MNIK (My Name is Khan) is Rs.150 crs. or 64 crs. Its a good site to compare apples vs. oranges and oranges vs. mangoes. But dismally, there's no credible website which tracks down the prolific Tollywood and its numerous releases - speculation and hearsay dominate Tollywood more than reality check. Its grown appreciably in the last many years but now comes an inflection point for more transparency so that we grow bigger and brighter. Any suggestions? One guy who I admire is Allu Sirish (brother of Allu Arjun). His take on Tollywood is different and enjoins the important thread between creativity and commercial viability. Check his views at : http://www.allusirish.in/

"Discover the Diamond in You" by Arindam Chaudhuri

Arindam Chaudhuri, one of those shameless self-promoters who forays into everything from politicking to Bollywood to B-School management apart from writing Alternative Budgets and Full Page Advertorials in all ABC certified newspapers (Who's financing them? Who's Reading them?), is out with a new book - Discover the Diamond in You (A pot-pourri of success literature in rapid text).But due to paucity of time, he says he composes the whole book on SMS.(We can make out). So, it reads very short and tweet-like and should be done away with in less than an hour, including Introduction by mind-alike Shah Rukh Khan. If you have never been exposed to any self-help book, and if your vocabulary is below 350 words, this book will suffice, I mean, do. Read it, if you, like me, are getting a foot pedicure and a shampooing of the hair simultaneously, and have some time to kill.

Watching a Movie in Multiplex vs. Air-Cooled Theatre

I watched a movie in Sandhya 70mm (RTC X'Roads) after many years, on first day first show for "Ye Maaya Chesaave". Couldn't relish it more. The shrieks, the whistles, the flowers, the paper tributes, and the shouts of joy and ecstasy to see different characters and the hero and the heroine make their appearance on the screen, and the response to stunts - that atmosphere is not there in multiplex screens - where everybody including me is afraid to even cough or sneeze. Form is good in multiplex screens, but the soul of cinema-watching still lies with the regular theatres. Can we have the best of both worlds? Happens rarely when multiplex audience gets bolder - afterall, you are not watching in your private theatre, and the audience are not robots.

"Ye Maya Chesave" Telugu Movie Review

It takes two to tango. Nag Chaitanya has a slick winner in "Ye Maaya Chesave" ("Vinaithaandi Varuvaaya" in Tamil starring Trisha and Simbhu) - his second movie, directed by Gautham Vasudev Menon, with lot of awe and skill. If the essence of a love story is conversations, Gautham navigates the portrayal of a relationship beautifully, showing all the moments that make it, break it, and restore. It shows why some make it and many don't with lots of evocativeness, passion, sensitivity and honesty. Refreshingly, A R Rehman's music (replacing Harris Jayaraj in a coup) feels at-home, competitive and enriching. You remember the output of his early years in this movie. Nag Chaitanya and newcomer Samantha excel in their roles. Sporting to see Mahesh Babu's sister Manjula produce a different film for Nagarjuna's son. Cinematography is another major asset. There are more pleasant surprises in the movie.

Book Review: Tales From the Bench and the Bar by Vicaji J.Taraporevala

There are over 47,000 pending cases in Supreme Court, over 3.7 million in High Court and around 26.3 million in subordinate judiciary. Amidst all this insurmountable volume of work, black dress, uniform, countless PILs (Public Interest Litigation)  being filed every day, and cases for bringing lawyers' assets to book under Right To Information Act, one wonders whether a lawyer's life is all about serious stuff! Not so, according to the book - Tales from the Bench and the Bar by Vicaji J Taraporevala. Its a delightful insider's account of life on the Bench and the Bar giving some refreshingly light moments that liven up the often stern and forbidding proceedings in our courts. The author himself is a senior advocate in the Bombay High Court and has been practising for sixty two years. He gives some glimpses of sharp wit and humor, of legendary lawyers like Nani Palkhivala, Sir Pherozeshah Mehta, M R Jayakar. The book is a good read and I have been distributing to a few lawyer friends and wannabe lawyers since.

Here's a sample: "A member of the Bar carrying a number of law books was greeted in court by his client with the words. "I thought you lawyers knew all the law." "Yes, we do", said the lawyer. After a pause, he continued: "Oh, these books  - they are for the judges."

"Maro Charithra" Audio Review

Mickey J Mayer has scored some refreshing music than the usual 8 1/2 beat songs he did for movies like Leader, Kotha Bangaru Lokam etc. A product of Trinity College, London - Mickey J Mayer can turn out to be Tollywood's AR Rehman if someone can help him with variations possible in percussions and re-arrangement. Mickey has definite strengths in melody-making and orchestration. This movie has one or two outstanding numbers which are, boldly, not re-mixed numbers of the old Marocharitra - that legendary K Balachander movie which has haunting melodies of M.S.Vishwanathan - the Guru of Maestro Ilaya Raja. Malay Palay Magadivo  and Yeh Theega Puvvulo may not be as good as Originals but they cast their charms on your senses, lingering on.

And now, In-Train magazine!

In-house magazines and In-flight magazines, we heard. But In-train magazines? Sounds new and exciting, right? A Hyderabad-based company - Intellium Media Consultants Pvt.Ltd has started India's first In-train magazine for the South Central Railways, released on 11th December, 2009. The magazine called  "Shades of Life" seems a promising new magazine, distribted freely to passengers (not for carrying) in AC Coaches of trains criss-crossing the South Central Railways. Considering that the SCR ferries over 20 lakh passengers every month, its a monster of a market too big to ignore for any publisher. The magazine is slick, finely produced with elegant editorial content and glossy pics with 200 gsm variety. Looks like Railways and Reading are finally going together decades after writers like Ruskin Bond, Winston Churchill, Jim Corbett, Khushwanth Singh enjoyed the experience of reading in the Great Indian Railways. Next time, you are in AC Coach, don't forget to ask your copy of "Shades of Life" and do drop in to give your feedback. I hope this gets bigger and better across Pan-India Railway network in due course.