And the Oscar goes to...

3.5 inches high, 6.75 pounds, tin and copper, with gold plating. A rough sketch of  a figure holding a sword hanging on the reel of a film. Not the best of designs but since 1927, its the hallmark of recognition and respect. It is probably the best-known statue in the world, known as the Oscar, because Margaret Herrick, the Motion Picture Academy of Arts (MPAA)'s first Librarian, named it as Oscar because it resembled a lot like her uncle Oscar. Monday mornings in India on 27th Feb-1st March are something to look forward to  - Its the night of Oscars telecast live in this part of the world, thanks to Star Movies. An awards ceremony that celebrates the achievements of cinema the Hollywood way, the night of limited dance and song, of solemn remembrances, of a brief snapshot of the non-Hollywood cinema seen through the prisms of "Foreign Language" category. The night of all-colour men and women dressed in Black and White and Red array of shining, coal-black, shining costumes. The night which has epic commentary on how Hollywood breathes life into the annals of society through its movies of the year.
I always admired the preciseness, grand scale of executions, class and charishma that underlines the Oscar awards. Only the best talent who usually vie with one another - screenwriters, costume designers, animators, editors, sound recordists, stage and setting designers, actors and actresses, playwrights and lyricists, writers and comedians - all of them get together, give their best flat foot forward, lend their voice, pen, nerve and sinew to make it the spectacle that counts. Somehow, the humor that comes out of this one night, according to me, is enough to drive you to raptures of laughter. Its like the night when the wit and received wisdom of PG.Wodehouse, Groucho Marx,  Erma Bombeck and  Woody Allen pillorie the pale lines off your face.
Talk about the comperes, I grew up catching up of the best comedians and standup-champions chaperone the Awards nights - from Bob Hope to Woody Allen, Billy Crystal to Eddie Murphy to Robert Downey Jr. Over the years, the Awards represent an assemblage of talents coming together to give the best glimpse of the Industry' united strength - although it is never the case because all folks can't be satisfied. I remember Bob Hope the great humorian who lived till the age of 100 - he started the whole tradition of hosting the funny side up. He never won an Oscar and rubbed it in at one of the Awards Ceremonies: "Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the Academy Awards, or as it's known in our house, Passover."
Tonight (or tomorrow morning for us in India), you have some of the best contemporary actors competing for the top honours - the likes of Brad Pitt ("Moneyball") and George Clooney ("The Descendants") and the classic legends like Merryll Streep. Sophistication and class, subtety and style  - you can expect to see a harvest of all of these in the Awards ceremony especially with Billy Crystal - Oscar Awards Host for the ninth time - replacing Eddie Murphy. Contrast this with the crassness of the Filmfare Awards - OMG! Come on, Oscars, lights on!

"Moneyball" Movie Review

"Moneyball" is a smashing adaptation of best-selling author Miichael Lewis's book by the same title. It must be one of the best movies on a game that Americans and Japanese love to freak out on - Baseball. Director Benett Miller draws some of the finest talent available in screenplay including the award-winning "Social network" writer Aaron Sorkin and creates a pulsating account of a true story. Its a story of two outliers Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) and Peter Brand (Jonah Hill) who think out of the box in replacing a club team that lost its three pricey players; they instead pick unconventional players who are technically "faulty" and boy, their team - Oakland A's - goes on to win 20 consecutive games in Baseball history - the best record since 1918.

Peter Brand, partner to Billy Beane, is the whizkid who relies on arcane formulae from calculus and creates algorithm-based programs that zero in on the game's most valuable but under-valued players. The twosome meet with stiff opposition for their unconventional thinking but eventually win the plaudits when they redefine the rules of the game. The more you know the game, the less you know more about it says an introduction to the movie - and it turns out that way. Later, as goes the true story, Billy Beane - the General Manager who turned it around for Oakland gets a multi-million dollar deal for more clubs but he turns it down to dote on his daughter. Peter Brand, the silent number-crunching backbone behind this whole idea to bring down valuations of players down to the real numbers they produce on the pitches - his play becomes the new motif for another aspirant Red Sox who win the next American League season.

I always wondered why the Americans never succeeded in attracting the commonwealth nations like India and Australia to Baseball. But this is the closest to getting an appreciation of the game, its contours and its flamboyance, the pace and the adrenalin are well brought out by Bennett Miller. Brad Pitt who plays the legendary Billy Beane must have seen gold in the Michael Lewis book, he produces this as well. Jonah Hill who played the Ivy League Economics graduate Peter Brand using computer-based algorithms which made the players bidding more credulous and level-playing ground for poor teams does an impressive job too. You can't help but relating to explore if the strategy adapted by these two protagonists has any implications for Indian cricket - especially in IPL valuations, the way players are bid at astronomical prices. Brad pitt essays a brilliant role and he has the best lines. "Is losing Fun?" and "Thats how losing sounds to me" must become two of the shortest motivational speeches ever delivered in the players' restrooms in sports movies. One line I remember: "We bought you as a valued player not because of your past but because of what we believed you will deliver for us." That says it all.

Michael Lewis - Wall Street's favorite writer who brings out the funny and romantic side of monetary worlds - he should be happy with the adaptation. I gather now that buoyed by the applause for this movie, his book "Coach" rights are bought by Walt Disney. That way, American movie-makers can make sensible and intelligent movies based on true stories for many millenniums - something that movie industries in other countries including India only occasionally attempt.

Cricket Australia Vs.Cricket India

The strength of a country's cricket team lies in its coaches and the process followed by the apex body in selecting in-form cricketers and giving a fighting team for the nation - a team that wont retreat or rest on past laurels. Cricket-lovers will always remember how clinical and ruthless Cricket Australia functions. They eased out Shane Warne at the cusp of another 300 wickets, and didn't spare ...Andrew Symonds for a few faux pas, waited for Steve Waugh, Glen Mcgirth, Dean Jones, Allan Border, Michael Bemen, David Boon, and several other cricketers I fail to recollect. And now, Ricky Ponting - the only cricketer who can beat the combined trio of Sachin, Laxman and Dravid in batting records. And look ma! he has been shown the door in ODIs. Thats class act of Cricket Australia.


Contrast with BCCI - reeking in corruption, under-invested in harvesting new talent, or training our cricketers to face bouncy pitches or fast bowlers. We don't even know how to sustain interest in fast-bowling as a career option, we make pitches that suit more batting records to get piled up. And look at our cavalier attitude towards non-performing assets - We are all the time waiting for some people who for some reason, we feel are above law, like Sachin to announce retirement. Gavaskar was right in saying, the best time to retire is when people say,"Why?" rather than "why not?". I have been saying consistently that Sachin's best days are behind and he doesn't deserve Bharat Ratna - thats a totally different topic (which I will address with proper arguments constructed layer by layer). And now, we are afraid to drop the demigod of cricket for whatever reasons. The point, however, is not that. The point is why BCCI doesn't have exacting performance standards for seniors who are not consistent like Cricket Australia or even neighbouring Pakistan Cricket Body which was notorious for sacking indisciplined players. Trouble is, BCCI has spread itself too thin on past laurels - and the country is going berserk on watching more and more of 14-reel cricket - Celebrity cricket league, IPL-Summer and IPL-October and the long dry-and-deadpan-pitch winter cricket season which end in draws or batsmen hauling up triple ton records.

Cricket nations across the world are waking up to the fact that too much money has crept into the cricketing lives - and cricket in India is becoming as gawdy as the big fat Indian wedding. If performance is not coming sooner or in consistent bouts, the euphoria or fixation over our national sportsgame will become anathema. Cricket lovers in India know that cricket blues happen also more often here than anywhere else. We just need an independent decision-making team that can look the other way when advertisers, business groups and cricket superstars are pouring in money. Money talks, in cricket also but not for too long - especially when performance goes missing.

"Poola Rangadu" Movie Review

Poola Rangadu" is comedian Sunil's third film as a hero. Directed by Veerabhadram, it is as entertaining as any mass hero's commercial project. Unlike in "Maryada Ramanna" where he puts an apprehensive face, this time, Sunil gives a treat of a range of emotions from his characteristic comedy, slapstick, punch dialogues et al, and mixes with sentiment well. Sunil has got a good support from other... actors like Kota Srinivasa Rao and heroine Isha Chawla and the two villains. Director Veerabhadram seems to be adept at story-telling with grip on entertainment and the pace never slackens till the end. He shows command over all departments of directing with a touch of mass appeal that could get another hit for Sunil as he comfortably struts from one range of emotions to another, jumps like an acrobat, runs like a cheetah, serenades Isha Chawla, dances like the best of Tollywood heroes now and like Salman Khan bares his newly-sculpted six-pack body in the climax.


Music by Anup Rubens and dialogues by P.Sridhar are both good and classy. Even if the plot is average, the screenplay and story-telling skills of the director make it a little better than average commercial films. Sunil the hero shows that with the backing of a good script and deft direction, a talented comedian can also do what superstars do on screen - with good dancing skills, timing sense of dialogues, average screen presence, and a body that pumps iron. From an expectations point of view, Sunil should find his rewards as the audience will find the movie thoroughly entertaining. Because of an effort to give a 360 degree view of what a full-fledged hero out to display on screen, the movie gets a bit longer at 150 minutes. But fun watching with some thrills and good laughs.

Anant Pai - Founder Editor of Amar Chitra Katha now has a comic

Finally, India's favorite comic creator has a comic in his memory posthumously! Uncle Pai's Amar Chitra Katha Amar Rahe. He must be busy in heaven making storyboards out of Angels!

"Love Failure" Movie Review

"Love Failure" is an Indian euphemism usually branded for emotional wrecks and one-sided lovers. Siddharth, who loves giving breaks to debutant directors has starred in a fantastic movie that must become another career-defining milestone after "Bommarillu". Dil Raju surely might regret missing a chance to back Mohan (director) and Siddu the third time because this film has universal appeal universal applause. Siddharth has boldly backed himself and the script and silences all his critics of the past half a dozen movies. The only way to answer your critics is to let your work speak loud for itself. An untried and fresh-looking starcast, a sans-makeup Amana Paul, a plot about two, no, many Engineering students and infact several couples of diverse traits and different age groups as to how they think, act and feel towards each other - all these could happen because Siddharth after many flops has chosen to trim his anchor role and make way for many others to perform and entertain. For most part, Siddharth runs a narrative staring at the audience trying to talk like a John Gray - getting under the skin of lovers as to why they break up and bid farewell. For the first time, Balaji Mohan attempts an honest overview of the state of mind and thinking pattern of today's generation in a way that will surely bridge generation gap. All this with minimum hassle and maximum clarity - thats the high point of the film.


There is occasional comedy again from unconventional-looking freshmen and right-dosed sentiments from under-exposed character actors - so they all stand out. Music by SS Thaman, surprise surprise, is enchanting and melodious without any mass strains of pied piper tunes that he has been, of late, playing. Thaman has created a different texture to the sounds in the film with BGMs and songs unconventional. Balaji Mohan's work and class in scripting, shot-selection, screenplay and mature handling of the subject of Love and Relationships smacks of a lot of promise in the freshness he brought. Movie's length also an advantage as its done with in two hours. Though there is a didactic touch to the movie because the hero (Siddharth) narrates as the main interpreter of maladies that besiege love. He metastasizes love as a serial with many characters and couples who run to the edge of divorce. What's impossible feat in the film - No fight, no item song, no action stunts, no sleaze, no exotic sets or SOTC world tour packages - there is not even a trace of a duet between Siddharth and Amana Paul but still the sparks are flying! Refreshing and welcome break from formula fares. Siddharth deserves a high-five after a long time for a bold and engaging script.

"Ek Mein Aur Ek Tu" Hindi Movie Review

"Ek Mein Aur Ek Tu" stars a metrosexual emerging star Imran Khan and a gregarious-and-gorgeous-looking Diva Kareena Kapoor in an improbable love story set in Vegas. (I don't know if its Las Vegas). Both of them, out of job-loss blues and depressive from breakups, meet at a Psychiatrist who charges per hour and queerly end up in a home for Christmas. Then they "marry" and quickly try to "annul" t...heir marriage. The bizarre twist turns to India where Kareena beckons Imran to Mumbai to spend a few days before the annulment takes effect. Nothing taxing here except that Rahul Kapoor (Imran Khan) bumps into his super-rich and stiff-upper-lip parents who pummel him into leading a mechanical almost soul-less life of existence. Director Shakun Batra encouraged by Karan Johar tries to weave a flimsy romantic plot into a lively, breezy and mostly funny tale that touches you without giving an overdose of everything. Though the story and the treatment often reminds you of several Hollywood movies and Hindi movies like ("Love Aajkal" and "Jab We Met") and Telugu movies (like "Bommarillu" and "Yeh Maaya Chesaave") there's a certain freshness in the movie and an energy from the main cast - a 32 year old Kareena still looking a freshman 27 and a well-groomed 25 year old Imran Khan. Cinematography is terrific - captures the beat of night life in the US as well as the varying beats of Mumbai with the same verve. Music by Amish Trivedi is average but not memorable to haunt you. Screenplay and storytelling deserve a pat - there is enormous effort to make it adlibbingly slick and good. Two hours of good fun!