~ Comeback Kid ~

It is comeback time !!!!!!

No, I am certainly not talking about the Rahul Dravid nor am i referring to Govinda. It is time to start the blog once again. I will take upon myself to start the blog all over again and make it more entertaining than before. Two minutes silence to the co-founder - Mr. Vinamra Gharat - who will no more be with us. Keep reading this space for more updates. Will be back with new interesting topics, new writers and certainly more members.

Before I sign out let me you wish you all a Happy Navratri and Happy Eid.

See you all within a week's time. Stay tuned!!!

The Countdown begins...

~ Archer Akshay

JAI HO!!!!!!!!

Jai Ho!!! These are the only two words that will resonate for years to come. What a film and what a proud moment for our country. Jai Ho Rahman, Jai Ho Gulzar, Jai Ho to everyone associated with the film. Thank you Rahman for giving us a reason to celebrate and thank you Danny Boyle for making such a beautiful film. Hats of!!!

A.R.Rahman has made us proud... Congrats Sir.

Jai HO!!!!!

Jai Ho!

Aaja aaja jind shamiyaane ke taley

Aaja zari waale neele aasmaane ke taley

Jai Ho!
Ratti ratti sachchi maine jaan gawayi hai

Nach Nach koylon pe raat bitaayi hai

Ankhiyon ki neend maine phoonkon se udaa di

Gin gin taarey maine ungli jalayi hai

Eh Aaja aaja jind shamiyaane ke taley

Aaja zari waale neele aasmaane ke taley

Baila! Baila!
(Dance! Dance!)

Ahora conmigo, tu baila para hoy
(Now with me, you dance for today)

Por nuestro dia de movidas,
(For our day of moves,)

los problemas los que sean
(whatever problems may be)

Salud!
(Cheers!)

Baila! Baila!
(Dance! Dance!)

Jai Ho!

Chakh le, haan chakh le, yeh raat shehed hai

Chakh le, haan rakh le,

Dil hai, dil aakhri hadd hai

Kaala kaala kaajal tera

Koi kaala jaadu hai na?

Aaja aaja jind shamiyaane ke taley

Aaja zari waale neele aasmaane ke taley

Jai Ho!
Kab se haan kab se jo lab pe ruki hai

Keh de, keh de, haan keh de

Ab aankh jhuki hai

Aisi aisi roshan aankhein

Roshan dono heerey (?) hain kya?

Aaja aaja jind shamiyaane ke taley

Aaja zari waale neele aasmaane ke taley

Jai Ho!

~Archer Akshay

Yes it’s that time of the year again. No I am not talking about the Budget session. I am talking about the eagerly awaited Filmfare awards and Oscars along with the most controversial day of the year- Valentines Day. That’s going to be the topic of discussion in our new blog including the infamous Mangalore Moral policing incident and review of Billu (not Baber).
Let’s go in a chronological order:

1.) Mangalore Pub Incident:

This incident has been talked about in the media for quiet a long time now and it’s no more a secret as to what happened that day. Moral policing brigade i.e. Ram sene members attacked female pub-goers because according to them this pub culture is deteriorating our youth. It’s the most inhuman and cowardless act in human history. Friends I would like your views on this incident. According to me there is nothing wrong with adults visiting the pubs provided they maintain certain decorum. And which country allows its people to beat up girls? Pathetic, disgusting and Immoral are the words which best describe Ram Sene’s act. It is pure Talibanism and political publicity in the name of moral policing. I hope you guys agree with me.

2.) Valentines Day:

Yes I agree it’s not a part of our culture, but still why should those celebrating this day be stopped? Thankfully, we didn’t have any untoward incident at least in Mumbai this time. But it was due to the added security cover. Moral policing brigades however ran havoc in other parts of our country and punished couples hanging out. Sometimes I feel India is a democratic country for namesake and it’s actually a handful of people who rule our country. Mob culture has spoilt the fun of living in India.
I truly hope better sense will prevail one day and we will be freed from the clutches of such publicity freaks.

3.) Billu Barber oops Billu Review ( Sorry Barber association oops again I mean Hairdressers’ association):

Firstly, a strict warning to all the viewers : Please don’t expect a lot from this movie because it’s a simple story set in a small hamlet and lacks the grandeur which is present in all SRK movies.
Billu Barber is a sweet story of love and friendship. Also, don’t expect the usual Priyadarshan kind of humour because this film doesn’t contain any senseless over-the-top humour which is present in all Priyadarshan movies. The performances are excellent and the movie truly belongs to Irfan Khan. His rendition of a poor barber tugs our heart strings. Lara Dutta too is surprisingly good and King Khan steals the show during the climax of the film. Great performances, Great cinematography, simple story, poor editing and good songs is how you can describe Billu.

Do watch it though because it’s worth a watch.

My rating ***


4.) The 81st Annual Academy Awards (22nd February)

The reason why I have included this Oscar discussion topic is not new to anyone in India. Slumdog Millionaire a movie shot in India with the help of Indian technicians is nominated in 10 categories and our very own A.R Rahman and Gulzaar Saab are nominated too. I agree that it doesn’t belong to India, but we can at least pray that Rahman wins. By the ways Slumdog has tough competition from Brad Pitt’s ‘Curious case of Benjamin Button’. Anyways let’s hope Slumdog wins many wards. Best of Luck and Jai ho!!!!

5.) Filmfare Awards: (54th annual Filmfare Awards)

Our very own prestigious Filmfare awards will be held on 28th of February at Yash Raj Studios, Andheri.
Guys and Girls do write in as to who do you think will win the Best film, Best actor and Actress awards.
I am keeping my fingers crossed for SRK. And I feel Jodha Akbar might win the best film award and the best actress award truly belongs to Piggy Chops Priyanka Chopra (Fashion).

That’s all for this month. I will write the next blog after the Filmfare Awards .Till than Happy Blogging and have a great time. Last but not the least, pray for SRK king Khan who is recuperating after his shoulder surgery. Come back soon SRK.


~ Archer Akshay

Slumdog Millionaire!!!!!!!

Hello Once again Ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to Reality Bites once again and today we discuss one more topic which is close to reality. Yes we are talking about none other than the much-hyped and awarded film - Slumdog Millionaire.

So before beginning let me give you a brief idea about the story of the film.
Slumdog Millionaire is the journey of a boy ( Jamal Malik) from the slums of Mumbai to the sets of Kaun Banega Crorepati. The story is set in flashback mode and is an account of how Jamal a poor slum dweller knows the answers to the questions asked on the show.

What remains prominent in this journey is the condition of the downtrodden in our city Mumbai and at the same time this story is about destiny and a will to do anything for your true love. Based on the novel Q & A by Vikas Swarup this tale is hard-hitting and at the same time interesting too.

Just like our blog this tale of ‘rags to riches story’ is difficult to digest because my dear friends some great philosopher had once proclaimed – ‘Reality Bites’ and this film is certainly not for the weak hearted who love typical bollywood movies. Yes, this film is about hope but its heart wrenching to see the condition of our so-called economic capital-Mumbai. In short great performances, great story and great direction is how you can sum up Slumdog Millionaire. (Oops I forgot great music by Mr. A.R.Rahman:D)

The following is a list of awards won by Slumdog Millionaire till now:

2009 Broadcast Film Critics Association The Critics' Choice Award:

Won: Best Picture
Won: Best Director – Danny Boyle
Won: Best Writer – Simon Beaufoy
Won: Best Young Actor/Actress (under 21) – Dev Patel
Won: Best Composer - A.R. Rahman



2009 Chicago Film Critics Association
• Won: Best Director - Danny Boyle
• Won: Best Adapted Screenplay - Simon Beaufoy
• Won: Most Promising Performer - Dev Patel
2009 Golden Globe Awards
• Won: Best Motion Picture - Drama
• Won: Best Director - Motion Picture - Danny Boyle
• Won: Best Screenplay - Simon Beaufoy
• Won: Best Original Score - A. R. Rahman
The above are a list of some of the prominent awards won by the film. The film has won more than 60 awards till now.

But every good thing is always criticized by cynics and yes a superb film like SM has also been slammed by some of the great stalwarts of our country.

According to Mr. Amitabh Bachan:

The Indian star had said" a murky underbelly exists and thrives even in the most developed nations... It's just that the Slumdog Millionaire idea, authored by an Indian and conceived and cinematically put together by a westerner, gets creative global recognition."
The Guardian (UK) said only a westerner could have made such an honest film. Indian producers are "fixated with making flimsy films about the lives of the middle class... Like Bachchan, they are too blind to what India really is to deal with it," it said.

Come to think about it, Amitabh is not entirely wrong. Westerners do love to see Indian poverty in fact Indian poverty still sells like hot cake in USA and UK. That is the only reason why films like Mother India, Salaam Bombay and Lagaan; all based on poverty get nominated in the Oscars.

What image of India will a 7-8 year old kid living in UK have of India when he watches this film? Films like SM might even prove to hamper the image of India which now no more is known as the third world under-developed country.

But at the same time we cannot ignore the truth because ‘TRUTH IS BITTER’ but it still persists no matter how much we try to ignore it. Dharavi is the biggest slum in Asia and that is the truth; an impoverished underbelly exists in major part of Mumbai and India and that is true and certainly we are not new to the fact that maximum percentage of our Indian population does dwell on the streets and the slums.

I feel instead of criticizing Danny Boyle (Director of Slumdog Millionare) we should try to improve the condition of our country by doing something for the poor. This movie should serve as a wake up call for the politicians. The day when we truly eradicate poverty from the face of our country will be the day when we can proclaim that – “you pathetic westerners have no right to portray our country in a negative light.”

Last but not the least some thoughts to ponder on:

1.) Why no Indian director thought of making the movie?
The answer is simple: We Indians love escapist cinema which takes us into a different world altogether. Also, the film wouldn’t have fared well at the box office.

2.) Amitabhji in numerous of your films like Deewar, you have been shown as a poor boy who becomes a criminal in order to become rich or take revenge against the society. So isn’t that making a fun of poverty and indirectly inspiring & leading unemployed poor people to the world of crime?

That’s all for this fortnight friends and before I sign out do post in your comments and yes one more important thing: let us all observe two minutes silence in the loving memory of ‘Chandni Choked Distributors’ oops I mean Chandni Chowk to China ( God save us from this

~ By Archer Akshay

Happy New Year???

First of all Happy New Year to all you guys and sorry from the bottom of my heart to write in a blog after such a long time. Well now without wasting any further time boys and girls let’s begin with today’s topic of discussion…. Happy New Year??Please don’t get confused. Yes that’s the topic of our new blog. And why not after all that we have suffered in the past year, are assured of a safe and joyful new year?

To those who have forgotten the happenings of the past year or suffer from a short-term memory loss like Mr. Aamir Khan; let me give you a quick flashback of the past year:

Following is a recap of the disastrous 2008:

5.) Financial crisis takes the world by a storm and devastates the economy of major countries.

4.) Israel declares war on Palestine resulting in mass human tragedy.

3.) Multi-budget movies with superstars bomb at the box office both in Hollywood and bollywood.

2.) Terrorism raised its ugly head again with India facing the wrath of terrorists throughout the year.

1.) Himmesh Reshammiya once again tortured millions of people with his second movie Karzzzzz (The producer has still not been able to repay the loan)

So that was a rewind of the eventful 2008. What is in store for us in the year 2009 can only be predicted by eminent astrologers. However the year 2008 also saw a few good moments:

1.) Spain emerged as the Champions in Sports by winning Euro Cup ( Soccer), Wimbeldon ( Tennis) and the Davis Cup ( Tennis).

2.) India launched Chandrayaan successfully.

3.) USA witnessed history after Barack Obama became the first Black US President.

4.) Michael Phelps an American swimmer won 14 Olympic gold medals.

5.) India emerged as the bigwigs of cricket by launching their very own 20-20 franchise ->IPL.


I just hope and pray that this year each and every country will get lots of joy and happiness. At the same time hope that the terrorists are wiped out from the face of this earth.
With a war already started (Israel-Palestinian) and a blast on 1st January in Assam, I am really afraid what will happen in 2009. But let’s be optimistic and let’s be united.
Things to watch out for in year 2009:

1.) Will India-Pak conflict result into war?

2.) Will Israel agree for a cease fire?

3.) Will Salman Khan finally settle down in life and accept that he doesn’t know how to act?

4.) Will Obama prove to be the solution to the worlds’ problems?

- Archer Akshay