The Sane Lunatic

I absolutely do NOT like the new SUV cars in general. I hate the way they look, the way they feel to drive and most of all, I hate it that soo many people like them and find them practical. While I do understand that if you're the type of person who often enough likes to take their car off-road for some adventurous driving experiences or if driving off-road is simply part of your routine, then the SUV is the car for you. Or maybe you are often in need to travel with more than 5 adults in the car, or maybe you need a car that can protect you from the likely event of being rammed into by another car, even then it suits your needs.  But if you don't plan to do any of those things, then your SUV simply says, "fuck you commoner" as you literally sit on your high throne in a car that allows you to fill the boot with bags and bags of more shit you don't need but would like to have. More and more of these city driving fucks have gone for these styles of vehicles a...

Here we have it folks, another remake of an old classic, which in itself was a remake and reinterpretation of an even older, classic movie.The new edition of 'The Magnificent Seven', directed by Antoine Fuqua, follows the line similar to that of the 1960 film which was directed by John Sturges and had an even more impressive star cast, including Yul Brynner, James Coburn and Steve McQueen. Denzel Washington plays bounty hunter and avenger, Sam Chisolm who is approached by two residents of an old west town called Rose Creek. Their town had been seized by greedy industrialist, Bartholomew Bogue ( played by Peter Sarsgaard), and they were desperate to find someone to liberate them. Taken in by their resolve and the pay offered, Sam agrees to take up the job and sets about recruiting some of the best guns in the West. He comes across hustler and fast-talking quick-shooter Josh Faraday (Chris Pratt) who he believes has his heart in the right place and would make a valuable ...

Now, regular readers would know that I like to go to watch movies, as regularly as possible. Over the years, I have frequented many different cinemas and different kinds of people coming to watch different kinds of movies. But I do have one major problem almost every time and its people making noises in the middle of the film!! There's all kinds of noises and disruptive sounds that people make at the movies. When people react to certain scenes in the film, in the form of gasps, laughs, groans, even the cheers when an epic character makes his or her entrance in the story, I don't mind as much. But what really bothers me is when people are continuously talking or muttering in the middle of the film. Sometimes it's a bunch of shameless punks with no sense of civil politeness or courtesy or even a shred of dignity. These bunch of aggravating scum can be hard to silence, as logic is unfathomable to their barely functioning brains. Then there are the annoying-narrators. Thes...

Allow me to start by saying that I really really recommend that you watch this movie. You really should. Well, now that we've got that out of the way, let me share a little about this extremely well-made thriller. Ritesh Shah (dialogue and screenplay writer) & Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury (director) should take a bow for creating a movie that has dealt with a topic often avoided or mishandled by other movies. Real life is never simple or straightforward. It is extremely complicated, and the potential for things to go wrong is always high. That is precisely what happens when three young ladies decide to hang out with some boys them meet at a rock concert. Now, I might point out that I will refrain from referring to the female characters as "modern" women, just because they live an independent and free lifestyle, because, in my view, that is the current normal, so they are just three women, Minal (Tapsee Mannu),  Falak (Kirthi Kulhari) and Andrea (Andrea Tariang) liv...

As I stood atop that giant rock, taking in the magnificent view before me, I knew I wouldn't feel like this again in a long time. At an unearthly hour for a Sunday morning, us 9 riders, in 3 cars, headed out towards the ride destination, Ramanagara. It is also known as the 'Silk City' and is home to some of the oldest granite outcrops that were immortalized in the iconic Bollywood film, 'Sholay', and other great films too. I didn't know any of that until after the ride when I asked: "Where are we?". As we reached our rendezvous point, a farm owned by a relative of one of the riders, I got glimpses of the natural beauty that awaited me on this ride. By the time we started the ride, the sun was up and the day was just perfect for a splendid ride through the lovely roads through Ramanagara. Sunny enough to make the sky and the grass and everything else look amazing in their colors, and cool enough to not tire us out too much. This route was...

The last day in Goa started off very lazily, with me staying in bed till 11, after which I ordered the usual breakfast and got ready for the day. I continued my practice of making sure that I went out for lunch to a local eaterie. But when I left the hotel that afternoon, it was drizzling, which did not dissuade me. It simply reduced the radius I could cover, and luckily I found a small food joint just as the rain kicked up. The place was not promising in terms of quality, and it delivered on the low expectations it projected. I ordered some chilly fry calamari that was more chewy than the standard eraser. I barely got through half of it, before I gave up and decided to fill up on french fries. The walk back was luckily rain-free, and very pleasant. Once at the hotel, I whittled away the time till the evening, which was when I headed to the beach for one last visit. I was lucky to watch the sun set halfway before being hidden behind the clouds. It was a remarkable sight, making up...

Now, I know that this installment has come rather late, but you will see why. Let's pick up from day 2 in Goa. The first priority on my mind was to try and find a way to rent a car to drive around in, but I couldn't get through to those guys on the phone in the morning. This is after I went out for a quick trip to the beach early in the morning and a nice western breakfast in the room (3 egg omelette, toast, sausage, hash browns and fresh fruit; it was goood). I remembered the name of the nearest car point from one of my conversations with the car rental guys the day before, and it was the city nearest my hotel, called Madagaon. There were only 2 options, rent a scooty (heck no!) or take the cab outside the hotel. I went with my only option, and they know they are your only option, so they overcharge like crazy. I paid INR 600 for just 9 KM! Anyway, so I arrive in the town market, slightly pissed off, but looking forward to exploring the area and maybe find something int...