Archive for the 'Sports & Entertainment' Category

Offside

Published by
Ved
1 month, 4 weeks ago in Sports & Entertainment. 4 Comments

  Caught this delightful piece of Iranian film (released in 2006) on disc and wasn’t disappointed at all. Once more am amazed at the simplicity of film making of some of the film makers we hardly hear or know about.

Directedand written by Jafar Panahi whose two films Dayereh and Talaye Sorkh were forbidden by the Islamic government of Iran. This time Jafar brings to you the comic tale of a group of young women who are football (soccer) fanatics and unfortunately for them the Islamic government has forbidden women from all sporting events. These young group of women dress up as men and try sneaking into the stadium and get caught, to be guarded by a young group of guards. They are keen to get a few glimpses of the Iran-Bahrain World cup qualifier and would do anything to get out of the guards eyes and mix with the crowd.

The story is simple and the director treats the movie as if he is a news crew covering an event and that’s what makes this movie a delightful watch. The cast is brilliant in being absolutely natural. There are quite a few hilarious scenes that are accentuated by just the expressions of the actors.The young guards guarding the women are amused on one hand and are restless to get on with work and share their tales with the prisoners There is this sequence where one of the girls asks to visit the toilet and a young guard is sent to escort her to the men’s toilet (no women’s toilets in the stadium you see) and she escapes, only to come back out of guilt Continue reading ‘Offside’

India at the Oscars…

Published by
Ved
3 months, 3 weeks ago in Sports & Entertainment. 1 Comment

On the topic of the Oscars® you may wish to see all the movies ever sent in by India in an article on wikipedia.

My personal belief & opinion is that the movies that get nominated and win in the Best Foreign film category are all films, in order of priority are, the ones that -1. Deal with human emotions 2. Portray stories that can be easily understood and felt by western audiences 3. Reflect the life/history/culture of the country the film is made in, in a manner that reflects the way it is perceived or understood by western audiences.

Yes, Lagaan was an exception in spite of its 3.5 hour length and numerous songs and dances.

Since the Golden Globes® were scrapped due to the writer’s strike (as mentioned in my post -65th Golden Globes® in jeopardy? and Golden Globes® scrapped ) I wonder if an arrangement will be reached before the Oscars® or will the Oscars® too get reduced to a 32 minute press conference to announce the results ? I hope not!

Racism in football - Of monkeys, bananas and Swastikas

Published by
Aarthi
4 months ago in Sports & Entertainment. 1 Comment

Sports like football have been trying to eradicate racism from their grounds for many years now, but cricket’s associations have only now come to terms with the fact that the issue needs to be sorted out in a systematic manner in their sport as well. The Symonds incidents with the crowd chants in India and now allegedly with Harbhajan on the field mean that racism has been brought into the glaring lights of the popular media in India.

 

  One thing to come out of the controversy is that the ICC has no established rules and procedures to tackle and punish race related offences in the game, whether by players or by fans. As football has been dealing with this issue for a very long time now, I thought I would spend some time discussing the history of racism in football, and the steps towards eradication taken by it’s governing bodies.

 The phenomenon of racism in football is obviously not as old as the scourge of racism in society in general, but it has been around for a very long time, and over the last 2 decades, FIFA has initiated numerous programs to try and eradicate this unsavoury practice, which is most prevalent in Europe.

  Most of football’s issues with racism are with the crowds, with monkey gestures and bananas being thrown at black players being very common, seen recently in Spain with Samuel Etoo the target. Crowd chants related to colour of skin are commonplace. Recently we saw this in in cricket as well with Andrew Symonds clearly being targeted by the Indian crowd.

Nazi swastika flags can be found flying in the crowds of Rome and Milan. Also, it must be pointed out that racism as a concept does not only target the colour of one’s skin. Ethnicity and religion are also targets of racists. In fact anti-semitic crowd chants are also heard often in football, especially in the Dutch league. Reported incidents of racism on the field between players are less frequent, but well documented as well.

Pointing out the many specific incidents would take up too much space, but high profile targets of racism have included John Barnes, Thierry Henry, Samuel Etoo and Marcel Desailly. You can check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racism_in_football for interesting specific occurrences of racism in the sport.

  Continue reading ‘Racism in football - Of monkeys, bananas and Swastikas’

The stars came down to earth

Published by
Ved
4 months, 2 weeks ago in Sports & Entertainment. 5 Comments

I could’nt resist posting on this right away !

Taare Zameen Par

The genius of Aamir Khan shines through in his directorial debut. The star proves his genius is not limited to being on screen alone and another star is born in the form of Darsheel Safary.

With a host of relatively unknown actors, Aamir Khan puts together the brilliant Taare Zameen Par which is easily the best of films of 2007 along with Chak De. The two best films of 2007 are Khan films and the films speak for themselves. The host of unknown actors is a common feature of both these films. The comparisons and similarities do not end here. Both movies stand out this year because they stick to the art of honest storytelling, which is what cinema is really all about.

Taare Zameen Par is the story of a 9 year old Ishaan Awasthi, for whom the outside world, the colours, the sights, smells and tastes hold more interest than the alphabets, numbers and the monotonous education that all of us have gone through. The one solace is Ishaan’s interest in painting. But all is not as desired. With failing marks and constant trouble at school, Ishaan’s parents see no other option than to send him to a boarding school where his ‘discipline’ issues will be resolved and he may turn out to be successful like his older brother Yohaan Awasthi (Sachet Engineer).

Ishaan’stroubles only continue and Ishaan draws into a shell, a world occupied only by his vivid imagination and bright colours. A temp art teacher Ram Shankar Nikumbh (Aamir Khan) turns up and notices the boy and recognizes the symptoms of dyslexia. Will ram connect with the boy ? Will Ram be able to convince Ishaan’s parents and teacher’s alike to the true nature of dyslexia and make them realise the talent that lurks within the boy ? The questions are answered Continue reading ‘The stars came down to earth’

I am Legend

Published by
Ved
4 months, 2 weeks ago in Sports & Entertainment. 6 Comments

   Imagine you are the last man alive in a city trying to find a cure to a virus to which you are immune, but which has wiped out humanity as we know it. You have your dog for company and everything that’s left in the city is yours to take, but keep away from the dark corners and stay indoors, hidden, after dark.

You end up talking to mannequins to keep your sanity, you end up watching movie after movie. You end up watching taped news telecast. You end up broadcasting a message and waiting at a place at the same time every day, all in the hope that there is someone else out there, for you are the only man alive but you are not alone. The darkness brings out the creatures, who were once human.

Does this give you a foreboding preview of the tone of this movie ? I hope it does for words cannot describe the efforts of the director (Francis Lawrence) and the intense performance of Will Smith, as Robert Neville. A strain of measles modified to cure cancer soon mutates to become a deadly virus that turns the infected into vampire like creatures. Like I mentioned about the movie ‘30 Days of Night’, this movie Continue reading ‘I am Legend’

Sourav ‘Phoenix’ Ganguly !

Published by
Sujith
4 months, 3 weeks ago in Sports & Entertainment. 2 Comments

Sourav to me has time and again been an unnatural phenomenon. He has this uncanny knack of rising from the dust and turning all odds in his favour!!!

I have observed Ganguly right from our under – 19 days, while playing together in junior matches and having interacted with him on the field and off it consistently,- it’s given me a good idea of the person he is in both situations…or that’s what I believed!!!

‘Unreasonable!!’Ganguly

I thought of him as a highly talented and more than capable batsman—however, having an attitude and work ethic unbecoming of a successful cricketer. I never gave him a chance to succeed at the higher level simply because of his unprofessional attitude. I have seen him always taking the easy way out –  avoiding critical fielding positions, demoting himself in the batting order at critical situations ( especially when he had to face a good fast bowler ) and avoiding training sessions.

 If all the people (playing or otherwise) around him were asked to fill out a column under the heading ‘Reasons for Ganguly to be unsuccessful ’, the list would be quite extensive.

But, what does Mr. Ganguly do?!! — Goes beyond these reasons by striking out each one on the list and comes out as a ‘hero from zero’.  He has made it happen once too often to be brushed off as luck. He is simply being ‘unreasonable’—not stopped by the reasons!!

Isn’t it a lesson for all of us to learn? — Just take action & go after our possibilities and dreams without succumbing to all the reasons (excuses) for failure. These reasons that would negate the same possibility that we create!! 

Ganguly’s second coming defines and gives practical meaning to the words such as belief, perseverance and confidence.

It also has shattered all my perceptions of him and his ways and my viewpoints of his attitude. There is no one way in achieving your goals as long as you have the belief in your abilities and go after all your possibilities with conviction!!!

Shall we all start being unreasonable going forward?!!!! I will for sure !!….

OSO:Om Shanti OM

Published by
Ved
5 months, 2 weeks ago in Sports & Entertainment. 8 Comments

As promised, here is my view of one of the most talked about movies this season.

This movie has been much talked about in India prior to its release. Primarily due to the fact that this movie had the king- Shahrukh Khan and the very attractive debutante Deepika, releasing on the same day as the Sony promoted Saawariya, directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali and also starring two debutantes. As per the latest rankings (for more on Box Office fundas refer to Diwali Box Office: OSO Vs Saawariya ) Om Shanti Om is by far the largest grosser of the year !

The movie has all the trademark Farah Khan style that was visible in her directorial debut-Main Hoon Na, including the use of technology (yup, all those special affects) allowing the blend of old and new ! Watch the movie and you will know what I am talking about. Yes, the technology is not new but credit to the director for thinking of using it.

I watched Om Shanti Om along with a houseful multiplex theater & I wasn’t disappointed at all. I absolutely enjoyed the movie. Yes, it could have been a tad shorter & the screenplay swifter in the 2nd half, but then I had a great time.

The story begins in the 70s with Om Prakash Makhija (Sharukh Khan) a junior artiste who is in love with the star Shantipriya (Deepika Padukone) and who dreams of becoming a star. He has his loyal friend Pappu (Shreyas Talpade) who is content being a junior artiste. there is the famous producer Mukesh mehra (Arjun Rampal) A chance encounter allows Om to begin a friendship with Shantipriya. Do things change ? Does Shantipriya know of Om’s desire. Well, this story does not have a happy ending & as they say in the promos-Ffor some love stories one lifetime is not enough. The first half is hilarious and you really are amused by the whole 70s settings & the entertaining cliches (including a young Sooraj Bharjatiya, wearing a ‘friend’ cap,copying lines etc).

The 2nd half of the movie is set in the modern day & you have Om Kapoor (Shahrukh Khan), a starchild and a star and

Continue reading ‘OSO:Om Shanti OM’

Diwali Box office: OSO Vs Saawariya

Published by
Ved
5 months, 2 weeks ago in Sports & Entertainment and Entry. 3 Comments

Loads of newsprint and loads of Newsreels were devoted to the predictions of which film will win over the Box Office since both biggies Om Shanti Om (OSO) and Saawariya released on the same date. One movie had a beautiful debutante and the King of Bollywood (sorry purist, for using this term) and many other stars in favour of it while the other had two debutantes and a powerhouse director with a flair for grandeur matched by very few across the globe !

But then, what is the Box Office ? What do they mean when everybody from the Economic Times to the News Channels say OSO beat Sawaariya by Z millions etc etc ? As you can probably understand the Box Office is nothing but the Box at the front of a theatre which has the words ‘TICKETS’ written on it. Now, ‘trade analysts’ declare a movie a hit only if its Box office takings are at the top of the charts. But does that mean the producers made their money. Not really, in Bollywood and in the last few years especially, producers tend to recover their money through sale of distribution rights, music rights and merchandising rights alone.  The Box Office takings affect the distributor and the theatre owner (sometimes it is a 50-50 sharing).

There are various websites which offer rankings of Box Office takings of Hollywood flicks such as BoxOffice Mojo and ShowBiz Data. There are many other sites too but none really that give you a credible listing of Indian Movies and their Box Office takings ! Now, the Economic Times Intelligence Group has started a section devoted to this in association with a few multiplexes and distribution. You can view it on their website.

 Of course, we are not endorsing or authenticating any of these services but just sharing the info for the curious movie-goer in you.

Now, the economically oriented ones among you may question, the movie rates were not the same 10 years ago (sigh ! I remember the days when the front row seats used to cost Rs.7.50 in Bangalore and now everything is in the range of Rs200) so how can  Continue reading ‘Diwali Box office: OSO Vs Saawariya’

20/20; Twenty20 ; T20 !!!!!

Published by
Sujith
6 months, 1 week ago in Sports & Entertainment and Entry. 7 Comments

First of all I would like to thank you all for your comments on my previous post; I enjoyed reading all your viewpoints. One thing that strengthened my conviction more than ever was the fact that we all have our viewpoints and when considered with an open mind, they all seem to make some sense!! Only the subject knows it all!!! Sorry Correction…I enjoyed reading all your viewpoints only after I opened my mind :) !!

Time. That’s a big factor in all our lives today and Technology plays a big role in saving time and effort. We are constantly looking to build faster machines: computers, cars …and now Sports even.

T20- This brand new phenomenon is set to bring about a revolution in  the traditional concept of the game called cricket. The length of the modern day seems to have reduced drastically over the years, and people are constantly in the run to gain some extra hours!!

20/20 can definitely be squeezed in the otherwise busy day!!!

Was this the reason that led Nick Borcich – the father of 20/20 come out with this format of cricket?

At the time when most things went wrong for English cricket, this format has brought some life back to this game which was slowly losing sports viewership & the interest of its fans to mostly football; the famous ‘English Football League’

The English fans started getting bored with the lengthy county and the one day matches.  Nick came up with this idea probably in his living room while watching a recorded one day international match & fast forwarding the tape to get the best parts of the game!!! He wanted to cut short the game to 3 – 4 hours rather than the lengthy 6-7 hours of play.

This format was ideal for the viewers who could turn out with family and friends and enjoy a couple of hours of good entertaining cricket.  It is end to end cut-out for the spectators!!

It is this rush to make it so marketable and viewer friendly that some of the innovations are in place that would make some cricket purists cringe. Everything from the cheerleaders to a large number of sixers, the free-hits, the field restrictions, the bowl-outs gives the crowd and the spectators something to eagerly cheer every moment! I am curious to get the bowlers viewpoint on this though!!!

I have played some 20/20 matches and let me tell you that I didn’t enjoy playing it one bit. Everything had to be done in a hurry and the batting part was just not acceptable to me. It was only power slogging needed and did skill play a part really?  I am sure most top batsmen in the world today have mixed feelings about this version as well. The Australians didn’t think highly of this format right from the start of the World Cup and it really did show on their performance and preparation or the lack of it.

I watched the first match in the recently concluded T20 world cup with a lot of skepticism. It soon turned out to be excitement galore and I immediately caught on to this format. There was no doubt in my mind that this was going to be a big success and that
India had the best chance of winning this World Cup. They didn’t disappoint me and all you fans alike!— This format of cricket is here to stay!! What say?!!

Who is Oscar ?

Published by
Ved
6 months, 3 weeks ago in Sports & Entertainment. 5 Comments

First of all, thanks for the nice comments on the articles in the Sports & Entertainment category. And yes, I will be writing about HDD and Blue ray Discs soon !

Now coming to a topic which has been in the news since India’s official entry to the Oscars® was challenged in court by another film maker. Some of you may have thought, who is Oscar® ?

Well, Oscar® is a trademark of the academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (called the Academy in short) representing the statuette given annually for excellence in Motion Picture Arts & Sciences in America.

Some facts about the Oscars® for you!

  • The Oscars® have been presented since 1929.
  • Voting is by secret ballot
  • Tabulated by Pricewaterhouse Coopers since 1935.
  • Official name of the Oscar® statuette is the Academy Award of Merit.
  • The statuette itself is 13.5 inches (34 cm) tall, weighs 8.5 lb (3.85 kg) and made of gold-plated britannium on a black metal base.
  • It depicts a knight holding a crusader’s sword standing on a reel of film with five spokes.
  • The spokes signify the original branches of the Academy: Actors, Writers, Directors, Producers and Technicians.
  • Why the statuette was named ‘Oscar’ is contested and has many theories to it. there is even a theory that the statuette maker remarked that the statuette looked like his uncle Oscar and therefore the name stuck !
  • The 80th Annual Academy Awards will be held on 24th February 2008 at the Kodak Theater in Southern California and will be hosted by Jon Stewart.

All trademarks acknowledged as belonging to respective owners