Friday 24 June 2016

Gabbar is Back -- and its good

Saw the movie "Gabbar is Back" on TV last night ----as usual I could switch on the TV only when the movie had completed its first half or may be more ( those of you who have seen the movie I switched on when Akshay Kumar was trying to help the lady and her  two daughters in the hospital ) .

I like movies with a social or a patriotic theme  it may be a crisp and captivating one or it may even be a mediocre one so this one too caught my interest and I did not switch channels .

Liked the movie, loved the theme and story line  though nothing new but I like Akshay Kumar  ( of these days specially, as he has shown that he can act too. being  equally comfortable with  comedy and serious roles ) . Liked the fact that the character of the businessman Patil who is the main villain is not unnecessarily glamourised with violence and cruelty as accesories .

On the whole I liked the movie and the fact that it was not very heavy , if tears came they could only form a mist and give a tug at the heart , which is more important if a  thought has to be conveyed .Lot of TV artists have been given a chance --they who are prominent on the small screen are seen trying to prove themselves here or lets say showcase themselves. Must have been easy on the pocket for the producer . .

What I liked best was a dialogue between Gabbar and one of his followers Govind played by the same person who plays Mihir in "Yeh hai Mohabatein" ( the over stretching , over boring TV serial ) Here in his crusade against all corrupt police officials Gabbar  catches hold of the worst of the lot and as per  his modus operandi death is the only sentence for  all the crimminals but   this particular corrupt police officer happens to be the father of Govind one of the most sincere and faithful followers of the Gabbar gang So Gabbar asks Mihir what punishment should be meted out to his father  to which Govind replies that the previous culprits who were sentenced to death too had been fathers of someone so if they could be punished with death the same fate should be allotted to this man irrespective of the fact that he was  his  father and then he requests Gabbar to allow him to be away from the scene because he will not be able to see his own father die in front of him . To this Gabbar replied that he had achieved his target of having an army of honest people  like Mihir who were honest and not prejudiced when it came to following rules but at the same time human enough to feel the pain and agony of their loved ones .


This incident struck a chord because isn't that how it should be rules are rules to be followed honestly and bias and prejudice should not be allowed to influence ones decision  , this is the only way corruption can be weeded out from society . 

The end too was nice with Gabbar throwing in dialogues  form "Sholay" to bring home his ideology .The dialogues of a Villain have been put to good use by a hero .

So on the whole a  nice movie can be seen once , and has a lovely song " Teri meri Kahani Ye baarishon ka paani "   missed the actual scene picturising  this song and I think I am glad I did because  romance is not all that easy to digest these days specially  after more than 40 years of marriage LOL  --- at times though these kind of songs do flicker in nostalgia .

While still at it I am happy I had recommended "Tamanna"and "Dahleez" the daily soaps --they are keeping our interests alive  "Bhabhi ji ghar pe hai "is no longer in my list whereas May I come in Madam" is interesting enough to make me finish my chores by 9.30 pm . "Kuchh Rang Pyar ke aise bhi "Ek duje ke vaste" and "Parvarish" too seem to be good have just been  able to catch a few glimpses . 

Glad I have come back  to the TV watching at least it is giving me some material   to blog about ,


Saturday 4 June 2016

Some Better Daily soaps to watch ---part 2

I decided to write this post today because I am afraid both the serials  may loose their crispness and twists and become run of the mill sagas , as they had done a few weeks back   making me  feel like a fool for having recommended  them to you all .

I am talking about Tamanna and Dahleez on Star plus --they had lost their newness and crispness for a few week but have again picked up the threads.

Tamanna is succeeding in teaching a lesson on communal harmony why and how badly is it needed and how vested interests have been trying to turn everything to their advantage using the innocent and vulnerable .  Here I am  forced to ask that age old question cliche too which seems so much idealistic and put on BUT is so important -----Do we inquire about the  caste or creed or religion of the blood donor when we need a blood transfusion ? Do we refuse to seek the advice of a doctor of another religion when we need help ? Are we aware of the religion of the farmer who must have grown our food in his farm ? and so many more questions of the same genre. A scene worth mentioning is when a rickshaw driver of a particular community  braves all the hazards to reach a pregnant woman to a  midwife who is not ready to deliver the child of  the patient only because she belongs to a different community At the same time they show how the sensible mature and right thinking  people of both the communities are trying to bring in peace

Dahleez too has taken an interesting turn what with the main characters finding themselves entangled in a situation which can become heavily explosive and disrupt the harmony of the family ties and relations -a slight spark already seems to have ignited because the leading lady is finding it difficult  to believe that her uncle and cousin were terrorists though all the fingers  in fact the whole hand is pointing towards them . Absence of any evidence to prove their innocence and the selfishness of the only person Harshvardhan ( who had lost his fiance to Asad now deceased and being mistaken as a trrrorist ) who knows that Asad is not a terrorist but doesn't divulge the truth making use of the opportunity to win back his fiance    On the other hand they are also showing the generosity and understanding nature of the Sinha family who though they had themselves lost their son are compassionate towards their new daughter in law whose cousin was supposedly a terrorist and had shot the Sinha's youngest son dead . Similarly their concern towards the widowed daughter in law is also an example of maturity and compassion . Another scene worth mentioning is  where the media is shown asking the parents how they are feeling on losing their son and this too when they are in the hospital with the body .of their dead son .

Both the serials are trying to tackle some social issues ---their direction may not be crisp and mature  but at least their is an attempt to show some thing new tackling  an important  social problem . Lets hope they can continue to hold our interest and that too in a mature way and not become childish daily soaps .

At the end I would like to recommend "Bhabhi ji Ghar pe hai "once again which is not totally lost after the replacement of the actor playing the role of Angoori Bhabhi it is still worth watching in spite of the replacement though after all  a change can always be noticed .

Another serial "May I come in Madam"is also rib tickling though with a slightly adult theme ---but not vulgar at all.

These serials have succeeded in weening me away from the computer for two hours daily ---9 pm to 11pm .







Friday 3 June 2016

Fun. Freedom. Confidence. The ultimate Urban Cross - Datsun redi-GO - the capability of a crossover with the convenience of a hatchback.#rediGO.



 Datsun's  redi-GO which is Nissan's low price sister brand will be launched in the Indian market on  June 7, 2016. The  pricing will be in the range of Rs 2.39lakh to Rs 3.5 lakh, The Datsun has  an 800 cc motor and  gives an average  of 25.17 km/l.it has a lot to offer to the first-time car buyer. It is reasonably spacious, is easy to drive and offers really good fuel economy. Its design is what they call a quirky tall -boy design and is available in trendy or lets say funky colours like deep red and bright green. It is based on Renault-Nissan's common module family  platform  the "CMF-A platform" and  98 per cent of the redi-GO’s parts have been locally sourced. 

After reading a lot of available material about the car I have discovered that while the redi-GO may not be a car which can be used by the Jazzy group for fast drives  in order to get a kick out of driving what I mean is that  Hoohaa ...yeeee  kind of excitement with guys and girls recklessly perched on the hood or hanging out of the windows waiving hands and scarves mouths open wide in thrill and excitement  giving the passers by and the traffic police jitters , making there own and others life miserable and  dangerous  BUT its a car which is easy on  every ones's nerves   and also easyto drive.   The gear shifts and the clutch are light making it easier for the veteran as well as the novice drivers to handle .Even the first time driver who is making a shift from a two wheeler to four wheeler finds it easy to adjust . 


Other features include  the hatchback with a good 185 mm ground clearance which makes it comfortable to drive on  broken and bumpy roads ( trademark of our Indian roads be it city or village urban or rural ) Its dimensions of 3429 mm length 1560 mm width 1541 mm in height and 2430 wheel base make it ideal for city drives as they will provide better maneuverability in choked urban conditions and easy parking too .Other highlights include swept-back headlamps and a narrow front with grille and a muscular bonnet. The top-end variant also gets optional daytime running lights on the front bumper, . The Tail lights are positioned at a reasonable height making  it easy for the visibility by other vehicles .Other customization options like a spoiler, door visors, roof rails, wheel trims, are also available.The front seats come with support on the sides, . The steering wheel has a nice and sporty shape and the contours offer natural grip. The glass area is generous and you get great overall visibility too.
The dashboard has a single DIN entertainment system  and  a USB port 

I read somewhere that there were certain disadvantages like----- cost cutting with  the compromise in  basic plastic quality, a lot of exposed sheet metal and no  central locking either------But then this urban car of mine should be able to  take the scratches, bruises and abuse of our choked urban roads and for this we must say thanks to the  exposed sheet metal ( which is actually a boon not a bane ) Similarly I also feel the absence of centralized locking a welcome feature because I have seen accidents and tragedies occur due to them ,we Indian parents are cautious enough to hold the child from opening doors in fact we don't let our kids  sit near the doors;  but then we are forgetful enough and careless too  to leave the  child locked inside  and walk away. Similarly it is being said  that  the  steering needs more weight and feel at higher speeds and while the engine is at home at low to medium speeds, highway overtakes will need planning  BUT then our redi-GO is meant for urban driving not for Highway overtaking isn't it ? 

SO   if you're looking for a second car the redi-GO makes for a good  city-runabout. It is THE car to take the scratches, bruises and abuse of our choked urban roads, while your primary vehicle can be saved for special occasions 

I would love to own this car because from what I have been gathering it has done away with the disadvantages of  and saved  the plus points needed by family cars on Indian urban roads for example , spaciousness and most importantly Ground Clearance and one should never forget the average it gives. 

The three important features which are luring me towards this Datsun redi-GO  are 


1. Its price together with the average of 25.17 km/l what with fuel prices jumping up and down regularly 
2. Spaciousness
and 
3.  most importantly its ground clearance ( very important for Indian roads urban or rural ) 


I would love to take this car on a test drive to certain areas of my own city Nagpur places like Itwari, Sadar , Central avenue , Railway station and Dharampeth and Sitabuldi because these are the places which have all the specimens of Indian Urban roads  they are crowded , narrow , bumpy  and also smooth and excellent thus providing all the hurdles and also the good points ;the examples of  perfect Indian Urban Roads  and would enjoy the------Fun. Freedom. Confidence. The ultimate Urban Cross - Datsun redi-GO - the capability of a crossover with the convenience of a hatchback

 Thus becoming the owner of India's first ever Urban Cross the Datsun redi-GO 

 Urban Cross    
"Urban Cross" ( https://www.datsun.co.in/redi-GO.html )  is the link to this post 
@DatsunIndiaDatsunIndia