Circus - The Thrill

Circus, I watched the movie along with the fans of Golden star Ganesh at Aparna theatre amidst a lof fun, excitement and whistles, then rushed to Fame Lido for the special screening in the evening, the evening was filled with a lot of excitement. You could see the excitement on Mr. Dayal's face, he was ensuring everything is going as planned. For the one's who doesn't know him, he is an excellent planner and an exceptional executor, doesn't take too much tensions but very aggressive. A Good Business man and a lover of movies, he can talk the brilliance in the quality of Al Pacino, Dr. Raj Kumar, Shivaji Ganesan, Rajinikanth and Ganesh, and you'll know he is not just talkin about action but about loving Cinema, which I think he passionately does.

Circus', Radio Mirchi's and Fame's team put up a good show at Fame Lido. Commendable Team Work, in spite of a lot of tension.

The movie started and the projection was real good. Good there by Fame! As I watched the movie, I could feel that this movie is not like any other kannada movie, this is a class apart. No obscene jokes, no tears, no melodrama, not much of love, not much of Sentiments! Just nail biting, rib tickling Thrills. I'd so damn! wow! and smile at the jokes.

Aparna theatre had fans whistling when the Hero runs into the scene, Ganesh has done a fantastic work, no wonder he is the golden star, he's got the potential to go a long way, let's see how he progresses after Circus.

The movie made people sit and wait for the next scene, people were actually sitting on the edge of the seats! For a Kannada movie, I felt overwhelmed..

The songs were very well done, music, camera and Choreography of the first song (Baaro Geleya) were Very Good, there was this remix of Dr. Raj Kumar's song (Jeeva Hoovagidhey) which was welcomed by Ganesh's Fans, another song (Sajnarey) this is a song which was made with live instruments which is now an absolute rarity these days. The Super hit song was "Pisugudale" Bhatru's (Yograj Bhat) Lyrics were subliming, he, as always, has done a brilliant job!

Oh yes! We did miss the title track which the director chose not to screen till they finish 50 days. The reason the song was removed may be because it was working against the thrilling sequences. Who would want to watch a song when they want to know what is going to happen in the next scene? not me. But honestly, it takes a lot of guts to remove the title track. Dayal needs to be appreciated for this. Ganesh too has not been worried, he's been co-operative which is awesome.

For the fans of Ganesh, this is a must watch, not for the songs but for the screenplay, for Golden star's action and his smartness. The thrills could have been tight, would have liked to watch Circus like a Kurudhi Punal or A Wednesday or Slumdog Millionaire, what I mean to say is we could have watched the movie with just the thrills and no songs! I think Kannada Films will get there sooner or later. But Circus is the first step into the road less travelled.

The movie is a happy ending as always (I like happy endings) :)
There was a press meet post the movie at Fame and Mr. Dayal said "He wants Press friends to highlight the fact that the movie is not the usual formula and that they have tried to break away from the usual kannada cinema image.

In my opinion I think Dayal was right, this movie was good, excellent logics, you could see good continuity, exciting background music, fairly decent graphics (could have been better though), nice thrills. The introduction of the heroine has been done well. Archana Gupta looks like a promising actress, the director has shown her pretty well which does not happen for a new-comer in kannada cinema.

The Director of Photography - Shekar Chandru has done a marvelous job! Shots inside and outside the trains were incredible. Editor - Jony Harsha has done a commendable job. Music - Emil has been great, 3 songs are a hit out of 5. Great background scores.. we could feel the western styled thrill.
All in all Circus looks like a good team work! Good job by Dayal, Ganesh, Archana, Shekar Chandru, Harsha and team...
You guys will go a long way!

Nandi Utsav 2008.

Nandi Utsav is the 14th year anniversary celebrations of Nandi Bharatha natya Kala Sala. I'll quickly take you thru "Bharathnatyam" and a very little about Nandhi Bharatha Natya Kala Sala. I'll then share my thoughts about Nandhi Bhratha Natya Kala Sala and Nandi Utsav.

Bharata Natyam (pronounced as ba-rata-na-tiam) is a classical dance form of India, celebrated for its sophistication, subtlety and stylization. Bharatanatyam is an ancient classical dance style, originally performed in the Hindu temples of Tamil Nadu, in southern India. The Indian dance system is the oldest and most comprehensive in the world, having an unbroken tradition that goes back 2000 years.

The name 'Bharatanatyam' is derived from three basic concepts of Bhava, Raga and Thaala.
The general interpretation for the name is

BHAva (expression) + RAga (music) + TAla(rhythm) + NATYAM(dance) = Bharatanatyam
Recognized for its dynamic rhythm and rich vocabulary of expressive gestures, its hallmarks are crisp geometrical movements, sculpturesque poses and stylized expressions. Visually, it is a dynamic, earthly and precise style of dance with a distinct linear quality

Nandi Bharatha Natya Kala Sala is a Bharatha natyam school at Nandidurg Road, Bangalore. Headed by Guru Mrs. Geethalakshmi . Mrs. Geethalakshmi is one of those dance experts who are striving to keep the art alive. The popularity of Bhratha naytam has had a nose dive after we got introduced to dance forms like Disco, Salsa and Jazz. however, I admit that people like Geethalakshmi have been quite successful in what they do. The Utsav had about 50 people performing! for a person like me who thought Bharath natyam is a not-so-cool form of dance it was a moment of revelation. I could feel the rhythm in my body after spending my evening at Nandi Utsav.

Performances that stood apart - Chandra Chuda padham, Mohini Attam, the folk dance, Subramanya Bharathiar's padham and the Krishna dasar's padham.

People who did really well - Yamini, Kavya, Divya and Meera! these guys had the passion and it was all over the place when they peformed. Lovely!!

Appreciate the students who are still keen about learning and performing Bharathanaytam, their parents and all the dance teachers! You guys are fabulous.

A lot of things kept me out of action for a long time, I wanted to start on a positive note and this was it - Nandi Utsav! It has made me get back to blogging. In the next few days, am going to be blogging frequently. Lots to share and loads to think about.. I want to write about 26/11, 01/01/2009, Circus and a lot of controversial stuff as usual.. Wishing you all a wonderful year ahead. Cheers.

PS - thanks to people like Divya, Pooh and Vats who've got me back to blogging! 3 cheers to you.. :)

Unity In Diversity.

Unity In Diversity

This is a line which never made sense to me back in school, my civics teacher would go on and on about this subject while I never found this interesting, EVER. I always wondered why she was so passionate about this topic.. days went by, weeks, months and years went by...

I guess I learnt what I had to learn; As a country, we went through a phase, a phase of growth, globalization. Manufacturing boomed, Outsourcing boomed and so has retail now. We've seen so much happen in the country and I've personally felt a lot emotional when there was an Earthquake, a Tsunami or a Kargil Attack. however, this line "Unity in Diversity" never struck me.

It took a movie to make me feel "The Feeling", I went this theatre to watch a movie and as usual, I was a lil' early and had to sit through the countless advertisements, after all the flam and glam ads, I saw a clip that read "Please stand up for the national Anthem" and I thought this was another funny ad, just before I could make a comment, the music started and I stood up; honestly, it was more of an involuntary action. I stood up and I saw the whole video, wonderfully made, I could see soldiers from every part of the country. All of them serving the nation, Uber-Patriotism!

A moment for a "Paradigm Shift" my whole philosophy of Patriotism, gained a new perspective, I could feel that I'm so touched, I could feel the goose bumps. I was clearly excited and floored by just looking at the Men who protect the country.

This day I saw nothing else but the true meaning of the term "Unity in Diversity" - Lovely Line!