You taught me to dream
But didn't teach me to come out of it.
You steered my dreams
And stopped suddenly with a
red light on your forehead.
You, then started to talk about
the sanctity of it.
I do not know
why my blood getting darker.
But i do know
each knife has to say a story,
Mine too.

My mind is empty.
But still it is filled fully with bubbles
I have been breaking them everyday
by dropping a drib of tears on each.
Today my mind turned
into a secondary emptiness.
Come on.
Please fill this void life
with the bubbles of thoughts and love
or at least with your sedating presence.

Raavan- A Santhosh Sivan film

Finally Raavan came. Both Hindi and Tamil version. After the tired ads and promotional tours by the leading actors, the film reached in our theaters.

This isn’t the first time Mani Ratnam’s film is being quite awkward to the viewers. By setting the Indian epic Ramayana as the thread of the film, Mani tried to give a 21st century’s face to Ravan and Ram. Regrettably it ended up in another inexcusably boring film of the Calendar year.

Raavan, the role played by Abhishek bachan not only could make any mark but also failed in front of the camera to perform naturally as he normally does. More over his character resembles a comic or a cartoon hero (sorry, not even a hero!!!) in the film. One can unhesitatingly say that the film is made for the Raavan and not for Rama, though the director trying to give importance to Ram with countable equivocal shots. I feel myself ashamed when thinking of those moments I got embraced by reading junior Bachan’s tweets about the upcoming magnificent film.

Aiswarya Rai, as usual, coming as a good for nothing character in this film too. But it is an inevitable fact that both the director and the cinematographer used her splendiferous beauty brilliantly.

There is nothing to be recalled markedly in the film except the roles played by Govinda and Priyamani. Though coming only in two or three scenes Priyamani could sign her caliber.

Now, coming to the real pathetic situation of the film. While celebrating Raavan as a Mani Ratnam film it becomes a complete Santhosh Sivan film (I am talking only in regard to the cinematography and not the direction. Santhosh depicted his power in Direction with his ten films). He portrayed the terrific beauty of Athirappally and other locations astonishingly. So I would like to consider Raavan as a portrait by Santhosh Sivan than a film directed by Mani Ratnam.

Although I was in an oasis of boredom whilst watching Raavan, I hope Mani Ratnam will come with a groovy film in near future.

When you said that you dont love me
I took that gun which
you gifted to your friend
And shot dead.
You know that I cant live
without your love.
You can take a drop of blood
that remains, when the bullet
pierced into your chamber of my heart.
Tell your friend to wash out
the imprints of my bloody hand
from his window glass with that red Saree
i wore wen we mated near the waterfall.
I have told you long back that
when the lines cross each other
there will be our destiny.
Oh water
Oh river
take all my sins
into your innocence.

(dedicated to Sajani, the role played by Nandita Das in the film 'Before the Rains')

Tulpan is not a film

It was the 10th and the last day of IFFI(International Film Festival of India). Inox courtyard was like Miramer beach in hot noon of march. Countable number of people were walking here and there. Some are discussing about the films which had been their breath and food for the last nine days. The big screen near the great tree (I would like to call it as "Bodhi") was removed, but the leaves of bodhi were showing live and repeat telecast of the festival.
Only two shows were scheduled for that evening. One is the 'Song of sparrows' by noted film maker from Iran, Majid Majidi and the award winning film 'Tulpan'. Even though it was screened before I did not watch that. Any way I did not want to be a man who did not watch the award winning movie. So me and my friend Sreejith booked ticket for that after the cancellation of our other tickets.
The ESG auditorium was quite full, all welcomed the director who bagged the award for best director and best film (sorry I forgot his name,more than that it is difficult to remember his name) with loud applauds.
The screening started. The first shot itself took me to the desert of Kazakhstan. From that I had been a part of that desert and that people, who are 'fighting' with the nature for their livelihood. The real life shown in the movie, at times made me to a state of vomiting sensation. Tulpan, I am sure, is not a film. But it is the Life.We should appreciate the courage which was taken by the director to shoot the movie in 'real desert'. He took four years to complete the film. Just think how many films are releasing in our country by the same director and crew in a year. I am not trying to generalize the Indian film industry, I know a very few exceptions are there. I can never say TULPAN IS A GREAT FILM, it is not a film at all. Now you may ask, what this person only narrated about film first.And now he himself saying.........?again I am saying tulpan is not a great cinema, but it is life, the real life.Not only the life of human but also the life of horse, sheep, donkey, even the life of a little dog too.
The emotional experience which tulpan could give is extremely different from other movies. It provoked me, made me to close eyes (some part of life is very hard to watch), it made me to cry, because I really wished to see tulpan (the beautiful woman like Tulip flower) at least in last shot of the movie. When the film ended, I was trying to place all the beautiful women faces for tulpan. But nothing matched................. and it will not, because tulpan doesn't have any face, she doesn't have even a body, but tulpan is there in the heart of all who have seen the movie