I have been reading about movies like RGV ki Aag, LCMD, JBJ etc all over internet (I have also been participating in the discussions in some blogs) and felt bad about movies, which people either chose not to watch or not to talk about, although they are better work of art and far more entertaining than all the films mentioned above and many others being discussed around. There are movies I watched in recent past and really liked them, but when I ask my friends about those movies, they seem to either not have heard of the movie or chose not to watch it, because they were made by some not so famous people and lacked good promotions (may be because of budget restrictions). Here I am listing some of these films, which I think deserved better fate at box office.
Haasil (2003) *ing: Irfan, Jimmy Shergil, Hrishita Bhatt, Ashutosh Rana
Written and directed by first time director Tigmanshu Dhulia, this movie is one of my all time favorite, I have watched it more than 20 times already and I can watch it infinite times without getting bored of it. The movie is a love story in the background of UP college politics. You get to see great acting from Irfan and Ashutosh Rana. The dialogues are so good that we even repeat them in our day today conversations. The language is exactly the same as being used in UP and dialogue delivery by actors is top class. The story is well researched and gripping.
This is one movie I would rate 9 out of 10. I wish Tigmanshu makes many more such movies.
Sehar (2005) *ing: Arshad Warsi, Sushant Singh, Pankaj Kapoor
Written and directed by Kabeer Kaushik (has anyone heard of him ever, what is he up to these days), this movie is one of the best Hindi movies released in 2005. The movie is based on the story of Lucknow STF (Special Task Force) in pursuit of UP railway mafia. This is one of the very few movies showing the Police business in great details and the difficulties faced by them in tracking down and eliminating the criminals. You get to see great performances by Pankaj Kapoor and Sushant Singh. I still can't forget the seen where Pankaj Kapoor's gun hating professor character picks up a gun and shoots Sushant Singh. Today's actors should learn some things from this great performer.
The movie has been made with very limited budget and probably makers of the film did not have enough money to promote it well. It hurts when such movies get unnoticed. Hope someday big banner and stars start supporting such efforts.
There are many other movies in the same category like Manorama SFU, Dil Dosti etc, Johnny Gaddar, Maqbool and many more. I wish after reading this post people go and watch these movies and support these talented film makers in serving the Hindi film industry to the extent they are capable of.
signing off, with best wishes to the talented budding film makers of bollywood and hope they get the support they need from industry and audience.
Showing posts with label Openion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Openion. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Monday, October 8, 2007
Karan Johar's Interview on Tehelka.com
I read the following interview on tehelka.com and found it really enlightening. http://www.tehelka.com/story_main34.asp?filename=hub061007IWish.asp
This interview has enabled me to look at Karan Johar's films in new light. I now understand why his movies are like the way they are. Why people always say that his movies are for NRIs. Why there are no bhukkha Indians in his movies. Why someone disowned by his rich parents decides to settle in London. Why rich use helicopters and poor convertible BMWs in his films.
You might think, how I have got so much insight to understand Karan's movies in such great details. Well at one point in his interview Karan says, "We used to live in a really tiny flat in Malabar Hill — it was like a 1,000 square feet." that's because his father was losing money on movies and was having really tough time financially. So that's the toughest time he has seen in his entire life, living in a 1000 sq ft flat at Malabar Hills. (Bhagwan mujhe bhi aise bure din dikhaye) After reading this line first thing that came to mind was, how the interviewer must have felt who is probably living in a 500 sq ft flat and that too at Borivali. Was he trying to mock at the interviewer or he is really that innocent. (arrey koi ise asli duniya dikhao)
If KJo made Sharabi, he would have shown Amitabh Bacchan settling in NY with Munshi ji after leaving his father's house. He would not be sleeping on temple stairs. After all in tough times people can manage at least that. They might not use helicopters for traveling, but at least they can afford a nice apartment in NY.
In our movies, poor hungry street children will not turn thief stealing a piece of bread (has anyone counted the no of movies showing this scene), oh! I am sorry, there wont be any poor hungry street children in KJo's movies. People will turn thief because they would probably want an AC to be installed in their bedroom and are not able to afford that.
Hey! that's only a part of the answer to first question and I would have really loved to talk about the entire interview. God, I hope I did not have my office tomorrow.
This interview has enabled me to look at Karan Johar's films in new light. I now understand why his movies are like the way they are. Why people always say that his movies are for NRIs. Why there are no bhukkha Indians in his movies. Why someone disowned by his rich parents decides to settle in London. Why rich use helicopters and poor convertible BMWs in his films.
You might think, how I have got so much insight to understand Karan's movies in such great details. Well at one point in his interview Karan says, "We used to live in a really tiny flat in Malabar Hill — it was like a 1,000 square feet." that's because his father was losing money on movies and was having really tough time financially. So that's the toughest time he has seen in his entire life, living in a 1000 sq ft flat at Malabar Hills. (Bhagwan mujhe bhi aise bure din dikhaye) After reading this line first thing that came to mind was, how the interviewer must have felt who is probably living in a 500 sq ft flat and that too at Borivali. Was he trying to mock at the interviewer or he is really that innocent. (arrey koi ise asli duniya dikhao)
If KJo made Sharabi, he would have shown Amitabh Bacchan settling in NY with Munshi ji after leaving his father's house. He would not be sleeping on temple stairs. After all in tough times people can manage at least that. They might not use helicopters for traveling, but at least they can afford a nice apartment in NY.
In our movies, poor hungry street children will not turn thief stealing a piece of bread (has anyone counted the no of movies showing this scene), oh! I am sorry, there wont be any poor hungry street children in KJo's movies. People will turn thief because they would probably want an AC to be installed in their bedroom and are not able to afford that.
Hey! that's only a part of the answer to first question and I would have really loved to talk about the entire interview. God, I hope I did not have my office tomorrow.
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Why do I like sports flicks?
Yesterday I was watching "The Greatest Game Ever Played", again. Though I had already seen the flick before, I knew what is gonna happen (that's the case with all sports flick I guess, you already know, what will be the ending). Still I was watching it with interest and was excited at every shot played by Harry or Francis (two main characters of the film). Though I don't know the rules of Golf, I never watch it on ESPN, still while watching the movie I kinda felt associated with the characters and the game. Same is the case with all the sports flick (except few).
Take example of recent release "ChakDe India", although it was based on a game I personally am not very interested in (I think that's the case with most of the people who watched the film and made it a hit). Still I rate it as the best sports flick ever made in Bollywood. I have watched this one twice already and did not loose interest while watching it for the second time. (ChakDe is one of the few movies I have seen more than once in theater)
My all time favorite Hindi film is "Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar". I have seen the last race more than 100 times by now and I always watch it with equal interest. I am as excited as I was when I watched it for the first time (I think the excitement wouldn't have been more, if I was watching it live, why? Will answer this why in later part of the post). I feel like cheering for Sanju (it was Sanju, I cheer for, not Amir Khan), I feel like telling Sanju to change gear at times. I feel more excitement than the character Ratan is.
List of my all time favorite movies include "JJWS", "Cinderella Man", "Rocky", "ChakDe", "Lagaan", "Remember the Titans" and many more, which I might not have seen yet.
Why I find these sports flick more exciting than a live match? When I am watching a live match I don't associate with the players as closely as I do while watching a movie. I know the real life players from newspapers, TV etc, but while watching a movie I virtually live with the players. I know the struggle these players have gone through before playing the game. There is always a story associated with the game, which in all cases is climax of the movie and by that time, I want the hero/s to win the game. Because till the time match starts, those players are not unknown to me, they are like my friends/neighbors, who have gone through a lot of struggle/training to reach the stage they are right now. To top it all, there is always an emotion attached, like in Cinderella Man, Russel Crowe was fighting to earn bread for his family, in JJWS, Amir was racing for revenge and pride, Lagaan match was for lives of so many families and ChakDe was again for regaining lost pride. I think these emotions make the game bigger than live matches.
I hope that even more such movies are made in future and I keep on enjoying the game as well as the movie. It's kind of combo offer, watch the movie and get to watch one very exciting tournament as bonus.
Take example of recent release "ChakDe India", although it was based on a game I personally am not very interested in (I think that's the case with most of the people who watched the film and made it a hit). Still I rate it as the best sports flick ever made in Bollywood. I have watched this one twice already and did not loose interest while watching it for the second time. (ChakDe is one of the few movies I have seen more than once in theater)
My all time favorite Hindi film is "Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar". I have seen the last race more than 100 times by now and I always watch it with equal interest. I am as excited as I was when I watched it for the first time (I think the excitement wouldn't have been more, if I was watching it live, why? Will answer this why in later part of the post). I feel like cheering for Sanju (it was Sanju, I cheer for, not Amir Khan), I feel like telling Sanju to change gear at times. I feel more excitement than the character Ratan is.
List of my all time favorite movies include "JJWS", "Cinderella Man", "Rocky", "ChakDe", "Lagaan", "Remember the Titans" and many more, which I might not have seen yet.
Why I find these sports flick more exciting than a live match? When I am watching a live match I don't associate with the players as closely as I do while watching a movie. I know the real life players from newspapers, TV etc, but while watching a movie I virtually live with the players. I know the struggle these players have gone through before playing the game. There is always a story associated with the game, which in all cases is climax of the movie and by that time, I want the hero/s to win the game. Because till the time match starts, those players are not unknown to me, they are like my friends/neighbors, who have gone through a lot of struggle/training to reach the stage they are right now. To top it all, there is always an emotion attached, like in Cinderella Man, Russel Crowe was fighting to earn bread for his family, in JJWS, Amir was racing for revenge and pride, Lagaan match was for lives of so many families and ChakDe was again for regaining lost pride. I think these emotions make the game bigger than live matches.
I hope that even more such movies are made in future and I keep on enjoying the game as well as the movie. It's kind of combo offer, watch the movie and get to watch one very exciting tournament as bonus.
Friday, August 17, 2007
Are you also fed up of these calls?
You are sitting on the comfortable sofa in your living room. You have just come back from a tiring day in office and trying to relax in front of TV. Before switching on TV, you have kept all the stuff in your pockets on the table. Now you are watching TV, you don't want to move for next 15-30mins at least. Suddenly you hear your phone ringing.
You think. You think it could be someone from office (may be something went wrong), it could be your girlfriend (why she calls up at odd times always), it could be your school friend (he is in town for last 2 days, and this is the suitable time for this bugger to call up) or whoever it is, it could be something important which needs your immediate attention. Buried in these thoughts cursing the person who invented cellphone, you get up from your comfortable sofa to pick up the phone. You look at the display. It's an unknown number.
Who it can be? May be some bugger has dialed a wrong no. You are gonna be really mad at the guy, you are going to teach him some dos and don'ts before dialing any no. Today is the bad day for the person who has just called you, by mistake may be.
You angrily, cursing the person who doesn't look at the keypad before dialing any no, pick up the phone. The conversation goes as below:
You: Hello, who's this?
Caller: Hello sir, this is X, calling on behalf of ABC.
You: What is it all about?
Caller: Sir, do you hold an ABC Bank credit card?
You: Yes (thinking, has there been any fraud on your card and bank is trying to report it. See, this is the benefit with these banks, they are so concerned about their customers)
Caller: Sir, we have a very exciting offer for you. (Before you can say anything) Sir, we are offering you a health insurance worth Rs Y Lacs on your credit card. Whenever you visit hospital and pay for medicines, just use your ABC Bank credit card and all your money will be reimbursed.
You: That's really good. (See, I told you, this bank is really concerned about their customers)
Caller: Sir, for that you just have to verify some details and the facility will be made available to you.
You: Isn't this facility provided by default to all your card holders?
Caller: No Sir! we are providing this to some of our most preferred customer. (You, feel proud. Oh! so I am their preferred customer.)
Caller: Sir, your date of birth please. (This rings a bell inside your head, why the hell they are asking for my date of birth)
You: Why are you asking for my date of birth? Can you explain to me in details about your offer.
Caller: Sir, we are offering you a health insurance worth Rs Y Lac, for that you will have to a premium of x Rs quarterly.
You: That part you did not tell me earlier.
Caller: Sir, but you don't have to do anything about it. It will come as part of your statement.
You: But I'll have to pay the bills, right?
Caller: Yes, Sir!
You: Then? (Now you are thinking, all of them are cheats, they just want to earn money, no matter how they do so. If you hadn't asked for those details, they almost convinced you for that.) I don't want any insurance, I already have health insurance and don't need one. Please don't call me again for this.
You hang up cursing your credit card company.
If you are already fed up of such calls, then the conversation could go somewhat like this:
You: Hello, tell me! (you have probably guess who is on the other side)
Caller: Sir! this is X calling from ABC.
You: Why are you calling ME then?
Caller: Sir! we have a very exciting offer for you.
You: I am not interested in any of your offers and don't ever call me again.
Or something like this:
You: Hello!
Caller: Sir! this is X calling from ABC
You hang up.
It's even more irritating if the conversation is as follows:
You: Hello!
Caller (an IVR): Download kijiye latest ringtones........
Now you don't even have anyone on the other line to scream at.
I always wonder how many such calls actually mange to impress the customer and end up in successful selling.
You think. You think it could be someone from office (may be something went wrong), it could be your girlfriend (why she calls up at odd times always), it could be your school friend (he is in town for last 2 days, and this is the suitable time for this bugger to call up) or whoever it is, it could be something important which needs your immediate attention. Buried in these thoughts cursing the person who invented cellphone, you get up from your comfortable sofa to pick up the phone. You look at the display. It's an unknown number.
Who it can be? May be some bugger has dialed a wrong no. You are gonna be really mad at the guy, you are going to teach him some dos and don'ts before dialing any no. Today is the bad day for the person who has just called you, by mistake may be.
You angrily, cursing the person who doesn't look at the keypad before dialing any no, pick up the phone. The conversation goes as below:
You: Hello, who's this?
Caller: Hello sir, this is X, calling on behalf of ABC.
You: What is it all about?
Caller: Sir, do you hold an ABC Bank credit card?
You: Yes (thinking, has there been any fraud on your card and bank is trying to report it. See, this is the benefit with these banks, they are so concerned about their customers)
Caller: Sir, we have a very exciting offer for you. (Before you can say anything) Sir, we are offering you a health insurance worth Rs Y Lacs on your credit card. Whenever you visit hospital and pay for medicines, just use your ABC Bank credit card and all your money will be reimbursed.
You: That's really good. (See, I told you, this bank is really concerned about their customers)
Caller: Sir, for that you just have to verify some details and the facility will be made available to you.
You: Isn't this facility provided by default to all your card holders?
Caller: No Sir! we are providing this to some of our most preferred customer. (You, feel proud. Oh! so I am their preferred customer.)
Caller: Sir, your date of birth please. (This rings a bell inside your head, why the hell they are asking for my date of birth)
You: Why are you asking for my date of birth? Can you explain to me in details about your offer.
Caller: Sir, we are offering you a health insurance worth Rs Y Lac, for that you will have to a premium of x Rs quarterly.
You: That part you did not tell me earlier.
Caller: Sir, but you don't have to do anything about it. It will come as part of your statement.
You: But I'll have to pay the bills, right?
Caller: Yes, Sir!
You: Then? (Now you are thinking, all of them are cheats, they just want to earn money, no matter how they do so. If you hadn't asked for those details, they almost convinced you for that.) I don't want any insurance, I already have health insurance and don't need one. Please don't call me again for this.
You hang up cursing your credit card company.
If you are already fed up of such calls, then the conversation could go somewhat like this:
You: Hello, tell me! (you have probably guess who is on the other side)
Caller: Sir! this is X calling from ABC.
You: Why are you calling ME then?
Caller: Sir! we have a very exciting offer for you.
You: I am not interested in any of your offers and don't ever call me again.
Or something like this:
You: Hello!
Caller: Sir! this is X calling from ABC
You hang up.
It's even more irritating if the conversation is as follows:
You: Hello!
Caller (an IVR): Download kijiye latest ringtones........
Now you don't even have anyone on the other line to scream at.
I always wonder how many such calls actually mange to impress the customer and end up in successful selling.
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Watch TV: What about these ads?
I don't have any educational or professional background in marketing, but i have a brain, which works overtime. I have a disease of thinking, thinking about things those do not affect me directly, but I see them around. Since I watch TV a lot, I see that half the time ad films are shown on the screen. I have noticed somethings from these ads, some of them are brilliant and some dumb, some catch viewers attention and some fail to do so, some of them are able to market the product well and some fail to do so.
1. Rediff Mail ad (It's not big it's unlimited): What does the ad mean? Don't go into the details of what is shown on the screen, the essence of the ad is, rediffmail is providing unlimited mailbox storage.
What does unlimited mean? It means that you will no longer be shown how much percentage of storage space you have already used. Instead of adding, they have removed something and marketing the product on that basis.
What a brilliant idea? Some people might actually be falling for it.
2. Feviquick ad (Catching the fish): Well the ad must be almost 10-12 second long. Only words spoken in the ad are in tamil, which i don't understand, but i still could understand what it wanted to say.
What a brilliant way of saying how quick and effective faviquick is.
3. Ads Featuring Celebrities: There are a lot many ads featuring celebrities. Have you ever thought, why these companies are spending millions to get a celebrity in the ad. Do you think if I would use MRF tyres just because Sachin is saying so. There could be many people who would do that. But I think the idea behind taking celebrity in an adfilm is not only targeting fans of those celebrities. These celebrities are famous, known faces, they are seen on TV, Magzines, Newpapers regularly,since your product is assiciated with these celebrities, they are indirectly marketing your product. They are in a way increasing the recall value of your product. If I need to replace my bike tyres and Sachin Tendulkar comes in my mind somehow, I might go for MRF tyres. The probability of Sachin coming in my mind is more than that of MRF tyres.
4. Orbit White Ad (It does not rhyme, but it is true): Have you seen the cow ad of orbit white. The ad is different from other ads, the idea, the concept, everything is different. The ad makes sure that people notice the difference by stating in the end "It does not rhyme, but it is true". Ad film maker has explicitly mentioned that this ad is different.
What is the need to make this ad different from others? The idea is similar to putting a white spot on a black wall. You will notice it easily.
to be continued....
1. Rediff Mail ad (It's not big it's unlimited): What does the ad mean? Don't go into the details of what is shown on the screen, the essence of the ad is, rediffmail is providing unlimited mailbox storage.
What does unlimited mean? It means that you will no longer be shown how much percentage of storage space you have already used. Instead of adding, they have removed something and marketing the product on that basis.
What a brilliant idea? Some people might actually be falling for it.
2. Feviquick ad (Catching the fish): Well the ad must be almost 10-12 second long. Only words spoken in the ad are in tamil, which i don't understand, but i still could understand what it wanted to say.
What a brilliant way of saying how quick and effective faviquick is.
3. Ads Featuring Celebrities: There are a lot many ads featuring celebrities. Have you ever thought, why these companies are spending millions to get a celebrity in the ad. Do you think if I would use MRF tyres just because Sachin is saying so. There could be many people who would do that. But I think the idea behind taking celebrity in an adfilm is not only targeting fans of those celebrities. These celebrities are famous, known faces, they are seen on TV, Magzines, Newpapers regularly,since your product is assiciated with these celebrities, they are indirectly marketing your product. They are in a way increasing the recall value of your product. If I need to replace my bike tyres and Sachin Tendulkar comes in my mind somehow, I might go for MRF tyres. The probability of Sachin coming in my mind is more than that of MRF tyres.
4. Orbit White Ad (It does not rhyme, but it is true): Have you seen the cow ad of orbit white. The ad is different from other ads, the idea, the concept, everything is different. The ad makes sure that people notice the difference by stating in the end "It does not rhyme, but it is true". Ad film maker has explicitly mentioned that this ad is different.
What is the need to make this ad different from others? The idea is similar to putting a white spot on a black wall. You will notice it easily.
to be continued....
Monday, June 18, 2007
Hate Mumbai Traffic: What about some new traffic rules?
Rule No.1: Anyone driving a car with less than 3 people inside will be fined 1000 Rs. What will happen if the rule is implemented?
1. This will reduce traffic on roads. There will be less cars on the road.
2. This will increase public interaction. Imagin your neighbor ringing your doorbell at 8:30 in the morning, asking if you need a ride to your ofice.
3. It would reduce no of rickshaws also. People will easily get ride to office.
4. Husband, wife will travel togather, even if they had a fight last night. This will reduce domestic fights.
5. Less need for public transport, less effort for government. This may lead to tax exemption to people who own cars.
So many pros! why don't we implement this rule, right away.
Rule No.2: No trucks in city between 8:30-10:30 in the morning and 5:00-8:00 in the evening.
Everyone knows what will happen. This is already implemented in some cities in India.
Have thougth of 2. Why don't you think of more and let me know.
1. This will reduce traffic on roads. There will be less cars on the road.
2. This will increase public interaction. Imagin your neighbor ringing your doorbell at 8:30 in the morning, asking if you need a ride to your ofice.
3. It would reduce no of rickshaws also. People will easily get ride to office.
4. Husband, wife will travel togather, even if they had a fight last night. This will reduce domestic fights.
5. Less need for public transport, less effort for government. This may lead to tax exemption to people who own cars.
So many pros! why don't we implement this rule, right away.
Rule No.2: No trucks in city between 8:30-10:30 in the morning and 5:00-8:00 in the evening.
Everyone knows what will happen. This is already implemented in some cities in India.
Have thougth of 2. Why don't you think of more and let me know.
Friday, June 8, 2007
Breaking News: There is none!
A lot many people who watch any of the many news channels will understand what I want to say here.
When I was a kid, there were no 24 hour news channels. The only news program was being aired on Doordarshan, twice a day for 15 minutes. That news used to be crisp and contained most of the events of the day, which anyone would be interested in. Now there are as many as 30 news channels, who claim to be airing news for 24 hours a day. Do you think the life is more eventful, than it was 10 years ago. I don't think so. I think the news still can be told in 15 mins, but we get to see those 15 mins in 720 (24*30) hours.
And what we get is something similar to following:
1. A boy falls in a hole and we get to see him for 60 hours. Many news channels were even showing live coverage of the rescue operations. All we got to see was repeated clips of the boy in the hole and people outside the hole praying for his life.
2. One character in a TV serial does something and we are shown clippings of that for hours. If you don't watch the complete story, you will be confused, that Smriti Irani might be going to prison now for killing someone, which was caught on tape by some news channel. Alas it was a clipping of some TV serial being aired on a news channel.
3. We get to watch programs like Hansega India, Aisi Ki Taisi on a news channel.
4. Some girl creates trouble in a wedding, the groom was supposedly her ex-boyfriend/ex-husband and we get to see a live coverage of that.
5. You get to vote (share your views) for anything and everything. I am most amazed by 5% of the voters who always vote "can't say", even though they know that they will be charged 6 Rs for that SMS.
6. Some actor is seen hand in hand with an actress and we get to see news of their marriage. And very next day, we get to hear denial statements from those involved in the story. This way they get to cover at least 2 days.
7. The water at Mahim bay turns sweet and people are there to drink that water. Once after that news I was near Mahim bay and I could not stand the foul smell there. BTW later it was confirmed by some scientists that it happens every year but since there weren't so many news channels, it never came on TV and so many people were saved from drinking that water.
8. Some God's image has appeared on some wall and people are gathering there to worship the God. Well I can show you various such images on my walls, during rains.
I wonder if things keep on going the way they are, the day is not far away when we get to watch news like these:
1. Two friends were arguing on some point and one slappped the other. They are shown live on TV.
2. Amitabh Bachchan's maid didn't turn up today. Jaya Bacchan was seen sweeping the house herself, while Aishwarya was getting ready for a party. And guess what, this could lead to a divorce between Abhi and Ash.
3. Salman Khan kicked one dog under the influence of alchohal, hear Menka Gandhi's comments on the event.
4. There was a peace talk between India and Pakistan, look for the details during our 60 Seconds headlines section.
What the hell, where is this taking us.
When I was a kid, there were no 24 hour news channels. The only news program was being aired on Doordarshan, twice a day for 15 minutes. That news used to be crisp and contained most of the events of the day, which anyone would be interested in. Now there are as many as 30 news channels, who claim to be airing news for 24 hours a day. Do you think the life is more eventful, than it was 10 years ago. I don't think so. I think the news still can be told in 15 mins, but we get to see those 15 mins in 720 (24*30) hours.
And what we get is something similar to following:
1. A boy falls in a hole and we get to see him for 60 hours. Many news channels were even showing live coverage of the rescue operations. All we got to see was repeated clips of the boy in the hole and people outside the hole praying for his life.
2. One character in a TV serial does something and we are shown clippings of that for hours. If you don't watch the complete story, you will be confused, that Smriti Irani might be going to prison now for killing someone, which was caught on tape by some news channel. Alas it was a clipping of some TV serial being aired on a news channel.
3. We get to watch programs like Hansega India, Aisi Ki Taisi on a news channel.
4. Some girl creates trouble in a wedding, the groom was supposedly her ex-boyfriend/ex-husband and we get to see a live coverage of that.
5. You get to vote (share your views) for anything and everything. I am most amazed by 5% of the voters who always vote "can't say", even though they know that they will be charged 6 Rs for that SMS.
6. Some actor is seen hand in hand with an actress and we get to see news of their marriage. And very next day, we get to hear denial statements from those involved in the story. This way they get to cover at least 2 days.
7. The water at Mahim bay turns sweet and people are there to drink that water. Once after that news I was near Mahim bay and I could not stand the foul smell there. BTW later it was confirmed by some scientists that it happens every year but since there weren't so many news channels, it never came on TV and so many people were saved from drinking that water.
8. Some God's image has appeared on some wall and people are gathering there to worship the God. Well I can show you various such images on my walls, during rains.
I wonder if things keep on going the way they are, the day is not far away when we get to watch news like these:
1. Two friends were arguing on some point and one slappped the other. They are shown live on TV.
2. Amitabh Bachchan's maid didn't turn up today. Jaya Bacchan was seen sweeping the house herself, while Aishwarya was getting ready for a party. And guess what, this could lead to a divorce between Abhi and Ash.
3. Salman Khan kicked one dog under the influence of alchohal, hear Menka Gandhi's comments on the event.
4. There was a peace talk between India and Pakistan, look for the details during our 60 Seconds headlines section.
What the hell, where is this taking us.
Saturday, June 2, 2007
I, Me and Myself: Everything is Personalized
I have got a mail from one of my colleague, regarding a new project. The project is related to showing different screens on ATMs to different set of customers. When I asked him, the reason, he said, it will add to the wow factor. Is this wow factor reason enough for spending so much money?
May be, yes. if we look around ourselves we will see that everything is being personalized. Banks are issuing credit cards with your image on the plastic. Some banks have even gone to the extent of giving customer a choise of the image to be put on your credit card. I-pod, the product that remarked the comeback of legendary Steve Jobs, can be the biggest example of personalization. Google has also got into this battle of making things personalized for it's users, if you have used new i-google, you will understand what I am talking about. Everyone wants everything around him to be based on his/her likings and dislikings. People these days are ready to spend a lot of money to buy something which has a signature of their own.
Personalization can start from small things like handkerchief and go upto having a private jets carrying your signature. All of this depends on how much one can afford.
Lets assume you are buying a key ring, a normal one will cost you 50 bucks. Suddenly you notice another key ring bearing your initials, but this one will cost you 20 bucks extra. Will you buy it? There are a lot many people who will be ready to pay 40 percent extra money just to make it personalized.
Have we ever thought that this extent of personalization is driving us away from our social life. We don't listen to our friends, because we are listening our favourite song on our i-pods. We don't want to spend our time with our friends because we too busy watching our favourite show on TataSky. We have started enjoying being alone, and we are not able to notice that in doing so, we are moving away from world.
May be, yes. if we look around ourselves we will see that everything is being personalized. Banks are issuing credit cards with your image on the plastic. Some banks have even gone to the extent of giving customer a choise of the image to be put on your credit card. I-pod, the product that remarked the comeback of legendary Steve Jobs, can be the biggest example of personalization. Google has also got into this battle of making things personalized for it's users, if you have used new i-google, you will understand what I am talking about. Everyone wants everything around him to be based on his/her likings and dislikings. People these days are ready to spend a lot of money to buy something which has a signature of their own.
Personalization can start from small things like handkerchief and go upto having a private jets carrying your signature. All of this depends on how much one can afford.
Lets assume you are buying a key ring, a normal one will cost you 50 bucks. Suddenly you notice another key ring bearing your initials, but this one will cost you 20 bucks extra. Will you buy it? There are a lot many people who will be ready to pay 40 percent extra money just to make it personalized.
Have we ever thought that this extent of personalization is driving us away from our social life. We don't listen to our friends, because we are listening our favourite song on our i-pods. We don't want to spend our time with our friends because we too busy watching our favourite show on TataSky. We have started enjoying being alone, and we are not able to notice that in doing so, we are moving away from world.
Friday, June 1, 2007
Not Well: Sick of Hypocrisy
We meet a lot many people in our daily life, some you know, some you are trying to knaow and some you don't want to know. Have you ever sensed that most of these people are really someone else. They are not what they appear. They are concealing their true identity behind a glass, which is not exactly transperant, but you can see trough it, if you try a little harder.
Have you ever tried looking through that glass shield. I do that sometimes and when you are able to see the clear image behing the glass, it really hurts. It makes me sick. Sometimes people you have known for years turn out to be someone else and you don't like the other person behind the shield.
Have you ever thought, why people portray themselves as what they are not. What is the exact motive behind these role plays? I think it helps them servive in this ruthless world. If I am surrounded by people who live a lavish life, because they can afford it, I will also try to live a life at par, even if it is difficult for me to afford those luxuries. May be by doing this they are trying to get away with the inferiority complex, caused by not being able to live the lifestyle of your friends.
There can be various such cases around ourself, and can be identified, if we look closer.
Now I want to ask all of you, wouldn't this world be a better place to live, if people around you are straightforward and genuine. If everyone knows, what cooking inside the other persons head, wouldn't it be better. Have anyone seen movie Everybody Says I am Fine, this movie has been made on the canvas of hypocrisy/show-off.
Have you ever tried looking through that glass shield. I do that sometimes and when you are able to see the clear image behing the glass, it really hurts. It makes me sick. Sometimes people you have known for years turn out to be someone else and you don't like the other person behind the shield.
Have you ever thought, why people portray themselves as what they are not. What is the exact motive behind these role plays? I think it helps them servive in this ruthless world. If I am surrounded by people who live a lavish life, because they can afford it, I will also try to live a life at par, even if it is difficult for me to afford those luxuries. May be by doing this they are trying to get away with the inferiority complex, caused by not being able to live the lifestyle of your friends.
There can be various such cases around ourself, and can be identified, if we look closer.
Now I want to ask all of you, wouldn't this world be a better place to live, if people around you are straightforward and genuine. If everyone knows, what cooking inside the other persons head, wouldn't it be better. Have anyone seen movie Everybody Says I am Fine, this movie has been made on the canvas of hypocrisy/show-off.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)