11 minutes

• Author –  Paulo Coelho
• Eleven minutes – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paulo_Coelho
• Category – Non Fiction
• My rating – 4 on 5

So, why did i pick this book up ?  I want to believe that it is another incident where the soul of the universe always shows the path … when you seek answers, you realize that the answer seeks the seeker!

 I have been thinking about what is right & wrong relationship and what works & fails in human relationships  - result of  few counselling assignment at work  -  I  end up listening to the younger generation’s complex personal relationships when it overlaps with professional environments - complex relationships with the first circle of family, relatives, friends, colleagues, neighbours -  how relationships change over time and why relationship is all about how you feel about the other person  -  why everything is fair in love and war – and why there are no rights or wrongs – and why the most important thing is related to heart and not to anything physical – and why  the society needs a framework in which physical relationships had to be given more importance over everything else!

At the outset, from my perspective, it can be a bit of a sticky book to refer in a conservative society (it can be even offensive to some!) -  this book uses”not-so-conservative” but realistic characters/ situations to explain  relationships.  If you appreciate Paulo Coelho’s spiritual perspective, you will find those all over this book  -   you will believe that there is this universal soul which each one of us are part of and the answer seeks the seeker.   The story revolves around the life of a young women who seeks answers -  this book will resonate with those who have the ability to appreciate the human nature and the universal fact that both right and wrong co-exists, both evil and good co-exists and the final realization that there is nothing called right or wrong and nothing belongs to us.

Few of the quotes which i want to remember…

About love

• She also noted that she associated love with the person’s absence than with their presence
• Freedom only exists when love is present
• The person who gives him or herself wholly, the person who feels freest, is the person who loves most wholeheartedly
• The great aim of every human being is to understand the meaning of total love. Love is not to be found in someone else, but in ourselves; we simply awaken it. But in order to do that, we need another person
• She knows this love was impossible, and yet expecting nothing, she could nevertheless have everything she hoped for from that particular stage of life

About life

• Does the world want me to take “no” risks, to go back where I came from because I did not have the courage to say YES to life?
• Sometimes you no second chance and that it is best to accept the gifts the world offers you
• Anyone who has lost something they thought was theirs forever finally comes to realise that nothing really belongs to them – And if nothing belongs to me there is no point wasting my time looking after things that are not mine; it is best to live as if today were the first (or last) day of my life
• Dreaming is very pleasant as long as you are not forced your dreams into practice.That way, we avoid all risks, frustations and difficulties and when we are old we can always blame other people – preferably our parents, spouses, children – for our failure to realize our dreams
• The true experience of freedom – having the most important thing in the world without owning it
• Time exists in two dimensions – it can be so quick or so slow – depending on one’s state of mind
• I will at last have gained one happy day in my life, considering the way world is, one happy day is almost a miracle
• The universe only makes sense when we have someone to share our feelings with
• Passion makes a person stop eating, sleeping, working, feeling at peace. No one wants their life to be thrown into chaos. That is why a lot of people keep that threat of passion under control (Keeping passion at bay or surrendering blindly to it – which of the two attitudes is least destructive?)
•  Desire is not what you see, but what you imagine
• Could I buy back a few hours of my life? We keep putting up with horrible people,waiting for that right moment to arrive, postponing the realization of dreams
• When I had nothing to lose, I had everything. When I stopped being whom I am, I found myself. When I experienced. humiliation and submission, I am free
• What thrilled her about the bird was his freedom, the energy of his wings in motion, not his physical body

About men and women

• All girls are looking for one of the three things – adventure, money or husband 
• I was unfaithful and.so were they, just like any other normal couple
• Resonates with any woman – there are three inside any women - innocent girl, femme fatale and understanding mother
• Men always take fright when a woman says “I need you”  (i think it works the other way when it comes to patriarchical society  -  men want women to be dependent??)

Zoo movies – Annai or aalayam (#atozapril 2013 challenge)

The last alphabet Z is for Zoo in Tossing it out -  the last one on the A to Z April 2013 challenge!!   I want to taken a moment and think through on what happened in the month of April and how i chance hit on the atoz challenge  -   while i decided to write about Indian regional movies on the same topic selected by Arlee on his blog, I was unaware of how much of fun and challenge it is to get this done!!  Thanks to the team who initiated this challenge and specifically to Arlee!

While there are many movies around animals and some scenes on zoo, this movie called Annai or aalayam is evergreen in my memory.   This is a 1979 Tamil regional movie which was a family drama with typical mother sentiments around an orphaned elephant.  The little elephant and its naughty actions were a great attraction for me at that time -  i remember pestering my parents to go and watch this movie the second time in the movie hall -  which in those days is a real luxury.  The hero (who is a hunter) ensures that the little elephant is united with its mother at the end of the movie and the entire movie revolves around the little elephant.  One specific song sequence where the little elephant equally dances with the hero/heroine is something very interesting.

 

Youth movies – Azhiyadha Kolangal (#atozapril 2013 challenge)

When i saw Youth movies with Tossing it out’s explanation that these are movies about being young /coming out of age,  I knew Y is still an easy bet for AtoZ challenge.

My first thought is Azhiyadha Kolangal  -  It is a 1979 movie in Tamil regional language and directed by one of those intelligent directors, Balu Mahendra.  It had leading actors in the main roles, though the movie focussed on the life of three teenage boys and their adolescent days -  their first love, witnessing a death, emotional excitements, small village..etc.

I still remember the day i forced myself with my father and his friends to watch this movie.   It was a rainy afternoon, where we had to take up the strong showers, get wet and still made sure that the movie was watched.

 

Xenophobia in Film – Madrasapattinam (#atozapril 2013 challenge)

Letter X was for Xenophobia by Tossing in out for the AtoZ April 2013 challenge

While I was looking for sci-fi film, i went ahead and reconfirmed my understanding of the word Xenophobia in Wiki  – “Xenophobia is an irrational or unreasoned fear of that which is perceived to be foreign or strange. It comes from the Greek words ξένος (xenos), meaning “stranger,” “foreigner,” and φόβος (phobos), meaning “fear.”   With this definition reconfirmed, I can put the entire load of movies with Indian freedom struggle as the theme

Over the course of 17th and 18th century, the East India company from Britain completely colonized India  -  while it brought in various challenges to the Indian community, this also brought in an irrational fear about the British among the population of India.

Madrasa Pattinam is a tamil 2010 period film, which very nicely portrays the feeling of people towards the British.  While the storyline has a romantic theme and the challenges the Indian public faced during the British rule, this movie will stand a long time in depicting the transformation of Madrasapattinam of the 1940s to modern-day Chennai.

Writers in movies – Bharathi (#atozapril 2013 challenge)

As Tossing it out says, there are many movies on writers  -   so, it is more to think on the one which impacted me.  Here is letter W for A to Z April challenge.

Anyone who has read the language of Tamil or been in Tamilnadu will be impressed and influenced by the great works of  Subramania Bharathi  -  he was a writer, poet and a visionary.  He could think years ahead and had strong views on social issues  -  he also played a very influencing role in Indian freedom struggle.

I grew up reading the poems of Bharathi  -   many of my current thought process probably are shaped up by those strong  verses  - be it those  dialogues by Panchali in “Panchali Sabatham”, which completely reflects and depicts the  progressive women OR the cat poem “Vellai nirathil oru poonai” which reinforces the importance of unity in diversity , he was a VISIONARY.   All is poems and their themes are still valid even after so many years.

Bharathi is a 2000 Tamil film which won national award  -  this was based on Bharathiyar’s  life story.  While he came from a patriarchical society and was initially an hypocrite average male at that period, he was open in his mind and understood the big picture and was ready to make amends when he realized his shortcomings.  This makes him a real life hero.  Look at this short scene from the movie -  he changes from an ordinary egoistic male to a matured individual -  after this incident,  he learnt to treat individuals gender-neutrally  and became an advocate of gender equality.

I can only think of Bharathi as the one writer who influenced many lives in the past and will continue to do so in the coming days also.  You can read more about him here  -  http://www.indianetzone.com/9/subrahmanya_bharathi.htm

Venice in Films – Nenu Naa Rakshasi (#atozapril 2013 challenge)

Venice in regional films would have been tough in the past, but in the recent times most of the Indian movies at a minimum have one song sequence shot at a foreign exotic location.  So, there were many movies which had songs shot at Venice, though this movie in Telugu language was shot majorly in Venice.  Nenu Naa Rakshasi is a 2011 Telugu romantic drama.  Having the limitations of understanding Telugu, I still felt compelled to watch this movie till the end to figure out the story line  -  unlike the typical south indian romantic drama, this movie had lots of twists and unexpected turns in the story  (ok, call it illogical turns)  -  i doubt if this movie is something which i will remember but for the location it was shot and the beautiful heroine.

Europe brings in lot of nostalgia in me… It also brings in lot of expectation in me -  one of these days, it is in the bucket list to go around in Europe with no specific plans with like minded folks  -  may be also get paid for that trip and evaluate the places around Europe  -    it is something which will happen when the soul of the universe aligns again to make it happen …!!!

Utopian movies – Kalki (#atozapril 2013 challenge)

Utopian movies can be what is listed in Tossing it out OR can be the real drama where the main characters are so idealistic that the whole movie feels utopian.   Here is the letter U for A to Z challenge.

Kalki is a 1996 tamil regional movie directed by one of those famous directors of south India, K.Balachandar.  While the movie is a drama, the main character in the movie was portrayed so differently, it made the whole movie utopian.  Almost 17 years since that movie, I am still looking to meet someone with atleast 10% of the idealistic heroine’s character in real life.  Ofcourse, the heroine’s boyfriend who waits and accepts her AS IS  adds to the flavor of utopian movie!!

While the movie revolved around women and their rights and the challenges of a patriarchical society, I still felt that this movie is more of a wish of the director than of a reality! I may be sound sarcastic, but that is how i feel!

Time Travel – Eee (#atozapril 2013 challenge)

Ok,  Time Travel for T is a simple guess for every Holly wood watcher -  Just the Back to the Future series will cover it all……..Tossing in Out got a long list!!  But then, i again  realized  that  the entire Indian cinema thrives on family drama ……… and how will I get the time travel movie for A to Z challenge!!

Is it very rare for a pure sci-fi movie in Indian cinema?  While Wiki lists many Indian science fiction movies here - many are on aliens, next life, etc. I did one loner Indian movie under the time travel in the list of Bollywood movies, which I am yet to watch

So, I went to the next nearest -  where the characters travel from one life to another life  -  it nicely aligns with the Indian mythology -  the soul is all persistent and moves from one body to another and never perishes.  What is left behind when a person dies is only the physical body.   With that as a background, the recent movie I enjoyed is Naan Ee.   Naan Ee is a 2012 drama and released in  many Indian languages including Tamil and Hindi. What made it unique was the live action animation and visual effects.  The storyline is simple  -  The hero gets killed by the bad guy as the bad guy wants the hero’s girlfriend.  The  hero is born again as a house fly (yes, that little small insect!) and the house fly takes revenge on the villain and protects his girl friend!  Fun movie -  there was actually a song sequence where the house fly dances!!  Kids will love it!!  

School movies – Panneer Pushpangal (atozapril 2013 challenge)

Letter S is for School from Tossing it out for the AtoZ challenge.

Though there are many school regional movies,  I had to mention this movie for a reason! - just a look-alike reason which my school buddies know!.  Panneer Pushpangal  -   is a 1981 tamil regional School movie which was a big box-office hit. 

Twenty years later,  there is another movie –  Sattai.   Sattai (2012) is  compleletly set in the school environment and conveyed good social messages loud and clear -  while at times the hero went into a preaching and sentiment mode, it was still a good watch considering the messages it supported.   It was one of those movies which proved that the audience will support movies with good messages if delivered well.

The theme of this movie was  very similar to Paneer Pushpangal movie in some way -   the challenges of teachers handling the kids in a matured way, the teenage love (mostly infatuation!) coming on the way of the students future, etc.  It still hurts to know that as a society we still are handling basic challenges on child education across the country for the past twenty years.

School is a necessary part of any child’s growing years.   At the same time, I feel the education a child gets outside the class room in the society is the one which shapes up the child  -   life skills is the most important part of education and I wish more schools focus on the holistic development of children.

Rain movies – Mazhai (#atozapirl 2013 challenge)

Easy peasey selection of film topic with alphabet R by Tossing it out for the AtoZ challenge.

While there were many movies with rain, the one movie with the name Mazhai (meaning RAIN) has to be mentioned for name sake!  Mazhai is 2005 regional Tamil movie, which had rains almost through every scene of the movie.  Whenever the hero and heroine meets, there is rain in the background which makes them think it is a divine direction.  Then follows the regular Indian mix masala (song and dance sequence included!)-  villain falling in love with the same girl, enticing the girl’s father to give his girl to him,  creating a rift between hero and heroine and finally a big huge stunt sequence between villain and hero and then the hero and heroine are happily married every after  -  EVIL PERISHES, GOOD PREVAILS. 

Rain brings in lot of lovely memories (ok -  i am ignoring the fact about bad roads after rain, sudden storms from the Bay of Bengal, and sometimes even loss of lives, which is very sad).   Who can resist the piping hot ginger tea along with the Bajji and Pakoras (Indian spicy snack) when it is raining.  Also, all of us have those memories of the childhood days in the rain -  where we were out on the rains with our friends  -   playing, laughing and running around and finally getting those scoldings from parents and sometimes even falling sick with cold and flu!

What is unique for a country like India is that the HOPE rains bring in  -  hope that we will have enough water for a good harvest in the coming season, hope the dry interior villages will have enough water to sustain their livelihood.  It has been a long dream for the Indian farmers that the Ganga-Cauvery river plans really take off -  that will enable the entire country -  use the excess waters from the norther plains to feed the dry seasonal rivers in the south -  it is still a vision and lot of work need to go in to make it a reality.  Hope it happens in the coming days.

This song from the famous Lagaan (2001 Hindi movie)  shows how much the rain mean for us in Indian villages. 

The theme of Thanneer Thanneer (1981 Tamil movie) highlights the challenges faced by villages -  this is another song in that movie which again reinforces about what rain means for us in India -  a single drop of water and look at how much joy it brings to the village folks! http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xlfoku_megam-thiraluthadi-thaneer-thaneer_music

Rain is GOD!!