There is sheer joy in watching movies on a long flight. Very akin to reading books on a train. After all, a faster mode of transport deserves a faster mode of media as well.
To me, the flight seat is nothing but a mini theater. You have got a semi-reclining chair, a small tv personally for you, headphones and a constant supply of drinks and food whenever wanted. Lastly, a collection of films to choose from. It is not only the setting that counts here but also the opportunity. In any season, there are very good movies that you watch out in theaters, but there are many good/decent movies which you couldn't watch because of time constraints or they were not deemed good enough to be watched in theaters. Flight time gives you that opportunity to catch up to these good movies, a time when these movies are not threatened by competition vying for my time. And ofcourse, there is always a scope to rewatch one or explore a totally random one.
So, without any further delay, here is the list from BLR to SFO.
Beasts of the Southern Wild - Let me start by saying that you have not seen anything like BOTSW before and it is unlikely you are going to see anything like it in future as well. Watching this movie is like watching a natural disaster in action - it is scary, emotionally draining, and gigantic but at the same time it is beautiful to watch - beauty that comes with shades of sadness, serenity and inner peace. The 6 year old protagonist, Hushpuppy, is a tour-de-force on herself; on one side we are enchanted by her energy and positive outlook but on the other end, we are shit-scared for here because after all she is just a six year old. She is the beast of the southern wild, a beast that has to fight to survive but at the same time knows that the wild has to be cherished as well. BOTSW is a triumph of making movies with imagination, it is a triumph of execution on a vision that the director wanted to share with others. Watch it if you love movies because this is a movie which values this medium for what it is and nothing else.
Where do we go now - Nadine Labaki's Where do we go now is a Leabanese movie on how women in a village try to resolve conflict between muslim and christian men. Their approaches are hilarious, weird and as one says it in the movie - "it might just work". WDWGN is a decent effort. It lacks in depth both in story and performance. It feels that the movie is unsure whether it wants itself to be a realistic portrayal of the religious tension or a comical take on a issue which should never have happened in the first place. However, the localization in the movie is indeed commendable and it transports us back into the era where TV watching was communal and community was the biggest entertainment there was.
Polisse - Polisse is a realistic portrayal of SVU-like unit in France. It is a docu-drama aka based on real stories but portrayed fictitiously. After merely three minutes into the movie, you realize that it is not going to be an easy one to sit through. Yet, Polisse must be watched, just to remind ourselves that there are real people doing this tough job, to understand that it is not easy to mix professional and personal lives for them. Polisse does feel cliched at times but it rarely feels far from reality. It has been compared to The Wire which is next on my watchlist.
The Odd life of Timothy Green - I had only one reason to watch this movie - Jennifer Garner. It felt like Garner's Juno like character again, so i decided to watch it. It is a cute little movie which always feels far-fetched, too fantastical and never moves you like other good movies in this genre. The storyline is bad, predictable and does not go anywhere. Garner's acting is the only thing that is good for the movie. It is a family movie to be watched with your children who have not entered their teen years.
To Rome With Love - I never wanted to watch TRWL because i knew i will be disappointed. I know Allen wants to make these short movies but there is no reason why they should be combined altogether. After midnight in Paris, which was so awesome in its plot and structure, TRWL feels like Allen made this movie just because he promised someone that he would do it. There are elements which give this movie a feeling that it is indeed an Allen movie but like his other recent attempts, it lacks a holistic feel. Allen may be paying homage to the city but the stories are so far out there that other than the location, there is nothing Rome-ish in it. TRWL in the end feels like an American's view of Rome than what it ought to be. The fact that it is an Allen movie just makes us, Allen fans, sad, very sad!
Brave - In the nascent years of animation medium, good animation and a decent plot was good enough for people to love it. But off late, with such amazing story lines coming into it, the genre has been redefined in particular for the mature audience. Brave has good animation but its story potential is only good for children. Few years ago, even adults would have enjoyed it because it was primarily the medium that was being cherished. But now, the expectations are higher. Brave is a good children's movie. For children, it has elements of fairy tales, comedy and be--good-do-good plot which goes well. But compared with its contemporaries, it has to do a lot better to appeal to me.
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Fantasy and Science Fiction
OMG! Literally :) This should have been a October post. Not even October, it should have been in September. But November it is.
Fantasy and Science Fiction - A course on coursera taught by Prof. Eric Rabkin.
I like the way Eric describes the nature of fantastic - "...the diametric, diachronic reversal of the ground rules of the narrative world."
After reading Harry Potter series, LOTR and more recently GRRM, i knew that i loved fantasy genre. After all, i am a true escapist at heart. (And why not in this real world.... more on this later). But it was not any kind of fantasy that i like. Political drama like GRRM with good prose is always a favorite. I reread LOTR last December just to remember how good it was. I liked HP series never for its prose but how the jigsaw puzzle unfolded and connected everything in the end.
According to GRRM, people don't like fantasy because of magic spells or dragons. In LOTR, when there was war, Gandalf was not fighting with spells and curses, he had a sword in his hand. My thesis here is that (a) fantasy shakes the ground rules of our world and that is what makes it so appealing and (b) It is not the props that matter, it is the interaction between reality and those props.
(As a sidenote, herein lies why the battle scenes in Harry Potter movies do not work because there is no excitement in watching two people fighting with muted breaths and words with a broken stick on their hands).
As far as Science Fiction goes, the genre never appealed to me. I have never really enjoyed Star Wars. I read Ender's game last year and found it to be too young adult-ish (read childish). Battlestar Gallactica was impressive but again not due to its SF elements but because of its political drama. I believe that the whole SF genre is way more popular in US that India because of the cultural context that they grew in. But, it is not to say that i am not amazed by SF. I truly believe that the power of science as a fantasy tool has endless possibilities but just that before this course, i had not come across any good SF writing.
I also believe that mythology is an extension of fantasy. Having read, and thoroughly enjoyed, Mahabharatha and Illiad before, i didn't see them as religious texts but as one of the best writings of fantasy ever possible.
So, my motives for taking this course was to know more about great writings in this genre. The course description had Dracula and Frankenstein. I have never been a fan of horror genre either, so i thought it was a good way of getting into its roots as well. It was to be a demanding course - 10 novels in 10 weeks. The course outline is copied below -
Grimm — Children's and Household Tales
Carroll — Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass
Stoker — Dracula
Shelley — Frankenstein
Hawthorne & Poe — Stories and Poems
Wells — The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Invisible Man, "The Country of the Blind," "The Star"
Burroughs & Gilman — A Princess of Mars & Herland
Bradbury — The Martian Chronicles
LeGuin — The Left Hand of Darkness
Doctorow — Little Brother
Off the above, i didn't get time to read Poe. I couldn't finish Island of Dr. Moreau and i read the wrong Bradbury (idiotic mistake) - I read a graphic novel adaptation of The Martian Chronicles instead of the actual book.
The course is designed intelligently. Not only it goes from fairy tales to horror to SF to modern fantasy, the writings selected are also in chronological order. This shows how the genre has evolved over time. The books chosen are the ones that has helped in shaping the genre. I especially enjoyed the fact that i read Dracula and Frankenstein back to back.
Among the list, the ones that i disliked the most was Burrough's A Princess of Mars. I found it to be too YA and lacking completely in prose. Followed by Alice's Adventures in Wonderland which outside of the wordplay (which is excellent), i found it falling abysmally short in plot and story elements. My favorite were Stoker's Dracula (oh how much i enjoyed reading it) and Wells' stories. I liked how Wells deconstructs the grandeur perception of super-hero abilities. The one that surprised me the most was Gilman's Herland. I had never read a utopian novel and to read a feminist utopian novel was simply a treat. It was a very refreshing read and it was the one that broke most of the ground rules. Doctorow's Little Brother was the most "masala" book of the lot, it is an ideal summer beach reading. But as Eric explains in his lecture, it is not at all an easy task to write in this manner. The craft is much more appreciated after attending the lectures.
We had to write a small essay on every book offering an insight about the book which will be useful for others. It was a good creative exercise to do so. Reading peer responses was also quite informative. Coursera has done a good job in creating a platform to do so. The discussion forums were too noisy but some of the popular posts were a delight to read.
Fantasy and Science Fiction - A course on coursera taught by Prof. Eric Rabkin.
I like the way Eric describes the nature of fantastic - "...the diametric, diachronic reversal of the ground rules of the narrative world."
After reading Harry Potter series, LOTR and more recently GRRM, i knew that i loved fantasy genre. After all, i am a true escapist at heart. (And why not in this real world.... more on this later). But it was not any kind of fantasy that i like. Political drama like GRRM with good prose is always a favorite. I reread LOTR last December just to remember how good it was. I liked HP series never for its prose but how the jigsaw puzzle unfolded and connected everything in the end.
According to GRRM, people don't like fantasy because of magic spells or dragons. In LOTR, when there was war, Gandalf was not fighting with spells and curses, he had a sword in his hand. My thesis here is that (a) fantasy shakes the ground rules of our world and that is what makes it so appealing and (b) It is not the props that matter, it is the interaction between reality and those props.
(As a sidenote, herein lies why the battle scenes in Harry Potter movies do not work because there is no excitement in watching two people fighting with muted breaths and words with a broken stick on their hands).
As far as Science Fiction goes, the genre never appealed to me. I have never really enjoyed Star Wars. I read Ender's game last year and found it to be too young adult-ish (read childish). Battlestar Gallactica was impressive but again not due to its SF elements but because of its political drama. I believe that the whole SF genre is way more popular in US that India because of the cultural context that they grew in. But, it is not to say that i am not amazed by SF. I truly believe that the power of science as a fantasy tool has endless possibilities but just that before this course, i had not come across any good SF writing.
I also believe that mythology is an extension of fantasy. Having read, and thoroughly enjoyed, Mahabharatha and Illiad before, i didn't see them as religious texts but as one of the best writings of fantasy ever possible.
So, my motives for taking this course was to know more about great writings in this genre. The course description had Dracula and Frankenstein. I have never been a fan of horror genre either, so i thought it was a good way of getting into its roots as well. It was to be a demanding course - 10 novels in 10 weeks. The course outline is copied below -
Grimm — Children's and Household Tales
Carroll — Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass
Stoker — Dracula
Shelley — Frankenstein
Hawthorne & Poe — Stories and Poems
Wells — The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Invisible Man, "The Country of the Blind," "The Star"
Burroughs & Gilman — A Princess of Mars & Herland
Bradbury — The Martian Chronicles
LeGuin — The Left Hand of Darkness
Doctorow — Little Brother
Off the above, i didn't get time to read Poe. I couldn't finish Island of Dr. Moreau and i read the wrong Bradbury (idiotic mistake) - I read a graphic novel adaptation of The Martian Chronicles instead of the actual book.
The course is designed intelligently. Not only it goes from fairy tales to horror to SF to modern fantasy, the writings selected are also in chronological order. This shows how the genre has evolved over time. The books chosen are the ones that has helped in shaping the genre. I especially enjoyed the fact that i read Dracula and Frankenstein back to back.
Among the list, the ones that i disliked the most was Burrough's A Princess of Mars. I found it to be too YA and lacking completely in prose. Followed by Alice's Adventures in Wonderland which outside of the wordplay (which is excellent), i found it falling abysmally short in plot and story elements. My favorite were Stoker's Dracula (oh how much i enjoyed reading it) and Wells' stories. I liked how Wells deconstructs the grandeur perception of super-hero abilities. The one that surprised me the most was Gilman's Herland. I had never read a utopian novel and to read a feminist utopian novel was simply a treat. It was a very refreshing read and it was the one that broke most of the ground rules. Doctorow's Little Brother was the most "masala" book of the lot, it is an ideal summer beach reading. But as Eric explains in his lecture, it is not at all an easy task to write in this manner. The craft is much more appreciated after attending the lectures.
We had to write a small essay on every book offering an insight about the book which will be useful for others. It was a good creative exercise to do so. Reading peer responses was also quite informative. Coursera has done a good job in creating a platform to do so. The discussion forums were too noisy but some of the popular posts were a delight to read.
Forrest Gump
I do not remember what was my reaction after watching Forrest Gump for the first time. All i recall is that i liked it. Especially Tom Hanks. Forrest Gump was also one of my early movies when i realized how powerful this medium can be. Over the years, i have watched Forrest Gump multiple times. There are so many favorite scenes in the film, so many concepts that strike at heart. For example - The one when Forrest starts running just like that, or the one where Lt. Dan joins Forrest on his shrimp boat and the scene where he is challenging the storm. The one when he meets Jenny at Washington, and the one when he realizes that he has a son. The movie is layered with scene after scene that just makes it a treat to watch. But the one scene that stays with me even after the movie, long long time after the movie is this one -
Jenny is on her deathbed and is afraid of her dying. She asks Forrest if he was scared in Vietnam. Forrest answers it and so naturally transitions on to a broader theme of beauty in this world. This scene epitomizes the genius of this movie. To start with, it summarizes the essence of this movie - the beauty and the goodness.
What is Forrest Gump about? What is its genre? Wikipedia describes it as Romantic-comedy-drama film. It is and it is not. It has all the three elements in it but it is not like any other rom-com movies of this genre. It is a very difficult feat. to genre-ify this movie. It is not a biopic as it does not cover a true person, yet it is a biopic. As a novel (which i have not read yet ) it must be an incredible piece of fiction. But to take the story on paper and convert it into this kind of film is brilliance. (PS: Forrest gump - the novel is going to be my next book.)
But coming back, what is Forrest Gump about? Is it about a fantasy story of an autistic boy? Is it about the purity of heart and soul? Is it a feel-good movie with a message that hard work pays? Is it about the recent events in American History ? Its about all the above and more. To take the historical events and marry them with the plotline gives an epic feel. Most novels or movies take one or two events (like World war 2 or 9/11) and create plots around/after it. But to show a journey of time through the lens of an individual and that too in fiction is quite a rarity. The only other instance that i know where its done is Midnight's children by Salman Rushdie. And i liked that novel as well.
Coming back to that scene, in those few seconds we get the entire gist of the movie. Yes, the movie is about the beauty and the goodness. But there is a lot going on there. The movie is also about loneliness as well. Forrest even despite his best intentions does not have many friends. He is lonely and often wonders why. In the shot of the Bayou, it is not only the shot of Sun setting down but it is a shot of a lonely Forrest enjoying the natural sunset all by himself. But, and here lies the masterpiece, the movie does not pity loneliness. The final two words of that scene "You were", quickly fills the void created by a lonely Forrest.
Often, i have wondered the practicality of the running scene. Is it doable? Where was he eating, how he kept himself hydrated? Being a little bit of runner myself and knowing the joys of running, i can feel the escapist pleasure in doing so but the practicality of it is questionable. It is interesting to observe that i do understand that Vietnam, Ping pong, Shrimp boats are all fantastical elements but somehow i want this running episode to be real.
In that scene, the background sound also changes, i do not think that it is an OST but that sound-byte adds another dimension. The music is there when needed. Alan Silvestri's score has a powerful effect of slowing down time, it gives breathing room in a movie where so much is going on all the time.
Jenny is on her deathbed and is afraid of her dying. She asks Forrest if he was scared in Vietnam. Forrest answers it and so naturally transitions on to a broader theme of beauty in this world. This scene epitomizes the genius of this movie. To start with, it summarizes the essence of this movie - the beauty and the goodness.
What is Forrest Gump about? What is its genre? Wikipedia describes it as Romantic-comedy-drama film. It is and it is not. It has all the three elements in it but it is not like any other rom-com movies of this genre. It is a very difficult feat. to genre-ify this movie. It is not a biopic as it does not cover a true person, yet it is a biopic. As a novel (which i have not read yet ) it must be an incredible piece of fiction. But to take the story on paper and convert it into this kind of film is brilliance. (PS: Forrest gump - the novel is going to be my next book.)
But coming back, what is Forrest Gump about? Is it about a fantasy story of an autistic boy? Is it about the purity of heart and soul? Is it a feel-good movie with a message that hard work pays? Is it about the recent events in American History ? Its about all the above and more. To take the historical events and marry them with the plotline gives an epic feel. Most novels or movies take one or two events (like World war 2 or 9/11) and create plots around/after it. But to show a journey of time through the lens of an individual and that too in fiction is quite a rarity. The only other instance that i know where its done is Midnight's children by Salman Rushdie. And i liked that novel as well.
Coming back to that scene, in those few seconds we get the entire gist of the movie. Yes, the movie is about the beauty and the goodness. But there is a lot going on there. The movie is also about loneliness as well. Forrest even despite his best intentions does not have many friends. He is lonely and often wonders why. In the shot of the Bayou, it is not only the shot of Sun setting down but it is a shot of a lonely Forrest enjoying the natural sunset all by himself. But, and here lies the masterpiece, the movie does not pity loneliness. The final two words of that scene "You were", quickly fills the void created by a lonely Forrest.
Often, i have wondered the practicality of the running scene. Is it doable? Where was he eating, how he kept himself hydrated? Being a little bit of runner myself and knowing the joys of running, i can feel the escapist pleasure in doing so but the practicality of it is questionable. It is interesting to observe that i do understand that Vietnam, Ping pong, Shrimp boats are all fantastical elements but somehow i want this running episode to be real.
In that scene, the background sound also changes, i do not think that it is an OST but that sound-byte adds another dimension. The music is there when needed. Alan Silvestri's score has a powerful effect of slowing down time, it gives breathing room in a movie where so much is going on all the time.
November blues
Aah, the guilt,
the internal pain,
anxiety, restlessness
the constant pressure.
Of not updating a blog.
When the rate of production is less than the rate of consumption,
then the consumption is not getting assimilated.
No reflection, no introspection.
Reminders, steady reminders,
As i wake up.
in all those actions when brain feels under - utilized
Like taking a shower.
Do it! Now.
I am not in the right mood.
Then when?
Tick tock. Tick tock.
This month will be over soon.
Lets do it, then.
Today. At this moment....
Peace
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Life in Sept 2 - Oct 21, 2012
Sometimes blog writing can be such a big chore. You want to write it, you have all the material, head is urging to empty the contents yet the final act of sitting and writing becomes so elusive. But, today is the day. So here it goes -
Concerts -
~As part of Bangalore Kidney Foundation's Dhwani concert, i attended Sarod performance by Sh. Shiraz Ali Khan followed by vocal recital by Dr. Prabha Atre. I must have attended a classical concert after 3 years, so i liked the feel. Dr. Prabha Atre's performance at the ago of 80 was mind blowing.
~Attended OktoberFest's Day 2 and saw performances by Agam, Demonic Resurrection, Carlton and Friends and finally Indian Ocean. Overheard bands such as One night stand and some band from Chennai. Agam was a discovery, liked their fusion of classical music, violin and drums. Indian Ocean was a disappointment as it was too short. But i got the Khajhoor road CD there and it has been playing in my car since that night.
Books -
~ As part of Fantasy course: Ursula LeGuin's The Left Hand of Darkness, Cory Doctorow's Little Brother, Burrough's A Princess of Mars and Gilman's Herland. Also, i goofed up on Bradbury's Martian Chronicles. Instead i ordered/read the graphic novel on the book by Dennis Calero.
~ Churning the Earth - It was partially read as part of the Oct BPIBC meetup. Need some more time to finish it and write a proper review.
~ The Odyssey by Homer.
Movies -
Good ones -
~Watched Gangs of Wasseypur 1 & 2 again at home
~ English Vinglish.
~ Animal Kingdom
~ Once upon a time in Anatolia (I have no idea why it is considered good, it was very difficult to sit through this one)
~ The Jon Stewart vs Bill O Reilly Rumble 2012 debate. Awesome!
Bad ones -
~ Killing them softly.
Courses -
~ Finished Fantasy and Science Fiction. Taught by Dr. Eric Rabkin (UMich)
~ Finished Introduction to Sustainability. Taught by Dr. Jonathan Tomkin (UIUC)
~ Currently taking Greek and Roman Mythology. Taught by Dr. Peter Struck. (UPenn)
And other interesting things ....
~ Ran KTM Half Marathon in 3 hr 15 mins. Bad timing but glad that i finished it. It was a very dehydrating experience.
~ The Ugly Indians - Now i am a certified BSNL pillar spotfixer and a certified Foothpath Discovery Spotfixer. Arranging for its raw materials by going to hardware store was also an interesting experience. Samosas at the end of work were also awesome :)
~ Went to Chennai for OFC thingy.
~ Attended 100 poets for Change at Atta Galatta. An evening where both amateur and professional poets came and read their own works or works of greatest. Very enjoyable. Loved the works of amateurs. Came back with a more ignited spirit.
~ Home composting is going strong.
Concerts -
~As part of Bangalore Kidney Foundation's Dhwani concert, i attended Sarod performance by Sh. Shiraz Ali Khan followed by vocal recital by Dr. Prabha Atre. I must have attended a classical concert after 3 years, so i liked the feel. Dr. Prabha Atre's performance at the ago of 80 was mind blowing.
~Attended OktoberFest's Day 2 and saw performances by Agam, Demonic Resurrection, Carlton and Friends and finally Indian Ocean. Overheard bands such as One night stand and some band from Chennai. Agam was a discovery, liked their fusion of classical music, violin and drums. Indian Ocean was a disappointment as it was too short. But i got the Khajhoor road CD there and it has been playing in my car since that night.
Books -
~ As part of Fantasy course: Ursula LeGuin's The Left Hand of Darkness, Cory Doctorow's Little Brother, Burrough's A Princess of Mars and Gilman's Herland. Also, i goofed up on Bradbury's Martian Chronicles. Instead i ordered/read the graphic novel on the book by Dennis Calero.
~ Churning the Earth - It was partially read as part of the Oct BPIBC meetup. Need some more time to finish it and write a proper review.
~ The Odyssey by Homer.
Movies -
Good ones -
~Watched Gangs of Wasseypur 1 & 2 again at home
~ English Vinglish.
~ Animal Kingdom
~ Once upon a time in Anatolia (I have no idea why it is considered good, it was very difficult to sit through this one)
~ The Jon Stewart vs Bill O Reilly Rumble 2012 debate. Awesome!
Bad ones -
~ Killing them softly.
Courses -
~ Finished Fantasy and Science Fiction. Taught by Dr. Eric Rabkin (UMich)
~ Finished Introduction to Sustainability. Taught by Dr. Jonathan Tomkin (UIUC)
~ Currently taking Greek and Roman Mythology. Taught by Dr. Peter Struck. (UPenn)
And other interesting things ....
~ Ran KTM Half Marathon in 3 hr 15 mins. Bad timing but glad that i finished it. It was a very dehydrating experience.
~ The Ugly Indians - Now i am a certified BSNL pillar spotfixer and a certified Foothpath Discovery Spotfixer. Arranging for its raw materials by going to hardware store was also an interesting experience. Samosas at the end of work were also awesome :)
~ Went to Chennai for OFC thingy.
~ Attended 100 poets for Change at Atta Galatta. An evening where both amateur and professional poets came and read their own works or works of greatest. Very enjoyable. Loved the works of amateurs. Came back with a more ignited spirit.
~ Home composting is going strong.
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Book Review: The Invisible Man and The Country of the Blind
The Invisible, The Country of The Blind
Both by H.G. Wells
It is shocking that i have never read H.G. Wells before. I cant believe how it happened. But i am glad that i have done so now. I loved both The Invisible and The Country of The Blind. In addition i read The Start which i found it to be so-so and finally i started The island of Dr. Moreau but have not been able to finish it so far.
The premise is awesome and so superbly set in The Invisible and The Country of the Blind. The invisible is a story of a man who has become invisible by his experiments. Invisibility to many would be a super power, people may wish for it in their dreams. But in Wells version, all is not well for the invisible man. It is only his body that is invisible. If we wears a coat, which he has to in order to protect against the harsh weather, his outline is visible. The Chinese proverb "Beware of what you wish, it may come true" is beautifully illustrated in this book as the invisible man struggles to survive. The reaction of society to invisibility is fascinating.
In the country of the blind, the one eyed man is the king. So goes the proverb, but is it so? Wells takes up this question and addresses it in his masterpiece story of The Country of the Blind. In the country, people have been blind for ages, so much so that their language has no words for "see" and "sight". The visitor with eyesight has a hard time in explaining them that he can see and is eventually considered to be delusional.
Wells' writings fall under science fiction genre, but for Wells sci-fi is just a means to break our beliefs and rules. Sci-fi just gives him tools to create the what-if scenarion, what follows after that is a sheer analysis of human beings and their actions. Both these books are very highly recommended.
Both by H.G. Wells
It is shocking that i have never read H.G. Wells before. I cant believe how it happened. But i am glad that i have done so now. I loved both The Invisible and The Country of The Blind. In addition i read The Start which i found it to be so-so and finally i started The island of Dr. Moreau but have not been able to finish it so far.
The premise is awesome and so superbly set in The Invisible and The Country of the Blind. The invisible is a story of a man who has become invisible by his experiments. Invisibility to many would be a super power, people may wish for it in their dreams. But in Wells version, all is not well for the invisible man. It is only his body that is invisible. If we wears a coat, which he has to in order to protect against the harsh weather, his outline is visible. The Chinese proverb "Beware of what you wish, it may come true" is beautifully illustrated in this book as the invisible man struggles to survive. The reaction of society to invisibility is fascinating.
In the country of the blind, the one eyed man is the king. So goes the proverb, but is it so? Wells takes up this question and addresses it in his masterpiece story of The Country of the Blind. In the country, people have been blind for ages, so much so that their language has no words for "see" and "sight". The visitor with eyesight has a hard time in explaining them that he can see and is eventually considered to be delusional.
Wells' writings fall under science fiction genre, but for Wells sci-fi is just a means to break our beliefs and rules. Sci-fi just gives him tools to create the what-if scenarion, what follows after that is a sheer analysis of human beings and their actions. Both these books are very highly recommended.
Book Review: The Left Hand of Darkness
The Left hand of Darkness
By Ursula Leguin
Light is the left hand of darkness
and darkness the right hand of light.
Two are one, life and death,
lying together like lovers in Kemmer,
like hands joined together,
like the end and the way
Ursula LeGuin's The Left Hand of Darkness won both the Hugo and Nebula award. The Left Hand of Darkness in the genre of other fantasy novels is like a documentary in the genre of drama films. That is to say, it is a difficult to read a surprising fact for a book which won the audience award for best fantasy novel of its year.
Left Hand of Darkness takes place on a planet called Winter where temperatures are always cold. Events are set in motion two years after Genry Ai, a messenger from Ekumen which is basically a "League of All Worlds" arrives at Winter. Genry Ai wants Winter to join the league. But Winter has its own countries and each country has its own ambitions.
The citizens of Winter called Gethenians are hermaphrodites though they require a sexual partner. But anyone could be a child bearer. Gethenians could be a male in some cases and women in others. Ursula LeGuin explains brilliantly how a society without the man-woman dichotomy would look like, how a gender less society would shape up; what is the meaning of love, jealousy in such a world.
At the same time, we are always reminded that everything is happening in a extremely cold planet. Gethenians have 66 words for ice,snow and its other variants. Winter's coldness seeps into the souls of its citizens. Gethenians are lonely, asocial, hard beings with a very slow pace of technological advancement. Cold slows everything down, decision making takes forever.
The Left Hand of Darkness is an experiment in the fantasy genre wherein what all the emphasis is given to the fantasy. It is incredibly dense in imagination, even the plot is aligned in a way that its aim is to explore the planet in more detail. LeGuin's writing make it believable and makes us wanting for more. We, like the messenger, are just an observer watching a theater unfold in front of us act by act. LeGuin also throws in some myth stories and a Gethenian POV which further influences our understanding of their world.
Reading now as part of coursera, i can see why others hated this book. It was very different from rest of the readings. I found it to be interesting, a little difficult but overall with a positive sentiment. I can not say highly recommended but read it as if you read a classic.
By Ursula Leguin
Light is the left hand of darkness
and darkness the right hand of light.
Two are one, life and death,
lying together like lovers in Kemmer,
like hands joined together,
like the end and the way
Ursula LeGuin's The Left Hand of Darkness won both the Hugo and Nebula award. The Left Hand of Darkness in the genre of other fantasy novels is like a documentary in the genre of drama films. That is to say, it is a difficult to read a surprising fact for a book which won the audience award for best fantasy novel of its year.
Left Hand of Darkness takes place on a planet called Winter where temperatures are always cold. Events are set in motion two years after Genry Ai, a messenger from Ekumen which is basically a "League of All Worlds" arrives at Winter. Genry Ai wants Winter to join the league. But Winter has its own countries and each country has its own ambitions.
The citizens of Winter called Gethenians are hermaphrodites though they require a sexual partner. But anyone could be a child bearer. Gethenians could be a male in some cases and women in others. Ursula LeGuin explains brilliantly how a society without the man-woman dichotomy would look like, how a gender less society would shape up; what is the meaning of love, jealousy in such a world.
At the same time, we are always reminded that everything is happening in a extremely cold planet. Gethenians have 66 words for ice,snow and its other variants. Winter's coldness seeps into the souls of its citizens. Gethenians are lonely, asocial, hard beings with a very slow pace of technological advancement. Cold slows everything down, decision making takes forever.
The Left Hand of Darkness is an experiment in the fantasy genre wherein what all the emphasis is given to the fantasy. It is incredibly dense in imagination, even the plot is aligned in a way that its aim is to explore the planet in more detail. LeGuin's writing make it believable and makes us wanting for more. We, like the messenger, are just an observer watching a theater unfold in front of us act by act. LeGuin also throws in some myth stories and a Gethenian POV which further influences our understanding of their world.
Reading now as part of coursera, i can see why others hated this book. It was very different from rest of the readings. I found it to be interesting, a little difficult but overall with a positive sentiment. I can not say highly recommended but read it as if you read a classic.
Book Review: Herland
Herland
By Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Herland is a feminist utopian novel about a country which comprises only of women. The story is told from the perspective of Van who among his two friends, all three men, visit this country with the intention of exploring it. But soon they are caught and held under guard where they learn Herland's language while Herland citizens learn English so that they can exchange ideas.
What follows is a fantasy like no other. By fantasy, i mean how Dr. Eric Rabkin defines it -
"Eric S. Rabkin defines literary fantasy as 'the continuing diametric reversal of the ground rules within a narrative world." Gilman tears down one rule after another - be it social inequalities, gender bias, raising children, education, economics, religion, governance and so much so that she even challenges the role of history.
First, in case by case, she blasts the world of men. It must be kept in mind that this novel was written in early 20th century when women didn't enjoy as much rights as they do now. In Herland, women work, they are independent - socially, economically. They are strong, there is no distinction between manly and womanly task; women are scientists, political leaders, security chiefs. Women do not enjoy jewelry or any fancy shiny objects. They are highly practical and intellectual. In a case by case basis, she shatters the prejudices of those times.
Gilman does not restrict herself to gender basis. She goes beyond in other spheres such as child rearing and education. In Herland child raising is a communal job, the best in the community are assigned this job. Children are future, they need to be nourished, bred and they should understand the nature that is around them and in them.
Perhaps, the most profound thing that struck me was the concept of history. Herland document their history but they do not pay much heed to it. Their rules and laws change every two decades. They look up to history just as a tool to learn. They take pride in the fact the future generation will be smarter than the current generation and will make rules that are better suited. There is no shame in acknowledging that past was inaccurate.
Gilman also addresses the notion of population - In Herland, not everybody is allowed to bear a child. It may appear that this is a violation of freedom, a fundamental right. But in Herland, community comes before an individual. Free will, fundamental rights, freedom belongs to community first, and then to individual. Herland makes a case that by proper education, a community can be created which understands this ideology as well.
This was my first utopian novel. I had utopian novels would make me happy as "all is well in utopia". But Herland pinches you with every page turn. All is indeed well in utopia but it is the contrast with our world that hurts. The visitors in Herland were from US, not from anywhere in US but that too California. They are ashamed to answer questions posed by Herlanders about practices in their homeland as they think that they realize that they are so sub-par. I just wonder what would have happened had they been from India.
By Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Herland is a feminist utopian novel about a country which comprises only of women. The story is told from the perspective of Van who among his two friends, all three men, visit this country with the intention of exploring it. But soon they are caught and held under guard where they learn Herland's language while Herland citizens learn English so that they can exchange ideas.
What follows is a fantasy like no other. By fantasy, i mean how Dr. Eric Rabkin defines it -
"Eric S. Rabkin defines literary fantasy as 'the continuing diametric reversal of the ground rules within a narrative world." Gilman tears down one rule after another - be it social inequalities, gender bias, raising children, education, economics, religion, governance and so much so that she even challenges the role of history.
First, in case by case, she blasts the world of men. It must be kept in mind that this novel was written in early 20th century when women didn't enjoy as much rights as they do now. In Herland, women work, they are independent - socially, economically. They are strong, there is no distinction between manly and womanly task; women are scientists, political leaders, security chiefs. Women do not enjoy jewelry or any fancy shiny objects. They are highly practical and intellectual. In a case by case basis, she shatters the prejudices of those times.
Gilman does not restrict herself to gender basis. She goes beyond in other spheres such as child rearing and education. In Herland child raising is a communal job, the best in the community are assigned this job. Children are future, they need to be nourished, bred and they should understand the nature that is around them and in them.
Perhaps, the most profound thing that struck me was the concept of history. Herland document their history but they do not pay much heed to it. Their rules and laws change every two decades. They look up to history just as a tool to learn. They take pride in the fact the future generation will be smarter than the current generation and will make rules that are better suited. There is no shame in acknowledging that past was inaccurate.
Gilman also addresses the notion of population - In Herland, not everybody is allowed to bear a child. It may appear that this is a violation of freedom, a fundamental right. But in Herland, community comes before an individual. Free will, fundamental rights, freedom belongs to community first, and then to individual. Herland makes a case that by proper education, a community can be created which understands this ideology as well.
This was my first utopian novel. I had utopian novels would make me happy as "all is well in utopia". But Herland pinches you with every page turn. All is indeed well in utopia but it is the contrast with our world that hurts. The visitors in Herland were from US, not from anywhere in US but that too California. They are ashamed to answer questions posed by Herlanders about practices in their homeland as they think that they realize that they are so sub-par. I just wonder what would have happened had they been from India.
Book Review: Curfewed night
Imagine a thousand shouts at the highest pitch, imagine shrieks all around you; imagine a piercing sound that forces you to put hands on your ears but they are of no help. But now imagine that its all muted, silence everywhere, all that you are left with are images that produced those shrieks. That is what it feels to be in Kashmir.
I was a tourist in Kashmir last month. Like any tourist, i was mesmerized by Kashmir's beauty. Yet, there was something kept the subconscious alert, a nagging tension in the air. The omnipresence and perennial presence of police force, distrust of the army wallahs towards localites, so few development indicators in the capital of a state and a feeling that everybody has adjusted to this kind of lifestyle.
Before this book, I was ignorant about the violence in Kashmir - who are these terrorists? what do they want?
Basharat Peer's Curfewed night is a beautifully written memoir that carefully documents life in the valley in 90s and first decade of this century. Through his eyes, we witness how people live in terror day after day; what people do when there is a bomb blast right near your house; how one studies in school when there is an army stakeout right outside and sometimes even firing. Basharat offers us a bird's eye view of how people gave up their lives to join the freedom struggle and the toll it had on their families and loved ones. In the second half of book, we witness the aftermath of the struggle, how army units tortured people, atrocities committed from both sides and how people are now getting on with the next chapter of their lives.
Basharat never tries to be preachy, there is rarely a discussion on ideology, although Basharat tries his best to share the causality. Lecturing about "effect" is useless unless "cause" is understood. What Basharat brings to the whole Kashmir affair is the humanity in it - beyond the state, the borders and governance, there are people who live there, people who react to what they see and hear.
Then there is a chapter on certain issues like getting an apartment for Kashmiris outside Kashmir. A section on how Kasmiri Pandits live in refugee camps, the sense of longing that they have to their homeland. How people hang bedsheets as curtains to give an impression that everybody is asleep inside. How a mother saw her son being asked to take a bomb into a building, how armies interrogated people.
At the same time runs a parallel thread on Basharat's personal life, life at home where literature, poetry was given the highest importance. Home where still there was family, values and a sense of connectedness. And what happens to one who has survived a bomb blast just by chance. Basharat, later, while writing this book empties his heart out as he shares his inhibitions in meeting victims. There is a minor incident in which a stranger enters his house and his caretaker quickly comes to his room urging him to hide as the servant claims that the stranger has a gun. This later is proven to be a hoax but Basharat describes the constant terror faced by Kashmiris.
Curfewed night should be read in conjunction with - http://www.caravanmagazine.in/Story/1548/The-Departed.html. The Departed is an excellent report on people who in 90s joined the armed struggle and have now returned disillusioned, lost and without any hope. The central message that comes out from their stories is a realization that violence is not the way to get azaadi. A realization that took them a whole life time.
I finished the book in 6 hrs - 3hrs an evening on two consecutive days. It is a book that we should read just to understand the humanity of people. There is no question of taking sides here. I sympathize with Kashmiris because i see humanity in them. I hope someday somebody will share stories from the army side and we will see humanity from their side. But having said that, i will never accept torture. I believe that restraint and care will make us win more wars than action-reaction.
I was a tourist in Kashmir last month. Like any tourist, i was mesmerized by Kashmir's beauty. Yet, there was something kept the subconscious alert, a nagging tension in the air. The omnipresence and perennial presence of police force, distrust of the army wallahs towards localites, so few development indicators in the capital of a state and a feeling that everybody has adjusted to this kind of lifestyle.
Before this book, I was ignorant about the violence in Kashmir - who are these terrorists? what do they want?
Basharat Peer's Curfewed night is a beautifully written memoir that carefully documents life in the valley in 90s and first decade of this century. Through his eyes, we witness how people live in terror day after day; what people do when there is a bomb blast right near your house; how one studies in school when there is an army stakeout right outside and sometimes even firing. Basharat offers us a bird's eye view of how people gave up their lives to join the freedom struggle and the toll it had on their families and loved ones. In the second half of book, we witness the aftermath of the struggle, how army units tortured people, atrocities committed from both sides and how people are now getting on with the next chapter of their lives.
Basharat never tries to be preachy, there is rarely a discussion on ideology, although Basharat tries his best to share the causality. Lecturing about "effect" is useless unless "cause" is understood. What Basharat brings to the whole Kashmir affair is the humanity in it - beyond the state, the borders and governance, there are people who live there, people who react to what they see and hear.
Then there is a chapter on certain issues like getting an apartment for Kashmiris outside Kashmir. A section on how Kasmiri Pandits live in refugee camps, the sense of longing that they have to their homeland. How people hang bedsheets as curtains to give an impression that everybody is asleep inside. How a mother saw her son being asked to take a bomb into a building, how armies interrogated people.
At the same time runs a parallel thread on Basharat's personal life, life at home where literature, poetry was given the highest importance. Home where still there was family, values and a sense of connectedness. And what happens to one who has survived a bomb blast just by chance. Basharat, later, while writing this book empties his heart out as he shares his inhibitions in meeting victims. There is a minor incident in which a stranger enters his house and his caretaker quickly comes to his room urging him to hide as the servant claims that the stranger has a gun. This later is proven to be a hoax but Basharat describes the constant terror faced by Kashmiris.
Curfewed night should be read in conjunction with - http://www.caravanmagazine.in/Story/1548/The-Departed.html. The Departed is an excellent report on people who in 90s joined the armed struggle and have now returned disillusioned, lost and without any hope. The central message that comes out from their stories is a realization that violence is not the way to get azaadi. A realization that took them a whole life time.
I finished the book in 6 hrs - 3hrs an evening on two consecutive days. It is a book that we should read just to understand the humanity of people. There is no question of taking sides here. I sympathize with Kashmiris because i see humanity in them. I hope someday somebody will share stories from the army side and we will see humanity from their side. But having said that, i will never accept torture. I believe that restraint and care will make us win more wars than action-reaction.
Sunday, September 23, 2012
A comparison of workplaces
Its
been six months since i moved back to India from US. I work in IT
sector for a well reputed MNC (name withheld). From outside, there is
little difference between the workplaces of US and India; after all,
what does it take to have an IT setup - floor divided into cubes, each
cube having a four-legged desk with one or two big monitors, a
keyboard, mouse and a nice ergonomic chair. Walls decorated with bright
colors with inspiring quotes, conference rooms with big wooden tables
and voip facility, a pantry area with coffee, soda cans and unhealthy
snacks and lastly a table tennis table for employees to flex their
muscles.
But
its the processes surrounding the workplace that brings out contrast
between the two nations. Consider the process of cleaning in a workplace.
In US, floors and the common areas were cleaned by the facilities team,
the cube is like its owner's private property and hence it was up to
the owner to maintain it. Also, most of the cleaning work happened after normal working office hours (typically after 9 pm) so that there is no
inconvenience to employees. In comparison, here nothing is private. The
desk is wiped clean every day and any stuff on it is organized as they
think appropriate. Cleaning is done in morning every day around 8 am, so
if you are an early to work kind of person (chiefly to avoid traffic),
you are surely to get disturbed.
The
cultural differences can be best seen at the pantry area. In US, due to
is highly individualistic orientation, all snacks are available in
small packs. There are no 1Ltr juice tetra packs, no 500ml soda bottles.
There is no concept of sharing outside of bread, milk and cereals. In
contrast here, snacks like Haldiram mixtures are purchased in big bags,
emptied into a transparent plastic jars with spoon and is shared by
everybody. We even buy chips/biscuits in large packs and there are empty
plastic boxes to keep the half eaten packs. In contrast, in US, it was
almost like a crime to leave a half eaten pack; we used to get threat
mails that our snacks supply will be cut off if half eaten packs were
found. Eat what you can and throw the rest is the mantra there. There
was a time when even water was available in 250 ml plastic bottles which
was later removed when a few of us complained that it causes too much
plastic waste. There is a sort of apathy towards waste generated.
There
is a forever paranoia of theft here. With every facility here, there
are "security" strings attached. For example, bats and balls needed to
play table tennis are kept with a security guard. One needs to sign
his/her name before they can be issued, just like in a library. Office
stationery follows similar pattern, even getting a pen requires a
signature. Every night, all the snack boxes are locked in, refrigerator
too is locked. Fundamentally, there is forever a feeling of mistrust
between administrative team and cleaning staff. While in US, nothing was
ever locked.
The
worst of all comparison is seen at the toilet. Here, there is one men
and one women loo rest room for a floor which has a capacity of about
250 people. One cleaning person is posted for each restroom; he is
always present inside the already suffocating room trying to act
invisible for the rest of us. I am not sure why he is asked to be
present inside all the time. In contrast, in US, not only there were
more number of restrooms, they were more airy and cleaned twice every
day at fixed times; no one was required to be present inside.
Parking is again a very interesting case study. Everybody owns and driver a car in US. Hence number of parking spots is roughly the same as number of cubes. But in India, as per the Bangalore Building-Bye laws, 2003, a company needs to have one parking space for every 50 sq mts of office floor space. It is independent of how many cubes there can be in 50sq mts. The writer acknowledges that if everyone drives to work on his own car, Bangalore would choke and die. But, having one parking space for every 30 people also does not make sense.
Parking is again a very interesting case study. Everybody owns and driver a car in US. Hence number of parking spots is roughly the same as number of cubes. But in India, as per the Bangalore Building-Bye laws, 2003, a company needs to have one parking space for every 50 sq mts of office floor space. It is independent of how many cubes there can be in 50sq mts. The writer acknowledges that if everyone drives to work on his own car, Bangalore would choke and die. But, having one parking space for every 30 people also does not make sense.
It
is not my intention to establish superiority of one over another. There
is always a reason of why things exist as they are. The security
paranoia may be due to past incidents of theft which may exist because
of the disproportionate income levels between the cleaning staff and
employees. My intention is for us to acknowledge, learn and then evolve
to make things better. What i do want is for all of us (including myself)
to take more responsibility, acknowledge the humanity of cleaning staff
and lastly, design processes that rather than creating barriers, makes
us more efficient.
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Long Strides - The story of KTM 2012
The pain has not gone out yet. There is still dard-e-disco happening in my whole body. It took me about 3hrs 15 mins (final timing is not out yet) for me to finish KTM Half marathon today - first half marathon in India, second HM of my life. Although my goal was to not run for time, but i had expected better from myself.
Just before the race start, we saw the Sun as a giant red-ball rising far away. It was a very scenic sunrise, but we all knew that soon we will hate it. My race start was just the way i had wanted - steady rhythm and decent pace. It was all going to plan, i was at the half way point and now i just had to return back. But just when i started to walk back, i started to feel the heat.
During my training, i had always drank water, no electrol/tang or gatorade, plain water. I also knew that 21Km can be done without any salt pills, bananas or other foods. During my first half, i smiled when i saw Peanuts, Salted potato chips, sandwiches there. But during second half, i started feeling dizzy. I instinctively knew that i am getting dehydrated, i felt salt particles on my face and arms. I had heard people fainting during races, i had never imagined it would be me but with my current form, i knew i had to do something.
Running is not a competitive event. If it is at all a race, it is with oneself. Running is an art of knowing oneself, paying to attention to tiny bodily functions, it is a feedback mechanism. At the 12.5K water stop, i just drank water, still believing that water will take care of everything. The Sun was now burning on me and my pace slowed down. I was feeling more dizzy. Somehow i reached to 14K water stop and i knew i had to do something.I gulped down 4-5 glasses of electrol. Not knowing how the food will react to my body, i chose to eat everything in less quantities - 2 peanuts, 1 chip, small orange piece, half sandwich. Not everything can be bad. When i started running, very soon i realized that i had over compensated and now found even more difficult to run.
At this point, i would like to take you back in time. I had been fairly regular in Runners High runs during the season. About 5 weeks ago, i ran 18K with no difficulty at all at the Decathlon trail. Then i left for Himalayan trek where i did about 12Km trek everyday for six straight days and this included a good deal of ascent. After the trek, i was fairly confident that i was ready for the half marathon. So confident that i skipped next two weeks of runs. Stupid! Stupid!
At 14.5K, i decided that this is not going to work, so i went towards a shaded tree and just sat down. At this point, i was in a give-up state - I wanted to run but all i could manage was walk. I needed a new plan. For about 3-4 mins, i just sat there. I knew that i was not in for time, but i wanted a good run for me. Those precious mins of pure relaxation did me a world of good. I was back on my feet and ran until the 17K mark at a steady pace. But dehydration kicked in again. My legs were aching now, as if they also wanted water. I was no longer sweating as it seemed that my body didn't had that much water to spare. From 17K, i was mostly walking up until i reached 20K.
Few meters before 20K a man running in opposite direction said - "What are you waiting for? Just run and finish the race". So started my jog. There were wonderful people in the last km to boost my morale. About 150m before the finish line, Santosh yelled - "Long Strides!" And like a muscle memory, they came - Long strides. I knew that this has not been a good run but my finish will be a good one. Long strides! A man joins me at the 100m to run with me, pushing me. Longer strides. I smiled and in a flash i was across the finish line. A big thanks to Santosh and Runners High unit for making this happen.
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