The Last Frontier – Alaska, where land ends!

(FROM http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Alaska_Panhandle.png) The inner passage of the Alaska panhandle consists of large land masses separated by fjords created by glacier activity. Cruising this passage begins in Vancouver. Most of the regions along the passageway are accessible by ships or seaplanes; a target of opportunity seen here – a Chevron gas-station in the middle of the [...]

A few Jhat-Pat reviews!

Managed to catch a few films and have not had the time to do detailed reviews. Some need a re-watch and a serious review – others were seen, been there done that. Here are two: Doubt – a priest gives a sermon on doubt, a stern nun sees it as some sort of public yet [...]

Serene, ethereal, calming – songs for the soul

You are by yourself, in an introspective mood. You want to keep the world at bay for a little while longer, keep the lights dimmed, and just be. What songs do you listen to in such moments? Here are my picks: Khoya Khoya chand khula aasmaan Aankhon mein saari raat jaayegi Tumko Bhi Kaise need [...]

A forever kind of love – Boleros for the Disenchanted!

Jose Rivera is the first Puerto Rican to earn an Oscar nomination – for his adaptation of the Motorcycle Diaries. He was born in Puerto Rico and grew up in the mainland USA when his parents emigrated there to try and realize their American dream. They did manage to send two of their eleven children [...]

To boldly go where the series had not gone before – Star Trek!

Just over 40 years ago Gene Roddenberry created a whole futuristic universe for our newly minted color TV sets. The show was marketed as Cowboys in space but was really supposed to be a series of adventures with a parable embedded within each one. The setting was post-apocalyptic mid 21st-century and humans had technology that [...]

It was A Wednesday!

This is a late review – but if you have not yet seen the film and plan to, please be aware that this review contains spoilers. I finally caught up to A Wednesday. It had been soundly praised all over and even got several nominations – something unheard of in small budget films. Directed by [...]

Wacky comedic moments in film songs!

Comedy is a difficult genre to tame. It can become forced, or crude or just is not funny. But sometimes if done just right then magical moments are created. Here are some such moments of comedy in Hindi cinema. 1. I will start with the classic Chalti Ka Naam Gadi. The real-life Ganguly brothers played [...]

In the People’s Republic of Berkeley!

Summer is here and the land of the free and the home of the brave beckons! Here are my suggestions on how to spend a sunny day in Berkeley – views AND eats. Start off the day by going right up the Berkeley hills to Tilden Park. Wander around, take short hikes, and ride the [...]

What Kolkata Knight Riders need to do immediately!

Lighten up guys, this is just a lighthearted attempt to dispel the gloom and doom relating to KKR. The team is so close yet so far – they lost two matches in the last over (literally the last ball) and one in the power over. How much more unlucky can a team get? So I [...]

Bachpan ke din! Innocence meets melody

Here is my list of the best songs picturized on children, about children or involving children: 1. Leading the list and as yet unmatched in innocence and a genuine warmth that made one love these children is Shekhar Kapur’s Masoon – Lakdi ki kaathi! The parents wage war over a child from a previous entanglement, [...]