Sachin - The God

Being a slothful creature that I am, the sporting world doesn't excite me greatly, not even vicariously. The sports pages of my newspaper are generally skipped over and I can not dream (pun intended) of sacrificing my sleep for a game. Neither is any sport personality in my hero worship league.
But then, Sachin is no ordinary sport personality and the cricket he plays is no ordinary sport. Sachin Tendulkar is the God of cricket.
Which he has amply proved today for the nth time in his career after smashing a double ton - the first by any player in One Day Internationals so far -against South Africa in the Gwalior one-day. Which is why he remains the only sportsman I truly admire.
His cricket is of course the one thing by which we all know him but my admiration is for the level-headed, no-nonsense person he remains, in spite of his obviously exalted position in the annals of the game and in spite of the glory of immense share of our collective Indian mindscape he occupies.
This is truly a virtue in this time of excesses of all kinds, where mediocre players & personalities lose no opportunity to throw their attitude around.
Congratulations to Sachin for this achievement and congratulations to all of us that we have had this opportunity to watch him playing in our times.  

Gandhi - our adhesive

इस बार बात देश को जोड़ने और तोड़ने की.

इसी छब्बीस जनवरी को, जब टी.वी. पर "गाँधी" फिल्म दिखाई जा रही थी, मैंने इस अद्भुत और विलक्षण व्यक्तित्व (चाहे नाट्य रूपांतर ही सही) का करिश्मा एक बार फिर देखा और महसूसा.

हमारे देश में, खासकर मेरी पीढ़ी में, गाँधी को गाली देने का और उन्हें देश की दुर्दशा के बीज बोने का जिम्मेदार ठहराने का फैशन सा है. शायद ये इस लिए है कि हम बेईमान, भ्रष्ट और सत्ता-लोलुप राजनीतिज्ञों के समय में पले बढे हैं. ऐसे में, किसी ऐसे राजनीतिज्ञ की कल्पना कर पाना, जो वाकई निस्वार्थ भाव से देश के लिए जीने और मरने की ताकत और हिम्मत रखता था, अकल्पनीय है. 

अल्बर्ट आइन्स्टीन ने गाँधी के निधन पर कहा था - “Generations to come will scarce believe that such a one as this walked the earth in flesh and blood.” 

कोई आश्चर्य नहीं कि उस कठिन समय में इस आदमी ने पूरे देश से "बापू" और "महात्मा" का दर्ज़ा पाया और इसे निभाया. पूरा देश इस संत की आराधना में एक हो गया था, जुड़ गया था.

इसके उलट, छब्बीस जनवरी के बाद, फरवरी शुरू होते होते ही हमारे कुछ आधुनिक नेताओं ने राजनीतिक रोटियाँ सेकने की खातिर भारतीय जन-मानस को तोड़ने के अपने agenda को हवा दी है. 

ईकिंसवी शताब्दी में भी एक विशुद्ध कबीलाई सोच को जीवित रख कर और गरीब बेकार लोगों को क्षेत्र और भाषा के नाम पर उकसा कर  गुंडा-गर्दी मचा पाने में वो आज तक जैसे सफल हुए हैं, वो भयावह है. 

पर ख़ुशी की बात यह है कि इस बार, पहली बार यह लग रहा है कि middle-of-the-road, sensible thinking के बहुत से दावेदार उठ खड़े हुयें हैं. यहाँ तक कि घोर हिंदुत्व-वादी पार्टियां भी इनमे शामिल हैं. आशा है इस बार घृणा के बादल छंट पाएंगे और कुछ मंगलमय  होगा. 

जैसा गाँधी ने कहा था - When I despair, I remember that all through history the ways of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time they seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall. Think of it - always.

Ishqiya

I am just back after watching Ishqiya and am awash with its honesty and originality in all respects. It is not quite often that you find such original films from your usual Bollywood stables.
Ishqiya is a tale of how two ruffians, who are running away from a gang-lord, need to take shelter at a widow’s house and how this stay plays out. “Ishq” (love) is the overpowering emotion that runs throughout the film. All the three characters experience it in their own way, which is why the name.
The widow is played by Vidya Balan, in which we see a powerful female protagonist after a long time. She plays Krishna who knows her mind and speaks it too – cuss words and all. This, according to me, is Vidya’s coming of age movie, where she portrays a real woman, far removed from her earlier plastic glamdoll roles (Though I admit I have not yet watched Paa). I am sure she could be a formidable contender for the Best Actress award in 2010.
The other two protagonists are Naseer and Arshad Warsi. Now, what can one say about Naseer which has not been said before. An actor par excellence, he gets under the skin of his character so beautifully. Arshad Warsi is simply a delight to watch. His body language of a desi ruffian is flawless, complemented by some brilliant dialogues in regional accent. And their hilarious comedy is a treat.
It is a completely desi film set in the eastern UP with gun running and kidnapping industry forming the backdrop. And as I said earlier, the honesty of the film lies not only in the realistic backdrop but also the emotional interplay between the characters. There is none of that soft-lens romance but only raw emotion which flows throughout. 
It is only the ending, which, I felt could have been more rounded off. But that is only a small hitch, which should not at all prevent you from watching this brilliant film from Abhishek Chaubey. Do go and enjoy it.