The Review Post

You know it's been a while since I read this one. But unlike the other books, I didn't feel like writing about The Great Gatsby as soon as I was finished.  My thought: it's a marvelous read. No wonder people rave about it so much. I've joined the club. There's so much truth in what F. Scott Fitzgerald writes. The plot may be set in post-war America, but the sentiments and emotions are so real and true to even this day and age. I'll confess, I've never been forced into retrospection by a book before. The Great Gatsby left me in an emotional limbo.  And I'm still in it.  The novel is witty, intense and has great character. You feel Jay Gatby's love, Nick Carraway's helplessness and Daisy Buchanan's ordeal. It left me with "and life goes on..." kind of feeling.  You think, you can comment on the lives of these characters, but you can't. And that's where I think the beauty of this book lies. There is some of them i...

Superman is my favorite superhero. And I can't say I've been happy with the way he's been depicted in the movies made till date. I mean cocky with a wry sense of humor is great, and works really well with the ladies too, but somewhere down the line I believe Superman stopped being taken seriously. Could be because of that glued hairstyle with just one curl on the forehead (which not once fell out of place, no matter how much he flew around the stratosphere) or the famous red briefs over the blue suit. Photo: Google images But all that changed with Man of Steel. The curl and the red briefs are gone as the superhero dawns a new avatar. And I don't think it has anything to do with the new face of Superman - Henry Cavill (drool!) - or his elaborate background story. I think it was more about Christopher Nolan and his vision of Superman. After Inception, The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises, we believe in the genius of Christopher Nolan. But unfortunately, that e...

Absolutely!  The much awaited Ranbir Kapoor (RK) - Deepika Padukone (DP) starrer was like a breath of fresh air. I know, I know, you might think of me as either of two things - an ardent admirer of Ranbir Kapoor or an enthusiast of the KJo brand of films - let me clear the air and say I'm neither. But I am an unabashed, self-proclaimed fan of Deepika Padukone (no I'm not gay, I'm just in awe of how well she's handled her life - personal & professional. Now that's what you call moving on).  Having established my credibility to review this film, I will also take my own cue from the previous sentence.  The movie is fast-paced and keeps you engaged with the way the characters constantly evolve and deal with sensitive emotions. RK is magnificent, effortless and proves his blue blood lineage with his portrayal of Bunny and DP is restrained, strong and fabulous as Naina. Kalki Koechlin has amazing screen presence as Aditi and Aditya Roy Kapoor was convin...

There's little that can be said about the great floods of the North this time, except that it was most unexpected after a bout of blistering heat. Sure the showers provided the much-needed relief, but to the dismay of its receivers. What devastation. May the souls of all those who didn't survive the calamity rest in peace. Having said that, I'd like to take your attention to the image below: When news of the floods was broadcast last evening, this visual - among the many other visuals of buildings collapsing, temples being washed away, vehicles drowning - showed the only upright structure that was up to the neck in water, but didn't look like it was going to budge. I was struck - by awe - and kept gaping at this visual as if it had me in a trance. There seldom comes an opportunity where you can say you witnessed an act of God. There's something so stoic about this image (and the video), that makes you think that maybe, just maybe, this is one of those....

I have always wanted to comment on the political system of our country but often wondered where to begin. In all honesty, I even tried writing a bit about it, but it just sounded like a whiny story of an unhappy citizen. In view of the upcoming elections, this seemed like a good time. Political commentary is a tough task. What should we talk about - the microcosm of things or the macrocosm of it? For instance should I wonder how my local corporation is functioning, how is my constituency doing -- infrastructure-wise, development-wise -- or should I worry about how the country is being governed at large? To tell the truth, I really don't know. Because I'm not connected to the political system at all. From a very young age I was told, politics is not a good thing. So I stayed out of it, but today I'm being asked to vote. They say it's my responsibility as a citizen, my right to choose. So I set off in search of a candidate, I realized this a good time to put my head...

Well there's a lot that transpired through the month of March. There was a book and a couple of movies that left quite an impression, to say the least. A mobile app I cannot draw my attention away from and of course mangoes and soothing drinks that have announced the arrival of summer in full swing. That explains my brief absence from the blogosphere. Getting straight to the point, I'll begin with the book - The Oath of the Vayuputras by Amish I am great fan of author Amish's story-telling technique. He is generally precise and to-the-point with his narrative. Good, brief descriptions and explanations and a seamless blending of facts with fiction. But with this book, I thought something, somewhere was amiss. It's a good read, no doubt, but the pace and intensity were lost somewhere. Not as sharp as the first two books - The immortals of Meluha and The secret of the Nagas. The former being my personal favorite. I'd say, in the war between Good and Evil ...

To say she had me at hello would be a lie. It took me a while to get into the flow of things but it'll be fair to say that two weeks after reading the book, it's all I can think about. Given a busy schedule (that we all have), I had stopped reading. At all. Nothing. I was a writer by profession and I didn't read any more (How does that work? Don't ask.) It was sad, I had forgotten how a book can make you feel. Where it can take you, the other world you step into for a brief period. How time lapses, you can't tell. Well, after reading this brilliant piece of work, in addition to all of this, I felt good about myself. I felt enriched. I bow down to thee Anne Fadiman for making me think, learn and laugh, all at the same time. Twelve essays, each distinctly different from the other, but the one thing that tied them all together, was the author. The style of writing is exceptional and each essay has the backing of some extensive (read laborious) research. She we...