watching through the window

Meenakshi....

2004-02-01T16:02:00.000-05:00

Whats wrong with me??? Nowadays its not taking much to fall in love fanatically with ARR's works. I figure, he got us tuned pretty good with his style or viceversa. At the most this is the fourth time I'm listening to Meenakshi's tracks and I am relishing it already as if they have been my favorites for a long time .
If any of you looking for another TAAL just like I was waiting since the laters' release here's our wish come true; Grab Meenakshi without second thought. Of total eight tracks 3 of 'em are Instrumentals, and potters rhythm stands out of the rest.

Meenakshi (Meenaxi) - Tale of 3 Cities

AR Rahman

M.F. Hussein

Year: 2004

Language: Hindi

Actress: Tabu

TRACKS:

1. Yeh Rishta ( Excellent!)

2. Chinnamma Chilakkamma (I like it)

3. Cyclist's Rhythm (Innovative use of Cycle Bell and native Thaarai, Thappatai (instruments used during funeral ceremony of Tamil society. If you are from this part of the country you cannot help making the typical dance moves.)

4. Dhuan Dhuan (gonna be my fav forever)

5. Do Kadam (breathtaking lullaby at the end of the day! Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz!

6. Noor-Un-Ala-Noor (sounds like ARR extended kannathil Muthamittal's Sattena Nanainthathu Nenjam (remember minmini's voice in the background during Madhavan and Simran scenes) except that he moulded it into a qawwali song and extras to mark his presence.

7. Potter's Village (Absolute magical fusion!!!!)

8. Rang Hai (Awesome!)

PS: For those unfortunate souls like me stuck in the US; I bought this online at nehaflix. All together it was about 15 bucks and they shipped to me in 2 days.

HAPPY PONGAL

2004-01-15T13:49:00.000-05:00

Anaivarukkum enathu Iniya Thamizar Thirunaal Vazhthukkal !!!!

Stressed Out? TRY THIS.... ( WORKS NOW!!! )

2004-01-06T23:10:00.000-05:00

Click on the HORSES from left to right, then right to left abd then just one or two at a time... Its fun.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2003-12-31T15:56:00.000-05:00

WISHING EVERY ONE A HAPPY, PROSPEROUS 2004!

I am back.....

2003-12-24T15:41:00.000-05:00

Dont Ask me what happend during the last couple of months, even if I want to tell you I might not be able to becuase things happend so fast. It all started with me visiting one of my friend in the West Coast. Before I know I have started planning to move up here, got a job, BOOM! Here I am in seattle a whole new place, new much friendlier preople, moderate weather etc. Reminds me of the somewhat similar situation in Philadelphia but 3 years ago.
I wish i can upload some images here... got to learn it.
for those who celebrate christmas, MERRY CHRISTMAS !

Iniya Deepa Oli Vaazhthukkal....

2003-10-24T15:33:00.000-04:00

Why lamps are lit on Deepa oli day ?

Ain't it'd be nice if our festivals are observed in the right spirit, with an understanding of their inner significance?
Yes, there is an underlying meaning behind Deepam and the whole array of lamps that are lit by the light from one lamp.
(Hey! don't take this very serious alright. I am just sharing this to talk about something different than sweets, crackers, TV programs, music and movies on a Deepa oli day. :-))

The master lamp symbolizes the Supreme power. The others symbolize the light in individual selves. The truth of the Vedic saying, "The One willed to become the Many" is exemplified by the lighting of lamps by the flame of one. The Deepavali festival thus bears out the profound spiritual truth.

The Deepam points to another significant fact. Wherever it may be placed, the flame goes upwards only and never moves down. Likewise, the flame of Gnanam (Spiritual Wisdom) leads one to a sublime level through the path of Righteousness.

So how to light the inner lamp?
Just like we need a container, second oil, third a wick and fourth a fire stick to light a lamp that removes the outside darkness we need four elements to light Gnana Jyothi (Light of Wisdom) that can remove our inner darkness.
1. Vairagyam (detachment) is the container.
2. Bhakti (devotion) is the oil. (Devotion not necessarily to god. Thats how I see it)
3. Ekaagratam (one-pointed concentration) is the wick.
4. Gnanam (Knowledge of the Supreme Truth) is the match-stick.

So Deepaoli is observed as a day for getting rid of all the bad qualities in us, symbolized by the demon Narakaasura. The Gopikas who were freed on that day represent the imprisoned good qualities in us. They should be manifested effulgently. This is the inner significance of the festival. As long as the demonic qualities remain in man, he will be immersed in darkness. Bad qualities and thoughts have to be got rid of altogether.

These thoughts are something that I learned when I questioned my Appa about the reason for Deepa Oli celeberation. Despite of the fact that all my family members are very religious and god fearing, these explanations helped me only towards making sense out of our popular practices rather than cultivating faith in god.
Hey! but that's me. May be it can help you otherwise... you never know.

.

Got carried away again....

2003-10-16T20:48:00.000-04:00

It's all his fault. I am pointing at Padhu. ;-). He is the one who got me started with his current post at KS. Since I had my view about plagiarism, I started typing my points in the comment box as usual but when it passed few hundred words I figured, Hey! Let me save my work as a document before I loose it with Haloscan. So here I am stuck with more than a two page article and finally decided to post it in my blog.

Plagiarism as we all know is nothing but using others' ideas, words, or works without clearly acknowledging the source. Unfortunately, we encounter copycats at all walks of life. It is true that imitation is the best form of flattery, it is also true that it works only when the world knows about the original creator.

Just to take it further and talk about it, I am going to recite an example and get into an awful lot of detail. To make it easier I have picked a movie and its soundtrack. I choose to talk about this particular (outdated) example because I was fascinated by the details when I first learned about them. Again, as a word of caution if you have other important stuff to take care of, this is the right time to sneak out. If you decided to stay and read ahead let there be lot of patience and good luck (as the audio links that I provided here sometime decide not to work) with you! :-)

The Movie
Although, not that popular, people who have seen Primal Fear enjoyed it specially for the great twists and very suspenseful storyline. Believe me, up until the last second, you don't know how things are going to end. A 1996 release, directed by Gregory Hoblit and studded with a stars: Richard Gere, Laura Linney and (according to me the hero) Edward Norton. As you witness Norton's dazzling performance it's hard to believe that this movie is actually his debut. By the way, if you have not watched it yet, please don't miss it. Its certainly worth watching specially if you are into suspense films.

Okay, so... If you think that I am gonna talk about some Indian movie they copied from this super hot flick, you are absolutely wrong. I'm not even gonna mention the name of the (Plagiarized) Hindi movie here for the sake of people who didn't watch the original version yet. (If you are uncontrollably curious to know about the Hindi movie click here). And if you are reasonably good reader, I would strongly recommend you to read the original novel by William Diehl which is better than anything else. But if you have any good reason not to be able to read the 390 pages, you are excused to go for the movie version (English).

God! What am I doing here? Writing a review for the movie or what? All right, too much of beating around... Lets get back to the track.

The Song
So I heard this soundtrack in Primal Fear by an unfamiliar singer and in a "never heard before" language but completely mesmerized by its mysterious tune. Honestly, it took more than a year to figure out that the song as Cancao do mar from the double Platinum album Lagrimas by Dulce Pontes, one of the best-selling Portuguese albums ever. (People say that it has the best romantic lyrics).
I started digging deep out of interest and came across the notion "It seems Amalia Rodigues sang this song ...". I was caught by surprise by this statement but later learned that in actual fact Amalia never sang "Cancao do mar" as such. It came from the repertory of her contemporary and friend/rival Marcia Condessa, who proposed it to Amalia, judging it was more suitable to her. The song was to be included in the soundtrack of a French production, but the text of the song was found not to be in line with the plot of the movie. As a result an alternative text was written and the song became, in Amalia's interpretation, "Solidao"(1955). And it became enormously famous, while the Cancao do mar version (also the later on record by Celeste Rodrigues, younger sister of Amalia) remained little known, until Dulce Pontes brought it to light again, with her 1995 Coliseum concert. That's when it was finally discovered by Hollywood and made multiple appearances in the Richard Gere vehicle "Primal Fear".

The Point
Everything was fine until the Tamil Version of this song came out in Kushi (2000). Yeah! You know what I am talking about, the "Oh Vennilla" lifted by Deva. In a way I was pretty excited about Vairamuthu's excellent lyrics decorating the original "hypnotizing" Portugal tune. But we have to accept the fact that Deva is daringly smart/stupid enough to use the whole song without acknowledging the original artist. Of course, this is just one out of hundreds that he copied.

As you could see, our DJ Deva unintentionally did a favor to the Tamil audience by redoing Dulce's track but (like always) failed to acknowledge her work as the source and cheated the audience and as well as the original artist. The worst part is that took credit for something which he don't deserve. Where as the original folk Fado came all the way from Portugal to Hollywood with proper credits being credited to the original artists appropriately. That's how the master mind gets the right credit while the audience would be able to track back and figure who did what and appreciate the value added to the original version.

The bottom line here is that there is nothing wrong in getting inspired by other's works and we all know that it happens in some point of our life, but as a fellow creator one should acknowledge the source at least to avoid hurting the creator's feelings, than to encourage them.

______________________________________________________________________________________________

Hey, If you are as crazy as I am towards songs and lyrics... proceed further.
______________________________________________________________________________________________

English translation of:
Song: Cancao do mar
Singer: Dulce Pontes
Album: Lagrimas

SONG Of THE SEA

I was dancing on my little boat
There on the cruel sea
And the sea was crying out to me
Telling me that I should steal
The incomparable light
Of your beautiful eyes
Come and prove that the sea is right
Come here and see my heart dancing
If I'II go dancing on my little boat
I won't go to the cruel sea
I'II tell her that I was singing, smiling, dancing, living and dreaming of you

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Song: Oh Vennilla
Lyrics: Vairamuthu
Singer: Unnikrishnan, Anuradha Sriram
Movie: Kushi (2000). Vijay, Jyothika

Oh Vennilla
En mael kobam yaen
Aagyam seraamal thaniyae vazhvathu yaeno yaeno yaeno
Oh kathalae
Un per mounama
Nenjodu poi solli nimidam valarpathu sariya sariya sariya

Tholaivil thoduvaan karaiyai thodum thodum
Arugil nerunga vilagi vidum vidum
Iruvar manathil aeno pada pada
Oruvan paarthaal oodal udaipadum

Nee penmaiyae
Garvam ennadi
Vaivarai vanthaalum
Varthai maripathu yaeno yaeno yaeno
Nee swasamae
Udambunoodala
En jeevan theendamal veliye sellaathathe
Nee vetri kolla unnai tholaikaathe
Yar sirithaalum paalaivanagal malarum

Oh Kathala
Un per mounama
Sollondru illamal
Mozhiyum kaanal illai illai illai

Oh Kathala
Orvarthai sollada
Muthal varthai nee sonnal
Naan maru varthai solvaen
Naam thinam solvaen
Enthan kathal solvaen
Udalil aliyaamal vazhum kathal solvaen

Whispering Breeze....

2003-10-12T20:49:00.000-04:00

.
Elangaathu Veesuthae..... Isai Pola Paesuthae....

Can u hear me humming? This is from PithaMagaN a much awaited Bala/Illayaraja's next movie venture.

Of the total five, two songs are very good especially my favorite 'Elankaathu' is mesmerizing in Shriram/shreyal's fresh voice and beautiful lyrics. (Ofcourse, I miss Vairamuthu's contribution as always).

To my surprise, this time, some of my friends couldn't help noticing something very uncommon with IRs music. They say that most of the songs in PMN strikingly reminds some of his previous numbers. And I did smell some traces of Azhagi's Oliyilae, Kadhal Jaathi's Kathae Kathae, Veera's Malaikoil Vaasalil, and also to some extent a song in Kizhkum Merkkum in Elankaathu song. 'Pirayae' song sounded more like Thalapathi's 'Putham pudhu poo poothatho'. These shadows doesn't alter the way I enjoy IR's works because I am a strong believer that his music is simple yet addictive, his BGM can create wonders and make the movie watching experience complete specially when the team members do their part right. If you have seen Moonrampirai, kadhalukku Mariyathai (just to name a few) one can very well understand what I am talking about.

But still, a question lingers in my mind;

Is Gnani taking a short cut to catch the audiences attention and aiming for an instant hit?

If at all IR is using a strategy to achieve an instant hit, is that to please the movie makers and audiences without diverting much of his attention from his current historically important venture Thiruvaasakam In Symphony? Remember, he is currently on a full fledged mission to create a work of music that will survive the test of time with lyrics from the great Tamil spiritual literature Thiruvaasakam.

Talking about the strategy of weaving well known strings in new songs, experts says that it can make the song cling to the audience easier and much faster, which I suppose IR hardly executed before but our current Zeitgeist A.R.Rahman is well known for that and to me it's not a sin either. Being said that, nowadays its not easy for most of us (even the hardcore IR fans) to appreciate or even accept Illayarajah's songs as such. Sometimes I can see myself yearning for a melody that is emphasized with clear and loud flow of base with the rhythm. This is how ROJA songs and its BGM sounded first and I thought that was kinda different but it didn't take much too long to get engrossed in the RAHMANIA trend.

Then again, IR is the one in south Indian Music world who started out with flying colors by breaking the rules and pushing the music part of the song from the back row to par with vocals. He defined the orchestration in m.music and with the help of Magnetic Tapes he propagated it to each and every house in the country.
As a better heir to the throne, our whizkid ARR proceeded further up and redefined the music with technology to newer limits and earned audience beyond our national borders.

Can anyone tell me who is next and gonna do what?
May be its not time yet for time to answer.

Very Simple but Struck me hard when I read this online.....

2003-10-05T20:52:00.000-04:00

One day an expert in time management was speaking to a group of business students and, to drive home a point, used an illustration those students will never forget. As he stood in front of the group of high powered overachievers he said, "Okay, time for a quiz."

The he pulled out a one-gallon, wide mouth mason jar and set it on the table in front of him. Then he produced about a dozen fist-sized rocks and carefully placed them, one at a time, into the jar. When the jar was filled to the top and no more rocks would fit inside, he asked, "Is this jar full?"

Everyone in the class said,"Yes."

Then he said, "Really?" He reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of gravel. Then he dumped some gravel in and shook the jar causing pieces of gravel to work themselves down into the space between the big rocks.

Then he asked the group once more, "Is the jar full?"
By this time the class was on to him. "Probably not," one of them answered. "Good!" he replied.

He reached under the table and brought out a bucket of sand. He started dumping the sand in the jar and it went into all of the spaces left between the rocks and the gravel. Once more he asked the question, "Is the jar full?"

"No!" the class shouted. Once again he said "Good." Then he grabbed a pitcher of water and began to pour it in until the jar was filled to the brim.

Then he looked at the class and asked, "What is the point of this illustration?"

One eager beaver raised his hand and said, "The point is, no matter how full your schedule is, if you try really hard you can always fit some more things into it!"

"No," the speaker replied, "that's not the point. The truth this illustration teaches us is: if you don't put the big rocks in first, you'll never get them in at all."

What are the 'big rocks' in your life?

Your faith, your education, your dreams? A worthy cause? Teaching or mentoring others? Remember to put these BIG ROCKS in first or you'll never get them in at all.

nostalgia....

2003-09-28T20:39:00.000-04:00

I'm taking a deep dive into the Amaravathi, I am talking about the songs from Ajith, Sangavi's debut movie Amaravathi with Bala Bharathi as MD.

Hmmmm, its July1994, I was just starting my UG in Annamalai and had made a whole bunch of new friends (most of them still are). We were bugged by the Ragging Demons (by then) and successfully dodged most encounters till that time but finally few of us were victimized and became full time entertainers for a while.
Anyway, I used to play this numbers over and over and upset my friends and some of them were surprised to see a die hard Illayaraja fan going crazy over this new comer. I remember watching this movie with almost half of our classmates and beleive me, I had hard time accepting BB as the MD than IR. Even though there were some difference in the usage of instruments but the flow, BGM, melody and everything pointed me towards IR.
Overall the movie with new faces did pretty good in theatres and I often argued with my friends that BB has what it takes to become a popular MD. Unfortunately I was wrong for unknown reasons and all we had from BB was Thalai Vaasal, Golmaal ???? and some TV serials.

Even now my friends doubts BB's talent as MD and comment his debut music in Amaravathi as an accident. On the other hand I'm hoping that he gets another chance but it seems like its never gonna happen. To my surprise, few years ago I was excited to hear that BB is working with Dir. Mahendran in Saasanam. Again, things didnt work out that good for them and the movie never seem to make it to the silverscreen.
what can I say. Ill fate? Hard luck?

P.S: While listening, only few songs can take you on a wonderful ride and let you travel back in time and sometimes even gives you goose bumps regardless of the environment that you exist.
I have of plenty of IR's songs that belongs to this kind but only very few MDs like BB have contributed towards it.

Hobby equals Killing Time and Learning Skills

2003-09-24T11:41:00.000-04:00

Feels good when creating something. I did something similar at KS page. Even though the outcome was kinda amateurish I have a satisfaction of understanding some of the secrets behind developing a web page.
Now I wonder more about how people do it from the scratch. Say, they have to write codes for the color, fonts and the layout WOW! That's very interesting. This may sound very basic to some of you who are Computer Pro's but for someone like me who had associated the past 9 years of life with Biological sciences and Drugs its defnitely more than that.
I love my profession but it is not that fascinating anymore. That's right, May be it is about time for a creative hobby.

Fresh Off Boat....

2003-09-22T23:57:00.000-04:00

This is something my friend Sathyu scribbled when he first came to this country. Originally this was published in NDTV site but I'm putting it up here coz it resonates with almost every one's feeling especially those who landed here in US as a student.

HOME
Sathyu Gopalakrishnan

Why do I find myself being so depressed? This is not the real me. I am usually a very cheerful person, have been told that I make a lot of people smile. So why isn't anyone returning the favor now? Is it too much to ask for?

Maybe it has a lot to do with my transition from home to the big wide world. HOME, oh sweet home! It's not a mere building but a whole world by itself. In its warmth I grew, a treasure trove of memories.

What makes home so special? It's not just the mere presence but the people, the memories, the warmth and comfort, which make a house a 'home'.

Back to my story, why am I feeling depressed? I am homesick! That's what I am. I didn't find it hard to say goodbye to all those things I grew up seeing. No, in fact I didn't even glance back at that old building I so fondly think of and miss now. I was rearing to go out and see the world.

I wish I had stopped to say goodbye to all those nooks and crannies I am so familiar with, to the sprawling sun baked terrace which has witnessed all my silly, childhood frolic, to the cracked backyard walls which still bear traces of my budding 'artistic' skills as a kid, to the coconut tree that I've tried so many times to climb, but in vain for I never could climb it.

The world I did see, but the excitement's long gone. I have accepted the change. Wasn't it my choice after all? I have even got used to the change. But am I really happy? I don't know.

I have had good times too ever since I left home. I won't deny that, but somehow my life at present doesn't seem real.

I live in a house; I have a roof over my head. But it's not home. I have come to realize that the very core of my being craves to be back in that cozy, protective sanctum called 'Home'.

I can only smile sadly when I hear ambitious youth waiting to leave home because they feel 'trapped'. It won't be long before they realize what they are escaping, or if it is an escape at all. I don't blame them. I was like that too, not long ago.

It's ironical yet amazing how even the most mundane, trivial things back home seem magnified when you think of them, things you would have barely noticed when you had them around you.

The stain on the rug, the crack in the wall, the clothesline, the stealthy tabby cat, why, even the bathroom water tap! I am reminded of the salmon, which are said to return to the very same river they were hatched at, when its time to reproduce. I realize the importance of home. I know I will go back someday. If fish can, why can't I?

BTW, I called him last night to get his approval about publishing his work in my page. (SHhhhhhhhh!!!!!! I've given the transcript of the conversation.)
Me:Hi sath, ELango here
Sath:Hey!!! Waazup brotha, Hov yo doin?
Me:good. nee eppadi irukka?
Sath:I'm coo man.
Me:Dey, the reason I'm calling you coz naan unnoda 'HOME' stroya en web sitela publish pannalaamnu irrukaen. Enna Ok va?
Sath:I dont mind bud. But i've got some COO Neu stuff brotha.
Me:Its all rite. Let me start from this ok.
Sath:O.k. No probs.
Me: Hey before i say good bye, do you still miss home?
Sath:You mean India? naaaa! Its too hot out there man and polluted too. But, love for my home is always there dude. Alrite.. I am on my way to Dave's paarte and I 'll talk to ya later. Ok. Chow!

This kinda reveals what couple years of American life can do to most of us. :) I'm not complaining but kinda amazed how we could really adapt to new culture so fast (again, I am not denying the fact that it has its own flaws). Sure enough, I went thru the same phase few years ago, now when i look back..... it is entertaining.

Idle mind...

2003-09-22T08:03:00.000-04:00

A devil's workshop. Really? I doubt it. At least not always. I think circumstances and one's psychological makeup plays a vital role and when given the right combination idle mind can actually be very creative. Specially in my case, I would say until recently I was always busy and right now I am going through a transition period and blessed with lot of free time. Though I am not creating much but its very invigorating when you have few extra seconds in your hand and spend 'em on things that you always love to do. But the question is will I be able to accomadate this after starting my routine again? May be. Lets see.

2003-09-21T15:48:00.000-04:00

Wonderful, I cannot believe that I have started my own Blog.Thanks to Lazygeek & padhu. I should also mention about Chandra who encouraged me towards blogging. She is doing a wonderful job with her valaipookal pakkam.
Coming to the amazing part of the story, I only remember reading Padhu's comment at Lazy's scribble board about getting together and showcasing our story writing skills. Before you know Kathai Sollungal is online. This is nothing but a try out intended for pure fun and to encourage aspiring writers. The Lazy geek aka Guru is not really a lazy person when it comes to doing stuff like this. To his part, Padhu the master mind of this 'online story discussion concept', is really on the move and posted his model story at KS. Even though I personally doubt my deserving traits for a writer, I'm joining hands with the geeks for a healthy hobby.