Movie Review - Shuddhi - Kannada (2017)

Shuddhi is an excellent thriller

Today I watched the new Kannada movie Shuddhi in Serra Theaters in Milpitas.

Usually when I watch a movie and like it, I just write about it saying I liked it. But this movie is so SOLID I am going to stick my neck out and say "Please go and watch this movie".

We needed a Kannada movie like this and I was waiting for it.

The movie takes up the prevalent issue of rape and atrocities on women and delivers awareness in the form of a top notch thriller that keeps you guessing and frequently provides twists which keep turning your grasp of the story upside down till the end.

It is a satisfying movie experience.

I am so impressed by the team that made this movie I can't help wonder where were all these guys till now! Well I guess they were not around making movies because they were young and growing up. Hats off to the writer-director Adarsh H Eeshwarappa for making this movie which has a fantastic story with many layers to it. The entire cast and crew have turned in their best performances and made this movie a real thrill to watch.

The first thing that stands out for me is the very natural acting by all the actors. In this movie everybody speaks one of the most authentic Kannada I have ever heard in movies. The characters are all very natural and believable. The police officers appear, behave and talk like real police officers and not like the artificial larger than life screen heroes which we usually see in movies. The movie has three leading ladies Nivedita, Amrutha Karagada and the American actress Lauren Spartano.

Nivedita and Amrutha have given very dignified understated but yet very endearing performances. What I liked about them was the way they act like real human characters without the false airs we commonly see in movie heroines. They deliver their dialogues in down-to-earth Kannada which is spoken in real life and not with the artificial stuck-up accent heard only from movie heroines. Shashank Purushotham who plays the police detective and his assistants (don't know their names) stand out for the ease with which they essay their roles. Lauren Spartano speaks only English as she should and is very impressive in her role.

It is worth noting that the actors were all picked up from five or six drama troupes and are all strongly rooted in Kannada soil and culture. That explains the attractiveness of the dialogue delivery in the movie.

The movie scores well in technical aspects too with good photography, screen play and dialogues.

Kudos to the story-writer-director Adarsh Eeshwarappa and the producers Nandini Madesh and Madesh Bhaskar.

And thanks to Kasturi Media for bringing this movie to USA.

We are really lucky that we see a band of young directors like Rakshit Shetty, Pavan Kumar, Anup Bhandari, Duniya Suri, Hemant, Satyaprakash and others who are coming up with fresh ideas and delivering well made movies. It is a great time for Kannada Film Industry with a stream of successful high quality movies like Ulidavaru Kandante, Lucia, Rangitaranga, U-turn, Kenda Sampige, Godhi Banna Sadharana MykaTTu, Rama Rama Re and many more to come.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mXIcCYjr-s

Disgusting exploitation of the loving characters from the phenomenal Kannada movie Thithi

Disgusting exploitation of the loving characters from the phenomenal Kannada movie Thithi

I love the recent multiple award winning Kannada movie 'Thithi' so much that I can't get enough of it. After watching the movie twice, I binge watched any video on Youtube remotely connected with the movie. In that process I ended up watching a disgusting trailer of a movie which is still not released.
ಆ ಚಿತ್ರದ ಹೆಸರು "ತಾತನ್ ತಿಥಿ, ಮೊಮ್ಮಗನ್ ಪ್ರಸ್ತ " >:( >:( >:(

The name of that movie (still in the making) is "Thaatana Thithi, mommagana prastha".

I really regretted watching the trailer of that movie.

In the words of Gaddappa - the 'phramose' character from the movie : "ಏನ್ ನೋಡ್ಬಾರ್ದಾಗಿತ್ತೊ .. ಅದನ್ನಾ ... ನೋಡ್ದೆ!"

ನೆನೆಪಿಸಿ ಕೊಂಡ್ರೆ ಹೊಟ್ಟೆ ತೊಳ್ಸತ್ತೆ!
ಅಯ್ಯಪ್ಪ! ಎಂತ ಜನ ಇರ್ತಾರೆ. ಥೂ ನಿಮ್ ಜನ್ಮಕ್ಕಷ್ಟು ! ಒಂದ್ ಚೂರೂ ಸ್ವಾಭಿಮಾನ ಇಲ್ಲದ್ ಹೊಲಸ್ @#$%& . ಈ ಕೆಲಸ, ಭಟ್ಟಿ ಇಳಿಸಿ ರೀಮೇಕ್ ಮಾಡೊದಕ್ಕಿಂತ ನಾಚಿಕ್ಕೇಡಿನ್ ಕೆಲ್ಸ! I guess there is no way to stop such shameless a$$h&^%$ from making this kind of vulgar thrash of a trailer and in the process make money by riding on someone else's classy work of art.

All the characters in the movie Thithi are so dear it feels yukky to see them being exploited in such a crass way. It is unfortunate that the makers of Thithi cannot curtail such cheapos from exploiting the work they lovingly created. At the same time it is understandable that the actors want to capitalize on their own fame. But these parasites who made the trailer have no business to freeload on other's painstaking achievements.

I think the only thing the makers of Thithi can do and are doing are to disassociate themselves from such sh&^.

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Renaming Mysore Bank

Renaming of the Mysore Bank Building

No more "mysur bank! mysur bank! yarree Mysur Bank?.. iLkoLi" ?

No more asking "mysur bank mele hogutto, KR Circle mele hogutto? "

No more telling "mysur bank hatra sigona. Vishnu Bhavanalli masal dose coffee baarisi, saagaralli first show nodkond baroNa"

When I was a kid this gorgeous looking building on Kempegowda Road, the head office of the home grown State Bank of Mysore was the pride of Bengaluru. Until Jayanagar Complex came into being, until the Public Utility Building (aka 22 story building) on MG Road and the LIC building near General Post Office came up, this 'Mysur Bank' was the most imposing and beautiful building in Bengaluru. To my mind at that time, the presence of such multistory buildings was an indication of modernity. It was an indication that Bangalore too can one day become like those cities in foreign countries or for that matter like Bombay in our own country.

I have walked past this building countless times right from my childhood days. It only became more frequent when I became a student of UVCE which was at KR circle nearby. We used to go to that restaurant (forgot the name) in Kaveri Bhavan complex diagonally opposite Mysore Bank. I remember eating cutlet in that place. We have walked past Mysur bank every time we had to go to Subhas Book house on Avenue Road. Just to clarify I did not use Subhas Guides. We only bought Text books :-) There were also those footpath vendors who sold books titled "Janapriya Kannada Chitragetegalu". Just having one of those song books gave the amateur singer the confidence to subject listeners to the pleasure of listening to his songs.

We also used to visit a store across the bank, where they sold Scientific Supplies. This was necessary for those unfortunate students who broke Test tubes, Burettes, pippets and beakers in the Chemistry Lab and had to replace them

Probably it was in this building that I used the lift (elevator) for the first time. I remember going to the top floor of this building and being fascinated by the view of the tree lined Kempegowda road and of the greenery of the garden city in general.

This building which has been in existence for at least more than four decades was renamed "State Bank of India" as of last week. Even though the name has changed, the name "Mysur Bank" cannot be erased from the lips of bus conductors and the general public so easily.

Oh just to clarify, we don't need to despair. The Mysore Bank building itself is intact. It will be there hopefully for a long long time.

Photo Credit: thehindubusinessline.com.

Here is a link to article on this topic in The Hindu.
http://www.thehindu.com/…/adieu-state-b…/article17746027.ece

ಅಧಿಕ ಪ್ರಸಂಗಿ ಫೋನು

ನಿನ್ನೆ ಸಂಜೆ ನನ್ನ ಮಗಳ ಬ್ಯಾಸ್ಕೆಟ್ ಬಾಲ್ ಪಂದ್ಯ ಒಂದು ಸ್ಕೂಲ್ ಮೈದಾನದಲ್ಲಿತ್ತು. ಆಫೀಸಿನಿಂದ ಆ ಸ್ಕೂಲಿಗೆ ನೇರವಾಗಿ ಹೇಗೆ ಹೋಗುವುದು ಅಂತ ತಿಳಿದುಕೊಳ್ಳಲು ಮೊಬೈಲ್ ಫೋನಿನ ಗೂಗಲ್ ನಕ್ಷೆಯನ್ನು ವಿಚಾರಿಸಿದೆ. ಆ ಅಧಿಕ ಪ್ರಸಂಗಿ ಫೋನು ಸುಮ್ಮನೆ ನನಗೆ ಬೇಕಾದ ಮಾರ್ಗದರ್ಶನ ನೀಡೋದು ಬಿಟ್ಟು "The school will be closed by the time you reach there" ಅನ್ನುವುದೆ? "ಎಲೆ ಎತ್ತೊ ಗುಂಡ ಅಂದ್ರೆ ಉಂಡೋರ್ ಎಷ್ಟ್ ಜನ?" ಅಂದ ಹಾಗಾಯ್ತು ಇದು. ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಕಿರಿಕಿರಿ ಉಂಟಾದದರೂ ನಮ್ಮ ಕನ್ನಡದ ಗಾದೆ ಹೇಗೆ ಕಾಲ ದೇಶಗಳನ್ನಷ್ಟೇ ಅಲ್ಲದೆ ತಂತ್ರಜ್ಞಾನಗಳನ್ನು ದಾಟಿ ತನ್ನ ಪ್ರಸ್ತುತತೆ ಉಳಿಸಿಕೊಂಡಿದೆ ಅಂತ ಹೆಮ್ಮೆಯಾಯಿತು.

endendu ninnanu maretu on guitar

endendu ninnanu maretu on guitar

Listening to these two ladies play this song gave me pure joy! Right from the opening note I fell into a trance. Especially because this song 'endendu ninnanu maretu' from Eradu Kanasu from 1974, is still green in the minds of Kannada film aficionados. That is the magic of this song picturized on the much loved actor Dr. Rajkumar and Manjula who is also popular in her own right. Listening to the original song sets the mind to the mood of the early 70s. The instrumental rendition by these ladies with the ringing guitar notes only enhances that mood. I have listened to it many times now.

On a related note, among romantic songs this song goes head to head (I know head does not fit in the same sentence as romantic, but ) with "Jeeva Veene needu " from Hombisilu picturized on another popular pair Vishnuvardhan and Arathi.

If you want to listen to more music from these two ladies search for 'Sandhya Raman or Vidya Ashok Kumar' on youtube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftiCZLb8wFc

ಋಎವೆವ್: Lion (2016)

Lion (2016)

It is very rare that non Indian film makers get it right when they make a movie set in India. The recent movie Lion is an exception. The movie tells the tale of our desire to search for our roots and identity. The first half tells the story of Saroo a five year old darling of a boy who lives with his mother and his siblings. He is very attached to his older brother Guddu. Once Saroo gets separated from his brother Guddu and starts looking for him. Scared and desperate he ends up getting inside a stationary train compartment and falls asleep on a seat. When he wakes up the train has moved far away from his town and eventually he ends up thousands of Kilometers away from home, in Kolkota. The little boy does not know anything other than the name of his hamlet - Ganesh Talai and not knowing Bengali he is unable to communicate with others there and is unable to get any help. After many encounters with other homeless children and adults including some with nefarious objectives he ends up in an orphanage. Soon he is adopted by a very noble minded Australian couple and grows up in Australia. In the later part of the movie we meet a twenty five year old Saroo who is still searching for his home in India and still yearns to meet his mother and brother. The rest of the movie is about Saroo's efforts to try and return to his original home.

The highlight of the movie is without doubt the lovely performance by the five year old Sunny Pawar. He is the embodiment of an innocent child and yet can convey so much of feelings and emotions and portrays the role of Saroo wonderfully. Dev Patel plays the older Saroo and is very effective. He was nominated for the best actor award at the Oscars. But Nicole Kidman as the mother who adopts Saroo, stands out with her dignified acting. The movie is very successful in capturing the Indian side of the story with authenticity and wonder.

The story comes across as unbelievable except that it is a true story. It is based on the novel "A Long way home" by Saroo Brierley the main character in the movie. Also I think this is the first time that an actor of India origin was nominated in the best actor category at the Oscars.

Lion is a very significant movie and it is worth watching.

ದಯವಿಟ್ಟು ಕವಿತೆ ಬರೆಯುವ ಈ ಪ್ರಯೋಗದಲ್ಲಿ ಭಾಗವಹಿಸಿ - ಏಕ್ ಅಕೇಲ

ದಯವಿಟ್ಟು ಕವಿತೆ ಬರೆಯುವ ಈ ಪ್ರಯೋಗದಲ್ಲಿ ಭಾಗವಹಿಸಿ :-)

ನೀವು ಮಾಡಬೇಕಾದ್ದು: ಕೆಳಗೆ ನೀಡಿರುವ ಹಿಂದಿ ಹಾಡಿನ 7 ಸಾಲುಗಳನ್ನು ಕನ್ನಡಕ್ಕೆ ಭಾಷಾಂತರಿಸಿ ಕವಿತೆ ಬರೆಯಬೇಕು.

ವಿವರಗಳು:
ಇದು ಒಂದು ಪ್ರಯೋಗ. ಒಂದೆ ಅರ್ಥಬರುವಂತ ಕವಿತೆಯನ್ನು ವಿವಿಧ ಬರಹಗಾರರು, ವಿವಿಧ ರೀತಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಬರೆದರೆ ಹೇಗಿರುತ್ತದೆ ಎನ್ನುವುದನ್ನು ತಿಳಿಯುವುದೇ ಈ ಪ್ರಯೋಗದ ಉದ್ದೇಶ. ಹೆಚ್ಚಿನ ಬರಹಗಾರರು ಬರೆಯಲು ಅನುಕೂಲಕರವಾಗಿರಬೇಕು. ಸ್ವಂತ ಕವಿತೆ ಬರೆಯುವ ಬದಲು ಭಾಷಾಂತರ ಮಾಡುವುದು ಸುಲಭವೆನಿಸಿ ಈ ಪ್ರಯೋಗವನ್ನು ನಿಮ್ಮ ಮುಂದಿಡುತ್ತಿದ್ದೇನೆ. ಹಾಗಾಗಿ ಹಿಂದಿಯ ಒಂದು ಚಿತ್ರಗೀತೆಯ ಕೆಲ ಸಾಲುಗಳನ್ನು ಆಯ್ದುಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದೇನೆ. ಈ ಸಾಲುಗಳನ್ನು ಕನ್ನಡಕ್ಕೆ ಸೃಜನಾತ್ಮಕವಾಗಿ ಭಾಷಾಂತರಿಸುವುದೇ ಈಗಿರುವ ಕೆಲಸ.

ಘರೋಂಡ ಚಿತ್ರಕ್ಕೆಂದು ಗುಲ್ಜಾರ್ ಅವರು ರಚಿಸಿರುವ "ಏಕ್ ಅಕೇಲ ಇಸ್ ಶಹರ್ ಮೆ" ನನಗೆ ಅತೀ ಇಷ್ಟವಾಗುವ ಹಾಡುಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಒಂದು. ಭೂಪಿಂದರ್ ಅವರ ಸಾಂತ್ವಾನ ನೀಡುವಂತಹ ಧ್ವನಿಯಲ್ಲಿ, ಮಂದ ಗತಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಸಾಗುವ ಈ ಹಾಡಿನ ಅರ್ಥಗರ್ಭಿತ ಪ್ರತಿಮೆಗಳುಳ್ಳ ಸಾಲುಗಳು ಮುಂಬೈನಂತ ಬೃಹತ್ ನಗರದ ನಿವಾಸಿಗಳ ಯಾಂತ್ರಿಕತೆ ಹಾಗು ಅನಾಥ ಪ್ರಜ್ಞೆಗಳನ್ನು ಸಮರ್ಪಕವಾಗಿ ಹೊರಗೆಡುಹುತ್ತದೆ. ಈ ಹಾಡಿನ ಎರಡನೆ ನುಡಿಯಲ್ಲಿರುವ ಈ ಸಾಲುಗಳು ಕೇಳುಗರ ಅಂತರಂಗವನ್ನು ಮುಟ್ಟುವಲ್ಲಿ ಬಹಳ ಸಫಲವಾಗಿವೆ ಅನಿಸುತ್ತದೆ.

"ಇನ್ ಉಮ್ರ್ ಸೆ ಲಂಬಿ ಸಡಕೋಂಕೊ,
ಮಂಜಿಲ್ ಪೆ ಪಹುಂಚ್ತೆ ದೇಖಾ ನಹಿ
ಬಸ್ ದೌಡತಿ ಫಿರತೀ ರೆಹತಿ ಹೈ
ಹಮ್ನೆ ತೊ ಟೆಹರತೆ ದೇಖಾ ನಹಿ
ಇಸ್ ಅಜನಬೀ ಸೆ ಶೆಹರ್ ಮೇ
ಜಾನಾ ಪೆಹಚಾನ ಢೂಂಡ್ತಾ ಹೈ,
ಢೂಂಡ್ತಾ ಹೈ, ಢೂಂಡ್ತಾ ಹೈ"

ಈ ಸಾಲುಗಳ ತಾತ್ಪರ್ಯವನ್ನು ಇಂಗ್ಲೀಶ್ನಲ್ಲಿ ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಕೊಡುತ್ತೇನೆ.

I have tried to give a simple translation of the above lines here. If there is anything wrong please correct me.

"These streets which seem longer than one's life span,
never seem to reach a destination.
It seems they just run and move around.
They never seen to stop for a while.
In this unfamiliar city, all it does is to constantly search
for known and familiar faces"

ಈಗ ಇಲ್ಲಿರುವ ಜಾಣ ಜಾಣೆಯರಿಗೆ ಒಂದು ಸವಾಲು.

ಈ ಮೇಲಿನ ಸಾಲುಗಳನ್ನು ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ, ಮೂಲದಲ್ಲಿರುವಷ್ಟೇ ಅಥವ ಮತ್ತಷ್ಟು ಪರಿಣಾಮಕಾರಿಯಾಗಿ ಬರೆಯಲು ನಿಮಗೆ ಸಾಧ್ಯವೆ? ಯಾವುದೇ ನಿರ್ಬಂಧವಿಲ್ಲ ! ನೀವು ಯಾವುದೇ ರೀತಿಯ ಕಾವ್ಯಾಲಂಕಾರಗಳನ್ನು ಬಳಸಬಹುದು, ಬಳಸದಿರಲೂಬಹುದು. ಈ ಮೇಲಿನ ಅರ್ಥ ಬರಬೇಕು ಮತ್ತು ಹಾಡಿನ ಲಯಕ್ಕೆ ಬದ್ಧವಾಗಿರಬೇಕು ಅಷ್ಟೆ! ನೀವು ಪ್ರಯತ್ನ ಪಡುವ ಮುನ್ನ ಬೇರೆಯವರು ಬರೆದಿದ್ದರೆ, ಅದರಿಂದ ಪ್ರಭಾವಿತರಾಗಬೇಡಿ. ನಿಮ್ಮ ಕಲ್ಪನೆಗೆ ಬಂದದ್ದನ್ನು ಖಂಡಿತ ಬರೆಯಿರಿ. ಆಯ್ಯೊ ಅವರಿನ್ಯಾರೋ ಈಗಾಗಲೆ ಬರೆದು ಬಿಟ್ಟಿದಾರೆ ಅಂತ ನೀವು ಸುಮ್ಮನಾಗಬಾರದು ಅಂತ ನನ್ನ ಕೋರಿಕೆ.

ಆಲ್ ದಿ ಬೆಸ್ಟ್!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pax5xLX6aNU