Take the bitter with the sweet n sweet with bitter!

Merry Christmas!! Or happy holiday if you're a Prez Bush fan!





Its the first anniversary of The Asian Tsunami. I join the whole world in mourning the destruction caused my mother nature. R.I.P all those who passed on 26th Dec 2004




P.S. For my Tsunami poem/song visit this

Hail Cyclone Mala

Whew!! In 10 hrs time I would've been writing my aldready postponed exam, but thanks to Cyclone Mala, lakhs of students like me are staring at a gloomy future. Exams shifted to Dec 19th due to Cyclone Fanoos are now postponed again due to Cyclone Mala. And in the 2 weeks I never touched the books for more than a cumulative avg of 10 mins.

I thank the rain gods, global warming, Prez Bush, all oil companies, car manufacturers n specifically hippies who've failed in their task of being global watchdogs.

Now, as I type, winds of 15 KMPH and intermittent rains are "lashing" Chennai. But what the heck, exams postponed...hip hip HOOOORRAAYY!!!!

On a sadder note, it may be rescheduled to Jan 2nd. Damn!!!!

A lot of stuff happening on the rap front. Yogi B of Poetic Ammo from Malaysia got in touch wid me. Yet to reply to my msg. Said he had "hella lot to talk to u".

I got in touch wid D'Lo, she's starting to be an inspiration to me. Altho I've never heard her rap, she's a Lankan Tamil Hip Hop artist/social activist.

A crew from Germany is going to record near Pondicherry. They wanted me to work wid them. So thats coming up if everything materialises.

A new Hip Hop Artist from Bangalore(i think) has shown up on download.com. Going by the name of PRX and having released a single "Bombay Dogs", this guy's got some good music. But his lyrics kinda undecipherable. Total commericial material. As soon as his album releases, I request all of u to cop it. Good. India's starting to get a Hip Hop scene, even tho its commercial, its something!! PRX is a must Listen.

Wow! I'm actually turning pro. Wonder where this shit is going to lead me into. As for now, its celebration time. No Exams atleast for next 3 days! Yippeee

Why the F?

Ok. I know this is a touchy issue to talk about. So lets talk about it. WHY DO WE HAVE CENSORSHIP?

I really dont understand "freedom" can have limitations. If India is a free country, then I'm a free guy. If I'm at fault for expressing myself, and get pushed around for that, I'm not a free guy.

A lot of "guardians" of free speech lurk around the corners of this "society" trying to malign those people who "malign" Indian culture or some crap like that. See, I was brought up in the Gen X. The kinda guys who take to Rap as much as we take to Rahman's music. Or who eat thair-sadam n also fast food. We dont care about who these "guardians" are. We like to freak out n do crazy things so we can break from the stereotyped "Indian Male". Times change, influences change, but India will remain etched in our souls. If we are true Indians n want to promote Freedom of Speech, make more people talk about it.
Matter of fact, Freedom must not have LIMITS. Thats why I strongly belive India is not a free country.
I have my own reasons
1) We still censor n edit things in public life instead of restricting the reach. Eg movies, music. what ever happened to Explicit or PA or MA in these? Total ban of a movie coz its content didnt please 5 people in a censor board??? Damn!
2)Who are we to decide who should watch or hear stuff? Ultimately, the layman like me is kinda deprived of seeing or hearing what I WILLINGLY want to.
3)Without actually taking off censorship, how can we say it affects the young people? We just shying away from removing it because we have a mental block that these things will degrade society. wateva...
4)I need not explain more after this point coz its just clear. Take Gandhi. The person who got us freedom. The same so called Freedom we have now. Ok. One of the interpretations of the three-monkey thing(thrimoorthi if i'm right) is "See no bad things, hear no bad things, talk no bad things". Who decides what is BAD? To each his own. Thats what we need. I, as a free citizen decide what I wanna say, what I wanna hear and what I wanna see. Unless that is possible, I'm not cheerful in celebrating an Indepenece Day which is supposed to mark me being LIBERATED.

Being a rap soldier, I really wanted to vent my anger on these so called "protectors of freedom". So, I've written a song called "Why the F?". I dont care if it doesnt create waves or if I make money out of it. I'm doing it coz I want to do it n dont give a shit of what ppl got to say abt it. I'm breaking barriers in Indian music with this song which has the most F word occurences. So go ahead n see the lyrics, d/l the song if u want from Illusions
Peace..

You've been Marooned

I've been seeing quite a few blogs being 'tagged' recently. As scoffes said, its a silly little game played by girls. And I schemed n schemed. Finally, I got the right plan. I'm inventing my own amazing game for guys right now. Its called "Marooned". Its the most annoying thing that is goin to hit blogsphere. Well, it goes like this. One day you wake up and suddenly find civilization has disappeared due to global warming, ice cap melting, alien invasion, earthquakes or tsunami. You find your bed on a small uninhabited island along with another person. No boats, ships, superman or any other "man", for that matter "woman" in sight. Who would that person be and list 10 things you would tell him/her?. This game is invented for guys coz I know from personal experiences that the number of realistic guys compared to girls is greater. However, thats only my view but girls are welcome to "maroon" their friends too. If you get "marooned" i.e mentioned by any of your friends in their "marooned" post by saying "If X,Y,Z are marooned, what would they do?". Simple rules. 1)You're not supposed to split your posts into paragraphs. It starts and ends as one full paragraph.2)You have to explain why you've chosen the person who gets marooned with you 3)Its only a hypothetical situation. Dont chicken out thinking this will never happen. After MJ's aquittal, Bush relection, Pitt-Aniston split, Indian cricket team rising to international standards and Arnold becoming Governor, I belive this world is doomed for 'crazy' things to happen. So go ahead and maroon as many people as you want. Let the games begin. Since I'm realistic, I'd want a girl to get marooned with me. So we may go ahead and save mankind, if u understand what I mean. Now, what I would do aprart from that, what I would tell her is 1)"You know, you're lucky you got marooned with me. If it was girl, then you'd be lesbian." Somewhat similar to something one of my idols said and I quote Navjot Singh Sidhu "If my aunt was a male, she would be my uncle". 2)"You better not crib about looking bad, you're the only hope for the world! Sheesh, stop whining". Why is it girls always bother about how they look(again only out of my narrow-minded viewpoint, majority of girls i've seen keep sayin "Shit! My hair' spoilt. oh, I'm not dressed for the occasion") 3)"I dont give a damn abt who you were, its only u n me. We dont have peeps in the middle trying to 'woo' you" I hate guys who 'woo' girls. Makes me wanna kick their balls. But girls find that charming, so as I always say "Let them be". No wonder I never fell in love till now 4)"Its upto you n me to sort this out. You try finding food, and I'll save my energy for saving the world". Yes, I feel like a King. But remember I can't rebuild the world without the queen.5)"How did you feel getting all the attention you did before the world came to this state?" I kinda recognize her n start talking to her.6)"Oh my GOD!! Thank you for getting her marooned with me". Confusing eh? 7)"We've talked a lot now, wat say we hit the bed? We have to rebuild the world remember?" Ahemmm.8)"You're so amazing, wonder would we have met unless this happened?" 'This' here refers to the world being invaded by aliens blah blah. 9)"Are you what you are or are you what you were made to be i.e a hippie, wannabe. Coz you certainly dont sound like one". But, from what I've seen, there are less girl "wannabes" than guys. 10)"You can be rest assured that I will rebuild the world. I just need you to shed the whole "think-you-a-movie-star" thing and work with me". Ok. The person who I want to get marooned with is EMMA WATSON a.k.a Hermione Granger from Harry Potter movies. I get to maroon myself with whoever I want. And after reading the most romantic, annoying to read, boring ass post of mine, I have the fortune to MAROON you. No shit! I kinda started liking this game. "If Scoffes, Magix(Curses), Aswin were marooned, what would they do?".Accept this new challenge to make you think and popluarise this "thinking game". Not one of those silly ass games. And once again I've pulled off another great scheme of mine, I love me.

Eminem Curtain Call !! Is it the END?

Two months ago, Eminem dropped a bombshell which left millions of his fans baffled. Marshall Mathers had enough. He announced he was putting an end to his MCing career after he went to rehab as a sleeping pill addict. His final solo project, Curtain Call, a compilation of his greatest hits with two "farewell" songs dropped on December 6th. This marks an end to a 10 year stint at the forefront of rap.

People compare him to 2pac Shakur by the way he connects with a mass audience. Many of the true hip hop guerillas poo-pooed this remark but stopped short of it by proclaiming him as one of the most lyrically gifted MC's of all time. True. Never has hip hop seen such a character who is at ease with his wordplay when tearing up opponents like Ja Rule/Benzino or making some of the most touching raps like "Stan","Lose Yourself" and "Mockingbird".

Fans all around the world appealed thro online forums for Slim Shady to quit playin. Thats exactly what he did. He quit playing the "Rap Game". There is stage in every person's life when somethings need more priority than others. For all these years, Marshall Mathers wanted to show the world he really doesnt give a .... He wanted to get himself, his family and his friends to a postion where they dont have to struggle to for their daily life. He wanted to tap into the white-trash audience which lost an icon after Elvis. He wanted to do what he did best. Now achieved in 10 years what no other rap star has. A worldwide fan base for his lyrical skills, being touted as one of the "Greatest MCs" of all time, he kept churing out underground tracks which ended the careers of his detractors, produced amazing music with guidance of Dr.Dre and take rap music to the average American household. He's been there, done that in the Hip Hop world of "Superstardom".

But look at the flipside. He's not been able to ressurect his marriage, partly because he wrote so many songs against his teenage-love/wife. He's not able to spend quality time with his daughter, whom he loves so much that he reads her "Harry Potter" every night. His personal life quite frankly is on the verge of collapse. So his final appeal to his fans. "LEAVE ME ALONE". I understand his intentions. The man is wanting to set things straight in his life rather than going aroung asking people to kick out Prez Bush to improve their lives.

In Curtain Call, Eminem has killed Slim Shady. Shady was the alter-ego that catapulted him to what he is now. And an emotional appeal to his fans thro "When I'm Gone" will make anyone who listens to it, burst in tears. I place it along with the best lyrically touching songs I've ever heard in any genre. "When I'm Gone" is a message to his fans not to mourn when he's gone but to cherish every time they hear his voice.

Eminem is an inspiration to the next generation of hip hop artists. He's the guy who made me sit up and listen to what he said. He's also my inspiration to dig into Hip Hop history and discover THE best lyricists like Pac, Biggie & NAS. He's the guy who showed that if you got the skill, you can make people notice you. He may be heralded as a no-good, white-trash, foul-mouthed, screwed up kid from Detroit, Michigan who bullied his way into the limelight but for a fan like me, he's the guy who changed lives. Marshall Mathers will still continue to appear on guest spots, release tracks thro his radio Shade45 and may even cut an album with D12. What he is quitting is making any more SOLO albums. But you never know! How long can he stay from the mic?

As Eminem takes a final bow to the audience who wanted him to be on stage forever, he walks into a territory not seen by him before. The softer side of him has to set his personal relationships straight. He need a timeout from the spotlight to make amends. This is a "second" chance for him to reclaim his on/off relationship with his wife. He's apparantly going to remarry her. The Legend of Eminem will live forever. The guy who changed the face of Hip Hop is walking away. And one last appeal from him is for his fans not to follow him. Go Marshall! I, as a fan, wish you success in the quest to set your life straight. Live Happyily Ever After. PEACE......

Aaru Movie Review

After watching Ghajini, I became such a big Suriya fan that I was all worked up to watch Aaru before any of my friends had seen it. With hype surrounding the film that its going to catapult him to the league of superstars, I was soooo sure I'll end up with no tickets on the first day.

It was overcast, with a drizzle off and on. I called up a couple of my buddies and thought we'll crash into Mayajaal, the only place where you can expect a sure seat on the first day if u go by 11-12 am. On the way to Mayajaal, we noticed Arardhana is also screening Aaru and thought we'll try our luck there.

It was 12 noon, no sign of any crowds which were denied a ticket to the first show, no annoying hoardings (its common for "to-be-superstars" to have cutouts which cover up the theatre), no crowd waiting for the 2nd show. Weird, assuming this guy is being touted as the next gen of tamil cinema after the Vijay-Ajith-Vikram phase.

I slowly walked up to the security guy and asked him "Will I get tickets for the next show?". He gave a sly look & suggested I bribe him to get tickets. Upon waiting for 1 hr, they opened the gates. By this time a considerable gathering had stormed the entrance. I managed to get tickets & IT was on!!

Intro scene of the movie kinda stunned me. Suriya's singing skills are like a 10 yr old boy trying his hand at an MS classic. After the initial stunt scenes, I was expecting it to be the same Vijay style masala entertainer. But its of a totally different league.

Aaru is a raw, ruthless, gory depiction of a hitman/thug in the slums of Chennai. His character reminds you of Inba of Yuva but Aaru is shown more as a anti-hero than a hero. The story is pretty guessable but the way it is told is simply amazing. Suriya's potrayal of a street thug who stands up for what he thinks is right, is one of the best of his career. Of course, there is the no-logic, wrongly placed songs, female-play-thing-love-interest charecter, 2-3 gaana(tamil rap) songs, really really bad words, comedy track of Vadivelu and the boom-boom background score stereotypes you have to bear with.

One thing that deserves mention is the direction by Hari. He seems to have done his homework on the slum life in Chennai, madras-bashai and locations for which he deserves accolades. The techno song locations are simply amazing. The stunt sequences are breath-taking. Especially the one where Aaru and a couple of goons fight in the waves of ECR beach with neck deep water. Excellent camera work in the fight sequences.

The songs of Aaru are badly placed. Just when you thought the story gets interesting, a song spoils it. The Jassie Gift, Vadivelu & Grace number "Onnu Rendu.." stands out as the only foot-tapping song alongwith the intro song by Shankar Mahadevan. There is nothing much to write home about the background score.

Some of my observations after this movie were
1)Why do gangsters/goons/dada's always travel in Omni/Sumo/Qualis/Safari/Ford Endeavour all the time. Isn't it easily noticable?
2)Why do heroines always do the 3 songs - 2 emotional love scene - 1 scene getting stuck with the villain so hero can rescue?
3)Why do I question logic in Tamil Cinema? Not of much use as Producer Saran will laugh his way to the bank with this one.

On the whole, Aaru is a cake packaged in a box of blood stains which you have to cut using an aruval (famous long knife). Its not a movie meant for' girls who love Suriya's choc-boy image' or for the 'light hearted people'. The A certification is pretty obvious after you watch the movie.

Plus : Suriya, Suriya, Suriya. One of his best performances & so different from Ghajini. And good stunt sequences.

Minuses : Trisha, too many goons/thugs as sidekicks for hero as well as villain, graphics that spoils songs

Review : Boring 1st half, Fast paced n racy 2nd half with a guessable climax. Watch it atleast once.

YUKKKK

All this while, i had a problem with my monitor. Everything went red. Lost all other colors in the tube. So the last time I had modified my layout, was not really sure how it looked. Now that I got the monitor fixed, the first time I saw the blog, I went "YUUUUKKKKKK"

So bear wid me as I toy around for the best color combination for this template.

Chennai 'Water'ed again

Ok. Thought I'll blog on the day after
1)the rain stopped and never came back till next year
2)India-SriLanka have started playing the match
3)Anna University exams took place according to schedule
4)the volcker issue stopped "rocking" the parliament
5)AIDS is declared an epidemic
6)World Disability day was "celebrated" by a bunch of social hippies
7)the suicide bombings & 'kid'napping in Iraq subsided
8)'expose scandals' were not used for selling mags
9)IIFI became an event to celebrate 'good' cinema
10)Rahul Dravid stopped talking for too much time to the press. Rahul, We like you when you dont talk much.

But, as we the people would continue to wait for that day, dreaming of India to be a great "World" power, I chose to break the silence.

All the aforementioned have acute chance of taking place in the near future. Coming to near future, why do people use that word. You know the future has to be somewhere after the present, you can never quantize that. "In the near future, I dont see change in the way the goverment works" harps one crazy hippie. You dont see change. Change only takes place when actions are performed by a so called parliament which represents the people. Perhaps the crazy hippies should go sit on a fast-till-death so they'll be heard. Arundati Roy, we need you. Help the hippies.

Coming to the floods, man!! What a year we've had. I know people cried for water, but talk about it coming through your roof. People should be more specific the next time they pray. "Oh nature, please solve our water problems. Take care you dont overwork"

India-SL match looks like its gonna head to a total washout. Chennai was not even the first choice to host the 1st mactch. The money - root of all problems. Think about the money wasted in making the cricketers stay in 5 star hotels, driving them everyday to the ground, employ so many people (tv crews, ground staff, police) to work for an event that's not even gonna take place, make fans belive they can atleast catch a glimpse of their fav cricketer and end up paying 1000rs for standing in rain, without the possibilty of a refund. Guys, you've just been f***kd in the rear. Rahul Dravid can repeat the same sentences for all 5 days.

Day 1: Its not under our control you know
Day 2: We cant control it
Day 3: These things can never be decided by us
Day 4: Its out of our scheme of things that these things happen
Day 5: Its pretty bad we couldn't do anything

Ok. You made your point. Now shut the hell up. Damn!!

Anna University needs a disaster management-exam timetable design- system. Somebody please help those jerks. No wonder Abdul Kalam was only a "Visiting" staff there.

Comin to my fav topic. Prez Bush. He's under increased pressure from the "American" people to bring back the troops. HA! Fat chance. Finish what you started. Its all the American people's fault. You voted the guy in, now shut the hell up and do what he says. God, I hate neo-cons.

IFFI just premiered some shit movies. Its become an occasion to glamourise the whole cinema thing. You got long legged babes, 50 year old-out of work- has beens- of world cinema, the whole of Indian press, throw in some food & drinks and EUREKA!! Anybody can hold an International Film Festival.

Disablity day has become a mockery to show the world how different the "differently abled" people are. I cant belive people buy that companies like ' reliance', who make money stealing India's oil reserves, really give a damn about any cause. Let alone disability day.

I'm totally sick and tired of everything happening around the country. But hey! I'm not complaining. Why?? Coz there's no use. You just have to take all the bullshit "The System" gives you. And make yourself belive you're happy. If you're not happy, then you become the rebel,anti-social, scum of this society or a wannabe-hippie. I am neither of the two. I represent the "Take it as it comes" kinda people. We have our opinions but dont really think we can give a solution. Coz its just too damn tough to solve problems that dont arise because of you.

And I end with another famous to be quote of mine "Wait and watch the clock tick, while everyone around you becomes a prick".

P.S : " You're wrong, I'm wrong, there is no right unless there is nothing left" Howzat for a crazy quote. Think I should get into philosophy.