Friday, December 21, 2007

"Innocence Re-lived"

I couldn't think of a better title for Taare Zameen Par..To say that it touched my heart would be a gross understatement! Kudos to Aamir Khan for coming up with such a gem of a movie...I'm still reeling under the magical spell of the movie..it just stays with you even after u walk out of the theatre-a sign of an excellent movie..
I,in my enitre life of 19 years,have never cried so much while watching a movie..infact i was on the verge of a breakdown..i'm not exagerrating..its true! The subtle display of various human emotions just bowled me over!
The movie is about Ishaan Avasthi(Darshan Safary-simply phenomenal)..a third standard kid who is dyslexic but his parents n teachers are totally unaware of it..as a result he is pushed around,made fun of,scolded at,bullied, and what not..
the frustrations he goes through bring tears to your eyes..no one understands him,no one bothers to actually..his parents are worried sick,wondering why is he so irresponsible when it comes to studies..completely opp to his elder brother,who is a school topper i.e, an "ideal" boy..but ishaan is total whacko! who loves everything but books..his innate talent to paint wonderful things is considered useless..he always fails in all subjects in school no matter how hard he might have tried..the list is endless...
He is sent away to a boarding school as a punishment..he worsens over there..he stops indulging in his fav pastime of painting...shuts himself up giving up all hopes..dats wen Ram Shankar Nikumbh( Aamir khan-flawless as usual) enters his life and discovers his problem..how he turns his life around is the crux of the remaining movie...
The character of Ishaan is a very well written role..you can find glimpses of Calvin(of Calvin and Hobbes) in him when he allows to take a sneak peek inside his boisterous imagination..his bubbling enthusiasm about life in its various colours is infectious..his unique perception of the world in its myriad forms forces you to think out of the box..he makes you feel elated and sad at the same time..he makes you feel his angst and joy effortlessly..his innocent vulnerability makes you cry, and you wonder where has all the innocence dissappeared from your life..
This movie made me re-visit my childhood...I laughed and cried with Ishaan,empathising with all his emotions and feelings..every scene,every moment touches you in ways unimaginable..I cried with tears of sadness and joy..something which I thought was never possible but I was proved wrong and how beautifully..
Every single person who has or will watch the movie will take away something from it..it'll be different for different people...thats where its beauty lies..and this movie will stay close to my heart for a long time to come..

Thursday, December 20, 2007

"Tryst with traffic"

"Red....yellow(blinking).....GREEN!!!!" and off i go..vroooom..on my nearly 6 years old scooty...feeling proud and amazingly independent..the intangible feeling of being free simply indescribable..it just has to be experienced to be understood..and i sure am loving it.
My first memory of being on any kind of a bike was when i was around 2 or 3 years old when my dad used to make me sit in front of the hero honda we had back then..i used to wear these little frocks and the moment my dad would lift me up to make me sit on the bike,i would cringe because the steel was icy cold..and then i used to stare at that shiny circle..which i later realised was the place where the petrol was put in..but for me it was a fascinating work of art..most of the time i would go on pressing it,hitting it,wondering what it does..but to my utter dismay it never did anything out of the ordinary except giving me sore hands..but i used to love the feeling of gushing wind in my hair.. eyes watering,my legs and thighs numb with cold and my dad behind me like a huge rock..i wish i could go back..but alas! we have a long way to go before a time machine can materialse..
Coming back to the present...not so long ago(read a few months ago) i was this person who was paranoid about driving on the roads thanks to some not so pleasant experiences on the road..like getting hit by a speeding motorist who dint care a damn as he was busy yakking away on the cellphone..and if that wasn't enough,he glares at me as though its entirely my fault! Here i am with a bleeding foot wondering what just happened and this guy simply gives me a angry look without a slightest hint of remorse or guilt for what he did to me and leaves..leaving me confused and angry!
After that incident i had totally given up on the prospect of driving a two wheeler..i would console myself thinking that i would drive a car instead.Everyone in my house including my younger bro can drive a two wheeler and i would be the butt of all jokes regarding my driving skills! And then finally one day..I found my Messaih in the form of my cousin who had enough faith in me to give me her brand new activa to drive..She was more enthusiastic than me,for i had casually mentioned that i wanted to learn how to drive a two wheeler..that's it! She was adamant that i start driving directly on the road,mind you..it was 8:30 in the night and roads near my granma's place have a lot of traffic..but she wouldn't listen..finally she managed to coax me into doing the unthinkable i.e, make me drive on the road yet again..I was totally overwhelmed,all the unpleasant thoughts entered my head..but the amount of confidence she showed in me,gave me the courage to venture out on the road one more time.. At first i thought i wouldn't last a minute and wanted to give up then n there but the encouraging look on my cousin's face did the trick..Poor thing had to literally stop all the traffic on the road to make come out..and it worked!! Once i was on the road..all my fears dissappeared! it was like magic! i never thought it could be so easy..
And here i am today going to the college on my own,on my two wheeler.. much to the surprise and envy of my friends all because of my"Driver's messaih"( that's what i call her these days) This brings a larger issue to my mind..i cant recall the number of times i gave up on certain ideas of mine thinking that it wouldn't work out..but now i know that impossible is nothing if you have a little faith in yourself and others around you :)
And and and..i love calling myself a "biker girl!!" hehehe.. :D