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Friday 9 March 2007

A Tribute to Women.

I read my friend Vivek reddy's blog - Ode to Minerva. It was a fantastic piece, aptly written to coincide with International Women's Day, and truly a literary masterpiece (It is okay to exaggerate at times!!!). I thought, even I should write something about Women. So here it goes, a compilation of quotations that embodies the quintessesntial unflagging spirit of Women. (Only the last four are original.)



Women are from Venus, but Men are just down to earth
-Anon

What a strange thing man is; and what a stranger thing woman. -Lord Byron

A pessimist is a man who thinks all women are bad. An optimist is one who hopes they are.
-Senator Chauncey Depew
Brigands demand your money or your life; women require both.
- Samuel Butler

One of the most difficult things in the world is to convince a woman that even a bargain costs money.
- Edgar Watson Howe
Despite my thirty years of research into the feminine soul, I have not been able to answer... the great question that has never been answered: what does a woman want?
-Sigmund Freud

A woman's mind is cleaner than a man's -- That's because she changes it more often.
-Oliver Hereford
Woman was made at the end of the week’s work, when God was tired.
-Anon
Behind every successful man is a surprised woman. -Mary Pearson

What is better than wisdom? Woman. And what is better than a good woman? Nothing.
-Geoffrey Chuacer, The Canterbury Tales
Women have a wonderful instinct about things. They can discover everything except the obvious.
-Oscar Wilde

Men are born, Women are to be borne!
It is said that the Army prepares you for the harsh realities in life.
Men who can’t join the army, get married!

All good things must come to an end. Maybe that’s why God made man, and then woman!
Days have been conceived not for commemoration or felicitation but, to remember the forgotten – for instance Valentine’s Day, Friendship Day, and I forgot the main one “International Women’s Day”!

Thursday 1 March 2007

Jaan Tere Naam...

The general perception about my nick of the woods is that it is a village, a place made only for a country bumpkin like me! Well that’s exactly what I am going to disprove.

Today, while I was setting out for my office, waiting at the bus stop (Ya we have buses, gone are the days of bullock carts!) I kept looking at the watch. I was getting late. (And Ya, there is no time difference between Panvel and Mumbai. Although looking at it, you’d feel it ought to belong to different times.)

Finally my messiah came, driving a Tata Safari, wearing an orange bandana and those spectacular goggles. He was driving toward my office and offered me a lift. I happily jumped in, with an opportunity to “rub shoulders” (The car was jam-packed you see!) with 9 more people.

Here comes the exciting part. There was an LCD (I don’t know what it is called, so am faking it) screen in the Sumo. And you won’t believe it – the movie being played was “Jaan Tere Naam”. Eat your heart out guys. I was the fortunate one, ensconced firmly in the back seat and gifted this Godsend opportunity to watch this path-breaking movie! Ask any child about two things that he/she remembers about 1992 – the reply will be 1) Pakistan won the World Cup, and 2) Jaan Tere Naam was realeased.

So for all my unconversant friends, “Jaan Tere Naam” was one of those epochal movies of the early nineties, which changed the life of every person who saw that movie. (It just made them more miserable? NO WAY) It touched their lives in a unique way.

It starred Ronit Roy (the current Big B of the small screen) and Farheen. Here goes the plot, poor boy meets rich girl in college. They fall in love, due to circumstantial encumbrances, the girl ditches the boy. Boy falls into the rut of depression. He learns that his girl is going to get married to someone else. That is when our hero dons the bright colours of band-walleh and goes marching along with the band into the girl’s marriage place and breaks into a jig.

Now, please read carefully... The following lines have been penned by expert lyricists. Please do not try this at home!!! (I am sure this is where Gulzar got inspiration from for his “Humko maloom hai (Jaaneman)”) Do not lose the essence of the song while getting lost in appreciating its literary value.

“First time dekha tumhein hum kho gaya
Second time mein love ho gaya!

Ye akhkha India jaanta hai, hum tumpe marta hai Dil kya cheez hai jaanam, apni Jaan Tere Naam karta hai. Tere se marriage karne ko main Bambai se Goa aaya. Pan mere ko Father ne tere Red Signal dikhlaya. Father se tere kya lena mujhe, Tu chahe mujhko main chahoon tujhe! Ye akhkha India jaanta hai, hum tumpe marta hai Dil kya cheez hai jaanam, apni Jaan Tere Naam karta hai…”

WOW! Whatever happened to the days of writing intelligible songs!!! It was vintage Kumar Sanu, at his nasal best! At times it sounded nasal, but most of the times, the voice seemed to be originating from some other orifice. I was on cloud nine when it began. The bristling of the hair on my hands had begun, I started nodding, tapping my feet, and even gyrating to the beats. People had strange expressions on their faces I guess they can’t appreciate cinema at its best. It does not get any bigger or better than this movie!

There are many more gems in this movie – the sensational songs, the amazing acting, and most of all a sense of belonging with an era that has gone by. I would recommend this movie to anyone who would want to relive those wonderful moments. I also plan to request my friends to learn this song. It would be a befitting tribute to our college to sing this evergreen melody at our next alumni meet!

Ye akhkha India jaanta hai, hum tumpe marta hai
Dil kya cheez hai jaanam, apni Jaan Tere Naam karta hai…

The car halted, I got down. I was a changed man – a fulfilled man. Not everyone gets dropped to office and gets to see “Jaan Tere Naam”. All thanks to Panvel! I guess, I am destiny’s child!!!