Ashley and Pudsey make my day

Divy sent this video to me and I watched it this morning. My jaw dropped and I was smiling like a cheshire cat. Pudsey and Ashleigh are just too cute... please do yourself a favor... Watch it.

And then there is Happy Singh who does the smartest trick in the book... :D

{More Pudsey and Ashleigh}
{And if you haven't got tired there's some more Pudsey and Ashleigh here}

PS: I still love Uggie, from The Artist as much. If not more. Ok, I think Uggie is the best looking dog ever.

PPS: Thank you Divy for sharing this! XOXO

Music: Loving this playlist on Coke Studio

Husnain Anwar's collection has a really superb collection of Coke Studio numbers... I am listening to it right now and loving it.

Have a lovely weekend y'all.

XOXO
Material Girl

TV: Sherlock

The BBC adaptation of Sherlock Holmes called Sherlock is, by far, the best i have ever seen.

This version of Sherlock is set in modern times. To me that is the biggest reason for you watch this show in the first place...  I can't imagine any other character fitting into our world so beautifully.

Benedict Cumberbatch plays Sherlock like he was Sherlock in a previous birth. Martin Freeman plays Watson and is the perfect foil for the mad, charismatic Sherlock.

And yes, Cumberbatch grows on you... that you can't imagine anyone else ever playing this character. And after i think 2 episodes i began to realize that the man is smokin' hot!

Watch Sherlock... it's a very intelligent and interesting show.

Rooh mein faasle nahin hote

Rooh mein faasle nahin hote: I first heard this song in Bombay about 8 months ago... and i fell in love with it. I have already heard it in loop thrice now!!

A friend of mine, Pranit Gedham, has composed the music for this film and i have been waiting for the song to be up on YouTube. He shared this link with me a few minutes ago and here it is... for you, my blogging friends, because i love you (even if you are all mostly silent and i don't hear much from you)



**The track is not available individually but you can directly click on the song name and you can listen to it immediately! 

The India Pakistan Google Tearjerker

This one had me in tears... Love this ad by Google that reunites 2 friends who were separated during the partition. Watch it. (I was imagining being reunited with someone from my past by my grand-nieces and nephews!! Silliness, i know!!)



PS: Have you ever Google-d yourself? 

Ram - Leela

Is it crazy that i am loving this song Ram Chahe Leela from Ram-Leela so much right now that i am listening to it on loop?

Well, it is definitely crazy that i think Priyanka Chopra looks smokin' hot in the song!! And that tattoo on her rib cage... just below her... er... umm... blouse... ooooh! *Sigh* It's gorgeous! Like truly killer.

Ok. I am going to stop now. Watch the video if you haven't already. Enjoy!

PS: Regular / non-crazy programming will resume from the next post on.

XOXO

Afterthought: You can hurl all the brickbats you want at Sanjay Leela Bhansali but he definitely makes all the ladies in his films look amazing. 

Khamaaj, Shafqat Amaanat Ali Khan

This morning, i woke up very agitated, after having seen some rather bizarre dreams. I turned to music to make me feel better. And it worked. This song soothed me, gave me goosebumps and brought back some beautiful memories.

Thank you Mr. Shafqat Amanat Ali Khan. A few months ago, your concert had me enthralled and jumping. Today, a concert on YouTube had me mesmerised and soothed. 

Downey Jr... phew!

speechless. and drooling.

oh wow! :D

Review: Ship of Theseus

This one's a long post with a lot of unnecessary details, so if you want the 2-min version, scroll down to the other post to read Pallavi's succint version! 

I managed to watch SOT. Just last night, in fact. Since i thought that there were going to be no more shows post the first week of release, i hurriedly booked tickets to make sure i didn't miss the film. Especially after Schmuckeshwar aka Somak told me that the DOP of the film is someone who can make anything look beautiful after having worked with him on a corporate film. And i value S' judgement a lot. 

We started early and reached the theatre on time so we didn't end up missing the first fifteen minutes, like we usually do. I even had time to get popcorn. Someone wanted a seat exchange and we didn't oblige because they weren't better seats. It was a late-night show on a weekday and i also had my yoga workout (that i didn't want to miss) but i still booked that show.

It was well-worth every single thing that i did to make it for this show. And probably more. 

There are plenty of visuals from SOT that are etched in my mind. Long after. Last night in my dreams. And this morning too. I can vividly recall details that i would love to see again. Schmuckeshwar was right... Pankaj, the DOP is brilliant. Of course, Anand Gandhi, the director, has done a superb job. And the casting - it's perfect. 

The pace is definitely slow but your attention doesn't wander because each shot is so beautiful,  so lovingly captured, you can't take your eyes off of it. 

SOT is 3 stories in one that have a common thread, and my favorite was the second one that features the story of a jain monk ailing with liver cirrhosis. The easy banter he shares with his young lawyer are easily the best moments in the film for me. (I also wish more religious leaders were like this monk.)

Of course, SOT has many layers and philosophical stuff and a lot of takeaways but that is something personal to each viewer so we wont start that here. Watch the film and i hope you enjoy it as much as i did. (SOT has got a lease of life and another week's run, so you can catch it on the big screen).

Remember Pallavi of The Next Monday Syndrome? I read her review of SOT on FB and asked her to write a guest post review of the film for my blog and in typical Pallo-style she said she had a lot on her plate and if i could wait a week? So i declined the offer and suggested instead that i post her FB comment on here!! 

So here's what she had to say: 

(Yes, her FB updates are pretty long. Usually longer than some of my blog posts!)

Intriguing, profound and endearing. Three stories that make up Ship of Theseus. The movie is packed with passive aggression. Five minutes down the film, holding a popcorn tub seemed a bit misplaced. This was not just entertainment, from the word go the movie demands you to give your absolute involvement to it. Very well made film and I am glad its been marketed well. Also it's brilliantly packaged for Oscars (why not?). More steam should be put behind such artistic endeavors. The theatre was filled with patrons from different demographics and everyone seemed to enjoy the film considering there was a round of applause at the end of the film from every corner. Its good to see that Indians as movie goers are not saying this or that anymore. Finally it looks like its all about loving your films. :)

PS: Do you know Anand Gandhi started his career as a dialog-writer of a very-popular soap opera? You'd be surprised! He also wrote the screenplay of another hugely popular hindi soap. 

The Italian Job and Silver Linings Playbook

You know i love watching films. So two in a day isn't a major feat for me. Especially when i am watching it on my mac. (The computer is literally my lifeline since i don't own a television or a music system and this is the only source of entertainment you will find in my home, besides conversations, my pathetic jokes and some beer, that is.)

{The Italian Job}

So yesterday morning i watched The Italian Job. I was looking to watch a good heist movie and this one came highly recommended (by the Internet of course). I also vaguely remember a friend telling my that Mini Coopers were launched using this film as the platform. 

The Italian Job is a winner alright. It's a story of a 35 million dollar heist that goes wrong. The movie begins in Venice, Italy where boat chases replace the usual car chase sequence. When you think that this is the best chase sequence a movie could have, you'd be wrong. There is more in the end and this time you have the staple car chase sequence which is pretty darn cute with all those minis racing around tunnels and going down subway stairs. The robberies are ingenious and you'd love to watch it on a rainy afternoon. So go ahead, pick up your DVD now. 

{Silver Linings Playbook}

SLP was movie 2 yesterday. 

I watched Silver Linings Playbook without reading a review or its synopsis, something which i almost always do before watching a film. 

It's a film about a man suffering from bipolar disorder who is released from a mental facility and girl he meets who has been recently widowed. SLP is dialog-heavy and the only chase sequence is Tiffany, the girl chasing Pat, the boy when he goes on his morning run. You'd think that this would make SLP slow. But no, it is extremely engrossing and very entertaining and my friend and i who watched it together (on his computer this time!) didn't want to take a dinner break even. SLP is definitely a must-watch. And i think almost all of us who think we are sane just have undiagnosed medical conditions. :)

No, i didn't mess around with the posters. Both really have the exact same color combination of black, white and yellow. 

Mr. Poirot, you really are the cat's whiskers. Sherlock, you aren't bad either

I am terribly fond of murder mysteries and crime thrillers. I own almost the entire collection of Agatha Christie's fiction and Erle Stanley Gardener. And i have read all of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's books featuring Sherlock Holmes. Of them all, Agatha Christie's Poirot is my favorite character. To me he really is the best of them all.

And David Suchet, who plays Poirot in the 1989 TV series called Agatha Christie's Poirot is very adorable.

Right now, I am neck-deep in work, and pretty brain dead. Watching him play Poirot is pretty much the only thing keeping me sane right today.

So i thought i'd share this with you right now. If you love AC, then you can safely watch this TV series. Because i know you will enjoy it much. David Suchet brings Poirot alive.

And if you like Sherlock Holmes, then you might want to watch the BBC version called Sherlock that premiered, i think in 2010. There are just 6 episodes and it's very interesting to see the character in our day and age and using computers and GPRS and all that in solving them crimes. Rather awesome. And again, Sherlock and Watson are beautifully casted.

That's about as much as i can gab right now... i am going back to David Suchet and some much needed entertainment. I hope you all have been happy and good. :)

XOXO
Abmica

Ship of Theseus

I came across a trailer of this film this morning. The premise of the film intrigued me and is beautifully stunning. I'd love to see it in a theatre in Hyderabad. Apparently the film will release only if enough people vote for it... So, please see the trailer and vote for it, if you like it.



Ship of Theseus is the cinematic debut of Anand Gandhi, who has written and directed several plays before. The movie has been directed by Anand Gandhi and is produced by Kiran Rao.

Vote for it here.

*The ship of Theseus, also known as Theseus's paradox, is a paradox that raises the question of whether an object which has had all its components replaced remains fundamentally the same object.

Meena Kumari: Tanha

This is melancholic but very beautiful. From Meena Kumari's I write I recite series.



I woke up feeling very edgy and agitated today. I was doing random things on my computer hoping to somehow feel a little bit sane again but nothing was helping till i found this song on a friend's wall.

And listening to this song helped calm me down a lot. So much so that i am listening to it for the fourth time now. Hope you enjoy it too.

{Link}

Must see: Supermen of Malegaon

You have to watch this documentary Supermen of Malegaon. It is funny and smart and insightful and inspirational. It was one of the best 65 minutes i spent in a long time.



You can watch it on youtube here.

Gangs of Social Media

This is ROFL funny. Loved it. As much as i loved Gangs of Wasseypur. 

Jaana jogi de naal - Shruti Jakati

Loving this right now. Very beautiful song sung very beautifully by a very inspiring woman.



{Read about this lovely lady here}

And another trailer: Zanjeer

Aru, this one is for you... the first person i thought of the moment the trailer loaded.

Zanjeer looks rather good too. Ok, Ram Charan looks better than the film looks and i'd actually watch it just for that!

Apoorva Lakhia's Zanjeer is scheduled to release sometime in June.

PS: Pause at 1:28 :)

Lootera

The trailer of Lootera looks promising and since it is directed by Vikramaditya Motwane whose previous movie Udaan was awesome... i think i am going to definitely watch this one :)

Lootera releases on July 5. 

About Choices

It's funny but it's also not funny. Our prejudices and mental workings about this are so ingrained in us that it's going to be a long while before things actually change for gay people... much like it was for women who demanded equal rights many years ago.

{via Upworthy}

Adele: Set fire to the rain

Love it. One of the few to which i know most of the lyrics and can recognize easily!! :)