The Dirty Picture and other stuff

I went the the theatre to watch Vidya Balan in The Dirty Picture. It is all it promises. Good acting and a beautiful script makes the characters real. I am told a lot of the movie is fictionalised as details of the life of Silk Smita are few and far in between. Smita was taboo for film historians and generally shunned by everyone. No wonder they had to make stuff up. The characters of Nasserudin Shah is an amalgamation of several 'Heros' of Indian cinema. Balan owns the movie from the start to the credits. She has really come out of her typecast good girl image to essay a role that will be remembered.

Still reading 'The Hunchback of Notredame' which is sometimes tangentially indulgent with the authors thoughts. As much as I respect artistic eccentricities, and as much as I defend my own, I cannot but say that sometimes they are a little irritating. I wonder if Les Miserables is the same. Looking forward to the rest of the book.

Next in line is Machiavelli's 'The Prince'

A tree, as seen from the balcony of the house I lived as a child.

Carvings from Shesharaya Mantapa in Srirangam Temple Complex, Srirangam.

Pictures from the wall carvings in the Venugopala Temple in Srirangam temple complex, Srirangam.

Pictures of the wood carvings on the Brahma-Rath of Tirupati Venkateshwara.

It has been a long while since my last post.

I watched Apocalypse Now Redux. It is long an passionately edited movie. I liked most performances and the direction. It did seem at places that the director has become indulgent but the final product was admirable.

I became curious about several references in the movie. For example the abandoned Playboy Playmate gone crazy in the war zone, or the references the building of the bridge repeatedly. I tried to get info if it was based on fact but found little.


I finished reading Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe. Initially I found the constant Christian references irksome, but later came to realise that it was never meant to be a "secular" narrative. Stowe mixes critisism and appreciation of Christianity and presents a very compelling case. An excellent read.

I watched The Hitch hiker's Guide to the Galaxy on TV. It is based on the popular Sci-fi novels. The story is mildly existential and a fun movie to watch. I call it mildly as the topics are skimmed upon without much deliberation. Of course it fares well as commercial-off beat movie.

Currently reading The Hunchback of Notredame by Hugo.

Hoping to watch The Dirty Picture the unauthorised biopic of Silk Smita *ing Vidya Balan.

Trial post from my mobile.

This is a small hanuman near my house.