SRELAKSHME NAIR

Meeting Mr. KH

2011-08-04T21:06:00.002+05:30

I was super excited when I got a call from Chennai asking whether I was interested to assist Mr. KH. But leaving my Husband back in Bangalore and taking up this project was a tough decision to make. But even my Husband said, “Hey it’s KH. How many people will be getting this opportunity?” So I came to Chennai for an interview with Mr. KH.

The first thing which I had to decide was what to wear and what not to wear for the interview! I didn't want to look cool like a teenager neither I wanted to look like any other film enthusiast by wearing a long kurta. So I settled for one of my favorite salwaar kameez, plated my hair and was ready to meet Mr. KH.

On my way to his office I felt like my Mother brought this project to me because she was one of the biggest KH fans. My eldest cousin has memories of her getting him ready for Mr. KH’s movies. She used to ask him, “”Do you know whose film we are going to watch today?” When he nods no, she used to say in full excitement “its KH’s film” She converted the entire family into KH fans. I was thinking all this on my way to his office.

Trust me when I say, I wasn’t nervous at all. But I was definitely anxious. The giant, black gate opened in front of me. The security asked me who am I ? Even before the interview I told him I’m going to work here, as an Assistant Director. They showed me the way in and as I was waiting for him, I got a call from one of the technicians. He said, “Sir is extremely busy today. He will meet you during his lunch break” I was happy at least I got a chance to meet him that day. My resume was already with his personal assistant. So I sighed and waited for him to call me upstairs to the dining room. Aptly the power went off! As I was climbing the stairs to the dining room, I was thinking I have seen so many of his films and always had been a fan. I need to choke the fan inside me before I stand in front of him. Otherwise whatever he utters will go over the top of my head.

When I entered the dining room, I could see a silhouette image of a man sitting in front of the dining table. As the power cut was not over, the French doors behind him were wide open. With each step I took, I was getting a clearer image of him. Who said Real life is less dramatic to Reel life! This is the best example of a filmy introduction of the much anticipated Hero. I was immediately humbled by his presence. With his big round eyes set on me, Mr. Kamal Hassan asked me just two questions. He just nodded his head as I replied. After a minute of suspense, I was approved by him to be part of his Vishwaroopam crew.

Engaged

2010-06-25T11:03:00.001+05:30

To my humble readers... this blog is not dead!!! Its just that... I'm busy shopping for my Wedding, designing my Invitation card, making a list of songs to be played in the Marriage Video, making another list of Kirthanams to be played in the Auditorium during the ceremony, designing the Mandapam/Stage etc etc...

Mr. Hood Where are You?

2010-04-08T21:37:00.004+05:30

http://videosfromindia.smashits.com/view/12418/punjab-farmers-saddened-as-food-grains-rotten-due-to-poor-storage

Mr. Robin Hood now you know where to loot! Let farmers in Punjab play Farmville for 'a while'.

What's Cooking in my Kitchen?

2010-03-10T02:03:00.012+05:30

What's Cooking in my Kitchen is a question every one wants an answer to. I wonder, Is it because I'm a young, unmarried, career girl that people find it hard to believe when I say I cook. According to society unless and untill you are married, you are not grown up enough to take care of a family. And tragically an unmarried career girl is looked upon as a care free soul who has no time for cooking! Some how they always find it easier to believe when I say I've a helping hand at home.

In the beginning when people used to ask me this question, I used to politely reply the list of dishes I made from morning till noon. But later I started observing, that all I do in a social gathering was to repeat what I'm cooking for my family.

How should I save myself from this intrusion into my personal life? How should I save myself from this awkward situation? I decided to ask them what did they cook every time they asked me the same question. But somehow my tongue didn't agree to obey my indecent plan! I felt ashamed at asking some one what did they cook today. Why should I know what do they eat!

Every house have their Maggie noodles or Bread and Omelet Day. Every family eats out to give a break to the lady in the house from her kitchen. But to my bad luck, every time some one asks me what did I cook today, It might be one of those days when I choose to settle with Cornflakes or a Porridge. But what I've seen is that people are more satisfied or rather convinced when I answer Porridge or Bread and Omelet than when I say, I made Avial or Sambar.

The other problem I face is when my thoughts are in the middle of my hero and his problems or in between my hero-heroine's kissing scene. At that time when suddenly someone asks me what's cooking in my kitchen, I've to "cut to" the kitchen from which ever location I was in my head. And this makes them feel that I'm making up a lie!

In parties my father is compelled to have fried rice, when he wants to try Bread and Fish molly. The reason they say is, "You might be eating Bread every day. So for a change try my wife's fried rice!" Another place where we are mocked at is, for eating Dosa! Our family is one of those typical South Indian families who love eating Dosa at any time. As long as I bring variety in the side dish. But whenever I say Dosa! I get the responds," Oh! Dosa eh? Why don't you make Chapati?" I'm happy that just like Salwaar Kameez have become a popular dress, Chapati have become everyone's favourite food. But since when did South Indians start eating Chapati? I'm sure they are not born eating Chapati and Daal from the hospital bed!!! The fact is, to say we are eating Chapati has become something like a prestige. Who wants to eat the poor old Dosa. After all its one of our very own.

The area where I get offended by this simple question is when these women and men roll their eyes in disbelief when I reply to them. Even when the ladies know how easy cooking is, they can not accept the fact that any body can cook as long as they've the appetite for it. And I wonder about these men who roll their eyes when they don't even know how easy cooking can be once practised. Then what are they rolling their eyes for!!

It's not the cooking which is the turn off. It is the other things like cutting vegetables, washing dishes and to find no grated coconut in the fridge etc.

So the real question remains, Am I a good cook? According to my elder brother, my cooking is a mixture of all the best cooks in my life. Losing my mother at the age of 13 forced me to take up cooking at an younger age. My cooking lessons mostly came from all my close friends mothers, from my neighbours and from my aunts. But according to my father, I'm just lucky that I've got my mother's hands. Even if I screw up sometimes, still it'll taste good! Talking about Amma's cooking, she was an amazing cook. I still remember her carrot cake, rainbow ice cream, chicken curry, mutton soup, prawns pulao and... the list goes on. And the best part is that she has left me an old bound notebook whose pages have turned into a golden colour by now. It's filled with recepies written in her own beautiful hand writing. When ever I cook something out of that book, I feel as if she is with me, sitting on the kitchen slab giving me instructions.

To my bad luck, none of these people who ask me this question knows even to switch on a computer. So accessing internet and reading a Blog is definitely out of the question. Therefore, next time when they see me, they are still going to ask me, ''What's cooking in your kitchen???'

Lets just talk...!

2010-02-18T03:04:00.023+05:30

A month back, I got a text message from one of my friend telling, "The Malayalam film directors Siddique Lal should sue Mr. James Cameron, for copying their film 'Vietnam Colony' and making Avatar." For people who have not seen Vietnam Colony, let me tell you the synopsis. Its the story of a Brahmin guy who comes to evacuate a colony so that certain big shots can construct few buildings in that spot. The protagonist befriend the residents to reach his goal. But as the story develops, he not only falls in love with a girl there but also with the people in the colony. He decides to switch sides and fight for the people against the biggies. He regains their trust and becomes their Protector. Now tell me, is Avatar all about that or was there something more the movie wanted to convey to its audience? For me, I understood the story while watching its simple trailer itself. Then what kept pulling everyone to the theaters??

The biggest coincidence was that the Copenhagen Summit on climate change came out around that time when Avatar was running in the theaters. In the movie, Dr. Grace played by Sigourney Weaver says, "Stop digging for more and Start preserving what is around you" The movie tells you to value everything that preserves the life on Earth. But isn't that the Hindu puranas has been teaching you all these years. But for an Indian who knows the Hindu teachings since childhood, Avatar has nothing new to offer other than the Giant studios mocap technology.
I had a room mate once, who wasn't open to other religious teachings. She used to constantly criticize me for worshiping animals, trees, the natural phenomena such as the sun, the moon, the rain, the geographical features like the mountains, the water, the sky and everything which sustained the life on Earth. Animism or Pantheism was out of her understanding when it was another religions teachings. She accused me of praying out of my fear. I didn't waste my energy and time by arguing with her. But I wondered what she would have to say about Avatar!

James Cameron may or may not have seen Vietnam Colony. But after watching Avatar, I feel he has definitely read about the Hindu Gods and Goddesses. While coming out of the theater, my friend asked me which Hindu God has Cameron depicted his Hero as?? 'Was it Lord Vishnu,' I wondered. He further asked me, 'Look at those eyes of the protagonist.' I remember, the movie posters used to show only those eyes initially and towards the climax of the film, they show a close shot of the hero opening his eyes. Seeing me ponder, he replied... "Lord Shiva!" It was as if a meteor came and hit my head. Suddenly everything fell into the place. The paraplegic hero, who finds solace and happiness in the world where the girl is. He wishes to be with her. He feels complete with her, in her world. The Ardhanarishvara concept, where Lord Shiva feels complete only when Goddess Shakthi is with him. I guess, the puranas have already given man a hint of how to treat his women!! Then the Ultimate destruction towards the climax of the film. If Brahma is the Creator, Vishnu is said to be the Protector and Shiva to be the Destroyer. Which makes many people wonder how can a God destruct his own creations, his own children? Its said, Lord Shiva destructs to balance the life on Earth. But when he destructs he is the Ultimate destroyer. Strange isn't it? What does the hero in Avatar become towards the climax of the film? He turns into this Ultimate destructor, making the audience whistle and cheer for him as he Protects the Na'vi.

In the film, the hero takes an Avatar and ends up helping the Na'vi. In the Hindu Puranic stories, the Gods took incarnations in each Yugas called Avatars to help humans in their struggle towards enlightment and salvation. Be it Lord Vishnu or Lord Shiva who ever Mr. Cameron has sketched his hero from; At least he kept an Indian title to his International film, telling the full world from where he drew his inspiration. In contrast with some other film makers who in spite of making a scene by scene copy of a Korean or Russian film, still claim the film to be truly Original!

Now keep aside all that I said about the Hindu teachings Avatar was preaching to the whole world and focus on the teachings of the Bible. In the film, the RDA's head of security, colonel Miles Quaritch promises our protagonist Jake, restorative treatment for his legs in exchange for intelligence about the Na'vi that would enable RDA to vacate Hometree of the natives and get access to the unobtanium benath it. Does anyone got reminded of the Satan tempting Man to choose the easy path of Sin to attain what he wants? Well, though our hero gets tempted initially, slowly he decides to be with the Good even if the tougher path didn't promise him anything. And in the end what does he get? God gives him his legs. Thus the film celebrates the victory of Good over the Evil.
But people like my friend who text messaged me might ask, 'How many Telugu, Hindi or Malayalam films you have seen with the same story line?' To people like him, what I want to tell, is that according to Valdimir Propp, who slams the original ATU (Aarne-Thompson-Uther) system and came up with his own formula proves that there are only 31 main plots in this world, from which you can create sub plots. Being an aspiring script writer myself, my humble request to my fellow script writers are, before you run out naked screaming Eureka and catch pneumonia, please come back inside, think about what Mr. Propp has said. And start working on how to PRESENT a simple story to the World audience in the most appealing way.

Mentioning about Presentation of a film, for some Slum dog millionaire was a greater film than Avatar. But for people like my father, who is above 60 couldn't understand what was happening in the film because of its editing pattern and narrative style. I noticed every time they put a cluster of insert shots, he was loosing his attention. Coming back to Cameron's another film- the Titanic; One of my cousins remarked, 'you cannot compare Titanic and Avatar.' According to him, James Cameron has lost it. To that Cousin what I asked was, "Rich girl falling in love with poor boy. She cannot admit her attraction for him, because her mother has engaged her to a rich man who has promised to help the family from their debts. How many Indian films we've seen in that genre?" Yet Titanic is a fantastic film because James Cameron thought, " Let me place this overly said, sad story in that ship called Titanic which got drowned few centuries back." And vola! what does he get by changing the background of the story- new conflicts, new plot points, new drama and emotions.

Here, even being an Indian when I find it so hard to write a script pleasing masses all over India;People like Cameron is succeeding to stir audiences from Kerala to Cuba. So till Cameron makes another film, lets just talk... and stop grumbling!

Incomplete without One another

2010-01-18T14:27:00.002+05:30

Men in Uniform !

2010-01-18T14:26:00.002+05:30

Malayali Pennu

2010-01-18T14:16:00.003+05:30

Griha Prevesham

2010-01-01T11:13:00.004+05:30

Waiting for the milk to spill and after that.... the waiting continues. Moved into my new house on Nov 23rd but the waiting continues for the electrician, for the plumber, for the people to fit the gate, for the driver to take us for purchasing the curtains; And as I wait for everything in my life from the bridegroom to the modular kitchen to be finished, I keep my readers waiting... waiting... and waiting for a new post!

At Peace...

2009-11-10T03:18:00.002+05:30

Buddha...

2009-11-10T03:06:00.003+05:30

A Buddha statue in Sai Gramam, a 50 acre land at Thonakkal amidst the picturesque surroundings of Pandavamala about 29 kms from Trivandrum City.

2009-11-10T02:38:00.005+05:30

Love is all around you! A piece of plastic thread lying on the road spreads the message so perfectly.

Old Age Home

2009-11-10T02:24:00.005+05:30

Rusted film Cans

He forgets how to Smile

2009-08-17T15:50:00.012+05:30

I was looking at the bright crispy white clouds from my flight window with brimmed eyes. Achan was hospitalised with Chronic SubDural Hematoma and nearly 500ml of blood clot needed to be removed from his brain. As I was travelling the surgery was going on in Kerala.
Sitting there, I whisper a prayer to these clouds... whisper a request to Amma whom I was sure is staying somewhere in these clouds, a prayer not to take him away from us. "Thirteen years is really a long period of seperation and surely you are missing him, but we need him," I tell her.
The surgery goes well. Achan does a speedy recovery. Fighting against all the odds he comes back home. But within two weeks he starts showing symptoms of a recurrence. His right eye becomes droopy, he starts dragging his right leg while walking and above all, he forgets how to smile. I could see a smile in his eyes. But his barin cells were not able to command his lips to convey that smile to us. It was heart breaking to see him like that. A man with an amazing sense of humour forgets how to smile!
We rushed him to the hospital and a second surgery was done. But unlike the first time, this time, he recovers slowly.
But when he fell sick and was in the hospital only I realized that... I didn't know how he smiled and I was impatient to see "how he smiled" just to capture it for the rest of my life. Once he was brought back to the room from the ICU, everyday I would request him to give me a smile and I could see my Achan trying so hard to smile. But when I see his eyes gleaming I would stop requesting further.
Even when I was doing normal day today things like going to the hospital canteen, watching tv, speaking on phone to Achan's friends about his health status, feeding him, listening to music..., when Achan didn't smile I felt I was doing something wrong. That's the time I realized, His smile was a surety, it was like a reassurance before doing anything.
I remember how my best friend's eyes become small when she smiles giving her crinkles at the edges of her eyes, the knock out smile of that stranger you saw in the bus stop, even the dimpled smile of Shahruk Khan but I didn't know how my Parent smiled! Days passed by and I waited for him to smile. Everyday morning I will smile at him to see his smile. Finally one day morning he was sitting in his hospital bed when I woke up. I looked at him and... he smiled. He smiled at me. Suddenly everything seemed alright... and I knew every thing else... was going to be alright.

In Love with you....

2009-07-04T01:00:00.004+05:30

It's burning hot...
The pollution sticks on my lipstick...
But they say,
"We'll miss you... Come back soon...,"
every time I say Good bye.........
Then how can I not fall in Love with you.... Chennai.

Stop being so... Typical

2009-03-17T13:02:00.011+05:30

The Chennai-Trivandrum mail was waiting impatiently, giving me no time for good byes and sobs. As soon as I jumped into the train, it was already moving. Thanks to the Railway minister’s idea of adding an extra middle berth in all the compartments that the train was really crampy and suffocating!!

My compartment had two Tamilian police officers, (who were going for an All India Police camp in Trivandrum along with their police friends in other compartments) two Malayali men in their early 30's, the TTE and a Marwadi businessman (who looked exactly like the Indian version of the laughing Buddha) The minute I kept my bag on the floor, the police men started their interrogation- "Is this your compartment?" "Do you have a ticket?" "Where to?" etc… etc Once the question answer round was over, I pushed my bag under the lower berth and waited for 9o’ clock to have my dinner and go to sleep. As soon as we reached a station, our Indian laughing Buddha got down the station to get a chips packet. It was really an interesting sight to see the way he was trying to open the chips packet just like an impatient child. Once he succeeded in opening the packet without dropping it all over him, he started relishing one chips after another with his eyes shut; which made it easier for me to stare at him! But the last thing he did before throwing away the cover was the most interesting- he plunge his thumb and point finger deep into the corners of the packet, dug out the last remaining bits of the chips and started sucking his salty spicy fingers to glory. All those women who deprive their husbands from eating potatoe chips and all those daughters who snatch oily food from their fathers hands, and were wondering how the pot belly kept growing…; This is what happens behind your back. This was exactly like the diabetic patients who sneak out to have ladoo and jilebi’s.

It was near 9 o clock by then, the police men started their dinner followed by the Marwadi business man and the two Mallu men. Slowly I also had my dinner and climbed up, folded myself into TWO as I had to fit in the upper (side) berth and went to sleep. But the tube lights near the entrance along with the one on top of my head were determined to not to let me sleep. I could do nothing about the entrance tube light so I looked down under my berth to ask the TTE if he could switch off at least the light on top of my berth. But nobody was there. The thought of climbing down, then again climbing up and folding me into TWO to fit in that berth itself was depressing. So I looked around for a passer by. Then I saw a pair of eyes looking at me and smiling. It was none other than one of the men among the two who were in my compartment. I just looked at him, and gestured "can you please switch off the light" and he ran to my rescue like a true soldier. But when I said thank you he replied, “kaiyil vecho" !! I wondered is it a new version of saying “No mention please” or “Pleasures mine”!!

It is not the first time I’m travelling in Chennai Trivandrum train... so by now I know exactly at what time each station comes. My station will only come by 10 o’clock in the morning. So what I usually do is get up by 9.30, comb my hair, fold my bed sheet, brush my teeth, wash my face, keep my things in my bag, have a cup of tea and wait for a minute... my station arrives. But our kind gentleman who turned the switch off the last night was too kind to bang his hand near my head screaming, “Wake up……………. its your station… you are going to miss it.” I looked at my watch and it was 6 in the morning and being a (proud) Indian, one thing I know for sure is that Indian railway can be 4 hours late to arrive but never 4 hours early to reach! So I covered my face with my bed sheet and went back to sleep. By sharp 9.30 I got down from my berth, where my friendly neighbors were kind enough to welcome me with their gleaming faces. I prayed to the Train Goddess, “to please reach the station in time” by seeing their smile itself. As soon as I got down they asked me "Is this the time for a Malayalee girl to get up in the morning?" For which all I could do was politely, smile. In the morning it was not the police men's turn to interrogate but it was these two gentlemen's. The interview started with, “ What are you doing?”
"I'm working as an Assistant Director in the film industry,” I replied modestly.

“O! Assistant Director in the film industry? Did you learn to fake this modesty by seeing the Super Stars?” they ask me! Before I could answer that one, the other gentleman quickly opens his bag and proudly displays a bunch of pirated Tamil CD’s to me. I looked at the police men sitting in front of me, but they were least bothered. I looked at the men and whispered “Thiruttu CD…”

But before I could even complete my sentence... they cut my sentence saying, “Thiruttu CD O! Don’t show off that you don't know Malayalam."

Which left me wondering what did I say now. Then the man turns to his friend and continues, “Thiruttu CD polum thiruttu!” Then only I realized instead of saying ‘Kalla’ (Malayalam) CD I said Thiruttu (Tamil) CD for the pirated CD’s.

“Paandy naatil poyi thani Paandy aayo?” they ask me. “Look at her nose ring… thani Paandychi” they comment.

Sitting in front of me were two Typical Malayali's who were travelling in a Chennai to Trivandrum mail with so many Tamilians among them. But they didn't give a damn about what they say or how they address another South Indian. They prefer to watch Tamil films when compared to Malayalam films… but you ask them about Tamilians, they call them Pandy in a sarcastic way and gives us the explanation, 'Once upon a time the Pandyans ruled Tamil Nadu and the people under the Pandyan Kingdom were easily called Pandy's and that’s the reason why we are calling them Pandy’s.' But ask them to explain the sarcasm and the disgust they use while calling Pandy's and they don’t have an explanation for that. A North Indian calls a Malayali, a Kannadikar or an Andhrite, as Madarasi. A Punjabi makes fun of the Gujarati's and vice versa. The point is you can be proud of the State you are coming from, proud of the Mother tongue you speak but Stop being so... Typical! If you believe you belong everywhere... You belong to every part of this Earth, then you won't find yourself Superior to the Others. Instead you'll feel, 'you are one among them.'

Hug Me, Ma

2009-01-26T12:57:00.013+05:30

All the Relatives were there in Grandma's house. On top of that the house was spilling with Guests. It was a festive mood all over and I was running around as a brat, saying back answers to the boys who were there in the guests. I liked one in them in particular, so I fought with him more and tried to provoke his ego; because at 13 that's what you are supposed to do- hide your emotions for the opposite sex.
Amma was busy in the kitchen, preparing lunch with my aunts for the relatives and guests, who kept pouring in. She stops me and asks me to prepare tea for the guests and I know why she asked ME to do it because trust me, I make really good tea. Atleast that's what my friends and all of my fathers friends say.
Everyone starts having their tea and I was waiting for all the guests to praise me with their Wah! Wah's! Suddenly Amma comes from behind me and starts shouting, "One thing I ask you to do and this is how you do it. There is no sugar for the tea !" I look at the guests with shock, who were now frowning at me with the cup of sugar less tea in their hands. I try to explain to Amma that I remember adding sugar. "You would have put sugar enough for only four people." she tells me and puts water to boil for making tea again. Yes, I remember then, that's what happened, but that was the count 1-2-3-4, that's the no. of people I make tea usually for every evening in my house. I was absent minded, but my ego didn't allow me to agree that. But before Amma shouts at me again and makes me cry in front of all these guests, I hug her tight from behind. But I couldn't stop my tears and my ego was too high to let Amma know that she is capable of making me cry. So before her pink blouse got wet with my tears, I quickly opened my eyes...
But there! I was lying in my room with only tears in my eyes- no relatives, no guest and above all... No Amma. As soon as I realized, all that I saw, was a dream, I shut my eyes immediately to go back. This time I was not embarrassed to cry in front of that many people and above all my ego was too small, it didn't matter at all. All that mattered was to go back and feel Her presence, a chance to hug her one more time in my life.

The Helicopter Shot

2009-01-03T23:24:00.011+05:30

It all started with an interview which was going on in the local channels. The interviewee was a new (film) director; So being an aspiring director myself I felt it was my duty to watch this interview !!! He was talking about his 15 core film, which was an interesting thing as being a newcomer, I wondered in awe, how did he manage to convince a producer to invest this much money for his first film! Throughout the interview the director kept on impressing me more; Coming from a non-filmy background the guy succeeded in convincing the Superstar for his first film! But the interviewer didn't seem as impressed as me as he wanted to know how is he going to spend the 15 core. For which our director calmly replied that he was using lots of Helicopter Shots, as it was an action film. That made me wonder who his cinematographer was. Again he would have convinced some big shot cinematographers with his script and stuffs I thought. Because throughout the interview he was telling how much he had worked hard on the Pre- production of the film.
By now the news of this film got flashed in all the (regional) film magazines.
The shooting started, and one of my friend was the assistant cameraman for the film. I called up my best friend, who was again an aspiring director (!) and said, "why don't we go and see the shoot, after all it is happening in our neighbouring town?"
We reached the shooting spot..., chaos every where... but thats how a film unit will be, we told ourselves. Suddenly all went quite, the shot is ready... the director is in his chair, viewing the monitor... then he screams through the microphone, the golden word which he would have been dying to scream out (& definitely rehearsed in front of the mirror too) since the day he dreamt of being a film director- ACTION! The Superstar is motionless... Martin Scorsese once told, 'its not a must to start doing something, every time I call Action!'... but here that was not the reason for the Superstar's motionless reaction. The cinematographer turns to the director and whispers, " you are supposed to give command to the sound and camera first, then only to the artist." Lesson no. 1 drilled in the head, you might think! but the director kept on calling Action first, for every retake.
Finally when the shot is taken, the Superstar comes to the director and asks him, "Son, how many more shots are remaining for me today?" The director takes a seat next to the Superstar and in a very slow pace starts narrating the story. ''No, no no...., interrupts the Superstar, i meant how many shots are remaining for me today?" The director flips through the filed paper in his hand and again continues with the story. The frustrated Superstar without loosing his patience in front of all his fans who have come to have a glance of him, explains to the director calmy, "What is a shot and what is a scene!" Finding the Director getting nervous the Superstar asks him," Then, what pre-prodution did you tell me, you guys did before the shoot??!?" "We finished designing the poster, sir" replies the director very sincerely.
Almost understanding the situation by now, we decided to leave. But we came all this way and leaving without seeing the Helicopter Shot was not right. We caught hold of our assistant cameraman friend, who also joined this film, to be part of the challenging Helicopter shot. As soon as he heard, we are here to see the Helicopter shot he was more than happy to take us to the chopper! I know, I should have read his devilish smile, hiding in the corner of his lips, before he took us to a room... filled with small white balls running on the floors. To our shock, the unit photographer was standing in front of "a Helicopter Cut-out from Thermocol" and taking its Shots! We looked at our friend who has passed our current state of mind long before and by now was at the verge of insanity for joining this work as he suddenly started laughing loudly seeing our expression. Asking him to hang in there, we ran home from there before we lose our sanity!

2008-10-27T22:54:00.003+05:30

Here again, I'm travelling...

I wish I could stop for You,

But then, I'm travelling in search of You!

Punarjani Guha, 2 km frm the Thiruvilwamala Temple

2008-10-27T22:53:00.003+05:30

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2008-10-27T22:41:00.002+05:30

Naranathu Brandhan...

2008-10-27T22:39:00.003+05:30

'Rayiranelloor' Mala keyattam!

2008-10-27T22:37:00.003+05:30

A Tea Stall In My Village

2008-10-27T22:26:00.002+05:30

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Palaruvi Waterfalls, in Kollam dist.

2008-10-27T22:21:00.003+05:30

On the way to Palaruvi Water falls...

2008-10-27T22:17:00.004+05:30

Kerala-Tamil nadu border

2008-10-27T22:14:00.003+05:30

The Chinese Fishing Nets

2008-10-27T22:06:00.003+05:30

These Chinese fishing nets, at the entrance of the harbor and along the backwaters are erected with pivots of wood. A good number of Portuguese who came to Cochin from Macao in China, re-introduced Chinese nets in Cochin and were given Portuguese names.

The Raja and the Rani's

2008-10-27T21:24:00.003+05:30

2008-10-27T21:18:00.002+05:30

A walking tour of the old streets of Fort Cochin: Walking through Fort Cochin today is a wonderful experience. An eventful history behind, the town presents a picture of relaxed grace that reflects a bygone era

The Dutch cemetery

2008-10-27T20:46:00.008+05:30

The Dutch cemetery in Fort Kochin: The tomb stones here are the most authentic record of hundreds of Europeans who left their homeland to expand the colonial empires and change the course of history of this land. The cemetery was consecrated in 1724 and is today managed by the Church of South India.

In conversation with God!

2008-10-22T02:15:00.004+05:30

God.... why did you make Onions....?
.......... ............
................ To make you cry everyday....!

Swimming to hide under water not to drown!

2008-10-18T20:18:00.004+05:30

Learnt swimming.... came out,
Life... is still the same!

Learning each day...

2008-07-21T19:41:00.004+05:30

Quit my job in Bengaluru, Karnataka and started freelancing... This way i can finish my script and still earn few bucks by the end of the month.
In fact, learning new things everyday.... for example 1st and foremost about money... "never be a cheap labour", were the words of one of my best friend to me, when i said to her about the four Ads I'm assisting in a month!
In this past 6 months..., forgetting the lack of sleep or fights with the production managers or catching the land lady in her secret lovers arms and earning her grudge and no-food days (!) which followed... other than that, this year taught me a lot... professionally.

The lazy bug or...

2008-07-12T00:59:00.001+05:30

My script is half way... I should be writing but this bug.... what is it called... the lazy bug has bit me and I remember a million other things to do which is less important than the script, to do whenever I sit for writing. Or... is it the fear of my characters getting into my head keeping me away, I wonder ?

Reel and Real........

2008-07-12T00:19:00.000+05:30

Saw two films today.... a polish one Your name is Justine and Spiderman 3. Both the films were emotionally challenging.... at least for me!! I'm a person who cries a pool even when a feather drops off a hat! Being a filmmaker you tend to see cinema just the way a Gynecologist sees a womens body... but I believe how much ever I dissect and analyze Cinema, the day I stop crying for movies, or rather say, the day I stop feeling for these characters I see on screen and categorize them into Reel and Us as Real, that day, I'll stop making Cinema!