Wanted ?

Rainy season! Hot Samosas! Sleeps! K'taka politics! The confused life as it is. But it's good.

Dravid is back in the ODI team! As a Bangalorian, what else does one need! But I believe since he's inducted, the no. of overs might be escalated. It might be 75 overs match instead of 50.

Saw Zindagi na milegi..something. Liked the company than the movie.
I watch only comedy films which make me forget some mess for sometime. But I do watch serious movies but that need to be exceptionally good to catch my attention.

The film I like the most is Manhattan (Woody Allen's ofcourse). If you ever want to catch a movie that captures the magic of a real relationship, watch the story of Ike and Tracy. The movie starts with Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue and quick shots of the jagged New York skyline. And as the camera zips across the city showing you its incredible energy, you hear Woody Allen talk about New York as the Philharmonic swells under Zubin Mehta’s baton, and you arrive in Manhattan, inside Elain’s Café. Ike and Tracy with their friends, as the movie introduces you to their world, their relationship.

But the most memorable part of Manhattan is the end where Ike, sprawled out on a couch as geekily as only Woody Allen can, wonders darkly whether his life is worth living at all. That’s when he tries to list ten things that make him happy. Groucho Marx, Willie Mays, the second movement of the Jupiter Symphony, Louis Armstrong’s Potatohead Blues. Swedish movies. Flaubert’s Sentimental Education. Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra. Cezanne’s Apples and pears. The crabs at Sam Wo’s. He sighs and then adds, almost as an afterthought, Tracy’s face. And that’s when everything changes. Instantly.

Ike tries to call Tracy. Her phone is busy. He runs out of his apartment, onto the street, tries to hail a taxi but they are all occupied. He runs faster. The music picks up. He tries a phone booth. The number’s still busy. He keeps running, running till he arrives where she lives-- just as Tracy is about to leave for London. The dialogue between the two is possibly the most amazing bit of writing I have ever seen on screen. To repeat it is impossible. You have to watch it to understand why Manhattan is one of the finest films ever made. Its simplicity, its poignance changes your whole take on life and love and everything that comes in between.

But this is not about Manhattan. It’s not about Woody Allen either. It’s about that soliloquy where Ike asks himself about the ten things that make life worth living, and chances upon the eleventh-- Tracy’s face. How often do we ask ourselves this question in the privacy of our most lonely moments? How often do we think of things that make life worth living? At different times, I have listed different things. Then I have stopped midway and changed a few. I have paused, pondered, argued with myself every time over every one of those ten things but never hesitated for a moment when I had to think of the eleventh.

Every one of us has a Tracy’s face secretly tucked away in our hearts. It takes courage to acknowledge that, as Ike did, and run out to where we need to go to touch base with our deepest loves. (Mine was simple though - right click and add on comm) More often than not we are running away from it. The only way you can ever see Tracy’s face is by sitting down, asking the first question: What are the things that make life worth living? You will be surprised at how many there actually are. I have to pick and choose every time. It’s not about permanence. The ephemeral will do just as well like say eating the world's best Dosa at CTR? You can change the list as often as you want. You can make mistakes. But every time you reach the end, Tracy’s face will appear before your eyes, almost as if by magic. That’s why good films are so important. If you allow them, they can actually change your life. They can make you see things you have not seen, feel stuff you have not felt. And, if you are brave enough to open your heart to them, they will teach you how to let go of your fears and run for it. Like Ike did, down the maddening streets of Manhattan, the moment he remembered Tracy’s face.

Think over it. And regarding Zindagi Na Milegi Dubara, I am glad I was the pillow.

Jd.