The Chronicles of "Youth Icon"

This post I write, in dedication to all those souls who bravely watched Vettaikaran, paying no heed to all those warning mails that were circulated online. See, we told you this even when Kireedam was released. Did you listen? No! So engrave this in your mind - do NOT go to certain movies unless you have insurance of at least a lakh rupees!

I, very wisely, saved myself from the torture. Well, actually, I have never seen any of Vijay's movies from start till end (except for a few movies that I watched on a scene-by-scene basis and concluded the rest of the story myself), so I wouldn't know how much of a torture it actually is. :P Anyway, from what I gather from the net, the story is thus (as seen in a website before it was released):

"According to sources, Vijay plays an auto rickshaw driver who works hard to bring justice to people who are innocent. All the stunt sequences have been completed; Vijay, wanting to fine tune his performance, has asked the director to re-shoot a few scenes.

It may be noted that ‘Superstar’ Rajinikanth also played an auto driver in Baasha which was released several years back. Let us hope that, the ‘Ilayathalapathy’ succeeds in his next venture and the film lives up to the expectations of the audience."

Okay. So he is an auto driver. That is so innovative! So what if Rajini played a similar role? I bet the bracelet in his hand didn't just spring up when he clenched his fingers. See now that's what I call improvisation. Not stopping there, he took the initiative to 'fine-tune' his performance. Seriously, guys. Is there anybody else with so much dedication and thirst to better themselves every time?

For example, consider his hairstyle in the Chinna Thamarai song. It's so completely different from what he has done so far. I think that deserves special mention. I mean, just imagine the amount of effort he must have put in to wear that wig. So what if mails were circulated saying the world would end before 2012 with his pictures. The look 'rocks'! :P




















Surprisingly, when I started out with this post, I was image-hunting for pics with his 'new look', and I found none as part of the movie stills! So, please bear with the poor quality of this TV-photo version that I found online. Interesting, actually. I wonder if the film crew knew how extraordinary this look is and purposefully omitted it from the stills so that nobody copies it. :P

Oh, and how can I forget the Vastrakala look?? How innovative of the costume designer to use it in a shirt, and how valiant of our Ilaya Thalapathi to sport it! And of course, the bit where he is half woman and half man. So authentic! In spite of the plait being shown so obviously even after he turns to his 'manly' side, I swear! I wonder if Anushka's costumes glitter as much as his. Which brings me to her place in the movie. I feel that she is a very pretty lass and has much more potential than to come at regular intervals for eye-locking scenes and duets in sets and foreign locales.

Which, in turn, brings me to the music. Vijay Anthony. Man, what do I say about you. The songs have been ingeniously copied from Sri Lankan numbers (as usual :P. IRAJ-Bambara Pattikka). They are hummable, though. I give that to him. You know, if you're looking for a different career opportunity and make big money at the same time, maybe you can do a research on music from different parts of the world, claim yourself to be a music director, and package it off here. And, voila! There's your claim to fame! And the lyrics... absolutely amazing. Check this out - 'If I hit you can't bear it, you can't sleep for four months. Collide with me, you won't reach home' (Nan adicha thanga matta... :P). Well, for a person who is pretty good at math, the 4-month calculation defeats me. Maybe it's something to do with biology. And I don't get how he won't reach home either. I should probably take it as he would be beaten too much into a pulp to take even a bus or auto. :-\

Vijay is known for his ability to dance well, unlike a few other actors. Come to think of it, that's probably his USP. But for some reason, he keeps falling down in Oru Chinna Thamarai. I realized only after a while that it was part of the choreography! The rest of the choreography is in his usual style. Which makes me want to applaud him for his effort at bravely executing those 'falling' steps in spite of the difficult environmental conditions. He could have hurt himself in those thick bushes and dense grass! :O

Finally, I read somewhere that there is a shot in the movie where he breaks a pillar stone just with his bare hands (So what if Mahesh Babu has already done it. This is with a twist. Don't ask me what, though. :P ). Can you imagine how much of a grit and strength it would require for him to do that! Bet you can't even come close to breaking a brick. Kudos to him for that!

Just think about it. Portraying the role of a simple lad who comes from a village to the city to fulfill his dreams, who can tolerate nothing but justice, who would do anything (even have his bracelet ride up his arm and break a pillar) just so he catches that bad guy, who thus far was dreaded throughout the city, only to be single-handedly wiped out by our hero. And not just him, mind you. His entire clan!

He has done it again! Literally! Where else would you find such amazing acting prowess?

Screw the insurance, I say. :P

To A Friendship, That Lasts Forever…

‘Minissha Lamba has gotten a nose job! And she looks terrible’ read the message on my phone from Ramya. I immediately replied asking where she saw it and began switching channels fervently to see the monstrosity.

Effectively, these were the kind of exchanges we had everyday. It didn’t matter if we ate each other’s brains the whole day at office. We would still continue to do so after we reached home. Time wasn’t a factor either. If it had to be told, it had to be told.

And before you look at it as being shallow, I will have you know that we also have regular spiritual and philosophical exchanges. Like what kinds of expletives are permissible at office, whether it is acceptable that her lead leaves early irrespective of the time he comes and she should slog, the brutal reality of Tiger Woods’ and Swami Nityananda’s reputations being slashed and the justice of it all… you see we may not like to broadcast it, but we are indeed much beyond our level and time. :D

We got together when we joined HP at Bangalore. We have been inseparable ever since. Inseparable in spite of our differences. And that is what I think makes it all the more special. Anybody who knew us there would vouch for the fact that we had more arguments than we had civilized conversations. Some of them actually refused to believe that we were even friends, what with us pouncing on each other every chance we got. :P

It hasn’t changed a bit even today. There isn’t a topic we haven’t argued about. But, end of the day, we know in our hearts that nothing would be half as bright without our friendship. Each and every minute is special in its own way.

The arguments led by our differed opinions of what was right, the angry fights because ‘a certain someone’ (read ‘I’ :D ) came half an hour late for a movie, the tickets we sold off at Sathyam and went to roam at City Centre, deciding out off the blue that we wanted to watch a movie, went straight to the theatre and ended up watching ‘Satham Podadhey’ (she had at least heard about it, unlike me. I didn’t even know such a movie had released. :P), planning surprise parties and going around the city hunting for gifts for some close buddies, the ‘relationship’ advices we used to give each other, cursing about anything and everything, catching up on the latest gossip. The time when we were the only idiots laughing our heads off when our bus to Bangalore skid off the road and landed in a pit… there is no end to all the stuff we did, and this post is definitely not enough. :)

Now, that special friend is getting married. It has been a long struggle, but she is finally about to succeed in tying the knots with the person she loves. It is going to be the happiest day yet in both our lives. I have been joking about it, pretending at times to even forget the date, pulling her legs about a lot of things… all the while hoping and praying that it turns out to be the perfect day of her life.

My old room-mate in Bangalore used to say I’m weird ‘cos I never cried when my mom used to come and visit me there. My mom used to cry her eyes out every time she left and I just used to stand there in an awkward manner. Whether it was a crime or not, that’s how I’ve been, never really attached to anyone or anything too much. I have never felt homesickness. I cried a little when a close friend of mine got married two years back, but never bawled or made a big deal about it. In some ways, I was thinking that was how it would be now too.

Well, I was in for a surprise. Yesterday, after collecting our blouses, we went to Landmark on an impulse. Neither of us had an agenda (as usual), and we had good fun (as usual). After I dropped her home, all of a sudden this weird feeling started building up inside. By the time I reached home, the reality of the fact that she was getting married crashed in and started sinking in finally. Looking at it outwardly, it was just like other weddings, something that was bound to happen one time or the other, to both of us in fact. But deep down, I knew things were going to change. Even if not all, definitely quite a few. Before I knew it, I was crying, the tears similar to that of a bride. She does not cry because she got married. She cries because she is going to be giving up on a huge part of her life that she would miss sorely. As I would…

For one, I am not going to be able to message her at 1 in the morning saying I was crying my eyes out watching ‘P.S. I Love You’. We were not going to be able to just announce at home we are going out and march out of the house. We were not going to be able to call each other at midnight to exclaim about somebody’s updated Orkut or Facebook album. Many, many things…

It may seem inconsequential, but actually, these are the small moments that make the whole time worthwhile. Not everything has to be made up of great, huge things. It’s the beauty of these small moments that makes it more precious.

We are not cutting ties for life. We are going to continue being friends. We are going to keep meeting, maybe less frequently, but it would be worth it. It’s just about the time needed to adjust to the changes. We all move with the tide that life takes us on. It’s how much we retain in spite of the flow that matters. It makes the entire ride eventful.

Rums, I hope and pray that you have the most wonderful wedding and the happiest life after that. I know you deserve it. I will be there for you anytime you need me, be it when am 50 at 2 in the morning, it doesn’t matter. A good friend is not one who nods their head just to make you feel better. It’s one who looks at your face, looks into your eyes and says that, that shade of eye-shadow is horrible. You are all that, and more to me.

I hope I was half that to you, in spite of all those occasional screw-ups. :)

Now and forever, love you. :)