My jab at poetry

The Goddess

Deep in the forest of the Evergreen Trees;
Far, far away in the unseen distance
Her ageless, unceasing, lonesome vigil
The lady keepeth: fairest moonbeams dance
About her shadowy skirts: above her swell
sentinels of ancient oak and elm;
From many a dolorous frog and sleepy cricket
a ceaseless chatter, in vain,
struggles to awaken the slumbering green.
There she hath stood for ages, and will wait
weeping, perhaps for glory days long past,
until time takes pity and wears her down
when by no living soul to be seen
with a small sigh shall she crumble to dust



Okay, first of all I know nothing about poetry. I have no clue about meter or rhyme. Rhythm and splitting verses in to syllables only gives me a headache. So, I had a brainwave. Why not use an existing poem as a template and kinda replace the words and bring in a certain mood. So, I pulled up the smallest poem I could remember and tried it. The result of the barefaced plagarism was the stanza above. It was fabulous how it all came together in my mind in the last two verses. It's not a bad effort. But, somehow, unsatisfying. Anyway, here is the original. It's called the Kraken by Lord Tennyson


The Kraken

Below the thunders of the upper deep;
Far far beneath in the abysmal sea,
His ancient, dreamless, uninvaded sleep
The Kraken sleepeth: faintest sunlights flee
About his shadowy sides; above him swell
Huge sponges of millennial growth and height;
And far away into the sickly light,
From many a wondrous grot and secret cell
Unnumber'd and enormous polypi
Winnow with giant arms the slumbering green.
There hath he lain for ages, and will lie
Battening upon huge seaworms in his sleep,
Until the latter fire shall heat the deep;
Then once by man and angels to be seen,
In roaring he shall rise and on the surface die

Dev D

Can the soundtrack of the Album make the movie? Well, if any album can, it would be the monster soundtrack for Dev D. I'm not a big fan of Hindi movies in general and Desi music in particular. But, sometime last year, thanks to one of my colleagues I came across this fabulous album called "Aamir". Every song in this small movie was out of the World. It was so good that the first thing I did was to download the album on my laptop. In fact the only Hindi albums on my iPod are Aamir, Jodha Akbar and Rock on. I love the other two, but, Aamir blew my mind away. I did not catch the name of the Music director at that time. I suppose I thought I this guy was a one hit wonder and did not spend too much mindspace on him, even though I couldn't stop listening to "Ek Lau" from the album at least once every week.
A month or so back, I was browsing the net idly, when I came across this video of a new movie starring Abhay Deol(Who normally looks a little pansy, but, definitely chooses his movies well. A canny actor)The trailer left my mouth agape. The movie seemed to have definite influences of Requiem for a Dream and the premise, a reworking of the Devdas story was definitely good. But, the highlight was the soundtrack "Emosanal Atyachaar". I'd never heard anything like that before. With silly hinglish lyrics combined with definite influences of Elvis(On the visuals as well)and a brass band instrumentation, this song is definitely not a standard bollywood staple.

When I read the review for the soundtrack on Rediff today, I was hooked. I downloaded the Album. 18 Tracks. Despite the Punjabi fillers, this is one of the most creative albums that have come out in recent Bollywood memory. The sheer range and variety of the songs in the album are breath taking. It covers just about the whole gamut(At least the whole Bollywood Gamut) from Rock to Folk to Bhangra(Yeah, I realize that Bhangra is Folk too). Like I said, great work. Is this symptomatic of long awaited influx of serious and original creative spirit in Bollywood? With the amount of money Bollywood has the capacity to generate, it definitely has the potential take the movie-going experience to the next level. This album is a step in the right direction. Be that as it may, after Aamir and this one nobody (Least of all, yours humbly) is going to forget Amit Trivedi's name in a hurry

In Bruges

I started watching "In Bruges" at about 12:30 last night. I was a little too nervy and I thought I would watch for ten minutes before dropping off to sleep.
The next thing I knew, I had a lump in my throat and a rictus-smile on my face and the time was 2:30 am. Yup, this one is a fabulous movie with top notch performances by Colin Farrell, Brendon Gleeson and Ralph Fiennes. But, Colin Farrell was, for me, the revelation in this movie. He plays the over-confident, contrite, inncocent and brash Irish hitman brilliantly. Ralph Fiennes as a menacing London Gangster is awesome as always. His lines, delivered with a truck-load of expletives, are hilarious. They could've shown more of Bruges though. All in all, a brilliant movie. You can watch the movie again just for the accents and the dialogue....

Poetry Picks- III

This poem is by Teresa Cader. I retrieved this from 3 Quarks Daily. This is a wonderful usage of Newton's three Laws of Motion. I do not know enough Poetry to write a critique. So, I'm going to hold back. Let me know if you enjoy it.

Amma's specialities that I miss very badly!

Writing about things which you are nostalgic about is supposed to be catharitic. Well.. let's see how that works out.... Yeah, yeah I'm a mama's boy

10. Kuzhi Appam Or Kuzhi Paniyaram as it is called all over Tamil Nadu. Amma has been making it since, like forever. She makes both the sweet and the karam Variety. I miss the karam variety the most. Soft in the inside and crisp on the outside. I never could restrain myself around this one. Amma usually makes this in the tea time and serves it with molagapodi. The best thing about this is the little pieces of Onion.

9. Chepan Kizhangu Fry is probably not the healthiest food around but, when you have it with sambar, it kicks ass. Golden brown and lightly salted, you can have it separately as well. Although, I should warn you, do not try to eat it immediately after it has been fished out of oil, however fabulous it looks. For one, it hasn't been salted yet. Then, there is a fair chance, you wont be able to speak again for the rest of the day!

8. Mullangi Sambar is another speciality of amma's. The best part about this is that, it goes with just about every curry from Vendekkai to cabbage. The golden mullangi tastes fab. Oh, and amma slices the Mullangi across, so that they form coin shaped pieces. It. Tastes. So. Very. Good. With. Idlis

7. Paruppurundai Sambar is an extremely difficult dish to make by all accounts. The urundai has a tendency to either become very hard or very soft, spoiling the dish completely. Of course, Amma gets it down pat, well, most of the time. On the same note, Parupparacha karamedhu tastes great as well be it Vazhapoo or Paruppusili

6. Vazhakkai Karamedhu is made once just about every single week when I'm in Ranipet. Mom doesn't make it too spicy. Just the right amount of spice and it goes fabulously with any Sambar especially the aforementioned Mullangi Sambar

5. Bread Upma is another tea time snack. Amma makes it with tomatoes, Potato and loads of red chilly powder. When it is very spicy, I love having Bournvita immediately after. The pleasant sting that accompanies the Bournvita is a cherished memory. Best of all, she doesn't use carrot, which totally spoils the taste in my opinion

4. Molagu Kuzhambu is another favourite. Amma usually makes it on Sunday afternoons. It is normally pretty thick and goes amazingly well with Vendakkai Curry(deep fried, obviously) and Arisi Appalam. Appa mixes this on the iluppachetti with rice and serves it. The iluppachetti imaparts that ineffable something that elevates this simple food to greatness. You have to taste it to believe it.

3. Dosai along with idli, is the most common dish in South India. But, the dosais I have at home are somehow above and beyond anything else. My usual count is 4-5. Amma knows I don't care for the crisp Dosais that Badri prefers. I like to be able to fold the dosai and dunk it in to the awesome thengai chutney and the molagai podi without breaking it in to pieces. Amma's Dosais are my favourite breakfast

2. Venn Pongal and Chutney should be made staples on the menu in Heaven if they don't have it on already. When Amma doesn't overcook the Kadugu and the cumin, it tastes like a blessing. The best part about having pongal at home is that, I generally have a second helping at about 10:30 in the morning between breakfast and Lunch, after I've has my fill at about 8:30. The cold chutney with the not-so-warm pongal is something to die for.

1. Urulai Kizhangu is by far my favourite vegetable when Amma's got her hands on it. She makes it two ways either by dicing it in to tiny cubes and frying them over a small flame or the more traditional roasted Alu Jeera sized version, albeit without the Jeera. I love the former and adore the later. The larger version tastes spectacular for lunch with a thick sambar, but it kinda loses out when you have it with curd. The Kutti urlakizhangu Karamedhu on the other hand goes very, very well with curd rice. Badri and I would fill out small davaras with Urulai kizhangu and have them separately.

There are many, many more dishes I'd like to list here. But, considering my manager might walk in any moment and the fact that I can't really come up with more adjectives for great-tasting food means I will stop here....

Over the weekend

This weekend was fabulous. Yeah, I had a miserable cold for most of the weekend, had trouble sleeping, had a very bad throat most of the time , it was freezing outside and I did not venture out at all. Still, the weekend kicked ass because,

1. I finished all five books of Codex Alera by Jim Butcher(Yup, 5 books in 3 days. No, this guy is no Steven Erikson). It is traditional epic fantasy. There is nothing new in terms of story lines and the character building is pedestrian, but, well, you don't read Fantasy for it's innovations in story telling or its literary merit. In terms of pure escapism, this series scores very high. Loads of fun!

2. I saw reruns of Psych. I find this show really funny. It's really surprising how much comedy has evolved here and in Britain(Coupling), whereas in the mainstream Indian media it's still driven by slapstick. This is not to say that the comedy in the US is all intelligent and incisive. It's not. Most of it is bad. But, there are shows like the Daily Show and Southpark which really kick ass. Also, I must say that some of the plays that I saw in Mumbai were really really good. Oh, and Crazy Mohan, is world class...... So is S. Ve. Shekar. But, by and large we suck........

3. I had fabulous Pizzas from Pizza Hut. Yeah, I completely freaked out when I realized I was loading up on calories for about five minutes, after which I decided it was totally worth it. :(

4. I thought really hard about going to the GYM. Although I did not actually go, I believe this is a major step forward. Small steps, friend, small steps

5. I saw Harini Athai on webcam. Although, we have spoken off and on over the phone, It was great to catch a glimpse of Athai(after years and years) and my youngest cousin(For the first time. Although, I was disappointed that she refused to sing!)

6. I saw the first five minutes of Kismat Konnection. It's on this list because, I did not watch the movie beyond the five minutes. Yeah, the movie is that bad!

7. I had Unniyappam. No, I did not make it. It was ready-to-eat.

What am I Reading Now?

Another post on invisible cities

I just noticed. All the cities have female names. So is there another layer of meaning here? Is Marco Polo talking about the women he's met? Some of the names are sheer poetry. Take a look and please, please read the book. I need to rave about it to someone!
The Invisible cities:-
Cities and memory 1: Diomira
Cities and memory 2: Isidora
Cities and desire 1: Dorotea
Cities and memory 3: Zaira
Cities and desire 2: Anastasia
Cities and signs 1: Tamara
Cities and memory 4: Zora
Cities and desire 3: Despina
Cities and signs 2: Zirma
Thin cities 1: Isaura

Cities and memory 5: Maurilia
Cities and desire 4: Fedora
Cities and signs 3: Zoe
Thin cities 2: Zenobia
Trading cities 1: Eufemia

Cities and desire 5: Zobeide
Cities and signs 4: Ipazia
Thin cities 3: Armilla
Trading cities 2: Cloe
Cities and eyes 1: Valdrada

Thin cities 5: Ottavia
Trading cities 4: Ersilia
Cities and eyes 3: Bauci
Cities and names 2: Leandra
Cities and the dead 1: Melania


Trading cities 5: Smeraldina
Cities and eyes 4: Fillide
Cities and names 3: Pirra
Cities and the dead 2: Adelma
Cities and the sky 1: Eudossia

Cities and eyes 5: Moriana
Cities and names 4: Clarice
Cities and the dead 3: Eusapia
Cities and the sky 2: Bersabea
Continuous cities 1: Leonia

Cities and names 5: Irene
Cities and the dead 4: Argia
Cities and the sky 3: Tecla
Continuous cities 2: Trude
Hidden cities 1: Olinda

Cities and the dead 5: Laudomia
Cities and the sky 4: Perinzia
Continuous cities 3: Procopia
Hidden cities 2: Raissa
Cities and the sky 5: Andria
Continuous cities 4: Cecilia
Hidden cities 3: Marozia
Continuous cities 5: Pentesilea
Hidden cities 4: Teodora
Hidden cites 5: Berenice

Desire

My last post on invisible cities, touched off something in me. Italo Calvino is one of my favourite writers and Invisible Cities is my favourite Calvino.
The premise of the book is this- Marco Polo, the greatest traveller of the mediavel world expounds on his travels to Kubla Khan, the Emperor of China. Marco talks about the various cities that he has visited and tries to explain their nature to the Great Khan. However, after a point, the Khan starts describing the cities Marco must've visited.

The following Excerpt is entitled "Cities and Desire 1". I have published the entire section here. Notice how Marco, while ostensibly talking about the particular City Anastasia, is infact talking about the nature of Desire itself. Aren't we all trapped by our desires? Is not Anastasia our Chennai or Bangalore or Mumbai or Delhi or London or New York?

Cities and Desire 1
-------------------
At the end of three days, moving southward, you come upon Anastasia, a city with concentric canals watering it and kites flying over it. I should now list the wares that can profitably be bought here: agate, onyx, chrysoprase, and other varieties of chalcedony; I should praise the flesh of the golden pheasant cooked here over fires of seasoned chery wood and sprinkled with much sweet marjoram; and tell of the women I have seen bathing in the pool of a garden and who sometimes - it is said - invite the stranger to disrobe with them and chase them in the water. But with all this, I would not be telling you the city's true essence; for while the description of Anastasia awakens desires one at a time only to force you to stifle them, when you are in the heart of Anastasia one morning your desires waken all at once and surround you. The city appears to you as a whole where no desire is lost and of which you are a part, and since it enjoys everything you do not enjoy, you can do nothing but inhabit this desire and be content. Such is the power, sometimes called malignant, sometimes benign, that Anastasia, the treacherous city, possesses; if for eight hours a day you work as a cutter of agate, onyx, chrysoprase, your labor which gives form to desire takes from desire its form, and you believe you are enjoying Anastasia wholly when you are only its slave.

Marco Polo and India

After Invisible Cities(Exerpts here), I've developed an interest in Marco Polo, so when I saw this essay, I had to stop and read it. What really shocks me about this article is, how little we have changed in almost a thousand years!