Fidgety Foots

According to this line by the Times of India, “The state will not receive much rainfall after the month of November, which will reduce drastically”.

Watched this movie tonight.

It is set in Vietnam, the story simple, Cinderella-like.

The story was old and boring, but the telling…it was exquisite, with sensuous visuals, music and sound. Like meditation, effortless and aware.

CYA spiel - Some may find this boring, please don’t yell at me if you do. The acting is so-so, but the production more than makes up for it.

Just finished reading ‘Persepolis’, the story of a girl’s childhood in Iran.

Education and recognition flowed through my reading. I learned of Islamic revolution while the nitty-gritty of living in a crowded, economically stratified third world country resonated.

I was reminded of who I was, who I am, why I became. Wondered what would have become had I grown up as Marji.

‘iatus = period when something (as a program or activity) is suspended or interrupted (Merriam-Webster).

I just wanted to say hello, sorry for not posting in so long. The last two weeks have been tumultous, but I didn’t have an excuse to be lazy before that.

I spent the last week reading “Shantaram” by Gregory David Roberts. It’s definitely worth a read. The writing is campy, but the breadth of the author’s experience makes it a very good book. You know what they (I) say…you can’t ruin a good story by bad narration. I hate spoilers, so I will say no more.

P.S. Vindo, comment maadi.

Today, we watched the new Don. Yes, you can continue reading this post, no spoilers here. The movie was alright - very stylized and slick with an unexpected twist at the end…but I still wouldn’t rate it as theatre-worthy, wait and watch it on DVD. And no one, no one! can do Khaiyke Paan Banaras Wala like the big B.

I also realized that I can’t tell the difference between John Abraham and Arjun Rampal. Is that bad? Judge for yourself before you “gasp!…how can you?…..”.

Confucion says - “hunky man looks all same”.

They may be said to have no salary at all, for what remains of the miserable pittance, after deducting the expense of paper, pens and ink, is swallowed up by the premium paid to cover the risk of their surety, and this is the obligation of the furnished security, which is intended to form an addtional safeguard against malaversion, only imposes upon them a stronger necessity to have recourse to corrupt practices for their sustenance.
- Comment by an English observer on the state of the British government in India during the early 1800s

I’m reading “The Great Hedge of India ” by Roy Moxham. The book talks of a British customs barrier 2300 miles long that was edged by a hedge (I rhyme, I rhyme!) and contains excerpts from the diaries and manuals of many British officers as well as scripts from the local rulers. The sentence above is one of those excerpts.

At least the words in it are different, unlike this sentence.

Read the Satanic Verses last month. The book is about freedoms - personal, political and societal. What the fatwa is wrong with that? I didn’t see anything in it that warranted author execution (this is subject matter for a rant, so I’ll leave it at that).

Here’s an excerpt from the book.

The real language problem: how to bend it and shape it, how to let it be our freedom, how to reposses its poisoned wells, how to master the river of words of time and blood…
[...]
Language is courage: the ability to conceive a thought, to speak it, and by doing so to make it true.

And I thought language was limiting! Maybe if I could express myself like him I wouldn’t think so….***sigh!***

No spoilers in this review. I’m not saying what the novel is about, except that it features an undertaker’s wife.

Thanks to the Fremont Public Library, I’ve been on an East-asian author binge for the better part of the year. If you read a lot of EA novels or blogs, you notice that we of the Indian subcontinent are wordy. We will describe feelings and events in great metaphorical and allegorical detail. I like that style of prose….it draws one into the characters. (see? Wordy. I could’ve dispensed with this entire para.)

Reading this one was VERY different. Estleman is given to bland, matter-of-fact statements. Big events are described with clinical brevity. Discovery of the love of a lifetime is dealt with in a page and a half. An extra-marital affair and the attending guilt in three paragraphs. And yet he manages to create a sense of the characters, the ethos, the period in which this story unfolds. Very delicately, you’re sucked into the story and its people.

It’s a serious tale about a serious time, so don’t read this for giggles. Do read this for the narration and the construction.

Verdict: Fabulous. I think I have to buy this one.