Sometimes..

even the most perfect of occasions, the most perfect of people, or the most perfect of relationships, hardly ever have a name or a timeframe. Or even a suitable title or definition. Or any degree of perfection. Or a definitive set of emotions associated with it.

Sometimes .. even the most perfect of things .. are quite simply understated and unsaid. And they just might not last all that long. And while one would crave to have the feeling last forever, one could find solace in respecting the fact that maybe those few instants of time .. were all that were meant to be experienced.

Sometimes ... there are no right decisions or correct answers.

And that's just how it is.

Hindi Acoustic Rock, done right

There have been rock bands. There have been legendary Pakistani rock bands - that's one sect that has really got this genre down.

Then, there have been Indian rock bands - or a significant lacuna thereof (for the record, Euphoria and Indian Ocean aren't rock bands). For a nation with a college culture that swears by Sabbath and Sepultura, it still hasn't produced a decent rock band of repute.

This acoustic track from Rock On! is quite a solid attempt though. Enjoy!

Wah, Javed Saab

Aankhen unko kahoon ya koi khwaab hain.
Aankhen neechi hui to haya ban gayi
Aankhen oonchi hui to duaa ban gayi
Aankhen utth kar jhuki to adaa ban gayi
Aankhen jhukh kar uththi, to khata ban gayi.

- Afreen Afreen (Sangam, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and Javed Akhtar)

The Way I "Are"? It's The Way I "Am", dude!

Nice!

Dubai detains 79 for indecent behavior on beaches - Yahoo! News

Dubai detains 79 for indecent behavior on beaches - Yahoo! News

Could this be a case of breeding the wolf till it comes back to bite you? To quote a befuddled tourist at the end of it, "I understand that I have to respect the rules of the country," said John MacLean, a British tourist on holiday with his girlfriend. But, he added, "I am not sure if I can kiss her or touch her in public."

Lost in Translation

Wikipedia has "Dum Maro Dum" listed with its translation as, "Take Another Toke".

Way to assassinate the so-far sublime promotion of 1970s religious drug use, Wiki.

Twisted Moralities

Such is the theme of "In Bruges" - a film that is Tarantino meets Mathew Vaughn on acid. Not since Layer Cake has a film engendered such a riveting sarc-comedy about the world of hit-men. The humor is dark, and the script is almost comic book-ish in its twisted madness (there's a coke-fiend dwarf moviestar, and this is not science fiction), centered around three stellar performances - Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson and Ralph Fiennes, to the backdrop of Bruges, a quaint Belgian village.

Bruges becomes synonymous to purgatory as you get into the meat of the movie, and realize that there is penitence that each character carries. And quite like life, even though the end may seem warped to many, without any form of justification, its time to accept that, even in the non-contract-killing world, that's pretty much how things are.

Montages...

... make it all look so easy and quick.

I tried to clean up a room, supported by "Eye of the Tiger". It takes FOREVER, no matter how many camera angles you try to simulate. Also, tried studying in various positions with quick changes of serious expressions, around the room, while "The Final Countdown" played in the background. Music's over, and I'm still as clueless as before. Movies fake it up for you!

In other news, maybe I need to stop using cheesy '70s anthems in my montages.

They're back!

Maroon 5. Haven't heard anything powerful from them in a while. And then this little gem comes along. Spotted it in the new 90210 commercial (why does the new team look so 'orange'?)

 

Its so Red Hot Chili Peppers in its arrangement. The opening notes sound so much like Californication and it even has shades of Other Side.

Hottie-Alert!

Move over, Elisha Cuthbert, the mid-year revision of "flavor of the year" is April Bowlby. First spotted as Alan's neurotic ex-wife on Two and a Half Men. Something extremely sensual about that subdued, mature look that she has.

In other news, I was only kidding, Elisha. You can stay too.

Most Non-Photogenic Prez

I could come up with a bevy of snappy captions for each picture in this G8 summit slideshow - with Bush looking goofier than holy hell. I just have no patience or inclination for Bush-bashing, anymore.

Alright fine .. just one.

"I'm so environmental y'all .. even my thought bubble is eco-friendly".

"Check it out check it out. Condy taught me how to moonwalk"

"C'maaaaaaaaaan ........ C'maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!"

"Boo-yah!"

"Must ... stay ... away ... from ... grass! ... Got ... into ... enough ... trouble ... cuz of .... grass"

"Something in your eye, commie"

"Something in your hair, Angie"

"I just spent all afternoon picking stuff off world leaders. I have freaking arrived"

"Don't make fun of Meddy's blue suit. Don't make fun of the blue suit. Learn to live with the blue suit ... don't kick off another Cold War, Dubya ... Just 6 more months and you're out of the House ... Don't screw up. Yes its blue .. I know ... "

"Oh .. say ... can you seeeeee"

"Hey... you're short" 

"Short, stocky, bald Algerian men give me goosebumps"

"Walk like an Egyptian.... with trailer park tootsie in tow"

"Solutions to the world's economic crisis? Dang, I came for the free sashimi, y'all"

Uber Edgy

Remember the zany "frozen railroad" project around Grand Central Terminal, a few months ago - this is the same team, Improv Everywhere, and way so much cooler.

 

 

In other news, "Singh is Kinng" review up.

Role Reversal

He cracked him! 7+ hours in the longest championship tennis match in history - and Majorcan, Rafael Nadal, finally broke the Wimbledon spell, beating Roger Federer to bring home the trophy.

6-4, 6-4, 6-7, 6-7, 9-7

Beyond the brilliant tennis, the respectful rivalry between the two is a sign of true sportsmanship.

A Fresh New Sound

A beautiful, atypical and intricate chord structure supports Khuda Jaane - an awesome, metro-track from the world of Vishal-Shekhar, from the OST of Siddharth Anand's Bachna Ae Haseeno (Ranbir Kapoor, Deepika Padukone, Bipasha Basu, Minnisha Lamba). 

Now that's an arrangement! Its one of those passive-aggressive compositions, which have this latent, subdued energy especially in the "Khuda Jaane Ke" chorus. Also, Ranbir and Deepika look stunning in the song's video - as do the eye-caressing locations.

P.S. Something about this song reminds me of the music of Aankhen (2002) - especially the track, Kuch Kasme. Must be the chords.

Hilarious!

Nick Thune plays out this well-written stand-up set about instant messaging and chat rooms, back in the day when the internet had just booted up.

Can't all we "Trumpet Winsock", 28.8 Kbps, "Eudora" enthusiasts from the 90s, relate to this?

Remix-and-a-half

And while we're on the subject of Leslie Lewis, Ghoongta was one helluva dance track. The video sucks, but the song is a pretty decent definition of India's urban nightlife.

Mode: Laid back

Kismat Konnection review is up.

Take it away, Lezz.

Bheegi Bheegi Raaton Mein - Leslie Lewis

In other news, can someone please kill the Six Flags "More flags more fun" guy?

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

"Anytime she goes away..."

Ain't No Sunshine: One of the most "covered" songs in history, and one of my all time favorites. Withers composed this back in '71 while he designed toilet seats for jumbo jets. Apparently he still had to write lyrics for the part where he repeats "I know I know" 26 times, but he decided to leave it just as it was. Amazing.

The Jackson 5 version (lead vocals by Michael)

The Stryke version (Azul Project) - from Challe's Nirvana Lounge

David Sanborn (featuring Sting)

Kenny Rogers

Eva Cassidy

And yet nothing like original. Take it away, Mr. Bill Withers.

I guess some melodies are timeless - no matter how you sing it.

Lines that stick

"Afterward, the seven hundred people in the boats had nothing to do but wait. Wait to die, wait to live, wait for an absolution that would never come" - Rose Dawson (Titanic, 1997)

This line was clearly written with a lot of forethought and emotion. Plenty of times when one feels this way. Lack of absolution. Even when you're hopeful, and even after the clarity appears. Absolution is something that honestly .. never comes.

Dear God!

Will the madness ever end?

More on "Squiggly Lines"

Here you go, Stewie.

They are known as "floaters" or "benign floaters" or "vitreous floaters": A blurry spot that seems to drift in front of the eyes but does not block vision. The blur is the result of debris from the vitreous of the eye casting a shadow on the retina.  We call them "Squiggly Lines"!

Lakshmi Mittal joins Goldman Sachs' board

NDTV, July 1, 2008: Lakshmi N. Mittal, world steel tycoon based in England, has joined the board of directors of Goldman Sachs Group Inc, one of the oldest and largest investment banking firms headquartered here.

Mittal, the chairman and chief executive of the world's largest steelmaker ArcelorMittal, joined Goldman's 12-member board Saturday as an independent director, the Wall Street firm said in a press release Sunday.

Goldman Sachs's board announced that Mittal will serve on the audit, compensation, corporate governance and nominating committees of the board.

He and his family together own over 43 percent of ArcelorMittal, which accounts for about 10 percent of the world's total steel output.

India born Mittal, 58, who settled in London n 1995, is Britain's wealthiest man and fourth richest person in the world with a personal fortune of $45 billion, according to Forbes magazine.

Lloyd C. Blankfein, chairman and CEO of Goldman, said: "Lakshmi Mittal has reshaped a global industry and, in the process, has engineered new modes of production, identified unrealised value and sparked remarkable growth."

"He has a keen understanding of the global economy, having operated in virtually every corner of the world. Lakshmi's experience, judgment and independent thinking represent an important addition to our board of directors, and will be of tremendous value to our people, our shareholders and our clients," Blankfein added.

Mittal, a B.Com from St. Xavier's College in Kolkata, founded Mittal Steel Company in 1976. The company acquired Arcelor S.A. to form ArcelorMittal in 2006.

For his outstanding business achievements, Mittal has received many honours and awards, including Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian honour. He was presented with a Fellowship from King's College London in 2007. The same year he received the Dwight D. Eisenhower Global Leadership Award and the Grand Cross of Civil Merit from Spain.

Founded in 1869, Goldman Sachs is a leading global investment banking, securities and investment management firm that provides a wide range of services worldwide to a substantial and diversified client base that includes corporations, financial institutions, governments and high net worth individuals.

Mittal is the second Indian on the board after Rajat Gupta, a senior partner at Mckinsey. Mittal is also a director of India's ICICI Bank and aerospace company EADS.

Interestingly, Mittal has also been on the international advisory board of one of Goldman's arch-rivals, Citigroup, but no longer holds this post.

Ogle at "Ooogle"

Satyapaul's latest.

I have no words.