No More 20s .....

I started writing this one with a dilemma . Whats should be the Title ?  'Turning 30' or 'No more 20s' . First one reflects assurance and sense of direction. Where else the second one is nostalgic and gives a sense of  mourning of the old days.

Nostalgia comes easy to me. And I do find occasions to feel nostalgic. Brings a distant sense of pleasure and relief to me. And this occasion is something special as I turn 30 !!!

30 Years !!!

Almost half of one's life. By this time the previous generation, including my Father, was happily married with 2-3 kids. But I am still unmarried and hence kids are out of questions. Not sure what kind of feeling I should have. Happy that I have survived, excelled or managed to stay float ??  Majority of my friends would be experiencing the same feeling during this year or may be next year. The little ones would have to wait for another 2-3 years .

My 20s, like most people, started in college. College, Hostels, Teachers, Classes, Assignments, Books, Projects, Grades, Festivals, Cricket, Movies, Crushes, Many friends, some close some distant. And lots of memorable moments. Have fond memories of the birthday celebrations back in AMU Hostel and the parties at 'Centre Point' restaurants. Life moved fast. HCL, Noida, Gurgaon, New York, More Friends, more moments to cherish. 

Will it be just another day, just another year ? Honesty I don't know. Neither I do get any signs like wise men do. Not sure that how much things will change from tomorrow but one thing is sure I wont be '20 Something' ever in my life....... again.

Men never grow old. Thats what I have heard. They always have fun. Kind of a true notion. But loosing hairs and gaining weight with age doesn't help in having fun. 20s are crazy. People get naughty in 40s. Never heard what wise men said about 30s.

How good were these 30 years? What different could have I done? What have I achieved so far ? Any regrets? Questions keep pouring to your mind once you start the introspection. I wish I could have answered 'No' to the last one.

Wishing for a better tomorrow !!!

Goodbye 20s !!!

Classic Bollywood Posters

Good old days. Hand painted posters, full of colors.  when the size of an actor’s face on the poster directly reflected his prominence and stardom.

Sharing some of the vintage Bollywood posters.

Movie Review : Kahaani

It's an exciting experience when a Bollywood movie entertains you without a single song and dance sequence. Kahaani falls into that category. A well made thriller with a believable screenplay and without any HiFi Hollywoodish Gadgets and exaggerated action sequence.

Credit should go to the Director and the Cameraman for creating such an ambience for the story-line. Kolkata has been has been captured in the same light as Slumdog Millionaire captured Mumbai. The not so bright side. And it makes an impact.

The director takes the liberty of 'absence of any superstar' to create solid characters. One of the most interesting is the character of the contract killer. You will like him.

Credit should also go to Vidya Balan for making everyone notice that actresses in Bollywood can have more to do than just be a romantic link to super powerful Hero and observe Karwa Chauth for that superhero. Back to Back superb performances. Paa, Ishikiya,No One Killed Jessica, The Dirty Picture and now Kahaani. A female Aamir Khan in making.

One of the very taut thriller in long time from Bollywood. Realistic, Original and never goes over the top. The investigation unfolds in the way our good old Byomkesh Bakshi would have done it. And suspense is successfully maintained till the end.

Not to be Missed !!

The Great Wall Of India : Rahul Dravid

One of the emotional cricketing moment for me since I started following Cricket Religiously. It started in the Summers of 1996 and Dravid retires in the Winters in 2012.

Many people walk into your life but few leave foot prints. Dravid was one of them. Its hard to see those people leave, with whom you have grown up in life. Dravid's career consided with my growth from a Teenager to the Man I am now. Full of high and lows. But moments to cherish for.

Dravid, along with his peers Sachin, Ganguly & Laxman, has given our generation some of the lasting memories in Cricket. Nothing can replace the sight of Ganguly taking his shirt off at Lords after that famous win, Sachin hitting Six of Shoaib Akhtar in that World Cup mactch in 2003 , Laxman playing that knock from heaven at Eden Gardens and Dravid raising his arms in the middle of the Pitch at Adelaide in 2003.

The T20 Generation will never the know worth of Rahul Dravid.

If it wasn't for the injury of Sanjay Manjerakar and Temper of Sidhu, we wouldn't have seen Dravid debut at Lords with that fluent 95. When he came on the scene in that summer of 1996, he was soon crowned the title of 'The Wall'. Back in late 90s one of the media person asked how it feel to be called  'The Wall', and he replied "I don't mind it but I know someday same people will write that they see cracks in the The Wall". He was right.

"I have failed at times, but I have never stopped trying. It is why I leave with sadness but also with pride".


Often overshadowed by his dynamic peers, what made him special was his selfless approach to the game. Always giving himself to the Team's demands. Be it keeping wickets in ODIs, opening the innings in difficult conditions, resigning as Captain after 2007 World Cup debacle, declaring the team inning with Sachin at 194 not out and now retiring from the game when he feels that younger generation should take lead.

In his famous speech at Bradman Oration he said "One of the things that has always lifted me as a player is looking out of the team bus when we travelled somewhere in India. When people see the Indian bus going by, see some of us sitting with our curtains drawn back, it always amazes me how much they light up. There is an instantaneous smile, directed not just at the player they see - but at the game we play that, for whatever reason, means something to people's lives".

I wish I was there at the Press Conference to wish him Goodbye , with a smile.