The Magik Of Rock On!!

Contrary to what you might be led to believe, this movie is not about rock music. Well, not just rock music, at any rate. It's about human relationships - friendship, love, ego clashes, drifting apart and getting back together, and it's about going after your dreams. Doing just what your heart prompts you to do. As the tag line says, "Live Your Dream." I loved it all. That's a theme really close to my heart, as you'd have understood by now if you've been following my blog, or even if you just read what I wrote about the title song from this movie in my last post.

I found the essential ingredients here which I need in order to like a movie - being able to laugh with the characters when they laugh, and being able to cry when they do. Farhan did an absolutely hilarious rendition of Saanson Ki Zaroorat Hai Jaise at which we all burst out laughing. I'd like to know why that does not feature in the soundtrack. But all the tracks that do feature in the soundtrack are totally amazing. From the whimsically worded Pichle Saat Dinon Mein and Socha Hai to the deep, meaningful Tum Ho Toh and Phir Dekhiye, all the songs strike a chord with the listeners. They're all very hummable. I'm sure I irritated Aarti and Nidhi at least a little bit when I was singing along with each of the songs. Although neither of them complained the way Sumit always does when I do this to him. The way he did when he wrote me a testimonial on orkut.

The movie is distinctly reminiscent of Dil Chahta Hai and Jhankaar Beats, both of which are among my firm favourites which I've seen dozens of times over. Even so, it has a distinct appeal that is all its own. It tells you stuff that you already know, but it does it in a way in which you like hearing it again. The story is really predictable in most parts, but it still keeps you interested. Towards the end, at the second talent hunt where the four lead characters entered their band, Magik, I could tell that Farhan was going to sing Tum Ho Toh on stage, but I still got all misty-eyed when he started. Everybody could tell that Arjun Rampal would eventually come and join the rest of the gang on the stage, but we were still moved when he actually did.

Lovely movie. Teaches you stuff about being friends. About staying friends. About living your life to the fullest. The way you want to. Doing exactly what your heart desires. Keeping track of the important stuff in your life, in your relationships, and letting go of the trivial stuff.

Interesting incident that happened to us during the security check at the entry point. I'd gone with three female friends. (Interestingly, the four of us have known each of the other three for a significant period of time but never before have all of us been in the same place at the same time.) The woman who was performing the security check pointed out that it seemed as if only girls were coming to watch this movie. She asked if it was meant only for girls.

Well, we'd considered the Bachna Ae Haseeno option as well. But isn't it pretty obvious that we should be more interested in four hot hunks than three sultry babes? I watched Purab Kohli in his debut movie and have found him really cute ever since. And Arjun Rampal is obviously a heart throb. Farhan Akhtar has a distinctive appeal. Not to mention that he makes terrific movies, barring the Don debacle, which I could never manage to sit through for more than ten minutes at a time.

Oh, and at the end of the movie, when the closing credits roll, they say, "Don’t download the music, buy the CD." It's worth it. I'd already downloaded it a while back, but I'm still thinking of buying the CD. I'll probably also lay my hands on Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na while I'm at it.

More Lines From Songs That I Totally Love

This is a follow up to Some Lines From Songs That I Totally Love.

From It Is You (I Have Loved) by Dana Glover from the Shrek soundtrack

It's no more mystery
It is finally clear to me
You're the home my heart searched for so long
And it is you I have loved all along


From Jab Samne Tum by Jagjit Singh and Asha Bhonsle

Hum koi waqt nahin hain humdum
Jab bulaaoge chale aayenge


Mehfuz by Euphoria. This song is very special to me and I love every line, every word, but here is an extract:

Faasle they hazaaron darmiyan
Waqt ke they hazaaron imtehaan
Fir bhi ban ke nishaan
Tere honthon ke kisi kone mein
Hansi ki tarah
Main mehfuz hoon
Teri aankhon ke chipe dard mein
Aansoo ki tarah
Main mehfuz hoon


When You Say Nothing At All by Ronan Keating. Some of the most romantic lines I have ever come across.

The smile on your face
Lets me know that you need me
There's a truth in your eyes
Saying you'll never leave me
The touch of your hand says
You'll catch me whenever I fall


Subah Ho Gayi Mamu from Munnabhai MBBS. Lovely thought about wanting to see other people happy.

Kaise hanste jaayen jab koi rota hai
Kisi ka dil jo tode kaise vo sota hai


Title song from Rock On!! I like the thought expressed here. Like I keep saying, I have dreams that I did not go after. But I think we all should. If there's something you really want to do, do it now. Don't live with the regret of not even trying.

Jaise jeene ko dil chahe
Jee waise tu
Meri toh hai bas ye raaye ki
Apne jitne bhi armaan hain
Poore karle tu


Rabba from Musafir

Zindagi mein koyi kabhi aaye na rabba
Aaye jo koyi toh phir jaaye na rabba
Dene ho gar mujhe baad mein aansoo
To pehele koyi hasaaye na rabba

Accidents Like Love And Marriage

This title is stolen from a novel that I recently read. This post is not about that novel, just a little similar in theme. By the way, for those of you who constantly cringe about the colour of my media player and/or blog, this particular book has a shockingly bright pink cover.

Coming to what I had in mind for this post, it's quite strange, the way romantic relationships function. There are those of us who have a well formed image in mind, find someone completely different from that image, and realize that that person was better suited for them than what they thought they wanted. And then there are those who find someone who fits the image perfectly, and realize that the image wasn't so perfect after all. They make mistakes, end up getting hurt, fall, get up on their feet again, and go and make the same mistakes all over again. There are a few lucky ones who find exactly what they needed in their first attempt and end up happy.

I was, until pretty recently, one of those confused people who did not have an image of what I needed or wanted from a partner. When the image began to form, it was quite fuzzy at first. The clearer it became, the clearer it made to me that I was hoping for too much and I wasn't going to find what I wanted too easily.

So, what is the alternative here? An arranged marriage? I am terrified of the very idea. As a dear friend of mine always says, it's like jumping off a cliff. She's right to a large extent. It's a huge step into uncharted territory. I think it makes a lot more sense to marry a friend whom I know, like to a reasonable extent, but possibly do not love in a romantic way. That way, you're still walking about in unfamiliar territory, but you have a map. But then again, doing something like that comes with its own set of complications. But again, what relationship comes without a set of complications? Some food for thought here...

Mirror, Mirror On The Wall, Who's The Fairest Of Us All?

These days I've been reading a lot less than I used to, a few years ago. There are a number of reasons for that, which are not part of what this post is intended to be about. But, from time to time, I do try to pick up a novel, or, an issue of Reader's Digest or Femina, both of which I used to read regularly a while back.

So recently I picked up an issue of Femina. I saw they were doing a feature on the 50 Most Beautiful Women. It's on their site too. They want their readers to vote for their ten favourites from a list of hundred women that their team came up with. This is a women's magazine which has been airing feminist views for about fifty years now. I fail to understand how they can be so shallow as to run a feature of this sort, and attempt to make it an annual event too. This is the second year that they are doing this. This is the same magazine that ran a feature, a few years back, on how shallow we all are, how obsessed with appearances, how, in spite of how lovely we find Kajol, Bipasha and Rekha, we'll still look for a "very fair" girl when we go looking for a bride. How can the same people actually encourage their readers to judge women based on appearances? Every woman is special. In her own unique way. Every woman is beautiful in her own right. And we all need to reminded of this fact once in while. We all need to be told that we are unique, that we have a place in the scheme of things which nobody else can take. We don't want to be told that we are less beautiful than Aishwarya Rai-Bachchan, or fatter than Sushmita Sen, or darker than Kareena Kapoor. Because there may be a dozen qualities that we have and they don't. We need someone who appreciates us for those qualities, and reminds us that we are wonderful people because of those qualities.

Zindagi Ki Raahon Mein Aap Mile Is Tarah

Zindagi ki raahon mein aap mile is tarah
Ki hamaare hoton ki muskaan ban gaye
Har lamhe mein samaa gaye is qadar
Kabhi hamara dil kabhi jaan ban gaye
Dil ki dhadkanein aapko dekh kar qayam thi
Aur phir aap is dil se anjaan ban gaye

Khwaab Ban Ke Kabhi...

Khwaab ban ke kabhi in aankhon mein samaa jaate ho
Aur neendein udaa le jaate ho kabhi
Kabhi muskuraane ki wajah ban jaate ho
Aankhon mein aansoo de jaate ho kabhi

Dil mein aap is qadar samaaye ho
Zindagi ka hissa ban jaao kabhi
Aapse hum mohobbat na karein to kya karein
Ye humein aap bata jaao kabhi

This Is For You, Sumit

Sumit is one of my dearest friends ever. Today I am missing him for an odd reason - for the first time since I started going out with friends for movies, I watched one today which was a major disaster and Sumit was not one of the friends I watched it with. Well, actually, there was also the Bhagam Bhag fiasco, but that one was on Sumit's birthday so that does account for some influence.

Sumit is one guy who is known among all his friends for meeting with misadventure after misadventure (kela, as he calls it). If I were supposed to fly and I missed my flight, that would be a significantly catastrophic occurrence. If the same thing happened to him, it would probably be written off as just another day. By the way, I just looked up 'disaster' on thesaurus.reference.com in order to avoid using the same word a dozen times in one post. Because it is a word closely connected to the subject of this post.

I just randomly remembered the time when Sumit told me that he bugged his colleagues on a particular day by playing Tu Jahaan from Salaam Namaste in a loop, all day long. I love that song, but until quite recently I just could not get how somebody could listen to a single song all day and not feel sick of it. Right now it's playing on my media player on repeat.

I could also never get how somebody could house a zillion black shirts in his wardrobe and not get sick of wearing the same colour to every wedding, every flight, every tragic movie watching experience, and every non-tragic movie watching experience. Sumit actually has an inordinately large collection of black shirts, most of which are jet black, except perhaps a sweatshirt which is black but has some squiggles on it which remotely resemble a frog. There was a time when Aditi and I tried to make him wear a bright red kurta, but to no avail.

Okay, enough leg pulling. Sumit is one friend who's always been there for me whenever I've felt low and needed cheering up. Whenever I've needed a guy's perspective on something. Whenever I've needed a sensible, objective perspective on something. Whenever I just needed a friend and didn't really know why. Or didn't really know whom to call. Or mail. I love writing to him, and correcting the grammar and spelling in the replies he writes. The habit of correcting grammar is not as prominent these days as it was when we were in school or college, but it's still there.

I could probably go on and on if I decide to put down all the good stuff about Sumit. But I'm in more of a mischievous mood right now.

This evening I was trying to remember the first movie that Sumit made us watch that turned out to be a major debacle. I just remembered that insane movie. It was the first movie I watched with my friends from school. But you know, it's the debacles that remain firmly etched in our minds and give us something to smile or laugh about every time we think of how frustrated we were when we were trying to sit through the movie. The ones that turn out to be nice are not remembered quite as fondly, or quite as often.

Lots of beautiful memories to choose from. Lots of great things to miss. Thanks for being the terrific friend that you've always been. Love you dude. Always have, always will.