The Middle Ground

Is there anything more wonderful than biting deep into a huge slice of some delightful chocolate trufle pastry? The taste of thick frozen dark chocolate melting in your mouth,ah! Well I did just that yesterday while watching the beautiful movie 'A Good Year' for the second time. It is sad that, these days, we have had to compromise on so many noble values in our journey to become the most 'whatever-fits' creation on earth. Gone are those days when, little children lived with doting grandparents.To live with somebody who thinks the world of you, who believes that there could be no one brighter or better than you, who knows for certain that you alone will become the richest, most sought after person, someday in the future, can do magic for a child.To have somebody around who is proud of you, because you are the way you are, can be the driving force behind your success, in every walk of your life. To have found such a person, would be like having God as ...

I found this as I was leafing through an old diary. At that time I was a paying guest for a Tamilian family, in Murichur Road, Tambaram. Deeksha was the land-lady's 7-yr-old daughter. "I am constantly surprised, how the world expects, two people with two completely different brain orientations, to react in similar manner to a given stimuli.We set general standards like 'IQ' to test all people, when 'IQ' essentially is a measure of one's left-brain capacity. The reason I have so much fun teaching 7-yr old Deeku is because of the weird reactions that she gives while doing her homework.'Deeksha! M and not W. b, not d.',  I often find myself reprimanding. 'Enna Kodumai ithu!'she mutters, irritated. Our curriculum has very few arrangements for right-brained or dyslexic children. Multiplication tables, force, motion, machines, arduous hours of mugging up may not be Deeku's cup of tea but she excels in extra curricular activitie...

Weekend lurks around the corner. If you are a movie buff you might want to see one of these off-beat movies. Everybody says I am fine : Rahul Bose, Rehan Engineer, Koel Purie A hairstylist in a professional unisex salon has a bizarre ability. He can read whats going on in this client's head while cutting his hair! A sardonic portrayal of how different lives are interwoven in the upper echelons of the Indian society. Rahul Bose boldly ventures into directing with this 'different' film. Monsoon Wedding : Naseeruddin Shah, Lillette Dubey,Vasundhara Das, Shefali. A middle class Punjabi family.A big fat Indian wedding set in Delhi.A doting father, a lazy fat brother, family reunions, a dark secret buried deep. A wedding contractor who chews marigold flowers and fancies the beautiful housemaid. Finally the rains! Very Indian, yet in English, altogether a delightful fare. Mr. and Mrs. Iyer : Rahul Bose, Konkona Sen Sharma Directed by Aparna Sen, this movie fol...

Its been 3 years now that I live in Chennai. The city stretches over a vast area and so where you live and where you work may be very far apart. A lot of people use the local train service to cover these long distances. Some of my most refreshing hours have been spent in a train carriage reflecting over thoughts and feelings while watching roads, cars, canals, building, the city flit by. A disgusting incident comes to mind. That day I was boarding a train from Nungambakkam. I heard the final whistle while booking the ticket.The next train would arrive a good 15-20 minutes later and I didn't want to wait for it on that hot, sultry afternoon. I hurtled down the steps and managed to climb into the vendor's cabin of the already-moving Tambaram bound train. A lot of people were standing as all the benches in the carriage had already been occupied. I caught a couple of breaths, relieved to have caught the train. Opposite to where I stood, a couple sat talking sweet nothings and...

Here is a list of my favorite hindi movies from the 70s and 80s. If you think Bollywood always churned out potboilers with senseless skin-showing and nonsensical song and dance routines, watch these movies to know otherwise. Most of these stories revolve around simple relationships within middle-class families upholding values like respect, honesty, integrity, sharing and love. Sadly simplicity and innocence is hard to find in relationships today, movies mirroring the society are no different. But if the movies Bollywood makes represents India to a global audience, then I am proud of the movies it made in that decade. Parichay starring Jaya Bhaduri, Jeetendra, Sanjeev Kumar, Pran and others Naughty kids harass a strict disciplinarian grand-father until a noble tutor comes to thier rescue. Sanjeev Kumar who starred opposite Jaya Bhaduri in Anamika plays her father in this charming movie directed by Gulzar. Don't miss the classical t...

The first makta here "Marriages are made in heaven." People meet on earth only for a cup of tea :p Tea, arguably is the single most important factor in getting the average Indian marriage fixed. Imagine this, somewhere in the east: Emaculately dressed, a young Bengali lady walks carefully into the living room with a tray laden with the best pieces of china, filled with spiced Darjeeling tea. She serves everybody (The gentleman, his parents, her parents) sitting in the room and finally sits on her chair, erect and eyes lowered. Monster-in-law (imagine the Bingley sisters from Pride and Prejudice): You have decorated your house very well. Mother : Didi, can't do much these days, due to leg pain Monster-in-law (Surprised): Why? Don’t the servants help you? Mother : They don’t enter into the kitchen or the Puja room Monster-in-law (impressed, turns to the young lady, falling into the trap laid just for her:): Oh! So dear, it is you who has prepared the tea? Wonderful! The ...

Tea , known by various names like, te(French), cha(bangle),chaha(Oriya), chai(Hindi), shai(Arabic),is prepared in many ways. The following are popular varieties: There is the spiced concoction popular in places around Shimla, in which, undiluted(unskimmed:)) milk is boiled with cardamom, cinnamon and cloves and simmered after adding the leaves, to make the most delightful matka of thick, malaidar, chai. In regions around Assam, Darjeeling and West Bengal, the leaves -hand-picked and processed with so much affection, their aromas preserved with so much care - are brewed in piping hot water. The liquor is then strained and served with slight sugar and a dash of milk. The result is a brick coloured, thin liquid with the most exquisite flavour. Then there is the Sulaimani, which the Arbabs in the Middle East, drink while smoking the hookah, over a game of dominoes. Leaves from Iran brewed just till the concoction obtains the color of honey, lemon zest added for that freshness. Ahh...Bliss...

When I am in and around Nungambakkam, The Alliance Francais(e) pulls me towards itself.There is always some play or a film festival or a book reading session going on there, not to mention, the delicious freshly baked home made chocolate cake available in their canteen. And so,one Saturday, I suddenly found myself inside their little Auditorium. The play being staged was called 'Madhavi'. The scene being acted was the one in which Madhavi pines for Kovallam(this is a famous Tamil epic), after he has left, never to return(I guess, he is dead). Madhavi spends her days and nights adorning herself with jewellery expecting Kovallam, to arrive in any instant.Selvi, her maid shares her angst. Kovallam never returns.Madhavi becomes insane. But,this particular reproduction of the famous epic, was different. The protagonists, though female characters were enacted by men. The most striking aspect though, were the costumes, the make-up and the props used. The men were wearing flimsy...