Re-discovered gems!

Thanks to my newly acquired interest/need for morning walks, I am once again, after a long, long time, getting to listen to songs that I choose - not the random stuff dished out by the FM channels. And I'm loving every bit of it.

While downloading songs on to my MP3 player (which again has been given a new life), my list of must-haves included Rehna Tu and Dil Gira Kahin (both from Delhi-6, of course on A R Rahman's music). Yes, agreed both of these are not 'work-out'music but they take me to another world altogether. I'm so glad I re-discovered these gems now!!

Rehna Tu: Like someone mentioned somewhere, you listen to the song and you feel Rahman just hummed the song when he was given the lyrics and it was recorded. Such is the casual tone of the song. I'm always in a fix when I listen to this song. Do I listen to the words, Rahman's magical, yet friendly voice or the lovely musical arrangement?
And such charming lyrics sung sweetly 'Haath thaam chalna ho, to dono ke haath daayen kaise? Ek daaya hoga, ek bayaa hoga. Thaamley haath, chalna hai sang, thaamley.'
While I'm enjoying the song, I'm almost waiting for it to end, so that I get treated to this extremely unusual and exotic sounding tailpiece. Yes, it does take you  bit into the line, 'kangalai konduthan rusiyarium' in the song Kaadhal Anukkal (Enthiran), and maybe even the good old Vaishnava Janato for some reason. Don't know what raagam it is, but it's just so beautiful. And the instrument used, I think is called a Continuum Fingerboard. Check it out on Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Continuum_(instrument)
All I have to say is Rahman, Rehna tu hai jaise tu, don't ever change!! Coming to think of it, the lyrics of the song actually applies to him and his music!

Dil Gira Kahin - A beautiful collage!
Wow! What an opening to a grand song!
I cannot fit this song into any particular style - its just a beautiful amalgamation of creative lyrics, enchanting vocals and interesting bits of instrumentation. There are Celtic sounds, Chinese sounds and Indian sounds woven so seamlessly, like a lovingly made patchwork quilt. And then, there is Chinmayee's voice teasing you with a game of peek-a-boo. Rahman is at it again - the art of using backing vocals sometimes like a musical instrument and sometimes to add surprising twist to a song.
The best part of the song is perhaps the lyrics by Prasoon Joshi, with some very fresh ideas.
Jane Magar Yeh Naiyan, 
Teri Kahmosh Zulfon Ki Gehraiyaan
Hai Jahan Dil Meraa Uljha  Hua Hai.

Naiyan - haven't heard this beautiful word in a Hindi song in a long time (haven't paid attention to the lyrics in Hindi songs in a long time - didn't find anything worth the effort!)
Khamosh Zulfon Ki Gehraiyaan - what a lovely expression it is. Who can think of this?

There are also lines like these that make you feel that person who has written the song, is just not a film-song lyricist but a real poet.
Sipiyon Ki Hoonth Se Moti Chalak Rahein Hai and
Samundar Lehron Ki Lehron Ki Chadar Odh Ke So Raha Hai
Per Mein Jagu Ek Khumari Ek Nasha Sa Ek Nasha Sa Horaha Hai.

If you happen to listen to this song, pay attention to the way the singer (Ash King) says "Khumari"- I love it.

Harris Jayaraj

When I read http://soundcloud.com/parodesynoise/harris-jayaraj-for-dummies and laughed my gut out, I remembered a joke my DH and I used to share.

You can actually compose a Harris Jayaraj song if you are a sincere Church-goer!! Let me explain.

Take for instance the song, "Paartha Mudhal Naaley" (Vettaiyaadu Vilayaadu")
and sing "Yesu pirnadhaarey, indru Yesu pirandhaarey". Doesn't it fit? Sing it in a nice baritone voice - it'll sound even better!

Or take the song, "Ennai Pandhaada Piranthavaley" (Ullam Ketkumey)
and sing something like Nammai rakshikka piranthavarey...Works?

Disclaimer: I mean absolutely no offence to any religion or its music. No offense meant to Harris Jayaraj himself, many of whose songs I really love (esp. the romantic ones) and I have his full collection on MP3. (I particularly love listening to this CD because its like listening to a nice song that  goes on for one and a half hours!! :P)

Unsolicited advice

Courtesy: wikipedia.org

I normally don’t believe in unsolicited advice.
Last evening I did something that I don’t think I would ever have done. I still can’t believe it myself.


I was on my way back home from work. A lady on a Scooty zipped past me. She had a little girl with her, standing in front. When I caught up, I noticed that they had stopped at an ATM a few buildings away. The little girl was standing alone on the bike and the lady (perhaps her mother) had gone into the ATM. I almost went past the ATM but I just couldn’t get myself to ignore this little girl, all of 5-6 years standing alone on the road. I looked for the ATM watchman – couldn’t find him.


So, I took the decision. I went back to the ATM. Stood there – not too close to the girl – I didn’t want to scare her (she as such looked uncomfortable with me hovering around). I just kept standing there till the mother came out. Now, this was difficult. As soon as she came out, I asked her in English, “Can I please talk to you for a minute.” Wrong move. She mistook me for a salesperson and hurried away muttering that she is in a hurry. I then switched over to Tamil and said, “I’m sorry I’m not a salesperson. I’m a mother of a small baby girl too. I was passing by and saw your baby standing alone on the road and decided to keep a watch on her. I could have ignored and passed by but I was too scared for her. Anything can happen in 5 minutes.  I just request you to please never, ever leave your baby like that on the road alone. Sorry again and thanks.”


Looks like the lady was too shocked and totally unprepared for this kind of unsolicited advice but lady, I did what my heart told me to! They say times have gone bad. Fine, agreed but at least, we should take our precautions for the safety of our children. Every day we hear horror stories of kidnapping and what not. What’s the point in blaming the degrading values of our society if we are not careful ourselves?


I then started walking back home, mulling over what I did. Another lady was talking to a patrol policeman at the corner of my street. This is what I could make out from their conversation. “Yes Sir, they snatched her chain and ran away...there near the temple... the poor lady is still there…” I then heard the lady giving the policeman the location and he was getting ready to go there on his bike. 

Bahut burey lagte hai.....

A lot of people are upset about yesterday's episode of Bade Achey Lagte Hain on Sony TV. It was the episode where a couple married for 6 months finally fall in love with each other and you know finally..ahem!!
Well, I do agree, this is most surprising for an Indian TV show. The producers have dared to tread where no one else has, so far. Yet, I don't think this particular show or any of the so-called 'family dramas' are meant for children. The other serials might not show physical intimacy but the violent thoughts, hatred, negativity, family members scheming and planning against each other are definitely not meant for children. How will you explain to your child the concept of child-marriage as shown in Baalika Vadhu or how will you explain why a mother-in-law should `plot' against her daughter-in-law or vice versa? Imagine an entire joint family (in-laws and children included) watching these MIL-DIL battles together! How will you explain family feuds over property? How will you explain murder for gain? What about adultery? It doesn't even have to be an overt show of violence like a murder - it is the body-language and gestures that children catch so easily - wagging a finger at someone ferociously, glaring, rolling of the tongue (so common in Tamil serials) - don' tell me you don't see kids mimicking these.

I was so saddened to see my daughter and another girl of her age playing a game...that too on my daughter's birthday. My daughter was supposed to lie flat on the floor and the other girl would go running around and yell, "Ivo setthupoita" (meaning: "She's dead" - in Tamil)!! I stopped the two of them the minute I caught them playing this horrendous game. My 4-yr old daughter, obviously after one whole day of serious thought, came up to me the next day and asked me why I stopped them from playing the game and why one should not say "sethupoita"? I couldn't help but roll my eyes! I am very much embarrassed to admit in public I caught my so-called 'little angel' inserting a foot-ruler behind her shirt collar and pulling it in slow-motion shouting out a very appropriate "Eeyye"...No, no she doesn't watch violent-village movies...she only watches "Siri-Siri"!

The TV channels are full of such negative ideas in various degrees and various forms. Leave alone children, such negativity isn't great for adults either.

Why is everyone so angry about one episode of a well-shot intimate scene between a grown-up, married couple? What about those parents that train their children to sing and dance for `item numbers' in the most popular dance/music competitions  So many babies in Hindi speaking families are affectionately called 'munna'/'munni' by their parents. Do these 'munnis' have any idea what it is to become 'badnaam'? Most of the judges of the shows (except a handful of them) don't bat an eyelid when children perform such numbers. They in fact praise them for the lively rendition of a badly-worded 'kuthu' songs. I have to tell you this. I once watched a boy, just 10-12 yrs old sing the popular Kamal Hassan song, "Ennadi Meenakshi" in some music competetion. My jaw dropped when the judge (I don't remember who it was), suggested that the boy should have brought more emotion and pain in his voice! Right, a 10-yr old boy should definitely know about heartbreak by now!! The corrects 'aeyes' 'oohs' and 'aahs' of the raunchy 1980s songs carry extra marks (example? Come on, take any of those S Janaki songs. I will list them on another blog post).

Coming back to Bade Achchey Lagte Hain, the theme of the show and the timing itself shows it is not for "family viewing". There was a recent rule ordering all TV producers to shift their timings to after 10:30 if the show had adult content. Yes, the producers need to be careful when they repeat the episodes the next afternoon. It would be best to edit them appropriately.

There is no denying that adults definitely deserve their space and time to do their thing, after a long day's work. In my opinion, it is best done alone (whatever that might be) - after the kids are away at school or when the kids are fast asleep!
PS: Guardians of the Hindi language, I request you to please ignore any grammatical errors in the title of this post, as long as you get the idea!

(Very) Early Childhood Education

Yesterday, I came across 2 of my daughter's playmates - one in the LKG and another in the UKG , different schools but both affiliated to the CBSE. The LKG kid had just finished with learning strokes and now has moved to writing letters of the alphabet.

The UKG kid's "syllabus" includes writing numerals 1-100, numbers in words from one to fifty and writing 3 letter words! This boy's mother tells me the school gives him so much homework that his tiny hands start aching.

I spoke to another parent whose child is in Standard I (again CBSE). This child could write sentences last year itself and now follows the question/answer pattern.

Another child studying in LKG in a State Board school also can write letters of the alphabet in Tamil and English, apart from numerals up to 20.

What I understood from the mothers of all these children is that LKG is comparatively easy, in the sense that they start with strokes and move on to writing the letters of the alphabet and a few numbers by the end of the year. However, UKG seems to be a giant leap from there. The learning seems to speed up by this level.

The 3 Rs have now become - Rapid - Rigorous - Rote Learning!!

My question: Is there a regulatory body that takes a check on the kindergarten/nursery school syllabus followed by different schools?

There are as many different syllabi as the number of schools in town. Isn't there anyone to monitor this? There seems to be no common pattern at all.

I'm not even talking about 'alternative education' like Montessori and Waldorf that ideally integrates play, nature, day-to-day life and education. I am just talking about the regular mainstream education that city schools offer.

Adding to the confusion is the age factor for admission. Each school follows a different age bracket for admissions into the LKG level. In this mix, a three and a half year old and a child who is 4+ years old will learn the same thing in spite of a world of difference in their 'readiness' to grasp a concept.

I did some research on the Internet and I understand that in India, schools come under the ambit of any Board of Education only starting from Standard I. Anything that happens before that, is totally up to the discretion of the individual school. The school is free to either let the children sing and play all day or cram them up with heavy writing work. The Department of Education, Government of India has a jargon-filled website that indicates that there is a body to look after Elementary Education but they seem have other albeit well-meaning priorities like getting to children to come to school in the first place! I am sure there is already some structure and regulation in place that I am not aware of. If not, I feel there should definitely be some laws based on a modern look at toddlers/pre-schoolers, their developmental needs and milestones.

My point is that children are like sponges. They will learn anything you teach them - be it 100 Thirukkural verses or names of 100 countries with their capital cities. It is another topic of discussion if gifted children are 'born' or 'made'. But where early education is concerned, I think we need to draw a line somewhere - not how much a child can learn but how much a child needs to learn.

Grandpas, cell phones and back-up plans

The other day I saw a cute, elderly couple holding hands and crossing the road. The thatha (pls note: nothing derogatory but only endearing) had this little bag slung on his shoulder and I could guess what its contents could be.

1. A bottle of water

2. Spectacle case (he will never remove his specs but will still carry the case)

3. A hand towel

4. A cell phone

5. And his most prized possession, his pocket sized telephone/address book

I find it extremely cute... Though many of our darling grandpas have finally started using cell phones, they still haven't got the heart to dump their pocket-sized telephone books. And I don't think its about being techno-savvy. I guess unlike us, they don't trust technology more than themselves. Its a good idea actually.

We youngsters save every little detail on our phones and get awfully stuck when our phones don't work or worse, when we lose our phones. We end up making 10 calls to find someone's phone number, whereas the grandpa coolly refers to his address book.

I must say, grandpas are totally "back-up gurus" . I see 2 classic cases in my family - my dad and dad-in-law. The address book is the back-up for the cell phone. There is a 500 rupee note folded several times over, hidden in a secret pouch of the wallet - that's back-up cash. A well-stocked, well-labelled medicine box apart from the box they use everyday...the list goes on. My dad-in-law often jokes about having a back-up wife somewhere!!

On a second thought, I won't be surprised if the gentleman I mentioned earlier had an extra bottle of water in his bag, just in case!!!

The art of simplicity

Been watching some old Hindi movies on TV lately - Chit Chor, Julie, Akhiyon Ke Jharonkon Se... What an experience in simplicity they have been! Each of these movies, so different in their setting yet similar in the handling - simple, no melodrama - just a lot of feeling poured into each subject. Interestingly, all of them were made between 1975 and 1978.

Julie was a very bold theme, extremely well-handled for those times. Excellent portrayal by Lakshmi and Nadira.

Among these 3 movies, what really stole my heart was Chit Chor and Akhiyon Ke Jharonkon Se (AKJS). Chit Chor is a totally lighthearted, charming love story. Watched AKJS last night and couldn't sleep. I cried on watching a movie after a really long time. It is a love story, between two young college going people - a great deal heavier than Chit Chor. I've always loved the title track sung by Hemlatha but having watched the movie for the first time, the song's still ringing in my ears and I've been humming it all day.

I was surprised to see that Chit Chor was made by Rajshri Productions and while watching AKJS, I guessed it must be the same company again and I was right. The same Rajshri that later made sentimental but over-the-top family dramas like Hum Aapke Hai Kaun and the forgettable Hum Saath Saath Hain. Chit Chor and AKJS are so different from the Rajshri fare of recent times - very few characters...uncomplicated story line and Ravindra Jain's lilting melodies. And both were quite progressive for those times - open-minded parents, no negative characters or "villains" and lovers who are quite open about their fondness for each other.

In AKJS, I was surprised and actually loved the way Sachin casually asks Ranjita, "Shall we go on a date?". Yet the teenage love story is portrayed with utmost maturity and decency. The girl and boy are also shown to be of the same intellectual level, which is a rarity even today's movies. When the heroine falls sick, I thought "Man, there goes", expecting the usual plot where she will go on to hide her sickness from her lover, suffer alone and do everything to make him hate her. But in this movie, every one is aware of the girl's illness. Of course, there is pain and tears but no heavy "rona-dhona", no "blood-vomiting" scenes(a typical feature of any movie where the character suffers from any major illness). Though it has a tragic element, I somehow don't want to call it a tragedy - the movie ends so beautifully.

I'm not sure if it was the story itself or the honesty and straightforwardness of storytelling that moved me to tears. There's a sense of timelessness about the whole thing.

After catching bits and pieces of recent flicks like Aaisha and Dostana, Chit Chor and AKJS felt like having hot, home-made Rasam saadam after a month long stay in Japan!!

The question on my head since last night is why are film makers complicating things these days? Has life become so complicated that people like to delve into further knots and twists? By complexities, I also mean all the jazzy special effects, jazzy music, jazzy clothes (if at all there are any!). Talking of special effects, there was this cute song situation in AKJS where time seems to stand still for the young lovers. While they are singing and dancing merrily, everything and everyone around them is frozen. And for this shot, the supporting cast actually stood there in freeze position! No hi-fi efffects of modern movies - yet the director conveyed his idea perfectly well. Life itself was simple those days and so the movies I guess. Yes, there were some heavy-duty film makers too in the 70s like Raj Kapoor, Dev Anand etc. who were all about big-budgets and big names. But there is some magic in that set of low-budget, sweet love stories of those years featuring darlings like Amol Palekar and Co. Perhaps that was India's collective state of mind those days - freedom attained, war ended, jobs happening, society opening up...what did people do? Sail into blissful romance perhaps (Just thinking aloud. Need to do some research though).

You know what, if I had the money, knowledge and talent, I wish to make a simple love story, like the ones we were talking about, just as an experiment, to see what people think of it. Will they get bored? Will they appreciate it?