Mother By Maxim Gorky

Mother - A masterpiece... Undeniably!

This is an interesting read into the life of factory workers. The exploitation of labour and enslavement of workingmen by the capitalists depicted here stands true even today.

The story revolves around a woman, her miserable life as a wife, her unconditional love for her son, and her transformation from a fearing wife and a doting mother to a mother who cares not just for her son, but for all socialists who fight against the power hungry capitalists.

The happenings are real and the characters evolve with the proceedings and make a strong impact. The character arc of the Mother is unbelievably real and takes its time to evolve. The transformation is setup in stages and is not immediate which makes this novel nothing short of reality. 

A novel that highlights the need of social reform in our society!

இந்திரா பார்த்தசாரதியின் "குருதிப்புனல்"

குருதிப்புனல் - ஒரு மனிதன் தன் இயலாமையை இகழும் சமுதாயத்தின் மீது கொண்ட வஞ்சம், தனிமனிதத் தாக்குதல்களால் உண்டாகும் பழி வாங்கும் உணர்வு என்று தனிப்பட்ட பிரச்சனையை மட்டுமே முதல்நிலைப் படுத்துகிறது இந்நாவல்.

ஆனால் கிராமங்களின் சமூக சூழல், அங்கு நிலவும் சாதியக் கட்டமைப்பு, விவசாயிகளின் பொருளாதார நிலை - அதனை நிர்ணயிக்கும் மிராசுதாரர்களின் அதிகார பலம், அதன் விளைவாய் எழும் எழுச்சி ஆகியவை பின்னணியில் தள்ளப்படுகின்றன. நாவலின் நிகழ்வுகள் எல்லாம் கிராமப்புறங்களில் அன்றாடம் நடக்கும் சாதி ரீதியான தாக்குதல்களே. அதை தனிமனிதப் பகையாய் சித்தரிப்பது ஏமாற்றமே.

மொழிநடையில் மிளிரும் இந்நாவல், நடைமுறையில் நிகழும் சமூக அவலங்களின் காரணத்தை, அதனால் எழும் போராட்டங்களை நீர்த்துப் போகச் செய்கிறது.

A Prisoner of Birth - Jeffrey Archer

A taut thriller that keeps you engaging throughout. Though some of the happenings in the novel question the believable quotient, there are consistent high points in the novel that compensate them and the courtroom drama at the end with a crisp climax makes it a delight to read.

Tribute to Vaigaipuyal Vadivelu

Castes in India by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar

 

This research paper by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar is a clear and concise text on the origin of caste system and the means of preservation of this unnatural hierarchical structure in the society. 

The paper outlines how classes became castes and how Sati, Enforced widowhood and Girl marriage are linked to the concept of caste and presents before us enough arguments as justifications. 

To put forth rational arguments to explain the complex caste system and its mechanism, origin and development in just 18 pages is again a testimony to Ambedkar's clarity of thoughts and his voluminous understanding of the caste system.

A must-read !!!

Symphony - I just learnt this word, He taught me what it is... In 7 Minutes!

Why is he even aging? Can't he be immortal? Well... He is gonna be. A musical concert. With a stage-wide orchestra, he stands in the middle facing a question. The 8 minute long retort that was calmly delivered by the man made me rephrase my line "With a stage-wide orchestra, He stands in the middle facing the question". "What is a symphony?" asked the compere. An answer came. We might need a never ending list of superlatives before we even start "adjectiving" it. The scene that unfolds makes you punch your fists in the air (not once) and at the same time makes you wonder if He should be celebrated more. 

You feel a silence that engulfs the initial frames of the video and you can see Him waving His hands as if He is painting in the air. Yes, He was.  With one strong wave of His hand, *Bang* He breathes life into the dormant orchestra. You see cellos and violins being played. The crowd erupts. He just silences the crowd with His finger on His lips. The passion evident. A soul stirring two and half minutes into the video, when the music reaches its peak, He stops it abrupt. "Idhayammmmm Poguthaeeee..." - No music, no back up vocals, absolute silence - yet there is melancholia and there is a pain conveyed (that is the situation for the song in the film). A 1979 song starts and the crowd goes frenetic. We have a standing ovation at the end. Then, we have how this music evolved from Schubert's musical notes to Idhayam Poguthae. We have a short session with the same song played for a different music. This version, during its run, makes a comfortable shift into the folk genre - the fist pump again. After a brief second version comes the answer to "What is symphony?" in His own style. 

The words from The Gnani to the novice. He reiterates AR Rahman's quote on Him - "When many musicians were running behind awards, He was living for music". 

ISAIGNANI ILAIYARAJA!


Please do watch the video embedded below

Thanks - Isaignani Ilaiyaraja, Prakash Raj, Jaya Television, YouTube Channels

Kaadhalum Kadanthu Poagum - In Nalan We Trust!

After setting the bar high with his debut film "Soodhu Kavvum", Nalan Kumarasamy is back with his rom-com "Kaadhalum Kadanthu Poagum", an official remake of a korean movie. After a brilliant trailer that garnered unanimous praise from the netizens, the expectations for the movie sky-rocketed. With Vijay Sethupathi having back to back releases this year, will Kakagapo be a +1 in the hit list?

A love story of an uneducated rowdy with an IT professional - sounds impractical yet falls into the conventional elements in Tamizh cinema. Hold on. Nalan doesn't present you an unbelieveable love affair. There is a relationship that runs on the thin line between friendship and love, an unconventional romance, an underlying pain, an undeniable practicality and an unanswered question at the end - this sums up the unconventional love story presented by Nalan breaking the stereotypes. It is not a love story where a man chases his lady love till Kerala or USA to impress her. There is no hurry in the sequence of scenes. Nalan gives time for the scenes to evolve and the love story evolves too. 

Vijay Sethupathi as "Kathir" is a gangster and Madona Sebastien is an IT professional.  A very known catastrophe in the IT industry lands her as a neighbour to Vijay Sethupathi. We have seen similar roles from Vijay Sethupathi in his previous movies, but he is at his best when he teams up with Nalan. Madona makes a great impact as the help-seeking, desperate IT professional yearning to fulfil her aspirations. Samudhirakani plays a small supporting role, a cakewalk for him. The movie deals with the reality of IT industry during its run. Right from the "eyewash" interview panel to sexual harassment, everything is dealt with and they form a perfect ambience for the story. The screenplay is seamless - it doesn't test the viewer's patience eventhough the scenes take time to evolve.

Nalan Kumarasamy's attention to details, Santhosh Narayanan's placement of songs and Vijay Sethupathi's entertaining screen presence gives us an exceptional experience. There is romance on screen even when the lead pair don't even see each other. We have seen Vijay Sethupathi walking out of a bank manager's room with the "Soodhu Kavvum" BGM. There is one similar scene where Vijay Sethupathi walks out of an IT company, but there is romance, a sense of gratitude from the lead lady, a sense of relief from the lead pair that engulfs the frame. Kaadhalum Kadanthu Poagum is Vijay Sethupathi show all over and the response he gets from the theatre growing crowd is amazing. His carefree body language and his ease while delivering dialogues makes him the "special one" of Tamizh Cinema.

Nalan redefines "mass appeal" in Tamizh cinema. We have the hero beaten up by rowdies because of his carelessness and stupidity. The audience laugh at the scene that unfolds. In the next frame, he gets up and walks out wearing a cooling glass. We have the deafening screams of the viewers in the cinema hall - Were these scenes inspired from Vadivelu? The immediate thought that came to my mind is Vaigaipuyal teaming up with Nalan Kumarasamy for a laugh riot. We have humour throughout the show that is undisturbing. Santhosh Narayanan's BGM and placement of songs makes the movie a delight to watch. His ability to blend the songs into the narration such that there is no dilution of the script makes him the best in recent times. The songs come in splits and hence the narration has no hiccups.

Bottomline - Kakagapo : A Nalan Show!