Monday, June 20, 2005

Madagascar and Parineeta

I ended up watching two movies - Madagascar and Parineeta - on Saturday. I really liked Parineeta; Madagascar was just okay.

Madagascar was not as funny as I had expected. It was about animals in the zoo in Central Park. The zebra wanted to experience life in the wild, while its friends, the lion, hippo and giraffe, wanted to stay in the zoo. I didn't agree with the premise of the movie that life for animals is better in zoos. I didn't like the depiction of life in the wild as ruthless and violent. What about the open spaces, fresh air, interaction with species of the same kind? The jokes and characters were all clichéd and predictable. Even one joke was a repeat from a "Sex and The City" episode; something to the effect, "What do you get in Connecticut… Lyme disease.” Maybe it's a common joke in NY which I'm not privy to. The animation was lovely though. The penguins acting like spies and their quest to reach Antartica was funny. Although, for no apparent reason, they didn't like it once they reach their destination. I suppose I shouldn't be analyzing the movie in such depth. It just didn't compare to some of the recent animated movies I've seen like Ice Age, Finding Nemo and Incredibles.

On the other hand, Parineeta was totally worth the watch even if I had to drive 40 miles one way and stay up late for a 11 pm show. I forced a friend who is not into Bollywood movies to go watch it with me. It was either the movie or Saki Bombing and she chose the lesser evil. She got converted after watching the movie. We've both been listening to the music all day. I didn't like the beginning and the end of the movie as much, but pretty much loved the rest of it. My favorite parts included the scene in which Lolitha admits to Shekhar that she didn't go to Moulin Rouge to Shekhar, Rekha in Moulin Rouge, the way Lolitha teases Shekhar, and the scene in which he wakes up sweaty, dreaming about Lolitha with Girish. I was able to predict the end; the story was simple that way. Diya Mirza was kind of irritating to me. I didn't understand the point of her dialogue - "Once I get married to Shekhar, I will kill him." The miscommunication towards the end also annoyed me. Overall it was a good movie. I like movies in which the woman is shown strong and responsible, not just a feather head. I’m sure someone from Calcutta would enjoy the movie a lot more.

I also saw 2 good previews - Paheli and Matribhoomi. We'll see how these turn out.

Sunday, June 19, 2005

Material friends

It seems that everyone around me is either getting married or actively looking to get hitched. As my friends cross over to the dark side, I find myself spending more and more time by myself. Consequently, I’ve been going out and eating alone often.
Usually when I eat alone, I bring the food back to my home or office. One day I decided to sit in a restaurant and eat alone instead of bringing lunch back to my desk and eating while surfing the web. At first I felt awkward. I didn't know what to do with my hands or even where to look. I didn't want to be staring at others and was trying to avoid reading my book at the table. Another problem with eating alone is that you can only order one dish and I saw at least 2 things I liked on the menu. I was forced to make pick one and order. A woman on the next table was there with her family and struck up a conversation with me. She asked me about the book I was reading. This book – Global Women - has invoked many questions, like which bookstore I had bought it from and what it was about, from women at the gym too. It seems that when you are eating alone, you get serviced faster. Soon enough the food came and I got busy eating.
On another occasion, I went to see the play - Lennon at the Orpheum Theatre alone. I had been planning to watch the play for some time since I like the Beatles and I like musicals. Finally one day, pumped up after a kick boxing class, I decided to go to the play at the spur of the moment. Apparently I was the only person who had come to see the play alone. I was also the youngest person there. Once the play started, I didn't feel awkward being there alone. Sadly the play didn't turn out to be that good. I did miss having someone to discuss the play with. I also had a hard time finding a cab to go back home after the play and it was quite unpleasant standing on the streets alone in the seedy area of Market and 7th.
The next step is to go watch a movie alone. No one around me seems interested in watching the Star Wars, Episode 3. I've realized that going out alone is not that bad at all. It makes me more aware of what I want -- what I want to eat, what I want to watch, where I want to go. I don't have to make adjustments for others and can do what ever I feel like doing. I am in general more aware of the surroundings when walking alone. I find myself talking to strangers more often. I also spend more time thinking rather than yapping incessantly. It gives me time to introspect and realize things about myself.
As I spend time alone, I find myself becoming increasingly dependent on material things. They are substituting my human friends. Every day when I walk home from the bus stop, I see my car parked in front of my apartment. It feels like an old, reliable friend, parked there day after day, ready for me to take grocery shopping or the occasional ride to see my sister or brother. The day my car got broken into, I got more upset than I had thought I would be; I felt violated. My laptop is a good friend at home. I spend hours with it. It’s like holding hours of conversation with a friend. I get input by reading online and output by writing. My small room heater gives me warmth; I cuddle up with it whenever it’s chilly. My Ipod is my gym companion and keeps me occupied during the bus ride (though I’m a bit embarrassed to use it when I see 70% people in the gym and bus carrying one). And my best friends, my books, are my lunchtime and bedtime partners. These friends are pretty reliable and easily replaceable. Best is they won’t go off and get married.

Monday, June 06, 2005

Kickboxing

I recently went to a kick boxing class at my gym. I had spent a long night with coworkers bar hopping and was feeling guilty about drinking as much. Hence I decided to do something good for my body and attend one of the classes offered at the gym. Incidently, it was a kick boxing lesson. I was reluctant because I thought kick boxing involved physical contact. However, it turned out that the kickboxing classes at the gym are aerobics exercises involving movements such as upper cuts, jab punches, crosses, back kick, right kick, knee strikes and roundhouse kicks.

As with any aerobics class, it required synchronization, which takes a while to get used to. When people went left, I went right. Somehow I survived without accidently kicking someone or worse getting kicked by someone.

I found kickboxing to be a much better option than working out in the gym by myself for an hour. Firstly, it is not boring. Running on a treadmill gets really boring sometimes. Usually my thoughts keep me occupied and that is when I think up most of the stuff to write here. It tends to get tedious though. Secondly, it is therapeutic. It gives a way to vent out a bad day's frustrations. Thirdly, it works out all muscles instead of just one part of the body like only legs. It is a good full body workout. Fourthly, it teaches you how to kick and box. Who knows, it might in handy. Fifthly, it keeps you motivated to work out for a full hour. The instructor keeps egging everyone on.

All in all, it is an excellent workout. It is an excellent damage control mechanism when you spend 7 hours drinking the previous night.

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