Rockstar – A review
Watching a 160 hour movie at 9:30 in the night isn't something I was particularly looking forward towards. But it was "Rockstar", and there is NO WAY a Hindi movie with such a cool title can suck! I wish I can say that after entering the cinema hall one fine night, and leaving it the next day.
Rockstar is that kind of a movie. It could've been much more than what it ended up being. I would love to say "spoilers ahead", but there is not much of a story to spoil. Ranbir Kapoor as Janardan Jakhar is a college guy, passionate about music but clueless as to how to make it big. He lazes around the college canteen, where its owner tells him - how can you be a great artist when you haven't suffered in life? He then goes on to quote a list of great artists, the ones posted in JJ's wall. JJ relents, decides he has to first fall in love, break up, feel the pain in order to become a better musician. Then the age old tale of falling for the girl, but only it isn't real the first time.
The initial 45 minutes are delightful in introducing the characters and how JJ tries to get close to girl just to fall in love. The neat and clean girl turns out to be a "junglee jawani" and they end up having fun watching cheap flicks in shady cinemas, boozing on cheap alcohol and what not, all before the girl's marriage. After the girl is gone, he is thrown out of his house and spends a few years playing and singing in Mosques, parties, Temples and all. Then he is slowly transformed into a bad-ass rocker Jordan - who shouts, screams, and in general is the black swan of JJ.
The second half of the movie is a drag - clichéd dialogs, repetitive scenes, grinding one's patience. Instead of a complete review which you can read on numerous sites online, here is:
What I liked
1) Fun filled 45 minutes at the beginning
2) Shades of Grey in the rockstar's life - having an affair with someone who is married and his sometimes forceful need to get physical
3) Decent performance by Ranbir
4) A mixture of different genres in the soundtrack. The Sufi song is great!
And what I didn't
1) Second half of the movie completely clueless!
2) Last 30 minutes a curse! Too many clichéd dialogs, scenes (including the class "Its a medical miracle!"), generally direction-less story telling
3) Did I say the movie is 160 minutes long? Let me say that again - 2 hours and 40 minutes.
4) Where is the soul of the rockstar? Pain is portrayed, but what about the process of how he writes lyrics, makes music. Even artists need preparation, you know.
5) People love an angry rockstar, but there should be another face too. Ranbir puts up his "I hate everything in the world" face for a better part of the movie, and it gets a bit too monotonous and boring
6) The crowd thronging him everywhere, girls falling heads over heels for him, everyone wanting a piece of him, etc seems a bit overdone. Doesn't happen the way its portrayed in India (and definitely not the way shown in the movie "Boys")
7) And the biggest letdown was that the movie was a letdown! I had high hopes, especially after enjoying the initial half of the movie. Too bad the team couldn't finish it off slickly as well.
Verdict
Rockstar - doesn't rock much. Enjoyable first half, avoidable second half. Great promise, poor execution. 6/10
Aravind Adiga’s enchanting, incisive debut novel
Aravind Adiga's fascinating debut novel explores with wit and insight of life of the two Indians & depicts India as a place that has "has no drinking water, electricity, sewage system, public transportation, sense of hygiene, discipline, courtesy, or punctuality”. The book also depicts India as a place where parents don’t bother to baptize their children.
'The White Tiger' is in the narrative form of a letter composed over seven nights to the Chinese premier scheduled to visit India to take a look at the true colors of Bangalore. With a caustic and funny protagonist Balram Halwai, son of a bicycle rickshaw driver from Laxmangarh, a small village in the desert state of Rajasthan, the book leads you into the dark parts of India describing the injustices of the contemporary Indian society.
Its probably safe to claim the fact that one cannot get through news articles these days without reading about the economies of India or China. Everyone claims that India is on its way to become the economic powerhouse of the world, and disregard the "poor continue to be poor" verity.
Adiga's training as a journalist lends the immediacy of the reality of life in India today with the precision overshadowing the realities at hand. To summarise it is quick, entertaining, chirpy and full of life. I recommend every fiction lover to go ahead and grab an ORIGINAL copy paying all due respect to the author.
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My 2 cents on InterviewStreet.com
Are you a student looking out seriously to start your career in a top notch company?
Or are you a software professional looking to hone your skills in other domains and verticals?
Or are you looking out for websites in the internet which can hone your technical skills and competencies?
Or even are you a recruiter hunting for some bright and right candidates for your multi-national company?
If you fall among any one of these categories, then dive in into the world of InterviewStreet.com. InterviewStreet, basically, is a portal for students to interact with professionals from their industry in the form of virtual interviews.
I would blindly state that the curriculum inculcated in the professional institutions are of mere use in the industry. The educational programs are structured by the parent universities for a decade or two. And in this radical world where everything changes, so does the technologies used in the industry. Finally, the students end up learning those technologies which are no longer in vogue with the industry or to put in simple terms, those technologies that are obsolete.
Who do you blame? The Industry? Universities? Or the entire Education system? Frankly, I find this situation similar to accusing the political system. We know that it is of no use and yet we do it.
Ok! Lets not get into politics right now!! Now this is where I find InterviewStreet pretty useful. Not only because it connects corporates to campuses but also it bridges the gap between what is taught in colleges and what is expected by the companies, which is what the students crave for. What are you waiting for? Try it!!
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