THE CRUEL EXPERIENCES of HARBOUR-LINE MUMBAI LOCAL COMMUTERS!!!

1335th BLOG POST -->>

      I remember the railway budget of our new government and the big promises made during the parliamentary session last year. Even bullet trains were planned, discussed and promised in the coming years. But seeing the condition of railway, basically talking about Mumbai Local, I am disappointed. The execution and approach is same as last decade and no new improvement can be seen- Either in punctuality of the trains, the condition of the coaches, the quality of announcement at the stations or any kind of initiative. I am a regular passenger of Harbour line and I am just too frustrated now considering how railway department have completely ignored this side of commuters.    

           Whenever there's any kind of new local trains introduced, it is for Western line. When it gets little older after continuous run of almost a decade, it is demoted to Central line. And after the train is on the verge of breaking in middle of the journey, it is transferred on Harbour line. 6 years back when I shifted to Navi Mumbai, I remember I used to sit at window seat easily even when I caught the train at the last minute when it began its journey from Panvel. It was all okay then. The crowd wasn't uncontrollable until train reached Chembur. But these days, the train gets almost full in Panvel itself. After it reaches Mansarowar which is just 2 stations from the starting point, Panvel, the train gets crowded. And by the time it reaches the 3rd station, Kharghar, it is not possible to even try to get into the train. But the desperation and helplessness of commuters make them keep getting into this train which is already over its capacity in its first 3 stops only. Only I know how I get down at Vashi station every morning for my office. 

             I am not asking much from Government like some ever complaining citizens. I am just asking for basic plans for this route during office hours. Rest you keep running your trains as you want during the whole day because the crowd isn't uncontrollable from 10.30 AM to 5.30 PM. But there should be a good frequency of trains between 7.30 AM to 9.30 AM and 6 PM to 8 PM in the evening. If you'll run train at 12 minutes during these peak hours, there will be crowd obviously. The number of housing projects that have been completed in Navi Mumbai in last 5 years have made lots of people migrate in this region of Mumbai which you consider outskirts that does not need as much attention as Western Line and Central Line. 

             I'll discuss a little scenario about the morning hours between 8 to 9.30 AM about frequency of trains. Here are the number of trains leaving from Panvel:-

8.00- CST

8.06- Thane Fast

8.12- CST

8.24- CST

8.36- Wadala

8.40- CST

8.50- Ladies Special

8.58- CST

9.10- CST

9.16- Thane

9.20- CST 

9.31- CST

              As you can notice, the gap between every train leaving for CST from Panvel is of 12 minutes. At one point of time it's almost 20 minutes as a ladies special is running in between in which men does not have a single bogie to enter. Out of all these trains, not even a single FAST local is planned. Except one UP and one DOWN for Panvel and Thane, not a single fast local runs from Panvel to any station THROUGHOUT the DAY. Not a single train is planned up to Vashi so that the crowd gets distributed and there's a little air to breathe for the commuters standing and cursing their situation in the coaches.   

       

     And I do not think out of all the trains I have mentioned above, any of them are 12 coaches except 1 or 2. In 9 coaches that we regularly have, 2 of them are first class which is again distributed between Ladies and Gents. 1.5 are 2nd Class- Ladies coaches. 0.5 coach is luggage department. So, in the end, only 5 coaches are General coaches which is meant for regular commuters. I got myself a first class pass but I have never enjoyed an okay amount of crowd except on Bakri-Eid when it was a national holiday but unfortunately, I had to go for my job. Every day, I have to stand besides door for half an hour and even after that it becomes a big task to get down at Vashi because of rush and crowd. Even at the door, people stand in 2-3 layers because of which accidents take place. No one dares to leave the train for the next because as we can see, it's almost after 12 minutes which leads to either late-entry at office or the person misses the connecting train that he has to catch either at Kurla or Wadala.

            Similarly in evening, the cruel plan executed by the railway department is sad and shameful. I'll discuss about what happens when I am returning back from Vashi to Panvel. And let me tell the non-Mumbaikars, Vashi is the first stop of Navi Mumbai when you come towards Navi Mumbai from Mumbai (CST, Andheri, Wadala etc). 

6.00 Panvel

6.03 Belapur

6.09 Panvel

6.20 Panvel

6.25 Panvel

6.35 Panvel

6.45 Panvel

6.49 Panvel- Ladies special

6.53 Belapur

7.00 Panvel

7.13 Panvel

7.17 Panvel

7.27 Panvel

               Again as you can see, there is almost the difference of at least 10 minutes in each train that takes you to the last stop, Panvel. The only train that is little less over crowded is 6.25 and 7.17 which you can think of catching and reaching up to the place in the coach where seats are. Still you can not think of getting a seat easily because people from CST who had to halt in Panvel have already got a seat by the time train reached Vashi. And let me tell you, these gaps of 10 minutes are enough for people to accumulate on the platform as everyone is back from office at the same time. Over this, there are other trains like Thane to Vashi, CST to Vashi, Wadala to Vashi which leads to double crowd as these people have to catch the trains to reach Panvel now. And the train for Panvel does not come until and unless these trains do not reach Vashi just because railway can't see any train running smoothly with its original capacity. 

             The various trains in between that you see for Belapur is again a bane. To avoid the crowd of Vashi, some Panvel people do enter this so that they will catch another train from Belapur which will be pretty easy. And similar situation occurs even at Belapur and when this crowd enters the train, the people who were already struggling after getting in at Vashi, faces this big crowd again who reached Belapur by a train that left the station 5 minutes ago. And all of this is not the end, the real story is that none of these trains are on right time. Mumbai Local was once known for its punctuality. Now, it's very obvious for me to find 6.35- Panvel on indicator at Vashi when it's already 6.50 in Railway's big clock fitted at various places on each station. So if a newly migrated person reaches Vashi at 6.50 and waits for the indicator to show him 6.53 Belapur, he will die out of panic when he'll see 6.35 Panvel on board.

            Trains at the frequency of 4-5 minutes can be easily scheduled as we can see 8.36 AM Wadala and 8.40 AM CST are running smoothly everyday. Even in the evening, 7.13 PM Panvel and 7.17 PM Panvel from Vashi are also running smoothly. 3-4 trains every hour between 5 PM to 8 PM can be run between Vashi to Panvel only so that this crowd also gets a seat and reach their home without getting tired and frustrated. Similarly, in morning, 3-4 trains can be planned till Vashi. Make the traveling of people within Navi Mumbai little easier. Also, please get some trains in good condition even on this line. We are also as much important as those people catching Andheri to Churchgate everyday. I'm a Fresher and work at office is much easier for me even when I am new in this corporate environment when compared to this journey of just half an hour twice in a day. Just imagine what senior citizens and people in 45-60 age group suffers every day for almost 1.45 hours (Panvel-CST) twice. If Suresh Prabhu, Devendra Fadnavis and Narendra Modi ever reads or get to know about this, please execute this before bringing bullet trains to India. Get your basics right first. Rest can happen even after 50 years. PLEASE!

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!! 

Mrs Funnybones by Twinkle Khanna (Book Review-3*/5) !!!

1334th BLOG POST -->>

    I finished reading Twinkle Khanna's debut non-fiction book "Mrs Funnybones" within 2.5 hours. It belongs to humour genre and as she is already famous with her columns in newspaper and tweets, her regular readers will surely enjoy the way she have written this book. Frankly speaking, I have never read any of her columns except few tweets so I picked it up just as a random reader. She has basically shared how her usual days are and have tried to create humor through that. Sometimes the humour looks real and obvious while somethings it looks forced. Which I must say also acts as a drawback to this book. When you attempt something like humor genre and only half of your jokes are funny, the other half irritates the reader more than the former half which made him laugh out loud.      

           Twinkle Khanna have used a very easy language to write this book which makes it easy for the readers to understand what she is trying to put forward. The book starts about her life as a wife of a celebrity and later on moves on towards her daily routine with her children, husband, mother, mother-in-law  etc. She discusses how a woman is in trouble throughout the day and with it, creates scenarios for us which are funny and laughable. She discusses even the serious issues so well that it does not look preachy and you like what she advises. 

             Through her sarcasm, she is surely going to win many hearts but for me the book has been average. Yes, it has some worthy humour but as I said, because the equal number of jokes look forced and unwanted, she fails to make it a laugh riot. Just like her husband's recent movies which are of comedy genre but manages to make you laugh only 30% of times, this book also ends up giving almost similar performance. I, therefore, rate this book 3 stars out of 5. 

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!! 

The Suicide Diary by Hari Prasad (Book Review- 4.25*/5) !!!

1333rd BLOG POST -->>

      I am done reading 49th book in 2015 just yesterday. Just one away from 50th and I am happy that I got my hands upon a book which really excited the reader in me. I read "The Suicide Diary" written by Hari Prasad and published by Lifi publication. Frankly speaking, I didn't have expectation from the book and I thought it would be just another tale of how a man didn't get the attention from the love of his life and ended up writing an over emotional and psychotic suicide letter full of childish romance and SMSes shared between the couple. But when I got an idea about the intention with which author have scribbled this book after few pages, I was amazed and my reading speed accelerated. Now as I am done with the book, I can definitely say that it's one of the best books I have read this year and I wish that people get to know about it so that it gets at least close to being Bestseller if fails to touch that mark.

   

            The book is about this protagonist who is always humiliated by everyone in life just because he couldn't get along with people and whenever he tries to strike a conversation, he ends up humiliating himself more than before. No one acknowledges his presence and people just end up ditching him or misusing his trust and loyalty. The book starts with his wrong equation with his boss and then moves ahead towards his wife and so on. After a while he feels that it's enough and he should commit suicide as he can't bear more humiliation. But he gives himself chance of few more days and then leave the world. What he does in these days is what this book is all about. 

          The way Hari Prasad have handled this sensitive topic in his debut novel itself speaks about the great amount of talent he has. The book belongs in the genre- Fiction/Thrillers/Crime and author have beautifully dealt with it. The kind of words and sentences he have used to explain the philosophy of his protagonist and the way his thoughts develop regarding a particular person or situation is an amazing experience for a reader to witness. The depth in the emotions and thought process of the protagonist makes this book a special one. Even the violence is narrated so well that you can imagine everything happening in front of your eyes and feeling bad about the people turning out to be a victim of it. Even the twist of video leak at one point of time shivers you thinking about the kind of harsh step the character takes. His chemistry with a prostitute is also depicted so perfectly that you only wish to meet the author and tell him how wonderful he is.

          Coming to the drawbacks: I felt that the over-description of few scenes or emotions irritates you at times because there's not much for which the author kept digging. The book becomes repetitive at times. I feel that the book could have been easily 30-40 pages shorter but author chose to stretch it to give whatever he has as an author in this book itself. But overall, the book is something which every reader who have been reading Indian authors should read and not miss. I would like to specially mention the last conversation between the protagonist and his wife. The last words that he speaks on phone to her will make you feel so happy for reading this book that you will thank me later. :-) I will give this attempt- 4.25* out of 5. GO FOR IT!!!

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!! 

Yes, My Accent Is Real by Kunal Nayyar (Book Review- 3.5*/5) !!!

1332nd BLOG POST -->>

    Who doesn't watch and like "The Big Bang Theory"? It's one of the most popular show and specifically in India, I have seen people watch it on their Android smartphones every time I travel in local train. It's the best time pass for the idle people. The characters of the show are favorites of everyone. And the show boasts about an Indian character too- Raj which is played by Kunal Nayyar. The popularity lead him to finally write a book on how he became popular with funny scenarios and events in his life. The name is "Yes, My Accent Is Real". He also adds in the title "And some other things I haven't told you". The book is published by Simon & Schuster publication and it is surely going to be one of the best selling books by them.      

           I haven't seen The Big Bang Theory for more than an episode or two because of the time constraint in my life. As I always chose a book before any kind of video, I ended up reading Kunal's book even when I have no connect with his character. That's the kind of person I am and I am very delighted to tell everyone that the way he have written his tale, anyone can pick up the book and enjoy the funny situations he have shared with us even if you are as stranger with the show as me. Haha! The language is easy and fast pacy. It makes you laugh with each sentence because the way writer have written it, he is telling that he does not deserve to be anywhere but still he lands up and make fun of himself. 

            The good part about the book is that it's not only funny but it becomes serious and emotional too at times when it's necessary. That's when I wanted to salute author for not letting this book look like a wanna-be or asking the reader for a forcible laugh even at the places where the jokes doesn't work. Along with making fun of his whole journey which from an Indian's point of view is quite successful, he also keeps telling where did he have to struggle more than needed and when did he feel low about himself. He have described India beautifully rather than making cheap comments on the nation like few other authors who find it a way of amusing their foreign fans. 

           The only drawback of the book is that the author is confused at times if he have written this book for only his Indian fans or only his overseas fans or for both of them. Sometimes he writes as if he's talking to Indians. Sometimes to the people of his migrated nation. Sometimes with all of us. That confuses us a bit about the approach with which that particular chapter is written. Also, I didn't find the whole description of each ceremony of his marriage funny even when the author have tried to create humor in it. He failed miserably only in that chapter otherwise all the chapters are wonderful if not great sometimes. I give this book 3.5 stars out of 5 and I want to read more from Kunal. GO FOR IT!!!

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!! 

Review: Kis Kisko Pyaar Karoon: Kapil Sharma's confidence as an actor is watchable!!! **½

1331st BLOG POST -->>

KIS KISKO PYAAR KAROON: 2.5/5

       I am just out after watching Comedy Nights with Kapil.. Oops.. Sorry.. Kis Kisko Pyaar Karoon, the debut movie of the most successful stand-up comedian of India. I, personally, didn't expect much from the movie because whenever a comedian ends up acting in a comedy movie as a lead actor, it ends up being the most idiotic and silliest movie of that year. But the case of Kapil Sharma has been little different. He became superstar with his show on Colors 2 years back but the continuous run of the same resulted in monotony and the show is not special anymore. Kapil Sharma didn't even close the season for a month or a quarter before the release of the movie to create some curiosity among the audience to watch him again on the big screen. Now it's like even if you will miss the movie, you know he will be back on Sunday with Akshay Kumar on Comedy Nights with Kapil. But, this has also been an advantage for him because as an audience when I was watching the movie, whenever I found him cracking some great punches, I was happy that at least the guy is in touch even if he is unable to create the same laughter of Comedy Nights anymore.  

           Now, as I spent the last paragraph in explaining how Kapil's case with a movie is different from other comedians but frankly speaking, Kis Kisko Pyaar Karoon in definitely watchable. Yes! You might not find it a laugh riot but it's a movie which Kapil really took seriously and didn't end up overacting as I was expecting. He did perform like a humble actor who did whatever his great directors, Abbas-mustan, asked him to do. Right from the first scene to the last, the actor looks confident in each scene and knows how to carry it with his image in audience's mind. He haven't pretended in any scene. We get to watch a real Kapil Sharma who is wanting to make his fans laugh even through a movie after a comedy show where he shares space with 8-10 other artists too.

           The 3 actresses have also does good job specially Manjari. Elli have also performed very well and she really looked beautiful and hot in the movie. The two songs in which she have performed great numbers are worth watching and she looks epic in Bam Bam song. Jamie Lever, daughter of Johny Lever, also played a good part as a servant and assured to make the audience laugh with her great comic timing and expressions. Arbaaz Khan is also innocent in his part and plays the role perfectly. In all, this movie does not disappoint in terms of performances. Varun Sharma is also hilarious and plays the supporting role well. And Director should be applauded that he didn't make anyone do any extra bit that was out of their league. He used people according to their talents and skills and placed them perfectly. Songs are also nice specially "Samandar main Kinara Tu".

            The screenplay of the movie is so perfect that not once will you find how did we reach to this scene just after the last one which was a totally different plot. This was understood by the trailer itself that the movie is not going to have something different as this concept is been played in many movies including Garam Masala. But the newness and freshness that the script brings with the punches and different scenes does not bore you throughout. Even in the emotional scenes, Kapil Sharma carries himself well which impresses you. I am surely going to watch his 2nd movie too. This is what the guy have done with his debut work. I give the movie 2.5 stars out of 5 for the genuine efforts from Kapil and an average performance by the directors considering that their name brings great expectations too. :-) 

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!! 

GANESH CHATURTHI...... I am blessed to be in MAHARASHTRA :-)

1330th BLOG POST -->>

             People from Kolkata often ask everyone to visit the state once during the Durga Puja to witness the whole scenario and proceedings. Similarly, I believe that one should definitely visit Mumbai, Pune or any of the states of Maharashtra during Ganesh Chaturthi for 10 days and witness what really joy, fun, happiness, energy and devotion is. There are always positives and negatives to find in any thing that takes place but talking only about the positives, Ganesh Chaturthi makes life easier for people residing in Maharashtra. Even when you are working in office or sitting for a lecture in college, you can hear a bhajan playing somewhere or the noise of dhol or bells ringing at some pandal. Even when you are doing your work, you are enjoying the festival in background. Ganesh Chaturthi adds flavor in the lifestyle and the craze stays for the next 10 days too. 

            I am only against unwanted noise and water pollution that are the resultants to such festivals but keeping these factors aside, experiencing Lord Ganesha and the energy he brings with himself is immensely interesting and unforgettable. We often stop believing in God when we face pain one after another and it seems as if our life will never be normal again. We even start abusing him in public and we find it cool in defining ourselves as atheist. But then the phase goes and incredibility starts happening with us again. Our belief for God starts returning and we again find ourselves in utmost devotion and dedication towards the Almighty. Since last 6 years, I have started following God more than anytime in my life. Surely in childhood, I prayed God with the most dedication but that was out of fear but the relationship with God now is of pure love and compassion. 

            Now I see idols of Lord Ganesha and tears start rolling down my cheeks. It happens if I start talking with God and thanking him for all the great things happening in my life. And during such seasons, when you find a beautiful idol at every 10 meters, it becomes hard to avoid the presence of God around me. I have never visited Lalbaug because these idols around me in my town gives me the best attention and grace. I touch feet of these idols with full dedication and find myself almost with God himself. The spiritual connect with any idol can make you feel you are sitting with God and talking about his greatness and its reflection in your life. 

             This Sunday, my mother and I decided to visit as many Ganesha Pandals in my town as possible and witness the creativity of each sculptor who gives definition to the presence of God through his eyes. It is an amazing experience to witness different shades of a God made by the hands of human being with great care and love. Not even one idol is defective. Because whenever you do something For God, With God and In Presence of God, things can never go wrong. I know this generation is too cool to even give a second look to a temple around because his group will call him a emo or a pandit or someone who believes in an absent figure who will solve all his problems. But only the devoted one can understand what kind of power the Almighty has through which he eliminates all our problems and fills our life with happiness.

           I am sharing very few pictures from the Pandals that I visited just to give my readers a feeling of what kind of Pandals Maharashtra witness during these 10 days of Ganesh Chaturthi. I hope you will visit soon to enjoy with us the festival of enjoyment and togetherness. OM GANESHAY NAMAH!!!

  Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

Chhimi Tenduf-La: "I have to be nicer to people in the hope that they buy my books." (Interview) !!!

1329th BLOG POST -->>

 Chhimi Tenduf-La is someone whom I call Chetan Bhagat of Sri-Lanka because the way he writes, he makes a reader feel that it's his own story even when he have faced nothing of it. He has recently come up with his 2nd novel- Panther. Do read this funny and honest interview to know what Chhimi have to say to all of us regarding his life as writer.

1.      How has life changed since writing first book early this year?

I have had to employ heavier bodyguards and I wear sunglasses in the night now. I’m just joking, of course, as if I am honest, nothing has really changed. The big change in my life was becoming a parent not an author. The only changes are that I am busier, for sure, and I have to be nicer to people in the hope that they buy my books.

2.      What kind of responses did you get for THE AMAZING RACIST?

Incredible really, both from bloggers and the press. I hoped it would have some commercial success but I never imagined it would be well received critically, so that’s great. The best part, really, is hearing that people who don’t normally read, have read it.

3.      Tell us something about your new release- Panther.

I started writing Panther as a high school drama- like a teen movie for South Asia, but it developed into more as I studied the psychology of child soldiers and the like. This made it a more emotional story, and possibly one which has suspense and surprises.

4.      How did you come up with such a title which does not tell much about the story inside? :-)

Initially it was called the Papadum King but my publisher felt that title made it sound too childish. We changed it to Panther to maintain some mystery. The main character was a child soldier for the Panthers, and in some ways he is a panther at high school, trying to sneak around and get by.

5.      How did you manage to write and release it within 6 months of your first release? 

I wrote both books before I approached an agent, so with a few tweaks here and there I sold them at roughly the same time. It is not like I quickly wrote Panther.

6.      A tough question: Choose one out of two- The Amazing Racist or Panther, which one is closes to your heart? You have to name one. :-)

Easy at the moment. I would say Panther for sure as it was more challenging to write and it is a deeper, more substantial story. The Amazing Racist was really fun to write and it has greater appeal to those who want an easier read, but Panther is getting more critical success. This choice may have been easy because Panther is the newer book so it is what I am thinking about more. In fact, sometimes I feel like I wrote The Amazing Racist in another life time.

7.      Didn't you find it a risk to write a story based on communal wars within a nation you live in?

Very much so. I don’t want to annoy people or look like I am taking sides. I think I can avoid the attention of violent elements as they are unlikely to read the book – if a movie comes out, then I could be in trouble.

8.      What are your plans for your 3rd book?

I have started writing it and the words are flowing – however, I want to be patient and not send it out there until it is as good as I can make it. I want to write at much as possible until December, when we are expecting a baby, then I will take a few months off and come back to it with fresh eyes. I hope.

9.      Any words for your Indian fans out here.

Thanks so much for your generous support of this book. The feedback from India has been fantastic and I have loved being in touch with some of you. If lots of you read my books I will admit that India has the best cricket team in the world.

Review: MSG-2: BABAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA !!! *****************************

1328th BLOG POST -->>

MSG -2- Infinity/5

     There are moments in life when you feel you have done the silliest thing of life and you can't be more sillier than this. Even I used to think about myself the same until yesterday. Because I wanted to watch some new movie, I do not know what made me watch MSG-2. Yes, you are hearing it right. And I do not think I have ever had much lower moment than this in life when I was feeling too bad about myself to get trapped in something which is only abusing itself with every scene. This is the greatness of the movie. Audience do not have to abuse it, the movie abuses itself and you just have to witness this happening in front of you for 2 hours and 12 minutes. 

           First of all, I would like to discuss the great plot of the movie. Some politicians and corrupt policemen decides to kill all the adivasis officially and finish them as they are too aggressive and have no guilt in killing human beings. The hero of the movie.... (Yoooo.... Control yourself, guys..... he is coming...... finally, he is here.... oh yes... he steps on the Earth... oh phuckkkk... whole earth have started shivering with his arrival...) SHRI BABA GURMEET RAM RAHIM SINGH JI INSANNNNNNNNNN...... decides to save adivasis. He goes to the CM and asks for one month to make them "INSAN". Well, now the whole movie is based on this. 

           The expressions of Baba's face is epic whenever he is angry or he is listening to someone. He tries enough to emote but in one or two scenes, 3 twigs of his beard did emote by moving. Even the jokes that Baba cracks makes you laugh like you are about to die next moment because with the kind of dialogue delivery that joke comes out, you can not resist yourself. And you find his followers laughing on these jokes in the movie. I feel pity about these junior artistes who had to do this job just to impress Baba and his Babaism. They could not have even abused him after the shot because Baba was present along with them on sets.

           The best parts of the movie is whenever Baba actually wanted to be a hero and does action scenes. The great thing is that no one ever came to fight with Baba alone. They always came with an army of not less than 500-1000 people. And you think someone would have killed Baba out of these 1000s? When Salman Khan and Suniel Shetty does not die, how can Baba? How dare you think like that? Baba is always standing in middle of these opposition armies. I do not know how army always managed to get baba in middle of them. And finally, Baba, who himself kept preaching in the movie to not beat or kill anyone, looks in anger and fury, then kicks so hard with his right leg that he jumps so high that he almost levels with the sky and comes down with such a great speed that as soon as his legs hit the earth, the dust blows with such a speed that all the 1000s of those people standing with tankers and all dies or gets disappeared. YO YO BABA GURMEET RAM RAHIM SINGH!!! 

          If you ever want to give yourself enough pain to forget all the other troubles of life, watch this movie alone. But if in case you want to laugh a lot and enjoy the moments with your friends like never before, watch this movie in group. In case you are too busy for next whole month, do not worry, MSG-3 will come soon and make sure you watch FDFS because no better MESSENGER has ever visited EARTH than BABA. Adiguru ki Jai!!! That's how they celebrate him in the movie. I will give this movie ************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************ And the stars kept getting typed forever.... 

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

Review: Katti Batti: Better to do Katti with this movie !!! *½

1327th BLOG POST -->>

KATTI BATTI: 1.5/5

      Kangana Ranaut has become a brand after doing an epic blockbuster- Queen and then a totally different movie, Revolver Rani, which didn't do quite well. And then this year with Tanu weds Manu Returns, she assured that she can bring audiences to theater by her presence. Just after this blockbuster of 2015, came the trailer of Katti Batti which showed Kangana in an avatar of a cribbing partner. With great fame and name, comes expectations and hope of consistency. Katti Batti proved to be such a bad movie that it might take little time for Kangana to understand what went wrong. On the name of performances, there was no one whom you can blame for spoiling the movie. Even Imran Khan, whom I do not like a bit as an actor, surprised with a balanced performance though he still manages to keep a straight face in the scenes which asks for great emotions. But then, acting is a skill and not talent you are born with. Imran should understand it now.

 

          The screenplay of the movie is so bad that you just want someone in theater who can fast forward it so that the crap finishes soon. The story is spoken in flashbacks and rather than generating any kind of craze in you, it actually shocks you that for these stupid moments and incidents, director is making us go again and again in the past of the protagonists. There's nothing interesting through out the movie. Yes, Kangana looks extremely beautiful in few scenes and that's the only point which holds you throughout. Even songs couldn't manage to keep you intrigued as they aren't as catchy as they looked during promos. Because this movie had Kangana, you expected more of her but she seems to be coming in between just to make you smile that she is in the movie. That's one of the biggest minus point. If the name on which you sell the movie is not as much as audience's expectation, you can definitely not entertain them.

           The last 10-15 minutes of the movie are really emotional and Kangana and Imran, both in the respective order, shows a great acting and it becomes hard to hold your tears. But just 10-15 minutes of good climax can not fetch you the vote when you have bored the audience for whole 2 hours. I give this movie 1.5 stars. Direction is too bad and I hope next time this self-acclaimed big director comes with a movie, there is some substance into it rather than only reel of 2 hours unfolding in front of an audience only to make them frustrated towards yourself. 

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!! 

Panther by Chhimi Tenduf-La (Book Review-4*/5) !!!

1326th BLOG POST -->>

          I remember reading "The Amazing Racist", the debut novel of Chhimi Tenduf-la, in the first half of this year. I enjoyed it so much that I still remember the story even when I am a victim of a very bad memory. Haha! I was amazed to know that he have already published his second book with HarperCollins in the second half of the year named "Panther". I was very skeptic about this book because I felt the writer does not have an idea of how to go in the industry which is making him release books in such short  gaps. But after reading this one, I can easily say that Chhimi is Chetan Bhagat of Sri Lanka. He knows how to hit the right spot with the youngsters through story and make them feel a part of it. Even when I am not from the country he belongs or the country in which this book is based in, I could easily feel and understand all the emotions and black face of reality. 

           Chhimi has this amazing humour which he creates in scenarios where you least expect it. There are situations which will make you laugh like crazy imagining if something like this can actually happen. That keeps his readers under the domination of the book and they only leave it once they end up reading the last page. And the good thing is that he does not use that simple English language to tell his stories. He creates and form sentences that shows how great a writer he is and how great he can be with each book. His writing style directly hits you and takes you in the world of his stories and stay there even after the book ends. I completed the book last night and I am still thinking about the protagonist and the life he lead. Only a great writer can make this happen.

           The book will be difficult initially considering the way it's started. It's written in two voices and two different lives of the protagonist is discussed one after another which makes it hard to fathom but once you understand how it's been written, you start enjoying the story. The characters are very well-developed- specially Prabu and Indika along with other supporting characters like Coach Silva, Achala, Mathews etc. The accent given to the Prabu is also well maintained throughout the book and doesn't cause irritation to the reader while reading conversations in wrong grammar. The way book changes in 2nd half gives it the right momentum and it is then that you finally get engrossed in it and start believing that you are reading a good and unique book. The twists and turns in the end are really unbelievable. 

            Through this story, Chhimi have told it in such an easy language the several difficulties developing countries like Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan faces on daily basis. It tells how everything is corrupt and how your life is ruled by few bad self-proclaimed kings. It tells about how a nation and its people suffer because of the unwanted wars that take place even within a country between two groups. There are many such realities- minor and major that Chhimi have discussed with this book which shoould be definitely appreciated. I will give this book an excellent 4* and I am eagerly waiting for his next book now. I have only one complain- Why such cover pages always? Give your cover pages as much life as you give to your stories. :-)

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!! 

The Winning Way by Anita Bhogle/Harsha Bhogle (Book Review-3.75*/5)!!!

1325th BLOG POST -->>

       In my shelf from last 2 years, I finally picked the book 4 days ago and since then, I have been able to grasp enough knowledge about how management has to be performed in a corporate environment that I even thought of giving it as a gift to my bosses of every organization here on wards. Haha! That's the magic of "The Winning Way" written by the couple- Anita Bhogle and Harsha Bhogle. The magical aura of the book can be assumed after knowing the names who have scribbled the foreword and the last word for it- Mukesh Ambani and Rahul Dravid respectively. This 196 pages book has many things to say which can definitely make you look things at organization from bigger perspective. It will make you understand why you have not been able to grow as quickly as others in hierarchy as this book makes you realize the mistakes you have been doing all along.   

    The Winning Way blends the field of pure management and Cricket together and tells us how both are inter-related with each other. The writers keep on giving us the example of many Cricket events and how few people managed the riskier and impossible situations there to get over the challenge. And then it teaches us how by taking an example from the same, we can apply it in our daily lives at organization and produce the same impossible results and win the already lost fight. I liked the language in which the authors have described the events and examples. Their own experiences in different seminars and the query from the employees of MNCs makes the book more insightful and you cannot thank the authors for sharing all of those moments with us.

                 The bullets in the end of every chapter assures that you can pick this book anytime whenever you are in trouble and recall all that you read in it. The bullet makes it clear that you do not miss any important point from the chapter. Even though the book belongs to the self-help genre, it can be read while traveling as it's written in the easiest language possible to make you feel as if you are hearing another great commentary from Harsha Bhogle and not reading something as important as this but still you will find yourself improving with each sentence as it's written with great research and counselling of people in corporate world and basically in management field. I give this book 3.75 stars out of 5. Yes, little more could have been given if it didn't have repetitive sentences every now and then. Also, Sachin's example is taken more than required. I know he's God but I didn't read this book to recite mantra. Right? :-)

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!  

Review: Hero: It's a straight Zero!!! 0

1324th BLOG POST -->>

HERO: 0/5

     What made me watch "Hero" this weekend? Just that one video featuring Salman Khan in the promos singing the title track of the movie. And this is the basic plan of Salman to drag audiences to theater through this one video and generate exactly the amount spent on this movie. I remember reading an interview of his in which he says that Sooraj Pancholi will replace him in Bollywood. Bhai, are you serious? First of all, no one can replace you and even if you wanted to name someone, you could have named anyone but Sooraj? Yes, I agree that the guy looks cool with a very nice physique and a great attitude he carries with himself but that's exactly what every newcomer male actor has in himself. What's great in Sooraj that you think audiences will forget all the actors and vote for him? Sorry, but your child isn't worthy enough to be the main lead in a movie that promotes heroism. Tiger Shroff did far better last year with Heropanti.   

              Similarly, talking about Athiya Shetty, someone said it rightly on Twitter that if she would not have been a star kid, we must have found her selling sim cards for Rs. 50 under a big umbrella. Again comparing her with Kriti Sanon, the debutante last year, she stands nowhere. Either in acting, aura, beauty or dancing. She is a complete Zero and only Salman Bhai who is known for having big heart can invest in such people. This movie is a remake of Subhash Ghai and Jackie Shroff's landmark film "Hero" made somewhere around 1980. Isn't it great that our Bollywood believes in remaking such an old movie with the same plot in 2015 when people reject even modern love stories? Not every movie can be Aashiqui 2 and earn 85 crores and also affection of 50% youngsters. That film was something else. It was a musical romance which touched youngsters. But this movie doesn't even have great songs. And love scenes, just don't make me write about them.

            Nikhil Advani have directed this movie so bad that you won't believe what's happening. The obvious things are ignored and the plot keeps getting weakened every 5 minutes and you want to kill yourself when a new character gets introduced almost when you start assuming that girl's father will agree for the relationship. The other characters are treated so badly that they are just in movie because a whole 2 hours thing can't be made with 2 people standing in each other's arms. The screenplay is so weak that start getting frustrated how the film transfers from one scene to another. Unbelievably bad and silly. The dialogues of this movie are the easiest thing I have seen in my life. Just one for all of you- When Sooraj Pancholi enters to crack bones of some villains, their boss says to him,"Hero ki tarah entry maarta hai.. Hero hai kya?" Just imagine! I better give this movie 0 and leave from him rather than cribbing more about it. Go at your own risk. 

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

THE PROBLEM OF IT FRESHERS TODAY!!!

1323rd BLOG POST -->>

         It has been almost 40 days since I started my first job. The new world that I got introduced with wasn't easy to get adapt with but when I realized to earn money, only this path has to be followed and I'll have to learn the things I am not finding enough interesting, I got into the extreme learning process and the basic fear that I used to have every morning before leaving home went away. Now I go to office with a confidence and attitude of learning, executing and making my employer feel happy about their selection. I remember how happy I was when I got the offer letter. I struggled for some 3.5 weeks after giving my MCA examination and I tell you, it was one of the most challenging period I had to be positive even when I saw no light in the tunnel I was walking in. It gives me goosebumps even now when I think what if the period would not have ended till now. Of Joblessness!   

           In my class of almost 70 students, not more than 15-17 got job. And the same ratio follows in almost every college except the Top 5 where MNCs and Brands come during Placement period. While in our colleges, only 4-5 students get placed through the institution. Rest have to crawl on roads, local trains, lanes, offices and almost in every Mumbai location to find a job for themselves. I do feel a peaceful silence in my life since I have got a job but I can clearly listen the high decibels of tension ringing in my friends' mind as they are yet to be placed somewhere. After working for more than a month, I can understand why the FRESHERS face problem in getting their first job. What wrong have they done to get treated like this? What is our fault if we do not have experience? What is our mistake if we get idiotic job vacancies claiming to recruit FRESHERS with 3 YEARS EXPERIENCE? I mean how is this possible? This might be a joke for you but this is the harsh truth that FRESHERS have to live with daily.

            In our colleges, first of all, we do not have great faculties to teach us the programming languages which are actually important to fetch a job. I am also unable to understand why are there 5 useless subjects which have nothing to do with practical life of job are inserted against just one programming language in every semester for 6 continuous semesters in a Post Graduation degree like MCA. When I joined my office and saw the project that they placed me in, I was shocked to see its vastness and complexity. Even if all the projects my classmates made in all the 3 years would be considered as one, it is still smaller than the one the IT company develops. Why are we not introduced to such systems during our course and have a VIVA upon them? It would be so easy for all of us to understand what kind of projects are actually developed in industry. Similarly, rather than asking us to prepare a random mini-project, modules of such large project should be divided among groups and integrated into a single project in the end which would also teach us how to work in teams within a big team. 

             For the 6 years that I passed in getting two degrees in Computer Applications, not even once a seminar took place which made us know the other profiles we can get in an IT company except development. It is only after I started searching for job and started working, I got to know about profiles like Business Analyst, Software Tester, Software Designer, Database Administrator, Network Support Engineer, Automation Architect, Data Analyst, Application Support Engineer, Security Engineer etc. Who the hell is responsible for guiding students about the different prospects they can get in after passing the course in a particular field and that too like IT? Even the Internship that we do in our last semester is asked to be done only in development even if I am a certified tester or database administrator. Are you fucking kidding me, University? Are you for real? Huh!

            Even if someone wants to get into development, there are so many options from PHP to Java to Android to Dot Net to Python to........ Shouldn't the course like MCA be also converted into specialization like MBA and Engineering? For 2 years, teach all the nonsense that you want and through proper seminars by industry people, make students understand what would be the job opportunities under each option and make them chose a specialization in 3rd year. Same can be done for B.E. students under IT and CS branches. In the 4th year, start teaching practically in lab for the programming language or something else chosen by the student rather than still repeating those useless subjects until the last semester. Stop that. 

         Enough of circulating degrees to students that is useless. People ask for your degree only to keep it with themselves for the number of years they hold you through bond. Every company in interviews are asking for Certifications. Even after spending lakhs and lakhs each year, we still have to spend 50,000 to 3,00,000 for a Certification. That 3 to 6 months course has better value than the 4-6 years that you teach us in the same field of education because their teaching approach is to develop students professionally and technically rather than giving them only good percentage. The job that I have fetched is only because of 3 months education I had at Seed Infotech. The whole college life seems to be a waste even when I am being called Master in Computer Applications. 

         This scenario have lead into companies exploiting Freshers by asking them to fill bond of 2 years with just 5000-8000 salary. Some are even asking to pay a security deposit of up to 50,000-1,00,000. And rest I have told you above, few end up asking for FRESHERS but with EXPERIENCE. I hope our education system takes this seriously rather than just earning from the growing number of students each year but getting some industrial trainers compulsorily with proper subjects that are actually useful in job. I hope the GOD of JOBS, if there is one, does something. Kaale Megha Kaale Megha Paani Toh Barsaao!!!! 

        My heart goes to all my fellow classmates who are still searching for job and facing these foolishness. In the end, I would also like to add that we are not even taught how to fill up the profile on job searching websites like Naukri, Monster, Timesjob, Shine etc. Some friends call me even for that. And we are dreaming of becoming Super Power with the help of youths in this decade itself. God Bless India! Hope unemployment does not become as big problem as corruption. What would you expect when our HRD minister is herself 12th std pass? It's better for me to stop writing rather than cribbing about hundred facts that is improper and enemy of students. 

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!