Jab We Met
So I finally saw this film on Monday, and I must say, I was quite impressed.
A step away from the cartoony-antics of your average Bollywood blockbuster, where they try to cram too much into 3 hours, this one was quite leisurely in its pacing and story, and that’s what makes it one of the strongest Bollywood films of the year.
We’re introduced to Aditya. He is young, handsome and rich, but he feels anything but. His father has died, leaving behind a failing company, his mother is distanced and his fiance has left him.
Getting on-board a train, he decides to attempt suicide. But then he meets Geet – a fanatical, eccentric Punjabi girl, with a lot to say. She saves him, without realising. After a minor calamity involving missed-trains, they end up on a road trip to Punjab, where they’re introduced to a whole host of chaos.
The film is written/directed by Imtiaz Ali, who manages to nail down emotion perfectly, thanks to his amazing leads. Shahid Kapoor proves he can lead a film on his own, and his performance is solemn, moody and realistic. Aditya isn’t in-human, he’s just searching for his soul – Shahid could have very easily over-played this, but he gets it right.
Kareena Kapoor is amazing as Geet. She gets the bubbly personality just right, and there’s not much left to say except she’s perhaps the most talented mainstream young-star in Bollywood. Great show!
The story is simple, and it works well because of it. There is no ridiculous plot twist or silly moments, it really is a romance story. But in being simple, and “small,” there isn’t much in the form of lavish sets or big musical numbers. But I’m sure Om Shanti Om has enough to fill in the void.
After Chak De!, this is further proof Bollywood is coming up strong. Let’s hope Aaja Nachle is just as good!
Diwali Time!
So on Saturday, it was Diwali Time, at least in my area (our celebration is 2 weeks behind, so we have good attendance). And for the most part, it was relatively uneventful.
The day event kicks off with Arrivals and Greetings, like any party. People arrive at their own leisure, and try to say “Hi” to all they meet, ignoring the select few. Then at 8.30 pm it was Dinner, a buffet of vegetarian food. My friends and I were lumbered with the task of serving food, and so we pretty much lost our appetite (especially me, serving cuddy).
At 10pm, there were Item Numbers, then an hour of Dancing. This was followed by Raffle draw, then finished off with a final half-hour of “naach-ing”.
There was a long-winded speech in the middle of the show, about how important Gujarati is to learn, even though half the audience weren’t Gujju, and it was pretty dull, but there was a lively dance number afterwards that was cool.
All in all, an alright night. I just wish there was more drunk’n mayhem and drama – cat fight, anyone? There’s always next year…
Enough of the gaming
I’ve decided I will limit the amount of talking I do about video games, technology and the like to once a week at most. It can get boring to read, and I get carried away when typing it!
This weekend my local community is having its annual Diwali celebrations, which will be fun. Yeah I know, it’s 2 weeks too late, but it doesn’t stop the naach-ing. I will type that up for Sunday’s blog.
Have a good one.
Paradise – coming soon to an Xbox 360 near you?
Hey peeps,
I was playing Super Mario Galaxy and I came across a level where you ride a sting ray and go surfing. The waves and the colours of the level made me think – wouldn’t it be awesome if there was a game where you lived on an island, just like this. Isle Delfino from Mario Sunshine came into my head. It’d be a blast.
I then began plotting an idea – what would the game have? What would you do on the island? Would you play as a character, or a God-like figure? And is it online? So thus ‘Paradise’ was born – a video game idea. Kinda like a mix between The Sims, Sim City, Lost and Mario Sunshine.
The story: you are aboard a luxury cruise liner, and you – among hundreds of others – are sailing along tropical oceans. The sun is shining. The refreshing breeze of the ocean current flows through your hair. But then all of a sudden, a storm forms above the cruise liner, and a green energy field forms. The cruise ship sails straight into it, and boom!
You wake up on a sandy beach. The heat cooking your forehead. And the sounds of people crying. You get up and look around. There are dozens of people, all on the beach like you. Nobody is hurt or injured, just lying down on the beach. You look out to the ocean – there is nothing. Not even the remains of the cruise ship. All you can see is the lush trees and jungle behind you, with its vibrant trees, streams and fruits.
You are in paradise. And away from the world.
Your mission in the game is to essentially live on the island, however you want. You can build huts and buildings, you can hunt for food, or you can explore the island revealing what the energy field was and where the rest of the passengers are. You can also learn more about all the survivors, and each could have their own subquests or whatever. The island is also home to some exotic-but-deadly enemies, so you have to help lead a resistance against them.
It’s the ultimate survivor game, a bit like The Sims Castaways meets Lost, but with an OTT exotic look similar to Mario Sunshine.
Anybody out there wanting to develop a game like this? Contact me! contact@thedesiblog.com!
WoW: Mr T pity the fool!
Blizzard Entertainment – the creators of World of Warcraft, the world’s No. 1 online video game with something like 8 million players – have unleashed their new adverts. And they’re pretty cool!
WoW is actually pretty fun. It’s quick to pick up and has so many missions and tasks, there’s always plenty to do (some online games are bland and boring, as they don’t feature many objectives). I played it during the summer, but then because of my work load, I stopped.
After I finish watching all my movies, TV shows and I complete my games, I’ll start up again. This time as a dwarf! They rule.
