Glen Beck Cont... uhh! - no, national hero !

So you think I forgot ! - Admittedly I'm only mentioning Beck because he dissed India (in a sense). I had thought that this was the first time. However, a cursory google on "Glen Beck India" returned results as old as 2006. He's being going on about Indian doctors and the river Ganga etc... This one is just another string of his rants. Mmmm it's good to look outwards - from a psychoanalytical point of view - having a 'world view' is good, for sure. It deters from obsessing about one's self and helps alleviate neurosis. So if viewers of Glen Beck's show get off on making fun of others countries and cultures then so be it. I think there is a place for such incendiary commentary; if only to relieve their isolation and neurosis about their own culture and society. For this alone, Glen should be commended, as well as the owners and sponsors of Fox News (fair and balanced of course). Mmm I almost regret watching Avatar now... money goes to Rupert Murdoch. Must stop reading WSJ too. oh no ! For the rest of humanity that doesn't prescribe to the 'adventures' of Glen Beck ? We must wait till his demographic changes its perspective on things. Long wait you say ? Well, there is a generational change in America - this is its last throes.

Sawariya Vs Om Shanti Om

I don't know why there was such a hype about comparing these two movies. The only commonality is that, in both movies, the 'Hero' doesn't get the Heroine. Apart from that comparing Sawariya to Om Shanti Om is like comparing an Apple to an Orange. Yes they are both fruit, but they have different tastes. Sawariya is like a stage adaptation of the short story 'White Nights', and no I hadn't read it till I saw the movie. Om Shanti Om, on the other hand is what can only be described as a very well made tribute to both, Shah Rukh Khan and the Indian Film Industry. More importantly it is a discovery of the inspiration behind many of Bollywood's actors. Yes, both movies had debutants in them, but that doesn't mean you start comparing them. Ofcourse, Sawariya will flop in the box office and Om Shanti Om will set records.

Shah Rukh has found a role that allows him to overact without appearing to overact, and Padukone Jr., does a very good job of playing both roles. The dialogue is witty, the story detailed and it always helps to pass the time trying to guess why certain actors appeared in Deewanagi deewanagi. Shah Rukh does a YMCA on the poster which sells with the CD and Dj Aqeel has, perhaps, made the best re mix of his career with Dard-e-Disco. I am most impressed with Farah Khan and the production quality of the movie. I look forward to Deepika Padukone's next movie. Some of the memorable scenes are 'Apahich Pyar' and 'Yennaaaaa Rascala'.

Farce # 1 ?!? - India's presence in F1

I wonder who comes up with these names ? Mr Mallya how many Rupees did you pay the person who came up with the name for your minority holding in team "Force India" ? I agree having an Indian presence above that of our beloved 'I must only come third from the bottom' Karthikeyan is a good thing. However, shouldn't we come up with a better name than 'Force India' for an F1 team carrying our national colours ? OK shall we be referred to as 'Force India' or 'Force India F1 Team' ? Is it a play on Formula 1 ? With Spyker's poor performance in 2007, don't we run the risk of being 'Farce F1 team' ? Let's try an maintain a perspective that is balanced. All new teams in F1 face a tough challenge and Force India is no exception. I agree we shouldn't short sell ourselves and it makes sense for a marketing ploy (for this is what is really is, there isn't a car manufacturer backing Force India) to milk this opportunity to overcrowd the Indian airways with slogans of 'Force India'. Since Indian advertising has no base in reality what so ever, Ads claiming Force India to take F1 by storm (get it Force / Storm ) will fit well into the landscape. So where is the authentic Indian F1 fan left ?

Fairy Floss F1 Flukey Farce India ? However, there is one unassailable fact, which may have been literally translated into the name which will accompany the tri-colour... The Indian economy is booming, so much so, that the frivolous circus that is F1 now has an economic presence that is distinctly Indian. With a track being made in Delhi, (?) There seems to be a lot of spare money floating around within the subcontinent which isn't going into cricket nor into Bollywood. It is yet to be seen who the sponsors or the drivers of the team will be. With Chandok testing for Redbull and Ralf testing for Force India (really you need to have a two syllable name) we have to wait and watch to find out if Force India will be piloted by two foreign drivers. If so, I wonder how successful their marketing campaign will be. If Ferrari continues to supply the engine then we will be 'Force India Ferrari F1 Team'

This reminds me of the Sanskrit conjunctions we used to do in school. Let's see who can come up with the longest name so that for a given space we have the smallest font. Fox Force Five anyone ?