STARBUCKS IN DELHI

STARBUCKS

Will I stand in a line of 40 people in sweltering Delhi heat to buy coffee for 200 bucks, the answer is a clear no, while I show resilience against the impact of one of the greatest brands in the world the queue outside the Mumbai and Delhi outlets is nothing short of the lines in Seattle (Excessive Coffee makes you sleepless in Seattle….hehheheh).

Some of the numbers that these stores... are achieving are mind boggling, just like the salary of its CEO Howard Schultz who is being paid 20-25 MM USD every year.

In India these serpentine queues have only been seen outside the outlets of SARVANA BHAVAN and SAGAR RATNA. So what makes STARBUCKS so popular, is it the

-Brand
-Taste
-Service
-Ambience
-Experience

I guess will find out once I can ask somebody who can stand in the queue as my proxy for a cup of DOUBLE ICE MOCHA

THANK GOD ITS FRIDAY- TASTEBUDS

Its FRIDAY and as the week closes symbolically (still have plenty of things lined up for Saturday) the mind seems to wander to what will be on offer for the TASTE BUDS during the weekend.

Despite the full work load ahead during the day, the prospects of gorging on some lip smacking, mind numbing fare in the evening (to kick-start the weekend) is hard to miss.

Some of the options that come to my ...mind are as follows

1.If its left to the wifey then it will be an ORIENTAL SOJURN all the way (never mind if it is sino ludhianavi ya that’s right its not sahir ludhiyanavi its sino ludhiyanvi which is 75% spicy Punjabi and 25% Chinese as Vir Sanghvi likes to call it) the kind of Chinese food that even the Chinese can’t imagine. Did anyone say chilly paneer ….ouch.

2.I on the other hand consider myself to be a pucca delhite and a pseudo Mughal, so my way on the high way would be TANDOORI all the way (never mind if its soyabean kabab over seekh kabab and panir tikka over chicken tikka masala for the veggie me) at Matru ki shop at Model Town a great place to visit for all the vegetarians.

3.The desserts throw open a debate which is as old as history itself. Will it be a pastry (god’s very own creation the pineapple pastry) from Wengers or a rasmalai from Haldiram’s or will it be an uninspiring visit to the Kwality Walls thela for a cornetto (noooooo).

Kellogs in the morning and the dabba in the afternoon will wonder why they are being given a second class citizen treatment today but what to do its Friday.

CHETAN BHAGAT - KAI PO CHE

CHETAN BHAGAT once remarked that INDIA is not KHAN MARKET and COLABA. This INDIA which lives in small towns and cities to a large extent might not be reading SALMAN RUSHDIE and AMITAV GHOSH but they are lapping up BHAGAT’s offerings as they connect with it and as they are the heroes of his work.

KAI PO CHE is an adaptation of BHAGAT’s 3 mistakes of my life. The movie is beautifully directed by Abhishek Kapoor (Rock On) the bonding specialist. The story revolves around three men, their dreams, hopes and aspirations. The background of 2001 India –Australia cricket series and the 2002 riots gives the screenplay a unique originality.

Great acting (AMIT SADH is superb) and even superior direction marks this as great cinema. I think this is the most intense/draining movie after TAARE ZAMEEN PAR and is definitely a must watch.

SPECIAL 26

The first four star movie of 2013-SPECIAL 26 has released. Do go and watch it for its director NEERAJ PANDEY who gave us A WEDNESDAY which has one of the greatest dialogues of contemporary India delivered by Nasserudin Shah –Main wo hu jo kaam par jaata hai to uski biwi ko lagta hai jang par ja raha hai pata nahi lautega ya nahi, har do ghante baad phone karti hai ki chai pee lee khana kha liya , ...darasal wo ye janna chati hai ki main zinda hoon ki nahi.

Special 26 carries forward the great work of Neeraj Pandey with powerful performances from Anupam Kher, Akshay Kumar and Manoj Bajpai, Jimmi Shergill chips in too. Anupam Kher has been rewarded with a meatier role compared to A Wednesday and he responds by showing a range which is the highlight of the film, very strong performance after KHOSLA KA GHOSLA.

Neeraj brings in a special style to his cinema where characters are shown walking briskly while entering a premises and the camera captures them from the front, it shows you the narrative in a style as if you were present in the room.

The story has its own charm based on real life incidents of 1987, as they say truth is stranger and in this case sweeter for the audience than fiction.

FILM SOUNDS OF 2012

In my year end musings, I wanted to do a piece on the FILM SOUNDS of 2012. The idea was to highlight those different sounds, which captured our minds and hearts and stood out.

Sounds of 2012

1.BIHAR KE LALA –Gangs of Wasseypur –Sneha Kanwalkar
The trio of Manoj Bajpai, Manoj Tiwari and... Sneha Kanwalkar made Bihar hep and revenge cool. Tani naachi gaayi sabke mann behlawo re bhaiya.

2.MAIN KYA KAROON- Barfi- Pritam
We have all heard boys and girls in our schools and colleges with a guitar singing hotel California, Nikhil Paul George is that boy who brings this magic to a mainstream Bollywood movie.

3.PARESHAAN- Ishaqzaade-Amit Trivedi-Shalmali Kholgade
The nation fell in love with Parineeti Chopra who was Pareshaan in college, on a giant wheel, at home in the bathtub. Refreshing is the word.

4.PAANI DA RANG- Vicky Donor- Ayushmaan Khurana
The surprise of the year, actor, singer and composer Ayushmaan Khurana gave us the song which many FM channels claim is one the most played songs of 2012. Pani da rang vekh ke -Akhiyaan cho hanju rul de.

5.LUNI LUNI- Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana- Amit Trivedi- Harshdeep Kaur
Sugary like the garam imarati from the neighbourhood halwai.

6.AGA BAI- Aiyaa - Amit Trivedi - Shalmali Kholgade and Monali Thakur
Many have missed Aiyya , but not to be missed is the marvel which had funky beats on which you could groove anywhere.

7.JUGNI-Cocktail- Pritam- Arif Lohar
All the songs of Cocktail were a rage but Jugni was the crown jewel turning Arif Lohar into an overnight star across the border in India.

Some of the runner ups include Auntyji from Ek Main aur Ek Tu, Jiya Lage Na from Talashh, Chup Chup Ke- Rush, O Womaniya-Gangs of Wasseypur, Mere Nishhan –Oh My God, Tu Hi Mera-Jannat 2, Navrai Majhi -English Vinglish.

In case you think there has been a sound which deserves an ear, do share.

 

TALAASH

Talaash

You see an intense aamir khan and are left to wonder what happened to the bubbly DJ of rang de basanti and rancho of 3 idiots, the man is so serious that he will give the post grads of National school of drama a run for being sad and in a state of denial in a performance. It is actually a painstaking performance.

Rani Mukherjee after the superb performance in AIYYAA which released couple... of months back comes back with a bang with a performance which is balanced and true to its part and scope.

However the crown jewel of the movie happens to be the fourth generation of the Kapoor clan. Kareena Kapoor just takes your breath away with her beauty and casts a spell as both Aamir Khan and the audience in the theatre fall in love with her. Saif Ali Khan take a bow for being the luckiest man in the Indian Sub-Continent.

Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti take you on a journey to the Promised Land but never reach there. That is the problem of creativity if it works does wonders but if it doesn't then it is like a bad cup of tea, you will never relish it.

LUV SHUV TEY CHICKEN KHURANA

The curious case of LUV SHUV TEY CHICKEN KHURANA…some say it is the recipe of a curry called chicken khurana...while others say it is the realistic depiction of Punjab. I tend to think it is the case of a superior ensemble cast of not so popular but talented support actors outshining the lead pair.

Vinod Nagpal as the patriarch reminds you of the quality that Doordarshan has churned out over the... years which is pure like the desi ghee that you spread on the chapatis.

Rajesh Sharma who plays titu maa is a serious threat to Anupam Kher and Boman Irani (remember you heard it here first) in the character acting space, the man is like a pillar on which you can fit the broad structure of a film. Outstanding work would be an understatement.

Dolly Ahluwalia (still fresh in the mind as vicky’s lovely Punjabi mother in Vicky Donor) has a small role but great screen presence.

Munish Makhija (udham singh on Channel V) is on the spot even for the 5 mins of screen time that he has got.

Kunal kapoor fails miserably, the man just doesn’t know how to emote, I think with people like ayushman khurana, ranbir kapoor and ranvir singh around, more homework is required or else producing movies or assiting direction can be alternatives.

Amit Trivedi’s music is the piece de resistance of the movie; it just takes you straight to the emotions of the characters and the fields of Punjab , five stars to the music.