Coimbatore Diary!
The past two weeks have seen a whirlpool of relentless activity preventing any chance of posting even a formal "Hi" in this space.I am afraid that my articles henceforth may be a random assortment of gibberish.
*If anyone decides to pursue a Masters degree in Sweden,the natural response would be a happy "All the best".But Mr.Karthikeyan's decision came as an absolute bolt from the blue.Officially,he was a faculty advisor in our Students Union but otherwise he was a close friend who can take you out for a dinner after a hectic day of work.He was a dynamic person who always stayed in the campus late into the night.He was largely misuderstood by many of my college friends.His acts of snatching ID cards for the most trivial of reasons always put off many but all his actions hinged on the fact that PSG Tech was not his employer but his Temple,Mosque and Church rolled into one.He was like a child in the lap of Mother PSG.A misunderstood Karthikeyan has left for Sweden to do a one year course.I pray sincerely that when he comes back to PSG Tech next year,he is understood,felicitated and celebrated.No one deserves it better.
*The CWG Theme song is getting the eggs and tomatoes everywhere.I had to take up this case for Rahman.One cannot light-heartedly write away that Rahman composed it keeping in mind that the CWG was anyways going to be a corruption-ridden shame.Honestly,the song is not Rahman-at-his-best work but it still gets all the cues (and cliches) of an anthem right.Many opine that the lyrics are WTF stuff but with my limited Hindi expertise,I dare not comment.The song,inspite of shortcomings, can work well as an anthem with the "Jeeyo Utto" refrains.With a vibrantly shot video and 24*7 coverage in satellite TVs,the song can capture hearts big time.But after nearly 18 years of Rahman-following,here is a Rahman song without a single moment of surprise.There cannot be a bigger surprise.
*I was in lab when the news of actor Murali's death spread.There were no "Oh my god" reactions.Murali was no Rajini or Kamal.He was a small actor with a limited fanbase.I once so convincingly felt that Murali had no fans on earth but whenever I went to Madurai,I was awestruck by the posters celebrating "Manuneedhi thandha Mannane"(Manuneedhi was a dud which ran for less than 5 days across the globe).Wherever I went,I saw posters of a dark Murali smiling in flexboards,posters and cutouts.I asked my uncle,"why is Murali so famous in Madurai?".He told me,"Nothing like that.There is a single fan of Murali who is doing all this."My respect for Murali grew because in an age in which fans keep jumping to an actor who has more fans already,Murali was able to retain a single fan of his for more than 15 years without giving a single noteworthy hit.
Murali was a dedicated actor whose legacy made my friend quip,"kadaisi varaikum love solamale sethu poyitare!".I was shocked to know that a person who turned into a star with "Idhayam" died of a heart attack.To me,Murali was about the natural acting singer in "Pudhu Vasantham",the ever-loving college student in umpteen movies and also about that single fan who will paste posters all around Madurai wailing "Uyir neetha anbu thalaiva".Tamil cinema has always been more about fans than stars.
*I don't know who invented this divide between "Regular" and "Sandwich" students in PSG Tech.I want to do a Bombay-Aravindasamy by cutting the hands of a "Regular" and "Sandwich" student and say "Indha rendu rathamum onnu serum".I live in dreams.
*If anyone decides to pursue a Masters degree in Sweden,the natural response would be a happy "All the best".But Mr.Karthikeyan's decision came as an absolute bolt from the blue.Officially,he was a faculty advisor in our Students Union but otherwise he was a close friend who can take you out for a dinner after a hectic day of work.He was a dynamic person who always stayed in the campus late into the night.He was largely misuderstood by many of my college friends.His acts of snatching ID cards for the most trivial of reasons always put off many but all his actions hinged on the fact that PSG Tech was not his employer but his Temple,Mosque and Church rolled into one.He was like a child in the lap of Mother PSG.A misunderstood Karthikeyan has left for Sweden to do a one year course.I pray sincerely that when he comes back to PSG Tech next year,he is understood,felicitated and celebrated.No one deserves it better.
*The CWG Theme song is getting the eggs and tomatoes everywhere.I had to take up this case for Rahman.One cannot light-heartedly write away that Rahman composed it keeping in mind that the CWG was anyways going to be a corruption-ridden shame.Honestly,the song is not Rahman-at-his-best work but it still gets all the cues (and cliches) of an anthem right.Many opine that the lyrics are WTF stuff but with my limited Hindi expertise,I dare not comment.The song,inspite of shortcomings, can work well as an anthem with the "Jeeyo Utto" refrains.With a vibrantly shot video and 24*7 coverage in satellite TVs,the song can capture hearts big time.But after nearly 18 years of Rahman-following,here is a Rahman song without a single moment of surprise.There cannot be a bigger surprise.
*I was in lab when the news of actor Murali's death spread.There were no "Oh my god" reactions.Murali was no Rajini or Kamal.He was a small actor with a limited fanbase.I once so convincingly felt that Murali had no fans on earth but whenever I went to Madurai,I was awestruck by the posters celebrating "Manuneedhi thandha Mannane"(Manuneedhi was a dud which ran for less than 5 days across the globe).Wherever I went,I saw posters of a dark Murali smiling in flexboards,posters and cutouts.I asked my uncle,"why is Murali so famous in Madurai?".He told me,"Nothing like that.There is a single fan of Murali who is doing all this."My respect for Murali grew because in an age in which fans keep jumping to an actor who has more fans already,Murali was able to retain a single fan of his for more than 15 years without giving a single noteworthy hit.
Murali was a dedicated actor whose legacy made my friend quip,"kadaisi varaikum love solamale sethu poyitare!".I was shocked to know that a person who turned into a star with "Idhayam" died of a heart attack.To me,Murali was about the natural acting singer in "Pudhu Vasantham",the ever-loving college student in umpteen movies and also about that single fan who will paste posters all around Madurai wailing "Uyir neetha anbu thalaiva".Tamil cinema has always been more about fans than stars.
*I don't know who invented this divide between "Regular" and "Sandwich" students in PSG Tech.I want to do a Bombay-Aravindasamy by cutting the hands of a "Regular" and "Sandwich" student and say "Indha rendu rathamum onnu serum".I live in dreams.
Ha... Try the last one before u leave... U wont get that chance after a year.... Don think... Jus give a try and see what happens....
ReplyDeletegood post:)i like wat yu wrote about murali:)
ReplyDeletevery well said abt karthi sir umesh :)
ReplyDeletethat last line sums up the last paragraph. [though i love this idea :)] appdi oru vela try panna (???) let me know ;)
ReplyDeleteArun & Moto + 1... :)
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