Migration =?= Blood Brothers =?= Prarambha =?= Positive

If =?= would mean "how is related to" what would be your answer.

Well they are abstract words, but my only aim is to compliment a few people, albeit late, but in good time for the wonderful effort they made.

And the answer would be AIDS. Yes, these movies were part of AIDS Jaago campaign last year.

The words above are the titles of four small movies directed by Mira Nair, Vishal Bharadwaj, Santosh Sivan and Farhan Akhtar in that order. I remember having read somewhere that it was the brainchild of Mira Nair. These movies were even shown on 1st December (World AIDS Day) on MTV.

Now they have been been screened free on Jaman (here). I think its no use giving brief plot of each movie, since each movies being roughly 15-20 minutes long, any takeaway from this blog would be a spoiler. But there are some thoughts on these movies that I'd like to share.

So warning here to go and watch the movies first then come back and finish reading it. Also advising you all to just go and watch the movie rather than read the sub-text before watching the movie.

Blood Brothers, was one amazing story where story's progress would be anyone's nightmare, the end everyone's heavenly relief. I think this is one movie where the real embarrassment, grief is shown in one brother and courage and spirit to fight in another.

Prarambha, to me appeared a bit pot-pourri of messages director wanted to convey but the end result was something Bollywoodish- it's a good deal if you are willing to believe the goodness of the story.

Positive, again was a movie which hammers its message slowly and you actually get to know how would you feel in this situation no matter which character you associate yourself in the movie. The son's touchy temperament, mother's patience and having made truce with situations and father's repentance and attempt to get his family back.

Migration, was another classic. I really appreciated how this movie folds itself in the last moments. In the end you have a pregnant urban mother, an HIV+ rural family.

You may claim there are enough giveaways in the movie to know who-gave-to-whom. But as the street-play portrays you never know who did the character in the movie contract it from. I think you'll appreciate the ending more if I argue that hints in the movie were not enough to blame one person so we have an open-ended movie. You just know that nearly everyone in the movie is now HIV+ and they don't know who they got it from. Just like the urban housewife might feel later, who did she get it from, his husband and she might have infected the rural worker or from the worker and she later spread it to her husband.

I believe if one understands this spread-network factor in HIV and give it a thought, once can't think of unprotected sex (at all?). Another real beauty was to portray that spread of HIV infects both rich and poor alike. I would rate this movie as the best of all (despite the fact that I hate Shiney Ahuja).

But overall, all the movies were good in spreading message of safe sex while also trying to explore how your families, friend, society and above all YOU react in these situations.

P.S. I will post EPL Vs IPL comparison-II a bit later.

Confessions of a dying blog

Lately I have been dumped just like one slumps down after a high from few drinks. I was born out of confusion (now that doesn’t mean – in an antisocial or immoral way). Normally things arise, take form and are born with a certain idea but I was born out of the wedlock of my owner and yes, confusion. And I was christened in the same spirit, “Trying to understand…. Life”. It’s ironical to say this but yes I was born so that my parents’ may end up getting divorced and I may be credited for it.

I was stuffed with articles, from political to lame poems, stories and even some pastime researched compilations on topics people may simply brush aside as ludicrous.

My timid father sought me to speak out against reservation, lame govt policies, criticize intellectuals from PC Chidambaram to Narayan Murthy. I was so happy back then, I felt myself equal to social activist, in the most ideal sense, trying and fighting hard to bring a change.

But lately I feel as if my parents’ matrimony is far from divorce, in fact its so strong that I think they may as well celebrate their silver jubilee anniversary. The only grouse is since I couldn’t help the divorce, I was dumped by my parents as if I don’t belong to them.

My father is nowadays a drunk addict only reduced to reading other’s blogs but when it comes to voice his own ideas and confusion, he dumps the idea thinking that it ‘s a cliché idea and it doesn’t have any substance to be talked about. Well yes, as if the blog on “Poor Jokes” had a lot of substance in it. And talk about substance, seems the next blog here may appear when my father becomes a modern day Carl Sagan.

Only a miracle can save me and my alcoholic father now.