The paratha paradox

I love parathas. They're roti and subzee mixed all-in-one! You can just roll them up and be done with dinner in a few bites. Or lunch. I mean, alu parathas are heavy, I assumed they're best for a good heavy lunch.

Boy was I wrong! As I landed in the land of Parathas and looked forward to filling myself to my heart's content with alu paratha, muli paratha, gobi paratha and even rabri paratha, I found out that looking for a paratha in the north after 10 am is like looking for water on Mars.

Plus if you ask any waiter or a street vendor for one, they look at you as if you've come from outer space. "Paratha toh sirf dus baje tak milta hai madam."

Considering how I'm never up at that hour, (dozing either at home or in office) I wonder when I'll get any parathas. I think parathe wali galli might be the only place in the entire Delhi where you can get parathas in the evening. I say lunch, they say snack! Jheejhus!

Image courtesy: http://chakali.blogspot.com

Rockstar.. Yeah right!!!

You know you've come for a terrible movie when:
1) You wonder when the movie is going to get over and realize that the interval is not here yet
2) You want to kill the reviewer who gave the movie 4 stars when he should have actually given half
3) You thank God you reached twenty minutes late and missed the beginning of a pointless movie, the plot of which was much better shown in its two minute trailer

I generally enjoy movies, irrespective of how boring or pointless they are, but this was the first one I felt like leaving half way through. I didn't leave because I thought, there must be some point, come on some point! But as I found out at the end of three excruciating hours, there was none.

The movie was extremely disappointing for two reasons. First, from the title it seems like the movie is about the life of a musician or 'Rockstar'. That is absolutely misleading. It is a love story. Period.

Second, the editing is terrible. I once heard from a good writer that the art of story telling requires a sense of which parts you delve on and which parts you fast forward. The plot is in itself flimsy, and bad editing makes it worse, as the movie delves on the boring love story, and fast forwards the so-called heartbreaks that turned the protagonist into a 'Rockstar', thus making it lose credibility.

In comparison, I would say Rock On came the closest to actually showing, to some extent, the lifestyle of musicians. At least it was believable. This movie does no justice to its title.

Ranbir Kapoor has tried hard and is endearing in most parts as the brash Jat boy who wants to become a cool rockstar. His transition from a geeky college kid to a seemingly heartbroken adult is smooth albeit the hard knocks which cause this transition are not convincing.

From what I've gathered so far, the guys love Nargis Fakhri and I must say that lady can point her toes. Her short dance sequence in the beginning and in Hawa Hawa are a pleasure to watch. However, her acting and her accent made me cringe.

The chemistry is sizzling between the lead pair. A R Rahman's songs are delightful and apt for a love story but not for a 'rock' movie which this anyway isnt.

It seems as Imtiaz Ali warms up to the art of film making he is getting more cautious and commercial. His 'Socha Na Tha', though a love story, was extremely off beat and fresh. The same goes with Jab We Met. He's now going to direct a South remake. I hope he shows some creativity there at least.