Wednesday, August 27, 2014
Tuesday, August 26, 2014
Film review : Mardaani
Maradaani is the latest offering from Yash Raj films.It is directed by Pradeep Sarkar of Parineeta (Vidya Balan's debut film ) fame.Produced by Rani Mukherjee's hubby,Aditya Chopra.It stars Rani Mukherjee ,a new talent Tahir Raj Bhasin,Mona Ambegaonkar,others.
The story is about a tough police woman ,Shivani Shivaji Roy.She is senior Inspector ,Crime Branch Mumbai police.She breaks bones without batting an eyelid.She has a niece & hubby at home.The niece's buddy ,a flower girl who sells flowers on the streets goes missing from an orphanage.Shivani starts her search.And the bodies start piling up.This alerts her that ,her missing teenager is caught in a sex trafficking racket.The stakes are high.Her family is hit because she dares to trace the girl.She moves to Delhi as the villain is located there.In Delhi,the police chief is apathetic like the society. The villain is burger,biryani & coke hungry .A video game addict He knows the moves & the tricks of the trade.He tries to threaten Shivani & yet her mission to find the missing teenager does not falter.Does Shivani manage to get the racket exposed ? Is she able to rescue the teenager or is it, too late ? Who is the kingpin ....the suave villian or is it some one else pulling the strings ?
There is just one song in the film....sung by Sunidhi Chauhan.The lyrics of the song too strong & convey the message that all must fight back.
The story is of flesh trade.This movie raises awareness about the lurking dangers of flesh trade .It is rampant the world over & especially, in India.If people think ,it happens to girls of the lower classes,it's time to have a re think.Sex trafficking is endemic across all countries,all colours,all races,creeds,etc.Majority of the victims are women & children..The Boko Haram kidnapping of girls who were converted to Islam & sold off is a case in point.In Iraq,Yazidi girls are being kidnapped by ISIS jihadis for trafficking.Not that other places are left out.Nepali & Bangladeshi girls & women are lured by promises of better life & sold into the flesh trade in India.India is the major transit point.Wikipedia As per estimates,3 to 4 lac people are trafficked in Asia.More than 30,000 kids go missing in India annually.Only a third are traced.This is apart from those, who are sold off by people the victims trusted and or others.Some are kidnapped & still others are lured by promises of better life.
Kindly support organizations which are trying their best to end suffering & bring succor to the sex trafficking victims.Prajwala is one such NGO doing laudable work in this regards.Support for PRAJWALA can be given here .
The film also exhibits how technology is being abused to sell girls.Tabs & tokens are used to select girls vide their profiles etal .Someone rightly said," Progress is not WiFi at every street.Progress is, when no 13 year old girl is sold at any street."
Please feel free to leave the links of NGOs who are working with sexual trafficking victims in the comments below.
The story is about a tough police woman ,Shivani Shivaji Roy.She is senior Inspector ,Crime Branch Mumbai police.She breaks bones without batting an eyelid.She has a niece & hubby at home.The niece's buddy ,a flower girl who sells flowers on the streets goes missing from an orphanage.Shivani starts her search.And the bodies start piling up.This alerts her that ,her missing teenager is caught in a sex trafficking racket.The stakes are high.Her family is hit because she dares to trace the girl.She moves to Delhi as the villain is located there.In Delhi,the police chief is apathetic like the society. The villain is burger,biryani & coke hungry .A video game addict He knows the moves & the tricks of the trade.He tries to threaten Shivani & yet her mission to find the missing teenager does not falter.Does Shivani manage to get the racket exposed ? Is she able to rescue the teenager or is it, too late ? Who is the kingpin ....the suave villian or is it some one else pulling the strings ?
There is just one song in the film....sung by Sunidhi Chauhan.The lyrics of the song too strong & convey the message that all must fight back.
The story is of flesh trade.This movie raises awareness about the lurking dangers of flesh trade .It is rampant the world over & especially, in India.If people think ,it happens to girls of the lower classes,it's time to have a re think.Sex trafficking is endemic across all countries,all colours,all races,creeds,etc.Majority of the victims are women & children..The Boko Haram kidnapping of girls who were converted to Islam & sold off is a case in point.In Iraq,Yazidi girls are being kidnapped by ISIS jihadis for trafficking.Not that other places are left out.Nepali & Bangladeshi girls & women are lured by promises of better life & sold into the flesh trade in India.India is the major transit point.Wikipedia As per estimates,3 to 4 lac people are trafficked in Asia.More than 30,000 kids go missing in India annually.Only a third are traced.This is apart from those, who are sold off by people the victims trusted and or others.Some are kidnapped & still others are lured by promises of better life.
Kindly support organizations which are trying their best to end suffering & bring succor to the sex trafficking victims.Prajwala is one such NGO doing laudable work in this regards.Support for PRAJWALA can be given here .
The film also exhibits how technology is being abused to sell girls.Tabs & tokens are used to select girls vide their profiles etal .Someone rightly said," Progress is not WiFi at every street.Progress is, when no 13 year old girl is sold at any street."
Please feel free to leave the links of NGOs who are working with sexual trafficking victims in the comments below.
Saturday, August 23, 2014
Friday, August 22, 2014
Book Review : Private India.
Private India is a joint work of two eminent novelists,Ashwin Sanghi & James Patterson.Ashwin Sanghi has penned bestsellers ...namely...the Rozabel Line,Chanakya's Chant & The Krishna Key.I have read The Krishna Key & it was really good.James Patterson is famous for books like the internationally selling Private series,Women's Murder Club,Detective Michael Bennett novels among so many !
This novel "Private India " is an edge of the seat thriller.The cover shows the Gateway of India,The Taj Hotel & the Worli Bandra sea link.There is a man the run towards the Worli sea link .The publishers are Arrow Books.The print is easy on the eye.Paper is off white colour.The book is of 470 pages & yet it can be completed fast, as chapters are short & that eggs the reader to read a little more each time.The book starts with a Prologue which describes the bombs which stunned Mumbai when they blasted in local trains in 2006.Next is Part I, which has 37 chapters.This is followed by Part II of 40 chapters .Then the finale unfolds in Part III consisting of 29 chapters.This is followed by Epilogue .After the Epilogue ,there is an extract about how it all started.That left me wanting more !
This mystery is set in Mumbai .Santosh Wagh is head of Private India ,an excellent investigative agency.A doctor is found murdered in a starred hotel room.She is from Thailand. She has been gagged with a bright yellow scarf.Next murder is of a journalist .There is that yellow scarf again on the crime scene. Is there any connection & if so what is it ? Or maybe, someone is trying tricks .Then the bodies start piling up.All victims are women.Is it serial killing ? Santosh is unable to decipher anything.Then his hacker goes missing.He is arrested & tortured.Is he the murderer ? Santosh,s,ex collegaue, from the police keeps blowing hot & cold .Santosh & his team have an office with state of art technolgy.And yet,their investigation is ending up nowhere.There is one guru, who has his hands or rather fingers in numerous shady deals.There is a don, who has been able to evade the law so very often.There is a terrorist threat looming over the maximum city.Are the murders & the terror threat connected ? In the midst of all this,Santosh Wagh's boss arrives in India. Santosh is unaware about his boss's mission.What is it ? His boss's Indian girlfriend is one of the victims.The police obviously suspect the boyfriend. Santosh is sure, that the police are wrong.Yet ,why is his boss being secretive ?Why only women are being murdered ?Is the perpetrator trying to tell something through the clues that are left near the victims.The victims seem unconnected.Or is there any link ? Santosh is bogged down by the murders.Will he & his team be able to outwit the killer & prevent more bloodshed ? And what happens to the terror attack ?
The thriller keeps us engaged in the narration.Santosh is addicted to the bottle & his ex colleague to tobacco.Do they give it up, for good ? This story is about the stress ,the guilt of working long hours in the law & order department in Mumbai.The city draws out the maximum stress amongst the residents.That leads to addictions which take a toll, on the health.Santosh Wagh come across as a workaholic ,a typical urban trait which leads to guilt of neglecting family which in turn, breaks many marriages.
All in all ,a book, which is a sure winner !
This review is a part of the biggest Book Review Program for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books!
Saturday, August 16, 2014
Friday, August 15, 2014
Book review : Choices by Ruchira Khanna.
Ruchira Khanna is a blogger.Choices is her debut novel.And her first book is very good !
She writes about immigrants & their values & hopes.She pens down their aspirations & their hard work in the United States of America .She writes in detail about the daily routine life .Though it is simply stated yet ,it gives us a peek into their daily lives.And makes us very empathetic.
This is the story of Leanardo, who is the son of immigrant Portugal parents.He wants to join the IT industry.Fate has other plans for him.He is hardworking & has clear set goals.He is diligent & sincere.He meets with an accident .This makes him realise the value of relationships.Another event changes everything upside down.Does Leanardo falter from his path ? Is he able to hang on to his dreams of being rich & successful ? What happens to his heart throb ? Is he able to wed her ? Is he able to complete what he began ? What does he gain ? What has he lost ? Has he chosen or did fate chose him ?What are the effects of the path selected ? Can all of us select ? Rightly or wrongly ? And what will be the aftermath ?
This is a simple story told in simple language.Yet it tugs at our hearts.Because it talks of feelings, which are our own.The details are all there.It talks about so many different nationalities living the American dream of making a successful living ...in a home away from home ! The characters are so various......Asian , Hispanic,Portuguese,Italian etal.They want to have a splendid life in America by working hard & giving the very best to their children ! They have simple needs & wants.
The book is very positive.It talks about life in a correctional facility...wherein inmates are corrected so that they can again be part of the society by joining it.I loved the book .It made me believe, once more, in the adage "Every saint has a past...every sinner has a future ."
Stalk her @
She writes about immigrants & their values & hopes.She pens down their aspirations & their hard work in the United States of America .She writes in detail about the daily routine life .Though it is simply stated yet ,it gives us a peek into their daily lives.And makes us very empathetic.
This is the story of Leanardo, who is the son of immigrant Portugal parents.He wants to join the IT industry.Fate has other plans for him.He is hardworking & has clear set goals.He is diligent & sincere.He meets with an accident .This makes him realise the value of relationships.Another event changes everything upside down.Does Leanardo falter from his path ? Is he able to hang on to his dreams of being rich & successful ? What happens to his heart throb ? Is he able to wed her ? Is he able to complete what he began ? What does he gain ? What has he lost ? Has he chosen or did fate chose him ?What are the effects of the path selected ? Can all of us select ? Rightly or wrongly ? And what will be the aftermath ?
This is a simple story told in simple language.Yet it tugs at our hearts.Because it talks of feelings, which are our own.The details are all there.It talks about so many different nationalities living the American dream of making a successful living ...in a home away from home ! The characters are so various......Asian , Hispanic,Portuguese,Italian etal.They want to have a splendid life in America by working hard & giving the very best to their children ! They have simple needs & wants.
The book is very positive.It talks about life in a correctional facility...wherein inmates are corrected so that they can again be part of the society by joining it.I loved the book .It made me believe, once more, in the adage "Every saint has a past...every sinner has a future ."
Choices by Ruchira Khanna
The Blurb
Leonardo is a young man who is standing on a crossroad of life, facing choices. One road leads to a high stress career that brings in big bucks; the other is a chance to make a real difference in lives of others. He has a few questions, questions that all of us have faced when facing choices that can change our lives. Does fate make a man, or do his desires? Do ambitions and desires actually lead a person to true happiness and fulfillment, or does providence and life changing events actually show a person the true path to follow?
‘Choices’ raises these questions, and attempts to answer them. It is a slice-of-life, a book written from the heart.(
Buy @
Watch it
Meet the Author
Choices: A Novel talks about how we all come to crossroads in our respective lives, and then the impact it makes by a choice we make.
A biochemist by profession made a mere choice of enrolling myself into a technical writing course. Now, little did I know that this small decision would take me on a path to creative writing and eventually publishing a novel.
This novel, Choices helps answer many questions about man's ambitions and desires and how is it a road towards happiness and contentment that could eventually become your destiny. This is a "slice-of-life" genre thus, impacting all humans who have made a choice sometime or the other in this lifetime!
A biochemist by profession made a mere choice of enrolling myself into a technical writing course. Now, little did I know that this small decision would take me on a path to creative writing and eventually publishing a novel.
This novel, Choices helps answer many questions about man's ambitions and desires and how is it a road towards happiness and contentment that could eventually become your destiny. This is a "slice-of-life" genre thus, impacting all humans who have made a choice sometime or the other in this lifetime!
Thursday, August 14, 2014
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Spotlight : Choices by Ruchira Khanna
Choices by Ruchira Khanna
The Blurb
Leonardo is a young man who is standing on a crossroad of life, facing choices. One
road leads to a high stress career that brings in big bucks; the other is a chance to make a real difference in
lives of others. He has a few
questions, questions that all of us have faced when facing choices that can change our lives. Does
fate make a man, or do his
desires? Do ambitions and desires actually lead a person to true happiness and fulfillment, or does
providence and life changing events actually show a person the true path to follow?
‘Choices’ raises these questions, and attempts to answer them. It is a slice-of-life, a book written
from the heart.(
Buy @
Watch it
Meet the Author
Choices: A Novel talks about how we all come to crossroads in our respective lives, and then the
impact it makes by a choice we make.
A biochemist by profession made a mere choice of enrolling myself into a technical writing course. Now, little did I know that this small decision would take me on a path to creative writing and eventually publishing a novel.
This novel, Choices helps answer many questions about man's ambitions and desires and how is it a road towards happiness and contentment that could eventually become your destiny. This is a "slice-of-life" genre thus, impacting all humans who have made a choice sometime or the other in this lifetime!
A biochemist by profession made a mere choice of enrolling myself into a technical writing course. Now, little did I know that this small decision would take me on a path to creative writing and eventually publishing a novel.
This novel, Choices helps answer many questions about man's ambitions and desires and how is it a road towards happiness and contentment that could eventually become your destiny. This is a "slice-of-life" genre thus, impacting all humans who have made a choice sometime or the other in this lifetime!
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Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Book Review : Ramayana - The Game of Life : Rise of the Sun Prince
Reading this book on Ramayana made me very nostalgic.I have read Amar Chitra Kathas & other books on the Ramayana.So many stories are interwoven in the Ramayana.I tried to absorb the subtle details & revelations made by Shubha Vilas,the author of the book.This is book I, of the series of books on the epic, Ramayana.
Shubha Vilas is a motivational speaker.He is an engineer .He also has a degree in law with a specilisation in patents.He applies the teachings of ancient scriptures to modern day lives.He encourages students and the youth towards better spiritual lives.
Jaico Books is the publisher .Jaico Books publish books on fiction as also non fiction.The paper quality is good .The book cover shows Rama aiming arrow at the sky .In the sky ,a roof of arrows has been made.Above the arrowed roof ,are the demons with ferocious faces.Sitting very near to Rama, are the rishis conducting yagnas .Another person is aiding Rama, in fighting the demons above.He is dressed like Rama though he is of fair skin, unlike Rama, who is of shyam varna.
This book I, narrates the story of Ramayana from the birth of Rama till his wedding to Sita.The tale begins with Valmiki muni.His story is narrated.Next, it goes on to narrate many tales about various characters who are an integral part of the great epic.
There are many short notes throughout the book which explain the terms & the reasoning.This makes the narration very interesting.I had read that Sita & her three sisters were married to Rama & his three brothers.This book states that Sita had one sister & her Uncle had two daughters & that's how Rama & his brothers got tied up in holy matrimony.These small details are like the icing on the cake ! I learnt that Vishvakarma had made two bows ...one for Shiva & another for Vishnu.These fine subtilities made me read further & further.
The book begins with a Dedication by the author to the numerous people who helped him in coming up with this book.Next is the index.First, is the acknowledgement wherein the author admits that he is unable to thank all, who helped him in his en devour to write the book.This is followed by the author's note.The note states why he wrote the Ramayana which almost, all Indians know.Why Ramayana continues to fascinate him, every time he reads it.Then the book begins .There are nine chapters.Each chapter is further divided into small headed paragraphs.
After the ninth chapter ends,there is an appendix titled " 24 qualities that make a hero ".This is followed by chapter 1 of the Book II in the series titled "Shattered Dreams ".
I loved the narration of the epic.The author rightly says that, the epic teaches us many things, about leading a spiritually uplifting life.It tells us, what is the virtuous life of a King ,a queen ,a householder,a wife,a father ,a mother & so on. I felt, as if I read the Ramayana in a new light !
Shubha Vilas is a motivational speaker.He is an engineer .He also has a degree in law with a specilisation in patents.He applies the teachings of ancient scriptures to modern day lives.He encourages students and the youth towards better spiritual lives.
Jaico Books is the publisher .Jaico Books publish books on fiction as also non fiction.The paper quality is good .The book cover shows Rama aiming arrow at the sky .In the sky ,a roof of arrows has been made.Above the arrowed roof ,are the demons with ferocious faces.Sitting very near to Rama, are the rishis conducting yagnas .Another person is aiding Rama, in fighting the demons above.He is dressed like Rama though he is of fair skin, unlike Rama, who is of shyam varna.
This book I, narrates the story of Ramayana from the birth of Rama till his wedding to Sita.The tale begins with Valmiki muni.His story is narrated.Next, it goes on to narrate many tales about various characters who are an integral part of the great epic.
There are many short notes throughout the book which explain the terms & the reasoning.This makes the narration very interesting.I had read that Sita & her three sisters were married to Rama & his three brothers.This book states that Sita had one sister & her Uncle had two daughters & that's how Rama & his brothers got tied up in holy matrimony.These small details are like the icing on the cake ! I learnt that Vishvakarma had made two bows ...one for Shiva & another for Vishnu.These fine subtilities made me read further & further.
The book begins with a Dedication by the author to the numerous people who helped him in coming up with this book.Next is the index.First, is the acknowledgement wherein the author admits that he is unable to thank all, who helped him in his en devour to write the book.This is followed by the author's note.The note states why he wrote the Ramayana which almost, all Indians know.Why Ramayana continues to fascinate him, every time he reads it.Then the book begins .There are nine chapters.Each chapter is further divided into small headed paragraphs.
After the ninth chapter ends,there is an appendix titled " 24 qualities that make a hero ".This is followed by chapter 1 of the Book II in the series titled "Shattered Dreams ".
I loved the narration of the epic.The author rightly says that, the epic teaches us many things, about leading a spiritually uplifting life.It tells us, what is the virtuous life of a King ,a queen ,a householder,a wife,a father ,a mother & so on. I felt, as if I read the Ramayana in a new light !
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