Wouldn't trade for anything else....

Happiness inspires never-ending desires of attainment within us.Everybody wants to be happy.Or anybody you meet on the streets would never greet you with a "I am not fine..."Everybody says I am fine.What drives the world? Money,Love,Power,Sex,Ambition...But what do they lead upto? In one sentence- the elated euphoria of being happy.Nothing makes you happy like the very hint of happiness.

But happiness feels so superficial.How can you feel , how can you have sensitivity when you are always happy?Pain is the true essence of life.Life without pain cannot keep you grounded.Life without pain cannot make you appreciate the fine nuances of this beautiful world.The best masterpieces in life are inspired by pain.Pain gives you focus.Hurt makes you the person you are.It helps you think.Brings emotional maturity .Makes you open your eyes more to the cosmos around you.

Pain makes me a better person.Makes me real.
Cut me like a knife anyday..

~A, can't live without a pinch of pain...

I would one day write on "Being Let Down..."

~A, a promise to remember....

"Kill Bill"..

I watched Kill Bill Vol 1 in 2007 and not many minutes ago finished Kill Bill Vol 2...There was an intended gap in watching the movies.More like the eagerness of lovers that is fueled by an interlude..Well a movie like KB and made by QT deserved that kinda break to get full appreciation.And now having been done with both the volumes and truly gripped by both , I just could not wait to pen down my enthused emotions even as I am @ the wake of dawn...

Beginning with Volume 1 , I had no clue about KB as I had never watched a QT movie before.But it dint take me much to figure.The movie is inspired by Martial Arts, Shaolin Temple.But it is not just another action movie.I was taken aback and yet instantly gripped by the way Uma Thurman kills the first viper of the DiVas Squad.Just out and out a killer and right in front of her daughter's eyes.She goes something like .."When you grow up you will wanna meet me.I will wait for you" And that z there to it ! No justification, No soothing words. I knew the movie was different instantly. Yes the movie has a lot of gore.But gore has style in it.

The martial arts fight inspiration of the movie with the caucasian edge kinda wraps up really well.Every move , every weapon depicts a different style.Repotedly QT spent around $ 65,000 for swords and accessories for this movie.

The action moves and fight scenes are surprising.Since a squad of killers are portrayed , the ease with which they handle an attempt to murder , a gunshot , a sword fight is really terrific.They are the best in the business and they actually justify every action move.Amazing !!
QT actually picked up bits and pieces while making this movie.The yellow tracksuit Uma wears on her way to killing the Krazzy88s is a direct tribute to Bruce Lee who wears it in the Game of Death.

In Vol 2 , I like the way Bill is more in the picture.They share a great chemistry of love and hate.She couldn't love another than Bill and she couldn't help but Kill Bill.That z a part of the essence of the movie.They were equals.

I loved the way Superman's character was analysed and how he justifies that just like superman's alter ego of Clark Kent was a critique on weakness of man, Beatrix Kiddo's running away to be a country lad's wife was a critique on normal people.She was born to be a killer and she admits she enjoyed killing people on the way as she made her way to Bill.

The final cresendo comes with Uma killing Bill and he asks her "How do I look?" and she says "You look ready"..The emotions are portrayed with very subtle tears without any dramatic effect and yet gets all the emotions through to you.

There are lots of trivia in KB and another one was when the credits were rolling up..As the viper squad names roll up, there are strikethroughs in the name.When Daryll Hannah's name comes up, there is a question mark.Coz they dont actually show her death but her pain on the way to death?Implying she might or might not be dead while for the rest it is sure they are dead..Well tats my interpretation ...

QT has done a great job.Gore gets a new style....

~A, like the way Bill was killed....

You will be my ain true love....

One of the best movies ever...English Patient

You'll walk unscathed through musket fire,
No ploughman's blade will cut thee down,
No cutless wound will mark thy face
And you will be my ain true love,
And you will be my ain true love

And as you walk through death's dark veil,
The cannon's thunder can't prevail,
And those who hunt thee down will fail,
And you will be my ain true love,
And you will be my ain true love.

Asleep inside the cannon's mouth,
The captain cries, "Here comes the rout,"
They'll seek to find me north and south,
I've gone to find my ain true love.

The field is cut and bleeds to red.
The cannon balls fly round my head,
The infirmary man may count me dead,
When I've gone to find my ain true love,
I've gone to find my ain true love

~A, The romantic

Weekend @ ImaginAsian...

Yesterday was great...a really exciting friday....twas my first flick in nyc theatre ImaginAsian , 59th St..Well honestly the theaters in india have done quite well...PVR z are huge both in infrastructure as well as the experience.. ImaginAsian is smaller than a PVR or Adlabs but the best part of the entire evening was the mix we had yesday evening...The spicy tadka...Tthere was a motley of people in the crowd..New Yorkers who werent Indians but were with Indian friends..The subtitles do help them..Desis who are on business visas with their wives and family in tow..Couples socializing over a movie...30 something singles who immediately reminded me of Carrie , Charlotte , Miranda and Samantha of Sex and the City fame..Generally a huge crowd...all from different walks of life but mostly all desis...Some were the condescending desis who couldnt resist a snide remark or so at us for being so obvious and loud in the hall...but wat the heck ? Who cares ! We were a huge group of eighteen people and esp students...Arent we supposed to be loud ?! :-) Well we were loud but our intelligent inferences throughout the movie kinda sent their grey cells for a brainstorm ride and they quietly accepted that we had what mattered..
I loved the girls in accent who couldn't stop cooing over Abhishek Bachan..Ttats wat i like about handsome guys.Girls just cant stop drooling over them...Accent or no accent ! And to the added bonus the movie was too good...A real Ramu comeback..I guess genius always speaks thru actions and not thru words as some Khans would learn the hard way..They couldn't stop their malicious remarks...Wasn't easy to digest even though it had the disclaimer tag of being "meant to be rude".Overall we enjoyed like never before.And then we walked all the way back to 33rd street station loving every bit of the city as we always do..Bloomigdales , A&F,GAP,Banana Republic just lured our minds ; couldn't lure our pockets though...But the city breathes life and lets out steam(literally, u can see manholes pouring out steam from the subway).You fall in love with NYC right away...I guess NYC is my lady..Have to wait to see LA till i can croon the song LA is my lady.As of now i am gonna hold onto my love before i move on..

~A, unabashed lover of new york city

Perfection is thy name...King Federer....

The Roger Federer Story,Quest for Perfection

When Tiger Woods achieved the “Tiger Slam” in 2000 and 2001—winning all four of golf’s major championships in a row—Roger Federer was not yet 20 years old. The way that Woods dominated golf and reignited interest in the sport certainly caught the attention of the young Federer. However, he never thought that he would ever be compared to someone as dominant as Woods.

“His story is completely different from mine,” he said in the spring of 2006. “Even as a kid his goal was to break the record for winning the most majors. I was just dreaming of just once meeting Boris Becker or being able to play at Wimbledon some time.”

Despite their different developments and the differences between their sports, the commonalities between Woods and Federer became unmistakable through the years. Like the four-time Masters champion, Federer is in full pursuit of sports history. While Woods is pursuing Jack Nicklaus and his 18 major championships, Federer is chasing Pete Sampras and his 14 Grand Slam singles titles. Both Woods and Federer are amazing because of their mental resilience, which is evident from the fact that they manage to make the most terrific shots under the greatest of difficulties.

Unlike his parents, Roger Federer is not a passionate golfer, but he follows Woods’ career with great interest. “It would be interesting to meet him and to see what he’s like in person,” Federer said in Key Biscayne in 2006.

Both Federer and Woods are clients of the International Management Group (IMG) and Federer’s agent, Tony Godsick, is friends with Mark Steinberg, the agent of Woods. In the summer of 2006, Federer asked Godsick if he could arrange a meeting with Woods.

“The next thing I heard was that Woods would be delighted to come to the US Open final,” Federer recollected. “At that time the tournament hadn’t even started. I would have preferred meeting him in a more relaxed atmosphere than on the day of the US Open final—and I still had to get there first.”

The public had no idea that a spectacular meeting was in the making behind the scenes at the US Open. After Federer defeated the Russian Nikolay Davydenko in the semifinals, he was informed that Woods was going to make good on his promise. He flew to New York from Florida on his private jet with his wife, Elin, to watch the US Open final in person.

To everyone’s surprise, Woods took a seat in Federer’s guest box—which was quite noteworthy given the fact that Federer faced an American, Andy Roddick, in the final.

“The fact that Tiger was sitting there put me under extra pressure,” Federer later admitted. “It was just like when I was younger when my parents or Marc Rosset watched me play in person. You want to play especially well.”

Woods’ timing was perfect. He watched and cheered as Federer won his third straight US Open title, defeating the resurgent Roddick 6-2, 4-6, 7-5, 6-1. For the third year in a row, Federer won both Wimbledon and the US Open—a record that he didn’t have to share with anyone.

While Federer briefly met Woods before the final, the two spent well over an hour together in the locker room following the match, drinking Champagne and gazing at the US Open trophy that Federer just won. Woods even talked on the phone to Federer’s parents who were at home in bed as it was nearly three in the morning in Switzerland.

“I was impressed by how much we had in common,” Federer explained when Woods was on his way back to Florida. “He knew exactly what I was going through and I see what he has to go through. I’ve never spoken with anybody who was so familiar with the feeling of being invincible.”

“It was terrific for me to see him go into my player’s box, shake his fist, and enjoy himself,” he recollected a few weeks later. “He was the loudest one in my box. I was surprised how loose he was about it. He was happy as a kid to be able to watch the final. I think we’ll do things together more often.”

The appearance of Woods at the 2006 US Open final sparked more comparisons—and debates—between the two “athletes of the century” as to who was greater and more dominant. With all due respect to Woods, James Blake came out in favor of Federer.

“In tennis, it’s a tournament where you have one bad day and you’re out,” said Blake. “That’s what we do every single week. Roger is winning every Grand Slam except for the French, winning every Masters Series tournament. That means he can’t have one bad day—that’s incredible. Not to mention he has to be out here for four hours running as opposed to walking while carrying one club—again not taking anything away from golf. Tiger’s proven himself every Sunday every time he has a lead. But look at Roger’s record in Grand Slam finals, too. In Grand Slam finals, he’s 8-1. That’s unheard of.”

The Woods camp and golf fans pointed out that the American, in contrast to Federer, already won all four major tournaments in his sport and instead of only having to defeat seven opponents at the biggest tournaments, Woods had to fight off around 150 contenders. Tennis aficionados emphasized that Grand Slam tournaments lasted two weeks and not just four days and that in tennis, having an off day is enough to get knocked out whereas in golf, players could always save the day in such a situation.

Still others highlighted the commonalities between the two. “Despite their total dominance, Tiger Woods and Roger Federer show a modest self-discipline that would have impressed the most chivalrous medieval knight,” the Daily Telegraph of Britain wrote. The Calgary Sun stated unequivocally which of the two super athletes it favored—“(Federer) is infinitely more human than Tiger Woods, more precise, more likable, more honest, less robotic, seemingly enjoying his place as a tennis player for the ages.”

The Daily News of Los Angeles, by contrast, questioned all of these comparisons. “You say the Swiss dude is definitely the greatest tennis player of all time? Good, then we can switch back to the Bengals-Chiefs. Equating Roger Federer to Tiger Woods isn’t a backhanded compliment, it’s a forehanded insult. An athlete of Federer’s all-around refinement deserves better than to be defined in terms of another athlete.”

After his US Open victory, Federer returned home to Switzerland when he received a surprise phone call. Pete Sampras, whose legacy and records were now one of Federer’s biggest rivals, called to offer congratulations.

“He had already text messaged me three days ago and now he was calling me to congratulate me personally,” said Federer shortly after the US Open. “He asked if I had gotten the message. I said I was just about to reply. It was almost embarrassing. Perhaps I should have replied quicker.”

Sampras told Federer how much he liked to watch him play and emphasized that he now was more clearly dominant than he was during his prime. “To hear something like this from him was incredible,” Federer said. “It’s never happened to me before that my earlier idol called me to compliment me.”

Sampras and Federer continued their text message relationship, with Sampras offering more good wishes over the following few months. Before the tournament in Indian Wells in March of 2007, Federer then took the initiative and called Sampras, who meanwhile announced he was returning to competitive tennis on the Champions circuit run by his contemporary Jim Courier.

Federer asked Sampras if he would like to hit some balls and train together. “I wanted to see how well he could still play because, after all, he was one of my favorite players growing up,” Federer explained. With a wink in his eye and devilish grin, he then said, “beating him in his backyard in Wimbledon was so special to me, so I wanted to try and beat him in his house.”

Federer and Sampras only played once during their careers—the memorable round of 16 match at Wimbledon in 2001. Late in Pete’s career, the two had one brief practice session together in Hamburg. “It started to rain,” Federer recollected. “I was so disappointed, but he was happy to get off.”

After their training session together in Los Angeles in the spring of 2007, Federer expressed his surprise at how well Sampras could still keep up during their practice session. “We played some great sets and tie-breaks. I’m glad to see that he’s actually still enjoying tennis.” The scores of these practice matches? “They’re secret,” Federer said. “Surprisingly, he was very good, but not good enough to beat me!”

Federer found that he and Sampras shared many commonalities and could talk in great detail of their respective lives and pressures on the tour, as well as common experiences, experiences at particular tournaments and even about players who they both played against. With Woods, this was not the case.

“Pete and I played the same tournaments and even played against the same opponents,” Federer said. “I have much more in common with Pete than I have with Tiger off court.”

“When I was new on the tour, I hardly ever spoke to Pete,” he continued. “First of all, he was never around at the courts, and when he would come into the locker room, everything was quiet because he was respected so much by all the other players.” Several years later, Federer finally got a chance to find out what made Sampras so unique and what brought him so close to perfection.

Before the end of 2006, Federer received another opportunity for an in-person visit with Woods. Just two months after the US Open, Federer, Tony Roche and Mirka Vavrinec followed Woods for six holes in the first round of the HSBC Golf Championship at the Sheshan Golf Club in Shanghai before the Tennis Masters Cup. Woods shot a mediocre round of 72 on the day—“Unfortunately, I was hitting wild shots everywhere,” he said.

Woods finished second in Shanghai that week but Federer one-upped him and put forth plenty of fireworks en route to winning his third Tennis Masters Cup title. Unlike the previous three years, Federer arrived at the Tennis Masters Cup after an extremely successful fall season and without any major injuries.

After the US Open, he returned to Davis Cup play, guiding Switzerland to victory over Serbia—and back into the Davis Cup World Group—defeating both Janko Tipsarevic and Novak Djokovic in singles. He then traveled to

Japan for the first time in his life and defeated Tim Henman to win the title in Tokyo. Two weeks later, he won his first title on Spanish soil, defeating Fernando Gonzalez of Chile to win the Masters Series event in Madrid. A week later, Federer achieved one of his most important career goals when he finally won his hometown event—the Swiss Indoors in Basel. Federer again met Gonzalez in the final, and after his 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (3) victory, he celebrated by buying and eating pizza with the ball kids at the St. Jakobshalle. He did not forget that years before, he too was a ball kid at the event.

In Shanghai, Federer’s lone challenger ended up being Roddick, who held three match points against him in their round-robin match before faltering. After an impressive semifinal win over his chief rival Rafael Nadal, Federer trounced Blake, the surprise finalist, 6-0, 6-3, 6-4 to win the championship.

“I’ve never seen any one play better tennis,” Roche said exuberantly. The title was Federer’s first in China and his win over Blake extended his winning streak to 29 matches.

After Federer’s dream year, the tennis history books were again revised. Although he only competed in 17 tournaments during the 2006 season, he earned $8,343,885 in prize money, besting Pete Sampras’ record by nearly two million dollars. “The Masters title in Shanghai is the perfect end to an incredible season,” said Federer, who reached the final of 16 of the 17 events he played, while winning a career-best 12 titles.

With a 92-5 won-loss record, he became the first player since 1982 to win over 90 matches in a single season. Federer was also the first professional player to win at least 10 tournaments three years in a row.

In retrospect, he was only two sets shy of becoming the third man to win the Grand Slam. Had he not lost the four-set final to Nadal at the French Open, a Grand Slam would have been achieved, although the pressure he would have faced at Wimbledon and the US Open would have been, of course, much more intense.

http://www.usopen.org/en_US/news/articles/2007-08-17/200708171187376791244.html

~A, King Federer's fan....