Vishal's Blog

PAST FORWARD: Sunset Special: A photo essay of my personal voyages Sam: Jaisalmer Sam is easily the most visited place in Jaisalmer but sadly has turned a bit commercial now. Most tourists come from far off places to watch the sunset at the Thar Desert sand dunes which at times look like a belly of a dancing damsel. Be aware that the camel care taker may at times rip you off for the fare to watch the sunset. But watching the sun alter its length here is a life time experience nevertheless. Most hotels around Sam arrange for a camel ride into the Thar followed by Rajasthani cultural programs every evening. We stayed at Chokhi Dhani for 2 nights and I definitely recommend it for a sojourn of at least a night. The sunset hues are absolutely breathtaking and the sky is brilliantly filled with stars once darkness takes over. While in Jaisalmer, miss Sam at your own peril.                  ...

                                                DJANGO UNCHAINED : FILM REVIEW When you think of cow-boys and gun toting action, Clint Eastwood movies immediately come to mind. I have been a huge fan of his movies especially - The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Django Unchained too is a similar kind-of movie wherein the director dwells in the civil war America when slavery ruled and the slaves were treated like dogs. But then there always emerges a Hero be it fiction or real life – as Coelho puts in his book ‘The winner stands alone’. Django is a blood soaked story of a slave turned bounty hunter who fights white men to win back his love. The prime deficiencies to me were too much violence used to exaggerate those bloody effects and unusual length of the film. After about 120-150 minutes (normal leng...

                                    OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN - FILM REVIEW  In all good v/s evil showdowns in Hollywood movies, when you think of a kidnapping scene, Bruce Willis' Die Hard immediately comes to the mind. The Antonie Funqua directed film Olympus has fallen too like many other films has derived inspiration from this all time best movie. Well, there is no Bruce Willis in this film but Gerard Butler does a pretty good job to keep the baddies at bay. And the stage is set. More so, the location which the baddies attack and keep people hostage is no ordinary building but the safest building on the planet - The White House. Mike Banning (Gerard Butler) is one of the top most security agents in the American President's security team. He has a personal relationship with the first family espec...

THE CALL With the IPL going on, movie goers like me are starved of choices. But watching a movie like The Call is definitely a pleasant experience. I do love watching thrillers but with an irresistibly charming Halle Berry in it.. the fun just doubles! Jordan Turner (Halle Berry) works as an operator in the the department of LAPD - 911. She gets a call from a teenager seeking help as a man enters her house. While Jordan is on the call with the girl, her intelligent and purposeful tips help the girl to hide away from the intruder. However while they are on the phone, it suddenly gets disconnected before Jordan calls her back. The phone rings alerting the intruder who succeeds in finding the girl. The girl is kidnapped and is murdered later on. This incident leaves Jordan devastated and puts her in a horrid state of mind. She refuses to take calls and works as an instructor preparing new joinees for the emotionally draining operator job. On one of those OJT's (On Job Tr...