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...

A section of British media has gone gaga over the marvelous virtuosity of Tottenham’s Gareth Bale. They see a Cristiano Ronaldo in the making (not sure if they are being pragmatic here). But the fact that Tottenham are currently placed 4 th on the premier league table and Bale has played a huge role, speaks volumes of his skills. Still in his early twenties, whether Bale becomes the worlds best or not remains to be seen. However like CR-7, Bale too has earned a name for being slippery as a squirrel (read faking dives). There are a few writers like Rob Hughes who have given him a benefit of doubt though. He writes “Some might say that, at the exceptional speed at which Bale moves, the slightest kick or tug might unbalance him”. But Bale has involved himself in such incidents with chilling efficiency and was recently awarded suspension as well.  There are many such cry-babies in world football today. Liverpool’s Luis Suarez and Manchester United’s Ashley Young are other e...

While the rains played havoc in July, a part of me was longing for the sun. I therefore decided to head to Tarkarli during a long week end. The rain is intermittent here and the sun peeps through the black clouds more often than not. Though we were curious to visit this somnolent town, it wasn't an easy decision primarily because the place is known for its sea food and we were told that veggies don’t have a great time. But then the plan B was in place. The KFC’s ( Khakhras, Fafdas  and Chevdas) had a fixed place in the luggage. Soon, the tickets were booked and everything fell into place as far as leaves from work were concerned and on a beautiful Friday evening.. We were off! The idea was to travel by train to get a glimpse of the beautiful Western Ghats and we weren’t disappointed.  The things that pulled us to Tarkarli were its beaches which I think can easily give the neighboring beaches of Goa a run for their money. Though there are budget home stays and ...

We flew to the Bagdogra airport and quailed beneath the tyranny of a long drive into the Himalayas. The car kept climbing the gravity defying bends as we kept moving towards the Makaibari village in Kurseong district near Darjeeling. Uneasiness flew down my spine due to the chilly mountainous breeze and the long drive made me wonder if the place was worth the effort. When we reached Makaibari, it was quite dark. While getting out of the car, as I looked skywards, to my astonishment I found the heaven was brilliant with stars. Accustomed to live in a noisy city, we found the silence at Makaibari, a bit unnatural. Knowing that the tea estate is also home to Leopards, we wanted to quietly sneak into our room. We walked into one of the houses in the village and into the heart of one ever smiling Mr. Gurang. The villagers at Makaibari offer home stay at a very nominal rate. The visitors not only can live and share meals with their hosts but also can join workers in plucking tea leave...