The Handmaid’s Tale

The critically acclaimed and famous book. Been used symbolically forever for women empowerment and rights activism almost everywhere in the world.

” In 2017, handmaids marched on Capitol Hill, Washington, in protest at the Republican healthcare bill which was seen to threaten women’s bodily autonomy. And in the same year, handmaids entered the Texas senate house to protest abortion-related legislation. Meanwhile, protesters against Trump’s 2018 and 2019 visits to the UK also sported handmaid costumes.” “Organizers of Saturday’s (28/09/21) Women’s March in Washington, D.C., have asked that attendees not bring “The Handmaid’s Tale”-themed imagery or clothing to the event.“

Author : Margaret Atwood
Art & Adaptation : Renee Nault

It’s supposed to be a heartbreaking novel set in a dystopian world. I could not make myself to watch the Netflix show. The first scene was creepy enough to close the application itself. But, fortunately, I found a catch. Reading this graphic novel helped a lot. I’m no way depreciating the novel. In a way, it helped me keeping the behind the scenes in my head crisp and short. Reading the book would have let my imagination go wild and exaggerate the story beyond limits. In the aftermath, I was able appreciate the story and art of both women with a manageable wreck . Otherwise, it would have been just a scarred memory just like what the movie “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas” did to me. A movie on a real horrific tragedy told from a kid’s point of view was not an intelligent choice by the past me.

I guess the original novel is a masterpiece. I just hope I don’t get to read it for very selfish reasons. Let’s talk about graphic novels. I have been reading comics/ manga/ webtoons since my college days. This might be considered the first graphic novel I bought as an adult. Money well spent, indeed..!! Nicely drawn characters and events. Fortunately, I need not go through the book or the show after reading this. It didn’t feel like a hurtful memory but still the story remains imprinted in my mind. Yay …!! Lucky me!!

I should really spend more in graphic novels of these kinds. They make pretty coffee table books too. Until, I write again.🙂

The Holmes

The Enola Holmes was in long watch list just pushed back for no particular reason. May be it was just too much of Milli Bobby Brown at that moment. There are quite many Sherlock(s) on the screen. Not that I’m complaining. With Robert Downey Jr. and Benedict Cumberbatch as framework (I have not watched older ones yet), it’s really difficult to overwrite their wonderful performances. Yet , there are two new Sherlocks recently. And, they didn’t disappoint.

Created by: Tom Bidwell
Based on: The works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
*ring: McKell David, Thaddea Graham, Jojo Macari, Harrison Osterfield, Darci Shaw

I started the Irregulars first. Not gonna lie, the story is a good one. But the screenplay sometimes feels awkward. The dialogues being pretty much predictable don’t do justice to the story. The show is about the five kids on the drama poster, while partially being a Holmes story. It would feel very weird at the beginning as the character sketches for Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes don’t match with the popular Sherlock movies. Still, there’s a strong resemblance to their traits as described by Conan Doyle. It was confusing at first. I could match them as the characters in Doyle’s books but still found it revolting against the beautiful Mr. Iron Man or Dr. Strange. I guess, that’s what real life action shows do to the book heroes. Henry Lloyd-Hughes did a fine job in bringing back the annoying Sherlock back to screen. Interestingly, they had a few of the Conan’s 221B people, like Inspector Lestrade and Land lady Mrs. Hudson, but with weird personalities.

Directed by: Harry Bradbeer
Screenplay by: Jack Thorne
Based on: The Enola Holmes Mysteries: The Case of the Missing Marquess
by Nancy Springer
*ring: Millie Bobby Brown, Sam Claflin, Henry Cavill, Helena Bonham Carter

To get a different perspective, watched Enola Holmes before writing this. Now, who doesn’t like anything of Milli Bobby Brown. She is a pleasure to watch in the movie. Constantly breaking down the fourth wall, she gives us a glimpse of her mind by talking directly. That made this fun to watch. It felt like a hobbit show with the background score and pretty landscaping. It’s got Helena Carter as Enola’s Mom, and bless yourselves, Henry Cavill as a charming Sherlock, Samuel Claflin as Mycroft along with a funny Inspector Lestrade. A heartwarming watch to be exact. The movie is an adaptation from The Enola Holmes Mysteries by American author Nancy Springer. The story, dialogues, funny gags all perfectly in sync in the movie, which happens to be co-produced by Milli Brown herself.

Until I write again.🙂

Re:ZERO-Starting Life in Another

One of best isekai animes ever created. A 18 year old boy transported to a fantasy land and trying to survive for himself and the half-elf he likes. What not to like!! 😁

Created by : Tappei Nagatsuki
Directed by: Masaharu Watanabe
(Screen Writer) Written by: Masahiro Yokotani Genre: Adventure, Dark fantasy, Isekai

I got reminded of Mario Kart when I started this show. The protagonist dies at the very first hurdle and comes back to life. The story goes on as he tries to change the story as he lives on a bit more than his previous attempt. The story kept me hooked onto it and I finished the first season (25 episodes) in 2 days in a healthy binging spree 😅. Netflix did a favor by putting this on the recommendations. I guess , I will finish this in Crunchyroll (official site for many such animes).

Quoting Rohan Joshi (@mojorojo on instagram) in his interview in the Random Musings, a great show and nice concept; disregarding anime/manga/comics as kids content just puts away some years (since 12th century) of literature out of your reach and that’s just pitiful, and clearly your loss. The Japanese animes can get quite redundant if only the dialogue deliveries are considered. But, there’s tons of pretty and inspiring art in them and I can never get over the stories told through them. Switching between genres should help the redundancy issue, as it does with any type of shows😐. We have got Webtoons these days which are digital comics available in various web portals and even apps (cough LINE Webroon).

There’s a whole new world of so many incredible stories just out there, and some still chose to watch cringe😬. Still, life is too short to read every story available, right..!! Until, I write again🙂.

Castlevania

From Wiki: [Castlevania is an American anime-influenced adult animated streaming television series on Netflix produced by Frederator Studios. Based on the Japanese video game series of the same name by Konami, the first two seasons adapt the 1989 entry Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse and follow Trevor Belmont, Alucard and Sypha Belnades as they defend the nation of Wallachia from Dracula and his minions. Additionally, characters and elements from the 2005 entry Castlevania: Curse of Darkness are featured beginning in the second season, and Alucard’s backstory is drawn from Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. The art style is heavily influenced by Japanese animation and Ayami Kojima’s artwork.]

There are some big names involved in this show. Never really went through the wiki of a show before writing this. Although the first season had started long back, I started watching it only last year on Netflix recommendations.

Very rarely we get to see Dracula painted not as a villain but a troubled soul. This show has some of the epic action scenes among the non – japanese animes I have seen. Although it has some Japanese art and artists included in the making, it’s from a US production house. I would like to issue a warning to those who don’t like bloodshed. To my relief, it was okay to watch even while eating, if that helps😅.

Third season is a bit slow in comparison to the others. The first and fourth being the best among all. It has everything ; Lots of pretty vampires, good looking humans, mind blowing action sequences and a few here and there sarcastic romances. And most importantly, it’s not at all a show for children.

A quick googling before this blog post, informed me of the cancelled creator Warren Ellis, who was accused of sexual misconduct by several women. This piece of information made me feel guilty of watching this and loving it. Although the cast and crew shouldn’t suffer the consequences but isn’t it a moral responsibility of everyone that’s involved to stop working with him. This requires a separate rant post altogether.😅

Until, I write again. 🙂

18 Again

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  Written by : Ahn Eun-bin, Choi Yi-ryool, Kim Do-yeon
  Directed by : Ha Byung-hoon
  *ring : Kim Ha-neul, Yoon Sang-hyun, Lee Do-hyun

A rom-com to be exact. A sweet love story of a couple who grew old together. Some very strong acting in the whole show. With almost no generic stereotyping and racism included, it’s a safe watch.

The most common trait in these korean dramas is the beauty of the cinematography. There are hardly any okay shots, all if them being beautiful in their own rights. The new and old ages are perfectly shot and transitioned through. Although, the sepia tone seems to be how the old times are depicted. And, guess what, that’s how the Hollywood sees the country India as a whole!!

• 

  The prettiest umbrella scene ever shot.

The struggles of the couple being parents at a very young age, being forsaken by their families and system is although very unrealistic, still believable, mostly because of the actors involved. Giving up on their childhood dreams felt too real on the screen.

How is it that our parents have a parallel hidden childhood which ceases to exist after they become parents..?!! Is this the true definition of being an adult in our society?! Why can’t people remain true to themselves without sacrificing all of themselves for the kids..??!! Isn’t it too much of burdensome expectations on the children?! The children have to turn up and make the long lost dreams come true. And, thus, the vicious cycle of unfulfilled dreams continue through generations. This becomes the culture itself. Why is it that the kids who get married at any age suddenly turn into adult and act a certain kind..?!

Until, I write again. 🙂

Search: WWW

This drama feels like a kimchi slap on the cringe romance series where all the female lead does is to cry for help. There’s definitely new and nice changes in the target audience as this gets reflected in the type of dramas produced and stories involved. The writers, majorly female, in the south korean tv dramas are given utmost importance. The PR of any new drama depends heavily on the name of the writer and their previous works. This that the concerned public cares for the script and storyline. A few exceptions are thee, obviously, where the actors take all the credit. But a good story or plot rarely flops.

Directed by : Jung Ji-hyun, Kwon Young-il
*ring : Im Soo-jung, Lee Da-hee, Jeon Hye-jin, Jang Ki-yong, Lee Jae-wook, Ji Seung-hyun

I would recommend to watch it only for the strong female cast. One would rarely find any bad actor in the whole drama. Everyone is just too good at their job. I couldn’t keep myself from falling in love with Lee Da-Hee all over again. Her stylist deserves a raise for making her look perfect in every scene. She has been playing this confident and sassy woman with some aegyo to perfection in a few other dramas.

Apart from Dahee, the characters of soojung and hyejin are again perfectly crafted. The character growth of hyejin is commendable. Although there are many male counterparts to these actresses in the show, they never overshadow the strong female narratives. They just play milestones to give directions to the story. Quite an irony, right..!? We need more such female characters who don’t just give company inorder to showcase the humane nature of the macho lead actor. Ye Soo-jung is casted as the vicious mother in law whom the audience will love to hate. She plays her version of a scheming businesswoman who can go to lengths to achieve what she wants. These four are the pillars of this show. And all other just play as supporting actors instead.

A bitter sweet unpredictable story with a series of nail biting moments. I felt sad, happy and pity for all its characters at various moments. And offcourse like almost all the Korean dramas, it has a sweet ending. They even tried giving the actresses few “men in black” style exit scenes, which was funny, although, I’m guessing it was not meant to be. I had heard many good things about it since it was released and it was on my list since forever.

I enjoy the dramas with such strong female leads. Although, I can watch a bit of cringe, only if the story makes sense. Too nuch of Ekta kapoor ruins the shows. This, indeed was a great watch. Until, I write again. 🙂

Tribhanga : Tedhi Medhi Crazy

The title is derived from an indian classical dance pose from Odissi, which is described as imperfect but beautiful quite like the lives of the three women [from wiki].

Tribhanga (tribend) odissi posture (source : stock adobe)

This movie has a very strong female cast and is directed by Renuka Shahane. And again it’s on Netflix. Don’t mind, I’m just stating the reasons to watch this movie. Watched the whole movie praying for no odissi appropriations. Fortunately, there were none and instead, they get a cookie point, for the reference made to Padma Vibhusan Kelucharan Mohapatra (that’s how he is famously known as). I guess, Odissi is well known among the artists and taken a bit seriously unlike the slapstick forced comedy on languages and cultures. There were nothing much on and about the dance.

In an ideal world, no parent really wants their kids to go through hardships. But, they have their own situations and personal issues. They are doing what’s the correct thing to do, as per them. Most of the times, the actions are a repercussions to their elders’ actions. Our parents are just struggling to keep up with the times while trying to hold the remnants of the culture taught to them from their elders. There’s this thing; they also have become parents for the first time in their life and are still figuring out how things function in today’s smart world. And most of time, their parents’ are the references for good or bad parenting.

The estranged relationships lack a major thing : communication. If we keep aside our ego and just talk it out, so much of the issues would be solved. All the silences between “We know that they know that we know”s (Is referencing Friends in this sad context, a bad idea..!!) keep on fuelling these unspoken battles. It’s normal to wonder, why these adults are not able to grasp hold of a situation and understand when to stop talking. The thing is, people don’t really change a lot after their 20s. The teenage and twenties is the time, people have maximum of their character growth. Sure, exceptions are there. Hats off to them, who try to change their perspective for the kids and younger ones. Most of the people stop putting an effort to change later. So, expecting those to understand our point of view is really a waste of time. Trying to change their point of view is even worse. The next very humane thing we often do is to give up on those people. 😅 Some of this weird hassle can be avoided if we try a bit more to think from their point of view, which is a rare thing to do in itself. At least we are putting an effort to mend some distances.

Whew..!!! I guess, there was nothing much about the movie here. 😅 The whole cast is just par excellence. Everyone, being a seasoned actor, acts the shit out of their characters. There were a few meh things to complain. A woman being the bridge between these wonderful characters would have been just perfect. We don’t always need men to be the sutradhaar, even in these women centric movies. Not that any of the men stole the show from the women. We had Tanvi Azmi and Kajol on lead roles, stealing limelight from them is very difficult. Overally it’s a good movie which showcases the various aspects of a mother-daughter relationship and how that affects their whole lifestyle.

Written and Directed by : Renuka Shahane
*ring : Kajol, Tanvi Azmi, Mithila Palkar

With cheers to the changing times of Bollywood, until I write again. 🙂

The 90’s show

Having grown up in 90’s, while watching up Karan Johar’s art has to be the absolute worst thing to have happened to most of us. Forcing some weird examples of love, romances, and some of creepiest friendships onto millions is just too much power to be vested in one man. Not calling out the Barjatyas’ family values and hypocrisies would be a sin too. These big budget family shows made by the rich men make the 90’s cringy.

These Malhotras and Raichands in plain boring black suits have ruled the TV sets throughout, some by Bollywood, some by the Ekta Kapoor. The music was always the best part of it. Although, some of it was copied or “inspired” (as they like to refer them), those are the one’s, we still remember and sing in the antaksharis (national indoor game of 90’s kids). How do even the Jumna Chumma and Tamma Tamma co exist!! It must have been a wild time for the musicians of bollywood.

Coming back to the most endearing plot lines for those movies, the friendships and romances. SRK is the best and worst thing to happen to all of us. Before him, we just had angry young men falling in love with the damsels with a few exceptions offcourse. SRK became the quintessential lover in the movies. In the country, where love was a fantasy to live in, SRK sold himself to the millions as the perfect Hero. The roles he portrayed would be considered creepy and stalker behavior now. Well, the 80’s were mirrored in them this way for sure. There were tonnes of force-romanticized Arjun Reddys in those movies and it was totally a normal thing then. Those were all sold to the public as entertainment, or as we call it here, mass movies.

The spoilt 90s

There were loads of good male friendships in those movies. Friendships is something, only males had cracked the code (as if!!) . The females were just known for envy and competitive story lines. Even the magazines used to pitch the actresses against each other and had stories of cat fights. How original and innovative of them, encashing gossip as if it’s their birthright.

(Top) Mujhse Dosti Karogi. (Bottom) Kabhie Khusi Kabhi Gham.

The typical Poo character (as in mean girls!!) was a standard set. Not like her is “not being like Other girls” in colloquial terms. Being like her refers to the girls moving in groups with discussions on fashion and boys (sure!! you wish!!). Reducing millions of personalities to a mere 5-6 generalized kinds is what bollywood did to us. A sure tip for the people here, in the friendships you forge in your life, be a Tina (Mujhse Dosti Karoge) and not a Poo (K3G). Whatever personality you have doesn’t matter until you treat your friends as an equal. Nobody deserves to be treated as a bollywood side kick. You are just losing precious relationships and people in your life. However macho or cool vibes you plan on showing off, show some damn respect to your friends. People who survive through this shit, there’s a need to have some self love and moving on to new friends for better mental health.

The movies we watch as kids, have so much impact on the character growth. For some people, that’s all the exposure they can afford in their small towns or villages. Having entertainment at the expense of misogyny and false chauvinism has cost us this age of mad mob actions. Hope that changes soon.

Until I write again. 🙂

Ask 101

It is a Turkish TV show released on 24th April, 2020, with just 8 episodes in the first season. The second one is supposed to get released in 2021. I have watched a few other Turkish shows earlier on YouTube, where, I was recommended this series. Not trying to be all ethical here, but I have made a mental note of using the authentic source whenever possible. It’s my way of trying to help a small group of people. Not that it changes the world. Still, I would like to believe that I am someway helping the production staff by reducing piracy.

This show, like what the name suggests, is nothing like the usual fluffy hopeless romantic stuff. It’s about a group of “misfits”, as we call them, high school kids and their friendship. I was quite an ideal student in my school days, and not so ideal in my engineering. Let’s put that on engineering college😁. And as per my ideal upbringing, I was made to believe that alcohol and smoking are only done by the bad people. Offcourse it was a li’l about being dangerous to health and all, but I was sure those people are Bad. I was quite afraid of them shamefully untill my engineering life 🙈. In college, one gets to see so many varieties of people around. Hostel adds upto them. I am sure a guy with a similar upbringing would have got shocked when they enter the boys hostels. As usual, the ratio of both the number of girls and the number of “Bad” (this is the last time I am using this adjective) girls is lesser in girls hostel to that of boys’ hostel. I remember being low key afraid of seniors (again, those Bhaiyas) who asked a few intros while smoking. I am a lot braver now. 😅 Atleast, I hope so🤞. Obviously, working in a professional career made much difference. There were so many experiences which changed me for good. Now, I hate guys who just gossip and shit talk about girls while drinking and still be their friends when they are sober. But still, better no. 😅

Directed by : Ahmet Katıksız, Deniz Yorulmazer
🌟ring : Mert Yazıcıoğlu, Kubilay Aka, Alina Boz, Selahattin Paşalı, İpek Filiz Yazıcı, Pınar Deniz, Kaan Urgancıoğlu

Back to the series, this show talks about a group of kids who think they are the decision makers, who can run the world (who doesn’t!! ). Each of them behave nothing like an ideal student in a high school. The teachers have been traumatized by their mischiefs and hell bent on getting them expelled. Except for one. The lady wants to seek the good in all of them and protects them. Being a teacher’s kid, in the starting, I was quite sympathetic to the teachers. Later, as they show the kids’ individual stories, the “sympathy” starts changing sides. We all get to know their personal issues and their struggles and how they build up a team to continue winning over life.

The casting should be good as all of them have done their part really well. I finished the series in one go, 7 hours straight. Couldn’t even speed up as reading subtitles take a bit time. The cinematography is pretty like the city Istanbul itself.

I had read somewhere, one goes to therapy because their of the people who did not opt to go. This seems to fit pretty well in this show. All of them struggle a lot within themselves. We take our environment and happy families very granted and still find issues in them. To be honest, all bullies are really are a result of their own inferiority complexes. But, obviously it’s not enough an excuse to hurt others. (From my very limited experience, I guess) People with their own complex, start showing off in front of their peers or friends, in turn make the shy, silent ones gain inferiority complex over nothing. A vicious cycle. What if, the adults try fixing themselves and their kids instead. And then abruptly end the cycle. Too far fetched a dream..!! I wonder..!!

Until, I write again. 🙂

Tiger Hills

It’s been long that I have successfully completed a real paperback book. Like any other craft, reading requires immense practice. I have kind of moved over to the dark side of reading more of e-books than these gold ones. Well, that’s what you do, when you tend to buy and hoard more books much more than what I read. The few shelves of books leaning on each other just stare back blank at me with the same disappointment as these set of lines.

It took a long time to complete this book for various reasons. Boring being none of them. If a book is boring, the best thing is to do is keep it aside and start another one. I read this somewhere and sincerely follow this rule.

Author: Sarita Mandanna

This book is quite a long and heavy one. I got overwhelmed every 100 pages and kept the book aside for a change of mood. I loved coorg whenever I had visited there. The book created a nice visual of the mountains and greenery which kept me connected to the narrative. Simple yet so beautifully concocted story with all the history of the place intact. Although I wish it was, History never was this fascinating in school. Mugging up for the upcoming exams being the worst of all problems. The story starts from early 1878 and ends in 1936. I kept my fingers-crossed throughout all major historical events in the book hoping that there’s some truth in the place and time references. It was a whole journey through the lives of three generations of characters. Getting involved in all their happy as well as sad moments.😅 It would have taken a toll on me to complete this in one go..!! The emotional roller-coaster drama in my head for these fictions is beyond my control. What to do with these stories of yearnings and unfulfilled loves?! Kudos to the author to have such skills to implant these CG movies implanted on minds.

Until, I read and write again. 🙂