Rudhramadevi- Film Review

This is a film about the Kakatiya Queen Rudramadevi who ruled in present-day Warangal. It was a rule that brought about prosperity and welfare for the most part. She was anointed as Rudra Dev and brought up as a prince, because a female was not acceptable as a ruler those days. She proved herself more than equal to the task, and managed to outwit her opponents within and outside with the help of a crafty Prime Minister, a la Chanakya.

The movie was ineresting to me as I grew up in Telangana/Andhra Pradesh, and Warangal is a place I visited many times. The arch from there also constitutes the logo of Vignana Jyothi Institute of Management where I worked for a few years.

From a historical viewpoint, it is worth a watch to find out how some of the kingdoms functioned, and understand why the foreign invaders had it easy to conquer/plunder India at various times, particularly in the North. The Queen refers to the infighting among Indian kings towards the end of the film. The actress Anushka (Shetty) is competent in her title role. Prakash Raj is impressive as usual, and Allu Arjun does well as Ganna Reddy. Baba Sehgal appears in an unexpected role.

See it if you are fond of history. The effects are not as spectacular as in Baahubali, but overall, it is a well-made film. Trimming about 15 minutes would have made it even better. There are some references to Italy. I don't know if they are meant as a dig at you-know-who.

Aviation and Tourism

There is a draft aviation policy at last. It is around 10 years too late, but never mind.

Is it so tough to see that easy aviation makes for a lot of benefits in spinoff mode? Ancillary industries grow. But the biggest boost is to another big industry-tourism. Compared with some other countries in Asia, India's tourism industry is minuscule. Compared to its potential, given the amazing things we have in India, it is even worse. Even domestic tourists are scared to go where no tourist has gone before. Mostly due to lack of access by road or rail. I have discovered many destinations only because I happened to live nearby. Hampi is one, Jog Falls another. Both are magnificient, and should be on everyone's bucket list. What if it was a short flight away from Bangalore, reasonably priced? I will bet that thousands more would visit both.

I can cite many more examples. Lonar crater (formed after a meteorite hit) in Buldana district of Maharashtra. Almost the entire North-east, Bhedaghat with its unique Marble Rocks, Dandeli forests, Tiger reserves like Bandhavgarh, Kanha. In fact, there are known examples of chartered flights coming in to Goa from European countries. They could go to a few other places if we had more working airports.

Taxes can be reduced on smaller airports, and other incentives given to make that happen. This can directly touch lives of service providers like hotels, taxi operators and restaurants in smaller towns, and increase pride in the country by showing off the best of it to both domestic and international travellers. Roads take time to build. Airlines can start much faster!

Hope this policy translates into quick action.

Naming Dons

The recent arrest of one of them gave me ideas. As you know, that (me having ideas) can be dangerous, and you are right. I ended up coining names for future Dons.

Tees Maar Khan

Bhagta Kachhua

Chaakuwala Chintoo

Peekay Pinto

Gadbad Ghotala

Daaga

Jay Kay

Kaalia

Patli Chhuri

Behosh Bablu

Khamosh Shatru

Yeda Lambu

Khara Shambhu

and the eternal Bollywood favourite, Shaakaal (would a mother think of such a name? I wonder)

Netless in Nagpur

I was in Nagpur for a weekend, and I could not access the net, as my friend and I both do not like the net on our phones. Good to be away from it for a while, too. The peace of mind you have is worth it. Luckily, the voice calls were also minimal, and we focussed on meeting friends, visiting old haunts and playing Golf. Reminded of the classic ad for Thums Up, which had the tagline Food, Friends and Thums Up.

The city of Nagpur is one of the most clean and civilised places I have lived in. Bangalore has better weather, but it is a well-kept secret that Nagpur also has good weather for about 10 months, except the summer months. It also has excellent connectivity by rail and road, and decent air connectivity. It is also going to get a Metro, and already has an IIM.

Anyway, meeting old colleagues at IMT Nagpur was a highlight of the trip, apart from the Golf at the Air Force Golf Club. It is a friendly 9-hole Course, that is moderately challenging. The Kodaikanal one was much tougher, for instance.

Cricketers in a Word or Two

Sunil Gavaskar- Stolid
Wadekar- World-beater
GR Vishvanath-Silken touch
Sachin- OMG!
Sehwag-Nonchalant
Saurav-Heart-on-his-sleeve
VVS Laxman-Smooth
Azhar- Glanciator
Solkar- Acrobat
Prasanna- Off-the-cuff magic
Chandrasekhar- Armed to the leg
Kumble-Smiling assassin 
Kapil- Leader by example
Dravid- Gentleman cricketer
Zaheer- Swinger
Srinath- Idli power
Sandhu-A googly for Greenidge (started the downfall of Windiestowards the World Cup)

How to Confuse an American

It is easy.

Spell 'colour' with a u.

Use 'spring' as a verb.

Pronounce park as we do in India. They would wonder why you are asking them to bark.

Do some quick arithmetic without a calculator.

Speak a language other than American English. Even Queen's English will do.

Add milk to your coffee.

Be knowledgable about world affairs.

Display knowledge of five countries not situated between Canada and Mexico.

Returns and Ink on Your Face

All the current events have me in a tizzy.

In this era of ball point pens, where do you find ink to blacken faces with? Is it a ploy of the ink manufacturers to increase their sales?

With respect for authors returning their hard-won awards, you can only return it once. Where does that leave you once the next earth-shaking event happens?

Putin bombs the hell out of some terrorists who have been ruling some parts of the world. Is he trying to showcase what hell looks like?

Is the Bihar election worth winning? I mean, can anyone actually govern it even if he wins?

Where are Radhe Maa, Indrani, and all other attention grabbers of last week? Can we bring them back?

Will he, won't he? This is not about Salman Khan's marriage. But about Dhoni resigning from the team, and becoming a commentator.