Ruchira's Ramblings

My heart clung to the emptying room while I held you close, And I was true in my heart as I trudged that night with unwilling steps. And then the cab moved through ever-stretching roads, Taking me away from you, and I boarded the train And moved on. And then I watched the moving hands of time impatiently And longed to reach my destination. And now I am home and settled, and quite at ease, But at that hour of leave-taking, I hadn't wished to come. I did not want to leave you, mother, but it's true I'm glad home.

In a befitting farewell by his home association, Bengal's prodigal son Sourav Ganguly was on Sunday presented a golden bat at his felicitation here as a poignant show of nostalgia marked the two-hour-long programme. As the former Indian skipper was presented with the bat made of one kg gold worth Rs 25 lakh, confetti was showered amid a dazzling display of fireworks in the Cricket Association of Bengal function 'Celebrating a legend'. Speaking on the occasion, chief guest of the function West Bengal Sports Minister Subhas Chakraborty described Ganguly as a 'Dhruv Tara' (the guiding star) and compared him with the warrior Arjuna who battled all odds in the Mahabharata... Don't get me wrong, people! I have been a Saurav-Ganguly fan since 1996, I have spent countless nights praying in bed for his century, I have crossed the decibel limit a thousand times(and am still prepared to do so)defending him against nasty critics-the Chappell -legion. But frankly, I don'...

I think this is my first full-fledged movie review. I would have liked to review a few other movies I loved(I have mentioned some of them in this review), but as usual I felt lazy about blogging and typing and...oh, whatever, let's get to Rab ne Bana Di Jodi. The story isn't quite( to quote a part of its catch-line)"extraordinary", we know what is going to happen before we are halfway through, but the treatment, the approach make sit special.The best part of this movie is its extreme feel good spirit that allows you to come out of the hall thinking that the world is not so terrible a place after all, and that a movie can work wonderfully without any violence or vulgarity or twisted issues, depending on simple, basic human emotions instead. Another good thing is what SRK has said in an interview is that the songs do not stop the movie- and that is the way songs should be picturised in movies and in recent times, I have seen movies where the songs are used to push the ...

In anger at all the terror strikes India suffered this year, especially the one in November.At Singur and Nandigram.I look back in anger at all the deaths of average Indians like you and me who fell to politicians and their clout, their greed, their egotism in all parts of the country, from cities to villages. I look back in anger at the communal hatreds fanned by opportunists for their own evil profits. I look back in anger at the smoking ban so brazenly being flouted everywhere and nothing being done about it. I look back in anger at the sheer mismanaged and ill-spent "Maradona dhamaka". On a more personal note, I look back in anger at the unfinished Metro expansion. Another year of promise gone, and I am still having to resort to a 3-break journey everyday. And I look back in anger and increasing frustration at a lot of my CU hours. I look back in anger at the cars, buses, tempos, lorries that honked their way this year through Kolutollah Street and promise to do the same ...