Never Have I Ever

This is a TV Series about an Indian American teenage girl, Devi (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) wanting to blend in the American culture, while her Immigrated mother pins her rooted to Indian values. It’s a hilarious series from the get go. Devi the protagonist falsely quotes at a Ganesha Puja celebrations that, “I love to say I am Indian”, John McEnroe laments, I am more Indian that you, girl. Well yes, John is narrating the whole story and quite funny at it, comparing her life with his personal tennis events.

The lines written are beautiful, acting by all characters are spot on. In end I like to say Mindy Kaling is a great writer, The Office fame, has created a goldmine.

Corona Virus(2020) or Contagion(2011)

“In order to get sick, you have to come in contact with a sick person, in order to get scared you just have to get in contact with a rumor.” Laurence Fishburne.

WhatsApp is a wonderful place to look for rumors, so I did, there is a video viral of Contagion’s trailer playing with uncanny references to the current Covid-19 predicted in 2011. As I dig deep into the movie, it is any other Sci-Fi thriller based of the previous virus outbreaks which almost all have been from China. Frankly speaking I have not seen the movie Contagion – duh! then what are you critiquing about!!!

Well as I googled to watch this movie online (you know I am working from home), although I have Netflix and Amazon Prime, I need to rent it to watch. So I googled Youtube, I did not find the movie but watched a review written by a Real Doctor, not Whatsapp doctors, but a certified one, Medlife Crisis.

Apparently he was compelled to review this movie in the wake of Corona Virus comparison. Boy do I love his review. He explains about the movie in such detail medical terms and finally gives a thumbs up to the attention to detail. More cool about his review, he sips a Corona Extra(vaccine) and runs for an extra boost once it’s over, doc has some funny bone.

Modi feeds Trump, Narcissism!

modi-trump-hug — Modi Trump bear hug, while Melania looks on!

President Trump declares to media here in USA, week ahead of is visit to India that Prime Minister Modi has promised to greet him with 7 million people; that is 70 Lakhs for those Indians reading my blog – narcissism much!

Modi is a self proclaimed businessman; every Gujarati is, but Trump is a businessman; a failed one at it, but claims he is a deal-maker. Modi knows grass is best fed to cows to milk and Trump, narcissism. Can Modi milk Trump or will it be just a spectacle verses substance.

Modi is building a 22 kilometer wall to hide the slums from Trump motorcade passing through Ahmedabad to welcome him at a biggest Cricket stadium in India. So much for those poor Indians who had offered Poojas (pun intended) for Trump to win the election in 2016. I love to here this quote from Trump,

My best friend Modi has built such a beautiful wall, very beautiful and HUGE!, those Do Nothing Democrats will never let me build a wall like this.

Now to understand Trump’s ego being hurt, we have to visit the inauguration picture that he posted in his #Whitehouse; a fake one. The real comparison with Barack Obama’s inaugural is pictured below.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/sep/06/donald-trump-inauguration-crowd-size-photos-edited#img-1 — Trump Inaugural crowd on left verses Obamas on right – courtesy The Guardian

It is just that till date Barack Obama is more popular in America and respected around the world. Here’s a recent tweet from Obama which has garnered close to a million likes. Trumps most likes have reached 200K #SAD (dragging the hands away).

https://twitter.com/BarackObama/status/1229432034650722304

The above tweet has hurt him so much that he had to issue a statement from his four walls of West Wing, reporters tweeted in response to hold some press conference if he had some real marbles.

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1231302822785953792

Here is another retweet he has done, don’t know who is this Sol but claims herself Master Memetician and this man feeds on these things.

https://twitter.com/Solmemes1/status/1231326273894526976

Well narcissism much!

I will just leave this picture here, just in case Kellyanne Conway feels this was too juvenile and plans to delete it.

TrumpRetweet

George Conway is no psychiatrist but long back has declared that our President needs help!; Kellyanne I think you should meet your husband once in a while.

How can I end my blog without mentioning our beautiful FLOTUS Melanie err… Melania Trump. She has planned to visit Delhi government school, which has aced the education system beating National School and esteemed private schools. She is there to preach India #BeBest, if only she turned around and looked at her husband and step sons, the world would BeBest.

America is BERNing again

Bernie2020

With Donald J. Trump’s gaffe as President mounting or so the democratic party thinks, is jumping in record number to throw their hat in the ring to compete against Trump in 2020.

The first one to declare her candidacy was Tulsi Gabbard, a little known U.S. representative from Hawaii although she is very well known for supporting Dictator Assad, I wonder if she was inspired by Narendra D. Modi who won with handsome majority using his Hindu card in India. Tulsi is the only Hindu candidate to ever run for the office in America period. Then came the most viable and popular candidates Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris. Yes democrats had a tremendous success in Mid-term elections with electing record number of female candidates across the country, so even though world thought that America would elect their first female and most popular candidate Hillary Clinton in 2016, there is tremendous hope in 2020. Democratic hopefuls list keeps growing with Amy Klobuchar, Cory Booker and ten other candidates, check the complete list here.

Bernie Sanders is a repeat candidate, which is rare in American Presidential candidacy, but Bernie believes that he was robbed of his pick in 2016 against Hillary by DNC, with the caveat of Super Delegates.

AGE: Bernie will be the oldest candidate to run for office if nominated on Democratic ticket, Americans prefer young and healthy President in office. Trump is an exception, because his doctors have claimed that he has super gene, if not this obese, he would live up to two hundred years. He is also an exception for being racist, xenophobic and sexist. But Bernie being the oldest candidate has serious young generation following, no wonder he had huge crowd at his first 2020 campaign kickoff at Brooklyn College.

SOCIALISM: Bernie’s primary agenda is to fight against big corporations, provide free college education, free health care like other developed nations for all and levy heavy taxes on the wealthy top one per-centers since 2016 much else has changed. It is this socialism that DNC got scared and tilted their support towards Hillary in 2016. Knowing this, Trump has already launched a massive campaign attack against democratic party as socialistic for 2020 re-election bid at CPAC. But the difference this time around for Bernie is another young star; recently elected US representative from New York; Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez more popularly known as AOC has rocked socialism. Most of the democratic presidential hopefuls have distanced themselves from socialism but Bernie prefers to call it Democratic Socialism. Socialism is a dirty word in America although it has been applied since ages such as Social Security, Medicare and free education to all until high school. Bernie says that times have changed and High School diploma is not sufficient to get a job instead every American needs a college education to get a job.

How far Bernie will get ahead this time around only time will tell with the crowded hopefuls, although he is the first to kickoff his campaign in full gear. The energy he has demonstrated thus far is commendable. Not far behind him is another most popular candidate still mulling on, Joe Biden.

With the early kickoff Berine sure has shown some steam in the game, but will America BERN this time, only time will tell.

Wars have REAL consequences

India-PakStat

In the wake of current Indo-Pak stand off Al Jazeera posted a picture of World Bank on the both nation statistics comparing side by side. The picture above caught my attention.

It all started when Pakistan sponsored JeM terrorists struck the CRPF bus killing more than forty personnel, one of the deadliest terrorist attack since a decade on Feb 14th at Pulwama. The entire nation mourned the loss of brave forces, rightly so they wanted answers from the nation that harbors these terrorists. This time it was no different that Pakistan said it did not harbor JeM.

It took ten days for India to plan and strike the cells of JeM well within the boundary of Pakistan and destroyed there camps, successfully returning back while Pakistan media mocked it’s Military as “Don’t honk, Pakistan Military is sleeping“. This covert operation was no less than what America had carried out to eliminate Osama Bin Laden in Abbottabad. But India is yet to eliminate Massod Azhar.

This escalated tensions on both Nuclear armed neighbors, Pakistan launched air strikes against Indian military targets and India responded aptly. Indian pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman was found in Pak occupied Kashmir as POW. India established that Pakistan had used a missile that was sold by America with a condition that it cannot be used against India. This was a clear violation of the agreement.

Understandably talks began behind closed doors to the release of the Indian POW with international community. President Trump who was busy with his failing Vietnam Summit and barrage of accusations by his long time lawyer(fixer) Michael Cohen at home, he found only one good news to deliver the Hanoi press, stealing the thunder of PM Imran Khan.

https://twitter.com/StateDept/status/1101028965546749954

https://twitter.com/omar_quraishi/status/1101079219252150272

With the release of Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, it is a clear victory for India and time to rejoice, but Retd: Air Chief Marshal AY Tipnis cautioned (more so scolded) the media, it is wrong to use high decibels on air and hyperbolic vocabulary, one man stands out for me is Arnab Goswami who has such thin skin being a journalist and a public figure does not have a Twitter account for the fear of public retribution, but barks non stop night after night on TV screens without a rebuttal, another is Rahul Shivshankar at least this man has a twitter account. You are welcome to list more in comments. Mr Tipnis said that media is talking such nonsense that even though India has been wronged by Pakistan, it appears that India is a aggressor in the international community.

With the international pressure or the good will gesture of PM Imran Khan (that’s what he claimed in his Parliament), a brave soldier has returned home.

In the end I wish to change that picture posted above by Al Jazeera to the one below, one day it will happen.

IndiaPakNew

Modi Strikes Jaish; JeM

PM_Modi

India has struck 80 KMs inside Pakistan with a precision air strikes in response to the Pulwama attack. It is inappropriate for me to title this opine as Modi strikes; it is more of the Indian Armed Forces that has carried out with vigor. A little credit is due to Prime Minister Modi for taking a call on this strike for being the first Air Strike of India into Pakistan since 1971. Googled the number of terrorist attacks since 1971… I fainted looking at the chart, once I recovered, composed myself to eliminate the ones that were home grown. There are scores that were conducted during Congress rule; more deadlier than Pulwama and couple in one term BJP; PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee administration. But this is the first time a sitting Prime Minister has taken a decisive action against the terrorist in their home ground. So that’s there; Modi Strikes!

Modi was elected in part due his strong hand and 56 inch chest that was needed to address the cross border terrorism from the past which Congress had failed miserably time and again. It would have been apt to strike the terrorist cells upon his swearing in, in 2014. But he chose to give a hug to the then PM of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif to mend a better relationship with our neighbors. The opposition cried that the 56 inch had deflated. Then the URI response happened, the first surgical strike in Indian history on Pakistan soil, opposition called it foul. And here we are after a Pulwama attack, within 10 days the Modi administration has stuck with military might within Pakistan eliminating the terrorist cells successfully. This time around there is no confusion among opposition that the administration has failed.

Now playing the devil’s advocate, what took Modi government to give such a decisive outcome around this time? it’s been almost five years that India elected him with absolute majority for this outcome. Is it that in 2018 the people said that they are turning back to Congress with the election results in Hindi heartland? In conclusion it is the good opposition (Mahagathbandhan) that has compelled Modi to display his 56. It is not mission accomplished yet until JeM‘s Massod Azhar is eliminated. So I urge the opposition to get even stronger and the citizens of India make an educated decision to elect Modi for second term, which he rightly deserves. You have given ten terms to Congress to expect the same failed outcomes hoping for the next one to be better.

Sarah Sanders Speaks…

It was refreshing to see Sarah after 40 days, she out ran government shutdown which in itself made a history as the longest shutdown. But I wonder why Sarah went 40 days without a press briefing. Trump had already tweeted in support of her saying, media never respects her, why address them anyways.

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1087733867614781446

Sarah being a true christian had intentionally stayed in hiding for 40 days and 40 nights (Genesis 7:12)(Acts 1:3) from the evil press.

It is extremely cramped for reporters to sit in that small briefing room and wait for Sarah to arrive. She has mastered this art to call the reporters at 2PM and shows up on the podium at 3PM. Today was no different, Brian Karem went in to check on her, who came back with two fingers wagging, a lady reporter in the crowd was surprised that Sarah would show up in two minutes. Then when adorned the podium, she immediately went to work, “Under President Trump’s leadership, economy is growing…” though she uttered President Trump, her mannerisms sounded like Emperor Trump. The gloating monologue went for another few minutes, I wonder if Trump would like to sit on a throne nearby when Sarah addresses the press, he would have if only press was not allowed to ask questions. Soon she handed over the mic to John Bolton and Steve Mnuchin, her idea was to tire the press by asking them questions. As though these two were not enough she sent out Larry Kudlow for taking the questions on this infamous shutdown, which when asked Larry dismissed it saying it’s not his place to comment on it, walked of smiling, leaving it to Sarah.

Finally she came back to podium to take questions, saying, “There should not be much left to ask me?” The media pounced her anyway with blizzard of questions. The first question she took was from her comfort zone journalist John Roberts; a Fox News white house correspondent. She had thought it would be an easy one, well karma is a bitch!

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1089691564283183105

But the question wasn’t easy to which she replied her usual answer, “Look I don’t want to get in…” basically it’s either get in, get ahead or get into. Since Sarah is trump’s spokesperson, she is his mouthpiece, when she says “I don’t want to get in” does she mean she does not want to get into the guts of Mr. Trump? Then she took a few questions from her nemesis like April Ryan, when asked “Will Trump shutdown the government again in three weeks?”, Sarah responded, “I don’t know you need to axe err ask Democrats for that”, I don’t if the use of word axe was in error or intentional, she has learnt few tricks from her boss. Finally ended with sly joke on Jim Acosta, he asked “All Trump’s aides are indicted like Paul Manafort, Michael Cohen, Mike Flynn including the most recent Roger Stone, is White house in trouble?” To which she replied, “Look, President Trump did nothing wrong.” I wonder even if she is indicted, would she say, “Look Trump’s mouth did wrong not Trump!”

Finally she stormed of the podium when the reporter shouted, “Good to see you Sarah” and another said, “Come back soon”.

The Indian Doctor(2010)

Well we are all familiar with the movies made in the light of British-India and there-after. One phrase stands out like a scar on the chest “You Bloody Indians“, may it be Richard Attenboroughs film Gandhi(1982), Aamir Khans Lagaan(2001) or Harrison Fords Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Doom(1984). Indians are either snake charmers or peasants. Even though today’s India is confident and economy booming at 10 to 12 percent a year under PM Narendra Modi, people walked out of the theater held their heads down from Thugs of Hindostan, for portraying Indians in bad light.

Welcome to The Indian Doctor a TV series, set in the 1960’s, an Indian doctor is invited to a small town in England to practice as the towns existing doctor has suddenly passed away. The screen opens with the doctor Mr. Sharma(Sanjeev Bhasker) although the local British would like to call him Mr. Charmer, along with his aristocratic wife Kaamini(Ayesha Dharkar) if only Brits could pronounce her name correctly. She is either called Camini or CarMini. Let me tell you Kaamini is a beauty with brains in the entire village and she brings an attitude with it. Although she starts like villain, there is no sweeter lady than her in the end. Kaamini’s mother who visits the town puts down all the Brits as stupid lot, she is ashamed to speak to any of them for there stupidity. You will see the true heart of a doctor to serve his patients even though they doubt his ability as a doctor from India. Mr. Sharma leaves no stone unturned before he exposes the top cat of the coal mine, Mr. Sharpes, who has risked the employees health for windfall profits. He acts a little like a Monk the detective to expose his wrong doings; this brings an end to season one.

Season two starts with a Small pox outbreak, although Mr and Mrs Sharma had planned to pack their bags and leave to India(Kaamini finds this village too backward for her tastes), they stay back to help the town with the crisis. This is where you see the gentle and educated heart of Kaamini, who works with her husband to contain the outbreak, eventually conquering the disease with only one death, which is attributed to one adamant Pastor who is determined to cure with the help of Lord as opposed to science(medicine).

There is a chance that you might not like the episodes and find it boring due to the slow pace and village settings, the Welsh and other English accents can throw you off. Have you ever watched a movie with your parents and in-laws together and suddenly a sex scene arrives and you can’t find the remote; all are adults but everybody is admiring the drapes and sheets in the bedroom. Same here just enjoy the beauty of the landscape of this beautiful village, I promise it’s stunning!

I recommend two seasons.

Badhaai Ho(2018)

Badhaai Ho – Congratulations!

The title of the movie is supposed to bring a very pleasant feeling but that’s not what goes on in the movie. Nakul(Ayushmann Khurrana) our lead lives in a joint family with his parents, younger brother and his loud mouth grandmother. It’s still a very happy family although he is very embarrassed to introduce his upscale girlfriend Renee(Sanya Malhotra) to them.
The movie is picturised in a middle class family living on row houses, every time we watch such movies it’s reminiscent of the fact the we are loosing this culturally knit locality to fast growing metros.
So Nakul is enjoying his life, hanging out with his new found love everyday, his brother going to school who gets a pocket money from his brother; it’s a greatest feeling. Grandma is happy controlling the family where both son and bhau(Neena Gupta) are obedient all the time. It’s a very happy family.
Then the pain starts, mother kinda falls sick. See this is a story based of a middle class family, there has to be some pain. So the whole family is attending to her now. Anyways before I go into describing her sickness, I really want to quote this classic dialogue which summarizes the whole movie. Nakul and his brother are sulking on the terrace with their mother’s “illness“, he goes,
“You really had to cry and beg to have your own room, hah!“, smacks on his back of the head. Corollary to that line ‘Can’t you just continue sleeping with parents!‘. Yes, his brother is in high school and children do sleep with their parents as long as they want,

a. for the lack of space

b. unlike American culture it is not looked down upon for children to hang out with parents. Instead it builds a lasting bond of caring, this story is testimony for that

c. the most important reason is that in India it acts a parent birth control.
Alright to the climax of their mother’s illness, she was feeling giddy and throwing up, the common problem at this age – gastric trouble. With the expert doctors visit, the unthinkable gets confirmed, she is pregnant!

The family falls apart, Nakul storms out the door saying, “What were you thinking“, younger brother never looks into his parents eyes. Grandma scolds them saying, “It is time to see your son get married and have children, and here you are having your own time“. These grandma’s have a heart of gold mine, but spits fire from their mouth. Well the only person who said Congratulations was the doctor.
Then the smirky congratulations keep coming from neighbors and distant relatives.
Nakul who was already feeling low with his status as stacked up against his aristocratic girlfriend, this makes him go even lower. In the heated argument, breakup happens. He is ashamed to meet his friends, skips going to cousins wedding. His brother comes home with a bruised face; he had gotten into a fight with his classmate who had teased their mother. Then it takes a turn, first Nakul goes to school with his brother and fixes that classmate, comes back home and comforts his mother that he would be there for the smooth delivery supporting the family.
Well it’s a two hour movie going melodramatic and addressing the family values in the society. Finally on the delivery day his girlfriend comes to join his hand in celebrating a beautiful new angel baby girl to life.
In this day and age where socially appropriated heterosexual sex has become a novelty, while the millennials are busy using all kinds of social media, texting and sexting, somebody has to keep the age old tradition alive.

hadagali

Up in air

Author: hadagali