Jokulatike - A Commendabale Effort

After watching the Tulu play, Gopala Ee Paar Bala at Townhall, Bangalore on 7th August 2011, I bought the DVD of Jokulatike, a Tulu tele film, primarily because of the star cast - Naveen D Padil, Bhojaraj Vamanjoor and Aravind Bolar, prominent names in Tulu theater. Well, Jokulatike did not disappoint me.

Picture Courtesy : Daijiworld.com

Directed by Sai Krishna M and produced by Ahalya productions, Jokulatike is a well made tele film. Sai Krishna M, who had acted in ace film maker Girish Kasaravalli's Kannada movie, Gulabi Talkies, does a neat job here. One should also applaud for the production value of the film.

Story revolves around the real estate agents in Mangalore. Ashok(Bhojaraj Vamanjoor), Ashraf, Allwyn(Aravind Bolar) are childhood buddies. They are into real estate business to make some quick bucks. How they outwit one another to get that elusive deal forms rest of the story. Naveen D Padil plays the role of a don with a heart of gold. Dialogues and sequences leading to loads of laughter make it a commendable effort.

So, do pick your DVD of Jokulatike soon.

Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara : Film Review

Simplistic but a very engaging film - this is my one line review of ZNMD. No extraordinary dialogues, no extraordinary sequences either. One can easily connect to the characters and the situations they are in. That is the precise reason why it has set the cash registers ringing at the box office.

Crux: Three friends (Hritik Roshan, Abhay Deol and Farhan Akthar) are on a bachelor road trip in Spain. In the three week long trip, how they discover themselves forms the crux of the story. Not to forget the fun part along which keeps your funny bone tickling.

Picture Courtesy : nowrunning.com

Screenplay : Seems like bollywood has moved on with its stereotypes. There is more talk through gestures. Less dialogues give more time for the viewers for the introspection of a scene. Even in introducing - deep sea diving, sky diving and bull run, which is somewhat alien to the Indian audience, Zoya has consciously not put the rules or the jargon which might have made the film boring.

Conquering Fears : On a philosophical note too film scores high. Conquering one's fears, looking for meaning in life - if it sounds too heavy to digest now, well, you will not feel the same after you have seen the movie.

Exotic locations in Spain add to the richness of the movie. On the whole, it is a well made movie. A definite watch for all.

Tulu Dramas in Bangalore This Week

Tulu drama fans in Bangalore have something to cheer about as there will be 2 Tulu comedy dramas staged at Town hall, Bangalore coming Sunday, 7th August 2011. Gopala Ee Paar Bala and Kala Kambula are the 2 plays directed by popular Tulu dramatist Devdas Kapikad. Tuluvere Chaavadi, Bangalore has organized the shows.
Name of the drama : Gopala Ee Paar Bala
Date and Time : Sunday, 7th August 2011, 1:30 PM
Artists : Ramaa BC Road, Bhojaraja Vaamanjur, Mahesh K Shaktinagara, Thimmappa Kulal, Satish Bandale, Shobharaj, Richard Pinto, Panduranga, Suresh Kulal BC Road, Sujata, Monica
Name of the drama : Kala Kambula
Date and Time : Sunday, 7th August 2011, 5:00 PM
Artists : Ramaa BC Road, Bhojaraja Vaamanjur, Thimmappa Kulal, Satish Bandale, Shobharaj, Richard Pinto, Panduranga, Deepak Rai Panaje, Suresh Kulal BC Road, Sujata, Monica

Playwright and Director : Devdas Kapikad
Music : Guruprasad Bayar, Varma Vitla
Make-up: Suresh Master, Naani Bantwal
Troupe Name : Chaa... Parka Kalavidaru

Venue for both the plays : Sir Puttanna Chetty Town Hall, JC Road, Bangalore

Tickets are priced at Rs.1000(entry for 2), 250, 150 and 100

For tickets you can contact the following numbers:
9741561897, 9845126989, 9449112306, 9449344484

Let us meet on Sunday for a laugh riot :)

Mahabalipuram Trip - Part 3 : Arjuna's Penance, Krishna's Butter Ball, Varaha Cave Temple and Tiger's Cave

Arjuna's Penance : The huge relief structure, Arjuna's penance is also called the Descent of the Ganga. Story from Mahabharata, where Arjuna performs tapasya(penance) to get Pashupatastra from Lord Shiva is depicted here. In addition, the story of Bhagiratha's efforts to bring divine river Ganga to earth finds place here.

Arjuna's penance, Mahabalipuram

Arjuna's penance is a structure measuring 30m (100ft) long by 15m (45ft) high, quite huge compared to human figure. Near to the Arjuna's penance, you can find the Krishna Mandapa. Walls of the Mandapa tell the story - how Lord Krishna lifted Mount Govardhana to protect the villagers when the rain god Varuna vented his anger by bringing incessant rains.

Lord Ganesha Temple, Mahabalipuram

Varaha Cave Temple and Krishna's Butter Ball : Moving on we spotted Varaha cave temple next. On way to cave temple, one finds Lord Ganesha temple, where unlike many temples in historic places, poojas seem to be conducted. But surprisingly, there was no statue of the god in the Varaha cave shrine. But one could find carvings of Varaha on temple wall. On the rocky hill nearby, Krishna's butter ball is a huge mounted rock, with virtually no support. People posing for photos as if they are holding it from rolling down was a common sight. Well, we did take our turn in doing so too! Down the hill, we found one more cave temple but dedicated to Lord shiva.

Varaha Cave Temple, Mahabalipuram

Tiger's cave : That brought an end to the visual treat we could have at Mahabalipuram town. But I had read in a travel guide about the Tiger's cave which is located 5 km before entering the Mahabalipuram town. So, I made sure to ask the driver to stop there. Apart from the cave, it is surrounded by trees, making it an ideal place for picnic.

Krishna's Butter Ball, Mahabalipuram

Chennai Bits : Don't know is it because of the part of Chennai we explored, I noticed only few big commercial complexes or modern glass buildings, a far cry from a city like Bangalore. Of the few, Hilton Chennai caught my attention for a while! Chennai traffic which greeted us on that day morning did say bye in the evening too, again in the same fashion - traffic jam. We had to get down from the Volvo bus we boarded to reach CMBT and walk to catch the KSRTC Corona to reach Bengaluru next day morning.

Hilton Chennai

Afterthoughts : After completing a series of posts on Mahabalipuram, I felt that any documentation on India's heritage site always leaves genuine readers wanting for more, purely because of the intricacies of architecture and not to forget the history and mythology associated with the place and the work of art. Here, I have tried to highlight only few aspects. If it arouses interest in the minds of readers about the rich heritage of India, I would consider my efforts fruitful. For more details on Mahabalipuram, click here. Also, another thought passes by - if Mahabalipuram trip travelogue has to be stretched into 3 parts and required as much effort, what it would take to document the vibrant Hampe(Hampi)? :)

Carvings on wall of Varaha Cave Temple, Mahabalipuram

Cave Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, Mahabalipuram

Tiger's Cave, Mahabalipuram

Sunset at Chennai

Oriyardori Asal - Film Review

Movies can be entertaining or thought provoking. Tulu movie Oriyardori Asal, falls into both the categories. So, it is clear that why it has drawn crowds in Mangalore and Udupi districts. Oriyardori Asal literally means one better than the other. The film is based on the Tulu drama of the 90's of the same name. Punch dialogues of the drama are part of modern Tulu folklore! Evidently, the film has been able to take full advantage of that.

Objective Note : Film begins with talks of highs and lows of Tuluvas, takes note of the people who have excelled for the right reasons and mentions few who have become infamous for wrong reasons. Also, it discusses the present challenges faced by Tulu Nadu, Tulu language not being included in the 8th schedule of constitution. Director of the movie, Vijaya Kumar Kodialbail has dared to present several issues upfront, which is a positive note for the marginalized linguistic community as well as for the coastal region. In his effort, he also makes a passing mention of the communal tensions marring the region in recent years.What to look out for : Needless to say dialogues are the most entertaining part of the movie. With the likes of Naveen D Padil and Aravind Bolar you are destined for full throttle of laughter all the time. Some of the dialogues and characters have been modified to suit the new age - like driver Babanna's never ending lines - Yaan panpun daada panda... (translated : What I want to say is..) during Bhoota Kola have been totally removed and replaced with his cell phone histrionics or say the character of coconut plucker Naathu who comes well dressed with a brief case to hold the coconut plucking tool! Film is also not devoid of glamour too as it has Ramya Barna of Pancharangi fame as heroine. Famous song from the original drama Bhageerathammana Per, Aitundu Ardhala Neer finds new tune here. There is also a song shot entirely in Mumbai, with lyrics in Tulu and Hindi with a Marathi line too - Sundar Sundar Amchi Mumbai shows Tulu dramatist's longing for Mumbai. Technically, I have no doubt in my mind to say that this Tulu movie is on par with the films made in Gandhinagar.

'Star' Cast : Kannada music director Gurukiran who hails from Mangalore makes a guest appearance in a song. Mr.World Raymod D'souza has a brief role in the film too.Thought provoking questions : An inept government body governing the city, leaders who are not ready to protect the fertile lands from polluting industries, deteriorating values among people - all come under hammer. High literacy rate and the presence of Tuluva people in prominent positions - have not ensured the constitutional recognition for the lingua franca of this coastal region. Though the film puts across these questions to the audience, treatment is superficial.

Asserting identity : Vijaya Kumar Kodialbail already said that he will announce the name of his next movie on the 100th day of the movie Oriyardori Asal. Nice to see such development for Tulu cinema which has only about 40 films to its credit. Apart from that, two other minority languages of Karnataka - Kodava and Beary are also finding their voice through cinema. Kodava movie - Jadi Male got released last year. Kannada actor Shiwadhwaj Shetty is directing the Kodava movie - Naa Puttna Mann. Beary language got its first film ever this year.

Going places : Encouraged by the stupendous success of the movie, Vijaya Kumar Kodialbail intends to release the movie in neighboring Kasaragod, of course Mumbai and Gulf countries, where Tuluvas have a good presence. Not to worry, film is going to be released in Bangalore too. As per the latest information, Oriyardori Asal will be released in Bangalore on Friday, 22nd July, 2011 at Gopalan Cinemas, Mysore Road (7 PM show).

Update - 25/07/2011 : As per the latest info available in media, due to technical reasons, Oriyardori Asal was not released in Bangalore on 22nd July 2011. Instead it will be released this Friday, July 29, 2011.

Update - 18/01/2012 : New Tulu film - Aamet Asal Eemet Kusal starring Naveen D Padil, Sai Krishna and directed by Ranjan Raghu Shetty will be released in the month of February 2012.

Happy viewing!

Mahabalipuram Trip - Part 2 : Pancharathas and Hill Temple

Back from Shore Temple, we went to Pancharathas(literally meaning five chariots). These monolithic structures which date back to 7th century, are named after the five Pandavas and Draupadi. Knowing a bit history of the place whenever you visit a tourist place can add to the excitement and thrill of the trip! Well, I have experienced it when I visited Chitradurga fort. I had read the Kannada novel, Hamsageethe. Though it is a work of fiction, historical elements are nicely blended, which makes you feel it is a real story. Now, lets turn back the pages of history about Pancharathas.

Pancharathas, Mahabalipuram

Bit of history about the Pancharathas : This is what ASI(Archaeological Survey of India) plaque at the place had to say about the Pancharathas - "These monolithic temples are known as Rathas as they resemble wooden chariot and they are an innovation of Pallava king Narasimhavarman I (Mamalla)(630-668 AD). A huge rock sloping from south to north was utilized judiciously to cutout different forms of temples, besides few animal sculptures. Though these monolithic temples are termed as Panchapandava rathas, they have nothing to do with Mahabharata. These rathas with their ekatala to tritala vimanas and different in plan and elevation exhibit splendid forms of south Indian art and architecture.

Draupadi Ratha, Mahabalipuram

The Nakula-Sahadeva ratha has apsidal vimana. A relief sculpture of Ardhanariswara on the wall of Dharamaraja ratha with perfect balancing of the masculine and feminine features is considered to be one of the finest specimen of early Pallava plastic art. The ratha also contains pallava grantha inscription recording the titles of Narasimhavarman I. The group of five rathas were executed as models of south Indian temples and were not consecrated as their stupas are still attached with the bedrock."

Bhima Ratha, Mahabalipuram

The first structure you find here is named after Draupadi, is different from other rathas as there are less carvings and the dome resembles the roof of a hut. Also, this is the smallest ratha. Next you can find the Arjuna Ratha. Further Bhima Ratha covers a large area, seemingly attributed to the large built of Bhima. Dharmaraja Ratha, is a larger version of Arjuna Ratha. You will find Nakula-Sahadeva Ratha on your right. For more info on the Rathas, you can visit this link. Apart from these structures you will also find statues of Nandi(bull), lion and elephant.

Nakula Sahadeva Ratha, Mahabalipuram

From Pancharathas, on way to Arjuna's Penance, you will find the hill temple. You can walk up the hill, to get a nice view of the Mahabalipuram town and sea nearby. I felt the hill temple similar to the Stone chariot at Hampi though the wheels are not present here.

Dharmaraja Ratha, Mahabalipuram

Nandi Statue, Mahabalipuram

Hill Temple, Mahabalipuram