How to help Assam flood victims?

July 21, 2020 by Keyur Seta 1 Comment

The Indian state of Assam is going through severe floods since some time now. The calamity has killed more than 80 people and affected as many as 70 lakh.

Despite such enormous numbers, the majority of the national media isn’t giving it much coverage. This isn’t surprising though as this has been the case with the national media which is ready to flash minor floods in Mumbai as ‘Breaking News.’

“Over 70 lakh people have been affected due to Assam floods. People, as well as animals, are being rescued from the affected areas and being shifted to relief camps and safer locations,” said Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal to the news agency ANI (Asian News International).

What makes the situation even worse is that, like majority of Indian states, Assam too is going through the COVID-19 pandemic.

But thanks to technology and internet, there are ways through which we can help the Assam flood victims.

Here’s how:

NGO: Actionaid Assocition

Account Name: ACTIONAID ASSOCIATION
Bank Name: Axis Bank Ltd
Branch Name: Bangalore (KT)
Account Number: 009010101455298
Address: No 9, M G Road, Block A, Bengaluru,
Karnataka 560001
RTGS/NEFT/IFSC Code: UTIB0000009
To know more about Actionaid, click HERE

NGO: Rapid Response

Account Name: Rapid Response
Account Number: 50200002115108
IFSC Code: HDFC0001038
Account Type: Current
Bank: HDFC Bank, Branch: Avadi
To know more about Rapid Response, click HERE

Known actor Adil Hussain hails from Assam. Speaking on how Assam has always been ignored, he told the Hindustan Times, “I don’t think anyone has taken it seriously. All the governments since Independence, before we could blame it to the British, I don’t think anyone has actually bothered about it. There were quick-fixes and band-aids, but no research (which I know of) has been done.”

Also read: You might be triggering DEPRESSION in someone without even knowing it

Hussain also wondered at how there hasn’t been any solution despite floods hitting Assam each year. “The flood happens every year, at the same time and the volume of water is almost the same. Even after that if we say we do not have a solution for it, I feel either we are either lying or we are not trying hard.”

India has power, ability to overcome worse than this, says 21-year-old MD Sahil Lalwani

July 10, 2020 by Keyur Seta 1 Comment

Success stories of people are generally narrated when they have lived quite a few decades. But for Sahil Lalwani, an age of 21 is enough to write a lengthy success story. Circumstances forced him to start working when he was in the 9^th grade as a vendor post-school and deliver products via Metro. From here on, he went onto own a series of start-ups in the coming years through his company Twelve 10.

But there is much more to it. Sahil scored defence contracts for chemicals and building the internal base for Indian Navy. But along with all this, his major business is into real estate. His current project includes a six-acre township in Kalyan and Kharghar.

We know this might be too much information for you. So we will just let Sahil speak in detail about his success journey.

You are doing a lot of things professionally. What was your aim in life to become when you were a kid?
Back when I was a kid, all I wanted to do was travel, visit different countries and meet people from different cultures. When I saw a picture of New York City in one of my general knowledge books back in grade two, I had a drive to explore USA. But being from a middle-class background, the only way to achieve this was to either go there for studies or for a job.

I had an interest in cinematography in grade eight and nine and I got into New York School of Film Academy back in 2015. But then, life happened and if you want to grow, you have to leave your dreams behind and follow the path leading you to success. My dad got ill while I was in 10th grade and I had to take over the reins and support my family alongside my mother.

What was going through you when you started working when you were in 9th grade?
I was going through a lot at that time like any normal 15-year-old. I would go to school and see these children arrive in Audis, Porsches and BMWs with VIP number plates. We were given a uniform so that no one feels inferior or superior, but I felt that we, as a family, lacked something. Though I belonged to a normal middle-class family, my dad would buy a luxury car and that pinched me a bit.

I had gone on a school trip to Dubai and the lifestyle there inspired me to make something of myself. As soon as we came back, I started working and formed a Facebook page and started getting references. I still remember the time I used to sell wallets online, followed by different merchandise. My first start-up was called Merchandise and More.

How did you get motivated to create quite a few start-ups at such a young age? Who guided you? Where and how did you learn the tricks of the trade? What were the challenges?
There was another instance that inspired me. Every summer we used to spend our holidays at my Nani’s house in Mumbai and while we were there, I used to see cars that my family accountant would drive. He had these huge luxury sedans that would make me a bit jealous, to be honest. It was a life changing moment for me, and I decided that it was time to either go big or go home.

If you have been given a life, make it work. I honestly didn’t have much help because my dad didn’t want me to work at such a young age, but I had the dream to buy my own luxury car. The first few months were tough, but I bought my first car in Grade 10 which was, of course, a second-hand luxury sedan. At that moment, I realised that I was successful and there was no stopping me after that.

Since my dad got unwell when I was in grade 11, I had to handle his business. There was no one to teach me the tricks of the trade and I fell on my knees quite a few times, but I got back up again. Books were the only thing that helped me learn technical terms and taught me how to deal professionally with people.

You also used to make defence contracts for Indian Navy. How did this happen? Tell us about your work in this arena.
After I finished school, my mom and I moved to Mumbai so we could explore our business options. And that’s when we came across an idea to manufacture household liquids, since they were so expensive. While searching for the breakeven contract, we came across an opening of Karwar Naval Base from where we made Twelve10 chemicals a success and now we supply to all navy and CSD canteens across India.

We at Twelve10, always want to provide products at a reasonable price. For this, we have also faced a lot of backlash and we’re considered to be a lower grade brand but what people do not understand is that MNC are over charging people. Even we want to earn, but we want to earn ethically. FMCG is an industry where people do not have work ethics at all. The profits sore up to 400% on manufacturing costs.

A major part of your business is real estate. How did you start in this arena and when?
Soon after we made money, we started to invest in the builder buying equities and properties on pre-construction basis or advance bookings. This helped us get better prices than properties that were already built. This, again, opened a source of income in the longer run. With my eyes set on construction, we started Twelve10 Construction where we provide an all-in-one solution to developers, right from putting the first brick on the ground, till the lock and key is finalised.

Also read: Post-lockdown things will be very difficult in the education sector, says Atreya Roy

Since it takes off a lot of pressure from the small builders in the sector, it has helped us grow and become the company we are today. Currently we are working with SR Group even in lockdown, to make a 6-acre township near Kalyan and various stand-alone properties in Kharghar.

What is the process of importing avocados from Peru? How and when did you venture in this area?
During the lockdown, we came across a term called immunity, which was already there in the market, but nobody cared about it back then. However, COVID-19 opened the eyes of the public and they started looking for products to increase their immunity. At this point, we saw an opportunity to import a superfood, avocados, that contain many nutrients and antioxidants. During this time, the government was only allowing us to import goods from Peru and New Zealand. So, we searched for traders and set up an ecommerce website overnight.

The process starts by contacting a trader in Peru who provides us with the prices of the product, which then get shipped in a plane with a controlled atmosphere to our city’s airport and from there, after clearing customs, gets shipped to our warehouse in the city.

How much has your business been affected because of the COVID-19 lockdown? How hopeful are you of things being back to normal before we reach 2021?
During the lockdown, we managed not to take a bad hit. Our constructions business and e-commerce website were doing pretty well, as people started to buy a lot of stuff online. However, our food and beverage subsidiary company called Tithe suffered to make ends meet. We had 25 Outlets to launch in Mumbai, out of which 5 were operational before the lockdown and, as we were still in the initial stages, suffered a few losses.

I believe different industries will react differently to this. Real estate prices, even with the most notable developers in Mumbai, have taken a hit as everyone is trying to liquidate their assets. There is a sense of insecurity about the future in the market, but I believe India has the power and ability to overcome even worse than this. We will get back on our feet. Of course, some losses are not curable but within 6-7 months we will once again be, a profit-making economy.

Also read: After scoring just 1 run in his first 6 innings, Marwan Atapattu made a historic comeback

When Navjot Sidhu and Ajay Jadeja were rivals on Sundays

July 4, 2020 by Keyur Seta 9 Comments

The phrase ‘reality show’ has been in the vogue since a decade and a half. But there were a lot of popular reality shows back in the 1990s. The only difference was that they weren’t termed as ‘reality shows.’

Not many would remember that we also had cricket reality shows in the 1990s in which some popular and successful former and current [at that time] cricketers used to perform. One such show was hosted by the great Mohinder Amarnath. It was a quiz show were ex-cricketers like Sandeep Patil, Atul Wassan, Roger Binny, Sayed Kirmani, etc, used to participate.

But one competitive show that excited kids and adolescents a lot in the 1990s featured Navjot Singh Sidhu and Ajay Jadeja. The reason this show stood out was that it wasn’t a quiz show.

Interestingly, the show tested indoor cricket skills of youngsters. It used to air on Sundays before lunch time on Star Plus.

This is how it worked. Sidhu and Jadeja were two captains whose teams would participate against each other. Each team would have youngsters who were commoners or cricket enthusiasts or budding cricketers.

Interestingly, players used to wear coloured clothes with one team wearing blue and the other orange. [On a lighter note, whoever thought that Indian players wore orange for the first time in their 2019 World Cup match against England was wrong]

Both teams used to participate in a number of indoor cricket games. This included Chinese cricket, juggling the ball on the bat, trying to hit the stumps from a distance, etc.

But one that I loved the most was a box cricket game with ‘ek tappa out’ rule. It meant that a batsman can be given out even if the fielder catches the ball after one bounce. There was a complete relatability factor since we used to play with the same rules in our colonies.

While batting in the stadium, Sidhu was known for coming down the track to the spinners, including Shane Warne and Muttiah Murlidharan, and lofting them for huge sixes. He used to dance down the track in this format too, but only to play the ball along the ground, as were the rules.

Also see: Forgotten Cricket Moments: The real Lagaan match at Brabourne Stadium

Jadeja was the best Indian fielder in that era. He used to showcase his fielding skills in this show too. Sidhu also became a much better fielder but that was much later; maybe just a year before he announced retirement.

It was a much admired show then among cricket fans. Of course, it was the era when Hindi television had content to offer; much before the saas-bahu pollution ruined it.

What made the show special was that the two cricketers involved in it weren’t ex-players. Both Sidhu and Jadeja were in form current players then. They used to somehow take time out of their busy cricketing schedules to shoot for this show.

I have been trying to remember the name of the show since few weeks now but to no avail. But a couple of cricket enthusiasts recently told me it was named ‘Kricket.’

Strangely, not only is there not a single video of this show, I couldn’t even find a mere mention of it in any article or post.

Additional reading:

England also had one Mark Waugh who also batted well and bowled off-spin

Aarya Review – Sushmita Sen packs a powerful punch in her comeback vehicle

June 25, 2020 by Keyur Seta Leave a Comment

The OTT (over the top) medium has proved to be a boon for crime thrillers. We see plenty of them in various languages over the world. Unlike cinema, the writers here get proper time to establish the storyline and slowly build up the excitement for the finale.

Disney + Hotstar’s Aarya is also a series under the same genre. The story takes place in a town in Rajasthan and it revolves around Tej Sareen (Chandrachur Singh) and his wife Aarya Sareen (Sushmita Sen). Tej runs a business of illegal medicines along with friend Jawahar (Namit Das) and brother-in-law Sangram (Ankur Bhatia).

The lust for more money compels Sangram and Jawahar to steal a large consignment of cocaine from the dreaded gangster Shekhawat (Manish Chaudhary) in order to sell it. But Tej is completely against this move. This develops a conflict between him and his two partners. Tej wants to leave the whole business; something he promised Aarya long back.

However, Tej’s plan receives a jolt after he is shot at by an unknown person. With her husband in critical condition, Aarya is forced to clear the mess in order to protect herself and her three children. Along with the bad guys, she is also pitted against ACP (Assistant Commissioner of Police) Khan (Vikas Kumar).

Although Aarya also falls in the genre of crime thriller, it would be unfair to say that it is just another series in the genre. This is not your usual crime saga where there’s high-octane action, too many killings and chase sequences. Aarya is a nuanced and layered drama where, along with crime, emotions also play a major part through various parallel tracks, with each being interesting.

So, while Aarya is caught in a cat-and-mouse game with both the villains and police, her journey is more emotional due to her love for her children and dead husband. There are other interesting tracks about Aarya’s sister Soundarya (Priyasha Bhardwaj) and her to-be husband Bob Wilson (Alexx O’Nell). The troubled married life of Jawahar and his wife Maya (Maya Sarao), who is Aarya’s close friend.

Aarya also makes a statement of how even among the wealthy households, patriarchy rules even in 2020. The narrative does so in a subtle way through the sub-plot of Aarya’s father Zorawar (Jayant Kripalani) and his young mistress Radhika aka Rads (Flora Saini).

Despite the presence of a number of characters, the writers have kept the character of Aarya in the center. She is a complex woman who shows different versions of herself in front of different people. She can feel emotionally numb but at another instance shows her powerful and fearless side.

In other words, the character had to go through various emotions in her journey. Sushmita Sen has added life in each emotion effortlessly thereby packing a puck in her comeback. Her act makes it clear that there is so much left in her, which mainstream Hindi cinema should take note of.

Aarya is filled with a long list of impressive performances from the likes of Chandrachur Singh, Namit Das, Ankur Bhatia, Manish Chaudhary, Priyasha Bhardwaj, Sikander Kher, Virti Vaghani (as Sen’s daughter), Jayant Kriplani, Vikas Kumar, Maya Sarao, Vishwajeet Pradhan, Sohaila Kapoor, Alexx O’Nell and others.

There are times when it seems that the nine-episodic Aarya should have been pacier. Few sub-plots could have been given less importance. The series also takes creative liberties here and there, which is generally a case in thrillers.

Also read: Panchayat Review – A perfect ode to Swades

But Aarya ends on an impressive note which provides a kick and gains your interest for its second season. The Bhagavad Gita sequence in the end gives a perfect ode to Sen’s character. It is also refreshing to see a woman given a place of Arjuna.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Directors: Ram Madhvani, Sandeep Modi and Vinod Rawat

Writers: Ram Madhvani, Sandeep Shrivastava and Anupkaran Singh

Cast: Sushmita Sen, Chandrachur Singh, Namit Das, Ankur Bhatia, Manish Chaudhary, Priyasha Bhardwaj, Sikander Kher, Virti Vaghani, Jayant Kriplani, Vikas Kumar, Maya Sarao, Vishwajeet Pradhan, Sohaila Kapoor, Alexx O’Nell

Platform: Disney + Hotstar

Number of episodes: 9

You might be triggering DEPRESSION in someone without even knowing it

June 15, 2020 by Keyur Seta 4 Comments

The shocking death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput through suicide has once again highlighted that depression is something that needs to be taken very seriously. People can be depressed due to various reasons. The most prominent among them is making an individual feel worthless.

Here are 8 ways in which the society makes an individual feel like a loser without any fault of his or hers:

— It starts from childhood itself when parents compare their child’s marks with their cousins’ and neighbors’. In case their son or daughter has fared much worse than other children, he or she is made to feel like a loser. Remember, wounds inflicted during childhood take the longest time to heal, which ultimately turns into depression.

— When an individual chooses an off-beat course like Arts, he or she is considered a loser because becoming doctors and engineers is a must when it comes to gaining respect from the society. It has happened with me and my brother when a family friend once asked my mother, “How did you even allow your kids to pursue Arts?” It was as if the two of us chose to become underworld gangsters.

— Similarly, if you pursue a creative field as a profession and are even doing well in it, you are still looked down upon by the samaaj. Indirect remarks will be made. And asking your salary in front of others gives them a different kind of a high.

— I guess I don’t need to explain much about how people are judged based on their physical attributes, including skin colors and they are made to feel like losers which slowly leads them to self-guilt and depression. Matrimonial ads are the best place to know how deep-rooted this mentality is.

— The question of marriage is the biggest menace in our samaaj. In case you are 30 and unmarried, you are a criminal. As simple as that. More so, if you are a girl. The society will look down upon you as if you don’t deserve to live if you are unmarried at this age.

At times people think that a person hasn’t got married even after crossing 30 because he or she has some problem. Firstly, it’s an individual’s personal issue and none of your business. Secondly, if he or she has a problem, is that a crime?

— When unmarried people are being looked down upon, you can well imagine how a divorcee is made to feel in our society. There are plenty of cases where a person has no other choice but to opt for divorce. But instead of understanding his or her problem, the person is made to feel like a criminal, especially girls, which thereby leads to depression.

For example, a friend of mine who is highly educated considers divorcees as ‘second hand maal’ and feels it is normal to say so.

— If you thought getting married will gain you acceptance from the samaaj, you are grossly mistaken. This is followed by the stage where people look at you with suspicion if you haven’t become a parent even after few years of marriage. The thought of either the husband or wife having a ‘problem’ will creep up again and you will be made to feel guilty. Giving support is out of question.

In case you decide not to have kids, which is a couple’s personal decision, you are considered lunatic.

— Being jobless is another crime. In case you leave a job without having another offer simply because the work and work culture was affecting you mentally, very few would understand that. In fact, even if you are laid off for no fault of yours, you are still made to feel guilty.

The tragedy is that society doesn’t even realize that they are inflicting pain on an individual through, what they believe, is ‘general talk and questioning.’ They have no idea that this slowly leads to a person feeling worthless, which is the starting point of being depressed.

Additional reading:

Why people in their 30s should stop believing they are 70

Difference between Film Journalism & Entertainment Journalism

May 31, 2020 by Keyur Seta 2 Comments

As we all know, film journalism involves giving information about films. It is largely about writing news and feature articles about movies, taking interviews of people associated with films and giving movie reviews.

In other words, film journalism is aimed at people who share a deep interest in films and who would like to get more information or knowledge on films and people associated with films.

The following are examples of articles that fall under the film journalism category:

— Will release films in theatres, but only when we’re comfortable, says director Kabir Khan

— Marathi horror film Lapachhapi gets a Hindi remake with Chhori

— Vidhu Vinod Responds to Kashmiri Students’ Critique of Shikara

— How a pair of folk puppets inspired Shoojit Sircar’s comedy Gulabo Sitabo

But the definition of film journalism has gone through a major change with the advent of online journalism over the last decade. This has given rise to a different branch of film journalism called ‘entertainment journalism.’ This is seen the most in websites that are completely dedicated to movies.

The definition of entertainment journalism is simple – to keep your readers or viewers entertained. Instead of giving information about films or cinema, it is about keeping your audience hooked with ‘stories’ about stars and superstars. More often than not, these stories are personal stories about famous people, which have nothing to do with cinema. And there is no place for faces that are not famous.

Some examples of entertainment journalism include:

— The best and the worst airport looks of 2020

— The super cute Taimur Ali Khan greets paparazzi saying ‘Aye Bhai Log’

— Hina Khan’s hot bikini pics have set the internet on fire

— How cute! Deepika Padukone has saved Ranveer Singh’s number in her phone as ‘ Handsome ’

— Neha Dhupia’s daughter interrupting her live Roadies Audition is the most adorable moment of the day

Going by the kind of news shared above, you must have understood that the only aim of entertainment journalism is to get page-views. In fact, it’s a battle on the internet for clicks between major and minor publications. And the only way to win the battle is by putting the kind of sensational or exciting content that would compel people to click on the link.

Also read: Hardik Pandya comments: We are channelizing our anger in the wrong direction

Along with such content, what works very well on the internet is glamorous pictures of actresses with skin show. The more skin show the more clicks. So, an actress sharing a hot picture on Instagram is news in today’s times. Then there are also photo galleries where all the glamorous pictures are dumped for someone to view them together.

It is understandable that a section of movie lovers abhor such content being dished out in the name of film journalism. This is completely understandable. And it is obvious that they slam these publications and their reporters for putting up such ‘news.’

However, it would be unfair to blame them. Trust me, almost every film reporter or journalist I know hates writing such stuff. There are people who entered this field to write about movies but had to be content with writing about Taimur. Even their bosses and the management personally don’t like bombarding such content to their readers.

So, why do they carry such content? The answer is simple. It is these news bits that give the maximum number of page-views. As hard as it may sound, page-views is the whole and soul for websites. Even for this, the editors and owners can’t be blamed.

The pressure is immense in today’s world where there are hundreds of movie websites. Hence, the only way to survive is to get page-views. People from the media would be aware about the dark period that’s going on in the profession. A long list of journalists have lost their jobs in the lockdown so far all over India. Such is the financial crunch in the media right now.

So, it is up to the readers. If they stop consuming news about Taimur eating an ice-cream and start giving page-views to concrete cinema news, there will be a complete change. It is in their hands to decide what would be published on cinema news portals.

When 2 part-timers opened the bowling for Australia

May 16, 2020 by Keyur Seta 3 Comments

The mid to late 1990s saw the rising of Sri Lanka. After becoming the unlikely heroes of the 1996 World Cup, they became one of the bigshots of the ODIs (one-day internationals), along with Australia. So, a match between Sri Lanka and Australia was considered a clash of the titans, especially after their clash in the 1996 WC Finals.

But this particular match between Sri Lanka and Australia is remembered for the latter’s bowling strategy that, to put frankly, was weird. This was the third match of the 1996 Singer World Series played at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. The other two teams in this quadrangular series were India and Zimbabwe.

In the match in question, Australia batted first and scored 228 for 9 with Michael Bevan top-scoring with 56 and Sri Lanka’s Upul Chandana taking 3 for 38.

Here came the baffling part when Sanath Jayasuriya and Romesh Kaluwitharana came onto bat. Australia had a deadly pace bowling line-up of Glenn McGrath, Damien Fleming and Jason Gillespie. But the bowling was opened by Steve Waugh and, hold your breath, Stuart Law!

On top of that, Law, who bowls leg-spin, was asked to bowl medium pace. He had just 12 wickets when his career was over. Steve Waugh was a useful bowler but why would you give him the new ball when you have three match-winning frontline pacers? And on top of that, Waugh and Law had to bowl to the most dreaded opening pair of Jaysuriya and Kaluwitharana.

This move had baffled me when I was a kid. Recently as I saw the scorecard of that match, I got another surprise. Except McGrath, Fleming and Gillespie, Australia didn’t play a single regular bowler in the match! I am yet to find any other instance of a team playing with only three regular bowlers.

Plus, they employed such a tactic in a match where they were pitted against, what was then considered, a dangerous batting order. If there were injury issues, they could have played some other bowler from the squad.

Playing only three regular bowlers meant that they needed to get 20 overs from non-regular or part-time bowlers, which is a daunting task. Maybe that’s why they wanted to finish off some of those 20 overs right at the start. Or maybe they wanted to give an easy time to the opening batsmen and then make them face some deadly bowling by the three regulars. Either way, it didn’t make sense.

But funnily enough, the weird tactic almost worked for Australia. Sri Lanka, at one stage, were reduced to 81 for 5, which made the target look steeper than it was. But the Lankans fought back and won comfortably with 4 wickets in hand. Aravinda de Silva top-scored with 83 not out while Roshan Mahanama made 50.

I guess not making a good fourth and fifth bowling option cost Aussies the match. Interestingly, in the other two league matches, Australia played four regular bowlers but in the final against Sri Lanka, they again played only 3 and paid the price as the Lankans won the cup.

Highlights of the final match of the series

But more surprising was the move in the league match were Waugh and Law opened the bowling. I am unable to find any other example of 2 non-regular bowlers opening the bowling in an ODI.

If you know any other such instance, please mention in the comments’ section.

Additional reading: Forgotten Cricket Moments: The real Lagaan match at Brabourne Stadium

Only time Tendulkar was NOT selected in team India, neither injured nor rested

England’s Mark Waugh also batted well & bowled off-spin. Here’s more…

Panchayat Review – A perfect ode to Swades

May 1, 2020 by Keyur Seta 1 Comment

‘Real India lies in villages’ is something we have heard numerous times. It is quite incredible to see the huge difference in lifestyle between a metropolitan city and a small village. At numerous places, these villages are based just 100 kilomers away from a big city but appear like a different country altogether.

Deepak Kumar Mishra’s web-series Panchayat, which is streaming on Amazon Prime Video, tries building a connect between urban and rural India through the character of Abhishek Tripathi (Jitendra Kumar). After not scoring well in his exams, he is forced to take up the government job of a secretary in the village Phulera in Uttar Pradesh. He hates taking up this job but is encouraged by his best friend Prateek (Biswapati Sarkar).

Abhishek gets a culture shock once he lands in the village. The small accommodation, open toilets to nagging co-workers and villagers are enough for him to abhor this place as soon as he lands there. On top of that, he has to deal with the not-so-interesting work of a secretary. How long will Abhishek hang in there?

There’s a certain degree of likeability in Jitendra Kumar when he feels frustrated and helpless because of any reason. As the series progresses, we get to see different shades and emotions of the character. Much before the series ends you get convinced that he is a perfect fit for this role.

Panchayat is filled with a number of other prominent characters as well. Manju Devi (Neena Gupta) is the actual Pradhan [village head] of Phulera. As there was reservation for female candidates during the last elections, her husband Brij Bhushan Dubey (Raghuvir Yadav) makes her fight for the election. Although she wins, the task of the Pradhan is carried out by Dubey.

Yadav once again gives a reminder that he should get a place in the list of the best character artistes from India. As per his habit, he gives another example of how should one live and breathe a character. But as he is always seen in the village office, you wonder why they signed someone like Neena Gupta for such a small role. However, she gets her moments in the last episode where she outperforms others.

Panchayat looks at different incidents in the tenure of Abhishek Tripathi through a wide range of conflicts with each being explored in every episode. The incidents are a perfect mix of being interesting, moving and, of course, humorous. The series is a result of a fine piece of writing, which is clearly its biggest plus point. We have seen how a village setting offers plenty of scope for humour because of the lifestyle over there and the characters. The makers have made full use of it.

Also read: The Family Man Review

As the episodes go by one after the other, Abhishek slowly starts developing an unusual bond with the villagers and the village itself. Though he might not show it, it’s pretty evident. A moment which stands out is the one where Dubey and others decide to hold a simple party for Abhishek after they realize how lonely he is feeling in the village. Thankfully, a forceful love story isn’t used as a troupe here.

Surprisingly, there’s no negative point here. There are a couple of incidents which might not appear as appealing as many others. But they certainly don’t fall in the minuses zone whatsoever.

Along with the content and the characters, the other major reason why one falls in love with Panchayat is because of the location of Abhishek’s home-cum-office and its surroundings, including the high water tank. There’s something about it which makes you eager to visit it.

We had felt the same after watching Ashutosh Gowariker’s Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Swades (2004), which is considered a classic by many. Panchayat is a perfect ode to the film. Going by how the makers have included a couple of references of Swades, it seems that giving tribute to the film might be their intention too.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Director: Deepak Kumar Mishra

Producers: TVF (The Viral Factory)

Cast: Jitendra Kumar, Raghuvir Yadav, Neena Gupta, Chandan Roy, Faisal Malik, Biswapati Sarkar

Writers: Chandan Kumar

Review: The Family Man

April 26, 2020 by Keyur Seta 1 Comment

Stories about secret agents have become a favourite topic over the years in Hindi content. This has been seen in films like Ek Tha Tiger, Agent Vinod, Madras Cafe, Baby, Phantom, RAW, etc. The idea has been explored in the web-series space as well in the recent works like Bard Of Blood, Special OPS, etc.

But director duo Raj and DK’s The Family Man, which is on Prime Video, is not just another secret agent saga because it throws equal light on a secret agent’s private life which gets heavily influenced by his professional life.

So, we have Srikant Tiwari (Manoj Bajpayee) who is a secret intelligence agent working for a team called T.A.S.C in Mumbai. He has solved plenty of terror cases with his colleague and best friend JK Talpade (Sharib Hashmi). Zoya (Shreya Dhanwantary) enters their team as an intern. Their team receives flak from their seniors when they are unable to stop a scooter bomb blast at Kala Ghoda.

After some investigation, they get to know of three gaming engineers who are linked with the deadly terror group ISIS. At the same time, Moosa (Neeraj Madhav), a Keralite who had gone to ISIS after being brainwashed, gets caught when he was about to enter his home state. He tries to flee along with his two team members but is caught and badly injured. He is admitted in a hospital where he says he hasn’t killed anyone. Moosa regrets joining the ISIS and is eager to reunite with his mother.

Inside his house, Srikant is like a normal middle-class man. His family, which consists of his wife Suchitra (Priyamani) and two kids, are completely unaware about Srikant’s actual profession. They feel he is into desk work which only involves working with files. Suchitra is not happy with Sri since he is rarely at home and she is forced to look after the kids alone. The kids are also not happy with their father for not being able to give them a better life.

The aforementioned two tracks appear as different as chalk and cheese. But the intelligent screenplay merges the two diverse tracks as naturally as possible. This area wasn’t handled as naturally in Neeraj Pandey’s series Special OPS. Barring the moment when Srikant’s daughter secretly goes to a party, nowhere do the two track appear different. Raj and DK’s deft handling while displaying their quirky humour is also always on display.

Despite the home track, The Family Man is more about Srikant’s professional life. The terror angle isn’t run-of-the-mill stuff and there are quite a few surprises in store. They have deeply gone into the working of terror groups. There are creative liberties taken in the cat-and-mouse game between the bad guys and the good guys but the fast pace and entertaining presentation doesn’t let you think much about it.

A major example of this is a long single take chase and action sequence between the T.A.S.C team and a group of three college students.

Moosa The Family Man — Neeraj Madhav as Moosa

The show takes us to places like Kashmir, Syria, PoK (Pakistan occupied Kashmir), Pakistan, Balochistan, etc. The choice of locations, rich production design and the VFX bring every location alive and gives the series an international feel.

Manoj Bajpayee is one of the finest actors in the country. He is flawless here too. The artiste adapts to different moods and emotions of his character with utmost ease. Sharib Hashmi shows his goodness here as well. These two actors have shown that even people working for the intelligence can be just like any other working employees.

Also read: An Open Letter to Arvind Kejriwal

Neeraj Madhav, as Moosa, comes out as a surprise. He is a phenomenal actor with wide range of skills. The series has a number of other impressive acts from Priyamani, the two kids, Shreya Dhanwantary, Darshan Kumar, Shadab Ali, Gul Panaag, Kishore Kumar, Dalip Tahil, Sharad Kelkar and a list of negative characters.

The Family Man mostly succeeds in keeping a fine balance between being light-hearted and serious. But this can’t be said about the last episode where things go dark and gory. The idea of not ending the story to facilitate the second season also appears questionable. There could have been at least some closure.

But these points certainly don’t stop you from waiting for the second season.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Director: Raj and DK

Producers: Amazon Studios and D2R Films

Writers: Raj Nidimoru, Krishna DK, Sumar Kumar and Sumit Arora

Cast: Manoj Bajpayee, Sharib Hashmi, Neeraj Madhav, Shreya Dhanwantary, Priyamani, Darshan Kumar

Number of episodes: 10

Platform: Prime Video

Filmi way to look at Sachin Tendulkar’s 200 in ODIs: Birthday Special

April 23, 2020 by Keyur Seta Leave a Comment

Sachin Tendulkar’s 200 not out against South Africa at Gwalior in 2010 remains one of the biggest highlights of his illustrious career. It was the first time that any batsmen reached a double hundred in one-day internationals (ODIs). On Tendulkar’s 47^th birthday, here’s revisiting the match, which India won by a massive margin of 153 runs, but in a different way.

Today, after 10 years of the knock, I feel it was one of those things that were destined to happen only to him. That fate always wanted Tendulkar to be the first double centurion in ODIs. It appears more so if you look at it like a movie script.

Every story has a protagonist. Here it’s Tendulkar. Every story has an aim. In this one, it is to ensure that he becomes the first batman in the world to score 200 in ODIs. Few conflict elements or obstacles in the path are a must for every story to become interesting.

The first obstacle came back in 1997 when Pakistan’s Saeed Anwar was all set to become the first batsman in the world to achieve the feat in the match against India during India’s Independence Cup. However, he fell short of just six runs when he was dismissed on 194. The man who got his wicket was Tendulkar. The little master would never let anyone else reach the milestone.

Two years later, the protagonist got a chance to reach the aimed number against New Zealand but there weren’t enough overs left. He remained not out on 186.

Also see: Sachin Tendulkar’s 8 best bowling performances

The next conflict came three years later when it looked like Sanath Jayasuriya will easily achieve the feat when he was batting on 189 against India at Sharjah. Sometimes the hero requires timely help from hero ka dost and this time it was Sourav Ganguly who kept the chances of the hero being the first to reach that score high. He got Jayasuriya out stumped.

The protagonist had to wait for nine long years to get another opportunity to reach that score against New Zealand at Christchurch. He surpassed 160 well before 50 overs. It seemed as if it was just a matter of time before Tendulkar would reach 200. Everything was going well and he didn’t look like getting out that day.

But then came a sorrowful plot twist in the form of a stomach muscle injury in the 45^th over. The protagonist had to go back retired hurt and would have to start all over again some day!

Also see: Only time Tendulkar was NOT selected in team India, neither injured nor rested

The drama and uncertainty continued almost a year later when the little big man was nearing 200 again; this time against South Africa at Gwalior. Will he finally? That was a question on people’s minds when it seemed like Mahendra Singh Dhoni wasn’t in the mood to give Tendulkar the strike.

But Tendulkar finally got a chance to face the bowling when he was on 199. As Dale Steyn was running into bowl, one could imagine the flashing images from the past whenever the Little Master couldn’t reach that number due to various reasons. The fateful delivery is finally bowled and the hero quietly takes a single.

That was it! Rejoice!

(If I was well-versed with video editing, I would have made a video out of this. If someone is still willing to do that, please get in touch.)