Month: March 2019

Posted in Uncategorized

LEADER

Posted on by adhitiaravind92

I usually don’t indulge in the political discourse. But Jacinda Kate Laurell Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand, with her actions made her way into my blog. It’s not every day you meet a leader like that and of course I’m charmed, inspired.

I remember once during a random discussion with friends, a question had popped up – what kind of a leader do you envision for your country? The popular and majority approved answer was someone who entertains people oriented leadership. When Bernice King, daughter of Martin Luther King Jr, described Ardern’s leadership as people oriented, I found myself agreeing.

At the wake of an unfortunate crisis in her country, which may or may not have happened because of a lapse on the part of the government, she readily ordered for top level inquiry. Royal commission is the highest level of independent inquiry under New Zealand law which can pinpoint the flaws in their own system. A daring and effective step of rectifying themselves to ensure there’s no repeat of such a scenario again. Secondly, she showed up for her people, for the minorities of her land and thereby bringing her entire country and its people under one firm stand of humanity, compassion and solidarity. The Amendment of gun laws, swift labeling of the action as terrorism, refusing his very own identity to the terrorist thereby crushing his evident thirst for publicity are some of the few moves on her part. She’s efficiently working around the current emotional atmosphere of her country.

To be honest, her each move being lauded as extraordinary is in one sense sad, because this should be the basic norm. She’s a global phenomenon today for basically doing her job effectively which is worth reflecting. There’s evident hate rhetoric generally in the world and it is in this chaotic atmosphere Ardern’s unapologetic and decisive approach becomes a potential game changer. She perceives the people of her country beyond their origin, religion and color and just as human beings who chose her country as their home. Her powerful words – “Victims are us, attacker is not” is indispensable and applaud worthy. Her powerful assertion holds a promise of peace and justice.

Ardern displays her emotions through her voice, expressions, body language and her actions. Even while openly grieving for the lost lives she balances it with insightful measures taken; thus becoming a refreshing visual for the world. She has adorned her position with humanity and resourcefulness.

Yes probably it’s easier to implement humanistic leadership and blend the nation to a unified emotion, in a peaceful country where the cracks don’t run deep. But that doesn’t reduce the gravitas of her actions towards the country she’s serving. In the aftermath of such an untoward incident she didn’t allow fissures to deepen and effectively tried to maintain the unity and peace of her country. Neither did she try and evade the chances for justice or a proper probe on her own government’s failure. The new gun laws to avoid a rerun,  all point towards her coherence and makes her worthy of all the praise coming her way.

 Hopefully Jacinda Ardern will be an inspiration and role model for generations to come. And I hope she continue to strive for her country and thereby initiate a change in world political rhetoric.

Posted in Uncategorized

SHOBANA: The Nagavalli of our Hearts

Posted on by adhitiaravind92

21st March, marks the birth date of a prominent contributor to Indian cinema, Actress Shobana Chandrakumar. The 80s and 90s of Malayalam cinema is resplendent with Shobana’s charisma. Though she worked in more than 200 films across six languages, her standout performances emerged from Malayalam cinema. How can any Malayali forget her show-stopping performance as Nagavalli. She is considered omnipresent in the list of all time Top 5 actresses of the industry. Conferred with Padma Shri in 2006 for her contribution towards arts, she is also the proud recipient of multiple national awards.

 During my growing years, watching her on the big screen filled me with a euphoric experience. She was the quintessential commercial heroine who passionately romanced, pulled at heartstrings with emotions and lit up scenes with comic timing. She was a dancing diva and a maverick performer on celluloid. It’s hard to be oblivious of her timeless beauty and grace. After spending almost two decades of her life on the big screen, she voluntarily stepped back to focus on her passion for dance. Today she is the proud owner of Kalarpana Dance School and visits cinema once in a while.

Her Ultimate Excellence

Despite myriads of impacting characters enacted on screen, the iconic performance of her career is Ganga-Nagavalli of Manichitratazhu(Malayalam). Her menacing act as Nagavalli and mild mannered Ganga, highlights the psychological and supernatural elements in the narrative. As she oscillates between the dual personalities of vengeful Nagavalli and meek Ganga realistic acting gets its definition. She indulges the complex role with absolute ease and fluidity. The shape shifting she adopts in the body language and mannerisms is stupendous. In the famous song ‘Oru Murai Vanthu Paarthaaya’, she swings between a mentally unstable persona and trained dancer with charismatic excellence. Shobana becomes the hero and villain of the film, and hits it out of the park. Despite the countless remakes (Chandramukhi, Bhool Bhulaiyaa, Apthamitra, Rajmohol) even after 25 years, Shobana’s Nagavalli remains immortalized and unmatchable.

Shobana’s Romances

Padmarajan’s Innale (Malayalam), a cult classic, has Shobana enacting the central character of a girl who undergoes amnesia after an accident and finds herself in a love triangle. It’s a beautiful film and she shines as Padmarajan’s heroine.

In Priyadarshan’s Thenmavin Kombath (Malayalam) she’s the feisty Karthumbi who teases Mohanlal’s Manikyan with a Kannada word ‘Muthugavu’ which means kiss and tickles our laughter bones.  The celebrated pairing gives us an equivalent of Tom and Jerry saga with this film.

In I. V. Sasi’s Kanamarayathu (Malayalam) she’s a young girl who falls in love with Roy (Mammootty) despite their age gap. Despite it being her second film, she plays the over possessive Sherly with panache. She is a lover who pursues a man who interests her and fights for that love.

Mohan’s Pakshe (Malayalam), has Shobana and Mohanlal play star-crossed lovers. In Pakshe and Kamal’s Mazhayethum Munpe (Malayalam) she plays the part of a mature lover who hackles with the realities of life but still savours the lover in her.

Shobana is undoubtedly one of the evergreen romantic heroines of Malayalam.

Shobana’s Comedies

Siddique’s blockbuster movie Hitler (Malayalam), presents her as the happy-go-lucky Gauri who offers enough comic moments to the narrative. The way she dramatizes her kidnapping, fakes pregnancy before a prospective groom and family or lures the attention of eve-teasers to get them into trouble – will make you lose yourself in peals of laughter.

Thulasidas’s Minnaminuginum Minnukettu (Malayalam) sees her handle a character with shades of grey, yet works around humour quotient leaving us in splits.

In the comedy dramas Minnaram (Malayalam) by Priyadarshan and Thulasidas’s Kumkumacheppu (Malayalam) she makes us swing between laughing at her quirks and drowning in her sad fate. She plays the role of suspicious wife to the gallery in Kumkumacheppu bringing in the humour element to the story. Whereas handles comic scenes with a straight face as required by the narrative and still stands tall beside Mohanlal’s animated act in Minnaram.

Shobana’s Tragedies

Shyamaprasad’s Agnisakshi (Malayalam) has her portray a Nampoothiri woman, who fights the shackles of tradition and caste; and when she’s ousted from a failing marriage and orthodox family for the same, she spearheads a movement for the emancipation of women. Shobana as Devaki portrays a seasoned act in the film; she goes through the beats of a bildungsroman and in the end as Sumitrananda, an ascetic, who finally walks into spirituality, paints a slow burning performance.

Vineeth Sreenivasan’s Thira (Malayalam), has Shobana headline the thriller after a gap from silver screen, yet have her deliver a power packed performance as Rohini. Despite the break from cinema, she owns the role with prowess and commanding screen presence. Shobana as Rohini is an authentic performance done right. Rohini’s courage, anger and spirit are a spellbinding watch under Shobana’s mastery.  

Noteworthy Performances in other Languages

In Maniratnam’s Thalapathi (Tamil) she plays the fragile lover of Rajnikanth’s Surya. She is naive and dreamy eyed and speaks with expressions. In the Mahabharat inspired plot, she plays Draupadi and despite the small screen time, her Subhalakshmi holds her own against the stellar cast.

Mitr: My Friend, an Indian English film, is the directorial debut of another renowned actress Revathi which has Shobana headlining it as Laxmi. Laxmi is synonymous to many housewives who sacrifice their age for a family who will ultimately take her for granted and finally run over her. It’s a sensitive portrayal where Laxmi’s flaws are as much highlighted and hence paves way for self realization. It’s one of those films that teach self love without much effort.

There are many more gems to her credit; it’s difficult to contain them in one article. Cinema and audience still awaits this talented artist to come back and shower us with many more powerful performances.

To the one who made my childhood a festival, HAPPY BIRTHDAY SHOBANA.