Review of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1

The much-anticipated 7th installment of the Harry Potter franchise is here and I get you the lowdown on this film.

The movie starts with a warning by Rufus Scrimgeour,the Minister of Magic,that dark times are there.We can clearly observe that the stakes are very high when Hermione(Emma Watson) clears her parent's memory. This heart-tugging moment is certainly one of the best scenes in the entire franchise.You can sense the hesitation and sadness when Hermione clears the memory. As the film proceeds,the famous trio,Harry(Daniel Radcliffe),Ron(Rupert Grint) and Hermione(Emma Watson) hit the road in search of the Hocruxes or parts of the soul of Voldemort(Ralph Fiennes).The film weaves through stunning locales of the British countryside and the elaborate indoor sets of the Ministry of Magic and the house of Xenopholius Lovegood.

The trio play their part very well,save for a few dialogues where you couldn't comprehend what they were saying because they were panting.They finally have seemed to get hold of the requirements of their characters.Just one thing:Daniel Radcliffe needs a shave.Ralph Fiennes as the terrifying Lord Voldemort is simply awesome.He kills people but you somehow still admire him.The house-elves,Kreacher and Dobby require a special mention here.The death of Dobby is another tragic scene.Bellatrix Lestrange is a mean character and the actress has carried it off really well.

Some scenes that I really liked are 'The Memory-Wipe','The 7 Potters','The Cafe Fight' ,'The Destruction of Lovegood's house' and the two scenes at 'The Manor House'.

The final verdict:Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is an engaging film that ,though will not keep you at the edge of the seat,will definitely not leave you with a dull moment,save for some moments when they are camping.This film is definitely the most well-made Potter film,in terms of direction,screenplay,camera-work and acting.Some scenes ended too abruptly while others were stretched a bit.But nonetheless,this movie sets up a perfect platform for the second part which comes in July.You bet that I will be queuing up for buying a ticket.I would like to go with 3.75 out of 5 for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,just some action was required.But I guess we will have plenty of that in the second part.

Spot-fixing and its side-effects

The News of The World released recordings of their sting operation that attempted to uncover the recent bout of spot-fixing and on the larger picture, match-fixing.All the cricket-fans and experts were very sad at this.Cricketers,current or former, were very quick to distance themselves from this activity.The media damned this activities.The betting syndicates of England were weakened.And most importantly, the noose tightened over Pakistan cricket.3 players,Mohammed Aamer,Mohammed Asif and Salman Butt were supposed to be in the heart of these allegations.And these were not mere guesses,NOW had video tapes clearly showing these players accepting money. I feel that Pakistan is going to be what South Africa was some years ago-an isolated cricket nation.Already players are reluctant to go and play there. This has led to large amounts of revenue loss to the PCB.

Another effect of this controversy is that from now on every player,guilty or innocent,is under scanner.So,if some player is taking a huge gamble and it does not work,people brand him as a person who has taken money.

Perhaps the most disturbing effect for the game(at least financially) is that this incident has hindered the spread of cricket to other parts of the world.What will we say to the Chinese:"This is cricket,a game in which the players are ready to diminish the nation's pride just for money.

And the fact that it was uncovered in the Lord's test has emotionally weakened at least my faith in the game.If the Home of Cricket is polluted,then the game is totally polluted.

Overall,this incident has left a bad taste in the mouth.The last time this had happened,players like Sachin Tendulkar,Sourav Ganguly.Rahul Dravid,VVS Laxman and Anil Kumble had managed to salvage India's faith in the game.Hopefully,this time,players like MS Dhoni,Virender Sehwag and Harbhajan Singh will save India from suffering a cricketing depression.

Heritage Walk

Ahmedabad,in order to make its residents as well as tourists aware of its heritage and culture.Recently,this has been provided impetus by Ahmedabad's bid to be a heritage city.I went to take the walk and see for myself the heritage offered by Ahmedabad.This walk was through the Old City and you will be surprised to see the contrast in between the New City.Here are a collection of my pictures there.

An Arabic Letter in the Jumma Masjid

The View of The Jumma Masjid
A Depth Photograph.This is a rack of the holy

book of Muslims-The Quran.
The Intricate Carving of the Jallis
The Tree of Life
Another Depth Photo
Every Picture says a thousand Secrets
Bhaila!
Father teaching his Son as the Grandfather watches
Just look at the beautiful Jallis
Idol of an Indian Goddess
Two Dogs in a Contemplative Mood
Another Idol
Exquisite Carving
A Pigeon standing alone amidst the rich culture
A Dilapidated Window
With the Pigeons at Ground Level
Pigeons in a Hurry
Ground Level-2

Shaak Market

The Shaak Market,translated as the vegetable market in Gujarati is the place from where everyone gets their vegetables,directly or indirectly-Right from 5-star hotels to the little dhabas or roadside hotels.I went there Sunday before the last and came back with great memories and awesome pictures(if I may say so myself)Below are some of the photos I have clicked.

A monkey escaping the paparazzi on a bridge on river Sabarmati

This is a daily interaction between the vegetable vendor and a customer,which

the lady in the red sari is watching.Though the deal is beneficial to both the

the groups.They find it necessary to fight over the prices.In a way,it is a

friendly fight.

This is a vegetable vendor arranging his wares as another

day wears on.It is strange but the vegetables sell according

to how neatly he keeps it because there is a lot of variety but

the person with the best hygiene takes the majority of clients.

The market is a place bustling with energy.There is a

lot of commotion and though there is a healthy

competition between everyone,they are friends

once the day ends.

Two pigeons on a rooftop discreetly watching the day's

proceedings.

These are sugar canes.They were arranged in such

a way that they give a feeling of depth.

Picture composition

Rotten watermelons

A cat watching the day's proceedings from under

a scooter.

This is a picture taken in a building in the market

showing the depth of the market and the number

of vegetable vendors thus showing the options.

Two cups in an arc.

Coconuts

Sugar canes in a bundle.

A potato couch

The Ahmedabad Stock Market Building still alive and

running.It depicts the resilience of the Amdavadis.We

have gone through a huge earthquake,communal riots and

even bomb blasts but still we have not lost hope and continue

to live with our heads high.

Siddi Saiyed Jalli and Bhadra Killa

Yesterday was my first attempt at photography and I have got to say it was very fun.I woke up at 5.15 p.m and went to Siddi Saiyed Jalli.The Jalli is the symbol of Ahmedabad and one of the only monuments promoted by the Gujarat government.I started photographing the exterior of the Jalli first and then moved over to the inside.All the people in our group had got a subject and we were all enthralled with the opportunity to photograph amazing stories.The structures told stories of God-knows-what years ago.We then moved onto Bhadrano Killo which is a fort having a temple.Here,the tables changed altogether.We moved onto various topics ranging from locks to tables and from flowers to toys.I swear,this is one of the most colourful places in India.After photographing we went back home contended and looking for more action.I edited my pictures and finally uploaded them on Facebook and Flickr.It is said that a picture speaks a million words so I will let them do the talking....

Even time can't stand the test of time.What are we mortals????

More lotuses than votes for BJP

I wish my life was as colourful as these toys...

A saint praying outside the Bhadra temple.

My dream in my vehicle....

The Jalli

Intricate Carving

Kabootar Ja ja ja ja

Romance in Heritage

The Jalli from another angle

A picture says a million secrets.Gotta lock them up right?

I don't know if walls have ears but they sure have eyes
Where there is a will there is a way

Is today's media responsible???

In the contemporary world,the role of media is very important.So,it is very important that media becomes responsible.Various reality shows completely destroy the privacy of people.The news people break all rules of the law as well as decency and break supposedly 'important' news.They make even regular news breaking news.They make up news just for the sake of gossip and scandals.They fill up space by making up news.They cause indifferences between two parties even though there is nothing between them.This is very inconvenient and frustrating.Also,they make a mountain out of a mole hill and sensationalise small news only to gain TRPs.I don't need to tell you how corrupt today's media is.Also,they keep it as the top story for 2-3 days and then put it on the back-burner.The never do proper follow-up to any story leaving behind important trails of information.They never cross the Ts or dot the Is.They leave behind loose pieces of information.

But as we can not clap with one hand, similarly the media is not the only one to blame.We,the people are equally at fault.We also want such gossip and scandalous news.

In a nutshell,I want to say that media and the people have to wake up to responsibilities and really come forward and take initiative to a better and responsible world

The T20 World Cup Debacle and its After-effects

India crashed out of the T20 World Cup in the Super 8 stages without winning any matches for the second time in a row.This has given rise to various fresh controversies and accusations and counter-accusations.First of all the news channels, nothing major is happening in the country so they saw this controversy as a way to attract more TRPs.The news channels have given these controversies interesting new ideas(mostly false).A Hindi news channel has stated that India crashed out of the World Cup due to several key players like Yusuf Pathan,MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh missing their mothers.Another news channel assembled a conference of former captains to 'dissect' MS Dhoni's captaincy.Next in line is the well-known clash between the Indian players and the BCCI.Now,one has come to expect that there will be a fight between the players and the board.Just 10 months earlier,they were bickering over the debacle in England.Now this campaign has added fuel to the already roaring fire.While the Indian captain blamed the IPL after-parties, the BCCI officials rushed to protect their money-spinning baby from a fresh row of controversies.

These are just a few of the controversies that are prevailing right now.Here are my views on the whole topic.

First of all,Dhoni has come under fire for his failed tactics.I agree he has made tactical errors.But to err is human.We have got to see that in his career as a captain,the only blemishes have been the T20 World Cups of 2009 and 2010.Otherwise,he has led India to many victories.The media and people conveniently have forgotten that he has led India to No.1 spot in both Tests as well as ODIs.

Second,the selection has been under fire for their selections.At this I totally agree.The selectors selected a very weak squad.I mean was Murali Vijay's selection over Robin Uthappa justified???Or was it a case of regional favouritism.Also,the Indian team as individuals looked good.But as a team we never looked balanced.It is strange that we can't find the reason for the failure of the team.I mean to say that there are never reasons to why the team fails in T20 when the same team is usually on the winning side in ODIs.

Maybe it is the tight schedule.We got a break of just 4 days before our WC campaign kicked off.

Whatever be the reasons,we have got to face it that we didn't play to our potential and we lost......

Sleep and Dreams

Sleep is very essential in the modern hectic life.Gandhiji has said that it is necessary for an average man has to have at least 6-8 hours of sleep.Recent studies support the theory.The brain never stops working but the sleeping time is the only time it relaxes.I love sleeping and on a holiday I sleep approximately 10 hours.The best part about sleeping is perhaps the dreams we have.We are transported to the place of our fantasies.We see the world the way we want to.We can bat with MS Dhoni in our dreams or we can act with Amitabh Bachchan in our dreams.More importantly,it reflects whatever you have been doing the whole day.Whatever we dream is a measure of the imagination of our brain.Dreams are just figments of imagination but strangely i feel that they tell us about ourselves.Many authors have been known to convert their dreams into full-fledge novels with perhaps some exaggeration.While sleeping we let each of our parts relax and rejuvenate.It is said that sleep is a depending factor for the rest of our day.A good sleep results for a great day as we are in good spirits.Similarly,a bad sleep will lead to an abysmal day at work or school.Also,a study has said that every night our mind slips into the sub-conscious state for 10 minutes.It is the time when we don't have any dreams.If a person is awoken at that time for 3-4 days consecutively,he will go mad.This is the greatest example of the importance of sleep.

Food

Anyone knowing me will know that I am a thorough foodie.I,for one,always believe that food is much more important than water.My mouth always waters when I see good food.Food is such an integrated part in our lives that we rarely realize the importance of food.Lots of people think of food just as a source of energy.But food is not only a source of energy but a source of enjoyment and adventure.I know its strange to use adventure while talking about food,but it is really adventurous and mysterious how different places make the same dish in a different way.India is a diverse country and so it is natural that different kinds of food will be made,owing to factors like vegetables easily available,climate and the earning of people there.The food found in the North is very different from the food in the South.My favourite food is of course dosa.I am perhaps slightly biased towards South India and maybe that is why it is so.Globalisation has brought exotic vegetables and dishes to India.Another interesting thing about food is how they eat it.The Chinese eat their food with chopsticks(I want to master using them),the French rarely eat anything without wine.The Japanese always drink green tea after their dinner.They even have a green tea ceremony.Americans usually have their food with soda or cold drinks while the English have beer with their food.Another strange thing is how the same dish is named differently in different places.What,we Gujaratis,call 'bhajiya' is called 'tempura' in Japan.

Good food is also dependent on the appearance.The Japanese are a master of food designing (in fact I think they are master of creative things,the biggest example is origami).It is strange how food takes such an important part in life.It is rather like air,always important.So,I believe that people should be food secure.No one should go hungry.I have read somewhere that Americans waste 1/4th food which comes to their homes.This results to 29 million tonnes of food waste every year,this food is fully edible and can be eaten.So,obviously if every person in every country contributes than we can make the whole world food secure.

Save Tigers

It is a matter of great concern that India's national animal,the Tiger,is heading towards extinction.While some surveys say that the number of tigers in India are 1411,it is rumoured that the count is even lesser than expected.It is time that we stand up.India is a very populous country and I am sure that if all of us support this cause,then tigers will roar again.Many initiatives and campaigns have been started and we have to support them.A few notable initiatives include Project Tiger and Aircel Save Our Tigers Initiative.Many noted personalities,from Kiran Bedi to the Indian captain,MS Dhoni,from Amitabh Bachchan to Suresh Raina have supported this campaign.Tigers are the best managers of the forest.If we do our bit for the nature,nature will do its bit for us too.

Cricket

Born in India,it was inevitable for me to catch on the cricket bug.Cricket is a game that has always been my favourite game and will continue to be so.It is a game which requires not only brawn but also brain.Cricket originally from England has become a craze in India since the World Cup victory of 1983.I am a right-handed batsman who bowls a bit of slow left arm bowling and can keep wickets fairly well.My idol is of course MS Dhoni,the Indian captain.The sensation of bat hitting the ball exactly in the middle is simply awesome.While bowling,your heart is in your mouth if the ball just misses the edge.Well,I can go on and on,but I have to go.I can tell you one thing that cricket is the world's most nerve-wracking and adrenaline-pumping game.