tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-94522082024-03-07T05:55:39.202-08:00Neha Rungta: Little Endian in the Big CityNeha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.comBlogger109125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-42357040218088469932008-07-07T15:23:00.000-07:002008-07-07T15:23:45.689-07:00Watermelon Strawberry Lemonade<div style='text-align:center;margin:0px auto 10px;'><a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg12KkCsFLCXcSt4Pbbj1QSv-phyuiNGu73hrFNGjfg_NQwUzYnoI3oGRc34R12Y5nAIPa0QgRPRB0L1ZuesfmsrF1caHVqBOKz3eiDH2YS8WfZydIOnOkGyLMUmxru_6BxNwt8VA/s1600-h/DSCN1838.JPG'><img src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg12KkCsFLCXcSt4Pbbj1QSv-phyuiNGu73hrFNGjfg_NQwUzYnoI3oGRc34R12Y5nAIPa0QgRPRB0L1ZuesfmsrF1caHVqBOKz3eiDH2YS8WfZydIOnOkGyLMUmxru_6BxNwt8VA/s320/DSCN1838.JPG' border='0' alt='' /></a> </div><br /><div style='text-align:center;margin:0px auto 10px;'><a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgimrbxsv3QBQ1CL7sHiXhyphenhyphenNsnto4PXeV5ccDeqiZ1GZAC3nDRQB8nB_swQ4OL0cABSJoxlqK1i-mIj6FoOtNmqcU9oMmaGzjuQtRCuwj4i0DWZuLz_ez-AdQYbs_wPAJj3CYcIPw/s1600-h/DSCN1839.JPG'><img src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgimrbxsv3QBQ1CL7sHiXhyphenhyphenNsnto4PXeV5ccDeqiZ1GZAC3nDRQB8nB_swQ4OL0cABSJoxlqK1i-mIj6FoOtNmqcU9oMmaGzjuQtRCuwj4i0DWZuLz_ez-AdQYbs_wPAJj3CYcIPw/s320/DSCN1839.JPG' border='0' alt='' /></a> </div><br /><div style='text-align:center;margin:0px auto 10px;'><a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmsu0Lc9TidkrJV5-zAFeJvwQ093r7Qkej6v_DdCf8YRGutuBtvow3k_h7lVhMxeW3vbvejcZa2KqVEzUJVfLauYzN4lNxkLcoaG_P_Qg5RQWzSPoisZv8EdfxzrROALTCUeyy3g/s1600-h/DSCN1841.JPG'><img src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmsu0Lc9TidkrJV5-zAFeJvwQ093r7Qkej6v_DdCf8YRGutuBtvow3k_h7lVhMxeW3vbvejcZa2KqVEzUJVfLauYzN4lNxkLcoaG_P_Qg5RQWzSPoisZv8EdfxzrROALTCUeyy3g/s320/DSCN1841.JPG' border='0' alt='' /></a> </div><br /><br />I made a nice watermelon strawberry lemonade. Pictures shown above. It is an interesting twist on just plain regular strawberry lemonade. I used two cups of diced watermelon, one cup of sliced strawberries, 2 tbs sugar, half cup lemon juice. (I like it a little tart, if you like it sweeter increase the sugar). Blended everything with some ice. Added two cups of water to the mixture, and finally a garnish of mint leaves.<div style='clear:both; text-align:CENTER'><a href='http://picasa.google.com/blogger/' target='ext'><img src='http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif' alt='Posted by Picasa' style='border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial;' align='middle' border='0' /></a></div>Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-58306483870524353462008-05-13T06:42:00.001-07:002008-05-14T07:16:15.758-07:00Managing the layout of figures in LatexThe placement of figures in your Latex document can sometimes be painful. I have recently started using the tabular environment to manage the layout of my figures in Latex documents. The idea is similar to using tables to manage layouts in html documents (before the popularity of CSS).<br /><br />Here is an example:<br /><br />Option 1:<br /><code></code><pre><br />\begin{figure}<br />\begin{center}<br />\begin{tabular}[c]{cc}<br /> \begin{tabular}[c]{c}<br /> %% Put figure (a) here<br /> \end{tabular} &<br /> \begin{tabular}[c]{c}<br /> %% Put figure (b) here<br /> \end{tabular} \\<br /> (a) & (b) \\<br />\end{tabular}<br />\end{center}<br />\end{figure}<br /></pre><br /><br />The above will result in a two-column layout for the sub-parts of a figure. An easier alternative is not to have the nesting in the tabular environment and just have the following.<br /><br />Option 2:<br /><code> </code><pre><br />\begin{figure}<br />\begin{center}<br /> \begin{tabular}[c]{cc}<br /> %% Put figure (a) here<br /> &<br /> %% Put figure (b) here \\<br /> (a) & (b) \\<br /> \end{tabular}<br />\end{center}<br />\end{figure}<br /></pre><br /><br />When the sub-figures are of the about the same size, option 2 works great. But when the sub-figures have different sizes and you want to align the figures a particular way then using option 1 gives more control. The other advantage of using Option 1 is that you can take the nesting of the tabular environment as far as you like. Consider this variation on option 1:<br /><br /><br /><code> </code><pre><br />\begin{figure}<br />\begin{center}<br />\begin{tabular}[c]{cc}<br /> \begin{tabular}[c]{c}<br /> %% Put figure (a)_0 here & Put figure (a)_1 here \\<br /> \end{tabular} &<br /> \begin{tabular}[c]{c}<br /> %% Put figure (b) here<br /> \end{tabular} \\<br /> (a) & (b) \\<br />\end{tabular}<br />\end{center}<br />\end{figure}<br /></pre><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />In the above example we have added two figures in the first column<br />while we just have a one figure in the second column. Note that this<br />same result can be achieved using \multirow and \multicolumn within<br />one tabular environment. The explicit tabular environment is more<br />intuitive for me and makes it easier to visualize and design the<br />layout.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-30232842068408530162008-05-06T15:35:00.000-07:002008-05-06T15:38:11.555-07:00My new webpageI have a new webpage -- finally!!! Everything you ever wanted to know about me and more can be found in <a href="http://vv.cs.byu.edu/~neha/"> Neha Rungta's Official webpage </a>.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-26629693899798438192007-03-20T16:43:00.000-07:002007-03-20T16:44:21.867-07:00Nice Quote"<i>How is it that little children are so intelligent and men so stupid? It must be education that does it</i>." <span class="author">Alexandre Dumas<br /><br />Really makes you think, doesn't it? With more education are we just getting more stupid?<br /></span>Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-44532109519367265332007-02-13T08:22:00.000-08:002007-02-11T07:30:50.071-08:00Wikipedia - A credible source?Many of us look up definitions on Wikipedia. Last semester I was in a Multi-Agent Systems class; in my lab reports for the class, I often cited Wikipedia as a source for certain definition and descriptions. So it was interesting when I came across this article on <a href="http://www.ksl.com/?nid=333&sid=889936"> College: Wikipedia Not Source for Papers </a>. I think it should really depend on the professor or the teacher whether Wikipedia is acceptable for the particular subject matter. In my personal opinion one should not cite Wikipedia when talking about state of the art research matters, nor should one cite it in a technical document submitted at conference or journal. I see no harm in citing it in term papers for simple definitions like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voting_system#Condorcet_methods"> Condorcet Voting Methods </a>.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-53408870272956236032007-02-10T12:28:00.000-08:002007-02-10T13:12:37.322-08:00India, the next superpower -- why not?I read an article on CNN <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2007/02/08/news/international/pluggedin_murphy_india.fortune/?postversion=2007020909"><br />India the Superpower, Think again </a>. CNN's Cait Murphy puts forth an argument on why India should stop taking pride in its enormous economy growth and curb its enthusiam in its bid for being a superpower. The article contains a lot of correct facts but fails to convince me with his argument. The writer's source of considering India as a superpower is the number of results he got when he googled "India" and "superpower" and not some International study. I googled the exact same two words and looked at the articles that popped up. Even the most optimistic articles referred to it as a "potential" superpower. To see the futility of the source, google "Ghana" "superpower" and you will get a large number of hits claiming Ghana to be the next superpower (Based on the fact Ghana beat USA in the Soccer World Cup in Germany). But Ghana does not have 1 billion people and an 8% growth rate so the writer decides to talk about India.<br /><br />He refers to the slow growth rate in the first 45 years after India's independence as the "a derisory Hindu Growth Rate". I found no basis for the term "Hindu Growth Rate". If the term refers to government policies, the first 45 years after India's Independence the Left-leaning "Congress party" has governed India and set socialist policies. Only recently we have seen a rise of right wing parties. If the term is referring to the majority of the population well then its derogatory and offensive. It takes a country time to stand on its own feet after gaining independence from another country. After 50 years of America's Independence they were mired in a Civil war. Women got a right to vote much later than 50 years after independence in the US. In that perspective 45 years is a very short span of time for a country to start making headway and post good returns.<br /><br />The writer presents some facts on the number of children who do not have an education and are malnourished. The children in America battle obesity, guns and metal detectors in schools, and low Math and Science scores (compared to other developed countries). This hasn't stopped America from continuing to be a superpower. My point is, I agree things need to improve but it is not a strong enough argument to support the writer's hypothesis. There a lot of people in India who have a better standard of living than they did 1o years ago. There are no comparitive figures on what "has" improved in India along with the ugly "facts" of how poor and uneducated the people are in India. A booming economy will in turn help people of the country. It takes time for the benefits to trickle down to all stratas of society. So why not take pride in an enourmous growth rate? It has caused others world wide to sit and take notice. With 1/8 of the population residing in the same country, and where each person is driven to prove his worth to the world. To people who say India can't be the next superpower, I say -- why not?Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1170812259590383672007-02-06T17:30:00.000-08:002007-02-07T18:13:36.792-08:00GuruI have returned to blogging after a long break. I saw the acclaimed movie "Guru" with the high profile, recently engaged couple: Abhisheik and Ashwariya. I had high expectations from the movie reading the great reviews, it being a Mani Ratnam movie, and more importantly it being based loosely on Dhirubhai Ambani's life. I was fairly impressed by the movie.<br /><br />There were some flashes of brilliance in the movie that are typical of a Mani Ratnam movie. In a very non-bollywoodesque scene the protagonist is shown very eager to marry his friend's sister for her dowry. There is a very natural touch to the scene which makes you chuckle. Abhishiek's interactions with Mithun after things turn dour between them are also interesting. The sweeping background score makes it even more enjoyable. But sadly the second half loses steam. It does not contain as much punch as the first half. Abhishiek has truly performed at new level altogether.<br /><br />Given that the Bachans are so close the Ambani family, Abhishiek grew up around Dhirubhai. That probably enables him to play with the role with such elan.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1164138033671519172006-11-21T11:30:00.000-08:002006-11-21T11:40:33.750-08:00San Jose = New IndiaMe and friend have been considering rechristening San Jose to New India. The number of Indians in the bay area is staggering. I was there recently for a conference I really felt I was in India by the sheer number of Indians I saw there. There is multiplex that exclusively plays Indian movies. So for a change I had the option of actually picking which movie I wanted to watch. We ended up picking Don. We got something to eat at a fast food India place nearby. Someone from the town I grew up was there and came up to me and asked me if I was "Neha". We trying to compute that from all the places in the world what was the probability of this happening in San Jose. The conclusion was "Quite High". We also a had a single data point to prove it, so it was decided to be statistically sound for this problem domain. The service was very typical of something you would find in India. No the US sweet and sugary customer service. My friend was asked twice to show her receipt when her order didn't show up. Embarssingly we found it more amusing than insulting. All things said and done, the food was really good, and after Utah it felt like being back home. On the next day I had the best Mysore masala dosa ever. It felt like dosa from a really good South Indian restaurant located in South India and not on El Camino Road in San Jose.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1162998761012948752006-11-08T07:02:00.000-08:002006-11-08T07:12:41.076-08:00Pointing vs. Sharad PawarWhen I saw this <a href="http://broadband.indiatimes.com/videoshow/367463.cms"> video </a> I was confused. Earlier Ponting seems to be having a sort of "banter moment" with Pawar saying "come on mate hand me the trophy". I am willing to give Ponting the benefit out doubt that he was pushing Pawar away as part of joke. Pawar is the president of the Board of Cricket Control in India, and cabinet minister in the current government. A lot of Indian viewers were shocked at this incident. A lot of that outrage has to do with a cultural background of respect and deference to other people older in age and in better social positions. <br /><br />Ponting has offered to apologize to any Indian official offended by his actions. He should be specific and target his apology to Pawar. He did not mention it was part of a joke or trick being played on Pawar. So maybe he just got carried away in the moment. It is the first time the Aussie's have won the ICC Championship Trophy.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1161391524679881582006-10-20T17:40:00.000-07:002006-10-20T17:45:24.693-07:00CS Enrollment going downCS Enrollment is going down. Right now at BYU there are 450 undergraduates in the Computer Science vs. 1000 a few years ago. This represents a nationwide trend in the US. So what is causing students to stay away from CS? The most common answer people talk about is the scare of out sourcing. But everybody I know is getting a job before getting out of college. This includes people with bachelors, masters and PhDs which makes it even more perplexing.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1160870410106950622006-10-14T16:54:00.000-07:002006-10-14T17:00:10.123-07:00Shahid Kapur in a Pepsi AdHere is a old <a href="http://youtube.com/watch?v=bebjEyoy9OE&mode=related&search="> pepsi advertisement </a> that came out just after Kuch Kuch hota hai became a blockbuster. Now here is the interesting part, the dorky guy whose "dil maange more" after the movie is over, is none other than Shahid Kapur. I just happened to come across it on youtube and could not stop laughing when I saw Shahid. For people unfamaliar with Shahid Kapur, he is a mainstream actor now and looks kinda like this -- <a href="http://specials.rediff.com/getahead/2004/oct/14sd1.jpg"> Pic of Shahid Kapur </a> .Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1158623549194950562006-09-18T16:42:00.000-07:002006-09-18T16:52:29.210-07:00Mehndi Pictures<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7165/688/1600/neha%20jis%20pics%20013.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7165/688/320/neha%20jis%20pics%20013.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7165/688/1600/neha%20jis%20pics%20016.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7165/688/320/neha%20jis%20pics%20016.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7165/688/1600/neha%20jis%20pics%20015.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7165/688/320/neha%20jis%20pics%20015.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7165/688/1600/neha%20jis%20pics%20014.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7165/688/320/neha%20jis%20pics%20014.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br />When I was in India I got Mehndi put. I had a blast. It was amazing. I am sad I didn't take pictures of how nice the color had turned out. It took two women (professionals) about 35-40 minutes to do each hand (Front and back).Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1155606880817220402006-08-14T18:43:00.000-07:002006-08-14T18:54:40.833-07:00Shocked to find Chaiya Chaiya in "The Inside Man"I rented the DVD for the Inside Man a couple of days ago. It had all the trappings of a movie I generally like. The plot line is about bank heist starring Clive Owens and Denzel Washington. A good thriller is always welcome with the recent of dearth of good movies Hollywood is churning out. More on that subject later. Clive Owens is one of most under-rated actors around. He really gets into the skin of the character he is playing. His British accent adds to his charm ofcourse. As soon as the movie started playing starting with the globe of the Universal Studios thing, I hear in Sapna Awasti's voice "Jin ki sar ho ishq ki chawan, pav ke neeche janat hogi", the evergreen Chaiya Chaiya song, an A.R.Rahman blockbuster from the movie Dil-se. The original soundtrack keeps playing as the credits roll. A remixed version of the song plays during the end credits of the movie too. Somehow to me (I am a prejudiced audience because I hear and see the song in a different context) did not gel with the setting of the movie. I almost expected Shah rukh Khan and Maliaka Arora to jump out from somewhere and starting dancing. Instead I was subjected to some scenes from Manhanttan. Inside Man is a good movie if you have nothing to do or you are a graduate student.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1154832308411284082006-08-05T19:23:00.000-07:002006-08-05T19:45:08.476-07:00Globalization in a flat worldBefore I come to my interesting tibit here is a little background on the subject: "Vegetarian Food on International Flights". On International flights we have to order special meals when we book our ticket because a vegetarian meal is not an accepted standard option on International flights. So we can order stuff like Asian Vegetarian or Western Vegetarian. Plus we have to specify we are ok with dairy products otherwise we get no desert and some excuse for butter with the bread. On some airlines if you request a vegetarian meal they will give you the lowest common denominator that is dairy-free, low-calorie, sugar-free in addition to being vegetarian. No prizes for guessing how bad such a meal tastes. <br /><br />The last two trips I have gone to India I have flow Northwest-KLM. Last year on KLM instead of bringing us our "special meal" during mealtime the stewardess came and asked, "Would you like chicken or vegetarian curry?". Note this is on a flight going from Detriot to Amsterdam and not some direct flight in and out of India. A guy sitting a couple rows behind us was quite appalled at his given choices. He asked the stewardess whatever happened to the traditional choices of beef or chicken. A similar thing happened this year too. Again the standard choices were chicken or vegetarian curry. The option for the sides were a crossiant or aloo parantha (its a kind of stuffed Indian bread). The guy sitting behind was curious why there was a standard vegetarian option. The stewardess explained since they were getting so many requests for special meals, a.k.a vegetarian meals, it was getting hard for the airlines to keep track of them and manage them. It was more cost effective for them to have the vegetarian meal as a standard option. <br /><br />This makes you think that globalization in a flat world is very multi-directional. If there are American food chains in India there is Indian food on an flight operated by an American airline flying from the US to a city in Europe.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1150911898400408012006-06-21T10:27:00.000-07:002006-06-21T10:45:54.943-07:00Excited about OmkaraThe next movie I am really excited about watching is Vishal Bhardwaj's adaptation of the Shakespeare's Othello called Omkara. After watching Maqbool, I was convinced Bhardwaj does a great job with the adaptations. Irfan Khan and Tabu with Pankaj Kapur made a stellar star cast to bring the deception and treachary of Macbeth right to hindi cinema. Next comes Omakara which is set under the polictical backdrop of UP which seems so appropriate for Othello. Ajay Devgan is Othello, Kareena Kapoor is Desdemona, Saif Ali Khan is Iago, Konkona Sen Sharma is Emilia, Vivek Oberoi is Cassio and Bipasha Basu is the courtesan. It will be interesting to see how Saif does as a schemeing manipulator. This sounds totally different than what he has done so far. This character allows more shades of gray. The only part of the star cast that bothers me is Vivek Oberoi as Cassio. After Company he has not proven himself in a really good role, so there is a question mark on his casting. Though he might bring a certain level of guilability and naiveness to the character of Cassio. The <a href="http://d.indiafm.com/trailors/o/omkara/omkara2.zip"> trailer </a> looks really good. I am waiting for its soundtrack to come out. Ajay Devgan has a great intensity in him as an actor which translates well to roles that command authority.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1150904636349769092006-06-21T08:17:00.000-07:002006-06-21T08:43:56.406-07:00Mumbai the rudest city?Reader's Digest did a survey of 35 cities worldwide to measure the level of civility in each of the city. Mumbai had the distinction of being at the rock bottom of the table. Now coming back to survey, the article on <a href="http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1664913.cms">Mumbai is the rudest city </a> states the three basic criteria used for judging the rudeness/civility of the cites. Here is the actual <a href="http://www.rd.com/content/openContent.do?contentId=27599"> article </a><br /><br /><font color="red"><br /><ul><br /><li>holding the door open for someone right behind you; <br /><li>helping a passer-by pick up a dropped newspaper or pile of documents; <br /><li>thanking shoppers after their retail experience.<br /><br /></ul><br /></font><br /><br />After reading the list I wasn't surprized at all Mumbai was at the rock bottom. Another interesting observation to make most of the Asian countries surveyed are towards the lower end of the spectrum. Here is why the survey is a totally unfair comparison. They are judging cities across the world based on the definition of the etiquite in the western culture. Holding open a door for someone right behind you is a very western defintion of etiquite. None of the major Asian cultures subscribe to this idea as a notion of civility. Some people who have been exposed to a western education will prescribe to the notion others won't. <br /><br />Thanking shoppers after their retail experience is a different kind of problem. There is a totally different dimension to this problem. Here is the key difference in the retail markets of the US vs India. In the US retail items are marked anywhere between 100-500 percentage profit range depending on the item. Selling one item is considered a succesful sale. However, in India the retail markup is not very high. The profit margins can range from 10-30 percent. To make the same money has the US counterparts, the salespeople have to sell 10 times more. In the process the sweet smile on the face, the sing-a-song "may I help you", "thank you for shopping with us", "are you finding everything all right" goes away. The focus on schmoozzing each client is not possible when you are trying to maximize the sale and not the experience of shopping<br /><br />For this to have been a more credible survey, it would have been nice if they had distingushed between the western and eastern idea of etiquitte.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1150660393831010302006-06-18T12:35:00.000-07:002006-06-18T12:53:13.860-07:00Music Review for Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna (KANK)Love them or hate them but you certainly can't ignore Karan Johar movies. So the music of KANK is finally out and whats the verdict? It is very Shankar-Ehsan-Loy-esque. Their trademark signature is all over the album. I don't mean that in a bad way. Even in A.R. Rahman compositions his signature is printed boldly on each of the songs. Since they last composed Kal Ho Na Ho for Karan Johar who produced the movie, there are definitely some parallels. But given that Kal Ho Na Ho was a fun album I was glad of the certain parallels. The soundtrack other than the title song is not something that grips you instantly; however, it definitely grows on you as listen to it again and again. Sonu Nigam renders the two romantic numbers in the movie with Alka Yagnik. They are the melanchony, romantic numbers which are easy on the ears. Both Sonu Nigam and Alka Yagnik bring a lot of emotion, passion and depth to these songs. It might have been interesting to have Shreya Ghosal croon atleast one these numbers. Here is a bigger thing that baffles me. Why is suddenly Sonu the king of "only" slow romantic numbers? He is as good at the fun happening songs as he is at the slow numbers. Case in point Fanaa and now KANK. Sonu is doing the slow numbers while Shaan is having the fun. Mix it up a little bit. Both Sonu and Shaan are extremely talented singers. The music directors need to bring out each of the different facets in these two melodious singers. <br /><br />Among the fast numbers in KANK, "where's the party tonight" by Shaan and Vasundhara Das is a lot of fun. I can already see this playing at all the clubs in B'bay for days similar to Kajra re and Its the time to disco. It has a great beat to it. You can't help but swing to it. The "Farewell Trance" is very techno based and enjoyable. I personally haven't come to care for the two versions of "Mitwa". In my opnion they seem to bring the album down a little bit. I might change my mind in a few days or after seeing the picturization. The last number "Rock n Roll Soniye" is very cliched. Nothing really new to it, a very predominatly wedding themed. It would be no surprize if it is picturized on a wedding. I have a sneaky suspision thatit will be picturized on Amitabh given the way Shanker Mahadevan has gone all out singing this song. <br /><br />Overall I would its a good album. Give a litte time before you decide to like it or hate.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1150560213112204302006-06-17T08:49:00.000-07:002006-06-17T09:03:33.136-07:00Anybody else tired of Himmesh Reshmiya?I was listening to a new movie score, "Ahista Ahista" which is composed by Himmesh Reshmiya. If I hear one more song in the nasal voice of his, I will be read to scream, or not listen to any of his crap ever again. So he got a great break with Aashiq Bana Banaya Apne. The novelty paid off, and it was a chartbuster. But he can't keep repeating himself again and again. I know there are a lot of Himmesh bashers out there. So I don't want this post to turn into lets hate Himmesh. He definitely has talent ; but he seriously needs to stop singing. I am sure the producers won't mind shelling out some extra bucks to get a proper playback singer. So I started listening to the track 5 minutes before I started writing this post. Now another 5 minutes later I am ready to turn it off. <br /><br />Now music directors singing in their movies is nothing new. Everybody from A.R. Rahman to Anu Malik does it. Shankar Mahadeven is even good at it. But they do it rather to mix it up a litte bit. Anu Malik just does it for fun in totally whacked out numbers like "Ek Garam Chai ke pyali ho". A.R Rahman is a more serious singer. He has done varied numbers like the title song of Dil Se, Chale Chalo in Lagaan, and Yeh jo desh hai mera in Swades. He does not sound a clone of himself in every other song he croons. <br /><br />Himmesh Reshmiya's current stratergy might pay off in the short run but if he wants to be taken seriously by his peers and the public he needs to diversify and not sing himself.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1149114959490343152006-05-31T15:27:00.000-07:002006-05-31T15:35:59.506-07:00Excerpt from a Jagit Singh Ghazal"Dhafna Kar do hume ke saas mile, navaz kuch der se thami si hai" ---> loosely translated in computer science terms means "Terminate my process of life so that I can breath because my life seems to have reached a halting state" ---> translated normally would result in "bury my body so that I am able to take a breathe, life in general is fleeting these days". Now that I have butchered the beautiful poetry totally and irrevocably I will get to the contradiction in the first sentence "Bury me so that I can live". It is quite captivating. We sleep walk most of our life. How many occassions have really fully lived life? Well thats my existential thought of the day.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1147545680132370962006-05-13T11:21:00.000-07:002006-05-13T11:41:20.153-07:00Dan Brown as a writerAn <a href = "http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/faithvalues/2002990952_davincidebate13.html"> article about scholars attacking the Da Vinci Code </a> got me thinking about Dan Brown. At best, Dan Brown is a very average mystrey thriller writer even with the huge success of the The Da Vinci code. There are articles and blog posts all over that find errors in Brown's research so google around and you will find enough posts. I am no expert on his books; however, I have read them all on airplanes and airports during the long trip to India. I just think Dan Brown is a very average writer. THe first 150 pages of Angels and Demons reads like a good book but detoriates very fast into a third-grade mystery thriller. Everything (the mole, the near death experiences, the bad guy) is very predictable. If you have read even two books by Dan Brown its is very easy to pick the pattern. Parts of the book are generally promising with taut writing and griping sequences. But he can neither sustain the momentum or keep up the quality of writing. <br /><br />Now the bulk of the critisicm comes mostly for what Dan Brown claims are "facts" in the book. The article linked above mentions <font color= red> <i> "If you were writing it as a nonfiction book," Gibson asked, "how would it have been different?"<br />"I don't think it would have," replied Brown. </font> </i>. I was completely shocked by this statement. The statement opened only two possibilites; one, he is starting to believe his own ficitious stories or two, he wants other people to believe them. <br /><br />Due to the quality of the writing, the book in my opinion is average. A good way to pass your time on an airport or airplane. I do think that the movie will be much better. From the clips I have seen Tom Hanks and Ron Howard will add a lot more credibility to Robert Langdon's character than Dan Brown could get do. Why? Because Ron Howard and Tom Hanks are the masters of their craft unlike Dan Brown.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1146766217889800412006-05-04T10:54:00.000-07:002006-05-04T11:10:17.903-07:00Stephen Colbert at the White House Correspondents DinnerFor viewers of the Colbert Report, this will come as a special treat. Now I will give due where it is due. Stephen Colbert's humor is vitrolic. It takes a lot of gumption to invite him to speak at the White house correspondents Dinner. Now the question remained could he deliver the same sharp punches with the President sitting a few feet away? The answer is "oh yes!" he did. It was a no holds barred talk. He made fun of everything from the energy crisis, low approval ratings, crisis mismanagement, the war in Iraq, and President. The video can be viewed: <a href = "http://www.dailymotion.com/video/143459"> Stephen Colbert at the White House Correspondents dinner </a>. Most of the jokes are pretty direct and mean too. Just keep that in mind, if you have never seen The Colbert Report. To the President's credit he was very sporting to the whole thing.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1145834488401051732006-04-23T16:03:00.000-07:002006-04-23T16:21:28.416-07:00Title song from Fanaa : LyricsMere Haath Mein Tera Haath Ho, Sari Jannattien Mere Saath Ho<br />Tu jo paas ho, phir kya ye jahan Tere pyar mein ho jao Fanaa<br /><br />dialogue:<br />Tere dil mein meri saason ko panah mil jaye , tere ishq mein meri jaan fanna ho jaye<br /><br />Jitne paas hai khushboo saans ke, jitne paas hooton ke sargam<br />Jaise saath hai karvat yaad ke, jaise saath baahon ke sangam<br />Jitne paas paas khawabon ke nazar utne paas tu rahena humsafar<br /><br />Tu jo pass ho phir kya ye jahan Tere pyar mein ho jao Fanaa<br />Mere haath mein tera haath ho, sari jannattein mere saath ho<br /><br />Dialogue<br />Roone de aaj humko tu aakhen sujane de baahon me lele aur khud ko bhi jaane de<br />Hai jo seene mein kaid dariya woh chot jayega, hai itna dard ke tera daman bheeg jayega<br /><br />Jinte paas paas dhadkan ke hai raaz, jitne paas boodon ke badal<br />Jaise Saath saath chanda ke hai raat , utne paas nainon ke kajal<br />Jitne paas paas sagar ke leher, utne paas tu rahena humsafar<br /><br />Tu jo pass ho phir kya ye jahan Tere pyar mein ho jao Fanaa<br />Mere haath mein tera haath ho, sari jannattein mere saath ho<br /><br />Dialogue:<br />Adhuri Saans thi dhadkan adhuri thi ahudre hum,<br />Magar ab chand pura hai fhalak pe aur ab pure hai humNeha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1145026940331616662006-04-14T07:20:00.000-07:002006-04-14T12:43:01.226-07:00Mistress of Spices TrailerIf you love Gurinder Chadha brand of cinema (east meets west), I am sure you will want to know about this. The book, <a href="http://www.chitradivakaruni.com/books/mistress_of_spices/"> Mistress of Spices </a> written by <a href = "http://www.chitradivakaruni.com/"> Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni </a> is quite different from your average novel with expartiate Indians trying to find a foothold in the US. It bring a certain mysticism and spirituality of eastern philosphy to the west. People have compared it to <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/014100018X/002-5840212-3977656?v=glance&n=283155">Joanne Harris' Chocolat </a>. The thing similar in the books is the healing powers of spices vs. chocolates, a person adept at adminstering them. However, personally the character development is very different both books. Mistress of Spices brings a lot of eastern values in a nice way. The movie has Aishwariya Rai as Tilo the protoganist, and Dylan McDermot plays the American. Here is the <a href="http://vv.cs.byu.edu/~neha/MoS_Trailer.wmv"> Trailer for Mistress of Spices </a><br /><br />I am sucker for the east meets west movies. Well made movies that is. The screenplay is co-written by Gurinder Chadha and her husband Paul Berges. Paul Berges directs this one. It will be interesting to see if he can bring the same level of sensitivity and humor like his wife's moviesNeha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1144369563830499122006-04-06T17:18:00.000-07:002006-04-06T17:26:03.846-07:00Water: A painfully beautiful movieDeepa Mehta's trilogy ends with Water. It is by far the most moving movie out of the trilogy. The characters and the situations are very real. You almost seem transported to the set itself. The moisture and water in the movie seems to surround the viewer in addition to the characters. The music futher haunts the viewer, and sucks them in. The plight of women, the hypocrisy of society, the poverty, the helpness remain etched in your mind long after the movie. The last movie that affected me so strongly was Mr & Mrs Iyer, or Pinjar. I very highly recommend the movie.Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9452208.post-1143994199528138052006-04-02T08:59:00.000-07:002006-04-02T09:09:59.550-07:00Closing Ceremony of the Commonwealth GamesThe closing ceremony of the Commonwealth Games just concluded in Australia. The last bit of the closing ceremony had Aishwariya Rai, Saif Ali Khan, Rani Mukherji et al. Now I saw the video online somewhere, where the quality was not too good so there is a possibility that the audio was not synced up the video. But I doubt that. The Channel 9 commetator called Aishawariya Rai - Isha Sherwani, and called Priyanka Chopra - Aishwariya Rai. A case of mistaken identity? The announcer at the stadium had gotten it right, just the commentator was all confused. So people who are wondering what bollywood stars were doing at the closing ceremony of the commonwealth games, the next games are in Delhi. They also unveiled the mascot, "Sher Khan". The commentator was saying Sher Khan, and it almost sounded like Shah Rukh Khan. You need to say it fast with an "strine" accent to see what I mean. The mascot costume was very tacky. The design is cute but it looked like some guy in a baggy halloween costume. Come on people we can do better than. The adverstiment for Delhi 2010 was also aired, the best part of the ad is end where they have jalebi with the words Delhi, yumm!!Neha Rungtahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270515668269362403noreply@blogger.com1