The Critique

Rajendra Pillai, A Pocket Book of Humour , Better Yourself Books, 2007, ISBN 81-7108-353-6, Rs. 45, pp. 215 I have read Pillai’s previous two books and I liked the way he presented his matter. The same goes for this book too. In his opening address, he expresses his motivation for writing this book, “our sense of humour... make(s) things that much easier for ourselves and for those around us.” His Christian roots too make an appearance as he quotes from the Book of Proverbs. Life without humour would be dull and dry. Humour is the spice of life and when we live with a healthy sense of humour we make life interesting and worthwhile for ourselves and for others. The layout of the book is simple and ordered day-wise such that there is one joke and one witty remark for each day of the year. I felt that the general humour of the book was pretty sour and insipid but the witty remarks were worthwhile reading. The jokes lacked punch but the wisdom statements shared were the real one...

Dir: Kevin Reynolds Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Tom Felton, Peter Firth, Cliff Curtis Dur: 1 hr 47 mins Genre: Drama Rating: 4/5 PG: The violence is a bit gory. I’ve been looking forward to this film ever since I watched its trailer. The trailer promised a fascinating story of a Roman tribune’s conversion. The film delivered up to expectation and the cinematography was a treat. The story was permeated by a sense of urgency: The Romans are desperate to end the fiasco surrounding Jesus as the disappearance of his body has shaken up the Jews. Unrest is brewing in the countryside and Pilate is determined to show the higher ups that he has things under control.   The actors have given excellent performances. Particularly noticeable is the character of Bartholomew who is usually never given much importance. Here he is highlighted by being the only disciple brought in for questioning. The dialogues are powerful and well-scripted. They add to the drama, mystery and emotion ...

Chetan Bhagat, One Night at a Call Centre, Rupa Publications, 2005, ISBN 978-81-291-0818-0, pp. 57, Rs. 95.   This was Chetan Bhagat’s second novel and I must confess – it was a let down. ‘Five Point Someone’, despite being half as good as the movie it inspired (3 Idiots), has a way better story than this. Chetan’s style in this book is drab and unbecoming of a writer of his caliber. Perhaps he has improved over time, for his later novels are far better than his initial ones. The book’s beginning and end had his personal charismatic touch but the large number of pages in between reek of aridity. The story is told in first person and is a narration of incidents that occurred on a single night at the call centre, Connexions, with few flashbacks that serve little purpose besides distracting you from the story and providing some ‘masala’ for those looking for it. The end is extremely predictable and hence detracts from the novels’ glory. I didn’t enjoy the reading experience a...

Dir: Zack Snyder Starring: Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Gal Gadot, Amy Adams Dur: 2hrs 30 Genre: Action Rating: 4/5 A single superhero usually creates a lot of excitement but if two of them combine… well you could probably say they could create ‘super-excitement’, more so when those two happen to the biggest names and crowd favourites. This film created quite a hype and promised to be a greater blockbuster. With a title that is worthy of a controversy, nothing less could be expected. However, I must confess that I was a little disappointed with the film. It seemed strong that Superman and Batman lived across the river from each other but never knew each other before. A forced meeting don’t you think? Despite its name, the film isn’t really about Batman vs Superman. It’s more of Good vs Evil and superheroes aren’t evil. They may be wrong, as the film portrays but they can’t be evil cause that would make them Supervillains. Mentioning supervillains, one does make an appea...

Dir: Anthony Hemingway Starring: Nate Parker, David Oyelowo, Ne-Yo Dur: 2 hrs Genre: Inspirational, Drama Rating: 2/5 It’s a heavily trodden path – we are well aware of how the black Americans suffered in their own country. There’s hardly been a year without at least one film on such a theme being released. The difference with Red Tails is that it doesn’t depict the black persons plight in the same way as most other films do. This film, inspired by true events, is an assertion of black American identity as a component part of the American identity. The blacks were not only denied dignity but were also denigrated as being less capable than their white counterparts. This film is about a squadron of black pilots who formed part of the American Air Force. Their efforts to prove themselves worthy of dignity and equal access to the ‘American Dream’ forms a major part of the film. The film however is marred by poor and unnecessary dialogues that lack quality and punch, besid...

The boarders of Don Bosco Academy, Sutgatti, began arriving on 27 th May 2016. School began on the 28 th but deadlines don’t seem to be worth much here as day-scholars and boarders continue to make entries days after school has begun. The period of settling down seems to be extending indefinitely. Every time a point of stability is approached somebody new enters and resets the whole process of settlement. This I’m told is not surprising or new, in fact, it is the acceptable modus operandi . To me it’s downright strange and the prolonged time for settling down is ensuring I remain unsettled. Nevertheless, those who have arrived are being helped to feel at home by the staff, community and companions. Night games were held to ensure the boarders mix around and have some fun together. The IPL final was screened and some party songs and hymns were taught to lighten the mood and fill the emptiness till school begins full swing. 

This was an essay I penned for the final exam of English in Divyadaan. Read on… Divyadaan is a place that stands on the two pillars of study and prayer. The aim of the place is to sharpen and develop the fertile minds of the young seminarians, Salesians in particular. The journey to Divyadaan is pretty much pre-established for the Salesians belonging to the Mumbai and Panjim provinces. I belong to the Panjim province and so had no choice but to move here after completing the novitiate. I remember asking my Rector when I was in the aspirantate, the purpose of these three years of study post-novitiate. He told me that it’s a time to broaden my outlook, sharpen my intellect, develop critical abilities and expose myself to new experiences. Looking back on these three years I’ve spent here in Divyadaan, I feel that all those things my Rector told me should happen have happened. I have broadened my outlook by being exposed to a diversity of philosophers and philosophies; I’ve kept ...