Sivagiri - The Crusader
Three issues have been in news over the last week, which probably have garnered more news bytes, second only to the swine flu. Instant hit has been BJP's "over the top - let me be first type reaction" to Jaswant's book on Jinnah; Then comes the media-savvy and smug "My name is Khan....Shah rukh(ja) khan"; and finally "Kaminey" and "Kandaswamy" ( I am afraid the early reports have called the tamil flick a dud ).
BJP is in a downward spiral, with party idealogy ( we are told they are still are not sure what it is ) being relegated to the background and LK Advani being marginalized even at a dottering age of 82. All the hoopla around mild and moderate ex-BJPer Jaswant Singh, his book and his subsequent explusion smacks of BJP's muddled thinking post Vajpayee era. Their internal mess has took roots post the lok sabha electoral debacle. Every credible political commentator vouches that none from the 20 core party members of BJP might have read the 600 something page book on Jinnah, leave alone reading between the lines. Their reaction is being ridiculed on the basis that it is Congress who indirectly are at the receiving end in the book, owing to Nehru's support for the two nation theory; Sardar Patel has not been shown as the troublemaker as is being played out in BJP circles. Jinnah purportedly has been shown toeing the logical line of seeking a separate nation owing to unfavourable bias towards the minority community. The popular verdict on who is the hero and who is the villain in the book, has not been announced as yet. Will wait for that....until then hope BJP doesnt shoot itself all over, while Congress stands by and waits for its turn to hog the limelight. That would mean lesser expenditure for the next elections - something our politicians wouldnt prefer.
SRK has taken his smugness and confidence to greater heights with his over-the-top reaction to his frisking at the NJ airport. While most of them feel that it is a publicity stunt by King Khan, he defended the same by saying that "My name is Khan" will be done only in 8-9 months; we have to give the man the benefit of doubt. He denies that he didnt feel offended because the authorities deliberately failed to acknowledge who he was, but still believe his ego got to him. But we have to appreciate the man for the kind of media empire he has built since his "Hi Chaps, Fauji" days. Congress MP Ambika Soni did put the Congress on the wrong foot when she called for an ill-advised tit-for-tat policy. She did her bit to get some news bytes, alas no match for BJP's "Quick Gun Murugan" reaction.
Kaminey, for all the negative connotations to the word, has been getting thumbs up, unanimously from all quarters. Shahid, post his "Jab We Met" performance, has managed to shrug off the tag of SRK wannabe. Vishal Bharadwaj, seen as a desi version of Tarantino, doesnt mix too much pop-candy in his serious movies - Omkara was a dark drama loosely based on Othello - and now Kaminey. Cant wait to watch this flick.
On the other hand, "Chiyan" Vikram's superhero caper Kanthaswamy is of a mind numbing length of 3hr 20 mins. The length wouldnt have mattered if it were a Lord of the Rings or a Ben Hur, instead the early reviews have been very disappointing. Shriya probably will walk off with the eye-candy honours while Vikram and Suzi Ganesan will have to get over the disappointment. It still might go onto rake in the moolah, but am sure the lead actor's and director's reputation have taken a hit. Wont watch this one, unless dragged into the theatres by unforeseen fateful forcing by faithful friends.
