December 11, 2011
Super Mario: A Brush-Stroke of Genius
His keen hand and eye co-ordinated in the most charmingly humourous way. If you see his paintings of his international travels, you'll see how masterfully he has captured the purest essence of the place - with , of course, the delightful twist of the comic. And his comic wasn't the poking fun, bringing you down kind, it was the comic that uplifted bogged-down human spirits. And when he recorded Goa, it was with such a fresh, honest and entirely unique perspective.
The detailing is down to the last twisted moustache and shine on the musician's shoe. You'll see the use of the labour intensive cross-hatching instead of merely shading the darker trusses of the church.
And in a way they are recordings of people and places, more powerful than photographs. Below are a few examples of the pure genius of the man.
Next time you're in Goa, I urge you to take a day off and visit his museum. I'm glad I asked Anjali and Annie to take me in the midst of my hectic shoot. I told Annie that maybe my next documentary should be about him, but after today, sadly, that won't be possible.
The one below is called Old Sailor in Hamburg below which he quips : A sea-wolf in ship's clothing.
The detailing is down to the last twisted moustache and shine on the musician's shoe. You'll see the use of the labour intensive cross-hatching instead of merely shading the darker trusses of the church.
And in a way they are recordings of people and places, more powerful than photographs. Below are a few examples of the pure genius of the man.
Next time you're in Goa, I urge you to take a day off and visit his museum. I'm glad I asked Anjali and Annie to take me in the midst of my hectic shoot. I told Annie that maybe my next documentary should be about him, but after today, sadly, that won't be possible.
The one below is called Old Sailor in Hamburg below which he quips : A sea-wolf in ship's clothing.
October 14, 2011
Who Shouts "Audience Pounce!" ?
I love this question from the Mega-Whatts Quiz in Bangalore.
The question is: Who shouts "Audience Pounce!" and later shouts out teh answer when it passes all 8 teams, which is surprising given the numerous clues in the question? Somehow everyone decided to take a seat.
The question is: Who shouts "Audience Pounce!" and later shouts out teh answer when it passes all 8 teams, which is surprising given the numerous clues in the question? Somehow everyone decided to take a seat.
October 10, 2011
Who Shot JR? I Did!
Which country are you?
Pune quizzers are famous for analysis. One of them actually wrote a computer simulation for Infinite Rebound v Direct-Pass. When I was in Pune, he wasn't around to share the results of this.
But luckily JR was around and he delighted us all with an impromptu analysis.
Pune quizzers are famous for analysis. One of them actually wrote a computer simulation for Infinite Rebound v Direct-Pass. When I was in Pune, he wasn't around to share the results of this.
But luckily JR was around and he delighted us all with an impromptu analysis.
Bulging Budget
If you've been following the blog since inception, you'd notice the budget increasing slowly.
There are of course truly valid and several reasons for this which I'd like to share with all of you who've supported the project
1. Extra travel like to Coimbatore, Guwahati and Kerala. And there's definitely gonna be a second trip to at least two centres. There are certain stories that cropped up while filming and I didnt have time to explore them fully.
2. Extra equipment - so it turns out for optimal editing, I require special 1 TB drives with fire-wires which aren't as cheap as normal USB hard-drives. And then I already have about 344 GB of material ( around 32 hours). Now the thing is, for editing , I'll need to convert the AVCHD files to a special format which makes new files which are 10X original! Thats over 3 TB!
3. Editing costs have increased.
4.Buying rights for some clips from channels.
But the great thing is despite the big jump in budget, you've helped me cover a large amount.
And there's still room for more support!
There are of course truly valid and several reasons for this which I'd like to share with all of you who've supported the project
1. Extra travel like to Coimbatore, Guwahati and Kerala. And there's definitely gonna be a second trip to at least two centres. There are certain stories that cropped up while filming and I didnt have time to explore them fully.
2. Extra equipment - so it turns out for optimal editing, I require special 1 TB drives with fire-wires which aren't as cheap as normal USB hard-drives. And then I already have about 344 GB of material ( around 32 hours). Now the thing is, for editing , I'll need to convert the AVCHD files to a special format which makes new files which are 10X original! Thats over 3 TB!
3. Editing costs have increased.
4.Buying rights for some clips from channels.
But the great thing is despite the big jump in budget, you've helped me cover a large amount.
And there's still room for more support!
September 15, 2011
Dr. Navin Jayakumar's 1st Quiz Question
The Landmark Quiz has been around for the past 25 years. Over the past few years teams from Pune, Mumbai, Banagalore and Chennai have been battling it out for the most coveted general open quiz. Now it's tentacles are out to tickle the quizzer in Hyderabad and Delhi, thus making it the biggest All-India general quiz.
It was started and conducted for most of its years by Dr. Navin Jayakumar. Eye-surgeon, pianist, quizzer & quizmaster. And more. Surely you will be struck by how inhumanly humble he is.
Mrs. Saranya Jayajumar, considered by many to be one of the best quizzers of India, has been quizzing since the 70s. She helps her son in making questions for the Landmark Quiz and has maintained her enthusiasm for quizzing till date.
After about 3 decades of quizzing, Dr. Navin Jayakumar shares with us his 1st quiz question! Also, see if you can answer Mrs. Jayakumar's question.
Where is Ramesh, founder of QFI?
Dr. Jayakumar poses a more fundamental question. And in the process draws a marvellous parallel between Quizzing and Religion!
It was started and conducted for most of its years by Dr. Navin Jayakumar. Eye-surgeon, pianist, quizzer & quizmaster. And more. Surely you will be struck by how inhumanly humble he is.
Mrs. Saranya Jayajumar, considered by many to be one of the best quizzers of India, has been quizzing since the 70s. She helps her son in making questions for the Landmark Quiz and has maintained her enthusiasm for quizzing till date.
After about 3 decades of quizzing, Dr. Navin Jayakumar shares with us his 1st quiz question! Also, see if you can answer Mrs. Jayakumar's question.
Where is Ramesh, founder of QFI?
Dr. Jayakumar poses a more fundamental question. And in the process draws a marvellous parallel between Quizzing and Religion!
September 14, 2011
30 seconds 3 continents
Govind "Greenko"/"Bubbles" Grewal gave me the idea. It was at Francis' Wedding in May and quizzers were sitting around doing what they do best (even when they're drunk), put fundaes.
Also, sources close to me, have mentioned that there seems to be a lot of emphasis on the Earl and his friends. I told them they're an integral part of the film, as I'd like to follow the young team. Fair enough, they said, but don't I think it's about time, I met The King?
I knew who they meant and said I was saving up my interview with Rajiv Rai. So here you are, a small peek at how the many travels of Rajiv Rai have helped him set quiz questions! And, according to Govind "Greenko"/"Bubbles" , answer them as well.
Also, sources close to me, have mentioned that there seems to be a lot of emphasis on the Earl and his friends. I told them they're an integral part of the film, as I'd like to follow the young team. Fair enough, they said, but don't I think it's about time, I met The King?
I knew who they meant and said I was saving up my interview with Rajiv Rai. So here you are, a small peek at how the many travels of Rajiv Rai have helped him set quiz questions! And, according to Govind "Greenko"/"Bubbles" , answer them as well.
August 30, 2011
A Yard-stick to measure the Earth!
At first, Kalidasa was a dunce....
It was a recent rainy afternoon when I finally met the Duke at his sea-side palace; where he was, as you would have seen in the last two references, with "his folks".
Like one of those sessions where a Grandmaster plays thirty chessboards successively, Srinath kept flipping between sports channels, mindful of all the moves. Yes he did regularly revert to what he called "an awesome spectator sport" - golf.
And then we got-a-talking about his deep admiration for Imran Khan and somehow came around to his proficiency in Sanskrit. He is one level below the highest which, interestingly, is called Pravesham or The Entry - because, I suppose, it is one's entry into a world of erudition, as you shall see....
... while Ilaiyaraaja was always a genius
I love the way he gets so emotional and passionate while talking about Ilaiyaraaja! Don't miss the way his mouth goes dry when he talks about the Carnatic vidvaan's!
It was a recent rainy afternoon when I finally met the Duke at his sea-side palace; where he was, as you would have seen in the last two references, with "his folks".
Like one of those sessions where a Grandmaster plays thirty chessboards successively, Srinath kept flipping between sports channels, mindful of all the moves. Yes he did regularly revert to what he called "an awesome spectator sport" - golf.
And then we got-a-talking about his deep admiration for Imran Khan and somehow came around to his proficiency in Sanskrit. He is one level below the highest which, interestingly, is called Pravesham or The Entry - because, I suppose, it is one's entry into a world of erudition, as you shall see....
... while Ilaiyaraaja was always a genius
I love the way he gets so emotional and passionate while talking about Ilaiyaraaja! Don't miss the way his mouth goes dry when he talks about the Carnatic vidvaan's!
August 25, 2011
The Earl Digs Graves
The Paths of Glory
I happened to catch The Earl one evening in his humble Castle and I don't know if it was the gloomy weather or the rather depressing prospect of an impending Monday, but somehow the discussion turned rather grim. However, my camera and I, were taken by surprise when we soon saw an uncanny transformation take over. Indeed, in talking about Death , The Earl's demeanour took upon a most lively form. Just see how he laughs in an almost mocking manner at the thought of "the inevitable hour".
I happened to catch The Earl one evening in his humble Castle and I don't know if it was the gloomy weather or the rather depressing prospect of an impending Monday, but somehow the discussion turned rather grim. However, my camera and I, were taken by surprise when we soon saw an uncanny transformation take over. Indeed, in talking about Death , The Earl's demeanour took upon a most lively form. Just see how he laughs in an almost mocking manner at the thought of "the inevitable hour".
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