Another Ghashiram in the making ?

Controversy about song 'Pinga' is spiralling so fast that it seems Bhansali may not require crores to put in for the promos and prerelease publicity, because in Cinema par-lance good or bad, any publicity is always in demand. And it is being provided by half baked history zealots [? mainly from Pune] on the platter. They seemed to be incensed, maybe because half the Pune is still in the slumber of past or maybe because Bajirao Peshwa hailed from Pune, a blue-blooded Puneri, for whom 'I'll break but won't bend' was/is a dictum. 

I too don't proclaim myself to be a historian, even half baked at that, but whatever I know about Bajirao comes from a very famous, very very famous novel on his life, going by the title 'Rau' written by very studious and a stickler for the facts, novel writer, Mr N S Inamdar.

Yes, Mastani was not accepted in Peshwa family by spreading red carpet for her, yes Chimajiappa, younger brother of Bajirao always detested her to the last,  but she was allowed to stay in Pune in a citadel specially built for her in Kothrud. When her son from Bajirao Samsher Bahadur [ Originally named Krushnarao], became eligible for thread ceremony, only meant for high caste Brahmans, though the ritual could not be solemnized at Kothrud by Bajirao, Kashibai saheb had sent gifts for the young boy nonetheless, accepting that he too was blue-blooded. Not only that, but Kashibai saheb also adopted him after the death of both Bajirao and Mastani and raised him as her own in Shaniwar Wada. It seems from the history that though Chimajiappa and Bajirao's mother Radhikabai were dead against Mastani, had even tried to eliminate her, Kashibai saheb might have had a soft corner for the lady. So though kept on the periphery, Mastani definitely did matter.

She was the daughter of Bundelkhand King Chhatrasal from his Muslim wife. She was officially married to Bajirao. Being a princess naturally, she was trained in warfare but was also trained in feminine art forms like dancing [ being a tradition up in north ] knitting, cooking and all other sundry things expected off a good wife.

Marathi [ I always detest the word 'Maharashtrian' because it encompasses anybody staying in Maharashtra, and it was coined much much later when Maharashtra state came into being ] women folk in those times were not allowed to venture out in open and interact with men, true, [ it took aeons for Savitribai Phule to start the revolution way after Peshwa period was over ] so the festivities like Mangalgaur were arranged precisely, taking the very fact into consideration. It's not unthinkable that in such festivities these,' always behind the curtain' women letting themselves go and enjoying the freedom to the hilt as men were simply not allowed. There are so many Mangalagaur songs and acts which may border on notoriety/ mischievousness.

The whole hoopla is being created after watching a  song, only one song 'Pinga', THE movie has yet to see the light of the day. The song shows Kashibai saheb and Mastani dancing to the tune of 'Pinga' but not like tamasha dancers as it is made out to be. Of course, the first few lines are based on famous Lavani song from V Shantaram film but only the tune, the steps enacted are far from it. Nowhere both have taken their pallus above their head, a step must for any Lavani song. Nowhere they are shown gyrating their derrieres or bosom to the erotic words of the Lavani, again a must for a Lavani song. In one or two instances Mastani [ Deepika] is shown doing Bharatnatyam steps which may be a deterrent as being from the north she should have been more conversant with Kathak rather than Bharat Natyam.

Apart from all these so-called historical technical things, what I feel like a true Marathi, every Marathi should welcome the movie with an open heart because it's going to open the world vistas for the Marathi culture, maybe, maybe in truncated form but aren't you bored of anyone with a 26-inch waist and 30-inch chest shouting " Main Punjab da Puttar" or " My two and a half kg arm [ with 100 mg of the brain ] if falls... "whatever! Have you any seen any Bollywood movie with protagonist A Marathi coming from rich class and dictating the terms. Either they are bhais fighting petty battles on the inner streets of Byculla or bais washing the utensils, and brooming the floor Always on the fringe. So now when this is happening why to abort it ?!
And for those puritans! Nothing in nature is in the purest form. Adaptation and Mutation is the rule of nature.!
Similar scenario prevailed among-st the Marathi literati when Ghashiram was staged years ago. Later it has become a milestone not only for Marathi theatre but also for the entire world. Every Marathi is now proud of the play that received stones and brickbats initially.
Let Bhansali take his creative liberties, and if he goes away from history in a perverse way then and then only take out your swords. [ I don't think that he would dare to do so. All said and done, Bajirao Mastani love story is mentioned in the same breath as that of Romeo and Juliet, Shiri and  Farhan, Laila and Majnu and chaste Marathis too do not object to it.] Let Bajirao Mastani see the screen in an earnest way and let us allow it to sink and float on its own merits and demerits. Till then let us wait and watch keeping in mind, what happened to Ghashiram in the past!

Musings ! Happy birthday to me !

Yet another year went by. Whether to look back to take the stock of the years gone by or to look forward to plan the life and start enjoying the ripe old age? Or I would rather look nowhere in particular. If you reminisce with a twinkle in the eyes and chuckle on the lips, you are going down the memory lane with nostalgia, but to be nostalgic means to be old. But of course, it means a life well lived and with a lot of goodies gathered on the way. Do you want to be one? Jolly well good old fellow?

And if you remember only rainy days it's really time to ponder. The road, if was always rough and rocky, maybe you had to fight all the time with the odds and come out relatively unscathed. Was it a life fought for a cause, worth to fight? I have seen so many around,  fighting losing battles fiercely and getting hopelessly wounded in the end!

I don't know what came more, in my share. 

Life is like water at the bottom of the pot and you are like a thirsty crow. You keep on dropping parts of your soul, pebble by pebble, hoping one day life would reach you, You would relish on it and fly away contentedly. Does it really happen? Or it's just a facade, an illusion of life well lived. Did it happen in my case.? By the time water rose to the desired level the longing to drink water had already evaporated. It so happened that I had to throw in so many pebbles, that all that water, I was hoping to drink and get drunk on life, just did not rise, it got consumed in just coating the pebbles leaving hardly anything for me to devour!

Does it make you cynical? No, it made me blank! Because cynicism too doesn't count! Really, what matters? Nothing, really nothing in big capital letters. You start as if it's a big deal but there comes a someone with a pin and you are left deflated at every level. The world goes on with or without you anyway.  

Happiness is not something to be achieved in the end. You have to work on it and live life simultaneously while having the journey! I did it, in the best way I could. I lost a few relations on the way I nurtured few endearing ones along. Pluses and minuses make the equation. Equation of my life would be a puzzle to me too. Haven't gathered so far, where I stand. And to tell the truth, not bothered to know either. 

If death is always a lingering thought, lurking at the back of your mind, maybe your hands are full either with the content or with remorse. In both the situations that's the normal outcome. Or should it be?!

Many more are to come, till the curtains are downed for the good, don't know, what to look forward to, till then? No, not out of desperation but because of sense of Deja Vu. Whatever there is to life,  I feel, I have lived enough and don't feel that life has anything more in store for me! No desire or longing is that strong, that sense of missing it, would prevail. And if you ask me there is no end to life. Really!

Me. A Schizophrenic ?

Nowadays I am confused a lot. Every which way the things are going is so beyond me that many times I fail to comprehend the situation. So a 'Gay' country [ They themselves call their capital 'Gay Paaari '. Of course affectionately and not literally ] like France attacks Syria without bothering about the other world's reaction, read Islamic, within a week of attack and we went on prosecuting Qasab for donkeys' years. And in the end what we proved to whom? I am confused.  

Man kills animals for food. and none escapes to satisfy his taste buds. From Mosquito eggs to insects, like gross hoppers and their larvae, from Dogs in Korea to Cats in Indonesia. From Crocodiles in Africa to Snails in France, you name a living thing  and it is served on your plate as a delicacy. Now the point is if you eat everything why beef should be a problem. Contrarily out of all these animals if you don't eat beef are you missing out on anything. In fact, the choice is so vast! And I am confused. To support or not to support cow slaughter?

Congress looted country right left and centre for more than 60 years. All the long term plans tomtomed as Dreams of India turned out to be white elephants. It has divided country on the caste basis irreparably under the guise of reservations to correct the social injustice. And today under same caste system which we want to do away with, the elections have been won in UP and Bihar. And I, the one who really wants classless caste-less society, am left bewildered and confused.

I really feel India should be a secular state in the truest sense of the word but on one hand, we have pseudo-secularism practised by Leftist and Congress favouring only Muslims and on the other side we have VHPs and Bajarang Dals who are taking India back to medieval times. Again I am confused which way to go.

To be educated, that too highly educated has become really a bane in India. You know everything is going awry but you are just helpless. Hordes of illiterates from the interiors of India are bringing back the goons and corrupt in the main arena of politics that leaves you totally confused asking, what India is really made of? 

Indira Gandhi went on proclaiming 'Garibi Hatao' for many years in elections after elections, never ever delivered But my Indians want Mr.Modi to deliver in 15 months since he started holding the reigns. And they wanted such a drastic change in a scenario like a magic trick that they started shouting from the rooftops, 'He's a liar, he is fooling people.' even before he completed one year in the saddle. They did not dare a word to say against Indira Gandhi for fear of eventuality, that all we knew and know,, but in spite of being PM of the country our noble country, he is called a liar even cannibal in the recent election. And nobody went to jail or died like Mr Nagarwala in suspicious conditions. I am confused who really is intolerant.

The list is enormous. I don't know when to stop. See. Confusion again.

  

Katyar Kaljat Ghusali

Let me confess at the outset that I was a bit, no, much skeptical about FILM 'Katyar Kaljat Ghusali'. Reasons were many. To start with, it is originally a musical, in drama format written many many years ago when we were young collegians when one has opinions on everything under the sun,  justifiable or not. And 'Katyar' was a huge success then, [why it still is an enigma even today.] so it was  THE play of OUR youth . So far all filmed dramas in Marathi have not lost their theatrical format thus remained just that ' Filmed drama' with all its shortcoming, constraint of space, loud melodramatic acting, in simple words overacting, as close ups were not available, it was for last bench-er to appreciate the correct expression, so on and so fore. 

Second big negative  for me was Sachin Pilgaonkar. No doubt he is a stalwart having acted in all performing media for more than 5 decades, but in last few years he has become too loud , too taking patrons for granted. He had become 'Maha Guru' and it showed in every move , every gesture, every utterance of his. If you become 'Know all', well you come down a step or two as an artist.

Musical dramas have always been a social signature for Marathi upper crust of the society. It never was for those who visited theater for ' Lochya Zala Re' or 'Sahi Re Sahi.' In movie lingo it was not for those who related with ' Time Pass' or 'Dagadi Chawl' So I was doubtful, whether the director - producer duo has stooped low and diluted the entire thing for every class of Marathi cine-goer, to throng to the cinema halls to solve the financial equation. 

Well, I am happy to say that none came true, for me at least.

First. It's not a filmed drama. And that is a big big triumph in it's own way. Script is so tight that a musical with so many songs, few retained from old and few added afresh, running for more than two and half hours, never allows you to blink even for a moment. Screen is  aflame with passion, emotion and terse skirmishes all the time. You, just don't get a chance to move in your seat  uneasily with slightest boredom or even a flippant yawn is not allowed to escape clandestinely. Not that, you are on the edge of the seat all the time but you become so much part of the screen that you may never know that you may really stand up with huge applause for perfect melodious rendition given by Shankar Mahadevan, mind you for a CINEMA SCREEN, [ I myself felt like doing it so many a time ] and that's is the true criterion for good script. 

Musical of course means songs. And that's a huge plus. Old ones from the original were of course treat to the ears but new ones too blend with the scene so effortlessly that it becomes impossible to sort out the two. Shankar Mahadevan with his prodigal son Shiv Mahadevan literally set your ears to the fire. 

Performances. Hats off to Subodh Bhave for extracting such extra ordinary performances from every actor. Sachin cleared all my doubts. He has given such a nuanced performance that he is worth for his title, veteran ! Revelation was Shankar Mahadevan. A south Indian in real life, speaking chaste Marathi without any signs of naivety gives such a solid performance that you just forget that it's his first ! The role fits him like a glove and raises no questions for his selection.

Hats off to Subodh Bhave THE captain of the ship , first for taking such a huge risk and second, for carrying it out with what a  huge poise. Successfully!

Go, what are you waiting for, throng the nearest movie hall. And for non Marathis it has subtitles in English !