Dhobighat : A Smart Move

Dhobighat has paved way for a whole new genre of elegant, intelligent and artistic movie making. I think the movie is quite a smart move by the veteran actor from a business perspective. Aamir is known for being very selective and so we get to see his movies once in a year or once in two years. Apart from a terrific performance by the seasoned actor, what a viewer expects in an Aamir Khan movie is the flavor of surprise...'what is it this time?' and the star lives up to this expectation by leaving a distinctive mark each time. In that sense Dhobighat is yet another feather in his cap. He's done a cameo role in the movie well a docudrama to be precise and this is the surprise this time.

Aamir has a huge fan following in all age brackets in India and abroad. No matter what the reviews are, his fans are bound to flock to the theaters. Such is the hysteria of an Aamir Khan movie. It might be difficult to say whether you like Dhobhighat or not but you'll definitely agree, it's different. The plot doesn't give the opportunity to Aamir to display his brilliance, but then does that really matter? He's a living legend of Indian Cinema and will always be which means that Dhobighat has no effect on his image and absolutely no negative repercussion on his future endeavors. With Dhobighat, Aamir has cashed in on his iconic image. It's a home production and what has been spent on the movie seems like peanuts and it actually is as compared to the revenues. Unlike his other mega budget movies wherein he pockets crores of rupees, the cash inflow from movies of this ilk is like an additional income. Further, with Dhobhighat, he launches his wife Kiran Rao as a director capable of making intelligent and unconventional movies which is again an icing on the cake. It's a win-win.

But the question now arises, can Aamir afford to gamble every time? One cannot overlook the fact that entertainment lies at the core of Indian cinema. Experiments can win critical acclaim, but to appeal to the masses, they have to be slowed down unless it is a particular segment they wish to target. And being the astute business man that he is, Aamir definitely has this in hindsight and we can expect more offbeat yet appealing products from his factory in the future.

CWG....OMG!!!

CWG is the flavor of the season. It is leaving more of a bad taste in the mouth rather than something we can relish, is a different story altogether.With a new feather being added to the crown every passing day, the multi-sport event continues to hog the headlines. Murphy's law once again holds true: Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.  I almost laughed my head off at the hon'ble CM's "minor glitches and hiccups" statement. Further, she goes on making up for the mess saying that the roof collapse was not in the area where athletes would be present! These shallow statements show the ministry's frenzied attempt to save face. Are these even real issues? They are just offshoots of a fundamental problem inherent in the root of our system:jugaadu and sab ho jayega attitude. I don't want to talk about corruption, because it has always been there and I hate to admit that we have got used to living in a corrupt society!

Delhi won the bid for the games in 2003. We are towards the end of 2010.Since the last 18 months,the CWG federation has been constantly raising its concern over the sluggish progress of the level of preparations. But our ministers in their utmost shamelessness keep skirting the issue with statements like "Please do not comment until the games have been hosted."  And now when things are going haywire they make an appeal to the nation to cooperate.At the same time they rebuff the media for tarnishing India's image in the global arena!I am absolutely speechless!Sir, can we comment now when team England arrives and decides to put up in a hotel rather than the Athletes' village?

Hosting an event of such a large magnitude is no easy task. Agreed. But, with the kind of culture and bureaucracy we have in India, was it not quite obvious that the sail wouldn't be smooth? When the completion date was postponed from Feb to March, why wasn't it considered as a do or die situation then? The date kept moving from June to August. But rather than treating it as an emergency, it was taken as an opportunity. But the sad part is that we missed on the opportunity every time!!! Why is it that things swing into action only when bums are on fire? Why would media not highlight the lacunae in the system ? It is just showing the reality. And it takes galls to accept mistakes which I doubt the Government has! Tomorrow, if the event turns out to be a success the media would flash the event as a success story despite all odds. That is the way things go. And God forbid, if there are any untoward incidents it would be a crying shame for a country that boasts of being the second fastest growing economy in the world !

Now, with the PM stepping in, the awesome foursome (pun intended) of Sheila Dixit, Kalmadi, Gill and Reddy will leave no stone unturned to make the event a success. But do you think it would be appropriate to call it a success when it is a clear case of management failure??? Sadly, this happens in a country whose premiere management institute ranks in the list of top 10 B-schools of the world!

But the hard fact is, despite all grudges, and with just 9 days to go, I can't help but cheer...CWG 2010,Delhi, hip hip hurray!