ಕ್ಷಣಪ್ರಭಾ - Kshanaprabhaa

Having watched every teaser and trailer that the talented crew of Katyar Kaljat Ghusali  (KKG, meaning: a dagger through the heart) released over the last couple of months, and having read about the time-tested and much respected Marathi play of the same name that premiered 58 years ago, I was all set to soak in its movie adaptation, knowing that you can only expect the best from Subodh Bhave , even if he was making his directorial debut with this. My knowledge of Marathi is only limited to the recent movies I have watched, the Abhangs I listen to, and a few trips I have made to Pune. But the Marathi movies have made a huge mark on me of late, through their artistic quality and sheer acting brilliance of actors like Atul Kulkarni and Subodh Bhave. It looks like the strong theater background has its impact. Period dramas are the kind of movies that have come out exceptionally well over the years, and I expected KKG to be no less artistic than Balgandharva (2011) or  Lokm...

Thousands of Indians led from the front in the long and hard freedom struggle of the country against the British, but unfortunately, in the present day India, very few of them remain on top of the minds of an average Indian. There were those who dedicated their lives and sacrificed their families, there were people who withstood immense hardship, and then there were those who took the cause to the average Indian and created a revolution by generating awareness amongst the masses by "connecting" with them and speaking their language - thus inspiring millions to plunge into the battle and take up the cause. A visionary like Bal Gangadhar Tilak was a leader who was in the forefront in all of these, yet, the country somehow manages to forget him in the hustles and bustles of the "free" and self ruled India he had imagined. When a work of art is made about such extraordinary gentlemen to whom the country owes a lot, it is very important that it portrays them in the...

Sri Padmanabha Dasa Vanchipala Sri Rama Varma , better known as Swathi Thirunal Kulasekhara Perumal Maharaja , and even more popular as just Swathi Thirunal , was not only a well respected and widely known King of the State of Travancore , but continues to be an eternal Prince of Indian classical music. A man with mastery over multiple languages, he patronized both Carnatic and Hindustani forms of Indian classical music, composed many a kritis , sang them himself, and rewarded singers and dancers of repute from across the country during his reign. It is the versatile king's bicentennial birth anniversary this year and what better occasion to finally get hold of his biopic, "Swathi Thirunal", a 1987 Malayalam movie that I was hunting for over five years. With Kannada maestro Anant Nag playing the lead role of Swathi Thirunal, there was much to expect from the movie, and I had only seen glimpses of it online. Excellent music with legends Dr. M. Balamurali Krishna ...

I was introduced to a mesmerizing  piece of music last year when my colleague Aniruddha's mobile phone rang when we were on call discussing some work in the most serious mindset possible. I was dumbstruck by the calmness that little piece of music could bring to my mind while in the middle of a critical design discussion, even as Aniruddha went on to recieve the call thus cutting short my opportunity to listen to that heavenly sound. On asking him about the details later, I got to know that it was the beginning part of a song from a Marathi movie named " Balgandharva ", released in 2011 - portraying the life and times of a famous Marathi singer and actor. I then went on to listen to that song myself, and ever since, it has been delivering a daily morning dose of cheering up, as I feel that it brings in a great deal of calming influence - " Panchtund Nararundamaladhara ", a Naandi song of the play " Shakuntal " as portrayed in the movie Balgandharva, ...