Adventures in Serendipity

"Cruising through the EEH,
Cool wind in my head,
Warm smell of bangda fry,
Rising up through the air"

Anything novel that arrives in life has its own spark of excitement for e.g. a new car. Last Sunday me, along with my parents had taken it for a test drive. Driving through the fields near Nashik highway - pure bliss and romance! Wohi "Swades" waali feeling. :)

However, serendipitous discovery of entertainment has its own quirks. In May 2020, when the Lockdown was at its peak, had watched the movie "Karwaan".

This was one of the rare Bollywood gems, a real funride to watch. I would rate it one of the best Bollywood movies that show relationships within the family, akin to Udaan (2010). Tanya (played by Mithila Palkar) plays a boarding school teenager, daughter of a single mom. Dulqeer plays Avinash, a 30 ish aged IT employee. However, he has a strong passion for photography which his father strongly disapproves. And the late Irfaan Khan, plays the character of van driver Shaukat. Due to a strange set of circumstances, the 3 characters embark on journey to Kerala from Bangalore. What transpires between them forms the crux of the story.

Having a legendary actor such as the late Irfaan Khan would have been a great learning experience for the rest of the starcast, especially for a newcomer like Mithila. The supporting cast like Amala Akkineni, Akash Khurana are also in their smaller roles.

Music

The music is top-notch. "Chota Sa Fasana" being my favourite track. Would have been great had the music directors released a unplugged Coke Studio version! "Kadam" transports you to a tent-like campfire atmosphere after a trek in the hills. And "Heartquake" is romance at another level, perfect accompaniment for morning jog to places such as this 10 min away from home:

The audio quality in "Saansein" is so kickass, esp the cool piano tone and the drumsticks.

The styling and fashion is top notch. Principal cast has been styled really well.

 

"Bhar De Hamaara Glass"Upon the end of probation period and further confirmation of employment, in Jul last, I had organized an evening self-party swinging to .

Personal Connection

1.  Daddy Issues - All 3 characters share their Daddy stories through interaction during the "Karwaan". And on account of having an extremely successful and equally passionate Daddy at home, with his own share of negativity (read tantrums 😂) and idiosyncrasies, have been at the recveing end quite a few times - twice this year😂).  And thanks to stressful situations - had faced and overcome Depression/ Depressive periods twice (in Finland while doing my Masters 2010-13) and in Mumbai (2014-mid 2018).
   All due to the usual excessive worry & concern about career 😂😂.
   Took me quite a lot of courage/ cool aggressiveness (हट्टीपणा) to reassure him that m sorted and things are smooth going.
2. Ooty/ Coonoor - Have visited multiple times on vacation during my schooling days, thanks to dad's school in Lovedale and College being in Ooty. Hope you would have got an opporutnity to ride the NMR (Nilgiri Mountain Railway).
3. Tanya's personal choices - She indulges in all the guilty pleasures (Alcohol, Non Veg). Ghar par Main to veg/ eggetarain hi hun, but baahar can't resist the temptation of a well cooked rawas fry/ prawn/ tangdi kabab. 👊 . And the occasional vodka with boys gang. "Jis bande ne "Vodka Museum" dekha hai, usko kaise rok paaoge"✌

TEDx Talk

Later that week, due to the lockdown and associated stress of isolation, had a few mentally difficult nights. And then this talk provided inspiration. Since then, have been on an occasional "Mithila marathon" thanks to YouTube. All kinds of "serendipitious discoveries" propped up - for e.g.

1. How PocketAces used "Video Analytics" & "Data Science" to decide the comedy gag lines for next seasons of their OTT Series, "Little Things" in particular. (m like dayuumn, that's my professional area of expertise 😅👌)
   
   
2. "Little Things" - font style being identical to the one used in the Web Series. - at office cafe.
   

Passionate Hobbies

1. Music - Both of us have a shared love for Hindustani Classical Music. And I've been volunteering for SPIC MACAY https://spicmacay.org/ right since my Btech days.
   
2. And you listen to John Mayer as well :)
3. Foodies - hmmm, Vada ya Misal ? ya Thal Peeth?
   but all said and done, mummy/ ajji ka banaya hua food is another 😋 feeling, chahe woh simple si Curd Rice ya Pithla Bhakri ho.

Tribhanga
Regarding your recent projects, Tribhanga takes the cake :). It was a dream come true to see you working with Kajol. And her on screen pair, the SRK is an alumunus of my school in Delhi 😊😊

Toally got you when during your last Insta live session you had mentioned that "one shouldnt take social media too seriously". Which is why after posting this on your account, m gonna take at least a week's break from Insta/ Facebook.

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Even though you are a famous celebrity, could we become BFFs? And could there be a possibility of us collaborating for music sessions (preferably f2f)?

Keep the 😊 ongoing :)

Best Regards,

Ajay