Oscar update: 81st Annual Academy Awards

2009 is certainly brilliant. With Hugh Jackman playing host, you can’t ask for more. Here’s your perfect host adding a touch of humor, and there’s the little musical that he played out, his opening song is surely going down in history.

The best supporting actress award saw previous winners grace the stage to represent all past winners including Whoopi Goldberg, Goldie Hawn, and Tilda Swinton. Tilda Swinton announced Penelope Cruz, this years winner for her role in Vicky Cristina Barcelona. Her acceptance speech saw an emotional Penelope thanking everyone she could.

Steve Martin and Tina Fey came on stage with with a cohost to announce the next couple of awards. Milk saw screenwriter Dustin Lance Black win the Original Screenplay award. The adapted screenplay award goes to Simon Beaufoy for Best Adapted Screenplay this year for the film Slumdog Millionaire based on a book written by Vikas Swarup.

Jennifer Aniston and Jack Black played host to announcing the next category of awards. the awrd for best animated feature film went to Andrew Stanton for Wall-E. The other nominations were Bolt, and Kungfu Panda. This was his 5th nomination so far. The best animated short film award went to Kunio Kato for La Maison en Petits Cubes.

The next hosts were Daniel Craig and Sarah Jessica Parker to announce the winners for art direction. The award went to Donald Graham Burt (Art Direction) and Victor J. Zolfo (Set Decoration) for the film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. The next award went to Michael O’Connor for the film The Duchess for achievement in costume design. The award for achievement in makeup went to Greg Cannom the film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.
Robert Pattinson too made it on stage as host.

The next hosts had guests in splits. Natalie and Ben Stiller put up a great show and announced the next awards. The best cinematographer award went to Anthony Dod Mantle for Slumdog Millionaire.

Jessica Biel came on next in a pretty gown to honor someone for his contribution and I didn’t understand this bit.

Next there was a great video montage of James Franco and Seth Rogen watching a video of scenes from nominated films all put together pretty funnily. They came on next to announce the award for the best live action short film. The award went to Jochen Alexander Freydank for SPIELZEUGLAND (TOYLAND).

What I just saw was pretty entertaining. A musical, to be accurate, High School musical, was performed with great gusto by none other than Beyonce and Hugh Jackman. Of course I hate what Beyonce wore or her performance and loved Jackman. Not only is Hugh Grant funny, he’s really a powerhouse of energy.

The run up to the best supporting actor male was anxious and hopeful for everybody I guess. Not only did we see 5 former supporting actor winners, the award was given to Heath Ledger for his role as the Joker in The Dark Knight. His family collected the award and I think everyone genuinely missed Heath, and expressed their respect and love with the customary standing ovation.

The next awards were in the documentary categories with Bill Maher playing host. The best documentary feature went to James Marsh and Simon Chinn for Man on Wire. It’s a great documentary on French performance artist Philippe Petit. I personally love this one because I’ve seen this guy on many shows. Megan Mylan won the short subject documentary for Smile Pinki. I love this too because it’s really nice and tells a simple story about little Pinki dealing with Harelip and Dr. Subodhs contribution.

Will Smith came on next to announce the next few awards. The team of Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton and Craig Barron won the visual effects award for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. The achievement in sound editing went to Richard King for The Dark Knight. The Sound Mixing title was lapped by Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke and Resul Pookutty for Slumdog Millionaire. Chris Dickens took home another award for the Slumdog camp in the film editing category.

The next standing ovation came for Jerry Lewis, veteran actor, and comedian who received the Jean Hersholt humanitarian award for his support towards those with muscular dystrophy through the muscular dystrophy telethon.

This is a brilliant achievement for A.R.Rehman with 2 awards for Slumdog yet again. He won the awards for best music score and best song as well. The song selected is Jai Ho. A musical medley even saw Rehman perform on stage in between both the award announcements with plenty of Bollywood style dance in the background. Alicia Keys and Zac Ephron played host during these announcements.

Liam Neeson and Frieda Pinto played host to announce the winner of the best foreign language film of the year. The award went to the film Departures from Japan. Director Yojiro Takita was overjoyed at the recognition.

Queen Latifah performed a sort of musical tribute to all people the film fraternity has lost. I didn’t know them all but the song was meaningful.

Reese Witherspoon was on stage to announce the award for best director. Well, you guessed it, Danny Boyle took this one home. Certainly Slumdog was a clean sweep, and the best directing award was certainly awaited.

The pattern to call on 5 former best actress award winners. The award for performance by an actress in a leading role this year goes to Kate Winslet for her role in The Reader. Meryl Streep, Angelina Jolie, Anne Hathaway, and Mellissa Leo were the other nominees.

To introduce this years 5 ominations for best actor, Micheal Douglas, Ben Kingsley, Adrian Broody, Anthony Hopkins, and Robert de Niro were called on stage. the award went to Sean Penn for his portrayal of Harvey MIlk in the film Milk. Sean Penn did give a great acceptance speech and supported gay activists. The other nominees were Brad Pitt, Richard Jenkins, Mickey Rourke, and Frank Langella were the other nominees.

Steven Spielberg announced the Best picture award and the announcement saw a majority of the Slumdog crew get on center stage. A truly happy moment for Christian Colson with the best motion picture of the year coming their way.

Vespa Scooty

Vespa is a well known Italian brand of scooters that are manufactured by Piaggio. The Vespa has with time evolved from a very simple model when the particular motor scooter was manufactured for the first time in the year 1946 by Piaggio & Co. S.p.A. of Pontedera. Piaggio & Co. S.p.A. of Pontedera is actually based in Italy and also happens to be one of the only seven companies that are presently owned by Piaggio.

The company Piaggio also is currently Europe’s biggest manufacturer of vehicles that have two-wheels. This company ranks fourth among the world’s fourth largest manufacturer of motorcycles as per as the unit of sales are concerned. From its very inception, Vespa scooters have been known for their stylish looks. Each Vespa comes with a glossy painted body that is made out of pressed steel. The unibody contained in every Vespa combines a total cowling that comes with its engine, and encloses the Vespa’s engine mechanism, and this conceals any types of dirt or grease.

The Vespa also has a flat shaped floorboard that provides necessary protection for the foot in the form of a broad pedestal. There is also a very prominent fairing right in the front. The front also provides protection from wind, and is shaped like a structural unit, and this singularly endears as well as endures the scooter’s shape. The Vespa was the first globally successful scooter.

Currently Vespa has come out with revolutionary Hybrid electric vehicles that run on electricity and do not require any sort of gas or other sorts of fuel. Vespa is also currently in the process of developing several hybrid scooters. There are a couple of models that are to be released later on. All these models of Vespa are primarily based on the ever popular Vespa LX 50 and also the Piaggio X8 12.

Blast the right places

Now, it’s not like I don’t support unity walks and similar support efforts but I think I’ve had enough of unity walks and baseless email forwards in the name of religion. I mean, how can you just go on and on and confuse people even more than they already are. The human species, for the most part can be influenced very easily and if you just throw in a little sentimentality, we’ll fall for it. It’s a tried and tested method and it’s still prevailing.

Take for instance the recent terrorist attack on Mumbai. I know it was sad and I’m heartbroken, but I don’t need to see images of forced Muslim and Hindu coalitions to state that we’re united. I mean by my not being part of a peace walk or If I refuse to forward a unity email, do I become a non believer of unity and harmony in religion. I can go and on about this but somehow most people fall for this emotional gambol. I for one thing can’t stand too much of this show. I’m hurt and I feel helpless about these attacks and worry myself sick about what if I get blown out some day but I can’t find compensation for such fear in talks of communal harmony.

The matter that needs tackling certainly is the threat terrorism poses and not how united we stand in the face of attacks. I mean no one’s really going to ask our religion and then shoot you down; they’re simply going to take you down.

So, is it really important to be more enthusiastic about peace marches, candlelight vigils and sending out messages that speak the voice of communal harmony? The need of the hour is to tackle terrorism, strengthen forces, and make sure there are intelligence services that can anticipate problems and thwart attacks right at the onset. Even better provide security and a safe haven in quarters where inclination towards terrorist activity is almost expected.

I mean I always thought bomb the place out was just a thing to say when you’re frustrated but imagine people actually carrying it out. Can’t read into people’s minds for sure but there’s got to be something someone can do, especially since people are so busy making policies and grants. It’s time the real matters are addressed rather than let the matter fizzle away till another one takes its place.

You and the internet

So much has been said about the internet and its negative effects, mainly targeted towards endless surfing. Let’s cut the internet some slack and look at the positives. An interesting report on CNN presented Dr. Gary Smalls test reports. A professor at UCLA, he studied two groups of older adults and the MRI on them suggests that when the group that consists of the technologically advanced people, referring to web savvy individuals, the results recorded greater brain activity in this group in areas of complex reasoning and decision making.

Get to Pushkar

For everyone who didn’t go to Pushkar this year, its okay, go next year. I’ll tell you how to get there from Bombay because that’s usually from where I set foot, after starting out at Pune. For those travelling from Delhi or northern regions, the distance is even more manageable. You don’t want to travel to Pushkar just like that unless it’s for the cattle fair because the holy town of Pushkar wears a pretty deserted look at other times of the year and you’ll simply get roasted in the desert. Since this is for the budget traveller and women who get harassed, please plan your trips in the safest possible manner. This means your train departures and arrivals should be during the day because you don’t want to find yourself being bullied by strangers in the middle of the night. The RTDC hotels are brilliant but even the budget ones like Hotel Pushkar and Sarover become costly during the fair (mela) season so you can make reservations at RTDC Ajmer instead, it’s only 13 kms from Pushkar and you can travel by bus. The hotels to choose from are hotel Khadim, and Hotel Khidmat. I always choose hotel Khadim because it’s less than 3 kms from the station and the bus stop is just 2 blocks away and always populated.

 

The weight matters

How to get slim

The way I look at it, till a certain age women do everything they can too look good and stay in shape. The right diet, a good gym, low calorie food, and the likes. Recent studies say, apart from the fact that weight is related to your genetic structure; weight has a lot to do with how happy and content your married life is. Yes, that’s true and proven. So, as a husband, if you’re wondering why you’re wife appears more voluptuous than before, it could have a lot to do with you, and not wholly with what she is eating.

You have to check the site I’m talking about because discussions don’t get better. I really think this site has answers.

Pune to Bombay

This post is for travellers who wish to embark on a journey from Pune to Bombay and is in reference to getting to Pushkar, an ideal travel destination. Getting to Bombay from Pune is very easy so don’t worry. You don’t necessarily need prior reservations especially if you are travelling on a weekday.

The traffic volume is high on weekends so you may not get a confirmed train reservation but you’ll find a bus or cool cab very easily. If you’re a group of friends, getting a cool cab is a good option. It seats 4 passengers and will cost you less than rs.2000 at anytime, at least this year (2008). If you go to an agent to get tickets or reservation, they charge a lot more, especially if you’re a foreigner that’s because only foreigners ask for reservations through agents most times. Make your own reservations.

Use private cabs at your own risk and preferably when you’re a big travelling group or very desperate.

You can get a bus ticket with Volvo from next to the Pune railway station. This can be done at the Amir Petrol pump. Many times, the bus isn’t parked there so you’ll have to travel about a kilometre to the Maldhakka Chowk or next to the railway station to get on. The ticket will cost you Rs. 150 on weekdays and Rs.250 on weekends and will take you to Dadar. From Dadar take a taxi and get to the Bandra terminus. The taxi will charge you Rs 80. If they bully a little its okay, pay them Rs. 100 because the traffic there is congested, its killing.

If you take a train, a regular reservation costs below Rs. 100 and an air conditioned compartment seat costs below Rs 200. Don’t leave train reservations, especially A/c seats till the last minute. You can make your reservations sitting at home through the IRCTC website but I don’t know if foreigners can use it because they have certain banks enlisted, it’s a direct debit system and saves on a lot of time. You just need to get a printout and carry an Id.

You can obviously fly, even charter a flight but I’m not getting into that.

Just travel

Here’s something for the budget traveller in India. Trust me it’s cheap and real. The write-ups on this niche will be specifically targeted for women travellers in India but can be used as guidance by everyone if you’re not a sucker for fancy five star amenities. All my experiences are a result of trial and error that may not always work right so you may want to make adjustments.

These are methods I’ve been trying over the years so it’s not a bad deal. The idea behind all the content uploaded is to make travelling an easy option rather than run behind travel agents that charge commissions.

There are travel options that you can take care of and handle on your own even if you don’t understand the language at most places. That could pose a problem but it’s not a deterrent. We are not going to discuss expensive air travel deals either, so it’s all going to be about budget travelling and seeing the best there is to see.

Durga Puja

 

Durga Puja 2008

 

For a person not celebrating Durga Puja in Calcutta (Kolkata) is not such a bad idea after all. Pune has its own charm in regards to “Sharodiya Shubheccha,” a celebration of life that happens each year and is fast getting popular. Not just the Bengali community, but everyone’s present to celebrate. Women in their best traditional sarees, jewelry, strong perfume and men in splendid kurta pajamas, it’s got the right flavour minus the clutter. That’s not all, there’s a feast available, true culinary delight, delectable fish preparations, soft lamb with steamed rice, chicken roll, and all the fried stuff. The ‘’Rosogolla,” “langcha,” and “shondesh” too made their presence felt. The stage programs, the semi “mela” set up, it’s all there. In fact, if one just happened to be there, it’s very difficult to tell whether you’re in a Kolkata “pandal” or not.

Here’s the Koregaon Park celebration, Pune.

Venue: Rohi Villa Palace.

Pirates of the Caribbean

Good news for film buffs: You love Johny Depp and Jack Sparrow is your favorite pirate. Here’s good news. Pirates of the Caribbean will be back. The 4^th sequel is underway, so all that Hollywood gossip is finally paying off. Pirates of the Caribbean, their fourth film will see the light of day soon as it’s decided that 2009 is when Walt Disney plans to begin shooting. Not all major characters may return, as there are no confirmed reports regarding the return of Kiera Knightley and Orlando Bloom, but not everyone is complaining, especially Jack Sparrow fans. It is alleged, that Depp will take home an unbelievable 32 million pounds, which breaks all payout records till date.

Keep watching this space for more piracy updates.