Oscar at 81: Yes we were right

More than a month ago on January 18, far from LA, here in India, the Team GNBI posted a list of nominees whom we thought deserved to be nominated by the Academy. We also posed a question whether we and the Academy think in the same dimension.
After the nominations were announced, we realised that we are quite coherent with the Academy. A month later, on this Monday morning, realisation dawned on us that we were absolutely correct with our winners, too. Of the top six categories for which we had announced our nominations and winners, the Team GNBI was correct in 5 of them. Numerically, we were 83.33% correct.
Except for the Best Supporting Actress category -- where he had chosen Viola Davis for her role in Doubt but the Academy awarded the golden statuette to Penelope Cruz for Vicky Cristina Barcelona -- our choice of winners were echoed by the Academy.
We had predicted Slumdog Millionaire to get the Best Motion Picture and Best Director trophies and we were right. We said Heath Ledger will get Best Supporting Actor trophy and we were again correct. Our choice of Kate Winslet was also correct for Best Actress only that we thought it would be Revolutionary Road but the Academy gave it for The Reader.
But it was in the Best Actor category where we went against the tide and said that Sean Penn deserved the trophy for his mesmerising portrayal of Harvey Milk. While the world rooted for Mickey Rourke for The Wrestler after he swept other coveted awards in the run up to the Oscars, we stuck to Sean Penn. The star of the Dead Man Walking too was not sure of getting it which he said while holding the golden Knight.

Our Score: 5/6

Jai Ho!
Since the return of Whoopi Goldberg to host the Oscar night at the Kodak Theatre in 2002 -- the year India’s Lagaan directed by Ashutosh Gowariker got an Oscar nomination in foreign films category -- there has never been so much buzz about the Academy Awards in India. Thanks to Danny Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire. The rags to riches drama, essentially a simple love story, beginning its journey from Mumbai’s slums has reached the LA’s streets. The movie which did not see the light in Indian theatres till it began scooping awards in all the major ceremonies gave three Indians their first golden statuettes -- A R Rahman (Best Original Score and Best Song), Gulzar (Best Song) and Resul Pookutty (Sound Mixing). Jai Ho!

Love Guru Rahman
“…all my life I had a choice of hate and love. I chose love and I'm here. God bless.”
These words from A R Rahman after getting his second Oscar on Sunday night for the Best song made it amply clear why the Genius is so humble. And don’t forget that Rahman brought the immortal dialogue of Deewar -- Mere paas Maa hain (I have my mother with me) -- to the Oscars.

Oh Jack! You were incredible

Finally, Hugh Jackman has put to rest all criticisms and questions raised against him during pre- Oscar months. On Sunday night, he was scintillating, captivating, enthralling and above all 24-carat entertainer. He sang, peeled up laughter, shook his hips, matched his dancing feet with Beyonce and above all anchored the entire show. Hats off Jack. You not only looked good, you also charmed the audience.


Right garnish!

No not the food at the post Oscar bash, but the small dosage of gay rights voices sprinkled during the ceremony. And of course, the voices were heard from Milk awardees -- the film based on Harvey Milk, the first openly gay politician who met a tragic end.
It began with Dustin Lance Black, who won the Best Original Screenplay Oscar for Milk. Black, who is openly gay, broke down during acceptance speech and said: “If Harvey had not been taken from us 30 years ago, I think he'd want me to say to all of the gay and lesbian kids out there tonight who have been told that they are less than by their churches, by the government or by their families, that you are beautiful, wonderful creatures of value and that no matter what anyone tells you, God does love you and that very soon, I promise you, you will have equal rights federally, across this great nation of ours. And thank you, God, for giving us Harvey Milk.”
Later, as Sean Penn got the coveted Best Actor award for his portrayal of Milk, the straight actor took Black’s message forward by saying, “And finally, for those who saw the signs of hatred as our cars drove in tonight, I think that it is a good time for those who voted for the ban against gay marriage to sit and reflect and anticipate their great shame and the shame in their grandchildren's eyes if they continue that way of support. We've got to have equal rights for everyone.”
After the historical election of Barack Obama as the first African-American President of the USA and Hollywood which have openly showered their support for the Democratic nominee during last year’s November 4 election, it was amply clear that there will be references of it. Though it didn’t come very frequently, but Penn’s this statement summed it all: “I'm very, very proud to live in a country that is willing to elect an elegant man president and a country who, for all its toughness, creates courageous artists.” Hope -- Obama’s one word inspirational tool -- was the buzzword at the Academy.


Carpet Bedazzled

The Red Carpet has always been the progenitors of fashion statements and icons. This year, it was no different. Recession notwithstanding, colours were in full flow. Our top 10 picks for this year’s Oscar fashionistas.


The first half


From left to right:
Alicia Keys wearing a lilac Armani Prive gown.
Penelope Cruz in the classic Pierre Balmain.
Slumdog star Frieda Pinto created a sensation at the carpet too. Her deep blue gown by John Galliano with one are covered was on everyone’s lips.
Marissa Tomei, nominated for Best Supporting Actress, wore a Versace gown and adorned Van Cleef & Arpels jewels.
Heidi Klum wore a sensational, extremely modern red architectural gown by Roland Mouret.

Pinto was exceptional but the first among the equals happened to be keys

The remaining 5


From left to right:
Amy Adams, Best Supporting Actress nominee, in a red Carolina Herrera ensemble with a multi-colored collar necklace by Fred Leighton. The black linear patterns added to breaking the monotony.
Jessica Biel in a strapless ivory satin Prada.
Kate Winslet, winner of Best Actress trophy, in a Atelier Yves Saint Laurent double colored gown by Stefano Pilati. Her jewels are by Chopard.
Mickey Rourke, Best Actor nominee in a white suit by Jean-Paul Gaultier. Take note of chains dangling from one side of his waist.
Queen Latifah in a crystal-embellished navy one-shoulder gown by Georges Chakra.

Rourke, Rourke, Rourke! He may have missed the Oscar this time -- the greatest UPSET some have called, but his innovative tuxedo, what he calls it, was certainly a scene stealer. The only male in this list. Others were completely boring.


(Photos courtesy: The Academy)

Rushdie, fatwa and terror this Valentine

A 1981 picture of Salman Rushdie when he won the Booker Prize for Midnight's Children. photo courtesy: Man Booker Prize


Sudhakar Jagdish

Page 88: …The world had rediscovered Flight AI-420, the Boeing 747 Bostan. Radar tracked it; radio messages crackled. Do you want permission to land? But no permission was requested. Bostan circled over England's shore like a gigantic seabird. Gull. Albatross. Fuel indicators dipped: towards zero…. The hostages watched the fight to death, unable to feel involved, because a curious detachment from reality had come over the aircraft a kind of inconsequential fatalism, one might say…. and although at that moment Buta and Dara rushed at her she pulled the wire anyway, and the walls came tumbling down. No, not death: birth…

Reading these passages from Salman Rushdie's controversial fiction The Satanic Verses on the eve of this Valentine's Day is riveting and laced with pieces of history -- contextual and contemporary. Two decades ago, on February 14, 1989, Rushdie was attending a memorial service in London. By then he was informed that Iranian Muslim leader Ayatollah Khomeini has issued a fatwa sentencing him to death for blasphemy against Islam. What followed was decades of Rushdie's hiding, attacks on bookstores and increasing decibel in the debate on censorship -- still a contemporary thing as pub goers are bashed in Mangalore, film posters are torn apart and a Bengali author is dashed off from one city to another in the darkest of hours.

(One of the several protests that erupted after The Satanic Verses was published in 1989)

In context is the opening chapter of the book where a hijacked Air India flight between Mumbai, then Bombay, and London is ripped apart by the explosive laden hijacker/terrorist over the English Channel. Rushdie penned the book which was preceded by Kanishka bombing over the Atlantic and followed by Lockerbie over Scotland. In the two decades, new boundaries were etched out in Eurasia, leaders got assassinated, Olympics were celebrated, earthquakes and Tsunami took lives, rising temperature drowned low-lying islands and incidents of terrorism rose exponentially. Headlines of attacks and toll in mammoth fonts and acerbic shades accompanies every breakfast, wrinkled image of Ajmal Kasab in a tabloid becomes lunchbox covers, word "bravo" is heard as people watch "The Stupid Common Man" coaxing the Mumbai Police Commissioner to hurry up to the War Room in A Wednesday.

Blasts are no more "exhilarating" but banal and has touched monotonous proportions akin to late 90s incidents of throwing grenades on Srinagar streets -- Is the frequency and commonality of the incidents are to blame for it? So could there be more spectacular attacks? As a former R & W officer and a well-known security expert R S N Singh puts it. "Soon there could be attacks, but in what form is hard to be ascertained." Another famous defence expert P R Chari says, "One have to run his/her imagination wild to get a premonition of what is in store." "High profile targets will be attacked, there could be assassination attempts," Singh adds. And according to Chari the terrorists could try to cripple the economy (for example) by attacking the nodal electric installations in a coordinated manner just like what the US did in Kosovo.

(The eight suspected terrorists who plotted to blow several trans-atlantic flights in 2006. The verdict in the case is awaited. photo courtesy: Photonews)

Treading over the Brooklyn Bridge, the numerical architecture of 11 is missing from the skyline, a visual accompanied with the echo of Daisycutters over Hindu Kush. Since then some youths in Bangladesh, Singh says, are sporting T-shirts with Osama's side and front profile. Chari says the tendency of terrorists have shifted from suicide attacks to suicidal attacks. The elongated queue of desperate youths to kill themselves for honour not only among the jehadis but also within outfits like the Tamil Tigers has only further elongated, he adds. And then. 79 days before this Valentine, a sketch of the triangle of horror was etched at an eye altitude of 10141 ft over the Google Earth's satellite image of Mumbai -- the birthplace of Rushdie and his Saladin Chamcha.

(Security man takes cover behind a fire brigade van as terrorists took the iconic Taj Hotel hostage during their three-day siege in Mumbai beginning November 26, 2008. photo courtesy: New York Times)

Nominations for 2008 REEL AWARDS

WE at The GNBI are proud to announce the nominations for the 2008 REEL AWARDS. This is the first time the Team GNBI has decided to award the best in the Hindi Film Industry.
We do not like to sound cliché that this award is different from the rest but we have decided that the coveted prize will be given to the best irrespective how popular or unpopular the films were at the Box Office. All the Hindi films have been short listed from over 200 Hindi movies, including those from Pakistan, that hit the theatres in India between January 1 and December 31, 2008. All the nominees are in alphabetical order of the film’s name.
The Awards will be announced here on March 5, 2009 ( Thursday)

Best motion picture of the year
Aamir
A Wednesday
Mumbai Meri Jaan
Rock On
Welcome to Sajjanpur

Achievement in directing
Rajkumar Gupta for Aamir
Neeraj Pandey for A Wednesday
A R Murugadoss for Ghajini
Shoaib Mansoor for Khuda Ke Liye
Shyam Benegal for Welcome to Sajjanpur

Best animated feature film of the year
Dashavatar
Ghatotkach
Jumbo
My Friend Ganesha 2
Roadside Romeo



Performance by an actor in a leading role
Rajiv Khandelwal for Aamir
Nasseruddin Shah for A Wednesday
Vinay Pathak for Dasvidaniya
Aamir Khan for Ghajini
Hrithik Roshan for Jodhaa Akbar

Performance by an actor in a supporting role
Anupam Kher (A Wednesday)
Pankaj Kapoor (Halla Bol)
Prateek Babbar (Jaane Tu Ya Jane Na)
Sunjay Dutt (Kidnap)
K K Menon (Shaurya)

Performance by an actress in a leading role
Priyanka Chopra for Fashion
Aishwarya Rai for Jodhaa Akbar
Nandita Das for Ramchand Pakistani
Chitrangada Singh Sorry Bhai
Kajol for U, Me aur Hum

Performance by an actress in a supporting role
Bipasa Basu (Bachna Ae Haseeno)
Kangana Ranaut (Fashion)
Ratna Pathak Shah (Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na)
Sohaa Ali Khan (Mumbai Meri Jaan)
Shahana Goswami (Rock On)

Achievement in film editing
A Wednesday
Ghajini
Jodhaa Akbar
Race
Woodstock Villa

Achievement in visual effects
Drona
Ghajini
Love Story 2050



Achievement in costume design
Fashion
Ghajini
Jodhaa Akbar
Race
Singh is King

Achievement in makeup
Drona
Ghajini Jodhaa Akbar
Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi
Singh is King

Achievement in art direction
Fashion
Dostana
Drona
Jodhaa Akbar
Race

Achievement in cinematography
A Wednesday
Jodhaa Akbar
Aamir
Khuda Ke Liye
Race

Best original screenplay
Aamir
A Wednesday
Dasvidaniya
Mumbai Meri Jaan
Welcome to Sajjanpur

Best adapted screenplay
Hello
The President Is Coming
The Last Lear




Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)
Vishal Sekhar (Bachna ae Haseeno)
A R Rahman (Jaane Tu Ya Jane Na)
A R Rahman (Jodhaa Akbar)
Shankar Ehsaan Loy (Rock On)
A R Rahman (Yuvvraaj)

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)
A R Rahman and Javed Akhtar for Kabhi Kabhi Aditi (Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na)
A R Rehman and Javed Akhtar for Khwaja Mere Khwaja ( Jodhaa Akbar)
Salim-Sulaiman and Jaideep Sahni for Tujh Main Rab Dikhta Hain (Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi)
Shankar Ehsaan Loy and Javed Akhtar for Socha Hai (Rock On)
A R Rehman and Gulzar for Tu Hi Meri Dost Hai (Yuvvraaj)

Achievement in playback singing for motion pictures (Male)
Javed Ali for Gujarish (Ghajini)
Javed Ali for Kabhi Kabhi Aditi (Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na)
Sukhwinder Singh for Haule Haule (Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi)
Atif Aslam for O Jaane Ja (Race)
Benny Dayal for Tu Hi Meri Dost Hai (Yuvvraaj)

Achievement in playback singing for motion pictures (Female)
Shilpa Rao for Khuda Jaane (Bachna ae Haseeno)
Shruthi Pathak for Mar Jawan (Fashion)
Caralisa Monteiro for Phir Dekhiye (Rock On)
Alka Yagnik for Tu Muskara (Yuvvraaj)
Shreya Ghosal for Tu Hi Meri Dost Hai (Yuvvraaj)

Rafa comes of age as age comes in Fedex’s way

BY VIKRAM VISHAL

WHAT is it that “killing” the 13-time Grand Slam champ? The missed opportunity to become the greatest-ever, equalling Pete Sampras’ magical tally of 14 majors– the most talked-about number in tennis? Yet another opening to avenge defeats to rival Rafael Nadal meeting a dead end? Or the agony of seeing the gap between the World No 1 and No 2 increasing further?
It probably is the amalgamation of all these ‘factors’ and many more that made the Swiss break down at the Melbourne Park. Having reached the final of the first Grand Slam of the year, he had a number of motivating factors, including the support of most of The Greats, not only to beat the man who is at the pinnacle of men’s tennis, but also to affirm that he is down but not out.

“It’s an unbelievable opportunity for me, of course, you know, not being No. 1 anymore, trying to beat No. 1 in the world and getting the 14th Grand Slam… This is where I won the Grand Slam to become No. 1 in the world back in 2004, so I've always had a special liaison with this tournament,” is what he had to say a day before the grand finale. Fedex’s 2004 victory had come after winning Wimbledon the previous year. And on Sunday, history repeated itself sans the Swiss master.

Twenty-four hours later: “The problem is you can't go in the locker room and just take it easy and take a cold shower. You can't. You know, you're stuck out there. It's the worst feeling, you know. So, I don't know, it's rough,” said the three-time Australian champion after the Spaniard triumphed at the end of the four-our-and-23-minute match.
He might have said before the match that “I don't only look at the majors”, and still feels every tournament he enters he would like to win, but he was very clear of the fact that what all wonders a Grand Slam victory can do, particularly if a No 2 is eying the top rank.

“It gives the most points, it's most rewarding in terms of ranking and in terms of being judged how you're playing. You get the biggest test. It's best-of-five sets. That's why obviously Grand Slams are very intriguing,” were his words hours before tears left him speechless upon receiving the runners up trophy.
His inconsolable emotion (along with his game of course) did earn him a standing ovation soon after the match. But the kind of reception given to Nadal was not the one a champion deserved, thanks to the ‘emotional’ spectators who, predictably, got ‘carried away’, so much so that even the 22-year-old could only say “I really know how you feel right now, but remember you are one of the best in history”.
While the former World No. 1 used words like “it’s killing me…” and “… will return next year”, the present No. 1 replied with “sorry for today mate”.
Federer has announced to return next year as he knows he is a master of the game as also the fact that Nadal has spent a year dragging him down, ending his run of five Wimbledon titles and his record stretch atop the rankings. While the former ‘fact’ will no doubt be a shot in his arm to retrieve his lost crown, the latter ‘truth’ seems to be what that might be “killing” him.
If anything that today’s on-court action followed by the off-court drama reflects is while Rafa has come of the age, age has come in the way of 27-yar-old Fedex!

It’s killing me… will return next year

Not akin to his style, the Master, Roger Federer, broke down after he lost to Rafael Nadal in the five-setter Australian Open Finals on Sunday. An emotional Fed broke down after receiving the Runners up trophy from legendary Rod Laver. “It’s killing me…” were the words which Fed uttered before becoming inconsolable while the audience gave him a standing ovation. But when Nadal came at the podium and hugged him, he took the microphone again and said “… will return next year.”

Later speaking to organisers, when he was urged to tell about the emotions he is undergoing, Fed said: “I mean, I fought hard, you know. I mean, I think I played well. I'm happy with where my game's at. I wish my serve would have been better, but that's something that sometimes is a bit, you know, day-form issue, you know… But, look, I mean, I love this game. It means the world to me, so it hurts when you lose.”

He said that this final would be one of the matches in his career where he felt that he “could have or should have won.” “But you can't go through your whole life as a tennis player taking every victory, you know, that's out there. You've got to live with those, you know. But they hurt even more so like if you're that close, you know, like at Wimbledon or like here at the Australian Open. So that's what's tough about it. But I have no regrets, you know. So it's all right,” he added. Rejecting the notion that he was hurt more since today’s win could have fetched him 14th Grand Slam title, Fed said, “ In the first moment you're disappointed, you're shocked, you're sad, you know, then all of a sudden it overwhelms you. The problem is you can't go in the locker room and just take it easy and take a cold shower. You can't. You know, you're stuck out there. It's the worst feeling, you know. So, I don't know, it's rough.”

(pic courtesy Getty Images)