Vicky Christina Barcelona

I have been a sucker for movies of all kinds lately, probably owing to the fact that I have not watched many of them lately while I was lazed around at my sleeper hit hometown of Sitiawan. I have been missing the environment of watching a romantic comedy for quite sometime, more so a Woody Allen comedy drama- and that is exactly what VCB provides. Fun, and that in my style!

VCB is no slapstick fun, it is true to the Woody Allen style of humor- weird characters, philandering characters, flexible lovers, infidelity, all which ultimately explores the many facets in which love can exist, without being judgemental and being humurous enough to keep you glued for 90 minutes in theater.

Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Christina (Scarlett Johansson) are two best friends who arrive for a summer vacation in Barcelona, and both get entangled in a quirky, dangerous relationship with a Spanish painter Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem), who in turn has a volatile on-off relationship with his ex-wife Maria Elena (Penelope Cruz). And for starters, Cruz won an Oscar for best supporting actress thanks to this wonderful extended cameo as a psychotic, obsessed, and also intelligent lover.

Whats interesting in the film is the characters. Vicky believes in commitment and security, while Christina believes in anything but commitment and security when it comes to relationships or love. Rebecca Hall, Javier Bardem, and Cruz all produce sterling performances and get to the gloves of their characters and Cruz definitely merits her Oscar based on this neurotic, gun-swinging (literally) performance. Bardem fits to the T in a role that follows up his talismanic, Oscar-winning performance in Coen Brothers' 'No Country for Old Men'. Hall meanwhile is surprisingly good in her role, and I recognize her well from playing Sarah Borden in one of my all-time favorite flicks- 'The Prestige'. Scarlett is somehow overshadowed by the former actors' performances, and I reckon the biggest trouble is Scarlett's 'hot'-ness factor. It looks like a bed scene is lurking around the corner everytime Scarlett gets close to a male character, and she struggles to overshadow that factor in her acting. She definitely has to work better on improving her character sketch, probably a throwback to the days of 'Lost in Translation' or glimpses from 'The Prestige' would help her in that respect.

Woody Allen is his usual self, directing this film with able composure and witty style which is like a satirical, non-judgemental social commentary on the weird forms love manifests itself in.

VCB is kewl!

Rating: 8/10

Taken- a Review

Best action movie in a long, long time!

The last time I sat through an action movie and was completely impressed by it was back in 2006 when I watched 'Casino Royale', a James Bond flick which topped all its predecessors in terms of substance and intelligence and very strong emotional undercurrent wheeling the story instead of just plain height-jumping stunts. 'Taken' follows suit with 'Casino Royale' in that respect.

The utmost impressive fact about 'Taken' is its non-nonsense approach. Its pretty admirable that the director convincingly manages to establish the emotional undercurrent of the movie within such a short period that makes you really feel Liam Neeson's hunger and desire to find his kidnapped daughter. And the movie is only 90 minutes long. It ends before you know its ending. That's how pacy the screenplay of this flick is.

Sure, this is no masterpiece, but you can't expect much more from an action flick. Its an action movie, and it serves its purpose well, and not to forget the film also exposes sex slave trading activities (which still exists) in parts of the world. Some of the scenes depict the brutality of the business so convincingly, and unlike your typical action film, the avoids many common cliches- a silent, unspectacular start which gave more space to show you what a father-daughter relationship is like, and the stunts are not actually as much over-the-top as other action films tend to be.

Liam Neeson's performance is simply talismanic. You can simply feel the hunger and desire for revenge that beams in him, and the way he goes about with an uncompromising approach towards finding his daughter is another high point. Famke Janssen (of X-Men fame) and the rest of the cast are adequate, but its Neeson's show all the way- it simply goes down as one of his career-best performances to date. (right there with Michael Collins, Love Actually and Henri Ducard of Batman Begins). He owns this film. And its also his first action film in a long, long time and he seems fresh and fit to jump around ships like a 16-year-old again.

Well, I can't resist this temptation so I would put it down here, one of the most powerful action monologues I have heard in screen:

I don't know who you are.
I don't know what you want.
If you are looking for ransom, I can tell you I don't have money.
But what I do have are a very particular set of skills; skills I have acquired over a very long career.
Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you.
If you let my daughter go now, that'll be the end of it.
I will not look for you, I will not pursue you.
But if you don't, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you.

And not to forget how he repeats it again when he meets Marko in person:

You don't remember me? We spoke on the phone two days ago. I told you I would find you.

Kudos to director Pierre Morel and the team, and of course to Neeson for making what is inarguably the best action movie of 2008.

Rating: 9/10

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button- a Review

Fine, but not fulfilling

It is fair to say that when I knew David Fincher is going to do a movie about a man aging backwards, I was expecting a film which is dark (true to Fincher's other film tones), but ends with a note like 'there is hope, there is a bright light'. When the movie came out, the grapevine had it that the film instead was trying to endorse a meaning or the nostalgia of life.

OK, I'll get this straight. I personally have very high expectations when a film tries to talk about life in a whole. I've read some wonderful books that taught me what my life is all about, but Benjamin Button is little more than a cinematic painting which is beautiful and runs like a small poem, has nostalgia in spurts and more. The film is beautiful in as many parts as it is somewhat depressing.

The major disappointment about this film is that the concept could have been transformed into a much better story. Instead, the writers chose to place the Curious man named Benjamin in a silent commodity of living his life like any other man outside there, instead of showing him as the miracle that he could have been. End of the day, he was just a man who lived. The miracle was missing.

I had troubles trying to get 'its talking about life' concept out of my mind till halfway through the movie, and I knew this film isn't about life, but instead it is about a man who was in many ways different yet similar to rest of human beings. The film could so easily be about a regular human being who ages just normally, because the reverse aging concept isn't blown enough to take centre stage in the whole film. What Fincher has ultimately told in this movie is that offers us similar joy and similar pain, even if we were living it in different ways.

All said and done, the movies is a beautiful painting. Exquisite camera-work, art direction, and spellbinding special effects on the older Benjamin are huge high points for the film. But what lets it down is the film's stale narrative structure, elaboration of many unnecessary scenes or events, at many points I simply don't get what message the film is trying to send out. Because, all the time, the film pretends like it has something important to say- while it doesn't have anything such.

The film's aesthetic features reminds me of both Forest Gump and American Beauty, but there seems to be a middling hand and you end up getting a slightly mish-mashed film. Despite the film's slow pace, some scenes that should have been elaborated more are instead put on an expressway train, it seems like the makers have conveniently skipped doing any scenes that could have a real pang in your heart. Very few scenes make you feel really sad, and even those aren't helped by some very silent, non-reactive acting by Brad Pitt (don't mistake me, he was brilliant in this film I think, but this is more the director's fault) or I should say the characterization. Not one scene of crying in the whole film and they made Benjamin look like young monk who knows what it is like to lose your loved ones and is used to it. The character transformation is almost non-existent.

Cate Blanchett is beautiful and adequate but as said Fincher and the team's monologue-like approach in a film where there is hardly any much dialogue doesn't help any actors show off their prowess. Tilda Swinton's character seemed to have no bearing on the story and was added just for the sake of it.

But, at the end of the day, it is a beautiful film externally but it just lacks more soul that it could have had. I couldn't hate this film, because I enjoyed it, but I couldn't love it either, because this should have been much much more.

Rating: 7/10

The Observer- Episode 5

Understanding Death

It was 2006, and it was 8 July- my father's 47th birthday, and also the 19th birthday of a girl of whom I will have fond memories of for the rest of my life. That was the day when I really felt the virtue of of the departed. As if irony comes in a tapestry, I had been wondering for a few days now that we, among us friends, seemed to have drifted apart so convincingly from each other that maybe a sudden death will make everyone realize that we can't throw our lives away so soon. Yes, I felt it. And deep inside, I felt like it should, and would happen, something that would shake all of us, but I didn't want to choose anyone of them to be the departed because all of them need to live on. But as if the writing was on the wall, Nirmalan ringed me as I was walking in my balcony on that silent, boring night on July 8 and told me the news: 'Mano is dead'. Dead? Really? How? What? Which Mano are you talking about? Our Mano? Manohar Rao? When? What happened?- I asked a barrack of questions that he nodded at, which I knew he would nod at. His first sentence had already told me what I needed to know. Manohar Rao is history.

Remembering Mano.

It was somewhere in May 2005. It was a UEFA Champions League final and I went to my grandmother's house to sleep that night exclusively because I wanted to watch the match. I put up an alarm at 2.30 but woke up at 3, considering that the match was between Liverpool (Mano's favorite team) and the much-hated (by me) AC Milan. I opened the TV and the score was 2-0, to the Milanistas of course. Soon, it was 3-0. Game over. I was back in bed. Around half-an-hour later, the grandmother house's phone rang out aloud. I picked up, and it was Mano, sounding all excited. "Is your TV on? Are you watching?" he said. "No la, its over. Why?" I asked back. "Watch, go watch, just watch, go!" he urged. "Why?" I asked. "Its a penalty. Go!" he said. I wasted little time. I gave little consideration that I might wake up my grandma and I turned on the TV. Liverpool's Xabi Alonso took a penalty, and it was saved by the keeper, but he tucked in the rebound. I glanced on the top corner of my screen. 3-3. That was the score. I was gobsmacked. I was glued to the TV as Liverpool went on to win the epic match in penalties, which turned out of be one of the greatest final of all time and also one of the most epic comebacks in football history. I watched it thanks to Mano. On a night when the young man had such a huge grin on his face that his favorite club won the world's most coveted club football trophy. On that young man who remains a memory and nothing more.

He was the only man in our group who held a farewell dinner at his home right before he took off to study in Politeknik. Little did we know that it was to be a farewell to his time on earth.

I did not attend the funeral, I decided to stay back at my convenience and instead believe that sharp-faced partly self-conscious Telugu-speaking mate is still in Ipoh furthering his studies and has not contacted me and will not contact me anymore. But, there, I decided to believe rather that he existed. He is not gone. Probably because I didn't have the courage to believe in it that way.

Side Note: Manohar Rao passed away after his motorbike collided with the back of a lorry on July 8 2006. There was no blood stain. He died due to broken ribs, shortly after arriving at hospital he was pronounced dead. His father, who used to sell fish in housing areas, stopped selling fish after that and shifted to doing different works. He had no other sons.

Departed 2

It was late September in 2007. I heard through a faint voice that Umesh consumed something bad. People were talking. But, knowing the nutjob for who he is, I assumed he had mistakenly drank something bad and will recover soon. Then, Gopi told me its poison one morning in late September. But he had no idea what or how. I started going around asking people. First, I was told it was rat poison, then was told it was paraquat. I knew this could be much serious then how it appears. We decided to pay him a visit, but were unable to do so as he was having his kidney cleaned at the time. I went back to KL. There were classes to attend. I knew deep inside that this doesn't look good. October 2 2007, Gopi rang me and told me Umesh has passed away. Umesh has erased himself from existence.

Remembering Umesh

It was 2002, and it happened. I was attending Mrs. Nagappan's tuition for Science and Ramesh Sekhon urged that we go and play football games in the cybercafe. We cut the classes early and went on and put up a fight with each other for half-an-hour. We returned to the tuition and we found out that the classes were off much much earlier and my father has already come and went back looking for me. I was in a desperate situation, and stepped in Umesh. He cycled me all the way back to his home and borrowed an umbrella so that I could walk back in that rainy evening to my home (which is not far away). Somebody talked, and my father knew what I have been doing. After receiving my share of foils for my folly, I thought it was dead and buried, until I discovered that the Krishnasamy (Umesh's father) had hit Umesh suspecting him to have conspired with me in going to CC and cutting off tuition. The boy took a hit for my mistake. And his father wasn't a light punisher.

Earlier that year, I was still new to this new 'taman' in which we have this new house after the burglary in my old house. I and my cousin sister were lost as to where we were walking and had no idea about the directions. Then came Umesh. And taking time off his need to rush back home, he guided us home before leaving. The boy is a live-saviour.

This time, I went to the funeral. I had to face it. And I cried endlessly. That dead body of his haunted my memories for days, even months to come. And I regretted not saying farewell when I had the chance. Till today, in ocassional moments of silence where life likes to pull you down the memory lanes and nostalgia, I could find a couple of tears my eyes for the man who took his own life. I cried because I knew he was no more. I saw him being burned to ashes. I saw him being closed in his coffin with a pack of cigarattes accompanying him.

SideNote: Umeshwaran died on October 2 after more than a week bedridden after consuming paraquat poison. He was cremated on October 5. Exact reasons for his poison consuming motivations is still unknown as he hasn't revealed the reasons even at the brink of death. His then-girlfriend never attended the funeral.

My aunt

My aunt, who lived with my family and took care of me partially when I was young, began falling sick in late 2008. My mother had wanted to to keep both her (my mom's elder sister) and her daughter (my cousin) in our house, but a lie told in a sadistic letter written by the daughter in a moment of utter madness broke apart two families. During Christmas, her condition deteriorated and became completely bedridden and began having memory loss. When my mom asked me 'Do you want to come?' to go and see my aunt, I said an instant 'yes', weird for a guy who doesnt like to make such familial trips with the elderly people. I saw her suffer and struggle and I allowed everyone to exit the room when the time came to say goodbye. I moved over and said 'I shall leave'. She nodded and remembered me at least, and greeted me the same. Two weeks later, she passed away. I couldn't make it to the funeral due to work commitments in Singapore, but I had said a good goodbye to the woman.

And today, I have learned that life presents you many opportunities to say goodbye for the going-to-be departed, so to cherish each opportunity to the fullest is how we should heed life. And when one departs, we should also allow them to depart, by placing them on the sidenotes on your mind, never to forget who they were, but not to think they still are.

"The fear of death drives us to do greater things and achieve things in life. We need that"- Paulo Coelho.

The Observer- Episode 4

The invicible feeling- understanding life

It was a nervous day for me as 2002 drew to a close. Mano and my friends made it a point to mock me right before PMR examinations were about to start about 'Moral not being part of PMR'. Well, that was a story of its own.

I remember Ms. Sathiya Devi was teaching our class Moral back in 2002. I hardly gave a pint to the subject, I never took notes, nor did I bother to concentrate on what was being taught in class. Just like any other 'Moral' day, she entered the class and I yawned with Mano seated next to me. He grumbled and let a sly smile knowing that I didn't read anything which I was asked to read by the teacher the week before. But Ms. Sathiya somehow decided that she would pop out a quizzical question to me first rather than to anybody else in the class who have actually read the materials. I stuttered and let in my trademark teeth-glittering smile at her, hoping fervently that she would just let me off the hook and ask me to resume my sitting and nothing-ness while she runs the class. But it wasn't to happen, thanks to my late friend Mano. He popped up and told the class what I whispered to his ears when Ms. Sathiya first entered the class- 'Moral is not in PMR, so why should I bother?'. I tapped at his arms a couple of times stopping him from saying it, but he decided he would say it, and he told it out loud to the class. Ram doesn't bother because Moral is not part of PMR. That was the statement that made the day. Ms. Sathiya let in a sly smile and seemed to nod with my statement. But she had to defend the subject as a teacher of it. So she, in a completely sarcastic manner, asked me to write a latter or inform the school principal about my thoughts and she would be more than happy to excuse me from attending Moral every week. But I preferred to stay in the class, rather than outside, so I let in a humiliated smile and sat back on my chair, dropping the subject (not to forget the strong stare into Mano for breaking 'our' secret').

The buddies had a laugh repeating that scene again during PMR, and obviously had a knack doing it again on the second day of PMR. I walked into the hall, as nervous as I always am during an exam day, did the exam, slept through the remaining time for the exam to finish (I wouldn't wanna go back without my buddies on tow), and walked out with a feeling of relief. Soon after, we forgot all our exam blues and decided to just have a blast for our journey back home. Only me, Vinod, and Thiru were able to make it together on our bicycles at the end of the day, and we passed the general market and moved to the main road and crossed it in front of the Fire Station. And then it happened. Thiru crossed flawlessly, and Vinod urged me to cross as well as he is about to cross. He got a headstart and crossed, and I started crossing as well. All I saw was Vinod's bicycle crossing halfway the road and a Kembara van appeared in full speed and I realized in that second that my cycle is completely placed in the way of the approaching van. Vinod has done his nuttiest job ever, I said to myself. I knew it was going to happen. And it did. The next thing I knew was that I flew a good meter or more and ended up inches away from the big drainage on the roadside. I expected myself to have broken bones, internal bleeding, or even external bleeding, but I woke up unscratched. I looked at myself in amazement, checking where I might have a crack or a spate of blood. But there was nothing, except for a recurring fever that followed for a week later, which subsequently led to a X-Ray test in fears that there might be a blood clot or some kind of swelling inside my head. There was nothing to it there either.

I felt like I was returning from the dead, and wondered why had I escaped alive from that episode. Approximately a year later, I found myself dreaming a weird dream (as explained in Episode 3), which resulted in my dream today. And if there is any logical connection to my sudden ability to write so much at such little time, and to be always thinking of a new story, this accident might well have had the biggest say in altering my mind to what it is today.

And even in that nightmare of a day, it might have well been a blessing in disguise. Because there is no bigger blessing than life itself.

The 10 most desirable ladies in the Indian tinsel town

Okay, well, I have been wanting to write along the lines of talking about hot Indian celebrities for quite some time now, its nothing more than for just the knack of doing it. But I made sure I wasn't going to be biased when I'm writing this down so I decided to consult some of my best buddies to round up on a list of ladies, some my personal favorites and some not, to make up the top 10 hottest Indian tinsel down beauties. Firstly, I would not want to judge them by only the 'hot'-ness factor because they are, afterall, celebrities and above that actors. So their career graph, celebrity personality, media personality, acting prowess all determine how the rankings shape up among the top 10. This is going to be one long entry about girls who are able to stir up the men, yeah. :P

10. Shriya Saran

This 27-year-old Mumbai lasse has been around for quite sometime, but hasn't found a date with the spotlight till director Shankar came knocking with a lucrative offer of casting her in his what-to-be 2007 blockbuster 'Sivaji: The Boss'. Judging by her looks, she is easily of of the most desirable ladies not only in India, but the world over (not to mention that she was romantically involved, maybe still is, with Desperate Housewives star Jesse Metcalfe), but I have to put her in this position given that she is almost non-ratable as an actor. Ever since shooting to fame, she has done little apart from flashing her assets time and again as probably the safest route to mantain her popularity rate. To add to that, she does really laughable lip-synching efforts while acting in Tamil and Telugu movies. Her ideology and approach towards acting makes her more of a celebrity looking to mantain her fame rather than an actress looking to prove her acting credentials. Credit however should be given to the fact that Shriya has done tremendously well to mantain her figure and even improve her body shape since coming to the tinsel town some sex years ago. She hardly neglects the virtue of keeping a fit and delicious body, and she deserves credit for that.

• Wow:
• Her body
• Fitness levels
• Graceful dancing
• Soft-spoken nature
• Nah:
• Lack of effort in southern movies
• Repetitive body flashing
• Hardly a passable actress in acting terms
• Lack of interest shown in trying to experiment and break her image

9. Nayantara


25-year-old Diana Mariam Kurien (her real name) has had a pretty easy way to achieve stardom. She has radically changed from the time she made her film debut in 2004 in the bluckbuster called 'Chandramukhi'. Once a bubbly, busty, cute, innocent-looking young lady from the God's own country (Kerala), she has now transformed into a complete sex bomb, with stunning fresh looks, and toned body. She is afterall a decent actress and has been part of some good movies in the past, but she too, like Shriya, seems to have developed an over-reliance on flashing her assets in order to continue her popularity graph in the industry. However, her turbulent relationship with fellow Tamil star Simbhu, which rendered her as a short-tempered, easily-offended individual, remains a blight apart from the fact that she once vowed 'never' to go to gym and slim down for the sake of glamorous proportions, stating that she is happy with who she is (the bubbly, chubby former Nayantara). But now, she has done exactly the opposite of what she had stated so vehemently, and there are rumors of liposuction being done too. However, with a string of popular films with popular actors, her graph in Tamil is on a all-time high.

• Wow:
• Her transformation from a cutie to a hottie
• More natural looks and natural beauty
• A decent, passable actress
• Nah:
• Immaturity underlined by her previous views on toning down.
• Refusal to open up and remain a closed-door personality with the media.
• Stereotypic with body-flashing in recent films.
• Failure to experiment.

8. Bipasha Basu

This 30-year-old is the definition of modern-day body-conscious hot ladies. She has openly admitted so many times that she really cares about her body and tries to constantly keep fit. Flanked on her side by who is possibly Bollywood's most adored hunk John Abraham as her boyfriend, Bips and John make a perfect couple resonating new-age Bollywood's ravishing looks. Bips has done tremendously well to keep her shape and appear stunningly in movies but it remains to be seen as to when her acting prowess will be really proven, as despite being around for years now, she has gotten very little movies that earn her critical attention, despite the fact that she manages to pull off decent performances when given challenging roles.

• Wow:
• That body
• Fitness levels (Abs)
• Knows the strength of a fit body
• Appears confident and assured
• Able to make most of characters given to her.
• Nah:
• Self-conscious at times
• Could and should act in more quality movies
• Hasn't really made the big cut as an A-list actress (she's on that list though, but she cant carry a film on her own popularity).

7. Deepika Padukone

The 23-year-old Copenhagen-born beauty is the daughter of famed Indian sportsman Prakash Padukone. She could have easily made this list at any time during the past three of four years, because even though she didn't make her film debut until 2007, everybody in India recognized her as the hottest, most happening ramp-walking model in the country at that time. So, it was only ample that she was given such a big project to mark her bebut, alongside Shah Rukh Khan in 'Om Shanti Om', which was a runaway success. She won awards aplenty as the best debutant in almost all the award functions, and is definitely an actress just waiting to become a queen of Bollywood. She is tall and has picture-perfect body to compliment it apart from a beautiful smiling face to round it off. Her looks are almost flawless, and it seems there is only one way she could go from here on- fowards. She is in a relationship with fellow Bollywood newbie Ranbir Kapoor and the relationship might come good provided that they actually stand the tide of the glam side of Bollywood and stay together.

• Wow:
• A smiling face
• Picture-perfect looks and body
• Decent actress
• Doesn't flash her body too much in films and keeps a limit for exposure.
• Nah:
• Relationship with Ranbir Kapoor, could be a little detrimental.

6. Shilpa Shetty


The main reason I have placed Shilpa right above Deepika owes to the fact that she is a good decade older than the former yet she retains the same charm and elegance that she used to have when she first entered the film industry. The 33-year-old though did not find the celebrity status that she probably deserves all along until the 'Big Brother' issue popped up. Coupled with the Richard Gere kissing inferno, Shilpa is now right on the media spotlight, but somewhat dissapointingly, film-makers have continously ignored her abilities as an actor thus the film career graph remains stale. The last she appeared in the full-fledged role in 'Life in a Metro', she won critical praise and gave a commendable performance. This lady definitely has talent, but in all possibilties her height could be the reason why she hadn't landed as many roles as she would have liked. Her fitness at this age is still top notch and she's a delightful personality.

• Wow:
• Fitness, amazing.
• Picture-perfect looks and body.
• Able and dedicated actress.
• Delightful personality.
• Always a good smile on her face.
• Nah:
• Film graph remains stale.
• Not enough substantial roles.
• She accepts to do cameos and item numbers in films, which doesnt help.
• Always associated with controversy, even though not her fault.

5. Trisha Krishnan



26-year-old southern beauty Trisha is an ample example of mantaining a career graph. Ever since she found profound success in 2003, Trisha has mantained her graph that she remains one of the most in-demand actresses in South India up till today, so much so that she could afford to reject Bollywood offers coming her way. She has one too many admirers but also many critics, but she goes about her job silently and convincingly. She has started experimenting with roles of late, choosing substance over pedestrian glamor, and even there, the results has been coming good for her. She is however a long shot away from becoming the complete charming personality that she could be.

• Wow:
• Good manintenance of her looks.
• Her progress from sidekick roles to lead roles.
• Her willingness to experiment.
• A cute smile always compliments her looks.
• Nah:
• The bathroom clip controversy (although it is almost put to bed now).
• Her alleged affair with Vijay.
• Some bad opinion within her public image.

4. Sonam Kapoor


She personifies every ounce of character and delight that a man would desire in a woman. 24-yea-old Sonam Kapoor is the daughter of veteran Bollywood star Anil Kapoor and she has certainly inherited her father's charm, elegance and warmth in terms of character. She has just made her debut in 2007 in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 'Saawariya', which was a flop but it didn't matter much because she earned all the attention she needed to earn with her performance and beauty. She is now acting in 'Delhi 6', a highly-anticipated forthcoming release directed by Rakesh Mehra, who made the 2005 cult film 'Rang de Basanti'. Sonam has done so well to trim down to her wonderful figure now, as she used to be chubby and big-sized when she was an assistant director to Bhansali in 'Black'. Her natural, girl-next-door looks are a great testimonial for her charm. And there's always that smile and soft-spoken nature.

• Wow:
• Almost everything about her character.
• Beautiful smile.
• Girl-next-door looks.
• Raw beauty.
• Wonderful voice.
• Selects her roles well.
• Nah:
• Yet to register her first hit (though it could come soon)

3. Priyanka Chopra


She had a huge strings of flops haunting her until 'Dostana' and 'Fashion' came and rescued a plumetting career graph. This 27-year-old is the 2000 Miss World and has been in the past voted as Asia's sexiest woman. Her svelte figure is a wonderful testimony to her looks, her sweet dark skin tone makes her a natural seductive beauty. She has lasted long and well in Bollywood and has gained considerable success over the years apart from a few blips. Her relationship with Harman Baweja is not entirely putten under a positive spotlight so that is one of her minus points.

• Wow:
• Her figure.
• Natural looks.
• Very good actress.
• Good nature about her.
• Nah:
• Seems to choose the wrong roles at times.
• Her relationship with Harman Baweja is made into publicity circus, so much that she is shadowing her own boyfriend.

2. Katrina Kaif


I have not credited Salman Khan for his career works so far, because they haven't been convincing enough, but finding Katrina Kaif is probably the biggest credit he would take. Kat has taken the expressway to stardom and standing firmly on top as one of the most desirable faces in India. She has given hit after hit, and has proven her critics wrong by taking huge efforts in learning Hindi, which she didn't know at the first place, and now imporving her acting skills significantly. Her lanky figure coupled by her looks which oozes complete elegance makes her a heart-stealer. At 23, she looks simply stunning.

• Wow:
• Her looks.
• Her body.
• Her lanky figure.
• No-nonsense personality.
• Ability to choose the right roles.
• Seems to have stabilized Salman's instabil lifestyle of the past.
• Nah:
• Doubts linger whether Salman is controlling her career choices.
• Could still improve as an actress.

1. Aishwarya Rai


Well, who else could hold this position? At 36, Aishwarya Rai has done superbly to mantain her looks and appearance that she still appears as a Miss World contender till now, even though it has been one and a galf decade since she won the title. Her popularity is continously on the rise, with even the likes of Julia Roberts claiming her to be the beauty of the world and TIME magazine ranking her as the 9th most beautiful woman in the world. The picture above says it all about this lady, her seductive eyes, charming smile, and an aura about her that makes her beauty so insatiable within logic. So much so that I heard a guy telling slyly that he 'never masturbates thinking of Aishwarya Rai', even though he adores her. Reason? She's just too beatiful to be lusted at. Her career is still going good and she is getting commendable roles still. Plus, she is the only married woman in the list.

• Wow:
• Her beauty.
• Her fitness.
• Her charm.
• Her elegance.
• Excellent actress (testified by Iruvar, Guru, HDDCS and Sarkar Raj)
• Great ambassador for Indian cinema the world over (who can forget her Letterman dialogue?)
• Great ambassador for Indian culture.
• Nah:
• Her turbulent relationships in the past have earned her a nasty name among some stereotypic Indians.
• She has a number of anti-Ash people out there who are just waiting to bash her for being all too phony at every given opportunity.
• Her fame has overshadowed her acting capacities.

Ram Anand.

The Observer- Episode 3

The Dream- From Nobody to Somebody.

I was born on a Deepavali day in 1988. Some people see it as a co-incidence, like my parents do, but I would rather believe that it is more of a miracle, to be born on a festival day, especially when it is a festival which doesn't have a set day to repeat annually. So, my birth on a Deepavali day is just plain random as much as anything. I used to say sarcastically- 'the whole Hindu community the world over celebrated my birth'. I wanted to believe that my birth is a miracle because I wanted to feel special. And today, I feel there is no wrong in looking at a stroke of luck or sheer co-incidence as a miracle or a sign and actually feel special about it. Because we all are special in our own ways, we just have to open up our minds to it.

My parents have convinced me like any other parents- that education is priority. So I was everything my parents wanted me to be while I was young- a straight As student (I leaped standard 3 to standard 5 through PTS), an Indian who speaks almost no Tamil at all (I spoke Malay with all my Indian friends- there were only four of them anyway). I remember I used to do something that not many kids would be encouraged to do. I was given an hour's playing time every evening after school, and since I virtually had no friends to play with, I would just go out of my shop and play an imaginary game with almost no toys. I did have a wild imagination.

By the time I was in secondary school, topics such as 'what is your ambition?' came to the fore. I had some great fascination with the prospect of flying, so I thought I would become a pilot, until I knew how much physical appearance matters to be a pilot. I grew somewhat frustrated after that, and was told being doctor is the better option to wish for. That was probably the first time in my life that I looked back and begun to wonder- why? Whats the use of all being doctors? My cousin brother has been wanting to become a doctor and there are talks of other cousins doing the same (in fact, all three of my uncle's sons became doctors, and I can tell you he was pretty proud about it), so I wondered as to why I have to follow suit. These questions sucked the education aspect out of me, my studies deteriorated wildly, until I settled to a mellow average league of students in a society where 'how many As did you take?' is the only question any elderly people will use as a leverage to valuate a child's potential, growing up, and duh, even evaluate how the parents brought the children up. I was searching for answers as to how I will be able to leave a mark for myself in this world. I started looking at the bigger picture. I want to be special, I want to be somebody, I want to do something I love and something that not every other five out of ten people that you know are trying to do. I never felt like I belonged in the league. I was short in confidence in myself. I was not the best in studies, always next best to someone else, nor was I the most apparent member of any groups I was part of in school. I was just 'a boy'. I was nobody.

It was somewhere during 2003 or 2004 (which I can't exactly recall) when it happened. It was like any other night, I was sitting down and watching a movie (a Tamil one, and a really crap one at that), and I just felt like I had enough. I remember telling my mom- even I can think of way better ideas to make a movie compared to these guys who are making it. Shortly after that, I went to bed, and I had the weirdest, most elegant dream your whole lifetime would ever give you. It was a movie, a full, two-hour long movie that ran like a theater reel in my dream. I woke up with such amazement and can't help but to be stunned by such a complete dream, and I went on a jotted down every idea that thundered through my head. And I told a friend. And the friend loved it. And on that day, I felt special. And I knew I have found my calling card. Writer-Director Ram Anand's journey has begun.

It only takes a moment to change from nobody to somebody.

Today, five years down the road, I look back at these facts with such amazement because these dreams don't come in a much spectacular way. I could have easily ignored the dream and carried on with my life as it was, but I trusted a stack of visuals that roamed my sub-conscious mind and allowed them to become the tool that completely transformed my life thereafter.

There were times a plenty where I questioned my ability to reach what I want to reach. And in 2006, my life changed again. I just finished writing, in addition to my existing long stories- few quotes which I want to set as my life's guides- quotes I created myself. I remember jotting down and even telling it to my friend Alex who was in a relationship dilemma at that time- Don't love someone because of anything. There is no reason, there is no logic. You love someone for who they are, completely- not because of her sexy legs or witty humor or their money in particular. Its the whole person. The connection of the souls.

And then I wrote, in a very simple manner- my description of life- Life is a Journey, Your dream will lead you to your destination, your dream will represent your duties in this world, and help you fulfill your potential as a complete human being and live life to the fullest.

The next day, my classmate Renn started raving about a book called 'The Alchemist', written by a certain Brazillian called Paulo Coelho, and how she read the whole book while travelling on a bus from KL back to Parit Buntar (all the more weird because she is hardly a reader, and especially novels? forget it). So she gave me this book, and I turned to a page in which it was written- One is loved because one is loved, no reason is needed to love.

And as I was about complete a book which was telling a story I could so fondly relate myself, my dreams, and my journeys with, Coelho mentioned it- that life was a journey. And since then, I never questioned my dreams ever again, because the book wasn't just a book, it was a sign sent in at such a benign time when I doubted my faith in my dreams. It was a sign that asked me to keep believing.

I may not have the full answer regarding my destinations and my roles, but its better to follow the signs to discover the meaning of this life and fulfill it rather than living the way the world tells me to live, to linger in normalcy, to live a mechanical life. And that dream of mine has opened my eyes to the miracles that the world has to offer, how life is much, much more beautiful and deep compared to how our own logics and reasonings describe it, how we have the willpower to determine our lives rather than thinking fate has it all set up for us.

I know that if live is a game, then I'm playing it, not watching it from sidelines. If life is a drama, or a play, then I am acting in it, trying to play my role to perfection, rather than just settling for any role and be happy with it. And if life is like a banana, I am holding a ripe banana in my hands and all set to gobble it up without any fear or restrictions. And if life is a journey, I am moving along, searching for my destination, rather than just stop at some point of the journey and think just staying where you are better served and secure. And I know I'm a small child, and as they say, kids are God's children- because children ask questions about life. They ask 'why?'. Adults stop asking that question, and start believing in things the world and their logic presents to them as reality. For that, I'm still a child because I always ask 'why?' and am always learning new things.

A dream, is not just a dream. Its the dream.

Ram Anand.

2003-2008

The Observer- Episode 2

When I had a drug called love

2001 was the year when my life really begun. Shortly after finding courage, which thought I never had, I found love; a kind of crazy love that I thought only exists in the silver screen of Indian love stories. It happened quite unspectacularly on an early morning in 2001 when I saw her in my class. The attraction was fuelled further thanks to few of my friends who somehow thought linking me and she would be a great idea. I was told she was my age and speaks my mother tongue, probably the most desperate lies a classmate could ever tell to hook you up with a girl. I never bought into those lies, but I found it pleasant to believe it, that is when I realized that I want this girl who is hovering around my class.

She was everything that I wasn’t. She was a probing nuisance who jumps around in class, while I was just that normal boy who goes about his business silently in class. Once I heard that opposites attract, probably it is true in my case. But I stayed silent for the rest of the year- amazed by the fact that a song that was written and composed some five years prior to that and has become one of the most famous Indian songs of all time spoke true of my feelings for her. I believed in then, that the opportunity will present itself, and I finally believe the trash that Indian cinema has so often repeatedly thrown at its audiences, that we are ‘meant for each other’. I questioned whether it was love or mere attraction at regular intervals; but mere attraction doesn’t last a gruelling five years, which I would find out later. The year presented itself many chances for me to make headways- strike a conversation, strike a friendship, or even create an impression. But I allowed those opportunities to slip by. Suffering a culture shock of sorts with the class environment and being surrounded by a bunch of morons who think they can bully me for some reason, I had to keep my focus on what I thought mattered most- my education.

The year passed by, and I found myself devoid of her presence in my class for the following year. I was more settled, but still I struggled to make headways. Something inside me held me back from approaching her, but that same instinct continued to disturb me at every sight of her. I allowed it to continue. My notion is that there was still time. Soon after, I knew she now has a relationship. For some reason, it was more relief rather than devastation. Probably I was relieved that I would not pressurise myself to approach her anymore and that I could hide myself behind the excuse that she is owned. Was I a coward? That was the question that bugged me at that time. The years passed, and I knew I could never forget her, yet I couldn’t tell her. I felt safe with the distance, I felt safe that only I knew what I had felt for her. The urge and regret never really hit me until 2004. Everybody, literally everybody was beginning to seeing sights of relationships. Relationships have become a more prominent feature of conversations between our friends, replacing the classic teasing, and name-linking, virtual match up acts. Girlfriend is no more a word that offers the luxury of having a girl, but instead it slowly turned into a necessity, a matter of pride. The girlfriend-havers are on a class of their own, while the bachelors will always have to look out for options. That is when I revealed to my closest aides, and revealed them the truth. And I made sure I never mentioned the word ‘I like her’. The only word I said was the one that was well and truly etched in my heart by now- that ‘I love her’. I took promises from them not to make it public, and they just did that. I knew the difference between their hormone rages and my feelings.

My friends were vocal enough to let me know that I’m being a coward by not telling her. But I stood by what I thought was the right thing to do- finish Form 5 without telling her. And I did just that- in spite of numerous ‘threats’ like ‘I will come and tell if you don’t do it yourself’. And the school days came to an end. I never told her for all the five years in which I could have easily told her. For all the time, I marginalized myself, thinking that I’m not good enough for her. The following year, I was found a new self- a person who felt free while talking to girls without any hesitation. Her absence from my life seemed to have given me new confidence and a new freedom. That is when I realized, I was right not to have told her. Not because I wasn’t good enough for her or because she isn’t good enough for me, but simply because she isn’t the ‘right one’ for me. I knew that when I meet the ‘right one’, I will find the guts and urge to tell her, unlike this episode.

(Unfortunately, few years later, a friend who promised me never to tell can’t resist and spilled the beans to her about my interests for her- what a name spoiler, duh!)

The world has very often run discrimination that being in a relationship is the only way you can express your love, and that one-sided love stories are failures. But when I don’t have any regrets of what had happened, how could it possibly be a failed love story? Thanks to those five years in which I was in some kind of trance, I know now what love is all about and I am able to help out each and every friend of mine who has to sort his or her feelings and relationship troubles out.

I am delighted because she made me realize that I, Ram Anand, am able to love so much and so sincerely for five years, that I would not have to struggle like the many out there who are afraid to commit, many out there who talk about love ‘dying’ with time. I knew, in that respect, that I have the ability to love so much not to let it die and I know how I will feel when I meet the ‘right one’ in the future.

She made me know that I have wonderful heart which is able to produce so much love, as they say, Love is God. What more you could ask for when you have God in your heart, and plenty of it? I know somebody’s waiting for me, because my heart and instincts, the same ones that so rightfully pointed out my dreams and my destinies to me, tell me so. And I am glad knowing that I am already on my journey towards my dream, because as Paulo Coelho wrote – ‘True Love never diverts you from your dream, true love will arrive at the right time and help you reach your dream’. And in my journey, at some important juncture, there will be the one waiting for me, waiting to help me reach my dreams and whereas I will help her touch hers.

Some still ask me, why did I love her when we had so little in common in terms of personality and character?

Because one is loved because one is loved, there is no reason to love. Love doesn’t have logic. Love is a miracle in this logic-driven world, a miracle that should never, ever be questioned. And I’m lucky I fell in love so early in my life.

Remain you, Remain who you are,

You are a little pain, you are a little delight,

You ooze charm when you fight or when you please,

I do not want to change you,

Not more, not less,

I want you,

For who you are.

Ram Anand.

2001-2007.

The Observer- Episode 1

Finding courage

It was a cozy night back in 2001. The doors were tightly locked as what was left in the house were nothing but the 'three stooges' (that being me and my two cousins). Everybody else in the family have made a trip to the hospital to visit my father, who was suffering from what was an unusually heavy fever. It's a bit strange for me, because my father has never, as far as my consciousness would go, laid on a bed at the excuse of being sick before, so that the fever had pinned down the toughest of man is something worthy of notice.

And as we always do, we searched for options as to what we should do to fill our time. All we needed was a ball (a rubber ball as big as you could easily cuddle it in your hands) and the small opening located below my study table, located at the far end of the hall at the isolated Kg.Acheh house. We didn't have neighbors, the next house was an abandoned one, and about two lots away lies a Chinese family, of whom we hardly see a sight during the day. So we played football, banging that small ball on the balls, shouting, hovering and sweating ourselves, aping after the Zidanes amd Figos and Beckhams. We had no other intention but to watch footy on TV at that time (those were times when watching footy is highly prohibited in the family because it would distract our studies. Getting caught watching footy is equal to getting caught bunking school and going to theater to watch movie or going to SpaceNet and playing computer games). So we came to know that Ronaldo (the original Brazillian samba man) is making his return from injury to play for Inter Milan against Brescia that night. So we watched the game.

And Ronaldo scored. And as usual again, I just can't sit, a habit I carry till today while nervously watching my favorite team play- I just can't sit and watch it relaxingly. I remember Roberto di Baggio playing for Brescia at that time. And the inevitable Igli 'Idli' Tare, as we would call him, wih his blonde hair and funny name.

And then it happened, I had the habit of looking to the silent, dark environment outside the house and well, just watching. For a moment, I was starring outside, and I did not see a dark, blank environment (there's only oil palm plantation in front and beside my house). I saw a man (which I assumed was Chinese), walking past my father's van parked outside. I starred, trying to figure of I'm hallucinating. Then I saw it. He moved. The man moved, and dissapeared.

"Somebody's out there," I murmured horrifyingly to my elder cousin, Vengtesh. "Who?" he and Sri asked back. "I saw a man, like a Chinese man, he moved," I explained. Thud, we heard a sound at the right side of the house. We panicked. "I think somebody's really out there," one of them said. "They are trying to get inside," I said. "Maybe they do not know we are here," Sri said. Yes, maybe they do not know the 'three stooges' are inside. So we geared up. There's stuff to do now.

Off we went to the kitchen, while ssshh-ing each other. We decided that whoever it is outside there, he musn't know that we realize their presence. Came out a hammer which I took from the kitchen cupboard. "This is best, I'm going to use this, you guys find stuff as well," I said and moved to the hall. Carefully, I placed the hammer on the table in the hall. We knew we needed a knife, but they weren't really sharp knifes in kitchen. Sri took a pretty normal cutting knife, and I and Vengtesh walked up to him and saw around the kitchen. "Take that," Vengtesh pointed out. I nodded. It was a butcher's knife. So I put that at the hall. Then to round it off, we found a rope. There, we were done. "I hit him with the hammer, you cut him with the butcher's knife, and we tie him up," we decided. That was the plan. We knew what to do next. Make our presence felt. We maximixed the volume of the footy game. And we started shouting and cheering as if the goals are flowing. It was all the more embarassing because, in truth, the game was slow-paced and chances were few and far between, but obviously the man outside wouldn't know the live update of what happening on a pitch in Italy while trying to break into a house in Kg. Acheh, Perak, Malaysia.

We continued shouting till we were exhausted. There were still sounds outside the house, some 30 minutes later, and we had to know whats going on.Vengtesh moved towards the kitchen door and we opened it up. Nobody. Then I pulled myself together and walked up to the front door. With the hammer in my hands, I unlocked the door and walked outside. Nobody. The sound was coming from the right-side of the house. I just walked, and took a peep. It was a cat. A cat starring right into my eyes in a glaring, spooky night at an oil palm plantation. I shush-ed it away, but it starred at me as if it doesn't fear me. After a while, it took the walk.

I went back inside the house and we had a laugh about it. Maybe it was just a cat all along. Maybe I was hallucinating. Then the relatives came back and we narrated the story to them. Some put up worried faces because they know its not a safe place, some found the funny side of it. The next day, we explored further around the house, and saw it, there and then, that the fencing at the rear of our lot has been cut through big enough to fit a person. I looked at my cousins. I might not have been hallucinating afterall. But nothing happened after that, so the matter was put to dust, done and simple.

A couple of weeks later, a scorpion entered our house and decided to bite my cousin sister who was sleeping at the wee hours of 3am in the morning. There were huge noises in the house, my father (who's back) killed the damn thing with some nasty broom hits. Back to bed was the signal.

That morning, we realized our house have been burgralized. Through the fence they came, they dispatched the window steels, helped themselves in, and opened the door, and conveniently took away out belongings which are worth a few thousand, including my wallet, my IC, my everything that proves my citizenship. Then I saw the TV turned a bit, way from its original position. And I realized, they have been wanting to take away our TV and Astro system as well, but couldn't do so because of the heavy wires which complicates the whole thing.

But they did take a souvenir from there- the remote control. Mockers. True mockers. Whether they are fools or geniuses is anybodys guess. I walked out and entered the oil palm plantation. I followed a small trail. I found both my IC and guess what- the remote control. I walked further and I found a Chinese man at the back of another house. Apparently, the house was his own house and they have broken into his house as well.

But at the end of the day, for all the fear and horror I went through, I discovered something I didn't think I really had that time- courage. I had the courage to walk up and face the nemesis, whether it was with a hammer or with just a meagre intention of finding a remote control, only that the nemesis was not in front of me.

Ram Anand.

2001.

HawkEye in the beautiful game.

The past week has seen three very dubious refereeing decisions in EPL coming under heavy scrutiny. Paul Robinson should not have been sent off for his tackle of Park Ji-Sung in last week's match between Manchester United and West Bromwich Albion, Shaun Wright-Phillips should have been sent off along with Rory Delap in the match between Stoke City and Manchester City, and above all Frank Lampard should never have been sent off in the match between Liverpool and Chelsea. So, the inevitable cry in the football world has come again- we need a HawkEye to prevent bad refereeing decisions from affecting the game in the future.

HawkEye is a computer system, a tracking system that is already being used in tennis and cricket to determine where exactly the ball had landed or touched in slow motion. If you watch tennis, you'd know what I'm talking about. It was developed by the Roke Manor Research team in Hampshire, UK back in 2001.

So, there are reasons a plenty as to why we need a HawkEye in this beautiful game. But here is what would happen with a HawkEye.

First of all, it is very important as to how will the HawkEye be used in football. Whether it will used as a major refereeing tool or just to contest dubious decisions remains a big question.

Firstly, we know too well that players like to wave and protest at every vital decision the referee makes. In this case, will the referee alone be enough to determine which decisions deserve a HawkEye replay? Say the referee and linesman all ignored calls by players to have a HawkEye and it turned to be a costaly ignorance when television replays come up moments later, referees will come under the firing line yet again, won't they? So lets consider having a full-fledge HawkEye and the ability to challenge a call at anytime during a 90-minute game, how will that pan out?

Imagine:

Commentator 1: On to Luis Garcia...good first touch....Luis Garcia......!! Off the line!!! The Liverpool players want a goal!...

Commentator 2: Its given! The referee has give the goal John! Unbelieavable! It looked to me like Kalou got it off the line there!

Commentator 1: Oh, wait, now, John Terry is going to challange that decision!

(So the players stop playing and keep their eyes on the boards where a HawkEye is called for).

HawkEye shows the ball crossing one inch past the line...through a shadow description it appears there on the screen, IN. Liverpool players celebrate and Chelsea players look disgusted by that margin. Play has stopped for more than two minutes.


Imagine if the same thing happens for every offside decision, every decision about a push inside the penalty area, every tackle that deserves a card, or every dive! Play halts for two or three minutes, and what we get is a break to watch at a screen at the far end of the stadium to numerically tell us whats in and whats not, whats good and whats bad. Hello, this is football, or soccer, whatever way you call it!


(Look at the illustration here of example of a HawkEye, practically, that ball is out but because of one inch's length, its is being deemed IN as the official review, imagine the frustration the players must be feeling...there are also questions about how exactly accurate HawkEye actually is)

In tennis its okay because te players will have to steady themsleves at opposite end of the court before serving, so such a break hardly affects the match or its rhythm. In cricket, players take up their stations and one bowls while one bats. Again, a delay in decision-making can be tolerated. The game will break in order for players to station themselves back in the end of every game, which is about few minutes long. But football?? A 45-minute constantly flowing game, imagine how much the rhythm would be affected if we were to watch decisions being replayed and analysed while players wait to take throw ins or freekicks. Football is all about adrenalin, the constant virtues, if decisions are replayed and challenged time and again, probably counter-attacks would never exist in football. We will spend an extra 30 minutes contesting decisions, the player's rhythm will break at regular intervals, which is a real disadvantage if a particular team is attacking incessantly. It would be pathetic to watch. Unless there is a system that would allow referees to get instant feed on a decision that needs to be made, football should remain the same as it is. Dubious decisions are not good, but they are part of the game. Definitely HawkEye isn't a solution for refereeing problems.

Introducing MacBook Wheel

Apple has introduced a new revolutionary laptop that has no keyboards what-so-ever. It has been christened as 'MacBook Wheel' and the keyboard system is build after the platform of Mac's vaguely successful 'iPod' series. You just have to wheel around without typing on the keyboard anymore, now thats being flexible. It was unveiled at a recent Apple expo event and even Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO, has apparently made a presentation of the 'wheel', which will definitely change our lifestyle completely from now on. :) :)

Just like how you use a touchpad to scroll your mouse around, this entire laptop's functionality is based on the touchpad concept, and if you wonder how you do type to text pads on it, you'll just have to scroll the way you scroll to type something in your 'iPod'- scroll, and a click on the alpabhet that you want (prolly they'll have dictionaries reccomending words at an instant, like the ones you have in your phones when you text message).

This is truly a revolution made by apple.

Just a reminder though, this breaking news was reported by the Onion News Network. Read it for yourself to know whats so special if the Onions report something, in case you do not know yet.

And, by the way, Steve Jobs have been suffering from what he branded as 'hormone imbalance' as he is losing tremendous weight in recent times and there are fears that his pancreatic cancer may be returning. So whats my point in mentioning Jobs' personal diseases here anyway?

Well, buddies, its because of this. So, who did the presentation for MacBook wheel that day?

Have a nice week. The world aint changing too fast yet. Lol.

The art of becoming a champion.

There is simply no 'just' in sports. And it was proved yesterday at the Rod Laver Arena at Melbourne Park, Australia when World No.2 tennis player Roger Federer broke down in tears while giving his runners-up acceptance speech after losing the Australian Open Grand Slam final to fellow rival and World No.1 Rafael Nadal.

After relinquishing his previously held World No.1 spot to Nadal after losing to the Spaniard in last year's Wimbledon Grand Slam final, Federer was heavily touted to defeat Nadal in yesterday's final, which would see Federer matching Pete Sampras' record of 14 Grand Slam titles. Above all, he did have a huge fan base in Australia, and as the Master of Ceremonies pointed out- if Australia were to adopt a foreign sportsman as their own, its going to the Swiss- known affectionately as Fedex (after Fedex Courier Express..lol).

Everything about this year's Australian Open final was spectacular. Heading into the match, Federer had a relatively easy semifinal victory as opposed to Nadal grinding out a phenomenal five-set victory over fellow Spaniard Fernando Verdasco in what was the longest match in the Australian Open history (it lasted more than 6 hours). Nadal's semifinal took place one day after Fedex's semifinal, and coupled with the tiring match which lasted so long, Federer was everybody's favorite in the final given his fitness, form book and support. But end of the day, its heart, desire, and passion which counts for victory as Rafael Nadal proved. Being a Nadal fan myself, I was made to believe that Federer is still the king on Hard Court (Nadal is the undisputed king of the clay court), so it emerged as a surprise when Nadal used his sheer resilience and ability to recover a point out of nothing to defeat Federer 7-5 in the first set. According to the pundits, Federer was supposed to 'blow Nadal away' in three sets.

But I feared the worst when Nadal started looking severely tired in the second set and Federer comfortably won 6-3. The onslaught may have very well started. Came the third set, and in seemingly dead situations with the odds firmly stacked against him, Nadal constantly held serve and dragged the match towards a tie-breaker. And then another spot of bother, Nadal had his trainer on court and seems to be suffering a hamstring problem. The commentator was already saying it, at this moment, that Nadal was 'not human' because he keeps going despite the odds. Nadal shockingly swept away Federer 7-3 in tie-breaker, which means Federer will need five sets if he were to beat Nadal. At that point, it was already a moral victory for the 22-year-old Madritista for he has come much farther than anyone had though he would come.

But Federer once again played his sublime tennis and blew Rafa 6-3 in the fourth set, and again, the spectators were thinking that Fedex would win the final set comfortably. All the physical exhaustion seems to have kept Nadal unfazed, and definitely Federer was disturbed by Nadal's repeated action of rising back from seemingly impossible situations. Nadal was the one instead, to sweep away Federer 6-2 in the final set and take his own sixth Grand Slam. And it certainly stunned everyone. Not once was one omen pointing at Nadal's win before this match. His fitness, his exhaustion (remember, including the final he has played 10 hours of tennis in the space of 48 hours), the very fact that Federer is always great in hard court, the extra day's rest that Federer had, the fact that the Australian crowd supports Fedex, and above all, the fact that Nadal called his trainer revealed he was having a hamstring problem. Yet, he played, and triumphed. And Federer cried.

"God, its killing me," Fedex said while giving his acceptance speech before breaking down. What killed him was Nadal's utter determination. It hurts Fedex that the country had wanted him to win, and that with the win he would equal Sampras' record, it just hurted him further because he knew there and then that it was Roger Federer, and not Rafel Nadal, who should have wanted the trophy more badly, who should have shown more determination and spirit of fight back. Roger Federer is a great champion and a sublime tennis player, but from now on he will learn one aspect that separates a champion from a legend- the spirit of never, ever giving up. Federer was never stretched this far before in his career until Nadal came along, now he is being stretched, and should he reply with aplomb and defeat Nadal by showing determination in the future, then this man will be worthy of a legendary status that many people are wanting to give him.

As far as Rafa is considered, only numbers count now. Let it be in the Wimbledon final, where he defeated Fedex in another historic five-set thriller and stripped of Federer of his 'king of grass' title, or let it be against Verdasco in the semifinal where he kept raking up points that are ludicrously impossible, he has shown that he has the steel that has seen him participate in few of the greatest matches tennis has ever witnessed. And at 22, its all about him going on to win a certain more number of Grand Slams in order to become a true legend, and a great ambassador for a sport called tennis.

And Federer was right when he criticized Novak Djokovic for retiring in a whiff against Andy Roddick in the tournament- just look at Nadal and you will know what it takes for you to become the great champion. That is something Djokovic is a long way off becoming.

That, in the heart of the cute, muscular young man from Madrid, who hugged Federer after collecting his Australian Open trophy, consoled him and said 'you are one of the best, I'm sure you will win the No.14 Slam this year'- lies the true art of becoming a champion.

Vamos Rafa.

P.S. Congratulations to Yuki Bhambri for winning the Junior's title (finally, a future prospect from Asia) and also to Sania Mirza and Mahesh Bhupathi for their mixed doubles titles. (India's going good in tennis). :)