Vijay Narayanan on December 31st, 2005

The ads I adored on television this year…5. Kaun Banega Crorepati – the Vijay Nazare ad. Superb thinking!
4. Samsung TV – starts off with the line “Imagine you receive a package for your neighbour…” The guy opens the package to find a great new TV, and virtually lives with it, till the neighbour arrives. Great [...]

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Vijay Narayanan on December 30th, 2005

My top 5 Tamil movie picks (of the ones I have seen) of the year…
5. Chandramukhi, starring Rajnikanth & Jyotika – the biggest Tamil movie of all time had everything for the thalaivar faithful. Though devoid of trademark Rajni ishtyle it became a wild fire, and according to some accounts breached the 100 crore barrier. [...]

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Vijay Narayanan on December 29th, 2005

My top 10 for the year…
10. Raa Raa, movie: CHANDRAMUKHI – When I first saw the song name, I thought it would be similar to Raa Raa Ramaiah in Baasha. The surprise was lurking. Telugu lyrics. Can’t understand, but the composition was good. Another Carnatic-based number. However Jyotika’s dancing was funny. Only I could have [...]

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Vijay Narayanan on December 28th, 2005

After I posted the earlier list, I received some feedback, and it was that I was overly biased towards melodies and slow songs. Well, that’s the way I’ve always been, so my list doesn’t change. Here’s the next instalment.20. Vidikinra Pozhudhu, movie: RAAM – I liked three songs from this movie. This one, Aarariraro and [...]

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Vijay Narayanan on December 27th, 2005

I intend to list out my top 30 favorite Tamil songs of the year. The list is in 3 parts, and follows the Baba count, i.e. backwards! There is no great logic or survey behind this innocuous list. My methodology is to assign a higher rating to songs I’ve willingly listened to more times. Here [...]

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Vijay Narayanan on December 26th, 2005

Watched two movies over a weekend packed with work.
King Kong
I had to choose between this and another movie, so I checked with IMDb. The rating for this one was a huge 8.1. The movie was ranked 166 in the list of the Top 250 movies of all time. Plus it was a Peter Jackson (of [...]

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Vijay Narayanan on December 20th, 2005

Last week, the shooting for Rajnikanth’s next movie, Sivaji (The Boss) has started. Must say that thalaivar looks cool… rocking good!

The production team is like the who’s who of Tamil cinema. AVM Productions, Shankar, A.R. Rahman, of course…

On seeing this pic, I was reminded of Kamal Hassan in Vetri Vizha (for saying which, my colleagues [...]

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Vijay Narayanan on December 19th, 2005

In his bestselling book, The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell points out how some mannerisms exhibited by ABC newscaster Peter Jennings swayed viewers subconsciously towards Ronald Reagan in the US Presidential elections. Gladwell opines that though Jennings himself might not have been biased, the fact that sample polls conducted after people watched ABC broadcasts indicate a [...]

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Vijay Narayanan on December 16th, 2005

Call it linguistic jingoism, chauvinism etc… this is a bad move. I’m reminded of a line I read in some magazine when this renaming spree on:
Okay, now we’ve renamed Bombay as Mumbai. Madras is now Chennai. And Calcutta has become Kolkata. Why wait? Let’s rename India as Foolishstan!

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Vijay Narayanan on December 14th, 2005

My friend and colleague, Anuradha remembers December 11 for another reason.The same day last year, the airwaves became suddenly bereft of divinity, as Madurai Shanmugavadivu Subbulakshmi, inarguably the most famous exponent of Carnatic music of the 20th century breathed her last.
“Varundhum uyirkku isai marundhaagum” says a recent Tamil song. (Music is the medicine for troubled [...]

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Vijay Narayanan on December 13th, 2005

Seen at the Chennai International Airport two nights ago…
For any inconvenience, please contact the Airport Manager.
Poor soul!

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Vijay Narayanan on December 11th, 2005

One hundred and twenty three years ago, this very day, was born a man so ahead of his time that the term “revolutionary” reads like an understatement. Though our hearts swell with pride at the mention of his name, it is also a disappointment that we tend to remember Subramanya Bharati only on his birthday, [...]

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Vijay Narayanan on December 11th, 2005

A cousin who saw Aaru on the day night of its release called it a bore.

Teakada, however, is effusive in its praise of Suriya’s latest venture, though the review makes me think that the movie isn’t exactly first-rate.

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Vijay Narayanan on December 10th, 2005

Miss Iceland Unnur Birna Vilhjalmsdottir has won the Miss World 2005 crown, at Sanya in China. I guess most people would rather refer to her by her title than her name. Someone help me pronounce it. The Hindu says… 
Unnur, 21, who describes herself as an “organised, ambitious and good-humoured” person, won the hearts and minds [...]

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Vijay Narayanan on December 10th, 2005

The World Cup is less than six months away, and the final draws are out. As always, some groups are expected to be tougher than the rest. 
Hosts Germany have an easy group A. Of Poland, Ecuador and Costa Rica, I think the Poles will make it to the next round. The whole of England should [...]

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Vijay Narayanan on December 6th, 2005

Yesterday, my cousin went on his first date. Not surprising, though he is 27. The surprising part is he took his mom along. Hold on, you’re yet to hear the worst part – the girl he was dating brought her mom along too! Upon meeting, the two of them exchanged solemn vows that they liked [...]

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Vijay Narayanan on December 4th, 2005

[A look at Cheran's Thavaamai Thavamirundhu]  
When the history of Tamil cinema is written, and when people have to address the question of which actor suited best the role of the father, the unanimous choice would have been S.V. Ranga Rao. But the choice will be no longer unanimous. Because, Rajkiran’s portrayal of Muthiah in Cheran’s [...]

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Vijay Narayanan on December 3rd, 2005

Another game of cricket in Chennai. Another rainy day. Another day lost. Something’s definitely wrong with the Chepauk!

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Vijay Narayanan on December 1st, 2005

I have never done anything that would get my name in the papers. And there are strong indications I might never make it either. The only thing I can be pleased about in all this is that I haven’t done anything negative enough to make my name notorious.
I slogged hard was lucky enough to finish [...]

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Vijay Narayanan on November 30th, 2005

Sun TV couldn’t have timed this better themselves. Khushboo’s fall from grace, though induced, is a great plus as it will naturally deal a blow to the popular “Jackpot” show on Jaya TV.Thanga Vettai, which went on air this Saturday, is a quiz show for the family. The show’s USP is that the prize is [...]

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