AK Lohithadas passed away this morning...Very sad and unexpected loss to the whole malayalam film industry.
I would say that he is one of this kind of 'scripwriter- director' whose movies were high in artistic content,but at the same time, depicted common mans life and themes in a realistic way...very similar to the 'Padmarajan- Bharathan', 'Sreenivasan-Sathyan Anthikad' combinations he made many successful movies in what is called the 'Golden age of Malayalam cinema' (eighties and ninties) with Sibi Malayil. Before this time there were broadly two types of movies ie either the art /parallel cinema and the mainstream commercial movies. The boundary between these two were gone in the late 80's ...thanks to all these filmakers.
Lohithadas' first script was for the movie 'thaniavarthanam' and after that there was no turning back. He wrote script for about 30 movies, directed about 10 movies, acted and wrote songs in a few. He received many state and atleast one national award (Bhoothakannadi-his debut movie as a director) if I remember correctly. Most of his movies had a bit of tragedy in it and may be thats one of the reason it stays in mind for ever.
Some of his memorable movies and scenes for me include:
1. The helpless mother mixing poison in rice and giving it to her son (Thaniavarthanam)
2. The dashing of the hopes and aspirations of a middleclass young man and his family due to just one incident and how the society sees it and dictates the life of people (Kireedam)
3. The relationship and love between two brothers and the circumstances that lead to one's concealment of the others death and the trauma, he experiences..... (Bharatham)
4. The dreams of a poor fisherman father (and daughter) who wants his daughter to become a doctor being shattered by her love and subsequent marriage to her childhood friend (Amaram)
5. The life of an extended farming family in Kerala told through the responsible and loving elder brother (Vatsalyam)
One dialogue I cannot forget is in Dasharatham (Mohanlal). This dialogue probably summarises what Lohithadas has to say about life....
"ഇതു എന്റെ life ആണ് . ഞാന് അത് ചില്ല് പാത്രം പോലെ എറിഞ്ഞു പൊട്ടിക്കും , അലമാരിക്കുള്ളില് ഇട്ടു പൂട്ടും , ചപ്പാത്തി പോലെ പരത്തും ,റബ്ബര് പന്ത് പോലെ കളിക്കും അത് എന്റെ ഇഷ്ടം . ആരും ഒന്നും പറയണ്ട ”
This list is endless ...His highness abdullah, Kamaladalam, Adharam, Sallapam, Kanmadam etc, etc...His loss is irreplacable( like Padmarajan), but I hope he has shown the way for others to make similar themes in the future and bring back the golden days of Malayalam cinema...
About Me
- PCV
- London, Leicester and Kerala
- I am a Medical Doctor, born and brought up in Kerala, settled in England for last 27 years. Interested in almost any and every field under the sun. I believe in 'Simple living and simple thinking'and try to follow this principle in life...This is a snapshot of what I wish to write; but many of the things I want to write are still under the iceberg! Lokah Samastha Sukhino Bhavanthu
Visits so far
Sunday, 28 June 2009
Friday, 26 June 2009
A tribute to the 'King of pop'
I was in disbelief when LA Times and CNBC first confirmed the death of Michael Jackson last night. He 'is' the king of pop music...a true legend. His music was an inspiration for one whole generation. He produced the sort of music which is played and popular in all parts of the world.
Michael Jackson's music was of a unique variety that left a long lasting impression when one hear it. It appealed all ages from paediatrics to geriatrics....He was a popular culture for over 4 decades...The influence and inspiration he had on the young generation is amazing. His flamboyant clothing (tight military style jacket) his dance movements like backward-gliding moonwalk, his feverish sometimes squeaky, crotch-grabbing dance moves and his high-pitched singing with his trademark sunglasses and his ever-changing, surgically altered appearance all meade him arguably the most exciting performer of his generation
I first listened Micheal Jacksons songs as a kid in school. His album Thriller was a great hit..one of the all time hits. His songs in that ie Thriller, Billie jean, Beat it etc were just out of the world...
The whole world is mourning his death....from Tokyo to Timbaktu...from Mombasa to Mexico
A mourning fan in front of his wax statue in Las vegas
In our college there used to be lot of people who dressed, acted and 'idoled' him. I remember a guy at Mar-Ivanious who was just like him...his mannerisms..the way he rode the bike etc..
Another major influence MJ had was in 'Break dance'....All the youngsters tried his signature moonwalking or various acrobatics!...infact every, almost every other student wanted to be like him.... If you speak to any person (young or old) about western music they would all know Michael Jackson. Such was his popularity......It seems that even a 'drink' in Malayasia is named after him!
Michael Jackson was the biggest pop sensation of our time (similar to Elvis and 'Beatles' in the previous era) . One of the few artists to have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice, his other achievements include multiple Guinness World Records—including one for "Most Successful Entertainer of All Time"—13 Grammy Awards, 13 number one singles in his solo career—more than any other male artist in the Hot 100 era. His peak was in mid 80's to mid 90's. Later in his life he faced many accusations and was described as a 'tortured genius'.
He was coming to London next month, where I was planning to watch him live for the first time :-( .......But his style and music will remain in millions of hearts for generations to come..........
His albums were:
Got to Be There (1972)
Ben (1972)
Music and Me (1973)
Forever, Michael (1975)
Off the Wall (1979)
Thriller (1982) Thriller is said to be the world's best-selling record of all time.
Bad (1987)
Dangerous (1991)
HIStory (1995)
Invincible (2001)
Michael Jackson's music was of a unique variety that left a long lasting impression when one hear it. It appealed all ages from paediatrics to geriatrics....He was a popular culture for over 4 decades...The influence and inspiration he had on the young generation is amazing. His flamboyant clothing (tight military style jacket) his dance movements like backward-gliding moonwalk, his feverish sometimes squeaky, crotch-grabbing dance moves and his high-pitched singing with his trademark sunglasses and his ever-changing, surgically altered appearance all meade him arguably the most exciting performer of his generation
I first listened Micheal Jacksons songs as a kid in school. His album Thriller was a great hit..one of the all time hits. His songs in that ie Thriller, Billie jean, Beat it etc were just out of the world...
The whole world is mourning his death....from Tokyo to Timbaktu...from Mombasa to Mexico
A mourning fan in front of his wax statue in Las vegas
In our college there used to be lot of people who dressed, acted and 'idoled' him. I remember a guy at Mar-Ivanious who was just like him...his mannerisms..the way he rode the bike etc..
Another major influence MJ had was in 'Break dance'....All the youngsters tried his signature moonwalking or various acrobatics!...infact every, almost every other student wanted to be like him.... If you speak to any person (young or old) about western music they would all know Michael Jackson. Such was his popularity......It seems that even a 'drink' in Malayasia is named after him!
Michael Jackson was the biggest pop sensation of our time (similar to Elvis and 'Beatles' in the previous era) . One of the few artists to have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice, his other achievements include multiple Guinness World Records—including one for "Most Successful Entertainer of All Time"—13 Grammy Awards, 13 number one singles in his solo career—more than any other male artist in the Hot 100 era. His peak was in mid 80's to mid 90's. Later in his life he faced many accusations and was described as a 'tortured genius'.
He was coming to London next month, where I was planning to watch him live for the first time :-( .......But his style and music will remain in millions of hearts for generations to come..........
His albums were:
Got to Be There (1972)
Ben (1972)
Music and Me (1973)
Forever, Michael (1975)
Off the Wall (1979)
Thriller (1982) Thriller is said to be the world's best-selling record of all time.
Bad (1987)
Dangerous (1991)
HIStory (1995)
Invincible (2001)
Sunday, 21 June 2009
The balance sheet of T20 world cup
Congrats to Pakistan who convincingly won the final against Srilanka. Pakistan, who fell agonizingly short in the last world cup and have been through so much problems as a country in the last two years, have pulled off a great victory. One might have felt sad for Srilankans, but Pakistan deserved to win the match and the cup. They peaked at the right time and thanks to Afridi who won the MOM award in both semi-final and final.
Afridi quite literally represents everything for a 'pakistani team'......He is a great talent (team) who has underperformed on many occassions previously, but has the calibre to beat any team anywhere in the world on his (their) day. This goes on to prove the age old notion that form is temporary, but class is permanent.
I went to watch a few of India's matches. Saw the first match in Nottingham where they won against Bangladesh, though not convicingly. Manikutty also had the first experience of watching a cricket match live again at Trentbridge where she saw Srilanka beating Westindies and India beating Ireland.
I was also at Lords last sunday only to see India being expelled from the world cup by a fighting English side. I must say that there is nothing more beautiful in cricket than at 'Lords' (the home of cricket) on a sunny day, packed with full capacity of passionate supporters.....It was literally a 'sea of Blue'.....But alas the Indian team let the fans down again in a big tournament! They lost all the 3 super-8 matches and left for home dejected. Who is to blame? The loosers were again the Indian supporters. The BCCI, team management and the team recieved hefty cheques as usual. It would have been wonderful if the players had shown a bit of the passion like their supporters and gone out of the tournament showing their grit and determination rather than being kicked out in such a cowardly and cheeky manner....
The T20 have given a few messages:
1. Twenty twenty is here to stay; though it may not affect the test cricket significantly, it will take away the sheen from one day internationals, who will definitely suffer
2. There are no under dogs or favourites in a T20. Anyteam can win or rather any one can loose as is being exemplified in this year s IPL where the bottom 2 teams from last year( Bangalore Royal Challengers and Deccan Chargers) went on to play the final
3. T20 is not just about hitting out or slogging every ball...there needs to be a clear planning, partnerships and perfect execution of the process to gain the upperhand.
4. Who said T20 will spell the 'death' of bowlers in cricket? infact it was the 2 teams with the best bowling resources (MMM ie Murali-Mendis-Malinga for Srilanka and AAA ie Aamir-Afridi-Ajmal along with Gul for Pakistan) that went on to play the final.
5. T20 will also totally change the way, the world views cricket. From 10 or fewer nations it will spread to many countries and it is only a matter of time and its not if, but when cricket will become a regular feature of Olympics.
Afridi quite literally represents everything for a 'pakistani team'......He is a great talent (team) who has underperformed on many occassions previously, but has the calibre to beat any team anywhere in the world on his (their) day. This goes on to prove the age old notion that form is temporary, but class is permanent.
I went to watch a few of India's matches. Saw the first match in Nottingham where they won against Bangladesh, though not convicingly. Manikutty also had the first experience of watching a cricket match live again at Trentbridge where she saw Srilanka beating Westindies and India beating Ireland.
Crowd support for India was tremondous where ever they played.....
Indian fans performing for the live telecast
I was also at Lords last sunday only to see India being expelled from the world cup by a fighting English side. I must say that there is nothing more beautiful in cricket than at 'Lords' (the home of cricket) on a sunny day, packed with full capacity of passionate supporters.....It was literally a 'sea of Blue'.....But alas the Indian team let the fans down again in a big tournament! They lost all the 3 super-8 matches and left for home dejected. Who is to blame? The loosers were again the Indian supporters. The BCCI, team management and the team recieved hefty cheques as usual. It would have been wonderful if the players had shown a bit of the passion like their supporters and gone out of the tournament showing their grit and determination rather than being kicked out in such a cowardly and cheeky manner....
The T20 have given a few messages:
1. Twenty twenty is here to stay; though it may not affect the test cricket significantly, it will take away the sheen from one day internationals, who will definitely suffer
2. There are no under dogs or favourites in a T20. Anyteam can win or rather any one can loose as is being exemplified in this year s IPL where the bottom 2 teams from last year( Bangalore Royal Challengers and Deccan Chargers) went on to play the final
3. T20 is not just about hitting out or slogging every ball...there needs to be a clear planning, partnerships and perfect execution of the process to gain the upperhand.
4. Who said T20 will spell the 'death' of bowlers in cricket? infact it was the 2 teams with the best bowling resources (MMM ie Murali-Mendis-Malinga for Srilanka and AAA ie Aamir-Afridi-Ajmal along with Gul for Pakistan) that went on to play the final.
5. T20 will also totally change the way, the world views cricket. From 10 or fewer nations it will spread to many countries and it is only a matter of time and its not if, but when cricket will become a regular feature of Olympics.
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