Indulgences(Cinema post 2009)

Hollywood+NYTimes=
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/12/12/magazine/14actors.html#1
Health Disclaimer:This video be watched before reading down below.

Many of us, who have fled to this country have (re)discovered our passion for "good" cinema
and "good" food, intensity of that passion got reduced on our pursuit to professional and social developments, while we were in the sub-continent. Adherence to "good" art  and "good" food (and may I add beverages as well) is our passport stamp of being elegant. Some might not be willing to confer on this, and those who won't, will be under the Sword of Damocles of being called non-elegant.
Snobbery is good and it works wonders as it injects a humongous sense of self-empowerment within.
 And this be told, the purpose of sharing the video-link above, was to trigger on the feeling of elegant-ness(throw out the word "elegance",  its too short to convey the enormity within).

Thus ends my Prologue.

The purpose of penning down this Blog is tad bit different.  I am badly seeking for recommendations for watchable movies, that got released post 2009. I am tending to believe many of you are Netflix,Redbox, Internet (devouring youtube specifically) users who hook onto movie channels at the slightest opportunity. Some of you are festival-goers and come across many avant garde movies. There are some, who would have had put premium on entertainment value rather than anything else. So what's your List of recommendations?  Here's my mine and this is why I recommend.
Hollywood
Inception (Director:-Christopher Nolan, Lead Actor-Leonardo di Caprio):-Its a movie based on dreams. The convention did not have much to play here. This is no good versus evil plot, there is no mission to be accomplished, there is no villain, no hero, no lost-love to be found out. Serious philosophers might find this one, as a trite talk on dreams.
Inglourious Basterds(Director: Quentin Tarantino):-Fictionalized history on World War II. Taut screenplay. Hitler gets murdered by the side-kicks in the movie.

The Ghostwriter(Director:Roman Polanski) :Fictionalized history. British PM, out of office, finds himself, assassinated. Best thriller I had seen in recent times.

Bengali Movies
Shukno Lanka(Mithun Chakraborty in the lead): A Bengali movie made with an universal appeal, that can cut across the board, irrespective of financial, social, rural, urban,professional status. Bengali movies are not known to be made of this kind, the only other instant I can think of is Goopy-Gyne Bagha-Byne. It has its own share of technical and non-technical flaws, condition yourself to overlook them.

Hindi Movie
None I can think of recommending. A close miss would be Rock On(Farhan Akhtar in lead) (just for intelligent production design).


Foreign Movies
The White Ribbon(German movie that won  in Cannes 2009, for the best film):-A dramma movie, set in a village, just before World War I.  I liked it because, it did not boldly underline the drammatic moments in the movie with  background score accents. Actually, no background score at all.
A month back, I watched a south-Korean movie at the South-Asian Minneapolis Film Festival, "Poetry" which had used the same technique of no background score.  Guess, that is the order of the day.

E-version of BSSM 's Magazine 2010

Journal of Durga Pujo Collector's Edition Vol V.

Thanking the Crew and Feedbacks/Comments are welcome

Usual Suspects:
An acknowledgment has been made to some in the Magazine, at the very first page.
Officers:-Basabdatta, Subhrajit and Shameek.
Protima Design:-Kaushik, Rahul, Ayan, Soumyadeep and Arpan.
Pujo Proceedings:-Nilanjana, Debasish, Aditi, Devleena, Payel, Joon, Meenakshi, Amit, Taraswi, Arpita,
Dipta, Sonia and Shankar.
Cultural Program:-Aniruddha, Projjwal, Rajes, Sauptik, Sandeep, Nandini, Puja, Shilpi, Diya, Subhabrata, Sharmishtha, Baishali, Sayan and Sohini.
Printing:-Abhijit, Aman and Snigdhanshu.

Beyond the Usual Suspects:
Bhog:-Purnima Ganguli

Cultural:-Rajarshi Guha Niyogi,
Registration Desk:-Ajay Yekkirala, Partha Sarathi Mukherjee
Protima Design:-Sanjoy De,
Dinner:-Vijay Srivastav, Saif Rahman, Ishtiaque Ahmed,
Video Recording and Photos:-Sandipak Bagchi, Lilia Pataky, Sounak Basu.

If names had been missed out and you are aware of it, do let me (saurav.mitra@gmail.com) know, I would re-edit this Blog entry.

Feedback and comments

Please post your feedback, if possible, in a detailed manner on BSSM's presentation of Durga Pujo 2010.
 Things that got your maximum/minimum attention, be it Pujo/Bhog or the Protima or the Cultural Program or the Lunch, Snacks, Dinner or the Magazine or the Publicity or the Reception or the Parking of cars or the Time Schedule, overall spirit and camaraderie etc.. If you were pleased or displeased, do let us know.
We encourage you to be as much critical as possible.
You are welcome to post the feedback in an unidentified manner, as "anonymous" if you are bit uncomfortable about it. It's our request, don't hold yourself back.
Your co-operation would help us to Audit ourselves and it would be widely appreciated.
With your help, your "Pujo" will be better than the best next time.
Thanking you in advance,
Sincerely,
BSSM

For Mahalaya follow tweets @birubhadra and RT them

"Soumitra Chatterjee omon daaksaaite obhineta, oto shundor gola, All India Radio onar gola-r byabohar na korey Birendra Krishna Bhadra-r gola-ta bar bar byabohaar korey keno bolun toh?" Lalmohon babu-r eirokom bekhhyappa proshne-y Feluda-r chokh-er opor aadh inchi-r bhuNru-ta ekbaar uthey nemey gelo. Amar haat-e tokhon Lalmohon Babu-ri aana gorom hinge-r kochuri, thik mukh-e dhokate jabo, tar agey hotat aie proshno.
 Radio-te Mahisahsur Mardini sesh hoyeche ghonta khaanek holo. Feluda protyekbari, niyom korey Mahalaya-r din-e or Emerson-er radio set-tai thik bhor chaarte-r shomoi chaaliye dei. Ebaro tai hoyeche. Tar por ek ghonta jog byam aar tar porey bibhinno khabor-er kagoz-e chokh bolano.
Ghori dhorey thik shaare saat-tai Lalmohon Babu-r bell baajlo. Pujo-r uponnyash joma kore diyechen prokashok-er kachey, boi berubey ponchomi-r din-e.  Sheite shokkalbela prakashok-er kache jante perei, chutte chole eshechen amader janate, haat-e gorom kochuri aar jilipi niye. Eshei janalen, apatoto tar jhaara haat paa, onaar gari-ta amra byabohar korte pari pujo-r shomoi-eo. Aar tar porei ei proshno.
Feluda bollo "jaanen toh Uttam Kumar-ke diyeo ekbaar chestha korano hoyechilo. Public sheta khai ni. Naturally, Akaashvani-o tar por aar sahosh korey Birendra Krishna Bhadra-r baire kauke bhabe ni." Lalmohon Babu, chaaar bar patro non, "Uttam Kumar-ke bangali khai ni ???  dhuuuuuur moshai, apni ki roshikota korchen naki amar sathe?"
"Two-two-four-eight-five-three-three-six, Topshe line-ta dhore de. Ring holei amake bolbi"-Feluda- je bepar-ta roshikota hishebe nei ni, shetar or konthwoshor shunei bojha gelo. Jani aie shomoi-e okey proshno korar maane hoi na, kar nombor, kisher nombor. Lalmohon Babu-i bollen "Nombor-ta aamar chena-chena thekche, kothau dekhechi khub recently.  Aribbbassssss, eta toh Kolkata All India Radio-r nombor. Apni ki okhane phone-y kotha bolben naki ?" Ami isharai Lalmohon Babu-ke chup korey jetey bollam.
Charminar-er dhoNa dhoNa chaarte chaarte Feluda bollo " Uttam Kumar toh morey bhuut hoye giyeche.  Jara achey taader moddhye Soumitra Babu thekey shuru korey haal-er Parambrata Chattopadhya-er gola-ke byabohaar korar kotha keno All India Radio-r  ekbaro money holo na  sheite janbar amaro ekta adbhut koutuhol hochche. Aaashi bochor dhorey cholche shei ek konthoswor, shei ek mannerism. Aaar public-o hoyeche temni. Ahaaaaahahaa Birendra Krishna Bhodro !!  ki udatto kontho !!! Arey aajker din-ey oti natokiyota chole na. Bepar-ta shekeley.  Bangali-r Chandipaath-tao  Vishwa-Bharati-r copyright-er moton aatke giyeche. Amra bhabi sudhu Rabindranath-kei aatke dewa hoyeche copy-right-e. Bangali-r notunottyo-ke bojhbar khomotau nei, ichchau nei. Na oder saathe ekta appointment thik kore ni. Dekhi oder ki motamot aie puro bishoi-tai, koutohol-ta besh tibryo hochche bhetorey bhetorey. Lalmohon Babu apnake osesh dhonnyobaad, apni ojante amar mon-er ekta janla khule dilen aaajker din-e."............

Our Prayers Are With You ...

Reference: http://tiny.cc/57b8i

Medici of BSSM (410 6th St. S.E. connection)

Apartment 314, 410 6th St. S.E., Minneapolis, MN-55414 have thrown out luminaries of BSSM, Subhrajit Roychowdhury, Kalyanjit Ghosh,Saurav Mitra,Rajesh Mukherjee, Jami Hafiz, Shaikh Mubassar Ali, Rajarshi Guha Niyogi, Partha Sarathi Mukherjee and  Shankhadeep Das. Oldest among them all was Rajesh Mukherjee, who was a resident since the year 2002. Conscious efforts were made by each one them to preserve the BSSM relevance in terms of having direct or indirect modes of engagement with respect to the society.

410, 6th St. S.E. is a property which belong to Steven Scotts Management.In the same building, the other residents had been Paroma Chakraborty, Sombuddha Chakraborty, Baishali Bakshi and Snigdhanshu Chatterjee. People who know them are aware of their humongous significance with respect to BSSM. What Jorashanko was to Renaissance of Bengal, 410 6th St S.E. was similarly the epicenter of  BSSM.

It is widely believed that, ex-410 residents  made a concertedly serious effort, so that the focus of power of BSSM lies within them. So that, it had to never let it go. In some form or the other, they would try to hold it onto themselves. One would constantly see the above set of names crop-up in a more frequent manner as opposed to others in the public space and discussion. One can check it, if one goes through the list of names involved in past Pujo Committees on web (http://www.tc.umn.edu/~bssm/) and Magazines(issues of Journal of Durga Pujo.)
However, this 2010 May, the connection got severed. The last BSSM residents of Apartment 314, coincidentally were the last BSSM residents of  410 6th St. S.E. as well, namely, Subhrajit Roychowdhury, Partha Sarathi Mukherjee and Rajarshi Guha Niyogi, who  had to separate out on logistics issues. Thereby bringing down a warehouse that stood for 8 years.
A good question to ask, what kind of legacy did 410 leave behind ?

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