Music of 2012

Its time to list out my favorite from music of 2012. I am boycotting Hindi music as a protest for Chennai express posters :P Even otherwise, there is nothing much for me there as I have lost interest in Hindi songs :D

This list is based on what sounded good to me and consists of songs only from those films released in 2012. So Kadal, Edhir Neechal et al will feature in next years list only :D

Songs/Albums/Artists are not listed in any particular order.

The SWEET 16 - Melodies that touched my heart

The FAST 8 - Peppy numbers that I loved

The Other Favorites:

From across the borders: From whatever little I had listened :D

Favorite Albums:

• Nanban
• Muppozhudhum Un Karpanaigal
• Neethaane En Ponvasantham
• 3
• Oru Kal Oru Kannadi
• Naan Ee
• Thuppakki 

Best Music Directors:

• Harris Jayaraj - Nanban, Thuppakki, OKOK
• Anirudh Ravichander - 3
• G.V.Prakash Kumar - Muppozhudhum Un Karpanaigal, Thaandavam
• D. Imman - Kumki
• Ilayaraja - Neethaane En Ponvasantham

Best Male Singers:

• Karthik
• Vijay Prakash
• Aalap Raju
• Special Mention: Vijay :)

Best Female Singers:

• Chinmayi
• Andrea
• Sunidhi Chauhan

Best Lyricists:

• Madhan Karky
• Na.Muthukumar

Movies of 2012

The number of movies I watched this year is very very less as I devoted most of my time to watch English series F.R.I.E.N.D.S, Two and a Half Men, Sherlock, How I Met Your Mother and The Big Bang Theory.

Following are the movies I watched in 2012. There are a few more old movies I watched but not in this list as they are nothing worth mentioning :D Except these I haven't watched any new movies and I don't regret, because these are the ones I wanted to catch up and I made sure that I saw them :D 

So I consider all of these my best picks of 2012 :D


Movies are listed in alphabetical order.

Best of Tamil:


Kadhalil Sodhappuvadhu Yeppadi
Kalakalappu
Naan
Naan Ee
Nanban
Pizza
Thuppakki
Vazhakku Enn 18/9

Tamil-Dubbed Films:

Chaarulatha
English Vinglish


Other Language Films:

Kahaani
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
The Amazing Spider-Man
The Lorax
Ala Modalaindi
Lifeu Ishtene

I want to watch Naduvula Konjam Pakkatha Kaanum also soon :D

Happy Birthday Chennai! ♥

August 22 - The city I love so much turns an year younger this day. 373 is just a number for those like me who have grown up along with the city all through their life.

She might not have the climate that everyone claims the best. She might not have perennial rivers that gives water throughout the year. She might not give the peaceful atmosphere and a relaxed life for those who need it.

Yet she accepts and takes everyone who comes to her with a new hope in life. She gives the safety and security which no other metro in this country can claim to have. She accommodates just people - not religions, languages or castes.

There are pubs and growing night life and at the same time sabhas and katcheris in music season. There are enough of things engage retired people at old age and at the same time opportunities for young minds coming out with hopes and dreams. There is a harmonious mix of all cultures, religions and various diversities which is the unique nature of this city.

On one hand, there are a quite a handful of things to be improved - the roads and drainage system especially in rainy season, the storm water drains. The prohibitively costly auto fares which are a total injustice to the common man. The heavy traffic in few areas which could not be controlled by any means. The need of proper "tourist spots" instead of passing off old buildings and memorials of leaders as tourist attractions - something that is worthy spending time on.

On the other hand, the city springs up lots of hopes in its latest developments - the Chennai Metro Rail project which if goes as per plan will be the most effectively connected transport network in Chennai. The new airport terminals that are built to match those in other metros - yet stays very much closer to the city. The increasing bus connectivity and standard of government buses. The booming industrial zones in and around the city and so on.

She knows to balance herself and stay firm for many years to come. She has done it for 373 years and she will continue to do it. And will make people like me always the proud children of Chennai.

To end with, a salute to the city from her Oscar winning musician:

Naan Ee - The Buzzing Entertainer

Quoting Vidya Balan from The Dirty Picture, "Filmein sirf teen cheezon ki wajah se chalti hain... Entertainment, Entertainment, Entertainment". And that is what Naan Ee provides you. Entertainment to the core from start to end of the end credits. And the amazing fact is that most of it is delivered through a tiny little housefly (Ee), sans any big stars.

A man madly in love with a girl is killed by a business magnet who sets an eye on the girl. He reincarnates as a housefly to save his lover who is now in the danger of getting into the trap of his killer. As simple as the story and concept sounds, it could have been easily turned into a silly piece of crap by the likes of Ramanarayanan. Instead, SS Rajamouli has created an outstanding entertainer that caters to audience of all ages and keeps them glued to screen all through.

Nani plays a sweet lover and dies early in the film. The only duet featuring him and Samantha is too colorful and a delight to watch on screen. Besides looking pretty, Samantha performs well in a strong role as a micro-artist and social worker and both of these are vital to her characterization and used well in moving the film forward.

But, the film ultimately belongs to two characters. One is the "Ee" or the reincarnated Nani, which comes for almost three fourth of the film. Right from its birth from a pupa, till it burns itself in the process of killing the villain and saving the lady love from previous birth, the fly rules the film completely. On the other end is Sudeep, the strong villain yet who can't get rid of a housefly from his life. He grows more and more evil from beginning to end and at the end gets killed in revenge.

The scenes involving the two are so interesting to watch and most of them leave you in splits. The ways in which the fly keeps Sudeep away from Samantha are very natural and nothing more than what a fly does. The stunts even if exaggerated are not lengthy enough or even a bit boring. Santhanam in a miniscule role shines and other minor characters in the film have performed their best.

The film works big time because of two factors - a strong script and special effects. It is extremely difficult to hold audience for over two hours without any big stars and that too with the antics of a housefly. But the brilliance of Rajamouli's script and direction manages to do that. Even the smallest details are taken care like the view from the fly's compound eye, which is shown as many lenses. The power of its eyes is also used very well in the stunts.

The whole story happens in 3 weeks which is pretty much the average life span of a housefly. Samantha being a micro-artist justifies the mask and metal claws that the fly gets. She interacting with a dumb and deaf girl in a charity event helps her understanding of fly's actions make more sense. The fly in itself is designed with typical features of a male fly. Any other errors made are not significant when compared to the entertainment we get.

The special effects which are said to have cost 7 crore are worth every penny spent, because that makes the film more realistic and non-Ramanarayan type. And the time taken to ensure it comes perfect has really paid off. The first interactions of the fly with outside world in a park are extraordinary and the standard is then maintained throughout.

The outstanding camera work by K. K. Senthil Kumar and crisp editing by Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao are a major plus for the film. Same goes with the music and background score by Keeravani, which keeps the mood and tone of the film intact throughout. Dialogues by Crazy Mohan are crisp, and funny too when required. An example is when Samantha feeds coffee for the fly in a saucer, the Coffee Day waiter claims sorry for having fly in the coffee and Samantha replies "No, No, Ee coffee kudichitu iruku".

The film has everything that is required for a commercial entertainer and is a winner in all aspects. Even the end credits are completely hilarious with Santhanam and Crazy Mohan making an appearance. A tiny housefly which could be a nuisance to us everyday has been made into a charming super hero and you can't just stop smiling when it says "I Am Back" at the end. We wish to say the same after entering the theatre for a second watch.

Naan Ee - Flying high

Movie Ratings from 2010 till date - The Very Good ones : Part 2

Ko (Tamil)

3.5 stars

A political thriller drama, it is a well written, executed and performed film with Jeeva and Ajmal taking all honors for performance from the relatively wooden heroines. A no-nonsense film that is worth spending time on.

The Lives of Others (German)

3.5 stars

A detective who is on a mission to spy a writer and his actress partner discovers sad realities and the troubles they are in and instead of relaying the truth in his investigation, he tries save them but not for long. A film which reminded me of politics controlling film industry in Tamil Nadu.

Payanam (Tamil)

3.5 stars

A flight hijack story and the rescue operation, told with humor, emotions, seriousness and a little masala. Very good time pass and entertaining. Brilliant performances from the whole cast.

Yudham Sei (Tamil)

3.5 stars

The war waged by the parents of a victim of sexual harassment against those who were responsible for her death. The officer investigating their case understands their plight as he himself is searching for his missing sister. An emotional thriller.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (English)

3.75 stars

An ugly infant neglected by his father starts growing younger everyday. He grows younger to teens and then back to infancy as his lover grows older than him. Unbelievable plot but excellent acting from Brad Pitt keeps you glued.

Wake Up Sid (Hindi)

3.75 stars

A lazy youngster leaves his house to make a living on his own after putting up a fight with his father. The careless rich-kid, a college student is taught the meaning of life by his girl friend, an aspiring writer with whom he lives.

Se7en (English)

3.75 stars

Two police detectives working in a crime-filled city, become deeply involved in a case involving a series of sadistic murders. Each murder corresponds to one of the seven deadly sins: Gluttony, Envy, Lust, Pride, Sloth, Greed and Wrath.

8 Mile (English)

3.75 stars

The Eninem movie about the life of a rapper and how he crosses all hurdles in life to win over his rivals. Enimem and Brittany did an excellent job, sad that the actress is no more. Never loved rap before as much as I did in this film.

The Departed (English)

3.75 stars

Hollywood remake of Infernal Affairs, like other such films in this list, does not impress me like the original. Nevertheless, an Oscar winner, its a great film with a brilliant performance from Leonardo.

Pulp Fiction (English)

3.75 stars

One of the top 5 highly rated films in IMDB, this links three interrelated stories with a non linear narration. The film has Quentin Tarantino's style throughout and being forerunner for many films made in this style, this was a brilliant movie.

Harischandrachi Factory (Marathi)

3.75 stars

The biographical tale of Dada Saheb Palke who was one of the pioneers of Indian Cinema, takes us through his achievements and how he brought life into cinema screen in a humorous way with light hearted scenes. Truly an inspiring story for anyone to know.

Apollo 13 (English)

3.75 stars

The events that happened before, during and after the launch of Apollo 13 space shuttle and how despite failures in mission, the astronauts are saved is told in an interesting manner.

Babe, I Love You (Tagalog)

3.75 stars

A sweet and cute Filipino film about the love story of a young college professor and a bar girl who despite their differences find a common interest and need for each other that destines them to be together for a lifetime.

Magadheera (Telugu)

3.75 stars

The extravagant and record breaking hit from Andhra, a film set in historical and modern times and its about reincarnation and reunion. Might sound mythological but the special effects, grandeur and performances makes the film worth a watch. Ram Charan as warrior and Kajal as his lady love were too good.

Leader (Telugu)

3.75 stars

An inspiring and thought provoking story on political games and ambitions of a youngster who accidentally steps into politics. A Mudhalvan type of film with a strong writing, good songs and nice performances.

State of Play (English)

3.75 stars

A political drama about a Congressman caught in a murder conspiracy of his employee and how his friend from press helps him by investigating the crime. As the suspense breaks, unbelievable truths are revealed

Infernal Affairs – 1 (Cantonese)

4 stars

The first one of the trilogy which was remade in Hollywood as The Departed. But I loved this more than The Departed. The reason is that the feel is better in this and the presentation was too good.

Infernal Affairs - 2 (Cantonese)

4 stars

The second one in the IA trilogy is actually a prequel to part 1 and tells what led to the whole story that happened in Part 1. Knowing the background of the primary characters of IA-1 was interesting.

My Sassy Girl (Korean)

4 stars

A very sweet love story from Korea where meeting a girl in train station changes the whole life of a guy. The emotions and the romance has been brought out very well, especially the female lead performed to her best.

The Man from Earth (English)

4 stars

The whole movie happens in a closed drawing room of a house with very few characters and proceds fully though conversations between them. Yet it was totally engaging with an unexpected twist at the end.

Oy! (Telugu)

4 stars

The film that left me in tears for a long time after I watched it. It is an usual love story with cinematic screenplay but the great music, some greatly written scenes and dialogues and performances of Siddharth and Shamili take the film to the next level.

Kavalan (Tamil)

4 stars

A beautiful heart warming love story from Vijay after a long time and sort of comeback for Asin to Tamil after a gap. Both of them along with the surprise element Mithra Kurian makes this an entertaining romantic comedy, with Vadivelu for laughs. A truly feel good movie that brought the Vijay of golden old days back on screen. Rounded off to 4 for the Vijay factor.

Amores Perros (Spanish)

4 stars

An Oscar nominee, its a film containing three distinct stories which are connected by a car accident in Mexico City. Each of the three tales is also a reflection on the cruelty of humans toward animals and each other, showing how they may live dark or even hideous lives.

Movie Ratings from 2010 till date - The Very Good ones : Part 1

Chocolat (English/French)

3.25 stars

A film as sweet as its name with the theme of how a whole village under the control of church breaks its traditions to accept Chocolate and its sellers as part of them. First time I saw Johnny Depp in a film without in a non-pirate form.

REC (Spanish)

3.25 stars

A Spanish horror film made using shaky camerawork and its about happenings in a cursed apartment complex whose residents one by one come under the attack of a strange disease that turn them into cannibals.

Darna Manaa Hai (Hindi)

3.25 stars

Six different short stories narrated one by one by friends who take shelter in a deserted ravaged house. Each of them gets killed after they leave the group until none of them is left over.

Trick r' Treat (English)

3.25 stars

The film consists of four Halloween-related scary stories which happen on the Halloween night. Dark comedy mixed with horror, it was a fun film to watch.

Mr & Mrs  Smith (English)

3.25 stars

An action thriller that works out only because of its lead pair, Angelina and Brad Pitt. They not only burn the screen with their awesome chemistry but also make the otherwise flat film worth watching.

Fallen Angels (Cantonese)

3.25 stars

A disillusioned hit man embarks on his last hit but first he has to overcome the affections of his cool, detached partner he rarely sees. Thinking it is dangerous and improper to become involved with a colleague, he tries to find a surrogate for his affections. He crosses paths with a strange drifter looking for her ex-boyfriend and a mute trying to get the world's attention in his own ways.

7 Khoon Maaf

3.25 stars

The film shows the transition of a girl in her teens till she becomes an elderly woman during the course of which she lives with seven husbands each of whom falls as a victim of death for one reason or the other. Makes a good watch for a Priyanka fan like me.

500 Days of Summer (English)

3.5 stars

The supposedly inspiration for VTV, this is a feel good film that touches upon broken love in a different way. The heart warming sincere portrayal of the protagonist’s character by Joseph Gordon-Levitt is a good reason to watch the movie. The sweet ending is something unexpected.

Catch Me If You Can (English)

3.5 stars

An interesting police-chasing-thief thriller with a gripping narration and lot of twists. Excellent performances from Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks.

Jerry Maguire (English)

3.5 stars

Story of a sports agent who fights against odds in his career and establishes back his credibility. One of the best from Tom Cruise.

Kalavaani (Tamil)

3.5 stars

A simple and soft love story told in a simple, hilarious way that will keep you engaged throughout. Good performances from Vimal and Oviya while Saranya rocks as Vimal's mother (‘Neenga venna paarunga, avan top-paa varuvaan’)

Munich (English)

3.5 stars

Spielberg's historical fiction film about the Israeli government's secret retaliation attacks after the massacre of Israeli athletes by the Black September terrorist group during the 1972 Summer Olympics.

Poltergeist (English)

3.5 stars

A horror film with great thrills and special effects, considering the fact that it was made in 1982. The mother of all RGV's horror movies.(The real horrors)

Rocket Singh (Hindi)

3.5 stars

The story of a college pass out with low grades in college who after humiliating experiences as a salesman finds a career breakthrough in a new secret business he ventures into with his colleagues. An inspiring tale of success told through great performances.

The Final Destination - 2 (English)

3.5 stars

The second installment in the series taking on the concept from the first, but with a new set of events and characters. Thought not as good as the first, it is still a great thriller in its own way.

Sherlock Holmes (English)

3.5 stars

Detective Sherlock Holmes and his stalwart partner Watson engage in a battle of wits and brawn with a nemesis whose plot is a threat to all of England. Very interesting to see the characters read about in childhood coming live on screen.

Race (Hindi)

3.5 stars

A thriller with lot of twists and turns until the end, each of which is unexpected and gets you more involved into the film. An exciting watch.

A Beautiful Mind (English)

3.5 stars

The Biographical film of John Nash, the father of Game Theory where his history is told in an excellent way and how his abnormal mind worked out wonders inspite of affecting his personal life to a great extent. Russell Crowe throws in a brilliant performance.

Run Lola Run (German)

3.5 stars

A very different film that shows 3 different 'what if' sequences that happen during a girl's run to stop her boyfriend from entering into a daylight robbery. The first two have a negative end while the last run ends in all is well.

One Day (Mandarin)

3.5 stars

A confusing yet interesting Taiwanese film about two people meeting in their dreams but one of them is having the dream an year earlier than the other. The narration switches between dreams of both back and forth, so it takes some time for the story to sink in.

You are the one (Tagalog)

3.5 stars

This is a Filipino romantic comedy film and tells about the encounter of a girl working in Census Bureau with a guy in American Embassy who rejects her Visa and what happens later when he comes to her for a help that would change his life.

Boy A (English)

3.5 stars

A touching portrayal of the life of a boy falsely accused with murder of a girl in  his childhood and how his life changes once he is brought back to the world by a caring mentor. Andrew Garfield of The Social Network impresses with his performance.

Chungking Express (Cantonese/Mandarin)

3.5 stars

A differently shot and told two tales happening in Chungking district of China. Both are linked by a small thread and are both romantic tales

Aarya – 2 (Telugu)

3.5 stars

The sequel to Aarya, this Allu Arjun starrer is a bundle of entertainment for its unusual storyline, good songs, Allu Arjun's performance and the small twists that come all along the story. An interesting watch.

Before Sunrise and Before Sunset (English)

3.5 stars

Before Sunrise is the first part of the story where two strangers meet in a train, get down at Vienna and spend an evening and night together before separating the next morning. They decide the meet each other at same place 6 months later.

Before Sunset is the part 2 happening 9 years later, where the same guy and the girl(same actors) meet again, now both in a different stage of life and with their own commitments. They spend time together before bidding good bye at sunset. What happens at the end is left to viewer's imagination.

Both are highly rated movies in various critic sites and are surprisingly very interesting inspite of the fact that there is nothing but conversation between two characters throughout the film.

Easan (Tamil)

3.5 stars

A hard hitting story of what happens to small town girls in big cities ravaged by sons and daughters of big shots. Though the amount of detail and depth of violence shown is not really needed, it helps create a shock for the viewer and makes you think about the reality for a moment.

Movie Ratings from 2010 till date - The Good and Excellent ones

Continued from previous ratings. The Very Good category is too long because of my generosity in star ratings. Hence will be done separately as two posts. :)


The Good Ones

Kismat Konnection (Hindi)

2.25 stars

An everything and everyone is good type story, with some good performances from Shahid Kapoor and Vidya Balan. Good time pass movie. Juhi Chawla was good to see after a long gap.

Lake Mungo (English)

2.25 stars

A supernatural thriller shot in a documentary format. The suspense is built slowly and when the truth is revealed, shocking truths come to light.

The Beach (English)

2.25 stars

A group of friends join people in an island who have created a fantasy world for themselves over the years. How these new entrants change the scene and affect their harmony is what the film is all about.

The Final Destination - 3 and The Final Destination – 4 (English)

2.25 stars

The last two films of the Final Destination franchise, though not as good as the first two were worth a watch for the thrills and chills, inspite of too much blood and gore.

Drag Me To Hell (English)

2.25 stars

A gory horror film with a fast paced screenplay and lot of thrilling moments. Nice exciting watch for once.

My Name Is Anthony Gonsalves (Hindi)

2.25 stars

This film, though a flop, was good for me and was enjoyable. It’s about an aspiring actor who is brought up by a baddie and when he comes to know his real colours, he is torn between gratitude and conscience. Nikhil Dwiwedi and Amrita Rao were impressive.

Ek Hasina Thi (Hindi)

2.25 stars

The story of a woman cheated and dumped by a guy and sent to jail. After facing atrocities there and escaping, she sets on a revenging spree finally giving a fitting end for the guy who betrayed her.

Love Aaj Kal (Hindi)

2.5 stars

The different type of story telling shifting between past and present, where Saif plays the protagonist in both. A practical story told beautifully though the ending was quite cinematic.

Remember Me (English)

2.5 stars

Though this movie didn’t receive that good reviews, I found it to be good and worth a watch. Robert Pattinson, quite different from the Edward of Twilight was good in this film. The ending was unexpected and unwanted though.

Striker (Hindi)

2.5 stars

Siddharth's first Hindi venture as a solo hero and he did a pretty good job in it. The film revolves around the Hindu-Muslim riots in Mumbai and set in the backdrop of a lower middle class residential area. Good performances and realistically written film.

United 93 (English)

2.5 stars

The film inspired by the real life incident of what happened on the United 93 flight on the day of 9/11 in USA. Its really emotional to see how passengers try to make the mission of terrorists a failure, losing their own lives in the process.

In Bruges (English)

2.5 stars

A black comedy crime film revolving around two hit men who stay in Bruges after an assignment where they kill a young boy by mistake. As days pass, their conscience strikes back leading to unexpected events. Collin Farrell was great in his role.

Sweet November (English)                            

2.5 stars

A candy floss sweet love story that has given ideas to numerous love films of India in recent times, including the highly rated Oy in this list. Keanu Reeves puts in a great performance as a committed lover willing to go any length to keep his dying soul mate happy.

The Last Song (English)

2.5 stars

A beautiful film portraying the affection of a father for his daughter. The daughter though initially not understanding him and keeping away from him realises her mistakes later and stays with him till he breathes his last fulfilling his last wishes too.

Karthik Calling Karthik (Hindi)

2.5 stars

A psycho thriller where a reserved man gets a call from himself and that changes his life upside down including getting along with a colleague. But one mistake he does spoils everything and it is revealed who the other person calling him is.

Moggina Manasu (Kannada)

2.5 stars

The film deals with the confusions faced by teen age girls with respect to making decisions of their life and choosing their life partners. Radhika Pandit did a very good job for a debut heroine.

Mundhinam Partheyney (Tamil)

2.5 stars

Made by a newbie with lot of other newbies in the cast, this film was better than what I expected and was worth a watch. The newbies thankfully knew some acting and the screenplay was also decently done. The music by Thamman was another highlight.

A Few Good Men (English)

2.5 stars

A courtroom drama starring Tom Cruise and Demi Moore, the film revolves around the trial of two US Marines charged with the murder of a fellow Marine and the tribulations of their lawyer as he prepares a case to defend his clients.

Merantau (Indonesian)

2.5 stars

An action film from Indonesia and its about a guy from small town who comes to city and earns unknowingly the wrath of a human racket gang in an attempt to save a girl and her brother.

Mirrors 2 (English)

2.5 stars

Not as thrilling as the first part (Mirrors). Yet there were lot of edge of the seat moments of chill and horror.

REC 2 (Spanish)

2.5 stars

The second part of the REC series, not as good as the first. Full of blood and gore, it is also shot in shaky camerawork as the first one. It tells the aftermaths and mysteries of the disease attack in the cursed apartment building.

And I Love you so (Tagalog)

2.5 stars

A widow with financial problems rents out her apartment where she and her loving husband lived. Her tenant, a victim of broken love, is determined to bring her back to normal life while his landlady is still not ready for a new life.

Moon (English)

2.5 stars

A man on a lunar mission discovers shocking truths about himself and the mission and the cunning strategies of the organization he works for. How he escapes the dangers awaiting is what the film is about.

Irreversible (French)

2.5 stars

A very disturbing and at times disgusting film, yet worth a watch for the superb narration that goes from climax to the start. The background score and shaky camera angles haunted me for quite some time after watching the film.

Philadelphia (English)

2.5 stars

Story of an AIDS patient in the 90's and his last days when AIDS was looked upon as a curse and people refused to even touch the patients. Great performance from Tom Hanks and rest of the cast.

Paranormal Activity 2 (English)

2.5 stars

The second installment of Paranormal Activity, this time more and more haunting and scary. The story involves a kid too which makes it more thrilling.

The Devil Wears Prada (English)

2.5 stars

Watched this movie in Movies Now one night and found it entertaining. The story of a girl who tries to impress her boss and get a good name and in the process she begins to inherit few qualities of her boss unknowingly.

Meiporul (Tamil)

2.5 stars

A decently good film made by NRI's and much better than the low budget independent films that release every now and then. A psycho thriller, its realistic portrayal of characters and good performances from an unknown cast impressed me.

Thamizh Padam (Tamil)

2.5 stars

A ROTFL entertainment of non stop Lollu Sabha type comedy which takes on numerous Tamil Film clichés in a satirical way. Though the second half drags after some time, overall it was a very good time pass.

Johnny Gaddaar (Hindi)

2.5 stars

Suspense thriller with a good number of twists and a one-leads-to-another kind of gripping narration.

My Sassy Girl (English)

2.75 stars

The Hollywood version of the Korean romantic comedy. As always, not as good as the original mainly because the original feel and emotions were underplayed, especially the heroine did not look convincing for the role.

Grown Ups (English)

2.75 stars

Probably not a high rated film, but had me LOL and ROTFL throughout for its Vadivelu type comedies. Really enjoyed a full length comedy after a long time.

Love, Sex Aur Dhokha (Hindi)

2.75 stars

Three stories about Love, Sex and Deceit and how it plays around the lives of characters in each of the stories linked by a thread is what the film is all about. Shot in a realistic manner it shockingly reveals the common issues in society today.

Tere Bin Laden (Hindi)

2.75 stars

A rollicking laughter riot where a Bin Laden look alike is used to create a news footage for a sinking TV channel which leads to unexpected consequences leading to bigger problems, all narrated hilariously.

Spy Game (English)

2.75 stars

An aging mid-level case officer on his last day before retirement realizes that one of his favorite recruits has his life in danger in a Chinese Prison and he is the only one who can save him. The film shuttles between past and present- about the experiences of the senior in the past with his recruit and his efforts today to save him.

The Recruit (English)

2.75 stars

A brainy student agrees to work undercover for a senior CIA officer with the hope of finding some details about his father. What he is unaware is the trap he is led into and the consequences he should face for it. Despite the low ratings on IMDB and RT, I found the film to be pretty good.

Wanted (English)

2.75 stars

The storyline of this Angelina Jolie starrer follows a frustrated accountant who discovers that he is the son of a professional assassin and decides to join The Fraternity, the secret guild in which his father worked. What happens therafter is told with lot of breathtaking action.

Darling (Telugu)

2.75 stars

A commercial family entertainer starring Prabhas and Kajal Agarwal. The hero has lot of dreams about his childhood sweetheart but when he meets her in person she seems to have no interest towards him. How he wins her back is what the story is all about.

Cashback (English)

3 stars

An aspiring artist, develops insomnia after a painful breakup with his girlfriend. To get over it and to spend extra hours gained he works in a super market which not only solves his problems but gives him a difference in life.

Infernal Affairs - 3 (Cantonese)

3 stars

The final installment in the trilogy, this keeps shifting times between incidents that happened before and after the first part. A little confusing narration but was enjoyable.

A Lot Like Love (English)

3 stars

This romatic comedy focuses on two individuals whose relationship slowly evolves from lust to friendship to romance over the course of seven years. The film's tag line is: there's nothing better than a great romance to ruin a perfectly good friendship.

Baava (Telugu)

3 stars

A typical Telugu village drama of family feuds, a colorful love story and love winning against all odds. Siddarth at his usual best while Pranitha was refreshing. Good songs and locations.

Chirutha (Telugu)

3 stars

Ram Charan's debut movie with an old story line of boy meets girl, girl hates boy, boy helps girl, girl loves boy, girls father opposes, boy proves his worth and father unites the lovers. But a fast paced narration and excellent songs drives away the boredom for the viewer.

P.S.I Love You (English)

3 stars

An emotional romantic drama of how a guy communicates with his single wife even after his death through letters each of which ends with P.S I love You. HE plans everything for her to be happy and get back to normal life, and at a point in time, he makes her let go of her past and move ahead in life.

Misty (Japanese)

3 stars

A Samurai warrior and his wife travel in a forest when they encounter a bandit. He rapes the warrior's wife and gets arrested. The incident is narrated as four different versions of same story told by four different people. A remake of 1950 Japanese film Rashomon.

dot the i (English)

3 stars

A man hires a struggling actor in an attempt at creating an artistic snuff film, but it happens so that the heroine is his spouse and she actually falls in love with the actor set to be her hero. When both of them realize the trap they had fallen into, they take their revenge but in a planned and measured way.

Turn Left Turn Right (Cantonese)

3 stars

A simple love story where the lovers inspite of being close to each other never recognize each other and even when their apartments share the same wall, their routines gives them little chance to realize who is on the other side. How they unite at last is narrated with humour, emotion and drama.

The Excellent Ones

Speed (English)

4.25 stars

Embarrassing to say that I had never watched this movie until few months back. Really an edge of the seat thriller that makes sure that you won't take your eyes away from screen for even a moment.

Open Your Eyes (Spanish)

4.25 stars

The Spanish original of Tom Cruise's Vanilla Sky. This 1997 film was well ahead of its times talking about concepts like Life Extension and at the end, it took me a lot of time to comprehend and realize the actual suspense in the film. Very well made movie.

Fight Club (English)

4.5 stars

An unusual thriller with excellence written throughout, in concept, story, screenplay, performances and the technicalities. The suspense maintained till the end keeps you engaged throughout.

The Final Destination - 1 (English)

4.5 stars

The first of the series and definitely the concept and thrills were very new. A spine chilling journey through life and death of a group of unrelated people bound by a single factor that they missed a flight that caught into an accident.

The Shawshank Redemption (English)

4.5 stars

The highest rated movie in IMDB till date, this proved very much worthy for the rating. It is not just a great movie, but an inspiring tale of prison break beautifully told through excellently written scenes.

Shutter Island (English)

4.5 stars

This is a brilliant piece of work. Suspense, suspense and more of them. And finally when they all unwound, it definitely leaves you astonished, whatever you thought as wrong is right and the right is wrong. Awesome film.

The Social Network (English)

4.75 stars

The extraordinary film that went on the get rave reviews and Oscar nominations for its excellence both in film making and performances. This story of Facebook and its founder is something which everyone gets attached to instantly.

Movie Ratings from 2010 till date - The Worst, Bad and Okay ones

This has been a very long break, and I am back again with ratings of movies I had watched in past 15+ months or so. There are categories as: Worst, Bad, Okay, Good, Very Good and Excellent. The first three will go in this post, rest will follow in subsequent ones. These are rating as per my tastes, likes and dislikes, and there is nothing to debate over this as the comments are truly my personal opinions. With that, let me get to the business.

The Worst Ones

Bad things first. I would not rate any movie worst, but I could not resist from rating these three films in this category, mainly because they are so weird and absurd, that they would make other bad movies look like classics. Even if I rate these movies, it would be only to indicate how bad they are.

Sindhu Samaveli (Tamil)

The father-in-law getting attracted to daughter-in-law and she reciprocating back might be a rare case real word controversial topic. But what makes this film disgusting is the way in which the incidents are portrayed and the reasoning out of these incidents. Sad that the lead actress and the hero who plays her husband, inspite of their potentials had this weirdity as their launch vehicle.

Kynodontas (Dog Tooth - Greek)

A film that has epic scenes like father arranging a girl for his son's sexual pleasures, daughters seeking sexual pleasure with each other and daughter and few more. Set in a weird backdrop of parents house arresting their children for no known reason and creating a fake living world for them, this seems to be a highly rated award winning and Oscar nominated film of Greece. Heights of disgust.

Shaa Boo Three (Tamil)

A less known (for good) film with less known actors who cannot act to save their life, a badly scripted and badly directed #epicfail film. I technically did not watch this film. This was running on TV as a companion for me when I was preparing MBA semester exams. No wonder I concentrated more on my book than on the film :)

The Bad Ones

These are potentially good movies which are spoiled by one reason or the other. I would not say I regretted watching these, but really regretted the way they were made.

Shaapit (Hindi)

0.5 stars

A Vikram Bhatt thriller that would have been atleast as good as Raaz if he had chosen the right actors to play the lead. Both the hero and heroine were wooden in their performances and the only saving graces were the thrills and camera work.

Nenapirali (Kannada)

0.5 stars

I supposed this to be a good film based on some reviews but finally it turned out to be a bad one. With a triangular love story and surprisingly good looking hero, the film started off well and was good till first half after which in the name of twists, the director had written a very bad screenplay with an expected ending, The title track which was played half a dozen times in the film did nothing good for the film which surprisingly is a big hit and won many awards too.

Mirch (Hindi)

0.5 stars

Four separate stories of women cheating on their husbands and escaping when they come to know of it, this is no film of women liberalization, rather portrays women in a bad light. It makes the concept of women entering into extra marital affairs look like a choice of convenience rather than a emotional decision. Thankfully there was a naturally acting Konkana Sen and a beautiful Raima Sen.

Arithu Arithu (Tamil)

0.5 stars

A film without any direction, proper story line, good narration or a focused theme. It wanders around science, love, terrorism and mental health ultimately causing a nauseated appeal to the viewer. The guy in the name of Villain kills you with his accent and dialogue delivery. Waste of time.

Nadunisi Naaygal (Tamil)

0.5 stars

Blasted by public and most reviewers, this film did never fulfill the expectations it had created or proved to be worth of its hype. Nevertheless it is a harmless one time watch though it is neither thrilling, nor very engaging. There is no takeaway from the film, even though it claims to have a message.

Sura (Tamil)

0.75 stars

With a complete entertainer like Vijay, a decent storyline and good music with amazingly choreographed songs, it should have turned out to be an atleast okay film provided there was some good original scripting and narration. But with a screenplay borrowing sequences from previous Vijay films and a weak second half, this film failed to impress on many aspects.

Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi (Hindi)

0.75 stars

Set in the era when Naxal movement was growing and with some good performances, this film would have been a good watch if only the director has a focused theme and a better written heroine character. Neither a biography, nor the story of a struggle and not even a love story set in violence backdrop, the film meanders through all these and ended up making me wonder what was the director conveying through it?

Anandha Thandavam (Tamil)

0.75 stars

A novel by Sujatha made into a film with some beautiful camera work and good music, but sadly it is marred by poor writing and weak performances from lead cast. The characterization of Tamanna in particular which varies from insane to childish to matured to pitiful is not brought out well which makes the film further weak. Nevertheless, was good in parts.

Click (Hindi)

1 star

Remake of Thai film Shutter (which was also remade as Sivi in Tamil), this is more loyal to its original but with respect to the thrills and horror quotient, it lacks a lot. The slow pace and lackluster music make things further worse. Some scary moments still worth watching.

A Perfect Murder (English)

1 star

The film which was the theme of Hindi film Humraaz, is about a husband discovering his wife's infidelity and planning to revenge on her. It was supposed to be a thriller but had a very slow pace that I almost slept off in the middle. Though good in parts, overall the film did not prove to be a gripping film.

The Okay ones

These are films that are moderately good and can be watched once for certain aspects.

36 China Town (Hindi)

1.25 stars

A mindless fun watch with multi star cast and some good songs. Woven around a murder mystery and kidnap of a child, its humor and Shahid-Kareena pair are the highlights of the film.

Chukkallo Chandrudu (Telugu)

1.25 stars

Scripted by its lead actor Siddharth, it’s a time pass film with three good looking heroines. Its about a guy looking for the right girl for him to marry and choosing one among his three childhood friends. The never failing Siddharth trademark entertainment guaranteed.

LA Confidential (English)

1.5 stars

Thriller set in the backdrop of Los Angeles underworld and sex racket and the police department trying to get hold of them.

Leap Year (English)

1.5 stars

Fun filled romantic comedy and a feel-good road film. A woman with the sentiment of proposing to her guy on leap year sets out on a journey amidst which so much calamities, but during the course of journey she realizes her heart is lost to someone whom she met during her journey.

Nuvve Nuvve (Telugu)

1.5 stars

A Bommarilu type but lesser brilliant film, wherein the girl's father is strict and not willing to accept the guy chosen by his daughter. Typical Telugu family drama.

Vennela (Telugu)

1.5 stars

A romantic thriller set mostly in US with a triangular love story among NRIs. A decent timepass.

Notebook (English)

1.75 stars

A poor and passionate young man falls in love with a rich young woman and gives her a sense of freedom. They soon are separated by their social differences. Their reunion and rest of the life is told in a emotional and sentimental way. A romantic tearjerker.

Sssshhh (Hindi)

1.75 stars

A joker in black cloak threatens and kills a group of students and teachers on a college campus, with the killer leaving no evidence at the crime scene. His main target is a girl and what happens when she sets out on a vacation with friends is the film all about. A crime thriller.

The Proposal (English)

1.75 stars

A pushy boss forces her young assistant to marry her in order to keep her Visa status in the U.S. and avoid deportation to Canada. But slowly they both fall in love and a visit to his family changes a lot in her.

When A Stranger Calls (English)

1.75 stars

A psychopathic killer terrorizes a babysitter, then returns seven years later to menace her again. The start and end of the movie is the real thrill and rest is just out of pace.

From Paris with Love (English)

1.75 stars

An action thriller which starts slowly builds up momentum and gets on run till the end. Nothing great about it, but still a good time pass film.

Splice (English)

1.75 stars

A sci-fi thriller where genetic engineering screws up to produce a creature that becomes a disaster in the life of a scientist couple.

Endhiran (Tamil)

2 stars

I have written about this film in great detail earlier. The stars are mainly for Director Shankar, music and the special effects.

Typical Tamil Mega Serial :P

Dedicated to all poor souls who endure Sun TV mega serial tortures at home :D

A marriage is happening in a hall. The arrangements for marriage would have been done in past 10-15 episodes out of which 5 episodes would have been in marriage hall itself. Now before thaali kattifying one person (mostly a lady) comes and stops the marriage.(The lady coming to marriage hall would have been shown for 10 mins earlier)

Niruthunga!

[thunder music for 10 secs all faces shown]

Indha kalyanam nadakadhu!

[thunder music for 10 secs all faces shown]

Ivaruku indha kalayanam pannika thagudhi illa

[shock music for 10 secs all faces shown]

yen? yen appadi sollra

[repeated atleast 5-6 times by different characters in different ways, every time they finish asking the first person's face and all other's  faces will be shown once]

adhuku oru kaaranam iruku

[suspense music for 10 secs all faces shown]

enna kaaranam? [all faces shown once]

sollu enna kaaranam? [two more ppl ask the same and every time all faces are shown once]

adhu ennanaa....

[suspense music for 10 secs all faces shown]

ivaruku yerkanave kalyanam aaiduchu

[thunder music for 10 secs all faces shown]

ivaru yerkanave innoru ponnku thaali kattitaaru

[thunder music for 10 secs all faces shown]

ivarum andha ponnum ipo purushan pondaati

[thunder music for 10 secs all faces shown]

ivanga rendu perum ipo kalyanam aana thambadhigal

[thunder music for 10 secs all faces shown]

ivaruku idhu rendavadhu kalyanam

[thunder music for 10 secs all faces shown]

[short aahh ooohh title music then break]

- You just finished watching one scene in a Sun tv mega serial :D

Consider similar scenes 30 mins a day 5 days a week, 52 weeks in a year for 5-6 years :D

Manasaatchiye illayada ungalukellam?? :'(

Endhiran - My Point of View

Okay, it’s quite some time since I posted anything on my blog. Thought of entering back here with this lengthy post. :) Before I start with, first things first:

> I am not a fan of Rajini. The last film of his I liked was Muthu.

> I am not a die hard fan of A R Rahman. Especially I liked none of his recent albums very much.

> I am not a too big fan of Shankar. The last film of his which I felt was a complete work was Mudhalvan.

I am a normal film viewer and I have some expectations when I go for a Shankar’s film with Rahman’s music featuring Rajinikanth and Aishwarya Rai and a crew of topmost technicians from India and world over. This write-up is based only on these aspects and I want to make it clear that, I am not interested in sales or box office collection statistics because they make no sense or are of no value to me.

Endhiran is definitely the biggest film of India till date both in terms of production cost and the reach. But biggest does not always mean the best and this film is an example of that. Claimed as a science fiction movie by many, I found it is nothing more than a typical mass commercial film borrowing lot of science fiction ideas for the flow of events.

The story as such does not have strong foundation like in the case of Shankar's other films (barring Boys and Sivaji). Reasons later. It’s a triangular love story where in the third angle is unusually a humanoid robot. This fact itself was supposed to be very interesting but I didn't find it so. Again reasons later. The robot which turns from good to evil in the second half of the film routes for a gripping climax, thanks to special effects.

The film's main characters except for the robot lack a proper characterization and appeared as alien as their character names. Dr.Vasigaran (Rajini), the robotic scientist makes the humanoid robot named Chitti (named by his mother, I wonder where in Tamil Nadu mothers dream of naming their children with a golti name like Chitti Babu). Vasi is in love with Sana(Aishwarya) with whom Chitti also falls in love at one point when he is given emotional programming and gets lost in it, failing to serve the purpose for which it is created. Vasi destroys it and throws it away in frustration. Dr.Bohra, who is Vasi's Guru but jealous of him, gets Chiti back to form and implants destruction programming in it. This leads to evil consequences that form the rest of the story.

The scientists Vasigaran and Bohra have their own labs which look more like space ships (reminding aliens again). Whereas Vasi's lab has two dumb asses as assistants, Bohra is not even shown to have anyone working with him. It looks as if Bohra managed to create dozens of robots (as shown in one scene) single handedly. What a genius! Wonder if any scientists of today have such sophisticated and well equipped labs, which can function without even proper assistants. It would have been more convincing if it was shown that both scientists work for AIRD and do their research there.

The first half of the film shows the making of Chitti and how well it performs superhuman tasks to benefit mankind. But I don't know what sense it makes to do system/beta testing on a robot meant for defense purposes with household and edupidi tasks in domestic environment. Memorizing telephone directories, scanning exam books and reproducing it for Sana, cooking and so on, the robot's multifaceted capabilities are explained through so many scenes. At one point, it becomes too much to take and the 'Boom Boom Robo Da' song is heights of it. It is ridiculous to see a scientist use a robot created with so much ambition for wearing on his tie and tying his shoe lace.

Of course, the robot also fights goondas and does superhuman stunts by his fire proof, electromagnetic and various other capabilities. The train fight though well executed seems very lengthy. And as I do a rewind of all heroic deeds done by the robot, it all turns out to be what is done by a normal commercial hero in a masala film, but here the viewer is expected to believe that all of them is possible and feasible, because its a robot doing them and it has superhuman powers. The way robot clears up a critical pregnancy case just because it has memorized Sana's medical books is something that happens only in films. Anyways, an element of thaaikulam attraction.

The second half had lot of unwanted scenes, the most boring ones like the ridiculous mosquito sequence, chitti dance and lead sequence before Kilimanjaro song. Many scenes look placed just for the sake of it, like the one when power goes down and robots walk over to the road using car batteries to recharge themselves. I wondered what purpose the whole sequence served. Scenes like dumping the dismantled robot in a corporation dustbin and showing that it is taken to a dump yard of normal garbage look totally bizarre in today's era of e-waste disposal campaigns and considering the fact that a robotic scientist cannot dispose his years of work just like that. Add to it that fact that the robot can reconstruct itself even at such a crippled stage.

There are scenes of confused logic, like the one when evil Chitti kidnaps Sana from wedding hall and fights with police, 100s of bullets rain all over. It is accepted that Chitti survives it by some power it has, but there is no explanation how a human Sana and a normal car can survive all that, especially Sana escapes without even a scratch, turning out to be better constructed than Chitti. The end scene is supposed to be a tear jerker meant for Thaaikulams wherein Chitti dismantles itself and some ‘messages’ are forcefully thrown in for the audience.

The only solace for second half is the climax sequence visual effects with ideas heavily borrowed from popular Hollywood films like Matrix, Anaconda etc. The effects are very well done as in Hollywood but the worming, deworming, electromagnetic blah blahs, though technically needed for the sequence are too heavy for a layman to understand. And again in this scene, when everything around the robot is crushed by it, a mere caravan with hi-fi equipments remains as it is and dodges over all the robotic destruction skills. Heroism!

Rajinikanth has done lot of work for the film especially with the makeup, robotic acts and so on, a remarkable feat for his age. But just makeup can't hide his ageing face which looks very odd with layered makeup in many scenes. He puts up a good show as a villain towards the end, but the robotic body language is totally missing and he acts like a normal human, may be director's fault. An evil chip can change the programming logic but cannot make a robot act like human villain. So the villainous laugh and all other acts are unconvincing when you think it is done by a robot.

Considering that his fights in recent films usually contained unbelievable sequences and over the top action, the fights does not seem to evoke any wonder, unless you remind yourself that it is being done by a robot here. And even the robotic dance in Irumbile oru Idhayam is nothing so different from what robotic steps Rajini did in his previous hits like Thillana Thillana. The romantic scenes between Rajini and Aishwarya might be enjoyable for may be die hard Rajini fans, but to me it was such a pain to watch such scenes.

Aishwarya surprisingly looked beautiful though lines of ageing showed up even in her face in some scenes. Given a heavy footage for a major portion of the film unlike Shriyas and Soundharyas, she could have done a better job than just looking beautiful. Scenes in which she emoted or tried to emote show that she is still of same standard as what she was in Jeans. The oddest thing is the way she sits in the scenes after evil Chitti kidnaps her, like someone waiting in a passport office. Looked like serious lack of acting skills or interest to act.

Danny Denzongpa as Dr.Bohra had nothing much to do rather than mouth some lines in a base voice, look intelligent in some scenes and frustrated or furious in others before he dies in the hands of evil Chitti. The other characters hardly had anything significant to do in the film and their absence would have been no big loss to the film. Infact, it would have atleast made the film more gripping.

Of Rahman's songs, Kaadhal Anukal (I hate this song's audio for no known reason) and Irumbile oru Idhayam are visually brilliant. Arima Arima has the grandeur of a Shankar's film song but is not very interesting like Mudhalvane or Adhiradi kaaran. The background score was just fine but definitely not what one expects from Rahman. Kilimanjaro song except for the locales, is a totally wasted song with the slow paced, uninteresting picturisation and its unwanted placement, which mars the sagging pace of the screenplay further.

The film is anyway supposed to look brilliant from technical point of view considering that a huge portion of the budget is spent for these and thankfully all of it has come out well. The technical crew of the film is the one that deserves credit for anything good about the film, be it the sets (Sabu Cyril who appears in a cameo) which show the massive thought process put in, costumes and makeup especially for the robot, brilliant camera work by Rathnavelu throughout, climax visual effects which give a feel of watching a Hollywood film and editing which was good but could have been much better particularly for second half.

Shankar deserves a big appreciation for all the conceptualization and execution, but this is one of his bad outings as a screenplay writer. What could have been made excellently as a slick 2 hour animation film has been overcooked with heroism, unwanted sequences and songs. There is a social linkage with Shankar's films like Gentleman, Indian, Mudhalvan or Anniyan, which makes you relate to the characters in the film. This is definitely lacking in Endhiran. The societal impact a robot is not explained in concrete terms even though the film touches upon it here and there. The film is more about the havoc created by a robot in Vasi and Sana's personal life.

There are lot of action sequences scorched with over heroism which would have been a topic of fun if present in any other hero's films. There were logical loopholes which would have been blown out of proportion in any other hero's films. There existed zero chemistry between the lead pair which would have not mattered even if it existed in any other hero's films. Songs appeared out of the blue when not asked for but that should not be the case when it is any other hero's film. Okay, I am not supposed to find such faults or question them, because it is a Rajini's film. Ok, Done!

On the whole, the film offered a good time pass, more of a children's kind and was worth watching once. The experience was better than Shivaji, which for me was nothing but a elite standard Perarasu film in high budget. It lives upto all its Hollywood-like expectations, only for the technical aspects. It is like a half cooked meal offered in a five star hotel. You enjoy the entire ambience but not the food.

The Rajini factor seems to have been added for just for the sales promotion, revenue generation and getting the film a very big reach which could not have been possible with a normal animation film or a film with a hero of lesser market. The end product is unfortunately something that lies between a Rajini style film and a sci-fi film with Shankar's extravaganza for support. Rajini fans may love it for his presence, but for me it makes no difference.

To end with: "Enaku Endhiran pudikala nu sollala. Pudichirundha nalla irundhirukum nu thaan sollren" ;-)

AAAAAARRRRRRRGH!

10 most irritating categories of people

1. Public smokers: Killing themselves and poisoning others, the worst human beings who pollute the world around us for their personal satisfaction. Worst are the nicotine stinking people coming near you after somoking, even worse is the ones trying to hide that nicotine stink using chweing gums.

2. Drunkards: Out of control and with a nauseating stink, these people are worst especially when we encounter them in public transportation. Sometimes they sit or stand near you putting you in the most awkward situation, especially when the bus is crowded. In an AC coach or Volvo AC bus, the worst smell fills the air like poison.

3. Nose picking people: Often encountered in buses and public places, having the worstest public hygiene and lack of civic sense. Don't they realize that it is a disgusting scene to others as bad as digging into ur a****le or rubbing your crotch area?

4. People who spit in public: This is yet another case of spreading your diseases to others by spitting in whatever possible places possible. Sometimes with yucky paan combination or more yucky beetle leaf combination, this not only is unhygienic but also spoils the neatness of public places

5. Late comers: Be it for a causal meet or a family outing, I hate keeping people waiting and I expect the same from others too. Simply because time is precious and we cannot take someone for granted just because we know them well. It is better to specify a later time or cancel the plan rather than making someone wait and testing their patience. Same applies when specifying time of return when you leave home. I am talking about delays of an hour or more here, not 10-15 mins.

6. Opinion thrusters: There are people who generalize their personal opinion as a public talk. Or canvass their thoughts in such a way that others should agree upon it. And in some cases, try to change our opinion on something and replace theirs instead. All these irritate me to such a extent and it is in one way a mental torture to deal with such people.

7. Sadists: There are many ways people behave as sadists. But what I often encounter is those who inspite of knowing that a person likes something or someone keep telling their bad comments and dump their hatredness towards that peson or thing in front of us. I dislike many things but never talk bad about it to someone who has a liking for it. But I have never had a similar reciprocation from anyone, infact it hurts a lot when people talk bad about something to you, knowing very well it is close to your heart. They are no less than sadists.

8. Egoists: Another worst class of people to deal with especially when you have to interact with them frequently for personal or official reasons. When people are stubborn for a long time, you lose any interest of having even a casual chat with them. At some point of time, it is good for everyone to give up and have a respect for others' feelings and there is nothing wrong in being the first person to give your hand for a shake.

9. Big mouths: Such people are really annoying may be since I am someone who enjoys silence more than noise. People who talk more than their age, people who make a fuss of everything, people who talk too much about themselves, people who are opinionated, people who talk non-stop are all very irritating to handle in life.

10. Irresponsible people: At some age everyone should acquire a maturity and be capable of taking up responsibilities failing which there is no way that they can face hurdles in life. It is really irritating to come across people, be it younger or older ones, who fail in their responsibilities and become dependent on others instead of they supporting the ones dependent on them. And when you assume onus of doing something, it is always good to act responsible and if you can't, it is better that you never take it up in first place.

5 most irritating things around me

1. Power cuts: Most worst thing to happen in a hot and humid city like Chennai and whats most irritating about it is that common man who uses fans and lights at his house has to take suffering for power scarcity while political and spiritual events, commercial establishments etc can still waste power in worthless ways and still enjoy doing so.

2. Traffic jams: Most traffic jams occur with equal responsibility of civic sense lacking public and ineffective traffic management. Drivers, especially the ones driving lorries, public buses and two wheelers ride without any botheration for others around them which is the only reason all traffic control measures go in vain.

3. Flyovers: While it is good to see flyovers that come across railway level crossings, the ones inside the city have no meaning and doesn't serve any purpose, as most of them are not used by public transport, are built in a direction in which there is less traffic flow and in many places they have led to congestion on either sides of the flyover. How can you call a flyover effective when it has less traffic flow and the whole area below it is congested?

4. Autodrivers: Chennai probably has the worst auto transport thanks to its drivers. From demanding double fare for a minimum charge walkable distance taking advantage of helplessness of passengers to ruthlessly charging high fares for every trip blaming fuel fares, autowallahs in Chennai have been behaving like they are from other planet to help people here. And worst that there is no regulation or any control over them till now.

5. Government functions: Anything that deals with government departments or officials is an annoying dealing where inspite of paying heavy amounts in white and black, you work happens only at their own pace and convenience. While it is being claimed of as a trustable and safe, even a simple transaction in a public sector bank is still a painful affair. Somethings never change and this complacence has become a character of government establishments.