Friday, 21 June 2019
Tuesday, 11 June 2019
Yuvraj, always the prince, never the king
Imagine the world’s best striker one on one with against a charging goalkeeper. He can chip it above the goalkeeper, he can dribble past the goalkeeper and tap it in, he can curl the ball in. He can score the goal in ‘n’ number of ways. He can miss it also in ‘n’ number of ways. That is Yuvraj Singh’s cricket career.
Yuvraj could play every shot in the textbook. Straight drive, on-drive, cover drive, square drive, square cut, late cut, leg glance, flick, hook, pull, sweep, reverse sweep… Any shot Sachin Tendulkar or Virat Kohli can play, Yuvraj could do too, at times even better than them.
His contribution to Indian cricket is underestimated. He instilled in the team the belief that they can chase down any total, no matter how big. His partnership with Mohammed Kaif that successfully crossed a 300-plus target in the Natwest trophy in England was a turning point for us in one-dayers.
He would do things when you least expect them. Like hitting six sixes in an over. And he didn’t do it in a Ranji Trophy match, but against Stuart Broad, who was England’s strike bowler, in a T20 world cup match, that too away from home.
Yuvraj played a big role in taking India to the world cup victory in 2011, scoring 4 fifties and a hundred. When his hour of glory came, he dedicated his trophies to his idol ‘paaji’ as he and his teammates fondly called Tendulkar.
He is also a fighter. He would make comebacks when nobody is giving him a chance. Whether it was cricket or cancer. The way he beat back cancer is an inspiration for thousands.
Yuvraj’s is also a story of wasted chances. His Test cricket stats do no justice to his talent. Just three hundreds in 40 Tests at an average of 33.92. Yuvraj Singh was the prince who had it in him to wear the crown, but lost it by a mile too many.
At the press conference he announced his retirement, Yuvraj could be seen painfully listing his accomplishments. He probably knows that in a country where cricket is a religion, the followers have moved on to newer gods and have no memory of him, or for that matter no time.
Yuvraj could play every shot in the textbook. Straight drive, on-drive, cover drive, square drive, square cut, late cut, leg glance, flick, hook, pull, sweep, reverse sweep… Any shot Sachin Tendulkar or Virat Kohli can play, Yuvraj could do too, at times even better than them.
His contribution to Indian cricket is underestimated. He instilled in the team the belief that they can chase down any total, no matter how big. His partnership with Mohammed Kaif that successfully crossed a 300-plus target in the Natwest trophy in England was a turning point for us in one-dayers.
He would do things when you least expect them. Like hitting six sixes in an over. And he didn’t do it in a Ranji Trophy match, but against Stuart Broad, who was England’s strike bowler, in a T20 world cup match, that too away from home.
Yuvraj played a big role in taking India to the world cup victory in 2011, scoring 4 fifties and a hundred. When his hour of glory came, he dedicated his trophies to his idol ‘paaji’ as he and his teammates fondly called Tendulkar.
He is also a fighter. He would make comebacks when nobody is giving him a chance. Whether it was cricket or cancer. The way he beat back cancer is an inspiration for thousands.
Yuvraj’s is also a story of wasted chances. His Test cricket stats do no justice to his talent. Just three hundreds in 40 Tests at an average of 33.92. Yuvraj Singh was the prince who had it in him to wear the crown, but lost it by a mile too many.
At the press conference he announced his retirement, Yuvraj could be seen painfully listing his accomplishments. He probably knows that in a country where cricket is a religion, the followers have moved on to newer gods and have no memory of him, or for that matter no time.
Monday, 3 June 2019
Sunday, 19 May 2019
Sunday, 12 May 2019
Sunday, 5 May 2019
Uyare, when dreams take off
We don’t come across acid attack survivors too often. But what do we feel when we do? Sympathy, fear, revulsion, sadness … ? Some would keep staring, others would try to avoid. What Uyare does is, it makes us see acid attack survivors as fellow human beings.
Uyare is the story of survival, determination and willpower.
It is a movie made for and by Parvathy (Pallavi). Barring the initial scenes as a college student performing at the youth festival, where she was a misfit, Parvathy is excellent.
So is Asif Ali (Govind), the obsessive lover. The more we dislike Govind, the more we feel for Pallavi. If Asif Ali had failed in his role, the movie would have too.
Tovino Thomas is good, Siddique as Pallavi’s father is OK and Prem Prakash as Govind’s helpless dad is very good. Anarkali Marikar as Pallavi’s friend is OK. Samyukta Menon is there for all of 10 seconds, for what we don’t know.
The good thing the film does is the acid attack survivor Pallavi doesn’t cover her face. It is empowerment and defiance. And it forces the viewer to play a role too. Unlike in real life, there is no avoiding the harsh reality, the viewer sits through, face to face with the acid attack survivor. Pallavi is looking you in the eye, and you are listening.
Uyare has its flaws. Where in the world would the owner of an airline dictate terms to the ATC? Where in the world would the ATC ask the only person to have some training at flying an aircraft to stay out of cockpit when the plane is crashing?
Uyare is a masala tearjerker with a fairytale ending, but then we wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.
Uyare is the story of survival, determination and willpower.
It is a movie made for and by Parvathy (Pallavi). Barring the initial scenes as a college student performing at the youth festival, where she was a misfit, Parvathy is excellent.
So is Asif Ali (Govind), the obsessive lover. The more we dislike Govind, the more we feel for Pallavi. If Asif Ali had failed in his role, the movie would have too.
Tovino Thomas is good, Siddique as Pallavi’s father is OK and Prem Prakash as Govind’s helpless dad is very good. Anarkali Marikar as Pallavi’s friend is OK. Samyukta Menon is there for all of 10 seconds, for what we don’t know.
The good thing the film does is the acid attack survivor Pallavi doesn’t cover her face. It is empowerment and defiance. And it forces the viewer to play a role too. Unlike in real life, there is no avoiding the harsh reality, the viewer sits through, face to face with the acid attack survivor. Pallavi is looking you in the eye, and you are listening.
Uyare has its flaws. Where in the world would the owner of an airline dictate terms to the ATC? Where in the world would the ATC ask the only person to have some training at flying an aircraft to stay out of cockpit when the plane is crashing?
Uyare is a masala tearjerker with a fairytale ending, but then we wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.
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