Movie Theraphy

Matubhoomi: Nation Without Women

Very seldom I watch Hindi movies but when I feel I got a good movie i will surely buy the CD. I liked the movie "Raincoat" though I have to test the patience of my friend to interpret each line because I can't comprehend the language. This movie however (Matrubhoomi) doesn't need much interpretation. This is a film by by Manish Jha. The movie I should say was one of the most powerful movies I've seen in Indian cinema. Forget about Bollywood's "dancing and prancing in the hills" type which is an insult to the senses, this movie is exceptionally powerful one. The movie starts somewhere in rural India (as my mind wanders, in Bihar) which brings the issue of female infanticide. A very poignant topic but the director skillfully unraveled the story with the tremendous nerve to tell a story such as this. The movie started with a brutal scene wherein a father is holding his new born baby girl and slowly submerged her in a drum of milk drowning and killing the innocent baby. That is just the start. A wealthy landlord is so desperate to get his five sons married but there is no more woman in the village so he ask the local priest to search on the other side of the river. There he finds Kalki. The landlord paid her father a hefty amount for it with the intention that all 5 of his sons will sleep with her (one son per day) and him on the remaining two days. Wise father indeed. From here the story revolves until there was chaos in the village when a lower caste man raped her repeatedly and also claiming that he's the father of the child.

The cinematography is excellent, the passing of time while she's pregnant is depicted in a very artistic way. It's not always that we see movies depicting real issues such as this one and for me it's a very courageous act for the director and the producer to make a movie as beautiful yet as political as this one. Art imitating life or life imitating art? Anyway, it's a really good movie or else TIME will not recommend it as "one of the top ten movies in the world for the year".

'Been away for awhile. Just need some time out to do some deep exploration. Thinking so hard about the good things and bad things in my job. There are things I can change and some things I cannot but the signs of my dissatisfaction growing each day. i was thinking sometimes that I'm killing myself slowly by continuing my job. Sometimes feeling so dumb why I am still here. But the question of financial security hovers in the mind. I don't want to burn the bridge by now. Haste makes waste. To be truly responsible to myself, I need some time to manage my personal life. Sometimes when things coming out of our way, we became philosophical and maybe I have the attachment below...

THE MAYONNAISE JAR & 2 CUPS OF COFFEE

When things in your lives seem almost too muchto handle,
when 24 hours in a day are not enough,remember the mayonnaise jar
and the 2 cups of coffee:

A professor stood before his philosophy class andhad some items in front of him.
When the class began,he wordlessly picked
up a very large and emptymayonnaise jar and proceeded
to fill it with golf balls.He then asked the students if the jar was full.
They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles andpoured them into the jar.
He shook the jar lightly. Thepebbles rolled into the open areas between
the golf balls.He then asked the students again if the jar was full.
They agreed it was.The professor next picked up a box of sand
andpoured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everythingelse.
He asked once more if the jar was full.
The studentsresponded with an unanimous "yes."

The professor then produced two cups of coffeefrom under the table
and poured the entire contentsinto the jar effectively filling the
empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

"Now," said the professor as the laughter subsided,
"I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.
The golf balls are the important things--your family,your children,
your health, your friends and your favoritepassions---
and if everything else was lost and only theyremained,
your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things
that matter likeyour job, your house and your car.

The sand is everything else---the small stuff.
"If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued,
"there is no room for the pebbles or the golfballs.

The same goes for life. If you spend allyour
time and energy on the small stuff you willnever have room for
the things that are important to you."Pay attention to the things
that are critical toyour happiness. Play with your children.
Taketime to get medical checkups. Take your spouseout to dinner.
Play another 18. There will alwaysbe time to clean the house and
fix the disposal.

Take care of the golf balls first---the thingsthat really matter.
Set your priorities. Therest is just sand."One of the students raised
her hand and inquiredwhat the coffee represented. The professor smiled.

"I'm glad you asked.It just goes to show you that no matter how full
your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee
with a friend."

got this nice photo from flickr.com and i take no credit on it.