The day when Indians across the Globe went bonkers

  Well as soon as the Indian team breezed their way through the quarter finals , beat the West Indies comfortably by 80 runs that's when I thought ,okay this the time I have no second thoughts gonna root for India my home team and see them through semis and then the big one ,the finals. The semis , what seemed like more than a week to go , and we playing against old ,yet strong opponents ,yes who else it is Pakistan !. Thats where the world cups biggest match and the build up began. I had predicted my gut feeling wanting to see a India -Pakistan clash in the world cup came true , and finally it became true !. No where any stretch of my imagination I would witness two old warhorses clash in the biggest match of the world cup,  umdoubtedly the mother of all the world cup matches.
 Then hearing , the news closely following these two teams very closely. At one stage , my heart really sank when I saw a hindi news channel claiming this match is fixed apparently , the man a big guy in Indian IT department ans he said " India is gonna lose this match, is fixed by the betting syndicates and we have to follow the Underworld orders !.But , I reminded myself and believed this is all rubbish and absolute uncalled pre match dramas .
Not only that is the end of the dramas , the Pakistani minister requesting the whole pakistani ,and just requesting them not to fix the match ? , which I still believe that the big betting syndicates are on the job just before the match is yet to be played !.
The big day arrived , all I wanted to see ,is my country's flag waving high and an famous India victory was on the cards . And it did , happen finally, pressure cooker released by Sehwag and our God of cricket , Sachin Tendulkar given 5 rebirths during his innings which he looked out of sorts but managed to get a healthy 87 runs.Pakistanis did play competitive ,but not at their lethal best. They rode on Shahid Afridi's magic arm , but he also coudn't provide any help to his own team. This is first India - Pakistan to have gone without any hiccups and the usual punjabi gallis .! Thats a common sight for me to see both the teams clash with sledging.
Umar Akamals lived their dream for a while but it all crashed when the experienced Harbhajan Singh spinning a ball and crashed onto his stumps ending any hopes of a Pakistani Victory. Still the banked on one man army , Misbah Ul Haq who finally went all out attack in the end. But the end was a painful one for Pakistan ,though I must say they played well to an extent.
Just when Misbah Ul haq went for a huge heave ,he was caught deep in the long on boundary and Virat Kohli the man who kept his nerve and took a good catch.
That moment, people went berserk in the crowd , Chak de India  ringing across the ground in Mohali stadium . I just jumped from my seat and I went too berserk and I screamed Chak De India !. This day whole Indians went wild right from people celebrating the victory , victory laps were witnessed in Dubai , famous areas went  mad like the Meena Bazaar , Karama, Bur Dubai  , in London people also going Berserk , US and Canada to ringing in the celebrations . Well, who can forget people going mad in Delhi, Punjab , Mumbai ,Kokata ,Banglore and other cities witnessing huge victory parades and people blocking the streets partying all night on the roads .This was day I felt being Indian is something to be proud of and now I can say we are the world champions before we meet the mighty lankans . 

Tanu Weds Manu

                                              Tanu Weds Movie Review

This is a movie has a a lot of promises , the way it is seen the promos ,  another romantic flick with inventive story telling and terrific performances .Unlike the past romantic flicks like Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge and Jab We Met. There was something very refreshing about these films that was lapped up by the audience.

It begins with Manu (Madhavan) a doctor settled in London coming bride-hunting to India to fulfill his parents' wishes. That's how he meets Kanpur-based small-town girl Tanu (Kangna) and takes an instant liking to her. But she is in love with someone else and wants Manu to call the marriage off. The heart-broken doctor is yet to recuperate from the wound when he meets his dream girl again at his best friend Jassi's (Eijaz Khan) wedding. Tanu and Manu begin to get to know each other better. But her heart still beats for the man she loves. In typical filmi style, Manu decides to get them together. However, fate has other plans and that leads to the eventual climax and a happy ending.

Director Aanand L Rai (STRANGERS) begins the proceedings impressively. You soon get acquainted with the unpretentious yet strong Manu and the bindaas Tanu. The sundry characters especially, Pappi (Deepak Dobriyal) and Payal (Swara bhaskara) add life to the proceedings. Although the first half gets a bit wobbly before the interval, it's pretty watchable primarily because of Tanu's crazy histrionics.

The problem lies in the second half when the narrative takes the much traversed path of numerous past movies. It's a mixed bag of HUM DIL DE CHUKE SANAM, JAB WE MET and PYAAR TOH HONA HI THA. The predictable end is not a problem, the docile script is. There's not enough spunk in the storytelling. You never get to know why Manu is going out of his way for Tanu, when he knows her intentions (is it his unconditional love for her?). Tanu's character all of a sudden becomes soft, and thereby loses her charm. Even the humour quotient isn't up to the mark.

What's Hot- Where love stories are concerned, it's quite obvious that the focus has now shifted from NRI-Land to the heartland of India. And it's a welcome change. The first thing that strikes you about TWM is its incredible backdrop -- sweeping shots of Delhi, Lucknow, Kanpur, Punjab and Vaishnodevi. Aanand Rai does a brilliant job capturing the essence of every city, making the setting just perfect for a love story of this genre. The narrative is simple and pleasing. Manu's pathos is adequately explained and justified. And Tanu's vortex of emotions is understandable and something you can identify with. The scenes between the lead couple are funny, poignant and have their own special moments. The songs are well placed and they don't seem jarring at any point. The Kajra Mohabbatwala sequence is a full-on winner. The film's highlight is the supporting cast -- Deepak Dobriyal, Eijaz Khan and Swara Bhaskar are brilliant. Watch out for Rajendra Gupta's volatile outburst that has been beeped for obvious reasons. Jimmy Shergill is striking in a new avatar -- he literally shoulders the entire climax. Kangna is very effective and free of any inhibitions. She makes the character of Tanu likable even with all its complexities. Madhavan is first-rate and finally gets a film that showcases his true potential.

TANU WEDS MANU is not completely bad and has its moments. The twist post the interval is deftly done. Some of the genuinely beautiful moments include the 'Jai Mata Di' scene in the beginning and Pappi conversing with Manu on the terrace.

And not to forget the foot –tapping ,bhangra and fun song which is seen in the promos 'Saadi Gaali ' is the saving grace of the  film according to me ,though not fully shot song and dance sequence as we normally get to see ,sung by Lehmber Hussainpuri .