Supernatural - Season 8

I can understand zombies, vampires, shape-shifters, even Leviathans (though they have more or less turned me off burgers!). But the Greek God Prometheus - strapped to a mountain side to suffer a death every day as a punishment by Zeus - coming down bang into 21st century in an avalanche? If I have to quote Dean Winchester, I would say 'Seriously?'. For a little while there, it looked as if the makers of the show kind of lost the plot.

And why in hell (!) did they have to kill off Meg for? I had come to like her one-liners and her deadpan expression when she delivered them. Plus the fact that she was helping Dean and Sam (though I no longer remember why!) did not hurt either.Thank God for handsome angels! Castiel is back and in his full demon-destroying form. I just couldn't figure out that 'pizza-man' dialogue between him and Meg. Or for that matter the reference to Mesopotamia when Naomi drops in (!) to meet Crowley.

Given the fact that some of the previous season finales have seen at least one major character being killed or sent to purgatory or some such far-flung place, I won't be surprised if Sam drops dead at the end of Season 8. I just hope it won't come to that.

The Holcroft Covenant - by Robert Ludlum (Spoiler Alert!!!)

This time, the Russians have been spared - for once. What we have, instead, are the Germans and the last days of the Reich when thousands of children of the Nazis are sent  out of Germany to all the corners of the world - by plane, by boat, by submarine - to await a destiny that was chosen for them. And they wait, for over 30 years when the wheels are set into motion as a Swiss banker meets an American - one Mr. Noel Holcroft and hands over 2 documents.

One of documents is a letter from Heinrich Clausen, Holcroft's biological father - whom he never knew - who was also one of Hitler's men. In the letter, Clausen has pleaded with his son to do what is right, to make amends for the horrors that were committed on the innocents during the war. A vast sum of money has been stashed away in a Swiss bank account for the same purpose. But to get his hands on it, Holcroft must find the children of the two men who assisted Clausen in looting the Reich secretly to amass this cache - Wilhelm von Tiebolt and Erich Kessler. And together they have to approach the Swiss bank to unlock the account to start the disbursement.

The second letter is more sinister.It is from those who claim to be from Wolfsschanze. It tells Holcroft, plainly, that should he fail to carry out this mission, they will destroy whatever it is that is dear to him in this world. Holcroft is confused, angry and bewildered. What makes matters worse is when he finally decides to carry out his dead father's wishes, he discovers that there are those who would do anything to stop him from doing so.

As attempts are made on Holcroft's life and people around him start dropping dead - at the speed that would put the dominos to shame - he succeeds in making contact with the children of Wilhelm von Tiebolt and Erich Kessler.

The million dollar question, however, remains - who is his friend and who is his enemy.

The narrative is super fast-paced - truly like a roller-coaster ride and leaves you wondering about just who the good guys are. The temptation to finish the novel in one sitting is truly irresistible. But I wasn't prepared for the end. Maybe it has got to do with the fact that I am an Indian - used to the typical 'and they lived happily thereafter' movie fare. Anything other than that leaves me feeling as if I have been cheated. :-) Oh, and that thing about Gretchen and Johann, wasn't at all needed. :-(

Bungalow 9, Bandra (West)

If I were to dream about food (believe me, I don't!), pasta wouldn't figure in the scheme of things. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy a dish of pasta occasionally but it's definitely not one of the dishes that I would want to be served if I were to be marooned on a deserted island ;-) That said, I wouldn't want to touch any pasta cooked in a tomato-based sauce - even with the proverbial bargepole. Pasta in pesto or a cheese-based sauce is a different thing altogether. :-)

Okay, enough of this beating about the bush. The fact is that when we landed at Bungalow 9, Bandra over the weekend, I wanted a no-frills meal with as few calories as possible, thank you! Successfully fighting the temptation to go for Gnocchi, I selected "Farfalle with Grilled Vegetables, Feta & Cherry Tomatoes". 'This pasta does not have a sauce. It's just tossed in olive oil' the waiter said as if it was a sin for any pasta dish to exist without any kind of sauce. 'Dude, that's exactly what I want' I almost said to him.

When the dish was served, it was every bit what was promised on the menu card. The pasta was superbly cooked - thank Heavens for small mercies! The olive oil coated it nicely without making it overly oily. And the veggies - cherry tomatoes and bell peppers - assured me that I was getting my daily quota of vegetables. Needless to say, I enjoyed every mouthful of the dish.

What I especially loved about the place was its decor. It was refreshing to sit in the open air area - without the blast of the ubiquitous AC directly in your face. The whole place seems to have been converted from some old bungalow - but they have managed to retain its old world charm. And added to it, if the clock that looks as if it has been transported straight from some out-of-the-way railway station is anything to go by. If you are a woman, don't forget to visit the Ladies' washroom. There is a real jackfruit tree right in the middle of it. I ain't kidding :-)




Maybe I will be a bit adventurous next time and try that "Gnocchi with Sundried Tomato & Ricotta, Light Basil Cream'!

The rapists in the Nirbhaya case have all been given the death penalty. There is a feeling of justice being served and that too within a reasonably short frame of time. I took the news rather cynically because there have been ample precedents of the actual execution being delayed for years due to the long-drawn process of appeals. In the meantime, the guilty continue to live on. The fact that they do so within the four walls of the prison is a small consolation. I hope and pray that this doesn't happen in this case.

But going beyond that, I wonder if the justice is truly and completely being served here. Some might argue that such death penalties will only result in the rapists killing their victims so as to prevent them from being identified and punished. Some others might say that the life imprisonment would have been a more fitting punishment for the rapists rather than killing them once and for all. As far as I am concerned, what might and might not happen in future should not be a factor in meting out a punishment to the guilty in a case. And rather than risking the early release of such maniacs for so-called 'good behavior' (not a question of 'if' but 'when') sometime in the distant future it is better to make sure that they are not part of this world anymore.

That said, my idea of a complete justice for Nirbhaya demands some concrete steps to make sure that this doesn't happen to other women down the road. At the risk of sounding cynical, I would say that one cannot expect 0 cases of rape unless one is living in Ram Rajya (And this has got nothing to do with BJP!). But we have to do all that we can to ensure that we don't have a repeat of the Delhi or Shakti Mills incidents. No two opinions about that!

First and foremost, there is an urgent need to bring about a drastic change in the perception that women are inferior to men. I won't label it as the problem of the uneducated folks or the rural folks. God knows there are enough educated people and city-dwellers who believe that women should confine their activities to home and hearth. In a traditionally patriarchal society like India, this is about as easy as cleaning up of the Augean stables. But someone has got to do it and soon! The only people capable of doing it are women - educated or not, employed or not - and men who are sensible enough to understand this. Like charity, this has to begin at home. Be it your dad, husband, brother or son - every time they try to project you as the weaker gender, prove them wrong. If you have sons, bring them up with the notion that both genders are equal. Teach them to respect women. If each one of us can bring about a change in our family, the whole country will change, it will have no choice but to change. Maybe I am being too idealistic. But in the present scenario, we could do with some amount of optimism.

Changing the opinions at home is one side of the coin. The other side is to improve the image as depicted in the media. When I read a statement by Kareena Kapoor that she feels unsafe in Mumbai, I wondered if she would care to re-examine her stance that item songs had nothing to do with the increasing instances of crimes against women. I am not saying we go back to the black-and-white era - it either showed a very idealistic world or it was perhaps a reflection of the Indian society as it was eons ago. But whosoever said that we have to consider only the extremes? Words like 'Chikani Chameli' accompanied by gyrating moves of scantily clad females aren't doing anyone - except for the producers and actresses - good. If spines could be grafted, I think our Sensor Board should be the first one in line to get the operation done. And we women need to make some serious noise against this commoditization of our gender.

Of course, increased presence of law enforcement personnel (instead of protecting the good-for-nothing VIP politicians!), their training and gender equality sensitization, self-defense training for women and a strict adherence to a basic set of precautionary measures by them should go a long way in improving the safety of women.

No one deserves to die like Nirbhaya did. No one. But if we succeed in making this country a safer place for women, justice would be truly served.

The world does not end; it only appears to be ending from time to time
-- Nick Murray

A funny take on the stock market's enthusiastic welcome to the new RBI Governor - Rajinikanth Rajan saves the rupee

It's that time of the year again. Maharashtra's favorite deity - Lord Ganesha - is here to stay. The festival started on Monday and will go on right till next Wednesday i.e. Anant Chaturdashi. Everywhere in the city, you will be able to see nicely decorated pandals with huge Ganesha idols.The coming weekend hundreds of people will throng these pandals for a glimpse of the God who is known to get rid of sorrows and bring loads of happiness.

I was listening to an FM channel today, where predictably, the RJ had asked people to call in and tell her what wish they expect the God to fulfill this time. Almost everyone said they asked the God to give everyone good sense - what in Sanskrit is called SadBuddhi. Looking at the present state of the country, let alone world, I won't be surprised if the God felt that He is just not up to the task. There is a lot of demand and just not enough supply. Take a look:

- At the top of the list are men who are so far gone down the drain that the moment they see a woman, the only thought that crosses their mind is to rape her. And then we have their moms who instead of denouncing such sons are shameless enough to claim that a person who knows how to rape a woman is juvenile. Yeah, you are right! Mother India was just a stupid movie.

- There is simply no competition for the 2nd place. It has got to be our politicians who don't hesitate to fuel a communal riot just so that they can secure their vote banks before the next elections are upon us. They are corrupt. They don't give a damn about the country and the general population. They are divided when it comes to constructive measures which can benefit the common man. But they are one when it comes to looking out for their own interest.

- The people who could give the politicians a run for their money (!) are those who don't have an ounce of conscience left - they provide rotten grains and pulses for the mid-day meals of children resulting in their deaths, they are practicing medicine despite not being qualified, they are running schools where ragging is causing deaths and they are donning saffron robes to preach religion only to themselves engage in illicit activities.

- And then there is us - you, me and everyone around us. We know that there is so much that is wrong in this country and yet we are sitting as if paralyzed. The sheer effort of leading our daily lives is sapping so much of our energy that we have neither the time nor the enthusiasm to even wonder if things can be set right.

To be sure, there are people who are doing good work. Everyday you read about organizations that are working to improve the quality of life of the poor, teaching under-privileged kids on the weekends, giving shelter to kids who have run away from homes......

But there are days when I feel that somehow somewhere we have gone wrong. And what is being done today is too little too late.