RIFLE RANGE BOY

Now that I am getting older, naturally, people think that the School of Hard Knocks would have knocked some wisdom in the thick skull of mine, and they approach me for advice. One of the questions asked to him in my capacity as 'Dear Thelma' or 'Auntie Agony' is about an interpersonal relationship. Why is it difficult to achieve life ambitions? I have so many things that I want to attain in my lifetime, but family life is pulling me down. My partner does not share the same fire that I breathe. The offsprings wear me down, dragging me together into a cesspool of hopelessness. Is there no relief from all these, they ask me.  I am no self-help guru by any imagination, so I try to dodge the question. "You know that is a very profound question. Philosophers for aeons have been trying to find that answer."  In fact, during Adi Sankara's travels from Kerala to the four corners of India, he had various debates with sages of other schools of philosophy. Adi Shankar...

Aaranya Kaandam (ஆரண்ய காண்டம், Tamil, Jungle Chapter; 2011) Story and Direction: Thyagarajan Kumaraja The Jungle Chapter refers to the third chapter in the epic Ramayana where Raavana deceptively uses a deer into tricking and kidnapping Sita. Here, the storyteller uses characters with animal names to symbolically represent our animal-like behaviours in a world that has jungle rules.  It starts with a purported dialogue between Chanakya, the Mauryan master strategist, a kind of ancient Machiavelli, and a student in 400 BC. Student: "What is dharma?" Chanakya: "Dharma is doing what is necessary." With that one line, I was hooked. The film is a gangster fare, but not the usual gory senseless machete-branding South Indian style. It is the characterisation and storytelling that kills. It is labelled as the first neo-noir Tamil film. In life, we are faced with many obstacles. What is the determinant that decides the right course of action? Do we use...

To the ignoramus, this YouTube clip would be a joke. Laced with a thick South Indian accent, impregnated with assertive gestures and complete with protruding eye movements for special effects, it has been making its rounds in many social media outlets many times over for hearty laughs and cynical smiles. Added on with the fact that this holy man was once caught on a CCTV to be in close proximity with a disciple, this flick becomes more enticing. Because of his unholy conduct, in a single brush, all his seemingly profound sermons have come to nought. If one were to listen to heart what Swami Nityananda is saying, depending on one’s understanding of life, its origin and purpose, it could not be denied that his speech carries a deeper meaning. He is talking about the Atma (soul) that is within all of us that is part of the Brahman as mentioned in the Vedic scriptures. The souls of all beings are linked in a different realm. To quote a line from Beatles’ song ‘I am the Walrus’, ‘I ...

The Equalizer (2014) Suddenly, somebody I knew blurted out, "Hey, Equalizer 2 will out soon!" Not really remembering anything about the first Equalizer, I inquired, "Was it any good?" to which he babbled something to the effect of as if I had committed a cardinal sin. So I made it a point to view the film myself, and I am not impressed. Appa used to be hooked to a TV series with the same name where a team of do-gooders went around helping desperate. I never went around watching it as I had many other pressing deadlines in my life then. Appa had a cult following for it, but I would not say he was a die-hard fan. Halfway through the episode, he would be in Slumberland, especially after his long hours spent in the bank working with other people's hard-earned money. So much for being an ardent fan! The TV series This 2014 movie based on the TV series defies logic. So many of the executed plans are too far-fetched and bends reality so much that it...

Aryabhata (476-550 CE) Mathematician/Astronomer. The first person to say that Earth  is spherical and revolves around  the sun. The first to suggest that  any number divided by 0  gives infinity ∞. (pinterest) Continuing in the quest to make sense of things around me, I stumbled into something quite thought-provoking. It has something to do with our idea of separating knowledge into the sciences and the arts. It is interesting to note that the Ionians, of the Eastern part of the Greek civilisation, and the Hindu culture started learning things about the world we live in entirely independent of each other. It is incredible how quite similar their discoveries were, at least in the initial stages. The pre-Socratic thinkers thought that there was a connection between the Universe and the world immediately around us. Thales tried to say that water is the essence of our existence. Democritus put forward the theory of Void and eternal, indivisible ato...