RIFLE RANGE BOY

Money Monster (2016) Director: Jody Foster That it is. There is no shortcut to making that first million. First, one must realise that one's journey to the land of gold and honey may meet impassable obstacles and not reach the intended destination. Or, he may be skewed away from the path and end up in a ditch. Or, he may be swallowed by a beast (or troll under the bridge, if you still believe in fairy tales!) Wealth is finite. It is a zero-sum game. For one to make a million, somebody else must lose a million. The way advertisers do their thing, prospectors buy the idea that no one is a loser. They entice you into the gravy train, which never runs short of curry! With the advent of complex algorithms, the unholy union of data scientists and conniving dupe masters never had it better. Speaking in incomprehensible jargon that they do not understand, they create a smokescreen that can cleverly hide their true malfeasances. Their spick appearances and polished social etiquettes belie t...

While scavenging around for the next topic to ponder, I came across a conundrum a friend of a friend was going through. Not many would find it a big problem. Many would not mind inheriting that problem. Others would say, "What problem?" After working all their lives engaging with various businesses to pull themselves out of the shackles of poverty, they can say they have arrived. No, thanks to the governmental racially discriminatory policies, and despite this, they had managed to give their three children an overseas education. Again, the children had opted to settle overseas because of the national social re-engineering policies. The roots are so deeply embedded elsewhere that they find it pointless to return to the roost. Their occasional summer vacation and digital connections would suffice for family bonding. The couples are left to fend for the coop and the empty nest. To complement that, there are multiple landed properties, real estate assets, various incomes, and a s...

Man On The Run ( Documentary, Netflix;  2023) Director:   Cassius Michael Kim We all know the drill. We have heard it all before. The Government started a novel project selling government bonds to buy oil fields in Central Asia. With the returns, the Government, via its subsidiary, 1MDB, would pour money into the country, which would help improve the living conditions of its citizens. The trouble was that the same who applied for the money from the Government approved the loan, executed the loan, received the loan and received the returns were all the same person. Najib Razak is the 1MDB Chairman, Minister of Finance and the honourable Prime Minister of Malaysia. And there were no oilfields that were bought. Still, the whole exercise saw many people making loads of money, enjoying obscenely decadent parties, and the Malaysian taxpayers paying exorbitant amounts of money as interest to international players. Even though the local journalists kept crying foul and were brave to p...

And Justice for All (1979) Director: Norman Jewison During one of those festivities gatherings, we managed to pin down one of our old schoolmates. That was quite an achievement, for he was and still is a senior partner in one of KL's outstanding law firms. We created a hypothetical situation. What if he, as a lawyer, either gets a client who admits his crime at the onset or, along the course of the trial, would he still continue to defend his client? In so many words, with mentions of the right to proper legal representation and duty to the client, our layman's minds understood that he would still continue defending his client. His task was to ensure that his client was free of his charge. Of course, he would not purposely make his opponent win, knowing pretty well that his client committed the offence. Nowhere in the conversation was justice and seeking the truth uttered. Justice is what the court determines, and the truth is what is argued out.  This must have been what the S...

Paper in Money Out (2023) Authors: Sree Iyer, Jagdish Shetty This book is supposed to be a work of fiction, but what we read here is probably what every Indian podcaster with the right leanings, worth his salt, is reporting on his channel.   It is a potpourri of dirty politics, dirty dealing and equally obnoxious under-table dealings laced with blackmail, thuggery, double-crossing and bribery. Perhaps I should add treason to the list as leaders, who were entrusted to protect the assets of the country, are seen making wheeling and dealings with the enemies. Money is a natural lubricant for any transaction, friend and foe alike.   One familiar with the twirls and twists of Indian politics will see a canny resemblance of characters to the who’s who in the present-day politicians and prime movers of Indian politics.   Offhand, I think I see the likes of Subramaniam Swami, P Chithambaram and son, Sonia Gandhi, Narinder Modi and possibly many leaders of the South. Listeners of ...

Who Painted My Lust Red? Book #2 Who Painted My Future Bright? Book #3 Author: Sree Iyer (2020) There must be a reason why politics is labelled the second oldest in the world, after the flesh trade. Anything goes if the price is right. At least, that is the perception these books give an impression on politicians and people in power who make decisions that could steer the country's direction. Money determines everything. It lubricates, moves and generates more wealth. There is a dire need to push as the window of opportunity only opens briefly. Wealth needs to be accumulated in the short time power is handed on a platter. In the meantime, vultures and hyenas will hang around to scavenge or perhaps initiate the kill themselves.   In this fiction, Sree Iyer tells an account of a dog-eat-dog world of Indian politics. It is not all about Indian politics either. In an environment where everyone is yearning towards that one thing in life, money, nothing really matters anymore. The end ju...

Farzi (Fake, Miniseries; 2023) Created, Written &Directed: Raj & DK It said that Pakistan is on the brink of bankruptcy. It has gone with a begging bowl to IMF for aid. After securing massive loans with low interest from China and investing in projects that never saw daylight, Pakistan found itself in trouble deep. The creditors came knocking on its door. The pandemic and local political turmoil tilt the economy further into hopelessness. Even God was not kind. Massive flooding, almost unheard of in desert-like Pakistan, took many lives in the densely populated regions of the country.  The real reason for Pakistan's predicament, India likes to believe, is Modi's demonetisation policy. It is alleged that Pakistanis were actively printing fake Indian rupees and using them to fund terrorist activities across the border. With the help of corrupt politicians, civil servants and the Mafia, these monies made their way to the Indian marketplace. It is the grey market; a fake ₹1...