Dame Agatha's return

I was 12 years old, maybe 13. Not quite bored of Enid Blyton but ready for something a bit more intense. The school library was not quite as vast as I would have liked it to be. And anyway, reading recommended by teachers was bound to be boring, wasnt it? So then one day, my English teacher (whom I loved, by the way) digressed from the lesson at hand to discuss what she thought we should be reading. I still remember her words, when she said "I hope you are not wasting your time reading trash like those Agatha Christie novels!".

Of course, that was all that was needed. I devoured most of Dame Agatha's novels with relish and became an ardent fan of Hercule Poirot especially. The first Christie I read happened to be "The Big Four" and my 12 or 13 yr old self was thoroughly impressed. But the Christie phase ended as reading tastes matured.

Anyway, even though I havent read a Christie novel over the past decade or so, I have always had a fond place in my favourites list for her mysteries. I still own half-a-dozen of them, and thats after having 'loaned' a bunch of them to friends, never to get them back. So, when I recently found 40 Agatha Christie books, the nostalgia itself egged me on to collect them.

And the first of the books I decided to read was "The Big Four". The same story which so thrilled me as a kid, seemed like one of Agatha's worst this time around. Hercule Poirot just does not seem the type who would have cigarettes which would double as a blow-pipe containing a poisonous dart. Although it does work in bits and pieces, overall - bad decision Dame Agatha.

I followed that up with the truly excellent "Mystery of the Blue Train". Perhaps this book is one of the best constructed of the Poirot mysteries. I was a bit dissappointed to find that I was able to guess the culprits identity well before the end, but I guess being a lot older than 13 has something to do with that. But it didnt take anything away from the pleasure and charm of reading a classically constructed Agatha Christie plot again. This story is also probably one of the less common Poirot stories which does not always follow Poirot around, making it necessary for the great detective to be constantly on the scene. He is very much in the periphery for great parts of the novel, and does not even make an appearance until well into the book. This book also differs from many other Christie novels in the build-up to the crime - which is a lot more detailed and complex, reminding me of PD James and Ruth Rendell. Much more than the usual dinner party with suggestive small talk during the main course! I dont think Agatha's fans will like that description!

But whether it be the antics of super-spy Poirot, or the intricate laying out of red herrings in the second book, the charm of reading an Agatha Christie novel once again has me in its embrace.

Radiohead's fans leave them 'High and Dry'

Social experiments are a way to understand society and social behaviours. As such, they can often lead to rather unglorious statements about our society.

So we have studies on how swearing at work can relieve stress. Maybe another study is required on how employees are affected when one of them starts relieving his/her stress by swearing loudly at meetings. Another on the impact on prospective customers/clients maybe?

Radiohead, the alternative rock band, decided on an alternative means of selling their new album, In Rainbows. They wanted their fans to decide the price at which they want to buy the album. The album was released on their website and allowed purchases for as low as 1 penny. This was an interesting social experiment which also had a possible econimic backlash to it. And unfortunately for Radiohead, and everyone who thought this was a path-breaking idea, its not quite gone as planned.

Studies show that more than 60% of the people who downloaded the album paid nothing! Only 38% paid anything at all, and the majority of these people paid less than 4 dollars - probably about a fifth of the price that would have been quoted for the album if it had been released the normal way. Kind of harsh!

On the flipside, Radiohead does get almost everything paid by a buyer since this model eliminates the label companies from the equation. This is a band which has a huge fan base of millions worldwide but when it comes to paying top dollar - i guess theres nothing like a freebie. But Radiohead was prepared for it, they knew it may all come to nothing at all. The website clearly informs the buyer that its upto you what you pay. Its a path-breaking way to connect to your fans definitely. And if this was Led Zep putting their new album out there and asking me to pay what I want for it - I would know what its worth and would pay it. I bet there were the true Radiohead fans out there too, who would know the albums worth and would pay the best they can.

With the worldwide popularity of peer-to-peer networks, and the high cost of buying music cd's, especially a new release, its hardly surprising that most people just helped themselves at the buffet. Being only a middling Radiohead fan, I guess I would have probably done the same - maybe I would have paid at most 4 dollars, the same price which Frys Electronics charged me for a brilliant collection of early Deep Purple classics which apparently no one was interested in. I found it in one of those discount bins, hidden in a huge pile of forgotten albums and collections.

But it must have hurt to think your fans dont think your new album is worth much. Radiohead now seems to have decided to re-launch the album in physical format. Possibly that haunting Thom Yorke refrain of "Dont leave me highhhhhh, dont leave me dryyyyyyyyyyy" must have come to mind more than once.

And what a night it was!

Following up on my previous post, a night to remember for the Kop faithful no doubt!

Liverpool 8 Besiktas 0 is not a scoreline Liverpool fans have seen often. I dont have the stats, but I definitely cant remember us scoring more than 4 in a match for some time now. But the team did what they did when it was sorely needed.

Again, Benayoun and Crouch made strong statements for bigger roles in the first team. Surely now Benitez must rethink his plan to use Crouch as a bit player. Crouch is not a great player, and strangely for a really tall guy he is better with his feet than with his head. But his contribution on the field is excellent. His ability to win balls allows players around him to play better too. He must surely be considered ahead of Voronin at least in the squad to play in the front line. Voronin was excellent yesterday playing on the wings too. But up front, his combination with Kuyt has not paid off yet.

Yossi Benayoun put in a brilliant performance and his hat-trick showed off his positional instincts wonderfully. Two of his goals were opportunistic and punished the goalie for his inability to hold on to a couple of cracking shots. Babel coming on late in the game and scoring two was also a good sign.

Benitez has a wealth of talent to use this season. With Kewell back, and putting in a decent performance against Blackburn in the weekend stalemate, there is a healthy competition on the wings. Crouch's performance might just have added that much pressure on Rafa to persist with him in the starting line-up. That would mean using Voronin on the wings, in addition to Kewell, Babel, Pennant, Benayoun and Rafa's possible favourite Jon Arne Riise. Inspite of their performances against Besiktas, neither of Crouch and Benayoun nor Babel may be sure of a starting place next weekend.

Here's hoping that Rafa works out a better alternative to his strategy of regular rotation.

Tonight's the night...

...when Rafa Benitez and Liverpool truly need to stand up and be counted. The clash against Besiktas today in the Champs League is of utmost importance if Liverpool are to avoid crashing out of the biggest football tournament.



And Stevie G, Rafa etc are making the right kind of confidence-boosting noises, but I have a sneaky feeling its going to be another one of those nervous evenings for the Kop faithful. In recent times, Liverpool have always seemed really edgy and brittle in important fixtures. And I cant help but think that a lot of the blame for that lies with Rafa.


His policy of enforced rotation, without consideration for present form is becoming less and less supportable. Almost no one is guaranteed a place in the starting eleven, even if they performed brilliantly in the previous match. At the moment, Sami Hyppia and Jamie Carragher are the only certainties in the first team, and thats because Benitez doesnt have cover for them with Dan Agger out. God forbid one of those two get injured before the January sales!! And with Torres unlikely to start, Benitez has a bit of a problem.


Kuyt has just not delivered so far this season, and has nothing to show for all his industry. His partnership with Voronin has not clicked at all, and the only times the Pool attack seems to be incisive is when the lanky Crouchinator is on the field. But there again lies a stink raised solely by Benitez. His trumpeting in the media about the need for Crouch to adjust as a bit player is clearly a sign that the lanky one may be on the shop window come January. Funnily enough, Crouch's performances (however erm, short they may have been) have probably made him attractive enough for the likes of Aston Villa and even perhaps Manchester City... though thats a rumour all my own. In fact, I'll just go out on a limb here. If Kuyt, Voronin and Crouch were all available, I think Crouch would generate the most interest.


So with so many of Pool's problem's seemingly Rafa-generated, has Benitez reached a plateau with Pool? Is a Houllier-like moment coming up sometime soon? Has the 'Rafalution' reached its climax? The expectations from the new owners and the fans this season is the highest it has been for some time now. Benitez has been provided the funds to deliver, and if he implodes in the first round of the CL so spectacularly , it will surely raise more than just a few eyebrows in the board room.


Thats whats making this game with Besiktas so important. I have my fingers crossed, especially with the prospect of Crouch being played from the start with Kuyt. Lets hope that Rafa sorts out his rotation itch and decides on his best team.

The Footie Roundup Post!

I've missed blogging. I've missed blogging (make that rambling on and on and on...) about footie even more. So here goes.

With more than a quarter of the season gone, the English Premier League table looks very different from the past few seasons. The most sensational story of the season has definitely been Manchester Citeh who are still riding on highs they havent seen in their recent past (their last moment of glory was in 1981 when they were, erm, FA Cup finalists). Sven Goran Eriksson and the dosh from the ex-PM of Thailand seem to be doing miracles for the club. Sven is clearly showing why he was a much better England manager than Steve McLaren can ever hope to be. Many of the players he has brought in were near-unknowns (even those Championship Manager fans didnt know about Elano, i'd bet!) but their quality has been undeniable. I always felt that Sven's being hounded out of the England job by the tabloids was disgraceful and that his achievements with the England team were phenomenal. But the English media seem to believe they should be winning every tournament they participate in, and thats never going to happen. It would be a minor miracle if Steve McLaren can take his team into the Euro Championship now, after their defeat in Russia. I mean come on, McClown replacing Sven! Ridiculous!

Both Manchester United and Chelsea had a much more shaky start to their seasons than usual. That great showman of a manager, Jose Mourinho, the Special One, found out that no one in the Chelsea setup is untouchable. Avram Grant and Henk Ten Cate seem to be proving themselves to be the right combination for that club. Sir Alex on the other hand, is reaping the rewards of his excellent bunch of attacking players. Nani, Hargreaves and Tevez, all are paying off their high transfer values on the field. Arsenal has also been brilliant this season with Cesc Fabregas coming very close to being the best player in the premiership, taking that mantle over from his ex-captain Thierry Henry. Van Persie, Hleb, Walcott, Toure have all been doing brilliantly, and Arsenal's version of kid-ology has them ruling the premiership table at the quarter-season mark.

Blackburn and Portsmouth have also gone off to great starts to their seasons. Though neither is potentially a top four club this season, they are definitely making progress in the right direction. With Roque Santa Cruz, Blackburn has bought a brilliant attacking player. Pompey on they other hand have made excellent purchases in John Utaka and Benjani. Both clubs have also kept their main players from the previous seasons.

Tottenham have definitely been the big losers so far this season. Martin Jol has lost his job on the basis of a string of poor results, but his work over the past seasons has been commendable. There is no doubt that Juande Ramos has a very good team at his disposal. Its upto him how he uses them. He made his reputation with Sevilla by getting the best out of a talented team without (arguably) having stars in his squad. If anything, he has made Freddie Kanoute more of a star than he ever was while playing in England. Dani Alves's star has also risen under Ramos' tutelage. Unfortunately for Ramos, every new manager is expected to bring in his own players, regardless of what is available. With a strike force consisting of Robbie Keane, Dimitar Berbatov, Darren Bent and Jermaine Defoe; supported in midfield by the talented and pacy Aaron Lennon, Teemu Tainio, Steed Malbranque and Didier Zokora; and defenders like Ledley King, Gareth Bale, Kaboul etc. Well, its a pretty decent team - but Ramos will need to make decisions and he will probably spend some more of the Spurs kitty, if only to prove he has a mind all his own.

Liverpool's season had started like it hasnt over the past five or six seasons. They were expected to hit the ground running and with the additions of Torres, Voronin, Babel and Benayoun and adding the resurgent Jermaine Pennant to the mix, Liverpool did do much better in the early part of the season this time around. But Rafa Benitez's rotation policy has yet again hit a snag and has come under much criticism from fans and 'experts'. Sometimes Rafa is a bit too fixed on rotating his team. And ignoring Peter Crouch is something a lot of people have done before and the tall one has always come back strongly. He has been given too few chances this season, according to me. There have been too many Kuyt+Voronin combos already and it would probably be much better to have the gangly Crouch in there to break the monotony. Also, Benayoun has been ignored a bit too often I feel.

Anywayz, theres a long way to go this season, and it may turn out to be even more exciting than the last one. This time there promises to be battles for positions all over the table instead of only for the top 2 or 3 places. Any slip-ups from one of the top four, even a string of 2 or 3 poor results can easily come back to haunt them.

Johnny Gaddar

Lovers of good crime thrillers in India, rejoice! Here comes Johnny Gaddar with a thrill-a-minute ride without resorting to histrionics and melodrama. Or to Bunty-Babli style histerical repentance for all the fun you just had!

I had a great deal of expectation from Sriram Raghavan's second movie. His first was the taut revenge drama "Ek Hasina Thi" and he delivers big time. JG is a straight crime thriller where there are no purely good or evil characters. Each of the characters are given screen time to flesh them out and to show them in proud shades of grey.

So we have Dharm paaji playing the leader of the gang of no-gooders without any Godfather airs and without an army of thugs around him. He lives alone and in his twilight years still possesses enough guile and strength to not be bothered by it. His partners in crime include - Prakash (Vinay Pathak) who manages a gambling den for the gang, but has a weakness for the cards himself; Shardul (Zakir Hussain) who is possibly the wealthiest and definitely the flashiest of the gang, runs a night club, and is married to Rimi Sen; Shiva (Daya) provides the muscle and is given responsibility to carry the money for the gang to Bangalore where he needs to close a deal for them; and finally Vikram (Neil Nitin Mukesh) who is the youngest and we find out the sharpest of the gang.

Its Vikram's illicit affair with Rimi Sen which leads him to double crossing the gang for the money. Oh, and also his love for James Hadley Chase novels and old Hindi mystery movies. Relax, spoiler-phobes, this all from the first fifteen minutes of the movie.

The decision once made, the rest of the movie deals with Vikrams plans on cheating the gang out of the money. And of course, with the James Hadley Chase reference, its clear that not all goes according to plan.

The direction is slick and never slackens the pace of the movie. The performances are excellent from the entire cast. The plot twists and turns without becoming too predictable at any time. The dynamics within the gang are shown very realistically and its not hard to believe that this is probably how things are done in the unorganised underworld. And the con-man in this movie is not shown to be so amazingly good as to fool his much more experienced colleagues, there is a good deal of luck involved. But will his luck hold through?

The answering of that question keeps the audience on the edge of the seat. And you couldnt ask for more from a thriller. Heres to many more films by Raghavan, India's answer to Quentin Tarantino, and much fewer from the RGV factory!!

Its been a while. There have been a few starts and stops, beginnings which were ended long before any end was on sight. There has been no lack of comment-worthy news, but due to a combination of several reasons, no comment came forth.

To continue from my previous post, the politics of power seems to have triumphed over good intentions. The nuclear agreement is all but dead. Dr. Manmohan Singh, perhaps the most important leader this country has had post-independence, has had to bow down to the pressures from several sides to accept the fact that the death of the nuclear deal is preferable to the downfall of the government. He has had to face up to the truth that an Indian electorate may not bear in mind his efforts as they go to the voting booths, there is no guarantee that the Congress will be able to come back to power if they call for elections now by defying the Left to pull out their support.

And the fickleness of Indian politicians has never been so blatant. The mischief-mongering Leftists like Karat, Yechury and Bardhan with a supposedly anti-American ideological stance has proved itself to be truly anti-Indian and anti-developmental. Their actions have appeared to be purely sensation-seeking and an attempt to assume a more central role than they are capable of in the national political stage. Their resistance to negotiations shows their closed mindset. They oppose to show they can oppose. As if we needed more proof!

The BJP being the single largest opposition party has also made opportunistic noises with the sole purpose of shaking the foundations of an otherwise stable government. That the economy has boomed under the secular image of the Congress party is not of any consequence to them. That foreign investment is driving growth in every sector of the industry is of no import. We are the opposition, our dharma is to oppose everything the government does. It does not matter one little bit that the discussions on the nuclear deal was started under the BJP government. If it goes through now, the credit will lie with the Congress. It does not matter an iota that it may lead to further growth for the nation, we oppose and oppose and oppose.

Anyway, so much for our political scenario. In other areas, the news has been much better. Dhoni leads India to the Twenty20 WC, it was definitely a tournament worth remembering. What is it about the absence of the big three that seems to spur a young Indian team on?

Vishwanathan Anand becomes the world champion of chess. This man must be brilliant. Its a huge achievement and it couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

Sania Mirza breaks into the top 30 ranks in the world. I hope she can hang on and keep doing better. She really has something to prove in the Grand Slams.

The Sensex has been soaring to new heights making me feel like banging my head on my desk for not having invested in the market a few years ago.

There does seem to be a curious drop off in IT jobs recently in Bangalore though. At least, the TOI's Ascent seems to give that impression. There hasn't been a lot going on and the Ascent is getting slimmer every week. Have IT companies completely gone with the likes of monster.com etc?

Well, its nice to be back here indulging my need to rant again. Hopefully I will stick to a more frequent verbal diarrhoea from now on.