"KILL DIL" COMPLETELY MISSES THE BULL'S EYE..........

Yash Raj films latest offering "Kill DIl" seems to have comprehensively missed the mark despite essentially being a film about hit men and their lives and times.......
This much awaited romantic thriller which had been touted as matinee idol Govinda's comeback and unequivocal answer to the legions of critics and naysayers who had written him off as a "has been" simply failed to set the cash registers ringing and only ended up garnering a measly Rs. 7.25 crore on the day of it's release.......
With critics unanimously panning the film and audiences failing to warm up to it; trade pundits have more or less sounded the death knell and opined that the opening weekend's collections might be far more depressing and even plummet further...........
Kill Dil was reportedly made at a reported cost of Rs. 45- 50 crore and the producers might just about end up covering their production cost and that too primarily on account of the prices at which the television; overseas and internet rights were sold; according to the film industry's Bible; Geeta and Quran "Trade Guide"..........
Despite bravura performances from teen idol Ranveer Singh and evergreen matinee idol Govinda; this Shaad Ali flick simply did not strike the right chords with a majority of it's audiences and left a significant majority of them shaking their noggin's in sheer frustration and consternation.........
Unless the box office collections show a marked improvement from the second day onwards; Kill Dil might end up achieving the dubious distinction of being the "floppiest" film of 2014 to have emerged from the Yash Raj film stables and do significant damage to Ranveer Singh's standing as a dependable star capable of drawing in the audiences in droves on the sheer dint of his quirky and "hatke" histrionics........
With the Saif Ali Khan; Govinda; Kalki Koechlin; Ileana D'Cruz starrer "Happy Ending" gracing the screens on November 21; alas the writing seems to be on the wall in eastman colour as far as the fate of Kill Dil at the unforgiving ticket window is concerned..........

ASSAMESE WOMAN BRUTALISED IN NATIONAL CAPITAL........

If the alarming crime statistics emanating from the area are any yardstick or parameter to go by; the powers that be within the national capital might well be constrained to rename Mundka (West Delhi) and christen the name as "Balatkaa"..........
Four brutes who are currently cooling both their heels as well as waning libidos in the capital city's famed Tihar jail allegedly gang- raped and demonised/savagely brutalised an Assamese (North Eastern) woman in the national capital's Mundka area before being arrested and given their just desserts..........
This barbaric and utterly condemnable incident occurred on the night of November 8; 2014 but only came into the limelight when the survivor was discharged from the hospital to which she was admitted and spent 6 days in; as mentioned earlier all the four rapists have now been arrested and incarcerated in the city's Tihar Jail.........
In her tear inducing statement; the doughty survivor said that she was currently in a relationship with a gent from the immediate neighbourhood as her husband had prematurely left for his heavenly abode a few years ago; but like the archetypal Hindi film villain; one Shahjahan an anti social element belonging to the same locality had taken to pestering her and even threatened her with dire consequences if she did not accede to his "indecent proposal"..........
Incensed and piqued by the survivor's truculence and obstinacy; Shahjahan forcibly entered her dwelling in the company of 3 henchmen on the fateful night of November 8, 2014, the four firstly subdued the doughty Assamese woman and beat her black and blue before taking turns at forcing themselves on her more than once each........
Neighbours who were alarmed and perturbed by the loud cries and resounding sounds emanating from the concerned dwelling informed the area police station and personnel from the very same soon made their arrival on the scene and shifted the severely injured survivor to the state run Sanjay Gandhi Hospital from where she was subsequently shifted to the Babu Jagjivan Ram Hospital for specialised treatment and rehabilitation before being discharged on the evening of November 14............
In the meanwhile; the area police raided quite a few notorious hideouts in the locality and arrested/apprehended all the 4 accused on the basis of a statement filed by the victim in which she had both named as well as identified her 4 tormentors.........
Is the mandatory ten year or decade long jail sentence prescribed by the law sentence enough for such crimes that cause incurable harm to the psyche and confidence of these plucky survivors or then should the same issue be revisited and a punishment commensurate with the brutality and savagery of the crime be meted out in each case; I for one would certainly like to hear your thoughts on this one...........

ICC CRICKETER OF THE YEAR 2014.........

Taking a welcome break from the age old trend of crowning batsmen as "ICC Cricketer Of the Year"; the powers that be bestowed this prestigious honour on Australian speedster Mitchell Johnson for his sterling exploits with the ball during the 2013-14 cricketing season.........
33 year old Mitchell Johnson not only annexed the top individual honour in the ICC's Annual Awards Jamboree but also crowned his heady achievements by walking away with the much coveted "Test Cricketer Of The Year Award" for the year 2014.........
Mitchell Johnson set the cricketing stage aflame by garnering 59 wickets at 15.23 apiece during the voting period which ran between August 26, 2013 and September 17,2014 thereby enabling his much maligned Australian side whitewash or then swamp the English Lions by a whopping 5-0 margin in the iconic Ashes series as well as ensuring that his side ended up on the winning side in a bilateral series with the marauding South Africans......
Johnson who also annexed these awards way back in 2009 thereby ended up becoming the second individual to win both these hallowed awards twice with his former captain and mate Ricky Ponting being the first individual cricketer to have done so,,,,,,,,,
Graciously acknowledging the twin honours bestowed on him; Johnson who was turning his arm over in an ODI match at Perth against the visiting South African side said that "Aggressive and in your face fast or pace bowlers are indeed a fast vanishing breed and it's indeed nice to keep the age old trend of the stereotypical "ugly" fast bowler alive and kicking; more importantly, I feel blessed to be able to consistently contribute to the Aussie cause and achieve the targets that I had set for myself at the beginning of the Australian cricketing season"...........
Continuing in this merry vein; Johnson further added that it all ultimately boiled or narrowed down to his attitude; self belief and tonnes of confidence that he had always had in his own abilities; "I am more than happy to be in the space I am occupying at the present time and will stretch every sinew in an effort to constantly better my worth as a bowler who led his proud nation to victory as often as possible"...........
"I would like to go down in history as one of the finest fast bowling talents produced by this great sporting nation a la Dennis Lillee; Geoff Thomson; Brett Lee and Glenn Mcgrath and will persevere as long as I am able to keep both my body and mind in optimum shape", Johnson signed off.......
Other previous winners of these awards instituted in the year 2004 include such cricketing legends like Sachin Tendulkar; Kumar Sangakkara and present Aussie skipper Michael Clarke to name just a few.......
South African ODI captain AB De Villiers was voted the "ODI player of the year 2014" and English wicket keeper bats woman Sarah Taylor was conferred with the "Women's Player of the Year" award.........

YET ANOTHER SENSELESS HONOUR KILLING...........

Honour killing or rather the macabre spectre of honour killing is alive and kicking in all it's monstrous glory in Akhilesh Yadav's Uttar Pradesh despite the Supreme Court passing numerous scriptures or rulings against the same and even going the extent of deeming the same extra constitutional and illegal.........
Enraged, incensed, outraged and piqued beyond belief; the family members of a 19 year old young woman belonging to Bareilly's Majhia Village cam together as one; accosted the 20 year old man cosying upto her in the sugar cane fields on the outskirts of the said village; dragged him into their dwelling and finally clubbed him to death with demonic glee for his seemingly unpardonable sin........
According to fellow villagers; the young woman who watched the gory spectacle of her male friend's sorry and grotesque end tried to end her life by hanging herself put was pulled down by the very same male members of her family who clubbed her male friend to death; given a sound thrashing that left her senseless and finally dumped right next to the lifeless body of her male friend in the compound of her family's "mansion"...........
According to local police officials; the deceased Durvesh alias Veeru was a daily wage labourer in the national capital (New Delhi) and involved in a long term relationship with the 19 year old young woman; Durvesh had surreptitiously returned to the village on the evening of November 10, 2014 for some personal work and thought it prudent to summon the lady of his dreams to the sugar cane fields on the evening of Thursday November 13, 2014 where the two were spotted by a well wisher of the young woman's family who duly informed her outraged father about his daughter's "affairs of the heart"...........
Maddened beyond belief; the young woman's father gathered all the male members of his family around him and the grouping imperiously marched into the now infamous sugar cane fields dragged the couple through the village by various parts of their anatomy and finally incarcerated the hapless young man in a room within their sprawling house before beating him to death with sticks; clubs; bricks and iron rods until he breathed his last at the very same spot..........
Scores of villagers who gathered outside the murder spot on hearing the din fracas and frenzy and witnessed the gory spectacle but not thought it fit to intervene in the macabre proceedings as they tacitly supported the same; on seeing the plight of her male friend; the 19 year old young woman rushed into her room and tried to hang herself to the ceiling of the same but was halted in her tracks; beaten senseless and finally callously dumped right next to the body of her male suitor.........
Alarmed by the young woman's heart rending plight a few women folk belonging to the village mustered up the courage to approach the local police who rushed to the spot on hearing about the incident and rushed the traumatised couple to the local government run hospital.........
Doctors attending to the couple declared the young man brought dead on arrival and rushed the young woman to a super speciality hospital in Bareilly when her condition started deteriorating or taking a turn for the worse..........
Cases under all the relevant and applicable sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) were registered against the young woman's father Omkar; mother Sheela; brother Jitendra and uncles Rajesh and Satyavir; Rajesh and Satyavir were arrested from an adjoining village on Friday morning while the other three accused are still at large............
One wonders when the respective state government's in whose domains this deplorable tendency is alive and kicking will indeed start cracking the whip and demanding exemplary punishments for all persons accused of the same as an example needs to be made out of such demons who hold the law of the land in utter disrespect and contempt while making a mickey of it at every given instance........... 

TANU WEDS MANU RETURNS.........

Powerhouse of talent; Kangana Ranaut must surely be doing something right as plum assignments seem to be falling in her lap with nauseating regularity..........
Kangana's whose stunningly natural and stark portrayal of the girl next door in the unforgettable "Queen" is till continuing to wow audiences will now be seen in a dual or double role: that of male protagonist R. Madhavan's better half as well as a rustic Haryanvi athlete in Anand L. Rai's much awaited sequel of the 2011 hit "Tanu Weds Manu".......
Anand L. Rai who was more than obsessed with the very thought of giving one of Kangana's on screen avatar's a unique denomination and metaphor of it's very own narrowed down on this idea of a rustic athlete replete with a stereotypical Haryanvi accent and mannerisms et all........
What makes this sequel appropriately titled "Tanu Weds Manu Returns" that much hatke is the fact that unlike all such films spawned off under the sequel genre; this one will continue from where the earlier 2011 film ended and boast of the same starcast as it's predecessor.......
"Tanu Weds Manu Returns" which is slated to be released nationwide by Eros International midway through the year 2015 has more than successfully wrapped up one shooting schedule in Lucknow and will near completion once the second schedule that is slated to be held in the national capital (New Delhi) from the first week of December onwards is wrapped up within 40 odd days or so.........
Here's wishing the intrepid team of "Tanu Weds Manu Returns" all the very best while ardently looking forward to yet another bravura entertainer from them........

HAFEEZ FINDS HIMSELF UNDER ICC SCANNER..........

Pakistan's cup of woe certainly seems to be overflowing what with batting all rounder Mohammad Hafeez achieving the dubious distinction of being the latest "offie" to be reported for a "suspect" bowling action.........
Hafeez who scored 96 an unbeaten century and ensnared one wicket each in Pakistan's comprehensive victory against the Kiwis in the just concluded test match held at Abu Dhabi was reported by match officials Ranmore Martinesz of Sri Lanka; Rod Tucker of Australia; former Australian medium pacer Paul Reiffel (TV umpire) and last but not the least; match referee Andy Pycroft( former Zimbabwean test batsman).......
Pakistani cricketing authorities must surely be feeling a sense of deja vu as Andy Pycroft was also the match referee when their premier "offie" Saeed Ajmal was similarly reported for an equally suspicious bowling action that was supposed to be in contravention of the existing laws permitting bowlers to bend their bowling arms to a maximum extent of 15 degrees.........
According to a tweet from International Cricket's Governing Body namely the ICC; Hafeez's supposedly suspect bowling action will now be subjected to the minutest of scrutinies under it's ongoing processes pertaining to the issue of suspect bowling actions in all three forms of the glorious game.........
Hafeez will have to undergo further testing of his reportedly "illegal" bowling action at an ICC mandated testing facility within a 21 day period from the day on which he was reported (Thursday; November 13, 2014) and will be permitted to continue bowling in international cricket until the final reports of this mandatory test are out for all to see........
One had heard and followed the dictum about being once bitten and twice shy but the Pakistanis seem to have contrarian and diametrically divergent views from the rest of the world on this controversial and contentious issue as not only Saeed Ajmal but another offie who turned out for the Pakistani domestic T 20 champions in the Champions Trophy T 20 tournament were already under the ICC's scrutiny; but Hafeez only deemed it fit to follow suit instead of learning a lesson or two from his fellow countrymen's follies........
Like evergreen Hindi film comedian Asrani once famously quipped; :jab hum nahin sudhrey to tum kya sudhrogey"......vive la Pakistan cricket and vive la continued follies by their unrepentant "offies"........

IS THIS THE INDIA OF OUR DREAMS.........

Is this indeed the India of the 21 st century and our dreams that we have come to love and cherish; if so then we indeed need to take a long and incisive look at ourselves in our mirrors and minutely examine our motives and actions........
A 21 year old woman belonging to Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly district has alleged that she was sold off to her captor hailing from Uttar Pradesh's Rampur area a little over three (3) years ago for the paltry and pithy sum of Rs. 50,000/- by her immediate neighbour........
According to police sources; the 18 year old woman (at the time when she was sold); a lifelong resident of Bandiya Village in C.B. Ganj had unhesitatingly accompanied the accused woman from the neighbourhood to Rampur; where she was initially incarcerated in a dark; desolate and dingy room against her will and subsequently sold off to one Padam Singh of Rampur by the accused woman for Rs. 50,000/-..........
According to the long suffering victim; she was made to pander to her buyer's convoluted and sometimes sinister sexual urges and proclivities during the three year period and even gave birth to a son during the time she was kept in captivity by her buyer; lord and master........
She (the hapless victim) also claimed that she made numerous furtive attempts to flee from the clutches of her tormentor and torturer but was caught and brought back every single time; she also claimed that she was attacked with a knife by her captor on quite a few occasions........
About five days ago; (night of November 6; 2014 to be precise); the traumatised and harangued woman managed to make good her escape from her enforced prison with her son in tow while her jailor had gone off to a neighbouring village for a family function; she somehow managed to wend her way back to her original home and hearth and tearfully narrated the tale of her hellish ordeal to her disbelieving and dismayed family members.......
Her enraged family members then made a beeline towards the local police station with the victim in tow but were directed towards the Rampur cops by the local police personnel as the alleged crime had occurred in Rampur and hence needed to be registered therein.........
As per their age old habit; the Rampur police authorities simply refused to take cognisance of the victim's litany of complaints and started pointing fingers at her; they only took cognisance of the matter and registered an FIR when directed to do so by the DGP of the area who took due cognisance of the victim's heart rending plight........
Cases have since been lodged against the elusive neighbourhood woman and Padam SIngh and further investigations into the horrific crime are on............