It's too early to write about this year. Who knows what might happen in the next few days. This has been the year of events for me. Of all sorts. Now when I sit and look back I actually cannot think and imagine how can so  much and how did so much happen in one year! And then this is life. What from where why things may happen you will never know. So lets see what are the things.

The year started wonderfully! It seemed it was the best year of my life. What may come, I was ready to face everything happily as I had everything I wanted then. Friends, family, love, life, aim and most of all happiness. But with the change of months, the craziness of life started increasing.

The first month of the year was what I will call sparks started flying. Arguments, misunderstandings, delusions, all that is needed to strike of a war. The second month brought in the first round of blows, direct pointing and framing and being charged off. March meant taking actions. And in one moment, I saw people who made me believe "what may come.." disappear. At that moment I stood friendless, loveless, guilty like a prisoner, imprisoned and kept in isolation. Did it changed me? Yes. Which meant preparing massively like never before for my finals which came in the fourth month of the year.

As a believer of numerology (the only thing I believe in) number four and I don't go hand in hand and anytime we come together means more destruction. I had mentally prepared and left preparing for exams, assuming that when it's four no one can save me. I felt doomed. The exams came, I gave, the first papermade me dead, rest as they say should be let lost in the pages of my life's story.

May meant trip, vacation, traveling, break from bondage. For me it seemed rehabilitation, to come back fresh. So I took the opportunity and went to Dehra Dun, one of the two favourite places of mine. I found family getting closer to me or me getting closer to my family for the first time. Thought everything happens for the best. But then again, blow came, misunderstandings, misconceptions, framings, charges but finally in the court of family and relatives I was let off as I was charged guilty without proofs. This one event made me go even more far far away from my family and relatives. Yes things happened then for the best. Atleast that made me come to know what is what.

Then came the month when I sat at home and tried everywhere to get a job! Yes by Jove's name, I got an internship offer at MiD-DaY and two months later ran all the way to Mumbai, or Bombai like I love calling it. But the biggest achievement at that point of my life was short lived. However in this short time, I lived the happiest moment of my year. Thanks to Abhijit Majumder, Sarita Tanwar, Upala, Shaheen, Freny and all. Days were like days in Eldorado. Rainy days always irritated me but those days even rain felt like blessing from Cheiro! At that time my exam's result also came out and to my disbelief I scored the second highest in my class and best result in my three years of rotten collegehood. I came first among girls. I spent the best days of my life with my younger sister like anything, like we were meant to be together and never apart. I was on top of the world. I guess it was time to get down which I refused to and I was pushed down from the top back to plain land of my city streets.

In the next month, september, I found myself among my siblings and it was they who tried all sorts to keep me warm and happy :-) Met my sister after two damn years, was so happy and my dearest brother was there to make the event even bigger. I got admitted to Calcutta University, the place I hated the most (I still do). Met some old friends, with changed faces and met new people but the year was so damn entertaining that it helped me to learn the new people's character around me. So with like minded people a new term started.

Then came the month of festivals, participating in events, partying with new friends, trying my hand at everything and anything possible. This was the month when my talents came to the limelight. I was appreciated like never before by all, especially by people who thought I was the witch of my colony ready to crucify their children and brainwash their grown up boys. But suddenly a storm came and with it came November. Sweet November felt thorny, past suddenly jumped out like someone intentionally had dug up the graves where I engraved people alive.

To escape truth I ran away to the forests with my parents and their friends and returned in the next month, the last month of the year. This month as you know has just started but the initial days has already been quite irritating, oops I mean entertaining. So entertaining Taylor Swift's songs Back to December and Haunted doesn't live my mind.

To end with I might conclude I had put on the avatar of Santa Claus this year. Gifted people whom I love and meant special though who are not related to me anyone. I might also add I have been getting frequent visits from a bat clan, don't know which clan but I am sure not Count Dracules must be some small time. And this year has given and restored or kept people whom I wondered to be virtual, yes you know who. And now I will conclude by writing, coming up next will be new year's resolution, which is .....

When was the last time you said, "Wow this man makes wonderful movies!" Well even if you had it would had been movies by either Aamir Khan, Yash Raj Films or our old Karan Johar(despite losing fame as a director, his production house makes wonderful movies.) Who would have ever thought a guy who once wrote dialogue for superhit movies like Asoka, Leela, Darna Mana Hai, Munnabhai would go on to become a successful director, making beauitful movies that makes you happy and want to watch it and experience the joy over and over again.


Abbas Tyrewala, much aclaimed for making movies like Jaane Tu Ya Jaane has hit the right chord with his latest movie Jhootha Hi Sahi. It has been a long road for this man, who dropped out of college just to work as a PR and later become a full-time writer. Abbas is someone who knows what he wants and knows how to achieve it. Despite his latest movie making some critics give negative reviews, till now who ever has watched it, have loved. He makes movies which hit the heart directly.


His movies consists of comedy, romance, drama, anger, joy, in short all emotions that a human being can feel and express (even which can't be expressed but seldom we try to or hide inside). Jhootha Hi Sahi cannot be compared with JTYJN yet it has it's own story. Starring his better half Pakhi in the lead opposite to John Abraham, the movie is about or little inspired from Superman, the double identity and how we sometime use it to our own benefit in our real life. The movie has its faults, for example filmy ending like JTYJN, still overall it has made us love it. One can go back and watch it over and over again and not get bored. Natural acting, simple story, great locations, catchy and right music for the right mood, superb side supporting actors. The most wonderful thing being the use of comedy in between moments of drama, the way serious issues were solved in the most trivial way.






Abbas surely knows how to use his cast and crew. You wouldn't find the movie over-written or too simple. It has been a long journey for John too, from Jism to Jhootha Hi Sahi. Each and every member of the movie, the people who are familiar to us, has progressed at each step. Now for the newcomer, the female lead, Pakhi, we are yet to know whether she is one-movie-hit or a superstar in making. Surely she has talent of acting in herself, quite natural in front of the camera. She well deserved the role of Mishka and the numerous people who had voted her for the role should be paid extra!! 


However one thing I missed in the movie was superb music like Abbas' previous movies. There are good numbers but not all. The movie has an ending like Notting Hill. But you can't expect every movie to be outstanding, out of the blue. Like then each and every movie would had been superhit! Plus Pakhi should get into shape in order to match beside superstars, she looks too ordinary. Either she needs to cut down some weight or get into a new look.


I guess it's time for Abbas to have a banner to his name.

Srijit Mukherjee's Autograph is not a remake or reinterpretation of Satyajit Ray's 'Nayak' rather it is sort of a tribute by the debutant to the great film-maker and also to Uttam Kumar. The selection of 'Achin Pakhi' for IFFI and not Autograph has surely raised some eyebrows however there may be many reasons for it being not selected.

Autograph has many discrepancies which may have lead to it's not being one of the entries to IFFI. One of the main reasons being, according to me, the use of the late actor Uttam Kumar's real name Arun Chatterjee and the whole movie revolving around the remake of 'Nayak', in modern version by the new director in the movie. As such the movie doesn't have any original plot to it's name also. The main plot or theme of the movie has been portrayed in a very loose way.

It is surely seen that the movie about one man's status in a film industry, about his position even though his movies not receiving much appreciations, and various people's thoughts and views about him which he doesn't bother about(the character portrayed by Prosenjit). However somewhere Srijit who has also written the script of the movie has mixed three more sub-plots, which has lead to the not-so-good presentation of the main plot. One being the remake, two being the breaking and beginning of the relationships and three being the betrayal.

Throught out the movie, much importance is given to the remake of Satyajit Ray's 'Nayak', the relationships and the return to the past of an actor's life which again is sort of not original. At moments the movie even confuses the audiences, till the mystery is broken by Prosenjit.

Srijit has made a good movie, something different, although his main plot, the theme is presented or portrayed towards more powerfully towards the end of the movie.

Autograph is no doubt a movie that people will enjoy, which is success of the whole team involved in the making of the film, a good performance by all the actors and crew (although there were lots of mistakes by the make-up artists). But the main plot of the movie have surely lost itself among too many sub-plots.

The tea-shop owner,"Thief go away, don't you have any shame? You little squid. That day even after getting caught with money he haven't gave up this act! Go now or do you want me to come?" The man was getting out of his shop, with a hot iron in his hand but by the time the boy ran across the street, panting.

Wondering and hungry he sat down breathing fast. Just then something dropped in front of him. He raised his eyes to see. A cellphone. He looked sideways to see where it came from. A lady was walking away hurriedly and the back of her bag was open and hanging. He quickly grabbed the cellphone and was about to run when suddenly every bit of torture he faced last time he tried giving back a lost thing. He didn't steal still. Should he return or runaway and sell. No he can't. He kept the cellphone hidden in his rugged clothes and started walking towards the lady slowly.

The lady by this time had moved on very far but the boy kept on walking, halting at times, thinking about the consequences. 

The lady heard the boy calling her name from behind; she put her hands inside her bag and was about to give away some money to the boy, thinking "another beggar". "It's better to pay him something or else he'll keep disturbing me." She was taking out some money, while walking, when the boy pulled her shirt and gave her the cellphone," It fell out when you were walking quickly in front of me. I didn't steal I swear am not a thief."

The lady was amazed. The money remained in her hands. She forgotten what she was doing. She kneeled and asked," What's your name? Where do you live? What can I do for you?"

The boy started talking quickly," Am hungry and they won't let me have anything coz they think am a thief because last day also I tried returning a man's wallet which fell infront of the shop. But they beat me. I'm hungry I want to eat like everyone. But I can't. Am not a thief believe me."

The lady came closer to the boy. " Lets go to the shop where they won't let you eat. I'll buy you something nice."

Lately I have found out what to we believe and perceive or was thinking to be like that was never the reality or even close to the truth. What it was all the time was pretence. I hate pretence and I hate people to boast it. More I hate when people use this same mechanism to insult, using their own mechanism and trying to prove that in others. I know it is hard to understand what I mean. Let me say it more directly - I hate people with two faces, with cheap motifs.




I met a young boy few days back. He talks less and appears to be in deep thinking and calculations always, a good way to disillusion people. What is inside him was really hard for me or anyone to understand. At first I thought no this is him, peculiar but incapable of hurting. But how long can a two-faced person stay inside one cocoon only? Slowly the other side of his face appeared. And this didn't surprise me. What I had to say I said on the face but people who are not ashamed of their acts find every piece of joke as a serious thing and serious as joke or they try twisting it like their twisted brain.










Another one is someone I know now for sometime. My interactions with the person had been totally on the basis of professional or educational, however there were instances when we discussed few personal issues. I did realize or had thought in those many interactions that something will turn little bitter or this person will. And that did happen. How cheap mindset these people have. When they see that they can't accept the reality or face the truth all they do is try to shout back at the people in some mean and cheap way and even ways which the person had once told to dislike.




Fake Pretense and Cheap is the three words I have for them. 




Though many people can describe them in many ways, I will do in these three words.What is the solution for them, treat them like they treat others and behave with them in their way. When later they question your act, just say - I GAVE YOUR OWN PIECE BACK.

So what should I start with, Once Upon A Time In Mumbai or Mumbai Meri Jaan? Rather I should say Once upon a time in Mumbai, meri jaan, I lived and experienced life. I am crazy girl from Violence-Struck Kolkata (Like Most Say), I have grown up there till my college days, in the City of Joy, left the city for betterment. And just where do I land up? In my second home, my Mumbai. No I don't call it my second home because I live here now but for the very fact that I have been here almost ten to twelve times, sharing a special connection with the City of Dreams.



This time the story is different, the experience and the life, unlike other times.Its almost like I am discovering the city again, rather for the first time. The streets, people, houses, offices, food and of all myself in the big city. All of these have made me approach towards the place in a different way now and most of the time making me compare with my hometown Kolkata, which I shouldn't. But I am a human and this is my nature.



Mumbai is a great place to live your younger days, when you wanna work, strive and prove to the world that you are worth being noticed! Nobody waits for no one here, nobody cares rather but when there is a crisis, the whole of Mumbai comes together to fight it. People here not only work hard but party hard to. You can live like a free bird, you will meet so many type of people and learn the good and the bad bits. Mumbai has enough reasons to make you fall in love with it but it has also got reasons to hate it, if not a lot but a little, at least to me.



First thing first I hate the transport system of Mumbai. No matter how many source of travel is there. I just hate it. Trains might be the lifeline of the city but that doesn't mean you will ignore the other sources and not work on them. Again trains might face problem then the other sources will feel the pressure but if you don't work on those sources how will they work nicely? Depending on one particular source is really bad.



Again the auto rickshaws can't travel beyond Bandra. I would have loved if it traveled between small distances, to the stations as I see a huge no of people depending on it.



Here we wait for one bus for one, two hours and there is no surety if it will really come. Then why the hell run buses? And people don't care about all these!!



The one thing I really expect from people is to know the city totally and not be ignorant of because I have seen a lot of them in few days ignorant about the city. Don't blame the government if there is a blast, blame yourself for being ignorant because I feel all that happened in the past is due to the ignorance of the people living here.



Having said all of these I am enjoying my stay in Mumbai but I wanna see Mumbai get out of the little things I disliked till now.

For every Calcuttan, Flurys is a place of being proud and celebrating life. It's just not the restaurant at Park Street, famous for it's pastries and history but a place to celebrate about to the world by simply being present there. From Juhi Chawla to a simple 2 year old, Flurys has always been the place to spend a lovely morning, a gala afternoon and a cheerful evening. However, the old charm of Flurys is fading away with time.






Remember 15 Stephen Court, blazing, caught in the middle of political games, unsure of it bouncing back, dead, charred bodies and the home for places like Peter Cat, One Step Up and Flurys. We all were sad, hurt, agonised when the we had to see our beloved place being covered with sadness, tragedy and horror, we had to see the shutters going down; then hoping badly the place comes back to life very soon before its very late.


And luckily I was present when Flurys re-opened after the tragic event, with an emotional welcome, not only by the hosts but the media too. It just felt like WE ARE BACK HOME. Nowhere did we felt like going, it was like winning our lost territories.



However last day when I with two of my friends visited the place, we were totally shocked, surprised and angered by what we saw. Unwelcoming people, no co-ordination, no service to help us settle, poor service at table, we had to ask literally over and over again for even a GLASS OF WATER, flies hovering around, unhygienic environment, hair in the food, water leaking from the ceiling. The thing which bugged us the most was poor service, rather very poor service. We had to wait so long to give orders and even once we felt like getting up and heading towards another place across the street.


That's not all! How can a place like Flurys, in a peak hour ask there workers to clean the ceiling while people are having their food! Can someone explain?!





I least expected this kind of attitude by their staffs, such hospitality, such condition of food, unhygienic environment and of all insects around the place. I don't want apologies but Flurys to wake up. Sympathies doesn't last long, so you guys better start working now or else your shutters will get down soon, again.