Top 10 Bollywood Movies of 2014

10. Kya Dilli Kya Lahore

9. CityLights

8. Filmistan

7. Miss Lovely

6. Highway

5. Finding Fanny

4. PK

3. Ugly

2. Queen

1. Haider

Honourable Mentions: Mardaani, Dedh Ishqiya, Mary Kom, Holiday, Amit Sahni ki List, Hasee Toh Phasee

25 awkward moments for every comic book/ movie fan

1. Quick Silver married his sister, Scarlet Witch, and they had a kid together (Godzilla)

2. Lex Luthor robbed Alfred and framed Lucius Fox (Now You See Me)

3. Joker and Robin went to High School together (10 Things I Hate About You)

4. Black Widow dumped Robin (Don Jon)

5. Nick Fury and Star Lord worked at Jurassic Park

6. Robin was close friends with Green Hornet (50/50)

7. Gambit and Hulk are brothers who wrestle (Foxcatcher)

8. Captain America, Punisher and Superman tried to kill Scott Pilgrim (Scott Pilgrim vs The World)

9. Ironman and Batman solved a noir case (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang)

10. Mystique and Batman were married. They, along with Rocket Raccoon and Lois Lane, tried to take down Hawkeye (American Hustle)

11. Batman, along with the Hulk and Gwen Stacy, tried to put on a Broadway show (Birdman)

12. Bullseye and Hawkeye fought each other while Nick Fury was their leader (SWAT)

13. Joker, along with Penguin, Doc Brown, and Chucky, hung out in a crazy hospital (One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest)

14. Nick Fury along with Hartigan tried to stop Alfred from stealing gold (Die Hard with a Vengeance)

15. Wolverine banged Dejah Thoris and still John Carter helped him to defeat Green Lantern (X-Men Origins: Wolverine)

16. Bullseye was in love with Joker as well as Gail (Sin City) and Odin narrated the love saga (Alexander)

17. Whiplash killed Frodo (Sin City)

18. Jane Foster and Black Widow were sisters (The Other Boleyn Girl)

19. Antman had an affair with Nova Prime (Fatal Attraction)

20. Lex Luther and Gwen Stacy killed zombies (Zombieland)

21. Obi Wan Kanobi banged Black Widow (The Island)

22. Green Hornet and Harry Osborne tried to kill Kim Jung Un (The Interview)

23. The Riddler fell in love with Obi Wan Kanobi (I Love you Phillip Morris)

24. Batman and Hawkeye kidnapped Maya Hansen while robbing banks and Carol Ferris wouldn't leave Batman alone (The Town)

25. Deadshot went back in time to save Thanos from being killed by an alien. Thanos grew older and became Two-Face (Men in Black 3)

Book Bond- Meet and Greet with Ashwin Sanghi

It’s not every day that one receives a phone call to attend an exclusive meet with a national bestselling author, least of all the same author who had judged your story and found it good enough to be published. The author is none other than Mr.. Ashwin Sanghi who has churned one successful book after another, namely The Rozabel Line, Chanakya’s Chants, The Krishna Key and Private India (co-authored with James Patterson).

The meet with the author was organised as a prelude to the fifth edition of ‘Tata Literature Live! The Mumbai LitFest’ which is scheduled to be held from 30^th October to 2^nd November in Mumbai. The venues of the event are NCPA, Nariman Point (Oct 30 – Nov 2) as well as Prithvi Theatre and The Easel in Juhu (Nov 1-2).


The Book Bond- Meet and Greet with Ashwin Sanghi was organised on the 20^th of October at Taj Vivanta, Cuffe Parade. Apart from the fantastic venue, the event even boasted of hosting Mumbai’s finest bloggers. The Tata Group needs to be given credit to bringing together such versatile bloggers under one roof.


The event started with the host Mr. Anil Dharker, who is the festival director as well, enlightening us about the Lit Fest. He went on to speak about how this year’s LitFest was bigger and better than the previous four editions. Mr.. Sanghi kept nodding in agreement; he added that the Tata LitFest was the most authentic literary festival in India with multitude of people actually standing in long queues to attend the festival.

Once the bloggers were informed about the LitFest, Mr. Dharker went on with his discussion with Mr. Sanghi. The various topics discussed included the present and the future of Indian literature, challenges of getting published in the Indian market, authenticity of history and mythology, present state of poetry, and the discussion concluded with words of advice to the aspiring authors by Mr.. Sanghi.

Ashwin’s Reading Addiction

Mr. Sanghi spoke about his initial days as a “book-keeper” and the influence his grandfather, an avid book-reader himself, had on him as a kid which enabled Mr.. Sanghi to devour books one after another. He confessed that he cherishes each book given by his grandfather and has them even numbered.

‘The best gift a parent can give his child is introducing him/her to the world of reading.’

Authenticity of History and Mythology

Mr. Sanghi questioned the genuinity of history. It was news to me when he said that almost 200 versions of Ramayana had been written. He further said that the first book on Chanakya was written 900 years after his death. So history is the co-existence of facts and fiction.

‘I had once happened to come across a temple of Amitabh Bachchan. The saadhu was offering his prayers to a huge photo of Amitabh Bachchan. It was only when I stepped outside and saw the Amitabh Bachchan Chaalisiya being sold outside, did I realise that the saadhu was chanting the same incantation. Now if more of such temples come into existence, then 500 years down the line, Amitabh Bachchan would be treated as nothing short of a messiah. Perhaps the same has happened before.’

Traditional v/s Self-Publishing

Ashwin Sanghi’s ‘Rozabel Line’ was rejected by almost all the traditional publishers, forcing him to self-publish under the anagram Shawn Haigins. Since ‘Rozabel Line’ received critical acclaim, Mr. Sanghi decided to try to get the book published again in India. And this time, Westland publishers obliged.

‘Self-publishing is the easiest way to get yourself published. A literary agent may help you get past the initial hurdle and approach the traditional publishers but unless the content is worth reading, it’s very difficult to get it published by the traditional publishers; whereas in case of self-publishing, the content never matters.’

Advice to Aspiring Authors

1. Always keep a peg of Whisky alongside you while writing.
2. Market your book shamelessly.

Mr. Dharker announced the shortlists for three coveted Book Awards – Tata Literature Live! Book of the Year (Fiction and Non-fiction), Tata Literature Live! First Book Award (Fiction and Non-fiction) and Tata Literature Live! Business Book Award.

The highlight of the evening was the autograph session wherein Mr. Sanghi showed his humble side as he signed personalised copies of ‘Private India’ (I got all his four books autographed) and answered numerous questions by the bloggers.

The spectacular event was just a sneak peak to the four days LitFest.

Chapter 2: Kick-off

A tale from one of the members of Team Supernova

Read the previous part of the story here

Tara Dutta’s mind was bubbling with various conflicting thoughts as she stepped out of her office, into the parking lot. Why did the Principal of St. Mary Girls School request to meet her at such a short notice? What could it be? Had Roohi’s disobedience gone beyond the acceptable limit? The Principal had sounded tired on the phone and this worried Tara.

Earlier in the morning, Tara had been busy covering an unfortunate mishap. A Churchgate fast local train had rammed into the rear of an Andheri bound train. Over 110 people were killed in the accident. The Home Minister was livid in the press conference and had announced that investigation was being carried out as they spoke. Tara’s team had come up with numerous possibilities, from negligence of the motorman to even a probable terrorist plot. Tara was annoyed at the incompetency of her team as none of them had remotely suggested the possibility of a signaling error. The call from Roohi’s Principal just agitated her further.

Tara ran towards her Ford Ikon; the driver was ready with the engine and air-conditioner on, and held the door open for her to get in.

The driver wasted little time and soon the car had crossed CST and was cruising along the JJ flyover. The cruise was short lived as the driver was forced to bring the car to a halt. A pulling cart had hit a motorcycle, which in turn, had come under a BEST bus, leading to pandemonium.

Tara didn’t like the sight she witnessed and cursed her luck. ‘These useless ghaatis should know better and follow the traffic rules. They are drawn to Mumbai like a moth to the flame. How I wish the city was rid of such vermin. Waiting here for the traffic to clear would be futile. Driver, doosra rasta ley lo.’

After twenty minutes of periodic start-and-stop motion, the vehicle left the flyover and was zooming past other vehicles in no time.

Meanwhile, Tara was lost in her thoughts.

At an early age, she had lost her parents in car accident. Her mind had blocked almost all memories of the orphanage. The only memory that she remembers vividly is of the day when her best friend was adopted by a young couple, leaving her alone. She had taken a pledge. She had decided that she would win at any cost; therefore she would win. She had no second thoughts about it. She basked in the small victories of her life until she met Shekhar Dutta.

Shekhar made her feel humane and played an essential role in transforming her from an ambitious and a self-centered girl into a compassionate and an understanding woman. Being with Shekhar, Tara had felt carefree and alive for the first time in her life.

After graduation, Tara joined a media house. It’s easy to get into media business. What’s hard is to get out. Tara knew she would control her destiny if she stood alone. Her work became her livelihood. While others took time to become acquainted and fraternize with one another, Tara wasted no time in her quest to become the best. Her competitiveness and will to win came back to her naturally; it had just been in hibernation and was lying dormant. Tara Dutta soon became a name to reckon with among the media professionals.

Tara’s success may have overshadowed Shekhar’s achievements in his work field but he wasn’t envious. Shekhar and she were like oil and vinegar; they went together but never mixed. They both adapted simultaneously to each other’s lifestyles without any complaints whatsoever.

Shekhar was on a trip and Roohi, as usual, had become unmanageable in her father’s absence. People are often dealt a bad hand. They have to struggle on and make do with what they’ve been given. Roohi would resort to numerous antics to get Tara’s attention. Tara knew her daughter very well to realize why she had been called to the school today.

Tara’s train of thoughts was interrupted at the sight of St. Mary Girls School. Tara exited the car and ordered her driver not to leave the vehicle as she would return soon to go back to work.

Being the mother of a notorious child, Tara knew the way to the Principal’s office having being summoned there numerous times but never under such a mysterious circumstance.

The door of the Principal’s office stood ajar which surprised Tara as the Principal was a disciplinarian and she always insisted that people inculcate the habit of knocking on a door before entering. Feeling a bit odd, Tara glanced inside the office and the scene before her left her speechless.

The Principal was bent over Roohi and was feeding her a bar of Snickers. Upon seeing her mother, Roohi jumped off the chair and ran towards her. Tara’s was amazed at her daughter’s sudden display of affection and she gave a quizzical look to the Principal.

‘Ma’am, if you could please settle down first.’

Tara made herself comfortable in the armchair beside Roohi.

‘That’s better now. There was an abduction attempt on your daughter.’

Tara couldn’t believe her ears and the colour drained off her face.

‘Ma’am, please listen to me before getting too worked up. The abduction attempt was foiled, courtesy our watchman. He had seen Roohi being accompanied by an unidentified man towards a van. Sensing something suspicious about the entire episode, he created a ruckus by howling at the passersby about a possible kidnap attempt. The chaos was enough to scare the kidnapper away. Your daughter wasn’t harmed in the incident, though she keeps insisting that the rogue was her father’s friend. Such traumatic experiences can take a toll on a child as young as Roohi. I request you to take Roohi to a doctor and bring her back to school only when she feels better.’

Tears welled in Tara’s eyes as the realization hit her that her daughter was almost taken away from her. She couldn’t thank the Principal enough. The Principal was right. Taking care of Roohi was her utmost priority. She cannot lose her composure now; she has to remain strong for her daughter.

Carrying Roohi in her arms, Tara headed towards her car. The driver was nowhere to be seen. Normally, she would have lost her cool, but at that instant her mind was preoccupied with the task of returning her daughter safely to home.

The driver’s number was unavailable and despite waiting for him for around ten minutes, there was no sign of him. Tara couldn’t wait any longer and decided to drive Roohi to home herself. She would deal with the incompetent driver later.

Once inside the car, an excited Roohi talked about the trick that she had played on her classmate. Her enthusiasm knew no bounds as not only had she left school early that day, she was also getting to spend extra time with her workaholic mother.

Seeing a hysterical and blissfully happy Roohi calmed Tara’s nerves. Looked like things would soon go back to normal. Little did she know that she was driving her daughter in a death machine.

The next part of the story is continued here

"Me and my team are participating in ‘Game Of Blogs’ at BlogAdda.com. #CelebrateBlogging with us."

Top 10 Six Word Stories

I'm writing a 'story' post after a seven month writing hiatus. But let me tell you beforehand, these stories are not mine. Instead of penning down stories myself, I've been reading a lot lately and I was amazed by the brilliance of the following stories.


1. Strangers. Friends. Best Friends. Lovers. Strangers.

2. The smallest coffins are the heaviest.

3. 'Just Married!' Read the shattered windshield.

4. An only son. A folded flag.

5. "Passengers! This isn't your captain speaking."

6. Brought roses home. Keys didn't fit.

7. Jumped. Then I changed my mind.

8. "It's our fiftieth, table for one."

9. "What's your return policy on rings?"

10. I met my soul-mate. She didn't.

86th Annual Academy Awards (OSCARS 2014) Predictions

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

The nominees:

Before Midnight- Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke

Captain Phillips- Billy Ray
Philomena- Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope
12 Years a Slave- John Ridley
The Wolf of Wall Street- Terence Winter

Major Contenders- 12 Years a Slave and The Wolf of Wall Street

Winner: 12 Years a Slave

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

The nominees:

American Hustle- Eric Warren Singer and David O. Russell
Blue Jasmine-Woody Allen
Dallas Buyers Club- Craig Borten and Melisa Wallack
Her- Spike Jonze
Nebraska- Bob Nelson

Major Contenders- American Hustle and Her

Winner: American Hustle

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM

The nominees:

The Croods- Chris Sanders, Kirk DeMicco and Kristine Belson
Despicable Me 2- Chris Renaud, Pierre Coffin and Chris Meledandri
Ernest & Celestine- Benjamin Renner and Didier Brunner
Frozen- Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee and Peter Del Vecho
The Wind Rises- Hayao Miyazaki and Toshio Suzuki

Major Contenders- Frozen and The Wind Rises

Winner: Frozen

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

The nominees:

Sally Hawkins- Blue Jasmine
Jennifer Lawrence- American Hustle
Lupita Nyong'o- 12 Years a Slave
Julia Roberts- August: Osage County
Jane Squibb- Nebreska

Major Contenders- Jennifer Lawrence and Lupita Nyong'o

Winner- Lupita Nyong'o

SUPPORTING ACTOR

The nominees:

Barkhad Abdi- Captain Phillips
Bradley Cooper- American Hustle
Michael Fassbender- 12 Years a Slave
Jonah Hill- The Wolf of Wall Street
Jared Leto- Dallas Buyers Club

Major Contenders- Barkhad Abdi and Jared Leto

Winner- Jared Leto

LEAD ACTRESS

The nominees:

Amy Adams- American Hustle
Cate Blanchett- Blue Jasmine
Sandra Bullock- Gravity
Judi Dench- Philomena
Meryl Streep- August: Osage County

Major Contenders- Cate Blanchett, Sandra Bullock and Judi Dench

Winner- Cate Blanchett

LEAD ACTOR

The nominees:

Christian Bale- American Hustle
Bruce Dern- Nebreska
Leonardo DiCaprio- The Wolf of Wall Street
Chiwetel Ejiofor- 12 Years a Slave
Matthew McConaughey- Dallas Buyers Club

Major Contenders- Leonardo DiCaprio, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Matthew McConaughey

Winner- Matthew McConaughey

DIRECTOR

The nominees:

American Hustle- David O. Russell

Gravity- Alfonso Cuarón
Nebraska- Alexander Payne
12 Years a Slave- Steve McQueen
The Wolf of Wall Street- Martin Scorsese

Major Contenders- David O. Russell and Alfonso Cuarón

Winner: Alfonso Cuarón

BEST PICTURE

The nominees:

American Hustle
Captain Philips
Dallas Buyers Club
Gravity
Her
Nebreska
Philomena
12 Years a Slave
The Wolf of Wall Street

Major Contenders- American Hustle, Dallas Buyers Club, Gravity and 12 Years a Slave

Winner: 12 Years a Slave

I hope we all have a gala time watching the 85th Annual Academy Awards.

Have a Nice Day.