Arbit Scratchpad

One of the books that I was very excited about reading, and which did not disappoint me. The book with its melancholy and mellow narrative makes a story on a difficult scientific topic, completely believable, by its sheer depth. It starts off as a first person account by the protagonist, Kathy who is now about to enter a crucial phase of her life and as she starts to tell her story the narrative shifts to her school days, when they were growing up in a special school at a remote corner of England, Hailsham – that becomes a leitmotif for their struggle in life. The story revolves around her classmates and their interactions with the teachers at the school – how they get to know the reasons for their existence, the boundaries within which they will need to lead all their lives and their coming of age. As they grow; their angst, tensions, passions and quarrels among close friends makes for an interesting read. New relevant terms and meanings are introduced without being jarring. The book ...

Finally watched 'Rang De Basanti' at Rex, yesterday evening. There are sparks of brilliance at times, unconventional too, but the movie tries to fit things in place that at times seems artificial, almost laughable. Especially the parts on killing people and violence are a bit too far fetched. The cinematography and screenplay is very innovative ... Some scenes are thrilling, like the one in which Amir Khan plays the role of Azad and escapes from the Ram Lila grounds in a motorcycle. There are some pathetic comparisons too, like when the character of DJ and Sue are kissing and the scene cuts to a part of the documentary where the freedom fighters are on a fast unto death. Certain dialogues, captions and narrative from the diary do evoke patriotism. The tenor is so comic even when the protagonists have occupied the AIR studios. The humour spoils the mood towards the end. Probably I knew some parts of the story and hence was critical of things, as I expected something better. Howe...