Veer Zaara Still Unplugged!

......so that night we had slept with numerous question popping before us and a hope to complete the movie next evening...
......finally that evening had come! After a tiring day at office, Rajat was back home before me & was already trying his hands with the movie.
"First CD got copied but the second CD is giving troubles" (Rajat)
"Ok! Now let me try. You shut down the computer and let my try with some of the softwares of my great software collection!" (Kanuj, assuring, comforting or say whatever you can!!)
Rajat pressed a button on the CPU & the screen came blank.

I was now ready to attach my hard-drive, which housed my great collections.
......here goes the bus in (bus is the pin/connector which connects the hard drive to the main CPU)
......here goes the power supply
......& here comes the computer live again!!
......a desperate search in my hard-drive for softwares
......ah! there they are!!! Install the File Copy Softwares (plus what all softwares i could think could help me see the remaining part of the movie!)

SHUT DOWN! Connect the CD-ROM! REBOOT!
(There is only one thing that can be connected-CD-ROM or an additional hard-drive, so to install the softwares present in additional hard-drive, CD-ROM had to be removed & so is now being again connected)

May God shower his blessing upon us!
May the Almighty be with us!!
AMEN!!!

Software 1: ISO Buster
First try....50 % success....51%...52%....52%....52%...stuck!!
No probs...
Second try....50 % success....51% done...52%....52% also done (great going!)....53%....54%.....still 54%....stuck again!!
No probs...always be hopeful!!
As one of the writings on my t-shirt says "I got a blood group with an attitude!! B+ve (be positive)" , i was still hopeful..

Software 2: BadCopy Pro
"This is a great software pal! I even extracted files from a scratched CD using this!" (Kanuj to Rajat)
"Lets see" (Rajat)
50%.....52%....55%....(jhakaas hai boss -translated-great stuff)...60%...60%....still 60%....Ok 62% now.....
Vinodh had also come from office meanwhile and was watching what was going on.

"Hey stop it now..its stuck & also time. The CD-parlour gonna close, we gotta go!" (Rajat)
"Its going on man! Just few more minutes"
63%....64%.....65%....still 65%....again 65%....arggg 65%....
"Its gonna take entire night like this then!" (Rajat)
"Ok!!" (Kanuj, canceling the extraction of the video file & trying to open the file which was saved, means the part of the video file that was extracted)
"Ah! its got something more than we could see yesterday!!" (Rajat)
"Hey! How come Preeti is here!" (Vinodh)
"You slept away in mid yaar!"(Rajat)
"What is going on? Where has the movie reached?"(Vinodh, wondering where the movie is going, as he slept mid-way in the movie last night)
"Chup chaap movie dekhne de, vaise hi its not getting copied"(Kanuj, furiously) (translated: be quiet & let watch the movie, anyways its not getting copied)
A series of ohs & ahs were heard...till the movie came to a final stop
....so the bad luck still continues.
I still tried with other softwares i had....but with no luck

"What now?We'l tell the CD-parlour person that the CD got stuck"(Kanuj)
"I'll send you the story tomorrow!"(Rajat, jokingly)
"Agar, story hi sunni hai to why watch movies?" (Kanuj) (translated-if we just have to listen to the story, why watch movies?)
"We can ask the CD-parlour guy to let us see the last 15 minutes of movie there at his place only" (Rajat)
"Hmm.." (Kanuj)

So we left home.....for food & quietly return the CD back to the CD-parlour.....

Veer Zaara Unplugged!

.....Its been months since the talk started.
Talk about plot of a movie involving the age-old cross-border romantic angle, which many authors & producers have used to earn fame, leaving the monetary part a bit away.

.....Its been few lesser months since the music became available.
Music of the movie, that a great legend created & left on his heavenly abode. Music that is creating waves, lyrics that are creating just thunders & dialogues that are bound to shake everyone, as claimed by the presenters.

.....Its been even lesser months since mails & SMSes started floating.
Hearing about the different story-line of the upcoming Yash Raj Productions' new release, and reading a bit about the same in the various publications, mails & SMSes starting floating-some to enlighten the readers about the expected ; some to panic the readers with why this publication (mostly SMS) was sent as they revealed the storyline of the movie - which no movie buff would like to do before he himself is an audience to that experience, specially with the case one of the biggest movie houses of the country presenting their creation.

So when was the gestation period going to get over? The producers had chosen to deliver at the time when the Indian crowd could no longer wait and have enough time to throng the cinema halls....to be precise the day of Diwali(November 12,2004), which is indeed one of the biggest festival in India....but to the producers' not such a pleasant surprise, a edited version of a classic was being released on the same day! When the director was asked to comment on the same, came the reply (and is indeed a great one!!) "After 44 years, I still feel emotional about Mughal-E-Azam like everyone else of my generation. But to expect that just because one’s favourite vintage car is going to be on the road, no other car should drive on the highway is not fair. " (as told to Bhawana of Screen)

By now (& of course, the title of blog says), its obvious that the movie in the context is Yash Chopra's Veer-Zaara.....the much awaited love-legend.

After lots of hustle & tussle in the Bangalore region, with the cinema owners defying the KFCC's (Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce) decision of not allowing non-Kannada films to be screened, Veer Zaara continued to be screened, but with the hype created for the movie creating shortage of available tickets, me & my room-mates (Rajat & Vinodh) finally settled to have the show screened on the very own mini-cinema version--Vinodh's computer. After curious checks about the quality of the print (err...sound was secondary and was indeed when we played the movie), we settled for the uncensored but yet shortened camera print CD version of the movie (movies that come on CD are usually of shorter duration than they are in cinema halls).

....in went the CD

....Windows Media Player zindabaad!

....File..Open..Browse.........CDROM......MPEGAV......ah! found the video file!

....get! set! the show starts!!!!

"Music's superb man!!" (Kanuj)

"Yes! i love this sequence" (Rajat)

"Who's done it? " (Kanuj)

"I suppose its Madan Mohan, the great legend" (Rajat)

"Oh! Heard the name for the first time" (Kanuj, poor general knowledge man! gotta work out on that!...start listening to some old numbers also!!)

"He's dead now!" (Rajat)

"Ok! But a great job indeed" (Kanuj)

"Can't you both watch the movie in silence" (Vinodh)

.....and the movie went on...till dialogues in Pakistani Punjabi were used by actors, specially by Preeti's maid servant, played by Divya Dutta.

"Yeh kya bol rahi hai, mujhe kuch samajh nahi aa raha!" (translated : what is she speaking, i am not getting a word of it!) (Vinodh)

"This is Pakistani Punjabi & she means to say that the bridegroom side just looked at your face & agreed for the marriage, if they happen to know about your ways of life, God alone knows what will happen", (Kanuj, translating)

"Ok! man, but its better if she just keeps her mouth shut" (Vinodh)

.....and Divya Dutta kept on speaking in Punjabi, perfect to her role, but to fume Vinodh more....while Rajat enjoyed peacefully, getting what all he could.

"Great scenic beauty man! Thats my land, Punjab! Do you know that this movie has been shot in a place near to my home town and the interesting part is that no one got to know that the shooting is taking place" (as usual , Kanuj)...adding more to this, about Lohri too, but to others' interest?

"Hey yeh to DDLJ style ja rahi hai!!" (translation : hey its going on the same lines of the old movie Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, DDLJ for short)(Vinodh, pointing to the turn the movie was taking)

"Are sa ek jaisa hi hai" (translation : everything is the same)(Rajat)

"Sssshh! Be quiet man! I am already not getting this lady's language" (Vinodh, troubled by Divya Dutta's punjabi)

"In DDLJ, Shahrukh came from ..." (Kanuj)

"..England..." (Rajat)

"Yes, England to India to get his beloved & here he's going from India to Pakistan! Its all the same man..same story re-cooked in a new dish" (Kanuj)

......(after some more scenes)...."no no its bit different man! But the music is superb. I'll try getting the polyphonic ringtone of this one man! will sound great!" (Kanuj)

"hmm " (Rajat)

..the movie continued...now the critical time came...i started predicting the storyline, like everytime.....

"I am 90% sure that......"

but Aditya Chopra gave me a checkmate this time!!! The next few scenes proved me to be wrong! What was being predicted, was proving that the story has been well-spun to keep the audience guessing!!!

"Superb twist man!" (Kanuj)

(Vinodh by this time was fast asleep, tired by the Punjabi used in the movie)

Now came the climax, the last 15 minutes of the movie were left...the movie was taking great turns....

Grrrrr

Grrrrr

Grrrrr................................the CD has got stuck!

"Try again" (Rajat)

"hmm, trying" ( Kanuj)

"Use Super Decoder" (Rajat) (Super Decoder is a video player, which plays even Cds in worst condition)

"Are Cd chale to sahi" (translated : let the Cd run atleast) (Kanuj)

"Use Roxio only..if it works" (Rajat) (Roxio is another video player, which comes bundled with Video Cds for computer play)

"Nup! Nothing working! I'll try Logging out and then logging in and then trying againg! " (Kanuj)

.....there continued attempts...all possible ones...2 brains storming to try and make the Cd work somehow....just the last 15 minutes...please.....

.....................

"No Luck" (Kanuj)

"We'll watch the rest tomorrow then,as there's nothing we can do!" (Rajat)

"But the Cd's in perfect condition, its a new one" (Kanuj)

"Maybe there's error in the CD-ROM" (Rajat) (CD-ROM is used for playing CDs in a computer)

.............and so went the lights off

.............Why does it has to happen to us only? Why?

.............Why can't the CD get stuck 5 minutes of play before?

.............Why at this position only when something had come up and the movie had taken such a turn which would make every movie buff to be uneasy in his seat?

With this questions in head & a hope to complete the movie tomorrow evening...me & Rajat too slept...


(Original Blog @ http://veer-zaara.blogspot.com/)

The Blog was listed on the Sify's homepage with a tagline-"Its not easy to watch a blockbuster at home-Kanuj tells you why"

My First Air Flight

Prologue:

Its been years since my dad went to USA, and everyone in my family wondered when they'll get a chance to get high into the air where the landmarks on our favourite place look like small pin-heads......
My mom got the opportunity when she went on some official work to Hyderabad....So the only people left were me and my sister. So it was my turn, maybe it was following the order of the head of the family first, then the lady of the family and then the bigger kiddo !!!
It was October first week, but we (me and my pal, Rajat) already had our eyes on the Diwali (November 12,2004) break since we joined the office. For me it had been four years since I celebrated Diwali with my family, being at Engineering College (NIT Calicut, Kerala). Rajat told me that a bundle of hols are coming and if we take few days off from office we can go and celebrate the great festival with our families. I was still thinking when he just announced that he's all set to go as he got permission from his manager to take three days off and also booked the air-tickets for his journey. So I too got into action. The very next day I asked my manager if I could take three days off and he gave a green signal...But the way he said it, I thought he's joking..But no..It was true as my senior colleagues too said-"Go & enjoy! Madi" (madi is a Kannada word). So I just went to the traveling agent opposite to my building and got my tickets..not exactly the dates I wanted...But holla I was going home

Came the days to go home..and came the final days for my project release....days and nights at office....Ah..

The day has arrived ( November 7,2004)............but till 6.30 AM (IST of course) I was at office...knowing that this would happen, I had packed my bags one day in advance. My flight was at 9.20 AM (IST) - Indian Airlines. So I needed to be at the Bangalore Airport atleast by 8.20 AM. I reached at 8.

So here it starts.....(obviously the airport part should also be included :-) )

Bangalore Airport : November 7,2004 : 0800 hrs IST : Bangalore-New Delhi

I entered the airport through the Indian Airlines departures terminal and saw a queue for check-in. Not following the Indian tradition, I went and stood in a queue..yes yes I am an Indian and I am proud to be one!!(though Indian cricketers are proving by contributing their part in their own way). After standing in the queue for around ten minutes, when my turn came, the official on the counter says, "Sir, please pass the baggage through the x-ray check before". Ah!! ten minutes wasted..Anyways..TP (time pass) ho gaya!! Went back to the entry of the Indian Airlines counter and got my baggage x-ray checked. The helper there put a sticker on it saying "X-ray checked- Indian Airlines".

Next, back to the queue. There was an old man ahead of me who was asking the official at the counter to give him a seat so that he can spread his legs properly. "You get a seat of your own choice? How is this? I've been traveling in Indian Railways since long and there our seats were already allotted!! Maybe a special case!!". On my turn, I just gave the official there my ticket and took whatever he gave...Didn't even knew what's gonna be that he's giving, just had heard its something that is compulsory before getting on the plane. Next confusion was should I take the newspaper kept there on the desk? (though the paper was something that I never had read before- Deccan Herald) is it free? (Forgetting nothing in this world is free!!). When I was still getting my boarding pass (yeah I got the term now!), there were people who kept coming and taking small tags placed on the desk, written on them was Indian Airlines. I just took my boarding pass and seated on the chairs in the waiting lounge. Another thought flashed-if all people are taking the tag, there should be some catch in that too, so I went and took one tag and attached it to the shoulder bag I was carrying as cabin-luggage.( I had already taken a copy of Deccan Herald, copying the elderly man ahead of me). After it was declared that I have to go for security check, I went in and the same thing happened with my shoulder bag--will you check everything with me with your x-ray? (Roentgen would have never thought that his medical discovery would be used to harass innnocent people like me!!).

In waiting lounge after security check....arey bhai..kabh chadaoge hawai-jahaaz par? Mujhe udna hai!! (translated: hey, when will you allow me to board the plane?I wanna fly) Okay not like the Wright Brothers!!I hope my journey is safer than theirs was!!Baaki Indian Airlines ki daya hai! (translated: rest is all courtesy, Indian Airlines!!) . I wanted to click pics of the magnificent view infront of me, with the airplanes and the airport looking really great!!but by mistake I had read the instructions on the air-ticket, photography is strictly prohibited in the aircraft and the airport premises. Ok...Please board me...................................Ah....boarding announced! I was like "Kanuj in wonderland" (Lewis Carroll please excuse me).

Following the fellow passengers I found my way into the plane. At the entrance was a smiling (not too great looking, as expected-thanks air-hostess descibers) air hostess with her hands folded as a welcome sign. Got into the aircraft. I was still in a wonderland...Err wonder craft now! Found my seat-10A-ahem-its a window seat, to my good(/bad) luck just above the wings. Okay, I sat there (not expecting like any other guy to have a gal on the next seat-because all times in the past were futile). There were guys next to me. But someone got them theirs exchanged with small gals who were too keen to pick up the candies and the cotton (in kiddy days, we called it bhudhi mai ka jhatta)..I was bit not easy in doing that ( I am a big guy now!!). A request by the onboard crew wanted us to tie our seat-belts and like a obedient student, I did! The air-hostess gave a demonstration of how to tie it too, also telling about the various exits & that we have to switch off our mobile devices as they might interfere with the working of the electronic gadgets used for navigation.

The plane started! The wings started moving up and down from the edges..ab mera kya hoga!! (translated: what about me now!!) . The plane started...slowly...I had in front of my eyes Kajol...No no not in that way this time, but in the way she was when her flight was taking off in Pyaar to hona hi tha. Is it the same experience? No now I can confidently say and its so thrilling, felt just like its on a vertical merry-go-round in amusement parks. As I was getting elevated from the surface, Banglore started appearing more beautiful everytime-the airport road never was such beautiful when I was plying on it!! The buses and cars were just like pin-heads! Those who have undergone that experience can feel what I am saying! Soon the aircraft was settled in the high air. The crew-head welcomed us aboard and informed us about the journey details-plane speed-720kms/hour;altitude-8000 feet above sea level; bangalore-Delhi distance-arg..I don't remember. But he did mention that we'll reach by 12.30 as the flight was already late by half hour..How can IST adjustment be forgotten. The air-hostess started offering the food- I took non-veg hoping it to be good and yes it was...something I don't know what was called--I just gulped inside. My ketchup finished and what to do!! I was searching for the air-hostess. One was in view-but she was an aunt ji. Then appeared the better one, the one which was welcoming at the time I entered the plane. She got me the ketchup! Then she came for serving tea. I hoped the aunt ji doesn't come and holla! She Didn't...the good one came but she was rude enough to scream at me to bring my cup near her.

The outside view was just superb. The clouds looked like small balls of cotton spread on the floor. Sorry I couldn't get the pics, though I wanted to-my mistake of reading the onboard-instructions. The plane appeared to be still but it was moving at 720kms/hour. After just one hour we were above Nagpur and the crew-head announced that the expected temperature at Delhi would be around 16 degrees C...as expected in this month of the year. I couldn't believe that in just one hour I was above Nagpur and I another one hour I'll be landing in Delhi, a journey which takes me around 40 hours in train.

Just after this, there appeared the much unexpected part of the journey. As every movie has some twists and turns to enthrall the viewers ( even Hum Aapke Hain Kaun had a slight twist!), so why would I be left behind. As soon as we crossed the Nagpur region, there was some bad weather and there was turbulence as a result of it. The plane shaked like a small kid drank water hurriedly and was coughing as a result of some water getting into the wind-pipe. Apun socha! beta ab tera kya hoga! kahin first flight last flight na ho jaye!! (translated: What will happen to you now! It shouldn't be the case that the first flight of yours is your last one also..I said to myself!!) ..We were again requested to tie our seat belts and informed that similar turbulence can be expected as the weather is bad ahead.....Hey ram...Hey ram...Kajol! you were right!! I should have listened to you! your first flight too had turbulence. But until and unless I get a personnel experience, why would Mr. Kanuj Gupta listen to anything. Ah it worked..Ok now....Thank God! it was okay in 3-4 minutes. The kids next to me were terrified but I think they were veterans and didn't show the kind of reaction a kid of around 10 would show.....

We approached Delhi and the view which I saw was even better than that of Bangalore, though I Didn't recognize most of the buildings. The announcement informed that the temperature outside is around 26 degrees C. The landing was another great experience though it shaked us..I had the imagination of a smooth landing..but anyways...Thanks I was on ground. The Indira Gandhi International Airport at Delhi appeared much better than the Bangalore one, being an of international standards. I got my luggage and then made my way to the exit where my aunt had sent someone to pick me up! But Delhi was a whooping hot than what I was told. The quarter an hour journey from airport to my aunt's home required air conditioner to be switched on at full speed!!!

So this was how my first air flight journey was.

The journey back was equally good though it was favoured by some better air-hostesses at the airport (courtesy- Jet Airways) and on board (courtesy- Air Sahara) and the futile wish of the past which was not futile (though no expectations were there and no exchanges happened)...lucky me! Bangalore was looking superb, fully lit.

(And yes, this time I managed to check the washroom also- a question which was there in the Bangalore-Delhi flight was answered..but I'll leave it unquestioned and unanswered here!!)

Epilogue:

All is well that ends well!!! But it was a real great experience and if possible would request everyone to have atleast once!


(Original Blog @ http://my-first-air-flight.blogspot.com/ )