TATBDOML

These are the best days of my life.     

These are the days which mark important milestones in my fortunate life. A reminder for my pathetic memory…

17/10/2013

Finally, after a long spell of creative void we finished a project in record time. A writing project, that came upon when I was just settling into another. Thanks Pradeep Kaniyadi for the wonderful offer, I hope that we managed to script a good story. A special thanks to my collaborator, Akruti Rao for writing it with me. 

To T D P… cheers

18/10/2013

The reluctance to be and do mediocre resulted with a lot of failed attempts to work in the creative media industry; however, this lead to certain important decisions.  A long term dream of starting a creative company is now a reality.

Oldboy Productions Private Limited is now an officially registered company.

Cheers

Pradeep Kumar

The Written Word

I had vaguely heard about Hemingway, knew he was a great writer, but never read any of his work. I hardly read anything other than spy, espionage thrillers and have very limited knowledge about literature. A couple of months ago, I happened to watch Midnight in Paris, a film by Woody Allen. It’s a fantasy rom com, which travels back in time to the 1920’s, to the world of Ernest Hemingway and his celebrated luminaries from the literary world. The character which stood out for me in this film was Hemingway’s, such an inspiring personality.

I’m currently reading one of his non-fictional books, and yesterday I read a passage from it. Now, I just can’t get past it. For an Amateur writer (I know "writer" is too strong a word for a guy who doesn't know the basics of grammar :-)) but still these words are so beautiful and inspiring.

Read on …

A Moveable Feast:

Chapter 7: “Une generation Perdue” A Lost Generation

When I was writing, it was necessary for me to read after I had written, to keep my mind from going on with the story I was working on. If you keep thinking about it, you would lose the thing that you were writing before you could go on with it the next day. It was necessary to get exercise, to be tired in my body, and it was very good to make love with whom you loved. That was better than anything. But afterwards, when you were empty, it was necessary to read in order not to think or worry about your work until you could do it again. I had learned already never to empty the well of my writing; but always to stop when there was still something there in the deep part of the well, and let it refill at night from the springs that fed it.

~ Ernest Hemingway 

Cheers 

Pradeep Kumar

Filmmakers: A Point of View

In the pursuit of Cinema over the past four years, I've seen so many views, ideas, people, fights, delusions, and critical analysis, both from the good and the bad.

The primary and the most important aspect of the art / business of Film-making (meditation or whatever else you want to call it), is the Filmmaker or the Director. The whole world knows and adores the famous and illustrious Actors, but for a thriving film industry, the talents of strong filmmakers matters the most.

Although Cinema had its supremacy in the past, I don’t think it can change any society as a whole. Cinema can have minor influences in good and bad ways in our present conditions. However good Filmmakers have the power to influence and impress generations.

Yes, “GOOD Filmmakers” is subjective. It may vary according to the industry, business aspect or it can purely depend on the art value.  But both do exist, even though most people involved, including some Filmmakers, are always DUMB enough to be at loggerheads with each other.

So the breed of Filmmakers is an interesting case study. These creators range from humble, reclusive, and eccentric, to the loudest and the most pompous freaks of nature, who claim to know the formula for success. The wide variety in personalities makes all of them unique. So it is indeed logical that in cinema, all these people will make all sorts of films, from Docu-Dramas to Hyper Realism, from Art House to Summer Blockbuster Commercial cinema.

The laymen, or the general audience, choose what they want according to their needs. And accordingly some films get critical acclaim, and some make millions of dollars at the box office, and many do strike a balance. 

Art house veterans ridicule mainstream or commercial cinema, and the commercial guys return in kind or just ignore. But one of the DUMBEST things to witness is the extreme arguments and fights between the Filmmakers regarding which is better or good. The animosity is as old as the history of cinema itself. No matter how much you dislike any form of cinema; there will be an audience for it. It can be a niche or it can cover a wide majority of the world’s population. 

I indulge in extensive research and analysis about filmmakers, genres, different aspects involved in film-making. Also have arguments and fights, but I do have a limit and it will never reach an extreme most of the times. I do make an effort to understand but certain times I do let go. I refrain from wasting my time by discussing things after a point. I love most genres except for extreme commercial cinema were Logic is nonexistent and the other extreme of self-indulgent cinema, absurd works which makes sense only to the ones who've made it; but still I wouldn't ask them to stop. 

Cinema is primarily an art form for entertainment, and through that entertainment one can have beautiful and meaningful experiences. Identify your strengths and explore.

Happy Film-making…

Cheers

Pradeep Kumar

RAGGING

“Ragging is good for developing friendship” is more like saying
“Rape is good for a healthy sex life”

- Pradeep Kumar

My Beliefs - Part 3

My Beliefs - Subject to change when I'm Wrong.

In the land of BOOTLICKERS, I will choose to CUT my Tongue :-p

Introverts are more often misunderstood as Self Centered Pricks : )

When people try to figure you out, you will have a thousand Definitions.
All of which can be False, True or Both...

People who try to impress and please everyone by playing it safe - show some guts please... might help you to improve your Personality.

Despise the ones who are ALL TALK and NO WORK... (I do despise myself at times : )

Never beg for Respect. When you are actually good at what you do... it is inevitable.

Never argue with a Narrow minded IDIOT, he or she will waste your Time.

If you do not Adapt / Update yourself; you will be Obsolete, History, Incompetent, Boring etc...

LE STUPID - Keep Changing the Mirror and hope for Better.

Even with Everything...
We look Ugly.
So don't even Think of...
Peeling your Skin.


Cheers
Pradeep Kumar

Yours Truly, LOVE.

Yours Truly, LOVE.  was my graduation film at L V Prasad Film & TV Academy. It was an amazing 2 years at film school where I learnt much more than just Cinema.

I have to confess that I did have plans to quit film school by the beginning of the second year, but I also like to finish what I start. So with lot of reluctance and lethargy, I did finish my final project for a sole reason, that I had committed to this project which was not mine alone and was also the Cinematographer's and the Editor's graduation project. 

I had four different stories and had to settle for a simple one which was extremely complicated to execute due to some unique circumstances. I always liked a challenge and I'm happy to say that I managed to deliver even when many "well wishers" would have loved to see me fail. (pun intended) 

No filmmaker will be 100% satisfied with his final product. I'm happy with the 60% I got. THANKS to my team who made this possible. THANKS to your constant patience with my short comings. 

Extremely Happy that my Film was part of  the following Film Festivals:

• 10th Kalpanirjhar International Short Fiction Film Festival (2012) - Kolkata
• Cut.In Student Film Festival of CMCS, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (2012) - Mumbai
• Reelshow International Online Student Film Competitions - Finalist for October, 2012
•  SIGNS 2013 - 7th Edition, Federation of Film Societies of India - Keralam.  
• THIRD PRIZE - 7th Asan Video Awards, Asan Memorial College of Arts & Science (2013) - Chennai.
• FIRST PRIZE – Mise En Scene Film Festival, Parampara (2013), Indraprastha College for Women, University of Delhi.

Cheers

Pradeep Kumar

Women are Crazy... Men are Stupid

George Carlin on Men and Women... Warning : Explicit Content  :) :) :)



Cheers
Pradeep

DO NOT JUMP TO.........

CONCLUSIONS :)

I'm much more than this blog. Do not get fooled... lol...

Cheers
Pradeep Kumar 

My first short film - exist

Exist was my first short film as a Director. This was my third project at film school were we had to make a silent film as part of our Continuity Exercise. I had written and posted the story in my blog a while ago. I just finished re editing the film and also added background music. We shot the film using a Sony HDV camera, the whole shoot was completed in one day.

I have to thank my cast Manoj Leonal Jahson and Mayank Gupta. Thanks to Rakesh Rawat my cinematographer, was amazed to see him climb up a tree not thinking twice about his own safety to shoot an overhead shot. As its a very slow paced film, I did bug my editor to death to get exactly what I wanted. Thanks Akruti Roa for putting up with my constant nagging while editing. Also thanks to all the people who helped me in making this film.

This film is dedicated to my dear friend Manoj Krishnamoorthy, will always look back at those memorable days and remember him smiling.

Hope the film is worth your time.

Cheers

Pradeep Kumar

An open Letter to all the Haters :-)

Facebook in one of the main platforms through which people exist. The active ones, these are the people who share anything and everything on social media. The second group are people who are occasionally active and the final group are your purist voyeurs, they just log in to see what others do. We all know to which category we exactly belong to.
I have seen many hate mails and open letters in the blog world, people generally whining about writing styles, content. People ridiculing others for their lack of English knowledge (mine is very bad), for having opinions etc. This outraged and offended group have now taken over social media too. These people think that the Internet / Blogs / Social Networking Sites etc... are their Ancestral wealth. Sorry idiots, its not. I'm surprised to see many who take the term HOME PAGE quite literally. Wake up people it is not YOUR freaking HOME page. It is Mark Zukerberg's Home page and we all are just guests here. I have every right to say what I want to and so do you. If I get annoyed with your comments and opinions, that is primarily my problem and the simplest solution is to keep away from you.

Social Media has become the new world of entertainment where you are the star as well as the audience. It's a large scale reality show in which millions of people participate with blind faith. So If you are unhappy about others opinions and activities, get the fuck out, If not, then stop whining and start irritating :-) 

Cheers to all who live and let live. 

Cheers

Pradeep Kumar 

My Fav Dance Sequences in Cinema

Singing In The Rain

Hello Dolly - The movie is one of the best musicals ever, which had some mind blowing choreography. Directed by the master - Gene Kelly.

Anchors Aweigh

Oliver! (The Musical) (1968)

Dance with me

Gene Kelly

Grease

Mise En Scene - Mr. Vengeance

Mr. Vengeance is my latest work at film school, it's a Mise En Scene. A single take short film shot on 16mm film camera. From the first thoughts of the story to the final  screening of movie at L.V. Prasad film academy, it was an amazing experience.

The film is dedicated to my Guru - Chan Wook Park. The story is inspired from his Vengeance Trilogy. Even though I saw the third film (Lady Vengeance) after my shoot, I was amazed to see how much Chan Wook Park's work has inspired me.

The film was shot in one day. Even when your planning is near perfect, things can still go wrong. We did face few problems and at one point I seriously thought we wouldn't finish shooting the film. Thanks to my Sound Designer - Aalaap Majgavkar, Dop and a great crew, we were able to finish the shoot. I have to thank my Sound Designer specifically here, he took it to another level during post production. Even during the shoot I had a zillion things running on my mind and the one thing I totally forgot about was how the sound department were doing their job. Aalaap and his team did such a perfect job. I also have to thank all the actors - Ragav, Ashok, Nirmal, Daniel.

I had a story and a specific visual design for this film. Of course there are a million ways to shoot the same story, this is just one way. 

Hope it's worth your time.

Cheers
Pradeep Kumar

My LiL Angel - Short Film

This is one of my Film School projects - Dialog Exercise. Initially I had 3 stories but due to specific issues I came up with the 4th idea at the last moment . I just had one week for pre production, casting etc.... and I royally screwed up on planning. We somehow managed to shoot my project in the alloted 2 days with a lot of compromises and difficulties. I learnt a lot about different working styles and also about what it takes to get things done when the odds are against you. 

I have to thank a lot of people who have taught me valuable lessons. Thanks to an amazing crew and special thanks to all the actors who did a superb job without having any rehearsals.

Hope its worth your time.....

Cheers
Pradeep Kumar

Quotes

Funny thing is IDIOTS read this and don't make an effort to think about it. Maybe if we actually start to think it will lead to a change, hopefully for correcting our mistakes.

Napoleon........

"The world suffers a lot. Not because of the violence of bad people, But because of the silence of good people!" 
                 
Einstein.........

"I am thankful to all those who said NO to me Its because of them I did it myself.."
               
Abraham Lincoln.........

"If friendship is your weakest point then you are the strongest person in the world"                 
                                  
Shakespeare..........

"Laughing Faces Do Not Mean That There Is Absence Of Sorrow! But It Means That They Have The Ability To Deal With It".                                 

William Arthur.........

 "Opportunities Are Like Sunrises, If You Wait Too Long You Can Miss Them".               
                   
Shakespeare.............
           
"Coin Always Makes Sound But The Currency Notes Are Always Silent. So When Your Value Increases Keep Yourself Calm and Silent"    
                 
Dr Abdul Kalaam........

"It Is Very Easy To Defeat Someone, But It Is Very Hard To Win Some"                 
                 

Shakespeare.....

"Never Play With The Feelings Of Others Because You May Win The Game                 

 But The Risk Is That You Will Surely Lose The Person For A Life Time".                                                    

The Art of Questioning

If not for the human brains thinking power, all of us would still be sitting inside caves. So here are some random questions for which
I want to know,
I know and
I certainly don't want to know
the Answers :-)

How come we always learn more about what not to do... rather than what exactly to do?

How come the moment you start being nice to people they take you for granted?

How come some of us are so ignorant?
You tell them about their ignorance... show them ..... explain in detail about the consequences..... but still they never learn until its too late and some never learn as its very convenient to be IGNORANT.

Why are we so obsessed about ourselves, our lives, our happiness, our worries, our image, our work, our status, our love, our pain, our ...etc...

Why don't we think and care for other peoples lives and opinions?

Is there a cure for Narrow Mindedness?

Why don't people take responsibility for their actions?
Its always somebody else's fault that everything is wrong or bad, If you are in trouble constantly the problem is with you... not due to others.

How come some people find it so easy to always Bitch about others when their lives are equally or more F'd up?
I do too, My Excuse: it's a rarity, percentage matters :)

Why do some put on a show when they do know its not possible to "act for life" ?

Is there a cure for an Egoist?

When am I going to stop ranting?

More to come.......

cheers
Pradeep

(500) Days of Summer - Directed by Marc Webb

This is a Romantic Comedy which stays clear of the usual, cheesy fares which we all have been putting up with in recent times. 500 days of Summer is a realistic, funny and beautiful movie. It's one of those movies which can freak you out, it definitely did freak me out.

The movie starts with a kick ass Disclaimer :

AUTHOR'S NOTE: The following is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to any persons living or dead is purely coincidental.

-----------------------------------------------

Especially you Jenny Beckman.

-----------------------------------------------

Bitch.

It begins with the usual - boy meets girl, boy falls in love with the girl, both have a relationship which is as usual "Complicated" and the movie reaches the end. An end which is a new beginning.

There are quite a lot of things which makes the movie realistic, one of the main factors are the lead pair. Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Tom) and Zooey Deschanel (Summer), both of them look super real compared to other Hollywood lead actors who either look too beautiful or flamboyant. Acting is never over the top, the overall subtlety goes well with the story.

I was surprised to know that this was Marc Webb's Debut. Cinematography and background score were excellent and again subtlety is the keyword.

I felt irritated with one aspect of the film and its the most important one, the screenplay. As the story is about Tom and his 500 days with Summer, the screenplay goes back and forth on these 500 days. This was confusing but half way through the movie I realized the genius of it. This irritant makes me want to watch the film again.

I believe that Love is indeed a Cliché, but (500) Days of Summer is certainly not one.

Cheers

Pradeep

HAPPY NEW YEAR :-)

Another year gone…. Another year came……

For all the right reasons..............

I hope to....Remain the same….....

I hope to.........Treat all the same….

I hope to..............Dream the same…..and 

I sure hope to...............Make a change…......

2011 can be just another year…. Or we can make it another Best Year….....

Wishing Good Health and Happiness……to you, your family and your friends……...

Cheers

Pradeep Kumar

P.S. I also hope to lie... the same… :-)

Short Story for Continuity Exercise - EXI(S)T

Exist

He looks unkempt in a ragged T-shirt and jeans. He checks his pockets for something and then adjusts his thick rimmed glasses. He walks slowly, lost in his world of turmoil. He walks past an old big banyan tree, a man was lying under it sound asleep. He walked past him still lost in his thoughts.

His legs were weary, his heart was pounding and he felt empty inside. He walked into a beautiful park dragging a ton of pain - himself. He used to visit this park quiet often and he had his favorite place. The park was empty today. He walked slowly towards the bench which always welcomed him without any complaints.  He sat down and stared at nothing, the nothingness inside drives him now…………….

He lies on the bench.

Time slips away in the real world, but he is happy to be in the world he wants to be. He hears a bird chirping. He opens his eyes and sees a sky of green. A gentle breeze disturbs the stillness of the trees. The beautiful swaying of thousands of leaves, he felt as if they were performing for his pleasure. His eyes lit up and he smiled for the first time, after so many months.

He got up and sat there staring at the breath taking setting. The ground covered by the lush carpet of grass. The tiny pebbles on the ground huddled together. The small terracotta elephant raised its tiny little trunk, happy to see him. The Massive tree standing at the corner of the garden spread its arms, welcoming him for a comforting hug. Nature greeted him, he was filled with joy and the void was no more.

He walked all around the garden trying to see, touch and feel his new found friends. Happiness filled his veins; it traveled all over to reach every nook and corner of his body. He felt lighter without the anchor of pain.

He started to walk again. All his worries had vanished, he felt like floating. He reached the pathway which had a beautiful green picket fence. The wooden planks were standing in a perfect line. All of them stood in rapt attention as he walked past them with his head held up high. He revered the respect shown by the Green Soldiers.

He walked further towards the big banyan tree. Now he noticed the man who was sleeping there. He went near him without making any noise. The man was of similar height and build compared to him. 

He started to smile again. He was happy to see the guy sleeping without any worries. The man had his hands clasped around something; he went closer to check what it was. He saw a pair of spectacles which looked similar to his. He put his hands near his eyes and realized that he wasn’t wearing his own glasses. He looked towards the garden and started running thinking he forgot his glasses.

He ran into the garden and reached the bench as quickly as possible. He stood there staring down at the bench, he couldn’t move. 

His mind was reeling in confusion at what he saw. His eyes didn't blink, the world just froze.

He saw himself lying there on the bench – Lifeless. Blood seeped through his mouth; he saw a bottle of poison on the ground. He was still wearing his glasses.

He stood there staring at himself and then, he started to SMILE.

Cheers

Pradeep

PS: Hope the rains in Chennai stop on the day of the shoot.

My Beliefs - Part 2

My Beliefs: Subject to change when I'm wrong :-)

To judge others is inevitable but your judgments may not matter after all.

I respect and appreciate an enemy who curses me on my face rather than a friend who speaks behind my back and is too much of a coward to question my actions.

The most scariest is the Unknown and People are always Unknown and Unpredictable.

When a Dog barks at you, its wise to ignore and walk away.
If the Dog jumps at your throat, Reflex... even if you have to kill it... save yourself.
[ I apologize to the dogs for using them as a metaphor.]

Assume - Most start with the Dumbest and Mundane assumptions..... very few have the patience to find the truth. 

(I've written more about Assumptions in another post - http://pradeepsrants.blogspot.in/2010/08/art-of-assuming.html )

Honesty is a very big Turn on.

Confrontations on ideas or Exchange of opinions can be very interesting, but very difficult to find interesting people.

Its so funny to see people shrink in size when EGO takes over
their Rationale.

To Err is Human...
To Err all the time is Stupid....
To Err and learn from it is Smart....
To Err, learn from it and make it look Cool... now that's Brilliance.

I'm not Brilliant, but I do make an effort to not be Stupid.

I'm not Perfect, so are You.

Third Rate doesn't have anything to do with poverty, even the most richest person can be Third Rate.

You "Yap" about everyone around you, most probably others are doing the same about you.

The most difficult thing to achieve is Consistency.

There are very few "Absolutes" in Life. Absolut vodka is one among them :)  

Curiosity is really Good, only when it makes you Smart.

The more you try, the more obvious you get.

Experiences can make you Numb.

When Confidence is taken over by Arrogance, you literally look like a Fool.

Make your move, when you are sure of Winning.
But sometimes your Efforts matter more, even when you Fail.

If you get Disturbed easily, most probably you will also end up disturbing others.

Whining can lead to Irritation can lead to Anger can lead to Stupidity can lead to Mistakes can lead to Regrets can lead to Whining........

Men lie all the time but Women are better liars (not all men and Women though)

"Personal Life" it's just that, literally.

Never interfere in other people's personal lives, unless you are part of it.

I don't judge people by their personal lives unless and until its mine too...

When Mediocrity is the Norm, Confidence seems like Over Confidence.

One cannot act for life.

Do not question the intelligence of an honest person.

You might be extremely talented in your craft but Personality will eventually decide your Destiny.

Arrive at a conclusion only when you have all the facts, every story has multiple versions and IDIOTS make up their mind listening to one side.

There are limits for Multitasking.

There will always be someone better than you, so don't be jealous - be inspired.

A Critic will "make sense" only when he/she Introspects first.

I don't give a FUCK about what you think of me unless and until I have some RESPECT for you.

Cheers
Pradeep

Frame By Frame - Pasanga [Kids]

My first project at Film school was a very unique one, Frame By Frame.

It’s 2D animation, a 30 seconds video of 720 hand drawn frames on 35mm Film. The size of a frame was 1.9cm X 2.5cm, drawing on the film with such constrained space took a lot of effort but it was fun.

Our Project name was – Pasanga (Kids)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nOahYdc3Zos

As my hero, The Joker says: Let’s put a smile on that Face.

Thanks to all, who put that smile on My Face…… :-)

Cheers

Pradeep Kumar