Marathi Cinema - in the changing phase

Marathi Cinema has gone through various changing phase. From Village based stories in 60s/70s to comedy wave in 80s/90s. But at the end of 90s the Marathi cinema was completely struggling for its identity having competition from bollywood, Theatre and growing TV channels.
But after entry of new minded producers and directors, the cinema has entered another phase of change. First the nomination of 'Shwaas' (Breath) for India's entry to Oscars gave recognition. Then many old and new producers started looking and making Marathi movies with new view. Gone are days when movies quality was so dull that anybody hardly willing to watch. Now movies are produced with excellent video and sound. Many new topics are approached. Movies 'Tingya', 'Valu', 'De Dhakka' though being from rural background were well received by urban audience. At the same time movies which could attract youth and urban population are being produced. ZEE became 1st corporate to enter movie production along with launch of movie channel in Marathi. Now many popular production house like Mukta Arts, ABCL, BIG Entertainment, are willing to invest in Marathi movies.
I personally seen so many Marathi movies in 1 year that I haven't seen in last 5-6 years. Hope this golden period continues and we get more good & quality movies in Marathi.
For latest on Marathi Movies - http://www.marathimovieworld.com/index.php
Reference - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marathi_cinema

Poor Umpiring - Has LBW rule changed for Tendulkar?

http://cricketnext.in.com/news/umpiring-howler-accounts-for-tendulkar-yet-again/37948-13.html

For the third time in a row, Sachin Tendulkar was on Tuesday done in by
poor umpiring in the current one-day series against Sri Lanka, being declared
leg before wicket in yet another dubious decision.
Tendulkar was declared
leg-before in the first ODI in Dambulla when the ball was clearly pitched
outside the leg stump, he fell LBW against in the second ODI when the ball was
missing the leg stump and was again ruled leg-before by Sri Lankan umpire Gamini
Silva on Tuesday when the ball was going down the leg side by an even wider
margin.
The three umpiring errors have meant that Tendulkar has made scores
of 5, 6 and 7 in the series so far.
True to his character, Tendulkar has not
shown any dissent although his disappointment was palpable.

Although Sachin is not showing any dissent towards wrong decisions, ICC/BCCI should act to put check on such poor umpiring decisions which is hurting and frustrating Sachin's fans. In the times when we have so many technical advancements, still why cricketers are facing wrong decisions?Or are umpiring proving their greatness by declaring Sachin out? (as per article in Maharashtra Times)

Mann Udhan Varayache...मन उधाण वार्‍याचे

मायेच्या हळव्या स्पर्शाने खुलते, नात्यांच्या बंधात धुंद मोहरते...
मायेच्या हळव्या स्पर्शाने खुलते, नात्यांच्या बंधात धुंद मोहरते...
मन उधाण वार्‍याचे गुंज पावसाचे ,का होते बेभान कसे गहिवरते...
मन उधाण वार्‍याचे ...


आकाशी.. स्वप्नांच्या.. हरपुन पान शिरते,
हुरहुरत्या सांजेला कधी एकटेच झुलते,
सावरते बावरते झडते अडखळते का पडते...
कधी आशेच्या हिंदोळ्यावर मन हे वेडे झुलते...
मन तरंग होउन पाण्यावरती फ़िरते...
अन क्षणात फिरूनी अभाळाला भीडते...
मन उधाण वार्‍याचे गुंज पावसाचे, का होते बेभान कसे गहिवरते...
मन उधाण वार्‍याचे गुंज पावसाचे, का होते बेभान कसे गहिवरते...
मन उधाण वार्‍याचे...


रुणझुणते.. गुणगुणते.. कधी गुंतते हरवते..
कधी गहिर्‍या डोळ्यांच्या डोहात पार बुडते..
तळमळते सारखे बापडे नकळत का भरकटते..
कधी मोहाच्या चार क्षणांना मन हे वेडे भुलते...
जाणते जरी हे पुन्हा पुन्हा का चुकते...
भाबडे तरी भासांच्या मागुन पळते...
मन उधाण वार्‍याचे गुंज पावसाचे, का होते बेभान कसे गहिवरते...
मन उधाण वार्‍याचे गुंज पावसाचे, का होते बेभान कसे गहिवरते...
मन उधाण वार्‍याचे..

To hear Online go to below URL
http://www.in.com/music/track-mann-udhan-173417.html

Video from Youtube

Trailer of Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi

Trailer of Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi

Rab Ne Bana Di... SRK doing Amol Palekar !!??

After looking at promos of 'Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi', 1 thing comes to mind, is SRK trying to do Amol Palekar of 70's. His dull shirts, moustache gives a look of 70's done by Amol Palekar in movies like Golmaal, Chitchor, Choti si baat

After Salman & Amir going stylish in looks in Yuvvraj & Ghazni, it would be interesting to see how 'RNBDJ' performs with SRK in gloomy looks

Change...Is it India's turn now?

US recently voted for a CHANGE. A change for Govt, change for economic crisis.
Change Obama could probably bring may be in foreign policy, which during Bush regime US developed by attacking Afghanistan/Iraq & was to follow with Iran. May be Obama will stop this attacking series. Then about economic change which has promised (hope it doesn't go against India's interest).

Can this happened in India? India is also recently going through economic slowdown. And many heads working on to rescue from financial crisis. And in a interesting move, L K Advani, the PM candidate for opposition party had meeting with several top industrailists & businessmen of India. Many matters were discussed and BJP now promising to get country out of economic gloom. NDA/BJP also plans to reach out to trade unions & farmers to discuss their issue (Just like Obama did before elections).
Will India vote for BJP/Advani and show Cong door? If BJP comes to power can it bring any drastic changes in current economic slowdown (which financial experts like Manmohan Singh & Chidambaram couldn't do)
Most contrasting thing is US voted for Younger/minority community person as a president, while our PM candidate is above 80 years of age. If at all Advani is elected as PM, we certailnly can say 1 change we did like US, US voted younger person as President, while we would vote oldest person as PM

Laurel & Hardy And The Boat

Video from Laurel And Hardy & The Boat
I like this video very much, especially the end in which Laurel innocently goes & checks if his trumpet is there :)
Enjoy the video!!!

DTH in India

Here is the summary of DTH operators in India regarding technical aspects and some advantages & disadvantages which user may face depending upon their views about the service
As of 18 Jan 2009. Number of channels may vary as channels added/removed by operator

DD Direct Plus
Owner: Prasarbharti (Public Broadcaster)
Satellite: Insat 4B at 93.5°E (Earlier on NSS 6 at 95°E)
Encryption: Un-encrypted
Encoding: MPEG-2
Channels: 50 TV, 21 Radio
Advantages: Completely Free (Free to Air), Good Audio/Video quality, Can be received any parts on India and neighbouring countries, Users can also enjoy local AIR audio channels in part of country, Carries many popular Hindi music channels
Disadvantages: Mostly DD channels and less popular Hindi private channels, appears monotonous as mostly carrying music & news channels, very slow in adding new channels, no EPG, no interactive services

DISH TV
Owner: Essel Group by ZEE
Satellite: NSS 6 at 95°E
Encryption: Conax
Encoding: MPEG-2
Channels: 140 TV, 4 Radio including 6 PPV MOD channels (50 TV & 21 Radio receivable from DD Direct Plus) + Interactive Channels
Advantages: First private operator to launch DTH service in India, user-friendly affordable packages based on regional languages, Carries DD Direct Plus channel in its EPG
Disadvantages: Slow in adding newly launched channels, NEO sports channels not available, not at par in customer service (as per various forums), delay in updating website

TATASKY
Owner: TATA (80%) and SKY (20%)
Satellite: Insat 4A at 83°E
Encryption: Videoguard
Encoding: MPEG-2
Channels: 147 TV including 6 PPV MOD channels, 0 Radio + Interactive Channels
Advantages: Good Audio/Video quality, fast package activation & account recharge, aggressive in adding newly launched channels, EPG in Hindi
Disadvantages: Costlier compared to other service providers, Lack of language based channel packaging, missing few ZEE channels & ZEE SPORTS, Missing popular music channels, No Audio channels

SUN DIRECT
Owner: SUN group (India) & Astro (Malaysia)
Satellite: Insat 4B at 93.5°E
Encryption: Irdeto
Encoding: MPEG-4
Channels: 110 TV, 3 Radio (50 TV & 21 Radio receivable from DD Direct+)
Advantages: First operator to use MPEG-4 encoding so can carry more channels, South Indian market targeted hence carry more south Indian channels then other operators, can receive DD Direct Plus channels as both use same satellite
Disadvantages: No ESPN-STAR SPORTS, NEO channels, no interactive services, less presence in other parts of India

BIG TV
Owner: Reliance ADA group
Satellite: Measat 3 at 91.5°E
Encryption: Mediaguard
Encoding: MPEG-4
Channels: 186 TV including 30 PPV MOD channels, 10 Radio + Interactive Channels
Advantages: Uses MPEG-4 encoding, carries more number of channels then any other operator, Carries more number on PPV channels, Carries most of popular GEC, Movies & Sports channels
Disadvantages: Confusing channel packaging for beginner users, may end up costlier if channel package not selected wisely

AIRTEL DIGITAL TV
Owner: Bharti Airtel group
Satellite: Insat 4CR at 74.0°E
Encryption: Mediaguard
Encoding: MPEG-4
Channels: 144 TV, 10 Worldspace Radio + Interactive Channels
Advantages: Uses MPEG-4 encoding, 1st DTH provider to provide worldspace radio, Universal remote control provided
Disadvantages: Not identified yet

Joining soon to the list VIDEOCON DTH.

Source:
http://www.lyngsat.com/in4b.html
http://www.lyngsat.com/packages/dish.html
http://www.lyngsat.com/packages/tatasky.html
http://www.lyngsat.com/packages/sundirect.html
http://www.lyngsat.com/packages/big.html
http://www.lyngsat.com/packages/airtel.html
http://www.saveondish.com/forum/dish-networks-india-f-1.html
http://broadbandforum.in/direct-home-cable-fm-iptv-television/

My Nokia N95

I am a quite techy person from childhood. From electronic cars/toys to calculators, FM radio, I had them all. When I got job in Dubai I got familiar with mobiles and Nokia 2100 was my 1st phone. It was a cool & simple phone sufficient enough to satisfy my curiosity in mobiles. Then I got Samsung E730 & X700 which were a good color phone with Media player, FM radio, MP camera. They were a stable phone. But I still wanted some more like Java kinda stuff, internet browsing, etc, which I found it all in Nokia N95 (after lots of net surfing) and finally I got my Nokia N95.

I ordered it from Nokia UK site and while ordering it was mentioned as ‘sand’ color. I wondered how it looks and after getting it, it was bit golden (and nice indeed). First thing I noticed was that compared to size, the phone was light in weight. I powered ON the phone and started exploring my ‘new Nokia N95’.

2nd most curious thing was about camera. As mentioned 5 mega pixel camera, camera was very good and now I felt there is no need for me to buy any digital camera. (Later in a trip the photos taken in sunlight were as good as any digital camera). Next thing was multimedia. It supported MP3 songs (as usual), but it also supported MP4 videos I created for my IPOD. It had most features that any MP3/Music player has with Song Artwork support too.

Now advanced features. It has built in WiFi, which worked very fine in our SKY broadband (with initial connection glitches). With help of application from Yahoo, Gmail, Windows Live I had emails in my hand literally. Then it supported http web browsing, Youtube, etc web related applications. Interesting thing it has is VOIP on phone. I can make internet calls from various providers in WiFi area. Although it drained battery a lot.

It had GPS receiver which displayed maps based on information from satellite (although I guess it requires network/WiFi and don’t know how it will work in open environment or roads).
Playing with Games available on net for Nokia N95 was fun. I installed/removed/played lots of games. Same thing with themes.

Overall I am satisfied so far with the phone and still exploring more.

Internet phone VOIP update: Nokia N95 supports VOIP
If we are connected to wiFi network and registered & logged on to any VOIP provider then cheap (ISD) calls can be made via VOIP. The phone itself provide in contacts, option for making call as Voice Call (normal call), Video Call & 'Internet Call'. For using VOIP, SIP setting must be done on phone.
But the bad part, still I am not able to make successfuly use it, may be some problem in setting. Call is getting establish, I can hear other side person, but other side can't hear me. And battery gets drained off faster in VOIP call

MAPS update: Maps feature I accessed using NOKIA MAPS & GOOGLE MAPS application. For accessing maps N95 uses inbuilt GPS device & GPRS/WiFi connection. First I tried inside room using WiFi, but the mobile couldn’t obviously communicate with GPS satellites and I was not able to see anything, so I doubted about the feature. But later thanks to free GPRS by my provider, I tried MAPS outside. And after few minutes I got ‘map’ of my current location using both NOKIA MAPS & GOOGLE MAPS. So finally it works I said to myself. It was exciting to see the map software tracking our location as I moved along the road. Now I can confirm that GPS & MAPS works fine in Nokia N95

TATASKY - Time to Change!

Launched in August 2006, TATASKY (referred as TS later)has come far way now competiting with India’s 1st and only DTH operator (then) - DISH TV. Although started under shadow of SKY UK and channel lineup dominating from STAR group, it has now come long way with many popular and new channels onboard (some exclusive). But now as market continues to grow and with launch of BIG TV from Reliance ADA nearby, time has come for it to change
Some changes it could under go to become more consumer (viewers) friendly are such as

Channel Packaging: Its area where DISH TV still scores, if TS comes out with packaging based on language, it would help viewers to opt for channels based on regional language and bringing down its monthly subscription

Channel Genre: Some people may be interested in Sports while some in Religious channels only, some in Entertainment & Movies, while some in News & Information. So it would be good idea to distribute channels based on its genre which could again give benefit to viewers to select their channel of interest and opt out from rest thereby avoiding lesser monthly subscription

Movies On Demand: MOD is the main source of income and if properly managed and marketed could prove useful for viewers as well as for TS. For this TS should bring cost down (Rs 30 - 40) for old movies and not more than Rs 50 for latest movies. They should get right for Movie on MOD before being telecasted on any channel. Then they should include good regional movies on MOD. Also could be added popular TV serials episodes and lastly Sports content

Audio Channel: TS should consider adding AIR (Radio) channels as well as popular private FM channels from various cities or tie-up with FM providers for Audio channel on DTH

Advanced Interactive services: TS still lags behind services like SKY/DirectTV in providing Interactive services. They should include Tetetext service covering LIVE sports scores, Share Market rates, Forex/Comodity prices, Movie/Music review, Tour Guide, etc. (although some may be covered currently under ACTIVE STAR NEWS)

Subtitle: TS should look forward in providing subtitle (although it is based on content providers), TS can take initative by starting it on STAR channels

Still many points could be added, but hope TS comes out with some of changes mentioned above providing benefit to viewers and sametime adding profits to its pockets