2015 in Review

Happy New Year 🙂  [Official] 😀

The WordPress.com stats helper zombies prepared a 2015 annual report for this blog. According to Uncle Dracula, the Vampire Team has worked harder than he thought in order to make it more popular among the humans. He would like to thank all the readers on this blog and has promised to provide vampire shares when the New Vampire World takes over the realm and bring the New Utopia into existence. He would make a request to all of you in order to pray for the same. Btw, the Vampire Team hopes that you have watched Charlie, the movie of Christmas 🙂

Here’s an excerpt:

The Louvre Museum has 8.5 million visitors per year. This blog was viewed about 81,000 times in 2015. If it were an exhibit at the Louvre Museum, it would take about 3 days for that many people to see it.

Click here to see the complete report.

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Final Liebster of 2015

Another Liebster Award Nomination 🙂

I was nominated for the Liebster Awards by Felicia Nazareth.
Thank you for the nomination, Felicia 🙂

What are these Liebster awards?

Liebster Award is a new-comer award given by bloggers to bloggers, that creates a great platform for new blogs to be discovered and build communications. The best thing about this award is, it creates a lot of encouragement and support within our blogging community.

What are the Liebster Award Rules?

By accepting this award I am committing to the following:

1. Thank and Tag the person nominated you.
2. Answer 11 questions asked by your nominator.
3. Nominate 11 bloggers.
4. Create 11 questions for your 11 chosen bloggers.
5. Notify them so through social media.

Here were the questions asked to me and my answers to them:

1) What is the hardest thing you have ever had to do?
To keep trying when there seems to be no hope.
2) What do you love about weddings?
I don’t really like weddings and other functions.
3) If money is deposited into your account for adventure purposes only, where would you go?
That would be somewhere in Latin America.
4) Your favorite song, movie and TV show?
There are too many of them to name one right now.
5) What does your blog name mean to you?
It means all the tea which I can ever drink!
6) What is your motivational tagline or favorite quote?
For now, I will take “To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield”.
7) What is your biggest problem/challenge when it comes to blogging?
To keep writing and have no appreciation from your relatives.
8) What is your favorite post that you’ve written? Link Please..
The Vision of a Lost Bat.
9) Chocolates Or Ice Cream? Choose One. Why?
Ice Cream, because it is cold.
10) If given a chance how would you change your past?
Too many things there; nobody knows what will bring the best!
11) Any advice / message for bloggers or me?
Just keep writing because blogging world needs you 😀

Do leave your post links in the comments so that I can read the answers.

My Questions For The People I Nominate:

1) Vampires or Zombies – who will you choose for company?

2) Which is the date on which you started blogging?

3) Which kind of posts do you prefer?

4) How has blogging changed your lives?

5) When do you usually wake up in the morning?

6) Dragons or Dinosaurs – whom do you prefer?

7) Which is your dream mobile phone?

8) Which is your favourite review at Movies of the Soul?

9) Where do you want to travel next?

10) Do you love a city so much to shift there? Which one?

11) Rain or Snow – which one inspires you more?

And my dear nominees are:-

Namrata
Nimitha
Hargun
Sachin
Clementia
Sanjay
Maitreni
Vinitha
Bindu
Roohi
Kiran

Keep writing 🙂

TeNy

Big Posts of 2015

Hitman vs. Transporter [Movies]
These are the seven most visited posts of the year 2015, and it comes as a flashback to what all happened at The Tea Cerebration(s) last year. The most visited post of the year was about Hitman: Agent 47 going face to face against The Transporter: Refueled here, as the date of release for the two movies were the same in India. The movies still only have 5.8/10 at IMDb and 8% at Rotten Tomatoes here in the case of the first movie, while the latter has 5.0/10 at IMDb and 17% at Rotten Tomatoes – but they were fine action flicks and worth the comparison; the post surely made it to the top of the list for the year!

Premam vs. Moideen [Movies]
The second most read post of the year is not that much far behind and is still getting a lot of visitors. With the potential to become the new topper for the year, this comparison has been something which the fans have been doing a lot. Premam and Ennu Ninte Moideen are the two top grossers of the year in Malayalam Cinema, and the fans of the latter flick are consistently trying to degrade the former movie. So, this post had become something essential, and there were many people searching with the same line as the title; some of them asked which one is better, and the rest asked which one is worse!

A Return to Tennis [Sports]
This is the tennis related post which I came up with after a long time, and it becomes one of those rare later sports posts. It was more of a random post about the tennis world, but it had a lot of visits, and the search engine was also very kind to this one. This post chases the write-up which is just above it with the steady number of visits. I wasn’t planning to come up with anything big related to this post, but things ended up really well here. So, with Novak Djokovic being the undisputed winner of the year, 2016 might not be that different in writing as far as the tennis posts are concerned.

Why Watch Rani Padmini? [Movies]
Another post about one of the most interesting and inspirational movies had to be written along with the review posted at Movies of the Soul – Rani Padmini is a movie which creates that kind of an impact. No matter what happens at the box-office, we just can’t avoid such movies. With movies like Mili, Su Su Sudhi Vathmeekam, My God and Jo and the Boy to go with it this year, this movie was also required to go bring only the right reasons, as inspiration was going to gain more strength. The movie review is also the third most visited post at Movies of the Soul after Kunjiramayanam and Anarkali, and this post also makes it to the top list.

The Storm Unleashed [Fiction]
This was one of the posts written as the BlogAdda WOW post, a fictional story which did win the badge for the same. The story of the fictional character coming alive was always a part of the dreams, and this one had me thinking about one of my favouite X-Men; it could have been Nightcrawler, Rogue or Mystique, but it was Storm in the end. This is one of my favourite WOW posts, and it did make it for a place among the most visited posts in a short time. There are a number of other fictional stories which made it to the WOW badge, and I have enjoyed writing each one of them.

The Vision of a Lost Bat [Fiction]
I consider this the most valuable post on this blog, thanks to the selection for the India Today Conclave at Taj Palace, Delhi. This one came as the game changer and has got a lot of visits from BlogAdda’s contest winning page. This was also the biggest surprise of the year, as I had mentioned in earlier posts – it also inspired more posts related to it, concerning the big program as well as the journey. It talks about the Vampire Bat’s journey to another planet where he found a new civilized way of life, as Dracula also gets there in the end, with teleportation working in full strength.

On Responsible Tourism [Journeys]
This is a post which is a lot visited which has come up to the top list in the recent days. This one was actually very quick to climb to the most visited posts list, and I was also invited for the Outlook Traveler Tourism Summit, but couldn’t make it to Delhi this time as I would have had to start packing at that moment when I heard that I was selected. I am not that quick, as you might already know. I think, and then I think more; so it was always going to take more time with booking the flights and arranging the accomodation. But I am happy that this post about responsible tourism was noticed!

***The images used in this blog post are from the Official Facebook Pages of the movies, Premam and Rani Padmini. Meanwhile, have you checked for the movie releases during the first quarter of 2016?

TeNy

Trip to the Dam

When I was a child, there used to be one place where all the school trips went – Malampuzha Dam. It is a case of nostalgia when we hear anything about this destination. The largest reservoir in Kerala which is located near Palakkad town has been the right choice of destination because it is far away, but still good enough for a one day trip. I visited the place for the first time when I was in the fourth standard. It was actually the only school trip that I ever had, and that ended late night with a movie. But with the development of other places as the big tourist destinations, this older scenic setting which has natural beauty as well as the beautiful park is not that much talked about around here. With these ten photos, I hope to make the place part of your list of places to visit, especially if you are planning to arrive in Kerala!

This dam which is built over the Malampuzha River, a tributary of Kerala’s second longest river Bharathappuzha, bring you a fine experience – something which I felt again after visiting the place a long time after those school days when I finished the college. The gardens are beautiful, the nature is splendid as usual, you will find a snake park, there is amusement park area and there are boating facilities as well as the rope-way option available. Palakkad Junction railway station is the closest rail option and Coimbatore airport is the closest choice to fly. There are other attractions which you can visit from here including Tipu’s Fort which was built by Hyder Ali, but this place itself is worth the whole day! It is about one hundred and fifty five kilometres from the city of Cochin, and you can follow the Aluva-Angamaly-Trichur route; the National Highway! The Cochin International Airport is one hundred and twenty kilometres from there and Calicut International Airport one hundred and ten kilometres. The closest city corporation in Kerala would be Trichur at seventy nine kilometres from the dam.

***The images used in this blog post were taken be me on my Sony Cybershot DSC-W310 camera.

TeNy

The Great Point of Life

There are times when we think about the point of life. Even though we come up with many reasons during different situations, there is nothing much about it in the end. There are many parts of life which are supposed to be big turning points, and the great boosts, but none of them are in essence, what they seem to be. For some people, it is never really there to be found either, and some of us don’t try. All these feel more like the illusions brought to make sure that we continue through this meaningless existence. I still wonder if anything close to being the one true meaning can be found on this day or the other.

Birth, is it worth it? :: We come into this world without being given a choice. We are born at some random place where we grow up while entering our meaningless existence. This is the cursed moment when we become someone, and we are not even sure why. We are born to be judged, just like I had talked about in my review of the short-film AUFDRUCK, and I believe that we actually have no real right to life despite being alive. We are not in control our lives unless we are the fake new generation hero who keeps saying that his life is his decisions. The truth is that the life itself is a lie.

Birth has meaning, but not in the case of humans; nature does have it.

Education, is it worth it? :: Throughout my life, I had thought that it mattered. I used to feel that being educated should be a priority in life. But in the end, what happens is that it is of no use. You won’t get a job; but if you had failed in the tenth, there are jobs for which you can apply and from there you can get promotion. But being a post graduate is bloody over-qualified. Well, they take those who can talk sweetly and lie about what they can do. You just need to lie, cheat and steal all the way up to the top, and studying is really not worth it – you might have guessed in from the politicians already. I would suggest Salt Mango Tree as the right word to describe the situation!

Hope, is it worth it? :: “There is no worse death than the end of hope” – I heard this one in the 2004 movie, King Arthur. But there are times when hope has no meaning at all. Sometimes, having hope is rather too difficult, and its own existence is doubted. Well, hoping against all hopes is hopeless, and I would rather take it out of the equation. Maybe there was a chance during the earlier days, but not during the days of modernity; not when people can lie and pretend so much better. If you are true, you won’t be considered good enough, and so, truth and hope are at opposite ends. Even this year, there are movies like Mili, Rani Padmini, Su Su Sudhi Vathmeekam, My God and Jo and the Boy which provides inspiration and hope, but what for?

Hope no longer flows; it no longer has the wings, or even the feet.

Friendship, is it worth it? :: Yes, we have friends; there might be many of them. How long will they remain on your side? How many of the childhood friends do you know? How many of the school friends are there with you now? How often do you call the friends from college? Do any of these people ever call you back? They will move on, and they will find new friends. They will leave for big jobs far far away, and you will be stuck here having that bloody nostalgia about friendship. If they return, they will have changed, and things won’t be the same again. Nobody is going to go Amar Akbar Anthony!

Marriage, is it worth it? :: I see too many marriages with big wedding ceremonies, having cameramen who sneak through the wires like terrorists getting under the fences on the border. But these people who go through those meaningless pre-marital courses and series of advices from the elders finally go into that bond, but there is no real point there either. Is it going to make life any better? Well, it has never been good, and each and every day, there are so many people who make me wonder if they have any mutual respect and got an idea what they learned during that pre-marital course. The world is strange indeed.

Death, is it worth it? :: In the end, you think that may be death will have a meaning, but you keep wondering about it, and come to the conclusion that it isn’t either. The problem is that could be worse after death. Maybe it can’t get any worse than what can happen to you in life, but you can never be really sure about that. Then the question remains about what is really worth it – I hope at least the sleep is worth it; I at least can try to have some nice nightmares and weird dreams which can be converted into a post. I guess I will just brush my teeth and go to sleep then. In the end, my nightmares are immortal, and about that I am eternally grateful.

***The images used in this blog post were taken by me on my Sony Cybershot DSC-W310.

TeNy

Kerala and Houseboats

During your journey to Kerala, you might have wandered around Alappuzha/Aleppey which is called the Venice of the East, and also through Kumarakom, both being huge tourism destinations on the Vembanad Lake – the longest lake in India, and the largest in Kerala. This lake which serves the three districts of Kottayam, Alappuzha and Ernakulam, is also known by the names Punnamada Lake and Kochi Lake as it has Kochi’s significant islands located on it or bordered by the lake and the Arabian Sea. The houseboats or kettuvallams have been a major component of Kerala’s backwater tourism, and these will be the special attractions which you should have noticed during your journeys! Here are a few photos of them with the natural beauty of Kerala from around Alappuzha-Kumarakom area.

So, have you been to one of these houseboats or traveled through/near the backwaters of Kerala having one of the most beautiful waterways around? If this hasn’t been accomplished yet, when are you making an attempt? There are also some interesting temples and churches which you can also visit while doing the same. The Venetian Capital of Kerala and the other towns around awaits you, as a journey to the South of India won’t be complete without witnessing the charm of this area which has canals, backwaters, beaches, and lagoons within a few kilometres.

***The images used in this blog post were taken by me on my Sony Cybershot DSC-W310 around Alappuzha and Kumarakom during the period of 2010-2011, and it is a small selection from a big collection of photos.

TeNy

A Letter to Vampire Santa

Vampire Owl: Good evening, my dear vampire apprentices. I know that this is Christmas, but this will be a very short class after which we can have the Christmas celebrations. Standing once again before you in this class, it is my honour and great privilege to read this letter which was written by the Vampire Bat to Vampire Santa when he was a little fang-less one, and it was sent only to be returned by the cruel postman. This comes as a part of the second semester Part IV paper twenty seven. There will be annotation questions coming from this one. So, please listen carefully.

Vampire Crocodile: Sir, we are going on a Christmas carol in two hours. The transportation is waiting outside.

Vampire Owl: Sure, you are allowed to go for that. Actually, this will be very short. I will just take a few minutes of your time. I am taking this class right now because you can actually keep talking about it when you go for the carol or arrange the crib and put the stars. This topic will suit the occasion, and it will make sure that you remember the whole thing in a better way, making things better for the examinations. Now, here is the letter. You can note down the points, and I shall provide you with a photostat copy of it later. Whatever you do, try your best to remember what comes next.

Dear Vampire Santa,

I know that you are very busy gifting those toothless little vampires with those special things. I have read a lot about the bloody cakes and those variety blood-wine which you provide them with. But I am asking you not to forget me. I had asked for something during the last year’s Christmas too? I think that you forgot that because it was blood-moon season at that time, and you were working only as a part-time Santa. It must have been difficult to work with those wolves instead of the reindeer, as you took over as the first Vampire Santa only last year.

I know your problems and limitations, but I also feel your abilities have improved this year, and you are no longer working as a part-time Vampire Santa. This year’s vampire programs are sponsored by the vampire elders, as I came to know from a letter sent to me as a reply from Uncle Dracula’s office. I have also understood that you are now paid in blood for your services, and that you are also training Easter Bunny for Easter, while developing a special relationship with Mahabali during your last visit to the underworld, which was clearly defined during the latter’s visit to Kerala during last Onam.

So, please try to bring these gifts for me. The first thing that I want is an autographed work from Uncle Dracula. I have heard that he is writing a new work on the truth behind the legend about him. I would like one of those very first fan editions from him. There has been some rumours that he will give these books only to the vampire elders and those who are part of his vampire guard of honour. Even if that is true, I know that you can get this because you are the Vampire Santa. There are not many things that you can’t do on a Christmas Day; this is December 25th – your own special day.

There is another present that I need you to provide. It is not for me, but for a few others. I am not sure if you provide presents to the older people, but this is a special scenario. I am asking you to provide some brain to my relatives who have always been so irritating. I want you provide them with the knowledge that money isn’t everything, and maybe you can implant this idea directly into their brains. Providing them with the ability to think will be easier, but they just don’t want to think at all, and it is depressing. You are the person with the skills, and so please do make the right decision about them here.

I also wish for our vampire world and the future New Vampire World which Uncle Dracula is working on, to be perfect. I hope that you provide enough strength and blessings to him and his minions. I have heard that your blessings have been touched by the Great Vampire Orb of Eternity, and I know that you are the one in command during this time of the year. There are things that you can do, which most people don’t know about yet. But I know, because I have always believed in magic, and I have chosen to keep my faith. You are my hope to seeing a better world order at least among the vampires.

This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda.

***The images used in this blog post are from the Official Facebook Page of the movie, Hotel Transylvania.

TeNy

The Tales of 2015

Another year is coming to an end, and 2015 has been a different year – all years have been different frome each other, even though nothing huge happens with life, and whatever happens, things just go back to nothingness which has been part of my life. 2015 will also have its own tales which the year doesn’t want to share with 2014 or 2016. There will be something different each and every time making the years not the same. It was better defined when we were in school or college as each year had something special; but now we have to think more to find those events.

Maybe the best or the worst of the year are yet to happen, but as of now, the best moment was winning the passes for the India Today Conclave at Delhi with BlogAdda. It should be my best win ever at any stage, and that happened with the post The Vision of a Lost Bat. I did go to attend the conclave where the main talkers were Sachin Tendulkar, Ranveer Singh, Katrina Kaif, Lisa Haydon, Viswanathan Anand, Chetan Bhagat and others. It was a great experience for me and it also made sure that I should blog more, and I would credit BlogAdda for that motivation to write more.

Well, I have written at least one post on every day of this year in this year, and I am still continuing that trend which I hope that I never have to stop soon. 2015 also had many other contest wins for me, and I would call it a rich year which has inspired me to write more and more. 2015 has made me realize that I should do many things, but the one thing that I should always do is to blog, which is why I bought the domain for Movies of the Soul, about which I feel very good. Until 2014, I was only a blogger who wrote something when I had time, but now I find time for writing each and every day, and I shall carry this over to the next year.

Life just keeps hitting the rocks, doesn’t it? But there is always hope.

But there is one big New Year resolution which I really need to make with 2016 right around the corner. In 2014, I fell short of watching 100 movies in the theatres with the final count at 89, and this year, it is at 81 so far, and it seems to be all prepared to end before touching the nineties too. So, in 2016, I want to get it to one hundred movies like I watched 109 of them at the theatres in 2013. I need to take the pledge to be more consistent with this; the problem with this year was that we shifted home and I prepared for some of the PSC examinations. But now I believe that I should keep my movie world alive with the rest too!

I also hope to get a job next year, and it has been the Mission Impossible for me this year. I had sent a huge number of resumes this year at various e-mails, but only a few of them replied and only an even lesser number gave me an appointment. It is a hope which I really need to provide the wings because the relatives are becoming more and more violent every day – the salaries of the cousins are getting higher and they are getting married to rich people which brings a lot of contempt on me. I really need to get somewhere to come up with a direct reply.

Somehow, this relative problem has to be dealt with – we call it The Relative-IT Theory about which I have already written a long time ago. Surrounded by the relatives who are always trying to boast about the salaries and bank balance of their children along with the acres of land and the properties which the children’s off-springs own, will only get worse next year. They will get richer and I will get older in 2016, and so the only precaution to be taken here is to be prepared for those words of vanity, but try to avoid them as much as possible. I have also prepared a few dialogues in case of an emergency situation.

So, you are on this boat to 2016 – lets go through the troubles.

The biggest hope is to become a better person than I am now; but that is going to be complicated because when I get older, I don’t get any stronger. Still, I hope that the upcoming year will bring something better. We have thought in a similar manner about other years too, but this time, Lets think that 2016 is going to be different. Maybe we can take life as one year at a time. The world might be the same anyway, but we can change and above all, we can hope. After all, it is something which costs nothing. May the year 2016 be better than 2015, and lets wish for the best to happen!

I’m sharing my #TalesOf2015 with BlogAdda.

***The images used in this blog post were taken by me on my Sony Cybershot DSC-W310.

TeNy

2016: The Final Quarter

After finishing my most awaited movies from the first three quarters, that is the first nine months of the year 2016, I have the final quarter here. The confirmed list was not that huge as the first, the second and the third quarters, but there were surely some nice titles there too, which is worth the long one year wait. During those times of waiting, we have those other movies which make sure that we never get bored. It is the quality of this year, and with more movies which could be added along with those in the list, lets declare 2016 a big one – here are those movie names for the last quarter! I intend to watch all of these on the very first day of release itself, as long as there is no collision with other non-Hollywood movies or the lack of theatres.

Assassin’s Creed: This is the time when Magneto becomes the assassin – yes, Michael Fassbender will be playing one of the most popular video game characters from this century! I have only played the first game of this video game franchise and then I ended my gaming times. As we go through history and the cities of those times, we had the protagonist Altaïr Ibn-La’Ahad, a member of the Assassins of that time. It was a stealth-based game, and it was fun to climb those towers and have a look around. There was action, and there were other special objectives to perform. Along with Warcraft, this is the other movie to have an adaptation from a big video game this year, and I hope that this works out well. I have really liked the adaptations of Hitman: Agent 47, Max Payne, Need for Speed, Resident Evil, Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li, Silent Hill, Tomb Raider, Mortal Kombat and Prince of Persia; even Doom, DOA: Dead or Alive and BloodRayne were not that bad as they are known to be.

Ouija 2 and The Strangers 2: It is not only The Conjuring and The Purge: Anarchy which will get the sequels in 2016, and it is not only Insidous: Chapter Two and Insidious: Chapter Three which can be the big sequels. Our protagonists will never learn and shall once again make the attempt to contact the forces from the other world, which will lead to the much needed horror for us. They might just do the same in a possible third movie, but lets hope that this one is at least scarier than the original Ouija and is also a better movies in totality. I do have hope. There is that idea which always got the potential to bring the best of horror! The Strangers 2 will be a sequel to that nice home invasion thriller of 2008; not that much is known about it though – but there is that high level of potential.

Underworld: Next Generation: The fifth installment of the Underworld franchise finally comes to the theatres in 2016. The last one of the series, Underworld: Awakening came in 2012, and I was not able to watch that because there were only a very few multiplexes here during that time, and this one never really reached there. Maybe, this time the things will be different. It will be Kate Beckinsale as Selene, the Death Dealer and the Vampire Hybrid for the first time on the big screen, and I got to wait for this one for sure. Even though most of the critics will have a tough time understanding the myth here, I am sure that a lot of people around here are looking forward to this story concerning the Vampire-Lycan wars, and if it does release here this time, could find some better business like Terminator Genysis and Pacific Rim did better outside North America.

Gambit: Well, the X-Men and its mutants will keep bringing the power here. We remember Taylor Kitsch as Remy LeBeau a.k.a Gambit in the movie X-Men Origins: Wolverine. I would have loved to see him again; for John Carter was a highly underrated movie and Battleship was some real fun. But this one will have Channing Tatum right out of Jupiter Ascending, his last movie to release here, and that will do just fine. I have read that Léa Seydoux, the Bond girl of Spectre will be in this movie too as another main character, and that will be great. I did read somewhere that it will be delated, but IMDb showed it as 2016 and so did Wikpedia. I would say that this one has been delayed too long, and it is time we see Gambit on the big screen as one of the more interesting mutants who were never given what they really deserved.

Doctor Strange: Marvel brings more of the superhero stuff with this man known as Doctor Strange. Here is someone who can bring the magical powers like no other superhero from Marvel. I have known this character during my childhood, and used to compare him to Mandrake who was the more popular hero and was the one whom I liked. My best memory of him is from an episode related to Spider-Man during an animated series on television. Planned to be released on November fourth, I do doubt when it will be released here and on how many screens considering the fact that the number of people knowing him here will be very low. Ant-Man did release on many screens, but had very less number of attendance and had to be removed earlier at many theatres – so lets see if this one arrives big here! Lets see if Avengers are related 😀

Jumanji, The Girl on the Train and Jack Reacher: Never Go Back: Jumanji will be remade and released for the 2016 Christmas, even though it might be too early for this – but the use of modern technology for bringing all the fun will be nice; we do remember how Goosebumps turned out to be with its own creatures. Meanwhile, The Girl on the Train based on Paula Hawkins’ first novel with the same name will also be there. The thriller with the cast which includes Emily Blunt, Rebecca Ferguson, Haley Bennett, Luke Evans and Édgar Ramírez has already got me very interested. It should be a nice murder mystery too. Jack Reacher: Never Go Back has Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher again, after he entertained us heavily as Ethan Hunt in Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation. Cobie Smulders will be there with him as 2016’s impossible gets the power!

***The images used in this blog post are from the Official Facebook Pages of the movies mentioned here (Assassin’s Creed and Doctor Strange). For the big Christmas Malayalam movies, click here.

TeNy

2016: The Third Quarter

The third quarter of 2016 might still undergo some changes, but I am going through with the available release dates of these movies, and putting them in the third group of three months, which are July, August and September. There might be other additions here, but I will provide some information about what to expect here with the movies from which I have the most expectations. Make sure that you have read the post about the first quarter as well as the second one, before going on to read this one, if you need to know about them all, especially about those releasing earlier and seeking your presence at the theatres.

Suicide Squad: Here we have an antihero team from DC Universe on the mission. The one person I am looking forward to with this one is Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn. Jared Leto is the Joker and there is Will Smith as Deadshot. Meanwhile, Jai Courtney plays Boomerang and Cara Delevingne is Enchantress. There are others who add to the super-villains here. With all these antiheroes around, Suicide Squad is going to be an experience different from the superhero movies around. Suicide Squad is known to be a team of super-villains in presently prison who agree do risky missions to gain reduced prison sentences (Batman won’t be too happy about that) – it will be very interesting to see how this one will turn out as we can be sure that it will be given the eighteen plus certificate here, and I am detecting many cuts along with it; what we will end up seeing might be kind of weird.

Ben-Hur: Based on the 1880 novel by Lew Wallace, this one becomes the third adaptation of the story which has been considered a classic. The first movie was a silent 1925 flick, and the second one of 1959 is the movie that we know more about. The latter was nominated for a total of twelve Oscar Awards and won eleven of them, only Titanic in the year 1998 and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King in the year 2004 matching this total. It had also become the second-highest grossing film of that time coming right after Gone with the Wind on the list. It was one of the earliest Hollywood movies which I watched with my family. This version is also going to be something epic, not doubt about that. I would love to see how the new special effects and technology will help this new version to make it a great experience in the theatres.

Star Trek Beyond: I haven’t known much bout Star Trek during my childhood, and unlike Star Wars, this was a new thing which came to me with Star Trek: Into Darkness in the year 2013, and it was only after that which I watched its predecessor. But after watching these movies, I had become a big admirer of the series, and have looked forward to the next movie. This one looks different from the trailer, and if you have gone through it, there is a lot more action around here with big fights and explosions. This time, they will be left on a planet where most of the action happens. I am not really surprised with bigger action sequences, as this is directed by the same man who directed Fast and the Furious series from one to six. After playing and completing Mass Effect, the big space RPG action game, I have decided not to miss a movie in space; after all, I did love Jupiter Ascending in 2015 too!

The Purge 3, Patient Zero and The Space Between Us: The Purge returns with the third installment in the franchise following The Purge: Anarchy. The twelve hour period when all kinds of crime including murder are legal, should always attract the viewers because the moments of thrills will be everywhere around. We are looking forward to what this new entry in the franchise brings! Game of Thrones‘ own Margaery Tyrell, Natalie Dormer will be there in Patient Zero with Matt Smith, as humanity struggles to battle another pandemic outbreak which could lead to human extinction. Meanwhile, The Space Between Us deals with inter-planetary romance in a future when people exist here and there. I am looking forward to seeing how this one is going to work out as a movie.

The Legend of Tarzan: We haven’t heard much about this one for quite some time except in animation. The novels from Edgar Rice Burroughs might be among the first ones of its kind which I have ever read. The books were available in Malayalam, but I don’t have them anymore. I still keep looking for them, but I feel that I might have lost them while shifting home – it is such a shame. I was looking at the illustrations of the novels online, and these English versions have different covers – what I read were colourful ones! Well, this movie will bring some of those memories back. This one has Alexander Skarsgård as Tarzan, and they lovely Margot Robbie is there as Jane. This is not really the origin story of Tarzan as this is more like his return to the jungle.

Ice Age: Collision Course, Knights of the Roundtable: King Arthur and Mechanic: Resurrection: Yes, you have read it right – The big animated ranchise is returning to us after Ice Age: Continental Drift. It took me some time to come to know about it and the trailer has already released; we don’t get much of the Hollywood news here, do we? Well, it has been too much of a gap after Ice Age: Continental Drift, and we really wanted this one. This should be the biggest adventure for the team. Knights of the Roundtable: King Arthur will be the kind of medieval adventure that we were waiting for – it should come in the right way this time. Meanwhile, Jason Statham will return to what he does the best (after being The Transporter which he no longer does), as Mechanic: Resurrection brings another action thriller continuing the story of its predecessor.

***The images used in this blog post are from the Official Facebook Pages of the movies mentioned here (Suicide Squad, Star Trek Beyond and The Legend of Tarzan).

TeNy

2016: The Second Quarter

I had earlier written about the movies coming up during the first three months of 2016, an year which provides so much for the fans and admirers of the cinema. Now, there is the second group of three months of the year, and it is actually huge, and maybe even bigger than what is there in the first three months. There is something for all types of audience, and here are the movies which I am waiting during the second quarter of 2016. Lets hope that these movies release according to the dates and also have faith that we don’t have to wait too long. There is no particular order which is followed here with the list, and you can choose them according to your own preferences.

Warcraft: Even though there is no particular order for the movies which I love, this one is still the movie which I am looking forward to watch more than any other. This is because I waited so long for this movie to release. Warcraft is one of the first strategy games which I have played, and undoubtedly the first strategy game which I loved and played for many hours. So a movie based on this game was always going to be a big thing for me, and should be the same for the large number of gamers all around the world. While Warcraft: Orcs and Humans started it, Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness was the big game which I loved a lot. Then there was the majestic thing, Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos which made me completely into it. Lets see what happens when humans and orcs collide in the movie version; and worlds come together!

Captain America: Civil War: This is more like an Avengers movie, with most of the big names present there, but I would guess that this is named Captain America because this follows the incidents of Captain America: Winter Soldier, and the situation has more to do with the Captain rather than anyone else; for it is personal for him. This one will have two teams, one lead by Captain America, joined by Scarlet Witch, Hawkeye, Ant-Man, Falcon, Agent 13 and the Winter Soldier, and another lead by Iron Man, joined by the War Machine, Black Widow, Vision and the Black Panther, with Spider-Man also there in the movie. With evil already existing, lets see what these fights bring, and who the real villain is. There will be high voltage action sequences, and we know what Avengers can do.

X-Men: Apocalypse: This one which comes as the sequel to Days of Future Past and becomes the ninth installment in the X-Men film series. Directed by the man who brought us the best X-Men movies in the franchise, this flick shall bring the first and most powerful mutant from the past, Apocalypse – this creature who was once worshipped as a god, will awaken and decide to purify the world which he finds as a miserable one. He will come up with his own horsemen of the apocalypse, and will go on war, with only Charles Xavier and his fellow mutants will stand against him, preventing the destruction of humanity. Nightcrawler will make a return here, and the presence of interesting mutants like Psylocke, Jubilee and Archangel will surely make things better; this one is of epic proportions. Wolverine will still be missed.

The Conjuring 2: The Enfield Poltergeist, Now You See Me 2, Rings and Amityville: The Awakening: Two of the highly anticipated sequels release on the same day of 2016 – June 10th. The Conjuring was one of the best horror movies of the century, and its prequel Annabelle didn’t click that well. With Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga reprising their roles as the paranormal investigators, this one should bring the glory to horror genre. One thing about the sequel to Now You See Me which releases on the same day is that it has Daniel Radcliffe on what seems to be his return to magic after school 😛 We will miss Isla Fisher, but Lizzy Caplan will be there as the final horseman. Rings, after the delay, will finally release on April Fool Day to bring us the horror 😀 Amityville: The Awakening will take whatever remains of horror as the fourteenth installment in the Amityville series.

Independence Day: Resurgence, Alice Through the Looking Glass and The Huntsman: Winter’s War: It has been twenty years since Will Smith and his people saved Earth from an alien invasion, and it is correct for both the invasion as well as the movie release year. But the aliens are not finished, and they will be back for vengeance in the name of their fallen comrades and the other creatures who are left on Earth. This one should surely be bigger fun, with newcomers added to the cast and some of the older cast returning. Meanwhile, Alice also returns to bring us the entertainment through the wonderland. The team of Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Hathaway and others returns with the sequel to that visual splendour which reminded us of our childhood. The Huntsman: Winter’s War will bring something a lot better than Snow White and the Huntsman because it doesn’t have Kristen Stewart, and instead still has Charlize Theron and Chris Hemsworth along with Emily Blunt and Jessica Chastain.

Finding Dory, The Jungle Book and The Angry Birds Movie: It took so many years after Finding Nemo, but we finally have the sequel – this time, we will be finding Dory instead, as she will be uniting with her family. Well, we have wondered what took them so long as many other animated movies have released in between and came up with other movies to add to the franchise. Kung Fu Panda and Despicable Me will surely agree to that. The animated adventures will also have The Jungle Book, which is another case of nostalgia for us. A return to the childhood becomes possible again with this movie; I am sure that a lot of people would agree. With its release once postponed, I hope it releases on the exact date this time. I am kind of doubtful about The Angry Birds Movie, but I still wish to watch it and know the secret of that game which we have been playing on Android 😛

***The images used in this blog post are from the Official Facebook Pages of the movies mentioned in the post (Warcraft, X-Men: Apocalypse and Alice Through the Looking Glass).

TeNy

2016: The First Quarter

Another year comes to a close with more than half of December gone and buried under the memories. 2016 is going to be a big year for the movie fans as a lot of you might have already guessed. Yes, we have felt the same for other years too, but you can just look at the movies which are going to be released, and then think in detail about how good the year can be. They have the right to disappoint us too, but looking at it, there is the feeling of something huge coming up. The following movies are only the most anticipated movies from the first three months, and even that is a nice list. It is not prepared in a specific order.

The 5th Wave and The Boy: Here is another science fiction thriller which features an alien invasion. Based on the novel with the same name written by Rick Yancey, this one has Chloë Grace Moretz and aliens. The situation has already gone through four waves of alien attacks, and the fifth is just on the way. The world is in chaos, and people are caught in this destruction and mutual distrust, and extinction is already on the corner. The movie also has good line-up of well-known faces including Liev Schreiber, Maika Monroe and Maria Bello. Yes, this is part of a trilogy and the last book is going to arrive in 2016 which means that franchise will have the material early enough for all three flicks. Meanwhile, look out for The Boy, a supernatural horror movie with a doll at the centre of everything.

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Kung Fu Panda 3: If you have watched the trailer of this movie, you will have the idea what to expect. This follow-up to Man of Steel has the two big superheroes of DC Comics fighting against each other as another threat arrives. There is also Wonder Woman whom we haven’t seen for quite a while on the big screen. Aquaman, Cyborg and The Flash are also supposed to be there. I would love to see how Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman will turn out to be. As you might have already felt, the action is going to be huge, and there should be some interesting themes. About Kung Fu Panda 3, we will just watch it – no other description is needed; the franchise should keep its level at all times.

Gods of Egypt and London Has Fallen: Well, how often do we get to see movies based on Egyptian Mythology? Here is one for a change from the Greek. In this movie, the evil god, Set takes over Egypt, and it is up-to the mortal heroes allied with another god, Horus to save their world. Game of Thrones‘ own Jammie Lannister, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau plays the great god Horus, and Gerard Butler is the villain. We have all heard about the Eye of Horus, haven’t we? It does look kind of strange, but it is different, and so it should work. Meanwhile, London Has Fallen, the sequel to Olympus Has Fallen returns with another release date, after supposedly escaping competition with Ridley Scott’s The Martian at the earlier planned date – I already talked about it last year as the movie to look out for in 2015, and it will be an interesting watch when it finally releases.

Deadpool and The Divergent Series: Allegiant: I am not without doubts about Deadpool with the humour in the trailer which is rather too much. But we could do with a mutant, because it has been some time. Days of the Future Past still lingers in the mind, and lets see what this mutant superhero got for us. This one also has Morena Baccarin from Gotham television series? That brings more need here. The fun could be quite different here. Even a sequel for the movie is already under development. We will also have the third movie of the Divergent series, after Insurgent made a lesser impact than its predecessor. But from the material for this part of the franchise, this should be a lot better. Then there is Shailene Woodley whom we can’t resist as Beatrice Prior.

The Young Messiah: We have been waiting for a long time to have a vampire book from Anne Rice made into a movie. We had the amazingly good Interview with the Vampire which had Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Kirsten Dunst, Antonio Banderas and Christian Slater; the movie which turned out to be so good that it could be better than the book, and there was The Vampire Lestat which was pretty much terrible. The Tale of the Body Thief was going to be made into a movie, but not much was heard about it after that. Well, we have one work of Anne Rice made into a movie, and it is not the vampire stuff this time. It is from her work Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt, a fictional work which depicts the life of Jesus Christ at the age of seven to eight. It will be interesting to see what it brings.

The Witch and The Forest: Released at 2015 Sundance Film Festival and with 87% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and 90% on Metacritic, The Witch is going to be something different, that is for sure. It should be a higher level horror movie, as the genre is not something usually loved by the critics. The movie takes the viewers to a seventeenth century Puritan family in New England, along the wilderness, and through the fears of witchcraft and creatures of the dark. The Forest is another supernatural thriller that we should be looking for. It has Natalie Dormer, Game of Thrones‘ own Margaery Tyrell in the lead, and is set in Japan – you are sure to meet some interesting souls here.

***The images used in this blog post are from the Official Facebook Pages of these movies (The 5th Wave, Gods of Egypt and The Witch.

TeNy

Christmas Special: 2015

This year’s Christmas is going to be special around here. No, I am not going to celebrate much this time too, as celebrations are not really part of my life, whether it is a festival, birthday or any significant day. The celebrations are going to be about the movies this time. You know that the movies like Dilwale and Bajirao Mastani have already released, and the Malayalam movies like Anarkali, Amar Akbar Anthony, Su Su Sudhi Vathmeekam, Pathemari, Rajamma@Yahoo, Salt Mango Tree and Ennu Ninte Moideen are still running in the theatres here, with Star Wars: The Force Awakens on the way. Lets take a look at the Malayalam movies getting ready for release on this Christmas.

Jo and the Boy: Manju Warrier once again takes the role of protagonist here after sharing the space with Rima Kallingal in the highly inspirational flick, Rani Padmini. The movie seems to be centred around the theme of “happiness” and there is something about finding the same. Sanoop Santhosh of Philips and the Monkey Pen fame will play the character of “the boy” here. This one will surely remind us of that same movie, and so we can be sure that something feel-good and inspirational can be found in this one too. Aren’t these the kind of movies that we need? It seems to be so as of now, but lets wait for this movie to release. The challenge will be huge for Christmas, and this one needs to thrive!

Charlie: The most awaited movie is indeed Charlie. It comes from the maker of big hits like Best Actor and ABCD, but both are not among the movies which I have liked. It had me in doubts, but unlike those two movies which had nothing new, Charlie looks special, and it remains so with only a few days to its release. With all the hype which has been built around this movie, Dulquer should be the star of this Christmas; Charlie even comes one day before the rest of the movies as it releases on December 24th. I also need to get out that terrible feeling from his previous movie, 100 Days of Love. No, I don’t need any dumb fan to come up with the list of box-office collections for that particular flick; for it is that attitude of the blind fan groups which needs to change.

Style: Now that sounds simple, and what this movie has more than anything else is this style. This one is supposed to be a big action thriller, and should have some masala around it too. Unni Mukundan plays the hero, and it seems to work very well, while Tovino Thomas who also stars in Charlie is here as the villain – this will be the performance that many people will be looking out for, that is for sure. Meanwhile, Priya Kandwal makes her debut here, and she has a charming presence in the trailer. Balu Varghese will handle the funny side. There are some interesting song sequences which will add to making this one a full entertainer. Style comes from the same team that brought us the movie Ithihasa.

Adi Kapyare Kootamani: It should be another fun movie in store for Christmas with Adi Kapyare Kootamani, as it has Dhyan Sreenivasan, Aju Varghese and Neeraj Madhav coming right out of Kunjiramayanam, the big fun movie of the year. If we replace Dhyan with Nivin Pauly, this would be more like Oru Vadakkan Selfie, and that is fun too. Namitha Pramod comes out of what might have been her only meaningless role in her career which she played in Amar Akbar Anthony, and she is rightfully suitable with this team. Mukesh will play the role of a priest, and as the story unfolds in a boys’ hostel, there seems to be scope a lot of comic sequences. We can only wait and see how much it can make us laugh.

2 Countries: The first thing that comes to your mind while seeing the poster of this movie is My Boss which was the complete comedy entertainer starring Dileep and Mamta Mohandas who returns here. That should make it interesting for the viewers to go for the movie, even though the name Jeethu Joseph is not associated with it. There is also a nice supporting cast including Aju Varghese, Suraj Venjaramoodu, Mukesh and Jagadish. Even though the title does make sense with its literal meaning, how it will work more might be in the form of how we Keralites use the word “country people”, and that should be where this movie can manage to make things even funnier. Dileep once again goes to another country with marriage, like in Life of Josutty – it seems.

With all these movies around, the question might be more about getting the theatres ready to show the flicks. We are actually coming right out of a theatre strike, and Dilwale and Bajirao Mastani staying there, Star Wars: The Force Awakens will also arrive, and there will be a battle for theatres. I don’t remember many occasions when five movies giving high hopes came to releease at the same time. Thankfully, Mohanlal starrer Puli Murugan, Mammootty starrer Puthiya Niyamam, Nivin Pauly starrer Action Hero Biju and Prithviraj starrer Paavada won’t be coming here for this season – think about these four too in the theatres next month – and there are big Hollywood movies coming in January!

***The images used in this blog post are from the Official Facebook Pages of the movies (Jo and the Boy, Style and 2 Countries).

TeNy

Like Music to My Ears

He was riding the scooter continuously for the last few hours despite the fact that it was raining for most of the time. The road was terrible, but he decided not to stop because he felt that he would change the idea and might decide to go back. He didn’t want to return, no matter what happened, but he wasn’t sure that his mind would allow him to keep going if he had a second thought about it. He took a sudden left and then a right turn to reach a narrow road and continued through the route. The place was getting rather deserted, and finally he saw someone on the left.

“Where does this road end? Or does this reach some special place?” he stopped the scooter on the side and asked the man selling tea on the road side.

“It goes just a few kilometres ahead. After that, you can walk to the edge of the cliff there” said the tea seller.

“I haven’t heard much about this area. This is not really a tourist destination, right?” he asked.

“No, not really. It used to be visited by more people earlier though. Now, the roads are so bad, and a better tourist spot has been set up a few kilometres away on the other side. The local politician owns a resort and partially owns two restaurants there and so he promotes that place instead of this location. The families go there. Only some college kids come here, but none at this time of the day. The path is clearly not suitable for the scooters like the one you are riding now. People come here on big motor-bikes and bigger cars”.

“The business should be very dull then. You are like the last witch hunter; I mean the last tea seller” he added.

“Yes, but during the weekends and the other holidays, it gets better” the man said while looking at the empty glasses on the side.

“This should be the perfect place for me, the exact location which I have been looking for” he said.

“You have to be careful about walking near the edges. It can be slippery” the man warned.

“I will just go and have a look now” he said.

“Do you need a cup of tea? And maybe some snacks like parippu vada, uzhunnu vada or onion vada?” the man asked.

“Not now. Maybe when I return from there; if I do. I am not really sure if I will be back” he said while continuing his journey.

He could hear the tea seller shouting from behind, but he wouldn’t stop. He continued through the road. The pot-holes were many and it was more than what the scooter could handle. But he was sure that he was not going to use this scooter again, and so it didn’t really matter for him. The petrol was almost getting over when he reached the end of the road. He stopped the vehicle on the deserted area on the side of the road and started walking towards the end of the cliff.

He was waiting for that news which was to be music to his ears. He had waited for that for too long. He was so impatient that he himself asked if that particular thing was going to happen. But nothing really happened, and he was left waiting, and each moment was like eternity for him. It was only last night that he decided that enough is enough, and he had spent more than the time which was required. He decided to leave that behind and begin this journey.

He walked around the place for a few minutes and enjoyed the beauty of nature. There was greenery all around except for the small buildings which seemed far away. As he stood at the edge and looked down, his mobile phone started ringing. He decided not to take it, but it continued ringing for some time. After some hesitation, he attended the call and listened to that news which was music to his ears. Yes, what he wanted to hear had finally reached his ears then.

“But it is too late now. No more music to my ears, only the terrible noise of chaos” he told himself.

He had decided about what he had to do and there was no changing it now, as he closed his eyes and jumped off the top. The tea seller arrived on a bicycle a few minutes later to find an yellow scooter with the key and a bag left on it. He searched inside the bag to find a towel and a note which said – “No more music to my ears; but death is only the beginning”.

This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda.

***The images used in this blog post were taken by me on Sony Cybershot DSC-W310 and Samsung Galaxy A5

TeNy

Finding Some Fun

There is nothing much going on in our universe except for the repetitive stuff that eats our brain parts every day, and society support the same. We are expected to be the machine-like humanoids who get a job and be married in the next few years after finishing studies, but when we try to do that, the firms will only ask for experience and deny us opportunities. It is a continuous process of not getting a job and the only thing that we can take home is more and more dosage of rejection. The positive side rarely makes a visit, and the scope for happiness is very less.

Often, we feel that there is no point in life and death is the only relief. During these boring days, finding some fun becomes rather easy only when related to movies – there is nothing much otherwise. As movies provide the much needed escapism from this meaningless universe which has nothing much for us, we get closer to the flicks and its characters. This is where the HP Starwars: Special Edition Notebook becomes a significant force in leading us into this fun which has been lost to modernity and its busy world, which has no place for you if you are true; unless you #AwakenYourForce.

When I was a child, I always wanted to have a Star Wars wallpaper, but those were the days without internet and wallpapers were not easy to find. Still, I managed to find some Jedi inspiration through the computer games related to the movie. This inspiration has always made me think more about space and all which came with it; as I had no blog at that time, I used to write stories and put them in the trash can. They were all lost, but this has played a major role in my blog becoming what it is now.

Star Wars: Dark Forces was a big game for me at that time, and its sequel provided the same effect. The demo version which were available with the computer magazines played a major role in inspiring the gamer in me, and along with the games like Unreal Tournament, made me the FPS game lover. Then there was Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds which came up as the replacement when I was playing too much of Age of Empires 2, and that took over the RTS genre for me, taking the interests in strategy games to another level. That kept the other side of inspiration going.

Star Wars have also inspired me to watch more movies, and it was the simple reflection of science fiction at that time – I had known no Star Trek at that time, and other movies based on space were also unknown. It should also be the first science fiction movie which I watched, and that was on cassette – when Starship Troopers arrived for me, it was on the CD. Star Wars was always there though, and the unknown lady of that time, Carrie Fisher was a big favourite. That music from the movie franchise kept ringing in my ears for a very long time, and it still continues.

So, the HP Starwars: Special Edition Notebook which is pre-loaded with everything required for the fans becomes the symbol of nostalgia and the return of inspiration. There is one command centre icon here which will help one to access everything related to Star Wars which goes through two centuries. There are wallpapers, behind the scenes shots, concept art, illustrated art and all which takes us back to those early days of Star Wars until now. Screensavers and sound schemes related to the movie are those which we really wanted during our childhood – there is the need for a time machine here.

Then there is that special font which will bring that special galactic feeling. All these will only prove interesting before and after watching the new release – Star Wars: The Force Awakens which is preparing to make its arrival grand. If you have had a look at the gadget, it does have a special look which makes it look like something else. There are those designs on it, and the red backlight on the keys will only add to the variety present there. This is the kind of thing that we should have had when we were kids, but it is never too late to have a Star Wars themed notebook as you #AwakenYourForce. This is where you search for more related to the same: www.hpshopping.in/starwars

***The image used in this blog post is from the Official Facebook Page of HP India.

TeNy

Force Awakens in the Galaxy

At the Great Vampire Castle, in the absence of Dracula, his vampire team starts another night of ruling the dark world. The night comes alive as the Vampire Bat and the Vampire Owl once again takes control of the night’s proceedings. The place slowly awakened to another night of absence for the vampire elders and the dark lords of the realm. The time of the undead had begun with the fourth howling of the wolves.

Vampire Hamster: Greetings, my dear vampire lords. There is certain news that a new force has awakened in the galaxy. It is now trending in vampire social media too, and people have started asking questions. But I have brought the same thing which they have been talking about.

Vampire Owl: Is it the creation of one of those witches of the north? I have always doubted them and their ways. You remember what happened during the last Halloween.

Vampire Bat: What is it, Squire Hamster? Is it something beyond the limits of vampire understanding?

Vampire Hamster: No, sir. This is it. There is something like hidden magic in it; nothing direct for our eyes. It is HP Starwars Special Edition Notebook and it is pre-loaded with the content from far away galaxies as depicted in the movies belonging to the franchise. Yes, I got this one correct.

Vampire Bat: I can sense some strange energy coming from it. This should be an eternal power source for us. Maybe it can replace the great blood moon.

Vampire Owl: See the red glow between the keys – it should be driven by the power from the blood of the soul. It is surely not of this world or the other. It should have its origin far beyond.

Vampire Hamster: I had thought that you will like this, my lords. Even the peasants thought so. I have gone through great difficulties to bring you this. The goblins and the dwarves wanted to steal it, but I had some highly complicated plans which were successful in the end.

Vampire Bat: You have guessed this one right. This is a very interesting variation of the commonly seen human gadget, Squire Hamster.

Vampire Owl: I have been a huge fan of these movies long ago. I am going to take the printed copies of these wallpapers and use them throughout my room.

Vampire Hamster: This is a very powerful model, my dear lords. I have collected detailed information about this from my secret sources. There are lots of humans really wishing to possess this thing.

Vampire Bat: I believe that the default wallpaper itself is enough to empower my dark bloody side.

Vampire Owl: Along with the blood coloured light which comes from under the keys.

Vampire Bat: There will be no day without those Starwars screensavers which will widen my imaginations.

Vampire Owl: It looks too good. A lot of people will be jealous with us having it in our possession.

Vampire Hamster: We can declare it as our official laptop, sir. We have less things official these days.

Vampire Bat: That design might be the best that this one could have.

Vampire Owl: We will have fun with it, as there is a lot to explore in there, and even more to take us back to the old days of Starwars. Those were like the best days.

Vampire Bat: Yes, indeed. There is nothing like it in the galaxy. I shall search for another with my telepathic connections, but I am sure that nothing will be found. This special battle-worn design has caught my attention for eternity. It is the time to #AwakenYourForce.

More details can be found to #AwakenYourForce at: http://www.hpshopping.in/starwars

***The image used in this blog post is from the Official Facebook Page of HP India.

TeNy

Award: Premio Dardos

The season of Christmas has arrived as we await the big day to bring some memories and a certain amount of happiness back to us again. It is that kind of a season when we look forward to gifts and more gifts. Meanwhile, here is an award which has come here after a long time; thanks to Akhil 🙂

You can see his post about the award here

PREMIO DARDOS AWARD
Premio Dardos is Italian for Prize Darts. This is given in the spirit of Friendship, Creativity, Community and Originality 🙂

And the rules…
# Include the Premio Dardos Award Picture and the name of the person that nominated you. (Include a link to their blog)
# Nominate 3 other blogs/bloggers which you want to (The number of blogs can be varied).
# Thank the blogger who nominated you in your blog and link back.

And my three nominees are:

Namrata

Sachin

Arvind

Let the good days leading to Christmas continue and hope that there will be something awesome coming through… 🙂

TeNy

Vathmeekam with a Twist

There are not many movies which inspires like Su Su Sudhi Vathmeekam. Yes, Malayalam movies have had motivation flicks which have worked, but this one has managed to come up with a life of its own, and the same has provided it a status high above Punyalan Agarbathis as far as the connectivity for the common man is concerned. The other inspirational movie, My God just worked less for the viewers, and none of the others like Rani Padmini and Mili were kept this simple, and the strength of its simplicity will surely amaze you. It is a quality that the movie can cherish.

Su Su Sudhi Vathmeekam is not the kind of inspirational movie which is made for the kind of people who enjoy individuality by traveling all around the world, finding love of lust and changing himself in the end like a psycho who is against the society – here, it is a lot about being part of the society as an individual. As it continues to run in a number of theatres and will make a comeback to other screens due to the quality of its idea and content, lets look at some of the reasons why this one works so well, and a special addition, the twist comes in the end related to a birthday!

Among the reasons that you find for watching this movie, there will always be Jayasurya, the man who does the role of the main character Sudi/Sudheendhan – he has also co-produced the movie here. There are not many actors who could have done this role with such perfection. As most of you have noticed, here he plays the role of a man with a stammering problem which affects his life. May be the problem could be brought to the screen well, not with such effectiveness as we can see in this movie. He is amazingly good in this flick as the titular character.

Su Su Sudhi Vathmeekam is at its best as the inspirational movie because it tells the viewers that all of them can, and it says that idea without any doubt. This inspiration is not radically focused on a certain thing, but on the individuality which is the thing where all the attention happens be. Here, the change begins when accepting oneself as another person and not someone else to whom the comparison is made. Being better or like someone else is never the idea of this movie, and the protagonist himself clearly states that point relating to his life.

For the same reason, the feel-good factor here is stronger than that of many other movies, and in all its simplicity, Su Su Sudhi Vathmeekam leaves you with the much needed happy feeling – there is absolutely no negativity around. It is not that easy to spread happiness, but the director Ranjith Sankar has done that without any moments of trouble. It is his success, just as it was for most of his previous movies. As the character itself is safe in the hands of Jayasurya, the feel-good factor works fine along with the inspiration that this movie provides.

So, the special addition to this post is that yesterday, December the thirteenth was the birthday of one of two main actresses in this movie, Swathy Narayanan. Even though she can’t be considered as the heroine of the film with her appearing with the flashback running strong and disappearing along with the first half of the movie, she makes a fine debut here. There are not many better movies to make a debut than a successful inspirational feel-good movie, as such flicks have special place in the minds of the viewers. With the cuteness factor heavily working in favour of her, she does her job very well as expected of her.

An Ayurveda Doctor by profession, she is also a skilled dancer, as we could understand from her appearance during the Lunar’s Comedy Supernite program in Flowers channel. She made that episode a charming one. She has the skills, and so I would like to wish her a happy birthday even though belated, and also wish her all the success in her upcoming projects. She has only bigger heights to achieve in her career. Swathy is the lady in the last poster used in this post. All images you see here are from the Official Facebook Page of the movie and are used to support this particular post about the flick.

TeNy

Remember the Waterfalls

Vampire Owl: Welcome, Squire Hamster. Are we ready for the great immortality test?

Vampire Hamster: Yes, Sir Vampire Owl. But we haven’t yet found the right waterfalls with the great scenic beauty which you had asked.

Vampire Bat: It is such a shame. A long time has passed since the search had begun – we might just be delayed this time, and Uncle Dracula won’t be too happy. He had called from the hospital yesterday.

Vampire Alligator: What are these guys talking about? This feels like a new thing for me.

So, the vampires need waterfalls – these rocks are near such a place 😀

Vampire Crocodile: Every five years, on this day, the vampire community comes up with an immortality test for the vampire apprentices which will make sure that they are immortal and ready for the next step of their training.

Vampire Alligator: What? You mean that they are going to test if we will die or not?

Vampire Crocodile: Somewhat like that. They will push us from the top the waterfalls.

Vampire Alligator: What? Holy alligator of the salt water! I am going to die. I thought immortality came naturally.

Vampire Crocodile: Okay, you can naturally jump from the top.

Vampire Alligator: What? Still, I am going to die! I haven’t even written a will yet.

Vampire Crocodile: Shut up! We are not going to die. We are immortal already. You should attend more classes; you are not understanding the whole point.

Here is the view from top of a particular waterfall around here 😉

Vampire Alligator: Even if I don’t die of falling, I will still die of fear. I am afraid of heights. I want to see my mummy; the one who is not inside the Pyramids.

Vampire Crocodile: Dude, that is also covered under the vampire immortality clause. If we die, Lady Death will bring our souls back according to the deal which has been signed between the two parties, the dead and the undead. Your life is insured. So, stay cool and wait for the vampire team to find the right waterfalls.

Vampire Alligator: It is okay then, I guess.

Vampire Crocodile: It will be a nice experience. We need to explore our immortality and get so much close to death and then understand that we don’t belong to the world of the dead.

Vampire Panda: I can even practice some Kungfu moves while falling through the air. This is going to be so cool. You will see that I can land on two legs.

Vampire Penguin: And I will do some dance steps in the air.

When waterfalls are around, rocks become more of a thing of beauty, right?

Vampire Owl: Come in, Squire Vampire Cat and Squire Vampire Crow.

Vampire Cat: Sir, the right place has been found. It is in Kerala. The location is very beautiful.

Vampire Crow: Half the credit for that should come to me too, as it was me who sent him for this search. I had noticed the signs long ago.

Vampire Bat: I see. I believe that I have been to these waterfalls which you are going to talk about. We can also have some fun walking around. This will also be the official vampire trip of the year. There will be no other journeys outside the realm.

Vampire Owl: So where exactly can we find these waterfalls?

[Vampire Cat takes a map out of the bag].

And a few very special people whom you will meet on the way there 🙂

Kerala has a number of waterfalls which have become interesting tourist destinations. There are lots of such names which come into our mind, but there is nothing like one place which has become another name for waterfalls in Kerala, and it is the most popular name among them all. Athirappilly Waterfalls in the Thrissur district in Kerala located about fifty kilometres from the Cochin International Airport and around eighty three kilometres from the City of Cochin, is also only about thirty one kilometres from the Chalakudy town; a fine location for everyone to have a visit.

All the waterfalls which you need can be found here along with the water 😀

An Athirappilly visit can also be combined with a journey to Ezhattumugham which is not that far away; if started early during the day, both can be covered in one day. Meanwhile, the Vazhachal Falls are just one around Athirappilly, even though it is not as steep as the big Falls. There is also another waterfall on the side of the road, and you can actually travel through Sholayar to reach the other side of Western Ghats, and the hill station of Valparai awaits you as you cross over to Tamil Nadu. This journey will be through the forests and allowed only duting day time.

And you shall witness the glory of Athirappilly Waterfalls 😀

The visiting time allowed at Athirappilly is between eight and six, and the tickets will be given only until five. Plastic as well as liquor and smoking are prohibited. People are adviced not to feed animals, but people were not that respectful to that advice when we last visited – may be things are better now. There is a some walk to be undertaken after entering the place. The number of tourists here is usually high, as there has been a lot of visitors every time we were there, not just on those big holidays. So, for peace, the journey should be for Ezhaattumugham.

Enjoy the waterfalls and keep the surroundings clean; be responsible 🙂

***The images used in this blog post were taken by me on my Sony Cybershot DSC-W310.

TeNy

Model Village: Kumbalangy

If you look through the map of Cochin, you will see a number of island all around, and among them, there is one which is going to be the focus in this post – Kumbalangy. Located about eleven to thirteen kilometres from the popular tourist spots Fort Cochin and Mattanchery, Kumbalangy is that extra location which one can visit while going through the usual destinations around the City of Cochin. Yes, you don’t really need to make those two places with monuments that crowded, for there is this option where you can spend the night peacefully.

You get to the model tourism island – Welcome to Kumbalangy!

It was some years ago that we had to take the ferry to get to the island of Kumbalangy. There was no bridge connecting Perumpadappu and the island, and when I was a child, I had to take the ferry to reach the island. There were two boats operating, and the vehicles and some of the cargo also joined us. The journey to the island was not something that I really cherished during that time. But things have changed with the new bridge being built and Kumbalangy finding its position in the tourist map of Cochin with ease.

Do you wish to be welcomed be the coconut trees for a change?

It was in the year 2003 that Kumbalangy was selected as a model tourism village by Kerala government, seeing its potential. The same has transformed it into a model fishing village and a tourist location which is getting more and more popular. It is associated with my childhood nostalgia, and now it is a lot more. Now, Kumbalangy is the place where you can really go on a trip, and it might be the next big tourist destination around Cochin as there is a lot of peace all around, and the place is also quite easy to reach.

The Chinese fishing nets – you will keep seeing them.

There is the city service bus facility available from Aluva to Kumbalangy, and you can also choose the Perumpadappu buses and get an auto. There will be AC and Non-AC low-floor buses starting from Aluva, Angamaly, Perumbavoor or Cochin Airport which will go to Fort Cochin and Mattanchery and you can get down at Thoppumpady to choose another bus to Kumbalangy or Perumpadappu which is just the other side of the Kumbalangy bridge. The island is just about eight kilometres from Thoppumpady too. Well, in one way or the other, it is part of Cochin and Greater Cochin Development Authority should agree.

As you look far far away, what is it that you see?

The distance from the Cochin International Airport is about fourty five kilometres. It is almost the same distance to Aleppey and its backwaters. But the backwaters of Kumbalangi and its fishing nets will make sure that you don’t really want to leave that early. The availability of the option to find peace and happiness not that away from city is a boon. Kumbalangy is also a nice eco-tourism centre. It is also only about fourteen kilometres to the city centre, and so everything is easily accessible from there, even though there will be the problem of traffic at some points – but it depends on the time when you are traveling.

This is also a good place to park your car unless coconuts fall 😀

You just need to travel thirteen kilometres from the Ernakulam South railway station to reach here, while it will be about seventeen kilometres from the North station. But if you are coming through the road from Aluva on one side or Perumbavoor/Muvattupuzha on the other and beyond, you can avoid the city by traveling through Maradu as it will get you to Thoppumpady. At the island, the most beautiful parts might be accessed through the smaller roads, just like the path which leads to heaven, as it is said. You might need the calmness and beauty here; you can keep bringing this to your mind whenever you are busy.

You stop, you look, and you enjoy the beauty of all that is on the way.

At Kumbalangy, you will see a good number of churches and temples. Most of them can be seen on the way itself. You can also travel to the famous pilgrimage centre, the Kannamaly Church from there. One the north-western side of the island, there is another smaller island which is connected to Kumbalangy, called Kallenchery, and it is a very scenic location there. It can be reached by traveling on the road by the side of the village office. There are some nice home-stays there, including the Kallanchery Retreat. New facilities are always being set up at Kumbalangy, and it has been some time since I last made a visit there. Maybe it is time to be surrounded by the backwaters again!

***The images used in this blog post were taken by me on my Sony Cybershot DSC-W310.

TeNy