"I want to be a Pop Idol" ~ Oscar Wilde, Velvet Goldmine

ALIEN TEARS WILL FILL FOR HIM

PITY'S LONG-BROKEN ERN,

FOR HIS MOURNERS WILL BE OUTCAST MEN,

AND OUTCASTS ALWAYS MOURN.

R.I.P. OSCAR WILDE

This man is a legend even after his death. Remember how I asked for an obituary...well I like epitaphs too. In my religion neither cremation nor a tombstone is allowed, but that's exactly what I want. I want my ashes to be spread all over the world, just like in Elizabethtown, and I want a kick-ass tombstone which says something beautiful and apt, just for me.

PAINT IT BLACK...AND WHITE!

So I was thinking why I did not put Empire State of Mind in my top videos list, and figured it's because I do not like the fact that it goes from black and white to coloured in the end. I used to think, in a complete non-racist way, that black people look better in B&W than white people. But then I realised that though generally everyone looks better in B&W, there are some people who truly stand-out and are striking when in B&W, even moreso than in colour sometimes.

So here's a list of people who are just gorgeous when stripped off of all colour:

• Whoopi Goldberg- I saw this picture and just couldn't stop looking at it. It's so powerful.

• The Beatles- I love their black and white pictures! With the dapper suits and the hairdos, no one ever looked this cute in B&W like the Fab Four.

 

• Ralph Fiennes- Though Amon Goth was a horrible person with a ponch, he had the most stiking face. Love.

 

• Grace Kelly- One of the most beautiful women who ever lived. The fairytale princess with a tragic ending, Grace truly signified her name.

 

• Bob Dylan- I personally find him one of the smartest, sexiest and most stylish men ever. His B&W pictures, even those of Cate Blanchett as him, are marvelous as hell!

 

• Cate Blanchett- She can pull off Katherine Hepburn, Bob Dylan and Galadriel. She is one of the most stunning actresses of today, truly symbolising the old Hollywood glamour with brilliant acting skills. Queen Cate is just sublime.

 

• Djimon Honsou- I think he's a fantastic actor. This picture of him makes me think that he's the real man of steel. It's enticing.

• Meryl Streep- I remember watching her first shot in Manhattan and falling in love with her. However the thing with Meryl is as she grows older, her looks seem to grow too. It's a true heart's desire to be as ravishing as her when I get old.

• Sam Riley- I watched Control and absolutely fell in love with him. Kill me but I think he actually looks better than Ian Curtis. He has such a B&W face.

 

• Renee French- I think I love her. It would be a dream to live in B&W, drinking coffee, smoking cigarettes and looking like that. Exquisite.

 

• James Stewart- He was fantastic and refined and grand and simply splendid. Plus he looked like that. What a man!

 

• Winona Ryder- Ever since Lydia in Beetlejuice, Winona has played many dark roles, but all with her twist. She is amazing and alluring and I really hope that she makes a comeback she deserves.

• Tom Sturridge- He is mesmeric. I love him. 'Nuff said.

• Marilyn Monroe- She's a sex symbol, a star, legend. Marilyn can even work a potato sack. However the most captivating pictures by this beauty have only been shot in B&W.

Hope you liked it :P

Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up. ~ Pablo Picasso

I recently turned the big, or rather ‘grown-up’ 18. Might sound clichéd but I can’t help reminiscing about my childhood. I was quite spoilt as a child, probably most amongst all my cousins or my ‘generation’ of kids, and I have my parents’ amiable nature and the Indian obsession with nerdy kids to thank for it. Honestly I’m a bit freaked out about becoming an adult. It’s like I am Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire, not Andrew G) sitting in a car with my uncle saying “With great power comes great responsibility.” As of 25^th August this year I cannot get away with being just a kid. I cannot act childish without being called immature. I cannot just sit around filling my face up with food. I actually stand a chance to get in trouble if I follow my true destiny of becoming a serial killer/mob gangster. Flying away with Peter Pan is no longer an option. Bloody hell I am too old to ever get accepted at Hogwarts!

So in order to honour my yesteryears, I want to write about my most random childhood moments, my favourite kid movies and (since I’m a born cinephile, one film-related post isn’t enough) all the movies that have shaped my personality, my dreams, my choices and my life so far.

Random Kid Moments-

•     My First Sports Day- Now I actually remember this like it was yesterday. I had four slices of jam bread for extra energy. I was in nursery and five years old. I was in a race and the teacher said, “Ready Steady Go!” and I started running…and then I realized I was the only one running because apparently we had to wait for her to blow the whistle. My mum says that I made a very embarrassed face and went back. Then there was a relay and I was the last person in my team. I was coming second but I stopped right at the finishing line, let another girl through and then ran and came in third. Why? Because the second prize was a stupid little dilapidated football and the third prize was a kitchen set. It was also the first and last sports prize I have ever won.

•     The Piñata Tale- So in kid parties, there is often that enchanting glittering piñata which is full of little toffees, chocolates, gifts and thermacol balls. Now whenever the birthday girl (I was in a girl’s school as a kid) hit the piñata and broke it open, all the other children started to collect as many sweets and gifts as possible…except me. I used to run after those lighter-than-air thermacol balls and collect twenty-thirty of those and those alone.

•     Eating out- Whenever I was invited to any parties by my friends or my parents’ friends, I never ate anything. Numerous people have tried and failed but the kid Me was adamant about eating nothing. Rather, I came home and ate normal food. Also whenever my family went to eat at restaurants, I didn’t used to eat anything at first and when all the food was getting over and we were going to leave, I would start eating then as if a bolt of lightning has suddenly hit me.

•     Pink Obsession- Oh I was the worst type of girlie-girl as a kid. I loved pink so much I bet I wanted to marry it. I wore pink rubber bands and clips and clothes and shoes. My worst pink memory is when I entered an art  competition my uncles used to hold for the kids in my area and drew a landscape with pink mountains, pink sun, pink trees, pink buildings, pink cars and pink people…needless to say I didn’t win the prize and had the worst crying fit ever.

•     Barbie Girl- Oh this might be a spin-off of the pink fiasco but I loved my Barbies. I bought new clothes for them when I bought new clothes. I gave them hircuts thinking their hair would grow back. Every time my best friend Alisha or I bought a new Barbie we would create a whole love story with a vamp and everything and marry her off to Alisha’s super-hunky Ken. I even bought the monthly Barbie magazines, without fail.

I’m having a bout of mid-teen amnesia and so I cannot remember more random stuff, but be sure that I was a weird kid.

PS. Feel free to not read any of this.

The Obituary

"Johnathan Trager, prominent television producer for ESPN, died last night from complications of losing his soul mate and his fiancee. He was 35 years old. Soft-spoken and obsessive, Trager never looked the part of a hopeless romantic. But, in the final days of his life, he revealed an unknown side of his psyche. This hidden quasi-Jungian persona surfaced during the Agatha Christie-like pursuit of his long-reputed soul mate, a woman whom he only spent a few precious hours with. Sadly, the protracted search ended late Saturday night in complete and utter failure. Yet even in certain defeat, the courageous Trager secretly clung to the belief that life is not merely a series of meaningless accidents or coincidences. Uh-uh. But rather, its a tapestry of events that culminate in an exquisite, sublime plan. Asked about the loss of his dear friend, Dean Kansky, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author and executive editor of the New York Times, described Jonathan as a changed man in the last days of his life. "Things were clearer for him," Kansky noted. Ultimately Johnathan concluded that if we are to live life in harmony with the universe, we must all possess a powerful faith in what the ancients used to call "fatum", what we currently refer to as destiny."

The Obituary for John Cusack's character Johnathan Trager by Jeremy Piven's character Dean Kansky in the film Serendipity. 
Why do I find this sweet...I don't know. But it's an interesting idea. For those familiar with the film, they will know that Johnathan Trager was very much alive and healthy, albeit a bit lovesick, when this obituary is written. 
So what I would like is for anyone who reads this post to write an obituary for me, no matter how little or well you know me...take all the time in the world...I know how no one comments on my blog and I have only a little ill-feeling towards this but really, I'm curious for what comments I may get.I'm not trying to be morbid or suicidal or any of those things...it's plain and weird curiosity. I'm working on one for myself too.

AMERICAN BEAUTY

Lester: I had always heard your entire life flashes in front of your eyes the second before you die. First of all, that one second isn’t a second at all. It stretches on forever, like an ocean of time. For me, it was lying on my back at Boy Scout camp, watching falling stars. And yellow leaves from the maple trees that lined our street. Or my grandmother’s hands and the way her skin seemed like paper. And the first time I saw my cousin Tony’s brand-new Firebird. And Janie, and Carolyn. I guess I couId be pretty pissed off about what happened to me, but it’s hard to stay mad when there’s so much beauty in the world. Sometimes I feel like I’m seeing it all at once and it’s too much. My heart fills up like a balloon that’s about to burst. And then I remember to relax and stop trying to hold on to it. And then it flows through me like rain, and I can’t feel anything but gratitude for every single moment… of my stupid little life. You have no idea what I’m talking about, I’m sure. But don’t worry. You will someday.


One of the best endings ever!!!