And the Oscar goes to....!

If you are a Movie Aficionado , you truly are as excited as I am then. And Academy awards are definitely the most prestigious award an entity on Celluloid can receive , not that the other awards are not important but an Oscar is indeed the maximum you can go.

So , yeah they are just a couple of days away , and I had this urge to write a post depicting my excitement and off course some guesses are on the way too.

Like we do for our home awards like IIFA ,Stardust etc. For me , Farhan Akhtar’s role in the Biopic was a clear winner and also a definite favorite for many too. Wasn’t sure about the best actress in a leading role , my top considerations would have been Sonakshi Sinha for Lootera and Deepika for Ram-leela I guess. But was sure about the Best film though , It had to be Bhaag Milkha Bhaag for it’s direction and screenplay . I personally wanted “The Lunchbox” to win the Best film award, but then again since I know how the Jury have been in the past years, odd were against it. A little commercial touch has to be there , to make it to the top. People say , Indian audience needs to be mature now, I say “Jury , you guys be mature first”. My best Bollywood films from the year 2013 are : The Lunchbox , Madras Café , D-day and Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. And the movie that I can watch again and again, has to be Yeh Jawaani hain Dewaani , don’t know why but lately that movie is definitely my feel good movie after Zindagi Na Milegi Dobaara .:D

Now, coming back to the 86^th Annual Academy Awards , the year 2013 has indeed had some epic roles/performances  and there have been movies being tagged as “Cult” Classics. Plus  the movies this year being nominated are not particularly that exact “Oscar type” material as many may see. It’s like when I ask one of my friends  to tag along for a academy award nominated movie , he says“ I am not in for that slow,  boring , sadistic stuff man , I would rather sleep here on this couch”. It is the case with many , most of us think that an Oscar movie has to be Slow and extremely boring . But that is definitely not the case ,ones who appreciate it as a work of art rather than just  a commercial stuff would know the difference for sure. And what I could feel this year was , most of the movies being nominated are equally enjoyable too. Like American Hustle , The Wolf of Wall Street, Gravity, Her, Nebraska ….these movies were intriguing and engaging to almost everybody.

And from last couple of years , I do make sure I watch every single movie nominated for the academies. It’s kind of a ritual now. :p At least all the ones being nominated for Best Picture, I make sure I cover ‘em.”Watch ‘em all before the Red Carpet event”. So unlike last year I successfully watched every single one of ‘em this year . It gives you a feeling of content when you are actually watching the award ceremony and you can know who’s being acknowledged for what.

So here are my guesses or let say my gut feeling about the main event.

Best Picture – 12 years a slave

Best director – Alfonso Cuaron for Gravity

Best Actor Male – Matthew McConaughey  for Dallas Buyers Club

Best actor Female – Cate Blanchett for Blue Jasmine / Sandra Bullock for Gravity

Best Actor Supporting male – Jared Leto for Dallas Buyers Club

Best Actor Supporting female -  Jennifer Lawrence for American Hustle

Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen/Original Screenplay -  Her

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year – Frozen

Best Achievement in Cinematography – Gravity

Best Costume – American Hustle/The Great Gatsby

Phewww….that’s a hell lot of guesses . Yeah , let’s see what’s in store for us.

Sadly ,there are chances that  Leonardo Di Caprio will miss out again , after yet another worthy performance for the Academy Award.  The Aviator and The Wolf of wall street are his career best performances so far,according to me.  On one side we have Leonardo Di Caprio , who hasn’t got an Oscar yet , and on the other hand we have Meryl Streep being nominated for the 18^th time now, though she has won 3 Oscars. Yep , you heard that right , 3 Oscars for real. Caprio , it’s not like your career has been torpedoed by other performers , it’s just hard luck man . We all know you are one of the finest actors and we do understand your level of frustration too (by the sarcastic  comments he made on some actors) , so there….there…I sincerely wish ,you get it this year.

P.S. – I know people , for whom watching an Oscar winning movie scares the living daylights out of ‘em. But it is not true from a last couple of years atleast. They are deserving and equally enjoyable too. J

I still consider myself as naïve in watching some serious stuffs , but over the years I have learned to enjoy ‘em .

So do watch ‘em if you get a chance. :D

Another Important thing : When can you catch the event screening live?....If you are in India then make sure you do ‘ve a strong …strong cup of coffee for the event ‘coz you gotta tune into Star Movies  at 5:30 a.m.3^rd Feb March 2014 Indian time and 2^nd Feb March 2014 8:30 p.m U.S. time.

P.P.S – Eagerly waiting for “And the OSCAR goes to….” J

Sometime a “NO” works just fine! –> Part -2

Note: No connection with the first part as such , you can even go ahead and read the first part( if you haven’t already) after you read this , if you think it’d be worthwhile reading J :D

“Asking the same question over and over again , doesn’t change the answer , does it?”

People have a habit of testing other people’s patience by stating or interrogating the same things , again and again and again. I don’t know about you but that does bother me “at times”.

It’s like : “What is your name?”

“Nikhil”

“Ok , then , What is your name ?”

“Nikhil”

“Ahh , I get it..Cool , So what is your name?”

“O_O”

Not that the above conversation has ever happened ,it  kinda serves the purpose :p I used to go ahead with a “Yes” nod , all the time. I still do. But there are times when it is just not the right time. And you know what I mean by that. Being an extrovert has it’s advantages but more of disadvantages in this particular case. You , a people pleasing person can’t just say “No”. It’s like a Priest chanting Satanic prayers. You can use it to your advantage as well . If an extrovert  says “No” , they would feel a little taken aback , but they will just let it go because they know you are a type of person who can say anything to everything .So you refusing  is gonna fade away as a joke eventually and does serve your purpose too. :p

“You are a people pleasing person doesn’t mean you go ahead and do something that makes you unpleasant.”

So here are some funny , sarcastic ways or Voiceovers(the lines playing in your head) that I found from various places and some are added by me too ,so it goes like this :

Ø  I will take a pass. I have some personal work.

Ø  I hate seeing the outside world after 5...it freaks me out.

Ø  I have been very busy lately....so would rest for sometime maybe.

Ø  Can’t lend you that , might need it this weekend.

Ø  Have already promised somebody else.

Ø  It isn’t something I really dig.

Ø  Yeah..it seems cool but done that already!

Ø  Feel like just doing some indoor stuffs today.

Ø  My “God” wouldn’t be cool with that

Ø  I’m shipping out of here on a cargo rig

Ø  I just got crop dusted and have to flee

Ø  I’m too high to even step out.

Ø  Ohh , can’t give it you , “xyz” has already asked for it.

Ø  Two words: licking batteries

Ø  Already crazy enough thanks

Ø  Lets table that for the time being

Ø  Lets circle back to that

Ø  Not a good time, maybe next time.

Ø  You must be talking to one of my other personalities

Ø  I don’t do anything that isn’t virtual

Ø  Will you wear this?

Ø  My fly eyes are indicating a “no”

Ø  I am actually inventing a new color at the moment

Ø  Probably not

Ø  I’m not really talkative

Ø  I actually don’t like other humans

Ø  Go die over there

Ø  Will get back to you on this later , but not today.

Ø  Not in a good mood. Later on this month for sure. :p

Ø  “No”

Saying a “No” doesn’t mean that you are an arrogant , rude person. It just makes you say “Yes” to yourself most of the time. But if you are in a position where an individual needs your genuine help , then don’t even take a second to say “Yes”. I guess we all would do that without even thinking about the consequence. And such consequences are worth it , I’d say. J

“Be helpful or useful , not used!”

 Peace out!

 P.S. – You can check out the first part here : Sometime a “NO” works just fine! –> Part -1

Being thankful maybe the key!

Note : Though the title suggests that there must be nothing new that this guy has to offer and that maybe true to some extent. But the way I see it & jot it down or the way you read it , does make a vast difference. “Perception can change anything to everything”

Are we thankful enough for the things we have?

I know many people (even I am one of  them at times) who keep repenting on things that they don’t have. Why having regrets when you haven’t committed a sin?. Regrets…like What if I had this? What if I would have grabbed that opportunity?. Trust me , it wouldn’t have made a difference .Won’t change the fact that you are such a cry baby all the time. Even If you finally did get that , then you would want something else & something more later.  Whatsoever we currently have, will always be less for us & that’s good in only one way ..we tend to strive for more ..we work a lot harder…we have a goal to achieve more!. That’s it! That’s just it! Other than that , no point in wanting more if you are not appreciating what you currently have.

When we get up every day  …are we thankful for yet another day that lies ahead of us? When we have our breakfast , thinking about the delicious meal that awaits us for lunch , are we thankful for the daily bread?. On your daily commute to and from the workplace where you have enough  time to think , when you pass by a slum , we aren’t thankful for the wonderful homes that we live in (Not house , I did mean “Home”). Are we thankful enough to our family members who make us realize the difference between a house & a “Home”. Your current life’s a boon mate, so cherish it. I can’t even start to state the things that we have & others can’t even dare to wish.

Thinking about the future …planning things…feeling happy about the things that we are gonna have in the near future is nice..very nice…but what’s the point in that if that’s just a transition for a next distant future just like our present. If we are today thankful to the things that we currently have ..appreciate the current feeling that makes us feel alive today, then & only then the future cravings or the needs are worth it. So ,being thankful right here right now maybe the key to our life ,to our happiness that we always urge to achieve. Have that amazing feeling now …Live that amazing feeling now!:)

P.S – When you have so much to get you through each day , please think about the one’s who pray “God , give us this day our daily bread” and still don’t have much to meet their daily obligations.Let us all think about them & be thankful.

There’s a saying: “You need not have more to be thankful , you just have to be more thankful”

Peace out!