Dada's Fury

Once upon a time I was a die-hard Sourav Ganguly fan. Oh well, things change. People change. Ganguly changed (or rather, his performance).

If Dada's I-was-asked-to-step-down comment is true (and everyone says it is), then it just shows that this man worked when he felt his "secure" position was threatened.

As Ganguly has said ever so often, he doesn't really care about what people write or say about him. So the man simply ignored his criticism in the media and in the cricket world. He continued to be comfy in his seat as the captain of the Indian cricket team, and no one could touch him. It's quite possible that neither the Indian management nor his team-mates opposed his captaincy overtly. And if they did, they were probably the ones who didn't matter in the larger scheme of things (like the BCCI, top management, or the selection committee).

But when Dada perceived a real threat to his position and a possible end to his days of power, he pressed the panic button, and put up a match-winning century. I have a hunch that if the "step down" statement had not been made, there would have been no century, perhaps no runs at all. Should a team leader (in sports or elsewhere) have such a mental make-up?

Greg Chappell was Ganguly's choice for coach, and the coach is a man who doesn't hesitate to give his opinion. Ergo, dear Dada, you two have different working styles, and he refused to play the typical Indian political games by speaking his mind. Plus, he bruised your ego, so what? Get over it.

I earlier thought Greg Chappell was a decent coach. Now I think he's just awesome.

Rock on, Greg! (And speak up more often).

PS- Is there a Greg Chappell: Speaks his Mind fan club?

ToI apes BT?

September 13, 2005: The Times of India, Mumbai edition, Page 8:

Kareena replaces Rani as Aamir Khan's co-star

Randeep Hooda, Sushmita in int'l project

Yup, these are real headlines from a supposedly-real newspaper.

What a title!

I still haven't been able to figure out why Salaam Namaste is titled so. It's named after a fictitious radio station (I assume), but it still doesn't make any sense.

Why I'd not watch the movie again:

• Director Siddharth Raj Anand seems to be a Karan Johar disciple, with the "special effects" introductions, the cinematography, even the costumes. I'd rather watch the guru's film.


• Too much time was spent on introducing unnecessary people, and their background stories made me yawn. Sure, Javed Jaffrey was funny, but was that character needed at all? Of course, the movie could have been at least 45 minutes shorter then. Where are good editors when needed?


• Sitting through the melodrama in the last half hour was painful. Watching Preity Zinta overact was even worse.


• Question to Saif: Are you trying to be the next Salman? In terms of male "exposure", I mean. Saif, I'd say you have a great torso, but we're already bored of them, thanks to Sallu.

OK, I admit the movie was not that bad. But the story, the "turn" of events, the dialogues, were predictable. It could have been another Chalte Chalte or Saathiya, except, of course, that the couple wasn't married.

I'd rather watch Iqbal a second time.