Through the ages and as civilisation progressed to create social fabrics, one question that’s haunted the otherwise undaunted homemakers till date has been the perennial chant from hungry family members ‘What’s for Dinner’ ? This loaded query becomes pertinent when it comes after another round of Budget announcements wherein the Govt. informs how they intend to make our lives better but ‘Mummy’ knows all about high prices of vegetables, oils & foodstuffs& everyone should eat whatever’s cooked !

Somehow, whether it was great expectations that didn’t materialise or force of habit, we can recall that even back in the days when we’d polish off a full-plate of ‘noodles’ for just ten bucks and an ‘orange bar’ for one, Mom would admonish how costly things had become and importance of thrift. That said, we were rewarded occasionally with a feast specially if the marks for any of our siblings were good enough to be celebrated ! We realise now that they were past masters of financial management, managing large joint families and cutting the cloth accordingly. Prices were very low compared to now but there weren’t double incomes & side businesses, incomes were pretty nominal too.

Today things have not changed from the perspective of feeling the inflationary heat for the middle class with flat/low or no real incomes but a lot had changed in life-styling. Fast food instead of roti-sabji, snack munching rather than regular meals and on-line ordering as an alternative to ‘ghar ka khana’ are options that not only the millennial but the majority of the working class go for, though ‘tiffin-dabba’ is mandatory for the mid-aged and ‘sugar’ daddies placed under strict home regimen by watchful wives ! Small ‘idli-dosa’ restos& wayside ‘vada-pav’ stalls are clear favourites of working class but for savvier students its pizzas, burgers, fries, momos- Italian, Mexican,Tibetian…

For the ‘aam’ household, daily dinner is a not only an important event that needs prep but has to meet the fickle standards of the consumers (family folk), who after fussing fall in line. Home-maker is a real producer-director calling the shots on dining table !The Lady through extensive research and discussions with friends, knows the ‘dietary’ balance that must have veggies, proteins, roughage etc & less of fried stuff& ‘mitha’. After initial resistance, Baba log realise ‘way to Mom’s heart is through the veggies’ !Skipping dinners and binging out with friends is acceptable but juston occasions…

On a formal note, dinner dates and meetings are places to promote business interests, set marriage liaisons, start romantic interludes or even discuss a club’s financial affairs and new activities apart from catching up on the grapevine ‘gossip’ which some do. In his inimitable style, late Bhatti said in one of his shows on ‘meetings’ – ‘Agenda chahekuchbhiho, ‘Samose’garam hone chahiye.’! ‘Dinner’ menu is so important always. If that’s taken care of (with right drinks!), every dinner meet gets a stamp of approval.

(TV Film Made in 1997 )

Stars : Jack Lemmon, George C Scott & Others

Watch on : Prime Video

Most films are watched for entertainment, excitement, fun or relaxation and even for the messages they carry but few films can match the kind of education one can get from such a riveting movie that’s almost like a taut two hour play where every scene is a revelation and calls for reflection. In fact the version we saw now was made in 1997 but I learnt the same movie was first produced in 1957 with Henry Fonda in the lead !

The film asks questions of the legal system that’s debated on the seemingly open and shut case of a teenage boy accused of committing the crime of murdering his father. The presiding judge advises the jury to consider all the evidence and pronounce the ‘guilty’ verdict ( that will result in life or death sentence) only if it’s beyond reasonable doubt.Twelve jurors of different ages, colour, creed, backgrounds have been given the task. They retire to the jury room and deliberate to decide what the verdict should be.

It’s a hot day and steamy inside the jury room and some jurors wish to get the matter over with in a jiffy and almost everyone agrees that there’s everything to point towards the boy as guilty. However, a lone hand of one mid-aged gentleman is raised against the vote for guilty. Asked how he’s convinced of boy’s innocence his cryptic reply is ‘I don’t know, but I want to discuss the entire evidence – isn’t that why we are here ?’. I will not elaborate further on what happens next, but it keeps us hooked till the end !

As a professional trainer once involved in taking sessions on leadership/management also, let me confess, that apart from the persuasive arguments and counter questions that follow legal cases,the screenplay and dialogues of the film have enough gravity and substance in them that can be lessons in communication skills, art of negotiating, logical reasoning, empathetic listening, reading between the lines & decision making !

I dwell on the learning part because the theme was adapted into a captivating Hindi film ‘Ek Ruka Hua Faisla’ by Basu Chatterji in 1986 with all star cast of MK Raina, Pankaj Kapoor, Annu Kapoor & others and during my stint as a Faculty Member in the BOB Training Centre In Lucknow, we’d show the film to our trainees & take their feedback. At the time, I hadn’t seen ‘Twelve Angry Jurors’ but having watched it, I found that two films were virtually a copy of the other, yet both excellent in execution.

Besides other remarkable aspects of the movie, watch the marvellous performances of the two principal characters played by Jack Lemmon and George C Scott. Others too !

In the 1960-70s era of black and white films, famed film-maker Basu Bhattacharya made thought-provoking, critically acclaimed films like “Teesri Kasam’, ‘Aavishkar’ and ‘Anubhav’ and fortunately the latter two are now available on ‘Prime Video’ for cine-lovers of what was then called ‘art’ films. We picked ‘Anubhav’ (I’d seen it about five decades ago and still remembered flashes of brilliance) my wife hadn’t, so it would be interesting to find nuances of enchantment, after 44 years of marital togetherness !

Cynical as we all tend to become, two major learnings were – you actually never know your partner as well as you may think, maybe there are hidden facets still unexploredand that discovery is always fascinating as it comes. The other is expression of feelings (though recently one senior couple singing in the rain on Marine Drive got viral !) it’s not great to get wet in rains to feel romantic& be down for a week with a bout of flu !

Coming to the film, it’s about in the genre of sensitive films that try to delve into why marriages lose their lustre, after the first flush of romance and settle in mechanical motions of corporate life-styles, long hours at office for the Boss-manand in mundane domesticity for the lady with lots of servants & many hours of nothingness in between. What makes it come alive in the film is the spontaneity that Tanuja shows in her role as the neglected wife, who takes it upon herself to rearrange her life again ! Such is her sparkling vivacity that she uplifts the entire film- one can rename the film ‘Tanubav’ !

The second highlight, according to us, is the sublime music by Kanu Roy and beautiful heartrending songs from the masters of melody, Geeta Dutt and Manna Dey. One song ‘Mujhe Jaan Na Kaho..’is picturised aesthetically as the couple merge into the glow of marital bliss, realising they are falling in love again.The scene is reminiscent of the song ‘Kali Ghata Chaye..’ from classic ‘Sujata’ directed by Bimal Roy, Basu’s mentor. In that song too there is an awakening but of a young girl into mystique of womanhood.

More delightful aspects of the movie are the other wonderful actors. Sanjeev Kumaras the preoccupied husband who realises late what his wife means to him. We miss that natural style, versatility and comic timing that made him such a fine, award winning performer as also veteran AK Hangal who played senior roles with great effect. Dinesh Kumar gives an understated yet impressive third angle to the struggling relationship ! ‘Anubhav’ is a lovely walk down memory lane for us and a masterful musical journey..

When we were young one of our teachers had asked ‘What are the two saddest words in English ?’ and the answer was – ‘If Only’ ! With theon going Paris Olympics 2024 in full swing it’s been most disheartening that a number of our promising athletes were placed ‘fourth’ and lost out on the medals by just a ‘whisker’! If we feel crestfallen at this travesty of fate, think of what they felt as their dreams got dashed in just minutes.

In sports, talent contests, academic competitions,business ventures and video games   the margins of failures and successes are measurable and visible after the event. But in life we all face hits and misses with amazing regularity and in varying degrees and learn to cope with it. There is always an element of wistfulness of reflections when we look back – if we had done things differently, seized all the opportunities, realised the gravity of situations, given right answers, taken correct decisions, life would be better.

Yet that’s not how it works in reality since we are human and prone to making errors. Famously said ‘you win some, you lose some’ and then there is the law of averages too. Howard Schultz says ‘I believe life is a series of near misses. A lot of what we ascribe to luck is not luck at all. It’s seizing the day and accepting responsibility for your future. It’s seeing what other people don’t see and pursuing that vision.’ Most achievers learn from their ‘near misses’ and try to ensure that they not succumb at crunch moments !

Misses don’t always have a negative connotations as was in the most recent incident of the failed assassination attempt on Donald (Trump) who claims to have ducked in time. A silver lining in grey clouds, many said this proved beneficial to his prospects. In Bengali we say ‘Phada Katlo’ or you overcame a bad omen when someone gets away with a minor injury, financial loss or experience that could’ve had disastrous results !

Lucky are those who get out of road/rail accidents but we must react when “potential accidents”situations start to occur because these “near misses” are, precisely, risk indicators. These “near misses” are warning lights forewarning us about the possibility of a potential accident. Timely corrective steps must follow on the likely causes.

Then there’s the positive side where you shouldn’t miss a chance to do something good and inspirational for fellow beings as you may do for loved ones and friends. Famous golfer Jeev Milkha Singh fondly remembers his Dad Milkha Singh, legendary sprinter.‘My Dad never misses a chance to remind me that whenever we are travelling together, if 100 people mob him for autographs, five approach me.’ What a motivator he was !

Finally, there’s always a lot of ‘missing’ between married couples when not near each other in the early phases of their togetherness but later on things may change and there are ‘near’ misses and hits at times. Tommy Cooper has tongue firmly in his cheek when he confesses ‘I’ve got a wife who never misses me. Her aim is perfect!’

Having been weaned in our youth on vintage Hollywood films of the 1950-60s by our Dad, an ardent fan of immortals like ‘Lost Horizon’, ‘Random Harvest’, ‘Gone with the Wind, ‘Roman Holiday’ & ‘An Affair to Remember’,the genrebased on classics and romantic novels and I’ve prided myself as having seen many but a few still remained, as other preoccupations took over in our lives and the era of B&W movies was replaced with glossier, racier, action-oriented kind of cinema emerging in the 70s.

As film buffs, many famous names still linger and when we chanced upon the 1960’s iconic film ‘The Apartment’ on Prime Video recently, I was over the moon, hoping PV wouldn’t take it off. I’ve known it was an acclaimed comedy by Billy Wilder, the famed director of ‘Roman Holiday’ that’s considered one of the most loved films of all time. We now had the chance to savour an old classic (a winner of many Academy awards), to enjoy US of the 60’s and feel that our Dad was chuckling along with us in spirit !To begin with, it had a superb star cast led by Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine, two incredible actors who kept us in splits in the film ‘Irma la Douce’ (1963) that was later wonderfully adapted in an Indianized version ‘Manoranjan’ with Zeenat Aman.

This film isin a nutshell about the funny escapades of an insurance clerk Baxter who, in the hopes of climbing the corporateladder, allows more senior coworkers to use his Upper West Side apartment to conduct their extramarital affairs.A dubious theme for those conservative times but shows that men would always be men !Baxter himself is a decent, soft-hearted guy, a do-gooder who feelsthat by helping out colleagues in clandestine liaisons,he isn’t really doing anythingshady though his image is taking quite a beating from suspicious neighbours. He is in a nice way attracted to an elevator operator in his office building, who responds with warm, friendly overtures. But in life, people aren’t what they appear to be and circumstances force everyone to compromise.

What appeals is that despite marital infidelity theme that surroundsthe film, there is certain dignity and a principled uprightness in the protagonist (Baxter) who will never take advantage of others even if it means putting himself in a spot. In fact, none of the office characters look darkly negative but reflect the weakness of moral fibre where illicit relationships thrive in large corporates and machinations and schemes unfold ! Wilder’s deft touches bring out the innate goodness in people, the warmth in human relationships & fellow feelings that extend beyond petty, selfish interests and purityof the chemistry between the lead pair comes out without resorting to explicit love scenes. 

Nothing can be taken for granted today that includesourenvironment, climate, fresh air,drinking water, but ‘taxes’ can be foundin omnipresent state and be deemed applicable to every aspect of the life of tax-paying public,but few can question the wisdom of those who decide the stringent GST rates ! Yet, in quite an extraordinary initiative, reportedly Mr. Nitin Gadkari, the high profile Transport Minister has urged FM Nirmala ji to consider removing GST on life & health insurance, so far a fairly neglected subject forall the political faceoffs and the fiery TV debates !

As a part of the life insurance industry for the past six years (following a long banking career) we’ve seen that the awareness for protecting the lives and wellness of families increased manifold as the pandemic of 2021-22 unleashed devastating effects, the unprepared met dire consequences and timely & adequate insurance cover became a saviour in those deadly times.   However, even then, GSTcontinued onlife insurance products including retirement (annuity) plans to senior citizens at rates ranging upto 18%.

Prudence demands that we plan for the uncertain future through various life stages as familial needs, responsibilities grow. From own marriage and building savings to acquire a nice home (and meet the EMIs), children’s schooling and meeting exorbitant higher education costs, adult progeny’s marriage expenses, retirement planning for continual steady income flow to maintain a comfortable living standard. All futuristic goals, bottom-line issomeone (insurer) must take care things go on, if we meet a sudden end. So Gadkari’s cry that ‘levying GST on life insurance premium amounts to levying tax on uncertainties of life’ should force Tax Bosses to introspect !

Coming to health insurance, the second TOI editorial today suggests that the GST rate is too high at 18% and should be slashed down to 5%. Health being a major indicator of society’s well-being, insurance against illness ( specially for senior citizens) becomes a critical element in family budgets but in the pandemic era, the premiums of health insurance products have shot up in recent years and many are forced to opt out of costly insurance. The paper says if health policies being a saleable service, must be taxed the why not bring them under GST’s lowest slab of 5% ? The service quality from various players needs much improvement goes without saying also !

There are some films you reserve for future because the subject deserves viewing at leisure keepingin mind rave reviews it’s garnered but has sadly failed to ring the cash registers at the box-office. Ironically, we find this encouraging, indicating absence of typical ‘masala’ and mindless violence.

‘Srikanth’ (now on Netflix) finally got our nod late last evening and once we’d settled down, we were bowled over by the protagonist, who’s named by his father, after the India’s dasher of 1980’s Kris Srikanth, but there’s a huge blip for doting parents, new-born is congenitally visually impaired. In fact, our own flashback went to classic films like ‘Koshish’ and ‘Sparsh’ that deal with the odds, struggles & triumphs of the physically challenged.

We realise as the film progresses that the film’s ‘hero’ (completely blind &without vision) is gifted with mental, analytical faculties that are highly developed and has an entirely different approach in dealing with physical limitations, he exudes positivity & confidence in his abilities to overcome hurdles, almost like the Napoleonic idiom ‘nothing is impossible’. Life is cruel, atevery step obstacles emerge for him starting from a flawed higher education system not built to accept a visually impaired despite his merit.     

Trying not to be a ‘spoiler’ but have to revealit’s a biopic on a truly amazing man,a self-made entrepreneur, industrialistanda motivational speaker called ‘Srikanth Bolla’. The film scores high on its single minded purity of purpose, cutting edge dialogues, scathing humour & undying faith in one’s ability to those overcome suchoddsthat normal people don’t ever face.

It’s tough not to compare with great past performances (Naseer in ‘Sparsh’ and Al Pacino in ‘Scent of a Woman’ – of strong characters who’re visually impaired) but actor Raj Kumar Rao excels in recreating a larger than life, fiercely strong willed man who shuns sympathy and charity for disability. He seeks equality in life &work opportunities and urges ‘at par’treatment.

Two of the other main actors stand out for effortless portrayals- Jyothika as the devoted ‘Teacher’ and Sharad Kelkar, theloyal business partner who ever stand by Shrikant like a rock.But a lovely cameo also comes from Jameel Khan (‘Gullak’ fame) as the great former President, Abdul Kalam. 

The film may seem to drag a bit towards the second half but it makes up beautifully in the closing sequences to round off a soul-uplifting journey of struggle andhope of moving from darkness to ‘light’,that will inspire !

If it hadn’t been for the protracted celebrations of ‘Wedding of the Year’ where the rich and famous from across the globe descended into Mumbai and then the shocking assassination attempt on Trump in the US, that kept the media enthralled and in total awe up to it’s ears, India’svictorious march in ‘Cricket affairs’ that continues (A 4-1 Sweep against Zimbabwe in T20’s, Ind. Women beating SA, Legends win Champions Cup, Bumrah& Smriti declared ICC Player of Month) would’vegot wider coverage ! 

But for a change let’s reflect on some of our own Bank colleagues & friends who could wield the bat and turn their arm over with dexterity on cricket maidans in their heydays. We had all heard that Test stalwarts like Chetan Chauhan (ZO, Delhi) and Ajit Pai (Estate Mgmt, CO) worked in BOB,I hadn’t actually met them. Sports in general was encouraged in our Bank.

I recall in early 1980’s the Bank’s Sports Club in Lucknow was active and ROs & branches would allow interested staff to leave early for net practice, and participate in inter-bank matches and tournaments after selections. As young sporty officers we’d try to be part of the cricket scene & from our batchmates Prabhat Agarwal and Sudhir Pant jiwere good, keen players but a name that comes to my mind is of Rakesh Singh, a brilliant left arm spinner in ‘Jadeja’ mould who’d win matches for BOB ! There were also lot of talented boys from Kanpur and the hinterland of West UP.

During my tenure in RO, Allahabad in second half of 1980s, we were lucky to have NRC Panicker as our RM, always supportive and a wonderful Boss. We had among other things, built a fairly good cricket team (no Dream 11 then !) of veteran cricket players led by Sushil Mishra, VK Vig (later Ex-GM), Deepak Dhar & Ashish Gupta (WK) among others and I too was part of a bunch that beat the fancied SBI in Finals of local Inter-Bank League ! 

We didn’t really get involved in sporting activities later on in our careers and if I’m not wrong, interest in sports dwindled in managers and bosses, maybe due to work pressures, challenging targets & practice of late sitting. Life style changes and technology (as in preoccupation with social media) have played their part, it’s more fun watching the IPL than being on a field. Considering the amount of affinity old friends share for most sports and some magnificent ‘cricket’ obsession (albeit only post retirement), it’s fair to say – if anything unifies andcreates bonding,it’s our love for sports !  

Stars : Nicole Kidman & Tim Roth

Watch on : Prime Video

Let’s do a fact-check to thrill the cockles of the hearts of cinema lovers of vintage (1950-60s) films : What’s common to the Hollywood classics of the bygone era that were of the likes of ‘Mogambo’, ‘High Noon’,‘Dial M for Murder’, ‘Rear Window’,‘Bridges of Tokori’ and ‘To Catch a Thief’ ? The ‘sahi’ answer would be ‘Grace Kelly’, the ethereally beautiful actress who played the lead role in the above Hollywood movies & others too.

A favourite of the legendary ‘thriller genre’ film-maker Alfred Hitchcock, Kelly in her hey days (the 1950s) loomed large in Hollywood lore. It’s unfortunate that her screen acting career lasted less than a decade. In 1955, Kelly met Prince Rainier of Monaco while she was in France for the Cannes Film Festival. They married in April 1956 and the glamorous union caused a media frenzy. Then on, Kelly would be Princess Grace.

The film ‘Grace of Monaco’ may at first appear like a documentary on the life and times of Princess Grace as she became an integral part of monarchical set up of Monaco, a small kingdom in France which was politically fighting for its survival as a nation and against the might of De Gaulle the French President. Nicole Kidman portraysGrace with finesseanddepth – the deep cultural, social & language barriers that confront her as she struggles with politics, protocols and rules to be adhered living in a huge palace.

Then comes the resolute and resilient side to Grace that surfaces as she in her utter  disenchantment, turns to the family elder. He advises that knowing the language and imbibing the French ethos and way of life,was essential to become worthy of her title. Gradually she finds her bearings while learning the ‘royal’ ropes, performing her daily duties as princess and becoming involved in philanthropic work as tradition dictated.

As a royal, understanding the resistance from her people, Kelly gave up acting entirely while many directors including the great Hitchcock tried to woo her back to movies, she turned them down (returning laterin TV specials &shows). As a devoted wife, it pained her to find her husband cornered by political adversaries and she takes it upon herself to engage with the affairs of the state and help her husband in his titular role. She achieves this with panache and literally earns respect of her husband,the Prince !

The film almost entirely belongs to Nicole Kidman who puts in a stellar performance and lives the challenge of playing a remarkable princess who was truly one of a kind !

Stars :Deeksha Joshi, Vivek Kumar, Denisha Ghumra, Sumit Singh

Watch on : Prime Video

It’s like pot luck when one is surfing through the plethora of films and web series on various OTT platforms and stumbles on an unsung gem in midst of mindless violenceand revenge dramas ! 

Yesterday, we watched ‘376 D’ in which even a movie buff like me couldn’t find a single known face. But the theme is so different in approach it intrigued my wife and me enough to start delving into it with optimism (after our overall poor show in Olympics’24). Initially a bit slow to begin with as the story builds up, it’s the second half of the 2 hour film that’s anutterly absorbing courtroom drama on the nuances of certain sections of criminal jurisprudence, and which are played out by three mightily impressive actors representing the two sides and the presiding Judge.

For the uninitiated (most of us are in such matters) Section ‘376 D’ of the IPC ‘if a woman is raped by a group of people acting together, each person involved will be considered as having committed the offense of rape and can be punished with rigorous imprisonment for at least twenty years, up to imprisonment for life, along with a fine..’ Dealing with this disturbing subject and section that comes up for debate, the film gets it’stitle. However, there is a critical difference in this film’s theme – ‘can a person claim justice under Sec 376D being a man and not a woman !’

Avoiding any spoilers from us, the storyline ( with all its cinematic license) picks up on the streets of Delhi to tell of a shocking crime committed on them that changes the lives of two brothers, who’ve always been thick as thieves. With one brother critical and in coma, the elder one tries to seek legal recourse aided by his lady friend, but they both begin to realise that the laws in place may not give them justice. They finally find an intrepid lawyer to fight the case against huge odds.

It must the stated that the film is not for the very young and has parts which are disturbing but in a society that is steeped in traditional ways of thinking and with rigid laws in place, this film was to us a revelation of sorts and in the genre of thought-provoking dramas like ‘SirfEk Banda Kafi Hai’ (Manoj Bajpayee) & ‘Patna Shukla’ (Raveena Tandon). The lead actors convey their plight but the main action comes from the two sparring lawyers played by Denisha Ghumra & Sumit Singh.