Ashtami Greetings, Blogdosts...

I love going to the Durga Badi at Tejpal.... have been doing so without a break for the past 25 years. Last night was just wonderful. For the first time, the dynamic organising committee had announced a dance competition. This is a unique form of worship, when devotees bearing earthen ware containers spewing clouds of fragrant dhoop, dance for the Goddess, swaying to the hypnotic beats of the dhaak. There's always a large representation of the members of the South Mumbai Bengali community,who show up in all their traditional finery, to offer pushpanjali and aarti to Ma Durga. It's a marvelous way to foster a feeling of community and togetherness....I wish I had clicked pictures of the talented dancers. But for those of you who'd like to watch the dance, check out Sanjay Dutt's version of it in - was it 'Devdas'?
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My jury duty at MAMI continues. Apart from the aborted screening of L'Ámour, film enthusiasts have been gorging on great cinema. I enjoyed ''Á Happy Reunion'- shot in Taipei and Hangzhou,  a shamelessly sentimental saga - very much in the Bollywood tradition.
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When I met Yash Chopra at Amitabh Bachchan's 70th Birthday party (we were seated at the same table), I somehow felt it would be the last time... even though he was in a good mood and didn't look ill at all.So, last night, when the news flashed on television, I wasn't surprised in the least. A tiny mosquito felled a giant of a man. Teaches one a thing or two about perspectives....