New Era

  Rituals Without Purpose I had a basic problem with any kind of rituals is they often adrift from the context. Be it modern world ritual of saying sorry or traditional ritual of touching feet.  Consequence: A hollow sorry or disrespectful feet touching.  Our ancient religions it seems are ardent believers  of second chances be it use of gangajal to wash sins or Micchami Dukkadam or shama yachna for washing harsh words, deeds or actions.  These ritual to a layman with bit of common sense like me looks like they are systematic opportunity provided to human beings to start afresh.  I can say for sure the purpose can't be to tell you keep doing what you are doing and just say micchami dukkadam at the year end. It is a window to introspect, it is a rewind button.  Practice in  Reality  When i talk to fellow Jains they often ask did you kept fast. I did two he did three fast etc.As if it is competition to show your patriotism towards your religion. I wanted to laugh at this but end up b

   There are many fine movies I watched during lock down from various states of the country and I think it is my prerogative to recommend them so that you can experience their craft too.  1. NATSAMRAT         Totally heartbreaking Marathi film that I witnessed on Netflix . This movie is not only story telling at its finest but showcased some of the best career performances. Starring Nana Patekar and directed by Mahesh Manjrekar. Before I rave about what I love about this film I wanted to talk about how we have this perception that when actors are not working actively in Hindi movies they are not creatively stimulated or not doing profound work.  Natsamrat is story of famous theater actor Ganpatram  who retire from theater to spend more time with family. Natsamrat is heart breaking tale of man who was once a celebrated artist and now seems to feel out of place. Its a acting masterclass by Nana Patekar. The story is not about the the ungratefulness of the children but about a man who wan