Archive for the ‘Misc’ Category

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Ramayan 3392 AD

Tuesday, April 27th, 2010


While we’re not a huge fan of comic books we did have to buy Ramayan 3392 AD by Deepak Chopra & Shekhar Kapur.

Product Description
Enter a post-apocalyptic world where the last of humanity struggles to fight against the evil hordes of Nark, a dark continent lead by the monstrous Ravan. Honorable, but inexperienced brothers Princes Rama and Lakshman are duty-bound to take command of the seemingly dormant outpost of Ayodhya. They soon realize no place in the world is safe from Ravan’s iron grip and must become warriors to defend their people to the death. In a time when what’s left world is enshrouded in darkness, these brothers are mankind’s last beacons of hope.

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Happy Republic Day

Tuesday, January 26th, 2010
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The Rediscovery of India

Sunday, January 10th, 2010

Title: The Rediscovery of India
Author: Meghnad Desai
Publisher: Allen Lane
Pages: 498
Price: Rupees 699

Meghnad Desai begins with a short preface, in which he discusses his interaction with the book that has had a seminal influence on him. “I read Nehru’s The Discovery of India when in my teens. It gave us the basic story, beautifully recounted by a masterful writer.” But as Desai grew up, he found himself becoming disenchanted by Nehru’s version of history and hence came the desire to rediscover India. How did India become a functioning democracy in a part of world that is infamous for being a playground of military dictators! Desai seems to be asking this question continuously throughout his book. That is probably why he chooses to name the first chapter as “The Vasco Da Gama Moment.” According to him, more than anything else, it is the arrival of Europeans that has shaped the culture of modern India.

While presenting his take on India’s history, Desai proves himself to be remarkably prone to veering off from the straight and narrow path and dwelling on hypothetical situations. He speculates on what could have been the fate of the country had the British not won certain decisive battles! “Tamil Nadu could have been French speaking and Bengal either Dutch or English speaking. Maharashtra may have been Portuguese speaking…” The idea that he wants to convey is that the Indian nation that exists today is only one of many possible futures, which could have transpired. The element of chance had a big role to play. The borders of any country in the world have never been sacrosanct in history and the same is the case with India. The book is interesting to read and it does offer us a different way of looking at Indian history.

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The Pickup Artist: The New and Improved Art of Seduction

Friday, January 8th, 2010

Title: The Pickup Artist: The New and Improved Art of Seduction
Author: Mystery, Chris Odom
Forward by: Neil Strauss
Publisher: Villard
Pages: 272
Price: $14.85

In the lexicon of most men, seduction would be defined as the subtle strategy by which they can have sex with someone. The desire to have sex is powerful; it can be as powerful as the desire to eat or drink and that is why men desire to be masters in the art of seduction. But the art is not that difficult to master, if you allow Mystery and his co-author Chris Odom to do the job of imparting their pearls of “seductive” wisdom. As you flip through the book’s pages filled with lucidly written text, you get introduced to an amiable guy called Adam, who arrives at the gorgeous Miami mansion where Mystery and his crew have withdrawn to plot their next move.

Adam is a really dedicated to learning the art of seduction, and it is time for him to have all his queries answered. A kaleidoscope of fascinating characters pops up at the scene, and the narrative gets subsumed by an incredible dose of sensuality. It is time for Mystery to draw Adam deeper and deeper into the game of seduction. But eventually it is Adam who must decide if a seductive lifestyle is really worth it. The story moves from South Beach to the vibrant strip clubs of Las Vegas, as Mystery and his compatriots hold seminars in different parts of the country to teach the art of pickup and seduction. This is one of those books, which gently prod the reader to surrender and enjoy.

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The world’s tallest skyscraper unveiled

Tuesday, January 5th, 2010
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Tenderness Movie Review

Sunday, January 3rd, 2010

Title: Tenderness
Director: John Polson
Based on the novel by Robert Cormier

A psychopath, a sexually precocious 15-year-old girl and a dogged cop are the three pivots around which the story of Tenderness revolves. Based on a novel by Robert Cormier, this is an unusual film about obsession. There is an element of mystery in the storyline, and you have to wait till the ending in order to decide who is the stalker and who is the victim. Lori Cranston (Sophie Traub), a 15-year old teenager, is fanatically obsessed with Eric (Jon Foster), the young serial killer, who has just been released from a detention center where he had been held on charges of murdering his mother and father. Her life is in grave danger during each and every moment that she spends with him, but she can’t live without him.

It is obvious that her obsession with Eric is the result of her own troubled family life. Her mother Marsha (Arija Bareikis) is plagued with a drinking problem and chronically bad judgment when it comes to boyfriends. When Lori first appears in the film, she is shown putting a chair against the bathroom door so that her mother’s latest boyfriend does not barge in to ogle at her while she is showering. For her, Eric is only a means of escaping the grim realities of her own life. When he is released, she hitches a ride with him by hiding in his car. Eric suspects that she was there to spy on him, but lets her tag along. Sex, power and tenderness are the same thing to him, but Lori is ready to put up with any indignity and danger.

Not far behind is Lieutenant Cristofuoro (Russell Crowe), the man responsible for putting Eric in the detention center. Cristofuoro is convinced that Eric will kill again. He rushes to save Lori from Eric, but does she even want to be saved! Romantic love and murder are virtually inextricable in her imagination, and she tends to think of death as the ultimate swoon of tenderness. The narrative is built up slowly to a thrilling climax, which runs counter to anything you might have ever expected.

It’s worth a watch for its unusual story.

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World says goodbye to 2009

Friday, January 1st, 2010
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Merry Xmas and Happy New Year!

Saturday, December 26th, 2009

4b1c0354000d3_mMerry Xmas and Happy New Years from all of us at Royal Magazine.

2010 promises to be a great year with a feature of Livvy Lars (pictured left) as the Queen of the Month in the upcoming issue.

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Music Review of My Name is Khan

Friday, December 25th, 2009


Being racially profiled and strip-searched can be traumatic for any member of the minority community, but that is what many hapless people from this part of the world are made to experience every time they visit US. Even the legendary Shahrukh Khan is not spared the ignominy and the frustration of being searched at US airports. That is what the film My Name is Khan is all about. However, just because the storyline is based on a grim subject, it does not mean that the music has to be lackluster. In fact, the thoughtful music by Shankar Ehsaan Loy is completely geared to strike a chord with lovers of quality music. The album has 10 tracks and the best thing is that it comes packed with some extra delights in the form of hit songs from Karan Johar’s previous films. So along with numbers form My Name is Khan, you also get to enjoy songs such as Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and Suraj Hua Maddham. The first song in the album is Sajda, crooned mellifluously by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Shankar Mahadevan and Richa Sharma. Adnan Sami, Shankar Mahadevan, Shreya Ghoshal lend their vocals to Noor E Khuda. Tere Naina is a romantic number by Shafqat Amanat Ali. Then there is the Khan Theme played out in fast paced instrumental style, which is somewhat jingoistic. Shankar Mahadevan and Suraj Jagan conjure an inimitable romantic ambiance in their song Rang De. The other four songs are from Karan Johar’s earlier films. This album will especially appeal to those who have a taste for mellow and romantic music.

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Chance pe Dance Music Review

Thursday, December 24th, 2009

chance-pe-danceFilm: Chance Pe Dance

Music Director: Adnan Sami

If you are big Adnan Sami fan then it is time to put your dancing shoes on and start shaking your leg to the tunes of Chance pe Dance. The album opens with guest composer Pritam’s “Pe..Pe..Pepein…” which is a chartbuster with strong Punjabi flavour. Even though the song begins with wedding music in the background, it evokes a Western feeling mainly due to the rap style rendition by Hard Kaur and vocals by Master Saleem and Neeraj Sridhar. The next song in the album is the “Pump it up”, an out and out rock track that has Vishal Dadlani behind the mike. Incorporation of music from dhol and electric guitar only add to the appeal of this number. But it is in the song, “Pal Mein Hi” that Adnan Sami gets the chance to don his mushy and melodic avatar. The vocals from Soham and Shreya Ghoshal are replete with the feeling of freshness and romance.

With “One More Dance” the album is back to being what it is all about – high octane dancing. There is the feeling of techno razzmatazz in the music of this song and the presentation is completely contemporary. “Yaba Daba Yahoo” has vocals by the inimitable Kunal Ganjawala and the music is meant to motivate everyone to huddle up on the dance floor. The next number in the album has Shaan and Tulsi Kumar crooning, “Rishta Hai Mera” in a rather romantic and mushy manner. The last number is “Just do it”, which turns out to be an adrenalin pumping rap track whose lyrics are littered with really funny words from everyday vocabulary. On the whole, if you are on the prowl for music that can have you and your friends dancing with abandon, then Chance pe Dance is the album that you have to go in for.

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Music Review of Tum Mile

Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009


Title: Tum Mile
Music Director: Pritam Chakraborty
Lyricists: Sayeed Quadri and Kumar
Singers: KK, Mohit Chauhan, Javed Ali, Neeraj Shridhar and Shafqat Amanat Ali

When it comes to latest music from Bollywood, Pritam Chakraborty is clearly the uncrowned king. He has made it a habit of churning out riveting tunes in film after film. The album for Tum Mile is no different, in the sense that it is blessed with an array of really enticing numbers. The title song Tum Mile comes in three different versions, crooned by three singers. The first version has Neeraj Shridhar mouthing a bouncy song that has a Westernized lilt to it, not only due to the rocking music, but also due to the incorporation of quite a few English words. Then comesJaved Ali’s musical rendition, which is kind of mushy and has a distinct romantic feel to it. The third version of the song is a rocking number sung with great panache by the inimitable Shafqat Amanat Ali.

But it is Dil Ibadat that is clearly geared to be the biggest chart-buster in this album. Highly passionate vocals by KK and a soft paced music by Pritam manage to conjure a surreal aura around this song. Then comes Tu hi haqeeqat, which evokes the feeling of Sufi influence. Crooned by Javed Ali, the soulful number is a delight to hear owing to its lyrics and great orchestration. Mohit Chauhan has lent his vocals to Iss Jahan mein, which has a bit of Jazz and Indi pop rolled into it. KK is back with Oh meri jaan, a slow and emotional track. At the end of the album there comes the Soul Of Tum Mile, a four minute long track of adrenalin pumping music that begins with the sound of thunderstorm. On the whole this album is well rounded.

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Japan’s Soft core Porn industry

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

alonleycowweepsatdawn copy
Pink isn’t just Blue
Why Art Film aficionados watch Japanese soft-porn

When Tarantino’s celebrated femme fatale set out to Kill Bill, her journey necessitated a trip to Japan. There was good reason for doing so. Besides serving to doff the filmmaker’s hat to many influences that gave the tale of vengeance its pop verve, what other cinematic realm could house the villainous character of a delinquent groin-stabbing schoolgirl who finds glee in the gush of blood?

Japan, indeed. No other country shares the absolute audacity with which Japanese films challenge the threshold of its audience’s sensitivity. Of its many recent exports, multiple award-winning director Takashi Miike pushes the envelope the farthest. His films shock to entertain, and to veil socio-psychological commentary in the guise of such depravities as sado-masochism, sexual domination and even necrophilia. Marquis de Sade would be proud. Miike’s inspiration is not without precedent, however. The oddly disjointed and extreme manga style of story-telling he is popular for is predated by an obscure genre of film exclusive only to Japan.

To read the full article be sure to check out the December issue of Royal available on November 30.

Naked beauty holding gun with smoke in background copy

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Brothers

Thursday, October 29th, 2009
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Title: Brothers
Director: Jim Sheridan
Writer: David Benioff
Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Natalie Portman, Tobey Maguire

Brothers, the latest to emerge from the oeuvre of director Jim Sheridan, is packed with the kind of intense performances that will leave you feeling stunned. A highly decorated marine goes missing during the course of an overseas war, and his younger brother, who is a black sheep of sorts, cares for his wife and children at home. As the narrative progresses it leads to consequences that will shake the foundations of an entire family and leave the audience mesmerized. As far as their characters go, the thirty-year-old Captain Sam Cahill (Tobey Maguire) and his younger brother Tommy Cahill (Jake Gyllenhaal) are totally different from each other. Sam is a devoted family man and an upright officer, and he is married to his childhood sweetheart, Natalie Portman, called Grace in the film.

Tommy is extremely charismatic, but he is also a decadent drifter, and has been in and out of jail. The film’s narrative progresses in two kinds of landscapes, war torn Afghanistan on one side and the halcyon ambiance of the home where Grace lives with her children. In Afghanistan, initially Sam is presumed to be dead, but he is still alive, while being subjected to the most intense physical trauma. However, he has no idea that back at his home his brother and his wife are being drawn together by a force that they are not strong enough to resist. When Sam finally makes it back home, the undercurrent of tension in the family becomes even more unbearable. Is there a way by which brothers can come to terms with issues of love, loyalty, and manhood, when both of them are caught in the welter of love for the same woman?

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SAW VI

Thursday, October 29th, 2009
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Title: Saw VI
Director: Kevin Greutert

Very few movies have the capability of spawning six installments, but Saw manages to achieve that incredible feat. The sixth installment of the bloodcurdling thriller is now running in a theater near you and it turns out to be as compelling and intensely suspenseful as the earlier Saw films were. The narrative of Saw VI takes off where Saw V left. An unchallenged successor to Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) has emerged, and that is Detective Hoffman (Costas Mandylor). But before Hoffman can really carve his niche as a cold-blooded killer, he must throw the FBI off-track by pining blame for the latest series of murders on the deceased Special Agent Strahm.

Meanwhile a box left for Jigsaw’s ex-wife Jill (Betsy Russell) outlines a new game targeting a health insurance CEO (Peter Outbridge). All Hoffman and Jill need to do is set the game into motion, and the criminal mastermind’s evil conspiracy will finally get revealed. As the narrative progresses a plethora of traps get revealed, each one of which is capable of delivering gory payoffs in the form of quick splashes of blood and an indecipherable mélange of body parts and internal organs. The only drawback is that the film has too many flashbacks. So many, in fact, that if you haven’t seen all the previous Saw films, you will find it difficult to understand the storyline of Saw VI.

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Reader Feedback (Best letter wins Paul Smith cologne)

Tuesday, October 27th, 2009

ronak vyas Hey everyone my name is Ronak Vyas and I’m the Editor-in-Chief of Royal. We’re looking for feedback from you, our dear readers, so we can continue to grow and improve. The best letter of the month receives the newly launched cologne, Paul Smith Man. Other participants receive old issues of the magazine. Your feedback can be in the form of comments below or you can email me personally at rvyas@royalmag.net

Thanks. I look forward to hearing from you.

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