Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Disclaimer: For those who haven’t yet got their hands on the latest (for reasons, I do not call it the last) Harry Potter book, do NOT read on. This blog will act as a spoiler.

For those who have…go right ahead!

J.K.Rowling has finally proven herself. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is just pure brilliant. This one book has transformed the series from a set of individual stories into one long interwoven spell. Like a true Hindi film, the book has all the elements of success – drama, love, sacrifice, friendship, betrayal and the one constant of good wins over evil.

Probably one of the few books which evoke emotions (Like the melancholy ending of Love story or the humor of Inscrutable Amricans), I would have been the saddest person if Harry had died in this book. Not for any other reason, but it would have proven that he was the boy who lived merely out of luck. But thankfully it is not to be. The boy lives on…and with him lives our hope of a better tomorrow.

Not revealing too much of the plot, I believe that the best part of this book versus its predecessors are the twists and turns in the story that Rowling managed to weave. You never know where the plot is leading to. Its also interesting how she portrayed the shades of dark in the greatest wizard – Dumbledore, defying the fairy tale logic of black and white. There is a little dark in all of us. The difference, as Dumbledore says, is what part of us we choose to follow.



And as I recently told a friend of mine, this book has done the impossible. It actually made me fall in love with Severus Snape. He emerges out of this book as the hero of all times. The one who lost his love but yet dedicated his life to protect her son. His story, seen in the pensieve was heart wrenching. Somehow, he doesn’t evoke sympathy or pity at the end of all this. He evokes empathy and love and awe. A moment of silence to honor a man who lived and died with dignity!

Slightly disappointing was how Voldemort died quite an uneventful death in the end. One would have expected the greatest dark wizard to go down dramatically, but it was not so. But Rowling, never failing to please, added the twist about the wands in the final duel, over-shadowing any lack of drama.

As most Potter fans, I wait with bated breath for the next one.. and hope like hell that there is a next one. Perhaps it’s little Albus Severus who takes on the role… who knows what Rowling has in store for us in the future.

Kudos to a woman who imagined this world of magic, a world that seems more real than ours and makes us ache to be a part of it. A world which shall for years to come, be talked about with the same awe that before only Enid Blyton deserved.

The boy who lived - Order of the Phoenix

The world as I see it is divided into two kinds of people - Potter believers and then there's the rest of the world. Harry Potter came into my (and millions of others') life when he was merely a clueless young kid. And he never left!

The latest motion picture, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is by far the closest depiction of the world of Harry Potter that Rowling created. The earlier movies merely managed to narate the story, but failed to capture all the nuances of the book. The wonder of the wizarding world, the awe of walking into a tiny ordinary tent and entering a palace. Harry's dread of the Dursleys, his ache to belong somewhere, his confusion of being the boy who lived and his thrill at being the youngest seeker.

The Order of the Phoenix scored on various counts. It managed to bring together the world of muggles and that of the wizards as two co-existing worlds. The order flying over river Thames on their brooms was not only visually appealing, but also finally brought the books in geographical perspective. The special effects were dazzling and befitting a series dedicated to wonder and awe. The scene where Dumbledore vanishes with a flash of light with his Phoenix fawkes was shot beautifully.



One of the best played characters was that of Dolores Jane Umbridge, the hogwarts spy sent by the Ministry of Magic. Her irritating giggle, the purse of her lips and her evil taunts almost make you want to reach out and give her a piece of your mind. Cho-Chang was a disappointment but surprisingly, Luna was a delight. She played her role to the hilt and you could do nothing else but like the little girl. Even Sirius Black was brilliant. Every time he would give that crooked smile and wink, i could swear that i heard a few hearts skip a beat!!



The movie also had a great sequence where good clashed with evil. Dubmledore fighting Voldermort was an awe-inspiring sequence. The two greatest wizards clashed their powers leaving everyone spellbound.

Why I love the Harry Potter series is something I will share another day. But for those like me who do too, one piece of advise - go and catch the movie. For once, you wont be disappointed.

The click of a mouse...

“The time taken to travel across the world is now equal to the click of a mouse…”

So said a not-so wise person…me! The net is a fascinating thing. It manages to collapse geographies, cultures … seen and unseen boundaries.

I went to a hostel when I was 13 years old. In all the years since then, there have been times that I have been in and out of home….but mostly they never coincided with my sister’s plans. We started living in different cities since that summer. It was an age of self discovery…a time to find out who I was and what I wanted to be. Perhaps the distance between us grew larger as time passed and we became concepts to each other. We loved each other because…well, we were sisters and we were supposed to. But, if you had asked me her favorite book or what she liked to eat, I just may have been dumbfounded.

Time passed. Distances grew larger. She moved oversees and I got immersed in the buzz of university life. It was perhaps then that we started understanding of what we stood to lose by silence. And then we discovered the internet. The world was flat once more. We could bounce off thoughts, ideas, moods and just about anything off each other with a click of a mouse.

And I discovered my sister once again. I saw her for the person she was and the things that made her unique. We saw each other as friends for the first time, as two people with conflicting opinions but no conflict.

If you ask me today, I’m not sure that I can still tell you the name of her favorite book. But I can tell you what can make her shout with glee….or cry at the drop of a hat (trust me, she will when she reads this).

An ode to my sister….for being what she is to me and much more.

One of my fav songs...

One of my favourite songs....something about it always manages to touch some chord...

Thank you - Dido

My tea's gone cold,
I'm wondering why I got out of bed at all
the morning rain clouds up my window and
I can't see at all
And even if I could it'd all be grey,
but your picture on my wall
it reminds me that it's not so bad
it's not so bad

I drank too much last night,
got bills to pay
my head just feels in pain
I missed the bus
and there'll be hell today
I'm late for work again
and even if I'm there,
they'll all imply that I might not last the day
and then you call me and it's not so bad
it's not so bad

andI want to thank you
for giving me the best day of my life
Oh just to be with you
is having the best day of my life

Push the door,
I'm home at last
and I'm soaking through and through
then you handed me a towel
and all I see is you
and even if my house falls down now,
I wouldn't have a clue
because you're near me
andI want to thank you
for giving me the best day of my life

Oh just to be with you is having the best day of my life

Magic

I read a recent interview by Gregory David Roberts - perhaps you would know him better as the ever popular Shantaram - in which he quoted that the most overused word in literature is 'magic'. I was somehow taken aback when I read that. If magic is so talked about in the world of words, then why is our belief in it so sparce in our lives? Why do most of us instinctively get defensive whenever we are faced with attributing anything to magic? Who is not skeptical of astrology, of alternate methods of treatments, of love at first sight and of premonitions.

Magic to me is something that does not have a logical explanation....something that has so much beauty in it that it would be marred if we tried to find an explanation. Magic is in the myriad of colors in the sky, in the smile of a street child. It is believing in the goodness of people and not being proven wrong. Magic is that one soul-mate who will live through life knowing that you are thinking of him/ her somewhere in the world even if you never meet again. I wonder how many of us still believe in it? I am in this tiny minority I fear. But how does one explain the 'knowing that this is right' when we meet someone for the 1st time.

Magic is what helps me go on, almost like the air I breathe. It gives me a reason to wake up everyday with a smile on my lips. If I could gift anything to the people I love, I would gift them a little bit of magic in their lives....

In the search for contentment

Sometimes I wonder why we seek our happiness in others. One too many philosophers have reinstated that the only true happiness is being content with yourself. Then why do we look at the world for filling spaces in our hearts....

And what does it take to be content with oneself? Often I do small things that I believe will make a difference to someone in this world...give a hungry child food, smile at a stranger, help an ailing in need...but if I speak my heart, the truth is that somewhere deep inside, I perhaps do these to feel better about myself. To avenge the wrongs I may have done somewhere along the way...and to reinforce to myself that I am, in truth, a nice person.

Does it work? I'm not sure. Its too early to say. Life is long....what goes around, comes around...

Matheran and the sound of the wind

Travel for a large proportion of us refers to a luxurious hotel, room service, dinner in formals in the classy restaurant downstairs and a short walk around the resort thrown in. I must confess I am a sucker for luxury too. When I went camping to Mashobra near Simla for the first time, I thought there would be beds and ACs in the tents…regardless to say, I was a tad bit surprised to find stark bare tents in the middle of a forest with sleeping bags as beds and a fire for protection against wild-life. But then that’s another travelogue.

So as one can imagine, I was quite wary when I heard that Matheran, a tiny hillstation in Maharashtra was known for scenic beauty and wilderness alone. Yet, this time I was pleasantly surprised.

In my opinion, Matheran is a popular hill station largely for 2 reasons : its proximity to Mumbai and the popular toy train that leads you to the town. Though the train was out of service, the rash taxi driver on unbelievably steep roads was a distant second in terms of a comfortable ride. Yet, we made it in one piece to Matheran. The Taxi dropped us at Dasturi (the place till where vehicles are allowed). Somehow we managed to find our way through the mob of touts selling hotels, horse rides and just about anything and found our way to the ticket counter. One needs to purchase a pass to enter Matheran. This is valid throughout your visit.

A few facts that no travelogue is complete without:
It is the smallest hill station in the world
It is also the cleanest hill station
No vehicles are allowed inside the town. None whatsoever

Wildlife includes monkeys(lots of them) and horses trotting along the path as the local means of transport. Jokes apart, Matheran is known as being an abode for various exotic birds. I would probably attribute that to the pollution free air and lack of vehicle sound.

I call these facts because the first three are displayed on posters at the entrance to the MTDC resort by the government of Maharashtra. The MTDC resort was another good find. The deluxe cottages at a double accommodation rate of Rs1,100 were quite reasonable. The resort itself is built on a large expanse of land surrounded by forests. One does not even mind the 2 hour powercut everyday as it gives you the opportunity to sit on the swing in the veranda and just absorb the entire experience. It is also the most convenient resort as it is located at Dasturi, right next to where the taxi drops you. one can make bookings locally in Mumbai at their office in Nariman Point (# 022-22026713)

Leaving my dainty image behind in Mumbai, I did what one should do in a hill station – trek. Take any path and start walking along it, here is where the beauty of Matheran lies. The quiet paths with tall trees on both sides – invariably leading to some “point” or another are a wonder in themselves. Right after breakfast, we set off trekking towards Sunset point. Being 1o’clock in the afternoon, we were obviously ill timed for the beauty of this point but it did offer us a spectacular view of the valley. Monkey point on our way back was –as can be guessed- full of monkeys and little else. For lunch, there was a tiny eatery behind the mosque in the main bazaar that seemed to be well known for its non-veg dishes but we opted for Diwakar – a garden restaurant that the locals recommended. I’ve often found that one should ask locals about the best places to eat in a new town; they are the best judge and a reasonable sample of people you ask takes away the element of promotion or bias. Diwakar has surprisingly great food and also offered chilled beer. The Chicken Biryani and the chicken lollypops left us licking our fingers.
The experience of trekking in Matheran is not like the usual treks in hill stations in Himachal and others. For one, the town is not too high above sea level. And more importantly, the fun of trekking here is not climbing difficult rock trails but in walking along narrow paths with a green canopy above you. Another interesting opportunity is walking on the unused track of the toy train. It’s a beautiful walk from Dasturi to Matheran market (around 2.5 kms). Locals have also realized this and at regular intervals you will find them selling refreshing lime water or cucumber to munch.

Some travel related info:

How to get there: Take the local train from Dadar to Neral and take a taxi from Neral station to Dasturi (The entrance to Matheran)
Money involved: Not more than 1,000 per person per day on a twin sharing basis
What to buy: Fudge and Chikki (Try the chocolate walnut fudge)
So whenever the travel bug bites next, and you are ready to leave the city behind just for a while, here is where you should head. Don’t take my word for it – go try it out for yourself.