Big B or SRK!

So, there is this great debate, the rivalry, the rancour, the hate, the competition between the men themselves as well as in media....... WHO's bigger, better, taller, fresher, newer and deserves the title of "Bollywood King"

To me. the debate is over even before it begins. Big B is the Badshah of the Bollywood, the Sultan of Bombay, the man who fought through it all and survived. A true test of any person is the adversities he/she weathers, the storms s/he comes through and, the maturity of actions displayed, on every single account, BIG B stands taller than srk, and literally too he stands way above this short guy.

To be fair, there are some similarities in the way both came on the hindi movie scene. Amongst that I think the Timing was a big factor -Being at the right place at the right time;

Big B - when the audience was looking for an angry young man
srk - when audience wanted to see all the shades of a man's inner personality. No black and white alone - they wanted to see all the shades of grey that exist in a person. A good evil, if you would.

Both were lucky too; they got good breaks to begin their careers and soon the audience ensured that they reached the dizzy heights of Desi Stardom.

Similarities kind of end there though, AB went through much adversity - a devastating accident on the set of movie ( I think it was "Coolie' but I could be wrong), getting into politics to help out a friend (who turned out to be a ungrateful wretch of a man), fall of the business he was trying to build (AB productions or what ever the corporate avatar his company was) and after that relentless political witch hunting - attacked personally with attacks on his family ( remember the IT raid they endured!) and still he stands tall in what his adversaries would like make live ruins for him/his family. An Endearing man but more importantly an endearing man.

On the other hand, srk has virtually enjoyed a breakaway free run every which way. I personally think that its also because he was indirectly or directly supported by the infamous "D Company" - the Dubai mutherf!%~@# responsible for killing thousands of innocents during the Mumbai blasts. Now obviously, there is no published report that announces this support, but you look at the uninterrupted run srk has at the bollywood and you wonder, who's supporting him so well that there is never even a whimper of anything bad about srk, indeed if anything does come up, that reflects poorly on srk, it is made to go away so fast that its off the news even before you realize that its a news to begin with - e.g. the story of the bungalow he bought on the sea face and then wanted to radically change the architecture and add add monstrous expansions to this heritage building.

BTW, I don't wish to take away anything from his popularity, great success at the box office or his business acumen. He has certainly earned it. Even though, I have reservations on his limited acting skills (for eample the fact that he has the same canned laughter irrespective of the role, the situation or the kind of movie) BUT considering the fact that there are hundreds of star sons/daughters who have worst skills despite being given multiple chances, and are still around, I think he's much better.

I wish I could go on and on but time is short and I must stop. In conclusion, srk doesn't hold a torch to the BIG B and yet the public debates oops I mean media propaganda continues to tout srk as the king, I don't blame them, as Murphy's law says; The race doesn't always go to the fastest or strongest horse but that's the way to bet. Big B may be stronger or faster but go ahead and bet on the short man.

Jesus of Change is arriving - soon in an office near you

And you guessed it right, its Obama. Right now, he's the only hope on the horizon, the man who will bring the change, the savior of humanity and many more things.

Well, frankly I like the guy but I don't like this blind fervor, this mouth-open, wide-eyed, saliva drooling looks that his fans are pouring on him and the overwhelming accolades, that are almost unwarranted/unprecedented. He seems like a good product but looks far from a real battle tested product. I mean he is a great political debater but beyond that I really don't know what exactly has he achieved as a professional.

My thoughts at the moment are that Sure no one would ever decline a chance of a Presidency, and that too of the US Presidency, the most powerful position on this planet, BUT would you not like to scrutinize a candidate's credentials very very closely for such a powerful position before you hire someone!

Right now all I see is that apart from the fact that this job aspirant speaks very well and talks convincingly about brining a change, I really don't know what he brings to the table. On the other hand, the competition both in his own party (Hillary) as well as in the other (McCain) is so uninspiring that he automatically appears to be better.

McCain is not only old but he's such an indecisive flip flopper that it will be like condemning the country to doom by choosing him. Hillary on the other hand has not created an impact that was expected (ok, I mean I expected).

To top my ignorance, I don't really understand the psyche of the women voters so hearing some comments makes me wonder; what the heck are you thinking! when you say you CAN'T vote for Hillary. To give an example, this is a conversation I overheard between two ladies, who per my guess were in their mid sixties; " I don't want to vote for a woman, who I think will cry if a tough issue comes up" WWHHAATT!!!!

I thought, this was a strange comment not only because conclusions were drawn based on vaporized facts but also because current president has admitted that not only he weeps on the job but talks directly to God! If he could be elected twice, surely Hillary could be elected once if the issue is "crying on the job".

All said and done, Hillary somehow or rather her team has not really done a great job either. More importantly in my analysis Clintons must have angered/annoyed/overstepped so many democrats when they were in the office, that everyone from Pelosi, Ted Kennedy, Kerry to Edwards may be joining Obama bandwagon not because they love Obama but because they definitely hate Clintons. I still remember that just when Kerry/Edwards campaign was picking steam and Bill was supposed to support them and speak for them, it was announced that Bill needed a heart by-pass surgery. Mind you, I'm sure he needed the operation but did he need it right then, on the exact days he was supposed to be helping Kerry/Ed! I'm convinced it was done just so Bill could keep away from the Kerry/Ed campaign without getting under fire.

Oh my! How your bad Karma comes back to haunt you when you least want it.
Still looking at the field, Hillary looks the best bet to me even though I wish it was Paul or Edwards in the final fight. Of course, if good candidates could filter through the process, then it would not be Presidential politics, would it!

So cheers to Obama. Sure he will be the president, I have no doubt. Nothing succeeds like a success they say, and right now what can he do if everyone has already decided to make him successful!

I'm just concerned that the people will be hugely disappointed in a year or two after he becomes the President.

I think it will be less than two years after he's in the power that the same people who want him to be president would like him to step down but then he would be set for another two years and that will be that!

We shall see!


P.S. - my next rant will be on SRK and AB. I'm just sick of these new puppies like SRK taking a shot at a giant like Big B. Of course, only Desi will be able to figure out that so if you are not a Desi or not familiar with Bollywood then this won't be something that you enjoy or even understand.