John Major talks sense?

Not often do I agree with a politician, especially a former PM of this country, but Uncle John does some say some interesting things…

Of course a lot of hypocrisy in what he says, accusing the current government of eroding trust in Parliament – anyone remember cash for questions?

But anyway, I like the way that the former PM talks about reducing the size of Parliament (fire the bastards) and downsizing the public sector. Oh yes, to look forward to a less interfering government…if only!

Random

I am going to be witty today. It is the least I can do. After all, the dear followers of this blog, all two and a half that are left after my travel month (man, I felt like the gimp in the room showing off his slides), it is time I returned this blog to the heights of decency that it once enjoyed. You know, the political commentary on this corrupt country, or the observations of ‘Living da vida loca en Londra’ or something along those lines. Hell man, even a visit to a bridge or two would not go a miss, or even something from a fabled part of South London might treat the reader to something that would entertains as well as enthrall. So, today, I have decided to return to wit, my forte and along with my atrocious spelling that usually accompanies these words, wit will be at the fore front of this blog post.

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It can be tricky to be witty.

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Okay, so instead of wasting precious web browser space with more, ‘ ‘, I have to come clean. I am witless. My brain feels really mushed up at the moment. But never fear, there is a reason for this. super productive session is going on, right now, where the forces of good and evilbattle it out for supreme control of the mind of ‘El Director’.

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What mind?

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Ah! I see it is to be another one of those rambles today. Well, fear not, it will not always be so.
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Hahahahahahaha!

Weekend Hi-Jinx

What recession? Go out on the town, and people are still spending like a crazy. I am one of them. No care in the world, going from one week until the next, hand to mouth. No focus on the future and just for today. Andf why not? For we can plan like crazy, but tomorrow, life has finished, and what is there to show for it? The remnants of a pension fund, a rabbit hutch of a home?

I am in two minds about this, as summer approaches. And ultimately, I think why not. Live for the moment! Life is about the memories, not of the safety factor. But also, what is interesting is how we spend our lives when having fun. Despite the fact that many of us have been doing the same thing, sday in day out, when it comes to the weekend, we do exactly the same thing. Same pub, same club, same toffy-nosed attitude to the bar staff, the same Friday night. Saturday is a hang over and a half and then onto Sunday, back in the pub after a failed attempt to utlise the weekend, all anticipating the Monday rush.

Well, try something a little different this weekend. Don’t get so tanked up. And remember, if you can’t get on the Nightbus, then don’t worry. It’s summer, and a walk back in this climate is far more pleasant than a peasant wagon Enjoy your weekend!

Jay and Kay Save the World – the trailer!

The Trailer, viewable by cliknig here. Enjoy!

Jay and Kay Save the World – Trailer!
Uploaded by cautionwetpaint.

Meanwhile, back in London…

So what have I been upto here in London over the past month . Well, to be blunt, busy. Working like a dog, there is no change there. Also, I have been hard at wok on the editing for ‘Jay and Kay Save the World’. In the past month, I have finished editing the short film, all the colour corrections have been completed, all the sound has been cleaned up and so I have arrived at the next stage of Post Production – the promotion and release of the film. This also included form filling on two important sites that cover a great deal of film festivals – a day for each one.

The promotion, not only included website redesign, but also press packs, photo stills and posters. Visit the CWP Website and have a shuffle around. You will see all those publicity pieces available for download.

Well that and something else. This is a bit of geekery coming along.

At the moment, I encode my DVD’s using a Quicktime file. The DVD looks all right, but still, it does not have that cinematic feel. Unlike the HD image I see while I am editing and the HD image that is available on playback as a raw movie file. WHich is why I am going to experiment with converting the film to an MPEG-2 file before burning to DVD. This will take me a couple of weeks to figure out, but hopefully, it will produce a superior quality DVD. As I have a few weeks before the remaining film festival dates come up for grabs, this is what I will spend doing, figuring out another tool in the editing suite. Once I have this DVD available, hopefully it will be of a better quality. Then I will contact the cast and crew and tell them that all is finished.

Life may be a holiday, but there is a lot of work behind the scenes

My India Top 5

As a round off to my India month, here are my favourite things that I did while traveled through India’s North East. In no particular order, and with nothing but frivolity behind the suggestions, I hope you have enjoyed reading about my travels through this great land!

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5) Meet the Khasi’s.

Up in the hills of Meghalaya state, enjoy the cooling breezer wafting in over from the Bay of Bengal. Dominated by the very cool Khasi people, Shillong is a laid back city, nestled away off the beaten track. Fun and chilled out a place as any.

4) Hop on the train.

Fun, cheap and a great way to see the countryside. Quite rightly famed as one of the best ways to see the country, the Indian Railway system is a must for any visitor to the country.

3) Cross a bamboo bridge.

They are shaky, oh what the hell, they are plain dangerous. But a little bit of bamboo will put some hairs on your chest. And if they can support my weight, they will probably support yours.

2) Catch a flick.

Head to the cinema, get your ticket and take your place in the cinema hall. Raucous, noisy affairs, so join in, whoop when there is a hint of love, boo the bad guy and tap your toes to the music. Fantastic fun, and a great way of watching movies and an interesting take on the local culture!

1) Eat well.

India is a country filled with fantastic food. One billion palettes make for some serious variety in the cuisine! Try something new, all the time, everyday. You will not regret it! Be adventurous…

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Thank you India for the memories. All of them. I hope to return to your fair shores very soon…

Leaving India

On leaving India, I was lucky enough not to get stopped in my tracks by Cyclone Aila which battered the region. The Shillong Plateau turned this devastating storm into a mere bit of wild weather, but for many others it was devastating to their lives. Such is the need to keep an eye out for the wet and wild when traveling, had I been 200 miles south, I would have at the least been badly delayed, and even worse, killed, such was the ferocity of Aila.

To leave India, I was going to have a 19 hour layover in Delhi, stretching my journey to a full 36 hours. As I did not know how transit worked in India, I did not book a hotel in Delhi before I left. Because of that, I bunked the night in Delhi airport before leaving the next day. In essence, it was one rough night of traveling, but something I am pretty used to.

Anyhow, you can experience some of the comedy of my leaving of India by clicking on the vid. Enjoy!

India, a look back

As you may have gathered, I had one incredible time in Incredible India, and for once, I might just have to agree with the advertising slogan. However, let us get this straight. India is no simple walk in the park. It is a hard country to travel around, filled with incompetence on every turn as well as being crowded with bugs, filth and people. I may have enjoyed India, but I am under no illusions about the country. It is incredible, but it will also wear you out.

India is a lot like marmite. You either love it or hate it; there is no in-between with that country. Personally, I love India, I still do, and a month later, I miss it like crazy. It seems a different world away, but I did have an incredible time there, and I hope to get back as soon as possible. When will I return? Who knows, and I am not even sure where I will go to next. But surely, the North East of India will remain a place which I must revisit sometime, especially the magical state of Assam.

My recommendation to all is that you must visit India, at least once in your lifetime, if only to experience a uniquely magical land. There are a lot of travelers whp cannot cope with India. And yes, it is an assault to your senses. But if there is one thing that you might gain from visiting India, it is the sense of being alive. India is a country filled with life and its people, more than anythin else, made this country a wonderful experience for me.

To paraphrase the first quote that kickstarted this travel-special month:

I am stunned by the richness of the land, by its lush beauty, by its ability to overload the senses. It was as if all my life I had been living in a 2-D black & white world. When brought face to face with India, everything was re-rendered in 3-D technicolour. For that, thank you and let me state it again, just in case you might have missed it. Despite all the hardships, and all the many problems that this country faces, I really do love India.

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Just as a side note, I have booked a short break to Istanbul for a few days this winter

Welcome to da movies!

India as you will all know (and if you don’t, here’s an education for you) is the world’s largest film maker and film market. Bollywood is famed throughout the West for its lavish sets and wonderful dance routines. Rajinikanth is India’s biggest star and has made inroads into markets far beyond India. There are even actors who have made it into the political scene of India. So, of course, being a film maker myself, I had to actually go to the movies while in India…

So it was, while wandering around Shillong, when I saw this poster, everywhere!

Who said advertising never worked? Pretty chicks on the poster, I can read the title of the film and more importantly, the venue is plastered on the poster. So off I went to the pictures to see the Khasi film, ‘Dashisha’.

I love going to the movies, especially in a foreign clime. If I get to see a local film, I get an insight into the culture of that particular area. A film shows the hopes and dreams of the local populace, what they aspire too, what is glamorous for them, what they want to achieve. I also get to see the reaction of the audience, an important thing to see what they like and dislike. A cinema is a great social leveler. No matter how rich or poor you are, a cinema is one of these things that everyone goes to. No matter what your social status is, you sit in the same seats, surrounded by left over snacks and (outside the UK) wafting cigarette smoke. Simple things like local customs and dress can also be ascertained by going to the cinema In fact, if you want to educate yourself about a people and their culture, then chick away the books and head to the picture house. Especially in a country like India, with its vibrant, localised film industries, a window will open to another world.

So what did I think of ‘Dashisha’? Of course I did not understand the movie’s language, although the movie was simple enough for me to understand the story, always a plus point. While a foreigner cannot hope to understand every twist and turn in the plot, a good movie transcends linguistic boundaries, which this was able to do.

I did not like the main characters themselves, I thought they were a bit wishy-washy, and I wish that there was more focus on the ‘bad guys’, as they were far more interesting while on the screen. I loved the songs, I thought they were great (in fact, I bought the album!) and really enjoyed seeing aspects of Khasi cuture that were only read about/inferred, such as their matriarchal customs and seeing their traditional dress. It was also interesting to see the inside of Khasi homes, as the director obviously used real locations rather than a studio.

Overall, I was happy to see the film. While the story did not resonate with me, the experience was fantastic, and I really can appreciate the effort this director put into the film. It is not easy making a feature length flick, and you can see the passion that was needed to bring this together. The director managed to wangle some fantastic locations and using his limited resources managed to theatrically release this film, with very little official backing. It was also a a fascinating insight into the culture of the Khasi people, far more educational than a dusty book sitting on some library shelf or some dull anthropologists lecture.

Movies, an experience for the mind as well as the soul

Shillong (2)

There are two sides to Shillong. First, the Bengali/Indian side of the city. The city where you can get dhal, the city of temples and mosques. The part of the city where there are men.

Then there is the Khasi side of the city. The city where there are churches. Where fish is the staple. The part of the city where women dominate.

Shillong is most definitely dominated by the Khasi people. Therefore, Shillong is a city of women!

More to the point, Shillong is great fun! The people of Shillong are unlike any other people of the North East. They are too cool for school. Look, these guys chill out with Bob Dylan concerts, they are the epitome of cool. They have their own film industry and, well, they are cool.

What is there not to like about Shillong. Great food, fun people, stunning women.

Did I mention that the Khasi people are matriarchal?

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Traveling in a matriarchal place is always entertaining for me, more so as I am fascinated just how everything functions so well. Trust me on this, matriarchies are so much more in tune with nature. The people are more relaxed (really chilled), there is less violence on the streets (actually, there is not much violence in NE India anyhow) and it is a lot more beautiful (better to see women than men in my opinion).

Travling in SHillong however was a surprise. Because I did not expect to see the city, I did no research on it, and so was completely bowled over by what I saw. I also spent quite a it of time actually in the city itself, chatting with people and experiencing the city. The Khasi are not the only people of Meghalaya state, but as they are the majority of the population of Shillong, they are the most urbanised of the Meghalayans and the most east to come in contact with. In fact, out of all the North East, only Assam is easier to travel in, and even then, there are parts of Assam which have difficulties.

Meghalaya does not have any of those problems, so if you find yourself with a few days to spare, then head over to Shillong, up in the hills. It is cool, in many respects, a mellow place to just sit back and soak up the atmosphere…