Stuff I wrote for my college campus newspaper - 15

Something

By Sanket Kambli

By the time this article comes out in print, our last medal hope must have jumped

her way either to the podium or nowhere. And before we all get depressed about the dismal performance of our contingent at the sporting spectacle in Greece.

I would like to say something. We all have high hopes when it comes to India’s

performance in cricket, and their skills do deserve that kind of expectation,

they don’t perform is another matter though, but that isn’t the topic of my write up.

But when we go about expecting a bunch of medals at Olympics, then I would say its

like stretching your imagination just a bit too hard. I am not a pessimist; even I would like to see India grabbing a few medals, but sometimes you got to be realistic. And the reality is that India athletes, certainly excluding a few, have a long way to go before we can entertain any serious hope of their podium finish. So it is better if we expect our athletes to improve their world rankings by gaining whatever points they can at such events, than dream about top 3 finishes. And the authorities should try and give prizes(monetary) to not to just medal winners but also who set some national record or a personal best, this probably will push them to work harder. Because I believe that if one

is regularly commended for a good performance, that person will surely try something which they themselves considered impossible, and maybe that will be a moment of biggest upsets in athletic world, when India finishes on the podium as regularly as Schumacher winning a formula one race. But don’t get all dreamy because this is one dream which will take a long time. And till then we will have to smart about the bronze in last edition of Olympics, silver in this edition, and maybe a gold in next.

Stuff I wrote for my college campus newspaper - 14

The Police Story

By Sanket ‘story teller’ Kambli

I want to be a Police Inspector, not know, but this used to be the mantra of many kids, say, a decade ago. But I am sure the number is slowly dwindling, and there doesn’t seem to be a stop to this decline. And the reasons are known to everyone, and the latest one seems to have made things worse. But this incident, has popped open a can of assorted issues. This act committed by a member of the police force, can never be pardoned. But other than the punishment, there is one more thing that one needs to understand. This act has brought fear, and it isn’t a comforting fact, to know that, the force formed to protect us, is the one we need protection from. So what could be the reason, what could be the thing that got into the culprits mind, to do such a crime. A newspaper by the name ‘Samna’, states the girls as the culprits, according to them, they are the ones who provoke men, titillate them by wearing tight/short clothes. While some reports are indirectly indicating the workplace stress, stress which is carried to their homes, leading some to find relief in alcohol, and alcohol shows its effect turning policemen into animals. Or it could be that it’s all in the head, the outlook towards women is twisted. Well, I leave the decision making to you. But what can be the solution, stress relief measures for police, dress code for every woman, or maybe we try and make some machine to change the way of thinking. Right know every measure taken, seems to be in the right one, as some say, something is better than nothing. But the wait for a solid and positive measure is still on. There is one more issue, the issue of moral policing, is it right for the police to disallow a boy to hold a girls hand, is it wrong for a boy and girl to sit together and chat, is it wrong for a girl to wear jeans and t-shirts, what is so devilish in these innocent things, well only the police know the reply, anyone with an answer. Is this end to the police story, well, it’s the beginning, and all that everyone wants is a happy ending, don’t we deserve it. What do say.

Stuff I wrote for my college campus newspaper-13

Mark Knopfler

Compiled By Sanket ‘sultan of swing’ Kambli

Mark Knopfler was born in Glasgow, Scotland, on the 12th of August 1949. At the age of seven his family moved to Newcastle in North-East of England. Like lots of other guitar-wielding schoolboys of the 1960s, he served an early apprenticeship by forming and joining anonymous schoolboy bands and listening to guitarists such as Scotty Moore, Jimi Hendrix, Django Reinhardt and James Burton. At sixteen he made a local TV appearance as half of a harmony duo along with school-friend Sue Hercombe. At school he exhibited flair for English; in 1967 he went to study journalism at Harlow Technical College. At the end of the course he secured a job in Leeds as a junior reporter on the Yorkshire Evening Post. After two years he decided to further his studies and commenced a degree in English at Leeds University. By day Mark continued working as a reporter and, later, as a full-time student. While living in Leeds Mark made his first record. It was recorded in a room that had been converted into studio in a house in Pudsey. The song was called Summer’s Coming My Way and it featured Steve Phillips on twelve-string guitar. After 1973, Mark took up a job as a lecturer at Loughton College in Essex where he remained for two years living in a rented flat in Buckhurst Hill, sometimes giving guitar lessons at Staples Road School. Then brother David came to stay for a few weeks en route to London. The Knopfler brothers would often sit up late into the night playing songs and, without knowing it, to some extent laying the foundations of what was to become, in time, Dire Straits. In 1977, they got together with John Illsley (bass) and Pick Withers (drums) to do gigs under the name of Mark's old band, the Café Racers. Later, a friend of Pick's suggested a new name for the band - Dire Straits. The die was cast. The band's first gig took place on the open space at the back of the Farrer House flats, the electricity provided by a power cable running from the stage into a socket on the wall of John's first floor flat. The rest as they say is history. In 1996 Mark began his career as a solo performer with the release of the Golden Heart album. The album was simply a step forward in the evolution of his music, "It's just moving forwards...” he said, "...Just trying to be better." In addition, he has scored the music to a number of films. First came Local Hero in 1983 followed in 1984 by the Cal and the Comfort and Joy soundtracks. These were followed in 1987 by The Princess Bride and two years later came Last Exit To Brooklyn. Further soundtrack work has seen the release of Metroland and Wag The Dog both of 1998. Mark's second solo album, Sailing To Philadelphia, was released in September 2000. His soundtrack album to the film A Shot At Glory is due for release in the not too distant future. To date, Mark Knopfler/Dire Straits have sold millions of singles and over 105 million albums. Over the years Mark has collaborated with many artists. He has at one time or other worked with people such as Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, Randy Newman, Buddy Guy, Tina Turner, Phil Lynott, Willy DeVille, Eric Clapton, Waylon Jennings, Chet Atkins, Phil Everly, Vince Gill, Paul Franklin, Kate and Anna McGarrigle, Paul Brady, The Chieftains, Ben. E. King, Mary Chapin-Carpenter, Joan Armatrading, Scott Walker, Jeff Healey, The Judds, Jimmy Nail, Bryan Ferry, Aztec Camera, Steely Dan, Sting, Sonny Landreth, James Taylor, Emmylou Harris, Gillian Welch and David Rawlings. Mark has been the recipient of countless awards and accolades, not least among which was the conferring in May 1993 of an Honorary Music Degree by Newcastle University of which he is justly proud. Mark Knopfler has always been a songster; to him the song is king. It is said that he has never really understood why his music is so popular. There is another side to Mark Knopfler, a very private side. By the mid-80s Mark was being referred to by some as the "quiet man of rock and roll." He is shy by nature and gets embarrassed when fans tell him how much they have been affected by his songs and how his music has changed their lives. It is a matter of public record that Mark has been married three times. His second marriage produced his twin sons, Benji and Joseph, born in 1987, and more recently his third marriage to Kitty Aldridge has been blessed with a daughter, Isabella, born in 1998. After more than twenty years at the top of his profession, Mark Knopfler is now a family man who loves to spend time with his wife and his children.

Stuff I wrote for my college campus newspaper - 12

Underground Metro in Mumbai – Reality; no more a dream

Compiled By Sanket ‘can go underground’ Kambli

Transportation in Mumbai is a huge problem, especially due to the geography of our city. The city's system is reported to be modeled after the London transportation system with the exception of the Underground Metro. Mumbai's lack of a subway system has been severely detrimental to the commuters due to the congestion that is experienced. Not only was the Mumbai transportation system modeled after the London system, it was pretty much developed in union with it. As London developed a system, Mumbai would receive it approximately five years later. Tram service in Mumbai began in 1870. It remained until the 1950s when people felt that the trams were becoming obsolete even though their passenger carrying capacity was 50% greater than buses; they were more energy efficient, cleaner and could be easily modernized. But, unfortunately the government did a study and ruled that buses would be more effective. The last tram ran in 1964. This was perhaps the first blow to transportation development in Mumbai. The second came in 1974 with the abolition of the trolley bus. The trolley bus was much like a bus, but it ran on electricity, was quiet and was able to follow routes that the large diesel buses could not run on. After the termination of these two systems, transportation development has been extremely difficult in Mumbai. So to revamp the transportation system of our city and ease the congestion, the process to build Mumbai Metro has begun. Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh has been reported to have cleared the project and the Mumbai Metropolitan and Region Development Authority (MMRDA) have begun inviting bids. Once the bidder is selected, in the coming months, work will begin on the first phase. Phase I of the Mumbai Metro includes three corridors: Colaba-Charkop (38.24 km), Versova-Ghatkopar (11.56 km) and Bandra-Mankhurd (12.8 km). It is estimated to take the MMRDA approximately eight years to complete this phase. The master plan comprises six other corridors: Charkop-Dahisar (7.5 km), Ghatkopar-Mulund (12.4 km), Bandra-Kurla Complex-Kanjur Marg via airport (19.5 km), Andheri (East)-Dahisar (East) (18 km), Hutatama Chowk-Ghatkopar (21.8 km), Sewri-Prabhadevi (3.5 km). Dr T Chandrashekhar, additional metropolitan commissioner and project director of Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP)—Metro Rail falls under this city improvement plan—said they decided to begin work on this line to ease traffic on the east-west corridor. ‘‘Plus, because all stations on this route will be elevated, it will be easier,’’ said Chandrashekhar. ‘‘If all goes well, work should start by the end of the year.’’ The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation will act as a consultant to MMRDA and the Metro will be constructed—at an estimated cost of Rs 1,500 crore—on a build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis. Once work starts, bids will also be invited for the 38.24-km Colaba-Mahim-Charkop line, the largest corridor in the project. ‘‘The state and Central Government will be equity share holders with 26 per cent equity in the project,’’ said Chandrashekhar. ‘‘It will take around 15 years to execute the entire plan (see box),’’ he added. Chandrashekhar also explained that roads were being widened across the city to accommodate the Metro. The elevated rail will require approximately 11-metre-high pillars, which will be constructed on the 2-metre wide central dividers. ‘‘For this,’’ said Chandrashekhar, ‘‘the road should have a width of 45 meters so that vehicular traffic is not affected.’’ The underground lines will be built using micro-tunneling—workers will burrow their way underground through tunnels and the surface of the roads will not be dug. Chandrashekhar also clarified that traveling on the Metro won’t be an expensive affair. The project, he said, aimed at easing congestion in trains and buses.’ So, it’s obvious that prices will be almost the same,’’ he said. ‘‘It could be somewhat marginally higher but not unaffordable.’’ And all that we can do is waiting.

Factual information courtesy- http://www.macalester.edu , umaupadhyaya@expressindia.com

Stuff I wrote for my college campus newspaper - 11

Celebrate: Republic Day

By Sanket ‘I proud to be Indian ’ Kambli

We are nearing mid January; it surely signifies something, no! It’s not about trying hard to avoid breaking all the resolutions made a few days ago. No guys, it’s our republic day I am talking about. Anyway, I don’t need to tell you, what being a republic means to this country, let’s just leave that to the textbooks. So let’s leave the details behind and just go ahead on. But can we?, considering the impact of the recent disaster, can we possibly look ahead for the republic day celebrations. If we take into account the inefficiency of our govt. in disaster management should they have the grandest celebration? Well let’s just leave these arguments to the editorials of national dailies, and direct ourselves on the day itself, which brings to my mind a flurry of thoughts from my childhood. I remember how in my schooldays, republic day was not considered as just another holiday, it was a day to celebrate, we used to go to the school for flag hoisting ceremony, proudly wearing a tiny flag fastened to our shirts, and a flag or two in our hands. Then we all would go for a ‘Prabhatpheri’ in the school neighborhood, guided by our teachers, carrying banners about some or the other social issue. Then returning home with sore throats after screaming about the aforementioned issues, me and some of my friends would quickly grab a snack, and assemble at my home, to watch the live Delhi parade, and we used sit there and start our kiddy comments on just about everything shown in the parade. Those were the days, the days of carrying flags the whole day, wherever we used to go, the days of freely displaying your love and pride for your nation, but now it’s not the case, it’s probably called childish by many to carry a flag, even on a republic day. Yeah! Some may say that one needs to have the love in their hearts, its not necessary to show it off, well that is a personal opinion, so keep it to yourselves and those who ‘wear their hearts on sleeves’ go out show your love for your country, in any so called childish way. What the heck, even if it’s not on our Independence Day celebration. A reason is sufficient, what do you say.

Stuff I wrote for my college campus newspaper - 10

Premier Hockey League: Will it give cricket a run for its money?

By Sanket Kambli

Is this a dream or what? Will this be successful or flop? Will this league become part of Indian psyche as English Premier League has become part of the Brit’s? No I am not talking about an alternative National Football League. What I am talking about is a different ball game (pun intended) altogether. Read on.

Hockey is a sport with a glorious history and rich tradition that has brought India more laurels than any other sport, watching a hockey player bring a touch of magic to their play with ball juggling feats is a sheer delight.

And today in India this great game is set to don new colors with the launch of the Premier Hockey League(PHL).

This league is the brainchild of the Indian Hockey Federations, ESPN STAR Sports and Leisure Sports Management. It is being hoped that The Premier Hockey League heralds the dawn of a new epoch.

The first match of PHL 2004-05 will be played in the Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh (SAAP) Stadium in Gachibawli, Hyderabad on Thursday, January 13.

All the matches in the first year would be played at Gachibawli. All Tier – I matches will be played on week ends while the Tier II games will be played on week days.

It looks, in the way, PHL is shaping up, has all the ingredients of attracting consumers to the game. It’s encouraging to know that Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) realizes that in today’s day and age of over exposure and competition from various sports, only the ones, which will innovate, will flourish and the rest will be forgotten. IHF looks determined to make hockey thrive. Creation of PHL with a strong television support seems like a definitive first step in growing the popularity of hockey in India. The league will provide the much needed playing exposure to hockey players and also benefit the players in terms of playing experience and keeping them in match practice before the beginning of international season.

The league will see all the leading domestic players as well as some of the international stars in action.

IHF says they have made some interesting changes in the format of the game so that the league is able to involve viewers more and more. The league has been designed in such a way that it promotes loyalty at the grass root level.

Keeping it relevant to the times, interesting names have been given to the teams instead of merely calling them by their cities.

The five Tier I teams will be called:

* Bangalore High-Fliers for Bangalore

* Chennai Veerans for Chennai

* Maratha Warriors for Mumbai

* Shere-e-Jallandhar for Jallandhar

* Hyderabad Sultans for Hyderabad

All these names have been created after exhaustive research and discussions between LSM, ESPN STAR Sports, IHF. They are hoping these names would invoke passions among people.

Tier II teams also have been given interesting names:

* Delhi Dazzlers for Delhi

* Lucknow Nawabs for Lucknow

* Imphal Rangers for Imphal

* Bengal Tigers for Kolkata

* Chandigarh Dynamos for Chandigarh

They also announced the Captains for the Tier I teams. These Captains have been chosen keeping in mind their natural affiliations with state federations, their skills and seniority. Idea is also to give players an experience of facing difficult situations and develop them as able leaders.

Names of the five Captains are:

* Dilip Tirkey for Hyderabad Sultans

* Arjun Halappa for Bangalore High – Fliers

* Viren Rasquinha for Maratha Warriors

* Gagan Ajit Singh for Shere-e-Jallandhar

* Ignace Tirkey for Chennai Veerans

IHF says the Captains are busy in the shooting of an interesting promo for the league involving all of them and the India’s ultimate sporting icon Sachin Tendulkar.

Under the rules of the league, Tier I teams will have an option of bringing in a maximum of five foreign players. IHF is in touch with various hockey federations across the world so that more and more international players can take part in the forthcoming league.

IHF have received very positive response from the leading federations and I am hopeful that some of leading super stars of hockey will be seen in action at the Gaachibawli stadium in Hyderabad. These players can be from countries like Pakistan, the two Koreas, Spain or any other hockey playing nation. It is almost confirmed that players like Sohail Abbas will be playing in PHL.

Imagine if Sohail Abbas was to play for Sher-e-Jallandhar then the pleasure of watching Gagan, Jugraj and Sohail in the same team will be unparalleled and every hockey fans dream come true. Intelligent team formations, presence of prominent players and profiling of players are bound to catapult the popularity of the game to another level. IHF says ‘Media is going to play a very important role in building the league and we look forward to your support in the area’.

To ensure that more and more people are able to view the fixtures, matches will be played in the evening starting the Thursday of each week and running across on Friday, Saturday and Sunday till the end of the league. Evening viewing will lead into an increase in ticket sales and will also make for convenient viewing for fans wanting to catch the games on television.

This looks like the beginning of a journey and this effort will go a long way in popularizing and developing hockey talent in India. Besides upgrading the standard and popularity of hockey in India, PHL will also drive corporate interest in the game.

Something about the teams:

*Bangalore Hi-Fliers (Captain: Arjun Halappa)--Representing the IT hub of the nation, they are the trend-setters.

*Maratha Warriors (Captain: Viren Rasquinha)--The team from Mumbai. Rich in heritage, they are known for their valor and pride.

*Chennai Veerans (Captain: Ignace Tirkey)--Determined to succeed, they stand for excellence and substance.

*Sher-e-Jallandhar (Captain: Gagan Ajit Singh)--Spirited, large-hearted, with joie de vivre, they always go for the kill.

*Hyderabad Sultans (Captain: Dilip Tirkey)--Of royal lineage, mixing tradition with modernity, they are the progressive nawabs.

This surely sounds damn! Exciting and 13^th Jan is the day to be booked for PHL. I don’t know about you but till 13^th Jan I will be busy updating my knowledge of Hockey.

Watch out for more PHL action, a low down on all captains and some Hockey Fundas in the next issue.

Stuff I wrote for my college campus newspaper - 9

Warning to all Online Bankers

Compiled by Sanket Kambli with inputs from security experts

It's a daytime bank burglary without weapons or getaway vans! All it takes is a laptop, a modem and an evil-genius mind.

Computer security experts have warned of Internet virus that steals password and account information of users who bank online.

The latest bug, last month, targets Internet Explorer browser users and can be picked up from pop-ads which secretly download and install programs that reads keystrokes and relays them to the hackers.

The pop-ups are instigated from websites that run ads from certain online ad services. These online ad servers apparently have themselves been hacked into to spread the bug. The virus apparently has a list of about 50 banks. Once it detects the user logging into one of the banks, it reads login passwords and intercepts the information before it gets encrypted.

The earlier virus was of a different origin and was picked up from websites that were infected. However, the goal of both programs remains the same - to steal bank account information. The two attacks highlight new risks to transmission of sensitive financial information on the Internet, experts said.

Users working on Internet Explorer browsers are the main targets of this virus because flaws in the software. However, Microsoft has said that it has been able to fix two of the three flaws, the third one still exists. Experts say that using pop-up killers (software that block pop-up ads) can help in stopping the bug from infecting one's computer. Another option is to use a non-Microsoft browser, such as Netscape, Mozilla or Opera.

Internet Explorer users are invulnerable if they download and install a patch that was released in April this year. Experts have also advised Internet Explorer users to set the security setting for their browser to "high" level.

A report on a website owned by Consumers' Institute of New Zealand, Inc, says a man from Auckland had his bank account robbed through the Internet in April this year.

Withholding his name, the website says $20,000 was transferred from his BNZ business account to a Kiwibank account. The Kiwibank account holder, an innocent third-party, had been duped by fraudsters. He in turn sent the money to a bank in Estonia. The transfer reportedly happened at 7.30 pm on a Friday night and was cleared and gone by midnight. Following Monday morning, a second transfer occurred but was detected and reversed. The man's laptop, which did have anti-virus software, was found to be infected by a Trojan Horse program. The program may have come in as an email attachment or via a dodgy pop-up on a website advertising plasma TVs, the site reports. The program read the keystrokes, which were recorded and transmitted back to the fraudsters, giving them access to his online banking details.

Stuff I wrote for my college campus newspaper - 8

Aamchi Mumbai and Shanghai

By Sanket ‘Mumbaikar’ Kambli

Yeah! Their names sound similar, but why am I taking these two together, read further to unravel the non-existent mystery. Weeks after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh took charge, he had stressed the need to develop Mumbai’s infrastructure. In the city a few days ago, Singh reiterated his commitment to support its makeover... but asked the state government to retain the ?‘‘Human face of development’’? The PM emphasized that it was time ‘‘to think big (think Rs 31,000-crore) instead of focusing on minor development tasks’’. Since then, Mumbai’s civic machinery has been working at an intense lick, trying to turn into reality the Prime Minister’s ambitious dream of transforming Mumbai into Shanghai. And with ample support from CM Vilasrao Deshmukh, egged on by Home Minister R.R. Patil, the civic body has demolished 55,000-odd illegal shanties and 80 illegal commercial establishments in just a month. Following which Congress MPs Sunil Dutt, Milind Deora and city Congress chief Gurudas Kamat met Singh and raised the issue of two lakh slum-dwellers having been forced out on the streets. To this, Singh suggested that the families so evicted be resettled outside the city. Also unhappiness has been expressed by some over encroachments near the airport, saying the slums gave a bad impression of Mumbai. The last week of December saw two ‘makeover’ teams engrossed in an intense two-day brainstorming session in Bangalore—one, a team working to transform Mumbai into Shanghai; the other, a team that was set up with the aim of turning Bangalore into Singapore. Back in the city, the Mumbai team says there’s a lot to learn from the Bangalore Agenda Task Force (BATF). ‘‘Especially from their experience in improving the civic administration and creating public awareness about development,’’ said Sanjay Ubale, secretary, special projects. The team was impressed by the BATF’s Public Accountability System where the municipal commissioner, police chief and the head of the city’s development authority interacted with citizens every six months. Admitting it would be difficult to implement all the programmes in Mumbai, Ubale said they could easily incorporate ‘‘a few things’’ in their plan. The Mumbai team, meanwhile, was quick to point out that Bangalore did not face massive demolitions like Mumbai—55,000-odd illegal shanties have been demolished and over 2 lakh slum dwellers left homeless. ‘‘We had our share of problems too,’’ Ravichandar former BATF member said, ‘‘but we had concentrated on commercial encroachments.’’ This renewal mission would focus on slum development, facilities for the urban poor, construction of roads and footpaths, development of urban facilities including sanitation, drinking water and power supply, public transport, parks and public spaces, legal reform, new construction projects and environment management.

Here are some of the mega projects that officials are hoping would transform Mumbai into a dream city.

* Transport Plaza for Bus Terminal, Wadala

Cost: Rs 100 crore Status: 6.5 hectares of land. Temporary plaza underway, entrepreneur can charge buses, operators, and passengers; develop commercial area

* Middle Vaitarna Water Supply Project, Thane

Cost: Rs 1,250 crore Status: All clearances obtained to construct 7.5 km long tunnel to boost Mumbai’s water supply

* Mumbai Trans Harbour Link, Sewri

Cost: Rs 2,700 crore for 22-km Sea bridge to Nhava Sheva from Sewri Status: Environment clearance assured, alignment approved, feasibility study updated in February 2004. Toll revenues for 30 years and development rights along approach roads

* Multi Modal International Passenger and Cargo Hub Airport, Nagpur

Cost: Rs 2,581 crore Status: Acquisition underway, project hopes to generate 94,000 jobs, boost exports.

*Rs 1,500-crore metro link between Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar;

*Rs 110-crore entertainment centre in the Bandra-Kurla complex;

*Rs 600-crore Passenger Water Transport system;

*Rs 4,500- crore Mumbai Urban Transport Project.

But some questions remain, whether this will really help to make Mumbai a dream city, is there a need to compare Mumbai to Shanghai. And how much ‘Human face of development’ will be maintained in transforming the financial capital of this nation into a world class city?

Stuff I wrote for my college campus newspaper - 7

Movies Sneak-Peak

By Sanket ‘Movie Hound’ Kambli

2005 will surely be a ‘kick ass’ year for all Hollywood fans, ‘coz this year is gonna see a flurry of some awesome releases, so let us pray they make it to our theaters. Here is all the dope that I could get about some flicks which I am eagerly awaiting.

Sin City

Release Date: April 1, 2005 - Dimension Films

Cast: Josh Hartnett - The Employee, Marley Shelton - The Customer, Carla Gugino - Lucille, Bruce Willis - Hartigan, Mickey Rourke - Marv, Johnny Depp - Wallace, Jaime King - Goldie, Brittany Murphy - Shellie, Michael Douglas, Steve Buscemi, Christopher Walken, Elijah Wood - Kevin, Maria Bello - Ava Lord, Benicio Del Toro - Jack Rafferty, Jessica Alba - Nancy Callahan, Nick Stahl - Junior/Yellow Bastard, Rick Gomez - Mr. Shlubb, Clive Owen - Dwight, Rosario Dawson - Gail, Michael Madsen - Bob, Alexis Bledel - Becky, Michael Clarke Duncan - Manute

Director: Robert Rodriguez, Quentin Tarantino (co-dir.), Frank Miller (co-dir.)

Screen Writer(s): Robert Rodriguez, Frank Miller

Summary: The movie's storyline will incorporate three of the SIN CITY graphic novels, specifically the first as well as THAT YELLOW BASTARD and THE BIG FAT KILL. Sin City is a violent city where the police department is as corrupt as the streets are deadly. In this movie, we follow three stories, the central of which is Marv, a tough-as-nails and nearly impossible to kill street fighter who goes on a rampage of vengeance when a beautiful woman, Goldie, he sleeps with for only one night is killed while lying in bed with him.

Silver Surfer

Summary: When the planet-eating space God known as Galactus targeted the peaceful planet of Zenn-La for his dinner, native scientist Norrin Radd offered himself as sacrifice in return for the God's forbearance. He became the being's cosmic powered herald, and lost much of what made him human in the process. At Galactus' touch, even Norrin's flesh changed into impenetrable metallic-like armor, capable of weathering the rigors of space travel. On a surfboard-like conveyance, the Silver Surfer scouted the cosmos, choosing appropriate planets for his master's next feast. Without his humanity to guide him, will the Surfer choose Earth as Galactus' next happy meal?

Wolverine

Cast: Hugh Jackman - Wolverine/Logan

Screen Writer(s): David Benioff

Summary: The first two X-Men movies only hinted at Wolverine's hidden past. As ensemble movies they could only use his story as backdrop. But it is assumed that the Wolverine movie will flesh out Logan's secret history and his participation in Canada's super soldier experiments. In the desperate search for his lost memory, he will travel from the wilds of the Canadian wilderness to the teeming cities of Japan and beyond.

X-Men 3

Release Date: May 5, 2006

Cast: Alan Cumming - Nightcrawler, Daniel Cudmore - Colossus, Shawn Ashmore - Iceman, Kelly Hu - Lady Deathstrike, Aaron Standford - Pyro, Rebecca Romjin-Stamos - Mystique, Hugh Jackman - Wolverine

Director: Its rumored that Bryan Singer will NOT be on this one.

Screen Writer(s): Dan Harris, Mike Doughtery

Official Site: www.x-men-movies.com

Summary: Third installment of the X-Men films. According to Donna Shuler, the third part will revolve around the Phoenix saga. Reports indicate the producers want to skip ahead and go straight into the Dark Phoenix story. New characters rumored to be in X3 include Gambit, Beast, Angel, Psylocke, Emma Frost, Dazzler, Juggernaut and possibly the Sentinels.

Daredevil2

Summary:

After his defeat at the hands of the Man Without Fear during their

first confrontation, the Kingpin returns with a new weapon more

powerful than anything that Daredevil is prepared to deal with - the

truth about Matt's secret identity! And Kingpin has brought a new henchman with him to help achieve his sinister goals...the infamous Mr. Fear!

Fantastic Four

Summary: When an experimental space voyage goes awry, four people are changed by cosmic rays. Reed Richards, inventor and leader of the group gains the ability to stretch his body, and takes the name, Mr. Fantastic. His girlfriend, Sue Storm, gains the ability to turn invisible and create force fields, becoming the Invisible Girl. Her little brother Johnny Storm gains the ability to control fire, including covering his own body with flame, like a Human Torch. Pilot Ben Grimm is turned into a super-strong rocky Thing. Together, they use their unique powers to explore the strange aspects of the world, and to foil the evil plans by the likes of Doctor Doom, which is who the villain of this film will be. Even as they deal with the various threats that arise to threaten Earth's peace, the Four must also deal with the pressures of fame as the world's most famous superheroes, and the realities of being a super-powered family.

Elektra(Remember Daredevil):

Summary: Jennifer Garner stars as Elektra Natchios, a beautiful and deadly assassin who finds herself at odds with "The Hand," the clan of mystical ninjas who trained - and then abandoned her. At the request of the villain Kirigi, she is assigned to target a Harbor Island man named Mark Miller because, she is told, of an act his grandfather had performed. A widower, Miller is a likeable man with a charming 13-year-old daughter Abby. After falling for him, Elektra becomes his protector and has to fend off four ninja assassins dispatched by Kirigi. But there is more to Mark Miller than Elektra knows, as he has aligned himself with "Stick," Elektra's former mentor, and both Miller and his daughter are quite able to defend themselves. In the end, Elektra must face off with Kirigi himself.

Blade: Trinity

Summary: The third Blade movie finds Blade joining forces with "the Nightstalkers", a group of human vampire hunters, as they tackle the powerful and ruthless villain Danica Talos. Talos has resurrected the man now known as "Drake" (modernized name for Dracula) from a century-long sleep in the hopes of finally getting world control for all vampires. Our heroes must unleash a virus that will kill all vampires. To make things a lot harder for Blade, the vampire leadership launches a public relations "smear campaign" against Blade, letting the "human" world know of his existence.

Batman Begins

Summary: As a young boy, Bruce Wayne watched in horror as his millionaire parents were slain in front of him. Obsessed with revenge, young Bruce flees to the Far East, where he seeks counsel and training from the dangerous but honorable ninja cult leader known as Ra's Al-Ghul. A 25-year-old Bruce returns to Gotham City to find that his family's business, Wayne Enterprises, has been taken over by shareholders, and the company's chief inventor, Lucius Fox, has been fired. Discovering a cave under his mansion, along with a prototype armored suit, leads him to assume a new persona, one which will strike fear into the hearts of men. Wayne enlists Fox to help him create the Batman alter ego when a villain named Scarecrow unleashes a plot to poison the city.

Stuff I wrote for my college campus newspaper - 6

Mother of all festivals

By Sanket ‘Fest Pest’ Kambli

Hey! This article isn’t about some famous college fest; it’s about an event which is being pegged as mother of all fests. This ten-day-long Mumbai Festival, which was postponed as a mark of respect to tsunami victims, originally scheduled to begin on January 7, would begin here from January 14 with a special programme at the Gateway of India, coinciding with Makar Sankranti. This fest is hoping to emulate the success of the Dubai Shopping Festival, a mix of consumerism, arts and entertainment which came to define Dubai and magnify its appeal. The Mumbai Festival will be spread across the city and split into different sections and events focusing on arts and crafts, music, food, heritage, youth and even a talent hunt. Both a big budget and big names have been roped in. Siddharth Kak from Surabhi will handle the crafts section, and walking good food guide Rashmi Uday Singh will travel the streets in a double-decker open-air bus to tickle the taste buds.Artist Sangita Jindal and star jazz performers like Ravi Colltrane, George Duke and Earl Kligh will also be part of the party.

• Food: A platter to please from Mohammed Ali Road to Khau Gali. Rashmi Uday Singh leads the way
• Crafts: Some of India’s best craftspeople will display their wares at reasonable rates at the Bandra Craft Mela
• Music: Jam with Almost Famous at Bandra Kurla or head for Gateway to hear the T Monk Institute of Jazz strike the right note
• Talent Hunt: The Limca Fresh Face hunt is on during the festival so keep that smile glowing
• Kids’ Corner: Indian Book House give kids a chance to relive those Amar Chitra Katha and Tinkle comics with fun events
• Art Wall: The 60-ft art wall at Marine Drive will be a canvas for some of the city’s best artists

While maintaining the basic intent of celebrating the spirit of Mumbai, the Festival Committee has rededicated itself to create multiple platforms for the citizens of Mumbai to reach out to tsunami-affected people, the Committee said in a release here. Whatever be the case, make sure you are part of this party, as you will surely find me there.

(Fest Details--Courtesy: Central Chronicle, Bhopal; Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd)