A Weekend as Anti-Climactic as Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya

Update
Eat this, nitwits (self-addressed, if that is the case)!
Disclaimer: Since I believe there are some wisecracks (in the event that I'm not one myself) who are likely to interpret the piece below as either me describing the girl-in-question's actions as quasi-romantic overtures or as me mocking the girl (for whatever reason), let me categorically state that the sole intention of this post is to be a parody of me and me alone. It is my belief that the girl is just a very friendly type whose actions were good-natured and bereft of any hidden ulterior motives.

This weekend was, surely, one of the more fun weekends in all my 3+ years in the US. Road-trips, however small, are always fun, especially if you're the only guy with a driver's license & you've got a fun gang to go with. Tentative plan was this - Rent car on Saturday, visit the temple in Lemont, Devon-shopping, Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya night-show, and on Sunday, leave for an early-morning trip to an acquaintance's place in the suburbs for a 108-Vishnu Sahasranamam-chanting session for his son's birthday, and finally return the car. All the while, having played (chiefly) Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya songs over and over again in the car stereo.

Well, at least, this was how I had envisioned the weekend to go. Folks who follow this blog or my twitter will probably also know how much I've been anticipating the movie all these days and I guess the same could be said of the weekend as well.

So then, Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya, for me, was rather anti-climactic (and I don't say this because of the ending). Not that I complain - I had more than my share of enjoyment in the movie and wouldn't mind a second visit, had I been in Chennai, just for one reason (the First Love-factor). If my feeling of anti-climax in the movie was primarily because of my expectations from the movie (apart from other very relevant reasons), the anti-climax to my weekend car-rental was somewhat of a parody on me.

So everything actually went pretty well - we managed to cover all the places (just) in time. However, since there was no iPod-Car cord, we had to make do with some 2-yr-old Hindi-Tamil-English CD-collection. After the movie however, there was a genuine compulsion to listen to VTV songs while riding in the car. Also since the Sunday-plan was totally solo, though it was about 1:30 AM by the time we returned home (I had to leave at about 7 in the morning), I meticulously got hold of an empty CD and made an audio CD of VTV.

Sunday morning was easily the highlight of the entire plan. I managed to leave at about 7:15 and the (romantic) setting was near-perfect - a mild haze hanging around, but quite bright. The temperature, by Chicago's winter standards - definitely decent. And a solo car-ride. What remained to be seen was if the CD worked and by Jove, it did! So I set off, to the tunes of Omana Penne and by the time I reached the suburbs, I'd lived up the entire feel. That's when I thought I absolutely had to let my 2 other mates feel the joy too, considering the fact that they'd felt so bad at not listening to VTV songs in the car the prev. night. Since I'd to return the car by 3 PM, I decided I'd leave the acquaintance's house (even if the 108-times hadn't been completed) at about 1, come back home by 2'ish, pick up my friends, go for a 1-hr'ish drive and drop the car by 3 so we could have a little fun together as well.
So far so good, yes? Only so far.

We managed to finish by 12:45, but then, there was lunch+cake-cutting, and I had no heart to leave before the boy cut the cake. Apdi-ipdi it was almost 1:40. Ippo dhan mega-twist. Since my host knew I came from downtown, he asked me to drop this Golti (strictly referential usage) girl who'd also come from downtown.

There are times when a combination of contexts make the big picture entirely different from how it would've been had any of the contexts been true separately. This was one such classic example.

In my case, VTV-influenced solo romance (I was already imagining another solo-ride back home with VTV songs), prospective_shared_enjoyment with Koottaaligal and a desperation to get back in time formed the main context. To this mix, the addition of a Golti girl had ominious signs of a personal comedy. This has very little to do with the girl's looks (not good-looking, but definitely not bad-looking). When we left in the car, I remembered the Ennai Konjam Maatri-setting and realized - never in my dreams did I even imagine such a setting could be so comic. And the conversations that ensued certainly added to the comedy element more and more.

And then, out of the blue, I lost my way. And the feeling that I was going to let down my hopes-needlessly-kindled-by-me comrades increased. So to save last-minute hassles, I decided to fill gas now than later. Stopped at the first gas station. Then I realized I didn't know where the button for the gas-latch was. Can you believe it? I SEARCHED FOR THE GAS-TANK-OPENER BUTTON FOR A FULL 5 MINUTES. And this girl sees me blundering around like a fool. Then I saw some button and pressed it. Wrong move - the bonnet opened. Finally, one punyavaan helped me locate it. It was right below the seat. :-(
Then I swiped my credit card to fill gas. For 1 minute, the machine got stuck. Then I re-swiped it. It said remove the nozzle after lifting the lid. I removed the nozzle, but I couldn't freaking find a lid anywhere there. Again this gentleman helped me out. Thankfully, I had the presence of mind to ask him directions and he guided me to I-55 N. Feeling like a total idiot, at the same time relieved, I thought may be we could make it, when I saw the time - 2:47. Holy Cow! Can you believe it? Two Forty Seven! Cursing myself, I cut through the 35-mph zone at about 60 and after 10 minutes, got onto I-55 N. My hopes of dropping this girl somewhere & getting my buddies was out of question, the question now was - Would I reach the airport in time? All this while, the girl was chattering away, having no idea of what tension I was in (nadoola she managed to look at my hand-written directions and say that my hand-writing was like a girl's :D). And somewhere, she asked me my Full name. I was like, what?!!! And then told her my name, since I wasn't in a mood to go into the details. She then said - "Ok, I'll add you in facebook."
I had no idea I could laugh in such a tense situation, but this was hilarious beyond measure. Suppressing my ROTFL, I told her I was an Orkut-loyalist. To this, she replies - "Oh, then I'll add you there. I keep Orkut for my India contacts & FB for US-contacts, but it's ok."
I almost closed my eyes and said - "Aandavaa...epdi epdi?"

So then, the short highway trip was over and I finally reached the airport to return the car at 3:09, escaping the extra-day charge. But wait, the comedy isn't over yet. After figuring out what her options were for getting back home, we were going on the train and I was sitting back & recollecting the entire comedy of errors - thinking how a prospective solo-followed-by-group-romantic adventure became a parody - laughing inside at how weird intros happen, this girl hesitantly asks "Can we exchange phone numbers?" Sethutten, sethutten nejama. :D

When I reached home and recounted this tragi-comedy of errors to my mates, their obvious-initial-irritation gave way slowly to humour until they literally started rolling on the floor laughing. And then, the C'tore guy comes up with this killer line -

"Naamala thedi pona athu nelaikathu....
Athuva Nadakkanum..
Nammala pottu thaakkanum..
Thala keela pottu thiruppanum.."

Not to be outdone, my roomie quipped - "Manasukkulla Golti Golti'ngudha?"

Yeah, some weekend that was. :D

(PS: I repeat, "Golti"-usage is strictly to refer to the girl's identity, there is absolutely no hint of malice intended at the girl anywhere either through this word or through the self-parody. Bharat Mata Ki Jai. Jai Maharashtra. Jai Telengana.)

Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya Rants

• Beautiful translation + Commentary on Mannippaaya - http://g-rulz.blogspot.com/2010/03/mannippaya-translation-commentary.html
• During 1st yr, I wore black & was silent all day coz I'd learnt that Trisha's fav food was Chicken Curry & Brown Rice. #confession #EpicFail
• I'm a Devadas who found my Paro's bathroom video many years back, but have now found her petitely clad in Chiffon sarees & chudidhars.
• Everyone's talking abt the hero's Mech Engg connexn, but no one says abt heroine's Math bg. Kaakha Kaakha Maya also Math major.
• Naasama Poga. I cant believe the fleeting thought of asking my employers NOT to file my H1-B (courtesy #VTV/Jessie) just crossed my mind. :O Such a thing would be #EpicFail because "Kadhala thedi nambo poga koodadhu. Adhuva nambala adikkanum." :D #FailedLogicForEpicFailFeelings
• Aana onnu da. Jessie maadhiri oru ponnoda enakku loves irundhu b/u aagi 3 yrs later avo enna paathuttu pesaama pona naan avlo dhan. :( #VTV 
• #VTV tweet of the day: Affected so much that I feel like falling in love, being loved back, then breaking up, and fin. feeling the Pain. :| Correction: Not Breaking Up, but inexplicably being unable to continue the relationship because of my girl's complicated confusion.
• Movies like #VTV that employ "novel" proposal strategies should realize they are eroding guys' options with every such depiction. Not saying the shock-and-awe in #VTV is "novel", but once this technique hits the big screen, its usability peaks & fades away.
• Sigh. Seems I HAVE to like #VTV now. But happy KB felt best prfrmnces by Simbu & Trish RT @bbthots KB to Gautham Menon http://bit.ly/abVGFD.
• Ridiculous/Dumb I know, but I prayed today morning while coming to work (to God) that I should get over #VTV/Jessie. Seri illa.
• I cannot believe I am this obsessed with a movie I was/am quite disappointed with, esp with the key element of the movie.  
• @cowmaaa It would also help to keep in mind Shakti ~= Shalini is truer than Jessie ~= Trisha. But yes, foresight-vindication is sweet.
• Dear @cowmaaa, the sooner you realize Trisha != Jessie, the better for you, the justification of 9 years of your craze notwithstanding. #VTV
• Whether the girl ditches the guy or the guy ditches the girl, it's the guy who stays single longest. #VTV #inspirationaltuesdays
• #VTV is probably the 1st movie I'm very polarized abt (not new), but the polarization being both for AND against [really :-(]. :|
• Sigh. I guess I'll have to reconcile to the fact that #VTV does indeed have highly polarized opinions. And that totally totally beats me. :(
• One thing I hated abt #VTV - kindling false hopes of seeing girls in Indian IT companies wearing sarees and churidhars. :(
• Wonder if the saree-wearing-style in #VTV was to suit Trisha's image or Jessie's. Esp considering KK_Jo, VV_Kamalinee & PKCM (in that order)
• And I repeat, Trisha & Simbu will make a great pair in real-life too. Celebrity-wise, you cant think of a better match for either. :-)
• At the risk of sounding contradictory, though I felt the "romance" bit left much to be desired, Trish & Simbu share great chemistry.
• So in case anyone felt bad about what happens bet. Trish & Simbu in Tamil, watch the Telugu version. :-) #VTV
• #VTV Trivia: The guy & girl that act in Karthik's movie are the lead pair in Telugu. Likewise, Trish-Simbu are the "stars" in Telugu.
• Totally loved the Central Park scene in #VTV. Brilliant emoting by Trisha & Simbu. So so loved it! :-) How I wish... If only...
• Must say special mention needs to be made of the cinematographer - surely has had a part to play in Trisha's resplendence. :-)
• But yes, after a log time, I ogled at Trisha unabashedly/guiltlessly. Like Simbu says, First Love is indeed unforgettable+lovely. ;-)
• #VTV - Def. disappointing. Great Chem., awesome Trish, pleasantly diff Simbu + Vintage Rahman wasted. Wud've said fail if not for these.             

Predicting the Vinnai Thaandi Varuvaaya Song-(Sequence + Context)

After a long time, I've been quite addicted to the sound-track of a film much before its release, as well as being quite enthu about the film's release. I also realized that all of VTV's songs are romance-based, and each one is as different from the other. Difficult to imagine (at least for me) composing music for 7-8 songs with more-or-less the same theme. So then, I set about trying to predict the sequence in which the songs will appear in the movie. Yes, vettiness aap course. :D My basic premise is of course that Karthik (Simbu) is an aspiring film director while Jessie (Trisha) is a Mallu Christian. I've also obviously taken into account the lyrics of all songs as well.

(PS: There's exactly one spoiler at the end of this article which I just came across. That's the "Update" part.)

Assumptions:

• The story is set in/around Chennai. 
• Trisha is something like an office-goer, going by the sarees she wears, and just the look she has. 
• Kerala locales obviously come somewhere in the song visuals. Hard to miss Kerala for songs, you know, especially when you have an important Mallu connection. ;-)

I'm not really going to take into account any extraordinary situations or consider any twists in the tale (but definitely do hope Gautham has one or two), and so, it is highly likely my order/prediction is wrong on more than one account, but that's what I'm hoping happens. :-) Even if there isn't really any major surprise package in the movie (wrt either story or twists), I'd still be content with a usual love story if Gautham has handled it anything like Minnale (or Alaipayuthey :D), considering the chemistry that Trisha & Simbu promise.

(Songs in Order of my guess except the last one)

1. Aaromale - I find it very hard to imagine how this song can actually be picturized with or without any dance. It is quite possible this song is one of those bits-and-pieces songs which appear occasionally as something like BGM, but a sincere hope/wish - that Aaromale be the song when Karthik first sees Jessie. Aaromale has this kind of heady feel about it - and the way the songs starts off and grows on you, it instantly conveys the feel of something momentous, yet, painstakingly grows from the beginning. The guitar opening itself is quite heavy, but despite this, the song really picks up pace. Kind of metaphorical, IMHO, with love stories. Opening is quite heavy and despite this, it grows more. Aaromale is that kind of song, for me. As for picturization, I hope this song was set in Kerala. :)

2. Kannukkul Kannai - Contact has been made. Probably not in the sense of talking or knowing each other, but at least enough contact for Jessie to know that Karthik is behind her.

3. Omana Penne/Hosanna - Both songs, going by the visuals, have a high chance of being Karthik-dreaming-of-Jessie songs. However, it's also likely they (at least one) might be a kind of duet - which, Hosanna is more likely to be...say something depicting - she also loves him, but hasn't accepted. Or something like that. Omana Penne, most likely, is the dream/imagination song.

4. Anbil Avan - This is probably the first proper duet between the two. The songs also shows Jessie accepting her love for Karthik (assuming it's Karthik & Jessie in the song :D). Also, the New York City pictures of Simbu & Trisha imply that there's bound to be a song where those pics come up. Of all the songs, this song seems to be best suited to the context and kind of pictures

5. Mannippaaya - Love has happened. Then some kind of pirivu. Song seems to fit the something-like-a-fight_then_reconciliation scenario perfectly. (On second thoughts, though a bit far-fetched, the female part might possibly indicate realization-of-love from Jessie's side, the first time she realizes & agrees to Karthik's love. But yes, this is definitely far-fetched).

X. Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya - This, I'm almost sure, is the bit-song which recurs from time to time,  especially when Karthik is pining for Jessie. Konjam sadness it has also. So...