My latest book is The One Who Swam With The Fishes.

"A mesmerizing account of the well-known story of Matsyagandha ... and her transformation from fisherman’s daughter to Satyavati, Santanu’s royal consort and the Mother/Progenitor of the Kuru clan." - Hindustan Times

"Themes of fate, morality and power overlay a subtle and essential feminism to make this lyrical book a must-read. If this is Madhavan’s first book in the Girls from the Mahabharata series, there is much to look forward to in the months to come." - Open Magazine

"A gleeful dollop of Blytonian magic ... Reddy Madhavan is also able to tackle some fairly sensitive subjects such as identity, the love of and karmic ties with parents, adoption, the first sexual encounter, loneliness, and my favourite, feminist rage." - Scroll



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20 November 2005

I like big butts and I cannot lie...

> Went and saw Harry Potter with Small last night. It was a totally last minute thing-- we were supposed to go see the LSR concert at the Habitat Centre, where the talented Annette Phillips led Artists Unlimited through gospel and qawwali, but we got damn late, what with grocery shopping and all. Annette has this magical voice--totally untrained but beautiful. People used to stop and listen to her whenever she was practicing even, in the common room.


But it was eight and the concert had already started and we were close to PVR and so we decided to catch the movie instead. We got tickets as well, for the eight o'clock show and with much excitement went in. I don't know why I persist in watching the Potter movies, they suck. (teeny tiny spoiler follows, so stop reading here if you haven't seen the movie)



They don't follow the book at all, and dude, man, what's happened to Hermione? She's become such a girl, even bawling in Mad Eye Moody's class and all. Where was the Impedimenta spell? Why were all the Beauxbatons girls Veelas? Where was Winky? Ron and Harry clearly have much sexual tension, Ginny barely features at all, Dumbledore is super aggressive and the only saving grace of the movie, I think, is the absolutely delectable Cedric Diggory. Mmmm.. Cedric Diggory. I want to dribble chocolate sauce on his wholesome pink and white face and lick it off. As for Rita Skeeter, even she was a disappointment. She didn't turn into a beetle! All she did was potter (heh) around, really annoyingingly. Gah. That's the last Potter movie I'm watching, that's for sure. But the dragon was most dragonlike. And so was Voldemort. Ralph Fiennes makes a very sexy Dark Lord indeed,even with no nose. But I guess Krum had enough of a nose for both of them.


*stops complaining about the movie, which by the way, even with all the omissions, lasts three hours*



> Also, this week, one of my former colleagues got married. It's the first time someone I knew, someone my age, was getting married and I was feeling all old and ancient. Especially when we went to see her and she was all decked up and looking beautiful and radiant and she had this gold things tied to her bangles and she said, "All you unmarried girls come here" and clinked her bangles over our heads. Apparently, if one of the gold things fell off and landed on us, whoever it landed on would be the next one to tie the knot. But it didn't fall, so I'm guessing no wedding for me, any time soon. I felt a little shy around her too, which is silly, because there was a time when I saw person every day at work and we spoke bout ad positions and what stories were going on the page and there she was suddenly transformed into this stranger, who looked at us happily and with such assurance on her face that I felt at once, terribly young.



> I'm sick of people calling me. No really, I think I'm suffering from cellphone overload. The bloody thing just rings and rings and rings and I'm tired of taking calls at all hours and talking to people and having to be available for everyone. It's like I'm on an electronic leash or something. You know what I'm going to do? Tomorrow is Sunday and I'm going to make it no-cellphone day and switch my phone off for the entire day. It sounds liberating also, coz that way I can leave my phone at home, I don't have to keep checking it and perhaps it'll bloody stop ringing also. You should try it too and tell me how it goes.

Of course, I'm also shit scared of the prospect of a day without my cellphone. What if I get an important call? What if something goes wrong? No, eM, put your phone off. Considering how excited I was when I first got my cell, I think this is quite ironic. It's like rai-ia-ian on your wedding day etc.

22 comments:

  1. Hey I am gonna call and check that:-)

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  2. What is this? Why the hell are the comments not appearing?

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  3. i fell asleep watching the chamber of secrets, so i'm not too enthusiastic about watching any potter movie.
    btw, what's this post gotta do with the song(title)?

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  4. My phone hardly rings. I rarely make calls. I wonder why I have it... for the sms-es and the alarm, maybe.

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  5. There are days I HATE my cellphone because it's ringing all the time. And then there are days I just keep staring at my phone screen as if that would magically make it ring. Technology's SO screwing us up. Machines rule us already. We didn't need 3 ridiculously boring movies of the Matrix series to tell us that.

    WV: vgetao ('Vegetable' in Chinese??? :D)

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  6. ab; Because, my dear, the little bold text which you have happily ignored says that comment moderation is on. Which means I get to read and "approve" comments before I let them show! Cool, no? :)

    sonia; Um.. well, nothing really. I was just singing it to myself this morning, doing a little bump and grind as I made the toast and the coffee so I thought I'd put it up :)

    hyde; Smses are pretty bad too. I've had HUGE fights and flirtations all over the text message.

    (Just as I wrote that, my phone rang, AGAIN)

    miss v vgetao?

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  7. I have decided that im linking you! :) so there!

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  8. Come to think of it, the only thing my phone does on a regular basis is wake me up at 8 in the morning!

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  9. I remember Annette so well - she was a year junior to me - and we were all in that big unhappy WMS family! :) Her passion was remarkable.. Hhmm..

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  10. my phone busted nearly six months ago and i was in the midst of a relationship. it's really liberating. i went nearly six months without a phone...only landline. slept like a baby. deadly experience.

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  11. no do it.. it makes u do other stuff.. read.. watch the sky .. and u can go out with so much of freedom ..remember the times when pple didn't change plans becos of cells.. and if they didn't get you ..they tried again .. or left u a message..
    DO it.. *grin*

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  12. Snake killed Dumbledork. Did I get that right?

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  13. lost my mobile recently. and did not replace it till it found its way back- which was over 2 weeks.
    And while I missed a couple of card parties (it was pre diwali) and a no. of deadlines, it was Bliss.
    And when it resurfaced and got back to the world- nothing much had changed.
    And while this is true- I wouldn't have the guts to procliam on my blog about not wanting any more calls or moderating my comments- am too much of a peoples' person- way too much fear

    and so in this context

    am proud of ya

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  14. abbe horsey, snake killed dumbledork eons later than goblet of fire.
    eM, wanting to know all about the big butts. i don't like them, though...

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  15. The third and fourth Potter movies were not made by Chris Columbus, thankfully.

    I really, really liked the look of the third film, which wasn't bright and cheery (or insipid) like the previous two. Hopefully I'll like GOF. Pity you didnt like it.

    PS: eM, some of your posts receive 40-50 comments. You read ALL of them?

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  16. Wendigo, big butts probably means eM is a fan of Sir Mix-a-Lot. Or Friends.

    And it's Snape. snaPe.

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  17. I tried, I totally did, to put my phone off yesterday. But *sigh* it looked so reproachful and promised not to ring all day, so I let it live. I'm such a wuss.

    Doc: I can't technically aford to put my phone off either. The maxim is, "Good reporters never switch off their cells". But then, I'm in features so what do I know?

    ttg: Perfect! A day off to mourn the loss of your constant companion. I wish I could do that. As for the song, check the reply to sonia's comment, where I explained everything. My post headers often have nothing to do with the posts themselves.

    hyde: 8 am! Terrible. I let no one call me before 10.

    neha: She was in my batch in college, actually, and I remember WMS practices too, once I walked in piss drunk and sang softly and out of key the entire time. Luckily, no one noticed :)

    estellite, dersh, lemontree: I think this is inspiring me to do a post on a day without technology. Really. We could give up computers for a day, or at least the internet, cellphones, electric kettles, television... it might be fun! Of course, we'd do all this indvidually, because one day without ALL these things might be a little hard to manage.

    horsey: Oh come on. Just because it isn't LOTR.

    wendigo: It's a song, she said weakly.

    dilletante: I read all the comments sure, but once it crosses a certain mark, it's hard to reply individually :)

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  18. It IS weird to know people your age (22, almost 23) getting all adult on you - I have friends buying houses, getting married and contemplating kids (kids, for cryin out loud). It can make you really afraid for yourself- either you grow up too, or get left behind. Shudder.
    Enjoy your blog. saddened to know that GOF sucks ass.

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  19. they aren't following he book?pity...this potter movie's probably the only one that's got good reviews...

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  20. i admire ur talent of writing big abt small things...

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  21. hi there!
    have switched off my cell phone on numerous occasions and it has always given one major benefit- i have suddenly had a LOT of time!
    have a good weekend.

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  22. ah so you too are a LSRite! smallw orld- who would have thought i would stumble on your blog of all the ones available online!!

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