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Undeterred by my earlier escapade with ‘The French Touch’ festival, I returned to the Alliance Francaise auditorium on Thursday evening to watch Jean-Luc Godard’s 1960 film ‘Le Petit Soldat’ (’The Little Soldier’).
Set against the backdrop of the Algerian War, the film narrates the tragic love story of Michel Subord and Anna Karina who fall in love in spite of belonging to warring terrorist groups. The film pulsates with the same restless energy as ‘Breathless’, my favorite Godard movie, which was screened at the festival earlier on Tuesday. So, in spite of the little anti-climax at the end, when the DVD stuck and wouldn’t play, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, or at least the part of the movie I did watch.
After the movie I ran into G.K. Desai, a Bollywood actor and producer, who has worked in several of Madhur Bhandarkar’s movies.
GK and I first met each other at a 24 hour film festival a few months ago when we watched six movies back to back on a weekend. We again spent half a day together at the Tri Continental Film Festival in January. In fact, at every film festival I now attend, I almost except to see him in his really cute attire of denim shorts, ‘I love California’ t-shirts and baseball cap.
GK has great knowledge of both Bollywood and world cinema and we have much to talk about every time we meet. When we met last time, I had offered my living room as a possible venue for the next 24 hour film festival. GK brought it up, as we walked out of the auditorium, and we spent the rest of the evening at my place talking about life and movies over drinks.
I think GK is greatly amused at my total lack of interest in Bollywood news and gossip. I hardly watch any Hindi movies and I’m totally clueless about who’s making which movie or who’s dating whom. I think that’s part of the reason why we get along so well.
So, we talked for hours about my off consumption experiment, his Hollywood movie ‘The Ode’, and why ‘Chinatown’ deserves to be in every list of hundred best movies ever made.
A little after midnight, after we had run through my stock of Fosters beer and Jack Daniels whiskey, we were listening to John Mayer’s ‘Something’s Missing’ on repeat, when he asked me –
GK: I don’t understand why you like this song so much. What’s so special about this song?
Gaurav: I love how he talks about having it all and hunger in the same sentence. See. (rewinds and plays the relevant part)
I’m dizzy from the shopping mall
I searched for joy but I bought it all
It doesn’t help the hunger pains
And a thirst I’d have to drown first to ever satiate
GK: (thinking) That’s almost like hawas, isn’t it? No, not hawas, maybe lalsa.
Gaurav: No, both hawas and lalsa are very specific forms of longing; what I feel is even more vague than lalsa.
GK: (laughing) Even more vague than lalsa! Gaurav, tum yaa to bilkul pagal ho yaa bahut profound ho!
It’s true, isn’t it? Only a madman would embark on an experiment like mine, searching for something that’s missing, something that’s even more vague than longing.
Comments (5)
It is an emptiness in our lives that we try and fill with retail therapy- the reason women buy shoes, diamonds and choclates and men buy- what I don’t know but I guess Cds and DVDs come close
I think you should auction your bottles of Merlot. After all your experiment is about ‘off consumption’. 
@Deepa: It is almost ancient wisdom that you don’t really miss your water until your well runs dry.
The only other time you notice is when you know exactly when the well will run dry.
With every bottle of wine I drink, I’m draining the well.
Only when the well is dry will I know how thirsty I will get without the wine.
But, until then, even an average bottle of wine tastes like it’s a rare Bordeaux.
Great bro, You are a writer no doubt about that. I really loved the write-up ,very meticulously you have put down each and every detail of the conversation we had after the un-finished “Le Petit Soldat”. I am still waitng for a story idea from you, for me to produce for you…………
@GK: Heh! People are already tired of hearing about my non-existent book deal. I’m sure they will start throwing rotten tomatoes at me (or the web version of rotten tomatoes, at least) if I even mention a movie deal.
I had a great evening talking to you about life and films. We should do it again, sometime soon, before my bar runs dry.
I thought your friend captured the evening with GK experience very nicely!! Made me really miss sitting around the bar at Marine Plaza Hotel with you and Wilson… the good old days
Out of Nairobi in 23 days! Amy and I are sailing on the Queen Mary from London to NYC on May 16. Can’t wait to show you some photos when we finish. Take care bro.
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