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Namit Khanna


Do you know anyone who has the time to do anything for society in a time that is hard pressed for time? Do you know someone who has the inclination to provide balance in the wake of uncertainty? Do you know dreamers who not just dream, but do? Do you know anyone who says that god gives us dreams a size bigger than we can imagine simply because we can grow in that space? Someone who lives by the adage that there are wonderful things to be done, and they won’t be done until one of us doesn’t end up taking the initiative of doing them? Well, while most of you might be thinking that someone of this nature is perhaps unreal in our age, or even that I might perhaps be describing, say, a super hero, I’d say you are all so wrong because it is time to brace yourself and be acquainted with Namit Khanna. No matter how harsh or bleak the world seems, he is someone who not only brings his sunshine to the surrounding he occupies, but sprinkles euphoria from his exquisite soul along the path he treads.


Not many know that besides being a model par excellence, Namz, as I fondly refer to him, is also a spectacular photographer. And what a lovely distinction it is indeed to observe that the man who helps others realise countless avatars of their mind’s eye while offering himself as a subject, is himself a keen and rather artistic observer of life and nature at large. In keeping with his humble nature, he would possibly choose to remain in the background, but I am afraid I won’t let the bum remain in the background, so here is a sneak peek at some of his work.


Kodaikanal 










My View of Mauritius 








Shanghai






(I will be updating this blog with Namit's photographs so kindly check back regularly. Thank you.)

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Falling Overnight - 2011


The moment you cast your eyes on the first scene in Falling Overnight you know something magical is going to overpower you, not magical in the magical sense but magical in the magical manner, if you know what I mean. I was most reminded of The Outsider by Albert Camus who so eloquently presents the harshness of life leading you to believe there’s no other metaphor closer to resembling life than death, and death to sex.

To the inexperienced, fiction normally reveals truths that reality obscures, and these are those who might attempt to take a dig at the fashion of how Chloe and Elliot meet simply because the clichéd custom is that sparklers and chemistry occurs for two souls in order to connect deeply over time, though the same people do not probably possess the faculty to discern that connections don’t have to take eras to evolve; a flick of a moment is all it takes for any two people who are meant to be together, to be together, despite the dynamics.  


To throw just a little light on the plot, I’d say that the motion picture is based on twenty-two year old Elliot (Parker Croft who also happens to be one of the executive producers and writers of the film) who on a day before his surgery for a brain tumour runs into Chloe (Emilia Zoryan) a charming young photographer who works at a café. The nearly honest and exquisite journey they both embark on is one of the imperative focal points of the film. The method in which the scenes have been authored and treated are as if it were unfolding before you, and in contrast to other films where you are made to empathise with the characters on the screen, the characters here involve you so nattily in their life that you actually travel the entire gamut of experiences just as they do. Subjects like these rarely fall within the purview of the ‘commercial’ and get pushed under ‘art-house’ but the fact that the gap that the writers and the filmmaking team have managed to bridge and balance by keeping the profound layers of the film intact and yet appealing to the cross-sections of society from the youth to the well-informed is laudable. For starters, the reality of how the man on the other side of the telephone refuses to text Elliot the details or the middle-aged woman who loses her temper when her cake hasn’t been made due to an error on the part of Chloe, are some of the binding forces that cement your relationship with this film, not forgetting that be it the modern depiction of Elliot having made his money in the digital boom or the acuity of the art angle is a stellar virtue I quite revelled in.

The fun Chloe makes of the dishevelled Elliot’s accent is cute and commendable: it certainly takes maturity to laugh at oneself. Chloe’s brother introducing himself when he meets Elliot for the first time is a striking scene. In the hands of an average writer or director it would have appeared crass, but here it is presented with such élan that it lends the much-warranted depth to the humour and elevates it to an entire new echelon. Parker is quite like that – gruff, but immensely sensitive. Emilia’s charisma lies quite literally in her euphoric, yet subdued simplicity. The supporting cast, the soundtrack, and the loveliness of the cinematography are commendable, and that said it is next to impossible to list the umpteen nuances this film unravels scene after scene. Every time I watch it, I learn something new, just like you do with literature, art or wine. Nevertheless, if I were asked impulsively to make an inventory of the three points that moved me then I would begin with how I first met one of the prettiest girls much under the similar circumstances as Chloe and Elliot. At a party she walked up to me and asked for my phone, saved her number and asked me to call her. Ever since then we have been soul mates. Some might ask – Just like that? Yes, just like that. The second is the conversation Chloe and Elliot have about why his family isn’t around to take care of him. It is true indeed that at times those whom we want and love the most are the people we would want to be away from in order to breathe and feel who we really are. Third, the parley with regards the meaning of what it means to live, and yet foretaste the impending fear of death; that is something that we could, any one of us, face at any moment in our lives and yet we are so oblivious to it simply because we like to supress what unsettles us. Therefore that fragment entered my bloodstream and with delicate introspection it transformed how I viewed life, offering me with a certain kind of renewed vigour to look at the storm in the eye and take life, as life wants me to take it – bravely.  


Many marvellous movies have been made, but Falling Overnight is one that would settle in the hearts and minds of those whom it touches. And isn’t that the calling of mankind? That if it could make a difference to even one person in life, then the purpose of life is actually accomplished. I reckon I ought to stop now because giving any more away would be unfair and more than anything else it would be compromising the content that needs to be watched and absorbed, and take my word, it surprises you with its uprightness. To conclude I’d like to state that in a world that claims it is the flaw that makes a piece a masterpiece, very rarely does one come across a motion picture this complete – it is as if it’s flawless, almost!

PS: Watch out for this team because the last time I checked with Parker he was busy writing his next screenplay and no matter how it turns out it will always be a winner for those who believe in him and his science of life.



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The Middle Finger!


When we men appreciate most unhesitatingly all that is worth appreciating, then why are we afraid as men to appreciate other men? I think that in appreciating anybody that warrants appreciation one must desist in attributing it to the angle of heterosexuality, homosexuality or bisexuality. I seem to observe that this baseless typecasting is a rather recent leaning plaguing our society at large. We should not forget that by nature we Indians are warm and do not have these ridiculous traits of don’t say this, or don’t do that just so that it could be misunderstood in our day-to-day interactions. And say when something of this nature is directed at people who are being suggestive or leading on, then the people at the receiving end ought to be sensitive to such implications and deal with matters in the manner they deem fit.

That said, let us not, with the fear of being misconstrued; hold ourselves back from genuinely appreciating something that justifiably merits it. Who knows a word of appreciation, if not anything else could help boost a human being’s confidence in manifold ways, and isn’t that what all of us want? To be able to succour people in inching towards their dreams!   

PS: If you still have people judging you based on some sloppy sexual metre when you know your intentions are clear then show these arses the middle finger!





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