The "Thumbs Up" Hill

You never know what wonders you can get to see during a train journey. e.g. during a recent train ride, got a glimpse of this structure. And on the return journey, made sure that I get a better view of the same.

Image Source: https://dreamzquizclubs.wordpress.com/2008/11/04/daily-question-32/

Post some research, found out that this is the famous "Thumbs Up" mountain near Manmad, in Nashik District, with the closest station being Ankai. The train was moving too fast to click a proper photo of the structure. But it did provide a stunning view. A hill with its top shaped like a thumb, making it to appear as the universal good luck symbol. The marvels of geology - wonder what all forces of nature must have been at play to form this shape!

On doing some additional research, found a blog claiming that this structure is also the inspiration behind the cold drink brand's logo! That would be an interesting take. However, it does seem a bit far-fetched. More likely, its the other way round. The place is now popularly known as "Thums Up Mountain" after the brand!

MovieNotes: Newton

Title: Newton (IMDB) 

*ing: Rajkumar Rao, Pankaj Tripathi, Raghubir Yadav, Anjali Patil

Director: Amit Masurkar

Language: Hindi & Gond

Genre: Satire

Basic Premise

An idealistic young man is appointed as the presiding officer to conduct elections in a region disturbed by Naxalism.

MovieNotes

A great insight into what goes behind the massive exercise that is conducting elections in India. We hear tales from the political rallies, see the voters on TV, but rarely hear the story from the perspective of the men and women conducting the election.

Highlight - Brilliant acting by the “star” cast. Also, the fact that the story doesn’t go over the top in preaching mode.

Each character presents their side, sometimes seriously sometimes in jest. Seemingly there is no right or wrong side. Each have their own shades of grey. The story also doesn’t take anyone’s side openly. Empathy is shown for the ordinary local residents, who are caught in between the wars of the Naxals and the Armed forces and are then showcased to the foreign media as "champions of Indian democracy".

I don’t think, anyone has ever explained Newton’s law of gravity with so much eloquence and simplicity as Sanjay Mishra’s character does to Newton.

A misplaced sense of idealism leads nowhere. Probably that explains the feeling of happiness on seeing Newton getting thrashed by the Army team supposed to be protecting him.

The movie seemed a bit incomplete (just my opinion). Guess not closing things out helps in keeping it more real.

Random Thought – Nothing better than English movies to learn the English language.

Rating – 9/10. Fun to watch. A light-hearted satire on one of the key elements which make "Incredible India"

Previously on Movienotes: Spiderman Homecoming