World's Greatest Superhero: The Daddy

Father's day is one of my favorite day's of the year. It's a date dedicated to acknowledge the role of fathers in a family. Often in the dynamics of family, we often see the mother as a role who puts in a lot of effort, but if you look into any happy family, you can see that the key to it is that they have both amazing fathers and mothers.

This year I would like to dedicate a post on my blog to all the amazing fathers around the world. How I plan to do it is by getting their own children to tell me to answer this question below;

"What you think about your father and what is his greatest strength"

Visalachy Subramaniam on her father, Mr. Subramaniam Maridam

Visalachy is on the right of her father

"My father is a policeman. The right way to say it is that he is a strict policeman. Lost his father (my grandfather) at a very young age and he was brought up by his 3 sisters and a single mother. His whole life has been dedicated to them even until now.

My father realized one thing, only education can bring up a family and he believes in that strongly. Even though he couldn’t persuade his higher education, but that didn’t stop him from learning. He loves to read newspaper and read books. This is where my father stand. His general knowledge level is very high. Nothing beats his knowledge on world history, economics and politics. This is what he have nurtured in me since I was young. Education is very important. You can’t bring up a family if you are not educated especially in country like Malaysia. Whatever he said is totally true.

If I am standing here today, it is because of him. I believe that what I have become is from what my fathers thought me at odd moments. He wasn't trying to teach me, but was trying to mould me with little scraps of wisdom. My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could ever had, he believed in me. Happy Father’s Day Appa.

Thank you for being a caring dad and understanding me. Love you Appa."

Dr.Karthiga Veloo on her father, Mr. Veloo Doraisamy

"What do you think about your father? God and I, we live under one roof. I call him Appa. Being a man who lost his father as young as 6 and has not felt what is like to feel the love of a father, my father is a champ!

There is only thing he has done selfishly; to pray that we(his children) never have a reason to weep. 40 years of working tirelessly to provide the best for his family and having his life revolve around his family and only family is no easy. Till date, I have not even witnessed him getting a new shirt for an occasion. Such is the selflessness of a father, my Appa.

What is your father's greatest strength? He is a principle driven, self-made man. From an orphaned boy hailing from a rubber estate to a Managing Director of a multinational company, his principles in life have made him what he is today and eased his rocky journey.

There are just too many things I have learned from just being around him. He is a living motivational book, the kind that changes your life overnight after a read."

 
Pravin Nair on his late father, Mr.Venugopalan Nair

"My father was a person who stood strong to his principles in life. He dedicated his life to improve the lives of people around him through compassion. He helped a single mom, who had 4 children and was facing financial difficulties, by providing necessary items such as rice, oil, sugar etc. I asked him, why do you go to great lengths to help these people. He then said to me, “If we have the capacity to help those in need, then do it. Service to mankind, is service to God”.

Pravin is on the left of his father

As his youngest son, I am truly indebted to my father, as I grew up with plenty of care from him. He made it a point to discipline me since young, and that has shaped me to be the person I am today. He was, in all honesty, a strict father, but one that had a lot patience while dealing with my difficult character.

My father passed away peacefully 2 years ago, due to heart ailments. He was, and is still, widely respected by the local community for his commitment in improving the lives of people around him. More importantly, he is still loved by his family, for he is an exceptional role model. A father who loved everyone around him."

Charlene Sharmini Fernandes on her father, Mr. Duglas Fernandes.

"He is the person I want to grow up to be, cheerful, charming and charismatic.

The one who taught me that ‘love’ is more of what you do and less of how often you say it.

The reason I believe in superheroes.

My first dancing teacher and my best dancing partner.

He knows exactly what to say at the right moments regardless of how far we are.

20 years or a 40 years old, I’ll forever be my pappa’s little princess."

#whensayingiloveyouisjustnotenough

Myself on my late father, Mr.Soundara Pandian

"Without a doubt he was the best man I have ever had in my life and will always be the best person I've known in my whole lifetime. Which is why losing him four years ago remains the most difficult moment in my life up to today.

I think my dad was the best silent teacher in the world. What I mean is that, my dad doesn't teach us by words but he leads with his example. Looking at how he came up from his family background to the way how he manages the family has thought me so much in life

My dad use to do 2 jobs to help us put through university and why he does that is simple. He knows the pain of not pursuing something you are passionate about and he never wanted us to go through that. He was doing his fulltime job at day and at night he would be on standby for hospital case. If the hospital calls him at 3 a.m. he would have to go and complete it and come back. He did not mind losing his sleep over it just to make sure we could get our degree. There have been days where he hardly slept. That is why I think my father is the greatest man in the world and he is my superhero.

His greatest strength was the love he had on us. He wasn't the type who shows it in words but does it by his action. Once again the silent teacher and I realized I have mold myself in his image. Thank you dad for everything. Thank you for raising me up, thank you for making me the man I am today, thank you for still guiding me although you are no longer alive with us. If I could be half the man you ever was, that will be a great achievement dad.

I hope I have made you proud of me pa. Gone but never forgotten. I wish to see you in my dreams every night pa."


Thank you everyone for featuring on my blog. This is truly the most beautiful piece I have came up on my blog. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to share this great stories of your dad.

Those who are reading it, if you feel like sharing about please go ahead and do so on the comment section. I would love to read about your dad and would want the world to read it as well. Thank you.



Simply Rajini!

Rajini Da!!!

The first thing comes to my mind when I hear the name Rajini is Thalaivaa!!!!. I would actually scream with passion "Thalaivaa!!!". And I am sure that it is not only me who would do this. Without a doubt, Thalaivaa is one of the most loved actor in the modern world. It's is not only the people in India who is crazy over him, but people in Malaysia and also Japan are huge fan of him.

Thalaiva Fans in Japan

But what makes this simple man look like a demi god to his followers. I am not surprised if Rajini has the biggest fan base in the world as an actor. A simple smile from him is enough to drive the audience into passionate cheering. He could easily stand in an election and become a Prime Minister of India if he wants to because such is the love and support he has from the people.

If I were to look into what makes Rajini extra ordinary, I can narrow it down into 2 factors.

1. Simplicity and Humble.

Simplicity at it's best

If you going to summarize Rajini in one word, that simplicity. Despite being one of the richest and powerful actor in the industry, off screen he remains one of the most simplest actor you can see. From the place he stands and eats, to the way he dress. The best example of his simplicity can be seen during the shoot of Thalapathy, debutant actor Arvind Samy felt asleep in Rajini's room without knowing it and instead of making a deal about it or waking him up, Rajini told the assistant directors not to wake Arvind Samy up and instead choose to sleep on the floor. A man who was like the most popular actor at that time slept on the floor, allowing a debutant to sleep comfortably on a bed. He never once spoke about that event out, until recently it was Arvind Samy himself who told that story. That is simplicity, that is a huge lesson we all can learn. I can go on and on about his journey from a bus conductor to being a Superstar as that is a super inspiring story, but I'll save it for another

2. Screen Presence.

When comes to on screen, the one thing which comes to mind about Thalaivaa is his screen presence. He doesn't need to do anything on screen. A simple walk, hair flip or even a smile is enough to get the crowd cheering their lungs out. The only time I found myself cheering in the cinema is only for a Rajini film. I just lose all sense when I see Rajini on the big screen. Such is his screen presence. The another aspect he stands out best is his dialogue delivery. When comes to punch dialogue, Rajini is da man!! I've seen many actor's utter punch dialogues, but none comes close to the way Rajini delivers his punch dialogue. His dialogue delivery combined with his on screen presence and his charisma makes him the only and only Superstar.

That gesture is Basha!! Screen Presence at it's peak

I can't wait for Kabali's release and I am already going gaga on the Nerupa Da song just because it has his punch dialogue delivery in it. I am going to make sure I watch Kabali on the big screen and I won't be surprised if I do it a couple of times.

Many actors will come and go, but there will only be one Superstar, One Thalaivaa and that's the Amazing Rajini. And why so?

Because he is SIMPLY RAJINI!!

Thanks For Reading

Life Goes On.... Always :)

26 years being blessed this wonderful, if there is one lesson I've learnt is that LIFE GOES ON.

Life Goes On- Even if you fail in an exam.

Life Goes On- Even if you get fired from a job.

Life Goes On- Even if you lose your best friends.

Life Goes On- Even if you get robbed

Life Goes On- Even if you break up in a relationship

Life Goes On- Even if your loved one's passes away

Life Goes On- Even if you don't pursue your passion.

Life Goes On- Even if nobody understands what you feel.

Life Goes On- Even if you are lonely today.

Life Goes On- Even if you haven't achieved your dreams.

Life Goes On- Even if everyone thinks you are a failure.

Life Goes On- Even if people mock you for who you are.

Life Goes On- Even if someone you care for betrays you.

At the end of the day my friend, life will always go on no matter what obstacle hits you. It will hurt, it will be difficult, it will break you down, but remember LIFE GOES ON.

So my friend, learn to pick up the broken pieces of your self and build yourself up again. Be confident of your true self and make your life beautiful. At the end of the day you are responsible for how you shape your life and you make your own happiness

The key to happiness is in your hands, no matter what happens my, just remember that LIFE GOES ON, and SOMETHING BETTER WILL ALWAYS COME.

Under The Spotlight: Idhu Namma Allu

Story Review

I just loved the way how the film started off. The director gave an overview of how a hectic working life routine is. It helped got connected to the film so easily as I could see myself in it and that is a big win for a director when he can get the audience to connect to the film. From there he smoothly introduced the hero and for someone who doesn't fancy Simbu, I was immediately won over that this film is not going to be a typical nonsense Simbu film but it is a film which will see the director dictate it to his style more than towards Simbu's style.

The genre of the film can be classified as a simple feel good story. Indeed it is a very simple story but what makes a fantastic film is that most of the scenes you see in the film are things that could have happened in your life or in the life of people you know. It was real, it was simple and it was beautifully executed by the director.

It's a story of a boy who meets a girl in an arrange marriage and falls for her but has to explain to her about his past relationship and face issues raised as they about to get married. That's what the film is all about but yet again it is a super feel good film and surely worth a watch.

The only down side for me in terms of story is the length. I felt the movie could have been easily 50 minutes shorter as I felt the movie should have ended in the scene in the picture below

Up to this point the film was absolutely perfect to me. Honestly I felt this was the climax scene and was ready to walk out of the cinema until the played the song and I saw on my watch there is 50 minutes to go.

The next 50 minutes turned out to be quite annoying to me especially the next 20 minutes which shows Simbu and Nayanthara hanging on the phone being in loved and talking stuff. It was just annoying and totally unnecessary. It was this part which tempered with the quality of the film and is what that will cause me to reduce my rating of the this wonderful film

The director got it absolutely right in his casting and huge credit to the director for that. Each actor picked for the role nailed their performance and he knew how to get the best from them. More importantly with the right casting, the director manage to get an amazing on screen chemistry between Simbu-Nayanthara, Simbu-Andrea, Simbu-Soori and Simbu-Father.



Rating: 4.0/5.0

Director Review
Pandiraj

The director got it absolutely right in his casting and huge credit to the director for that. Each actor picked for the role nailed their performance and he knew how to get the best from them. More importantly with the right casting, the director manage to get an amazing on screen chemistry between Simbu-Nayanthara, Simbu-Andrea, Simbu-Soori and Simbu-Father.

Credit again to Pandiraj for coming up with this heart warming story and I felt that this has been his best movie after Pasanga. Always admire Pandiraj as a director and he goes on again to show he is a fantastic director.

There were to let down for me personally. First as I have already mentioned was the draggy 50 minutes of the film which could have been eliminated. Second is the quality of the top view camera was so poor. Not sure why or how he allowed that in film or perhaps he was experimenting with a new idea which I don't understand but I wasn't impressed with it.

Another win for Pandiraj was the fact he used the emoji, the caller screen appearing whenever some one calls and the twitter description of the character during introduction. It felt very Gen-Y and helped me connect to the film better



Rating: 3.8/5.0 

The Cast

Simbu

Without a doubt I would classify this as Simbu's best film after Vinnaithandi Varuvaya. It was so great to see a subtle, soft spoken Simbu in the film. He was fantastic from the first scene right up to the final scene. I would say it was a flawless performance by him.

It clearly shows that the guy has immense talent, and if he picks the right scripts with the right director than you will get to see the very best of Simbu as an actor. He played the character to his strength and his class. It was a very simple fun loving guy role which he was so natural in it.

His performance felt real throughout and he deserves all the praises in this film. The man has been going through a rough patch of screen recently and this film will surely be his big comeback and AYM is going to raise him to another level. If he plays it smart and picks the right film, Simbu can certainly on the same ranks as other top actors in the industry.

Credit to Simbu to be able to pull off a couple of different looks in the film without losing shape of his character. Fantastic stuff.

 Rating: 4.7/5.0

Nayanthara & Andrea

Personally I did not enjoy Nayanthara's character in the film. I found her as being rude and annoying and too dominant in the relationship. Not the type of girl I would want to date. Putting that aside, I think she did very well in playing the role. To be able to pull of that character wouldn't have been easy and she played it well. It is nice to see heroine getting a huge chunk of screen time and she did justice in her scenes.

It becomes a bigger challenges when the second heroine you have in the film is someone like Andrea who can easily over shadow you with her quality, yet her performance stood firm to show why she is one of the industry's leading heroine

Without a doubt I was in love with Andrea from the moment go in the film. She was freaking stunningly beautiful and there is no doubt about her acting skills. She nailed the character easily. Plus, I love the nature of her character as she is the type of girl you would want to fall in love with. Her character had two shades and she was equally good in both shades as a girl in love and as a girl who wants to get back to her ex boyfriend. One of the most underrated, versatile and gorgeous actress in the industry. 

 Rating: 4.5/5.0

Soori

It was thanks to this man which helped me got through the last 50 minutes of the film. He plays the role of Simbu's motorbike driver. Yes you read it right, motorbike driver for Simbu. His role had a significant impact in the overall feel of the film.

Soori was at his peak at his one liners whenever Simbu speaks to Nayanthara and his counters to Simbu can leave you in laughter. You would actually laughed out loud at his one liners. I was so pleased with Pandiraj for casting Soori in this role as it could have been easily ruined by any other comedian.

Rating: 4.5/5.0

The Music

Kuralarasan

Correct me if I am wrong but this is actually Kuralaran's first film as a music director right and I think he has done a wonderful job for a first time. Even if it is not his first film. I think the quality of his songs and bgm was really good and pleasing to hear.

Looking forward to his next film

 Rating: 3.3/5.0

Final Verdict: Idhu Namma Padam Tha!! Loved it

Final Rating: 4.1/5.0

UFLP SEAA CONNECT 2016: One Of The Best Thing That Has Ever Happened To Me

What a week it has been. A week ago I thought my world was so small. Nearly everyone I know are from Malaysia, I only understood about the Unilever business within Malaysia and my whole mind was thought to see just things within Malaysia.

Fast forward a week later, a whole lot of things has change. I have been lacking drive and joy in recent months, and the UFLP SEAA CONNECT Session has just recharge my batteries and got all good to go. It has help redefine my purposes in life, got me inspired, ready and connect to a whole bunch of new and amazing people. The purpose of this event was to get us Unilever Future Leader Program (UFLP) people to build our networking with the SEAA community and equipped us with the right tools to go on to be future leaders.

From Malaysia there was only 4 participants and 3 organizing committee and my biggest fear was that for the next 4 four days I am only going to be hanging out with the fellow Malaysians and no one else. I made a conscious decision that I will try not to spend as much time possible and mingle with the participants from different countries. The other participants are from other countries are from Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Australia and New Zealand.

We were immediately divided to groups of 10 and I was glad that I was the only Malaysian in my table. The first friend I made during the session and will perhaps be the most awesome person I met throughout the event was a guy from Philippines named Jeggy We instantly got things running and become best buds.

Our very first session of Day 1 was a team building event which I found it to be super cool because it mainly used an African drum and a couple of pipes only. We were thought of tunes and music to related that out business and showed us that everybody has to work together well to create beautiful music and if one group doesn't cooperate it will reduce the quality of the music. Just like in business, when one department doesn't do well it impacts the entire business

Next we brought to a series of leadership talks where by this successful Unilever leaders shared their journey from humble beginnings up to the point of who they are today and explained some of the key principals and things they had done to be who they are today. The questions from the UFLP were really tough for the leaders but they managed to answer the question clearly. This bit of the event opened our minds up on actually what is the difference between this leaders and us and how they look at things and make it happen

Next we were treated to an open bar dinner with free flow of drinks and allowed us to build networks among the UFLPs before we headed back in for our Cartoon Character Costume Party. Once again this has to be one of the best parties I have been to. Free flow of drinks, laughter, lip sync battle and networking. It was the bomb.

On day 2 our agenda was packed with a workshop on The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People. The first day we focused on the first 3 habits and I was blessed that I got Leannerd as our coach for this session. He is the VP for HR in SEAA. A man with so much experience and expertise. He is also a certified Covey Training and the way he conducted the workshop has left a deep impact on me on how I should be to highly effective.

The last session for the day was another team building event which was based on sports. The particular highlight for me when we were asked to build a racing car using pipes and tires and race around the track. First there will be a qualifying round and the top 6 teams will qualify to the final and than the race will be a two lap race. The only twist to this was that we were not allowed to race with our cars but we had to use the car of the beside team which was only told minutes before the qualifying. Therefore we had to make do with what he had and try to get the best results. Our team managed to qualify into the final race but did not win the race. I think we got 4th, but the team that used our car won the race and I was proud that the car which we build was the only car that never broke down throughout qualifying and the race.

The final part of the day was dinner at the open bar with the graduated UFLPs. The particular highlight for me was that I did my first ever karaoke session with my fellow Philippines friends.
Lots of networking session was done that day and I had a good insight speaking to the graduated UFLP on how they made it to graduation and what to expect along the way. Another great day comes to an end.

Day 3 was fully packed with the 7 Habits workshop which I felt was the best part of this entire event. We went on to complete the balance the 4 habits and we did a lot of activities throughout the session. In this part here I would like to say a big thank you to Afra from Australia and Book from Thailand. This is for the Emphatic Listening session the Talking Stick Session. I was able to open up on things which I had been keeping in for a long time and you guys gave some very good insight about it and it was so helpful. So glad that happened.

Once the 7 Habits workshop was concluded, we were brought around to travel around Singapore and our first stop was to this super cool buffet. I finally managed to try first lobster and thanks to Jeggy and Aziz from Indonesia I had my very first Sushi. Got to admit the Sushi was good but I couldn't take much of it. Next we were brought on to an open top bus ride around Singapore heading to the Light Show which was cool with the music and the light show on the trees. (insert Video). Our final stop for the night was the River Cruise and I finally got close to Marina Bay Sands and The Malayan.

On The Final Day, we had a couple of talks but the main highlight was before lunch when we had a panel of leaders sitting on the stage and took some very intense question about the generation gap and how we can work together. It was so good to see how leaders from different generation are so eager to make things work with the Gen Y and it's time Gen Y start understanding things from their perspective to ensure a win-win situation.

Than comes the moment towards the end of the whole event. We had a quick speed dating session followed by creating an anchor which will remind us of this moment of the event and also writing appreciative notes to 3 UFLPs. We concluded the event with a sharing session on the revolutionized UFLP assessment method that is going to go live soon. It's going to be huge. We ended the day with lots of picture taking and hugs before saying our See You Again and leaving Four Accers.

The reason why I am writing this is to record down how amazing this event was and every time things don't go well for me or when I am in a struggle I can always read this back and remind my self what an amazing moment I had here and remind my self not to give and continue to be successful. Thank you Unilever for this amazing opportunity. I don't see myself as a Malaysian UFLP anymore but as an SEAA UFLP. We are a big community now and our voices are strong. We will make great changes. We are Ready, Inspired and Connected!!!