Seshadri's Musings

More web-series… Kota Factory – Kota Factory is TVF's latest original. India's first 'Black and White' show highlights the problems present day IIT-JEE aspirants face in their day-to-day lives. Season 1 came in 2019 and Season 2 in 2021. Season 3 is also expected. One of the reviews from IMDB... I was in the middle of binge-watching all the web series on TVF Play when this came (I prefer calling shows like this web series and the ones on Netflix and Prime TV-shows). I was trying my best to finish Pitchers so that I could move on to this. I had seen too many memes and saw all my friends sharing the stories on WhatsApp about them watching the last episode. So finally, when I got the chance to watch this, I did it immediately. Kota Factory is probably the best web series that TVF has made so far, and that's saying something provided Yeh Meri Family also exists. Kota Factory is a story set in Kota, where a

I had gone for the 1 st Pixel phone that was launched some six years back.  Used it for about 5.5 years and have great memories of the photos that I took with it.  A couple of months back, when Jayesh (my son) complained that his Realme phone was not working well, I gave the Pixel to him and shifted to his Realme phone.  I had heard that Pixel 6 was coming soon and wanted to buy that.  But that was still a few months away at that time.  The Realme phone was not that great.  In the meanwhile, my daughter too wanted a phone of her own, so I purchased Redmi Note 10 Pro during a sale.  Since it had a dual sim, both my daughter and me were using the same phone between us 😊 .  When Flipkart Diwali sale came, I saw Pixel 4a at a reduced price of Rs 25K.  With the exchange of the old Pixel phone and some credit card offers, it was available at around Rs 22K!  With that, Flipkart was also offering a Google Nest Mini (a mini-Alexa) for Rs 1 (instead of the usual Rs 2K+) with Rs 40 as courier c

More web-series reviews… 13 Commandments (13 Gobbeon) – Belgium series. Came out in 2017. A serial killer reverts to the 10 commandments in order to kick society a conscience with his crimes. One of the reviews from IMDB... This thirteen-part Belgian crime thriller sees the police searching for an attacker who has been targeting people based on the Ten Commandments; each attack is accompanied by the appropriate commandment. While the attacks are brutal, they are not fatal... that of course would break the commandment against killing. The attacker, dubbed 'Mozes' gains some sympathy amongst those who believe society has moved too far from Christian Ideals. The investigation is led by Peter Devriendt and his new partner Vicky Degraeve; each of whom have their own problems. Peter's daughter seems to be somewhat off the rails and Vicky's mother is in hospital with no chance of recovery following a car accident som

More web-series reviews… The Widower – A three-part drama based on the crimes of convicted murderer Malcolm Webster.  Came out in 2013. One of the reviews from IMDB... I knew nothing about this case before watching The Widower. I found it to be compelling, yet appalling viewing. I found myself rooting actively for the victims, including speaking out loud to the second and third ones. I also found myself having very strong, visceral reactions to Webster which made me realize what a fantastic acting job Reese Shearsmith did. He was PERFECT, nailing the part of a man playing a victim himself, appealing to the empathic, care-taking natures of many women. Yes, he was charming, as Victim #2 says, and he was also smarmy. Even writing this I'm grimacing and feel like throwing something! One of the other reviews here complained that the TV version was not really like reality. Well, there often is a big difference between fiction and non-fiction. And, having read at least one article

In the past few months/weeks, we have seen a different India, which was never evident in the past.   Earlier, whatever happened, India was mostly in a shell and not concerned about anything.   Other countries used to take us for granted and were constantly ignoring us when it comes to taking center-stage in the world.   Our politicians too were not concerned about this situation and were quite willing to let it go and were concentrating on filling their own pockets. Recently there have been a couple of instances wherein India has flexed its muscle so much that the other countries had to sit up and take notice.  I will be talking about 3 such instances, so far, that has made each of us proud to be an Indian.  Whatever anyone may think of the current government at the center, looking at these 3 instances, I will always prefer this government over any another, either in the past or in the coming future. During the Covid crisis, in spite of vociferous opposition, India did send the vac

Mouse – Another interesting Korean series 😊 !!  Jung Ba Reum (Lee Seung-gi) is a rookie police officer, working at a police substation whose life changes when he encounters a psychopathic serial killer. This drives him and his partner Go Moo Chi (Lee Hee-joon) to unearth the truth behind psychopathic behaviors. This also raises the questions, whether it is possible to scan a psychopath in the mother's womb using fetal genetic testing? And if the child in the womb is a psychopath, will it be wise to have that child? A review from IMDB... This show is a fantastic thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat. The serial killer parts, particularly in the beginning, are very dark and somewhat scary, giving a great opening to a show that fully deserved all of its 20 episodes. Each and every episode is packed with twists and turns and some amazing plot points you won't see coming. At the start of the series, I felt like there were a lot of plot holes, but they are defini

More web-series… The Five – A mystery series created by author Harlan Coben. Jesse, a five-year-old boy, goes missing. Twenty years later, his DNA shows up at a crime scene. One of the reviews from IMDB... The disappearance of a young boy some decades previously is the scene setter for a complex mystery drama from the pen of Harlan Coben. When the child's DNA appears at a crime scene, the four friends charged with his care must confront the ghosts of their past and resolve the mystery and conflicting hopes of their present life. The plot successfully weaves in and out between mystery thriller, police procedural and personal drama. The four lead characters are well written and, crucially, well contrasted. Each actor can hold the screen in progressing the narrative and the different personal narratives dovetail very well. The casting of their younger selves is excellent. Good supporting cast too, with back stories complimen

More web-series reviews… Tabula Rasa – It means a Fresh Start! Series from Belgium 😊 !! A young woman with amnesia becomes a key figure in a disappearance case. One of the reviews from IMDB... Tabula Rasa is an excellent psychological thriller. The acting is top-notch, particularly from the three lead actors: Veerle Baetens, Stijn Van Opstal, and Jeroen Perceval. This is a show that will keep you guessing, with so many twists, layers, and hidden connections. There's a fantastic air of creepiness and menace. The imagery is stunning and the cinematography is great. My jaw dropped in shock more than once. Aside from the intricate and compelling central mystery, the relationship drama is also great. There's nuance in the performances and the show really displays the complexity of family life. As an American, I found it fascinating to see what life in Flanders is like. There are just so many fantastic elements to this show. It's the perfect show to bingewatch. Tabu

More web-series reviews… All these series released in 2021. The Squid Game – A story of people who fail at life for various reasons, but suddenly receive a mysterious invitation to participate in a survival game to win more than 38 million US dollars. The game takes place at an isolated island and the participants are locked up until there is a final winner. The story will incorporate popular children's games from the 1970s and 1980s of Korea, such as squid game, literal translation of its Korean name, which is a type of tag where offense and defense use a squid-shaped board drawn in the dirt. No. 1 series in Netflix till recently 😊 ! One of the reviews from IMDB... So, Squid Game has taken over the world these last few weeks and I thought that I had to watch it and I have now finished it and here is my review for it. The premise of the show sees a large group of down on their luck Koreans assembled to play childhood games with a deadly twist for a huge cash prize. Main

More web-series reviews…   World’s Most Wanted – Heinous criminals have avoided capture despite massive rewards and global investigations. This docuseries profiles five of the world's most wanted. One of the reviews from IMDB... Netflix has raised the bar for its docuseries so high, that other decent releases go under the radar. Fortunately for me, I saw the trailer and had immediately saved it in my list because I had seen Don't F*ck with Cats and liked it. It's the same team. So this isn't as crisp as other series' and I think this is one of those documentary that could've used a little recreation for dramatic effects because the characters they chose to interview .. some of them are little dramatic. Another thing they could've done better is to show us more about the criminal's past life because they choose to pursue all these most wanteds after their heinous crimes. We are taken through the journey of what they did, how they fled and little