Seshadri's Musings

More web-series reviews… Art Detectives – Came in 2025. In the Metropolitan Police's smallest department, the Heritage Crime Unit, an art-loving detective tackles cases connected to the world of art, antiques, collectibles and cultural heritage. A review from IMDB... Granted this review is based on the first three episodes, so it could change. I found the first three episodes to be intelligent, crisp, deft and witty. I don't want to give any spoilers, so I would encourage others to take a stab at the series. As long as it is primarily case driven and avoids the temptation to indulge in tick-box family drama, I have high hopes for this. The three episodes thus far have been set in Yorkshire (Portraits and the National Gallery), Gloucester (A Viking dig and artifacts), Cornwall (a listed estate and rock memorabilia). For those who like comparisons, I would say it's an amalgam of Lovejoy, Dalgliesh and Chelsea ...

Some 2 years ago, I decided to join the yoga program with Habuild (another blog on this topic later 😊 ) to get me in shape.  In Feb or March this year, they provided me an opportunity to attend a session at the Art of Living campus in Bangalore.  I checked out the same on the website and decided to attend the session.  In April, I went to Bangalore and started attending the session.  My attendance was just to find out what the program was rather than envisaging whether my body will benefit from it or not 😊 ! The campus was good and I had selected a 4-sharing room, meaning 4 people to one room.  There were 4 individual beds and an attached bathroom in the room.  The sessions were also good and I was able to do most of them.  Because of my leg issues, I was provided some leeway in exercises where I had to use my leg muscles most.  In one session, there were some games involved. In the first game, I was among the 15-20 odd winners of the game, ...

More web-series reviews… From – Came in 2022 and ran for 3 seasons. From is set in a seemingly ordinary town with an extraordinary secret. The series follows the residents as they encounter unexplained phenomena that intensify with the onset of night. As everyday life is disrupted by mysterious forces, the inhabitants must navigate unforeseen challenges while trying to understand the hidden nature of their environment. The narrative weaves together multiple personal stories, exploring the struggle to maintain order and connection amid an ever-present sense of uncertainty. A review from IMDB... I have loved this show so far and the acting and mysteries etc. Are definitely very cool. However I am starting to get a little worried that this is going very much towards the "Lost" vibe. While "Lost" was also a fantastic show in terms of acting, directing etc. In the very end what annoyed me was how much of the mystery was there just to be mysterious. Watching th...

More web-series reviews… The Sopranos – Ran from 1999 to 2007. New Jersey mob boss Tony Soprano deals with personal and professional issues in his home and business life that affect his mental state, leading him to seek professional psychiatric counseling. A review from IMDB... The Sopranos is arguably the greatest show in Dramatic Television history. Its hard to think of another series that boasts so much intelligence, sublime writing or first rate performances. Across its epic scope it produces fresh and iconic characters and a constant level of high quality. Centering around the life of one Tony Soprano, a man who lives in two families. One is the conventional wife and two kids nuclear family the other a huge New Jersey Mafia group, of which he is the boss of both. Played by James Gandolfini, of True Romance and The Mexican fame, Tony is a fascinating, scary but also likable guy. Full praise must be given to Gandolfini for making a womanising and horrifically aggressive b...

This trip was planned a long time back with my cousin and his family. Somehow or the other, it never materialized, for whatever reason.  In March this year, there was a ceremony in Bangalore that we had to attend. On checking the map, it seemed that I can make the trip to Hampi and then proceed to Bangalore for the ceremony from there.  As usual (I have decided that this was the last time I was doing this 😊 ), I called up a few people to see if they were interested to accompany me for this trip.  When no one seemed interested, I asked Jayashree if her friends would want to come. She checked with her friend, who was in Bangalore, and she immediately confirmed that she would accompany us.  I started seeing what all places were there to see in Hampi. Based on google, I drew an itinerary for a 2-day trip, seeing almost 20-25 different attractions in Hampi.  On checking the trains, I found that instead of reaching in the morning, it would be good if I can reach th...

More web-series reviews… Criminal justice: A Family Matter – Came in 2025. Attorney Madhav Mishra represents Raj Nagpal, discovered with murdered nurse Roshni Saluja after his child's party. As the trial unfolds, hidden facts emerge, questioning identities. A review from IMDB... Criminal Justice: A Family Matter is not your typical courtroom thriller filled with twists and high-octane suspense. Instead, it is a slow-burning, thoughtful exploration of how the justice system interacts with personal trauma, parenting, and the delicate balance between legal responsibility and emotional truth. The show moves away from merely focusing on "whodunit" and steps into the morally gray territory of why things happen and how society-and more importantly, families-react to them. What makes this season particularly striking is its emotional weight. It doesn't rely on shock value or dramatic plot twists to keep you engaged. Instead, it invites the viewer to sit with the disc...

Today was the last day of adventures as the next day we were flying back to our destinations. With discussions between Mr Pankaj and us, we drew the following itinerary.   First stop would be the Ross Island or the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Island, followed by a visit to the Anthropology Museum. Then lunch at a chaat place, the ad of which we had seen during the boat ride aboard the Nautika. Then onwards to Chidiya tapu and a visit to a ship finishing with dinner at our friend’s place. Mr Pankaj came to pick us up in a car.  We went to a small jetty from where a small boat took us to a big boat.  We went on this boat to the Ross Island. This island was occupied by the British Colony during the pre-independence era and it was their Administrative Head Quarter until an earthquake rocked the islands in 1941, after which the British moved to Port Blair for settlement abandoning the Ross Island. The Japanese also had occupied Andamans in 1942 during World War II. The Japan...

More web-series reviews… Monk – Ran from 2002 to 2009. Adrian Monk is a brilliant former San Francisco detective, who now consults the police as a private consultant while battling with an obsessive-compulsive disorder. A review from IMDB... Many sleuths of literature, film or television have idiosyncrasies or handicaps to overcome. It's a common theme that many of them use their personal foibles as an occupational aid. Adrian Monk (Tony Shaloub) is one such character. As a P. I. he has a reputation as a wunderkind, super sleuth, savant, and deductive virtuoso. Despite his OCD, his panoply of phobias, and a lingering emotional wound from the loss of his wife, Trudy, Monk is called in when the police can't solve a murder. He uses his debilitating attention to details to view a crime scene or piece together clues as no one else can. And it is all done in humor. "Monk" is one of the best comedies of all time. T...

Got up early as we had two boat rides today, one from Havelock to Neil Island and the next from Neil Island to Port Blair! Had breakfast as soon as the counters were open.  Then waited for the tour operator to come and pick us up.  There were 2 stops for the itinerary today. One was a natural bridge and the other was the Bharatpur beach.  Today looked to be a hectic journey but it was not so 😊 ! We were dropped at the Havelock jetty point, from where we took the same Nautika boat to Neil Island.  The journey took some 45 minutes.  We were met with another employee of the tour operator here. There was some confusion regarding our visit as they had still not got any confirmation of our visit. The tour agent at Havelock had given me the Neil agent’s mobile number. So, I had called him as soon as we reached Neil Island.  After a few tense minutes, he got the confirmation and we proceeded for the trip. He took us to a shop where we kept our luggage on ren...

More web-series reviews… We Were Liars – Came in 2025. A 17-year-old girl who survived a horrible accident at her family's summer home two years ago that she cannot remember. She returns, determined to remember the details of her accident but as the pieces start to come together, she discovers not only the painful truth of that night, but a shocking revelation about herself. A review from IMDB... This 8-part miniseries hit Prime streaming yesterday. My wife and I settled in and watched the first two episodes. The biggest issue is nothing much happens in the first two episodes. The main character has an incident she doesn't remember at the end of episode one. Then most of episode two is flashing back and forward to understand why her family and friends reacted the way they did. And juveniles trying to sort out boy-girl issues. Sort of a teenage soap opera. One reviewer wrote "flat, nonengaging", another wrote "lazy writing, lazy cast saying lazy lines....

The itinerary for this day had only 1 place – Elephant Beach.  All the water sports activities were supposed to happen at this place.  I was told by someone that elephants used to swim at this place, hence the name 😊 !  Here are some facts from internet… The elephant beach is located at a remote corner of the Havelock Island which is accessible by both water and road from Havelock.  In ancient times, elephants were used to bring people to the beach due to the lack of transport facilities. Hence the name, Elephant Beach 😊 !  It has a rich and colorful underwater coral reef. What makes this beach popular among other beaches is the opportunity for visitors to indulge in water activities like scuba diving, snorkeling, sea walking, kayaking etc. We had our breakfast at the hotel and waited for our car to pick us up.  The car took us to the jetty. The lady agent was already there. She procured the boat ticket for us to the beach. We boarded a small boat wit...

More web-series reviews… Kerala Crime Files 2 – Season 2 came in 2025. A review from IMDB... I really did enjoy the first season of Kerala Crime Files. It is a solid show with good attention to detail. This time around, it starts off with a really strong pilot episode. The plot is intriguing, filled with layers, connections, and complications that hint at a gripping investigation. However, the most essential part of a thriller, which is the suspense, starts fading by the time we reach episode 3. What begins with promise turns into a slow-moving stretch. On one side, that might be how real investigations unfold, but on the other, it does not exactly keep you hooked. There is never really a point where you are biting your nails trying to figure out who did it. There are no surprises, no sharp turns, and no real highs. Maybe if it had been cut down to five episodes and included a few unexpected twists, it could have worked b...