The Inner Significance Of Easter

Easter is a universal festival. 
The ancient Babylonians, Egyptians, Norsemen and Scandinavians worshiped the Egg. Norsemen exchanged coloured eggs, at the time of the vernal equinox, in commemoration of goddess Ostara. Hindus believe that the Mundane Egg, in which Brahma gestated, broke its shell in spring. Thus, the symbol of the egg is a universal symbol. The word Easter closely resembles names of different Pagan goddesses—Ishtar, Ostara, and the Greek Astarte. Goddess Ostara of the Northland was worshipped as a beautiful Queen of the Spring-time, and from Ostara, our word Easter comes. The story goes that when Ostara first came to earth, at the very beginning of the world, she noticed how dark and cold everything seemed. She knew that life in everything was sleeping for a while, till it was time to wake again. Then she realized that she was sent on earth to wake things up. Easter celebrates the awakening of life from its winter sleep.

The ancients celebrated 21st March, the day of the Vernal Equinox, as the birthday of the world. In the fourth century, Easter was fixed as the first Sunday—following the first full-moon day—after the vernal equinox. During the spring festival the ancients celebrated the renewal of nature, as the Christians celebrate on Easter Sunday the resurrection of Christ—the rising of the Christ from the dead. After crucifixion, the body of Christ was taken down from the cross, wrapped in a linen sheet and placed in a tomb dug out of solid rock and a stone was rolled against the entrance. This was on a Friday, now called "Good Friday." Three days later, on Sunday, people saw that the door of the tomb had burst open and the body was missing. The story goes that subsequently Jesus appeared before his disciples.

The Bible says, "Jesus rose from the dead." Theosophy teaches that he rose in his finer body or Mayavi rupa. Resurrection conveys that everything does not end with the death of the physical body and that there is no such thing as death for the Soul—IT always is.

To appreciate the inner significance of Easter, we must understand the symbology of the egg, the crucifixion, the resurrection and the Christ.

Man has never been without a friend, i.e., the Elder Brothers or adepts who help mankind. Jesus was an adept. Like Jesus, Krishna and Buddha too died on the cross. The Cross represents the "Tree of Life." "Tree" is a symbol of sacred and secret knowledge. "Tree" also stands for various Initiates. Realizing the unity of all, these adepts and Initiates identify themselves with humanity and hence are able to take upon themselves part of the karma of suffering humanity. Taken literally, the whole of the life of Jesus, up to his crucifixion, shows this great sacrifice which the spiritual beings make, in order to help humanity.

But Christ is also the Divine Principle in each one of us. H.P.B. writes: "Christ—the true esoteric SAVIOUR—is no man, but the DIVINE PRINCIPLE in every human being." (The Esoteric Character of the Gospels)

Christ is not the only Son of God; we are all sons of God in our divine nature. But unfortunately this divine nature, though all-powerful on its own plane, is quite powerless on our plane. Every time we refuse to listen to our divine nature—the Christ within—we crucify the Christ. So it is not the personality which suffers but the innocent Christos within us. Every time we want our will to prevail over Divine Will, there is a minor crucifixion. But, every crucifixion must be followed by Resurrection. Thus:

He who strives to resurrect the Spirit crucified in him by his own terrestrial passions, and buried deep in the "sepulchre" of his sinful flesh; he who has the strength to roll back the stone of matter from the door of his own inner sanctuary, he has the risen Christ in him. The "Son of Man" is no child of the bond-woman—flesh, but verily of the free-woman—Spirit, the child of man's own deeds and the fruit of his own spiritual labour. (H.P.B. Series No. 7, pp. 4-5)

To resurrect the Christ we have crucified, we must allow divine nature to control the terrestrial nature, and thus raise ourselves to the spiritual level. Spiritual life has been defined as conscious existence in spirit while we are in this body. Spirit is eternal and we need to become aware of it. Our knowledge of matter has become instinctive, but not so our knowledge of spirit. When that happens we will resurrect into spiritual life.

To accomplish this resurrection, mind must be trained to co-operate with the spirit. We must be bold and frank enough to own up our misdeeds, our vices, and our defects.

What is spiritual rebirth? H.P.B. explains that a man striving after spiritual perfection must have three births: (1) physical, from his mortal parents; (2) spiritual through Initiation; and (3) his final birth into the world of spirit—at death. (Isis, II, 565)

H.P.B. points out the difference between the words, "Chrestian" and "Christian," thus:

Chrestos means certainly more than merely "a good" and "excellent man," while "Christos" was never applied to any one living man, but to every Initiate at the moment of his second birth and resurrection. He who finds Christos within himself and recognizes the latter as his only "way," becomes a follower and an Apostle of Christ, though he may have never been baptised, nor even have met a Christian, still less call himself one. (H.P.B. Series No. 7, p. 13)

H.P.B. observes that Jesus was a Chrestos, "as undeniably as that he never was entitled to the appellation of Christos, during his life-time and before his last trial." The Glossary explains that Chrestos means a disciple on probation—a candidate for hierophantship. When he had attained to this through initiation, long trials and suffering, and had been "annointed," i.e., "rubbed with oil," as were the initiates—as the last touch of ritualistic observance—then his name was changed into "Christos," the "purified," in the esoteric language.

In a way, crucifixion and resurrection reflect the initiation ceremonies practised by the ancient Egyptians and other early civilizations. These initiations took place in the crypts, caves, temples, and pyramids where the neophyte underwent a series of physical and psychological trials through which he proved his strength and readiness for spiritual rebirth. The symbol of the cross and the crucified man have deep significance. Thus:

The initiated adept, who had successfully passed through all the trials, was attached, not nailed, but simply tied on the couch in the form of a tau(in Egypt)...plunged in a deep sleep. He was allowed to remain in this state for three days and three nights, during which time his Spiritual Ego was said to confabulate with the "gods," descend into Hades, Amenti, or Patala (according to the country)...his body remaining all the time in the temple crypt or subterranean cave. In Egypt, it was placed in the Sarcophagus in the King's Chamber of the Pyramid of Cheops, and carried during the night of the approaching third day to the entrance of a gallery, where at a certain hour the beams of the rising Sun struck full on the face of the entranced candidate, who awoke to be initiated by Osiris, and Thoth the God of Wisdom. (S.D., II, 558)

The primordial system, the double glyph that underlies the idea of the Cross, is not "of human invention," for Cosmic ideation and the Spiritual representation of the divine Ego-man are at its basis. Later, it expanded in the beautiful idea adopted by and represented in the Mysteries, that of regenerated man, the mortal, who, by crucifying the man of flesh and his passions on the Procrustean bed of torture, became reborn as an Immortal. Leaving the body, the animal-man, behind him, tied on the Cross of Initiation like an empty chrysalis, the Ego Soul became as free as a butterfly. (S.D., II, 561-62)

In the imagery of chrysalis and butterfly, chrysalis means cocoon. When a pupa breaks the cocoon—built by its own saliva—it comes out as a completely transformed thing, i.e., a butterfly. We build our cocoon of flesh, matter, desires and vices. We must break the cocoon, and come out as a butterfly—the wings of which denote freedom.

Egg symbolizes immortality. The hen lays an egg and from the egg comes the chick, which grows into another hen. An egg is potentially capable of giving birth to a chick. But in its exterior, such potentiality is not evident. Man, too, is capable of becoming a God, but matter is like the shell of an egg. The chick has to break it. We have to transcend the limitations of matter to be reborn. Interestingly, in Sanskrit, Dwija means twice-born and it is also the name given to all oviparous animals and birds. The "laying of the egg" marks the first birth, and when the chick comes out by breaking open the shell, it marks the second birth.

In Letters That Have Helped Me, Jasper Niemand mentions "the sheaths of the heart," which man has to break one by one. Man himself prevents his coming into direct communication with Divine nature. He has to refine and disperse the lower self. "Each man has a different mode of doing this, but each who advances at all finds that with every new period of his inner life a new self rises before him. Looking back over a group of weeks or months, he is amazed to see what manner of man he was then, and smiles that pitying smile which we bestow upon the faded letters of our youth." But there are some that are not strong enough to come out of the rut. They have to struggle hard to break that heavy obstacle which resists all change.

In the Puranic allegory, Viswakarman's daughter Sanjana (spiritual consciousness), who was the wife of Surya the sun, complained to her father of the too great effulgence of her husband. Viswakarman, the divine carpenter, crucified the sun on his lathe and cut away eighth part of his rays—creating round him a dark aureole. After that, Surya looked as though he had been crowned with dark thorns and he became "Vikarttana," one who was shorn of his effulgence. Vikarttana is the type of the initiated neophyte. All these names were given to candidates who were going through trials of initiation. The candidate for initiation personifies the sun, who has to kill all his fiery passions and wear a crown of thorns, before he can rise into new life and be reborn.

It refers to the process in Initiation, wherein the candidate was made to look deep into his consciousness and face the whole of his lower nature without getting disturbed. Candidates were literally made to sit, all alone, in a dark room. By cutting off the sun's rays, Viswakarman created similar darkness. This is equivalent to descent into lower worlds or Hades, wherein the candidate touches the lowest levels of his consciousness. After facing and purifying it, he rises with fully purified consciousness.But there are a series of initiations in the life of a disciple, till he comes to the stage of final Initiation, when he comes face to face with the Dhyani Buddha, the head of the hierarchy to which he belongs.

Spiritual rebirth or resurrection "is the spiritual birthright of every human being endowed with soul and spirit, whatever his religion may be. Such individual is a Christ-man." (H.P.B. Series No. 7, p. 12)

With love and passion, 

Amrriees Siman

Love: From Passion To Compassion

If two people are really in love,then not only foreplay but afterplay also will be there.If two persons are not in love then sex will happen and they will go to sleep,there will be no afterplay.Foreplay will not even be there,and afterplay is impossible,because what is the use?The thing has happened,the end has been achieved. Rape is in the mind. 


The sex center knows only rape,it is the center of aggression.That’s why the military doesn’t allow sex for soldiers,because if they have sex relationships they cannot be good fighters.The aggression moves through the sex center.If sex is allowed and if a soldier is living with his wife or with his beloved,he will not feel like fighting on the battleground!


This is one of the reasons why American soldiers are defeated wherever their girls follow them.They cannot be aggressive because the center of aggression is sex.If sex is allowed, aggression flows out of you and then you don’t feel like fighting!So the soldiers have to be prohibited from engaging in sex,they must suppress their sexual energy which will then accumulate and become aggression.Rather than entering a woman’s body, they can enter anyone's body with a bullet.But it is the same thing – the entry!Your bullets,your knives,your guns,are just phallic symbols – to enter the other’s body,to destroy.


The coaches of athletes who participates in the Olympics tell them,"Don’t have sex at least for two weeks before" Why?Because if you have sex you will not be a good runner!From where will you get the aggression to fight,run and compete?All religions all over the world – almost all,except for one wonderful sect,Tantra,being an exception,have told their monks to be celibate,because they think that religion is also a sort of struggle.You have to fight with yourself,so retain the aggressive energy and fight with yourself !

Sex can easily become violence because it is passion,it is rape.Love,the heart center or the love center,is totally different.It is nonviolent,it is passive,not even active.It can come to you like a very silent perfume,and that too when you invite.That’s why despite the presence of great beings like Krishna,Buddha or Jesus,who brims with lots of love,some of us cannot feel their love,because we can feel love only when it is too violent,in its brute and aggressive form.We have become addicted to violence.And their love is so silent.It showers on us all the time but we cannot feel it because we have become so insensitive.Only when someone attacks do we start feeling.


The heart center is not the center of passion,but is the center of compassion.And compassion is absolutely different from passion,just the opposite.It is non-aggressive energy,moving without any noise,but you have to become very sensitive to feel it.So only very sensitive people can become attracted to Buddha,because only very sensitive people can feel that love is flowing from him.If you are asking for strong doses of passion,then Buddha will just look dead;nothing is coming out of him.

Remember this: passion has to be transformed into compassion,only then will you move from the sex center to the heart center.Now even your heart has to follow your sex center,which is the higher following the lower,with compassion,its other way around,your sex center will follow the love center,the heart center – the lower following the higher.And this should be the order of your being – always the lower following the higher.Then the lower becomes totally different,the quality changes :-) " 


source : Vedanta: Seven Steps to Samadhi by Osho 


With love and passion, 
Amreish Siman

The Moon and You

It is well known that the moon creates the tidal flow, and as beings who are made up of 75% water, it makes sense that we are also deeply affected by the moon. Learning how the moon affects us, how we can work with the moon is certainly well worth the effort, and developing a relationship with the moon is an extremely empowering and rewarding experience.

This article is dedicated to the moon and her influence on us and our lives.

It includes moon phases and their effects.

Phases of the Moon

The moon cycles 13 times a year through phases, each of which influence us just like the pull of the tides.

It starts with the New Moon, which carries the energy of new beginnings, this is a great time to focus on stepping into something new.

Then the Full Moon, signifies the time of the completion of a project, and finally returns to the New Moon again.

This entire cycle occurs over a period of 28 days, and yes, there is no mistaking it, this is the same as women's menstrual cycles, women tend to be much more connected to the moon than men.

The Waning of the moon is the period that runs between the Full Moon and the New Moon. It supports the energy of letting go, releasing, moving away from situations you've outgrown. It is a great time for working heavily on any releasement work such as clearing addictions and difficulties. It is also the perfect time to do a Spring Cleaning, going through your things and throwing out anything you no longer use, getting your hair cut, in fact, anything to do with getting rid of stuff.

The Waxing of the moon, is the period that runs between the New Moon and the Full Moon. The influence it carries during this time is wonderful for building, gathering or creating new things. The waxing moon is a great time to start new projects, sign up for a course, be creatively expressive, anything related to generating new aspects of life, or recreating the old.

Now of course this doesn't mean that you shouldn't let go of something during the waxing moon, or that you can't sign up for something new in the Waning moon. It does mean that if you have plans for this kind of work, including the tidal pull of the different moon phases in your plan, will support your actions in the same way that swimming with or against the tide makes your swim easier or more difficult.

One final important point to make about working with the Moon, is that it helps to realise that all things have the need for both generating and clearing. This means that both aspects of the lunar cycle can be used to your advantage for any particular issue or project. For example, if you are looking at having a huge clean-up at home, you could plan and design everything, including any furniture/room arrangment changes, during the waxing time. This is your time for creating new looks and new ways to live. You could then go on to do the cleaning up work during the Waning period. The perfect time to let go of the old, so that the new designs can take their place.

There is so much more about the effects of the moon on us as human beings. Learning to work with the moon and how she affects us can result in a much deeper understanding of ourselves and how much more power we have in our lives than perhaps we've realised. By simply becoming aware of the phases of the moon and the effects that it has on your life, you have made a great start to a new level of empowerment!

source :Daniella Breen

With love and passion, 
Amreish Siman

Effective Creative Visualization

The hardest part about doing a thing,getting a thing,or becoming some “thing” – whether it is something that we need or something we desire (want) is belief.

For instance,we may need to get a new job because we need to make more money,or we may desire a new job because there are things about our current position we don’t like.Maybe we consider it boring and want something more challenging,more stimulating.

Of all the “New Age” techniques for manifesting our goals (making them “real”),creative visualization is perhaps the best known,unfortunately,it is perhaps also the most misunderstood.

Misunderstanding the how and why visualization works often results in failure.It is easy to become disillusioned about the power of visualization when no matter how often or hard we concentrate on visualizing,the outcome we desire just doesn’t happen.

Many Americans first became aware of “visualization” as a technique when the Russians used the technique as central to training Olympic athletes,with great success.Since then,the idea of visualization as a tool to enable us to live a better life has become practically a mainstream assumption within American culture.

Visualize what we need(or want) and it will come.
And then it doesn't ! And all too often,rather than educate ourselves as to why it may not be working,we just give up and settle living lives in which we do not manifest our greatest potential(s).


Till this very day,most of the best athletes employ creative visualization as a central part of their training program.For those of us who like numbers,early Russian studies indicated that those who spent 25% of their time engaging in physical training and 75% of their time mentally training had more success than those who spent 100% of their time physically training ! In our everyday world,what that would look like to someone who wanted to improve their ability to,say,run a mile more quickly?With physical training of one hour a day 4 days a week would they have more success if they spent one of those hours visualizing running their mile more quickly?

However,it is important to note that the Russians had their athletes engage in a very disciplined program.The Russian criteria for this “mental rehearsal” included:

• Very detailed visualizations
• Visualization exercise(s) performed frequently and consistently

This means that while “daydreaming” may certainly be somewhat helpful when it comes to manifesting a goal or desire,following a consistent schedule and setting aside regularly scheduled times to practice creative visualization will most usually provide better result in most cases.

Creative visualization must be detailed

A common complaint of people wishing to employ creative visualization is that they can’t “see” or create a clear enough picture.They close their eyes and maybe all they see are colors,or even just a “blank screen.”They are having trouble visualizing.This is where detail comes into play.So far we’ve been concentrating on visualizing (“seeing”) as it relates to improving athletic performance;however, creative visualization is just as powerful technique for achieving any goal or desire.

For example,you have decided to pursue finding another job. You've set a scheduled time to visualize, say,right before getting out of bed in the morning and right before going to sleep at night(both great times to visualize).You close your eyes and start thinking that you want to get a picture of your new job and get nothing !The more you strain to “see”,the blanker your mental screen gets.Now is a great time to remember that you have five senses,not just one !!

If you can’t see your new job,can you hear it? Imagine a conversation you may have with a colleague or superior.A very detailed conversation where you are expressing yourself to others with extreme confidence and competence.Your listener,in turn,responds as you would wish them to in the most optimal circumstances you can imagine.

Can you smell your new job?Perhaps your desk is near the coffee maker.Now the conversation you have imagined has smell attached to it.Can you touch your new job?Maybe you can feel yourself standing by your desk with a cup of coffee in your hand having that successful conversation with your colleagues.

Now that you can hear and touch your visualization,you try to imagine you can see yourself at your new job,but darn,all you can see is the color red.Ask yourself,what is red about my new job?And you realize that it is the tie or sweater a colleague you are speaking with is wearing.Before you know it you can see, hear,and touch your new job exactly as you desire it to be !

Creative visualization must be practiced consistently

Remember that creative visualization is often referred to as a “mental rehearsal”.Those in theater, actors,directors,and technical staff have an intimate understanding of the importance of rehearsing  and they rehearse often.They don't leave rehearsing to chance,there is a formal schedule put into place.  At first rehearsals are scheduled quite frequently.In these first rehearsals performances are usually pretty choppy.People forget their lines,actors have not completely embraced their characters,props are missing,etc,but with frequent rehearsal,performances begin to improve.Eventually,this scheduled, consistent and frequent rehearsal results in performances where the actors forget that they are on stage and become the play.This is an excellent example of the power of creative visualization when it is performed in a scheduled, consistent, and frequent manner.

The role of belief in creative visualization

“To be it, you must believe it.” This statement is true on many levels.

First,psychologists report the power of something they term “self fulfilling prophecy.”The basic premise is that whatever one believes about themselves or their circumstances,whether positive or negative  have a powerful impact on their behavior,thereby quite often causing this belief to become true.

For example,if a student believes they will flunk a test,it is likely that their study habits will be negatively impacted,reducing the amount of material they remember.In addition,the thought that they will flunk the test causes them to become anxious and this high level of anxiety negatively impacts their brain function.And the result?At the very least,if that student does not perform to their true potential on the test,it is quite possible that the student will actually flunk their test.

The theory of self fulfilling prophecies makes a lot of sense when you consider the strong relationship between an individual’s level of self confidence and the beliefs they have about themselves.If a person has no confidence in their ability to pass a test,it follows that they have no faith that engaging in behaviors that support passing the test will be effective.For example,they may not study as often or as long as they need to,or not take advantage of studying with a study group.

However,visualization techniques can change a negative self fulfilling prophecy into a positive self fulfilling prophecy.For instance,frequently,consistently and in a detailed manner visualizing one’s self actually taking the test successfully is very powerful.For one,the level of self confidence is improved.  Those who feel confident are not focused on perfection,they are focused on realizing their full potential. In this case,it is passing the test,not necessarily getting the highest grade in the glass.

An example of a specific visualization for passing a test is,as one is studying,to visualize placing information into a file folder and placing that file folder in a file drawer.When taking the test and “stumped” for an answer,simply close your eyes,visualize the file drawer,open it,and pull out the folder with the correct answer.This sounds silly,but there is science behind it.This visualization helps to create new neural pathways and,when the visualization is used with you trying to come up with the right answer or information needed to be able to solve a problem,the pathways to that specific information needed are engaged.In other words, a “short cut” to the information needed to pass the test is created in the brain.

The Role of Quantum Physics and Visualization

Perhaps the most powerful of visualization techniques are those of quantum jumping.These techniques involve accessing one’s “twin” or doppelganger selves existing in an alternate universe (reality) who is already “doing the thing or getting the thing” we desire,our visualization practices to manifest it  in our lives.

Quantum physics demonstrate properties of matter (which are actually waves) to include the fact that the universe splits into alternate realities whenever one or more outcome is possible.For instance,this means if there is a you who believes they will have difficulty passing tests or getting the job they want,there is another you who takes tests successfully and snags positions they find meaningful, fulfilling, and lucrative.

source : http://www.quantumjumping.com by Burt Goldman

With love and passion,
Amreish Siman

Managing Criticism

How does it feel when someone blames you?Usually,when someone blames you, you feel heavy, hurt or you become unhappy.You get hurt because you resist the blame.Outside you may not resist,but inside when you resist it hurts you.When someone blames you,you usually blame them back or put up a resistance inside yourself. 
A blame takes away some negative karma from you.If you understand this and don’t put up a resistance and feel happy about it, then your karma goes away.Outside you may resist, but inside if you don’t resist, and feel happy,“Oh, good, somebody is there to blame me and take some negative karma,”you will feel immediately lighter.The way to deal with blame is through patience and faith.Faith that truth will always triumph and things will get better. 

Whatever work you do,there will be someone to find fault.Keep working without losing your enthusiasm and spirit.A wise man by his very nature will keep doing good work.His attitude does not depend on someone’s praise or blame.To uplift your spirit and save your mind from blaming, you need to judge your company.Your company can pull you up or down. The company that drags you towards doubt, blame, complaints, anger, and desires is bad company. The company that pulls you up towards joy,enthusiasm,service,love,trust and is good.An ignorant person says, “Don’t blame me because it hurts me.” An enlightened one says “Don’t blame me because it might hurt you.” This is a beautiful point.Someone warns you not to blame them because it will hurt them and they will do something harmful to you out of revenge.On the other hand, an enlightened one asks not to blame because of compassion.Demand and blame destroy relationships.So,you should know how to praise others and uplift a situation instead of blaming or finding fault. Uplifting the other should be your commitment.Then you are the right person for anybody. Everybody will love you when you don’t hurt them intentionally. 
    You are not here to blame or criticise.Criticism can come from two kinds of people.When they are narrow-minded, then they criticize out of their ignorance or they really want to bring something good in you.If their criticism is coming from a space of improving you,thank them for their compassion.You can improve since their criticism makes you realise your mistake. If it is coming from a space of putting you down, be compassionate and just laugh at them. In either case, you do not have to worry about criticism. 

The great Indian Saint Kabir Das(right) has said that keep someone who criticises you close by, that will keep your house, your mind clean,without the need of soap and water. If everybody around keeps praising you, they may not show you your shortcomings. The people who criticize are authentic since they are pouring out their heart. You need to be able to give and take constructive criticism. An educated person will neither shy away from criticism nor will he shun the critique. The measure of your maturity depends on how you handle criticism. Ability to take criticism is a measure of one’s inner strength. 


source : The Art of Living by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

With love and passion,
Amreish Siman

Mindspark : Nanban

Nanban(2012)

Director : Shankar

Screenplay : Shankar,Madhavan Karky

Story : Rajkumar Hirani,Abhijat Joshi,Vidhu Vinod Chopra

Music : Harris Jayaraj

Cast : Vijay,Jiiva,Srikanth,Sathyaraj,Satyhan,Ileana,S.J Suryah

Language : Tamil

Distributor : Gemini Film Circuits

Running time : 188 minutes

Rating : PG-13

 '3 Idiots' is a masterpiece by all means and i’m proud of the fact that the film remains the highest grossing film in all of India to date and not some mindless rubbish masala.The biggest stars of that film is its story and screenplay,which should be the case with any movie being made out there,if you ask me.Rajkumar Hirani,with all goodwill and inspired talent that he possess, has managed to create an interesting and entertaining screenplay which can be readily adapted into any language anywhere in the world but being the box-office phenomenon and epitome of filmmaking excellence ‘3 Idiots’ was and still is,most filmmakers would shy away from the idea of remaking it in their respective native setting,fearing whether their take would match up to the original but one man instead rose up to the challenge and lapped it up like the pro he is...Shankar!!!!!!!!!!!

              It puzzled me at first of why a hugely successful director like him who NEVER made a film where he didn’t have full creative control over the screenplay would want to direct a remake,that too with a frame-by-frame approach?Come on people,its always been other directors imitating and emulating Shankar,not vice-versa,and most fail as that man has developed for himself a practically inimitable style of filmmaking.So why the paradigm shift with Nanban?The answers came bombarding my mind like rays from a plasma gun hitting a granite plate.That man felt very very close to the film,from my POV,it appealed to him personally in a big way,that’s why!!!!!Now  what makes me say this?Consider  these points/trivia :-

1)     1 )  The core theme or message in ‘3 Idiots’ is about pursuing one’s PASSION, make a living and carving a career out of their heart’s desire.Strive for excellence,never settle for less and success will follow suit.Shankar is a famous living example of this adage as each of his films is made with a penchant for excellence(and he never settles for less,if he needs Rs165 crore to make a movie the way its SHOULD ME MADE,then Rs165 crore it is or else forget about it,Mr.Producer !)

2)    2) The setting of the film is at an engineering college(IEC).Shankar himself is an engineering undergraduate with a Diploma in Mechanical Engineering.I strongly believed that he identified very closely  with Madhavan’s character in the original-engineering student with his heart elsewhere,wildlife photography,to be precise.In Shankar’s case,its obviously filmmaking (which also brings another revered filmmaker to mind,also a Mechanical Engineering graduate,also made wildlife photography the passion of his protagonist in his film,its none other than the genius dude Selvaraghavan with his recent masterpiece ‘ Mayakkam Enna’.J)Another one on the “Mech.Eng list’ is Gautam Vasudev Menon,and ehem..there’s also another ‘in the making’..hehe..err..nevermind,we leave that aside now !:p

3)      3) Another core message of the film is OPTIMISM,with Aamir Khan’s Rancho/Phunsukh as the torchbearer of the adage ‘All Is Well’.All of Shankar’s film are highly optimistic,from Gentlemen to Endhiran,never has he made a film without the protagonist’s grand triumph in the finale.And since he also wrote the screenplay of almost all of his films,its clear that it reflects his own values and attitude towards his career and life in general(hence ALL the box-office collections of his movies happens to WELL,very WELL in fact !)

4) 4) Shankar’s films has common thread-an everyman(or a group of everyman,like ‘Boys’ and this),sick of the injustice,incited on a personal level, rising up the challenge to seek justice and then triumphantly revolutionises the society ).Despite the absence of the towering heroism or super-underdog set against a gross malaise or decay of the society,’3 Idiots’ effectively highlights the ill-driven education system in India(also most parts of Asia,especially) which is obsessed with results with its ‘by-the-book’ approach of education,completely ignoring the creative freedom of learning.Also,the film endearingly portrays the dilemma of most Asian societies with their highly-biased perception  on the idea of ‘ideal career or profession’,i call it the EML(Engineering,Medicine&Law) syndrome.For Shankar,the character of Ranchodas Chanchad perfectly fits the bill of his ‘grand protagonist’ ,albeit in a subtle but definitely powerful manner.

                 Having said all that,i must reiterate that whatever i wrote above is my personal perception of why Shankar chose to remake this film especially amongst hundreds of other Hindi blockbusters.Of course,its also obvious why,of all directors,with dudes like M.Raja around,who’s famous for making remakes didn’t take up the challenge even with the awareness that they already have a winning screenplay capable of winning millions of hearts.Why?Its simple.It takes a local giant to remake a fellow giant.What’s fortunate is that on top of the undisputable box-office track record that Shankar holds,he coincidentally happens to be the best man for the job(based on my trivia above!).One of the hallmarks of a great director is his/her critical judgement on casting and despite my initial doubts of Shankar’s choices of actors for ‘Nanban’,i walked out of the cinema with a smile and felt that all the choices he made was fully justified.Vijay actually suited the role perfectly,something which didn’t strike a chord with me the first time i came to know that its him who’s gonna fill Aamir’s Khan’s shoes.All i can i say is that Vijay lived up to his title of ‘Ilaya Thalapathy’,well,its a youth-oriented subject,speaking from a director/producer point of view ,in terms of marketability factor,there can be no wiser choice than to cast the local ‘Godfather Of Youths’(who really looks believably young considering his age) in the hugely positive and impactful main role which he justified the best he could.As for Srikanth,he also kept up,but didn’t quite match up to Madhavan’s take in the original whereas Jiiva fared much better,i would say as well,sometimes even better at times to Sharman Joshi in his role.Satyaraj,being the excellent character actor he is,did a fantastic job as the Tamil Virus.Special praise must go to Satyan as he really gave one of his best performances of his career as Silencer.As for Ileana,she did what she could matching Kareena’s performance expression by expression just like the film itself remade carefully frame by frame.Of course i enjoyed the cameo by S.J Suryah,it was a delight to see him with his over-the-top histrionics on screen again

                As for other aspects,a Shankar’s film is not complete without his trademark lavish song picturizations,which sets him a notch higher than his contemporaries in this department.And for the rest,cinematography,music,art direction and editing is typically what you can expect from a Shankar’s film,rarely disappointing.All in all,all is well...hahaha..to be honest,with all these elements in place,its very hard to go wrong ,and thankfully,it never does.In a nutshell,its definitely a welcoming breeze of fresh air for Tamil filmgoers who haven’t watched ‘3 Idiots’ and a nostalgic trip down memory lane for those who have,only its in their local flavour.Go watch it and get inspired people !

From the heart with love and passion,
Amreish Siman