My first Drama Review .

I generally don't write cinema critics not only for my very lack of knowledge ,,more importantly unless until "this show (or at least trailer) " satisfy me or otherwise circumstances are so hard,-that to refresh I watch it . This week has a very hectic calender to most of all Indian journalists & on 22nd July trust vote will follow. In the mean time I enjoy a Russian movie :Alexander Sokurov's drama about a Russian soldier in Chechnya who is visited by his grandmother.
Genre Type: Drama
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MPAA Rating: NR
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Starring: Galina Vishnevskaya, Vasily Shevtsov, Raisa Gichaeva
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Director: Aleksandr Sokurov
The question is not what filmmaker Alexander Sokurov's deliberately paced drama, set during the second Chechen war, looks like, but what it smells like.The answer? Guns, iron and men.That's what Russian army officer Denis Kazakov (Vasily Shevtsov) identifies as the strange odor coming from the inside of a tanklike vehicle he's showing to his visiting grandmother (opera legend Galina Vishnevskaya in the title role), who has just arrived at his camp in Chechnya. As visualized by Sokurov ("Russian Ark"), the scene is so redolent of dusty, olive-drab metal, sweat and oily gun rags that you can practically smell it coming off the screen. The tension, therefore, that is introduced by the almost absurd presence of this silver-haired little old lady among the male-dominated culture is exquisite, if not exactly epic.On her second day in camp, Alexandra shakes off her military minders and wanders into the nearby town market, where she's greeted by the mostly Muslim population with reactions ranging from the outright hostility of a teenage boy to the open arms of Malika (Raisa Gichaeva), a local woman who invites the heroine back to her apartment for tea and conversation.Speaking of conversation, "Alexandra" is pretty chatty for a war movie.That's because it's not one. Not really. Although guns can often be heard firing in the distance, the violence is limited to dirty looks and references to how many people Denis has had to shoot.The frequent, mundane talks -- which Alexandra engages in with her grandson, Malika and the base camp's enlisted men -- are not so much about politics as they are about people. At the same time that they underscore the gulfs between the young and the old, between men and women, between civilians and soldiers, and between Russians and Chechens, they highlight the common humanity of these groups with a touch that is both delicate and devastating

Nuclear Deal

Jammu, Jul 18 (PTI) Strongly backing the controversial Indo-US nuclear deal, Union Water Resources Minister Saifuddin Soz today said it will help the country generate more power to meet its energy needs."By signing the deal, India will get access to clean nuclear fuel. It will help us to generate enough power to meet the requirements of the country," said Soz who is also the President of Jammu and Kashmir Congress."Most of the electricity in the country is generated through coal, but generation of power through nuclear fuel would enable us to get clean and enough supply of power," he said while addressing the JKPCC convention here.Yesterday, Congress president Sonia Gandhi took the deal to the people's court and said that the deal will help generate more power.Gandhi, addressing a rally in Nellore yesterday, had attacked the opponents of the deal, saying that the party does "not need any certificate from anyone on patriotism and national interests." Soz said India is the only nation which has been offered such a deal despite having tested nuclear weapons twice earlier."India is a proven nuclear power but a responsible democratic government which has such nuclear weapons not to use to attack others but only as a deterrent," Soz said."We are soon going to sign the agreement on the nuclear deal in the interests of the people of the nation," he said and asked his party workers to carry this message throughout the state.Referring to the power crisis in Jammu province, the Union Minister said that he had already taken up the matter with the officials concerned and the Haryana Government. PTI
India will brief representatives of a total of 54 countries from the IAEA Board of Governors and the NSG on the safeguards agreement of the Indo-US nuclear deal on Friday. Twenty-six of the 54 member nations are part of both the IAEA and the NSG. The briefing - to be conducted by Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon - is an Indian initiative and not taking place at the IAEA premises in Vienna. The presentation will try to explain: The importance of the deal for an energy-hungry India. India not being a signatory to the NPT, will also try to allay fears of nuclear proliferation. Controversial elements in the safeguards agreement are also likely to come up. Especially references to India's unspecified right to 'corrective measure' in the event of a disruption of fuel supplies. India will also try to make a subtle pitch to NSG countries for future nuclear trade. Menon will be helped in the task by a top official of the Department of Atomic Energy, R B Grover, India's permanent envoy to the IAEA, Saurabh Kumar and the MEA's negotiator on the agreement, Venkatesh Varma. A safeguards agreement approved by the IAEA's board is necessary for India to amend the rules of global nuclear commerce determined by the NSG. The board is scheduled to meet on 1 Aug to take a decision on the safeguards agreement. IANS correspondent in Vienna Mehru Jaffer spoke with CNN-IBN early on Friday morning and below is her analysis: “What India has to convince the 35 board of governors of IAEA is that it will continue to use the technology that it buys USA & the other suppliers countries in a responsible way. The concern is that India has promises to open up only 14 of its for IAEA inspection, what about the other six? There are skeptics with the board of governors there are member who jealously are for non proliferation and they are very concerned that it is a 100 per cent safeguards draft, how are they going to monitor the nuclear technology and what India buys will not be diverted from civilian use to its military.”