Back to gyming, back to life, back to up beatness, back to conquering the world feel, back to spring in the voice and back to back-to-back movies. ‘Shawshank Redemption’ - why did I not see this wonderful movie before and ‘GodFather II’. I had always thought it to be the weakest of the trilogy, but NOOOOO .. understood it better than ever before and simply loved it for the nth time !!

Strutting about the house as though the theme music of GF playing in the background. Some terrific moments in the film. And did you think that Al Pacino actually slapped Dianne Keaton in the abortion scene. I think he did. With Lee Strasbourg around, maybe Al dearest took his method acting a bit too seriously. But it was the moments of silence that captivated. They always do. They are the moments that define the caliber of a director. The confidence that they exhibit, by holding a scene where nothing is happening, or seems to be happening. And Pacino’s stark controlled look throughout moments of deep contemplation, simply outstanding !

Some days back I had mentioned about that Indian spy that had been imprisoned in Pakistan and how my Father  had worked towards getting him free. Well the family came in from Ferozepur today to meet and express personal thanks for the deed. They were unable to meet my Father and they just had to convey their gratitude to me, so I met them. They had brought along the original letters of my Father and left me copies of them and it was so beautiful to being in the company of my Father’s hand written post cards and letters. One could almost feel his presence there as I opened them and read them. And today we lament those moments when we received our letters through the post. The joy of anticipation. The anxiety of what it would contain. The anxious wait for the ring of the postmans bicycle bell announcing his arrival. That quiet corner that you chose to occupy as you gently opened the envelope not wanting to destroy even the foldings. Going through the contents, reading and re reading them. Putting them away in special boxes or drawers which remained private and personal. Re visiting them at short intervals and imagining the senders sentiments. Those were glorious days. Nowadays a rushed cryptic sms, or Bberry message and at the most an email, which never could match the ink and pen efforts. Immediacy and speed has taken away the romance from letter writing. It has also taken away the confidentiality and personal attributes from the medium. The world now reads and expresses instantly every 140 characters that one tweets. Yes we have gained in connecting rapidly, but I think lost that very elusive quality that letter writing demanded.

And yes … today met up with FmXt  from Egypt Jyoti Miglani along with her husband Dhruv and her son, who were visiting Mumbai just to meet up and go back to Delhi and Faridabad. She had never been to Mumbai ever before and to have made this trip just to meet me was indeed most caring and generous. So touched.

Oh dear !! Some of the problems that we face when we have seen something as inspiring as the Godfather is the desire to never come out of it. Somehow you wish that it simply carried on. That events continued to flow. That we got an opportunity to see what more took place in the lives of this family called Corleone. You feel reluctant to keep away from it. I guess that is the classic film then. One that involves you to an extent when it would be difficult to leave it and move away. You wish somehow that you could be a part of that atmosphere, that house, that family, to share and live with them their lives. Amazing is it not to feel so strongly for film ?

Its the birthday today of late Yash Johar, father of Karan Johar, founder of Dharma Productions, and one of the finest gentlemen in the film industry. Many may not know but he started his production company with Dostana, the original with me. Then went on to make Agnipath also. Loved by all, considerate and caring to everyone’s needs. Lending a helping hand without even being asked to and one that reached out to everyone. We remember you fondly Yash ji and send our thoughts and prayers to the family.

Love to all and more to come …

Amitabh Bachchan