Shiva Ram

Aiming high.. flying low

[Sudhir Srinivasan @sudhirsrinivasn]

Many, many thoughts on Balan: The Boy
(possible spoilers)
______

In Balan: The Boy, you spend an entire first half following a mother and her son, watching them drift from place to place, drop identities like clothes, until that heartbreaking interval when they get separated. When the second half begins, of course, you'd expect to remain with one of them. Instead, like society that has abandoned them in unexpected ways, director Chidambaram lets them go. He shows us a police station, a potentially dangerous policeman, and his relationship with a constable. It almost feels like you're now watching an entirely different film. The film, you see, is as nomadic as its main characters. The mother and son live in a world of sudden exits, of unreliable shelters and short relationships. It's so cool that the storytelling has this same restless rhythm.

We’ve seen films about people running from abuse, violence and suffering. What Chidambaram’s film beautifully captures is the tragedy of people running from love as well, and how inevitable this is for people who have been permanently damaged by violence. When those who are supposed to protect you cause you the deepest wounds (the boy’s father, the policeman, and to a certain extent, Tovino's character too), you begin to believe that stillness is dangerous, and worse, human company cannot be trusted. Attachment becomes synonymous with threat. That’s why the mother runs when the tea-shop owner offers her a home. That’s why she gets ready to leave again when her anonymity gets compromised at the grandmother’s estate. She truly has internalised the tragic conclusion that love results in captivity. I suppose every relationship does demand a kind of surrender.

It’s a film of extraordinary sensitivity and craft. One of my favourite images feels straight out of a painting: the mother and son lying together on a bed with a gun beside them. Isn't this such a fantastic visual summary of their existence? The weapon is a shield, yes, but it is apparently a more reliable companion to them than another human. Interestingly, the old woman comes closest to becoming part of their tiny family. And yet, it is only after her death that mother and son finally allow themselves to stretch out on that bed and rest. Better a gun than even a gentle old woman, it seems.

Balan: The Boy spoke to me about imprisonment, and about the extreme lengths some go to avoid being captured. The film has a wild soul, and I have always harboured a tender spot for wildness. The mother’s retelling of her past is beautifully designed to be a fucked-up fable. The film itself unfolds like that story: a mother and child moving through people and places, collecting strangers as they go. I know this idea sounds like some romantic road movie. But no, no. Chidambaram treats this as a dark thriller, and this is because society remains uncomfortable with those who refuse to conform. Think about it: even identity is a compromise in exchange for safety and security. I loved that these two remain nameless till the end.

In many ways, this film feels like the opposite of Chidambaram’s previous work, Manjummel Boys. There, the frames were crowded with people, with friendship, with positive sentiment. The landscape itself sometimes seemed more important than the individuals. Here, everything is intimate. Painfully close. In that film, a group comes together to save someone. Here, the main characters refuse to be saved.

Some close-ups are truly breathtaking. The eyes of the boy. The eyes of his mother. There is so much life in them, so much damage. They reveal pasts that dialogue never needs to explain. The gorgeously atmospheric music by Sushin Shyam certainly helps. I found myself gasping at certain editing choices too. A shot of the ocean at the beginning tells you so much about the mother and the child even before you know what they've done. Another stunning moment arrives when Abbas, played magnificently by Tovino Thomas, falls asleep after making a promise to the boy and wakes the following morning, when we see that the child has now become a teenager. This creative choice tells us so much more than any montage might have.

Just like the mother and son, the film too refuses to conform. Characters arrive and disappear. Some never return. The narrative goes wherever it wishes. The film casually shares information, allowing meaning to organically emerge later. A bank robbery is mentioned almost in passing, only for you to connect the dots once Abbas comes in. The grandmother casually tells us that the boy enters school through a back entrance, and when we later watch him quietly use that route, the moment feels surprisingly emotional.

Balan: The Boy feels breathtakingly fresh. A woman at its centre who won't seem like a victim. A child who never cries, even though he should all the time. A narrative that moves across people, places and time like a happy nomad. This is a film rich in ideas, feeling, and cinematic novelty. If I had a reservation at all, I think it would be about the Pavithran character, and how his revenge feels too extreme for this deeply nuanced film.

But this is a tiny complaint about a work of tremendous ambition and emotional power. This film in speaking about two damaged people, doesn't ask whether they can be fixed or rescued. Instead, it asks whether people can be so afraid of being trapped that they see every refuge as a trap, every person as a threat? That's the kind of nuance that makes Balan: The Boy the best film I've seen all year.

[Shiva Ram @Shiv_aur_ram]

This is what smartbuy has mailed two times asking me for 6 months bank statement in spite of me calling out why that is a ridiculous request. @HDFCBank_Cares @HDFC_Bank

[Shiva Ram @Shiv_aur_ram]

@HDFC_Bank @HDFCBank_Cares when a customer asks for refund not being deposited, it is almost comical that you want the full 6 months bank statement to raise issue. Who in their right mind shares 6 months bank statement for refund update?

[Rohan Paul @rohanpaul_ai]

This is that original MIT report that said 95% of AI pilots fail and which spooked investors across US Stockmarket.

The reports says, most companies are stuck, because 95% of GenAI pilots produce zero ROI, while a small 5% win by using systems that learn, plug into real workflows, and improve with use.

Teams keep buying or building static tools that demo well but cannot remember context, adapt, or fit daily operations, and this report maps exactly how the few winners do it differently.

🧪 How they ran the study

They combined a review of 300+ public implementations with 52 structured interviews and 153 senior‑leader surveys across January to June 2025, which gives the patterns below real footing.

🧵 Read on 👇

[John Mcguire @GhostofArtBell]

As someone who recently retired from Manufacturing I can already tell you because I've run facilities who have run and setup facilities in tandem in the US and China

You would FAIL in the US , mostly because of shipping and packaging. COULD I setup a line that stamps out toasters 100% - Could I keep the cost to around $10 - $15 even with a D2C model Maybe ( Assuming I don't need a chip, just a heat sensor / timer ) However back of the napkin math puts me at $20-$25 but I could upsell a MADE IN USA story- could I package and ship it anywhere in the US for $4 ? NO NO NO. Shipping and packaging would cost at least $8.00 and that assumes substantial existing transport volume

The hidden issue in the US facing many companies is the fact that Chinese outfits thru direct fraud ship whatever they want in the United States for FREE

Google TECHNICAL / WATER labels

The other issues are simply sourcing, The copper wire and heat coils and flat metal would need to be sourced - assuming 10m in startup capital - you aren't setting up a foundry with that money - However you could setup a line of automated stamping ( metal box ) and injection molding ( the case , knobs, etc, )

However kind of funny, with a 10m budget 100% of that automation equipment would have to come from CHINA -
The most cost effective partial and fully automated production equipment comes from china. In my experience your looking at a 10x price difference .

And in my experience MANY of the "manufactures" of automation equipment in the USA don't actually MAKE 100% of the equipment - they simply improve on equipment they import from China. Basically they find the weak design points of Chinese made equipment and harden those areas - ie put in GOOD bolts, good mountings, actually think about OSHA and UL, Convert power supplies to US standards, that sort of thing.

Chinese made automation equipment does work - but they have really strange weak points

[Shiva Ram @Shiv_aur_ram]

@SanjayY38289627 Yes! This is what I am talking about. Also what about pre existing diseases which has crossed the waiting period.

[Shiva Ram @Shiv_aur_ram]

This post has no context on his to avoid rejection during porting of policy. Anyone has a clue?

[Nikhil Jha @NIKHILLJHA]

Sum Insured=10L
Claim Amount=3L

Policy Ported in Oct'2024,
Cancer detected in Nov 2024,

Lodged a claim with Niva Bupa,
Niva Bupa rejected the claim and canceled the policy citing non disclosure,😭😭

The ported policy was 5 years old!🤯🤯

A thread🧵on claim rejection due to portability and how to avoid it?👇

[Shiva Ram @Shiv_aur_ram]

@NIKHILLJHA Sure. I didn't find it. So my opinion still remains the same.

[Shiva Ram @Shiv_aur_ram]

@NIKHILLJHA Again. Not mentioned in your thread.

[Shiva Ram @Shiv_aur_ram]

@NIKHILLJHA Sorry. Your thread covers all the things to do right when policy is to be taken first time including moratorium period, declarations, etc. Not when policy is ported. Can stand corrected if you guide me to the post where you mention the same.

[Shiva Ram @Shiv_aur_ram]

@rag_anurag_ki Nice. 52 investments in a MF or 52 MF portfolios? Would be surprised if it is the latter.

[Shiva Ram @Shiv_aur_ram]

There is a Vadivelu meme for all situations!

[Narundar @NarundarM]

L&T CEO reaching his home after saying, "How long can you stare at your wife?"

[Shiva Ram @Shiv_aur_ram]

The issue is with your integrations how can I check who is at issue here. The same card when presented for manual payment goes through successfully.

[Shiva Ram @Shiv_aur_ram]

@netflix @NetflixIndia @HDFCBank_Cares There is an issue with auto payments happening on your account where account is going on hold in spite of card being active. Your customer service reps are useless with each one asking to check with the other.

[Shiva Ram @Shiv_aur_ram]

Mind-blowing movie. Can't imagine such a simple setting but so intense cinema. #KishkindhaKaandam

[Shiva Ram @Shiv_aur_ram]

@ActusDei Also isn't NPS contribution from company not part of taxable income? So it becomes Exempt at the time of making the investment and Exempt from the appreciation of investment. It is not exempt only at the time of withdrawal in the EEE norms like PPF.

[Shiva Ram @Shiv_aur_ram]

This is so unfair. @Swiggy I am moving away from ordering if this is how you treat these delivery personnel. How do you come up with these things?

[Varsha Bansal @VarshaaBansal]

NEW: Swiggy has gamified health insurance for its food delivery workers. Divided into gold, silver & bronze, their insurance changes weekly as per the category they fall under that week based on the points earned.

My latest for @restofworld: https://t.co/KVufjdUXAi

[Older, Wiser, Happier @thathappydad]

Longish 🧵but my anguish is genuine.

In my lifetime, I have seen the political map of India change radically. Creation of 11 new states, from Gujarat to Telangana. Liberation of Goa, annexation of Sikkim, upgrading UTs to states, break-up of a state into 3 UTs.
1/n

[Kedar Anil Gadgil @KedarAnilGadgil]

As someone on whose late brother (Flt Lt Abhijit Gadgil) and mother (Kavita Gadgil) the film (Rang De Basanti) was based, I can assure you that during our entire fight with the government (ABV as PM) to restore my brother's honour, not once were we ever called anti-nationals.

[शिक्षित बेरोज़गार @kaul_vivek]

Everybody loves a good story, don’t let data spoil it

Real GDP growth during 2023-24 is expected to be at 7.3%, which is pretty good. But private consumption expenditure, which forms about 60% of the GDP, is expected to grow only 4.4%.

Other than the pandemic year of 2020-21, when private consumption contracted by 5.2%, this is the slowest growth since 2002-3, when it had grown 2.9%.

There has barely been a mention of consumption growing at its slowest pace in 21 years.

As India marches toward becoming a $30 trillion, $40 trillion, $60 trillion economy, the stock market rises higher and higher, and real estate prices go way beyond what even the middle class can afford, people aren’t really interested in the devil in detail.

It hampers the stories that they are being told and the stories that, in turn, they are telling themselves. Everybody loves a good story, nobody wants data to spoil it.

My column in the Deccan Herald.

https://t.co/nOXM89c4vK