Two men kiss in Rules: Pyaar Ka Superhit Formula but there is no hoopla about it. One speaks movingly about love and the price he has paid for daring to desire another man. Even though their story is a side-bar in the film, it is fleshed out and quietly effective.

FRESH FEEL: Soman (left) has a tailor-made role

Parvati Balagopalan makes an invigorating debut with Rules. The film rewrites Bollywood conventions. The story, loosely inspired by Love in Shimla, is standard issue candy floss. A plain Jane photographer's assistant, Radha, is mind-bendingly infatuated with a gorgeous model, who naturally hasn't noticed that she exists. Enter Radha's street-smart grandmom who gives her a quick lesson on how to hook the man of her dreams.

Occasionally, the film's energy flags but the performances are good-from Tanuja's wily matriarch (at one point, she checks out Soman and says, 'What a body') to Vasudevan's vulnerably attractive ingénue to Soman, who of course has a tailor-made role. Like first love, Rules feels fresh and mostly fun.

— Anupama Chopra

"I love keeping the team in splits"

There are many sides to Brett Lee. When the Australian fast bowler is not strumming the guitar for his rock band Six and Out, he finds the time to design an eponymous clothing line for men. On a recent visit to India, he shows why he is called the joker of the team.

Q. John Buchanan says you're the joker of the pack.
A. I love keeping the team in splits but Glenn McGrath is funny too. When I was making my Test debut against India, he said, 'Welcome to Test cricket.' I thought he was really being nice until I keeled over. He had tied my bootlaces together.

Q. What are your views on sledging?
A. I don't see anything wrong with asking the batsman what he had for dinner last night. We may indulge in banter on the field but we're all great mates off it.

Q. Where did you learn Hindi?
A. I thought it would be useful to understand all the chatter going on when we play India and Pakistan. I asked my Indian and Pakistani mates back home to teach me. Rest assured, I know a lot more than jaldi and shukriya.

Q. Do you frequently indulge in text messaging?
A. I know why you are asking this one! I only send text messages to my mum and dad.

— Anjali Doshi

HARI OM TATSAT By Jagjit Singh Universal, Rs. 40

Rarely does one find websites dedicated to instruments and that too rare ones like santoor. Which is why www.santoor.org is a step in the right direction. The site features Pandit Bhajan Sopori, one of the few musicians to have consistently visited Kashmir and performed there in an earnest bid to revive the tradition of Indian classical music in the militancy-scarred region. The website gives details about the santoor and the Sufiana Gharana to which Sopori belongs. It is a visually and content- rich site.

Jagjit Singh is a genius in the sense that he has not restricted himself to singing ghazals or composing film music. He always experiments with sounds and rhythms even in bhajans. His new album Hari Om Tatsat features a mahamantra in praise of Lord Vishnu and his various forms and it has been set to bhajan style. The music has been composed by Arshad Ahmed and lyrics penned by Pandit Kiran Mishra. Singh's voice has the ability to soothe frayed nerves. Ideal to begin the day with.

— S. Sahaya Ranjit