Good Asian Dramas

They say there are two types of people. Type One- The live to eat  Type Two- The eat to live ones. The foodies are always looking for something new on their platter. If you are into K-dramas you might have observed importance of food in their culture and must be craving for some of it. So let us dig into some of the major ones that we encounter often in the dramas! 1. Tteokbokki The chewy rice cakes shaped in cylinder and dipped in sweet and spicy sauce is the must have in typical high-school drama. I am sure many of us would have tried to find it in local restaurant as it really looks very delicious. Apparently this dish originated in Joseon dynasty. So pretty classical I must say.   2. Jajangmyeon This is typical take-away or delivery item in the K-drama land. This black bean noodle dish is cheap and convenient option that can be ordered easily. So it is must have for busy people like students, tired workers or anyone in need of quick and filling meal. The dish finds i

Do you like Messi? Don't ask this question when you start liking someone! You need to watch this drama to understand the joke. This is one of those dramas which I had kept ignoring forever. Now that I have watched it, I wonder why did I do that?  If I can describe it two words it shall be- ' Criminally Underrated'!! It is a sport drama which deals with everyday lives of students from athlete college. Kim Bok-Joo is a weightlifter. Her father and uncle run chicken shop. They are very supportive of Bok-Joo and always encourage her to pursue her dreams. Bok-Joo has kind and outgoing personality and has two best friends. On the other hand Joon Hyung is in swimming team. He suffers from trauma that causes him to false start during a tournament. Therefore, although very talented, he needs to overcome this psychological barrier to be able to win competitions again.  Bok-Joo and Joon Hyung were childhood friends but they do not recognize each other at the start. That is because he

.... The first thought that comes to our mind about Taiwan is of course bubble tea! Second one might be electronics goods and the mighty Taipei tower. We all know that Korean dramas dominate the world of Asian Dramas. They have evolved so much in past few years handling different genres. But there is lot more to explore if you look around. If you have been following Asian dramas for a while you must have encountered few dramas from Taiwan. There are quite good numbers of T-dramas to watch once you are past language barrier and difficulty in remembering names. Here is the list of few I have come across so far. 1. Meteor Garden This is based on classic  Hana Yori Dango /Boys Over Flower . There is a group of four boys from rich families who consider bullying other schoolmates for entertainment. In that school arrives female protagonist from humble background who gets into the trouble with them. You might have already watched Korean remake of the same.   Positives: The story is closer to

In this drama, the female lead is not disguised in men's attire for a change! There is something charming about historical dramas. They have the ability to take you back in the time. The palaces, the inner court, the Pyehas, servants, Crown prince, Dowager and the evil ministers. On the flip side these dramas can often be very heavy in plots reasons being schemes for power struggles, wars and the consequent bloodbath! So if you want to enjoy the beauty of historical dramas without all these heavy elements then let me suggest a drama that I stumbled upon recently- " Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung" Have you ever wondered in olden times how they used to keep track of everything happening around? Of course there was no Twitter or Facebook or internet for that matter. There were special people called 'Historians' whose job was to write down everything happening around them. This drama focuses on role of historians, importance of education and censorship in

What is something that every drama lover is afraid of? Yes! The dreaded ' Drama Slump ' For many of us watching dramas is not just a form of entertainment. Some treat it is as an escape from reality, some seek emotional comfort and many find it therapeutic. As we ride along the drama wave in a full speed one day out of nowhere we totally lose interest. That is commonly termed as 'Drama Slump'. It can be rephrased as not able to find anything that piques your sustained interest. Let's analyze how this Slump Cycle works and how to get out of it. Causes and Symptoms You have binge watched an entire drama on weekend. It was an awesome drama and you are still not able to get out of it. You started watching too many dramas together. In this case you can't feel any connection to any of those. You heard/read spoiler and you didn't like it. If the things are not going as per our wish then why bother wasting time? Sounds familiar? Many of us are guilty of doi

When you witness a crime but you don't know you have witnessed the crime but criminal feels that you have. He does't know that you don't know he knows. Okay! Enough of this ' They don't know you know they know ' stuff! ( I admit I am a big time "friends' fan) Now back to the story.  Who doesn't love crime, suspense, court room drama with a pinch of romance (and very hot Ji Chang Wook)? Bong Hee (Nam Ji Hyun) is struggling trainee prosecutor who comes to know that her boyfriend is cheating on her. Angry yet helpless, all she could do is to curse him death every time they pass by each other. And to her surprise on one fated night, he is found murdered in her apartment! She becomes the a prime suspect. To add to her misery, the prosecutor for this case is Noh Ji Wook (Ji Chang Wook) under whom she is undergoing her training.  He is the topper from the office in list of 'the worst prosecutor'. He is disliked by everyone- his

There are 3 dramas in 'Reply' series. I have watched only 1988 version, TWICE. Let me tell you, every episode is almost 1.5 hours yet I have no regrets. As the name suggests this series takes place in the year 1988. It is story of five childhood friends and their families living in Ssangmun-dong neighborhood of Seoul. Duk seon is the only girl in the group of five. Sun Woo is student council president. Jung-Hwan is from rich family. Choi Taek is brilliant Baduk player who has left school to focus on his game. Dong Ryong is mischievous and has no interest in studies. These friends often hang out in Taek's room, dancing, arguing, eating pizza and ramen, watching video tapes. The drama shows daily life and struggles of everyone and how their friendship changes subtly over the course of time. It also has second set of characters-the parents and the siblings. They are also equal part of the drama. The cinematography is really good. If you are 90's kid then you