Agneepath – No Fire in This One
Agneepath, Agneepath…! The lines from the famous poem written by the late Harivanshrai Bachchan, the father of the “Superstar of the Millennium”, Amitabh Bachchan. Agneepath – the first film to come out of Dharma Productions, the film that fetched Amitabh Bachchan his first and only National Award, the film, which over the years has achieved a cult status, thanks to the Superstar’s fabulous portrayal of “Vijay Dinanath Chavan”, aye!
It was Yash Johar who produced this film in 1990 with the creative Mukul S. Anand at the helm. 22 years later, it is his son Karan Johar who remakes this film with the debutante director Karan Malhotra. So, how good is this attempt? Let me remind you that the original Agneepath didn’t fetch many rewards but awards.
First things first, this film is not a scene-to-scene remake of the original. Not all the original characters are reatined, and director Karan Malhotra reworked on the original script to cater to the audiences of 2012. And to be honest, the script actually falls flat, and leaves the audience with an incomplete experience.
The Story
Agneepath is a revenge drama. Vijay Dinanath Chavan, son of Master Dinanath Chavan are a happy family (including his mother) residing in Mandva, a small island, a little distance away from Mumbai. Master Dinanath is a well respected person in the village, as he works for the welfare of its residents by producing salt. Enters Kancha Cheena, son of the Zameendar of Mandva, who not only has an evil look but also evil ideas. Kancha finds out that the soil of Mandva is fertile enough to grow cocaine. So, he lures the villagers to submit their lands on a lease basis to him for he would set up a salt factory, and the villagers would profit from the factory. Master Dinanath, tells the villagers to not submit their lands to Kancha, for they could permanently lose them. Kancha plots an evil plan to get rid of Master Dinanath and eventually kills him with the little Vijay watching him. Vijay and his mother leave Mandva and come to Mumbai, and all Vijay wants now is to avenge his father’s death. The rest of the story is how gets his revenge over Kancha.
Performances
Hrithik Roshan as Vijay Dinanath Chavan is good, though not great. The director failed to extract the intensity that the character demands. Although I hate to compare his performance with Amitabh’s in the original, I would have to say the emotions that Amitabh portrayed in his character are missing in the adaptation. But nevertheless, Hrithik gives a wholehearted performance.
Sanjay Dutt as Kancha Cheena looks frightening for sure. But, his performance is somehow incomplete. Although he utters a few funny lines in pure Hindi, his characterization is flawed. Though he is a perfect match to Hrithik, as far as their muscles go, performance wise, the audience are left wanting.
Rishi Kapoor as Rauf Lala, well he is the surprise package! We all adore Rishi Kapoor for his acting skills but, in this one he plays a perfect bad guy and he just excels in this role of the ‘kasai’, and we are just going to end up admiring his acting skills even more. If for anything, you would have to watch Agneepath just for his performance.
Priyanka Chopra, who plays Kali doesn’t have a substantial role but plays her part with ease. Zarina Wahab as Hrithik’s mother is OK. Arish Bhiwandiwala, the boy who played the little Vijay Dinanath Chavan is very good. Om Puri as commisioner Gaitonde is fabulous.
Music doesn’t have a big part to play in the film. Although the background score by Ajay-Atul suits the bill. Cinematography by Kiran Deohans and Ravi K.Chandran is very good. Editing could have been a bit crispier as the runtime of the film is a little long. Screenplay by Karan Malhotra and Ila Dutta Bedi could have been better. Nothing new in the action department by Abbas Ali Moghul. Dialogues by Piyush Mishra need a special mention. The production values are very good.
This Agneepath has a couple of good performances by Hrithik and Rishi Kapoor that will leave the audiences awestruck, but the film falls flat as far as the content is concerned. The high that the original hits with regards to its emotions are amiss in the adaptation. But this one is going to be a money spinner for sure, thanks to the extensive promotion and ‘Chikni Chameli’.
A one-time watch, and do not go wanting to watch Big B reincarnated.
Don 2 at the box office!
As reported earlier, Shah Rukh Khan’s much awaited action thriller “Don 2: The King Is Back” has opened to an awesome collection of over Rs.48 crore.
Thanking his fans for making the film a hit, director Farhan Akthar writes, “Thank you all.. our film has taken a super start and your support has everything to do with it… Thanks for the incredible feedback on the film. We’re glad to have entertained you… Do keep it coming…,”
The film was shot in exotic locations in Malaysia and Germany and was made on a budget of about Rs.75 crore. Earning around Rs.15.30 crore on Friday, Rs.15.09 crore on Saturday and approximately Rs.18 crore Sunday, making a grand total of Rs.48.39 crore, the film is on it’s way to become a hit.
“We are very happy with the response that the film has got so far in domestic as well as international markets. It has had a record opening on a non-holiday Friday and the word of mouth response is also good,” Reliance Entertainment CEO Sanjeev Lamba said.
Did you watch the film?
Don 2 – Movie Review
How ironic but, everyone in India has been chewing on Ra.One and Shahrukh Khan ever since it hit the screens in October, and most people even wrote Shahrukh Khan off saying that he’s reaching the twilight of his stardom. But tell you what, “The king is back” – and this time he looks unstoppable. Don 2, Farhan Akhtar’s sequel to his own remake of Amitabh Bachchan’s ‘Don’ has the “Baadshah of Bollywood” back in the shoes of the “Bad Guy” – remember it was his performances in negative roles during the early part of his career that got everybody to notice Shahrukh. 5 years after his outing as Don, SRK is back with a bang, once again!
If one remembers well, when Don came out five years ago, it didn’t open to such a good response although it eventually ended up being a hit. Enacting a legendary character that was made so popular by the Big B and trying to remake the very popular original were huge risks. Farhan Akhtar though, added his own mark and style with a super twist in the climax to the original and SRK did the rest. So, Farhan had to make sure that the sequel also carries forward the style and the twists. One has to agree that Farhan Akhtar has pulled it off!
The story of Don 2 starts with where the first part ends, with Don narrating his story of how he’s become the king of the Asian drug market. Now Don has his eyes set on the European market but, the European drug lords do not want Don’s domination over them and try to have him killed. Don escapes the attempt, and devises his own plan to get rid of the European bosses. Farhan Akhtar made sure that the story had all the twists and thrills of a thriller on the lines of MI, Bourne and Bond. The film is a perfect thriller, and the audience are sure to have a blast.
If Shahrukh Khan is the one responsible for pulling you to the theatres, believe me, you are not going to be disappointed. He is a pure joy to watch on the screen. He just gets into the skin of the character and carries of all the various looks in the film with extreme finesse. His one liners, the way he walks, talks and laughs as Don – simply brilliant. Shahrukh exudes such panache while playing the bad guy that he makes us feel it is in fact good to be bad. Not only Sharukh Khan’s fans are in for a treat but, movie going audience are just going to love what this charismatic Supertsar is going to offer.
Priyanka Chopra does not have a big role to play but she does her bit well. The same goes to Lara Dutta but she does her bit decently. Boman Irani is back as Vardhan, and as always he delivers a brilliant performance. Om Puri is retained as Malik, but the veteran does not have a lot of scope for performance. Kunal Kapoor is alright. Hrithik Roshan makes a guest appearance, and I would not want to reveal as to why he comes, because that would be a spoiler. His tango with Priyanka Chopra is good.
The film belongs to Farhan Akhtar as much as it does to Shahrukh Khan. Farhan, who is also the writer of the film has done yet another marvellous job. His dialogues are simple yet cheesy and are sure going to tickle your funny bone. The first half sets the pace for the film and the second half just kicks off from there. Music by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy is alright, although there is only one song in the film. This was to make sure that there were no hindrances in the screenplay. Action sequences have been very stylishly choreographed. The camera work is fabulous and the editing is crisp. As is the case with all Farhan Akhtar’s films, the production values are outstanding.
This Christmas weekend, movie loving junta are sure to have a blast, thanks to Don 2 . “The King is Back”! Go for it.
Review by Sriram Boyanapally
The Dirty Picture – Review
First things first – kudos to the cast and crew for bringing out a film like this! ‘The Dirty Picture’ has all the ingredients of a commercial cinema to keep the audience engaged for 140 minutes, and believe me, it’s definitely not a biopic, and for sure the movie doesn’t feel like a documentary. The makers of the film wanted to accomplish three things with this film, which are – “entertainment, entertainment, entertainment”. Today’s audience wants entertainment, and the film just provides us with that.
Synopsis: As we already know, the film is inspired by the life of ‘Silk’ Smitha – the sex siren who rocked the south film industry during the eighties and the early nineties. Thus the name of the lead character in the film, ‘Silk’. But I believe the similarities just end here. Reshma aka ‘Silk’ is a girl from a small town in Tamil Nadu who runs off to Madras just before the day she is to get married to fulfill her ambition of becoming an actress. But as fate has it, she is unable to garner any opportunities of becoming a lead lady and ends up being a ‘sex siren’ and a ‘vamp’ in films. The rest of the story is about how her career reaches new heights and how it falls to unseen depths, as she becomes addicted to alcohol and begins to age.
Cast and Performances: The primary cast of the film includes names like Vidya Balan, Naseeruddin Shah, Emraan Hashmi and Tusshar Kapoor.
Naseeruddin Shah plays the role of a ‘Southern Superstar’ and he fits the bill perfectly. Tusshar Kapoor plays Nasseruddin Shah’s brother and a budding writer who falls for ‘Silk’. His character in the film is a very subtle one and he gels into his role well. Coming to Emraan Hashmi, one has to say that his acting only keeps improving. Emraan Hashmi’s voice plays a crucial role in the film as he is also narrating the story and his hatred for ‘Silk’. His encounters with Vidya Balan are simply superb.
But of all the cast, the credit definitely has to go the lead lady Vidya Balan. There was Parineeta, then was Ishqiya, then No One Killed Jessica and now it’s The Dirty Picture. One has to say that she’s gotta have guts to play such an audacious character that smokes, drinks, shows oodles of cleavage and utters filthy one-liners. Vidya Balan’s efforts have to be supremely appreciated for she manages to pull off everything that the character requires with supreme panache while not making it look vulgar. For those of you who were thinking that Vidya Balan was risking her career playing the role of ‘Silk’ and she doesn’t have the ‘oomph factor’ of Silk Smitha, just watch the movie and decide for yourself what the lady is capable of.
The rest of the cast is just as convincing.
Technical Departments: After Vidya Balan, the film belongs to the writer, Rajat Arora. His story, screenplay and dialogues are simply superb. It is tough to write an entertaining film inspired by the true story of a ‘sex goddess’ who ended her life abruptly. But Rajat Arora does a fabulous job, and a few one-liners and dialouges of his are sure going to have the audience in splits.
The camera work and editing are slick and suit the mood of the film. ‘Oo la la’ is already playing on many lips, and the background is perfect.
Lastly, the credit has to go to Milan Luthria. This veteran filmmaker is just continuing his form from his last outing (Once Upon a Time in Mumbai). He succeeded in extracting brilliant performances from all his actors and the lead lady especially.
Final Say: “The Dirty Picture – Definitely Not” 
Rating: 4 out of 5!
Review by Sriram Boyanapally
Movie Review: Desi Boyz!
Nick (John Abraham) and Jerry (Akshay Kumar) are best buddies who share the same home, both of them being victims of the global recession in UK are left jobless. Both the buddies have load on their shoulders, with Jerry taking care of his nephew and Nick has to maintain a high-end girlfriend Radhika (Deepika Padukone).
They are in desperate need of a job and it is then when the duo meet Sanjay Dutt who gives them a job as male escorts in his company, Desi Boyz with one rule set: “No sex”.
There after, life becomes easy for all. The nephew is happy as all his expenditure is taken care off and Radhika is content too.. However, later on, she learns about Jerry and Nick’s nocturnal activities, when their real profile pops up on Youtube..
Nick and Radhika break up, nephew is sent to a foster home, and Jerry is chased out off Nick’s home, to complete his graduation.
Enters Tanya (Chitrangada Singh) who play a ‘sexy professor’. She is also Jerry’s love interest.
The chemistry between John Abraham and Akshay Kumar sets the whole mood of the film. The two, once again leaves the audience in splits, after GARAM MASALA.
Deepika Padukone, needless to mention, is superb through out the film, Chitrangada manages to impress in her brief role while Sanju baba rocks.
Pritam’s music is awesome and the title song, Desi Boyz, has already become a chartbuster.
Finally, Rohit Dhawan, the director of the film, has done a brilliant job.
Rating: 3 out of 5
Movie Review: Always Kabhi Khabi…
By Neharika.
Directed by: Roshan Abbas
Produced by: Gauri Khan
Screenplay by: Roshan Abbas, Ranjit Raina, Ishita Moitra
Story by: Roshan Abbas, Ranjit Raina
Starring: Ali Fazal, Giselle Monteiro, Zoa Morani, Satyajeet Dubey, Satish Shah, Lilette Dubey and Vijay Raaz
Music by: Aashish Rego, Shree D, Pritam Chakraborty
Cinematography: Fuwad Khan, Anshuman Mahaley
Editing by: Sanjay Sharma
Distributed by: Red Chillies Entertainment, Eros Entertainment
Grade: D: Poora time Waste 
:(
ALWAYS KABHI KABHI is said to be based on director Roshan Abbas successful play ‘Graffiti’, which he had written and directed way back in 1999.
The story spins around the lives of four high-school adolescents – Sameer aka Sam, Aishwarya aka Aishu/Aish, Taariq aka Einsten, Nandini aka Nandu the Bull, who are in their final year at St. Marks, a school full of good looking, well-dressed romantic students dancing around with funny professors like Ms Das (Lilette Dubey) and Professor Agarwal urf Agro (Vijay Raaz), the girl’s skirts end much above their knees and Romeo and Juliet continues to be the most important chapter in classroom.
Sam, the coolest dude in school, who lives life through shortcuts falls in love with Aish, a new entrant in the school, and as always, you can expect obstacles in their love story. A parallel love story emerges between angry young rebel, Nandu and the cute nerd Einsten. Everyone’s parents are evil.
In short, the story is about how the four brats screw up their lives, and to top it up, the family problems, thus clashing their dreams and aspirations.
The first half of the flick is dull and boring while the second half has a flashy climax. The movie is completely a teeny,youth type film, filled with dreams, friendship, love, crushes, parents pressure, campus life, flirting etc etc. The film does convey a message at the end especially to the parents.
Though the movie is so-so, in fact, it desperately wanted to look youthful, though the dialogues and one-liners did have a youth flavor. The entire star cast did their parts beautifully and can be rated above average. Thankfully, there was no over acting.
Roshan Abbas’ Always Kabhi Kabhi would have worked well if he had released the flick a few years back.
Rating: 1 out of 5
Movie Review: Shaitan….
By Neharika.
Directed by: Bejoy Nambiar
Produced by: Anurag Kashyap, Sunil Bohra, Guneet Monga, Meraj Shaikh
Screenplay by: Megha Ramaswamy, Bejoy Nambiar
Starring: Rajit Kapoor, Rajeev Khandelwal, Kalki Koechlin, Pawan Malhotra, Shiv Pandit, Gulshan Devaiya, Neil Bhoopalam, Kirti Kulhari
Music by: Prashant Pillai, Amar Mohile, Ranjit Barot, Anupam Roy
Cinematography:Madhie
Editing by: Sreekar Prasad
Distributed by: Viacom 18 Motion Pictures
Shaitan, a movie which the Indian spectators will experience for the first time. It is this realism, edginess and awkwardness that stays with the audiences once they leave the theaters.
A story about five youngsters, who live life as if there is no tomorrow. They come from affluent homes, speeding through the streets of Mumbai in an expensive Hummer. Amy [Kalki], Dash [Gulshan], KC [Shiv], Zubin [Neil] and Tanya [Kirti] enjoy life, seeking for excitement all the time, till a moment changes everything. Well, they meet with an accident, killing two people on a two wheeler. Their actions to cover up lead them through a series of incidents, thus bringing out the inner ‘shaitan’ in all of them.
Inspector Mathur [Rajeev Khandelwal], who’s fighting his inner demons too, is handed over the responsibility of chasing the youngsters.
The story has the exact amount of ‘rage’, ‘psyche’ and ‘moments’. No dull moments. Both the first and the second halves were well balanced. The film gives us a glimpse of the erratic and inner psyche of today’s youngsters who live for the moment.
Talking about the star performances, Rajeev Khandelwal ( Mathur) as a cop was very very convincing, focused performance. Kalki was as usual excellent, giving a striking performance. Debut actors Shiv Pandit and Kirti both are fresh and will shock audience with their smart convincing act.The others were pretty decent and effective.
Debutant director Bejoy Nambiar has done a fab job. His content, is worth a praise. Right from the script to direction to narration to execution; everything is just about perfect. Madhi’s cinematography is spectacular. The car chase scene literally gets your hair to stand. Must say, very interestingly shot.
The film’s sound-track, which lists five composers including Ranjit Barot and Amar Mohile and a metal band, is peppy and simply superb. Dialogues are completely youth centric.
Final word: An adrenaline pumped thriller, a must watch flick for youth who love realism and edginess.
I give it a 4 on 5 rating…
Dum Maaro Dum – Review
By Neharika.
Directed by: Rohan Sippy
Produced by: Ramesh Sippy
Starring: Abhishek Bachchan, Bipasha Basu, Rana Daggubati, Prateik Babbar, Aditya Pancholi, Monty Munford.
Music by: Pritam Chakraborty
Cinematography: Amit Roy
Editing by: Aarif Shaik
Distributed by: Fox Star Studios, Ramesh Sippy Entertainment
Grade: C: Ek Baar Chalta Hai
Rohan Sippy’s Dum Maaro Dum is a slick action-crime thriller, that revolves around six Indians who meet in Goa and how their lives change forever, once they find themselves caught up with the drug menace.
ACP Vishnu Kamath (Abhishek Bachchan) is assigned by the Chief Minister of Goa to exterminate the drug mafia, which was spreading like a plague. Mercy (Muzammil S. Qureshi) and Rane (Govind Namdeo), his two assistants, assist him in carrying out his assignments of catching Lorsa Biscuita aka Biscuit (Aditya Pancholi), who is the main drug dealer in that area.
Laurie (Prateik Babbar) is a young simpleton, who falls prey into the drug web, after getting caught red handed, smuggling cocaine from the country. Joki (Rana Daggubati), Laurie’s well wisher, pleads of Laurie’s innocence to the ACP, trying to make him realize that Laurie was a mere pawn.
Zoe (Bipasha Basu), Joki’s chick, was caught in the same drug web five years ago, that Laurie was in now. It was Biscuita who came to her rescue by using his influence to get her out. But, in return, he made Zoe his girlfriend despite being married. Hence, Joki’s concern for Laurie.
The story further unfurls itself with the ACP realizing that the drug racket was actually not carried out by Biscuita but by an invisible man named Michael Barbusa, who uses various aliases to operate from different cities.
The story comes to its climax with ACP completing the given task of busting the drug racket along with Joki and Laurie.
The narration and the dialogues, make the flick worth watching. The director did a splendid job by keeping the suspense alive till the end. The unexpected twists thrown in the end worked wonders for the production. While the first half showed some movement in the theater, the second made sure the audiences were glued to their seats.
Abhishek Bachchan did an amazing job as a tough cop. The only thing that played against his cop stature was his pot belly and double chin.
Rana Daggubati was dull initially, but played the climax spectacularly. Prateik Babbar portrayed his innocence, brilliantly.
Bipasha Basu was naturally good.
Pritam Chakraborty did an awesome job on the music, Amit Roy’s cinematography was appealing, Aarif Shaik’s editing is the biggest plus point. Deepika Padukone’s raunchy item number adds glamour to the entire movie.
Final word: An adrenaline pumped thriller, not best suited for the romantic ones.
Review: Thank You……. It should have been ‘Sorry’ instead…
By Neharika.
Directed by: Anees Bazmee
Produced by: Ronnie Screwvala, Twinkle Khanna
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Bobby Deol, Suniel Shetty, Irfan Khan, Sonam Kapoor, Celina Jaitley, Rimi Sen.
Music by: Pritam Chakraborty
Cinematography: Ravi Yadav
Editing by: Steven H. Bernard
Distributed by: UTV Motion Pictures, Hari Om Productions.
Grade: C: Ek Baar Chalta Hai/ Bakwaas 
‘Men are Dogs’ and ‘Women are Dodos’…
Looks like, director Annes Bazmee has a fondness for expressive words like WELCOME, NO PROBLEM and now THANK YOU. And ya! comedy and Akshay Kumar undoubtedly goes hand-in-hand.
After SINGH IS KINNG, Akshay Kumar and Anees Bazmee have once again paired up after almost 3 years, now in Thank You. A multi starer rom-com heavily inspired by Bazmee’s earlier comic flick, No Entry.
Thank You is about three married men trying to have some fun outside their marriage.
Raj (Bobby Deol), Vikram (Irrfan Khan) and Yogi (Suniel Shetty) are three friends who are married to Sanjana (Sonam Kapoor), Karthika (Rimi Sen) and Radha (Celina Jaitley).
Raj (Bobby Deol) and Sanjana (Sonam Kapoor) are a happily married couple. But soon, she suspects her husband flirting behind her back, Maya (Celina Jaitly), wife of Yogi (Sunil Shetty) catches him red handed with another girl, and Vikram (Irrfan Khan), who is also unfaithful to his wife, keeps Shivani (Rimi Sen) so petrified that she never dared to question him.
In short, the trio philandering husbands tries to spice up their humdrum lives by embarking on extramarital affairs. They never think twice before cheating on their wives.
Enters Kishan (Akshay Kumar), a private detective or you can say a modern day love doctor who spies on the three promiscuous husbands and promises to teach them a lesson that they’ll remember lifelong.
As usual, there is a lot of confusion that follows. That’s not it… There is a very tacky flashback story of Akshay Kumar too.
The highlights of the flick are the scenes between Vikram and Shivani and Yogi’s frustration, which tickle your funny bones to the core. The first half of the film is disappointing, leaving you to look for the rare laughs, while the second half saved the entire script. It has you grinning at certain goof-ups. Again, the film’s climax was a BIG bore.
Akshay Kumar’s carefree acting did create a lot of laughter. He delivered a fine performance. Sunil Shetty kicked up a bit of fun, and must confess, his acting came as a pleasant surprise to me. Bobby Deol’s role hardly had any humor in it as he is seen angry with his wife in almost the entire film. But his acting was decent enough. Irrfan Khan is mind-blowing. It was a delight watching him. Every single scene that he was in, brought a riot of laughter among the audience.
Sonam Kapoor was again just a glamor doll in the flick. She could not emote genuinely in a single scene. Her performance was below average. Rimi Sen did a fabulous job. Her comic timing was simply wonderful along with Irrfan Khan. Celina Jaitly is hardly seen in the drama. She disappears from the large part of the film. Mallika Sherawat item no Razia, failed to impress the audience.
There was no freshness in the plot of the film. Anees Bazmee’s direction is praiseworthy. He did try to keep the audience involved and amused for a larger part of the flick. Pritam’s music is not inspiring at all. Unlike his previous creations, this one was disappointing. Editing by Steven H. Bernard is crisp, Yadav’s cinematography is first class.
A final word, Thank You is a one time watch. Head to the theater without any expectations. This is a flick for the mass and not the class.
A: Wah! Kya Film Hai , B: Paisa Vasool :, C: Ek Baar Chalta Hai/ Bakwaas , D: Poora time Waste
Tanu Weds Manu- A Mismatched Wedding!!!
By Chandrika
Director: Aanand L. Rai
Banner: Viacom 18 Motion Pictures Paramhans Creations and Movies N More Pvt. Ltd.
Story: Himanshu Sharma
Cinematography: Chirantan Das
Music: Krashana
Cast: R. Madhvan, Kangana Ranaut, Jimmy Shergill, Ravi Kissen, Deepak Dobriyal, Rajendra Gupta, K K Raina, Eijaz Khan, Swara Bhaskar
C: Ek Baar Chalta Hai
In a country obsessed with wedding “Tanu Weds Manu” strikes the right chord. Right from the first shot till the end one there’s “shaadi, shaadi and lots of shaadi.” It explores the age-old arranged marriage concept of India, also throwing light at the present scenario. Where else will you find a perfectly eligible man getting married because of “family pressure”? Or two adult individuals deciding the most important decision of their lives in a few minutes? Welcome to India!!!
The story is simple and oft repeated. We have Manoj Sharma, aka Manu (R.Madhvan) a decent, obedient son, who comes all the way from London to get married as per his parents’ wishes. Then we have Tanuja Trivedi or Tanu (Kangana Ranaut), a rebel from Kanpur, who does not want to be “customized” by some man. And as they say opposites attract. Our guy falls for this “loud-mouthed” “C-word spitting” “manizer” (In case you are wondering what “manizer” means then let me tell you it’s a word I coined to describe a woman who changes men every week/month or year. Opposite of womanizer, simple) When the “baat” finally gets “pakki”, Tanu drops a bomb on Manu by telling him, while smoking a cigarette (so much for “UP ke Sanskaar”), that she is in love with a contractor (Jimmy Shergill) whose name she has tattooed on her chest. She demands (no please, no request) Mr. Pacemaker (Manu’s profession in the movie) to call off the wedding. He dutifully obliges. But he just cannot get the woman out of his mind or heart. As luck would have it, destiny brings Tanu and Manu together again at a friend’s, you guessed it right, WEDDING. Will Ms. Confused finally say “I do” to Mr. Sacrifice? Go and find out.
Okay, let me first tell you what goes against the movie- its dragging pace. This couple of hours movie seems like an eternity, especially towards the end. In this world, where people love instant gratification, TWM is too slow. Long, senseless dialogues simply test the patience of the audience. Second thing which is hard to digest is the huge patience of the hero. Which guy will put up with a girl who treats him like crap? And for what? The girl is neither a looker nor refined. The third weak point is the story- nothing refreshing about it.
Having said that, TWM does offer entertainment to its audience. I am sure each one of us can relate to some moments in the movie. Be it NRI returning to find “Indian susheel” girl or “ladki dekhne ki rasam” or mother bragging about her so-called “cultured” daughter to get her married- these are episodes picked up from life. You might end up saying to the one sitting next to you, “Hey this happened with me.”
Performance by R. Madhvan as a shy guy is good. Rajat (Rajendra)Gupta as the father of the bride and K.K Raina as the groom’s father are convincing. But the guy who will catch your attention is Deepak Dobriyal (Pappi), a typical UP “bhai” who happens to be Manu’s friend, guide, confidante. His effortless acting is worth watching. As for Kangana Ranaut she looked miserable and acted far worse. A dialogue delivery classes rather than a cosmetic surgeon will do a world of good to your career Ms. Ranaut.
Another aspect which is commendable about the movie is the characterization. You will see typical characters which you meet so often. Like the worried mother of “30 something guy” who cannot find a single suitable girl for her son or friend who is eager to get you tied down to the woman who is not even remotely interested in you.
Music by Krashana is nothing great. How can a movie about wedding not have lots of “band baaja wala gana”? After all we are Indians!!! I wonder if the songs will survive even one wedding season. Fingers are crossed.
By all means, go and watch the movie if you love “shaadi, shehnayee and suhaagraat”. Don’t forget to take along your mom, Pammy mausi, Sheila chachi and the whole ladies gang.
A: Wah! Kya Film Hai , B: Paisa Vasool , C: Ek Baar Chalta Hai , D: Bakwaas , E: Poora time Waste
Movie Review: SAATH KHOON MAAF – ‘hell hath no fury like a woman scorned’
By, Neharika
Based on Susanna’s Seven Husbands by Ruskin Bond
Director: Vishal Bhardwaj
Producer:Ronnie Screwvala, Vishal Bhardwaj
Written by: Matthew Robbins, Vishal Bhardwaj
Cast:Priyanka Chopra, Neil Nitin Mukesh,John Abraham, Irrfan Khan, Aleksandr Dyachenko, Annu Kapoor, Naseeruddin Shah, Vivaan Shah
Music: Vishal Bharadwaj
Cinematography:Ranjan Palit
Editing by: A. Sreekar Prasad
C: Ek Baar Chalta Hai
This movie had so many expectations to satisfy but despite best efforts by Priyanka Chopra and director Vishal Bhardwaj it soars in some occasions and falls short on some counts.
Suzanna (Priyanka Chopra) is a rich woman who wears her heart on her sleeve and unluckily meets and falls in love with six wrong men one after the other. Each of her husbands has a disastrous shortcoming which leads to their deaths.
Be it the jealousy of Major Rodrigues(Neil Nitin Mukesh), drug addiction and unfaithfulness of Jimmy(John Abraham), abusive sadomasochism of Musafir(Irffan Khan), polygamy of Nikolai Vronsky(Aleksandr Dyachenko), blackmailing and opportunistic nature of Keemat Lal (Anu Kapoor) or the deviousness of Dr. Modhusudhon Tarafdar(Naseeruddin Shah). She is assisted in all of her murderous adventures by her faithful assistants Usha Uthup and Shashi Malviya.
The story of first five husbands is narrated by Arun(Debutant -Vivaan Shah) to his wife played by Konkona Sen Sharma and the last one by Suzanna to Arun.
The movie has a dark enigmatic appeal to it. Priyanka gives a sterling performance all through the movie exuding a deadly and irresistible charm. The male leads have very little to do and are completely overshadowed by Priyanka in the frames, the only exceptions being Anu Kapoor who delivers a very realistic and competent performance and Vivaan Shah with a promising debut act.
‘Darling’ and ‘Hey Mama’ are hummable songs.
The editing is crisp and to the point. The movie could not have been more compressed than it already is.
In the end Vishal Bhardwaj deserves the credit for creating such a dark and thrilling cinematic experience.
The movie is not the regular mirch masala which takes the box office by storm and may not appeal to some, but it does warrant at least one visit to the theatre.
A: Wah! Kya Film Hai , B: Paisa Vasool , C: Ek Baar Chalta Hai , D: Bakwaas , E: Poora time Waste
Movie Review: Patiala House
By, Neharika
Director: Nikhil Advani
Producer: Bhushan Kumar
Mukesh Talreja
Krishan Kumar
Twinkle Khanna
Zoeb Springwala
Cinematography: Santosh Thundiyil
Music: Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Anushka Sharma, Rishi Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia, Hard Kaur, Prem Chopra
C: Ek Baar Chalta Hai
2011 has brought in a lot of excitement. But one of the most exciting and awaited events of this year is the ICC Cricket World Cup … Movies based on the world cup is inevitable … Nikhil Advani combines the excitement of cricket with the melodrama of a family nok-jhok. This is probably a good way for the producers to make an impression in the box office.
Introducing to you Patiala House as a joint Sikh family, consisting of sons, daughters, ghar jamais and cousins, homing various talents. Unfortunately, none of them could live their dreams, reason being the bigoted and adamant Rishi Kapoor.
Times change, people also change but Gurtej Singh Khalon aka Bauji (Rishi Kapoor) wasn’t made out of the changing material ..The movie is about Bauji developing hatred against the goras after a horrid incident of his mentor (Prem Chopra) getting killed under a racist attack … This triggered a sense of deep pride and Bauji started fighting for the cause of Indians residing in Southall, finally making it an Indian friendly country.
Pargat Singh Khalon aka Gattu (Akshay Kumar), then a kid, knew only one way and that was his Baujiway. Puppet like, he follows his Bauji’s orders instead of following his heart- being a pace bowler for the England Cricket team. Gattu, suppressing his desires, is content taking care of his Bauji’s provisional stores. The younger generation of Patiala House, holds him responsible for their individual sacrifices.
Anushka Sharma aka Simran, a chirpy and energetic young girl, along with her brother Zee, wittness Gattu losing himself and with the combined effort of the entire Patiala House, gets him to join the England Cricket Team, against his Bauji’s wishes.
Patiala House, in every possible way tries hiding the truth from Bauji until the cover is blown by Gattu’s brother. This news didn’t go well with Bauji which in turn led to him disowning Gattu. Soon the father realizes that his son was at such a stage where the entire British nation is dependent on him for their victory.
Nikhil did a pretty impressive job on the direction front. The film consisted of various emotions in the right proportion. The Cricket cast was very real with Andrew Symonds, Herschelle Gibbs, Kieron Pollard and the legend Nasir Hussain making special appearances. The cricket scenes wasn’t as thrilling as Laagan or Iqbal, but it did serve the purpose. Manan Sagar’s editing was good but could have been better. Shankar-Ehsan-Loy’s music was apt for the film, Akshay Kumar was very convincing as a cricketer, Anushka Sharma, a natural actor that she is, did a brilliant job, not to forget the flawless acting of Rishi Kapoor and Dimple Kapadia combined.
The film is over all an eye watering yet fun-filled family drama.
Janta janarthan ka kya grade hai????
A: Wah! Kya Film Hai , B: Paisa Vasool , C: Ek Baar Chalta Hai , D: Bakwaas , E: Poora time Waste
