Besharam review

‘Besharam’, Ranbir Kapoor’s latest release has a basic problem - it does not live up to its name. When you watch Ranbir you do not expect an out and out ‘Besharam’ comedy. However you do expect some smart assery if that is what is projected in all its promos. Good performances, the Kapoor clan, and some good humour could not really create the magic that you expect from the entire crew. The young Kapoor is a teen heart throb, here he tries to be more, and doesn’t really do too well. ‘Dabbang’ was a great make of classic masala film making that came from Abhinav Kashyap, and was pulled off with élan by Salman Khan. Salman stood out in his archaic 1990s hero avatar, delivering loudmouthed-applause-inducing dialogues looking as if he spoke like this every day. Despite Ranbir’s refreshing acting skills, he falls short – probably because he looks just out of ‘Wake up Sid’ cuteness. Humour is just spattered insufficiently and inconsistently. The parts where you end up enjoying the most are Rishi and Neetu Kapoor’s sequences, and by the end you are disappointed that they did not have as much screen time as you would have liked. It looks like Abhinav wanted to work with a plot that involved all three, but his ambitions stopped short right there. He did not bother with a plot line which was fantastical enough to accommodate all three of them sharing the screen space and make a compelling must watch blockbuster.

The story revolves around a good hearted orphan, Babli (Ranbir), who has grown up to be a car thief. He falls for the ‘beauty’ Tara Sharma (Pallavi Sharda). Rishi and Neetu play a slightly corrupt, cop couple - Chulbul and Bulbul Chautala. The movie has a predictable plot, atypical of masala flicks, using stereotypes of every kind. The love story between Babli and Tara is unconvincing. Not that you need a why and a how, but it doesn’t build up at all. Also, one major grouse I had with the movie was that I was waiting to understand why Babli was called Besharam in the first place. By the standards of how Indian movie heroes are generally shown wooing ladies, Babli was quite a softy, giving flowers to the leading ladies mom, carrying her grocery. Apart from what you have seen in the promos, Ranbir never goes beyond pulling out socks from his pants.

The other two Kapoors are fantastic. Every time Rishi and Neetu appear on screen they manage to entertain. From the first chase sequence to the climax, the few minutes that they have, they have pulled off the chemistry that they were known for back in the 70s. Neetu Kapoor plays gutsy, stands on equal footing as Rishi, and has a good comic timing. She jibes and jokes with Rishi, who is equally cute with her whenever they are seen together. It’s like watching an old endearing couple still in love who have managed to keep the fire alive because of their romance infused in a sense of humour.The first half of the movie is rather floppy, but the second half of the movie picks up the plot. But the climax is worth watching. Rishi, Neetu and Ranbir fight side by side; Rishi Kapoor takes the centre stage and you realise Kashyap probably made the movie only for this scene.

The music of the movie comes from Lalit Pandit who is the part of the 90s famed Jatin-Lalit duo. ‘Dil Ka Joh Haal Hai’ which is filmed near the traditional lahlahate sarso ke khet sounds like a track straight out of that decade. Another refreshing track is ‘Love ki Ghanti’ which reminds you of Kishore Kumar’s fun songs from the 60s. It has a conversation structure and sounds really fun! The title track and the other tracks, even though nothing to write home about are more or less enjoyable. As Ranbir fan, one would not really mind the movie. But it does not make an impact as ‘Dabbang’ moment for the hero. The superstar in the making is probably is a much better actor than a masala entertainer and that’s something that he has proven in his previous movies. The filmmaker did not have a proper vision for an actor of Ranbir’s calibre and this one is certainly not the best for either of them!

Bollywood Movie Khap Review

Cast: Om Puri, Govind Namdev, Manoj Pahwa, Mohnish Bahl, Anooradha Patel, Uvika Choudhary, Sarrtaj Gill

Directed by Ajai Sinha

Rating: Honour spilling

'Khap' sounds like a blunt instrument cutting through flesh and ironically refers to Khap Panchayats or village bodies that brutally skin young couples who marry within their own clan, village (or cow-shed?). Although, the Supreme Court of India has banned Khaps from exercising medieval methods to simulate the phrase, 'till death do us apart', no court has proof-read the script of the film, 'Khap', so here we go again.

Luckily, movies made on grave topics are usually intercut with a lighter parallel screenplay to balance the mood. Unluckily, 'Khap' takes the parallel story so far, it leaves the core issue like an abandoned baby outside a deserted church. So amidst the barbaric chopping, tractor mowing and sword stabbing of couples marrying within their 'gotra' (clan) in a quaint village called Sajod, lies a diabetically-sugary urban love story.

Welcome to Delhi, where 'sweet16' aka Ria (Uvika Choudhary) giggles in front of her laptop when she's pinged by 'cool_stud' aka Kush (Sarrtaj Gill). Under the guise of being a Canadian babe and an Australian mate, the two exchange some tacky messages and odd pictures of each other (a close-up of Ria's pouting lips and a widescreen of Kush's eyes with his shades hanging by the tip of his nose). Clutching on to these quirky photos, the duo indulge in a tedious song to find each other. Being from the same college and not across continents comes in handy and this hunt ends soon. To celebrate their union, we break into another song, which traces their relationship with signboards like 'Love has begun', 'Love in mid-air' and 'Love in danger'. Ok, back to some chop-chop in Sajod. Another couple forgot to spot 5 differences between their 'gotras' before saying, 'I do'. Chop! Slash! Splatt! Enough? Ok, go back to downtown Delhi!

Now, the city and village sequences can't be parallel forever, so Ria's dad, Madhur (Mohnish Bahl) happens to be the son of Khap President of Sajod, Omkar Chaudhary (Om Puri), aka Commander Slash? Disturbed by his father's atrocious ways, Madhur had forsaken Sajod life decades ago to move to Delhi. But what Madhur couldn't give up (and something that we all have to unitedly endure) are his charred and wormlike expressions (possibly produced by placing a transparent box of fart over his face?).

Anyway, to connect the dots, Riya and friends also happen to visit Sajod for a picnic/ field trip/ Khap darshan etc and discover the dark order of the place. Later, Madhur, who is also a human rights officer, is sent to investigate a possible case of honour killings in Sajod. And with all roads heading to Sajod, it's hardly imaginative to guess where this headless chicken is headed. Following a series of 'Papa, I'm not coming home', we have some dishonorable and some accidental killings. Ria and Kush also get intricately mixed up in this severely melodramatic story that results to naught.

Critical character actors that define this story with their unnecessary presence are as follows: 1. Alok Nath plays a random bloated person lecturing college kids in a library about the demerits of marrying one's siblings. He hammers his opinion by screaming across the library, to a point that you want his unfriendly appearance to end or offer him hammer-killing. 2. Kaka or Omkar's household help, who's eternally playing with dough to fix his special 'mooli ka paratha', much-loved by Madhur. Go figure who's not making it for dinner. 3. Mad village idiot, whose bizarre antics are deliciously scary. He may not have his way with words but like a pug that attracts attention to the scene of crime, he manages to convey an important happening towards the end of the film. 4. Manoj Pahwa and Govind Namdev playing Omkar's loyal aides Sukhiram and Daulat Singh sufficiently sneer, grunt and display numerous flashes of fury.

Using cinema as a medium to sensitize audiences about social evils like honour killing is noble indeed. But not if it turns out to be a criminal murder of time, like this film.

Review: Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey moves you, but sporadically

Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey (U/A)

Director: Ashutosh Gowariker
Cast: Abhishek Bachchan, Deepika Padukone, Sikandar Kher
Rating: ***

Think of all the things you expect from a Hindi film about India’s freedom struggle. Songs about love for the motherland are a given, dialogues that speak of revolution a must, there will usually be a bunch of very bad firang actors cast as Britishers who will speak anglicised Hindi and at least one character will lay down his life to protect his friends’.

Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey (KHJJS) has all of the above ingredients that have usually resulted in films that are slightly over-the-top, even jingoistic, but which serve a purpose – that of giving you the thrill of watching the lives and stories of those who fought for the freedom we enjoy today.

But director Ashutosh Gowariker, in his trademark fashion, keeps the hyperbole minimal and opts for a simpler treatment, and focusses primarily on narrating a story.

Thankfully, in KHJJS, the story is what makes it watchable. Firstly, few of us may know of Surjya Sen – the protagonist – like we are aware of, say, Netaji Bose or Bhagat Singh or Mangal Pandey or even Rani Laxmibai.

History textbooks, to my knowledge, rarely made mention of the Chittagong Uprising, about a group of teenagers that attacked British forces in five different places on one night under the leadership of their schoolteacher Sen, lovingly known as Masterda, in the year 1930.

KHJJS borrows its story from the events narrated in Manini Chatterjee’s novel, Do And Die: The Chittagong Uprising 1930-34.

Sen (Bachchan) is fighting the freedom struggle along with his associates Nirmal (Kher), Anant, Kalpana (Padukone) and a few more. However, with most of his other saathi in jail, he turns to a group of teenagers who want to do their bit against the British Empire.

Impressed with their gumption and desire to free India, Sen trains the teenagers – who keep growing in numbers – in combat and weaponry. With help from his revolutionary friends, Sen plans an attack on five locations that are of importance to the Empire on one single night.

The film chronicles the preparation that went into the execution of the attacks and the aftermath.

All the things that make KHJJS different from other films of the same genre go against it too. For one, Gowariker takes his own sweet time to narrate the story.

Even though the film is Gowariker’s shortest, at close to three hours, it’s still quite long to make you shift in your seat more than once. Also, the film seems to lack the fervour you expect from a film with a patriotic theme.

Having said that, the strong points of the film is the novel storyline – that of kids fighting for independence – and the performances of most actors, especially the children.

Also, Gowariker manages to recreate the era well (with art director Nitin Chandrakant Desai), and draws you in the plot slowly and steadily.

While the pre-interval portions are enjoyable because of the camaraderie between the kids, the film shifts into action mode immediately after half-time. The attacks and the planning that went into them have been depicted well. Also, some penultimate scenes are sure to move even the stone-hearted.

However, the film drags at a number of places, and takes a little too long to wrap up. Also, Sen’s romance with Kalpana Dutta looks forced and takes a great deal away from the central plot. In fact, Sen makes a mention of his wife who he says died due to his mistakes, but you don’t really know what actually happened. Lame attempts at establishing a ‘Bengali’ set-up, with characters calling others’ with a pronounced ‘O’ in their names (like Kolpona), jar.

Performance-wise, Abhishek does quite well in the central role, but somewhere falls short of delivering the kind of performance you expect from the lead actor of a film like that. Deepika is confident, and doesn’t have much to do, something you won’t really complain about.

Sikander Kher and the actors playing Sen’s other associates pitch in good performances. Special mention, though, has to be made of Vijay Maurya, who like in many of his earlier roles, excels in this one too.

The film’s biggest plus, though, is the performance of the kids. Each and every one of them enthuses life in characters, creating an immediate connect. You smile when they are happy and feel the anguish when they experience it.

After having seen the words ‘Vande Mataram’ uttered in almost every film set in pre-independence India, watch the kids discuss its meaning. It’s among the scenes that make a strong impact. Wish there were more.

Rakta charitra 2 Review

Ram Gopal Varma’s Rakta Charitra 2 is all set to hit theaters today.

Now everyone who watched Rakta Charitra,is eagarly waiting for the second part, because it is based on the factionism in Anantapur that served as Paritala Ravi’s rise to power.

This is a tri lingual movie coming in Telugu, Tamil and Hindi. The film stars Suriya, Vivek Oberoi, and Priyamani in the lead roles along with Shatrughan Sinha, Radhika Apte and Ashish Vidhyarthi in supporting roles.

Movie Talk

Tamil hero Surya performance is extraordinary in Rakta Charitra 2

Songs also got average Response

Rakta Charitra 2 is going to be better than Rakta Charitra

It has less violence than earlier version

Over all the movie talk is Average and it may collect good collections than Rakta Charitra part 1.

Raavan: Movie Review

Cast: Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Vikram
Direction/Screenplay: Mani Ratnam
Music: AR Rahman
Dialogues: Vijay Krishna Acharya
Cinematography: Santosh Sivan, V Manikandan
Genre: Drama
Release Date: June 18’2010 worldwide
Rating:

Personas are often deceiving. A man who comes across as evil and menacing can be godly in reality, if watched closely and vice versa. Deception rules and dominates the world. Although, once the truth unravels, bad starts seeming good as in the case of Beera (Abhishek Bachchan).
Beera hides in the dense forests of north India from where he orchestrates his criminal activities against the police, a la Veerappan. He ruthlessly kills the policemen and loots their weaponry. Going by Beera’s sharp hunting skills and knowledge of the jungle, even the police is now scared of the dangerous outlaw except for SP Dev (Vikram).

Right after being posted to Lal Maati, Dev finds his wife Ragini (Aishwarya Rai Bachchan) caught in Beera’s clutches as he kidnaps her and takes her to the jungle where he resides. Turns out Beera has been meaning to settle a personal score with the police for a long time. Dev takes the help of a funny forest guard (Govinda) in order to get back his wife. Ragini on the other hand oblivious to Beera’s power, does every thing possible to escape her nightmare.

Mani Ratnam’s modern adaptation of Hindu mythological epic Ramayana with a twist, is a film made with good intention, beautiful music and mind blowing cinematography but unfortunately lacking everything else!

To start with, the story of the film as if on a long pause, just doesn’t move ahead for a good one hour after the film begins.

The scenes seem repetitive with Ash screaming from the bottom of her lungs even when she speaks (in a voice that seems inspired by Vidya Balan’s from Bhool Bhullaiyya, after she is possessed that is) and Abhishek doing some weird jig jig jig...not a dance, but the words he says as he shakes his hands around his head vigorously when either angry or amused.

The two keep staring, screaming at each other when not climbing a rocky mountain or jumping off a cliff as they play hide n seek in the forest for almost an hour. Their chemistry and the dialogues fall short of portraying the angst or the attraction they hold for each other thus making their interaction simply a waste of time.

A brooding Vikram keeps flashing his forehead frown lines and quizzical eyebrows as he hunts for Beera in the forest using minimal dialogues but maximum action & style (His fans will like it).

The only actors who provide good comic relief with their words and bindaas act amidst this insipid chase are Govinda and Ravi Kishen... both wasted to a large extent.

The dialogues are highly uninspiring for a film that intends to tackle a subject of this stature. (Ash asks Vikram: Yeh Beera Robin Hood hai ya Raavan)

Raavan is no Mani Ratnam signature film at all. It in fact looks like Mani attempting a Ram Gopal Verma (in terms of camera angles and direction) or even a Vishal Bhardawaj (feel, setting and twist of the film) while being inspired by Ghai’s Khalnayak (story).

The filmmaker seems inspired by so many things at a time that he forgets to retain his own USP. There is no punch in the script which doesn’t rise above clichés, no tenderness in the love between Dev and Ragini and no depth to Ragini or Dev’s character as they come across as silent spectators to Beera’s eccentric antics. The ten facets of Beera’s personality too doesn’t stand out.

The film moves you only when Abhishek and Priyamani come to picture. Both actors act superbly and infuse soul into this otherwise lifeless drama. Abhishek walks away with the main role and does a good job as he gets into the skin of his character very well. Wish his character would have been written better.

Ash holds one disgruntled expression on her face throughout and so does Vikram.

The film can be watched for its brilliant cinematography by Santosh Sivan and V Manikandan. Jungles, waterfalls, rains...have never looked so beautiful in a Hindi film before nor has a de-glam Ash in an extreme close up.

Music by AR Rahman is mesmerizing. Behne De, Ranjha Ranjha and Beera Beera are tracks that grow on you and are capable of being listed in Rahman’s all-time hits.

Outfits by Sabyasachi go perfectly with the theme of the film.

We assume Mani Ratnam went through a writer’s block this time around which is natural for creative geniuses of his calibre. We hope he regains his brilliance that gave us Roja, Bombay, Guru and Yuva.
source:indiatimes

Film: Raavan (Hindi)
Rating: 2.25/5

The most talked about movie has finally hit the screens in three languages. With big names like Mani Ratnam, Vikram, Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya in the list, the expectations are obviously high.

Story
Ragini (Aishwarya) is the wife of SP Dev Pratap (Vikram) and she gets kidnapped by the most dreaded Beera (Abhishek). Dev begins his hunt for Beera to rescue Ragini. For this, he takes the help of Sanjeevani Kumar(Govinda) a modern day Hanuman, playfully hopping from one spot to another as he joins Dev's mission to search for his wife. On the other hand, Ragini gives a tough time to Beera as she wants to escape. But who is the bad person? Is Dev successful in getting Ragini back? All this forms the rest of the story.

Performances
Vikram looks apt as a cop and his dubbing was also done well. However, he had a grim face throughout so not much of contribution from him in terms of body language or dialogues. His strong screen presence made up for any drawbacks.

Abhishek Bachchan tried his best to look villainous but then he has that baby face which makes it hard to convince. Moreover, not enough power and depth was given to his character which is another setback.

Aishwarya looks gorgeous as ever and she did her bit well. Most of her words were expressed through her sparkling eyes so not much to complain from her end.

Priyamani made her presence felt, Govinda was alright, Nikhil Dwivedi was okay, Ravi Kishan was good, Tejaswini Kolhapure was there to fill the screen that’s all. ‘Big’ choreographer Ganesh Acharya managed to shake his tummy to some extent in a song.

Analysis
The film has arrived with a lot of hype and it must be said that it stands nowhere near the hype. The major failure for the film is the poor content. There is no depth in the etching of the characters and the film proceeds in a mild manner. Entertainment quotient is zero and there is hardly a scene where the audience can connect and flow with the characters.

Mani Ratnam has attempted to portray a tinge of Ramayana in a Ballet mode but the poor background score and just one good song was not much of a help. The film survives only due to two things – exceptional cinematography and breathtaking locations.

It recalls MF Hussain’s ‘Gajagamini’ to some extent while projecting some scenes in poetic-ballet manner.

Editing was alright, costumes didn’t have much work and the art department was natural. If we are to take this as a new age Ramayana then questions will arise on the integrity of Lord Rama’s character. In a way, the villain is shown as the bad man with the good heart while the hero is shown as the good man with a crooked heart so conflict of interest happens.

Weak dialogues and lack of comedy is another setback and to connect to the backdrop of the story could also be difficult. Overall, the film’s only life is its technical values but the narrative or writing are very poor. Mass has nothing to gain from it and other genre audience must have patience to watch it. The openings will be good for the film for obvious reasons but then the chances of film making it to the success mark is very bleak.

Bottomline: Not interesting
source:greatandhra.com

The first official Theatrical Trailer of Lamhaa (2010) Bollywood Film Cast & Crew, LAMHAA Stills, Reviews

Lamhaa (2010) Bollywood Film Cast & Crew, LAMHAA Stills, Reviews

Star Cast: Sanjay Dutt, Bipasha Basu, Kunal Kapoor, Shernaz Patel, Aman Verma, Yashpal Sharma, Vishwajeet Pradhan, Vipin Sharma, Yuri Suri, Anupam Kher

Director: Rahul Dholakia
Producer: Bunty Walia, Jaspreet Singh Walia
Banner: G S Entertainment Pvt. Ltd.
Release Date: 16 Jul 2010

LAMHAA STORY

Lamhaa movie is based on the Kashmir valley. An unknown company who is generating millions of unaccountable dollars benefiting politicians and bureaucrats in the Indian and Pakistani intelligence is likely to disrupt and possibly paralyze Kashmir.

Thus Vikram (Sanjay Dutt) an undercover intelligence officer is sent to investigate this highly confidential mission using the identity of Gul Jehangir. The same day that he lands in the valley, Haji (Anupam Kher) a top separatist leader, survives a blast. Only leaving Vikam to wonder whether there is connection between the blast and the operation?

To solve this conundrum, Vikram teams up with Aziza (Bipasha Basu), Haji’s young, aggressive and outspoken protégé. They embark together on a journey full of intrigue, suspicion, betrayal and danger, to uncover the truth. Vikram and Aziza exposes the dirty secrets of a state’s fight for freedom, the corrupt nexus of politicians, intelligence, militancy and the crucification of idealistic and passionate people.

RAAJNEETI MOVIE REVIEW

RAAJNEETI MOVIE REVIEW

RAAJNEETI MOVIE CAST & CREW

Ajay Devgn, Nana Patekar, Ranbir Kapoor, Naseeruddin Shah, Arjun Rampal, Katrina Kaif, Manoj Bajpai, Sarah Thompson, Darshan Jariwala, Shruti Seth, Nikhila Tirkha, Chetan Pandit, Vinay Apte, Kiran Karmarkar, Daya Shankar Pandey, Jahangir Khan, Ravi Khemu and others.


DIRECTION : Prakash Jha

STORY

The plot of the flick has a very large canvas involving a large number of characters much like epic ‘Mahabharata’, and if you want you can easily compare them with contemporary personalities shown in the movie. This all begins with Bhasker Sanyal(Naseeruddin Shah), who is a fiery left leader with a clear conscience and impeccable political integrity.

However, one mistake forces him into self- exile as well as birth of Sooraj(Ajay Devgn). Sooraj grows up in a backward community home and gradually rises to become a fiery political leader much like Bhaskar.

But the problem with Sooraj is the same as was with Karna in ‘Mahabharata’. Sooraj’s loyalty to his friend Veerendra Pratap(Manoj Bajpai)goes against his own real family, and the man is torn between two divided loyalties and continues to fight whole of life with it.

Then there is another character of Brij Gopal (Nana Patekar), who never ran after power in politics and left everything. However, he did not run away from his familial responsibilities and continues to mentor the younger political leaders—Prithvi(Arjun Rampal) and Samar(Ranbir).

Another character in this political drama is that of Prithvi Pratap (Arjun Rampal), who is heir to a powerful political family, but his passions are uncontrollable. Though he has a very good heart but his method is all brawn and this creates problems for him as well as others.

On the other hand, Veerendra Paratap (Manoj Bajpai) is Prithvi’s cousin but overambitious and wants power to rule at all cost. However, he is being prevented from realization of his dreams by unfavorable circumstances, but refuses to accept defeat.

Then there is a sweet lady Indu Sakseria(Katrina Kaif), being daughter of a rich industrialist she is naturally gorgeous and wants to love her beau for ever. However, circumstances force her to come out of hibernation and take the plunge into politics. She does it successfully and wrests power after defeating several seasoned war horses.

One person from these warring families is Samar Pratap (Ranbir Kapoor), younger brother of Prithvi Pratap who is completely apolitical and steers clear of bloody dirty politics. Sarah Jean Collins (Sarah Thompson) loves him, and both of them hate violent way of politics.

But soon Samar Pratap is sucked into his family political tradition, and seeing no other way out, decides to indulge in the game fully. Gradually, he emerges as the master of this political warfare and successfully protects his family from the rival’s assault.

How Samar Pratap handles the electoral politics in the face of fierce rivals, treachery, deception etc and what happens afterwards to the main characters of this political thriller forms the rest of the story.

PERFORMANCE

Ranbir Kapoor, the handsome hunk of bollywood who plays the character of Samar Pratap in the film, comes out with a brilliant performance. Even before such veterans as Nana Patekar, Ajay Devgan, etc, Ranbir is able to hold his own and comes out a winner. His transformation from apolitical to master of the political warfare is praiseworthy. He enacts the whole thing so smoothly that it’s unbelievable.

Arjun Rampal, who plays the elder brother of Ranbir Kapoor, comes out with a winning performance and the filmmakers should give him more meaty roles now onwards. After his superb performance in Shah Rukh Khan’s ‘Om Shanti Om’ (though negative), here once again Arjun excels.

Manoj Bajpai, who plays the negative character of Veerendra Pratap and cousin to Ranbir Kapoor and Arjun, has come out with rare performance. Every nuance of his character has come out perfectly in his acting.

Nana Patekar, who plays the character of Brij Gopal, looks perfect in the mentoring role of Ranbir Kapoor and Arjun Rampal. He is sharp and curt in his dialogues. He lives up to expectations of the audiences. Naseeruddin Shah, as usual, is brilliant in his small appearance in the film.

Ajay Devgn, who plays the character of Sooraj, is good in the first half. In the second hour of the film, Ajay’s character seems to have been forced to go on the backburner by the director Prakash Jha despite of their excellent working relationship.

Katrina Kaif, the sizzling hot sexy siren of bollywood, is a surprise packet in the film by adopting a deglamorised avatar. However, the beautiful lass has come out with an honest performance in the film and lives her role well. Others provide able support to the main cast of the film.

The direction of Prakash Jha is superb. The director has handled a large number of biggies with ease and extracted out of them the best for the flick. His expert knowledge on the electoral polities of Bihar and other north Indian states must have helped him in this venture.

The unpredictability and constant twist and turn in the story line are its USP and Prakash Jha must be credited for it. In fact, the long movie of three hours does not bore due to these twists and turns and the audience remain interested till the last.

The number ‘Mora Piya’ is already popular with the audiences. Dialogues, especially those delivered by Nana Patekar, are superb. The cinematography tries to capture every important moment of this political drama efficiently. Other production values are also good.

VERDICT

Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif have given superb performances in the flick. However, the USP of the flick remain the constant twists and turns of the plot line and its realistic treatment by filmmaker. The film truly mirrors the electoral democracy as practiced in most of our states by our so called political leaders. However, the film is more inclined towards intelligentsia than hoi polloi. A brilliant realistic flick.

Paathshaala - Movie Review

Using the concept of child labour prevalent in television, the film highlights the sorry situation of a school whose students seem to have no mind of their own! Dated and morose in style, the film just goes around in circles, instead of making a point.

What's hot: Saurabh Shukla as the conniving school manager Mr Sharma, who loves taking jabs at students and sniggers at every opportunity of passing a rude remarks is colourful.

What's not: Paathshaala crumbles under its own weight. Like a house of cards it starts crashing down even before you settle down in your seat.

Everything from the sets, to the costumes and dialogues look outdated. As opposed to today's kids who use iPods and tweet from their Blackberrys, this Saraswati Vidya Mandir has students who are unreal and corny.

Showing an outcast as a kid with some black paint and badly stuck make-up on his face is just hilarious!

Scenes depicting the effect of reality shows on today's children are so hammed up that they serve no purpose.

Among the cast, Shahid looks sedated and the colour and length of his hair keeps shifting in a mysterious manner. Ayesha Takia has nothing new to do than fit in those clothes and down a few bottles of glycerin.

Nana Patekar's unending speech in the climax will make you start liking your own school principal no matter how strict he was!

The rest of the cast doesn't have much to do other than give uneasy close-ups in very bad lighting. Neither entertaining nor socially relevant the film struggles to keep you interested.

What to do: Skip this Paathshaala, instead arrange a reunion with your school mates, it would be more fun than sitting through this shoddy affair.

Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai: Bollywood Movie Review

Cast: Riteish Deshmukh, Jacqueline Fernandez, Ruslaan Mumtaz
Direction: Milap Zaveri
Genre: Romantic comedy/ Fantasy

Review this movie

They say men are from Mars and women are from Venus. But what happens when a man from Earth meets a woman from Venus!

Milap Zaveri’s breezy rom-com begins with a spoof on the Hindi film industry just like Om Shanti Om with Riteish playing SRK, Vishal Malhotra playing Shreyas Talpade and Ruslaan Mumtaz playing a superstar ‘Desh’ just the way Deepika Padukone played ‘Shantipriya’. OSO’s maker Farah Khan also makes an impressive cameo as she is the director who Rajesh Parekh (Riteish) and Kaushal (Vishal) assist.

24 year old Rajesh and best friend Kaushal are perpetual losers as both are kind of chick repellants. Why, because Rajesh is too simple and Kaushal too horny. The two keep envying Desh’s popularity and his craze amongst the female population. One fine night, a gorgeous girl falls from the sky and lands straight into Rajesh’s arms! To everyone’s surprise the girl (Jacqueline) happens to be from Venus whose mission is to find her true love on earth, just like Rajesh.

Riteish, Vishal and Jacqueline all three render impressive performances and are the saving grace of the film. Where Riteish and Vishal have perfect comic timing, Jacqueline looks every bit a woman from Venus. She is gorgeous, pleasant and a confident performer. There is no naivety in her performance. Her Hindi too is surprisingly decent.

What disappoints is the sloppy script. The idea between alien-human love is interesting but the story doesn’t materialize as we would expect. The dialogues are corny, characters clichéd and the genre confused. There are ample of heavy romantic cheesy lines but no interesting romance. The actors have good comic timing but there are no great humorous punches in the script itself for them to enact. Also the director gives undue space and time for supporting actors instead of focusing on his lead pair which seems futile.

Karan Johar, Akshay Kumar, Priyanka Chopra and Sajjid Khan also play cameos as they talk about superstar Desh just the way they did in spoke about Farhan in Luck By Chance. Again nothing new there!

Making Ruslaan Mumtaz as the superstar of Bollywood in the film too seems like a bad idea. The actor looks cute and acts well but doesn’t look the character he plays, as off screen, he himself is a newcomer and is thus unable to display the aura of a superstar.

The film had the potential to be better but disappoints.

Review: My Name Is Khan remains on the fringes of great cinema

Film: My Name Is Khan (U/A)
Director: Karan Johar
Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, Zarina Wahab, and others
Rating: ***

The other day, I managed to catch bits of Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (KANK) on TV — the first time since I saw the film when it released in 2006 — and remembered how disappointed I had been after watching it. It’s not like it was a bad movie or anything of the sort, but given its interesting plot, it failed to rise above the multi-starrer entertainer it ended up being.

Four years later, KANK director Karan Johar’s latest film, My Name Is Khan (MNIK), suffers from a similar problem. It has everything a director needs to execute a grand vision — an interesting plot (Shibani Kashyap gets story/screenplay credit), good actors, excellent production values (art direction, locations etc), and is technically superior (Ravi K Chandran’s cinematography is a treat). And it’s fairly entertaining, too.

But, sadly, MNIK ends up somewhere between a film with a larger statement that strikes you with its honesty and a film with the typical trappings you would find in what is annoyingly referred to as a ‘Bollywood’ film.

MNIK is quite good, but not the great piece of cinema it could have been.

Rizvan ‘Shah Rukh’ Khan suffers from Asperger’s syndrome, a disorder which makes it difficult for people to interact socially, and comes to live with his younger brother (Shergill) in the US after their mother dies.

Here, he meets hairstylist Mandira (Kajol), a free-spirited woman who lives with her six-year old son, Sam, from a failed marriage. While Rizvan falls in love with Mandira, she too grows fond of the good-natured Rizvan. An unlikely romance later, Mandira gets married to Rizvan.

The perfect existence of the Khans gets disrupted, howevrer, after the September 11 attack on the twin towers in New York City. Sam gets involved in a tussle with a few college ruffians who beat him up because his second name is Khan.

Sam dies of his injuries and a shattered Mandira blames Rizvan for his death. "He died only because his name was Khan,” yells Mandira and asks Rizvan to leave her. Rizvan tries to assure Mandira that things would get better, but she tells him that as long as he remains a Khan, he would be looked upon as a terrorist, even if he persuaded the US president otherwise.

Rizvan sets out on a journey that takes him from one US state to another, following the movements of president George W Bush, for whom he has a message: “My name is Khan, and I’m not a terrorist.”

The film makes an important point. Not all Muslims can be typecast as jihadis — something that is not entirely novel, but is still valid. A two-hour-long intense drama with well-crafted, emotional sequences (which MNIK has in plenty, actually) would have driven the point home.

Instead, the film combines elements of a love story with a message-oriented theme and ends up being what can now be referred to as a ‘Johar’. At 2 hours 45 minutes, it’s a bit long, and certain sequences in the first half are welcome only because they give you opportunities for quick toilet breaks.

The love story between Mandira and Rizvan, pre-interval, is likeable in places but makes it that much longer for the film to settle into its groove. Once that happens, however, MNIK is a compelling watch.

The scene showing Sam’s tussle with the bullies, and what follows, grabs your attention and sets up a dramatic second half. Certain sequences tug at your heartstrings and the film moves you and leaves you feeling satiated in the end.

What adds to the enjoyment is the performance of the real-life Khan. Shah Rukh, as someone suffering from a disorder, gets the character just right. His body language and expressions are fabulous. Some may find his way of talking monotonous, but Shah Rukh inculcates that aspect in his character well enough for you to stop minding it after a while.

No Karan Johar-directed film would be complete without a Shah Rukh Khan monologue. Be prepared to be bombarded with a few here, too. Thankfully, though, Khan nails it every single time.

Kajol is the perfect foil to Khan, as she has always been, but how you wish she wasn’t the bubbly, ‘cute’, loud woman she has already played in previous Johar films. In scenes requiring her to display emotional and intense histrionics though, she is at home. Watching the two performers in their element together after a long time will be cherished by fans of films the duo appeared in through the 1990s.

With the two dominating the proceedings, the other actors — Shergill, Sonia Jehan, Arjun Mathur, Parveen Dabbas, and others — are left with little to do. Zarina Wahab, in a cameo as Rizvan’s mother, is a welcome addition to the long list of ‘mummies’ in our films, while the child actor playing Sam is quite good.

Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy’s music is strictly functional, ‘Noor-e-Khuda’ being the only song that stays with you.

For Karan Johar, the film is another step in the direction he has been charting since KANK and with his recent productions — of giving audiences their fill of escapism, but finding a way to experiment within the minimum space his entertainers allow him. He may not be there yet, but in MNIK, Johar shows sparks of the brilliance he displayed with his first cinematic effort, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, which remains a personal favourite from the director’s stable.

Hopefully, he will better even that soon. C’mon KJo, let’s have a sappy romantic comedy — melodrama, music, family values, et al — next. Others can worry about social issues.

Bollywood Film Kisse Pyar Karoon Review

Kisse Pyar Karoon

Film:Kisse Pyar Karoon (Comedy)
Cast: Arshad Warsi, Ashish Chowdhury, Yash Tonk, Udita Goswami
Direction: Ajay Chandhok
Duration: 2 hours 57 minutes

Sitting through a few reels of this film that's supposedly a comedy, you end up with just one query: Why Mr Warsi? Does an actor get some masochistic pleasure in destroying his own talent by dabbling in dismal fare? Doesn't Arshad Warsi know he's got what it takes? If only he'd stop being self-destructive and display some plain common sense while selecting his scripts. Cineastes have savoured his best in films like Seher and the unforgettable Circuit in the Munnabhai series. Even in cornball films like Golmaal, Warsi managed to hold his own, despite the ensemble caste. But having to watch him in dispensable stuff like this, definitely makes you cringe. Doesn't it make him cringe too?

Kisse...is a loser from the word go. A down market band of boys -- Arshad, Ashish, Yash -- deliriously live their unruly life and are determined to continue this way. And the only way to perpetuate this all-male camaraderie is to keep the women at bay. Now that's okay for Arshad and Yash who have their own diversions, but Ashish is a diehard romantic and can't survive without a girlfriend.

Nursing a broken heart after girlfriend Aarti Chabria vanishes into the blue, he spends most of his time singing sad songs...until his buddies find another distraction for him. Now that's a move that backfires, since the blackbelt expert, Udita Goswami, is a shrew who wants to tear the band of boys apart. Arshad and Yash now must try to exorcise their friend of the Udita obsession to win him back. Add to this, a headless plot about an anonymous gangster (Shakti Kapoor) with a yen for AK-47s, and you have a film that's as enlivening as a headless chicken.Too loud. Too lost. Too ludicrous.

Bollywood Movie Dev D Review

Film: Dev D (drama)
Cast: Abhay Deol, Mahi Gill, Kalki Koechlin
Direction: Anurag Kashyap

THANK God for the mavericks, the non-conformists, the infidels, the les enfant terribles. They make things happen when kitsch becomes king; when creativity crumbles; when formula pervades, fungus-like. Imagine a world without rule breakers. And then imagine, like Anurag Kashyap: unbridled, unbounded, ungrounded....

Indeed, Dev D is one such flight of fancy from the filmmaker that definitely defies all conventions and demolishes all moulds. Not only does it rewrite the technique of the artistic medium, with its unusual cinematography, dizzy editing, non-linear plot narration, turn-of-the-century dialogues and breathtakingly bizarre audio track (music: Amit Trivedi, lyrics: Amitabh Bhattacharya), it completely revises the ancient text which has already made its mark in its various avtars , the latest being the high-pitched rendition of the self-destructive hero by Shah Rukh Khan in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Devdas.

Kashyap has always been a contrarian filmmaker, consciously steering away from traditional Bollywood with films like Black Friday, Paanch, No Smoking. However, while his earlier films were an innovative search for his groove and rhythm, Dev D is like that heady cocktail which has the vodka pitched perfectly with the tang. (Incidentally, Dev D likes his vodka with thumbs up, washed down in unlimited portions, morning, noon and night!) Set against the rich rural backdrop of Punjab and Paharganj (Delhi), the film traces the self-destructive sojourn of a young, contemporary hero who mirrors the existential angst of the proverbial outsider, made legendary in the writings of Satre, Camus, Kafka, Kerouac and the ballads of Kurt Cobain.

But Dev D (Abhay Deol), unlike Devdas, isn't a blast from the past. In his rootlessness, his lack of purpose and his complete disconnect with the real (read traditional) world, he reflects the mindset of the archetypal new millennium 20-something who doesn't know how to blend tradition with modernity, permissiveness with orthodoxy, Oxford with Bhatinda. And so, he asks his childhood sweetheart, Paro (Mahi Gill) to send him her nude photographs through e-mail, yet can't handle the quandary about her virginity and pronounced sexuality. In a fit of aggrieved machismo, he spurns her wild sexual adventurism which sees her cycling to the neighbouring fields at the break of dawn with a mattress meticulously rolled up on the carrier for a clandestine tryst with him. (Ever seen the bharatiya naari do this in Indian cinema? Bravo, brave new Bollywood!) Little does he realise that Paro isn't mere putty in his hand and is unwilling to subject herself to any kind of ‘emotional atyachar', in the name of love.

Having given vent to her anger and pain, she simply moves on while the already disconnected Dev becomes even more dysfunctional with his alcohol and drug addiction. He moves to a seedy hotel in Paharganj and ends up after a drunken stupour in young Chanda's (Kalki Koechlin) pink and purple boudoir. Once again, Kashyap reinterprets the self-sacrificing courtesan, Chandramukhi in completely post-modern terms. Here, she is Lenny, the schoolgirl who ends up as the sex worker, Chanda, after being disowned by family and friends because she featured in a lewd MMS, that sent the whole nation in a lustful tizzy. `And they call me a slut!' exclaims the feisty escort who attends college by day and plays Florence Nightingale in shorts by night.

The relationship between Dev and Chanda begins with hate, scorn and derision with the decadent Dev unleashing his chauvinism and me-centrism on the hooker. But when the haze of cocaine lifts, the heartburn begins, once again. After having stooped to unimaginable lows, our hero dreams of a second chance. Will he get it or is Devdas destined to waste away forever? The last we saw him was at a non-descript momo joint in the seedy by-lanes of Paharganj, waiting for nirvana. Of course, he's all by himself, since proud little Paro's moved on and survivor Chanda's too strong to play doormat, willing to give up her slutty ways, for love alone.

Dev D is indeed a coming-of-age film, not merely for the protagonist, Devender Singh Dhillon, but it is a brilliant breakthrough for Bollywood too. It really doesn't matter whether the film ends up as a box office scorcher. What matters is the fact that for the discerning viewer, Dev D is a tryst with milestone cinema, reminiscent of Baz Luhrmann's Shakespeare-shaken-and-stirred in Romeo and Juliet. Kashyap, however, gets even more adventurous and adds a progressive flourish to both the plot and the characters which are played to perfection by the three lead players. If Mahi and Kalki are riveting new finds, assured of a long innings in cinema, then Abhay Deol adds a whole new meaning to the term `Unconventional Hero'. Manorama Six Feet Under, Oye Lucky, Lucky Oye were just teasers. Dev D is the class act from the Deol who cleverly flew over the cuckoo's nest. Don't miss this film which completely reinvents the musical love story, with zany numbers like ‘emosanal atyachar', ‘saali khushi', ‘nayan tarse' and the rest. More importantly, it might just go down in history as one of the most radical Indian films, at least in its delineation of male and female sexuality.

Bollywood Movies Hits of 2008

All ye' Bollywood fans and Bollywood lovers are interested in knowing which indeed was the most successful Bollywood movie of 2008. Is it Ghajini or Golmaal Returns? Or is there other clear winner? What do trade guides show? Which Bollywood movie truly rocked 2008? Is the most successful Bollywood movie of 2008, also your favorite movie?

Presenting here are the hits, superhits and blockbusters Bollywood movies of 2008, including a brief review. The movies are arranged according to their time of release.

1. Jodhaa Akbar : Released on February 15' 2008, Jodhaa Akbar, directed by Bollywood most prolific director Ashutosh Gowariker, was a semi hit. It went on to do a business of Rs. 62 crores. Hrithik Roshan was the USP of the film, he played Akbar so well that the historic figure is now synonymous with the actor.

2. Race: Released on March 21' 2008, Race was the first big hit of 2008. An edge of the seat thriller, the movie directed by Abbas-Mustan was full of twists and turns. As of May 30, it grossed Rs.63,67,00,000 ($14,886,600) in India, and $9,505,321 in other parts bringing a worldwide total of $24,391,921. Race is actually the fifth biggest hit of 2008.

3. Jannat: Jannat, directed by Kunal Deshmukh, was a Mukesh Bhatt film, released on May 16. Based on cricket betting, the movie extracted the career best performance of Emran Hashmi. Debutante Sonal Chauhan made a pretty picture in the movie. Jannat grossed 32,47,00,000 in 5 weeks, quite higher than its cost of production.

4. Aamir: One of the dark horse hits of 2008, Aamir directed by Raj Kumar Gupta released on June 6. The movie starring Rajeev Khandelwal was a story about how an innocent man gets trapped in the hands of religious extremists who want to bomb the city. An interesting premise, the movie did good business.

5. Sarkar Raj: Sarkar Raj, directed by Ram Gopal Verma released on June 6 2008. The movie was a semi-hit; people compared Sarkar Raj to its prequel Sarkar, and found that the sequel was not as effective as the first one. Nevertheless, it grossed 34 crores in India in its first two weeks and over $1 million in the USA.

6. Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na: Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na, released on July 4 2008; directed by Abbas Tyrewala and produced by Aamir Khan, was the iconic movie of 2008. The movie was a blazing hit and it is still the favorites of the youth segment, which forms a major part of the movie going audience. The youthful movie had a cliched but entertaining story with fantastic music by A.R.Rahman. in 5 weeks, it earned approximately 52.96 crores.

7. Singh is Kinng: Singh is Kinng was a movie, all Akshay Kumar fans were waiting for. Released on August 8, 2008; the movie recorded the biggest advance booking in the history of Bollywood, second only to Ghajini. With a fantastic figure of Rs.44 crores in the first week, Singh is Kinng was the fourth biggest hit of Bollywood 2008. By September, it had already earned Rs.73 crores.

8. Bachna Ae Haseeno: Released on August 15, 2008, Bachna Ae Haseeno proved to be a solace for Yash Raj films which had only given flops before this, in 2008 like Tashan and Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic. Made on a budget of Rs.18 crores, this Ranbir Kapoor earned Rs.31.20 crores in its second week, and was declared a semi hit.

9. Phoonk: Phoonk directed by Ram Gopal Verma was probably the least expensive movie, which did good business. The movie based on black magic was a success because of the subject.

10. Mumbai Meri Jaan: Mumbai Meri Jaan, released on August 22' 2008 was a movie based on 7/11 bomb blasts. A slightly documentary style film, it focussed on the repercussions of the bomb blasts. The movie was an an above average hit. The USP of the film was a power packed performance by Paresh Rawal and Irrfan Khan.

11. Rock On!!: Rock On (released August 29' 2008) , directed by Abhishek Kapoor and produced by Farhan Akhtar, was another youth favorite, like Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na. Based on friendship and rock music, Rock On was treated like a sequel to the cult movie Dil Chahta Hai. It made singer-actor-producer-director (phew!) Farhan Akhtar, a household name.

12. A Wednesday: A Wednesday, released on September 5 2008, is the dark horse success of 2008. A powerful script, impeccable dialogues and a unique treatment by director Neeraj Pandey, made this probably the most watchable movie of 2008. Naseerudin Shah proved that he is inimitable when it comes to stellar performance.

13. 1920: A spooky movie directed by Vikram Bhatt (released Sep 12' 08) was high on horror around a haunted palatial house. Newbies Rajneesh Duggal and Adah Sharma gave a spirited (no pun intended!) performance. The fantastic English locales and visual effects proved to be the USP of the film.

14. Welcome to Sajjanpur: Welcome to Sajjanpur, released on September 19 2008 was director Shyam Benegal's entry to commercial cinema. The movie shot in rural set-up brought back memories of Malgudy Days and fared well at the box office.

15. Fashion: Fashion directed by Madhur Bhandarkar, gave a push to Priyanka Chopra who went down-slide with four back to back flops in 2008. It appealed to the youth and the upper crust and did good business.

16. Golmaal Returns: Released on the same date as Fashion (October 29' 2008) , Golmaal Returns was a run-away super hit. Though marred by critics, it was declared a huge success by the masses. It surpassed the first day totals of Om Shanti Om, last year, by collecting 22.03 lakhs on day one. This Rohit Shetty venture earned Rs.48 crores in the first week, making it the third biggest hit of 2008.

17. Dostana: Dostana directed by Tarun Mansukhani for Karan Johar released on November 14' 2008. The story of two men Abhishek Bachchan and John Abraham, who pretend to be gays, and fall in love with eye-candy Priyanka Chopra made the box office smile. By December 12, it had already earned Rs.80 crores.

18. Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi: One of the much awaited movies, the Shahrukh Khan starrer Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, released on December 12'08. Made on a modest budget of Rs.22 crores by Yash Raj standards, Aditya Chopra directed this movie to success. The movie also featured debutante Anushka Sharma. Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi earned 7.5 crore net all over India and by day 1, and earned Rs.44.5 crores by week 1. Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi is the second biggest hit of 2008.

19. Ghajini: The most awaited movie Ghajini, proved to be a record breaking success. The most successful movie of the year and perhaps one of the all time big hits, this Aamir Khan movie directed by A.Murgadoss proved recession cannot beat quality. Released on December 25, 2008, this remake of the Southern movie of the same name is running quite strong, thanks to the Aamir Khan brand power. On Day 1, Ghajini earned Rs.33 crores, (compared to Rs.18 crore of Rab Ne) worldwide, something which is unheard off. Ghajini is all set to pass Rs.100 crores in three weeks, overtaking the lines of previous two years biggies Om Shanti Om (Rs.80 crores) and Dhoom 2 (Rs.85 crores).

Conclusion 2008: Ghajini has proved to be a big money spinner for Bollywood. The year 2008 has pooled in 15 percent or Rs.900 crore more than last year. Call it the Pareto Principal, if you will but Rab Ne and Ghajini have added another 20 percent more to the box office collection of movies preceding them. Masala films and movies based on 'terror issues' dominated 2008.

So, here is the countdown of the top 5 films of Bollywood 2008:
5. Race
4. Singh is Kinng
3. Golmaal Returns
2. Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi
1. Ghajini

Bollywood Movie 'Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi' Review

Cast & Crew
Shahrukh Khan - Surinder Sahni and Raj Kapoor
Anushka Sharma - Taani
Anupam Kher
Farida Jalal
Vinay Pathak

Production Credits

Director: Aditya Chopra
Producer: Aditya Chopra , Yash Chopra , Sanjay Shivalkar
Written by: Aditya Chopra

Aditya Chopra's last outing as a director was Mohabbatein. The film, which starred Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan, brought Big B back in the reckoning. Eight years later, when it seems like the Chopras themselves could do with some resurrection, who do they turn to, but Shah Rukh Khan!

Khan plays a government servant Surinder Sahni who lives a fairly uneventful life in small-town Amritsar. On his deathbed, Surinder's professor urges him to marry his only daughter Taani (Anushka Sharma) who is yet to recover from her fiancé's death.

Caught in this rather awkward situation, the two people start their newly married life by living in separate bedrooms, hardly speaking and sharing very little in common. While Surinder is head over heels in love with his bride, Taani continues to remain holed up in her room.

Surinder who seems clueless of how to make his wife smile, finds solace in Bollywood cinema. But while watching a film he realises how much Taani loves Hindi films and its heroes. Meanwhile, the once bubbly and cheerful Taani learns of a dance-training programme and asks her husband's permission to participate in it.

Surinder is so desperate to win Taani's heart and see her smile again, he undergoes a complete transformation courtesy his loyal friend Bobby (Vinay Pathak). In his new improved avatar, Surinder sneaks into the dance class just to catch a peek of his wife. As luck would have it, he ends up becoming her dancing partner and introduces himself as Raj.

A complete opposite of Surinder, Raj is an OTT Punjabi boy who wears tight jeans, garish t-shirts and bright sunglasses even when it's not sunny outside. Unlike Surinder, he also goes all out to display his feelings for her and knocks off the power supply of half the town just to say the three words.

And that's when things change for the worse. Despite his assurances, Taani tells him that everything from that point nothing would ever be the same. Because Taani has fallen in love with Raj not knowing that he and her husband are the very same person.

How Taani comes to terms with her feelings and who – Raj or Surinder – walks away with the girl form the climax of the story.


What works:

Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi starts off from where most Yash Raj films end. The boy (or in this case the man) and the girl are in fact shown married in the first frame itself. It is how they cope with each other is what the movie is all about.

Rab Ne also moves away from the typical Yash Raj films format in many more ways. It is set entirely in small-town India. So there are no foreign locales or skimpy skirts and definitely no swanky apartments with bathrooms the size of football fields.

In a sense, Anushka Sharma comes across as a perfect choice for such a film. A complete fresher to showbiz, Anushka does a convincing job playing the vivacious girl who has lost her love and her father.

Playing the pretty-looking Taani, Anushka is every middle-class boy's dream partner come true – when she finds her husband's colleagues have invited themselves over, she keeps her sorrow aside and plays the perfect host. She also cooks and cleans for him. And guess what, she's one helluva dancer and can pack a punch on a motorbike too!

Shah Rukh Khan plays a double role of sorts. While on the one hand he is the simpleton working for Punjab Power on the other he is the hero his wife dreams of.

During the day he keeps a nine-to-five job. But once the sun goes down, Surinder becomes Raj who grooves with Taani, engages in a gol-gappa eating competition and doesn't hesitate to show his innermost feelings to her.

The 40-something SRK shows just why he is called King Khan as he carries off the two roles almost effortlessly. What is striking is that each time he changes his attire his body language also undergoes a drastic change.

Dressed in tight clothes, he is the macho Punjabi lad with coloured hair, driving around the latest bikes, confident and always flirtatious. But once he gets into his off-white shirt, cream trousers and specs he slouches, takes hesitant steps first towards the dining room and then to his room upstairs.

Towards the end the two characters appear almost once scene after another. Yet never once do you see Shah Rukh blurring the lines. Surinder's slouch and his subtle ways of showing his love to Taani make your heart go out to the man willing to go to any extent for his wife's happiness.

What doesn't work:

Despite its simple storyline (that seems to be a distant echo of Hrishikesh Mukherjee's Gol Maal and it's moustache plot) Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi fails to hold your attention beyond a point. At about 2 hours and 40 minutes, Rab Ne is far too long for today's short film audience.

Jodhaa Akbar, the other long film of the year, at least had the opulence, a good-looking lead couple and some fantastic music score by AR Rahman to fill up the timeline.

Here the songs – except Haule Haule – slacken the pace further. Then again there are bits, which could have well been done away with. Why for instance do Yash Raj films have the recurring Dhoom theme is beyond me. Roadside Romeo had it so did Bachna Ae Haseeno. We all loved Dhoom and its sequel. But c'mon Adi, don't tell us it's what you associate Yash Raj with the most.

Age has begun to show on Shah Rukh's face and it's evident he has been undergoing something to keep his looks intact. That is probably one of the reasons why close shots of the Khan don't necessarily work.

Verdict:

In troubled times like ours we could all do with a love story like Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi. Agreed, the film could have been far, far shorter and simpler, but watch this solely for Shah Rukh Khan. If you aren't his fan already, chances are you'll become one.

source:buzz18.in.com