Movie Review Student of the Year Hindi 2012

If there's one genre on which one can blindly rely on Karan Johar, its romance. The filmmaker surely knows how to capture the matters of heart and portray them evocatively and endearingly on celluloid. And when it comes to college/teenage romance, it is KJo's home turf. So while Karan swooned millions of heart with his debut college romance 'Kuch Kuch Hota Hai', the filmmaker is back to teenage mush with Student Of The Year. Will this candy floss cast the same spell on young hearts or not let's find out.

Located in the scenic locales of Dehradun, is, what we are told, the best school of India, St. Teresa. Best, for it has a cool canteen, spectacular college premise, and a clout of elitist students who either are busy flaunting their Guccis, Pradas or Ferraris or their hot bods. In the world where the students are divided between Tatas - the elites and Batas - the poor ones (although in the course of the film you don't quite find any), enters Abhimanyu (Siddharth Malhotra), an apparently middle class, small town, hardworking boy who makes it to the school on scholarship. He is touted to bridge the gap between the Tatas and Batas, which in the course of the film you don't quite get to see.

Abhimanyu wants to be just like the millionaire trustee of the school Ashok Nanda (Ram Kapoor) but his plans start crumbling as he falls for the brattiest college boy's girlfriend Shanaya (Alia Bhat). The brat here is Rohan Nanda (Varun Dhawan), Ashok Nanda's son who doesn't quite take to his father and wants to be a musician instead. What follows is the clash between Rohan and Abhimanyu for the prestigious title of Student Of The Year. While for Abhimanyu it is his gateway to being rich, for Rohan it's his ticket to prove his mettle.

Karan Johar's college romance takes a 21st century spin as this portrays glossiness as never seen before. So the complexities in life of the characters are pretty much about not having mellowed down clothes to wear for hospital visits or not finding their designated parking spots for their Ferarris.

Writer Rensil Dsilva takes a very 'Jaane Tu Yaa Jaane Na' approach by having a group of ex-students narrate the story of the love hate relationship between the three friends Rohan, Shanaya and Abhimanyu. However, much against the aforementioned film, this time around the film fails in holding the attention. There's enough farce deliberation in the narrative to keep you glued to the seats. Moreover, the film keeps oscillating between Abbas Tyrewala's 'Jaane Tu...' and Rajkumar Hirani's '3 Idiots'. While on one hand you have the friendship, bromance and romance, on the other you have subtle remarks on the education system etc. - none of which do have been dealt with properly.

Major portion of the film goes showcasing the muscle flaunting and flexing heroes or the high handedness and fashion freakiness of the heroine.

What works for the film are the characters. All three newcomers show ample promise as they play their parts with laudable confidence. At a young age of 19, Alia Bhatt marks a crackling debut. Not only does she look very fresh and beautiful but also acts well. Both Varun Dhawan and Siddharth Malhotra too do a swell job in looking their parts and playing them well. As for the rest of the cast, Rishi Kapoor as an effeminate Dean is a delight to watch. Ronit Roy and Ram Kapoor are fit for their roles too.

To sum it up, Student Of The Year is all fluff sans much stuff. Watch it if you are a big fan of frothy, glossy romance. For the ones looking for realistic meaningful cinema, this isn't the film for you.

Movie Review Delhi Safari 3D Hindi 2012

In the present state of animation films where animation only revolves around mythology it's a plight to see a film like Delhi Safary that goes beyond mythology struggle for 5 long years to see the light of the day. The film finally makes it to the theaters and we give you an insight of what this film is all about.

Delhi Safary is the story of a young cub Yuvi from Mumbai's Sanjay Gandhi National Park who is distraught and depressed over his father Sultan's death by the builder who is razing the forest in order to build sky scrapers. Thus starts the journey of a cub, his mother leopard, a monkey, a bear and a parrot for justice. They decide to take on the builder by going to New Delhi and protest in front of the parliament in the presence of the media. And it is their journey in train from Mumbai to Delhi via various stops and adventures in between that makes for the entire story.

Delhi Safary isn't amongst the various small time animation films that make it to the theaters for a week or two and straight enter the satellite shows. This film has all its ingrediants to make for a good theater watch. Nikhil Advani makes sure that the film doesn't get preachy at all by adding enough humour quotient in it. Although the film does tread on predictable path quite a lot of times, it's the humour and entertainment in the script that keeps the audience hooked to their seats.

The biggest strengths of Nikhil Advani is his characters in Delhi Safary. The filmmaker chooses renowned filmmakers to dub to the animals in the film and literally breathe life into the characters. There are film stars like Suneil Shetty, Boman Irani, Urmila Matondar, Govinda and Akshaye Khanna in the film. While Suneil Shetty plays the senior leopard Sultan, Urmila plays the doting yet determined mother leopard, Boman Irani dubs for the bear Bagga while Akshaye Khanna plays the multi-lingual parrot Alex. However, the character that deserves a big round of applause is that of Bajrangi dubbed by Govinda. He forms the biggest highpoint of entertainment in the film. Govinda fuses all his humour, wit and entertainment into the character making for a pleasure watch.

The only thing that works against the film is the usage of songs. They don't add any value to the film and only act as deterrent to the proceedings, especially the song in the Kutch part which is completely pointless and boring.

To sum it up, Delhi Safary is a funny and enjoyable ride that leaves you with a strong message not only for the kids but for one and all. A definite watch.

Movie Review Janleva 555 Hindi 2012

If there isn't enough pun in the film's title itself you really have to read this review. Janleva 555 essentially is supposed to be a film made to create awareness about the increasing deaths owing to snake bites. However, the film ends up becoming everything that a film shouldn't.

The film takes off with a show reel of renowned personalities of film industry such as Vyjayanthimla Bali, Sonu Sood, and Prabhu Deva among others requesting the audient to watch this film as the revenue generated from the film will be donated to the victims of snake bites who need ventilators on an immediate basis. Well, you already begin to wonder that since you're watching the film anyway why are you being told furthermore to watch the film? But that's totally besides any reasonable reasoning.

Coming back to the film, we are shown two friends, Neelam (Kalpana Pandit) and Pooja (Shona Chabra), who are in love with two guys. All four happen to be aspiring filmmakers deeply concerned about the increasing death ratio in India due to snake bites. These four along with a few other friends decide to make a film on the same issue and take off to a small remote village known for its snake population. However, things go awry when Neelam realises that in one of her previous births she was a snake called Rajni and later turns into an ichchadhaari naagin. The rest of the film follows similar absurdity as the aforementioned line.

With feeble promotions and dismal screens, there isn't much expected from Janleva 555 but one stills expects at least some sense in the film. However, the film defies all logics and sensible grounds and follows the part of lunacy. After a point you get so annoyed that you almost forget there ever was a noble intention behind making this film.

If one had to make a film on such a serious cause, it was best to give it a documentary feel. But by blending a poorly written fictional work, filmmaker Sandeep Malani only ruins his film beyond repairs. There's not a single salvaging point in the film. While the story is shoddy, the actors are laughable. The least said about the production value the better. The film proceeds in circle and has an insanely long run time with songs cropping up more than dialogues in the film itself.

With no redeeming factor, Janleva 555 can surely turn out to be a Janleva nightmare if one opts to watch it. Lay off!

Movie Review Aiyaa Hindi 2012

Long gone are the days when an actor would say his/her film is different and it would turn out to be a regular Bollywood potboiler. With the onset of various unlikeliest of gems creating a furore at the box-office, one only gets further more intrigued at the slightest mention of anything unconventional in a storyline. And what more unusual than to have the female lead go head over heels for a man only for his odour?

Meenakshi Deshpande (Rani Mukherji) is a highly animated and over the top, middle class Marathi girl from Pune. She prefers living in her dream world which consists of impersonating her favourite actresses Sridevi, Madhuri and Juhi. If you thought Rani's quirks are enough, wait till the absurdities of the entire household grip you. So you have Baba, the father, who smokes three cigarettes at the same time, Aaji, the grandmother on the wheelchair wearing sunglasses in the house and has gold teeth, bhau, the brother, who's only love in live is that for street dogs.

Proceeding ahead with the story, the Deshpande family is in a look out for a suitable groom for Meenakshi. However, the latter's likings with regards match up to her quirks. She wants a South Indian (read dark-skinned) male. Enters Surya (Prithviraj) and Meenakshi in one swift movement falls for his tanned skin and body odour. However, Surya is completely ignorant of her while in the meantime Meenakshi's parents have her engaged to another man Madhav (Subodh Bhave). The rest of the film revolves around Madhav chasing Meenashi while the latter chasing Surya.

 Aiyyaa is based on debutant filmmaker Sachin Kundalkar's 2009 short film Gandha. Although the concept on papers or as a short capsule sounds interesting, the problem comes about when Sachin stretches it to massive proportions. The entire first half dwells on the quirks of the Deshpande Family and with a little twist coming right towards the interval point by the time of which you are tired and restless.

Humour being one of the strong elements in the film also fails to impress and only turns out to be a low IQ farce affair. There's zilch amount of logic used in the film and the over the top antics only make matters worse.

Both Subodh and Prithviraj aren't given any dialogues to deliver. Prithviraj only takes some advantage of being a South superstar and mouths a few liners that too towards the end of the film. considering the fact that he merely had to be a good looking prop, the South Star is average at best.

The film completely centers around Rani who tries all tricks of trade written in the acting book to launch herself in the main league. She goes dramatic, over the top, loud, humorous but sadly none of it aides the storyline. It's difficult to believe that the same actress who's had critically acclaimed films in the past stooping to such mediocrity.

Rani shoves all her energy in the dance sequences. But even at that with the exception of Dreamum Wakepum or Aga Bai, the rest of the numbers fail to impress one bit.

To sum it up, Aiyyaa, is a major disappointment coming from the production house of Anurag Kashyap and from the once upon a time highly revered actress Rani Mukerji. Watch this 'Wakda' tale at your own risk.

Movie Review Makkhi Hindi 2012

Following to the stupendous success of its Telugu version Eega, renowned filmmaker who took imaginative and creative cinema to new heights released the Hindi dubbed version of his cinematic marvel titled Makkhi. Although except from a few name changes here and there, and Hindi dubbing by the same actors or others, there's isn't much of a novelty factor in this one other than the sheer want for the film to be seen. As the graphical wonder makes way to the Hindi film industry today, we give you a quick sneak peek into what this film is about.

 For the acclaims and accolades that it's drawn unanimously, Makkhi happens to have one of the simplest of stories, Jaani (Nani) in madly in love with Bindu (Samantha) who runs an educational non-profitable organisation and also has a hobby of micro art. Nani keeps pursuing Bindu for more than two years but she never quite budges to his love confessions. By the time Bindu finally starts feeling for Jaani comes the villain of the tale. Sudeep (Sudeep), a multi-millionaire business, who is smitten by Bindu. Insanely pissed at not getting any response from Bindu and figuring out Jaani to be the result of it, Sudeep murders Jaani. From here starts the ultimate revenge saga as Jaani reborn as a fly. How Jaani seeks his revenge is what follows through the rest of the plot.

Filmmaker SS Rajamouli wins all the brownie points for visualizing such an interesting twist to a very normal love-revenge-reincarnation saga. And it is only possible to come from a man who has seen tremendous success in the past for all his films. It's only the conviction with which he makes the fly take revenge which forms a riveting drama.

The possibilities with which a fly can attack a human and the antics with which the fly actually goes about doing all that is thoroughly entertaining.

The film does however, become a drag in the second half and you wish some of the scenes could've been chopped for a crisper feel but if you consider the broader picture the minor flaws appear negligible.

The biggest hero of the film is the graphic work. Nothing could've been accomplished had it not been for the flawless graphic work that gets used in the film. To add to it is the background score which aides the proceedings well.

Nani, despite having a smaller part to play in the film does a brilliant job while Samantha looks beautiful and acts well. The person to take away the largest piece of cake is Sudeep. It isn't a joke to be emoting to something that will only be created in the post production and the way Sudeep reacts to the Fly is fabulous and laudable.

The only difference in the Hindi version is the Nani's name gets changed to Jaani and SS Rajamouli tries to get some face value by trying to get Ajay Devgn and Kajol to dub in the initial 5 minutes.

Makkhi, to sum it up, is a perfect example of the wonders a human brain can do if you just let it wander out of the box. It is a film which deserves to be seen by one and all.

Movie Review Kismal Love Paisa Dilli

There is a thin line between being humorous and corny. Often in Bollywood, this line is blurred by the filmmakers trying to tap the pedestrian sense of humour of today's youth. But there are also many who succeed in doing so like Kya Kool Hai Hum. Punches at the right time and good comic timing are the two important attributes of such genre of movie. Riding on the same comes this Friday's release Kismat, Love Paisa Dilli. Let's see if it manages to make us laugh or squirm. 

Lokesh Duggal (Vivek Oberoi) is a raffish and streetwise Delhi guy who has a life changing moment aboard the last metro. His life turns topsy turvy when suddenly he is dragged into chaotic slurry of cops and goons and even a don chasing him. All this for that one missing tape which everyone thinks, for some reason, lies with Lokesh. Soon he is joined by an unlikely partner called Lavina (Mallika Sherawat) who initially hands Lokesh over to the cops to protect herself but later on get embroiled in the same mess as Lokesh. Rest of the movie is a series of mishaps and occurrences that suck Lokesh and Lavina into this mess even strongly. 

As the name suggests, KLPD sticks to acronym to the T. Director Sanjay Khanduri found the cocky meaning of the acronym so fascinating that he didn't think twice before following the same route with the movie. The fact that a man who gave the critically acclaimed movie Ek Chalis Ki Last Local could come out with something this astute is really disappointing. 

It is unclear why Sanjay wanted to cram up the movie with every salacious thing possible from homosexual comedy to sex comedy to cheesy slangs and others. However none of them serve the purpose and end up being ridiculous. The movie runs in tangent and the 2 and a half hour runtime starts to get on your nerves after a point of time. 

As for performances, Vivek Oberoi needs better films if he wants to gain back his lost glory and Mallika Sherawat should start looking for meatier roles. Here she had a wasted part but couldn't even live upto it. Only respite in the movie is Ashutosh Rana and his team's antics. Rest don't deserve a mention here at all.

All in all, KLPD can be easily missed and you won't even feel it. I give it 1 star. 

Movie Review English Vinglish Hindi 2012

There are no villains in "English Vinglish". Only imperfect human beings like you and I, who make that common error of taking loved ones for granted.

Admit it. At some point in our lives we have all felt that if we don't speak good English, we are not destined to be successful human beings. Imagine a housewife - beautiful, efficient, charming, supportive - and imagine if she looks like, well, Sridevi and still feels she is being taken for granted just because she can't speak fluent Angrezi.

Shashi's children find her embarrassing at times. Her husband openly cracks jokes about her accent. Shashi's husband thinks he's just being urbane and witty. But it hurts. We see that hurt in Sridevi's eyes each time she is slighted and snubbed by those whom she loves the most.

We know this world. We know this woman too. Director Gauri Shinde brings to the comfort of the familiar a feeling and flavour of wonderment, discovery and beauty.

 "English Vinglish" is a fabulous fable of a woman's self-actualization. Shabana Azmi used to do such films in the 1970s. The issues in those films about unfulfilled wives were largely socially-defined - infidelity, adultery and betrayal. The betrayal of the unforgettable woman in "English Vinglish" is far less dramatic and therefore much more profoundly deep-rooted.

Shashi breaks up a little every time the three most important people in her life - her husband, daughter and son - crack up at her vernacular accent. Then comes the chance for redemption. A five-week vacation in the US, a clandestine crash course in English and best of all, a chance to feel wanted and special when a fellow-classmate, a quietly striking French chef, gives Shashi the attention she doesn't get from her husband.

This is the complete middle-class woman's fantasy. Go out on your own and find happiness. Shinde wins over the audience at the story level itself. And then as a bonus, she proves herself a master storyteller.

Sure, Shinde gets a tremendous boost from cinematographer Laxman Utekar who captures New York in its quiet mellow state of bustling grace; composer Amit Trivedi's music simply and fluently melts into the theme and storytelling; and editor Hemanti Sarkar cuts the footage the way Shashi would cut her vegetables, precisely, lovingly and without anxiety.

Finally it's really the director's call. In what I rank as the best debut by a female director since Aparna Sen's "36 Chowringee Lane", Shinde imbues a majestic mellowness and an unostentatious glow to the story of Shashi's coming-of-age saga. Shashi's ennui is not the in-your-face tragic pathos of Madhabi Mukherjee in Satyajit Ray's
"Charulata" or Shabana in "Ek Pal". No case-history of domestic torture is built for our heroine. And no, the husband, played by Adil Hussain, brilliant in a thankless role, is not a cad sneaking into another woman's bed.

The narration doesn't try to pin its resplendent protagonist's life down to boomarked vignettes suggesting a violent need to be liberated from her domestic life. It's all very routine, recognisable and familiar.

The miracle of watching "English Vinglish" confer such a supple and contoured shape to Shashi's life is attributable to the director's high-concept theme and treatment. Shinde abhors overstatement. You hardly ever see Shashi break down. And so when the awards fall into Sridevi's lap at the yearend the nomination clip won't be the woman who suffers wracking trauma stereotype.

Nope. This woman is far more special than the bored housewives who look for an alibi to burst into their own version of 'Kaaton se kheench key yeh aanchal' to justify their succulent bites into the forbidden fruit. Sridevi simply sinks into the Big Apple, biting off juicy mouthfuls of New York's sobering cultural grace absorbing the cultural shock with a dignity that films about journeys tend to undervalue. Not this one.

"English Vinglish" a delectable geographical and emotional journey undertaken with a refreshing absence of bravura and selfcongratulation. Much of Shashi's inner power comes from Sridevi owning the role. This actress simply vanishes into her character living every breath of Shashi's voyage from laddoo-making to self-actualisation. The journey is so excitng for us the audience because we feel a new world of experiences unravel for Shashi even as she savours the newness of it all.

Sridevi is the film's backbone. To her good fortune, and ours, the film is supported by a uniformly impeccable cast. Hardly ever in recent times have I seen so many wonderful performers in one film who don't seem to 'perform' at all. Whether it's Shashi's immediate family, or her sister's family in the US, and her classmates at the coaching institute - every character stays with us. Every person populating the plot is vididly sketched.

Finally, of course, this is Sridevi's film. In the past she has given outstanding performances in awful films like "Nagina" and "Judaai". Here her inviolable virtuosity and exceptional grace get brilliant support from every department of the film.

Specially memorable are her scenes with her French co-star Mehdi Nebbou who is so splendidly supportive, we forget what a major star he is in France.  Each time the two get passionate and emotional about one another, they speak in their native tongues, certain that their words would not impede the meaning of their thought expression.

Words, this beautiful work of unassuming art tells us, are redundant. More so, when the embodiment of silent eloquence Sridevi needs to express her inner thoughts. She never allows her character to look like a victim. That is the real triumph of "English Vinglish".

Sublime, subtle, seductive and thoroughly engaging "English Vinglish" is in some ways, a life-changing experience. It turns around the male gaze, making patriarchal tyranny seem like an acceptable tradition that we never thought we needed to break. With oodles of persuasive charm, the director breaks down the bastion of male pride with a film that generations will look back on with affection. As for the incandescent Sridevi, was she really away for 16 years? She makes the contemporary actresses, even the coolest ones, look like jokes with her flawless interpretation of a woman who seeks only respect because love, she already has.

Flaws? Yes one. Amitabh Bachchan's cameo, interesting as it is, overstays its welcome. Actually Shinde plays the Big B the best possible compliment in the opening credits: "100 Years Of Indian cinema 70 Years Of Amitabh Bachchan."

To that we can add, a good 40 years of Sridevi. If you watch only two films every year make sure you see "English Vinglish" twice! - Rating : 4/5 - Superb...

Movie Review Kamaal Dhamaal Malamaal

Although Priyadarshan is returning to his comfortable genre - comedy, with almost the same team, the first and foremost thing to clarify is that Kamaal Dhamaal Malamaal is by no means a sequel to the laugh riot Malamaal Weekly as being touted. However, despite the let down of it not guaranteeing the same comedy as that of Malamaal Weekly that still gets TRPs everytime it airs on TV, KDM at least boasts of the nearly the same cast and the return of Priyadarshan to comedy after serious films like Aakrosh and Tezz.

Set in a little catholic village, KDM's protagonist is Johnny (Shreyas Talpade) aka Bakri. Afraid of everything and everyone, Johny is one terrified soul. Born into the household of David (Om Puri), a local farmer and being the only son, Johny does nothing except buying lotery tickets every week to to take his ailing father out of his misery. But he fails everytime. The only thing going in his life is his love for Maria (Madhhurima) the daughter of the village's biggest gunda and sworn enemy of David, Peter (Paresh Rawal). Enter Kallu (Nana Patekar), a stranger who saves Johnny's butt all the time, talks mostly in monosyllables and is perpetually starving.

Priyadarshan sticks to his template of small town backdrop, similar casting and almost similar attempted gags, with the only exception that this time around almost everything gets executed horrendously. Neither does the setting appear natural nor the gags entertaining. Infact it comes as a horrifying surprise that the man who has cult laugh riot Hera Pheri to his credit could come up with something as banal as Kamaal Dhamaal Malamaal.

The punches and gags are uninspiring and insipid and mostly end up annoying you no end. The humour is the typified loud kinds making it unbearable for you to sit through. The charactersketch of every person is very vague and although each and every actor tries lots to save the film, the banal dialogues and poorly scripted gags ruin their efforts.
  

Movie Review OMG Oh My God 2012

For long Akshay Kumar has been accused of movies low on quality content. And once and for all the superstar puts all accusations to rest as he produces a film that boasts of a great script and fabulous acting! Let's see what this joint production venture of Akshay Kumar and Paresh Rawal is all about.

 Kanji Mehta (Paresh Rawal) is an atheist, who runs an antique shop. For him, God and religion are nothing more than a business proposition as he goes ahead making money by y selling the faith of people for his profit. His life suddenly is thrown off gear as an earthquake ironically destructs only his shop in the entire area.

While all his detractors blame it on his atheism that led to God's wrath, Kanji remains unperturbed and finds his victory with the insurance scheme that he had taken. However, his happiness remains short-lived as the insurance companies too spin a scam in the name of God by slating all destruction under natural calamity as 'Act Of God'. They promptly reject the claim stating an earthquake to be an 'act of god' rather than a man-made phenomenon.

Frustrated and distraught, Kanji decides to file a case against God on the premise that if God is responsible for his loss then it is God's responsibility to compensate him for his losses. His case causes quite a stir as not only the insurance company but all the authoritarians of God (read Preists, Pujaris etc.) get dragged to court to defend God!

Whether Kanji's atheism loses its battle in front of the nations belief or he comes out victorious with his insurance money follows through the rest of the plot.

Based on a highly celebrated play Kanji Virudh Kanji (Gujarati), OMG despite having an alteration of around 50 per cent of its original screenplay is brilliantly essayed. The film may neither have the opulence of big budget sets nor superstars in main lead, even the cinematography and music are nothing to speak of but in spite of that, the film starts gripping you within a few minutes keeps you glued right till the end leaving you teary eyed yet smiling all along.

The film purely stands on two strong pillars - the story and acting, testifying once again that all you need is a good script. Umesh Shukla who also directed the original play debuts with this film and puts all his theater experience in making an honest film. He brings about a fair balance between atheism and faith without getting preachy. In its own humorous and satirical manner it conveys a strong message and makes you question the blind faith eating up the nation.

Umesh uses the star power of Akshay Kumar perfectly well as he ropes him in as God. Akshay's enactment of a modern day God Krishna Vasudev Yadav, riding a hot mobike and using modern gadgets is never for once caricaturish. Instead Akshay's acting prowess only makes the character more believable. Paresh Rawal on the other hand essays his part as if it were a cake walk. Although, repeated portrayals of the character in the original play would've seasoned Paresh but in the film too he delivers a crackling performance. What comes as a surprise is the portrayal of an effiminate, long haired Swami by Mithun Chakravorthy who gives a laudable performance.

The film only scores negatives points for its poor production values, needless insertion of the Prabhu Deva - Sonakshi Sinha song which could well be used just for promotions and its length. Music by Himesh Reshammiya is uninspiring.

To sum it up, OMG Oh My God is an honest film with a strong message which should be encouraged and seen especially for the brilliance of its script and the delightful acting of Paresh Rawal!  

Movie Review Heroine Hindi 2012

Filmmakers have an uncanny habit of creating stereotypes out of almost nothing. So you have typical romance, stereotyped action or even typified characters. However, Madhur Bhandarkar takes the credit of stereotyping his own films by his own films! Confusing as it may seem, let me go ahead giving you a brief account of his much hyped Heroine.

The film starts off with the breakdown of a once upon a time superstar Mahi Arora (Kareena Kapoor) who courtesy all her insecurities and blow hot and cold, mood and spoilt mannerisms has come spiraling downward in her career. She hails from a broken home and takes to alcohol for the slightest of problems. Most of Mahi's insecurities arise out of her relationship with superstar Aryan Khanna (Arjun Rampal) who is seeking divorce and wants to keep their relation under wraps. Mahi's eccentric ways only increase from thereon as she takes of drugs, more alcohol and cigarettes. After breakdown no 1, the actress bounces back and kick starts her career afresh with the help of a PR agent (Divya Dutta) who turns Mahi into a brand, keeps her in news, gets her endorsements and suggests her to date a famous cricketer Angad Paul (Randip Hooda) so as to be in the news. However, despite all her efforts, her career once again comes crashing down and she actress tries picking up the pieces almost through the film after her countless breakdowns.

Madhur Bhandarkar through his films has always exposed to brooding and murkier side of various streams; be it of dance bars in Chandni Bar, media in Page 3, the underbelly in Traffic Signal, the fashion industry in Fashion amongst others. Claiming himself to be a realistic filmmaker, Madhur this time around chose to expose the secrets of the big bad world of Bollywood. However, as Mahi in the film kept losing her sheen in her career, Madhur's film also kept spiraling down in its narrative.

Much like his earlier films, there seems absolutely no flow in the narrative, leave alone a storyline. The film keeps going on in circles and gets tedious and monotonous. There's nothing unseen or unheard shown in this film so in terms of novelty, Heroine holds zilch value. Madhur literally picks out the hit scenes of his earlier films and places them exactly in the same manner in this film. So you have a trio of wannabe socialites gossiping at parties, gay make-up artistes, manipulative friends etc. Even some of the characters have gotten repeated only to make you keep reeling in dejà vu.

Heroine only works for Kareena's performance. Not only does she look splendid in all her glam shots but pulls off her no make-up look with equal ease with her flawless acting. Had it not been for Madhur literally turning her into a modern day Meena Kumari with the excessive soppiness, Kareena actually would've left her mark with this character.

Arjun Rampal does a good job in portions while gets reduced to moping around most of the film courtesy the morose script. Randip Hooda acts well but one cannot help but notice his weirdo spiky wig that he dons in most of the scenes clearly showing continuity flaws.

As for the rest of the cast, Divya Dutta as the PR, Lilette Dubey as Mahi's mother, Sanjay Suri as actor Abbas Ali, Shahana Goswami as a Bengali actress, Ranvir Shorey as a Bengali filmmaker, Mugdha Godse as an actress among others only get typified in their parts.

Music by Salim-Sulaiman works in parts too. While Halkat Jawani has surely picked up among the masses, the rest of the songs only add to the gloominess in the film and also appear quite like Fashion songs.

Over all, Heroine is nothing but a rehashed version of Madhur's earlier movies and clearly a disappointing affair. Watch only if you are a Kareena Kapoor fan as she alone is the highlight of the film.

Dreamum Wakeupum Rani Mukherjee Prithviraj Hot Song Aiyaa New Hindi Movie Promo Official Video Song Theatrical Trailer

Dreamum Wakeupum Rani Mukherjee Prithviraj Hot Song Aiyaa New Hindi Movie Promo Official Video Song Theatrical Trailer 

Movie Review Barfi Hindi 2012 Hit

An actor had once said in an interview that there's nothing interesting in watching a love story between two good looking, well settled, and well brought up, in short perfect people. It's only the imperfections in a character that makes for a relatable story. However, Anurag Basu takes imperfections to a different level and presents love in its purest form sans any conditions with his latest gem Barfi!

Quite like the story there's nothing conventional about the film. Unlike the usual linear narrative, Barfi takes to a non linear story-telling oscillating between the past and present, unfurling through series of evocative flashbacks. The narrative comes about through various characters who present the goings on in the life of Murphy a.k.a Barfi (Ranbir Kapoor). Barfi is deaf and mute but that doesn't take away from experiencing the joys of life. Barfi lives his life to the full; lives his life as it comes and works around his imperfections with a smile on his face. It doesn't take too long for him to fall head over heels on Shruti (Illeana D'Cruz). She too falls for his mischievous and happy go lucky self however, giving in to societal pressures ends up marrying somebody else. The unrequited love makes Barfi start his life afresh and soon enters Jhilmil Chatterjee (Priyanka Chopra) an autistic girl, in Barfi's life. While the others fail to understand Jhilmil, Barfi instantly strikes a bond with the girl.

Their relation gets strong during the course of a bank robbery, a love triangle, a missing case and lots more.

Anurag Basu's Barfi celebrates love of all things, and more importantly love of life and the ones who matter to you the most. He does so by creating an emotionally stirring ride that doesn't quite go too melodramatic but in its own light hearted manner tugs at your heartstrings right away.

The major strength of the film comes with its narrative. It doesn't give away the entire plot in one go and unfurls the story little by little keeping you glued to the proceedings. It does take you a few initial minutes to get used to the poetic pace of the story as it weaves a picturesque painting and once you get settled you are taking on a magical ride.

For a film with lead protagonists not uttering a word, it can get difficult to hold the audiences' attention but Anurag handles this case best by interspersing the emotional elements with humour. For the first time after the era of Raj Kapoor does Chaplinesque humour get effectively utilized in a film. While the first half gets you going with the endearing love story, the second half keeps you glued with the suspense element that starts running concurrently.

The film not just scores an ace in its story, what aids the film like strong pillars are its various technical elements too. Mostly importantly is the cinematography by Ravi Varman who surely can be the plausible award winner this year for his works. In his own lyrical and poetic manner Ravi paints a beautiful picture of Darjeeling that's magical yet real. Even the background score does justice to the goings on. Pritam's music is astounding. Not only is it too fresh in its approach but very appeasing and pleasant to the ears.

Barfi however, wouldn't have been complete without the stellar performances of the lead cast. Ranbir Kapoor excels himself once again and shows that he is a power house of talent. Priyanka Chopra matches shoulders as she beautifully constructs her character of an autistic. Illeana D'Cruz on the other hand, makes a commendable debut. Not only does she looks beautiful but also brings out a brilliant balance of emotions through her acting.

The only thing that may work against Barfi is its non commercial approach as well as a long length. However, it will remain a gem etched in the history of cinema.

To sum it up, Barfi is an emotionally stirring yet joyous ride that will make you fall in love with love and life. A must watch for one and all!

Movie Review Raaz 3 Hindi 2012

Raaz 3 is an extension of the successful Raaz franchise from the Bhatt camp, which has become adept at giving horror thrillers and sequels. The promo posters and trailers were erotic and thrilling and does the movie provide more of the same?

Shanaya is a movie star who is on the decline as she slowly loses her position to a promising new comer, Sanjana. She just can’t accept that her time has passed and looks to somehow bring Sanjana down. She chooses black magic and uses her boyfriend director Aditya as a pawn to achieve her dubious motives. Aditya agrees initially but slowly starts falling in love with Sanjana as time passes and now he just can’t continue falling in line with Shanaya’s wicked intentions. Now, what does Aditya decide, is there respite for Sanjana or does Shanaya continue her torments? Watch Raaz to find out.

The film works big time due to the scorching screen presence of Bipasha, the absolutely thrilling black magic moments and the scary sound design. There are lots of flashy horror effects which work due to the eerie presentation. The 3D effects are shocking at few instances. In fact, whenever you expect those black magic moments, you might be forced to bury your face in your hands.

Emraan Hashmi does an earnest job but this is just not a film where he can stand out as the horror quotient and two hot ladies steal the limelight from him. He has his intimate moments with both the ladies and these scenes are in line with his reputation as the ‘serial kisser’.

BipashaBasu has pushed the limits when it comes to ‘hot’ on screen and she is perfect for this role of the ruthless star. Esha Gupta wins our sympathies during the scenes when she is terrorized by black magic. The TV episode and the joker episode will scare the living daylights out of you. Later, the long sequence when she imagines to being raided by cockroaches is again disturbing.

The songs, though decent, just turn out to be pleasant distractions from an otherwise horror filled movie. The background music is on the mark while the 3D effects and the way horror has been depicted serve the purpose of scaring the audience.

The movie dips in momentum at very few instances and that is a plus for sure and the dramatic climax though not as chilling as expected, is a fitting conclusion.

On the whole, if you wish to get spooked and thrilled, then Raaz 3 won’t disappoint you. It’s a royal return for ‘old-school’ horror thrillers.

Verdict: Thrills and spills galore; Raaz 3 is a chilling experience. Rating : 4/5 - superb in 3D

Movie Review From Sydney With Love

Carrying forward the legacy of his late grandfather Pramod Chakravorty who made films like Ziddi, Love In Tokyo, Jugnu, Warrant, Nastik in the early '70s, comes Prateek Chakravorty who makes his foray into filmdom with a rom-com From Sydney With Love. The film has been in the pipelines for long and after a constant battle for shows in multiplexes and theaters, it finally sees the light of the day. Whether it turns out to be worth the wait or not let's find out.

Meghaa Bannerjee (Bidita Bag), a small town girl from Bolpur in West Bengal, lands herself in Sydney with a scholarship at the New South Whales University. Her first day itself and she gets taken for a ride by Raj Baksi (Prateek Chakravorty) while finds her aides in Rohit Khurana (Sharad Malhotra), Lubaina Snyder (Evelyn Sharma) Suhail Syed (Karan Sagoo) and Kalpana Chatterjee (Reshmi Ghosh). Life goes good as she enjoys her days in Sydney until her drink gets spiked one day at a party and she ends up sleeping with Rohit, her boyfriend by then.

Too much to take for her rural morals, Meghaa heads back to India while the lovelorn Rohit follows her all the way till there with Raj in tow. Whether he wins over Meghaa or not follows through the rest of the plot.

Debutant Prateek Chakravorty dons far too many hats in a go and in a clear case of fingers being in too many pies ends up offering a shoddy platter. The first half and the second could well be two individual movies in themselves. Especially the second which goes on like a separate entity altogether into an unending saga giving glimpses of various Bollywood films ranging from Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge to Badhai Ho Badhai.

The entire first half could've been covered up in the series of montages, but the filmmaker chooses to include multiple songs, forced sequences for example, that of a rugby match challenged by Suhail out of a blue for no rhyme or reason.

Another major hindrance in the film is Prateek Chakravorty himself. He gives himself excessive screen space almost to the point of annoyance. And if he needs to work the script or the direction, he also needs to work on himself. With his annoyingly podgy self which he uses to make a mockery of his own self, he doesn't get too far in pleasing the audience. Moreover, he fails no chance to project himself as a hero by giving himself romantic song and dance sequences.

As for the rest of the characters, Sharad Malhotra proves to be the best of the lot. But even at that, his acting is average at best. Bidita Bag should work on her dialogue delivery whereas the likes of Sabyasachi who plays Meghaa's father, Karan Sagoo, Reshmi Ghosh and Evelyn Sharma are passable.

To sum it up, From Sydney With Love is shoddily executed mashup of many romantic films of the past. Watch it if only if you have nothing else to do.

Rating : 2/5

Movie Review Jalpari Hindi 2012

Lately, broaching a social issue has become a sure-shot way to enter international film festivals. While many manage to come out with riveting stories that get lapped up by critics and audience alike, others end up becoming pseudo art house cinema. However, when you have filmmaker like Nila Madhab Panda in the credits who gave us the fascinating I Am Kalam, you can rest assured you are in for a treat and Jalpari turns out to be just that.

Shreya (Lehar Khan) is a fearless, tomboyish and intelligent girl who is raised by her father Devendra (Parveen Dabbas) sans any gender bias and as equals with her brother Sam. However, she is in for a shift as she enters her father's small village in Haryana for the first time during her summer vacations. The village appears far removed from what she had in mind. There aren't too many girls to play around with, she makes friends with local gang of boys led by Ajithe (Harsh Mayar).

Her adventures don't cease and without anyone's knowledge she heads out to unravel the mystery of a witch who's been plaguing the village for years. Whether she comes out victorious or not follows through the rest of the plot.

Nila Madhab Panda surely knows how to infuse a very potent social issue in his films and present it in a light-hearted manner without turning it into a heavy or melodramatic film. In his previous film I Am Kalam too he addressed the issue of child labour and illiteracy while this time around in Jalpari he tackles female feticide. However Jalpari doesn't quite match up to the brilliance of his debut film. In the first half the film stretches for no reason testing the audience's patience. There's too much focus on unimportant sequences wasting ample screen time. But right when the film comes to its main plot mostly towards the second half, Nila starts rushing up with the proceeding and gives it a rushed end.

His strength however, lies in making his film very earthy and rooted. The way he captures the lives of the villagers is laudable. Almost every character fits the bill perfectly and acts well. He also shows great prowess in working with children and extract outstanding performance from them. His new find Lehar Khan appears very confident onscreen and does a swell job while the star of his debut film Harsh Mayar once again charms the audience as a Haryanvi bratty kid.

To sum it up, Jalpari doesn't quite match up the brilliance of I Am Kalam, but still remains an endearing watch.

Movie Review Chal Pichur Banate Hain Hindi

It definitely isn't easy to make a Bollywood feature film and what best a way to testify it by making a film on the making of a film? Chal Pichchur Banate Hain takes quite a thought at hand and presents a film that through the medium of its main plot also conveys the message of hope. Whether it strikes a chord with the masses or not remains to be seen.

A middle-class young guy Suraj (Rahil Tandon) goes the conventional way of graduating with a MBA degree, doing a decently paid job. However, his interest lies elsewhere. A handycam in tow whilst capturing the little stories and life of Mumbai city is what gets him happy. Hence one fine day he bids adieu to his cushioned job and an offer to work in the UK, goes against his parent's demands and takes to nurturing his passion for filmmaking. How through adversities, struggles and failures he finally makes a film is what follows through the rest of the plot.

Chal Pichchur Banate Hain more than a feature film appears more like a film school project. Filmmaker Gaurav Dagaonkar passionately makes this film, so passionately that he says almost everything in one go shoving too many elements in a film. In the process he completely disregards that the film has to be viewed by the audience after all that gets miserably bored in the film.

Despite having a one line plot, the film dwells into needless sub plots. The entire flash back sequences of Suraj's childhood are so pointless that even before the story actually takes off, the audience loses interest. Gaurav inserts a love angle too in the film so you see a span of a romantic sub plot too from dating to mating to breaking up to getting back again. Moreover, to increase the angst and yearning of turning into a filmmaker all the more, Gaurav also inserts a dramatic family angle of monetary hardships et al.

On the acting front, Rahil Tandon puts up a decent performance and if given a right director may just turn out to be good. Sonakshi Sinha's cousin Bhavna Ruparel who features in the love angle with Suraj as Melrena is average at best.

To sum it up, Chal Pichchur Banate Hain loses focus on its story by meandering into meaningless sub-plots. With nothing new to see and a garbled plot, the film turns out to be quite a dud!

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Movie Review Joker Hindi 2012

Labelled as Akshay Kumar’s 100th film, Joker has released amid low key marketing and promotions. Directed by Shirish Kunder and presented by UTV Motion Pictures, this movie co-stars Sonakshi Sinha. The film looks at the fascinating concept of aliens in a light-hearted way.

Agasthya (Akshay) is a space scientist in the US who is looking to device a system that would communicate with the aliens in outer space. Just then, he is forced to return to his village named Paglapur in India, which as the name indicates, has many eccentric characters, including Agasthya’s family. Things aren’t rosy at the village and he discovers that his village has been removed from the Indian map and now he plans to somehow bring his village back in the public eye. As expected he takes the help of his pet subject, aliens, to attract national interest on his village.

What follows is buffoonery and silly antics galore, which might appeal to the kids in the audience. Being Akshay Kumar’s 100th movie, he hasn’t chosen his customary comedy masala but instead chosen to make a movie for the kids. He looks very youthful while his pair Sonakshi Sinha has a cute voice that belies her mature physique. That said Sonakshi is sparkling.

Shreyas Talpade creates a riot with his alien language (gibberish) that brings about wholesome laughter on occasions. The rest of the characters in the village are also crazy in their own ways. Minisha Lamba hardly impresses in a cameo while the American antagonist named Simon Goeback (interestingly named) is sufficient.

The movie is very bright and colourful thanks to the creative art direction and sets. It would surely attract the kids, given the flourish of colours. The movie's plot turns out to be a mish-mash of some other acclaimed movies such as Swades, Lagaan, Koi Mil Gaya and Peepli Live.

On the downside, there are far too many songs even though the film is about 105 minutes long only. G.V.Prakash’s ‘Sing Raja’ and Chitrangada Singh’s item number ‘Kafirana’ make a mark for their peppy tunes and colourful picturization.

Though the movie is harmless time-pass and isn’t a bad watch, there is nothing special too. The movie doesn’t take itself too seriously and as a result even the audience will just laugh it off after coming out of the cinema halls.

Verdict: Kids might enjoy this madcap alien entertainer - Rating : 2 / 5

Review Shirin Farhad Ki Toh Nikal Padi

All love stories generally have a template – 2 strangers meet and fall for each other and then brief conflicts arise between the two before the final matchup. Shirin Farhad Ki Toh Nikalpadi also has the same components except that here we have two 40 plus adults falling in love. The setting is also different - all the characters belong to the Parsi community.

Farhad Pastakia is a 45 year old working as a salesman in a women’s lingerie shop who isn’t happening in the matrimonial market due to his profession, while Shirin Fugawala is still single as she has an ailing father to take care of. The conflict element in their ‘love at first sight’ is provided by Farhad’s mom who just can’t forgive Shirin for a mere petty issue. How the two of them finally manage to unite in matrimony is the resolution to this flick.

The film manages to turn out to be an endearing rom-com thanks to the terrific acting by Boman Irani and Farah Khan as the middle aged lovers. Boman excels in comedy as well as the serious scenes towards the end and his body language in particular is typical of a middle-aged man. Farah’s voice is her greatest plus and she even shows off her excellent dancing skills in few of the songs. The other characters in the large Parsi community also make a mark like the old man who is caught in a time warp and is still mad about Indira Gandhi. Farhad’s mother and grandmother also have a sizable part so does Shirin’s aunt.

The movie has been executed in a meager budget and money hasn’t been splurged on huge sets, extra-ordinary cinematography, sizzling costumes and exotic locations. It is just a movie about an average couple and their desire to find true love.

Jeet Ganguly’s songs are good to listen to, but this movie would have been better off, without songs. Few of the songs definitely drag the movie. Therefore even with a running time of 112 minutes, the movie isn’t taut.

Sanjay Leela Bhansali has written this movie and the comedy portions standout. Some funny scenes are built around Farhad’s profession. The first encounter between Shirin and Farhad’s mom is another brilliant funny sequence. The romance is also likable with several cutesy moments. Bela Bhansali Sehgal has directed this movie and she has presented this movie in an engaging manner with just a few glitches.

To conclude, this movie would give hope to those youngsters who are still searching for their love. Love has no expiry date, that’s what they would learn.

Verdict: This “better late than never” romance is worth a watch for its simplicity and heartening moments.

Movie Review Delhi In A Day Hindi 2012

There have been far too many cross over films in the recent few years that have made it to Hindi screens. While some have blended the cultures of both east and west really well, some have tried to show India from the eyes of a foreigner. The latter seems to be the case with yet another cross over film Delhi In A Day.

A PVR Director's Rare, Delhi In A Day showcases the divide between the upper class society and the poverty stricken domestic helps that too through the eyes of a foreigner from London. Jasper (Lee Williams) wants to see the real India and hence starts off his trip by visiting his father's partner in Delhi, Mukund Bhatia (Kulbhushan Kharbanda). In a palatial house in Delhi filled with numerous domestic aides, Jasper in his very first day loses all his savings that he carried with him. Mukund's better half Kalpana (Lilette Dubey) starts suspecting every domestic help and gives them 24 hours to own up their fault. Whether it turns out to be one amongst them or not follows through the rest of the plot.

NRI director Prashant Nair deploys some of the formulaic tricks of making a crossover cinema, right from the conversational sequence between a local cabbie and a foreigner which has been done to death before to the foreigner wanting to travel through the trains and buses in a big to see "real India", a commonly used dialogue.

The biggest flaw in the film is that there's nothing Delhi specific about it. The film could well be based in Mumbai or any other city as filmmaker Prashant Nair doesn't quite explore any Delhi essence except for showing a Punjabi family which could be situated anywhere.

Delhi In A Day does start on an interesting and pleasant note interspersed with great humour brought about by the mannerisms of Kulbhushan Kharbanda and Lilette Dubey. Even the initial portions of Jasper are intriguing. However, right from the time the main plot of missing money takes off, the film just treads on a wafer-thin plot testing the viewers patience. There's ample time spent on unrequired portions like the long dance sequence of Rohini (Anjali Patil) on an old song.

Moreover, many a things are left unexplained like what happens after Rohini goes into a notorious bylane of Delhi in a bid to take a loan. Or even the behavior Chotu (Arun Mallick) towards Rohini. Or Jasper's fascination with Rohini.

The film however, had ample scope to make for an enjoyable movie. However, it gets reduced to just being enjoyable in terms of characterization and humour. Kulbhushan Kharbanda is at his typified best and is surely a delight to watch. Most of the humour in the film centers around him. Lilette Dubey as the upper class hoity-toity housewife makes for a perfect cast too. Lee Williams is average at best. However, what takes the cake is the casting of the house-help. Right from Chotu to Rohini or even Raghu (Vidya Bhushan) all put together an outstanding show. They fit the bill to the T and full marks to Prashant Nair for having cast them.

To sum it up, Delhi In A Day could have been a fine attempt however, with a wafer thin plot and a very slow pace it turns into a dull affair.

Rating : 2.5/5