Singham

SINGHAM

What interested me about Singham and finally took me to a cinema hall is the presence of Ajay Devgn and Rohit Shetty (who I believe makes his films very passionately). One could sense what to expect from the promos (which also remind me a lot about Dabanng).

The film starts of with a honest cop (Sudhanshu Pandey) being proven guilty for a crime he never committed (obviously the villain of the film- Prakash Raj(Jaykant Shirke) traps him in this) and subsequently committing a suicide. The story then moves to a small town Shivgad on the border of Maharashtra-Goa, where there lives an honest cop..SINGHAM (AJAY DEVGN). Then there is a love track of a cute little village rooted urban upfront girl (Kajal Agarwal) and the macho inspaector. Then finally there is a confrontation between Singham and Shirke. Shirke then gets Singham transferred to Goa (the place where uski chalti hai) and the story unfolds.

The film is a full on masala film which will have a lot of ceetis and taalis reception at a single screen. It has almost everything a masala film would have....fights, romance, comedy, drama, rona dhona...and at places crafted well too. Ajay Devgn carries the macho man Singham role with ease. Prakash Raj also does his part superbly Govind Namdeo is superb. Kajal Agarwal doesn’t have much to do but nonetheless she does well for a new comer. Sachin Khedekar and Ashok Saraf are in fine form and evoke a lot of laughter with their characterization and punches. There are some witty lines that do evoke laughter.

Songs are a big let down. Be it the romantic songs or the title track. The title track looks like wannabe ‘Hud Hud Dabang’. Also the song is shot at the same location is ‘Hud Hud..’. Also what doesn’t work are the day for night sequences and the general camerawork and a lot of shots are out focus. Though this is not a film where you apply logic but there are a few sequences where you hoped Rohit Shetty to have done a better job.

But to sum it up...Singham turns out to be better than Dabanng. And Ajay Devgn rocks!!!!!

Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara

Do what gives you true happiness. Is that an insight new to any of us? I am sure the answer would be a profound 'No'. But, "Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (ZNMD, henceforth)" does try to help us get out of the matrix that our worlds (generically speaking) are and be free, feel free, and does so so very successfully.

I shall not dwell too much into the details of the film's story as I assume most of those reading this post must have either watched the film by now (or are planning to) or have read/heard about the story somewhere or the other. I, in all honesty, intend to digress from the central theme of Chalchitrakatha, the blog to scribble a little on the nuances ingrained in the experience called ZNMD (Gaurav, my sincere apologies there!). 

Should I do it point wise? No. It, somehow, limits the scope of writing and takes away something we all must crave for, more so after watching ZNMD -- freedom. So, the free flowing paragraphs are better!

The escapade starts with three friends, namely Kabir(a)(Abhay Deol), Imran (Farhan Akhtar), and Arjun (Hrithik Roshan) (in order of appearance in the film), travelling to Spain on a Bachelor Road Trip. The adventure (as the three musketeers were to discover in due course of time) was essentially to try out an adventure sport of each one's choice. Besides, Imran, the "diamond biscuit" man (Laugh Out Loud...he writes scripts for advertisements) had his plans of meeting his biological father (Naseeruddin Shah), an artist in Spain. Arjun is the money-man (aptly addressed that way by Naseeruddin Shah in a later scene) and it is revealed later that his ex-girlfriend had apparently left him due to his obsession with work and money. Kabir(a) runs a hotel (family business) and is about to get married to Natasha (Kalki Koechlin) in a couple of months.

ZNMD is full of clever gentle wit, humor of the rolling-on-the-floor-laughing category and discoveries!Yes, discoveries. Imran is just too cool and too good at uttering all those jokes, witty one-liners, and making just laughable gestures & expressions. How often have we come across such characters in our lives amongst ourselves, amongst our friends ! The answer is a big "All the Time". Some imponderables, amongst many, are the Mantal Bwoyz Sequence, the Bagwati thing (though I have to admit I didn't like it as much as others may have), all the pranks they (the three musketeers!) pull at people, the Japanese School-Girl sequence (love the way Arjun says, "Main ek stock broker hoon, koi Japanese school girl nahin"), and many many more. Yeah, the Laila-Majnu one and the Doordarshan one too. :-)

Coming to the performances, I mean, I don't know what to write. Abhay Deol and Kalki Koechlin are such good actors. Acting comes so so very naturally to them it's difficult to appreciate they are on celluloid and not around. Just plain bland smooth simple and plutonic acting. The Farhans the Akhtars! Oh! My My...what do I write. You look at him through the passage of the film and you say to yourself where the hell has this guy been all this time! what the hell has he been doing all along! Such elegant and smooth transitions he makes; from a witty prankster to a disillusioned bewildered son (his girlfriend in Spain very rightly exclaims -- you laugh from the outside but your eyes are sad); simply superb. And Hrithik Roshan. Oh! Everytime I watch him on screen I feel like Man...What've you done...What magic you create...and at that time, I recall one line from one of the movie reviews I came across a couple of years ago -- "Hrithik Roshan is the best that we have at the moment." So very true. Hrithik Roshan is terrific. Period. What a Stunner (from him)! What a pull-off! Like, really. Laila (Katrina Kaif) is brilliant in the context of the character she portrays and the audiences instantly connect to the theory she espouses -- that of Life.Freedom.Break-Free.Live.Live Now.Discover. She brings vibrance and oozes raw freshness to the film. I don't know if I right but characters like these suit Katrina Kaif like no other. Never in a moment will you feel her uncomfortable with the character. She seems at ease. She is at ease. And, what's comforting is she has got finer if not the finest dialogues in the film which she has delivered effortlessly solely because she seems to have a similar approach to Life as Laila. I don't think I need to applaud Naseeruddin Shah for his work. Yes, he is tremendous and the baritone is devastating (I mean devastatingly enticing). The character he portrays, his lines, and the way he delivers those lines...it seems Zoya Akhtar requested him to come to the set one fine day and shot the scene.Yes, like that. Just Pure Awesomeness there!

But, the characters that overshadow all the aforementioned, in my opinion, are the "Emptiness in Space Punctuated with Mesmerizing Poetry " and the "Background Score" of the film. Consider the sequence where Arjun experiences epiphany in Deep Sea (the Deep Sea Diving sequence) and cries afterwards or the sequence after Imran meets his biological father punctuated with beautiful beautiful poetry. As Arjun would put it Just Magical. Beautiful. The Bull Run sequence, in my opinion, steals the show. I am referring to the second half of the run (from when Kabir(a) starts running again till the gorgeous screen-freeze...again, terrific poetry...jo apni aankhon me hairaaniyaan leke chal rahe ho to zinda ho tum...Javed Sa'ab, take a prolonged bow.I mean it.Yes, really.Pure Awesomeness there!). The Background score is so subtle it speaks more than a thousand words. What brilliance what class from Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy! You just have to look at the characters looking into the emptiness of space and feel the moment. You have to feel it to comprehend what I am trying to say. It's that magical. It's that beautiful.

The film has numerous magical sequences and moments, some of them being the Sky Diving and the sense of achievement and fearlessness that punctuates the trio's gestures & expressions on its completion, the sequence where Imran and his girlfriend are exchanging thoughts totally diverse and oblivious to the other and still deriving a meaning out of the exchange, the sequence from when the trio arrives at the artist's (Naseeruddin Shah as Salman Habib) place till when Imran walks out of his house in tears saying "Sorry tab boliyega jab yahan se (dil se) ho", the Bull Run sequence (I know I have mentioned it before) when the three friends take oaths as to what would each one do if he survived...is just breathtaking, etc.

Now, some technicalities. The Camerawork is truly first rate. Beautiful Spain becomes a character in itself. And What a Beautiful Character! The Music is brilliant and compliments the screenplay beautifully. But, "Paint it Red" (the entire La Tomatina sequence is an experience!), "Senorita", and "Khwaabon ke Parinday" deserve a special mention. I just wish the song "Dhadakne Do" were used more frequently during the screenplay. And Zoya Akhtar is a Top Class performer. Again I recall a reviewer's line on her -- "Zoya is much ahead of her time." So true. She has an enviable vision of things, of sequences, of story-line, of characters that is very very rare. What a Director! Kudos! Yes, Dialogues are, I would say, very simply and very intelligently (yes, both at the same time!) penned by Farhan Akhtar who continues to stun us with his abilities.

I could go on writing and writing about ZNMD like a stream of river travels a thousand miles but I should not. And that's why I think I shall pull my vocabulary list out of the closet and put it to good use (finally!). ZNMD is MAGICAL BEAUTIFUL EPIPHANIC. Period. So, JUST LET YOURSELF GO and float in the ecstasy called "Zindagi Milegi Na Dobara".


P.S. You can find all Imran's poems here. To relive the magic, watch it again. Yes, watch it again. It's Pure Awesomeness.
Gaurav, this is my first post on the blog. So, as Imran would say, "Cheque bhijwa dena"  :-) A Big Big Smile. 

      

ZINDAGI NAA MILEGI DOBARA!!!!

DCH set in Spain! Spain ki advertising hai! Yaar Hritik ke peechle do filmein flop hui hai hope ye naa ho! These were the kind of comments I had heard for the film before I caught this one up.

The film starts of with Abhay Deol (Kabir) proposing Kalki (Natasha) for marriage. And as the wedding date comes closer time comes closer for the 3 musketeers Abhay, Farhanm (Imran), Hritik (Arjun) to go to Spain for a bachelor party. The terms and conditions are that each of them will decide a task for all 3 of them to do and the tasks have to be taken up come what may!

As the story unfolds, one realises that the film could have fallen into the DCH trap right at the beginning but it doesn’t! The initial friction between Arjun and Imran is treated differently than Sid and Akash (in DCH). The characters are well etched. Abhay is a caring husband to be, Hritik a money minded financial broker and Farhan a happy-go-lucky poet. The chemistry between the three is superb and most of the humour comes across brilliantly. The timing is awesome! Looks like a lot of lines are improvised and it works!

Another winner is the music of the film. Senorita, Khaabon ke parindey are interwoven and picturised superbly. But ‘Der hui lekin’ takes the cake. Cinematography is another winner. The film at most of the places is a visual treat. Espcecially the underwater bits.

Performances wise Hritik, Farhan and Abhay go strength to strength! Hritik is superb and balances his character very well. It is a complex character to portray and he does it with ease. Understated Abhay Deol is also brilliant and so is slightly more exuberant Farhan. Lot of sequences are worth a mention! Of the lighter moments ‘BPL’ scene works very well and on execution level it is handled very well...Right from starting out as a lighter scene and shaping up into a serious one and then again ending on a light note! Well crafted. This scene actually establishes the friction between Hritik and Farhan. The use of ‘bag’ wati is also good. But the scene that stands out is the scene between Farhan and Nasseruddin Shah. Nasser sir is brilliant in his one scene cameo! Deepti Naval leaves a mark in her cameo. Though the story is based largely in Spain and some opine that it is an advertisement for Spain tourism..for me it doesn’t come in the way of the film.

The length of the film is one of its weaknesses. The post interval portion is longer by atleast 10 mins. The story culminates much before the film finally ends. Also didn’t like Katrina’s peroformance. Personally felt that the character had a lot more scope in it!!!

All in all the film works and is one of the better films of the year. Hritik fans can rejoice!

Delhi Belly

About a couple of weeks ago, on a lush green court of wimbledon playing his quarter final match against Jo wilfred Tsonga, Roger Federer was gallopping all over, firing aces, majestic backhands and sharp winners.Tsonga on the other hand stood belittled in contrast to his inhumanly long frame. It was going to be an end everybody had anticipated well before the start of the match. It was the end to be till a delicious forehand winner from tsonga went past Federer and things were never the same again...

Before you start thinking that i have messed up the title of the blog, let me tell you, the experience of watching Delhi Belly was exactly the same. A film with so much promise, great music, brilliant plot and a maverick producer, things could never go wrong. Still, this film turned out to be, atleast for me, quite forgettable. A lot of "credit" for this can be given to the script and screenplay. With a potentially classic plot, this film could have gone on to be one of the best comedies in Indian cinema. But as they say, a chain is only as strong as the weakest link and the weakest link here was the lead actor Imran Khan. Khan falters at all the departments be it acting, emoting or dialogue delivery. The only thing good about his character in the film is his looks and he is not to be given any credits for that. Supporting actors have done well for their role but the film belongs to Vijay Raaj as the don. He does not have much screen time but whenever he is there he electrifies the screen. His portrayal of the character is totally hilarious. He is one of the few characters in the film whose dialogue delivery does not seem to be forced (talking about the "Hinglish" version). Vir Das also stands out in his portrayal of a cartoonist.

The story of the film revolves around a "package" which Shehnaz, fiancee of khan and an airhostess, has to deliver for a friend of friend. The "package" contains diamonds which shehnaz is unaware of and hands over to khan to be delivered to the specified address. From khan, it changes hands and goes to vir, then kunal and then vir again. In the meanwhile vir also has to take a stool sample of kunal and deliver it to a lab. Vir mixes the package and the don gets the stool and diamonds are delivered to the pathology lab. There are a couple of sub-plots also going around like the khan-poorna story, kunal's stomach disorder and the trio's landlord's story.

Technically the film is very good with some brilliant cinematography and background score.Dark corners of Delhi have been captured very well.

Its really surprising that with so many things going well for the movie, when you step out of the theater, you dont feel good in your head. It promises you lettuce and serves you cabbage ;) (bad joke..... the Delhi Belly effect.... can't blame me..)