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Category: Hindi

  • It was a gamble, okay!

    It was a gamble, okay!

    MUMBAI: Jackpot is the name of the floating casino in Goa as well as the five crore jackpot at stake one big night. The motto of any gambling house is that ‘The House Always Wins’ which is to say a player may sometimes win some money but, eventually at the end of the day the house is the winner. The film also stresses on the principle in which case it is hard to understand why the casino is bent on gifting a five crore jackpot to any gambler? And when one talks of big time jackpot, what is five crore when even a TV show like Kaun Banega Crorepati offers more than that?

    Naseeruddin Shah is a residual hippie in Goa who sports some odd colour long hair of the kind Indian sadhus do. He owns the casino Jackpot. Sunny Leone works for his casino and has a five-year stint as the manager of a Las Vegas casino to boast of. She may work with Shah but sleeps with Sachiin Joshi, a drifter who leads an idle Goa life; his major talent is tricks with playing cards. He is a cardsharp. Tired of his idle life, Sachiin gets an itch to make some easy money and since easy money is not really easy to make, he plans a con on Jackpot. From the look of it, everybody is planning one, Sunny as well as Shah. The idea is to outwit the rest.

    So far so good but this is all you manage to gather in this film as it goes into its last few minutes and the characters themselves volunteer to tell you what it was all about. One consolation is that the film is only 92 minutes long.

    Producer: Raina Sachiin Joshi.
    Director: Kaizad Gustad.
    Cast: : Naseeruddin Shah, Sachiin Joshi, Sunny Leone, Makrand Deshpande.

    Just about everything in the plot is juvenile. Shah owns a casino worth crores where huge sums exchange hands while the casino is the only assured winner but he can’t raise five crores for a plot of land that is on offer. That he should want to deal with a street-side lad like Sachin at all whatever the bait makes no sense either. The film has been spread over 10 segments with each having its own title and the narration keeps jumping from present to flashback adding to the confusion.

    There is nothing much to performances as Shah only makes loud gestures for acting, Leone is not even in the  film for her acting skills. Sachiin tries not to act which is wise. Direction is poor. Musically, one song, Kabhi jo badal barse…is good.

    The word Jackpot has no antonym but that is what this film would be if there was one

  • Bollywood comes out in support of the LGBT community

    Bollywood comes out in support of the LGBT community

    MUMBAI: Everyone was in for a shock yesterday when the Supreme Court ruled that there was no constitutional room for change in Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code that holds same gender sexual relationship an offence. The Bollywood fraternity, which in the age of social media has become really vocal, especially when it comes to supporting the social causes, even this time came out to criticise the SC’s ruling. Many people from the industry started tweeting as soon as the news broke.

     

    Section 377 of IPC makes gay sex an offence punishable with up to life imprisonment, said a bench of justices GS Singhvi and SJ Mukhopadhaya while overruling an earlier verdict by the High Court that had decriminalised same sex relationship.

     

    Filmmaker Karan Johar tweeted: “#Sec377 is not just a violation of human rights but also makes democracy seem like a mirage in our country….”. This was even retweeted by fashion designer Manish Malhotra.

     

    Actor Adil Hussain wrote: “Ramdev and Judiciary have forgotten the Role of Shikhandi and Brihannala in Mahabharata.Wonder what Values they are talking about!! #Sec377.”

     

    Filmmaker Farhan Akhtar, who has been initiating many movements of late online, was upset with the ruling as well, but expressed himself in just one-liner, “The Supreme Court got it wrong today.”

     

    Actor Richa Chadda, who has been known for her fiery and strong characters, tweeted, “The Supreme Court criminalises love, again. Sad day.”

     

    Kabir Bedi wrote: “It’s a sad day when the Supreme Court of India does not uphold the democratic rights of sexual minorities. #Sec377 #LGBT”. He continued, “The State should stay out of the bedrooms of consenting adults. SC upholding regressive law seems bigoted. #Sec377 #LGBT.”

     

    Even actor Anushka Sharma, didn’t hesitate to present her disappointment. She tweeted, “So disappointed with the SC (supreme court) verdict. Freedom is such a deceptive term. Rights are an ambiguous mystery.”

     

    Singer-actor Shruti Haasan wrote, “11.12.13 a day that reminds us how blatant regressing and oppressing someone has become – plan b move bedroom to another planet and time… (It is) frightening how someone else decides how when and who you should love – basically freedom of choice isn’t legal anymore.”

  • Alia discovers the unseen India

    Alia discovers the unseen India

    MUMBAI: They don’t call acting the best profession for no reason. There’s something about it that fascinates many. And one of the most important is that while donning different roles, an actor gets to learn a lot of new things. Something similar happened to Alia Bhatt while shooting for Imtiaz Ali’s Highway.

    Presented by Sajid Nadiadwala and starring Alia Bhatt and Randeep Hooda, the film traverses six states of north India and captures the landscape of the different regions as it goes along. The makers have come up with Highway Diaries – short video snippets that capture the journey of the film and all the exciting experiences that the cast and crew had during its making.

    The latest episode of Highway Diaries titled Sambhar Salt Pan, Alia is seen shooting for the film in a salt factory in Sambhar (Rajasthan) along with other actors of the film. Born and brought up in a city like Mumbai, the world of Sambhar where anything and everything has more than a pinch of salt was a revelation for the young star.

    “Highway took me to all these amazing places that I probably wouldn’t have ever seen otherwise. Sambhar, the salt factory, was the most beautiful and the most weird experience for me. I celebrated my birthday there as well. In many ways, I think it was here that I truly started feeling like Veera (her character in the film),” said Alia in a release.

  • Disney India and Anil Kapoor team up to produce ‘Khoobsurat’

    Disney India and Anil Kapoor team up to produce ‘Khoobsurat’

    MUMBAI: The Walt Disney Studios has announced its next film ‘Khoobsurat’, a wholesome family entertainer in association with actor-producer Anil Kapoor and producer Rhea Kapoor. The film is being directed by writer and an ace ad-film director Shashank Ghosh and will star Sonam Kapoor in the lead role. 

    The film has great ensemble cast which includes Kirron Kher, Ratna Pathak Shah and Amir Raza Hussain. The film narrates the story of Mili (Sonam Kapoor), an exuberant, vivacious and fun girl, who turns the lives of a royal family upside down. 

    For a long time now we were looking for a script with Disney’s values and we’re happy to have found that in ‘Khoobsurat’. A delightful film, I believe that ‘Khoobsurat’ is entertainment with a heart. We are also looking forward to working with Anil Kapoor Film Company on this lovely film,” said Disney UTV senior creative director – studios Rucha Pathak.

    “We are so excited to bring you ‘Khoobsurat’ with Disney India. Disney always stood for wholesome and heartwarming entertainment and we look forward to creating that with this film as well. Shashank’s take on the film is unexpected, colourful and fun everything you find in your favourite Disney movie!” added producer Rhea Kapoor. 

    The film went on the floors recently in Bikaner, Rajasthan and will hit the screens by mid-2014. 

  • Single screens save R…Rajkumar’s face

    Single screens save R…Rajkumar’s face

    Mumbai: The latest film to come from the Prabhu Deva stable R…. Rajkumar was thrashed by the film critics. Following the trend, the film met with firewall at multiplexes with its crude approach and poor content. However, single screens proved face saving for the film in hinterlands, especially in the Hindi belt in the opening weekend as it managed to garner figures of Rs 26.6 crore.

     

    The poor run continued as another film launched on 6 December, Club 60, a delightful film about lonely senior citizens who find shelter in a club and in each other’s company, had a very weak opening as expected.

    Even the Nawab Saif Ali Khan wouldn’t save Bullet Raja. The film had an unimpressive run following poor public reports. The film managed to add a little over 10 crore in four days to its opening weekend of Rs 19.7 and ending its first week with Rs 29.75 crore.

     

    Singh Saab The Great collected Rs 6.1 crore in its second week taking its two week total to 26.9 crore while Gori Tere Pyar Mein continued its poor run in its second week by adding just 3.75 crore to its first week figures and taking its two week total to 25.85 crore.

     

    The only two silver linings for the film industry have been Galiyon Ki Rasleela: Ram-Leela which joined the 100 crore club as it held on well in its third week by collecting 8.5 crore. This takes the film’s three week total to 100.3 crore of which half came from Bombay Circuit.

  • ‘The Good Road’ goes to Harvard University

    ‘The Good Road’ goes to Harvard University

    MUMBAI: Gujarati film The Good Road – India’s official submission for the foreign language film category at the 86th Academy Awards – will be screened at Harvard University’s Cambridge campus in Massachusetts, US.

     

    A production by the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC), the film will be showcased on 9 December at Harvard University’s South Asia Institute (SAI). The film’s director, Gyan Correa, will interact with the audience at the screening.

     

    It will be an academic event held for the Harvard faculty, students and affiliates who have an avid interest in films, said a statement from NFDC.

     

    The event will begin with Vikram Khanna, a professor at the Harvard Law School currently teaching a course on the Indian entertainment industry, sharing a quick introduction on the film followed by the screening. The event will conclude with an interactive question-and-answer session between Correa and the audience.

  • ‘The Good Road’ goes to Harvard University

    ‘The Good Road’ goes to Harvard University

    MUMBAI: Gujarati film The Good Road – India’s official submission for the foreign language film category at the 86th Academy Awards – will be screened at Harvard University’s Cambridge campus in Massachusetts, US.

    A production by the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC), the film will be showcased on 9 December at Harvard University’s South Asia Institute (SAI). The film’s director, Gyan Correa, will interact with the audience at the screening.

    It will be an academic event held for the Harvard faculty, students and affiliates who have an avid interest in films, said a statement from NFDC.

    The event will begin with Vikram Khanna, a professor at the Harvard Law School currently teaching a course on the Indian entertainment industry, sharing a quick introduction on the film followed by the screening. The event will conclude with an interactive question-and-answer session between Correa and the audience.

  • ‘Gandi baat’, badly told

    ‘Gandi baat’, badly told

    MUMBAI: Can one say, ‘A love story is a love story’? One cannot; how the story is told makes all the difference. Mughal E Azam, Barsaat, Aradhana, Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, Kabhie Kabhie and Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!, among others, were all love stories but each was memorable for its own reasons.

     

    At the opposite end of the spectrum is the recent crop of South Indian-style formula love stories that have been raiding the box office of late. R… Rajkumar is one of them. It is a mindless action film in the guise of a love story, and not a very good action film at that. The villain loses his credibility too many times in a period of two hours 26 minutes to be of any interest by the time the climax comes about. The villain’s superiority, ego and power are all finished long before the final fight; all that remains is finishing him physically. And the film, already bankrupt of ideas, devotes 20-25 minutes just to that. It seems never-ending.

     

     

    Producer: Sunil Lulla, Viki Rajani.
    Director: Prabhu Dheva.
    Cast: : Shahid Kapoor, Sonakshi Sinha, Sonu Sood, Ashish Vidyarthi, Mukul Dev, Asrani, Srihari, Poonam Jhawer; Charrmy Kaur and Ragini Dwivedi (both in special appearance in songs).

    Earlier named Rambo Rajkumar and later forced to withdraw Rambo from its title, it settled for a suggestive R….. Rajkumar which is explained in the film as Romeo Rajkumar; after all, the Romeo, Shahid Kapoor, falls for Sonakshi Sinha at first sight. He has dropped in to an unfamiliar town in midst of two warring groups exchanging bullets. Sonakshi is caught in this crossfire and he stretches his arm to ward off bullets aimed at her, in the process showing off his tattoo to her. (No, the tattoo does not materialise into any Manmohan Desai kind lost and found story.)

     

    Shahid loves to poke his nose into others’ business. Ashish Vidyarthi’s goons plan to kidnap truck carrying opium belonging to Sonu Sood. Shahid saves it and earns an entry into Sood’s gang. Shahid can tackle 100 goons singlehandedly, the goons being very sporting as they tend to be in all South Indian action choreography. They always attack one after the other, each waiting his turn. Sood is thoroughly impressed and Shahid is promoted to his right hand man, displacing Mukul Dev who is also a sport and, instead of hating Shahid, makes him his best friend. Shahid’s reason for staying around in the town is probably Sonakshi as he has fallen head over heels for her.

     

    Soon, Shahid has a competitor. Sood sees Sonakshi and is besotted by her. She turns out to be the orphan niece of Sonu’s enemy, Vidyarthi, but so what? They decide to bury the hatchet and become rishtedaars. Challenges are thrown and a fight sequence is in place when Shahid leaves the scene. He could have taken Sonakshi along at that very moment but he avoided doing that for the sake of taking the film into the second half and eventually to its never-ending climax. No sense ending a film at interval stage.

     

    In the absence of anything worthwhile, the second half is whiled away with songs, some action and some cell phone romance besides unsuccessfully attempting some Himmatwala, Mawali kind of funny sequences with Asrani, Poonam Jhawar, Vidyarthi etc.

     

    Prabhu Dheva is handicapped as this time he is directing an original and not a remake; he is totally at sea! The film has one item number which is popular with masses in Gandi baat… The background score is eardrum shattering cacophony. The editing department seems to have been passed over. Action is routine South brand where the hero is superhuman. Besides, every action sequence has been stretched as if to make up for the lack of content. Shahid does a tapori role he is not cut out for. Just growing stubble does not make one a tapori. Sonakshi is too large for the frame. She is unimpressive in all that is expected of her. Sood is routine while Vidyarthi, Srihari, Asrani and Poonam Jhawer pass muster. Mukul Dev makes his presence felt.

     

    R…. Rajkumar has nothing to offer to multiplex audience and, may be, three days’ worth to single screens before it ends its reign.

     

    Sweet 60

    Producer: Kavee Kumar.
    Director: Sanjay Tripathy.
    Cast: : Farooq Sheikh, Sarika, Raghubir Yadav, Satish Shah,Sharat Saxena, Tinnu Anand, Vineet Kumar, Suhasini Mulay, Zareena Wahab, Himani Shivpuri, Viju Khote, Harsh Chhaya, Mona Wasu.

    When a personal tragedy is juxtaposed with comedy, when underlying emotion in every person’s life is camouflaged with vibrant humour and still a maker comes out with an entertainer, the concept is the hero. Such is the confidence in the script that the cast is made up of half a dozen veteran 60-plus actors; in fact, casting is the mainstay of the film. Club 60 is one of those films which come as a breeze of fresh air. It joins the category of Vicky Donour, OMG Oh My God, Dirty Picture, Kahaani and Special 26 as a rare gem. In short, it is not just another run-of-the-mill movie.

     

    Farooq Shaikh, a neurosurgeon of repute in Pune and his wife, Sarika, also a doctor, are in depression and mourning having lost their only son in a shootout in a cinema hall in the US where he went to study further. To leave their son’s memories behind, the couple has moved in to the very flat they had bought for their son’s future use in Mumbai after folding up their medical practices in Pune. While Shaikh is totally shattered and even tries to commit suicide once by slashing his wrist, Sarika contains her pain and loss within herself and tries to be a support to Shaikh. While Sarika joins a local hospital to keep her mind from the tragedy, Shaikh refuses to divert his attention and prefers to wallow in his sorrows. Then, a few days into his Mumbai life, there comes in his life a storm called Raghubir Yadav.

     

    Yadav lives in the same building, a floor above Shaikh. He dresses in t-shirts bearing suggestive messages, branded sunglasses, half-cargoes and Nike shoes. He is a gaudy, loudmouthed, overenthusiastic Gujarati who believes in living his life to the fullest but also forcing it on to others. After as short ride in the lift with Yadav, Shaikh has had enough of him. He decides to keep Yadav at arm’s length and also advises Sarika to do the same. But Yadav is not easily contained. He soon invades the Shaikh household, force-lands on breakfast table and invites the couple to join Club 60. While Yadav irritates Shaikh, Sarika finds him quite amusing and does not totally reject him.

     

    Yadav wants Shaikh to come look up the club and with little help from Sarika, he manages to do so. Yadav manages to involve Shaikh in his club along with four other friends, Sharat Saxena, Satish Shah, Tinnu Anand and Vineet Kumar, who are as boisterous as Yadav. At the club, their life revolves around a tennis court where they play little, abuse and fight each other more and finally settle down for their favourite finale, breakfast followed by a fight over who pays! Everything they do is like any group of boys in teens would be doing. Shaikh is a witness to all this camaraderie but aloof.

     

    Within a generally well-thought-out script, there are two scenes, both involving Sarika that stand out for being thought provoking. One is her talk with Shaikh’s psychiatrist, Harsh Chhaya and another with Shaikh, both of which are better seen on screen. The scene with Shaikh changes his attitude, turning him from a loser to a positive man. As Shaikh comes closer to the five people in the 60 plus group, he learns that he was not the only one to have lost someone close to him. All five around him had a sad story to tell which they hid behind their boisterous bravado and loud demeanour. They did not indulge in self pity like Shaikh did.

     

    Sanjay Tripathi has written and directed this film, his debut. He has excelled on both counts. Despite dealing with two shades, tragedy and comedy, the film’s dialogue is effectively relevant. The songs, composed by Pranit Gedham, besides being well penned, take one back to the melodious 80s. Background score is effective. Performance wise, Sarika tops with Shaikh and Yadav (who could have been a little less loud) also do very well. The other four, Saxena, Shah, Anand and Kumar give a natural account of themselves. Suhasini Mulay, Zareena Wahab, Himani Shivpuri, Viju Khote, Harsh Chhaya and Mona Wasu are fair in support.

     

    Club 60 is a small budget film with still smaller budget for promotion. Its hopes rest on word-of-mouth, failing which the business will sadly go to pirated discs because, the film is an entertainer with human story and the word is bound to spread eventually.

  • Gandi baat, badly told

    Gandi baat, badly told

    MUMBAI: Can one say, ‘A love story is a love story’? One cannot; how the story is told makes all the difference. Mughal E Azam, Barsaat, Aradhana, Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, Kabhie Kabhie and Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!, among others, were all love stories but each was memorable for its own reasons.

    At the opposite end of the spectrum is the recent crop of South Indian-style formula love stories that have been raiding the box office of late. R… Rajkumar is one of them. It is a mindless action film in the guise of a love story, and not a very good action film at that. The villain loses his credibility too many times in a period of two hours 26 minutes to be of any interest by the time the climax comes about. The villain’s superiority, ego and power are all finished long before the final fight; all that remains is finishing him physically. And the film, already bankrupt of ideas, devotes 20-25 minutes just to that. It seems never-ending.

    Earlier named Rambo Rajkumar and later forced to withdraw Rambo from its title, it settled for a suggestive R….. Rajkumar which is explained in the film as Romeo Rajkumar; after all, the Romeo, Shahid Kapoor, falls for Sonakshi Sinha at first sight. He has dropped in to an unfamiliar town in midst of two warring groups exchanging bullets. Sonakshi is caught in this crossfire and he stretches his arm to ward off bullets aimed at her, in the process showing off his tattoo to her. (No, the tattoo does not materialise into any Manmohan Desai kind lost and found story.)

    Shahid loves to poke his nose into others’ business. Ashish Vidyarthi’s goons plan to kidnap truck carrying opium belonging to Sonu Sood. Shahid saves it and earns an entry into Sood’s gang. Shahid can tackle 100 goons singlehandedly, the goons being very sporting as they tend to be in all South Indian action choreography. They always attack one after the other, each waiting his turn. Sood is thoroughly impressed and Shahid is promoted to his right hand man, displacing Mukul Dev who is also a sport and, instead of hating Shahid, makes him his best friend. Shahid’s reason for staying around in the town is probably Sonakshi as he has fallen head over heels for her.

    Producer: Sunil Lulla, Viki Rajani.
    Director: Prabhu Dheva.
    Cast: : Shahid Kapoor, Sonakshi Sinha, Sonu Sood, Ashish Vidyarthi, Mukul Dev, Asrani, Srihari, Poonam Jhawer; Charrmy Kaur and Ragini Dwivedi (both in special appearance in songs).

    Soon, Shahid has a competitor. Sood sees Sonakshi and is besotted by her. She turns out to be the orphan niece of Sonu’s enemy, Vidyarthi, but so what? They decide to bury the hatchet and become rishtedaars. Challenges are thrown and a fight sequence is in place when Shahid leaves the scene. He could have taken Sonakshi along at that very moment but he avoided doing that for the sake of taking the film into the second half and eventually to its never-ending climax. No sense ending a film at interval stage.

    In the absence of anything worthwhile, the second half is whiled away with songs, some action and some cell phone romance besides unsuccessfully attempting some Himmatwala, Mawali kind of funny sequences with Asrani, Poonam Jhawar, Vidyarthi etc.

    Prabhu Dheva is handicapped as this time he is directing an original and not a remake; he is totally at sea! The film has one item number which is popular with masses in Gandi baat… The background score is eardrum shattering cacophony. The editing department seems to have been passed over. Action is routine South brand where the hero is superhuman. Besides, every action sequence has been stretched as if to make up for the lack of content. Shahid does a tapori role he is not cut out for. Just growing stubble does not make one a tapori. Sonakshi is too large for the frame. She is unimpressive in all that is expected of her. Sood is routine while Vidyarthi, Srihari, Asrani and Poonam Jhawer pass muster. Mukul Dev makes his presence felt.

    R…. Rajkumar has nothing to offer to multiplex audience and, may be, three days’ worth to single screens before it ends its reign.

  • ‘Yaariyan’s’ ‘Baarish’ gets over a million hits

    ‘Yaariyan’s’ ‘Baarish’ gets over a million hits

    MUMBAI: When Bhushan Kumar, son of T-series founder, late Gulshan Kumar, entered in the business, nobody was sure if he would be able to create the same musical magic that his father created. But it seems he is rising above his father’s shadow. After creating ripples with the melodious music of Aashiqui 2 earlier in the year, now even T-series’ second venture Yaariyaan seems to be getting a lot of attention, especially from the youngsters.

    One of the songs, Baarish from the film that was launched earlier this week already seems to be popular among the masses. Reports suggest that the song that features lead actors Himansh Kohli and Rakul Preet, has already got 1,138,752 hits in just four days. Despite a fresh cast, such an overwhelming response is really surprising.

     

    The film is being directed by Divya Khosla Kumar and is based on the life of college-going youngsters. It is scheduled to release on 10 January 2014.