Hindi

‘Bombay Velvet’: A disaster

Published

11 years ago

May 15, 2015

MUMBAI: A film’s first test is in its title. Teasers, promos and the rest come much later. A bad or irrelevant title displays utter lack of imagination besides having no connect with the film. Bombay Velvet is based on a historian, Gyan Parakash’s book, Mumbai Fables.

Bombay/Mumbai is comparatively a new city turned metro during mid-20th century and Karachi enjoyed the status Mumbai grabbed later. It started after the seven islands were linked as one land mass.

In this case, Mumbai has a history and its passing heroes, villains and other legends but no fables to speak of. The book’s title being a misnomer, the film makes its story a fantasy a la Dick Tracy sans Tracy, the cop, of the comic strip, who is missing here while his main villain, Flattop Jones, a hired gun is made the hero. Otherwise, you may call it a prohibition era American film transplanted as a 1960s Hindi film with Mumbai background.

Ranbir Kapoor arrives in Mumbai with a woman he thinks is his mother but is not so sure. All heroes need a sidekick, soon he cultivates one too. By scene two, both are grownups and
have graduated to petty crimes. As has been seen in many such films, while the hero is impulsive and violent, the sidekick is more balanced and logical.

Ranbir has no scruples and he can clobber a man to death as easily as he can pick a pocket. His only ambition is to become a big shot; when he grows big, he wants to be bigger. If you have not found anything novel or interesting so far, there is no hope of it coming your way hereafter.

The film is about all the wrong people coming on one screen (though Mumbai was never that way nor it is now). Mumbai was a city where even its dons were respected till
the early 1990s.

There are big players in the city and they realize the talent of Ranbir, the most impressed being Karan Johar. Karan is a fixer, who turns deals and is in cahoots with Siddharth Basu though you never learn what Basu is: a lawyer, a politician or another fixer? He is impressed just because Ranbir tries to enter a bank and tries to steal his money by barely poking his two fingers pretending he has a gun! Karan is a big shot, wielding great power and one wonders why he’s at a bank to withdraw money when his personal staff can do it for him.

Karan, however, is mighty impressed and offers Ranbir contracts to kill people. You don’t know where this film is going until the reality hits that it is going nowhere! Ranbir is a pawn in the hands of Karan but not for long. He wants his share of the pie to be well-defined now that he is in the inner circle of the clique.

Ranbir has to frame an honest politician who can’t be bought with money. He is a hurdle in Karan and his clique’s plans. It is unclear why they don’t shoot him dead like they do all others. On such occasions, Karan uses his wife as a bait to lure the person. The politician is so honest, he accepts only Scotch and women in his bed. This film has some legendary character sketches.

Meanwhile, there is also a chapter on Portuguese Goa. Anushka Sharma, a choir singer child impresses Remo Fernandes. You are not told who he is or what he amounts to but he convinces her mother to send her with him. Next you know, he is torturing and sexually abusing her. Again, by scene two, she is a grown up. This time when Remo enters her room to deliver her daily lashes, she beats the hell out of him and escapes to land in Mumbai to come acros who else but Ranbir.

These absurdities go on and on for over 150 minutes until the film comes to a predictable yet welcome end. Phew!

As for a script, none exists. The film proceeds on whims. Everybody is double-crossing or backstabbing the other for no apparent reason. No character is etched out in detail. They come and it is left to you to figure out but soon you don’t care.

The script is poor and has no consistency. It was such an amateur idea to start the film in sepia and duo tone when you are going to show rest of the film in colour. (Manoj Kumar did that to great effect in Purab Aur Paschim when he shot his film in black and white until a flight from London enters Indian airspace and then turns in to colour film). In those days, gang wars were fought with Rampuri knives, swords and soda water bottles, nobody used guns, let alone Tommy guns.

Direction? There is none in this film. The director is obsessed with his period film idea so much so that he carries his vintage cars into 1960 when Fiat and Ambassador ran the roads. The edifices created for the era were non-existent (this reviewer having grown through that era). 1960s belonged to Beatles and other popular pop groups but the film sticks to jazz.

Mumbai night clubs were famous for their late night cabarets, not Goan jazz singers, which found its patrons mainly in five star ball rooms not in a seedy night joint like Bombay Velvet. The director is totally at sea when it comes to knowing Mumbai of those days. Editing is poor. Music is out of sync.

And, what is it with getups? Ranbir Kapoor, a fairly decent looking guy has been made to wear an MGR kind of wig and, resultantly, he looks like a comic character. Anushka Sharma is made to look like 1950s and 60s Hollywood B grader. Karan can’t act; the only time he evokes a reaction is when he wants to know what Ranbir saw in Anushka that he did not in Karan! But then, that was the era of closet gay.

Kay Kay Menon, the only decent actor in the supporting cast, plays a Crime Branch cop in the era when Mumbai Crime Branch was compared to Scotland Yard. But, he is nowhere around when Ranbir litters the South Mumbai streets with corpses. And, CID in felt hats and ties and blazers? This man, Kashyap, is joking. There are a few other side players who hardly matter since the director does not even bother to introduce them.

Bombay Velvet is a disaster.

Producers: Vikas Bahl, Vikramaditya Motwane, Fox Star Studios.

Direcor: Anurag Kashyap.

Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma, Kay Kay Menon, Karan Johar, Manish Choudhary, Siddharth Basu, Remo Fernandes, Satyadeep Mishra, Vivaan Shah, Ravina Tandon (cameo).

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Hindi

Boney Kapoor acquires remake rights of Tamil political satire Thalaivar Thambi Thalaimaiyil

Strong word-of-mouth turns Pongal satire into remake pick

Published

2 days ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: A Pongal release, a village satire and a theatre visit in Coimbatore have turned into Boney Kapoor’s latest acquisition. The producer has secured the remake rights to the Tamil political satire Thalaivar Thambi Thalaimaiyil (TTT), a film that has been enjoying a strong theatrical run powered by word-of-mouth and praise for its sharp, rooted writing.

Set in a rural milieu, the story follows a panchayat leader thrown into disarray when a wedding and a funeral land on the same day. What unfolds is a swirl of satire and humour that skewers local politics, power games, bruised egos and family tensions, all anchored in the textures of everyday village life.

Kapoor first encountered the film earlier this year while in Coimbatore for the Celebrity Cricket League. With time to spare, he caught a screening at a local theatre. That viewing proved decisive. According to sources, the narrative style, performances and the film’s balance of political commentary and comedy caught his attention.

Interest quickly turned into intent. Kapoor reached out to the producers soon after to explore a remake. Talks gathered pace over the following weeks and came to a head last Friday at the film’s success party in Chennai, where Kapoor joined the celebrations and continued negotiations with the makers.

By the end of the evening, the deal was sealed, with Kapoor formally acquiring the remake rights.

For an industry constantly mining regional cinema for the next crossover story, the move is telling. A small-town satire with local flavour has found a national backer. And if Kapoor’s instincts hold, a tale born in one village may soon echo far beyond it.

Hindi

Fans take centre stage as Zee Cine awards turns the spotlight around

Published

3 days ago

February 7, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: When the applause gets louder than the dialogue, you know the fans have taken over. That was the unmistakable mood as Zee formally announced the Zee Cine Awards 2026, flipping the script to celebrate not just cinema’s stars, but the people who cheer them on the loudest.

The 24th edition of the awards marks a fresh chapter in Zee’s long-standing relationship with Hindi cinema, anchored in its fan-first philosophy, Fantertainment. This year’s theme, ‘Yeh Pal Hai Fans Ka’, reinforces a simple idea: cinema’s most powerful moments are shaped as much by audiences as by actors on screen. Presented by Maruti Suzuki, the awards aim to turn fandom into the main event.

The announcement, held in Mumbai, was anything but a routine press conference. Bollywood stars Akshay Kumar, Tamannaah Bhatia, Jacqueline Fernandez, Sonam Bajwa, Aparshakti Khurana, composer Mithoon and singer Palak Muchhal joined fans to kick off the celebrations, turning the launch into a high-voltage, participative spectacle.

Staying true to the theme, fans didn’t just watch the announcement, they drove it. Akshay Kumar took the lead, pulling fellow stars on stage and energising the room, before the unveiling of a live LED Fan Meter. Powered purely by audience cheers, the rising meter culminated in the reveal of the Zee Cine Awards 2026 ground event date, announced in unison with fans, blurring the line between performer and spectator.

The momentum continued as Tamannaah Bhatia, Jacqueline Fernandez, Sonam Bajwa and Aparshakti Khurana recreated iconic hook steps, joined by Mithoon and Palak Muchhal for music-led interactions. Games, spontaneous performances and playful banter kept the focus firmly on shared moments, underscoring the evolving bond between cinema and its audience.

Beyond the launch, the awards will roll out as a multi-platform journey across television, digital, print and fan-led experiences. The aim is sustained engagement from the first announcement to awards night cementing fandom as a cultural force rather than a footnote.

Commenting on the milestone edition Zee head of advertisement revenue, broadcast & digital Laxmi Shetty said the 24th Zee Cine Awards continue to draw strength from the network’s omni-channel ecosystem, reflecting how audiences consume content today across TV, digital and social platforms. She noted that long-standing brand associations, including Maruti Suzuki’s three-year partnership and support from brands such as Hell Energy, underline the platform’s scale, trust and cultural relevance.

As Zee Cine Awards 2026 gathers pace, one thing is clear: this year, the loudest cheers won’t just echo in the auditorium, they’ll shape the show itself.

Hindi

Prime Video to stream Don’t Be Shy, produced by Alia Bhatt

Published

2 weeks ago

January 30, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Prime Video has found its next feel-good original, and it comes with a healthy dose of heart, humour and youthful chaos. The streaming platform has announced Don’t Be Shy, a coming-of-age romantic comedy produced by Alia Bhatt and Shaheen Bhatt under their banner, Eternal Sunshine Productions.

Written and directed by Sreeti Mukerji, the film follows Shyamili ‘Shy’ Das, a 20-year-old who believes her life is neatly mapped out until it suddenly is not. What follows is a relatable tumble through friendship, love and the awkward art of growing up, when plans unravel and certainty gives way to self-discovery.

The project is co-produced by Grishma Shah and Vikesh Bhutani, with music composed by Ram Sampath, adding to the film’s promise of warmth and energy. Prime Video describes the story as light-hearted yet emotionally grounded, with a strong female-led narrative at its core.

Prime Video India director and head of originals Nikhil Madhok, said the platform was delighted to collaborate with Eternal Sunshine on a story that blends sincerity with humour. He noted that the film’s fresh writing, earnest characters and infectious music make it an easy, engaging watch for audiences well beyond its young adult setting.

For Alia Bhatt, Don’t Be Shy reflects the kind of storytelling Eternal Sunshine set out to champion. She said the film stood out for its honesty, its coming-of-age perspective and Mukerji’s passion, which she felt was deeply woven into the narrative. Bhatt also praised Prime Video for supporting distinctive voices and bold creative choices.

With its breezy tone and familiar emotional beats, Don’t Be Shy aims to charm viewers whether they are rom-com regulars or simply in the mood for a warm, unpretentious story about life refusing to stick to the plan.