ITV

Tag: Randeep Hooda

  • Cartoon Network’s The Powerpuff Girls associates with Mumbai Fire Brigade

    Cartoon Network’s The Powerpuff Girls associates with Mumbai Fire Brigade

    MUMBAI April 2016 saw the global launch of our all-time favourite, super cute and a power packed show – The Powerpuff Girls on Cartoon Network after 11 long years. Blossoms, Buttercup and Bubbles enthralled the fans over the weekend with their charm to save the world before bedtime.

    Juggling between their school and homework, The Powerpuff Girls flagged off the rally organized by Mumbai Fire Brigade with Prabhat Rahangdale – Chief Fire Officer, Snehal Ambekar – Mayor of Mumbai and actor Randeep Hooda – Ambassador of Mumbai Fire Brigade at the Byculla Fire Station today. The rally was held from Byculla headquarters to Bandra Sea Link fire station.

    Just like the fire fighters, The Powerpuff Girls who believe in saving the world before bed time were seen posing for the shutter bugs with/on the vintage fire engines.

    Tune into Cartoon Network every weekend to watch The Powerpuff Girls at 9 a.m. IST.

  • Cartoon Network’s The Powerpuff Girls associates with Mumbai Fire Brigade

    Cartoon Network’s The Powerpuff Girls associates with Mumbai Fire Brigade

    MUMBAI April 2016 saw the global launch of our all-time favourite, super cute and a power packed show – The Powerpuff Girls on Cartoon Network after 11 long years. Blossoms, Buttercup and Bubbles enthralled the fans over the weekend with their charm to save the world before bedtime.

    Juggling between their school and homework, The Powerpuff Girls flagged off the rally organized by Mumbai Fire Brigade with Prabhat Rahangdale – Chief Fire Officer, Snehal Ambekar – Mayor of Mumbai and actor Randeep Hooda – Ambassador of Mumbai Fire Brigade at the Byculla Fire Station today. The rally was held from Byculla headquarters to Bandra Sea Link fire station.

    Just like the fire fighters, The Powerpuff Girls who believe in saving the world before bed time were seen posing for the shutter bugs with/on the vintage fire engines.

    Tune into Cartoon Network every weekend to watch The Powerpuff Girls at 9 a.m. IST.

  • Eros to release ‘Do Lafzon Ki Kahani’ on 4 March

    Eros to release ‘Do Lafzon Ki Kahani’ on 4 March

    MUMBAI: Eros International will be releasing the Randeep Hooda – Kajal Aggarwal starrer Do Lafzon Ki Kahani on 4 March, 2016.

    The contemporary love story has been directed by Deepak Tijori.

    The movie is being presented by Eros and has been made under the Alumbra Entertainment & Dhiraj Motion Pictures Production banners in association with Focus Motion Pictures & Deepak Tijori Films. The film is produced by Dhiraj Shetty and Avinash V Rai.

  • B4U acquires overseas distribution rights of Wave Cinemas’ six films

    B4U acquires overseas distribution rights of Wave Cinemas’ six films

    MUMBAI: B4U has acquired the overseas distribution rights of six films, which have been produced by Wave Cinemas.

     

    The first film in the deal is Main Aur Charles, which is directed by Prawaal Raman and stars Randeep Hooda, Richa Chadha and Adil Hussain.

     

    The deal was inked between B4U head of films Sunil Shah and Wave Cinemas CEO Rahul Mittra. 

     

    Slated for a worldwide release on 30 October, Main Aur Charles is presented by Wave Cinemas’ Ponty Chadha.

     

    The deal also includes the re-release of the 1969 Prithviraj Kapoor starrer epic Punjabi movie Nanak Naam Jahaj, which is presented by Wave Cinemas’ Ponty Chadha and Shemaroo Entertainment in association with Raju Chadha. The movie will hit theaters in November coinciding with Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s birth anniversary.

  • Randeep Hooda to play Aishwarya Rai Bachchan’s brother in ‘Sarbjit’

    Randeep Hooda to play Aishwarya Rai Bachchan’s brother in ‘Sarbjit’

    MUMBAI: Omung Kumar’s biopic Sarbjit has been in the news lately for its various speculations on the star cast of the movie. After roping in Aishwariya Rai Bachchan for the role of Sarabjit’s sister Dalbir Kaur, the makers have finally locked down Randeep Hooda for the role of Sarabjit.

     Known for his performances in movies like Kick, Highway and Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster, Hooda will be essaying the role of the slain Indian prisoner  Sarabjit.

    The movie will narrate the struggle of Dalbir Kaur whose aim of life is to get her brother out of the jail, who has been imprisoned in Pakistan for a mistaken identity of an Indian spy.

    Hooda is all set to play the role Aishwariya Rai Bachachan’s younger brother. The duo will be seen sharing screen space for the very first time in Indian cinema.

     

    Omung Kumar said, “Yes Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Randeep Hooda are going to be apart in my next Biopic Sarbjit.”

     

    The movie will go on floors in October 2015 and will be released in Cannes in May 2016. 

  • ‘Main Aur Charles’ to release on 26 June

    ‘Main Aur Charles’ to release on 26 June

    MUMBAI: The Randeep Hooda, Richa Chadha and Adil Hussain starrer Main Aur Charles will release on 26 June, 2015.

     

    Main Aur Charles is a crime thriller and a biopic of the infamous conman Charles Sobhraj. It tells the story of the 1970’s ‘Bikini Killer’ and also captures the Tihar jail break of 1986.

     

    Directed by Prawaal Raman, it is presented by Wave Cinemas’ Ponty Chadha, produced by Raju Chadha, Amit Kapoor and Vikram Khakhar.

  • ‘Ungli’…Fingered!

    ‘Ungli’…Fingered!

    MUMBAI: While the Indians may love a Robin Hood kind (he robbed for charity), vigilante films, which have been made by the dozens in Hollywood, they are not very popular genre in India because, this is a nation supressed by some or the other rulers and have got used to the idea. So what if their own people like Municipal head or RTO boss or traffic cop and others supress you and put a price on just about everything you need to survive, we take it in our stride. Why bother to fight for your right when you can buy it in anything between Rs 100 to a lakh and be done with it?

    It is a common scene that in a city like Mumbai, traffic police don’t stop you from doing wrong, they stand round the corner to let you do that and cash in on your crime! It is the same when one is unfortunate enough to need the help of the ‘service’ of one of the government agencies.

    Randeep Hooda, Angad Bedi, Neil Bhoopalam and Kangana Ranaut are friends who are let down by the society and people in high places. Their gym instructor and brother of Kangana, Arunoday Singh, is lying in a coma with little chance of recovery; he is in this condition because he was hit brutally by a fixer’s, Mahesh Manjrekar, son who handles bribe collection and distribution of the Mumbai police force. There is only one witness, senior citizen Arunoday who is trying to defend himself from Manjrekar’s son.

    Producers: Hiroo Johar, Karan Johar.
    Director: Renzil D’Silva.
    Cast: Sanjay Dutt, Wmraan Hashmi, Kangana Ranaut, Neha Dhupia, Randeep Hooda, Angad Bedi, Neil Bhoolam.

    The senior citizen is threatened not to identify the culprit in the court and, as a result, the culprit is set free. The foursome lose faith in the system and decide to mete out justice on their own. They turn vigilantes. They decide to take on the corrupt and punish them on the spot when and where found guilty of corruption. The electronic media, always at the end of the butt of joke in movies, make these vigilante gang famous from their very first exploit. Also, the way they give names lacking imagination like Coal Gate (inspired by Watergate!), Bollywood (inspired by Hollywood), they name the gang as Ungli Gang because that is the sign they left behind after their first episode of instant justice.

    While every department takes its turn at being punished by the Ungli gang, the police is hot on its trail. The people in high places are uncomfortable with this gang fearing their turn someday and want its illegal activities to end and to put them in prison. So the corrupt police force selects the most honest cop, Sanjay Dutt, to capture the gang who in turn enrols the rebellious junior, Emraan Hashmi, to do the job. Emraan is a rebellious cop and generally anti-establishment.

    Emraan Hashmi joins the Ungli gang to liquidate it. Instead, he sees the gang’s point of view and becomes a part of it. As it progresses, the film strays.
    The script is quite hackneyed and direction patchy. There is no eye for details in things like designations and stars worn are three for all ranks and there are many such glitches. Musically, Dance Basanti… and Pakeezah have appeal for youth. Dialogue is good at places. The film looks dated having taken its time in making.

    Ungli has had a poor opening and has little chance of showing much improvement over the weekend.

                                                      

                                            ‘Zed Plus’…Nothing plus about it

    Zed Plus is supposed to be a satire on the security system of the Indian police protection branch locally and the National Security Guard nationally. Zed Plus is supposed to be a security cover provided to a VIP. Since the perception of who is a VIP and deserving of such a security is determined on threat perception, it is the cause for this film promoted as a satire. One day, a local puncture mender with his workshop on the highway, Adil Hussain, earns this Zed security. This is all about him.

    This is a famous dargah town in Rajasthan which goes back 500 years. The originator of the Dargah had a family of 12 children which has now flourished into 400+ heirs but only one man runs the dargah and pockets all the takings. The others rebel and it is decided that all the heirs will get a chance to perform the rituals at the dargah one by one, each getting a turn every 15 months!

    The film is all about this small town with a dargah as its claim to fame. While the film peers in to the lives of the townfolk, it returns to its main theme only much later.

    Kulbhushan Kharbanda is the prime minister of India surviving on day to day basis with his blackmailing coalition partners. Just about every coalition partner is blackmailing him with threats of withdrawal of support everyday unless their demands are met.

    When the PM, Kharbanda, is all at sea, some unidentified caller advises him to visit this famous Peepali Pir dargah in Rajasthan which would solve his problems. Of among the 400+ guys to take their turn to be the Khadim of the dargah, it happens to be the turn of Adil to conduct the rituals of the dargah on the day the PM is slated to visit.

    The PM arrives, the town is cleared of all ugly sights including Adil’s puncture shop and the front platform of his wife’s (Mona Singh) footwear shop. Many are left jobless. The PM’s dargah visit works for as soon as he enters the premises, the PM’s problems are getting solved one after the other. He has only Adil to thank for all the favours of the dargah. He is happy with Adil and asks Adil to spell his problems if any and the PM would solve them for him. Adil says he is threatened by his neighbour, Mukesh Tiwari, only for the PM to understand as the national troublesome neighbour, neighbouring country (Pakistan).

    The PM instantly orders a Zed Plus security for Adil, a victim of Pakistani threats! The rest is left to the media who make him into a national hero like it did a simple village man, Omkar Das, in Pipli Live.

    Adil becomes a celebrity overnight. A local hero, he is chosen by the Rajasthan CM to contest for his party. His degeneration has started, he is taught to accept bribe. He is manipulated by his PM and his Rajasthan CM, both being anti each other.

    Our hero, Adil, is right out of Raj Kapoor’s Shri 420. He decides to return to his normal life. He realizes his follies and greed and confesses to them at an election meeting.

    Zed Plus may be a satire but hardly worth any mirth. The only problem Adil faces due to the security is that he can’t visit his paramour without the security guards following him. The PM’s PA knows a gaff has been made by the PM but he has to stick to the story of threat from the neighbouring country so that the PM is not made to look like a fool. Hence, despite Adil’s requests to withdraw his cover, it stays.

    While the idea was worth exploring, it is stretched too much trying to pack in parallel stories. Direction is fair. Songs have purely thematic appeal. Editing is slack. Adil Hussain performs very well equally supported by Mukesh Tiwari.  Mona Singh is adequate. Sanjay Mishra is good as usual. K K Raina impresses.
    Zed Plus has weak face value leading to its poor opening. It faces bleak prospects.

  • Shaukeens …Not for a film shaukeen

    Shaukeens …Not for a film shaukeen

    Shaukeens is inspired from the 1982 film, Basu Chatterjee’s successful film Shaukeen, starring Ashok Kumar, Utpal Dutt and A K Hangal. They are replaced here by Anupam Kher, Annu Kapoor and Piyush Mishra. The original had Mithun Chakraborty and Rati Agnihotri as romantic attractions. Their replacements here are Akshay Kumar and Lisa Haydon. Shaukeen was remade in Telugu as Prema Pichollu with Chiranjeevi and others in 1983.

    Producers: Murad Khetani, Ashwin Varde.
    Director: Abhishek Sharma.
    Cast: Anupam Kher, Annu Kapoor, Piyush Mishra, Lisa Haydon, Rati Agnihotri and in cameos Abhishek Bachchan, Kareena Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia, Suniel Shetty and, in a special appearance, Akshay Kumar.

    The actual theme, though with a different ending and with the approach of a thriller rather than a comedy was The Fan Club, a 1974 novel by Irving Wallace, made into a film the same year. Here an actress is kidnapped by a few men. In Shaukeen and Shaukeens, three old men, referred to in India as thirkee/lecherous men, bored with their daily routine, embark on a holiday with the express purpose of finding some sex.
    Kher, Kapoor and Mishra are deprived of sex for different reasons. Kher’s wife has turned full time religious and sex is taboo for her; Mishra’s wife is dead while Kapoor could not marry the woman he loved and, hence, has no sex life. Best they get is to ogle at young girls at morning exercise groups. This proves to be even more frustrating even as their attempts independent of each other fail.
    Having had enough, Kapoor comes up with an idea. Since they are well known in Delhi where they are based, they decide to land up in Bangkok. But the very mention of Bangkok is opposed by the two men with families, Kher and Mishra, as whatever the reason, Bangkok in the family and friends circle would create talks. They decide on Mauritius where they learn Akshay Kumar is slated to shoot his next film.

    They are lucky to get a house to themselves in Mauritius as the owner, Lisa Haydon, has decided to rent it out while she is away. The trio’s first night out at a club is a failure. But, to their surprise there is Lisa sleeping in the lawn; her programme got cancelled at the last minute.

    Haydon is a bindass, carefree girl and a self-proclaimed designer who makes a pendant out of a frog’s eye and glares for Akshay from her nails! Her carefree attitude is taken by the three men as an open invitation. They put their efforts into scoring with Haydon, collectively as well as individually.

    While these three are chasing Haydon, Akshay Kumar is in Mauritius for a film shoot. Haydon is a big fan of Akshay and she proposes that whoever of the three takes her to meet Akshay will get whatever he asks for from her. Kher manages first followed by Kapoor by which time has had enough of her.

    Mishra’s attempt is the last straw. A drunk Akshay (he is a closet alcoholic) is on stage at an Indian community event, bursts out in anger.

    Sadly, Shaukeens is a poorly adapted version of the original. Nothing about it looks natural: the way they behave or the way they try to court Haydon. The comedy is either absent or banal, making one laugh at the attempts to create comedy instead of the comedy itself. Direction is routine and lacking imagination. Music is poor. Not a very long film, but even at 135 minutes it offers much scope for further editing. Performance wise, while Kher and Mishra are routine, Kapoor is a little better. So much so that Akshay Kumar emerges the best of the male cast. Haydon is a wrong choice.

    Shaukeens fails to entertain. Having opened to poor response, it faces tough time ahead.

    Rang Rasiya ……Of colours and women shapes

    Producer: Deepa Sahi, Anand Mahendroo.
    Director: Ketan Mehta.
    Cast: Randeep Hooda, Nandana Sen, Paresh Rawal.

     

    Rang Rasiya is based on the life of the renowned Indian artist and painter of the 19th Century, Raja Ravi Varma, who went on to become a legend. Born in Kerala, Varma was a painter trained in the basics of art followed by water painting and then oil painting by three different masters. He was driven out of his native Kerala by the local ruler for adding the prefix Raja to his name. But he was backed by the ruler of Mysore, who was also his patron, and his paintings adorn the Mysore Palace till date.

    The film version is an adaptation of a novel, Raja Ravi Varma, written by Ranjit Desai. It is a novel and not a life account of Varma and, hence, the film too has a commercial film-like approach. And, it turns out to be more about women and romances in Varma’s life and that is what is expected to attract the moviegoer. After, all painting and painters find their followers at art galleries not in cinema halls.
    Lying in cans since 2008 for want of censor clearance, the film was screened at various film festivals. It has only now finally got an Indian release. Married with five children, Varma, played by Randeep Hooda, has a glad eye for pretty women and admired their bodies; he was an eternal lover. His sexual encounters with women would be dream sequences, otherwise, for a common man. A flirt who uses women for his artistic inspiration as well as for what they are. Finally comes a woman, Nandana Sen, who he soon becomes passionate about.
    Not taking Varma seriously, she eventually becomes his model and lover. He has found a new inspiration only to be vehemently opposed by the self-styled custodians of culture and traditions. From being dragged to court to being blamed for the plague epidemic in Mumbai, he faces it all.

    Varma takes his art and admiration for the female further as he gives faces and form to Hindu gods and goddesses and paints their pictures, and sets up his own lithographic printing press to print and distribute these pictures free of cost to lakhs of people including those not allowed into temples. He provides a God/Goddess to every home. His one admirable act was to financially help the father of Indian cinema, Dada Saheb Phalke with his first film project.

    Ketan Mehta is a fine and sensitive director but here his priorities seem mixed up between depicting the life of one of the most renowned artist and his sex life. Rather than romance, the film and characters seem to thrive on lust. Hooda looks too hard faced to depict Varma. Girls are just okay.

    Biopics are not a very popular genre even about our recent heroes while this one is about one from a long past few can identify with, making the film a commercial liability.
     

     

  • ‘Kick’ …Get a kick out of it!

    ‘Kick’ …Get a kick out of it!

    MUMBAI: Other films may have done more business at the box office but 2009’sWanted created a new slot for Salman Khan; that of a walking talking killing machine, a Superman (but without his sartorial taste of wearing his underwear over his pants). Being a Hindi film hero, he also has to simultaneously carry out the tougher job of maintaining and placating a girlfriend, and sing and dance with her in garish club sets. Ever since Wanted, films are made for Salman to fit in that same mold which assures success. The planned Eid release, something which now seems like a fixed slot for Salman starrer, adding hugely to the film’s prospects.

    Salman is on a mission; he needs to find a person who, he thinks, is responsible for a certain crime despite being in high position in politics. Meanwhile, he notices Jacqueline Fernandez, a psychiatrist, when she is wearing horn-rimmed glasses and looks like a nerd—though she changes to tiny dresses when she is ready to romance and dance the jig with the hero.

    Impressed with Salman and very much in love with him, Jacqueline ‘s love story with Salman is not quite convincing and uses up most of the first half offering nothing except a few songs on the viewer. Then, Salman is taunted by Jacqueline about his monetary status. He vows to spend his time on making money and turns into a contemporary Robin Hood. It is another matter that a little later his cause for raising money is a small kid suffering from cancer. He makes raising monies for children needing medical attention his life’s mission.

    There is a little girl who is dying of cancer and, unable to meet the expenses of her operation, her parents commit suicide. Salman takes up the cause of that child and approaches the big shots of the town for help. One of the big shots (and a minister), Nawazuddin Siddiqi, along with a bunch of his sycophants, makes the mistake of insulting him by donating Rs 100 while he needs Rs 11 lakh for the child’s survival. That is a reason enough for Salman to eliminate the gang of Nawazuddin one after the other.

    Producer: Sajid Nadiadwala.

    Director: Sajid Nadiadwala.

    Cast: Salman Khan, Jacqueline Fernandez, Randeep Hooda, Nawazuddin Siddiqi, Mithun Chakraborty, Saurabh Shukla, Vipin Sharma, Sanjay Mishra, Archana Puran Singh, Kavin Dave, Sumona Chakravarti and an item number by Nargis Fakhri.

    Meanwhile, the action has shifted to Poland and an Indian cop, Randeep Hooda, is following Salman’s tracks. He is willing and ready to shoot Salman but never does so when Salman is around him because he comes in the guise of a friend, Devi Lal while the thief Hooda is chasing is called Devil (al)!. While Salman and Hooda play cops and robbers, a lot of Nawazuddin henchman millionaires back in India are being robbed. Nawazuddin is exasperated and desperate to find the culprit and add his death to his reputation.

    The film turns into a caper as Salman carries out a number of heists in varied ways maintaining his humour all the while. These missions are serious business for Salman and his romance with Jacqueline has been called off, while Hooda, who has come to Warsaw chasing Salman, happens to be her family friend and it is left to her to look after him. A sort of triangle is formed. Though predictable and seen earlier, now the sequence is such that Salman is hunting for Nawazuddin and Hooda is hunting for Salman the Devil. These are the parts that make Kick interesting as would be expected from a Salman action thriller.

    The script, as should be apparent, is a bit messy .There is nothing solid happening in the first half except a romance without chemistry. All the action is in the second half where there are some sudden jumps and locations unexplained. You don’t know whether you are in Delhi or Europe, whether one is in past or in present as the things unwind. Sajid Nadiadwala’s foray into direction considering these glitches in the script is satisfactory. What matters is that it will go down in the record books as ‘A super hit on debut’ for him. The film has competent cinematography by Ayananka Bose. The film’s music is not up to the mark and adds to the tedium of the first part. The one song which has popular appeal is ‘Jumme ki raat…’ Dialogue has the usual Salman one liners laced with humour.

    The film belongs to Salman Khan all the way and he is in full form. Randeep Hooda comes in a different role and justifies it. Nawazuddin as a maniacal villain, the kind you see in a Bond film or a super hero film, may not come across as strong enough against Salman but looks sinister enough to be slayed. Jacqueline is okay. Mithun Chakraborty as Salman’s father complements him well. Kavin Dave and Sumona Chakravarti lead the supporting cast of able actors like Saurabh Shukla, Vipin Sharma, Sanjay Mishra and Archana Puran Singh.  

    Kick has taken a thundering opening despite coming on the last Friday of Ramzan and Kavad processions in the North as a Maha Shivratri ritual. The film is expected to break first day records and enjoy a ‘10 day weekend’ at the box office and creating more records.

  • ‘Highway’…road to nowhere

    ‘Highway’…road to nowhere

    MUMBAI: A road movie is a genre with its roots in the United States (US) where it became more popular with the post World War II auto boom and peaked in the 60s when a lot of things changed in how the youth looked at life. America had the road, the spirit of adventure and the type of cars and bikes coupled with social movements which did not tie one down. In India, road movies are rare and far in-between and gained some momentum only thanks to inspiration through easy accessibility to DVDs. Despite a few attempts in the last decade or so, the only memorable Indian road movie I can think of is the 1972 Mahmood film, Bombay To Goa. (I would even call Mahmood’s Sadhu Aur Shaitaan a road movie; so what if it was shot only within Bombay limits!) Probably because it was not a DVD inspired film and if it was inspired from external forces, it was very well adapted to suit the Indian taste. A road movie formula is one where the lead characters come of age, grow or improve in the process of the journey.

    Highway, going by the definition of a road movie, is a copybook road movie as far as its characters go. The tough as tungsten male protagonist melts like a candle while the female matures enough to break all shackles of social norms and bindings. The problem with Highway is that, while the rules of road movies are already laid down for it, sadly, the content for the length of the film acceptable to Indian audience, where you can’t remain indifferent to romance and fitting in songs, does not come with the formula. Probably, that is why the percentage of Hindi road movies working at the box office is so small. (Some films I can recall: Bombay To Goa, Ginny Aur Johny, Chalo Dilli, Zindagi Na MIlegi Dobara, Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahi and Daud)

    Producers: Sajid Nadiadwala, Imtiaz Ali.

    Director: Imtiaz Ali.

    Cast: Randeep Hooda, Alia Bhatt.

    Randeep Hooda works for a gang which is for hire; they commit crimes on contract basis. On a mission to loot a petrol pump, Hooda comes across Alia Bhatt who is out to get some fresh air with her boyfriend. To make good his escape, Hooda dumps Alia’s boyfriend but takes her as a hostage till he reaches his partners and own vehicle. Kidnapping Alia was not on his agenda and why he does not dump her is a question. Alia comes from the house of a very influential man in Delhi and the gang members expect trouble. On account of this, Hooda decides to go on his own and demand ransom for Alia. This is a road movie so instead of cooling his heels in one place, he just takes his truck around the country (except Southern parts). In the era of electronic surveillance, he manages to hide from the authorities merely by changing the number plates of his truck; description of the vehicle does not matter.

    While Hooda may give Alia a slap or two, he never tries any sort of mischief with her. As expected, Alia is drawn towards him and won’t let him go. She does not want to go home where she is being molested by an uncle since she was nine. She wants to hang around with Hooda and keep travelling. They end up somewhere in the mountains, borrow a house and set up a kitchen with Maggi noodles! By now you have had enough and decide that if the police won’t find them, you yourself will call them when there is a bang. The police who did not manage to nab him while he roamed about the highways of India, passing state check posts, finally find him in this remote mountain and without warning just shoot him down.

    There is nothing such as a story in this movie. This has been shown in a number of films where the captive falls for the goon. Otherwise, this film is a kind of Bharat Darshan taking you to places you would not go to otherwise. In a weatherman’s parlance, the film is 133 minutes but feels like 300 and with just two characters to carry it off, offers no distraction except change of scenery.

    Highway is touted to be aimed at the gentry audience but one would assume even gentry go to cinema for entertainment, which this film is lacking.

     

    Darr @ the Mall

    Stolen ideas…

    Horror has not really been a favourite Indian genre and neither are there original writers for this breed of film. The preference here is mainly feel good fare or soaps or romance. Obviously, the ‘inspiration’ has to come from Hollywood films. Horror movies don’t have repeat value, in most cases does not even gain a first-time audience, provides no scope for music which is a must in Indian movies and, generally, don’t entertain. In which case, why would anybody want to make one is a mystery! As suspected, Darr @ The Mall comes from a 1989 Hollywood film called Phantom of the Mall: Eric’s Revenge.

    Contiloe Entertainment is a TV content providing company making a foray into film production and the film will be learning experience for the company.

    Producers: MSM Media Motion Pictures, Contiloe Entertainment.

    Director: Pavan Kriplani.

    Cast: Jimmy Shergill, Nushrat Bharucha, Arif Zakaria, Asif Basra.

    Phantom of the Mall: Eric’s Revenge was about one Eric Matthews who lives in a huge house which burns down; Eric is reported dead but he has been able to save his girlfriend. Soon, a mall comes up where his house was. Eric is not dead though badly burnt. He haunts the mall, killing people, especially those who set an eye on his girlfriend.

    Darr @ The Mall is about a mall, ironically called Amity Mall, that has come up at a location where an orphanage run by a kindly nun stood once. The orphanage burns down killing the nun as well as all the children save for one child who, though wounded, manages to escape. A mall has come up where the orphanage stood. Soon, the mall is in the news for all the wrong reasons. Workers and sentries get killed at random at the mall. As a result, nobody is willing to take charge of the security at this mall when Jimmy Shergill, an ex-army man, gets an offer he can’t refuse. He accepts the job at the mall.

    Even as Shergill takes charge, the killing spree continues though no harm comes to him. From the sundry staff, the killing progresses to the families of the owners. To salvage the reputation of the mall, the owners decide on an evening party at the mall paving way for an item number too! That evening, which is never-ending for the viewer in this film, lasts most of the film. There are purposeless killings and illogical incidents. Why, when the culprits are available for the picking, does the revenge seeker kill innocent sentries and others?

    Darr @ The Mall is a poorly written horror film where nothing works. While in the original, it was a private property, an orphanage is not owned by the orphans, and just by killing its inhabitants one can’t take over the premises! This is a pathetic effort by Pavan Kriplani. There is no horror, only gore to pass of as horror. Writer director Kriplani is totally at a loss with this project. While the rest are caricatures, it is sad to see Shergill being totally wasted in this whim of fancy. Excuses have been created to fit in a few songs but in vain. Editing is poor. Photography is passable. Background score is jarring.

    Darr @ The Mall stands no chance at the box office.