Mere Brother Ki Dulhan Review

Just when you think there can't be a film worse than the one you saw a week back there comes another debacle right in your face making you take back your words. And clearly after having a distorted and hackneyed Bodyguard last week which expectedly created records at the box-office, comes yet another trashy rom-com Mere Brother Ki Dulhan. And this is no My Best Friend's Wedding or Mere Yaar Ki Shaadi Hai or even Chal Mere Bhai, this is "different". Come on! Aren't all rom-coms "different" after all?

The title of the film and the promo give out the entire story leaving very little for you to guess and whatever little ambiguity that was left also got cleared by the repeated reinforcement of the story by the lead cast Imran Khan, Katrina Kaif and Ali Zafar who extensively spoke about the film in its publicity campaign. But for the ones who still couldn't get it right here's a gist of the one line plot.

Kush (Imran Khan) goes on a bride hunting spree for his brother Luv (Ali Zafar) and stumbled upon many a wrong girls finally narrowing down to Dimple Dixit (Katrina Kaif). Comes a flashback of five years, Dimple and Kush met each other during their college days and then went out of contact. Back to present they Dimple demands celebrating 48 hours of her live the way she used to back in college days before she gets tied down by marriage. Kush agrees. So there's song and dance and the twist that Kush falls in love with his brother's Dulhan! What happens next? Worth a guess?

Having begun his career as assistant director under Yash Raj banner, debutant filmmaker Ali Abbas Zafar (Do not mistake him for being Ali Zafar, the actor) does nothing but rehash some of the popular romantic films of the past and presents a clichéd, tripe story. The film is high on predictability and hence boredom. Each and every scene unfolds in front of your eyes just as you expect. There's not even a glimpse of novelty in it. So if the bride hunting sequence reminds you of Namaste London, the Choomantar song bears resemblance to Wake Up Sid and I Hate Love Storys. Even the cult romantic film Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge finds itself in MBKD. Throughout the film there are spoofs being made of actors like Shahrukh Khan, Salman Khan and Aamir Khan so much so that there's a bhaang consuming sequence with a huge Dabangg poster at the backdrop and the dialogue goes like, "You're Da Bhaang boy!" Funny? Maybe unintentionally!

The character-sketch of Kush is completely awry as Imran Khan definitely falters in pulling of a small towner's way of talking calling his elder brother "Bhai Saahab". Both Imran and Katrina meticulously maintain just one expression on their face and that alone is enough for emoting various expressions such as that of happiness, sadness, anger etc. Katrina looks ravishingly beautiful but only if that alone was enough. Her consistent problem of dialogue delivery commendably remains consistent even in MBKD. An actress who finds it hard to enact a sober girl is given a 10 mins long sequence of a drunk girl where she mouths the cult dialogues of Sholay. Funny? Maybe unintentionally yet again!

Katrina Kaif in the film has a brother by the name of Ajju Bhaiya who fills in the role of Tuffy (read the dog in Hum Aapke Hain Kaun) in order to bring Dimple and Kush together. But that's not all, Ajju Bhaiya's USP is that he acts exactly like Shahrukh Khan of My Name Is Khan. Funny? Unintentionally once again!

Ali Zafar is the only saving grace of the film and holds the screenplay tight whenever he comes onscreen. However, he alone finds it hard to salvage the badly scripted film. Music of Mere Brother Ki Dulhan is average at best with a song or two growing on you.

Imran Khan's luck on rom-coms seems to be shining for a while. Katrina Kaif is one of the leading ladies of the industry. Ali Zafar has track of the much acclaimed Tere Bin Laden as his last film. So there are definitely reasons enough in this film other than its story or script to watch it. If the same goes for you, take your pick!


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Bodyguard Review

For three years now, every Eid, a Salman Khan movie has become one of the rewards of the festival. Whereas last year we had "Dabangg", which despite its simplicity had layers into it, this year we are treated to "The Bodyguard" which isn't a patch on "Dabangg". Despite this, it has enough to hold the attention of festive audiences.

Bodyguard Lovely Singh (Salman Khan) is a nice, honest man of steel who is faithful to Sartaj (Raj Babbar). Sartaj, asks Lovely to guard his daughter Divya (Kareena Kapoor) day and night.

Lovely does his job diligently, but is unawares that Divya serenades him under a pseudonym Chhaya over the phone, and has fallen in love with him. Things get out of control when Sartaj's enemies try to kill Divya while Sartaj thinks Lovely is trying to kidnap his daughter.

"Bodyguard", conceptually, is based on the type of stories that have made Imtiaz Ali popular - sweet, gentle love stories, where the underlying theme being sacrifice for the sake of love. Yet whereas Imtiaz Ali reveals in a certain quaint subtlety despite the melodramatic nature of his films, "Bodyguard" director Siddique does not have that much of skills to pull that off.

The result is a film that has its few funny, slapstick moments but the problem area is the surprise twist in the end. It is an end that does not gel with the pace of the rest of the film and seems cooked up. That is especially true because director Siddique gives no foreshadowing or inclination before of a possibility of a character doing what she does in the end.

However, that would be a problem with urban audiences. As far as rural viewers go, the ending, fantastic as it may be, might actually work for the film. After all isn't there enough elements of fantasy in the rest of the film like when Salman going in the opposite direction in a train, simply jumps on to a running train in another direction. If one can digest that, one can do the same for the ending.

A little more effort on the editing table would have eased a lot of things.

Salman fans, however, have much to cheer. They not only get to see their favourite star beating enemies to pulp, but also get to see his well toned torso, that in the end is revealed after jets of water blow away his shirt, much like the subway wind blew away Marilyn Monroe's skirt.

Debutante Rajat Rawail provides comic relief to the film not just with his antics but also the funny messages on his t-shirts like '6 Pack Coming Soon' pasted over his fat belly.

Salman is his well-chiseled self, and Kareena is as good as the script demands of her, which isn't much. The music is catchy, especially Himmesh Reshamiya composed song "I Love You".

Overall, "Bodyguard" may not have the chutzpah of a "Dabangg", but it pulls itself through to entertain viewers during the festive season.


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That Girl in Yellow Boots Review

The 1960s were a wonderful time for Indian cinema. The government set up the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) to impart cinema education and FFC (Film Finance Corporation) to fund creative cinema. The result - beginning 1969 India saw what is today called 'The New Indian Cinema' that resulted in some of the greatest films ever made in the nation. Recently, with the advent of digital filmmaking, little droplets of creative cinema have been foreshadowing another cloud-burst of creativity. However, it needs patronage. Perhaps NFDC (National Film Development Corporation), transformed from FFC, would provide that shot in the arm to extremely talented, but unfinanced filmmakers in India. And "The Girl In Yellow Boots" (TGIYB), co-funded by NFDC, could be that game changer. A British national of Indian origin, Ruth (Kalki), is in India looking for her dad who had left her when she was young. To fund her trip, she works in a shady massage parlour charging Rs.1000 to give 'happy endings' to her customers. She is caught up in her druggie boyfriend's mess but a greater mess awaits her in the discovery of her father. TGIYB is good news for Indian cinema for many reasons. Firstly, it is perhaps India's first commercially released film to be not just entirely shot in digital (LSD was the first) but also shot on cameras that are usually used to shoot stills. Seeing what digital can do on big screen, like LSD, is an experience and lesson in filmmaking. Secondly, it will perhaps become the second innings of NFDC. The brilliant films produced by its precursor FFC in the 1970s and 1980s will vouch for the veracity of how much creative cinema needs and deserves governmental patronage. In a few months' time NFDC will also release Dibakar Banerjee's "Shanghai". Shot in 13 days, TGIYB is spot on in almost all departments. It is carried forward by a stellar performance from its cast, especially Kalki Kochelin, who's also the co-writer. TGIYB is a statement on modern life and society. The character of Ruth, despite her seeming loss of innocence and purity, is the purest character in the film. Yet, like a beautiful flower in full bloom, she is trampled upon by a ruthless society that ceaselessly uses her. Her yellow boots becomes a metaphor for the beauty and cheer that is stolen from her. Violence, though rarely physical, is inflicted upon her till she becomes insensitive to the innocence of another like her. Her trampling seems complete, till in the end she redeems himself, by refusing to act as per her impulse. This is a typical Anurag Kashyap film as it returns us to the themes that form the backdrop in many of his films - sex, drugs and violence. The quirky characterization and the pun of language is all there. Who else can pun a name 'Chittiappa Gowda' and pull it off or juxtapose the banal telephonic conversation of a chatty woman and serious confrontation on phone between mother and daughter at the same time? Yet, the film is also atypical of Anurag for unlike his other film he exercises great restraint. And it is in this control, of not ending the film in violence, lies its greatest power. The time is ripe for another cinematic revolution in the country, where filmmakers are not shackled by nepotistic and uncreative production houses and corporate houses married only to profits. Hopefully, TGIYB will prove to be the first, in the many to follow. sr:nr

Bol Review

Filmmaker Shoaib Mansoor who likes to call himself Showman is one person who gets lauded for the same reasons as the ones for which he earns brickbats. Four years ago when cinegoers across Asia and Europe applauded him for his path-breaking film Khuda Kay Liye, the religious authorities rejected his portrayal outright and created a hate community against him and his film. The very filmmaker is back with yet another film, Bol that not only questions conventions but also the moralistic or religious beliefs that's been governing the lives of millions.

The film starts with a young woman being sentenced to death. She doesn't justify herself throughout the court case but requests her last wish to be fulfilled; to tell the world why she committed the crime. The story goes into flashback; Manzar Sehbai who plays Hakim Saab is a religiously rigid man. Following an orthodox patriarchal society, he yearns for a male heir in the family but for all his 14 attempts all he gets from his wife are daughters. Only 7 daughters survive in all and one a born eunuch. Bogged down by his false pride and moralistic thoughts, he wants to put an end to the eunuch's life. The women of the house are not allowed to voice their opinion. Any feeble protests from them are received by brutal blows from Hakim. Courtesy his unending desire to have a male child the headcounts in the family keep rising and with many mouths to feed the economic conditions of the house become bad to worse. With his increasing atrocities on the family oscillating between religious to ideological, Zainub his eldest daughter one fine day puts an end to her father's life and carries the weight of his death on her shoulder.

Director Shoaib Malick presents a social remark which is complex, emotionally compelling and forthright. He makes no bones about the fact that he blatantly highlights the still prevalent gender issues and family planning conceptions which till today are backed by religious morals. Instead of being preachy, Bol ends up touching you and disturbing your notions. It is gutsy and in your face.

The first half of the film does appear sketchy and loosely knit. Moreover, it maintains a stagnated graph. However, it's the second half that makes for an invigorating watch. There are far too many moments in the film that make you clap and laugh satirically at the mindless thriving of Hakim on his religious morals. For example the squabbling of Hakim and Zainub during the India Pakistan cricket match sequence where Zainub ridicules Hakim's belief that it's only with prayers to Allah can Pakistan win over India. Even the entire brothel sequence between Hakim and Meena the courtesan played by Iman Ali makes for a delightful watch. Shaoib strongly depicts the flaws in the notions of Islamic Societies but not without showing a ray of light at the end of the long tunnel. In 2 hours 40 minutes long, Bol justifies women' emancipation.

There is no denying that Shoaib's biggest strength lies in his characterisation. Each and every character remains etched in the minds of viewers. If Humaima Malick deserves to be lauded then even Manzar Sehbai's portrayal of a wicked and sadist father warrants kudos. Shoaib Mansoor convincingly brings to light the different shades in a human. It surely is difficult for one to judge the characters such as that of Chawdhary or Meena.

Unlike Khuda Kay Liye, Bol is marred by incomprehensible staunch Urdu dialogues and bad edits. The story meanders needlessly into some areas wasting screen time. It isn't necessary that just because one ropes in Atif Aslam one has to make him sing songs. Even the ending appears clichéd and Bollywoodish.

Last but not the least, Bol leaves behind a question, if killing is a crime, why giving birth isn't? One of the rare gems from Pakistani stable. A must watch indeed.






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Mummy Punjabi Review

Mummy Punjabi - Superman Ki Bhi Maa; with a title such as this you can expect some unrealistic, non-existing cinematic liberty. But believe you me when I say this, its better you prepare yourself for excess ludicrousness, buffoonery and banal antics if you ever make up your mind to watch this film.

Set in Chandigarh, Mummy Punjabi traces the life of Babyji (Kirron Kher) a cheerfully, loud Punjabi mother fondly known as Mummyji by the whole of Chandigarh. An urban yet traditionally rooted mother of three, Mummyji treats his sons like daughters and wants them married much before her daughter as she thinks that a daughter should first stand on her feet. After a lot of brides and groom searching she finally gets her children married. But strangely not all her decisions go right and Mummyji is left alone to fend for herself in her old days. How the transition occurs in her life and how she tides over the bad times is what follows through the rest of the plot.

Filmmaker Pammi Somal's target audience is very ambiguous. It certainly can't be Pan nation as the entire film is shot with English and Punjabi dialogues nor can it be the Indian culture craved NRI audience because if that be the case then the shor-sharaba, dance and songs, marriage sequences in the film is way below standards for them to be enticed. The film neither justifies its title nor showcases any substantial storyline. It appears very episodic in nature more like a TV Show than film. There are as many as three full-fledged wedding sequences each fighting with the other for being more garish, tacky and loud. And each wedding has an equally loud, jarring and horribly choreographed song. If that's enough for annoyance, there are two disco numbers, again horribly choreographed and badly composed.

Courtesy the English dialogues the entire film appears fake when the whole of Chandigarh speaks in English including Kirron Kher's gossiping maid played by Divya Dutta. It's a pity to watch actors like Jackie Shroff and Satish Kaushik go wasted but Pammi Somal manages it just perfectly. All the other actors do nothing else but ham throughout.

The second half of the film does bring in some emotional moments handled best by the seasoned star Kirron Kher. The climax especially that does strike a few chords of the heart. Pammi Somal compassionately tries to give out message of respecting your parents and being by their side in their old days.

Mummy Punjabi is meant only for those who really admire Kirron Kher and consider her reason enough to endure a film such as Mummy Punjabi for a good 2 hours. 




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Bas Ek Tamanna Review

Talk of an uninspiring, meaninglessly meandering and straying storyline and filmmaker Rahul Kapoor's Bus Ek Tamanna may truly be defined. With meagre budgets in hand and extremely low publicity the film, that clashes with the highly anticipated Salman Khan starrer Bodyguard, may make way out of the theatres even without a whimper. The only talking point the filmmaker has been closely clutching onto is that the film has been banned in Pakistan.

Set in Lucknow Bus Ek Tamanna revolves around Faraaz (Sameer Aftab) a young man belonging to a middle-class family who is desperately in need of a job. He meets Sameera (Rituparna Sen Gupta), a Dubai based entrepreneur who offers him a job in Dubai; that of taking care of her psychologically disturbed child. Before leaving for Dubai, Faraaz falls in love with a simple school teacher Sanah (Gauri Karnik) and marries her. Cut to Dubai, Faraaz completely transforms himself to become a father to that child and forgets his family. He even hides his marriage from Sameera. What happens when two alternate worlds of his collide follows through the rest of the plot.

This is one film that doesn't quite have a purpose of its own. There is definitely no message in the film yet the filmmaker tries getting preachy towards the end by suddenly popping the topic of the privilege being given to Muslim men to marry as many as four wives as Sanah advices Sameera to marry Faraaz for the sake of the kid while Sameera gets into a social commentary. Even for a simple fictional saga there are far too many things which go completely haywire. For example: Why does Faraaz hide his wedding? Why does Faraaz hide the nature of his work from his family and wife? Why does he forget about them all of a sudden?

Bus Ek Tamanna could've made for a social drama or an emotionally stirring saga but what it turns out to be instead is tripe, hackneyed film that neither entertains you nor touches you. You don't feel empathetic towards Sameera's problems in life with regards to her child or feel the longing of Sanah when her husband goes offshores barring any contacts.

There are songs that are mediocre and don't add any value to the film. The heavy Urdu laden dialogues are inexplicable. Sameer Aftab and Gauri Karnik give puerile performances while Rituparna Sengupta doesn't show any improvement. The only respite about her is that her flawed dialogue delivery gets covered up courtesy dubbing. Reema Lagoo gives and earnest performance.

Over all, Bus Ek Tamanna is a long melodramatic saga which is best avoided. Watch it only if you are seeking an undisturbed long nap. 


sr:nr

Chatur Singh Two Star Movie Review

 

Chatur Singh Two Star Movie Review: After a successful tryst with comedy in ‘Munna Bhai’ and ‘Dhamaal’ series it was expected that Sanjay Dutt’s latest flick ‘Chatur Singh Two Star’ will be a hilarious one as well. But to the viewers disguise the film falls flat on the sky high expectations.

Story: The story of the film is based on the novel ‘Chalaak Jasoos’ and it revolves around the not-so-smart cop Chatur Singh who is famous for his goof-ups and foolish acts. He lives in his own fantasy world and considers himself to be smarter than the world, when actually the truth is a totally opposite one. Despite of his not-so-funny antics and dumb nature he luckily unfolds a murder mystery and accomplishes as pivotal mission. Ameesha Patel plays his love interest in the film and she helps him find the right clues. Suresh Menon plays his aide who is in awe of Chatur Singh whom he considers as his ‘guru’.

Analysis: The film has disaster written all over it. The humor in it is out-dated and the story is one of the most irrelevant tales of recent times. Based on the once-famous novel it isn’t a great concept for the film. There are many loop holes in the script and director Ajay Chandhok fails to cover them up. His loose hand at direction adds further woes to the film. The comic sequences are irrelevant and are totally baseless as they lack humor.

Performances & Technicalities: The director fails to utilize a powerful star Sanjay Dutt who has given gem of performances in the same genre of comedy in films like ‘Munnabhai’ and ‘Dhamaal’. Talented supporting cast like Satish Kaushik and Suresh Menon’s versatility too is wasted as their potential isn’t explored to the fullest. We wonder what made Ameesha take up the role which does no good to her career as her character in the film is easily avoidable.

The music in the film is given by Sajid-wajid who gave some great music in ‘Dabangg’ fails to live up to expectations as none of the songs have the potential to climb the charts but are decent if not good.

Rumi Jaffery’s poor story and equally pitiable screenplay are the major drawbacks of this not-so-funny film. In the age of slapstick and masala comedies we wonder if the film will be able to survive the Box-office storm as along with it two more films namely ‘Not a love story’ and ‘Sahi Dhande Galat Bande’ too are releasing on the same day.

Plus Point: Sanjay Dutt’s name

Minus Point: Story, Performances, direction, screenplay, music

Final Word: Skip it

Chatur Singh Two Star Review Rating: 1/5
Banner: Pen India Pvt. Ltd, Lotus Pictures
Cast: Sanjay Dutt, Ameesha Patel, Satish Kaushik and Suresh Menon
Music: Sajid-Wajid
Producer: Mohammad Aslam
Director: Ajay Chandhok

sr:nr

Sahi Dhandhe Galat Bande Movie Review

 

Sahi Dhandhe Galat Bande Movie Review:

Story: Revolt is in the air! Anna Hazare is fighting for his land, his country India with the government and similar is the story of our poor farmers who have been exploited by the government. Their fertile land has been snatched away from them in return for an amount that is one eighth of its actual market value. Our protagonist of the film ‘Sahi Dhande Galat Bande’, Rajbeer (Parvin Dabas) along with his three aides Sexy (Vansh Bhardawaj), Doctor (Kuldeep Ruhil) and Ambani (Ashish Nayyar) is a small time crook who empties people’s house for money.

Analysis: The tweak arises when he is asked to empty the land of his own people for the government. His village is on a dharna against the govt. and now by hook or by crook, it becomes Rajbeer’s business to fight for his people, his village, and his land. He tries kidnapping, the CM’s son, kills his own mentor but finally, when the leader of the farmers is shot dead, he sits on the hunger strike himself and chants for their demands.

Performances: Parvin Dabas is one of the most underrated actors of the country. His command over his craft is quite prominent in this film too just like ‘Khosla Ka Ghosla’, and ‘’. His aides, too do a fab job with each one standing out. Strong characterization makes the film even more watchable.  Preeti Jhangiani plays a news reporter and has a blink and miss role. The villagers played by Yashpal Sharma and Neena Kulkarni are quite convincing. Sharat Saxena as the antagonist is good too. Kiran Juneja plays the CM and for the very first time was exploited to her full potential. Tena Desae is talented and proves it again post ‘Yeh Faasley’.

Technicalities: Kudos to Dabas’ debut hand at direction, for pulling off the subject with panache! Nowhere did it seem stretched or diverting from the point unlike the recently released ‘Aarakshan’. The subtle unconventional comic sequences, the slow-motion action filmed by the director are commendable. More films like ‘Sahi Bande Galat Dhande’ should be made in India. It is an engrossing, edge of the seat entertainer that takes you on a revolutionary journey. No wonder Karan Johar wanted to remake it with Salman Khan. Yes the film would have worked better with a bigger star cast but nevertheless talent never goes unnoticed.

The cinematography, editing make take it to another level. The music is foot stomping and the background makes the film more thrilling.

Plus Point: Direction, Performances,

Minus Point: Lesser known star cast

Final Word: Don’t miss it

Sahi Dhandhe Galat Bande Review Rating: 3.5/5
Banner: Very Fishy Films
Starring: Parvin Dabas, Vansh Bhardawaj, Kuldeep Ruhil, Ashish Nayyar, Tena Desae, Preeti Jhangiani
Music: Suhas, Siddharth, Dhruv Dhalla, Master Mahavir Chopra
Producer: Preeti Jhangiani
Director: Parvin Dabas

sr:sgm