Archive for the ‘bollywood’ Category

The passing of an era – RIP Rajesh Khanna

Posted: July 20, 2012 by fattiemama in bollywood, cinema, film, Thoughts
Tags: , , , , ,
8

Fatema Kagalwala puts on those nostalgia-wala goggles and remembers Rajesh Khanna.

I have a very 70’s generational angst. I have a theory that we, all of us born in the 70’s are marked. And politely speaking quite fucked. We are the in-between generation constantly straddling two worlds, one full of a traditionalism no longer serving us, and another of modernisation hurtling us to a place that has stripped us completely of our original identities. We have one foot in both. Our childhoods were wrapped in what was probably the blackest period of modern India – the 80’s where decay, political, social and personal was at its ugliest, poverty and disillusionment with the Great Indian Dream had left us utterly hopeless and arts were a shadow of their original selves. Maybe, it is for this that I (we?) continue to feel like an alien in this uber-modernised, superficial millennium and keep asking myself ‘Where do I belong?’ And probably it is this that makes me misty-eyed with nostalgia, sense of loss and emptiness when I but merely watch a yester-year film song especially of the 50’s, 60’s or 70’s.

Films and the heroes we loved in our childhood keep us connected to our past and the entire world it embodied. No other medium or star can do that for us, but yes, film heroes can. And that’s why when I heard of Rajesh Khanna’s demise yesterday I had a lump in my throat like he was a long-lost childhood friend. His going brought up all that sense of immense loss and pain that had been growing ever since Dev Anand and Shammi Kapoor left us.

I was having lunch when I heard it. My first reaction was ‘Don’t go!’, ‘Don’t do this to us…’ ‘We need you…’ I was screaming inside, ‘You don’t know the way you keep us connected us to ourselves…’ ‘We don’t recognise this world we live in but with you it’s bearable…’ ‘What will we do without the dreams you gave us to dream?’ I felt I had lost yet another link to myself, my past, my world. It wasn’t about cinema anymore. It was about the world Rajesh Khanna was a part of, the world he kept alive for me. The world I could go to at will, to rejuvenate myself. A sort of coming home when tired… Rajesh Khanna, Dev Saab, Shammi Kapoor symbolised a world of gentility and innocence that I was born in and then rudely shaken out of before I had my fill. They kept me connected to what was no more…And now they are…

Rajesh Khanna the star and Rajesh Khanna the man were both something that I wasn’t personally attached to, like I was to Dev Anand, the first man I ever fell in love with. Yet, his charming smile, the innocence in his eyes, the warmth he invested in his characters and his eccentrically crooked style, all remained endearing to me no matter how frail a shadow of himself he became. In my eyes, he remained Anand, Arun, Raj and Kamal, none of his later life pursuits ever diminishing all the beautiful worlds he had created for me in my childhood. It must be the dreams he (and others before him) sold to my wide-eyed child that makes me cling to a world that has long past…

A world where innocence meant thinking that when actors died in films they died in real life…

Where women scraped the mud of an actor’s car tyres and marked their foreheads with it as sindoor…

Where an autograph or a mere sighting of our favourite star would leave us in a tizzy for days…

Where the word ‘matinee’ gave us shivers of delicious delight be it pre-fixed to our loved idol or show…

Where we dressed up for a film outing and carried tiffins to movie halls…

Where we were willing to sit on the aisles if need be and would get up dance when we felt like…

Where we could sit on the footpath to watch a film being projected at a random street celebration…

Where we made films run for months and months never tiring of watching it for the 5th or 15th time as long as it was in the halls…

Where it was a big big deal to escape school / college to watch that film’s first day first show…

Where first day first show meant a lot more than our careers ever would…

Where men were gentlemen and women ladies…

Where stars were gods…almost…

…until they passed on. And left us bitter about the fact that they are mortal after all.

This is less of an obituary to a man we all loved and will continue to and more of an obituary to the passing of an era he and many like him embodied. An era that holds the key to me, an era that gave me my roots only to find that they no longer sustain me in this weird world I find myself living in. I will always live by the dreams that you, my childhood stars showed me and hope it will suffice. Because now that you are gone, what else do I have?

Saying goodbye with one of my most favourite Rajesh Khanna song.

Thank you for that world

Thank you for those dreams

Thank you for those movies…

Without them, my childhood wouldn’t have been half as beautiful.

Rest in peace.

Cocktail’s Veronica & Meera – behind the stereotypes

Posted: July 16, 2012 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, movie reviews, reviews
Tags: , , , , , , ,
15

SPOILER ALERT

Not again, I said. Bhartiya naari gets the guy. Boozie naari gets converted to bhartiya nari as she tries to get the guy. And the guy is desi at heart who is also Mama’s boy- will sleep with boozie, will fall in love with bharatiya. Imtiaz Ali, Sajid Ali and Homi Adjania took bollywood’s oldest and most favourite formula of love traingles and did just one brilliant thing – remove the communication gap between the three which has always been a bane in desi love triangles. So all three of them sat together and discussed it openly – tum mujhse, main isse pyaar karta hoon. And then? Nobody had any clue what to do – writers, characters, makers. As the formula goes, cool and confused lovers will travel a distance to discover true love. London —-> Cape Town —-> Delhi.

Fatema disagrees. She says there’s more to it. So, over to Fatema Kagalwala and Nadi Palshikar for the rest. We are going with the Cocktail trend. This post is also by 1 guy + 2 women –  @CilemaSnob

Cinema feeds us so many stereotypes. Loudly, brazenly, irresponsibly. In the race for finding the formula, women characters have been brutally pigeonholed in our cinema for ages, making us believe there isn’t anything more. The curse of populist feminism as well as quick mass appeal has given us generations of blanket portrayals of loud, gender role-defying women as ‘strong’ and shy, silent and traditional women as helpless wimps. It is easy for us to see a gun-toting Zoya and the sassy Veronica as perfectly liberated but is it a true portrayal of liberation or is there more? Are we missing something because the definitions we are fed are shaky themselves and years of gender polarisation have left us no gaps to sieve characters that don’t fit in? Is Meera as wimpy as she comes across and is Veronica as care-a-damn as she looks? Let’s uncover the world behind the characters of Veronica and Meera discovering what makes them tick and different in Imtiaz Ali’s and Homi Adajania’s Cocktail. First, over to Nadi…

Veronica’s Parents. They send her money but do not really care. So our girl is a wild child. An attention-seeking child. She breezes into places and then behaves brazenly. Look at me, I am being bad. The loud music gets faster and faster until towards the end she says, “I can’t do this anymore” Tantrums are tiring. The tantrums have not worked either. Kya hai mere paas, she asks- not once saying “what did I get after loving you so much?” There has been no question of that anyway. There was supposed to be no question of that anyway. But that she is fatigued, exhausted. Going round and round like a child having a fit. Having banged her head against a wall to seek attention and then complaining that her head hurts to the same person that never saw anyway. For now that she knows that the love she wants can never be had, does she want to gain bliss by being child to this couple? This couple, who unlike her own parents, will stay together. This woman who has given her house a feeling of ‘Home’, this man for whom, what started as a superficial thing has turned into a love so deep that he has to be clung to- whatever maybe the rules of the game. Like Martin who does not mind being scolded like a child and then comforted by his wife Antonia when he finds her with Palmer in iris Murdoch’s A Severed Head. Like Anais Nin in some moments, felt about Henry Miller and his wife. And in our own cinema- my favourite ‘triangle- Gulzar’s Ijaazat (based on  Jatugriha by Subodh Ghosh)  where Maya says  about Sudha, her lover’s wife- “Didi maarengi toh nahi” while Mahender has said – I will put you in Sudha’s care. She will know what is to be done with you. And the bitter words between Sudha and Mahender that Maya hears over the phone- which remind her of the fights between her parents. And she goes away-

But coming back to Veronica-

Outside the club, Gautam glances at Meera- like an adult signalling to another about taking care of a child who is sick. Veronica quiet easily slides into the role of child being taken care of by parents. Two people who love each other, and yes she knows that, but are responsible for her well being. Deep, difficult, this. The scene – Lest we do not recognize that this has gone beyond mere two friends taking care of a drunk friend, is the explicitly spelt out – “Why can’t Gautam take me to the bathroom?” The tantrum of “Why can’t Daddy take me to the bathroom?” which is usually explained by a “Because you are a big girl now, and so you go with the women.” Which usually appeases the child.

But here the script goes dangerously close to the enactment of incest or rather an incest –like fantasy with the shocking “There isn’t anything you haven’t seen before.”And how easy it is to sink into fantasies. (Maybe this is the way he need not give this girl up?) Sink together near Veronica’s bed after tucking her in and ask a very adult, really caring. Are you okay? Parents saying thank God, the children have finally slept.

The next day- while Meera who is good and kind has done what she thinks is the right thing – gone away, we have veronica trying to win Gautam back. Not like an adult woman. But emphasizing the imitation of Meera – See, I got the recipe off the net – I will cook – just like her. The apron almost a disguise – poised with a ladle in hand. Saying defiantly – I sent her away. The simulation of the fantasy of mother being banished – I’ll look after father – I can even make ‘the yoghurt salad thing’ and the difficult biryani. And here, thankfully, I thought, Gautam does the responsible thing. He is angry, rightfully so. From somewhere far away there was more than money coming for this neglected child at last. Sensible, stern ‘parenting’?

And ‘stern’ I do not think she would mind. For looking back, we now remember that comic scene with Gautam’s Mama telling her how to sit properly, for Kavita Kapoor would surely disapprove. This comic scene in retrospect, seems poignant as this is what Veronica has never had – a gentle reprimand for the way she has been dressing and behaving wilder and wilder.

Here, when Gautam does the right thing- reprimands her for this silly behavior, looks for Meera, I saw hope for Veronica. After that  little relief that is awarded to her – Gautam looking after her- making her laugh, feeding her. Plaiting her hair- (reminding me of that other film – Sadma which too hinted at a kind of quasi-incestuous relationship), I hoped Veronica would realize the situation that she was in.

And so we are okay with Meera ordering Gautam to take care of Veronica, this being agreed to. Sure. Sometimes the writer would like to provide just a little succour for a character he can’t help but love.

And Veronica did not let us down. Being cared for a while- like someone blowing softly on all those wounds the crazy girl carried on herself- the hospital-bed scene actually bringing out the wounds, making visible, the scars of Veronica. This almost dying and then being given a chance to make a new beginning- and she does realize what the situation is. And decides to restore the rightful couple to each other. It is here that the script is not very kind to this, its most lovable character. And we see that although the character arc of Veronica seems to be on the way to something good, Gautam has not become adult enough. So there’s the jumping out of autorickshaw and dialogue like “My best friend’s marrying my other friend” or something as corny as that! And our photographer girl who has put them in the rightful frame and would have liked to click and walk away, is pulled into the frame- collective hugs all around. Once again, she is let down. You can’t really blame the Kapoors for not knowing the right thing to be done of course – after all, the D’costas didn’t.

For this is where she should have been restored to her place, the door shut in her face, so to speak. However traumatic it might be for her, the script should have left her behind while Gautam goes to India (Meera’s located nicely in this other separate world to where he can go ‘leaving’ Veronica to her own resources of which she has quite a few, considering her realization etc).

But even as the potential darkness is broken by a loud song, as the screen fulfils the Indian fantasy of both these girls dancing with the hero,  I say to myself – once again a ‘not really my type of movie’ has connected in a way I cannot describe. Once again, just a love story – good looking people in pretty locales – written by Imtiaz Ali has gone beyond – has shown me the painful journey, the remarkable transformation of a character. And just like that other time, Homi Adajania has very subtly gone dangerously close to taboos, hinted at the terrible hurts that lie behind our ‘bad’ behavior.

And now Meera. Nadi Palshikar’s intuitive post on Veronica made Fatema want to delve deeper into Meera. She was intrigued to uncover the world behind her character because something told her there was more to her. She felt Imtiaz hadn’t written a stereotype howmuchever our sensibilities may push us to believe… Read on.

Meera – In our cinematic landscape where women characters have to be one of a few ‘types’, on first glance Meera seems to be your regular chhui-mui, sacrificing goat because she knows no better. The first time we see her she is dressed in a demure salwar kameez, with jhumkas and a mangalsutra, extremely uncomfortable sitting close to a garrulous gent on a cramped flight to London. She manages her luggage awkwardly while she waits for a husband who doesn’t show up. We see her as a reserved and simple girl from the heartland of India (assumed by her dress and demeanour) and think she will be the dependant, helpless type as we are generally shown such girls to be. Soon after a long wait at the airport of a foreign land where she knows no one, has no place to stay and whose ways are completely unfamiliar to her, she heads to the police station to seek her husband. Her first action when she meets trouble is to look for a solution. Her first thought is not a victimised ‘oh what will I do?’ something we’d expect a character like hers to automatically do. She breaks down only after her husband brutally rejects her. We see her hiding in the bathroom of a store sobbing away…It is only later that we understand she wasn’t sobbing because she was feeling helpless at her plight but because she was deeply hurt. If by then we have already typecast her in our heads we are likely to miss out on more that we learn of her later…

Meera is a product of her upbringing. An upbringing that is rooted in values very Indian across the spectrum of positives and negatives. She does not understand live-in relationships and relationships without commitment. She is a self-respecting girl, one who is a little out of her depth in this foreign land but who does not let that become an excuse to wallow in self-pity. She willingly looks for and takes up a job to support herself, as if it is the most natural thing to do. Yes, she blames herself for her husband leaving her and that hints at a typically low self-esteem but how many of us haven’t blamed ourselves for our partners leaving us? Especially if you come from a space where marriages are sacred and a world where women’s identities are closely linked to their house-bound roles…Actually even without either…

One would expect Meera to ‘Indianise’ the rootless Veronica and Gautam, and the film to an extent. Any other film would have done so and that’s where Meera’s character becomes independent of the demands of the story. It does not use her character to sell Indian values, which is what we are used to seeing. She is who she is but she also lets the two stay who they are. She draws the limits of her comfort but does not impose her will. Yes, she does lack a confidence in herself in relation to the larger world but not in her own values; hence, she does not shy from praying to her gods in the irreverent household she lives in but refuses to give friendly hugs to Gautam, even after they become friends. Yet, she straddles both worlds beautifully, allowing herself to change some and then drawing her boundaries tight. She keeps emphasising ‘Main aisi hi hoon’. She rejects an idea not because it scandalises her but because that is who she is and that is what she identifies with. That is what she does not want to change… She does not flee at the first hint of trouble, but then we know she is not the fleeing type. She leaves when she thinks that is the right thing to do. Right not because she believes sacrifice is a great virtue and as a woman she is supposed to be so, but because that is what she sees as doing the right thing by her friend Veronica, someone she has come to love like a sister.

It is a thin line Imtiaz Ali and Homi Adajania tow in keeping Meera just this side of stereotyping but they do it with an intuitiveness and maturity we aren’t used to. It is another thing that a lot of this is swept by in dialogues and the compulsive yuppie-ness of the film. Some more is in the over-weaning need of romantic films to be dreamily so. Extrapolating a bit, it is this strength of character that must have made the flighty Gautam fall in love with her, something the film should have emphasised rather than go on a romantic trip of ‘you are this’ and ‘you are that’. She grounded him, something Veronica (or any other girl) couldn’t do for him. Isn’t love after all, about finding a home for our souls to rest in? Gautam had to find it in Meera because she always chooses to remain who she is not because she cannot go beyond her boundaries but because she won’t. Choice is empowerment and what better symbol of strength than the ability to make it?

It is for this that despite her shy exterior, Meera comes across as a woman stronger than cinema would have us believe. Because being true to oneself requires far more strength than we can imagine, in cinema as much as in life. It isn’t an exciting thing many times, hence Meera is a boring character and Veronica is attractive. But isn’t the foundation of ‘self’ far more solid than colourful antics and a glossy exterior that barely manage to hide the chinks inside? As a film, Cocktail didn’t strike me as anything more than a warm romance but all its superficiality couldn’t hide the worlds of its characters…created with a subtlety we aren’t used to watching.

‘गैंग्स ऑफ़ वासेपुर’ – क्योंकि ये ज़रूरी है

Posted: July 2, 2012 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, film review, movie reviews, reviews
Tags: , ,
17

He is a certified boob-yist. Well, i remember he won a contest on twitter where you had to figure out the faces from just the cleavage pics. And he got all six of them spot on! But that story is for some other day. Shivam Sharma masquerades as GhantaGuy on twitter (#FF) and describes himself as “Passionate movie-buff. Not a critic”. Over to him. on Gangs Of Wasseypur.

Even after seeing the movie twice I could not bring myself to review it because there was so much in it, so much to take in all at once and I was not sure from where to start. The following post started out as about some amusing reactions and things that I have observed in the last week regarding Wasseypur. Things that surprise me and make me laugh at the same time. Though there is a lot that I still want to write, it’s still a start. Read on.

‘गैंग्स ऑफ़ वासेपुर’ को रिलीज़ हुए एक हफ्ता हो चुका है. समीक्षाएं पढ़ी जा चुकी हैं. पिक्चर को पसंद-नापसंद किया जा चुका है. पर वासेपुर अभी भी दिमाग पे छाई हुई है, ज़ाहिर है कि और कुछ हो न हो, ये एक ज़रूरी फिल्म है.

“The Magic of Cinema”.शायद वही.

पर कुछ बातें जो मुझे खटकी हैं वो हैं audience के अलग और कुछ अजीब reaction. मैंने ये फिल्म नागपुर के एक ठसाठस भरे पिक्चर हॉल में देखी थी (गौरतलब है कि नागपुर सलमान खान का गढ़ माना जाता है और ‘दबंग’ के all-India collections में नागपुर सबसे आगे था.) पिक्चर में करीब ७०-८० बार गालियाँ आती हैं. फिल्म सच्ची घटनाओं पर आधारित है और गालियाँ ज़रूरी हैं क्योंकि वासेपुर कि गलियों में घूमने वाले, बात-बात पर कट्टा चलाने वाले जिन लोगों की ये कहानी है वो गालियों का प्रयोग रोज़मर्रा में करते हैं. आप और मैं भी गरमा-गर्मी में इनका प्रयोग करते हैं और कुछ अपने मन में ही देकर सुकून का अनुभव कर लेते हैं.

बहरहाल, फिल्म में जितनी बार भी गालियाँ आयीं, लोग जोर से हँसे. जोकि मुझे खटका क्योंकि ये लोग भी आपस में गालियाँ देते है पर हर बार उसे मज़ाक के तौर पे नहीं लिया जाता और न ही ठहाका मार के हंसा जाता है. फिल्म में भी सब जगह इन्हें मज़ाक के तौर पर नहीं डाला गया. जहाँ हैं वहां सही हैं. पर शायद हमें सच्चाई को मज़ाक में और मज़ाक को सच्चाई की तरह लेने की आदत पड़ गयी है.

ये कहानी उस जगह की है जहाँ की ख़बरें ‘अमर-उजाला’ और ‘दैनिक जागरण’ के क्षेत्रीय पन्नों पर छपती हैं. अर्नब गोस्वामी और राजदीप सरदेसाई के आदी शायद उससे relate न कर पायें और क्योंकि हम उनसे काफी दूर हैं इसीलिए वो गालियाँ हमें या तो हंसाती हैं या discomfort महसूस कराती हैं.

क्या एक normal reaction देना इतना मुश्किल है? शायद हाँ.

कुछ लोगों का कहना है कि पिक्चर बहुत vulgar और cheap है.

हमें ‘शीला की जवानी’ और ‘मुन्नी बदनाम हुई’ आदि, जोकि सिर्फ अंग प्रदर्शन के लिए बनाये हुए item songs हैं, उनसे कोई आपत्ति नहीं है. अगर कोई शब्द अपने आपको सबसे आसानी से explain करते हैं तो वो है “item song”. साफ़ तौर पर ये वो गाना होता है जिसका प्रयोग सिर्फ लोगों को खींचने के लिए किया जाता है और उसके लिए अधनंगे खुले प्रदर्शन से बेहतर हथकंडा नहीं है. (ऐसे गाने ज़्यादातर उन फिल्मों में होते हैं जिनकी कहानी लोगों को खींचने के लिए काफी नहीं होती. यहाँ मेरा उद्देश्य इन गानों को बनाने वालों के विरोध में नहीं है पर हमारा दोगलापन दर्शाना ज़रूरी है.) जितना बड़ा स्टार उतना बड़ा गाना. और ‘aesthetically shot’ होने के कारण इन्हें public domain में accept कर लिया जाता है और ‘vulgar’ tag तो दूर-दूर तक नहीं दिया जाता.

इस समय मेरे मन में एक गाली ज़रूर आ रही है पर उससे मेरे अभिप्राय पर कुछ ख़ास फर्क नहीं पड़ेगा. छोडिये.

खैर, वासेपुर में कोई item song या kissing scene नहीं है. क्योंकि गाँव और छोटे कस्बों में मुंह पर चूमना कोई आम या ज़रूरी बात नहीं होती. बल्कि, kissing भी एक तरीके से यहाँ western (या french कहें) phenomenon है और पिक्चर में दिखाए गए उस २०-३० साल पहले के fridge की तरह ये भी अभी तक अंदरूनी भारत में पूरी तरह पैठ नहीं कर पाया है.

अगर तब भी आपको फिल्म ‘vulgar’ लगी हो, तो इसका मतलब है के आपका दिमाग स्क्रीन पर चल रहे scene से आगे निकल गया है. निर्देशक और किरदार, और किसी को न सही पर आपको उत्तेजित करने में सफल हो गए हैं और ‘vulgar’ शायद आपके दिमाग में बनी वो image है जिसे अब आप guilty-feeling के तौर पर बाहर उलटी करके निकाल रहे हैं. निकालते रहिये.

शायद कुछ देर बाद आपको अच्छा लगे.

और एक बड़ा मुद्दा उठाया जा रहा है के फिल्म में बदला तो हुआ ही नहीं, सरदार खान बाकी कामों में लग गया और यूँही बिना बदला लिए मर गया. दर्शक को उसके किरदार से कोई sympathy नहीं हुई और इसलिए फिल्म भी मात खा गयी.

जनाब, ये एक सच्ची कहानी पर आधारित है. फिल्म में कोई हीरो नहीं है. मतलब, conventional defintion वाला तो कतई नहीं. सरदार खान निहायती कमीना, शातिर, ठरकी और एक हत्यारा है. राह-चलते आदमी को जो चाक़ू गोद-गोद के मारने में हिचकी नहीं लेता उससे आपको बहुत sympathy तो नहीं होनी चाहिए.

अगर आप ऐसे इंसान को ढूंढ रहे हैं जो किसी महिला की इज्ज़त लुटने से बचाता है, या किसी गाँव को डाकुओं के आतंक से या फिर जिसकी बहन की हत्या हो गयी है और ऐसी ज़बरदस्ती थोपी हुई sympathy आपको चाहिए तो साहब ये गलत फिल्म है आपके लिए. यहाँ कहानीकार आपको ज़बरदस्ती कुछ “feel” करवाने की कोशिश नहीं कर रहा है. ये वो manipulative सिनेमा नहीं है जहाँ हीरो के आंसू निकलते ही पीछे से १०० violin मेघ-मल्हार बजाने लगते हैं और आपकी रुलाई फूट पड़ती है. वो काम आजकल के prime-time TV shows बेहतर कर लेते हैं.

इसे एक new-wave कह लीजिये या फिर सालों से चली आ रही इस तरह की फिल्मों का mainstream हो जाना कह लीजिये कि आज की हर फिल्म आपको manipulate नहीं करती बल्कि काफी कुछ आपकी judgment पर छोडती हैं और वासेपुर इस मामले में मील का पत्थर साबित होगी. आज से कई साल बाद तक इसका नाम याद रखा जायेगा जिसने सही मायने में unconventional और conventional के बीच की रेखा को पूरी तरह मिटा दिया.

वासेपुर भारत की underbelly को दर्शाता एक दर्पण है जिसमें हम झांकते हैं और हमें गंदगी दिखाई देती है. हमें दिखाई देते हैं रेलगाड़ियों का पाखाना साफ़ करते हुए छोटे बच्चे और एक ऐसा नर्क जहाँ इंसान की जान की कीमत कोयले से कम और कौड़ियों के भाव है. शायद इसलिए हम इसे देखकर या तो हँसते हैं या घिनौना समझ कर नज़रंदाज़ करने की कोशिश करते हैं.

ये कहानी बड़े शहरों को जोड़ते हुए किसी चौड़े highway की नहीं है, बल्कि उस highway से उतर के पांच मील अन्दर, इधर-धर दौड़ती हुई पगडंडियों और टूटी सड़कों की कहानी है.

Problem आपको तब होगी जब आप highway पर अपनी air-conditioned कार में बैठे हुए ही अन्दर की तरफ देखेंगे.

थोडा सा धूप में बाहर निकलिए और अन्दर जाकर देखिये..

क्योंकि ये भी ज़रूरी है.

(PS – Shivam blogs here and here)

Gangs Of Wasseypur – Family tree of Khan, Singh & Qureshi

Posted: June 24, 2012 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, News, Story / Plot / Synopsis
Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
32

Lot of us have been talking about the characters of Gangs Of Wasseypur and how they are confusing at times as they keep on entering and vanishing from the main plot. And then film critic Anupama Chopra pointed out in her review that it would have been good if there was a booklet with all the main characters and the family trees. Talk started on social networking platforms and our man from Wasseypur, Neeraj Ghaywan came to the rescue. This is also going to help you in understanding the family dynamics in Part2. So here it is.

Have a look and spread the good word to your confused friends. There are two pages – 1st one is Khan tree and click on the arrow which appears on the tree to take you to 2nd page – that’s Singh and Qureshi clan.

Entertainment – the cure for Constipation?

Posted: June 10, 2012 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, film
Tags: , ,
50

….wonders filmmaker Kushan Nandy. And if you are smart and well aware of the discussions in social media platforms, you can connect the dots too.

Last night I watched Shanghai.

The entire 114 minutes of its running time, I did not flinch. Brilliantly scripted, performed and directed, it is a film where every department competes with each other to underplay. A rarity in Indian Cinema today.

I was truly entertained.

There were twenty-four people watching the Friday evening show along with me, a few had dozed off, three men sitting behind me were giggling and farting away and another gentleman was screaming and spitting into his cellphone.

Obviously they weren’t entertained.

Back home, I read the trade reports that claimed a 15% opening. The film hadn’t entertained a soul.

I was the idiot.

Indian Cinema, now almost 100 years old, the largest movie industry in the world says entertainment is the only driving factor that persuades people to go to a movie theatre.

Sad. Because porn entertains too. And you don’t need to pay for it.

Sad. Because even one of the most stressed out, autocratic, poverty-stricken countries, Iran, doesn’t say that. They go out and make A Separation instead.

Sad. Because, entertainment has a new name. Constipation-remedy.

Poverty. Corruption. Quality of Life. Our audience is stressed out, they say. They need a release. Which makes it sound a bit like constipation looking for relief.

And what hits me every Friday, in the name of this entertainment or laxative is more frightening. I see men flying at ninety-six frames per second, defying gravity. I see inane, asinine humor, which doesn’t even make my driver laugh. I see the same item number, repackaged with different breasts every time.

And all these films have not made a penny less than a 100 crores. They have obviously entertained someone, somewhere. Well, quite a few someones who belong to an India I don’t understand. These someones who have discovered laxative and named it entertainment and vice versa.

And yes, I love entertaining cinema. I love Sholay. I love Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro. I love Hrishikesh Mukherjee. I love Parinda. I love Paan Singh Tomar. I love the Ram Gopal Verma films which were made before the dinosaurs went extinct.

So I will go out and watch Shanghai again. I will hope it picks up. Makes money. So that more people make more Shanghais. So that I get the weekly dose of entertainment I prefer.

Because sir, I am not constipated.

Are you?

(PS – You can read his earlier post here.)

Why Rowdy Rathore should flop

Posted: June 3, 2012 by moifightclub in bollywood, movie reviews, reviews
Tags: , , ,
35

If the header is not self-explanatory, then over to Navjot Gulati for the rest. Read on.

THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILER. DO NOT READ, No, wait. READ IT IF YOU ARE PLANNING TO WASTE YOUR MONEY ON THIS FILM.

I often hear an argument by filmmakers and film Buffs that masala films generate money for the smaller (better) films to be made, and they provide good time pass fun. Not so very long ago I also believed that, but on 1st June my belief went for a toss – from Andheri to Malad to Filmcity to some studio in the outskirts of Bombay(that’s where the most of this piece of crap was shot). I wasn’t mighty impressed by Rowdy Rathore’s (RR) promos but somewhere I could see the wickedness which Prabhudeva portrayed in Wanted and that gave me a hope that RR might be a good fun, but alas.

I firmly believe that staying true to the genre is the most difficult thing to do, and if you succeed in doing that, then a Singham or a Wanted is born. For me, Singham and Wanted are true to the genre. I have been using this word too much I guess. Yes, I’m. I like to call it the Punjabi Dosa (ok, I just coined it).

The ingredients are as follows :

1. An emotional story ‘inspired’ or ‘lifted’ or ‘officially bought’ from a Southie Film.

2. A big star who is famous in North India, has six packs to show and shirts to take off.

3. 5 well-directed action sequences.

4. Humorous dialogues.

5. An item number.

6. Peppy Music.

7. A very strong villain.

8. Standout performances by supporting cast.

By no means I’m endorsing these kinds of films. I’m just stating a fact. Now, let’s analyze Raddi Rathore on these parameters.

1. Emotional Story

A pickpocketeer doppelganger of a cop takes revenge from a crime lord in Devgarh. This revenge is for the cop’s murder after he is tricked into becoming the guardian of cop’s little daughter, who still has a walkman in 2012! Because? Precisely, there’s no reason. Nostalgia, i say. Well, whatever rest happens in the film is because of only one reason – that is what happens in the original film which they have got the right to remake.

And they also have a homage to Jadu, the alien from Koi Milgaya, as the Cop is suffering from a tumor and can only fight like a Hulk when water is sprayed on his head.

2. A big star with six packs who takes his shirt off.

I disappoint. No Bhaai. No Duggu. No Devgn. No Shirt off. Probably Akki was not prepared since this is his 1st action film in AGES (CCTC, Tasveer,Tashan, Singh is King, Family had NO ACTION).

3. 5 well directed Action sequences.

I will give a 5star to anyone who can point out those to me I as was busy yawning throughout the slow-mo punches and the blasting cars in CG, all lifted from the original film (Vikramarkudu).

4. Humorous dialogues.

An example of film’s humor?

Well, it was nonexistent.

5. An item number

Wanted and Dabbang had better. Even Singham for that matter.

6. Peppy Music

The music by Sajid-Wajid is functional. Won’t last beyond the weekend of the film.

7. A very Strong Villain

They cast a guy from Southie films called Nasseer, who is trying to hard do a Prakash Raj, and he is playing a Bihari guy whose voice has been dubbed. #Enoughsaid

8. Standout performances by supporting cast

The guy who played the photographer, he has made a living out of the phrase, Bhaiyya Ji Ismile. Singham had Prakash Raj’s comic act towards the end. I crack up whenever he says, “Yeh Cheating hain”. Wanted had Prakash Raj again. Also, it had Vinod Khanna in an unintentionally funny performance. In this film, we have Yashpal Sharma visiting Baapji, played by Nasseer, with his kids and begging him to help find his wife. Later on he sees her as the sex slave of the son of Baapji, and keeps quiet to avoid his irk. As pointed by Karan Anshuman in his Mumbai Mirror review, this has to be the most regressive scene in hindi cinema history. For me, the character of Yashpal Sharma defines the film.

Now, coming to my biggest problem with the film – the ‘sur’ of the film. The reason all the films I have mentioned have worked is because they didn’t take themselves seriously, but strangely for good 50 minutes Rowdy Rathore is cringe worthy with its stupid take on all sorts of regressive films that Dharam Paaji used to do with B-grade directors. And suddenly towards the last 30 minutes, it becomes a goof ball comedy where the villain is now scared of the Police Inspector, and it miserably fails while trying to pull off a Prakash Raj.

Why It should Flop.

If this film also goes on to have a steady run from Monday, then it will give rise to many clones which will take our cinema nowhere. The ‘virus’ started with Bhaai, moved to Devgn, and now has reached Akki. I won’t be shocked if we see SRK doing such a film and making an ass of himself soon. Shahid Kapoor is already doing the remake of Vettai. And even bigger fear I have is that somewhere an aspiring filmmaker, after seeing the success of the film, will believe that the film is not about the script but the star (although it’s true but there are many who are trying to change that).

The day is not far away when Tushar Kapoor will ask Ekta Kapoor to ‘relaunch’ him in a southie remake, or for that matter, even, ‘Uday Chopra’. Be prepared for it or spread the word and make Raddi Rathore a weekend phenomenon which tanks Monday onwards.

(P.S – I’m not against masala films but the ones made ‘Badly’ like Buddha Hoga Tera Baap and now Raddi Rathore. Also, I have intentionally left out many points mentioned in other reviews/posts because I am also trying to be original 😉

Richa Chadda’s Cannes notes – The Artist

Posted: June 2, 2012 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, Film Festival
Tags: , ,
4

She didn’t have a big role in Dibakar Banerjee’s delicious ode to Delhi, Oye Luck Lucky Oye. But say Dolly, and people still remember her. Remember, Main tujhe hoat nahi lagti? That hoat one is Richa Chadda, who will next be seen in Anurag Kashyap’s two-parter Gangs Of Wasseypur which premiered in Cannes Directors Fortnight Section. She shares her Cannes experience in this post.

The Artist

It was my last day at Cannes and I had an afternoon flight back to Mumbai. I spent my time walking around and catching up with friends from Cairo and L.A.

I took a cab from the Carlton Hotel, at the Croisette, for the airport. Throughout the way the cabbie chatted me up in faltering English. Probably in his mid seventies, he was genial and had a flush on his cheeks that could only come from tomatoes or happiness, at that age.

“That building looks like a ship”, I exclaimed when I saw one designed like a deck, over looking the sea. “No, it’s quite expensive!” I explained that I meant ship and not cheap. He laughed for twenty seconds. We Indians seem to care a lot more for the official language that is necessary because of the inferiority complex we associate with our own culture. This Frenchman didn’t care. It was because of the cabbies contagious laughter that I forgave him and his GPRS easily. (I almost missed my flight because he had mistakenly taken me to the Villenieve Loubet village instead of a town by the same name.

Just as we entered the airport premises, he told me, “Miss, you have pretty eyes, and long lashes, also you eat more for a skinny person, and I think you come for festival”. “Oh, thank you, Sir, and how did you guess?” I don’t concur with the skinny remark.

Then he replied in a manner almost shy. “I think, may be, you are an artist”.

People always ask me upfront if I am an actor or a model. But this was the first time anyone called me an artist. (No, this doesn’t include the Mumbai Cine-Artist Association type slang) I was touched. There was respect in his eyes. I reached out to my ticket and wanted to tear it. I experienced a sudden cheap-thrill at the idea that I CONSIDERED the idea of wanting to tear it. Just the previous week, some ex-bureaucratic octogenarian type secretaries of my housing society in Mumbai had expressed displeasure over residents that worked in the film industry. This was indeed another world, an evolved one, where people with a creative bent of mind were not pariahs or a nuisance. I don’t mean to generalise, but it can be tiresome to try and explain your species to the world. Here I was, in a foreign country, with a man who didn’t understand my language, but understood me perfectly.

“Yes, I am an artist”, said I. He smiled suddenly and have me a Toblerone.

🙂

PS – My trip was also successful because I saw another artist! Jean Dujardin crossed my car and winked at the Croisette, in front of the Grey Goose party. Salt and pepper hair, generous smile and a black tuxedo. That you won an Oscar, is secondary. You held the audience in a silent film! Respect.

You can follow Richa’s posts here. And to read more about her Cannes experience, click here and here.

Shah Rukh Khan Interview

Posted: June 2, 2012 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, News
Tags: , , , , , , ,
22

Sinus is a great equaliser. That’s the first thought which came to my mind when i met Shah Rukh Khan. I thought it was for lesser mortals like us. A superstar with a sinus problem and no solution? Plus, pain in the knees. Blame it on the jumping, dancing and cartwheeling. And when my nose gets irritating, i have the luxury to shut everything and go to bed quietly. But SRK doesn’t have that luxury – meetings, back to back interviews, photo-ops. Black coffee is his source of energy. He picks another cup and settles down to talk.

I pointed to the other big cup in the room – IPL one, and asked if that’s the source of energy these days even when he has bad cold? Having faced all kind of criticism because of KKR’s performance in the last few years, he could see it as a pitch for another one. And so quickly clarified it with a smiling face –  It’s completely wrong for me to be sitting with this cup for two days because it actually deserves to be with Gautam and the boys. So I was just asking before I sat with you that this needs to be sent back otherwise they will think the owner has stolen the cup and run away.

Since Vishal Bhardwaj is one of my favourite filmmakers and there has been talks about him working with VB, i could not control myself from starting the conversation by asking if they are ever going to work together. He said, we were discussing Two States. And then i heard from few other actors and actresses that they are also doing Two States. I thought arre we all are doing Two States kya? Also, there was some issue with the copyright of the book. So that’s not happening. But we are going to meet soon and inshahallah, let’s see.

We also discussed his school of cinema and where he belongs now. So without wasting any more time, over to him for what he does best – conversation. And for his other talent – spreading those arms and let the love flow? He promises he will deliver that soon in Yash Chopra’s film.

Still Flying High?

I am always high during the process of things. Once the process has been ended or achieved, I move on to other things. But, yes, we are very thrilled for this set of boys and the whole team, Venky and Jay, everyone who has been working so hard for 4-5 years. I sometimes feel it is a little unfortunate that KKR is strongly associated with me by virtue of being a film star but actually what happens in KKR is extremely and tightly associated with the people who run it, which is the staff, the administration, the on-ground staff, the cricketers and these 20-24 boys of the team. But its alright, now that we have won it, it’s an extremely happy feeling. I feel like a proud father for all the youngster who played for the team.

Criticism because of me

See, I don’t play the game. So what was difficult is to accept the fact that here is a set of team like any other team, which will do well and do badly, like all teams do, but, yes, I do feel responsible, but unfortunately a lot of the criticism is due to me. A lot of things which should not be attributed to cricket or the boys who are playing it, got attributed to them because I happen to be one of the owners of the team. And there is no other way that I can turn around and tell them ever that i am really sorry guys, people talk more about them, it’s over-hyped for its victory, it’s over-hyped for its defeat.

My involvement?

A lot of time I have heard  people turn around and say that I involve myself in the cricket. I have never done that. But there’s no way to explain it when you are losing. Because nobody gives you a chance or believes that. The decisions that the team has taken, when anyone asks me, why was this decision taken? I say I didn’t take it. You know there’s a whole set of good minds who know their cricket and they take it and they are still with us from day one. There are boys like Andrew and Adrian and Joydeep and Joy and Mathew and the Coaches that have come in and of course, the team. They take all the decisions, they believe in certain things, they design the strategy, so don’t blame them if that strategy have gone wrong. Ya, it’s just gone wrong but don’t blame them more than they should be held responsible for it just because a movie star happens to own the team.

Criticism of Kolkata celebrations & Sports as a career

Now, i don’t know how to say, may be I get hurt with the little things and I remain unhurt by the big things sometimes. Being the focus of attention twenty four hours a day for all good things and some bad, it does start making you a different person. We went there to share happiness and I have said this often enough that it’s alright to be happy. It’s an important aspect for sports in our country that if there is celebration, there will be lot of parents and guardians who will say that it’s a good thing if my son also takes to sports. It makes you famous, it makes you sing, it makes you dance, people come out on the streets. They will believe that they will be in good hands if they play sports. And I am not taking away from any other profession but I am a big believer that sport should be, as a profession, available to youngsters. And they should have the choice . Not just cricket, football, hockey, chess, but everything. We have some great achievements in that and that greatness would be multiplied or will go multifold only if we give the impression to everyone that it’s a great job to do. So when people  say that, Oo there are only 4 or 5 Bengalis in the team, why should Bengal celebrate? Come on, it’s a part of India. Its an integral part of India. We are Indians! If there is a club or city which wins on that day let them celebrate.

Next year when they win, be it Chennai, Insaallah, they celebrate. And let me tell you if they win it in Mumbai, I will come for it. I will not stay away from it.

If the Chief Minister wants to come for it, they are most welcome. Let me just tell you if we start looking for propriety in happiness, it will not be as free flowing and as beautiful as happiness should be. You can question everything it from a cartwheel to a bus ride to anything. I remember when I was shooting for Chak De India, there was a scene when the team wins and I didn’t know how to play it. Then i saw a Japanese coach winning an Olympic gold and through out the game he was most animated and shouting and abusing in Japanese. I could not tell, I was seeing the documentary and suddenly they won the gold. When they won he just sat down quietly. So everybody has their own way of expressing happiness. If I was to keep on questioning individually and pass judgement on how in happiness some people jump, some people sit.

My son jumped on the bed, broke the bed. I didn’t reprimand him. I think its alright to jump on the bed and be happy. I jumped on the field, my kids have not yet reprimanded me. And people came out on the street in lakhs to celebrate the fact there is an attachment to KKR and Gautam Gambhir. I think its fantastic.

Daddy as embarrassment

I don’t know how true it is for other star children but I think star children go through a lot of embarrassment. But on the other hand a lot of children go through the fact that parents say, you know what, its alright to be an actor. And you know what, let me see, if my Dad behaved like that, then? (He thinks for a bit and smiles) I ask my children many times, are you embarrassed? They say, no, its ok, Papa. Sometimes they say, sometimes they just say ok just to keep my heart. They might be embarrassed. But its alright, you know, I turn around and say, you know what, there are times when you embarrassed me but I still love you as much. It’s love.

Me and Mamtadi

 Oh, i think she is just a wonderful lady. You know, I heard some criticism that why is she telling people to move away, we were her guests, she wanted there to be no crowd. I think she is very earthy, she is very normal. I think she is amazingly appealing because you know, you normally assume that we have been trained to believe that people in high posts and important areas should be of a certain manner. It’s alright if you don’t wear a tie.

I’ll tell you, I met the Premier of Malaysia once, Dr. Mahathir, one of the most respected names in the world. I went to see him near his parliament and he held my hand, walked out of the parliament without any police around him, and he started showing me the gardens. And there were people who were waving out and he looks at me and he says, you know Shah Rukh, I think I am really famous, people are waving at me. And whenever I go to Malaysia, he has got a small shop, which is a beautiful shop and he makes breads there. And he always takes me by the hand from the 80th floor of the Petronas Towers, where he sits. He takes me there and says, come, lets have some bread. So I find it amazingly charming. So all these ideologies and all, I don’t know. Sometimes I believe, may be, it is a throw-back from the times when we were not free, you know, behave in a certain manner. If you are an officer on duty, behave like this. If you are an official, then treat everyone as if they are inferior. You know, I think it’s a bit of the babu culture that is remaining. But I think its time we change that and leaders talking, being wonderful and warm, because we forget anyone, whether anybody, a king or a person, just about manages in life. First, they are normal human beings with normal emotions, and allow that freedom to everyone. Don’t sit on judgement, don’t sit on a high horse, don’t believe that you can undermine somebody’s emotions just because the person happens to be important and you can do so.

Video you didn’t see – It’s all about the family (Winning mantra)

You know,  for 5 years people tell me that do you talk to your boys, do you say something to them? No, I hardly say anything to them. Whenever you finish a match or begin a match, you know, sometimes a boy comes down. Yusuf will come and sit with me, Iqbal will come, Manoj Tiwary or Debabrata. A couple of times I have been called by the Coach when he sees me, he calls me and says, Shah Rukh, come here, you know what, sit down with Bisla and have a chat with him. He’ll feel confident and good because they are young boys.  They are going on a  very big arena and maybe because i have the experience of myself on big arenas, so they feel if I can chat with them and make them comfortable.

Gautam sometimes tells me,  Shah Rukh Bhaiyya, isse paanch minute baat kar lena, khud apne aap main jab aapka dil kare. So I do and I remember when Sunil Narine had come in, initially he was very quiet. He was a young boy, so Gautam told me, Shahrukh Bhai speak to him and make him feel comfortable. So I just speak to them at that level and then the last match was on, and I just felt that these guys have been away from their families for more than two months. If I am able to make sure that their whole families talk to them, and send a message, they must be missing them too. So we sent cameras all over the world. We are filmi people, so that is something that lies in our domain, so we sent cameras and got messages from their children, their sisters, their brothers, their mothers, their fathers  and the whole idea was that the team plays for the team, the team plays for the fans, this time just go and play for the people who love you inspite of winning or losing. So, it was very touching to see. We never get to see the people behind the scenes of these great achievers. So it was wonderful to see Pradeep Sangwan’s parents, it was fantastic to see Debabrata’s dad, lovely to see Bisla, it was nice to see McCullum’s family and Marchant De Lange’s aunt from somewhere and Sunil Narine’s mom and dad talking. It was beautiful, it was fantastic. It was very touching to me, so I am sure they felt that this team is like a family because their family was there to cheer them on for the finals.

Wankhede

I have no stand on it. I don’t know why people think it’s a stand. I said so that I do not in any which way mix two things together. Like if I am doing something good or bad, does not mean I represent everyone in Bollywood and they are like that. I don’t think so. They are wonderful people, here there are much better people than me. Really nice guys. If you misbehave with me, does not mean the whole of your community is like you. An individual’s action or reaction does not hold true for the whole association or the organization he or she works for and my reaction is to an individual, in no which way to any organization or association. And on the other hand, an organization or association, if it feels the right thing to do, if an individual from our team has been subjected to an abuse, which I did, and even if you did the same, but its alright to stand by them. I think its absolutely alright and its absolutely clean and its the way and the rules of the organisation. I don’t know, may be, I would do the same if somebody came and got angry.

Suppose there was a boy in my office and he said something to instigate you, and you got angry with him. I’ll still stand by that individual, so its absolutely right. So I don’t think individually I would never pick on that gentlemen and say, look its okay what you said. I don’t think so. I don’t think it was okay what he said. And I will stand by that. And I hope it gets resolved in a nice manner because personally my behavior in front of my own children and viewers is not good because that’s not what I stand for.

B-A-N

It’s the first time I have had a ban, so I don’t really know how to react to it. I don’t know, if I had a few more, maybe I’ll be able to gauge is five too much or three little or should it be a lifetime ban? I don’t know, I’m really completely ill at ease about discussing the fact that does it bother me, doesn’t it bother me. This is the second time I have been there in 10 years, so by that calculation it’s kinda be alright. But not by any other calculation. Just by respectability, it’s not a good thing to have. And I don’t know the legality of all this and I don’t want to get into it but if I can’t go to watch a match, I wont go. Maybe I’ll wear a disguise and go, and nobody finds out. No, I am just being naughty.

If an association has decided to respect the individuals, who perhaps, who according to them are not spoken rightly to, its their decision but I lovingly say that anyone from that Association to come and watch my films whenever they want.

Yash Chopra Film

Yashji’s film is untitled yet, it’s with Katrina and Anushka. Yeah, we are shooting it from day after tomorrow. 50% is over and Inshahallah, it should be out by Eid. Lovely songs by Gulzar Sahab and Rahman Sahab, really nice. I think it’s a good thing that I have worked with them for long, so it feels nice. I feel at home working with them. And you know, when you’re doing a romantic film, it’s a little easy on the joints. Its just easier on the joints and muscles, that’s all. So it’ll be nice. Hopefully I’ll be able to present romantic film in a different way as an actor and I think Yashji and Adi have taken care that I play something different and still the film has something new, some new romantic quality to it and just the fact that the two girls are new and I have hardly worked with them. With Anushka i have done just one film, and with Katrina, have never worked, and that itself will be a high point for me as an actor, plus for the film. It will be really fresh and nice. I am really glad to work with them. I learn a lot from them. It’s wonderful to work with them and I learn a lot from them. They are really kind and gentle and they are really sweet girls and really wonderful actors because when we sit down and discuss things, they come out straight forward with what they think of the scene and that helps me in interpreting. I myself may be jaded sometimes, having done similar scenes, so when they have an interpretation, I think not only it is youthful but it is also, Ohhh, you could do it like this. It is also a big challenge for me to get out of my what you said tricks of romance and say do it differently. And I think a couple of scenes have been really helped by Katrina and even with Anushka I have worked with her before. Even Rab ne Bana di Jodi, its honest, its direct and its great fun. So I am really looking forward to it and

Chennai Express starts, I think, we are still in process of casting and recc-eing the locations. So I’ll take a month off after shooting for Yashiji’s film and I’ll get to Chennai Express and a couple of months later we’ll get into Happy New Year.

Give me a quiet dinner

I don’t know wherever I am taken by life. I have never planned, I am very disorganized. I whatever I am doing at the moment in my life is the most important thing. I haven’t shot for a month for this film, I am back to shooting. I look forward to that. I have a few injuries and hurt, not because of my cartwheel but otherwise. I’ll repair that in London, I think. I’ll have to spend some time with my children, I think, which is important. They have holidays now, play a little football in Hyde park. Wait for the other two films to come, come back to Mumbai and uhh, now you remind me, get tensed again because in Sept-Oct we have to play Champions League. So that will be one another roller-coaster ride but InshahAllah, the team now must be feeling extremely confident and unpressurized. Normally if a team just wins, there is a chance of them getting over-confident. Our team, because it had been so negatively portrayed, I think they must have just come to now as being the starting players. So it’ll be nice to see them.

I really, really feel I have to leave for London but I wish I could just sit down with Gautam and his wife, and all the boys, Jacque, Bisla, Rajat, you know, sit down and just have a quiet dinner with them. So hopefully I’ll just try and call them to London if they are not too busy playing cricket somewhere, I’d like to call them. If they are busy, I wont call them lest that becomes a controversy. But I’d call them and say, come have dinner, and just sit down and talk with them of other things than cricket and winning or losing, other things things which are more important than winning and losing, that is, being happy. So I’d like to sit down and talk to them .

4am Tweets

I don’t tweet now so much because I got a little heart-broken. You know, I used to use the twitter as something I thought would be a personal messaging platform but then the media picks it up and puts it out of context and its like, I didn’t mean it. This is about this and why are you writing this about this? Some little things happening somewhere and somebody said something about my film release and suddenly I have a tweet and they just say, he’s just saying this because of that and I’m like, oh, not again. why would they do it? And I’d like to request everyone that Twitter is just to express yourself, which does not necessarily mean that you need to get abusive. Sorry (smiles), it seems that I am the wrong guy to be giving advice about abuses but I don’t think you need to do that and take out some kind of an angst on people that you don’t know. Expressing yourself is wonderful but sometimes I feel I have these wonderful people I am sending what I think is important, which maybe completely unimportant, but I think I have said my heart.  And then suddenly you get these retaliations which are not related to that message.

And a couple of times I have spoken about innocent children and somebody has retaliated and I’m like why? Why this man, I mean you don’t need to do this. I got a little, how do you say thwarted, I got a little taken aback that you know that even on a place where I thought I could share something personal without a mediator, without media between, somehow it is not working out the way I want and is it because I just come too close too fast, should I just refrain? So I have been away. Today I tweeted I think. And I’d like to request everyone on twitter, just respect it, like it, dislike it, don’t get personal. Because I am not getting personal with you and I have to request everyone to get personal, do it face to face. Its more honest. If you wanna say something to me, come meet me, we’ll sit down and chat over a cup of coffee and see where the conversation goes after that. And don’t do it without any reason just because it’s good to say, leave that to the socialites. Leave that to analysts, pop psychologists. Don’t make yourself that to lend yourself to the analysts. So I’ll tweet maybe once in a week.

Why i do it at night is because I finish work by 9pm normally on a shooting day. I come in and like to be with my kids till I put them to bed. Then I just sit with the family, hang out for some time and I sleep late. So everyone kinda desserts me by 2.30-3, so I say this is the time. I don’t use the telephone, the internet, I don’t use emails when I am in the house. Once I am in the house, I have no way that anyone can communicate with me, except for my kids, my wife and my sister shouting and screaming at me, nobody else can communicate with me. And that’s a rule I have had for 20 years. So when they are kind, if out of sight, than I say, its alright, its not on their time, so I tweet late. I sleep a little late, so I do it at that time. I don’t do it in the car and all unless its something that I want to do. So I do it late night because I don’t think I should encroach upon my family time.

And with this we came to the end of conversation as the time given to us was over. Hopefully next time we will get to talk about his school of cinema and more. As i packed up, he was ready to move to another meeting. Sinus? A smoke break. Another cup of black coffee. And he must be all set.

Miss Lovely and Gangs Of Wasseypur – Tracking all the Cannes buzz

Posted: May 28, 2012 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, film, Film Festival, Indie, Interview, movie reviews, News, reviews, video
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
13

Ashim Ahluwali’s Miss Lovely and Anurag Kashyap’s two-parter Gangs of Wasseypur premiered at Cannes Un Certain Regard and Directors Fortnight section respectively.

This post is to track all the buzz from the Cannes – reviews, interviews, videos and more. For the Cannes buzz of Vasan Bala’s Peddlers, click here.

Starting with some generic news links.

– Edouard Waintrop, Artistic Director of the Directors’ Fortnight, talks about the new wave of Indian cinema. Click here.

– VIDEO : Tom Brooks’ Cannes edition of Talking Movies starts with Indian films. Click here.

MISS LOVELY

– Review published in the Screen International is here.

– The Hollywood Reporter’s review is here, which describes it as Bollywood meets Boogie Nights in stylized retro-sleazy thriller.

– Variety’s review is here. You need account to read it. But if you are too curious, go close to the screen, squint your eyes and you will be able to read through the black screen.

– A small review in Sight and Sound is here which says the film is mesmerising for the first hour or so, during which, the echoes of Boogie Nights aside, I found myself thinking of Wong Kar-Wai, Scorsese, Matteo Garrone’s Gomorrah and even Irma Vep. Unfortunately the film then palls somewhat – director Ashim Ahluwalia can’t hold onto a story, or develop characters. But while it’s good it’s very good indeed, and had it been that touch better (and shorter) it could have been a game-changer for Indian cinema.

– A french review is here which is not too complimentary. Use Google Translate (GT).

– Ahluwalia makes ‘Lovely’ impact, says Saibal Chatterjee in The Sunday Indian. Click here.

– New York Times piece on the film is here.

– Ashim’s interview in Another mag is here.

– Ad Vitam has picked up the French rights of the film. News link is here.

– VIDEO : Anupama Chopra’s interview of Ashim Ahluwalia is here.

GANGS OF WASSEYPUR

– Review in Screen International is here which says, this Tarantino-tinged Bihari take on The Godfather has what it takes to cross over from the Indian domestic and Diaspora markets to reach out to action-loving, gore-tolerant theatrical and auxiliary genre audiences worldwide.

– The Hollywood Reporter review is here which calls it a dizzying explosion of an Indian gangster film, whose epic structure and colorful, immoral killers capture the imagination for over five hours..

– Review on desi site DearCinema is here.

– In Italian. click here. Use Google Translate (GT).

– Long piece in french edition of Huffington Post is here. Use GT.

– Coverage on BBC website.

– Saibal Chatterjee’s report in The Sunday Indian is here.

– VIDEO : Anupama Chopra’s interview with Kashyap and Bala is here.

– Click on the play button to watch the official video of the screening

If we have missed any links, do post it in the comments section. We will keep on updating the post with new links.

Gangs Of Wasseypur music review – वूफेर फाड़ दिया भैय्या!

Posted: May 24, 2012 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, music, reviews, songs & videos
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
60

If you have been following this blog for sometime, you will know that music review means it’s time for Rohit to take over. So over to him. But before you read the review, you can check out all the songs here.

Also, click here to read our earlier post in which lyricist Varun Grover introduced the two hit songs of the album – jiya ho Bihar ke lala and I am a hunter, the foot-tapping and fun song, which i feel, is dying to have a music video. Mr Kashyap, do it. The song has great potential. You are sitting on a goldmine. Explore it!

The post also has lyrics of six songs – Jiya ho Bihar ke lala, I am a hunter, Ek bagal, Keh ke loonga, O Womania and Humne ke chhori ke.

Back to the music review.

Music – Sneha Khanwalkar

Lyrics – Varun Grover, Piyush Mishra

इतना दिन से इन्तेज़ार था. पूरा उत्तर प्रदेश और बिहार में लोग बाग कोई गाना नहीं सुन रहे थे. चलो ज़रा देखें ससुरा इन्तेज़ार के लायक था या नहीं?

1. Jiya ho Bihar – The song starts with faint ‘thaaps’ as if a traditional song but soon is joined by electric guitars and then the techno arrangement leads us to the very desi Manoj Tiwari. The song makes no bones, thanks to excellent Manoj Tiwari and some real catchy lyrics (Tani Taan kheech ke taansen kehlawo rey bhaiyya, for example). The backup vocals are excellent. Somewhere in the background you will hear shehnai as well. Yes. The marriage of techno sound with Manoj Tiwari is just brilliant. There is a constant ‘bhaiyya bhaiyya’ in the background! Just too good a touch!

There is always that song from which you associate a movie, This one will be the image of Gangs of Wasseypur).

If interested, you can get the lyrics here.

2. I am a hunter – (पापी लोग का नाम है – वेदेश सोकू, मुन्ना ओर रजनीश) The song starts with a ‘Heyllllo’(and TRUST ME!, you will repeat the ‘heylllo’ to hear if it is actually said the way it is said) and then something that we all have done while growing up! (Listen and tell me if you can find it, not telling it here). Special mention must be made for Sneha. This is a fun song and trust me, the song has 2 funny moments per second. Be it the laughter in the background, be it the interplay between vocals along with the constant Caribbean beats the song has ‘fun’ written all over it. Yes, it’s a tad naughty. Still, the words like ‘bhokali’ will ensure that this is played by guys (And girls, may be!) in bonfires. Yes. Up till now Patti rap was THE song that got guys (and sometimes girls together) in a gathering. Now, that place belongs, rightfully to ‘I am a hunter’. Best.Bakchod.Song.Ever.

You can check out the lyrics of the song here.

3. O Womaniya Live (Performed by – Khushboo Raj, Rekha Jha ओर उनकी सहेलिया) Singers start this song in a way that will remind the people who have grown up in north India, those ‘sangeet’ settings that happen during marriages wherein the ‘ladies’ (pronounced as – lay-deej) sing and poke fun at the new bride or may be her ‘in laws’ or may be her ‘bridegroom’. The words are pure ‘North’ and are laced with lot of fun (and naughty-ness). People who will have tough time trying to find the meaning of the songs will get the ‘fun quotient’ when the backup vocal singers will go ‘o o o ho ho ho’ Very naughty! The music setting is very ‘drawing room’ like and even when backup singers giggle you get the feel that they are sharing a joke! Singing is just incidental to the setting. Kudos Sneha! Kudos for reading this very rare, Very, very rare genre. The words of this song in particular have a flavor of north. Big time. Varun Grover, take a bow! Also the singer will remind you of that one character in such family settings who is the ‘leader’ and repeats certain words in order to poke fun at the bride, डबल अर्थ wala fun. (case in context – Patna and satna. ‘Satna’ means when someone sits uncomfortably close to someone else)

4. Keh ke loonga – Night. That’s what the ‘itchy’ start of this song reminds you of. Sneha gets behind the microphone and gets on with it. Accompanied by Amit Trivedi, the ‘graveyard’ feeling of the song gets scarier when the intentions are reflected in words. No matter where you are, I will dig you up and ‘teri keh ke loonga’. It has a very ‘Ghar mein ghus ke maroonga’ feel. Still, it’s not loud. The song just stares at you with the coldness of a dead body. We need Sneha Khanwalkar to sing more. Much more. Much, much more. She is THAT good in the song. Composed by Piyush Mishra and arranged by Sneha. Amit Trivedi is in his usual brilliant self! The resonating sound of howling might not be liked by all. Dark. Scary. This sums up the song.

5. Bhoos ke dher mein – Manish J. Tipu and Bhupesh start the song and will actually lead you into believing that it’s a sad song. Suddenly, an ‘all male’ group of backup singers (accompanied by harmonium and brass band), get into your ears shouting ‘Na milihey’ (you shall not get). This song has a message. More like the songs that you associate with the wanderers who gives out message about life in their songs. The difference? There are way too many singers (and at times a barking dog in the background if I heard it right!). Situational song. Has a very ‘chadhta suraj dheerey dheerey dhalta hai dhal jayega’ (A qawwali-sque song by Aziz Naza, very popular up North). Won’t be a chartbuster. May be that’s exactly what is needed. Let’s see.

6. Ek Bagal – Flute and Sitar talk between themselves and put you at ease immediately and then the strong bass creates a perfect platform for Piyush Mishra (PM) to start what is probably the most powerful song (in terms of effect that it will leave on you) of the film. The excellent use of electric flute deserves a repeat mention. It is THAT good. There is no doubt that this song is penned by PM himself and composed by him as well. The song has a little ‘jis raat sheher mein khoon ki baarish aayi thee’ feel in between. I suspect this song will find a place in the second part of the film as well. Minimalistic ‘arranged’ music. Authentic is the word. 2 thumbs up!

For lyrics, click here.

7. Bhaiyya – This track, performed by the musahars of Sundapur, is another avtaar of a folk song but is music heavy. My guess, this is a background song again. It ends too soon. Didn’t touch me. May be you will like it.

8. Tain Tain – A good harmonium along with at least 10 other sounds suddenly start this song. Then it all settles down. The beat continues and so does a siren! And then Sneha Khanwalkar goes ‘tey tey tey’. Before you figure out what’s happening, the brass band arrests your attention! Ok, too much happening at the same time! This has to be a background sound. This track is just a mix of a lot of sounds (whistles, vocal ‘ta ta ta chu chu ley ley lu li’ and so much more!). Remember the track ‘dol dol’ from ‘Yuva’? This track, in principal is the same, BUT is very DESI. This track grow on you and somehow satisfies the ‘constant casio synthesizer beats wali bhookh’ in me.

9. Suna kar ke Gharwa – performed by Sujeet (From Gaya ओर उनके दोस्त भाई लोग). The song uses a slow tabla and ‘manjeera’. Very folk. But too short. सब लोगों को नही समझ आएगा. It has a sound of a ‘folk singer’ closing his eyes as he connects with self and the powers that be via his singing.

10. Aey Jawanon – Yes, some shayari. Some ‘UP-Bihar’ style shayari about how people are selfish. The stop-and-go and stop-and-run music arrangement completely reminds a ‘northie’ like me of the roadside ‘nautanki’ music. To you, it might remind of ‘pintya gela’ (from shaitaan) in essence, because the instruments used are completely different but the linear tune is somewhat ‘pintya gela’ like.

11. Womaniya (Remix) – Starts exactly like the ‘live’ version but the bass and trance effects soon take over. Something that I haven’t heard ever. Something Desi…real wala desi mixed with ‘mehengai dayan’ like remix (from Peepli Live). The naughty feel of the song is retained. At times I felt some excessive instruments were used but I won’t be surprised if this is played in pubs and people go ‘OMG OMG’! There is a brief romantic exchange of words between shehnai and electric guitar…Just too damn good! मुहझौंसा and what not! This remix grew on me!

The pronunciation of ‘womaniya’ as ऊमनिया is just too adorable (in both the versions)

12. Mann Mauji – Probably one of the best romantic songs this year. Iktaara, algoza and so many other beautiful sounds along with the singer Usari Banerjee is a touch of pure genius. Even the singing style has a touch of vintage in it! ‘Khula hai bajuband phata hai kaaj sambhal ke chalna hoga’. Composed and penned by Piyush Mishra, arranged excellently by Sneha, this song has a sweet vintage feel. Hear it. The ‘secondary vocal’ (at times algoza, at times violin) that constantly accompanies the singer is so so so vintage. Brings back the days of कुएँ के किनारे गाना और नाचना.

13. Loonga loonga (Remix) – The roadside shayari about life (Along with constant beats and ‘loonga loonga’ in the background) starts the song. A faint ‘siren’ (The one that you associate with IPL when a bowler bowls a No-ball and free hit is about to be executed. This is a short version and thankfully so, because the music arrangement and the overall sound of this song is in contrast to the theme of the album. Passable.

14. Humni ki chhoree ke – (Sung by Deepak Kumar – मुजफ्फरपुर वाले) – With just the harmonium and very पक्का ओर रिसा हुआ गला the singer gives us a flavor of a very, very touching song. It’s a folk bhojpuri song and many a singers have sung it already. We could come across Pawan Singh and few others (Check them out on youtube) but this version, with minimalistic music arrangement, has everything that will make you very sad, lump in throat stuff. Even if you don’t understand the meaning of it. Magic of good music, isn’t it? Highly recommended!

Overall a fantastic album! The music stays true to the overalls of the film. Even though 2 remixes are included (to make the album appeal to the ‘non small town’ पब्लिक) फिर भी, This will go down as a फसाद मचाने वाला album by Sneha Khanwalkar and Piyush Mishra. Comparisons will be made with the OST of Omkara, Dev D, Gulaal and so on, but this album will stand it’s ground. Quite easily.

The backdrop is more or less same (in terms of geography), so the sound influences could overlap. Still, inclusion of some pure folk songs of the region is a superb idea and makes the album more relatable. The effort in terms of penning the right lyrics (Piyush Mishra, Varun Grover and Vikas (for hunter – english lyrics), arranging and composing music (Piyush Mishra and Sneha Khanwalkar), singers and the sheer research about it all is praiseworthy.

Rough around edges, raw and melodious in equal measure, here is an unputdownable power album that deserves a listen.

In the days of ch**** Studio (इंडिया) and all those wannabe ‘EXPERIMENTAL page 3 types’, here is an album that gives you a sound and taste of what the sound of those places is like. Those places are called ‘Chowk’ in small towns – an open market area in a city at the junction of two roads.

Chowk Studio. Anyone?

वूफेर फाड़ दिया भैय्या!

My Picks – Entire album.

माने की पूरा एल्बमवा सुनियेगा एक बार. चीन जायेंगे आप, की हम का कह रहे हैं.

(PS – You can order the album on Flipkart also. click here.)

Older Entries
Newer Entries