Posts Tagged ‘Rajeev Masand’

VOTD : Rajeev Masand’s ‘The Directors Roundtable 2015’

Posted: January 1, 2016 by moifightclub in bollywood, video, VOTD
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We love year end lists. It’s great fun to see who thinks what about which film at the end of the year. Rajeev Masand does a year end roundtable with actors and directors.

In this year’s roundtable, he has six filmmakers who talk about some of the newsy topics and the challenges they faced. The directors are Sriram Raghavan (Badlapur), Anand L Rai (Tanu Weds Manu Returns), Zoya Akhtar (Dil Dhadakne Do), Shoojit Sircar (Piku), Sharat Katariya (Dum Laga Ke Haisha), and Kabir Khan (Bajrangi Bhaijaan).

VOTD : Directors Roundtable with Rajeev Masand

Posted: January 2, 2015 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, video, VOTD
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Like in the last few years, Rajeev Masand has done a series of roundtable discussions this year too. And the one which has the best panel and which interests us the most is the directors roundtable. This one had Vishal Bhardwaj (Haider), Rajat Kapoor (Ankhon Dekhi), Vikas Bahl (Queen), Imtiaz Ali (Highway), RajKumar Hirani (PK) and Abhishek Varman (2 States).

VOTD : Why Kangana Ranaut is the coolest Bollywood star currently

Posted: October 23, 2013 by moifightclub in bollywood, Interview, VOTD
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This is bit old news. But since people are still discovering Kangana Ranaut’s latest interviews, am posting it here. I saw her interview with Anupama Chopra, and then the one with Rajeev Masand. In both the interviews, she comes across as smart, candid, funny, and articulate. Honest confessions on life, films, career choices, Bollywood, National Awards, and more. Rare qualities in a bollywood star.

Watch it if you haven’t.

Dear Kangana, whatever you are drinking, please distribute it to your fellow actors too.

Anupama Chopra’s interview

Rajeev Masand’s interview

Vasan Bala’s Peddlers – Tracking all the Cannes buzz

Posted: May 22, 2012 by moifightclub in cinema, Film Festival, Indie, News
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Vasan Bala’s debut feature Peddlers premiered at the ongoing Cannes Film Festival in the International Critics’ Week section. This post is to track all the buzz from the Cannes – pics, videos, interviews, reviews and more.

PICS

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Latest REVIEWS

– An early review in French is here. Rated it 3.5/5 and to sum it up – I think this is a young director who can go very far if he continues this way.  (Thanks to Google Translate)

– Bikas Mishra of DearCinema.com has reviewed the film here. Bikas is also on the Critics Week jury this year. To quote the last line few lines, Sidharth Diwan’s restless camera adds amply in capturing the life in the megapolis. Prerna Saigal’s editing is worthy of a special mention.

Vasan Bala’s Peddlers marks a very promising debut. I would be looking forward to his next.

– Another French review is here. To quote from the review, Bombay shines here in all its ambiguous charms , angles sometimes hard, dry, and always flattering that one has rarely seen. ( Again, via Google Translate).

– The Hollywood Reporter’s review is here.

– Film critic Christain Jungen tweeted his rating 3.5 stars. And calls it an atmospheric gangster movie from Mumbai, half Hollywood halfway Bollywood.

– Saibal Chatterjee reviews the film for The Sunday Indian. Click here. To quote from the review, Vasan Bala is clearly a talent to watch. The way he handles the characters, paces the narrative, uses music and creates the dark and disturbing backdrop against which the film plays out reflect the kind of grasp that augurs well.

The deft touches that he brings to the table lift Peddlers well above the level of run-of-the-mill gangster flicks. It isn’t, to begin with, a gangster flick at all.

– Another French review is here. This one is mixed.

UPDATE – 23/05/2012

– New French review which rated it 15/20 and to quote, That said, the director shows a sense of rhythm and creativity in the staging that might interest the Jury of the Camera d’Or. Peddlers is an Indian film that has nothing in Bollywood and is the work of a director in search of gallons, but already talented.

– To quote another review, Peddlers is located in-between a relative novelty in Indian cinema, somewhere between the sweet and colorful to a Bollywood film and the roughness of a gangster movie. Efficiency is “quasi American,” but the exceptional photography and the use of music we bring in a definitely Indian.

Latest NEWS/FEATURES

– The Hollywood Reporter interview is here – on How ‘Peddlers’ Reflects the Indie Spirit (Q&A).

– In Variety’s Spotlight on India cinema. Click here.

– VIDEO – Excerpt from Rajeev Masand’s interview for CNN IBN. Click here.

– Another interview is here.

– Another report in Hollywood Reporter – Indian cinema moves beyond bollywood.

We will keep updating this post as more reviews and features come out.

Click the play button to see the video of the screening and presentation.

Pics Courtesy – Siddarth Diwan (Film’s DoP), TheLostFilmCritic, Rajeev Masand

Twenty10 Rewind – Who picked what ?

Posted: December 31, 2010 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, News, Special
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Its that time of the year again. The only time when we love making, reading and sharing lists. We decided to compile all the filmy lists and compare them. So here it is – all the year-ender lists . And any critic who puts I Hate Luv Storys and Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey in his/her list of  Top 10 films of the year, needs to stop reviewing films. Now.

Anupama Chopra (NDTV)

Top 5 – 1. Udaan 2. LSD  3. Peepli Live  4. Ishqiya  5. Robot

For the video, click here

Rajeev Masand ( CNN IBN)

Hits – 1. Udaan 2. LSD 3. Ishqiya 4. Peepli Live 5. Phans Gaye Re Obama & Do Dooni Chaar

Pits – 1. Anjaana Anjaani 2. No Problem  3. Action Replayy 4. Teen Patti 5. Raavan

For the video click here.

And for The Five Lessons We Learnt At The Movies this year – click here .

Raja Sen (Rediff)

Best Actors –  1. Ranver Singh 2. Rishi Kapoor 3. Anshuman Jha 4. Naseeruddin Shah 5. Nawazuddin Siddiqui 6. Satish Kaushik 7. Arshad Warsi 8. Ronit Roy 9. Pradhuman Singh 10. Shah Rukh Khan

For why and how, click here.

Best Actresses – 1. Vidya Balan 2. Neetu Singh 3. Anushka Sharma 4. Shruti 5. Katrina Kaif 6. Vishaka Singh 7. Amrita Puri 8. Aditi Vasudev

Click here for details.

Best Trailers – 1. Dabangg  2. Yamla Pagla Deewana  3. Road, Movie   4. Ishqiya  5. Yeh Saali Zindagi  6. Love Sex Aur Dhokha   7. Once Upon A Time In Mumbai   8. Tere Bin Laden  9. Peepli Live 10. Udaan.

To know why and how, click here

Film Soundtracks – 1. Ishqiya 2.  No One Killed Jessica 3. Love Sex Aur Dhokha 4. Aisha  5. Udaan For details, click here .

Sukanya Varma ( Rediff)

Best Films ( In no particular order) – Peepli Live. Ishqiya. Robot.  LSD .  Tere Bin Laden.  Pas Gaye Re Obama.  Udaan. Do Dooni Char. Band Baaja Baarat. Dabangg

For more, click here

Mayank Shekhar (Hindustan Times)

Golden Trophies – 1. Peepli Live 2. Do Dooni Chaar 3. Love Sex Aur Dhokha 4. Ishqiya 5. Udaan 6. Rajneeti 7. Tere Bin Laden / Phas Gaye Re Obama / Well Done Abba 8. Dabangg / Guzaarish / My Name Is Khan 9. Kartik Calling Kartik 10. Striker / Antardwand

To read in detail, click here

Best Of The Worst – 1. It’s A Wonderful Afterlife 2. Krantiveer 3. Knock Out 4. Mumbai To India 332 5. Teen Patti 6. Accident On Hill Road 7. Sadiyaan 8. Bum Bum Bole 9. Hiss 10. Dunno Y… Na Jaane Kyon. In details Click here

Namrata Joshi (Outlook) : And the one that touched the heart: Ab bhool gaye hain joote kahan utaare the…

For Liberalisation’s Children, click here and for a very personal recap, click here.

Shubhra Gupta (Indian Express) : Can you tell a story, Mr Fink? Can you make us laugh? Can you make us cry?” Onwards, to 2011.

Click here

Harneet Singh (Indian Express) – Y: YRF – The return of the banner with the sleeper hit Band Baajaa Baaraat.

For  A to Z of Bollywood 2010.  Click here

Nikhil Taneja ( MTVIndia.com): WTF English of the Year – Shahid Kapoor’s attempts at tweeting

For more WTF Moments of The Year ( The Bad, The Ugly and The Good in 2 parts), click here and here.

And Best Reviewed film of the year ? Well, thats easy. Udaan. To see all the four stars rating, click here

VOTD : Filmmakers VS Critics

Posted: November 29, 2010 by moifightclub in bollywood, VOTD
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If you missed the latest episode of Koffee With Karan, we have got the most interesting part of the show. Our VOTD – Critics talking about filmmakers and the directors talking about the film reviews.

KWK had Raj Kumar Hirani, Farah Khan and Imtiaz Ali as guests on the show. And the critics were Mayank Shekhar, Minty Tejpal, Sarita Tanwar, Anupama Chopra, Rajeev Masand and Taran Adarsh. But WTF is Sarita Tanwar ?! Someone who has no clue about films and rated Once Upon A Time In Mumbai and My Name Is Khan 4.5 stars! And Taran Adarsh ? Well, thats a joke. Or joker. You decide.

WTdoubleF: Guess who is supporting Akshay “Jackass” Kumar ? Amitabh Bachchan. Naam toh suna hoga!

Posted: July 13, 2010 by moifightclub in Bolly Jokes, bollywood, gossipmongers, Thoughts, WTF
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It all started with this picture.

We wrote about it here. It was a shameless piece of shit publicity idea to involve an ailing old man who has nothing to do with the film. Rajeev Masand tweeted about it saying…

Need innovative ideas 2 promote films in competitive times. But Akshay Kumar grinning like a jackass at RKLaxman’s hospital bed is a new low.

Guess who found the tweet offensive. Amitabh Bachchan. Why ? Because of the use of the word “jackass”. We think thats an understatement. Look at the grin on Akshay Kumar’s face. What do you call that ? Plus, Rajeev said “like a jackass”. And even before Rajeev tweeted his thoughts on the pic, blogosphere and social media was already buzzing with sharp criticism of the pic and the publicity idea.

So, the key word is “Jackass”. We checked Dictionary.com and according to it…..

jack·ass has two meanings – noun

1. a male donkey.

2. a contemptibly foolish or stupid person; dolt; blockhead; ass.

We bet Rajeev didn’t mean the second one. It has to be the first one.

Anyway, WTdoubleF is that Amitabh Bachchan who criticises media almost everyday on his blog doesn’t find the pic offensive. Infact, he doesn’t comment on it but puts the focus on “jackass”. Wow! Bachchan in Blunderland. And to remind Mr Holier-than-thou, here is what he commented on his blog about TOI journalist Bharati Dubey once….

Get married, if you are not already. Embrace your sentiment. And may you hold on to it till your old age without the use of any props ! When you get there, give me a call. If I am still around, we’ll talk !!

Ofcourse, thats not personal. Click here to read more – why and when. And this wasn’t the first time. He also commented on Upala KBR of Mid-day stating…

Upala, the affable and rotund by-line writer form MidDay is insistent on my responses to the utterances of Mr Sinha, Mr ShahRukh Khan, Mr Salim Khan, Mr Aamir Khan.

Mr Bachchan, what do you mean by rotund by-line writer ? Again, going back to dictionary.com, it means…

ro·tund –adjective

1. round in shape; rounded: ripe, rotund fruit.

2. plump; fat.

3. full-toned or sonorous: rotund speeches.

Well, its also not personal! You can read the blogpost here. Wow, Sir, you are surely getting better with age. And yes, you choice of words surely confirms that you went to Sherwood School.

And click here to read Rajeev Masand’s reply to Bachchan’s criticism.

BTW, Sir, what do you think of that publicity stunt of Akshay Jackass Kumar ? Knowing your Sherwood School background, you surely can come up with better word than “jackass”! We are waiting and how!

PS – We lost respect for the old man long long long back, though he still remains one of our favourite actor of all time. So, all you “jackass” fans of Big B, come, attack us!

UPDATE – And finally the Jackass Kumar has replied. Click here to read his reply.

WTF : Mimoh is Ashutosh Gowariker’s BuddhU, oops, Buddha!

Posted: June 12, 2010 by moifightclub in bollywood, cast & crew, cast news, film, News, WTF
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Mim-Oh, aah, oouch! We knew that Ashutosh Gowariker was looking for an actor to play the lead in his big budget international film Buddha. But we had no clue that he would settle so close! Film critic Rajeev Masand tweeted about the casting news today evening. Its not confirmed yet but seems he is surely there.

Yes, we also want to know the same. What has he seen in Mimoh ? From which angle ? Where and how ? Or is it gonna be Har-Man/Hurr-Man/Whatever-Man casting redux and one more Whats Your T-rashee ? And if it is all about a star kid, then why this talent hunt ?

Also, Gautam Buddha must be turning in his grave. If you don’t believe us, click here. Why suddenly after 1000 years ? Or is it just a coincidence! We guess it has to do something with Mim-OoH….aah…ouch! We have already started Buddhist chanting!

VOTD : Do movie reviews matter ? Minty Tejpal, Meena Iyer and Rajeev Masand discuss & dissect it with Taran Adarsh

Posted: May 29, 2010 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, film, film review, movie reviews, songs & videos, video, VOTD
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What ? When ? Where ? How much ? And why ?

Its an age-old debate. And things are changing now. In west, the new rule is “Forget the critics, Fear Twitter”! Plus, there are many popular bloggers now whom viewers trust more than many critics because they know that there cant be any hidden agenda there. And may be thats why many publications are in the process of doing away with critics.

Ok, enough of our review gyaan. Since we are putting it as VOTD, do check it out. Taran Adarsh, popularly known as Trash Adarsh for his movie and film reviews, discusses the issue with Minty Tejpal (Mumbai Mirror), Meena Iyer (Mumbai Mirror/TOI) and Rajeev Masand (CNN IBN).

Some candid confessions, some strong opinions, west versus east, do producers/directors try to influence them and why do they write/say, the way they do. And they even discuss Nikhat Kazmi!

(PS – Mumbai Mirror belongs to TOI group)

Vikramaditya Motwane & Anurag Kashyap on Udaan – two video interviews!

Posted: May 16, 2010 by moifightclub in bollywood, cast & crew, cinema, Film Festival, News, songs & videos
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So, who is this Vikramaditya Motwane ? And why and how he made Udaan, the film which got selected for Cannes this year, the mecca of all film fests! The dream debut of any filmmaker, unless you count Pottymakers like Sajid Khan as filmmaker too! And its also not about going there to pose as a mannequin and fake plastic smile all over! Its about that love called cinema! Its about “official” entry! Rest everything else is just frills and thrills or hisssss.

Have been trying to locate Vikramaditya Motwane and the story of making of  Udaan but so far its been bad luck (Though managed to watch the film & loved it). So, here are two tv interviews in which producer Anurag Kashyap and director Vikramaditya Motwane talk about Udaan, Cannes and more. First one is by Anupama Chopra of NDTV. And the second one is by Rajeev Masand of CNN IBN.

Vodpod videos no longer available.

more about “Vikramaditya talks about Udaan- ndtv“, posted with vodpod
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And if the videos are not working properly here, click here for direct link to Anupama Chopra’s interview and click here for the one by Rajeev Masand.

PS – Dear Anurag, we know that long long ago you were the one who promised Vikram that nobody else but you are goning to produce Udaan, we also know that you get hyperactive when you start talking about cinema  and we also know that what you talk, makes lot of sense. BUT, let Vikramaditya Motwane speak too. He is the “director”  of the film . We know you well, we wanna know him now! Its a scary feeling that you might be going the VVC way – maine banayee hai….maine…..maine kiya hai….maine likha hai…maine kaha tha….everything where maine is the key word! Hopefully we will be proved wrong but there is no harm in a making a point that’s coming across so strongly in both the interviews. Enjoy!

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