Posts Tagged ‘Vishal Bhardwaj’

Ruskin Bond writing Vishal Bhardwaj’s next – The Seven Husbands (plot details)

Posted: November 23, 2009 by moifightclub in bollywood, cast & crew, News, Story / Plot / Synopsis, writing
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The name is Bond. Ruskin Bond.

This one comes as a surprise. We had no clue about this development, though we make sure to track every move of one of our favourite filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj. In an interview to Indian Express, Ruskin Bond has given out the details of the story that he is writing for Vishal Bhardwaj. Its called The Seven Husbands. Last time they came together to create the magical Blue Umbrella. And this one, it already sounds delicious. Read on.

To quote Mr Bond….

Vishal asked me if I could do another story for him and I saw no reason why I wouldn’t. He liked a four-page short story of mine, Susanna’s Seven Husbands. I expanded it into a 200-page episodic piece that can be filmed. My protagonist is a femme fatale who bumps off her seven husbands… I had to find ingenious ways of bumping seven people off while writing the story. Not something that I am used to contemplating generally.

On Priyanka Chopra and some more….

I haven’t actually seen her films. She gives a lot of interviews on TV so I have seen her occasionally. My protagonist comes from an Anglo-Indian background, she is a beautiful lady, but reserved. She isn’t very glamorous like Ms Chopra and doesn’t try to charm men in obvious ways. I hope Vishal will keep that in his characterisation. She is very smart too. She even gives an old husband of hers an overdose of Viagra in my story, who of course can’t take it. No, no, I can’t give out anymore of the story. My only regret will be, I couldn’t be cast as one of Ms Chopra’s seven husbands. Guess I am too old for that (laughs).

Woohoo…Piggy chops goes chop chop! And its not big surprise that Vishal Bhardwaj is again working with Priyanka Chopra. The performance that she delivered in just 10-12 scenes of Kaminey, any director would want to repeat that act. You can read the full Ruskin Bond interview here.

A boy named Cajetan

Posted: August 25, 2009 by moifightclub in bollywood, cast & crew, cinema, News, Story / Plot / Synopsis, writing
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Cajetan Boy 2If you have seen Vishal Bhardwaj’s Kaminey, you must have noticed the name Cajetan Boy in the opening credits of the film. We have been trying to google more about him but no luck. Timeout Mumbai has done a small piece on him, the writer on whose story Kaminey is based.

Vishal met him at the Mira Nair’s Maisha Filmlab where he had gone as a mentor. He liked Cajetan’s story Roho and later on bought the rights. You can read the feature here or scroll down…

Vishal Bhardwaj’s Kaminey explores a singe day in the lives of identical twins from Dharavi, but the story was actually born an ocean away. The plot was created by Cajetan Boy, a writer and short-film director from Nairobi, whom Bhardwaj met in Kampala in 2005. “I am excited to see how it will be handled by an experienced and renowned director working with a budget,” Boy told Time Out in an email interview.

In Kaminey, Shahid Kapur plays twins who can be told apart by their particular speech impediments. The twins, Charlie and Guddu, get embroiled with a gangster (played by Taare Zameen Par writer Amole Gupte) and spend the course of the movie trying to save their skins. The speech impediments are Bhardwaj’s innovation, as is the gangster angle.

Boy said his story, titled Roho (which means soul) was about identical twins from Kibera in Nairobi, Kenya’s biggest slum. There are no gangsters in the original plot. “The movie was initially set in extreme poverty,” Boy said. “I set out to show that there is a direct link between crime and poverty; crime and the police; crime and the affluent. I set to show that the system conspires to have poverty.”

Boy said he wrote the story, the screen treatment as well as one draft of the script. He said he had mixed feelings about selling the story to Bhardwaj. The director told the Mumbai Mirror that he bought the idea from Boy for $4,000, or just under Rs 2 lakh. Boy describes himself as a “passionate movie maker who is determined to make Kenyan movies with or without a budget – mostly we have none”. Kaminey’s rumoured Rs 44 crore budget will probably come as something of a shock to him. 

Boy is the Products Development Leader for Et Cetera Productions, a film and television production house. He has written one-act and full-length plays, including Benta, which was made into a movie in 2006, as well as the screenplays of All Girls Together, a social drama, and Backlash, which he described as “an HIV/AIDS epic exploring culture and the pandemic”. He met Bhardwaj at a scriptwriting workshop in Kampala organised by Maisha, the filmmaking centre set up by Mira Nair in 2004. “I am hopeful that I will get a visible credit that will put me on the map as a writer,” Boy said. “So far all the material I have seen on the net makes no mention of Maisha or me – maybe I am not checking in the right place.”

Boy’s concerns as a writer are about “poverty, crime and classes – the links between them and how each preys on the other”. He said he was also keen to accurately portray the lives of those who live on the margins of society. “I am concerned with how to make people look at what they take for granted (slums, prostitutes, thieves, drug dealers etc), accept their existence and question why these things exist,” he said.

The Kenyan writer hasn’t watched many Hindi films, but the few he has seen have impressed him. “Those that I have watched thrill me with the intensity of the characters, the beauty of the picture and the ability to make mundane even ugly scenarios and locations cinematically beautiful,” Boy said.

Kaminey’s Dhen Tedan – the original

Posted: August 21, 2009 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, News, songs & videos, television
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Kaminey 2Finally, the audio and video of the original Dhen Tedan song is out. Though Vishal Bhardwaj has admitted it many times in his interviews, but those of you who still cant recall, click the play button. Its sung by Suresh Wadekar and Roop Kumar Rathod for Vishal’s directorial debut on television. Remember the series Gubbare ? Check out young Sharman Joshi. The original was also by Vishal Bhardwaj and Gulzar.

And for the full audio track click here.

Kaminey : love story of our times & the generation that read Nandan!

Posted: August 18, 2009 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, film review, News, reviews, Thoughts
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Kaminey 2The director (lets call him aKa) made a fist, positioned it in front of his crotch, moved it to and fro, cracking a joke on me, because thats what I think love is all about. Atleast accoding to him. Why ? Because I didnt feel the lump in my throat when i saw Love Aaj Kal(a title that sounds like a mathematics theorem and is even written like one). Ofcourse, aKa felt that lump, a big one too and some three four times. That Mr Ali has already been branded as bollywood’s new age love guru and every producer/director aspires to make a Jab We Met kind of romcom is surely some indication. And, mere har jhoot ki niyat hamesha sach thi Guddu!

But fuck that new age. Fuck that theorem of love. Enough of that cool and confused one. One that make an effort to sound smart and make you laugh. Hail the Bharadwaj Boy! Why ? Because for me, the greatest stories are those which belongs to us, of our times, of our politics. And someone finally dares to touch the M-word. Marathi, Maharashtra, Mumbai. Ironic that the filmmaker belongs to other M(eerut) town. The newspapers had enough, there were lot of tv debates. But like always, politics is a bad word in our bollyland. And only few dare. And, mere har jhoot ki niyat hamesha sach thi Guddu!

Sharmaji from Bambai is in love with Sweety from Mumbai. The risk ? Your do nimboo aur mirchi! And still he goes for it and pulls it off with so much ease. And, mere har jhoot ki niyat hamesha sach thi Guddu!

As the film moved on, i was wondering if love will again be doomed in Bhardwaj’s Kaminey, as it happened in Maqbool and Omakara! When killing is more poetic that any happy ending, i dont complain. Kareena’s dead body on the swing, Tabu looking through the mosquito net, aha…the visuals that will stay with me forever. But finally Bharadwaj has a happy ending to his love story of Guddu and Sweety! And, mere har jhoot ki niyat hamesha sach thi Guddu!

As Guddu gives condom gyaan, Sweety drops the bomb. Her eggo is preggo. She has tested thrice. No, its again not that dude style, where the couple decides to part away after mouthing some cool lines. Here the writing on the wall is apne haath jagannath. They dont shy away. Shit happens. And you can get rid of it in just 24 hours. Thats my generation. Knows the shit, wants it, enjoys it and wants to get rid of it too. And, mere har jhoot ki niyat hamesha sach thi Guddu!

 During my school days, we used to open the history books, hold it vertically and used to enjoy the history lessons. It used to baffle our history teacher and somehow it always remained a mystery to him. Inside the history books, it used to either Nandan, Champak, Suman Sourabh, Nagraj, Super Commando Dhruv, Doga, Bhokal or Chacha Chaudhry.

Nandan had a popular punch line too – Jo bacche Nandan padhte hain, woh jeevan me aage badhte hain. Me and my sister never cared much about jeevan me aage badhna but with every new issue of Nandan, we used to fight. She always claimed the first right because her excuse was she would finish it quickly and i take lot of time to read. I would wait for my turn.

I dont remember if any hero of hindi films ever claimed to read Nandan or Champak. Guddu did. And he wins it. Guddu stammered and so Sweety decided to do so, to boost his confidence. Love is all about stammering together. Its not just about drinking same tea or coffee. One is tangible, the other one is sharing the discomfort. The group of aunties who sat in the row behind me kept on wondering about Sweety if yeh bhi totali hai kya ? Aisa kaisa? Its the payoff.

Finally, the petrom pump scene. One of the most romantic scenes I have seen in recent times. One that gave me lump in my throat. Mr aKa, love is not only to and fro. Just like its not about drinking black tea! Sweety wants to fly out for honeymoon, she managed to book the tickets last minute. But Guddu remembers his school love suddenly. All of a sudden. Sweety wonders why. Bus abhi yaad aaya na. Aha, love without calculations. And, mere har jhoot ki niyat hamesha sach thi Guddu!

Whats with all the Tarantino and Ritchie talks ? Was i the only one who didnt remember any bit of any of those filmmakers while watching Kaminey! The characters are so rooted, they speak so many languages, so much mannerism, the psychedelic visuals, the brooding sky, the morning rains…i was stuck! Eyes wide open! All i want to know now is the man called Tassaduq Hussain.

And, mere har jhoot ki niyat hamesha sach thi Guddu! Beat this killer line. Dont think anyone will. Atleast not this year. And yeah, do handover the award for the performance by an ensemble cast to Kaminey! Say no more. 

Kaminey – film reviews

Posted: August 16, 2009 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, film review, News, reviews
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KamineyDamn! The Fwine flu! We still havent managed to watch Kaminey. And going by the film reviews, almost everyone seems to have loved it except Khalid Mohamed. Lets check who rated how much.

Taran Adarsh ( Indiafm) – On the whole, KAMINEY lives up to the hype associated with it. The film has three stars – Vishal Bhardwaj, Shahid Kapoor and ‘Dhan Te Nan’ – and this combo as also the crooked characters and a genuinely hatke subject should guarantee ample footfalls in cineplexes even after its initial weekend – 4/5

Rajeev Masand (CNN IBN) – Kaminey, amidst all the bloodshed and bullets, this film has a full beating heart. As Charlie would say: It’s a MUFT-WATCH – 4/5

Khalid Mohamed (Aslibaat) – At the end of Kaminey, then, you exit with some upbeat feelings. Fit looks food fut..fut is fwite fisappointing. F..ouch – 2.5/5

Raja Sen (Rediff) – Wow. Now if that isn’t kameenapan, I don’t know what is. Awefome – 4.5/5

(Now, this is one guy whose style we really like but his politics is all wrong. The dudde published the review on wednesday for some early word of mouth publicity. And clearly the intention must have been to score some brownie points from Bhardwajsaab for his writing career! Mr Sen, for how long ? )

Shubhra Gupta (Indian Express) – I came away with a stunning build-up, some spectacular sequences, and terrific music. But from a Vishal film, I wanted the full monty – 4/5

Minty Tejpal (Mumbai Mirror) – Well, this is it. Tarantino gave Hollywood Pulp Fiction, and now Vishal Bhardwaj gives Bollywood Kaminey. It’s the new standard of cutting edge cinema, and it rocks all the way. Dhan te nan. Damn, just can’t get the tune out of my head – 4/5

Mayank Shekhar (Hindustan Times) – There’s still nothing to take away from the movement this movie means to Hindi films. Missing it is your own entertainment loss. Given the director’s unfortunate commercial track-record with gems like Maqbool and Omkara, I really hope this time, ‘Vishal overcome!’ – 3.5/5

Anupama Chopra ( NDTV) – Kaminey will take some getting used to. It isn’t the comfort food that Bollywood normally dishes out. But I strongly recommend that you see it. This taste is worth acquiring – 4/5

And we are dying to have that taste!

Kaminey- Whose story is it ?

Posted: July 22, 2009 by moifightclub in bollywood, cast & crew, News, Story / Plot / Synopsis, Thoughts, writing
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Kaminey 2First we read that there are four writers who have been credited for Kaminey. Vishal Bhardwaj, Supratik Sen, Sabrina Dhawan and Abhishek Chaubey. And now there is one more addition.

In an interview to Mumbai Miror, Vishal has clarified that the story started with a fifth person. To quote Vishal

Four years ago, Mira Nair assembled writers from America, India and Canada to mentor ten students from Asia and Africa. This scriptwriting workshop was held in Kampala, Yuganda.

A young writer from Nairobi showed me a script which was a story about twin brothers and what happens in their life in a span of 24 hours. It was like parallel cutting and I really liked that approach. Mira and I spoke about it at length and both of us felt that it was a typical Bollywood masala movie.

I was in touch with that writer for the next six months. He also sent me another draft. Then two-three years later I asked him to sell me the idea. He was in need of money so I sent him some 4000 dollars and bought the script to make any time.

I picked up that idea and added Bollywood masala and my dark and serious side to it. So now, one brother stammers and the other has a lisp. I thought that it would be exciting to make. But it wasn’t that easy. It was very tough and I had to work really hard. I would never like to make such a film again.

We wonder if the person is credited in the film. Because in publicity material there is no mention of any fifth person. But then, do you credit someone for story idea ? May be, or is it more than an idea. Unlike others, who makes sure to hide every source of inspiration, even if its remake, it feels good to read that Vishal is giving credit to the person who deserves it. Wish he had given out the writer’s name too.

You can read the full interview here.

When Kaminey wasnt Kaminey enough…

Posted: July 19, 2009 by moifightclub in bollywood, cast & crew, gossipmongers, News, Xclusive
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Kaminey 2……..it got stuck at the edit stage.

Blame us for this overdose of Kaminey, but don’t think there is a way out. Here is some fresh & exclusive dope about Vishal Bhardwaj’s Kaminey. After the shooting, Meghna Manchanda was suppose to edit the film. She earlier edited Vishal’s Omkara, her first film. And then his short film Blood Brothers.

After the film’s edit, Vishal wasnt happy with the final cut. He felt many sequences weren’t working. Also, Kaminey was a difficult film to edit, a desi pulp fiction. Vishal felt that Meghna wasn’t getting the right pulse of the film. He called up well known editor A Sreekar Prasad and got him onboard. And it seems Sreekar didnt charge anything for the film.

Vishal Bhardwaj was damn happy with Sreekar’s final cut. But it led to fallout between him and Meghna. Also, the situation became bit awkard as Meghna’s husband Supratik Sen is one of the four writers of the film. Supratik assisted Vishal on The Blue Umbrella and Maqbool. Though Meghna has been credited alongwith A Sreekar Prasad, but now its not all well between the director and miyaan-biwi.

Kaminey’s complete cast – All the Vishal’s Men

Posted: July 17, 2009 by moifightclub in bollywood, cast & crew, cinema, News, pics
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The complete list of actors/characters of Vishal Bhardwaj’s Kaminey is out. And a new pic from the film. Scroll down for all the actors/charcters’ names & traits.

kaminey cast

Shahid Kapoor ( in blue) – Guddu – Works as a trainee in an NGO. Middle class aspirations.

Shahid Kapoor ( in T-shirt) – Charlie – Life is all about betting at race course. Give me more!

Priyanka Chopra ( Sweety Shekhar Bhopu ) – Guddu’s love life. Bhope’s lil sister.

Amole Gupte ( Next to Priyanka ) – Bhope Bhau  – Small time gangster turned politician. Want to be messiah of the slums.

Tenzing Nima ( Next to Amole ) – Tashi – Drug Lord. High style and cold kills.

Shiv Subrahmanyam (Between Amole & Tenzing ) – Inspector Lobo –  Narcotics department officer. Crooked and brutal.

Hrishikesh Joshi (extreme right ) – Inspector Lele – Narcotics department officer. Lobo’s partner in crime.

Carlos Paca ( behind Amole ) – Cajetan – Has the gun. will kill. Don’t mess.

Rajtava Dutta ( next to Shahid in blue ) – Shumon – Bookie on racing circuit. Mony, gun & women.

Deb Mukherjee ( behind Rajtava ) – Mujeeb – Powerful bookie on racing circuit. More power.

Chandan Roy Sanyal ( behind Shahid in blue ) – Mikhail – Charlie’s best friend. Acts before he thinks.

Writers – Supratik Sen, Abhishek Chaubey, Sabrina Dhawan and Vishal Bhardwaj. Music – Vishal Bhardwaj. Lyrics – Gulzar.

Woohooo! All these characters meet on a rainy night. Add drugs, guns and money. We are waiting and how!

Its confirmed. Hrithik Roshan is the new Vijay Dinanath Chauhan.

Posted: July 13, 2009 by moifightclub in bollywood, cast news, cinema, News
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Hrithik RoshanFirst it was Hrithik Roshan. Then Abhishek Bachchan. And finally its back to Hrithik Roshan.

According to Mumbai Mirror, its confirmed now. Hrithik Roshan will play the lead in the remake of Agneepath, to be produced by Karan Johar and debutant Karan Malhotra will direct it.

After Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Guzaarish, Hrithik was supposed to work with Vishal Bhardwaj. But now he wants to complete the remake first and then move on to Bhardwaj’s film.  So Vishal have to wait.

Agneepath was produced by Yash Johar and directed by Mukul Anand. Amitabh Bachchan, Mithun Chakraborty and Danny Dengzongpa were the lead actors. Mithun also bagged a national award for this film.

And like us, those of you who are missing the great lines of Harivansh Rai Bachchan, here it is.

Agneepath

 अग्नि पथ! अग्नि पथ! अग्नि पथ!

वृक्ष हों भले खड़े, 

हो घने, हो बड़े,

 एक पत्र-छॉंह भी मॉंग मत, मॉंग मत, मॉंग मत!

अग्नि पथ! अग्नि पथ! अग्नि पथ!

 

तू न थकेगा कभी!

 तू न थमेगा कभी!

 तू न मुड़ेगा कभी!

कर शपथ! कर शपथ! कर शपथ!

 

ये महान दृश्य है,

चल रहा मनुष्य है,

 अश्रु श्वेत् रक्त से,

लथ पथ, लथ पथ, लथ पथ !

अग्नि पथ! अग्नि पथ! अग्नि पथ!

New pics from Kaminey – Priyanka Chopra as Sweety

Posted: July 9, 2009 by moifightclub in bollywood, cast & crew, cinema, first look, News, pics
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Two new pics from Vishal Bhardwaj’s Kaminey has been released. Priyanka Chopra as Sweety. Take a look.

Priyanka Chopra 2

 

Priyanka Chopra

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