Ghajini - Not as per the expectations

"Ghajini" - an Aamir Khan starrer action flick, fall short on expectations after all the hype that has been created by the publicity gimmicks like "Aamir turns barber", " You can make a boring 2 hr movie and an interesting 3 hrs movie, duration doesn't matter".

Let us first talk about the positives. Aamir has played his character well. He was simply superb in some memory loss sequence (particularly at climax), and entire flashback. However, there were moments where he was very loud and he seemed to be forcing himself. Aasin did her job well as a bubbly yet sensitive girl. There is nothing much to talk about other actors.
The plot was decent, however there were scenes which where dragged a bit too much and hence a 3 hr movie, at the end of which you start feeling "when is it going to end". Probably the flashback could have been squeezed in an out right action flick. Some of the action sequence anddark shots are well picturized.The lighter moments in the flashback were good. "Guzarish" and "Behka' were 2 songs which are shot very well and have good lyrics and music.

Now coming on to the negatives. Barring Aamir, other actors simply seem to need acting classes. Background score in many places was too loud. There are some inconsistencies which are difficult to digest. A person who becomes chief guest of a collage function is a high profile goons. These people attend functions with pistols.
I have not come across a mainstream bollywood cinema titled after a negative character. Moreover if "Ghajini" the character is the most important, I guess director should have roped in a quality actor to dispense that role.

All in all, it isa lengthy film that doest not live upto the expectations created by the hype. However, it was refreshing to see an action flick after a long time. It might do well in single theatres and will get a good opening nationwide. Watch this movie only to see Aamir in entirely new role.

"Munch ka Crunch Mahaan" - Ads for Munch

As part of Brand strategy competition organized by Nestle for their wafer chocolate brand - Munch, we designed the following print Ad and TVC for Munch to carry forward their "Mera crunch mahaan" and to peg it at emotional level.

Print Ad
This was appreciated for the innovative idea and execution. It is an attempt to raise "Crunch" from mere crunchiness of wafers to the emotion of cheerfulness and confidence inspiring.



TVC

This was designed to differentiate "Munch ka Crunch" from situations of crunch. It is an attempt to peg Munch at the emotion of cheerfulness and enjoying life with all its faults and rewards.

Mumbai Meri Jaan - an honest attempt

The plot is about the 7/11 serial blasts in local trains- the lifeline of Mumbai city. It showcase how it affect the lifes of 5 individuals Key Key Menon (by profession he assembles computers but spend his time sitting in nukkad type café), Soha Ali Khan (a reporter), Irffan (a poor chaiwala), Paresh Rawal (a policeman) and Madhawan (white collar employee who prefer staying in India rather than going abroad and commutes regularly by local trains). It clearly showcase the trauma, feelings, anger, despair as aftermath of these blasts. And finally it moved on to show how everything get back to place and how the journey continues in the same spirit.

What appeals in the movie is its close to reality screenplay and smart direction of showcasing 5 different individual’s life in the same time frame. It is a powerful script supported by equally powerful performances. Paresh Rawal is a class act and so is Key Key in scenes when he looks at people with suspicion. Irffan is good but he was not at his very best. Soha yet again prove that RDB performance was not a fluke. Madhavan did a pretty good job of being a frustrated/ awestuck individual and tensed husband.

All in all it is an honest attempt towards a true cinema and justifies its catch line of “a salute to undying spirit of the city.

Singh is King - Silly but Watchable

With all the buzz, promos and interviews, Singh is King hit the theatres last week and disappointed many who expected a quality movie with not only quality performances but also a quality story board.

Lets first have a take on story, and screenplay. A gaon ka chora “Akshay" along with “Om Puri” goes to Australia to get “Lucky Singh” back from underworld where he is known as KING. In between all these he falls in love with Katrina, finds a Maa in Kiran Kher, takes on the position of KING due to situation and misunderstanding that arises. Working as KING “Happy Singh” spreads happiness in the world of underworld and change their heart to motivate them to return to Punjab –their home land. Anyone who might have gone to theatres with brain intact would have been terrible disappointed as it just does not have a gripping storyline or a fast paced screenplay.

Now let’s talk about characters, plot and performances. Akshay Kumar has become a success mantra, whenever he comes on screen there is a distinct charm and charisma that comes out. His getup and comic timing and fluent Punjabi deserve a round of applause. Katrina still needs to work on her Hindi, but she is improving with every movie and is perfectly suited for angrezi-desi chori with her annoying hindi dialogue delivery. Actually this made her tick in roles of Namastey London and Singh is King. Moreover she looks gorgeous everytime she captures the screen space. Om Puri disappoint in the character of “Rangeela- Akshay’s friend” as there is always an expectation of stellar performances from such gems. To be honest, he has been wasted in that role. Javed Jaffery did well as KING’s brother. Kiron Kher played a stereotyped bollywood maa decently and other characters were well suited to the plot. One man as mention who stood out is Akshay Kumar. He seem to have master the art of comic timing and silly scenes. This movie is doing well and will do so in coming weeks because KING (real King –Akshay) rocks.

Other positives are the cinematography. Pyramids of Egypt have been captured beautifully and few stunt sequences are well shot. Costumes have been designed in accordance with the plot.

Moving on to the music, it’s different and title track and “Ji Karda” are there to remain in countdown for few weeks at least.

So, though it appears to be a weak story but will work because of Akshay, comic plots and all the buzz that has been created.

Other way to look at it is it was never meant to be a power packed story driven movie, rather it just wanted to keep audience engaged in applauding Akshay’s stunt, his wonderful comedy timing and gorgeous Katrina.

Kab Hogi Seher

Every 'Human Being' hopes for a beautiful and a peaceful world and when incidents like series of blasts happen, they left them with despair and shattered hopes. I could not prevent myself from penning down my views. It is really disappointing but there is still hope as Dushyant Kumar has pointed out

"एक चादर साँझ ने सरे नगर पर दाल दी
यह अंधेरे की सड़क भोर तक जाती तो है"

Ye bomb ke visfot ye dhamake

Kitni halchal dilon me machete

Bahne lagi nagar me laal nahar

Saaya ban mandrata aatanki kahar

Dhamakon ki taal par thirakti aatank ki saqi

Ab bhi dil ke pyalon me dwesh ki haala baki!!

Kyun fizaon me ghula hai itna zahar

Saaya ban mandrata aatanki kahar

Bane hue hain sab mook darshak

Kitni baar uthi ye dhwani karkash

Dar ka mahaul hai charon pahar

Saaya ban mandrata aatanki kahar

Andhiyara chaya, ghiri hui kali ghata

Kab hogi subah , zara ye to bata!!

Kya andhiyari sadak layegi savera

Tam ki chadar chirti kab khilegi bhor

Kahar ko shant karne, Kab Hogi Seher

Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na- A Refreshing Movie

So here is the movie that marks the directorial debut of Abbas Tyrewala. Abbas has been a candid script writer and has given powerful script for Maqbool, Munnabhai MBBS and Main Hoon Na. The type of script that he has written speaks volume about this man’s ability to write in different genres from art type flick “Maqbool” to a fun-filled “Munnabhai MBBS” to total masala flick “Main Hoon Na”. He has lived upto his name in “Jaane Tu…” not only in terms of script but has been superb in direction too where he handled different emotions really well and has been able to transform the script as it is on the screen.

This movie is full of debuts as far as casting goes, few important ones being Imraan, Genelia and Prateek Babbar. Imraan has been excellent in portrayal of a chocolaty college boy character. Genelia needs some homework on dialogue delivery and some improvement on gestures however she brings freshness and an electrifying smile on the screen that at times reminds you of Juhi Chawla. Prateek did not have much space to showcase his true potential however in the little cameo he played he looked rock solid. Well that’s what you would expect out of the son of prolific performers Raj Babbar and Smita patil.

On one hand where the main cast of the movie is primarily debutant there are 2 small cameos played by 2 of the most prolific artistes of Indian Cinema, namely Nasseruddin Shah and Paresh rawal. Paresh Rawal in character of Mumbaikar Policawala justified why he is rated brilliant. Naseeruddin Shah displayed his charisma from the photo frame itself and towards the end he reminded us of his dancing skills as he displayed in “Huzoor is tarah…” and “Tirchi topi wale…”

Now I would like to make some comments on the storyline and presentation. ( I would not be discussing the story like other reviews!!) After a long time we have a nice refreshing movie on college life (probably after Ishq Vishq). It is a movie on friendship, love (between couples, parents and son, brother and sister etc.) and expression of love. It may sound a clichéd movie on college life but what sets it apart is the presentation. Presentation wise it has enough masalas, few subtle one liners (with no double meaning!) and lot of joyful moments. By no means it can be called as a comic flick however there are many instances where you will have a smile on your face and you can hear outburst of laughter in the hall and these all are situational and not forcefully introduced. At times you may find exaggeration in some of the scenes but those are not awful but they gel well with the overall film and its style. However there are some scenes with typical melodrama that may trouble some portion of the audience but those are very few in number and are widely scattered. Character of Jignesh patel (Played by Neerav) deserves a special mention (as I am studying in Gujju Land) which brings about a humorous portrayal of Patel Bhai.

This movie has enough of masala elements and some scenes reminds you of being manipulation or modified version of some scenes of 70s, example being horse scene that reminds of “Zanzeer”, talking frame sequence reminds you of TV serial “Hum Paanch”. It seems the concept of reverse positioning and disrupting positioning of brands are well utilized.(Marketing people might be able to comprehend it better J)

Now the music, if it’s A. R. Rahman it’s highly improbable that it would disappoint you. Music is refreshing and lyrics are unique compared to normal bollywood pyaar bhare geet lyrics. “Kabhi kabhi Aditi…” and “Pappu can’t dance saala…” are really cool and refreshing.

So, watch this movie if you want a 2 hrs 45 minutes light entertaining movie and you have the ability to appreciate bollywood in its pure form

For those who always want to find something “very sensible” and only facts and those who cannot appreciate some exaggeration of bollywood flicks, it’s better to stay away.

It’s paisa vasool!!

Lasting impressions of Section-A and Uppercut

An eventful year at Section –A ( a ‘Mehfil’ in its own sense) will come to end today. It was a journey with mixed memories ranging from group formation drama, SFI Presentation nautanki to T-Nite celebrations, SPEW party etc. It’s a mixed feeling with joy of stepping to tuchadom and at the same time the thought that we would not be sitting together under the roof of our very own Section-A

Ye manzil nahi bas ek padav tha doston
Jahan mulakat hui wo makan tha doston

Wo meethi baat , teekhi takraar
Jami kitni hi mahfil-e-yaar

Har kone me bani kahani koi
Dilon me rah jaegi nishani koi

Kitni hasin, kitni thi masti
Sabki alag alag thi hasti

Aaj uth jaegi ye mahfil
Khali khali se honge dil

Bhinna bhinna bhavo ka kaisa adbhut ye sangam hai
Jahan naye makam ki khushi, wahan bichadne ka gam hai

Saman dhuan badh hai, Fiza me ghula kaisa ye rang hai
Hum na honge ek mahfil me ab, yaadein lekin sang hai

……………………………………………………………… padav (tuchadom) ki aur !!

Well, it just can’t end over here; special mention to ‘Upper Cut’ is still left

Salute to ‘Upper Cut’à not just a place, but a philosophy

Upeer Cut ke din,
yaaron kitne haseen
apni alag hai ada,
yaaron sabse juda
apna hoga aasman,
apni hogi zameen
Upper Cut ke din
Yaaron kitne haseen

Alag rang hai, dhang hai
Duniya dekho dang hai
hum hain jawa
hum hain juda
har mehfil, humse jami
khwab bune hum rangeen
Upper Cut ke din
Yaaron kitne haseen