Jaane Hoga Kya – Now I wasnt expecting anything great from this long-in-the-making-released-hurriedly film. So, what turned out was a pleasant surprise. And not because of its content. But for the inadvertant humor that the film provides. Ok, so what’s it about? Cloning! Don’t choke on that coke, it is actually a film on human cloning. And how the directors (Glenn-Ankush) portray it is the best comedy released this year. As per this film, to make a clone there has to be two plastic covered ‘capsules’, connected to a computer. So, ‘data’ will move from one capsule to another, as heat rises, and out of steam a new human will be formed! Wow! That simple!

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Mai hoon ik khanabdosh
Saara jag mera watan

For those who wonder the reason of my prolonged absence, the above quote and the post’s title will give away the reason. Yes, I am now in Agra – once again away from home, and in yet another historical town.

Things happened quite suddenly. At least, the shifting part. Even though, I can’t claim I have fully done so because I am still living in the company’s guest house and have only brought one travel bag. I plan to go back to Delhi sometime next week, once I have the possession of the flat, which I have selected.

The flat is an awesome one, providing a beautiful top-angle, wide-panaromic view of the Taj Mahal.

But first things first – how did I end up here? Frankly, even I wasn’t too aware that the interview I had given was for Agra’s position. When the HR lady called up to give package details, and other stuff, she casually mentioned that the place of posting is here. For several seconds, I was in a dumb stupor. And the lady had to repeat thrice to confirm that she had understood my shocked grunts as an affirmation to the offer.

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[ For her own personal reasons, Priyangini stopped writing some time back. The regulars on her blog will recall (with a twinge of nostalgia) her superb writings especially the sweet-n-sour suitor sagas and the mesmerising musical posts.

But I guess you can't keep a good writer away from penning his or her thoughts. So, Priyangini has also once again picked up the pen. And it is the privilege of Random Expressions to have her here as a guest writer, to write on the most talked about movie this season, Omkara

OTHELLO-BHARTIYA STYLE, By Priyangini Mehta

Then must you speak
Of one that loved not wisely but too well,
Of one not easily jealous but, being wrought,
Perplexed in the extreme; of one whose hand,
Like the base Indian, threw a pearl away
Richer than all his tribe; of one whose subdued eyes,
Albeit unused to the melting mood,
Drop tears as fast as the Arabian trees
Their medicinable gum. Set you down this,
And say besides that in Aleppo once,
Where a malignant and a turbaned Turk
Beat a Venetian and traduced the state,
I took by th’ throat the circumcised dog
And smote him thus. (V.ii.352–365)

These are the final words of Othello just before he stabs himself to death in remorse for his weakness. My mom, an English Literature student told me once that when the recitation of Othello ended in her class, there was a pin-drop silence for almost one full minute.

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Welcome to India’s first superhero; and as that, Krrish does remarkably well. Rakesh Roshan’s films have always been fairly entertaining, including the ill-fated Kala Bazar and King Uncle. And now, he has improved vastly on the technical side which makes viewing more pleasurable.

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Warning : For those who havent seen the movie – the review contains spoilers!

Subhan Allah! They still make movies with an old-worldly charm, which is like having a tasteful and lovingly served meal that leaves a lingering aftertaste of flavor and fulfillment. Fanaa is a fantastic follow up by Kunal Kohli to his other emotional mellow-drama Hum Tum ; and as a director he displays a natural maturity progression in his craft and subject, tackling a deeper version of romance than his previous two films.

Fanaa is definitely not for GenNow. They will not understand the leisurely pace; nor the hushed unfolding of a tender romance between a blind girl Zoonie Ali Beg (Kajol) and her guide Rehan Quadri (Aamir Khan) set against the backdrop of Delhi’s historical heritage – who suddenly leaves here with love, eyesight and a child; neither would they gauge the strained undercurrents between Zooni and Rehan when they finally meet again, constrained by a storm raging outside, destroyed by a storm blasting within.

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Film Review

I like Abbas Mustan, the film industry’s sole director duo. Generally they pick up a foreign idea, indianize it, garnish it with good music, add a dash of comedy and serve a slickly packaged dish. Khiladi, Baazigar, Chori Chori Chupke Chupke, Aitraz, Ajnabee, Badshah and Humraaz are some of their good movies. With their brother Hussain Burmawallah at the editing table, Abbas Mustan’s films always have a smooth narrative flow. 

Having grown up on a staple of Agatha Christies, Hindi films’ murder mysteries always leave me unfulfilled. So in that respect 36 China Town had a tough standard to live upto. But if for a moment we leave Christie-comparison aside and view 36 China Town individually as a film, it is definitely entertaining, and all above mentioned standard Abbas-Mustan ingredients are present. 

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Last night Zee aired The Hero – Love Story of A Spy ; the film was a box office dud, but somehow I had  enjoyed it at that time. Watching it again was equally interesting. This was the review I had written to send to Filmfare at that time.

With a song on his lips, power in his biceps, punch in his voice, here comes our dashing, daring and dynamic hero. He changes his appearance faster than a chameleon, crosses the LOC single-handedly to save his beloved, preaches about nuclear bombs, and wins the hearts of the masses with his charms. 

With his penchant for Sunny Deol, Pakistan-bashing and climaxes in fast moving trains, Anil Sharma returns with his latest patriotic saga, titled, very aptly- The Hero. The sub-title (Love Story of A Spy) is a misnomer, but then, Gadar (Sharma’s previous big hit) had a ‘love story’ in its name, so we can assume it was added for superstitious benefits. Else, the love story in the film is even less loose than Pakistan’s reason for claiming Kashmir!!!
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I admit I am not too well versed in Kalpana Lajmi’s cinema, and haven’t watched any of her films barring the refreshingly honest Ek Pal. My association with her is restricted to Lata Mangeshkar’s extremely eloquent ‘Dil Hoom Hoom Kare’ from Rudaali. Hence, I approached Chingaari with an open mind, and to say it left me cold is a major understatement. 

Chingaari is one of those B-and-C-grade films masquerading as an art film. It is a puerile and pathetic piece of cinema that has neither the content nor flow to captivate audiences. It seems Lajmi’s intention was to shock and sensationalise the audience without any care for aesthetics or form. 

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This review was written the same day I saw the film, which was on 4^th February. But seeing the overwhelmingly positive reactions for the film didn’t have heart to publish it. Till the time I told Anubha about its existence. She reprimanded me for not putting it up and reminded me that on my blog I had complete right to write whatever I felt. True, perhaps I have been playing to the gallery quite a lot, and taking ‘the popular’ tag a bit too seriously than warranted. Thanks Anubha for the reality check! 

Blame it on the huge expectation – but fact is I found Rang De Basanti just about ok, a different film, but just about that. Somehow it couldn’t involve me into its narration. There were too many incoherent details which left me cold – some were minor quibbles regarding Delhi’s depiction: why the hell did Sonia (Soha Ali) take Sue via Red Fort if they were going to University from Delhi Airport?  There is a much shorter and convenient route! And then, that was clearly not anywhere close to Delhi University for sure! It was India Habitat Center passed off as DU! 

Even though Rakeysh Mehra struggles to deploy a conventional story telling format, he is unable to fully discard the now-standard jump-cuts and fast-track editing styles; at few crucial points these neo-modern techniques crop up horrifyingly. The post-interval lathi charge scene is one prime example. Instead of gripping the audience in a tight-fist and knocking a solid punch, he shows a collage alternating between slow-motion and hazy movements with a dull song in the background. The entire sequence’s steam, whose build-up begins with Ajay Rathod’s death, dissipates away like a pressure cooker rudely taken off the burner! 

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Film Review

A day in the lives of Mr. Wood and Mr. Grumpy (with Ms. Hefty thrown in) is what sums up this short but fairly interesting film. Milan Luthria moves several notches upwards from Deewar and Chori Chori, but does not still encompass the flourish exhibited in his debut Kachhe Dhaage. In principle Taxi 9211 is much like that film- two men from extreme strata of society meet, and their destines intertwine making them realize about some harsh realities of life.

The story is quite nice, and I won’t reveal it here leaving the viewers to discover it – that’s the fun of watching the film.

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From Mukesh’s soul-stirring (and melodious) Zinda hoon iss tarah to Shibani Kashyap’s guttural scream (and off key) Zinda hoon main, Hindi film music has come a long way; and so have its noir heroes. From Raj Kapoor’s humorously dark but essentially tracing roots in light, bumbling tramp to Sanjay Gupta’s nether-conceptualised Armani- wearing sinister baddies is another journey that Bollywood has taken. 

I would have given Zinda a complete miss had it not been the only film playing in nearly all top Kathmandu cinema-halls. Family, the other release, and my own choice, has not made its way here yet. To give Gupta his due credit, Zinda is perhaps his most cohesive and steadfast narrative to date. I wouldn’t go overboard as some critics have done in lauding about ‘realism’ because that is still truly not fully present here, though I can understand where they come from. But yes, there is a sense of starkness and throat-grabbing urgency that is, if not appealing, but certainly very attention-focussing. 

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Film Review

Ex-rediff staffer and writer Suparn Verma makes his directorial debut. His roster of writings includes Chhal and Karam, definitely not the ‘feel-good’ films. In addition, he also has the dubious claim of scripting the insipid Janasheen. Had I known this background, I would have avoided EKEH at an arm’s length. Anyways, I had the (mis)chance to watch this ‘thriller’ first day (third show) in a nearly empty theater (if this was the state on first day, only a miracle can save this film; and that miracle will not be ‘word-of-mouth’ publicity for sure!).

The film opens on similar lines as Musafir - a conman inadvertently cheats a don’s henchman; and the don gives him a few days to return his money – so what’s the common DVD source for both? Thereafter, the film takes on a path full of turns, leaving at times the audience baffled as whom to believe. In that essence, the film works. Plus, the cons are better written and executed than Bunty aur Bubli. But the end-twist is so contrived, it just does not hold water – especially in light of some events shown previously.

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Film Review

You would have known ‘impulse buying’; we all indulge in it at some stage or the other. But have you heard of ‘impulse movie watching’? If no, then I take credit for creating this new marketing mantra. (Err, hope you do not think me to be mentally as imbalanced as the film’s hero).

I had gone for a meeting; it was near Jai Cinema. On impulse, I walked into the theater to watch Kyunki. Ever since its release, I wanted to view it. At home every one vetoed the idea. No one wanted to see a depressing film during Diwali. (I guess that has been the film’s biggest folly. People flocked to see the utterly soporific Shaadi No One, but avoided this one). And by now it is too late to salvage its fate. The hall was fifty percent empty when I saw the movie today.

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Every time I read a film review in the newspapers, I am always left wondering how much of it is true and genuine, and how much a mere extension of the PR plan of the producers. If in a good week some four films are released, is it humanly possible for someone to see all four and write comprehensively or cohesively on each of them?

I have a lot of friends who decide to watch a film basis the next Times of India review; Nikhat Kazmi (their resident critic) is an excellent writer (in fact, she is one of my inspirations) and her views are often right on track; but, I never form my opinion of films purely on her comments. For me, she is an enjoyable writer who just happens to comment on films!

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