Quantcast
Channel: Movie Reviews - Nagpur Today : Nagpur News
Viewing all 264 articles
Browse latest View live

Nothing to love or say “I Don’t Luv U”

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Cast: Ruslaan Mumtaz and Chetna Pande;

Director: Amit Kasaria

Plot: Yuvaan and his college friends in Delhi whose only pastime is chasing dreams. The ogling, gawking, giggling, nudging, and winking references to campus courtship, though neatly filmed by cameraman Saurav Vishwakarma, occupy too much space in the first hour of the story when we are told, with far less subtlety than needed, that Yuvaan is an incorrigible flirt.

Yuvaan says, he believes in “sex at first sight” and, he isn’t joking, too. Later, when he gets into a sexual situation with a girl, he jumps off his bedroom windowsill.

Enter the NRI beauty, all sweetness and kindness,played by newcomer Chetna Pande. Now here’s where the plot needed to get piping hot. We wait to see Yuvaan soften the innocent campus queen and push her to do things she and he would regret later. Yuvaan doesn’t really mean any harm even when he ends up making sexual advances towards the trusting girl.

The script should have shown Yuvaan as a young sexually over-active lout who takes advantage of the guileless girl, but the script instead shows Yuvaan, too, as a victim and places all the blame for the MMS scandal on the over-zealous electronic media for over-sensationalizing the recorded clipping that “accidently” gets on Yuvaan’s phone and “accidently” leaks out.

Ruslaan is good with emotional, sentimental scenes. Chetna is one pretty girl to look up.

And, now, how the story goes to the end, wherein the society indulges in blame game, and is a happier lot for someone else’s fault this one wants to say something.

Verdict: The film tries to teach & preach and in the end the content gets breached. So you have nothing to luv or to say “I Don’t Luv U”

Yash Raj Trivedi

Nothing to love or say “I Don’t Luv U”


“Aurangzeb” may steal hearts

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Starcast: Rishi Kapoor, Jackie Shroff, Arjun Kapoor, Sasheh Aagha, Prithviraj Sukumaran, Amrita Singh, Deepti Naval, Tanve Azmi, Swara Bhaskar, Sikandar Berry, Sumeet Vyas, Rasika Dugal, Kavi Shashtri.

Director: Atul Sabharwal

Yash Raj Film’s latest offering Arjun Kapoor-starrer Aurangzeb was released today. What does the film offer to fans, theNagpur Today would like to brainstorm fans through a vivid review of the flick.

 

Plot: The story goes around and around when a hero comes with a face in the double role. Ajay (Arjun Kapoor) is the son of the real estate developer Yashvardhan (Jackie Shroff) in Delhi, who under the disguise of his property empire , runs a crime world clandestinely. Well-versed with Yash’s underworld activities, Senior Inspector Ravikanth (Rishi Kapoor) along with his team including Arya (Prithviraj Sukamaran) and Dev (Sikender Kher) kidnaps Ajay and infiltrates his lookalike Vishal (Arjun Kapoor) in Yash’s empire to know all the other partners and plans they want to carry out with ulterior motives and with their nefarious designs. Ravikanth, too, has a wicked dream to become the kingpin of the underworld by ruining Yashvardhan. In the meanwhile, Vishal and Ajay are left stunned when they come to know that they are twin brothers who got separated.

So the question is: Will the brothers unite or will they fall prey to the crooked tactics of the cops?

That’s how the story deals further. The Director Atul has paid a lot of attention to make the film glamorous. However, the glamour loses the grip as far as the actors are concerned.

Arjun Kapoor provides a double treat in his double role. His commendable promise in acting doesn’t give a memorabilia of a sort, but he is one actor to look out for in the tinsel world.

Rishi Kapoor plays his role shrewdly and managed to command power all through. Jackie Shroff blows his fans over with his wonderful stint. Prithviraj needs to brush off his Southern twang, but besides that flaw he is marvelous and powerful actor. Perhaps, south’s last gift to Bollywood! Amrita Singh, who is back on silver screen after a while, manages to stay magnetic all through.

Debutant Sasheh Agha is all about skin show and does not prove herself well.

Verdict: New talent creates competition. Arjun Kapoor’s acting is something to watch this weekend.

 

Yash Raj Trivedi

“Aurangzeb” may steal hearts

Ishkq in Paris has No Ishkq, Just Paris

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Director         Prem Raj

Producer      Preity Zinta, Neelu Zinta

Starring         Preity Zinta, Rhehan Malliek, Isabelle Adjani

Music             Sajid-Wajid

 

Plot: After a long wait “Ishkq in Paris “finally released today, though no one was eagerly waiting for the film to release not even the people who made it.

The story goes like this that Two strangers. Akash and Ishkq encounter each other on Swiss rail and become friends, owing to a ‘no baggage’ pact set by Ishkq, the two part ways the next morning without a proper goodbye. Ishkq, being the strong-headed independent girl, moves on, while Akash ends up falling for the girl he spent the evening with.

They cross paths once again in Paris but will there be ‘Ishkq in Paris’. Will Ishkq and Akash survive their test of getting over their commitment phobic nature is what frames the climax of the film.

Preity Zinta was missing from the screen for a couple of years; she bounces back with a performance that derives its zing and sparkle from the actress’ inbuilt zest for life.

Preity takes her character Ishkq beyond her own personality. Rhehman Malliek makes his big-screen debut with the film which is directed by Prem Raj.

The film also features French actress Isabelle Adjani and Bollywood hot favorite Salman Khan who made a special appearance in a song.

The only people who got claps were the music directors Sajid-Wajid for a good job they always do.

 

Verdict:

So called Romantic Comedy is “Clueless”. The best thing you can get from the film is a tour to Europe. So it’s like No Ishkq ,just Paris.

: Yash Raj Trivedi

Ishkq in Paris has No Ishkq, Just Paris

F & F6 is better than the last one, worth it!!!!!

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Cast: Van Diesel, Luke Evans, Wheels Galore

Direction: Justin Lin

Plot: Whenever we watch a film the first which comes to our mind is will it be “Worth it”?

Moreover F and F 6 also underscores the point that our own Dhooms and Races are just not in the same class, both in terms of plot content and action thrills, never mind the ongoing claims that Indian cinema’s technique is world class.

Back to the car business at hand here, written by Chris Morgan and directed by Justin Lin, who have been at it for four installments. They’re challenged, now, by the miracle of resurrecting one of its staple characters, who you thought was dead and gone. So what? She returns, alive, kicking, albeit suffering from memory loss. And since the Fast-gang had retired after their last bonanza heist in Rio, the question is – how to bring them back in action? After tall, they’re all cushily settled in exotic dream spots. Aah but wait, they do long to return to their homeland America.

Agent Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) and his partner Riley (Gina Carano) need help to bring down Owen Shaw (Luke Evans), a bad guy (I really don’t know if he’s a terrorist, a mercenary, or what) who is using his own team of car thieves to steal parts for a highly-dangerous and highly-lucrative WMD. Dom Toretto (VIN Diesel) agrees to help when he discovers Letty (Michelle Rodriguez), who supposedly died in the fourth movie, is alive and working with Shaw. Brian (Paul Walker), Ramon (Tyrese Gibson) Tej (Ludacris), Han (Sung Kang), and Gisele (Gal Gadot) all agree to pitch in for that “family” crap Dom is always spouting and to get full pardons.

Over to the combats-a-minute, then, which are executed with more chutzpah this than you’d expect in a B-grade franchise. Army tanks and an omnipresent airplane are around, besides the opportunities galore to perform gravity-dyeing martial stunts.

The second half puts the adrenaline rush in third gear and takes the story line beyond the rubber burns and skid marks. Lin focuses on the emotional bonds between the characters making them more than just steroid studs.

Verdict:

Better than the last one, F&F6 will make your throat dry. Watch it!!!!!

: Yash Raj Trivedi

F & F6 is better than the last one, worth it!!!!!

Don’t expect much, Relish love, life and friendship with Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Deepika Padukone, Aditya Roy Kapur, Kalki Koechlin

Direction: Ayan Mukerji

The Dharma Production’s film, which had created a hype before its release for several reasons , pairs for the first time the ex-lovers Ranbir and Deepika together after their bitter break up in 2010. The two had earlier worked in a hit film Bachna Ae Haseeno (2008). Ayan Mukherji is a close buddy of Ranbir and, since beginning, wanted to cast the ex-lovers.

Plot: Ranbir Kapoor (Kabir Thapa aka Bunny), Deepika Padukone (Naina), Kalki Koechlin (Aditi) and Aditya Roy Kapur (Avi) go on a trek. While Bunny, Aditi and Avi have always been close, Naina, the staid, studious girl is a last minute addition to the group. The group just wants to live life king-size. Early enough in the film, Bunny announces—marriage at 25, children at 30, retirement at 50 and then waiting for death—is not how he sees his life playing out. He wants to travel the world over, he wants to be free. Aditi and Avi share his thinking to a degree. But Naina is different. She is studying to be a doctor, believes in family traditional values, too.

The first half of the film has a great “masti”, second half is all hate-love me back story. In short, talking about the stars playing characters in the film have done nothing extraordinary. Ranbir Kapoor, after playing award winning characters inBarfi & Rockstar, has nothing new to offer, in fact, he should look beyond friendship when he takes a pick.

So is Deepika, who is looking fit, pretty hot at times. However, her acting skills and chemistry with her co-star is the same like where she left Bachna Ae Haseeno.

Aditya Roy, the new boy in the block, could not have been a hit if this film had been released before Ashiqui 2. I hope you will get it!!! So, when you will watch YJHD.

Kalki was nice. In fact, she is the one who got some laughter to the un-required comic in the film.

One of the highlights of the film is a special item song by dancing diva Madhuri Dixit. Choreographed by Farah Khan, the track titled Ghagra is Madhuri-smitten Ranbir’s introductory song. Following this, there are a few high energy dance numbers like Balam pichkari,’Dilliwali Girlfriend, that are already chartbusters. The movie also treats us with a lovely and touchy song Kabira. There are a couple of nice touches, but it needed more than a few stray smiles to save the catastrophically doomed second half, mired in boring controversies and poor plotting.

Verdict: This weekend don’t expect much but a film you watch with someone you love.

Celebrate love, life and friendship with Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani.

 

 Yash Raj Trivedi

 

Don’t expect much, Relish love, life and friendship with Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani

Dharam not Garam, Sunny not funny and Bobby is still “bobby”, YPD 2 can be missed.

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Cast: Dharmendra, Sunny Deol, Bobby Deol, Neha Sharma, Kristina Akheeva, Annu Kapoor, Anupam Kher, Johnny Lever, Sucheta Khanna

Director: Sangeeth Sivan

Plot: Dharam, Sunny & Bobby, Deols earlier struck an emotional chord with the audiences worldwide as ‘Apne’ in 2007 and took you through a laugh riot as ‘Yamla Pagla Deewana’ in 2011.

As per the prequel we know Dharmendra as Dharam is a con man, who makes a luxurious livelihood along with his younger son Gajodhar (Bobby Deol) in Varanasi, despite having an affluent elder son Paramveer (Sunny Deol) in the UK.

As the film opens, Paramveer’s undying faith in God is introduced to the audiences. He is indeed a one-man army who doesn’t refrain from calling spade a spade. Nonetheless, Paramveer’s father and brother take pleasure in conning people despite being supported by him financially and otherwise.

The two thugs – Dharam and Gajodjar – lay a trap to get hold of a UK-based businessman Sir Yograj Khanna (Annu Kapoor), who travels overseas to seek Yamla Baba’s (Dharmendra) blessings.

And with him comes his pretty daughter Suman (Neha Sharma), a diehard fan of Bollywood superstar Salman Khan. Dharam wants his son Gajodhar to impress Suman and thus make way to a plush visit to the UK along with Khanna, the multi-millionaire.

As the father-son thug duo land in the UK, they realise that they have indeed asked for trouble, for they weren’t aware that Paramveer works for Khanna. There is another agenda, of course. For Gajodhar – of the fictitious Oberoi Oberoi and Oberoi Industries fame – to marry Suman (Neha Sharma), daughter of assumed billionaire Sir Yograj (Annu Kapoor) for money. Except, it turns out she’s not his daughter, but *like* his daughter. Semantics, semantics. His real daughter is Reet (Kristina Akheeva), who very quickly becomes the apple of Param’s needy eyes.

Dharam is not that garam , sunny plays the same old sardar with “Dhai kilo ka haath” and bobby is still in the course of acting.

The new thing to see is the new face Punjabi-Brit ‘soni kud’i called Reet (Akheeva).

Music is great, and the dance number are foot tapping.

Verdict: YPD 2 is not that funny, do not compare with the prequel.

: Yash Raj Trivedi

Dharam not Garam, Sunny not funny and Bobby is still “bobby”, YPD 2 can be missed.

“Fukrey” is fun for everyone

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Cast: Pulkit Samrat, Manjot Singh, Ali Fazal, Varun Sharma, Richa Chadda, Pankaj Tripathi, Priya Anand, Vishaka Singh

Direction: Mrighdeep Singh Lamba

Duration: 2 hours 10 minutes

Plot: Makers of Dil Chahta hai, Lakshya & Zindagi Milegi na dobara brings one more saga of friendship which this time goes cheap.Fukrey kicks off with the four kickass  pals Hunny (played by Pulkit Samrat), Choocha (Varun), Lali (Manjot Singh) and Zafar (Ali Fazal) who own nothing in their life except big dreams to make it to a big college in the city.

To make their big dreams come true, they need a big budget for which they approach a lady gangster Bholi Punjaban, played by Richa Chadda, who is full of abusive lingo. She does all the illegal work to make money without hesitation and regrets nothing.

Finally she invests into the plan of the four trouble makers. But everything gets messed up.  How will they recover all that was lost and will Bholi Punjaban forgive the four notorious buddies? That is how the story deals further.

The first 15 minutes of the movie is slightly boring, but thereafter, the sequences that follow are hilarious and truly entertaining.

The four actors share a great chemistry and their comic timing is brilliant. Dialogues by director Mrighdeep Singh Lamba, and Vipul Vig could have been better to suit the sequences at most times.. Richa Chaddha from a gangster’s wife in Gangs of Wasseypur to a gangster herself here plays it brilliantly.

Music is good , Ram Sampat provides the soundtrack to Fukrey and his music jazzes up the mood of the film, with quirky lyrics and tunes from title track ‘Fuk Fuk Fukrey’, to the very likeable ‘Ambarsariya’.

Verdict: As the New Year starts, this bunch of fresher’s can’t be ragged. Happy, go, Lucky is all about Fukrey. Watch it!!

 

: Yash Raj Trivedi 

“Fukrey” is fun for everyone

For Dhanush “Yeh Hindi Cinema hai aur yahaan bhi launda kuch nahi kar paaya”Raanjhnaa joy to watch.

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Film: Raanjhanaa
Cast: Dhanush, Sonam Kapoor, Abhay Deol, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, Swara Bhaskar

Director: Aanand Rai

Plot:
we are been introduced to Kundan (Dhanush) and  Zoya (Sonam) through a voiceover that takes us back to events leading to that very moment.

Set around the banks of Banaras, we learn that Kundan is not your regular Bollywood stalker.

He obsesses and loves Zoya to the extent that every slap and rejection is a thorn disguised as a flower in his mind.

So after getting slapped 16 times, slitting his wrist and some emotional blackmailing later, the boy gets his way with the girl. Their romance is killed by the girl`s orthodox parents even before it surges when she is sent to another city to finish her studies. 8 years later, the boy grows into a man, who is now waiting eagerly to have his beloved back in town but the girl (now a grown up woman), has found a mate of a better bearing.

So what’s the wait like and what happens next is the second half which does not endear much.

Dhanush has neither the conventional good looks, nor the six-packs to cater to mainstream audience. And that strangely is his biggest asset.

Sonam play her character with no retakes as she has not much to offer.

Abhay Deol is a chocolate in the film .Probably was just been got to weight the film sponsors.

Of the supporting cast, Mohammad Zeeshan Ayyub and Swara Bhaskar are brilliant. Ayyub and Dhanush’s camaraderie and banter is humour-inducing and entertaining at times during the film.

Rahman’s melody may not give you a feeling of music like Bombay or Dil Se but still has something great to listen.

Dialogues are not once to remember other than “Yeh Banaras hai aur yahaan bhi launda kuch nahi kar paya “.

An Anand Rai’ hand on the film speaks for his Direction attributes.

Verdict: Overall a film you may watch for Dhanush & Dhanush.Ranjhnna a joy to watch.

: Yash Raj Trivedi

For Dhanush “Yeh Hindi Cinema hai aur yahaan bhi launda kuch nahi kar paaya”Raanjhnaa joy to watch.


Ghanchakkar – Fails to impress

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Director        : Raj Kumar Gupta

Cast                : Vidya Balan, Emraan Hashmi, Rajesh Sharma, Namit Das

Genre            : Suspense Comedy

To begin with, the major thought behind the concept of Ghanchakkar is captivating and fascinating, but it simply gets flimsy when it comes to bearing the weight of an entire two hour-plus film. The pace of this black comedy is subtle enough that all the characters, and not just the ‘lazy lad’ of the film’s quirky opening song, appear to be sleepwalking through it all.

The storyline revolves all around a man who has lost his memory, and the complications that he sparks off, seems destined to be quickly forgotten.

The leading roles of Ghanchakkar are a couch potato (Emraan Hashmi) who is a retired cat burglar and his talkative wife (Vidya Balan) who has an apparently weird obsession for strappy nightwears.

It presses a 1980’s plot device into the service of what is meant to be a new age comic thriller and inevitably comes a cropper.

Three guys pull off a bank person, one of the robbers suffers a memory loss, and the booty goes missing.

It isn’t that Emraan and Vidya, playing the married couple squabbling over minor things, are not given a few laugh-out-loud situations. Raj Kumar Gupta, who’s done Aamir and No One Killed Jessica before this, gives Sanjay and Neetu a cracking opening, involving bad cooking, resigned eating, and spousal sulks. Post the dining, there is the bedding. And here, where very few Bollywood movies venture with any imagination, the director gifts us an occasional smile. Balan wears wicked red horns and fishtail tights with flourish: she’s all bondage hot-and-ready, and Hashmi who usually gets to kiss and leave his lovelies, lets her make the first move.

Two shady fellows, Pandit (Sharma) and Idris (Das), enter their placid lives, enticing Sanju to get back to his tools and a bank vault stuffed with a great deal of cash. The booty, stashed in a suitcase, disappears.

The rest of the film has these four characters searching for it, shooting suspicious glances at each other, being stymied by dead ends.

This is where the film could have quickened, but it slackens instead, leaving Balan to provide a chuckle or two in her hatti katti Punjaban avatar, her accent slipping more than her deeply cut negligees. But the film doesn’t make of its characters’ quirks as much as it could have.

What makes the film worse is that none of the handful of players is a rounded figure that the audience can relate to.

Ghanchakkar, if it is remembered at all, will go down as an ill-advised change of pace for Raj Kumar Gupta, the maker of the memorable Aamir and No One Killed Jessica.

Ghanchakkar – Fails to impress

Lootera lacks flow…Watch only if you love slow

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Cast: Sonakshi Sinha, Ranveer Singh

Director: VikramAditya Motwane

Plot:

Agreed. Lootera has all the coolness and calmness that satiates your aesthetics but here’s the caution. It’s certainly not meant for those who long for little bit pace in such a romantic rain fed love story. While Lootera drives your beauty sense to new high as it matches its every frame with poetic touch…The performance of both the lead protagonists was good, the setting was somber but the crawling speed makes all seem aimless.

Though  Lootera is one film which has a lot to offer, but whatever was on the platter certainly does not click with the young taste buds.

A visiting archaeologist Varun Shrivastav (Ranveer Singh) comes to Manikpur, a nondescript picturesque town in West Bengal to excavate the temple grounds for the local Zamindar. With knowledge and experience beyond his young demeanor, Varun greatly impresses Zamindar and his family. Especially, Pakhi (Sonakshi Sinha), the Zamindar’s feisty and only daughter finds herself irrevocably drawn towards him. Soon after Pakhi falls in love, she discovers that Varun is actually a thief.

Her fellow, Varun, is a more street-smart sort, one who might not watch a film as soon as it releases but knows enough to cheekily make a reference to it later. When we first met him, he was calm, unhurried and mostly unflappable — playing an art-teacher might be a stretch for him. Nevertheless, he gamely pulls up drawing with ease, and confidently daubs the canvas with green paint. The contrast between the two characters is delightful, and the actors conjure up a fierce, throbbing chemistry.

Sonakshi Sinha has finally shown her artistic best, proving her not just a Start –daughter Sonakshi Sinha proves herself to be a star.

Delhi Boy Ranveer Singh has moved on from his boy next door image, his intensity towards his performance is visible.
Amit Trivedi’s compositions set to Amitabh Bhattacharya’s lyrics are playful (Sawaar Loon) and tragic (the soul of the film Ankahee), and they stay with you for long.

But mind you…Watch it only if you love to go too slow.

 

Verdict : Lootera looks good at sight but clearly lacks substance to push itself at the box office

- Yash Raj trivedi

Lootera lacks flow…Watch only if you love slow

Milkha runs and how! Run to your nearest theatre for BMB

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Cast: Farhan Akhtar, Sonam Kapoor, Meesha Shafi

Director: Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra

Milkha Singh’s life unfolds on celluloid as never seen before as Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra creates magic on the silver screen yet again, with his much awaited movie of the year- Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. As is expected of a Farhan Akhtar starrer, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag brought to the spectators, the perfect magic that is a permanent feature of all his movies.

The movie is pure; rather an unperturbed biopic that does not give into the stereotypical styles and clichés that this era’s films have evolved into. Milkha Singh’s life-changing events unfurl as Mehra maintains the perfect blend of his peculiar style of storytelling and raw fact-presenting ways while making the film. Like all Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra movies, this one is another atypical genre that he offers to the cinema world. Unlike other biopics, BMB is the unadulterated art in the form of a film that is not disturbed by sudden sways from the main storyline.

Farhan Akhtar’s performance as the innocent sardar who makes it big in the sports world after his many struggles, does absolute justice to the legend that Milkha Singh really was. Rewinding to the time of the India-Pakistan partition in 1947, the film depicts the traumatic time when little Milkha runs away from his village in Govindpura (now in Pakistan) as Pakistani troops invade their village only to return to a house of dead bodies of his family; the only surviving member being his elder sister, played by Divya Dutta excellently. After looking back into horror, Milkha grows up running from the ghosts of his childhood memories as regular flashes from his past keep coming back to him. His ‘run’ in movie is both literal, and metaphoric.

There are times in the movie when one realises how Farhan’s character comes into close proximity with the real Milkha Singh. Apparent from the hard work he seems to have done to make each of Milkha’s achievements seem as if his own elucidate what a brilliant actor he is. Sonam Kapoor’s brief desi-style romance with the young Milkha before his success takes us back to the time of naïve, old movie romances. Yograj Singh plays the character of Milkha’s strict coach and one of his biggest supports in the film, surprising the audience with his flawless performance.

The film does not invite an audience to watch the life story of Milkha Singh-the athlete, but Milkha Singh-the fighter. The milestones of his life where runs from his village at first, then to winning a glass of milk at the army camp and then finally towards winning the blazer of the Indian Sports Team as the champion.  The Flying Sikh’s world-breaking records and his struggle as an athlete when jealous rivals injure his leg, create the dramatic effect that one seeks in the movie.

Partha Borah said,” Patriotism, love and family bonds, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag showed that Bollywood can create much more than mere melodrama and item songs. The three hour journey through Milkha’s lifetime is fascinating and influencing. From music to the cinematography, the movie is amazing.”

Jahnabi Deka said,” Hard work and dedication never fail. BMB is a synonymous to this phrase. It is totally an inspiring film and it has left a great impact in my mind. Farhan Akhtar has done a great a job. Rakesh Omprakash Mehra- I salute you!”

Tapan Pathak said, “BMB provides to be a big relief to us where the recent movies in Bollywood created a humdrum atmosphere. It’s a high intensity movie that depicts sheer passion and the power of will and grit. It is sure to write its name in the history of Bollywood in big bold letters.”

The film sticks to your mind even after it’s over. The 3 hours, 8 minutes long movie keeps you bound to your seat only to leave an awe-inspiring impact on your mind. It was worth the wait and it is certainly worth a watch.

Shivangi Chaturvedi

Milkha runs and how! Run to your nearest theatre for BMB

D-Day: Surprises the audience

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Director                : Nikhil Advani

Cast                        : Arjun Rampal, Irrfan, Rishi Kapoor, Huma Qureshi, Shruti Haasan, Aakash Dahiya, Chandan Roy Sanyal, Shriswara

If you were wondering ‘D-Day’ is just a film about RAW agents and their mission then you were thoroughly wrong. Directed by Nikhil Advani, ‘D-Day’ gives you an optimistic visual reference to what could indeed be achieved, should one put in all what is needed to get hold of that one man – who tops India’s most wanted list. In totality, ‘D-Day’ throws light on those unsung heroes who sacrifice everything, even their identities for the nation.

Starting with, the flick is essentially about R&AW sending agents abroad to capture India’s most-wanted terrorist — a guy so obviously Dawood Ibrahim that they don’t have to call him that, just allude to it in the title. That’s preposterous to begin with but what’s heartening is that Advani, who also co-wrote the screenplay, actually tries to make it less so. Plots such as this, especially in mainstream Bollywood and in this blockbuster season of Hollywood, demand and are extended a significant amount of cinematic licence. Within that context, Advani, whether it’s in the actors he fills the corners of his scenes with or the way he goes about connecting the dots, appears to care.

But whatsoever, D-Day takes you into a world you haven’t been to before. While you have seen many thrillers with spies and raw agents, this one is different in that, it uses references to many real life instances (people and places). While the names of the characters have been changed, if you are intelligent enough, you will make the connection and enjoy the film so much more. In short, the film is about four protagonists, Arjun Rampal (Captain Rudra Pratap Singh),  Irrfan Khan (Wali Khan)Huma Qureshi (Zoya Rehman) and Chandan Roy Sanyal all with varying back stories who come together on foreign soil to bring back India’s most dreaded terrorist Rishi Kapoor as Iqbal. It explores the foursome’s journey, choices, loss, and victory While on this mission, everything that can go wrong, does. Then the hunters become the hunted and it is upto the foursome to try to make alive out of the neighbouring country.

What comes as an impressive factor is that after big budget bonanzas with big stars (Kabhie Alvida Na Kehna, Chandni Chowk To China, Salaam- E-Ishq), Nikhil Advani makes a gripping, tense film on a tight budget and minus an A-List actor.

So in conclusion I would add that D-Day is an efficiently made thriller, with some outstanding performances. The film excels in portraying the dark reality of the underworld, with an impressive end.

D-Day: Surprises the audience

Ramaiya Vastavaiya : Reciting “Maine Pyar Kiya” in different tone

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Director                : Prabhu Deva

Cast                       : Girish Kumar, Shruti Haasan, Sonu Sood

It may sound a bit too directly judgmental, but this piece of bollywood flick dint stand by public expectations. The name of famous dancing dive, Prabhudeva, being attached with RV, it was expected that the story will bring a concept of fresh air along. However, not completely failinf to stand by the expectations, after having delivered macho movies like ‘Wanted’ and ‘Rowdy Rathore’, Prabhu Deva has done a fair job with ‘Ramaiya Vastavaiya’, but it has nothing new which has not yet been seen before.

In the very beginning itself, you will be reminded of the Kajol-Salman-Arbaaz story of ‘Jab pyaar Kiya Toh Darna kya’! But, although not a marvellous effort, the film does a commendable job of going rustic in order to explore humble novelties, it has hardly anything new to offer — except the lead actor. To its credit, it’s entertaining in bits but that has more to do with accidental comedy than anything else. In fact, the camera blatantly revisits several iconic scenes from the bygone Bollywood films every now and then.

The storyline of the movie revolves all around that one thing, love! Let it be brotherly love, sisterly love or the love between two people who are attracted to each other. Sonu Sood – who plays an over-protective brother – takes care of his sister Sona, played by Shruti Hassan, after their mother dies. Raghuvir – played by Sonu – educates his sister and never lets anything or anybody hurt her. All he desires is to find a down to earth guy who can keep his sister happy in their own village. However, as luck would have it, she falls in love with an NRI, Ram – played by Girish Kumar – whom she meets at her best friend’s wedding. Then starts the typical love-hate relationship, which actually culminates into proper head-over-heels, let’s grow old together kind of love. Sadly, this doesn’t stay for long and then comes the clichéd separation and the guy’s desperation to prove his love.

The boy’s parents are too proud to let him have his way and the girl’s brother is too scared to let her away. And there are other elements too who add to the clichéd drama.

And while we are at it, Atif Aslam’s voice renders two mesmerizing lines as a signature to yet one more romantic rollercoaster in place.

Girish Kumar is fine-tuned and provided a rather comfortable space for a newcomer. Moreover, his affable character retains a comical touch throughout. Shruti Haasan stays gorgeous but does very little otherwise. As her onscreen brother, Sonu Sood reminds you of Arbaaz Khan in ‘Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya’. Amongst the senior actors, only Vinod Khanna holds his own.

So bottom line, this movie reminds you of the old bollywood concept, a rich boy falling for a village belle, that is nothing extraordinary! It’s a high time for the filmmakers to realize, that Bollywood fans seek a glimpse of fresh air, with fresh and peculiar story line.

Ramaiya Vastavaiya : Reciting “Maine Pyar Kiya” in different tone

‘Issaq’ lets expectations down!

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Director        : Manish Tiwary

Cast               : Prateik Babbar, Amyra Dastur, Rajeshwari Sachdev and Ravi Kishen

Director Manish Tewari frames ‘Issaq’, and how! This ‘not-atol-appreciated’ flick has definitely let the expectations down.

Talking about the movie in brief, Issaq, the Romeo and Juliet retake by director Manish Tiwari is starring Prateik and Amyra Dastur. And this is what she messaged us: “Prateik and Amyra fail to do justice to the small town characters they are playing in the film. The protagonists’ disappointing performance clashes with the beautiful locales of Varanasi…ironic! The supporting actors – Ravi Kishen, Makrand Deshpande, Prashant Narayan, Vineet Kumar Singh from Gangs of Wasseypur fame are the real heroes of the film – they are rustic to the core. Half the film is over and Issaq is still trying hard to recreate the classic Romeo and Juliet passion, but unfortunately we don’t feel the love yet!”

Let’s move on to the story of the film. No spoilers here, just what the director has already said — Issaq is an adaptation of Shakespeare’s much-adapted Romeo and Juliet. The counterparts of Capulet and Montagues are Kashyap and Mishra. (If you missed this stunning usage of alliteration here, you should probably never watch a Bollywood film ever again.)

There are too many cracks in the film’s script. Trying to elucidate the tale of two families who have a history of rivalry between them, the writers unnecessarily adds a communist angle to it, almost to enrage you. With very little knowledge of what pushes communist terrorism to the brink of violence, the Laal Salaam part of the story is forced and pointless.

The film is inconsistent. It failed to keep us hooked, and Prateik and Amyra simply cannot manage to step into the shoes of small town sweethearts. Their urban accents, the way they dress and how they carry themselves – nothing complements the rural and charming appeal of Benares. The quarrels look pointless and romance is flat and dispassionate.

Issaq is a tedious film which retells the story of amateur love. A flaky plot and wavering narrative makes Issaq a novel concept that is compromised at the altar of the director’s need to prove his artistic bent. I am going with a 2/5 for this one. Those precious 2 hours of my life are never returning!

‘Issaq’ lets expectations down!

‘The Wolverine’ is a stunning perspective for Cinema Industry

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Movie            : The Wolverine

Cast                : Hugh Jackman, Rila Fukushima, Will Yun Lee

Director        : James Mangold

The Wolverine, directed by James Mangold (Walk the Line, 3:10 to Yuma) and written by Mark Bomback and Scott Frank, is also something of an anomaly in the current, unstoppable wave of comic-book-based movies. It has all the requisite special effects and big-ticket action sequences – including a fight on a moving train and a climactic punch-out between the hero and a villain in an oversize metal suit – but it also has an unusually intimate, small-scale feel. Inspired by a series published by Marvel in the 1980s, it has more old-style comic-book atmosphere than Man of Steel or Iron Man 3. Instead of expounding a tedious origin story or staging an epic battle for apocalyptic stakes, The Wolverine focuses on a specific and self-contained adventure in a richly imagined place.

The very first shot of The Wolverine is a stunning perspective. We’re on the shore looking out over a large body of water. The sky is blue, sprinkled with clouds. In the distance, we see what turn out to be B-29 bombers slowly approaching. Pan to the right to reveal a Japanese POW camp, where soldiers desperately make preparations for their final moments. They release the POWS, except for one. Logan, aka Wolverine, sits in a subterranean holding cell in the middle of the camp. A sympathetic soldier named Yashida opens the cell to release the dangerous prisoner but instead of running, Wolverine pulls Yashida beneath the ground and protects him with his own near-indestructible body from the atomic blast that destroyed Nagasaki.

Cut to the present. Logan has renounced violence and is leading a solitary existence in the Yukon. That’s not going to last very long, however. Yashida (Hal Yamanouchi) has sent one of his minions — a petite, red-haired, butt-kicking foot soldier named Yukio (Rila Fukushima) — to retrieve Logan and bring him back to Japan, so Yashida can personally thank him for saving his life in Nagasaki.

Oh, did I mention that Yashida is now the richest and most powerful man in Japan? He heads up a tech company and let’s just say he doesn’t really want to say good-bye to Logan: he wants to harness Logan’s immortality. In the process, Wolverine gets mixed up with Yashida’s son, Shingen (Hiroyuki Sanada); his fetching granddaughter, Mariko (Tao Okamoto); and an equally fetching but far more dangerous mutant named Viper (Svetlana Khodchenkova).

The frames canned by director of photography Ross Emery too are worth a mention. He has captured Japan with all its aesthetic beauty. He has also combined the latest digital technology with images from traditional lenses to deliver a characteristic look and feel.

Deemed to be an action film, the script provides high voltage action sporadically.  Unfortunately, the fights that keep you glued are synthetic and bloodless and the climax gravitates instead of surging to the zenith. “The Wolverine” is not a bad film at all.

‘The Wolverine’ is a stunning perspective for Cinema Industry


‘BA Pass’ displays the impact of privileged and powerful on the weak and vulnerable

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Movie   : BA pass

Cast       : Shilpa Shukla, Shadab Kamal and Rajesh Sharma

Director: Ajay Bahl

Efforts worth appreciation, as BA Pass comes forward as a story of a young man’s journey into the world of prostitution, the man being impoverished. Debutant director Ajay Bahl has created a gem, which shines as a work of art, showing life’s most grim and harsh reality. This is a story of Mukesh’s (Shadab Kamal) descent into prostitution, the journey being full of brutality.

This sharply written, smartly edited and evocatively shot film lands all its blows well-nigh perfectly, without having to overplay its hand.  Adapted from Mohan Sikka’s short story, ‘Railway Aunty’, it’s about the doom and desperation of Mukesh and the path he undertook to come out of an ignominious existence. This film explores the options before the young gigolo and the choices that he makes.

It is an unflinching, scalding tale that exposes the heart of darkness that lies under the serene, genteel veneer of middle class life in Delhi. The film opens with a funereal scene of an extended family in mourning over a double tragedy. It closes with a shockingly distressing finale. And nothing that happens in between provides the minutest glimmer of hope. Yet BA Pass is never less than riveting.

Love is not even a distant mirage in this emotionally arid urban outback, and the sex act is indulged in with clinical coldness, only as a means to exercising power over the meek, not as a pursuit of pleasure by a pair of equal partners.

A teenage boy (Shadab Kamal) loses both his parents in an accident. He is forced to leave his small town in Punjab and move to Delhi, to his aunt’s unwelcoming home in a Paharganj railway officers’ colony. Manipulated by the wife (Shilpa Shukla) of his uncle’s boss (Rajesh Sharma), he is drawn into the licentious lady’s boudoir and from thence into male prostitution. He is quickly sucked into a bottomless abyss. The boy needs money to fund his studies and his two sisters’ stay in an orphanage. The sexual predator next door puts him in touch with other similarly inclined ‘aunties’ in the neighbourhood and he soon begins to earn enough to be able to dream of escape for himself and his hapless siblings. His only friend is a cemetery caretaker (Dibyendu Bhattacharya) who he befriends as a result of a shared passion for chess. The teenager adores Kasparov, his sparring partner swears by the older Karpov. But there is much else that separates the two. Violence is a constant presence in this heartless world. The lovemaking is rough and leaves bruises and scratches that linger long enough on the body to singe the soul of the boy at the receiving end. And all this is always just one catastrophic step away from brutal blood-letting.

The downbeat drama, which marks cinematographer Ajay Bahl’s directorial debut, plays out in a benighted world of dangerous liaisons and false moves where the privileged and powerful prey relentlessly and mercilessly on those that are weak and vulnerable.

BA Pass is a movie not to be missed.

‘BA Pass’ displays the impact of privileged and powerful on the weak and vulnerable

Po, Po, Po… Onboard Chennai Express!

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Star Cast       : Shahrukh Khan, Deepika Padukone and more…

Director        : Rohit Shetty

Producer      : Gauri Khan, Ronnie Screwvala, Siddharth Roy Kapur

Genre            : Drama

The Chennai Express train has finally arrived! So pack your bags and ‘Ready, Steady, Po’ to take a trip to the colourful, exciting and fun-filled world of Rahul and Meenamma! Being the solo-festive-release this Eid, Chennai Express is expected to take the nation by storm. The film stands strong and tall on the shoulders of the super powerful ‘Brand Shahrukh Khan’. The movie promises lot of entertainment and if things go fine in the movie’s favour, Shahrukh is sure to cast a magic spell on the audience again.

Shahrukh Khan: Shahrukh Khan screen name is Rahul. He is a cool going guy lives in Mumbai with his grandfather.He is a bachelor, who has a good quality of loving every one (over-loving).One fine day Rahul accidentally boards a train journey where he finds a girl (Deepika) in the journey, that not only takes him to his destination, but also makes him realise the power of True Love!

Deepika Padukone: Deepika Padukone screen name is Meena.She is called as Meenamma by her loved ones.She is a South Indian lady who stays in Komban village with her huge family (Joint family).She lost her mother when she was a child. As discussed earlier, One day she meets Shahrukh Khan in a train journey and falls in love with him in this journey.

The story of Chennai Express revolves around a 40-year-old bachelor Rahul (Shahrukh Khan), who lands up in a totally unexpected journey, while he travels from Mumbai to Rameshwaram. But, for Rahul what follows is a series of adventures where he finds himself in new surroundings, challenged with an unfamiliar language!

Rohit Shetty, the Director plays to the gallery and lifts many iconic Bollywood situations and invests immensely in buffoonery. He’s even got writers Farhad and Sajid’s pen numerous inane one-liners that mock his and Shah Rukh Khan’s earlier movies.

The method isn’t novel, but is definitely chuckle-worthy. At least, some of it is. But Rohit’s uneasiness is evident when he’s forced to restrict his trademark action thrills to a few scenes, and focus on the funnier escapades instead.

He even changes tracks mid-way, hoping to ride on SRK’s famed romantic image, and prompts him to crinkle his nose, flaunt his dimples and directs much attention to his legendary gaze, but with so much madness going around it’s tough to take anything serious.

That said, it’s Deepika Padukone, who manages to overshadow SRK with her incredible beauty, cute dimples and a consistently over-the-top accent. Despite being given a character that could easily turn into a caricature, she manages glamour and comedy well. That’s an incredible feat considering she’s just a few films old.

That said, Rohit obviously gives Shah Rukh immense attention, allowing him to display his vintage antics, and spread his arms in his trademark style at many occasions. Evidently these are crowd-pullers, so SRK loyalists won’t be disappointed.

Po, Po, Po… Onboard Chennai Express!

Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai Dobara : The blend of romance and action din’t take it too far

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Film                : Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai Dobara

Director        : Milan Luthria

Starring         : Akshay Kumar, Imran Khan and Sonakshi SInha

The movie is a sequel to the 2010 film, “Once Upon A Time In Mumbai,” a biopic about the rise of Mumbai gangster Sultan Mirza through the city’s underworld.

Once upon a time in Mumbai Dobara is all about when gangsters were heroes, there lived a mafia king called Shoaib Khan (Akshay Kumar). He was a charismatic man with womanizing expertise. Milan Luthria directed Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai Dobara revolves completely around this don and the characters played by Sonakshi Sinha and Imran Khan are only secondary.

The movie begins from where the prequel Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai ended. Only this time, it is Akshay Kumar who is Shoaib Khan instead of Imran Hashmi who played the role in the first part. Shoaib, a successful don who assassinated his mentor, the previous don Sultan Mirza has now earned his share of respect. OUATIMD is set in the 1980s of Bombay, where Shoaib’s sole interest is the supremacy of Mumbai, but his heart is swayed by a lovely lady called Jasmine (Sonakshi Sinha).

In the movie, Shoaib is like a godfather to Aslam (Imran Khan). Aslam was spotted by Shoaib during one of his visits to the slums. The tagline of the movie says ‘This time it’s personal’ and yes, we do see a lot more than crime and killing. When Shoaib’s passion for Jasmine grows into something more, there arises a rift between the young Aslam and godfather Shoaib. The two vie for Jasmine’s love.

Most romantic films end with a trip to the altar. Most endorse the fairy tale aspect of love. The romance in OUATIMB is real and good old style. Akshay Kumar plays the bad guy unapologetically. He is chilling as the dreaded don and endearing as the helpless (and later dangerous) man in love.

OUATIMD’s crowning glory is Akshay Kumar who goes all the way with his “negative” act in one of his career-best performances. The scene where he walks into a police station in broad daylight and then walks out as casually is one of the film’s high points. The last 30 minutes of the film belong only to him and he rises way above the script with his raw and gritty persona.

But however, set backs of this movie have dominated. With Akshay Kumar, who isn’t a Khiladi anymore but is a ‘complete game’ as he says in the film, OUATIMD is unexpectedly a big time let down. We didn’t expect Luthria to peek in the minutes of the law-breaking world as he didn’t glance into it in the original Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai. What we anticipated from him was to maintain a similar verve in premise, which won accolades in the limelight of Ajay Devgan and Imraan Hashmi earlier.

Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai Dobara : The blend of romance and action din’t take it too far

‘Madras Cafe’– Review by Prashen Kyawal

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

 

Madras Cafe : Decaffeinated Coffee

Cast: John Abraham, Nargis Fakhri

Director: Shoojit Sircar

Barring a few, War films in Bollywood usually have a typical over the top melodramatic treatment. Often the movie makers try to play to the gallery with the patriotic card. However, hollywood have many quality war movies with underplayed narrative style. Madras Cafe is such a movie from hindi film industry which raises the bar of movie making in India.

The movie is based on civil war in Srilanka in the 1980′s and 1990′s. The era which witnessed struggle for resources between Srilankan’s Tamils and Sinhalese (two ethnic groups in Srilanka) converted into full blown civil war due to the demand for separate state “Tamil Eelam” by LTTE (named as LTF in movie). It uses the civil war as backdrop while taking creative and cinematic liberties to present a story which will intrigue the audience throughout the movie.

The movie revolves around Indian Intelligence agent from RAW, Vikarm ( played by co-producer John Abraham ), who is assigned a job to make sure that the scheduled elections in Srilanka (which are part of a peace processes initiated by the then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi) get peacefully executed. He has given specific mission to weaken the powerful separatist militant group LTF by hook or crook with the help of a officer, Bala who is already posted in Jaffna. Through his initial attempts which fail to achieve his goals, Vikram realizes that there is much more to the game than the brief he got about it. He gets involved in a bigger plot drawn by global players to secure their own interests in this part of the world. Eventually it leads him to the conspiracy and unfortunate event of assassination of Rajiv Gandhi. Thus the film presents a narrative of Srilankan Civil war, India’s intervention in it and its eventual aftermath in a big budget action movie format.

Sujit Sircar and writers Subhendhu Bhattacharya, Somnath Dey and Juhi Chaturvedi join hands together to create a taught screenplay with a linear narrative (even though it gets revealed in series of flashbacks). They have purposefully chosen to downplay the violence and aggressive patriotic fervor. Even though the story has many events where they could have been little more dramatic but they did not choose to manipulate them. They stuck to the docudrama style narrative which builds exponentially and gets the audience involved slowly in the happenings. This is what makes this movie unique and worth a watch.

The efforts put in by the writing team in screenplay gets a boost as Sujit Sircar takes up the mantle as a Director and gives complete justice to the screenplay. He keeps the simplicity quotient alive as he unfolds the story visually on screen. However, with the help of his DOP ie Director Of Photography, Sircar succeeds in getting the look of a big budget, big canvas movie. The denatured color palette used in the color scheme of the movie continues the underplay factor in screenplay and directive style further. It also adds an International look to the movie. Along with the writer, director and DOP, film editor Chandrashekhar Prajapati deserves credit for cutting the crap and focusing on what is necessary to transcend the vision of the director on screen.

Madras Cafe has a strong support from its ensemble cast. Casting director Jogi goes out of the usual list of supporting cast and gets on board few unusual faces like Siddhartha Basu, as Vikram’s boss RD, and Prakash Belawadi, who plays Bala. For me first half is salvaged due to the performance given by Prakash Belawadi. Quizman Siddhartha Basu impresses and proves that he is a natural in front of the camera. Apart from that John delivers the job he is given to play. Though I am not sure if I can praise him for his job. I am unimpressed by Nargis Fakhri who plays Indian-American Journalist Jaya who is friend of Vikram in the movie. Though she was written off as a non actor by many in her debut movie “RockStar”, I thought she was good in that movie. Despite the PR machinery using that story to get media space by claims of Sujit Sircar that Madras Cafe will be a relaunch movie for Nargis and it will get her noticed, she is strictly OK in the movie. Funny are the scenes with Vikram where she talks in English and he in Hindi. Why can’t he just reply her in english or vice versa? I found their scenes as kind of unsuccessful attempts to look cool. It did not work out. Everyone else ably supported the film through good performances.

Movie has no songs which is great as no one feels a need for it. Background score by Shantanu Moitra is apt. John Abraham as a producer needs a big pat on his back and needs to be applauded to support such project whole heartedly. The production value of the film is impeccable. Visual Effects, Color Correction and DI by Prasad EFX is of high quality.

This is movie needs right kind of audience to watch it in theater and I fortunately had same. Though the movie has lukewarm response and only 4-5 rows at the back (higher ticket price rows) were filled, I thought it reached to its correct audience. I do not think if it converts well in terms of money but the movie will do good in multiplexes. It will also be good for TV/DVD viewing. Madras Cafe is meant for such audience who like underplayed docudramas.

However for me it was like a decaffeinated coffee. It would have not harmed if the characters would have connected emotionally more with the audience. A pinch of humor here and there would be a great help too. Not for the sake of comparison but just to give an example, if you remember Kahani also had an underplayed and realistic treatment. But it had higher entertainment quotient with the help of humor and emotional connectivity. Lack of it masks Madras Cafe dry and drab story telling. Though second half makes for it and intrigues clients into the assassination conspiracy. It made the film paisa wasool for me. And I will suggest you also see it.

 

Recommendation: For the lover of sensible cinema, it is a must watch. It is high quality cinema to come out of Bollywood.

Do watch if you like decaffeinated coffee. I like my coffee Strong! :)

Review by Prashen Kyawal

‘Madras Cafe’ – Review by Prashen Kyawal

Satyagrah : Movie Review by Prashen H. Kyawal

$
0
0

Nagpur Today : Nagpur News

Satyagrah: an(ap)shan(ap) tales

 

Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Arjun Rampal, Manoj Bajpayee, Amrita Rao, Indraneil Sengupta

Director: Prakash Jha

Satyendra Dubey! Most may have forgotten this name but many others will never forget it. Satyendra Dubey was a project director at the National Highways Authority of India. He was murdered in Gaya, Bihar after fighting corruption in the Golden Quadrilateral highway construction project. For every Indian who cares for news about injustice, his murder left a deep scar inside their heart. This and many such events including day to day fight with corruption, Kejariwal’s silent movement through yahoo groups regarding RTI, candle light marches for Jessica Laal case with effect of Rang De Basanti on the young generation, culminated in unbelievable support for Anna’s Anti Corruption Movement in and around August 2011. Through Anna, Kejariwal, Kiran Bedi and team, people vented out grievances saturated inside since decades.

It was obvious that Prakash Jha who is known to take inspiration from major social issues, will use this subject to create a movie. After the stupendous success of Gangajal, Prakash Jha has developed sort of a formula for his films. A formula which is evident in films like Apaharan, Arakshan, Raajniti, Chakravyuv. But did he give justice to the subject at hand in Satyagraha?

Story of this movie is set in a fictional town called Ambikapur. Amitabh Bachhan plays role of Dwaraka Anand aka Daduji, a well respected teacher who lives life on his own principals with his son and daughter-in-law. Ajay Devgan plays role of Manav Raghavendra, who is a friend of his son. He is often criticized by Daduji for having materialistic ambitions and dirty business tactics. Daduji’s son gets killed in a road accident (inspiration from Satyandra Dubey case?). Then due to some turn of events, Daduji is arrested and jailed for 7 days for slapping the collector of the district. Manav gets back to town to get Daduji out of jail which eventually becomes a big movement. How that happens and what happens next is the film all about.

Story and screenplay written by Prakash Jha and Arjun Rrajabali fails in taking real life events and turning them into gripping drama on celluloid. The film fails flat from start and never lifts up. Infact post interval, it dwindles down rapidly and never gets up. Barring 2-3 scenes, audience does not connect with the story and its characters. The characters are not crafted well and things happen haphazardly.

Since the foundation is weak, Prakash Jha, as a Director also fails to create a strong structure on it. The movie is stale, drab and uninspiring. He could never achieve the magic he had created in Gangajal. Even Rajniti too fall flat post interval. He is taking his audience for granted. Prakash Jha must get his act together or soon he will be in dark corners like RGV.

Performance wise except Manoj Bajpayee (Balram Singh, the minister) and the woman who pleads Daduji to eat roti, everyone else is strictly ok. Ajay Devgan sleepwalks through the role. Kareena Kapoor (Yasmin, the journalist) looks out of place. Arjun Rampal (Arjun, a local leader) looks foolish in some scenes while he garden walks on the dais. His character has no background and detailing.

Cinematography by Sachin Krishn is passable. Background Music by Salim-Suleiman is ok. Songs by Indian Ocean, Anjjan Meet and Adesh Shrivastava is forgettable. Production quality is as per budget.

With such promising start cast, powerful production house and such interesting subject, Prakash Jha fails to create a movie which can entertain and motivate audience. I think he wanted to show what can happen if such movements are handled immaturely without strong fundamentals of non-violence. However, the message could not reach effectively. And thank God in reality, the people at the helm were mature enough and nothing anarchistic happened.

In short, the story of Anna’s real life movement (in August 2011) was much much interesting with unpredictable twists and turns than Jha’s failed reel life attempt.

Recommendation: Watch only if you can not miss a Prakash Jha movie. Even then you can wait for its TV premier. Others can spend their time in some other entertainment activities.

Satyagrah : Movie Review by Prashen H. Kyawal

Viewing all 264 articles
Browse latest View live


<script src="https://jsc.adskeeper.com/r/s/rssing.com.1596347.js" async> </script>