Shahrukh swag, Dabangg and steamy farts.

Winters huh! Yeah I am not too fond of them. I mean they are okay. A bit hyped actually. The only thing I like about winters is the Shahrukh Khan feel that it gives me every morning as I walk out of the bathroom. You know what I mean, right? That feeling, down there in that picture.

Yeah I give that Shahrukh Khan entry every time I walk out of the super steamy bathroom. Yup the swag and all...

I have noticed SSM give me a weird look every time I  make that classic entry from the bathroom to the bedroom. He is probably impressed at my swag. But actually he has been giving me that look ever since I took him to watch Dabangg 3. Rather, from the time I walked out of the theatre and shouted BEST. MOVIE. EVER. A lot of people gave me the look too. I am pretty sure they were overwhelmed by the cinema as well and it was a look of mutual admiration. Well. SSM has been giving me the look since then. I guess he is unable to express his awe. But I get him.

So well, 2020 resolution is to start blogging again. And here I am. And like all resolutions this may not stick around too... but I will try. Because crazy keeps happening.

It is not my fault really that I stopped blogging. When I was doing my day job, I had the laptop open in front of me and there was no other option than to blog. Because I rarely worked. Now that I am at home I don’t see the laptop and I don't blog. So I have asked SSM to switch on the laptop every morning. Not because I am lazy but because he needs to have some fun thing to do too, besides giving me the look.

The winters this year are seriously cold. Ri, Rai and I went for a walk last evening and we were steaming from our mouth. Ri was having fun blowing air from his mouth watching it steam. He then asked me, Ma would we see steam if I fart too. I kept staring at this butts all the time we were out. I am not sure if he did fart. But I was happy with the though of steaming farts.

It is Ri’s birthday today. He turns 9. Happy birthday, love and may the year be full of steamy sparkly farts.

Book Review - Eye of the Eagle

While I have enjoyed reading short stories for children by Shirsendu Mukhopadhyay, I have never read any of his thrillers. And so when Bee Books (the publisher) approached me to review this book. I decided to take it up as a chance to try out the thrillers by the author. I would like to clarify here that I cannot read Bengali fluently and the books I have read are all English translations.

Eloger Chokh (Eye of the Eagle)

The Characters…. 

Three Women and Bishan
Wife Shivangi, wife's friend Nandini and Jahnavi 

The turn of events...
Nandini is brutally murdered!
Shivangi is found in the bedroom, lying half naked and fatally injured.
All evidences are pointing at Bishan. But, is it that simple? 

And the truth…
Eye of the Eagle delves into the complications of relationships and world of complicated characters where mystery unfolds only through the eyes of Detective Shobor!

***

I found this to be a quick and good read. Very urban and revolving around complex relationships. The books had interesting characters and I particularly like detective Shobor’s characterisation. The suspense, although predictable, was well maintained till the end.

It is being made into a film too

You could buy the book here - http://amzn.to/2ak6A2d 

I am not promoting Paperboat, but I love them.

Me: Hey we forgot to taste the Paperboat guava drink. Let’s try it now.

SSM: Okay

We sip it

SSM: hmmm a bit like paaka pyara (ripe guava) na, with mirchi!?

Me: It is not. It is like kacha pakka peru (Not so raw not so ripe guava) with mirchi.

SSM: It is OKAY!

Me: It is OKAY with the first sip. Gets better as you keep sipping it. Try.

SSM: Yeah, you are right. It is good.

Me: Reminds me of the pink peru we used to it when we were kids. I don’t think they grow them anymore. Sigh.

SSM: (sipping) hmmm.

Me: Hey, check this out… you can actually suck it in while keeping your head straight. You don’t have to roll your head back to take a gulp. This is so cool!

SSM: How does that matter?

Me: Of course it matters. This is like the whole things is a huge straw. It is like magic.

SSM: Sigh, it is science.

Me: Oh, Shut up. This is the awesomest thing ever. (awesomest should be a word) I mean you could be reading a book and drinking this. But you don’t have to shift your glance away to take a sip. You can just read and suck at the same time. You don’t even have to pour it in a glass and use a straw anymore.

SSM: When do you ever use a glass and a straw to drink something while reading!?

Me: I don’t, but I could. And now I don’t have to. I have to tell the Paperboat guys about my wonderful realisation about their bottles. They should totally send me free drinks for bringing out this super USP for their product.

SSM: They do that anyway, weirdo!

Me: That’s true too. Yeah. But I love the Paperboat guys. 

***

In the meanwhile, check this awesome little short film that they have come out with. :)

1.2.3.4. Get on the dance floor...

***SPOILERS*** - Well, not really.


If you have been stressed, depressed or on an all time low for a while, then do go and watch Chennai Express. If you think senseless comedy can add a few laughs to your life, then do watch Chennai Express. If you agree that the world would be boring without stupidity, then do watch Chennai Express. Actually, just go watch Chennai Express.

The film has the famous train sequence which, as we all know, adds extra brownie points to my film likeability. I am not going to explain the train scene. I have done it twice before. You can read it here and here.

But beside that Chennai Express is a riot. Nothing to think about, no intelligence required, a full on good old Bollywood style entertainment is what it is all about.

I laughed a lot, I hooted, I jumped and whistled. I did everything I do when I enjoy a stupid film. Yes, I seriously enjoyed it.

I think Shahrukh Khan and Deepika Padukone performed with superb timing. It reminded me of the Shahrukh from Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jaayenge. I loved Deepika's possessed act.

Shahrukh comes back as Rahul again, a forty year old Rahul. Rahul who again wants to have fun and love is, well, meant to have fun. Rahul ends up falling in love with the runaway Meena, a don’s daughter who wants her married off to another beefy neighbourhood don. Ultimately Rahul, after having bashed up the beefy don and his goons, and smeared his own face with blood and mud, convinces the father don that he is the right guy for Meena.

So as you see, it is a regular bollywood plot, - in Rohit Shetty style. Rohit Shetty has made a complete family entertainer.

It will make you laugh and laugh out loud; unless you are the nose up in the air kind of a person who thinks it would challenge your existence on earth if you laugh at anything unintelligent.

Of course the film does have it annoying bits – like the dwarf who goes ‘tock tock’, like Shahrukh trying to spoof his own films with "My name is Rahul and I am not a terrorist" or "Rahul, naam toh suna nahin hoga", like Deepika going “tum kya karti”, “kidhar jaati”.

But then this is not a critic’s film after all. You really should not try to find logic in the film.

So go watch it. If you love Bollywood; you will enjoy Chennai Express.

PS: There is a tribute to Rajnikant at the end of the film for all us Rajni fans. Do not miss that.

 

 

 

 

Lootera - Review.

*SPOILER ALERT*   *SPOILER ALERT*   *SPOILER ALERT*

Lootera. There are various reasons why I loved the film; various passionate reasons.

***

I will begin with reasons that are, well, personal.

The moment the movie began and I realised that it was shot at the Itachuna Rajbari, it was enough for me to know that I love the film. Itachuna Rajbari is one of my favourite weekend getaway places.

The last time I was there, I had spent hours exploring the place; every corridor; every room; every nook and corner. Seeing and relating to all of that in the film was sheer pleasure.

Then they showed Mocambo. The Mocambo. The favourite eating place Mocambo. Need I say more?

And then the plot was based on The Last Leaf – one of my favourite O’Henry short stories.

So I constantly had ‘These are the few of my favourite things’ ringing at the back of my mind.

***

And now, on to the film - Lootera.

Vikramaditya Motwane’s Lootera is a film based during the post-independence period. The zamindar (Barun Chanda) and his daughter, Pakhi (Sonakshi Sinha) live in palatial mansion. They believe that life will continue with the same grandeur, untill the government of India passes a law to deprive all zamindars of their power. The government also seizes the zamindars land.

This is when enters Varun Srivastava (Ranveer Singh), introducing himself as an archeologist who needs to study the land owned by the zamindar. Varun and Pakhi fall in love as they bond over poetry and painting, and finally the zamindar father fixes up their engagement.

It gets revealed on the day of their engagement that Varun had been nothing but a con-man who had vanished after having robbed them of their wealth; leaving Pakhi heart-broken for life.

The second half of the film is based in Dalhousie where an ailing Pakhi stays with her maid (Divya Dutta). The film then progresses the O’Henry's The Last Leaf way.

I really enjoyed the story line. I enjoyed how the tale of a con-man was blended flawlessly with O’Henry's short story.

Sonakshi Sinha And Ranveer Singh did a decent job.Sonakshi, though needs to work on expressions. There were times when it was getting difficult to guage whether she was getting angry or having an asthma attack. Ranveer really needs to open up his mouth to deliver dialogues He just mumbles. Divya Dutta was brilliant in a role that required immense under-acting.

The cinematography is overwhelming. I loved the fact that the film was shot in natural light. Every scene looks like a beautiful painting - breathtaking. The music is splendid.

The film did have a couple of, flaws.

I mean I am quite sure that no Bengali zamindar’s daughter who would have studied in Shantiniketan would really be into reading Godan – Premchand or reciting Hindi poetry. If the director was not okay about using Tagore he could have very gone ahead and shown her reciting a Wordsworth or a Keats. That would have been more authentic.

Also the fact that there was not a single soul during the chase sequence at the streets of Dalhousie seemed unreal.

Anyway, the flaws were not prominent enough to bring down the brilliance of the film.

I think Vikramaditya Motwane delivered Lootera to perfection.

Do watch the film.

***

PS: If you haven't read O'Henry's The Last Leaf, you can read it here.

O’Henry’s The Last Leaf was also made into television serials years ago on Doordarshan. I remember watching it in the show, Katha Sagar – made by Shyam Benegal. You can watch it here.

The story was also used in one of the episodes of a serial named Honi – Unhoni. I was unable to get a link for the same.

Why I liked Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani

 

The train starts moving; the hero is at the door; the heroine is at the platform. The hero leans out of the door; stretches his arm out; the heroine starts running; she runs fast in slow motion; she then manages to hold his hand. The hero then pulls her up into the train.

As a rule, if a film has this scene, I am bound to like the film. It is my all-time favourite Bollywood scene. And that’s what happened with Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. Yes, I did like the film.

 

The film is not great; the film is not bad. The film is likable.

No one did an exceptionally great job.

Ranbir Kapoor did what he does best – playing cute.

Deepika Padukone did what she does best – playing intelligent and geeky.
Kalki Koechlin did what she does best – playing Kalki.

No, it’s not about great acting. It’s not about a great story line or about great music. It’s not about a great script either.

But what it is about, is a great deal of niceness.

Remember that dear friend who gives you a nice tight hug when you meet? It always happens; it’s clichéd; yet, it is one of the warmest feelings you can experience.

And that is exactly the feeling Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani left me with; loads of warmth.

 

PS: Madhuri Dixit did what she does best – look gorgeous.

       Farooq Sheikh did what he does best – awesome acting.

PPS: It's not a film I would want to watch again ever. but I did like watching it this one time.

Bombay Talkies

This is not a review. These are just my views of the anthology film.

(Contains spoilers.)

I enjoyed Bombay Talkies. I carried the film back with me after I walked out of the movie hall. I discussed it with various people and finally decided to write about it.

 

Karan Johar’s Ajeeb daastan hai ye – It began with a bang; in a very non Karan Johar way; with a beginning that would shake you up and makes you sit up and watch. Touching up on the sensitive topic of homosexuality he gave us a very intense audacious film to mull about. Astute and poignant relationships coupled with brilliant acting by Rani Mukherjee, Randeep Hooda and Saqib Saleem.

Saqib, constantly reinforcing the fact that he is gay to everyone he met, with a need to rebel against the system and Randeep trying to conceal his sexuality preference and the fight with himself; the conflict of mind they both go through; the undercurrent attraction and passion – it was all brilliantly portrayed. Rani too was fierce and superb

Except for a couple of sleazy dialogues - gale me mangalsutra, aankho me kamasutra – (said by a fresher to a boss just did not make sense), there were some very witty one-liners. The songs (Ajeeb Daastan hai ye and lag ja gale) were aptly used to augment the film.

Dibakar Banerjee’s Star – If you have read Ray’s Patol Babu filmstar you would agree that it is not an easy story to be made into a film. And that was my apprehension when the film began. But Nawazuddin Siddiqui was spectacular. It’s always a pleasure watching him act and he did a perfect Patol Babu.

I thought that Nawazuddin could have done a better job with the Marathi dialogues. Somewhere I felt they lacked the clout. Sadashiv Amrapurkar was brilliant, just brilliant. Seriously, he was awesomely brilliant.

The cameo by the emu was a true feel good. And as I write this; just the thought of the final shot by Nawazuddin, silently enacting the day’s story to his daughter, against the melancholic tune by Tagore; modified by Banerjee is giving me goose-bumps.

For those who haven't read Patol Babu Filmstar do read the story here. (english translation)

 

Zoya Akhtar’s Sheela ki Jawaani – The film began with numerous kids saying what they want to be when they grow up. So I thought it was about kids and their dreams.

Then there was this child who had no interest in football but yet he was being forced by his father to play the game since it was a very ‘guy thing’. This led me to believe that the movie was about wrong parenting. The boy then started showing interest in his mother’s makeup and jewellery and dressing up like a woman. So I said to my self, “Oh this is a LGBT story”.

And then the boy started showing keen interest in dance and wanted to be Katrina Kaif (The movie also has a fairy Katrina Kaif giving advice to the boy about hiding his dreams till others are ready to accept them). Then he began helping his sister to make some money by dancing to Sheela ki javaani so that she could go for a school trip. And I thought, “Ah this is about sibling love.”

 Somewhere the film confused me. I couldn’t gauge what message Akhtar was trying to give us. It also ended very abruptly.

The high point of the film was the acting capabilities of both the kids, especially the boy. It sure was a difficult role to act.

 

Anurag Kashyap’s Murabba – The initial dialogue where the father conveys to his son Vijay to get a solitary murabba tasted by Amitabh Bachchan so that he can then eat it – as his last wish, was enough for me to know that I had already fallen in love with the film. That, followed by the Bachchan song made it sure for me.

The entire quest by the son to get the murabba tasted by Amitabh Bachchan; the struggle and the anxiety he goes through for it was brilliant. Vineet Kumar Singh has amazing acting skills. A cameo by Amitabh Bachchan is always welcome. Don’t we all just love his mere presense on the screen?

I loved, LOVED, L.O.V.E.D. the Bachchan song.

Somewhere being a supper sucker for anticlimax I would have liked the movie to end where the jar falls off and the murabba gets stamped upon. BANG! That’s it! But well.

The tagline Achaar ke martabaan me murabba nahi rahte failed to impress me.

***

The anthology film ends with star studded song celebrating 100 years of Indian cinema. It did not feature Salman Khan; Hence I refuse to talk about the song.