Kannada Matinee Star 'Sahasa Simha' Vishnuvardhan No More

Today's early morning news came as a big shock to most Kannadigas when they were rudely awoken by Vishnuvardhan's sudden demise.

Born as Sampath Kumar, he was given the screen name of Vishnuvardhan by Puttana. Vishnu was a veteran of more than 150 movies and has acted in lots of award winning movies, most memorable of them being Mutthina Hara with Suhasini.

He stormed the theatres in his debut movie Naagara Haavu by Puttana which was an instant hit. This regional language movie was later remade in Bollywood as Zahreela Insaan, where Rishi Kapoor played the role of rebel Ramachari.

He also acted in a few Hindi movies along side Akshay Kumar in Ashaant and Zaalim.  Prior to this he was also seen in the movie Inspector Dhanush. Of these, Ramsays made Inspector Dhanush and Ashaant.

His association with Dwarkish was fruitful and they delivered a series of hits with Raja-KuLLa combo. He also starred in Nishkarsha which was heavily inspired from Die Hard. Vishnu excelled in movies of all genres - drama, action and comedy. He went on to gather 7 Filmfare Awards and many other state honours. So popular was his persona and stature that the state govt declared a holiday as mark of respect and mourning. May his soul rest peace. And may God give strength to his wife and two adopted daughters.

New Game Show : Abhishek Bachchan's Aaram Classes

Now that Big Boss is over, Abhishek Bachchan will be seen on the same channel at the same time from 23rd Jan, hosting a new TV show. BigB will be replace by his son AB Jr. The show is called Satruday Night Bingo and will be played in great leisure. A regular game of "housie" will just become a little more fun with celebrities and of course the common men. Watch out!

You can catch up with AB on facebook

Checkout the website of colors channel to play this game.

Kishore Kumar Sings : Guni Jano Bhakt Jano

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Etx0Y5YmACs&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1]

guni jano re bhakt jano
hari nam se nata re jodo bhayi maya se munh modo re
jagat narayan ki jai jai bolo bolo
nagad narayan ko chhodo re, jagat narayan ki

are rajdhan, are gajdhan, gajdhan rajdhan
rajdhan gajdhan rajdhan anajdhan
lal ratan dhan khan re
aayo re jab santosh-dhan baba sab dhan dhul saman re
bolo re sab dhan dhool samaan re
dhan to hai deewar ret ki, dhan se priti todo re, jagat narayan ki

jai govindam jai gopalam

duniya karti rup ki bhakti kaisi maya-roop re
arre ham to uske bhakt hain bhakto jisne banaya roop re
sundar nari pritam pyari chhavi dikhalaye
jai govindam jai gopalam
suno suno chal chitram ki katha sunaye
katha sunaye bhakt kishoram, jai govindam

brahmaande he koti sitaram prithvi par bhi anek sitaram
arre aashirvadam ashokakumaram
prithvi-putram raja-kapuram shammi-kapuram shashi-kapuram
ramam shyamam dilip-kumaram purab-pashchim manoj-kumaram
arre premapujari dev-anandam, roopa-pujari IS-joharam
arre nilam-kamalam raj-kumaram, yade yadam sunil-dattam
are ittefaqam rajesh-khannam jai jaani rajendra-natham
uchhalamakudam jai mahamudam

are swarg lok mei ek hai indra, arre prithvi karey hain teen indra
arre jai jitendra jai dharmendra jai-jai-jai ho jai rajendra, jai govindam
jagat narayan ko chhod ke santo, nagad narayan ke hain sab yaram
nagad narayan ke

in sabake pichhe arre pad gaya income taxam
arre bam bam nache kishor-kumaram, bam bam nache

'sarfaroshi ki tamanna' revisited

piyush mishra re-wrote the legendary song for the movie 'gulaal' keeping in mind the current scenario. and he has done a wonderful job.



sarfaroshi ki tamanna ab hamare dil mei hai
dekhna hai zor kitna bazu-e-qaatil mei hai
waqt aane pe bataa denge tujhe aye aasmaan
hum abhi se kya bataye kya hamare dil mei hai

o re bismal kaash aate aaj tum hindustaan
dekhte ki mulk saara kya tashan kya chill mei hai
aaj ka launda yeh kehta 'hum to bismil thak gaye
apni aazaadi to bhaiyya laundiya ke til mei hai'

aaj ke jalso mei bismil ek goonga gaa raha
aur behron ka wo rela naachta mehfil mei hai
haath ki khaadi banaane ko zamaana lag gaya
aaj to chaddi bhi silti angrezo ki mill mei hai

dekhna hai zor kitna bazu-e-qaatil mei hai
waqt aane pe bataa denge tujhe aye asmaan
hum abhi se kya bataye kya hamare dil mei hai
sarfaroshi ki tamanna ab hamare dil mei hai

American Beauty : Where?

The movie did not work for me at all, it was crass. I felt it was hyped because of the director-actor combination, but lacked substance. The acting was brilliant, no two ways about it. But what I hated was that, there was not a single sane character in the movie. I dont enjoy a movie thats filled with characters/caricatures but lack depth.

You have Kevin Spacey who is suffering from inferiority complex and the only thing he looks forward to is his daughter’s friend, that's a sick mind where sex becomes a goal to work for; not family, not wife or children but an object of lust tat too someone who is 20 years younger; I can still accept that becasue its not a moral issue. Meena Suvari, who actually reciprocates Spacey’s lust; does she have a mind of her own or what? Annette Bening is shallow too; she cheats on her hubby by sleeping arnd instead of confronting the truth, and continues to live selfishly in a bad marriage. Thora Birch who is low on confidence and the only thing that would cheer her up is a boob-job; and the sudden interest shown by her nerdy neighbour actually turns her on because no one has ever seen her in amorous way.

The drug peddler who tries to find beauty of life in shooting flying polythene bags and death, how demented. And his army-burdened dad who suspects that his son is gay.

While i do agree that America has lots of such families with such characters, but I would definitely not believe that all these characters would be found in the same family. Yes, you can find these characters but in different families, you dont bring in all fuckin nerdy characters in the same house. Come on .. gimme room to breathe. This is a potboiler situation where you bring in all the wacks/freaks you can think of and put them in the same frame and call it ‘american beauty’

movie poster : love sex aur dhokha

This is the poster of Dibakar Bannerjee's latest movie. His previous successful movie was Oye Lucky Lucky Oye [OLLO] which starred Abhay Deol. Click PFC to know more

devaa aa gaya … DevD has arrived

“devaa aa gaya”… announced Dharamdas[Tiku Talsaniya] in 2002’s version of Devdas. But my Dev hadn’t arrived yet. What SLB did was excellent, poetry on celluloid; but what AK has done is more like a sonnet. I would not like to compare the two becasue SLB had his version while AK has his own subversion [pun intended].

SLB took great pains to re-create the past, an old era near Hooghly while AK has done a whole lot of research to portray Dev for the present and future. He has set a benchmark for other writer/directors becasue this is a movie that respects the sensibility of a mature audience. AK has gone a few notches up in the story-telling department. Black Friday looked like a docu-drama and No Smoking went into a fantasy and looked like AK had lost control due to his over-indulgence; but DevD is a perfect blend between visual imagery and story-telling … like Coke with Vodka.

I have followed DevD diaries and have been reading about it from inception to conception to gestation and finally reproduction. And it was worth the time that it took, becasue he has got everything right; well almost. I thought the second half dragged a bit, lost a bit of momentum; but it ended well.

AK has moved Devdas to Punjab, from Kolkata, and rechristened him as DevD. That in itself is a huge shift and makes us realise that Dev belongs to Gen-X. He has pleasure trips, guilt-free sex, enjoys a good smoke and lots of liquor, has sex-chat with Paro; in fact his dad quips in that Dev has acquired new taste .. “chicken chhodke fish, whisky chhodke vodka aur asli ladki chhodke sookhi baas ki bamboo ke peeche bhagna”. Thats Dev, always running away; sometimes from Paro, sometimes from Chanda and most of the times from himself.

He loves Paro immensely but his arrogance gets the better of him. He loves her so much that he breaks a bottle on the head of one of the villagers who brags that he has had a nice fuck with Paro and that she is great in bed; but his chauvinism does not permit him to make love
to her. So great is his arrogance that he belittles Paro, breaks her heart and pushes her away to marry somebody else. The realisation dawns on him only when her ‘doli’ is about to leave with the blaring ‘Emotional Atyachar’ in the background. Perfect song that describes the feeling and captures the emotions of Dev.

Then enters Chanda in his life. A precocious girl who was wronged by her boyfriend, he shot a video of her giving a BJ and circulated it. The shame that her parents go through when media guys hound their house waiting to make a scoop, finally makes her run away. She has been disowned by her mom as well as her friends who refuse her calls and she finally lands up in a dingy brothel, or should we call ‘pleasure house’ where rich brats visit. Dev is also brought here by a pimp called Chunni.

Some people don’t find love all their lives, but Dev fortunately or unfortunately finds love twice; this time in the form of Chanda. But both the times he fails to recognize it. When he was with Paro he did not realize it was love till she left him, and now that he is with Chanda the thought of Paro keeps haunting him. He wants to meet her once, make love to her. Meet he finally does, but Paro has moved on in life. She has been mature enough to compromise and she accuses Dev of not being in love with anybody but himself. And thats the last we see of Paro, totally out of Dev’s life. While Dev is still not able to accept this fact he drowns himself in alcohol and in his drunk stupor
he over-runs 7 people o the footpath in his BMW.

In the final reels, after his dad’s death he has a near miss accident when a car crashes against a wall beside him. And that brings in a new consciousness and he decides that he has to move on. I shall not reveal the ending but all I can say is that this Dev is a guy of the new generation; and hence the ending had to be new and believable too. A special mention should be made of the fantastic music-lyrics duo, Amit and Amitabh have done an excellent job. All the songs are apt and they have been weaved into the movie; they are almost like a smooth narrative. Mahi Gill as Paro was brilliant in the movie. She has everything it takes to make an actress, an amazing range of expressions – from grief to grin, from anger to anxiety, from love to loathing…everything. Kalki as Chanda was good but she could not express herself through her voice and face; she needed lines.

The editing was slick and 360 deg camera rotation was used to great effect. Cinematography was fantastic, capturing the beauty of Punjab, the loneliness of Delhi streets, the filthy room of Dev, dingy brothel areas; everything was shot well. And finally, Abhay and AK…from concpet to conundrum…they created it. Abhay has rasied the bar for himself, he is no longer competing with anyone but himself. I am waiting for his next and of course AK’s next titled Gulaal. Until then
… dhol yaara dhol.

This post was first published on PFC

stills from 'rocket singh'

Working on the look of Rocket Singh[Ranbir Kapoor with Jaideep Sahni]

Kishore Kumar Sings : Priye Praneshwari

priye praaneshwari, hridayeshwari
yadi aap hamey aadesh karey to
prem ka hum shri ganesh karey
priye praaneshwari

ye chakshu tere chanchal chanchal
ye kuntal bhi shyaamal shyaamal
ye adhar dharey jeevan jwaala
ye roop chandra-sheetal sheetal
o kaamini
o kaamini prem vishesh karey
yadi aap hamey aadesh karey to
prem ka hum shri ganesh karey

ho sanchit punyon ki asha
sun vyathit hriday ki mridu bhasha
sarvasv samarpan karde hum
karo poorn hamaari abhilasha
gaj-gaamini
gaj-gaamini door klesh karey
yadi aap hamey aadesh karey to
prem ka hum shri ganesh karey

ham bhramar nahi is yovan ke
ham yaachak hain mann upvan ke
ham bhaav pushhp karde arpan
saakaar karo sapne mann ke
man-mohini
man-mohini, mann mein pravesh karey
yadi aap hamey aadesh karey to
prem ka hum shri ganesh karey

Bina 'Anarkali' Rai Passes Away

A popular actress of yesteryears, Bina Rai, passed away in the morning hours of 6th Dec' 09. Not many people/channels reported about it.

She will be most remembered for her performance in and as 'Anarkali'. She also later went on to essay Mumtaz role in the movie 'Taj Mahal'. Pradeep Kumar had played the hero opposite her in both movies. She did a couple of more movies after 'Taj Mahal' and then quit the scene. May her soul rest in peace.

20 Best Movies In 100 Years Of Indian Film History

1. Meghe Dhaka Tara – Ritwik Ghatak (Bengali, 1960)
2. Charulata – Satyajit Ray (Bengali, 1964)
3. Pather Panchali – Satyajit Ray (Bengali, 1955)
4. Sholay – Ramesh Sippy (Hindi, 1975)
5. Do Bigha Zameen – Bimal Roy (Hindi, 1953)
6. Pyaasa – Guru Dutt (Hindi, 1957)
7. Bhuvan Shome – Mrinal Sen (Hindi, 1969)
8. Garam Hawa – M S Sathyu (Hindi, 1973)
9. Mother India – Mehboob Khan (Hindi, 1957)
10. Ghattashradha – Girish Kasaravalli (Kannada, 1977)
11. Elippathayam – Adoor Gopalakrishnan (Malayalam, 1981)
12. Mughal-e-Azam – K Asif (Hindi, 1960)
13. Nayagan – Mani Ratnam (Tamil, 1987)
14. Kaghaz Ke Phool – Guru Dutt (Hindi, 1959)
15. Apur Sansar - Satyajit Ray (Bengali, 1959)
16. Sant Tukaram – Vishnupant Govind Damle, Sheikh Fattelal (Marathi, 1936)
17. Jaane Bhi Do Yaro – Kundan Shah (Hindi, 1983)
18. Guide – Vijay Anand (Hindi, 1965)
19. Madhumati – Bimal Roy (Hindi, 1958)
20. Anand – Hrishikesh Mukherjee (Hindi, 1971)

mere paas 'PAA' hai

When I first saw the trailer of the movie, I was a bit surprised as to why BigB's get-up was made to resemble a zoozoo. That bulbous head was a bit of a turn-off. But on further read-up I found that the character was suffering from a rare ageing disorder called 'progeria'

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCCk8VZaEb0&hl=en_US&fs=1&]

The word is now out that the movie is inspired by Francis Ford Coppola's movie called 'Jack' which starred Robin Williams. Here too, smallB is married to Vidya Balan and they give birth to a baby who suffers from genetic disorder. Enter BigB, a kid who ages at four or five times the pace at which normal humans age. So, at age of 10 he would look 50.

But unlike 'Jack', where Robin Williams longed to live a normal life, earn his pride and place in society and graduate from college just as Rani Mukherjee did in 'Black', this movie is very different. Only the premise of the rare disorder is the common thing between 'Paa' and 'Jack' but both movies have been taken to different logical conclusions.

This disorder can throw new light on the research of ageing, to find factors as to how and why people age. Hayley Okines, in 1999, was diagnosed to be having this condition and she spread the awareness. Just as TZP created huge awareness about dyslexia, hopefully this movie will do the same to progeria.

Wish all the best to the movie makers that it does well. Special wishes and prayers to Amitabh Bachchan, as he is producing the movie under ABCL banner. More power to him, amen! And hoping to see some great acting from the father-son duo, who play a father-son relationship, but its reversed role-play. Cheers!

Lessons To Learn From Noah's Ark Experience

• Don't miss the boat. 
• Remember that we are all in the same boat! 
• Plan ahead. It wasn't raining when Noah built the Ark.
•  Stay fit. When you're 60 years old, someone may ask you to do something really big.
• Don't listen to critics; just get on with the job that needs to be done. 
• Build your future on high ground. 
• For safety's sake, travel in pairs. 
• Speed isn't always an advantage. The snails were on board with the cheetahs. 
• When you're stressed, float awhile. 
• Remember, the Ark was built by amateurs; the Titanic by professionals. 
• No matter the storm, when you are with God, there's always a rainbow waiting.

Jeevan Ek Sanghursh : Dede Mera Dede Tu Bees Rupaiya

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLfQbRsDY34&hl=en_US&fs=1&]

filmfare awards 2009 … bucking the trend

Finally, sanity is being restored, or at least an effort is being made to do so, in the 54th Filmfare Awards. I was so glad to see movies like Rock On, OLLO and MMJ winning, and movies like RNBDJ and Dostana taking a backseat. Although the nominations were a little fuzzy[some categories had 5 nominations and some had 6, just to please a few people I guess], but given the limited scope of the nominations, most of the awards were well deserved.

Let me start with the Lifetime Achievment Award section. Bhanu Athaiya was a very good choice, especially because costume designers have never really been given their due. In fact, the Best Costume Design category was introduced so late, in 1994, only after seeing what Manish Malhotra’s costume did to Urmila Matondkar; from a demure girl next door he turned her into a sex symbol overnight. Back to Bhanu, she won the Oscar for Gandhi[1982] and that’s been her greatest achievement till date. But considering her work in Bollywood, she did a good job in Lagaan, Swades,1942ALS, Chandni and Razia Sultan. Her list of work shows her predilection and brilliance for period dramas where she has a fantastic sense of color, fabric and designing.
Om Puri being awarded this, ahead of Naseeruddin Shah, that was a bit of a disappointment. I think they should have been awarded together at least. These two giants of the arthouse cinema in the 1980’s did some terrific work. They have not been given enough credit, but this award is probably a way of doing so.

Coming to the Critics Award, Shahana Goswami was deserving of it. Her work in Rock On was awesome, her raw talent and the spontaneous expressions shone through very well. But at the same time, Manjot Singh for OLLO was not a very good choice in my opinion. In fact, Paresh Rawal and Abhay Deol deserved it more than Manjot. And outside ofOLLO, Paresh Rawal for MMJ or Naseer for A Wednesday would have been a much better choice. Nishikant Kamat forMMJ was again a good pick, but I don’t understand this Special Jury Mention for Prateik Babbar and Purab Kohli. What does this award mean? And why Prateik Babbar?? For slouching on the couch, being untidy, and having the foresight that Sushant Modi[Ayaz Khan] is not the right guy for his sis?? And Purab Kohli! He had nothing to lose in Rock On, he was just caught in-between Arjun Rampal and Farhan Akhtar’s ego clash. When they called the band off, he happily joined his dad’s business; when the band was reinstated he started driving around in the SUV once more. He was happy either ways and did not help further the cause of the story.

Talking about stories, Best Story for Rock On was a little surprising. Lots of films in 2008 had amazing stories to tell, like Aamir, A Wednesday, MMJ. I kept cosoling myself that Dostana and Ghajini did not win it. Best Screenplay was awarded to MMJ and Best Dialogues to OLLO and I had no complains with it.

In the techincal awards section, two awards that I didn’t agree at all are Best Costume Design and Best Art Direction. I thought OLLO was shot on location, so where was the Production Design. And the costumes looked like everyday stuff, jogging suits, sneakers, waist-coats, casual wear. In fact, Jodha-Akbar deserved both these awards, for the elaborate sets and the intricate jewellery and costumes. I would like it if someone can explain this to me.

I was happy with all other awards, like Best Cinematography and Sound Design for Rock On, Best Editing went toMMJ, it could have gone to A Wednesday or Aamir too[except for the dragged last 20 mins]; and I cared less for Best Choregraphy, Best Action and Best Visual Effects where the winners were Pappu Can’t Dance Saala, Ghajini andLovestory 2050, respectively.

I was totally ok with the debut award for male, being shared by both Farhan Akhtar and Imran Khan; similarly the female debut award should have been shared by Asin and Anushka Sharma, instead Asin took it home.

Arjun Rampal for Best Supporting Actor was good, but Kangana Ranaut for Best Supporting Actress was unexpected and undeserved. Shahana Goswami for Rock On or  Ratna Pathak for JTYJN would have been a much better choice. The problem with Kangana’s performance is that, she is unidimensional and has no range. Give her such a role, and 9 out of 10 times, she will just sleep-walk through it like in Life…In A Metro or Gangster or Woh Lamhe.

Music awards were doled out pretty judiciously. Sukhwinder Singh for Haule Haule and Shreya Ghosal for Teri Orewere really good choices. For the award of Best Music Director, I am sure it must have been a close fight betweenShankar-Ehsaan-Loy who produced some great score for Rock On and ARR who was also competing against himself with 3 nominations. But, ARR winning for JTYJN did not go down well, I shall consider this as an award for all the good work Rahman did in 2008, i.e., Jodha-Akbar and Ghajini included. And ARR for Best Background score of Jodha Akbar was good news. Regarding the RD Burman award, not sure how this is rewarded, but I think Amit Trivedishould have been awarded. Finally, the lyrics award for Javed Akhtar was also fine for his simple and meaningful words in Jashn-e-bahara.

Talking now about the mainstream awards, no complains about the Best Director and Best Movie. Ashutosh Gowariker did a great deal of research and a lot of hardwork went into Jodha Akbar. There was nobody more deserving than him, in the category. I would like to contest the Best Actor and Best Actress, though. Taking for granted that its more of a popular vote, Hrithik and Priyanka still did not deserve it; they may have won but they were not the best. In fact, newbie Anushka Sharma and Aishwarya Rai did a better job in RNBDJ and Jodha Akbar, repectively. Even if it was popular vote, then Aamir Khan and Aishwarya Rai should have won.

All said and done, I think the awards were balanced out pretty well. I would any day accept these results than watchRNBDJ/Ghajini/Dostana take away awards and accolades. I would like to see some transparency in the entire process, though. The system should change, at least introduce a jury for popular award and give 50-50 weightage to public votes as well as jury members votes. That way, there will be more clarity in the process.

At the end of the day, good cinema won. At least the awards will help further the cause of independent cinema and meaningful work, and be appreciative and motivational for film-makers who want to tell us new and different stories. And I hope this trend will stay, not just prove to be an abberation. Perhaps, haule-haule se hawa lagti hai …

This post was first published on PFC

Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani : Main Tera Dhadkan Teri ... Abb Bacha Kya

aahh its he on the track, lets go
he is sexy sexy

attention!!

rhythm of something dont stop
give' em wht they want n dont stop
lak nu hila de n dont stop
sab ko dekha de yeah dont stop

lak nu hila de n dont stop
you know wht i look my boy he' s so rock!!
go on wht u think u hot star?
dharati hilade laade lishkare
rab nu hila de nachake dikha de tu soniya

main tera dhadkan teri yeh din tere raatein teri
abb bacha kya, abb bacha kya
har ghadi khud se hi main karta rahu main baatein teri
abb bacha kya, abb bacha kya
ishq ka rog hai yeh, aisa jog hai yeh
isase bachane ka abb aasaar najar nahi aata

kuch yaar najar nahi aata, ghar baar najar nahi aata
sansaar najar nahi aata, jab pyaar hota hai

teri chaahato se din shuru, mere rubaru ho tu hi tu
teri soch ho, tera saath ho, abb har ghadi
teri baat mein, teri yaad mein
khoya main rahu, aur yeh kahu
mere saamane teri baat ho abb har ghadi
kabhi kabhi yaari mein, yaar khumari mein
chahe kuch bhi ho dil ke paar najar nahi aata

kuch yaar najar nahi aata, ghar baar najar nahi aata
sansaar najar nahi aata, jab pyaar hota hai

meri aashiqi ka hai sila, meri chaahato ko tu mila
teri mehfile meri manjilein abb ho gayi
tere khwaab hai behisaab hain, teri deed hai meri eid hai
pareshaaniyan aur muskilein sab kho gayi
ishq to jaadu hai bas bekaabu hai
ishq ke jaadu mein kuch dushwaar najar nahi aata

kuch yaar najar nahi aata, ghar baar najar nahi aata
sansaar najar nahi aata, jab pyaar hota hai
main tera dhadkan teri yeh din tere raatein teri
abb bacha kya, abb bacha kya
har ghadi khud se hi main karta rahu main baatein teri
abb bacha kya, abb bacha kya
ishq ka rog hai yeh, aisa jog hai yeh
isase bachane ka abb aasaar najar nahi aata

kuch yaar najar nahi aata, ghar baar najar nahi aata
sansaar najar nahi aata, jab pyaar hota hai

Blue : Yaar Mila Tha

Yaar mila tha saiyaan ek din
Yaar mila tha saiyaan
Aankhon mein sapne dil mein leke
Pyaar mila tha saiyyaan

Kya main karti saiyyan baiyyan
Kya main karti saiyyaan
Teri yaad mein kitni sadiyaan
Aah bharti saiyyan

Aarre kuch toh sharm kar leti
Aab kya kahengi duniya
Kyun uske sang ho li
Us peepal ki chaaiyaan

Socha nikal loon par pallu woh khencha zor se
Bola sandesa hai laaya woh teri aur se

Haaye dil ghayal zakhmi jiya
Kaise jeeye ab tera piya

Maar diya dulhaniya tu ne
Maar diya dulhaniya
Jeete jee apne saiyaan ko
Maar diya dulhaniya

Yaar mila tha saiyaan ek din
Yaar mila tha saiyaan

Hai kusoor kya mera
Batana yu sata main
Teri raah takti thi

Raah takti thi to khafa
Ho gayi thi tu ya bewafa
Ke panghat pe
Ghoonghat ke bina
Jaa baithi kaise tu woh bhi mere bina
Usi panghat pe
Jahan jhat se
Pehli baar thaami thi maine
Teri kalayi
Harjayi
Jahan dhoop se hum bache the
Jahan Nache the
Apne kadam
Aur besharam woh kalayi tu thama ke aayi
Haathon mein na jaane
Kis khotte ke
Kis potte ke
Mere hote se par sote se

Ooooo
Par tu ne hi to usse bheja na?
Ooooo
Ke mera pyaar piya ko dejana

Ohhoo hhohoo

Yaar bulaya saiyaan
Maine yaar bulaya saiyaan
Bhooli saari duniya
Jab ek baar bulaya saiyaan

Toh a gale dulhaniya
Lag jaa a gale dulhaniya
Dhekh ke aapni yaari duniya
Laakh jale dulhaniya

Yaar bulaya saiyaan
Lag jaa a gale dulhaniya
Bhooli saari duniya
Duniya laakh jale dulhaniya

Arre teri waffa ke kisse
Ab ga rahi hai duniya
Har maa kahe bete se
La aise dulhaniya

Haay dil ghayal zakhami jiya
Jeeye bas jeeye ab mera piya

Blue : Chiggy Wiggy

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLUpxfEIM1s&hl=en&fs=1&]

Every Man who ever sees me wants to hold my hand

And be the one who gets me to say oh i do they
Swear eternal undying devotion yes they swear
That they will love me forever love me true

But i dont need a shining star
And i dont wanna be rescued
No neither fron nor charming prince
Nor my summers barbequed

I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you boy
I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you boy
I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you feilla
Just chiggy-wiggy with you baby

I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you boy
I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you boy
I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you feilla
Just chiggy-wiggy with you baby

Freeeee your mind
Free ee ee is the way to live it up
Free ee eeto go
Free eee ee if i dont wanna give it up
Free ee e to groove
The dance floors where i wanna be
Free ee ee to move
White picket fences frighten me

I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you boy
I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you boy
I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you feilla
Just chiggy-wiggy with you baby

Aa aah dont want talker
Aa aah dont need repartee
Aa aah dont need a future

I just like to party

Aa aah forget tomarow
aa my feeet are tapping
Aa aah why dont you get it
Why wont you let it happen

Say you'll never go never ever go
Down upon on your knees

Say you'll never say
Never ever say
Baby marry me pleasee e e e eeees

I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you boy
I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you boy
I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you feilla
Aaaah ahahhh chiggy-wiggy with you baby

Hey hey heyyy heyy
Gore!
Baby!

Khatoon ki khidmat mein khiladi ki hai khwaish
Qaatil yeh adaayein qaatilana yeh numaish

Kar le chiggy wiggy mere sang soniye
Kar chiggy wiggy mere sang jaaaniye
Kar le chiggy wiggy sang sang heeriye
Chiggy wiggy
Chiggy wiggy
Chiggy wiggy
Kar le chiggy wiggy mere sang soniye
Kar chiggy wiggy mere sang jaaaniye
Kar le chiggy wiggy sang sang heeriye

I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you boy
I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you boy

Tera husn hai rehmat ya ghazab
Tere ishq ibaadat ya khata

I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you fella
I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you Fella

Tera husn hai rehmat ya ghazab
Tere ishq ibaadat ya khata
Tu kahe to tere sang sang zindagi
ya guzaroon aaj ki raat raat

Tu kahe to din
Tu keh de to shaam
Tu jo kahe woh sach
Jo tu kahe wohi mera naam naam

Kar le chiggy wiggy mere sang soniye
Kar chiggy wiggy mere sang jaaaniye
Kar le chiggy wiggy sang sang heeriye
Chiggy wiggy
Chiggy wiggy
Chiggy wiggy
I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you boy
I wanna chiggy-wiggy with you boy

Ho ho
Chiggy wiggy ho thoda chiggy wiggy
oh sun haal dil ka
Oh aaja chiggy wiggy
Oh kar chiggy wiggy
Oh kyun soche kal ka

oh aja chiggy wiggy
Oh thoda chiggy wiggy
sun haal dil ka
Oh aaja chiggy wiggy
oh come on chiggy wiggy
Oh kyun soche kal ki baat baat

London Dreams : Khuli Ankh Ka Sapna

The dope is that the premise of the movie is based on Abhimaan, except that instead of a couple we have two friends. Ajay and Sallu are both friends in different parts of the world. While Ajay, just as BigB, is popular in London as a singer of a band, Sallu plays at weddings in his hometown. But Sallu, just as Jaya Bachchan, was much more talented than Ajay.

And Ajay makes the mistake of inviting Salman to join his band. What happens next? Salman is an instant hit and a crowd puller; and nobody wants Ajay anymore. Ajay is consumed by this jealousy and big ego hurdle. He plans a vice to cut down Salman's grwoing stature. He pushes Salman into hedonistic liefstyle with booze and babes, just before a crucial concert.

While the troop movies from Paris to Amsterdam and other places, Salman slides further into this couldron of sleaze. Will he recover? Even if he does, will Ajay realise his follies? Will Salman forgive Ajay and will their friendship hold them together?

That's what the movie is about. Oh! I missed out on Asin. She is the lead dancer of the band. Ajay loves her, but she falls for the rural innocence of Salman Khan. That adds to Ajay's woes, first Sallu steals his limelight and then his ladlylove. So, who finally wins over Asin!

nice songs from recent music releases

I have not had the time to write about the recent music albums, just so tied up with work. But I did find enough time to listen to the songs of Blue, Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani, Aladin, Tum Mile and Main Aur Mrs Khanna. I tried listening to Jail and All The Best, but just couldn't finish with them. They were so darn boring.
Anyways, my favourite song these days are Chiggy Wiggy and Yaar Mila Tha from Blue. There is something weird about the Chiggy Wiggy number, I just can't stop listening to it. It has a great start, fantastic vocals by Kylie Minogue and a superb bhangra twist by Sonu Nigam. The rhythm is just right to set your mood, fine stuff. Rahman sounds truly international with the opening 2 mins of the song and then does a bhangra fusion. The lyrics are dumb, but I can do with that as long as I enjoy the music. Whats with this:

Khaatoon ki khidmat mei khiladi ki hai khwahish ... eeks!

Yaar Mila Tha is another modern fusion of rural/folksy sounding lyrics orchaestrated to genX music, much like Gendaphool in Delhi-6. The lyrics sound a bit chauvanistic, but I am sure they have been tagged to a pre-created rhythm. And the background chorus makes this song really work, infuse energy into this rustic number while Udit Narayan and Madhusree do total justice to the song.

Two other good songs in album were Rehnuma and Fiqraana. I am unable to follow the lyrics of Fiqraana, too damn difficult. But I love listening to it. Shreya Ghoshal sounds really sweet.





Moving onto APKGK. It has a racy start with Main Tera Dhadkan Teri .... Ab Bacha Kya sung by KK. This is the most catchy of the 14 songs in the album. I don't really like the beginning piece by Hard Kaur, that actually works against the song, but the moment KK's vocals get into the musical notes, a new life is infused to this song. 5 of the 14 tracks are remixes, total waste.

Kaise Batayen song is so jaded, sounds like a bhajan. And then Atif Aslam gets into action, Pritam's favourite. The song is just about tolerable. Another Pritam favourite Neeraj Sridhar croons Prem Ki Naiyya and sings about it being Ram Ke Bharose. That's all I can recall from this album, rest are just boring stuff.

Talking about boring stuff, I expected so much from Vishal Shekhar but they let me down with the music of Aladin. The genie rap is such a gimmick, trying to cash-in on Bachchan's voice but the lyrics are a terrible let-down ... aladin...tera bheja hai khali !

O Re Sawariya is another bad song. The only saving grace of the album is the song You Are The One.

You may be
Just a lil bit deewani
Thodi thodi si crazy
but baby you're the one

Tum jaise hai na koi yun deewani
Thodi thodi si crazy
But baby you're the one



Vishal Dadlani has written the lyrics himself and both Vishal and Shekhar have rendered the song. They probably did not want to give away this song to anybody else. Nice song this!

Another musical duo, Sajid Wajid, have composed for Main Aur Mrs Khanna. SW feature in most of Sallu's home production movies, so also this. But as usual, except for a couple of songs they lack consistency in quality. Don't Say Alvida is a hummable song, melodiously sung by Sonu and Shreya. Another widely unpublicised song that is sung by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan is Rabba Hai Rabba. This is one of the better songs from the movie, in an otherwise dull album.

Finally coming to Emraan Hashmi's movie Tum Mile, this has some rather disappointing songs. Emraan is known more for his songs than the movie itself, but that's not the case here. For once, the songs are lack-lustre and did not interest me at all. Except for Tu Hi Haqeeqat and Dil Ibaadat, rest of the song is mediocre. Pritam hasn't given some uninspiring music. Expected a lot more from him after Love Aaj Kal. By the way, Kurbaan music is just out. Hope it turns out to be good.

Kamal Rashid Khan : Son Of A Gun

No, I am not referring to the gun locket that hangs around his neck. I am really pissed off by this guy who comes with loads of attitude. Wonder where he got that kind of arrogance and the delusions of being a star.

Anyone watching Big Boss 3 will recognise this stubborn cranky man as the main attraction/distraction of the reality show. He is foul-mouthed and short-tempered and his tall claims would leave the biggest of braggers to shame. He claims that his drinking water comes from France and milk from Holland, what hogwash! He claims to be a multi-millionaire but his comfort level in the confines of Big Boss jail was admirable. He felt so much at home in the jail, he just rolled on the raised platform like a dog rolls on the ground.

But what I found most disconcerting was the fact that he was bullshitting in front of BigB, one of the most humble men on Earth. He felt no regret about his outburst on Rohit Verma and his brutal attack on fellow inmate, he definitely needs some therapy. He also had a war of words with Raju Shrivastav, a guy who usually is cool and composed, but noth this time. Raju gave it back to KRK which he could not handle. Even on previous occasions he misbehaved with other inmates like Claudia and Tanaz.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poe3p9P_lp8&hl=en&fs=1&]

What was worse was that, he was justifying himself in the eviction episode. He was showing as if he made a sacrifice for Sherlyn Chopra. He was the most-hated character in the house, he did not perform any task and he had a bad attitude. No wonder all housemates voted him out last week. But the rising TRPs lured the producers in duping the voting public and retained him for another week, hoping that he would reform. Yeah! jerks like these never change. He just kept revealing his character flaws one after another.

The truth is that, he came to Big Boss home only to create ruckus and generate some publicity for himself. He was successful initially, in grabbing eyeballs. But later we all realised that he is not just putting up an act, he is truly full of shit. I even doubt he has a fan base that he keeps bragging about. Anyways, good riddance to bad rubbish.

Much to BigB's credit, he played the tolerant and forgiving father so well. Long live BigB and goto hell KRK!

upcoming bollywood releases ...

Release Date: Jan'2010


Release Date: Jan'2010


Release Date: 25 Dec'2010


Release Date: 06 Nov'2010


Release Date: Dec'2010


Release Date: Jan'2010

movies that released this diwali

this diwali has seen the release of 3 big movies, but all 3 are kinda duds. none of them have generated enough interest in me and i think i will be skipping all of them.

i actually did want to watch blue, especially because it had sanjay dutt and akshay kumar together, but the reviews have really not been good at all. sample this:

Blue, directed by Anthony D'souza is a brainless, forgettable action-thriller that quickly sinks without a trace. Let me say this right away: anyone expecting anything other than the sight of Lara Dutta in a skimpy bikini, or indeed Akshay Kumar with his shirt off, is going to be very disappointed.

And here's some more from the same review:

Blue suffers from a dull script and inane dialogue, and is cursed with characters that are as shallow as the waters they paddle.

read the review for yourself, its here.

And here's more about the movie from another review:

The plot is supposed to be full of clever twists and turns, but is nothing but preposterous. It is meant to be a razor-sharp adrenaline inducer, but throughout the nearly two-hour film you get the feeling as if you are watching an extended music video with snatches of National Geographic footage.

That review can be found here.

Now that blue was out the question, my next bet was all the best. with a starcast like that and rohit shetty directing it, i am sure it will have at least a few laughs. some good words about the movie:

Comedy is a delicate genre. It needs an accurate combination of fresh banter, palpable camaraderie and gauged response. All The Best isn't the perfect recipe for laughter but it sure has its Lever-filled moments.

read that review here.

another review that says that the movie is pretty good is here.

an excerpt from that review is below:

Tucked away beneath those pointless songs and some ridiculous, overblown action scenes is a silly yet surprisingly enjoyable tale of misunderstandings and mistaken identities. Like most Bollywood comedies these days, All The Best is far too long, but it has a winning combination of cleverly crude humour and genuine sweetness.

the weakest movie of the 3 is main aur mrs.khanna. the movie looked like a disaster from the dull trailers. and these words have confirmed my thoughts on the movie:

There are dumb scripts and dumber scripts, but Main Aurr Mrs Khanna has got to be the dumbest. You feel nothing for the film's characters because you cannot understand why they behave the way they do. It's the kind of screenplay in which every obstacle in the characters' lives could be overcome by having one sensible conversation which for some strange reason, they never have.

the full review is here.

i am not sure what i will watch, but i definitely know what to avoid.

Aladin : Make A Wish

There is a lamp, there is Aladin and there is a genie. But that's about it. He has grown up in a very timid, weak not really a nerd but just a weak, timid person in the college. He keeps getting bullied by all his seniors and people who are tougher and stronger than him. So he has always led a very reticent, reclusive, reserve life. Then he sees this girl in college whom he falls in love with at first sight and he needs to communicate with her. But he does not have enough courage and energy. The gang that teases him in college is always teasing him because his name is Aladin. They convince the girl to give a lamp to him as a present all as a joke. It turns out that this lamp is indeed 'the lamp'. He has to rub it in front of them because they are making fun of him. And a man appears who is a genie. He says I am a genie, I have three wishes, I am 5,000 years old, I am due for my retirement and these are last three wishes so would you please hurry up and ask them because I need to get back.

source : ibn

Wake Up Sid, Smell The Coffee!

So, what's wrong with Sid? And why is he still asleep? Isn't there anyone to tell him that morning has long gone and its almost afternoon. Being a night person does not really mean that people get up at dusk!

Ranbir Kapoor as Sid is the right choice. Youthful, exhuberant, curious, romantic, the guy next door etc. But where the screenplay has really gone wrong is in the first half.

A protagonist who insults his mother for no fault of hers, who has no respect for his dad's hardwork can never win the sympathy of the audience. Sid manages to do that in the second half of the movie, but it was too late. It was a foregone conclusion that the script would take such a turn.

What's baffling is the fact that we have a guy in his 20's, who belongs to business family and does not aspire to get into business; let alone his dad's business. What's worse, he meets a girl who wants to go on a walk with him and he doesn't get the idea of sleeping around with her. No kidding, he does not know about the birds and bees. His dad is a tycoon and we don't see girls throwing themselves on him, not even in parties. What kind of retard screenwriting is this?

The director, Ayan Mukherjee,  knows where he wants to go but does not know how to get there. He uses a dozen of cliches and a bunch of cut-paste jobs from movies like Dil Chahta Hai etc, to fill the void in his movie.

One of the cliches being Rahul Khanna, who has been stereotyping himself and last seen in Love Aaj Kal in the same kinda scenes. And the other cliche being Konkona Sen Sharma as Aisha, what's wrong with her? Isn't she tired of playing 'new girl in the city'. Pick any movie and you get that from her, Laga Chunri Mei Daag, Life In A Metro, Luck By Chance etc. She does well in the movie, giving her piece of mind to Sid and helping him in overcoming his oversleep-disorder. Only if his parents had done that... oh! then then we would not have the movie at all.

The director is unable to handle even the two friends that he created, Laxmi and Rishi. Somehow he kept forgetting both of them. And the moment he recalled them he canned a shot  and forget about them again, almost like memory-lag.


The one thing that Ayan has been able to do well was the 'coming-of-age' bit. The romance between Sid and Aisha was handled well, he explored the relationship and helped it blossom. Sid not only wakes up but also finds himself all grown up and mature, albeit a little late. The friendship turning into respect and then love was beautiful, the saving grace of the movie. I sincerely hope that he makes a better movie next time around and does not get carried away by the success of this one.

Anupam Kher and Supriya Pathak as parents were awesome in the movie. Supriya especially was superb as the trying-to-speak-english mom. She emoted so much even without any dialogues, that was touching. Ranbir was awesome, this guy will go places. He acting is improving, it can be seen in the emotional scenes. He did better in this movie than waht he had done in Bachna Ae Haseeno.

Finally, the movie will do well because we have loads of Sids around us who will identify with the movie. Unfortunately, these Sids will go back home after the night show, oversleep the next morning and will continue to be dazed and confused.

Chick Flick : Confessions Of A Shopaholic

You know that thing when you see someone cute and he smiles and your heart kind of goes like warm butter sliding down hot toast? Well that's what it's like when I see a store. Only it's better.


The movie was really honest. It showed the cravings of  a shopaholic in a very open manner.

The movie is about Rebecca Bloomwood, a woman deep in debt and  a credit collection agent named Derek Smeath chasing her for debt recovery of over 9000+ dollars.

Becky is a shopaholic who just cant stop shopping. The stores beckon her, the articles and mannequins speak to her, tempt her and she gratuitously obliges. When she is fired from her current job, she gets an interview call from  Alette magazine. All positions get filled and the receptionist advises her to attend the interview with Successful Savings which is a sister concern of Alette. But on the way to this interview she spots a green scarf. The scarf entices her and the purchase hassles like credit-limit-reached etc delays her interview.

The fun begins here. A shopaholic is given the responsibility of writing a financial advise column as the girl in the green scarf. She writes things that she doesn't believe in. She writes about savings and best deals by day and attends shopaholics-anonymous club by night; where she is taught to fight the habit. To add to the mess is the fact that she is falling in love with her boss, Luke Brandon. Luke was the same guy who helped her purchase the green scarf where she had lied that its for her aunt. Luke is mighty happy with her column and her progression as a financial advisor. Although her column is a big draw, business houses acclaim it and seek her advise; but she is busy evading the credit collecting agent.

They said I was a valued customer. Now they send me hate mail.

Her popularity zooms and she gets invited to a tv show. Among the audience is Derek Smeath who causes her public embarrassment by bringing up her debt report. Towards the end, she comes to terms with the fact that she cannot go on like this. Will she repay her debt? If yes, how? Will Luke return her affection?

The movie was pretty entertaining and hilarious at times. In one of the congregations, where shopaholics are asked to speak about their experiences and how they have been trying to fight the addiction, Becky starts describing about the sweet aroma of the store and the wonderful dresses that are in display; and she ends up disrupting the session. Whatever effort co-addicts had made comes undone as her description gives rise to everyone's yearning for shopping.

And here is her comparison of men and mall:

A man will never love you or treat you as well as a store. If a man doesn't fit, you can't exchange him seven days later for a gorgeous cashmere sweater. And a store always smells good. A store can awaken a lust for things you never even knew you needed. And when your fingers first grasp those shiny, new bags... oh yes... oh yes.

If you have been with or known women who shop till they drop, then you can relate to this movie. Its just a fun watch to kill time, and does make for some genuinely funny moments. If you are not a person who shops much or visits a mall just once a month, then you will be bored for sure.

Isla Fisher played Becky really well. She brought out the inner frustrations of the character and the craving for stores pretty well. Hugh Dancy as Luke was played with lot of restraint. He was not charming, but just about nice and smart. Kristin Scott Thomas played Luke's mother with lot of style. The director, Hogan, could have done a better job. His direction was a little inconsistent. He excelled at comic scenes, but could not handle the emotional stuff well. Overall, a nice watch.

The Curious Case Of Shilpa Shetty

Lady Limelight is a jealous lady. She wants all of your attention. You don’t have any time to think of anything else but Lady Limelight, because pretty soon that light will be shinning on somebody else. So you better do it while you can.
- Buck Owens

Yesterday I was seeing a news bulletin about Shilpa Shetty wishing to meet Jade Goody, and she was telling the media that she is hoping for a miracle to save Jade Goody. She hadn’t completed the sentence yet and I laughed out loud. How fake was she! I have always felt that she is so superficial and yet successful at portraying the apparent shallowness.

If you see her filmography, you will observe that in the last 10 years in Bollywood, she has not given more than 3 hits. In 2000 she had just one hit in Dhadkan, then next 5 years were barren. Then, in 2005 she was part of the success of Dus. And her last hit was Life-In A Metro which released 2 years ago. So, she has only 3 movies from the past decade to boast about. But still, she continues to hog the limelight and be in the news. I am just amazed at how she manages to do it, make public appearance at all the events possible mainly because she is invited to them. What makes her a part of the guest-list?? No cinematic achievements, not a supermodel, not a sports personality, a mediocre actress, not venturing into politics and yet, you name the event and she is there.

Apart from the goodwill gesture shown towards Jade Goody, her last impactful action was buying a 11.7% stake in the IPL team of Rajasthan Royals, in partnership with her boyfriend/fiance Raj Kundra; following the footsteps of Preity Zinta.

Shilpa started her film career with a bang. Her first movie Baazigar hit the silver-screen in 1993, which starred SRK and Kajol was a superhit and her song Kitaabein Bahut Si Padhi Hongi Tumne and Aye Mere Humsafar was quite a rage. Though her acting was nothing to talk about, as the movie gained popularity due to SRK’s anti-hero portrayal, she gained a lot from it. Her next big hit was Main Khiladi Tu Anadi which released in 1994 and had Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan. She played a dual role in the movie, and the song Churake Dil Mera became an instant hit.

After this she lost her track, got romantically involved with Akshay Kumar. Stardust magazine had printed a story about her alleged affair with the actor and was quite disparaging. Shilpa sued the magazine claiming that it had caused her immense loss in terms of movie offers and the ensuing finances, as well as mental strain and emotional drain-out. She won the lawsuit in 2000, successfully.

Around the same time, she did a quick belly-jig item number Dilwalo Ke Dil Ka Karaar Lootne, Mai Aayi Hoon UP Bihar Lootne in the movie Shool. This was a sort of comeback vehicle for Shilpa as she was almost forgotten by the public. She then signed on Dhadkan with Akshay Kumar and Sunil Shetty, directed by Dharmesh Darshan. This movie was a re-launch for her career and gave her a new lease of life. The songs of the movie did well, and the hype around the movie helped it at the box-office. Shilpa Shetty was back in all her designer wears and wedding collection garments, but her acting was really-really bad. All she did throughout the movie was sulk.

I don’t think this is worth mentioning, but becasue she was nominated by Filmfare for Best Supporting Actress in the movie Rishtey, I am writing about it. This forgettable movie released in 2002, and starred Anil Kapoor and Karishma Kapoor. Shilpa Shetty played a fisherwoman Vaijanti, and it was over the top acting, total ham-scam. She later went on to do a few Kannada and Telugu movies.

When she stopped mattering to Bollywood, out of the blue came a case of her familial linkage to the underworld. In brief, she had signed a 3 crore deal with Praful sarees and she was reportedly paid just 50 lakhs. So, she allegedly used underworld links for extortion of the remaining amount and threatening the owners of Praful sarees. Mumbai police even arrested her father on such accounts and that case is pending in the court.

After her brief disappearance and few more trashy movies, came Phir Milenge, in 2004. The movie had Salman Khan and Abhishek Bachchan, and was a rehash of Philadelphia. The movie wasn’t all that good, but AIDS awareness was the in-thing back then, and this movie rode on the waves and did decent business. But, as far as acting was concerned, she came a cropper. All the glycerin shown through, and it was kind of horror show because she had no make-up on; that itself made her thinner by 2kg.

In 2005 came Dus, where she played the Indian version of Lara Croft, with all those body-suits and fight stunts. When she made an appearance in Big Brother, she called herself the Angelina Jolie of India; wonder what gets into the heads of these celebrities, they just start flying. Anyways, in the same year, 2005, came Fareb, with her younger sister Shamita Shetty and Manoj Bajpai. Another painful watch, I kept wondering how Manoj must’ve handled the torture.

Then came the year of reckoning for Shilpa Shetty, 2007 was the year that entrenched her in people’s mind forever. She appeared in the celebrity edition of Big Brother and from then on, she has not stopped making headlines. I am still wondering as to who proposed her name for the show to be held in UK. Not many in UK would have known her, she was not among the best or top actresses in Bollywood and yet she was invited to Big Brother. Pure luck, fate, destiny, what else?

Anyways, she made it to Big Brother but she was unconvincing. Finally, the moment had arrived, the racial slur against her, which turned the tables in her favour. The racial abuse caused a nation-wide stir and became a part of prime-time reporting. An unknown Indian actress was suddenly occupying tv-space, web-space, space in print-media, and she gained popularity. The tv channel, Channel4, started receiving complains and protests demanding an apology, and in no time the votes in her favor kept piling on. She eventually won the reality show, and it was like a moral victory for all Indians.

Barely had she regained composure that Richard Gere took her breath away, literally. Shilpa Shetty and Richard Gere were on a AIDS awareness campaign, thanks to her involvement in Phir Milenge, and Gere was merely demonstrating that AIDS does not spread by kissing. He casually took Shilpa in his arms and planted a kiss on her cheeks. That was enough for the moral brigade to raise a furor and seek apologies from her. Shilpa may have forgotten the kiss, but she would definitely remember the protests against her. This was not her first brush with the self appointed custodians of culture. In 2006, she was summoned by a court in Chennai over a PIL filed against her for posing indecently. She and Reema Sen had posed for a photo-session in navel-revealing costumes and that irked the conservative narrow-minded culture-vultures.

Back to 2007, her movie Life-In A Metro released and it was received very well by the audience. Her demure portrayal as a housewife who is wronged by her chauvinist husband, played by Kaykay, got her some rave reviews. And in the same year she was signed up by Vijay Mallya to become the brand ambassador for Romanov.

Still riding on the success of Big Brother, she was made the host of the 2nd edition of Big Boss to be telecast on Indian screen in 2008. As usual, she looked glamorous, but was pathetic at hosting the show. She had limited Hindi diction and whatever she spoke in English too, was totally depending on the teleprompter, there was no spontaneity unlike Arshad Warsi who had hosted it so well in the previous edition.

Shilpa’s last screen appearance was in the Shut Up And Bounce song of Dostana, sandwiched between Abhishek Bachchan and John Abraham. Prior to this she featured in a Yoga video too.

Its 2009, she has just stepped into the IPL scene and I am not sure what we can expect from her. But whatever maybe the case, she will be the focus of every event she attends, she will be in spotlight and she will continue to be a media-savvy person, she will continue to appear glamorous and somehow make it to all the headlines, cover-photos of magazines and to the guest-list of all the events and parties. Tum Dil Ki Dhadkan Mei Rehto Ho Rehto Ho …

This post was first published on PFC

BigB Gets Big Bucks For Hosting Big Boss

Its stale news that BigB will be anchoring Big Boss. The fresh news is that, he is commanding a whopping 1.5 crore per episode. That's like, 126 crore for the 84 episodes that he will anchor.

While SRK got paid 1 crore per episode for Panchvi Paas, which of course failed, both Salman and Akshay charge around 80lakhs per episode for 10KaDum and Khatron Ke Khiladi, respectively. But BigB, being the Big Boss gets the biggest pay packet.

All said and done, the man has some screen presence. His latest ads on tv, for the promotion of Big Boss, looks fabulous. He brings so much grace to the nauseatic reality show, in just the ad; wonder what's gonna happen in the show. Looking forward to the evictions in the show!

preity zinta does a 'kajra re'

preity zinta was found doing a kajra re number for salman's home production. the song was being shot with sohail khan. the reason for doing the song is very weird. she said that the movie is being directed by her good friend prem soni and salman has played prem umpteen number of times, so she was doing the song. phew!

anyways, checkout the pic:

prasoon joshi : a 'gulzar' in the making?

I have been at this post for quite a while now. But yesterday when I chanced upon this news piece that Prasoon Joshi was given the Shailendra award, I was spurred on to complete the post.

When I look around at all the lyrical mockery that’s happening and all the poetical gimmickry, I wonder what will be the fate of lyrics in cinema, going ahead. Its not a very happy picture, let me tell you. Barring a few new generation of lyricists, I don’t see much talent around.

Now, coming to the crux of the post; although we do have lyricists who churn out a few good songs, they all lack depth and versatility. That’s where my search begins for a ‘gulzar’ of the next generation. A lyricist/poet who can write sensitively, with sublimity, with progressive ideas and write on innocent situations as well as controversial stuff, who can make your blood boil as well as cool your senses, who can write about society at large as well as for the individualistic/common man, who has knowledge of historical events and keeps pace with contemporary issues. If we see the growth and maturity of Gulzar, we would all be befuddled by it. Starting with Mera Gora Rang Lai Le to Mera Kuch Saaman to Aye Zindagi Galey Laga Le to Tujhse Naraaz Nahi Zindagi to Goli Maar Bheje Mei to Fatak; his range is unfathomable.

The only person who comes to my mind, wo can carry forward the legacy of Gulzar, or who can write Gulzarian lyrics seems to be Prasoon Joshi. The talent that he has displayed through his variety of work is impressive. In fact, quite a few times his lyrics sound like its from gulzar’s school of thought. The lyrics like Maa from TZP and Khoon Chala from RDB have that distinctive Gulzar touch. Let me pick a few more works of Prasoon which seem to be the silver-lining around the dark clouds of movie lyrics.

Arziyan from Delhi-6:

Written as a quwalli, its a prayer with a lot of heartfelt thoughts. The first two lines in itself conveys the pathos of the soul. Face is the mirror of the soul; if the soul is wrankled, so will the face be. There is nothing more to explain than the expression of disdain written all over the face

Arziyaan sari main chehre pe likh ke laaya hoon
Tumse kya mangu mein tum khud hi samjah lo

He goes on to explain how people have gotten all their wishes fulfilled whenever they have approached him. The thirtsy ones who asked for a drop have received an ocean of blessings etc. I do not wish to translate it, it loses the feel. Just read it :

Jo bhi tere dar aaya, Juhkne jo sar aaya
Mastiyan piye sabko, Jhoomta nazar aaya

Pyaas le ke aaya, Dariya woh bhar laya
Noor ki barish mein bheegta sa tar aaya

Toot ke bikharna mujhko zarur aata hai
Varna ibbadat wala shaoor aata hai

Sajde mein rehne do, abb kahin na jaunga
Abb jo tumne thukraya to sawar na paunga

Sar utha ke maine to kitni khwahishen ki thi
Sar jhuka ke ek pal mei maine kya nahi paya

Really sublime!

Rehna Tu from Delhi-6:

When I first heard the song, I mistook it to be a love-song and I imagined AB Jr singing this for Sonam Kapoor. But I was pleasantly surprised that the song is dedicated to Delhi. That was a stroke of genius, where even Delhi is made to sound like a dilruba and jaaneman who is not supposed to change for anything.

Rehna Tu Hai Jaisa Tu
Thoda sa dard tu Thoda Sukun

Tujhe badalna na chahoon Rati bhar bhi sanam
Bina sajawat milawat Na jyaada na hi kaam

The character of Delhi is brought out very well and the spirit of romance is all over the song, sample these lines:

Mujhe teree barish mein beegna hai ghuljana hai
Mujhe tere lapat mein jalna rakh ho jana hai

I would like to make a mention of the song Dil Gira Dafattan, which has been written with immense feelings and emotions. And we also had Masakali which is such a fun number. So, in one album he packed a punch with such variety and depth of thoughts. In fact, in Delhi-6 he also co-wrote the screenplay which means he not only understands the medium but has also gained fine grip of it. He is looking to expand his horizons and we can expect some good story/screenplay out of him.

Maa from TZP:

I don't get moved that easily, but this song creates the magic which can melt a stone. A beautiful peice of poetry, a dedication to every mother that echoes the sentiment of every child who has been showered by mother's love.

Mai kabhi batlata nahi
Par andhere se darta hoon mai maa

Yun to mai dikhlata nahi
Teri parwah karta hoon mai maa
Tujhe sab hai pata hai na maa

Mom knows everything, mama's boy, mom knows best and so many other phrases come to mind. But most of all, I recall what Mother Teresa said that God created moms so he could be everywhere.

Jab bhi kabhi papa mujhe
Jo zor se jhula jhulate hain maa
Meri nazar dhoondhe tujhe
Sochun yahi tu aake thamegi maa

Unse mai yeh kehta nahi
Par mai seham jaata hoon mai maa
Chehre pe aane deta nahi
Dil hi dil mein ghabrata hoon maa
Tujhe sab hai pata hai na maa

His delving into child psychology and coming up with such gems shows us a glimpse of his sensitivity and emotions. The ease with which he brings out those feelings is amazing.

Kholo Kholo from TZP:

I chose this song only to highlight the playful lyrics that Prasoon can come up with. This not only establishes his range but also the imagination that he is capable of.

Kholo kholo darwaze, parde karo kinare
Khute se bandhi hai hawa, Milke chhudao sare
Aajao patang leke, apni hi rang leke
Asaman ka shamiyana aaj hume hai sajana

Tu dhoop hai chham se bikhar
Tu hai nadi o bekhabar
Beh chal kahin, Udd chal kahin
Dil khush jahan, teri to manzil hai wohi

His handling of situation with such creative thoughts is beautiful. Prasoon's lyrics in TZP is commendable because it shows the understanding that he has of children. Of course, he must have been guided by the sensitivity of Amole Gupte; but yet, to come up with such poetic lines is sheer genius. In fact, the title song of the movie and the Bum Bum Bole are songs which are at perpendiculars with each other, but Prasoon writes them both with such ease without ever losing the message in it.

Khoon Chala from RDB:

A call for revolution, a call for change, a call for new enthusiasm and a call for blood akin to what Bose once said - give me blood and I will give you freedom. Echoing those very sentiments are these wonderful lines.

kuchh kar guzarne ko khoon chala, khoon chala
aankhon ke sheeshe mein utarne ko khoon chala
badan se tapak kar, zameen se lipatkar
galiyon se raston se ubharkar, umadkar
naye rang bharne ko khoon chala, khoon chala

It brings out the pangs of revolt beautifully. Everytime I hear this, I get goose-bumps. It makes me sit up and think about how we take things so lightly instead of speaking out against it.

khuli si chot lekar, badi si tees lekar, ahista ahista
sawaalon ki ungli, jawaabon ki mutthi sang lekar, khoon chala

The movie demanded such lyrics, such pain and the subsequent actions that follow. Prasoon has very effectively described a revolt with such less words which actually translates to a whole lot of ideas.

Lukka Chhupi from RDB:

Another 'mommy' song but in a ballad format, sensitively written. The innovation in the song is the fact that its an ode from a dead son to his mother, which hasn't been done before.

Luka chuppi bahut huyi, saamne aaja naa
Kahan kahan dhoondha tujhe, thak gayi hai ab teri maa
Aaja saanjh hui mujhe teri fikar
Dhundhla gayi dekh meri nazar aaja na

The manner in which the son, who is no more, describes the nether world is awesome.

Kya bataoon maa kahan hoon main
Yahan udney ko mere khula aasmaan hai
Tere kisson jaisa bhola salona
Jahan hain yahan sapno vala
Meri patang ho befikar udd rahi hai maa
Dor koi loote nahin beech se kaate na

The mother's concern for the son and the son's free-spirited reply makes for an enigmatic listening. This is one of the best songs to be written, not many people realize the beauty of it.

Teri raah takey aankhiyaan jaane kaisa kaisa hoye jiyaa
Dheere dheere aangan utre andhera, mera deep kahan
Dhalke suraj kare ishara chanda tu hai kahan

A couple of more songs worth mentioning are the Khalbali and Pathshala. While Khalbali brings out the angst in the youth and the boiling passion to do something, Pathshala describes college fun times and those moments of frolic and playfulness.

Let me quickly list a few more songs that would bring out Prasoon's versatility and paint a bigger picture of his wonderful thoughts and imaginations. Two songs from Ghajini stood out, Guzarish and Kaise Mujhe Tum Mil Gayi. The two songs are written for different situations, but both are nice.

In Thoda Pyar Thoda Magic, he has written Seedhi Sapaat Zindagi which has some nice similies and Lazy Lamhe which is a totally fun song. And how can I forget the Chand Sifarish song which was a light hearted romantic number. Now this takes me back to his songs in the movie Hum Tum where he wrote Ladki Kyon Na Jaane Kyon to Chak De Saare Gham to Gore Gore Se Chhore and finally to the romantically poetic title song of the movie.

While I refrain from comparing Prasoon to Gulzar, I do believe that Prasoon has the pen with which he can put across creative thoughts and myriad ideas. If Gulzar is the clear stream of reason, Prasoon is a trickle of that spring, if Gulzar is that blazing sun of heated thoughts and words then Prasoon is a spark of those ignited flames, if Gulzar is the peak of serenity and calmness then Prasoon is but a hillock belonging to the same range of mountains. I just wish he continues to write, write well and touch people's lives with his writing. I am ending this post with an ode on Prasoon using his onw words ...

naam -o-nishaan rahe na rahe
ye caarvaan rahe na rahe
ujaale mai pee gaya
roshan hua jee gaya
kyon sehte rahe
ruu-ba-ruu roshni hai

This post was first published on PFC

movies galore this weekend ...

this weekend saw release of half a dozen movies. sadly, all are trashy and i am not interested in any of them. will probably just wait for dvd release and watch it a year later; if i remember by then. anyways, let me start by talking about each of them:

kissan: any movie that has sohail khan and arbaaz khan must be totally avoided, is my dictum. they both just cash in on sallu bhai's name and make trash stuff. add to this, director puneet sira who is trying so hard to get rid of the 'issar' surname. the same puneet issar of 'duryodhan' fame in br chopra's mahabharat. this is his 2nd directorial venture, previous one being 'i, proud to be indian'. this movie is a rehash of manoj kumar's 'upkar'. but while upkar was honest and benovelent, this movie isn't anything close to the original. read this

Now the Singh family are Punjabis, but their accent is terrible. The director should have cast actors who were more fluent with the language, or at least, learnt it better. Arbaaz does a terrible job in the film. Jackie makes an visible effort but lands up being too dramatic. Dia and Nauheed are just props, adding some romance to the scenes

the reviewer further says

Kissan is really not worth the trip to the theatres. Don't even watch it if you have nothing to do.

you can read the full review here

another review that trashes the movie has this to say

Because the acting is uniformly uninspired, and the direction mostly flat, and because this film doesn't even have its heart in the right place, I'm going with one out of five for director Puneet Sira's Kissan; watch it at your own risk.

that review can be found here

daddy cool: this movie is copied/inspired by the english comedy film called 'death at a funeral'. another movie from the makers of masti and dhamaal. i did not like either of the two movies, but i did feel that dhamaal was a better effort than masti. i am not sure if this movie will deliver, if reviews are anything to go by. read this

If you do find yourself laughing on a few occasions, it's mostly out of disbelief at just how shockingly bad this film turns out to be. The acting is an assembly line of over-the-top, ham jobs from a cast that is possibly the most ineffective you've ever seen.

that review can be found here

another review that pretty much says the same thing

Things like Prem Chopra shitting in Javed Jaffrey's hands does not qualify as funny. Or when Aftab Shivdasani, dressed in boxer shorts, tells Tulip Joshi that they need to marry because Tulip is pregnant, and everyone listening to the exchange start clapping when they are done.

read the full review here

love khichdi: another dud of a movie by randeep hooda. his choice of movies is aweful, don't know why. this star studded movie boasts of a nice starcast, but fails to ignite any flames.

But the weakest link in this whole enterprise is our leading man, completely miscast in this role. He tries to be funny but falls terribly short. He doesn't even look like the 26-year-old character that he's playing. He looks much older.

the review goes on to say lots of other things, read it here

yeh mera india: the trailer looked quite messy because too many issues were taken up. i did feel that the movie would not be able to do justice with any of them, and reviewers have confirmed by doubts. read this

A message movie that addresses everything that's wrong with our country -- from communal hatred and corruption in the system to the class divide and sexual harassment -- Yeh Mera India bites off way more than it can chew.

starcast is the strength of the movie, but too many characters have been given space and none of the issues have been handled well

Even if there are some credible ideas floating around, director N Chandra struggles to put them forward in an accessible manner, resorting instead to convey them in a bombastic, over-the-top, and ultimately unconvincing style. What's more the solutions offered by the film to deal with the social evils it talks about are too simplistic and idealistic even.

read the full review here

quick-gun murugun: finally, a movie that seems to be the pick of the week. it has received good reviews from all quarters. the only drawback seems to be the fact that a spoof of a character does not withstand the time stretch, it should have been much shorter.

Good spoofs are hard to come by, but director Shashanka Ghosh's Quick Gun Murugun is a rare exception. Based on the iconic Channel [V] character created in the mid-nineties by Ghosh himself and writer Rajesh Devraj, the Tamilian cowboy in bright orange pants has now crossed over to the big screen for a full-length feature.

some more good words for the movie

Packed with clever one-liners, bursting with popular film references, and turning every South Indian cliche on its head, the makers of this film deliver a wildly exaggerated but immensely amusing picture that's well worth your time.

check that review here

another review that raves about the movie

In its outrageous, comic-book treatment, QGM comes rather close to the comedy-action-crime film Kung Fu Hustle directed by Stephen Chow. In its flavour, it is as potent as desi chilli powder and chutney.

read that review here

let me add one final dash to this. aamir khan has also recommended the movie, checkout his blog.

Hero Hiralal : A Reality Show Ahead Of Its Time

The advent of cable-tv happened in India in the early 1990’s when foreign channels were beaming in the houses of the privileged upper-middle-class. A decade later came the age of the reality shows with Channel V running a contest to form a girl-band on the lines of Spice Girls; and in 2002 Viva happened.

But much before cable-tv was introduced and much before reality shows made an appearance, came the movie Hero Hiralal. It was the vision of Ketan Mehta that he weaved such a tale which seemed pedestrian to begin with, but ended in a crescendo. It was a reality show of high-voltage drama and very much ahead of its times, when nobdoy had come-up with such a concept.

The movie released in 1988 and I saw it a couple of years later in DD. The movie starts in a typical boy-meets-girl format. We are introduced to Naseeruddin Shah as Hiralal who drives an auto in Hyderabad. He is a big film buff and that’s how gets the title Hero. His friend Mohan Gokhale plays a movie-poster-painter and one of the landmark dialogs of the movie was ‘phata poster, nikla hero’.

A film troupe arrives in Hyderabad to shoot a movie and Roopa, played by Sanjana Kapoor in her debut movie, is the lead actress of the movie. Hero falls head over heels for her, he takes her round the city in his auto. Kiran Kumar plays the lead opposite Roopa in the movie that’s being made, and Hero keeps landing up during the shooting. He whisks her away and they spend a lot of time together, exploring the city in his auto. Roopa is just being friendly but Hero mistakes her overtures for love.

The movie shooting is complete and the entire cast moves back to Bombay. Hero, in his desperate bid to announce his love to Roopa, reaches Bombay. When Roopa dispels all his notions and feelings of love, Hero decides that life is not worth living and he wishes to end his life.

That’s when Sitara Devi, a publicity agent, enters his life. She does not want Hero to end his nondescript life in such anonymous fashion. She wishes to make his death a mega-event, to announce to the world about the pain and subsequent death of a lover and thereby make him a love-martyr. She turns, what would have been an incident [his suicide], into an event.

Huge hoardings are drawn-up all over the city, declaring this reality show as a must-watch. Lots of publicity is done and people queue-up to buy the tickets. There is media frenzy and reporters scamper to Roopa and and Sitara Devi for exclusive interviews. People on the streets start discussing this event and Roopa starts questioning herself whether she loves Hero or not; and what she can do to stop him from sacrificing his life.

Meanwhile Roopa is being closely guarded so she does not escape to meet Hero. Kiran Kumar and Rohini Hattangadi, playing Roopa’s mom, keep a vigil on her. The talk of the town is Hero and his game-of-death, the tickets are all sold out. People are for the first time going to witness a volunteered death in broad-daylight amidst public eye, and all for love. Hero’s unrequited love has brought him so close to death.

The day of the event has finally arrived. People and media throng the venue and Hero is tied in a glass tank and water starts filling into the tank. Roopa flees from her home, and helping her cause is Amitabh Bachchan, in a special guest appearance who drives Roopa to the venue of the event. Can Roopa stop Hero from giving away his life? Will she stop Hero by declaring her love to him so he has a good enough reason to live for? Will Sitara Devi let someone disrupt the show? Will love triumph?

Naseeruddin Shah was marvellous in the movie, he displayed great restraint. Sanjana Kapoor in a debut performance was good as well. Rohini Hattangadi as Roopa’s mom was just about ok. But Ketan had kept the most important role for his to-be wife Deepa Sahi who played Sitara Devi with lot of strength and vigor. She brought the shrewdness and wile into the character, she was fantastic. And of course, Ketan Mehta as a film-maker, excelled in his artistic vision.

The movie’s unique concept of exploiting people’s emotions for commercial gains is much like the reality shows of today; where behind-the-scene activities, emotional outbursts, minor squabbles and disappointments, impoverished backgrounds are highlighted for higher TRPs. Every incident is micro-managed to gain maximum publicity. Curiosity is generated and the public is made to wait for days together for the events to unfold. The media/event-managers are desensitized and they neither care for the trauma and desperation of the participant nor for the consequences of such unethical event management, much like Sitara Devi in the movie.

In 1988 we had one Hero Hiralal, but in 2009 we have hundreds of Hero Hiralals on every show in every channel. What was a figment of Ketan Mehta’s imagination is now unfolding in every drawing-room with people glued to their couches waiting for their Hero Hiralals to appear on-screen. Phata poster, nikla Hero!

This post was first published on PFC