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.