Raanjhanaa Movie Review

Dhanush, one of the biggest stars in Tamil cinema and a national award winner, makes his debut in Bollywood with Anand Rai’s much awaited film ‘Raanjhanaa’. This romantic drama also stars Sonam Kapoor and Abhay Deol in other key roles and is all set to hit the theatres tomorrow. Bollywood3 has been to a special screening of ‘Raanjhanaa’ and we are bringing you an exclusive review of the film well in advance and so read on to know more.

Story :

‘Raanjhanaa’ is a term used in Uttar Pradesh to refer to a person who is deeply and madly in love with someone. In this context, ‘Raanjhanaa’ is a story of Kundan (Dhanush), a Hindu Brahmin boy, living in the holy city of Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh. In his childhood, Kundan falls in love with Zoya (Sonam Kapoor), a Muslim girl, and goes on to chase her till he turns 16. A series of events lead to Zoya being sent to Allahabad for further studies by her parents and soon Zoya forgets Kundan. She then returns to Varanasi after eight long years where Kundan is still eagerly and patiently waiting for the love of his life. But little does our Raanjhanaa know that Zoya is now a big girl and has fallen in love with her co-student and youth politician (Abhay Deol).

The focus then shifts to the question of whether Kundan can finally win Zoya’s love? This one question is what the rest of the movie is all about!

Positive Points :

Raanjhanaa moves smoothly ahead from a cute childhood love story to an intense and mature one. Director Anand has very creatively directed the scenes that simultaneously amuse and charm the viewers.

Talking about performances, I would like to start with Naman Jain, the child artist who plays the young Dhanush. Last seen in the Zoya Akthar segment of ‘Bombay Talkies’, Naman delivers a performance that clears marks him as a future superstar. Sonam Kapoor comes up with an intense portrayal of a character who is a mix of beauty and power and she gives an applause- worthy performance. Then there is Abhay Deol who doesn’t have too many scenes but still manages to grab the viewers’ interest everytime he walks into a scene. Swara Bhaskar and Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, the other characters from Varanasi, have given splendid performances and the quirky dialogue delivery by Zeeshan will definitely have you in splits.

Now if you are still wondering why Dhanush is still not being mentioned, that’s because I was saving the best for the last! Dhanush may have become popular across India for his singing talent in ‘Kolaveri Di’, but his acting in ‘Raanjhanaa’ is nothing less than a wonderful revelation for viewers. He is the surprise package and his sheer talent in playing a lovable and intense loverboy has the viewers longing for more. Whether it is the comic or the intense scenes, Dhanush leaves no room for error and proves that his earlier National Award for acting was well deserved.

Negative Points :

Though the first half doesn’t let the viewers take their eyes of the screen, the second half turns out to be a little inappropriate. The second half suffers mainly because of the political sequences which are not that important and this stretches the movie to an extent that the audiences get bored. The romance vanishes off the screens and takes the audiences interest levels down. Despite his talent, Abhay Deol is clearly wasted in the film where he clearly does not have much to do.

Technical Aspects :

After a long gap, music maestro A R Rahman has come up with an interesting album that expresses romance in a many unique ways. Some of the tracks like ‘Tum Tak’ and ‘Raanjhanaa’ are extremely lovable and fit smoothly in the narrative.

The cinematography is first-rate as the camera easily captures the minute religious and cultural aspects of Varanasi. Also, the editing and background score is above average. However, lot of credit should go to the dialogues which are the film’s biggest strengths and take the film to a different level. The typical north Indian dialogues make the scenes look even more realistic and authentic and this where Director Anand scores.

Verdict :

Overall, ‘Raanjhanaa’ is a story of love and treachery with some surprisingly awesome performances by the entire cast. Despite a slow second half the film’s other strengths make the movie a must watch!

MOVIE RATING.......3.75/5

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Ishkq in Paris Movie Review

After months of postponement in the release of Preity Zinta’s first production venture, Ishkq In Paris will finally hits the theaters tomorrow. Directed by Prem Soni, the movie also stars newcomer and television star Rhehan Malliek in the lead role. After attending the special screening of the movie, we bring to you an exclusive review beforehand. Lets see how the film is.

Story:

Ishkq (Preity Zinta) and Akash (Rhehan Malliek) are two different individuals who meet each other in a train to Paris and end up spending the night together. While Akash is on a break from his mundane boring agent life, Ishkq is happy-go-lucky half French, half Indian girl who in an emotional mayhem after her father leaves her mother (Isabelle Adjani).

Their ‘Night free of guilt and baggage’ turns out to be the most memorable night of their lives. But as per their commitments, the two part ways without even knowing each others full name. Will they meet again? Where will their destiny take them? The answers to these questions form the rest of the story…

Positive Points:

Ishkq In Paris is the Hindi remake of the Hollywood flick, Before Sunrise but with a desi tadka added to it. Filmmaker Prem Soni manages to bring back the sweet romantic love story that has been long lost in Indian movies.

Speaking of performances, Preity makes a comeback with this movie in her own quirky self. Her talkative nature in real life is very aptly depicted on screen. Not to forget that she looks gorgeous. Rhehan on the other hand is a fresh addition to the film industry. Along with his acting, he also manages to bring a charm on the screen with his good looks.

Isabelle is an artist of poise and she has an on screen aura that is unmatchable. The actress is beautiful in every way. The movie is filed with romantic moments and Paris has been showcased wonderfully.

Negative Points:

Even when the first half of the film is a bit acceptable, the second half looses the flow and charisma. Prem Raj’s attempt feels more like an emotional turmoil than a love story. Every time Preity opens her mouth to speak about her so-called family troubles, the audiences keep loosing interest in the movie. Isabelle’s expressions in a few sequences are funny.

Even after being a 96 mins short journey, the love story stretches in the second half to an extent that feels like an epoch. Some of the sequences in the film are boring including the climax which is too joyful to digest.

Technical Aspects:

The music album of the film is refreshing, especially Kudiye Di Kurti, which features Salman Khan in the guest appearance. The song takes the viewers in high spirits and gives a break from the dull poignant uproar. While the first half depicts a love story of 30 something couple acting like teenagers, the second half is nothing more than a cheesy story about break-up, commitment and marriage.

The camerawork by Manush Nandan is A class, as he very aptly captures the romantic Paris streets and the astonishing Eiffel Tower. The screenplay is unpleasant while the direction lacks substance. Editing is decent and Dialogues are fine in the first half, but become tedious by the second.

Verdict:

On the whole, Ishkq In Paris is a tacky love story that feels and looks good only in parts. However, if you are a die-hard romantic and cannot afford to visit the city of romance, visit the movie theatres to take a journey through the beautiful city of Paris.

Movie Rating..............2/5

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Shootout At Wadala Movie Review - Exremly High Voltage

After the much acclaimed 2007 gangster thriller, Shootout At Lokhandwala, director Sanjay Gupta is back with ‘Shootout At Wadala’. The movie has Anil Kapoor, John Abraham, Tusshar Kapoor, Kangana Ranaut, Manoj Bajpayee, Sonu Sood and Mahesh Manjerekar in the lead roles. This movie is loosely based on Hussain Zaidi’s book, Dongri to Dubai, which explains the story behind Mumbai Police’s first ever registered encounter of gangster Manya Surve.

Story :

The movie starts off with the story of a bright college student, Manohar Surve aka Manya Surve (John Abraham), who is madly in love with his girlfriend Vidya (Knagna Ranuat). They to marry each other soon after they get their college degrees. But their world collapses when Manya is sent into life custody over a murder that he has not committed.

While in jail, he meets Sheikh Munir (Tusshar Kapoor) who makes him strong and both escape from the bars to form their own gang. This new gang poses a serious threat to the gang of Zubair Imtiyaz Haskar (Manoj Bajpayee) and Dilawar Imtiyaz Haskar (Sonu Soon). A fierce turf war breaks out between the two gangs.

On the other hand, there is ACP Ishaque Bagwan (Anil Kapoor), who pledges to erase the mafiaraj in Mumbai. He vows to kill Dilawar as well as Manya.

Will Manya succeed in becoming the biggest mafia Don of Mumbai, or will he be stopped by Zubair? What happens to ACP Bagwan’s plans? This forms the rest of the story.

Positive Points :

Filmmaker Sanjay Gupta’s forte is action and with his latest venture, he proves this yet again. The action scenes have been shot well and they are on par with the sequences seen in ‘Shootout at Lokhandwala’.

Speaking of performances, John Abraham has managed to give his image a makeover. The actor is nothing less than remarkable in the role of a grave gangster. His acting is intense and absolutely engaging. The terror that was created by Maya Bhai (Vivek Oberoi) will be re-created by Manya Bhai through his one.

Tusshar portrays the role of Manya’s good friend decently. Anil Kapoor is a class actor who can hold his own in any role. In ‘Shootout At Wadala’ too, Anil delivers an electrifying performance.

Kangna Ranaut gives an appealing performance in few of the scenes. Manoj Bajpayee is engaging as usual. Special mention goes to Sonu Sood. The actor’s appeal is unmatched in the movie and he succeeds in creating an aura for himself. Rest of the cast comprising of Ronit Roy, Mahesh Manjerekar, Jackie Shroff and Siddhant Kapoor give good performances.

Negative Points :

Shooutout At Wadala has nothing in common with ‘Shootout at Lokhandwala’. Even though Sanjay Gupta has done a decent job with this one, he fails to re-create the magic of the previous version.

Tusshar is a talented actor, but he is not given much screen presence to show it off. Kangna Ranaut’s dialogue delivery is plain bizarre, just as in her other films.

The movie’s length is too long. The proceedings become tedious after a while.

The romantic scenes between John and Kangna lack emotional depth and fail to draw the viewers in.

Technical Aspects :

The music of this film keeps the viewers occupied. O Laila, featuring Sunny Leone and Ala Re Ala starring Sophie Choudry are the best of the lot. Priyanka Chopra’s Babli Badmaash doesn’t leave quite an impact. The dialogues are not very impressive.

Sanjay Gupta has done a decent job in the direction department. Cinematography by Sameer Arya and Sanjay F. Gupta is top notch. Editing by Bunty Nagi is A-class. The screenplay is just about OK.

Verdict :

On a whole, ‘Shootout At Wadala’ has some powerful performances from the lead cast. There is a lot of violence in the film and some intense action sequences have been shot well. If you don’t mind the excessive length and a superficial romance, you may catch the film once.

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Aashiqui 2 Movie Review

Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt is trying to recreate the magic of his1990 hit film, Aashiqui, with this latest version. Directed by Mohit Suri, Aashiqui 2 stars Aditya Roy Kapur and Shraddha Kapoor in the lead roles. The movie is all set to release tomorrow and we have been to an exclusive premiere. Let us see if the makers have managed to re-create the magic of the original.

Story
Rahul Jaykar (Aditya Roy Kapur) is a poopular singing sensation. He falls in love with Aarohi (Shraddha Kapoor) and her voice after he hears her singing in small bars. Rahul decides to launch Aarohi’s career and make her a superstar.
After grooming her and honing her skills, Rahul succeeds in making Aarohi a very big star. As Aarohi’s career rises, Rahul’s career starts descending into an abyss. He is just a pale shadow of his former self. Rahul loses confidence in himself and becomes a wreck.
This is when Aarohi decides to leave her career behind to help the love of her life .
Will Aarohi bring the sensational Rahul back to life? That forms the rest of the story…
Positive Points:
Aashiqui 2 manages to bring out an innocent romance that is lost in movies these days. Mohit Suri, who is an expert in thrillers, tries his hands in a romantic flick for the first time and he has done a pretty good job.
Aditya Roy Kapur possesses immense talent. His good looks and performances in a few dramatic sequences are worth praising. Shraddha on the other hand is beautiful and portrays the role of an innocent young woman excellently.
The chemistry between the lead pair is a thing to watch out for in the film.
Shaad Randhawa and Mahesh Thakur have done a decent job.
Negative Points:
Apart for a similar title, Aashiqui 2 has nothing in common with the 90’s blockbuster. Even though Mohit Suri tries his best to keep the plot intact, bad writing by Shagufta Rafique spoils the fun.
The story of the film is good only in bits and pieces and gets stalled by the end.
The makers have tried to create the 80’s romance but the movie proves to be more of an ‘how to quit alcohol’ session than a romantic.
Technical Points:
The songs of the movie are no doubt a hit, especially the tracks ‘Tum Hi Ho’, ‘Sun Raha Hai’ and ‘Piya Aaye Na’ . The dialogues penned down by Shagufta are a let down and don’t have the necessary impact on viewers.
Mohit Suri’s direction goes out of place in a few scenes. Cinematography by Vishnu Rao is average and so is the editing. Screenplay gets poorer as the movie progresses.
Verdict:
Aashiqui 2 has good music as well as fine performances from Aditya and Shraddha. There is a sweet romantic feel to the proceedings. However, poor writing and bad screenplay let the film down. The movie ends up being a one time watch.


Movie Rating...........3/5

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Ek Thi Daayan Movie Review

Producers Ekta Kapoor and Vishal Bhardwaj collaborate for a unique and never-touched-before concept with Ek Thi Daayan. Directed by Kannan Iyer, the movie is a supernatural thriller starring Emraan Hashmi, Konkana Sen Sharma, Huma Qureshi and Kalki Koechlin in lead roles. The film is set to hit the theatres tomorrow and let’s see whether it manages to horrify as expected.

Story:

The movie starts off with Bobo (Emraan Hashmi),a world famous magician who is stuck amidst frequent horrific illusions from his childhood. His condition forces him to visit his childhood psychiatrist. During one of his hypnosis session, Bobo recollects his terrifying past, where his sister and father are killed by a Daayan, named Daayana (Konkana Sen Sharma).

His girlfriend, Tamara (Huma Qureshi) doesn’t believe in his illusions and helps him to carry on in life. As soon as he tries to forget his past, Lisa Dutt (Kalki Koechlin) enters the scene who reminds Bobo of Daayana. Is Lisa too a part of Bobo’s illusions or is she for real? How does Bobo get rid of his hallucinations ? That forms the rest of the story.

Positive Points:

After all the bollywood horror flicks revolving around aatmas, ghosts and black magic, the makers of Ek Thi Daayan add a new genus of Daayans to the league. Kannan Iyer brings a new form of horror to Indian cinema with a concept as unique as this one and manages to terrorize the audiences brilliantly.

The movie revolves around Emraan Hashmi and he doesn’t let the viewers get their eyes off him. The actor’s performance is par excellence. Out of the three Daayan’s, Konkana Sen Sharma excels in her role. Even though the movie is her debut in the horror genre, she manages to play her character terrifically.

Kalki Koechlin doesn’t have much to do in the film, but manages to portray her character well. Huma Qureshi gives an endearing performance. Special mention goes to Rajatava Dutta (Emraan’s doctor) and Vishesh Tiwari (the young Emraan), who have depicted their parts extremely well. The small girl playing Emraan’s childhood sister is simply adorable.

Negative Points:

The movie is an adaptation of Mukul Sharma’s (Konkana’s father) short story and it would have been more convincing if it was made any shorter. Even though the film has a few extremely spooky moments, a few scenes just do not go with the flow. The movie gets confusing as it processes and goes completely out of track by the climax.

Huma Qureshi is a zilch as compared to her previous acclaimed performances. The movie could have done better without Kalki’s character, which doesn’t have much to do. The climax of the film is confusing and the second half is elongated to an extent that it takes the viewers interest off.

Technical Aspects:

The music of the film given by Vishal Bhardwaj is definitely a plus. Yaaram, Kali Kali and Lautungi Main go with the flow and act as refreshments. Totey Ud Gaye is an appealing number. Saurabh Goswami handles the camera in a marvelous way and captures the spooky sequences extremely well.

Clinton Cerejo’s background score gives a horrific effect to the film. While the first half of the film is informative and interesting, the second half becoming dreary by the end. Kannan Iyer manages to indulge the viewers in a new genre pretty well. His screenplay is tight and doesn’t let the film wander.

Verdict:

On the whole, Ek Thi Daayan is a distinctive and unique addition to the horror genre. Apart from a few confusing scenes, the movie will be liked by all types of audiences, whether or not one believes in Daayans. This one is unquestionably worth a shot.


Movie Rating ..................3/5

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Commando Hindi Movie Review - Ultimate Body Show

Vidyut Jamwal made a smashing debut in Bollywood with his negative role in the 2011 action entertainer ‘Force’ where he held his own against the film’s leading man John Abraham. Force went on to be a decent hit apart from making Vidyut an overnight star. He also went on to win all the major debutante awards last year and earned himself the tag of an ultimate action hero. Vidyut is now debuting as the hero in producer Vipul Shah’s action entertainer ‘Commando’. The movie also stars former Miss India Pooja Chopra and Jaideep Ahlawat of ‘Gangs Of Wasseypur’ fame. The film release today and so let’s read on to see what the film is all about:

Story:

Karanvir Dogra (Vidyut Jamwal) is a range one commando with the Indian Para military force who is captured by the Chinese government for trespassing into China. He is imprisoned and tortured for more than a year while somewhere in Pathankot, Amrit Kanwal Singh(Jaideep Ahlawat), a deadly criminal in that area wants to marry his cousin Simrit (Pooja Chopra) at any cost.

As time passes by, the Chinese want to take Karan to an unknown location when he escapes and crosses over to India at the Lepcha border in Himachal Pradesh. He heads to towards his base at Pathankot when he runs into Simrit who is on the run from Amrit Kanwal Singh’s goons. Karanvir warns the goons to leave Simrit alone and when they don’t listen to him, he beats them to a pulp. Unexpectedly, Simrit is far from happy about this and ticks off Karan for adding to her troubles and she forces him to accompany her till she feels safe. The rest of the story is as to how Karnavir saves Simrit form the evil clutches of Amrit Kanwal Singh.

Plus Points:

As the tag line suggests, Commando is surely a one man film which means that it’s a complete Vidyut Jamwal show with almost every scene dominated by him. One can confidently say that Vidyut is the Indian version of Sylvester Stallone and you can’t help but remember films like First blood and Rambo while watching Commando. Vidyut is absolutely amazing in all the action sequences and he also reminds you of the young Akshay Kumar in the early 90′s. Vidyut has the physique, talent and most importantly, he also dances well which is a must for every Hindi film hero.

Jaideep Ahlawat who plays the negative role does an amazing job with his body language, characterization and dialogues suiting the film perfectly. Pooja Chopra looks decent and plays her part well. Commando has some hardcore entertaining action sequences spread across the film. What also helps is the film’s running time which moves at a crisp pace from start to end finish.

Minus Points:

Needless to say, Commando’s story is as old as the hills and there is nothing special about it as it is a good versus evil saga. The sequence showing Vidyut’s escape from China is quite unbelievable and so are the sequences about Vidyut making his way back into India and getting caught up with the heroine. Vidyut looks stiff in some of the scenes and his sequences with Pooja Chopra could have been better. Despite their good looks, the lead pair lacks chemistry and that clearly shows on the screen. The first 15 minutes of the second half tend to get a bit slow and you can easily keep guessing on what happens next throughout the film.

Technical Aspects:

Given that the minimum expectation from a hardcore action film is of some jaw-dropping action sequences, Commando scores highly on this expectation and has some of the best action scenes ever seen in any recent Bollywood film. Lethal hand-to-hand combat fights, amazing stunts and well directed action sequences are in abundance in Commando. The background score is very effective as it elevates the film completely.

The dialogues and the music are OK with director Dilip Ghosh sticking to the tried and tested plot which makes this film a simple watch. The screenplay moves at an even pace while the cinematography captures some stunning locations giving a fresh feel to the film. Though the adaptation is very old school, it’s been quite a while since we have seen such a film in Bollywood.

Verdict:-

On the whole, Commando is one film which has some of the best and original action scenes in then recent Hindi films. Watch out for Vidyut Jamwal as he displays some of the best stunts you would have seen in a very long time. Finally, even though Commando reminds you of films like First Blood and Rambo series, this desi version is a must watch for all action movie lovers.

MOVIE RATING.................3/5

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Chashme Baddoor Movie Review

In these times when Bollywood has suddenly discovered the tested option of remaking of old hit films, it’s now the turn of director David Dhawan to try and recreate the tries his hands on recreating the magic of the 1981 cult comedy ‘Chashme Buddoor’ that was directed by the acclaimed Sai Paranjpaye. The original had starred Farooque Shaikh, Deepti Naval, Ravi Baswani, Rakesh Bedi, and Saeed Jaffrey in the main roles while this remake has Ali Zafar, Taapsee Pannu, Siddharth, Divyendu Sharma and Rishi Kapoor in corresponding roles. The movie has used a lot of innovative promotional techniques over the last couple of weeks and is finally set to release tomorrow. Let’s see whether the remake manages to retain the purity and joy of the original film…

Story:

The movie starts with the bromance of three best buddies, Siddharth (Ali), Omi (Divyendu) and Jay (Siddharth) who live a carefree life in the sunny land of Goa. While Omi’s income depends on his labored poetry, Jay is a struggling actor and these two regularly skip paying for their rents and food expenses for months together while trying to find girlfriends without any luck. Sid is their innocent buddy who is a simpleton and is conned into covering his friends’ misdeeds all the time. The trio is deep in debt to the friendly hotelier Joesph Furtado (Rishi Kapoor) and their gorgeous landlady Josephine (Lilette Dubey).

In this situation enters Seema (Taapsee), the daughter of Army Major (Anupam Kher) and she is supported by her father’s twin brother. Seema is a bubbly and open hearted girl whose good looks and personality attracts Omi and Jay who are totally smitten by her but Seema instead finds her soul mate in Sid. Omi and Jay are unable to digest this fact about their failure and so they try and create a drift between the two lovers.

The rest of the story is whether these two will succeed in breaking up Sid and Seema’s love for each other!

Positive Points:

Apart from a small spelling difference, the remake is a refreshing alteration of the original. While Sai Paranjpye’s Chashme Buddoor was an amalgamation of innocent, delightful and warm humor, David Dhawan’s Chashme Baddoor is flat out funny where David has managed to create a movie of unadulterated family humor that will be enjoyed across all age-groups.

Speaking of performances, David has smartly chosen a young star-cast, who give splendid comical performances. While Ali plays Farooque’s character perfectly with a little contemporary twist and Taapsee is refreshing and pleasing, however it’s Divyendu and Siddharth who are definitely the show-stealers. Divyendu is a talented young chap who should be going places soon and he is given his career best performance. Siddharth on the other hand portrays a totally different character when compared to his intense character in Rang De Basanti. Siddharth’s expressions and dialogue delivery is outright hilarious and these two actors have a fantastic comic timing which is absolutely remarkable.

Rishi Kapoor and Lilette Dubey’s old-age romance is portrayed with excellence. The two Anupam Khers and their loud and energetic mother Bharti Achrekar effortlessly bring back the old-school David Dhawan comedy to life.

Negative Points:

Some of the scenes within the screenplay are left unexplained and this leaves the audiences perplexed. While Divyendu and Siddharth are introduced with a motive, the main lead Ali makes an impromptu appearance out of nowhere. Some of the sequences are also overdone by the actors. Also, the frequent flashbacks and usage of old Bollywood tracks tend to overstay their welcome over time.

One main shortcoming is that the romance between Ali and Taaspsee couldn’t reach the level of innocence portrayed by Farooque and Deepti in the original. Taapsee is definitely beautiful but fails to match upto Deepti Naval’s aura.

Technical Aspects:

Even though Sajid Wajid music have scored peppy and contemporary music, the placement of songs after every few scenes is nothing but tedious. The track ‘Har ek friend kamina hota hai’ by Sonu Nigam is the best song in the film.

The movie will surely prove to be a comeback for David Dhawan especially after his disastrous outing in ‘Rascals’ and this movie will be on par with the laughathon ‘Mujhse Shaadi Karogey’. Special mention goes to writer duo Sajid-Farhad for penning surprisingly funny dialogues in the form of Jay’s side-splitting PJ’s and Omi’s drooling poems. The camera has beautifully captured the beautiful sun-kissed environs of colorful Goa while the editing is decent.

Verdict:

Overall, Chashme Baddoor may have not been able to recreate the chemistry, innocence and fun of the original, but it definitely is a laugh riot. The movie offers one giggle after another and will work great with the masses. So just leave your brains at home to enjoy the movie thoroughly with your family and friends

Movie Rating.........3/5

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Himmatwala Movie Review - Skin Show

Maverick director Sajid Khan, who has been making comedy entertainers from the past three years, is back with the official remake of the super hit 80′s flick Himmatwala. Starring super star Ajay Devgan and southern sensation Tamanna Bhatia, this movie has major roles by Paresh Rawal and Mahesh Manjrekar. Already, music of the film has created a huge buzz and the film which carries huge expectations, has finally hit the

screens today. Let’s see how it is.

Story:-

Sher Singh(Mahesh Manjrekar) is a evil landlord in the village of Ram Nagar. He always troubles the poor and dominates the whole village with the help of his wicked brother-in-law Narayan Das(Paresh Rawal). Among all the troubled families is Savitri Devi, who loses her husband and her son Ravi(Ajay Devgan) in the evil deeds caused by Sher Singh.

After 20 long years, as Savitri Devi and her daughter are leading a poor and miserable life, suddenly Ravi reappears in the village and comes to the rescue of his family. He not creates a huge revolt against Sher Singh, but also falls in love with Sher Singh’s daughter Rekha(Tamanna) leaving Sher Singh highly disappointed.

An angry Sher Singh forms a team and finds out some bitter truths about Ravi and creates a rift between his family. What bitter truths does Sher Singh know about Ravi? How does Ravi manage to tackle Sher Singh and his plans? and What happens to his family and love interest during the course of this time? That forms the rest of the story.

Positive Points:-

As we all knew the story of Himmatwala previously, the only perceptive was to see as to how Sajid Khan would present this Himmatwala to the audience. The set up is the same but the script has been aptly molded according to today’s time and age. Paresh Rawal is the best of the lot, and is hilarious in the role of Naarayandas. He not only reprises the role of veteran Khader Khan successfully, but also gives tremendous boost to the whole film.

Ajay Devgan looks apt for his role and plays his part well. Southern Sensation Tamanna makes a rocking debut and looks stunning in all the songs and scenes. Though her role is less, Tamanna oozes glamor and suits her role perfectly. Mahesh Manjrekar and Zarina Wahab do their respective roles well. All the fight sequences, especially the scenes involving the tiger is worth a mention. Music of the film, especially the Sonakshi Sinha is quite good. Comedy scenes between Paresh Rawal and Mahesh Manjrekar are hilarious.

Negative Points:-

Remaking a blockbuster is always a hard task as the director needs to live to its expectations first, and has to cater to the current generation of movie lovers. Sadly, Himmatwala does not fulfill the promise which the promos have created. Even the swanky star cast could not save the film. Length of the movie is painfully long and takes for ever to finish.

Scenes are melodramatic and over the top. One can see some cheezy comedy and many dragged out situations right throughout the film. The main villain who creates such a ruckus is never projected in a right way. Right through the second half his character wanders all over, and makes a confusing watch. One can say that Himmatwala is let down by Sajid Khan’s weak direction and lack of projection in the story.

First half an hour of the movie is very slow. Right when you think that movie looks good, you are disappointed with a dragged out scene. All the emotions, set up looks over the top and will surely not liked by the urban audience.

Technical Aspects:

The only saving grace of Himmatwala are its songs and fights. Music of the film is very peppy and all the songs have shot exceptionally well. Naino mein Sapna, Taki and Thank God Its Friday make a good very watch. Fights of the movie need a special mention here. They look realistic and have been canned supremely well. One fight which involving the tiger is superbly shot and gives a major boost to the film.

Graphics used for canning the tiger scenes is awesome. The tiger and the whole set up looks very real and the way it has been shot is also worth a mention. Screenplay of the movie is a big let down and that is where the falters. Though all Saji Khan’s previous films have similar comedy, his story and situations were strong. But this time around he ends up now where and disappoints completely.

Verdict:-

On the whole, Himmatwala is one film which disappoints compltely. Peppy music, decent action and some hilarious comedy scenes will be loved by the masses. On the flip side, over the top situations and poor direction go completely against the film.. All said and done, Himmatwala fails to live up to its expectations and can only be watched for the tiger who is the real Himmatwala of the film.

Rating.....2/5

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Mona Singh Topless MMS Video Released

Television actress Mona Singh,who shot to fame with the popular serial Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahin is

making headlines for an ongoing MMS Clip which has gone viral on net.She is seen in the MMS video completely naked looking into the camera and moving from room to room.The MMS doing rounds on the web and went viral on Thursday. Mona Singh says that she is being morphed in the video. But the video shows a woman who looks like Singh nude.

Mona said, “All I can say is that this is a morphed video.I have taken relevant action against this and lodged a complaint at the cyber crime branch and investigation is on."
Mona Singh was shooting for her current TV serial Kya Hua Tera Vada, when she was informed about the video. The actress left the studios immediately and filed a complaint with the cyber crime branch of the Mumbai Police.

 

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Himmatwala Live Updates From Theater

Updated at 01:00 PM

Movie is done now. Keep watching this space for the complete movie review.
Updated at 12:51 PM
Climax on now, stunning fight scene on now.
Updated at 12:42 PM
Movie heading towards climax.
Updated at 12:33 PM
The Item Song Dhoka Dhoka, featuring top actresses of regional cinema is currently on now.
Updated at 12:24 PM
Hilarious scenes now between Paresh Rawal and Mahesh Manjrekar.
Updated at 12:15 PM
The famous Song Taki Taki is on now.
Updated at 12:09 PM
Tamanna makes back an entry, supports Ajay Devgan in his deeds.
Updated at 12:01 PM
Movie heading into an emotional mode.
Updated at 11:52 AM
Heavy emotional scenes between Ajay Devgan and his Sister on now.
Updated at 11:45 AM
Ritesh Deshmukh makes an surprise entry.
Updated at 11:35 AM
Unexpected twist, Interval time.
Updated at 11:27 AM
Adhyayan Suman makes an entry as Paresh Rawal's son.
Updated at 11:19 AM
Tamanna is in love with Ajay Devgan. The super hit Naino Mein Sapna song is on now.
Updated at 11:02 AM
Massive fight is on between a wild Tiger and Ajay Devgan. Graphics look amazing.
Updated at 10:52 AM
The Song Bum Pe Laat is currently on...Ajay Devgan teases Tamanna.
Updated at 10:45 AM
Tamanna makes an entry as Mahesh Manjrekar's daughter.
Updated at 10:37 AM
Movie moves into flash back mode, Zarina Wahab is introduced as Ajay Devgan's Mother.
Updated at 10:30 AM
Paresh Rawal, Mahesh Manjrekar makes an entry in a village called Ram Nagar.
Updated at 10:23 AM
Ajay Devgan makes a rocking entry as the Himmatwala. A superb fight is on with a Russian Fighter.
Updated at 10:17 AM
The movie opens with super hit Sonakshi Sinha Song, Thank God its Friday..Titles are rolling.
Updated at 10:12 AM
The movie has just started and the duration is 2hrs 39min.
Updated at 10:08 AM
Hello Folks. We will bring you live updates for 'Himmatwala' in a minute or two.. Keep watching this space.

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Sona Spa Movie Update Review

Makarand Deshpande is a noted theatre and film actor who has given many powerful performances in a lot of movies that have won him accolades. He has also ventured into the directorial arena and unfortunately this journey hasn’t been quite a success. His latest film ‘Sona Spa’ that stars the very talented Naseeruddin Shah along with actors Aahana Kumrah, Shruti Vyas and Pooja Pradhan. The movie releases today, let’s see how it fares…

Story:

The movie starts with Baba Dayanand (Naseeruddin Shah), who is the man behind the concept of Sona Spa, explaining the concept from outer space (quite literally). The interesting thing about Sona Spa is that it sells sleep at the cost of 2500 rupees an hour! This means that the sleep workers sleep on behalf of the client who can stay awake and complete their other chores in parallel. The catch here is that the sleep workers also have the access to the client’s dreams while sleeping for them. The Mumbai branch of Sona Spa is operated by Indu madam (Pooja Pradhan) where Rucha (Shruti Vyas) and Ritu (Ahana Kumrah) work as sleep workers with their own set of troubles with life. While Rucha is a rich brat dealing with her father’s insomnia, Ritu is a well-mannered girl who deals with her traumatized sister and a comatose father. Sona Spa also has a senior employee, Meenakshi (Nivedita Bhattacharya), who is a prostitute turned ‘sleep worker’.

The rest of the movie is about how the two young girls, ‘who btw only sleep for you and not with you (bummer)’, deal with their client’s dreams and at the same time their own problems in life.

Positive Points:

Director Makarand Deshpande has chosen a concept that goes well with today’s fragmented and stressed lives where all a sleep deprived person needs is a few hours of sound sleep. Naseeruddin Shah’s depiction as a baba is good. The two young talents Aahana Kumrah and Shruti Vyas have played their parts well while Nivedita shows off her talent as prostitute in a lucknowi attire and accent.

Negative Points:

We would like to start by asking Naseer Sir, about ‘what was he thinking’ when he signed up for this film? Throughout the film, the very talented actor is shown talking through a TV screen at the spa since he is leading a very comfortable life in Seattle where there are more sleep deprived people! Ahana and Shruti, the two very talented theatre artists, are absolutely wasted in the movie. To top it all, there Pooja Pradhan, who should probably go back to her previous profession of modeling as she was good at that atleast. Here she looks more like a hotel stewardess than an entrepreneur.

Makarand Deshpande has successfully helmed a tale that makes sense only in few parts. The other characters including the police officer, a rich man (with a weird disorder of killing his lovers in dream) and Indu’s mentally charged brother have overplayed their roles.

Technical aspects:

The only one song in the film ‘Neend Ka Bijness’ is played during the interval and does no good for the film. Makarand, as a director, fails to entice the viewers with a confusing script where some of the sequences are left half-way while some of them don’t make sense at all. The filmmaker selects an interesting topic but executes it in a bizarre way.

Cinematography by Rajeev Jain is just about OK thanks to his framing of the spa which is noteworthy. The background score by Shailendra Barve is decent. Editing by Biren Joyti Mohanty is one aspect that could have been totally worked upon.

Verdict:

On a whole, Sona Spa is one movie that despite dealing with a good concept and talented theater artistes, fails to be executed properly. This is one confused saga that can be easily missed without any regrets. However, if you are looking forward for a sound sleep, then do visit a screening of Sona Spa since that will definitely put you to sleep!

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Aatma Movie Latest Review

Supermodel turned actress Bipasha Basu who is known more for her sultry and bold looks has been experimenting with different characters in her last few films. After giving a stunning performance in Raaz 3, Bipasha is back with another supernatural thriller titled ‘Aatma’. The movie also stars the highly talented Nawazuddin Siddique and is directed by Suparn Verma. The movie released today and lets read on to find out more about it .

Story:

The movie starts off with Maya (Bipasha Basu) who is a single mother who has suffered endless abuse from her husband (Nawazuddin Siddiqui). She is quite relieved to be freed of his clutches due to his death. Her peaceful life is soon shattered when she begins to discover that her dead husband has possessed her 6 year old daughter Nia (Doyel Dhawan). Unusual incidents start occurring in Maya’s life and people start getting killed in the course of time. The rest of ‘Aatma’ is about how Maya manages to escape from the grip of her possessive husband and also saves her daughter.

Plus Points:
Bipasha Basu put in very sincere effort in Aatma. She looks good as the traumatized mother and has captured those emotions very well. The child artist who plays Nia also does a wonderful job who not acted well but also carries the whole film on her shoulders. Some of the scenes where the evil Aatma has possessed Nia are shown in a very realistic manner. The first 20 minutes of the second half is quite interesting.

Negative Points:
Though Bipasha Basu has put in a good act, she seems to be getting repetitive in these kind of roles. Overall, her look, body language and the way she has been showcased is quite ordinary. The movie suffers highly due to some weak scripting. A talented actor like Nawazuddin Siddique has been completely wasted in the film. His characterization of the evil Aatma has not been showcased properly. His presence is limited in the in the film and even his particular role does not suit the film.

While we expect some nerve wracking thrills in every super natural film, Aatma has absolutely none of them. All the so called evil moments are quite ordinary and sometimes they go overboard. The first half takes forever to finish and the story only enfolds in the second half. The climax of the film leaves a lot of open questions and many of us would not be able to relate to the ending.

Technical Aspects:
The production design of the film is quite good. Most of the film is set in the house which has been showcased very well. Cinematography is quite good and this is the only technical aspect of the entire film that is good. Special effects are very ordinary and do not scare or thrill you at any point.

Director Suparn Verma’s story is very ordinary and has nothing to offer. Suparn neither holds your attention with an engaging story nor does he manage some horrifying scenes. Even his scary scenes are over the top and have been seen in many other film earlier. The screenplay of the movie is just OK and only picks up pace in a few sequences.

Verdict:
Overall, Aatma is a film that is unfortunately neither scary nor thrilling. Some over-the-top sequences and an average story go against this film completely. Finally, this Aatma has no life and can be completely ignored even when it is telecast on TV.

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Rangrezz Latest Review -Best Script For Fiendship

After creating a lot of hype by getting the rights of Korean singer Psy’s hit number ‘Gangnam style’ for his Hindi film ‘Rangrezz’, the Bhagnani’s, Jackky and Vashu Bhagnani are back with their upcoming film Rangrezz. Directed by Priyadarshan, Rangrezz is another male bonding flick starring Jackky Bhagnani, Priya Anand, Rajpal Yadav, Amitosh Nagpal and Vijay Verma in lead roles. This movie is a remake of Tamil hit film Naadodigal and has finally hit the screens. Let’s see how it is…
Story:

The movie starts off with three best friends, Rishi (Jackky Bhagnani), Winu (Amitosh Nagpal) and Pakkya (Vijay Verma) living a cheerful life in a middle class background and struggle to make it big in their respective career paths. Megha (Priya Anand) is Rishi’s childhood sweetheart who is also his uncle’s daughter.
Their lives take a U turn, when Rishi’s childhood friend, Joy (Raghav Chanana), who is also a son of a powerful politician enters their life. Joy is in love with the daughter of another A-lister but is scared to go against his parents. Rishi and his two friends come to his rescue and help Joy to get married to the love of his life. However their sacrifice is later followed by a strong betrayal by Joy. Because of this repercussions Rishi and his friends get into more trouble. Rest of the story is as to how they manage to gather themselves and get back to their normal lives. Will the friends help the lovers to get married to each other and what problems will they face in the procedure, forms the rest of the story.
Positive Points:
Rangrezz is one of those movies, where you enter the movie hall with no expectations but come out totally satisfied. The movie is basically about friendship and sacrifice. The whole film relies on this strong concept and fabulous direction by Priyadarshan only enhances it more. The movie has some unpredictable twists, drama and amusing humor.
Speaking of performances, Jackky Bhagnani is growing himself as an actor with every film. He gives a splendid performance as compared to his debut in 2009’s ‘Kal Kissne Dekha’. Amitosh Nagpal portrays a role of computer intellect and a close friend with perfection. However, newcomer Vijay Verma is a show-stealer. His dialogue delivery and rowdy performance, makes him the star. He has the capability of going places after this. Rajpal Yadav is flawless while portraying his forte onscreen. His humor takes the movie to another level. Priya Anand plays a bubbly in-love girl with ease. All other characters look refreshing on screen.
Negative Points:
Rangrezz is one movie that inspite of a strong concept, lacks some substance. Priya Anand, who showed her acting skills in English Vinglish, has been completely wasted in the film. Rajpal over does his character in some places. The biggest disappointment is the climax of the film, which is left unexplained by the director. Just when the viewers start to shower interest in the movie, it looses plot and scatters. The story also has one nameless and dialogue-less character, who is not been introduced at all, but is present in almost all major scenes.

Technical Aspects:
The music of the film is decent enough to entertain the viewers. However, Shambho Shiv Shambho, the song adapted from Naadodigal, is the highlight. It leaves an impact and goes with the flow of the scene. While the first half of the film is short and informative, the second half needs serious trimming. The first half is engraved with some engaging drama and humor and also has some nail-biting sequences. The social message sent across by the filmmaker is powerful. Cinematography and screenplay is laudable and editing is decent.
Verdict:
On the whole, Rangrezz is a total surprise and is targeted to the youth of today. Apart from being entertaining, the movie is thought provoking and an example of good cinema. However the lack of big names may hinder the movie’s performance at the box office. Finally Rangrezz is surely worth a watch.


MOVIE RATING.........3/5

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Jolly LLB Movie Update Review

After a gap of three long years, director Subhash Kapoor is finally back with Jolly LLB which is promoted as comical drama. Starring the talented Arshad Warsi, Boman Irani, Amrita Rao and Saurabh Shukla in lead roles, this movie is set to hit the screens on 15th March. As always, we have got you an insightful review well in advance. So let’s see how Jolly LLB is!!!
Story:
Jolly LLB has a very simple story with the movie starting with Jolly, a small time lawyer from Meerut who shifts to Delhi with an ambition to become a hi-profile lawyer. In Delhi, he continues to take up small legal cases and invariably ends up on the losing side. One fine day, his luck turns and he gets a chance to take a case where he has to argue it out against Rajpal (Boman Irani) who is one of the top lawyers in the country.
In parallel, Sandhya (Amrita Rao) a school teacher is Jolly’s love interest who steadfastly supports Jolly in his hard days and helps him make the right career moves. The rest of the story is about how Jolly manages to win justice for his client against the cunning and talented Rajpal.
Positive Points:
While a number of earlier movies such as Kyunki Main Jhooth Nahi Bolta, Damini, Ek Ruka Hua Faisla, etc. revolve around courtroom cases, director Subhash Kapoor takes a different route and makes an effort to bring out the actual truth behind the court cases. All the courtroom scenes are very realistic and believable. Arshad Warsi handles his role of a struggling lawyer with ease and lives the character on screen. He is funny, witty and gels with his co-stars while giving tough competition to Boman Irani and is on par with him in their scenes together.
The other talent in the film, Boman Irani plays an arrogant and intimidating lawyer to perfection. However, the one other character that merits a mention is Saurabh Shukhla who plays the role of the judge. Saurabh gives one of his best performances and is a scene stealer in the movie.
Negative Points:
Jolly LLB is one of those movies which easily fails to reach up to the viewers expectations. The biggest drawback is that though Subhash Kapoor promoted the movie as a comical, mind you…it isn’t a comical. The movie lacks humor and there is none of it in the first half and a little bit (thanks to Saurabh Shukla) in the second half. One would expect a lot of humor thrown around thanks to the presence of Arshad and Boman in the film but it ends up with the characters being portrayed as serious personalities.
Amrita Rao is just about OK and is only there as an eye-candy. She gives an over-the-top performance and the romantic scenes between Amirta and Arshad could have been totally scripted out. Some of the movie sequences go on a tangent leaving the audiences confused and longing for explanations. Some of the characters such as Arshad’s bodyguard could have been completely deleted from the screenplay. Overall, the movie is stodgy in the first half, regains pace by the second half and turns into a boring sermon by the climax.
Technical Points:
Jolly LLB is more of a serious courtroom drama than a comical entertainer. The songs are absolutely average and go against the whole plot. The dialogues penned down by director Subhash himself are lengthy and get confusing at times. Anshuman Mahaley’s cinematography is decent as he depicts the court room scenes wonderfully. The background score by Sanjoy Chowdhary and editing by Sandeep Singh Bajeli is just about OK.
Verdict:
On the whole, Jolly LLB is a total somber affair than being an amusing one. Good performances from Arshad, Boman Irani and some nerve racking court room scenes are sure shot plus points. A slow second half and a dodgy climax spoils the fun. Finally, watch this movie without any expectations and you would be decently entertained. Would recommend a one time watch.

RATING..........2.75/5

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Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster Returns Update Review

After the critically acclaimed Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster, one would wonder how good its sequel can get. This time around Sahab Biwi Aur Gangster Returns stars the principal characters Jimmy Shergill, Mahie Gill and two new additions Irfan Khan and Soha Ali Khan in other lead roles. Whether director Tigmanshu Dhulia tries his hands in making this movie better than its prequel let’s find it out now.

Story:

The movie starts with Inderjeet Singh (Irrfan Khan), a gangster turned politician, who is having an affair with Thakur Birendra Pratap’s beautiful daughter, Ranjana (Soha Ali Khan). The couple’s financial differences keep them away from marrying each other. Aditya Pratap Singh (Jimmy Shergill), the Saheb has still not forgiven his biwi, Madhavi (Mahie Gill) of betraying him in the first part. Madhavi is still a drunken and spoilt wife who longs for her husbands love.

It is after Saheb sees Ranjana’s photograph that he determines on marrying her in any case. He in turn blackmails Ranjana’s father, who leaves with no choice but to agree to the Saheb. This is also when Madhavi plans on concentrating on her political career. Birendra Pratap hires Inderjeet to destroy Saheb completely. During the course of all this Madhavi develops a physical relation with Inderjeet while he is still madly in love with Ranjana.

Will Saheb get cornered into Inderjeet’s trap which involves Madhavi. Will Ranjana come to know about Inderjeet and Madhavi’s relation? What happens next ? That forms the rest of the story.

Positive Points:

Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster Returns is far more better than a regular gangster film. It is a vibrant tale of love, lust, passion and surprisingly lot of humor. Irrfan Khan is surely the highlight of the film. He plays his character of a self poised gangster with extreme poise and humour that one doesn’t miss Randeep Hooda at all.

Mahie Gill continues from where she left in the prequel. She plays a drunken displeased woman with faultlessness. Soha Ali is excellent and subtle as the sweet simple girl. Jimmy Shergill, as in the previous part is certainly a rage. He portrays an affectionate wheel-chair bound sahib with excellence and ease.

Negative Points:

The main star of the film Irfan Khan, is not properly introduced in the film and one wonders how does he fit into the whole story which had ended in the first part. His connection with Jimmy Shergill is unexplainable and could have been portrayed in a better way. Even though Mahie plays her part as an unsatisfied biwi with poignancy, some of her drunken sequences are over-the-top.

SBAGR also fails as a standard masala entertainer and is targeted only for specific audience. After a certain while the story gets predictable and moves a bit slowly.

Technical Points:

The songs of the film go with the flow of the scenes, except for the item number by Mughda Ghodse, which could have been a complete no-no to the film. The addition of the track ‘Lag Ja Gale’, gives special meaning to the film. Tigmanshu Dhulia plays smart in choosing the characters, as each of them play their role with ease.

His direction is without a doubt, the best thing in the movie. While the first half of the movie goes by introducing the characters, the second half has all the ingredients that will let you stick to your seats. Unlike its first part, SBAGR has a fair amount of humor quotient, which is a remarkable addition to the movie. The editing and the screenplay drop a bit in the second half as compared to the first.

Verdict:

On the whole Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster Returns is a baap of its prequel. Even though, not targeted for family audiences, the movie has everything that will keep you engaged right till the end. Thrilling sequences, love, lust, passion, revenge this movie has everything and is surely worth a watch. Go for it.

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Siddarth Romance With Siddarth In Mumbai

Taapsee and Siddharth are busy these days promoting their upcoming Hindi film Chashme Baddoor. The promotional campaign began recently and both the actors were spotted at a college in Mumbai where they interacted with the students. In fact, the film is all the more crucial for Taapsee since it’s her debut film in Bollywood. The film’s release has been delayed on several occasions and finally it’s gearing up for release on April 5. David Dhawan has directed the film. Ali Zafar and Diveyundu Sharma are playing the other lead roles in this film.

Meanwhile, Taapsee is also awaiting the release of her upcoming Telugu film Gundello Godaari which will hit the screens on March 8. She’ll also be seen in Venkatesh starrer Shadow, Chandrasekhar Yeleti’s action adventure, Lawrence’s Muni 3 and Ajith starrer Valai.

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Amir Khan Changed Male To Female Soon

Aamir khan is ever-ready and ever-charged to do anything for the character. His new film with Raju Hirani titled as 'PK' will have Aamir sporting a Skirt or call it as Ghaghra, as we can seen above. Shooting of the movie has begun in Rajasthan recently and Aamir looked quite funny wearing yellow skirt and a blazer with transistor in hand and an old black shoes. Media reports say of Aamir spending 45 days of long shooting schedule for this film in Rajasthan where in his wife Kiran and son Azad are accompanying. Raju Hirani has roped in Anushka Sharma as heroine in this flick.
Let us see, what is the speciality and reason behind Aamir accepting such costumes for 'PK.'

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The Attacks of 26/11 Review -RGV Style

After getting a lot of negative feedback for some of his recent projects, filmmaker Ram Gopal Verma is back with a real life saga to experiment with this time. The Attacks of 26/11 is based on the 2008 terrorist attack that took place at the Taj Hotel and Nariman House on November 26 and stars Nana Patekar and Sanjeev Jaiswal. The incident shook the whole country and took away 166 lives. The movie is set to hit the theatres on 1st March and we bring to you the review much in advance, after attending a special screening in Mumbai. Before seeing how the film fares, we would like to first express our solidarity with the victims of the attack.

Story:

The movie starts off with Joint Commissioner of Police, Rakesh Maria (Nana Patejar), narrating the shocking events of 26/11 to a committee. He starts by narrating how the 10 terrorists entered the Mumbai through the Gateway of India by hijacking a boat. One of the terrorists is a 20-yar old, innocent looking Ajmal Kasab (Sanjeev Jaiswal).

The terrorists come in with a set plan and distribute themselves to attack different areas of the city. While two of them attack the famous Leopold Café, two go for the famous Taj Hotel, killing and hurting people in large numbers. They spare neither women nor children. Kasab along with one of his partners attacks the crowded VT station leaving behind a trail of destruction. How the police force fights back and regains control of the city forms the rest of the story.

Positive Points:

The replica of the Taj Hotel created in the movie is fantastic and Ramu’s portrayal of characters is believable and convincing. He has given great importance to the emotional aspects of the attack. How police officials suffered and the sense of loss experienced by people is very clearly shown.

There are some strikingly effective scenes in the movie. The attention to detail is noteworthy. The improvised high capacity magazines held together with duct tape,switching on and off the AK 47′s full auto mode etc..

Speaking of performances, Sanjeev Jaiswal bears remarkable resemblance to Ajmal Kasab.Nana Patekar has given a top notch, seasoned performance and his role is key to the film.

Other actors including Atul Kulkarni and Ganesh Yadav have portrayed their character as police officers with ease. Though most of the events are well known to the public, RGV has still succeeded in keeping the interest of viewers alive in the first half.

Negative Points:

After watching the film, we can say that Ram Gopal Verma’s good old days are not yet back. If a person goes in expecting to see a gripping visual portrayal of the brutal attack that shook the country, he/she may come out disappointed. The director has chronicled the events effectively in the first half, but changes direction completely in the second half.

Nana Patekar’s narration can get very slow at times and may test the patience of viewers in the second half of the movie. Sanjeev Jaiswal overplays his role at times.

After seeing the brutal attacks on VT Station and Leopold Cafe, you expect to see the storming of the Taj by NSG commandos. But apart from a visual hint about their role, nothing else is shown. The end result – no satisfaction.

Climax is slow. The discussion between Nana Patekar and Sanjeev Jaiswal about the philosophy of Jihad and its implications is perhaps good for showcasing the emotional conflicts of a psychopath, but it will be very tough for common viewers to appreciate.

Technical Aspects:

Harshraj Shroff’s cinematography is worth a mention as he manages to capture the brutality effectively. Ram Gopal Verma’s direction is good only in parts. He has succeeded in showcasing the brutality of the attacks effectively, but slips in the second half.

Editing is not effective, especially in the second half.

Verdict:

Overall, ‘The Attacks of 26/11′ is a brave movie. It is more of a realistic and raw depiction of the event rather than a true cinematic adaptation. The first half is very good but the second half is philosophical. As a result, the film can get very slow here. You can give it a shot. This is definitely one of RGV’s best efforts in recent times.

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I Love New Year Movie HQ Trailer

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Zila Ghaziabad Movie Review - Noting New

Mass entertainers have become an integral part and parcel of Bollywood currently and this trend has become more popular thanks to Salman Khan’s string of blockbusters in this genre. Cashing in on this craze, Sanjay Dutt, Vivek Oberoi and Arshad Warsi have come together for the Anand Kumar directed ‘Zilla Ghaziabad’. This film is based on real life stories of some brutal gang wars that took place in the crime-prone areas of Uttar Pradesh and so let’s see how the movie fares.
Story:
The movie starts with showcasing the character of Fauji (Arshad Warsi) who is a dreaded gangster based in Ghaziabad. Fauji works for Chairman(Paresh Rawal), a powerful politician who get his illegal activities done by Fauji but prefers Satbir(Vivek Oberoi), an educated lawyer to handle all his legal issues.
Fauji doesn’t like the special attention being showered on Satbir by Chairman, and taking advantage of this rivalry, one of Fauji’s close friend creates a huge misunderstanding between them. The misunderstanding leads to bigger and bigger problems and soon both the groups are baying for each other’s blood. They start creating a huge law and order problem in Ghaziabad which has the local residents caught up in the cross-fire. As the situation goes out- of-hand, a special officer Pritam Singh(Sanjay Dutt) is appointed to get the situation in control.
The rest of the story is about how Pritam Singh deals with the dreaded gangs and comes out victorious in the end.
Positive Points:
The basic story line of the movie is average and is gripping only in bits and pieces. Vivek Oberoi plays his part well and looks good as the honest and sophisticate gangster while Arshad Warsi looks apt and plays his role with sincerity. Arshad speaks the local dialect really well and is specially good in the confrontational scenes with Sanjay Dutt.
Charmee Kaur does a decent job and looks beautiful as the simple Indian girl while Ravi Kishen impresses in the role of Rashid. Zarina Wahab’s character is sketchy and she flits in and out of the screenplay. The first half of the movie is decent and makes a breezy watch.
Negative Points:
The trailers project Sanjay Dutt to be major star of the film but surprisingly he makes his entry only in the second half. Sanjay Dutt has done many bad films in his career and Zilla Ghaziabad would surely make it to the top of that infamous list. The super fit Sanjay Dutt looks out of shape and hardly makes an impact in the film. Zilla Ghaziabad does not have anything to keep you hooked to the proceedings and is quite predictable right from first scene.
There are lot of the so called Dabangg moments such as the fights sequences, dances and the production design that immediately remind you of Dabangg. There are many over the top sequences as well as many illogical scenes that seem to have been added later.
Characterization is vague where the characters lack enthusiasm or motivation. The whole set up and the basic plot seems shaky and has not been handled well at all. The second half of the movie is quite a pain to sit through and becomes totally routine. Too much violence for unknown reasons is what the film showcases throughout
Technical Aspects:
As Zilla Ghaziabad is supposedly an action entertainer we have all the fight sequences shot in an over the top manner. You can see all the lead stars pulling off action scenes that are quite funny and unbelievable. Songs of the movie are just about OK esp., the title song. Both the item songs are good and have also been shot well while the dialogues have an Uttar Pradesh nativity and have been handled well. The whole look of the movie is decent and showcases the Ghaziabad town well.
The screenplay of the movie is a big drawback. Many scenes have been misplaced and also seem to have been rushed. The editing is OK and so is the back ground score. Director Anand Kumar makes a mockery of the whole film as he completely loses the plot and fails to register even a single scene in the whole film. Neither does he create any hype with the gang wars nor he tie it up in a justifiable manner.
Verdict:
On the whole, Zila Ghaziabad is one film which tries hard to be a masala entertainer but falls flat on its face. Vivek Oberoi, Arshad Warsi try to save the film but some over the top sequences, and a out of shape Sanjay Dutt are huge negatives for the film. Finally, you can completely ignore this film even when it comes on TV.

Movie Rating...........1.5/5

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