The world’s coolest pirate has arrived yet again, sporting his off-red bandana and hoop earrings. With that distinctive gait of his, Jack Sparrow embarks on a quest for the ‘Fountain of Youth’ in the latest installment of the ‘Pirates’ series – On Stranger Tides.

The movie’s plot is inspired from Tim Powers’ novel of the same name. The story entails a three-chariot race to the legendary ‘Fountain of Youth’. Sparrow sets foot in London upon hearing that an impostor has conjured up a journey to the fountain. He is captured by the King’s forces, and meets Captain Hector Barbosa (Geoffrey Rush), now a privateer, who asks him to join their journey to the fountain before the Spanish, who are already chasing the fountain, make it. Sparrow manages a spectacular escape, and meets his original impostor, who in reality was Angelica (Penelope Cruz) – his former love interest. Angelica drugs Sparrow and takes him aboard ‘Queen Anne’s Revenge’ – her father, legendary pirate, Blackbeard’s (Ian McShane) ship – which is on also on a quest for the Fountain of Youth. Meanwhile, Barbosa is hot in their heels, duly assisted by Sparrow’s first mate – Gibbs.

Gore Verbinsky has stepped aside for Rob Marshall, who wields the megaphone. The director of flicks like ‘Chicago’, and ‘Nine’, Marshall has given a signature style to this edition of Pirates – especially the action choreography. Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley are noted by their absence — the onus is entirely on Depp to take the plot forward, and he does it with elan. ‘On Stranger Tides’ is an out and out Jack Sparrow movie. His mannerisms and his endearing camp-gait impresses the viewer. Depp does everything from swinging from a chandelier to scaling palm trees while being tied to it. The best sequence is the initial ‘carriage-hopping’ sequence; the crowd in the theatre applauded wildly to the exquisite stunts, astonishingly, shot on a single-take! Cruz looks just great as the female lead. McShane is menacing evil Blackbeard while Rush ably reprises his role as Barbosa.

Full marks for the action sequences – they’re way ahead of the previous installments in the series. The CGI, coupled with 3D is indeed spectacular. Special mention goes to the mermaids – yes, there are loads of them in the movie. Unlike stereotypes, mermaids in this movie are vindictive and bloodthirsty – even vampire-like (the Twilight effect?), which makes them all the more attractive (Psst, their boobs are up for the grabs, pun intended. ). 3D is icing in the movie’s cake. Through my viewing experience was hampered by an inferior-quality theatre, I’m sure other viewers might have a better tale to tell.

That said, the film is lengthy, at 136 minutes. The story, in all its tedium, is average, and the meandering script only makes things worse. The plot is, at its best, chaotic. POTC has become a franchise of sorts, in the model of Harry Potter – and the plot for this movie seems tailor-made just to keep the franchise afloat. It hasn’t helped the the story is based on a novel. A lion’s share of action sequences are filmed at night, bringing in a visual tedium of sorts. Yes, your eyes tend to droop for brief spells. (A friend of mine actually slept through half of the movie).  The first half, despite the cart-hopping action sequences, drags.

Despite all its shortcomings, ‘On Stranger Tides’ manages to satisfy the average ‘Pirates’ fan, albeit marginally. If you’re a Jack Sparrow fan, the flick is worth a watch. Else, gear yourself for a mishmash of action sequences, amidst a chaotic plot.

My Rating: 5.5/10.

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Santosh Shivan is one of the best cinematographers in the countryAs a director, he has sparkled in the past with movies as diverse as ‘Tahaan’ and ‘Navarasa’. As the ace cinematographer returns to direction once more, one expects some mind-blowing visuals in a power-packed movie. And that’s precisely what ‘Urumi’ has to offer.

Urumi is the story of Chirakkal Kelu Nayanar – a warrior in 15th century Kerala. The story, being told in flashback, has Krishna Raj (Prithviraj), a struggler based in Goa, who gets to know of his vast ancestral property in Kerala by a mining company which wants his land. All set to sell it off to the company, he comes back to Kerala where he gets to know the story of his ancestors from a tribal. Thus unveils the story of Kelu Nayanar, who wants to take revenge for his father’s death by killing Vasco Da Gama. Ably supported by childhood-buddy Vavvali (Prabhu Deva) and Arackal Ayesha (Genelia) – a warrior princess, he sets off to get Vasco’s blood.

This is not Santosh’s first period film – he has done ‘Asoka’ before. The experience has held him in good stead – Urumi defines perfection. The film has Santosh Shivan written all over it. The visuals are spectacular. Shot mostly in Malshej, Maharashtra, the locals are exquisite and look stunning in Shivan’s frame. Even the mist, most of which is natural, looks quite striking. All stops have been pulled to underscore even the last detail. Shankar Ramakrishnan’s script is quite straightforward, and helps the viewer focus into the nuances of the story perfectly. The connection between the flash-back and present is quite ironic and deserves applause.

Acting by Prithviraj is quite commendable. Prithvi excels as the angst-filled hero, living by his father’s ideals. His dialogue delivery and body-language is quite impressive. Genelia has shed her bubbly girl-next-door image to become the warrior princess – Ayesha. She does a good job, playing the menacing princess. Prabhu Deva effortlessly fits himself to the role of Prithvi’s sidekick, providing for the occasional laughter. Surprisingly, he even speaks decent Malayalam. Nithya Menon, who plays Bala, the ‘Chirackal’ princess, sparkles with her childish gait. Jagathy Sreekumar’s Machiavellian Chencheri Kurup is outstanding. He displays a Shakuni-like brilliance, drawing many accolades. The foreign cast, Robin Pratt and Alex O’ Neill – who play Vasco Da Gama and his son Estavio Da Gama respectively, are decent. Vidya Balan, however, is excess-baggage. Her item number is disappointing, with the actor exposing her not-so-perfect figure.

The highlight of the movie is its stunts. Internationally-acclaimed stunt-masters have been roped in to do martial arts for the movie. The movie justifies its title; the ‘urumi’ a.k.a. ‘Curling Blade’ depicts itself in every single stunt scene, so much to the fact that you become a fan of the potent weapon. The fact that the movie doesn’t employ CGI comes across as a high-point. Actors like Prithviraj and Genelia have in fact, acted in the stunt scenes themselves. The final clash between Prithviraj’s soldiers and Vasco Da Gama’s army is amazing. Most of the slow-mo stunts are breathtaking. They leave you glued to the seat, open-mouthed in adoration.

Not everything about this flick is rosy though. At 170 minutes, the film drags. The editing should have been a bit more taut; at least thirty minutes of the story could be easily cut out. Apart from ‘Aaro Nee Aaro’, music by Deepak Dev is disappointing. So are the music videos, most of which are quite unnecessary.

Overall, the 20-crore movie is watchable and worth the effort. Kudos to Prithviraj and Santosh Shivan for producing coming up with such an epic extravaganza.

My Rating: 6/10.

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I happened to watch ‘The Social Network’ today. Yes, I’m a little late, I know. Better late than never, they say.

I didn’t realize it first, but this movie was my first flick in 2010.

Boy, what a movie it was!

Now, now, before you presume things, I’m not reviewing the movie. (I’m quite famous  notorious for my reviews these days. )The movie deserves nothing less than ‘awesome’, (quoting Barney). If you’re looking for a review, take my word, it’s awesome. Even for a non-computer geek. The movie spews awesomeness, hats off to David Fincher for the brilliant way he has laid out the story of Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook.

I can safely say that ‘Social Network’ was the best thing that has happened to me in 2011.

Movies go a long way in  influencing you. They plant an idea in your head (la ‘Inception’) and take you to another realm, another world. And they inspire you to such great extent that you’re blown away. The social network had such an impact on me. It made me realize that even a college student can go on to be a billionaire. It gave me an insight on the power of ideas, how they can spiritedly bloom within your mind… And how, forced into action, they could work wonders with your life. It was a much-needed wake-up-call for me. Yes, I was sleeping. And this movie woke me up, with a rude shock!

Now that the movie has set my ball rolling, I’m getting back to the drawing board. It’s high time I started working towards the realization of my goals.

Oh, btw, Happy New Year, folks! And do watch ‘The Social Network’, if you haven’t.

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I first heard of Kurutham Kettavan from mom. She heard about this new Malayalam music video featuring Suraj Venjarammoodu and Ranjini Haridas on TV and alerted me immediately. Not exactly a fan of Ranjini, I didn’t show much interest. But mom seemed all hyped up about the video, despite not having seen it. Now, my mom’s the last person who’d follow a new music album or anything. So I really didn’t have a clue as to why my mom showed interest on Kurutham Kettavan.

Only until I saw the video myself.

Made in the ‘Palavattam’ mould, the album tries to undo (irreparable) damage done to the Malayalam Music scene by a juggernaut called ‘Silsila’ (incidentally made by a namesake of mine ). Sung by Anoop Sankar (Asianet Plus fame) and composed by Hariprasad, the peppy number has a tongue-in-cheek video featuring Ranjini and Suraj.

The song is about the travails of a random guy, played by Suraj Venjarammoodu, who is  a Kurutham Kettavan (one who’s upto no good) from childhood. Ranjini Haridas is Rosykutty, his love interest. Pepped with 3D animation, the video has a cartoonish-feel to it, making it quite endearing. The song’s also pretty-good, and matches upto the ‘Palavattam’ quality.

Kurutham Kettavan is a product of Vishraam Creations. Favour Francis is the video-director. Prakash Velayudan has handled the camera while Sushil has crafted the 3D visuals of the video. The video is edited by Dheeraj Warrier.

You’d surely enjoy the video, if you know the language. Do check it out!

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The other day, my cousin and I were planning to go for a movie. My cousin, Shambhu, is a ‘Madrasi’ – he’s doing his medicine at a Chennai Medical College and was back home on vacation. He asked me about the latest flicks running in the local theatres. I recommended ‘Cocktail’. I’d seen the movie and loved it. “Er… Is that even a movie?” he asked. I gave him a brief outline about the Jayasoorya, Anoop Menon starrer. He butted-in before I could complete.

“Whoa… whoa… Dude, I’m talking Tamil/Hindi movies here. NOT crap Malayalam flicks. Didn’t I tell you that I’ve stopped watching ‘em?”

I wasn’t too shocked — the typical Chennai Champ, our friend was just throwing attitude. He’s certainly going to retract his statement once I gave him a brief idea about the movie, and its suspense. Or so I thought.

Turns out that Shambhu meant every word of what he said. He’d rather sit at home and  watch Sun TV rather than drag his ass to the theatres to “waste fourty bucks for a drab three-hour weepathon”.

“Malayalam movies are dead, period. And I don’t attend funerals,” he gave me a hand-gesture, Rajni-iShtyle.

If my cousin — a once-hardcore-Mammootty-fan could go thus far (Rajni’s wigs are way better than Mammookka’s, he quips these days); there’s indeed something seriously wrong with our Industry. And my cousin’s just one among the many (almost-countless) naysayers.

So what’s wrong with the Malayalam Film Industry?

1. Lack of Good Films in the market – Let’s face it, Malayalam movies are simply not appealing any more. Apart from masterpieces like ‘Pranjiyettan and the saint’, how many films good films can you count in the past few years? Three, or maybe four max. There ends it. Ours was a film industry which churned out films that  consistently featured in the Indian Panorama and went on to win national and even international film awards. But that’s history now. Talented filmmakers are still there, but they’re simply not coming up with good movies or not working on movies at all. We’ve also entered the ‘rip-off’ culture. Directors like Priyadarsan have ripped-off in the past, but they’ve done it with elan. Current rip-offs like ‘Anwar’ and ‘Cocktail’ may be doing good in the box office, yet many critics have panned them. Commercialization is a tsunami that has taken the industry by storm. So we’ve sequels of previously-successful movies (think Balram v/s Tharadas, Sagar Alias Jacky, In Ghost House Inn) and pure commercial crop (Puthiya Mukham, Robin Hood et al). Our producers are pulling all stops in making films succeed. They end up burning their fingers badly and ruining our industry too.
2. Increased Failure Rate - The few good movies that make it to the theatres suffer fatal losses. On an average, less than ten percent of the movies releasing in theatres set the cash registers ringing. With increased production costs, and plummetting revenues, producers find it hard to make ends meet. Many producers shut shop and move on to other businesses. The ones that have moved on are the lucky few, there are many others who’ve taken to the streets, forced by debtors to pawn their very clothing. All for the sole ‘mistake’ of financing a film. Wary of accumulating failures, the community of producers is fast-dwindling.
3. The Superstar System - Our ‘superstars’ could certainly learn a lesson or two from Amitabh Bachchan and Rajnikanth. While Bachchan-saab endears audiences with his charismatic charm and humility in KBC4, Rajnikanth walks and talks amid commoners as if he were a nobody. Our superstars go on to throw attitude and slap people in public. I’m a huge fan of our superstars. But many of their actions have crossed the limit. They must stop ghost-directing movies, and leave their attitude aside, while acting in movies. With their overwhelming attitudes out of the picture, Malayalam moviedom would go a long way in sculpting a success-story.
4. Competition from other languages - This excuse has forever come to the rescue of our directors explaining why their films were panned. One could have argued against it in the past. Not any more. Hindi, Tamil and English are making hay in Kerala, while the sun of our film industry is on the wane. These industries are not doing exceptionally well themselves. Bollywood and the Tamil Film industry are also seeing plenty of losses. But our viewers find time to watch these flicks. I can safely say that smart marketing is the reason. Tamil and Bollywood movies have the budget to afford extravagant scenes shot in exotic locales, a liberty our flicks can’t afford. Coupled with brilliant actors and directors, these movies rake moolah in our shores, overshadowing our shoddily-sculpted movies. It also hurts the Malayalam movies have a limited market, when compared to these exquisitely-mastered flicks.
5. Piracy - Bootlegging is as old as movies. And it suits the laidback Malayalee attitude. The typical Malayalee is way too lazy to drag his/her ass to the theatres. He’d rather have the movie on his television screen, even if it’s of a shoddy quality. When a  new Malayalam movie does its television premiere in a festive season, the entire family crowds around the 32″ LCD TV, to watch the flick in HD, complete with stereophonic sound. With the arrival of torrents, piracy has gone an extra mile. You can now lay your hands on the Blu-Ray rip of a two-month old movie, in three-hours time. What more does the Malayalee want?

One should actually give the industry a pat-on-the-back for having survived all these odds. We still have producers (many of them actors themselves) who are willing to foot the bill for a movie, half-sure that they’d go knee-deep in debt, once it’s out. As long as the dwindling, never-acknowledged community of producers  exist, our industry shall live on. Perhaps, they’ll find a work-around, perhaps we might get to see many a ‘Pranjiyettan’on the screens from now on.

No, our Industry is NOT dead yet. And let’s pray that it shall never ever die.

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Prithviraj has indeed come a long way. From ‘Stop Violence’-obscurity to ‘Ravanan’ celebritydom, he has seen it all, and risen up like a phoenix. Fans of the actor who is widely touted as the ‘next big thing’, have been eagerly awaiting his latest flick Anwar.

Coming from master-filmmaker Amal Neerad of ‘Big B’ fame, the movie had a lot of expectations attached. Peppy tracks from Gopisundar like ‘Khalbilethi’ and an aggressive promotion only added ‘fanned’ the fire, pun intended.

Don’t judge a movie by its promo, they say.

I concur.

‘Anwar’ doesn’t have anything new for a storyline (which itself is mostly ripped-off from ‘Traitor’). Islamic terrorism has featured in many movies like ‘Baba Kalyani’ . ‘Anwar’ has the terrorism story, narrated from a muslim angle. So we have our protagonist, Anwar (Prithviraj) who is booked by the police while running a hawala transaction. He ends up in jail and finds himself in a spot – constantly attacked by policemen and fellow-inmates (who are Hindu, needless to say). Babu Sait (Lal) – fellow-inmate and terrorist rescues Anwar from his plight, and takes him under his fold. Once freed from the jail, they join hands to craft terror. Prakash Raj is an ATS (Anti Terrorist Squad) officer trying to bring Lal and his comrades to book. A twist follows and changes the storyline altogether. Mamta, a suspect in a bomb-blast case, plays Prithviraj’s love interest.

The first half of ‘Anwar’ is downright impressive – especially the camera-work, and the way the plot unfolds. The narration by Mammootty sets the tone for the movie.  Powered by a taut-direction from Amal Neerad, Satheesh Kurup’s cinematography works wonders.  You notice a brownish-tinge in the frames, especially during the jail-scenes – yes, the ‘Big B’ effect. Amal has gotten better in what he does, even with his famed slow motion sequences (think ‘Sagar Alias Jacky’). His attention to detail needs applause. There’s a scene where Prithviraj washes his legs, after taking a beating (literally) from the police. Even such ‘normal’ scenes are dealt with such finnesse. Dialogues by R Unni stand out. The film spares lengthy monologues – the actors speak mostly in the Kochi-lingo. Vivek Harshan’s editing is taut and makes the movie fast-paced.

Prithviraj impresses with a stellar performance. He has improved in terms of acting skills and has done his homework right. He sparkles, especially in dialogue delivery. The actor has some of the most brilliant lines in the movie; it also helps that he has one of the best voices in the industry. However, he fizzles out in the song-sequences – especially in ‘Kanninima Neele’, where the actor fails to live up to the mood of the song. However, watch out for the stunt scenes, crafted in Amal Neerad perfection. Prithviraj simply oozes style in these sequences. Even the worst of his critics will have to applaud him for his performance. Mamta has also done a good job – despite a sidelined role. Salim Kumar, who plays Babu Sait’s right hand Ashraff – is comic relief for the otherwise-serious movie, giving way for some good laughs. Prakash Raj plays the  beedi-smoking ATS officer’s role with elan. Jinu Joseph (remember the kid’s father in Kerala Cafe’s ‘Bridge’?), who plays Raj’s sidekick, fails to impress.

Music by Gopisundar is a big positive. Tracks like ‘Kanninima’ and ‘ Khalbilethi’ are amazing. Both songs – especially ‘Kanninima’ impresses with its stunning visuals.  While Shreya Ghosal’s voice is the highlight of a haunting ‘Kanninima’, the ‘Khalbilethi’ number has a feel of its own. Sukhwinder Singh has done a good job with ‘Vijanatheeram’. The rap-song from the movie – ‘Njaan’ got mixed reviews. The song (especially the video) tries to repeat a Bluffmaster feat, with Prithvi doing an ‘Abhishek’. The song – sung by Prithivraj and Mamta, is peppy but largely-disappointing. The song was greeted by loud boos from the audience when this author first watched the movie (First-day, first-show).

Anwar is far from being the perfect movie on screens, this season. The storyline is hackneyed for one, including the full  plot, post-twist. It’s a tried and tested theme which may not go well with many of the well-informed, ‘been-there-seen-that’ viewers. The dark tone set by the first-half of the movie falters during the second half when the movie slips to classic song-dance routine. Once a movie becomes quite predictable, there must be something delectable about it to hold a viewer’s attention. Anwar lacks just that.

Ironically, the worst part of this movie is its credits – the movie ends with the ‘Njaan’ song video, with credits rolling as a ticker (which was masked by poor projection, at my theatre). But that’s not even a problem, considering the song’s video. You may have differences in opinions about the song, but of course, you CANNOT butt-in such a er… ‘different’ song after  a gripping movie. It’s sheer-sacrilege. ‘Bluffmaster’ was cool.But it was a hip-movie, not a dark one. In any case, ripping parts of ‘Bluffmaster’ for a movie at the other end of the spectrum isis NOT cool. The song spoils the mood set by movie, bringing in a negative vibe amongst viewers. It mocks the the whole movie and its hapless viewers, at least the few who stayed back to see the end-credits.

Picture this – ‘Anwar’ – a ‘serious’ movie by all forms of interpretation, ends with a flirtatious word: “Thalle.” (No, the phrase  doesn’t have any serious inner-implications)

The song’s a mere attempt to make Prithvi don the ‘superstar’ hat. Prithviraj does not need a rap song to be cool. And this ‘so-called-rap-song’ has only tarnished his image as a stellar actor.  I think it’s high time Prithviraj gave a break to his ‘professional singing’ career. He should focus on his acting. Not because he’s a bad singer. Because an appalling song like this could do to Prithviraj what movies like ‘Praja’ and ‘Onnaman’ did to Mohanlal.

All in all, Anwar is good in parts. It’s a must-watch for all Prithviraj fans -easily one of his best movies, especially the ‘Amal-Neeradi’-ified styles and stunts. Give it a miss if you’re looking for what the trailer lured you into. The flick’s like one of those cute barking dachshunds — they just bark on. No bites. No rabies.

Nothing.

My Rating: 5.5/10

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“Khaike paan banaras waala,

Khul jaaye band akal ka taala…”

As Amitabh Bachchan’s booming voice, sung (a slightly-tweaked version of) his own popular track, gyrating with thirty-odd beauties, millions of eyeballs applauded. The song-dance sequence by Amitabh officially kicked off the much-awaited fourth edition of Kaun Banega Crorepati.

The studio was a far-cry from the previous studios of the show. Huge pillars added a gothic touch to it – even though the arrangement of the studio remained the same. The new logo of KBC – featuring the new ‘rupee’ sign was emblazoned on the wall. Amitabh walked into the studio from in-between the pillars, with his trademark ‘welcome message’ “Namashkaar, adaam, sat sri akal. Aap sab ko swagat hai, Kaun Banega Crorepati mein!”

As talks about the fourth edition of the country’s most popular game show (which gained immortality through ‘Slumdog Millionaire’) started, there were enough apprehensions. The KBC journey was all downhill – the show progressively plummeted in popularity, season over season. While KBC 1 was shot Star TV to the number 1 slot, Season 2 failed to reach the same level of success, although TRPs hovered around an impressive 9-11. But it had its premature death, with Amitabh falling sick before long. Shah Rukh tried to repeat the AB magic with KBC3, but in vain. Even though the Khan received filmfare awards for the best TV show host and the show was declared the best game show, TRPs did hit rock bottom.

Having burnt its fingers with KBC3, Star TV laid hands off the new edition of India’s most popular game show. Sony Entertainment Television grabbed the opportunity with open arms. Amitabh was back in the reckoning, and the process of ‘return’ started. The core-team had not changed – Sidhartha Basu was still in charge of the groundwork – namely, the questions. There were apprehensions though. With a melange of game shows on TV, would the viewer opt for good-old KBC? The auditions started.

Over 50 lakh people stood in endless queues, and filled endless forms – for that one-on-one with the star of the millenium.

KBC had arrived, once more.

Ten among those 5 million applicants made it to the final round. From a mass communication student to a chef – these ten people hailed from ten different parts of the country, from ten different backgrounds. One of the contestants was a participant in KBC Junior. When informed of the fact, Amitabh jokingly-remarked: “Thank you for making me realize how old I am,” graceful words from a gracious actor!

The contestants had settled down – it was time for the ‘Hot Seat’ question.

“Arrange the following words of this Hindi proverb, in order,” the booming voice instructed.

3.53 seconds later – Rajesh Chauhan, from Jheemar UP, clad in a green shirt and a wide grin, walked onto the hot seat – The lucky first participant of KBC4. “Chale hum, aur aap khelte hai Kaun Banega Crorepati,” Amitabh’s voice echoed with a magical boom. Chauhan, who runs a general store, said that he has been preparing to attend the show for over a decade.

Slight changes were made to the KBC format, to keep with the times. Like the previous editions of KBC, this one also has 12 questions, with prize money starting from 1,000, going on to 1 Crore.  Amitabh announced a surprise package later on – there was a 13th ‘jackpot’ question too, which would give the winner a whopping 5 Crore. The first two questions had a time limit of 30 seconds (The ‘Khadiya-babu’, takes a side-seat with ‘Computer-ji) – the question stands cancelled if participants fail to answer it on time. The remaining questions will have a time limit of 45 seconds, until the 7th question – after which, ‘Khadiya-babu’ remains suspended. The prize money-increments remain the same, however.

The ‘lifelines’ have been slightly tweaked – There are a total of four lifelines, this time. The first three – ‘Audience Poll’, ‘Phone a friend’ and ‘Ask an Expert’ – will be available throughout the game. ‘Ask  an expert’ is a new ‘lifeline’ – where experts on a domain will be assisting contestants, with their questions. The fourth-lifeline is a modification of 50/50 – the ‘Double Dip’. It will only be available to contestants after the seventh question (after winning the 3,20,000 price). In double dip – a contestant can answer twice. That is, he could answer wrong once, and get away with it, only to try a second time. Quite interesting.

Charu Sharma was the ‘expert’ for Episode 1. Through videoconferencing (apparently – it could even been an earlier recording), he wished Amitabh a happy birthday (the show was telecast on Amit-ji’s birthday) and Chauhan good luck. Chauhan had a surprise in store – his favourite actor, Sanjay Dutt was with Charu, on the screen. Chauhan was enamored with surprise. So much for being the first contestant in the country’s most popular game show!

Soon, the game began.

Chauhan, a wide-eyed village dweller appeared calm and confident. His preparation showed, and his answers were quick and spot-on. From easily identifying the “orange city of india” (Nagpur), to presciently realizing the chess piece occupying the maximum position (pawn), Rajesh Chauhan enjoyed a dream run. He was not sure about India’s first spaceship to moon – and needed a lifeline to opt for ‘Chandrayaan 1′.  Charu Sharma helped him out with the seventh question, telling him that NREGA was named after none other than the father of our nation – Mahatma Gandhi.

Rajesh Chauhan made Rs 3,20,000.

Amitabh had twelve cheque leaves ready for each contestant – signing cheques as rounds passed. Chauhan had bagged his 3,20,000 cheque. That was when Amitabh broke the 5 crore ‘jackpot’ prize that was kept under the hood until then. The crowd was euphoric, and Chauhan was tensed – now he had to get home with the 5 crore.

Bachchan shot his eighth question – Rajesh had to identify what these four were: Gyaneshwari, Lichchavi, Gorakhdham and Sarayu. After a lot of thought, Chauhan correctly identified Lichchavi and Sarayu as rivers and went for the same option. Bachchan quizzed him repeatedly: “Is this your final answer?” Chauhan nodded.

He was wrong.

The four are express trains plying through the country – and the four suffered accidents over the past year.

Chauhan’s face wilted in disappointment. Probably realizing that every emotion of his was being captured by ten-odd cameras, he doubled up and smiled – smilingly accepting his 3,20,000 cheque (30% of which, he’d be losing to the Income Tax department).

The show was not over for Chauhan. Before he could bat an eyelid, lo and behold, Sanjay Dutt walks into the studio! Rajesh was overcome with happiness – and Sanjay gave a warm ‘jaadu ki chappi’ to the general store-propreiter. Together, Sanjay and Rajesh sung ‘Happy Birthday’ to Amitabh, and both of them left the studio.

It was time for the next ‘Fastest Finger first’ – and the nine remaining contestants peered onto the television screens. This time, the contestants had to arrange members of the ‘Kapoor’ family in decreasing age. Only 3 got it right, and Alok Kumar, from Orissa did it in a little over 5 seconds. This dude, a self proclaimed quizzer, was severely hit by the ‘heat’ of the hot seat. Tensed to the core, Alok was un-nerved, and used up both his lifelines in the first three questions. Before Amitabh could ask the fourth question, the famed ‘KBC alarm’ rang – and the show was over, one and a half hours later.

KBC-1 was all about seeing the charm and charisma of the Big B in the small screen. Season over season, the charm wilted out. The Shah Rukh effect, maybe – it was a pleasure to watch Bollywood’s biggest superstar on the small screen, once again. The wait to see Bachchan-saab on television was indeed reminiscent of the same feeling I all went through, ten years back. Big B is bigger, KBC has changed (a new logo, a new format and a new channel) – but the charm and the appeal remains the same. KBC4 has nothing new to offer, it’s the same old wine – which now tastes better, having aged by ten years. KBC4 is not just a trip back to memory lane; it maybe reworked trivia quiz – at times a tad too trivial, but it’s a show that affects you. It’s one show, that you’ll be able to recall – scene-by-scene, question-by-question.

Do watch Kaun Banega Crorepati 4 on Sony Entertainment Television, every Monday – Thursday, at 9 PM.

Especially, those of you who missed out on the earlier avatars – you’re gonna love it, trust me.

Image Courtesy: setindia.com, Wikimedia Commons.

Related posts:

1. KBC4: Amitabh Bachchan’s Birthday Gift
2. Kites: A Review
3. Dabangg: A Review

Amitabh Bachchan personifies versatility.

Only few people have donned the roles of an actor, producer, TV Show Host, Playback singer, and even a politician - and that too with smashing success and elan.

His booming voice – once rejected by All India Radio, has reached iconic proportions. The true celebrity of our country, Mr. Bachchan is characterized by an instinctive charisma and an innate humility that no one in his position could have.

Amitabh Bachchan celebrates his 68th birthday today on October 11th, 2010.

Mr. Bachchan even has a birthday-present for his millions of fans across the globe – Kaun Banega Crorepati 4. The show that reversed his once-ailing fortunes… his lucky charm. The show characterised another side of Amitabh – the human side. It showcased his humility and his knowledge. He was a candid, calm and comforting host – well aware that the fortunes of those in the ‘hot seat’ opposite him, lay safe in his hands.

With minutes left for Kaun Banega Crorepati 4 to air on Sony Entertainment Television (the program starts at 9.00 PM IST – today), one is reminded of the ill-fated stint of its previous edition featuring Shah Rukh Khan. The show started with great fanfare, but nosedived in popularity later-on.  It was the time of the much-written-about Shah Rukh-Amitabh rivalry. And Shah Rukh inheriting Amitabh’s role was considered to be a success on Shah Rukh’s side. However, negative reviews hit KBC3 bad, and Shah Rukh’s charm was no match for Amitabh’s oeuvre.

Anyway, Kaun Banega Crorepati is back, having shifted channels from Star Plus to Sony Entertainment Television.

Let’s wish Amitabh a Happy Birthday, tune into our televisions and accept his birthday wish with grace!

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2. Racism: Some hard facts
3. Is the Malayalam Film Industry Dead, yet?

“Mote wale is taraf,
Patle vale us taraf,
Aur jo fit hain wo mere peeche.”

Inspector Chulbul Pandey (Salman Khan) makes himself clear. His cops do as instructed. Pandey turns, only to find himself forlorn in a village ‘gully’. “Kya ho gaya hai police force ko,” he bolts in pursuit of the elusive dacoit.

The scene from ‘Dabangg’ pays tribute to Asrani’s legendary police officer from ‘Sholay’, and evokes peals of racuous laughter from the crowd. One of the many moments that bring an otherwise-ordinary movie alive.

So we’ve Chulbul Pandey – a self-styled, corrupt -but- charming cop, who calls himself ‘Robin Hood’  - yeah, he steals from the rich and passes on some of the booty(not all, mind you) to the needy. Like a Rs 1 Lakh compensation to a constable injured in a (fake) encounter. Despite his charming self, Chulbul has enemies all over the place. He not only has  to patch up with his step father (played by Vinod Khanna), step brother Makhhi (Arbaaz Khan), but also woo his sweetheart Rajo (Sonakshi Sinha) – to whom his charm falls flat. Smalltime-politician -cum- goon Chhedi Singh (Sonu Sood) plays Pandey’s nemesis and pits the brothers against each other. Our ‘Robin Hood’ must fight all the odds in question.

‘Dabangg’ reminds of you ‘Quick Gun Murugun’, or at least  its comic-like styling. That’s the best part of the movie – at some point in time, you feel ‘Pandey’ is a superhero, with all his ‘superhuman’ powers. Abhinav Kashyap takes deviation from his brother’s (Anurag Kashyap, ‘Dev D’ fame) school of cinema – he’s lifted lavishly from Tamil movies, at least the stunts. Stunt-choreography by ace-Telugu-stuntman S. Vijay, only adds fuel to the fire. Coupled with bullet-time nee ‘slow motion’ (think Matrix), some stunts stun you (literally), while others fall flat. The opening sequence does justice, however and sets the tone to the movie. You also find references to those ‘70s potboilers featuring the ‘angry young man’ – epitomized in ‘Dabangg’ by Salman’s character.

Salman Khan emerges as the clear winner with the movie. No, he still can’t cry on-screen, and he still has a long way to go in terms of acting skills. But he’s portrayed Chulbul’s role with elan. Seamlessly marrying seriousness with smiles, he charms you – bringing forth some of the best moments in the movie. Like his dance to a henchman’s ringtone, in the middle of a stunt-sequence. He promptly reminds the henchman “Acha tone hai. Forward karna.” The movie brings out the best of Salman – which makes Dabangg a must-watch for all fans of the actor. Sonakshi sparkles, and makes her presence felt with an amazing debut. Sonu Sood is efficient as the menacing villain. But brilliant actors like Om Puri and Mahie Gill are wasted with side-roles.

That said, the biggest defect of the movie is its plot – which is behest with flaws. It’s hackneyed for one. Sibling rivalry is so yesterday. The screenplay is uneven and prolongs the movie. Plot holes and loose ends are galore – reasons behind the rivalry between Chulbul and his stepfather are not justified. And we don’t see a lot of ‘Robin Hood’ activity from Chulbul – he’s just another corrupt cop who hoards a safe-full of money. Apart from the love-track between Sonakshi and Salman, all sub-plots falter.

This movie is not for the intellectual. Leave your brains at home, or at least at the doorstep of your theatre, before you watch the movie. The matrix-style stunts make you pull your hair out of exasperation. Watch out for the final face-off between Salman and Sonu. Salman, badly hurt from a stab flexes his muscles. Lo and behold, his shirt gets shred and flies away – leaving you with a glimpse of the ‘steel body’.

If you are sporting enough to guffaw and forget scenes like these, good for you.

At some point in time, you wonder whether the movie is a spoof. Well, it’s not – it does have a, er, ‘serious’ story. But the profusion of fun moments make you think otherwise; and the end, you come out disappointed.

‘Dabangg’ is not a bad movie. It’s fun, you ought to watch it sans expectations. Don’t get hyped up by the promos. Expect the worst, and you’d have a fun-filled two hours, five minutes. Watch it if you’re into slapstick or if you’ve had a rough day.

Watch ‘Dabangg’ if you’re a Sallu fan.

Rating: 6/10

Related posts:

1. Kites: A Review
2. Quick Gun Murugun: A Review
3. Anwar – Review: Prithviraj Shines in a Disappointing Movie.

Kites was one of the super-hyped movies of 2010. It features the ‘comeback’ of two prodigies: Hrithik Roshan (who hasn’t seen silver screen since 2008-hit ‘Jodha Akbar’ ) and Anurag Basu (who spent time battling cancer, post ‘Life in a Metro’). Rakesh Roshan (the producer and Hrithik’s dad) did a good job of promoting the snazzily-shot trailer, months before; the movie premiered even in Cannes to reasonable applause. Rajesh Roshan’s music added fuel to the hype’s fire.

But, when a movie is hyped beyond its mettle, conventional wisdom drives home the point that it is bound to disappoint; ‘Kites’ isn’t exactly different from this predicament.

The premise has centuries-old wine in a ramshackle bottle – Triangular, oops, ‘Rectangular’ love. So, we have a swashbuckling hustler – Jay(Hrithik), who’s a dance teacher -cum- eclectic-odd job man (one of his odd jobs include marrying illegal immigrants for green cards). Rich, spoilt dance-student, Gina (Kangana Ranaut) falls for her instructor, and Hrithik toes her line at the prospect of reaping green, realizing that she’s the daughter of a casino-lord played by Kabir Bedi. That’s when Hrithik meets Mexican beauty Natasha (Barbara Mori), Gina’s brother Tony’s  (Nicholas Brown) fiancée. Natasha (a.k.a. Linda), was the last among Hrithik’s ‘green card wives’, and she is still married to Jay. An instant-chemistry sparks between the duo, and they elope after a rendezvous-to-get-divorced which progresses into a chaste-romantic-extended-date. How the doomed couple evade an army of cops and escape Mexico forms the rest of the plot.

The best thing about Kites is the chemistry between the lead pair. Don’t know whether the ‘affair’ rumors have helped, but Hrithik and Barbara make an awesome couple. The movie is best noted for those small nuanced moments between them. The kisses are passionate, and the acting is so intuitive that at some point in time, you get a vague feel that the rumors may be true, after all. The communication gap (Barbara’s character speaks just Spanish)  is also well portrayed – and that makes the couple kinda cute too. The emotions are elevated to an ethereal level, which means you simply cannot relate to the passion – but still you get overwhelmed at times.

Anurag Basu has got his technicalities right in Kites. The camera work is brilliant, and Las Vegas is excellently portrayed. The movie has an equal share of Spanish, English, and Hindi (unlike some movies, where everyone in USA are Asians and speak Hindi). Ayanka Bose (the cameraperson) has indeed done a brilliant job. This flick has a glossy exterior which makes it seem a straight import from Hollywood. Kudos to the appealing stunt scenes (which occupy at least a quarter of the 2 hour flick). Another high point of the movie is the foot-tapping music by Rajesh Roshan. The lone-dance sequence is impressive and has Hrithik gyrating to one of his best performances. Kangana proves that she’s a talented dancer.

The glossy exterior does little to impress the discerning movie-buff; the flick disappoints you thoroughly. Beyond a certain level, it simply fails to make an impact on your psyche. The flaws start right from the story, which is a marriage of bollywood and Mexican teleplays, only to give a disastrous combo. What baffles you is the fact that four scriptwriters worked nights to get such an appalling screenplay made – Too many cooks spoiled the broth here, evidently. The low point is the second half of the movie, which is listless (and I’m being polite here). Some scenes even question your intellect. You see a deliberate attempt to stretch the limits of ‘The Bollywood Love Story’ (which has now attained cult status like ‘The American Dream’), that make you feel like puking, at times. Some parts of  Kites are outright dumb. For instance, Hrithik grows a 10 cm thick beard within just two days of ‘being marooned’, and we don’t see any evidence of genetic anomaly here! Also, Kangana is wasted – even she does something downright absurd, during the climax, something that goes beyond all logic. Not to mention the obnoxiously-bad acting by the supporting cast, including Nicholas Brown, who plays the villain. Even the dialogues (in Hindi), seriously suck!

Summing up, Kites is predictable; albeit in a different way. Watch it for the expensive, well-shot stunt sequences. Watch it for the chemistry between the lead actors, who are the most stunning people in silverscreen (citation needed). If you’re looking for a stellar movie, having taken bait of all the media promos, DO NOT WATCH THIS MOVIE – you would come out with enough dissappointment to burn down the theatre. It’s one of those movies that you can see on Television, on pirated DVD, in the comfort of your living room.

Recommended, ONLY if there aren’t better flicks in theatres around you.

Rating: 6.5/10

Related posts:

1. Dabangg: A Review
2. Quick Gun Murugun: A Review
3. Urumi – Review: Style and substance