Rock On!! --- Movie Review

Before I start reviewing this film , I would just like to make my purpose of writing this review clear to all the readers . As a reviewer my job is to analyse a film so even though if the film is liked by the masses it is very much possible that I would still find it fairly entertaining and won't be satisfied with the product . So one thing is clear that Rock On is a good film and would be liked by audience in general to an extent . So should I must stop writing anything about the film and just say that it would be liked by people at large so go and watch it ? My answer to that question is no , I would still write about the film since I have seen it as a general audience and there would be someone that might agree with my opinion .

So cutting the crap off lets talk about the film . The film in my view is a good example how an average film that very well could have been a classic but doesn't turn out to be one due to some flaws in it . Rock On as we all know is about Music so the biggest role that anybody could play in this movie was the music itself .The heroes of the film are not Farhan or Arjun but it is the music . Chak De is a classic in sports film genre not just only because of SRK or the Girls but mainly because of the Hockey that was shown in it . Same thing applies over here .In Rock On I couldn't find one single musical tune that I would never ever forget in my life . There was no piece of music that was as powerful so that it can last a lifetime . Music being the base of the film and the base itself wasn't that strong . I agree that it wasn't that bad but even music of several films is equally good or even better . But those films are not based on music . This one does . People who would wanna argue with me will say to me that Dude you don't understand rock music that's why you are saying so . For them I would like to say that Dude lets assume I don't understand "Rock" music , so what , most of the people in India don't but still they listen to LP and Greenday don't they ? Then why do they do so , the reason being music of all genres is at the end of the day music only and good music can always cheer you up . You don't have to do a thesis on it . Music of Rock On cheers me up but like all other movies . Mind you this is not a Music Review , I am talking of music because it is the biggest factor and the whole film is based on it .

Lets leave music aside and talk about other aspects . Next comes the script . The script or the story of the film is very much predictable and several such scripts have been already written and just set-up has been changed to an extent . The story as we all know is about a band who gets a chance to fame but gets broken up due to ego clashes and then one day they again reunite to create "Magic" . You would understand why I have quoted the word magic after you see the film . That's the story of the film for you. Simple and tested many times on screen .

After script comes performances and situations . The audience's connection with the characters is only limited to an extent and the audience doesn't get attached to any of the characters . This fact is very much clear from the fact that even though one of the band member is not completely fit health wise you don't feel sympathised for him to a large extent . You'll just feel sad but you won't sympathise because the connection with the character is quite less . On the other hand if SRK gets ill in a film people start crying or at least sympathise with him just because his characters connect with the audience . So the connection is quite less and the characters are forgettable . I still remember sameer , aakash and siddharth of Dil Chahta Hai because I felt connected with them . And I don't even remember the name of Farhan's character in the film . I just remember name of Arjun Rampal just because his name is quite cool in the film , Joe Mascarhenas . Sorry if the spelling is wrong .

Then comes acting . Well if you didn't feel connected to the characters that means the actors didn't act that well . Most of them were first timers and were good for first timers but were not at all great . The whole group of Jaane Tu.. was much better acting wise . Casting as they plays a big role and I could find only two characters being properly casted , one being Arjun Rampal as tough guy who is soft at heart and his wife(Debby) which is played by Shahana Goswami . This girl has got talent and acting comes naturally to her . She according to me acted the best in the whole film even though her role was quite small . Farhan has acted so so and his acting skills are not as good as his Direction skills so he must focus on what he is better at rather than wasting time on improving his acting . He has done a fair job but why should he act when he can Direct a fine piece of Cinema like Don and Dil Chahta Hai . The two sidekicks Luke Kenni and Purab kohli have done their job like they should have and not tried to become heroes which is appreciable . Purab is quite funny and can act better . Luke is good for the kind of role he has played in this one but nothing more . Then comes Prachi Desai , the TV girl , who looks nice but gives very limited expressions . She was either smiling or mum . She never got a chance to prove her acting skills . Still , it would be quite difficult for her to go ahead in Bollywood . Arjun was as usual , neither too good nor too bad .

After script and acting comes screenplay and Direction . The screenplay of the film wasn't that tight and had gone lose on several occasions . The pace of the film is a little on the slower side . The cinematography by Jason West was top notch . But I couldn't understand the basement or the attic where the Band practises . There are no such places in India . You may find many such places in America but not in India . In a way the film would appeal to western audiences more than Indian audience after all how many "original" bands does India have anyways who write and compose songs on their own . There may be a lot but the number would be still low as compared to the west so all the original bands don't get offended . Then comes Direction which is by Abhishek Kapoor who has done a decent job as a newcomer but could have done much better . How much influence did Farhan had on the sets that we don't know so nothing can be said about his Direction skills . The story itself and actors were weak what could have the Director done . He should have probably worked harder on the script before going on to make it .

Overall , the film is good and would be liked by people in general . Saying that , I would still say that it could have been a much better film and probably a classic if they would have worked slightly harder . The film would entertain you for its length but won't blow your minds . So if you want to just pass some time then you can watch it . I expect a top class product from Farhan who is the producer also , especially after films like Don and Dil Chahta Hai coming from his house . The film can be watched once and the efforts that those guys have put in can be appreciated .

Movie Rating : Three Stars out of Five , entertaining to an extent but same old story .

There's a line that appears on screen after the film ends that says ---"Don't Download the Music , Buy it" which reminded me of the starting credits of the Hollywood Hit "The Simpsons Movie" that featured Bart Simpson writing something on the Black Board as punishment . See the screenshot . I laughed very hard when I saw it since I had myself downloaded the film and watched it even before it got released in India .

Drona Vs. Kidnap

The second of October this year will have two films battling it out for their fate on Box-office. The first release being the long awaited Drona which according to Goldie Behl is not a superhero flick and is an Indian Fantasy Adventure film . The film has been long in the making and has no buzz around it as such . The promotion of the film hasn't started in a full fledged way yet but whatever has started looks quite dull . Even Abhishek doesn't look excited about the film and is currently on his world-tour , far away from his film . This is the second Directorial venture of Goldie after Bas Itna Sa Khwab Hai which was a box-office dud . Though the budget of this one is much higher and the star-cast is also stronger the film itself is not creating that excitement in me for it . I am not a big fan of Abhishek and even Priyanka is getting quite repetitive these days . Abhishek's looks are always a problem and he doesn't even do anything about it . The Music of the film is yet to hit the stores and a lot will depend on it . The trailers and rushes haven't given any taste of the music that would be there in the film so nothing can be said about it . A lot is on stake in this film for Abhishek as Sarkar Raj was a multi starrer and also wasn't appreciated that much among both critics and audiences . This film will show the solo star power of Abhishek since no big name is attached to this film apart from him and Priyanka . No Big Director like Mani-Ratnam or Big Producer like Yashraj so a lot will depend on him .

Giving this film a very tough competition would be Kidnap . Fresh out of the success of Jaane Tu .. Imran Khan is riding high on the success wave and at present provides more attraction than Abhishek . The promos of Kidnap are also better than Drona and hence an initial interest in this film is much more than that in Drona . This film is Directed by Sanjay Gadhvi who has tasted success earlier in both the Dhooms . So it can be said that he has an experience of creating "Dhoom" among the audience . Sanjay has also done nothing apart from the Dhoom series . So this can also be considered as his second attempt . Though Dhoom was produced by Yashraj and hence Aditya had an influence in those films , how much we don't know . We might know after Kidnap releases . Still , Kidnap is produced by Ashtavinayak which is also a good production house so production quality won't suffer .

Imran is playing a slightly (or completely?) negative role so people would definitely wanna watch that out since he played a good-boy in Jaane Tu. The music of the film also looks good . The second promo of the film features one of the songs which looks and sounds quite good . Apart from this the film also has Sanju Baba who is also a crowd pulling factor for the film . The female lead is played by Minissha who is looking quite hot and has already proved her acting skills .

For now , there are lots of positives in favour of Kidnap and it looks quite strong on Paper . Whereas Drona is looking quite dull and doesn't have that energy in it . People like to see young energetic performances these days and a young cast of Imran and Minissha would certainly provide that . Priyanka is also on streak of flops and dull movies so that is also not gonna go in her favour . Both Abhishek and Priyanka look more enthusiastic and fresh in the promos of Dostana which means the fact that Drona being released so late is also going to go against it .

Overall , I am looking forward to see Kidnap on the second of October which is a national holiday and hoping for the best for Drona . Which film are you going to watch first ?

Chamku --- Music Review

After the Musical Hit Album of Saawariya last year , Monty Sharma is back with Chamku this year . The fact that he has talent has been proved last year and his music still occupying the space on Music Channels proves the point further . He is back with Chamku , a film starring Bobby Deol and Priyanka in the lead and Produced by Dharmendra . The film is Directed by Kabeer Kaushik whose first Film Seher (starring Arshad Waarsi and Mahima) was a box office disaster .He is starting afresh after that with this film whose Music has been given by Monty who is also one film old .

Talking a little about the album , it consists six tracks in total with five originals and one remix version . The First track on the album is Aaja Milke which is a romantic number and on air these days . It has a very nice romantic tune in it and hence it is getting a little popular . The song has been mainly sung by Shreya Ghoshal in her sweet voice and supported by Shail who gives her good company . The song has very beautiful and soulful lyrics by Sameer who has done a good job . There is very fine use of Saxophone pieces in between the verses of this song. The tune basically has nothing new but the lyrics and soulful singing of Shreya have done the trick and it makes the song appear quite new and romantic . Monty has very well understood the mood of the song and has provided full justice to the lyrics and the song in general . Shreya is brilliant as usual and steals the show in this one .

Then comes the best track on the album , Kithe Jawan , by Richa Sharma which is a core Punjabi track with a sad feeling attached to it . This song reminded me of the hit song "Lambi Judaai" from the film Hero (and not the latest one from Jannat) . That song is one of the best song which is based on "Judaai" (Separation of Lovers) . But what was best was the way in which that song had been sung by Reshma . That song had a very sad feeling attached to it and was sung very passionately by her . This song also belongs to that genre where Richa Sharma has done the job . Richa is a terrific singer and she sings Punjabi songs really well . The last time I remember that Richa had done such a fine job was in "Ni Mein Samajh Gayi" from Taal which is an exceptional song . Richa has once again spread the magic of her voice and done an exceptional job in this one . The lyrics of this song by Sameer are again great and much better than Sameer's usual work . Monty has given fabulous treatment to this one and has understood the mood of the song very well . He has given it very modern yet contemporary treatment which makes it a treat to listen . Kudos Richa , Monty and Sameer for this one .

Next comes Gola Gola by Abhijeet and Vaishali Samant . This song also reminds you of those folk songs from Rajasthan which are quite fun to hear and also sometimes have great lyrics . This song has an Authentic Indian tune and even the singers have sung it in typical folk style . The song though doesn't have that powerful lyrics yet the tune and singing style are enough to carry the song on their shoulders . The song wouldn't hinder the pace of the film and if shot beautifully the song would be treat to watch . This song might not get that popular but would certainly look good in the film .

Next comes a trance music by Monty with vocals by Saleem , Soumya and Anaida . It has a very nice trance feel in it according to its name and probably for the first time I have heard an Indian Trance Music. The song very well incorporates some fine Indian instruments into the Trance music of the west . The vocals in between are also quite good and the song would look good in Background . The Arabic lyrics have been very well sung by the Singer and the whole song would really sound great on a good music system and even better in the Multiplexes .

After the Trance music comes "Bin Daseya" which is a lounge version of Kithe Jaawan . Since the original is such a great song even this one sounds good . This lounge version might appeal to certain people more than the original one but I prefer the original one . This version is quite nice and nothing fancy about it . It would sound good at a Lounge or a Pub . Monty has put in some nice effects in this one and hence has done a good job once more .

Then comes the last song on the album Dukh Ke Badri which is again a slow song but that doesn't make it anything less . It is again a fabulous song and has a very different music than other songs . This one doesn't sound like typical slow songs and has nice music pieces in it . The song has been sung by Kalpana and Parthiv and Shail have given her company . This song sounds really nice and might look even better in the film . The singing by Kalpana is of top quality and she gives a nice competition to Richa's song . The song has some very nice Lyrics and they have been given full justice by the singers and the composer .

Overall , this Album is highly recommended and Monty has once again proved that though he works less but he is going to stay for a long time in Bollywood . After a long time an album has came that has all the songs quite slow and soulful . If you love fast music and music with beats then this one is not for you . This is very much on the slower side and yet it is a great album . The film has not much of a Hype around it and even the title is little weird and hence the music won't gather that much audience . But after sometime the songs are bound to work especially after the release of the film . The music is fabulous and I just hope even the movie is as good as the music . I hope the script of the film is as strong as the Music .

Album Rating : Three and Half Stars out of Five , Quite Different then the usual that we get to hear these days .

Mumbai Meri Jaan --- Movie Review

This year has been quite dry when it comes to the quality of films that have been produced . In fact there were just 2-3 films that satisfied me and made me think it of as a brilliant piece of cinema . The interesting thing to note is that the Two films that I found great this year (Aamir and Khuda Ke Liye)were both based on terrorism and its aftermath . The third film this year that has impressed me is again having a terrorist background and that is Mumbai Meri Jaan . This film should not be called a film , it is more of a docu-drama sort of film which has depicted the reality of Mumbai and Mumbaikars , their problems and their Life in general covering all strata's of Society. This film is almost like a Reality Special Report that a channel like NDTV makes with real stories and real characters which makes us realise how tough life can be and how nobody gives a damn how tough your life is . You have to sort it out yourself .

The film though is based on Mumbai Blasts but neither it focusses on the plan of Blasts neither does it focus on catching of criminals . As the name suggests it is about the life of Mumbaikars and how their life gets affected by a terrorist activity .The film is has no common story but has strong characters and each character has a story of his own . The film focusses on various issues that are surrounding us apart from the big Terrorism issue . It makes a black humour of those issues that we don't take up seriously but terrorism is the Baby of those small issues itself . It portrays that if we sort out those small issues in our life then automatically the big issue of Terrorism will end .

The film focuses on lives of Five Peoples who belong to different sections of society and all live in Mumbai . Soha Ali Khan who is a Journalist , Kay Kay who is a simple computer assembler looking desperately for some work ,Irrfan Khan who is a Tea Vendor , Paresh Rawal who is a Police Constable and R. Madhvan who is working at some organisation on a high post and pay scale . Soha Ali Khan is a typical Television Reporter who just cares at giving news and tries to sensationalize everything like every typical channel does . She is a famous reporter and is ready to get married with her fiance who doesn't like Media because of their irresponsible behaviour .

Kay Kay is an Educated Struggler who struggles for existence and has lot of debts on him . He doesn't like Muslims at all and thinks that all of them are Terrorists . He is very radical about religion and practically hates every Muslim .Madhvan is an upper middle class guy who works and earns but still prefers to travel by Local Train because he thinks that more the people travel by public transport , the more organised the traffic of Mumbai would be and basically cares about our country and loves Mumbai and India a lot . He declines all his offers to go abroad because he likes Mumbai and India a lot .

Irrfan Khan is a very poor and innocent Tea Vendor from south and he tries to adjust in Mumbai with just bare necessities of life . He too wants to go to Malls and Multiplexes and live a life like many people live in Mumbai but he can't . Then there is Paresh Rawal who is a corrupt Police constable who is just about to retire . He is good at heart and quite honest at heart but he also gets involved in the system and can't do anything about it because he is too small a person to do anything about it .

Amongst all of these only two get affected directly from the serial Train Blasts , Madhvan and Soha . Madhvan's friend gets injured and loses his hand and Soha loses her fiance in the blasts . The plot of Madhvan shows how he gets terrified after the blasts as he just narrowly escapes those blasts . He gets scared a lot and he starts having Mental Anxiety problems and his love and trust for Mumbai and India also starts shaking . After the blasts Kay Kay starts probing into blasts himself along with his friends because he has suspicion on some Muslim guys that regularly visit a restaurant but are missing after the blasts . After the blasts the Police start their usual routine of High Alert in the town and try to tighten up the situation of the city . Soha gets the shock of her life and takes a break from her job but her channel decides to do a byte on her . She gives them the permission and faces the same questions that she used to ask early and realises how hard it is . She gets to face the other side of her profession and her perspective changes . Irrfan in order to take his revenge from rich people spreads rumours of Bombs in Malls and watches them run for their life . While doing this he doesn't realise that how much problem he is causing and his rumour can get dangerous .

The whole movie revolves around these different plots with Mumbai being common in all their plots . How they slowly slowly recover from the blasts and how they realise their mistakes and also the fact that though the city has many problems but still it is the spirit of the city that makes them still live their . The whole movie is a mirror image of our society and its happenings . But as they say sometimes others have to show you the mirror to you so that you realise that what flaws you have . The same job has been done by Director Nishikant Kamat who has shown us what we see daily but act like blind people who haven't seen anything .

The film is not made like a typical film that moves according to a single story . This one moves in a random way and portraying each story simultaneously .Each story has something to offer and sends out a message in general . The movie starts off with archive footage of Mumbai and how it has changed over the years . The beginning of the movie is quite strong and creates an impact on the viewer's mind . But it is after sometime that the movie comes into its true element which it has maintained for the entire length .The plot of Irrfan Khan though was quite moving but still it was unnecessary and could have been avoided . Most of the time the film has Serious tone but some scenes have still been dramatized and some being over-dramatized . Especially the scene where Irrfan lifts his both hand and looks towards the sky while a heavy background score is played is quite out of the place and frankly speaking a little stupid also . The movie though surrounds the Mumbai blasts yet it has talked very less about the blasts . The Mumbai blasts have been used more as Publicity tool to attract the audience . Black Friday as we all know is an exceptional film and not only does it focus on the Mumbai Blasts of 1992 but also in the process sends out a strong message .

Talking a little about the acting , the film has some of the finest performances by all the actors in it . Especially Kay Kay and Irrfan who were at their best . Kay Kay is one of the best actors in the Industry yet he has done very few roles and that too mostly in Multi-starrer films . He is one of those actors that get under the skin of the character effortlessly and are quite natural about it . His acting just mesmerizes me and I am a huge fan of him since his Television days . The other fine performance is by Irrfan . His plot though wasn't that strong yet he delivers his best and it is because of him that his plot can be seen . Soha has also done a fine job but she can do much better . Paresh Rawal is a seasoned actor , he also gives a fine performance . The character of a Marathi Constable suits him perfectly . Madhvan's role wasn't that good but he still acts quite well . He also can do much better than this .

Overall , the film is very good but it lacks that cinematic approach and hence would please only selected audience . The Director Nishikant has worked more hard on the scenes rather than the complete film . He has shown some of the most finest scenes and has created several moments throughout the film but there was no common thread that could hold all these moments and hence you have a feeling after watching the film that something was missing . The Acting , Direction , Cinematography and Background Score were all good but that soul is what was missing . But still , the film is different type of cinema and it should be appreciated for its effort . The film though might not work that much but has certainly won all the accolades that it could have .

Indian Audience has seen such type of cinema very few times and Documentaries have also never got popular in India thats why this film also won't work on a commercial level . The Director has worked differently on the Five Stories of Five People and if you are ready to accept that then only you can watch it .

Still , the film is recommended from my side because it has very strong messages in it that have been presented in an excellent manner . The film has some of the finest acting performances and number of moments that make it worth a watch .The film also shows the life of Mumbai and Mumbaikars in a very realistic manner so it is a must watch for all the Mumbaikars . The film ends with the Famous song "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil Jeena Yahan , Zara Hatke, Zara Bach ke, ye he Bombay meri Jaan " which very well puts up the entire lifestyle of the city .

Movie Rating : Three and Half out of Five Stars ; Fabulous acting and some great moments .

Bachna Ae Haseeno --- Movie Review

One thing is for sure now that after giving hit films like Hum Tum , Salaam Namaste , Dhoom , Bunty and Bubly , Chak De etc. , Yashraj have either sold their common sense and logic along with their films or maybe all these films were made without any interference by Aditya Chopra . SCRIPT is one word that Aditya needs to Meditate while breathing and even all his associates who are emptying the fortunes of Yashraj every month or so . I don't know why actors keep doing Yashraj's film and expecting a wonder out of them . Off lately all my posts which have the Word YASHRAJ in it sound like I am protesting against them and booing them down . But the truth is that apart from Chak De nothing has excited me that came from their house . I am a huge fan of Films like Hum Tum and Salaam Namaste which were commercial success only because they had a good script . Two years before I thought Yashraj will rule not only the Box Office but also people's heart but now I think the opposite . Well , enough of Anti-Yashraj Rant lets talk of the film that has released last week , Bachna Ae Hasino , starring Ranbir and three other girls .

The film as you know is about a Boy and Three Girls who fall in love with him . Sounds a little like Dil Mange More starring Shahid and Directed by Anant Mahadevan but take my word guys it just sounds like that . That film was an underrated and box office dud . In fact it was a far better product than this one and the actors in it were also much better . Well this one has three girls , three weak stories and three kisses so I am also devoting three paragraphs to each of them .

The first story is set up in 1996 where Raj Sharma (Ranbir) and his group are on a holiday in Europe and they meet girls just like SRK and group did in DDLJ . This whole part is kind of a spoof on DDLJ since the heroine of the story Maahi (Minissha) is a huge fan of the film . She comes to Europe to find her Raj and meets Ranbir who sets her up so that she falls in love with him to get a little physical with her . So this is when the first question arises . Can Ranbir who has a mushy mushy and a sweet guy image play such a wicked guy's role ? The answer is a straight no . I'll talk a little later about this . This story ends for a while when Minissha realizes that Ranbir was lying and that he doesn't love her . Talking of errors and stupidity in this one , the story is set in 1996 but music of Dhoom is played while the group walks over to girls . Apart from this , the movie starts with the Title track and the starting piece of that song has been used often in the film . It is so often that after each dialogue Ranbir says there is the music of title track in Background . You would like it the first time its played , you would like it even more when used second time but then on it just becomes an overdose of such a fantastic piece of Music . Instead of using it wisely they have bought the rights and abused it . Talking a little about acting , Ranbir though is the lead actor of the film but still he was not able to stand out among the group of four friends . He looked just like all other guys who were as pathetic as he was . Minissha though is a fabulous actor did a lot of overacting in this one and it never appeared that she was in love with Ranbir . It was more like she was in love with the film's Raj , I mean the chemistry was no where . The kiss was looking passionless and emotionless .

Next comes the story (set up in 2002) of Bipasha Basu who is a struggling model and a cool girl who has a live in relationship with Ranbir . She also falls in love with Ranbir but without his knowledge . Ranbir gets a job in Australia and he decides to leave her but she asks him to marry her as she thinks that Ranbir completely loves her . Ranbir tries all the tricks in the book so that Bipasha breaks off with him but he fails since she loves him so much . So at last he ditches her on the day of the marriage and runs away to Australia . Talking of errors again , Ranbir talks of Australia to his friend in the accent that became popular after Jaaved Jaffrey did Salaam Namaste which got released in 2005 . Maybe Yashraj did a special screening for Raj(Ranbir) of the film in 2002 . Then there is a scene where Strippers dance in his apartment along with him on the song Jhoom Barabar Jhoom . Just Imagine strippers dancing to the music from Jhoom Barabar Jhoom which again released just last year . There was one kiss in this one also which in my opinion was the best among all the three . Bipasha looked comfortable while kissing Ranbir and hence it looked better than the other two .

Then starts the third story in 2007 in Australia where Ranbir works happily and Deepika does all kinds of Day and Night Jobs to support her studies .She is a Taxi driver and Ranbir falls for her . She doesn't believe in Marriage at all and breaks Ranbir's heart just as he does with two other girls . Then as usual Ranbir realises his mistake and decides to repent for it . So he flies back to India and then to Germany to say sorry to Minissha and Bipasha respectively . The whole saying sorry sequence has been dragged for last one hour or so and when Ranbir comes back to Australia , Deepika is waiting for her Kiss , I mean she also realises that she loves him and decides to settle down with him . The ending sequence had to be in a Taxi since she is a cab driver . The End .

Talking of Acting Bipasha was the best among all and only she acted professionally . All other actors looked like that they didn't knew what they were doing . Rest of the cast is quite young and they were all probably excited since this was their first film with Yashraj . They enjoyed the foreign locations and comforts . Ranbir , for most of the part played the role of a Wicked guy which not at all suits his personality and he more looked like a Puzzled Guy than a Handsome Hunk . His acting didn't impress me at all and it appeared that he has style without enough substance to back it up . Bips was the best and she tried her best to play Miranda Priestly(Devil Wears Prada) for some part of the film . Ranbir still tries to imitate his father's and grandfather's in his acting but lacks a little bit of Charisma (not Karisma) . And Deepika looks boring on screen but she is so beautiful and has those killer smile and dimples that you can forgive everything else wrong about her . Not much of a role for her and a little disappointment after OSO .

The film as you can see has no script again and even a lay man can guess the whole plot beforehand . There are a lot of Mistakes throughout the film with one of the most loose background score that I have ever heard . Two fantastic pieces of Music from DDLJ and Karz wasted like some ordinary background score . The Director had nothing to do since the script itself was so weak . The Music of the film is also weak and only Khuda Jaane is soulful . If we compare this one to Dil Mange More of Shahid then its a perfect example of how a bad film can earn more than a much better one just because of the Publicity and the names attached to it . I cannot believe the same Director has directed a film like Salaam Namaste and then this one . He has used pieces of Shehnai and the very old Thunder Sounds in background when there is a sad sequence or shock sequence in the film . Where is Yashraj going , now maybe only a Widow breaking her Bangles is left for them I suppose to show on screen .

Bachna Ae Hasino is much better than Tashan is the best compliment that this film can get from my side . Ranbir is OK and Bips is good . The film might entertain you but won't satisfy you . Nothing new in it apart from the actors . The same old formula and same old scenes with almost zero chemistry among the leads . I don't know what I would get to see in Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi , Yashraj's last hope for the year . SRK would never work with Yashraj again if the film turn outs to be a failure . Lets not hope so and SRK being my favourite I have to hope for the best . I hope SRK interferes in the film if Aditya gets Logic less while directing the film .

Movie Rating : Two out of Five Stars , Another dud from Yashraj .

Dostana --- Teaser Trailer Review

The next film of Dharma Productions after their infamous KANK will hit the cinemas in November this year . The first teaser promo of the film is out now and from the looks of it another blockbuster is on the cards . This time though Karan has just produced this baby of Tarun Mansukhani . Since this one comes from Dharma Productions the Budget has to be quite high and the movie would also be a full blown commercial one . The teaser gives a taste of whats in store this November . For the ones who don't know the film starrs Abishek , John and Piggy Chops (Priyanka Chopra) .

The film is set in Miami (Florida) so a change of location from Dharma's favourite New York . The film looks as cool as the spirit of the city and would be targeting the Youth at large . Karan has already said that this Dostana has no resemblance with the 1980 hit of same name which was produced by his dad . The only resemblance is that this is also a story of three friends , two guys and a girl .

Well , the teaser starts off with the usual - "From The Makers of " and then the list of films by Dharma Productions over the past few years with the Music of Kal Ho Na Ho in the background . Strangely "Kaal" was missing from the list , maybe because it was not a pure Dharma Productions film . Well , after the slow soulful music of Kal Ho Na Ho suddenly starts a groovy youthful score and the mood of the trailer changes from depressing tone to a lively one . Then we get to see introductory shots of all the three main leads with everyone looking hot apart from AB Baby . With Priyanka in super hot and sexy swim suit and John flashing his six packs they set the screen on fire backed by the terrific background score . Karan would have for sure flown to Miami to see Piggy in a Bikiny .

After this comes the only Dialogue in Trailer where John says that he and Abhishek are a Gay couple which is a lie . The whole story starts with this lie and how this lies gets stretched into truth and the life after the lie . After the dialogue there is a whole sequence of scenes from the film where Abhishek and John do some homosexual acts and tickle our funny bone with their expressions . The Trailer ends with a three framed scene showing all the lead in their avatar . The chemistry among the three leads looks great on screen and a lot depends on that for the success of the film .

The teaser trailer is great in every sense and much much better than Abhishek and Priyanka's October release - Drona . Piggy is super hot and Abhishek might once more face a Media lashing on his looks and fitness compared to other stars . This one creates a lot of interest amongst the audience and people won't be able wait for three more months before the film releases . I am not sure how many of you remember this but Teaser trailer of Kal Ho Na Ho was a treat to watch . In my list of best trailers it ranks quite high because of the fabulous music it had and the rapid moving scenes that were quite in sync with the Music and the famous Heart Beat music of that film . That one had scenes which were not in the film and SRK had delivered some fine lines in that one . This teaser is not as good as that one but still it is a great one and it will for sure create a big element of interest about the film.

Interestingly there are lot of big releases before this one and the Teaser has hit the theatres quite early . I don't know what is the publicity plan of Dharma but I hope it is a good one . It should not be like that the teaser has been released and then its after one and half month or so that people get another dose of the film . The teaser has been attached with Bachna Ae Hasino (another dud by Yashraj) so look out for the trailer in the film or check it out here only :

First Look --- Kidnap and 3 Idiots

The first look of two films , Kidnap and 3 Idiots , are out now . One being the next of Aamir Khan after Ghazni and other being the next of his cousin Imran . Lets talk about the Aamir one first .

The Teaser poster of Aamir's next venture as an actor , 3 Idiots , is out now and its one of those posters that say a lot about the film and create an interest beforehand . The film as everyone knows is based on the Famous novel "Five Point Someone" which is based on a group of students from IIT and their misadventures of their college lives . The film is to be Directed by Rajkumar Hirani who will be directing something different from Munnabhai for the first time . This film would be a real test for him as a Director . The Producer is the same , Vidhu Vinod chopra who has produced both of Hirani's film . The film also starrs R. Madhvan and Sharman Joshi as supporting cast and will also have Kareena as the main female lead .

Now talking a little about the poster which has shown Aamir pressing against a blackboard which has Problems of Calculus written all over it . Amir is having his cropped hair cut and I don't know how would he be able to play a role of Boy who is half the age of what he is right now . We know thatAmir is a a great actor and can almost play any role with utmost perfection but I don't understand till when he and his contemporaries are going to play such roles . The Directors need to find some new talent now and they need to take risks . Anyways , as I said the poster says a lot about the film especially the tag line which goes like this " chose excellence - success will follow" . The poster reminds me of Good Will Hunting and A Beautiful Mind where two geniuses keep solving their calculations with anything that they find .

We know that this film would be adaptation of a famous novel that has been read by a huge block of people so it would be interesting to see for the first time in Indian film industry , people responding to an onscreen adaptation of a Famous book . Though Devdas has also been adapted many times and several such other stories but those stories had been read only by a few selected people and not by a people at large . This would be probably the first such experience when people will react to a film based on a book . This film and book might also lead to a new fashion of Adapted Screenplays and for sure create two new categories in all the league of Awards - "Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Original Screenplay " . The award guys will get too happy since they like to distribute more and more awards and please everyone in the Industry . So even if Hirani doesn't gets best film he can at least get "Best Adapted Screenplay" and be happy .

Well , I still hope that Hirani gets the best film award and the film turns out to be as good as the novel is .

Now Talking a little about the next release of Imran Khan , Kidnap , whose trailer is running in the cinema halls along with Singh is Kinng . This is the second film of Imran whose first film has proven to be biggest hit of 2008 up till now (Singh is Kinng might overtake it ) . In Jaane Tu... Imran Played a role that was meant for him and he had just needed to be natural whereas his acting skills will be tested in this film where he plays a not so good guy and his role has a negative side to it .

The film is Directed by Dhoom Fame Sanjay Gadhvi and it also starrs Sanjay Dutt and Minissha Lamba . This film would be Gadhvi's first film which is not produced by Yashraj . In this one Sanjay plays a role of the Richest Indian in the World and what happens when his Daughter gets Kidnapped by a guy played by Imran .

Talking a little about the teaser trailer , it starts with Sanjay (Vikrant Raina) being introduced and his net worth is shown which is in Billions . Then Imran is shown in a completely different look than what he had in Jaane Tu.. , making the Kidnaper's Call to Sanjay .He Kidnaps Sanjay's Daughter played by Minissha . Then starts a series of scenes which show that Sanjay instead of Paying the ransom decides to chase Imran down and catch him . The film looks like a good thriller from the scenes that have been shown in the Trailer and the background score used in Trailer is also good .Sanjay looks more like a Dude and the title of "Richest Indian in the World" doesn't go with his personality . For such a role a Corporate personality is needed , someone like Rajat Kapoor might have looked better .

Anyways , the trailer looks good and the film looks a little inspired from Mel Gibson starrer 1996 hit Ransom . That one was Directed by Ron Howard (Director - Da Vinci Code) and he is an intelligent man and he made a nice pacy thriller . This one , I am sure has many Indian elements in it with a probable love angle between Minissha and Imran . I hope that Both Sanjay Gadhvi and Imran prove themselves apart from their Debut attempts . Imran has done a great thing by signing this film and would prevent him from getting trapped in a Chocolate Boy image . But this might even prove a big risk if he is not able to play the role properly .

The film is all set to release on October 2 which is roughly one and half months from now . It would be interesting to see audience reaction to Imran especially after Jaane Tu .. which is still running in some of the Cinema Halls . Check out the Trailer :

Singh is Kinng --- Movie Review

Well its official now that Anees Bazmee can rightfully take place of David Dhawan in the industry in coming days after this film . The David Dhawan genre of Mindless comedy and action has entertained lots of people in the past and created stars like Govinda . I would like to make a clear statement before I review the film that I was never a fan of such films and I would never be but still I have watched almost all the films that have been made in the genre . The last film of Anees Bazmee , Welcome , broke many records of collection despite of the fact that it was a pathetic comedy film that also belongs to the same genre of films . Before Welcome Anees made No-Entry which in my view was a fantastic comedy film but then even David Dhawan has made films like Deewana-Mastana , which is one of my all time favourites . The fact I am trying to portray here is that dont't judge Anees by his film "No-Entry" , the real Anees is what you see in "Welcome" and what you would see often .

Singh is Kinng is one of the most hyped films of the year with Hit pair of Akshay and Katrina with a deadly combination of a Singh and Akshay . If you would read my review of Welcome there also I have mentioned that I watched Welcome because of Katrina since I am a die-hard fan of hers . And again I would say that I watched Singh is Kinng because of Katrina and again I was disappointed because she again had very small role to play like there was in Welcome . This film is a little better product than Welcome is what I can say about it .Welcome had one of the most boring and cumbersome endings I have ever seen , leave aside the film and this one at least ends better than that one .

Well , lets talk a little about the film . The film starts off with a Birthday Party of Lucky Singh the famous don of Australia who is known as Kinng over there . There is a murder attempt on him at the party and as expected he does his Mindless Heroic Stunts defying all the rules of Science to kill his assassin . Then there is a shift of location back to India in Punjab where Akshay kumar or Happy Singh is a Punjabi Munda who is good at heart but all the people in his Village are fed up of him because of the trouble he causes to others whenever he tries to do a good deed . The village is also the birthplace of Lucky Singh who leaves for Australia to earn money but becomes a gangster over there and never comes back . In order to get rid of Akshay and his troubles the Villagers push him into an emotional trap to bring back Lucky to his Parents in the village who are waiting for their son since a long time . Akshay being so good gets trapped and leaves for Australia along with Rangeela(Om Puri) but lands up in Egypt where he meets Katrina . Its love at first sight and Akshay has to leave Egypt just because he doesn't have a visa of Egypt . In the meantime there is a dream song with Katrina -"Jee Karda" .

Dream gets over and they get back to their mission of getting Lucky back and reach Australia . In the process to force him to come back to India there is one more attack on Lucky Singh and he is saved by Akshay. While saving Lucky suffers a head injury he gets paralysed and his gang makes Akshay the Kinng because he saved his life . After this starts the whole process of how Akshay transforms all the leaders of the gang and in the end even Lucky into good human beings and in the mean time how Katrina lands up in his life and their love story .

The story as you can see is very simple and mind you , though the film is based on Sikh characters and uses a lot of Punjabi yet the USP of film is NOT the Sikhs . The characters that were shown Punjabi could in fact be played by any person of any religion . So the film has nothing to do with the Sikhs . In fact it has been more used as a Publicity tool . This fact would be agreed even by the Sikh community that it has got nothing to do with their religion . It is well know that Akshay read the title of this Film at the back of a truck and decided to make a film out of it . So the Sikhs have been put up in the film and the script just because of the title of the film . They are not an inherent part of the script . Their attempt of attracting the Sikh audiences worldwide has struck gold and the film no doubt is going to break the collection records in coming days .

Now talking a little about the acting , the film as I said has very little for Katrina and is completely based on Akshay and the other male characters . Anees paid off his debt of not giving Akshay a larger role in Welcome in this film . Akshay is as usual and we get to see an extended and much melodramatic version of Punjabi Jatt of Namastey London in this one . Namastey London in my opinion portrayed a better version Punjabi Culture in its first half then what Singh is Kinng has done throughout the film .The Punjabi jatt of Namastey London was better than Happy Singh . One of the reasons I say so is because Namastey London had an authentic Punjabi cast with Rishi Kapoor and Akshay Kumar both being Punjabi's and hence portraying it effortlessly . Apart from Akshay and Katrina , this film also has actors like Om Puri , Jaaved Jaffrey and Ranvir Shorey . All of the supporting cast has done a great job and without them the film would have been a disaster and people couldn't have seen it for three hours . The comic timing of Jaaved Jaffrey and Yashpal Sharma was fantastic throughout the film . Katrina should stop taking such roles where her looks are given more preference than her Acting . I think she has far more acting talent then what she is usually offered .She should do more of films like Namastey London rather than Welcome and Singh is Kinng where she just dances in the Songs and acts as an Eye Candy . Katrina is a fabulous dancer and the fun she has while dancing is worth watching .

Talking of Script , it is a typical Two liner script which has been stretched and built according to conditions . The film has very little bit of Action and it is mostly mindless . The film will please the masses and very little of the classes .The comedy is same old one and it has been presented in same old fashion . Bits and pieces of comedy is worth a watch but the film on whole is so so . The film entertains you throughout its length but only to satisfactory levels and not overwhelmingly . The Direction is as usual and the Director has very less a job in such films , most of the hard work is done by Music Directors , Choreographers and Actors . The music of the film is good and apart from Bhootni Ke everything is fine . Bhootni Ke is pure noise . The producer Vipul Shah who himself is a Director would be happy on the Business point of view considering the film's collections will be great but his creative side wouldn't get happy after reading the reviews . Vipul should make better films than this one .

Overall , the film is fairly entertaining so it can be seen , but don't expect a laugh riot out of it . The film has all the emotions packed in it and as I said earlier is a typical David Dhawan type of film . So if you are not a fan of such films don't waste your money and time in watching it in a cinema hall . Wait for the DVD . But if you are fans of Films like Partner and Welcome go watch it this one would amuse you even further . What amazes me is that people still find getting hit on a crotch amusing and laugh on it like they have seen it for the first time on screen ?

Film Rating : Two and Half out of Five stars , good music and a great looking Katrina packed with fair bit of comedy by Akshay and the gang .

On Screen Friendships in Bollywood

Well , its Friendship day and probably the best time to talk about the beautiful relation that exists amongst the millions of human beings which makes it possible for us to live happily . The friendship among two or more people has been shown in countless occasions on screen and the emotion has also been used for attracting the emotional audience in the past . Though many films have shown friendship among the actors , very few are there which have shown it in the original form . Most of the films have just shown it in a Melodramatic way where - "Ek Dost Apni Dosti ka Waasta Dusre ko Deta Rehta hai ". Still there have been few films that have successfully explored the relation and shown it to its core on-screen . I have picked 10 Best such films where friendship has been shown in its true elements . I may have missed a few .If I have , comments are invited . So here goes the countdown :

10. Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega --- Preity and Rani : Its a common belief that two girls can never be great friends and as Art imitates life there have been very few on screen friendships amongst two Female Actors . But one of those that looked great was the friendship amongst Rani and Preity in Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega . Who can forget both Rani-Preity wrapped in just a towel and singing "Piya Piya ho Piya" ? The song got so popular that all of a sudden there were several films that were offered to the duo . Their on-screen Chemistry was great and it was never seen before amongst two Girls in Films . Their friendship was also presented in a good fashion and where a boy (Salman) is the one that comes in between by chance . The film had a very dramatic ending but the films in those days had it that way . Apart from the end the film was not that bad and the best part was certainly the Friendship of Rani-Preity . Film makers still have a chance to make a great film on friendship amongst girls which is a rarity but still it would exist somewhere .

9. Hera Pheri --- Akshay and Sunil Shetty : Partners in Crime is what the friendship between Akshay and Sunil in this film can be called . Though they keep fighting with each other from start till end but they still understand each others problem and help in all circumstances . This is how friendship should be . Though they keep fighting but what is behind those fights is what is so great to see on screen . The person in between them is poor old Babu Bhaiyya (Paresh Rawal) who though is of the age of their Fathers but still manages to make and treat them as a friends . This showed us that Friendship has no age Bars and it can bloom amongst any one .

There have been several other partners in crime too like Sanjay Dutt and Govinda in Jodi No. 1 and Amitabh and Vinod Khanna in Hera Pheri (1976) but both being a little more focused on other things than friendship so didn't make it to my countdown .

8. Andaz Apna Apna --- Aamir and Salman Khan : They can be called as the most funny friends on-screen with an almost perfect chemistry in between them . Aamir , an oversmart guy and Salman , a little slow guy both made a fantastic combination on screen and backed by a hilarious script and cast the film is a treat to watch and it is the chemistry among the two leads that makes the film so funny . The film is so funny that while I was writing this , the scenes kept coming back to my mind and I had a smile on my face while writing this . The news is doing the rounds that a sequel will be made and directed by Aamir himself . If the news is true , I'll pay any amount to see the film .

7. Kuch Kuch Hota Hai --- SRK and Kajol : The friendship amongst a boy and a girl is a very debatable topic and people always say that it is love that lies under it . In any case the debut Director Karan Johar managed successfully to show this relation on screen in his first film Kuch Kuch Hota Hai . Though their friendship transforms into love still the first part where the friendship is shown in its element is something that was been never shown on screen before . I still remember SRK saying " Pyaar Dosti Hai " in the film and isn't it true . Even if their cant be any friendship amongst a boy and girl , isn't Love completely based on Friendship . Anyways , it is K-Jo's Best film in my opinion and the film that epitomised friendship amongst a boy and a girl .

6. Chupke Chupke --- Dharmendra and Amitabh Bachchan : This film is the most unique pick that you will find in my countdown . The friendship amongst Dharmendra and Amitabh in this film has never been talked about but I've found it quite interesting . The film is no doubt one of the best comedies of all time but in it lied a friendship amongst two people that was shown in its true element . Proff. Parimal Tripathi of Botany and Proff. Sukumar Sinha of English made a fantastic duo that got lost somewhere in the film . The song "Sa Re Ga Ma" had fantastic chemistry amongst Amitabh and Dharmendra . They shared very small time on screen together in the film but the scenes where they did , showed their friendship in a great way .

5. Style --- Sharman Joshi and Sahil Khan : This film is one more film where two happy go lucky friends land up in trouble due to their pranks . The film has been Directed by N. Chandra and I didn't ever think that he could make Comedy films . Just like Rajkumar Santoshi made Andaz Apna Apna , Chandra made Style . The film is hilarious and again the friendship amongst the leads was a treat to watch . Both of were just perfect for the characters that they played and very well portrayed the Young Friendship . The film had some very hilarious moments with a fantastic chemistry amongst the heroes . The film also sent out a message to youth . The film had little boring end but still the first half is a must watch and the comedy in it is a treat . The film showed how friends land in trouble together and true friends don't leave and run in the middle .

4. Rang De Basanti --- The Group : This film which is one of the revolutionary films of all time not only in its style of making but also on the level of impact that it had in the society , has a core that is completely based on friendship . The film is about a group of friends which had all kinds of people from all religions . Aamir as Daljeet or DJ was in a way the leader of the group yet was more a part also illustrating that no one is a leader in a group of friends . The film also showed that youth is so carefree and yet it feels a burning desire to do something for the country inside . Their group not only does the immature stuff that everyone does in its youth but also talks and debates on some important things in life . And when one of them gets killed by the System they decide to go against it together even if it results in their death . The film also showed Siddharth (as Karan Singhania) who kills his father when he realises that his father was also involved in the system that killed his friend . The film also had Laxman Pandey (Atul Kulkarni) who is religious fundamentalist and hates muslim making a muslim friend in the form of Aslam played bny Kunal Kapoor . The film makes its point on several issues in India and it also shows that Friendship doesn't look at those issues but certainly it can solve those issues .

3. Sholay --- Jai and Veeru : If you have observed throughout the countdown I have written the name of the film and then the actors name in the begining . But here I have written the name of the film and then I have written the name of the Characters - Jai and Veeru . This is the extent of how Iconic their friendship is in Indian cinema . We still remember them as Jai and Veeru more than we do by their real names . The friendship was shown in the true element and not in a Melodramatic way . Though it does take an emotional , dialogue filled turn towards the end but the times in those days demanded that . I watch the film only to watch the comedy that is there in the starting part of the film and it is completely situational comedy which was a rarity in those days . The chemistry and Friendship between Amitabh and Dharmendra is unparallel and it will live for ever . The film still wasn't completely based on Friendship and it had several other angles too that's why this film lies on the Third Spot .

2. Munnabhai M.B.B.S. --- Munna and Circuit : One more film with iconic characters and characters that connected with people so much that they can never fade in our memories . The film directed by Rajkumar Hirani though had many things in it that made it a thing to remember like the "Jaadu Ki Jhappi" and "Maamu" . But the one thing that made it such a big hit was the chemistry that exists between them throughout the film . The sequel of the film also had some of the most emotional moments amongst them but my favourite is still the original one . The comic timing amongst them was just fabulous and the film showed the other side of the Bhai's and made people laugh and cry with them . The scene where Sanju asks Arshad Waarsi to bring a Body for dissection is just hilarious . Arshad as a true friend arranges the body for his friend and after that you know what happens . The film in my opinion truly shows the Character of true Friendship and how friends affect our lives so much . The film and the sequel taken together made it to the second spot on my countdown .

1. Dil Chahta Hai --- Aamir,Saif and Akshay : The only film that revolves completely around friends and friendship is Dil Chahta Hai and the film has attained a cult status among the people and each and every group of friends identifies itself with this film . The film shown that how beautiful friendship can be and that in spite of all the things that can come between friends the friendship still remains intact id it is true . It also shows how friendships and friends teach you so many things in life and how the life around you gets affected by your choice of friends . The film had some of the most Hilarious and most Emotional moments both . The film brought in the culture of Group of friends aspiring to go to Goa together . I don't know how many group of friends would have tried and still keep trying to go to Goa and enjoy life with friends like Sameer , Akash and Siddharth did in the film . The film tops my countdown only due to the fact that it was completely based on Friends and Friendship . It also showed how friendships break and get joint again if there is true love under it .


These were the films that shown greatest friendships in Bollywood on screen. The films are considered to be Larger Than Life and but still I believe some of you would have identified yourselves and your friends with some of the characters that are their in these films . These films in together show all possible colours of friendship that exist amongst friends .Apart from these films there are also numerous other films that have tried to show friendships on screen .

Have a happy friendship Day and may you many more true friends in life than you have right now . If you want to share any moment with your friends that could be filmed on screen or you have a story of your own then feel free to share it with me .