Blue --- Movie Review

The big Diwali release , the most expensive Indian film , Akshay's return to action film, first underwater action film ,Rahman's music, Katrina's guest appearance and Lara's sexy avatar . These are some of the tags that have been associated with "Blue" to make it look large than what it is and to make it sound like a Hollywood production rather than an Indian one . Well , it is an expensive product , no doubt about that , but it is certainly not a "rich" product .

As usual the producers have taken risk with the money but they haven't taken any risk with the SCRIPT and gone ahead with a formula based action film . The producers and director followed Hollywood path in all the production aspects except the script and the screenplay . It almost felt like the Director had a notion of "I'll make the most expensive film ever" even before he had the script .

The screenplay of the film is very much flawed and very much borrowed . It has scenes which are almost a copy of some of the scenes from several Hollywood flicks . The boxing scene being heavily inspired from a scene from "Broken Arrow" , the bike chase scene from "Torque"and the gunshot scene from "Bad Boys II" etc. On top of it , all these scenes seemed so out of place and strange with no proper logic to them .

**some spoilers in this para**

The characters of the film are also not believable and very weak . Sanjay Dutt's character "Seth Ji" is supposed to be an expert diver and swimmer yet he has belly which is definitely like that of a real "Seth" who sits on the "Galla" . Lara Dutta who is not credited as having special appearance has a role limited to the length of a song which introduces her . She has got nothing more in the film apart from the introductory song . Zayed's character is so stupid that he falls in love so suddenly with a biker chick (Katrina) and never even doubts her intentions . It is also hard to believe that Zayed Khan who pretends to be a daredevil chickens out so soon and runs to his elder brother for help . Sanjay Dutt thinks of Aarav (Akshay) as his friend even though he clearly wants only the treasure which is supposed to be hidden in a very dangerous place underwater . But the DANGER has not at all being addressed in the film . They go and retrieve the treasure with such ease that even a novice could have done it . No shark attacks throughout the film . They go underwater to play with the sea-turtles , that's it , and make a documentary which could have been made by Discovery Channel . The story of the film is so short and predictable that one or two more sentences and you will know the entire plot .

The music of the film has been terribly used by Anthony . The songs in the film start off in a very abrupt way with nothing to add to the film ."Rehnuma" which is a good track has been used in the title credits which comprise of nothing but some shots of the aquatic ecosystem . Lara's introductory song "Aaj Dil" starts suddenly and she changes her outfit in it within every 20 seconds . The title track is just for the underwater masti that the actors do . They had nothing to show in "Bhula Tujhe" so they show a recap of the entire film in it . So it would be much better if you watch the film from where this song begins , that way at least you will save a lot of time . Kylie is sitting at the bar in the same outfit in which she performs "Chiggy Wiggy" along with Akshay after he tries to flirt with her .

The performances by the various actors are also very limited . Akshay should stop playing these playboy kinda roles , at least at this age . They don't suit him anymore . His acting limits are known to everyone and he stays within those limits . Both the female actors have almost nothing to do and Zayed has just something . Zayed is as usual and Sanjay also keeps it simple . I had some expectations from Rahul Dev who plays a negative role as Gulshan but he also gets nothing to perform .

Coming to other technical aspects , the background score by Rahman also doesn't have a lot to offer . I am not sure but I think I heard a trumpet in the background score in some place in the film along with some strange sounds which seemed to be coming from nowhere .This is probably the worst that Rahman has ever done in background score . The only strong aspect of the film was its Cinematography and Laxman Utekar deserves some praise for it . I particularly loved the scenes which were shot in the moon light during the night sequences . Even the underwater camera work was great. The costumes of Lara Dutta were also good and she did look hot onscreen . The action sequences had very less creativity but nevertheless shot on much higher standards than what we usually see in Indian films . The locations in the film have also been selected brilliantly and they look splendid .

Anthony D'souza gets no points for his direction and the only thing good he did was keeping the film just around two hours long else it would have been a very unbearable experience . The only thing of the director that impressed me is how he got the producers to spend so much on this film and also convinced some of the big names literally to come on-board . There's a line from the film "Duniya Ka Sabse bada Nasha hai Risk" and the producers are now definitely at a great risk to lose a huge sum of money . Probably this is the dialogue which Anthony delivered to everyone while making this film . Though its a risk that has not been taken passionately .

In all its a film with just good visuals but has no substance to back those visuals . Blue won't give you the blues but won't make you happy either .

Movie Rating : Two out of Five ; only for the visual aspect .

Here's wishing a very happy diwali to everyone !

Ajab Prem ki Ghazab Kahani --- MusicReview

Unlike Vishal-Shekhar and SEL who almost do the entire album themselves , singing,composing and even writing (in case of vishal-shekhar for Aladin) , Pritam has kept himself to composing only and he still believes in bringing in some of the best singers to do their job and he needs to complemented for that . It brings a variety to the album and doesn't keep it monotonous .Vishal has given some horrible lyrics for Aladin and he should seriously think about writing . As far as I can remember most writers had some hair on their head :) , just kiddin , no offence to bald people . He did a great job for "Aankhon Mein Teri" in OSO but doing an entire album is just too much too soon .

Coming to "Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani" , its a fun-filled album and it is pretty clear about that . It has 8 originals and 5 remix versions and an unplugged one . Since the film is a crazy love story some of the songs have that crazy element while the others are pure romantic ones . The lyrics are by Irshad Kamil who finally has worked with someone other than Imtiaz Ali . Pritam and Irshad together have already given a hit album this year which results in expectation from this one too .

The first track on the album is very rightly a fun track , "Mein Tera Dhadkan Teri" , which establishes the mood for the entire soundtrack right away . This one has some fun lyrics which are not senseless by the way and the music also has that fun element in it . Its a light track to begin with but has a nice combination of both lyrics and music . I've taken for granted that if its Pritam's album it has to be inspired from some place and I've not spent any time figuring out from where . This track also has some RAP bit by Hard Kaur which is good and adds to the track . Sunidhi and KK have done a good job as usual providing vocals for this track . The lyrics are also a bit catchy in nature but not like "Om Mangalam" of Kambakht Ishq . In all , its a good fun track to begin the album .

Then comes probably the best track on the soundtrack , "Tu Jane Na", by Atif Aslam and not Mohit Chauhan who has sung songs like these for Irshad and Pritam . Atif as usual does a fabulous job with his style of singing . Pritam has also kept the composition simple yet beautiful and given it a bit of classical touch . The chorus (which is a rarity these days) sounds so good and makes the track even more beautiful . The track starts off in an unusual way like it has been continued from some part before . The chorus goes somethig like this ...

kaise bataye kyu tujhko chahe , yaara bata na paye ,

batein dilo ki dekho jo baaki , aankhen tujhe samjhaye , tu jaane na ...

In all , its a great track that has to work for sure and with Ranbir-Katrina chemistry that is evident in trailers , am sure it would look even better on-screen . Great job by both Pritam and Irshad .

The album switches back to fun mode and we get "Oh by God" . Who said that "Shehnai" is just for sad moods only , Pritam has just proved otherwise and used it in a comic way over here . It has that famous "Wedding Shehnai" . Since its a fun track the lyrics are not meant to be taken seriously but still they are much better than "Bhangra Bistar Beer Bater" . Sunidhi-Mika sing it as usual . This track is also more film oriented and though its a fun track , it would make more sense along with a comic situation in the film .

It switches back again to Romantic mood and thus comes "Tera Hone Laga Hoon" which has Lyrics by Ashish Pandit . This one also has Atif and giving him melodius complany is Alisha Chinoy . This one is also a great track and I think it is equally good as "Tu Jane Na" . It starts off with Neeraj singing some nice english lyrics which add to the beauty of the song throughout . The composition of this one is on the lines of "Is This Love" from Kismat Konnection . Ashish has also done a good job with lyrics and even the three singers have done a great job together . Though Atif is a good singer but I think it is his voice quality which is not something very exceptional and quite normal that makes him so much more popular , it makes you sing the song along with him .

Again a sudden jump to fun mode and we have "Prem Ki Naiyya" ; this one being my favourite amongst the fun tracks . Its got Neeraj singing in a bit of UP style accent and its nice to see him attempt at least some thing different if not completely . Though its basically a Neeraj kinda track only and fast-paced with all the groovy music in it . Since Ranbir's name in the film is "Prem" the song has lyrics something like "Prem ki Naiyya hai Ram ke Bharose..." . The song also has Suzanne D'Mello for small bits in between and this time she does the job of singing some weird english lyrics instead of Neeraj . The lyrics are also fine and the music by Pritam is also good in this one .

The long list of the singers gets even longer with Javed Ali and Jojo singing the next romantic track on the album "Aa Jao Meri Tammana" . This one clearly feels like some Emraan Hashmi track that I heard sometime back (so many of them ) . It would have been much better if Emraan would have made a guest appearance for this song . But then he would have demanded to kiss Katrina and if denied would have accused of a biased behaviour against him :) . I just hope Ranbir doesn't lip-sync to this song in the film because the voice just won't suit his boyish charm . This one is not a bad track but i didn't quite find it interesting either . The lyrics and tune both felt like something that we have heard before . Javed's fan would love the track .

The last original on the album is a RAP track by Hard Kaur . She is of the better rappers in India and she does a good job mixing hindi,punjabi and english together in this track . I am not a hard-core rap follower so I cannot comment on whether its inspired from some track or not . But personally I liked the track and its worth listening , much better than that "Genie Rap" from Aladin . Since a part of this tack was also a part of the first track on the album , the music of this one has shades of the first track . A short and sweet track which has not been made unnecessarily long . The lyrics by Hard Kaur are also good and much better than many other rappers in India .

Then follows a long list of remixes,reprise editions and unplugged versions which is a thing to expect in most Pritam's albums . He liked his own work so much that he does it all over again to complement himself . All of them are like usual remixes only so nothing to waste time on . Leave these tracks for DJs only .

I think Pritam wanted to make some record of sorts with this album so he brings on Kailash Kher and his group to sing an unplugged version of "Tu Jaane Na" . Since this one is my favourite track on the album and Kailash is also one of my favourite singers , I liked this one too . Kailash sings it in his own style and in his earthly voice . A nice little treat for Kailash kher fans to end the album .

With so many singers , the album does provide a nice variety of tracks and it doesn't feel monotonous . The album is so much better than the long list of below average soundtracks that are out there in the market right now (All the best,London Dreams,Main aur Mrs.Khanna,Aladin,Jail and even Radio :) ) . The soundtrack has a nice mix of romantic and fun tracks which also have a good bit of lyrics and not some average commercial crap . Both Irshad and Pritam have done a good job together again .The film would definately benifit from it . I am now looking forward to the film and since it is not an out and out comedy like Andaaz Apna Apna , I would try to keep that film out of my mind while watching this one . I hope Rajkumar Santoshi hits back . Bohot din ho gaye koi achchi comedy film dekhe hue .

Album Rating : Three and Half out of Five .

New York --- Movie Review

This year has been virtually empty when it comes to film releases . Those that managed to get released before the strike were all major disappointments and the year has been so far not good . The first half of 2009 has almost got over and now we finally have a film that one can look forward to , New York . The film's subject matter is known to everyone and this film is not a typical entertainer . When a production house like Yashraj makes a film like this it is bound to get a bit commercialized . What matters though is that does the core subject matter of the film gets lost under the glossy outside .

The answer to that question is no . Kabir Khan is an intelligent film maker and he had proved that in Kabul Express . This time he re-confirms it . He has made sure that the big cast and budget do not affect the film in any way and affect it only in a positive way . The positive that I see is that when big names and big stars get associated with such a subject the message that the story aims to send reaches a far wider audience than what it would have in case of a smaller budget film .

Talking of film , it starts off in a great way and comes straight to the point . There's no circumlocution and the director makes his point clear right in the beginning that this ain't no usual masala entertainer . The introduction of characters on screen is one of the most powerful I've seen in recent times . The song "Junoon" has been Brilliantly used for this task and I could have never imagined that it would be used in this way . The small love angle that is there in the film is there just for some roughly 20-25 minutes in the beginning and that too done in a very swift and neat way . Time passes by in the film pretty fast and it takes no time for the director to come right from 1999 to 2008 . The whole introduction part has been done in a very fresh and brilliant way . The friendship of all the three characters has been portrayed in a very subtle manner and it is not in your face . They become friends just like normal people do , presentation might be a bit different and large . The emotional connect with the main characters gets established in this part and I must again say Kabir has done this job fabulously .

Once that connect is established , the film gets right down to business and talks of life after 9/11 for an average Muslim person in America . The film moves about in a very fast and a bit thrilling way . It talks about the inhuman torture that the non-american prisoners have to bear in the prison cells and how it got even brutal after the 9/11 attacks . Kabir and the actors have very well understood and felt the subject and carried it off brilliantly on screen . There is this small character of guy who has been traumatised by the treatment he gets for no fault of his own . He is just brilliant . Though a really small part but when he speaks about what happened with him , it shakes you to the core . The actor has done a top quality job for this small part and he has the strongest part apart from the main cast . This is one character that you would remember for a long time even after the film ends .

I don't want to give out many details from the story as it is treated in a way that it would be better if you know them as you watch the film . The little bit of suspense that Kabir has kept has been done in a nice way in the film . The film's story unfolds in a really nice way and it manages to hold attention of the viewer throughout the film . The first half of the film ends strongly and manages to hold the interest of the viewer and keep it alive for the second half .

If majority of the first half is seen through Omar's (Neil) eyes then second half has Sam's (John) view of things . The second half starts afresh and the story moves forward from there and doesn't creep slowly towards the end . The serious tone of the film continues here too and it is this part where the director aims to send out his view on the things and also the message of the film . The way story moves , the end is a bit expected yet the director manages to surprise a bit here too and executes it in an almost perfect manner . The end comes at a proper time and again comes at a swift pace . The film doesn't have any emotional drama yet the emotional connect with the characters is good . Kabir proves his point that one doesn't need long emotional dialogues to establish that connect .

The cast of the film is also great and they all look good together . The friendship of the characters has been portrayed in a very fresh and good way . Katrina , John and Neil look great on-screen together and a good friendly love film can be made using this chemistry . But I guess it won't look as fresh the second time as it did in this one . Too bad that this film has none of that and has only small trailer of what could have been full length Yashraj feature film . The innocence of their friendship and their characters add a lot to the film and make the point of the film even more stronger . The young characters of the film also make sure that the message goes out straight to the young people of our country or as Pepsi calls it , the Youngistaan .

Talking of acting , everybody has done a great job and even Katrina who is accused to be a mere show girl does her part well . John and Neil both have felt the characters in the script and acted out them well . Irfan needs no compliments and he is great as usual . His character is also an important one . The small kid that is there in the film is also great and his really short part is also good .

Music of the film is also good and it has been brilliantly used by Kabir . He has made sure that almost through every song the story keeps moving and the songs don't hinder the pace of the film . In fact the songs have been used in such a way that they add to the film in so many ways . The background score by Julius Packam is great and only in some parts it could have been a bit different . The cinematography by Aseem Mishra is great and he shows new york in a great way . While watching the film I realised that the trailer of the film had been cut in a really brilliant manner and kudos to Kabeer and his team for that . The editing of the film by Rameshwar Bhagat is also good and film is very brisk in nature and moves about at a constant rate .

In all , its a great film and you need to see it to believe it . The script of the film is great and when script is great things generally tend to fall in place automatically . The director Kabir Khan has done a really good job and he needs to be applauded for making a film on this subject . I don't like Aditya's decisions mostly but I respect him for supporting this film and also providing Kabir with a good budget to make it . He should support films like this and look forward and if not many then at least make one such film a year . Kabir is a good film maker and I am now looking forward to his next project , I hope it is also a good one . I would recommend this film to everyone and it is high time that we support good and subject oriented cinema no matter who produces it . If this film works on the box office which I am sure it would then many producers would dare to support such projects and not go for the usual masala entertainers .

Movie Rating : Four out of Five ; A good film made with a good intent .

New York --- Music Review

New York is the first big film to hit the screens after the long strike between the producers and multiplex owners and also Yashraj's first film for this year . Yashraj had a terrible last year with RNBDJ being the solo hit of the year and they would expect to start this year on a positive note . This film by Kabir Khan of Kabul Express fame is based on different subject matter and is not usual Yashraj entertainer . The film as we all know has the backdrop of 9/11 WTC attacks and the story revolves around that incident . The trailers of this film had hit the cinema halls long back along with Rab Ne.. but the release got delayed and now Yashraj have very less time to promote the film . The music of this one is by Pritam and expectations of a commercially hit album are always there from him . He last worked on Aa Dekhe Zara and the track "Gajab Huio Rama" is still on the charts .

Since the film is completely based in New York , the music of the film also has that complete western feel and there are very few Indian elements in it . The soundtrack has eight tracks in total with 6 originals and 2 remixes . The first song on the album is the track that features in the trailer , "Hai Junoon", by KK . The track begins with a guitar piece that reminded me a bit of the guitar theme from Sholay . When I heard it in the trailer my expectations with the music rose and I started expecting a good soundtrack . I must say that the best part of the track was in the trailer itself and apart from that it has very little to offer , at least in terms of music . The track though a simple one but yet in my opinion is the best on the entire soundtrack and comes upfront . It will definately get popular but at a a slower rate probably because it is not one of those instant hit types . The lyrics by Sandeep Shrivastav are nice and refreshing and capture the emotions of the characters very well . This song suits Katrina very much and this is definately her time . KK as usual does a good job singing the song and I loved the chorus also in the track . Overall , a nice light track to begin the album .

Next comes "Mere Sang" by Sunidhi Chauhan who I think sings very few good songs these days . She has far more talent and she is wasting it on so so commercial tracks . By the way this track is not one of those and is a good one . It also has a western feel to it and is of the league of songs from pritam's film METRO. This song also has a good use of guitars and drums and has the rock feel to it . The lyrics of this one are also good and have that urban feel to them . Overall , its a nice track and Sunidhi does well singing it .

Coming third is "Tune Jo Na Kaha" which reminded me of the track "Chal Chalen Apne Ghar" from Woh Lamhe . Pritam who is famous for composing inspired music this time got a little inspired from his own work from the past . Though not largely but in certain parts you can observe the similarity between this track and that one . Listen to both the tracks and if you think that I am right then please leave a comment , I want to know that is it me only who thinks this way or you also think so . Well , this track is also good one and the lyrics here add to the beauty of the song . Sandeep has done a great job once more and he can do even better . The vocals are by Mohit Chauhan on this one and he has done great job as usual . Overall, a nice slow number and has some nice piece of lyrics .

"Aye Saaye Mere" comes next which aims at sending out a message through itself . The central message of the film also probably lies in this song . This one has been composed and Sung by Pankaj Avasthi . He does a great job singing and his voice does have that sufiana quality of a saint and the music he composed for the song is also pretty simple and basic . This song would most probably feature in the background and would look good that way along with the film's storyline .

Next come the remix versions of "Hai Junoon" and "Mere Sang" which are just like every other remix and have those bass beats and DJ effects with a higher tempo . Nothing great about them and are good for discs etc. Amongst the two , I liked the "Mere Sang" one more . The tracks have been remixed by Julius Packam who has also composed the two themes musics that follow next .

In the end come two theme musics by Julius Packam , first one being "Sam's Theme" which is nice and has vocals by Caralisa Monteiro . The fact that Sam's character has a theme proves that it is the central character in the film . Caralisa does a great job with the vocals and apart from her vocals the music has little to offer in this theme . Nothing so new about the theme but might look good in the film . Sounds a little sad which leads me to believe that Sam probably dies in the film .

Finally comes the theme music of the film and this one is nice bit of music but not a great one . Julius had done a fabulous job in Kabul Express and I expected a little more from him . I hope he does a great job with the background score of the film just like he did in Kabul Express .

Overall , the album falls a little short of the expectations but still is worth listening and the songs are pretty simple . They match to the theme of the film and I am sure they would look and sound even better in the film . Lets hope that the film doesn't fall short of expectations and is at least as good as Kabul Express .

Album Rating : Three out of Five ; certainly worth listening .

Yuvvraaj --- Music Review

One of the most awaited release of the year , Yuvvraaj , is all set to release and the music is out now . The album for me is of more interest since it is probably for the first time that we might get to listen to pure western classical compositions with an ARR (A. R. Rehman) touch and without any Indian elements . ARR's last album Jaane Tu.. was an instant hit among the youth and had nothing classical in it . This album's value increases more since ARR is teaming up with Gulzar again and the duo have done nothing less than wonders in the past . The album has a total of Nine songs with 8 originals and 1 remix which is a rarity these days . We often get more remixes than the originals . Sometimes we also get 3-4 version of the same track on the same album .This album at least breaks that trend and the originals outnumber the remixes by a huge difference .

The first track on the album is an Introduction track for the lead character "Yuvvraaj" in the film . It just has Salman Khan giving an intro along with Beethoven's Fifth Symphony . Salman's dialogue delivery isn't that good and his monotonous voice mismatches completely with the Beethoven Symphony . The symphony is full of dramatics and Salman's dialogues sound like he is talking to someone on a telephone , quite casual . He has not at all modulated his voice because he can't . The music no where matches his voice . This one is a track that would be combined along with the next track on the album which makes it sound even more out of the place . The singer on the next track doesn't sound like Salman at all . This thing that I am talking about would be more clear to you when you would listen to the two tracks one after the other .

The second track on the album "Tu Meri Dost hai" is a fabulous track and is already on air . Just listen to starting violin piece in the song and it shows us the brilliance of ARR. I could just listen to the starting piece for the whole day . It has been very well sung by all the singers and especially Benny Dayal who does a fine job . He sings very well but I think his voice won't suit Salman that much . This one is a musical love story and we have seen in the west how actors themselves first learn singing and sing their songs themselves in a musical . This makes it much more entertaining and they act even through their singing . Indian musicals make very less sense as we know throughout the film that he is a singer in the film but it is actually someone else who is singing which makes it a little less believable . In any case this track is a nice one which starts off in a magnificent way .What I didn't like was that it doesn't manage to maintain the quality with which it starts . It raises the bar in the starting and then lowers it a little by the end . Shreya and Rehman also do a great job as singers .

Next one is a Disco Track and after giving a super duper hit "Pappu Can't Dance" ARR doesn't manage to repeat the magic . This one neither has those catchy lyrics nor it has the groovy tune . I don't blame Gulzaar Sir for the lyrics since it is a little out of his style . Still , he had done a fabulous job in "Fana" of Yuva . I got seriously disappointed with ARR after listening to this track . This track feels completely out of the place .

The fourth song on the album "Tu Muskura" brings back the classical mood and is also on the slower and romantic side . This track also has inputs from "Tu meri Dost hain" in between . It would be picturized on Katrina since she is the only female lead in the film . It is a nice romantic song and has a nice tune . The tune is not as great as it was in "Tu meri dost" but still is good enough to hold the song . Alka Yagnik does a good job in singing and has been very well supported by Jaaved Ali . This one interestingly has Indian classical singing inputs in between by Jaaved which sound good .

The fifth track on the album is "Mastam Mastam" which sounds more like an African composition in the starting and reminded me of the songs from Walt Disney's - Lion King . A very new sounding song that would be interesting to watch in the film . It has a good tune backing all the wild music . The song has been very well sung by Sonu as usual and he is just fabulous in whatever he sings . The track abruptly changes its tune in the middle part which in a way surprised me but not in a positive way . The lyrics have nothing much to offer . Just listen to the singing style of the various singers and how much they enjoy the song while singing . It is more of a Singer's song and Sonu , Alka , Benny and Naresh all do a great job . Without their singing the song wouldn't have came out this good . It is a nice experimental track that I am sure would be visually much more exciting than audio wise . If you have seen Disney's "Enchanted" then I am sure you remember the musical song where everybody starts singing along with the lead couple and slowly slowly a large crowd starts singing and dancing with them . I am sure they would also try to attempt something like that in this song . In all , a song that would look great in the film if shot in the right way .

The next track on the album is "zindagi" which is a slow sad song and we have seen Hariharan sing such songs in ARR's previous albums . This one though has been sung by Srinivas and he also does a good job . The whole lyrics and tune are good but nothing extraordinary and not as good as "Tu Hi Re" of Bombay .A good track but such a track is not expected from ARR since he has given much better in the past .

The Seventh track on the album "Dil Ka Rishta" is something that Subhash Ghai has tried to repeat from Taal . This one might be climax song and would feature near to the end of the film . If you remember in Taal also the second symphonic version of "Ishq Bina" was used towards the end of the film during which the story kept moving . In a similar fashion even this song would have the story moving in the background along with all the emotions of a Love Story flowing in excess . This song is very long (7:39) and is also not that good to hold the audience for its entire length . On the contrary the second symphonic version on "Ishq Bina" in Taal was not only long but also had the potential to keep the audience entertained for its length . The singers do an average job and the music is also good in bits and pieces . Some of the pieces of music are so good that they could very well be used in background for the movie .
Overall , the song is a bit long and not entertaining enough .

The last original track on the album, "Manmohini" , is a modern version of Indian Classical Songs . The song has been very well sung by Vijay Prakash who has that Classical voice and the song completely suits him . This song is not as good as "Albela Sajan" of Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam but isn't that bad also . A very short length track that has just some Classical renditions in it . A track that is a little different from the entire album .

Then in the end comes a remix of "Shano" which has been remixed well by Krishna Chetan but the English lyrics in it have nothing new in it and are the same old ones . This one is much smaller than the original which is nice thing since I found the original one much longer and repetitive .

Overall ,as a die hard Rehman fan this one disappointed a lot and is below the expectations . Only one track "Tu meri Dost hai" impresses and all other tracks are an average affair and are expected as it is an ARR album . Much below by the ARR standards and I expected a lot from this one since it had ARR and Gulzar both along with Subhash Ghai . It looks like history didn't repeat itself after Taal and this album stands no where as compared to that one . The whole western classical that I was expecting was also given in small doses that also adulterated with other kinds of music .The lyrics by Gulzar Sir were also not that good as compared to his other works . You can buy the album and listen it once but don't expect a "Taal" or something like that out of it .

Album Rating : Three out of Five Stars ; "Tu Meri.." and "Mastam" being good and rest being quite average stuff according to Rehman's standards.

Yuvraaj ---Trailer Review

One of the big releases of the year , the much awaited Subhash Ghai's Yuvraaj , is all set to release and the first promos have hit the cinema halls . The film as we know starrs Salman Khan and Katrina together after a long time . In "Partner" they were not opposite each other . Apart from them the film also has Subhash's favourite Anil Kapoor and Zaayed Khan . The music is by the maestro himself , A. R. Rehman and the Lyrics are by the wordsmith Gulzaar sahaab . The duo together have given musical masterpieces like Dil Se , Yuva and Guru , all being with Mani Ratnam . This time they team up with Subhash Ghai who has also given musical hit like Taal . Yuvraaj is also a film in the Taal category i.e. a Musical Love Story . Taal is one of ARR's best works and the movie is also one of the best from Subhash Ghai . Lets hope they are able to create the same magic once again after almost Ten Years .

The magic that I am expecting gives a glimpse of itself in the promos of the film . The first trailer starts off with some musical notations being shown in the light of some candles . After that starts a beautiful orchestration in the background and we see a glimpse of all the lead actors of the film one by one . First we see a little younger looking Salman and then the eternal beauty Katrina playing a Cello . After her we see Anil Kapoor with a bouquet of flowers giving his innocent smile even at this age . Then at last we see Zaayed Khan walking on the streets . Then starts a series of some very short scenes all showing the Musical environment in which all the leads are living . The huge concert halls and musical notes etc. all giving you a glimpse of the scale of the movie and its background . Then at the end a line comes which is probably the tag line of the film "Music Binds Love " . Then at the very end we see an even younger looking Salman peeping from behind a pillar into the camera .

The trailer in all gives out very few details about the story and just gives an intro of the leads . The music in the background also gives us a hint of whats in the store . The music is just fabulous as expected from ARR and this is probably the first time he will get to use the western orchestrations in a full fledged way since this film seems to be set in London which is home to the symphonies and orchestras . The music in Taal was more Indian and had a mix of Indian and Western . But in Yuvraaj we might get to see just western classical instead of Indian classical . I am more interested in the album than the film for the meantime .

The looks of the actors are also one thing to watch out in the trailer . Katrina looks like a hollywood heroine from the 50's and looks like an exotic beauty . She is the only female lead and hence the second thing that the movie will be focussing on apart from Music would be of course her . The lead actors of the film would probably fight it out for the God's Best creations , Music and Love . Then we also get to see the "Bhola" avatar of Anil Kapoor that he dawned in his first few films . Salman also looks quite younger and he might look good with Katrina in this one .

Overall , I am looking forward to both the Album and the film which will release soon .Subhash Ghai is also looking for a hit since a long time and I hope he gets that in this film and viewers get to see a complete film . The year in any case has been very bad with most of the films leaving disappointed. I also hope that my favourite Katrina acts this time which she can and not just dances to songs . Check out he 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 .

Singh is Kinng --- Music Review

The next big film which is ready for release is "Singh is Kinng" , starring Akshay and Katrina . The music is out now and from the look of the Music Launch party which was attended by some high profile guests like Amitabh,Salman,Akshay and Katrina it looks like the producer are not going to leave any stone unturned for the promotion of the film . The big part of promotion of any film is its music , as I always say , and the music of Singh is Kinng is surely creating some buzz around the film . The film is no doubt going to be a hit considering it has the hit-jodi of Akshay and Katrina . Katrina has now definately became a lucky charm and she is part of all the big projects these days . She is on a streak of 5 hits and I don't think it wil break soon . Akshay's streak broke with his last film Tashan , but he would be soon back on track with this film .

Talking a little about the music , the album has 12 songs in total out of which 6 are original and rest are remixes . The music is again given by Pritam who is himself on a streak of hits . One line that can describe this album is "Fun all the Way" . Almost all tracks are dance tracks and have a club feel to them . The lyrics are by Mayur Puri who has done a fairly good job for the entire album.

The album opens with the Title track "Singh is Kinng" by famous International Hip-hop star Snoop Dogg . The track is a true Hip-hop track with Punjabi tadka . The track is a Fusion track and basically presents a trailer of the entire album which is a fusion of western and punjabi music . The track has been well composed by guest composer Calvin Broadus with inputs by Surjeet Singh and Manjeet and Kuldeep Rai . The song has a very nice rhythm and tune . It is very well sung by Snoop Dogg , R.D.B. and Akshay . R.D.B. has delivered in a good way and even Akshay has done his bit quite well . Overall , the song has a catchy tune and lyrics which will make it a hit in coming days . Mind you it is not the song that is featured in the trailer which is on air .

The next track on the album is Jee Karda which is sung by Labh Jan Jua and Suzie Q. The club feeling continues and again a nice fusion of Punjabi and English lyrics is there . This song is a little bit faster in its tempo than the previous one and has a nice tune attached to it . This song is again a Party song with pure Punjabi in it . The song is well sung by the singers and it will also work in the coming days . Songs like these are meant for enjoyment and lyrics don't play a big role , so don't pay heed to the lyrics .

The next track on the album is "Bas Ek King" which is on-air these days and is already a hit . The track is again a fusion hip-hop Punjabi Track . The track is composed very well by Pritam and is a hit for sure . The The song is sung by Mika,Neeraj and Ashish Pandit . It also has Rap by Hard Kaur which stands out in the track . She is the best female rap artist I know . She can work on an international track for sure . The catchy title Singh is Kinng is back again throughout the track which guarantees it it to be a hit .

If its a Punjabi Party all the way and there is no Daler Mehendi in it then its a no party at all . Well he also joins in the fun with his track "Bhootni Ke". This track is what they call a "Thenth Punjabi" or in other words a typical Punjabi track . It has ample use of Dhol Beats in it and is basically meant for the Marraige and would be used in the "Baraat" of the Groom . The track is a typical Daler track yet it lacks the catchy lyrics like "Kaala Kauwa Kat Khaaega" etc. hence it won't be as big hit as his previous tracks . Yet it will work .

The party stops for a moment with the next track on the album "Teri Ore" which is the Romantic track on the album . The song has avery nice lyrics and tune attached to it and has voices by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and Shreya Ghoshal who do their job like Pros . The song is completly different from the entire album hence stands out . Though the tune is not Punjabi yet the lyrics and accent used by singers has a little Punjabi feel to it . The song interestingly has an use of Rajasthani Folk in between and at the end which sounds really great . Throughout the song , the famous Rajasthani Instrument , Ek-Taara is used which sounds really great . The music directors should use contemporary Indian Instruments which sound really great and Pritam needs to be applauded for it . The last time I remember it was used was in Jis Desh Mein Ganga Rehta Hain (Govinda-Sonali) in the hit song "Prem Jaal Mein Phas Gayi " . The last picture to use rajasthani music was probably Paheli . In all its a great romantic track and with the fantastic chemistry of Akshay and Katrina on screen it wold look even better .

The Punjabi Party resumes with next track Talli Hua by Neeraj Sridhar and Labh Jan Jua . The song sounded me similar to Neeraj's song in Goal "Ishq Da Qalma" in terms of singing style . This song again has a club feel to it which is always in case of Neeraj Shridhar . The song doesn't have good lyrics neither it has a unique tune so it is the weakest track on the album . Songs like these when included in a film makes the audience quite bore during the duration of song and they also break the link of the film .

If the club beats in the originals were not enough then there is also a series of Remixes . The song Talli Hua is anyways a weak track yet it has been remixed and even the remixed version appears the same . The songs already have so much of a Club feeling to it that it even doesn't appear that they have been remixed . Then there are two remixes Bhootni Ke out of which one is sung by Mika . The remix tracks are just a mere formality and nothing great about them . The next remix is of Bas Ek King which has some extra Rap in it by Hard Kaur yet it almost sounds similar . Next is the remix of Jee Karda which is mere faster version of the original with a little bit usual DJ bits in between . Then there is lounge mix of the Teri Ore which sounds good since the original itself is good .

Overall , the track is more of a Party album and the Remixes included it in are unnecessary . The whole trend of keeping the Originals and Remixed versions on same album was started by Himesh Reshamiya and it needs to be stopped . The remix version of the tracks are mostly useless and the money and effort put on them can be saved and rather the Audio CD must be made a little cheaper in Market so it discourages Piracy to an extent . Anyways , the album has songs which have the potential to climb the music charts and it would get popular in days to come .

Top Three Tracks :

1. Singh is Kinng .
2. Teri Ore.
3. Bas Ek King .

Album Rating : Two and Half out of Five , Good Album yet the Remixes were unnecessary and I wasted my time listening to them .

Race --- Movie Review

Its time now that Abbas Mustan should either retire or stop making Thrillers . I say so because race is one more disappointment which has been the case since last few movies of Abbas Mustan . The movie is not at all thrilling if you are a little bit smart . The plot of the movie is quite guessable and you can figure it out even before it happens . Abbas Mustan this time have been inspired from Hollywood Flick "Wild Things" . The plot is different from that movie but what is similar is the chase for money and double crossing . If you have seen Wild Things you may not like this one at all . The music is all inspired from west in the same way as the film is . But since it is quite popular right now so it would be liked by everyone .

Talking of the film , it has two brothers Ranvir (Saif) and Rajiv(Akshay) who are the owners of Horse Racing Club and are into Horse Racing Business . Akshay has a drinking problem hence his father doesn't leave him any property and names it all to his elder step brother Saif . The whole film revolves around saif and his insurance policy worth millions .

The small scene that was in Ajnabee where Akshay Kumar hurts himself just to get his mediclaim by foooling the insurance company so that they can use the money to go for a tour has been blown manifolds and a movie has been made out of that scene . So this time Abbas Mustan have stolen from their own movie and put something from Wild Things and wallah !!! Race is born .

Bipasha Basu is Saif's girlfriend and Katrina is Saif's loyal secretory . Then happens the entire sequence of Double Crossing each other to get the money which is to be given by Insurance company after Saif's death . There is nothing in the Plot that I can reveal because if I would do so the very small amount of pleasure that you would have got from movie would also get lost . Double Crossing is fun till you can't guess it . Once it becomes predictable it is just waste of time .

Anil Kapoor plays a Cop who investigates Saif's death and Sameera is his Dumb Secretory . They act like the Karamchand and Mini of the famous "Jasoos Karamchand " TV series which got real popular on DD . In fact Sameera's name in the movie is also Mini . What is irritating is the way Anil has played his character . A lot of adult jokes and mannerism that doesn't suit actor of his stature . Both Anil and Sameera's character are just a showpiece and put in just for Time Pass . The story could have been written even by an amateur writer who knows nothing about writing . At no point in the movie I felt shocked and the acting performances were pathetic . Akshay Khanna did this role probably out of unemployment because he has an image of a good actor and in this movie he has just put his image down . Nothing good for a great actor . If he had to do such roles then why is he selective in the first place ? He could have done loads of such movies .

Katrina Kaif has two good songs picturised on her , thank God for that because she is the only reason I went to watch this movie . Their is nothing new by Bipasha but she looks hot as usual . Sex scenes are a must if its an abbas mustan movie and Bips is in one of them . One big reason why Wild Things worked was that it had full frontal nudity in it by Dennis Richards and all the other leads to an extent of a Three-some . Well , the Director duo could not do that so they put in some adult jokes and a love scene to make up for it . This might attract some of the audience but it will leave even that kind of audience unsatisfied .

The Direction is just regulation stuff and the Script is very weak . The Cinematography is quite good and all the Actors look hot . Acting performances are just regular and nothing extraordinary . The action sequences are also amateurish and repetitive . The action sequences are all shown in trailers so if you are expecting a little bit more action then also you would be disappointed . The Director Duo should now watch some more Hollywood movies or read some more thriller novels , they might find something interesting for their next movie .

In all , the movie is a big disappointment and if you just want to do some time pass then only watch it . Don't expect it to be a thriller and you might like it . The songs are worth a watch and thats why it gets a little higher rating from my side . The movie is in no ways going to thrill you but you might enjoy it a little bit . Rather I'll refer Wild Things to you . Go out rent a DVD of Wild Things and you would also not only save some bucks but even would get entertained more than Race .

Movie Rating : Two out of Five for music and the cinematography . Below Average stuff.

Welcome --- Movie Review

One of the last big releases of the year , Welcome is a tough competitor for TZP and probably would out-do TZP in terms of Box-office numbers . The movie is Directed by No Entry fame Anees Bazmee and produced by Firoz Nadiadwala . The movie is quite different from Anees's first offering No Entry in terms of comedy style and also actors . The main drawback of the movie for me was the fact that it was not at all situational based comedy and situations were created hypothetically , just like in any David Dhawan's film . If you are a big fan of David's cinema then you would for sure enjoy this movie a lot .

The movie is not meant for intellectual type of people and it may disappoint them . The film targets the common audience and hits a bulls eye . The Movie has many comic scenes that would tickle your funny bone for sure . But I am dissapointed because I expected more from Anees after his last film. But it is not his fault . All the movies made under Nadiadwaala's production are same because they interfere in the film for sure and hence Anees won't be having freedom . Once Saajid Khan rightly said that they are the Bruckheimer's of India and follow the same formula .

Talking of the film , it moves around Akshay & Katrina who want to get married but Akshay's uncle Paresh Raawal wants to get Akshay Married to some respectful Family people . But Akshay and Katrina fall in love and then starts the game of turning Nana & Anil into good honest people from goons . Though Akshay is suppose to play the lead role but in my opinion its Nana who stole the show and walks away as a lead of the film . Akshay and Katrina just perform the romance part of the movie with very few comic scenes for them . Nana is just outstanding as he is and has the best dialogues in the movie . Anil has done just regulation stuff and got laughs only for his abusing on screen . Mallika got to do more "Acting" than Katrina though her role was short . There is a whole Bhaagambhag in the end as there is in any comedy movie .

Just go out to watch this movie without thinking of story and other things . No Entry had a new story and great situations . This one doesn't , but still I would refer the movie for Nana fans and also David Dhawan's fans . It wont disappoint you . If you liked Partner then you would love this one . Akshay's and Paresh's fans may get disappointed for their small role in the movie and not much comedy from them .

The Music is average and looks good only in movie . Malaika does an item number in the movie which is so-so and only one thing was noticable in that song - Malaika's ugly Pregnancy Strech Marks . The make-up man failed over there . Cinematography is good and involves UAE like any other Nadiadwaala movie does . Overall it can be watched once if you want to laugh a bit and enjoy mindlessly . Considering Partner ,the Movie do very well at the Box-office and Akshay would have a perfect new year . This time probably he edited his own part by mistake .

Movie Rating : Two and a half Stars for fabulous acting by Nana Patekar.

Do You Wanna PARTNER???

Review --- PARTNER

One Line Description: STRICTLY NOT RECOMMENDED !!!

This movie is total बकवास with no sense at all. If You have an IQ of a Baby then better watch it. Babys' also have better IQ these days, I think they would also reject it. The movie is made for old Single Screen Audience which can sit in the STALLs and Just Whistle without any Sense and Strictly not for "MULTIPLEX" audience. The Comic sense of both Govinda and David has not Grown with time, poor Salman got stuck in between them . The girls are mere Showpieces with very few dialogues.The Little bit Action which is there in the movie is just STUFFED for no good reason. Very few pure and original Comic Scences, and I would lke to request the multiplex owners to atleast screen such movies in lesser screens and give some time to other meaningful movies.

How can people watch movie by leaving there brains at home!!!(As David always says). A strict no from my side for people who like some GENUINE entertainment and not STUPIDITY!!! I wasted my 100 bucks and I hope You wont. Better watch it on Video atleast u'll save some money.

AND ofcourse it is almost Frame to Frame copy of HOLLYWOOD hit HITCH that to done in a pathetic way. If u have watched Hitch then please dont even Think about this one and if u have not then just only think about this movie DONT watch it , atleast in a Cinema Hall.

POSITIVES:

The only good part was the Music. The songs are well choreographed and performed by artistes. The music is a winner in this movie

FAVOURITE SCENE:

None . The best Scene was when CREDITS Rolled Down alongside the Govinda and Salman's IIFA performance. It was better than this movie.

OVERALL RATING:

*Just one Star.

Only Songs are worth watchin .

VERDICT:

Seriously Guys n Gals u would ask each other Do You Really Wanna Partner ???

User Rating :