Once Upon A Time In Mumbai Again/Dobara (Your Choice)

After series of lesser known films or severe failures (Like ‘Hattrick’, ‘Deewar’ and ‘Chori Chori’) Milan Luthria hit the note of a high point in his career in with ‘Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai’ (2010), a period gangster film or rather folklore depicting Mumbai’s growing underbelly based in the 60s and 70s, apparently inspired from real life individuals like Haji Mastan (Aka Sultan Mirza played by Ajay Devgn) and Dawood Ibrahim (Aka Shohaib played by Emraan Hashmi). Inspite of being an imperfect film ‘OUATIM’ was appreciated enough owing to the catchy dialogues and one-liners, the upbeat plot, the well justified performances and the music, some of which still refuse to fade from our memory.

Three years later, Mumbaai has moved 12 years ahead (Reel time), with Shohaib being the most powerful man in the city (Controlling it overseas), after killing his benefactor Sultan Mirza, in a fit of rage and lust for power over whole of Mumbaai. Here’s the best part, 12 years from Sultan’s Killing Shohaib (Emraan Hashmi) becomes Akshay Kumar and Mumtaaz (Prachi Desai), who plays Shohaib’s lady love in the first part become Sonali Bendre. Some age miracle formula I must say!!

Apart from such liberties regarding casting issues, the makers of ‘Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai AGAIN’ (Yes, I like to call it by its name prior to the change because it sounds linguistically correct) have literally exploited the saying ‘Let your imagination run wild’ by exposing us to the unimaginable, like a Tiku Talsania having ‘Something’ (Say a fling, affair, or just ‘cordial’ relations) with… with… wait for it… Vidya Balan!! That’s like the film maker’s assurance policy for all the guys (no age bar) that well, if Tiku Talsania can get Vidya Balan, ANYTHING can happen, so be positive. In keeping with such awesome hyperboles, in a particular scene Shohaib, the most wanted man in India, with only macho juice flowing in his veins, walks into a Mumbai Police thana sees a photo of himself being the most wanted criminal, laments about its quality stating that a new one must be sent to replace the old one and walks out. It not only takes the audience for a ride but also badly reflects on the Police force and their quality of work.

‘OUATIM Again’ fails as a film because of the drastic shift in genre from a period gangster film to a love triangle set in the backdrop of a gangster environment. It’s an out and out love story, with bloodshed, deceit, breaching of trust and so on.

Milan Luthria as a director fails for me completely, with not being able to live up to the standards of his baby and doing no justice to anything from the first part. What really irks me is his inability as a director to trust his own actor to live to his expectations and shoulder the responsibility of a second film. Had Emraan Hashmi still played Shohaib, almost 50% of the film would have been better there and then.

Akshay Kumar as Shohaib is a complete let down, close your eyes and listen to him talk and you can’t tell a difference between Rowdy Rathore / Khiladi 786 and now this one. He is totally unable to convince you as Shohaib. Sonakshi Sinha and Imraan Khan make you indifferent to their performances with having done nothing different from what they have been doing in each and every film. (Except Lootera which worked great for Sonakshi and well… Nothing for Imraan)

After a point of time the entire film felt like a Kavi Sammelan, Having Rajat Arora back on board with the dialogues, no character was able to put forth a simple sentence without a ‘Saying…’ or an analogy or an idiom to convey a particular message. In keeping with his previous work from ‘OUATIM’ and ‘The Dirty Picture’ (Which got him several accolades and the dialogues of which are still remembered time and again when a particular situation arises) Rajat Arora has gone overboard this time. In their individual capacity the one-liners used are bang on!! But if every dialogue is a one-liner then it loses the impact its set out to create. Even the usage of Bura maan jaaega… seems deliberate and simply to keep in tone with the first film.

With no exceptional music, Pritam has let down all those who highly appreciated the tracks from ‘OUATIM’, especially with a newer rendition of Tayyab Ali (From ‘Amar Akbar Anthony’) and a controversial track, Allah Hoo (edited from the film) he has portrayed complete inability to produce anything new and worthwhile. Except for the background ‘theme’ score, which continues from the first film and is used as effectively in ‘OUATIM Again’ as well.

The film starts off on a note saying ‘Thank you to Ajay Devgn and Emraan Hashmi – for starting the journey’. All through the film I was hoping that the end would have a note saying ‘Sorry to Ajay Devgn, Emraan Hashmi and all you viewers for letting you down’. But then again, not all hopes are always fulfilled in life.

 

Chennai Express – Ready, Steady… Derailed

Everything this festive season, right from the Gosht Saalan, to the succulent kebabs, to the Sheerkorma with infinite amounts of fresh dry fruits, to the pompous festive celebrations and crisp clothing seemed so fresh. However, in these times of celebration and fanfare ‘the most awaited’ ‘entertainer’ of the year seems to have fizzled out with its consistent staleness for three hours.

With advance booking galore and reportedly earning 25 Crore rupees on the very first day, ‘Chennai Express’ needs no reviews for people to go watch the film. Shah Rukh Khan Fans may have never even booked their tickets for an actual train journey in advance, as they have for the film. Even those who don’t have the best of the opinion about him (Or supposedly HATE him as they say and prefer to express their anguish against him as curtly as possible) might have wanted to see the film owing to Rohit Shetty’s history of making some of the most entertaining films in recent times. His action packed comic-capers have garnered him enough recognition to the extent of getting him aboard the ‘100 Crore wagon’.

Without being a snob or bore, I owe a lot to Rohit Shetty for making some of the moments in my life as entertaining as they could get with films like ‘Golmaal’ (The first in the series), ‘All the best’, ‘Singham’, ‘Bol Bachchan’. However, all said and done ‘Chennai Express’ fails to make me laugh or even entertain me beyond a few seconds in each sequence.

Chennai Express is not a film; it’s a three hour advertisement with infinite product placements ranging from ‘Nokia’ to ‘Pepsi’ and the most important ‘Commodity’ of all: Shah Rukh Khan. The film sells him to you in abundance quantity with repeated references to ‘DDLJ’, ‘My Name Is Khan’, ‘Dil Se…’ and many of his past films. This makes me inevitably balance a striking resemblance between Chennai Express and An ‘Epiphyte’ (A plant or an organism who grows and solely survives on the support of other plants and organisms).

With nothing fresh to offer, Chennai Express is the love story of a (Not so obedient) boy, a runaway girl, a cruel and unemotional father and a bad ass villain. Yeah! Yeah! It’s any other film from the 80s and 90s, with contemporary settings.  Most of the elements you expect in a Rohit Shetty film seem to be total let downs. With no puns or dialogues that stay with you, a lot of the comedy used seems repetitive throughout the film. If you’re expecting a garage full of cars flying and smashing in and around town, disrupting the regular lives of citizens you are in for a total bummer. It’s seems Rohit Shetty reached the season’s clearance sale at the garage/Junk yard a little late hence had to come back home with a few (100 odd) cars less.

I am no actor, but I do believe that an actor should be ageless and should be able to mould into his/her character with utmost perfection with no boundaries. However, an actor should play the character physically and keeping the mental maturity stable. In spite of repeated reference and emphatically stating that he is aged 40 in the film, Shah Rukh Khan portrays the maturity of a 20 year old. With excessive hamming and over the top performance he is himself from DDLJ, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Baadshah or any other film 15-20 years ago. Shah Rukh Khan simply refuses to grow up time and again (To the extent that his name is also ‘Rahul’). All these put offs supersede his fairly good efforts to maintain a decent comic timing in the film.

Rohit Shetty’s incapability to offer something new and fresh to the audience thoroughly irks me and what genuinely angers me in the fact that under the pretext of ‘Entertainment’ ample liberties are taken. The film definitely fails to conform to what it preaches (The most commonly used dialogue throughout the film states that “Do not underestimate the power of a common man!”) The entire film does nothing but underestimates and challenges the thinking capacity and intelligence of the common man in the audience. Throughout the film, I felt a sense of linguistic incompetence on not being able to comprehend 40% of the dialogues, which were in Tamil. After some time I reached a saturation point and switched off.

Chennai Express fails to be funny, but is nevertheless amusing, with (larger than life) idiocy like the 5 feet something Shah Rukh Khan beating up the 7 feet something antagonist who’s built seems nothing less than one of those ugly beasts on WWE. What also amuses me is Deepika padukone’s discovery of an invisible device to help you download and store new clothes and ornaments for every new day, when you are on the run and her discovery to bring back a nearly dead man from his sleep (Shout out his name thrice). It’s better to be oblivious to the music of the film (Say, perhaps the song ‘Titli’ can be an exception) as it fails worse than the film itself. And with a tribute to ‘Superstar’ Rajnikanth at the end (Which was totally out of the place and completely uncalled for, especially to a viewer like me who doesn’t think of Rajnikanth in high regard and for whom Rajnikanth doesn’t go beyond childish text messages) it’s just the pits.

The only highlights and saviours for the film are the song sequences by Rohit Shetty, mounted with sheer grandeur and beautiful locations supplementing the extravaganza of colours. Full marks to Rohit Shetty for portraying an almost unseen side of India and escaping the sunflower fields with ‘Soniya’, ‘Mahiya’ and breaking away from the Punjabization of Bollywood love stories. And last but definitely not the least, Deepika Padukone. India’s favourite party girl has broken the barriers and gone out of her own realms to perform better than anyone in the film and at the same has managed to look utmost beautiful and elegant than ever before. With her almost authentic Tamilian accent she manages to win hearts of not only her fans but other onlookers as well.

So, how many aboard the ‘Chennai Express’?

B.A. Pass

 

When I read ‘The Railway Aunt’ by Mohan Sikka (Which features in ‘Delhi Noir’ – A compilation of short stories throwing light on India’s capital and dark underbelly) I knew there was a potential script hidden in it to be adapted on celluloid. But my mere thoughts were executed and channelized into action by Director Ajay Bahl to make ‘B.A. Pass’ and How!

I have mentioned this many a times earlier and I stand by the fact that I am not a film reviewer, I am just a viewer putting forth my views without the objective of influencing one’s viewing habits. I respect all the film critics writing for the publications and on broadcast media, however with all the reviews coming in for B.A. Pass what is definitely irking me is the fact that all critics are labelling the film under the genre of ‘Drama’. Clarifying this major blunder, I would like to state that B.A. Pass is a pure, out and out ‘Neo-noir film’. Throwing in some technical knowledge, A Neo noir film is a film with updated themes, content, style, visual elements or media that were absent in films noir Viz. particularly those films that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations.

B.A. Pass is an adaptation in a perfect sense, shouldering the responsibilities of doing justice to the literary work of the author by thoroughly balancing all the intricate details. However, Mohan Sikka’s ‘The railway aunty’ in its gritty, engrossing narrative lacked a depth, thus leaving the reader shallow at the end of story. I was hoping to see this void being filled on screen, but in vain. B.A. Pass is as shallow and doesn’t give the viewer the desirable depth.

A few days ago, I was told that ‘D-day’ (2013) was India’s boldest film made, post ‘Black Friday’ (2005) at which point I did concur to this thought. However, after watching B.A. Pass, I laugh at the fact about how liberal we have been in using the label ‘Bold’ for the films made till date. The erotica and sexual intonations in the film are unmatched to this date in Indian Cinema. Heartiest congratulations to the B.A. Pass team on being able to pass the thorn laden path of the censor board and Applause for the members on the board for the display of such mature action.

The film is very well crafted and aptly manages to convey the emotions thoroughly in each scene. With really no scope for change, the love making scenes throughout the film seem monotonous after a point, yet they try to do away with the monotony using setting factors like the changing colours of lingerie according to a particular position. This may have been one of the few films I’ve seen recently where one person has managed to live up to the role of a director and a DOP (Director of Photography) on the same project for a feature film. Debutant director Ajay Bahl manages to stand out with his choice and decision of releasing India’s premier Neo-Noir erotica on the big screen, but the DOP in him manages to do a finer job with the visual beauty and lighting of Delhi by Night. The use of neon signboards in the darkness of the night was the icing on the cake throughout the film.

The story is multilayered by itself and depicts the story of an orphan in Delhi, who gets trapped in the male prostitution ring of the capital. An unconventional relation between an elder woman and a young boy, the film speaks about ‘too much trust leading to deception’. The dark and disturbing plot is finely supported by great talents such as debutant Shadab Kamal, Dibyendu Bhattacharya (Who was highly appreciated as Chunni from Dev.D) and one of the finest femme fatales in today’s day and age Shilpa Shukla (Who featured in ‘Hazaaron Khwahishein Aisi’ & Who’s role in ‘Chak De India’ as Bindia Naik, was most talked of amongst all the other hockey players) Sad that it took her 6 years to bag a chunky and noticeable role.

With no music to break the pace of the film (Just A song in the final credits, composed By Alokananda Dasgupta) the film shall prove to be a breakthrough in a lot of terms for Indian Cinema and the effect of which might not be measurable today or tomorrow, but surely after a few decades.

Final thought – If you aren’t able to fathom the fact that ‘Life aint no fairy tale’ and look at films as a medium to drift away into a dream world, B.A. Pass isn’t meant for you. Also for those, who might just want to see it for eye candy and the portrayed ‘X’ factor, I think you might be disappointed because there is a lot more to the film than that.

Ship Of Theseus

 

Before I start talking about the film, I find it necessary to mention that I deem myself intellectually, culturally and philosophically incompetent to state my views about ‘Ship Of Theseus’. However, I would like to say a few words (Of mostly praise) for Anand Gandhi’s directorial debut. From the past one year, every seminar, every post-film talk, every lecture has been incomplete without atleast one of the panellists or the speaker on the dias saying “The day ‘Ship of Theseus’ gets a theatrical release, Indian Cinema will have arrived” (Yes, It’s that old and was screened at the MAMI film festival 2012). This got the wheels churning in my mind as to what is all the hype surrounding this film and it’s film maker all about? Then, around 6 months ago I happened to attend another seminar, where mentioning ‘Ship Of Theseus’ was imperative because one of the panellists was Anand Gandhi himself. What I thought of him then, makes me feel ashamed of myself now after looking at his work. And perhaps the only bug in my mind stopping me from wanting to see ‘SOT’ was the fear of the phrase that “A film is a reflection of its film maker”. But I feel lucky that all that has changed, and how! In keeping with the philosophical temperament of the film, It was perhaps my fate or the returns of my good Karma that after 2 weeks of various hurdles, keeping me from viewing it, I was finally able to see the last show on the last day of the film.

On 19^th July Indian Cinema ‘finally’ did arrive, with ‘SOT’ getting a theatrical release. Kudos to Kiran Rao/Aamir Khan and the people at UTV for being able to discover the gem and being able to present it to the world in a magnificent way on the big screen. This studio backed release of an independent film must definitely prove to be a trendsetter, and such films should be made more viable to the audience wanting to see more of them. I believe SOT has set the ball rolling with Dharma Productions presenting Ritesh Batra’s ‘The Lunchbox / Dabba’, which is also co-produced by Anurag Kashyap. If this trend sets in completely I think we can do away with a farce like ‘PVR Director’s Rare’.

Talking about the film, I am firstly happy that it did not let me down in keeping with the overall hype it has garnered for all these months. After a long time, I felt complete after watching a film in the theatre, with every single element in the film – be it the breathtaking visuals or the true to life and soulful performances or the humanist touch to the genuine storytelling, Or just how the name of the film itself has such a deep meaning from which it is derived,  you name it – making me feel so calm and serene. It’s difficult to pin point how an audio visual medium makes you feel so good at the end of 2 and a half hours. With beautiful analogies that explain life, SOT makes you introspect about so much that you might have been oblivious to and considered as a negligible part of your life. Perhaps the only thing I felt as unnecessary in the film was the Interval, but then again the audience needs the popcorn and samosa for every mood. The end of the film literally gave me Goosebumps and it’s a big deal for me that this was the FOURTH TIME in all the years of me wanting to pursue a career in films, that I’ve felt envious of a film maker and felt that “I wish, this film was made by me”. When I say all this, I am also unashamed and unabashed to state that, Yes, I did not comprehend each and every thing in the film and perhaps a few more views will help me do that as well.

I look at Ship Of Theseus as a ray of hope. Hope for all the independent filmmakers with such great work, to find their presenting saint, Hope for the Indian cinema to keep evolving with the pace as it is now and to maintain it, Hope for Anand Gandhi to keep up his good work and shoulder the responsibility he’s been bestowed upon by his first film itself and A final hope that SOT releases on DVD, because It’s a must keep, must BUY (Not downloaded) and must watch.

A final note, If you are oblivious to cinema as ‘Art’ and tag every film that is not mainstream as ‘Film festival material’, you might want to refrain from boarding the Ship Of Theseus and go see a ‘Ramaiya Vastavaiya’ which also released on the same date.