Movie : Tamasha

Don’t kill the child within you because when everybody reminds you that you’re ordinary or mediocre it’s the child inside you who says,”you are special”

There are very few movies which gives you a complete package of a good feeling, humming songs while stepping out of cinema hall, a different perspective of life, a movie character to whom you can relate to, a couple of movie sequences which keep on flashing in front of your eyes days after watching the movie, and a resolve to better your life, cherish the relationships and letting the child inside you live.

Tamsha works perfectly because it is imperfect in large parts and so is our life. The film is not just another romantic movie and hats off to Imtiaz Ali to direct such a lovely piece of art. The appreciation, in equal measures, goes to both Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone who enacted brilliant characters in the film. A couple of scenes in the movie : Ranbir kapoor imploding after break-up and Deepika Padukone trying to pacify him along with the scene of Ranbir Kapoor telling story to his father is class apart and kudos to Imtiaz Ali for such an accomplishment. A. R. Rahman’s music, though not one of his best creation, is aptly shot in the movie and the synergy works as the music lingers on in the subconscious mind for quiet a few days. The songs safarnama, tu koi aur hai and tum sath ho is brilliantly shot and gives all together different experience to the song. The whole second half lifts the movie to a very different level which doesn’t require boxoffice numbers or critics’ rave reviews to establish itself as one of the best movie in hindi film genre and create a niche for itself.

A few Q&A raised in the movie :

1)      “Nahi Sahab yaha to hum rikshaw wale hai. Yaha koi maika lal humko pehchan nhi paya sir. Ander se kuch aur hi hum aur bahar se majboor". Which of our character is real and which of our character is fake : The one who is  mediocre, ordinary, a polite, sincere and obedient employee living in a city – a comfortable but colorless, lifeless life or the one who is fearsome, happy and naughty when he travels and cherish every moment of with his loved ones without carrying the baggage of city life?

2)      “Mujhe nhi lagta Tum ordinary ho. Tumhare saath hoti hu to main special ho jaati hu yaar toh socho tum khud kya hoge”. Life is all about the power of love.  Ranbir Kapoor did not break free from baggage of being in race he was forced to run by his father, a race he knew he will always be mediocre until love compelled him to break free.

3)      A race in which we all compete, starting from the day we took first step in the school, without knowing what we all are racing for, or maybe we all know that, we race to become the best ‘robot’ and to lead the best ‘mechanical life’.  A race in which we lose our sleep to earn peaceful sleep, sacrifice our comfort to live a comfortable life and make all endeavor to live someone else’s life.

4)    "Darta hai. Darr lagta hai. Apni kahani mujh se pooch rha hai. Kayar. Kisse darta hai. Hai kaun yahan. Tu bata kya hota hai aage. Bata. Bol apni kahani. Kya hai tere dil k ander. Chahta kya hai tu. Dil me heer liye aur heer khoje virane me. Farebi. Dhokebaaz."   Facing the demons inside, running away from it is not an option.

5)      “Kaisi lagi kahani. Papa? Ending kharab hai na? Ending sahi nahi. To koi baat nahi apni kahani hai. Ending change kar lenge." We are the masters of our own destiny.  We are the makers of our own fate.  When we fully realize this truth, we will no longer search for the truth outside of ourselves.  

6)    "Haan ek tha jo kehta tha ki main special hoon. Bachpan. Mera Bachpan." Don’t kill the child inside you and keep your childhood alive in your heart and soul.

movie review : katti batti

After watching ‘katti batti’, viewers will ‘katti’ with Nikhil Advani and Imran Khan

Director : Nikhil Advani

Production : UTV motion pictures

Music : Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy

Cast : Imran Khan, Kangana Ranaut

Release Date : 18-Sep-2015

This could well be the last film, for both the Director Nikhil Advani and Actor Imran Khan, when viewers will take note of them seriously. The film is targeted to multiplex movie-goers of metros with hollywood inspired story telling style. The movie opens up well, as was the trailer of the movie which generated some interest among the target audience, but as we move along the story, the viewers feel cheated and deprived of the value for their money. The first half of the movie was so badly presented, trying to copy from hollywood movies, that the last 15-20 min of the movie which was the best part of the movie helped by fine performance by ever improving Kangna Ranaut, instead of leaving the viewers in tears left them laughing at poker-face of Imran Khan and that is the irony of the movie.

The film is centred around Imran Khan in (500) days of summer style of story telling. The offence of the Director is not just in failed attempt of copying 4-5 hollywood movies but he gave little interest in character building of both Imran Khan and Kangana Ranaut. The role of Kangana, who is enjoying form of her life giving awesome performance in Queen and Tanu weds manu returns, in the movie except for last 15-20 min was meagre and she was left with only showcasing colorful, out of the world type dresses and ill-make up-ed hairstyles. The direction was good in only parts, trailer being better than the movie, and one wonders whether the movie is directed by some Ad director. Although, couple of song sequence was nicely filmed. The fight sequence in college, a sequence where Imran Khan pushes the bike while Kangana is still seated as pillion and a sequence in which Imran Khan’s sister argues using facebook to convice Imran Khan that Kangana Ranaut is not commited to him is laughable, viewers’s expect a lot better from the director.

The supporting characters in the film are out of the world with a turtle as pet named Milkha, a south Indian boss who jumps and shouts at a decible which nearly ruptured viewers’ eardrums, Imran Khan’s sister who just tries to imitate the role of girl in (500) days of summer, college friends who can do anything to save ‘not-so-dude’ drunk guy from being caught  by his parents, a male protagonist’s best friend, a female protagonist’s friend who is more worried about some Rs. 5 lac toilet seat pot than the condition of depressed Imran Khan and then there is a band group, every member of which is ditched by their better half, named F.O.S.L.A acronym for Frustrated One Sided Lover’s Association, some may find it as newly invented word but the name is also borrowed from a not so famous Prakash Jha produced film Dil Dosti etc. The music of the film is average and one soon forget it as he/she steps out of the hall.

The biggest let down of the movie is undoubtedly Imran Khan. The whole movie was centred around him but he gave a very poker-faced performance where he should have tried harder to twitch a facial muscle or two. In many sequences his acting made it look an average scene which should have been emotionally exhaustive scenes. His acting in later, serious part of the movie was summed up by the viewers’ laughters in the partially filled hall where the director would have intended the spectators to shed some tears.

Overall, the movie is a big let down and raises the question mark on the future career path of both director Nikhil Advani and the male protagonist Imran Khan.

Stars : 2/5