Bioscope (Marathi Movie) Review

July 18, 2015 by Keyur Seta Leave a Comment

Rating: * * * ½

By: Keyur Seta

The idea of presenting few short films as a whole film is slowly gaining acceptance. It doesn’t come as a surprise to see the genre entering Marathi cinema, as newer or experimental topics have been a regular feature here.

Bioscope, an amalgamation of four short films, is an interesting start to the genre in Marathi. Although not each of the four films can boast of being superlative, the experience as a whole is certainly pleasing due to the progressiveness on display in each, both in terms of the subject and treatment.

Picture: Marathifilm.in

Dil-E-Nadan
Based on a Ghazal by Mirza Ghalib
Director: Gajendra Ahire
Cast: Neena Kulkarni and Suhas Bhalekar
Writer: Gajendra Ahire
Music: Narendra Bhide

The story takes place in today’s Indore. A classical Ghazal singer (Neena Kulkarni) has been living with her musician friend (Suhas Bhalekar) since 30 years. The two of them are trying to come to terms to the fading days of gharana music and mostly spend their time reminiscing the old, golden years.

This one transports you to the Nawabi Indori Gharana of music. Beautiful tunes, rich production design (the revolving fan standing out) and royal Urdu dialogues continuously enchant you. But the film works as a whole due to the amazing bond between the two characters and the ending moments. Showing the two of them purely as friends is a bold statement. Neena Kulkarni and Suhas Bhalekar provide excellent performances and they also share some amazing chemistry.

Picture: Marathifilm.in

Ek Hota Kau
Based on a poem by Saumitra
Director: Viju Mane
Cast: Kushal Badrike, Spruha Joshi
Writer: Viju Mane
Music: Soham Pathak

A young garage owner (Kushal Badrike) falls for a beautiful girl (Spruha Joshi) of a respected family. More than the social difference, it is his skin color that is stopping him from sharing his love for her.

The age old story of a poor guy falling for a rich and upper class girl gets another dimension of the issue of complexion. The undying stigma attached to the dark-skinned in Indian society is presented here in a bold and mature manner; the protagonist is smartly linked with crow. But the story appears dragged after a point. Thankfully, the killer moment in the climax saves the day. Kushal Badrike perfectly molds himself in his character. Spruha Joshi is fine too.

Picture: Marathifilm.in

Bail
Based on the work of a folk poet Loknath Yashwant
Director: Girish Mohite
Cast: Mangesh Desai, Smita Tambe, Uday Sabnis and Sagar Karande
Writer: Abay Dakhane
Music: Avinash-Vishwajeet

The film focuses on the sorry state of affairs of cotton farmers by highlighting the plight of a famer named Panjab (Mangesh Desai). From his small village in the interiors of Maharashtra, he visits Mumbai to join the protest for increasing rates of raw cotton.

This is another not-so-novel subject narrated differently. The sorry condition of a cotton famer is arrived at in a creative manner. The fact that they receive almost peanuts for their produce while the clothes made out of it are sold in an abnormal price is a very appealing manner of highlighting their plight. But the film lacks proper flow. Also, an important event in the tale isn’t presented clearly. Mangesh Desai is fully believable as a helpless farmer. Smita Tambe is also perfect as his wife.

Picture: orientpublication.wordpress.com

Mitraa
Based on a short story by Vijay Tendulkar
Director: Ravi Jadhav
Writer: Vijay Tendulkar and Ravi Jadhav
Cast: Veena Jamkar, Mrunmayee Deshpande
Music: Salil Kulkarni

The period is 1947. A boy (Sandeep Khare) is eager to share his feelings for his childhood friend Sumitra (Veena Jamkar). But Sumitra loves another girl (Mrunmayee Deshpande).

Story of a lesbian girl based in India in 1947 is something out-of-the-box considering queers’ struggle to gain acceptance even in 2015. Mitraa is a bold, beautiful and unconventional take on the issue of lesbianism. The protagonist’s manner of disclosing her sexual preference and the reactions to it sums up its new-age-ness. But you really can’t ignore its visually stunning frames despite the film being in black and white. One wouldn’t mind watching it as a full-length film. In a difficult role, Veena Jamkar provides a thoroughly skillful act. Sandeep Khare is dedicated as her childhood friend. Mrunmayee Deshpande plays her part well too.

Baahubali (Hindi) Review

July 11, 2015 by Keyur Seta Leave a Comment

Director: S S Rajamouli

Writers: S S Rajamouli, Rahul Koda, Madhan Karky and Vijayendra Prasad

Producers: Arka Media Works and Dharma Productions

Cast: Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Tamannaah, Anushka Shetty, Ramya Krishnan, Sathyaraj

Music: M M Keeravani and M M Kreem (for Hindi)

Genre: Action/ Drama

Rating: * * * *

Review By: Keyur Seta

When you have Rs 250 crore riding on your film, the pressure to deliver is enormous. Add to this, the nature of the subject that brings its share of painstaking hard-work. In fact, the stakes are so high for S S Rajamouli’s Bahubali: The Beginning that the overall satisfaction has to be spectacular. Being merely a ‘good film’ isn’t enough at all.

Picture: Trendingonindia.com

So, does Rajamouli fulfill the expectations born out of the costliest Indian film ever? The answer is a loud and energetic ‘Yes!’. He has dreamt super big and has dared to bring it alive on screen through a visual spectacle that just doesn’t cease to amaze you. Bahubali will be remembered as an achievement and landmark for Indian cinema for years to come.

The film takes place in an ancient city named Mahishmati. A drowning lady (Ramya Krishnan) somehow manages to save the infant she is carrying. The child is raised by a tribal couple. He grows up to be the mischievous and strong Shiva (Prabhas). Ever since his childhood, he has been obsessed with climbing the mountain with a huge waterfall.

After several attempts, Shiva finally succeeds. He finds the beautiful Avanthika (Tamannaah), who is a part of a warrior group. She and his group members are hell bent in freeing Devasena (Anushka Shetty), who is held captive by the evil Bhallaladeva (Rana Daggubati) since 25 years. Shiva, who has fallen in love with Avanthika, vows to help her in her mission. Will Shiva succeed? Who exactly is Shiva?

Bahubali: The Beginning is not just a film. It is an experience that stays with you long after you leave the cinema hall. You will notice some visual delight in almost every frame through some colorful visuals, breathtaking locations, high-octane stunts and, lastly, exciting and epic war sequences in the climax. Such a visual spectacle is not seen before in India.

But the film is not only about visuals. There is some smart story and character development in the first half. It was nice to see the love track leading onto the major twist. The script has succeeded in giving a good amount of importance to all major characters.

Picture: Mid-Day.com

However, the romantic track is clumsy and regressive. How long will we sugarcoat harassment and stalking as romance? This is the only negative aspect in Bahubali, apart from few errors and the overall length. But nevertheless, these points don’t lessen your excitement for the part two or the sequel titled Bahubali: The Conclusion, whose release date is January 26, 2016.

National Award Winning cinematographer K K Senthil Kumar also plays a major role in creating such an end result. It is to be noted that his job was one of the toughest for a DoP. The powerful background music adds more life to the proceedings. Songs used in the background suit the content.

Coming to the actors, Prabhas gives a powerhouse performance, both as Shiva and Bahubali. Some sheer hard-work and dedication is on display from this fine actor. This is one performance that will be talked about far and wide. Rana Daggubati makes sure you love to hate Bhallaladeva, which means he is fantastic. Sathyaraj, in the role of Kattappa, is flawless.

Anushka Shetty too shines in a challenging role. Tamannaah does justice to the character of a warrior. But at times she tries too hard to appear tough through her expressions. Ramya Krishnan too chips in with a dedicated act. Nassar, Adivi Sesh, Tanikella Bharani and others provide perfect support. Sudeep is impressive in a cameo.

Overall: Bahubali: The Beginning is an epic visual spectacle. This film is an achievement for Indian cinema! It is going to break all box office records.

Forgotten Cricket Moments: When Zim sent Pak into panic mode

July 9, 2015 by Keyur Seta 1 Comment

(This is the 1^st episode of the section ‘Forgotten Cricket Moments’. As per the name, FCM will feature interesting cricket moments that are forgotten over the years.)

By: Keyur Seta

Sharjah hosted the most number of One-Day Cricket series in the 80s and 90s. The venue has seen some exciting moments. Two most memorable ones include Javed Miandad’s 6 off the last ball of Chetan Sharma in the 1986 Austral-Asia Cup Final and Sachin Tendulkar’s birthday special innings in 1998 against Australia in the Coca-Cola Cup final.

Like many other triangular series at this venue, there was one between Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Zimbabwe in 1997 called Singer-Akai Cup. This post features a round robin league match from the series between Pakistan and Zimbabwe. It was a match where Zimbabwe scared the daylights out of Pakistan in a manner no one could have imagined; not even Zimbabwean players.

Moin Khan (Picture: Cricketcountry.com)

With the likes of Wasim Akram, Inzamam-Ul-Haq, Saleem Malik, Ijaz Ahmed, Saqlain Mushtaq, Shahid Afridi, Waqar Younis and Mushtaq Ahmed in their team, the match pretty much looked like a ‘no contest’. But it wasn’t to be. That’s the beauty of the game and this venue. By the way, there were no floodlights in Sharjah then and all day matches were played in white clothes.

Pakistan won the toss, chose to bat and immediately started losing wickets. After losing 2 wickets at the score of 34, the veteran Saleem Malik was sent packing for a duck! Then Inzi succumbed to a run-out, one of his favorite methods of returning back to the pavilion. But even at this stage, it didn’t look so bad for Pakistan. A lot of times teams had managed to fight back against Zimbabwe after a poor start. Plus, Pakistan had a long batting line-up.

Unfortunately for them, this didn’t turn out to be a routine bad start against Zimbabwe. Wickets kept tumbling and the scoreboard soon read 51 for 7!!! Nobody was able to believe their eyes. I remember even the commentators, who weren’t expecting much from the match, were at a loss of words. Since it was an unimportant match, very few people, including my cricket-crazy friends, had tuned in. They missed a lot.

So, what was in store for Pakistan after being 51 for 7 and that too inside 20 overs? Batting out the 50 overs looked impossible from now on. But they managed to do something that looked like more than impossible at this stage. What if I told you they not only batted the full 50 overs but also managed to win the match in such a situation? Yes, that’s what eventually happened.

It all happened due to the wicket-keeper batsman Moin Khan. As they say, Cometh the hour, cometh the man. As per his fond habit, he bailed out his team from the deepest hole possible. He batted sensibly and fortunately found some great support from Saqlain at the other hand. Moin scored a heroic 61 off 97 balls with just one four and one six. It was sheer hard work. Saqlain, on the other hand, faced 81 balls for his 20. This is very slow even by the test cricket standards today but this is what was required given the situation.

Pakistan went on to score 151 for 9; a score that looked like almost a miracle after being 51 for 7. But one still expected the Zimbabwean team of that era to chase down the score. Sadly, they never looked like doing so. Pakistan’s deadly bowling attack was too much for them. They kept losing wickets in such a way that only four batsmen managed to reach double score. They were eventually bowled out for just 119 in 40.1 overs.

In this way, an inconsequential match turned out to be super interesting. Pakistan was expected to win but I am sure nobody would have predicted such turn of events.

See the full scorecard of the match HERE.

Sharjah Cricket Stadium. (Picture: Supersport.com)

When bloggers were made to sniff…. literally!

June 22, 2015 by Keyur Seta Leave a Comment

Blogging offers a new dimension to your life. In fact, it can be said that blogging is a life other than your normal life. Apart from getting your views read and earning money every now and then, blogging also brings you in contact with the type of beings you don’t normally meet during your day-to-day life.

These people are your fellow bloggers. They are someone with whom you share the ‘other’ world and they know the joy of being to the other world. It is sheer pleasure to meet and interact with fellow bloggers. So, needless to say, it is also a pleasure to be involved with some blogging activity with them. One such recent activity was the #SniffSniff activity by BlogAdda.

As a part of this activity, we would receive some products or items that would create curiosity or anticipation for a product that would be launched soon. Our task is to guess the final product that would be launched based on the items sent to our doorstep. In other words, watching CID came to good use.

Here are the details about the product:-

1. The first item to land up in my house took every one of us by surprise. Something lest expected is a mild way of describing it. What else can you say when a clip, which is used for drying clothes, lands up at your place? On top of that, my family members started giving some confusing reactions to it. Naturally, they wanted to know who sent it. It took a while to explain to them that this is a method of generating anticipation for a product. Since the clip was placed on the nose of an image, which was also sent along with, I guessed it has something to do with smell.

2. The second item also was a surprise but it was a pleasant one. There were coffee beans in a packet. This time, my family members didn’t give any daily soap reactions; more do because they loved the aroma of coffee beans. You might find it difficult to believe that this is the first time I ever held coffee beans in my hand.

3. The third item too turned out to be something completely out-of-the-box. It was a mask that people generally use to combat bad smell or germs. But, although it wasn’t something I anticipated, I realized that the final product has something to do with combating bad smell, as my family members resumed their confused reactions.

So, what it could be? A deo? Find it HERE.

Arjun Rampal all praise for Dharam ji during deo launch & bloggers meet

June 14, 2015 by Keyur Seta 1 Comment

I attended the #SniffSniff product unveiling event by BlogAdda in association with Nivea.

By: Keyur Seta

We have heard male actors praising their female counterparts numerous times. Even female actors praising the looks of actors from their own gender is a common occurrence. But a male actor being in awe of another male actor in terms of looks is a rarity, which was witnessed recently during a bloggers meet and media interaction with actor Arjun Rampal.

Picture shared on Twitter by dwitiy125 (handle)

When Rampal was asked how it feels to be one of the most handsome actors, his answer pleasantly surprised many. “I feel Dharam ji (Dharmendra) is the most handsome actor. I was with him in a flight three days ago. He still looks beautiful and he is a beautiful human being too.”

Rampal was speaking during the launch of the Nivea Men Body Deodorizer, a deodorant for men. The event was organized by BlogAdda and was attended by bloggers, who got a special candid session and photo op with Rampal. The actor spoke extensively on the issue of body odour and shared his experiences, which included a funny incident with his female friend.

“She has a big problem about body odour. I was wondering how to tell her about it as it can be awkward. So, I just said that some people have a terrible body odour. To this she said, ‘Oh yes. I am glad I smell good naturally’. What to say now?”

Before Rampal entered the scene, the bloggers got a chance to interact with Animesh Gupta, a Psychologist, Stress Management specialist and Trainer, about everything related to body odour; how and why it occurs, how to deal with it and, most importantly, how to tell someone that he or she has a bad body odour. But the interaction was funnier than serious, thanks to Gupta’s sense of humor.

But the most hilarious moment arrived when the spoof of a news debate show was played. It is a smartly-written and well-performed act, which is shared below.

The entire #sniffsniff experience was interesting but my family members found it surprising and, at times, weird to see somebody sending things like a clip, coffee beans and mask at my doorstep so religiously. It took a lot to finally make them understand that it is a promotional activity to build anticipation.

For me, the word ‘deodorant’ brings back bad memories of not only body odour but also those pathetic deo advertisements, where females start getting turned on by the good smell of men. I find such ads completely an insult to women as it shows them to be so dumb that they will have physical pleasure with anyone who smells good.

I wasn’t expecting Nivea to advertise their product in this way. But I wasn’t entirely sure given the advertisement scenario in India. Thankfully though, their ad, which was played at the event, doesn’t support this ridiculous theory. It was a case of Happy Ending.

Picture: BlogAdda

Nagrik (Marathi Movie) Review

June 11, 2015 by Keyur Seta 1 Comment

Director: Jaypraad Desai

Producers: Sacchi Entertainment

Writer: Mahesh Keluskar and Jaypraad Desai

Cast: Sachin Khedekar, Milind Soman, Devika Daftardar, Dilip Prabhavalkar, Rajesh Sharma, Dr Shriram Lagoo

Music: Tubby-Parik and Sambhaji Bhagat

Genre: Political Drama

Rating: * * * ½

Review By: Keyur Seta

An honest and fearless protagonist stranded in a grossly corrupt system is not a novel subject. But a tried and tested subject ceases to be one if treated completely in an out-of-the-box or unconventional manner. It is this treatment that makes the Marathi movie Nagrik an impressive, hard-hitting and intense socio-political saga.

The film revolves around the idealistic, fearless and honest-to-the-core newspaper journalist Shyam Jagdale (Sachin Khedekar). He is known for his column Nagrik, where he exposes corrupt practices. His recent column exposes the utterly corrupt and ruthless politician Vikas Patil’s (Milind Soman) idea of orchestrating communal riots. However, this doesn’t go well with his new editor with lose morals.

As the editor is more interested in generating revenue, Jagdale isn’t allowed to publish any more of such stories. Hence, Patil continues his shoddy practices for political gains as a helpless Jagdale looks on. He soon realizes that Patil is just a cog in the entire corrupt machinery. What’s worse is that Jagdale’s personal life is also far from perfect. Will things ever change within his house and outside?

Both Pictures: Marathistars.com

Nagrik doesn’t follow a conventional storyline. It is more of an attempt of providing a glimpse into the filthy world of corrupt politics and the murky underbelly of Mumbai in a completely no-holds-barred manner. Due to some skillful efforts of the writer and director, the film succeeds in its attempt. The viewer is sucked into a truly intense world, which stays on with him/ her long after the completion of the film.

The practice of generating a hard-hitting effect through visuals, expressions and silences isn’t explored much in Indian films. Off late though, the trend if catching up where a particular scene says a lot without saying much. Nagrik continues the trend very successfully. This results in a number of sequences and incidents that hit you hard without the use of clichéd lines. There is a long non-verbal sequence in the second half portraying the irony of the life in Mumbai, which is the highlight of the film.

However, Nagrik, has its share of downfalls. After a point of time in the second half, the proceedings tend to lose grip when nothing much is happening in terms of story development. Few incidents, in this half, are questionable. Also, the climax isn’t as hard-hitting or something that provides a kick. Thankfully, these issues don’t do much in overriding the plusses.

Sambhaji Bhagat’s folk songs played in the background go well with the situation and add up to the effect. From the rest of the tracks, ‘Bola Vithal’ is impressive. The camerawork goes with the intense theme. The background score also adds to the intensity. But majority of the times, they have decided against using any background music and it works that way.

Some dedicated performances also play a major role. Sachin Khedekar brilliantly brings out the right frustration and vulnerability. Having said this, he scores well during witty confrontational scenes with Soman. But Milind Soman too makes a solid impact. He is outstanding as a ruthless, corrupt but at the same time, calm-headed politician. Dilip Prabhavalkar isn’t behind, as is expected from a quality veteran, as another corrupt politician.

Dr. Shriram Lagoo, another thespian, displays his talent in a difficult role of an ex-politician agonized by the sorry state of affairs. The film can also boast of some high quality performances from Devika Daftardar, Rajesh Sharma (Bollywood actor making his Marathi film debut), Neena Kulkarni, Sulabha Deshpande, Madhav Abhyankar and Rajkumar Tangade.

Overall: Nagrik is a hard-hitting realistic socio-political saga that is recommended for the lovers of sensible cinema. It is expected to do fairly well at the box office provided it receives positive word-of-mouth.

Maggi Controversy: 3 important issues need immediate tackling

June 5, 2015 by Keyur Seta Leave a Comment

By: Keyur Seta

The controversy regarding the presence of high amount of lead and Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) in India’s loved snack Maggi Noodles and its subsequent ban in various states (Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Assam soon all over India) has come as a rude shock to many, including me, for two reasons.

Let’s face it, there are many around us who not just love Maggi but are also dependent on it. I know a lot of people (mostly men) who can cook just one dish – Maggi. The snack is also a messiah for people living in remote areas of Himalayas. Secondly, the controversy is completely out of the blue. Seriously, how many of us had expected something of this magnitude to happen with Maggi? None, actually!

As things stand out, we can’t ignore the serious health hazards posed by the snack due to the enormous level of lead and MSG being found in it; lead is around 17 times more than permissible limit. And when the risk is as high as being attacked by Cancer, you really can’t ignore it. Hence, ban on Maggi is the only way to deal with the situation, no matter how painful it is for many of us.

Pictue: Kairalibazaar.com

But the issue doesn’t end here, at least for me. In fact, it starts here. The whole controversy surrounding Maggi has opened a can of worms as it has given rise to some very serious questions or pointers:-

1) Was FDA sleeping?: The presence of such high amounts of lead was found unknowingly or randomly by a person who got the noodles tested for something else. If he hadn’t tested, we wouldn’t have realized this incredibly serious issue with the snack. So, this completely exposes the functioning of Food & Drug Administration (FDA) with regards to clearing foodstuffs.

How did they allow such a big scam to ever take place right under their nose? What is the point of having FDA if they are unable to detect such enormously dangerous substances in a snack that is consumed by all, including children? Is their responsibility only limited to testing an item during license renewal that happens just once in 6 months or more?

Therefore, if there is anyone in the firing line due to the controversy it is the FDA. With the presence of lead in such high amounts in Maggi, their failure is proved, which calls for some stringent action against the officers responsible.

2) Celebrities’ Responsibility: Celebrities (Amitabh Bachchan, Madhuri Dixit and Preity Zinta) endorsing Maggi shouldn’t be held responsible for promoting such a product. All they need to do is check whether the product is legal and has approval from FDA or any such government body. You can’t expect them to check the ingredients themselves in a laboratory when our authorities themselves have easily cleared the product.

Picture: Filmibeat.com

However, this doesn’t give a Clean Chit to our celebrities, at least from me, as they are still guilty of promoting lies in return for crores of rupees. For example, the packet of Maggi says it is high on Vitamins and Proteins. This is a blatant lie as it is junk food. This whole issue should be a wake-up call for our celebs when it comes to endorsing any product and everything that the makers claim.

3) What about other products?: Most importantly, this makes me doubt as to how safe are the thousands of other products that the masses are consuming, right from the time they wake up. As mentioned above, the entire Maggi fiasco came to the surface by fluke after a man got it tested for something else. Who knows? We might be consuming such or similar seriously hazardous products unknowingly.

The need of the hour for our authorities is to check as many products as possible for such dangerous contents and follow it up with regular surprise checks to ensure their safety. Considering the enormous number of products we consume, there is no doubt that this is an almost impossible task. But nothing is more important than the well-being of the citizens.

Hilarious dialogues from Tanu Weds Manu Returns

June 3, 2015 by Keyur Seta Leave a Comment

It won’t be wrong to say that dialogue writer Himanshu Sharma is the real hero of director Anand L Rai’s Tanu Weds Manu Returns. The amazingly rib-tickling lines are the biggest reason for the film touching hearts far and wide.

Here is the list of some memorable dialogues from Tanu Weds Manu Returns uttered by Datto (Kangana Ranaut), Pappiji (Deepak Dobriyal) and others:-

– Haalat dekhi hai? Adrak ho gaya hai ye aadmi. Kahin se bhi badh raha hai!

– Dr Sahab, is aadmi ne meri zindagi jhand kar rakhi hai.

Picture: Postpickle.com

– Thari lagaai lage toh mhare jaisi, par main thari lagaai na su. Mhara naam Kusum Sangvan, yo mhari saheli Pinky, main Ramjas college Delhi University me padhu su, sports quote te admission leya, National level ki athletes su. Jila Jhajjar, 12 45 07, aur phone number main daunko naa. (Kusum aka Datto)

– Ke kar raha tha baya phaila ke? Yeh jagah se Shah Rukh Khan banan ki?

– You are a good question. But your question hurt me.

– Kya sex sex, Akhiri baar 2013 me hua tha, woh bhi Bhai Dooj ke din!

– Woh dekh… Kabootar.

– Nikala tumne bhaiya ko pagalkhane se? …. Woh ticket 60 hazaar ki thi. Theek nahin laga seedhe pagal khane jana. Socha pehle London ghoom loon.

– Arey maine apni biwi ko hawas ki nazar se nahi dekha, dusro ko kya dekhunga main.

Picture: Storysoviets.com

– Ab Utro ghodi se, hum ek baar chadh nahi paayein, yeh hai ki utarne ka naam hi nahi le rahein.

– Tum kya Salman Khan ho jo tumhe commitment issues hain.

– Sala, original bhi wahi rakhe aur duplicate bhi…

– Pehle bhi aapne iski lugai hadap li thi.

– Kya Sharma ji, hum thode bewafa kya huye, aap toh baddchallan ho gaye.

– Bhaiya badi der laga di aane mein…. Haan, badi flight miss ho rahi thin a teri!

– Masoor ki dal mein ajinomoto nahin padta.

Picture: Movies.ndtv.com

Book Review: Operation Jai Mata Di

May 25, 2015 by Keyur Seta Leave a Comment

Author: Pratik Shah

Publisher: Self-published

Price: TBA

Pages: 251

Additional Feature: Prologue of the author’s next book titled ‘Unravelling’

Rating: * * * *

Review By: Keyur Seta

The book was received as part of Reviewers Programme on The Tales Pensieve.

After going through the title, cover image and synopsis, debutant author Pratik Shah’s Operation Jai Mata Di appears like a typical hostage saga with the only difference being the number of hostages. But thankfully, this is just the tip of the iceberg. The book in totality is a motivating and inspiring political drama providing vision and hope amidst complete apathy by the political class.

Picture: Smashwords.com

The story is set in today’s era at Vaishno Devi. Thousands of devotionally and emotionally charged pilgrims are slowly trekking their way to the Bhavan of their beloved Goddess. But just some distance before their destination, 10,000 pilgrims are kidnapped by armed men in a daring midnight operation.

The Government of India and the entire nation is shaken by the audacity of the hostage-takers. The Prime Minister is under serious pressure not only from the opposition but also the citizens to act quickly to save the pilgrims. Worse, the PM has to deal with a selfish and opportunistic Defense Minister. Will the hostages be saved?

The USP of Operation Jai Mata Di is its main plot, which takes you by surprise and has the potential to appeal to every concerned citizen of India. The consequences of the kidnapping and the final culmination can be best described as emotionally overwhelming and inspiring. The only issue with the plot is some errors and the over-ambitious motto at times.

But mostly, Shah has succeeded in handling a sensitive issue with maturity, especially the working style and psyche of politicians and the government. His proper knowledge of the political process is also visible. The motivating dialogues also help the cause.

Coming to the writing, the language is rich but at the same time simple and understandable for all. However, some important sentences should have been less simplistic. The pace is fast and gripping but the build-up before the kidnapping gets tedious after a point of time. But the real problem area is the missing of comma and other punctuations throughout the book. The editor should have taken care of these basic issues.

Overall: Operation Jai Mata Di is for thriller lovers and also those who are fed up of the almost irreparable corrupt system. It will be hugely surprising if the book isn’t made into a movie.

Tanu Weds Manu Returns Review

May 22, 2015 by Keyur Seta 2 Comments

Director: Anand L Rai

Producers: Color Yellow Pictures and Eros International

Writer: Himanshu Sharma

Cast: Kangana Ranaut, R Madhavan, Deepak Dobrial, Jimmy Shergill, Mohammad Zeeshan Ayub

Music: Krsna Solo and Tanishk-Vayu

Genre: Drama/ Comedy

Release Date: May 22, 2015

Rating: * * * ½

Review By: Keyur Seta

There has been a craze for sequels in Bollywood since five years or so. But strangely, there has hardly been a sequel that has matched up to the first film of the franchise, leave along being better than it. Apart from Lage Raho Munna Bhai and Jannat 2, I can’t think of any worthy names.

Anand L Rai’s Tanu Weds Manu Returns enters this rare list as it not only matches to the first film, it even surpasses it as far as entertainment is concerned. It presents an old pickle in new bottle in the most hilarious way.

Coming to the story, Tanu (Kangana Ranaut) gets married to Manu (R Madhavan) at the end of the first film. But in a span of for years, their marriage crumbles. They return to their hometown and apply for a divorce, much to the agony of their respective parents.

Picture: Indianexpress.com

Completely out of the blue, Manu comes across a college student Kusum (Kangana Ranaut), who is a lookalike of Tanu and falls for her. On the other hand, Tanu flirts around with her family’s Paying Guest (Mohammad Zeeshan Ayub), a law student, and her old flame Raja Awasthi (Jimmy Shergill). Is this the end of the journey for Tanu and Manu?

First things first – it is difficult to recall the last time you laughed uncontrollably as much as you do in Tanu Weds Manu Returns. The film is a complete laugh riot that gets you out of your seat after almost every few seconds, even during serious moments. Comedy gets better when it is unpredictable, both in terms of the type of jokes and situations. This is the case here.

Apart from the one-liners, writer Himanshu Sharma should also be lauded for using specific character traits of characters to induce humor. He has maintained a fine balance between modernism and desi-ness. Out of all characters, Kusum deserves special mention. Don’t be surprised if people gain sudden interesting in learning Hariyanvi (I am already in the list).

But amidst such goodness, the film has a big negative area. Almost every important story development lacks conviction. For example, Manu suddenly falling in love with Kusum in such a short period and that too when he is going through such a painful divorce is difficult to believe. The same is the case with other important points. On top of that, the climax is predictable and clichéd. However, the high doses of entertainment won’t let you fret over these points.

The music also plays its part. ‘Banno Tera’ is the best of the lot. The song has become an instant rage. Chirantan Das’ camerawork with vibrant visuals goes well with the theme. The film is well edited, especially during the very last frame.

Kangana Ranaut gained a lot of fame after her performance in Queen. Now, with this marvelous act, she has become one of the top actresses to come from Bollywood. She manages the difficult task of playing two hugely opposite characters with ease and a lot of passion. You will specially fall in love with Kusum. R Madhavan’s character sketch isn’t that exciting but he manages well.

Apart from Kangana, Deepak Dobrial is the star of the film. He is a fine artist and he shows it here while playing Manu’s best friend. Jimmy Shergill and Mohammad Zeeshan Ayub too aren’t far behind. Rajesh Sharma, as Kusum’s brother, displays his talent yet again. The film is well-supported by Swara Bhaskar, Ejaz Khan, K K Raina, Rajendra Gupta and others.

Overall: Tanu Weds Manu Returns is a non-stop laugh riot. The film’s goodness will be reflected in its positive box office collections.

Picture: Desimartini.com