The Common Man Speaks

Baboo Band Baja (Marathi Movie) Review

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Direction: Rajesh Pinjani

Production: Neeta Jadhav, Rajesh Pinjani

Cast: Mitalee Jagtap Varadkar, Vivek Chabukswar, Milind Shinde

Music: Rohit Nagbhide

Rating: * * * 1/2

Plot: Jaggu (Milind Shinde) is a member of a local band in a remote village in Maharashtra. He wants his son Baboo aka Babya (Vivek Chabukswar) to join the same profession. However, Baboo’s mother and Jaggu’s wife Shirmi (Mitali Jagtap Vardkar) is determined to educate her child so that he can enter a more respectable profession. Will Shirmi succeed in her noble task or will Baboo too end up being a band baja wala?

Review: Not-so-long-ago, Amit Abhyankar’s Jana Gana Mana (2012) gave an important message that every child has a right to education irrespective of his social class. The same message is put forth in Rajesh Pinjani’s debut flick Baboo Band Baja, although in a different way. Like Abhyankar, Pinjani too succeeds in spreading the message with honesty.

The story hardly moves forward in the first half but the interesting sequences, conversations and confrontations and most importantly, the direction makes sure your interest is very much alive. In fact, it works well here as you become absorbed in the rural mood of the flick and even start feeling for the characters. The same absorption is continued even in the post-interval sequences, although things continue to go at the same pace.

(Review continued after picture.)

Some appealing events nicely lead up to the pre-climax portion. They could have ended the film in the pre-climax itself though. But having said this, the makers surely deserve applause for the message given.

Rohit Nagbhide’s songs are apt for the subject and so is the background score. The cinematography is applause-worthy as it beautifully captures the remote village. The editing should have been tighter, especially in the funeral scenes.

Mitalee Jagtap Varadkar gets into the skin of her character with such mastery that it is difficult to believe that she is putting on an act for a movie. It isn’t surprising that she won a National Award for the performance. Milind Shinde molds himself perfectly to play Jaggu. He gives a terrific act too.

A difficult character is played by ease by child actor Vivek Chabukswar. The actor deserves a lot of applause as it could have been a daunting task for any kid. He too rightfully deserves a National Award for the act. The surprise package is the actress who played the mad woman. She is outstanding!

Overall, Baboo Band Baja will please those who prefer off-beat cinema. The film is in desperate need of positive word-of-mouth. The fact that it is released with four other Marathi movies will surely affect its chances at the box-office.

Kashala Udyachi Baat Movie Review

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Direction: Pramod Joshi

Production: Balasaheb Bhapkar and Shashank Bhapkar for Sai Prasad Media

Cast: Sachin Khedekar, Anupam Kher, Atul Parchure, Mrinal Kulkarni, Anjan Shrivastav, Suresh Menon, Suresh Menon, Kishori Ambiye, Kishor Pradhan, Rajesh Upadhyay

Music: Salil Kulkarni

Rating: * * * ½

Plot: IT professional Aditya Pradhan (Sachin Khedekar) has reached the pinnacles of success in no time. This has ensured he has everything in life. However, the race to become successful has just reduced him to a money-making machine as he has just forgotten to actually live life. In fact, he regularly faces wrath from his wife Sakshi (Mrinal Kulkarni) and daughter Tanisha (Shruti Welankar) for not being able to give time to them.

Aditya’s life takes a drastic turn one day when he is confronted with a puzzling as well as a shocking situation. There is just nobody who can solve Aditya’s problem. Just then, he comes across a blind stranger (Anupam Kher). Is the stranger a solution to Aditya’s problem?

Review: You have a successful career, family, hefty bank balance, bungalow, expensive car and all the luxuries of life. But does that really mean you are living life and not merely existing? What is the use of such enormous success when you can’t share it with your family? Such harsh reality of today’s urban life is portrayed in Pramod Joshi’s Kashala Udyachi Baat! And while that happens, you get to experience a moving saga that will motivate you to live life to the fullest.

Although the puzzling situation, which Aditya faces, was earlier seen in the Hollywood flick Groundhog Day, it works very well here as it also gives a kick start to the proceedings. And those who haven’t seen the Hollywood film will be awestruck by the twist. Aditya’s confusion produces some humorous and interesting situations. However, dialogue writers (Joshi and Sanjay Dole) could have used the problem in increasing the funny situations.

(Review continued after picture.)

The hold is continued in the second half when Anupam Kher’s character gains full control. What follows is a series of incidents that will touch hearts of city dwellers as they will realize the importance of living rather than just being money-making machines. This is followed by a climax that will bring a smile on your face and you will come out of the theatre rejuvenated.

The film, however, also has few flipsides. At one point the events in the second half might appear stretched and preachy. This might not be accepted by entertainment-hungry audience.

Salil Kulkarni’s music suits the mood of the flick except the item number. Technical areas like cinematography (Salil Sahastrabuddhe) and background music (Bapi Tutul) score well too.

Sachin Khedekar once again gives a delightful performance. Whether it is comedy, tragedy, helplessness or anger; he portrays every emotion with flawlessness. Anupam Kher is simply lovable! It’s a delight to watch him perform as he gives some valuable gyan and at the same time makes you laugh.

The film is well supported by cameos from Atul Parchure, Mrinal Kulkarni, Anjan Shrivastav, Suresh Menon, Suresh Menon, Kishori Ambiye, Kishor Pradhan and Rajesh Upadhyay.

Overall, Kashala Udyachi Baat! gives an important lesson that will surely move the urban workaholics. The film relies heavily on word-of-mouth if it has to succeed at the box-office.

Bittoo Boss Box-Office Prediction

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Direction: Supavitra Babul

Production: Kumar Mangat, Abhishek Pathak

Cast: Pulkit Samrat, Amita Pathak

Music: Raghav Sachar

Star Value: Bittoo Boss has debutant Pulkit Samrat in the lead while Amita Pathak plays the girl opposite him. Hence, there is no star value in the movie. The film is entirely dependent on the content, just like the makers’ first film Pyaar Ka Punchnama.

Hype: The promos of the movie have succeeded in tickling the funny bone of the audience, especially the line ‘Bittoo Sabki Lega… Photo’. Although the film appears promising judging by the promotional clips, the hype isn’t as much as the makers would have hoped for.

Music: From the songs, only ‘Bittoo Sabki Lega’ has managed to impress and become a bit famous. It looks like music is not the strength of the movie.

Prediction: Bittoo Boss will fail to get a positive opening. Its chances rely entirely on the film’s initial response. Even if it does succeed at impressing initially, it will depend heavily on word-of-mouth publicity. No prizes for guessing the fate of the film if the content fails to impress at the onset.

Aavashicho Gho (Marathi/ Malwani Play) Review

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Writing: Sanjivani Jadhav

Direction: Sanjivani Jadhav

Cast: Sanjivani Jadhav, Mangesh Kasekar, Manjusha Morgaonkar, Madhu Shinde, Mayur Pawar, Swapnil Sane, Sonal Bhanushali, Vishal Dhawle

Production: Sanjivani Jadhav

Sets: Pradip Rangankar

Rating: * *

Plot: Janai Malwankarin’s (Sanjivani Jadhav) husband hasn’t returned home after the train blasts that rocked Mumbai years back. However, she is sure her husband is alive and will return. She also continues to live as a married lady. People around her do everything to make her believe that her husband is no more but Malwankarin doesn’t budge. So, will her husband return?

Review: Lost-and-found sagas can be entertaining if there are interesting dramatic moments to keep the audience glued. A bunch of unusual and crazy characters act as an added advantage. Although Sanjivani Jadhav’s Aavashicha Gho deals with the above concept and also has crazy antics of supporting characters, it falls short due to a weak script.

The play scores in the initial moments when Malwankarin’s belief is pitted against other characters. This provides good entertainment due to the constant humour. However, after a point of time, you realize there are a good number of scenes which have nothing much to do with the main plot. Plus, the majority of humour and gags that follow fall flat.

The important scenes where Mama tries to prove to Malwankarin that her husband is dead aren’t too appealing and appear lengthy. The twist in the climax does come as a surprise but the explanation provided is far from convincing.

Fortunately, the performance area turns out to be a plus point. Sanjivani Jadhav carries the proceedings well on her shoulders. She is likable in emotional as well as comic scenes. Mangesh Kasekar shows confidence playing Sanjivani’s son-in-law. Manjusha Morgaonkar’s act as Kasekar’s wife is commendable. Madhu Shinde shows maturity in his act. He had the difficult task of impersonating unusual characters.

The surprise package turns out to be Mayur Pawar. His antics provide a good dose of laughter. The rest of the actors Swapnil Sane, Sonal Bhanushali and Vishal Dhawle offer good support.

Overall, Aavashicho Gho is high in performance and direction but low when it comes to writing.

Housefull 2 Review

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Direction: Sajid Khan

Production: Sajid Nadiadwala for Nadiadwala Grandson

Cast: Akshay Kumar, Asin, Rishi Kapoor, Randhir Kapoor, Mithun Chakraborty, John Abraham, Ritesh Deshmukh, Shreyas Talpade, Boman Irani, Jacqueline Fernandez, Shazahn Padamsee and Zarine Khan, Johnny Lever, Chunkey Pandey

Music: Sajid-Wajid

Rating: * * *

Plot: There is fierce animosity between the families of Chintu (Rishi Kapoor) and his illegitimate brother Daboo (Randhir Kapoor). Both challenge each other of finding the richest groom for their respective daughters Heena (Asin) and Bobby (Jacqueline Fernandez).

This gives rise to a number of unusual situations and mistaken identities involving a large bunch of characters like Sunny (Akshay Kumar), Max (John Abraham), Jolly (Riteish Deshmukh) Jai (Shreyas Talpade), J D (Mithun Chakraborty), Parul (Shazahn Padamsee), J Lo (Zarine Khan) and Aakhri Pasta (Chunky Pandey).

Review: It was evident from the promos of Housefull 2 that it has no scope for things like logic and reasoning. So, if you keep those two elements at bay, chances are you would enjoy the comic caper by Sajid Khan. Although it goes overboard on few occasions, it won’t matter much if entertainment is the only thing that you are looking for.

Writers (Farhad-Sajid, Sajid Khan, Tushar Hiranandani and Sajid Nadiadwala) succeed in the daunting task of merging the sub-plots and mannerisms related to the large number of characters and at the same time continuously providing some rib-tickling moments. The foursome deserves praise since handling a complicated plot with such huge star cast can be a headache for anyone. The fact that they created every character different from the other also deserves mention.

(Review continued after picture.)

As the film isn’t a flawless product, it has its share of flipsides too. Some incidents go a bit too overboard. Examples – The snake and alligator scene, Malaika Arora’s track and a fight scene involving Vindu Dara Singh. Even the climax could have been plotted in a better way but since you have already had your share of humorous moments, it doesn’t act as a dampener.

Director Sajid Khan’s passion for entertaining cinema is noticeable in this flick. He has nicely repeated the humour from his successful television shows. An example of this is actor Ranjeet’s ‘Aye’ effect which will surely stay etched in your memory for long.

Composer duo Sajid-Wajid has been successful in such commercial films. They don’t disappoint here too. The track ‘Papa Toh Band Bajaye’ turns out to be the best of the lot. However, the use of other songs does make the proceedings lengthy. Technical departments like cinematography (Manoj Soni) and background score positive marks too.

It is extremely difficult to pick the best from such a mammoth star cast. Rishi Kapoor, Randhir Kapoor and Mithun Chakraborty prove why they are considered respected veterans. Although Akshay Kumar has played a comical character umpteen number of times, it’s a pleasure to see him perform. The above mentioned ‘Aye’ effect suits him perfectly. Riteish Deshmukh and Shreyas Talpade do well too. John Abraham succeeds in showing his comic side.

From the girls, Asin manages well. Shazahn Padamsee is average while Jacqueline Fernandez and Zarine Khan need acting lessons. From the supporting cast, Johnny Lever is likable, Boman Irani is strictly average. Chunkey Pandey is once again outstanding as Aakhri Pasta.

Overall, Housefull 2 is for those who prefer non-stop entertainment without giving any trouble to their topmost organ. Others should stay miles away. The positive opening coupled with the type of product it is, will make sure it will earn big bucks at the box-office. Hence, one can say Sajid Khan has scored a hat-trick.

Housefull 2 Box-Office Prediction

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Star Value: Housefull 2 has a long list of actors including Akshay Kumar, Asin, Rishi Kapoor, Randhir Kapoor, Mithun Chakraborty, John Abraham, Boman Irani, Ritesh Deshmukh, Shreyas Talpade, Jacqueline Fernandez and Zarine Khan. It also has few other stars in special appearances. Naturally, one can say it has a very high star value.

Hype: The two crazy promos of Housefull 2 have created a good hype for the movie. The film is in the news due to its ensemble star cast, which has young faces as well as the veterans of Bollywood.

Music: The peppy fun number ‘Papa Toh Band Bajaye’ has been liked by the masses. Apart from the witty lyrics, ‘Anarkali Disco Chali’ has become popular as it is Malaika Arora’s first item number after ‘Munni Badnaam’. Hence, the music has also helped popularize the movie.

Prediction: Mostly due to the huge star cast, Housefull 2 will surely get a positive opening. Whether Sajid Khan will score a hattrick of successful films will depend on its initial response.

If it does receive thumbs up at the start, it will become the highest money-grosser of the year so far. However, if it doesn’t, it will still earn good returns for the producers in the first week (especially first weekend). The big advantage that Housefull 2 has is that it caters to single-screen as well as multiplex audiences.

(Posted under the category BOLLYWOOD.)

Kunjam Kunjam Down Memory Lane!

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Like most Twitter users, I too have a habit of glancing at the ‘trending’ list as soon as I sign in. Last week when my eyes fell on it, I was highly surprised to see Baba Sehgal’s name in the list. As people start trending even for all kinds of antics (slapgates being the latest), my first concern was to see the reason behind the trend. Fortunately, it was for a good reason. Baba’s latest single ‘Praji Kunjam Kunjam Control’ had become the talking point among Twitteraties.

This took me down memory lane – back to the early nineties when Baba was the talking point (only in real world as there was no virtual world back then). I clearly remember during that time, after returning home from school; my daily winding up task included listening to the whole cassette (CDs were unheard of) of Thanda Thanda Paani (Baba’s first album). It had become a daily activity, apart from watching the same songs on TV.

Coming back to his latest single, it can be said it’s a typical rap song which can be easily associated with Baba. However, despite that, it has something which is never found before in a Baba number: it deals with the social issue of killing the girl child.

There have been numerous documentaries and short films urging the society against killing the girl child. Unfortunately, they have not created the desired impact on the youth, who term them as boring. But the message coming from a rap song will certainly make heads turn.

The credit mostly goes to the lyrics for putting forth the message in a clear, straightforward manner. But in doing that, Baba hasn’t compromised on the rap factor. Example – ‘The Jhoola Is Jhooling, But She No More Living, Hey Butcher Stop Your Fun, Please Let Her See The Sun’. Of course, there are some vague lyrics in between but that is how Baba’s rap songs have always been. From the video, Baba showing affection towards an old lady deserves mention.

Just hope this doesn’t turn out to be just one off incident of an Indipop artist trending. If it doesn’t, one day Indipop itself will trend!

See the song here –

Agent Vinod Review

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Direction: Sriram Raghavan

Production: Saif Ali Khan and Dinesh Vijan for Illuminati Films

Cast: Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Adil Hussain, Dhritiman Chatterjee, Shahbaaz Khan, Prem Chopra, Gulshan Grover, Maryam Zakaria, Ravi Kissen, Ram Kapoor

Music: Pritam

Rating: * * ½

Plot: While on a mission in Afghanistan, Raw Agent Vinod (Saif Ali Khan) gets caught. Somehow he manages to free himself. After his job forces him to travel all over the world, he gets to know about something called 242. What is 242? In his quest he comes across unusual characters. He also meets Dr Iram (Kareena Kapoor). But can he trust her?

Review: After debuting with the impressive Ek Haseena Thi (2003), Sriram Raghavan came up with Johnny Gaddar (2007), which according to me is one of the best thrillers ever in Bollywood.

The promos of his third flick Agent Vinod promised a roller-coaster experience. But all promises aren’t fulfilled. Despite having international standard resources and a super-creative director at its disposal, the Saif Ali Khan starrer is let down as the script, which is the most important element, isn’t up-to-the-mark although interesting. Therefore, the product turns out to be a one-time watch and that too only for hardcore action thriller lovers.

Your expectations are raised in the initial minutes when the credits roll while the first fight scene is carried on. The super-stylish way of presenting the opening credits produces a seeti-bajao effect. As the tale unfolds, your interest continues to be stable until Kareena’s character arrives which brings some complications in the narrative.

Although there are a good number of twists in the second half and the film continues to move at a brisk pace, the complications seem to increase. There will be a good part of the audience that will find the proceedings a lot confusing. Thankfully, some thrilling, nail-biting moments in the climax provide some satisfaction although the film shouldn’t have been dragged after that.

Sadly, the flipsides don’t end here. There a good number of logical errors which can not only be pointed out easily but are also pure laughable. And then there is the usual Hindi fillum formula of not a single bullet hitting our hero even when thousands are showered on him. One surely expected more intelligence from someone who has Johnny Gaddar under his belt.

But what makes the film a one-time watch is some Hollywood-like action and stunts, clever editing, brilliant cinematography, smart dialogues and some creatively directed scenes. The scores for these areas are definitely high. A gun-fight scene with a romantic song in the background deserves special mention.

The same can be said for Pritam’s music. Songs like ‘I’ll Do The Talking Tonight’, ‘Dil Mera Muft Ka’, ‘Govind Bolo’ and the theme song suit the content perfectly. Although ‘Pyar Ki Pungi’ is an enjoyable number, it just doesn’t suit the nature of the flick. Its placement is also faulty.

This is not one of the best acts by Saif Ali Khan but it’s surely one that deserves appreciation. He manages to play a difficult character with maturity. Kareena Kapoor does well portraying a mysterious character. A very smart and impressive performance is given by Adil Hussain. Shahbaaz Khan and Prem Chopra fit their character well.

The rest of the cast including Gulshan Grover, Maryam Zakaria, Ravi Kissen, Ram Kapoor are good too, especially the last one is terrific and hilarious!

Overall, Agent Vinod is yet another Bollywood action thriller which is let down due to the writing department although it is very well directed. Due to this, the film won’t gain very good collections at the box-office.

 

Bhagat Singh, Sukdev, Rajguru 81st Death Anniversary… Same old story!

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Like every year, this year too there is hardly any hype about Martyrdom Day, i.e March 23, the day when Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru happily accepted death at the hands of the British 81 years ago (1931). Terrible is a small way of describing this situation where the biggest sacrifice for the independence of India hasn’t received the notice it deserves. Over the years our government and even media has failed in honoring the greatest of revolutionaries.

This, however, isn’t going to lower the spirits of all of us who heartily admire the trio for their unmatchable service for India. We will continue to worship them!

Talking of the trio, I would like to point out something about Bhagat Singh which is not known to everyone, especially those who don’t admire him. By doing this, I am also trying to rubbish-off a myth related to Singh and his comrades who have been a part of Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA).

There has been a wrong widespread belief that the members of HSRA were violent. Time and again, they have been accused of endorsing violence. However, all those who have done an in depth study on their life would highly disagree with it. These revolutionaries had always believed in achieving their mission in a non-violent manner.

There have been instances where they have used violence but it’s only as a means of self defense or when there isn’t any hope of achieving the goal through non-violent methods.

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To prove their non-violent nature, I would like to point out few instances from their revolutionary life:-

* On April 8, 1929, when Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt exploded bombs in the Central Assembly in Dehli to oppose Public Safety Bill and Trade Disputes Bill, they purposely used bombs which don’t hurt anyone even a bit. Plus, they exploded the bombs in vacant areas. Their only motto was to create sound.

* Of course, they did avenge the death of Lala Lajpat Rai by killing British officer Saunders but they did that as there was no hope of getting justice from the British government. They had to take the step as a last resort. A pamphlet distributed by HSRA said, “We regret to have had to kill a person but he was part and parcel of that inhuman and unjust order that has to be destroyed.”

* Instead of fleeing from the spot, Singh and Dutt court arrested themselves. They could have escaped as the HSRA had weapons at their disposal but they didn’t even think of doing such a thing.

* After being sentenced, Bhagat Singh, along with other members of HSRA, started a hunger strike as the Indian prisoners were debarred of basic amenities unlike the British prisoners. This was akin to Gandhi’s mode of Satyagraha.

If the members of HSRA really believed in violence, the above mentioned incidents wouldn’t have taken place.

Coming back to the first point, I would like to offer the highest tribute to the trio of Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru. We will never be able to repay the biggest sacrifice ever to the nation.

Have a look at some of the original photos of Bhagat Singh and his comrades: –

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Bhagat Singh (Picture Courtesy – unp.co.in. Click to enlarge)

News of the hanging of the three martyrs (Picture Courtesy – commons.wikipedia.org. Click to enlarge)

Bhagat Singh’s mother with a wellwisher (Picture Courtesy – unp.co.in. Click to enlarge)

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Bhagat Singh as a student in National College, Lahore (Picture Courtesy – unp.co.in. Click to enlarge)

Rajguru (Picture Courtesy – india.targetgenx.com. Click to enlarge)

Sukhdev (Picture Courtesy – india.targetgenx.com. Click to enlarge)

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India-Pak final? Only if Sri Lanka obliges!

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So, the whole of India, including me, is going gaga over India’s remarkable victory against Pakistan in the ongoing Asia Cup. It also looks like Virat Kohli will be the next big thing after Sachin Tendulkar for Indian cricket after he amassed an earth-shattering 183 in the match.

However, India is still isn’t certain of meeting Pakistan in the finals. For that to happen, Sri Lanka must beat Bangladesh in the next match.

As I look at the situation, the terrible thought of history repeats is coming to my mind due to some striking similarities. By history, I mean just the last one-day series in Australia. Just consider both situations as follows: –

* India played exceedingly well in their last league match in the tri series in Australia by chasing more than 300 very easily. The same thing has happened in India’s last league match here in Asia Cup.

* In both the occasions, Kohli scored a magnificent hundred.

* In the Australia series, India, to reach the finals, depended on the Aussies to beat Sri Lanka. Here, India has to depend on Sri Lanka to beat Bangladesh.

* In Australia, India failed to reach the finals after Australia lost to Sri Lanka.

* What will happen in Asia Cup?

Well, all Indians would hope history doesn’t repeat and we get a mouth-watering India-Pakistan final in the Asia Cup. But everything is in Sri Lanka’s hands. In Australia, they disappointed us by winning the last league match. Let’s hope they don’t disappoint us again by losing this time.