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Aayna Ka Bayna: Life is a dancing stage!

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Since recent years, Marathi filmmakers have started making films on subjects which were never touched before. One filmmaker who has also tried to do that is Samit Kakkad in Aayna Ka Bayna, a film entirely based on different forms of western dance. The film stars well-renowned Marathi actor Sachin Khedekar along with Amruta Khanvilkar and Raqesh Vashisht.

The makers have claimed that this is the first Marathi film to be based purely on western dance. Director Kakkad, whose last flick being Huppa Huyaa, further explains this by saying, “Aayna Ka Bayna is all about dreaming with your feet and winning.”

As dance is an important ingredient of the story, the makers have tried to make sure that no stone is left unturned when it comes to the quality of dance. They have roped in dancers from Rohan N Group. The group has managed to impress viewers with their moves in dance reality shows like Boogie Woogie and Chak Dhoom Dhoom.

And if there is dance, there has to be music. For this, composers Ajit Parab and Sameer Mhatre are being signed. There are also action sequences imbibed in the script which are handled by Javed-Aezaz.

Now, only the release of the movie will determine whether the makers will ‘dance’ all the way to the bank as well as audiences’ hearts!

Paan Singh Tomar Review

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Direction: Tigmanshu Dhulia

Production: UTV Motion Pictures

Cast: Irrfan Khan, Vipin Sharma, Khan Jehangir Khan, Mahie Gill, Rajendra Gupta, Nawazuddin Siddiqui

Music: Abhishek Ray

Rating: * * * *

Plot: The movie is a biopic on the life of the great Indian athlete Paan Singh Tomar who was later forced to become a dacoit. After enrolling in the Indian army, Tomar gets himself transferred to the sports department. Having the ability to run like a hare, Tomar soon becomes a National Champion in the sport and later leaves his mark at the international level as well.

But the big turning point in his life arrives when he gets into a dispute regarding his farm with his nephew Bhanwar Singh (Khan Jehangir Khan). Singh uses force to snatch away Tomar’s farm. Tomar runs from pillar to post to get justice but in vain. This forces the sportsman to become a dacoit and fight for his rights.

Review: Director Tigmanshu Dhulia has always narrated hard hitting dramas with maturity, right from his debut Haasil (2003) to his last flick Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster (2011). With Paan Singh Tomar, the filmmaker tries to tackle his most difficult subject ever. It is believed that big challenges bring out the best in you. This phrase proves to be true for Dhulia as he comes up with his best effort ever in PST. In fact, personally speaking, it’s one of the most well made films to have come from Bollywood in recent years!

It’s a proven fact that the root of all great films is a powerful or a watertight script. Such is the case with the screenplay of the Irrfan Khan starrer courtesy Dhulia and Sanjay Chauhan. It was a very intelligent idea to have Tomar narrating his life to a journalist.

The unfolding of events as Tomar’s life progresses from being an army officer to a champion runner (in the first half) makes sure there isn’t a dull moment ever. It’s an amalgamation of well written and well directed scenes with terrific performances and dialogues.

The same continues in the post-interval section when the athlete starts a new chapter in his life as a dacoit. The way Tomar and his group take revenge and fight for their lives stays etched in your memory.

(Review continued after picture.)

In the end, your heart just goes out for Tomar and numerous other sportsmen (non-cricketers) who are just thrown away by the government and sports authorities as unwanted individuals after they brought glory to the nation. It really paints the sports authorities and system with shame to see such brilliant sportsmen been denied a meaningful life and even simple justice.

There isn’t any flipside as such. The only thing which can be mentioned under this is that the film might not appeal to those who are looking for feel-good or masala entertainers.

There is top quality work seen even in the technical departments like cinematography (Aseem Mishra) and background score (Sandeep Chowta). Those are vital areas in a film like this. The songs, which are only used in the background, suit the subject.

Over the years, Irrfan Khan has proved that he is one of the best actors India has ever produced. He proves this fact yet again in his act as Paan Singh Tomar, which can be rated as one of his finest ever! He skillfully gets into the skin of the character and portrays every emotion with ease!

Vipin Sharma, Khan Jehangir Khan, Mahie Gill, Rajendra Gupta, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and the rest of the supporting cast also delivers quality performances.

Overall, Paan Singh Tomar is a film which can take Indian cinema to greater levels. Sadly, it hasn’t had a good opening at the box-office due to the lack of proper publicity. However, the collections might just increase in the coming days if it receives positive word-of-mouth, which it strongly deserves!

Matter (Marathi Movie) Review

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Direction: Satish Motling

Production: Poonam Shende for Saarthi Entertainment

Cast: Santosh Juvekar, Sushant Shelar, Rajesh Shringarpure, Jitendra Joshi, Usha Nadkarni, Sameer Dharmadhikari, Yogini Chouk, Surekha Kudachi, Minal Ghorpade, Megha Dhade

Music: Abhijeet Rameshrao Kawthalkar

Rating: * * *

Plot: Pakya, Babya and Raja (who are later played by Santosh Juvekar, Jitendra Joshi and Sushant Shelar) are forced to kill a gangster during their childhood. There are sent to the remand home where they join hands with the notorious Rony (later played by Rajesh Shringarpure).

As the stigma of being murderers is attached to their name, the four friends neither find a job nor self-respect from the people around them. Left with no other choice, they are forced to join underworld don Bala’s gang. In the meantime, the commissioner of police appoints officer Vikram (Sameer Dharmadhikari) the task of cleansing Mumbai from the filth of underworld.

Review: Underworld of Mumbai is not a novel concept in Indian cinema. So, when a filmmaker decides to try his hand in the genre, it is vital that he provides the audience with an interesting and a memorable tale. Director Satish Motling touches the genre in his debut flick Matter. Although the end result might not be superlative, the film surely turns out to be a one-time watch due to the realism executed in terms of characters, dialogues, story and situations.

An exhibition of good writing (Atmaram Dharne) is seen at the start as no time is wasted in bringing the twist (murder) in the lives of three children. Things further brighten up when the four friends grow up. Their conversation and the regular addition of realistic yet rib-tickling humour scores well. The further unfolding of the events and an interesting twist at interval point sums up a good first half.

The same, however, cannot be said for the post-interval portion. The main reason for this is that too much of importance is given to Pakya, Babya and Rony’s love stories. In this, Babya’s marriage incident appears stretched. An unusual incident that deserves mention is that three prominent characters are not shown grieving when their loved one passes away. Strange! Fortunately, the twists and the events that follow, including the climax, fare better.

(Review continued after picture.)

In the end, one has to say that the flick indirectly gives an important message that there cannot be any justification for crime, no matter how valid a reason you have.

Performances are another plus point. Santosh Juvekar displays his talent yet again as a hot tempered bhai. Sushant Shelar and Jitendra Joshi provide well-executed performances while Rajesh Shringarpure is likable. Usha Nadkarni is terrific as a ruthless politician.

Sameer Dharmadhikari is apt in the role of a cop. He gets to prove his mettle more in the second half. The actor playing Bala is average. The character needed to be more convincing. Surekha Kudachi shows maturity. Yogini Chouk provides good support while Minal Ghorpade and Megha Dhade are just okay.

Overall, Matter is a one-time watch, especially for those who enjoy such crime thrillers. It has a chance of making a mark at the box-office because of the commercial factors thrown in.

Mumbai Meri Jaan

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The magic of the city of Mumbai is such that even the simplest of every day scenes stay etched in your memory. Celebrating that magic of Aamchi Mumbai, I present some of the simplest yet memorable pictures from the great city. Have a look!

Army Restaurant, Kala Ghoda (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

View from Indiabulls tower, Lower Parel (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Outside Bandra station (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Outside Metro Adlabs (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Outside Metro Adlabs (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Dadar railway station (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Haji Ali sea face (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Churchgate station (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Shivaji Park maidan during monsoon (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Sunset at Shivaji Park beach (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Helicopter inside the premises of Chatrapati Shivaji Vastu Sangralaya (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Sunset at Shivaji Park beach (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Sunset at Shivaji Park sea face (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Irani Restaurant near Shivaji Park (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

View from Bombay Natural History Society building (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Tere Naal Love Ho Gaya Box-Office Prediction

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Star Value: Riteish Deshmukh and Genelia D’Souza aren’t big stars. In other words, they don’t have enough star value to attract audiences to a movie. However, the fact that the couple recently got married and the way their marriage was hyped has made them the talk of the town. The timing of their marriage is spot on, which is just before the release of their film.

Hype: As mentioned earlier, the hype for the movie is created due to the wedding of the lead couple in real life. However, one can’t deny the fact that its comical promos have impressed the audience.

Music: Apart from the title track, no other song has managed to gain popularity. The promotional material of the movie is only focusing on this song.

Prediction: Tere Naal Love Ho Gaya will fail to get a very good opening at the box-office. It will at the most have an above average run if it manages to impress at the onset.

(Filed under the category BOLLYWOOD)

Jodi Breakers Box-Office Prediction

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Star Value: R Madhavan’s star value has increased in Bollywood after the stupendous success of 3 Idiots. But since he is playing the mail lead in Jodi Breakers, it is a question mark whether it will attract audience towards the theaters. Bipasha Basu, who plays the female lead, has lost the star power which she possessed earlier. However, there is Omi Vaidya as well. So, all in all, Jodi Breakers has a decent star value.

Hype: There is not great hype surrounding the movie, although the comic promos have gone down well with the audience. More publicity and promotion is needed.

Music: The song ‘Kunwara’ has become well-known while the track ‘Bipasha’ has just managed to make heads turn.

Prediction: Jodi Breakers won’t attain a very positive opening. The collections would range between average to decent. It has more chances at the metros than the smaller centers. It is vital for the movie to create an extra-ordinary effect in the initial weekend if it wants to succeed.

(Filed under the section BOLLYWOOD)

BMC Elections 2012 Results!

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So, the much awaited results of the 2012 BMC Elections are out! However, one cannot say that the whole of Mumbai is responsible for the results since more than half of them turned a blind eye to voting and instead preferred to chill on a holiday!

Results:

Congress         – 46

NCP                  – 21

Shiv Sena        – 65

BJP                  – 32

MNS                – 27

RPI                  – 1

Others           – 22

 

 

More than 50% Mumbaikars lose their right to complain!

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Since time immemorial, people of Mumbai have been complaining about poor governance, poor roads, water and electricity shortage, dumping of garbage, lack of civic amenities, etc. But do you really have a right to complain if you fail to exercise your basic right of voting and selecting appropriate people for governing?

Likewise, more than 50% Mumbaikars have lost their right to complain as they were too lazy to carry out an exercise as simple as voting! In other words, these people should not raise eyebrows when there is water-logging in their locality during the next monsoons. What else can one say when the voting percentage in Mumbai for the BMC elections yesterday turned out to be as low as 44%?

Anyways, the results will be out shortly. One can just hope that whichever party wins, turns out to be people-friendly! And a hearty GET WELL SOON to all those who didn’t vote yesterday.

Ekk Deewana Tha Box-Office Prediction

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Star Value: There is no such star value in Ekk Deewana Tha. Having said that, Prateik Babbar is becoming quite known these days, while debutant Amy Jackson has started impressing people by her looks.

Hype: Although the promos of the movie haven’t taken the audience by storm, they have certainly made heads turn. But the biggest publicity for the movie is created by its song ‘Hosanna’. However, the film’s promotion is negatively affected by the hype surrounding the 2012 BMC Elections.

Music: As mentioned above, the track ‘Hosanna’ has managed to enchant the audience in no time. Javed Akhtar’s touchy as well as peppy lyrics have worked wonders. The song has single-handedly managed to promote the movie. The rest of the songs are hardly heard.

Prediction: It will be difficult for Ekk Deewana Tha to get a good opening first up. But if it manages to strike a chord with youngsters in the first weekend, it might well turn out to be the surprise of the season.

Will South Mumbai vote this time?

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After the 26/11 Mumbai attack, the rich and elite South Mumbai-ites formed a candle rally near Gateway Of India where they literally bashed and abused the government. They even declared overpowering the existing Congress government.

However, at the time of the Lok Sabha Elections, that soon followed, hardly anyone from South Mumbai cared to vote. The percentage of vote was as low as 12%! In fact, this has been the sorry tale in South Mumbai since long.

Now, the 2012 BMC elections are just around the corner. So, will there be a better turnout this time in South Mumbai or will it be the same old story?

The people from this part took active part in the Anna Hazare movement mostly in August where they again vowed to overpower the government. This gives an indication that they care for the country. It’s high time they show this concern by lining up to cast their vote since this is the least one can do!

Looking at the way corruption has grown amongst politicians in recent times, I can understand the overall mindset of not trusting a single politician. But it is wrong to say that each and every politician is good for nothing. You can visit myneta.in and get all the information on the candidates from each constituency. On this website, one can also find whether there are any criminal cases on any of the candidates along with their bank balance.

People are anxious to know the winner of the BMC elections out of Congress, NCP, Sena-BJP, MNS, etc. But I am equally anxious to know the percentage of vote in South Mumbai. This is because I firmly believe that if you can’t do a small deed like voting, you have no right to sit back in your drawing room and say, “Is desh ka kuchh nahin ho sakta!”