My thoughts on Saawariya

I know I am not famous enough to be on Koffee with Karan, but if I was asked by the honorable host as to which movie I would choose to watch between Om Shanti Om and Saawariya, I would have answered without blinking, "Saawariya, of course." True to my answer, I went and watched Saawariya this weekend.

The movie is based on Fyodor Dostoevsky's short story 'White Nights'. How far can you stretch a short story to make into a 3 hour movie? Owing to this, the story is not the best part of the movie and some people might even find it boring. What makes the movie come alive is the direction, music and Ranbir - in that order.

To create a dream world so beautiful and take your audience to this world and make them forget that they have left a real world behind is not easy. Sanjay Leela Bhansali does this and he is a genius. For as long as the screen was lit up, I was mesmerized. The whole movie is shot in a set which mimics a small town around a lake. By interval time, you feel you are a part of that town. There is one shot where Sonam is reading from a book and her aunt and her governess (??) are with her. The three women are shown in three mirrors and in between the focus shifts to Sonam and you can see the other women in two mirror. It's mind boggling to even think how SLB shot this!

If you are not fond of melodious music, do not watch this movie. It's like a Chitrahaar sometimes, with songs back to back and these songs add flavour to the movie. The first song 'Pari', so beautifully sung by Kunal Ganjawala is equally well crafted by SLB. I particularly liked the shots involving glass panes. Ranbir and the women are separated by a glass pane. The shot begins with Ranbir's reflection on the glass pane and the women slightly out-of-focus and as the shot proceeds, Ranbir fades out and you see the women. This technique repeats a couple of times all through the song.

Considering that it is Ranbir's first movie, he has done well. The whole movie stands on his shoulders and he carries it well. He comes across as this lovable, vivacious, naughty, lover boy who lives life to the fullest. His acting seems like overacting at times, but it is forgivable. He is exceptionally brilliant in his towel-clad act in 'Jabse tere naina'. He proves his dancing skills in the title song. It's the innocence on his face that takes your heart away. Sonam doesn't really have much scope to act. Moreover, with Ranbir hogging the screen, she failed to impress me.

There are certain places where the movie goes too far away from reality. Like the song 'Dekho chaand aaya'. The song is shot in a mosque and all the men are in white, except our Ranbir who is dressed in black. After the song, the men and women mingle and exchange greetings - which is sacrilegious in Muslim community. If this scene couldn't have been shot in any other way, SLB could have based this story in some other, more liberal community.

While the movie does have these far-from-reality pieces, it is closer to real life than most of our Bollywood movies. We are so used to seeing the male lead sacrificing his love for his friend and the female lead agreeing to marry her lover's friend for the sake of her love. In Saawariya, we actually get to see some real emotions, where the male lead places his own love above someone else's and asserts that man, after all, is selfish. I can't say much without marking it as a spoiler. People who have watched the movie will understand what I am talking about.

Even though it is not SLB's best, he definitely shines in this movie. If you are a romantic and sometimes let your heart overtake your head, then you will enjoy Saawariya.

Why I liked Chak De India

1. The movie is crisp. It actually reminds me of a freshly starched cotton saree. Very little time wasted on unnecessary things. Rarely do you watch a movie which is as focused as this. From the moment the movie begins and till it ends, it revolves around the Indian Women's Hockey team.

2. SRK is acting. Finally. You get to see a different angle of SRK. He is brilliant.

3. The girls. The whole world is going gaga over them. If you have caught sight of them on TV, you know how they are. I thought Vidya had the meatiest role and she wouldn't have done a good job. Contrary to my assumption, she has quite a small role and she has done complete justice to her role. The girls look well settled in their roles. Only the prominent roles are developed and the rest are just used as fillers.

4. Music. This movie has a full fledged album with quite a few songs. None of them are lip-synced. This was a big relief. What you see on TV are all for promotional purposes. None of them figure in the movie.

5. No female lead. Thank God, SRK doesn't have a girlfriend or a wife who he goes to and cries with his head on her lap. I was so happy the director was smart enough to leave this out.

6. The intent of the movie. It answers more than one question. On one hand, it talks about other sports being overshadowed by cricket. On the other hand, it talks about women not being taken seriously in the sports field. But what touched me is the fight a man put up to prove his innocence. No media coverage, no press releases, no appearances on TV - one single blow to all those people who maligned his name. At a lower level, the movie showcases how volatile public opinion is.

I am not saying this movie is perfect. With all the ignorable limitations it has, the movie is still good. The positive points outweigh the negative ones. If you haven't watched this movie yet, I urge you to do so.

Tribute to Hrishikesh Mukherjee

August 27th marks Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s death anniversary.

They say comedy is a difficult genre and it is very difficult to make people laugh. Hrishikesh Mukherjee probably would not agree. With movies like Chupke Chupke, Golmaal, Kisi se na kehna under his crown, one can say comedy came easily to Hrishida.

I remember my first glimpse of Chupke Chupke - those stomach-wrenching guffaws, tears-filled eyes but still wanting more of it. Think of watching a movie on any Sunday lazy afternoon and the first movie that comes to mind is a Hrishida movie. The main reason Hrishida’s comedy movies became such a rage was because of their clean humor. In these days, where comedy has become synonymous with adultery, clean humor is almost non-existent.

While he was the unquestionable expert in the comedy genre, Hrishida gave us serious and thought-provoking movies like Anand, Abhimaan, Alaap and Sadma. If Hrishida’s comedy movies gave us much laughter, they were compensated with ample tears in his serious movies. Who can forget the ending scene in Anand? Or the one in Sadma?

Hrishida’s movies have given us numerous memorable characters. Cinema goers remember Pyaremohan and his obsession with Hindi even today. Raghu, the all-rounder cook, who had a solution to any problem, inspired Govinda’s role in Hero No.1 and continues to linger in our minds. The dying Anand with his undying spirit inspires us and teaches us how to make the most of our lives. Not to forget, Bhavani Shankar, with his philosophies on mustache, continues to entertain us even now, 32 years after the movie came out.

Music played a very important role in Hrishida’s movies. One of his earlier movies, Anuradha, had a singer as the main protagonist. Pandit Ravi Shankar composed music for this movie and gave us some memorable numbers. Hemant Kumar created magic in Anupama with songs like Dheere dheera machal and Ya dil ki suno duniyawalo. Aanewala pal jaanewala hai continues to be the philosophical song that the younger generation listens to even today. Songs like Ae ri pawan dhoonde kise tera man, Kahin door jab din dhal jaaye, Saawan ke jhoole pade, Mein shayar badnaam, Badi sooni sooni hai, Zindagi kaisi hai paheli, Bole re papeehara, Tere mere milan ki yeh raina tell us the appreciation and importance Hrishida had for music.

Hrishida, with his highly entertaining movies, with no violence and simple plots ruled the Hindi film industry from 1957 (Musafir) to 1998 (Jhoot Bole Kauwa Kaate). Any Hindi film director trying to make a comedy movie uses Hrishida as reference. They dream of making a comedy movie which comes anywhere close to Chupke Chupke. With the king of Hindi cinema’s comedy genre gone, the industry has incurred a big loss. The magician who made us laugh and cry with the same passion has left a big gap in the Hindi film industry which no one can fill.

Do visit Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s official website. They have a very interesting collection of Hrishida’s photographs.

The Blue Umbrella

It is seldom that a Hindi film meant for children makes news. The Blue Umbrella grabs your attention and rightly so. The film is based on a novella written by Ruskin Bond. Set in a small village in Himachal Pradesh, the story is about a girl possessing a bright blue umbrella which no one in the village has seen before. The girl, played by Shreya Sharma, is exultant because of her prized possession and does not waste any chance to flaunt it. Nandakishore, owner of a small shop in the village, has his eyes set on the umbrella and wants to get it at any cost. Does he get it or not? Watch the movie and moreover, that's secondary.

Vishal Bharadwaj showcases Himachal Pradesh in all its glory. The picturesque mountains, the snow fall, the snow capped houses - the story couldn't have asked for a better place. The simplicity of life, the innocence of the people, the clean and pure way the villagers lead their lives - these are the best parts of the movie. Music, by Vishal Bharadwaj, adds spice to the movie. Gulzar's lyrics is as original as ever. The first half is fast and tight, while the second half drags a bit.

Shreya Sharma does justice to her role, but it is Pankaj Kapur who walks away with the cake. His acting is effortless and brilliant.

The movie is entertaining and refreshing. Go watch the movie and awaken the child within you. If this is not a reason good enough for you, then the movie won this year's National Award for Best Children's Film. Now at least, go watch it.