Moview Review: Sarkar Raaj

Director : Ram Gopal Varma
Music : Bapi-Tutul
Lyrics : Prashant Pandey, Sandeep Nath
Starring : Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai, Govind Namdeo, Tanisha Mukherjee

First things first: A huge round of applause to Ram Gopal Varma. The director has redeemed himself after the failures of NISHABDH and AAG. This here is vintage Ramu at his best, no doubt about it. Just goes to show that one should stick to what one is best at. And no one uncovers the underbelly of crime and politics as succinctly as RGV.

SARKAR RAJ is a thriller to the core. It may have the background of power politics but when it's time to reveal his cards, Ramu pulls out his 'Aces', one after another to dish out a gripping fare. The final 'Ace' he delivers at Sarkar's house is mind numbing! To reveal more would be a crime. Just goes to show that it's not only the ones bred in the city who are power hungry, but also those in far off villages! Hence, he does full justice to the tagline: 'Power cannot be given. It has to be taken'. And on this line rests the plot of SARKAR RAJ, a sequel to SARKAR! Yes, it also takes a fresh look at the tradition versus modernity debate.

Anita Rajan (Aishwarya Rai-Bachchan) is the CEO of Sheppard Power Plant. This international company wants to set up a power plant in rural Maharashtra. Only the Nagres can help. A meeting is facilitated by Govind Namdeo (Hassan Qazi) an aspiring politician. Sarkar (Amitabh Bachchan) sees no sense in this project and dismisses it outright. But Shankar Nagre (Abhishek Bachchan) thinks otherwise. He feels that this power plant will be a huge benefit for the villagers in the interiors of Maharashtra. After convincing his father, Sarkar, he mobilizes support from the villagers and goes about the business with Anita. But things are not as easy as they seem. Shankar meets with obstacles, one after another and as the plot unfolds, you realise how the characters are used as a pawn for a completely different game!

The background score by Debashish Mishra is commendable. Even when there are no dialogues being spoken, Mishra creates the mood, which speaks a thousand words with his music, as the cameraman, Amit Roy, takes astute angles. The sepia tone throughout the film maintains the mood of this exciting fare. To my mind, there is no standout performance.

Sarkar is the shrewd old, wily politician that he is. Experience is a great teacher but he allows his son, Shankar, to make his own decisions. Abhiskek Bachchan, slips into the role, permanently brooding. Has it to do something with the murder of his brother Vishnu in SARKAR? Maybe. The scene where Vishnu is remembered is intelligently woven to connect the two films. Rajesh Shringapure (Sanjay Somji) impresses in his fiery approach, mobilizing support against the Power Plant.

But for me, the real 'Ace' is Dilip Prabhawalkar (Rao Saab). He fits the part and performs to the 'T'.

There are a few jarring moments which don't really move with the scenes. Like for instance, why is Sarkar or Shankar not able to 'smell' the enemy in their camp when he is sitting right there with them one moment, and the next moment he is hatching a plot with Qazi. Haven't they enough 'informers'? Or why is a politician not seeing monetary benefits in a project as huge as this? Also, Govind Namdeo's make-up looks like that of a stage artist; it does not go with the flow.
These are small glitches that you overlook as you look at the larger picture on screen and are easily forgiving to the director who finishes off the proceedings with finesse. The dialogues, the one-liners, are awesome. To my mind, RGV is the real star of the film.

TO GO OR NOT: A must watch. SARKAR RAJ, is an understated approach of the powerful machinations of those wanting to grab a piece of the pie.

Ratings : 4/5

Woodstock Villa Movie Review

Director : Hansal Mehta
Music : Anu Malik
Lyrics : Virag Mishra
Starring : Sikander Kher, Neha Oberoi, Saif Ali Khan, Arbaaz Khan


What you look for in a thriller is this; when the pieces begin to unravel and you want to put them back in place, the plot has to make sense. That's what earns the audience's appreciation. That's what STRANGERS was all about. This Kay Kay Menon-Jimmy Sheirgill-Nandana Sen thriller released last December, was a perfect example of how a thriller should be.

Sadly, WOODSTOCK VILLA has none of these attributes. Though it begins well and holds your attention until intermission, when the pieces begin to unravel you say, "Is this what it is?" Hansal Mehta has no clue what he is up to. All he knows is that he has to help Arbaaz Khan cover up his wife's death.

OK, picture this: Arbaaz's wife is dead and he has his lover take her place. My question is this: are the servants so blind as to not know that this here is another woman living in the house. And Neha Uberoi who is helping Arbaaz cover up for his wife's death is not even an identical twin!

Picture this too: Neha and Sikander are off to the US with the booty after they trap Arbaaz. Both check in separately to avoid suspicion since the cops are on their trail. Since Neha is carrying the bag with the cash, she decides to give Sikander the slip, moves to another counter and asks for a ticket to Johannesburg. My question is this: does she not need a visa to go there?

Picture another scene: Sikander has boarded the flight to the US and besides him is the bag filled with Rs 50 lakh. My question is this: will not the immigration officials in the US want to know where the money came from?

So there you go. The plot is a complete mess. All that is left to review is the performances of Sikander Kher and Neha Uberoi who was last seen in DUS KAHANIYAN. Sikander Kher who plays the Casanova is very confident. It does not look like this is his first performance on screen. If he makes the right choices, I'm sure he will go places. A bright future indeed. As for Neha, no complaints. She does a fairly impressive job.

Anupama Varma who makes her presence on screen after a long time looks the sensuous seductress she portrays in her short role.

The background score is too loud and the songs look forced. The film has good production values though. Sadly, it has no plot.

TO GO OR NOT: To top it all, the corpse is almost a week old. You can imagine the stench. Stay away.

Ratings : 1/5

Music review- Welcome

WELCOME -Music review

Welcome is the next Akshay Kumar slated for release at the fag end of the year. The actor has had a fantastic year and is being talked of as being no less than Shah Rukh Khan, where popularity is concerned. In fact, the rise of this actor has gone primarily unnoticed with the media running around SRK and the other Khans while Akshay has silently gone in for the kill. However, unlike his previous hit, Heyy Babyy, which had music by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, the music of Welcome is not such a welcome sound to the ears. The music of this Firoz Nadiadwala film, directed by Anees Bazmee, has been composed by quite a few composers and hence there is no consistency to the album. There is Himesh Reshammiya, Anand Raj Anand and Sajid-Wajid involved in the business of creating music for the film. Somehow the expected effect is not forthcoming and the music album of Welcome is just slightly above mediocre.

However, having said that, the album begins with quite a bang. The title song, Welcome kind of sets the mood for a fun time ahead. This number has been composed by Sajid-Wajid and singers Shaan and Soumya Raoh lend their voices to the number, with composer Wajid chipping in as well. The composers have used trumpets and a lot of orchestration to give the song a grand party feel. The number has an almost visual feel to it and one is sure that 'seeing'the song will just add to this number's popularity.

Anand Raj Anand makes his entry with the next number, Hoth Rasiley, which is sung by Shankar Mahadevan, Shreya Ghoshal and the composer himself. The music in the beginning gives one the impression that we have a Punjabi tadka number on hand. But the number lacks that essential spark. It is, at best, ordinary. Though it has a very good beat, and creates a wonderful atmosphere as well. But it stops short of being a rocking number. However, the singers, all give it their best shot. As it is, this is not so much a singer's song but owes more to the arrangement for its effect.

Himesh Reshammiya makes his appearance in the album with two compositions. The first of these is Insha Allah, sung by Shaan, Krishna, Akruti Kakkar and Reshammiya himself. The number begins in a very deceptive fashion, with slow, romantic notes played by a solo saxophone. But that changes soon enough as Reshammiya comes on singing Insha Allah. The composer-singer outdoes himself in the manner in which he pitches the 'Insha Allah' refrain at suitable intervals in the song, at an amazingly high pitch. If the intention was to raise the pitch of the song, then it falls dismally short of that. The poetry, is of course, not worth writing home about. But where the music of this number is concerned, one feels that Reshammiya has given us better. It has a mediocre beat and may just catch despite being an average song. But there is a chance that the song has been choreographed and shot superbly, which may just give it a major boost.

The next song is titled Koka Laka Vellari, whatever that may mean. Its music has been composed by Reshammiya, who has also lent his voice to it. This number provides a respite from the high voltage numbers that went before it. It is more subdued, emotional and more like music to the ears. This is more like the Reshammiya that we know. It has all the hallmarks of a good Reshammiya number, there is a good fusion of both Indian and Western arrangements and the number has been sung with feeling. The tabla bit at the end of each line provides a very good effect. The number is a sad love song, and Reshammiya pays heed to the mood of the number in his arrangement as well. One of the better numbers of the album along with the title song. But Koka Laka Vellari still remains a mystery.

Ucha Lamba Kad is the third number sung and composed by Anand Raj Anand. He sings this number all by himself, backed by a capable chorus. This is a very typical number, again with a Punjabi flavour to it. It is a throwback to the fusion Punjabi folk tracks and finds it inspiration in that genre. But the number is not catchy enough and is unlikely to create any kind of storm.

In fact if there is any number besides the title song ' Welcome', which is has staying power, then it is the last song of the album, Kiya Kiya.This number is composed and sung by Anand Raj Anand, along with Shweta Pandit. The singer-composer redeems himself with this number. Kiya Kiya is definitely a winner. The number is catchy, -- its beat, its music, all have a certain zest and it turns out to be the best in this album. The picturisation should add to the song's popularity.

One is not sure whether the idea of having so many music composers has added any real value to this album. There is no real winner in the album, no song which has enduring power. The film may well go on to do better business than the film itself.

Movie review

DUS KAHANIYAAN


wire photo

Cast: Sanjay Dutt, Suniel Shetty, Shabana Azmi, Naseeruddin Shah, Manoj Bajpai, Dia Mirza, Nana Patekar, Anita Hasnandani, Rohit Roy, Arbaaz Khan, Sudhanshu Pandey, Mandira Bedi, Amrita Singh, Minissha Lamba, Parmeet Sethi, Neha Dhupia, Mahesh Manjrekar, Neha Oberoi, Aftab Shivdasani, Dino Morea, Tareena Patel, Jimmy Shergill, Masumeh Makhija

Director: Sanjay Gupta, Rohit Roy, Meghana Gulzar, Apoorva Lakhia, Jasmeet Dhodi, Hansal Mehta

Producer: Sanjay Gupta

Banner: White Feather Films, Eros International

Music Director: Bappi Lahiri, Anand Raaj Anand, Shafqat Ali Khan, Gourav Das Gupta

Rating: ***

Whoever said Indian cinema doesn't know crispness should watch Dus Kahaniyaan. With a suave collection of ten stories, Sanjay Gupta has been able to live up to his own expectations and conveniently drown the voices yelling about chaotic cinema. You start the film with an apprehension of sorts but through the flood of stories, you're forced to put them aside.

Ten stories come alive in two hours carrying an undertone message, each one different from the other. Each story grips you in the chair (since they finish off in ten minutes) but there are a few that guarantee to come home with you. 'Gubbare' (Gupta's personal favourite) and 'Rice Plate' easily supersede the lot. Some leave you with a half-baked impression you don't know what to do with.

Movie review

Khoya Khoya Chand

Cast: Soha Ali Khan, Shiney Ahuja, Rajat Kapoor, Vinay Pathak, Saurabh Shukla, Soniya Jehan, Shushmita Mukherjee,

Director: Sudhir Mishra

Producer: Prakash Jha

Music Director: Shantanu Moitra

Rating: *



Is it the story of Madhubala, Meenakumari or Sarika? Is it a movie, documentary or making of a movie? Nothing is clear. Sad, because director Sudhir Mishra has an interesting subject on hand but somewhere, he loses it while converting his thoughts into screenplay.

You don't know whether what you are seeing on screen is the actual shot of the movie or of another movie being shot within the movie? Confusing, right? Absolutely! There is no effort to brighten up the lighting!!! So there you are caught wondering what is being projected on screen. After some time, you stop taxing your brain and just slip deeper into your seat.

And if the film is set in the sixties and seventies and the other actors dress and have hairstyles resembling that era, why is Shiney Ahuja (Zafar) a writer-director looking like he has stepped out of an Ad in the current era? Speaking of Ahuja, he steps onto the screen with a pained expression and maintains it throughout the duration of the 15 reels. Vinay Pathak is falling into a dangerous rut. This talented actor is playing a side-kick more than once. While there is nothing wrong in playing a side-kick, I have to admit that Vinay is far more talented. He has to use his creative side more imaginatively if he wants to leave an indelible mark on Indian cinema. And I know this man has that.

Now for the story, if you have not yet guessed from the opening line. It is about the struggle of a pushy mother to get her daughter, who is already an extra in films, the heroine roles even before she can turn 15! So she pushes real hard taking her to producers and directors who scar Soha Ali Khan (Nikhat). Later, Nikhat, 'uses' the reigning star of that time Rajat Kapoor, to climb up the ladder. She also realizes that when she decides to get married to Zafar, her bank account has been wiped off by her mother! Rings a bell???

To cut the long story short, Zafar and Nikhat then 'Live in'. He then has some differences because she refuses to do his film, which eventually flops and he moves off to England while Nikhat hits the bottle big time. Cut to a few years later when Zafar returns. He learns that Nikhat also has a hole in the heart, after she agrees to star in his film. They marry. She dies a year later, and Zafar goes on to make many more films. The last two lines are flashed on screen when the movie ends, that's how I know.