Boy Wonder!?

Happened to catch the latest one in the series of biopics - Budhia Singh- Born to run.

The Highs - Simplistic and realistic depiction of the story with apt casting. Manoj Bajpai totally gets into the skin of his character. Many small time Marathi actors have got a good opportunity to showcase themselves in Bollywood. Overall a decent watch. 2.5/5.

Wonder if this exposure and publicity will help the real Budhia get back on track - literally!

Surprisingly Above Average

Going for this play was a total blind game. And boy was I pleasantly surprised!

True to its name, the story is full of surprises and keeps you involved right till the end. Although it appears to be predictable at first glance, the end is not too goody-goody as you would expect.

I never had much expectations from this cast but Saurabh Gokhale has proved his mettle. His performance is effortless and excellent! Prajakta Mali is also pretty good - so much better than her TV show! Mayuri Deshmukh is ok. Sameer Khandekar was a total turnoff. Had so many expectations after watching him on TV - but his dialogue delivery was too speedy for my taste. Diction was pretty bad. Could not even catch some of the words!!

Overall, this play is decent. You will definitely not be disappointed.

The Eid King ;-)

Is it just me or has Salman "bro" transformed into a docile version of his earlier self? With ‪#‎Sultan‬, he seems to have completely given up on his nonsensical, tad cheap, mannerisms and comedy! Has the era of a matured bhaijaan finally dawned?

That said, its a decent one-time watch movie. Lot of muscle and masala with standard set of ingredients - romance, action, milna, bichadna so on and so forth! And of course ek signature dance step to banta hi hai! The theme song is catchy.  

All in all 3/5. Personally, I enjoyed Bajrangi Bhaijaan, with all its melodrama, more than this one!  

Low Flier

Udta Punjab - Despite the hoopla, it turned out to be a low flier.

It was more of a Punjabi documentary than anything else. Cuss words in every other dialogue with graphic depiction of drugs and violence did not make the deal for me.  

Alia Bhatt and Diljit Dosanjh stand out with amazing performances; Shahid Kapoor is pretty convincing as the pop star; Kareena is not as bad as some people have described. 

The movie could have been shorter in length. Overall ok-ok for me. 2.5/5 

Te3n tighda toh kaam bighda

Te3n tighda toh kaam bighda - that pretty much summarizes it!

You expect greatness from the deadly trio of Amitabh Bachchan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Vidya Balan but this one is just not upto the mark. A tad bit too slow with a predictable plot, this Kahaani is nowhere in the league of its predecessor. Vidya Balan seems somewhat unfit for the role (thats a rare comment!); Amitabh looks too senile; Must give it up for Nawazuddin though- that guy's a natural.  

Overall just an okay-ish one time watch. 3/5  

Flying High

Gela Udat - Nothing short of a cinematic experience on stage!

It has everything from drama to comedy and dance to fight sequences. Story is average but superhero Siddharth Jadhav never lets the spirit drop! Like he says in the play, "Ekach fight - vatavaran tight!" The guy's enthusiasm and energy are at an altogether different level. The rest of the cast is apt. 

Overall, a typical Kedar Shinde comedy. 3.5/5. The extra 0.5 for the effort put into creating live cinema on stage! 

Prison-break!

Sarbjit - A good one time watch if you are into biopics. Omung Kumar seems to have found his niche.

The story is free flowing with a plethora of emotions - be it love, angst, melancholy, sadness, patriotism, hate - name it and its there somewhere in the movie. 

Performances are rock solid - Randeep Hooda aces it; Aishwarya Rai is pretty convincing; Richa Chaddha is restrained but holds on to the character. 

Overall, pretty good. 3/5 from me. 

Every Second Counts

Traffic - A good attempt but not as gripping as it should have been.

Since the story was simplistic and predictable, the onus of success was entirely on the actors. Performances are strictly OK but nothing extraordinary. Personally felt Manoj Bajpai didn't fit the part. Jimmy Shergill may soon take up police duty for real considering so much experience on his resume! 

Overall its a decent one time watch. 

To Infinity and Beyond!

The Man Who Knew Infinity - an inspiring story of chasing one's dreams.

Especially loved the performance by Jeremy Irons - the guy who played Hardy. Dev Patel is also up to the mark and a huge improvement over Slumdog Millionaire.

With a crisp narrative, good acting, and an insight into the life of one of the most brilliant Indian minds - Srinivasa Ramanujan, this movie is a good watch.

Top Class!

Nil Battey Sannata - a simplistic, feel-good, performance-oriented film.

Swara Bhaskar is a natural! All the young actors are pretty good. Ratna Pathak Shah and Sanjay Suri pitch in perfectly. 

Overall, a commendable effort and definitely worth a dekko! 

Fanatical And Narcissistic!

#FAN - Fanatical And Narcissistic

#FAN - Faltu And Nonsensical

The beginning was nostalgic- reminded of our days as kids when we collected our hero's photos and posters and used to be crazy for SRK. 

After the first 15-20 mins, the movie is totally bokwaas! What spews is crazy behaviour which lacks the finesse of Anjaam, Darr and such others. The "fight" sequences seem to drag on forever, just like SRK's series of crappy movies. 

With these kind of films, #SRK, you may soon lose a fan!! 

Now only an AC (Amazing Comeback) can save our hero! 😐

Picture-perfect Family Drama!

Kapoor & Sons - a functional tale of a dysfunctional family!

The family is typical - a doting grandpa with a funny side, fighting parents, and 2 sons - 1 perfect and the other not so much. Throw in an uncle, aunt, cousins, friends and girlfriends and you got yourself a full house!

To summarize the plot, Grandpa has an heart attack and estranged siblings return to their family home in Coonoor. What unfolds is family drama, with its ups and downs, secrets, betrayals, jealousies, so on and so forth. All grandpa wants is a perfect photograph of a happy family - Kapoor & Sons (Since 1921)!  The rest of the movie is a journey of how the characters finally fulfill grandpa's wish.

Rishi Kapoor rocks his grandpa act, with his adorable looks and near-perfect comic timing. Fawad Khan is effortless and extremely lovable as the "perfect bachcha". Siddharth Malhotra plays the second fiddle efficiently. Rajat Kapoor and Ratna Pathak Shah are good as the fighting parents. Alia Bhatt has a sidelined part but blends in perfectly. Supporting cast is also apt.

All in all, the movie is a good one time watch, with great characterization, engaging story line, fine performances, and minimal loopholes.

Laden with Crap!

Watching Tere Bin Laden - Dead or Alive was such a waste of time! Around half an hour into the movie, I was not sure whether we would be dead or alive until the end of the movie. It was such a load of crap.

Although sequels never match up to the original, this one is so bad that it should never have been attempted. All in all, there were 10 people in the theater, of which a group of 6 left around 40 minutes into the film. The only good reason for us to bear this nonsense was the "private screening" kinda experience in a nice multiplex.

The comedy quotient is at an extreme low, with forceful punches from time to time. Performances are strictly average. The Obama lookalike is too young and Pradhuman Singh's Laden act falls flat. Manish Paul is average but nothing close to his potential that we have seen in his TV shows. Ali Zafar's cameo, which is supposed to be funny, is barely so!

The only saving grace (if at all) is the character played by Sikandar Kher, He has done well with the dual part, getting the accent quite right for both.

Overall, this one is laden with a baseless plot, mediocre performances, and utter lack of finesse. Catch this one on TV if there is nothing else to watch (not even Suryavansham).

Sh(a)Bass!!

Happened to catch this epic movie two days ago on TV. Whatta film! Hats off to R. Balki for the concept.

Who would've thought that Amitabh and Dhanush, with their distinctly opposite personalities, can be cast together to create something unique!

The Balki-Bachchan combo completes their hat-trick of brilliance with this one.

Although Amitabh and Dhanush excel, the real stars of the show are Amitabh's baritone voice and Dhanush's acting. Together, they rock!

Akshara Haasan is alright for the part, though dialogue delivery is too monotonous.

Some portions of the second half drag a little bit and I am not a fan of toilet humor either.

That apart, this is a must watch for the amazing performances!

Chak De India starring Mary Kom!

From the first look of the film itself, there was an inkling that this one would resemble Chak De India!

True to the suspicion, this film is a mash-up of several movies of the sports genre.
With nothing new to offer from the plot point-of-view, this is strictly a one-time watch.

An arrogant coach (read: failed star athlete of his time), plight of women athletes in India, a mean "head" of sports department, a natural sports star from a poor background, sibling rivalry are some of the "highlights" of the movie which failed to impress. All these "plots" are just gheese peete and seen "n" number of times before.

However, must appreciate the casting. R.Madhavan holds on to the character to the T although his flab quotient overrides his fab value to some extent. Ritika Singh is aptly cast, and so is Mumtaz Sorcar. Nasser and Zakir Husain are supportive in holding things together. Small punches from the other supporting actors provide the comedy quotient. Nothing special about the music either.

Overall, unless you are specifically interested in watching khadoosgiri and arrogance, you can wait till they screen this on TV.

Lift your spirits!

Airlift - Sheer Brilliance!

Whatta way to tug the heartstrings of patriotism when Republic Day is just around the corner!

A commendable effort by director Raja Menon. The execution of the story line is crisp, without much dragging and delay. The characters are clearly etched out. Special mention for the cinematographer, Priya Seth, for brilliantly capturing the essence of the ordeal. Depiction of the war zone is extremely detailed.

The background score and couple of songs are pretty good. Especially loved the "Tu Bhoola Jise" number; although did not much appreciate the rip off of "Didi didi".

And of course, Akshay Kumar steals the show with his effortless performance. He is ably supported by the rest of the cast. Was great to see Nimrat Kaur in a more glamorous role as compared to her earlier one in Lunchbox. Purab Kohli also made a mark with his passable part. Inaamulhaq, who played the Iraqi major, is also worth a special mention.

Overall, this is a must watch movie for all. Catch it as soon as you manage to get tickets!!