Review : Return of Hanuman.. (3 Star out of 5)

What a return this is of the much-adored deity – this time in present age, where Lord Bramha keeps a tab on Earth's soaring crime graph over the computer and Narad strums a guitar instead of the sitar.

A worried Lord Hanuman is moved by the plight of Minku who is bullied by his classmates and wants to go to Earth to help him. Hanuman checks on the boy through a computer screen and zooms in to Bajrangpur, to keep a track on the boy very often. He also tells Narad that seeing the same faces up in the sky, main pak chuka hoon. When not following Minku's life, Hanuman, mischievous to the hilt, zips around the world replacing himself with the Statue of Liberty and throwing Osama Bin Laden and George Bush in a net.

When Hanuman approaches Lord Bramha for permission to visit Earth, Bramha tries to dissuade him and asks Chitragupt, who is busy surfing meneka.com, to show Earth's escalating crime rate. But Hanuman is adamant and Bramha finally agrees after he signs a `contract' and agrees to all the conditions. Thus a baby with a tiny tail is born to a Pundit. Maruti, as he is named, is an adorable child who grows inexplicably fast and is forever hungry. He becomes the savior of Minku and his other harassed friends (a nerdy girl, fat boy, clichés galore).

Meanwhile demons, like Rahu and Ketu, who had vanished from Earth to live in Shukragraha, are back. A series of events sets off the `parlay', where humankind is on the brink of being destroyed by nature's fury. There's a neat message towards the end, though not fully explored, of stopping the exploitation of Mother Nature.

The filmmaker (Anurag Kashyap) is convinced that details on the story are not that important, and that kids are not going to want to know the layers of why and what, as long as Hanuman whacks the bad guys cold. Which is why the explanation of the story's context is hurried through in the beginning, making the viewer feel a tad rushed. Perhaps the story could have been thrashed out more peacefully with explanations that kids would follow.

Kids are likely to enjoy the modernisation of the tale, right from the colloquial Hindi-English interspersed conversation, to the use of computers and fax machines etc. There are plenty of innovative modern touches that are likely to tickle the little viewers, like when Lord Vishnu is fighting a demon that breathes fire, Vishnu uses a fire extinguisher to douse the flames. Takeoffs are replete with spoofs on Matrix, Sholay's Gabbar Singh and even Himesh Reshammiya; some work, some don't. Dialogues by Anurag Kashyap does a great job of balancing contemporary with mythical with a generous sprinkling of wit. Narad, in an interesting spin on the popular phrase of walls having ears, sushes Hanuman saying, Yahan badalon ke bhi kaan hote hain.

What is disappointing is the chauvinistic portrayal of women characters – they're either sari-clad mothers or cheerleaders in short red skirts and apsaras in revealing clothes. One might be tempted to skim over this in the name of light-hearted fun, but kids are perceptive and pick up fast, and such stereotypical images just strengthen the already biased conditioning society feeds them. While there's no control over the content in films otherwise, a children's film perhaps ought to be more accountable.

The songs are fabulous (music by Tapas Relia; lyrics by Satish Mutatkar). Animation, as in the earlier Hanuman, is superlative. While Return of Hanuman is not a sequel to Hanuman, comparisons are inevitable. While Hanuman had more to tell in terms of story, Return of Hanuman excels in the storytelling style serving up a modern-mythological combination. It's aloo paratha with pizza topping-your kids will love it!

Review : Welcome

There are some films where you know exactly what to expect—this one gives you nothing more and nothing less. It's one of those films where underworld bhais are cuter than bunnies, and about as harmless, where there are about a hundred excuses for a song, glam unlimited in the form of the pretty heroine, and where the goofy gags make you laugh despite yourself.

They are not asking you to expect a plot and depth in the film, so you'd be foolish to demand plausibility in the plot. Also would be silly to object to the glorification of crime, and to the strange old-world system where marriages are fixed without even informing the potential bride and groom.

The story is such: Rajeev is a perfect marriage material bachelor, the kind who is well mannered and has a way with kids. Rajeev's uncle Dr. Ghungroo (Paresh Rawal, dependably competent) wants him to get married to a family with an impeccable sharafat track record, and is finding it impossible to find such a doodh-ka-dhula-hua family. As irony would have it, Rajeev ends up being saved from a massive fire by Katrina Kaif's Sanjana (a favourite on-screen name these days), the sister of the city's most feared don Uday Shetty. Unknowingly, he falls in love even faster than his burns heal. They have freak meetings, you know, where coincidence and a weak script keeps bringing them together. And the story progresses with a million other tiny ones hovering about the main plot, one involving a fake film shoot and a Godfather-type RDX's (Feroze Khan, apt) loony son. The stretched climax of the film is a roller-coaster ride, going a bit too fast. You're so busy catching your breath, you just can't stop to have fun.

Welcome is a victim of too many sub-plots suffocating the wacky, simple story, that otherwise had immense potential to be fleshed out for laughs. But for some reason, out mainstream comedy filmmakers believe that unless you stuff the audience with as many gags as you can fit and some more, the film won't be found funny enough.

The storytelling technique is archaic, where each character is literally introduced to the viewer – example, "Yeh Hai Uday Shetty, Sanjana Ke Bhai", as the voiceover goes on to explain how the don is actually a closet actor, etc. You remember this technique from the David Dhawan films and one hoped this boring, over-simplistic storytelling style was done away with. Dialogue ranges from the above average to the superb. There are some truly witty lines in the film, that won't just make you laugh, but you'll remember them as well.

Technically, the film is a letdown, and again a bit outdated. Welcome lacks the finesse of our films today, where even if the story disappoints, the cinematography, sync sound, editing and stylistic narration are superlative. Here, the film is dubbed, and done in the old school way. The film is punctuated by boring songs that are just there, not justified. One song, by Himesh Reshammiya, even has unpolished computer graphics of fire popping up all around (they met in a fire, remember?). Then there's the other yawning cliché of a beach song, where the protagonists are singing some inane Hindi lyrics, with lots of foreigners in bikinis forming the background. Music directors Sajid-Wajid, Himesh Reshammiya and Anand Raj Anand haven't been able to whip up anything memorable save the title track. The film is set in Dubai, by the way, like producer Nadiadwala's several films in the past, and the location has been unimaginatively shot.

What works for the film is simple—its sparkling, superb cast. Nana Patekar as Don Uday Shetty is a laugh-riot as is Anil Kapoor as Don Majnu. Cast together for the first time since Parinda, their comic timing complements each other perfectly, and together, they're an incredible treat to watch. Truly, these two talent powerhouses hold the film on their able shoulders. Even the supporting cast, comprising talented, known faces, like Vijay Raaz is superb. Akshay Kumar is likeable, but is clearly overshadowed. Katrina suits the role and sports her uniform look of short skirts, cascading long hair and blinding lip-gloss. Mallika Sherawat does well in her short screen time, though her character is an interesting one.

So at the end of it all, is Welcome funny? Yes, and it encapsulates all kinds of humour, from the objectionable, cheesy derogatory gay jokes, to genuinely funny one-liners. Not as blasé as director Anees Bazmee's No Entry, this one's an attempt at slightly more refined humour.

You're welcome to watch the film (excuse the obvious pun), if you can ignore some of the implausible, impossible situations, and choose to concentrate on Nana-Anil's crackling comic chemistry.

2 1/2 stars (essentially for Nana Patekar and Anil Kapoor)

Aamir's Taare is a nice watch

Mighty nice, Mr Khan, mighty nice.

Taare Zameen Par is an impressive debut indeed for filmmaker Aamir Khan, and showcases a brilliant performance by the young Darsheel Safary -- one of those child actors you can't possibly resist. More than just dyslexia, the film is a look at childhood dreamers who feel shunted out by the rest of the world, the cruel world that doesn't understand them. At some level, I guess we all relate. And this ends up a nice watch -- sincere, even if somewhat simplistic.

Aamir is particularly gifted with imagery. The film opens with Darsheel's character, the impish Ishaan Awasthi fishing from a naala , and heading home to literally feed dogs his homework. The child doesn't talk much but is strikingly imaginative -- a Calvin without his Hobbes -- and given to art. Misunderstood at almost every step, he stands up to a local bully defiantly, as scrappy as the strays that chewed upon his test papers. His parents have their hands full, choosing instead to concentrate on their elder son, an achiever of Complan-Boy levels.

Darsheel is superb in the role as we see him bewildered, then hurt, then frustrated with constant rejection. Khan, who handles the school sections of the film with relatable nostalgia, reels us in with poignant, simple visuals and makes us feel the child's pained confusion. A song bursts onto the scene, cut smartly like an edgy music video, showing Ishaan's father (played by Vipin Sharma) get ready for a business trip, while his harrowed mother (Tisca Chopra) gets eggs and bread ready for first father then each son, in turn. All while Ishaan is blissfully oblivious to the need of the hour, or the hour itself. By this point, we're hooked.

It is hard to know, as a director, when there can be too much of a good thing. Khan indulges himself with his nice little visual flourishes significantly in the first half, to the point of repetition. There is the clever device of the child -- being shunted off to boarding school against his desperate pleas -- making a flipbook which shows a family with one kid moving away, as the pages turn. It's a strong, simple touch, yet Khan chooses to show it to us again and again, showing the audience the flipbook every time any character sees it.

While Ishaan stands in a corridor, punished, some seniors walk by. Each of them -- every single one -- points and laughs at our protagonist, which is depressingly overdone and unreal -- even social outcasts aren't picked on by everyone; a lot of the kids just wouldn't give him a second look. The first few times the teachers rebuke Ishaan or are frustrated by him, it works. But we are forced to see everything again: pain in English class, Maths, Hindi... and so on. Flip, flipbook, flip. It doesn't help that outside of Darsheel and Tisca (and later, of course, Aamir), the rest of the performances seem either amateurish or over-the-top.

The director himself enters neatly at halftime, shushing us to announce intermission. Aamir plays temporary Art teacher Ramshankar Nikumbh, one who works part-time with a special-needs school, and wants Ishaan and his buddies to open up. Khan plays the role in just the right key, a sympathetic teacher who notices a problem but doesn't want to force himself through the child's shell. It is he who realises Ishaan has dyslexia, and goes to meet the Awasthis.

Aamir now balances his own character speaking like a Public Service Announcement with Ishaan's father spouting lines seemingly written for... laughs? Sure, they are laughs at his ignorance and a look at his lack of conviction, but the sharp contrast between the two seems contrived. The child's mother rapidly goes from confused-but-undoubtedly-caring to one who thinks googling dyslexia is enough. In fact, the whole parental angle is left considerably half-baked, seeming to serve only for a few good comebacks the teacher gets to make.

Yet, let's discount that as nitpicking. This is the story of the child and his teacher, and Nikumbh stands at a blackboard and shows pictures of Albert Einstein and Abhishek Bachchan and tells us  -- and the kids -- that dyslexia is more common than we think, and that it can be helped given the proper aid. Nikumbh speaks to the faculties, asks that Ishaan be given a little more time, and, after having educating the audience thoroughly on dyslexia, proceeds to charm Ishaan out of it.

Though I really wish Nikumbh didn't confess to himself having grown up with the disability; it makes it feel like only ones who have experienced it can empathise with the condition.

All great, except he does this over the length of one song. There are far too many musical digressions in this film anyway -- and while most are touching interludes to enhance the narrative, they end up stroking what's already been touched -- yet this is wrong in particular, to show and identify the problem and then dismiss it in a manner of minutes. It is all very well to depict that love and care will conquer all, but the process cannot be as simple as making plasticine elephants.

The songs are good, however, and Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy do a bang-up job, as does lyricist Prasoon Joshi. Scriptwriter and conceptualiser Amole Gupte has clearly written a heartfelt script, and his imprint lies all over the film, even visually -- outside of the two final paintings painted by Samir Mondal, all of Ishaan's artwork is done either by Gupte or his wife Deepa, who also edited the film. This is clearly a labour of love for them.

Highly watchable and -- again, because of Darsheel and Aamir's knack for sentimental imagery -- warmly likeable, Taare flounders fatally at the end. Sure, it's okay to appease the masses with a tacked-on and cheesy ending, but for a film which stresses that we need to give our kids their space and not force themselves into constant comparisons, a film which asks them to take their time to find their talents, the climax becomes about a competition, about how winning magically makes everything better. And that's a scary thought, in context of what the film tries to say, overall.

Taare Zameen Par is, above all else, an earnest film. 

Aamir brings us the debut of both a great child actor and a budding director with a fine eye, though he seems slightly Ashutosh'd in terms of pace. Economy is the one thing this film cries out for. Crisper, tighter, and less repetitive, and we'd have a very good movie on our hands. For now, we have a director with clear potential for solid work. And we need as many of those as we can get.

I would be heartbroken if Taare Zameen Par doesn't work

Move over Francois Truffaut, Wong-Kar Wai and Majid Majidi. You too, I guess, George Clooney.

Aamir Khan is here, and he's confident about Taare Zameen Par, his directorial debut. So overwhelmingly confident, in fact, that he doesn't blink when he raves about his own film's sensitivity, and repeatedly hails it as unique, one without parallel "in the history of world cinema." Wow.

And he says this thrice, just in case you missed it the first couple of times.

It takes us a while to get to that point. Before that, we wait for the man himself in his nondescript Mumbai office.

Going by the production calendar on the wall, it is evident Aamir obsesses over detail. The schedule is for a feature called Delhi Belly, and each date is meticulously marked, from days for recce, to casting to pre-production, but the tell-tale document is the one pinned below, a Script Correction chart which details what colour the corrections to the current draft should be made in -- and there are 11 colours listed for the said changes.

We are suddenly told Aamir has run out of time for individual Q&As, and over a dozen of all those waiting are herded into a ridiculously tiny room and told we'll get to chat him up together.

Is Aishwarya Bachchan pregnant?

Is there a Salim on the way? Actress Aishwarya Rai, Jodha Bai of the period epic Jodhaa-Akbar, is "enjoying the speculation" about her pregnancy in the media. And she refuses to rise to the bait. "If I walk too carefully or if I stand with dupatta draped on one side, the media will be rife with speculation the next day. So I am myself, going along with the flow," said the chirpy former Miss World-turned-actress shimmering in a cloud of green chiffon and diamonds.

She was in the capital to unveil a new collection of Nakshatra diamond jewellery, a brand she represents.

She is not even threatened by the return of Madhuri Dixit in Aaja Nachle. "Have you watched Devdas?" Aishwarya shot back when asked how did she take the former superstar's comeback.

Aishwarya is comfortable in her new role.

"This new phase of my life, as Abhishek's (Bachchan) wife, has been special. I have another set of parents in Amit (Amitabh Bachchan) and Jayaji. The goodwill of the media and the people in general also has mattered," the actress said.

The actress is full of memories of Jodhaa-Akbar. "It is a director's film all the way. Ashutosh Gowariker is a committed filmmaker and for me it was another project that I enjoyed. The choice was between two films and Ashutosh was undecided which one he would make first. Then he messaged me one day saying will you be my Jodha. I said why not?" recalls Aishwarya.

There is no special connect on the part of Aishwarya with Jodha Bai, emperor Akbar's favourite Hindu queen, whose identity is still a mystery.

"Ashutosh is not here to give a lesson in history. He just made a movie on the moving love story between Jalaluddin Akbar and Jodha Bai. It is an inspiring story. They were two people, who had an arranged inter-religion marriage despite the fact that they came from different backgrounds," she clarified.

The only aspect of Jodha Bai the actress identifies with is her "silence". "She made her presence felt through her silence and spoke only when she wanted to make herself heard," Aishwarya said.

Speaking about love for diamonds and accessories, she said: "Diamonds were to a woman what cars were to men."

The actress is nostalgic about her first diamond. "I got it from my father. It was a diamond ring which belonged to my grandmother."

The rest of the diamonds she acquired along the way "with experience and they have been priceless".

The new Madhuri Dixit?

Looks like Isha Koppikar may have something in common with another Maharashtrian actress, Madhuri Dixit  .

After struggling for five years in the film industry, Isha has found a mentor in Subhash Ghai . The filmmaker is relaunching Isha in his new production, Hello Darling.

The film is directed by first-timer Manoj Tiwari, and will costar Gul Panag, Celina Jaitley, Chunky Pandey  and Rajpal Yadav.

Ghai had given Madhuri's career a boost with the big hits Ram Lakhan and Khalnayak. The films cemented Madhuri among the top stars.

Isha's last big film was Shah Rukh Khan's Don; even former mentor Ram Gopal Varma's Darling did not do much for her.

Will Hello Darling prove lucky for Isha?

Strangers achieves a rare feat

A Mistress, two Masters & a Servile. I'll have to explain, quickly. Contrary to his claims, Strangers ' debutant director Aanand Rai does adapt the classic Strangers On A Train. The 1951 film was adapted from the debut novel of the Mistress of Suspense, Patricia Highsmith. It took two Masters to make the film itself -- the noir Master Raymond Chandler penning the screenplay, expertly directed by Alfred Hitchcock.

 

Aanand Rai's Strangers treads the trodden path of Bollywood filmmaking's cliche while adapting foreign films -- that is, of opening the film with an extremely dramatic event that is in actuality only an incident, such as one of the protagonists of the film being arrested for a murder of another of the protagonists. I mention this particular, seemingly trivial, malaise because of its total absence in any of the sources that have been borrowed from.

 

After showing us Jimmy Shergill's (Rahul) arrest for -- in all probability at this point -- for Nandana Sen's  (Preity murder, the film kick-starts its proceedings with Kay Kay Menon (Sanjiv Rai) and Shergill sharing a first-class coupe -- and stories -- on a train between Southampton and London.

 

Ostensibly, it turns out Shergill is a struggling writer married to Sen, a girl he fell in love with, pursued, and has now been married to for six years. And Kay Kay Menon, based on the stories he tells, is a businessman of some sort who's been married to Sonali Kulkarni  (Nandini), for over 15 years. Both marriages have been rendered defunct -- one for disagreeing over having/affording a baby, while the other, over the wife's obsession with her dead son.

 

It is at this point that the male-strangers agree on a plan to do away with their respective wives. If not the wives themselves, the men agree to swap killing duties. Being strangers gives the duo the advantage of pulling off a crime, one that would never be tracked-back to their partnership. It is also this very same leeway that potentially can explode if one of the two walk-away from their end of the bargain.

 

While Strangers On A Train has one of the two strange-partners going back on the deal, Aanand Rai's Strangers does indeed proceed with what's been agreed, only changing the killer & the killed. This minor change is brilliantly captured in the last 30 minutes of the film's second half, all the while setting up this major triumph.

 

The permutations can be anything out of a possible 16 options. Watch Strangers to relish the independent update on a revered classic. I've been maintaining the idea of how a film school specialising in Second Half Of The Film should be set-up for the larger good of Indian mainstream cinema. Aanand Rai's Strangers surprises by achieving the rare feat of an Indian film's second half bettering, and even improving over the first half.

 

Kay Kay Menon is back with a role that does only quaint justice to his talents while Jimmy Shergill fits his, albeit with inherent awkwardness. Nandana Sen makes a comeback to the Indian screen with a performance that's impressive and a smile that has a voice. Contrary to expectations, Sonali Kulkarni does not get to do much in the film; she's just a mute fourth.

Now, buzz about Sania and Shahid

Shahid Kapoor, it seems, has gotten over Kareena Kapoor.

Mumbai's local tabloid Mid-Day reported that the actor was seen with tennis star Sania Mirza in a Bangalore hotel.

Apparently, the duo met at the hotel and spent quite some time together.

'Yes, we did meet over dinner on Tuesday night, but we were in a group," Shahid clarified to Mid-Day. "My friend Shriram and a couple more friends were with us. We had dinner at the hotel I was staying in and people must have seen her entering. That's how people must have thought we had something romantic happening. After dinner, Sania went back and Shriram and I spent the night catching up on our lives in my room."

After Shahid's split with long-time girlfriend Kareena, there were rumours of him linking up with Vidya Balan. The two are currently filming Aziz Mirza's next, Lucky Charm.

But Shahid insisted he was 'single and ready to mingle.'

Sania seldom speaks about her personal life in public. The media, however, had gone on an overdrive linking her to Indian tennis player Mustafa Ghouse and Pakistani tennis player Aisam Qureshi.

First look: Himesh is back with Karzzz

Himesh Reshammiya's second release as an actor, after Aap Kaa Surroor, is being produced by T-Series' head honcho Bhushan Kumar. It is a remake of Subhash Ghai's smash hit Karzzz.

Himesh will be playing the part that Rishi Kapoor had enacted in the original. Urmila will play the role that was made memorable by Simi Garewal. The film is being made on an extravagant scale and has fresh tunes composed by Himesh. The actor has also gone for a complete image makeover in this film.

Meanwhile, Ghai has decided against remaking films produced by Mukta Arts himself. "How can I remake my own scripts, when I am looking ahead at newer ideas? But I am sure the remake of Karzzz will be welcomed by the present day generation and I wish Bhushan and Himesh luck."

I'll get 8-pack abs:Sanjay Dutt

All those Bollywood hunks with six packs had better step aside, Sanjay Dutt — the original stud of the silver screen, is back to claim his title.
Yes, Munnabhai who is out on bail, is using every moment of his temporary freedom to get back into real action. "I am enjoying the luxury of time before I get down to serious work," said a charged Dutt who begins shooting for his next film EMI from Wednesday.

And, Dutt has a secret weapon up his sleeve. He's enlisted the services of noted Hollywood training guru Mark Twight to get fighting fit. Twight had trained the warriors in the film 300 and got actor Gerard Butler, who plays the leader of the Spartans, into awesome shape. Butler reportedly underwent months of strenuous workouts before shooting began. Dutt is hoping some of Twight's magic will rub off on him now.

"I have to wrap up some work and by end of February, he is flying down from LA. I will start training with him immediately," said an excited Dutt. He is confident that soon he will get a body that will be Bollywood's envy and his pride. "Just give me six months, and I promise you I will have eight pack abs," added the actor. "Eight pack abs is a new concept here, but in the West, it's not uncommon. You can push your body to get it, but it's a very strenuous process."

He is not insecure or in competition with the league of present hunks in Bollywood. "They all look damn good! I am glad everyone is understanding the essence of keeping fit," said Dutt, adding that working out has always been his first love. "I am an actor not a body builder. Six pack abs don't guarantee success or make you a good actor. Your talent, dedication and a good body adds up to it all. When I say I am going to get a fitter body, it's nothing to do with setting a trend, or that I am preparing for any specific role. I want to see how much I can push my body. It's a new high, a different kind of challenge for a man who loves working out."

Dutt, incidentally, has been an idol and inspiration for many Bollywood stars who today follow the path of fitness religiously. But the past few years, and his legal problems, have taken a toll on that once magnificent body. "I have a strong belief in God, my loved ones, my fans, and most importantly in myself. I will bounce back again," said the actor who has himself been inspired by the likes of Sylvester Stallone and Al Pacino.

Esha just got sexier

The very sexy Esha Deol is hip and happening. Move over Urmila Matondkar; to the back of the class Malaika Arora; as for you, Bipasha — take a break. If you can all do 'item numbers' for Bollywood... why not Esha?

Why not, indeed! Only, the Lady in Red whom AT discovered on the sets of Sunday, prefers not to describe her popping in and out of the film in a dance sequence as an 'item number'. She's doing it for friends, Esha said. "Besides, the number that I am dancing to is kick-ass, and I love dancing, so why not?" she adds.

Meanwhile, the Indian outfits in her personal wardrobe appear to have been replaced by western gowns and mini dresses. "Not at all!" says Esha defensively. "I find saris very sexy.

In fact, I think it's the sexiest of all outfits. In my first film, I had played a very Indian character, but no one really noticed it. I guess my baby-fat overshadowed my clothes then. It's just that people have started noticing me now.

A big thank-you to them! As a girl, when I wake up in the morning and look in the mirror, I want to feel 'Wow!' I want to wear any dress I desire. And today they all fit me! And she looks ravishing in 'em, too, our Lady in Red

Sanjay Dutt, back in action!

Sanjay Dutt will return to film sets on December 12 after a two-week holiday in Goa with girlfriend Manyata. The film, EMI (Easy Monthly Installment), also stars Urmila Matondkar .

 

Dutt was released on bail by the Supreme Court on November 27 after he was sentenced to six years imprisonment by the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act court in July, in connection with the Mumbai bomb blasts in 1993. He was released on bail for a while because the copy of the judgement had not been given to him after it came from the TADA court.

 

Dutt was sent back to Yerwada jail in Pune where he spent about 37 days.

 

The actor is presently in New Delhi to meet his lawyers and is likely to fly back to Mumbai soon.

 

EMI is about a couple who cannot bear the burden of their monthly installments. It will see Dutt with Urmila after their last film together, Khoobsurat.

 

To get ready for the role, Dutt has trimmed his beard and has also hit the gym.

Some decent Kahaaniyan : Dus Kahaaniyan

Settling in to watch Dus Kahaniyaan, one cannot help but worry about how a collection of ten short films is going to play out. Especially since Paris, je t'aime, a concept love note to the city of amour that came off as the worst kind of gesture towards a great city -- a bad one.

I did not have high hopes for what was going to play out on the big screen on this beautiful Friday morning as I settled in to watch what Hansal Mehta, Rohit Roy, Meghna Gulzar , Apoorva Lakhia, Jasmeet Dhodi and Sanjay Gupta had wrought.

Starting out with a story starring Arbaaz Khan and Mandira Bedi was a bold choice. Neither is known for possessing great silver-screen presence and a story about marital infidelity isn't necessarily something that will buy a great sigh of surprise from audiences. Even so, the story entitled Matrimony offered up enough of a twist in its tale to allow me to consider that I might not be watching run-of-the-mill Bollywood fare after all.

The second, High On the Highway was one of my least favourite stories, and the dramatic editing did little to ease the relative woodenness of the story or Jimmy Shergill and Masumeh's performances. To say what it is about would be to give it all away so there is really nothing one can do except wait for it to end.

Pooranmashi might well be the best thing Meghna Gulzar has ever directed. An efficiently enacted tale of small-town excess in the face of 'unbecoming behaviour,' featuring Amrita Singh and Minissha Lamba, this one definitely suggested an upswing in the range and tenor of stories attempted by the filmmakers in this collection.

Strangers In The Night, like the classic song of the same name, does a good job of blending style with substance. Starring Mahesh Manjrekar and Neha Dhupia, and featuring content that intentionally misdirects the viewer, this one delivered the surprise ending fairly intact.

Zahir, starring Dia Mirza and Manoj Bajpai is another one of the weaker films in this collection. Featuring a recently single man and the girl next door, like every other film on this list, nothing here is as it seems but the plot felt more heavy-handed than the better stories in this lis,t and the twist in this tale is more easily predicted than some of the others.

Post intermission, we visit Lovedale which stars Neha Uberoi and Aftab Shivdasani with appearances by Anooradha Patel and Anupam Kher. A tale of love lost (and found), this one again fails to grasp nuanced storytelling. A fairly straightforward rendition of a campfire tale where you see the supernatural twist coming from a mile away.

Sex on the Beach, starring Dino Morea and newcomer Tareena Patel, adds lust to the supernatural and works as a counterpoint in some ways to the film before it. There is a genuine scary moment in this film, helped by sound effects and the rather convincing menace in the leading lady's manner, and a nice epilogue in the form of a tongue-in-cheek appearance by the segment's director Apoorva Lakhia. Neither great nor totally bad, this short comes loaded with cheesecake for male and female viewers.

Rice Plate might be Rohit Roy's directorial debut and the first of these ten stories to directly be connected by the 'inspired-by' tag to material that already exists, but it is still a good story. Featuring Shabana Azmi playing a Hindu lady of South Indian origin and taking us through her quest to avoid contact with people of a faith other than her own, this one features strong performances from the leading lady as well as a masterfully understated appearance by Naseeruddin Shah. With a debut like this, one wonders if Mr Roy might not be better served by a career behind the camera instead of in front of it.

Gubbare is another tale clearly leading to a fairly predictable conclusion, right from the moment we are introduced to the setup in the form of a bickering couple played by Anita and Rohit Roy. Uplifted by Nana Patekar's performance as the person Anita's character picks up a conversation with, the predictability in this case is a comforting blanket that suffuses the story with warmth and grace. Love, loss and the pain of a missed apology makes for a very lyrical tale.

Rise and Fall, the final film in this collection is a highly stylised gangster thriller that evokes the memory of the modern Brazilian classic City of God as much as it harkens back to other efforts by Sanjay Gupta. Highly effective intercutting between the interactions of two youthful 'shooters' with the conflict between adult gangsters played by Suniel Shetty and Sanjay Dutt, brings this stylish effort to an appropriately flashy close.

Along the ten stories that make up this compendium, lives are lost, lives are saved, lives are destroyed and lives are made. People learn ugly truths about others and themselves and we are shown a little bit of what the future might hold if we allow our lives to go the way they are going.

We also are taken through the looking glass into lives we might never even dream of living. Lust, infidelity, the religious divide, crime, punishment and the power of love are the universal themes tackled by the six filmmakers across these ten films and they got it right more often than they got it wrong.

Where filmmakers like Quentin Tarantino , Robert Rodriguez, the Coen Brothers, Alfonso Cuaron and Wes Craven (among others) have -- albeit in ragtag groups, muddled together with lesser directors -- failed to make a watchable compendium of films, Sanjay Gupta and his merry band seem to have succeeded. I am very interested to see what audiences make of a project like this one, but I think it is a foregone conclusion that a sequel will be announced in fairly short order.

Review : Dus Kahaniyaan

Movie
Dus Kahaniyaan
Director
Apoorva Lakhia, Meghna Gulzar, Sanjay Gupta,
Producer
Sanjay Dutt
Cast
Sanjay Dutt, Nana Patekar, Vidya Balan, Neha Dhupia

Sometimes, a short story of 10 minutes or a music video of 4 minutes has a better story to tell than most 2.30 hour movies.

It would be unfair to club Dus Kahaaniyan in the same category as Darna Mana Hai, Darna Zaroori Hai and Salaam-E-Ishq. Not only because the genres are as diverse as chalk and cheese, but because each 10-minute story in Dus Kahaaniyan has something to say. At times, the message is loud and clear. At times, feeble. But there's no denying that Dus Kahaaniyan is refreshingly different from the episodic films we've witnessed in the past.

At the end of the day, it's all about narrating interesting stories effectively. Sanjay Gupta and his team of directors have chosen 10 different stories that are not linked with each another and also don't have a sutradhaar to bind them in one thread. Nor is the finale of each story the same. So let's minutely look at each story and the impact they create.

Rice Plate
Cast: Shabana Azmi and Naseeruddin Shah.
A Hindu woman and a Muslim man's journey over a rice plate. It is about the challenge that the woman faces when a man claims her plate of rice. Will she place her hunger before her beliefs? Maturely handled by debutante director Rohit Roy. Plus, watching Shabana and Naseer after a hiatus is a treat. Shabana is outstanding!

Sex On The Beach
Cast: Dino Morea and Tareena Patel.
Dino picks a worn out book on the beach and its character comes alive into a breathtaking woman. They have a great time together, but suddenly everything changes. The mystery woman has some surprises in store for Dino. Director Apoorva Lakhia succeeds in giving you some chills down your spine. The culmination to the story is eerie. Dino is alright, while Tareena flaunts her assets without inhibitions.

Love Dale
Cast: Anupam Kher, Anooradha Singh, Aftab Shivdasani and Neha Uberoi.
Neha meets a woman in the train who is wearing only one earring. She finds that strange and that chance meeting strikes the change in her life. A story about fate, destiny at play and the notion that one moment can change your entire life. Very identifiable, very true to life. Beautifully handled by debutante director Jasmeet Dhodi. Aftab and Neha are natural.

Matrimony
Cast: Mandira Bedi, Arbaaz Khan and Sudhanshu Pandey.
Mr. & Mrs. Sarin is a happily married couple. The devoted wife meets her ailing aunt every Thursday. But is she really meeting her aunt? A story of betrayal and faith. The twist in the tale, towards the end, comes as a bolt from the blue. Mandira is efficient, Arbaaz is able, Sudhanshu is perfect. Sanjay Gupta shows his expertise as a storyteller.

Gubbare
Cast: Nana Patekar, Anita and Rohit Roy.
After an argument with her husband in the bus, Anita sits next to an intriguing man holding 11 red balloons. This story unfolds a journey within a journey into this man's past, uncovering the key to one of the most important lessons in life. Fantastic performance by Nana. Anita is effective. Sanjay Gupta is in form yet again!

Pooranmashi
Cast: Amrita Singh, Minisha Lamba, Parmeet Sethi and Vishwajeet Pradhan.
It's about the mother-daughter bond. A mother's only daughter is about to get married and she would do anything to make her daughter happy. But an incident changes their lives forever. A brilliant story beautifully handled by Meghna Gulzar. Amrita is topnotch, Minisha is okay. The end moves you!

Strangers In The Night
Cast: Neha Dhupia and Mahesh Manjrekar.
Every anniversary, they narrate the other a secret; this year it's the wife's turn. She begins narrating an interesting encounter with a stranger at the railway station waiting room. What you perceive and what you eventually witness is a sharp contrast. Again, an outstanding story. Neha is first-rate, Mahesh okay. But what you carry home is the culmination. Sanjay Gupta handles the story with élan! High On The Highway
Cast: Jimmy Sheirgill and Masumeh.
The highway symbolised their companionship and their unspoken love. Its unpredictable and volatile turns define this story of two people, who discover the boundaries of freedom and the recklessness of life. Though interestingly handled by director Hansal Mehta, the story lacks meat. Jimmy and Masumeh are competent. Too dark, content-wise as also visually. Overall, mazaa nahin aaya.

Zahir
Cast: Manoj Bajpai and Dia Mirza.
After discovering something startling about his neighbour, a writer is driven to madness. The one step he takes gives this story its required twist. Hits you like a ton of bricks. Manoj is superb, Dia is excellent. Sanjay Gupta shows that he can handle emotional moments with remarkable ease.

Rise & Fall
Cast: Sanjay Dutt and Suniel Shetty.
Two parallel stories run together to meet one end. It is a story about two gangsters, their friendship and subsequent betrayal. Very confusing, looks very theatrical and the action and the subsequent scene only add to the chaos. Gupta and Hansal concentrate more on technique instead of simplifying things. Both Sanju and Suniel are strictly okay.

On the whole, the number of interesting kahaniyaan in Dus Kahaniyaan outnumber the not-too-interesting ones and that's what goes in its favour. At the box-office, the film may not set the box-office afire, but would definitely keep its investors safe given the fact that the film has been sold for more than reasonable prices and also due to the fact that it has the merits to keep you hooked. A novel experience!

Review : Khoya Khoya Chand

It is just so goddamned refreshing to see a period film made with such affection, such glorious reverence.

Khoya Khoya Chand does its best to transport you to the golden era of Bollywood, among archaic lights, melodramatic sets, divas and classic automobiles.

The visual treatment is stunning, and thanks to that and a superbly chosen cast, we get to smell the vintage greasepaint.

And while I profess, increasingly as I think about the film, indulgent affection towards it, I must admit to being clueless as to how the audience unconnected professionally with cinema will perceive it.

Perhaps the in-jokes, at almost every step of the film, will be lost on them. This is an unhesitatingly insider film, Bollywood reflecting on Bollywood, not marked by raw impressions or cynicism.

Then again, the audiences might also, in their potentially awestruck viewings of old-school filmmaking in a lovely film, gloss over the movie's flaws. I'm curious.

This isn't Sudhir Mishra's 8� or his Day For Night, this is his Aviator. It is a glossy, neatly crafted romance set against an era of cinema the director himself is clearly overwhelmed by. The tale is of a pretty young starlet -- who has been more couched than cast, right from an abominably early age -- and her compromise to break into the limelight by giving in to the reigning star. Enter, then, the just-budding screenwriter who tells it like it is, and who she ends up falling for.

It is a fine tale of compulsions and choices, of free will and helplessness, of Filmfare Awards and fat financiers. This is one of the filmmaker's most simplistic films, however, where the characters are clearly-delineated but utterly lack subtext. It is a neat love story, conflicted yet obvious, dramatic and basic -- not that there's anything wrong with that.

The basic problem lies in the telling. While not claiming intimate knowledge with the world of the times, I doubt any of us have ever encountered taxiwallahs who spoke like Guru Dutt in Mr & Mrs 55. The films of the 50s are -- as of any era -- not a depiction of the life and times, but a thematic indicator of the ideas, the romance and the box office of the age.

There is a classic scene in Aviator where Katharine Hepburn takes Howard Hughes to lunch with her family, and while there is much wit and repartee, the conversation is still casual enough to be markedly different from the times they are on the set. Khoya, however, is peopled by the stagy set, by men who raise sinister eyebrows and women who delight in the soliloquy. Even though their conflicts and concerns may be real, they behave filmi.

Soha Ali Khan has the meatiest role seen in years, an author-backed character that requires her to emote and over-emote, to go from merry to melancholy in a heartbeat, and she manages this rather strongly. Sure, she is given unreal lines, but there is a fiery-eyed conviction as she toils on them, visibly straining to stay in character. It is a solid performance, and -- called on to act for probably the first time in her yet-budding filmography -- she delivers. The film rests on her shoulders, yet she manages to look like a pin-up.

More than that (but with much less to do) is Sonia Jehan, a ravishing beauty brilliantly cast as a diva, and in the film's finest scene outdoes herself when she asks, equal parts coy and manipulative, why she should sign a certain film. Classic.

Rajat Kapoor  is super as a star, first debauched then desperate, and Saurabh Shukla's chubby financier gets all the one-liners. Shiney Ahuja is occasionally all right with the intensity, but whenever he has to break the glare, when he has to grin and throw stones at a producer's house, the acting effort shows.

It is a tastily put together film -- much credit to cinematographer Sachin K Krishn -- but is bogged down by a self-pitying protagonist. While I could still be persuaded to not wince through the shot of the director weeping and forgetting to say 'Cut!,' Ahuja's writer-director seems too pouty and kerchief-needy -- even as everything falls into his lap. Um, more or less.

Darn the inconsistency. The film starts off unreal but is being narrated by Vinay Pathak as an assistant director, so you sit back and imagine these are romanticised flashbacks as told by a warmly nostalgic chum, and that imparts an air of Bollywoodity to the proceedings. Yet this character loses his omniscient voice, and we are now left on our own -- but the staginess continues.

I'm fine with the film, outside of Shiney Ahuja and the third act. There is much to smile at and much to applaud fondly, and many a cameo. It is a lyrical film, and -- that title song is magnificent -- the music holds together perfectly. I just wish we didn't have the title cards at the end.

Do go watch it. It is a sincere effort, a work born out of sheer love for the medium, and I earnestly wish we would see more films like this.

Shiney Ahuja: Khoya Khoya Chand is semi-biographical

So do you play Guru Dutt in Sudhir Mishra's Khoya Khoya Chand?
I won't deny that there are quite a lot of similarities. I play a filmmaker of the 1950s and 60s who doesn't follow any set patterns. The kind of films my character makes are very relatable to Guru Dutt's oeuvre. And then there's a romance with an actress of the times. Therefore, it is semi-biographical.

How difficult was it for you to go back to an era when you were not even born?
Very easy. There was my director Sudhir Mishra to guide me. All those questions about how one got into the speech, body language and mood of the era are not applicable to me. Because I never prepare. I go by my instincts on the sets. And with a filmmaker like Sudhir it gets easier. The clothes, dialogues, sets, and overall aura helped, too. I began to believe I was in the 1950s. Often after shooting on the sets, I'd feel I had stepped into the future when I went outside.

Did you watch the films of Guru Dutt and others?
No, none. I didn't do any preparation. I had grown up in Lucknow. Therefore, I am familiar with the 'Nawabi' language.

Do you think the trend of reclaiming the past in our movies is healthy?
Most certainly, if it is done with purely artistic intentions. However, if there's a hidden agenda then it's bound to show up. I loved going back to a time when I wasn't even born in Khoya Khoya Chand and Sudhir's earlier film Hazaron Khwaishein Aisi. I was surprised by how well I blended into the character. To me good acting is when you're not caught doing it.

Were you not born in 1975?
Contrary to reports… no I wasn't born in 1975. Khoya Khoya Chand took me even further back. I loved going into an era I had only heard my parents talk about. Sudhir won't just make audiences see an era, he'll also make them experience it, make them aware of the aspirations and ambitions of those times.

You've also been simultaneously working in Jahnu Barua's Har Pall
No, I wasn't. I finished with Khoya Khoya Chand and then went into the other one. I like to work on one film at a time. After Sudhir and Anurag Basu (Life in a Metro), Jahnu Barua has been a superb experience for me. Jahnu and Sudhir are similar in their passions and yet dissimilar and very different artistes.

How commercial is Har Pall
As commercial as, say, Shakti Samanta's Aradhana, which on reading must have sounded very commercial. And look how artistic it finally turned out! When I read the script of Har Pall, I wondered why Jahnu would want to make such a commercial film. Contrary to his reputation, I found him to have a very commercial sensibility.

How was it working with Soha in Khoya Khoya Chand and Preity Zinta in Har Pall.
Soha is sweet, accommodating and levelheaded. With Preity, it's interesting because she comes from big-banner productions like Yash Raj Films. She brought all those experiences into play in Har Pall.

Though your Bhool Bhulaiyaa is a hit, the reviews weren't too kind to you.
Every director looks for a certain kind of performance. I did what I had to in Bhool Bhulaiyaa. I played to the galleries and blended into the situations in the script.

Are you happy with the way your life and career are going?
If Bhool Bhulaiyaa wasn't a hit, I'd have been very disappointed. Just like I would be disappointed if Khoya Khoya Chand doesn't get me critical acclaim. It could become as successful as Muzaffar Ali's Umrao Jaan.

I believe you command a very handsome price….
I don't command anything at all. I simply accept what I am given. People who want to pay me less than I deserve have created the rumour that I charge an astronomical fee. If I were demanding unjust fees, why would a filmmaker like Sudhir Mishra work repeatedly with me? I am now doing a lavish film, Ek Aur Devdas, with him. I understand the value of honest self-evaluation. I am now doing expensive commercial films. In one of my films, Hijack, a Boeing 737 was hired for 15 days. We have done sophisticated stunts in the film.

So Hijack would be your first action film.
Yes, it has a lot of complicated stunts. I am leaving the country for a film about bikers. I don't think anything like this has been attempted before with me in a totally different look. There's a huge amount of investment in the film and me. And I've to justify my price and presence.

What are your immediate plans?
I am out of the country until the end of December. But I might come back for the premiere of Khoya Khoya Chand.

Taare Zameen Par : Music Review.

Javed Akhtar

It is different - but not different like some tomato ketchup where the difference cannot be described.

The music album of Taare Zameen Par is different because it doesn't have the usual tired and clichéd duets and solos in which Tera Deewana serenades Meri Jaan-e-Mann. It doesn't have that almost mandatory content free "item song" that tries desperately to entertain the public at the cost of coherence. This album doesn't have songs with such frantic tempo that it seems the songs are trying to run away from themselves or where the meaning of the words, if any, is crushed under the heavy boots of cacophony.

The music of Taare Zameen Par is at peace with itself. Here is a music album that carries some heartfelt, sincere, very fresh and extremely original songs. Today when most Hindi film songs are mere assembly line products, this album comes like sunshine on a rainy day and for that one feels like thanking Shankar Ehsaan Loy and lyricist Prasoon Joshi.

Since only a different kind of film can offer different musical situations to the music director and the lyricist and only different kind of situations offer room for different kind of songs, I have no doubt in my mind that a lot of credit goes to producer and actor Aamir Khan who is also wearing the director's cap for the first time. Need one say that such songs could not have been possible in Zinda Jala Doonga or Pyar Hua Too Much!

The songs of Taare Zameen Par are windows to a different story; even as an actor Aamir Khan has never hesitated from exploring the unchartered oceans of narratives and each time has discovered a new continent of success.

The very first song of the CD sets the mood of the album Kho Na Jayein Yeh Kahin is an extremely moving and effective song. There is an honesty and simplicity in the composition and its rendition by Shankar Mahadevan, makes you trust the song.

Prasoon Joshi, who is at his creative best, makes a fascinating collage of similes. The song does not ask you to analyse each simile separately. What matters is the ambience these similes create. The song forms a rainbow of many shades of love, tenderness and compassion and Prasoon Joshi introduces many new similes such as Meethi si Jhapki. The song doesn't end with a bang but slowly fades out, making you feel that even if you can't hear it any more, it is still resonating somewhere.

The second song, Kholo Kholo is another interesting and wholly unpredictable composition. The tune is like a happy, healthy and naughty child who just can't sit still and again Prasoon makes his presence felt with some unusual images like Khootay se bandhi hawa.
The other songs of the album maintain the high standard but the one that strikes the deepest chord in my heart is Ma. Since Alam Ara, hundreds of songs have paid tribute to the mother and yet this song manages to tug at your heart strings by the sheer simplicity of its emotions. The words, the composition and the sincere, guileless singing by Shankar make it so effective. All I can say is that when I finished listening to the song my eyes were not dry.

Shankar is a trained classical singer. Such singers tend to exhibit their vocal prowess and in the process, often kill the real emotion. Shankar has refrained from any such indulgence.

It is not only the rendering of Ma but the music of Taare Zameen Par on the whole has a minimal quality that only Masters of their art with tremendous self confidence can afford. They know how much is enough; you find this minimal quality in the performance of actors like Brando, in the couplets of poets like Meer and in the paintings of artists like Rothoko.

So, here is a music album that is guaranteed to bring a smile to your lips and a tear to your eyes. Here are some songs that tell us that in spite of all the calamities, life is beautiful... I think all of us want to believe that, don't we?

Welcome

Akshay Kumar has reached a stage where currently Shah Rukh Khan is. No matter who is his leading lady, no matter which production house he works with, no matter what the film's genre is, no matter who directs the film and no matter who composes for his films - the fact remains that he is audience's darling and would hit gold in each of his films. His great run in last few years is a testimony to that!

This is the reason why even with names like Anees Bazmee, Firoz Nadiadwala, Anil Kapoor, Firoz Khan, Nana Patekar, Katrina Kaif and Mallika Sherawat involved, Welcome would go down as an Akshay Kumar release. With multiple composers like Anand Raaj Anand, Himesh Reshammiya and Sajid-Wajid involved, it only promises to be an added advantage. However, in case of Welcome, it turns out to be a major disadvantage as the music turns out to be way below the mark.

The start of the album is good. Bring out the trumpets and lay down the red carpet - the celebrations have begun and party is on with the arrival of title song Welcome. The music has a distinct David Dhawan touch to it with the title song of Partner (composed by Sajid-Wajid again) coming closest. Composed as a Western track with a distinct party feel to it, Welcome is a high on orchestra number which has Wajid giving a voiceover and Shaan and Soumya Raoh pairing up to croon the major part of the song. Even though the intermediate portions of the number aren't any great shakes as they turn out to be a routine fare, the music woven around the opening lines if a killer and ensures that there is no dull moment.

It's fast becoming a trend (a healthy one though) to see one composer crooning for a fellow composer. Vishal Dadlani has been doing it for Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, Anand Raaj Anand has done it for Pritam, Shankar Mahadevan has done this for Vishal-Shekhar and others and now he has done it again for Anand Raaj Anand for the number Hoth Rasiley. Surprisingly, the song turns out to be very ordinary as it is excess of sound and fury which kills the impact.

The tune takes numerous twists and turns and a minute into the song, one tends to loose interest into the proceedings. Shankar comes along with Anand Raaj Anand and Shreya Ghoshal to croon this celebration number with an extremely loud Punjabi celebration setting to it. The only thing which can save the number from being a total disappointment is it's picturisation/choreography which may be done in a comic setting.

With Anand Raaj Anand playing the dual role of a composer as well as a singer for this song with Shweta Pandit joining in, Tera Sarafa again belongs completely to the David Dhawan school of music. Nothing surprising here since Anees Bazmee has been a script/screenplay writer for numerous Dhawan movies in the past.

Coming back to the song, Tera Sarafa again follows an unapologetic masti-dhamaal mode with a focus mainly on getting foot tapping beats and keeping the heat on for fast paced proceedings. The USP of the song is Anil Kapoor and Nana Patekar shaking a leg with Mallika Sherawat, though one wonders if the song would have gone any further distance if not for this unique pairing! Ultimately Tera Sarafa is the kind which is heard today, enjoyed mainly due to choreography and forgotten the moment film is off the screens!

Oops, now what's that!? By the time an elaborate 30 second saxophone piece is through and one settles down to hear something soothing, the 90s style arrangements start scaring a listener. If this is not enough, what follows next truly catches you by surprise as Himesh Reshammiya (doubling up as a composer and singer) croons the word Insha Allah in the highest possible pitch!

Heavy arrangements, as has been the hallmark of the album so far, doesn't spare a listener here as well even as Shaan and Akruti Kakkar come together with Krishna to croon some of the most ordinary/pedestrian lyrics from a music album of 2007. Just hear this one - Ab Jism o Jaan Mein, Dil Ke Jahaan Mein, Hai Tera Welcome, Aa Bhi Jaa! Aided by 'dhol' beats, Insha Allah turns out to be a routine 'masala' number which work more visually (that too due to Akshay's presence) than audio-wise!

Kola Laka Vellari - Now this is yet another number where one exclaims - Oops, now what's that!? Frankly, one can't actually comprehend what exactly Kola Laka Vellari stands for. In fact even Google doesn't! The only good thing about this song is that Himesh Reshammiya is far subdued while crooning this one. A moderately paced song, the song has a mix of Western and Indian arrangements though in a trademark Reshammiya setting that made him a household name in last couple of years. A love song with sad undertones to it, Kola Laka Vellari is barely decent but that's about it.

Anand Raaj Anand returns after a couple of tunes by Himesh Reshammiya and creates Uncha Lamba, the opening tune of which lifts has it's references in Makhna [Bade Miyan Chote Miyan]. A number which could well find references in number of Punjabi-fusion-folk tracks, Uncha Lamba has predominant Western arrangements which go well with the current on-screen image of Akshay Kumar. With Kalpana as his duet partner, Anand Raaj Anand gets into a romantic mode with this yet another 'masala' track which barely sustains itself for the situation and that's about it.

With great power comes great responsibility - This can well be true for Akshay Kumar now as well! As mentioned at the very beginning, any film starring Akshay Kumar today is THE Akshay Kumar film. Whatever good or bad, it is attributed mainly to the superstar than anyone else. This is why even the music of Welcome, which is extremely ordinary in any case, will be termed as nothing less than disappointing due to high standards set for an Akshay Kumar film. Though thankfully the film seems to be highly interesting, Akshay fans would have to wait for Tashan and Singh Is Kinng in anticipation of some good music.

Sameera:Saying no to erotica

Just in case you were wondering where the voluptuous model-turned-actress Sameera Reddy has disappeared, here's an interesting piece of news.

The actress says that these days she is on a back foot when it comes to smooching and bold scenes and she has her own reasons for it. In a bindaas interview to NT, she tells why.

Saying no to erotica
The sensuous actress is often referred to as the desi Jennifer Lopez. She says "It's definitely a compliment" but goes on to add that she has decided to go easy on sensuous roles. Her steamy scenes with Anil Kapoor in Musafir had created waves not so long ago. Ask her the reason and she tells, "Indian audience is not yet ready for such erotic scenes. I am definitely not going in for an image makeover, but yes, I won't do such scenes till the audience is suitably matured. All my forthcoming flicks have me playing bubbly, young characters."

Gossip, Gossip
Sameera Reddy has been linked with her co-star NTR Junior, director Sanjay Gupta and a European DJ. Recently she was spotted in Goa with a hunk Shamshul Lalani. Ask her whether we hear the wedding bells in the near future and she is quick to reply, "I just don't like to comment on my personal life. I am concentrating on my career right now." Rubbishing the rumours, she adds, "I fail to understand from where such gossip emanates and I want to put these rumours to rest."

Scoring brownie points
Sameera is on a professional high these days. She is working in Mira Nair's film Migration. Talking about the film she says, "The movie is on AIDS and will be released next year. It's been great working with Shiney Ahuja and Irrfan."

She adds, "I am also appearing with Katrina Kaif, Bipasha Basu and Saif Ali Khan in action thriller Race." Was working with all these topnotch stars tough? Weren't there any ego clashes on the sets? She laughs before replying, "They are all thorough professionals. The women behaved themselves while the boys - Akshaye Khanna and Saif Ali Khan- were busy playing chess on the sets."

Hollywood charm
The actress can't stop raving about her Hollywood connect. "I met George Clooney sometime back and he complimented me on the saree I was wearing and on my traditional bindi and bangles. I also met Shakira, she's very coy and very pretty," says Sameera.

Spooky tales
Ask Sameera what's the most weird thing she has ever done and she is quick to reply. "I sleepwalk and scare people. It's actually very spooky." Narrating an old incident, she says, "I and my friends had been to Mahabaleshwar for picnic and had rented a cottage near a graveyard. Each one of us had many ghostly stories to tell and then we all went off to sleep. Next morning I saw everybody shocked and staring blankly at me. I asked them what had happened and they told me that in the middle of the night, I just woke up and started talking to three invisible guys. Even the boys could not understand what was happening."

Family bonding
The actress is the youngest sister of Meghna and Sushma Reddy. Ask her whether her older sisters bully her and Sameera corrects us immediately, "Not at all! They stay abroad and I just don't find enough time to chat with them. My mom Nakshatra is my best friend right now. She is a supermom and I admire her zest for life. "

Even Madhuri can't save Aaja Nachle

She came, she danced and she returned.

That's right. Madhuri Dixit has gone back to her family in Denver, the United States, after her comeback vehicle Aaja Nachle released over the weekend.

Though Madhuri's acting was brilliant, there were not many takers for the movie.

Some multiplexes recorded 30 percent ticket sales while the scene in single-screen theatres was even more discouraging.

And this despite no other major competition. The only other release last week was the low budget film Gauri.

"Madhuri danced and acted well but she chose a wrong script," said trade analyst Komal Nahta. "The film was anti-modernisation and therefore did not click."

Comparing the film to John Mathan Matthew's movie starring Ajay Devgan and Shahid Kapoor, Nahta said, "Aaja Nachle was on the lines of Shikhar and therefore it did not appeal to masses. The content was poor."

Adding to Aaja Nachle's woes was the controversy over the lyrics of a song. UP Chief Minister Mayawati, while banning the film, termed the lyrics of the title track as casteist. Punjab and Haryana followed suit, but soon revoked the ban following producers Yash Raj Films' apology and the deleting of the objectionable words.

Though the ban did not amount to huge losses, the damage is already done.

"The theme of saving a dancing school was not good enough. Except for Madhuri, the film had nothing to woo the audience," said trade analyst Vinod Mirani.

"Moreover, to the new generation of cinegoers, Madhuri's name does not mean anything so all the talk of a comeback did not make much sense. There was curiosity among the people for Madhuri but when they saw the promos and got to hear about the script, the curiosity was killed," Mirani added.

Aaja Nachle was not produced at a very high cost, and the only star attraction was Madhuri. The producers, hence, are not likely to suffer heavy losses. One analyst, on condition of anonymity, pegged the "maximum loss" at "Rs 5 crores (Rs 50 million) and not more than that."

But it is a big setback for the country's biggest banner, as Aaja Nachle is its fourth flop of the year, after Ta Ra Rum Pum, Jhoom Bara Bar Jhoom and Laaga Chunari Mein Daag.

The only film that did well for Yash Raj this year was the Shah Rukh Khan starrer Chak De! India.

Jassi's Mona eyes Bollywood

Mona Singh, who had captured the imagination of the tele viewers with her much talked about role of Jassi in Jassi Jaise Koi Nahi will make her Bollywood debut next year.

Talking to newspersons in Jaipur, Mona said ''I will make my Bollywood debut next year. I have signed up for a film which will be released next year.''

She however did not reveal much detail about the project and also who will be hero opposite her.

''I cannot say anything more than that. Many surprises are in store for you next year.'' She added.

Mona said, she participated in the reality show Jhalak Diklaja followed by the much acclaimed serial as a 'conscious decision' to bring out her real image as she did wanted to be draped in the Jassi character.

She said ''though the serial has made me what I am today but I don't want to be in an image trap. The Show Jhalak Diklaja helped me to showcase my real self as against the charactor of Jassi. An actor has to be versatile and some times a particular image may harm my growth.''

Asked about her new roles she said ''I have not signed any new serials but will be seen in a new reality show in the pipeline in the name Naya Roop Naya Zindagi to be aired shortly. When asked about the serials she said serials no longer enthuse her.