When I was in India, every morning when I read newspaper, I would come across one or the other story involving a crime by or against maids. For some strange reasons, they continue to persist even though we Indians continue to progress as a civilized society.

More often than not the maids in India end up being the victims although there are times when they are on the erring side too. Sometimes they are accused of stealing petty household goods and at times they become cynosure of all eyes for all the wrongdoings. All said and done this so called “Maid In India” controversy doesn’t seem to die down.

The latest on the list involves a tinch of Bollywood masala. Long story short, the recent Shiney Ahuja rape case – one which shocked the nation, convinced us there is quite a bit of villain among the heroes too. I might be prejudging the case, but going what has been reported in the news it seems likely that Shiney will stop shining for a while. The point is the maids have become a victim of their own circumstances, like most women, in front of their own heroes.

Brings me to the point-Will we, in India,  ever get to a stage where we rely on professional maids for our saaf-safaai ? Can this unorganized sector be made more organised so that crime of this sort can be rooted even before they occur ? Will we, the middle class Indians, can ever live without a maid ?

Well, quite possible…if the government wills. May be its time for the government to step in and regulate that unorganized market  and show a ray of hope to the poor and downtrodden by bringing in professionalism, accountability and most importantly security for the server and the served.

Food for thought ?

Image Credit: Ahron de Leeuw

Popularity: 45%

Today we live a stressful life and movies have become an integral part of our entertainment. I remember few years back I could watch a movie for Rs 30 which was quite under budget. No one really bothered about watching a pirated cassette and none made noise about pirated movies.

But these days people are willing to buy pirated movies than watching the movie in a theater. There are several reasons for that . I was thinking what should be done to reduce video piracy. Here are some of my thoughts.

1) Reduction in Actor Remuneration

How can a hero charge Rs.16 to 20 crores per film? If the cost of production comes down people can afford watching the movie in theaters. I see top bollywood heroes and heroines preaching against piracy. If 50% of the money I paid for watching for a movie goes into paying to lead actors, what right do they have to talk about piracy? . If they charge less production cost would come down and so would be the piracy.

If producers have right to earn Rs.250 crores by making a movie like Ghajini, actors have right to charge more than Rs.15 crores per movie, multiplexes have the right to charge me Rs 150 for each ticket, Rs 60 for a pop corn and 50 for a coke, every spectator will have right to buy a pirated DVD for Rs 30 on a pavement. Folks reduce your profits and reduce the piracy.

2) Improvement in Movies’ Quality

I made the mistake of watching couple of movies by watching the amazing trailers that were played in the break time. Trailers were superb but when I went for the movie it was as stupid as it could be. Why should I spend 1000 rupees for a family on a movie and get stranded with stupid movies, which was not even worth 10 rupees. So come out with good movies instead of coming with silly remakes.

3) Understanding Market Conditions

When market is not ready to pay more, cheap products find place. It is the producer’s job to deliver his product at the right price. Since the prices are exorbitantly high for movies, piracy has seen flourishing. The very fact that a person buys a pirated DVD for Rs.30 to 50, is a clear indication of the acceptable price range for the masses.

When a DVD player costs only Rs 3500, why should a DVD cost Rs. 500+. The cost of a blank CDs and DVDs has reduced considerably but there is not much reduction in the original CDs and DVDs. Producers and Distribution companies should reduce the cost of CD/DVD thereby encouraging people to buy originals.

If an original good quality DVD did not cost more than Rs 50 then there would be no piracy. If the production house distributes its content close to the prices of pirated ones, piracy will have to take a dip. Moserbaer’s initiatives in the right direction is worth emulating. Instead of selling 10 DVDs for 500 each, sell 1000 DVDs for Rs 50 each and you will make the same profit. This network of pirates cannot be wiped out in a few months’ time as it has become their reliable source of income and there is a need to convert them into legitimate distribution centers of entertainment products

4) Availability Of Original DVDs

Production houses should release original DVD to the market as soon as the movies are withdrawn from theaters. The window between theatrical release and the home video release is too wide a gap for people to wait and watch them at home. People don’t have patience to wait for a good movie and they would rush to the pirated dvd vendor or will download a copy from the net. So release your DVD as soon as the movies are taken off the theaters.

I hope the movie makers realize this soon and come up with ground breaking strategies that would help everyone – the movie makers, the audience and the middlemen.

Anyone listening ?

Image Credit: Jacob Botter

Popularity: 21%

One news that caught my attention a few days back was about Shilpa Shetty.

Shilpa Shetty and her boyfriend Raj Kundra bought a 11% stake in Rajasthan Royals for an estimated sum of Rs.83 crores. Wow! What an astonishing figure to pay for a 12% stake in a Cricket Club!

It is not the amount that is bothering me, what bothers me is the “Me Too” tendency amongst the glamour dolls of Indian Film Industry as if there is no other business in the world.

Look at what happened – When IPL started there were just four or five celebrities raring to take the risk. Shahrukh Khan and Juhi Chawla of Red Chillies Entertainment became the lead promoters in Kolkata Knight Ri ders. Preity Zinta and her boyfriend Ness Wadia bought a significant stake in Kings XI Punjab.

Subsequently Tamil Superstar Vijay and actress Nayantara became the ambassador for Chennai Super Kings while Katrina Kaif and Akshay Kumar became the brand ambassadors of Vijay Mallya’s Royal Challengers and GMR’s Delhi Daredevils respectively. And now we have Shilpa Shetty and her beau.

Not that Indian cricket and Bollywood did not have a connection. They definitely had – Sharmila-Tiger Pataudi, Azhar-Sangeeta Bijlani et al are shining examples. We also had the likes of Sandeep Patil, Mohsin Khan (Pakistan) and in the last few years, speedster Salil Ankola trying their luck at Bollywood and/or Indian Television. This trend seems to be growing north. With the launch of IPL last year, Indian cricket seems to have taken a big leap in bridging the gap.

Is this the right thing to happen to Indian Cricket? I don’t know.

Purists will tell you that the glamour industry could take the steam out of Indian cricketers. What happened with Pataudi, Salil Ankola, Sandip Patil and the dozens who tried their hands at Bollywood or their glamour dolls. Purists will also give you examples of dozens of Premier Leagues in Football, Soccer, Basketball, Tennis etc are not well represented by the glamour industry. Why should Indian cricket be an exception ?

The broadminded ones, like you and me , will tend to believe that glamour and cricket are inseparable, for cricket is a religion in India and Bollywood stars are Gods. Cricket and Bollywood are like husband and wife – one can not live without the other. There can be innumerable analogies that can establish this relationship and as long as we have a thriving population of glamour and cricket fanatics, the euphoria of being in a relationship will continue. It is a never ending debate.

The meat of the matter is that we, Indians, love cricket and we also love Bollywood. And when Bollywood Glamour and Cricket Stars promises to entertain the entire nation together, there is only one person who is the most benefited – The Spectator!

Three cheers for the Indian Spectator.

Ashkalakiri ashkalakiri hooh haah, hooh haah !

Ashkalakiri ashkalakiri hooh haah, hooh haah !

Ashkalakiri ashkalakiri hooh haah, hooh haah !

Image Credit: Vijay Bhandari

Popularity: 25%

Remaking a movie successfully is not an easy task, but that’s surely Priyadarshan’s cup of tea. Most of the times we have seen that South Indian movies when made in Bollywood bomb at box office. Priyadarshan proves this theory wrong everytime he does it. Billu Barber, in short, is a complete family movie with some nice entertainment.

Story revolves around village environment just like some of  other typical old Priyadarshan movies. Billu (Irfan) is an ordinary, simple barber leading his life with wife Bindiya (Lara Dutta) and two kids in BudhBuda village. He struggles to meet two squares of the day but does not like getting into debts. All his attempts to improve situation becomes futile.

Apparently rumour spreads in the village that Billu is friend of an actor. There is a parallel story in the movie about Sahir Khan (Shah Rukh) as a successful hero. Life suddenly changes for Billu after this rumour, and all those who scoffed Billu at his current condition tries to treat him nicely in their own ways. Everyone seeks favours from Billu to meet his actor friend. This episode creates a temporary “happiness bubble” in Billu’s family that they start enjoying it.

You have to watch it to see how life changes for Billu, whether he would meet up with his actor friend or not. Movie has some very nice offbeat locales and those dazzling fashion wear.

Conclusion:

It’s been long time since we had a movie that all generations can sit together and watch. This movie definitely falls into this category. Irfan, as always, was effortless in acting and was at his best. Shah Rukh looked much better in this movie than his recent previous ones. A complete family entertainment with some emotional flavour added in the end. Well that’s anyway expected in Shah Rukh movies. Isn’t it ?

Om Puri (as a money lender) and Rajpal Yadav (as a poet) have some very hilarious dialogues in the movie. Songs with Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra and Kareena Kapoor add extra spice. Lara Datta was a surprise as a rustic girl and she lived upto the expectations.

Overall a sweet and feel good movie that you can watch and enjoy it.

Image Credit: Billu Barber

Popularity: 20%

Much has been talked about her performance opposite Aamir Khan in her latest debutant movie in Bollywood. Asin who made an excellent entry into the Bollywood film industry with her latest film Ghajini has won the hearts of many people.

Though she is a well known star down south, this was her first appearance for the Bollywood film viewers. And she has proved herself as a talented actress by her performance in Ghajini. Not to forget that she has given her own voice in the movie.

She seemed like a breath of fresh air in the Bollywood film industry which has been dominated by Rani, Aishwarya, Preity, Kareena etc.

It has been a while since we got to see good actresses from the south delivering roles of some substance in Bollywood movies. Not many actresses in Bollywood get a chance to work in their first movie opposite the perfectionist Aamir Khan but Asin had already got it.

She has bagged her next role opposite the handsome Salman Khan in her next film "London Dreams". The King of Bollywood Shahrukh Khan is also looking forward to work with her. She has done a commercial opposite Saif Ali Khan.

Well what more can an actress who just entered into Bollywood ask for?

Just one movie old and she has been the talk of the town. She impressed the viewers with her performance as a simple bubbly girl and has won many accolades for her role in the movie.

It is said that she has been giving a tough time to many Bollywood actresses, and has become the reason for their sleepless nights. She has suddenly made a new entry into the league of the top actresses in Bollywood.

There have been many new stars making their entry into Bollywood film industry each year. They have been delivering superlative performances in their movies and the competition between the actors is getting tougher by each day. It’s not an easy task to make an impact and survive in an industry like this, especially for someone from a non Bollywood background.

Asin has risen to fame with her first performance itself, unlike many Bollywood actors and actresses who made their debut as popular star kids and gained enough exposure and popularity.

There have been questions in the media if Asin would follow Sridevi’s footsteps as the next actress from the south who will make it big in Bollywood?

Well only time can answer that. And I hope she does it and looking forward for her next performances. Way to go Asin!!!

Image Credit: Wikipedia

Popularity: 15%

AR Rahman, creates history by becoming the first Indian to win of Golden Globe Award. He won this award for excellent background score he composed for the latest movie, Slumdog Millionaire, yesterday, 11th Jan 2008.

The underog called Slumdog Millionaire, sweeped all awards in categories it was nominated for. It won four awards including Best Film, Best Directory, Best Screenplay and Best Original Score.

ARR who is revered as Mozart of Madras has made his presence felt worldwide with this. While his other international works got him a lot of acclaim, this definitely makes him known to folks he was unknown so far.

It was a great day for Indians at Golden Globe as it was not only AR Rahman who was present at the ceremony. Sharukh Khan was the one to present the award to Slumdog Millionaire and was another first of Indian film representation at the awards ceremony.

Slumdog Millionaire is already a favorite for Oscars and may be we are in for more surprises too.

For now… AR Rahman rocks!

Golden Globe Nominations and Winners

Watch award event

Popularity: 18%

I will give credit to Danny Boyle (Director) for handling the movie nicely especially some of the sensitive topics. I will not bore you all repeating about the story, which revolves around this 18-year-old guy from slums cruising towards winning the multi-millionaire game to find his love of life.

The story starts mocking Jamal (the slum guy) on the show referring him as a “chai wala” (a tea supplier) playing who wants to be a millionaire game. He slowly gains confidence of the audience and whole nation when he starts answering all the questions relating them with events happened past in his life. You must watch the movie to see how he relates each answer to the past events. Although its sheer luck factor for Jamal to get questions in the game for answers he can relate. Otherwise a guy who does not know the image of Gandhi on a 1000-rupee note can answer a question about image on 100-dollar denomination. Anil Kapoor as usual acted very well in the movie as the show compeer. Jamal could answer all questions in the game based on past events but the last one. So go watch it how he answers the last question and finds his lady love.

Some excellent performances from all actors make this movie look real and touching. Every kid who acted in the movie leaves a lasting impression. “Feel Good movie of decade”, is how this movie is being promoted and it doesn’t seem exaggerating once you watch it.

Conclusion: Nice movie. Good direction, excellent background score by AR Rahman. But there are couple of disturbing scenes shown in the movie on poverty. Not that they aren’t true, but I guess all these days we have struggled lot to improve our India’s image from “Poor” to advanced state of developing nation. I am yet to see a movie by a foreign director on a new concept other than poverty in India.

Go watch this one!

Rating: ****1/2

Popularity: 18%

Tough task, but I have decided to list top 20 all time best tracks composed by AR Rahman (ARR). Me being a die hard fan of ARR it is very difficult to list only 20.   These are the 20 songs I would never skip when I am playing all of ARR’s songs on my music player. So here you go! and mind you they are in no particular order.

Track Name	Album	Language
Yeh Jo Des Hain Tera	Swades	Hindi
Dil Se Re	Dil Se	Hindi
Jashn – e – Bahara	Jodha Akbar	Hindi
Tu Meri Adhoori	Ghajini	Hindi
Vasta Nee Venuka	Nani	Telugu
Preminche Premava	Nuvvu Nenu Prema	Telugu/Tamil
Hello Doctor	Prema Desam	Telugu/Hindi/Tamil
Prema Prema	Prema Desam	Telugu/Hindi/Tamil
Chaiyya Chaiyya	Dil Se	Hindi
Nahin Samne	Taal	Hindi
Taal Se Taal Mila	Taal	Hindi
Yeh Haseen Vaadiyan	Roja	Telugu/Hindi/Tamil
Dum Daro Dum Daro	Guru	Hindi
Saathiya	Saathiya	Telugu/Hindi/Tamil
Vandemataram	Vandemataram	Hindi/Tamil
Shakala Baby	Mudalavan	Tamil/Telugu/Hindi/English
Do Kadam Aur Sahi	Meenaxi	Hindi
Tu Hain Zubaan	Ada	Hindi
Des Mere Des Mere	The Legend of Bhagat Singh	Hindi
Baadal Jo Aaye	Yuva	Hindi

Phew! If I were to pick one and only one to listen, then it would be “Yeh Jo Des Hain Tera” from Swades.

Ok, Ok, I can already hear you all asking me about Rang De Basanti, Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na and other scores of compositions of ARR. But you see like I said these are my favorites. Please do share your favorites in comments. I am certain this is going to be a never ending list!

Run, get your headphones on!

Popularity: 29%

I am a die hard fan of Salman Khan. I loved watching him in numerous movies, then what is making me think he is copying someone? Read on..

I watch the TV show Friends everyday. In last one year, I perhaps watched all the seasons twice. Of late I started realizing that Joey, a character in Friends played by Matt LeBlanc, is like someone I know. After a lot of thought, it struck me that it is Salman Khan.

Salman, perhaps was very original in earlier movies. Think of Maine Pyar Kiya, Andaz Apna Apna, Saajan, Hum Aapke Hain Kaun. But somewhere in late 90s his style changed, think Judwaa, Hello Brother or even the recent Partner and Yuvvraaj. Other than one or two exceptions like Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, every other film in which he is a brat makes me feel his acts are heavily “inspired” by antics of Matt LeBlanc. Interestingly if you see the timelines of change, they do coincide with the times when Friends became popular.

Couple of my friends shared the same thought when I discussed with them. There have been others who out-rightly rejected my claims. “Why do you always think our guys copy Hollywood, why don’t you think Matt LeBlanc may have been inspired by Salman?”, is what they have to say.

Do you share my views or think otherwise, do share your opinions. Frankly, I loved the old Salman than this new “inspired” version. Hope to see the old him back sometime.

Image Credit: Wikipedia

Popularity: 20%

Starring: Aamir Khan, Asin, Jiah Khan, Pradeep Raawat
Production: Geetha Arts
Lyrics: Prasoon Joshi
Music: AR Rahman
Directed By: AR Murugadoss

Ok, before I begin let me reiterate that Ghajini is not Memento. Expect for the “Short Term Memory Loss”, everything else about Ghajini is different.

This isn’t a standard run-of-the-mill Bollywood affair. It is strikingly different from the first frame. The strength of the movie is its script. It is so well written that it keeps you on the edge all through. You would not get time to think as the movie progresses.

I am not going to talk about the story of the movie as you can see that I am already recommending you to watch it.

I have seen the south version of the movie and I would say it is thankfully a very well made remake. There have been few changes in the script, and they are welcome changes. Aamir did full justice to the role. The hardwork he has put in to look the character is commendable. He looks amazing in both the getups in the movie. Few sequences where he was outstanding were, the hostel scene, the hospital scene and the entire climax. You just get absorbed into the happenings, thanks to Aamir. However I felt Surya excelled in few scenes in the original, especially the ones leading to the whole saga (you will know when you watch). Asin was spot on. She seemed very comfortable. She provides the much needed relief for this dark love story. Jiah Khan was fine. Pradeep Rawat, is excellent as the bad guy.

Another thing that would hit you hard is the stunts, these aren’t something that were perhaps seen in any other Hindi movie so far. Peter Hain and Stunt Siva are the stunt coordinators and have done a very superb job. The fights look real, very real. Though they at times are violent, they seem ok in the context of movie.

Cinematography, Ravi K Chandran has captured some spectacular visuals for the movie, be it the beauty of the dead desert in the song Guzarish or the Steadycam shots from the climax of the movie, they are brilliant.

Music by AR Rahman is a major asset, apart from the songs, it is the background score that adds the feel to the movie, music drives the mood almost through the 40 penultimate minutes. Songs are beautifully picturised. In my music review for Ghajini, I mentioned that I did not like the Behka song too much. But once I watched the movie, it turned out to be one of my favorites.

Murgadoss deserves special accolades for improving his original idea. His script is the king of this movie. He is sure-shot winner for many awards this year.

Production values of movie are lavish. Geetha arts splurged a lot of money on making and promoting. They are certainly going to reap a big benefit.

Finally before I close the review and provide my rating, my words for a few critics, whose review seem to be questioning logical issues in the movie. I think Cinema is supposed to be made with some cinematic liberties. Pointing them out as logical errors in my view is pointless. It is like asking, how come there is background score when two people are speaking. A good effort deserves to be praised.

Just go and enjoy this good cinema, you will not be disappointed.

Rating:****1/2

Popularity: 22%

I wonder if there would be a day where our commercial & entertainment capital Mumbai would be renamed to Bollywood on the lines of Hollywood.

Nevertheless the world cinema today knows only two top names, Hollywood and Bollywood. The language Hindi is considered to be 3^rd largest spoken in the world after Mandarin and English. Statistics say that we produce double the number of movies than Hollywood in a year. So having been 3^rd on the list, what Bollywood  additionally requires to edge past Hollywood? Does it qualify to have its own Oscar counterpart in Bollywood that actors across the globe aspire to be nominated and win the prestigious award? It would be a dream come true for all Indians to proudly associate themselves with our country regardless of their location.

So why are we not able to make headway in this?

• Routine stories
• Same old melodrama mixed with lot of sentiment
• Not much creativity – More of romantic movies less of creativity
• Making movies only with set of audience in mind – no bigger picture

Most of the producers in Bollywood have a mindset of making movies for masses and for youth. I understand that about India’s total population is comprised of 41% youth. But the times have changed, and audience looking for more and more variety. We have seen enough of romantic movies now. It’s high time for our producers to take Bollywood cinemas across borders. Its quite encouraging to see these days international production companies like Sony Entertainment Pictures, Walt Disney Pictures and recently Columbia Pictures investing on Bollywood cinemas.

One of the reasons for Hollywood being on the top is due to variety / creativity of movies it makes. Although there are more non-English speaking nations in the globe, all these movies are dubbed into their own language. I was watching Terminator movie in Spanish whilst I was in Barcelona this summer. That’s the reason why we have so many audience worldwide for Hollywood compared to Bollywood.

What is required for Bollywood to win the race?

• Variety
• Creativity – so that foreign countries can dub them into their own language to watch it. Are you listening all those copycat writers?
• Please do away with unnecessary songs –Hard to dub songs in other native languages. Release the songs as separate pack not in the movie. Cannot tolerate any more people around the world mocking Bollywood is just about dozen people dancing. Lets prove its more to it.

I would like to see world cinema looking up to Bollywood as a prestigious place to work and achieve.

Producers are you listening?

Image Credit: media-studies.ca

Popularity: 11%

India won the Chennai Test against England convincingly enough by six wickets. Sehwag once again proved that a solid start can change the course of the game and the psyche of opponents.

England was, for once, outplayed in the game and it did when it mattered most – the last innings of the match.

Sachin was brilliant. Scoring his 41st century speaks volumes of the cricket left in him, even at this age. He along with Yuvraj paved the way for an Indian celebration.

With that being said, are we now heading for the Top Spot in Test Cricket ?

We have a Captain Cool in Dhoni, a legend in Tendulkar, a Swashbuckler in Sehwag, A wall in Dravid etc who are raring to go and achieve the unachievable.

The question is even with these stalwarts on the side, can we still make it to the top ?

In my opinion we are just a few steps away from reaching the top. As per the latest ICC Rankings, India is placed 3rd only next to South Africa and Australia.

So, what would it take India to reach the top spot in ICC Test Rankings ?

A few wins. No losses – Slam dunk, isn’t it ?!

Let’s dig a bit deeper. What would it take the team to win matches after matches ? I have given a laundry list of “To Dos” which Dhoni & co can work upon…

1. Dhoni should maintain his cool, as he always has been
2. Sehwag, Gambhir & Tendulkar should continue the way they have been performing
3. Middle Order must be consistent even if it calls for a few heads rolling (Rahul – are you listening ?)
4. Zaheer, Harbhajan, Amit & Ishant need to set higher benchmarks and consistently perform
5. Get the team’s mind off from off-the-field issues

Off-Field Issues ?

• Security Guards are meant for your Security
• Who slapped whom & why
• Bollywood Dreams and
• Of course- Of DhoniLakshmi’s Kollywood Dreams

Unnecessary attention diversion, you see..

Popularity: 24%

Before you read this let us warn you that this post reveals the plot of the movie.

King Khan manages yet another romantic story. Shah Rukh’s signature style story of keeping heroines in ‘confused’ state, trying to snatch away the girl from somebody else and some emotional pack continues. If in all his earlier movies he managed running after somebody else’s girl, this movie is little different in that trying to snatch the girl from his own self. Undoubtedly his acting has been asset for the movie.

The movie begins in Amritsar in a Punjabi family. Surinder Sahani (Shah Rukh) is a simple, boring and very old-fashioned guy gets to marry equally opposite in nature girl Taania (Anushka) under tragic conditions. Their marriage becomes conditional and runs on terms. Surinder falls in love with Taania and he slowly discovers that Taania likes guys with heroic characteristics and he plans to bring her back to her original chirpy state; otherwise she was to wipe out her past due to her tragic loss of her fiancée in a road mishap.

All credit goes to Shah Rukh managing this part of the story very nicely in the movie and keeping the audience entertained as an employee of Power of Punjab (a power supplying company)

Taania, a vivid dance lover happens to see a dance competition program in Amritsar and tries to rediscover herself in that competition. This is when Shah Rukh’s new avatar is introduced as Raj. A funky jatt trying to flirt around with girls becomes dancing partner for Taania. Suri as her husband at home and Raj as her dancing partner. Of course it was very foolish to show Taania could not recognise her own husband’s face in new avatar and believes Raj to be a different guy.

Like in all Shah Rukh movies, the story reaches a point where Taania is confused between Raj and Suri and she even gets ready to elope with Raj at one point in time. Little drama after that makes her realise she should stick to the guy she is married and goes back to Suri only to find Raj and Suri the same.

Except some of the high dose emotional packs, the movie is entertaining. Some of the Punjabi dialogues are hilarious and make you laugh instantaneously. Only the title song is catchy in the movie. Om Shanti Om seems to have pioneered a trend of having songs mimicking actors of yesteryear in Shah Rukh’s movies that followed Om Shanti Om. Hope there wont be any fresh controversies like the recent Manoj Kumar’s for the mimic song in this movie.

Shah Rukh looked a bit old pairing with this new heroine. However Anoushka’s contribution in the movie is outstanding. As a new comer she did very well. Good reflexes in dance steps and advantage of her height besides her acting skills would surely bag her new offers from other banners.

If you can tolerate bit of emotional drama, then you will not be disappointed with the entertainment in this movie. Watch Vinay Pathak, he is hilarious as Suri’s childhood friend in the movie.

Go watch this for Shah Rukh.. Happy watching!!!

Rating:***1/2

Image Courtesy: Filmikhabar

Popularity: 20%

The protagonist of the movie is standing in front of a house drenched, waiting for the door to open. A female character opens the door from inside, comes out and is surprised to see the hero. The hero gestures her not to raise voice since others will be sleeping. He then through gestures conveys to her that her daughter is so cute and that her husband is very smart and that the house is a good place to live in. He exclaims and expresses the beauty of rains.

Then he slows a bit. Takes a deep breath and goes on continuing his talk through gestures through which he conveys that he loves her and how deep it was rooted. The heroine, first perplexed, regains her sense and gets emotional and forwards to offer him a hug. The hero stops her and bid a goodbye. He raises his hands in happiness of the feat he made; to convey his love to his old flame of love.

The above scene is from the movie ‘Dasvidaniya‘. The male & female character is portrayed by Vinay Pathak & Neha Dhupia respectively.

Vinay Pathak, the lead actor in the movie is a theatre actor turned movie actor. As per Oscar Wilde theatre is one of the finest and greatest forms of art, the most immediate way in which a human being can share with another the sense of what it is to be a human being. And Vinay is one who truly lives the quotation. From upgrading himself from theatre to main stream motion movie he had given his talent a wide exposure. This is one actor with whom we can relate instantly and never get bored.

Vinay had hosted a show in Star TV with his friend and co-actor Ranvir Shorey called ‘Ranvir, Vinay Aur Kaun?‘ He profiled another feet too when he hosted a show on ESPN called ‘Nokia Football Crazy‘ during the World Cup in Germany. Below are few brief reviews of his acting skills in some of the well acclaimed movies; bet not to miss ever if you are a complete movie freak. List is just put chronologically.

Jism (2003)

In this third movie of his he portraits a character called DCP Siddarth. Though his character doesn’t have a much wide scope for his talent, the role was something to watch out. The concern of a human whose friend is in trouble is very well portrayed by Vinay.

Khosla Ka Ghosla (2006)

Asif Iqbal, the character he plays in this movie is a visa agent. With acting stalwarts like Anupam Kher & Boman Irani stealing the show, Vinay makes it sure that he embarks a notable performance in this flick. The story which is revolving around a plot of real estate fraud deal, its Vinay’s character’s crooked idea that helps the script stay above everything. And no prize for guessing, he had enacted the character so well.

Bheja Fry (2007)

Taxman and aspiring singer Bharat Bhushan is the main reason which makes us sit in front of the screen when the movie is running. Playing a mediocre idiot guy who is being pranked by a rich socialite, Vinay hits the humour nerves of the audience throughout the movie. How fool a man can be and how he can turn around the situations from bad to worse is amazingly portrayed by this guy.

Johnny Gaddar (2007)

Greed, an emotion difficult to portrayed is being easily handled by Vinay in this movie. The character Prakash in this movie can be anytime rated as one of his best performance till date. Though famed as comedian, Vinay gets morphed into a club proprietor with dark shades. Nobody could have pulled out this character this best, if it was not Vinay.

Dasvidaniya (2008)

A movie in which Vinay Pathak entertains you through a character Amar Kaul, an accounts manager who realizes he is left with only three months of life before succumbing to stomach cancer. A perfect to-do-list following person, Vinay’s character lists down his final notes. Scenes of him with Saritha Joshi playing his mother, Neha Dhupai playing his childhood love, Rajat Kapoor playing his best friend were simply done superb. Though a sad ending, his acting leaves us realize the importance of life and reminds us to pursue things which we really want to. A must-watch performance enacted brilliantly.

Few other flicks of his worth watching

• Manoram Six Feet Under
• Buddha Mar Gaya
• Say Salaam India
• Mixed Doubles

As Seneca put it right

Life is like a play, its not the length but the excellence of the acting that matters.

Vinay Pathak truly prove this statement. I am sure, his best is yet to come.

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Mumbai is a city full of scandals, controversies but above all it is a city full of dreams for many people. People come from small villages and towns for its celebrity status, its glamour, and the “Sheheri Babu” syndrome. 

They come with big dreams where they see themselves as Sharukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai or for the matter of fact any other famous celebrity, but is Mumbai everything that they dreamt of ?

Mumbai is a golden city but as it is said that “All that glitters is not gold”, the harsh reality of Mumbai is learnt by these people on the very first day as they come to the city.

The inflated prices, corruption, the problems of boarding and lodging etc prove to be an obstacle for these people. They get to the city but their dreams remain farfetched. Surviving in Mumbai is not an easy task for everyone. People struggle whether they are in the higher or the lower pedestal to stay in the race to reach to the top.

Who is to be blamed for this?

The tough competition or the population boom. Mumbai’s population is approximately 18 million and in the next two decades. It is expected to reach to 28. 5 million that is more than Tokyo’s population which is currently the most populous city in the world. 

Still people are migrating to Mumbai just to be termed as a Mumbaikar, like many Indians want to be termed as a British or an American. Mumbai is getting so populous that within few years the government will have to issue “visas” for coming into Mumbai.

Increase in population has not only worsened the standard of living in Mumbai but has given rise to poverty and many anti-social crimes. Mumbai’s sky rocketing prices of properties, congestion, traffic, lack of space and greenery and many other factors have forced people to shift to suburban areas, but everything has its positive and negative aspects.

Mumbai may not be a perfect city but it is a city where all communities come together not on the division on their respective religions but as a Mumbaikar. During calamities people help each other on the basis of humanity and not on the basis of which religion they belong to.

The Mumbai city has won many accolades from across the border too. This city has gone through many hard ships but has always proved victorious because of the “Never Say Die” spirit of the people.

The second most important aspect of Mumbai which comprises of what Mumbai actually is that whatever happens in Mumbai , this city is constantly on its feet trying to move forward . The clichéd saying that “Mumbai never stops” actually holds true for this city. The best example for this is the Mumbai bomb blasts which happened a few years ago where the city was back to normal within a few hours after the unfortunate blast.

The “Aamchi Mumbai” attitude haunts a person from the very time he steps into Mumbai, thus making him feel as an integrated part of this famous city. Whether its day or night the mysteries of this wonderful city keep on unfolding itself by beautiful surprises with every experience in the city.

Mumbai a six letter city but on a deeper thought it is like an autobiographical book of memories and experiences of thousands of people. This city with its ups and downs has taught people the true purpose and meaning of life and to deal with the highly competitive world. Therefore this city resides in the heart and soul of every Mumbaikar. 

Probably that is why the city is considered as “Mumbai Meri Jaan”.

As I am on the verge of completing this article for India Special, I heard the terrorist attacks that happened in Mumbai today. I bet Mumbai will be back on its feet tomorrow !

The Mumbai spirit will live on and on and on….forever !

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