Thriller on toast

For a suspense-thriller, the Talaash sound track is pleasantly bereft of brass-and-horns-blaring spy music. After scoring the sparkling Delhi Belly and chiming in neatly for Aamir Khan’s popular talk show Satyamev Jayate, composer Ram Sampath rustles up a gratifying soundtrack that enjoys circling around love rather than hover around mystery.

    The seductive, lingering ambience of Muskaanein Jhooti Hain doffs a hat to the crime noir OSTs via a simple yet charming tune. Deep notes of an upright bass set the tempo for a jazzy, bluesy slow jam, fired up by Suman Sridhar who sounds like a foxy enchantress. Many may feel the mood mirrors Mikey McCleary’s Bartender ‘Bollywood-reinvented’ songs, but Ram sprinkles enough minor notes and smoky synths to cue this one into the whodunit genre. Javed Akhtar’s fine lyrics provide the icing: Lak inhi galiyon mein…In masli kaliyon mein..Toh yeh dhoom thi: Jo rooh pyassi hai…Jis mein udaasi hai….Woh hai ghoomti: Sabko talaash wohi…Samjhe yeh kaash koi. At 3.20 mintues, it ends sooner than you’d want it to but is still the zaniest of the lot.

     Hona Hai Kya is the lone ‘suspenseful’ number, almost screaming out its need to be mysterious. The electronic arrangement though stylishly pulled off may seem a tad overbearing for some, and there’s more than a fleeting resemblance to snatches from Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy’s Don. Ram’s vocals are effective but there’s little intrigue in this one to keep you coming back for more.

      The vibrant Jiya Lage Na sounds eclectic in its expansive atmosphere of a free-flowing bandish tempered with racy electronic. Sona Mohapatra sounds endearing as always, Ravindra Upadhyay puts up a cool show and Akhtar’s pen lends voice to the longing: Main muskaoon, Sabse chhupaoon, Vyakul ho din-rayn…Kab se naa aayi naino mein nindiya, Mann mein na aaya chain.

     Soft keys, bass and guitars hum a melody of lovesticks wistfulness in Laakh Duniya Kahe, which charts a route similar to Delhi Belly’s Tere Siva. But the sincerity in Ram’s voice and a charming chorus is what takes this standard soft rock ballad a notch higher. Javed Akhtar’s lines comje off like a lyrical sequel to Tum Ho Toh from Rock On!! but are soothing nevertheless: Laakh duniya kahe, Tum nahin ho… Tum yahin ho.

      Again, Jee Le Zaraa is your regular, dime-a-dozen indipop fare that stands out mostly for Vishal Dadlani’s smoothly-jagged vocals. The lyrics are an uninteresting spiel on how your heart is asking you to ‘live’ life, while the remix is strictly passable.

      While it’s tough to deftly follow up a refreshing, tren-bending album like Delhi Belly, Ram stacks up a sleek, above par tracks-list for Aamir’s next. There may not be standouts here and yet there is much to indulge in, if good music is what you are in talaash of.

Poor Little Rich Kids

For most of the first half, Ajab Gazabb is a drab advert for DC’s Avanti, a vehicle in the supercar category rubbing shoulders (strictly in the looks department) with the Lamborghinis of the world. It’s finely worked into the plot with Dilip Chhabria’s initials changed to an unimaginative Dream Car. There, I plugged it too. The set up around it is overly simplistic: super rich boy has a literal love- at-first-sight moment with a girl he spots across the escalators; she’s the pseudo-activist type who hates rich people, a rather strange affliction. Boy pauperizes his family and himself to win her over. A predictable twist on one of the classic Bollywood rich-poor divide romance themes, it turns out there is more to Ajab Gazabb Love than the framework suggests.

    Making the film thoroughly mundane by interval point are run-of-the-mill songs with dozens of bikini-clad bodies aboard yachts in the Italian Riviera; some random referencing of “issues” such as midday meals, the relevance of Gandhi, rich-poor debates, and why Gangnam Style is actually the ultimate wedding sanget song (okay, not that last one); and other such filler items punctuated by irritating sound effects that ultimately only propel the plot at a snail’s pace.

    Yes, however, the second half is hilarious. This is mostly thanks to the appearance of Arshad Warsi, who completely steals the show with his one-and-a-half scenes. Aiding him wonderfully in his second release of the week and in a double role is Arjun Rampal. His easygoing performance here pays off and is more impressive than the intense act in Chakravyuh and the deft handling of the double role (with many physical interactions) is superbly directed. Sanjay Gadhvi hits his stride as the writing suddenly turns engaging and incisive with its international stereotyping and humour. Nothing intellectual of course, just quick, purposeful crafty situations that the actors pull off with much better timing than you’ve come to except from proceedings in the first half.

     Jacky Bhagnani as usual plays himself, Nidhi Subbaiah is as limber as frozen kulfi forgotten in a freezer. The pick of the actors are easily Warsi and Rampal. If you like light comedies and if you can put up with a boring first half, some preachy-teachy moments, and a gamut of clichés, you can change AGL. I certainly laughed a lot in the second half. You might too.

What MAMI didn’t get right

When the 14^th edition of the year’s Mumbai Film Festival was announced at the National Center of Performing Arts (NCPA) in September, it left most in the audience smiling. Additional sponsors, scenic  South Mumbai venues, and rare films from across the world meant a bigger, better feast for film lovers. The Jamshed Bhabha Theatre, a majestic venue that can fit 1109 guests and is the first choice for operas and the most prestigious Western classical music performances, housed eager cinema lovers looking to enjoy cinema without coughing up thousands. Quite a change from last year where viewers would be turned away from a packed house, or have to leave a film mid-way to queue up at another screening hall. The film selection was top-notch, presenting the best of Cannes and Toronto, not to mention screening restored silent films accompanied by a live orchestra. And yet, there were glitches.

LACK OF INFORMATION

Some of the big films that drew crowds from far suburbs were cancelled at the nth hour. French film Amour, one of the most anticipated this year, was canned just two hours before it was meant to be screened, and shown on a late date. Lyricist and film enthusiast Varun Gover says technical snags proved frustrating. Viewer Shaila Rajadhyaksha, who caught most of the films at Cinemax, Sion, said not a single MAMI representative was present on any of the days.

ENTRY CONFUSION

Although all viewers were excepted to register in advance to acquire a press or delegate pass, Inox multiplex, which had deducated all five screens to MAMI screenings for the week-long fest, introduced an entry ticket system. If you wanted to catch a movie at any Inox screen, you had to queue up at the box office, and acquire a ticket (1 per person). This meant that if you wished to catch four films back-to-back, you’d have to make a trip down after each screening. Filmmaker Kushan Nandy says, “They must issue tickets at one go, and not on the same day as the screening. At the Toronto International Film Festival, e had all our tickets in hand a week before the fest kicked off. This ensured that everyone standing in queue could walk in for the screening, and no one was denied entry.”

TECHICAL  SNAGS

Srinivasan Narayanan, festival director, attributed cancellations and rescheduling to digital cinema packages getting corrupted due to overuse at prior festivals held in other cities. The other reason was the Key Deliever Message (KDM) not reaching the venue on time. A protected password, KDM is used to protect a film form being pirated. Narayanan said the organizers didn’t have a large enough window to run checks before screenings.

AWKWARD HOSTS

Festival volunteers who were given the task of playing emcee, and announcing the names of films and directors that had won awards were amateurish, and unfamiliar with most names. The anchor for the opening evening struggled with most names including that of acclaimed filmmaker Zhang Yimou, who was to receive the lifetime achievement award.

MASTER CLASSES IGNORED

Although the fest included a series of master classes, that were essentially lecture-workshops held by experts in their field, most went unnoticed since they were announced way past their starting time or just before the screening of a film.

Kamal Haasan, Mani Ratnam reunite after 25 years

After their 1987 classic Nayakan, the actor and the director didn’t work  together again… till now

The 21 st of this month marked completion of 25 years of Nayakan aka Nayagan, the 1987 Tamil film written and directed by Mani Ratnam and starring Kamal Haasan. The cult classic based on the life of gangster Varadarajan Mudaliar was given pride of place in Time Magazine’s ‘All time 100 Best Film’s for 2005. Strangely though, after this critically acclaimed project, the two mpovie maestros never really came together. However, all that is about to change now.

    We’ve learnt that Kamal and Mani will be reuniting to do their next film although it doesn’t have  anything to do with Nayakan. Rumour has it that after Nayakan’s runaway success, both actor and director became too big in stature to be accommodated in one film despite being family. Fact is, Mani is married to Kamal’s elder brother Charu Haasan’s daughter Suhasini. It was only when Nayakan completed a quarter of a century that Kamal and Mani spoke at length and decided their collaboration would have to happen ‘now or never’.

    Kamal confirmed the news and said, “Mani and I did speak when Nayakan turned 25. I am not at liberty to divulge the details of our conversation. All I will say is, the answer to the question that haunts both of us – why not another film together after Nayakan? – will soon be answered. Nayakan is no doubt the most influential film of my career. I suspect Mani feels the same.”

    We hear the upcoming film is likely to be a Hindi-Tamil bi-lingual.

Lata to launch her music label

Having started at the age of 13, Lata Mangeshkar has been singing for nearly seven decades, mesmerizing millions with her golden voice. She has sung for four generations of heroines; an unparalleled phenomenon in Hindi cinema.

     And while she no longer sings as much and often as she used to, at least not in Hindi films, there’s no taking the music out of the country’s favourite songstress. The legend, who turned a glorious 83 on the 28^th of last month, is now gearing up to launch her very own music label next month.

     A source from the music industry told Mirror, “Lata didi lives for music, and she has been working on this plan for long. Initially , she was to launch her music label this month but due to big tragedy in the family, it was postponed.”

     Indeed, words cannot begin to describes the Mangeshkar family’s tragic loss. On the eighth this month, Lata’s sister Asha Bhosle’s 56-year-old daughter Varsha  Bhosle committed suicide at their Peddar Road residence, Prabhu Kunj. A pall of gloom descended upon the Mangeshkar home. Both sisters were in deep shock and grief and for days on end, had stopped appearing in public altogether. Needless to say, the launch got delayed.

    Lata’s music label won’t be associated with film songs. Said the source, “She has had enough of film songs to her credit. The music label associated with non-film songs is entirely her brain-child.” And it will be a business enterprise.

    An official announcement in this regard is expected sometime early next month.

CHANNELS SAY NO TO ADULT FILMS

SAY THEY WON”T BUY AY BOLLYWOOD FILM CERTIFIED ADULTS_ONLY BY CENSORS

In a fresh blow to filmmakers, four major broadcasters have decided not to purchase ‘A’ rated films. Not even if the producers in question or the censors slip the objectionable portions and hand them a modified version to be broadcast.

      What has precipitated this decision is the fact that advertisement revenues of satellite cahnnels have fallen considerably in the past whenever they have telecast ‘A’ films. Reason being these flicks have to be aired post 11pm.

      And it doesn’t end there. The broadcasters have made it crystal clear to producers that in the event they purchase a film well before its release and it then gets rated A a week or two before hitting theatres, they will be left with no options but to terminate the contract.

     Confirming the development, Jayantilal Gada, CMD of PEN India, the acquisition agency for Zee TV, told Mirror, “We have decided we will not buy an A film. We hardly bought any films in the past that were unfit for family viewing. Zee TV is a family channel and it has decided to remain so always. Besides, why indulge in investment where neither the returns nor the viewership is according to expectations?”

      The film industry was in for a rude shock on Thursday when Sony Entertainment Television, which has been a lead player in broadcasting films with ‘controversial’ content, categorically told some filmmakers about the channel’s new policy. Mahesh Bhatt told Mirror, “A very highly placed representative of Sony told me they had taken a decision they would not buy films that get an A certificate from the Censor Board. She said even those films that are modified to a U/A rating for TV viewing will not qualify.

      While Sneha Rajani, Sr Executive VP and Business Head from Song refused to revert to our calls and text messages, another producer on the request of anonymity said, “Some channels have taken a big beating for airing sexladen movies. They are answerable to their audience which is why this drastic decision.”

     Said Bhatt, “This will create chaos in the film industry. Makers will have to do a rethink on content.” Said Hemal Jhaveri, Executive VP and GM-STAR GOLD and Movies OK, “We are not buying A films.”

     On September 21, 2012, Mirror had reported how the recent  spate of big productions failing to meet box office expectations (Don 2, Agent Vinod, Mausam) had forced broadcasters to change their mind. At the time, a majority of them had already decided to buy film’s satellite screening rights only after the audience had decided its fate on a Friday. As such, filmmakers were already under the stress of having to prove their mettle at the box office before demanding their share of the pie from satellite channel owners when this fresh trouble has now hit them. At the time of going to press”, Mirror had also confirmed that even Colors had taken a similar decision.

Of Right and Wrong, Left and Right

Prakash Jha makes commercial films. Prakash Jha makes films on social issues of vital importance to the country. These statements are both true and not mutually exclusive. Writing in a Sameera Reddy item number in a narrative that is dealing with a sensitive and crucial national crisis like Naxalism is no easy task. To top it off, Jha and screenwriter Anjum Rajabali handle the issue delicately; walking a tightrope of a carefully crafted balancing act that presents both sides with equal oppurnity to make their case.

     Do Naxals ruthlessly target and kill policemen with alarming frequency or is this an act of self-defense against a if-you-miss-I'll-hit kind of situation? After all, the brief to the men in uniform is clear: annihilate. And what is the stand of the government? Allow corporations to displace (they'll claim 'rehabilitate') adivasis and mine away minerals resources for the progress of the nation? Or earn nothing and spend instead on the upliftment of a few? Should they protect the decision to hand over swathes of land to MNC's by sending in the army (remember an army only protects a country from its external enemies; it's police who maintain law and order) and effectively brand the Naxal uprising as a war on the state itself? Chakravyuh poses all these questions and defines the problem for the common (and often unenlightened) citizen. He does this using a popular and likely format: cinema, but an unlikely treatment: commercial cinema. And he pulls it off.

      Jha chooses the mole-in-the-enemy camp route. You've seen this plot device in many films, though interestingly the closest parallel may be drawn with Cameron's Avatar where commercial considerations outweigh concern for an indigenous people who are destroyed by machines and guns. The one who had been planted becomes part of the other as he understands and accepts their philosophy.
      Kabir (Abhay Deol) is the plant and he's to help his best friend Adil Khan (Arjun Rampal) track the movements of the Naxals. They've been causing problems for the builders of the new Mahanta steel plant at Nandighat, a fictional town in Chhattisgarh and the corrupt politicians of the state unhesitatingly put uniforms on the job to quell the uprising. Unsurprisingly Kabir is taken by their cause and idelogy and works against the police. Until the very end, the upright Khan and Kabir make their arguments to keep the issues in equilibrium. Both are right, both are wrong. Come to think of it, there is corruption in the ranks of the Naxals too.

      Despite this, Jha takes a stand(amiss in his previous Aarakshan) and tilts his sympathies in favour of the Naxals leaving behind a spate of clues that point in this direction. For starters, the evil MNC is called Mahanta, which I suspect is a thinly veiled version of Vedanta, of which ex-Home Minister P Chidambaram - the man who declared an internal war on the Maoists - was on the board of. The private armies of the MNC who flatten homes of hapless villagers carry saffron flags and are clearly right wing goons, as far away from the Maoist left as possible. He shows us images of these villagers and this is not only for the drama. We're to feel their pain too. In fact, his protagonist Kabir is the only character to have passionately engaged on both sides of the fence and is the only man to be in a position to understand all aspects of the argument. He makes his choice and sticks with it to the very end.
     The film is massive. Hundreds of coordinated extras fill up scenes. Yet, one feels Jha's method is getting somewhat repititive. The technical formula that served him well so far is beginning to look dated with an overall neatness missing. Do such films need item numbers any more? Must the effectiveness of the message come at the cost of style? But then again if a Bhansali can produce a Rowdy Rathore, give me a Chakravyuh over it any day.
     Watch this film for it's lucid, dramatic presentation of a nation's problems. The commercial aspects notwithstanding, at the heart of it, Chakravyuh is the first effective film on the Naxal-Maoist question.

' I didn't get Aamir on board because Kiran is my friend'

Talaash director Reema Kagti in conversation with Mirror

It's been six years since your last Honeymoon Travels....
  I had stopped counting. But you certainly haven't (smiles). It was a forced sabbatical. I was working on a couple of other scripts apart from Talaash and things weren't working out. I was getting really frustrated.

So who or what was the claming influence?
Zoya and Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Siddhwani from Excel Entertainment. They told me,'Aisa hota hai. Hang in there' (pauses).

Go on...
We took the script to Aamir Khan. And I didn't think it would happen so soon (smiles). I was participating in a poker tournament in Goa. One day, I woke up at nearly 4pm having played the previous day till late. That's when I saw umpteen missed calls from Ritesh and Zoya. I was delighted.

Expectedly, you lost the next game?
I crashed out of the tournament in no time. I was so happy I wasn't able to focus. Ritesh had even fixed a meeting between Aamir and me but I couln't reach in time. However, Aamir was gracious enough to send me a text saying, 'All the best for your tournamnet'.

And then?
I approached Rani Mukerji. She is very exacting but finally, she was convinced. Kareena too took her time before giving her nod.

We hear Aamir pulled a lot of strings?
I've known Aamir since the time I was an Assistant Director on Dil Chahta Hai and Lagaan. I would be working with a tyrant. Yes, he had inputs. But as a lead actor and producer, doesn't he have the right to contribute? Even Farhan had his share of contributions. That's how films are made. No filmmaker can ever say he has pulled off any of his works singularly. And Aamir's inputs were honing the film; they weren't something I couldn't deal with.

But the film got delayed quite a bit...
I couldn't just edit the film myself and release it. I had to show it to several people at several stages. That's how it works. And Talaash was a difficult film to edit. It made me sit long on the edit table.

You made all your lead actors go under water?
Aamir jumped into the lake right away but Rani developed cold feet. We had to make her use devices that would keep her afloat and not let her sink below the waist. Later though, she got it right. As for Kareena, she is a better swimmer than Rani and even Aamir.

We hear Shah Rukh Khan was supposed to do Talaash...
i don't want to discuss something that didn't work out. Some things work out, some don't (shrugs). Lets talk about real issues pertaining to Talaash.

Issues like?
They want me to insert tickers in smoking scenes. Heroine was allowed as it had up to 40minutes of smoking and so much cannot be cut. Tabacco and cigarettes are sold at every nook and corner. I myself am a smoker. The only way I will stop smoking is if you ban the activity in the country. Why can't they understand such a simple thing? Believe it or not, I called up the censor Board to ask for the guidelines before I shot the smoking scenes and at that time, there was no 'ticker' rule. Anyway, it doesn't make sense...You can show rape but objections are raised over scenes depicting consensual sex. God...

Finally, the inevitable question. Did you get Aamir on board easily just because you are Kiran Rao's friend?
Yes, Kiran and I are very good friends. But I think it is known how Aamir works. He doesn't work the way you are hinting. I have answered your question.

JASPAL BHATTI (MARCH 3, 1955 - October 25, 2012)

'How can fate be so cruel?'
Just a day before his film Power Cut starring his son hits theatres, Jaspal Bhatti dies in a road accident

On Sunday, celebrated filmmaker Yash Chopra breathed his last, three weeks before his directional Jab Tak Hai Jaan could hit theatres. Four days later comes news of the demise of Jaspal Bhatti - the man who popularised satire as a form of social protest - just one day before his film Power Cut starring his son Jasraj opens to audiences nation-wide. Bhatti (57), died in a road accident at 1.30am on Thursday. He was travelling from Bhatinda to Jalandhar along with Jasraj and Suril Gautam (Yami Gautam's sister) for the promotions of his film.
     Talking to Mirror, Bhatti's close friend Darshan Bagga (Punjabi flim actor) said, "They were travelling together and there was a sharp curve ahead that they didn't quite see. Their car hit a tree and Jaspal, who was sitting in the front seat next to Jasraj, suffered severe head injuries. He died on the spot."
     Compounding the tragedy is the fact that Jasraj makes his acting debut with Power Cut. Said Bagga, "Jaspal was so excited and proud of the film. He was just waiting for Friday. He wanted to see his son on the big screen. How can fate be so cruel?" Indeed on October 21, Bhatti had posted on a social networking website, "Do watch the first day first show of Power Cut movie this Friday."

     The cops took Jaspal's body from the scene of the accident to a nearby hospital even as Jasraj and Suril followed suit, hoping he might survive. "But they declared Jaspal dead as soon as the body was wheeled into the hospital. Jasraj was in a state of shock. He couldn't bring himself to speak to his mother (Savita Bhatti) till long after the doctors confirmed Jaspal had passed away," said Bagga.
      Bhatti graduated from Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh, as an electrical engineer. He was known for his street plays during his college days. He worked as a cartoonist for The Tribune in Chandigarh before foraying into television. His television series Ulta Pulta and Flop Show broad-cast on Doordarshan in the 80s and 90s re-wrote the rules of small screen entertainment.However, Bhatti wasn't too comfortable in the Hindi film industry. Sagar Bellary, who worked with him in Hum Tum Aur Shabana said, "He would forget his lines and forced me to do several takes. While I lost a lot of raw stock, it was worth it just because of the warmth, wit and masti he brought into his cameo. I feel Bollywood didn't really recognise his talents." Boney Kapoor, who cast Bhatti in two of his films, is shocked. "What was refreshing about Jaspal was that unlike many other comic actors, he never tried to be funny all the time. Once the camera was off, he was a sober suave gentleman and a good conversationalist," he said.
     Veteran actor Kader Khan who played Jaspal's best friend in the Rishi Kapoor directed Aa Ab Laut Chalen, has fond memories of him. "Bahut lajaawab aadmi they. Ek aur saathi chala gaya. This year, we've had so many losses," said Khan.

     Divya Dutta, who hosted a comedy show with Bhatti, and met his wife Savita just a week ago, can't believe he's gone. "Yash and Bhatti, two of the finest people I worked with, gone within a week...Just the other day, his wife told me Bhatti sends a big 'Hi' to you. And now this...," she trailed off.
    After the post-mortem in Civil Hospital in Jalandhar, Bhatti was cremated in Chandigarh yesterday evening.

Tamannah is Tiger's heroine

Neither Athiya Shetty nor Issabelle Kaif will play the lead in Heropanti. Nadiadwala finalises the South superstar

After months of speculation as to who will play the leading lady opposite Jackie and Ayesha Shroff's son Tiger in his debut film Heropanti, we've now learnt south superstar Tamannah is producer Sajid Nadiadwala and director Sabir Khan's chosen one.
    Earlier, a section of the media had reported that Suniel and Mana Shetty's daughter Athiya was being considered for the part. Next, there were rumours Nadiadwala was talking to Katrina Kaif's daughter Issabelle for the role.
    A source told Mirror, "It is finally Tamannah they've zeroed in on. The earlier reports were all rumours. Tamannah will sign on the dotted line in a day or two. The search for the heroine of Heropanti is definitly over."
    Added the source,
"Tamannah did not take long to say 'yes'. She knows Sajid is a sensible producer who knows his job. Also, she has full faith in Sabir's directional abilities."
    Heropanti, a love story set in North India, is excepted to go on goes on floors by end of 2012.

Chetan Bhagat turns film writer

First, he persuaded close buddy Sajid Nadiadwala to take over as director of the Hindi adaptation of the Telgu blockbuster Kick (2009). And now Salman Khan has convinced author Chetan Bhagat to write the film's screenplay. When contacted, Chetan said, 'I've known Salman from the time of Hello, the movie version of my novel One Night At The Call Centre. I wanted to work with him ever since. While we could easily regurgitate the entire Telgu film into Hindi, the challenge here is to restructure the original screenplay. When I saw the original film, I loved it but I felt there is potential to take the content deeper. Sajid too makes his directorial debut with Kick. I've shared a comfort level with him ever since he got the film rights of my novel 2 States. His vision for Kick is huge. I hope I am able to make his vision come true." 

     On his part, Sajid said, "I am really happy to have Chetan to write the screenplay and Rajat Arora to do the dialogues. I didn't want to turn director without being sure of the writing..."