Phata Poster Nikhla Hero

 The story is ridiculous with the plot hinging on monumental coincidences and songs patched in between scenes there was no way to connect. At one point while his mother is dying, the hero is dancing (with utter conviction) in an item with Nargis Fakhri as she croons "Main chidiya firangi, tu desi mosambi". The love track between Shahid Kapoor and Ileana d'Cruz is merely a footnote that relies heavily in dreamed-up song sequences. At a key juncture, the mother comes visiting from the village to check up on her son's progress as a police officer. He is forced to, in turn, replicate the situation from Munnabhai MBBS where he must act as one. They pass it off as a joke in PPNH, but underlining the source in your dialogue, doesn't give you the license to rip off the idea for a large chunk of your film.

There are good bits too, though they're almost all in the first half. The depiction of the police - Darshan Jariwala, Zakir Hussain, etc. is rather fun. But Santoshi gets ambitious in the second half and contrives an end involving biological weapons and countdown timers and eventually goes into another zone from where there's no turning back. If only he'd maintained the tone and accessibility from the start, we'd have a stronger film.

Shahid Kapoor turns up with a high energy, much improvised performance that fits perfectly for this particular movie. He seems to have had a blast because, really, anything goes. PPNH is the kind of film where a gun is pointed at him and he breaks out into a hilarious dance before going on to beat up the baddies. Could an actor have more fun? Then there's Padmini Kolhapure who has a larger, more significant role than the heroine d'Cruz and well, when your template is the 70's Bollywood's ubiquitous, 'Ma' - there's not much to effort to put in.

Essentially a gimmicky two-star film that entertains in bits, a half star extra for Salman Khan's epic, self-deprecating cameo.Phata Poster Nikhla Hero is a caper comedy that rides on pop culture and, in full awareness, cliches. Rajkumar Santoshi tries to put an original spin on the South-Indian film remake formula that Bollywood is besieged by. He attempts to mock it by getting rid of all "serious" elements and keeping it firmly in the comic zone. Unfortunately, it stops being funny after a while.

The film opens with an 80's-style prologue where a starry-eyed kid who wants to be a film hero is raised by a mother who intends for him to become an honest police officer. It's been maybe a decade or more since we last saw a film driven by a mother-son relationship at its center (these days we seem to be hung up on heroes with complex daddy issues) complete with melodrama including hospitalization, threats of self-poisoning, and absolute redemption. Is it fun or innovative? No. Does it evoke nostalgia? Maybe a little.

The Lunchbox

  It takes very little to shake up these seemingly unshakeable lives. A mis-delivered dabba, terse notes that are unwittingly humorous, harmless suggestions effecting a profound impact that create a beautiful mystery kindling - it's difficult to call it 'love' yet - an inexplicable intimacy. It also changes the way they interact with the world. Ila finally leaves the confines of her flat, she questions the futility of life and order. Fernandes blossoms as a human being, even affording his co-worker, Aslam Sheikh, a smile.

Aslam's character (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) might seem an anomaly at first. All secondary characters mostly stay and transact off-screen. The camera usually stays on Ila or Fernandes, but Sheikh - the new recruit deputed to fill in Fernandes' shoes - is the exception. For one, his track bolsters the narrative and gives it a spark in the form of Siddiqui. And second, it firmly makes The Lunchbox about Fernandes.

Batra's direction is impeccable and the final cut goes well beyond the screenplay. Tension builds, humor edges in, and drama unfolds in restrained measures. There isn't a single aspect you could change to better the experience.

There is a sacrosanct approach in detailing the characters and the spaces they traverse. Frames are meticulously set up, without being ambitious at any point. His transitions are superb, simple. It's almost as if Batra wants you reach for the subtext by keeping the visuals uncomplicated. Despite the hundreds of films made in Bombay every year, there has hardly been one more true, more authentic to its city that The Lunchbox.

But Batra's big achievement is modulating every performance to perfection. As it is, a director's greatest challenge is to continually keep actors aware of their graph and mood in the context of the script and each other. Now imagine doing this with a couple in entirely different locations yet communicating in synchronous pitch.

To top it off, The Lunchbox has some twenty-odd producers, co-producers, and executive producers' name attached to it. From Danis Tanovic to Anurag Kashyap to Karan Johar, could a list be more diverse? This is how all films should be made. Support from across the board, with zero compromise on the director's vision.

Is this really a first feature? Incredible.

Irrfan Khan is in tremendous form, and delivers a fine, nuanced performance. He enjoys the freedom the indie format provides, taking his time, allowing space for the emotions to form into expressions that don't need support from dialogue or further exposition. The typical mainstream film would never have the patience for such a thing. Nimrat Kaur is excellent in her first release, an utterly unselfconscious effort. She barely has any face-to-face interactions, yet she commands the screen with confidence. And is it possible to not like Nawazuddin Siddiqui in any role he takes on, particularly an endearing one like Sheikh's?

I watched The Lunchbox twice over a few months and can testify that it has a high repeat quotient, the final confirmation that was required for a perfect rating. There's buzz of an Oscar selection in the Best Foreign Language Film category. India will be hard-pressed to find a more deserving nominee.Could a simple lunchbox and its contents change lives? One of the best films to come out of India in a long time, director Ritesh Batra answers the question in his little masterpiece, The Lunchbox.

Ila (Nimrat Kaur) is in a loveless marriage, but lives in equanimity springing from ignorant bliss. Her rituals are hectic, identifiable. This is her life, a view restricted to her Malad East home's windows. She rushes against time to dress her daughter for school, waits for the dabbawala's cycle to show up, interacts with her neighbor (who we never see) across floors through a series of loud conversations, a basket on a pulley to facilitate the exchange of masalas, and a shared taste in music. Then there's her cooking.

Fernandes (Irrfan Khan) is also a creature of habit, but crafted out of careful choices that may have crept up on him. In the last days before his retirement after 35 years of service in a government office, little has changed for the widower. An evening cigarette in his balcony overlooking the happy Christian family across at dinner, wearing the same track pants, always opening the top dabba of his lunchbox last. Always.

Thriller’s big suspense

Anil Kapoor is planning a major casting coup for his ambitious television project, 24.

The crime thriller is set to get a shot in the arm with a cameo and three veterans, Rishi Kapoor, Naseeruddin Shah and Kamal Haasan are in contention.
A source close to the development told Mirror, "The creative team of 24 have zeroed down on three actors. The role is quite complex."

 

The show has not begun yet but Mirror has got the low-down on the cameo, which will be central to the plot.
 "The character will be introduced towards the last few episodes of the first season and will be shrouded in mystery until a surprise reveal in the second season, when it will acquire major proportions," said the source.

As of now, Rishi is contender number one, though his name has not yet been finalised.

Bollywood slams service tax man

 The Film and TV Producers Guild met with R Shekhar, Service Tax Commissioner and Sameer Wankhede, Deputy Commissioner, Service Tax, over the week to air their grievances. Before the meeting, the Guild's President Mukesh Bhatt had accused the department of selectively targeting the film industry.

"I am going to ask the department to stop the witch hunt. The filmmakers are not paying taxes, not because they don't want to but because the process is a complicated one and they need to be educated about it. The department needs to engage us instead of targeting us. There are so many other industries defaulting on service taxes, why do only the names from the film industry get flashed in the media.''," he had then quipped.
 Post their discussion, though Bhatt told Mirror that the meeting was fruitful, Wankhede said, "We have given them time till September 30 to make corrections. As far as withholding their names is concerned, that will be the Commissioner's call. We have no personal agenda against them but we can't stop our work."

With the meetings apparently failing to broker peace, the film industry is now backing Bhatt's claims of a witch hunt. Mirror spoke to many insiders and among them senior producer Pahlaj Nihalani did not mince words while accusing the department of foul play.

"Their conduct is appalling. They are selectively targeting Bollywood personalities and then naming and shaming them in the media. There are plenty of bigwigs in the list of defaulters but only those from the film industry make it to the negative headlines" he said.
 Director Rensil D'Silva endorsed Nihalani, saying, "Bollywood celebs are soft targets and that is the only reason this is happening," and Kulmeet Makkar, the Guild's CEO echoed similar sentiments.

Nihalani was also quick to accuse Wankhede of publicity mongering saying, "Samir Wankhade used to be with the customs authorities and during his stint there, Bollywood celebrities were targeted and the details of their trouble were quickly relayed to the media."

But Wankhede maintained his stand, and said "Let's get this straight. We are doing no wrong in declaring the names of the defaulters.The public should know what is happening. We send out press releases on every defaulter. If Bollywood celebs get highlighted, it's not our fault," he said in a conversation with Mirror.

Meanwhile a seminar to make the film industry understand the laws of service tax, was organised by the Guild and the chartered accountants of top studios and actors including Aamir Khan, Disney UTV, Eros and Reliance were in attendance among several others. Accusations of a witch hunt fly but officials maintain their 'duty' stand.

Here is a feud no one saw coming; it is Bollywood versus the Service Tax Department.

Anurag Kashyap, Ram Gopal Varma, Vivek Oberoi; these are some of the filmy names who have found themselves in a tax noose in the recent weeks and their defaults have promptly been splashed across headlines.

Rattled by the raids in their offices and their names being leaked in the press, the fraternity had a series of meetings with the department.

‘Marriage scares me now’

When it comes to Bollywood, out of sight is definitely out of mind. There was a time when producer Gaurang Doshi was collaborating with industry bigwigs like Amitabh Bachchan (Deewar) and Akshay Kumar (Aankhen), but personal strife soon overtook his work. A tumultuous divorce, reports of an affair with a starlet and accusations of domestic violence were followed by a self imposed exile. Mirror finally coaxed him into a meeting and during a conversation at his Andheri office, Doshi spoke to us about his plans to make a comeback.

Your last film Deewar hit the theatres in 2004. Where were you for so long?

I went through a very rough time in my marriage. And I didn't want to make a film when I was not in the right frame of mind. I decided to go to London and LA to learn more about filmmaking. I didn't want to spoil my name, banner and reputation. I decided to bide time.

What went wrong in your marriage?

Sometimes people stop getting along after a certain point of time. That's exactly what happened between my wife (Madhuri) and I.
But your wife accused you of dowry harassment and domestic violence and you were convicted...

Yes, she did. But it wasn't true. She has said in her petition that she lived a Queen's life with me. Tell me, why would I demand dowry after living with her for 10 years? And I wasn't put in a lockup. Yes, I was detained at a police station and then I was out on bail. Anyway, it's all over now. Life is a learning experience. Deceit and attack can come from the most unexpected quarters. Today, we are divorced.

Are you in touch with Madhuri? And where is your daughter?

I am not in touch with Madhuri. Our daughter is with her.

Did you have friends who stood by you in your moment of crisis?

Not really. I had so many friends and thousands of contacts but when I needed them and looked around, they were all gone.

Buzz was, you were besotted with a certain starlet Flora Saini ...

No. She was a part of another plan to defame me. Misunderstandings were created between my wife and I. There were people around her who were poisoning her mind. A girl who comes from a simple background tends to get carried away by glamour and parties. Money is such a thing that... (Trails off)

Do you mean that you weren't at fault at all? Weren't you very flamboyant then?

All I can say is, it takes two hands to clap.

Are you in touch with Flora?

Not at all. Good luck to Madhuri and Flora, both.

Do you still believe in the institution of marriage?

No. The thought of remarrying scares me.

Lessons learnt? ...

I got married at 22. One shouldn't marry at such an early age, even if you're wealthy and successful.

So what are your plans now?

I have announced a film on the anatomy of marriage which Prahlad Kakkar will direct. Then I have a very big film coming up, which I shall announce soon. I am glad that I took a break. I am rejuvenated now. But still, I shall ensure that I make my films sensibly. I shall never forget my roots. I will never forget the day Amitabh Bachchan agreed to do Aankhen for me. I just went to the sets of Aks and told him that I had something brilliant for him. He asked for a four line narration and when he said yes', I didn't know how to react. His blessings have always been with me.