Apur Sansar

Ram Gopal Varma's Rakht Charitra is a multi lingual film that has been based on true events. The film has been conceived in two parts though the Tamizh version was merely the second part. The second part infact sums up most of what was shown in the first part in its initial minutes. (Note that the film was called Rakta Charitra in Telugu and Ratha Sarithiram in Tamizh.) I doubt if the film has a so called powerful plot. It is just another story of power and revenge and of course the treatment makes use of enough and more gore for the sake of justifying the title! The film is filled with scenes that have been quite neatly written but it is the weird vision of Ram Gopal Varma that makes Rakht Charitra one interesting watch. The film has RGV's stamp all over it with the loud background score, and stunning use of slow motion. There is an irritating voice over to the film as well which narrates almost everything that we see for the sake of maybe the 'Dummies' who are wa...

I had seen My Dear Kuttichathan in 3D when I was very young. It would be more than 15 years I guess but I still have memories of the awesomeness that I had experienced through the stereoscopic 3D then. To revisit the film again upon its 2011 re-release (This was the second re-release of the film. The film is called Chhota Chetan in Hindi and Chutti Chathan in Tamizh.) was an experience that I never wanted to miss. My dear Kuttichathan has been directed by Jijo and this was India's first stereoscopic 3D film. He was also the man who came up one of South India's first 70mm film with Padayottam. I still wonder why Jijo did not make many more films and it is strange that there weren't anyone to carry on the inventive nature in making films in Malayalam even afterwards. My dear Kuttichathan does not have a story credit. But I have heard that it has been based on a short story that was written by non other than Padmarajan himself. It is a remarkable story that the film narra...

Delhi Belly is, an English film that is partly Hindi, directed by Abhinay Deo and produced by Aamir Khan. The film written by Akshat Verma is another tale of confusion and chaos. The witty dialogues and the wonderfully well worked out situations for humour make this an entertaining and delightful watch. It is a comic thriller that works just like one of those Guy Ritchie movies like Lock, stock and two smoking barrels or snatch. The writing and the visuals of the film makes use of a style that manages to blend a 70's retro style and a post 2000 modern style with class. The balance between the styles opens space not just for something not much seen but also for some interesting humour. Jason West has literally made a masterstroke with the shots of Delhi Belly while Ram Sampath comes up with an extraordinary soundtrack that gives total support to the style of the film. With supremely intelligent casting, the makers of Delhi Belly have a clear winner right from the word go. Ofcou...

Amole Gupte was the person who was supposed to direct the Hindi film, Taare Zameen Par, which was in the end directed by Aamir Khan. The film was an exceptionally powerful film that featured a well researched and superbly constructed writing from Amole himself. Amole Gupte makes his directorial debut with yet another film with children as its focus. The teasers of the film revealed students in a similar light of taare zameen par. But the film is different from TZP but yet another brilliant portrayal of the life of a school boy. The film has a very simple storyline and works with only few characters and all of them centered mostly around a school. The writing is makes itself seem plain simple by giving characters that could not be more real. But I'm not quite sure if the ending of the film satisfied me enough though I have a half mind feeling that it was an intelligent ending. The films highlight should be the performance of the child artists in the film. Partho, son of the d...

Kiran Rao is the wife of Aamir Khan and also a writer and director. Her debut film, Dhobi Ghat, is an Indian film set in Mumbai around four characters and one that runs without an intermission. I had to mention that the film did not have an interval because of the fact that most films in India are used to one! The writing of the film may not be liked by all. Some might find the climax of the film rather unsatisfying but to me it worked. The endless nature was well portrayed by the maker. The four leads are likable as well. Surprisingly Aamir Khan would be the weakest if I am to say! Monica Dogra is splendid. She shares the maximum screen time in the film alongside Prateik Babbar, who is no less stunning. Monica Dogra manages to look convincing and makes an impression. Kirti Malhotra plays a small role but that is just as effective as the other characters. But something about her seems incomplete and that was disappointing. AaaPrateik Babbar is totally believable as the dhobi and the fi...

Shaitan marks the debut of Bejoy Nambiar as a feature film maker. I had seen the short film, reflections, he had made with Mohanlal in the lead. Reflections was a weird film and that is what aspiring filmmakers come up with rather than the life of a college student or some shit in those lines! The trailers of Shaitan were underlining that he had something. As Anurag Kashyap promoted Shaitan over twitter I was actually moving to the edge of excitement. On June 10th, I managed to see the Shaitan at PVR cinemas in Chennai. The first 10 minutes of the film with the super awesome with the Bali track from Prashant Pillai, the photography of Madhie and Bejoy's crazy eye for visuals. It was a treat at the cinema. The fight club like shots with the camera moving 180 or 360 degree was pure awesomeness. And the ultra slow motion shots, even better. I loved it all.  I had very little clue as to what Shaitan was going to be about and that was the best part. Sreekar Prasad's slick editing m...

The Waiting Room is a slow thriller. The film is set in a limited environment and there aren't many characters to worry about. The proceedings take their own time to happen and it has interesting plot developments as well. The sound design of the film works effectively in the beginning of the film and also in setting the ambiance of the film later on the day calls in for the night. The rainy setting adds a cinematic flavor and the less use of dialogues keeps the tension on the right side.  But there are some things that does not help the film. The second act of the film seems rather too slow with almost no real plot development happening. The psycho killer who is on the run is too liberal with his killings as I was forced to feel that a couple of kills would have made him more fearful and exciting to wait for. Also there aren't too many characters to suspect the killer to be but even with the limited space the maker has managed to bring a conclusion that wasn't ...

Anushka Sharma is a show stealer. Rab Ne Badi Jodi or Badmaash Company may be two bad examples that could be associated with an actress like Anushka. In Band Baaja Baaraat, I got to see a very lively girl in Anushka who emotes so beautifully to the surroundings making the film more than what it should have been! It is not just Anushka who manages to be brilliant in the film. The newcomer Ranveer is on par with his brilliant performance and shares an extraordinary chemistry with Anushka. The writing with some genuinely interesting humour by Habib Faisal adds richness to the lively performers making the plot and the execution of director Maneesh Sharma just wonderful.  Band Baaja Baaraat is a celebration of weddings! And it is not easy to make a film out of the theme of a wedding. It is not that films on weddings have not been made, there have indeed been many including the classic comedy, Four Weddings and a Funeral. But I truly believe that wedding is an event that is never really ...

I am Kalam is a film that I really loved. It is one of those film that affected me very well in the emotional level. The film is about a young boy, Chottu, who happens to get inspired by A. P. J. Abdul Kalam. The film does have cliched portions such as the spooky story Chottu has to tell to sleep inside a roof! But the story follows the character to new worlds and the plot developments though predictable are just engaging. The visuals and the light humour in the tea shop provide enough entertainment as well. The film did remind me of a few films which where also films that I loved. The boy in striped pyjamas being the one which I was reminded when the two boys interacted and had fun. Bashu, the Iranian film or Kazcha, its Malayalam take, was also a film that I remembered. These memories may have been due to way the story of I am Kalam was narrated by its maker. Through the eye of a child, how different can the world be after all. I am Kalam is a film that children shouldn't miss. I...

Walt Disney can be proud that they have distributed a great movie to begin their proceedings in India. Do Dooni Chaar is a small film with a big heart. Rishi Kapoor, Neethu Kapoor, Archit Krishna and Aditi Vasudev appear in the lead roles in this film. A film tells a beautiful story and the characters are have so much life in them. The events in the film progress at a leisure pace but not once did I feel like taking my eyes of the big screen. There aren't dull moments in this film and that's what makes it so feel-good. The film grows to a new level with the plot development in the second half and has some brilliant scenes. There is even a portion where I felt so much love for what the maker has written. Aditi Vasudev who plays the daughter of Rishi Kapoor performs very well and so does the others in the cast. The film reminded me of the Hindi film, Khosla Ka Ghosla which was also a family comedy. However Habib Faisal's making makes DDC different and it maybe noted that ther...

Love, Sex aur Dhokha was a wonderful film. Three stories of Love, Sex and Betrayal. It may also be seen like the first story was about love, the next about Sex and the third about betrayal. The film works both ways! Khosla Ka Ghosla was one film that I really loved. The director Dibankar Banerjee who made that film made a second film called Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye which I haven't seen. But Dibankar's thrid film LSD is an excellent film in terms of the content as well as the innovation he has made with digital cinema. Having watched a few episodes of the programs such as Emotional Attyachar, I was able to sense an extra life in the film. The references to the television world and the folks who sit for entertainment in front of that box should definitely put on a DVD of LSD and watch! It does not mean that the film is flawless. LSD does suffer some hiccups. The pace of the film seem to alter at regular intervals. Events would seem forced at places. But those are forgettable when the...

Ram Gopal Varma is without doubt one of my favourite directors in Indian cinema just for the reason that he made Shiva, Satya and Company! This along with Mohanlal being cast in the film are the only two reasons why I bought the DVD of aag home and sat through the entire film.  First things first, I also don't believe that Sholay is the greatest movie made in India! But yes indeed it does work as a very interesting film. I remember very little of Sholay now but I do have the idea of the proceedings as I sat to watch Ramu's version. The last one hour of the film and the romance between Ajay Devgan and Nisha Kothari could be considered as one of the most terrifying bit of film making especially because it comes from Ram Gopal Varma. The songs where horrible expect for the track Aag and the background score was simply too loud for me! The cinematography was fine but it did make me dizzy after a while! But Amitabh Bachchan and Mohanlal gave splendid performances though Mohanl...

Vishal Bharadwaj's Kaminey is a classic film targeted at the masses. Vishal Bharadwaj could be a genius. He has handled a movie that could turn out to be a total mess at some other guys hand with great brilliance. He has not only managed to execute the film in style but also taken care of the music, screenplay and dialogues of the film. The plot of Kaminey is simple. The construction of the plot is where Vishal and his team has made the magic. As in a Guy Ritchie film here we travel with one character and then at a point slide over to another. The action as in a Quentin Tarantino movie is gonna come hitting at you as hard as you have ever imagined a Bollywood cinema to be (and the better thing here is that you have very less blood compared to QT)! What makes Kaminey have the class is the the fact that it is truely cinematic. Kaminey is a true film and not a hindi film. Vishal Bharadwaj has been able to communicate with his film very universally with the brilliant dark visual t...

Taare Zameen Par , written by Amole Gupte and directed by Aamir Khan, will make you cry not because it's bad but because it's really good! Taare Zameen Par centers around Ishaan Awasti played to perfection by Darsheel Safary. With such a brilliant performance in debut, I could remember only one other person- Ayesha Kapoor, who was mesmerizing as a deaf and blind girl in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Black . Taare Zameen Par does star Aamir Khan, but the movie belongs to Darsheel all the way. But the highlight of the film is nothing but Amole's script which took him seven long years to complete. Definitely the pain he took all those years is fantastically visible on screen. TZP does have it's shortcomings. Too many songs, though worth hearing and having some really good lines, tamper the narrative to a very large extent. The movie even moves at a snail pace in the second half. But, Aamir who takes the director's chair with creative assistance from Amole creates a be...