Top Bollywood movies

Since AM is away, I spent my Friday night and all of Saturday watching movies, given how much it snowed today and I could not step outside. I am always looking for lists of Bollywood comedies, off-beat movies, and classics to fill my time, so I decided to do one myself. Here goes…

Bollywood comedies – some of them are completely mindless and slapstick. A lot of them are with Akshay Kumar, he is my favorite comedy actor. Years back when I went to get my US visa in India, I had to take an entire wedding album of photos to prove that I am married since I wanted a dependent visa, the guy at the counter asked if my the guy in the photos was Akshay Kumar instead of AM, haha, I was quite flattered, so silly. Not that Akshay is the best looking guy, but he plays comedy so effortlessly, and his performances during award shows are so energetic.

1. Delhi Belly – I can watch this movie again and again, it has toilet humor but is so so hilarious, the dialogues are so funny. Amir Khan never disappoints. And it doesn’t have people breaking out into a song out of nowhere, there is a 30 seconds song in the middle and one at the end. The film falls in the category of Hangover.
2. Chalo Dilli – Offbeat and satirical, it stars my favorite actor, Vinay Pathak, and Lara Dutta has changed for the better these last few years.
3. Andaz Apna Apna – The funniest movie ever and a classic, totally mindless though. Wish Amir and Salman would get over their egos and do a sequel.
4. Hera Pheri – Another classic comedy (slapstick) that brought Paresh Rawal, Sunil Shetty, and Akshay Kumar together, the rest is history. The sequel Phir Hera Pheri is not as good but has its funny moments.
5. De Dana Dan – A laugh-out loud riot with Akshay, Sunil, and Paresh back together. Akshay is a housekeeper for Archana Puran Singh, a cruel employer, and he pays her back at the end. A comedy of errors.
6. Houseful – Akshay never disappoints, another comedy. Akshay is unlucky for everyone around him and has a hard time keeping relationships till he finds the one. It is completely slapstick, but I enjoyed it.
7. Malamaal Weekly – This movie has classic old actors such as Om Puri and Paresh Rawal, both can carry off a movie even today. The movie revolves around a dead man winning lottery and the rest of the village wanting a piece of it. I lost count of how the amount would be distributed…
8. Awara Paagal Deewana – This is a copy of The Whole Nine Yards. It is very slapstick, so watch this only if you don’t mind a mindless film.
9. Chup Chup Ke – This is an under-rated film and came right after Jab We Met starring Kareena Kapoor and Shahid Kapoor. A very nice movie, but like usual Bollywood films the end became mushy and unrealistic.
10. Hungama – Another mindless comedy flick from Priyadarshan. His movies promise a laugh-out loud hilarious ending, no matter the rest of the film.
11. Bhagam Bhag – Slapstick, debut of a new slimmer and more stylish Lara Dutta.
12. Hulchul – Very loud but has some funny moments.
13. Dhamaal – Another slapstick movie but if you like Arshad Warsi it is funny. I would skip the sequel Double Dhamaal.
14. Welcome to Sajjanpur – A highly entertaining and simple film about a village letter-writer and his love trysts.
15. Bend it like Beckham – A sweet look into an Indian family that moved to the UK. The only Keira Knightly move without her smug-face.
16. Monsoon Wedding – A sweet movie about family, love, and a feel-good ending.
17. Chameli Ki Shaadi – A very funny old movie, Amrita Singh is hilarious.
18. Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron – Another classic, black comedy.
19. Gol Mal – The old one released in 1979, one of the funniest old movies starring Amol Palekar directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee.
20. Padosan – I like Sunil Dutt and he was amazing in this movie, really funny.
21. Chupke Chupke – Another funny oldie directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee.

I will keep adding if I think of more.

Good, some offbeat (new-age) films

1. Black – Serious and slightly depressing, about a woman who is deaf, mute, and blind.
2. Khamoshi – Excellent actors, but serious. Nana Patekar is a brilliant actor as is Manisha Koirala. Manisha is a beautiful singer but both her parents are deaf and mute.
3. Tanu Weds Manu – A charming movie, Kangana looks gorgeous.
4. Udaan – One of my favorite movies, bitter-sweet, depressing moments with a very positive end. This is one of the most heartfelt movies I have ever seen emerge from Bollywood. I wrote a review about it.
5. No One Killed Jessica – A good comeback for Rani based on a true story about Jessica Lall.
6. Tahaan – A very charming film, the little boy steals the show. My review is here.
7. The Blue Umbrella – A very sweet film, Pankaj Kapoor as usual delivers his best.
8. Jab We Met – The charming duo Shahid Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor come together for this one. Rumor has it they broke up while shooting, but they continue to ooze chemistry on-screen. An American friend’s favorite song is “Nagada Nagada”.
9. Swades – Slightly serious, but a very charming and patriotic movie, takes me back home. It performed better overseas than in India due to its nostalgic tone.
10. Chak De India! – A must-watch about a hockey coach’s comeback.
11. Bheja Fry – A copy of the French movie Dinner Game.
12. Dasvidaniya – A poignant and sweet movie starring Vinay Pathak.
13. Khosla Ka Ghosla – A trying time for a family.
14. Mithya – A comedy version of Don.
15. Johnny Gaddaar – Talk about irony.
16. Being Cyrus – I loved Saif, Shabana, and Naseeruddin in this.
17. Corporate – The first time I took note of Kay Kay Menon.
18. Mixed Doubles – This is a bit serious but tackles a serious subject of couple swapping. It keeps the viewers wondering, did she or didn’t she.
19. Kaun? – A thriller from Ram Gopal Varma, Urmila overacts a bit.
20. Rangeela – This is one of my favorite movies, and it put Urmila on the map. The songs are amazing, AR Rahman at his prime.
21. Omkara – A story about Othello.
22. Maqbool – A different take on Macbeth.
23. Company – Mumbai underworld by Ram Gopal Varma.
24. Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Naa – A cute take on friendship turning to love.
25. Band Baaja Baaraat – Two partners turn from lovers into rivals.
26. Tere Bin Laden – A hilarious underrated movie based on a Bin Laden look-alike.
27. Dil Chahta Hai – Amir’s movies are always classics and so much fun to watch even after all these years, and the songs are amazing. He is like Peter Pan, the boy who never grew up, he always makes movies for the youth.
28. Ghajini – Wonderfully acted, another one from Amir. Serious but very interesting.
29. Hum Tum – Not one of the best films, but good time pass about men vs. women.
30. Taare Zameen Par – A serious story about dyslexia.
31. Earth – A story during riots when a jealous boyfriend acts out.
32. Rockford – If you grew up in a boarding school, you will relate to this one – a very good movie.
33. 3 Deewarein – A good suspense movie from Nagesh Kukunoor.
34. Karthik Calling Karthik – The final wedding song used in the TV show Outsourced was from this movie (uff teri ada). An okay movie to watch when you have nothing else, it has some suspense.
35. Lagaan – Another classic by Amir Khan, a truly inspiring movie about cricket and an attempt at sending the British back with their tail between their legs.
36. Prahaar – Madhuri looks so natural in this movie. Nana Patekar is at his best. A slightly serious film.
37. Bluffmaster – A light movie.
38. Dostana – I really liked this film, its funny and has good songs. Abhishek and John have amazing chemistry, and their Koffee with Karan together is a must-watch. I hear there is a sequel in the works.
39. Lage Raho Munnabhai – While I was not too crazy about the prequel Munnabhai MBBS, this sequel is very entertaining. Arshad Warsi steals the show.
40. Life in a Metro – Another offbeat decent movie.
41. Rajneeti – A brilliant cast, Ranbir brought his acting chops to this one. A good political movie. Katrina looks too old for Ranbir though, he needs to work with younger actresses.
42. Rocket Singh – Another Ranbir movie. I liked 3/4th of the film, the ending was poorly done, but worth watching once.
43. Outsourced – I chanced upon this movie after watching the TV show Outsourced, its such an under-rated film, and quite charming.
44. Sarfarosh – Another charmer from Amir Khan.
45. Wake up Sid – This is a very light film, a love story about an older woman falling in love with a younger man. Very light and average.
46. Jhankar Beats – Another charming under-rated film.
47. Pyaar Ke Side Effects – I don’t like Mallika Sherawat and she cannot act to save her life – she should stick to item songs. But Rahul Bose steals the show in this decent movie.
48. Kaminey – I like this one only because of Shahid Kapoor, he does a very good job in a double role.
49. Sardar – I am including this one because AM likes it – I haven’t seen it yet. According to him, Sardar was very practical during the partition of India and Pakistan; Nehru, on the other hand, wanted partition to fulfill his own desire to become Prime Minister, while Gandhiji was always against partition of any sort. In the fight for power, Sardar stood, an unsung hero, the most practical of the lot. Had he prevailed it would have caused India much less grief from the spurts of riots that continue between Hindus and Muslims. Totally AM’s opinion, not mine. Its on my list to watch.
50. Border – No list can be complete without Border. Its a very heartfelt movie based on a true story where the bravery of Indian soldiers protect an area of Punjab from Pakistani attackers. Akshaye Khanna made his impressive debut.
51. The Japanese Wife – A very charming Rahul Bose movie where he tries his stint in long-distance relationship with a Japanese. The visuals are very calming and pretty.
52. Zubeidaa – An art film with a great cast in Rekha, Manoj Bajpai, and Karisma Kapoor depicting the tug of war between a wife and a mistress.
53. Water – A Deepa Mehta movie, it shows the plight of widows. I had to watch it for John Abraham.
54. Jodha Akbar – A stunning portrayal of the relationship between Akbar and his wife. Hrithik and Aish ooze chemistry, and the visuals and fashion are all very stunning. Breathtaking!
55. Choker Bali – An art film starring Aishwarya Rai. She looks beautiful.
56. Mujhse Shaadi Karogi – Another slapstick movie starring Akshay Kumar and Salman Khan.
57. Fashion – Starring Priyanka Chopra, the film is about the rise and fall of fashion models. It is a serious film and gets unrealistically emotional at the end. Of course Priyanka could never walk in Paris, their models are stick-think, “almost” anorexic, while Priyanka has a healthy figure.
58. Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara – The movie is a decent watch for an afternoon at home, kind of like Dil Chahta Hai but less funny, like Hangover but less slapstick, it is loosely based on The Hangover. Farhan Akhtar is fantastic, he plays comedy and serious roles perfectly, Abhay Deol was quite good too as always.
59. Taxi No. 9 2 11 – Good entertaining movie starring Nana Patekar and John Abraham. A remake of Changing Lanes.
60. The Namesake – A serious and heartfelt film, I love Irfan Khan in general and he plays the role of a patient father and husband quite well. Based on a book by the same name by Jhumpa Lahiri.

3 Idiots does not make my list because even though it was a top grosser, the pregnancy scenes were over the top and unrealistic, I would not watch it again. Rang De Basanti also started off well and then went into an unrealistic mode.

Roja and Bombay are good movies as well, just not at the top of my list.

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3 Idiots, the movie

I watched 3 Idiots on its release date 12/23. I have been waiting and waiting for this movie – Amir Khan is my favorite actor and ALL his movies are amazing in every way – acting, direction, songs, etc. 3 Idiots was not up to Amir’s level. I have come to expect nothing but perfection from him, and this one was not. I expect it to do well though because it is overall a good movie.

First, none of the songs were good except for “All is well” and”behti hawa sa tha woh”. All the other songs were boring. He usually uses AR Rahman’s music for all his films, not this one. Second, the story was stupid, cheesy, and totally unrealistic – not like Bollywood movies are realistic, but still. Third, pregnancy scenes. I hate pregnancy scenes in general because they are gross and show women in the worst possible manner. Fourth, sending the hero to martyrdom. I am so sick of Bollywood heroes playing the martyr in movies. This movie had plenty of that.

Now for the good part. Amir was adorable and has not aged a day. He has maintained his youthful look. There are many funny parts in the movie. Amir’s movies have day-to-day humor and friendships that last a lifetime. The humor is what keeps this movie alive and a must-watch at least once. And Kareena’s Indian dresses – she looks adorable in them.

The story is based on Chetan Bhagat’s book – loosely based. The entire film was shot in IIM-Bangalore. Amir and his two closets friends are students at the best college in India, ICE (ahem… based on IIT). His friends cram for the exams, a big problem with the Indian education system. Their parents put a lot of pressure on education and going to the best colleges (again so typical of India). Parents want their kids to be doctors or engineers. The movie is based on this pressure felt by kids and problems with the education system that encourages students to cram to pass in exams rather than inculcate in them a desire to obtain knowledge. Amir is different – he is there just to obtain knowledge, and comes first in class on that basis alone. His friends always come last. They are all so naughty, and the principal played by the lovable Boman Irani is fed up with their tactics. Amir Khan falls in love with Kareena who is Boman’s daughter and a doctor.

After Amir and his friends cross a line by stealing an exam paper set up Boman to fail one of Amir’s friends (BTW Kareena gave them this info and the key to Boman’s office), Boman rusticates them from the college. The same day the city is flooded with rains. Boman’s older daughter (Mona Singh) is pregnant and needs to be driven to the hospital. (Another blip – Mona Singh looks like Kareena’s YOUNGER sister, not older). No taxi will take them in the floods. This is when the story goes downhill and gets oh so cheesy. Instead of taking Mona back upstairs in the house, Amir and his friends take her to the college’s ping pong table. Kareena on the webcam tries to teach them how to push the baby out. She tells Amir that there is a vacuum that doctors use to push the baby out when the mother is too tired. The light then goes out. Amir uses his knowledge to get the lights back on, and uses a vacuum cleaner to prepare the suction that Mona needs. Ugh!!! Finally the baby is out. But that is not all. The baby does not cry, and everyone is worried that it is not alive. Amir says “all is well” and the baby starts kicking. OMG!!! This is just so Bollywood. How many times have actors come back from the dead just after hearing such cheesy lines? Ugh.

Then Amir, the martyr that he is, delivers the baby and picks up his bags to leave dutifully since Boman kicked him out. Of course Boman stops him, and Amir is the best student of the class on graduation day bla bla bla. But yes there is a surprise ending which is quite hilarious.

A funny, cheesy, typical Bollywood movie with a lot of good humor and adorable actors in Amir, Sharman Joshi, Madhavan, and Boman Irani. A good movie but not to Amir’s level. Amir is like the boy who never grew up – all his movies focus on youth. Dil Chahta Hai, Rang De Basanti, and now 3 Idiots. Dil Chahta Hai was amazing. I gave the cheesy Rang De Basanti a pass due to the awesome songs and parallels with the extremists which kind of made the cheesy & martyr-type ending justifiable. I hope he doesn’t make any more of such cheesy films – its time for him to grow up.

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My list of movies this weekend

This weekend I have to catch up on movies. I want to watch Hangover and Stoning of Soraya M. Stoning is a depressing Iranian movie – I love Iranian movies. They are so simple, realistic, and heart-warming… Children of Heaven is my favorite.

I know somehow AM will get me to go to Transformers. I don’t want to go – could not stand the old ones. I know he will try to get me to go with him. I have no problems with him watching his movie and I mine on my own. Its better than having to sit through something I don’t like. A few weekends back he took me to Terminator Salvation. I liked the movie (surprisingly), but he took me to watch the 10:30pm show! Yawn. I usually like action movies, but I am so over the fight between machines and what not. Its so over-done. I wish AM would just go with his friend, but he will take me damn it. Bloody hell.

Last week he brought a DVD for Taken – the movie was absolutely pathetic, and the only saving grace was Liam Neeson. It started off promising. Liam is an ex-spy who has marital problems (cliche). He tries to get close to his teenage daughter and left his job. His daughter goes to a foreign country with a friend and is kidnapped. Liam’s ex-wife is married to an extremely rich guy, but is not over Liam – she keeps throwing her resentment in his face. The plot could have gone either way – the daughter was kidnapped due to Liam’s occupation, or due to her stepfather who did some underhanded things in business. But no – the plot was that she was kidnapped by people who sold such young girls into prostitution. Haa – American girls kidnapped for prostitution? How unrealistic is that? I mean, the entire country would go into an uproar if that happened, especially to someone so rich and powerful. Liam alone rescues her. AM liked it because of action. He likes anything remotely close to action, regardless of the plot. I could not stand it after 30 mins and tuned out.

I also watched Nothing But the Truth. I like Kate Beckinsale – she is a good looking average actress. The movie is based on a true story. Kate is a journalist who exposes a woman as a CIA agent, but refuses to divulge her source to the court when summoned. She goes to prison for over a year and still does not reveal the source. In the end she reveals her source in exchange for only 2 years of imprisonment versus 5. The worst part was that the source was the agent’s daughter who went to the same school as Kate’s son. I mean, would any kid be held responsible for telling someone that her mom is a CIA agent? And Kate went to prison for it for one year, abandoning her own son and husband. On top of that, the CIA agent is shot dead. Completely ridiculous. The movie is based on Valerie Plame who was a CIA agent. The difference is that Valerie was not shot dead; Judith Miller, the reporter, did not write the story about Valerie’s being CIA, but did provide the story to the writer; Judith went to prison for 3 months; and Judith was proved to be a liar – 10 of her articles did not have reliable sources.

I watched Andaz Apna Apna and Awara Pagal Deewana on YouTube. Andaz… is such a timeless classic – it leaves me in splits even today. Another funny classic is Hera Pheri – I love the Akshay and Paresh Rawal. Andaz… made me want to watch Lagaan so AM and I are doing a movie and pizza night. Amir Khan is by far my favorite actor, and I truly respect his dedication to movies – he cannot do a bad movie.

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54th Filmfare Awards 2009

I enjoyed Star Screen Awards despite Sajid Khan because the awards were relatively fair. Filmfare awards, OTOH, is a means to rejoice filmdon and their kids who are now actors/actresses. Sometimes an outsider may win an award due to the sheer support and accolades the person may receive.

The award ceremony was held at Yash Chopra studios. Karan Johar, Imran Khan, and Ranbir Kapoor hosted it along with Deepika Padukone and Konkana Sen Sharma. Karan was his usual suave and articulate self. It is hard not to like him. He is so well spoken and sophisticated. Imran and Ranbir were cute, although some of their jokes were not that funny and dragged a bit. But their being eye candy made up for it. Deepika was a deer in headlights, at 5:00 below in the video. I could not believe that she was so bad as an anchor. Konkana overshadowed her completely. Deepika should just go back to being eye candy in movies, leaving the acting and anchoring to Konkana.

Jodha Akbar and Rock On won most of the awards. While JA was a decent movie and beautifully made, the best actor award should have gone to Aamir Khan for Ghajini. But since AK has rebuffed the awards, none of the award ceremonies have the guts to still give an award that is truly well deserved. Rock On was completely undeserving; the only award well deserved was for Arjun Rampal. Rock On was not that good; it was an okay movie. To add to the insult, Farhan Akhtar‘s harsh voice was nominated for singing with other well known singers with great voices. Truly an insult to the singers! I mean, Farhan cannot sing, but can get away with it because he made the movie and he is Javed Akhtar‘s son. Ridiculous.

When I watch such awards ceremonies, I admire AK’s stance on refusing to attend them or accept any award, and I even admire his refusal to send movie clips for movies that he has produced. I wish more actors would take such a strict stand so that the awards would start being more fair. Ghajini deserved many awards, but only Asin won for newcomer. So unfair. I really don’t like Farhan – he is everywhere, too much in-your-face. No he is not that talented. Luck by Chance was a much better movie but nobody went to watch it probably because of the disappointment with the over-hyped Rock On. I am so over these awards.

Even the red carpet was not that interesting. I cannot stand the woman (forget her name, she used to host Indian Idol). She keeps screeching in her mike and is painful to listen to. And Aish came with a flat hairstyle that made her look much older than she is. It was nice of Abhishek though to sit in the front row with Aish and Amitabh to cheer on the hosts. Am glad its over. Next year I willjust tune into Star Screen.

The ultra gorgeous Sonam… she is the most fresh-faced in the industry right now.

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Delhi 6 – an unbearably long trip to Old Delhi

Like many other Indians, I was looking forward to Delhi 6. After debating whether to watch it in the theater or online, I ended up watching it online because I am trying to save on expenses. Given the number of movies I watch each week, it makes sense to watch some of them online. And am I glad – it was not worth the trip.

Delhi 6 is about Old Delhi, and the traditional lives there. I had no idea people lived in that traditional way in any part of Delhi! Abhishek returns to Old Delhi from New York with his grandmother Waheeda Rehman because she is dying and would like to die in her hometown. Abhishek’s Muslim dad married a Hindu, which displeased his grandfather, hence the dad never returned to India. In India, AB meets his uncle played by Rishi Kapoor. The entire movie focuses on Old Delhi and the lives around AB, made complicated by traditions. Sonam Kapoor is Om Puri’s daughter who wants to become an Indian Idol while her father wants her to get married in the arranged manner. The old Prem Chopra is married to a young wife who is banging a younger guy on the side. In the midst of all this is the black monkey, a man rumored to have caused trouble to Old Delhi’s inhabitants. Nobody knows who this black monkey is, and people start using him to hide their bad deeds. For example, Prem Chopra’s wife is with her boyfriend when Prem comes knocking at the door; she sends her bf out of the window and complains that the black monkey tried to rape her.

The concept was good, but direction, camerawork, and editing failed miserably. Also, AB’s chemistry with Sonam Kapoor is practically non-existent. Sonam looks gorgeous, and after writing her off after Sawariya, I realized that she can become a force to reckon with. Acting wise she doesn’t do much, but she looks gorgeous, and since when have Bollywood actresses needed to act? AB doesn’t have many dialogues. He is American born, so half the time he speaks with a slight accent. It is an awkward situation because the Director probably could not figure out whether to let him speak the Indian way or American way. AB goes in and out of the accent, and has very few dialogues. It is annoying because one, if he speaks in the American accent some people may not understand him; two, if he doesn’t, well, he is an American in the movie so how can he speak in the Indian accent; three, everyone knows that he is actually Indian so the accent would be a complete put on and annoying.

The movie moves at a very slow pace, and the lives of people around are not completely explored. They are simple people, but the Director is so bent on showing the simplicity that he forgets to infuse natural element into them. The movie lacks soul. Rahman’s beautiful music is completely wasted – wish he had used them for Slumdog instead because the music is much better than SM’s Jai Ho. Rahman’s songs have more soul and chemistry than the two actors.

It says a lot about an actor when the only chemistry he has on screen is with a man. AB has had the most chemistry with John Abraham in Dostana, but to be fair, even a doorknob would have chemistry with hot John. Aishwarya has more chemistry with Hrithik than her own husband AB, and AB has zero chemistry with Sonam. Maybe he had a little chemistry with Aish in Guru, and I don’t remember in Naach where he has a lip-lock with Antara Mali.

Sonam Kapoor looks gorgeous (below), and has such a versatile look. I look forward to seeing her more. Too bad her Sawariya gig was overshadowed by Ranbir and Deepika’s love affair.

Masakali from Delhi 6

Rehna Tu – my favorite!!!

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Dostana – sexy John and funny Abhishek

I enjoyed watching Dostana, although some scenes seemed to be a drag. Overall a very funny movie, with oodles of chemistry between John and Abhishek. Their offline chemistry translated onscreen, and it was such a pleasure to watch them. Especially the scenes with Kiron Kher – so funny! Their bloopers and funny clips were hilarious, especially where both are trying to kiss and burst out laughing. Wonder how many takes that took. And their Koffee with Karan was entertaining too. I had no idea Abhishek was so hilarious and such a langoor. He is funny and yet articulate in expressing his POV. Totally complements his father and wife. Amitabh and Aish are so articulate, graceful, and hold themselves back, while Abhishek is funny and himself. I like this side of him.

Bobby Deol OTOH was dull and uninteresting. Don’t care about him anymore.

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Miss India worldwide 2009

I watched Miss India worldwide online, and was appalled at the quality of contestants. The last one I watched was when Sushmita Sen and Aishwarya Rai won. Nobody is even close to them in terms of grace, intelligence, and beauty. Both absolutely gorgeous women. I could not decide between Sushmita’s smile and Aish’s beauty, but today in terms of beauty I like Aish more, although Sush is more interesting in interviews.

In the 2009 show, the contestants introduced themselves by speaking in an American accent. Extremely annoying. We all know that Indians do not have an American accent, so why put it on? No it doesn’t look cool, it is extremely annoying and everyone knows that you are putting one on. Same goes for film stars. An American accent doesnt make you cool. In fact Americans like the British accent. Moving on…

The contestants were parrot-like in their introduction, and clearly were reading from somewhere or had mugged their introductions. Not one natural one. But when they moved on to the Q&A round, some personality did come out. The judges included Milind Soman, Deepak Tijori, and Nafisa Ali. I had such a huge crush on Milind Soman back during his modeling days, and he has not changed one bit. For a man to be 40+ and look so gorgeous! He has classic chiseled looks and an awesome personality. As for Deepak Tijori, he made a fool of himself in Big Boss, and his movie Tom, Dick and Harry was such a disaster; he probably came to redeem himself. Nafisa Ali, a Miss India years back, was probably wondering how the whole pageat thing has gone to the dogs.

The Indian pageant at least has some redeeming qualities. The international one is pathetic. Trump has the reverse-Midas touch – he brings down the standard of everything he touches. Since he has taken over the pageant, the standards have gone down completely. Judges include Santino from project Runway – seriously, what does he know? Miss Worlds trip while walking, are dumb as a doormat, and their clothes come off which media loves to show over and over. They have become fodder for mockery. Who watches these pageant’s anymore?

Sushmita Sen

Aishwarya Rai

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Movie – Tahaan

I love watching movies, especially off-beat. I watched Tahaan yesterday – such a sweet movie! Reminded me of Children of Heaven. Purav Bhandare plays Tahaan, and he is the most adorable kid ever!! His acting is flawless and holds your attention completely. Small things like his dancing bring such joy to the heart that you just want to rewind and watch him again and again. Just watching him in the movie was so sweet and filled me with a warmth and sadness for all the unfortunate kids in the world. So innocent… The movie had all my favorite actors – Rahul Khanna, Rahul Bose, and Anupam Kher. Truly a must-watch!

Tahaan lives with his mom (played by Sarika), older sister, and grandfather in terror-ridden Kashmir. His father is away with the terrorists fighting against the military. But before leaving, he gave Tahaan a donkey, Birbal. Tahaan loves Birbal. However, his grandfather dies and Tahaan’s mom has to sell the donkey to make ends meet. She sells it to Rahul Khanna. Tahaan goes to get his donkey back but Rahul K. refuses. Tahaan is upset, and sees a man hitting his donkey because the donkey refuses to move. Sweet Tahaan picks up a stone and tells the man that if he doesn’t stop hitting the donkey, he will hit the man with the stone. So cute! Tahaan slips in and frees Birbal at night. Birbal runs back home and Tahaan is happy. But his mom makes him return the donkey. Tahaan is very upset with this, and tells Rahul K. that he will work with Birbal, and if he is around Birbal will work harder. But RK tells him to go home.

Tahaan finds out that Birbal has been sold to Anupam Kher, and goes to AK. AK tells him to get lost, but Tahaan is adamant. Anupam then meets Rahul Bose, who works for him, and the two leave for their town along with another women (Nadia) who accompanies them for a safe exit through security. Tahaan follows them in the falling snow, but finally gets tired and starts freezing. AK and the team know that he is following them, and get worried when they don’t see him around. They finally find him under a rock. After giving him some warm fluids, they take him with them seated on Birbal. On the way they see some men singing and playing music. Tahaan, adorable as he is, runs and dances with them and enjoys the music. He is truly a sweet kid. He asks AK and the rest to dance with him.

After dropping off Nadia, AK challenges Rahul Bose and Tahaan to do a race between Rahul’s horses and Tahaan’s donkey. If Rahul wins, he will get a cell phone, and if Tahaan wins he will get Birbal back. Tahaan’s donkey is no match for R’s horses, but R has an eye for women. He sees Nadia in a marriage procession and stops to eye the women. Tahaan continues to run, and he wins. His determination to win and get Birbal back is heart-warming. He meets AK’s nephew who is of the same age. AK gives Birbal to his nephew. This upsets T, because AK had told T that if the donkey wins he would get Birbal back. AK refuses. No amount of money or goodies will get Tahaan to change his mind about Birbal. Tahaan calls him a liar and runs back home in tears. Such as sweet kid. On the way he stops by an ice pond. A man stops by and asks Tahaan why he is crying. Tahaan tells him about Birbal. The man (Ittres) tells Tahaan not to worry, he would take T to his “peer baba” or “wise man” who will bring back his donkey. T says that he will meet him the next day.

The next day, T accompanies AK to his town again, and on the way back stops by the ice pond. Ittres takes T to peer baba. T sees people with guns, and is fascinated with the guns. He then meets peer baba who tells him to go to school and play. Ittres gives T a grenade to keep at home, and take to AK’s town the next day.

T again accompanies AK to his town. Everyday, AK brought fruits from T’s town to his own town on horses and the donkey, and has to go through a security checkpoint. T hides the grenade in the box full of fruits. Ittres asks T to transfer another package as well, which T hides under the donkey’s saddle. At the security checkpoint, T is nervous but gets through fine. Once T reaches the town, AK’s nephew takes T up to his room and shows him some figurines that he made about his parents, AK, Birbal, and Tahaan. He tells T that he lost his parents in the terrorism in Kashmir. T asks him why he doesnt buy another donkey, since Birbal is T’s donkey.

Ittres then comes to see T. T gives Ittres the package, but Ittres says that T needs to do one more thing for him. T by then is frustrated and asks if he will get his donkey back then. Ittres says yes. Ittres tells T that T has to throw the grenade and blast a house. T agrees to do it for his donkey. But by then T suspects that something is amiss. You get the feeling that T is very innocent like all kids, but is a smart kid and will not be taken for a ride. And he is smart enough to take care of himself.

In the meanwhile, AK’s nephew tells AK to return the donkey to T. AK says that Birbal cost him a lot of money, but his nephew tells him that AK taught him that he should find happiness in other’s happiness. AK is happy to see the goodness of his nephew’s heart, and that his nephew will grow up to be a good man.

T goes to the house that he has to blow up, and sees a puppy on rows of sacks. T removes the dog so that it doesn’t get hurt. When T is about to throw the grenade he sees the door open and a few militants inside with some prisoner. T doesn’t want anyone to get hurt. He turns around to throw the grenade in the opposite direction, when he sees AK’s nephew come running after Birbal. T then runs to the river and throws the grenade in it. This scene got me at the edge of  my seat, because I was scared that the grenade would go off in T’s hands and he would blow up. After the grenade blows up in the river, T returns to the house and sees that the militants are with his father! He calls out to his dad, who doesn’t hear him. He runs back home and tells his mom that he saw his father. His mom then goes to prison to meet her husband, whom she had cried for and waited for so long.

When T wakes up the next morning, he sees that his donkey is back! Happy ending! The movie is truly worth watching. Tahaan is so innocent and cute, and small things like him dancing bring such warmth to the heart. And yet the fact that terrorists would take advantage of such innocence to transfer weapons is scary, because it probably happens in Kashmir. Such a paradise reduced to this, because India and Pakistan keep fighting. How did it all start? Why? When I was in school, students were taken to Kashmir on a trip. I chose not to go because I wanted to go home to my parents, but I wish I had gone. I will never get to see the beautiful Kashmir ever! Such a shame. The movie made me think of all the unfortunate kids, and I really want to do something for them. Its just so unfair that kids, who are innocent, have to go through so much pain and trouble. I wish this film had received more support and marketing.

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Chandni Chowk to China a bummer

I love Akshay Kumar‘s movies, and used to like Deepika till she decided to date Ranbir and now media keeps thowing them in our faces. I cannot believe that Warner Bros decided to make its foray into Bollywood with CC2C. What a disappointing movie. The only saving grace is Akshay and that too because of his comedy. And of course my fav Ranvir Shorey – how can I forget him?

There are really funny moments, but overall the movie is unbearable especially with the double role Deepika and the same old story about two sisters getting lost and finding each other. Yawn. I could not watch beyond 30 minutes.

But my two favorite parts were when Akshay sees Ganesh in a potato and when he tries to close the hand baggage compartment in the plane and instead hits Ranveer’s neck. Hilarious!! The ganesh one reminded me of 10-12 years back when Ganesh decided to drink milk. I remember everyone in my hostel trying to make the statue drink milk, so did I, and nothing happened, and yet people claimed that Ganesh drank milk. It was quite embarrassing when “The World This Week” talked about the progress in India, and made fun of the Ganesh situation. Ha Ganesh in a potato… sooooo believable. LOL. Cannot stop laughing. I love Akshay he is so funny.

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Slumdog Millionaire

Everyone is talking about Slumdog Millionaire and its bagging four GGs. I saw so many interviews with Dev Patel and Freida Pinto – Freida is gorgeous and adorable!! Dev is cute and funny, but a bit too hyped. He doesn’t deserve an award because there wasn’t much acting for him in the movie. Surprising that nobody is talking about his brother in the movie, who did a good job as well and had a key role. Why is no one talking about him? And what about the kids?

Dev was in David Letterman – why not THE GG winner AR Rahman? People, its not pronounced raaahman but rehmaan. Its high time he got recognized. I liked O Saya much better than Jai Ho – Jai Ho has been nominated for the Oscars. In O Saya he imitates the sound of the train, and it is amazing! It fit perfectly with both young brothers traveling to Agra and working at Taj Mahal. I have never come across such a talented musician with such an immense passion for music (except RD Burman and Adnan Sami). AR Rahman’s music brilliantly captures every tone of his movies. If a movie has soul, Rahman’s music adds the heartbeats.

O Saya

Jai Ho

Jai Ho was initially to be used by Subhash Ghai’s poor excuse of a movie “Yuvraaj”, but the soft song did not fit the actor’s mood in the movie, so Rahman used it for Slumdog. One man’s loss is another man’s gain!

Talking about music, I loved Adnan Sami’s classical for Indian Idol below. It was as if the tabla and his music united and reached a climax.

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