Bawarchi (1972) Review by Shivom Oza – This Cook Did Not Spoil The Broth!

3.5/5 Stars

Bawarchi, inspired by the Bengali film, Galpa Holeo Satyi (1966), by Tapan Sinha, revolves around the disgruntled Sharma household, who cannot retain a cook for more than a while, owing to their rude behaviour. And then, the affable Raghu enters, and overstays his welcome!

The Hrishikesh Mukherjee film can be described in two words - Simply charming. In fact, any of the legendary filmmaker's films could be given the same description. Bawarchi belongs to a genre that so many filmmakers in today's day and age are trying to recapture. Any story which does not abandon the Indian-ness despite being embedded with western influences, works for us. Bawarchi is a story that reminds us of ourselves. And mind you, so many elements put forward in the film are still very relevant, even four decades later.

No person wants to take up the cook's job at the chaotic Sharma household. Their Shanti Nivas is riddled with ashanti, and no member in the family is leading a peaceful life. All of them carry their problems to work/school/nowhere and back home, and vent out all their frustrations at each other, which leads to much negativity. Add to that, the absence of a cook only increases the tension, leading to much irritation and blame-game!

Enter Raghu (Rajesh Khanna)! Within a few days, Raghu mixes up nicely with everybody in the household. He's absolutely impeccable at his work. Moreover, he takes that extra effort to solve everyone's problems at home. He even sorts out differences between estranged family members, and acts as an agent of change in the Sharma household.

But, how could a cook be so knowledgable, one wonders! Is there more to it than what meets the eye?

There is no dull moment in the film. It has everything that the regular cinema viewer in you would want to watch in a movie. It has got drama and comedy in abundance; music is nicely tailored in, and the suspense element towards the end takes the film to another level. Performances by Khanna, Jaya Bachchan, Usha Kiran, A. K. Hangal and Asrani, stand out. Meanwhile, Amitabh Bachchan's voice works wonders for the narration in the film. Music by Madan Mohan has its 'old-world charm', which may never be created again. Gulzar's dialogues form the perfect foil to Hrishikesh's perfectly-conceived scenes.

More than anything, the film manages to be very witty, despite going down the 'preachy' path, more often than not. Rajesh Khanna's monologues, if listened to intently, will leave you with a melancholic smile on several occasions. There's a certain sense of overwhelming quality in these underdog-films, where you cheer on as those who have for long suffered, decide to stand up for themselves. There's a certain sense of relief in such films, when you see good things happen to good people. Such films give us hope to fight back against all that's negative in our lives. 'Goodness' always wins. While we may not see it happen around us often, it is important that we believe in it.

This cook did not spoil the broth!

Shivom Oza 

Enemmy (2013) Review by Shivom Oza – Not Very Viewer-'friendly'

1.5/5 Stars
 
'Enemmy' is a film about four buddies (do you sense irony here?). Suniel Shetty and Kay Kay Menon play foster brothers in this crime-drama, which revolves around the police-underworld-politics nexus. Mithun Chakraborty plays a senior investigator, who is looking into a robbery case.

There are moments in the second half, when you do notice a semblance of a good script. There is a clever story hidden in the film, and it shows, albeit occasionally. However, most technical elements, such as dubbing, editing, music, screenplay among others, fail to make the cut.

An innocuous robbery takes place in broad daylight. A lot of money is involved, which should apparently reach a dreaded gang lord Mukhtar Menon (Zakir Hussain), but is stolen by four mercenaries. No one knows who the four mercenaries are!

Four police offers begin hunting for these apparent fugitives – Eklavya Karmarkar (Suniel Shetty), Eric Colaco (Johnny Lever), Madhav Sinha (Mahakshay Chakraborty) and Naeem Shaikh (Kay Kay Menon).

But, the real story begins to unravel when Yugantar Sharma (Mithun Chakraborty) enters the picture, and turns the entire investigation on its head.

The way in which the equation between the police department and the criminals, has been portrayed, is quite engaging. However, the production values, the unnecessary songs, needless characters, over-the-top, gravity-defying stunts and the occasional hamming does mar the film a trifle!

Mithun Chakraborty and Kay Kay Menon have got the best dialogues and scenes, and both the seasoned actors live up to their billing. Suniel delivers a decent performance as the ‘Bhau’ of the gang.

The film fails to impress, mostly owing to poor editing and misplaced scenes. Overall, the film is a half-baked affair!

'Enemmy' is promising in some parts. However, these parts are too few, and far in between.

Shivom Oza

Man Of Steel (2013) Review by Shivom Oza – Just Falls Short Of ‘Super’

3/5 Stars

Every superhero franchise has gotten an overhaul ever since Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises) tasted success. This time, it's Superman's turn. 300 and Watchmen director Zack Snyder is at the helm of this story, co-written by David S. Goyer and Nolan. The trailer of Man Of Steel has generated a lot of hype among the audiences. Let's see if the film is worth all of it!

Man Of Steel gets a lot of things right. It mixes up the dark elements (which we associate with the recent Batman films) within the commercial space wonderfully. The screenplay and the dialogues are also a good mix of cheesy and hard-hitting.

Where the film falters is the length, the casting of the principal villain Zod and the never-ending, repetitive final face-off between Superman and his nemeses. However, it is a fine film. Trailer flattered to deceive a little bit, but then you all are going to watch it anyway. So, I must stop the ranting.

As planet Krypton is nearing destruction, Jor-El (Russell Crowe) and Lara Lor-Van (Ayelet Zurer), send their biological son, Kal-El (Henry Cavill), to Earth to carry their race forward.

While Jor-El and Lara Lor-Van do face resistance from Krypton's military commander, General Zod (Michael Shannon) (who has now turned hostile, and planned a coup against the establishment), Kal-El does get transported to Earth eventually.

Zod, along with his team of mercenaries, is caught, and is sentenced to spend all eternity in the Phantom Zone, an eternal living void.

Kal-El, who finds himself in a different environment altogether, struggles to adapt to the human world during his childhood. However, while growing up (with the name given by his adopted parents Jonathan Kent (Kevin Costner) and Martha Kent (Diane Lane), Clark Kent), he realizes the significance of the superpowers that he has been bequeathed from his place of origin.

Kal-El/Clark Kent is rechristened once more (SUPERMAN!), when he puts on his suit, and readies to wage a battle against Zod, who successfully managed to escape the Phantom Zone.

The first-half of the film (setting of the basic premise, the marvellous special effects in the Krypton sequence, Kal-El inadvertently showing-off his superpowers, the wonderful conversations between him and his adopted father, the introduction of Amy Adams, and to top-it-up Hans Zimmer's enchanting score) is terrific.

The film, especially in the first hour-and-a-half, wonderfully balances out the quirkiness of a commercial superhero film and the seriousness of a coming-of-age story.

It is in the latter half, when the film really begins to drag. The final face-off, involving a lot of hand-to-hand combat and innumerable explosions, between Superman and his nemeses lasts for almost an hour.

While the action and the special effects are brilliant, the repetitiveness of this never-ending last act does mar the impact, a trifle!

The dialogues of the film, especially the ones involving Kal-El and his two fathers (biological and adopted), are well-written and performed. Watch out for those scenes!

The highlight of the film is our superhero's bravado! There's a scene in which Zod is threatening Kal-El's adopted mother Martha. At this point, the man in the blue suit swoops in and beats the evil commander up to smithereens, while warning him to not threaten his mother. For the lack of a better word, such scenes are absolutely filmy, and manage to keep your interest alive!

The one major downside to the film is the runtime. With a shorter duration, the film could have been much better.

Not bereft of flaws, but entertaining enough.

Shivom Oza

Yamla Pagla Deewana 2 (2013) Review by Shivom Oza - Quite A Mixed Bag!

2/5 Stars

Deols (Dharmendra, Sunny Deol and Bobby Deol) are back with the sequel to their 2011 hit 'Yamla Pagla Deewana', 'Yamla Pagla
Deewana 2'. This time, the conning game will get bigger, with the conniving father-son duo (Dharam and Gajodhar) trying to pull off a heist in UK. 

Notwithstanding the magnificent screen presence of the Deols, 'Yamla Pagla Deewana 2' does leave a lot to be desired as far as the 'entertainment' quotient is concerned. Several gags and one-liners, albeit funny on paper, do not transcend well on screen. However, the superb soundtrack and the camaraderie between the Deols, does salvage the film to a large extent. It should work for audiences that do not mind slapstick humour. 

This film is not a continuation to 'Yamla Pagla Deewana'. Barring the three principal characters, Dharam (Dharmendra), Paramveer (Sunny Deol) and Gajodhar (Bobby Deol), 'Yamla Pagla Deewana 2' begins on a completely different note. Dharam and Gajodhar lead extremely comfortable (and dishonest) lives in Benaras, by duping people. Paramveer, meanwhile, is a recovery officer working for a bank in U.K. The conning duo never let the righteous Paramveer know about their misdeeds, and pretend that they are running a flower business in India. 

Dharam and Gajodhar come across a wealthy NRI businessman from U.K., Sir Yograj Khanna (Annu Kapoor), in Benaras, and decide to make him their next target. Dharam persuades Gajodhar to impress Yograj's daughter, Suman (Neha Sharma), and convince her for marriage so that they can acquire all his money. Everything goes as planned till the father-son duo land up in U.K., for the marriage!

Dharam and Gajodhar have to face a few uncomfortable truths during their stay over there, which sets the premise of the film. 

Story-wise, 'Yamla Pagla Deeqana 2' offers something different from the usual fare that is meted out in the 'commercial' cinema space. The screenplay, somehow, manages to do justice to the plot as well. The various twists in the film are well-placed, and move the story along wonderfully. However, the humour, more often than not, lacks the punch. The principal villain Dudeji (Anupam Kher), and his two sidekicks Bunty-Babli (Johnny Lever and Sucheta Khanna), may get overtly slapstick for your comfort. Their side-plot involves the making of a virtual mall (which will consequently become the eighth wonder of the world). In order to acquire land for this mall, Dudeji sends Bunty and Babli to take control of Yograj Khanna's nightclub. Bunty-Babli choose to get into unusual disguises (while taking inspiration from Shah Rukh Khan's 'Don', Sardars, Samurai and the likes) so that nobody recognizes them. There's also an orangutan, Einstein, who befriends Dharam and Gajodhar, and goes on to play a very important part in the story. Johnny-Sucheta's characters, the orang-utan’s antics, and the inclusion of Sumo wrestlers and Ninja fighters, do provide this film with a quirky flavour. However, none of these sequences manage to invoke more than a guffaw. 

The action in the film is all 'Sunny Deol'. Deol can move beyond 'Gadar', but 'Gadar refuses to leave the man. The action is very much similar to what we've been accustomed to see in his films, over the years.

These aforementioned instances do seem like fillers in what was potentially a very good dra-medy! A few of these gags could have been done away with, since they unnecessarily lengthen the duration of the film. 

The film's primary USP is the music (Sharib-Toshi and Sachin Gupta). Songs such as the title track, 'Changli Hai Changli Hai', 'Main Taan Aidaan Hi Nachna' and 'Suit Tera Laal Rang Da', and their excellently-shot-and-choreographed videos, infuse a lot of life and colour into the film. 

The Deols, as expected, deliver exceptional performances in the film. While the hilarious duo of Dharmendra and Bobby Deol have the best dialogues, Sunny pulls off a coup of sorts, managing to perform comedy, action, romance and drama with élan. 

Australian model-turned-actress Kristina Akheeva is extremely impressive for someone who is acting in her first Hindi film. Neha too, impresses with her whole 'Salman Khan-die-hard-fan' act. 

Director Sangeeth Sivan and writer Jasvinder Singh Bath had a great concept at hand. Doing away with a few unneeded gags would have worked wonders for the film. Overall, the film is a half-baked affair, and only die-hard Deol fans will enjoy it!

Shivom Oza

Mere Haule Dost (2013) Review by Shivom Oza – Such A Howler!

1/5 Stars

I had found the premise of Mere Haule Dost was quite interesting, which is why I thought that I should review the film. It revolves around 5 friends, Mota, Bong, Dada, Bheja and Paisa (all nicknames, presumably), who want to go on a bike rally in the Himalayas but do not have the resources.

However, a good concept has to be executed in the same manner. Mere Haule Dost fails to transcend a decent premise into a passable screenplay. Most aspects about this film, from the dialogues to the camerawork to the screenplay to the performances, are amateurish. Notwithstanding the poor production values, the film, which encompasses elements like friendship, trust and love, fails to connect with the viewer at any level.

The basic plot has been already given above. Beyond that, the film focuses on the problems that the five friends face in their personal lives (matters of money, heart etc.).

None of the performances leave a mark. Writer-director Nitin Raghunath tries to capture real situations out of the lives of ordinary college-going students. However, it gets too much into detail, hence making the end-result very cringe-worthy. The basic story had a fair bit of potential, the only positive from the film.

This one’s a howler!      

                                        

Shivom Oza

Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (2013) Review by Shivom Oza – Kuch Zyaada Hi ‘Lambi’ Kahaani!

2.5/5 Stars

Ayan Mukerji made a scintillating debut with the coming-of-age drama ‘Wake Up Sid’ in 2009. With ‘Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani’, the writer-director sticks to the ‘coming-of-age’ theme. The film revolves around how four fairly different individuals (Bunny, Avi, Aditi and Naina) deal with friendship, love, success, failure and consequently, life!

Buddy comedy, coming-of-age drama, travel adventure, marriage extravaganza, familial melodrama and multiple love triangles - 'Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani' mixes up too many elements. There are quite a few sparkling moments in the film. The equations between several characters have been showcased brilliantly. However, owing to some implausible side-plots and the never-ending-length, the film leaves a lot to be desired.

3 friends Bunny (Ranbir Kapoor), Avi (Aditya Roy Kapur) and Aditi (Kalki Koechlin) set off on a trip to Manali, expecting a life-changing experience. Bunny is a middle-class boy who doesn’t want to lead his life in the conventional way. In his words, ‘Main daudna chahta hoon, udna chaahta hoon, girna chahta hoon’. The effervescent Bunny wants to travel the world, and wants every day in his life to be dramatic and eventful.

Avi is a sentimental (and temperamental) guy, who depends too much on his best friend Bunny. The guy has no focus in life, and cannot handle either alcohol or money.

Aditi is a tomboy. Unabashed, brave and gutsy on the outside, but very emotional deep-within!

So yes, these three individuals are quite different, but that’s what works in their friendship. The three are joined on this trip by Naina, an introverted medical student, who wants to break free.

What transpires in this trip, which drastically changes the lives of these four characters, and how they come to terms with its repercussions eight years later, is what ‘Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani’ is all about.

Several elements don’t work for this film. It could have done away with at least three dance numbers. A big chunk of the film (close to 40 minutes) involves a marriage, and so, all kinds of song-and-dance sequences have been thrown in. Yes, the soundtrack of the film is very good, but the lip-syncing and the over-the-top choreography are reminiscent of dance numbers in Karan Johar’s (the producer) ‘Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham’ and ‘Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna’.

Secondly, the screenplay is very inconsistent. It seems too slow at some places (the aforementioned marriage sequence, the entire Manali trip) and too rushed at some (climax, patch-up between bickering friends).

Thirdly, the film is long. 160-odd minutes!

                               

There are good points as well. The dialogues are wonderful. Ranbir Kapoor, Deepika Padukone, Farooq Shaikh (who plays Bunny’s father) and Kunaal Roy Kapur (delightful cameo) deliver exceptional performances. The music, as already mentioned, is wonderful. The locations are absolutely magnificent.

Ayan is absolutely terrific at capturing relationships. The scenes involving Bunny and his father strike a chord. Even scenes wherein Bunny defends his lifestyle are well written, directed and performed.

The film is quite a mixed-bag. That’s why am sitting on the fence with 2.5 stars.

Shivom Oza

Aurangzeb (2013) Review by Shivom Oza – Mughlai Mash-up!

2.5/5 Stars

Arya, an honest Gurgaon-based police officer, sets up a coup in which he replaces a pivotal member of a gang with a look-alike. However, the coup goes kaput!

Although the cast members (Arjun Kapoor, Prithviraj, Jackie Shroff, Rishi Kapoor, Sikander Kher and Amrita Singh among others) have delivered stupendous performances and the cinematography is first-rate, the film falls flat owing to its convoluted screenplay. The writer tries to mix up too many sub-plots and twists, making the film a very complex and an exhausting affair.

Gurgaon-based police officer Arya (Prithviraj) has to choose between following his late father’s (Anupam Kher), who was an honest policeman till fate did him in, ideals and his uncle Ravikant’s, who is an opportunistic head of the police department, crooked ways. Arya chooses the middle path and ends up facing terrible consequences.

Vishal (Arjun Kapoor) is a simpleton living with his widowed mother (Tanvi Azmi) in a far-off town in North India. The mother has faced a lot of troubles in trying to get away from her turbulent marriage, leave one of her children behind, and bring Vishal up for so many years. Vishal joins hands with Arya and his uncle to help eliminate a very powerful gang reigning in Gurgaon. This gang, led by Yashvardhan (Jackie Shroff), is running havoc with multiple corporate deals and abundant money laundering. Yashvardhan has an errant son Ajay (Arjun Kapoor), who happens to look exactly like Vishal.

How the stories of all these characters intertwine is what ‘Aurangzeb’ is all about!

The characters in this film are very well-etched. Arjun Kapoor effortlessly plays an irresponsible and a conniving ruffian (Ajay) with élan, just like he did in his debut film ‘Ishaqzaade’. However, he surprises with his charming performance as the innocent, harmless man caught amongst rogues (Vishal). The man displays great range playing these two diametrically-opposite characters.   

The veterans Jackie Shroff, Rishi Kapoor and Amrita Singh too, deliver top-notch performances. Sasha Aagha delivers a passable performance, playing Arjun Kapoor’s love interest. Her real moment of reckoning, though, is when she belts out the foot-tapping ‘Barbadiyaan’. She is an amazing singer, and should definitely sing more often in the future. As far as performances go, the pick of the lot is Prithviraj. Be it the body language, dialogue delivery or the acting, the South actor enthrals and how! His character is the least-complex among the entire cast, and perhaps that helped the way it transcended on to the big screen.

It is the story that lets the film down. ‘Aurangzeb’ has too many plots, sub-plots, characters and side-characters. The action scenes have been very well-executed, and the premise of the film, based on the real estate-police nexus, is extremely interesting. However, when logic goes out of the window, no amount of slickness can salvage the product.

Director Atul Sabbharwal directs well, but his writing leaves a lot to be desired. ‘Aurangzeb’ is full of crests and troughs. However, the latter outnumber the former.  

Shivom Oza

Garm Hava (1973) Review by Shivom Oza – Whose Country Is It Anyway?

4/5 Stars

M.S. Sathyu’s ‘Garm Hava’, which roughly translates to ‘Scorching Winds’, is based on an unpublished Urdu short story by Ismat Chughtai. It was adapted for the big screen by Kaifi Azmi (Shabana Azmi’s father) and Shama Zaidi (director M.S. Sathyu’s wife). The film revolves around how a Muslim family, living in Agra, copes up with the repercussions of the India-Pakistan partition. 

The movie is an absolute must-watch. Any Hindi film, which borders on religion and communalism, doesn’t come close.

‘Garm Hava’ is about how the Mirza family, based in Agra, India, comes to terms with the after-effects of the India-Pakistan partition. The family, headed by two brothers; Salim (Balraj Sahni) and Halim (Dinanath Zutshi), takes care of its livelihood by running a shoe-manufacturing business in the city. However, post the partition, things start to get difficult for this relatively modernist Muslim family. Even though the Mirzas are keen to stay back in India, circumstances in the country make it difficult for them to lead a peaceful life.

So, Halim, who is a major leader of the All India Muslim League, backs out and leaves for Pakistan, along with his wife and son Kazim (Jamal Hashmi), after pledging initially that he would stay back in India to look after its Muslims.

This results in a lot of troubles for Salim, who doesn’t want to leave his home country to settle elsewhere. Moreover, his ageing mother (Badar Begum) doesn’t want to leave the place where the family’s forefathers have been buried.

One shouldn’t think of Salim as egoistic. He loved his country (India) and always hoped for everything to get back to normal. However, Salim and his elder son Baqar Mirza (Abu Siwani) cannot get a loan, or retain employees or win their clients’ trust. This situation makes it next-to-impossible for them to run their shoe-manufacturing business. Moreover, the house that they lived in belonged to Halim, who fled to Pakistan. So, the Indian government had every right to take away their mansion, which it does eventually. Salim’s other son, Sikander Mirza (Farooq Shaikh) can’t get a job, because of his religion.

Salim has a young daughter, Amina Mirza (Gita Siddharth), who falls in love with Kazim, but is left heart-broken after Halim’s family moves back. That’s one of the other important side-plots of the film. ‘Garm Hava’ realistically portrays the condition of a normal, peace-loving, nationalistic Muslim family. Although the circumstances have changed a lot since the painful divide, the film remains very relevant, even today.

To talk about ‘Garam Hava’, one can go thousands of years back in history. A particular community settles in our country over a thousand years ago. For hundreds of years, they adopt and adapt to, the culture of the natives, and give it their own touch at the same time. The two leading communities live peacefully on the same land for eons, until a foreign nation squanders it all away. Yes, pre-partition India equally belonged to the Hindus and the Muslims. It was politics that led to the creation of a separate nation, Pakistan. However, just because a few people want a separate country and government, do you impose it on everyone? Sure, all Muslims did not want to go to Pakistan. They have every reason to call India their ‘home’, as much as people belonging to any other religion do.  When you live in the same place for years, it’s really difficult to move on. That’s why; it’s difficult to understand the predicament of the Muslims at that time. Pakistan offered an alien land but a new opportunity; whereas India was always ‘home’ but it had turned hostile.

Imagine a family, which has been living in a country since time immemorial and has its roots, culture, lifestyle imbibed within the nation, suddenly being asked to move to a foreign land?

That’s the Mirza family. The politics of the film is very clear, especially from Salim Mirza’s point-of-view. Your heart goes out to every character in the story, which gets judged just because of his/her religion. There is no negative character in the story. Everybody is just a victim of circumstance, which makes the film look and seem very real. At some point, the film may make you ponder if anything has changed at all in the way that we look at minorities.

We may call ourselves a secular and a democratic country, but the truth of the matter is that there are prejudices even today. It takes a lot of gumption to stand up to the system, and while watching the film, I was glad that Salim Mirza stuck to his guns and did not relent to the political pressure. Along with the millions of other Salim Mirza’s living in India!

There are several elements in ‘Garm Hawa’ – love, nationalism, religion, betrayal, hate, greed and politics among others, and each one of them has been dealt with, finely. The cast of the film is absolutely terrific. Balraj Sahni is the pick of the lot, but everyone’s done a great job. The music of the film deserves special mention. You will fall in love with the instrumental pieces, composed by Aziz Ahmed, Bahadur Khan and Khan Warsi.

What else to write? The film is sheer genius, and you must watch it!

Shivom Oza

Gippi (2013) Review by Shivom Oza - Over-the-top, Yet Delightful!

3/5 Stars

'Gippi' is about Gippi (real name - Gurpreet Kaur), played by Riya Vij, a 14-year-old overweight, ordinary-looking, clumsy, poor-in-sports, poor-in-studies, unpopular girl, who lives with her divorced mother, Pappi (Divya Dutt), and her adorable brother Booboo (Arbaz Kadwani) in Simla. Gippi's life revolves around her family, friends and her collection of old Hindi film songs. Being a huge fan of Shammi Kapoor, Gippi lets her hair down whenever/wherever his songs start playing.

The only time she starts to get insecure is when she attends school. Having to deal with the constant bullying by the most 'popular' girl in school, Shamira Chauhan (Jayati Modi), and her gang of girls, Gippi goes into a shell and starts thinking of herself as inferior to the other students. Moreover, having to deal with the physical, emotional and social changes that accompany a growing teenage girl; Gippi only gets more cranky and introverted. In order to impress everyone in school, Gippi befriends a much-older high school student, Arjun (Taaha Shah), and tells everyone that he is her boyfriend. But, the truth comes out when Arjun publicly tells Gippi that he always thought of her as a friend.

This gives Shamira and her friends one more reason to belittle their favourite target. The clash reaches such a level that Shamira challenges Gippi to stand against her in the student elections for the position of the head girl. So, the battle lines are drawn. Our much-troubled girl's brother, Booboo, and friends, Anchal and Ashish (Aditya Deshpande), who is terrific as the nerd besotted with Gippi, help her out in marking certain goals (Hot Body, Popularity, Boyfriend and the likes) that would make her win the elections. The film is about how Gippi overcomes the odds at school, in addition to helping her mother cope up with her father's (Pankaj Dheer) second marriage.

Another important part in the film is Kabir's (Mrinal Chawla), the most popular boy in the college. Watch out for what he does in the film!

The film showcases several delightful moments - Gippi and Anchal talking about puberty, Gippi's inspirational speech during the student elections, her equation with Pappi and Booboo, Gippi’s makeover among others. The actors, who play the school students, have done a brilliant job. These teenagers have been given the best scenes and lines, and they charm you with their effortless performances. Among the adults, it's only the formidable Divya Dutta who impresses. The rest of the cast, comprising Taaha Shah, Pankaj Dheer, actors playing the school professors among others, have poorly-written roles and so, don't quite leave an impact.

There are various outrageously over-the-top sequences in the plot. One of them involves an apparently-introverted Gippi, who assumedly gets stage fright, suddenly breaking into a dance in a bizarre costume, while giving her student election speech. While it may evoke a guffaw or two from the viewers, the scene does seem terribly out-of-place and isn't in line with what Gippi's character is supposed to be. Another low for the film is the underwhelming climax.

For films such as this one, which deal with the coming-of-age of an underdog, you would expect a cracker of an ending. However, what you get is a very tepid version. Even the music, composed by Vishal-Shekhar, doesn't quite stay with you. The only hummable number in the soundtrack is 'We're Like This Only', sung by Dadlani. The rest of the songs do not go well with the theme of the movie. Leaving these aforementioned drawbacks aside, 'Gippi' does pack in several feel-good moments and considering that it's been made by a debutante director Sonam Nair, the film is a decent effort. The best thing about this teenage movie was that it ENTIRELY revolved around a girl, which seldom happens in our part of the world. Obviously, we love 'Gattu', 'Stanley Ka Dabba' among other children-based films, but it's good to know that someone has made a 'Gippi'!

For those of us who've passed out of school and college, 'Gippi' is a fairly good nostalgic ride. Those of you who are still studying, you may watch and learn.

The film teaches you to get rid of your own insecurities and accept other people's weaknesses. And, one must add, it does a good job of doing that!

Shivom Oza

Deewaar (1975) Review by Shivom Oza – Must Watch For Its Performances And Dialogues!

3/5 Stars

‘Deewaar’, the Yash Chopra film made in 1975, is a classic tale about two brothers, who get caught on either side of the law.  

The principal characters of the film, labour union leader Anand Verma (Satyendra Kapoor), his wife Sumitra Devi (Nirupa Roy), elder son Vijay Verma (Amitabh Bachchan), younger son Ravi Verma (Shashi Kapoor) and Vijay’s love interest Anita (Parveen Babi), are essentially victims of circumstances.

Anand Verma is an upright labourer who stands up for his colleagues. However, circumstances force him to go against his principles, and wrong the people that he once stood for. The consequences of Anand’s actions are faced by his family.

Troubled by the constant taunts and humiliation from Anand’s (who eventually runs away) nemeses, wife Sumitra Devi is forced to move from their hometown to Bombay city. Here too, she finds it difficult to earn enough to bring her two children up. So much so, that Sumitra and Vijay have to go on about their menial jobs, just so that they can earn enough to send Ravi to school.

Vijay, who goes through the turbulent experience of having ‘mera baap chor hai’ (My father is a thief) inked on his forearm, gets deeply disturbed by all that happened to his family, and starts holding their poverty responsible for their family’s condition. He even refuses to go to the temple, as he has lost all faith in God!

The two sons grow up and while Ravi ends up becoming a police inspector, Vijay, owing to fate, gets on the wrong side of the law. ‘Deewaar’ is about how the drama unfolds between the two siblings!

The film captures several realities that we associate with the 1970s – the real estate boom, labour strikes, clout of the underworld, victimization of the poor etc. However, the basic essence of the film is about how there is no clear ‘wrong’ or ‘right’ on show. We may think of Vijay Verma as the villain of the story, but the crux lies in what forced him to do what he did!

The dialogues and the one-liners in the film are the scene-stealers. Who can forget the iconic ‘mere paas maa hai’ dialogue? The confrontation scenes between the Verma brothers are ‘power-packed’, not just for Salim-Javed’s writing but also owing to Bachchan and Kapoor’s performances.

Amitabh Bachchan, Shashi Kapoor and Nirupa Roy are terrific in their respective roles. Neetu Singh does a good job in her limited part. Parveen Babi, who plays Amitabh’s love interest, is shown as a liberated Indian woman who smokes, drinks, gets into relationships and is modern-in-thought and spirit.

Watch out for A.K. Hangal’s cameo in the film. The minor sequence, involving him, leaves a huge impact on the viewer’s mind.

The songs of the film are good, but certainly not extraordinary. ‘Keh Doon Tumhein’, sung by Kishore Kumar and Asha Bhosle, is a nice, peppy track and the pick of the lot! The plot may seem a bit bizarre at some portions, but considering that the film was made in 1975 and has been a reference point for so many screenplays written since then, ‘Deewaar’ should be watched!

‘Deewaar’ is not Yash Chopra’s best film. However, there are a couple of elements in it which should not be missed – performances and dialogues!

Shivom Oza

Commando (2013) Review by Shivom Oza – Lights, Camera and ACTION!

2.5/5 Stars

Commando, produced by Vipul Shah, projects itself as an out-and-out action film, with unbelievable stunt sequences performed by Vidyut Jammwal of Force fame. The makers have also maintained that while it is an action film, there is a lot of emotion (in the form of romance, music, song-and-dance etc.) inherent in the screenplay. The film keeps its promises on most counts. To put it briefly, the plot revolves around how Captain Karanvir Dogra, a commando, rescues Simrit from the stranglehold of the local goon, Amrit Kanwal Singh (colloquially referred to as AK74, since he was born in the year 1974!), and his men.

Your opinion of the film will depend a lot on your expectations. So to lay it out for you, here's what you should expect from Commando - unbelievable action (never-seen-before in Hindi cinema), Vidyut Jammwal's electrifying screen presence, Pooja Chopra's decent acting performance on debut, hummable music, corny (most of them being cringe-worthy) dialogues, a villain with clownish tendencies, bizarre plot points, wonderful cinematography and one abominable, sleazy, unwanted item number.

Commando is a complete 'masala' film. There will be several moments during the film, when you will look around wondering, 'Who came up with that?'. So, expect all the aforementioned aspects and you might just end up liking it. Luckily, action remains a very dominant part of the film, and doesn't get overshadowed by other embellishments.

Commando of the Indian army, Karanvir Dogra (Vidyut Jammwal) escapes from China (where he was in the custody of the Chinese army after being falsely implicated as an Indian spy and mercilessly tortured thereafter) to India (albeit in miraculous circumstances). Here, at a small town close to the Punjab-Himachal Pradesh border, he bumps into Simrit (Pooja Chopra), who has run away from her home after facing a lot of harassment from the eccentric and much-feared local politician, AK74 (Jaideep Ahlawat). Thus begins the action extravaganza!

We get to see Vidyut perform innumerable and breathtaking stunt sequences, and mouth rip-roaring one-liners. The actor is sublime when it comes to flaunting his brawny side. The perfectly toned physique and the charming dialogue delivery, works wonders for the young actor's screen presence. Pooja performs very well, for someone who is making her acting debut. One wishes that her character had been written in a better manner (perhaps toned down its effervescence a trifle), but Pooja does well with what she had to do. Jaideep Ahlawat, who plays the villain, is absolutely marvelous. The actor plays the comical villain to the hilt and evokes chills and guffaws in equal measure. Jaideep is a real find, and should definitely be seen in more films. The supporting cast members deliver passable performances.

Mannan Shaah's music is pleasant and hummable. The song 'Saawan Bairi', sung by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, is as beautiful as its video, which features Vidyut and Pooja. Sejal Shah's cinematography is at its best during the shoot of this particular song. Sejal's camerawork is one of the highlights of the film. There's an unwanted item number in the film. This dance number screams 'sleazy' and almost withers away a fairly enjoyable movie-watching experience. Vidyut and Pooja have got terrific screen presence and are fine dancers as well. Hence, the songs, barring that apology of an item number, don't really slow the film down or spoil the screenplay. The dialogues of the film are outright corny. At times, one does wonder if this is really how people, or on a more widespread level, army people talk! The lines have been written in order to bring in the whistles, but sadly, not all of them work! Dilip Ghosh's attempt to make a movie like this, which seems like a good amalgamation of the realistic and the commercial, almost succeeds.

However, as already mentioned before, Commando is not everybody's cup of tea. Although the makers have moderated their sensibilities considerably for this film, Commando remains a 'masala' potboiler and only those who enjoy this genre will like it. Prasad Sasthe's background score deserves special mention.

If you're a fan of action films, go for Commando. However, remember that the film comprises many more elements, which one usually associates with 'masala' potboilers. So, keep that thought in mind!

Shivom Oza

Chashme Buddoor (1981) Review by Shivom Oza – Don’t Call It ‘OLD’!

4/5 Stars

“The word classic means something that is a perfect example of a particular style, something of lasting worth or with a timeless quality”, says the dictionary. We often mistake most old films to be ‘classics’. However, the ‘something of lasting worth or with a timeless quality’ prerequisite seldom gets fulfilled.

Sai Paranjpye’s ‘Chashme Buddoor’ (1981) is one such film, which satisfies all the aforementioned parameters.

The film, which kind of embodied all genres – romance, comedy, drama, tragedy, satire and a bit of action, is what you would call in today’s lingo a ‘full-blown masala entertainer’. Although the songs do slow it down a trifle, the dialogues, performances and the writing make ‘Chashme Buddoor’ a must, must watch!

Siddharth (Farooq Shaikh), Omi (Rakesh Bedi) and Jai (Ravi Baswani) are three Delhi University students, staying together in a rented flat. While Siddharth is the studious one and spends most of his time reading books, Omi and Jai are absolutely ‘good-for-nothing’. They spend all their time chasing girls and fooling around! However, the three friends share one common interest – smoking cigarettes! They buy borrow their cigarette stock from a local shopkeeper, Lallan Miyan (Saeed Jaffrey) and never pay up, much to the old man’s chagrin!

This ‘uncomfortable’ camaraderie goes on until the three friends end up falling for the same girl – Neha Rajan (Deepti Naval) aka ‘Miss Chamko’!

The film encapsulates everything that was ‘cool’ about India during the 80s. Right from the language to the lifestyle to the behaviour, there was a good mix of the innocent and the liberal (and sometimes, the rebellious). The three main characters, played by Shaikh, Bedi and Baswani, are witty and wicked in equal measure. All the three actors manage to hold their own. While Baswani plays the foolish, crooked Jai to the hilt, Bedi shows that he is a genius when it comes to comic timing. Farooq, despite not getting to play one of the ‘funny’ guys, ends up creating his own niche of humour with his wide range of expressions and reactions. Deepti Naval had to play ‘hard-to-get’, ‘madly-in-love’, ‘damsel-in-distress’, ‘plain-Jane’, ‘glam-doll’ and what not, in the same film, and she brings out her best for this (still-memorable) character of ‘Miss Chamko’. Some of the sequences in the film are beyond brilliant, right from the opening credits to Omi and Jai’s futile wooing to Miss Chamko’s detergent powder demonstration to the light-hearted banter between the leads and Lallan Miyaan. Leena Mishra’s cameo as the grandmother is absolutely delightful.

The best part about the film is that it’s not the nostalgia which will make you smile. The humour is such that it would have worked even in 2013. So, you wouldn’t necessarily laugh because you got reminded of a certain era. You would laugh because you found the scene really funny!

The music of the film by Raj Kamal is the only aspect which may not work for today’s audience. Most songs do slow down the film. The songs are good, but in isolation and not within the screenplay. One song that really goes with the theme of the film is ‘Pyar Lagawat’.

Other notable aspects of the film include the terrific parody featuring Baswani and Naval, Amitabh Bachchan-Rekha cameo and the amazing restoration work done on the film.

Sai Paranjpye’s genius is written all over ‘Chashme Buddoor’. It’s a must watch (on the BIG screen)!

Shivom Oza

Salaam Bombay (1988) Review by Shivom Oza - Ek Din, Apne Hindustaan Mein, Sab Theek Ho Jaayega!

5/5 Stars

Bombay, now Mumbai, is often referred to as 'sapnon ka sheher' (city of dreams). There's a scene in 'Salaam Bombay', when Krishna, played by Shafiq Syed, is requesting for a ticket to any big city in the vicinity and the ticket seller tells him, 'Bombay jaa, waapas film star ban ke aana'. This, folks, is the magic about the city. Mira Nair’s ‘Salaam Bombay’ captures the life on the streets of this glorious city.

 

Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, ‘Salaam Bombay’ is a heart-rending film. The story, and particularly the mind-numbing climax, won't make you smile or cry. Instead, it will stun you!

Krishna (Shafiq Syed), who has run away from his home after being involved in a scuffle with his brother, works in the circus. On one of the days, young Krishna is left abandoned by his circus troupe after being asked to run an errand. The boy finds it difficult to find his way back to his mother, or locate his circus troupe. So, he lands up at the railway station and travels to the nearest big city, Bombay. Here, he hopes to collect 500 rupees so that he can return to his 'mulk' (home).

Krishna loses the little money that he had on the first day itself, as he gets robbed by the street urchins. He follows the robbers all the way till Bombay's red-light area at Grant Road. Here, he comes across interesting characters. Baba Golub (Nana Patekar) has hired Chillum (Raghubir Yadav) to sell drugs for him, while his wife Rekha (Aneeta Kanwar) sleeps around for money with well-off men at the up-scale areas of the city.

Chillum, who is a hustler and a drug-addict, befriends Krishna and gets him a job at a tea stall. So, Krishna is rechristened as 'Chaipau'. 'Chaipau' loses his heart to a young prostitute, named 'Sola Saal' (Chanda Sharma), which colloquially translates to Sweet Sixteen. While Baba and Rekha share a complicated, sometimes abusive, relationship with each other, their daughter Manju (Hansa Vithal) finds herself neglected all the time by her parents and her friend, Krishna/Chaipau.  Meanwhile, the young boy finds himself in the middle of several complicated equations; the unspoken one with Sola Saal, the helpless one with the self-destructive Chillum and lastly, dealing with his own troubles of trying to procure 500 rupees, which will help him go back to his 'mulk'.

'Salaam Bombay' captures the raw, relentless energy on the streets and slums of Bombay city. Although the film largely is about the downtrodden and the underprivileged class, every one, irrespective of their cast, class, race, sex, region or faith, will relate to these characters. The pathos of the city is wonderfully captured through Sandi Sissel's camera. Even the editing, which does seem abrupt on a few occasions, by Barry Alexander Brown brilliantly sets up the premise of the film. The cast, comprising of stellar actors in Patekar, Kanwar, Yadav, Shafiq and Vithal, make these dingy-characters their own through their exemplary performances. The cameo list includes Irrfan Khan, Sanjana Kapoor and Anjan Srivastav, all of whom went on to carve their own special place in the annals of the Indian entertainment industry. Mira Nair and Sooni Taraporevala's 'Salaam Bombay' is arguably the best film to be made on Bombay/Mumbai. While it does not mirror every aspect of this wonderful city, the parts that it does are immortalised in the best possible manner. One dialogue in this film really hits you hard - one elderly man tells Krishna/Chaipau - 'Ek din, apne Hindustaan mein sab theek ho jaayega', which translates to 'One day, in our India, everything will be alright'. This one line speaks volumes about the poignancy within the film. Hriday Lani's dialogues play an equal role in making this film the 'cult' that it is.

We keep reading about how the people of Mumbai resume their normal lives post any catastrophe - deluges, bomb blasts, riots, terror attacks. This phrase, 'the indomitable spirit of the people of Mumbai' is used by each and every scribe, every time our city faces a calamity. You know what best describes the indomitable spirit of Mumbai? 'Salaam Bombay'! Thousand Salaams, Mira Ji!

Shivom Oza  

Sona Spa (2013) Review by Shivom Oza - So Jaaiye!

0/5 Stars

If you've already watched the trailers of the film, 'Sona Spa', it seems like you must have already made up your mind. The film deals with sleep deprivation, which according to the makers is a 'major modern life issue'.

One falls short of adjectives to describe this apology of a film. Even 'terrible' is an understatement.

The 'plot' is nothing but a big 'blot'. Apologies for this lyrical catastrophe, but this particular film deserves all the 'accolades'. The concept of the film is that at 'Sona Spa', you can buy sleep for yourself and that girls will sleep for you. However, there's a catch! The girls can also inhabit their client's dreams, which lead to problems.

Look, one may call this concept 'novel', 'fresh', 'innovative', but if the execution is so lackadaisical, then they ought to be pulled up! Shruti Vyas, who is such a brilliant theatre actor, is completely wasted in the film. Naseeruddin Shah's is a guest appearance, thankfully. The actor par excellence, yet again, features in a terrible film. Quite frankly, one cannot complain about not getting enough due in the Hindi film industry, if you choose such scripts. If one feels that great disservice has been done to their talent, they should self-introspect instead of playing the blame-game.

Go to sleep. Avoid the film!

Shivom Oza

Aatma (2013) Review by Shivom Oza – Redefines The Horror Genre!

3.5/5 Stars

Recent horror films churned out by Bollywood follow certain prerequisites – sex, love story, lip-sync songs, item numbers, and unfathomable twists among many others. These films end up being accepted by the audiences and collect great box-office returns. Surprisingly and to an extent, thankfully Suparn Verma’s ‘Aatma’ comprises none of the above, and yet manages to be more effective than any of those films, which do consist of the aforementioned prerequisites.

‘Aatma’ relies purely on the content and, to a large extent, succeeds owing to clever storytelling, astute direction and remarkable performances.

The plot of the film is quite simple and linear. Maya Verma (Bipasha Basu) keeps her daughter Nia (Doyel Dhawan) in the dark about her husband and the girl’s father, Abhay Verma’s (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) abusive behaviour and untimely death. It is when strange incidents start occurring in Nia’s life (Nia’s classmate and teacher die in mysterious circumstances) that Maya begins to get worried. Soon, she discovers that her daughter has been talking to someone (whom she claims is her father), not visible to anyone else. Her fears come true when she realizes that it’s Abhay’s ‘Aatma’ that’s haunting them and that the maverick wants to take Nia back with him.

The story of the film is very new so far as this particular genre is concerned. It takes the bold step of doing away with typical commercial cinema innuendos and keeps most aspects of the film (screenplay, dialogues, art direction, cinematography, acting etc.) subtle and realistic. There are a couple of scenes in the film, such as the entire sorcerer angle with the religious connection, which seem a bit out-of-place. However, the film manages to do away with most clichés and ends up becoming a compelling watch. The cinematography (Sophie Winqvist) deserves special mention for incorporating the bluish-gray colour tone and imbibing it so wonderfully with the screenplay. Even the background score by Hitesh Sonik accentuates the thrill-factor of the film. As far as the performances go, Bipasha Basu delivers her career-best performance as the helpless mother coping with an abusive relationship, a long-kept secret and the impending loss of her only child. Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Doyel Dhawan too, deliver first-rate performances. Among the supporting cast, Shernaz Patel stands out. Suparn Verma has dared to try something different from the norm. Kudos to the director for this brave and largely successful attempt!

The film is more intriguing than terrifying. Either way, you should watch it!

Shivom Oza

Mere Dad Ki Maruti (2013) Review by Shivom Oza – Chalegi Nahin, Daudegi!

3.5/5 Stars

Tej, a wealthy-yet-stingy businessman, buys a luxury SUV for his future son-in-law. However, on one night his notorious son, Sameer, sneaks out this prized possession and ends up losing it.

Ashima Chibber’s ‘Mere Dad Ki Maruti’ is a fun, feel-good film. The terrific dialogues, music and performances make up for the over-the-top screenplay.

Sameer (Saqib Saleem), Chandigarh’s useless bugger (or ‘burger’ as his dad, Tej (Ram Kapoor), calls him), takes out his father’s prized possession, a Maruti Ertiga, in the night to impress the college hottie, Jasleen (Rhea Chakraborty). While Sameer manages to sweep Jasleen off her feet, he ends up losing the 10-lac-rupees-worth-car. 

So, his friend Gattu (Prabal Panjabi) and he embark upon the car-hunt. After running helter-skelter through the streets of Chandigarh all night, the duo give up. Eventually, they cook up a plan to get another car. The cat-and-mouse begins with Sameer trying his level best to cover up this gaffe from his temperamental father. The story begins on a great note and is excellently placed till the interval point. Post, second-half, there are a few unbelievably over-the-top scenes. Yet, ‘Mere Dad Ki Maruti’ manages to culminate wonderfully.

The film’s dialogues (Ishita Moitra), interspersed with Punjabi slang, are one of the highlights of this film. The story, penned by Neeraj Udwani, is fresh, but the treatment did get a bit formulaic. There’s a scene in which Prabal’s Gattu delivers the ’70 minute’ speech a la Kabir Khan from ‘Chak De India’. There’s another scene in which a religious procession is playing ‘Dhoom Macha Le’ from ‘Dhoom’. Marriage is an integral part of the film, so there's ‘Kajra Re’ from ‘Bunty Aur Babli’ playing several times. These scenes are enjoyable, but one hopes that the production house doesn’t keep coming up with ‘YRF’ references. It does get a bit repetitive. Saqib Saleem, Prabal Panjabi and Ram Kapoor deliver outstanding performances and Rhea Chakraborty too, is quite good. The best part about the film is the foot-tapping music by Sachin Gupta. The soundtrack boasts of names such as Mika Singh, Yo Yo Honey Singh, Diljit Dosanjh, and Panjabi MC among others. ‘Main Senti Tha’ and ‘Panjabiyaan Di Battery’ are surely to get you to hit the replay button, again and again!

Comedy reigns supreme in the story and along with the wonderful music and the emotional touch towards the climactic moments, makes this film a great family entertainer. The youth, in particular, will tremendously enjoy it.

Shivom Oza

Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster Returns (2013) Review by Shivom Oza – Please Go Back!

2/5 Stars

Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster was one of the best-written films of 2011. Jimmy Sheirgill as the Saheb, Mahie Gill as the Biwi and Randeep Hooda as the Gangster, delivered terrific performances and gave us a gripping political-bedroom-drama. Tigmanshu has, since then, made huge strides in the Hindi film industry with brilliant direction in 'Paan Singh Tomar' and a formidable acting debut in 'Gangs Of Wasseypur'. Now, he is all set to present his next directorial venture.

'Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster Returns' comprises traits - sex, betrayal, politics, power, greed among others, which are similar to its predecessor's. Even though the performances and the 'dialoguebaazi' steal the show, the screenplay is a big let-down.

Indrajit Singh (Irrfan Khan) wants to avenge the killing of his ancestors at the hands of Aditya Pratap Singh’s (Jimmy Sheirgill) forefathers. He frequently visits the ruins of his family’s erstwhile kingdom and every visit keeps reminding him of his mission to destroy Aditya Pratap Singh. Indrajit’s love interest, Ranjana (Soha Ali Khan), is the daughter of another royal, Bana Singh (Raj Babbar). Aditya, confined to a wheelchair and already in a defunct marriage with Madhavi (Mahie Gill), takes a liking for Ranjana and asks for her hand in marriage. Bana Singh, who is reluctant to give away his daughter to a handicapped and a temperamental man, summons Indrajit to plot Aditya’s downfall. The film is essentially about how Indrajit along with Ranjana get together to bring Aditya down. However, then enters the Biwi! Having already assumed ad-hoc power in the kingdom, Madhavi is perpetually inebriated and is basking in the glory of her newfound power. Trouble arises when Madhavi comes in contact with Indrajit! The story of the film is baffling at some points. The main conflict of the film only comes with about half an hour of the film to go. Till then, the story does not really go anywhere.

Even though the characters have been well-etched in isolation, they don’t quite go well with the story of the film. Soha’s Ranjana is shown as an innocuous princess who is blindly in love with Indrajit. However, there’s no trait which you would associate with her character, except maybe, confused. Mahie starts out brilliantly with her temperamental, drunk act (which she seems to have mastered), but it gets too annoying and repetitive. The bizarre twists-and-turns in the plot dilute the impact of the casts’ performances. Even though the actors get memorable dialogues to mouth, the story doesn’t quite rise to the occasion. Random incidents such as out-of-the-blue arrests and deaths of pivotal characters are left unexplained. Aditya, who couldn’t stand up till the mid-way point of the second-half, gets his swagger back, all of a sudden. The other royal members, with interesting nicknames such as Rudy and Bunny, also seem a confused lot with no real motive at hand. Irrfan, who is shown to be quite determined in his quest to kill Aditya Pratap Singh, suddenly develops a change-of-heart in the end. The climax just escalates the bizarre-level of the film by a few notches. As far as the politics of the film is concerned, here again, the only impression you will take back is that politicians are lecherous and dumb. Madness is obviously permissible in cinema and often, it makes for terrific viewing as well. However, there should be some method to the madness. The two unneeded item numbers only worsen the viewing experience.

When you have powerhouse performers in Jimmy Sheirgill, Mahie Gill and Irrfan, backed with a wonderful story teller in Tigmanshu Dhulia, how can you go wrong? When your first film ‘Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster’ was so bloody awesome, how can you make such a bad sequel? While you put all the thought into the 'dhamakedaar' dialogues and the 'seeti bajao' scenes, why didn't anyone proofread the screenplay? Greed and complacency! Sequels make sense commercially. One can make good sequels too, but proper attention should be given to the script as well. Mere piggy-backing on the ‘brand’ name won’t do!

Shivom Oza