Gangs of Wasseypur - "Keh Ke Dekho" !!

The 'Tarantino' and the 'Coppola' of Bollywood, Anurag Kashyap, is back with the most stylish, most entertaining and yet the most realistic film of his career. The man who made us experience the reality around the Mumbai blasts in the name of 'Black Friday', the unfortunate condition of the student politics in 'Gulaal' and the depiction of the modern-day 'Devdas' in his cult film 'Dev D' is actually back with his most awaited film about the coal-mafia in Bihar. 'Gangs of Wasseypur' (Part 1) stands tall and it can easily be said as the best work of Anurag Kashyap.

The story starts with Shahid Khan (Jaideep Ahlawat) robbing a British train and selling the loot to the villagers. Shahid works at Ramadhir Singh's (Tigmanshu Dhulia) colliery and thinks of grabbing the mafia-throne by killing Ramadhir but gets killed himself when Ramadhir comes to know about his plans. After years Shahid's son Sardar Khan (Manoj Bajpayee) becomes the most feared man of Wasseypur and plans revenge against Ramadhir ("goli nahi maarenge saale ko, keh ke lenge uski"). The story is about three generations confined to the coal mafia in Wasseypur and their gangs who fight incessantly to bring their honour back. Part 1 of GOW is focused on the life of Sardar Khan and how he succeeds in becoming an awe-inspiring figure of Wasseypur.

Manoj Bajpayee is the real hero of the film as he single-handedly takes the film to an unimaginable level of success (remarkable acting, astonishing screen presence and superb dialogue delivery). Jaideep Ahlawat brilliantly played is part (throughout the starting sequence you may think that he's Manoj Bajpaee). Tigmanshu Dhulia's role suits him pretty well, Nawazuddin Siddiqui has a small role (but Part 2 belongs to him), Richa Chadda is absolutely brilliant, Reema Sen is sexier than ever, Vipin Sharma is good. Piyush Mishra is the narrator of the story as well as a character in the film and he doesn't need an introduction.

Writing of the film is a separate character which performed brilliantly and better than any other character the film has. A superlative screenplay packed with a meaty set of dialogues and lovable characters makes the film realistic and entertaining at the same time. Sneha Khanwalkar's music is fantastic (be it Jiya Ho, Hunter or Womaniya), this "womaniya" will go places. Cinematography by Rajeev Ravi is again A-Grade regardless the fact that shooting an Anurag Kashyap film you need to be a rogue at times.

Anurag Kashyap has shot this film in a "Tarantino mixed with Coppola" manner and it definitely stands out. Showcasing detailed description of every incident, every fact surrounding the happenings in Wasseypur since generations and yet making it entertaining enough that the viewers ask for more after watching a 160 minutes film is the job of a genius. Gangs of Wasseypur is a masterpiece of its kind that should not be missed otherwise Sardar Khan "keh ke lenge apki".
Eagerly waiting for Part 2.           

Punctured Ferrari !!

When a film comes from such a reputed banner like Vinod Chopra Films the expectations are always high (and if their last film happens to be '3 Idiots' there's not much to say than to look forward). Directed by Rajkumar Hirani's AD since Munnabhai MBBS, Rajesh Mapuskar 'Ferrari Ki Sawaari' falls flat on the storyline (it is said that the script was developed in a span of seven and a half years, seriously?).

Rustom Debu (Sharman Joshi) is a single father, honest and simple, who can even go out of the way to pay the fine for his silliest mistakes and would say "Mere bete ne dekha na, jo dekhega wohi seekhega" (according to its makers, the whole film is summarised with this dialogue). Kayo (Ritwik Sahore), his son is an extraordinary cricketer and his dream is to play for Team India. Rustom's father Behram (Boman Irani) hates cricket (for some reasons) and doesn't want Kayo to play. To fulfill Kayo's dream of playing at the Lord's cricket ground which is possible only with 1.5 lakh rupees in his pockets, Rustom performs an act of dishonesty which eventually gives him the exact amount needed. Rustom unknowingly steals Sachin Tendulkar's 'Ferrari' (???) for a wedding planner who in return would give the amount which he needed so badly. The story moves ahead with a lot of other characters involved with 'Ferrari' - the owner's servant, the security guard, the 'goonda' groom and his 'goonda' politician father.    

The story has nothing to push it further and it would be a better option to keep the film crispier and shorter. The characters used for comical purpose sounds boring and takes the pace of the film to a negative level. If it is not for the performances the film would go through digs. Sharman Joshi outshines and we can say that he has actually made his own identity in the list of fine actors (absolutely brilliant in the climax scenes). Boman Irani is terrific with such a beautiful 'Parsi' accent and terrific performance. The child actor Ritwik Sahore is very natural and performs well. Paresh Rawal is amazing in a small (negative) role.

Rajesh Mapuskar's direction is above average (considering his debut) but writing is far below average; no scope for the storyline to grow; even Hirani's dialogues lacks the magical touch. Cinematography and editing is good and Pritam's music is average.

'Ferrari Ki Sawaari' is a feel-good film where life seems too easy and everything falls into place very easily, this is the reason it is liked by everyone; you may criticise it but cannot hate this 'Sawaari'.
P.S. It is actually Sachin's Ferrari in the film.

"Bhaarat Mata Ki Jai"

An adaptation of a greek writer Vassilis Vassilikos' novel "Z", Shanghai is a political thriller directed by ace filmmaker Dibakar Banerjee who gave us classics like 'Khosla Ka Ghosla', 'Oye Lucky Lucky Oye' and 'Love Sex Aur Dhokha'. Dibakar Banerjee has been consistent in showcasing his brilliance throughout all of his previous films choosing avant-garde subjects and he hasn't failed in this one either. Just one thing he needs to know is 'making purely realistic cinema in today's time won't have your viewers attention'.
Bharat Nagar is a small Indian city which is being prepared by the ruling party for an outshining infrastructure project which will convert Bharat Nagar into 'Shanghai' (many people won't know why the hell the name is Shanghai). Dr. Ahmedi (Prosenjit Chatterjee), a social activist is against this development in the name of IBP which will cost the poors their houses and lands. After one of his speeches (worth mentioning: "baahar mausam kharab hai, oley padh rahe hain") a speeding truck hits him and lands him into a critical condition. One of his students, Shalini (Kalki Koechlin) believes that it is not an accident but an attempt to kill him and tries to find out proofs related to it and meets Joginder (Emraan Hashmi), an adult filmmaker who claims to have a shocking proof about the incident. Meanwhile the chief minister sets up an inquiry commission headed by T.N.Krishnan (Abhay Deol), an IAS officer and also IBP's Vice-Chairman. The story revolves around these four characters and how they get involved in this whodunnit case.
The 'hero' of the film is it's visionary director who has shot every bit of the film with honesty and adhered to reality throughout the running time. The intellect of the film is worth praising (only if you've proper knowledge of politics and all the incidents happening around) but it actually is the main demerit of the film (single screen viewers literally watch the film open-mouthed wondering what all is happening).
The film's pace is too slow which ultimately leads to lack of viewer's attention. If it is not for performances the film would go on an absolutely dull note. Be it Abhay Deol as a Madrasi-IAS officer or Emraan Hashmi as a porn videographer, the cast totally outshines each other.
The screenplay is brilliant (Urmi Juvekar and Dibakar Banerjee) and some dialogues wins applaud. The cinematography by Nikos Andritsakis (as superb as in LSD) is eye-catching and those constantly unstable camera shots creates a feel for the film. Namrata Rao's editing is good and Vishal-Shekhar's music is above average (though the film has only 2 songs and 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai' is best among them).
Shanghai is not a film for everyone (definitely not for masses) but it's a film about everyone. A perfect political thriller (though you'll not be thrilled anyhow, you may yawn) of all times which leaves an impact and reveals our bureaucratic conditions where the states have their own "Shanghai Dreams" where they want to build a city full of economic growth and development and on the other side they crushes the small-town dreams of people who just wants their basic neccessities and not a "SHANGHAI".          

"Don't Angry Me"

It seems that every Bollywood actor (read superstar) needs a role of a fearless cop with a lot of action scenes in his platter, a pinch of romance, some teaspoons of comedy and added masala (a twist) to regain their "popularity dish". Rowdy Rathore is another such film which marks Akshay Kumar's comeback to action films; one was Chandni Chowk (to China or whatsoever, never mind). A remake of the Telugu blockbuster film 'Vikramarkudu' stars Akshay Kumar, Akshay Kumar (again) and Sonakshi Sinha in lead roles.
Shiva (Akshay No.1) , a small-time crook leading a happily 'crooked' life falls in love with Paro (Sonakshi Sinha) who also starts loving him. His life turns upside down when he meets a small girl who recognises him as her father (Heyy Baby? NO). Shiva finds out that the girl's father Vikram Rathore (Akshay No.2)  is actually his look alike (and Thank God not a lost twin brother) and a fearless cop who has a back story of destroying some outlaws who now wants to kill Vikram and his daughter. The story has all those elements which are necessary to make the film a blockbuster today no matter if we've been watching similar stories since ages. Akshay Kumar is as good in his role of Vikram Rathore as irritatingly he performs a "chinta chita" humming idiotic role of Shiva. Akshay Kumar seriously needs to think about choosing his roles (he's a brilliant actor if used well). Sonakshi Sinha once again has absolutely nothing to do in the film (how can you even think of a female performance in a masala flick) and her part looks forced in the storyline. Nassar as 'Baapji' looks naturally menacing and Paresh Ganatra as '2G' is funny as always.
When the choreographers jumps into the field of direction you know the film's going to shake you up and it does ('Wanted' was still better). Shiraz Ahmed's screenplay (which at times looks very much forced) is no match with his past few works (Race, for one). Santosh Thundiyil's cinematography is good as always, editing has no scope, music is average (though Sajid-Wajid calls "Aa re 'Pritam' pyaare", he wouldn't come). Rowdy Rathore is nor 'Dabangg' neither 'Singham' but it takes a route between them and stands alone as an Akshay Kumar-entertainer. Made on the budget of Rs. 40 crores, it had already collected Rs. 66 crores (in 4 days) making it a blockbuster (sadly and madly). After watching the film you'll get to know one thing for sure : Sanjay Leela Bhansali is badly in need of money after making sensible films like 'Guzarish'.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCAcU3p9GNo