Ghanchakkar (28 Jun 2013)

Cast: Vidya Balan, Emraan Hashmi, Rajesh Sharma, Namit Das

Director: Rajkumar Gupta

It is a common practice amongst the filmmakers to add an unnecessary but high impact item song in an upcoming dud movie and market that entire movie around that song, so that at least the movie receives a decent opening and considerably recovers the making cost within the first week of its release. But, to do this whole marketing drama around a ‘character in the movie’ is unheard of. ‘Ghanchakkar’ breaks all conventional norms by doing so, and sadly only therein lies the innovative effort of this movie! The entire movie hype is created around Vidya’s character i.e. of that of a boisterous and voluptuous Punjabi woman who is highly into so called (read weird) fashion wear and who cannot cook well. But this character is of no pivotal consequence to the movie. It neither defines the pace nor serves the climax of the movie! In fact the movie’s climax and ending make no sense at all.

In recent history, both Vidya and Emraan are known to give sure shot hits and their last venture together ‘The Dirty Picture’ received both commercial and critical acclaim. Announcement of their next venture with an experimental and hit director like Rajkumar Gupta (‘Aamir’ and ‘No One Killed Jessica’) created a lot of expectation as both the actors are known to do wonders with a little offbeat commercial movies. But it seems that even during their golden phase, actors cannot create a hit out of a half hearted script and direction. In spite of Vidya’s trademark acting, you do feel that a Huma Qureshi or a Parineeti Chopra would have done a better justice to the role. Reasons – a) because Vidya’s Punjabi accent doesn’t appear effortless or consistent, and b) her recent marriage to the movie’s producer (Siddharth Roy Kapur of UTV Motion Pictures) and over exposure due to her impeccable Sabyasachi clad presence in award shows and Cannes Film Festival, kind of weighs heavily over her make believe character in the movie. Rajesh Sharma’s acting and characterization are both consistent throughout the movie. Namit has acted well but characterization is not so clear.

Raanjhanaa (Jun 2013)

Cast: Sonam Kapoor, Dhanush, Abhay Deol, Swara Bhaskar, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, Kumud Mishra, Shilpi Marwaha

Director: Anand L. Rai

You are all set to watch a ramp walk. The model walks in well dressed in ethnic, colorful  and vibrant finery well laced with gota, embroidery, sequins and the likes. Upon reaching the front of the stage she turns around to commence her exit. But the back of the apparel is a combination of leather black and whites in different geometrical shapes, very Gen-X like, simply strewn together within the outline of the apparel. You are left in an utter confused state because how much ever you try, you cannot derive to any logical or creative or even any experimental link between the front and the back of the apparel. Neither can you find clear logical link between the elements of the back of the apparel themselves! You really enjoy the model’s entry on the stage, make up a mindset which makes her exit somewhat predictable and somewhat mysterious, and you are all set to enjoy her exit. But the whole experience simply leaves you fumbling to understand what the designer actually intended. This is Raanjhanaa. Rustic, well scripted and soothingly paced first half, but absolutely differently scripted and cumbersome second half.

It seems that the director intended to recreate the magic of the classic 1942 – A Love Story in modern day setting i.e. pure, innocent love amidst the backdrop of political turmoil. Instead he created pure innocent love and political turmoil. Reasons – a) because he could not handle both the sensibilities together, and b) Sonam is not Manisha, who when well directed, can throw in myriad expressions together to depict the internal turmoil of the character.

First half of the movie is fresh in its approach and keeps you entertained. Sonam looks beautiful in every frame. But she direly needs to get out of her ‘Saawariya’ mindset. Yesteryears’ actresses mould does not work for the modern day complex characters. Her acting ranges from being good to confused to ordinary. Abhay has a magnetic screen presence. You expect him to do a lot more than he is given the chance to do in the movie. But the surprise package is Dhanush. You would never expect this lanky man from south to act and emote so well in every scene that he has been given to act. Best thing about him is that he neither tries to steal away other actor’s scenes nor he tries to display the star in him over the character that he is playing. Swara Bhaskar and Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, his two friends in the movie have also acted very well. Except for the voice, you simply cannot realize that Swara is the same lady who played Kangana’s robust elder sister in ‘Tanu Weds Manu’. Kumud and Shilpi have also done justice to their roles. Some of the dialogues mouthed by Dhanush and his friends do make the required impact. They have their own vernacular charm. Music is composed by the legendary A. R. Rahman, so it is undoubtedly good.

Fukrey (Jun 2013)

Cast: Pulkit Samrat, Navjot Singh, Ali Fazal, Varun Sharma, Richa Chadda, Priya Anand, Vishakha Singh, Pankaj Tripathy

Director: Mrigdeep Singh Lamba

‘Fukrey’ is Delhi slang for people with boastful mouth but falling short in action when required. It can also mean idle and/or street smart people who waste time doing nothing. ‘Vella’ and ‘Lukha’ are another nearby slangs used for such people (courtesy: Mumbaikars).

The movie is a well made comedy with apt name and casting and is pleasant to watch. Direction and acting are also good. It deals with the money requirement of idle duds (read ultra weak students) to gain shortcut into college by buying question paper(s). Their sole motivation for college admission is proximity to girl(s)). To facilitate this, they go to the extreme length of borrowing money from a local mistress of vices and in the process suffer heavily.

In the movie, the kind of euphoria the protagonists attach to the simple act of getting admission or entry into college is something new and worth watching. As mentioned earlier, all characters fit the bill and have performed well. But the icing on the cake is the debutant  Varun Sharma who has played the role of gawky, child like and puberty-excited ‘Chucha’ to the T. His acting is fresh, original and consistent. With him on the screen, you are well assured of some laughter. This is a great achievement for a debutant. Pulkit seems to be acting ‘the hero’ of the movie, wherein in reality no such character exists. Only if that misconception was erased from his performance, the bar of the movie would have raised a few notches higher. Nevertheless his performance is very controlled as compared to his first and preceding movie ‘Bittoo Boss’. Ali has done justice to his melancholic and introvert character and has refrained from using unnecessary nuances in his acting. Richa’s ease of use of expletives is something new on Indian screen. Hats off to her to mumble such dialogues with such natural ease. But unlike other characters, somewhere her character is not well defined. It ranges from being a local (read street) mistress to that of an anti social boss! Navjot is good in poker faced comedy.

It is surprising to witness such well woven comedy from Mrigdeep whose last directorial venture was ‘Teen Thay Bhai’ which was a depressing comedy in spite of the presence of good actors (Om Puri, Shreyas Talpade) in the movie!