Film Review: WAR… CHHOD NA YAAR

Very credible premise, BUT…… 

Cast: Sharman Joshi, Jaaved Jaaferi, Soha Ali Khan, Dalip Tahil, Sanjay Mishra, Manoj Pahwa
Story Idea, Writer, Director: Faraz Haider

Venkat and I went for the film in Cinemax Sion on the day of its release. We were kind of dubious about it when we saw that there were less than 50 people watching the film with us.

THE STORY

The film begins with Captain Raj (Sharman Joshi) of the Indian Army and Captain Qureshi (Jaaved Jaaferi) of the Pakistan Army getting together with a couple of other colleagues to play a game of cards. They sit on the sides of the wire fence at the border and have a ball.

Suddenly, shooting breaks out and the story goes into flashback. At the Defence Minister’s (Dalip Tahil) insistence, GBC TV sends its correspondent Ruth Dutta (Soha Ali Khan) to the border to get information about an impending war between India and Pakistan. But what she finds there is something else altogether.

The Chinese Premier (also Dalip Tahil) has a video conference with the Indian Defence Minister as well as the Pakistan Minister (Dalip Tahil again), promising the sky. Then there is the Defence Minister of the USA (you guessed right that it is Dalip Tahil) wheeling and dealing with the defence heads of both India and Pakistan.

Watch the film for the hilarious turn of events.

MY PERCEPTION

The film runs for 119 minutes and is set in real time of less than 24 hours. The chemistry between Sharman Joshi and Jaaved Jaaferi (yeah, that’s the spelling in this film while the actor keeps changing it pretty often) is very good.

Soha Ali Khan’s role as a correspondent is quite simple and she could not but do it well. There is no scope for emoting or acting that was required.

Manoj Pahwa

The comedy is not too bad but then again it was not that good either. I have seen way better performances by Sharman Joshi, Jaaved Jaaferi and Sanjay Mishra. Despite having four roles, Dalip Tahil was not used up to his potential.

Manoj Pahwa is excellent at comedy and very expressive. He was totally wasted in the film. In fact, the film reminded me of an ad Manoj Pahwa had featured in where he plays an officer in the Indian Military. He is offered a drink by his equal from Pakistan across the wire fence at the border. He was just fantastic in it.

All I can say is that there is no depth to the dialogues and execution. I would blame the writer-director for this.

Having mentioned all the negative points, I must say that the Story Idea is brilliant – befitting the oncoming Golden Age. I just loved the message that the people of both the countries – India and Pakistan – are not interested in war. That’s so true! And I am sure that includes the military of both countries too. It’s quite possible that we have become puppets in the hands of the stronger countries and they are playing on our insecurities. Very credible!

I only wish that the film had been made more interesting.

VERDICT: Watchable! But not worth the 220 bucks we paid per ticket.

RATING: ** ½ (could have been smarter)

*Silly
**Shaky
***Smart
****Snazzy
*****Super

Film Review: FERRARI KI SAWAARI

I somehow felt that they forgot to get an editor or if they had one, he/she forgot their scissors at home

Cast: Sharman Joshi, Boman Irani, Ritwik Sahore, Paresh Rawal, Satyadeep Mishra,
Director: Rajesh Mapuskar

STORY: Rustam (Sharman Joshi) is a head clerk at the RTO office and absolutely straightforward. While his father Debo (Boman Irani) is a couch potato. Rustam’s son is 12-year-old Kayo (Ritvik Sahore) who plays terrific cricket for such a tender age. Only the three men are part of the household where Kayo’s mother has passed on. Rustam is very particular about the values he teaches his son – he not only preaches but lives ‘honesty’. The family runs on Rustam’s single income while he does the household chores too. He breaks the family piggy bank to gather funds to buy a new bat for Kayo. Under these circumstances, Kayo lands an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to go for a cricket coaching workshop at Lord’s, London. While Kayo’s cricket coach (Satyadeep Mishra) is doing his best to keep Kayo away from the scene – he is fully aware of their financial circumstances – the child does get selected. It’s Rustam who is keener that his son goes to the workshop, more than Kayo. Will he be able to get the funds together? Watch the hilarity and pathos weaving together as Rustam does the best by his son. Will Kayo go to Lord’s?

MY PERCEPTION: As I saw in a number of reviews, it’s true that the middle-class will be able to relate to the struggles faced by Rustam and Kayo. Most of the children who have dreams of becoming something must be undergoing this kind of an experience in a country like India. This is the film’s USP.

Boman Irani is a veteran and he has performed very well. Ritvik Sahore was excellent as Sharman Joshi’s son and Boman’s grandson. The values that the film brings to the fore – most of which is missing in kids nowadays – is nothing short of excellent.

Ritvik Sahore is neat and plays a great role. The way he is first angry with his grandfather and later gets close – all thanks to Rustam’s way of handling situations – were portrayed perfectly. More than all this, there is this dialogue that he speaks to his father about becoming a great cricketer while practising from home. While the words must have been written by a scriptwriter, the child says them in the correct fashion without sounding like an adult. That is some feat, I realise. I salute Ritvik on this score.

Sharman Joshi is an excellent actor and has given an excellent performance of a Bawa male who lives with his father and son and runs the house singlehandedly. His expressions were perfect for the role he plays. What I did not like is when he sheds so many tears. True, there were a number of emotional sequences, but there is something known as overdoing – well, that has what has happened in this film.

Satyadeep Mishra as Kayo’s coach is worth a mention. He has done a neat job of his role.

One thing I have to mention about the cinematography. The angles of Mumbai that have been portrayed in the film are nothing short of amazing. All the areas shown, especially from above, are simply gorgeous. Kudos!

The sequence with the wedding ceremony conducted by the Koli corporator was well made.

But, and there is a huge BUT here…

The film does not deserve screen space for more than an hour and a half while it drags on for 2 hrs. 20 minutes. That’s 50 minutes too long. The story has only so much to say. You can’t keep dragging and hammering the same situation again and again. The audience will tend to get bored.

I somehow felt that they forgot to get an editor or if they had one, he/she forgot their scissors at home. Problem after problem after problem being dragged out slowly can be quite torturous. This is a fast moving world and we want to get things going at that pace.

The script could have been way shorter. While the humour with Sachin Tendulkar’s servant and security guard was good, it could have been made tight. The actors themselves have performed well.

The film is probably doing fantastically well more because people – like me and my family – are under the impression that it has been directed by Rajkumar Hirani. That is not so. The director is Rajesh Mapuskar.

I have to mention here that Vidya Balan’s item number was excellent despite her growing bulk. Good one, Vidya!

Why haven’t I mentioned Paresh Rawal? Because there is nothing worth mentioning.

VERDICT: It is definitely worth a watch for the values that brings to you and for Ritvik Sahore.

RATING: **1/2 (as it is not Smart enough)

*Silly
**Shaky
***Smart
****Snazzy
*****Super

Film Review: 3 IDIOTS share the last laugh!

Cast: Aamir Khan, Madhavan, Sharman Joshi, Kareena Kapoor, Boman Irani, Omi Vaidya
Director: Rajkumar Hirani

The film is loosely based on Chetan Bhagat’s Five Point Someone or so I heard. I have yet to read the novel to relate to this.

The Story: Farhan Qureshi (Madhavan) stops an Air India flight by feigning a heart attack. He wants to rush to meet Rancho (Aamir Khan), his college buddy. He calls Raju (Sharman Joshi), another friend, and rushes to meet Rancho whom they have not heard from over the past few years. The two friends rush to the top of the college tower only to meet Chatur Ramalingam aka Silencer (Omi Vaidya), the smart-aleck they used to hate. It has been ten years since college and Silencer wants to show off his success. When threatened, he offers to take Farhan and Raju in search of Rancho. A large part of the rest of the film is shown in flashback over their college days and the balance in their search for Rancho. How they find him and what Rancho has become forms the end of the plot.

In the end it was the 3 Idiots who share the last laugh!

Our Perception: The film has been very well made with the plot keeping you fixed to your seats despite being three hours long. A couple of songs may have been avoided. Aamir has done an excellent job, but then so have Sharman and Madhavan. Boman Irani as Veeru Sahasrabudhe aka Virus has done a super job. His make-up and lisping have gone a long way in ensuring that the role is not the same as that of Dr, Asthana in Munnabhai MBBS. Kareena was okay as Pia. I would award the first prize to Omi Vaidya as Chatur Ramalingam. The guy was just fantastic – he did not seem to act but to walk through his role.

By the time this blog is up, most of the Mumbai population must have seen the film at least once or twice. I am glad in a way as I can go ahead and write anything about the film without spoiling anyone’s fun.

The delivery scene was over-the-top but then again, truth can be stranger then fiction.

Most of the people I know thought the movie was damned funny. I agree to a point. But beyond that, I would say, it was a very thought-provoking film and I cried quite a bit in a few scenes. Especially the one when a student plays the guitar wishing that he could live life once again with different choices. It was heartbreaking to see it more because it is so true in today’s society. I have seen so many youngsters forced to study subjects that they never want to. Worse is not being allowed to pursue the career that one adores. I sincerely wish that people would not just see the jokes but look beyond to what, I am sure, the director was trying to say.

Education for the sake of learning VS getting marks is a subject close to my heart. I am glad that more people will become aware of this after seeing Aamir Khan saying it on screen. Another one that touched the heart was when Rancho explains ‘machine’ in simple language while Silencer rattles off a book definition and the teacher’s reactions to both. Totally realistic!

I only wish that the ragging had not been shown as if it is the best that could happen to one at college. The scene also was very similar to the one in Munnabhai MBBS. I was under the impression that this is not permitted in colleges nowadays.

The best scene was probably the speech given in Hindi by Silencer. It was just hilarious. I have copy-pasted the speech for your reading pleasure, thanks to my friend Diti.

Adarniya sabhapati mahodaya …atithi vishesh shikshan mantri shri R D tripati [tripathi] ji ..maanyaniya shikshagan aur mere piyaaare [pyare] sahpatiyo [sahapathiyon] …aaj agar I.C.E aasmaan ki bulaaandiyo [bulandiyon] ko chhu raahaa [raha] hai ..to uska shreya sirrf [sirf] ekinsaan [ek insaan] ko jaataahai [jata hai] shri veerusahastra buddhe ..give him a a big hand ..he is a great guy really .. Peechle buttis saal se inhone nirantar is college mein balatkar [balaatkaar ] pe balatkar kiye ..umeed hai aagey bee [bhi] karte rahege [rahenge] ..hamine to aashcharya hota hai ki ek insaan apne jeevan kaal mein itni balatkar kaisi kar sakta hai …inhone kadi tapaasya se apne aapko is kaabil bunaya [banaya] hai ..waqt ka sahi upyog ghante ka purna istemaal koi inse seeke [seekhe] ..seeke inse seeke ….aaj hum sab chaatra yaha hai ..kal desh videsh mein fail [faael] jayenge ..waadaa hai aapse jis desh mein honge waha balatkar karenge I.C.E ka naam roshan karenge …dika [dikha] denge sabko jo balatkar Karne ki shamtaa yaha ke chaatro mein hai wo sansaar ke kisi chaatro mein nahiii ….No other chaatra No other chaatra Adarniya mantraji namashkar aapne is sansthaan ko wo chees di jiski hamein sakht zaroorat thi ...sstunn ..stunn hota sabi [sab hi] ke paas hai ..sab chupa ke rakte hai ..detaa koi nai …aapne apna stun is balatkari purush ke haat mein diya hai…ab dekiye yeh kaisa iska upyog karta hai.. Sloke..... Utamamm dadh dhadhattt padam…….. madhyam padam thuchuk thuchuk…….. khanishtham thudthudiiiy padam…….. sursuria pran khatkam..!!!!

Verdict: Definitely worth a watch. I went for a late night show and was wide awake throughout the film.

Rating: ****Snazzy

* Silly

** Shaky

*** Smart

**** Snazzy

***** Super