Naseeruddin Shah is India's finest actor.

One man makes all the difference - Naseeruddin Shah. To breathe life into such a simplistically written character is indeed a challenge, and Shah does exceedingly well and actually with his brilliance takes it to another level. So strong is his portrayal that you almost empathize with his angst. You forget that he is just an actor mouthing lines given to him by the dialogue writer. Shah becomes the character. That intensity in voice, that anger in eyes, those frail expressions of a middle-class existence in Mumbai are so apparent in Shah’s interpretation that you want to see more and more of him. And if the claps of audience in the theaters are anything to go by, the country’s finest actor’s performance in ‘A Wednesday’ has really hit you hard!

It's obvious why one might be inclined to see this film in favourable light. A person-on-the-street's grouse against the escalating threat to their lives; be it through recurring terror attacks or even monsoon floods. Post-such episodes, most of us whip ourselves back into normalcy, only for the freshest incident to dip us back into gloom. Yet, we do nothing about it.

‘A Wednesday’ is a film centered on burgeoning terrorism globally. This time it is the common man who wields the mike and makes himself heard. It is he who asks questions of his survival, his well-being, his life. Questions that are being asked all over the world but find it increasingly more difficult to be answered in India torn as it is with communal strife, poverty, external aggression and an outdated system. The film takes the system head-on and forcing itself to take a look at some uncomfortable truths. But this film takes a route few have trodden by showing drastic repercussions of its continual inability to tackle life-threatening issues. The film builds this catharsis, and the choices the characters make are brilliant in a tightly wrapped screenplay. The film doesn't fall prey of the usual setback of thrillers starting off impressively but losing momentum midways. It's consistent all through and the imaginative culmination imparts the film that extra sheen.

Debutante director Neeraj Pandey brings to us, idealistic and incorrupt officials ready to lay down their lives at a moment's notice but he does that with a touch of realism that makes them believable. He invests a human side to every character and juxtaposes the human dilemmas and pressures of the profession ably in each. ‘A Wednesday’ is a very brave film and Pandey should be applauded for the effort. It’s not an offbeat film but a completely commercial film with a message and by no means is the film a patriotic or jingoistic film.

The confrontation scenes between Anupam Kher and Shah are a treat to say the least. Anupam Kher comes up with a fine performance. Jimmy Sheirgill and Aamir Bashir are equally adept and gracefully natural. Deepal Shaw as a news TV reporter is quite capable and her voice is dubbed with a typical accent characteristic of the profession.

Besides a tight script, the film has very focussed direction by Neeraj Pandey. A lot of the film has been shot by Fuwad Khan in stylish top-shots where the characters - terrorists and counter-terrorist maneuverings appear larger than life and yet miraculously shrunken in the cosmic scheme of things. Editing and music keeps the energy and pace of the film going and increases the upbeat tempo.

And finally, it could have been any day of the week, but it is about a Wednesday, and a significant Wednesday at that. Watch it for its riveting plot and brilliant performances.

Mission Turkey!

Please put your hands together to felicitate the one and only Apoorva Lakhia for making the worst film of the year so far – Mission Istanbul. This one's a Turkey if there ever was one, and to relish it, you've got to be in the mood for Christmas!

To put it mildly, ‘Mission Istanbul’ is ‘Murder of Cinema’ and I am sure the future generations of film students could write several theses on this murder. It has such a cruelly contrived story that you wonder if the writers of the script are truly in touch with the real world. Guess what! Al Qaeda roams free in Kabul post the American invasion of Afghanistan and the public killings still take place in football stadiums under the rule of the new Afghan government. Not just this, Northern Alliance is still fighting its battle with Al Qaeda. I truly feared that the Director would next show Ahmed Shah Masood alive and kicking the sh*t out of Al Qaeda. Thankfully, that didn’t happen!

The film could have made interesting points about the economics of terror, the commoditization of news and its sensationalized packaging as entertainment. It also alludes to various vested Western interests in keeping the region in conflict but takes that thread nowhere. Sequences, set pieces and plot devices are liberally sourced from Hollywood fare such as Enemy of the State, The Siege, The Matrix, Swordfish and the Hong Kong actioner Infernal Affairs. The rest apparently came from the fertile imaginations of the director and writer. One of which would be the blatant product and tagline placement for a fizzy drink (Mountain Dew) done so horribly badly that I, for one, am never going to be able to pick up a can of that stuff again!

Vivek Oberoi opts for a knowing smirk while Zayed Khan looks like he's barely able to control his steroid rage. No opportunity to overact is missed by either of them. Shabbir Ahluwalia and Nikitin Dheer are no better. Shriya Saran constantly looks like she's straining to remember her lines (or she's smelt something unpleasant) while Shweta Bhardwaj's simpering appears better suited for ads in the back pages of certain guy magazines.

Apoorva Lakhia’s (one of the most overrated Directors in Bollywood) style of filmmaking is to take stylish shots and put them in quick succession to each other and add the remaining impact by loud background music. He really needs to work as an assistant under some truly qualified director to get the basics right. This is the same movie that was offered to Apoorva Lakhia, with the accompanying fat pay cheque, it was not money well spent for the producers Suniel Shetty & Ekta Kapoor.

There are so many flaws in the film that one can keep on writing….. The true heros of the film are the audience who brave sitting through this ‘Mission Turkey’. And before this piece becomes even more incoherent than it already is, I must sign off and attempt to undo the brain damage. Let's just hope Apoorva Lakhia doesn't decide to make a sequel and call it MI:2 as he has already compared this ‘Mission Turkey’ to ‘Mission Impossible’ in one of his interviews!

Umar sari toh kati ishqe butta mein momin. Aakhri waqt mein kya khaq Musalman hogaye?

The loose translation of the above Urdu couplet by legendary poet Momin Khan would be: All your life you lived in non-Muslim ways. In your old age, how can you become a Muslim? For me this couplet quiet sums up Khuda Ke Liye – In the Name of God.

I’ve been reading a lot about Khuda Ke Liye – first Pakistani movie to release in India after 43 years, a movie that has become a craze all over Pakistan, so much so, that on one hand there was a fatwa against it by some radical maulvis and on the other hand an endorsement from Pervez Musharraf, the director of the movie went on vacation with his family, as soon as the movie was released fearing his life, the film was recently honoured with Pakistan's highest civilian award Sitar-i-Imtiaz, etc.., I was very curious to watch Khuda Ke Liye and since I had missed it when it released in India a few months ago, I decided to buy the DVD of the film.

I remember getting bowled over by Pakistani director Sabiha Sumer’s excellent film Khamosh Pani a couple of years ago when it was shown at the MAMI festival. Khamosh Pani told the story of a youth in rural Pakistan who falls under the influence of fundamentalists, and turns his back to his mother and his lover.

Writer / Director Shoaib Mansoor’s movie Khuda Ke Liye – In the name of God goes a step further. The story is interesting as it handles two major issues – religious extremism and racial profiling - and twines them well. There are other issues also that the movie tries to focus on; condition of women during Taliban days in Afghanistan, theological issues of acceptance of music and cultural contextualization of Islam and the way various groups are putting forward their own version of the religion. The film’s introspective theme also takes a look within the contemporary Pakistani society and shows the wedge between the moderates and extremists, it also brings to the fore the less-acknowledged truth that Muslims are being viewed with increasing suspicion in the West. All it takes for you to become a terror suspect is be a Muslim, even though a progressive and moderate one. Besides this, the film also highlights the double standards in the largely patriarchal Pakistani Muslim society where women have to follow what men decide for them, even against their wishes.

Loaded with such relevant issues Khuda Ke Liye turns out to be a film that not just entertains you, but it raises questions in your mind about the denigration and hypocrisy in our society and religion. The movie also attempts to take on the raging debates consuming the Muslim World and Muslims living in foreign lands. The story starts somewhere in pre 9/11 timeframe and ends in late 2002 in the midst of which it follows various characters facing an array of issues in life.

It is a heart wrenching film with good performances by all the actors Shaan, Fawad Khan, Iman Ali and Naseeruddin Shah, who has a cameo in the film and not surprisingly a very powerful one. The film’s music and songs are mesmerizing, particularly 'Allah Ho' and ‘Bandeya’.

Khuda Ke Liye is a brilliant movie, especially if you are interested in what Islam has to say on various issues. Shoaib Mansoor deserves kudos because he tackles a bold and controversial theme that attacks Islamic fundamentalism in a subtle way and that too, in Pakistan. With honest intentions, deft handling of a serious, sensitive and pertinent subject Shoaib Mansoor has done a creditable job as Writer / Director.

A theme like the one depicted in Khuda Ke Liye – In the Name of God is more for the thinking viewer, who loves to ponder over the movie after watching it.

Faisle nahi unke natije galat hote hai

RGV is amongst the finest storytellers Bollywood has produced, no two opinions on that but I guess there has been an overkill of underworld films from RGV himself, everyone’s seen that and done with.

While going to Contract, if one expects some serious insight into the nexus between Mumbai underworld and the terror network then RGV’s underworld-meets-terrorism flick is a major disappointment! At the best the film is a vendetta tale and how much more can you experiment with a genre that's beaten to death? Its time RGV should stop making any more films on the underworld.

Satya or for that matter Company, came at a time when the underworld subject wasn’t much explored in bollywood and RGV’s realistic, hard-hitting and at times shocking treatment of the subject caught the attention of the audience, and since then we have seen lots of movies based on underworld and now almost there is no part of the underworld, which is not cinematized.

RGV’s earlier films on underworld were comprehensive when it came to story, character sketches and how things played out, but the riveting and realistic effect of RGV’s earlier underworld films is conspicuously missing and the prime problem with Contract is that it's too superficial!

RGV, who seemed to have got his rhythm back to some extent with Sarkar Raj, fails to go above mediocrity with Contract. I don’t understand why RGV still keeps treading on the beaten track and comes up with yet another forgettable film!

In his blog RGV has said that he just wants to make “thousands of films” - and I am sure films like Contract will definitely help him achieve that quickly.

Its time RGV takes a cue from one of the lines from Contract where the hero says, “Faisle nahi unke natije galat hote hai” (It’s not decisions, but their outcome that goes wrong).

P.S: With ‘Phoonk’ RGV returns to yet another of his favourite genre of filmmaking, lets hope he doesn’t fumble again.

My favourite Top 10 Bollywood films of 2007.

After my last post here, where I had written about the ‘Top 10 Asian Films – Action’ by Samuel L Jackson, a few of my friends told me to try and write my favourite Top 10 Films of Bollywood in 2007. As said earlier, though I am not into making my top 10 lists, here I am just trying to see if I can really do it…

Of late, Indian film industry is changing and every year its bringing new hope and new kind of movies. In terms of fresh ideas, unique concepts, and fascinating projects, I think 2007 was a year of creativity at its best in recent times.

Generally the Top 10 is picked based on box office collections, while that to me is a great barometer to judge the quality of the film, it is not necessarily the best one because some of the best films (content wise) bomb at the Bollywood boxoffice!

My favourite Top 10 Bollywood films of 2007 are here, in no particular order…

1. Black Friday
2. Taare Zameen Par
3. Chak De India
4. Jab We Met
5. Johnny Gaddar
6. Dharm
7. Bheja Fry
8. Manorama 6 Feet Under
9. Om Shanti Om
10. Life in a Metro

There were a few close contenders for the Top 10 list, films that I enjoyed but somewhere they missed a mark to be part of my list. The films include The Namesake, Guru, Blue Umbrella, Parzania, Strangers, 1971, Cheeni Kum, Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd., Gandhi My Father, Welcome & Hey Babby.

I have tried my best here, I Would love to hear your Top 10s and why you picked them.

Sex and Bollywood.

Bollywood has never had a background in realism. It consisted of escapist musicals with common storylines of ‘good vs evil’ and ‘boy meets girl’. The films were generally family orientated and the plot was kept simple so that even the rural audience would find it easy to relate to. Of late, there has been a dramatic shift in the style of filmaking due to the globalisation of films. The Indian film industry, which churns out around 800 films per year, has some cause for concern because the transplantation of western ideas has led to extreme vulgarity with high sexual innuendo and unnecessary violence in films today.

Therefore it can be speculated that there is a westernised audience that is catered for but what about the traditionalists with opposing values. India’s rural population cannot possibly understand the values and issues expressed in a Hollywood style. The opposition to the change in film style also comes from the religious groups and separatist groups who feel that Bollywood films do not promote traditional values.

I don't think the Indian film market is ready for explicit sex scenes just as yet. A sizable sector is made up of family audiences, many of whom are uncomfortable watching sexual intimacy on screen. We can neither ignore this sector, nor pressurise them into dropping their inhibitions. Extended families and friends go for movies together and eat, drink and have a good time. If explicit sex scenes are shown to them, most end up squirming in their seats.

In today's scenario, if a film has explicit sex scenes, the buzz will most probably attract audiences who will see it for all the wrong reasons. Explicit sex scenes can only work for very small budget films, targeted at a niche audience. The Indian cultural ethos and its people are not as flexible as the west and therefore films deemed too westernised will always be rejected, regardless of the extent of the globalisation of cultures.

Indian culture has an inherent shyness, where intimate sexual contact between a man and a woman is considered private and personal. And our society hasn't yet opened up to the extent where sexual issues are discussed in the drawing room. Only after that happens, will our cinema be able to show explicit sex on screen!

Off late, it seems the pendulum had swung too far in the other direction, as now the skin shows and brazen sex comedies are giving way to mass entertainers that are much more of a true reflection of today's society. The films being made today are a mix of modern truths and a dash of old fashioned values and escapism. After all, that's what a film is supposed to be about - escapism.

It'll take at least another 10 years before India is ready for explicit sex scenes on screen. Personally, I'm okay with the idea. But there are at least two generations ahead who aren't. Once these generations pass out and today's youth become the heads of families, the films will change.

But, certainly, not yet.