Africa Calling

Several times during the course of my wanderings in Oulu I saw beautiful posters of dolphins. They said Villi Meri…couldn’t figure out if it was one of those aquariums like Deep Sea World in Edinburgh or was it a movie.

Google and Google translator to the rescue – Villi Meri means Wild Ocean. It was a film being screened at Tietomaa Science Center in Oulu, with special screenings in English on request! Tag line for the movie – Africa meets the Sea.

Africa...has been on my wish list for as long as I can remember. Even as a young girl in school I remember seeing photographs of my cousins who had visited Mombasa in East Africa, and thinking …gosh I do so want to be there too!!!!

The centre boasts of a magnificent super screen theatre. Believe you me, it not one of those kahli peeli boasts. The screen was super-duper.

The movie overall was a documentary to raise awareness of the effects of pirate fishing and global warming on the marine life. It lays stress on the fact that only 1/100^th part of a percent of the seas is protected and the need for marine reserves.

But it was based around a place called the Wild Coast on the coast of South Africa, where shoals of sardines head towards the coast in June/July every year. They are followed by all kinds of predators – various species of Dolphins, Sharks, Whales, Seals and Gannets.

The Gannets can plunge midflight to depths as deep as 10 mts to catch the fish!

This phenomenon is referred to as ‘The Sardine Run’ and it seems that people can catch sardines with bare hands at that time of the year as the swirling shoals are gigantic in size and very close to the surface and coast – the shoals can be upto 7 km long! More than fish, these shoals look like an oil spill in the sea.

The photography and the effects were brilliant. In the opening scene I felt as if I was sitting in a helicopter and approaching the coast!!!!

In between they also covered the local people and African music…the drum beats are something that make you just want to dance!!!

A place I love and a good screening make for some wistful thoughts. I just wanted to catch the next flight to South Africa after seeing that movie.

And then last week someone sends me pictures from an African Safari….too much of a coincidence. I just have to plan East and South Africa this year!!!

Tare Zameen Par

I watched this movie quite some time back- the first weekend after its release…
I simply loved it…and cried a lot while watching it. Initially I thought that I was the only emotional fool, but who ever I talk to seem to have been moved by it.

A friend, who I hear from once in a blue moon, mails to tell me that I should go watch the movie...Another friend calls from India and the 1st thing she says – go watch Tare Zameen Par…

Well, I expected the movie to be good….Aamir Khan is after all a perfectionist. He always seems to do movies that leave a lasting impression.
Just thinking and most of my fav movies are his movies.– DCH, Sarforosh, Lagaan, RDB and now this one.

The movie is all about a dyslexic boy and how no one including his family realizes that. They think that he is just not interested in studying and is simply naughty. The movie begins in the life of a happy and care-free boy Ishaan Awasthi, played by Darsheel Safary and moves on to how later he feels he is being punished when he sent to a boarding school and the trauma of separation from his family that he goes through…and finally how Aamir Khan as his art teacher helps him come out of that and overcome his difficulties with reading and writing…

The other message that I liked about the movie was the emphasis on creativity and how it has no value in our academic system…

Darsheel Safary is fabulous…the show stealer…and his character is so well sketched… The contrasts are amazing…
Initially when he is punished and made to leave the class, he thinks its Bindaas…and is break dancing outside the class…
Later in the movie, when again he is punished in the boarding school and made to leave class he is totally lost and so scared. One just wants to hug that boy then. And one realizes that he has changed so drastically …become so quiet from the naughty boy who would jump on the kitchen top to pick up the fish bowl from on top of the fridge, grab a sandwich as his mom shouts at him to wash his hands…even his clothes are clean now…earlier he looked like a typical naughty boy returning from school…shirt out, mud marks all over his clothes, laces and tie undone…

The song ‘mein kabhi batlaata nahi’ is THE MOST TOUCHING song I have heard...it just brings tears into your eyes...

Well…overall a brilliant movie and if you haven’t seen it…don’t give it a miss…

Saawariya...

What a let down...it’s a good thing that I missed it at the theatres… and we had an option to fast forward and reduce the misery from 2 hrs 10 mins to 1 hr…
It is a totally bizarre romance. The characters were not sketched well and so one gets a feeling of incompleteness and only at the end of the movie you think that the storyline was good but could have been handled a little better.
I am sure Sanjay Leela Bhansali could have done better – with some good dialogues but instead every few minutes they break off into a song… reminded me of the Chitrahaar times on Doordarshan years and years back…just one song after the other…we tried keeping count in the beginning but eventually lost count…
The few dialogues that we have in between the songs hardly make sense and are so irritating because of the plastiky giggles from Sonam…(Cant decide if her giggling is worse or Ashwariya’s)
The set was quite artificial too…you like it initially but after some time it gets monotonous…
The only nice thing about the movie was Zohra Sehgal, who is brilliant as always… She plays a ‘now-stern-now-mellow’ landlady who wins your heart over.
The song that Ranbir sings in a towel…seemed a bit erotic…wonder how come the board passed it…or didn’t give the movie an A rating…
Rani Mukerjee was likable at times…and if had to sum up this movie in her words…’I don’t likes’…

Cheeni Kum

Cheeni Kum played in Bangalore for several weeks and I made plans with a friend several times...but somehow they never materialised...

Finally last night Sony TV played it and I made sure I didn’t miss it...

Its about romance between a 64-year-old man and a 34 year-old woman... handled very maturely ...no overt display of emotion...the performances are brilliant...whether its AB or Tabu or the little girl Sexy...

The first half is toooooo good...the humour, sarcasm and witticism is awesome...the comedy is not the usual slap stick comedy associated with Bollywood but far more subtle...and the chemistry between AB and Tabu is terrific...

Buddha (AB) is arrogant and self-assured, yet feels the need to impress her - while never admitting it. Their banter and Tabu's retorts to AB's arrogance has one constantly impressed...

There is a fantastic scene where she berates AB for being too forward, for daring, like all men would, to ask a girl out and assume she's available, just because she's smiled at him a few times. The tension is palpable as AB falls silent. And then 'I do hope you won't be late,' she ends, still deadpan, immediately confirming both date and smirk.

Another scenes that I really enjoyed is when they have been meeting up for a few days and Tabu asks AB to ask her THE question all guys are supposed to ask...he's like hesitant so he asks her to ask the question...the build up of suspense as she says ...should I? And the smile…as she asks 'what’s your name?’

The way 9 yr old Sexy...friends with 64 year old AB questions him and gives him gyan is really interesting... her dialogues are really good.

Zohra Sehgal plays AB's movie... she's brilliant as always ...though one thing I have noticed...she seems to be type cast in all her movies...the old granny ...but very unlike the preaching types...still very young at heart... watches WWF or some serial one would never imagine someone her age would watch...like 'sex in the city' in this movie...

The 2nd half dragged a bit...where Paresh Rawal plays the 58 year old father who is dead against the match...thou Paresh had his funny moments too...

Bottom line...head to the lending library if you haven’t see this brilliant movie...since it definitely is not to be missed...

Om Shanti Om

They don’t call him King Khan for nothing...As far as mainstream cinema is concerned, SRK is unbeatable...a true entertainer...

Om Shanti Om – a bit over the top but thoroughly enjoyable ...corny humor but itz SRK so one enjoys it...and of course the great music...

He was totally convincing as the junior artiste who dreams of becoming a star in the first half and then as The Star in the second half ...
Shreyas supported him to the hilt in the act as his best friend and co junior artiste.
Kirron Kher as the melodramatic mother is also really good.

But what I liked best about the movie were the spoofs
- At the Bollywood of the 1970’s – the typical flowers coming close to each other…and the superimposing of Deepika with stars of yesteryears like Sunil Dutt, Rajesh Khanna and Jitendra in a song sequence was very good.
- Then the star in the 1st half is a direct one at Rajesh Khanna…
- The conversation between Om and Pappu (Shreyas) - He can’t be a star with a name like Om Prakash Makhija...he needs a surname of Kapoor or Khanna ...
- And the one on Rajnikant in the cowboy avatar and fighting with a fluffy tiger – too hilarious
And so many more...
All this is in good humor... he even spoofs at himself in the awards ceremony scene where they have the nominations for the best actor...
Hrithik, Abhishek, Shabana Azmi, Akki in good humor have made fun of themselves...though it is a pity that Manoj Kumar could not take it and is pretty upset...

The song where he gets some 30 odd actors and actresses to come and dance with him was quite enjoyable too... especially the bits with Dharam Paji...

Farah Khan is the queen of ‘Kahani mein twist’... not as much as in her earlier movie ‘Main Hoon Na’ where every new reel had a new twist in the tale...
Here she refrained from too many twists and tried to keep a single story line ...but in the end I guess she just could not resist and the in the climax scene we have the ghost of Shanti instead of the look alike of 30 years later...That was not really required...

But still... a movie I would recommend to all who enjoy BOLLYWOOD MASALA...not for the celebral types though !!!

Bhool Bhulaiya...

Recently in a discussion with some friends I was told...Priyadarshan is a really good director...he makes excellent comedies. That and some good ratings on sites made me go watch this movie...I was a bit disappointed…as I expected it to be excellent and it was just a wee bit above average…

Firstly its not a comedy as the trailers suggest...its comedy + horror + thriller...and it seems as an after thought the director thought...let me sprinkle a bit of romance too...(between Akki and Amisha Patel, which really isn't required...)

PreInterval - good, light hearted comedy...the kind of movie that helps you shut off from the world completely and just have a good laugh...akki, paresh rawal, rajpal yadav are all great comedians and don’t let us down.....
There is some amount of suspense/horror too... and for a person like me who really gets involved in the movie...I stifled screams and nearly jumped a couple of times...
First time I have seen Horror and Comedy working soooo well together...

But Post Interval...The script writer seems to have got a bit confused...It is supposed to be a psychological thriller...but I found it to be too abstract...Have you ever been in a never ending maze? Its like that ... interesting initially ...but then one gets bored...and suddenly as you think you are near the end of the maze...you start enjoying it...only to be let down...and left thinking…when is this going to get over?

The comedy bits with Akki are good...and there is a shifting needle of suspicion...as to who is responsible for the eerie events in the mansion...a ghost or someone from the household... which manages to keep the interest in the film...but once the secret of the ghost is out its difficult to sit through the rest of the mambo jambo...and I would have walked out had it not been for Vidya Balan...She’s amazing...her role demanded great histrionics ...and she delivers with her incredible performance...

Chak de, Hockey and Welhams…

Last week I watched Chak de…brilliant movie…one which makes you laugh during the movie and keep you smiling long after…

SRK was good…really good…but the girls were better….
The characters were really sketched well…the girls came from diverse backgrounds …and believe me they did an exceptionally good job…. The Haryanvi (Komal Chautala) and the Punju (Balbir Kaur) were excellent… their language, actions, behaviour…

I had a friend in college…he used to say… generally Indian women are good looking but the women from Chandigarh are the best… they are really smart and good looking…seems like whoever sketched the team for this movie also believed that…

And then the scene where the Telugu goes to register for the training camp and the guy doing the registration says "Tamil aur Telugu mein kitna faraq hai?" …so matter of factly…The girl doesn’t take affront; but replies nonchantly "Utna hi, jitna Punjabi aur Bihari mein hai."…excellent one!!!

This movie reminded me of my hockey days in Welhams…


I can still hear the cheerleaders singing…

Rub a dub a dub…the Woodies in the tub…
We’ll rub them and we’ll scrub them and hang them on the line…
Oh we can beat the Woodies any old time!
(Woodies refers to Woodpeckers, one of the houses in Welhams...I was in Hoopoes..There was immense competition in Hockey between Woodies and Hoopoes)

Another one which i remember..
A has the brains
B has the looks
C has the sexy legs
To make Hoopoes win the game !!!

(In reality...A would be the one who comes 1st from the bottom in class
B would be the not so gud looking one
C would be the one with the thundering thighs...
but we all didnt mind...it was taken in true sportwomenship..)