End of an Era of Romance for Film Industry and me, an ardent fan of Cinema and Dev Saab remembers

I can’t think of any song to dedicate to him and his memory...every song he did was as if a part of his personality and attitude to life.

'Main zindagi ka saath nibhata chala gay....' something that the actor truly lived by. 'Abhi na jaao chodd ke ki dil abhi bhara nahi....' something that every one always said for him. 'yaad kiya dil nein kahaan ho tum...' something we would say for him from now on. 'Jeevan ke safar mein rahi milte hain bichhar jaane ko....' is something the heart knows is the truth of life but the heart still refuses to believe...the list is never ending, as is the understanding of him and his life and work.

I can’t believe he is no more.....of two people I truly ever fell in love with...I thought I still had chance to meet at lest one of them in this lifetime. But no that dream too is now all packed up and has a quite place in my heart, for now. 

Its still a truth, that will take time to dawn on me....for when I met him for 5 mins, about four years back, as a chance encounter at a film screening, I had a chance to see someone I loved in front of my eyes for real. But sadly the event that he was going for was only for invitees and media, so I it was just 5 mintues of ogling from my end, as he said ‘hello’ to me. That time I had thought that one day I will meet you with my name, but not just 5 minutes; and who knows maybe even work with you or be interviewing you....I lost my path in the way thereon...and now I have lost him...No, We have lost him.

A salute to the undying spirit and undying and forever young heart....Dev Saab


When I understood the mean of cinema and the place it went on to hold in my heart...I understood true love. This true love was not just for Cinema, but for two personalities. Two extremely different dynamic Indian or shall I say specifically Bollywood Personalities. These two were not just contemporaries of each other but also shared an exemplary friendship that however didn't last long. These were Guru Dutt and Dev Anand.

Guru Dutt and Dev Anand met when Dev Saab was shooting for his first film, Hum Ek Hain, and from there on a chance meeting turned into a sweet friendship, that sadly didn’t lost long, as the focus of film career and life in general drifted the two apart.

I feel in love with Guru Dutt after I understood Pyaasa and Kaaghaz Ke Phool. I fell in love with the brooding image of the poet that he portrayed. The hurt and pained expressions, a man troubled by life's ups and downs, I fell in love with it all. I feel in love with his sensibility in films, which arose out of his own personal experiences, understanding and thought. I feel in love with the man he portrayed on screen and feel in love with the man off screen. The more I saw, the more I read, the more I felt an intense emotion of connection with him, which was beyond any comprehension, even my own. Guru Dutt died at a fairly early age, after 2 unsuccessful attempts to end his life, sadly the third time it was unlucky strike for all those who loved him and wished him to recover out of his depression and don back his place in the film industry.

Dev Anand was an exact opposite of all that that Guru Dutt was. Dev Anand had a boyish charm about him always. He always donned a smiling face, whether you see it in his films, or in the stories of his friends. All his images on screen and off screen presented a young man full of life, for which age was just about increasing numbers to liveliness and a few wrinkled lines on face. Dev Anand was the romantic hero, who made hearts of everyone swoon, and had a bounciness of spirit and heart always.

I don't know, rather I don't remember, when I fell in love with Dev Anand. It must have started when I was 13-14 years old and saw a number of his films, and when I compared them to the romantic films by other actors, whether his contemporaries or newbie, I realized the romantic image of Dev Anand was more appealing due to the gentleman side that I saw in his characters. There was a gentle calming effect of seeing Dev Saab on screen, which bought a slight smile on lips and always stars in eyes.

Dev Anand took failures and success with same strife, an attitude that nothing changes as he moved on effortlessly from one role to another and climbing a steady ladder of success and love. Dev Anand was known for his smile and friendship. Whenever I heard any celebrity, his contemporaries especially, always talked about his dying attitude in life and his young at heart image.

It is now truly an end of era, a romantic era. Earlier on in the year another star of Romance and joviality had passed away, Shammi Kapoor; and now Dev Saab. The hero who belonged to the youthful times of our grandparents and parents, but his stories and film transcended every sense of time for me. For me he will be the ‘hero’ from my ‘romantic love stories’, something akin to what adolescent youngsters feel for the ‘heroes’ of Mills & Boon; maybe that is bad allegory to explain it, but ya will get the point bit across.

Yes, I do have my own array of heroes, on which I grew up. There are the Khans and Kapoors and more of my time as well. And yes definitely the star of all SRK. But what I feel for Guru Dutt and Dev Anand and their timelessness, surpasses any excitement I would ever feel for seeing any these on any screen.

And now even though the memories and the art of both dynamic personalities (Dutt and Dev Saab) survive, they both have now taken a departure from the physical existence. I had made a list of people whom I would like to meet for sure after I die, and that list was topped by Guru Dutt's name, and now even Dev Saab joins him there.

Two such different people, such different life, such different body of work, such different approaches to life. But for me, my love for their on-screen and off-screen personas, and dedication to never stop in my attempts to get to know them and understand them as much as possible; shall never exist.

RIP Dev Saab :(

Puss In Boots (2011): Watch it for swashbuckling charm of Puss, seductive voices of Banderas and Hayek, the innocence of script and chaotic mix of characters.

Well I personally love the character of 'Puss In Boots' from Shrek franchise. A spunky feline voiced by Antonio Banderas...is a lovable yet feisty outlaw. He is a lover and a leaver. The movie 'Puss In Boots' takes a look into the origin and story of this cheerful feline outlaw, before he is introduced in the second of the Shrek franchise.

Movie is somewhat a chaotic mix of a number of nursery rhyme characters in an old feel Spanish village setting, yet it is an enjoyable film. But the film mixes up too much too follow at times. You have the story of how innocent lovable Puss becomes Swashbuckler outlaw Puss in Boots, and goes on his ways of crime with characteristics of Zorro. And the story begins to bring in an array of familiar names such as Humpty Dumpty, Jack and Jill (who are a married couple here, and here I was thinking always they were brother and sister), and Jack and the bean stalk, and then Golden Goose and Mother Goose. Then there is the love angle with the seductive and sassy Kitty Softpaws (voiced by Salma Hayek).

The plot is interesting as well, it is about Puss's quest for the magic beanstalk, in order to reach the magic castle beyond clouds and steal the Golden Goose that lays golden eggs. He is joined in his plan by two sidekicks; an estranged friend Humpty and Kitty Softpaws; and pursued by villionous duo Jack and Jill. But as it turns out eventually not everyone as what they seem to be. But I won’t reveal this part much as the movie has just released and is for sure worth catching atlest once, if for nothing else then sexy voices of Antonio Bandares and Salma Hayek.

It is a story of adventure, friendship, love, betrayal, revenge and reunion. But yes I found the film lacking the charm of Shrek films and the usual suaveness of Puss. The film on the whole becomes a bit complex, with a whole array of Spanish folks and Folklore characters being mashed up together, and there are too many ‘change of heart’ moments in the story, which make it not so smooth. As a character Puss has just one angle, the swashbuckling, charming, sword dueling, with self delusional Spanish vainglory; and well after a few starting scene that charm seems to be loosing interest for me. For me I think the character of Humpty Dumpty (the egghead, voiced by Zach Galifianakis) was much more interesting and multi dimensional. Yet I really did enjoy those particular bits in the story where sword handling swashbuckling Puss uses big innocent cat eyes to disarm his enemies. And the Spanish dance of Puss and Kitty Softpaws.

The film is wonderful in terms of colorful visuals, and 3D works well in adding on to the spectacular animation. Puss as character and Antonio as its voice is a match made in heaven. And so Salma’s voice to the suave Kitty Soft paws.

I would rate the film as a good 3 out of 5. Even though often at times the mix of characters becomes chaotic, yet the child-like innocence of the story makes me smile even though on the most lamest and silliest of jokes and clichés. And yes the film is thankfully no sequel or prequel or anywhere attached to the memory of Shrek (which I’m sorry but has totally lost all appeal to me after so many sequels of its own). The Puss did took a share of my attention away from Shrek and the Donkey when it was introduced in the second Shrek series, but here, on its own, the Puss in Boots stands tall for itself.

Puss In Boots 3D (2011)

Director: Chris Miller;

Voices Of: Antonio Banderas (Puss in Boots), Salma Hayek (Kitty Softpaws), Zach Galifianakis (Humpty Dumpty), Billy Bob Thornton (Jack) and Amy Sedaris (Jill).

Writer: Tom Wheeler,

Based on a story by Brian Lynch, Will Davies and Mr. Wheeler;

Editor: Eric Dapkewicz;

Producer: Joe M. Aguilar and Latifa Ouaou;

Released by DreamWorks Animation.

Running time: 1 hour 30 minutes.

Imtiaz Ali's Rockstar (2011): Raises the bar of expression for it's actor and director

I know it’s too late to write this review, but in my case it is always like 'jab jaago tab saavera'...jab dekhoge toh hi toh express kar paaoge. 

A lot of constraints often stop me from watching a film in the very first week of its release. And I’m not someone who goes to a movie because of other’s perceptions…I know that would be a wiser decision…but when it comes to movies I just listen to myself and no wiser decisions come to me then.

Anyways coming back to the film Rockstar, I thoroughly enjoyed the film. The themes, the emotion, the cinematography and yes the music, for sure, all made it a wonderful experience. I want to say I had heard a lot of mixed reviews about the film, somewhat more permuting to the negative side. But after watching the film all I can say is that those negative reviews would have been more so based by those who took the movie’s director’s earlier ventures as a pre-notion in their mind to watch this film as well.

I don’t usually judge audience sensibilities, everyone has their own perceptions and I respect that. I don’t judge your judgment; you don’t judge mine…is what I go by. Anyways, I think that most people, who went to watch this film, had to pre-conceived notions about it before they entered the hall.

Firstly, after looking at the film’s posters and its name, they were expecting an artistic and brilliant look into the world of music and the image of a ‘rockstar’. They were expecting a film based on ‘rockstar’.

Secondly, most people went in holding a pre-conceived image of Imtiaz Ali’s earlier venture. Love breakup reunion drama sort of image, with candy floss romance and diversions.

Now these two notions were in themselves so contradictory in the mind of the audience that a few failed to understand and view the film objectively.

I’m not saying Rockstar is in any way a brilliant cinematic experience, or top notch of the lot, no. The film has its own fault lines. Some casting decisions, certain predictably dramatic portions, a bit of slope downwards in unraveling the plot that slowed it to a snail’s pace; this was all there too. But then again the film’s themes and cinematography and music just fills up your senses so well that you can over look certain parts of that.

One of my friends, Neelakshi, aptly commented on the film by saying; “The main (and only) problem with Rockstar is that the director was unsure whether to pitch his movie for the masala- loving audience who laps up movies like Bodyguard and Ra-One or whether to pitch it for the art critics. In the process, he might have ended up pleasing neither. However for me who falls into neither category the movie was thoroughly enjoyable.”

I too felt the same, Imtiaz Ali wanted to make film that was different to his earlier style, but he might have been unsure of how his traditional followers will respond to the sudden change of his direction, hence the visible fault lines in the plot.

For me the film is ruled by its themes. Themes of a tragic love story, theme of artistic expression and angst, and the theme of self destruction. Yes it might be true that Ranbir’s rise as a ‘rockstar’ starts after pain and heart break enters his life; but it is also true that this pain and heartbreak is not reason of his rise, these emotions unleash the creative expression in his heart and voice, that was otherwise resting as comfortably within him as his own life of comfort. The theme of self destruction is more prominent than all the other.

Ranbir Kapoor’s acting is just brilliant. After Ranjneeti, he has again proved his mettle as an actor very successfully as a Rockstar as well. Anyone anywhere who has watched the film has not stopped praising his acting skills and his constant upward growth as a performer. Nargis Fakhri is just a beautiful face, who shouldn’t have opened her mouth or moved a bit. She reminds me a lot of Katrina Kaif, just a face but moment you open your mouth it just shuns you off totally. Aditi Rao has a small role yet her remarkable performance in that too doesn’t let her get shadowed out. Piyush Mishra delivers a great performance as ‘Dhingra’. Shammi Kapoor’s short appearance is more about his expression through eyes, which are beautifully conveyed, and they just make you nostalgic about his presences in film industry and recent demise.

Music of the film had been a hit even before the film was released, after the film’s release audiences started loving the lesser played numbers as well. I enjoyed the songs ‘Nadaan Parindey’ and ‘Jo bhi main….’ And loved the musical bit with the jugalbandi between Shammi Kapoor on shehnai and Ranbir Kapoor on guitar. In the album it is called ‘dichotomy of fame’, an instrumental piece that I’m sure everyone would love.

I feel somewhere down the line the whole music team themselves enjoyed making the music of this film, and that is what is conveyed in its lyrics, music and vocals. Everything, I know a bit over rated, but for sure was a musical ecstasy for me.

                                        

I don’t want to get too much into the storyline here, because for that wiki is there. Also those who have seen it know what it is about and those who haven’t should definitely see it to know what it is about.

The film is, well everyone knows by now, not about ‘rockstars’. It is more closely related to ‘Devdas’ and ‘Dev D’. It is about an artist’s personal journey to self discovery and realizing that getting your ‘heartbroken’ is not just about refusal of a proposal; it is deeper than that, it is about blindly falling for someone and then realizing that you can never really hold on to them.

I loved the narrative style, the non-linear narration, was a good break from the few recent films I have seen. Also the open-ending is an interesting addition to Imtiaz Ali’s style of filming. It leaves a lot to audience’s imagination and intellect.  Cinematographer Anil Mehta provides a beautiful edge to the film, with his lens realistically and artistically capturing the beauty of Delhi, Kashmir and Prague. No doubt in that I would say he has a remarkable record of work with films such as Khamoshi: the Musical, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, Lagaan, Saathiya, Kal Ho Na Ho, Veer Zaara and Wake Up Sid; in his kitty.

I would give Rockstar 4 out of 5. This is all for three reason’s; one being Ranbir Kapoor’s performance, two being its music that is just mesmerizing, and three for Imtiaz Ali for attempting something like Rockstar.

  

Directed By: Imtiaz Ali

Produced By: Shree Ashtavinayak Cine Vision Ltd; Eros International

Starring: Ranbir Kapoor, Shammi Kapoor, Piyush Mishra, Nargis Fakhri, Aditi Rao.

Story By: Imtiaz Ali

Music Director: A.R. Rehman

Cinematographer: Anil Mehta

Bimal Roy’s ‘Do Bigha Zameen’ (1953): a socialistic realistic cinematic portrayal

THERE IS a great Indian director considered a master with his realistic portrayal of society, including its all bitter truths. A director who had a strong command over the narrative and his films were a true look into the era they were set in.

Leave all his other films aside; one of his most acclaimed works is Do Bigha Zameen (DBZ), a socialistic realistic cinematic portrayal. It is a story of an agrarian society slowly been taken over by industrialization and commercialization and vices that accompany it.

As author BD Garga remarks in his book on cinema, “His (Bimal Roy) indignation arises out of one man’s exploitation of the other, lack of human decency and social decay. He questions not so much the political structure as the moral base of the society…in “Udayer Pathey” and DBZ, he despises the deception of the rich…He was a romantic and an idealist to whom exploitation in any form - social, economic or religious- was unacceptable.”

In DBZ, Balraj Sahni showed a vast emotional range. He portrays the role of the peasant Shambhu convincingly that you can feel moved with every emotion that the character goes through. It was perhaps his best-known role as the peasant Shambhu and gives a performance of a lifetime. His realistic portrayal stands out all the more particularly when one considers him in real life being well educated and westernized. It is said he actually rehearsed for the role by pushing a rickshaw on the streets of Calcutta and interacting with other rickshaw pullers who were convinced he was one of them. Nirupa Roy and Rattan Kumar as his wife and son respectively compliment Sahni perfectly.

Every character in the film is a representation of a class, be it a poor farmer who considers his piece of land to be his mother, a lecherous and greedy landlord, a scared and protective wife and mother, a child who travels to a city and sees the trials his father goes through and tries to become a part of it. Other than these there are a lot of distinct characters- like a dying father who only wishes to see his son save his land or characters in the city; like a crude landlady who is soft in the core of the heart.

What is also attractive in the film is the composition of the frame that makes every shot almost as if a work of photographic art. Roy never looses the sense of realism from the narration of the story. The film is beautifully photographed by Kamal Bose.

The story of the dispossessed peasant and the landlord had been told many times before but in DBZ, Bimal Roy with his innate reserve and good taste chooses a much wider context in which to place his narrative thus looking at rural poverty at one end and the brutalizing effects of city life at the other end. DBZ is a sad and moving tale which Roy projects with much sympathy, understatement and simplicity and gives us a film that is very human and has great emotional depth.

The film is strongly influenced by the Italian neo-realist Cinema and particularly evokes De Sica’s masterpiece Bicycle Thief (1949) particularly in the scenes of the father and son in the city.

The film also has a high dosage of metaphors as images like the idea of a man running as fast a horse to support his living. Something that hits me while watching this particular scene is a similar type of metaphor from a different film. I am reminded of Naya Daur (1957), a film too based on the ideas of change in the society. There it’s the negatives of industrialization and modernization and machine culture that displaces human labour. In that film it’s the horse-cart driving labourer as against the machine cars.

A moderate commercial success, the film won Roy much critical acclaim and awards at the Cannes and Karlovy Vary festivals. To quote the News Chronicle on August 17, 1956. The film also went on to win Best Film and Best Director awards at the inaugural Filmfare Awards. But perhaps the biggest compliment for the film was a comment made by Raj Kapoor. On seeing DBZ and being much moved by the film he had exclaimed, “How I wished I had made this film!

Here is a scene from the film that is particularly the start of it all...especially should be seen by those who haven't seen the film so far....

There are a lot of excellent dialogues in this movie, but this scene has one of my favorite dialogues so far:

Sambhu: zameen toh kissan ki Maa hai hazoor....Maa ko baich doon?

Zamindar: Arre rehne de. Zameen par mill lagg jaane se Maa Baap bann jayegi....

Do Bigha Zameen (1953)

Director: Bimal Roy

Starring: Balraj Sahni, Nirupa Roy, Ratan Kumar, Jagdeep, Murad, Nana Palsikar

Producer: Bimal Roy

Writers: Salil Choudhury (story), Paul Mahendra(dialogue), Hrishikesh Mukherjee(scenario)

Music Director: Salil Choudhury

Cinematography: Kamal Bose

Editing: Hrishikesh Mukherjee