Bollywood of the decade : My picks

As the year and with it, the decade comes to an end; I have decided to list out my favourite Hindi movies of last ten years. Movies released in the period 2000-2009. I must admit Bollywood has started to disappoint me to a great extent - or is it that I am getting more and more skeptic? Whatever, I feel the magic touch of 70's and early 80's (I try not to think of horrible 90s of Hindi cinema) is wanning somewhat. But still, there comes a movie every now and then that lifts my heart and demands to be recognized as one of my cherished cinematic moments. Without much ado and before I get too monotonic; here are some of my favorites of the decade (It is not easy to think of and compile this list in one go; I shall come back and add new titles):

1. Dil Chahta Hai (2001): Refreshing, funny, enjoyable to its core - Dil Chahta Hai was a revolution in Hindi cinema. It blew away the trend of unbearable family drama, stupid action flicks and deviling NRI romance with a daring script about friendship, youth and love. With his directorial debut, Farhan Akhtar proved he is a true genius when it comes to movie-making. Revolving around the lives of three friends - Akash (Aamir Khan), Sameer (Saif Ali Khan) and Siddharth (Akshaye Khanna) - the movie portrays their friendship; their individual lifestyle and how these two aspects of their lives crossed paths. With powerful story-telling, unmatched acting, witty dialogs, moving music - this movie eventually went on to register a cult status for all youth movies made thereafter (of course, no other youth movie could even come near this one till date). It also gave Saif Ali Khan a complete career make-over and helped him establish himself as a true actor rather than an annoying side-kick of 90's stupid action dramas. It gave Aamir Khan his second big hit of 2001 after Lagaan.

2. Rang De Basanti (2006): Another revolutionary movie from a fine director - this time I mean literally. Blended with sheer perfection - two stories of young Indian generation belonging to two completely different ages - this one was a concept never experimented before on Indian screens. A young English filmmaker Sue arrives in India to make a documentary on Indian freedom fighters and revolutionaries Bhagat Singh, Chandrashekhar Azad and their associates and aides. She chooses to involve some modern-age Delhi University students for her project which eventually turns out to be an eye-opener and life changing experience to those young students. The movie effortlessly switches between current day lifestyle and struggle of young Indian generation and the society as a whole and that of Bhagat Singh and his era. In a nutshell, Rang De Basanti was a triumph for Indian cinema; a milestone for direction and music - a complete entertainer.

3. Taare Zameen Par (2007) : An eight-year old boy affected with Dyslexia is struggling to cop up with the expectations of his parents and teachers to score high on exams; to do his homework and to do everything he doesn't like doing. For him, the world is simple - it is beautiful - full with colors, paintings and nature. But for a society driven by the notion that scoring high on exams means scoring high with life - Ishaan Awasthi (played by sensational child star Darsheel Safary) is a complete failure. But then there came, like an angel, their new art teacher, Ram Shankar Nikumbh (again incredible Aamir Khan) who seems to be the only one who understands Ishaan. He helps Ishaan to become what he really can become - a bright Star on this earth. With this directional debut, Aamir Khan proved that he is not only one of the greatest actors of Indian cinema; but also one of the finest movie makers. This movie grabs you by your collar and demands you see what is right for the kids in today's world. Open your eyes to enjoy their world - to be happy with them - to experience their pain.

4. Khosla Ka Ghosla! (2006) : A small budget film; a glorious comedy - Khosla Ka Ghosla - probably was the most underrated movie of the decade sadly deprived of the true recognition it deserves. A small, simple middle-class family comedy that lights up my mood everytime I watch this one. Hailing from a middle-class family myself; I could not think of any other such perfect depiction of lives of this section of the society. Both Anupam Kher and Boman Irani had been phenomenal in their roles perfectly supported by other cast members. The best thing is there was no big star in the movie; that could have taken away the simplicity - the real beauty of this gem. A must watch for those who can appreciate a no-nonsense plain and hilariously comic movie.

5. Swades (2004): For me, Shahrukh Khan was a super-star with a great personality and charismatic charm without much talent of acting. And then there came "Swades" and I was blown away. Mr. Khan proved that he is no shallow star - in fact he is one of the best in the business. So effortlessly and movingly he portrayed the character of Mohan Bhargav, the NASA NRI scientist visiting a remote village of India that I was enthralled and deeply affected. Swades touched a number of social issues of Indian society, especially in remote parts of the country. This was a movie with a heart; only the ones who do not have one or have one made of stone can remain untouched by this film. How can we not feel the agony of the farmer to whom Mohan did go to collect the 'karz'? How can we forget the face of the young kid selling a 'lota' of water on the railway platform and the shaking expression of Mohan (read SRK) while drinking the water? How can we ignore the messages loudly sent out about caste-ism, partiality, poverty and patriotism? The mind-boggling music of A.R. Rahman  made this movie far more memorable. And Mr. Khan - you truly deserve the incredible fan following you have around the globe; add me to the list.

(to be continued......)

I never thought I would appreciate "Kaminapan" one day....

Why is "Kaminey" so good? Well you tell me. Take the most overused, outdated formula of Hindi Cinema - Judwaa Bhai (Twin brothers); dare to make a movie on that theme for today's multiplex generation and yet turn it into such an enjoyable ride that you yearn for more. Now if that is not incredible and supremely innovative - then you tell me what it is. It's a "coming out of the age" movie for Bollywood. I did expect this from Vishal Bharadwaj; especially after watching his previous movies - Omkara and Maqbool - two gems of Hindi cinema. And he outdid himself.

Kaminey has a strong script, witty dialogs, great music and marvelous acting from everybody including those assistant henchmen. It's visually stunning, dark at times, and most importantly funny - not overdoing the jokes. Take "Chalie's dream" for example - a masterful visual - and horse's sound in sync with Charlie's shout. Only a director with a heart to create something daring, original and new could come up with such subtle style. Now hold on - are you going to snag me when I say "original"? Are you going to quote Tarantino or Ritchie here? Get it right guys: there is nothing wrong in being inspired by some of these great Hollywood directors. Even though I agree the plot formation and specially the style of the climax may look similar to Ritchie's "Lock, Stock and Two smoking barrels"; there is nothing that you can term as "rip-off". At least nobody is stealing scene-by-scene from a foreign film and claiming it to be "original idea" like some of those shameless movie makers.

Shahid Kapoor - wow, I am now convinced - he is the new generation of Bollywood heroes. Mind blowing in both the roles of the movie. Priyanka - very cute, funny and lovable. And the villains - I strongly believe it is the villains that makes a movie more enjoyable. And in this case; there are plenty of them - and interestingly many of them (well almost all) are funny. They did a great job to keep the movie thrilling till the end. And whatever you have to say, I liked the ending. Perfect climax for a movie like this.

I am very happy and hopeful to see fresh ideas being tried in Bollywood. And directors like Vishal can really make a difference. Hope to see more "Kamineys" in coming days!!!

Roll that spectacular reel

Lights, camera, action !!! And the magic begins. Fascination, illusion, drama, romance, tragedy, comedy - everything begin, impossible becomes possible, the future becomes the present, giants roared, soldiers martyr, nature destroys, emotions bursts. Cinema has always been captivating me, pulling me into a whole new astonishing world. I am not a film critic, but simply someone who enjoys watching the magic being cast in screen. There are a number of movies that have inspired and deeply affected me. Every time I watch one such movie, my head nods for those extraordinary filmmakers and their extraordinary vision towards the world and human race. In this and a few of the future posts, I would like to mention some of these movies - the list is long and there has been quite some time since I watched many of them. I shall only touch upon some of those that I can think of little more vividly at this moment compared to the rest. But first, in this post, let me recollect the names of some of these stupendous cinematic wonders; those that come to my mind right now are:

• The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
• Life is beautiful (Italian: La vita è bella) (1997)
• Dark Knight (2008)
• A beautiful mind (2001)
• Hotel Rwanda (2004)
• Schindler's List (1993)
• Forrest Gump (1994)
• The Pianist (2002)
• Dinabondhu (Assamese) (2005)
  
• Casablanca (1942)
• The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (Italian: Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo) (1966)
• Memento (2000)
• Sholay (Hindi) (1975)
• The Matrix (1999)
• Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain, Le (2001)
• American History X (1998)
• Pulp Fiction (1994)
• Fight Club (1999)
• Psycho (1960)
• Léon (1994)
• The Departed (2006)
• L.A. Confidential (1997)
• The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
• The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
• The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
• Saving Private Ryan (1998)
• The Green Mile (1999)
• Rebecca (1940)
• Braveheart (1995)
• The Sixth Sense (1999)
• Gladiator (2000)
• Ben-Hur (1959)
• Letters from Iwo Jima (2006)
• 3:10 to Yuma (2007)
• American Gangster (2007)
• Blood Diamond (2006)
• Mystic River (2003)
• Finding Neverland (2004)
• Taare Zameen Par (Hindi) (2007)
• Dil Chahta Hain (Hindi) (2001)
• Gone with the Wind (1939)
• Jurassic Park (1993)

May be I have missed some of the movies in the above list and shall keep adding them as and when I watch or remember. But all of these films have influenced me deeply in some way or other and they gave me much more than a mode for just time pass !!