Badlapur believes in this statement, which was made famous by Don Corleone in Godfather. All the characters have a darker side and you'll empathize with and hate every character as the film progresses. Director Sriram Raghavan is known to make violent films. This time he gave a psychic twist of goriness along with violence. I liked Director's attempt to create something new not seen commonly in Bollywood.
How can you not love acting prowess of Nawazuddin Siddiqui, who struggled for 10 years before coming to limelight in Kahaani and GOW. You'll love the shrewdness of Nawaz when he talks to Inspector (Kumud Mishra) or his passion of a love struck romeo when he talks to Huma Qureshi. But, he has done such roles of poor-guy-getting-beaten-up umpteenth times and have mastered it by now. I would like to see him excel in a non-violent film.
Varun Dhawan has shrugged off his chocolate boy image and has tried something totally outside his comfort zone. He didn't fare too well portraying character of grief-stricken Raghu. I missed his eyes seething with anger. I missed sorrowfulness on his face when he remembers his lost ones. I wish he could have done what Shahid did in Haider. He still has a long way to go. But, I'll appreciate his efforts much more than Nawaz for trying something different.
Kumud Mishra as Inspector and Divya Dutta as NGO worker have performed well within their limited roles. Huma Qureshi, Radhika Apte and Vinay Pathak were below average. Music is boring except Jee Karda song.
Watch this film if you like watching dark films with violence and goriness. Strictly for adults.

If there is a movie which made me laugh in a long time, it is Hunterrr. A bold attempt by Phantom Films, known to make offbeat cinema with a growing cult following. It is no secret that Hunterrr is a mature bold comedy but you shouldn't compare it with meaningless cheap cinema like Grand Masti etc.
Hunterrr is about selected few, who have mastered the art of being a Casanova. But, what happens when a tiger wants to finally settle down? Can he or can he not is the question. Story of the film is quite predictable and the mood is very light and comical. In the second half, film gradually shifts from adult comedy to romantic and then emotional. Overall, a good screenplay with non-linear story line, gripping plot, crisp editing and good direction. But, I found last 45-60 min a bit drag and could have been more crisp.
Gulshan Devaiah is a brilliant actor (and I loved him in "That girl in yellow boots"), who finally lands up with a lead role. He is truly amazing as the Mandar Vasu Pankshe. You'll see his different shades as "Confident Vaasu" as well as "Nervous Fiancee". Radhika Apte is another fantastic actress, who is known for doing quality regional cinema. She has done films in Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Marathi, English. Can you beat that!
Music is very situational and you won't find anyone singing songs around the trees. Yet, you won't remember any song after the movie is over. I liked Bappi Da's Hunter 303. It has got very peppy feel to it. Watch this movie with your wolf pack, you'll totally enjoy it. If you can watch it with your better half and she appreciates it, you are one lucky fellow in this world!

I didn't have any courage to watch this film in theater so I skipped it. Today when it finally came up on Colors, I summoned all my courage to give it a try. I was wrong, I should I watched it earlier, movies like these are inspiration to film critics. There is so much room to lambast smile emoticon
Story of this movie is about the protagonist, who is trying to make a movie but he doesn't have a story. So profound! That's what happens when you pay peanuts to your scriptwriter and spend a bomb in pedicure of your bombshell. Result - Scriptwriter runs away and your incompetent nincompoop Director dabbles his hand at writing story. Cameraman literally shoots his frustration and shares his pain with audience.
Arjun Rampal watched late night show of Hunterrr before acting in this one. Though out, he tries to maro chance on Jack-andezz like a jackass but no luck to avail. Damsel is nothing short of a sugar candy and is busy saving her wrists from havoc of ants instead. You can hear her cooing Cheetiyan kalaiyaan waaaah. Shernaz Patel plays Asst Director and is heavily inspired by Kiran Rao and thinks that with persuasion she can also get her Mr imperfect.
Finally better sense prevailed to Director and he casted a sensible actor Ranbir Kapoor to woo some moolah. Director also strategically named movie "Roy" (Roys are 15% of West Bengal population, ~1.35 Cr as estimated by fakingnews). He could have as well named the movie "Sharma". More people would have come to watch it.
Towards the end, when Ankit Tiwari was asked how did you find the story.. he cries out loud, Ae Story.. Tu Hai ke nahiiii.. Tu Hai ke nahiiiii. You can sense the dard in the voice of this mard. Ok a bad one tongue emoticon
Tagline: Krupya, Roy dekhein aur royein. coz pain is meant to be shared
Still, if you are looking for potential reasons to watch movie:
1. Extra long legs of Jack-andez
2. Awesome picturesque drool worthy resorts n hotels
3. Inspiration to become an entrepreneur. Coz any salaried class can't afford those resorts n hotels
4. Example of a delivery slower than even Rajat Bhatia's (KKR fame)

DBB is one crime thriller that'll keep you on edge of the seat. It has got very gripping but complex story which is the highlight of this film. I am glad that this movie was in able hands of very skilled Dibakar Banerjee who is the director, producer, script writer as well as screen play artist. Dibakar is known to make "hat ke" cinema and DBB adds another feather to his cap.
Sushant Singh Rajput's career graph has been going down with some bad choices of films. DBB would give a fresh lease to him. I liked his acting but didn't find him as convincing as original Rajit Kapur. Somehow Sushant's character lacked that confidence and sharpness and relied more on improvisation. DBB has a large ensemble of not so known actors. One of of the act that'll leave you spellbound is of theater master Neeraj Kabi. He came to limelight with award winning film Ship of Theseus.
Kudos to art director for the sets, costumes and entire feel of 1940s. Entire soundtrack has been composed by independent music artists, with no background to Bollywood. I found soundtrack average except the one in last fight scene. That was a killer in true sense. With all its plus, DBB would still appeal only to a certain section of society due to its ultra fast pace and convoluted story line. Don't watch it if your idea of a film is to relax and pop some popcorns. Best to be watched alone sans any distractions.
Trivia: Director Dibakar Banerjee also worked on lyrics and music for one of the tracks "Back Ke Bakshy". What talent man!

With so much of hype around Piku, I had a peek of the flick this weekend. It is one of those recipes which has all the necessary ingredients but doesn't leave you with a lasting aftertaste. On top of it, entire movie is about the grand quest to seamless bowel movement. Please avoid any popcorns or sandwiches during the movie.
Amitji has played the role of an extremely irritating father. As anyone would have expected, he played this role to perfection with a constipated look and eyeballs bulging out of sockets. Irrfan's role looked very restrained and it was like a Ferrari driving at 40 km/hr. There is so much more to this actor which didn't come out. Deepika had to just look beautiful in different attires, give her dimpled smile, roll her eyes and yell at Amitji in a monotonous syllable. Nothing really great.
Full marks to Juhi Chaturvedi for spinning a fresh story. Shoojit Sircar kept the mood of movie subtle without any dramatically overwhelming melodrama. Anupam Roy has composed some soothing numbers which are good to play in car on a nice drive. I have seen him live in one of the plays and he has a long way to go. When the movie starts, an appealing Bengali musical tune gets played in the background of casting. If I find it somewhere, that is going to be the next ringtone of my phone.
Overall a different movie, very nice attempt but nothing outstanding. I can compare this movie to Indian film The Bong Connection for some parts. However, I feel that Bong Connection did a much better justice of being closer to the roots.
Verdict: Watch it if you want to see something different without any expectations. There isn't anything better in theaters anyway.

Tanu Weds Manu Returns is everything which Tanu Weds Manu was not. TWM was a light hearted romantic comedy about friendship, festive wedding atmosphere and Kanpuriya Style. TWM made you laugh with the antics of Pappiji (Deepak Dobriyal) and one liners of Raja Awasthi (Jimmy Shergill). TWMR will make your heart melt for various characters in different situations.
TWMR is an emotional family drama which deals with the stress in the relationship between Tanu and Manu. This stress isn't affecting just 2 lives but 10 other lives associated with these two characters, like a chain reaction or dominos effect. TWMR is not an outstanding film like its prequel which immortalized various characters in memory of audience. But, it is still an above average film which one should watch. Personally, I was disappointed because I was expecting to watch same chemistry of romantic comedy. Did the director surprise me? Of course, he did but I was more shocked than surprised.
Coming to the acting department, Kangana Ranaut leaves you spellbound with the character of Kusum "Datto". There is a stark contrast between Tanu and Datto and yet Kangana graciously exhibited both roles with panache. Be it the look, haryanvi accent or mannerism of characters, Kangana leaves no stone unturned. Especially, the scene where Datto gives her introduction to Manu would make you stand up and clap for her. Madhavan has done the role of "Big Loser" multiple times and no one else could've looked so helpless and pitiful. Suits his image, which he did effortlessly. Deepak Dobriyal, Zeeshan Ayub, Swara Bhaskar, Jimmy Shergill are all class actors and have done wonders on silver screen. But, in TWMR their roles are limited to just being "Shaadi ke Baraati". They just have to be around Tanu and Manu to support them. Rajesh Sharma as Datto's brother is the dark horse in this film and one of his monologue in his village is worth mentioning.
Plot of the film is indeed unusual and kudos to Himanshu Sharma for the story. But, I didn't like the ending of the film. Story is going in a direction, then sudden jerk and situation changes and the end. Funny it might sound, but that's like high school mathematics problem of deriving a theorem. Wherever you're stuck, it is LHS = RHS, hence proved!
Krsna Solo & Tanishk-Vayu have given a melodious music with a good variety. Banno is already a chart buster and you can't stop dancing to it. Move on and Mat ja re has a melancholic touch. Old School girl is extremely funny and reminds me of "Moora" song of GOW 2. Ghani Bawri was a nicely timed situational song. Otherwise, peppy but it brings a lump in the throat.
Verdict: An above average film that can be watched with family. Just be clear that it isn't a romantic comedy but an emotional family drama. Else, you might be a bit disappointed like me.

Bombay Velvet is the age old story of 1970s, where a 20 something protagonist arrives in "Sapno ka Sheher" and wants to become "Mumbai ka Raja" overnight. Whether it is Deewar or Satya, basic plot remains the same. However, narrative of the film and screenplay is largely inspired from the west. Bombay Velvet was a personal ambition of Anurag Kashyap. He grew up watching gangster movies, heavily influenced by Martin Scorsese and his genre. He wanted to give a desi twist to Scarface and made Bombay Velvet. I even found the look and mannerism of Ranbir inspired by Al Pacino.
Direction of Anurag Kashyap is above average but there is hardly any scope of marvel with such a cliched plot. Movie is based on a novel, Mumbai Fables by Gyan Prakash. Anurag has tried to show entire novel in 150 min and hence you'll find movie extremely fast paced with tons of characters leaving you baffled. Editing is done by academy award winner Thelma Schoonmaker but I felt she has done a shoddy job this time (or she couldn't cope up with overpowering director).
Ranbir Kapoor has done a good justice to his role but I didn't find his performance anything close to clap worthy. Anushka Sharma was totally wasted in this film and she hardly has any juicy role. I had very high expectations from Karan Johar after watching him in the trailer. He carried off Kaizad Khambata very well in the beginning, but somewhere in between he lost the character and came back to his Koffee with Karan antics. There were so many characters - Kay Kay Menon, Manish Choudhary, Siddhartha Basu that none of them had anytime to show their skill.
Music by Amit Trivedi was a big let down and all the songs were boring. He tried to give it a touch of 1960s Jazz era but couldn't create something as catchy as Kaisi Paheli Zindagani - Parineeta. One team whom I would give full marks for Bombay Velvet is its art directors. It was a mammoth task to create Bombay of 60s and they did it brilliantly with all that razzmatazz.
Verdict - Don't go with high expectations. If you are a hardcore fan of retro gangsta movies Or if you want to see old styled Bombay, you might find it appealing. Otherwise, it is OK to give it a pass.

Many of you have asked me about my opinion of Welcome to Karachi. I decided not to watch it until it came on Set Max within 2-3 weeks. Here are my Top 7 reasons for hating it. Some of these reasons might resound well with you:
1. I am allergic to bullshit and Jackky Bhagnani is a known allergen.
2. This movie would be 6th Flop in a row for Jackky Bhagnani. Even Unmukt Chand has better track record in IPL.
3. In Jackky

Dil Dhadakne Do can be very well compared to buffet spread of Chutney Chang, which has 108 dishes but none of it looks appealing to you. Instead of complementing each other, as a matter of fact, they rather confuse you. Zoya Akhtar - How many people you wanted to stuff in a single movie! What was the point of playing passing the parcel with camera? Couldn't you have chosen 4-5 characters and tell a compelling story with them. We have seen enough of Kekta Kapoor on TV, don't need to replicate it on silver screen.
Entire story (whatever little it is) is narrated by Pluto Doggy Mehra that how each character thinks and behaves. Sometimes, you'll feel as if you are watching a Discovery program on "Human Psychology and Social Behavior as experienced by canines". Right from Anil Kapoor to Ranveer Singh to Farhan Akhtar to Priyanka Chopra, every single character is a loser in the film. Everyone's marriage is falling apart. Everyone is helpless.
Acting of every character is utter crap. Ranveer Desperate Singh, Anil Jackass Kapoor, Priyanka Piggy Chops, Anushka swollen lips Sharma - Shame on you for such dismal performance. Shefali Shah was the only saving grace and she managed to exude vivid emotions with excellence, amidst bunch of hopeless nincompoops. Aamir Khan gave voice to Pluto Doggy Mehra. To some extent his narrative managed to sew loose pieces of incidents together in a chronological order. But he said "Dil" so many times, I am sure he must have blurted out "Dil Ki Deal, Snapdeal" a zillion times in rehearsal. Farhan Akhtar was quite capable to pull off entire film single handedly but his entry was post interval. It is like giving last 5 overs to AB Devillers and expecting him to hit a century!
There was no editing done for the film. How could you stretch this baseless banter to 170 minutes? Unbelievable! Soundtrack of the film is boring and none of the songs are catchy. Shankar Ehsaan Loy have disappointed us this time. There is an interesting trivia about song "Pehli Baar". This song didn't use any choreographer. Director asked Ranveer & Anushka to do it impromptu, so that their sizzling chemistry could be seen onscreen. Well, I could only see their incapability loud and clear.
Please spare yourself this torture and bless me for sacrificing my evening and warning you in advance.
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