Fan is a movie about passion, devotion and obsession. It is a story of all those starstruck fans for whom their idol is the reason to their life. Coincidentally and (un)fortunately, there isn't a dearth of fans like that in India who are always ready to go overboard to fulfill their craziness. You, me and our society is no one to judge them and label them as stupid, psycho or crazy because it is difficult to understand their perspective unless you are a Fan. As Gaurav says in the film, "Rehne de tu nahi samjhega"

Film starts with the tribute to SRK with footage of his old hits, his first Filmfare award and what not. SRK plays almost himself as Superstar Aryan Khanna, which must have come naturally to him. What I admired in the film was character portrayal of Gaurav the Fan (also played by SRK with 3D scanning and prosthetics). Expressions of Gaurav the Fan are praiseworthy and you'll admire his transition from a bindaas carefree happy go lucky guy to a revengeful mastermind schemer. 2 scenes which I particularly remember are:

i) His eyes popping out when he gets the call from Aryan Khanna
ii) He bites his lip and shows with action, "De de ke maara.. De de ke maara"

Other actors hardy have any screen time. Of course, when you have 2 SRKs in the film then other actors shouldn't have much hope of any footage. Waluscha de Sousa plays Aryan's wife and does justice to her role as a beautiful mannequin. Yogendra Tiku and Deepika Amin as Gurav's parents makes you empathize with them. Especially the scene where they are supporting Gaurav as backstage artists. Shriya Pilgaonkar (daughter of talented Sachin and Supriya Pilgaonkar) reminds you of cute and bubbly Priety Zinta / Genelia D'souza.

Theme of the film is quite fresh - "A crazy fan and his quest to meet his idol". But somehow script writer Habib Faisal couldn't build on the story further and story fizzles out by interval. What follows is a typical Bollywood Masala movie of "Catch me if you can". It is a hackneyed plot which is not only shown in Hollywood (The Fan, 1996) but also in SRK's own film Duplicate (1998). I am glad that the film doesn't have any songs (not even the Jabra Fan) and manages to get over under 150 min. But the chase sequence promoting tourism in Dubrovnik (Croatia) and Indra Vihar, Delhi were a bit drag.

There are limitless glitches in script which are hard to ignore. Superstar running amok after a common man, jumping from building, bleeding everywhere. Why does he has a security team and army of bodyguards? Gaurav wasn't a bright student in his class and runs a cybercafe. Suddenly post interval he becomes crime master Gogo, manages to get Aryan's phone number, gets access to his itinerary, manages to get fake id, WOW! May be Director forgot to show that Gaurav did a brief stint in Al-Qaeda where he was taught to become James Bond. Even the end of film was negative and reaffirms the fact that a fan's only identity is his idol. He is nothing without him. C'mon, is that the message SRK wants to give to another 100 psychotic fans of his who are ready to go any extreme with a drop of hat.

Verdict: This film is an out and out masala flick made for the numerous fans of SRK. If you are a fan (of SRK or any other celebrity) then it'll strike a chord with you. Else, you won't be able to relate with all the craziness going around. However in absence of any good films in theater now, you can go and watch it. You won't be pleased but not a bad idea to beat scorching heat in AC and comfortable sofas.

Aligarh is one of those rare films which has a great plot, critically acclaimed actors, skillful director, very appealing trailer and a movie made very passionately but still doesn't connect with audience. I have immense respect for LGBT rights and deeply moved with atrocities meted out at Prof Siras. But, I could barely keep my eyes open towards the end of watching Aligarh.

Movie is made at an extremely slow pace and darkness of cinema hall, comfortable seats and soothing conditioned air makes it an irresistible combination to doze off. If it wasn't for Rs 350/- ticket + 250/- popcorn, I wouldn't have battled with my eye lids. This story isn't about homosexuality because that point of view wasn't discussed and justified in the film. This film is a biography on a person Prof Siras, who has a distinct outlook towards life, society, current generation and also happens to have a different sexual orientation.

A great part of film is spent on building the characterization of Prof Siras, who is a reserved shy person and loves old Hindi music with his glass of whisky. A big fan of poetry who loves writing books. Someone, who is a staunch believer in religion and orthodox in nature yet he is open to have relationship with a person of different religion and socio-economic class. Someone, who abhors the casualness of current generation and believes that this generation makes everything trivial and doesn't go deeper in understanding feelings. A person with great self respect who gets hurt when people takes dig at his sentiments. A simple apolitical person who conveniently dozes off in a courtroom where his case is getting discussed, because he doesn't understand nor interested in convoluted legal mumbo-jumbo. Very few films have such well defined characterization of a role. Kudos to Hansal Mehta for doing it so impeccably.

It is one of the best played roles of Manoj Bajpayee. A dynamic actor like him who is known to play aggressive roles mouthing fierce dialogues have played a role of such calm and composed professor. You'll admire his grip on characterization when he closes his eyes and gets lost in himself, when he feels shy, immense pain which is reflected from him eyes but not from his words. It is remarkable to see Mr Bajpayee playing this role with so much perfection. If there is anything to be watched in this film then it is Manoj Bajpayee's acting prowess. For Rajkummar Rao, this was one of the easiest roles ever played which didn't give him much room to challenge himself and show his acting capabilities.

Now when everything is so great, what really went wrong?

1. If this movie was about homosexuality (or any other social matter for that matter) then it would have still got the audience attention. But this film was about Prof Siras characterization. Does anyone really care who he was and what he really cared for?

2. Pace of the film is extremely slow and people don't have so much patience to understand, assimilate, ruminate and then digest characterization of a person.

3. Many of the threads were left open, which might be intentional but seems like a technical fault. For e.g. Whether Prof Siras partner was hand in glove with journalist or not. What was the animosity between AU faculty and Prof Siras. Was it political for the power or it was a related to religious bias?

Verdict: This movie isn't of everyone's taste. Be very careful before you choose to watch it. You should have a deep interest in philosophy and slow paced films should be your type. There aren't any explicit scenes or usage of bold language, so it is a safe film from that point of view. Ideally, to be watched alone if you are a thinker. Don't drag your friends or partner along if it isn't their type of film.

Movie Review : Tamasha | www.bollyreviewsnow.com
Ratings: 3/5 (Just for the last 30 mins of the film, which delivers an inspiring message)
Tamasha is an abstract, which won't go down easy in your digestive tract. Film starts with a wacky storytelling concept which keeps you bewildered and might be repulsive for some.
I can draw a parallel between Tamasha and a 3 course meal. 1st course is a dubsmash, where video is of 2015 but all the dialogues are from 1970s films (Teja from Zanjeer, Mona Darling). If you can't relate with that era, you won't be able to decrypt the cryptic filmi language. Ranbir extends this character to play Dev Anand and fails miserably in mimicking his mannerism. 1st course lasts for 45 min and is largely unimpressive, far fetched and way too filmy.
2nd course starts with a peppy song "Heer Toh Badi Sad Hai" and the film transitions from a Matargashti to a mushy mushy romance. Plot starts coming on track and looks believable, however this happiness is short lived and what follows is an hour long emotional melodrama. Character sketch of Ranbir is half baked and shifts gears from being a non-conformist of herd mentality ==> battling with internal complex ==> Schizophrenic ==> Wondering what director has in mind ?? Lack of clarity in Director's vision rubs off on lead characters and makes audience scratching their head. You'll also see inspiration derived from Hollywood classic Groundhog Day (1993) in showing routine scenes.
3rd and final course is a short 30 min power packed punch, which explains the mayhem shelved out at audience for last 1 hour 45 min. This is where the message becomes crystal clear and you admire the abstract beginning and director's point of view. However, it is too late and difficult for audience to appreciate the film. Having an awesome dessert doesn't absolve your sins of serving tasteless bland food.
Director Imtiaz Ali is a champion of romance and his effort of delivering an abstract art film fell flat on his face. I can clearly see him bruised and distributors bleeding at the box office. Ranbir Kapoor handled his highly ambiguous characterization very well. Alas, his role is highly confusing for which I won't blame the actor. Deepika Padukone is consistently mediocre without any effort on improvement. Piyush Mishra as storyteller is marvelous and talks in poetic language (as always), which is very classy. I am sure he must have written some of those dialogues as well.
Cinematography by Ravi Varman is impressive but not a differentiator. These days, every film has great photography, locales and sets. Music by AR Rehman is above average with special applause for "Heer Tu Badi Sad Hai". Music in other songs isn't impressive but none of the songs are forced and very situational. I loved the spread of singers ranging from Mohit Chauhan, Mika, Lucky Ali, Arijit Singh, Sukhinder Singh to AR Rehman himself. Wow!
Verdict: Definitely a hatke film as poster says, Why always the same story? It could have been a wonderful film if it was executed well. Don't go to theater expecting a lighthearted fun filled romantic film. This film might leave you a little heavy. Message delivered in the end is indeed inspiring.
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Plot of Prem Ratan Dhan Payo (PRDP) is more predictable than India Vs Bangladesh cricket match. As you would have guessed, it is a shudh shakahaari parivarik film without any onions and garlic. Barjatyas are trapped in a black hole and refuse to budge beyond 1990s. PRDP will remind all those in 30+/40+ about their jawaani and to teens/20+ audience about their nana naani.
Paarivarik film genre is a citadel of Barjatyas. They have a secret masala recipe with pre-mixed ingredients, which has been dishing out Blockbusters ever since Maine Pyar Kiya (1989). Zero points for any direction and creativity as PRDP offers nothing new.
PRDP is 95% about Salman Khan and 5% everyone else put together. Some of the critically acclaimed actors like Sanjay Mishra, Deepak Dobriyal and Swara Bhaskar were totally wasted in this film. Sonam Kapoor played the perfect mannequin as director would have expected. Anupam Kher, Neil Nitin Mukesh and Armaan Kohli disappoints.
With all its lows, this film has a very strong point which is the charm of Salman Khan's Prem character. Something which made him heartthrob of nation and made all the girls swoon. Even if it is a cliched character, still it has that perfect blend of idealism-romance-humor-impishness with a feel good factor. Ever since Salman Khan metamorphosed into Chulbul Pandey, it left a void in Bollywood for Prem's character. I personally find Salman more emphatic, emotionally expressive and appealing in Prem than any other role.
Full marks to PRDP for its sets, costumes and cinematography. At one point, it feels like an advertisement of Taj Lake Palace (Udaipur) honeymoon suite package. My heartfelt sympathies with fellow salaried comrades who got a heartburn watching those scenes. Its OK, afterall Mount Abu, Mahabaleshwar and Yercaud aren't that bad honeymoon destinations either. Sulk Sulk..
Music of the film is pukeworthy and having Himeshji Reshamiyaji on the vocals was the last straw. Song "Aaj Unse Milna Hai" was promoted by Haldirams and the lyrics have summed up their entire menu. Title track Prem Ratan Dhan Payo has special DTS-Dolby echo effects of Kekta Kapoor.. It goes like this...Payo... Payo...Laayo... Chaayo....Aayo... Gaayo..Payo. WhyOOOO ?

Shamitabh is a brave attempt by Director R Balki to present a fresh concept to Bollywood audience who have gone habitual to rotten ideas. This movie is about clash of egos between 2 super talented individuals who need each other badly but can't stand each other even for a sec. Salute to Balki for such a brilliant script and screenplay. It is an intellectual film and might not appeal to everyone's taste. Don't expect a masala movie of Good-guy-beating-bad-guy and they-lived-happily-ever-after. I could sense lot of symbolism in the film, where 2 characters mean much more than 2 individuals. To me Amitji's character depicted experience/wisdom, which you get with time. Dhanush's character depicted passion/Fire in belly which makes you do silly unimaginable things to achieve unrealistic dreams.
If there is one thing, you should go to watch this movie then it would be Amitji's performance. Off late his roles have been very subdued and I have been missing that persona of Amitabh which exuded confidence and who could carry off his arrogance with a poise. You'll get to see that Amitabh in this movie, absolutely! Dhanush is a marvelous actor and has proven his mettle in Raanjhana. I am glad he is choosing his roles carefully and not doing any Kicks and Jai Hos. Akshara Hassan doesn't even know the single akshar of acting. Most of the time, she was managing her pixie styled hairs off her face. She needs a good barber and some lessons from great Kamal Sir.
But, in his pursuit towards excellence, Director went a little overboard and dragged the film a bit too much. He conveyed his point well and clear by interval and after that it was a drag. Some editing could have made the film much crisper to 2 hours and a wonderful piece of art. Most of the songs are worthless and could've been done away with. Still, if you want to watch something different, I'll suggest go for it and watch the movie.

Dum Laga ke Haisha (DLKH) is a Comedy Family Drama, which will remind you of clean family movies made by Hrishikesh Mukherjee. Film is set up in 90s era in Haridwar and highlight challenges in a typical arranged marriage where 2 strangers try to lead a life together with all their differences. This theme isn't new to Bollywood but I don't remember any other film which managed to keep it so light yet realistic minus all the melodrama, tears and melancholy.
Kudos to debut director Sharat Kataria to keep the audience engaged from start to end. Audience will witness seamless transition from comedy to drama to romance. Ayushmann Khurana has a penchant to try different roles and work in quality cinema. DLKH would add to his maturity as an actor. Thanks Ayushmann for continuing being an actor and not trying to become a "star".
If there is one thing DLKH would be ever remembered for, then it would be for debut lead actress Bhumi Pednekar. No amount of words can describe the brilliance of this actress.She impresses in all the areas be it her expressions, dialogue delivery or immersing herself in the role. Before this role, she worked as an assistant to casting director Shanoo Sharma for 6 years in Yash Raj Films. She wasn't casted because she was so hefty, rather she gained 10-15 kgs for this role. If my prediction is right then she is bagging debut filmfare award this year.
Role of character actors was well defined and their presence strengthens the plot and adds to the beauty of story. Film has some great actors like Sanjay Mishra (Filmfare 2014 - Best Actor Critics for Ankhon Dekhi) and Seema Pahwa (Ankhon Dekhi). Music of the film was disappointing but that doesn't make much dent in its Entertainment Quotient. Must watch with your better half and family. Safe to watch with kids.