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Movie Review: 7 KHOON MAAF by FENIL SETA
02 years ago
Vishal Bhardwaj! The very name is enough to get viewers to theatres. After all, every film of his (Makdee, Maqbool, Omkara, Blue Umbrella, Kaminey, Ishqiya) and also his short film (Blood Brothers) has managed to successfully engage and provide high-octane entertainment as well as meaningful cinema. Hence, 7 Khoon Maaf was definitely on the ‘must-watch’ list of almost every moviegoer. And that was also not only because of Bhardwaj’s successful track record but also because 7 Khoon Maaf had a deadly theme-a woman marrying multiple times and killing all her husband’s! The star cast and the songs were like an icing on the cake! However, 7 Khoon Maaf does have its moments but unfortunately falters at several places. At places, it’s the execution that’s erratic and at places, it’s the writing that’s flawed. What remains consistent is the performance of Priyanka and of course, the murders!
The story of the movie: Susanna (Priyanka Chopra) is a beautiful lady any man would die for! And sure enough, nearly half a dozen husbands of hers are already dead! They were:
1. Major Edwin Rodrigues (Neil Nitin Mukesh): Suave and dashing. But also possessive and chauvinist
2. Jimmy Stetson (John Abraham): An upcoming musical sensation who turns out to be evil
3. Wasiullah Khan (Irrfan Khan): The strangest husband of Sussanna! A poet who seems so innocent and sweet to everyone, but is completely opposite on the bed
4. Nicoloi Vronsky (Aleksandr Dyachenko): He has More >
Movie Review: MASTI EXPRESS by TARAN ADARSH
02 years ago
by Fenil Seta
in External Reviews
By Taran Adarsh, February 18, 2011 – 10:56 IST
Now here’s yet another film that places its story on Rajpal Yadav’s shoulders. This time, Rajpal has Johny Lever for company. MASTI EXPRESS, helmed by first-time director Vikram Pradhan, has two stories running concurrently: Rajpal and his wife Divya Dutta’s fervent desire to have their kid educated at a respectable institution and the auto rickshaw race that forms the crux of the story.
Quite an interesting idea, I must add, but interesting ideas don’t necessarily translate into fascinating cinematic experiences. The problem is, MASTI EXPRESS appeals in parts, not in its entirety. At places, the film is engaging, but there are times when it comes across as a yawn-inducing attempt. The screenplay writing is clearly the culprit here!
BY BOLLYWOOD HUNGAMA.COMMASTI EXPRESS tells the story of a father [Rajpal Yadav], who desperately tries to get his only child admitted to a renowned school and provide him education. His son is just another brat in a slum with an uninspiring future. The son is refused admission initially, but later, when the father faces a lot of obstacles and wins an auto rickshaw race with the help of the school kids, the Principal [Manoj Joshi] opens the doors of his school to the kid.
The director tries to pack just about everything to make the film palatable to the junta janardhan. He decides to pander to the commercial diktats by injecting songs on guest stars [filmed on Shankar More >
Movie Review: 7 KHOON MAAF by TARAN ADARSH
22 years ago
by Fenil Seta
in External Reviews
By Taran Adarsh, February 18, 2011 – 08:33 IST
The very thought of watching a Vishal Bhardwaj film excites a movie buff no end. Right from MAKDEE to KAMINEY, Bhardwaj’s body of work stands out from the rest. The forward-thinking film-maker’s fixation for adapting novels and plays is known to all and sundry by now. Continuing with his practice of adapting from the written form, the supremely talented storyteller now adapts Ruskin Bond’s short story ‘Susanna’s Seven Husbands’ for his new outing 7 KHOON MAAF. Known for walking the unusual path, Bhardwaj narrates an unconventional story yet again – of a woman who marries multiple times, following the untimely death of her husbands.
Till a few years ago, no one would’ve ever thought of making a film on a woman who marries, remarries, weds again, ties the knot yet again… in fact, she walks down the aisle multiple times. That’s not all, the woman, we are told, kills each of her husbands subsequently. The theme might come as a jolt to the trditional moviegoers, since the wives on the Hindi screen are either depicted as docile and dutiful or fiercely independent and ambitious. The question is, will the orthodox Indian audience absorb a theme like this? It’s blasphemous, some may opine. Imagine a murderous bride, some may rant.
BY BOLLYWOOD HUNGAMA.COMThere’s talk that 7 KHOON MAAF is also loosely inspired from an Italian movie by the name SETTE VOLTE DONNA aka WOMAN TIMES SEVEN [1967], helmed by Vittorio More >
Movie Review: ANGEL by TARAN ADARSH
02 years ago
by Fenil Seta
in External Reviews
By Taran Adarsh, February 11, 2011 – 12:03 IST
Hindi films have often depicted rare illnesses/disorders/disabilities… GHAJINI [Anterograde Amnesia], PAA [Progeria], MY NAME IS KHAN [Asperger Syndrome], TAARE ZAMEEN PAR [Dyslexia], BLACK [Alzheimer's], KARTHIK CALLING KARTHIK [Schizophrenia], GUZAARISH [Paraplegia]. Now Ganesh Acharya’s ANGEL talks of Cerebral Palsy. Like his peers, Acharya isn’t merely highlighting a disability. ANGEL is primarily a love story… a hatke prem kahani in filmi lingo.
BY BOLLYWOOD HUNGAMA.COMLove can happen anytime, anywhere, to anyone. It can happen to people who have arrived at the sunset of their life and also to those with serious disabilities. Though we talk about how love is the purest emotion, our society, very often, does not accept love when it doesn’t fit into our perception of love. To cite an example, love between an elder person and someone half his/her age or love between members of the same sex or between disabled individuals may make us uncomfortable. We get judgmental at times, thinking that we are right, while others — those who don’t act according to what we feel is right — are labeled as rebels, oddballs and misfits. ANGEL does that. It goes into the unconventional zone, depicting a love story between a social misfit and a woman suffering with Cerebral Palsy.
There’s talk that ANGEL is similar to GUZAARISH. It’s not. Nor is it similar to SADMA. In GUZAARISH, Hrithik was completely paralyzed below More >
Movie Review: PATIALA HOUSE by TARAN ADARSH
02 years ago
by Fenil Seta
in External Reviews
By Taran Adarsh, February 10, 2011 – 13:54 IST
A while ago, I posed a question on Twitter and Facebook, asking people what their expectations were from PATIALA HOUSE. The reaction ranged from encouraging and affirmative to unenthusiastic and unexciting. A wide number of caustic and scathing comments were a consequence of Akshay Kumar’s last year’s releases, namely KHATTA MEETHA, ACTION REPLAYY and TEES MAAR KHAN. Also, a few called it similar to DHAN DHANA DHAN GOAL, while some even compared it with NAMASTEY LONDON.
In fact, a lot many factors go against PATIALA HOUSE. Director Nikihil Advani and Akshay’s last outing together, the infamous CHANDNI CHOWK TO CHINA, remains a favorite punching bag to this day. Besides, PATIALA HOUSE comes at a time when people have had an overdose of Akshay starrers. I reiterate, there ought to be at least six months’ gap between two films of a major star, while this is Akshay’s fourth release in six months [KHATTA MEETHA - 23 July, ACTION REPLAYY - 5 November and TEES MAAR KHAN - 24 December]. Moreover, the film opens exactly one week before the keenly anticipated World Cup cricket matches and coupled with that, it will have no breathing space as the very next week witnesses the release of another much-awaited film 7 KHOON MAAF. Expecting PATIALA HOUSE to overcome these hurdles is tough, mainly when the chips are down!
BY BOLLYWOOD HUNGAMA.COMThe chips are down also because people assume PATIALA HOUSE to be More >
Movie Review: UNITED SIX by TARAN ADARSH
02 years ago
by Fenil Seta
in External Reviews
By Taran Adarsh, February 4, 2011 – 12:02 IST
I often wonder why don’t [Hindi] film-makers attempt chick-flicks with loads of dazzling action/stunts? Say, on the lines of CHARLIE’S ANGELS? In fact, way back in the 1990s, I vividly recall, there was an attempt by several film-makers to make action films with all-women star cast. But the projects fizzled out for reasons best known to those film-makers.
The first impression that UNITED SIX evokes is that it’s a mishmash of several Hollywood action fares that show the fists and curves of the fairer sex. But you are proven wrong as the story begins. Sure, UNITED SIX has six women essaying pivotal roles, but this is about the heist they carry out successfully. The concept is attention grabbing, but it’s the screenplay writing that makes the effort partly engaging, partly so-so, partly amateurish, partly self indulgent.
BY BOLLYWOOD HUNGAMA.COMUNITED SIX is the story of six girls living in Bangkok. They are going through a tough phase in their lives. Their dreams are shattered, their aspirations crushed. Out of frustration and anger, they decide to rob a bank. One of the girls, Jia, who was fired from the bank for refusing to sleep with her boss, convinces the others and leads them.
They rent a bakery adjacent to the bank and start digging a tunnel which would lead them to the bank. They soon realize that it’s not as easy as it seems like. However, they continue with their mission, but one by one, on one More >
Movie Review: UTT PATAANG by TARAN ADARSH
12 years ago
by Fenil Seta
in External Reviews
By Taran Adarsh, February 4, 2011 – 08:40 IST
I’ve often said that ‘small’ or low cost films, very often, have much more to offer than several biggies that thrive on star value primarily; content is a secondary issue for these films. Ticket paying audiences insist on watching good films and that’s where a strong word of mouth plays a vital part these days. Positive feedback can lure viewers even after the crucial opening weekend is over. Films like TERE BIN LADEN, UDAAN, DO DOONI CHAAR, PHAS GAYE RE OBAMA and BAND BAAJA BAARAAT endorse this statement.
BY BOLLYWOOD HUNGAMA.COMI genuinely believe that the audience for hi-content films is multiplying with each passing week. The viewer is willing to give his/her precious time and invest his/her hard-earned money on a film with substance, which only goes to prove yet again that content is the backbone of business, the low cost or absence of top stars notwithstanding. The day of the underdog has finally arrived.
In the 1970s, Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Basu Chatterjee popularized comedy films. The trend was carried forward by Sai Paranjpye. Early 1990s saw the emergence of David Dhawan, Priyadarshan and Anees Bazmee proving their mettle with slapstick. First-time director Srikanth V. Velagaleti merges comedy with thrill elements in his debut outing UTT PATAANG and the experiment succeeds to a major extent.
UTT PATAANG is a difficult film to conceptualize, pen and also execute. Besides, it requires More >
Movie Review: YEH SAALI ZINDAGI by TARAN ADARSH
02 years ago
by Fenil Seta
in External Reviews
By Taran Adarsh, February 4, 2011 – 08:37 IST
A while ago, while chatting him up for my show on TV, I had queried Sudhir Mishra as to why Hindi film industry fails to produce qualitative movies, unlike the 1960s and 1970s, which have tremendous recall value even in the present day? I markedly remember, Mishra didn’t blink an eyelid while answering this one: “That’s because most producers are not literate enough to understand scripts that could elevate the standards of Hindi films. Film-making for them is limited to the weekend business these days.” The proclamation stayed with me!
BY BOLLYWOOD HUNGAMA.COMWhen you saunter into a cineplex to watch a Sudhir Mishra film, it’s given that this maverick film-maker will serve you non-formulaic stuff. As a viewer, I liked some of his efforts [IS RAAT KI SUBAH NAHIN, HAZAARON KHWAISHEIN AISI], but a few didn’t live up to my expectations. His new film, YEH SAALI ZINDAGI, has already generated the buzz for a variety of reasons. It’s ‘controversial’ or ‘provocative’ title being the key one.
Before I proceed further, let me tell you that the title is of immense significance to the film. Sure, it may sound offensive [the Censor Board chief too raised a hue and cry, asking Mishra to change the title of the film], but why does a commonly used word ['saali'] create an uproar? Actually, I am quite amused at the brouhaha. In our society, we refer to the sister-in-law as saali, don’t we? Besides, almost three decades More >
