Bollywood masala at Delhi Fashion Week

How can Fashion Week be short of stars and there they were Bollywood's a,b,c listers making a beeline for the fashion riot.

Though it may have taken a little longer than usual for them to be seen at the fashion week but they finally arrived.

On Day 3 actress Soniya Mehra of Victoria 203 strutted her stuff for Renu Tandon.

It got better as there was Amrita Arora getting plucked and tweaked.

And then came the day's last show Rocky S for a cellphone brand we have to say he must have made a lot of calls.

There was a front row filled up with friends and fans and yes all of them filmy to varying degrees.

Lara Dutta also revisited her ramp days after quite a while.

And since the designer has another show coming up within this week everybody is wondering are these stars going to stick around Or will they just make way for the next batch of Bolly faces?

Hema Malini in Laaga Chunari Mein Daag

Hema Malini will be seen in Pradeep Sarkar’s forthcoming film LLaaga Chunari Mein Daag - Journey of a woman. She has a done a special appearance in the film.
Hema is in fact even seen in the theatrical promo of Laaga Chunari Mein Daag and it seems like she plays the role of a courtesan/dancer in the film.

Arshad's friends & foes!

Actors Arshad Warsi and Sanjay Dutt may be good friends both on and off screen but for once, they're playing foes in their latest film Dhamal. Arshad explains just how the 1993 blasts case has taken its toll on Sanjay Dutt.

According to Arshad, "It was very tough. Days before his verdict was due, I could see the suppressed tension written all over his face. In between the shots, his mind would always be somwhere else. Lately, he had turned very quiet."

On being asked whether he'd like to switch over from the comedy genre, he replied in the affirmative. Arshad quoted, "I would love to step out of comedy if given a chance. For me, doing something apart from comedy, would be like taking a vacation. In fact, I'm doing 'Goal', which is a very serious movie."

Well Arshad sure seems geared up to go a long way, in the uphill task of creating his distinctive niche, ploying on the murky twists and turns in Bollywood.

Remake of Sholay evokes mixed reactions

Bollywood director Ram Gopal Varma's controversial remake of the cult 1975 film Sholay has opened to a mixed response from audiences, who said they found it hard to relate to the contemporary version of the original.

Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag, was released late on Friday. It has almost the same storyline as Sholay which told the story of two reformed crooks who save a village from a bloodthirsty bandit.

In Varma's movie, the two men arrive in Mumbai in search of a job and unknowingly begin working for a gangster.

They get arrested and are then recruited by a former policeman to catch the city's most notorious criminal.

The strong characters in Sholay became cinematic legends. The movie was such a success that it ran in cinemas for years and became arguably one of Bollywood's greatest-ever films.

Varma's version lacks the script of the original, but there are hints of the old movie in its music.

The film, which opened to average bookings, failed to impressed many.

"His (Varma's) remake is not as half as good as the original," said Nishant Singh, a college student. "It has got a poor cast."

For many, the only striking thing in the remake is top Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan's portrayal of the foul-mouthed bandit, Gabbar Singh.

Bachchan's evil appearance and portrayal of the neurotic and merciless villain was received well.

"Amitabh is the best thing in the movie," said Ruchi Malhotra after watching the film.

"He has really done a great job of playing the role of Gabbar. He is in fact the only one who stands out in the entire movie."

Apna Asmaan

IndiaFM


It's difficult to strike a balance if you sail in two boats. Apna Asmaan tries to do that and ends up being neither here (appealing to lovers of serious cinema), nor there (appealing to those with an appetite for commercial fares).
Debutante director Kaushik Roy chooses a serious theme to begin with and you expect him to stick to realism as the story unfolds. But somewhere, in between, the film changes lanes and moves away from the core issue. What it sets out to narrate (a moving story of a young boy) and what it eventually narrates (the ills of wealth) come across as two different stories packed in one film.

In a nutshell, it's the writing that lets the film down, yet again. How one wishes Roy would've stuck to the serious issue, instead of spicing up the proceedings in the second hour.

Click here for RGV Ki Aag Special

The movie is about today's urban aspirations, as represented by a young couple living in Mumbai. The wage earner (Irrfan Khan) works in the field of plastics. His wife (Shobhana), gives up her early promise as a classical dancer, in order to settle into marriage, which is threatened when their only son (Dhruv) turns out to be autistic.

His condition distances the parents, the father torn with guilt and the mother craving success points from him. But a drug works wonders on the boy, but at a severe cost.

Apna Asmaan mirrors certain truths. You identify with the goings-on initially. The portions involving the child and the anxiety of his parents are captivating. The sequence of events that lead to an angry Irrfan Khan injecting the 'Brain Booster' to his son is the highpoint. But things deteriorate the moment the son opens his eyes and become a genius within minutes. Now what was that?

Images: Nisha Ka Nasha

That's not all! He becomes a great mathemagician and starts indulging in all kinds of vices. He even disowns his parents. That's where the writing goes haywire. How and why does he get such negative traits are left unexplained.

The end too is bizarre. The culmination to Anupam Kher's character, plus the son being administered the antidote and the sequences thereafter are difficult to absorb. Actually, it seems quite bizarre.

Images: Scandalous gossip from Hollywood

Director Kaushik Roy knows the technicalities right, but it's the writer in him that lets the director down. Music is strictly okay. Cinematography (Barun Mukherjee) is alright.

Irrfan Khan is good, not excellent.Nonetheless, he's brilliant in the sequence when he loses his temper and injects the booster. Shobhana does a fine job. Anupam Kher's character is half-baked. Rajat Kapoor is sidelined. Dhruv is loud.

On the whole, Apna Asmaan has precious little to offer


Author:Sify