Arundhati - a woman and her dagger.

It is so rare to see an actress at the centre of a Telugu masala film, that when I spotted the Malayalam dubbed DVD of Arundhati, a 2009 Telugu supernatural thriller, I knew instantly that I had to buy it. The cast also intrigued me - Anushka Shetty, who is typically a solid performer, was at the helm and Sonu Sood, my favourite scumbag in both North and South Indian cinemas, played the horrifying villain she has to conquer. The plot tells of a woman being reborn in modern day to conquer the evil that once plagued her court.

I didn't have subtitles for this movie, so all of its subtleties, or lack thereof, escaped my understanding. What I could gather was the gist of the plot and the performances, which are all solid. The CGI was probably never amazing to begin with, so it looks a bit dated now, but serves its purpose, as this tale of black magic and all kinds of sorcery wouldn't really be told without the help of computer-generated special effects.

I wish I had had subtitles, though, because I feel like regardless of quality, this film would've been more interesting. What I gather is that it's an okay film, not a spectacularly good one - it has all the tropes of this type of film, from the revenge angle to the ludicrous horrifying lengths Sonu Sood's villain reaches. It's not quite Magadheera levels of fun, partly because it's so serious and has almost nothing in it to truly lighten the mood (even the songs never really make it fun). Some scenes are almost too dark, lending it a bit of a horror film feel, which may be entirely intentional. There is also one film shamelessly copied from a well-known Chinese film from the early 2000s.

It is so rare to see a female-lead film in this manner, though. There is no hero here - Anushka's two characters are the focus, and even though she gets some help from men, there isn't a single moment where it looks like the focus might shift towards somebody else. It's refreshing, but at the same time it's not as revolutionary as one might hope. There is no part in which the traditional gender roles are necessarily questioned - the heroine is given agency but she's kind of portrayed as the exception, not the rule. A devil's advocate might ask whether that's so different from how heroes are portrayed, too, though, and I suppose that's true.

Perhaps more telling is the fact that even if this was a pretty decent hit in the box office, I've not really seen it mentioned much. I suppose that could just be a sign of its reputation, because like I said, even without subtitles, I didn't get the sense I was missing out on nuanced storytelling, or even intriguing supernatural world-building. As it stands, I might recommend it to those who like the leads and don't mind dated-looking CGI combined with stern supernatural stories. 

Rewatch magic: Paa & Mujhse Fraaandship Karoge.

When I first saw Paa, I was sure my extreme emotional reaction to it was a fluke. It wasn't a hyperbole to say I cried my eyes out throughout the movie, by the end letting out dry sobs because I had no tears left. It was so bizarre - this had never happened to me with any movie, and I had watched a fair bit of tear-jerkers in my time. So it had to be something other than the film, causing this reaction - maybe it was just my mood to cry my eyes out, and the movie gave me good impetus to do so without feeling silly for it. 

This is not to say anything against the film. It's a damn good one, and even if I was wary of the "gimmick" of having the son (Abhishek) play the father, and the father (Amitabh Bachchan) play the son, who suffers from progeria. Acting through prosthetic make-up is difficult for anybody, and Amitabh-ji was praised through the roof for this performance, and I wondered whether that was because of the performance, or his star power combined with the braveness of taking such a role.

Thankfully, the movie puts the story and its characters front and center, thus making sure you almost forget about the gimmick entirely. And even if the film is named 'father', the mother is the real highlight here - I feel like Paa was the first role where Vidya Balan was just staggeringly amazing, and I'm pretty sure I cried the hardest whenever her character cried. 

I went into my rewatch thinking that I probably wouldn't be so emotionally prodded by the movie, as I remembered crying at so many lines and so many scenes. This time, I thought, I'd know what was coming - surely that had to make it less emotionally impacting? 

Well, it did not. Not only did I cry my one paper tissue soggy, I was also so mesmerized by the film I couldn't just hit pause and go get another one. When the climactic scene arrives, even though I knew what was coming, even though I had seen it coming miles away, I was just completely broken. If my tear ducts had any moisture left, it was all let out by the end of the film. Again.

So I keep wondering. What is it about this story that just gets to me? I don't feel like there's anything particularly personal about the story for me, so it's not like it reflects my own life in any way. I suspect some other fans of the film may feel the same way, but considering I'm not really the tear-jerker person, nor does this film get consistently mentioned among the best or most favourite films (hell, even I don't regularly list it as one), I'm kind of puzzled. The performances are all great, the musical cues certainly heighten those performances, and the soundtrack is wonderful, but I still don't know why this movie leaves such an impact on me. The only thing I know is that on my next rewatch, I'll know to prepare more tissues. 

Mujhse Fraaandship Karoge, on the other hand, remains the perfect rainy day romcom to watch. I wonder if Kunal Kohli feels that way, too - since I recently realized, being a little slow I guess, that Fraaandship is basically a modernized version of Mujhse Dosti Karoge. MDK, of course, and this has been admitted by Kohli himself, was kind of a dated movie even when it came out. It was a late 90's film for the early 00's, and though it has some redeeming features (that Antakshari song or the completely filmi and wonderful climax), it's not really one to remember much nowadays.

I wondered about the expiration date of Fraandship as I rewatched. Preity and Vishal fall in love via Facebook by impersonating their friends, and while social networking could be here to stay, youth culture does tend to change rather rapidly - what's cool one minute tends to not be so cool the next. Still, from the marketing perspective (ugh, yes, the kind of phrase I never wanted to type), it makes sense to give the youth films that portray characters who are also young, and hopefully in a way that's realistic but still idealized.

Another thing I picked up on was that the film was directed by a woman, Nupur Ashtana, which is sadly a rare thing world over. Good on Y-Films for finally getting some women directors in the fray as well (will mothership Yash Raj Films follow suit sometime in the future?).

I also thought about the message the film sends. As with any glossy romcoms, there is some focus on superficial traits, but what is notable in Fraaandship is how personality, chemistry and compatibility win out in the end. Preity and Vishal have instant chemistry online, but they continue to bicker with one another face-to-face. There is also no "make-over moment" - when Vishal sees Preity all dolled up for the club, he still doesn't seem all that interested. 

When Rahul and Mallika (the friends whose online identities our hero and heroine adopt) first meet, they don't seem to hit it off that well, even though they are both very attractive people. However, once they get to talking and discover they actually have some things in common, they become more interested in one another.

I know it's not much, but I'll take it as it's so much more likable and relatable than the films with paper-thin characterizations and so much emphasis on fashion and looking cool, hot, whatever. Of course films will always try to sell a very glamorous image, and that includes the superficial focus, but actors shouldn't just be moving clothes racks for the latest designer clothes. So for all its classic mainstream film traits, at least Fraaandship is putting a simple, yet agreeable message out there.

Kaminey picspam.

I love the way this movie looks and feels. The oppressive but calming blue tones with occasional flashes of red and gold just seem to add to the gripping atmosphere.



Things only go from bad to worse, and the descent is beautiful to watch, and re-watch, for that matter.

Somehow, Omkara with its tragic ending still feels more rewatchable to me, but Kaminey is just so good, and so well-executed, and with such beautiful music and performances that I couldn't help but love it.

Gandha: scent of hope, and of tragedy.

It stands to reason that if you wre going to turn any of the three stories in Gandha (Marathi for 'smell', directed by Sachin Kundalkar) into a massive motion picture, it would have to be the first one, titled "Bride-to-be". It's the sole feel-good story of the bunch, and has comedic elements to it - but at the heart of it there is one woman's independent quest for love, which she finds through the strangest means: mainly, her sense of smell.

Sound familiar? Of course, the director re-made this first story into the colourful and over-the-top Aiyyaa, which I loved and have discussed previously. The bride-to-be Veena in the original version is played by the young actress Amrut Subhash, who fits this subtle version of the story well. Her colleague is played by Anita Date, who essays the same role in Aiyyaa. Veena, just like Meenakshi, is being married off enthusiastically by her parents, and she's reluctant to agree to any matches, but plays the part of a bride-to-be to please her family.

Although the films share tone and the basic story structure, there are differences, too. The object of her obsession is not South Indian, but Marathi just like her, and the colorism gets explored not by her desire for a dark man, but by Veena's mother's complaining to her shrine that her dark daughter will never be married. (Quizzically, this gets overshadowed by odd skin lightening creme product placement..)

You can easily see why the director was so eager to expand this story and explore this character and her story some more. Of course, the result was a completely different movie, and it's a matter of taste whether one prefers the short, subtle and sweet tale of Veena to the story of Meenakshi - louder, more song-filled but still with those undeniably gorgeous quieter moments tucked in the longer running time. I personally happen to adore both versions. 

After the subtle saccharine, the next story "A man on medicines" can be quite hard to watch at times. It's a terrifically acted small piece of human drama, about Sarang (Milind Soman), a man downing pills on the regular, whose ex-wife Raavi (the fantastic Sonali Kulkarni, who most Hindi film fans probably remember best from Dil Chahta Hai) comes to visit her. What follows are basically just discussions of his sickness, their relationship and her obsession with the odd smell she finds in the apartment. 

In this segment Kundalkar decides to pay heavy-handed tribute to Wong Kar Wai and Pedro Almodovar by  having Sarang watch their films in some scenes. The tributes are probably heartfelt but don't necessarily add much to this piece of the film, as it excels more as simple human drama; big emotions in a small milieu.

There's a lot of beauty in Sarang's luxurious-looking apartment, but at times it's hard to find much relevance in the lingering shots of these surroundings. It's almost like this part of the film was meant to be a stage play, so we as audience would be forced to focus on the crux of the whole thing: the two characters, interacting. I don't want to tell you too much about the story, as it's best to watch it unfold as it slowly does.

Sonali Kulkarni, where art thou? It appears her filmography hasn't been empty since 2001, she's just managed to avoid my radar because of the kinds of films I've been selecting to watch. Being Marathi herself, she's done a bit of Marathi cinema alongside some Hindi indie fare, but aside from the Hindi Singham, not much that seems to have pushed through the mainstream. It's a shame, really, because she's a good actress - in here, as well as pretty much everything I've seen her in.

The final story ("Woman who sits aside") in the film portrays Janaki (Neena Kulkarni), a childress married woman having her period while her sister-in-law gives birth in the house. Because of cultural sanitary restrictions, she's not supposed to touch or even be close to other family members, or do the usual house chores, and her isolation is pretty painful to witness. It's also raining heavily, so she's stuck inside, alone, at least until her nephew begins communicating with her.

Potentially the most dull story within the film is brought to life by Neena Kulkarni's engaging performance. None of the stories are necessarily tied together by the end of the film. I think it does the film well to leave its theme so open for audience to draw their own conclusions. Our sense of smell is tied to strong memories, and yet it's one we rarely consider at all, other than when trying to eliminate it in its unwanted forms.

The second and third stories would make good full-length films, I believe, with a little more backstory added to each of their characters and with the tone kept as close to the original as possible. I'd especially like to see a longer, expanded version of the second story, but I'm not sure what the director's future plans involve. Certainly remaking "Bride-to-be" into Aiyyaa was an inspired move, and based on these two films, I hope Sachin Kundalkar does continue making films - it seems he's got a lot to offer.

(I watched the film legally on the Youtube Channel RajshriMarathi, and the video included good English subtitles so check out if you can, too.)

Anathaaru - what's in a remake?

Bala's modern Tamil classic, Pithamagan, is probably not the first film you'd choose to remake. It's a dark and grim tale of a man who barely knows how to communicate via speech, and its other protagonist is a scam artist - the film only operates in shades of grey when it comes to morality. It's also a film packed with powerhouse performances; not only did the film put Vikram on top of the list when it came to versatility in Tamil cinema, it's also remembered for Surya's portrayal of the lovable con artist, and the female leads (Laila and Sangeetha) were solid as well. (My Pithamagan review, for further reading.)

To my great surprise, however, Anathaaru, the 2007 Kannada remake of Pithamagan, does not fall that much behind its original counterpart. Perhaps what happened with Nanban, the vivacious Tamil remake of 3 Idiots - I love the original so much I cannot help but also love the same story and characters in the remake.

So much rested on Upendra's shoulders. Could he match Vikram's original dialogue-free performance in any way, shape or form? I was impressed that he more or less did. He doesn't copy his acting cue's from Vikram, but makes the character his own. The performances do not feel identical, though they clearly share the same roots in the story. I've been of two minds when it comes to Upendra as a film maker (see my reviews of Super and A) but I'm definitely of one mind when it comes to the man as an actor: he's talented.

Darshan plays Sathya the conman, and has the same infectious likability as Surya's performance in the original film. The character is still a horrible human being, and never changes for the better precisely; the romance he has with the young girl Parvathi (Sanghavi) after scamming her is still one of the more questionable romances I've witnessed on screen. And yet, I like both of them, and more astonishingly, I root for them to be together.

And naturally his scenes are hilarious to watch as well. 

Sanghavi portrays Parvathi with the same kind of petulant, yet sympathetic pluckiness as Laila did in the original. I'm sure some people find this character grating; I don't, and will like her in every version of the story.

The low-grade DVD (with English subtitles, thankfully) does not show a strong directorial hand, however, and I find myself wondering if it's just the DVD or perhaps the remake is simply not as well directed as Bala's original. The cinematography is fairly dull, and the colours even more dull - if I didn't already love the story, I'm not sure if I'd be that impressed with it this time around. It's a good film, but perhaps because it's not original, it's not a great film. 

Still, for the performances and the ability to bring life to this story a second time, I have to give the Kannada film makers props. It's a challenging film to remake, and they did a decent job of it. I would recommend it for Upendra's strong performance, but for those who've not seen the original - do not see this one before you've witnessed Pithamagan.

Revisiting the unbelievable charm of Oye Lucky Lucky Oye.

I didn't love Oye Lucky Lucky Oye as much on the second watch as the first, but it's still a terribly fun, all-around well-executed film. The satirical comedy didn't contain as many laughs as I remembered it having, but one thing was certain, at least: the film completely rides on the effortless charm of Abhay Deol as Lucky.

There's a certain easy-going confidence to him in this role, and it's just a joy to watch. Even though to be hustled in real life would just be terrible, it's joyous to watch on-screen. I guess it's the ingenuity of the swindler that makes it so fun, and Lucky is definitely among the smartest of Hindi film's recent slew of con artists.

If you, for whatever reason, have missed out on this film so far, give it a spin.

Ayan: an utter Thamizh delight.

Sometimes the blessed Kollywood just gets it right. Ayan is all of the following:

1. a really good Surya film, that makes most people wish they woke up as Jothika tomorrow morning

2. a terrifically solid action entertainer

3. probably the BEST film where the main character is actively involved with pirating films

4. a film so good that I could easily encourage you to get the DVD without even thinking about pirating it!


Surya plays Deva, who smuggles whatever Dass (Prabhu Ganesan, pictured here on the left, also known as That Guy From A Lot Of Tamil Films) needs, be it diamonds from Namibia or pre-release pirated DVDs. The plot is fairly standard, but it's the execution that counts here, and the fact it throws a couple of twists on the way you might've seen coming, but enjoy nonetheless.


Chitti (played by Jagan), Deva's partner-in-crime and friend, is not only the brother of the heroine Yamuna (Tamanna) but also pretty integral to the plot and all its happenings, but I won't say more as to not spoil it.


Basically what this provides is simple, good masala, including fights on Namibian rooftops, awesome song picturizations, cutesy romantic comedy and well, Surya looking really good.



And angry and shirtless.


But mostly just really attractive. There's even a special, adorable little shout out to his wife Jothika, which made me all gleeful.


And the songs are all fun and gorgeous!


And there's even some slightly questionable comedy with women sexually harassing Surya!

Actually, speaking of questionable elements, there's a couple. As can be expected, the portrayal of Namibia and its warlords is pretty brutal, and negative. How much of this is based on reality and how much of it is based on prejudice, it's hard to say, not being an expect on the subject. There is a picturization shot in Namibia, where Surya briefly sports a bizarre curly wig that could be considered a little racist..? But with Indian films you've sometimes got to be grateful that things aren't as offensive as they could be: at least there's no blackface here. There's also the slightly odd "hippie" picturization (first picture of this post) but it didn't bother me that much.


On the whole, this is a gorgeous, fun little film. It's maybe coloured a little over the edges, but it's a good film and one I'd definitely recommend.

Run, and how semi-nostalgia bites.

The weirdest thing about watching a film from 2002 in 2012 is precisely that - when you're so used to thinking of early 2000s films as "current", "recent", even "modern", and then there's a very sudden realisation that no, actually a lot of these movies are getting rather old. Of course, old doesn't necessarily mean dated. In some instances, however, it does, at least in some aspects.

Run (2002) is a Tamil action romantic comedy about a guy (R. Madhavan at his absolute most adorable) who meets a girl (Meera Jasmine - ditto!), pursues her, and then gets into trouble for loving her. At the heart of this conflict is the girl's brother (Atul Kulkarni, who is awesome), who is a bit of a rowdy, and there is a cute b-plot where the boy doesn't like his brother-in-law. It was re-made in Hindi two years later starring Bhumika Chawla (remember her?) and Abhishek Bachchan.

Run is far from being a really good film, or even a good film. It's saved by the cuteness of its leads, and the strength of the Vidyasagar soundtrack, but that's about it - the story is unremarkable, the action is not the most engaging (whoever thought that Madhavan would make a convincing badass?) and overall it just has the feel of a very run-of-the-mill early 00's Tamil actioner.

Oh, and there's Vivek, playing Madhavan's friend in his own comedy b-plot, who is unsuccessful in locating his friend in the massive city of Chennai, but is very successful in getting himself into a world of trouble by behaving irresponsibly and carelessly.

The Vivek comedy in this was not incredibly but reminded me of why the guy is a favourite: his character is a terrible, selfish person, but his comeuppance for his bad behaviour is both hilarious and socially critical, as it points out the multiple ways in which people rip off, abuse and exploit other people. You feel bad for him, in some ways, but on the other hand, his misfortunes are caused by his own behaviour - if he just behaved like a decent human being, he might not land in so much trouble.

One aspect of the film is the relentless pursue of Meera Jasmine's character by Madhavan's character. Sadly this feature of the love story is not as dated as it should be - her no's (brought on by her knowledge of her brother's behaviour) go unheard by him, and eventually he is vindicated when she confesses she likes him, but would still rather they not see each other, because of her brother's anger. 

I do like some Indian films where stalking sadly gets vindication like here, but in Run, the love story is just kind of bland, and so it irked me that they included this. Of course, the story does also have the couple continuously running into each other, unintended, suggesting fate has its hand in their love, but the stalking does still feature.

So why did I still enjoy this film, despite its unremarkableness and some unlikable aspects of the story? It had its charm, particularly in the interactions between the leads, and the songs. The film goes out to have songs and picturizations that feel very much "of its time". We get not just on but two Swiss picturizations, which are so beautifully shot you suddenly remember why these song picturizations in a foreign country became a thing. Despite questionable fashion (those fake leather trousers, please never return to us!) the songs are just a delight - beautiful locations, fun dancing, very catchy, poppy tunes. 

For a good example, check out this song - and for a challenge, try not to hum the "duhh dooh duhh" tune afterwards.

What else? Well, Madhavan is really cute in this.

So cute!

Definitely.

Of course, not to be outdone by Meera Jasmine.

Precious! It's interesting that the only other film with these two that I've seen was Ayitha Ezhuthu (ie Tamil Yuva with the Best Cast Ever: Surya, Siddharth, Madhavan), where they play the characters Rani and Abhishek played in the Hindi version. If you know either film, you'll know those parts are a far cry from romantic fluff.

Other things I enjoyed...

Raghuvaran as Madhavan's brother-in-law. There is awkwardness between them, because the marriage took the sister Madhavan's character loved so much away from him. However, the two find common ground as the film goes along, and the subdued character Raghuvaran plays is just fantastic.

And Atul Kulkarni, who I'd gladly see more of, stole the scene whenever possible as the resident baddie. There's a certain subtle, razor-sharp edge to his acting that makes for really good villains, even if the writing doesn't give his character the complete badness that would make it a truly legendary villain.

And so there you go - a middle-of-the-road film that feels very much of its time, in both good and bad.

GRATEFUL NOTE: The DVD I have of this comes from Nina, who years and years ago sent me a bunch of DVD's she no longer had the need for. It's taking me a small forever to get through the films - I think I've still got at least three films to sit through, but I still appreciate her sending me movies, and will hold onto this DVD for whenever I feel like watching some young Madhavan in catchy songs. Thanks, Nina! (Assuming you're still following this blog!)

Why Kanthasamy is over-the-top, out there and exactly as it should be.

This post is a recommendation, though it might not appear it.

After Kanthasamy you may find yourself in a delirious stupor, wondering whether you dreamt it all. Did you just witness a film where Vikram delivers justice while making chicken noises, and Shriya Saran wants to jump his bones so desperately (and who could blame her?) that she imitates a cat? Was this thing the result of a costume designer and a director of photography on a acid trip, or just something you imagined?

I'm here to convince you it was all real, because I witnessed it, too. And if it really was all a mass hallucination, well ... mass hallucinations do not get much better than this. Which is why, if you haven't seen Kanthasamy, you really need to.


Yeah, so, Vikram plays a cop who takes care of bad guys on his spare time using a costume and amazing special effects and has his own theme song (of course!). That is literally the plot. And Shriya is the daughter of one of these bad guys, who plays some mind games with the cop Kanthasamy. Also, she really wants to jump his bones. I don't think I've seen a heroine this sexually assertive in a Tamil film, ever. Is it just to make her sexy or genuinely empowering? Who knows?


Vikram's never met a heroine like this either, clearly.

The reason I love this film is because it's like somebody watched Anniyan and thought, "That wasn't quite strange enough for me," and then they filmed it and somebody else went absolute berserk with the editing software and filters.

And that? Is glorious. It's also got way too many subplots and strings of plot that don't maybe quite all add up but who cares, Vikram kicking ass whilst being the most badass chicken god that ever lived.
You still with me?



Well, come back to me. Allow Vikram's contact-lens-blue eyes hypnotise you back to this world. And by this world, I mean the alternate universe portrayed in this film.


Yeah. That world. Because trust me, the real world with its laws of nature and logic are not worth it.
But Kanthasamy completely is.