What's Your Raashee?

This is out on 25th September.  I don't often trek to the cinema to see Bolly films, but I'd quite like to see this..it looks like brainless fun.  Plus, I quite like my astrology so it'll amuse me, I'm sure!  The music's interesting too....you can get more info on the official page.

Looking forward to seeing Priyanka in 12 different roles!

I can't wait!!!!

According to his official page on Facebook, Amrinder Gill's new album is out in October. Cue squeals of excitement!!!!!! I love this guy's voice - so melodious. I can't wait to hear the new stuff. No idea if he's teaming up with Sukshinder Shinda again for this, but no doubt that it'll be a good 'un!

Is it October yet?!

Golden Oldie

Came across this on YouTube and wanted to share :o)



I love these old songs - fantastic!

Came across this....

High Heel Confidential

Nothing like a bit of of a laugh......

(No, haven't watched any flicks in a while....the last Indian film I watched was......ummmm.....errrr.....)

Any suggestions? I tried watching Rab Ne Banadi Jodi but I can't get past the first few minutes...

Oh wait - I managed to watch Fashion. Now that was quite good!!

My new career....

...Or at least it will be once I send off my application.

I'm going to be the person that spell-checks subtitles and captions on all Indian tv channels. The straw that broke the camel's back/the hair that ruined Himesh's wig was a caption that appeared on SRGMP saying 'Congretulations'. It's not the worst offender, but enough is enough. I can't take it anymoh-woh (reference to a Phil Collins 'hit').

*grr*

My resume will be in the post.

I couldn't resist.....

Just had to be done!!!!!!

The resemblance is uncanny!

It's in the eye....brows.

My latest ickle-wickle 'celebrity' crush. I use the apostrophes as the person in question probably hasn't reached that point yet, but then again, the standards aren't exactly sky-high anymore *meh*

I do feel better about this learning that he's 25. *puts cradle-snatcher crown away* Anything less than 10 years younger is fine-to-ogle as far as I'm concerned.

Behold. My object-of-momentary-affection.



I've noticed an uncanny resemblance to another fave of mine:



Twins!!!!!!! Apart from the colour.

Anyhoo, apart from that...I'm unemployed at the moment so I'm having the time of my life switching from one music channel to another. If I see the trailer to Singh is Kinnnnnnnnnnng one more time I may just do an Elvis and shoot the tv.

I See You....

...but I wish I hadn't bothered.

Actually, I gave up after about 20 minutes and decided it was more fun to go and run an errand for my dear mother. Arjun Rampal reminds me of Keanu Reeves - I like 'em both but they do best when they stick to flicks that involve them looking moody (and purdy) and generally only speaking when abbbbbsolllllllllluuuuutely necessary.

I do like the strapline of the movie tho - 'you find love in the strangest places'. Yup. In this case, the soul/spirit of some poor comatose road-traffic accident victim decides only Arjun will do (for what, you'll have to actually tread where I didn't dare, and watch the rest of the flick). There was some Chunky Pandey (does he bathe in vinegar or has he taped his skin back...why hasn't he aged as much as he should've by now?!), and even a flash of Shahrukh Khan playing a gee-tar.

The rest just made my eyes and ears bleed.

I couldn't watch it. Not even for Arjun. For what that's worth.

Chakde! India

Well. It's been about half a lifetime since I last watched a bolly flick the whole way through (spot the slight exaggeration).

I didn't think I'd enjoy this. It started off a tad slowly and I'm not the biggest fan of Mr SRK but I stuck with it.

Glad I did! By the end I was skipping around the room, wielding an imaginary hockey-stick and celebrating my gold medal. Well, almost.

SRK managed a restrained and rather fab portrayal of the coach with a score to settle. The understated nature of his performance made it so much more real - you could sense the emotion simmering underneath, rather than have to put up with the usual wails of agony and t-t-t-trembling voice (equals 'horrible' in my book).

'The gals' were great - the Punjabi lass had me in stitches with her retorts, although being of Punjabi persuasion myself I was a tad annoyed that they didn't sort out her mono-brow. (I know, I know, petty but *sigh*). Aaanyway, there was a bossy one, a bullying one, a naive one, a boyish one etc etc. Some faces I'd seen before, but mostly unfamiliar - which worked fabulously as it made them all more the believable (well, leaving aside the fact that a few jogs around Delhi/Mumbai/wherever it was were enough to turn them into world champions).

Overall, it was entertaining fare (and needing just a background score and all of 2 songs to appease the music-lovers). It's actually one I'd buy on DVD and watch again on some lazy day. Family-friendly, unusual-ish subject matter, not overly long, well-acted, and with a nice moral thrown in about not being so darned tribalistic. <---that might not be a real word, but it suits me just fine.

Haven't watched a thing....

*holds hands up* I've been a bit rubbish - I just haven't made the effort to watch anything of late...not even a classic! Top of my wishlist is 'Cheeni Kum'. I recall seeing the trailer and from most reports it seems like a refreshing type of film - different from the norm. I'm rather addicted to the title track too :o)

Apparently there's going to be a re-make of Mr India. Hmm. The original is one of my all-time faves, so I'll be watching very carefully.... Munky Khush Hua? ;o)

Move Over Indian Idol

It's back! Zee TV's Saregamapa started a few weeks ago and I'm a happy bunny! Admittedly, it was a slightly wobbly start and it felt very strange to see the wonderful Shaan replaced by Aditya Narayan - but the little fella is starting to come into his own as the show progresses, and his cheeky humour is hilarious.

Already I have my favourites -

* Amanat Ali - absolute marvel..once he relaxes and sings from the heart, he'll be even more amazing than he already is.

* Sunil Kumar - incredibly rich voice - you can really picture him as a playback singer.

* Junaid Shaikh - has shown some fantastic control over his high notes and sufi-type songs.

* Reecha - my fave amongst the girls for now...altho I think overall the boys are definitely stronger this year.



Ismail Darbar and Himesh Reshammiya return as mentors, with the latter carrying on where he left off with the dramatics - but he does entertain me so! We also have Bappi Lahri and the duo of Vishal and Shekhar - it's all starting to come together very nicely!

Gangster

Oh man. *slaps self* How did I forget to mention that I saw this on the way back from India?

Fan-dibbly-tastic! I have to watch it on tv - I'm sure I didn't get the desired effect on the small 'plane screen.

But still - what an effect it had!

I had low hopes, to be honest. Not being a regular bolly-watcher, I'd never heard of Shiney Ahuja or Kangana. Sure, I'd seen a few glimpses of them in the music vids on cable - I recall thinking that she was very different-looking. A change from the usual fluffy starlets.

The film had me hooked. Completely. Fast-paced and gripping; I was completely drawn in. By far my favourite character was that played by Shiney. The lad didn't have much in the way of lines but mamma, can he convey emotions through those eyes or what?! *eep*

Kangana was the same - very expressive eyes in a drunkon-stupor-ish kinda way. Emraan was believable. Call me naive, but I didn't see the twist coming. I think it was moving so fast and I was having a good ole time watching it so I didn't really have time to reflect and wonder what was going to happen next.

Not sure where they set it - somewhere in the Far East, but the backdrops were great. Gritty and real.

Music = wow. Yes, yes, so Ya Ali was a bit of a lift from Guitara's Ya Ghali but still, it's a monster of a song. I think my fave was Mujhe Mat Roko - completely affecting. I remember sniffling quietly in my seat - that got the tears flowing! Bheegi Bheegi by James was also a killer track. None of the songs were intrusive - everything gelled together and it was all pretty seamless stuff.

If I had to pick out the scene that I liked best....*thinks* Umm...it would have to be where Kangana is outside her apartment, with Emraan having just left. She's looking down the corridor, the camera turns with her and all of a sudden there stands Shiney. I admit I did a little jump of surprise at that point. Hehe. :oP

That's it...I'm ordering the DVD now.

Bo-ring

Yes, alright - it's another picture of you-know-who. Can't blame me. Well, you can but...

Haven't watched anything of much interest lately. Finally caught 'Plan' the other day (with the lovely Dino Morea in it). Was fairly rubbish but there was plenty of eye-candy so I didn't feel altogether too aggrieved.

Saw 'Black' a couple of months ago - that was awesome. The little girl who played the role of the blind child in the first half of the film absolutely stole the show. She isn't blind in real-life but her portrayal was soooooooo believable she had you completely convinced.

Umm. I think that's about it, actually. I was praying that some half-decent flicks would come on cable last week as I had the week off work but nope. Nada. *sulk*

Can't think of one!

Indeed. Just wanted an excuse to stick up a picture of Zulfi Syed (again). You can never have too many.

Tried (and failed) to watch Fight Club. Dino Morea and Zayed Khan kept my attention for about 35 minutes but after that I couldn't be bothered and off I went. The rubbishness of the film soon outweighed their attractiveness. *sigh*

I'm sure I read somewhere that Kareena Kapoor is going to be/might be in a remake of Pakeezah. I hope I was mistaken and/or it's a bad joke. 'Tis the season of remakes and I'm just praying that they don't try and wreck another classic. Sure, take bad films and try to make them better - but why take films that are already good (nay, great!) and just rehash them?! I guess it's easier...

Talking of which, I haven't seen the new Don. Haven't seen the new Umrao Jaan. I can wait until they turn up on cable.

Punjabi Cinema Rises Again

Exciting times! I remember watching classics like Long Da Lashkara, Chan Pardesi, and Sarpanch back when I was a little 'un. Then came a decade or so where there were practically no Punjabi films of any worth whatsoever.

Things finally seem to be picking up again though :o) We've had a couple of flicks that've done quite well (The well known singer, Harbhajan Mann, starred in the first couple of films which got people into Punjabi films again). Since then Gurdas Mann has rejoined the fray (Waris Shah is out soon). The films are looking slicker and with decent music again.

One of the most exciting developments for me is the participation of actors (not singer-actors) like Jimmy Shergill, Juhi Chawla, and Manav Vij. At last we've got heroes/heroines that can attract younger audiences - no more pot-bellied types prancing about in a kurta pyjama! The glamour-factor arriveth! :o)

Parineeta

What a sweet film! Just watched it now... will spare you the story as I think I am probably the last person on the planet to see it :oP

The chemistry between Saif Ali Khan (Shekhar) and Vidya Balan (Lolita), playing childhood friends, was strong - very believable. Although that's not surprising - Vidya is stunning in a very understated way..like the heroines of yesteryear :o)

The ending was a bit disappointing, if I have to pick a weak point. Watching Saif smash through a wall with the aid of a garden ornament (yes, really) was a bit not in keeping with the atmosphere of the film - I would've preferred he just dash after Vidya in the rain or something..throw himself in front of her car..I dunno - anything but the water fountain! Still....I'd watch it again :o)

Oh yes - Sanjay Dutt had a smallish role. I kept expecting him to burst into a Munnabhai dialogue though..hehe..

Omkara - Naina

'nainon ki mat maaniyo re
nainon ki mat suniyo
nainon ki mat suniyo re
naina thag lenge, naina thag lenge...

...jagte jaadu phukenge re, jagte jagte jaadu
jagte jaadu phukenge re, neenden banjar kar denge
naina thag lenge...'


Penned by Gulzar, and sung by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan - this is my song of the moment. Absolutely beautiful - I've had it on constant repeat for days. Haven't seen the film yet, so I'm very curious to know how this song is used (if it's used). I love Rahat Fateh Ali Khan's voice - heavenly :o)

Munky Khush Hua

No particular reason - just that it's sunny outside and I'm still on my holidays from work!

Didn't manage to watch any flicks at the weekend - just caught the tail end of some old awards show where Shahrukh Khan led a fairly humourous tribute to Yash Chopra. He's looking a bit haggard (Shahrukh, not Yash), but then he has been around for a bit and all that c-c-c-crying, c-c-c-carrying hefty heroines about, and all those c-c-c-costume changes can't be easy on a man!

Happy Birthday to Zulfi Syed!

Yes, 'tis this lovely fella's birthday today (according to FTV anyway, but hey he has to have a birthday someday in the year so it may as well be today *cough*).

I've already reviewed his debut flick, Pyaasa (see old entries). Waiting for Chupke Se to arrive in the post (it's taking soooooo long, darn it) - seen a few songs from it and it seems like a sweet movie. Skipped Wajaah, and am impatiently awaiting the DVD release of Taj Mahal - that's something I really want to see. Overwhelmingly, the praise for Zulfi's acting has been really positive in the latter film - finally, somewhere to showcase his talent properly! Hopefully we'll see more of him now ;o)

Here's a treat - great song too :o)

Musings

Greetings. Haven't watched a film in the last few days. Karan Johar's 'Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna' is out in all the cinemas but I think I'll just wait for it to turn up on cable. I'd love to see 'Omkaara' - maybe I can drag a friend along to see it *ponders* Apparently Saif Ali Khan is seriously good in it :o)

Ordered a copy of 'Chupke Se' so I can indulge in some more Zulfi-watching (I think that should be an Olympic sport).

Hmm..maybe I'll dig out an old DVD or something. I still haven't seen all of Veer Zara (shocking, I know). I've tried watching it twice and every time I get stuck at the same spot :oS Maybe I'll be third time lucky and manage to see it through to the end!

Then again, I need something cheery to watch. It's grey outside and I think it's affecting my mood somewhat. I think this calls for - Mr India!!!!!