Veere di wedding....on Page-3 :)

Veere di wedding! 

Its been 6 days since this league-se-hat kar flick got released…

When I look back and try to remember…mmm…all I remember is utter Chaos!!...not just in the movie, outside too… meaning, in the hall jam packed with people, mostly girls (that’s a 1 up for the makers)

It seemed dooms day was approaching in lightening speed and things were supposed to be set right the very next moment.

In and about the movie, too much on everyone’s mind, too much planning, too much to deliver and too much delivered too…..dotting the ‘i’s and crossing the ‘t’s types.

Aur toh aur, try watching their interviews on you-tube….babba re!! All are so fidgety and uncomfortable…trying to look absolutely ‘correct’, say everything right, act perfectly well in front of the shutter bugs!!....but body language giving them all away completely, Kareena dropping the mike, Shikha rightening and re-rightening her position in chair, Swara constantly tugging at her short dress keeping her hand in a way not to give a slightest of opportunity to the camera to get a click in any wrong ‘pose’.

All four girls panic stricken as if exam results are about to be declared and Akashwani has announced that at least one of u is bound to fail. :)))

Only one person was at ease in the interviews and that was our dear dear Ekta Kapoor!!.. ahem J

Uff…Guys!! Take a chill pill!!!

Anticipating the questions that might arise in the audiences’ minds and cleverly answering them, for instance, ‘Veer’ in Punjabi means ‘Brother’(literal meaning- brave)…so before anybody thinks of exhaling a question mark, its told ki bhai, it means ‘Phraaand’ and that too ‘Girl-Phraaand’!! J Properly ‘A’ Certified, Ekta Kapoor as co producer, delayed shoots for no less than a year owing to Kareena’s pregnancy till finally Bebo darling turned up at least 6 months post natal….working hard on every detail…no loop holes permissible…

Making a woman centric commercially viable movie was the whole purpose of the makers. As a simile I am reminded of the…ahem…topper gold medalist girls of our classes in college…the way they prepare for and take their exams, kuchh kuchh us tarah!! ;)

All four fair damsels desperately needed this film to do good at any cost. Kareena post delivery, Shikha struggling to make a mark in commercial cinema, Sonam….well….

And Swara!!......

Swara!...Swara!!....oh Swara!!!

Pata hai kya, it seemed as if all the undercurrent urges in Swara, to be ‘Tanu’ (Kangana’s character) in ‘Tanu weds Manu’, blasted out in an exothermic reaction in this movie!! :)))

Don’t get me wrong people, Swara was and has been my favourite and after this movie, my ‘hot’-favourite, but here her character portrayal was just short of berserk (no fault of hers of course, she did what she was bid to do) unnecessarily loud cuss words, mannerisms etc as if ‘A’- Film banaye hain toh ‘A’ content toh dalna padega naa types.

She was oh so perfect in Tanu weds Manu….in her element…….and here it appeared she was hurricane-hit, no less!! Poor dear!! :/

But then I think….and I think hard….

And I realize…..

Aisa nahi hota, toh kaisa hota…..

The movie was made with a purpose…and hence made in a certain way. Who would have watched the movie showing harsh realities in a slow ‘Hum Log’ type setup?! The movie would have been shelved by now under the parallel cinema label chucked with loads of critic awards but no commercial success. Isiliye, wo kehte hain naa, ‘The end justifies the means’…..

It is actually a mirror, it shows this particular side of the society. Especially an eye opener for parents. Yes, it’s a fact that such, if not exactly so, language and mannerisms are rampant and not just in boys. Using cuss words in girly talk is becoming a fad, a mark of superiority and revolt….we can’t help it…so should not try to preach or change. Just try to be there for our kids and equip ourselves to support them when they need us.

Abhi toh the gossip doing the rounds is that Swara is being trolled for her ‘m’ scene. A guy says, he was ‘embarrassed‘ when the scene came up while he was watching the movie with his Grandmother!!!!! Really?!!! Cmon dude watching the clearly ‘A’ certified movie with your GRANDMOM??!!!!! What were you expecting bhau…Astha channel?!! Unless all this is not a deliberate publicity gimmick…..kya karein…ye sab toh jo naa karein so kum hai, nai kya?! Siiigh :/

One thing did disappoint me though….the title made me hope and expect a rich treat of Punjabi language and culture, something like ‘Mubaarakan’ which didn’t happen….fir kya kar sakte hain!…..deeper sigh!!!

Chalo koi nai….alls well that ends well, the film is grossing higher by the day, Sonam is now a happy Mrs Ahuja, Kareena a proud mom and Swara has now opened up to new heights as a style icon and fashionista ….bless her!!

And bless the whole team of Veere di wedding!!  

Go watch it people and do lemme know what you feel…

Tab tak ke liye aagya dijiye…..Namaskar!!....from me here at Page-3 J

Udta Punjab!! Fly....Flew......Flown......... :)

Udta Punjab!! fly…flew……flown……. :)

Hydaa ppl,

How ready are you for the hydro-cution [as in like electrocution ;)] policy of Bhagwanji?

Confused? Hmm??

Arre baba, mai baarish ki baat kar rahi hu….Mumbaikars will understand wat I mean, being used to experiencing the wrong side of it. :)

Khair, aap sab ka nai pataa but I for one experienced a big short circuit in these rains….on the verge of a huge fire breaking out. Yu ki, Paani me aag lagaane jaisi baat thi.

Again marm ko samjho, don’t go by the literal meanings. :)

Here I am referring to “Udta Punjab”!!

I know each one of you have something to say about it. So do I.

It was a brave dare. Abhishek Chaubey was crystal clear in what he wanted to say and he dished it out exactly the way he wanted…undeterred….unadulterated….RAW!!!

I saw that movie not because I wanted to, no it wasn’t in my list of movies to watch. Why? Simply because I am a family person and what I had in my mind about it was that it was some movie made by Anurag Kashyap…..a complex movie which will be something like parallel cinema, unacceptable language, that I used to think was put in, in the name of reality, but which only fetched dislike from ordinary people like me; dare without much sensibility etc etc. All in all a movie strictly a no no if you want family entertainment. Obviously I had given not a second thought to it.

But as luck would have it, the other choices that I was left with in the then time frame were The Conjuring 2 and Dead Pool!! :(((

Sigh!! We could easily have returned, and I promised myself to book tickets online in future so as not to get in such a dead lock situation. I surrendered and left the decision to my family. They decided to take the tickets for Udta Punjab and I complied. I was sure we would come out after not more than a few minutes with what I had made up my mind about the film’s content.

So there we were, with our popcorn buckets, nachos, cokes etc….at least some entertainment in these I thought…..if not in the movie. :)

And true to my anticipation the beginning hit me with a berserk Shahid in the matrix of sorely horrible and horrifying language. I was jolted by the shock culminating into helplessness that I was enduring it all. Shock tends to put you into momentary stony inactivity when you can’t bring yourself to move….or run away stat. I thought it was sick. I mean was there no civilized conversation possible?

The next few minutes were spent in the storming of my “little grey cells” in the words of Hercule Poirot :), to just imbibe and relate to wat was going on onscreen.

Gradually, I got into the Zone………

……..and I swallowed it, hook, line and sinker.

People talked about online piracy…….you just cant get into the zone if you are not watching it in theatres and if you are not watching it in theatres, any other option whatsoever for spending that time of yours would be better.

You are taken there…..whether you like it or not, you Are there, you witness that….all that. You are forced on to the revelations and realizations. You face what they face, you feel what they feel….the pain, the helplessness, the reverse metamorphosis from a human to the lowliest of living creatures…..

You get scared….you panic…..

You are thankful it’s a movie……..and not the reality…..

You are thankful you are not one of them….

You are thankful, you can come out clean and unscathed………..

This is what Udta Punjab does to you…..For good.

The controversies, the negativities, the blame games, the political connections, the reference to a particular state……..all seem so ridiculous!!

I can do but pity those who cannot imbibe what is being writ large all over it for their own good, for the good of their kids, their families.

It is one movie that reached the hearts and heads of its own cast and crew even.

Aliya!!! My God, that little girl went all out for that movie……not for the movie per se, but for the sheer strength of purpose it held. The appearance that she clad, the peculiar tan of a sun beat labourer, her superlative acting…..she didn’t even have a name!!

Because she was The Character that she portrayed….above any thing else. She didn’t care what petty people might say, she didn’t care what image she would beget, all she cared was, even if this would prevent one person from landing into this hell of drug deadlock, her purpose will be solved. Salutes to her.

Shahid did his best.

Diljit n Kareena did well too.

Each character was tailored to perfection. One thing again noteworthy and worth appreciating is that Aliya, Shahid and Kareena reduced their remunerations for this movie….Hats off guys!!

How we loath and pity Balli [Prabjyot Singh] at the same time   

The message was so crystal clear….whoever you are, whatever you do…no matter what class ,caste, state, creed, sect you belong…..stay away…..stay as far away as possible from this gruesome, unforgiving, worse than hell vice……or be doomed in eternal peril…..

I was amazed, in all this dare act, Abhishek Chaubey had the cheek of putting in perfect comic moments too. :)

When Balli opens the door in his intro….the very characteristic teenage into drug abuse….you can make it all out instantly….the disheveled expressionless blank stare with the fluorescent gogs set tilted on his nose :))))

While running to trace Aliya, Tommy bravely climbs up the compound wall and jumps down landing straight on to gunpoint of the goons…..you laugh despite the heaviness of the moment when you haven’t yet gotten over Kareena’s shock.

And it wasn’t just Udta Punjab giving me the shocks…even the Interval did….

Kaise?

Just before the post interval resumption of the movie, came the grossly grisly ghastly disgusting trailer of Great Grand Masti!! And I literally felt like slapping all those in it……khair the lesser said about that the better….

Just a piece of info…Ekta Kapoor is a co producer in Udta Punjab as well as Great Grand Masti…. :/

Generally, actors directors and the others involved give their skills and talents to a movie….but Udta Punjab wrenched out each bit of their souls too…..something like the dementors of Harry Potter…only to make Us realize, only to help Our youth survive….Only to make the World a better place to be….

Udta Punjab has shown us the power of inner strength and determination. So good people join in the fight, join in the campaign…..together we shall triumph.

Start by watching it in the theatres, leaving behind the prejudices, negativities, and celebrate the bravado, the dare, making it a huge leap forward…

Share your experiences with me and enjoy the rains… :)

Till then its tata, bye bye, cheerio from me here at Page-3!!

Paisa feko Tamasha dekho...

Paisa feko, Tamasha dekho…

Howdy my tiddly-om-pom-poms out there,

Paisa feko, Tamasha dekho…

Well, there’s much more to it than that. :)

Yes I am talking about Imtiaz Ali’s Tamasha released this Friday. 

Why I saw the movie so early on?

Again, well…firstly, like most of us, when I heard it was a Ranbir-Deepika starrer, I decided at least it was worth giving a try. Maybe I too like most of us wanted to see the one time steady lovers who looked so good together, as the main leads, even if it was just for the movie.

That’s it, that’s all. I never thought of making any conscious efforts to try and view it proactively. After all there’s a lot to a movie than just a Hero and a Heroine, isn’t it?! :)

Then I chanced upon a promotional video of Tamasha in Facebook. No, it wasn’t the official trailor….[I saw the official trailor much later, even after I actually saw the full movie. :) ]

Then what was there in that video, where they were not even taking about the movie per se J. It was a short video having the three of them…yes, the three of them….Imtiaz, Deepika and Ranbir playing a game, some variant of dumb charades…..

It was then that I decided….decided to watch the movie positively. Sounds strange isn’t it? Not if you understand the perspective, and I admire the person who gave this idea of a promotional video which is not promoting the movie left right and centre :)

It was what I saw of the trio that made my decision…usually we talk about chemistry between the male and female protagonists only, hai naa? which was supposed to be all the more pronounced between Ranbir n Deeps darling…but what caught me unawares was the way the three of them vibed…..together….nothing to do with any past affair etc etc etc….no awkwardness….complimenting each other completely….no pretences……..I loved it…I had to now see what they had done in the three hour show....without fail.

Alright…..then I got to listen to the songs of the film…all five of them. I was disappointed. Only Matargashti showed some promise…with the catchy theme tune……

“daang daang da dang dang dyao…dang dang dang  dang dang dyao……daang daang da dang dang dayo……chirkut zindagi, you know!!!” haan yaar yahi words the… "chirkut zindagi":)))) but in Mohit Chauhan’s polished voice it didn’t appear as much "chirkut":))))))

Anyways so moving ahead in my quest, I researched….in fact searched for reviews that were there……and what I found, saddened me. The reviews were mixed, everyone had different points to disagree to…….of course with one common factor in all, the great performances of the actors :(….that I knew already didn’t I?)  but the movie getting mixed reactions was against what my brain had inferred in the face of my home work till now :(

Siiigh…….

All the more reason to go and see for myself, what went wrong, and where, hampering an open out n out 5 stars.

And the coming Sunday….I was there….with my popcorn and coke :)

The movie began…and ended…. :)

I felt like standing up and clapping….standing ovation….as in like the end of a brilliant theatrical show. Yes, that’s exactly what it was, a brilliant theatrical show….accessible and available everywhere, not just in colossal theatres.  :)

It was better than my expectations….Had Imtiaz been present there then, I would have shaken his hands and thanked him…thanked him for proving me right….thanked him for giving us….Tamasha…The Theatrical Spectacle….. :)

I was happy I had read the reviews, I knew exactly why it was written, what was written in there.

I was reminded of the story of The Six Wise Men!

They were all opining, inferring, judging depending on the part of elephant that they were touching….

Even I don’t claim I saw it all. Yet, I saw enough to savour it, relish it for all that it was worth :).

The songs that I had heard before, that seemed inconsequential without watching the movie, now made sense….all of them. Mohit Chauhan, Sukhwinder Singh, Mika, Arijit Singh and doing complete justice to their numbers that were selected very aptly according to their genre and areas of excellence. Aur toh aur Alka Yagnik ka toh jeernoddhaar ho gaya bhai :)))))...with the chorus paving way straight to the listener’s heart :).

Saying that the performances were superlative would sound as hollow and stupid as stating the universally known truth that the Sun rises in the East. Still I would say Ranbir surpassed himself. He had so so many shades to do justice to as Ved, nowhere was any allowance of chance overdoing or under for that matter. Yet he brought out Ved for us perfectly.

Some sharply hilarious instances worth mention being Ranbir’s second intro in Tokyo as Don-“2”!!, the auto driver’s tongue hitting his teeth hard as he lip sang lagaawat-wat-wat-wat, etc :)))

Another point that couldn’t be missed was how effortless was Ranbir’s perfect rendition of looooooooong sentences in his dialogues, whether English, Hindi, or even French for that matter……hindi slangs and chalu bhasha ke half sentences in the middle of hard core technical English jargon…. My God!! Simply amazing….

When his mom asks, “tu toh jaane wala tha naa aaj?” the answer, “nahi gaya, baap ka ghar hai” with a smile, makes you relax instantly.

Before this happens, it starts appearing there could be no positive end to this complex situation that Ved is in and that the movie is heading for a depressing, frustrating, saddening end….maybe like Rockstar…………but when Ved starts telling the story to his father……tears well the eyes…..

Ending achchhi naa ho toh koi baat nahi…….

Kahani apni hai…….ending badal deinge………:)

Kahani apni hai doston……ending Happy honi chahiye…..toh utho jaago aur lag jao…..build a happy ending for yourself…..like Ved…..:)

This is what Tamasha wants to tell us….:)

So darlings…….go watch the movie if you haven’t already…..with my eyes….and be positive….be happy always…..:)

Now I leave with this note and very Merry Christmas Wishes…

Take good care of yourselves…love you all….

Bye bye, tata, cheerio from me here at Page-3 :)