तन्हा सी राहे,मीलो चलाए,

तन्हा सी राहे,मीलो चलाए,

रोके कही तो, प्यारे, साथी मिलाए,

सुबहा की गोरी, काजल लगाए,

चंदा को जैसे कोई, लॉरी सुनाए,

पीपल के नीचे, भीनी हवा में,

वो गुदगुदीसे जैसे, हसके हसाए,

रोशन सी आँखे, झुकके बुलाए,

दूरी मिटाके "जाओ", ये गुनगुनाए,

बूढ़ी कहानी, नानी सुनाए,

छोटी सी गुड्डी से वो, सपने बुनाए

यहाँ पर तो सब ने की है बंध आँखें,

यहाँ पर तो सब ने की है बंध आँखें,

यहाँ पर किसी को दिखा कुछ नहीं है,

यहाँ बैंक देखो ये कर्जो को रोये,

वहाँ सिसकियाँ भर, बिना कौर सोये,

यहाँ कुछ निवाले सभी में बटेंगे

ये बच्चों के बारूद समय पर फटेंगे,

ये बिस्कुट वो कोला, कढ़ी पक रही है,

यहाँ पर किसी को दिखा कुछ नहीं है,

यहाँ पर तो सब ने की है बंध आँखें,

यहाँ पर किसी को दिखा कुछ नहीं है

वहां एक कली सी मसल दी गयी थी, 

वहाँ कोई  बच्ची न जन्मी कभी थी,

यहाँ जल रही थी वो बेटी किसी की,

वहाँ फिर पड़ी थी बिकी आबरू भी, 

मगर हम कही थे, यहाँ हम नहीं थे,  

यहाँ पर किसी को दिखा कुछ नहीं है,

यहाँ पर तो सब ने की है बंध आँखें,

यहाँ पर किसी को दिखा कुछ नहीं है,

यहाँ जब नदी साफ़, नालें बनी तो,

यहाँ राख जल के मशालें बनी है,

वहाँ देखो कोई चला नौकरी को,

वो रिश्वत पे  गांधी से दारु मिली है,

यहाँ भूत भोली बना अब परी है,

यहाँ पर किसी को दिखा कुछ नहीं है,

यहाँ पर तो सब ने की है बंध आँखें,

यहाँ पर किसी को दिखा कुछ नहीं है,

कहानी एक लड़की की

सुबह जब आँख खोले पंखडी और रंग बिखराए
सदा हो आरती की मंदिरों में, धुंद सी छाए,
वो गौरैया कहीं तब पीपलों की छाँव में गाए,
कोई झरना पहाड़ों पे बना झालर तो बह जाए,

वो झालर जो हटाओ तो मिलेगी तुम को वो लड़की,
नहाकर कोयले से जिसने उजला रंग बनाया है,
वो लड़की जो परी होती अगर होती कहानी में,
खुदा ने पर किसी कुम्हार की बेटी बनाया है,

बहे शफ्फाक पानी पारदर्शी आवरण बन कर,
लगे सब मन बहकने बाँवरे वन के हिरन बन कर,
चहेरे पे चमक दैवी, वो काया का लचीलापन,
चले वो अप्सरा जैसे, अदाओं में सजीलापन,
सभी ये शोखियाँ उस को जवानी से मिली लेकिन,
धड़कता है अभी बचपन कहीं उसकी जवानी में,

करे आवाज़ पायल जब गली में दौड़ आती है,
कभी तुतला के बच्चों संग वो उनके गीत गाती है,
कभी बकरी चराने के बहाने खेलने भागे,
गुलेलो से फलों को फिर कभी वो तोड़ के भागे,
कभी वो हाथ में मट्टी, मेहँदी सी सजाती है,
घुमा पहिया नये फिर रूप के गमले बनाती है,
हज़ारो हसरतें सब की वो लेकर साथ चलती है,
मगर ख्वाहिश पुरानी एक उसके मन में पलती है,

कभी दादी ने राजा की कहानी एक सुनाई थी
कि जिसमें राज सारा प्यार में वो छोड़ देता है,
बनाता है महल रानी को दफना ने वो उसके बाद
बना फिर पास में अपनी कबर को जोड़ देता है,

उसे ये था भरोसा एक राजा है बना उसका,
जो उसको प्यार से रख कर महल उसके बनाएगा,
कभी तो चाँद देखेंगे वो महलों की अटारी से,
कभी रूठे तो फूलों और गहेनो से मनाएगा,

वो राधा बन रहे बैठी, हो कान्हा पास में जब भी,
बनी मीरा इसी ही सोच में, जोगन वो हो बैठी,
गुरूर भी नाज़ होता है जब होता है जवानी पे,
मगर उसकी जवानी गैर की यादों में खो बैठी
न था उसको मगर मालूम, ये भी बात होती है,
सुबह होती वहाँ पे है जहाँ पे रात होती है,

कही से घूमता प्यासा भटकता शाह एक आया
वो अपने लश्करो से हो जुदा, इस गाँव में आया,
वो उलझा जब कहाँ? क्यूँ? कौन? के पूछे सवालों से,
थी जैसे एक कहानी बन रही उसके खयालो से,
वो लड़की थी परी, देवी के मनभावन कोई सपना,
तभी थी ठान ली उस ने बनाएगा उसे अपना,

वो लड़की भी, इसी के वास्ते अब तक रुकी सी थी,
सगाई पे महल में आँख उसकी भी झुकी सी थी,

जो लड़की अब बनी रानी, बनेगी शांत, चंचल है,
जो दे सब को ख़ुशी समझो, कहानी वो मुकम्मल है,
अगर ऐसा जो होता तो, विधाता भी अधूरा है,
किसी में भी सभी को वो कभी भी खुश न रख पाया,
मुकम्मल ख्वाब की तक़दीर, कहानी थी वो लड़की की,
खुदी को रौंदती तदबीर कहानी थी वो लड़की की

जो दादी ने सुनाई थी कहानी थी वो राजा की,
हो जैसे बात रानी की वही जो थी वो राजा की,
भला ये कितने दिन रहना, लगेगा बंद महलों में,
बनी रानी बुढ़िया सी पड़ी उन बंद महलों में,

अकेला चाँद जब आता रहा सुनी अटारी पे,
बड़ा मातम सदा लाता रहा सुनी अटारी पे,
हवेली लाख बन जाए कहीं पे नाम पे उसकी,
बनेगी कब्र उसकी पर हमेशा नाम पे उसकी,

वो पायल थी बड़ी हल्की ये गहने बेड़ियों से है,
ना बकरी बाप की कोई, ये सपने भेड़ियों से है,
ये मेहन्दी हाथ की जैसे जलाती है बदन सारा,
कभी ख्वाहिश कोई झूठी जलाती है जनम सारा,

कहानी खूब राजा की भले दादी कहे हर दम,
नसीबों में वो लड़की को अकेलापन मिले हर दम,


सुना है आज राजा मर गया उस युद्ध भूमी पे,
नयी एक फौज बढ़ती है कहीं उस युद्ध भूमी से
ना रानी को गंवारा है महल में गैर आ जाए
लिए है हाथ में औज़ार उसने युद्ध भूमी के,
चला कर वो लिखेगी खूब रानी की कहानी वो,
सुनो बच्चों ना राजा की कोई अब से कहानी हो

 

मटमैला चाँद - Nazm

आसमान की खातिर थे
चाँद सूरज आमादा,
भर सुबह को बाहों में,
अपने घर से निकला था,
रास्ते सब खाली थे,
रौशनी भी हलकी थी,
ओस-गीले पत्तो ने,
ख्वाब भर सितारों संग,
रात यूँ गुजारी थी,
जैसी मेरी यादों में,
तुम दुबक के आती हो,

चल के थक गया जब में,
बेंच के उस कोने पर,
हांफता सा बैठा था,
रास्ते पे तब जाने,
कोहरे की परतो से,
चाँद मैला निकला था,
नार एक बैठी थी,
मुझ से दूर कूड़े पे,
जाने कितनी बातें ले,
चेहरा मटमैला था,
चीथड़ों की साडी थी,
आबरू के खूंटे पे,
कितने किस्से साडी की,
गाँठ में छुपाये थे,

वक़्त के थपेड़ो से,
नैन बच के निकले थे,
कोपलो से होंठों पे,
गीत भूले बिसरे थे,
देख कर मुझे उसने,
आँख फिर झुका ली थी,
भौहे खिंची थी जैसे,
उर्वशी हो दिनकर की,
बेशरम सी नजरो से,
ताकता रहा उसको,
अंग की लचक में वो,
थी छबि अजंता की,
पर जवानी पे उसकी,
थी वो भारी मजबूरी,
चंद पैसो को कूड़ा,
चल रही थी चुनने वो,
ज्यूँ चला के अग्नि पे,
परखे कोई सीता को,

सोचता रहा फिर में,
क्यों वो इतनी सुन्दर थी,
कौन सी खुदाई वो,
उसके मन के अन्दर थी,
गौर से जो देखा तो,
जान पाया बातें में,
साथ उसके आँचल में
और भी थी आवाजें,

ये समज में आया है,
चाहे कोई आफत हो,
आबले हो आहों के,
या सफ़र के छालें हो,
रब्बरो सी रोटी या,
कंकरों की दाले हो,
धूंप कोई झुलसाती,
या सियाही रातो की,
चीथड़ों की छन्नी से,
छान के जब आती है,
लोरियों सी लगती है,

सुनके आज वो बच्चा,
गोद में माँ की देखो,
आँख मूंद सोया है,
जैसे कोई मंदिर में
मूरति हो कान्हा की,
खूबसुरती उसकी,
खूब उसके अन्दर है,
अपनी हो या गैरों की,
माँ हमेशा सुन्दर है

(Structure notes : Tried keepting it 212 (1 or 2) 222 like the nazm on bhookh by Javed Akhtar. Might have missed at places as did not bother about it while writing)

સ્વપ્ન વનવાસ માં

મૌત હમણાં નહીં આવતી પાસ માં,

છે અધૂરા ઘણા સ્વપ્ન વનવાસ માં,

પ્રેમભર હાથ થી આપ જો કોળીયો,

તૃપ્ત થઇ જાવ હું, રોટલા- છાસ માં,

લાંચ સૌ આજ પ્રસાદ કહી આપશે,

ભક્ત મળશે નહિ એક, સો દાસ માં,

આભમાં ખૂન છે ડૂબતી સાંજ નું,
સૂર્ય જો શ્વાસ દે આખરી શ્વાસ માં,

આમતો આગવી છે પ્રભા ચાંદ ની,

પણ ચમક કોકની શ્વેત અજવાસ માં,

છે બધા નીર સૌ, આમ તો એક આ,

થેમ્સ સિંધૂ મહીં, કે હો બીયાસ માં,

કૃષ્ણ જેને કહે યુદ્ધ કર ધર્મ નું,

પાર્થ મળ્યો મને તે મોહનદાસ માં,

ભાવ માં ખોખલા, મદરસા, ગોખલા,

દેવ છે તોતડા શબ્દ પ્રયાસ માં,

છે ગણતરી ઘણી પુણ્ય ને પાપ ની,

શેષ કઈ ના મળે પણ તે અભ્યાસ માં,

અંધકાર ને સવાર, નવવધુ સી મળે,

પલ બે લાલાશ માં ને બે કંકાસ માં,

ફિલ્મ ના સ્ટેપ તું સીખવા કોક દી,

શ્યામ ને લઇ જજે, દાંડિયા રાસ માં,

રાડ પાળે ભલે આન્તડી ભૂખ થી,

લોરી ગા રાજવી ભોગ ની આસ માં,

સ્વર્ગ જેવું જગત કેમ ભડકી બળ્યું,

ફક્ત તણખો પડ્યો, ભૂલ થી ઘાસ માં,

'શાહ' ઈશ્વર થકી છે, કે છે ઈશ શાહ થી,

આમતો બંને સામ-સામે પ્રવાસ માં.

कहानी में सभी को कुछ गुनाह माफ़ होते है

बगावत में रिवायत को, कभी तुम मोड़ के चल दो,
यहाँ जो नींद में खोया, उसे झंझोड़ के चल दो,

कहीं पे बुन रहे है लोग सपने, तो कहीं यादें
सभी ये छोड़ पाओ तो, सभी ये छोड़ के चल दो

कहानी में सभी को कुछ गुनाह माफ़ होते है,
हमारी भी कहानी है, यही तुम सोच के चल दो

बड़ी थी महफिलें वो, तुम जहाँ से उठ के आये हो,
अकेला चाँद ये गजलें सुने तो बोल के चल दो,

नहीं आसान सीधा रासता तुम तक पहुँचने का,
कहीं मंदिर किसी पूजा से रस्ता मोड़ के चल दो

सभी अपने लगेंगे तुमको राजा भी भिखारी भी,
अगर ये मन के दरवाजे सभी तुम खोल के चल दो

बगावत में रिवायत को, कभी तुम मोड़ के चल दो,
यहाँ जो नींद में खोया, उसे झंझोड़ के चल दो

નઠારો

ઘરે સાગરે સાંભરે છે નઠારો,
ધરે પાતરે જે ચરે છે નઠારો

વખત બે વખત નો ન કાઢો તકાજો,
સમય હાથ માં થી સરે છે નઠારો

સપન ના બની વાદળો વિસ્તરે છે,
અને તારલાં થઇ ઝરે છે નઠારો,

ફરી તાક ભાળી, અગન ઝારવાનો,
ભલે શ્રાવણી માં ઠરે છે નઠારો,

ગલી ના બધાં બાળકો ને ડરાવી,
જો મમ્મી સમક્ષ થરથરે છે નઠારો,

જુદા થઇ તમો થી રુદન હું કરું પણ,
ખુદા લાગણી થી પરે છે નઠારો,

જતો રે કહું છું ઘણી વાર એને,
છતાં કોક ક્ષણ પાંગરે છે નઠારો,

સજા ના ઘટાડો, કસમ ન્યાય ના છે,
રજા ને ભલે કરગરે છે નઠારો,

વળી એ જુએ શ્વાન ભસતાં તો ભાગે,
હવે શ્વાન થી ગજ ડરે છે નઠારો,

બધી કોર હવાથી  ફગે ને ઉડે પણ,
ખોટી ગાંઠ લઇ કાંગરે છે નઠારો,

દરિયે પડે તો ના પાછો ફરે એ,
અધીરો છતાં બંદરે છે નઠારો,

અધૂરાં સપન લઇ  કપટ થી મારે તો,
નરાધમ બની અવતરે છે નઠારો,

હવે શાહ ને ચુપ કરવો જ પડશે,
જીવન માં બહુ ગાંગરે છે નઠારો

Barfi - Movie Review

Movie Name :  Barfi

Planet bollywood Link ot be uploaded soon ! 

Producer: Ronnie Screwala, Siddharth Roy Kapur (UTV)
Director: Anurag Basu
Starring: Ranbir Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra, Ileana D’cruz, Rupa Ganguly, Saurabh Shukla, Ashish Vidyarthi, Aakash Khurana              
Music: Pritam
Lyrics: Swanand Kirkire
Genre: Drama, Suspense

Rating : 7 out of 10

Recommended Audience: General
Film Released on: 14 September 2012

Ronnie Screwala and Siddharth Roy Kapur have an uncanny knack of straddling between sensible and commercial cinema (7 khoon maaf, udaan, guzaarish, No one Killed Jessica, Kaminey, DevD to name a few) and merging them at times to create a lovable film. This brings a lot of production value to Anurag Basu’s Barfi. Anurag Basu better known for his passionate portrayal of love in various of his works (Life in a metro, Kites, Murder, Gangster TV Serial – Tara), had to explore softer and simpler side of love with Barfi. Ranbir Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra have been talking about Barfi being the most challenging roles they have done. There has been a lot of buzz around the movie before its release, does it live up to it that is the question you take along while entering the theatre hall.

Let us first give the credit where it is due. If not for the brave new production houses like UTV who produces a Barfi with similar value as a Rowdy Rathore, getting these stories in mainstream Bollywood would have been very difficult. Unlike earlier movies made with subjects like Barfi, it is a 100% commercial movie and doesn’t delve deep in portraying the difficulties of life for a deaf and mute Barfi or an autistic Jhilmil. It just goes out and tells the story. Thanks UTV.

Barfi is a story of a deaf and dumb poor lad who falls in love with Shruti, daughter of a rich man who visits Darjeeling often. Then there is an Autistic Jhilmil, who inherits a fortune leaving her greedy father to mercy of a trust. Disappearance of Jhilmil and her friendship with Barfi post Barfi’s breakup with Shruti forms the key theme of suspense in the movie. 

Somewhere before the intermission a dejected Barfi, moves out of his girlfriend’s house knowing that there was a better “suited” man for her which she and her parents have chosen. There is an emotional outburst about neither being rich nor being “normal” from Barfi there. An umbrella covered Shruti listening to the verbally unsaid outpour of Barfi drenching himself in Rain. The sunlight, like other similar scenes, is heavily diffused with dark clouds, colours wilfully cooler and actor intuitively non-melodramatic. A subtle but crackling chemistry between Ranbir Kapoor and Illeana D’ Cruz, great use of ambient light and tones in cinematography, silence punctuated with violins and accordion over a lilting piano tune – The scene more or less summarizes everything that is good about the movie.

Post intermission however there is another scene, where you see a Jhilmil, feeling jealous and left out while eating at a street side Puchka (Panipuri’s Kolkata version) shop because of Shruti entering their life again. The warm tones of artificial bulbs lighting up the crowded frames of Kolkata (in strike difference to Darjeeling), the infatuation of the earlier life overpowering the lovable present, a socially unaccommodating autistic Jhilmil whose love you cannot completely relate to, a confusion of myriads of emotions – the scene summarizes everything that goes wrong in this well plotted and structurally flawed film.

The structure of narrative is complicated and non-linear. There are flashbacks in flashbacks at times and becomes a little difficult to understand at times - A complicated suspense thriller narrative for a simple and sweet lovestory. For the love of place and characters, the movie gets indulgent and spends too much time developing the relationship between Shruti and Barfi. It has lots of moments to remember.  Priyanka Chopra’s character, the key ingredient that needs to change Barfi’s life and add suspense and thrill to the story is not well introduced to the audience till intermission. The story than rushes through the events in Kolkata but doesn’t delve deep into development of Jhilmil’s character and her relationship with Barfi. It tries but doesn’t evoke the same feelings that it could with Shurti. Narrative being a Mishmash attempting to be innovative doesn’t help as well. As a result one doesn’t relate to Jhilmil and cares less about her disappearance. The thrill goes, so goes the emotional punch of lovestory between Barfi and Jhilmil. The crackling chemistry between Barfi and Shruti is absent between Barfi and Jhilmil. Eventually you seem to be caring more for a character which is not supposed to be the protagonist.

Thus though the direction and story by Anurag Basu and to an extent even the screenplay is polished, the structure of storytelling does not let it come out well. Ranbir Kapoor as Barfi is outstanding. He is successful in slowly creating the charm that is so reminiscent of Rishi Kapoor. The first part of the movie requires him to emote like a Bollywood hero and to perform like a Charlie Chaplin / Mr.Bean – and he does succeed in doing that. Priyanka Chopra tries hard at times but her badly underdeveloped character works against her throughout the film. Illeana D’cruz looks ravishing and acts her part well. She is surprisingly confident and it is her chemistry with Ranbir Kapoor that adds a different flavour to the movie. Saurabh Shukla, Ashish Vidyarthi, Aakash Khurana – are like old hands one can always rely on. Their acting and performance both are just adequate. It is pleasant to see Rupa Ganguly as Shruti’s mother. She works like a mirror to talk to for Shruti’s character.

Ravi Varman, who has been known for using natural light in his cinematography, does an extraordinary job for Barfi as well. Barfi would be a classic example of using tones to add to storytelling. The cool bluish skyline of Kolkata with warm yellow window where Barfi sits , the clear white diffused cool light through mist and clouds of Darjeeling are well captured. The natural light in all scenes is filtered, diffused, through windows, through clouds, through rains, through glasses and it gives a distinct feel. Editing by Akiv Ali also complements the cinematography and story but fails to cover for that basic lacuna created by the structure of storytelling. The length of the movie though could have been shortened. Art direction by Rajat Potdar is simply outstanding.  Every single item that you see in the frame – whether it is the little mouse in the house or the chau dance props,  is used well to enhance the storytelling.  Sound design by Shajith Koyeri gives charm to the two main locations shown. Music by Pritam (both the soundtrack and the background score) is very well composed. Background score with a distinct usage of Piano, Accordion and Violin / Cello gives a European touch to the montages from Darjeeling. “Ala Barfi” and “Phir Le aya dil” in particular are beautifully framed pieces. Shafqat Amanat Ali’s voice takes the latter one to a different level with the added visuals.

Overall Barfi has a great entertainment value with light hearted and charming first half. If only the structure of the story was better managed it would have been one of the best family entertainers you would have seen in years. Fans of Ranbir Kapoor and lovers of offbeat stories will both enjoy the movie equally. UTV, Anurag Basu and Ranbir Kapoor lives up to the hype created by the movie but fail to exceed the expectation which they could have done with a great platform like Barfi. 

पुराने जूते

एक बात थी कड़वी,
जो किसी से कही थी कभी,
याद की चम्मच में काढ़ा बन,
आज सोच का स्वाद बिगाड़ने आई है,

वो एक पल है पुराना
जो उम्र में बड़े एक दोस्त सा,
आज मिला है वापस, तो याद आ रहा है ,
कैसे बचपन में उसने मेरी कोहनी मरोड़ी थी,

हँसी में एक खनक थी तुम्हारी,
आज मेरे रूठने पे जैसे मनाने आई है,
में उसको ताकता रहूं, तो बड़ी अंजान सी लगती है,
ना जाने किसके पास रहके आई है इतने दिन,

पुरानी याद अगर लंगर होती ,
तो डाल किनारो पे बैठा रहता,
तुम पानी पे परछाई सी हो, जो किसी के खेल में,
एक पत्थर से बिखर जा रही है, ये क्या ख्वाब है?

सच नये जुतो से मिले घाव सा है,
काश पुराने टूटे ना होते

 

Ek Tha Tiger - Movie Review

http://www.planetbollywood.com/displayReview.php?id=f081712081230 

What does one expect from a Salman Khan movie? As Vidya Balan says in The Dirty Picture, “entertainment, entertainment and entertainment”…and he is entertainment alright! He remains, in the true tradition of Bollywood, one of the heroes for whom movies are written. You do not expect a story when you enter the theatre hall, you expect a lot of masala though - you expect good looking locales and dances, dialogues and action. You expect a larger than life setting and character for Salman Khan. So does the film deliver on expectations. After the phenomenal success of Dabangg, Ready and Bodyguard, does this movie generate enough whistling, hooting and dancing for its audience to call it another “classic” Salman movie? Almost!

There is a scene in the middle of the movie when Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif are both running away from the secret services and you see two efficient officers of ISI and RAW shooting at them together. There is a pause in the scene as their eyes meet with each other. It is probably the first time when ISI and RAW go hand in hand to kill someone – and that is the story of the film. A love story of spies with a lot of spice! The Story (and it was slightly surprising to know that there is one), traverses the love life of RAW agent Rathod (Tiger) and ISI agent Zoya (Zee). The movie starts with a chase sequence in Iraq and ends with another one in Cuba. Tiger is on a mission to Ireland tracking movements of an Indian Scientist (Roshan Seth) where he meets Zoya. There is Girish Karnad and Ranvir Shorey on the Indian side of spying, paying the bills for Salman Khan and there is Gavie Chahal on the Pakistani side.

The mission, as you can expect is not as important as the love story that develops, so much so that the writer leaves the mission like an open ended thread where you don’t know what happened to the scientist. But you do not have time to croon over it because soon you are transported from Ireland to Istanbul via Delhi. And then as the lovers elope you move with them to the colourful Cuba. Salman Khan movies are like love- you shouldn’t think much over them and if you just go with the flow you will enjoy them. Just like the scene in the movie where the characters read “ Amor cuerdo, no es amor” – A love without madness is no love.

The movie is replete with chase sequences and behaves differently from other spy movies. As the movie traverses continents, people and countries there are umpteen numbers of wide angled landscapes at sunrise and sunsets, leading lines of convoluted roads where the chase happens and keen feel-good production design which is aptly supported by James bond-meets-Dhoom series background score. Songs appear when they are not required but they won’t irritate, as else there are very few occasions when the good looking agents get a chance to dance. Dance is a subtle part of the movie.

Salman Khan as Tiger, is a treat to watch for his fans. He slips into his larger than life role with ease and enjoys the action sequences. Acting skills are not important here but the sheer charisma that he carries can be felt in the darkness of theatre hall around you. Katrina Kaif looks beautiful (though a little plump!), and does extremely well in the action sequences. Dialogue delivery was never her forte and it still looks like an unattainable peak. The rest of the cast is wasted including Girish Karnard as a RAW senior with almost silly lines to utter along with Roshan Seth as an Indian missile scientist who is not given a single dialogue to deliver. Finally Ranvir Shorey a competent RAW officer who is not allowed to talk about mission and its complexities. Ditto with Gavie Chahal who gets a good debut though.

Direction by Kabir Khan is at best average. If he was not ably supported by his assistant directors that managed the grand production locations and were it not for the impact of his lead actors, it would have been difficult for him to pull this one off. The ambitions here are at an entirely different scale compared to his prior works – Kabul Express and New York. He mixes the feel of Kabul Express and New York at various points in the film. Where Kabir Khan disappoints is partly in the story and screenplay (although that can be forgiven) but particularly in the dialogues that are written alongside the talented Neelesh Mishra. Some of these dialogues are outright silly – imagine an ISI senior telling his subordinate “Bibi, ek aurat ke liye uski izzat hi sab kuch hoti hai” or a senior RAW agent telling his junior “thi ek sweet si ladki”. There are no classic one liners like “Maine ek baar commitment de di…” or “Mujhe pe ek ehsaan karna….” In the film. This dries up what could have been a constant stream of whistling and madness in the movie hall. The movie had a lot of scope for dialogues which were missed thoroughly.

Aseem Mishra’s cinematography is top notch, something that is very much a pre-requisite these days. The approach taken here reminds one of another great movie of yesteryears, The Great Gambler. Low camera angles to cover the rising mosques of Turkey, wide angle shots to show a barren Iraq, a hurried camera in the chase sequence and colourful Cuba are all nicely utilized. The art direction in particular, with local team hires to set up the production design for Cuba and Turkey is top notch. Chase sequences are beautifully edited by Rameshwar Bhagat with sharp cuts, beautiful pauses in slow motions and narration and nicely choreographed action shots. Action sequences (with Input from Hollywood – Mark Rounthwaite) are the key highlight of the film.

Vaibhavi Merchant and Ahmed Khan gets enough chance to show the dance movies, its well-choreographed with Latin numbers in Cuba, ball room dancing at UN assemblies and ballet dances in Ireland. Music by Sohail Sen and Sajid Wajid is thankfully less intrusive and the background score (by Julius Packiam) is racy but could have made a bigger impact.

Overall, Ek Tha Tiger delivers what it promises to deliver. It is a well made, charismatic, and larger than life film with beautiful cinematography and splendid action to boot. Dialogues and story leaves a lot to be desired. The movie is intentionally simplistic and silly at times but fits the bill for a masala movie. It is strongly recommended to Salman Khan (and Katrina Kaif) fans. For the rest it is just passable but a key element of Bollywood is diversity – for every exemplary Gangs of Wasseypur there would be a charming Ek Tha Tiger.

जो है मज़ा मझधार का - A song

 

जो है मज़ा मझधार का, वो ना किनारो पर मिले,

जो मंज़िलें हो नाव की ना वो लहर बन कर मिले,

एक चोट पर हो घाव तो एक चोट पर मरहम मिले,
हम कल मिलेंगे जीत से जो आज सौ ठोकर मिले,

होगी कोई मजबूरियाँ, जो कह ना पाई तुम मुझे,
बेबाक सा वो इश्क़ भी तो कर ना पाई तुम मुझे,
कब तक कहूँगा प्यार के में झूठ अपनेआप से,
जब याद में चुभते हुए सब बेवफा खंजर मिले,

आँखें भरी हो दर्द से, हो भूख का लावा जवान,
जब रोशनी जाती रहे, दुश्मन लगे सारा जहाँ,
तब होसला बनकर कभी वो साथ में आ जाएगा ,
थे ढूँढते उसको बूत्तों में वो मगर अंदर मिले,

हो एक साया एस ज़मीन पर जो मेरा रहबर रहे,
चाहे वो हो बेज़ार सा या बादशाह अकबर मिले,
सागर रहे, गागर रहे, या बूँद भर हो ओस में,
अब जो मिले वो ठीक है, हो नूर या पत्थर मिले

 

Poem - अधूरी आस सा भारत

कहीं चलती कहीं रुकती, बताओ आग कैसी है,
बुझा दो हर वो दीपक जो अकेला रोशनी चाहे,
लगे ना जो सभी में वो बताओ आग कैसी है,

जलाके रूप ना बदले वो अंजन हो नहीं सकती,
जलाए जो नही सोना वो कंचन हो नहीं सकती,
अगन जब भी लगे तब वो कोई बदलाव लाती है,
ना लिपटे रूह से ज्वाला तो बंधन हो नहीं सकती

करे जो राम सा शासन, वो रावण नहीं मिलता,
बड़े भाषण तो मिलते है मगर राशन नहीं मिलता,
हमारे देश के नेता, सभी है भूख के मारे,
कभी चारा कभी दाना, कभी सावन नहीं मिलता

कभी था कृष्ण की भूमी, खुदा के नूर सा भारत,
हैधर्मो से, या जनपथ पे, लो जगड़ो में फसा भारत,
कभी सारे जवान बेटे कहे, पैंसठ की बुढ़िया है,
अकेले गाँव में रोता , अधूरी आस सा भारत,

बुझा दो हर वो दीपक जो अकेला रोशनी चाहे,
लगे ना जो सभी में वो बताओ आग कैसी है

Gangs Of Wasseypur -2 : Movie Review

http://planetbollywood.com/displayReview.php?id=f080712055332

The first part of Gangs of Wasseypur had left the audience wanting for more and the expectation with GOW 2 are therefore sky high. Does the film live up to the expectations? Even before we answer that let us make a point first : this movie reinvents the genre of revenge themes and redefines the use of violence and dark humour in narrative. It is surely one of the most well researched movie which tries to capture every possible detail of the characters it portrays.

You know right from the first frame that revenge is the end motive of the movie and the nemesis of the protagonist is going to face it brutally. But it goes beyond brutality. It is probably the most violent scene you would have ever seen in a Hindi film. Nawazuddin Siddiqui with that little smirk of satisfaction on his lips and the unshed tears in his eyes defines the gist of revenge. He exactly puts his finger on what all the revenge movies till date missed – satisfaction and relief of ending a story.

All of Anurag Kashyap movies are well layered and this is no different. Obsessed with storytelling, his indulgent, amoral themes transcends the boundary of good and bad and leaves aside the age old motifs of victory of virtue over vice. The illegitimate and deprived part of the society supersedes the one containing legitimate power owners and is the focus of attention throughout the move. This form of storytelling works for many as it is very relatable to people. There is a strong political power struggle, a think family bonding, and a rich narrative that adds to the dark theme of the movie. In between a marriage celebration, as the leading lady of the movie (Protagonist’s mother) while singing a wedding folk song, moves into the agony of her past – of death of her elder son and her husband, the mood swings from celebration to sadness. That scene almost summarizes the crux of the movie- a family’s story written in blood, power struggle and precedence of enemy over lover.

The story of GOW 2 starts with the demise of Sardar Khan (Manoj Bajpayee) and rise of the next generation. Danish (Vineet Singh) gets killed and Faizal (Nawazuddin) takes over. Two colourful characters of Definit (Zeishan Quadri) and Perpendicular, former copying Salman Khan and later Sanjay Dutt, make the story edgy. With Sultan (Pankaj Tiwari) and Ramadhir Singh ( Tigmanshu Dhulia) growing older the story of revenge intensifies with introduction of characters like Shamshad (Rajkumar Yadav) and killings now include that of women of the family as well. The pointlessness of all the killing and violence is well mentioned by Faizal’s character at a point.

The style of narrative is strongly influenced by world movies, film noir and pulp fiction. Unlike the sentimentality of movies that we like to fall for, the movie treads the thought process and theme of the story. Action is the prime mover. The blood and gore in the movie might remind you of Tarantino and it’s unique because there is no precedence to such violence in Hindi films. Yet it is strongly rooted with the impact of Bollywood on the common man. References to eras and times of Khan’s, Qureshi’s and Singh’s are done through Bollywood movies. Yashpal Sharma’s character with his songs like “Teri Meherbaniya” , “Yaad Teri Ayegi” and “My name is Lakhan” is an exceptional point in case. Dark humour apart from this song is everywhere as well – do check out some of the chase sequences in a crowded town as well as goof ups during the gang wars.

Nawazuddin Siddiqui is the find of the movie. Of course we saw him in Kahaani and Pan Singh Tomar this year, but this surely will be a landmark role in his career. Evil, simple, greedy, ruthless and charming at different times, he delivers an extraordinary performance. Zeishan Quadri who also happens to be the writer of this epic story, is the next in line as definit. He portrays his character with ease. Vineet Singh, Pankaj Tiwari, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Piyush Mishra, Satya Anand, Jameel Khan – all are pitch perfect like the first part of the movie.

Anurag Kashyap seems to understand women better now. Unlike mostly powerless and oppressed females of Gulaal and victimized chanda of Dev D, Nagma (beautifully essayed by Richa Chaddha), Mohsina (Huma Quereshi), Sama (Anurita Jha) and Durga (Remma Sen) are more in control. Huma Quereshi stands out from the lot this time. She shines and charms the audience in the love scenes with Nawazuddin.

Dialogues for the movie (Zeishan and Anurag Kashyap) give a beautiful earthly feel to the almost unrealistic backdrop of violence. The story and screenplay are absolutely spot on as you do not feel bored even with a little extra length of the movie. Zeishan Quadri has done a great job in characterization, giving enough space for individuality. Cinematography by Rajeev Ravi adds to the screenplay. There are times when the screen goes completely black and those pauses in the visual story telling are beautifully taken, as you move around in your seat trying to squint and find out what happened to the character. Some of the violent shots with unstable camera movement has a gritty nervy feel about it. Visuals of perpendicular – a well-built teenager playing with the blade in his mouth and Definit taking a cobra like a muffler are tightly integrated with the screenplay. Editing again is to be blamed but with the kind of indulgence, you tend to feel that editing just to keep the length short would not have done justice to so many characters and their backstory.

One of the strongest and omnipresent character for the part 2 of GOW has been the music. The movie for the first half deals extensively with percussions. The drums, the dhols, the daflis – all keeps you hooked to the movement of the story. The occasional flavour of folk songs and the experimental songs with lyrics like “Frustiyao na moora, Nervasao na Moora” being used absolutely intelligently adds to the flavour. Sneha Khanwilkar, you are the chosen one!

All in all, this is the best movie to come out from India this year so far. It is gritty, well-paced, extremely well-acted, genre defining, path breaking work of art. The movie is not for the ones who are not comfortable with violence being depicted graphically. If you can digest violence on screen, it is a sure winner.

Gazal by Jaykumar Shah

સફળતા સમય ને જુઠા પ્રેમ ના છે,
ઘણા છે મિત્રો પણ બધા નામના છે,

ન સમજાય ઍવી જગત ની કથા છે,
અગન જાનકી ની, ભજન રામ ના છે,

દુનિયા નકામી દુખો માં બળે છે,
સુખો તો બધા તોય પરધામ ના છે,

ન સ્વતંત્ર માણસ, ન આઝાદ ઈચ્છા,
જો યુધ્ધે ચડેલાં, ધરમ-કામના છે,

હૃદય લાગણી થી સભર રાખવાને,
આ મારા બધા તો દુખો ગામ ના છે,

મફત માં મળી જાય મૌલિક વિચારો,
નકલ ચોર અહ્યા વધુ દામ ના છે,

બધી ભૂખ ની ઍ પરાકાષટા છે,
ઘરે પેટ ખાલી, પિતા જામ ના છે,

હવે કોઈ સામે ન માથું નામવું,
બધા દેવતા હાડ ના ચામ ના છે,

ખુદા તો કહે ત્યાગ કર કામના ને,
સભા માં મજાની તોયે નામના છે,

બપોરે સળગતા સૂરજ આથમેતો,
અધૂરાં રહે જે સપન શામ ના છે.

Gazals

Hindi Gazal

(If you wish to sing sing it like Kumar Vishwas' "Koi Deewana kehta hai" or Mohd Rafi's "Khilona jaan kar ..." :):))

गली के मोड़ पे बैठा वो भूखा गुनगुनाता है, 
पके जो चाँद की रोटी, लगे मीठी बताता है, 

टहलने आज निकला है, पुरानी याद का मौसम, 
वो गाओं से भरे बादल, शहरो पे बहाता है, 

नही है मौत की परवाह, नही है जन्म पे रुकता, 
फकिरो सा समय जोगी सदा बढ़ता ही जाता है, 

यहाँ पे वक़्त किसको है, यहाँ सब दौड़ना चाहे,
कभी माँ-बाप का रोना, कभी बच्चा सताता है, 

कहीं गोरे कहीं हिंदू कहीं हिन्दी के मेलो में,
जो छूटा एक बच्चा, नाम वो भारत बताता है, 

हवा में धुन्द है, लंबा सफ़र अँधा कटे कैसे,
रूको तो राह की चिंता, चलो तो चैन आता है,

बड़े कितने बनो तुम शाह रहोगे बस खिलौने से, 
वो जितना खेलना चाहे हमें उतना खिलाता है

 1222 1222 1222 1222

 

Gujarati Gazal

જીતવુ નો'તૂ ના હારવું હતું
ફક્ત આ સ્વપ્ન કંડારવુ હતું,

હાથતાળી દઈ, આપ તો ગયા,
જે વધેલુ જીવન કારમું હતું, 

તુંય તો ખ્વાબ આ દેખતી હશે,
સાવ અણધારયુ ધારવુ હતું,

બાન્ધયુ'તૂ જે અમે ડાળખાં મૂકી,
ઍક ઍ માળખુ બાળવું હતું,

સગપણો જો ઘણાં પૂર માં વહે,
બસ હવે ડૂબતું તારવું હતું

212 212 212 12

 

P.S. : Have been learning to write behr/chhand based Gujarati and Hindi Poetry for a while. Understood after quite some time that there is some very basic difference between  the two and needs to be treated differently. Hindi Poetry relies directly on the sound of a word and also gives quite some freedom to the one who is delivering / reading the poetry to pronounce. Whereas Gujarati poetry is slightly inflexible in that sense. The unit it uses unlike Hindi Poetry is not "Phoenetic sound" but it is the letter! Which means that "hrsva" or "Dirgha" of the letter is one that decides the weight. Moreover I saw little liberty in taking words like "til" "bil" "fir" as one letter of double weight, it is seldom considered to be 2, but is always 21. ​

 

 

Movie Review - Bol Bachchan

Planet Bollywood Review Link 
http://planetbollywood.com/displayReview.php?id=f071312023925

Entertainment coupled with a weak story, a weaker screenplay, and complete lack of common sense– Bol Bachchan has all the exact ingredients of cooking a 100 crore dish. The movie and its box office collection reflects the average film making for the average film going audience that Bollywood has currently ended up in. The story is inspired (the new term we use for copied) from legendary Golmaal (yes this time they copied the story in place of name) and fails to create the same vibe. The dialogues partly inspired by senior Bachchan movies and partly by the done-to-death inept English speaking dimwit roles that we have seen fail to make a lasting impact. Its inability to recreate Hrishikesh Mukherjee feel makes you remember and miss Hrishi-da all the more. For most of the English speaking role of Ajay Devgn, you might recall Chupke Chupke’s Dharmendra for the play on language.

The background music and the looks of the protagonist makes you remember a better made Singham, and yet for most part of the film the character looks like a spoof on Singham. It has flying cars and prop assisted Darasinghified (god bless his soul) fight sequences like all other Rohit Shetty films but misses the pulse. Presence of dedicated comedians like Krishna and VIP and Asrani in unnecessary character sketches reminds you of the times when Johnny Lever and Kader Khan used to light up the screen in their roles for comic relief. Infact it would even make you miss Rohit Shetty’s very own Golmaal famed – Arshad Warsi, Sharman Joshi even Tusshar Kapoor and Vrajesh Hirjee. Bol Bachchan has a strange deja-vu like feeling with all aspects of movie making. Don’t get me wrong, the movie isn’t bad. It is a lazy film. It neither wants to say anything new nor does it want to say anything that is already said in a different way.

Bol Bachchan is a story of Abbas Ali (Abhishek Bachchan), who moves to Ranakgadh headed by Prithviraj Raghuvanshi (Ajay Devgn) for certain circumstances and has to pose as Abhishek Bachchan (Oh yes that is his onscreen name as well) in front of Prithvi. Prithvi’s old lover who died in a car crash looked exactly like Abhishek Bachchan’s sister Sania (Asin) and Prithvi’s sister Radhika (Prachi Desai) eventually falls for Abhishek Bachchan (for lack of a better hero in the film). And then there is comedy of errors ala Golmaal the original one. The background score shouts “Khatra” just the way you would have heard “Golmal hai bhai sab Golmal hai”, which I think was much better used even in Hera Pheri. There is a motley of crowd in Zohra bai (Archana Puran Singh), Ravi Shashtri (Krishna), Shashtri (Abhishek), VIP and all helping the lead Palactor (inspired from Palekar).

To give the credit where it is due, the movie has some moments of genuine laughter; especially a couple of scenes with Archana Puran Singh which are memorable. Don’t miss how while posing as Abhishek’s mother she simply effortlessly gets in to her real character of Johrabai singing “ye hai reshmi zulfon ka andhera…” Last time you would have seen her act with so much restrain and subtlety was probably in Jalwa. She is very good. Ajay Devgn does a seemingly impossible task of carrying the role, the lines and the film in turn on his shoulders successfully. BolBachchan is a movie where everyone spoofs himself in jest and pack is led by Ajay Devgn. Abhishek Bachchan overacts to fill his 2 roles with the extra bit of acting. Krishna, VIP and Asrani are well placed and do their non-existent part with conviction. Neeraj Vora hams for most of his part. Asin stands, smiles, dances and looks nice. So does Prachi Desai. Though her looks would surprise you - She looks peach and almost 5 years younger than in Rock On!

Sajjid- Farhad’s dialogues need some mention here as they try to save the lack of novelty in story (Yunus Sajawal). Though the dialogues too were mostly inspired (the first one it reminded me of was Swades’ mela ram saying “apni chaukhat ka dia and giving light to neighbours place”). Cinematography (Dudley) is pretty impressive in a couple of scenes not connected to the story but during songs. Else it’s the usual Rohit Shetty film with spinning camera continuously running over trollies. Steven Bernard’s editing had a lot of scope of shortening the movie, which it did not. Background music is nothing extraordinary. Action of course is at a level that befits Rohit Shetty and Ajay Devgn’s prior works, but is unnecessary most of the times.

On the whole the movie with all its shortcomings and surprising laziness is an entertaining film for efforts of a few who acts well. In cinema, there is a thin line between art and entertainment. Bol Bachchan surely tries hard to be classified as entertainment but just falls short of it.

Gangs of Wasseypur - Part 1 - Movie Review

Planet bollywood link to be updated soon.

Producer: Anurag Kashyap, Sunil Bohra
Director: Anurag Kashyap
Starring: Jaideep Ahlawat, Manoj Bajpai, Richa Chada, Piyush Mishra, Reema Sen, Nawazzudin Siddiqui, Jameel Khan, Pankaj Tripathi,
Music: Sneha Khanwalkar
Lyrics: Piyush Mishra and Varun Grover
Genre: Crime, humor
Ratings : 8.5 /10
Recommended Audience: Adults
Film Released on: 22 June 2012

In the second half of 19th century, a dejected painter after being turned down by many decided to become a missionary. He moved to a small Belgian town of coal miners in poverty. He saw a lot of characters in this poor peasant folk and it is here that Vincent Van Gogh created his first famous painting the potato eaters, in his own style characterized by Coarse and harsh strokes. Rajeev Ravi (cinematographer) and Anurag Kashyap together did a Van Gogh in the first one hour of Gangs of Wasseypur. The treatment and feel of the first hour of the movie is unlike anything you have seen before. Gangs of Wasseypur is painting of moving images with coarse language and harsh strokes of light on dark background. It defies tradition like a Van Gogh painting too. Story telling in Anurag Kashyap movies has remained immoral and is not  dependent on a protagonist; neither does it try to create an emotional bond which drives you as an audience to take pleasure in the characters motives and actions. It purely is one visual cue leading to another to tell a story. The place, the language and the plot become more important than the themes and message. Face of Indian cinema is not going to remain the same. With movie being internationally well received, there has been a lot of anticipation and excitement for the movie. Is the movie an epic story? Does the movie represent the current regional dynamics in India? Where the makers of movies like Dev D, Gulaal, Hanuman and No Smoking, able to add a new dimension in their portfolio? Well the answer is most certainly yes, but how is something we will try to explore here.

Gangs of Wasseypur is a crime and revenge drama sprinkled with generous but sinister dose of humor at the most unexpected places. The main characters belong to the area of Wasseypur in Dhanbad – A place marked with coal mafias and Butchers. The story is about the rivalry between the two factions of Wasseypur – the Qureshi clan of butchers and Khan Clan of the Pathans. There are numerous characters, nuances, themes, plots within the movie that makes it a gripping film. The motley colorful platter of people is made delicious with the calibrated and methodical attempt of getting the pulse of the place. Language and character definition brings the realism of the film while the screenplay fictionalizes the characters and makes them unforgettable. Recurrent use of gun fights, profanities, immoral exuberance and influence of Bollywood on Indian villages like Wasseypur makes the movie interesting even with its slightly longer length. Movie making is extremely indulgent in Gangs of Wasseypur.

The movie starts in 40s with Shahid Khan (beautifully essayed by Jaideep Ahlawat), a proud pathan getting in a tift with Wasseypur’s Qureshis over looting of trains in name of Sulatana Dacoit. He ends of moving away from the rivalry, being thrown out to the coal mines of Dhanbad. He works along with the peasants there and his ambitions earn him a foe in form of the local coal mine owner turned politician Ramadhir Singh (Tigmanshu Dhulia).  With this start the fights between Ramadhir Singh and Sardar Khan, Shahid Khan’s son on one side and Sardar Khan and Quereshis on another. Sardar Khan’s allies Farhan (Piyush Mishra) and Asgar (Jameel Khan) and his sons Danish (Vineet Singh) and Faizal (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) makes the army on the Khan side and Ramadhir Singh’s son along with Quereshis – Ehshaan Quereshi (Vipin Sharma) and Sultan (Pankaj Tripathi) holds the other side. Females have got a very special place in this movie as you see the gun yielding immoral gangsters go meek in front of their women – partly for the women’s love and partly for their own lust. Unfortunately the theme of the movie cannot be further detailed as the stories are only half built and there is the other half of the movie yet to come. But with the number of plots and subplots, it surely is an epic attempt.

The real hero of the movie is the story and screenplay. It is a well researched film. The writer (Zeeshan Qadri)  of the movie belongs to Wasseypur and the shooting of the movie has happened in director’s (Anurag Kahsyap) hometown. This single factor brings immense amount of authenticity and realism into the movie. While the actors and their quirky behavior makes the movie surreal. And together, in a truly Kashyap style movie brings the real and surreal together. Whether it be lustful machismo of Sardar Khan or the movie maniac son of his Faizal, the characters are etched subtly but in detail. The story is ably supported by a tight screenplay.. Dialogues has always been a strength of Anurag Kashyap, whether it be another Manoj Bajpai starrer Shool, or Gulaal or GOW and this movie too has some of those very memorable dialogues.  Dialogues are coarse, impactful and humorous at the same time. This surely is a movie with a great attention to details.

Sneha Khanwalkar’s music creates the additional dimension of depth in the movie. Songs though many only adds on to the story telling. “ik Bagal mein chaan hoga ek bagal mein rotiya” and “Teri Keh ke lunga” shines and are very well placed.

Cinematography by Rajeev Ravi is economical and realistic. The first half of the movie has a proud and upright protagonist Shahid Khan amidst power and politics of coal mines. The coal marred black faces of the mining labor in golden glow of dusk and dawn marks this half while the second half which is full of dark characters has many frames where 20-30% of the screen is pitch black shadows. And then there are some blood soaked reds of butcher house and gunfights. Having watched Dev D, Gulaal, That Girl In Yellow Boots and now GOW, one knows that Rajeev Ravi is an extra pair of eyes for Anurag Kashyap’s mind. He is brilliant.

Actors have excelled in the movie. My pick of the lot are four – Manoj Bajpai, Jaideep Ahlawat, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Richa Chadha. This is definitely Bajpai’s best. He commands the screen while delivering threats to his nemesis, while lustfully ogling at a girl as he listens to a father’s request of saving another woman being harassed, while killing a person with a knife like playing a sport or while wooing the women through tender acts. It is quite surprising that Nawazuddin Siddiqui seems to have been discovered suddenly even after being in Industry for so long. Like his earlier hits this year – Kahaani and Paan Singh Tomar, he is tremendous here as well. The subtle internalizing of character is quite evident in his gaze at his love or standing with hands on his hips like Amitabh Bachhan details his character.  Richa Chadha as Saradar’s wife Nagma similarly had a difficult task but she leaves an impact. Jaideep Ahlawat looks the character completely , a very definitive performance by him. Piyush Mishra and Jameel Khan as allies look convincing. Huma Quereshi in her small role as Faizal’s lover delivers some very funny lines in style (“Permissan Lena chahiye na!”). Vineet Singh as Danish is less rebellious and good hearted – the same comes out well in his portrayal. Vipin Sharma and Pankaj Tripathi in their roles as Quereshis look sinister, Reema sen as a double chinned seductress pans her role out well; A very special mention to a befitting nemesis – Ramadhir Singh played by a terrific Tigmanshu Dhulia. He is someone who is comfortable with such a backdrop and has delivered as a director (Haasil, Shagird and Saheb Bibi and Gangster), his acting skills are no less.

The only spoil sports here are the indulgent editing (Shweta Matthew) or lack of it at times and too many subplots. Though am not complaining as it is as much like watching multiple movies together. The indulgent movie making surely tires you though.

The blood soaked, gun marred, man dominated Gangs of Wasseypur is rich in its visual treatise and is definitely gripping. It will remain one of Anurag Kashyap’s best. The movie is highly recommended for its absolutely different treatment, strong story and pitch perfect actors. This is Bollywood’s gift to world cinema. But it is not the complete review the review is not complete yet because “Kahaani abhi baaki hai”. The movie lives up to the expectation though it leaves you unsatisfied as it is only half the movie.