Got Bollywood

The 2009 would bring us some interesting and fresh flicks. Rakesh Mehra, the superhit director of Rang De Basanti comes back with another film. Dilli 6 is written by mastermind Kamlesh Pandey who was the man behind the successful Rang De Basanti.
Dilli 6 is said to be the story of Rakesh Mehra’s own experience as a child when he used to stay in old Delhi. Its a story of an American-born Roshan (Abhishek Bachchan) who comes to Delhi with his granny (Waheeda Rehman). The film has multiple side tracks telling stories of different characters residing in the Chandni Chowk area of old Delhi. It highlights the mixed culture of the people who follow different religions.

The film is all set to release in February. Prior to that it will be screened at Dubai International Film Festival.

With 2009 just around the corner, Bollywood stars are headed to different destinations to usher in the New Year. Since the mood in Mumbai is pretty glum after the November 26 terror attacks, most of the New Year performances in the city have been canceled. Moreover, even the stars who would normally stay put in Mumbai on Dec 31 are headed to exotic locales.
Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor are on their way for a chilled out vacation in the Swiss Alps. Hope there are no bhel puri restaurants there to give Saif the stomach cramps. Akshay Kumar is already on a holiday with wife Twinkle Khanna, son Aarav and Dimple Kapadia and his mom Aruna. For them, the celebrations began on Dec 29 with Twinkle’s birthday and will continue till the January 1. Shilpa Shetty is on a vacation with her beau Raj Kundra in Spain. Alongside the duo are their respective families. Salman Khanalong with his brothers is in Goa for the New Years. The celebrations, low-key this year, began in the Khan household from Salman’s birthday on Dec 27 and will continue well into the first few days of January. Katrina Kaif has been in London for the Christmas reunion with her family and is expected to join Salman on 31st evening. Malaika Arora would be performing on stage at a hotel in Singapore, while Celina Jaitley will perform at the New Year bash at City Pavilion in London. Arjun Rampal, Farhan Akhtar, Ritesh Sidhwani and the rest of Rock On gang is headed to Dubai. They initially planned an outing in Goa but changed the plan after the government canceled outdoor parties. Shahrukh Khan is in Los Angeles to shoot Karan Johar’s film My Name Is Khan. He, Gauri and the kids are likely to fly to Uganda for a brief holiday. Kajol and Ajay Devgan have left for their farmhouse in Karjat. They are expected back on Jan 2 after which Kajol would fly to the US to shoot with SRK. John Abraham and Bipasha Basu will most likely head to Goa. Looks like they don’t mind if there aren’t any outdoor parties.

London (ANI): Popstar Britney Spears is reportedly dating Bollywood dance instructor Sandip Soparrkar, who choreographed her raunchy 'Womanizer' video. Apparently, the 27-year-old flew to Jodhpur for a romantic three-day Christmas break with Sandip who is a pin-up in his native India.
The couple has been dating for three weeks. The Mirror has learnt that the couple even exchanged homemade pressies under the tree. A source said: "It's early days but their romance is going from strength to strength. Britney and Sandip tried to keep their reunion in India hush-hush as they're determined to have a relationship just like any other couple.
"Sandip is very down to earth and keeps Britney grounded. He's also quite spiritual and sensitive, which is a side of him she adores. For Christmas, Sandip or Sandy as Britney calls him presented her with a traditional Indian sari. She wore it during a candlelit dinner. The pair were whispering and giggling all night. Sandy ordered local delicacies including chicken tikka and a cottage cheese curry. Britney was nicking the dough balls from his plate. It was really cute."Britney, who met Sandip at a party thrown by Madonna earlier this year, is spending the New Year back in Los Angeles.

Akshay Kumar is a loving husband, so what if he charges the poor producers 9 crores for a mere dubbing job even when the world economy is down in the dumps. Look what nice things he does with all the money. He pays heavy income tax to the Indian government and keeps his wife happy… Thats perhaps the greatest achievement for any Indian man - because these two things are literally impossible to achieve for many Indian men.
He decided to gift her a lavish Bentley Car worth 3 crore to his wifey dear on her birthday on 29th December. Apparently he spent so much for her because he was extremely proud of her and wanted to give her the best of everything because he owes his success to her.
Apparently he handed the car keys to his wife before he flew off to Hong Kong for Christmas Show. Twinkle was overwhelmed with joy we heard.

A day just before the release of Ghajini, Aamir Khan went into great depression thinking about the future of his flick. In his blog entry, he wrote that he was suffering from prenatal depression and behaved like a zombie.

Aamir Khan Beats Shahrukh Khan at Box Office Ghajini, as we all know broke all the advance booking records. The box office reviews say that Ghajini raked Rs.7 crores during 650 paid previews at multiplexes in India Wednesday.On Christmas, Ghajini’s worldwide box office collections peaked Rs. 32 crores in a single day! On the other hand Shahrukh Khan’s Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi made only 10 crores on its opening day as opposed to Ghajini’s 32 crores. Aamir Khan has beaten Shahrukh Khan at the Box Office. Ghajini undoubtedly is the biggest hit of 2008.

It's all happening in the Beach Party Capitol of the world..Miami is the setting for Dharma Productions latest offering "Dostana" - serving a cocktail of all ingredients to do with Friendship, Fun, Frolic and that thing called Love but with a slight twist, there is a small case of pretending to be Gay!!

When Sameer (Abhishek Bachchan) and Kunal (John Abraham) are turned down for an apartment because the land lady doesn't want 2 strapping young men to corrupt her young sexy niece Neha (Priyanka Chopra), they go to plan "G" - they pretend to be "Gay" to secure the apartment.

All is well till they meet the sexy siren Neha and thus begins a journey of fun, frolic and a test of friendship like never before when Neha's boss Abhimanyu (Bobby Deol) enters the fray as the third contender for her affections, it gets even hotter under everyone's vests and bikini's and the boy’s get down and dirty, in sunny Miami.

Ghajini is a powerful movie, sucking you into the violent and disturbing world of a man terribly wronged. It's a movie that keeps you on the edge of your seat from the start and is replete with violence, even after three cuts by the censor board. True, the violent scenes come and go, but it's not the violence per se that is disturbing but the way it is portrayed - with plenty of blood and gore. Despite this the movie has managed to win a U/A certificate.



That said let me say that Ghajini is a well-made film with brilliant music by A.R Rahman. Yes, it's a three-hour masala film and kind of in your face, but then that is what we look forward to in Bollywood don't we! The director, A. R. Murugadoss has done a decent job, even though the story of the film seems to have been lifted from Memento, a film by Christopher Nolan. And Aamir's Hindi version is a remake of the Tamil one, which was also directed by Murugadoss. Everything about this movie, from the cinematography (Ravi K. Chandran), Editing (Anthony) and Art Direction (Samir Chanda) is above average. The fight scenes are the best I have seen in a Hindi film.

Phir Hera Pheri..Enjoy!
We all remember the trio of "Hera Pheri', Baburao, Raju, and Shyam who rose from rags to riches…!
Still, money brings the joy of riches and with it the greed to make more money.
So as each one is looking for investment options, Raju who's always quick to spot ways of making easy money scouts out for an option that promises to double the investment. The only hitch is the minimum investment required is beyond what the trio saved in the last outing.
You can trust Raju to come out with a solution.
He ably ropes in a couple of unwitting investors adds it with another interesting jape without an inkling that it'll blow on his face, to come up with the number.
Now will these riches double or get them into trouble…?
Wait to watch a rib-tickling, non-stop laughter riot to find for yourself. Add to this the comic presence & performances of Jhonny Lever & Rajpal Yadav.
Let's share a little secret here: Rajpal is one of the investor. And the poor man has borrowed money from a Don. And the Don's totla played by the versatile, Sharad Saxena.
Bipasha Basu & Rimi Sen complete the ensemble cast.

This is a story of "Om' and "Shanti'. His film started in 1977 and ended in 2007. He was a Junior Artist in the 70's. She was a Superstar of the 70's. He was her biggest fan. She was his biggest inspiration. He was madly in love. She was waiting for love. He wanted to be a "superstar'. She wanted to be a "girl next door'. He was ready to give up all his dreams for love. She was ready to give up everything she had for love. He felt betrayed in life. She felt betrayed in love. And then …started the saga of "Om Shanti Om' For some love stories one life time is not enough…

The Delhii Heights is a high-rise apartment in Delhi, where Abi [Jimmy Shergill] and Suhana [Neha Dhupia], a married couple who work for rival companies, live. It's about how their professional lives affect their personal ones.
Also, there lives Timmy Kohli [Om Puri], a fun loving Sikh, with his wife Ruby [Kamini Khanna] and two daughters. Then there is Bobby [Rohit Roy] and his wife Saima [Simone Singh]. Bobby is a compulsive flirt and his wife knows about it. How things take place and how their lives change is to be seen. Then there is Lucky [Vivek Shauq], a cricket bookie, a hilarious character in itself. Also, there are four boys, residents of Delhii Heights, who keep running after girls and pulling each others' legs. How these stories run simultaneously is amongst the highpoints of the film.

The story of one man's life to achieve his dreams.
Aryan (Sohail Khan) was born to fight. He is the college champ and under the tough training of coach Ranveer Singh (Puneet Issar), he dreams of winning the nationals.
His love, Neha (Sneha Ullal), is more than just his better half. She is his support system, his strength. He needs her to be around every time.
Life takes a turn and Aryan chooses to give up his dreams and marry his love instead. They have a kid and together, start living a common man's life. Life moves on and so does Aryan. He hits a low professionally, as well in his married life.
One day, his ex coach asks him to get back into the ring and gives him the courage to face the world head on. Aryan decides to follow his dreams again, but he isn't the man he used to be. His support system, his wife, has left him.
Will Aryan be able to achieve his dreams? Is he truly unbreakable?

This year we've seen some big banner releases like Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic, Mere Baap Pehle Aap, Sarkar Raj, Bhoothnath, Tashan, U Me Aur Hum, Krazzy 4, Jodhaa Akbar, Jannat and Race. Unfortunately, only a handful have been successful at the box office. We take a look at the biggest hits of 2008, so far.

Widowed Arjun Khanna lives a wealthy lifestyle in London, England, along with his daughter, Shirani. He decides to re-marry widowed Betty, who also lives in London with her daughter, Anu. Years later both daughters have grown up and are of marriageable age. Anu has fallen in love Danny Grover, and both are expected to marry soon. However, quite unexpectedly Danny dumps Anu for another girl, leaving her devastated and heart-broken. She travels to Bombay, India, meets a young man, Aman Mehra, from Lokhandwala Complex, Andheri West, and when she hears that Shirani is getting married to a Guju, Kunal Shah, returns home along with Aman. Arjun couldn't be happier as he is now able to see both his daughters along with their respective beaus. What Arjun does not know is that Danny had dumped Anu for Shirani and both had had a relationship; that Aman is a hired male escort, recruited by Anu to make Danny jealous; Things get worse when Danny is unknowingly invited by Kunal to attend the marriage - and this is where the past will be re-visited and Kunal may be forced to call off the wedding.

It is a Sweet, Enjoyable

It is too lethargic and Lax

Release Date : 25 December 2008

Jumbo is the name of the protagonist of this animation film, which goes by the same name. He is a cute, loveable, baby elephant, who is in search of his father. That, in a nutshell, is the basic storyline of this animation flick. But there is just one problem with the film, it is not fun enough. Considering that the film is targeted at the kiddie audience, there is very little humour and even less fun moments in the film. Also, the coming of age plot has by now become quite hackneyed and done to death by more skilled filmmakers, like in the Lion King, for instance, still an all-time favourite with kids and adults alike. The hook for the film, is supposedly Akshay Kumar, Dimple Kapadia, Gulshan Grover and Rajpal Yadav's voiceover, but it is not enough to salvage the film. The animation quality of the movie, which has been made in Thailand, is quite refreshing and good. But the story line seems to suffer from antiquity. Also, the tale is not narrated with the sense of levity as it should have been. Unfortunately, the film is much too verbose for its target audience. Forget kids, even adults will find it boring after they have got over the cuteness of Jumbo, the protagonist.The story is about Jumbo, who goes out in search of his lost father but ends up losing his mother as well. But on the journey, he discovers love with a pink elephant called Sonia (Lara Dutta's voice). He also stumbles upon an exiled kingdom, which is ruled by a good king and joins his army as a warrior elephant. He then leads the army to battle with his arch enemy, a tusker called Bhaktavar (Grover).The coming –of-age-theme and the need to emerge a winner has definitely been inspired by Lion King. But unlike the latter, which had a lot of fun elements, Jumbo lacks the fun quotient. The film is more like a moral story liberally dishing it out about peace, brotherhood and family values. This preaching-from-the-pulpit attitude mars the movie. Just because the target audience is kids does not mean that makers have a field day preaching? Films are meant for entertainment and that should rightly be the first criterion.The star voices don't really add much to the film, except for the curiosity factor. The only voice which seems to stand out and actually elicits laughter, is that of Rajpal Yadav as a messenger bird. Besides being the voice of the protagonist, Akshay also appears for an item song which comes along with the film's credits. This film, which has been directed by Kompinn Kemgumnird, is too lethargic and lax. It fails to connect with its target audience.

Maharathi is a refreshing film, in that it has an original story and screenplay. It is an adaptation of a famous Gujarati play written by Uttam Gada. It seems that actor Paresh Rawal was very keen to make it into a film, and is one of the driving forces behind this film. The other thing that Maharathi has going for it is its stellar cast. It has the likes of Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri, Paresh Rawal and Boman Irani in it, and they all are in fine form in the film. A thriller by genre, Maharathi has a very interesting plotline; the screenplay too seems to move well, except towards the end, which seems very hurried. The film does not wrap up very interestingly and thus in the final analysis, seems to lack punch.One of the best things about the film is that the audience is not privy to all the information, and thus it succeeds in giving a nice jolt now and then. In the hands of a more masterly director, it could have been quite a thriller. However, this is not to put down director Shivam Nair. The film's story revolves around Subhash (Paresh Rawal), a struggler, who has been trying to get into the movies for almost a decade. One night, he saves the life of a man, Mr Adenwalla (Naseer) and helps him back home. The very grateful Adenwalla hires him as his driver and actually feels very close to him, a fact which is resented by his young wife Mallika (Neha Dhupia). Subhash is well aware of this fact. Gradually, he manages to entrench himself in Adenwalla's house and heart. Adenwalla, a once famous filmmaker, who has fallen into hard times, is sick to death of his greedy wife. He hatches a plot and takes the ultimate revenge on her when he commits suicide in front of her and Subhash. He had insured his life for Rs 24 crore but she can only claim it if she can prove that his suicide is a murder. After Adenwalla's death, Subhash senses that fate has given him a chance to make something of his life. Hence, he plots with Mallika to prove that Adenwalla was murdered, with the understanding that they will share the loot equally. The duo decides to get a third person into the house so that they can have another witness. They enlist the help of Mr Adenwalla's lawyer, Merchant (Boman) in this and hire a caretaker (Tara Sharma). The plan is to keep up the pretence that Adenwalla is still alive, so that they have time to plot his so called ‘murder.' But things go haywire and Mallika is found dead. The cops enter the scene, along with ACP Gokhale (Om Puri) and the plot finally unravels. But Subhash manages to save himself, with the help of his wits and quick thinking.The plot, like we said, is very interesting. In fact, in parts, some of the film's sequences are quite brilliant, specially the ones featuring Paresh Rawal and Boman Irani. The actors are, of course, brilliant. And that is what saves the film. But there is a lot of confusion in the movie, especially in the final sequences when Subhash manages to save himself and implicate Merchant. Motives are not exactly clear. What is interesting, however, is the manner in which Subhash manages to wriggle out of the disaster.Since the movie moves at a very brisk pace, one somehow is not greatly bothered by it. But these questions do remain. The unraveling at the end of a thriller is very important. But Maharathi seems to stumble at this point. Also there is a sting in the tale, provided by Tara Sharma's character, but it is somehow not startling enough. A little wasted, one felt.The director could have paid a little more attention to the smaller details in the plot and the screenplay. Barring that, the film has good production values. The cinematography is good, without any unnecessary frills, unlike what one would expect in a typically shot Hindi thriller film. Even the background music is not overpowering. Nothing takes away from the action and the actors in Maharathi, no songs, nothing. Nair deserves kudos for that. There is a song in the end, but it comes only with the credits and seems more like a promotional number. Naseer's character is bumped of within the first half hour of the movie. But the master actor creates an impact with his charismatic presence. Om Puri is there for a very little while as well, but he too leaves an impact with his natural style of acting. The two are a study in contrasts, with Naseer being all flamboyance and Om, more earthy and natural. Neha Dhupia as the greedy wife is competent and so is Tara Sharma as the simple caretaker. The real acting honors in the film, however, are shared by Paresh Rawal and Boman Irani, both of who deliver seamless performances. Maharathi is an interesting film, well acted and replete with some brilliant oneliners by Paresh Rawal's character. It has almost everything going for it but lacks the ability to deliver a knockout punch at the box office.

Bool Bhulaiyaa is an exciting thriller-comedy film, the backdrop of the film revolves around a small village/town where people are very conservative and superstitious