Kucch Luv Jaisaa Release Date : 27,May 2011

Producer    Vipul Shah
 Director    Barnali Ray Shukla
 Music    Pritam Chakraborty
 Writer    Barnali Ray Shukla
 Lyrics    Irshad Kamil
 Release Date    27-May-2011

The film opens with a song which aptly captures the diminishing chemistry of a married couple, over the years, in a swift transition mode. How one wishes debutante director Barnali Ray Shukla could show the same alacrity throughout the film, which sadly turns into a lethargic lesson into nothingness.

More than a decade since their marriage, romance in certainly not as candyfloss as it used to be between Madhu (Shifaali Shah) and her husband (Sumit Raghavan). But when her husband forgets to wish her on birthday, a disheartened Madhu eventually takes it upon herself to make her day happening. She buys herself a car for just a couple of lakhs (and no, it's not a Nano)!

Further she stumbles upon a passport forger, Raghav (Rahul Bose) who she mistakes for a detective. And her idea of making her birthday happening is to spend it with Mr. Detective, understanding the nitty-gritty of his spying business. While you expect the contrasting characters to set on an adventurous ride hereon, they only make way for a lackluster and unexciting narrative.

The major setback of the film is Barnali's uninspiring writing which gives no graph to the narrative. After Madhu and Raghav check into some resort, the story becomes stagnant. Also their fake pursuit of a target doesn't take the story anywhere. Unlike Bose's earlier films like Mr & Mrs Iyer and Chameli , where his random encounter with an unknown female led to interesting outcome, here the proceedings only become boring and tiresome over time. Add to that, there's hardly any chemistry between Rahul Bose and Shifaali Shah which adds to your apathy.

The man seems to have his set of problems in life, the woman has her, they start discussing their problems and subsequently the viewer seems to have problem with them. To start with, Madhu's inclination to go spying with a stranger seems too flimsy and far-fetched. And while the viewer remains indifferent by their encounter, the two are influenced enough by their one-day adventure (or the lack of it) to have changed perspectives towards life. The criminal surrenders. The housewife encourages her school-going teenaged daughter to be open about her love life!

Shifaali Shah is decent but gets hyperactive with her expressions at times. Rahul Bose carries a forced accent and seems uncomfortable in his character of a small-time crook. The talented Sumeet Raghavan doesn't get much scope. Neetu Chandra speaks through her lipstick.

This dull film ends up being Kucch TV serial jaisa !

404 Release Date : 20,May 2011

Producer    Nameeta Nair
 Director    Prawaal Raman
 Music    Sameeruddin
 Writer    Rajvvir Aroraa, Imaad Shah, Satish Kaushik, Tisca Chopra, Nishikant Kamat, Mukes
 Lyrics    Imaad Shah, Rachel Varghese
 Release Date    20-May-2011

No, this is not a sci-fi action film nor is it about cyber crime. The name and the tagline of the film, 404 - Error Not Found, is misleading. After Ragini MMS and Haunted, Bollywood continues to flirt with ghosts, with its latest release, 404. However, this film is smart, dark and yes, spooky, too.

As soon as Abhimanyu (Rajvir Arora) and other juniors enter medical college, they are ragged by a bunch of seniors. These seniors are pro at the art of ragging and are unstoppable. Leading the pack of these sinister seniors is Chris (Imaad Shah). Then there is Abhimanyu, a confident young man, who is not afraid of Chris. The seniors are irked by his attitude and decide to harass him further. Professor Aniruddh (played by film director Nishikant Kamath) teaches psychiatry to students and is part of the guest faculty. Aniruddh and his lecturer wife (Tisca Chopra) stand in support of Abhimanyu.

Drama unfolds when Abhimanyu insists on moving into room number 404 in the hostel, which is kept locked after a student Gaurav committed suicide there. Abhimanyu doesn't believe in ghosts, but the seniors are hell bent on trying to instill fear in him. Slowly situation changes, and then starts the thrilling drama that reveals some horrific tricks that mind can play.

Debutant director Prawaal Raman, who has also written the script, offers a thrilling edge-of-the-seat fare. Not too gimmicky (except for the last scene, where Kamath's histrionics could have been controlled), the film is fast paced and has a taut script. It is one of those rare horror films, which is not dumb and in your face. Some scenes, however, are pretty predictable, like the one where Abhimanyu is cleaning the mirror of all the things in his room, facilitating the 'ghost' to show itself in it.

This is a limited budget movie and the compromises show on screen. Even though it is a huge medical college, only a handful of key students are seen everywhere, even during a protest march against the senior
students.

The cast is efficient. Kamath tends to go overboard at some points, but nevertheless, surprises with his acting capability. Imaad Shah is perfect and stays away from overdoing it though his character provides ample opportunity for exaggeration. The movie is totally watchable.

Pyaar Ka Punchnama Release Date : 20,May 2011

Producer    Abhishek Pathak
 Director    Luv Ranjan
 Music    Clinton Cerejo, Hitesh Sonik, Luv Ranjan, Ad Boys
 Writer    Luv Ranjan
 Lyrics    Luv Ranjan
 Release Date    20-May-2011

It seems anti-rom-coms are taking Bollywood by storm. LUV KA THE END released a few days back and this week it's PYAAR KA PUNCHNAMA. We're sure it's tag line - Come...fall out of love, won't make Aditya Chopra, Karan Johar and the likes very happy.
First things first. The promos of PYAAR KA PUNCHNAMA gave the impression that it's a sex comedy. But it isn't. It's about relationships. While watching the film, one is also reminded of Madhur Bhandarkar's DIL TOH BACCHA HAI JI, which released early this year.
The film traces the life of three friends - Rajat (Kartikeya Tiwari), Vikrant (Raayo Bhakhirta) and Nishant aka Liquid (Divyendu Sharma), who are desperate to get girlfriends. Their wishes are answered soon. Rajat meets Neha (Nushrat Bharucha) and soon gets in a live-in relationship with her. Vikrant falls for hottie Riya (Sonalli Sehgal), who still can't get over her ex-boyfriend. Liquid is smitten by his new manipulative colleague Charu (Ishita Sharma), who uses him to get her office work done. As time passes, the relationships of all the tree couples starts getting from bad to worse. Will they hold on is what forms the rest of the story.
The film is an anti-rom-com and director Luv Ranjan rightly doesn't waste much time in establishing the romance between the characters. The initial few minutes of the film are fresh and enjoyable. The problem in the film arises when the couples start facing problems in their respective relationships. All the tracks drag to no end. While the first half is still bearable, the second half just goes on and on. The best part of the second half, infact the entire film, is the 5-minute-long hilarious monologue by Rajat. He perhaps echoes the thoughts of each and every boy who's in a relationship.
Many of the things shown in the film are real are relatable. But they get very monotonous and boring as a viewer. The graph of the film oscillates from being very funny to very clumsy. The film needed to be much shorter, which would have helped it immensely.
The music by Clinton Cerejo, Hitesh Sonik, Luv Ranjan and Ad Boys goes well with the film with Baanware being the best song. Akiv Ali's editing is okay. Sudhir K Chaudhary's cinematography is good. The dialogues follow the lingo of today's youngsters.
Kartikeya Tiwari is decent. Vikrant delivers a very restrained performance. Divyendu Sharma is excellent. Among the girls, Nushrat Bharucha is the best. She delivers a confident performance. Sonalli Sehgal looks great but is pretty ordinary when it comes to acting. Ishita Sharma is passable.
PYAAR KA PUNCHNAMA is inconsistent and lacks 'punch'.

Kashmakash Release Date : 20,May 2011

Producer    Subhash Ghai
 Director    Rituparno Ghosh
 Release Date    20-May-2011

A sensitive story by Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, released around his 150th birth anniversary, Kashmakash (dubbed from Bengali film, Naukadoobi) is a fitting tribute.

Set in the 1920s the film talks about true love, eternal loyalty and patience. These words might sound a tad bit dated to today's generation, but the story is progressive in its own way. It subtly takes on the social conventions and questions the credibility of marriage as an institution.

Ramesh (Jishu Sengupta) is in love with Hemnalini (Raima Sen) but he is forced to marry Susheela, a widow's daughter. Hem, unaware of Ramesh's wedding, waits and pines for him. Ramesh and his bride meet with a boat accident and in a mix up of sorts, Ramesh ends up with another woman, Kamala (Riya Sen) who he mistakes for his bride. When Ramesh realises the mistake, in a bid to hide the scandal, sets up home in Raipur with Kamala.
Raima Sen dazzles in the role of an independent, progressive thinking woman who is hurt by love, but has too much pride to wallow in self pity. She has a special relationship with her father (played brilliantly by Dhritman Chatterjee) and it is only with him she shares her woes and her thoughts.

Riya Sen surprises with her performance playing a village woman who is in a vulnerable situation but is strong enough to seek her husband, in spite of the societal pressures.

Both the Sen sisters are perfectly cast in their roles. Jishu Sengupta as the weak and tormented gentleman does justice to his character.

Prosenjit as Dr Nalinaksha, Kamala's estranged husband, is pretty good too, considering that his role is not really a prominent one.

As is the case in many of Gurudev's novels, women are the strong and dominant characters and it almost seems like Hemangini was written with someone like Raima in mind.
Tagore's story, Rituparno Ghosh's sense of romance and drama, Gulzar's lyrics and music by Sanjoy-Raja and Ghosh makes Kashmakash a film that should not be missed, especially by the romantics amongst us.

Ragini MMS Release Date : 13,May 2011

Producer    Ekta Kapoor, Shobha Kapoor
 Director    Pawan Kripalani
 Music    S D Burman, Shamir Tandon, Faizan Hussain, Agnel Boman, Bappi Lahiri
 Writer    Pawan Kripalani, Vaspar Dandiwala
 Lyrics    Majrooh Sultanpuri, Virag Mishra, Faizan Hussain, Agnel Boman, Indeevar
 Release Date    13-May-2011

Movie Review: The film has obviously been inspired by Paranormal Activity, the cult horror film that created waves with its grainy hand-held video footage. But rest assured, there is such a strong desi flavour to the film, you rarely end up thinking of the Hollywood indie film.

Ragini and Uday make an interesting couple. She's the fragile uptown girl, unabashed about expressing her sexual demands. While he's the desi boy who sprinkles his conversation with gaalis and cuss words and is no-nakhra about his hormonal rage. Also, he has no qualms about exploiting the pretty young thing who trusts him completely. Why should he? He's been promised a film career if he delivers: dream fulfilled for wannabe stars....

Most of the action transpires within the closed doors of the spooky house, where the lights come and go, the stairs unnecessarily creep and shadows flit across, when no one's looking. The chills factory gets in overdrive when the ghost decides to make her presence felt and begins to yank hair, fling bodies, and wound flesh in the middle of the foreplay.

The horror does work in places, although the persistent dim light and the grainy video effect tend to get a bit irksome. But the realistic performances by the lead pair more than make up for the lapses.

Watch it for its novelty and for the fact that Ragini MMS makes a heady cocktail of sex and horror that's so very different from run-of-the-mill Bollywood. 

Stanley Ka Dabba Release Date : 13,May 2011

Producer    Amole Gupte
 Director    Amole Gupte
 Music    Hitesh Sonik
 Writer    Amole Gupte
 Lyrics    Amole Gupte
 Release Date    13-May-2011

Movie Review: Amole Gupte is magical with kids. And that's because he seems to be as much a psychologist as a filmmaker. After writing Taare Zameen Par, he writes and directs Stanley Ka Dabba, another heartwarming film about children just being children, with all their cares and carefree abandon. And adults just being adults, with all their idiosyncrasies, quirks and secret anguish.

The beauty of Stanley Ka Dabba lies in its sheer simplicity and authenticity. The film creates a slice of life from the pages of any and every school in big and small town India where kids just want to have fun and teachers want to be the proverbial killjoys. Of course, there are exceptions, like the popular Miss Rosie (Divya Dutta) who generously sprinkles her conversations with terms of endearments and encourages every glimpse of creativity in the kids. The biggest bugbear however is Sir Babubhai Verma (Amole Gupte) who is more interested in gobbling the kids' food rather than teaching Hindi. Stanley becomes his pet peeve because he never seems to have his dabba, yet ends up having a daily feast with his friends. Why? Because he is the most popular boy in class and his friends simply adore him. Needless to say, Stanley's missing dabba becomes a metaphor for his mysterious life....

The other highpoint are the sterling performances. Almost all the adults have created picture perfect portraits of the various types of teachers all of us have grown up with. But in the end, it is the kids who walk away with all the laurels, specially young Partho whose Stanley remains with you, long after curtain call.

Don't miss this rich and nuanced soul curry for both, the young and adult heart. 

Shagird Release Date : 13,May 2011

Producer    Hussain Shaikh
 Director    Tigmanshu Dhulia
 Music    Abhishek Ray
 Writer    Tigmanshu Dhulia, Kamal Pandey
 Release Date    13-May-2011


There is this utterly delightful action sequence where Nana Patekar, playing a belligerent corrupt but effectual cop in a crime-infested small town of Uttar Pradesh run by the political mafia, barges on to a nefarious hide-out. He peeps into the room where the goons are watching a vintage black-and-white song on television. Then they switch to a channel airing a Himesh Reshammiya song.

Patekar slams into the room and shoots them all down.

“This is what happens when you listen to the wrong songs. ”

The savage humour of the above sequence stays with you in a film that could have made a much more forceful impact had Shagird come four years earlier.

Given today’s jaded political scenario with politicians of both genders perpetrating the most obnoxious deeds of corruption on the national exchequer, the Bunty Bhaiyas and the Shakeel Bhais of this film appear to be relatively harmless creatures of the underworld.

Like the cops in the films of earlier millennium this film arrives a little late after the action is over. The film exudes the scent of jadedness. That could also be because of the characters who are so steeped in corruption and debauchery they seem born for hell. However the feeling of experiencing something decadent seeps deeper into the narrative.

Much of the goings-on fall into the realm of ‘realistic’ cinema located in the cow-belt that has been a staple of a certain breed of directors like Vishal Bhardwaj, Anurag Kashyap and Tigmanshu Dhulia.

The absence of an inspiring budget repeatedly takes its toll on the narrative’s claim to credibility. There are innumerable sequences which jump out of nowhere, and not in a startling but annoying show of unpredictability.

The kidnapping of the tv journalist Rimi Sen and her two colleagues by militants looks so staged you wonder how seasoned professionals could fall for it.

What works are some of the dialogues and Nana Patekar’s wry cynical cop’s part. He brings in that familiar yet engaging element of intrepid defiance into the theme of corruption and compromise.

Here again, the role suffers from a sense of staleness. Patekar and his shagird from the police department were far more warmly portrayed in Shimit Amin’s Ab Tak Chappan by Patekar and Nakul Vaid.

Shagird is not devoid of merit. The Patekar characters affinity to vintage film songs gives a centre to an otherwise-doddering tale of desperate corruption.

They don’t make songs like they used to. Neither do the contemporary cops thrillers like Dum Maro Dum and Shagird match the brutal persuasive powers of past cops flicks like Zanjeer and Ardh Satya.

Khakee is a fading colour in our movies. The hero in Shagird doesn’t even bother to wear it.