Yuvraj review

Every step you take, every move you make… we’ll be watchin’ you. Have altered the lines of a famous song. For, this one is applicable for Subhash Ghai, a proficient storyteller, one of the most successful stories from this side of the Atlantic. Irrespective of how his films are received at the ticket window, Ghai’s movies are always under scrutiny. You watch every film with a magnifying glass.

yuvraj is no exception!

Ghai’s forte has been drama. Recall the dramatic moments in Karz, Vidhaata, Meri Jung, Ram Lakhan, Karma, Saudagar. He re-visits the genre with      yuvraj. Besides,      yuvraj is his most opulent work thus far. It has a sweeping effect, the film makes a stunning visual statement.

Honestly,      yuvraj isn’t Ghai’s best work, but post Yaadein, Kisna and Black & White,      yuvraj salvages him, even redeems the storyteller.

The story (Ghai) mirrors a universal truth. Greed leads to disputes and in turn, ruins all relationships. A fact you’ve heard or witnessed time and again in real life. While the story is captivating, the screenplay doesn’t really do justice to the thought. Also, Rahman’s music acts as a soothing balm, but the problem is, it takes time to grow on the listener. And that could be a deterrent.

Yet, in all fairness,      yuvraj is a notch above the commonplace. If you intend spending your hard-earned money on it or devoting 3 hours of your precious time on Ghai’s new outing, chances are you won’t regret it.

Deven      yuvraj (Salman Khan) is a chorus singer, in love with Anushka (Katrina Kaif). Her father Dr. Banton (Boman Irani), however, is dead against this relationship. Things take a turn when Deven’s father passes away and he returns to London to stake claim on his father’s wealth.

He meets his two estranged brothers Gyanesh      yuvraj (Anil Kapoor) and Danny      yuvraj (Zayed Khan) after almost twelve years. But things aren’t hunky-dory between them…

Ghai has an eye for visuals and every frame of  yuvraj seems like a painting on celluloid. Unmistakably, that’s the first thing you notice as      yuvraj unfolds.

It takes time to absorb      yuvraj. In fact, Ghai doesn’t open all his cards at the very outset. It’s only when the father (Javed Shaikh) passes away and Mithun Chakraborty, the Executor of the Will, enters the scene that the wheels start moving.

The film gathers momentum after the interval. If the first hour has a few by-now-famous Ghai scenes, the second hour sees Ghai in form, with a number of sequences staying in your memory. The penultimate 20-25 minutes are the best. Watch Anil go through the handycam with disbelief, watch Anil and Salman’s act during the concert, watch Salman’s emotional outburst towards the end… also the titles (brings back memories of Om Shanti Om).

On the flip side, the screenplay is erratic. There’re constant highs and lows in this journey, the film works in patches. In fact, the screenplay falls prey to predictability and mediocrity at places.

Ghai handles the dramatic scenes with flourish. Rahman’s music is soothing, but you expect more because Ghai’s movies are embellished with lilting music that you recall even after 2 or 3 decades. Kabir Lal captures the striking beauty of Europe well. The output is superb. The sets (Omung Kumar) are truly majestic.

yuvraj belongs to Anil Kapoor, who towers above the entire cast and delivers a natural, believable performance. Salman’s looks are inconsistent. At times the boyish look is intact, at times he looks bloated. Ditto for his hairstyle. His performance, however, is better, mainly towards the finale. Zayed tries hard and convinces in a few scenes. Mithun Chakraborty is fantastic in a brief role.

Katrina looks angelic. Despite the focus being on the three men, she registers an impact. Boman Irani is credible, especially in the scene when he steps out of the Operation Theatre towards the end. Aushima Sawhney is confident. Anjan Srivastava and the pack of villains/vamps look straight out of Ram Lakhan and Taal.
On the whole,      yuvraj is interesting in parts, with the penultimate 20/25 minutes taking the film to an all-time high. At the box-office, the package (a mammoth cast, Subhash Ghai, A.R. Rahman, the stunning locales of Europe) should ensure a hearty opening and with no major opposition in the forthcoming week, it should keep its investors smiling.

Yuvraj Director: Subhash Ghai

Yuvraj Cast: Salman Khan, Anil Kapoor, Katrina Kaif, Zayed Khan, Boman Irani, Mithun Chakraborty, Aushima Sawhney

Avakaya Biryani movie review

Cast: Kamal Kamaraju, Bindu Madhavi, Ramesh Rao and others.

Music: Manikanth Kadri

Director: Aneesh Kuruvilla

Producer: Shekhar Kammula and Chandrasekhar Kammula
Avakaya Biryani is canned in a village backdrop and the scenario is quite pure and crystal clear. The first half of the movie is interesting and some scenes succeed in tickling the audience. But the second half lacks the zeal and the climax is well carved and is a little bit tense.

Story

Avakaya Biryani starts with the first frame in a village back drop like a typical Shekhar Kammula movie. Akbar (Kamal Kamaraju) is the only auto driver of a 7 seater auto in a remote village. He is a paper boy of the village in the early mornings and transforms as an auto driver in the day. He is a Muslim with very broad minded thoughts. Though he is an orphan, he grows up with utmost qualities and ethics and grows up with some secular thoughts.

Akbar is constantly pestered by a Muslim leader Babar who is tries to poison the mind of Akbar with some religion related thoughts. But Akbar never deviates from his original principles and so is a well natured guy at heart.

Akbar has his friends who are dearer to him in all manners and considers Masterjee (Rao Ramesh) as his mentor.

Then the twist in Avakaya Biryani takes place as the heroine enters the life of the hero. A Brahmin family visits the village and resides in the village from then on. It is discovered by Akbar that the family is settling in the village and to earn a living they desire to open up a Tiffin center in the village.

Moreover, to gain some more earnings the Brahmin family plans to sell pickles in the nearby towns and village and the family head, who is an orthodox minded character, hands over the marketing business of the pickles to his wise daughter Laxmi (Bindu)

With no other option for transportation, Laxmi has to travel to in Akbar’s auto. After few sweet incidents the hero and the heroine fall in love. But the main hurdle is their religion and then the story goes on the usual way with some suspense and the usual drama.

Finally, all ends well and the climax is pretty much as expected by the youth.

Performances

Kamal Kamaraju who played the character of an IPS officer in the movie Godavari is the male lead in this film. He plays the character of a Muslim youngster in this film and the movie portrays in an apt role according to his body language. His expressions are according to his dialogues and his acting skills are well exposed.

Bindu Madhavi who is a typical Hyderabadi girl gives a good screen presence. Still she has to improve her dialogue deliver and is ago at the dancing skills. In some scenes she looks like a Bengali babe and with the sari below her naval she steals the eyes of every male audience.

The other characters like Rao Ramesh performed well in this film and the music is melodious and apt to the mood which the film creates,
One thing is quite clear that the movie has nothing to offer to the mass crowds, but is a family entertainer to some extent with a classic touch.

The director carved the movie in such way that it looks like the movie been directed by Shekhar himself.

On the whole Avakaya Biryani will be a respite to those who need a soothing experience and are well tailored to reach to all modes of life.

It has been a while since viewers got to see a good situational comedy. And expectations are high from talented actor Vinay Pathak’s first production venture

“Dasvidaniya”, which releases Friday.

The actor-turned-producer had the viewers in splits in “Bheja Fry” along with Rajat Kapoor and Ranvir Shorey.

Directed by first time filmmaker Shashant Shah, “Dasvidaniya”, which means good bye in Russian, is a bittersweet situational comedy that revolves around Amar

Kaul (Vinay Pathak), whose existence is easily forgotten among the millions of people in Mumbai’s ever-increasing population.

Amar, as a shy and quiet guy, lives a dull and monotonous life in the city and is almost non-existent to people around him. It is his obsession for making

his daily to-do list every morning that keeps him motivated to look forward to another day in his life.

And then suddenly his doctor tells him that he will die within three months. Then begins a journey of a lifetime for Amar, where he sets out to write his

final to-do list. He lists down 10 things he has to do before he dies and he feels the list would make his life worthy, before it actually ends.

As the countdown begins, Amar succeeds in fulfilling the final tasks on his wish list and in the course of doing them, he realises that he had actually been

‘dead’ despite being alive until now.

Amar is symbolic of all those people who have always wanted to do things but kept them on hold.

Thanks to changing tastes of viewers and the multiplex culture, experimental films have carved a niche for themselves and, going by the past performances of

such films at the box office, “Dasvidaniya” may succeed in entertaining people

Cast: Surya Siva Kumar, Simran, Divya Spandana, Sameera Reddy and others

Music: Harris Jayaraj

Direction: Gautham Vasudev Menon

Producer: Aascar Films

Vaaranam Aayiram is a typical Gautham Menon film which seems to be pretty close to his real life and has a message at an end. The movie has a three hour long heavy sentiment drama, which has all the ingredients of Romance, love, comedy and at last advocates non- smoking heavily, as it gives a hard slap to all the smokers who can face the harsh consequence of Cancer. Surya is superb and Simran steals the show with her superb acting skills.

Story

Surya (Junior Surya), the son of Krishnan is an emotionally bonded guy with his parents and his sister. He grows up seeing his parent’s immense love towards each other and the passion towards him and his sister. The different phases of life, are well depicted in this film as the child, teenage life, adulthood in a man’s world are well illustrated. Surya is closely attached to his father and Simran who plays the character of mother to him inspires him for being strongly will powered and also to be emotionally weak sometimes.

Krishnan (Senior Surya) is Surya’s Father who is a middle class man and ventures out to USA in order to fetch his true love Simran. They marry and are proud parents of two siblings. Surya and his sister as told earlier get the inspiration and lesson from their parents that nothing is impossible in this world if your dedication and the sanctity in heart are well pure.
With these principles, Junior Surya gets into his adult hood with a brief love phase in his life. He falls in love with Meghna (Sameera reddy) but the love ends as soon as it is started as Meghna decides to part her ways in order to pursue her professional dreams. She prefers to chase her dreams rather than accompanying Surya. Moved by this Surya regrets to be in love with Meghna and desires for a beloved who is in lines of his mother Malini (Simran).

Surya fetches a defense cop career and is posted somewhere in Jammu and Kashmir. After a few reels of regular kidnapping and goon bashing drama, Surya’s heroic skills are well expressed. Unfortunately he is informed about his father Krishnan’s illness of cancer and leaves the base camp, to be with his family.

He immediately packs and moves to his family and realizes that his father Krishnan is ill and his mother Malini is shaken by this incident. But again, Krishnan inspires his son by his strong will power and determination to invade out through his illness.

Then Surya’s wife Priya (Divya Spandana) enters his life and they marry happily. But Krishnan’s illness deepens day by day and this makes him close to his grave. In a scene which is heart touching, where he tries hard to express something to his grandson, but fails to do as his Vocal Cords fail indicating the last stages of life.

The whole movie is packed with sentiment and love towards a family and the movie is loaded with an emotional drama in every scene.

Finally, the movie ends with a justified climax and this is a suspense which must be seen on the big screen.

Performances

Surya Siva Kumar plays the dual role of Krishnan and Surya in this film. The actor doesn’t need a certificate for his acting as he has immense talent. The senior surya looks more promising with his make up and depicts a perfect middle aged person with lots of experience to reveal. Junior Surya plays the role of an obedient son to his father and is tinged with some love, romance and mother sentiment from the female characters.

Simran plays the character of Malini who is a Pativratha to Krishnan. She plays the role with ease and takes on the limelight of this film.

Priya is the character played by Divya Spandana. The character demands some love, attitude and also sometimes emotions and Divya Justifies her character as a wife to Surya.

Sameera Reddy enters the life of the hero like a breeze and plays the character of Meghna. She moves around the trees with the hero and finally departs.
O the whole, the movie is highly sentimental drama which has nothing for the mass crowds. The movie will surely hit the 50 day mark, due to its touching story. But may finally give up after 70 day mark.

Recall the ‘Kantaben’ episode in Karan Johar’s Kal Ho Naa Ho. The episode is alive even today, in skits, on stage, amongst friends. That was a mere trailer. Picture abhi baaki hain. Dostana takes ‘Kantaben’ episode to another level altogether.

Dostana is no BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN. It’s not a serious take on homosexuality either. On the contrary, it’s a madcap comedy where two straight men pretend to be gays. Although Dostana is a mainstream commercial film, it dares to push the envelope in its own way. It brings homosexuality out of the closet, gives it respect and dignity and doesn’t treat gays as ‘abnormal’.

Love triangle in Hindi movies often centre around two guys falling in love with the same girl, or two girls choosing to love the same guy. But Dostana is a first. It’s the first Hindi film that, at the core, is a rectangle [three men loving the same woman], but two of them, guys in this case, pretend to be a couple.

Sure, Dostana has ample shock-value since what has been witnessed in its promos is barely a fraction of what you’d get to watch in the movie. But more than shock-value, the film offers loads of fun-n-laughter and dollops of entertainment in those 14 reels.

A word of appreciation! It requires courage to fund a project like Dostana. Karan Johar, the producer, deserves to be lauded for treading the untrodden path. It requires courage and conviction to swim against the tide in your directorial debut. Tarun Mansukhani, the debutante, deserves a few brownie points extra for not thinking straight. It requires courage for two A-list actors to go all out and risk their professional [and personal] lives. Abhishek and John deserve an ovation for not only agreeing to play these characters, but also infusing life in them, without making a mockery of the gay community.

To cut a long story short, Dostana is not to be missed. Dharma Productions, the late Yash Johar and Karan Johar’s film production outfit, has produced several significant films in the past. Add Dostana to the list!

Miami is the setting for Dostana. When Sameer [Abhishek Bachchan] and Kunal [John Abraham] are turned down for an apartment because the landlady [Sushmita Mukherjee] doesn’t want two strapping young men to corrupt her young sexy niece Neha [Priyanka Chopra], they hatch a plan: they pretend to be gay to secure the apartment.

Over a period of time, Sameer, Kunal and Neha become buddies. When Neha’s boss Abhimanyu [Bobby Deol] enters the fray as the third contender for her affections, it gets even hotter…

Dostana shocks you all the while and that is its biggest USP. Don’t expect stereotypical situations or characters all through this film. Watch Abhishek cook up a romantic story between John and him in Venice. Watch Boman Irani’s interaction with Abhishek and John. Watch Kirron Kher’s dramatic entry at this point. Howlarious scenes all, they’re sure to bring the house down.

If the first hour is laced with crackling chemistry between the guys and terrific humour, things get serious towards the second half since there’s one more person vying for Priyanka’s attention — Bobby Deol. There’s humour in this hour too, but the focus is mainly on who’d get Priyanka in the end.

The length is a slight deterrent in the second half and the editor could’ve easily cut the unwanted flab to make the narration in shape. But the film works as a package! Also, the film has a shocking end and people are bound to raise eyebrows. It would have its share of advocates and adversaries. A debatable culmination, for sure!

Director Tarun Mansukhani is here to stay. He deserves kudos for choosing an offbeat story, then making a foolproof screenplay and most importantly, executing it with flourish. Dostana merges form and content beautifully, since the film is, technically speaking, sound. Ayananka Bose’s cinematography is top notch. The locales of Miami are a feast for your eyes. Costumes and styling are very upmarket.

Vishal-Shekhar’s music goes well with the mood of the film. It’s young, peppy and energetic. ‘Desi Girl’ and ‘Maa Da Laadla Bigad Gaya’ are foot-tapping compositions. The latter is bound to be a rage!

Both Abhishek and John are fantabulous! Abhishek pulls out all the stops and delivers one of the finest performances of his career. His comic timing is superb! John will make guys and girls drool over his amazing physique. But, most importantly, people will sit up and notice how fine an actor John is. Both Abhishek and John compliment each other so well. In fact, had the chemistry and camaraderie been missing, the story would’ve failed to look convincing. Two thumbs up for these two guys!

Priyanka looks stunning and delivers a first-rate performance. First FASHION, now Dostana, Priyanka is back with a bang. Bobby Deol lends the required class to his role. No other actor would’ve looked so real while underplaying this character.

Boman Irani is sure to bring the house down, the auditorium is sure to resonate with laughter in his sequences. Kirron Kher is superb as the Punjabi mom. Watch her throw a fit when she learns that her son [Abhishek] is gay and much later, when she accepts John as family. She’s remarkable! Sushmita Mukherjee, as Priyanka’s aunt, is fantastic. She’s so, so funny. Shilpa Shetty sizzles in the opening track.

On the whole, Dostana is a winner all the way. In terms of content, it might just prove to be a trendsetter. In terms of business, the film holds tremendous appeal for the youth. The 16 to 25 age-group would go into raptures and bonkers over this film. Its business at multiplexes mainly will be amazing. In Overseas too, the film should emerge amongst the biggest draws of 2008. Dostana rocks… have a blast!

Vaaranam Aayiram which is going to hit the silver screen with almost 560 prints tomorrow is all set to release on 13^th night as a premiere has been organized in USA and Gautham Menon and Sameera Reddy will be attending the premiere.

Preview

Cast: Surya Siva Kumar, Simran, Sameera Reddy, and Divya.

Banner: Oscar Films

Director Gautham

Music; Harris Jayaraj

Surya plays a dual character in this film and the film depicts the relationship between a father and son, the bond shared by them with some dramatic scenes. Simran will act as a wife to senior Surya and will play the character of a mother to junior Surya who experiences the bitter tastes of life. He is seen being ragged by his school seniors and is also involved in a brawl with the street rowdies. The phase of a youngster grown up in a middle class family is well portrayed in this film and the kind of experiences, infatuations and the tragedy is well depicted in the climax.

Young Surya is in love with Divya Spandana and has a passion to become a musician. He instead lands up as army official and what happens to his love Divya, and what is the need of Sameera to enter the scene is the climax of the story.

The movie has all the ingredients like emotions, sentiments, love, passion , message and a patronage for one’s own country is well available in this movie.

Aegan Movie Review

Cast: Ajith, Nayantara, Navdeep, Suhasini Mani Ratnam, Jayaram, Suman, Nasser, Sriram, and others.

Music: Yuvan Shanker Raja

Direction: Raju Sundaram

Producer: Ayangaran International

AEGAN is a film which has come out of the mind of Raju Sundaram and is a carbon copy of “Main Hoon Naa”. For those who never watched the Hindi Main Hoon Naa this movie appeals the most. And for all those who have seen the Shahrukh’s Movie, this movie looks ridiculous and looks overloaded with glamour and Raju Sundaram’s way of expressing comedy.

Story

Ajith is an encounter specialist who aims at the criminals and tries to eradicate them from their roots. He is a sharp shooter and mimics the Hollywood heroes in some scenes like flying in the air and aiming the bad guys. His father who is a senior officer calls Ajith to trace an informer who was a follower to a criminal. Initially the informer agrees to reveal the truths of a dreaded terrorist. But due to the fear of his life the informer disappears into hiding and his name is Devan.

Devan believes that if goes against his crime lord, his life will be in serious threat and so backs off from his police approver role suspecting the police. The cops trace out that Devan’s daughter is studying in a college located in ooty and will be a great asset in luring Devan again as a police informer.

With the duty to follow Devan’s daughter Ajith walks into the college as a student and discovers another truth that his step brother is studying in the same college.

Navdeep plays the character of Ajith’s step brother who later on discovers that Ajith his elder bother and a son of his father.

Nayantara plays the role of a glam doll teacher in the movie who shows her every inch in the body liberally. Her saris minus the usual blouses and instead string supported clothes wrapped around her bosom give the mass public an eye treat. She is seen in micro minis, floral tops which expose her well tones shapes and sizes to the maximum extent.

Piya is another heroine in this film who plays the character of Navdeep’s beloved and plays the character of the Devan’s daughter. She plays her best in the movie, but is dominated by Nayantara.

Suhasini plays the character of mother to Navdeep and is a strep mother to Ajith by the etching plot. .

The movie has nothing more to divulge and at last ends well in a happy note with the bad being punished and the good cheering up.

Performances

Ajith’s role as an encounter specialist is apt to the character as his macho image is well matched with the action skills. The first half of the movie revolves around him and then the characters become messy. But still the climax gives us the impression that Ajith was the perfect choice to do the action scenes and hanging to the wires.

Nayantara acts less and reveals more which thus makes every penny paid to her justified. She is seen in skimpy clothes and sometimes in saris which bare her back and curves to a large extent. He chiseled well toned cleavage and naval region is visible to the audience in every son she does and this will be a highlight in this movie. Her previous Bikini act in Billa last year is going to be overshadowed this time with her latest deeds of acting in fewer clothes.

Navdeep plays his role easily and suits the character of Ajith’s brother well. His cat eyes and chocolate face is appealing to the girl’s gang in the theatres.

Piya gives her 100% to the movie and just succeeds in making her presence on screen.

Suhasini acts well as a mother and so does Nasser who plays his character making it resemble a real life.

The music which is composed by Yuvan Shanker Raja looks dull and below average. No tune is catchy and just film in the reel. The 3 minute songs are visually well shot, but the tunes are little bit dull without any class or a mass ouch. Freedom song which has Ajith in his dancing shoes lives a little bit more than expected. Except for that single, the other songs are truly terrible.

The movie seems to be carved in a typical Raju Sundaram style. With comedy sinking the core elements in the film, the movie notches the suspense element down. It is better if all the choreographers like Raghava Lawrence and now Raju Sundaram stay away from the direction department from now.

On the whole the movie is going to sink its life after a 50 days run. And if some external factors help it, the movie may touch the mark of 100 days. It is possible if the fans of Ajith desire to do so.

Jog your memory a bit. Samir Karnik’s first two movies [KYUN HO GAYA NA, NANHE JAISALMER] have been critical and commercial disasters. But Samir has assembled an impressive cast for his new outing HEROES. The billboards look really impressive. You think, chalo, dekhte hain, will Samir deliver this time? Will his fortunes change for better? Come to think of it, you saunter into the auditorium with zilch expectations. HEROES is an underdog.

Before we delve any further, let’s clear a few misconceptions pertaining to this film. Just because the promos highlight the men in uniform, it doesn’t mean HEROES is a ‘war film’. Sure, it talks about love for the nation, but HEROES is not anti-Pakistan, is not jingoistic either, is nowhere close to BORDER, LOC and the likes, in terms of content.

HEROES talks about a journey undertaken by two boys and the three letters they’ve to deliver to the families of the deceased. HEROES is more of an emotional experience, how each family copes with life after their beloved has become a martyr.

Besides evoking strong emotions, HEROES also arouses strong patriotic feelings. There’re moments in the film that compel you to salute those who guard our nation, so that we can sleep in peace. At the end, the message it delivers is simple — You don’t have to be a soldier to love your country.

Back to the two pertinent questions we raised at the outset. Question 1, Does Samir deliver? HEROES is a revelation. Cinema is all about narrating stories and Samir proves that he’s a proficient storyteller. Question 2, will he prove lucky this time? Well, HEROES has all it takes to strike a chord, with family audiences mainly. The moments linger in your memory much after the show has concluded.

Final verdict? HEROES salutes the heroes who guard our nation. It’s a powerful film. A moving experience!

HEROES is the story Sammy [Sohail Khan] and Ali [Vatsal Sheth] who travel a thousand miles to deliver three letters as a part of their film school assignment. But little do they know that the journey they have embarked upon will give a new meaning to their life.

HEORES unfolds in three chapters. But before that you get to see the wild side of two misled youth who don’t take life seriously. The first chapter, Salman-Preity, is the highpoint of the film. The emotional moments in this chapter are worth applauding. Note the moments between Salman-Preity and also between the kid [Dwij Yadav] and the two youth. The scene at the Indo-Pak border — the fence dividing the two nations — is amazing. Watch Preity missing her husband and also embracing his uniform. Another brilliant stroke! This chapter deserves a 10 on 10 for its high emotional quotient and captivating performances.

Chapter 2 is slightly less impactful than Chapter 1. The portions between Sunny and Bobby are well executed, but the writing isn’t as compelling. Yet, the fight sequence — when a group of hooligans act smart with Sunny’s girlfriend [Hrishitaa Bhatt] — is superb. Sunny’s ‘dhai kilo ka haath’ and the way it shatters the tiles on the floor leaves a strong impact. Watch this sequence with the masses and you’d only hear whistles and claps. Another scene from this chapter — Sunny paying his last respects to Bobby — is moving.

The third chapter [Mithun, Dino] is the softest link. Nothing wrong with the writing or its execution, but something is missing, the pace suddenly dips. The match in the end works mainly because it has been edited well.

Samir Karnik takes giant strides as a storyteller. Binod Pradhan and Gopal Shah’s cinematography is top notch. The DOPs have done complete justice to the panoramic locales of North India. Sajid-Wajid’s music is a major asset. ‘Mannata’ is the pick of the lot. What a soothing composition! Ditto for ‘Makhana’ [filmed on Sunny, Bobby]. Dialogues are magnificent at places.

The ones who leave the maximum impression in this multi-starrer are, in this order, Salman [superb; one of his finest works], Preity [outstanding; has spoken Punjabi so fluently], Sohail [pleasant surprise; evolving into a very fine actor], Sunny [very likeable] and Mithun Chakraborty [mature]. Bobby is effective in a cameo. Wish he would’ve got more footage. Vatsal Seth is decent. Dino is just about okay. Dwij Yadav is first-rate. Prateeksha Lonkar is fair. Amrita Arora and Ria Sen are passable.

On the whole, HEROES is a genuinely well-made film with strong emotions as its trump card. At the box-office, the pre-Diwali dull phase notwithstanding, it has the merits to climb the ladder with a strong word of mouth. The film deserves to be tax-exempted for its noble theme and noble intentions.

At last, one can now say undoubtedly that Bollywood has finally come of the age! The biggest film industry of the world has now finally proved that it can also make a superior animated film in all respects just like Hollywood! And all this is achieved by Roadside Romeo! The film has songs, drama, tragedy, romance, stupidity-in all, it’s a complete entertainer!

The story of the film: Romeo (Saif Ali Khan) was a rich, cool, spoilt dog who was having a time of his life in his mansion. But one day, the family with whom he was staying shifted to London and Romeo was abandoned on the streets of Mumbai. And here he has to face the harsh realities of life. He is threatened by a gang of three dogs-Guru (Vrajesh Hirjee), Hero (Kiku Sharda), Interval (Suresh Menon) and a cat Mini (Tanaaz Irani). But soon Romeo befriends them. After finding friends, Romeo finds love in Laila (Kareena Kapoor), a hot beautiful female dog! She too gets charmed by her but there’s a problem and that’s Charlie Anna (Jaaved Jaaferi), a local dreaded goon dog. And to make matters worse, Charlie loves Laila too!

Roadside Romeo, no doubt, has a weak plot. It has a story which is beaten to death thousand times in Bollywood-a handsome hero falls in love with a beautiful heroine, the villain creates an obstacle; then there is misunderstanding, action and finally love triumphs! So the storyline of Roadside Romeo is completely predictable. Yet, the film works and that too big time because all the characters are dogs, thus making the experience a unique one!

The characters in the film are excellent and its one of the big plus-points of the film! The lead character Romeo looks handsome, smart and at the same time stylish. His entry and his introductory song (title track) were terrific and it gave the film a rocking beginning!

Yash Raj Films has always presented their heroines as hot-n-sexy chicks (Amisha Patel in Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic, Kareena in Tashan, Ash in Dhoom:2, Rimii/Esha in Dhoom etc). This trend continues with Roadside Romeo with Laila who is given a preety, hot and sexy look with glittering eyes! Move aside Ash, Kareena, Minissha, Bipasha, Mallika and all other hotties….’cos Laila is here!

The audiences are surely going to love both these characters. While the girls will go ga-ga over Romeo, the guys will surely admire and marvel at Laila! And not to forget the actors who voiced these cute characters! Saif Ali Khan was perfect choice for Romeo. His voice has that mischievousness and style which suits perfectly for the character. Note the scene in the beginning where he’s narrating his tragic experience of getting abandoned on the street-the pain that Saif brings through his voice is worth appreciating! And Kareena’s seductive voice also suits to the T for Laila!

But the best was certainly Jaaved Jaaferi who voiced the villain, Charlie Anna! His accent was particularly funny and the way he pronounced certain words was too good! Although in certain places, it becomes a difficult to decipher what he said, overall he does a fantastic job! The characters of Romeo’s friends were also good, but Tanaaz Irani was the best among them. Also the director could have done away with one of Romeo’s friends. And lastly, special mention should be made of Sanjai Mishra, who voiced a dog ‘Chhainu’ (Charlie’s chamcha!). His efforts are worth appreciating!

Salim-Sulaiman’s music was good, but not the best. But still, it doesn’t go against the film as the picturisation of the songs were excellent! All the songs were good, but the best was the title track, ‘Apni Duum Bhi Oonchi Ho, ‘Cool Cool’. The duo’s background score like always was fantastic!

The world-class animation by Tata Elxsi/VCL was the best compared to the animation used in other animated films of India! Everything in the film looked real, especially the city. The dark dingy lanes, the torn posters of Hindi films, advertisements of English speaking courses and many such things seen in the film in the background helps in making the film look real as much as possible.

And finally, Jugal Hansraj stands out as the winner! He wrote the story, screenplay, dialogues and directed the film. The story was waferthin, but the screenplay was effective in majority of the scenes although, there were some sequences which were disinteresting. Dialogues were damn funny, especially the typical Hindi film dialogues mouthed by the dog Interval! And his direction was first-rate and completely flawless! Though the film was predictable throughout, the climax was quite interesting and the twist in the events was worth applauding! Mr Hansraj, any plans of a sequel to Roadside Romeo?

Some of the best scenes of the film:
1. The first scene and the title track (excellent!)
2. All songs (picturised wonderfully!)
3. Chhainu and Charlie Anna’s entry!
4. Laila and Romeo meeting for the first time
5. Romeo and Anna meeting for the first time
6. The intermission point
7. Laila at Romeo’s place for a haircut!
8. Mini pretending to be Laila!
9. The last 15 minutes (excellent!)
10. The last scene (at the station)

On the whole, Roadside Romeo is entertainment and animation at its best! The film has a weak story but yet it works for its cuteness. The film is not only targeted at kids and will be loved by one and all especially those who loves animals! It’s less than 2 hours and doesn’t bore even for a moment! It may eventually not turn out to be a huge grosser since its released with a biggie (Heroes) and will have to face two more biggies after 6 days (Golmaal Returns and Fashion). But still, the film has the chance to stay at the BO by a strong word-of-mouth!

Keka –Movie Review

Cast: Raja (Son of Sirivennela Sitaramashastry) Ishaani, Anup,, Basha, Vijay, Mayilsamy, Duvvasi, Dharamavarapu,Vyapari and others

Music: Chakri

Director: Teja

Producer: Teja

KEKA is a love story based film which attracts the youngsters to large extent. It is not like his previous hit films which zoomed up at the box office. Most importantly Keka has some impeccable screenplay and cinematography which will make the audience glued to their seats. By producing this film with all the new comers in the lead, Teja has once again proved his motto to bring new life into the Telugu film industry. Since, Keka attracts the youth; it can be tagged with an average film with some vulgarity in the movie.

Story

Arjun (Raja) is a care free guy who is seen enjoying with his friends in his native town. The regular tangy tastes of a village are well portrayed in each frames of the film. Sujatha (Ishaani) incidentally meets the hero Arjun and soon Arjun falls in love. Sujata reciprocates the same, but hides it from the hero. But very soon she falls in deep love with the hero. Then Sujata goes to the city (Hyderabad) and following her Arjun lands up in Hyderabad. He finds out many ways to find out his love and soon discovers that she is a student of a college. He is delighted and rushes to college, but unfortunately Sujatha has signed off from there and the Hero learns that she has taken TC to join another college.

Then after a little bit of reel loading, Sujatha is found studying in the same college where Arjun is pursuing his studies. Sujatha’s parents wontedly make the heroine join the college in order to love another person named Kiran. Kiran is the person with which Sujatha is engaged and in order to make the pair understand each other their parents make Sujatha study in the same college of Kiran

But Kiran is a good friend of Arjun and Arjun comes to know all about the truth and gathers his strength to reveal his love to Kiran. Arjun’s friends force him to reveal his love towards Sujatha to Kiran and finally the hero tells the truth to Kiran.

To the surprise of all, Kiran whole heartedly accepts Sujatha and Arjun loves and sacrifices his love. Until the truth came into light, Kiran was also in love with Sujatha, but when Arjun tells him the truth that Sujatha loves Him, Kiran decides to back off.

All is happy until the climax. But as usually the suspense and the thrill emerge out in the last scenes. Is Kiran hero or a villain will make the audience enthralling for sometime?

And this is the suspense in Keka which has to be watched on the big screen.

Performances

Raja who plays the hero Arjun’s Character in this film lives up to the director’s expectations and gives his 100% to the film. His innocent looks and dialogue delivery look apt, but still he has to improve a lot. Well known Lyric writer Sirivenella Sitarama Shastry is his father and so he may live in the industry with this background for sometime.

Ishaani is slim and sexy, but her face lacks the eye catching luster. But, hold on she is in her teens now and has a long way to go in the film industry. As usual she is open to show her skin on screen and so she is a glam doll from her debut. Actress Rassi has dubbed for her hoarse voice and her dancing and expressions skills are awesome. Her dialogue delivery is also up to the mark.

Anup Kumar who is the second hero in this film has well played his character. His friendly character transformation into a villain is appreciable and is done with an ease.

Comedy is not so hilarious, but some adult comedy brings some laughter in this film. Music by Chakri is average and only one song is a little bit catchy. The rest of the music is passable.

Teja who is well known as a churner of very little stories gives some life to the story of Keka in the first half. But like his previous hits Jayam and Nuvvu Nenu, the story lacks the grace in the end and some audience may feel that it is enough and its time to go.

He digs out the mass element with some characters and it may make the story little bit fair.

On the whole, though the movie KEKA is aimed at the youth, it may just live up to 50 day run maximum.