Atithi Tum Kab Jaoge? Movie Review
One of my childhood memories is that of several relatives visiting us in Mumbai [presumably for a few days], but
overstaying their welcome. Those days, the atithis were never looked upon as ‘intruders’.
Rokkk Movie Review
Horror films made in India follow standard rules and guidelines. Every possible ingredient that viewers have witnessed since the Ramsay era automatically finds its way into horror films even today. ROKKK too borrows everything available on the shelf.
Thanks Maa Movie Review
In a vital sequence from this film, the warden of the reformatory [Alok Nath] gives the street kid [Shams Patel] a bar of soap, tells him that he should have a bath pronto and should, therefore, undress in front of him. Before the street kid realises what his intentions are, the warden starts fondling with the kid’s hands. The street kid snaps, he realises that something is wrong and flees from the reformatory the same night.
Road, Movie Movie Review
Just a thought before I review this film… When you saunter in for the screening of a movie directed by a celebrated film-maker, a movie which has had a good run at film festivals, a movie which tilts towards art house cinema, it is expected that the critic shower the film with lavish praises and speak of it in glowing terms.
Karthik Calling Karthik Movie Review
Have you ever received a call from yourself? Is it possible in the first place? There are several theories doing the 
rounds about the two Karthiks in this movie. So what is it? Is Karthik hallucinating? Does he have a double role? Or a split personality? For most parts of the film, you actually buy the explanation that Karthik does receive calls from, well, Karthik.
Let’s accept the fact that a concept like this instinctively generates curiosity in the film. But the real test is to make the story work in those 2 hours. Also - this is vital - the identity of the caller should come as a jolt when the film concludes.
KARTHIK CALLING KARTHIK works in parts, but during the penultimate part, when the story shifts from Mumbai to Kerala, the sand castle, so beautifully built by debutante director Vijay Lalwani, gets washed away.
One doesn’t want to challenge the behavioural patterns of a person with a certain disorder, but when it comes to the big screen, when you are narrating a story on celluloid, you need to do a lot of spoon-feeding and make it look convincing. In this case, unfortunately, the finale is just not convincing and therefore, acts as a spoilsport.
Meet Karthik [Farhan Akhtar], an introvert by nature and shy by choice. Karthik suffers with huge confidence issues and is miserable at his average job that yields less than average results. His boss [Ram Kapoor] treats him like dirt. Shonali [Deepika Padukone], his colleague, who he secretly loves, doesn’t even know that he exists. Karthik is a loser. He knows it. He accepts it.
Suddenly, one night, the phone rings. And Karthik speaks to someone he never thought he would. He speaks to a man who also claims to be Karthik. The man on the phone says he’s here to change Karthik’s life. Karthik accepts the phone in his life and soon it becomes his guide, his mentor, his friend, his guardian.
KARTHIK CALLING KARTHIK is a love story as also a suspense fare that teases your mind. Any love story works if the chemistry and also the moments between the on-screen lovers looks real and the chemistry between Farhan and Deepika works well.
Correspondingly, a suspense film works if the viewer keeps guessing what the culmination to the story would be. The mystery only deepens when not only Karthik, but also his girlfriend and psychiatrist are engulfed in this storm. All hell breaks loose when Karthik’s life goes upside down and Karthik is back to square one. But from this point onwards, the graph of the film only goes downwards.
Debutante director Vijay Lalwani knows his job well, but he’s letdown by his own writing. The second hour not only looks stretched [two songs flow one after the other, with the story coming to a grinding halt], but the pace also gets excruciatingly slow at this juncture. The climax, as mentioned earlier, is a complete downer.
Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy’s musical score is an asset. The film has some lilting tunes. Cinematography [Sanu John Varughese] is perfect. Dialogues are simple mostly and at times, very witty.
This is Farhan Akhtar’s third film as an actor and it must be said that he takes giant strides when it comes to acting. The story throws several challenges at him and fortunately, he emerges trumps in the most difficult moments. This is, by far, his best work.
Deepika Padukone looks bewitching and acts natural throughout. Ram Kapoor is fantastic. Why don’t we see him so frequently on the big screen? Shifaali Shah is excellent. Vivan Bhatena is good. Tarana, Vipin Sharma and Yatin Karyekar are serviceable.
On the whole, KARTHIK CALLING KARTHIK is a decent product with an unconvincing conclusion. Watch it for the wonderful performances of Farhan and Deepika, if you have to. Caters to the youth in metros mainly.
Teen Patti Movie Review
The earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s need, but not every man’s greed. That’s so true! Let’s face it, money 
is the root of all evil. When we have more, it is never enough. This is exactly what Leena Yadav’s TEEN PATTI tells you.
TEEN PATTI is not only about gambling on table, but all those gambles that we take in our life. Bearing an uncanny resemblance to the Hollywood film 21, TEEN PATTI is akin to a roller coaster ride; if there are highs, expect the lows too.
Leena Yadav’s take on greed and deception has some defining moments, but the fact is that the writing lacks clarity. Let me explain. Probability is a very interesting theory in mathematics. But the problem is, is it easy to comprehend for the average viewer? Frankly, despite Leena’s best efforts, only a handful of viewers will be able to comprehend the goings on and the theory of probability.
Besides, the narrative is such that it caters to the intelligentsia mainly. For the average moviegoer, thirsting for entertainment, it has little to offer.
The reclusive genius Venkat [Amitabh Bachchan] has cracked a theory that could redefine the principles of probability and randomness. Venkat is encouraged to test his theory in the real world by professor Shantanu [Madhavan], an ambitious colleague of Venkat.
Although Venkat has no interest in the money that could come from practicing his equation to crack ‘Teen Patti’, which could rake in all the moolah, he eventually succumbs to Shantanu’s charismatic persuasion. Soon, with the help of a few students, they explore the underground gambling dens of Mumbai.
But what starts out as an experiment between a charismatic young professor and an eccentric older one soon descends into a game neither of them can control.
It takes time to get the hang of things in TEEN PATTI. But once the two professors and the students begin their sojourn to the dark alleys, the film comes into its own from thereon.
The story moves back and forth, with Bachchan narrating his side of the story in flashbacks to Sir Ben, which is well integrated in the narrative. The intermission point - when the mystery about the unknown caller deepens - only heightens the expectations from the post-interval portions.
But there’re hiccups! The pace gets excruciatingly slow in this hour and also, it tends to get repetitive. Among the cameos - Jackie Shroff, Ajay Devgn, Tinnu Anand and Shakti Kapoor - only the ones featuring Tinnu and Shakti stand out, while Ajay’s scene seems forced.
The writing is erratic [Shiv Subramanyam, Leena Yadav], with some portions touching the peak, while a few touching the ebb. The suicide of one of the students and how it puts an end to the game is a master stroke from the writing point of view. Bachchan’s speech in the finale, when he’s bestowed with the Sir Isaac Newton Award, moves you no end. But between the suicide and the finale, the film tends to get uninteresting.
Leena’s direction shows maturity in her second outing. A number of sequences are deftly executed. But how one wished Leena would learn the art of narrating stories within commercial parameters. Aseem Bajaj’s cinematography is striking. The visuals are simply incredible. Salim-Sulaiman’s music has two catchy tracks - ‘Neeyat’ [the moves of the dancer are tantalising] and the track towards the end credits. The usage of B&W in this song is truly imaginative. The choreography of both these songs [Ashley Lobo] is superb.
Bachchan plays the role of a mathematician with remarkable ease. One cannot imagine anyone else in this character other than Bachchan. Especially noteworthy are the sequences between Bachchan and Sir Ben. Madhavan is excellent. The actor displays the grey shades most convincingly. The film introduces four new talents and each is confidence personified. Siddharth, Shraddha and Dhruv get maximum footage and they stand out. Vaibhav has tremendous screen presence, but his role lacks meat.
Raima Sen is alright. Barry John is first-rate. Anjan Srivastava is good. Mahesh Manjrekar is effective. Saira Mohan is hardly there. Sir Ben Kingsley is an amazing actor and expectedly, he’s brilliant here. It’s a treat to watch these two magicians - Sir Ben and Bachchan - perform on screen.
On the whole, TEEN PATTI is a fresh concept for Indian viewers, made well, but limits itself to the intelligentsia and big city audiences mainly.
Click Movie Review
Post KYAA KOOL HAI HUM and APNA SAPNA MONEY MONEY, Sangeeth Sivan has got saddled with the image of 
making laughathons. Partly also because his non-comedies like CHURA LIYAA HAI TUMNE and EK - THE POWER OF ONE fell flat on their face. With CLICK, Sivan proves that he’s at home in horror segment too.
The spirits are vindictive and in Bollywood, very predictable too, right? In fact, the spirits here are in their 20s, have dark, uncombed hair, wear white saris and have one expression from start to end. CLICK follows the same path, but is different too.
CLICK is heavily inspired by the Thai film SHUTTER [2004], which was made in the United States with the same name and which has also been attempted in Tamil and Telugu languages in India. Of course, you may draw parallels with RAAZ [Dino Morea, Bipasha Basu] too, but only one part of that film is similar to this one.
Although quite derivative, CLICK remains watchable for two reasons: The storyline is interesting [if you haven't watched any of the versions, of course] and the horror quotient is better than most horror films made in Bollywood. Also, the sound design is efficiently done.
Of course, there’s a flipside too. The film could’ve done with better special effects, could’ve been shorter [it tends to get repetitive at times], could’ve been fast-paced and could’ve also done without songs.
Final words? Horror movie lovers shouldn’t be disappointed!
CLICK is the story of a young photographer [Shreyas Talpade] and his girlfriend [Sadaa]. He takes beautiful pictures and yet when they’re printed they hide a secret. A secret that is so dark and menacing that he hides it from his girlfriend. A secret from his past that if revealed, threatens to ruin not only his life but that of his friends and loved ones. What happens when the spirit comes back to haunt you?
For any film to stand on its feet, it should’ve a tight screenplay and should be equally captivating towards the finale. The culmination plays a crucial part here.
Sangeeth Sivan succeeds in keeping you engrossed for most parts, but he could’ve done with a few horror techniques to scare the audiences. The appearance of the hand or the movement of the spirit in the house could’ve been limited to one or two instances. Also, whose idea was it to give a chalky makeup to the spirit? Looks hideous!
The culmination to the story is interesting and it’s an end I haven’t seen in Bollywood before. Also, what’s interesting is that the film doesn’t feature the hero as squeaky clean. He’s got a past and his end is justified too. The songs [Shamir Tandon] are strictly okay and the non-promotion of songs makes it worse. Cinematography [Ramji] is alright. The sound design [Parikshit Lalvani] is excellent. That goes for the background score too.
Shreyas pitches in a believable performance. Sadaa does well and manages to hold your attention. Sneha Ullal doesn’t get very many lines to deliver, but she stays with you. Rehan Khan gets minimal scope. Chunky Pandey does well.
On the whole, CLICK should appeal to the youth, especially those who love horror films.
Toh Baat Pakki Movie Review
A lot of present-day directors seem inspired by Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Basu Chatterjee’s movies. The veterans 
told simple stories in the most simplistic manner. Director Kedarh Shinde, one presumes, also seems inspired by their master works and attempts to narrate a story that’s identifiable and at the same time, dipped in humour.
But TOH BAAT PAKKI is not as invigorating as one expects it to be. The film has some wonderful moments, some old-world charm, but the humour, at several points, falls flat. Especially towards the penultimate portions.
Final word? It’s a half-baked fare!
Rajeshwari [Tabu], married to Vinay [Ayub Khan], dreams of getting her sister Nisha [Yuvika Choudhary] married to the most suitable boy within their Saxena community. Also, Rajeshwari is against the dowry system.
Rajeshwari finds a good Saxena boy studying engineering and has prospects of a promising future. Rahul [Sharman Joshi] is a good proposition for her sister and she even gets him to move into her house as a paying guest.
However, when Rajeshwari learns that Rahul is not interested in marriage, she smartly devices a plan to bring her sister and make them get to know each other. She’s confident that once he meets Nisha, there is no turning away. They fall in love. Rajeshwari is happy. Marriage is fixed.
Things take a turn when Yuvraaj [Vatsal Sheth] lands up at Rajeshwari’s house. Yuvraaj is also a Saxena. He has a good job and is waiting to move into his house. Rajeshwari can’t believe her luck. This is a better prospect. The story takes a turn when Rajeshwari tries to set up Nisha with Yuvraaj.
The problem with most storytellers is, the story they choose may sound convincing at narration level, but what eventually unfolds on screen is half as convincing. On paper, the 4-para synopsis of TOH BAAT PAKKI holds promise, but the screenplay, spread over two hours, has its share of hiccups.
For instance, the portions depicting Sharman helping Tabu during the marriage celebrations are far from convincing. In fact, the screenplay starts losing its grip from hereon. Even Sharman’s attempts to poison Himani Shivpuri and Vatsal Sheth’s mind appears childish. Ditto for the abduction drama towards the end. The Sharat Saxena track also looks forced.
Kedarh Shinde’s direction holds your attention at a few places only. Especially during Tabu and Sharman’s portions towards the first half. But the patchy writing lets him down. Pritam’s music doesn’t work, except ‘Jis Din Mera Byaah’. Dialogues are too flowery at times.
Tabu is a pleasure to watch. She’s natural and it must be said that it gets difficult to move your eyes when she’s on screen. Sharman, again, is likable and gets it right. Vatsal does fairly well. Yuvika doesn’t get much scope. Ayub Khan is passable. Himani Shivpuri and Suhasini Mulay are as usual. Upasna Singh is loud.
On the whole, TOH BAAT PAKKI has a few interesting moments, but not enough to keep you hooked. It will have to rely on a strong word of mouth, especially from family audiences, to stay afloat.
My Name Is Khan
Questions of religious and national identity, of the sense of right and wrong, of combating a certain isolation that
comes with a behavioural disorder. But what triumphs over all the complexities unfolding in a tumultuous post 9/11 America is Rizwan Khan and his essential goodness that tells you unwaveringly - his name is Khan and he is not a terrorist.
Striker
Some stories seem very interesting on paper. You get hooked, perhaps captivated. But there are times when these
stories lose sheen when translated on celluloid.