Three Words

I. SAW. HIM. 

The Classic War of Cat and Mouse!

After a long...very long wait, we finally had Raees release! Shah Rukh's look had me rocking and rolling. Who doesn't want to see such a handsome man wearing pathanis while sporting kohl? Of course the beard too which we have been seeing for the last 3 years now :D

Mr. Body-Shot's shot actually scared the hell out of me so I would never count that into one of my favorites. But entries of Mahira and Nawab were really memorable. Especially Nawab, this guy is sheer magic on screen. You can't miss him even if he is in a frame with 500 other people. It was my long time wish to see him act with Shah Rukh and since Shah Rukh always makes my wishes come true, this one couldn't be left out.

Coming back to Raees, he is a guy who follows the simple principle that no work is small or big and there is no other faith bigger than business...as long as the business does not cause harm to anyone. With baniye ka dimag and miyanbhai ki daring, he rises like a generous phoenix in Fatehpura, outlawing what we all learned from MNIK that there are good people and bad people only. I apologize for this cheesy throwback. But this is how the layers are crafted in Raees! Put the bad boy and the good boy together, you have a man named Raees.

Then we have Inspector Majmudar, an undisputed baadshah of getting transferred all around the state he swore to protect from crimes. He believes that everything should come in written form otherwise it is not valid because...humans don't take much time to change their minds.

Zeeshan as Sadiq aka Raees' right hand is amazing! I have a special love for all the people who have played the roles of Shah Rukh's faithful friend or brother in all relevant films so Zeeshan obviously joins that special love. I really hope to see them cast in another film.

I will not get into the story further because there are still many of you who have not watched it. But let me tell you one more thing, the story is pretty amazing and keeps you preoccupied for the entire duration of the movie. Combine Shah Rukh's magnetism, Nawab's profound ordinariness and a fresh powerhouse in the form of Mahira, you are in for a treat that is well worth your money.

Alia's Zindagi

I watched it a while back but haven't had the chance to write this review. I know I suck but life has been hectic. But anyway, better late than never!

Just a note that I hardly have watched the promos of the film and neither did I like the music album except for Ae Zindagi sung by Arijit. Man, Arijit is all I need when it comes to music. And combine a classic favorite with him, life is gooooood.

So we didn't find tickets where we first planned to watch but thankfully I knew where to go as backup plan. So we went to another theater and caught the last show. It didn't start off well...with an awkward dwarf throwing folks around on a mat and hyperactive lips disturbing the peace of Parisians setting the stage for the start of the movie, nope. It was reaaaaaaally not good. 

The beginning of the movie, I was like...I wanna go home. You see, I no longer have much patience. And it felt like everything was just messed up and terribly vulgar. But this turned out to be the base of Dear Zindagi. At the end of the movie, the beginning seems more understandable and a little similar to our very own lives. 

I will be honest, I have been a mess myself for the last one and a half year. I have crossed roads with a few therapists myself but no one will ever be like Jehangir. I know how therapists also feel about their difficult job and the affect it has on their own lives. So I was glad that it wasn't just the patient's story, we got to see what Jehangir felt. I loved how there is an amazing transition of Kaira from being a coward to someone who faces the truth and draws strength from the truth. THAT is the ultimate triumph of the protagonist.

I loved Ali Zafar in the movie even though he was really annoying but so damn charming. I was floored and smiling ear to ear. After watching this, I fell in love with Let's Break Up...especially the video, Feroz's fantastic choreography makes the song such a treat. And Vishal's voice is just apt for a song like this...basically basically basically tu bhi kamini!!

I definitely went to watch this movie for Shah Rukh but I returned home as a real hardcore fan of Alia Bhatt. She is pure bliss. Throughout the film, you will experience moments where you wish you could just hug her. Long dialogues, short dialogues, she kicks ass. Even if you are a fan of SRK, you will feel delighted to see Alia more than Shah Rukh.

And what do I say about Shah Rukh? As if he was never a therapist for me...I am what I am because of his wisdom for the most part. He no longer impresses me, because our connection is beyond impressions and adjectives. Which reminds me...I'm sorry I never did a Fan review, that movie traumatized me.

Shall be going back for a second watch soon. Dear Zindagi kind of gets to you over time, and you just want to watch it again.

Fan

This is his 13th release in which he has a double-role. And this is by far his most challenging one because it is absolutely all about his two roles, there are no side stories involved. And man...wasn't he just gooooood or what!! I know "good" is an understatement but good is just about good. And this "good" is the kind of good you say when you taste some real good food.

All these emotions has been troubling me since I have come back home after watching and it made me so exhausted that I needed a long sleep. Initially I felt I hated the film because of its story and its climax. My sisters were with me and I just walked off leaving them alone because my eyes were ridiculously moist. And I just needed some time alone.

This film is completely fictional but being a fan of a star is such a touchy feely subject along with the kind of ending the film offered...these are sensitive topics. There are numerous factors that shape how and why you become a fan of someone, not just because of a star's looks or his work. As fans, we do the things out of love and in order to carry out such things, we also work (doh). So yeah, I am completely on Team Gaurav. Even right now. But I don't obviously agree with his transformation...that is extreme. Even if my favorite star broke my heart into a billion pieces, I would never dare to raise my hand on him/her let alone think of harming his stardom.

Maybe I should rest my mind and think it through before saying anything...yep this is the kind of affect this film is having on me!!

Consuming Shah Rukh Khan

When you are a fan of Shah Rukh Khan or anyone, it becomes a habit to watch, read, hear, eat, sleep (hopefully not), drink him/her. This is a reason why these public figures have to keep rolling out new stuff to keep their fan bases going strong. Then let's get going about consuming Mr. Khan.

Shah Rukh did a variety of roles in the first phase of his career. He had nothing to lose and no one really to be scared of. Remember, he made a goal of doing about 22 films. You can only wonder when 22 films became 70+ films. Through these seventy releases, he won billions of hearts all over the world. Okay, I know this sounds like I'm teaching the English alphabet but many of us seem to forget the basic story about Shah Rukh's success.

We just keep wanting more and more from him. And he also wants to keep delivering the highest quality cinema possible so it can be worth the price we pay to watch it. He values the time we give to watch his latest in theaters so much that he doesn't even stop even if he gets injured. Health is wealth. But to him, his audience's happiness is his real wealth.

Of course there must be a personal benefit too as to why he allows us to consume him every minute and every second of the day. It's his dream to give back to the industry and its consumers in the most grandest way possible. It's also his ultimate escape from the original Shah Rukh Khan who is in great pain. Every time the actor Shah Rukh faces a failure or hurtful abuses, the original Shah Rukh takes the blows. Then he forces the actor in him to get to work.

He has an eye for details, which us analysts ignore often because hey, Bollywood films are just singing and dancing after all. He wishes to bring the best talent in the film technology field to India rather than outsourcing work to Hong Kong, China, USA, etc. Because India produces the most films in this world. And there is a growing popularity for the usage of visual effects. 

When he does masala movies, he makes it with the intention that a whole family will have something to enjoy in it. There are different palates in every family. One person might like romance, another may like action and another may love comedy. To make everyone smile in 2.5 hours is an amazing talent. And he tries his best to do so.

You know what it looks like when we cry over him not doing a certain film which did great? It looks highly ungrateful. We are being ungrateful to the man who have put in tons of sweat, blood and effort to keep us entertained. He constantly puts up a great fight with his physical pain. Why? So we can devour his work. When fans cried over him not doing 3Is, it was ridiculous. The last time he played a college student was in Main Hoon Naa and that too, it was situational. I can't imagine him in his underwear either. Good for the little one that he did 3Is.

You can't expect Shah Rukh to be in every blockbuster made in Bollywood. No one wished that he do a Border, Gupt, Sarfarosh, Krantiveer, Zakhm, etc. He kept rising because of his very own personal choices. Now he is the biggest star in India, a very important figure. With such power, comes great responsibility. He has to be wise about what he does now, because he has enemies watching him like hawks. One mistake and there will be a heavy price.

It is pretty easy to spend 3 hours of our valuable time to watch a film created by hundreds of people and made in the time span of months who think of nothing else but to present their project in the most perfect way possible. Sad fact is that some films are worth watching many times on the big screen while other films are worth watching once maybe. Should he takes a lot of risks that are political, financial or both and it goes wrong then will you be there to rescue him? Quite sure, you'll be the first to run away from him.

It is quite disrespectful to compare him with younger actors who are actually following his footsteps is another way that you are sucking on his blood literally. Hasn't Shah Rukh almost always experimented? Each film is an experiment on its own. If it wasn't, then it would be called a copy. Plus you know something? He has to be very careful about his choices because he is a superstar. A role that suits Shahid, Ranbir, Varun or any other younger actor, will not suit Shah Rukh. Many actors have come and gone in the last 20 years. The excitement of possibly finding a replacement of Shah Rukh Khan is always high but, I personally think that if he retires then that's the end of Bollywood. They are already remaking, adapting and continuing from scrapbooks of yesteryear.

It makes me sad that I have to repeatedly cross paths with fans who don't seem to appreciate him enough. And then I have to write such posts again and again. I hate repeating myself. If you don't like his latest movies, please shut up and keep patience. We can't predict what he has next up his sleeve. When you become a fan of an actor, you have to have faith in him or her. And seriously, Shah Rukh is the safest actor on whom you can place your faith on. Because he is experienced, experimental, and honestly the best name in Bollywood. It is shameful to see fans nodding with haters and saying that this and that film of Shah Rukh is utter crap.

Keep in mind that he is now 50 years old. His kids are growing up and I'm sure he would like to be able to spend more time with them. You realize he belonged to us before his children and dedicates more time to make us smile instead of his kids?  Yet, you would like to bestow your taste of cinema onto him because you think you own him? Right.

As a fan, you need to support him in his ups and downs. It does not make him feel any better if you criticize his choices. Trust me when he says he reads everything, he really does so. What makes us think that he can tolerate so much cribbing over his work if we can't tolerate someone criticizing us all the time? "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you". Consume him a bit responsibly because he is a human like us.

Character Names

1. Raja/Raj - 9
2. Sunder
3. Karan
4. Lalit
5. Anil
6. Vicky
7. Ajay - 2
8. Rahul - 8
9. Sunil
10. Vijay - 3
11. Arjun - 3
12. Guddu
13. Hero
14. Ram - 2
15. Romi
16. Gopal - 2
17. Hari
18. Vikram
19. Roop
20. Badru
21. Shankar
22. Bablu
23. Manu
24. Amar
25. Baadshah
26. Amjad
27. Max
28. Aryan - 2
29. Arun
30. Ashok
31. Dev - 2
32. Jai
33. Yeshwant
34. Aman
35. Dushant
36. Veer
37. Mohan
38. Kishan
39. Don - 2
40. Kabir
41. Om
42. Aditya - 2
43. Surinder
44. Sahir
45. Pawan
46. Rizwan
47. Shekhar
48. G.One
49. Samar
50. Chandramohan
51. Charlie
52. Kaali
53. Gaurav
54. Raees
55. Jehangir
56. Tahir
57. Harinder
58. Bauaa

The 15 years in Dilwale

One thing I really loved in Dilwale are the similarities between the siblings. Apart from the themes of sibling-hood, forgiveness, love, drugs, etc. I think one more theme happens to be how life comes a full circle at times. We all have gone through identical situations in the present days which have happened in the past  So these are the instances that I noticed. I'm sorry I have no pictures to offer because the DVD is not out yet.

When Ishita tells Veer that they should tell their families about their relationship. She won't like it if their loved ones heard from other people.

&

When Meera tells Kaali that they should tell their families about their relationship. She won't like it if their loved ones heard from other people.

Meera and Kaali tell Randhir Bakshi about their relationship first and he agrees. Then Meera tells her dad.

&

Ishita and Veer tell Raj about their relationship first and he agrees. Then Ishita tells Meera.

Ishita confronts Raj in support of Veer's false allegations.

&

Meera confronts her own henchmen in false support of Kaali 

Raj's woh baat alag hai to little Veer

&

Raj's woh baat alag hai to grown up Veer

Meera shot Kaali on his heart.

&

Meera takes a bullet on her heart to save Kaali

Veer's first meeting with Ishita on the road to help her

&

Kaali's first meeting with Meera on the road to help her after he hit her

Kaali intervenes when goons are passing lewd comments to Meera

&

Kaali intervenes when King's men are able to assault meera

Kaali asks Meera for a 5 minute date in Bulgaria

&

Kaali asks Meera for a 5 minute date at the wedding dance

Dev Malik creates misunderstanding to end Meera's relationship with Kaali

&

Meera gives a condition to Veer for his marriage with Ishita and tries to create a rift between Veer and Raj.

Countries SRK Has Been To

Shah Rukh, you should visit more countries since you live in airport. So far it is 35, will add more if I find out more.


1. India (doh)
2. Pakistan
3. Bangladesh
4. Nepal
5. Sri Lanka
6. Indonesia
7. Guyana
8. Malaysia
9. UAE
10. USA
11. UK [including Scotland, Wales]
12. Iceland
13. Bulgaria
14. Germany
15. Netherlands
16. Canada
17. Croatia
18. Oman
19. Australia
20. New Zealand
21. Morocco
22. Turkey
23. South Africa
24. Mauritius
25. Switzerland
26. Norway
27. Greece
28. Seychelles
29. Singapore
30. Macau
31. France
32. Italy
33. Thailand
34. Trinidad & Tobago
35. Spain

Dilwale

I don't know how and where to begin at. Even after watching three times, I just don't know if I will be able to describe it well. One quality of Dilwale is that it was made to make people happy. First time I watched it, I felt speechless. My family kept asking me what is wrong with me and I was like....nothing. Later my friend helped me figure out that I was spellbound by SRK & Kajol. The most romantic couple on screen.

My first SRK-Kajol film was My Name Is Khan. While the film was outstanding, the story was something very different. Which is why, we did not see SRK-Kajol in the avatars they are most famous for. But Dilwale turned out to be the best tribute to this couple. Their charisma is inescapable. I am one of those kids who always believed that they were a real life couple too because whenever I would watch TV, their films would be on. And yes I thought Rakhee Gulzar was SRK's mother because I always seen him dying in her arms (Baazigar ending). Anyway, I would love to thank Rohit for introducing SRK-Kajol to us who were too little to go to theater and watch KKHH, DDLJ, K3G, etc.

What I liked about this film is how it doesn't begin to make you laugh your pants off right away. There is some comical scenes but mostly the drama and romance. Then in the second half is where the best comedy comes. Next, I loved how the most amazing twist has become my favorite. I think it should be the scene of the year. Who would have thought we would get to see SRK-Kajol in such action packed drama. I loved their date too, was smiling like a skeleton. Another favorite scene is in the rain where Kajol was so damn good that I felt like hugging her. She deserves an award for that scene. Gerua looked breathtaking on the big screen.

After interval, I believe Ramlal & Pogo scene was totally epic. If the scene went on any longer, it would become the reason of my death LOL. Janam Janam kind of supports my claim about how this film is a tribute to SRK-Kajol. Not because it is black and white but because of the atmosphere of the song, the intensity matches up to the one they are known for. Daayre was my favorite song before the movie release so there is no way I would not like it. I loved the shot of Kriti crying and laying on leaves. It was beautiful. I admired the new brothers in town, SRK & Varun. I would have never thought they are step brothers because there was so much love and care between them. Varun's tone change when he is trying to act sad was hilarious. Same goes for Kajol & Kriti. The similarities between them were striking in terms of their actions and thoughts. Varun Sharma is my latest favorite this year. Tamboo Mein Dhoom Dham was nicely advertised. But bas...it is okay, I will keep it till google search only. Gareebon ke Jackie Shroff, Anwar, Chintu's father, Purushkar bhai, Jenny, Kingu, Joshua, all were awesome.

One quality I always liked of Rohit is that he makes sure everyone has dialogues. It is not that they were there to give expressions only. I loved Shah Rukh. His flamboyant pretty boy or ever cunning gangster personalities 15 years ago and then the melancholic but loving elder brother hiding his dual personality. His intensity as the gangster was so remarkable that I can't tell you. The way he changed from Raj the bade bhaiyya to Kaali in one scene will give you chills. The way he beat up people, phew. Totally superb.

I still have a few more times to watch. I'm really thankful that I had such a deserving good end to this exhausting year. Now chalo, I gotta sleep because I have to go pick up my Dilwale CD from the post office... :D

What is SRK's fault?

So, instead of writing my review of Dilwale, I decided consciously to write about the ongoing stupidity which is harming the business of Dilwale. It is highly disturbing to me because when I was hearing the interview which started all this ruckus, I had a fear that it would be blown out of proportion. My fear came true and how.

Let me start with how the conversation started.

Barkha: But is it frightening to you as a product of the syncretic background that today this country is trapped in battles over cow meat and whether Mumbai should ban a certain kind of meat during the certain kind of festival...that there is violence attached to this. This is no longer an academic debate. I mean, the current raging debate is intolerance. And do you believe that there is rising intolerance? Do you believe you live in an environment where it is getting tougher and tougher to just say something and not be attacked and not be assaulted?

SRK: I think the one reason for it also is that the platforms have increased. Maybe, there were similar attacks then but there were not enough platforms to hear the voice. Now there is social media, television has become much bigger, radio, everything...everyone speaking. Everybody is talking. Everybody has a right to talk and put it out there. So I think maybe, it might have been there earlier, I hope so. That it is not a modern phenomena, it is not a recent phenomena. I am assuming ke chalo yaar, pehle bhi aisa tha lekin sunayi nahi deta tha. Now you hear it a lot more. Second part of it is..yeah I think that just because you can hear it a lot more, like in my case, I think we should speak a little more sensibly. I think we should be a little more tolerant. We should give each other some levee. And what each other yaar? If this "our country" and religion...keep on talking about then we are going to go back to the dark ages. There is NOTHING, there is NOTHING less important than religious intolerance. It is shocking to me. I can't imagine. Yes, people tell me that maybe in smaller towns, the way people are brought up, it's different, blah blah blah. But I meet people from everywhere, maybe from the place I am is not enough. But I still meet people. Yeah, of course you can make their way of thinking different by public speaking or being larger than life and changing mindsets. But I don't think religion intolerance is any which way forward for any country. I think it's the worst kind of thing that can happen. And intolerance of any kind...and now we're looking at such small issues. And like you said, these are not small issues because they are leading to violence. It's really really shocking. And how do Indians go and show their face...you know when I'm outside, and people say...you guys don't do this? And I am not saying that this is what defines my country. Because I can tell you one million things that define my country beyond this intolerance part. But when somebody is asking me, you've got to answer it. And it doesn't auger well for us as Indians. To even answer in joke. What answer do you give to this? You certainly don't become serious about it. Because I rather talk about India in a manner which India really deserves to be spoken about. 

Barkha: And India's image is being hurt in the world. But that's not the primary reason to change it, we have to change it for ourselves?

SRK:  The change is for us. We don't have to change it for others, the imagery is okay. The imagery will be bettered or lessened by different things. The change is for us.

 If you are curious to hear those words from the man himself, this is the video to watch. Let me know when you hear him say "India is intolerant."

What did he say wrong? Is killing people over what they eat, something to be proud of? In any sane person's opinion, no my friend, it is actually quite shameful. You know, there is some level of intolerance in every corner of the world. Racists, ethnocentric people and xenophobic people are everywhere and they do ridiculously unethical acts. Such acts do attract criticism from people. Shah Rukh has done the same.

Dear Indian protesters, did you know that by protesting, vandalizing, and threatening...you are not proving yourselves to be very tolerant? In spite of not being spelled out loud, you are still adding fuel to the issue of religious intolerance. Now, you must realize some important key points. He is an Indian citizen like you. His vote counts as much as yours do. His taxes are used in the same way as your taxes are used. He has the same freedoms as you do, which includes the right to have a voice. So what wrong has he done by speaking about an issue? When other celebrities talked about the meat ban, no one decided to boycott him/her. Why SRK? Just because his father was a Pakistani born freedom fighter who chose India? Or because his parents chose to retain their original religion of Islam? What is the problem? Do you guys not have any actual serious problems to be concerned about? It is absolutely pitiful that Shah Rukh has to repeatedly say that he is an Indian and a proud one.You guys are dampening my happiness which lies in him. You all are a threat to this world, not just India alone because you guys are reproducing!!!

If you remember past hot situations, Shah Rukh has often been the victim of intolerance. People have pelted stones at his house. People have burned his posters. People have sent him death threats. People have disrupted his films in theaters. People tell him to leave India. People keep abusing him all the time. People even drag his kids and late parents when they abuse him. He has much more right to speak about any kind of intolerance because he constantly suffers because of it. But if he dares to speak about such things, he becomes the villain. In his industry and outside of it too, there is this acid like hatred for him which is very heart breaking at times. One cannot ignore negativity for too long.

Hate him because you are a fan of someone else or you think he is not a good actor or he is overrated. But stop making him the scapegoat of illogical political hate. If you disagree with him, be civilized for God's sake and respect his opinion. He is not your neighborhood dog that you can abuse and throw sandals at. He is a very important and respectable man, much more important than your alien political leaders who are not even worthy of standing on a international stage. Learn to respect the man who has made India proud. Most people know India because of him. Don't try to break the man who provides hope and happiness to millions around the world and in India through his work.