The idiots let the Idol out …

The idiots let the Idol out …

What kind of shit — apologies, horseshit — audience is listening to, and voting for Indian Idol anyway? How in the world could they possibly lose Deepali, a blessed voice tailor-made for Bollywood’s best melodies. It’s absurd, it’s total nonsense, and as Javed Akhtar put it as only he could - she get’s punished for singing well. Absofreakingbullshit, the length of that profane term doing little to suggest my annoyance at having Deepali out of the show.

Girl, we’ll miss you, we sure as hell will. May you sing and RJ your way into the ears and minds of the nation, this - from a fan like many others who could see your helplessness through your smile yesterday. You were brave to put up the face and rendition you did, and heck, we know that.

If this is the Janta’s choice, then I’d rather not have it. Perhaps the wordsmith, the skylark sweetheart that gave us Made in India, the immortal vocals that rendered Pehla Nasha and the thief who hasn’t even spared the Israeli National anthem - should play their roles as judges. Let them bring their skill and judgement into play and pick the best Idol, and seriously, if this is the kind of voting that’s going to happen, democracy be damned to a bloody death that the people brought upon it.

Source: showbizia.rediffiland.com

Of Rishikesh, Munnabhai and Umrao Jaan!
In case you are wondering what happened to Thought Express, well it went on a vacation. And thanks for missing me, some of you.

So, yippee, I just got back from a refreshing holiday to Rishikesh and Haridwar. Though Haridwar was a disappointment of capital proportions, Rishikesh still maintains its sanctity and freshness.

If you happen to head towards the holy cities anytime soon, please remember to carry a set of umbrellas and raincoats, it’s raining quite a bit.

Oh, and while I was there, I couldn’t help noticing how the posters of some dubbed Chiranjeevi-starrer Devaa hogged more walls than Priyanka Chopra-Akshaye Khanna’s rom-com, Aap Ki Khatir.

But the film of the moment and year is definitely, Lage Raho Munnabhai. (No offence to Rang De Basanti and Omkara. I love you both!) Very rarely comes a film that makes you want to praise it openly to obscene levels without any shame or hesitation. Lage Raho is one such experience.

I happen to see it in an expensive multiplex of Ghaziabad. Trust me I wouldn’t mind paying double for the amount of pleasure it gave me.

The kind of response it generates from the crowd is absolutely heart-warming. Ditto for the film. What a glorious work of cinema! The film leaves you feeling so light, relieved, happy and appreciative. Everyone who finds it hard to get into the yoga routine should wait for the DVD of Munnabhai- 2 to come out. It’s THAT good. Maybe Munna-Circuit Day isn’t such a preposterous idea after all?

In latest news, have you seen the promos of Umrao Jaan? Aishwarya Rai is looking fetching. That too is a feat when you look good almost all the time. Noticed how Abhishek Bachchan looks like a younger version of his ‘Pa’s’ Afghani Pathan, Badshah Khan (Khuda Gawah) in the whole Nawab get-up? I didn’t like the brief strain (music composed by Anu Malik) that goes with the trailer though. It just doesn’t stand out. And when you make, correction: remake, a film like Umrao Jaan, you got to be clear on two points costumes and music.

Ah well, the soundtrack is yet to come out. So like always, hope for the best and be prepared for the worst.



Source: thoughtexpress.rediffiland.com

Chak De is a masterstroke

Chak De India is, what SRK could call, a masterstroke.



Forget the whole patriotism thing it has going for itself, this is a movie that raises the bar for other flicks that try. This is work worthy of praise by the guy who gave us Ab Tak Chappan, and it doesn”t try too hard to be artistic, or mainstream. It”s just there, it”s an honest narrative and it proves a point: a good story when told well can entertain, period, without really the need for bikini-clad sex-Sherawats as fillers.

Kabir Khan (SRK) is the captain of the national hockey side, and oops - he misses a penalty stroke against Pakistan in an all-important final. The media manufacture treason, and Khan is soon under the microscope. Eventually, he”s tagged a traitor, and it”s done oh-so-filmi - chalked on the Khan”s residence - before he leaves in a tearless farewell.

We fast-forward seven years. Khan is back, applying for the God-forsaken post of the women”s hockey team coach. Why? To regain the lost pride, etc. No major motivational speech to rope Khan in, mercifully, as he puts forward his case. The women”s hockey board, of course, have nothing to lose, having little faith in their team”s ability. That leaves Khan and his new beard in the company of sixteen girls from around the country, literally, as he begins his harsh mentorship. Sadly for the girls, this isn”t a coach, it”s an authoritarian, a dictator - King Khan at his stringent best - as he makes them toil hard, both mentally and physically, instilling them with confidence and inspiring them with the pep-talk.

Yes, it does get shaky, but Khan prevails, taking the team into the World Championship, not before they had to play a match against their male counterparts to prove their worth. The World Championship, of course, is the big showdown, as Khan guides them nicely with victory after victory, and in the “bharatiya nari running around in knickers for their win”, Kabir Khan tries to win the hearts of people. Again.

Unfortunately for director Shimit Amin, when you do decide on a sports flick, something of this nature, you have to compromise on a lot. The end is all too obvious, and rather predictable, but the journey throughout was more than enjoyable, and that”s where he scores. The final moments of Chak De India actually grip you, although you know the end result at the back of your mind. More than anything, I loved this flick for the honesty - there is no real overdone masala talk, no item tracks, no I”m-going-through-a-depression parallel narratives, absolutely no dilution of the sort. It figures - at just over two and a half hours running time, it”s made an impact. The girls do their bits pretty well, and although not all of them hog the screen, there are a few prominent players, namely Chitrashi Rawat as Komal Chautala, Shilpa Shukla as Bindia Naik and Sagarika Ghatge as Preeti Sabarwal. Did I mention Sagarika”s hot? Nope? Okay, here goes - she is.

But, hello, this is a welcome surprise, a Yash Raj flick with no lover boy Khan? And wow, I mean wow, King Khan can act. Disarmingly so convincing, that even those witty one-liners which ought to have had no place in the script is delivered with such precision. Chak De doesn”t try too hard to remain subtle throughout, and there are flaws and the clich