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He Says She Says – 4: Who should make the first move?
This appeared today.
By Sudhish Kamath & Shonali Muthalaly.
(Since, it isn’t credited in the official site)
🙂
Browsing Category Archives
When SRK met SRK!
Scroll down for the complete story. 😀
Netru Indru Nalai: Update
For those who missed it, here’s the story on the Making of Netru Indru Nalai, the one Mani Ratnam really liked.
We journalists do not show anyone our copy before it appears, so I had to refuse his request of showing him the copy, for him to “clear”. So finally when it appeared, maybe he was just relieved that I didn’t leak out details or write anything negative.
It’s a curtain raiser, how critical can one get anyway?
But as I was hanging around the sets, he sure was getting the jitters as I jotted down every bit of detail I came across during their discussion. Of course, I was able to use only 5 per cent of the information because the organisers wanted to keep a few surprises.
The event did not happen because of rain. And, it totally washed out the hype generated by this other story on the morning of the show.
They say that the show will happen sometime soon.
But Vandana of The Banyan pledged she’s not gonna do anything of this scale ever again.
Will keep you guys posted about the fresh date of the show.
From the rehearsals I’ve seen, I can promise it’s gonna be one long disco out there at Jeppiar College. Awesome selection of songs, esp. the bit when Shilpa Shetty swings her hip to Chaiyya Chaiyya… Man, she was sooo good at her very first rehearsal that when she walked off after her dance, one of the dancers commented: Avanga nadanthalae dance madri irukku (It looks like she’s dancing even when she just walks).
I can’t wait to see her on top of the train with Vivek Oberoi doing the jig.
Never mind the distance or the price of tickets, this show will be a must watch.
When SRK met SRK :D
An abridged version of this appeared in the paper today. Here’s the unedited full text of the interview, when Sudhish Rajagopal Kamath met Shah Rukh Khan.
* * *
It was, perhaps, most apt to have the most watched star endorse a watch. A watch so slick and premium, that for a moment you would think he’s endorsing a time machine. Oh well, okay, maybe it IS, really.
So after the Tag Heuer (we need to plug it in for it introduced us to him, though in reality, SRK introduced the watch to us) moved two hours past the scheduled start of press conference, we were ushered to his suite for the ten-minutes of a lifetime — a one-on-one with Shah Rukh Khan.
And, the spaghetti-sporting publicist with the hour-glass figure indicated: “Five minutes.” (Someday even Suderman will have a butli like that for secretary!)
Thus started our rapid-fire Q&A session.
Q: Were you disappointed that one of your best performances till date, Mohan Bhargav in ‘Swades,’ did not fetch you a National Award?
A: I’m no one to judge what my best performances are. It depends on what people say.
It’s a good film to make. I think I’ve performed as well as I could. I think I’ve put in that much hard work. I don’t want to sound bratty. But, it’s just that it’s a loss to the National Awards. And I believe that. I’m not being a bad sport. Also, a friend has got it so it seems wrong for me to say that…(shrugs)
Q:Did you like him in Hum Tum?
A: I didn’t see it.
Q: You’ve always said your personal favourite roles have been in ‘Swades’ and ‘Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa,’ which, is a film you did quite a while ago. Why do you say that these films are your favourite?
A: ‘Swades’ because it’s so radically different. It gives you an opportunity. People keep on saying that, you know, one should do different roles. I can’t do a different role in a film which is exactly the same. With due respect, you can’t do an action film differently than actually you’re supposed to do it. Once in a while, you do get films for an occasion, a situation… The whole ideology of the film is so different. Then, you can rise to the occasion or at least you know film has a character. Sometimes, that film helps you make a character. Otherwise I’m a hero type. So, if there is a film where I’m supposed to be in love I’ll do it like a hero. But, sometimes, commercial cinema gives you enough space to make a character. ‘Swades’ was like that. ‘Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa’ was among the first ten films I did and I grew up and learnt something. Then I think it happened with ‘Dil Se’ and ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’… they were made simultaneously. By that time, I felt I had done something, learnt something nice. And then again, I learnt something with Swades. I can’t explain the difference but people say you’re growing as an actor, etc. But I just felt that something different has happened to me. I’ve learnt some more. And that becomes very special to me.
Q: Did you plan something special for it, or did you just follow Ashutosh?
A: When people tell me I act the same I say I’m a director’s actor. It’s the directors who act the same. I take no credit or discredit for what I do in a film. I should never tell a director what to do. I’m a believer in a good story. As a matter of fact, I told him that Swades won’t be commercially big. And, to do a film like this after Lagaan… But then he said “My dad wants me to make this film.” So I said “OK, if your dad wants you to, then do it. But commercially it isn’t viable.” Because it’s a subject that can be a little heavy on you. And no one really wants to know about the good things in life. We just want to know about the songs and dances. So he just told me what to do. He was very clear on Mohan Bhargav. From the clothes to the hair…
Q: Are you allowed to talk about Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna (KANK)? You see a “learning process” there?
A: You see, when you start doing it, then suddenly you realize it is different in a certain way. It’s been a bold subject for Karan. But, of course, it’s going to have the trappings of a Karan Johar film. And its not that he can’t make it differently. See, the stakes become very high when you make a film for 35 crores. So you need the trappings to be there. You can’t make a film for 35 crores and not know business. So it has to have… you know, it IS like that. Hopefully, I will do something new within the parameters set for commercial cinema.
Q: You’ve been working mostly with people who are your friends…
A: That’s not true. Everyone asks me. But I’ve worked with first time director Nikhil Advani.
Q: That was written and produced by Karan Johar.
A: Farah had never directed a film. Even Karan and Adi were first time directors when I did their films.
Q: You don’t want to work with the new breed of directors, say, from the Ram Gopal Varma school of filmmaking?
A: Ram Gopal Varma has been new school for the last eight years. (laughs) But he doesn’t give me a film. He comes and narrates every story to me. Then he says: “But Shah Shah Rukh, my daughter wants me to make a film that’s nice and sweet. She doesn’t want to see all this – the way I make films.” So, he comes and narrates everything to me… his ‘Sholay,’ ‘Sarkar,’ everything. Every film he narrates and then finally tells me “I want to do a Karan Johar kind of a film with you.” But, I already have Karan Johar for that… (laughs) Inshaallah, it’ll happen sometime.
Q: Is Mani Ratnam’s project Mahabharatha happening?
A: I am not aware of it at all.
Q: Bobby Bedi’s 100-crore production, Mahabharatha, they’re trying to get you, Aamir together. You guys haven’t acted together at all.
A: He’s mentioned it. Bobby’s an old dear friend. So one day he vaguely mentioned it.
Q: This film with Prabhudeva…
A: Somebody else also asked me this, is he directing a film they asked me. I don’t know.
Q: This smoking ban. You’ve welcomed this ban. And the last five years you’ve said that you’re trying to give up smoking. When are you quitting?
A: I gave it up three days ago. I did. (laughs) But, I’ve cut it down to ten cigarettes a day. Hopefully in the next few days, I’ll give it up.
Q: Your Dreamz Unlimited, it’s future. Do you see yourself making Dreamz Unlimited films soon?
A: It’s all fused together now. Under the banners of Dreamz, Arclights and Red Chillies. But we decided, due to our very special relationship, between me, Aziz and Juhi, that if we make a film together, we should share the profits or the losses. You know it started with Chalte Chalte, like Juhi said, “Look I’m not part of the film, why should I be part of the profits?” Very sweet people.
Q: One last question. What does it mean when you say ‘your interpretation of a character’? Like Farhan Akhtar’s ‘Don’ you said will be your interpretation of what Amitabh Bachchan did.
A: No, it’s not my interpretation of what Mr. Bachchan did. It’s my interpretation of the story. See, this is the way I think of doing scenes. My mind thinks like a person who’s born in 65 and lived in the 70s and 80s. I know people of my age and perhaps younger people.
Q: So is Farhan Akhtar’s ‘Don’ contemporary?
A: It is based now. The whole idea is to introduce it to a generation that didn’t see it. Like ‘Devdas’ was. But ‘Don’ lends itself to being a film that can happen now. It has the trappings of a good commercial film. The action is more stylized and… it has a lot of scope for a modern film.
Q: What has no one asked you yet? You’ve done some 2000 interviews. What has no one asked you yet? Your toe-nail size? Do you cut you toe-nails?
A: Do I cut toenails? I think somebody’s asked me that also. (laughs)
* * *
After the interview…
Suderman: Hey, I want a snap with you. At the end of the day, we are all fans, you know.
Shah Rukh Khan: Sure (gets up and poses).
Where’s the snap? Coming soon, watch this space! 😀
Some reasons to celebrate. And blog.
🙂
I can’t stop grinning. Life hasn’t been better.
1. I’m on night shift. So not too much work.
2. I met Shah Rukh Khan yesterday. It’s been my dream to shake hands with the man who shares my initials (My office calls me SRK after the initials of my official name Sudhish R Kamath). My interview appears on Wednesday. Check this space for the complete unedited version.
3. I’m most likely to be on my way to Australia for a week, if my visa comes through. Cuz my office is sending me on an assignment there. I’m looking forward to a mini-vacation.
4. I entered finals of www.stickcricket.com and lost only by 34 runs chasing 201 in 10 overs. And I beat my own record of scoring 238 for two in ten overs in practice mode with two centurions (Sehwag 113 and Gambhir 112).
5. Finished first rough cut of the movie, thanks to Vijay, who’s been at it in spite of his personal lows. And, I’m getting my old music director back on the project. Hopefully, this will help build bridges with a few old friends who had to opt out of the film because of our differences.
6. A couple of my old friends are in town — Gij and Raghu. Been able to spend some time with Raghu, hope to do the same with Gij, if she manages to finish her shoot on time.
7. I seem to have adequate resources to buy an Apple G4 iBook. Quite excited about the Mac. All I need is a stopover in Singapore on my way back from Australia. I just pray that is possible.
8. Been single, content and independent. Freedom… Yay!!
9. Had quite a few people say nice things about my reviews and articles during the past fortnight, starting with Mani Ratnam himself. Thank you for the feedback. Much appreciate.
10. And hey, this blog crossed one lakh hits a day or two ago!! Thank you all… each and every one of you. Even you bad-mouthing anonymous fuckers… thank you for contributing to CounterMan! Finally, thank you Statcounter, for keeping tab of these anonymous sons of anonymous fathers.
Episode 3: Who should pay?
He says:
No doubt about it at all. Women must pay.
Men have been paying for years now. Time for payback.
Yes, man was an ape once upon a time. Just like how he used to pay once upon a time. But here’s a word, ladies: It’s called evolution.
The modern man no longer wants to pay.
He might buy you a drink when he’s high or buy you coffee to make you feel special — once in a while. Which is why and how it becomes `special’. If he did it everyday, he would be such a bore and of course, broke, unless he’s got a sugar daddy.
Also, it has something to do with empowerment.
Come on, shell out the money. Show us who’s the boss. As Rod Tidwell says in “Jerry Maguire”: “Show me the money!”
Bad enough you make the guy drive you around most of the time. And, the number of times we drop you home. Do you, like, even know about the escalating cost of fuel and maintenance?
You give the guy a heartache every other week, are you aware how much a night out with the boys costs?
And, those endless mushy phone calls in the middle of the night. Who do you think pays? It’s a man or his father. Or the girl or her father (if she calls). Which means that the probability of a man paying the phone bill is three out of four.
So the next time you go out, be a lady. Pay for the guy. He always entertains you with his romantic services.
Also, he’s probably broke and borrowing money just to make you feel good.
Coffee: 50 bucks.
A full-course meal: 150 bucks.
The pleasure and satisfaction of taking a man out: Priceless.
She says:
And I always thought they enjoyed paying. Honestly. I’ve gone out with guys who are completely rabid about picking up the cheque.
Through dessert, they make eyes at the waiter. Drum their fingers on the table. Flex their credit card holding fingers. And when the bill arrives, they jump up in one beautiful swoop and grab it.
So, what’s a girl to do? I’d pay, but I really don’t want to break a nail. After all, a man’s got to do what a man’s got to do. And maybe, someday, I’ll pay him back by baking him a basket of cookies. (Snort. Yeah right! Only if I can hire someone to make them for me.)
Besides, when a guy asks you out for dinner, he has to pay for the pleasure of your company in some manner. You’re doing your job by looking nice, and listening to his boring office-and-sports stories with an appropriately wide-mascara-eyed admiring expression.
Oh, all right. I admit it. Gender roles have changed. And men don’t have to pay anymore, just like I don’t have to bake cookies anymore. (Give me a moment to recover from a bout of hearty laughter caused by the image of myself in a kitchen.)
But it’s still a charming gesture. It’s not about the money. Two cappuccinos cost less than a pedicure. Paying for them is no big deal.
However, when a man pulls out his wallet to pay at a restaurant, it tells you, he’s generous. When he fights through a crowded bar to get you a fruit juice at the disco, it means he’s thoughtful. When he picks up movie tickets, it means he’s considerate.
And that’s why you date the guy who takes you out for dinner, and just become backslapping buddies with the chap that makes you pay for his pizza.
The Balls of Mangal Pandey: Review
I really wish Ketan Mehta had fictionalised this just a little more. Especially, towards the end.
The build-up throughout the film made me expect a heavy duty well-orchestrated war scene in the end, instead he cuts to still shots of school text book illustrations of the war.
That is the biggest disappointment of Mangal Pandey, which has been wrongly hyped as the desi Braveheart. The very comparison with Braveheart does make Mangal pale, but that’s only cuz Ketan refused to change history, after having taken liberties to add a lot of fictional characters and sub-plots.
Hence, to begin with, Mangal Pandey is a film best watched without any expectations whatsoever. Once you’ve removed all preconceived notions, the phenomenal hype surrounding the film and the fact that it took two years in the making and 18 months for Aamir to grow his hair, and get set to watch it with a clear mind, without any prejudices or expectations, you surely will be surprised.
Mangal Pandey is a pretty neat film. It is very good Indian cinema, with its melodrama, ‘yeh dosti’ bonding between the heroes, songs that could have been done away with and an item number. So if you’re going in thinking a period film should not have any of this, you are surely going to be disappointed. Some of my friends did not like it because it was very pop.
I for one, am glad that Mangal Pandey is made for us — the dominant Indian sensibility, rather than simply catering to the white audience (that apparently has more money to offer the film than we do, given the overseas clout Aamir weilds).
Add to the fact that the story of Mangal Pandey in itself does not provide for elaborate war scenes. It was just a rebellion, where one man stood his ground. Might not seem significant after having heard and watched many large scale films on freedom and independence, but that’s where it helps to understand Indian history and place Mangal Pandey in the context of the freedom struggle. The first ever recorded account of an Indian rebellion was his. The first ever vision of a truly Independent India was his. This film basically shows us the balls he had to take on the East India Company, in spite of knowing he was outnumbered 1: 3,00,000!
So what he exactly did might not stretch more than maybe three separate acts of protest. There sure might have been other unsung heroes. But the fact that Mangal did make his protest heard, is what makes his story significant. To bring to the forefront these three episodes of bravado, Ketan Mehta creates an elaborate setting during the first half of the film — the way of life in a country ruled by the East India Company, the rapport Indian soldiers shared with the Indian-born Brits (the sub-plot involving an Indian maid breast-feeding a white infant serves as an excellent metaphor for the state of affairs) and the events that led to the making of a rebel.
Ketan Mehta is a highly under-rated director. More than Varma, he has to be the original Indian maverick filmmaker. Look at his range.
The Rising — Ballad of Mangal Pandey, 2005; Aar Ya Paar, 1997; Oh Darling Yeh Hai India, 1995; Sardar, 1994; Maya Memsaab, 1993; Hero Hiralal, 1988; Mirch Masala, 1987; Holi, 1984; Bhavni Bhavai 1980; and Toote Khilone, 1978.
The fact that most of these films are very different from each other shows us the repertoire of the master craftsman. One person made the raw and rustic Mirch Masala, the slick and stylish ‘Oh Darling Yeh Hai India’ and the politically correct docu-drama in Sardar and now a fictionalized kitchsy Mangal Pandey!
I even loved the mega-budget musical ‘Oh Darling Yeh Hai India’ (it ran just a week or two in the city, so you’ll be excused for asking for not hearing about the film). Imagine, here was a man who had the balls to make a full-fledged contemporary musical with political overtones.
Though a section of the audience will find the film sensual, a lot of the Indian audience is likely to find it crude and voyeuristic in its depiction of women.
But again, Ketan could have made Mangal Pandey in the same sensibility as Sardar and I’m glad he used a very mainstream Bollywood sensibility. Like the note at the beginning of the film says:
Legends are born when history meets folklore.
I’m glad this is not in the realistic mould but roots itself in the folkish, with a very “popish” modern feel just so that you know that the situations and circumstances are very relevant in today’s world where America controls operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, a world of MNCs monopolising trade and finding slaves in every country around the world.
Next the performances:
Aamir: First rate (though I wish he had got rid of his boyish voice which jarrs with the manly-get-up!)
Toby Stephens: As Gordon, seems more convincing than Mangal, with his head in tact on his shoulder.
Rani: Shows plenty of cleavage, adds some glam and is super effective in that one scene when she says: “Hum toh sirf jism bechtey hai, aap toh apni aatma bechtey hai” (“We only sell our bodies to the Brits, you sell your soul,” she tells Mangal, the sepoy)
Amisha: Has nothing much to do, but kiss Toby and have that single tear drop during the ‘matter’ scene with him.
Om Puri: As the narrator, lends the film so much of credibility, as he translates the English scenes for the junta.
It is pretty hard to believe that the guy Farookh Dhondy who wrote Kisna (the worst film ever) wrote this too. He’s pretty adequate, or maybe cuz I really dreaded the idea of him writing for this much-awaited film.
Himman Dhamija’s frames and Nitin Desai’s art do bring alive the world of 1857, full points to them for making the film technically sound. The thing with A.R. Rahman is that he comes up with these awesome songs that there was no way Ketan Mehta could’ve left them out of the film.
And the end of the film, you’re just left wondering: Damn, I wish there was that war-scene! Would’ve made it so complete!
Instead, Ketan shifts to a minute long b/w docu reel on the freedom struggle and the subsequent Indian independence in 1947, as a realization of Mangal’s dream of a free nation ruled by its people.
Verdict: Must watch.
Post script: Leave your expectations at home. They could be sometimes be unfair and too demanding.
The Rising: The Westerner’s Perspective (Reviews)
When The Rising premiered at the Locarno fest, reports say that it received a standing ovation.
Here are a couple of reviews to the English version of the film by Western critics. The desi version I guess would have more melodrama (or at least I hope! What’s a Bollywood war movie without some kickass melodrama? Even the Hollywood manufactured Braveheart had goose bumps-inspiring melodrama after all!)
The first one is reproduced from The Variety magazine. I would’ve just given a link but it requires you to sign up for trial membership. Too complicated just to read one review, so here it is:
The Rising: Ballad of Mangal Pandey (India)
A Yash Raj Films release of a Kaleidoscope Entertainment, Inox Leisure, TFK Films presentation of a Kaleidoscope Entertainment, Maya Movies production.
(International sales: Capitol Films, London.)
Produced by Bobby Bedi, Deepa Sahi.
Directed by Ketan Mehta.
Screenplay, Farrukh Dhondy; Hindi dialogue, Ranjit Kapoor.
Mangal Pandey – Aamir Khan
William Gordon – Toby Stephens
Heera – Rani Mukerji
Jwala – Amisha Patel
Emily – Coral Beed
Lol Bibi – Kirron Kher
Hewson – Ben Nealon
Lockwood – Simon Chandler
Kent – Kenneth CranhamGen. Hearsey – Jeremy ClydeSorabji – Sorab Adeshir
Kemala – Mona Ambegaonkar
By DEREK ELLEY Bollywood cracks the epic code with “The Rising: Ballad of Mangal Pandey,” a gorgeously lensed, well-structured audience-pleaser that harks back to classic Hollywood blockbusters of the ’50s and ’60s. Based on the 1857 Indian Mutiny that signaled the slow decline of Blighty‘s rule in the subcontinent, pic sidesteps the usual pitfalls of historical action-dramas made with Anglo-local casting for a good old-fashioned tale of heroism with a political slant. Opening-night attraction at the Locarno fest goes out worldwide through Yash Raj Films Aug. 12, and could cross over to fractionally wider biz than usual Bollywood fare. Largely shot in English, the movie has none of the awkwardness in dialogue or playing that’s afflicted similar productions in the past, despite being directed by an Indian, Ketan Mehta (“Mirch Masala,” “Sardar”), and using a largely Bollywood crew. Dialogue falls naturally into English or Hindi as circumstances dictate and, apart from a couple of overplayed supporting roles, the Brits come over as real characters rather than colonial stereotypes. Thanks to good perfs by leads Aamir Khan (“Lagaan”) and Toby Stephens, the personal conflict — which, in true epic style, mirrors the wider drama — is socked over at a human level that’s finally very moving. In April 1857, Mangal Pandey (Khan), a sepoy (Indian infantryman) in the East India Co.’s army, waits to be hung for mutiny in Barrackpore jail, northern India. (The trading company, with its own troops, ruled the country for 100 years, under a mandate from the U.K.; latter took over direct rule after the uprising.) When it’s discovered that the hangman has run off in fear, Pandey’s execution is delayed, which allows for a flashback that occupies most of the picture. Flashback starts through the eyes of William Gordon (Stephens), a young Glaswegian officer who bonded with Pandey when the latter saved his life during a guerrilla ambush in Afghanistan. Hindi-speaking Gordon has a sympathy for the locals that’s in stark contrast to most of his white colleagues. Script intros a broad range of characters: Gordon’s racist colleague, Hewson (Ben Nealon); bigtime East India Co. employee Kent (Kenneth Cranham) and his daughter, Emily (Coral Beed); and Lockwood (Simon Chandler), an auditor sent from London to investigate company corruption. Trigger for the mutiny is the army’s introduction of a new gunpowder cartouche that’s rumored to be greased with cow and pig fat, making it off-limits for both Hindu and Muslim sepoys. (Cartouche’s sealed end has to be bitten off so the gunpowder can be emptied into rifles.) Other tensions are also building. Gordon rescues a young bride, Jwala (Amisha Patel), from the banned practice of suttee — a bride immolating herself with her dead husband. Meanwhile, Pandey is beaten by Hewson and his pals for defending a high-class prostitute, Heera (Rani Mukerji). Farrukh Dhondy’s script packs a lot of characters and incidents into the first hour but without any feel of being a cut-down miniseries, thanks to Sreekar Prasad’s smooth editing and dialogue which economically sets up the basic conflicts. Various personal, romantic and political strands — the last very typical of Dhondy, a onetime commissioning editor at U.K. web Channel 4 — come to a head at the intermission. Final hour translates all the foregoing into more action, as Pandey leads a mutiny that shakes the East India Co. to its core. This is the classic structure of all the best historical epics, and though the film employs recognizable Bollywood trademarks, helmer Mehta’s approach is more “Western” in its rhythms, pacing and avoidance of Asian melodrama. Musical set pieces are more integrated into the action, and the focus is kept tightly on the Gordon-Pandey relationship. Some story threads are underdeveloped (the wet nurse of Hewson’s mistress, especially), and Emily’s soppy character is wisely ditched early on. Mukerji makes the most of her feisty nautch-girl, and has a moving, dialogue-less scene near the end with Khan’s Pandey, but it’s a small role for a star of her caliber. Ditto Patel as Gordon’s lover. It’s Khan and Stephens who drive the pic, and both are excellent. Khan brings a dignified passion to Pandey that’s matched by Stephens’ robust Scot, and both get major acting ops in the final reels. Technical credits are aces on all levels, from Lovleen Bains’ realistically colorful costumes to Himman Dhamija’s eye-watering widescreen compositions. Musical numbers by top composer A.R. Rahman are typically rhythmic rather than melodically memorable, pushing along and commenting on the action.
Camera (color, widescreen), Himman Dhamija; editor, Sreekar Prasad; music, A.R. Rahman; lyrics, Javed Akhtar; production designer, Nitin Chandrakant Desai; costume designer, Lovleen Bains; hair and make-up, Penelope Smith, Slash Apeni Sandhu; sound (Dolby Digital/DTS Digital), Robert Taylor; choreographers, Saroj Khan, Raju Khan; action co-ordinator, Abbas Ali Moghul; associate producer, Varsha Bedi. Reviewed at Locarno Film Festival (Piazza Grande, opener), Aug. 3, 2005. Running time: 150 MIN. (I: 85 MIN.; II: 65 MIN.)
Okay, the second one has firang prejudices written all over it. This is from Hollywood Reporter.
But this one too says the movie has been well shot! I’m pretty sure we guys are gonna love it!
By Ray Bennett Thu Aug 4, 6:51 PM ET LOCARNO, Switzerland (Hollywood Reporter) – Ketan Mehta’s sweeping epic, “The Rising — Ballad of Mangal Pandey,” is a kind of Bollywood “Braveheart” as one courageous and doomed man confronts the might of the British Empire, plus there’s singing and dancing. Sumptuously designed and beautifully shot, the film will delight Bollywood fans but likely will fail to capture mainstream audiences with its melodramatic style and jarring combination of stirring action, brutality and musical numbers.For 100 years, the East India Company was the face of the British Empire, ruling one-fifth of the world and dominating the Indian subcontinent with the help of 300,000 Hindu and Muslim soldiers called Sepoys.In Mehta’s tale, the introduction of a new rifle in 1853 brought down the most successful private company in history. The rifle used a cartridge that soldiers had to bite the end of in order to pour the powder into the barrel. But the company used the grease of pigs and cows to seal the cartridges, and so placing them in their mouths violated the Sepoys’ faiths.At first, trusting the Company lie that the cartridges do not use pig or cow grease, Pandey bites the bullet, but when the truth is revealed, he leads the Sepoy in a rebellion that for the first time unites all the various creeds, tribes and castes of the region. It sows the seeds for the end of the East India Company’s reign, though India would not gain its independence from Britain for about another century.The saga is told in black-and-white terms with a clear division between good guys and bad guys. The dastardly villains are the ones in the red uniforms who speak as if they’ve just swallowed a plum. The only good British officer is, inevitably, Scottish.The Bollywood style is so bouncy and optimistic, however, that it’s difficult to sustain the effect of an oppressed nation when everyone, even untouchables and slave girls, all appear so jolly. The hero is savagely beaten by five Company men, but shortly afterward he joins the beautiful pleasure house girl Heera (Rani Mukherji) in a jaunty dance number.Although the film is expertly rooted in its period, Heera seems to have been parachuted in from the 21st century with her cover girl eyes and MTV choreography.There are many bold statements about freedom and peoples’ rights to their own cultures and faiths and a suggestion that there are modern versions of the East India Company at work in the world, which might well be true, but the message gets a bit lost amid all the happy singing people.
To break the silence… A ‘pointless’ conversation!
It’s been a while since I said something.
The truth is I didn’t have anything to say.
I’ve been listening.
I’ve been thinking.
I’ve been chilling.
I’ve been editing.
I’ve been putting extra hours at work.
And extra hours at sleep as well.
Leading a pretty regular normal life.
It’s been a really weird fortnight, chasing deadlines.
About ten days ago, an unexpected vacation came by… a feel-good trip to Bangalore. Thanks to A who took me to a couple of super romantic spots in the pub city. A chilly evening, breeze, booze and a little drizzle just to give it a touch of perfection. God must’ve been in a good mood.
The flip side of it was that it wasn’t intended to be a vacation. I had gone there on work, on a specific mission of finding the right actors for the rest of the shoot. That quite didn’t work out.
The whole week passed in trying to fix the shoot, in between tight work and editing schedules. And there was an excuse to unwind when my office threw a party at Aqua @ The Park for the Metroplus Theatre Festival.
Last night, I chatted into the night with a friend. “It’s a pointless life. Here I am in this room thinking I make a difference to the world. Then you zoom out and see there are 10 different houses and many people like us who think they actually make a difference. Zoom out further, you see this city and then country and the world and the universe and you realise you are not even a speck on the face of the planet. We are nothing in the larger picture. Education has fooled us into believing that we mean something,” said V.
And no, neither of us were drunk. Though we wished we were. We were listening to some rocking music (Requiem for a dream, Tambourine Man, Doors, Dylan) and continuing our debate.
“There is a point,” I said, trying my best to brush up my feel-good rhetoric that had been gathering dust over the past fortnight. “And we define what we mean and who we want to be. Are you happy being inside in this room or do you want to make yourself heard in this colony, in this city, in this country… Do you want to be seen even when someone zooms out of this country? Or are you happy sitting in a corner and complaining about how insignificant we really are? We all come into this world with a purpose. We spend half a lifetime finding it. And the rest trying to accomplish it. There is a reason. And the reason is life itself, the journey of finding answers.”
He saw through all the lines influenced by half a dozen movies (including my own) and said, “It all sounds good. But in reality, we are just a mass of flesh. You could find your purpose today, become a millionaire and the very next day, you could get run over by a car. We don’t control anything.”
“We can’t control death. But we can control life. And how we are going to live it as long as we have it,” I said.
We were both probably having an argument for the heck of it, but the debate was reinforcing something very basic — We are all so similar, we just believe we are different because of our influences. V did have a point when he said education had fooled us into believing we know it all.
These influences had made us believe we are cool. Made us judge people on the basis of what we believe we know. Made us look down at some, look up towards some.
Our lives indeed centred around ourselves.
“Maybe that’s even more reason to make a difference to the world. Be selfless, like Gandhi. You’ll be remembered even after your death. Maybe someday they will put your face like they have his face imprinted on every single currency note,” I said.
“Gandhi is dead,” said V. “What difference does it make to him that we’ve put his face on the note?”
Ah! Life is pointless indeed! He he!
Let’s not take it too seriously!
Superstar: Single degree of separation!
ROFL!
This is a forward I got in my mailbox this morning, thanks to my buddy Prasanth.
Thalaivar vazhga!!
There is a popular story saying that wherever you go, you will find at least one Rajinikanth fan.
Here is an interesting new story.
Rajinikanth was bragging to Jayalalitha one day, “You know, I know everyone there is to know. Just name someone, anyone, and I know them.”
Tired of his boasting, Jayalalitha called his bluff, “OK, Rajini how about Tom Cruise?”
“Sure, yes, Tom and I are old friends, and I can prove it” Rajini said.
So Rajini and Jayalalitha fly out to Hollywood and knock on Tom Cruise’s door, and sure enough, Tom Cruise shouts “Thalaiva! Great to see you! You and your friend come right in and join me for lunch!”.
Although impressed, Jayalalitha is still skeptical.
After they leave Cruise’s house, she tells Rajini that she thinks Rajini knowing Cruise was just lucky.
“No, no, just name anyone else” Rajini says.
“President Bush”, Jayalalitha quickly retorts.
“Yes”, Rajini says, “I know him, let’s fly out to Washington”.
And off they go. At the White House, Bush spots Rajini on the tour and motions him , saying, “Rajini, what a surprise, I was just on my way to a meeting, but you and your friend come on in and let’s have a cup of coffee first and catch up”.
Well, Jayalalitha is very shaken by now, but still not totally convinced.
After they leave the White House grounds, he implores her to name anyone else.
“The Pope,” Jayalalitha replies.
“Sure!” says Rajini, “My folks are from Germany and I’ve known the Pope a long time”.
So off they fly to Rome. Rajini and Jayalalitha are assembled with the masses in Vatican Square when Rajini says, “This will never work. I can’t catch the Pope’s eye among all these people. Tell you what, I know all the guards so let me just go upstairs and I’ll come out on the balcony with the Pope.”
And he disappears into the crowd headed toward the Vatican.
Sure enough, half an hour later Rajini emerges with the Pope on the balcony.
But by the time Rajini returns, he finds that Jayalalitha had a Heart attack and is surrounded by paramedics.
Working his way to Jayalalitha’s side, Rajini asks her, “What happened?”
Jayalalitha looks up and says, “I was doing fine until you and the Pope came out on the balcony and the man next to me said, “Who’s that on the balcony with Rajini?”
🙂
MADRAS INK. 