Bhavai - Artful Performances. Stupid Controversy. 

It could have been Ravan Leela without any problems.

Prateek Gandhi, aapdo Gujarati, talented, national acting sensation finally in a lead role in a Hindi Movie, and it had to be a controversy, Why? It is anything but a controversy. 

A simple Ram Leela in a town takes manifold proportions turning the life of an aspiring actor down side up and upside down. Raja Ram Joshi (Pratik) wants to join the Nautanki and a series of coincidences fetch him the role of Ravan. Now, the nautanki's owner (the earlier ravan), Sita (Aindrita Ray) and Raja Ram has an ensuing love triangle resulting in some amazing dreamy poetic sequences. There are amazing funny scenes and lines which will keep you engaged. 

The entire hindi heartland humour, the heart burn of being a spiritual actor, the politics of religion, simple aspirations of village folk have been extensively well captured. 

What stands out is Pratik's act, simply flawless. Aindrita too is fresh and has a cute presence. Abhimanyu stands out with his perfect performance outshining Pratik in the role of Ravan. 

The film exposes us on the dilemma of Politics and Religion on the blind faith people have on the characters who protray Ram and Sita. 

Music is nice soulful but not exactly hummable. Cinematography too rules. 

All in all, it is a must watch. It is simple story and yet there was a useless controversy!

Go Watch it.

Luv ni Love Storys – 1B3HK Story

One boy vs three girls and you thought he had all the luck? Well, grass is always green on the green screen, while reality is completely non-filmy.

Jignesh Vasavada

2.75 stars (.75 for the Look)

 

I have been checking every grammar site on whether it should be stories or story, nowhere it says storys...but what the heck, my grammar teacher isn’t coming to watch a Gujarati movie, so we grant the creator the creative licence as we focus on the Love Stories (I got this right).

Our Hero:

Luv, a cute kid who refused to give kheer to his father is packed off to a Boarding school and grows up to become Pratik Gandhi who can play golf like he plays cricket. Initially he plays a guessing game with the viewers teasing us to guess his profession (love guru, negotiator, hair-stylist, rich man’s son and chef). Finally, he settles down for one profession. His entire family knows all aspects of love. Luv falls in love far more easily than she can say Jalapeño (with a pronounced H). The entire movie revolves around his falling and failing in love (remember bachna ae haseeno, well don’t). And yes, there is a strong hidden political leaning with Luv’s surname. 

Love Interest 1:

A super hot, super beautiful Mishti (Shraddha Dangar) who gives all the right signals of love and while the viewer and kids in his family know everything, Luv just does not get it. All the slow-mo scenes here are really nice and effective.

 Love Interest 2:

A cute, bubbly, Sonam (Vyoma Nandi) who is so beautiful that the entire society notices her, but our man doesn’t. Who misses a hot neighbour? She too is completely into Luv, but not so much into him and yet he is into her. Confused? Well so were we. Did someone refer to the Kaula Lumpur Police Department?

Love Interest 3:

Amongst the most sorted, gorgeous and intelligent of the three, Preeti (Deeksha Joshi) flirts with a yes, no, yes, no, yes, no to the extent that she even has a T-shirt to that effect (just in case the audience does not get it). Confuses Luv, his friend, family, Golawala, balloonwala and the audience equally.

All that is Wow

Well, the film gets its look so so right.

Good Locations, good Art Direction and above average camera work by Suraj Kurade sets the tone of the movie.

The music by Parth Bharat Thakkar is good, soulful and in most cases takes the story forward. Ghoome Ghoome is a rocking number sure to hit the Top Charts.

Acting, all four have done a great job. Each of them excels in their individual roles. All in all, it makes the movie very watchable.

Dialogues and some situations were truly funny. The cast carried it well.

Hardik Sangani too rocks in the friends role.

All that is Saav

What is with the story? It just vanishes in thin air. Towards the end one feels completely lost and just wants the film to end.

Casting. While Pratik can make any role look like a cakwalk, he seemed just misfit for the role. A chocolaty, cute and dreamy boy (remember Ranbir) could have been more appropriate for the role. Did he look a tad bit uncomfortable in the lover/playboy/Casanova image. I thought so.

Logic, in most places seems misplaced. The story becomes predictable and slow. Situations are questionable. You want to run away with a girl but have not thought of what next. The entire third sequence of love is all over the place and stretched.

Pretty predictable ending.

And please don’t miss moments:

So, when you are heartbroken, you can waste water.

Men are like Golas...and...hello...this was a family watch...

You say Undhiyu and serve Pulao.

2023 is when the movie starts and yet 2019 they are checking FB timelines????

Teacher goes in and walks out for balloons and the bell rings and kids get the balloons. I want to study in this school (for the teacher, though).

The video has just begun playing and the characters end the same (wait for it).

The Verdict:

Should one watch this movie, of course yes. It is as glamorous as they can get. Besides lessons in love, prem, ishq and what not, you will surely fall in love with the cast.

x

Dhunki – Trance by Chance

A cosmos of chef-turned-entrepreneur meets coder-turned-entrepreneur meets realities of life.

2.75/5 The .75 for Kaushambi and Vishal.

Jignesh Vasavada 

Well the good times for Gujarati cinema for the year 2019 seem to have begun rolling. With a good film last week, this week too appears promising, not to mention, the coming few months. However, there are miles to go in few departments.

What is heartening is that film-makers are experimenting, with styles and genres. Dhunki is one such experiment, slightly late in time, yet not too late.

1. The Film begins with a lot of people to thank. Just too many.
2. Why Why do these actors not wear seat belts or wear helmets, why? (Or am I too paranoid/hopeful).
3. Deeksha Joshi has 5 clearly visible moles, 2 lightly visible ones and one highly invisible mole on her face.
4. ISRO just did not have to spend so much for a moon surface landing, this movie offers a lot of space on the heroes’ faces.
5. Daaru is injurious to health, even in Mount Abu, so relieved.
6. English subtitles of Gujarati movies are a huge distraction. I learnt, Dadagiri is Bossiness.
7. Just because it is a movie about a chef does not give you a reason to forget your manners, never talk with food in the mouth.
8. Looks like Radio Industry is truly throwing up good actors and rich bosses, RJ Ankit (the firing boss), RJ Aarti (the tycoon boss), Chirag Tripathi (the non-hiring boss), wow, good cameos.
9. Daaru Peene Dhingli thai jay chhe! What a line, Loved it.
10.  It will always haunt me, you go to an investor to seek 1 million of funds and have no plan on hand!!

And therein lies the challenge.

But before that, the story.

Nikunj and Shreya, colleagues in a digital firm, quit based on a goof-up and follow their passion of opening a food delivery start-up. Nikunj’s wife (kaushambi) and Shreya’s fiancé (Vishal) keep giving them reality checks even as they duo struggle to keep their passion up and running. Looking at the clever trailer, we are sure how this will end for the protagonists, however, there promises to be some twists. The way the movie ends, it is good.

But can someone please tell me, why does the story need to have so many close-ups? Extreme Close-ups? With a weak story line and average sub-plots, there is just no scope for any kind of facial expressions, then why did Anish and his DOP adopt this classical line of film-making. Beats me, even as I count Pratik’s nose hair, get irritated by Deeksha’s every interfering hair-line, Dr Vishal’s ear (I assume he is an ENT surgeon). Why! Why!

Also, I am confused. Is this film about food? Then where are the array of very well shot extreme close-ups of dishes? Only three dishes, Dal-fry, some non-veg dish with cream and something else? Why? If it was about an app, then why focus on a chef? And if it was about a start-up then where is the marketing plan, the passion, the ‘Real Disappointment’. To be fair, there is a lovely sequence of investors giving gyaan, not money. Very relatable.

Yes, there are some really good sequences, emotions, connects and attempt at humour. Once in a while you also feel the pain, you relate to incidents (home selling, struggle for jobs, at jobs). But all in all, had some more hard work gone into the story and detailing, I am sure, this movie would have been more gripping. Ditto, the pace, it is sometimes too slow, sometimes just ok, but never takes off.

Anish Shah’s directorial debut is commendable. But he just needs to get more story oriented and practical. Among the actors, Kaushambi and Vishal score high, a truly commendable task considering they were number 3 & 4 in the cast. Kaushambi looks and acts fresh and confident while Vishal does a great job of a MCP. Pratik is a natural, but I feel is more of a package than just a face. Extreme Close-Ups spoil the plot. Complete opposite stands for Deeksha, who does not get too many emotions to show her strength. Her Extreme Close-ups are futile.

Music by Siddharth Amit Bhavsar is fine, Niren Bhatt’s Urdu-Gujarati lyrics are good but not catchy.

All in all a truly good urban effort. Definitely worth a watch, worth spending your weekend. Dhunki times for Gujarati cinema are here.

Pics Courtesy Dhunki Promotions

Mitron – The Friendly Super-Son

Yeah Yeah, One more 'Different' Gujarati Friendship Story

Jignesh Vasavada

3.5 Stars

There is something very cute about Jackky Bhagnani, that innocent appeal, that adorable bechara feeling that makes you want to buy a movie ticket to his movies. It is this endearing feature of his persona that should have been used to promote the film, they would have saved all the money.

Still there were a lot of learnings while watching this movie:

1. Who will tell me honestly, is this an autobiography of Jackky Bhagnani? Come on, a wannabe chef being forced into movies? Please, poor him.  
2. Who did the homework on Ahmedabad? When does Light ever go in Ahmedabad? Unless of course you cannot afford the excruciating bijlee rates, lights never go off here. Premise hi galat hai. 
3. Love adds speed. Yes, here the family has been searching for the house for 30 plus mins in an innova, a distance that lovers cover in 1.7 mins, yeah yeah that short from Pol to Pol.
4. Why did the hero have a GJ-1 Scooter and Heroine have GJ-4, Aa toh just!!
5. There are one too many Mirror shots, guess they wanted to make a mirror image of the original movie (yes yes this is a re-make).
6. This movie was conceived and shot in the pre-Vijay Nehra days, else the street food cart would have to be replaced every day of the shoot.
7.  Since when did YouTube have an office in Gujarat? And why does it have to have a greek/german/godknowswhat language speaking gori? Why?
8. I wonder, if Lester D’souza, the owner of Upper Crust, is marrying off his daughter, why will he outsource his catering? Why?
9.  Never sit next to a Music Director while watching a movie, I have never focused on the sound so much in my entire life.
10. Yes, this film is about a Gujarati, based in Gujarat, you know how? None of the characters wear helmet while riding a two-wheeler.

Finally, the Bhagnanis have gotten the mantra of success right, only that they got the equation wrong. Touch Gujarati family and you have success, but touch them for a movie then the Gujarati ought to be a financier!!

Boss, what are the characters doing? Speaking Gujarati or Hindi? One of the things that Khichdi got it right was the dialogues and their delivery. Something I feel Mitron ends up confused.

Otherwise the movie is delightful, wish it was in Gujarati, it would have been a run-away hit (though it has all the makings of one here).

Jay (JB) is a good for cooking things is list-less till he decides to marry for money. Avni (Kritika Kamra, with puffed under eyes) is ambitious and being forced to marry. Their lives intertwine and as fate would have it they become business partners. Whether the partnership will go Band Bajaa Baraaat, is anyone’s guess (duh!!). Yeah, Yeah, the movie is as simple as this.

Wonder why did they even have friends when the movie was all about hero and heroine? Guess it was always about three friends (they had to fit them in). Pratik Gandhi excels in whatever role he has been given. Truly class. Prateik Babbar looks good, has no role. He needs more meat in the role than on his body. 

Shivam Parekh (5 dialogues) is absolutely non-utilized. Kritika excels in her debut role and seems to be a bright candidate. Jackky rocks with a brilliant performance. Now, if the film doesn’t work then boss, meet an astrologer, or actually become a Chef!!!

Watch the movie for the screenplay, cinematography and some amazing background score. Truly, very high class. Songs blend very well with the narrative. Overall a good package to spend the weekend with.

And yes, the movie ends with not one, but two songs.

P.S. Please find the screenshot of the True-Caller identity of the number. I have done your bit, don’t waste time on the same. Language is Telugu.