Endearing Promos, Lovely Songs, Greatly Hyped but unfortunately an unsuccessful attempt by the actor turned Director, Pankaj Kapoor. A simple love story that’s what Mausam could have been. But in order to make it a Love Saga with the twists and turns of anti-social activities has made the Director and the actors to enact something very lethargic piece of art that inspite of being highly melodramatic, fails to touch the audiences’ hearts.
The Promos and the music definitely raised the expectations of the Media, Classes and the Masses. But most of these people have come out of the theatre carrying a bad review of the film. Though the beginning of the movie seems promising but the slow pace of the events drags it unnecessarily for three hours. The story showcases the time period of 10 years in a young boy and girl’s life. How they meet, separate, meet again, again get separated and finally end up marrying each other. As a stated earlier the love story could have been simple but the complications of the anti-social activities and an unnecessary filming of all the terroristic activities has made the plot a complex one. And it definitely does not soothe the viewers.
Shahid Kapoor has tried to give his best shot and his personal attachment with the movie and the character is visible throughout the film, because Mausam has been directed by his father. Sonam Kapoor no doubt has become a fashion Icon for the young generation. And his love for style and fashion is clearly seen in the Scotland sequence. Though the Scotland set up seems a little artificial and unnatural.
Mausam do have some great love moments between Harry (Shahid) and Ayat (Sonam), but unfortunately these scenes are unable to make the audience to stick to their chairs. The movie has turned up to be a disaster for Pankaj Kapoor. But of course the “Office Office” star deserves another opportunity as there is no doubt about him being a talented artist. Well.. I wish him All the Best for his next venture whenever he plans it.

Singham looks like Ajay Devgan doing his version of Dabangg and Wanted but the film isn’t entirely so. It is a pretty watchable film that Ajay Devgan elevates with his presence and intensity.

No surprises here. Tamil remakes are the flavour of the season and boys must have their fun. So Rohit Shetty and Ajay Devgan, tired of playing funnymen have decided to go back to their-or their stuntmen father’s-action roots. I can’t say I am terribly excited at the prospect.

The honest police protagonist gives an extensive emotional speech on how the entire police force has gone corrupt, which instantly awakens the conscience of cops from across the state including the DGP, all of whom come to Singham’s immediate rescue. A head constable on the brink of retirement mouths a monologue on how a police officer is supposed to be saviour of the society yet remains underpaid than janitor.

An aftermath of the success of larger-than-life actioners like Wanted and Dabangg , Singham (officially remade from last year’s Tamil hit by the same name starring Suriya) is clearly devised as an out-an-out action flick for the original action hero Ajay Devgan. The focus is clearly on action and perhaps Rohit Shetty’s definition of full-blown action is his trademark blowing-up-cars phenomena. Jai Singh Nijjar’s action direction involving mortal combats and car chases is quite unimaginative on that front and it’s only thanks to Ajay Devgan’s intensity and physical authenticity that the fight sequences look kind of convincing.

The obligatory romance track involving Kajal Aggarwal is predictably boring. The heroine fulfils the prerequisites for an action film where she has to get molested once to give the hero a chance to show his heroism. A couple of redundant love songs later, love is hurriedly established between the couple. The idea of casting real Marathi actors doesn’t help much, since most of them are relegated to the backseat. And both Ajay Devgan and Prakash Raj who take the lead, struggle in forced Marathi dialect and accent.

Ajay Devgan effortlessly revives his action-hero image and looks quite convincing in his role. Kajal Aggarwal doesn’t get much scope other than showcasing a constant smirk. Sachin Khedekar hams. Ashok Saraf is his usual self. Sonali Kulkarni is wasted. Ashok Samarth has a commanding presence as the villain’s sidekick. Prakash Raj is perhaps the only villain who would be credited for his amazing comic timing.

Ajay Devgan clenching his fists like a lion kind of reminds Mithun Chakravarthy doing a similar step, couple of decades back in a B-grader called Cheetah . Singham isn’t much different from that film either. If an exaggerated action film still excites you, then go Sing-ham!

I will give 3 Stars to Singham.

The sensationalism that Murder achieved half past the film, the sequel attains in the first ten minutes itself.

Jacqueline Fernandez is as much seductive as Mallika Sherawat and comparatively more tastefully tempting. However the entire erotica in the sequel is completely peripheral to the plot. On the contrary while the first part involved only an accidental half-murder, the sequel indulges in rampant massacre. So while the sensuality in the treatment seems forced in Murder 2 , the semi-slasher shade attempts to bring more justice to the title.

Murder 2 isn’t designed as a suspense flick since the identity of the serial killer is revealed much early in the narrative. Also it isn’t about tracing the murderer since the killer is caught in the first half itself. While the investigative drama in the film doesn’t go beyond an average episode of CID TV show, it is never the focus of the film either. The film tries to play more with the abnormal characterization of the psychopath-cum-sadistic killer who enjoys every ‘bit’ of his butchering business. From a sadistic slasher to an amnesiac actor, Prashant Narayanan switches shades in his character like a chameleon – credibly and effortlessly.

While Mahesh Bhatt’s storyline finds its roots in the 2008 South Korean flick Chugyeogja (The Chaser) , the antagonist is kind of Indianized by giving him a eunuch identity. As bizarre as it might sound, he was a womanizer who castrated himself and now seeks revenge on female form for his self-induced impotency. Mohit Suri’s direction meets the prerequisites of the genre, making it a decently crafted film. He smartly builds up the tension and anticipation that a slasher film demands, showcasing some explicit blood-and-gore sequences, but never over-exploits the potential of the relatively new genre to the Indian audience. It’s a calculated risk.

On the flipside the romance track between Emraan Hashmi and Jacqueline Fernandez is literally half-baked. Though there is no dearth of physical intimacy, the chemistry is clearly lacking. Their character conflicts are even more unconvincing. She is sad because her Indian mother was abandoned by her foreign father. He is upset with God because his entire family committed suicide for reasons unknown. But despite their theoretical troubled past, the viewer remains indifferent to their trauma. The entire Emraan-Jacqueline plot contributes nothing to the central narrative.

Emraan Hashmi seems in his comfort zone in a Bhatt-camp designed character that he seems to have mastered by far. Jacqueline Fernandez looks hot and the Bhatt-banner never makes skin-show look tawdry. However with a tangential character, she is only seen in an extended special appearance. Sulagna gets more scope comparatively. She bears a striking resemblance to Celina Jaitley. Sudhanshu Pandey is wasted. Sandeep Sikand doesn’t overdo his eunuch character. The ever-dependable Prashant Narayanan is perfect in his part.

While Murder 2 isn’t killer stuff, it is entertaining enough to qualify as a time-pass thriller.

A 2.5 Star Movie…

Aamir Khan’s declaration that Delhi Belly was going to ‘destroy the image created in 10 years’ caught my eye. News about him requesting the censor board to pass the film with an ‘A’ certificate thus avoiding any cuts to the film managed to raise an eyebrow but we all know what an amazing marketing genius Aamir really is I mean who can forget the Ghajini haircut every cinema usher in India sported in 2008.

The language of the youth in India today has been captured perfectly. Delhi Belly dares to show a side of the youth in India today that is not sugar coated as is shown in majority of the Bollywood films. This has not only added a sense of realism to the film but allowed the most gross and serious scenes in the film to be captured humorously making ways for smiles and laugh out loud moments.

The Delhi Belly script is the true hero of the film alongside the dialogues. The one liners in the film are not only ingenious but entertaining in every sense of the word. I can only say that the 19 drafts that were written by Verma were worth every page.

Abinay Deo’s second venture as the director is fast and the synchronisation with the screenplay is evident. The plot is not lost anywhere – which is a risk when making films that have an ensemble cast. Deo has managed to pull of a feat that many aspire to but few have achieved.

The chemistry between all the members of the cast is fantastic, but in all honesty it is the three male leads who steal the show. The entire film revolves around them and their antics and I would love to see them star again in another comedy.

The art direction of the film is good, camera work is perfect as it manages to transport the audience to the situations being shown with ease and the editing is second to none. Though only two of the songs are shown in the film (‘Jaa Chudail’ and ‘I hate you’), all the videos that have been released are well thought out with the choreography being well executed.

Delhi Belly is not without its faults. I have to mention that it is not your typical Hindi film. Some will either love this or hate this. The concept is not entirely original. It is not the first time that a Hindi film has been inspired by Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.

There are also a few holes in the script that are glaringly obvious when seen as visual situations on the screen. The film is also part of a new trend that seems to be emerging with crossover cinema with the film being 80% in English and 20% in Hindi, and that 20% is Hindi swear words. This means that Delhi Belly is a film that is best suited to the urban classes, which rules out all of rural India when it comes to looking at recovery of the Rs30 Crores.

The second point is, that though Aamir and Imran have maintained that the content of the film is only for adults and not kids and there is no obvious skin show, there are a couple of scenes in the film that would make you a little uncomfortable if you were watching them with your parents right next to you.

All in all I would say that Delhi Belly is one of the most original comedies to come out of Bollywood this year and say it is one of this summers must watch films.