Made in Heaven Review: The Heaven on Amazon Prime!

Amazon Prime's new original 'Made In Heaven', starring Arjun Mathur, Shobhita Dhulipala, Shashank Arora, Shivani Raghuvanshi in the lead roles and are ably supported by Jim Sarbh and Kalki Koechlin. The show is directed by Reema Kagti, Nitya Mehra, Alankrita Srivastav and Prashant Nair and written and produced by Reema Kagti and Zoya Akhtar. The premise revolves around a wedding planning company 'Made in Heaven' and their encounters with their inner selves, their clients amidst the hassles of executing a wedding.

                     

What's Good: Characters: The characters of MIH are fabulous, realistic, relatable and everything a typical masala Bollywood male/female character is not. They alone become the reason enough to watch this show. Story: Pretty much on the similar lines on the show Rishta.com,  MIH deals with the inner conflicts in great detail and offers logical solutions to them. Zoya Akhtar who has co-written the show does best what she has always done- A Perfect Portrayal of Dysfunctionality in Urban India. Cast: With the credentials involved, we know this shall not be disappointing. Photography and Cinematography: Avik Mukhopadhyay captures the wedding scenes and the scenarios like never before. Realistic: The problems, the inner conflicts are spot on and relatable. Relevance: The topics of an extramarital affair, section 377, high aspirations, child abuse are dealt with finesse and care. Dialogues, Screenplay, Editing and Direction: With Zoya and Reema penning down the script and screenplay and 4 directors taking care of direction, there is absolutely nothing that goes wrong here. Editing by Pooja Soorti (Andhadhun editor) we know we are in for a delight.

                                           

What's Bad: The one and only first episode which takes a lot of time to build up!

                                           

Final Word: If you say Sacred Games is the best show to come out of India, I would have agreed if Made in Heaven had not come! Made In Heaven may not be raw and rustic, may not even have the slang that caters to the Indian audiences' but hits the bullseye when it comes to the portrayal of the dysfunctionality. The series definitely caters to the audience it is based on as well as to all age groups. An absolute must watch and perhaps the best web show available on a digital platform. I am going with 4 stars.

                                          

Favourite Character: Jaspreet 'Jazz' Kaur portrayed by the wonderful Shivani Raghuvanshi. The vulnerability, the class, the feelings, the conflicts, the importance of every penny was so well portrayed by her and she brought about the emotional heft and the vibes of 'small girl with big dreams' theme to the show.

Best Episode: Episode 3, directed by Nitya Mehra and starring Deepti Naval.

Badla Review: Revenge served Lukewarm!

After making thrillers like 'Kahaani', 'Ahalya' and the screenwriter for movies like 'Kahaani 2', 'Te3n' etc. Sujoy Ghosh, one of the best directors of Indian Cinema delivered these intense thrillers but soon after made 'Kahaani 2', which made his credibility in danger. He delivers 'Badla' this week, starring Amitabh Bachchan, Amrita Singh and Taapsee Pannu in lead roles and all that can be said is, 'Revenge is best served COLD'. 'Badla' is an official adaptation of the Spanish film, 'The Invisible Guest'.

                                                

What's Good: Performances: Amitabh Bachchan is at his usual best as Badal Gupta. Amrita Singh as Rani is an absolute delight and we need to see more of her. Manav Kaul as Jimmy is good in his small cameo. Dialogues: The dialogues are decent enough. The Twists: The twists are good and unexpected and bring the much-needed thrill. Story: The story is an absolute delight. Screenplay: The screenplay adaptation is decently done by Ghosh. Mahabharat References: The references for the epic Mahabharat are absolutely ingenious and delightful. 

                                             

What's Bad: Taapsee Pannu: She seems to have walked directly from the sets of her movie 'Pink', it is an absolute let down from someone who delivered a scintillating performance in her last movie, Manmarziyaan. Being too smart for its taste: Director Sujoy Ghosh tries to act smart with his twists as if the audience would not see it coming, which they definitely see coming. Too many Twists: A simple, neat plot is turned upside down and complicated for its own taste. Thrills: Apart from a very few moments, the thrill seems to be missing, Bigtime!

                                             

Overall, Badla is a major disappointment which could have been so much better had not the movie been too smart for its own good! I am going with 2.5 stars for the movie and an extra half for the terrific act of Amrita Singh. The movie will probably rake in 45-50 crores lifetime considering the credentials involved. It could have actually been so much better had they stuck to the original premise.

                                           

P.S. Apparently it seems to be Taapsee Pannu's 'Badla' with the audience for letting down 'Manmarziyaan'. 

                                            

LC Review: Luka Chuppi, Bahut Hui!!

Recently, I was in conversation with someone regarding Tigmanshu Dhulia's comment as to why trash like Total Dhamaal mints unimaginable numbers at the box office. To this, I had a simple reply that not everyone can make a movie like 'Stree' or 'Badhaai Ho' which has the right amount of comedy and subtle social message. The same producers who delivered 'Stree' last year, present 'Luka Chuppi', a movie that exactly falls in between the likes of Total Dhamaal and Stree.

                                                   

What's Good: Characters: The characters apart from that of the leads are well etched for a small town setting and make everything look authentic. Dialogues: The dialogues are hands down the real hero of the movie. Super-Strong Supporting Cast: Alka Amin, Aparshakti, Atul Shrivastav, and the maestro Pankaj Tripathi provide the much needed and fabulous comic- relief. Genuinely Funny Moments: The movie has some funny moments though on the lower side. Background Score and Cinematography: The background score and the cinematography are a few of the positives of the movie.

                                               

What's Bad: Leads: Both Kartik Aaryan and Kriti Sanon seem monotonous. While Kartik seems to have walked on from the sets of PKP-2, Kriti seems to have walked from the sets of Bareilly ki Barfi. Hideous Plot: The story of the movie is illogical and flat out hideous and fails to give what it set out to prove. Forced Situational Comedy: The comedy situations looked forced but then it the dialogues stood out. Relevance: The movie had so many elements it could have played with, but those elements which could have been actually relevant pave way for a love story (face-palm).  

                                                 

Final Word: Overall, if we overlook the hideous plot it has, Luka Chuppi has some chunk of genuine laughs and the movie can actually be beneficial as a stress buster especially after a tiring working day. It is a kind of 'Shudh Desi Romance' gone wrong. It tries to have an impactful relevance but fails. I am going with 2.5 stars for Luka Chuppi. Had the makers not paved way for a love story, Luka Chuppi without a doubt be one of the best movies of the year! But nonetheless, if you are looking for pure entertainment after a tiring day, give it a shot!      

                                               

P.S. If you are expecting some 'Stree' level content, then please stay away!

TD Review: Total Duh and No Maal.

8 years after 'Double Dhamaal', Indra Kumar is back after ruining one of his movies with sequels (Masti) to ruining his iconic movie 'Dhamaal' by remaking it as 'Total Dhamaal'. Tells the plot, pretty much? No. It further ruins the plot of 'Dhamaal' that includes names like Anil Kapoor-Madhuri Dixit, Ajay Devgn, Pritosh Chakraborty, Javed Jaffrey, Arshad Warsi, Boman Irani, Sanjay Mishra. Even if one is not looking for logic, this movie fails the brainless entertainer category as well. Promoted as a 'Stress buster' and 'Family Entertainer' this movie fails to reach either of these 2 tags. 

                                          

Whats Good: The Anil-Madhuri Pair: The coming back of this couple as Mrs and Mr. Patel, a constantly nagging couple on the verge of divorce is one of the best things of the movie. A Few Laughs: The other thing it manages is to give a few genuine laughs. Ajay Devgn's Comic Timing: Needless to say this man knows how to be spot-on. Jaaved Jaffrey: As Manav,  he never fails to bring a smile on your face which at times gets overboard.

                                          

Whats Bad: The Few Laughs: The good things of the movie are as well, the bad parts of the movie as they are way to less. Music: No guesses here that the remakes 'Mungda' and 'Paisa Yeh Paisa' are absolutely useless and pathetic. Incoherent: Very very incoherent. Basic Story:  Agreed, I was not looking for story but there is nothing. Absence of Sanjay Dutt: One surely misses Sanjay Dutt quite a lot here. Needless Cameos: A few cameos, all uninvited. Slapstick Humor: Indian cinema and slapstick humor. Ofcourse! Beyond Repair Second Half: Second half is so bad, it undoes whatever little the first part built. VFX: The VFX is even worse than what we got to see in Love Story 2050(if one recalls). 

                                         

Overall, 'Total Dhamaal' tries to be a good cinema but fails heavily even if we remove the logic from it. The iconic pair does give its best but fails to uplift this movie. It is perhaps the worst movie (no surprise though) of 2019 so far. I am going with 1.5 stars. Even as a family entertainer, the movie fails. Kids however, shall enjoy this movie. 

                                         

P.S. Even after a heavy and stressful day at work, going home and relaxing shall be more beneficial than watching this movie. AVOID.

GB Review: Apna Time Agaya. Bahut Hard'ich' hai!

Let me begin by saying it was TOTALLY worth the hype and wait! Zoya Akhtar has time and again proved that she is literally the BEST filmmaker we have today! The way she presents us the underdog story through poetry and emotions is absolutely stunning and she definitely knows how to craft a 'hard, brilliant, riveting, intriguing cinema. The movie is inspired by the life of rappers Divine and Naezy.

                                          

What's Good:  Acting: Ranveer, Alia, Sheeba Chadha, Vijay Raaz, Vijay Verma, Amruta Subhash, debutant Siddhant Chaturvedi are absolutely riveting and play a huge role to keep the audience invested. The story, Dialogues, Screenplay, and Direction: Zoya and Reema's story and screenplay are absolutely watertight and liberating at the same moment. Each scene pumps energy into the audience because of the amazing camerawork and screenplay and is also able to make a comment on 'follow your passion' in a practical way, as well as they, make a comment on the rap scene in India. Vijay Maurya's dialogues and Javed Akhtar's lyrics are absolutely perfect and blend well. The unseen Mumbai: Not the usual Mumbai, Zoya takes us through the slums and the 'not so explored' aspect of the city, as well as a testament to the ', never giving up the attitude of the city. Music: The music is beyond any question, outstanding with Doori and Apna Time Aaega being personal favorites..

                                         

What's Bad:  (This section is too hard). Zoya's normal timing problem: At 153 minutes, even infusing energy into the viewers, Gully Boy keeps you invested but as soon as you are about to lose interest, Zoya drops in a scene and brings you back into the movie. Kalki's Character: her character Sky seems sketchy and should have had more to play in the movie.

                                  

With all said and done, Gully Boy is absolutely amazing, not to be used. Also a testament to all those who dream and dream big. Gully Boy is a super MUST WATCH. I am going with 4 stars! You shall walk out of the theatre supercharged, and super motivated.

                                 

P.S. Pls do not miss The BEST movie of 2019 so far! Stay tuned for 'Hum Chaar' review.

ELKDTAL Review: Ek Ladki ko dekha toh aisa laga jaise A Breath of Fresh Air!

'The most unexpected romance of the year' hit theatres finally and gave us a reason to cheer! The Rajkummar Rao and Sonam Kapoor starrer 'ELKDTAL' hit the theatres among a lot of fanfare and promotions. Promoted with #Let_Love_Be, the movie explored an altogether new dimension of romance which has never been explored in Indian cinema. Directed by debutant Shelly Chopra Dhar, the movie is simple, adorable and conveys it messages without going over the top or saying it out loud. 

                                               

What's Good: The Performances- Right from Rajkummar Rao until Regina Cassandra the casting is pitch perfect and packs a powerful punch. The Story and Screenplay: Ghazal Dhaliwal's writing deserves applause for the subject it brings to the table powered with Dhar's direction and Screenplay. The Dialogues: The dialogues are amazing and stay with you long after the movie is over. Technicalities: Supremely edited, well executed. Music: Each and every song is an absolute delight!

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What's Bad: Sonam Kapoor: What a powerful character reduced to a tepid character thanks to the failure of Mrs.Ahuja's inability to portray the character with her sensitivity and finesse. Story: The predictability of the story. The lazy cinematography: What could have been excellent shots are reduced to being superficial. Apart from these, there is no false note in the movie and it is literally a breath of fresh air and stays with you long after you leave the theatre.

                                      

Verdict: Overall, ELKDTAL is a Must watch and cannot be missed by anyone at any given stage. Do watch it and it's relevant in today's world. I am going with 3.5/5 for ELKDTAL! It is a complex subject dealt with simplicity and love.

                                      

P.S: As in the trailer Rajkummar Rao says, "Iss ko aap apne dimaag se nahi, dil se dekhiye!" meaning that watch it with your heart and not your mind. If you follow this, you shall surely love the movie!

  

TAPM Review: A Tragic Accident!

The controversial movie, 'The Accidental Prime Minister' has finally hit the theatres and has Anupam Kher, Akshaye Khanna, Suzzane Bernet, Vipin Sharma, Arjun Mathur essaying major roles in the movie. It is based on the book by Sanjay Baru of the same name.

                         

                                      

Anupam Kher as the accidental prime minister, Manmohan Singh is quite underwhelming and it seems as if he is more into mimicking the former prime minister and it often turns out to be amusing than interesting. Akshaye Khanna as the media advisor Baru is absolutely fabulous and tries his best to lift an otherwise a relatively poor film. Divya Seth, Suzzane Bernet, Arjun Mathur make an appearance and do a good job.

                                             

Based on Baru's book, the movie had all the right ingredients to be a taut political thriller but is reduced to being a snoozefest documentary thanks to debutant director's Vijay Gutte poor, incoherent direction. His direction fails the movie to reach its full potential and often turns out as a flat narration. The poor dialogues and surprisingly poor writing by Hansal Mehta make the movie a disappointment. Adding to the disappointment is the poor editing but in spite of these follies, the movie is informative and Gutte's set design and working of the PMO is done with finesse. 

                           

                                              

The Accidental Prime Minister has more lows in its incoherent storytelling than highs but fails to engage a viewer due to a debutant director at the helm. Perhaps, an experienced director would have been a better choice to bring this interesting political drama to the forefront. I am going with 2.5 stars, it is a golden opportunity lost!