The Decade that was (2010-2019): Best Performances in Bollywood.

This decade for Bollywood has been very good in terms of performances. Not only did this decade give us performances to remember but also performances that were self-aware and flawed. This post lists out performances by Bollywood actors which stood out and stayed with us.
                             
                                 

      

This posts only consists of performances which were based on fictional characters.  The list in no particular order is as follows:

VIDYA BALAN in Kahaani: As a woman on the lookout for her husband, Vidya gave us a performance to cherish for years to come! Moreover, her character develops more like Goddess Durga which only increases the intensity of her performances multiple folds.
VIDYA BALAN in Tumhari Sulu: When you lift the movie so much by acting 'the hell out' of the screenplay, the performance is bound to be exemplary and noticed!

                                

DEEPIKA PADUKONE in Cocktail: Arguably, the portrayal of Veronica couldn't be better than the way Deepika did in Cocktail. Vulnerable, Free Spirited Veronica was an absolute delight and revelation of the actor that Deepika was.
DEEPIKA PADUKONE in Piku: As the tired and irritated daughter of Bhaskar, Deepika played the girl next door with the utmost charm and not forget her dressing style.

                             

SHEFALI SHAH in Dil Dhadakne Do: Her portrayal of Neelam Mehra was beyond words. As a conflicted mother and wife, she was astounding.
                                                         

KANGANA RANAUT in Tanu Weds Manu Returns: Datto or Tanuja, Kangana showed why we love her and her national award is a testament to it as well.
KANGANA RANAUT in Queen: Playing the simple girl next door Rani, Kangana's performance was simple yet amazing.
                               

NEENA GUPTA in Badhaai Ho: Neena Gupta as Priyamvada Kaushik gave a performance of a lifetime to cherish. Playing a mother who loses her son's affection because of her role as a wife was heartbreaking, to say the least.
                                                   

SUREKHA SIKRI in Badhaai Ho: She played the role of a mother, a mother in law and a grandmother in the best way possible.
                                                 

ALIA BHATT in Highway: Alia in Highway was not just another star kid. Playing a rape victim iof the high society she played Veera effortlessly. Her portrayal of a victim of Stockholm Syndrome was beautiful.
ALIA BHATT in Udta Punjab: Alia playing a Bihari immigrant in the movie unknowingly caught in the drug racket was splendid. Moreover, her cute chemistry with Tommy Singh (Shahid) was amazing.
                                        

TABU in Andhadhun: Probably the best example of a grey character, Tabu's Simi was perhaps the most unlucky character. A fine blend of ruthlessness and beauty, Tabu's performance was criminally overlooked in this movie.
TABU in Haider: Tabu as Ghazala was an amazing portrayal, Gertrude, from Hamlet. Viscous, Loving and desireful, she portrayed Ghazala pitch-perfectly.
   

RAJKUMMAR RAO in Trapped: Playing a man stuck in high rise building, RR delivered a performance to be cherished for ages to come.
RAJKUMMAR RAO in Bareilly ki Barfi: Playing an innocent  Pritam Vidrohi, RR literally engulfed the UP accent like no other.
                     

RANBIR KAPOOR in Rockstar: Playing the rockstar Jordan, RK literally rocked the movie and made everyone desire to be a rockstar.
RANBIR KAPOOR in Barfi: 2 consecutive years, 2 consecutive hits, RK played the charming, affable Barfi with so much grace and panache that it's hard to imagine someone else in the role.
                     

MANOJ BAJPAYEE in Gangs of Wasseypur: Perhaps this man has given the finest performance this decade in Aligarh (biopic, hence not counted) but apart from his several outstanding performances, his performance as the iconic Sardar Khan is one for the keeps!
                                                              

SHAHID KAPOOR in Haider: SK as Haider portraying the titular character whose equivalent was Hamlet in the Shakespearean adaptation was outstanding. Shakespeare would've been proud himself if he could see him.
SHAHID KAPOOR in Udta Punjab: Playing druggie Tommy Singh, Shahid was outstanding yet again and deserves the accolades for playing such an intense character.
                            
RANVEER SINGH in Lootera: Playing an archaeologist cum con-man, Ranveer was simply exemplary in this and in my opinion, this is his best work to date.
                                                          
MANOJ PAHWA in Mulk: A father who has lost his son and is accused of being a terrorist, Manoj Pahwa's portrayal of Bilal was amazing and outstanding by each and every term. Wish him more acknowledgement in the future.
MANOJ PAHWA in Article 15: Playing a morally corrupt upper caste cop, Manoj Pahwa's act in the movie was perhaps my only take-away from this hard-hitting movie in terms of performances.
                       
GULSHAN DEVIAH in Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota: Playing a double character in this movie, Gulshan Deviah is one of the best actors working in Bollywood currently.
                                                
VICKY KAUSHAL in Masaan: Vicky Kaushal playing Deepak was spell-binding. How often does a full-fledged Bollywood debut leave one stunned? Watch his portrayal to know more!
                                                  

So, this is my list for the best of the decade. 

Please stay tuned for more regarding the best of the decade!

The Decade that was 2010-2019: Best Bollywood Music Albums!

Bollywood Music Albums are way beyond just item songs. These include songs that one cherishes even after ages, are unapologetically original and those which help in the progression of the movie story forward.

       

Before Picking my favourite 15 albums from this decade, here are some honourable mentions:

Ek Villian: Ankit Tiwari, Mithoon.

Dum Laga Ke Haisha: Anu Malik.

Delhi Belly: Ram Sampath.

  

My Favourite 15 Albums (IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER):

Goliyon ki Raasleela; Ram Leela: Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Perhaps his best musical work to date!

                                                            

Manmarziyaan: Amit Trivedi. With one of the best songs in forms of 'Chonch Ladiyaan', 'Daryaa', 'Sachi Mohabbat', this Amit Trivedi album is an underappreciated album.

                                                            

My Name is Khan: Shankar Ehsaan Loy. Noor-e-Khuda, Sajda, Tere Naina! 

Band Baaja Baaraat: Salim-Sulaiman. From party nights to romance. This album covered all genres!

Queen: Amit Trivedi. From 'Kinare', 'Gujariyaa' to 'London Thumakda'. This movie and its music hold a special place!

Raanjhanaa: AR Rahman. An AR Rahman masterpiece whose music took the story to another level.

                                                                 

Lootera: Amit Trivedi. Soulfully capturing the heartbreaks, 'Shikayatein', 'Ankahee' and 'Sawaar Loon' are crooned even today!

                                                                

2 States: Shankar Ehsaan Loy. "Mast Magan', "Chaandaniya', 'Locha e Ulfat'. SEL gave us an album to remember!
                                                              

Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani: Vishal-Shekhar. Each and Every song rules the playlist.......6 years down the line!
                   
                                                             

Barfi: Pritam. Sweet, simple and soothing. Barfi songs can be the 'go-to' songs from this decade!
                     
                                                             

Gully Boy:  Karsh Kale. A perfect blend of relevancy and hip-hop.

                                                             

Udta Punjab: Amit Trivedi. Absolutely Innovative and an Amit Trivedi brilliance!
         
                                                              

Ae Dil Hai Mushkil: Pritam. #Channa Mereya! 1st Song for Breakups!

                                                              

Aashiqui 2: Ankit Tiwari, Mithoon, Jeet Ganguly. Kyuki 'Tum Hi Ho'. Period.
 
                                                             

Rockstar: A.R. Rahman. This was the album which I did not like initially but over time, it grew on me and how!
                                                               

Hence, this was my list for this decade's best songs. Please stay tuned for more of this Decade's best by Bollywood Elephant!
                                                          

Bala Review: Aala Re Aala, Bala Aala!

Ayushmann has finally made his own brand of cinema where he depicts the real-life problems in a middle-class India. Since "Dream Girl" did NOT work for me a bit, I was skeptical about Bala and yes, Ayushmann went back to being the Ayushmann I adored in Bareilly ki Barfi, Andhadhun.

                                 

Whats' Good: Acting: Ayushmann, Bhumi, Yami rock the stage with support from an amazing cast. Social Commentary: Some really good messaging laden with gallops of entertainment. Editing/Music/Dialogues: Amar Kaushik does well in writing the dialogue and settings. The song Tequila and Khata Hui are memorable. Characterization: Mainly, Bala works because of Latika, Bala, Pari and Mausiji who make the movie memorable.

                                           

What's Bad: Missing Factor: As the movie ended, everything was there but still not there kind of feeling was there. Story: The story has been told and lacks a novelty that Ayushmann'a films usually have. Lack of Subtlety: Bala lacks the subtlety and the message is kind of 'in your face'.

                                          

Bala is all in all the director's film. The movie works most of the time and keeps you entertained in its duration but still, there is something that seems to be missing. I am going with 3.5 stars for Bala. One of the better films of 2019, but will it stand in top10 Hindi movies of 2019 is yet to be seen!

                                            

                                                         

MIC Review: Souper-Douper Amazing! Entertaining and Relevant.

So, after a lot of speculation Rajkummar Rao-Mouni Roy starrer 'Made in China' released and perhaps you wouldn't find a better Diwali release since 2010 in Bollywood. The movie is directed by national award winner Mikhil Musale and co-stars Boman Irani, Paresh Rawal, Sumeet Vyas, Gajraj Rao.

  

                                             

What's Good: Acting: A spectacular cast can never go wrong. RR gets the Gujarati character absolutely spot on. Though, Mouni Roy is very nominal in her role as a housewife. Boman Irani as Dr.Vardhan as sexologist easily deserves an award nomination! Story: Excellent Story with a relevant message is brought to life by the director. Technical Aspects: The screenplay, the DOP does a fantastic job in keeping the story intact.

                                              

What's Bad: Incoherent: The movie's coherency is certainly questionable: like it is there but still not there. That is what the movie falters a bit at. Just like TSIP, MIC does not completely submerge you into the movie. Music: Sachin-Jigar's music is supremely underwhelming. Odhani, Valam, Sanedo all of them underwhelming.

                                                

Final Words: 'Made in China' is a MUST WATCH. It tries to talk about a very taboo topic in a funny and entertaining way and it is really doubtful whether we get a better movie. It also plays a bit with your psychology as it approaches the climax and efforts are to be lauded for bringing a taboo topic for a dining table discussion. Though its incoherency lessens the impact, I am going with 3.5 stars for this RR-BI extravaganza.

                                                

PS. Never knew that the That would give us Best Diwali release this decade will also give us the Worst Diwali Release this decade in the form of 'Housefull 4'. A crass, cringy and horrific cinema.

                          

The Age Debate of Bollywood featuring "The Real Reason"!

With Tushar Hiranandani's 'Saand ki Aankh' trailer came out featuring Taapsee Pannu and Bhumi Padnekar there has been a lot of debate as to why were these 2 casts for the role of 60-year-old ladies. For the uninitiated, 'Saand ki Aankh' is based on the true story of Tomar sisters who became sharpshooters at the age of 60. Hence, the debate revolves around the fact that why weren't age-appropriate actresses like Neena Gupta, Seema Pahwa, Ratna Pathak, Supriya Pathak etc not cast and rather these young blood were cast.

                                             

The kind of filth and the controversy surrounding and blaming the hard work of these actresses is being questioned, it can easily and simply be said that had it been any actor, any actor like Alia, Vidya, Shraddha shall never say NO to these stories and in fact shall will pay to play these roles as these roles are affirmative, inspiring and whatnot. So belittling them is absolutely wrong. In fact, no one question's Aamir for playing a college kid in 3 idiots or Nargis playing Sunil Dutt's mother in Mother India or Anupam Kher in Saaransh and just targetting these capable women. 

                                               

What I believe to be the real reason behind this fiasco is that all the producers care about is the Box office collection. Considering the fact, the movie is releasing alongside biggies like Housefull4, Made in China, perhaps the makers would have thought about making some noise by hiring some young blood which would "attract" the audience to the theatres! And since Mone makes the world go round and the youth's unawareness about yesteryear's actresses can be a reason for the producers to NOT cast them as they won't set the cash registers ringing. But all said and done, unless and until money shall continue to rule the roost in Bollywood, actresses will always be snubbed, the content will be neglected (of recent 'The Sky is Pink') as they won't earn revenue! The same reason as to why we did have Akshay Kumar in 'Mission Mangal', take him out, and slash the collections by half!

                                                 

P.S. We hope Saand ki Aankh does some great business.

TSIP Review: Sky is the limit!

To begin with, I really had a tough time to gather myself and write a review for this Farhan-Priyanka starrer. Director Shonali Bose presents this real-life story of Aisha Chaudhary with her personal touch ( she has gone through a similar thing with her son) making this movie so balanced, positive, beautiful and deals with the subject that 'death is the ultimate truth' so well that it is hard to encapsulate it in words!

                                           

What's Good: Performances: PC, Zaira, Rohit perform so exponentially well but it is Farhan who makes the maximum impact. The vulnerability, the emotions, the longing couldn't be played any better. The movie is pitch-perfect here. Music: Pritam's music is just like the cherry on the cake. Message: What it takes about is something very relevant about life. Direction, Writing, Dialogues, Editing: The excellent voice-overs by Aisha (played by Zaira), bose's sensitive handling of the subject, Juhi's writing is top-notch. Theme: Something apart from talking about life, TSIP addresses the issue from the parent's side as well (just as they say what to do with Aisha's clothes, books etc and break down in tears) is something new and refreshing to see.

                                              

What's Bad: Duration: In its 135 minutes of runtime, the movie keeps one invested but patience varies from person to person. Messy Timelines: The movie jumps back and forth a lot in the 30 years which might be hard to follow!

                                                  

                                        The real-life inspiration for TSIP: The Chaudharys

Final Word: The Sky is Pink is an unforgettable saga of the celebration of life until death attempted in a never before style. The movie does not want you to Cry but will surely end up making u teary-eyed or even weep. It's a highly polarizing movie like October from the previous year so either you will absolutely hate it or you will love it and since I belong to the latter, I am going with a solid 4 stars! Though, viewers discretion is highly advised!

                                           

P.S. Instead of spending money on War, watch this!

Is Gully Boy actually worth an Oscar entry?

To begin with, it is not always about selecting the 'Best Film' at the Oscars. If India were to send the Best Movie to the Oscars, the Tamil movie, 'Super Deluxe' should have been a sure shot choice to send to the Oscars. But Oscars is not about sending the best of what India has, but the movie that can bring home an Oscar.

                                    

•  To begin with, this year at the Oscars, India shall have the advantage of its visibility among the 6000+ jury  members because of the movie's director Zoya Akhtar and costume designer Arjun Bhasin are among the members of the jury which also gives them a chance of networking and trying to juice in maximum votes from the jury for their film. Thus, increasing nomination chances (if not winning!) 

                                             

• History is proof that the Academy prefers movies based on the underdog stories set in rural India/slums backed by actors who bring to life the super-strong emotions. Emotion in world cinema is something which is not as openly expressed as in Indian cinema. Hence, when people see something emotional, they tend to incline in that direction as it gives them the sheer joy of something being expressed.

                                             

• To people criticizing that the Malyali Movie ' Kumbalangi Nights', not considered even in the list of movies that could potentially be selected for Oscars is basically because the movie was not even submitted to the film federation of India for consideration by the producers and only the movies that are submitted to the board are considered and a theatrical release is a must for movies to be considered for Oscars which was unlike the case for the Rima Das movie, "Bulbul Can Sing".

                                                      

• And finally, the most talked-about contender for the Oscars, 'Andhadhun' failed to make it as the official entry mainly because 'Andhadhun' lacked novelty or to put it in other words, the western audiences have seen true blue thrillers like Andhadhun which mess with your mind with open endings. Hence, Gully Boy made it through. 

                                             

Finally, to conclude India's chances of winning are fairly decent considering the previous releases and something that needs to be majorly and thoroughly checked is the Right Subtitling. If the subtitling strikes a chord and keeps the essence of emotions intact, Zoya might just bring an Oscar home!

P.S. To anyone saying that 'Gully Boy' is a copy or similar to '8  miles', kindly watch 8 miles and then we can chat!