Bollywood and it's Pay Disparity.

"I was ‘rumoured’ to bring bad luck to films. Mind you, all of these films had huge male co-stars and directors, but the failure of movies was blamed upon my bad luck. Thereafter, I’ve been asked to reduce my pay, I’ve been thrown out of films because the producer was having financial issues." was said by an actor who brought both name and fame to a movie which was solely her outstanding performance. An off-beat content driven and a women centric movie that managed to make it big on financial returns.

                                         

Such incidences raise questions about the pay disparity that is on going in Bollywood. A fact not hidden from anyone, males are paid more than females for their films.  Pay Disparity occurs because when it comes to revenue and it's credibility, the producers believe that it is the "male power" that has brought in collections.  And as per the stats of the last 3-4 years also suggest that a male lead has brought in more collections than any female lead movie.

Can anyone imagine Asin doing a lead role in a movie like Ready? The movie that has grossed 122 crores domestically would not have even made 22 crores with a female lead. It was Salman Khan's star power  that brought in collections.

                                               

If a low content movie makes 100 crores in the name of a male superstar why can't a female actor also earn the same type of money. Why? Pay Disparity. India is known to have let men have an upper hand over women for past centuries. So that has now started reflecting in Bollywood. A women centric movie earns less and the actress is also paid less. So indirectly, it is the audience who is to be blamed for this discrimination. They don't appreciate women driven movies because it might be against the typical role that a male person sees a woman and that is of a housewife.

                                               

                                                  

 

Content driven movies also think twice before signing actresses like Priyanka Chopra, Kangana Ranaut, Deepika Padukone, Kareena Kapoor etc. because they charge in the range of 9-12 crores for a movie. So producers are in 2 minds, "Should I, should I not?" but then with current situations of content winning over stardom they "risk" their money on such pretty faces. If a movie succeeds, it is not because of the content and still actresses are not given their due.

                                                  

 

With women lead movies like "Noor", "Naam Shabana", "Begum Jaan" releasing in the next two months, we can know about how are women centric movies going to do in the near future. But currently, the number of movies being made with female leads, it seems that the  far future might be holding the answer to this pay disparity. But, as of the near future with the Khans, it seems that women have a long way to struggle in Bollywood and in the country for an equal status.

 

                                               

P.S. A normal ratio of an Actor's earnings to Actresses' earnings is 5:1.

Anaarkali of Aarah Review: She came, she saw, she conquered. 2017's Pink BUT has a mass appeal!

2017 seems to have had a revolutionary start. Some good content backed by strong performances have been the agenda. Like last week's Rajkummar Rao starrer "Trapped", Bollywood has delivered "Anaarkali of Aarah" this week.

"Anaarkali of Aarah" is a movie made up of actors (and not stars). Writer and debutant director Avinash Das has been successfully able to handle the concept of consent of a woman and made it interesting (and entertaining) by adding some typical masala elements. The story of the movie is an out and out winner but it is the sincere and earnest performances that steal the show and back a strong script.

                                        

Swara Bhaskar's portrayal as a singer who hails from Aarah in Bihar and does "programs" for people is par excellence. Her dialogues, her make-up, her accent are all phenomenal. Her eyes, especially in the last 15 minutes spoke volumes. Swara emerges as a real hero of the film. She has sung, she has fought and she has won your heart, She gets a perfect 5/5 for her portrayal.

                                                    

Pankaj Tripathi as a co- entertainer and organizer of the troop does a memorable role as Rangeela. Fearing at times, daring in the other, he gives a braves attempt which is worth applauding. His portrayal deserves 4/5.

                                                    

Sanjay Mishra, who has done memorable roles in the past, plays an impressive baddie, VC, who has connections in the government, is brutal, shameless, arrogant and an egoist. His portrayal of a baddie is worth 4/5.

                                                               

With such a strong script, strong performances and explosive dialogues, Anaarkali of Aarah suffers considerably in the technical department. The editing is choppy in places, some unnecessary masala in places, a little loose screenplay and the cinematography hamper the viewing at times. The music is typically folk associated which suits the surroundings and the atmosphere the movie creates.

What makes "Anaarkali of Aarah", one of the better movies is its honest portrayal of the hypocrisy and the cynical view that the society has towards such 'low-level singers' without being over the top. It is one of those few movies which balances both masala and message deliverance equally, what we call 'Masala Realism' in Bollywood.

All said and done, 'Anaarkali of Aarah' deserves a 3.25 stars which is elevated to a 3.75 stars for Swara's ground-rattling performance. Being low on budget and high on realism, Anaarkali of Aarah is expected to a lifetime business of 5-10 crores at the box office.
                                     
P.S. Do not miss it! It deserves your love as much as Phillauri.
                                              

Failures, Bollywood and Stardom.

'Failure' is a word everyone is afraid of. Failure signifies defeat and defeat is something which a human nature does not accept easily. There are a lot of failures after which comes success. Failures in Bollywood are something which everyone can learn from.

                                          

Like Ram Madhvani took 14 years to create 2016's most acclaimed movie Neerja after his debut into directing. Sujoy Ghosh took 4 failed attempts to make this decade's biggest thriller,  Kahaani. So, it does take a lot of failures to reach success. What if Amitabh Bachchan had quit Bollywood after his first failure in the form of Saat Hindustani? We would have had no angry young man. So, it does take time for things to come our way.

                                       

Bollywood has seen a lot of failures, though it has also given us an idea about how to cope up with them. The biggest example being Anurag Kashyap who bounced back after the delivering the biggest flop of the decade, "Bombay Velvet." When an off-beat movie earns good moolah (even may not recovering full amount), the director gets a lot of inspiration and hope to make more such movies. Nil Battey Sannata and Pink are such examples.

                                           

Once someone becomes successful in Bollywood, what follows is stardom. Stardom is a cocktail of fame, power and money. It is something that is highly addictive. In the world of stardom, the person should not forget about his/her failures and the people who were with them when they were nothing. It was their faith that helped them through their failure.

                         

In life, we all have ups and downs, there can be bumps too. We face failures, we taste success but when we fail Bollywood can teach us about a thing or two. So, never feel lost, never lose out your dream (maybe related to Bollywood), don't be afraid of failure and when you believe that you should quit, look upto these examples. It can be that you could be the next Ram Madhvani or the next Amitabh Bachchan in your field and always remember Harivansh Rai Bachchan's lines, "Mann ka ho toh achaa, mann ka na ho toh behtar" which means if things go the way you want then it is good, if not then it is even better.

Trapped Review: Traps you in its gritty and engrossing storytelling and Rajkummar's Acting.

"Trapped" is Rajkummar Rao's triumph. Trapped directed by Vikramaditya Motwane of 'Lootera' and "Udaan" fame, the director skillfully captures the real life scenario of a young man named Shaurya (Rajkummar Rao) who gets trapped inside his own apartment. Trapped is all about his struggle and survival in an apartment of Mumbai , a city where one becomes deaf to their inner voices.The movie has subtle undertones of loneliness, a lone person's mentality and rediscovery in a big city like Mumbai.

                                  

 

  As mentioned earlier, Trapped is Rajkummar Rao's triumph. Shaurya makes you believe in his   loneliness and it gives you a feel that you are trapped with him in his apartment. His mentality, his freedom, his fears are so much believable. Trapped is Rajkummar Rao's best performance to date. If you thought Shahid was his best, this performance is a notch higher.

 

                                           

 

 With only 1 character in a movie, a lot of reliance comes upon the plotline and storytelling. The writer and director skillfully manage to weave a simple plotline into an intriguing and gritty ride of 103 minutes. The editing, th background score just keep building up the intriguing atmosphere of the movie. There are places where scenes seem to be repetitive and a lousy screenplay somewhat make this 103 minute journey long.

 

Overall, Trapped emerges as the Best Movie of 2017 so far.It is gritty, thoughtful, your worst Urban Nightmare which you don't want to come true. Watch it! It will stay with you for a longtime. Do NOT skip it. I rate the movie 4 stars out of 5.

                                    

P.S. Do not watch this movie if you are looking for a regular entertainer.different which may not appeal to everyone.

"All that glitters is not Gold"

"All that glitters is not gold." is a saying everyone is familiar with. But, when it comes to Bollywood, this saying only increases multiple folds to hold true. There is a huge price an actor pays for their stardom.

                                     

 

The Bollywood industry  may look very glossy and stylish from the outside but , actually has a very dark life on the inside. What appears to be a very comfortable, luxurious life is actually laden with loads of work.

People might  contradict by saying "Even an average Indian works what makes an Actor's life so different?" The answer is "Stardom." Not every Indian in the country has the same type of craze, madness as an actor. And moreover the craze for movies is unprecedented in our country.

 

                                      

 

An actor, after signing on a dotted line of the contract, becomes a director's pup, leave alone people like SRK, Salman, Rekha, Kareena and Hritik, who dictate their own terms and conditions after being approximately 25-30 years old in the industry.

 

                                      

 

The next gen actors like Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt, Ranbir Kapoor etc. and their social media profiles, are a proof to the efforts they put into their films. Waking up at 3 a.m(because the story demands) to sleeping at 3 a.m., the next day is a proof they pay for their stardom. Not only that, Amitabh Bachchan at 69, used to sit in the makeup for "Paa"as it took 6 hours to get him ready for the shoot due at 6 a.m. An average Indian, has fixed workload to put in a day unlike an actor who does not have any "fixed working hours" except Akshay Kumar, who follows a strict regime.

 

                         

 

Just to quote of the recent times, Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt starrer "Badrinath ki Dulhania", for the promotional tour took 10 days to 10 different cities which pretty much speaks how much effort post acting is needed. Not only that, while Varun is gearing up for next movie, "Judwaa 2", where he is already in Bangkok for shooting. Alia is also filming for Ranbir Kapoor's "Dragon"  and Zoya Akhtar's "Gully Boy" speaks volumes of effort and dedication. They do not have a "sunday" break to rest unlike the audience, instead they have vacations which most of the Indians go for at regular intervals.

 

                                                                                                       

Hence, "All That Glitters is Not Gold." Everything comes with a price tag so, actors too, pay a price..

A price that requires a lot of dedication and pain. If you know anyone willing to pay this price, they certainly know the effort it requires but before that it is hard to find a "BREAK" into this industry. If anyone just projects themselves as future stars, they must be given this reality check!

BKD Review:BKD has its highs and lows, but ends mostly with Highs.

BKD is the "supposed" sequel to the 2013 hit, Humpty Sharma ki Dulhania, though both the stories are entirely different they have the same cast as HSKD. The movie opens with a  comical Badrinath Bansal (VD) trying to woo Vaidehi (AB) and how and what happens to their relationship forms the crux of the movie. By now, I'm sure everyone knows that it's a typical Bollywood romance BUT there is something more to it than being a clichéd romance. 

Varun Dhawan's portrayal of Badrinath Bansal is Phenomenal. It's par excellence. His accent, his dialogues are well written and spoken. Alia Bhatt as Vaidehi, just proves to be like a wine, the older the better. She is just getting good with every passing movie. Her portrayal of a guilt-stricken, selfish and career oriented girl is beyond my expression. Yash Sinha as Alok (Badri's brother), Sahil Vaid as Somesh(Badri's bestie) and Shweta Prasad as Urmila(Badri's sister in law) prove to be amazing support to this movie.

                                             

Shashank Khaitan's writing in the first half is commendable with it's fair shares of lows, but the "curse of the second half" strikes this movie badly. The movie falters a lot towards the end and even though the climax of the movie is amazing, it fails to captivate the audience (who have already lost interest in the movie) inspite of giving out a good and an important message.

The music is another feather in the cap of this "clichéd" romance. The song "Humsafar" is a personal favourite. The editing , the cinematography and the dialogues are nice. The costumes, and the locations of Kota, Jhansi and Singapore just add to the colourful portrayal of the movie. It seems that the director has tried to compensate for the clichéd romance through this area of the movie making. The movie enjoy its shares of highs and lows but ends with more highs than lows.

For me, BKD had 3 good things: The acting, Amazing Chemistry and Beat-Tapping Music. I would like to rate BKD with a 3 star rating. The lifetime business of BKD should be around 90-100 crores solely due to holi. BKD is a strict one time watch. Nothing more!
                           

                                            

        P.S. My friends regretted watching this movie.                   

Dear Bollywood, I wish u were real. *Sigh*

Dear Bollywood,

 Like everyone says, "Real and Reel life should not be mixed." I wish u were real. Bollywood, there are so many  instances in life where one feels like "The King of the World", it is no doubt a moment but if someone lives that moment then why not? They may not end up having a "trophy" but it can certainly provide them happiness.
When it rains, my ears start to linger with "Taal", "Tum Se Hi" tracks and make me go in a trance and enjoy the moment. Contrary, to what happens with you, I may end up catching cold but it's worth it. It casts  a big smile on my face. 
       TO                    

It is you who has made every girl dream for their "Prince Charming", had you been for real, people would have started believing that dreams , DO come true.

                             (Well, it's a dream)

If u were true, with every wind that blew, I would believe that yes, a lower lip smile would have been there making feel as if I were a superstar with all the camera focus on me. I would have been the star of the moment, giving me a reason enough for life.
    (Smile: Coz Life is short )  

Had u been here for real, the courts in India would have had no job because families would never be broken and family members standing face to face with each other, would not have said, " I will see you in court."
Had your dance forms been for real, everyone from a toddler to an old person. Everyone would have been happy.

The love life of people would have been momentous and rewarding in their own ways, there would been colours all around, Diwali and wedding could not have been prettier.
                                                                

                                                              Diwali: Beauty all over!
There would be no souls listening to things like, "Aisa kewal filmon mein hota hai." and fulfilling their own dreams.
Your gangsters were as funny as Crime Master Gogo and as wicked as Bhiku Mahatre to as helpful as Munna Bhai. Had they been in the real world, these terrorist threats would not have been a distinct threats as they would be busy within their own selves.
Most importantly, if you were real Bollywood, life would have been so optimistic and beautiful. Dreams would have also become true thus making this world a happier place. Bollywood, wish u were real, but since you are not, it is time for me to go back to my real life, a life I came from.

Love,
The Bollywood Elephant.