Gehraiyan (गहराईयाॅ)

"Gehraiyan (गहराईयाॅ)"

Watched Hindi movie 'Gehraiyan (गहराईयाॅ)'. 

This film is directed by Shakun Batra. Produced by Hiroo Yash Johar, Kara Johar and others. Written by Shakun Batra, Ayesha Devitre, Sumit Roy, Yash Sahai. Music by Kabir Kathpalia, Savera Mehta. Cinematography Kaushal Shah. The film stars Deepika Padukone, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ananya Pande, Dhairya Karwa. The film runs for 2 hour 28 minutes and was released in Feb 2022. I watched it on Amazon Prime with Aditi on 13th Feb 2022. 

Deepika's father quits the family business, leaving it to his brother, and settles in Nasik. Her mother finds the marriage suffocating and commits suicide. Fast forward to present day. Deepika, a yoga instructor, is in a live-in relationship with an aspiring author for six years and the relationship is going nowhere. Her cousin Ananya and her boyfriend, Siddhant, come to Mumbai and they all meet. Sparks fly. 

Who is attracted to who? Is it reciprocated? What are the obstacles? Will the love win?

Deepika plays the protagonist whose story threatens to emulate her mother. She is stuck in a loveless relationship. The depth of her feelings is unfathomable to the man in her life. She does well in acting department, has a great physique but doesn't really look young any more. Siddhant plays an ambitious businessman, risen from humble background, who is torn between love and what he needs to do to avoid bankruptcy. He depicts his transformations well. Ananya plays a foreign educated girl who is a willing party to an injustice but who is also a little innocent. But she needs to improve acting. Dhairya plays the budding author who takes his partner for granted. 

This movie contains a lot of intimate scenes between Deepika and  Siddhant. They are a little too much and revealing by the Hindi movie standards. It may become embarrassing to watch with children. Deepika and Siddhant do the scenes without inhibitions and the chemistry is sizzling. 

The story is slow and even predictable. The death gives a twist to the story. It's difficult for a director to determine how to end such a movie. This director decides to do it plainly rather than trying to shock the audience again.

It's a subject relevant to modern times. But one wonders, if they were married (instead of being in-live in relationship) would the story have gone on same path or would it have ended differently?

Positives: Deepika-Siddhant chemistry.

Negatives: Excessive use of F*** word. 

Watch if you like this review.

Gangubai Kathiawadi (गंगुबाई काठीयावाडी)

"Gangubai Kathiawadi (गंगुबाई काठीयावाडी)".

Watched Hindi movie "Gangubai Kathiawadi (गंगुबाई काठीयावाडी)". 

This movie is directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Written by S. Hussain Zaidi. Produced by Jayantilal Gada and Sanjay Leela Bhansali. It stars Alia Bhatt; Vijay Raaz; Shantanu Maheshwari; Ajay Devgn, Indira Tiwari, Jim Sarbh, Seema Pahawa. Music by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Cinematography by Sudeep Chatterjee. Film runs for about 2 hour and 34 minutes and was released on 24th Feb 2022. I watched in theater with Aditi on 25th Feb 2022.

Ganga's boyfriend brings her to Mumbai to make her heroine and sells her to a brothel. Ganga becomes Gangu. With the patronage of local Don Rahim Lala, she becomes Gangubai, Madam of the brothel and goes on to represent the community of prostitutes.

Alia Bhat plays Gangubai with conviction. Neither her physique nor her looks are suited for a prostitute. But what she lacks in personality she more than compensates with her acting. She defines and executes the role. She comes, she sees and she wins. Indira Tiwari plays Alia's best friend, Kamli very well. Ajay Devgan plays Rahim Lala, the good Don. He has a small role and film credits categorize it as guest appearance. His personality fills the screen and he acts adequately. Vijay Raaz plays Raziabai, the eunuch. His character shows promise of dual with Alia but fizzles out. Jim and Shantanu play small but important male characters. Seema Pahawa plays the original Madam of house and looks very much like one. 

Direction is good, but story is slow. Despite that director retains the interest of audience. There are some noteworthy intense scenes like ones between Alia and Vijay in Irani restaurent, the one of police raid, the one of photo with school kids, and the best one of her speech. Some of the shortcomings are Alia's age. Although the movie spans more than 13 years, she doesn't age at all. Characters use modern words while the movie is set in 1960s.

Director is also the music director. There are two good songs. Although Dholida has become very famous, I liked the one picturized on Huma Khan more. Like his past movies, he couldn't resist the temptation of inserting a dance of Alia, even if it doesn't fit well in the story. While director is in awe of the character, he depicts her representative work rather than the comprehensive work she did for the prostitutes and their children.  

Art director has created old Kamathipura well. Although he has attention to details, sets look like sets and background movement of crowd looks a little exaggerated.

The film is loosely based on the true story of Gangubai Harjivandas, popularly known as Gangubai Kothewali, whose life was documented in the book Mafia Queens of Mumbai by S. Hussain Zaidi.

Positives: Alia, Alia, Alia.

Negatives: Pace, Shortcomings.

Recommend watching.

Veergati (वीरगती)

"Veergati (वीरगती)".

Watched Marathi movie "Veergati (वीरगती)". 

This movie is directed by Raju Desai, Vishal Desai. Written by Abhiram Bhadkamkar. Produced by Raju Desai, Vishal Desai, Roshan Kanal, Ashoke Pandit. It stars Aditi Bhaskar, Nikhil Chavan, Anwar Fatehan, Gaurav Ghanekar, Ajit Jha, Rinku Karmarkar, Yatin Karyekar, Radhika Harshe. Cinematography by Arvind Singh. Film runs for  1 hour and 1 minute and was released in 2019. I watched it on 15th Jan 2022 on Zee5.

Salim achieves his dream of joining army. He has to return to Kashmir, 2 days into his first vacation. In Kashmir, Hussein is lured by a recruiter as a terrorist. There is a terrorist attack. There is a death. 

Gaurav Ghanekar plays impressionable Hussein, a new terrorist. Rinku Karmarkar plays his mother well. Nikhil Chavan plays army officer Salim Shekh. He looks every inch army officer. Aditi Bhaskar plays Hina, his girl friend. Radhika and Yatin play Salim's parents. Ajit Jha plays Suleiman, the recruiter. 

When it appears like the movie is coming into flow, it's blooming, it ends abruptly. Although it ends with a commanding performance from Yatin Karyekar and although it gives an important message, the abruptness of the end surprises the audience. 

Directors could have taken a few more minutes to ease the movie out without affecting the message. 

Positives: Yatin's final performance.

Negatives: Abrupt end.

Ok as a quick watch, not wow!

Fatteshikast (फत्तेशिकस्त)

"Fatteshikast (फत्तेशिकस्त)".

Watched Marathi movie "Fatteshikast (फत्तेशिकस्त)". 

This movie is directed by Digpal Lanjekar. Written by Digpal Lanjekar. Produced by Almonds Creations. It stars Chinmay Madlekar, Mrunal Kulkarni, Harish Dudhade, Ankit Mohan, Sameer Dharmadhikari, Ruchi Savarn, Mrunmayi Deshpande, Trupti Toradmal, Akshay Waghmare, Ajay Purkar and Anoop Soni. Music by Devdutta Manisha Baji. Cinematography by Reshmi Sarkar. Film runs for about 2 hour and 23 minutes and was released in 2019. I watched it on 15th Jan 2022 on Zee5.

This movie set in the times of Shivaji Maharaj. Shahista Khan has occupied Pune and his atrocities on the citizens are limitless. Shivaji raje implements strategy of defeating his generals. But eventually he has to strike at the heart, at Lal Mahal, at Shahista Khan.

Chinmay plays Shivaji, looks like him. In this movie too he plays contemplative Shivaji, rather than inspirational. Mrunal plays Jijabai and doesn't look like her. Mrunmayi plays an unglamorous role of servant and does really well. Her acting in the scene with Sameer is fabulous. Sanjay Purkar plays Tanaji well. Trupti Todarmal pleasantly surprises in the role of Raibagan. Ankit plays Yesaji and gets opportunity to show his muscles. He also tries to act but struggles with Marathi. Harish Dudhade plays Bahirji convincingly. His changes of attire and bearing of various roles is impeccable. Having indistinct features play to his advantage. Where was he until now? Sameer plays Namdar Khan. His acting drips menace initially, but his character suddenly loses importance. Anoop Soni plays Shahista Khan. He doesn't have to speak Marathi for the role. But he is not really impressive. 

I had written review of movie Farzand in 2019. It was of same director and most of this cast and characters were in that movie too. We can say the director is consistent. Direction is ok. The battle scenes appeared sparsely populated. You should see many more soldiers in any battle. Sets look like sets, not real locations. Often two characters talk in the midst of battle, but nobody attacks them while they are talking. 

Cinematography was good. Even the scenes in dark were clear. The qawwali is good. Choreography in concentric circular formation for the last song was superb.

Positives: Mrunmayi & Harish.

Negatives: Battle scenes.

Watch for the historical value.

Lochya zala re (लोच्या झाला रे)

"Lochya zala re (लोच्या झाला रे)"

Watched Marathi movie 'Lochya zala re (लोच्या झाला रे)'. 

This film is directed by Paritosh Painter & Ravi Adhikari. Produced by Navin Chandra and others. Music by Chinar-Mahesh. Cinematography Sanjay Memane. The film stars Ankush Chaudhry, Siddharth Jadhav, Vaidehi Parshurami, Sayaji Shinde, Prasad Kandekar, Resham Tipnis, Vijay Patkar. The film runs for 1 hour 50 minutes and was released on 11th Feb 2022. I watched it in theater with Aditi and friends on 12th Feb 2022. It was a show organized by Maharashtra Mandal Abu Dhabi (MMAD).

Ankush is a rich kid living in Birmingham on the allowance assigned by his uncle, who runs their family owned business. To get more money out of uncle, Ankush has told him that he has married Pooja. His best friends Siddhartha and Vaidehi leave their son with her father and come to Ankush to celebrate their anniversary. Suddenly uncle arrives.

Where will he produce Pooja from? What length does he go to conceal his secret? Will Siddhartha and Vaidehi help him? Will his neighbours contribute to the melee?

Ankush plays the Birmingham based rich kid, who really doesn't look youngster any more. Nevertheless he delivers a good performance. Siddhartha plays his best friend. His timing is impeccable. Although he creates humor during the entire film, he impresses with the emotional scene in the end. Vaidehi looks beautiful but needs to work on her comic acting. Sayaji is not known for his comedy prowess but he delivers a good performance. Resham is a misfit.

The movie happens in Birmingham. There are a number of scenes shot overseas. It's an indication that the budget of Marathi films is on the rise. If it's the trend that's a good news for Marathi movie industry. 

It's an out and out slapstick comedy. It's based on a Marathi play. And there lies the problem. When a play is adopted into a screenplay it needs certain alterations to transpose into the new genre. But the direction is like a play with characters thinking aloud, characters standing in a semi circle while delivering dialogue etc. The situational comedy could have been more refined.

There are moments of brilliance. You laugh out loud. There are good scenes. There are bad scenes. You are embarrassed. But the overall effect is not as good as it should have been. 

Positives: Siddhartha, some comic scenes.

Negatives: Play like Direction, overall effect.

Not a must watch.

Operation Parindey (ऑपरेशन परिंदे)

"Operation Parindey (ऑपरेशन परिंदे)"

Watched Hindi movie 'Operation Parindey (ऑपरेशन परिंदे)'. 

This film is directed by Sanjay Gadhvi. Written by Tajas Dhhanraj. Produced by Arti Gudal. Cinematography Arkodeb Mukherjee. The film stars Amit Sadh, Rucha Inamdar, Kunal Kumar, Amit Gaurr, R. Nadir, Akash Dahiya & Rahul Dev. The film runs for 1 hour and was released in 2020. I watched it on Zee5 on 11th Jan 2022.

Recent times. Punjab. A daring jail break. A terrorist escapes. A team of police is on his trail. Time is of essence.

Was the terrorist supposed to be in jail break? What is the master plan? Can STF Abhinav Mathur and his team capture the escaped bird?

It's a race. The terrorist is running and the police is tracking him. Police has the advantage of resources and terrorist has advantage of surprise. 

I decided to watch the movie because it was only one hour long. It's rare for a Hindi film to be so compact. It's also directed by the director of Dhoom and Dhoom2. So the expectations were high. 

The story is fast paced, has no slack but lacks drama. Not enough masala for a Hindi movie. But since it's said that the film is based on infamous Nabha jailbreak, the director can be excused for staying close to reality.

Amit Sadh delivers a good performance. Rahul Dev impresses with an out of character role of Harminder Singh Mintoo of KLF. Rucha and Akash show promise. 

A compact movie. Good direction. Fast pace. No slack. 

Positives: Acting, length.

Negatives: Lack of drama.

Good for quick viewing.

Barot house (बारोट हाऊस)

"Barot house (बारोट हाऊस)"

Watched Hindi movie 'Barot house (बारोट हाऊस)'. 

This film is directed by Bugs Bhargava. Written by Sanjeev K. Jha. Produced by Jahanara Bhargava and others. Cinematography Deepak Metkar. The film stars Manjari Fadnnis, Amit Sadh, Alefia Kapadia, Aryan Meghji, Fareeda Patel Venkat, Aseem Hattangdi, Kiearra Soni. The film runs for 1 hour 30 minutes and was released in 2019. I watched it on Zee5 on 10th Jan 2022.

Mr. Barot hates his daughters (he thinks they are not his. Why?) and loves his son. One of his young daughter goes missing. Her body is discovered next day. Second daughter is also murdered and so is neighbour's son. Mr. Barot suspects his 9 year old son. 

Is the son killer? Is it not what it seems? Is Mr. Barot correct?

Direction of this movie is crass. The deaths are shown crudely. The story has no flow. It's lumpy. The reactions are unconvincing. Acting is barely passable. Things happen randomly. There is a twist at the end but audience can see it coming from a mile. 

Amit Sadh overacts. He is a better actor than that. Manjari plays the grieving mother but doesn't look mother of four. Kiearra looks cute in her guest appearance. Aaryan acts well. 

At the end of the movie one wonders what one watched. Is it really possible? Why does the killer kill? Director and writer don't bother with the answers.

Positives: Umm....

Negatives: Almost everything.

Give it a wide breath. AVOID.