The year was 2001. Jhamu Sugandh and Aamir Khan Productions’ ambitious project – Lagaan, had just released its publicity material on TV. In an age of no-twitter and zero-presence of social networking sites, TV trailers and theatre publicities were the only way to go. The first trailer was indeed very intriguing. It only showed an incomplete political map of India, and a Rupee coin rolling over it. The heavy beats of the percussion filled the air, and as the short teaser concluded, the anticipation levels were soaring high. As I look back to that period of pre-Lagaan release, I feel an intense nostalgic rush filling me with smiles.
Lagaan was released and was widely loved and adored by audiences and critics alike, locally and globally. It has been 9 years since, and even then, the melody of Lagaan’s soundtrack, the drum beat and the passionate voices of the villagers of Champaner continue to linger in my head; all of them crying out – Re Bhaiyya Chhoote Lagaan!!
So, on this 9th anniversary of one of the most uplifting pieces of cinema ever, let’s celebrate the music of Lagaan – one which not just serves as a Bollywood routine element of the movie, but also a medium which translates a thousand emotions in a single line. The music of Lagaan transcends many levels and goes beyond the limits of boundaries, languages and cultural differences. A.R.Rahman scores, arguably, one of his career’s best soundtrack, and the translation to screen is equally breath-taking.
So hit the jump to experience with me, and celebrate the magic of the soundtrack of Lagaan – Once Upon A Time in India.
[Continue Reading…]
by Sujoy on April 9, 2009
in TV,recap
Once upon a time, long before television was invaded ( read:screwed over) by kanjeevaram sari clad women with jewellery as heavy as themselves, witchcrafty make-up, mean plans and super-repetitive close-up shots (or in other words Balaji Telefilms), was the era of Doordarshan’s Prime Entertainment. And that was when, long before becoming the Bhabhi of the Nation (singing Lo Chali Main with Salman Khan in Hum Aapke Hai Kaun), Renuka Shahane entered our lives as the Lady with the Electrifying smile, greeting us “Namaskar” every Sunday Night with Siddharth Kak on SURABHI. CINEMA VISION INDIA’s production, Surabhi brought information packaged in an entertaining 30 minutes box like never before. It wowed us to the core. Children, adoloscents and adults across the nation were glued to the half hour of culture explosion that ranged from dizzying heights of Ladakh to Aleppey’s backwaters, from the fields of Paan cultivation to remembering the greatness of cinema legends like Raj Kapoor and K.L.Saigal. Surabhi was my Indian Wikipedia; even better, it was on Television and I competed with my Dad in answering the Sawaal Jawaab. [Continue Reading…]
by Sujoy on December 16, 2008
in Bolly
They are the meanest creatures ever born on this planet. They are the pain in the arse of our Bollywood heroes and have some of the most badass lines; lines which make them immortal. Sometimes these villains are so badass that they own the movie, and the hero becomes just a mere character. Of course, in Bollywood terms and conditions, the hero always wins, but from the audience perspective, the hero might have won the battle, but lost the war. This post is my tribute to those 20 immortal villains that have graced the Bollywood silver screen. Some are straight out of comic strips, others are downright evil and mean, and the rest just tickle you and force you to roll down the corridor. It is such a shame though that these characters are more known as the Villains whereas they actually are the Heroes of the movies they were in. It was very hard to arrive at the final top 10 list, but you know, I am a genius of sorts when it comes to matters like these. No hurt feelings for those who couldn’t get through. Maybe you could be featured in the next list coming up shortly. Special mentions to the ones who just missed the list by an inch. ROLL THE DRUMS…….
20. Lotiya Pathan (Kiran Kumar) – Film: Tezaab
Achievements and Activities: Ganglord, kidnapper who doesn’t believe in Villain fashion. No white shoes, no furs and no underground camps. Downright street stuff with local goons and badass street fights. Started the first onscreen gang-war things of sorts.
Why is he on the list: In a movie which has Anil Kapoor playing the angry young man Munna, Madhuri Dixit dancing to ‘Ek Do Teen’ and the whole country dancing to it, if you can still remember the name of the villain, job well done!!!
Youtube Reference scene (click here) :- Lotiya Pathan is enraged at Munna getting punished for only a year.
19. Gulfaam Hassan (Naseeruddin Shah)-Film: Sarfarosh
Achievement and Activities: Ghazal Singer who playbacks Jagjit Singh’s vocals perfectly and carries out terrorist activites from his ancestral fort in Bahid, Rajasthan. Keyword: Mohajir.
Why is he on the list? He can pull out the ear of a child goat just because he broke a vase. He made the word “Gunaah” as one of the keywords for all mimicry artists who want to copy Naseeruddin Shah.
Youtube reference scene (click here):- The climax scene of Sarfarosh when Ajay Rathod’s plan dawns on Gulfam Hassan, but its too late. [Continue Reading…]
Yeah, the red jacket and the ghost gang dancing turned 25 this year. The album is being revamped and the Silver Jubilee edition is in stores now. But what actually reminded me of Thriller and made me listen to it (and yes, I even did the famous arm-swinging routine as well) throughout the week, was this- Signature performing the Bhangra mashed up with Thriller in Britain’s Got Talent’s first Semi Finals winning performance. If you haven’t seen it, you’ve been living in a cave.
Having said that, the magnitude of success of Thriller as an album to hold the Guiness Record of the most selling album worldwide does raise a lot of questions. Is it pop culture blown out of proportion? Is it showmanship winning over melody? Or is it just plain and simple-Jackson at its best. Sadly though, 25 years later after, the success story of Thriller still continues whereas Jackson has transformed into one of those zombie dancers (both physically and mentally) back and forth (Any one keeping count of the transformations, from Black to White to Nose to just Oh-I-donno-what’s that ?). [Continue Reading…]
