And another one bites the dust. The penultimate awards show of the year (until IIFA wakes up, sometime in June-July), and the biggest of B-Town, Filmfare awards, were handed out tonight at the Yashraj Studios. Earlier, we had discussed the nominations, and made some predictions as well. And here’s the list of winners from tonight, and also my mini-take on each one of them.

The Filmfare Awards 2012 Winners

_______________________________________________________

BEST FILM -  Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara [Really, was this the best of 2011? REALLY! Here are my choices btw]

BEST ACTOR MALE - Ranbir Kapoor, Rockstar [Mubaarakaa..again]

BEST ACTOR FEMALE  – Vidya Balan, The Dirty Picture [Very deservingly so]

BEST DIRECTOR  - Zoya Akhtar, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara [ Fine, whatever. Congratulations!! You see, I have a problem with ZNMD. More on it here]

BEST DIALOGUE – Farhan Akhtar, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara [Mantally challenging dialogue - Mushi Mushi! ]

BEST SCREENPLAY – Akshat Verma, Delhi Belly [Seriously, what the effing eff !!! Here are my thoughts on Delhi Belly ]

BEST STORY – Sanjay Chauhan, I Am Kalam 

BEST ACTOR MALE (CRITICS) - Ranbir Kapoor, Rockstar [Mubaarakaa]

BEST FILM (CRITICS) - Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara [BRB, busy LOL-ing]

BEST ACTOR FEMALE (CRITICS) – Priyanka Chopra, 7 Khoon Maaf [Shukriya for coming. And while you are here, why don't you take home this award]

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR MALE - Farhan Akhtar, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara [Mantal Bwoy beats Kabiraa, Mandook, and Superstar Suryakanth. How typically Filmfare! I have got a Kolveri di right now. ]

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR FEMALE – Rani Mukherjee, No One Killed Jessica [Welcome back Rani. And congrats on the award for having uttered the word Gaand!]

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD – Aruna Irani [LOL. I don't mean any disrespect, but this could only be because they wanted to play Chadhtee Jawani on the show]

SCENE OF THE YEAR – The Dirty Picture [I bet the pichkaari scene was shown in the AV]

RD BURMAN AWARD  - Krsna, Tanu Weds Manu [Finally a Rang for the Rangrez]

BEST MUSIC – AR Rahman, Rockstar [Here's one more feather in your overcrowded cap]

BEST PLAYBACK SINGER FEMALE – Usha Uthup & Rekha Bhardwaj, Darling, 7 Khoon Maaf [I am very happy for Usha Uthup]

BEST LYRICS – Irshad Kamil, Nadaan Parindey, Rockstar [Yes, yes, yes]

BEST PLAYBACK SINGER MALE – Mohit Chauhan, Jo Bhi Main, Rockstar [Man of the moment]

BEST DEBUT DIRECTOR – Abhinay Deo, Delhi Belly [Preposterous!! ]

BEST DEBUT MALE – Vidyut Jhamwal, Force [Muscles impresses Filmfare. Who else was nominated? No love for Liquid? ]

BEST DEBUT FEMALE – Parineeti Chopra, Ladies vs Ricky Bahl [Predictable!]

BEST CHOREOGRAPHY – Bosco-Caesar, Senorita, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara [I am worried about this trend. Seriously, did no one see Chammak Challo?]

BEST VFX – Red Chillies, Ra.One [Deserving!]

BEST BACKGROUND SCORE – Ranjit Barot, Shaitan [Deserving as well]

BEST ACTION – Don 2 [Y U NO give Shaitan the best action award? ]

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – Carlos Catalan, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara 

BEST SOUND DESIGN - Nakul Kamte, Don 2 

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN – Shashank Tere, Delhi Belly

BEST EDITING – Huzefa Lokhandwala, Delhi Belly

BEST COSTUME - Niharika Khan, The Dirty Picture

Quite shameful of Filmfare to have given absolutely no award to the finest movies of the year – Shor In The City and Dhobi Ghat. After all, it is all about loving your parents, family, and your relatives. There is a reason, why B-Town award shows are also known as Khan-Daan awards. Until the IIFA’s, keep watching this space. I will know if you don’t. Nope,..don’t even try to.

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The remake of the 90′s cult movie – Agneepath might have sounded like a bad idea on paper. After all, it is so deeply embedded with the strong presence of a performance which defined the star, and the star which defined the movie. Amitabh Bachchan’s white suited, guy-liner endorsing gangster, might have been a 90′s take on the many smuggling movies of the 70′s – viz. Don and Deewar. But what made Agneepath different then, was its no holds barred, self destructive protagonist, who is solely driven by revenge. How could one recreate that? Debutante director Karan Malhotra has the answer for that. And the answer is .. not to recreate *that*. 2012′s Agneepath is a remake of the 90′s original in as much way as Ram Gopal Varma remade the Godfather into Sarkar (and Sarkar Raaj). It does not attempt to shift the time scale and create similar scenes/situations existing in a parallel universe, re-enacted by a different group of actors. Instead, it redefines the dynamics, the relationships and the narrative to a certain extent, and yet, pays tribute to the presence of the original. And THAT is how you remake movies – not by driving your script to make more cash, but by making your characters come back to life..or rather offer a new life to your characters.

By now you must have got it that I loved this movie, despite a few silly unwanted additives. But when the end product is so damn good, who am I to complain. Hit the jump, as I discuss a bit more in details, and of course will be making some comparisons with the original [inevitably].  SPOILER ALERT

We know of the plot already, as I believe most of you have either seen the original, or the new one, or even both (like me). So, I’ll try to skim the fat, and get straight to the point.

#1. The first thing that Karan Malhotra’s version instantly establishes is how Mandva works. It is a village, on an island, and ruled by a Zamindar. And most importantly, Master Deenanath Chauhan is not a dumb self-righteous dude. But he’s one who is ambitious about the economic growth of the village. This is what makes him a villain for the Zamindar, and his evil son – Kancha. Secondly, a 12 year old Vijay, played surprisingly very well by Arush Bhiwandiwala, gets to see his father getting hanged in front of him. THAT is disturbing on so many levels, and defines Vijay’s self-destructing motivation towards avenging his father’s death. It is a bit unclear how Vijay associated everything against only Kancha in the original.

#2. Vijay, is not an angry man. Amitabh’s bare chested challenge to his ganglords to shoot him does not feature here. There are no monologues in a police station, and neither any grand dialogue delivery. Vijay is a very deeply disturbed, miserable and extremely sad man, who has lost his father, been rejected by his mother, and is struggling to reach his goal. And Hrithik portrays it in the most real way possible. There is clear pain in Hrithik’s eyes, his stare and even in his body language. Even with a body so big, you can see through the broken heart that he carries around. And you can also see the clear determination in him to prove his point – even when he knows of the dire consequences.

#3. So how do the two Vijays compare? One is the filmy best. But the other is heartfelt, and sort of explains Vijay Dinanath Chauhan’s motives clearer. Come next year, I’ll be surprised if Hrithik does not take home the awards for this. If acting means immersing yourself into a character, to an extent that the fine line between what’s real and what’s not, is blurred, then Hrithik’s acting of Vijay Chauhan is “acting”.

#4. The genre defining moment of Vijay.. Dinanath.. Chauhan.. Poora Naam, is perfectly placed in the new one. Of course, I have been anticipating how they’d treat it, as it has been spoofed way too many times to count. And I will not spoil it for you when it happens, but it is indeed very satisfying.

#5. Rauf Lala. How can I sum up my thoughts about Rishi Kapoor playing Rauf Lala? Ermm.. excellent, brilliant, amazing? Those are mere adjectives, and I’d add some more to that, only if I knew what. I am absolutely loving the different shades of characters that Chintujee has been portraying over the last few years (e.g. Do Dooni Chaar, Luck By Chance, Chintujee, Love Aaj Kal). And this is a brilliant addition to his amazing filmography. Rishi Kapoor makes us believe in Rauf Lala as the gangster who rules Mumbai’s drug distribution network. Lala’s power, his control and his unforgivably disgusting business of trafficking young girls, is again balanced by his family oriented life, and the trust he has in Vijay. Or is that the whole picture? You’ve got to watch this to find out. And oh, Shah Ka Rutba has been playing on my Winamp since I have got out of the cinema. That’s going to get a lot of hits on Youtube from me when the video releases.

#6. Speaking of videos, the only other song that stands out is – Gun Guna Re, where we see Priyanka’s dancing skills in a Dogri chawl mohalla. The track is very catchy, and you can’t help tap your foot; more so when Udit jee takes over, and a drunk Vijay tries to ape the dance steps. Some more points for resisting the temptation to not make Hrithik Roshan do some proper dance moves. That’d have been pretty awkward to see Vijay move like jagger. And no, Chikni Chameli is one of those unwanted additives that I was talking about earlier. More of it has already been discussed here.

Special mention to the background score/sound engineer Stephen Gomes for inserting appropriate bassoon sounds, and even cellos. The use of colours in the Ganesh Chaturthi scene was exceptionally pretty, and cinematographer Kiran Deohans’s job is very much appreciated.

#7. And speaking of Priyanka Chopra, she’s probably the sore thumb of the movie. I get it that she’s one of the big league actresses now, and demands a better wardrobe than the extras. But please, only when it suits the movie. Ok, so she runs a Chinese beauty parlour, so is definitely more fashionable. Hmm… still can’t digest the fact. I don’t see the point in adding a female lead, just so for the sake of it. If I were to design the title poster (in the beginning of the post), her rectangle wouldn’t be as wide as the ones of Rishi Kapoor and Sanjay Dutt. And what was with that Nepali vs. Chinese thingie? What was the agenda behind that scene? Am I missing a joke or something?

#8. Coming back to Mandwa, thanks to Karan Malhotra’s imagination, it is redesigned by Kancha as a concentration camp – where villagers are enslaved, and their land is used for cocaine plantation. But it is a bit weird to see that Kancha, who has clearly got contacts to get weapons, artilleries, and possibly food distributed for his army, cannot get into Mumbai via any of the neighbouring states. Or perhaps, Rauf Lala’s network is more widespread than my imagination. But then, how would I know the operations and project management aspects of a gangster. LOL! [BRB! #Facepalming myself for having that written down, but too lazy to delete it now].

#9. Sanju Baba, is back in his Khalnayak avatar. He has been a social outcast for his alopecia problem, but I don’t get the logic behind Kancha’s mentally deranged actions – such as hanging anyone that he dislikes, or having a loud laughter (in Hindi we call it “Thahaka”) at the drop of a hat, or for not flossing. Maybe, that’s what defines him – Kancha is mental! And you cannot define mental. Just as Alfred said, “Some people just want to see the world burn”. Kancha wanted to see Mandwa to be his coke-mine. But what he’d do with all that money if he couldn’t get out of Mandwa, is a burning question, that I leave open to the floor.

#10. And for the climactic fight between Vijay and Kancha, it is by all means epic. Sanju looks like a beast, who can even handle a bullet through him. And Vijay looks like the rock that can beat the scissors…oh wait…he did get stabbed numerous times. But he rises, and then what a scene!! [It is here, where I started missing my local theatre, when I could hoot a wolf whistle to my heart's satisfaction]. To be noted, Hrithik gets stabbed in the stomach, but when his shirt gets all torn, that knife scar disappears, and with that, any source of bleeding. Minor filmi creative freedom, or huge cinematic fail? You decide.

To conclude: Agneepath is a hell of a movie. The tone is very serious, dark and extremely violent at times. There’s slashing of necks, and bullets flying. It is rated 15 for a reason, so don’t go expecting a family movie. Hrithik delivers a solid, emotionally charged, and physically punching performance. To me the stand-out moment of Vijay, has to be the one at the end, when after Kancha is killed, Vijay breaks down, to scream out – Babaaa. All his bottled anguish and pain, is released. And with that Vijay’s purpose in life is served. It moved me, more than any of the dialogues could. Rishi Kapoor’s act as the druglord kingpin Rauf Lala deserves all the awards, and more. I wish Sanju was a little bit less caricaturish, and a bit more real.

OKS Rating: 4 Slashing Machetes Out of 5

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And then, there was yet another B-town award. This time around, it was the Producers Guild awards – a.k.a Apsara Awards. And apparently, Zoya Akhtar’s Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara was the year’s best movie, according to the producers. There are some pleasant surprises, and a lot of facepalm worthy awards. Hit the jump for the complete list of winners, and my mini-take on them.

BEST LYRICS – Irshad Kamil, Naadaan Parindey, Rockstar [Well deserved. Apsara got it right]

BEST MUSIC – AR Rahman, Rockstar [Need I say anything here?]

BEST SINGER MALE – Mohit Chauhan, Saada Haq, Rockstar [Unstoppable]

BEST SINGER FEMALE – Shreya Ghoshal, Teri Meri, Bodyguard [Right choice, wrong song]

BEST PERFORMANCE IN A COMIC ROLE - Deepak Dobriyal, Tanu Weds Manu [Awesome surprise, but at the cost of Pitobash. Hang on, he wasn't nominated. WTF!!!]

BEST PERFORMANCE IN A NEGATIVE ROLE – Prakash Raj, Singham [Screams "This is Goaaaaaaa"!]

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE - Farhan Akhtar, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara [Mantal choice]

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE – Parineeti Chopra, Ladies vs Ricky Bahl [Yea right. No Swara Bhaskar boo!]

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE – Ranbir Kapoor, Rockstar [Yet another one in the bag]

BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE – Vidya Balan, The Dirty Picture [And for her too]

BEST DIRECTOR – Zoya Akhtar, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara [Imma let you finish Zoya, this was an OK movie, but really Milan Luthria is the best director of 2012.]

BEST FILM – Ritesh Sidhwani & Farhan Akhtar, Zindagi Ne Milegi Dobara [Give me a roundhouse facepalm everyone]

BEST SCREENPLAY - Reema Kagti & Zoya Akhtar, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara [Can we just call this a ZNMD awards show?]

BEST STORY – Reema Kagti & Zoya Akhtar, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara [Hehehe, best story..or best tour catelogue]

BEST DIALOGUE – Rajat Arora, The Dirty Picture [Sigh! For all those Emraan Hashmi metaphors]

BEST CHOREOGRAPHY – Bosco Caesar, Senorita, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara [Again, boo for no Chammak Challo love]

BEST DEBUTE FEMALE – Parineeti Chopra, Ladies vs Ricky Bahl [Yea, ok she was good for a debutante]

BEST DEBUT MALE – Rana Daggubatti, Dum Maaro Dum [Rana who? That Te Amo dude who disappeared after Bips called dibs on drugs. Evs! ]

MOST POPULAR SONG – Chammak Challo, Ra.One [Yes, Yes, Yes!]

PRESIDENT GUILD HONOUR – Amitabh Bachchan, Kaun Banega Crorepati [Ermm, ok. At least they are not giving it to him for Aarakshan ]

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR MALE - Shahrukh Khan [Not Salmaan, who gave the year's biggest hits - Ready and Bodyguard, but SRK - who gave the biggest dud of the year - Ra.One]

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR FEMALE – Priyanka Chopra [Whaa... Ainveyi! ]

TECHNICAL AWARDS:

BEST EDITING – Aarti Bajaj, No One Killed Jessica 

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – Ranjan Palit, 7 Khoon Maaf & Chirantan Das, Tanu Wds Manu

BEST ART DIRECTION – Subrata Chakraborty & Punita Grover, 7 Khoon Maaf

BEST SOUND DESIGN – Resul Pookutty & Amrit Pritam Dutta, Ra.One

BEST SPECIAL EFFECTS – Red Chillies VFX, Ra.One

BEST COSTUME DESIGN – Payal Saluja, 7 Khoon Maaf

BEST SOUND MIXING – Anup Dev & Tarun Bhandari, Ra.One

And that’s the whole list of winners. What did you think of the winners? Share your thoughts in the comments section below. The awards show airs on Colors on the 11th of March. Yep. Probably it does need a lot of post production work to be done. And that is the beauty of B-Town award shows.

P.S. The Official Apsara Awards website has not been updated for more than 2 years.

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So apparently Total Film, one of the biggest movie mags of the UK (second only to Empire), did a top 50 list of Bollywood movies. And to my utter surprise, the list seems to be compiled by someone who watched exactly 50 Bollywood movies, which might have appeared on his/her Lovefilm queue. Otherwise, there is no other reason for something like THIS to have ended up in a Best of  list. The dilemma for me is, whether I should be angry at the inclusion of some of the movies which would NEVER appear on any Best of list, or at the exclusion of some of the obvious Bollywood classic, which even Lovefilm would recommend. The dissection continues after the jump, and if you’re wondering why I have included the GIF above, hover your mouse over it to know exactly how I feel about this list. Feel free to join the discussion in the comments.

I have listed my list of problems with this Top 50 list as bulleted points – just for the sake of clarity, and so that I don’t get distracted or get carried away.

1. Exclusion a: RK Films included in this list are – Bobby, Aawara. And for a list that contains KANK, Mohabbatein, this does not have Sangam, Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai, Jaagte Raho.

2. Exclusion b: Obvious classics such as Guide, Jewel Thief, Chalti Ka Naam Gadhee, Pyaasa, Humraaz, Waqt are snubbed to make room for Fashion

3. Exclusion c: There is no Shammi Kapoor movie here. Neither any Shashi Kapoor movie, nor Dev Anand. Thankfully, there’s Balraj Sahni at no.49.

4. Exclusion d: Senior Bachchan’s movies have had a huge impact on Bollywood cinema, and cinema in general. And the one to enter the top 10 at no 5 is Coolie. There is no sign of Deewar, Zanjeer, Shakti, Satte Pe Satta, Anand or Namak Halal.

5. Inclusion a: 3 Idiots gets to be no.1. As much as I love this movie, it is NOT the best Bollywood movie by any means.  Even Raju Hirani and VVC would agree with me on that. And I cannot help but wonder about the stretch of imagination that this writer had, to include Manmohan Desai’s 80′s flick – Coolie in Top 5. I kid you not – Top 5!!!

6. Inclusion b: The intense SRK, YRF, Dharma fanboism that this list exhibits is almost on an unashamed Bieber-fever level. From Om Shanti Om, Devdas, KHNH, KANK, MNIK, Mohabbatein, Dostana, Rab Ne.. to even Fanna making it into the Top 10 list is a big slapping #facepalm meets #epicfail. Yes, they are all entertaining Bollywood movies, but by no means represent the greatest of Bollywood cinema. Or are we supposed to take this list as a subjective view of the author, who happened to watch movies based upon recommendations by Lovefilm – You watched Om Shanti Om, so you might also like Salaam Namaste. (Yes, that IS in the list as well !!!)

7. Inclusion c: Fashion! Motherfucking Fashion..yes, Madhur Bhandarkar’s cliché fest Fashion completes the Top 10 list. What more is left for me to say?

BIG THANK YOU THOUGH: Having said all of that, I would still appreciate this list for its inclusion of the following movies -

Sholay, Paakezah, Dil Chahta Hai, Mother India, Agneepath, Sarfarosh, Tezaab, Andaz Apna Apna, Peepli Live, Amar Akbar Anthony, Udaan, Bobby, Aawara, Rang De Basanti, Lagaan, Swades, Taare Zameen Par, Kaagaz Ke Phool, Hum Aapke Hain Kaun, Mughal-E-Azam, Salaam Bombay, Mr.India, Do Beegha Zameen, Munnabhai and Chak De India

The Complete List of Total Film’s 50 Greatest Bollywood Films can be found here.

Kindly share your feelings on this “list” in the comments section below.

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So, the Screen awards for 2012 got handed out in an elaborate awards function show last night. We’ll get to see more of it in a few weeks, when the heavily edited, and appropriately placed emoticons of Priyanka Chopra smiling at Shahid Kapoor’s jokes will be one of the highlights of the show. Because, if we talk about the awards, the final winners list looks more like a token give-away to anyone who attended the show. And just in case the blogosphere doesn’t explode with opposing comments over SRK winning an award in a year where he’s mostly done more publicity work than Times Square billboards, Screen has quite conveniently created new categories to make everyone a very happy family. Welcome to the Bollywood awards season – the season of egalitarian policy and where acting doesn’t matter.

Earlier in the month, we made some predictions. And by the looks of it, Screen actually managed to pull off a “ha-ha, gotcha! In your face everyone”. Hit the jump, as we review the winners, and also review our predictions vs. the final list of winners.

THE 18th SCREEN AWARDS 2012 – WINNERS

TECHNICAL AWARDS:

Costume: The Dirty Picture  / OKS: Ra.One
Verdict: Fair-dos

Action: Ra.One / OKS: Ra.One
Verdict: Told-ya

Choreography: Bosco Caeser – Senorita, ZNMD / OKS: Chammak Challo – Ra.One
Verdict: Meh! Senorita looked more like impromptu stuff. I don’t see anyone doing Abhay’s moves. Chammak Challo is still my winner.

Cinematography: R Madhi – Shaitan / OKS: ZNMD
Verdict: Fair-dos

Dialogue: ZNMD / The Dirty Picture / OKS: Tanu Weds Manu
Verdict: WTF!!! TDP for it’s mega boom-bastic Emraan Hashmi metaphors, dropped at 1000 per minute. And what is with the two winners. Ooh, there’s more!

Story: Delhi Belly / OKS: Stanley Ka Dabba
Verdict: WTF!!! I don’t get it how a crime caper comedy is the best story we’ve heard in 2011.

MUSIC AWARDS:

Lyrics: Prashoon Joshi – Aarakshan / OKS: Irshaad Kamil – Rockstar
Verdict: Complete WTF!!! I think the closest comparison would be to give SRK the best actor for English Babu Desi Mem. Wait, did he win anything for that?

Music: A.R.Rahman – Rockstar / OKS: A.R.Rahman – Rockstar
Verdict: Told ya! This was unstoppable.

Background Score: Ranjit Barot – Shaitan / OKS: Ram Sampath – Delhi Belly
Verdict: Fair-dos.

Playback (Male): Mohit Chauhan – Rockstar / OKS: Mohit Chauhan – Rockstar
Verdict: Told ya! Another one of the most predictable winners this year. Although, I’d have LOVED to see Bappi da going home with this award this year!

Playback (Female): Shreya Ghoshal – The Dirty Picture / OKS: Usha Uthup – 7 Khoon Maaf
Verdict: Fair-dos. Yes, Shreya is deserving, but more so for Saibo, imho. But am happy with this too.

MAIN AWARDS:

Child Artist: Partho Gupte – Stanley Ka Dabba / OKS: Partho Gupte – Stanley Ka Dabba
Verdict: Yep, told ya!

Ensemble: ZNMD / OKS: Chillar Party
Verdict:  Fair-dos. I think I got a bit carried away with my own judgement, rather than who I believed would win on the night. Stupid decision, considering how obvious it was that Screen loved ZNMD.

Actor in a comic role: Pitobash – Shor in the City / OKS: Pitobash – Shor in the City
Verdict: Told ya! A very well deserved award. All the best for Filmfare and future projects.

Promising Newcomer (Male): Divyendu – Pyar Ka Punchnama / OKS: Pitobash – Shor in the City
Verdict: Haven’t seen the movie PKP, so really can’t give the verdict on this.

Promising Newcomer (Female): Parineeti Chopra  - Ladies Vs. Ricky Bahl / OKS:  Parineeti Chopra  - Ladies Vs. Ricky Bahl
Verdict: Told ya!

Actor in a negative role (Male): Prashant Narayanan (Murder 2) / OKS: Amole Gupte – Stanley Ka Dabba
Verdict: Fair-dos. Prashant was good, but it is hard for me to judge, since the Korean original, The Chaser, is far superior than the desi-copied version.

Actor in  a negative role (Female): Priyanka Chopra – 7 Khoon Maaf / OKS: Kalki Koechlin – Shaitan
Verdict: Fair-dos. But, am curious if she had a performance lined up for the night.

Supporting Actor: Saif Ali Khan -Aarakshan / OKS: Rajesh Sharma – No One Killed Jessica
Verdict: WTF! And I’d like to add a thousand more WTFs. Seems like the name of the movie for which Saif got the award speaks for itself.

Supporting Actress: Aditi Rao Hydari – Ye Saali Zindagi / OKS:  Parineeti Chopra – Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl
Verdict: Fair-dos.

Actor: Ranbir Kapoor – Rockstar / OKS: Ranbir Kapoor – Rockstar
Verdict: Told ya!! Was anyone else even competing?

Actress: Vidya Balan – The Dirty Picture / OKS:  Vidya Balan – The Dirty Picture
Verdict: Ditto!

Director: Milan Luthria – The Dirty Picture / OKS:  Milan Luthria – The Dirty Picture
Verdict: Told ya! Although, I believe Filmfare will decided otherwise.

Film: The Dirty Picture / ZNMD / OKS: Shor in the City
Verdict: WTF!! Fair-dos. I managed to get both of them wrong. LOL. And what part of Best Film says two movies? Aah, it’s all about loving your family and front row seats.

 MORE WTF-ery 

Popular Choice Male: Shahrukh Khan for Don 2. / OKS: Can I LOL now, or should I just shoot you in the face?

Popular Choice Female: Deepika Padukone for Desi Boyz. / OKS: What movie is that ?

Performer Of The Year: Ekta Kapoor / OKS: Thank you Ekta jee for making The Dirty Picture and Ragini MMS and Shor in the City.

Jodi Award: SRK and Priyanka Chopra / OKS: Did I hear her blush and smile uncontrollably again like on that Koffee show?

Ramnath Goenka Memorial Award for “having made a difference”  - Aarakshan
OKS: And Stanley Ka Dabba which addressed the issue of Child  Labour is irrelevant compared to the “making difference” qualities of Saif winning the Supporting Actor. Two words – Bitch please!

Didn’t predict in my previous post:

Sound Design: Kunal Sharma – Shaitan
Editing: Huzefa Lokhandwala – Delhi Belly
Production Design: Delhi Belly
SFX: Ra.One
Screenplay: Delhi Belly

SCORES:

Told ya: [Correct Predictions ] – 9 out of 35
WTF: [Screen needs some education ] –  8.5 out of 35
Fair-dos: [That was ok! ] – 9.5 out of 35

And Asha Bhonsle received the Lifetime Achievement Award. Congratulations Asha jee and keep blessing us with your melodious voice. On that note, I end this post. Please leave your comments below.

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The nominations for the 57th Filmfare Awards have been announced. And by the looks of it, the jury clearly did not watch a lot of movies. There is a clear omission of some of the most best movies in Bollywood of 2011. And a clear favouritism can be spotted as well, as you’d expect from the biggest movie awards in Bolly land. There is no clear consistency in the number of nominees (as in some have 5 nominees, and others 6 – e.g. Best Actor / Actress), and certain nominations are complete wtf-ery. The complete list can be found at the Filmfare awards website.

Hit the jump, as I discuss the nominations, and make my predictions.

Lyrics: Quite similar to the Screen award nominations, but wtf – Javed saab got a nomination, not for Khwabo Ke Parindey, but for the more impromptu Senorita. Remember  - “Na Main Samjha, Na Main Jaana, Jo bhi tumne hai mujhse kaha hai Senorita“. Really Filmfare..Really? Gulzar saab’s Daarling also makes it to the list, along with Irshaad Kamil’s Rockstar accomplishments. And to end the list is another mindfuck – Vishal Dadlani for Chammak Challo. I think it is indeed the end of the world order.

OKS Prediction: Irshaad Kamil for Sadda Haq, but if Vishal wins for Chammak Challo – all bets are off.

Music: A surprise entry here – Sohail Sen is nominated for Mere Brother Ki Dulhan. IMHO, that soundtrack had only one good track and that was Madhubala. Is it worth the nomination – No! Tanu Weds Manu is absent from the list, and so is Shor in the City. Other nominees are Vishal Shekhar for Ra.One, A.R. Rahman for Rockstar, and SEL for ZNMD.

OKS Prediction: A.R. Rahman for Rockstar, just coz it’s easy and uncontroversial.

Playback Singer Male:  Filmfare seems to be clearly impressed by Mohit Chauhan, as he gets dual nods for Rockstar. But wtf, Akon and Vishal for Best singer in Chammak Challo. C’mon, that song was so auto-tuned that even the fire brigade siren called it it’s step brother. And seriously Shafqat and Rahat nominated for one of their weakest songs ever. There is no explanation whatsoever for Bodyguard making it to the nominations, for any of the categories.  There’s no Tochi Raina, Shriram Iyyer for D-D-Dilli, or Wadali Brothers for Rangrez, or Lehmber Hussainpuri for Saddi Gally. And where is Bappi da’s Ooh La La? Bloody annoying!

OKS Prediction: Mohit Chauhan for Rockstar; he’s the man of the moment.

Playback Singer Female:  Again, you can see Filmfare did not listen to that many soundtracks. Bodyguard is included again, just so that we do not forget the year’s biggest grosser. Alyssa Mendosa’s Khwabo Ke Parindey gets the well deserved nod, and so does Shreya’s Saibo. Usha Uthup’s Daarling is a safe bet, but really – Katiya Karu ? I didn’t even like it a bit. Where is Sona for Bedardi Raja? I give up.

OKS Prediction: Alyssa Mendosa for Khwabo Ke Parindey, ZNMD

Supporting Actor Female: It’s interesting to see Juhi Chawla (I Am) getting on the nominations list after ages, and for a well deserved role. Up against her are, Parineeti Chopra (Ladies vs Ricky Bahl), Rani Mukherjee (No One Killed Jessica), Swara Bhaskar (Tanu Weds Manu), and Kalki Koechlin (ZNMD). If it was left for me to choose, I’d go for Swara Bhaskar for her intense and fierce Biharan performance, an absolute treat to watch. But again, this is the Filmfare awards.

OKS Prediction: Juhi Chawla, I Am.

Supporting Actor Male: Evidently, Filmfare lapped up ZNMD..or vice versa. Farhan and Abhay make it to the Best Supporting role nominations. And poor Arjun, I mean Hrithik msut’ve felt left out. Quite cool to see Naseer saab getting a nod as well for his Superstar Surya role in The Dirty Picture. And Vir Das nominated for Delhi Belly is just one of those favouritisms I was talking about. Probably, it is more down to him doing the hosting honours last year, or his Jaa Chudail routine, whichever you preferred. Ending the list, is the strongest contender – Pitobash for Shor in the City. And you know how much I loved his role as Mandook.

OKS Prediction: Pitobash, Shor in the City. I hope Filmfare does an ‘Udaan’, and gives it to the well deserved guy.

Continue here for the Big 4 >> Best Actor / Actress / Director / Film

Be our Facebook chum here, where we discuss the best and worst of Bollywood. Or follow me on twitter for absolutely wise rants.

As the new year settles in, we are bombarded with the year’s first of many Bollywood awards - The 18th Annual Colors Screen Awards. The nominations are out, and in this post, I’ll be ranting a lot and trying to review the choices for the nominations of this year. Also, winner predictions will be made, and trust me, you can place your bets based on my predictions** (Only at your own risk)**.

The complete list of nominations can be found on Screen’s website here.

P.S., we won’t be discussing all the categories.. pfft. Way too many to even count. Hit the jump for the review.

TECHNICAL AWARDS

Costume: Seems like the only chance for Patiala House to have surfaced on the awards nominees list. But really, what was so striking about the costumes of that movie? But well, neither can I remember anything about two other nominees – Mausam, Ye Saali Zindagi. Ra.One seems like a good contender for bringing spandex back to fashion, but especially for THAT striking Bebo red sari in Chammak Challo. Either that, or the Pink Apsara costume of Vidya (The Dirty Picture), that I’ve been drooling on.

OKS prediction – Ra.One

Choreography: All predictable nominees here, with Chammak Challo, Senorita, Ooh La La, Disco Fighter, and Darling making the cut. In terms of mass appeal, Chammak Challo wins it by a mile. By that I mean, everyone remembers the signature rotatory motion that everyone was doing in Chammak Challo. The next contender I believe is Ooh La La, but that is more about a “back to the 70′s” set, rather than choreography. But then, Screen could go mental and just go fuck it, we’ll award the Disco Fighter song.

OKS Prediction – Chammak Challo – Ra.One

Action: Of all the ones nominated, I liked the non-cheap look of Don2 the most. Although Ra.One had it’s edge over others, with wire-fu and rasengans flying. I am not a big fan of the Vijayan Master school of dishoom dishoom that we got to see in Bodyguard. I think Dabangg was the end of it. And Singham was all about Ajay Devgan doing a Lady Gaga routine.

OKS Prediction – Ra.One

Cinematography: Both Delhi Belly and Rockstar had some exceptional cinematography work, but the obvious choice this year is Carlos Catalon for his portrayal of Spain as a character on it’s own in ZNMD.

OKS Prediction - ZNMD

Dialogue: No, I do not agree with Delhi Belly qualifying as a nominee for it’s expletives. And Farhaan and Abhay Deol’s antics with Bwoys, Mr. The Dubeys, and Mantal – that is not award worthy material. And no, I almost had a migraine after I finished comprehending the many metaphors of The Dirty Picture. And why the hell is Chillar Party not nominated here? My winner is Tanu Weds Manu, for it’s absolute spot on North Indian middle class twang in Hindi – from the very Bihari Payal, to the oh-so natkhat Puppy jee (Deepak Dobriyal).

OKS Prediction - Tanu Weds Manu

Story: I don’t get how some movies like 404 and Mujhse Fraandship Karoge are doing in this category. And I really don’t know why Shor in the City or Shaitan are not in this category. Seems like a bit of a egalitarian policy to not nominate these, as it seems like Screen will be awarding one of these movies in either of the categories. Pfft. Nevertheless, it is great to see Stanley on the list.

OKS Prediction - Stanley Ka Dabba

MUSIC AWARDS

Lyrics: Irshaad Kamil has been nominated for Rockstar and Javed Akhtar for ZNMD. But why the fuck isn’t lyrics writer Rajshekhar nominated here for the mammoth Rangrez?

OKS Prediction - Irshaad Kamil for Sadda Haq

Music: I agree with most of it, as you can see from my own OKS Bollywood Music Awards posts (part 1, and part 2). I’d love to see Krsna or Ram Sampath win. But we all know who’ll take home this one.

OKS Prediction - A.R.Rahman for Rockstar.

Playback (Male) : Mohit Chauhan has been a tour de force this year with Rockstar. But that doesn’t guarantee a win, especially at Screen which has always been very unpredictable in this category. I will LOVE to see Bappi da win this. But on a serious note, ..

OKS Prediction - Mohit Chauhan – Rockstar

Playback (Female) : All nominees are wrong, just fucking wrong. Except for Usha Uthup for Darling. Shreya could’ve been nominated for Saibo, but they went for Ooh La La ( The Ooee Maa must have done it’s magic). And I cannot disagree more on nominating Khoya Khoya Chand. NO!

OKS Prediction - Usha Uthup – Darling

Background Score: If Ram Sampat doesn’t win the Best Music award, I think he should get it. Else, there’s always SEL for ZNMD, or Amit Trivedi for No One Killed Jessica.

OKS Prediction - Ram Sampath – Delhi Belly

Continue to Page 2>> where we discuss the MAIN AWARDS.

]]> http://www.oneknightstands.net/the-screen-awards-2012-nominations-review-and-predictions/feed/ 2 http://www.oneknightstands.net/top-7-bollywood-movies-in-2011/ http://www.oneknightstands.net/top-7-bollywood-movies-in-2011/#comments Sun, 01 Jan 2012 12:34:17 +0000 Sujoy http://www.oneknightstands.net/?p=2264

Time indeed flies. Where did the year go? 2011 is so history now. For me, it means that I need to submit my end-year review sheet to my manager describing all the good efforts that I have put in over the last 12 months. And that sort of gave me this idea to have an end year review of Bollywood in 2011. (Although I do work in the financial sector, please do not expect a Quarterly results post from me). And so in traditional award season fashion, we roll out the prelude to the OKS Bollywood Movie Awards. So without any further ado, let’s roll out ..

The top 7 Bollywood movies of 2011.

7. Chillar Party

Kids centric movies in Bollywood have always been produced in sparse quantities, and the ones that do see the light of the day turn out to be kids centric, with morals manipulatively woven into the script. Chillar Party checks all the boxes of the kids movie formula, and yet somehow stands out as a rebel of the genre. It was a pleasant surprise to see a movie with no known star cast, completely centred around a bunch of kids, and having a story with a golden heart. Yes, it is not bereft of the obligatory good vs evil theme, and the evil here is conveniently a local politician.

But the hero here is the bunch of kids, each one a brilliantly sketched out character on its own, and sporting colourful names such as Panauti, Janghya, Encyclopedia etc. Thrown in the mix is the cause of animal rights and how politicians today will not stop at making any opportunity turn in their favour. Even with its flaws, Chillar Party is warm, heartfelt and entertaining, and deserves the no.7 spot on our list.

6. The Dirty Picture:

Milan Luthria’s ode to the heaving seductress of South Indian cinema – Silk Smitha, could’ve gone wrong in many ways. It could’ve turned out to be a just a mere spoof of the era of cinema it was trying to recreate. It could’ve been just another movie which sold sex, with an excuse. It could’ve been an “another” jewel on Tushhar Kapoor’s failure crown. But amongst all those “could haves”, Luthria successfully managed to rake in a “should have” – Vidya Balan. She is the main reason why The Dirty Picture works so well. She is fierce, fearless and flamboyant, just as the onscreen Southern siren she’s impersonating. She embraces the oomph and the aura of Silk in every single frame. And even with its confused inconsistencies, you cannot smile and sometimes perv at her Ooh-La-La. Even Bappi da’s phantaa-seee song hits the jackpot.

The other strong reason why this made it to no.6 is – the promiscous ageing superstar Surya, played by Naseeruddin Shah. Shah’s uncompromising portrayal of the non-six pack, tight and shimmering shirted, yet arrogant filmstar, is a treat to watch. And together with Vidya, they share some awesome screen space. Quite shameful though, that the other two male characters – Tushhar and Emraan are left to either bite the dust, or mumble lyrical metaphors. But this is a one woman show, and for all its dirt, in the end, the picture was very Bumbaat!

5. No One Killed Jessica

” Someone with a pistol in his hand, power in his head, decided that a life was cheaper than a glass of drink “. That single line shook and stirred the whole nation for a decade, whilst the media circus thrived on it, making headlines with every combination of words possible. That man who made the shot with his 22 bore Italian Barretta still manages to roam around free. With 300 witnesses to the incident, mostly socialites of the elitest order including Bina and Malini Ramani, model Shayan Munshi (key suspect turned hostile), No One Killed Jessica is a hard-hitting story of the legal battle aftermath, that is shouldered by the victim’s sister Sabrina Lal (Vidya Balan).

The movie is a dramatised version of the case, and depicts how in a modern city like Delhi, the political capital of India, innocence can be easily bought, or can it be? It also shows the rise of the democracy and how a public uprising can stir governments. The dramatisation of the story with the involvement of a fictional reporter (played by Rani Mukherjee, looking desperate for a breakthrough role) doesn’t really come out as a ‘real’ performance and often looks contrived. But apart from that minor annoyance, No One Killed Jessica is a story that needs to be told time and again to remind us, that even in modern times like these, feudally aggressive and arrogant politicians can try to get away with almost anything, and it is not OK for us to accept this ‘name-dropping’ mindset. It is OK for us to realise that in a democracy, ‘Ye Public Sab Jaanti Hai’.

4. Dhobi Ghat

I have already written enough about my love for this movie in my review here. What strikes most about this movie, is that its director – Kiran Rao, through the eyes of its lead characters, give us a multi-dimensional insider ‘s look of Mumbai. You cannot help yourself falling in love with the city. The characters here are perfectly etched out, not even one overpowering the other. Prateik Babbar shines as the male lead, but it is débutante Kriti Malhotra, who makes a mark as the innocent outsider, new in the city girl. A must watch for people who love their cinema to leave them with a sweet after taste.

3. Tanu Weds Manu

A mix of clichéd storyline with unpredictable situations, director Anand Rai’s Tanu Weds Manu brings together a house of vernacular awesomeness set in the non-cosmopolitan environment of North India. And it is this setup of the middle class North Indian family and fond familiarity of characters and situations which makes Tanu Weds Manu not fall into yet another romantic comedy, but rise above in a league of its own.

Combined with a cracking soundtrack from Krsna, this movie has a lot working for it. Whilst Jimmy Shergill isn’t necessarily the strongest of villains, and neither are Madhavan and Kangna the most favourite hero n heroine to root for, it is the supporting characters which leave a lasting impression. Swara Bhaskar as Kangna’s Bihari friend Payal, and Pappi played by Deepak Dobriyal are absolute ace performances. If only for these, I wouldn’t mind watching this over and over again.

2. Stanley Ka Dabba

And at no.2 people, is Amole Gupte’s romantic ode to the tiffin box – Stanley Ka Dabba. A cracking directorial debut movie for Amole Gupte, this also marks the debut of his son – Partho Gupte as Stanley. A simple tale of a class of young boys, and their tiffin boxes, Stanley.. breaks every mould of any genre. This stand on its own, and has no bounds. There’s drama, comedy, romance, tragedy and even bromance. It is as epic as the imagination of these kids.

This movie was shot as an acting workshop for kids on Saturdays and during vacation time, with kids who haven’t had any experience in acting. Goes a lot to say how the end result is so natural and without a trace of artificiality. One of my favourite scenes of the year, is the one where the bunch of kids are on their feet, screaming their lungs out to sing Dhan Te Nan. Such is the freedom and innocence of being a child. And to have captured that very essence is an achievement.

And our no.1 movie of the year is..

1. Shor In The City

No surprises here. Whilst we loved Director duo Raj Nidimoru and Krishna D.K.’s debut feature 99, their second feature Shor in the City, had several aces up their sleeves. There’s Tushhar Kapoor who surprises with the performance of his career – as the pirate book publisher Tilak, struggling to read, and surprised to discover that his own wife is more educated than him. Senthil as the NRI struggling to set up his business and caught in the web of Underworld extortionist is set in contrast with the gang of Tilak.

But the stand-out performance of the year, goes to Pitobash for his insane, weird and brutally real portrayal of the dumb guy – Mandook. Please take a bow, as we take off our hats.

The complex plot of the characters intertwined with each other, all falling into  its place, like a well designed jigsaw puzzle, assemble around the idea of “Karma is a bitch”. Needless to say, I love the soundtrack by Sachin-Jigar, which also features one of this year’s best songs – Saibo. (Shreya, please collect your award already). There’s a lot more about the movie which I have written in my review here.

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So there we go, those were my 7 Best Bollywood movies of 2011. I could have done a Top 10, but that would mean I’d have to include some not so strong movies which had to be included just to fill the numbers. Please feel free to share your comments below, and also include your own list of Top 7 Bollywood Movies in 2011. Cheerio!