Bajirao Mastani - An experience

So yesterday when I left my lab late in the evening, I followed my usual ritual of putting on my mp3 player and stuffing the earphones in my, well, ears. The song it played was Fitoori, a song which was taken from Bajirao Mastani's soundtrack, although not featured in the movie itself. About an hour later, when I walked into my home, the song playing was still Fitoori. At just under 4 minutes long, that is equal to approximately 15 replays. But that is the kind of hold this movie has on me ever since it came out. First the trailer, then that ethereal homage to Mughal-e-azam and Madhubala's pyaar kiya to darna kya magic set in the modern adaptation of the sheesh mahal (Deewani Mastani), followed by the rest of  the music, and finally the film itself. I have always been an ardent admirer of the Sanjay Leela Bhansali school of filmmaking, right from the critically acclaimed Khamoshi, to the much maligned Saawariya, the acclaimed-but-hardly-seen-by-a-single-soul Guzaarish, to his redemption ticket at the box-office Goliyon ki rasleela: Ram-Leela. So naturally I was bound to be excited when the maverick finally came out with his dream project, 12 years in the making. Though the excitement might have been of a more subtle, restrained variety, which comes with age. Especially though, as after the slight disappointment with the unabashed, melodramatic tone of Ram-Leela, this one seemed to signal a return to form for SLB, the director who gave us one of TIME magazine's 10 best films of the millenium, and the best film of that year (2002) worldwide (Devdas). And that is exactly what it turned out to be.

It would be very easy to dismiss this film as just a costume drama, replete with "over-the-top" action sequences, costumes, sets and emotions, as indeed a few reviewers tried to do. SLB is a director reviewers love to hate. Trashing his movies as over the top, melodramatic, all gloss no substance, pretentious etc. provides them the ultimate high, and makes them feel good about themselves. However, for a change, they have been unusually kind and receptive of Bajirao, lavishing it with well- deserved praise in all aspects - world-class production values, set pieces, costumes, cinematography, music, direction and of course, the acting. Even international reviewers, such as the reviewers of the Guardian, and Ms.Saltz of the  NYT, have been very generous with their praise for this magnum-opus, accepting it for what it is - a fine example of old-school Bollywood story-telling, combined with production values at par with any big-ticket Hollywood production. 

Personally, for me the highlight of the film was its most underrated aspect - the music. Universally praised and liked, it hasn't been discussed as much as it needs to be. SLB, who helmed the music for this one completely on his own like his last few ventures, deserves major props for bringing classical music back to mainstream Bollywood. Right from the opening kathak number, "Mohe rang do lal" – another homage to K. Asif and Madhubala's spell-binding "Mohe panghat pe", the classical tone is set for the entire movie. The way this number opens, with the sounds of chirping birds evoking early dawn, you realize you are in for a musical treat. The setting of fountains and the grand old fort serve as the background for Pandit Birju Maharaj's subtle choreography, brought to life by Deepika Padukone's graceful swaying, all of which makes  this number a visual treat as well, and a major reason for why I could see this movie twice within a week in theatres! This is followed by another highlight, the well-known Albela Sajan, sung by a bunch of talented singers in a choir-like manner, a significant feat for a classical song. The colourful song makes you joyously celebrate the triumphant return of the victorious hero from battle. The less said about Deewani Mastani, the better. This is a song which will go down in history, just for the sheer artistry with which it has been conceived – a monochromatic spectacle of brilliant choreography, cinematography, vocals, sets, costume and performances. Shreya Ghoshal returns to top form with this album for the man who unleashed her force in Bollywood with Bairi Piya. The only song I was apprehensive about pre-release was Malhaari. The boisterous number seemed far removed from the sedate world of Maratha Peshwas, and Ranveer Singh’s dancing with animalistic fervour set to Vishal Dadlani’s power-packed vocals did not seem to gel with the times it was set in. But all apprehensions were set aside, as it assimilated beautifully in the movie, a battle cry celebrating the all-conquering war prowess of the Marathas. You almost believe that a peshwa could have danced like that with his soldiers. Same goes with Pinga. Bhansali follows a sort of template in all his films, especially when it comes to music. For instance, there is a customary song about the moon (chand chupa badal mai, woh chand jaisi ladki, yoon shabnami…). So here too, we have a Pinga, built on the same template set by Dola re …. Two women, rivals in love, come together to celebrate their affection for the same man, with one ultimately handing over the reins to the other. A lot of hue and cry was made, open letters written by “activists” seeking their 15 minutes of fame criticizing the concept of making a peshwani bai dance with commoners, and the factual inaccuracy of a Kashibai struggling with arthritis dancing energetically. However it was all forgotten and the song was received favourably, compared incessantly to its predecessor, and the two ladies pitted against each other – with Priyanka Chopra coming up on top more often than not. The two gems on the album, Fitoori and Abb tohe jaane na dungi are inexplicably not included in the film. Listening to the thumris, one can’t help but be hopeful that the videos were shot and will see the light of the day somewhere down the line. The latter has my favorite lyrics from the album:

Ek hai mannat, ek hai dua …

Dono ne ishq ki rooh ko chhua,

Daayein se pad, ya baayein se pad….

Farsh se arsh tak, ishq hai likha

 Aayat, another masterpiece by the omnipresent and overused Arijit Singh, follows the template set by its far superior predecessor Lal Ishq from Ram Leela. Aaj Ibadat, which only plays as the end credits roll out, beautifully brings together Sanskrit hymns with Urdu poetry, and underlines the theme of religious harmony preached by the movie boldly with double lines. In short, though SLB is unlikely to win any awards for music direction, or any of the singers rewarded for bringing his vision to life, they all undoubtedly deserve a thunderous applause for these soulful, classical-based tunes, in my opinion, especially in a year dotted with below average soundtracks. Read this completely to-the-point review of the album in the Hindu.

Both Ranveer Singh and Priyanka Chopra come up with career-defining performances. Unfortunately, it is SLB’s muse, Mastani, who seems to have drawn the short string in the bargain, coming across woefully underwritten and unidimensional as compared to the other two protagonists. Deepika Padukone already had a landmark performance last year with Piku, and here again she gives an earnest performance. It’s the writing which lets her down. Although it is easy to root for Priyanka’s dignified Kashibai, by virtue of her being the simpleton, honest, jilted first wife, it is her incredible performance that steals the show. She proves that you don’t need to fill every frame of the movie to make an impact. Of her limited screen time, it takes her just two scenes to stamp her presence across the movie – the one in which she confronts Mastani and after giving her a piece of her mind, finally accepts her on her own terms, and the much talked about guroor scene, where she shreds into her husband’s infidelity by confronting him with all the dignity and self-respect she can muster. You feel for her when a sick Bajirao mistakes her for Mastani, and not for the lovelorn man on his death bed. You feel Kashibai's anguish through her, so well has she imbibed the character. This is a hundred steps beyond Fashion, Barfi or any other performance of her illustrious career. The entire supporting cast, predominantly Tanvi Azmi, lives up to the expectations one has come to have from a SLB film.
This is only the second film ever that I paid twice to watch in a theatre, the first being Zindagi Milegi Na Dobara. While that one was more or less circumstantial, this time, it was completely voluntarily. And during the second watch, which was barely 2-3 days after the first one, not even once did I feel I that I have just seen it. It retained it's freshness for the most part, except the long-drawn out climax, which frankly, grew a little tiresome in the first watch itself. Even though it is not a flawless film, Bajirao is definitely the finest representative of everything that is good about the Bollywood cliche, has repeat value, and I suspect, and hope, that in absence of any quality opposition in the forseeable future, will have a long run at the theatres, finally reaffiriming SLB's box office credentials after Ram Leela.

Hindi cinema, Punjabi soundtrack

Just read an article in The Hindu's Friday supplement (the closest it will ever come to the main body of the Times of India), titled 'Direct, Dil Se'. The subtitle read as, "It is no longer just about Bandra and Bhatinda. .....". This was just the stimulus I needed to write about something that has been irking me for long now, and was on my hitlist of things to lament about here. Its the all pervasive Punjabi songs in Bollywood cinema of recent times. Sure as the afore mentioned article says, Hindi films may have finally broken the confines of Punjab, Gujarat and Maharashtra and starting to venture into the by-lanes of  UP, Bihar, Kolkotta, and the likes. But apparently, the whole country dances to the tunes of bhangra and hums Punjabi lyrics. The first time I realized this was when I was looking at my music collection sometime back, and noticed that in two months of the new year, I had only felt the need to download the music of one film. Even last year, the total number of films with music worthy of listening to more than once was miniscule. While this might be due to the overall falling standards of filmy music, I also realized that I just didn't care to listen to Harshdeep Kaur singing heer or Rabbi's challa as I had no clue as to what they are singing about. Now give me something like angrezi beat, where the music is more than enough and I don't have to really guess what the lyrics mean, and I'll be more than happy. But whats up with all the heavy duty Punjabi music in almost every other Bollywood movie nowadays? A sampler of the trailers and music on TV nowadays - 'Jugni' from Saheb, Biwi aur Gangster returns, a couple of tracks from Mere dad ki maruti (something about Punjabiyon di battery and another one I don't even know what its called). 

Now when we are talking about movies that are set in Punjab and the stories are integral to the state, I get that the music adds to the flavour - movies Mausam, Luv Shuv tey Chicken khurana, needed their (wonderful, I might add) Punjabi soundtracks. But do we need a Punjabi track in every movie? I have not seen Jab tak hai jaan (and will not see it. well ..... Jab tak hai jaan!), but I am guessing it wasn't really necessary for SRK to jump around like a monkey singing an all out Punjabi song on the streets of UK or US (or whatever hell western country Yash Chopra chose this time around to humiliate Indians) in a HINDI movie!? Did a movie like cocktail need to have all those Punjabi tracks (borrowed from various sources), however great they might have been? Did a student of the year really need a "Velle" or Kukkad"? Did a UP-based Tanu weds Manu, need a Jugni (there seems to be a lot of them anyway!) in the end credits? And speaking of Jugnis, one of the stand out moments in Cocktail for me was when Deepika Padukone's character realizes she's hit rock bottom, at a party, and is seen lying on a rooftop, ravishing in a green dress. The song playing in the background is, of course, another Jugni! And though I love that song, I have no idea what it is saying! I do not know how does it convey the turmoil the character is going through, or even if it does do that or not, because I do not understand the lyrics. So it takes away something from that moment for me. Do the filmmakers and music directors and lyricists of our Hindi film industry really believe that the entire country understands Punjabi? Heck I am a Delhiite, and Delhi might as well be the honorary capital of Punjab, and I still have trouble understanding and more importantly, identifying with those songs! I just feel like flipping the channel, or get bored and distracted when most of them come on. 

Now I am not saying that if its a Hindi movie, it all should be inexplicably Hindi. I don't mind a Marathi 'Navrai Majhi' (English Vinglish), Womaniya or a Gujarati 'Shubhaarambh' (Kai Po Che) thrown in every now and then. In fact, these are pleasant, refreshing breath of fresh air. All I am opposing is this excessive, unending barrage of unnecessary Punjabi music and lyrics (they bother more) in every second Hindi film! And this is a relatively recent trend maybe last couple of years or so. I guess it has to do with the recent success of Punjabi pop music and artists like Mika, Honey Singh and so on. Not so long ago, a "tere bin" by Rabbi (Delhi Heights) or even Mauja Mauja (Mika) were extremely appreciated. Because then they were the exceptions, rather than the norm. Hindi Pop music scene died with the 90's and all we have now is Bollywood to satiate our need for Hindi music. A little regional flavour every now and then is welcome and even appreciated, but can we please maintain a soundtrack that all Hindi-speaking consumers of Bollywood universally understand?

2012 - Wrap Up!

At the start of this year, I had vowed that I'll be much more regular with my posts. Its almost the end of 2012, and I have exactly the same number of posts as last year, excluding this one. But I still have around 2 hours to catch up! Though I don't really see the point. Till last year, each post drew at least one comment, and I knew people were reading, even if they were just my friends. This year, 13 posts have collectively drawn just two comments, not counting the two replies by me. The post on the "fire in the blood" documentary continues to draw a lot of people from all over the world each day, as it makes the round of film festivals around the world and curious people Google it to learn more. They inadvertently land up on my blog, but without much feedback, I am assuming no one bothers to read it. 

Catching eye balls was never the intention of this blog. It was always meant to be a place where I could think out loud and clear my head. But who am I kidding? Its obviously demoralizing to not have a sustained readership. Also, the things I end up writing about don't help. This year its mostly been about tennis, and a few social and political issues. Not much personal stuff. Incidentally, these are the very topics I cannot talk to my friends about, due to lack of interest. And as they make up my entire readership, its not surprising that there ain't much feedback. But anyway, enough of rambling, cause I am still gonna keep thinking out loud here.

This year saw a lot of lows, with a few highs - for me personally, as well as the nation in general. I'll probably spend January introspecting, and maybe even writing about both. Last year ended with a promising bang, cause I finally joined a PhD program, but the bang started to fizz out even before January was over. However, I did accomplish my long standing goal of joining dance classes. Basically, that sums up the year for me, disappointment and confusion on the career front, and satisfaction in finally doing something I love. Oh and yeah, my almost 2 years of post masters research experience fructified in the form of two publications in  international scientific journals - something I had dreamed of forever, but didn't really mean as much when it finally was realized. Anyway, so here's my two cents worth on what was good in 2012.

Best Movie (Hindi) - English Vinglish.

Best Actor - Not very competitive this year, at least from the movies I saw. It would have to be Nawazuddin Siddiqui for his collective effort in Talaash, Kahaani, Miss Lovely and Gangs of Wasseypur. Though I must say I haven't seen the last two, and also Paan Singh Tomar, for which many would say Irrfan Khan would be a lead contender.

Best Actress - Priyanka Chopra would have scored again this year in my book with Barfi! (after 7 khoon maaf last year), had it not been for a brilliant Sridevi in English Vinglish.
 
Supporting Performance - Parambrata Chatterjee in Kahaani and Kareena Kapoor in Talaash.

Best Soundtrack - Again, not too much brilliance to look back on, but Teri Meri Kahaani was the soundtrack that most frequently appeared on my playlist this year, along with Cocktail.


Playback singing -

Male - Sonu Nigam for Abhi mujh mai kahin (Agneepath).

Female - Hamsika Iyer for Raabta [Siyaah Raatein] (Agent Vinod)

Personality of the year - Definitely, the agent of change, the woman who took the nation by storm - the unnamed.

Movie of the year (English) - Life of Pi would come out on top from the few that I have seen. Still waiting to watch Argo and Les Miserables.

Breakthrough Artist of the year - A band to look forward to for greatness in future - Fun. They may not have debuted this year, but they definitely had a breakthrough and took 2012 by storm.

Song(s) of the year - Though it would be Gangnam style on many lists in the world, it won't be on mine. I never got the whole hoopla around this song, it was no Macarena! But this one would still be a very tough pick, with a host of songs ruling the roost this year. I would for now, go with the obvious ones - 'Call me Maybe' by Carly Rae Jepsen, 'We are young' by Fun, and 'Somebody that I used to Know' by Gotye, though my heart says 'Madness' by Muse.

Filmy Dilli!

Mumbai has always been known as the home of Bollywood, or rather the Indian Film Industry. Delhi, for some obscure reason, was never really a hot spot for filming movies. It surprises me, as with its ample open spaces, green boulevards, historical monuments, and remnants of old-world charm, it appears to me as a pretty darn good destination for the Bollywood moghuls. But recently, it seems Bollywood has woken up to Delhi in a big way. And being a hard core Dilliwalah, I'm lovin' it!!

A host of movies in recent past have had at least some parts shot in this gorgeous, ancient abode of Dil walahs. Though I must say, I had never really given much thought to this while I was here. Only when I became a NRD (Non-Resident Delhiite), and spent two years of life in Pondicherry, did I begin to appreciate even a slight glimpse of my city in the movies! I still remember, watching Love Aajkal for the second time, when it was screened as part of one of the regular film festivals at the University. As soon as that particular stretch shot in Delhi (lasting not more than a few minutes) came on, I was hooting and cheering (highly atypical of me, as people who know me will tell you) like a rockstar's groupie!! The metro, Delhi haat, the wide roads, green tree-lined boulevards, the Red fort stretch of ring road...... all these must have passed in a matter of few minutes, but for me the thrill of that entire movie was encapsulated in those moments. Can you imagine, what would have happened If I had made it to Delhi 6's screening!? I saw that one too when I was in Pondy, and I still feel it is one of the best representations of the city, along with Delhi Heights, and now apparently Band Baaja Baarat, even though most of it was shot in Jaipur!! In fact, it sounds lame now, but as soon as the train used to enter Delhi on my return trips from Pondy, I would set my mp3 player to only play these two songs - ye Delhi hai mere yaar (Dilli 6) and Dilli by Rabbi Shergill (Delhi Heights) - while I soaked in the sights and sounds of the city!!! Tried to create my very own Filmy moments there!

In fact, I was excited about seeing Break ke Baad and Band Baaja Baarat only because of the AIIMS flyover and the green CNG low floor bus in their trailers respectively. And when the latter turned out to be entirely set in Delhi, with Dilli almost like a character in the film, with the Dilli wali lingo, and Delhi University campus proving to be icing on the cake, I couldn't help but salivate and begin to listen to Ainvayi Ainvayi at least ten times a day! Still waiting for a chance to catch these two movies.

I always used to rue the fact that Delhi could not boast of an extraordinary ode to itself, unlike Mumbai which has such a beautiful, immortal song dedicated to it (ye hai Bombay meri jaan). The only two songs that even come close are ye Delhi hai mere yaar (Dilli 6) and Dilli by Rabbi Shergill (Delhi Heights). The upcoming movie, No one killed Jessica, also features two songs on Delhi, but they don't even come close in terms of an ideal tribute. Though I must admit that some of the lyrics in aali re, like "Dilli hai dil waalon ki par hoton pe to gaali re", are unfortunately true. Looks like I'll have to take up this responsibility of penning down an ode to this city of mine on my own shoulders! Anyone up for composing?



Some of the films in recent memory which have had the life of an average Delhiite at their hearts are Do dooni chaar, Dil Dosti etc., and Pyar ke Side Effects. I have heard that the first one beautifully tells the story of an middle class Delhi household and its aspirations, while Dil Dosti etc. is I guess, the first film with proper DU life as its background. I wonder why more film makers don't exploit DU? And how can I forget Aisha, Sonam Kapoor's showcase for the elite, rich, pretentious and snooty Delhi, which shops in DLF Emporio and Khan market, has a luxury car for each family member, and frequents art galleries and polo matches. And I believe the rest of India, sees Delhi usually with this perspective only.

Another face of Delhi, that movie makers have now and then loved to show in their films, is its old world charm, Purani Dilli, and the various monuments adorning the city thanks to the Mughals, Lodis and the British. While Fanaa packed in a sort of Dilli darshan in its first half, the song Bol na halke halke from Jhoom barabar Jhoom too brought out the beauty of Qutub Minar. In Kurbaan, Delhi and its wide open spaces were showcased when at their best, in winters! The foggy streets, winter clothes, Rajpath, Jama Masjid..... though Delhi did not get much screen time in the movie, it was enough to get me hooked! But I was left wishing that DU really has lecturers who look like Kareena Kapoor!! And Delhi does come out at its best in winters, though immortalized in a rather crass and vulgar fashion in the song Dilli ki sardi! But more on Delhi and its winters in another post.

Now, while writing this, I realize what a mammoth task I have taken upon in trying to chronicle Delhi's tryst with Hindi cinema. I still haven't even touched upon two of Hindi film Industry's biggest and most high-impact hits, both with the Aamir Khan stamp of quality cinema - Rang De Basanti, and 3 Idiots. While for RDB, Delhi provided the perfect setting for the portrayal of political activism, as well the exuberance and "Don't give a Damn!" attitude of today's youth (with IHC masquerading as DU!!), in 3 Idiots, it just played a titsy bitsy role, with a cameo by the iconic CP. In fact, RDB led to the first massive media-led movements for social justice, and brought the common man out on the streets in wake of the Jessica lal murder case (if I remember correctly). A unique case of life imitates art, and vice versa too, cuz now the highly anticipated film No one killed Jessica brings to screen that very same pioneering mass activism movement.

So before a myriad other films featuring Delhi start flooding my brain, I will wrap this up, hoping to catch Band Baaja Baarat and a simple request to the film-wallahs, ye Dil maange more of Dilli! And if you have Delhi in your film, you have my ticket!