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Reviews
Mangal Pandey: The Rising (2005)
An epic that shouldn't be missed!
Mangal Pandey The Rising is a film that has enormous expectations (probably no other film in recent times has been awaited to this extent). And the main reason for this hype and huge expectations is Aamir Khan the superstar makes a comeback to the silver screen after 4 long years
Mangal Pandey is a story set in the year 1857 when India was in the grasp of the East India Company. Mangal Pandey (Aamir Khan) is an ordinary sepoy (soldier) who serves the Company's 34th regiment. We see the story through the eyes of Mangal and his superior officer William Gordon (Toby Stephens), who share a deep friendship. The Company introduces a new rifle called the Enfield that requires the sepoys to bite into grease that supposedly contains cow and pig-fat, and that is where all the trouble starts. It becomes a religious issue as cow is sacred to Hindus and pig is taboo for Muslims. This incident transforms Mangal from an ordinary soldier serving the British to a rebel who sacrifices his life and in turn, provides that spark to begin India's independence movement. So the story of Mangal Pandey is not about the actual Uprising, but the hero whose sacrifice sparked this whole movement. The film depicts the situation prevalent in Barrackpore in 1857. Scriptwriter Farukh Dhondy has taken cinematic liberties and he blends fact and fiction. Rather than giving the audience a history lesson as documented by the British, writer Farukh Dhondy and director Ketan Mehta introduce fictional characters and fill the narrative with folklore.
To both Mehta and Dhondy's credit, all this is shown without sounding like a boring documentary or a history lesson. However, the script has its pitfalls and could have been a lot better. The biggest problem of the film is that it does not have a smooth flow. This is partly due to Dhondy's script, partly due to Mehta's direction and mainly due to Sreekar Prasad's inconsistent editing. Many scenes seem like they were cut and pasted haphazardly. Many characters are introduced and then later they are nowhere in the narrative. Songs (except Mangal Mangal, Main Vari Vari and Takey Takey, to an extent) are forced into the narrative and appear at wrong points. Most characters seem under-developed; even Mangal Pandey's character could have been developed much better.
Why, then, did I like the film, inspite of so many flaws? That is because the film has something magical to it that it endeared to me despite all its obvious flaws. At the end, I left the theatre satisfied. The film is technically, a world-class product and epic in scale. Scenes like the war in Afghanistan, the torch scene with the sepoys and Mangal surrounded by a massive army are shot so exquisitely that they give you the goosebumps. Himman Dhamija's dazzling camera-work and Nitin Desai's impeccable art direction take you back in time and convince that you are in 1857. On the whole, the film manages to stay rooted in that period and achieves that late-19th century feel very well. The visual effects of the film are a treat despite minor hiccups. Costumes by Lovleen Bains are good overall, but some costumes like those of Tatya Tope and Rani of Jhansi shown at the end seem straight out of a fancy-dress competition. Action sequences by Abbas Ali Moghul are aptly designed. The sound effects are superb
..the sound department has done an outstanding job. A.R Rahman's music is disappointing except for the rousing title track Mangal Mangal and the 'mujra' Main Vari Vari; Rasiya is also good to hear, but it has no use in the movie. But the background score also done by Rahman is impressive. The dialogues of the film range from a few mediocre lines to excellent ones. Generally, the dialogue is good
..sample this "Hum apne hi desh mein acchut hain (We are untouchables in our own country)", says Mangal to Gordon.
Now to the performances
..a superhuman effort was expected of Aamir Khan and the superstar-actor does not fail to deliver. Though he's let down by the script
.as I said before, Mangal Pandey needed to be fleshed out better, Aamir gives his soul to his character. Be it the drunken scene with Toby Stephens where they play a prank on a British officer; or the rage he displays when he's beating up a senior officer; or the calm intensity in his eyes when he walking up to face his death
Aamir shows his tremendous range as an actor. But still, his brilliant performance does not seem as glorious as it should, because his character is somewhat diminished by the script. Toby Stephens is the biggest surprise
he matches Aamir step-for-step as the kind and sensible Gordon. He's worked hard on his character as well as his Hindi and he's also helped by the fact that Gordon is the best-written character of the film. Rani Mukherjee as the nautch-girl Heera is in top form in the 'mujra' Main Vari Vari and she shines even in her short, underdeveloped role. Amisha Patel does not have anything to do at all. The supporting actors are almost like cameos. However, Mona Ambegaonkar as the nurse and Mukesh Tiwari as Bakht Khan leave an impact.
To be frank, the film is inconsistent all along the way
..but despite all its obvious flaws, it is still brilliant, magical cinema. There is too much of candy-floss in Hindi cinema at the moment, and we need more films like Mangal Pandey, Swades and Sarkar which are easy targets for criticism
but these films show you what cinema is all about. Ketan Mehta's epic is a tad disappointing, no doubt and it could have been a lot better
but this is one film that should not be missed. Check it out at least once
..as for me, I'm already thinking of watching it a second time because I'm sure I've missed out on quite a lot of finer points in the movie
.Mangal Mangal Ho !
Swades: We, the People (2004)
The best film of 2004
Ashutosh Gowariker
..the man who gave us LAGAAN an Oscar-nominated movie! As such, SWADES is a highly expected movie being Gowariker's next film after Lagaan. And for me, this time
it was even better than Lagaan. That's because Swades hits you right where it matters most at your heart !
So, Swades tells the story from Mohan Bhargav's (Shah Rukh Khan) perspective. Mohan is an Indian by birth and he also did his schooling in India. But went to the US for higher studies and eventually ends up as a scientist with NASA. He's working on a hi-tech NASA project called Global precipitation Management, but there's something else that's haunting his mind for months
..his nanny, Kaveri Amma who took care of him like a mother all those years when he was in India. After his parents' death, Mohan came back to USA, but then he realizes that he's ignored Kaveri Amma. He dreads at the thought of what condition she would be in India
maybe languishing at some old-age home. That's when Mohan decides to come back to India (his Swades) to look for Kaveri Amma and bring her back with him to the US. Thus begins Mohan Bhargav's journey of self-realization
Mohan reaches Delhi and tracks Kaveri Amma to a remote village called Charanpur in north India. There, Mohan encounters all sorts of problems that he hasn't seen
electricity shortage, caste-distinction, child marriage, illiteracy and so on. Mohan is of the belief that India is never going to change because people here just don't want to change. Like any other NRI, he just wants to finish off his work quickly (take Kaveri Amma back) and return to the US. But gradually, he gets involved in the village and its people. He changes
many incidents (particularly one) makes him realize something very deeply. For that
..go watch the film and see Mohan's journey of self-realization yourself. And I bet
.you'll be moved by it !
Swades is a patriotic film on a very different level. It never, for once, resorts to jingoism and putting down other countries. Swades has a very simple message if all of us decide to do something for our country (however small it may be), it'll certainly make a difference. And of course, the film has truly moving scenes and poignant moments. Also, the performances are exemplary Gita, the school teacher and Mohan's love interest played by the immensely beautiful Gayatri Joshi. She makes a fantastic debut. Kishori Balal gives her all into Kaveri Amma and makes her a truly affectionate character. Dayashankar Pandey (who played Goli in Lagaan) and Rajesh Vivek(who played Guran in Lagaan) are amazing as Mela Ram and Nivaran the Postmaster respectively. But the film belongs to Shahrukh Khan the actor's finest performance to date. After a long time in his career, the superstar finally gets into the skin of a character. And thoroughly convinces us that this is Mohan Bhargav and not Shah Rukh. Whether it's the sorrow in his eyes or the passion, Shah Rukh's body language and expressions convey it all. Absolutely brilliant performance ! Swades also has another big asset in A.R Rahman's music and Javed Akhtar's thought-provoking lyrics . All the songs of the movie are excellent to hear and they've been aptly used in the film. The background score, also by Rahman is one of the best ever in Hindi cinema. Mahesh Aney's camera-work gives a very real look to the film and so do Oscar-winner Bhanu Athaiya's costumes. Gowariker (story) and K.P Saxena (dialogues) who had also co-written Lagaan are in full form here as well.
But ultimately, kudos to Ashutosh Gowariker for guiding his team of actors, technicians and the musical team to give us something as splendid as Swades. Gowariker gives all Indians a very important message with Swades. And this shouldn't be missed
it's one of those rare Hindi film masterpieces hardly seen in today's sleaze-flick times !
Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar (1992)
Inspiring movie
"The victory of the underdog" theme makes for great entertainment. The story takes place in a hill-station, which is a centre of many boarding schools. And all the schools have their share of financially rich students.....except Model School, where all the relatively poorer students go to. And among big schools like Rajput, Xavier's, Lawrence and Queens....Model High is a misfit. So, the students studying there are ever-ridiculed, and labeled as no-hopers. But there's one student who can win laurels for his school.....the honest, hard-working Ratan who's the "gem of Model High School". Ratan's family includes his father and brother Sanjay who also studies in the same school (but is diametrically opposite to his brother). Sanjay is least interested in anything else apart from whiling his time away and having fun with his group of "pyjamachaap" friends. Cut to the main plot.....there's an annual inter-school bicycle race, which is always won by the Rajput College brat Deepak Tijori. He and his friends are the greatest bullies around. But Ratan is determined to win this race this time......but courtesy a fight with Deepak Tijori and gang, he falls from a cliff and is badly injured. Model High's only hope.....Ratan cannot participate in the race now, and the school has to be content with its usual "pyjamachaap" image. Not quite!!! Ratan's good-for-nothing brother Sanju takes up the challenge on behalf of his brother, and despite no one giving much of a chance in the race......no prizes for guessing who turns out the winner in the end!
What really makes Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar compelling viewing is director Mansoor Khan's simple yet excellent narrative. Most of the characters are pretty etched out as well. Some great relationships are portrayed in the movie.....that of Sanju and his father (played by Kulbhushan Kharbanda). The coldness between the two of them is brought out in the movie pretty well. Secondly, between Sanju and his best friend Anjali who turns out to be his love eventually. Sanju never sees the love Anjali has for him, until she's the only support he has when he's alone in life. Thirdly, between the two brothers Ratan and Sanju.....who are as dissimilar to each other as one can think of......but are still so close to each other. One of the best sibling relationships portrayed in a Hindi movie....far different from the overly melodramatic brotherly love that one is used to seeing. And of course, none of this would have been possible without the actors.......so there's Deepak Tijori who truly irritates you with his brattish attitude, the hot (but not very emotive) Pooja Bedi as Devika, Kulbhushan Kharbanda as the father who admires his elder son and is frustrated and aloof with his younger son (but loves him nevertheless), Ayesha Jhulka (in her only memorable role) as Anjali who has always loved Sanju but does not get the reciprocation from him, Mamik as the sincere Ratan.......and of course, Aamir Khan who's the soul of the movie. As usual, the actor gives a marvelous performance as Sanju. Three cheers for this actor who's defied his chocolate-boy looks to emerge as the most-varied actor of his time. Oh, I almost forgot to mention the melodious music......almost all songs are great to hear, with "Pehla Nasha" being the highlight.
All, in all.......the movie does inspire you, and after you've seen it....you do feel like doing something similar for your own school/college as well.