Author: aninditaroy444

KISI KA BHAI KISI KI JAAN: A lot of critics have panned the movie labeling it as pure balderdash. But I found it to be a masala entertainer with mass appeal, although totally formulaic.
This movie is a remake of the Tamil movie “Veeram”. Salman, handsome to a fault, sports two hairstyles, a long flowing one while he is in Delhi and a short one while he is in Hyderabad.
The romance is mostly hands-off barring a few hugs but I wish Salman would select more age-appropriate heroines. His yesteryear heroines Bhagyashree (with hubby Himalay and son Abhimanyu) and Bhumika Chawla show up in cameos. Veteran actress Rohini Hattangadi also plays a senior role. The action scenes are well-choreographed but it is hard to digest Salman bashing up Olympic medallist boxer Vijender Singh who plays the villain. The songs and the background music are superb especially the “Yentamma” song which features Oscar winner Ram Charan but the pelvic thrusts look vulgar. The closing credits song composed by Yo Yo Honey Singh comprising of nursery rhymes could have been better. And yes, there is that famous mandatory shirtless scene that is so swoon-worthy. This is a feel-good movie and would resonate well with family audiences. Please do not go by paid reviews. Watch the movie and come home with a heart filled with joy and mirth.

MRS.CHATTERJEE VS. NORWAY: Based on Mrs Sagarika Chakraborti’s real-life trials and tribulations against the Norwegian Government, this movie is a heart-warming tale of an immigrant mother’s relentless struggle for the custody of her children. Despite living in Norway, Mrs Chatterjee lives the life of a Bengali bou and her home is steeped in Bangaliana. They eat Bangali khabar with fingers and the children sleep with their parents. This mode of Indian parenting is highly disapproved by the Norwegian authorities and they confiscate the children and put them under foster care. The rest of the movie unfolds the socio-legal drama that ensues in Norway and India finally culminating in a rejoiceful family reunion. The movie is high in content and the delivery is superlative. Rani carries the movie on her petite shoulders and is uninhibited and flawless. The unrelenting protests, the hysterical wails and rants, the pangs of separation and the unbridled joy on seeing her children, the constant pleading with her husband-she enacts all of these with elan and panache. She screeches and howls but never goes over the top. Although Anirban Bhattacharya puts in an impressive debut in Bollywood, its Rani’s movie all the way. But there are certain events in the movie that I couldn’t digest:

1. Rani is a BSc graduate and yet speaks in broken English.
2. India breaks off the telecom deal with Norway over some “foster child” issue.
3. Lawyers are so damn supportive-even the opposition lawyer takes a backseat and embraces defeat and says “Congratulations!”
4. While the gripe is against Indian parenting, why is custody given to Anurag Chatterjee, the brother-in-law who is also Indian and a bachelor to boot.
5. How could Rani take away her children from the foster home and travel to Sweden without being nabbed earlier than when it is shown?
   When Barun Chanda showed up as the judge, the climax seemed predictable. The movie is interspersed with Bengali dialogues and mannerisms and even the Hindi spoken by Rani has a Bengali twang. Though this sounds delightful to Bengalis-it might deter non-Bengali speaking audiences. The final statement given by Rani in the Calcutta court could have been more impactful and soul-stirring. Music is moderately pleasing especially the “Shubho Shubho” track. The natural beauty of Norway is not much captured or kept at the editing table. Jim Sarbh’s performance is commendable. Neena Gupta is wasted in a miniscule cameo. Directed by Ashima Chibber, the movie, with its release after International Women’s Day and before Mother’s Day is a women-centric movie which despite being a tear-jerker will appeal to families all across the globe. It’s been since long that Rani has acted in a non-YRK movie and she gives it her all. Watch the movie to enjoy and marvel at Rani’s bravura performance.

KABERI ANTARDHAN: Set in 1975 during the Naxal Movement and the Emergency, the movie has little historical references to the turbulent era in Bengal and Indian history. The movie is based in Hatimara in North Bengal where there is no TV but only radio and newspaper but the captivating flora and fauna of the Hatimara forest are not captured by the cinematographer. The screenplay is very slow and predictable-the audience can easily detect the culprit making the movie much less of a thriller. The background score is too weak and also the camerawork does not add to the intrigue. The story goes back and forth in a nonlinear fashion but adds little to the tension. The performances are superlative though. Prosenjit is paired opposite Srabanti-interestingly Srabanti started her career as Prosenjit’s daughter many moons back. Indraneil Sengupta looks smart and slick. Amabarish is cast in a non-comic role. Churni Ganguly scores high especially in the scene where she learns about her son’s demise. The movie falters because of its confounding storyline and ill-conceived implementation.

PATHAAN: Despite worldwide cries for boycotting PATHAAN, the movie has grossed close to 1000 crores and is the biggest blockbuser of 2023. It is the comeback movie of SRK after 4 long years and also has Salman Khan in a cameo. Thiis movie is the fourth installment of Aditya Chopra’s spy-universe. Touted as an action packed thriller, the action scenes are a copy-paste job from old Hollywood movies and other Hindi action movies such as WAR and DON3. The acting is quite mediocre, the direction is run-of-the-mill, the screenplay is terrible and the plot is threadbare. The VFX is horrible. There is sadly no ‘wow’ moment in the movie. SRK’s twelve-pack abs are fake and are CGI produced.The scantily clad Deepika lacks oomph and chutzpah and looks vulgar. John Abraham is too handsome to be a villain. Dimple Kapadia is laudable. The much hyped appearance of Salman Khan is hackneyed and forced and if I might say, somewhat stupid. Everyone totes a gun, engages in fisticuffs and high kicks and somersaults. The action scenes are pretty predictable. At two and a half hours, the movie tries your patience. If you are a celebrity worshipper and a diehard fan of SRK, watch this vanity vehicle of his for a dose of patriotism and a rush of feel-good hormones.

The initial part is long winding, tedious and suffocating. The CGI lions are “fika” and eats up the budget. War troops’ long shots are stock shots. Akshay Kumar does not ride the horses for real and is actually bouncing on a wooden horse. Movie warms up after 1 hour with the entry of former miss world Manushi Chillar. Manushi is a little stiff in the romantic scenes but shines with grace and dignity. But she is too skinny to be a hindi film heroine. Although she has a Deepiku hangover, she dances well and emotes adequately. I couldn’t understand why Sanjay Dutt had to pull a Dritarashtra act. Sakhshi Tanwar’s performance is powerful and impactful. But the movie is disjointed and doesnt engage with the audience like Tanhaji or even a Padmavat. Akki is adorable, fit and fetching. The supporting cast including Ashutosh Rana, Ali Fazal and Sonu Sood pack quite a punch. Music is average. The climax is more comic than tragic. Overall a movie that should appeal only to history buffs. 

TIRANDAJ SHABOR-interesting but not intriguing; script has some witty and humorous interludes; Sashwata’s effortless acting is something to watch out for ably supported by Subhrajit Dutta. Tough guy Nigel Akkara also stands out and its nice to see how well he has molded into Tollywood. But the scene where Shashwata slaps Nigel and he drops down immediately is hard to digest. Chandan Sen’s “Kaushik Sen” meets “Rituparno Ghosh” accent is funny and does not sound affected. There are some usual Bong movie trademark scenes like women smoking and scenes with sexual innuendo. Overall a nice effort by Arindam Sil. But parents be aware it is a whodunit meant for adults only.

ANEK: A movie with a great concept of national integration and about inclusion of marginalized minorities especially from the Northeast. One man army Ayushmann Khurrana shines with sheer brilliance and it is a delight to watch his frames. But a Hindi movie is lacklustre without a frontrunning female protagonist. It is a man vehicle and that might deter women moviebuffs or fellas into chick flicks. The climax is nice and uplifting. The movie has a Mary Kom hangover however it is not off-putting. Some parts of the movie are a drag but you can live with it. I will give it three stars.

TOP GUN: MAVERICK-Regular Hollywood masala. Lots of action and CGI loaded sequences-some comic relief and a technical sub plot of a plot-this is on aerodynamics(hee ho).And of course there is the ageless Tom Cruise in ship shape-fit as a fiddle and a continuing inspiration for all young and old. Good that he got over his Scientology bent. Do watch out for his unmissable and cute jaw twitching that only guys can do(sigh! sigh!) I particularly liked the intimate sequences-very muted, subtle and gradual and not the wham bam scenes with mile-long French kisses that is so old-school Hollywood. Maybe they watched Jodha Akbar and not Devika Rani. Its the old British style of courtship of manners that is oh so endearing. But I did not understand why one has to refer to your female colleague as “coyote”. You can be a bad-ass without being a woman-hater you know. A huge shoutout to my dear friend Lily Panisena for recommending this chic movie to me. Do watch it at your nearest IMAX theatre for the maxest audio-visual experience.Two thumbs up. 

Belashuru: Very frustating, low budget movie. Shoddy cinematography, inane screenplay. “Ini bini tapa tini” comes after 2.5 hours which is the only uplifting reel. Another scene with Soumitro and Rituparna is watchable. The major problem in the movie is that the focus is not on the thespian Soumitro Chatterjee and he is relegated to a gloried extra as part of the ensemble cast. Watch it if you want to lose your mojo!

APARAJITO (2022): Aparajito-The Undefeated is a biopic on Satyajit Ray and essays the trials and tribulations he faced while making ‘Pather Panchali’ in 1950’s Bengal. The movie is directed by Anik Dutta who created the sensational Bhooter Bhobishyot in 2012. Shot in black and white, the movie is poignant, riveting with all-encompassing simplicity and intensity. It explores the influence of neo-realism on Ray’s debut vehicle. The movie also depicts the cerebral Bengali bhadralok coterie in 1950’s Calcutta steeped in intellectualism, revolutionary thoughts and penchant for Adda over a cuppa. Mirchi Agni appears in a couple of scenes as a Member of the Film Society that Ray founded back then.Jeetu Kamal is superb in depiction of Ray with his mannerisms and stylized acting although his voice is dubbed. Sayoni Ghosh is adequate as Bijoya Ray and her relationship equation with Ray is maturely depicted. Ray is shown as a westernized Brahmo Samaj liberal who objects to the term ‘boi’ frequently used to refer to movies by the hoi-polloi in Bengal. Barun Chanda as Jawaharlal Nehru shines. Paran Bandopadhyay is perfect in the comic interludes. In fact, comedy plays a major part in this movie and is interlaced with the subtlety of old-world Bengali humor that was prevalent at those times. The dialogues reign supreme in this movie and are the heart and soul of the film. The cinematography and casting of the supporting characters are also immaculate. There are several ‘aha’ moments in the movie which portray the iconic scenes that Ray shot for ‘Pather Panchali’. But I did not like the dream sequence too much-it does not stir the powerful feelings that ‘Nayak’s dream sequence did as crafted by Ray. The climax is uplifting and it shows Ray’s acceptance as an impactful filmmaker in India and abroad. As the end credits roll, you are undoubtedly going to feel a lump in your throat. The movie is a passion project for Prithwiraj Choudhury (my classmate from South Point) who apart from being a dyed-in-the-wool internationally acclaimed academic, is an accomplished singer and a fine arts aficionado and I salute his contribution to this masterpiece. The movie stars one my favorite persons, Priscilla Anne Corner (Priscilla Corner) who shines with her dignified presence.

WAH PHUCHKA:Is there a Bengali who does not love Phuchka? Golgappas and Panipuris are equally popular in other parts of India. But the roadside phuchka vendors do not maintain hygiene protocols or any safety precautions. Earlier the only Phuchka shop in Kolkata worth its salt was Puchkalicious at City Centre 2 at Rajarhat which was just a stand and did not have any seating arrangements. Moreover it was too far away for South Kolkata residents. Fret no more-’cause Wah Phuchka has outlets in Kasba and Lake Gardens at present. Both the shops are hole-in-the-wall dingy outlets with no air-conditioner. The space is very small with 4-5 stools but this does not deter loyal patrons. There is a wide variety of phuchkas(both veg and non-veg) and the taste is mouth-watering and one of a kind. The culinary experience is so mind-blowing that people do not mind the dull and drab ambience. I have visited both the Lake Gardens and Kasba outlets and found the fare consistent in flavor and taste. I have had the Chicken Keema Phuchka, Rajasthani Phuchka, Kolkata Jhuri Phuchka and Dahi Chutney Phuchka.
I had the Mohe Mint Krush drink to wash them off. Despite the juicy fillings and the toppings the phuchkas were not soggy. There is only one staff member and she is very cordial, diligent and attentive to details. She also wears mask and gloves and uses sanitizer. If you are queasy about the tacky setting, you can order via Swiggy or Zomato as well. You can find more information at http://www.wahphuchka.com.Crunch in every munch, awesome aftertaste and great presentation styles would make love you this place.