Vidya Balan

Vidya Balan, daughter of P R Balan and Saraswathy Balan, born on 1January 1979 is an Indian actress.

Growing up in the sub urban neighborhood of Chembur, Mumbai, Vidya aspired to ac t in films from a very young age. She acted in the first season of Ekta Kapoor’s Hum Paanch in the role of Radhika. She attended St. Xavier’s College and then went on to persue her Master’s degree in Sociology from the University of  Mumbai. While pursuing her Master’s degree, Vidya attempted to work in films but was unsuccessful.

Her first film was the Bengali drama Bhalo Theko.In 2005 she made her debut in Bollywood with Pradeep Sarkar’s Parineeta. It won a Best Female Debut Award and nomination for Best Actress at Filmfare Awards. Next she starred in the comedy Lage Raho Munna Bhai. From then on followed Guru, Salaam –E- Ishq and Ekalavya., which were commercial failures but Vidya’s acting talent was praised. She then appeared in Sajid Khan’s Heyy Babyy in which her style sense was criticized. Bhool Bhulaiyaa came next and was a success at the box office. In 2009 Paa was considered as a turning point in her career.Then followed the success of Ishqia(2010), No One Killed Jessica(2011), The Dirty Picture(2011), Kahaani(2012), Ghanchakkar(2013), Bobby Jasoos(2014), Hamari Aduri Kahani(2015), etc. The Dirty Picture fetched a National Film Award for Best Actress.

She is known for portraying strong female protagonists and has brought about a change in the concept of Hindi film heroine.

She is married to Siddharth Roy Kapur,the CEO of UTV Motion Picture.She was awarded a Padma Shri and received an honorary Doctor of Arts degree from Rai university.   

Azhar: A dispiriting script which disgraces a colourful personality

A disclaimer at the beginning of the movie proclaims that it is an imaginary story which features many incidents of an Indian cricket captain and any connection with any person is purely coincidental.

The movie depicts the life of Mohammad Azaharuddin (Emraan Hashmi), one of the most popular and controversial figures in the history of Indian cricket. The Hyderabad boy rises to immense popularity and fame as predicted by his maternal grandfather but also is plunged into the abyss under the charge of match fixing. The movie drags and mainly focuses on Azhar’s personal life- his extravagant lifestyle, relation with his first wife Naureen ( Prachi Desai) and the glamour queen Sangeeta( Nargis Fakhri). Also Manoj, Navjot and Ravi are mentioned by their first names only; no surnames.

It is only Emraan’s powerful acting which makes Azhar watchable. The actor, previously known for lip locking scenes in movies has proved his acting talents in Dibakar Banerjee’s  Sanghai and we get to see that  equal amount of talent and hardwork in Azhar. He has tried his best to transform every bit into Azhar. Prachi Desai as Naureen is average. Nargis Fakhri is pouty with not so good dialogue delivery. Lara Dutta as the feisty public prosecutor, once a fan of Azhar acts her part well.Kunal Roy Kapur, Azhar’s fumbling lawyer friend is average.

Coming to the director, Tony D’ Souza has made a quest to portray Azhar as innocent and also eulogizes him. He glosses the grays. A movie about such a famous figure requires proper research but sadly Azhar lacks it. A dull script disgraces him.

The editing is also poor and the movie in many parts drags and bore us.

But the music especially Bol Do Na Zara and Itni Si Baat pleases us and capture our mind.

On the whole Azhar is a mediocre film and lacks a powerful plot. Emraan Hashmi is the only reason to watch it.  

Five reason to watch Masaan

1.      Varanasi – Varanasi, one of the oldest and spiritual city, has almost been portrayed as a character in Masaan. Rather an unconventional setting for bollywood movies. As an increasing number of bollywood movies chose foreign countries as their location. The director and the cinematographer has captured its beauty , rigid values, charm of the ghats and complexities of the lives of the people living there.All these attributes has been very beautifully knit with the storyline of the movie.

2.      The theme of life and death and everything that lies in between – Masaan, unlike other bollywood movies has portrayed the theme of entropy, destruction and ressuraction. Also the Dom community, which rarely finds any place in Bollywood movies is shown here in Masaan. The caste differenceand the dark side of the society is intricately related to the plot.So, with its unconventional theme and stark difference when compared with other bollywood flicks, Masaan is completely worth watching.

3.      Richa Chadda, Vicky Kaushal and Sanjay Misra – Richa Chadda, a well known face in Bollywood, has nailed has nailed her character of the headstrong Devi beautifully. Hers is the character of a girl who inspite of being involved in a scandal, does not fear to look into the eyes of her father.

Vicky Kaushal as Deepak, a boy from the Dom community , who studies civil engeneering, keeps us glued to the screen with his seasoned acting.

Sanjay Misra, playing Vidyadhar Paathak, portrays his character efortlessly.

Watch the movie for them.

4.      The hopeless and red balloon love story  - Vicky Kaushal and Shweta Tripathi play lovers in the movie. Starting with a social netwaorking site their love blooms. Theirs is an old school romance. The coule goes in a long bike ride, shares food and can be seen stealing kisses under the Peepal tree. The girl, Shalu belongs to an upper caste- she loves poetry and music , while Deepak belongs to the Dom community, Their love story provides relief from the otherwise tense plot.

5.      Th Music – The music is the soul of Masaan . Indian Ocean’s songs in the movie gives us the earthy flavour. Man Kasturi Re and Tu Kisi Rail Se Guzarti Hain are sensuous and wonderfully melodious.                                                                                                                                             

Revisiting Wake Up Sid

Director: Ayan Mukherji

Cast: Ranbeer Kapoor, Konkona SenSharma, Anupam Kher, Supriya Pathak, Rahul Khanna.

Rating: 8/10.

Debutant director Ayan Mukerji’s Wake Up Sid, comes with a fresh air amidst Bollywood’s not –so – real, masala movies. It is both simple and magical and is weaved beautifully by Mukherji. The movie has something more to it than just a coming – of- age story. It mirrors a slice of life.

Twenty something Siddharth Mehera/ Sid( played by Ranbeer Kapoor), a carefree, lazy, slacker and also a rich kid who spends his dad’s money on expensive clothes, discotheques, etc.lives in Mumbai and encounters Aisha Banerjee( played by Konkona Sen Sharma); she is a few years older than him and also a complete antithesis to his character. Aisha is confident, independent and has definite goals in life. She is the sort who reads Murakami and Tagore and probably watches Woody Allen movies( notice the  Annie  Hall poster hanging on the wall of her apartment). After a rift with his father Sid moves into Aisha’s cuddly apartment and thus begins his waking up process in life.

But apart from the storyline  what is more intriguing are the protagonists- Sid and Aisha. We relate to both of them and love almost everything about them. Sid’s attitude of living in the moment, his love for photography, his method of preparing the birthday cake for Aisha are all such things which keeps us glued to the screen. And Ranbeer Kapoor fits easily into the character. Also Aisha’s style, her love for books( the way she smells books), her fetish for cleanliness, her confused state in the matters of heart are the things with which we can relate to. Sensharma known for appearing mainly in parallel cinema and talented acting skills puts life to Aisha’s character. Also Anupam Kher as Sid’s father and Supriya Pathak as Sid’s English learning mother are apt for their roles. Rahul Khanna as Aisha’s handsome boss also deserves mentioning. With his minimal acting he manages to portray his character with ease. Sid’s two friends also are worth mentioning.

Mukherji all through the movie maintains a laid back narrative. The happenings in the movie are familiar but his way of handling them makes them look quite different. Instead of including lip locking scenes the director has peppered up the movie with various tender moments. The editing is also brilliant and do not get a chance to stifle the yawn.

The music very efficiently helps us to have a look into Sid and Aisha’s minds. Iktara by Rekha Bharadwaj and Boondon ke Moti are refreshing. The English number So Close is also equally good.

But Wake Up Sid has its shortcomings also – the film is about every urban youth and only they who have grown up in cities can relate. The ending too is a bit Hollywood like.

Overall with simple yet breathtaking scenes , realistic characters and feel good moments Wake Up Sid is a must watch.