Niraj Bagri

Ayushmann Khuranna has become synonymous with offbeat films, covering a wide spectrum from “Vicky Donor” to “Badhaai Ho”. Not all of them are very entertaining though, this one added to the list. Story revolves around the life of a typical middle-class family in Delhi where an old grandmother lives with her obedient son Gajraj Rao, dutiful daughter-in-law Neena Gupta and two grandsons, Ayushmann being the elder one. Their lives turn topsy-turvy when Neena Gupta becomes pregnant at a relatively old age bringing embarrassment and uncomfortable moments for other family members. Ayushmann’s love life with Sanya Malhotra also takes a beating in the process since he takes maximum time to adjust to the new environment. Finally, the family members overcomes their inhibitions and inner stigma to bond together to welcome the newborn with deserving happiness. All the actors have performed well with Surekha Sikri stealing the show as strict, authoritarian but soft hearted grandmother who vents out her feelings in choicest of words and expressions regardless of situation or person at receiving end. The scene where entire family sees the baby for the first time is scripted beautifully and acted in a manner characterised with intense feelings. The movie starts on a promising note, paving way for a comic roller coaster as the trailers suggested. But soon the soda fizzles out with comedy getting replaced with sentiments and emotions at a slow pace which dampens the mood. Laughter moments are there, but sprinkled sparsely or probably promotions of the film had set wrong expectation. Either ways, go for it if you are a sucker for melodramatic family dramas. I found it ok ok types.

Movie Review : Baaghi 2 Some movies are meant for select public only. If you like typical Bollywood melodrama, chiseled bodies of actress & actor to drool over and over-the-top action sequences, then it’s a “Good Friday” for you. Else, give it a pass. Read below for detailed review: Year 2001 - beautiful babe, handsome hunk, college romance, girl in a plush bungalow, boy in a bachelor pad, girl’s dad wins the emotional battle of marrying her off to person of his choice, jilted lover boy bids adieu to old life to start a journey of mourning, years pass, damsel in distress, nobody to fallback on, gives SOS to ex-flame who is more than happy to leave behind his army life and come back to help his lady love, some casualty, eventually good overcomes the evil. Circa 2018 - add drugs, Russian warlords, goa setup, punjabi remix wedding song, item number and high adrenaline action; that’s Baaghi 2: old vine in a jaded bottle. It is a conventional film among hoards of atypical stuff being dished out since last few weeks. But there’s nothing new or novelty in it. Acting, dialogues, sets, fight scenes, romance, climax, direction, editing almost everything is average in it. Expectedly, so is the sum total. In corporate parlance it has no USP (unique selling proposition). A line of appreciation for Tiger Shroff’s physique. The man looks like a Greek god. This factor gets accentuated for people like us who can’t think of attaining such nirvana state until next life. Sigh!! However his portrayal as modern-day Sunny Deol in Rambo’s avatar trying to take over an army of goons all alone is funny and indigestible. Remaining star cast isn’t impressive either, be it Disha Patani, Manoj Bajpayee, Prateek Babbar or Randeep Hooda. Equally disappointing is choreography. I can’t sympathise more with Saroj Khan who is upset with such poor reincarnation of iconic Madhuri Dixit number “ek do teen...”. Some movies are meant for select public only. If you like typical Bollywood melodrama, chiseled bodies of actress & actor to drool over and over-the-top action sequences, then it’s a “Good Friday” for you. Else, give it a pass.

Finally, the much anticipated AAMIR KHAN movie is in cinema halls. His almost once a year appearance on silver screen makes it even more delectable. Add legendary AMITABH BACHCHAN to it and expectations soar to stratospheric levels. Is the film worth the wait? Let’s find out. The story starts from late 18th century when British rule started spreading in India. They deceitfully conquer one of the eastern states headed by Ronit Roy who dies fighting them out. His young daughter Fatima Sheikh is saved by trusted lieutenant Amitabh Bachchan who goes into exile & trains her to become a gallant warrior. In comes Aamir Khan, a rogue who is absolutely non-trustworthy. Someone who plays by no rules. His only motto in life is to earn money. He is entrusted by Englishmen to find Amitabh and his mini army “Azaad” who were revered by masses and hailed as rebel leaders. Their sole aim was to reconquer their lost state and punish British general Patrick who killed Ronit Roy. Aamir enters Azaad gang and tries to double cross Amitabh. But the latter successfully awakens his conscience and helps Aamir become trustworthy warrior who tries unconventional ways to win the battle. Aamir repeatedly said in all promotional campaigns that this time he is edgy because unlike his last few releases “Thugs of Hindostan” lacks moral or social message. Now I can decipher, he feared the script to be very weak. Except for few of Aamir’s funny stunts with his typical glitter in the eyes there is nothing noteworthy in the film. It’s a bold statement to make but yeah, his acting this time is pretty ordinary to say the least. Mr. Bachchan is impressive, but casting 75 year old man in a role which demands rigorous action sequences is bit too much. Probably, his body-double had more screen space than him. Pity! Nothing much to say about rest of the star cast either. A word of praise for Katrina Kaif’s awesome dance in Suraiyya song. But isn’t it scary if that’s the highlight of the film!! So often have we been subjected to such isolated incidents which lead to India’s independence, many of them amazingly put up. This one is nowhere in contention in any of the departments. Probably the makers were banking solely on star power of Aamir and Amitabh, giving two hoots to everything else which constitutes good cinema. Sorry to disappoint Aamir fans (includes me too) but “Thugs of Hindostan” is like last year’s crackers in your home. You want and expect them to work perfectly but reality is far from it. This one is a damp squib too. Better spend the Diwali weekend meeting and greeting relatives over sweets and savouries, with customary bashing of Modi’s policies & governance 😊

Yes, there does exist such a franchise and this one is 3rd in the series! Don’t bother to rewind your brains, after all 2011 & 2013 are way too “long back” to think about. Director Tigmanshu Dhulia received critical acclaim for the prequels but he badly misfires this time. The story is setup up in Rajasthan, amongst the families of Rajwada. I won’t divulge details. Not because the plot is intriguing and I might spoil the fun, but to save the makers from ignominy. In a nutshell, the movie is about powerplay in royal families intertwined in complex web of love, lust, hate & deceit associated with it. Everybody in the starcast is an honorary member of senior citizen’s club of hindi film industry. Irony is, these days the young lads are showing gravity and maturity infront of camera while the oldies are acting like poker-faced nuts. Kabir Bedi, Nafisa Ali, Sanjay Dutt, Deepak Tijori, Jimmy Shergill, Mahie Gill, Chitrangada Singh & Soha Ali Khan. Arrange them age-wise in any order, the mean or median would be greater than 50! Wish their acting did any justice to their hair transplant or overdone make-up. Poor narration, slow pace, forced sub-plots, sloppy screenplay, simple editing, funny background score and too many diffident & unwanted characters makes the movie unbearable. It has couple of forgettable songs too, in case somebody wanted to pick any positives! Censor board should stop the release of such disaster in larger interest of stupid few like us who go to watch every reel passed by them. At least you can thank me for saving your precious time, money & senses!!