War Chhod na Yaar

A noticeable aspect of Bollywood in the last decade has been the rise of what I call the SBGM - Small Budget Great Movie. Usually made on a shoestring budget (INR 10 crores or less) they pack a great story, great performances by lesser known actors and make memorable watches. Some find box office success, like Vicky Donor (made at a budget of 5 cr, grossed about 65 cr at the box office) and Peepli Live. Some fail commercially(anyone remember Luv Shuv tey Chicken Khurana?), but live on in the hearts of critics and movie-lovers like yours truly.

One such SBGM was the 2010 political satire - Tere Bin Laden. A Pakistani news reporter, who in his desperation to migrate to the US, hatches up a money-making plan by making a fake Osama Bin Laden video and sells it to a news channel. The plan has unexpected cross-country repercussions, landing him and his entire motley crew of amateurs (including the false Bin Laden) in trouble. Put simply, TBL was a laugh riot. Great performances by the protagonist (Ali Zafar), his bumbling assistant (Nikhil Ratnaparkhi), the false Laden (Pradhuman Singh) - and almost everyone else. For me, TBL also established another important fact - that plots with seemingly impossible storylines can be made entertaining if made properly.

Hence it was with great expectation that I went to see "War Chhod na Yaar" in its first week of release. If you haven't heard of it, or if you don't know what the movie is all about - here's the trailer:

War Chhod na Yaar official theatrical trailer

Why did I have great expectations? First, the plot seemed as impossible as TBL, to make a satire on a historical rivalry between 2 nations. Second, it starred Sharman Joshi, Sanjay Mishra and Javed Jaffrey in lead roles - underrated actors with great comic timing (TBL never had any celebrated comic actors). Third, the trailer really made me laugh and was a sign of things to come.

Debutant director Faraz Haider tries to create a plot where rival soldiers on both sides of the fence are shown to have great camaraderie. They play Antakshari over loudspeakers, joke about each others' food, and generally get along like neighbors. He tries to show (rightfully so) that soldiers are merely human - it is the politicians and their vile motives that is responsible for war. In the end, the human spirit triumphs and the wrongdoers learn their lesson.

A great idea, completely disappointing in its execution. Firstly, there's no real screenplay. Haider seems to have simply come up with an idea for a story and then struggled to stretch it over a 2 hour run-time. As a result, short bursts of brilliant comedy are interspersed with long stretches of boring, mindless activity. Scenes which dazzle you with situational humor 
are succeeded by scenes where the characters either resort to slapstick, Govinda-esque humor, or (worse) get into silly stuff like defacating on screen. Even the talented Jaffrey and Joshi struggle to find their feet as a result.

Secondly, satire does not mean your core characters act like buffoons. In WCNY, only the Indian army looks and acts like poster-boys. The Pakistan army is shown as a bunch of clueless idiots with a sick, delusional commander (Sanjay Mishra) at the helm. They beg to get fed well and new uniforms cause incurable itches. Dalip Tahil plays 4 politicians (Indian, Pakistani, Chinese and American - go figure) all of which are selfish idiots. The Pakistan Army commander plays video games, or chooses to visit the bathroom, when attending a diplomatic con-call. Mukul Dev plays an Afghan intruder - I'm sure a character brought in to just stretch the plot - who's repeated infiltration attempts gets spoiled by an Indian army spy like taking candy from a baby.

Thirdly, what is Soha Ali Khan doing in the movie? She plays a news reporter called Rut Dutta (thank you Faraz, we would have figured that Barkha is a Rut in Hindi) who gets sent to the front by a politician for covering imminent war. As she watches the camaraderie between the 2 sides and realizes who is really responsible, she takes it upon her to set things right. Sadly, she neither acts nor looks the part of a game-changer. We have had better performances from her in RDB and Mumbai Meri Jaan (ah, another SBGM close to my heart!).

Lastly, the ending is really tame. A lot of average movies have turned out extraordinary in the way the climax has been treated. WCNY's climax is so amateurish, it only worsens the whole experience. You just sit through it waiting for the end and trying to remember where you parked your car.

So in summary, should you watch WCNY? Take my advice. Have a good laugh by watching the trailer. If you really must see it, save your money and wait for WCNY to hit the TV channels. May be watched one time for the occasional funny parts.

3 stars out of 10, one being for the funny trailer.

Bombay Talkies

Celebrating 100 years of Indian Cinema through one single movie is a tall ask. Naturally the resultant movie, Bombay Talkies, was to to carry a sea of expectations from viewers. Contrary to my usual habit of skipping multiplexes and buying a DVD later to curl up in the comfort of my couch and home theater, I went to watch Bombay Talkies (BT) in just the second day of its release. To repeat what you already know, BT is a collection of 4 films made by Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar and Anurag Kashyap. The common theme (at least what the viewer expects) was all 4 stories carry a deep love of Bollywood movies. Here's my analysis of the 4 stories:

Karan Johar

If Karan Johar was allowed to rule the world, his motto would be "I'm a homo, and I'll make homos out of you, in real life or reel!" I had heard enough of how his BT venture was far removed from the typical KJo movie-making style. The style is different, truly, but the theme is the same old Homo-Jo.

Rani Mukherjee (Editor, filmy gossip magazine - sexy sarees and low cut blouses) is in a lukewarm marriage with Randeep Hooda (Presenter, News Channel - looking dapper with a toned physique, grey beard and tailored suits). Into Rani's office walks a new intern - Saqib Saleem - self-professed homo and a way with words. In no time they become fast friends, and then she invites him home to meet her husband. Saqib falls for Randeep at first sight. Randeep is initially wary of him (the natural male reaction to homosexuals) but warms up to him as they share their love for old Hindi film music. Saqib wastes no time in professing his love for Randeep and repeatedly hits on him. The stereotype Indian male in Randeep initially revolts, even physically hitting Saqib, but (as expected) he falls for him and shares an intimate moment. When Rani hears of this, she realizes their marriage is a lie, and she has been living it. The story ends with a shot of Rani dressing even more brazenly (why? looking for greener pastures?) while Randeep is shown miserable.

If the storyline puzzled you, welcome to the club. Protagonists of a story loving old Hindi film songs, or a little beggar girl singing "Ajeeb Dastaan hai yeh" add color to the characters, not the industry. Its not celebration of cinema. Its a gay story cleverly tweaked to fit in to the main theme. And don't know about you, but the sight of adult men lip-locking on screen is visually intolerable to me. In an earlier film Homo-Jo made Rishi Kapoor enact a gay old man. In this he makes an alpha male Randeep realize his inner homosexual. Forget the last 100 years of Bollywood, I'm afraid this does not set the trend for the next 100 years!

Dibakar Banerjee

If BT was themed to have just one story celebrating Bollywood, it would have to be this. A screen adaptation of Satyajit Ray's short story "Potol Babu Film Star", the film by Banerjee is an exquisite display of acting, emotions and timing. Banerjee is spot on with his understanding of the director's canvas and the ability to bring out the best from his protagonists, aided with humour.

Nawazuddin Siddiqui is an ordinary man leading an ordinary life inside a Mumbai Chawl with his wife and daughter. No aspirations, no talents to speak of, just the need to sustain himself. He tells the same old stories of Hrithik Roshan and other "heroes" to put his daughter to sleep every night. One day he chances upon an acting opportunity - a bit role (that of a pedestrian) in a blockbuster movie. Somehow, this little act awakens the man in him, as he realizes what he is truly worth in the world.

There are 2 extraordinary sequences in the story. The first shows Nawazuddin practicing his dialogue in a huge courtyard away from the set, with only a (sleeping) dress-man for company. He is aided by a lovely cameo from Sadashiv Amrapulkar (Where were you all these days, sir?). The second is a lovely 5 min sequence where he puts his daughter to sleep reciting his own story. No words, just some lovely music and a flamboyant display of body language by the great actor. When the story ended, I saw the entire theatre audience silent for a few moments. Then they (me included) burst into thunderous applause. Take a bow, Mr Siddiqui and Mr Banerjee. You are truly what make movies - magic.

Zoya Akhtar

This one left me with mixed feelings. As a director, Zoya has the habit of taking run-of-the-mill stories and turning them into magic through sheer acting, cinematography, dialogues and crisp editing. The rags to riches story of a struggler becoming a star is oft-told. But what made Luck by Chance stand out was the performance by Farhan and Konkona, as well as editing that never left the story hanging. The same for ZNMD, where some superb acting by the 3 protagonists (and Katreena, she acted as well as any), smart dialogues and the stunning visuals make the movie a delight to watch.

In BT Zoya takes the story of a little boy (Naman Jain) who hates football and wants to become a dancing star like Sheila (of Sheila ki Jawani). He is reprimanded by his conservative father for being so "girly", yet he chooses to pursue his dreams. The same old story of children not choosing to walk the beaten path preferred by their parents.

The good parts? Surprisingly natural acting by Jain and the girl who plays his elder sister. Some sweet moments, including the realization that films do affect our children in ways we do not think possible. The bad? Lets say Zoya needs a larger canvas (in the sense of timing) to tell a story, and her BT story leaves you feeling unsatisfied. I also couldn't understand why an actor like Ranbir was wasted in such a bit role.

Anurag Kashyap

If the Dibakar Banerjee story is the flagship of the BT Armada, the Kashyap story deserves to be the corvette. The common man does not emote in the way of matinee idols, his joys and  sorrows are well contained (until he is desperate) - and Kashyap is a master of such portrayal.

In BT, Kashyap reminds us that India extends beyond its metros to small towns and villages, where people treat Matinee Idols as Gods and believe they hold healing powers. The protagonist, Vijay (Vineet Kumar - remember Danish Khan from Gangs of Wasseypur?) is an Allahabad town boy. His ailing father tells him to go to Bombay and get the great Amitabh Bachhan to eat half of a homemade Murabba, with the belief that taking bites out of the remaining half will help his father live for long. The dutiful son obeys and sets off for Mumbai to meet Amitabh. He feels he will have a natural passage into the house of the man who is ultimately a Ganga Kinare Wala like him!

Naturally, the great big city doesn't care about him or his emotions. He meets many sorts of people in his quest, and endures great hardships before he gets to meet God (Amitabh Bachhan himself, in a 30 sec cameo). Unfortunately things still don't go as planned. To Kashyap's credit, every second of the story is gripping, and the viewer alternates between laughter, and sympathy for the poor small-towner. Another story which left me laughing at the end and the audience applauding.

Conclusion

Except the Homo-Jo story, Bombay Talkies is a collection of stories which speak to you and me, and truly tell how Bollywood affects our lives. It is not just a movie which marks a celebration. It also has 2 little gems which warrant a watch in their own right. I would rate it 6 out of 10. 

On a different note, if I wanted to spend a Sunday afternoon watching an anthology, it would not be this one. It would be Dus Kahaniyan, released in 2007 and an absolute Gem.