tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-361235192024-03-13T02:46:15.782+01:00In praise of all things Dharmendra-relatedA blog dedicated to a man I love... I don't know what it is about Dharmendra, but I just think he's the bomb. I started this blog to express my love for him. Since then, it's become my space to talk about movies, and especially movies made in India and/or by Indians. I still have nothing but love for Dharam though - he could quite easily be my grandfather, but I still think he's the bomb...Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger147125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-43762410442491470662012-12-25T11:18:00.001+01:002012-12-25T11:18:22.056+01:002012….Another year’s gone by, faster than a speeding rocket! It was a very eventful and busy year for me, personally and professionally, and I didn’t have much time for Bollywood. I did keep tabs on news and events in the industry, and my favourite Bollywood blogs and websites. It wasn’t a great year for Bollywood in my opinion, it didn’t seem to me that there were a lot of fantastic movies or fresh, creative ideas… but that being said, I really haven’t seen enough of the year’s movies to really have a strong opinion on the overall quality of the industry’s output in 2012.<br />
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Because I didn’t have much time to watch films this year, I didn’t do much blogging at all this year… hopefully that will change next year when I get a chance to catch up on my sadly neglected DVD collection! Anyway, this post is basically just to wish anyone who still wanders here by accident Happy Holidays and a very happy, peaceful, successful and prosperous 2013! Here’s hoping it goes well for us all!<div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-11404369596568525352012-08-20T09:37:00.000+01:002012-08-20T09:37:24.225+01:00Just stopped by to share this...<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/q5LM3GhuNI8" width="420"></iframe>Poor Dharam-paaji didn't take too kindly to a question from a reporter on why his sons, Sunny and Bobby, were not in attendance at their half-sister Esha's wedding.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-43815122745565298232012-08-18T14:01:00.000+01:002012-08-20T09:31:17.401+01:00Eeek!!Wow… have I really not posted here since January? <br />
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It’s been a whirlwind year so far… sudden losses of family members and dear friends, new and sometimes extreme circumstances both at work and home... I can safely say it’s been one of my most challenging years yet… I can only hope that the worst of it is over, and although I’m still dealing with the aftermath (and will be for a long time to come), hopefully I've come through these experiences stronger, and with valuable lessons learned. It hasn’t all been terrible though… there have been some good moments, and my new location has brought me some unexpected opportunities and given me a chance to develop skills I’ve been wanting to work on for a very long time. <br />
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With everything that’s happened, there really hasn’t been much time for watching Bollywood films, which is why I haven’t really had much to blog about here…. I’ve kept tabs on recent industry developments through my favourite blogs and Twitter as usual, but moving away from Lagos last year also meant moving away from the cinemas where I once caught the latest releases. And I haven’t even made a dent in my mammoth pile of unwatched Bollywood DVDs… there just hasn’t been time. I’m hoping to find some (time) though, in the months to come, and to blog some more…. Till then, see you later! <div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-36329126996509883642012-01-01T10:57:00.002+01:002012-01-01T19:31:17.505+01:00BACK TO INDIA…<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>HAPPY NEW YEAR</strong>, everyone!! It's been a while since my last post, and so much has happened in that time... I've moved to a new part of my country, and it's been a really interesting challenge so far.</span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Last year was fairly quiet on this blog, and the definite highlight for me was <a href="http://shahrukhislove.blogspot.com/2011/03/let-wild-rumpus-begin-all-you-need-to.html">DEOL DHAMAKA</a>, organised by <a href="http://www.bollystalgia.blogspot.com/">Amaluu</a> and <a href="http://www.shahrukhislove.blogspot.com/">Ness</a>, which of course was right up my street… I had so much FUN coming up with Deol-related posts, and reading everyone else’s. I learned so much, laughed so much, and now love Dharmendra even more!</span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">I am really excited about the new year and all that it promises to bring. In just a couple of weeks, I will be in India (<em>yayyy!!</em>) - my second visit after my amazing 2007 trip. A good friend and I will be visiting Delhi and several cities in Rajasthan for 10 days. It should be a very interesting experience, and of course I will come back and tell you all about it.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">If any of you are in Delhi and would like to meet up, please do let me know – send an email to the address on my profile…. I love meeting friends from the blogosphere... so far I’ve met <a href="http://www.sotheydance.blogspot.com/">Veracious</a>, <a href="http://www.apunbindaas.blogspot.com/">Nicki</a>, <a href="http://sebahtubman.blogspot.com/">Miss SET</a>, <a href="http://naijanaz.blogspot.com/">Snazzy</a>, <a href="http://36inchesofbrownlegs.blogspot.com/">36</a>, <a href="http://omorere.blogspot.com/">Omohemi</a>, <a href="http://www.adura-odesanya.co.uk/">Adura</a>, Cheetarah, and some of my fellow SRK-crazy-fans from <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/daddysgirlali">twitter</a>. I’ve also come close to meeting <a href="http://www.bollywooddeewana.blogspot.com/">Bollywood Deewana</a> and <a href="http://www.shellsbollyworld.blogspot.com/">Shell</a>, but those meetings didn’t quite pan out – we will definitely have to make it happen soon. And of course, my wonderful first trip to India was with a <a href="http://www.bettyboopu.blogspot.com/">lovely young lady</a> I met through blogging, who has now become such a dear friend and sister from another mother. It’s always, <em><strong>always</strong></em> a such a pleasure. </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>Till next time, take care and enjoy every moment of 2012!!</em></span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-33016440426313108652011-09-28T20:59:00.004+01:002011-09-28T21:06:17.966+01:00RANBIR KAPOOR & HIS LADIES - Part 2<p align="justify"><strong><em>And here’s Part 2 of the post on Ranbir Kapoor and his onscreen romances….</em></strong></p><br /><p align="justify"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-eeZzw0GWcVU/ToN77iZ0W5I/AAAAAAAADTY/mZH8YC1o6U4/s1600-h/vlcsnap-2011-09-24-06h53m23s33%25255B3%25255D.png"><img style="BACKGROUND-IMAGE: none; BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; DISPLAY: block; FLOAT: none; BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-LEFT: auto; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-RIGHT: auto; PADDING-TOP: 0px" title="vlcsnap-2011-09-24-06h53m23s33" border="0" alt="vlcsnap-2011-09-24-06h53m23s33" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-gdniaDdOlHE/ToN7_fJLp-I/AAAAAAAADTc/FpBc6DFfNKg/vlcsnap-2011-09-24-06h53m23s33_thumb%25255B1%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="644" height="276" /></a></p><br /><p align="justify">· <i><strong><span style="font-size:100%;">Rocket Singh – Salesman of the Year</span></strong></i>: In 2010, Ranbir won the Filmfare Critics’ Choice Best Actor award for his performances in his three releases from 2009: ‘Wake Up Sid’, ‘Ajab Prem...’ and ‘Rocket Singh’. Impressive as it was that Ranbir had three really good performances in one year, I really don’t think he should have won the award on the strength of all three. While he was good in ‘Ajab Prem...’ and very good in ‘Wake Up Sid’, I personally think his ‘Rocket Singh’ performance was the best of the three and definitely award-worthy. Ranbir disappeared into the character of Harpreet Singh Bedi beautifully, and rendered an understated but powerful performance in this film (directed by Shimit Amin and scripted by Jaideep Sahni).</p><br /><p align="justify">I like ‘Rocket Singh’ a lot... it’s one of my favourites from Ranbir’s filmography so far. It’s really well-scripted and engaging, and it has wonderful performances from the supporting cast - Manish Chowdhary, D. Santosh, Gauhar Khan, Mukesh Bhatt, Naveen Kaushik and Prem Chopra, with Ranbir doing an excellent job of ‘anchoring’ the cast. </p><br /><p align="justify"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-AojmSGDaikg/ToN8C2VfW3I/AAAAAAAADTg/jRjs9U_JzGc/s1600-h/vlcsnap-2011-09-28-20h34m24s99%25255B4%25255D.png"><img style="BACKGROUND-IMAGE: none; BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; DISPLAY: block; FLOAT: none; BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-LEFT: auto; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-RIGHT: auto; PADDING-TOP: 0px" title="vlcsnap-2011-09-28-20h34m24s99" border="0" alt="vlcsnap-2011-09-28-20h34m24s99" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-cOplXcmlkEg/ToN8F_v4cAI/AAAAAAAADTk/83Ly6_ucLq0/vlcsnap-2011-09-28-20h34m24s99_thumb%25255B2%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="553" height="251" /></a></p><br /><p align="justify">I also really like the film’s subject matter – it’s an engaging and thought-provoking look at many things – the modern-day workplace and the power politics and dynamics within it, the pursuit of self-fulfilment <em>vis-à-vis</em> more ‘practical’ interests, entrepreneurship, education, competition.... I also liked the shades of grey in the story... the fact that we really couldn’t root for the hero in good conscience because he was doing something wrong, and the fact that the villains turned out to be much more than cardboard cut-outs. I liked that we got to see Harpreet grow over time and learn more about himself and the world. Ranbir did a great job of expressing his character’s emotions throughout the film. And of course I loved Ranbir’s look.... </p><br /><p align="center"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-wsmKGhtJBlM/ToN8H8bmDdI/AAAAAAAADTo/gNl5aU-fj0w/s1600-h/Ranbir%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img style="BACKGROUND-IMAGE: none; BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; DISPLAY: inline; BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px" title="Ranbir" border="0" alt="Ranbir" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-JtbCie5354Q/ToN8KliNMZI/AAAAAAAADTs/aGqVEWfTjjs/Ranbir_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="343" height="484" /></a></p><br /><p align="justify">But on to Ranbir and his ladylove in this film.... Shimit Amin’s 2007 hit, ‘Chak De! India’ appealed to me for many reasons, but one thing I really liked about Jaideep Sahni’s ‘Chak De!...’ script was that Shahrukh Khan’s character, Kabir Khan, didn’t have a love interest. There was so much to watch in the interaction between Kabir and his hockey team members (who were really nicely fleshed out characters), that a love interest for Kabir was totally unnecessary. I kinda wish Jaideep had similarly resisted the urge to create a love interest for Harpreet in ‘Rocket Singh’. Sherena, played by Shazahn Padamsee, was a cute character, but the film would have been just as good without her.</p><br /><p align="justify"><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-uHUckFUbTzs/ToN8MJx3R-I/AAAAAAAADTw/Prb0yEJnrRg/s1600-h/Rocket%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img style="BACKGROUND-IMAGE: none; BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; DISPLAY: block; FLOAT: none; BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-LEFT: auto; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-RIGHT: auto; PADDING-TOP: 0px" title="Rocket" border="0" alt="Rocket" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-7J0TfxfFE4o/ToN8NZHfOPI/AAAAAAAADT0/oUyIoHlkRtc/Rocket_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="256" height="260" /></a></p><br /><p align="justify">Sherena and Harpreet had just a couple of scenes (and a montage) together, and while they were an adorable couple, they left no lasting impact. Sherena was sweet, but her character was a bit wet noodle-y; I much preferred the sassier Koena (played by Gauhar Khan), the film’s other main female character (not saying that she and Harpreet should have hooked up, but I loved her). </p><br /><p align="justify">Also, I didn’t think Shazahn Padamsee’s performance was any great shakes; true, she wasn’t given much to do in ‘Rocket Singh’, but I don’t think she’s a particularly good actress – not yet, at least (an opinion that was strengthened when I saw her again in ‘Dil To Bachcha Hai Ji’)... she’s very pretty but her acting leaves something to be desired.</p><br /><p align="justify"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-t1Fru1NzoIA/ToN8QNA1b1I/AAAAAAAADT4/wvfphUeX9X4/s1600-h/vlcsnap-2011-09-28-20h17m55s81%25255B4%25255D.png"><img style="BACKGROUND-IMAGE: none; BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; DISPLAY: block; FLOAT: none; BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-LEFT: auto; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-RIGHT: auto; PADDING-TOP: 0px" title="vlcsnap-2011-09-28-20h17m55s81" border="0" alt="vlcsnap-2011-09-28-20h17m55s81" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-FRy1LXLEyCQ/ToN8RnXCpgI/AAAAAAAADT8/65iFtLn9WPo/vlcsnap-2011-09-28-20h17m55s81_thumb%25255B2%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="333" height="154" /></a></p><br /><p align="justify"></p><br /><p align="justify"><strong>· <i><span style="font-size:100%;">Raajneeti</span></i></strong>: This was the third Ranbir Kapoor movie that I saw on the big screen, and the character of Samar Pratap was Ranbir’s first truly ‘dark’ role, a nice departure from the cheery, carefree kid he played in most of his movies before this one. This was also Ranbir’s first chance to shine in the context of an ensemble cast with acclaimed and established actors, and I think he did an outstanding job and held his own. His character’s transformation from sheltered, geeky academic to Machiavellian, amoral politician was chilling but very seamlessly depicted. I thought this was a really accomplished performance by Ranbir.</p><br /><p align="justify"><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-8Zer58Uab-0/ToN8SozeLrI/AAAAAAAADUA/8UP29q33NSk/s1600-h/raajneeti%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="BACKGROUND-IMAGE: none; BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; DISPLAY: block; FLOAT: none; BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-LEFT: auto; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-RIGHT: auto; PADDING-TOP: 0px" title="raajneeti" border="0" alt="raajneeti" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-mknxwH-y5uw/ToN8U2x-1QI/AAAAAAAADUE/Bk9TCXchtEo/raajneeti_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="204" height="204" /></a></p><br /><p align="justify">While I loved Ranbir’s performance, I did <i>not</i> love his onscreen relationships with his female counterparts in this film. First we met Katrina Kaif, playing Samar’s childhood friend Indu, who despite being in love with Samar, is eventually married off to his brother, Prithviraj… I found the Samar/Indu scenes generally underwhelming and even a bit boring – the Prithviraj/Indu scenes were more interesting, if a little disturbing. </p><br /><p align="justify"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-3QThrd4eNcs/ToN8WGXVxaI/AAAAAAAADUI/YFSsFsKP2yQ/s1600-h/rajneeti%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="BACKGROUND-IMAGE: none; BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; DISPLAY: block; FLOAT: none; BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-LEFT: auto; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-RIGHT: auto; PADDING-TOP: 0px" title="rajneeti" border="0" alt="rajneeti" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-vQKEFrGqgUw/ToN8XWbT4gI/AAAAAAAADUM/YLPNrWGmp3A/rajneeti_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="244" height="196" /></a></p><br /><p align="justify">And then we met Sarah Thompson Kane, playing Samar’s American girlfriend, Sarah… I found her scenes opposite Ranbir almost painful. I didn’t think there was much chemistry there, and Sarah’s performance seemed so weak and stilted. That being said, there was <i>so</i> much more going on in ‘Raajneeti’, especially among the male characters in the film (the women in this film mostly got used and abused by the men, sadly), that there really wasn’t much scope for nuanced male/female relationships.</p><br /><p align="justify"><strong><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-5o-bKJXcvns/ToN8Y-KWgmI/AAAAAAAADUQ/XzMf62S-MJU/s1600-h/Raajneeti2%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="BACKGROUND-IMAGE: none; BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; DISPLAY: block; FLOAT: none; BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-LEFT: auto; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-RIGHT: auto; PADDING-TOP: 0px" title="Raajneeti2" border="0" alt="Raajneeti2" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-jdgT54Xm_8g/ToN8Z1RzbpI/AAAAAAAADUU/Q0a_PLwodd0/Raajneeti2_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="244" height="154" /></a></strong></p><br /><p align="justify"><strong></strong></p><br /><p align="justify"><strong>·</strong> <i><strong><span style="font-size:100%;">Anjaana Anjaani</span></strong></i>: If this film had been shorter and better scripted, it could have been really good. As it is, I made about a hundred abortive attempts to watch it before I was finally able to finish it. It isn’t that it’s a bad film – it’s that it lacks heart and depth. It’s a shame because there was so much potential for more.</p><br /><p align="justify"><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-06eu41xO0K8/ToN8bJInJhI/AAAAAAAADUY/c0bwRuxh7Sc/s1600-h/Ranbir%2525205%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img style="BACKGROUND-IMAGE: none; BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; DISPLAY: block; FLOAT: none; BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-LEFT: auto; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-RIGHT: auto; PADDING-TOP: 0px" title="Ranbir 5" border="0" alt="Ranbir 5" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-UiyzZdhaXXE/ToN8cc00C_I/AAAAAAAADUc/st1GdRB-zHQ/Ranbir%2525205_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="214" height="305" /></a></p><br /><p align="justify">It’s really hard to feel a lot for the main characters, Kiara (Priyanka Chopra) and Akash (Ranbir), because they are self-absorbed and shallow… and because, with the exception of one very effective scene with Ranbir and the fabulous Tanvi Azmi, you don’t really get the feeling that Kiara and Akash really work <em>through</em> their individual drama in the course of the film. They sort of get to point A to point B without too much messy stuff in between. For a film that goes on for two and a half hours, that’s pretty poor. A good chunk of time was wasted on ineffective scenes that added nothing, and sometimes even hampered the narrative instead of moving thing along. The characters were potentially very interesting, but not explored to the extent that they could have been. Akash had a better arc than Kiara (or maybe Ranbir did a slightly better job with him), but that’s really not saying much. Basically, it could have been much better.</p><br /><p align="justify"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-UY53MitOoWs/ToN8efSJ7XI/AAAAAAAADUg/kmpgZBmaY1g/s1600-h/vlcsnap-2011-09-28-20h44m48s176%25255B3%25255D.png"><img style="BACKGROUND-IMAGE: none; BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; DISPLAY: inline; BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px" title="vlcsnap-2011-09-28-20h44m48s176" border="0" alt="vlcsnap-2011-09-28-20h44m48s176" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-t46cig_Ruck/ToN8g03LhLI/AAAAAAAADUk/0-yw1PfvJT4/vlcsnap-2011-09-28-20h44m48s176_thumb%25255B1%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="552" height="248" /></a></p><br /><p align="justify">However, it’s not really Priyanka and Ranbir’s fault – I think they both did a very competent job with the material they were given… the material was just a bit two-dimensional. This is a cool-looking film, shot in cool locations with two exceedingly cool people wearing very cool clothes, but it could have been much more than that with a better script.</p><br /><p align="justify">That being said, I was pleasantly surprised by the Ranbir/Priyanka <i>jodi</i>. When I first heard that they would be working together, I actually grimaced – while they are actually the same age (both were born in 1982, Priyanka a couple of months before Ranbir), PC has something really mature about her face, and I just thought she would look so much older opposite Ranbir, who has more boyish features. Of course, that (the leading lady being/looking older than her male counterpart) is not a bad thing in itself, but I felt that the film would probably not suit that look, and… I just thought it would be a mismatch.</p><br /><p align="justify">I was wrong… Piggy Chops and Ranbir actually looked really good together in this film. The way Priyanka was styled in the film might have a lot to do with this – whereas in a lot of her older work she’s been styled in ways that made her look older than she really is, in ‘Anjaana Anjaani’ she looked fresh-faced and youthful, wearing a really hip, cute array of outfits. The AA team kept her make-up minimal. With a fresh face, fun haircut and the aforementioned wardrobe, she looked beautiful. </p><br /><p align="justify"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-iyktIXU40-4/ToN8idp0WcI/AAAAAAAADUo/w61KHITFYW0/s1600-h/PChopra%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img style="BACKGROUND-IMAGE: none; BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; DISPLAY: block; FLOAT: none; BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-LEFT: auto; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-RIGHT: auto; PADDING-TOP: 0px" title="PChopra" border="0" alt="PChopra" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-ToxvGRCuVqM/ToN8jkX9wOI/AAAAAAAADUs/5L1ysqb6SaU/PChopra_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="288" height="210" /></a></p><br /><p align="justify">And Ranbir, who bulked up a bit (but thankfully not too much) before this film, and who had an equally enviable wardrobe, looked mighty fine too. I thought they complemented each other very well, looks-wise.</p><br /><p align="justify"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-b6B5g_WlROA/ToN8lZjAqII/AAAAAAAADUw/O85wZEQt6_4/s1600-h/Ranbir%2525203%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="BACKGROUND-IMAGE: none; BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; DISPLAY: block; FLOAT: none; BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-LEFT: auto; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; MARGIN-RIGHT: auto; PADDING-TOP: 0px" title="Ranbir 3" border="0" alt="Ranbir 3" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-lTFcC05bEak/ToN8nBCl6TI/AAAAAAAADU0/MWR83DSMrdg/Ranbir%2525203_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="358" /></a></p><br /><p align="justify">On other levels, however, their <i>jodi</i> was a little less successful. There were a couple of sexy, smouldering scenes that sort of worked, and their madcap friendship was nicely portrayed overall, but they were just okay together, not great. It <i>could</i> have been worse, and I did like some of their scenes together a lot (especially the ones in which Akash is protective of Kiara), but I don’t think they had a chance to fully explore the potential of their <i>jodi</i> in this film. So I never thought that I would say this, but I would actually like to see Ranbir and Priyanka work together again in the future.</p><br /><p align="justify">And that’s it… my assessment of Ranbir Kapoor’s onscreen romantic relationships… so far my fave has to be Sid/Aisha from ‘Wake Up Sid’, but I really think Ranbir has been a very good leading man and has worked very well (and played very well – sorry, couldn’t resist!) with his leading ladies so far… and I’m really looking forward to seeing how he fares in the years to come. And as I said at the beginning of Part 1, while I didn’t like the ‘Rockstar’ trailer (mostly ‘thanks’ to Nargis Fakhri’s screeching and Ranbir’s general emo-ness), I will be at my local cinema if and when the movie makes it here. I’m a fan of Ranbir’s acting and I don’t see that changing in the foreseeable future.</p><br /><p align="justify">So… Happy Birthday, Ranbir… and here’s hoping you continue to have a career as rich and varied as it’s been so far!</p><div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-69586845713547520322011-09-25T19:22:00.001+01:002011-09-25T19:31:59.879+01:00RANBIR KAPOOR & HIS LADIES (no, I don’t mean it that way!)<p align="justify">Of the younger, ‘post-Khan’ generation of actors, Ranbir Kapoor is undoubtedly one of my few firm favourites. I have keenly followed his career since his 2007 debut with ‘Saawariya’, and I have enjoyed his work so much that I have seen all the movies he’s starred in since then. And although the ‘Rockstar’ trailer looks pretty dire to me, I will keep seeing all his movies – because I just really like watching the dude.</p> <p align="justify"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-eLlfvzRr-l4/Tn9wsmhY3eI/AAAAAAAADRE/h9YmIVxLAjw/s1600-h/vlcsnap-2011-09-22-00h03m51s20%25255B3%25255D.png"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="vlcsnap-2011-09-22-00h03m51s20" border="0" alt="vlcsnap-2011-09-22-00h03m51s20" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-O0KTIVhqjcA/Tn9ww4dAjYI/AAAAAAAADRI/gtLI65bQDHc/vlcsnap-2011-09-22-00h03m51s20_thumb%25255B1%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="644" height="278" /></a></p> <p align="justify">Why do I like Ranbir? Many reasons, but here are the top… five:</p> <ul> <li> <div align="justify">Like his parents before him (who are two of my all-time favourites), there is something very ‘natural’ and engaging about his onscreen demeanour. He has really nice onscreen energy and presence, and a confidence that always comes across without being overbearing. </div> </li> <li> <div align="justify">I also think he’s a talented actor with the capacity to keep getting better. He really gets beneath the skins of the characters he chooses to play, and he handles both comedy and drama very well.</div> </li> <li> <div align="justify">He’s also a capable dancer – I love a good dancer, and there are precious few in the new crop of Bollywood’s leading men. He gets a lot of goofy, loopy, silly dances, and he’s good at those, but I think he could do more ‘stylised’ stuff equally well.</div> </li> <li> <div align="justify">He’s <i>very</i> easy on the eye, of course – I love his looks. I could actually wax quite lyrical on this topic (the gorgeous hooded eyes, the distinctive nose, the athletic physique, etc etc), but I won’t, because I don’t want to nauseate anyone, including myself. Suffice it to say I think Ranbir is <em>extremely</em> good-looking.</div> </li> <li> <div align="justify">Also (and I think this is really key to my enjoyment of Ranbir’s work) I love his film choices – I think that unlike many other young actors, he’s been very smart about the roles he’s chosen to play and the people he’s chosen to work with. I’m sure there’s an element of luck in there as well, but I think he’s chosen the right roles with remarkable proficiency. In just 4 years, he already has a really enviable resumé.</div> </li> </ul> <p align="justify">While I love Ranbir onscreen, I’m really not a huge fan of his offscreen (public) persona. I don’t enjoy listening to his interviews, for example, because I personally don’t find him particularly witty, interesting or personable in them. I also have lots of thoughts on the way he’s conducted his personal affairs in the public eye, and especially on the whole ‘Koffee with Karan’ thing. No need to go into all that here, but yeah, not a fan of Ranbir’s apparent treatment of his ladyloves offscreen. </p> <p align="justify">Incidentally though, I think his onscreen interaction with his leading ladies so far has been very good. I think that Ranbir does well with romance, not yet on the level of his dad Rishi of course, or on the level of one of the Khans, but I think he could definitely get there with more time and experience. He plays really well opposite the actresses he works with, and makes them look good, and I love that in an actor. His onscreen romantic relationships are nicely depicted for the most part, and this post is all about that…</p> <p align="justify"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-GSGvgneiCB0/Tn9wx90-20I/AAAAAAAADRM/3GNiAV2gu4M/s1600-h/saawariya%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="saawariya" border="0" alt="saawariya" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-GN-o1XF8wrM/Tn9wy0y1KjI/AAAAAAAADRQ/cO_EV8AoUBk/saawariya_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="179" height="204" /></a></p> <p align="justify"><i><strong>Saawariya</strong></i>: Bhansali’s flop tale of unrequited love, which I talked about a little <a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2009/07/sanjay-leela-bhansali-sumptuous-lush.html">here</a>, despite its failings, still managed to be a good launch-pad for the careers of Ranbir Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor. </p> <p align="justify"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-t75ds626Lo8/Tn9wz_tHqnI/AAAAAAAADRU/ubdhyopeLL4/s1600-h/Saawariya1_10220%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="Saawariya1_10220" border="0" alt="Saawariya1_10220" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-F6T9w7TqXhk/Tn9w0ySa0NI/AAAAAAAADRY/71VtFmeBqgk/Saawariya1_10220_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="244" height="139" /></a></p> <p align="justify">They both looked gorgeous (even if the characters they played were irritating and Ranbir’s styling sucked). Also, Ranbir had that towel scene, which I will absolutely ’fess up to loving. Their characters didn’t have that much real interaction, though, and what they did have seemed contrived and just not that engaging or memorable. I actually found Ranbir’s interactions with Gulabji, the prostitute played so beautifully by Rani Mukherji, and Lilian (‘Lollipop’), played by Zohra Sehgal, much more appealing.</p> <p align="justify"><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-rGYoNxec4D4/Tn9w12Ig1TI/AAAAAAAADRc/Vory7vNwsZk/s1600-h/jtf1n6g0cmpumcu6%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="jtf1n6g0cmpumcu6" border="0" alt="jtf1n6g0cmpumcu6" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-Ogfpph-JYCg/Tn9w266rMOI/AAAAAAAADRg/Fi4hwvUBluQ/jtf1n6g0cmpumcu6_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="244" height="184" /></a><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-AJPvdM4E4F4/Tn9w4GTC0LI/AAAAAAAADRk/T6CBEeQ0drk/s1600-h/rani%252520saawariya%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="rani saawariya" border="0" alt="rani saawariya" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-Tm7oGfXiBt8/Tn9w5Fa8zVI/AAAAAAAADRo/NtmRKESa3vE/rani%252520saawariya_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="244" height="188" /></a></p> <p align="justify"><i><strong></strong></i></p> <p align="justify"><i><strong>Bachna Ae Haseeno</strong></i>: An imperfect film, and the first Ranbir Kapoor movie I saw on the big screen, BAH was Ranbir’s first taste of a slick Yash Raj Films production. And like many recent YRF movies, it got a little bogged down in references to YRF classics from the past, and was a little too glossy for my tastes. Plus Ranbir’s character, Raj, was quite frankly a bit of an ass. That being said, I think Ranbir (as Raj) did a pretty good job of romancing the ladies in this film, losing them due to his immaturity, cowardice and selfishness, and then later trying to make amends. </p> <p align="justify"><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-u1gS7BpIWIM/Tn9w6JTITbI/AAAAAAAADRs/H6DXHOGig9o/s1600-h/Bachna-Ae-Haseeno-Movie%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="Bachna-Ae-Haseeno-Movie" border="0" alt="Bachna-Ae-Haseeno-Movie" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-arX7_kqbDT4/Tn9w7S9FUcI/AAAAAAAADRw/AqghChuZPrM/Bachna-Ae-Haseeno-Movie_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="244" height="184" /></a></p> <p align="justify">Raj had three ladyloves in this movie – with the first one, Mahi (Minissha Lamba), it was puppy love, all clean, fresh and fun… until he broke her heart. She went on to nurse her hurt for years, even after marrying and starting a family with the drop-dead gorgeous Joginder (Kunal Kapoor). Raj/Mahi was my least favourite <i>jodi</i> in BAH, because I just didn’t think there was enough depth to their brief relationship to make Mahi lose her <i>joie de vivre</i> and not commit herself fully to her dishy (he was SO fine) and adoring husband, even years later, when she would presumably have been older and wiser. So this one stretched credibility quite a bit for me, but hey, Raj and Mahi were a cute couple while it lasted.</p> <p align="justify"><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-Tu2m_E0Gs_Q/Tn9w8mP2T2I/AAAAAAAADR0/hlM1oifaTF0/s1600-h/bachna_ae_haseeno121208%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="bachna_ae_haseeno121208" border="0" alt="bachna_ae_haseeno121208" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-kV4hshlN_cU/Tn9w9v8LcPI/AAAAAAAADR4/RmnFS8M_IC0/bachna_ae_haseeno121208_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="244" height="156" /></a></p> <p align="justify">The second leading lady in BAH was the stunning Bipasha Basu – and she was my favourite. Their relationship was much more contemporary and ‘grown-up’, but just when Bipasha’s character, Radhika, started to let her guard down and believe in their relationship, Raj dumped her in just the cruellest way possible. I liked the way their relationship progressed… from the initial attraction, to something deeper, to the betrayal, and then to a grudging (on Radhika’s side) mutual respect. I also loved the fact that when he returned, Radhika put him through the wringer for a bit. I think Bipasha’s performance has a lot to do with my enjoyment of the Raj/Radhika relationship – she brought such ‘realness’ and <i>oomph</i> to her role… she was just fab.</p> <p align="justify"><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-sikRnwBpZqk/Tn9w-hHFWbI/AAAAAAAADR8/6QXogVQlRgw/s1600-h/bachna-ae-haseeno_bipasha-basu_ranbir-kapoor___21769%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="bachna-ae-haseeno_bipasha-basu_ranbir-kapoor___21769" border="0" alt="bachna-ae-haseeno_bipasha-basu_ranbir-kapoor___21769" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-DmNZkBlHFXo/Tn9w_iZLUmI/AAAAAAAADSA/q5OY7fVgflE/bachna-ae-haseeno_bipasha-basu_ranbir-kapoor___21769_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="244" height="175" /></a></p> <p align="justify"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-2bsNZXddvbE/Tn9xAtdUZCI/AAAAAAAADSE/RXxlwCAobdY/s1600-h/bachna-ae%25252Bhaseeno-bipasha-ranbir-kapoor%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="bachna-ae haseeno-bipasha-ranbir-kapoor" border="0" alt="bachna-ae haseeno-bipasha-ranbir-kapoor" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-4lHjUELPzvY/Tn9xBmPBZ4I/AAAAAAAADSI/si7rbufETOk/bachna-ae%25252Bhaseeno-bipasha-ranbir-kapoor_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="244" height="144" /></a></p> <p align="justify">BAH’s third leading lady, and the lady with whom Raj had the defining relationship of the movie, was of course with the smart and independent Gayatri (played by Deepika Padukone, whom Ranbir famously started dating shortly before the film’s release). The Raj/Gayatri relationship definitely had the most complexity and honesty to it, but I actually don’t remember that much else about it – they looked good together and had a nice interaction, but for me the Raj/Radhika relationship left more of an impact.</p> <p align="justify"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-V-GSysHJS6E/Tn9xCnrU-RI/AAAAAAAADSM/5LkpM8fKIjQ/s1600-h/ranbir-and-deepika-in-bachna-ae-haseeno%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="ranbir-and-deepika-in-bachna-ae-haseeno" border="0" alt="ranbir-and-deepika-in-bachna-ae-haseeno" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-p6ut9F_N_80/Tn9xDuI5ZwI/AAAAAAAADSQ/TbIhBjNg_Y4/ranbir-and-deepika-in-bachna-ae-haseeno_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="244" height="188" /></a></p> <p align="justify"><i><strong></strong></i></p> <p align="justify"><i><strong>Wake Up Sid</strong></i>: I absolutely <em>love</em> this movie, and the relationship between Ranbir’s titular Sid and Aisha (the wonderful Konkona Sen Sharma) was beautifully portrayed. The movement from friends to roommates to a couple felt so natural and organic, and the credit for that definitely goes to Ayan Mukherjee’s wonderful story and direction, and of course to Ranbir and Konkona for how subtly they conveyed their characters’ feelings and personal development. </p> <p align="justify"><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-wT-AMtTWnoA/Tn9xEkvVVyI/AAAAAAAADSU/EJirI-fkui0/s1600-h/Ranbir%2525206%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="Ranbir 6" border="0" alt="Ranbir 6" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-TI3ct7jF7_k/Tn9xF5mhF4I/AAAAAAAADSY/zOYXWEKVhVU/Ranbir%2525206_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="174" height="244" /></a></p> <p align="justify">Ranbir’s portrayal of Sid was excellent, you really felt the character’s lack of clarity and motivation – and you empathised with it and wanted to see him get past it and find some inspiration. It could have been just another shallow depiction of the young loafer that we see so often in Hindi films, but Ranbir took Sid to another level and reminded us that, corny as it sounds, there’s a ‘Sid’ in all of us. Konkona as Aisha was fantastic too – her character reminded me of myself and my friends. And seeing Sid and Aisha come together was such a treat. </p> <p align="justify"><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-roY6m1NH160/Tn9xGoqtt-I/AAAAAAAADSc/X2_4H3TSDRQ/s1600-h/WUS%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="Ranbir__Konkona_in_WUS" border="0" alt="Ranbir__Konkona_in_WUS" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-LcAczLk4e9E/Tn9xHzaB2XI/AAAAAAAADSg/HCOGLIRAXQs/Ranbir__Konkona_in_WUS_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="244" height="182" /></a></p> <p align="justify"><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-roY6m1NH160/Tn9xGoqtt-I/AAAAAAAADSc/X2_4H3TSDRQ/s1600-h/WUS%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="WUS" border="0" alt="WUS" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-xADL-cUUR_E/Tn9xItsxVbI/AAAAAAAADSk/AVpgs0zZnNw/WUS_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="244" height="164" /></a></p> <p align="justify">There are so many great little moments between Sid and Aisha in the film, crowned perfectly by that gorgeous closing scene. Just writing this makes me want to watch this film again. They were <em>just. so. good</em>.</p> <p align="justify"><i><strong><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-gsLxgJc2rE8/Tn9xKVe10nI/AAAAAAAADSo/lqvaIIUKdjs/s1600-h/vlcsnap-2011-09-23-00h17m03s25%25255B4%25255D.png"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="vlcsnap-2011-09-23-00h17m03s25" border="0" alt="vlcsnap-2011-09-23-00h17m03s25" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-IVM-X_glJoQ/Tn9xLutwLSI/AAAAAAAADSs/S9PKMeZAUk4/vlcsnap-2011-09-23-00h17m03s25_thumb%25255B2%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="244" height="107" /></a></strong></i></p> <p align="justify"><i><strong></strong></i></p> <p align="justify"><i><strong>Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani</strong></i>: Rajkumar Santoshi’s 2009 screwball comedy was the second Ranbir Kapoor movie that I saw on the big screen, and there are many things I like about it. I love the songs from the film, I like the uniqueness and quirkiness of the story and the characters, and I like that in many ways it’s a bit of a throwback to the goofier Bollywood fare of past decades, which doesn’t get made very often these days.</p> <p align="justify"> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-Gl4UElIDSCQ/Tn9xMg78tfI/AAAAAAAADSw/mMnFp0Nah4o/s1600-h/Ajab-Prem-Ki-Ghazab-Kahani-1-1252416805%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="Ajab-Prem-Ki-Ghazab-Kahani-1-1252416805" border="0" alt="Ajab-Prem-Ki-Ghazab-Kahani-1-1252416805" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-9cfS9Zu7SKk/Tn9xN5XVIBI/AAAAAAAADS0/4eQkMA3gnso/Ajab-Prem-Ki-Ghazab-Kahani-1-1252416805_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="185" height="244" /></a><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-lFjUT58vInM/Tn9xPEAWokI/AAAAAAAADS4/rSsGl3Lp4vQ/s1600-h/Ajab-Prem-Ki-Ghazab-Kahani-Ranbir-Kapoor-Katrina-Kaif%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="Ajab-Prem-Ki-Ghazab-Kahani-Ranbir-Kapoor-Katrina-Kaif" border="0" alt="Ajab-Prem-Ki-Ghazab-Kahani-Ranbir-Kapoor-Katrina-Kaif" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-IKXLCNmab7Q/Tn9xQiIKAWI/AAAAAAAADS8/kcVIEukJQkY/Ajab-Prem-Ki-Ghazab-Kahani-Ranbir-Kapoor-Katrina-Kaif_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="171" height="244" /></a><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-TPP5Eh99qUQ/Tn9xRtt2IWI/AAAAAAAADTA/Pf6rW5SKzII/s1600-h/Ajab_Prem_Ki_Ghazab_Kahani_%252528released_in_2009%252529_-_A_comedy_starring_Katrina_Kaif_against_Ranbir_Kapoor%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="Ajab_Prem_Ki_Ghazab_Kahani_(released_in_2009)_-_A_comedy_starring_Katrina_Kaif_against_Ranbir_Kapoor" border="0" alt="Ajab_Prem_Ki_Ghazab_Kahani_(released_in_2009)_-_A_comedy_starring_Katrina_Kaif_against_Ranbir_Kapoor" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-pGX6yCOFfxA/Tn9xS82mhuI/AAAAAAAADTE/0vE6e1J0NTI/Ajab_Prem_Ki_Ghazab_Kahani_%252528released_in_2009%252529_-_A_comedy_starring_Katrina_Kaif_against_Ranbir_Kapoor_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="176" height="244" /></a></p> <p align="justify">I really enjoyed Ranbir’s performance in this – his character (Prem) was a really sweet and likeable cornball, and he portrayed him a boyish glee that was so much fun to watch. He also displayed comic timing throughout the film, and the development of his friendship and eventual romance with Jenny (Katrina Kaif) was also really sweet and a fun watch.</p> <p align="justify"> <a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-UxQj72n_rQA/Tn9xTg3VuvI/AAAAAAAADTI/Zyqq8ZOOeC0/s1600-h/Ajab%252520Prem%252520Ki%252520Ghazab%252520Kahani%252520katrina%252520kaif%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="Ajab%20Prem%20Ki%20Ghazab%20Kahani%20katrina%20kaif" border="0" alt="Ajab%20Prem%20Ki%20Ghazab%20Kahani%20katrina%20kaif" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/--rNLYo-F2yk/Tn9xUicGRvI/AAAAAAAADTM/UjrJATp6OVA/Ajab%252520Prem%252520Ki%252520Ghazab%252520Kahani%252520katrina%252520kaif_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="244" height="184" /></a></p> <p align="justify">I’m not a big fan of Katrina as an actress (although I will give her full props for working hard and being a committed professional), but I think ‘Ajab Prem…’ boasts one of her stronger performances. Jenny was a little tough to buy into as a character (especially the way they dressed her – I think they were going for ‘young and innocent’ but I found it just a little silly), but Katrina managed to convey the naïveté of the character in a way that worked well and didn’t cloy. She displayed really good comic timing as well. All told, I really enjoyed watching Ranbir and Katrina together in this one.</p> <p align="center"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-1bPYUViBS-U/Tn9xWK-hpvI/AAAAAAAADTQ/OttVq5n6iXo/s1600-h/ranbir-kapoor_katrina-kaif___128838%25255B5%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="ranbir-kapoor_katrina-kaif___128838" border="0" alt="ranbir-kapoor_katrina-kaif___128838" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-N8oRqR6sTxg/Tn9xXah2cYI/AAAAAAAADTU/72oIe0LNQJ4/ranbir-kapoor_katrina-kaif___128838_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="244" height="184" /></a></p> <p><i><strong>Since this is getting a little long, Part II of this post will be up on Wednesday, which also happens to be Ranbir’s 29<sup>th</sup> birthday....</strong></i></p> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-18370792739392889632011-08-19T09:36:00.003+01:002011-08-19T09:56:21.375+01:00'STRONG AND DEPENDABLE'<div align="justify">It's been a while since I've been here... I haven't been watching lots of films these days, although I do manage to squeeze a few in here and there - recent viewings include 'Caravan', 'Chalo Dilli' and 'Break Ke Baad'; there's been so much other stuff going on. </div>
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<br /><div align="justify">I was so saddened by Shammi Kapoor's recent passing, and reading the warm, heartfelt tributes to him brought tears to my eyes. I have grown to like him and his work very much in the past couple of years, thanks in large part to reading <a href="http://www.memsaabstory.wordpress.com/">Memsaab's blog</a>. I've discovered that in his performances, he was able to portray joy, wonder, romance, deep emotion... all those things that make up cinematic magic, so very beautifully. I've also learnt a lot about the full, adventurous life he lived - the mischief he got up to, the people he loved and worked with, and his passion for what he did. I have only seen a handful of his movies, and now I'm looking forward to seeing a lot more. I've also been watching his <a href="http://www.youtube.com/show/shammikapoorunplugged?s=1">lovely Youtube videos</a>, which I would highly recommend... they are just so full of his charm and warmth. They sure don't make 'em like that anymore... <em>truly a legend</em>. I will definitely be doing some more posts about Shammi in the coming months.</div>
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<br /><div align="justify">I also wanted to share this lovely quote from the gorgeous Leena Chandavarkar (who co-starred with Dharmendra in <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067651/">'Rakhwala' (1971)</a> (quite a fun movie if you ever come across it) about Dharam's kindness to her when her husband lay dying in hospital in the late 70s:</div>
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<br /><div align="justify"><em><strong>"At a time like this, I will never forget Dharmendra. There are some people who have godliness in them and I think he is one of them. While Siddharth was fighting for his life in hospital, the doctors said he needed a life saving drug, which would be able to digest protein. I don’t know what made me call Dharmendra. Even as a young girl, I had always thought of him as strong and dependable. Prakashji answered the phone and immediately put her husband on. While I was trying to explain how serious Siddharth was, he said, ‘Never mind that, just spell out the name of the drug and I will try and get it as fast as possible’. The drug was Tracilol, only available in London. I don’t know how he managed it but within a few hours, he got it for me. Siddharth died 11 months later. But at that time, Dharmendra really went out of his way. I shall always remain grateful to him."</strong></em></div>
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<br /><div align="justify"><em>Source: <a href="http://cineplot.com/leena-chanavarkar-memories/">http://cineplot.com/leena-chanavarkar-memories/</a> (the entire interview is a great read - thanks to my friend Ang for sharing.)</em></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-59301972279291647872011-06-30T10:27:00.001+01:002011-06-30T10:36:14.112+01:00IIFA ROCKS!!!<div align="justify"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="color:#000000;">I’ve just returned to Lagos, the crazy city I call home, from an AMAZING 5-city working vacation that featured lots of quality time with special friends and family, time spent learning new skills, some sightseeing, and a few days experiencing the sheer, glorious madness of IIFA 2011 in Toronto. IIFA crowned a whirlwind of crazy, frenetic activity for me, and it was SO memorable.</span></span> </span><br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><span style="color:#000000;"></span><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623752074226208242" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicYpvhkE7z71vr8VgIk87TXsF-KcUjh70bGVDea6Urd0ec7dTsD67Vt1YcYXaiMIsi3W1lS7B2VmyDofqSwdKZnFpLzEwMnmtlEwFKGYnCUB0NiD-tgbFgn9PiUitSPso1lu4-/s400/P1080923.JPG" border="0" /> </div><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB">Although I left <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" /><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Toronto</st1:place></st1:city> right before the big awards night on Saturday, I was able to attend the IIFA Rocks event on Friday night, which simply rocked!! I was also able to meet some of my fellow SRK fans from Twitter </span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB">(which was very special), and to spend some time watching stars go by at the Fairmont Royal York hotel, where all the Bollywood stars stayed during the IIFA festivities. I saw so many of them, and I have to say they all looked pretty great! Boman Irani looked so tall and handsome! Ranveer Singh was so warm and friendly with the fans. Mahie Gill is tiny… and she was shy, or nervous, or something. Sonu Sood is an absolute HUNK (fanning self). And so on…. </span></span></span><br /></p><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><br /></p></span><span style="font-family:georgia;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623759845927881282" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwPTVF5npmWc6BWDeWVEBZHw358WkBU5Qi0iX-de4fy20-kdjDmqDLcuDtVIn9HvGkZGcHXYEmfxwtDnRqcRPAJ0duiO5lQjR3PWdmc7KUroay_VPKlgDwKWej7yC1fcet-8Po/s400/P1080859.JPG" border="0" /> <br /><p align="center"></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;color:#000000;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB">Please don’t ask me what these acrobats were about, because I don’t remember. Pretty cool though.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p></span></i></b><br /></span></p></span></span><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;">I’m sure some <a href="http://www.totallyfilmi.com/">of</a> <a href="http://www.bethlovesbollywood.blogspot.com/">the</a> <a href="http://www.shellsbollyworld.blogspot.com/">other</a> <a href="http://www.filmigirl.blogspot.com/">Bollybloggers</a> that attended the IIFA events in Toronto will have lots to share on their blogs, mostly about the awards night and the red carpet party with Shah Rukh Khan and Vivek Oberoi on Friday night (which I hear was amazing), but I figure</span></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;"> there won’t be too many blog posts about the IIFA Rocks event (since most people were at the aforementioned SRK/VO party that night)… so here I am, sharing my impressions and pictures of IIFA Rocks…. </span></span></p><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"></p><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;">(<i><strong>Warning</strong>: I will probably use the word ‘amazing’ about a gazillion times in this post. Bear with me please; sometimes it’s the only word that fit</i>s<i>!</i>)</span></span><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;color:#000000;"><br /><br /></p><br /><div align="justify"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623749888178196658" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIRYrOqUzUvJ1L0P2v6U57IynXvIef31nOEGNcsrZ7thsoeCWXiUASHSQQ2tIPAvleTaSbt9Nuqwcs6ZRqjhscgRxVhMX7szdpTLXt14Wp8RuqyJm_j5JmgvUAbQzeJc3mF6gt/s400/P1080874.JPG" border="0" /></div><br /><p align="center"><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:78%;"><em><strong>The massive crowd at Ricoh Coliseum</strong></em></span></span></p><br /><p align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;">IIFA Rocks had something for everyone – great fashion, stars aplenty, music, dance, and even awards – the IIFA technical awards (sound, editing, costume design, special effects etc) were handed out (the big winners were ‘Robot’, ‘Band Baaja Baaraat’ and ‘Dabangg’). The technical awards were handed out mostly by actors – Anil Kapoor, Anupam Kher, Shah Rukh Khan, Bipasha Basu, Malaika Arora Khan, Arbaaz Khan, Sonu Sood... and many more. And there were many other Bollywood celebs that just came to watch the festivities.</span></span><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;color:#000000;"><br /><br /></p><br /><div align="justify"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623757597512972562" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5S4GDYMyAsJXBxd_l2uJeHNGl0_UvupFqrluKOApzM0y3l1SuS3DyhxxUgFuH7nzq284Nh24A7Go5luUo0b44J1KL3xT98_X43IqCRo_oZW_IuO-cpnfVvGWbq4afp7Y0c_-Z/s400/P1080953.JPG" border="0" /></div></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;color:#000000;"><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="center"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:78%;">Malaika ‘Munni’ Arora Khan and hubby Arbaaz prepare to present an award as the hosts of the night look on</span></span></i></b></p></span></span><br /><br /><p align="justify"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="color:#000000;">It was a pretty funny (and telling) moment when Shah Rukh Khan was making his way backstage to prep for presenting an award, and at the same time, it was announced that Niharika Khan had won the award for Best Costume Design for ‘Band Baaja Baaraat’... as Niharika was making her way to the stage to receive her award, she got pretty close to King Khan (who of course was pretty close to the front as well), and of course his hulking bodyguards, thinking she wanted to talk to or touch SRK, asked her to step aside. The poor lady tried to explain that she had just won an IIFA award, but they just moved on. A nice little dinner party anecdote for her!</span></span></span><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></p><br /><div align="justify"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623759876683929922" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQWzHIp2Ss8WlFLgXHnccvmJIncg9LJQZpAq5qWH0tlK0M5Y1i433oqCAJlaoHz8XHuSFtVRYCr-QmUS7sFljCe5xmHlXD-A6vhHkoWElyhL4zLlFN1w9VomSU2mUVbQfjE93c/s400/P1080827.JPG" border="0" /></div></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;color:#000000;"><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="center"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:georgia;">Can you spot SRK, Rakesh Roshan, Hema Malini, Esha Deol, Riteish Deshmukh, Genelia D’Souza in this picture?<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i></b></p></span></span><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="color:#000000;">There was a huge crowd at Toronto’s Ricoh Coliseum, and everyone was super-excited, dressed sooo stylishly, and raring to go!! Some stars were already seated, and every time a star’s face showed up on the big screen, a roar would go up from the audience. Some celebs, usually (I noticed) those who aren’t exactly on the A-list right now (e.g. Ameesha Patel, Zayed Khan) got VERY excited when the crowds cheered for them, while others (e.g. SRK – who of course got the loudest cheers, Riteish Deshmukh, Anil Kapoor) accepted their cheers and acknowledged the crowds more graciously. <em>Fun!</em></span></span> </span><br /><br /></p><br /><div align="justify"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span></span><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623757613984569554" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggo2dDqP51vVJZHrO8hhSc4jTaG8tsg37nvvUg-q2LHE_GCsDIuGRoTmJPn24JTF-ymUN12YiZgC-HItWsKRu4RCpbZXrl9NzUXYVDGxMWrydNzTELHO6zNlUUDSfmcM_7WDnW/s400/P1080939.JPG" border="0" /> </div><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="center"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;font-size:78%;" >Anil Kapoor, he who never gets older</span></i></b></span></span></span></p><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB">I was impressed by how well-organised the event was. It did start late, but not ridiculously so, and once it got started, it went like clockwork. Great planning by Wizcraft and great execution by their team and all the sponsors, participants and volunteers. Although I was in the cheap seats, I had a pretty great view of both the stage and the stars in </span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB">their front row seats. I looked at the big screen from time to time, but not a whole lot, as I could actually see pretty much everything clearly from where I was sitting, which was great. I loved my seat, and even though I kinda wished I could have shared the experience with a friend or two, I had an amazing time dancing hard to the Bollywood beats and cheering for all the stars.</span></span></span><br /></p><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623762226644255250" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZP6oQvJdCE8_QBajNOP_hfcaUvzPahlH8d7YHAkM3kPfmBHGoLnHE_U6sIYc8ihWRqM7zFgEGQ2Il7vSQwDQHnvY2XLpzk1LJ3d_65oaj8c7dXTV4eBRfJNioqyohsziw_tAY/s400/P1080961.JPG" border="0" /></span></span></p><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;">Karan Johar and Anushka Sharma were introduced as the night’s hosts, and I think they both did an outstanding job. We all know Karan Johar is an excellent host with his ready wit and good sense of humour – I think he could probably present a show like this in his sleep, but Anushka’s eloquence and poise was a revelation. Just as with her first onscreen performance in ‘Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi’, there was no indication that she was doing this for the first time. Her confidence was supreme, she read off the prompter without looking like she was reading off a prompter, she adlibbed nicely here and there, and she generally did a great job of effortlessly complementing Karan… and she looked absolutely gorgeous doing it!! </span></span><br /></p><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623762217898416642" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 284px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEnzzTw6W1x2Zgi_9cmrgfw6YSLJ2OeJWbSfrfXSIt3P881l0rn2jTYFzU-yL-_f0l7hFo4B5t0TW0ZKTFjtIVaducmWA7UqjE-1FzK4zxBhUoFp0uzEoEO-LpeXcdv8UMqzt6/s400/P1080917.JPG" border="0" /></p><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;color:#000000;"><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="center"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><strong><span style="font-size:78%;">Anushka and her winning smile<o:p></o:p></span></strong></span></span></i></p></span></span><br /><br /><p align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;">Saif Ali Khan was originally pegged to host, and I personally am glad he couldn’t make it and got replaced by Karan and Anushka. They made a great pair. I liked when Anushka teased Karan over the fact that ‘Band Baaja Baaraat’ won more technical awards than ‘My Name Is Khan’, and when Karan joked that we were making him and Anushka feel irrelevant by ignoring them in order to scream whenever a star’s face was displayed on the big screens.</span></span><br /><br /></p><br /><div align="justify"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span></span><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623757618541321266" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI0BbiX6OxlCaYYa81RIjGl60ch8IP5wCp8ufxqNb_glW-IdsDVG2ts17ambVVhmZqFmdMF9-WPi4Hjko1Ys6l7sjma0esIRpULf8CU3LU6sCK7k39FFDDuyOUV6oP3LC0fgQJ/s400/P1080916.JPG" border="0" /> </div><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;color:#000000;"><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: center" align="center"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-size:78%;">I love the funny faces here!<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p></span></span><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;">Composers and musicians Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, who had a great band and were <i>amazing</i> performers throughout the show, kicked things off nicely with a stonking performance of ‘Laung da Lishkara’ from ‘Patiala House’. Up next was Jermaine Jackson with a spirited tribute to his late brother Michael. I loved every minute of this, from ‘Can You Feel It’ to ‘Scream’ to ‘Wanna Be Startin’ Something’. I could not stop dancing and singing along – I <strong>LOVE</strong> those songs!! Then Sonu Niigaam joined Jermaine onstage and they sang a moving duet, an original song written by Sonu. I thought it was beautiful and very nicely done….</span></span><br /></p><br /><div align="justify"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span></span><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623759854744792946" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU7xlvOwhW6WPqykHkbsMlFcXXw9mKtlWTgH7oT1XJc-BsP9i8ZIrak1HaDMvRD_CYQmJ3iIpkyJm4xveTtGKyUM9RZ6MHDRNbBmJpCgKOSGQ52az7vi-mkmupp_uizPWDZset/s400/P1080842.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623759862613732098" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglf7LNyzkrRcAT_K-qSYC0nsUjxmkRD4GJ_FJjmIp0_ctES78LinALSPyY_MBtFbPBNt7haha29WWLgwiPX710cBOTMEHGnHO4FcdGgnWDuUeH8ttATk4m3ss2WyE1GRFTkKC-/s400/P1080841.JPG" border="0" /> </div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;">The first fashion collection of the night belonged to the talented Rajesh Pratap Singh, who showcased a beautiful collection of clean-cut, extremely wearable clothes… lots of black (which I love), beautiful tailoring, strong lines, some glitz, and distinctive prints (vibrant but ‘grown folk’ stuff). I loved his use of earth colours and a rose motif which should have looked a bit played-out but actually looked fresh and young. I also loved his dark, long velvet jackets and coats on both men and women. Stunning collection! His models walked to ‘Main Doon Hon’, ‘Rock On’ and ‘Aaj Ki Raat’ (one of my faves!) performed by S-E-L, and I loved it. </span></span><br /></p><br /><br /><div align="justify"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623762202362321890" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmemj1VxQ7PiWFmr9xqcYI2mFXOUTxcDg_VxFuZiE2HUqR6NbOCR0dEwXyA4Wa9DyBDJJjkQeOZdFUAFEHBeE9Ap2Ffi2sBoVGOnc1tJKRREsExbJx-yw9Nsrqa0SsUhZhwtRP/s400/P1080860.JPG" border="0" /></div><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;">I also loved the diversity of his models – it was great to see models of different races wearing his designs – and thankfully, this was a theme throughout the night. His showstoppers were some cricketer guy (Brett something or other, I think), Rahul Khanna and Zayed Khan. Rahul seemed kinda bashful up there on the ramp, which was so adorable and cute (aawww!!!), and Zayed was flamboyant and all over the place, which was also cute in a very different way. They looked great!</span></span></p><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;">At this point Bipasha Basu walked pretty close to my part of the arena, looking <strong>fierce</strong> in a TINY (and I do mean TINY) sequined black dress – and it struck me that, like her dress, Ms Basu is pretty tiny – I mean, you see her in pictures and onscreen, and she looks a lot more... substantial... than she actually is... she is pretty compact really, but her body is absolute perfection – all those hours in the gym have definitely paid off! Another tiny woman, Dia Mirza, performed next – her dancing was not great, but she had loads of charm, energy and such a fun attitude onstage... I really enjoyed her performance.</span></span><br /></p><br /><br /><div align="justify"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623749908312217442" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcf1RrVC_8Egt9AykdbhAB0eHE8kG5-IMsvpIwNsjREkGt9tgV28abd3r_fUxPCjf0WI2ZrkEwBO1tY8ACfwVDwacWrNN4JY5lgfavnU33kJIfCd2A95loHKDCwpku7VhRBsb5/s400/P1080899.JPG" border="0" /></div><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><span style="color:#000000;"><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: center" align="justify"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:78%;">Tiny Bipasha in her tiny black dress</span></span></span></i></b><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;"></span></p><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: center" align="justify"><span style="font-family:georgia;">The next fashion segment belonged to American retailer The Bay, one of the sponsors of the IIFA Rocks event. The clothes were predictably lovely and classic, and the models walked to S-E-L’s ‘Uff Teri Adda’ and ‘Paint It Red’. The only real surprise of the collection was the addition of a few luxe pieces that looked really glam... the final one being a glittery column worn to perfection by Neha Dhupia, who was the perfect showstopper.</span></span></span></span><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><br /><br /></p><br /><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623749894362667554" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNL1fjIVfzcMOj1SeNbuUBib6A3qBp5w-Ns0_N942eZ9NUWrAob1CmlPj_SMmWYxHZRMeW8n3QJkQJIJ2V8jLxCmznOwC5k6G5VHUJRFuIBX9ASNe9r6lAZYBjx1_CPgIaMIT-/s400/P1080883.JPG" border="0" /></span></span><br /><br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623749903038052674" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzWIzCw35vdPioWugc-XEuEr3UDjeA_kFjrh1-Cs7wA8YdtP_jmuK3_5nvl7PwH4TzXKgrirsuuR0f5fFEtpMz9XSNwUyvlwVn1YSt9zLi2K4lPJFvCYiasQDcks1NVwWXBYNR/s400/P1080886.JPG" border="0" /><span style="font-family:georgia;"></span></span></span></div><br /><br /><div align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;"><span style="font-family:georgia;">Up next was one of my favourite parts of the night – an energetic romp of a performance by RDB and Mindy Kaur (along with some fab backup dancers). I just LOVED Mindy’s fierce attitude, energy and cool confidence... she really brought the heat. They performed remixes of ‘Kambakkht Ishq’, ‘Yamla Pagla Deewana’ and some other song I don’t know. It was so much fun... I just could not stop dancing!</span></span></span><br /><br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623762211080996770" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUVh33bPMLIprzGldDqBVu0vi28l205k_N18pUiyccMSTpT8qJyEfB5CD06nQ9jpP_Ppj4bTFaoaCFEL_JiepsSCLuS4PuCKDCoqAF-gawSSlvwVrup0rbMyrsXDx9-j_mPjc_/s400/P1080903.JPG" border="0" /></span></div><br /><div align="justify"><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: center" align="center"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;font-family:georgia;font-size:78%;" >The fabulous Mindy Kaur and RDB</span></i></b></p><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: center" align="center"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;font-family:georgia;font-size:9;" ><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p><span style="font-family:georgia;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623749918520463170" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ629b7D-OWVc3o47HSFY_cApD6A3sNfDs3kKScMA7kzfrTMHDShG6Kg34RcgKQ6M7rTW6u-xO-MlPQVaF1HcakykENUAmfmByQ-zJ-GnAVscLYe4SPYT5X7XzgYontrMnp1RR/s400/P1080907.JPG" border="0" /></span></div><br /><div align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;">There was a very moving performance by Salim-Sulaiman of their original songs from the upcoming movie ‘Azaan’, which will star some newbie Sachin something-or-other. The movie did not look particularly great from the trailer, but I loved the performance of the songs – really lovely. And wow... Salim Merchant has SUCH a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">beautiful</i> voice – I didn’t really realise that until I heard him sing live.</span></span><br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><span style="color:#000000;"></span><span style="font-family:georgia;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623752065462157362" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE9iuME3vov-SvExp-wp0oMBIQdb6-aUEBqIABElYflvvZSzOXOjjjp7_CHT9PhBGwslwiy7UOjkB8t-30u0oFH-u8ISzIP_g-cd5q91YlgmryG9LZQLO2NcaSNMzlh_12Zdd-/s400/P1080920.JPG" border="0" /> </span></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;">Up next was a collection of jewelry by Vikram Phadnis for Gitanjali... it was very ornate stuff, beautiful, but I felt I had seen it all before... then Sonakshi livened things up for me as the gorgeous and poised showstopper. I love her regal carriage... all the other models just seemed to pale in comparison. She was utterly fantastic. When Karan and Anushka came back, Karan commented on how beautiful Sonakshi was, and I am pretty sure I hearda tiny trace of envy in Anushka’s voice as she agreed with him!</span></span><br /></p><br /><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623752079657310530" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFIMl8loArD5ioKTjWL71thBssAiaQjBV0fnMzYIvORTx6phn0SVbnoSBwel6nrLpN2jwjiiiY3wRcFLvYqv9zj87a5hiYYIkRUYWeKaMlAjWfmmGfeeFprsZLha3OVk8TFrLN/s400/P1080933.JPG" border="0" /></span></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="center"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><strong><em><span style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:78%;">Sonakshi's regal posture is evident even from this angle<o:p></o:p></span></span></em></strong></span></span></span></p><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623752087451172226" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB4dQT1QrLG94Kbm_LYTjdm0fgIhYuN3XIs6NmsoO0aNm_0BJntVhkHG7oL9dfICC1u1uEw47w6VKZIoXedhGKgwGoCzbjkZNQ81v4-ThlHpOwm3Yk9XP5BZe3rV-GGxvOAHk4/s400/P1080934.JPG" border="0" /></span></p><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="font-family:georgia;">Up next was Sonu Niigaam, who had amazing energy onstage along with that gorgeous voice – he really is a great live performer and I enjoyed every moment of it... I didn’t know most of the songs he did, but I loved it all... and when he did ‘Tumse Milke’ from ‘Main Hoon Na’, I was in ecstasy!</span></span></span> </p><br /><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623752096625886322" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiMMnLVveSoUCtgmqLvZJJ1-Umm5Sjj76xP0MCe_QM2aZ4V1H7bgWMc3rCSt1Lf9Pev2y_PwkBxt4iMNXAALlb82WVjJS6eX1E1lqsH06SJBb7TwT_m7geBLYc71YwEAh8DnQH/s400/P1080943.JPG" border="0" /></span></div><span style="color:#000000;"></span><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;">Mallika Sherawat was next with a smokin’ hot performance... she was sultry, flirty and fun, and I enjoyed it....</span></span></p><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><br /></p><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623757587252578770" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 336px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ6omXV_l8SB4OCbc6f_MU4YNj1Qg0BPUPNH5yF1WXsx9QFAOZvDRjCFspsq7HSjwHNp9SXmWHJFRum4P6Gknb3JjL7T_OHnRL07NSCiVMhYKZJGMefPv3FI-PNlGV32bohxKL/s400/P1080959.JPG" border="0" /></span></p><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: center" align="center"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;font-family:georgia;font-size:78%;" >Mallika doing her thang</span></i></b></p><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="font-family:georgia;">.. and then it was time for the final fashion show of the night... by the genius that is Sabyasachi. I love his designs, so I was so excited! This was a beautiful collection... he brought the drama with a collection that was strong, striking, even fierce at times... but still wearable. The clothes were bold but still graceful and feminine... beautiful.</span></span></span><br /></p><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623754917769368114" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqohDYcNdKJIN64j1EbDNdTEkCnS_TML9bCvYA4X5x_Kh2el-Av-FEiytqAaJ53haS0wGvYTbBcab1dm6ee92w9j73Ppze-Pv9SLoUAXDble-ZgYjHRAu6cqV8E_QtRmcXDEWf/s400/P1080976.JPG" border="0" /></span></span> </p><br /><div align="justify"><span style="color:#000000;"></span><span style="font-family:georgia;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623754910981839506" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2f3iUZG-TNujltwGXT0rYulP4rfJi3Ltqvtk3Eep5-YYwrw4zrYcr5kslUXnejYUT9kQHD2gXI3FOHhh1p-BSncX1oEsqgLMH3-v0p0Ev_pvN3i06MJ_sL0vTL63Vy0EOE14R/s400/P1080981.JPG" border="0" /> </span></div><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;">I love the way Sabyasachi mixes bold colour blocking and stripes with delicate, elegant florals and some really intricate, rich detailing... and somehow he manages to pull it all together and make it look coordinated and so unique. As S-E-L and their band performed ‘Kajra Re’, the final showstopper of the night, a dazzling Bipasha, who has lost NONE of her modelling mojo (the other models simply seemed to fade away), sashayed out onto the stage to crown the collection and the event. There was a funny moment when Sabyasachi came out and Bips tried to dance with him but he adamantly (and obviously unhappily) refused. Poor Bips – it was a little awkward, as she returned to dancing by herself! </span></span><br /><br /><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623754902847803378" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6aCksrra6wjac0UZr4DWsD3-FEwAAAqI28o6DNRhuJxk2aDFR0ci8xcYDmMdg3uzqLsy4B7a2aOcI7BaRczXJRFWvkeF-9DXzRsU0TfoKVRK86cdKGH7xoygji5Kjxf6A7G3S/s400/P1080994.JPG" border="0" /></span></div><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="color:#000000;"><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: center" align="center"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:78%;">Bips shows 'em how it’s done<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i></b></p></span></span><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="font-family:georgia;color:#000000;">S-E-L and their band ended the night perfectly with a rousing performance of ‘Jhoom Barabar Jhoom’... all the night’s performers jumped onstage and ‘jhoomed’ away... so much fun... and then it was all over....</span></span><br /></p><br /><br /><div align="justify"><span style="color:#000000;"></span><span style="font-family:georgia;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623754896543181922" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGXn3YX58pqGVolt2dM5LJhuA0FKWXFFo4H7E2tYeYsPL2UQpyBh-7HimqFJXjefxLlsJ4lY6t0IxtPk_PQti5Qq76tvzGlnwMxmasC4pdHR8kR6e3KSDElmEbSLXgBViTsuWq/s400/P1080998.JPG" border="0" /> </span></div><br /><br /><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623754893653906226" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwB3sVbfj80oo8OLvHGm9-A79EYvwQ-kpGgtnYSey7gJqns0NNIZMEr2mWQC9Ww22rz9N2xW1Gn9W15qRW2Tif6LaeOdk1jVzzqJ3B6b0f7JP1KwIlgk53s3n-VIOQH9e-MSEZ/s400/P1090003.JPG" border="0" /></span></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="TEXT-JUSTIFY: inter-ideograph; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-family:georgia;">I had such a fabulous time! <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB">What a night!!!</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p></span></span><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><br /></span><div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-58764841768168485462011-04-15T20:55:00.007+01:002011-06-29T17:21:04.402+01:00STYLISH? QUI? MOI??<div align="justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><em>(Eek... I wrote this post AGES ago but for some reason never posted it, and just realised now that it was still sitting in my drafts...)</em></span><br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><a href="http://bollystalgia.blogspot.com/">Amaluu</a>, who writes the wonderful <a href="http://bollystalgia.blogspot.com/">Bollystalgia!</a> blog, very kindly and graciously nominated me for a Stylish Blogger Award (thanks <a href="http://bollystalgia.blogspot.com/">Amaluu</a>!). There are many things I enjoy about blogging, but by far the best thing has to be the opportunity to get to know so many great bloggers like <a href="http://bollystalgia.blogspot.com/">Amaluu</a> and to share ideas and opinions with them. </div><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623676415448606930" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfcsptQH_dETcKO4hN5hIGM_VXGw5UJd108_G-2ArasML_iWxnA0mfi0H_FGcMKTR5uTT3-paEevK8iHvl6QwA9y9l9108BJAlGaKo_bok2YcOE_rpSV9KXvsyz0I86fWD7olF/s400/stylish.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><div align="justify">I don't blog very often these days, but even when I find myself taking long breaks from this blog, what inevitably brings me back is always the desire to share something with and learn something from this richly diverse group of bloggers who always manage to evoke raucous laughter, wild imaginings, deep thought, and so much more, in me.</div><br /><div align="justify"><br /></div><br /><div align="justify">Anyway, on to the Stylish Blogger tag... I get to share 7 facts about myself, and then I get to pass this on to 7 more stylish bloggers. So, facts about me:</div><br /><div align="justify"><br /></div><br /><div align="justify">1. I love to drive, it's one of my very favourite things to do, but I have an absoloutely <em>terrible</em> sense of direction while driving. I can drive to the same place everyday for weeks and still get lost every single time. I am also not a very careful driver - I get into a lot of scrapes on the road.<br /></div><br /><div align="justify">2. I absolutely <strong>crave</strong> adventure and new experiences, and will try just about anything once - with a few exceptions (see 4. below).</div><br /><br /><div align="justify">3. I am grossed out by a number of things, but have only two true phobias... frogs and buttons (yes, <em>buttons</em> - don't ask). They make me shudder with fright and disgust.</div><br /><br /><div align="justify">4. I am one of those annoying people who won't give up on a task (or a hobby, or an interest, or a project, or even a silly spreadsheet) once they really get stuck in. I have learned (the hard way) to be careful about what I get myself into, because chances are, once I'm in, I'm really, <em>really</em> in, and it might be a long time before I get out (especially if I'm really good at it and/or really enjoy it). I can get totally wrapped up in stuff very easily.</div><br /><br /><div align="justify">5. I am naturally very shy, although I've gotten <em>much</em> better at handling it over the years. I used to be <em>painfully</em> shy, now I'm just shy. Once I get really comfortable with people, though, I get very goofy and silly.<br /></div><br /><div align="justify">6. I almost always root for the underdog (except when the underdog is insupportable for reasons of principle) - I just don't see the point of supporting the person with the most supporters.</div><br /><br /><div align="justify">7. My greatest passions are travel, writing and music. To pay the bills, these days I am a lawyer who somehow got roped into the rustic (but often very interesting) world of shipping. But I intend to live off my passions eventually.<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify"><em>Phew</em>... that was tough... now to the easy part... there are SO many blogs that I love and consider extremely stylish and well-written, but since I'm posting this so late, I think most of them will already have received this award, plus I guess this tag is really old now... so for some super-stylish blogs, please look to the left - I have lots of amazing blogs listed in my sidebar, and I <strong>love </strong>them all!</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-63873493516265776422011-03-31T14:43:00.008+01:002011-03-31T20:03:20.024+01:005 DEOLS IN A LIFTThis is my last <a href="http://shahrukhislove.blogspot.com/2011/03/let-wild-rumpus-begin-all-you-need-to.html"><strong>Deol Dhamaka</strong></a> post, which makes me a little sad! <br /><br />A stunning testament to just how much the Deols are loved in blogland, Deol Dhamaka has been a huge, rip-roaring success, and there are over 100 (posts) <a href="http://www.delicious.com/bollystalgia/DeolDhamaka"><strong>HERE</strong></a> to show for it. I have been having such a blast reading them all, and have learnt all kinds of cool/interesting stuff, so I would definitely recommend that you check the links out. <br /><br />This post is in the style of <a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2009/06/encounter-in-lift.html"><strong>my other elevator post</strong></a>, but this time everyone involved in the encounter is a Deol… so I think the answers will be a lot more obvious this time! <br /><br /><strong>D1 (to D2):</strong> Hey, where are you going? <br /><br /><strong>D2:</strong> My stylist called in sick this morning, so I have to dash out to the hair salon. There’s this place in Bandra that’s been getting rave reviews, so I’m going to try them out. Keep your fingers crossed for me; you know how much value I place on my hair. I’m hoping all goes well. Where are <em>you</em> off to? <br /><br /><strong>D1:</strong> Where else? The gym. I’ve been slacking off a bit these days; I need to get back in shape. <br /><br /><strong>D3:</strong> But I thought you weren’t doing action films anymore… does it really matter? <br /><br /><strong>D1 (looking around in mock bewilderment):</strong> Did someone just speak?<br /><br /><strong>D4:</strong> Gosh, no need to be so rude to D3! <br /><br /><strong>D1 (laughing):</strong> Listen, as much as I love you, I don’t need a little kid telling me how to behave. Go back to your little island in the Mediterranean or wherever it is you’ve been shooting your cute little film. <br /><br /><strong>D4:</strong> Hmmm… you sound a little… bitter. <br /><br /><strong>D1:</strong> Well, that’s because I probably am a little bitter. Let me just make one thing clear to you, D4, no-one can look after your interests as well as family can, and… <br /><br /><strong><em>The lift door slides open, and in walks D5. Everyone in the lift falls silent, except for…</em></strong> <br /><br /><strong>D3:</strong> I am <strong>SO</strong> glad you’re here! D1 is being so rude to me! No one talks to me the way he does; I get respect everywhere I go because I demand it... but D1 is just <strong>SO</strong> disrespectful!! Arrgh!! What have I ever done to deserve this? <br /><br /><strong>D5:</strong> You should all be ashamed of yourselves… you are all adults now and I expect you to act maturely. <br /><br /><strong>D2:</strong> B...b…but I wasn’t involved!! I wasn’t mean to D3. I am just going to the salon. I didn’t say anything… I just want to go get my hair done… it’s... it’s just so stressful having it in this… <strong>unstyled</strong> state!! <br /><br /><strong>D4</strong> <strong>(laughing):</strong> Don’t be such a baby, D2! <br /><br /><strong>D5:</strong> Yes, don’t be a baby! <strong>GROW UP!!! </strong><br /><br /><strong><em>D2 promptly bursts into tears. D1 tries to comfort D2…</em></strong> <br /><br /><strong>D1:</strong> Don’t cry dear! I have just received a great new film script to produce, and I have cast you in the lead role. It’s a fantastic story – there’s action, romance, comedy… plus Anil has already agreed to direct. Come on, cheer up, cheer up! <br /><br /><strong>D3:</strong> Is there a part in there for me?! My career needs revival too!! <br /><br /><strong>D1:</strong> I’m sorry, did someone just say something?! D4, is D5 STILL TRYING TO SPEAK TO ME??!! <strong>I AM GETTING REALLY FED UP!! <br /><br /></strong><strong><em>Faced with D1’s frightening anger, D3 bursts into tears of distress, and is comforted by D5…</em></strong> <br /><br /><strong>D5:</strong> Don’t cry dear, don’t cry… I will pay for you to take a shopping trip to Europe, and… and… I will also pay for you to take another romantic holiday with your… <em>err</em>… friend… look don’t cry, everything will be ok…. <br /><br /><strong><em>D4 looks at D1 consoling a sobbing D2, and D5 petting a weeping D3, and mutters in disgust:</em></strong> <br /><br /><br /><strong>D4:</strong> Damn... why the hell wasn’t I born into a cooler family?!<div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-75679047708892821452011-03-29T00:19:00.003+01:002011-03-29T00:27:59.049+01:00Some Dharam pics...<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR3HrQlSpVz56xodQsx50ujdIlMi8-b3mTitkjc_li278yhAK1U2hBADLCaxJZhg85TZ_6qpw2IBteG948d725NBFvwqWyShbxQrTqKXAJdxNwwDQjHPhol0kkMLxk-hibHZ1g/s1600/Dharam+picspam+2.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 364px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 455px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589275409474192642" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR3HrQlSpVz56xodQsx50ujdIlMi8-b3mTitkjc_li278yhAK1U2hBADLCaxJZhg85TZ_6qpw2IBteG948d725NBFvwqWyShbxQrTqKXAJdxNwwDQjHPhol0kkMLxk-hibHZ1g/s400/Dharam+picspam+2.jpg" /></a> <br /><div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-17264638262991240642011-03-27T21:26:00.003+01:002011-03-27T21:43:57.489+01:00STAY JUST A LITTLE WHILE LONGER...I really do wish that March could linger just a little longer... <a href="http://shahrukhislove.blogspot.com/2011/03/let-wild-rumpus-begin-all-you-need-to.html">Deol Dhamaka</a>, a month-long celebration of all things Deol, from Bobby's curls to Sunny's dancing to Esha's divatude to Dharmendra's kickass-ness to Abhay's edge (and everything in between)... has been absolutely amazing. If you haven't had a chance to catch up with all the Deol-related goodness, there are currently almost <strong>90</strong> posts (<em>and counting!</em>) that you can check out at Bollystalgia's <a href="http://www.delicious.com/bollystalgia/DeolDhamaka">links page</a>. It's just been <strong>SO</strong> good to read great write-ups by brilliant bloggers on an wide variety of films and topics related to the Deols. I will have one or two more posts up for Deol Dhamaka before the month runs out, but for now, I would just like to thank <a href="http://bollystalgia.blogspot.com/">Amaluu</a>, <a href="http://www.shahrukhislove.blogspot.com/">Nesspi</a> and everyone else involved in organising Deol Dhamaka for helping to make my March so memorable and<strong> fun</strong>!<div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-78563124216600210392011-03-17T22:54:00.005+01:002011-03-17T23:33:16.587+01:00Your Inner Deol – A Quiz<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><em><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Disclaimer: This is just a fun quiz... nothing remotely serious intended.</span></em></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"> </p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><strong><em><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">So, which Deol do you identify with the most? Answer these simple questions to find out...</span></em></strong><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l9 level1 lfo1" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">1.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>When it comes to romance, you’re mostly...</strong></span></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l9 level1 lfo1" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">a.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Passionate</span></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo2; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">b.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Shy</span></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo2; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">c.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Complicated</span></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo2; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">d.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Affectionate</span></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo2; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">e.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Uninterested</span></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo2; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;"></span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l9 level1 lfo1" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">2.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>You would describe your dancing as...</strong></span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l10 level1 lfo3; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">a.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Sexy</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l10 level1 lfo3; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">b.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Light-hearted</span></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l10 level1 lfo3; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">c.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Excellent</span></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l10 level1 lfo3; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">d.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Clumsy</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l10 level1 lfo3; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">e.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Fun</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l10 level1 lfo3; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l10 level1 lfo3; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l9 level1 lfo1" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">3.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Your favourite movie genre is...</strong></span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo4; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">a.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Romance</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo4; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">b.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Drama</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo4; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">c.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Action</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo4; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">d.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Thriller</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo4; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">e.<span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"> </span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Noir</span></span></span></span><br /><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l9 level1 lfo1" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">4.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>The first thing you notice about people is their...</strong></span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l7 level1 lfo5; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">a.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Smile</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l7 level1 lfo5; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">b.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Eyes</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l7 level1 lfo5; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">c.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Physique</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l7 level1 lfo5; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">d.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Accent</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l7 level1 lfo5; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">e.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Energy</span><br /><br /><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l9 level1 lfo1" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">5.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>The word that describes your personality best (out of these options) is...</strong></span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l4 level1 lfo6; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">a.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Independent</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l4 level1 lfo6; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">b.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Stubborn</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l4 level1 lfo6; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">c.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Proud</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l4 level1 lfo6; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">d.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Aggressive</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l4 level1 lfo6; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">e.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Self-assured</span><br /></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"></span></o:p></p><br /><br /><br /><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l9 level1 lfo1" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">6.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Family is...</strong></span></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo10; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">a.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>A necessary evil</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo10; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">b.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Everything</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo10; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">c.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>What you make of it</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo10; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">d.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Important</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo10; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">e.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Both a curse and a blessing</span><br /><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l9 level1 lfo1" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">7.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>The decade you would most like to live in is...</strong></span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo7; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">a.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>The 1960s</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo7; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">b.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>The 1970s</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo7; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">c.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>The 1980s</span></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo7; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">d.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>The 1990s</span></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo7; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">e.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>I’d much rather live in the present</span><br /><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l9 level1 lfo1" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">8.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>When choosing a life partner, the most important quality I will look for is...</strong></span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l6 level1 lfo8; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">a.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>All-consuming passion</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l6 level1 lfo8; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">b.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Poise and confidence</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l6 level1 lfo8; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">c.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Physical attractiveness</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l6 level1 lfo8; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">d.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Companionship</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l6 level1 lfo8; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">e.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Why on earth would I look for a life partner?</span><br /><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l9 level1 lfo1" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">9.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Love is...</strong></span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo9; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">a.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Over-rated</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo9; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">b.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Exciting</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo9; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">c.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Private</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo9; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">d.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Pain</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo9; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">e.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Intense</span><br /><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l9 level1 lfo1" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">10.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>What really attracts me to people is their...</strong></span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l8 level1 lfo11; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">a.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Sense of humour... I love a sharp wit</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l8 level1 lfo11; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">b.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Loyalty to family and friends</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l8 level1 lfo11; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">c.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Physical appeal</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt 54pt; mso-list: l8 level1 lfo11; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">d.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Conversation... I have to enjoy spending time with them</span><br /></p><p style="TEXT-INDENT: -18pt; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt 54pt; mso-list: l8 level1 lfo11; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="mso-list: Ignore">e.<span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></span></span>Generosity and kindness</span><br /></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong>Scoring Guide:</strong></span></p><strong><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;"></span></strong><br /><table style="BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; BORDER-LEFT: medium none; MARGIN: auto auto auto 36pt; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; BORDER-TOP: medium none; BORDER-RIGHT: medium none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt" class="MsoTableGrid" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tbody><tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-firstrow: yes"><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 74.35pt; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="99" ><p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraph"><o:p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></o:p></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">A<o:p></o:p></span></b></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">B<o:p></o:p></span></b></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">C<o:p></o:p></span></b></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">D<o:p></o:p></span></b></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">E<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><o:p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></o:p></b></p></td></tr><tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 1"><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 74.35pt; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="99" ><p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">Question 1<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><o:p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></o:p></b></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">5<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">4<o:p></o:p></span></p></td></tr><tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 2"><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 74.35pt; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="99" ><p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">Question 2<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><o:p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></o:p></b></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">5<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">4<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p></td></tr><tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 3"><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 74.35pt; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="99" ><p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">Question 3<o:p></o:p></span></b></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><o:p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></o:p></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">5<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">4<o:p></o:p></span></p></td></tr><tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 4"><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 74.35pt; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="99" ><p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">Question 4<o:p></o:p></span></b></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><o:p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></o:p></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">4<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">5<o:p></o:p></span></p></td></tr><tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 5"><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 74.35pt; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="99" ><p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraph"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">Question 5<o:p></o:p></span></b></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">4<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><o:p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></o:p></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">5<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p></td></tr><tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 6"><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 74.35pt; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="99" ><p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraph"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">Question 6<o:p></o:p></span></b></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><o:p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></o:p></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">5<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">4<o:p></o:p></span></p></td></tr><tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 7"><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 74.35pt; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="99" ><p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraph"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">Question 7<o:p></o:p></span></b></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><o:p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></o:p></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">4<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">5<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p></td></tr><tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 8"><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 74.35pt; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="99" ><p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraph"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">Question 8<o:p></o:p></span></b></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><o:p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></o:p></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">5<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">4<o:p></o:p></span></p></td></tr><tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 9"><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 74.35pt; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="99" ><p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraph"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">Question 9<o:p></o:p></span></b></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">4<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><o:p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></o:p></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">5<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p></td></tr><tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 10; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes"><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 74.35pt; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="99" ><p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-add-space: auto" class="MsoListParagraph"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">Question 10<o:p></o:p></span></b></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">4<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><o:p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></o:p></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">5<o:p></o:p></span></p></td><td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt solid; BORDER-LEFT: #f0f0f0; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; WIDTH: 1cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 5.4pt; BORDER-TOP: #f0f0f0; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt solid; PADDING-TOP: 0cm; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; BACKGROUND-: 5.4ptcolor:transparent;" valign="top" width="38" ><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong>If you scored:</strong></span><br /><br /><br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvgiHgUVoxxq0molnPVdU2UtvLb4la3viYy_GcxkjphAciLGW1qs-J_ljAzcC-p6cD7XCkSsFSRdbJnTnms2xdj-GYF8DGZGdXmbIoBWw8LaQ0mbzrxx4askEfEWvC0GXjnBhC/s1600/glitterati_esha_deol_20060731.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 119px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5585175347422447730" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvgiHgUVoxxq0molnPVdU2UtvLb4la3viYy_GcxkjphAciLGW1qs-J_ljAzcC-p6cD7XCkSsFSRdbJnTnms2xdj-GYF8DGZGdXmbIoBWw8LaQ0mbzrxx4askEfEWvC0GXjnBhC/s200/glitterati_esha_deol_20060731.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong>10-17</strong>: You can relate the most to <strong>Esha</strong>. Fiery and headstrong, you have a mind of your own and aren’t afraid to speak it!</span></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimLZ8gN1s8TnhSMdzJ8rGStaz3dsUUG9o4ycaJGcxDbDqXXRRo2JNxfaMvRfgcXO6qxhf-HhhX6ehYid2HBpUqNGzgYM8X5CXrgfg4yoRe3hhbPLOtBZWUFd9ltQVvfguHQj3D/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-02-27-22h36m48s230_Cartoonizer_2.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5585175355468366322" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimLZ8gN1s8TnhSMdzJ8rGStaz3dsUUG9o4ycaJGcxDbDqXXRRo2JNxfaMvRfgcXO6qxhf-HhhX6ehYid2HBpUqNGzgYM8X5CXrgfg4yoRe3hhbPLOtBZWUFd9ltQVvfguHQj3D/s200/vlcsnap-2011-02-27-22h36m48s230_Cartoonizer_2.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong>18-25</strong>: You are a lot like <strong>Dharmendra</strong>... you like to have fun, but you also have a deep appreciation for the simpler, more enduring things of life....</span></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWOJEzQi2_JE2jZnCV9i1E-626_mwHcDnVCz74S1ZmTUQtf301eotEZ_ogLvEUaxhlvGXrnf4-ljUixjvnKQmhIzAa-d7xTVkZPk8sBOOIZV0UBgi6bx-xQ-pECicRb4ll2Gv-/s1600/original_Bobby-Deol_468ca6484dd0f.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 148px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5585175364307708066" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWOJEzQi2_JE2jZnCV9i1E-626_mwHcDnVCz74S1ZmTUQtf301eotEZ_ogLvEUaxhlvGXrnf4-ljUixjvnKQmhIzAa-d7xTVkZPk8sBOOIZV0UBgi6bx-xQ-pECicRb4ll2Gv-/s200/original_Bobby-Deol_468ca6484dd0f.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong>26-33</strong>: You can relate to <strong>Bobby </strong>– you’re honest, a great friend and fun to be with... and you like to do things with your own unmistakable flair!</span></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju0uhznvHmEJDdxPvGySxxN3ZA6tOUayElV7mPYh10_pbwJy2jc_lWz5OpAQsT4YUKBVo-5yRx8hzzUtktpRiwxn3thrPKRELhb81fU1-HhsbxQCvfDVUqNEnMiRbOmx8iKk8P/s1600/abhay-deol1.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 150px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5585175348081173794" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju0uhznvHmEJDdxPvGySxxN3ZA6tOUayElV7mPYh10_pbwJy2jc_lWz5OpAQsT4YUKBVo-5yRx8hzzUtktpRiwxn3thrPKRELhb81fU1-HhsbxQCvfDVUqNEnMiRbOmx8iKk8P/s200/abhay-deol1.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong>34-41</strong>: Like <strong>Abhay</strong>, you pride yourself on being your own person and choosing not to go down the well-trodden path.</span></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOgnSjj4yISrtaf6aAF2qJ58xItFU-9sN-5W_vlc3qPoNjGMPcxuZQNj9F0wt6ztDI7BFpevpWKUwyO0a3ErLdq-9rXrSYWIixJRQvM3T0xwWfaYcSmWVrP8HxJN5-4Q6CJdQs/s1600/sunnyqq.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 145px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5585175357269146898" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOgnSjj4yISrtaf6aAF2qJ58xItFU-9sN-5W_vlc3qPoNjGMPcxuZQNj9F0wt6ztDI7BFpevpWKUwyO0a3ErLdq-9rXrSYWIixJRQvM3T0xwWfaYcSmWVrP8HxJN5-4Q6CJdQs/s200/sunnyqq.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong>42-50</strong>: You’re like <strong>Sunny</strong> – large-hearted, trusting, but with a secret taste for the unknown.</span></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong><em>I would love to know which Deol you ended up with!! (Apparently, Bobby is my soul brother!!)</em></strong></span></p></div></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-72656053542648748482011-03-14T22:31:00.004+01:002011-03-15T00:07:02.230+01:00THE DECADES OF DHARAM: THE 80s<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">This post is the third part of my ‘Decades of Dharam’ series – here are my posts on the <a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2009/12/5-decades-of-garam-dharam-60s.html">60s</a> and <a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2010/02/decades-of-dharam-70s.html">70s</a>... this part has been a very long time coming because... the 80s were not at all the greatest period of Dharam’s career, in my opinion. I really think that he did his very best work in the 60s and 70s, and although there are some definite gems in his 80s filmography, there seem to be a lot of... less-than-stellar films there too. </span></span></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">Also, I have to say that I am, generally speaking, not a huge fan of 80s Bollywood. Growing up in the 80s in Lagos, Nigeria, I watched (and enjoyed) a few classic 80s Bollywood films... <em>Disco Dancer</em> and<em> Mard</em> are the ones I remember best... they were crazy and ridiculous, but also fun and entertaining. Since re-discovering Bollywood movies in 2005, though... I’ve definitely come across a good number of Hindi films from the 80s that I just adore (both loopy, fun films and more serious ones), but I’ve also seen many that have just... really, really annoyed me. And I’m sure that in seeking to avoid those bad 80s movies, I have also missed out on some of the decade’s better fare. This is why I love bloggers like <a href="http://www.bollystalgia.blogspot.com/">Bollystalgia</a> and <a href="http://bollywooddeewana.blogspot.com/">Bollywood Deewana</a> that celebrate a lot of the fun, freedom and entertainment that 80s Bollywood offers. (There’s a <a href="http://shahrukhislove.blogspot.com/2011/03/in-defence-of-eighties.html">great post </a>on this over on <a href="http://www.shahrukhislove.blogspot.com/">Shahrukh is Love</a>, by the way).</span></span><br /></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">All this means, of course, that I have seen only very few of Dharmendra’s 80s films (although I recently purchased a few more and will probably watch them sometime this year), and so I feel hugely unqualified to write this post (and so will really need you all to help me out in the comments section as always)... but anyway here goes....<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">The 70s ended fairly well for Dharmendra, as I noted in <a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2010/02/decades-of-dharam-70s.html">my previous post in this series</a>... he finally married his paramour, Hema Malini, and although his output declined a little, the films he did make were modestly successful. He started out the 80s with 5 films released in 1980: <em>Chunaoti, </em><a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2006/10/time-to-finally-finish-this-or-part-3.html"><em>The Burning Train</em></a><em>, </em><a href="http://bethlovesbollywood.blogspot.com/2009/08/avoid-yaar-even-though-yaar-in-question.html"><em>Ram Balram</em></a><em>, Shalimar</em> and <em>Ali Baba Aur 40 Chor</em>. (He also made a special appearance in <em>Insaaf Ka Tarazu</em>.) <em>Shalimar</em> and <em>Ali Baba Aur 40 Chor</em> were lavish productions –<em> Shalimar</em>, famously billed as a Hollywood-Bollywood collaboration, featured British actor Rex Harrison, alongside Dharmendra and Zeenat Aman (Zeenat would turn out to be one of Dharmendra’s more frequent leading ladies in the early to mid 80s) in a story about international jewel theft. Despite the enormous expense that apparently went into making the film, it was very poorly received, but has since become something of a cult classic. <em>Ali Baba Aur 40 Chor</em>, based on the popular legend, was another international collaboration – this time with Russian partners. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">Like <em>Shalimar</em> and<em> Ali Baba...</em>, <em>The Burning Train</em> (also known to me as<a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2006/10/time-to-finally-finish-this-or-part-3.html"> <em>The Film That Made Me Fall In Love With Dharmendra</em></a>), was a massive production, an ambitious thriller about a train headed for the destruction and how the lives of 3 men are linked to the train and its fate. I LOVE this movie, and not just because of Dharmendra. It has EXCELLENT music (some of RD Burman’s best work, in my opinion), a great star cast (Dharmendra, Hema Malini, Vinod Khanna, Parveen Babi, Danny Denzongpa, Jeetendra, Neetu Singh, Vinod Mehra and others), and a really good storyline. Unfortunately, Indian audiences seem to have been less than impressed, as the film did not fare particularly well at the box office. It did very well elsewhere though... although I never saw it growing up, it was one of the more popular Bollywood movies in Nigeria back in the 80s – I knew the melody of <em>‘Teri Hai Zameen, Tera Aasman’</em>, the schoolchildren’s prayer from the film, years before I ever saw it myself.</span></span><br /><br /></p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 280px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5584073221266780514" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlST-jY6xWPa7gjVHxteF-L8vcDFDoVTs4Mc6HzrFA9dn094kQIhe-x08PMEnMkdfHZVfZIpAKNW-qs-9CjTEkECPjZ9rSiBAkYO7-rgzyCuu0tcvRIPPMMZwJyLfrMZipunv6/s400/ram-balram.jpg" /><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;"><em><a href="http://memsaabstory.wordpress.com/2009/08/31/why-god-why/">Ram Balram</a></em>, another 1980 release, was notable for reuniting Dharmendra with his Sholay co-star Amitabh Bachchan in a film about two brothers, <em>‘ek chor, ek sipahee’</em>. Dharam played the crook of course, and Amitabh the cop, while Ajit played their abusive and controlling uncle. Zeenat Aman (again) and Rekha co-starred as their love interests. Ram Balram is really not a good film in my opinion, but I found it watchable – mostly for Ajit’s camp performance and the way Dharam and Amitabh hilariously cower away from him at the slightest threat. Quite amusing. The film is a bit boring though, the storyline is full of holes, Dharam and Zeenat’s chemistry falls a little flat, and the attempt to recreate the magic of <em>‘Yeh Dosti’</em> was manful but just not good enough. For what it is though, it’s not too bad.</span></span><br /></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">So, although a couple of Dharmendra’s 1980 releases did not live up to their blockbuster billing, it was a good year for him movie-wise – a good start to the decade. Moving on to 1981, and Dharmendra’s more notable releases included <em>Aas Paas</em> (one of his more noteworthy romances opposite Hema Malini – also notable for having Mohammed Rafi’s last recorded song<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>on its soundtrack) and <em>Professor Pyarelal</em>, which <a href="http://www.memsaabstory.wordpress.com/">Memsaab</a> reviewed wonderfully <em><a href="http://memsaabstory.wordpress.com/2009/12/16/professor-pyarelal-1981/">here</a></em>. He also had a fun, dance-y cameo in the <em>‘John Jaani Janardhan’</em> song from <em>Naseeb</em> (the inspiration for Farah Khan’s<em> ‘Deewangi Deewangi’</em> number from <em>Om Shanti Om</em>).<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">In 1982, Dharmendra’s releases included the kitschy but very entertaining <em>Ghazab</em> (opposite Rekha), wonderfully reviewed by Bollywood Deewana <a href="http://bollywooddeewana.blogspot.com/2009/12/ghazab-1982.html">here</a>, the epic <em>Rajput</em> (with Rajesh Khanna and Vinod Khanna), and the dramas <em>Teesri Aankh</em> (with Shatrughan Sinha and – again – Zeenat Aman) and <em>Badle Ki Aag</em> (with Sunil Dutt, Jeetendra and Reena Roy). <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">Dharmendra’s first release of 1983 was <em>Razia Sultan</em> – notable for many things, one of which is the sensual <em>‘</em><em>Khwaab Bankar Koi Aayega’</em>, picturised on Hema Malini and Parveen Babi with hints of same-sex eroticism. It was also the last film to be written and directed by Kamal Amrohi, who also wrote and directed the classic tragedy <em>Pakeezah</em>. In one of several films in which he had his skin darkened (I might do a post on that sometime...), Dharmendra played Yakut, the dark-skinned, lowborn love interest of Razia Bano (played by Hema Malini). It has been speculated that Kamal Amrohi cast Dharmendra in this role to humiliate him, as payback for Dharam’s treatment of Amrohi’s late wife, legendary actress Meena Kumari (I talked about this briefly in <a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2009/12/5-decades-of-garam-dharam-60s.html">my post </a>on Dharmendra’s 60s career). I have no idea how true or false this is (and I don’t really think Dharmendra was humiliated by his role in <em>Razia Sultan</em>), but I do know that despite the huge budget of this lavish production, and its truly magnificent music, <em>Razia Sultan</em> didn’t resonate with audiences, and was not a hit. </span></span><br /><br /></p><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc-thbwDGQ5gqPEt0j4KNrCP53iBf4SL7vIpEsYSP6jPbnmQ6phHY5O4-M23FTY7obL-5Hvo0fA4ROe1e9kakQLZrCTcsN5RVa7V6b8pFu8LmkOtyE0VSjHrMyca0lG3JMwz3S/s1600/10918513_pro.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 107px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 149px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5584073228385734610" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc-thbwDGQ5gqPEt0j4KNrCP53iBf4SL7vIpEsYSP6jPbnmQ6phHY5O4-M23FTY7obL-5Hvo0fA4ROe1e9kakQLZrCTcsN5RVa7V6b8pFu8LmkOtyE0VSjHrMyca0lG3JMwz3S/s400/10918513_pro.jpg" /></a><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;"><em><a href="http://bollystalgia.blogspot.com/2010/08/sridevipalooza-lions-tigers-amjad-oh-my.html">Jaani Dost</a></em>, reviewed by Bollystalgia <em><a href="http://bollystalgia.blogspot.com/2010/08/sridevipalooza-lions-tigers-amjad-oh-my.html">here</a></em>, was also released in 1983, as was <em>Naukar Biwi Ka</em>, which I really dislike, but which has some really fun songs. I should also mention that in 1983, Dharmendra’s first son launched his career. With <em>Betaab</em>, Sunny had a very successful debut and went on to make loads of well-received movies.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">In 1984, <em>Baazi</em>, a revenge/action flick with Dharmendra, Mithun Chakraborthy and Rekha, was released, and by this time, Dharmendra’s penchant for law enforcement roles in action flicks, which he would take into the 90s as well, was pretty well-established. In 1985, there was the star-studded and very successful <em>Ghulami</em>, in which Dharam, along with Smita Patil, Reena Roy, Naseeruddin Shah, Mithun Chakraborthy and Kulbushan Kharbanda, sparkled in JP Dutta’s debut commercial production. </span></span><br /><br /></p><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWqyDJ29VKfFAHyV9dWep2HwoC5ssIVWI3ccH71BAHgWyqXo3dIb0glNtCRD6zBL_8gqIKxWks0kh0YTHSnw9tBad5VG1pqRTUBxgSShDUKwZPg9wLnqpGvY5z3ZmMrvdbwarB/s1600/Loha-1987-Hindi-Movie-Watch-Online-204x300.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 204px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5584073234350549394" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWqyDJ29VKfFAHyV9dWep2HwoC5ssIVWI3ccH71BAHgWyqXo3dIb0glNtCRD6zBL_8gqIKxWks0kh0YTHSnw9tBad5VG1pqRTUBxgSShDUKwZPg9wLnqpGvY5z3ZmMrvdbwarB/s400/Loha-1987-Hindi-Movie-Watch-Online-204x300.jpg" /></a><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;"><em>Sultanat</em>, which marked Juhi Chawla’s debut, was released in 1986. Apparently, it’s not a great film (I refer again to <a href="http://shahrukhislove.blogspot.com/2011/03/in-defence-of-eighties.html">Ness's awesome post</a>), but I’d still like to see it, just to see Juhi in her first movie, and also because I love Sridevi, and she's in it too. As Dharmendra moved into the late 80s, director Anil Sharma (who would turn out to be quite the Deol favourite) gave him a hit with <em>Hukumat</em> (1987), and his other 1987 releases (including <em>Watan Ke Rakhwale</em>, which reunited Dharam with Sunil Dutt and Mithun) did quite well too. </span></span><br /><br /></p><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkFCkrl6o2wxqB9kpsw-MLqzPYXQVdm6RCBchi1BLyRrrqkOAq93is7Q30zjku_0mt2m4XKlTzNyP_AP_5emKwYD5THhyphenhyphenFlYCDY4-8LzX0a56b6pMci2b98_YziLlQ9dOH3tRe/s1600/hukumat-poster.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 190px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 215px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5584073232421926578" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkFCkrl6o2wxqB9kpsw-MLqzPYXQVdm6RCBchi1BLyRrrqkOAq93is7Q30zjku_0mt2m4XKlTzNyP_AP_5emKwYD5THhyphenhyphenFlYCDY4-8LzX0a56b6pMci2b98_YziLlQ9dOH3tRe/s400/hukumat-poster.jpg" /></a><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">I won’t bother talking much about Dharmendra’s 1988 and 1989 films, especially as I haven't seen them, but from all accounts, they were pretty standard 80s fare and not exactly riveting stuff. One must bear in mind though, that by the mid-to-late 80s our dear Dharam was well into his 50s... and still playing the action hero in many of his films... perhaps that says it all. I haven’t seen most of Dharam’s films from this period (the late 80s), and I really can’t confess to any particular longing to do so, especially since I still have quite a lot of his older work to look forward to. Being a little crazy about the guy though, I suspect that I will eventually get to even the most obnoxious 80s stuff, and I also suspect that I will even find a way to enjoy some of it, just because it’s Dharam. Not just yet, though.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><br /><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">So, we leave Dharam at the end of the 80s in his mid-50s, a little the worse for wear and rough around the edges, and possibly, finally (resilient though he was) starting to feel the after-effects of all that 'life'.... His loyal fans were still enjoying his movies, as shown by his hits in 1987, and he was still churning out movies that were very much in keeping with the cinematic style of 80s Bollywood. </span></span><br /><br /></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">In his personal life, his oldest child had joined him in the movie-making business, and his second wife, Hema Malini, had given birth to two daughters, Esha (born in 1981 – or 1982, depending on the source) and Ahana. By the way, Hema, interestingly, kept acting right through the 80s (unlike many other ‘star wives’) and had a very decent run that decade (especially with her successful, sparky jodi opposite Amitabh Bachchan in films like <em>Naseeb, Satte Pe Satta, Nastik</em> and <em>Desh Premee</em>) which was perhaps not all that surprising – she was still so young, vivacious and beautiful in the 80s, and plenty of people still wanted to watch her. </span></span><br /><br /></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ></span><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">The film I’m picking as my Dharmendra-related reference point for this decade has to be <em>The Burning Train</em>, of course, with a fit, 45 year old Dharam looking years younger and saving lives with noble humility and all the calloused sensitivity of a broken heart. Such melodrama, such angst, such... <em>Bollywood-ness</em>. I love it!</span></span><br /></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">As always, I would love to hear from you, especially if you have a different (and perhaps less bleak?) perspective with respect to Dharmendra’s 80s filmography. I would love to hear about which of Dharmendra’s 80s films you’ve particularly enjoyed (or not). As a matter of fact, one of the pleasant surprises I encountered when preparing this post was <a href="http://bollywooddeewana.blogspot.com/2009/12/ghazab-1982.html">these comments on Bollywood Deewana's blog </a>by Dharmendra fan GKK, who assures me that I'm totally wrong about Dharmendra's 80s films, and that he did some of his best work in the 80s. The truth is, as GKK rightly says, I really haven't seen enough of Dharam's 80s films to categorically dispute this. Perhaps I really am just parroting the conventional wisdom. And I am rather hoping that GKK is right, really... on this occasion, I would love to be proven wrong!</span></span><br /></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"><span style="mso-bidi-: minor-latin;font-family:Calibri;" ><span style="font-family:georgia;">I’m taking another break from the Decades of Dharam series now, but I will be back soon with another <em>Deol Dhamaka</em> post. I am absolutely loving the month of March!!</span></span></p><p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal" align="justify"> </p></div></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-10559342835534505612011-03-08T13:30:00.004+01:002011-03-08T14:52:20.178+01:00Questionnaires - Part 2 (Bobby, Abhay and Esha)<strong><em>And here's the continuation of my Deol questionnaires…. Bobby, Esha and Abhay….<br /></em></strong><br /><strong>My favourite thing about Bobby Deol is</strong>: His smile – he has a good one, genuine and charming<br /><div><div><div><div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>My least favourite thing about Bobby Deol is</strong>: His hair (when it’s long)…. Not a fan. At all.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5581699072242879074" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 379px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaamP8BrPHx7LKE2BJx4IcWpIp3FwAFgQzaDUVj6CXzgFrPqolmiVftNtdBF77ssWmzbqsBbzx3syaxWbRTj090YQ4e0smzg-bzqtrOskBQFf_cftjqDDV09G_uVMh5if57SOs/s400/Bobby-Deol2.jpg" border="0" /><br /><strong>My 3 favourite Bobby Deol movies are</strong>: Tough. Because I haven’t seen most of his films (especially the older, more popular ones), and I am yet to see a Bobby Deol movie that I’ve liked wholeheartedly and without reservation. But I did like him in <em>Jhoom Barabar Jhoom</em>, <em>Dostana</em> (most of it) and <em>Apne</em>. </div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>My 3 least favourite Bobby Deol movies are</strong>: <em>Shakalaka Boom Boom</em> was awful, and <em>Barsaat</em> (2005 – ridiculously tagged ‘A Sublime Love Story’) was pretty bad too. <em>Dosti: Friends Forever</em> was not terrible (mostly thanks to Bobby, actually), but it certainly wasn’t good either<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5581699306082340834" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 274px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKIyyUjmML3JdMcbk8MNL_5fY0XX7PKyi3WHToHo4ZGvDGOYWKE5iQ67TBuCfNJHciE3pGx2uttUD5kXLcRucs67ro34iVu9tkcgdVDEB08iiD9qFhEF_P2SHKekNGtRn6TBno/s400/bobbydheores_full.jpg" border="0" /><br /><strong>I wish Bobby Deol would</strong>: Work with creative, original filmmakers more often<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>I wish Bobby Deol would not</strong>: Wear his hair long. Ever.<br /></div><div align="justify"><strong>Bobby Deol’s best career move was</strong>: Nurturing a softer, more contemporary image<br /><strong></strong></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>Bobby Deol’s worst career move was</strong>: Working with bad directors in low-quality productions<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>What distinguishes Bobby Deol as an actor</strong>: I’ve been thinking about this one for a while… maybe his generosity and willingness to share screen space and put his co-stars in the best light – something that has always struck me in his performances<br /></div><div align="justify"><strong>My advice to Bobby Deol is</strong>: Obviously (as I’ve already mentioned it twice), I like you so much better with short hair, and I wish you would keep it short always. I also wish you would be more adventurous in your film choices and make an effort to work with better filmmakers.<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong><em>And now on to Abhay....<br /></em></strong><br /><strong>My favourite thing about Abhay Deol is</strong>: His effortless confidence and cool... he wears it well<br /><br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong></strong></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5581699056066654562" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHJllpPCF8MIZOVMV5uIRkIwk3FggcXlAhWM2hK11Sr3qgoUx2TlChu9Buho8HZ1kw2LYNOwYBwlBjFwrg68Bjw-A7OGashoWM788uldLPbdCEPyN8Gf2aw_aOT_cSFaFBJ5r6/s400/abhay-deol-320x240-2009-07-01.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><div align="justify"><strong>My least favourite thing about Abhay Deol is</strong>: Nothing really. Sometimes I think he tries a little too hard to be ‘different’ and ‘edgy’, but for the most part, I like him just fine as he is<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>My 3 favourite Abhay Deol movies are</strong>: <em>Dev D, Honeymoon Travels Pvt Ltd, Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye! </em><br /></div><div align="justify"><strong>My 3 least favourite Abhay Deol movies are:</strong> <em>Ahista Ahista</em> was so dull and ended so stupidly<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>I wish Abhay Deol would</strong>: Work with Mahie Gill again… and soon!<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5581699058858647954" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 264px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJA4NLiDiLzklCG8SdKwW1zeekcdiymUoPtSeK-n8Jd-4ti_CBtKfMzU36P7GnNo98D55sZ45DYO1-tolBYIGp6ywH96oX_fNGpP2sj6QUvvVoGI4fZsydL40fuZD_8Xe9FiQg/s400/abhay-deol-wallpaper_B%2526w_1.jpg" border="0" /><br /><strong>I wish Abhay Deol would not</strong>: Nothing really… I like the direction he’s chosen to go in<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>Abhay Deol’s best career move was</strong>: Seeking his own path<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>Abhay Deol’s worst career move was</strong>: I think he’s made pretty good choices so far… I’m not sure that <em>Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara</em> was a great choice for him, but I guess we’ll find out soon enough</div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>What distinguishes Abhay Deol as an actor</strong>: His willingness to take risks, try new things, work with new directors, and develop new ideas<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>My advice to Abhay Deol is</strong>: I really like your choices so far. You’re doing your own thing, but not in a predictable manner. I even like that you did <em>Aisha</em>, although I hear you're regretting that choice now. Just keep doing what you’re doing<br /></div><br /><br /><br /><div align="justify"><strong><em>And finally, Ms. Diva Esha....<br /></em></strong><br /><strong>My favourite thing about Esha Deol is</strong>: There’s something… hard almost, a little edgy, and restless about her that I really like. Her looks are unconventional, but I find them appealing. And I think there’s an opinionated, bold side of her that flashes out from time to time. Also something that approaches masculinity, which I find compelling (in a good way)<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>My least favourite thing about Esha Deol is</strong>: She seems…. self-entitled to me. Like she just expects to do well, almost without trying, just because she is Esha Deol. I never really feel any passion or real depth from her<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>My 3 favourite Esha Deol movies are</strong>: <em>Just Married, Yuva, Dhoom<br /></div></em><strong></strong><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5581699068209981538" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtc9wZye47g_JuiHeb7u1Ow0aH4eh1U6gl4lOZbZHI-EzHMJZnRiPn5EoIbxKVxtNOS0Qn0PqRKs9R7gK0L18_ps0w110idpy3idDVV9jfTY7G3cCLci6SMWVHjtdOrpAERma6/s400/esha_deol_4.jpg" border="0" /><strong></strong></div><br /><div><strong></strong></div><br /><div><strong>My 3 least favourite Esha Deol movies are</strong>: <em>Kya Dil Ne Kahaa</em> (atrocious!), <em>Ankahee</em> (which, it has to be said, she was actually pretty good in – absolutely nuts, but good. It was one of her best performances so far, in my opinion – but it just wasn’t a good film)<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>I wish Esha Deol had</strong>: Chosen more roles (even in smaller films) that really showcased her talents and helped her grow as an actress<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>I wish Esha Deol had not</strong>: Taken on cutesy, saccharine roles like her role in Kya <em>Dil Ne Kahaa</em>… totally the wrong fit – I don't think there’s anything sweet about Esha. Roles that are a stretch for her, and she's no great talent, so she can't make them truly believable.<br /></div><strong></strong><br /><div><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5581699066838398354" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2u7jJF9prKvsyu4q-v0oJDeyHBpiGZmQd-hDcfNJ629sspUkJC1XYR40OiGRiZQPFhWShipqseOkzin7bVaCzhXuaa-0vWMutDcg8jYiz5n-mw4OTXVOAZrc1eL8kNBkNrDZk/s400/esha-deol-wallpaper.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><div align="justify"><strong>Esha Deol’s best career move was</strong>: I don't know.... I think she could be a lot smarter career-wise... and I think her chances have really dwindled... it would take some real effort to rebuild her career and ignite some positive buzz about her work</div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>Esha Deol’s worst career move was</strong>: Trying to be a conventional heroine… she would have fared much better with darker, edgier fare<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>What distinguishes Esha Deol as an actor</strong>: That harsh, restless quality I mentioned earlier… she took it overboard in <em>Ankahee</em>, but I really liked it in <em>Just Married</em>. With the right roles, she could really harness and showcase that unique energy… but first she needs to find the right roles… and I'm not sure she has it in her. I would love to be proved wrong.<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"><strong>My advice to Esha Deol is</strong>: Maybe I’m wrong, but I get the feeling you aren’t passionate about acting. Figure out whether you really want to be an actor or not. If you just want to be a star and enjoy the perks (glamour, attention etc), then you have to be prepared to really work on reviving your career and going after solid roles (even in smaller, more independent films). Otherwise, you will have to get those perks some other way, famous parents or not.<br /></div><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-71873617342959018182011-03-07T21:23:00.004+01:002011-03-07T22:02:32.007+01:0010 THINGS I LOVE ABOUT DHARMENDRA - PART 2<div><br /><br /><div> <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5581440682668089394" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1_vcI_PEyn6REG3iJByHD8kE8EGFZJv7ptht_Vm5mEDCXrOyzda7JuuK92Wm9GN0rD38noiRT6NcY4d_gwn00pGvAx_6x0r5P9mtin1U-aeSsrNLVvwMhcD4csWvaVnCBGiea/s400/cap004.bmp" /><br /><br /><div align="justify"><em>And the list continues....<br /></em><br /><strong><span style="font-size:180%;">6.</span> DANCE MOVES</strong>: <a href="http://www.dustedoff.wordpress.com/">Dustedoff</a> mentioned this in the comments to my last post, and I absolutely agree. There is something so cute, fun, carefree and almost childlike about Dharam’s dancing. And he always looks like he’s enjoying it just as much as we are. He is not a good dancer, not by a long shot, but who needs good dancing when you could have this instead?<br /><br /><iframe title="YouTube video player" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/notx8po-dsg?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><em>Many thanks, <a href="http://www.dustedoff.wordpress.com">Dustedoff</a>, for bringing that one to my attention.</em><br /><br /><iframe title="YouTube video player" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/MTGgUpGfaPA?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><iframe title="YouTube video player" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Q4--2_VFdsU?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:180%;">7.</span></strong> <strong>LEAN ON ME</strong>: It’s tough to put into words, but there’s something very, very comforting, reassuring and... solid about Dharam onscreen. You always feel like you can trust him to be there for you. Perhaps it helped that many of his characters have allowed him to be so caring and protective – whether it was to a love-interest ('Anupama'), a mentee ('Guddi') or a buddy ('Sholay'). You just always feel that here is a guy who would come through for you in a pinch, without even stopping to think about it. <br /><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5581440677477325826" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmCp50n-rN5O_sxE9DpJoDQmoh75eb_vJRsp5F5SS5mnDQX-gT1ZyVB_L340EnVB2i9Xqk3h7A7pRaiqFG8wnsZG4hZZ2FcMYPlXeWtpSyHgH_JzX1fCaT8P1bdm7fQdXDbvhf/s400/Guddi+%252814%2529.bmp" /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:180%;">8.</span> HUMILITY:</strong> For all his hunkiness, here is something so personable, ‘real’ and down-to-earth about Dharmendra – which I suppose is why he is such a favourite among the ‘aam junta’ – he doesn’t seem to have any airs or graces – and this comes through really well onscreen. He never seemed to let his star power overwhelm his characters the way some of his contemporaries did (<em>*cough* *cough*</em> Rajesh Khanna). And he seems really humble in real life as well... his colleagues in the industry always have such wonderful things to say about working with him. I was quite touched when Amitabh Bachchan recounted how Dharmendra invited him to an event (I think it might have been the music launch of ‘Yamla Pagla Deewana’), and even with all the activity around him, Dharam kept calling Amit ji to tell him to take his time and not to leave home too early.<br /><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5581440671684241026" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnTDUhHoUFCmPb9eVx-PL32KTSWa_DEfop9JdqLAxSuCVmkmdEGdjt7bUMrqPfOdlzUfi2VcbQzId_5sIQUDg4ks8nidH3KOQ5_0Iq1JTqGwC09XFEZ5McGUoOdsbIORiN3EtM/s400/Guddi+%25286%2529.bmp" /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:180%;">9.</span> GLASS BREAKING</strong>: Now this is one of those random things... I really, really like it when Dharam gets all mad, but instead of lashing out, he tries to control the angst as much as he can, until he just loses it and breaks some glass with his bare hands. This I don’t even know why I like – I just do. Probably slightly twisted, but there you go.<br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:180%;">10.</span> VERSATILITY</strong>: I really like how Dharam tried so many different things onscreen – slapstick comedy, family drama, action thrillers, social commentary, romance... and he did well in every department. The great thing about him is that he’s got something for everyone – a ‘The Burning Train’ for the adrenalin junkies, an ‘Aaya Sawan Jhoom Ke’ for the romantics, a ‘Satyakam’ for the philosophers... and of course a ‘Sholay’ for those of us that like a little bit of everything in our masala mix.<br /><br /><em>What are some of your favourite things about Dharmendra? I’d love to hear them....<br /><br />I’ll be back soon with the second instalment of my ‘Questionnaires’ – this time my subjects will be Bobby, Esha and Abhay. </em></div></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-31027719610613754922011-03-05T18:00:00.007+01:002014-12-21T19:32:10.871+01:0010 THINGS I LOVE ABOUT DHARMENDRA – PART 1<div align="justify" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: georgia;">This guy Dharmendra had me at hello really, and the more I see of him, the more I love him. There are SO many reasons why I love (love love) Dharmendra, but here are the top 10:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 180%;"><strong>1.</strong></span><span style="font: 7pt 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: 100%;"> </span></span></span></span><strong>HE’S GORGEOUS</strong>: <em>Duh</em>. This one’s a no-brainer. From the beautifully chiselled features to that fit physique, Dharam-ji is just, simply put, one good-looking specimen of manhood. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFXM_sXxtC4psXl4B3Cg8MYNt5UB4ltP03yueSWwEYwPSDxRvx80N1_7z16UnU8HusDr5uh7A7VsmJVCIcSjfg_onoOb5D73pLLB1mTCr5WUcTylXseD58p4hkZKEelZ6ZKlKA/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-02-27-21h58m07s56.png"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFXM_sXxtC4psXl4B3Cg8MYNt5UB4ltP03yueSWwEYwPSDxRvx80N1_7z16UnU8HusDr5uh7A7VsmJVCIcSjfg_onoOb5D73pLLB1mTCr5WUcTylXseD58p4hkZKEelZ6ZKlKA/s400/vlcsnap-2011-02-27-21h58m07s56.png" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5580652115016213186" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 300px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: georgia;">This is particularly enjoyable to me because, no offence meant, but for me, there aren’t really a whole lot of really gorgeous leading men in Hindi cinema. Plenty of charismatic, interesting-looking heroes for sure, but I really do feel that the women have always outdone the men in terms of physical beauty. Good looks (in the ‘classic’ sense) aren’t quite as important for the men of Bollywood – what’s more important for them is screen presence, charm and believability – which is why overweight heroes with questionable styling choices have held sway at the box office at various times. Of course, this is probably changing now (which I am actually not sure is a good thing), as the unconventional good looks of Aamir Khan and SRK <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>gives way to the modelesque beauty of the Neils and Ranbirs of the noughties. (All this is purely my opinion, of course – I’m sure plenty of people will disagree.) </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaM6gVJrZbOtctPnDfkClBPCv32fhXh0G_qoaY77tmv4SxQM0AwS0HrzUl_rViHz4EcwQe-P1CsZ-AMCM_hUnlbQkYE_vQqft7bJXvSKeqbxWUsZBTywMfRT9cu5QNNcEUtU_L/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-03-02-20h03m10s35.png"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaM6gVJrZbOtctPnDfkClBPCv32fhXh0G_qoaY77tmv4SxQM0AwS0HrzUl_rViHz4EcwQe-P1CsZ-AMCM_hUnlbQkYE_vQqft7bJXvSKeqbxWUsZBTywMfRT9cu5QNNcEUtU_L/s400/vlcsnap-2011-03-02-20h03m10s35.png" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5580652131717196434" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 300px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: georgia;">Anyway, to get back to the point, Dharmendra has always been a real treat and feast for the eyes for me in terms of his physical beauty. As one of my commenters pointed out a while ago, he was one of the first mainstream leading men in Bollywood to train for his roles – to make sure that his legs were toned and honed in preparation for <em>Dharam Veer </em>and all the other movies in which he proudly showed them off. He was in fantastic physical condition, carrying off very physically challenging roles with great aplomb, well into in his 40s and even his 50s, which is pretty remarkable considering that he also had a well-publicised drinking problem. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: georgia;">It’s often said that Dharam ji’s beauty was at its peak in the 60s, which I tend to agree with – but as I’ve mentioned before on this blog, I do tend to prefer his slightly more mature looks in the early-to-mid 70s – for me, he was just irresistible in his early-to-mid thirties.</span></div>
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<strong><span style="font-size: 180%;">2.</span></strong> <span style="font-family: georgia;"><strong>THAT VOICE</strong>: I love Dharam’s voice... there’s something so raw, yet noble, strong, and almost pure about it. A little huskiness, but not enough to be menacing. A certain innocence and freshness, but not enough to be girly. Unlike his son Sunny, he wasn’t much of a shouter in his movies – he generally spoke in lower tones, and even when he got really mad, his voice would generally go lower and more menacing, not necessarily louder. But for all its quietness, Dharmendra’s voice has always held authority and projected whatever was need, whether it was anguish, angst, confidence, comfort, laughter, love.... <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>Brilliant dialogue delivery – he always emotes so well with his voice.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: georgia;">And I know this has nothing to do with his voice, but I also think Dharam had fabulous lip-syncing skills – I really love watching him lip-sync to Hemant Kumar’s haunting voice in the beautiful ‘Ya Dil Ki Suno Duniyawalon’ (<em>Anupama</em>), or to Mohammed Rafi’s agonised voice in ‘Hui Shaam Unka Khayal’ (<em>Mere Humdum Mere Dost</em>). Such expressiveness in his features....</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 180%;"><strong>3.</strong></span> Speaking of his voice, another thing I love about Dharmendra is his <strong>ANGREZI</strong>!!: (By the way, I really love that word, Angrezi). Dharmendra’s father was a school headmaster in Ludhiana, but as far as I know, Dharam himself didn’t go to college. When he does speak (often halting) English in interviews etc (which isn’t often – you get the feeling he’s far more comfortable with Hindi), you very much get the sense that he pretty much taught himself the language through practice. I do feel that Dharam places a high premium on education, as seen in the high level of education his children have received, particularly in the UK. But I don’t know that Dharmendra himself enjoyed an advanced level of formal education. He probably finished secondary school and then started working immediately after that to support his family. He married young, became a father at a young age, and was working in movies by the age of 20, so he almost certainly did not go to university. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>(I would love to know if anyone has more info on his early life – I’ve not found a whole lot on the net)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: georgia;">For all this, Dharmendra has played an incredible number of Angrezi-speaking, highly educated individuals in his career – from a brilliant college student (<em>Ayee Din Bahar Ke</em>), to a novelist (<em>Anupama</em>), to professors (<em>Chupke Chupke, Dillagi</em>), to an engineer (<em>Satyakam</em>), to a doctor (<em>Bandini</em>), to an award-winning scientist (<em>Black Mail</em>), he’s played them all, and very convincingly too. Just as he’s also played loads of street rogues, criminals, etc with little or no English skills (<em>Sholay, Patthar Aur Phool, Ram Balram, Samadhi</em>, etc). And if there’s one thing I enjoy, it’s hearing Dharmendra do his Angrezi dialogues. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: georgia;">Whether he’s playing a highly educated man or an illiterate one ‘murdering’ the English language, there’s just something about it. I can’t put my finger on it, maybe it’s the beautiful accent, or the very precise enunciation or that certain shyness/uncertainty that comes through at times, but it’s just wonderful... it just gets me. Every time. And I’m not the only one – </span><a href="http://www.rotikapadarum.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Rum</span></a><span style="font-family: georgia;"> feels the same, as does the lovely </span><a href="http://bollywooddeewana.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Bollywood Deewana</span></a><span style="font-family: georgia;"> – in fact he made this fab little video of Dharam’s English dialogues in <em>Krodhi</em> (which looks like a fabulously camp film – the wig and beard alone are quite amazing – I must watch it!). I just looove this video to bits and watch it whenever I need a pick-me-up. Enjoy.<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/GAipa_4eAIo?rel=0" title="YouTube video player" width="480"></iframe><br /></span></div>
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<strong><span style="font-size: 180%;">4.</span></strong> <span style="font-family: georgia;"><strong>SENSITIVITY</strong>: I would love to say that whenever I think about a man with sensitivity, I think about Dharam, but thanks to Ralph Tresvant, all that comes to mind is an R&B song from the 90s (albeit a pretty good one). But back to the topic at hand. There is such a sweetness and sensitivity about Dharmendra that just makes my heart melt. Especially with his leading ladies... in films like <em>Anupama</em>, where he’s gently coaxing a timid girl out of her shell, or <em>Black Mail</em>, where he shyly confesses his feelings to Rakhee’s lovely Asha and then eventually struggles to deal with his crushing disappointment when he feels used by Asha. There is something so sweet about Dharmendra sometimes, you just want to put your arms around him and give him a hug. Manly as he is (and he is very manly indeed), in his best onscreen performances you just get the feeling that he feels things deeply. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: georgia;"><strong><span style="font-size: 180%;">5.</span> HUMOUR</strong>: Dharmendra has such a great sense of humour onscreen, and fantastic comic timing too. Sometimes he gets really, really wacky (<em>Ghazab</em>, for example – those buck teeth and that whiny act were just something else!); other times it’s more subtle (like the witticisms in <em>Chupke Chupke</em>), but it’s always fun. The great thing about Dharam’s comedy is the way he throws himself into it and isn’t afraid to look silly or undignified. He’ll happily dance like an absolute idiot if required... in fact; you often get the sense that he really enjoys laughing at himself. <br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/pTw64tyKyXg?rel=0" title="YouTube video player" width="480"></iframe><br /><br /><em>Now who could possibly resist that??</em></span></div>
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<em><strong><span style="font-family: georgia;">And now, this post is getting longer than expected (and why on earth did I not expect it??), so I shall be back with Part 2 of this list later....</span></strong></em></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-71465499194857453412011-03-04T11:41:00.005+01:002011-03-04T15:54:27.434+01:00Questionnaires – Part 1 (Dharmendra and Sunny)<div align="justify"><strong><em>I have a very good Bollywood-watching friend, and one of the many fun Bollywood-related things we do in our free time is make each other fill out questionnaires about actors and actresses… so I’m kicking off my <a href="http://www.delicious.com/bollystalgia/DeolDhamaka">Deol Dhamaka </a>posts with questionnaires on the Deols and their careers… obviously (given the name of this blog) I am starting with Dharmendra!<br /></em></strong><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;"><strong>My favourite thing about Dharmendra is</strong></span>: His drop-dead gorgeous looks<br /><br /><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5580235727921493554" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2At5BqewlHWjAaQadZ_0ZQN4MRKjVlHATWGAvEwaKYsHy5tRmxhuw3ZvQ60iLWGDkGW7LvwBsd3k7ZBG19QSJdfk0zLvN_iv4IqkRDL2k6vQ8JiOPLhBE-pM_s80IvUhVMlcy/s400/Chupke+Chupke+%25289%2529.bmp" border="0" /><br /><div><div><strong>My least favourite thing about Dharmendra is</strong>: Nothing really, acting-wise. On a personal note, I hate reading unpleasant stories about him, e.g. that he once hit a female journalist</div><br /><div><strong>My 3 favourite Dharmendra movies are</strong>: <a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2007/02/chupke-chupke.html"><em>Chupke Chupke</em></a>, <em>The Burning Train, Anupama</em> (and <a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2008/09/satyakam-dharmendras-best-performance.html"><em>Satyakam</em></a><em>, Jeevan Mrityu, Black Mail, Sholay</em> … oops, sorry, I forgot you only asked for 3)</div><br /><div><strong>My 3 least favourite Dharmendra movies are</strong>: <em>Anpadh</em>, <em>Naukar Biwi Ka</em>, <em>Ayee Milan Ki Bela</em> (I have purposely avoided many of his 80s and 90s films, otherwise I’m sure more of them would be listed here)</div><br /><div><strong>I wish Dharmendra had</strong>: Done more movies with Sharmila Tagore</div><br /><div><strong>I wish Dharmendra had not</strong>: Made so many gross, tacky movies in the (mid-to-late) 80s and 90s</div><br /><div><strong>Dharmendra’s best career move was</strong>: Doing a good mix of movies – romance, bromance, drama, action, comedy</div><br /><div><strong>Dharmendra’s worst career move was</strong>: Doing so many forgettable (and sometimes outrightly bad) movies in the 80s and 90s – no-one remembers him (positively) for them now</div><br /><div><strong>What distinguishes Dharmendra as an actor</strong>: His smooth blend of manliness, sweetness and accessibility. He was a pin-up, an everyman, and a he-man all at the same time. And I think he was a wonderful actor – definitely one of the most under-rated in Bollywood</div><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5580235738738930914" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLzuEQ6fp1W8fifY3E03BfJ20JAzCb0uPyL5H4zp4c6ekjce6qf0JKu6-Xn4E6Z8G9W4jOYV4lMEqYIm6J14_CFIG7xwaYV5QHLhI4fdD3g25IdLHlFgMbcQCPT3amX00_p_wX/s400/cap004.bmp" border="0" /><br /><div><strong>My advice to Dharmendra is</strong>: Enjoy your golden years, keep doing movies with your kids every now and then, and just… enjoy. Oh, and <em>mwahhhh</em>!!<br /><br /></div><div><strong><em>And now to my dear Sunny D, <a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2007/03/dharams-children-part-2.html">whom I have a soft spot for</a>:<br /></em></strong><br /><strong>My favourite thing about Sunny Deol is</strong>: His childlike quality and sincerity as an actor – he got it from his dad but I think he has it to a greater degree</div><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5580235734074300994" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsOWXIoPaDPNoLwN4gumuVUhBMnU5E8DGCfpGr7TzFaKv1l-Xtf8mSshu1AyQECwDRRe3iw7QmgFBmBEnemmhOMiDMgTqi2MGVKaZAe2jM3P6Wi443637ZwXw-lVGYfGLOujOf/s400/Ghatak+%25282%2529.bmp" border="0" /><br /><div><strong>My least favourite thing about Sunny Deol is</strong>: The lack of nuance/complexity in his acting. He can get very hammy very quickly</div><br /><div><strong>My 3 favourite Sunny Deol movies are</strong>: <em>Gadar: Ek Prem Katha</em>, <em>Ghatak: Lethal</em>, <em>Apne</em> (I really need to see a lot more of Sunny’s films – especially <em>Ghayal</em> and <em>Damini</em>)</div><br /><div><strong>My 3 least favourite Sunny Deol movies are</strong>: the absolutely horrendous <em>Insaniyat</em> is the only one that comes to mind, but then I really haven't seen many Sunny Deol films - maybe just 5 or 6 in total</div><br /><div><strong>I wish Sunny Deol had</strong>: Done more varied films – experimented more – at the start of his career</div><br /><div><strong>I wish Sunny Deol had not</strong>: Done <em>Darr</em>!</div><br /><div><strong>Sunny Deol’s best career move was</strong>: Focusing on his strengths and becoming an action hero</div><br /><div><strong>Sunny Deol’s worst career move was</strong>: Perhaps not venturing beyond his comfort zone in the indsutry, but then again, maybe it’s a good thing he stuck to what he’s good at….</div><br /><div><strong>What distinguishes Sunny Deol as an actor</strong>: Muscle and brawn nicely underlaid with that sweetness and sincerity<br /><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5580235722582423122" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjiyyNtVAk5oYOfHhCJJ03gOmrQ8u1Q4eE-t5bO3EfJX2mB4nGsOjGe_Y_0qw2mdvumyenxH3YsnNAQX4aF0U3QcpW9lgZIq6TcuFZn0mJfwG7YmYjOwM1eAR7CwP6INI02AOe/s400/Ghatak+%252811%2529.bmp" border="0" /><br /><div><strong>My advice to Sunny Deol is</strong>: Keep doing what you’re doing… I like your recent choices (<em>really</em> want to see <em>Yamla Pagla Deewana</em>!) and I think they work for you… but step it up and do more!</div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-35252588158416042762011-03-01T10:30:00.004+01:002011-03-04T15:59:02.840+01:00YAYY!! IT'S MARCH!!!... and March means <strong><a href="http://www.delicious.com/bollystalgia/DeolDhamaka">DEOL DHAMAKA</a></strong>!!!<br /><br /><em>Deol Dhamaka</em> is a month-long celebration of the Deol family: Dharam, Sunny, Bobby, Esha and Abhay... I haven't been very active on this blog lately, but I could write about Dharam endlessly - and I do have lots to say about the other Deols as well... so my first <em>Deol Dhamaka</em> post will be up soon. Please check out <a href="http://shahrukhislove.blogspot.com/2011/03/let-wild-rumpus-begin-all-you-need-to.html">Shahrukh Is Love </a>and <a href="http://bollystalgia.blogspot.com/2011/02/coming-soon-deol-dhamaka.html">Bollystalgia</a> for more details.... and you can <a href="http://www.delicious.com/bollystalgia/DeolDhamaka">find all the Deol Dhamaka posts HERE</a>.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-44378316768926844542011-01-10T11:17:00.004+01:002011-01-10T11:20:54.025+01:00Faces... and more faces....... and this was my final gift to Amreena... a slideshow of her favourites....<br /><br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dz_0wGjbObfC18ZXTcJCOb5J99qNryD8Rb4VeLN4WX_YzHfhUQrmnA9bqoyiOjWeCYpUVLVMTJzDcc' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-47292752956155940872011-01-05T18:49:00.004+01:002011-01-05T19:03:29.273+01:00MAD FOR MADHURIAs my Filmi Secret Santa recipient is a Madhuri Dixit fan, I also made her a few collages of Madhuri...<br /><br />... young and adorable in 'Dil'...<br /><br /><br /><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYI4ruMKXIHxADPGKvLhO9rGZw3JTRs6myoJhC0AFHkA0_v8DTnSoCP5Jtfupma-x7wAMxmExhk5cdsW5xmVuDC-1BOaPa2urveEb36DczNo9YUgYNFMW4zpIb-ns8T7m2nGmq/s1600/Young+Madhuri.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 283px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558763210097894066" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYI4ruMKXIHxADPGKvLhO9rGZw3JTRs6myoJhC0AFHkA0_v8DTnSoCP5Jtfupma-x7wAMxmExhk5cdsW5xmVuDC-1BOaPa2urveEb36DczNo9YUgYNFMW4zpIb-ns8T7m2nGmq/s400/Young+Madhuri.jpg" /></a> </p><p>... fierce and defiant in 'Beta'...<br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvTky3flAM8fsORWVdWAr9bJQtGqDNURKNRzqP3a-j8m2zu-Mp0738KI_HT_irljBL5NaMnU_LlQKYeZYUBtI_pUeWFmy_ix8oclYrz9wjrAyo9aztV8AVJvoBRyZB4DVugpV-/s1600/Madhuri+in+%2527Beta%2527.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558763202291080866" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvTky3flAM8fsORWVdWAr9bJQtGqDNURKNRzqP3a-j8m2zu-Mp0738KI_HT_irljBL5NaMnU_LlQKYeZYUBtI_pUeWFmy_ix8oclYrz9wjrAyo9aztV8AVJvoBRyZB4DVugpV-/s400/Madhuri+in+%2527Beta%2527.jpg" /></a><br /><br />... warm and elegant in 'Devdas'...<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUWjEApinrRD1_B5sFTLsCbMXv0kAUQZWOJaNA4-6HuTjn55S-dT0NBI-U4O7WPrCiyt9qxOHL6A99SnCD7l8OXOkO5abI9xARSWppNmwe47-nLcRHMSl0RUaDsZ8UGwrnPFRX/s1600/Madhuri+in+%2527Devdas%2527.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 283px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558763197092112882" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUWjEApinrRD1_B5sFTLsCbMXv0kAUQZWOJaNA4-6HuTjn55S-dT0NBI-U4O7WPrCiyt9qxOHL6A99SnCD7l8OXOkO5abI9xARSWppNmwe47-nLcRHMSl0RUaDsZ8UGwrnPFRX/s400/Madhuri+in+%2527Devdas%2527.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><div><br /><div></div></div></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-65584545968716493042011-01-03T22:14:00.004+01:002011-01-03T22:52:17.856+01:00Who Said What? - Bollywood QuotesThe wonderful <a href="http://www.bethlovesbollywood.blogspot.com/"><strong>Beth</strong></a> once more graciously organized a 'Filmi Secret Santa' process during the recent festive season, and I had such a blast putting together presents for my recipient, Amreena. My first gift to Amreena was a slideshow of quotes by her favourite actors and actresses... some fun, some insightful, some very sweet....<br /><br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dwhUXn5hiIVqlk9nYVp6EaJFI6ghPZtP9V9pu_02kdkRswvdMfR4CWIAM0jc7LLLPtn2hfk-K8if9c' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-89598203441457793162010-12-10T14:21:00.008+01:002010-12-10T15:54:56.336+01:00BRING ON THE WOMEN!!<div align="justify">Rajkumar Santoshi’s ‘Lajja’ (2001) is one of those movies that I find frustrating.... Let me start by stating my opinion of the film - which is that overall, it’s not a good film. The script is often clumsy, clunky or corny (and sometimes all three), and the directing and editing are pretty shoddy sometimes. There are elements to the story that are either superfluous or actually detract from the power of the film (e.g. the presence of Ajay Devgan’s character, Bhulwa). </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">But what frustrates me about ‘Lajja’ is the flashes of radiance in it, the elements that do work, the things that could have made for a really good movie if they hadn’t been overshadowed by the sucky stuff. I really like Rekha’s earthy performance, for example... but I think my favorite thing about ‘Lajja’ is the relationships between the female characters...</div><div><br /><br /><div align="justify"></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549044400544741586" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 136px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_dwBij199os7Qtvg1HHYczwaxoQ1gT1Ldj3fhuSncdhULtgo1P9DpT2fA8qFThU_DLPd3_59QuLvGOUYCy0yv0t2DhdyFX8-9PnWc5NPk3g-PBcEOmymIliUqCQOyBY0_tQoU/s320/Lajja....bmp" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549044398628188674" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 138px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyHJpa5c8pUBJqVaGWlEXWDck-QG4VHiQ2dOI1a3Y9QTEaLEKPaKdmvTfLhQ2fO_FkdZ6eSgEchFcGxaGENG3ITpgomg3FHwCbrj54DJTc9enMDZe6dnQBJOy9TQN9IXMKE5lU/s320/Lajja+%252822%2529.bmp" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549044392904798690" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 138px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhisTSzq-ffQjK4pVf-anJIgRkE3V5Qp0YUrxHSXInCo4h5JpN-GEb3MrtUJCHg3JzG_zM4b87XX7p_gDbrryD1l9H_CwME2H29QLvnjOn0HpWFTPworIV2Prvv7mhysDG0arZ-/s320/Lajja.bmp" border="0" /><br />... especially the relationship between Vaidehi (Manisha Koirala) and Jhanki (Madhuri Dixit):<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiViJ6WksmdrrQNVvZZUwuxmCPR2-L-kOFV_i7nuHptQ0wpvHf4Pm2DMukPL-py8xLJlLjbUUc7TENre0r_rLMMUB1cf-co27-Jzq_HXVDUUMzWU2to9ZHVG3WoJsRg1wY1Ylbt/s1600/Lajja..bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549046163083400082" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 137px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiViJ6WksmdrrQNVvZZUwuxmCPR2-L-kOFV_i7nuHptQ0wpvHf4Pm2DMukPL-py8xLJlLjbUUc7TENre0r_rLMMUB1cf-co27-Jzq_HXVDUUMzWU2to9ZHVG3WoJsRg1wY1Ylbt/s320/Lajja..bmp" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGtEMooSO_juB8mza4QZ_kuGPbzhwhKxE1yoZJD4JX7eECltZUCycDEcMu5wtAg46cXeCWhXTmswY9oWROcvj7Y75Ia7RmCnNz-gdxtHwyFAvFeGTk3JebilDzVumJ540u5_nE/s1600/Lajja+%25283%2529.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549045063590396258" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 137px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGtEMooSO_juB8mza4QZ_kuGPbzhwhKxE1yoZJD4JX7eECltZUCycDEcMu5wtAg46cXeCWhXTmswY9oWROcvj7Y75Ia7RmCnNz-gdxtHwyFAvFeGTk3JebilDzVumJ540u5_nE/s320/Lajja+%25283%2529.bmp" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0txlb0I_5CDHu9xq29hhX21n20k8b1_U4HaY9FTlOv44s-2_4B7fMHoso0u8v6Vzm2n3yIUkpje6OM-XLqhgoyIJFSTiylgL4b20KO8Znvq7CohlUugzOFCSD4D9nlS5GkQwT/s1600/Lajja+%252814%2529.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549046153707837666" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 136px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0txlb0I_5CDHu9xq29hhX21n20k8b1_U4HaY9FTlOv44s-2_4B7fMHoso0u8v6Vzm2n3yIUkpje6OM-XLqhgoyIJFSTiylgL4b20KO8Znvq7CohlUugzOFCSD4D9nlS5GkQwT/s320/Lajja+%252814%2529.bmp" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8kD8BsOfA3cQ3b_ZM-YD2y6ySwjuRfH3OUPTPZGR-RNAijT5Q0C9sviZLUSA8jM9v0Uc3BfiUkujsJ8he0Sr3BnJxDJLFnAhf-701dNxVbYT99y9dE_nh4To2ylz5cflZ4giV/s1600/Lajja+%25284%2529.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549045071375098610" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 137px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8kD8BsOfA3cQ3b_ZM-YD2y6ySwjuRfH3OUPTPZGR-RNAijT5Q0C9sviZLUSA8jM9v0Uc3BfiUkujsJ8he0Sr3BnJxDJLFnAhf-701dNxVbYT99y9dE_nh4To2ylz5cflZ4giV/s320/Lajja+%25284%2529.bmp" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjagARuqe7p_rAE-JoT82Fid3bRL7GgAX6XwPHcsduebgY4aEDYmFZjsHJ12F5AXjYMGywOccsKfAzxR6CRWOnDmBNbluM-tDORL6bem-S6NPUeCVlhraQvhqrXVd2PvOH2lHCp/s1600/Lajja+%252810%2529.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549046145579269842" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 135px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjagARuqe7p_rAE-JoT82Fid3bRL7GgAX6XwPHcsduebgY4aEDYmFZjsHJ12F5AXjYMGywOccsKfAzxR6CRWOnDmBNbluM-tDORL6bem-S6NPUeCVlhraQvhqrXVd2PvOH2lHCp/s320/Lajja+%252810%2529.bmp" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_nQVdotbhc7_dKExYt-SMvYWJ9y1fg5Efj6ZCJBvD6gKeiyIQM7UUdyGFTL0NEl80P-bgHbNwskgg7HpQf7B-KOyJ__8fLrH3uWCCIBT1JPUmtWfflak4bp_QdCYSYCMAyXKD/s1600/Lajja+%25289%2529.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549046141143043106" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 138px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_nQVdotbhc7_dKExYt-SMvYWJ9y1fg5Efj6ZCJBvD6gKeiyIQM7UUdyGFTL0NEl80P-bgHbNwskgg7HpQf7B-KOyJ__8fLrH3uWCCIBT1JPUmtWfflak4bp_QdCYSYCMAyXKD/s320/Lajja+%25289%2529.bmp" border="0" /></a><br /><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoWG65GZi0i9eX-uzpYNnSltIRsrVkUegCtel4N49jgk7jMyR39E9ZPBGM-t6Dmeu_kZlrw00Tax6aw5MZbWblAn1wSwGA6k_xnDgjdMDiw9zVC9N3B8TbkYdnmmj3T0MHzshn/s1600/Lajja+%25288%2529.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549046136711084786" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 137px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoWG65GZi0i9eX-uzpYNnSltIRsrVkUegCtel4N49jgk7jMyR39E9ZPBGM-t6Dmeu_kZlrw00Tax6aw5MZbWblAn1wSwGA6k_xnDgjdMDiw9zVC9N3B8TbkYdnmmj3T0MHzshn/s320/Lajja+%25288%2529.bmp" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2StoKW1vjeXQjLjVcyPm3FZAPuItE6ACOEfeffqa28BHyfa6lx354LzMVNpKR8afIVrwKJdfv6ARrvvimcBSt-J0m0SpayMFB0hQU9zKut4nnbmt2Gm3EuaYs2TqPJhbFqQ5N/s1600/Lajja+%25287%2529.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549045094199678562" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 137px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2StoKW1vjeXQjLjVcyPm3FZAPuItE6ACOEfeffqa28BHyfa6lx354LzMVNpKR8afIVrwKJdfv6ARrvvimcBSt-J0m0SpayMFB0hQU9zKut4nnbmt2Gm3EuaYs2TqPJhbFqQ5N/s320/Lajja+%25287%2529.bmp" border="0" /></a><br /><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-4I245IAlTFzMss3wt7zkFlbNvSc_3mTmnB7ySh_h98aiu2uXFOs8q6NghY_SO-AcwaIBhM-HLGNo0WBJdHEUTzugovvlWpbf5vz2_o4KeQx9X3dLmdx77GbpA1BZLraPxyh2/s1600/Lajja+%25286%2529.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549045088173638194" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 137px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-4I245IAlTFzMss3wt7zkFlbNvSc_3mTmnB7ySh_h98aiu2uXFOs8q6NghY_SO-AcwaIBhM-HLGNo0WBJdHEUTzugovvlWpbf5vz2_o4KeQx9X3dLmdx77GbpA1BZLraPxyh2/s320/Lajja+%25286%2529.bmp" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_d5yt3LtAqUqV25Mrn5v32s3ki_HVxq3AU66cCcwxR7pc48VsDV-ERzVJ8gOelIdP6wI0LI_qVttjOD0SvsjCc0jSk9OpfuooYo297caVSBirt4OvN7D8haGlmlIq4XmksVtG/s1600/Lajja+%25285%2529.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549045078942039810" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 136px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_d5yt3LtAqUqV25Mrn5v32s3ki_HVxq3AU66cCcwxR7pc48VsDV-ERzVJ8gOelIdP6wI0LI_qVttjOD0SvsjCc0jSk9OpfuooYo297caVSBirt4OvN7D8haGlmlIq4XmksVtG/s320/Lajja+%25285%2529.bmp" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div><div><div><div align="justify">Looking over my collection of Vaidehi/Jhanki screencaps got me thinking about girlfriends (the platonic kind) in Hindi films. ‘Bromance’ is a central feature of a lot of Bollywood movies, and has been for decades. Alas, the same certainly cannot be said for relationships between women. I love my girlfriends – I’ve always had great relationships with funny, smart, strong, compassionate women... and I love reading about female relationships. I also love watching vibrant, interesting female relationships on the big and small screens, but that doesn’t happen nearly enough when it comes to Hindi films. Relationships between women are generally skimmed over and sidelined.</div><div align="justify"><br /> </div><div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549046782761928514" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 168px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjICZu3xIuA7c3Jg_bFNCujeVf-ur1Dc3fVSSPn6wgB7IueT5DoaVEbwDcyYiGOTR4z6Ki2XHZGgAyDO28XQbqLYKF0CXcNWkDi_h6Q6uXH7Ce6FaCjo9KrBkMxdej6pDkH7_2Y/s320/vlcsnap-2010-01-31-21h55m20s34.png" border="0" /></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549044426325879586" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 190px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc6EBbrJr-u4knPIXJB3qhtDqnuGr4SDQ80Zjn8qIwW7Lin1TVCizUpLYv3MjCsdCVFBTnqQg9X538Pr9nI_sqtMgptAu3H0lLHXPKdGEY_D0Otf3QvJ8udr3KAizGDCB-DsiW/s320/Ishq%2521+%25288%2529.bmp" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549065981620855490" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 171px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI2OBWvr_L-S5ZT1u170l3qsJlE9Ba3u_tgPYOalkL83RUOTaU_TEQNlZvWmCV64FtaEhhSToHLFIUoLogeJxB7A7gISqDTGIJWy4_Q-DzUmGTTr3nTZ_BRDdpxY_Hqg9nMjpV/s320/Chori+Chori+Chupke+Chupke+17.bmp" border="0" /></div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">Yup, onscreen relationships between women are almost always peripheral in Bollywood – there were really no female equivalents of the two-hero movies that Amitabh Bachchan starred in alongside Shashi Kapoor/Dharmendra/Vinod Khanna/Rishi Kapoor/ Pran in the 70s and 80s. Neither are there female counterparts to contemporary, mainstream movies about male friendship, like ‘Rock On!’, ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ and ‘3 Idiots’. There are plenty of films in which there’s real affection and friendship portrayed between sisters, cousins, or women related by marriage, although again, this is usually peripheral – forming the backdrop to the central story (which is often dominated by a man or two).</div><div align="justify"><br /> </div><div align="justify"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549044408969358786" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 148px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifJNNVvTqYRwoY8KZSfn-tvrbCWXsSnOcxGlfsaVUswjuafmzLltDfLt4LwOvdOBQCpXH6Il7cOQPNDRsjGviMzl4U3sxhVa0peEGN4HNCo0P4MPVr3p2WYkRLaY_QxUGEw1lB/s320/Hum+Aapke+Hain+Koun+%252815%2529.bmp" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549046782075970082" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiapCBIqmuGsdcQZBKS7Tc1LCw9CxboqHkkqkA7yFxrIvTjZgItfKXMmDPC1gHhNZXr2b7UBcBbp-lKk8583NOJwqDOtOWwQTSaBbnDfX0vCASTB5xp-_W-E4SwwKDZyJqSaIAd/s320/Ram+aur+Shyam+2.bmp" border="0" /><br />But, in stark contradistinction with the many films about friendships between men who aren’t biologically related, there just aren’t many films with similar stories involving women. Probably because the consensus is that such movies won’t do brisk box-office business, and perhaps there’s a little of the whole ‘women can’t stand to share the spotlight with each other’ stereotype in the mix as well. But I figure profitability is probably the key issue.</div><div><br />I have been thinking hard, trying to remember Bollywood movies I’ve seen that have platonic female relationships at their core (with the exclusion of relationships between biological sisters), and I’m not coming up with a whole lot. Apart from ‘Lajja’, there’s the lovely ‘Dor’, of course, with Ayesha Takia and Gul Panag playing two women thrown together by a combination of tragedy and serendipity.... </div><div><br /> </div><div align="justify"></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549046787048126674" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 144px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEX_YIQYFljCD40_INl8NRBFXVkKdM0zq95kWbxinINqwF81lvlqvXXZ1KSLXZe-WU2Z0cYLghHUwcKskBKjAFH80YDbTCvNE6mjaOGLg1F1gm8WOuj3LOtyD11hpkm3KRJfNu/s320/vlcsnap-364349.png" border="0" /><br /><div>... and there's the gorgeous 'Fire', with Shabana Azmi and Nandita Das burning up the screen in a compelling (and controversial) story about love, sex and self-fulfilment...<br /></div><div></div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549065978136391714" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 217px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqRWG4IQklxXmuXazoj7n1kMToNr9AVdNKRZEhOt3w2c-pYPCZgoPUJR5YudXPDH_EwQ8tvSi_sVeUIoJCiTX7HbiXzk5bW97r7T6655ZSsjw2Uvf0Pdo11O4_RLqYU9oThyXd/s320/2.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div></div><div>And of course this year, there was ‘We Are Family’, which I haven’t seen (and don’t really want to).... </div><div align="justify"><br />... but there aren’t many more, which is why I’m really looking forward to Vidya Balan and Rani Mukherjee in ‘No One Killed Jessica’ (I know it’s not really <em>about</em> the women’s relationship, but at least it’s a theme), and to Deepika Padukone and Priyanka Chopra’s rumoured two-heroine film.... I really hope these movies do well and open the door to other films with women and their relationships at their centre. I would love to see more –for example, I would love to see something with Madhuri Dixit opposite Aishwarya Rai again – but this time, not converging in concern over a childish drunk à la Devdas, but in a smart film about women balancing (and/or failing to balance) career, romance and family. Or I would love to see Vidya Balan and Mahie Gill star in a good old-fashioned, honest-to-goodness buddy romp with a sparklingly witty script. Or maybe Jaya Bachchan and Shabana Azmi in a movie about two older women rediscovering themselves through their friendship.... And one of my most enduring dream movies is a remake of ‘All About Eve’, starring Shabana Azmi, Konkona Sen Sharma and Aamir Khan. Hey, a girl can dream, right?</div><div align="justify"><br />... Anyway, I’d love to hear about the Hindi movies you’ve seen that featured interesting female friendships... am I exaggerating their scarcity? Which ones would you recommend? And who would you like to see in your dream Bollywood movie about female friendship?</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-70809249164437683032010-11-15T23:10:00.007+01:002010-11-16T14:14:03.736+01:00'YAMLA PAGLA DEEWANA' & 'KOFFEE WITH KARAN'<strong><em>Well, it certainly has been a while!!</em></strong><br /><br />It's been over 6 months since my last post... certainly not by design though - my laptop gave up the ghost shortly after my last post, and I've only just been able to acquire a new one. I have kept up with all the developments in Bollyblogland, though - from <a href="http://bethlovesbollywood.blogspot.com/2010/04/announcing-khanna-o-rama-may-3-9.html">Khanna-o-Rama </a>to <a href="http://bollystalgia.blogspot.com/2010/08/sridevipalooza-sridevi-jeetendra.html">Sridevipalooza</a> (and lots more besides). As usual, there's been lots and lots of fun stuff going on.<br /><br />I remember when 'Apne' was about to come out in 2007 - <a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2007/04/apne.html">I was super-excited </a>at the prospect of seeing Dharmendra onscreen with his sons... when the movie eventually came out, I naturally traipsed off to the cinema to see it - and <a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2007/09/25-thoughts-on-apne.html">I really enjoyed it</a>. Not because it's a great movie (it's certainly not), but because it was OTT, and<em> fun</em>, and emotional, and very silly in parts, and just total <em>paisa vasool</em> for me at that point in time. I haven't bothered to see it again since that day, and I don't think it would stand up to a second viewing, but I really enjoyed it at the time. In<a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2007/09/25-thoughts-on-apne.html"> my post on the movie</a>, I remarked that I would love to see Dharam, Bobby and Sunny do another movie... but I didn't think it was likely.<br /><br />I was obviously totally wrong! Here's the trailer for 'Yamla Pagla Deewana', scheduled to debut in 2011:<br /><br /><object width="640" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/m4DJraX2-FU?fs=1&hl=en_GB"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/m4DJraX2-FU?fs=1&hl=en_GB" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="385"></embed></object><br /><br />Now I don't understand about 90% of what was said in that trailer (<em>ze subtitles, zey are my friends</em>!!), and it looks like the film will probably have a lot of cultural references that I won't really 'get', but it does look like a lot of fun - colourful, entertaining and just <em>fun</em>. The trailer is actually generating some nice positive buzz for the movie. Can't wait till it comes out... hope it makes it to one of my local cinemas, and I hope it's received well.<br /><br />Another fun recent development, of course, has been the return, after a loooonnng hiatus, of 'Koffee with Karan', Karan Johar's irreverent and quite frankly, <em>nosey</em>, chat show. It's already stirred up the pot quite nicely with Deepika Padukone allegedly making bitchy comments about Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif, and Ranbir himself pretty much 'fessing up to the world that he's a little bit of a player - an adorable one to be sure, but a 'playa-playa' nonetheless. I love how Karan Johar is not afraid to go after the salacious details on this show, and how he manages to get the celebs to say stuff they probably would not say on a 'regular' day. It's also great that he manages to get just about everyone who's anyone in Bollywood to do the show.<br /><br />I really enjoyed the first 2 seasons of KWK - in fact, I<a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2007/05/ive-found-new-love.html"> raved about it </a>on this blog early in 2007, and it made it to <a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/2008/01/2007-my-bollywood-year.html">my list of favourite Bollywood-related things of 2007</a>, although for me the formula got a bit stale and irritating by the latter part of the second season. The show started to lose its freshness and became a bit of a vanity thing, especially for people with new movies coming out. I was quite glad when Karan called it quits, really.<br /><br />But I guess a good long break was just what the show needed to give it back its 'kick', and I think one can safely predict that the third season will give us quite a few memorable moments. Just some of the people I'd personally love to see on KWK this season: newlyweds Konkona Sen Sharma and Ranvir Shorey, Vivek Oberoi (not with his wife, though - maybe with Sushmita Sen or Ajay Devgn), Amrita Rao, Shahana Goswami, Sridevi, Akki & Dimple, Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan... and of course K-Jo's 'usual suspects' - like SRK, Kajol, Bebo.... The ultimate coup for Karan, of course, would be to get the 3 Khans - Aamir, Shah Rukh and Salman in the studio on the same day and for the same show... but I think we all know that's not going to happen. It's fun to imagine though - things would probably get pretty heated!<br /><br />Anyway, just wanted to check in... will be back soon with some Dharam-centric posts and maybe some other non-Dharam-related observations... one thing's for sure, it definitely won't be another 6 months before my next post!<div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36123519.post-91662315601075462642010-03-08T09:01:00.005+01:002010-03-08T09:19:34.681+01:00DHARMENDRA: THE ROMANTIC POETI am working on a few new posts, including the next instalment of the <a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/search/label/Dharam%27s%20Decades">Decades of Dharam series</a>... but in the meantime I would like to share this<a href="http://www.harmonyindia.org/hportal/VirtualPageView.jsp?page_id=5974"> Dharmendra interview</a> from 2007, in which Dharam talks to Tina Ambani about poetry, patriotism, <a href="http://ilovelovelovedharmendra.blogspot.com/search/label/Dharam%27s%20Children">parenthood</a>, prayer... and <em>pyaar</em>....<br /><br /><strong><em>Excerpts</em>:</strong><br /><strong></strong><br /><strong><em>Do you prefer Dharam, the lover, over the action hero?</em></strong><br />Love is also action, Tina! I am driven by love. Love should never be demanding; it must be unconditional. Love is an exquisite pain and in that pain lies intoxication. And if your lover shares that pain, the intoxication reaches another level altogether. I have been privileged enough to share such a love for over 25 years and it is amazing.<br /><br /><strong><em>And all the female actors still rave about your good looks. How do you stay so handsome?</em></strong><br />Whatever is in your heart and soul shows in your face. For the past few years, I have been practising <em>pranayama</em> [yogic breathing exercises] every day. It has transformed my life. I find it intoxicating — it has the same effect on me that alcohol used to. I used to drink a lot but I stopped about five years ago.<br /><br /><strong><em>How do you get along with your own children?</em></strong><br />Wonderfully. My girls, Esha and Ahana, are more open with me, though. I guess daughters have that kind of bond with their fathers. Sunny and Bobby are a little shy. Sunny is also a bit of an introvert.<br /><br /><br />The full interview is quite a treat for a Dharam fan. I always enjoy reading Dharmendra's more recent interviews (the good ones, at least) because there's something very consistent about them - both in the things he says and the way he says them, and always underneath it all... a poignant, human touch of vulnerability.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Daddy's Girl</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com16