RGV STANDS FOR…

Rawness, Guns, Violence
Romance, Guts, Villainy
Razz-ness (A Nigerian-ism – tough to explain), Guys, Viciousness
Reality, Genius, Vision
Redemption, Grittiness, Variety

This is fun, I think I’ll do more ‘RGVs’ later… of course RGV also stands for Ram Gopal Varma – and his films are the subject of this post. This is my second post focusing on the work of a particular Indian director – I did one on Hrishikesh Mukherjee a while back.

I think the words I’ve used above describe different elements of Ram Gopal Varma’s work… I’ve seen only three RGV movies – 'Rangeela', 'Company' and 'Shiva' (that’s also the order in which I viewed them). The first one is lighter, romantic, typical Bollywood ‘masala’ fare – the latter two are edgier, darker, harder-hitting crime movies – the kind of work which has resulted in RGV being called India’s Tarantino. And what I really like is that the films belong to such different categories, you can still see RGV’s distinctive film-making style shining in all of them.

I think RGV has a flair for several things: shooting fast-moving acting scenes, building a sense of heightened anticipation and suspense, using his actors effectively in terms of character exploration, shooting dramatic, confrontational scenes; and injecting very striking and strong visual images into his films.

Of the three RGV movies I’ve seen, ‘Company’ is probably my favourite. Starring Vivek Oberoi, Ajay Devgan and Manisha Koirala, it’s the story of an underworld kingpin (played by Devgan) who takes a young ambitious hustler (played by Oberoi) under his wing. At first, things go swimmingly – the protégé does his boss’s bidding and it’s all gravy for the gang, but then the dynamic of the relationship changes and it all goes awry. This film has many strengths – the cinematography is beautiful, the action scenes are gripping and realistic, the sets are brilliant (I love the maze effect of the buildings during the crucial chase in Kenya) – but the best part is the acting and the wonderful way the actors navigate the intricacies of the characters’ complex relationships, all played out against the fascinating backdrop of organized crime and ‘un-organised’ law enforcement.

There is a fabulous rawness to the film, a grittiness and a realness – but there’s also a softness, a sweetness and a simplicity. I love the dynamic between Ajay and Vivek – both of whom deliver marvelous performances (especially Ajay). I also like the restrained, conflicted-but-too-tired-to-care moll played by Manisha – at first I thought she was just wooden and boring but later I got it. Other stand-out performances are by two actresses – the fantastic Seema Biswas (playing Vivek’s mother) and newbie Antara Mali as 'Kannu', Vivek’s love interest (a very, very good performance). That’s another thing I love about RGV’s films: I love the fact that RGV really allows women to take centre-stage in his movies, and he’s not afraid to use strong female characters in his stories – that’s pretty damned hot. But the best performance of the film, for me, is by Mohanlal, as the police boss. Ajay is a very close second, though.

Hmm… my second fave RGV film is ‘Rangeela’. This will probably seem a bit heretical to many who regard ‘Rangeela’ as a classic slice of Bollywood, but I far prefer ‘Company’. Anyway, the best thing about ‘Rangeela’ for me is Aamir Khan – definitely one of my favourite Aamir performances. He is so sweet and so believable and natural in this film, and I just love the way he said ‘Arre Milli’. Urmila Matondkar’s performance as the heroine is also lovely – she is bright, sparky, fun and adds depth to what could have easily been a shallow character. Even Jackie Shroff is ok, although my worst part of the film was definitely him dancing around in the ocean in a tight black Speedo and then proceeding to suck Urmila’s toes – blech!

There is also a lot of colour and style to the movie; and it’s a fresh, light-hearted take on the tired ‘young female with big sapnay becomes big famous movie star’ story. What I didn’t like about ‘Rangeela’ though is that there were way too many songs, only 1 or 2 of which I liked, and Urmila did way too much pouting and ‘winding’ in the songs for my taste – but I guess that’s part of why people like this movie so much. For me it’s just ok, not great.

‘Shiva’ is my least fave RGV movie so far – not because I don’t like it though – I really do, I like it a lot – it’s just that the other ones had an edge for one reason or the other. I really like ‘Shiva’ because RGV used fresh young faces in his lead roles – I love directors who don’t always use the same established faces, who aren’t afraid to try newbies and less commercially-successful artists (hint, hint, K-Jo), and RGV is definitely one of them – he gave Vivek Oberoi his big break, and routinely uses actors who are ‘off the beaten track’ (e.g. Seema Biswas), simply because they are good.

‘Shiva’ is good in some parts – the action scenes are good, the chemistry between the leads (played by the TDH Mohit Ahlawat, and the potentially very good Nisha Kothari – in a nice strong role for a woman) is engaging – again, RGV can shoot a good love scene. The story is interesting and dramatic, there are lessons to be learnt, the relationships between the characters are beautifully explored, and what’s hinted at is even more interesting than what’s explained. There’s also a cute and funny song mocking the police.

It’s a bit silly in some parts, though. The ‘little monkey man with a curved knife thing’ was dumb – I mean, come on! He obviously was no good with a knife if he couldn’t put a single nick on our hero’s body in all that time he had. It was good comic relief though. Some of the acting was bad – especially the guy who played the villain. I did not ‘feel’ his ‘evil-ness’ at all – he was just dead boring. Some parts of the plot just did not work, they just beggared belief – but I like that RGV gave them a shot anyway. I really like that kind of adventurousness and experimentalism in a director.

WHO’S YOUR FAVOURITE KHAN?

I know there are quite a few Khans in Bollywood, but for the purposes of this tag, I am limiting myself to 4. No prizes for guessing which 4, though. It’s the 4 delicious actors who regularly make females (and a few males too) gasp with delight, and reach for their ice-cold Cokes (to cool them down) whenever they appear on their movie screens. Any Fardeen fans reading this, yes, I know he does it for you but he doesn’t quite make my list, sorry. Here, in descending order of preference, are ‘my’ 4 Khans.

1. SHAH RUKH KHAN:

Far and away my favourite of the 4 Khans. Why do I like SRK so much? It’s a combination of things: the fact that I get the feeling he is fearless about acting and will take on almost any part as long as he gets paid and gets a kick out of it. The fact that he seems so deliciously outspoken and diva-ish in real life – I always like divas, as long as they don’t go completely round-the-bend like MJ.

I like the fact that SRK obviously does not take himself too seriously and is just enjoying himself and having fun with every movie. I love the fact that SRK seems very human – slightly arrogant, slightly childish, a bit silly sometimes, trying to quit smoking, trying silly fashion trends – he seems real.

I love the fact that he is a great dancer and a great lip-syncher and that he’s cheap enough to dance for a fee at weddings. I love it when he gets all romantic and sweet. I love it when he gets all intense. Like Maja, I quite like his eyebrows. I love all his dumb same-y mannerisms – the shrug, the sideways look, the downward look, the hand through the hair, the sob-sob cry, the sniff-sniff laugh – I love it ALL. I think he is a very talented actor. He has been able to sell a distinctive product – himself. I love his nice physique. I love the fact that he climbed to the top from practically nothing and doesn’t seem to care that he’s hated for his success. Ok, I will stop. I’m probably nauseating someone right about now. But a couple more things:

I love his smile(s) – notice how he has variations:

sad smile – ‘no, Simran I won’t come to your wedding. I won’t come’

happy smile – ‘my little brother Laxman'

Happy smile - 'I got the pretty girl!' - from 'Yes Boss'

comical smile – in almost any scene with Johnny Lever in ‘Baadshah’

With Juhi in 'Yes Boss'

hot smile:

checking a babe out smile:
Checking Preity out in her borrowed Punjabi outfit in 'Veer Zaara'

People talk a lot about how all SRK’s characters are the same, but I actually don’t agree: for me, his cheeky annoying ‘DDLJ’ character is very different from his creepy ‘Darr’ character or his cute dorky-but-manly ‘Main Hoon Na’ character or his hot and oh-so-brave-and-regal ‘Asoka’ character. Anyway, as you can tell, I really like SRK – so I won’t bore you with any more details.
Favourite SRK performances: Main Hoon Na (absolutely LOVE this movie), Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (he was annoying at first but very good - it probably shouldn't be here but I'm sentimental about the movie)

Least fave: Mohabbatein (awful fake-pretend violin-playing, was so sick of it), Pardes (he was okay but fought a bit too much. First time I wished he’d just die in a movie and be done with it. Needless to say, he denied me that small satisfaction)


2. AAMIR KHAN:

Why do I like this guy? He is a hardworking and intense actor (at least he appears to be). He’s got that alternative arty thing which can be quite sexy. He is cute and I love his eyes. He makes shortness look hot – see ‘Lagaan’ and ‘Mangal Pandey’. He has such a charming and natural smile – and those creases that appear at the sides of his eyes when he smiles really should be unattractive, but somehow aren’t. He can be funny, dramatic, subtle, serious, goofy, whatever you need him to be - and he's committed to being the best character actor he can be. You never get the sense that he's putting you on.

He can dance and lip-sync great. He makes his characters believable and real, and he makes you feel the energy and emotions of each character. Even when he does dreadful movies, he stands out. He is hot (but I think I’ve already said that). He’s always doing something different. You can really trace his development over the years - although he is a VERY natural talent (his early work shows so much star quality that it's almost blinding). Notice I have focused only on his acting, as I’m not sure what to make of him away from the movies (not that it’s any of my beeswax).

Aamir, Kajol, Ajay and Juhi doing ther best 'I'm weirdly stunned' look in 'Ishq' - Juhi obviously doesn't get it and falls back on her cuteness.
Aamir in his romantic-teenage-girl-pinup days, acting all defiant with Madhuri Dixit in 'Dil'. They had great chemistry in this film.

Favourite Aamir performances: Rangeela (didn’t like the film that much, but LOVED the way he said ‘Arre Milli’ in it – I know, ‘tis random), Dil Chahta Hai (loved the way he clowned around with the boys and with Preity. ‘Jaane kyon, jaane kyon, jaane kyon, jaane kyon, jaane kyon’ – sorry just having a brief DCH moment).

Least fave: Akele Hum, Akele Tum (he wasn’t actually bad in this movie, but I can’t get over the fact that it’s almost a scene-for-scene copy of Kramer v. Kramer; and when I hear that ‘Yes, I love you Daddy’ song that sounds kinda like the theme song from ‘Love Story’, I’m not sure whether to say ‘how cute’ or just to throw up.)


3. SAIF ALI KHAN:



I know... I could at least have found a photo that showed his face... but still.. it's a great view, ne-c'est-pas?

Reasons I love Saif Ali Khan. He’s cute. He does boyish very well. He does funny and charming very well. He does mischievous very well. BUT I’m finding he also does serious, mature and deep very well. I like the fact that he seems to be growing and developing as an actor. He’s an expressive and honest actor. He throws himself into each movie. He’s cool. He seems intelligent. He seems like good fun. He seems like the boy-next-door despite having famous parents (although I've heard he's not as down-to-earth as he seems). He seems like a guy who is just trying to make it – aww, bless his heart. He’s been a bit 'controversial' by marrying an older woman for love – I like that, even if it didn’t work out. He’s cute – but I think I already said that.

Favourite Saif performances: Kal Ho Naa Ho (he totally overshadowed my SRK in this movie. I loved the chemistry between his character and SRK’s character), Parineeta (in a challenging role, I think he did very well – I was impressed).

Least fave: You know what? I actually haven’t badly disliked Saif in any movies yet (at least, the ones I’ve seen) and haven’t disliked any of his movies badly either. Will update this as soon as I do. It’s bound to happen eventually.


4. SALMAN KHAN:


So, Uzo, I get to finally answer your question. Why is Salman my least favourite Khan? You know what? It’s hard to express. But like my little sis would say: ‘I just don’t like him’. Maybe it’s that sugar-sweet, I’m so cute, I’m so funny, I’m so fake-pretend half-Italian (ok, I know, low blow, that wasn’t actually his fault) thing he does sometimes. Maybe it’s the fact that he is determined to show off his pecs NO MATTER WHAT. He just has to take that shirt off and pump some iron at some point. Maybe I think the pecs are a little too large and He-Man-ish for my personal taste.


Maybe he’s just too cheesy and over-eager. Maybe he tries a little too hard ‘Neelam? He he. Yo Neelam!’ Maybe he just feels very ’80s to me – and not in a cute ‘Hello, is it me you’re looking for’, Cosby Show-ish way; more like in a bad the-guys-from-the-A Night at the Roxbury-movie-or-whatever-that-Will-Ferrell-movie-was-called; Rico-Suave-ish way. For some reason, in his real life he seems rather insecure and a bit of a baby at his not-exactly-spring-chicken-ish age – and what was that whole thing with Aishwarya? Didn’t she say he abused her or something? And did he really shoot a croc or something crazy like that? Ok, I’ll get off the personal life track now before I confuse anyone. This is supposed to be about his acting.

The truth is, having said all that, Salman is not that bad. He may be my least favourite Khan, but I’ve enjoyed several movies he’s been in. Really and truly I have.

Favourite Salman performance: Chori Chori Chupke Chupke (he was really good in this film, which had a really silly storyline but got by on good acting), Hum Aapke Hain Koun (he was young, wide-eyed and kinda goofy-cute, and he said ‘Painting, bhaiyya, painting, which was kinda cute)
Salman, Rani and borrowed baby in 'Chori Chori Chupke Chupke'

Least fave: Lucky – No Time for Love (this is an absolutely painful watch and should be seen by no-one), Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya (once he did his shirtless-rock-star number, not even the presence of my screen faves Dharmendra, Kajol and VK could make this finish this film – drats, I could have had 5 movies on my Dharmendra-movies-I’ve-seen list. LOL

Who’s tagged?

Did I mention that this was a tag? So, I tag the following lucky 4 ‘Khans’:

Beth Loves Bollywood
Maja
Sheetal Makhan
T-Hype

I hope someone on the above list is up to this (and if no-one really is, someone please just take pity on me and do it anyway). Basically (and as briefly or longwinded-ly as you like), what’s your order of preference for the 4 Khans, and which 2 performances of each one do you like most and dislike most?

A Break from my Tale - and in its place, tales of 'Teri Meherbaniyan', Highlighted 'Packages' and Slightly Demeaning 'Rain Scenes'...

Okay... I've decided to take a likkle break from the story of how I became enamoured with my dear Dharmendra. I figure that the suspense created by this delay will be a good thing for this blog. Instead, I'm doing a brief review of 'Teri Meherbaniyan' (released in 1985), the last Bollywood movie I saw.

I was interested in seeing TM (forgive me, but I'm not about to write that long thing everytime I refer to it) for the following reasons:

1. It's regarded as one of the most popular Bollywood movies in Naija.


2. It looked mildly interesting on the cover.


3. I figured it had to be good to make up for a long name like that.
   

However, I did have my misgivings about seeing the movie as well... the tagline is 'the tale of a loyal dog' or something like that... and I'm not a big of animals in movies. I just think it's corny and kinda razz. That's not to say I've never enjoyed a movie with a dog in it - I did like 'Hum Aapke Hain Koun' and those Hollywood family movies - 'Beethoven', 'Benji' etc, but I can't say it's a big draw for me.

Anyway, back to TM. This movie starred:

Jackie Shroff: Ever since I saw this guy's extremely cringeworthy dance-moves in a Speedo, on the beach in 'Rangeela' (am I the only one who can't understand all the fuss about 'Rangeela'?), I've been like, what is wrong with this dude? He seems slightly... shall we say... eccentric (no offence to anyone who knows him, I'm just talking perception here). And watching 'Devdas' only added to my perception of Jackie - what a razz character with all the 'P for Pyaar, Ch is for Chand' stuff. BollyBob has a HILARIOUS Jackie Shroff expose here: http://dangermuff.com/bollybob/n_jackie.html. I promise you it is so worth a read. Now I feel kinda bad for bashing Jackie, though. I'm sure he's a nice guy...

So what did I think of our dear Jackie in TM? Well, let's start with the positives, Jackie was kinda cute way back in 1985 when this movie was made. Facially, he don't look bad at all. Actually quite hot. He had a nice trim physique too. Can't say he's aged well, though (again, no offence). And the 'hero' thing he did in TM was quite cool - though I can't say the same for the love scenes with him running after 'Bilji' as if to say na Olympics he dey train for. However, his hotness was kinda detracted from by the extra-tight jeans he wore throughout the movie - is it just me or were those jeans designed to make his package look HUGE? If so, they succeeded. And he also wore a T-shirt at some point that was emlazoned with the words 'Single Man'. Oh, the 80s!!

Poonam Dhillon in TM

Poonam Dhillon: Quite a pretty girl, she does an ok job in TM. There's a scene where she's singing in the rain fantasizing about Jackie's character and she's like totally drenched and rolling on the ground and... you get the picture. What is it with these Indian directors and putting girls in the rain with their saris soaking wet and highlighting every contour of their bodies? I think it's a bit much, all for the sake of cheap thrills... I will soon suspect that a lot of them are total pervs. I have to say my dear Kajol did her 'rain scenes' well in 'Kuch Kuch Hota Hai' and 'Kabhi Khushie Kabhie Gham' - she kept it subtle and did not go over-the-top with the sexiness. Way to go, Kajol.

Well, Poonam was ok in this movie and did her 'so sexy' thing competently, although I think they could've chilled out a bit. The chemistry between her character and Jackie's character was actually quite nice.

Another photo of Poonam... in the middle of a staring contest with Jackie

Moti the 'Wonder Dog': Ok, first I have to say that I don't believe this dog was not harmed in the making of TM. Is there anything Moti does not do? He worked harder than any of the actors on this film, I'm sure. He runs, he growls, he bites, he carries messages, he saves lives, he delivers messages, he bears funeral garlands, he makes his master fall in love, he cries (wonder what they put in the poor dog's eyes), he lights a funeral pyre, he 'kobalises' the bad guys, he watches a half-naked girl bathing and steals her clothes (a bit icky, I thought)... phew! This dog im suffer no be small... I guess Moti was ok in TM, since the movie was kinda all about him, but men, it was a bit too much. And near the end of the movie, a 'holy' cobra comes to help Moti out... men, dunno what to say about that.

The rest of TM's cast is quite good. The late Amrish Puri (just found out today that he died last year) does his trademark evil villain (his 'Babuji' in DDLJ and 'Sahib' in 'Koyla' were terrifying, in very different ways). Although Amrish Puri played mostly villains during his distinguished Bollywood career, I hear he was actually a very nice guy. Anyway, the rest of the cast is good, especially the guy who plays the mute character.

TM also has very nice music, put together by the talented Laxmikant Pyarelal. The music is lovely even if the sequences are a bit much. One of the songs with Poonam and Jackie is actually nicely done, until they start rolling around on the ground...

However, TM has a poor script and the movie does not flow well. Because of this, you don't really get to empathise with the characters. The most striking example of this, to me, was when Jackie's character (Ram) comes into town to see that something terrible has happened to his beloved Bilji (Poonam Dhillon's character), who was supposed to have been protected by Moti, the dog (Bilji locked Moti out when she noticed he was watching her bathe - again, icky).

So, anyway, Ram gets mad at Moti and thrashes him, until he realises there was nothing Moti could've done. He then apologises to Moti, gives him a nice stroke, sings him the title song, and then, with a smile (albeit a sad smile), has a nice meal of naan and rice (apparently prepared by Moti, cos I don't know who else could've cooked it) with his dear wonder dog... what? If I was Bilji eh! After what happened to her, it was a bit silly for him to sit down with his dog and wack bread and rice. Haba! He could have waited small, at least to get over the shock. Poor scripting!

To sum it all up, TM is a WACK movie, and I can't for the life of me understand why it's popular in Nigeria. Maybe it's another case of Koko dumping! Whatever it is sha, I would not recommend this film to anyone.