Chammak Challo Promo!!!!!!!!!!!

OMG, SUPER LOVE the new promo for Ra.One!!!! I just had to post this if for no other reason than so I didn't lose it. Shah looks absolutely adorable and now that the synopsis is out, I think the film is going to have lots of heart and some good laughs.



Also, Shah's "look" for the film...



The waiting is killing me!!!!

Don 2, or what's with the hair? Really?

With a huge win under his belt for best male actor for MNIK, the extremely ambitious Ra.One coming out in approx 3 months time AND the release of the sequel to his hit crime drama remake Don, it is definitely the year of Shah Rukh. The teaser trailer for Don 2 hit the airwaves this morning, and I have to say it looks polished, action packed and Shah looks devilishly evil. I don't know what the story is for Farhan's 2nd film in the franchise, but I can not wait to find out!!!



So, a question to Shah Rukh fans. Which movie are you looking forward to the most and why?

Shake That Biscuit Baby!

Oh. My. God.

This, and only this, makes me want to see Delhi Belly.



Oh, Aamir, you are priceless.
God bless you.

WHAT'S UP TORONTO?!!!! My adventures at IIFA Part 2


How can you possibly top a night with Shah Rukh and Vivek? With another full day of Bolly goodness, that's how!

After the haze that was Friday night, Saturday morning came far too quickly, but there was so much to do that, even with a mild hangover, I got my butt out of bed and got ready to face the day. After some much needed lunch, we did a quick stop at the TIFF Lightbox to have a look at the Raj Kapoor exhibit. They were running clips from a few of his films, including Shree 420, and if you had the time you could pose to have a picture of your face superimposed on a still. Unfortunately for us, their camera wasn't working, which was really too bad because that would have been cool. Oh well.




From the Lightbox, we made our way to the Fairmont Royal York, which was the hub for all the celebs and I think official press central. I'm not sure how we managed to get in unnoticed, as there were people standing at the front doors requesting to see people's room cards. In any case, we were there, milling around among all the peeps, hoping to connect with a wizcraft person in order to secure an interview with a favorite actor. Unfortunately, that didn't work out for us, but we had a very exhilarating visit, even managing to somehow make our way up to the 19th floor executive suites. I don't mind telling you that my heart was racing the whole time! I felt like we were going to get busted any minute, and almost did end up getting kicked out when we were loitering a little too long on the main lobby floor by another very scary white security guard. There was a few celeb sightings, although my stupid bladder kept me from seeing Arbaaz Khan and Malaika Arora!!!






Chilling on the 19th floor where we bumped into some CBS and BBC peeps.






We weren't exactly sure who this was underneath the sunglasses and 5 o'clock shadow, but he looked like someone we should know. If you figure it out, let me know.


After we decided our celeb stalking wasn't going to get us to our final goal, we decided it was time to check out the events and goings on around the Rogers Center, so we made our way through the busy Toronto streets and eventually came to the Samsara stage, where we got to see Raghav perform. I wouldn't have known Raghav from Adam, but I do know this song, and it rocked!






There were less people here than I thought there would be, but that's before I realized that most of them were lining up at the green carpet (some from the night before) to get a glimpse of their favorite stars as they headed to the awards that night)


As the afternoon wore on, we headed out for a bite to eat, where we witnessed some protest of something or another (I'm guessing, like most things, it was over some sort of political "damn the man" protest). After some deliciously bad for you pub food, and a pit stop to THE cutest dress shop ever, we hoofed it to our hotel room to get ready. In our hurry to get to the Rogers Center by a start time of 7pm, we forgot to take any pictures in our lovely formal wear. Silly us! Since when does an Indian event EVER start of time? The show was supposed to start at 7pm, I think it finally began at 9pm, and ran a staggering 5 1/2 hours, due in part to every single celebrity thanking Toronto and saying what a warm welcome they've received. Yes, we all feel the love, now let's move it along!

So, the list of winners has been circulating now since that night, so I just want to touch on a couple of things I loved about the awards themselves.

#1 - Boman and Ritesh were very good at hosting the function. There was A LOT of gay humor (dancing in drag, near kisses and lots of embracing!), and in between they were funny and eloquent and it was a delight to watch them interact. They did a hilarious sequence of short films, that made fun of everything from Munnabhai to My Name is Khan to DDLJ to Sholay. Ritesh did a really funny character with no arms that must be from some movie, but I didn't recognize it. If anyone knows who I'm talking about, let me know. I'd like to be in on that joke.


#2 - Ranveer Singh! What a performance, and, in my opinion, the very best of the night. Sure Bipasha's was sexy, The Deol clan did a fine job, and Priyanka's was, well, that's when I got up to stretch my legs, but none compared to the sheer exuberance that the newly crowned best male newcomer gave to his audience. I had thought that Anushka was going to join him on stage (and I'm not sure what the story is there), but it was so much fun! Kya energy, kya style, kya performance!




Anushka and Ranveer win hottest couple. And really, who else is it going to go to? I love that look that she is shooting at him! Someone is not impressed!


#3 - Arshad Warsi is ROBBED!!!! Everyone knows I am a huge fan of Arshad's and Ishqiya was in my top 5 favorite movies of last year, but when I look at his performance of Babban, I just can not believe that he didn't win this. Now, to be fair, I haven't seen Ranjeeti, a film that spouted several best actor nods, but I just can't see anyone comparing to the raw, yet perfect culmination of role and actor that we saw in Arshad and Babban. He said in an interview this past weekend that he does the movies like the Dhamaals, the Golmaals, the Munnabhais for the audience and he does the films like Ishqiya for himself. I'm so happy he has apparently signed on for 3 more serious films in the immediate future. Maybe we will get to see him finally take home some well deserved accolades!


Arshad takes his turn at thanking Toronto "in case he doesn't make it back up to the stage"


#5 - Shah Rukh wins best actor for My Name is Khan! Okay, I get it. A lot of people did not like this movie. I, on the other hand, loved every single second of it. I firmly believe the reason it made such an impact on me is because I am a parent, but I also believe that Shah Rukh was amazing as Rizwan Khan. It was a character very far removed from the lover boy Raj and it took a tremendous amount of talen to play the part so effectively. I will always applaud actors that take risks with their careers, even if we only see them do it once in a while.

And, while we are talking about Shah Rukh, I just have to say, I appreciate the fact that, despite his fractured knee, he still came on at the end of the show and did a little dance tutorial for all of his fans. Oh sure, someone else could have stepped in and filled the bill, but I honestly and truly believe that he is someone who really doesn't want to let people down, so something is better than nothing. I had a good time watching him show us how to do the belt move from Dabangg, or the guitar move from Rock On, and the amusing "back stories" behind them. That is something you would NEVER see at an Academy Awards, and part of the charm behind this movie industry!


Rock on Shah Rukh!


Final last notes...

While the show did run a tad long (!), I loved how people got their time to talk. I dare anyone to tell Dharmji that his turn is over!


Sonu Sood wins for best villain! So happy and proud for him. Loved that he thanked his mom from above! SO SWEET!!!!! I'm searching out more of Sonu's movies for sure!


Sonakshi takes home best female newcomer! Yay! How gorgeous is this woman, seriously?
I can not wait to see what comes her way in the future.


What a terrific adventure it all was! I have heard rumours that IIFA may be held in Las Vegas next year, in which case I better start saving now, because there is NO WAY I am missing that one!



Until next time....

IIFA - an adventure in Toronto Part 1

There's something strangely sad about coming home from a vacation that fulfills nearly all of your expectations. Now that I'm back, full throttle into the reality that is my life, I feel as if the last 4 days were little more than a dream. I wish I was still sleeping!

Friday was such a blur. My sister and I got into Toronto in the afternoon, and, after meeting Filmigirl (who is AWESOME by the way), and checking into our hotel, we headed to meet the lovely Beth Loves Bollywood and Irena at Aroma. The food was so divine I couldn't get enough. Mmmmm......




Even Mini Khan made a welcome appearance! What?! I was just curious!


With the Red Carpet Vivek Oberoi party (you know the one that was highjacked by Shah Rukh!), on it's way it was time to head back to the hotel and get ready. I never EVER wear a dress, but this was a special occasion, so I had to get all dressed up. Once we got to the Sheraton, I was so happy that we had line by pass tickets. That was until I realized that there was no such thing and we had to stand at the back of the line anyway. Oh well. At least it moved fast! So, go from this line to get your wrist bands, to this line to get downstairs, to this line for red carpet pictures and you are finally in! WOO HOO!




I have to tell you, for someone who loves desi/filmi music so much but only gets to appreciate it in the comfort of her home or blaring in the car, it was SO GREAT to be able to dance to my favorite songs in a club like setting. Of course, after getting a wine, we started up right away!


Apparently, like most Indian organized events, there was absolute chaos! No one with a vip wristband knew where to go for the actual meet & greet. Some people were saying, "Just head to the front", which we tried only to be scolded at very ominously by a large white security guard. SCARY! Finally they announced where to go, and, as we made our way over, we were bombarded with people just trying to get a closer look. However, those wristbands were awesome things, because it allowed us to actually go on stage with the very handsome Vivek Oberoi. I remember thinking I wondered how I would ever react if I got a chance to actually meet a celebrity. Would I be cool. Would I be a total fangirl. I'm not actually 15 years old anymore, after all. So, when I got a chance to meet Vivek, I think what I came up with was, "I'm so happy to meet you. I loved you in Prince." Smack head! What a wasted opportunity! Though, to be fair, they were ushering us over that stage so fast I felt completely rushed! Oh well, at least I got myself a pic of the event to commemorate my complete lack of eloquence.

I hate this picture of me, but oh well, it's me and VIVEK OBEROI! WOOT!!!!

After Vivek was done, we were graced by the one and only Shah Rukh Khan. You know, for the amount of people that seemed to be milling around outside the Sheraton, there didn't seem to be the thousands of peeps inside that we were expecting. That being said, I didn't get as close to him as I would have preferred, figuring at least 30 - 40 yards between the love of my life and myself. It was close enough though to get a few snaps and see him answer questions, say some dialogues, show off his signature filmi move. The crowd was crazy over him, and I'm embarrassed to say that after all was said and done I had to excuse myself to go compose and get it together!! Geez! At some point I'm sure I will outgrow this crazy fangirl inside me.... ah who am I kidding, I'll be the same when I'm 60!


One of the better shots I got of Shah Rukh. He looked tired I thought,
but still very handsome and dapper!



A much better pic courtesy of Projected Life Photography, who very kindly took our photographs with Vivek and some great photos of the guest of honor!

After all the hubub over our wonderful hosts of the evening were over, the dj threw on some fantastic tunes and filmigirl, my sister and I hit the dance floor! No sooner had we started to rock out when we were joined by a small group of ladies, who were amazed that we knew the words to the songs! From that point on, we had people coming up to us all night wondering who we were, how we knew Bollywood, asking to take our photos. It was strange but fun and we continued to dance the night away until the wee hours of the morning! I even won an official party Shah Rukh tshirt! Woot!




I was so excited to meet some of my SRKAngels from twitter, including srksuperfanatic and shahrukhzangel and twitter friend Daniel. Brief as it was, I was thrilled to spend time with them all.


Shruti, me and Nabila! SRKAngels represent!!!


Filmigirl, Daniel and me!

A fantastic day! An even more fantastic night. It was really an amazing time, and I made memories to last a lifetime!

Stay tuned for Part 2 - IIFA fever!

Time Flies!


Holy smokes! Has it been that long since I did a post? I completely missed my 2nd bloggiversary (bummer), but as spring moves forward, my love of all things Bolly related continues to grow! I've seen a bunch of films in the last couple of months, but I am so behind on my reviews that I'm going to do a loved it/hated it post soon. Coming up: Patiala House, Golmaal 3, Band Baaja Baaraat, Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai, Break Ke Baad...

I am SO INCREDIBLY EXCITED to be leaving to attend IIFA 2011 in 4 days!!! I have purchased a gorgeous (and "fresh" outfit according to my very persistent but fun salesman) so I can attend the awards in style! I couldn't believe when I read Shah Rukh would be performing the final number of the night. SCORE! My bank account has experienced a disastrously high shrinking rate, however my closet has become home to some wicked party wear!

And speaking of Shah Rukh, what else are you to do the big IIFA weekend but party, so when we got the chance to go to a Vivek Oberoi & friends event, why not! Scooped VIP tix up and was excited to see who "friends" were, little did I know that the night would be host to special guest Shah Rukh! WHAT!!!! As little as one week ago no one even knew if he was going to be gracing Canada with his presence, now he's going to be at everything I'm attending! My heart was experiencing serious palpitations last night on the arrival of this news.

So, parties, awards, movie poster art museums, movies all with my sister, Filmigirl and a host of other wonderful twitter/blogger friends I can not wait to meet, Friday can not come here fast enough!!!! I can't wait to post all the pics and tell you all how much fun I know we are going to have. Can it just be Friday already!

Kingdom of Dreams Photoshoot

What a great day today! First Kolkata Knight Riders won their game today against Delhi, complete with several waves and kisses to me from our lovely owner(yay for my boys in purple and gold!), then I got to see the specatcular Harry Potter trailer for Deathly Hallows 2, THEN I stumbled upon this wonderful new photoshoot with Shah (who, by the way I am missing like crazy!). So I had HAD to share some of them with you. Check out pinkvilla.com for the entire photo spread.


So dapper in this all black ensemble! Shah is nothing if not genuinely classy!



I am so loving the little smirks! Kya smile!!!



Oh my gosh! Loving the mural behind him. If someone would like to come to my house and paint it up for me like this I would be infinitely grateful!


Taa daa! A super terrific block of pics! Go, run and check out the rest of them now!

Guzaarish


Apparently I am on a video viewing rampage it seems. How interesting that it just happens to coincide with my last trip to the video store. I've several to write up, but I think I'm going to start with my latest, Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Guzaarish.

I remember seeing the first sneak peaks and trailers for this film and at once thought it looked beautifully intriguing. Then the music was released and I was completely underwhelmed. Only one song spoke to me, and the rest nearly put me to sleep. I belong to a small percentage of people I'm sure who are averse to kiss the ground SLB walks on. Of his films that I've seen I've only really enjoyed HDDCS (and yes, that does include Devdas), but after the disaster that was Saawariya, I was reluctant to go on another journey with the director, regardless of who was in it.

When the trailers were airing I'd heard stories that the movie was going to unwind similarly along the lines of the magical drama The Prestige. After the film was released there was apparently a slough on controversy over the main theme of the story, a smoking scene with Aish, alleged plagiarism of Indian writer Dayanand Rajan's unpublished novel Summer Snow and the similarity between the film and the 2004 Spanish film The Sea Inside. They say any publicity is good publicity, but even with all that, the film didn't do well at the box office, and it's a real tragedy because Guzaarish it really is an incredibly touching and lovely film!

Simply put, the story is about one man's pursuit to achieve the final word on his life. Quadriplegic for 14 years, Ethan Mascarenhas (Hrithik) decides to take matters into his own hands and appeal to the courts, with the aid of his best friend and lawyer Devyani, for euthanasia. The film also follows the close relationship between Ethan and his long time nurse, Sophia (Aishwarya). Instead of getting into the political matters of mercy killings, which I'm sure it was SLB's intention to perhaps shed some light on the taboo subject, I'd rather talk about the moments in this film that left a lasting impression on me.

One might think that a film about a man's quest to live and end his life with dignity might be a sombre affair, but the dialogues are peppered with humour, and it's these exchanges that really make you fall in love with Ethan's character. You'd think that a person who had to deal with the unfortunate after effects of an accident that left you in a wheelchair for the rest of your life would be bitter and cynical perhaps, but Ethan tends to looks at situations differently, using his experiences to help enhance the lives of others with his inspirational book and radio show, and attacking his own mishaps with a dry wit. One of my favorite scenes takes place right after Ethan nearly falls out of bed.










I suppose it is a combination of brilliant direction and acting that, as a viewer, you feel empathy for your protagonist when watching any kind of movie dealing with disabilities. When I watched the scene where Ethan was faced with a leaky roof, I thought my heart was going burst with compassion for the man. One second I am welling up over how completely tragic and desperate the moment is, then, once again I am laughing at how he seems to overcome it all with his amazing humor.








When Hrithik said he was going to lend his voice to a song in Kites, I thought "Cool!", then I listened to it and thought, "Boy, how I wished he hadn't done that". In Guzaarish he lends his pipes to another song. However, this time it was poignant and what turned out to be a very special moment in the movie for me! SPOILER ALERT Ethan sings, as a tribute to his mother at her funeral, What A Wonderful World, with such meaning that you don't care that he's not a playback singer. It's intended to be a personal acknowledgement to the bond they shared, and it's incredibly touching. The song has special meaning to me as well, as it was played also at my step-father's funeral. Beautiful.


END SPOILER

I have to say that I was really relieved with the look of this film, and by that I mean it was colorful! Beautiful crisp vivid colors in almost every shot. Bright reds, glorious greens and, yes there was some calming blues in there too. What SLB managed to bring out in a lot of the film was a total ethereal quality. The scenes where Ethan flashes back to his days as a magician are really stunning. Cinematically speaking, it really is a lovely film to watch.






I'd said that when the OST was released, I wasn't sure of the songs in the film, except for Udi, which was instantly catchy. However, in the context of the story, each and every song works wonderfully and is, perhaps, one of the best examples of how a film and music work symbiotically together in perfect harmony. Even the background score is beautiful and does exactly as it should, enhancing the mood of the film in every frame it plays.



I love the Spanish vibe to this tune. I love Sophie's ability to let loose a little bit and I LOVE Ethan's response to it!

This film, even with all it's beauty and song, would be nothing without the absolutely brilliant acting done by each and every person yielding a script. It's quite a large cast of supporting players, but it's Shernaz Patel (Devyani Dutta) who stands out to me as the best friend/lawyer. Both sympathetic to her friends cause, battling it out in court, and saddened to know that if she wins it ultimately means the end of her friendship, Shernaz plays the torn woman well. Aditya Roy Kapoor plays Omar Siddique, the young hopeful magician who weasels his way into Ethan's home but ends up being the recipient of all of his tricks. I just saw Adi in Action Replayy (which I'm not quite finished yet), and thought he was capable, if you can look past that giant mop of a hairdo! I can see him with a successful supporting character career.




Aish was beautiful, of course, in this film, and she does a wonderful job as Ethan's nurse. You can tell that their relationship runs deeper than the standard nurse/patient relationship and it's her resounding quietness that demonstrates just how much she cares about him, especially during the scene where she is being attacked by the court's prosecutor.


However, this film belongs to Hrithik. It is a daunting task to take on a role, I would imagine, that requires you to sit in a chair, immobile (with the exception of a few minutes of film) with nothing but your face to convey what you are going through. Hrithik was able to express everything, love, anger, depression, happiness all with his face, and he was ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT!!! And you know what?! The "Jesus" hair that he had to sport for so long that everyone gave him SUCH a hard time about, well you don't even notice it. I mean, you notice it, but you don't care. This role did nothing but solidify why Hrithik is one of India's top superstars and why he is one of my favorite actors! Also if you are looking for a hot Hrithik, you do get one in the magic flashbacks.






No, SLB, it is I that is having a love story with you. You took a tough subject, treated it with extreme care and made a film just so lovely it's a crime that people didn't embrace it as I have. Oh, sure, it has a few flaws, but I'm not going to talk about them. What I'm going to take away from this film is that love, and life, are precious as long as you live by what makes you happiest.

One sidenote: I saw a film a long time ago that tackled a similar subject called It's My Party about a man that has to cope with the lasting complications of advanced AIDS. If you liked Guzaarish, you should definitely check out this American film.