DJ Munks.com

UK PREMIERE ON THRUSDAY 29th JAN ’09. WORLDWIDE MOVIE RELEASE ON FRIDAY 30th JAN ’09.

..

I saw the trailer of Luck By Chance at the Ghajini Premiere in London and I instantly built up really high hopes from this movie. The colourful clips, the texture of the shots, the cast, the music.. it all seemed so well put-together in that one minute trailer… And guess what.. LBC does not let you down !!

..

The members of the Akhtar family are known for their talent and effortless brilliance in the Indian film industry. Zoya Akhtar joins the family trade in style !! She has the eye for attention to detail, the sanity for a good story, the elegance for a good script and the touch to sparkle every shot. At the same time she has the class that  every Akhtar has including Shabana Azmi.

..

PLOT

This Bollywood movie is about “Bollywood“. Its different from the others made in this genre in story style where it gives you an insight into every character and their little life story.

The movie is mainly about 2 aspiring actors played by Konkana Sen and Farhan Akhtar who want to get somewhere in this hugely notorious industry. Farhan Akhtar falls in love with Konkana during his struggling days. He gets lucky and then plays a little crooked to get the lead role in a movie being produced by a huge Producer [Rishi Kapoor] & his wife [Juhi Chawla] launching his brother as a Director [Sanjay Kapoor] with a new female lead [Isha Shervani] who is the daughter of a famous old Bollywood queen [Dimple Kapadia] which happens when the Superstar [Hritik Roshan] drops out of the movie to do another Karan Johar film.

His life and personal commitments change to favor his career. He leaves Konkana & his friends behind in a circle of lies till reality hits him and he decides to come back to the people who loved him when he was nothing.. only to find they have moved on and left him alone to his stardom.

Let me clarify.. the story is NOT about Farhan Akhtar.. It’s about Konkana Sen.. Surprised..?? Its true.. I hate ruining stories so I will leave the details for you to discover when you watch this movie..

..

REVIEW

LBC is a very light, fun, colourful, charming, artistic and aspiring movie with great music. Nothing too brilliant about the story if you notice… It has traces of many movies made to the tune of the Bollywood industry and aspirations + hardships of aspiring actors who will to succeed at any cost in this big intoxicating industry. But what is brilliant about LBC is how simple & light this movie is !! It has no action, few intense emotional scenes and full of light humour making it a great family movie. It shows the different aspects of movies and different characters associated with the industry. It brings out the stereotypes with simple character driven jokes about them that will keep you giggling throughout the movie. The full cast of the movie does a commendable job as fas as projecting their character is concerned but none of them out-stand and share the limelight from the other great actors in the movie. Everyone is equally good.

..

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE MOVIE

- Special guest appearances by the best in the industry. The movie starts with Aamir Khan !! Other names include Sharukh Khan, Kareen Kapoor, Rani Mukherjee, Javed Akhtar, Shabana Azmi, Abhishek Bachchan, John Abraham, Ranbir Kapoor, Akshaye Khanna, Vivek Oberoi, Manish Malhotra.. did I miss anyone..??

- Farhan Akhtar & Konkana get along brilliantly as the leads with style and quality acting.

- Rishi Kapoor & Juhi Chawla are hilarious. So is Sanjay Kapoor.

- Dimple Kapadia is intense, strong and charming even now..

- Isha Sharvani is cute and fits the bill well. Hritik is sublime and still very noticeable in his short role.

- The art work and cinematography are colourful and very pleasing.

- Music is the best with Shankar-Eshaan-Loy doing their magic. Even the background score & Sound design are great.

- Zoya has done a great job for her directorial debut and sure can write a good story. Farhan can write some mean dialogues too.

- The twist at the end in the story is totally unexpected and well thought. Also, no character or element of the movie feels out of place. Every thing in the movie fits well with each other like a complete jigsaw.

..

LOW-LIGHTS OF THE MOVIE

- Some scenes of the movie seem a little stretched. You do notice 2 hours 40 minutes passing by.

- It is a slow movie, no doubt, and thus will let your attention go off the screen every now and then.

- A few strong emotions and challenging scenes could have made this movie more appealing.

..

FINAL WORD

Very Good – 7.5/10 .

Its the second big release of 2009 after a disastrous Chandni Chowk to China and it is a HIT for sure. How big a hit is what we have to wait and watch. Must Watch..

Keep it for a relaxed evening after a quite dinner for light-feel-good entertainment. It doesn’t promise laugh riots but sure will make you giggle and smile every few minutes.. Kudos to the cast and crew.. !! It’s not Luck .. just plain Talent !

..

..
I sooo love the start of this album that it’s difficult to move on….

Let’s start this review again.. [while I play the CD again from the start ]

..

Simple fundamental… When Shankar-Eshaan-Loy [SEL] come together with Javed & Farhan Akhtar, history knows that the music is always ground breaking. Be it Dil Chahta Hai or Lakshya or Don or Rock On !! the result has always been pure harmonic melody in an innovative style. This time they had another Akhtar join their fabulous team. Farhan’s sister Zoya makes her debut as a Writer & Director thus making it a complete family movie for the Akhtar’s. The class & grace of this family is evident in the music of this movie and I am sure will very clearly be seen even in the movie when it releases..

..

The film is about the struggle of an aspiring actor played by Farhan in his second movie as an actor along with some big names like Konkana Sen, Rishi Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia, Juhi Chawla, Sanjay Kapoor & Hritik Roshan. Here is a spoiler :- We hear there are special appearances by Shahrukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Salmaan Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Shilpa Shetty, Rani Mukherji, Karan Johar & many more to name a few !!

..

Lets come to the music. As the movie is about struggle, love, relationships, fun & pain the music is about that as well. All these fundamentals work with a listener as everyone can relate to them in some way or the other. Javed Akhtar’s lyrics always deliver the message in the most soothing & perfect way.. and music of Luck By Chance is no different.

..

REVIEW

Track 1- Yeh Zindagi Bhi – Its got a very groovy drum break beat start. Very catch & you will want to listen to it again & again just for that start. But wait for Shekhar Ravjiani & Loy’s vocals to come in cause they are equally brilliant with some amazing poetic lyrics typical to the Javed Akhtar style about life & a man’s aspirations. The chorus & bridge of the song are very catch & will get stuck in your head. You will be humming the harmonies for a couple of days atleast. Make sure you stop & listen to the lyrics once atleast as they are deep & meaningful. The repetitive background drum beat music works in favor of the song & thus I don’t see any downside in this song although you can hear a slight similarity to the ‘Taare Zameen Par’ soundtrack. I give this song a 9/10 .

..

Track 2 – Baawre – After I finally managed to get past the continuous looping of track 1, the expectations were very high for the rest of the album. “Baawre” doesn’t disappoint you. The Rajasthani ensemble along with Shankar’s vocals is a classic blend of traditional with modern Bollywood music. Although the overall feel is traditional, the song has a very situational feel to it and you wonder what it will look like in the movie. What this album misses is a club tune. This song has the potential to fill that gap depending on how it is shot. Hritik Roshan dancing to the song in a Russian circus environment should do the song good. It will still not become a “Koi Kahe” as it lacks that class. The instruments, the composition, the lyrics, the mixing on this song is very good. I just don’t like the drop that comes in around 3 minutes into the song. This song gets a 8/10 .

..

Track 3 – Pyaar Ki Daastaan – You have had a song about life, a fun dance number & now a romantic one. When you get to song 3 you know this album is a complete package with all moods.

Amit Paul delivers some very soulful vocals along with Mahalakshmi Iyer on this song. Lyrics are deep & very romantic with a strong Bollywood flavour to it. The composition is not very different from many other Bollywood romantic songs. Plus it is not very catchy but definitely a good listen. An average song. I would give it a 6.5/10 .

..

Track 4 – Yeh Aaj Kya Ho Gaya? – A simple straight forward song sung by the melodious yet powerful Sunidhi Chauhan. A happy feel good factor with a complete live music ensemble. I can imagine the SEL boys performing this song live on stage. Live drums, keyboards & guitars… Minimal synthetic music.  Takes you back to Rock On !!. Great composition and has a light side to it. I like this song. I give it a 7.5/10 .

..

Track 5 – Sapno Se Bhare Naina – If you liked track 1 on this album, you will LOVVVVEEEEE this one. This is by far the best song on this CD. You have to listen to this song atleast 5 times to grab all elements of this song viz. Lyrics, Vocals, composition, instruments used and the overall package of each element blending with other. Each element is so grasping that it takes full 5 minutes of the song to relish it. Pay attention to the lyrics from the word go & you wont get enough of it. The aspirations & dreams are picturesque through words alone. The music of this song also forms the background score of the film’s intense moments. It has a dark bassline for it’s start and then goes into a soft Drum n’ Bass beat pattern. Shankar’s voice makes you feel like you are walking on sky. It surely is the best overall work of SEL I have ever heard. I give it a 9.5/10 . Brilliant !!

..

Track 6 – O Rahi Re – Another superb soft song. Shankar’s vocals on this song literally touch your soul. This song without any music & just his vocals is good enough to take you on a trip with the amazing lyrics at hand. I think SEL realised that & thus have kept the music to a minimal with an acoustic guitar & a simple beat. Its completely in the style of “Maa” from Taare Zameen Par. I would love to see Shankar perform this live on stage someday. 9/10 .

..

Track 7 – Baawre Remix – If you want to do something different from the current trend… THIS IS HOW YOU DO IT !! With the Remixes trend in the market, the team of LBC haven’t kept remixes off nor have they gone the typical way of giving a song to DJ Suketu or A-Myth and the likes…

Midival Punditz are regarded to be the kings of Asian Underground and they make a come back here with a direct entry into Bollywood with this amazing rendition of Baawre. Truly electronic with vocal scatting being the main feature. The production of this remix is simply innovative & new to a style unknown to Bollywood. A rocking 8/10 for this remix.

..

FINAL WORD

BRILLIANT – 8.5/10

..

Shankar-Eshaan-Loy along with the Akhtar family make a statement and put a milestone at the start of 2009. It is sort of a like a challenge for all music teams to try and out do them. And frankly… I doubt anyone can come close !! You might have bigger hit songs in the forthcoming year but not an album packed with hits like this… Cant wait for this movie !!

..

..

..

It’s been long time coming that I start writing movie reviews on this dedicated page.. And I was waiting for the last few months because I wanted to start off with writing about this particular film..

“GHAJINI”

Of all the Khan’s that rule the Bollywood industry, the one I truly regard as an actor is Aamir Khan. And when you hear that he has been working on a project for 2 years, then the wait just feels longer than it actually is in anticipation.

Over the last few weeks I have had the opportunity to interview the stars of the movie including the gorgeous Asin and ‘so-called hottie’ Jiah Khan. And then I was invited to the UK Premier of the Unedited Ghajini 3 days prior to the release. The build up has been enormous & the film very well marketed. Hence the expectations are sky high as well.. Especially for me !

Feels like the worst hit in the face for me when I say.. “The movie is a BIG disappointment !!”

..

PLOT

A brilliant concept to start with … A business tycoon-Sanjay Singhania (Aamir Khan) falls in love with a middle class upcoming advert model – Kalpana played by Asin. She is the happy-go-lucky, always kind & helpful girl next door who makes famous to be the girlfriend of this business tycoon who she has never even met. Sanjay approaches her to sort out this mix up but falls prey to her bubbly charm & decides to keep shut about who he is. She assumes him to be just another guy & they eventually fall in love.

[Question:- How has no one ever seen even a single picture of this top man in India even though if he has just come from the US..??? ]

Anyway, Sanjay never actually manages to tell Kalpana that he is the man she has been pretending to love all this time even after he has asked her to marry him & she has agreed. The day comes when he decides to tell her but our fab villain Ghajini appears & kills Kalpana in front of Sanjay & leaves him with a head injury because of which he can now only remember the last 15 minutes of his life. He writes notes, tattoos & graffiti’s and also takes photo’s to remind him of what had happened. The movie is all about the good ol REVENGE theory that is well deserved.

Jiah Khan comes in as a medical student who wants to do a case study on Sanjay. Gives him up first thinking he is a murderer but then helps him find Ghajini..

..

REVIEW

So a good story with a sensitive concept & thus should have been handled well. But has been dealt with not lot of caution. There are some very good scenes in this movie but then there are those horrible scenes as well.

[Question:- How does a guy who can remember only 15 mins last a climax fight scene for about 30 mins? ]

[Question:- Firstly, how does he remember that his memory lasts only 15 mins & he needs to take notes & photos? ]

-Many such questions unanswered & hint a loose script & you sit wondering why !!! Very Bollywoodish.. Then there are those really good parts as well. Like the way he has setup his room is brilliant with sticky notes & tattoos & marker notes for everything from the moment he wakes up till he steps out of the house. Beautifully shown..

-Moreover the film is very violent and definitely not for the weak hearted & kids. Very long fight scenes that are gory & could well be a part of ‘SAW 5′.

..

-Excellent acting by all. Aamir gives it his all once again with 8 pack abs & an amazing overall physique. But I still don’t get (apart from the positive of the story) what part of this script did he like & agreed to do this movie!! He deserves much better…

-Highlight of this movie:- ASIN .. An established South Indian actress now definitely hear to stay in Bollywood. She does an amazing job in her role & I definitely nominate her for the best actress of the year award yet again (She won the best actress award at the South Indian Filmfare awards for her role in Ghajini). Her bubbly character reminds you of Kareena in Jab We Met. And did I forget to mention .. She looks stunning !!

-Jiah does a reasonably good job but looks dumb & out of place in many scenes..

-Another highlight of the movie is Pradeep Ravat aka GHAJINI. He brings the traditional Bollywood villain back to life in this era of family saga’s. A brilliant actor who fits his character perfectly.

..

-Music has A.R. Rahman. Need I say more… ?? Do notice the background score in the movie. Its very good. So is the sound design.

-Edit & camera work is something I could talk about a lot. It’s got it’s positives & negatives. There are some real good close up shots to give it the dark feel. And then there are pan shots where the focus goes out & the scenes become blurry. Did they not pay attention. If it was intentional.. then guys.. it doesn’t look nice.. please don’t do it again..Lots of scenes are in fast forward to give it speed & intensity. Doesn’t fit in every time. Also some useless visual effects.. Why do they try those..? Graphic “grass” in a South African dessert !!!! What were they thinking.

Director Murugadossa I hear is know for his back-forth story telling style. He overdoes that too. 3 hours of that gives u a headache with abrupt flash backs.

..

FINAL WORD

An average 5.5/10.

It will do well with the masses. If crap like Singh Is Kinng can.. Ghajini sure can!!  It’s great for a viewer who doesn’t ask questions or cares less about logic in a movie.

This movie would have been an epic masterpiece if it was directed any better. The story idea is brilliant.. only needs some attention to detail.

Watch it for the acting & the concept. If you like action, then that as well. A one time watch for sure. But don’t go in with high expectation’s like I did. It’s not Hollywood.. Its Bollywood!!