Father Geek Here with Darius25 and the news from Bollywood...
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Hey all, hope you’ve had a great week. We’re back with lots of new Bollywood scoops in this column, including info on the “Vaastav” sequel, “Kaante (Thorns)”, and my review of “Yeh Hai Jalwa (This is Ecstasy)”. We also have pics from “Hathiyaar (Weapon)”, “Chor Machaaye Shor (Thief Makes Noise)”, and “Yeh Hai Jalwa”.
INDIA
Hey all, hope you’ve had a great week. We’re back with lots of new Bollywood scoops in this column, including info on the “Vaastav” sequel, “Kaante (Thorns)”, and my review of “Yeh Hai Jalwa (This is Ecstasy)”. We also have pics from “Hathiyaar (Weapon)”, “Chor Machaaye Shor (Thief Makes Noise)”, and “Yeh Hai Jalwa”.
INDIA
- Director Mahesh Manjrekar has now completed principal photography on the sequel to his hit film, “Vaastav (Reality)”. The sequel, previously known as “Pratibimbh”, has undergone a title change to “Hathiyaar (Weapon)”. It stars Sanjay Dutt as the grown-up son of his gangster character from the first film, along with Shilpa Shetty, Namrata Shirodkar, Sharad Kapoor, Gulshan Grover, and Shivaji Satam. The film is currently going through post-production and is set to release this winter. Incidentally, one of Sanjay Dutt’s earliest gangster roles (possibly his first) was in the superb J.P. Dutta film, titled “Hathiyaar”. Now let’s see if this new film lives up to the standards of both of the earlier films. Here are some pics from the film.
Sanjay Dutt, Sharad Kapoor, and Sachin Khedkar shoot up some bad (or good) guys: They're Right Here
The gorgeous Shilpa Shetty: See Her Right Here
Gulshan Grover and Sanjay discuss some important issues: Click Here
- More bad news for those anxiously awaiting “Kaante (Thorns)”. It seems that Sanjay Gupta’s gritty crime film has been postponed yet again, but only by a couple of weeks, to September 6. Now let’s hope that the film actually releases on that day.
- Character actor Puneet Issar will turn director for the film “Sanghaar – The Destroyer”. The film will star Salman Khan, Arbaaz Khan, and Shilpa Shetty in the lead and will be shot over 4 months, starting this December. It is expected to release next fall.
- More rumours are starting to emerge regarding Farhan Akhthar’s next film. The director was out of the limelight for a while after “Dil Chahta Hai (Desires of the Heart)”, but has emerged with some details on his next project. It is set to be a different type of war film, titled “Lakshya”. Amitabh Bachchan, Hrithik Roshan, and Preity Zinta are already confirmed to star in the film, which will not be a full-blown epic like “Border” or the upcoming “Line of Control”, but will be shot on a more intimate level and detailing the darker aspects of war. The film is expected to release in Spring 2004.
- More stills have been released from David Dhawan’s upcoming comedy, “Chor Machaaye Shor (Thief Makes Noise)”. The comedy, which rips off “Blue Streak”, stars Bobby Deol, Shilpa Shetty, Bipasha Basu, Om Puri, and Shekhar Suman. It’s set to release on August 30.
Bobby Deol (under a lot of makeup), Shilpa Shetty, and a really huge diamond: Click
Bobby Deol, and a really scary looking Shekhar Suman in drag!! Suman makes his first appearance in a major film, post his super-successful run as the host of “Movers and Shakers”: You Might NOT Want to Click Here
You can recover from the horror of that last pic, by looking at the STUNNING Bipasha Basu: Check Her Out Here
And another pic of Bobby and Shilpa: Click Now
YEH HAI JALWA (This is Ecstasy)
Last week’s new release was David Dhawan’s latest comedy extravaganza, oddly titled “Yeh Hai Jalwa”. The family entertainer’s original title was “Family No. 1”, but I guess the new title, along with the fresh pairing of Salman Khan and Amisha Patel, would draw a much larger crowd. But don’t be fooled by the title, the ads, or the pics, Amisha has a very little role in the film – it is mainly a family comedy counting on the comic timings of Salman Khan and yesteryear actor Rishi Kapoor.
That’s right, Rishi Kapoor – the famed loverboy of the ‘80s comes back after a minor hiatus to take on a fatherly role, and that of Salman Khan!! This interesting casting is sure to draw some reaction from the crowds (perhaps more bad than good), but it really works here. Salman plays a rich industrialist, Raju, who discovers that his missing father, Raajiv (Rishi Kapoor), is alive and well in jolly ole’ London. He leaves his business and hops on the next plane to London and meets his father. Upon arriving there, he discovers that his father is one of England’s wealthiest men, has a large and happy family, and is none too interested in anybody claiming to be his illegitimate son. Now begins a battle of wills, as Raju tries anything in order to get accepted by his dad while Raajiv tries EVERYTHING to get Raju leave the country. And a lot of hilarity ensue until the predictable ending.
Ok, even though the film has a typical dramatic story, don’t be fooled. This is an out-and-out comedy which doesn’t fail to entertainment. It is very funny, in a nonsense-David Dhawan way and will manage to keep you smiling (even laughing out loud) till the end. It is sappy at parts, but then again you have the gorgeous Amisha Patel to stare at during the amazing songs! And best of all, the short run time combined with the snappy editing makes this an extremely fast-paced film.
Acting wise, both leads are well suited for their roles. Salman Khan underplays his role, and doesn’t resort to some of his loud (and obnoxious) histrionics seen in other David Dhawan films. Rishi Kapoor totally rules as the arrogant father and is just bursting with energy in every scene! He may have aged a bit, and put on a lot of weight, but he still has talent to make you cry with laughter. He and Salman share some great rapport on screen and look every bit the father-and-son duo that they portray. Anupam Kher is great in his supporting role as Rishi’s best friend. His comic performance here shows that he’s best suited to acting roles and should leave direction (like in last week’s “Om Jai Jagadish”) till he finds a good script. And last but least, our darling Amisha is just FABULOUS. Sure she doesn’t have a great role (as Salman’s girl), but she’s just GORGEOUS in the songs and shows some ample assets, where it counts! She’s not too bad in some comedy scenes either.
All in all, this is a mind-less comedy that almost anyone will enjoy. It has some really great songs, some hilarious actings from actors of two generations, and has the beautiful Amisha Patel. What more do you want?
Get a load of these babies: Just Too Hot
Salman Khan punishes poor old Rishi Kapoor: Go Here
Amisha and Salman: Just Click Here
More of Amisha and Salman: Click Here Again
Even Sanjay Dutt gets in on the fun: Click
