The Hindu : New Delhi News : About true love, melancholia, nostalgia, devotion and much more

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Oct 01, 2006
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New Delhi

New Delhi

About true love, melancholia, nostalgia, devotion and much more

ZIYA US SALAM

WOH LAMHE

(At Shiela and other Delhi theatres)

A bleeding heart makes for a moving film. Even as Mahesh Bhatt bares his soul without giving himself very many bonus points, "Woh Lamhe" turns out to be that melancholic exercise one has come to love and adore from the Bhatt camp. It is not the sort of cinema that will rake in the riches at the box office.

It is not the sort of cinema that will leave you smiling, and will probably not even appeal to all those who believe films are but another word for entertainment.

But to every heart that has experienced love, and is not unaccustomed to sorrow, it will rekindle the old flicker.

Keep a little space for very personal dreams here and you might just find a reflection in this film directed by Mohit Suri. Based on a rare bond the maverick filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt shared with Parveen Babi, a woman who often loved the undeserving, this is a rare insight into the traumatic life of the much talked about actress.

More than Bhatt, this film is actually about Babi, a star for the public who was actually a slave to her "mentors".

She comes across here as a free-spirited Junagarh girl who reached the heights in Bollywood only to find that the companions are all climbers.

Among her friends was Mahesh Bhatt, the man who was no different initially, but later helped give her a dignified burial after she had succumbed to paranoia.

Half an hour into the film and the heart aches with sorrow at the tragedies that awaited her at every corner and roundabout. However, this is not a relentless sob saga, saved largely by Pritam's music score and some outstanding lyrics. The music is a hit already; the lyrics are catching the fancy too. All combining to give an abiding touch of melancholy to this film.

A personal dream made manifest in public, "Woh Lamhe" suffers only from some convoluted storytelling towards the end. And occasionally the editor does seem to misplace his scissors.

In between you get some wonderful moments stitched together by Kangana and Shiney Ahuja. Kangana has those diabolical eyes that don't give her away. As Sana Azmi - the screen version of Babi - she parts with the body, keeps the soul to herself. Her kohl-lined eyes, her sorrow-soaked voice, all leave an impact. And all along, Shiney -- who plays a character based on Bhatt -- brings suitable angst to his craft.

Expect no filthy gratification in "Woh Lamhe". It is all about finding fulfilment in fleeting moments. It is about true love, about those moments when there is no yesterday, no tomorrow. A modern world always on the move may not have time for the tears of a forlorn lover.

Yet this film will appeal to all those who loved and lost, all those who lost and still love.

JAI SANTOSHI MAA

(At Paras and other Delhi theatres)

The mind goes back to 1975 when Satram Rohara's film wooed a million hearts. And Anita Guha came to be revered as Santoshi Maa. Nostalgia is a wonderful emotion; it retains the best, rejects the bad. And "Jai Santoshi Maa" the original indeed seems a masterpiece.

Cut now to 2006. Percept Picture's "Jai Santoshi Maa" comes riding on recall value, promising salvation. And a nice recap. Director Ahmed Siddiqui borrows heavily from the original - two bhajans, "Main to Aarti Utarun Re" and "Yahan Wahan... Hai Santoshi Maa" - to give us a film that has a spark as long as it stays in the past. Which is not much longer than the first half hour when the two bhajans follow in quick succession. They are so well executed that one wishes a rewind, particularly Usha Mangeshkar's hosannas to Santoshi Maa.

The highlight taken care of, the new devotional film resembles the TV saa-bahu sagas with the all-good, all-clean daughter-in-law subjected to the worst possible cruelties by her mother-in-law and a couple of sisters-in-law. All along the hackneyed tale continues with an out-of-work Rakesh Bapat playing the adopted son who must bear his share of cruelties.

From the first frame onward we all know everything will end well. The good shall prevail. The evil shall lose. The defiant shall come around. There is little novelty to keep us hooked till the end. Yes, don't go for this movie with eager anticipation of an able successor. The heart has its whims, the head its reasons. Watch it if you must for its songs.

JOHN TUCKER MUST DIE

(At PVR Saket and other Delhi theatres)

Movies just got younger. After a long series of cerebral fare in the past few weeks, here is a film you can watch without taxing your brains one bit, without once looking for wider meaning.

Basically a joyride, this film comes with no string attached, and makes not even half earnest attempts at seriousness. This one actually is quite thrilling in its own way.

A school girl-school boy kind of romance, it is a gentle teaser that keeps you involved all the way through.

From the time John Tucker dates and rejects his first girl to the last moment of justice, it is a delight. Not a rip-roaring one but one that makes you smile, even occasionally laugh without for a second giving you more than fleeting enjoyment. Here all the pickings come from the breezy momentum of narration.

It is the story of a guy who has it all easy and natural with girls. They come to him like magnet to iron. It is fine as long as it lasts as they all fall for his glib talk. The problem is it does not last for long. Soon girls gang up to teach him a lesson. How the proceeding move from there makes for interesting viewing. Throw in elements of love and romance and you have an interesting mix.

Director Betty Thomas makes no pretensions to highbrow fare, makes no concessions to uncles and aunts. Instead, the entire concentration is on the teen brigade. And they are likely to go back fairly happy with this comic fare with its potion of below-the-belt laughs.

SNAKES ON A PLANE

(At Spice PVR, Noida; and Delhi theatres)

Hollywood goes shopping, stops by at Bollywood, lifts the snake concept. But director David Ellis takes care to give it a Hollywood touch, so he introduces the snakes to the aeroplane, giving us shrieks of fright.

And a film that thrills you only for the newness of the genre: there aren't too many snake films released these days.

Incidentally, the film comes riding on a lot of hype, with its Hindi version out too. The guys obviously feel snakes and Indians have an affinity that makes for shrewd business sense too. Here Samuel Jackson accompanies a witness against a gangster on a Pacific flight. And the gangster does the unthinkable: introduce snakes on the plane, causing havoc all over hoping for a crash! A bit farfetched plot, niggardly humour, lopsided thrills, "Snakes on a Plane" has them all. Still interested?

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