So we're one day away from ENDHIRAN's release here in the U.S. and I for one am super excited. There's somewhat of a rush going to a new Rajnikanth movie, a feeling of exhiliration when sitting in the theatre with a bunch of rowdy Tamilians who will no doubt whistle, stomp and cheer for Rajni's entry ...
... which brings me to my list of Favorite Rajni Entry Songs. Tamil movies consistently have a 'Hero's Entry Song' - usually a fast-paced, all-male dance number that uses the lyrics or setting to tell you about the Hero's background and character. It usually shows the Hero in the streets with a gang of friends (and extras!) having a jolly time, making passes at girls (the girls usually stop to dance along for a while too) and generally being charming and exciting.
Rajni's Entry Songs are even more powerful because it's simply the first moment you see him on-screen - which of course HAS to be loud and thrilling! Often times the song will echo into his next film somewhere because they are so beloved by his throngs of fans. He usually walks/leaps/turns into his first shot and gives some sort of recognition to the audience - either a smile, namaste or wink - and the masses go WILD. It's freakin' awesome.
So after creating my list of favorite Rajni movies yesterday, I found myself humming some of his most popular tunes and decided I had to make a list, and as long as I was making it, why not share it? So here is my list of favorite Rajnikanth HERO'S ENTRY songs:
Vanthenda Paalkkaaran - Annamalai
Naan Autokaaran Autokaaran - Baasha
Oruvan Oruvan - Muthu
Athanda Ithanda - Arunachalam
Singanadipottu - Padaiyappa
Dippu Dippu - Baba
Devuda Devuda - Chandramukhi (re-peeeaaatuuuu!)
Balailakka - Sivaji
I can't remember if this is the first song in Kuselan (the tamil predecessor of Irrfan Khan & SRK's Billu), but it certainly is the best! This awesome song features tons of familiar faces and is a tribute to the 75th anniversary of the Tamil Film Industry:
Cinema Cinema - Kuselan
These aren't necessarily my favorite songs from these movies, just the ones that best exemplify the "Rajni Entry". I am waiting to see what happens when Rajni is first shown on screen in Endhiran. I can't wait! I am going to be on a family vacation during the release weekend, but I'm trying to figure out a way for all of us to go see it together.
Justin explains of the concept for the video... He tweeted:
so the U SMILE video is almost here...and here is the concept... ...every interview every show I get asked would i date a fan....well as a SINGLE guy...yes single...the answer is... ...yes...i would date whoever i fell for. and that could be a fan. so the video is that story... ...the video is i meet as she is a fan...and i fall for her. i fall 4 her smile...it is the story of me and her..and she represents all of u so when u watch tonight think that could be us :) when u smile i smile. enjoy. hope u like it. #USMILE
So with the release of Endhiran this Friday causing so much buzz, I thought it was time to do a little primer on Rajnikanth (similar to my post on Vikram) ...
Most people can't help but be charmed by the story of Rajnikanth, a man from a poor background who had worked as a coolie and a bus conductor, who eventually became the 2nd highest paid actor in Asia (the first being Jackie Chan, naturally). He's an institution in Tamil Nadu, a star that the masses won't let fade, because they love him too much. What can be said about Rajnikanth? He's almost universally loved. Even though he's done a limited number of Hindi movies, he's always recognized for his style. He's been called the Baadshah of the Box Office - it doesn't matter what the subject is, who the director is, or who his co-star is ... Rajni's presence will drive fans to the theatres in droves. He is so beloved that the audiences of Tamil Nadu will reject any movie in which he dies!
Slate.com did this nice Rajni 101 article that I appreciated ... it wonderfully describes Rajnikanth this way:
This is Rajinikanth, and he is no mere actor—he is a force of nature. If a tiger had sex with a tornado and then their tiger-nado baby got married to an earthquake, their offspring would be Rajinikanth.
That's pretty epic. As is the man it's written about. Here's another article about Why Rajni Rocks! Yet another great article published in the PR flurry of his latest release Endhiran (co-starring Aishwariya Rai Bachchan) lists some of the most popular Rajnikanth jokes (in the vein of the Chuck Norris jokes). CLICK HERE to check out the entire article, but here's some of my favorites:
Rajnikanth doesn't move at the speed of light. Light moves at the speed of Rajnikanth.
Rajnikanth never wet the bed as a child. The bed wet itself in fear.
There are no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Rajnikanth lives in India.
Google won't find Rajnikanth because you can't find Rajnikanth. Rajnikanth finds you.
Rajnikanth doesn't need a visa to travel abroad, he just jumps from the tallest building in Chennai and holds himself in the air while the earth rotates.
You can check out some more Rajni jokes here. So obviously Rajnikanth is an institution and a legend in Tamil Nadu (and also in Japan!) ...
If you've never seen a Rajni movie, you definitely need to. Just don't start with Padaiyappa, you may not come back to us. However once you are sucked in, Padaiyappa can be fun! Especially the lines Abbas delivers in praise of Rajni - "What a man!" and "Illai, ungalakku vayasu ahallai!" (No, you haven't gotten old!)
He zoomed to popularity in films from the late 70s such as Moondru Mudichu and 16 Vayathinile, playing the baddie with such panache that you were drawn in despite the negative character. Even in Hindi films he was popular for his antics with sunglasses and cigarettes (flipping and flicking them with fabulous sound effects!), as well as his kick-a$$ mojo.
He's everyman, yet he's Superman!
He also became famous for his one-liners ... dialogues that he uses several times in his films until they become cult-classics ... much like the way Salman Khan used the line "Hum tumri jaan mein itna ched karenge itna ched karenge… ki confuse ho jaoge ki..Saas kaha se ley aur pade kaha se" in the movie Dabangg (2010). However Rajni's lines were a regional craze! The image below from Forbes India showcases some of his best ones:
So EVERYONE who's ANYONE will probably be checking out what Rajni (at age 60) has got in Endhiran, which releases tomorrow, October 1, 2010. But here's a list of some of my Top 12 favorite Rajnikanth movies:
1. Billa (1980) - an almost scene-for-scene remake of Amitabh Bachchan's Don, but it's an incredible ride because it's RAJNI man!
2. Thillu Mullu (1981) - another remake, this one is of Amol Palekar's popular comedy Gol Maal (1979).
3. Geraftaar - Hindi (1985) - the combo of three of my favorite actors, Amitabh, Kamal Hassan and Rajnikanth, is too killer!And gratuitous cigarette flipping by Rajni also features prominently.
4. Guru Sishyan (1988) - great blockbuster comedy with Rajni and Prabhu. This hit was remade by Director Shakti Chidambaram in 2010 with Sathyaraj of all people, which I think is a travesty.
5. Chaalbaaz (1989) - obviously I love Sridevi, who is the ultimate star in this movie, but Rajni's taxiwallah character was really memorable and hilarious, especially his little sing-song "Aaj Sunday hai, to kya? Aaj hamare daaru peene ka day hai!"
6. Hum (1991) - Again this wasn't Rajni's movie - Amitabh was the star through and through, but it also had a powerhouse combo of Amitabh-Rajni-Govinda which made the movie AMAZING.
7. Thalapathi (1991) - again an amazing star cast, but the only one I really remembered was Rajni. And of course the awesome song "Raakamma Kai Thattu" featuring the beautiful Shobhana. How could they take such a great song and turn it into "Tu Tu Tu Tu Tu Tara"???
8. Annamalai (1992) - I think this is my ultimate favorite Rajni movie. It is HILARIOUS, and features Rajni with Khushboo (who had such a huge fan base in Tamil Nadu I heard they built a temple for her). We still use running jokes from this all the time ... such as "Prince?" "YES!" ... you just have to see it. I also LOVE the scene where there's a snake in Khushboo's bathroom and Rajni is terrified but has to save her. Just couldn't stop laughing!
9. Veera (1994) - I'm not sure why I loved this one so much, it could be because I totally love the actress Meena or the song "Madathile" ... the story takes a weird turn at some point and I absolutely CANNOT reconcile the end AT ALL, but I still enjoyed this movie in general. It was remade in Hindi by David Dhawan as Saajan Chale Sasural but Gharwali Baharwali also had that awkward, WRONG ending that Veera had. Veera also had a line-play on one of his earlier films ... a one-liner that my husband and I always say ... "How iiiis iiiiit? Suuuuuuuuper!"
10. Muthu (1995) - Another mega blockbuster that featured Rajni with Meena (who is just such an amazingly gorgeous lady, but god, do they ever stuff her into the most ridiculous outfits). Directed by one of my favorite comedy directors K.S. Ravikumar and featuring music by A.R. Rehman (the first time he did music for a Rajni blockbuster!), this movie was most memorable for the lavish song picturizations, especially "Thillana Thillana" (yes, I know they sampled that bit from Deep Forest). This movie was apparently dubbed for Japanese audiences and made Rajni a sensation in Japan!
11. Arunachalam (1997) - a kind of version of Brewster's Millions, but Rajni-fied! I tend to get the storylines of Annamalai, Muthu and Arunachalam mixed up, but honestly who cares? They're all awesome! Once you start watching you will get sucked in and love every sunglass-twirling, towel-flourishing second. Rajni was paired with Rambha and Soundarya in this one.
12. Chandramukhi (2005) - most everyone knows this one as the remake of the Malayalam hit 'Manichitrathazhu' or the inspiration for the Hindi 'Bhool Bhulaiya' ... this was a really over-the-top and yet perfectly intriguing film. Is it a ghost story? Is it a psychological drama? It seems even most reviewers aren't sure. One thing it has in common with Rajni blockbusters is a point where a character does an entire soliloquy about how amazing Rajni's character is. All Hail Rajni! Jyothika was also given a very prominent role, though she is opposite Prabhu instead of Rajni. Rajni is paired with then newcomer Nayantara (who hasn't looked the same - or worn as much clothing - since. I suppose it worked in her favor since she's now Prabhudeva's ladylove). Interesting how Jyothika had such a great run in Tamil Cinema before marrying Surya Sivakumar but never paired with Rajni! Then again, nor did Simran who was one of the top Tamil actresses in the mid to late 90s and early 2000s. Anyway, I don't know who would EVER consider Akshay Kumar to take on a role played by Rajni ... he simply couldn't carry it off.
Also very memorable was that when I went to see this film at the theatre, there was an aunty there wearing a nightie. Awesome.
So there are definitely some honorable mentions that didn't make my personal top 12, such as Andhaa Kanoon, Gair Kanooni, Padaiyappa, Baasha, Ejjamaan, Kuselan and many of his earlier films that have merits. These are just my favorites, the ones that I can watch over and over!
I am definitely excited for the release of Endhiran, even if I do think a Rajni-Ash pairing is absolutely ridiculous ... I have high hopes that this film will erase the disappointment of Sivaji and Baba. I will probably be shelling out for that $20 ticket, because when push comes to shove, I love me some Rajni.
I'm going to try and quickly throw together a post of the best Rajni-Entry-Songs from his films. It's a genre of it's own.
I hope you check out some of Rajni's films ... if you don't know where to begin, I'd recommend Annamalai and Muthu!
Also coming up in October - it's Rekhalicious October, spearheaded by @sujoysingha over at oneknightstands.net. Definitely check out his blog for some great stuff, and I'll be doing some special Rekha posts as well!
Justin Bieber looked a little surprised to be photographed while he was vacationing in South Africa this week.
The 16-year-old teen idol was spotted enjoying lunch at a restaurant in Cape Town. While Baby Biebs is taking a well-deserved vacation, he tells fans that he is already itching to get back to work. "I miss performing," Justin tweeted earlier today, proving that he isn't your average lazy teen.
Glee star Lea Michele knows who she wants the show’s next guest star to be—Justin Bieber!
In a recent interview with E! Online, Michele talked about the possibility of the Biebs appearing. "I don't know about Justin Bieber coming on the show, but he would be awesome.”
What’s perfect is that Justin is at the age to be able to play a student too! We’re thinking new freshman transfer who happens to have killer pipes??
While we sit and hope for the Bieber guest appearance, Lea also had other great Glee news. She said “But I will tell you this—breaking news from Lea Michele!—we have an Academy Award winner coming on ‘Glee’ in the next few episodes that is not Justin Bieber."
Who could it be?? We’ll have to use our investigative skills to find out. Perhaps she’s talking about Javier Bardem, who is appearing on the show this season. Michele said she’s upset her character isn’t lucky enough to have a love scene with him.
"I know the storyline and it's not with me,” Lea said. “Maybe I'll be like, 'Don't I look like Penelope Cruz? Hey, It's me—I'm Penelope.' "
Bieber Fever will be hitting the toy aisles this year -- J-14 is excited to announce the first-ever Justin Bieber toy and doll line!
Debuting around December 4, the Justin Bieber toy line will include: Justin Bieber collection figures, Justin Bieber singing figures that sing a portion of one of Justin's most popular hit songs, Justin Bieber microphones that play two of Justin's hit songs, and a collectible plush bears.
Fans can pre-order the toys and dolls starting today on toysrus.com and see all the products on justinbiebertoys.com.
Oh, man, Santa Claus is gonna need an extra sled just to hold all these Justin Bieber dolls. Just in time for the holidays, these authentic Justin Bieber Dolls are about to be living under almost every Christmas tree in America.
Designed by Bravado, these dolls come in two different categories. You can either get a "Style Collection," which is pretty much Justin looking like a swagged out boss or the "Music Video Collection Singing Figures" which actually sing songs by the Biebs. I don't know why you'd need the singing version, though. You'll probably be screaming so loud (with utter joy) you won't be able to hear it.
So far we've seen images of two of the dolls; the above, singer-songwriter, let-me-get-your-scarf-for-you kind and this one...
...the swagged out, all-black-everything model.
Add these toy dolls to the ever-growing merchandising empire surrounding Justin Bieber. Resistance is futile. Whether you've been naughty or nice, you'll probably want these come holiday season. The Justin Bieber doll is expected to hit stores in early December. I'd get on line now, if I were you.
Justin Bieber has been teasing fans about the ongoing progress of his latest music video. But it looks like the wait is almost over.
On Saturday, Justin finally made the announcement that the music video for his hit single "U Smile" will debut in less than one week. The teen pop star broke the news first to his loyal Twitter followers by stating: "yeah i got the news...U SMILE video premieres Sept 30th!!...next week!"
In an interview with MTV News, the Canadian singer said, "'U Smile' is one of the best songs I have ever recorded. It really is a throwback to the great records I listened to growing up. ... I wrote it for all my fans who got me here."
Originally, "U Smile" was released as the second digital-only single from the second half of Justin's debut album on March 16, 2010.
Are you excited to see the new video for "U Smile?" What is your favorite Justin Bieber song?
Justin says the love his fans have for him ‘is not real love’ and admits to being lonely!
It looks like things may be getting pretty lonely at the top for Justin Bieber as he is even dissing his fans in his latest interview! Justin sat down with the Daily Mail and when the reporter noted how much his fans love him Justin responded, “It is not real love. You can say it is, but it’s not. They do not know who I am.” Ouch!
Justin, who the reporter notes had been having a tough day due to vocal problems, also says he is getting “lonely” on tour. “I want to hang out with my friends, but I need security,” he explains. He does however have a temporary solution; “I’m going to get my dog to come on the road in a couple of weeks.”
When asked later if there are any singers he admires, or if he wants to be like that other famous Justin (Timberlake), the Biebs replies, “I am going to do a Justin Bieber.”
What do you think about Justin’s new interview HollywoodLifers? Was Justin just having a bad day?
Jonas Brothers aren’t afraid of Justin Bieber’s extreme success. Kevin said: 'I think there is room for everybody. We’re not afraid of anything or worried about anything. We’re just being who we are and making music that we love. We’re proud of the guys that are following their dreams. As long as they’re doing it for the right reasons, we’ll totally support them.'
Joe is still friends with Demi and has fun with her: 'Me and Demi, we’ve known each other for a long time. We’re very close friends. We’ve been friends for a long time. Some things work out, some things don’t. That’s just how it is. It’s always fun working on screen and off stage with Demi. We have a lot of fun.'
Jimmy Fallon, master impersonator, has struck again!
The Late Night With Jimmy Fallon host, who captivated the world with his Robert Pattinson impression, has now applied his chameleon-like powers to channeling "Baby" singer Justin Bieber.
Fallon tweeted a picture of himself all Bieber-ed out last night, along with a crack about the Bieb-ster's CSI performance:
"Justin Bieber made his acting debut on CSI. In the episode, Justin is forced to investigate a very suspicious arrival—pubes."
Ooooh—low blow, Fallon!
But let's set that unpleasantness aside for a moment. Who rocks the Bieber look better, Justin or Jimmy? Have your say in the comments section.
Billboard lists '21 Under 21, selected not only for their tender age but also for their potential to rule the pop culture zeitgeist over the next 12 months.'
Jasmine V, opening act (and possible crush!) of one Justin Bieber, is giving Celebuzz readers an exclusive behind-the-scenes glimpse at her time on The Biebs' My World tour.
Following the big announcement that she was joining Baby Biebs on the road, 16-year-old Jasmine "V" Villegas was kind enough to share the first official video montage from her time on tour with Celebuzz. Check out Jasmine rehearsing, performing (and bowling!) in the video below, cut to her new single, "To The Yard:"
Jasmine V's first official performance (even before the Bieber tour) was for Sprite's Fresh Sound Studio series exclusively on Buzznet. The show features all of her new music, choreography and sexy style. For more Fresh Sound Studio performances with Good Charlotte and N*E*R*D, make sure to stay tuned to www.freshsoundstudio.com.
What do you think of Jasmine V? Is she a fitting opening act - and girlfriend - for The Biebs? Let us know in the comments.
When the brains behind CSI: Crime Scene Investigation announced Justin Bieber would guest-star, they promised it'd be "true event television". Except it wasn't. E! Online reports that 14.6 million Americans tuned in to the 11th season premiere of CSI, which featured the Beeb playing a troubled teen with links to a terrorist group. Sure, 14.6 million is a lot — but it's a big drop on the 15.7 million who watched the Bieber-less season premiere the year before. In addition, most of those 14.6 million viewers were old (well, old-er) people who probably had no idea who this doe-eyed, perfectly coiffed young woman on their screen was meant to be anyway.
When The Bald Guy () posted this tag on his blog, I immediately added it to my list of must-do’s, and after a sort of hectic week I finally get the time to take this head on.
The above question and a host of associated questions, including those below (reproduced from TBG’s tag), are ones that I have asked and answered so may a times myself.
Asked less, answered more than a trillion times – friends, relatives, colleagues, and even random strangers!
I think my replies have varied only slightly based on my mood and disposition at that moment in time. Here I make a conscious effort to introspect, retrospect, and ummm, well, to be honest.
Before I bring on the volley of Qs, some basic facts – Well into my 20’s, I have been married to the love of my life for more than three and a half years - and, oh boy, you could pass me as “well married”!
The Qs…
Are you more programmed, more regulated in your thoughts and deeds?
A definite yes! I have learned to think twice before I speak and act (in most situations I try to restrict my tongue-in-cheek responses to myself or to a close circle of dear ones), and coming from me, believe me, that takes a huge effort!
I am definitely more politically correct, diplomatic, and conforming to established institutions than I was a couple of years back.
This programming manifests itself in subtle ways – I am more patient with relatives and extended family, I try to think from the other’s point of view (however I dumb it may be to start with :D), I have learnt to make allowances for nosey, pesky people around :p: :p.
Or are you simply calmer? Assuaged?
If I take this as a continuation of the previous question, my actions and reaction are definitely more controlled and in line with expectations, but somehow, (even though it may sound contradictory) the raving lunatic in me is not cured.
Assuaged? My husband will do a double somersault laughing his head off if I respond in the affirmative.
I am still the crazy person my friends and family swore on way back! My idiosyncrasies remain intact (touch wood) irrespective of the waves of time that keep crashing in!
I am still bonkers enough to break into a dance in the middle of the road, have ice cream for three meals a day, make inappropriate comments in public and then laugh out loud in an “unlady-like” fashion, threaten my husband with a call to 911 if he tries waking me up early in the morning (in India, can’t threaten him with 100 coz - it's seldom answered), and make him blow balloons and decorate the cake-knife with a fancy ribbon to celebrate my birthday!
Are you still in love?
With whom? :D
Ok, honestly, a resounding YES - Am still very much in love (phew, thank god!) – with the person I married, with the wonderful family and friends I share my life with, and with the blessed life god has bestowed on me.
Or are you simply loving? Caring, fond and loyal..?
I wonder why this question begins with an ‘or’. Am I in love or am I simply loving?
Hell yeah, I am in love and I am loving to those who love me back!
I am no angel or saint; I care for people who matter to me.
I am fond of all the people I willingly include in my everyday life.
I am fiercely loyal to my loved ones - friends and family.
Marriage has not changed a thing or the intensity when it comes to love and loyalty. I was always the way I am now!
What does marriage do to you?
Lots :D!
Marriage makes you fall in love with your beloved all over again. Nothing like waking up to the brightest sunshine in your life.
Marriage convinces you that you made the best decision ever, coz there would be no other man in the whole world who would bring back the entire medical store for a slight cut.
Marriage makes you hate the guy you married when all his promises of love and never ending support are sacrificed at the altar of a stupid cricket match!
Marriage exasperates the life out of you when good-for-nothing relatives and well-wishers are waiting for the ever elusive “good news”.
Marriage makes you believe in the K-serials when you disagree with your MIL on the color of the curtains.
Marriage provides the much needed privacy from the ever-so-curious world outside. Finally, you can be there for each other, always, without having to explain your relationship status.
Marriage makes you independent and responsible and secure. People suddenly start taking you more seriously.
Marriage makes you dependent – this one person controls your emotional and mental well being – almost completely.
Marriage teaches you that life is not perfect as the Mills & Boons and Yash Chopras of the world will have us believe. There are tiffs, and there are misunderstandings, and it takes a lot of hard work to keep it all together for the sake of love.
But as in the end of all love stories, it is always well worth the effort you put in!
And finally the big one: Has marriage killed the girl in you?
NO! I would never let that happen. Vish would never let that happen. Though he would be happy if the girl in me grew up a bit in-keeping with my age, I still choose to believe he’d rather I stay the person he fell in love with – it is the complete package you get, as we both often joke!
Having said that, life has its own way of moulding you into a more mature and understanding being.
With marriage comes a new chapter in your life, with new characters, new story lines, new plots, never-before-been-in situations, not-trained-for experiences but the individual that is you remains and must remain essential to the core – whatever be the story!
Dreams don’t come true by making wishes on shooting stars, but don’t stop dreaming.
Love is also about you taking the first step forward no matter how huge your ego is, but don’t stop loving.
He seems to suffer from the most incurable form of amnesia when it comes to dates – your first date, the date he proposed, your parents’ birthdays! But don’t stop celebrating (kick him, for sure!)
Miracles don’t happen always as per expectations, but don’t stop believing in them.
Faith and hope make the world go round!
Marriage is about accommodating, including and sharing, but don’t compromise the individuality and the uniqueness that define you.
Marriage is about being the doting wife, the responsible daughter-in-law and eventually the loving mother, but don’t let the girl in you die.
She should be the beautiful, inimitable foundation on which you build your life.
Canadian crooner Michael Buble dresses up as teen sensation Justin Bieber in the video for his latest single "Hollywood," the follow-up to "Haven’t Met You Yet."
A loving tribute to a fellow Canuck!
In the vid, Michael also dresses up as other celebs including Clint Eastwood and James Dean.
The official "Hollywood" video drops next week but the track is now available on iTunes and is part of the upcoming Crazy Love Hollywood edition being released on Oct 25th.
Justin Bieber sent out a simple tweet that says “”Everyone call me 248-417-5346 or text” to his 4.5 million followers and sure enough, the over-excited fans tried to call and sent text messages to the number. The problem was that it wasn’t his number, instead it belonged to his online “enemy” Kevin Kristopik who hacked into Bieber’s best friend twitter account earlier this year and got hold of his personal number.
Kristopik received over 26,000 texts and he had to cancel his number and delete his twitter account. Though it was a naughty move because he was using his popularity (and fans) to get his revenge, it was kinda slick because not many of other boys can do that.
Anyway, I have a feeling this won’t stop and Bieber has created himself an arch-nemesis and given his unpopularity with teenage boys, he has made more enemies now who will try to top this act.
The following video was posted by Kristopik showing how his phone was jammed with messages from Bieber’s fans.
Because it is too, too hilarious, I have to post here EXACTLY what is written as the summary of this movie on the back of my DVD of Parvarish (1977), grammar, punctuation (or lack therof) and all. I will highlight the particularly good parts:
An encounter between the banit Mangal Singh Police Officer Shamsher Singh ended with arrest of Mangal Singh. Mangal Singh's wife delivered a baby boy and breathed her last. Police Officer Shamsher Singh brougth the new born home. A suggestion of handing the new born to an orphanage distributed his emotion as he had gone through the misseries of being brought up there. Shamsher Singh wife decided to take over the upbringing of the child alongwith her own son Kishen, the new arrival was named Amit. Mangal Singh was informed to take over the upbringing as per the wish of his late wife that both she andfree his brohter Devsingh informed him that his son was alive for fourteen long years in the prison walls, as he was set his wishes to Kishen whom he thought was his son. Kishen and Mangal Singh decided upon the downfall of Shamsher's family.
Time lapsed and Mangal Singh and Ksiehn jointed the under Supremo. Amit grew upto be a promising Police Officer of he ciountry. Neetu and her sister Shabbu lived on witts. their entanglement with Amit and Kishen led to happy romance. Then one day Neetu discovered that Mangal Singh was the Killer of her father, he planned to murder Mangal Singh with Shabbu's help. Amit one day learnt that he was only an adopted boy in the house, the real son was to rteturn his file incomplete. Shamsher Singh was a duty bound officer,everything in the world came next to his duty. He refused to accept Amit's file. At the risk of their lives Amit and Shamsher Singh decided to expose the Supreme and bring could hold back Amit, Kishen realised his misunderstanding that he was the son of Mangal Singh, he jointed hands with Amit and thus put an end to the world of Supreme.
WHAT? Oh my god. I was laughing SO HARD reading the back of my DVD. My 2.5-year-old son thought I was having an attack or something.
If you have any idea what this movie is about based on that then you deserve a prize or something. But this movie, which came out the year I was born FYI, is one of my absolute favorite Bollywood movies. It is such a nonsense masala film. The star cast is absolutely perfect, and though Vinod Khanna is not one of my favorite heroes (*ducks from thrown chappals*) this is probably my favorite film of his (besides Chandni, which really can't be called HIS film now can it?). Of course I'm a die-hard Amitabh Bachchan fan, and the added bonus of Neetu Singh and Shabana Azmi? Awesomesauce! (Incidentally, has anyone ever done a list of actual commercial/masala films that Shabana Azmi starred in? I am curious)
It's an AME - Amitabh Masala Entertainer!
But it's HPK FTW with his angsty, conflicted performance!
Since this movie has been recapped so fabulously by other BollyBloggers such as Beth Loves Bollywood, Filmi Geek, Post-Punk Cinema Club, The Bollywood Fan, Filmi Girl and I'm sure many more, I won't go through the entire storyline (which is masala-fabulous, btw). I'll just highlight my favorite things about the movie.
1. Double Hero and Heroine If you read my post about Jaani Dost, you know that my sister and I used to play a game we brilliantly called "Nothing" so we could honestly answer when our grandfather asked us what we were playing. And this game almost exclusively required the soundtrack of a movie that had multiple heroes and heroines, so that we could each choose a character to be. Though our double heroine movies usually involved Parveen Babi, who my sister liked to be, occasionally we'd have random characters (for example she was Aradhana and I was Rajni from Satte Pe Satta). Anyway, movies like Parvarish were perfect for our game. I believe that she got to be Neetu and I was Shabbu for this one.
Group Hug!!!
But the multi-starrer Bollywood movie is something I generally look forward to ... there's just something more FUN about it, especially when the chemistry between the heroes is really good (not TOO good though, like not so good that you think the heroines are unnecessary ... I'm looking at YOU Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan!). The more the merrier, you know?
2. The Fashion Why can't it still be the 70s? I absolutely love the bell-bottomy, print/patterned blousey goodness this movie provides. There's also a good assortment of costumes or disguises in this one! Vinod as the stuffy schoolteacher for the blind, Neetu as the Euro-Maid, Amitabh as the Strawberry-Blonde Gentleman, The girls going from street urchin to sari-clad and then mujra dancers to nagins ... there's some craziness going on here!
Patchwork chic!
Full tan suit, or full denim?
Check out that collar!
VK's partial to the all denim ensembles
Bellbottomy Goodness!
Cleans up pretty well!
Pretty in Pink!
Fancy dress competition, Bearded Man Amitabh vs. Swiss Miss Neetu
?????
3. My two favorite cuddly Uncles - Shammi and Amjad I think I've already professed my love for young Shammi, but dare I say he's one of my favorite "Uncles" of Hindi Cinema? He's adorable and still has those bright, sparkling eyes. He'd make one hell of a Santa Claus. And as for Amjad, I have a deep-seated love for Amjad that sparked somewhere around the time I first saw Yaarana. Even when he's the bad guy, he always manages to make me feel sorry for him. I wish there were more movies of him in good guy roles, I really do.
5. Awesome Chicas Neetu and Shabbu are really fun, interesting heroines. They do far more than just sparkle and shine. They go after what they want, even going for the guy and then approaching his parents to take it to the next level. They have a storyline of their own really ... Mangal Singh is the bad dude that murdered their parents, so they have a score to settle with him. They don't just sit back and wait for the heroes to avenge their parents, they create an entire stage show, hire sidey dancers, create giant gun sets and choreograph a whole dance routine to try and off him (oh, and when I saw Zoolander, the ending scene with the Prime Minister of Malaysia TOTALLY reminded me of this song!). They're also clever and sneaky - not your typical sharmili ladkis. Though they DID need to get men to go see it, so of course the guys have to save the girls at the end of the day. BOOOOO!
6. Crazy Villains and Wacky Lairs Let me just say that I love when villains in movies have crazy names. Does it get any better than "Supremo"??? I think not! And this is one hell of a lair ... Beth can tell you all about it! But not only is there a fabulous lair, there's a SUBMARINE. And a Submarine Chase Scene!!! Let Beth tell you about that one too.
Stalactites! Buffet table draping! Stick on leaves! Random statues! Railings for the lines waiting to get on the rides?
Danger around every corner!
For realsies, you could get hurt here. It's the Quicksand Pit of Doooooom!
7. The Songs, Arre Wah, the songs So many fabulous songs on this soundtrack by Laxmikant Pyarelal I don't know which one is my true favorite! The first one that comes to mind when I think of this movie is the scandalous number with Neetu dressed as Heidi and Amitabh as Sir Redbeard:
And then of course the AWESOME Sab Janta Ka Hai number where we are introduced to Neetu and Shabbu's wily ways:
And the Double-Hero/Heroine number posted before, Jaate Ho Jaane Jaana, which I think of as a pre-cursor to my favorite song of this type (two heroes chasing after the two heroines, that are mad at them), Jaanu Meri Jaan from Shaan.
But the two that make me laugh the most are what I consider lasting memories from this movie ...
8. Memories Clearly I was not the only one taken with this movie. Two songs from this movie proved to be especially popular with the Indian population of Metro Detroit. We used to have a 3-day India Festival every summer in downtown Detroit, and people would come from all over to participate in the dance competitions. Sometimes we had some "special items" (like the guy named Dimple that used to dress up every night to dance to Disco Dancer. I'm still scarred from his lusty dance moves).
One year two girls managed to either find or create the EXACT pink and green costumes that Neetu and Shabbu wear in this number, and performed it on stage carrying little WATER PISTOLS. It was awesome. Awesome as in hilariously bad. That's taking your inspiration from the film a little beyond the necessary.
But even MORE memorable were the two guys that decided they wanted to perform to Hum Premi Prem Karna Chahe. What they ended up doing was pretty much walking around the stage through the whole song, except for the part where the Amit character (wearing a white suit) KICKED the Kishen character (wearing a black suit)'s injured leg JUST LIKE IN THE MOVIE. On stage. While walking around in circles. They also got some of their friends to come in to be Shammi Kapoor and the Maa's characters. They just walked on for a little while, arm in arm. There was absolutely no context for anyone who hadn't seen the movie. We had by then, many times, so when the guy got kicked in the knee, we were CRACKING UP. I don't think anyone else in the audience was. But I will never, ever forget these two guys and their "performance".
My sister and I still enact the kick in the leg part every time we hear this song.
Ohhhh I love this movie so much. Seriously, it is action-packed, fun, exciting and the entire ending fight scene has this really happy, peppy music in the background that is totally incongruous. There's angsty Vinod, honest policeman with something to prove Amitabh, and a Matryoshka Doll of Villains (is it Mangal Singh? Nooo it's Supremo!). What's not to love??? Don't you want to see Vinod Khanna "jointed his hands" with Amitabh Bachchan to "put an end to the world of Supreme"?
Highly Highly Highly Recommend for some excellent dishoom-dishoom and fun, unique heroines.
.jpg)
_0.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
