Bbuddah... Hoga Terra Baap (2011)

I’ve never been a stickler for action movies – particularly the dishum-dishum one-man army variety Bollywood serves on a blood-stained platter. The one exception, though, remains Indian cinema’s proverbial ‘angry young man’, Amitabh Bachchan: superhero for the masses eons before a shirtless Salman Khan became all the rage. Zanjeer. Deewar. Sholay. Trishul. Muqaddar ka Sikandar. Lawaaris. Shakti. Coolie. Shahenshah. Mai Azaad Hoon. Agneepath – I’ve grown up to his cult-classic one-liners, his bravura, his passion, aggression, and of course, that trademark Bachchan baritone. Now 68-years… young, one thought he’d long since abandoned that larger-than-life persona in favor of stern patriarchal figures, occasionally reinventing himself with gems like Black, Cheeni Kum and Paa.

Of course, then came along Bbuddah… Hoga Terra Baap. The ‘one-man industry’ [as billed by French director François Truffaut] strikes again in the avatar his ardent fans love most: the one where he kicks major ass.

Let me get this out of the way at the onset: this is masala filmmaking at its finest, read: thin-to-the-point-of-emaciated plot. For example, here are some of the characters: a conscientious cop so ‘straight’ he could convert an army of little monsters, re: Lady Gaga [Sonu Sood], his doting single sati-savitri mom [Hema Malini] and blink-I don’t love you-blink-but now I do love interest [Sonal Chauhan], a moist toilette mafia mogul [Prakash Raj] and his army of womanizing goons… and Raveena Tandon, who replaces Johnny Lever as the movie’s staple over-the-top comedienne. You’ve seen them all before; these cardboard-cutout characters predate cinema of the ‘70s and ‘80s. Then there’s the plot itself: following a perceived terrorist attack – calm down, the antagonist isn’t Muslim – ACP Karan [Sonu Sood – a dead ringer for a young Amitabh] avows to rid Mumbai of its mafia kachra within two months [sigh, only in Bollywood]. Naturally, Kabir [Prakash Raj], the contractor behind the attacks is a bit peeved and hires the baap of all contract-killers to off our righteous cop. Enter Viju [Amitabh Bachchan], who has as much aversion to being called ‘bbuddah’ as Pamela Anderson had on being called ‘babe’ in Barb Wire [did you know the movie was a reimagining of Casablanca?! But I digress.] With several botched up operations under his belt 45 minutes into the movie, just when you begin to think ‘whoa, he’s really not the best in the business, is he?’ or ‘whoa, why am I watching this movie?’ comes a twist in the tale that pulls the rug from right under you. Where the first half is really bbuddah wine in new bottle, it’s the second half that really brings on both action and emotion. And those wolf-whistle inducing one-liners.

Seriously. The first hour or so is mild torture, mostly because of infuriating subplots. ACP Karan is head-over-heels over Sonal Chauhan’s character [I forget her screen-name]. Yawn. Raveena Tandon is reunited with old flame Viju and must express her lust via million-expressions-a-minute. Fast-forward to the good stuff, please. Even Amitabh Bachchan channels less of his Zanjeer/Deewar namesake’s [Viju/Vijay] firepower and gusto in the first half: his character is more reminiscent of womanizer Sam from Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna. Yes, he’s riding a Harley, and rocks Aviator sunglasses whilst aiming a sniper rifle, but you’ve seen him angrier, you’ve seen him more irreverent. Where’s all the ‘thodi thodi seena zori, thodi thodi maatha phori, thora action, thora Jackson’ we were promised? I don’t want to see Amitabh playing matchmaker, doling out marriage-advice, DJing at a club – I want to see blood, guns, explosions, the frikkin’ works! Director Puri Jagannadh reserves all the good stuff for the second half, and we’re reduced to watching more a display of the South Indian cinema aesthetic – choppy editing, disjointed scenes, several thousand camera angles for a single shot… in essence, everything you hated about Salman’s Wanted – than an ode to brand Bachchan. And that’s really where you feel letdown; we all knew this wasn’t going to be a National Award winning screenplay, but we did hope the director would keep that camera lens focused firmly on its protagonist. Dare I say it: Jagannadh doesn’t exploit AB enough; as critic Deepauk Murugesan puts it: ‘unsuggestive background music clouds the reticently used baritone and designer sunglasses mask the smoldering anger in those eyes.’ One wishes as much effort had been put into the screenplay and dialogue as was into Bachchan’s eccentric wardrobe.

But fret not, for whilst the first half boasts of mediocrity, the second – minus that one unwarranted subplot featuring a father who hates love marriages [massive eye-roll] – is where both director and Bachchan really come into their element. The action sequences work – Amitabh even gets to bend a bullet a la Angelina Jolie from Wanted!, as does one brilliant comedic sequence [read: background music war] involving Amitabh, Hema Malini and Raveena Tandon caught in lovers’ crossfire at a café. The emotional element, the little of it there is, packs an equal punch. But it’s the climax sequence, beginning from Bachchan the storyteller to Bachchan the destroyer of all, that takes the cake. There he is. This is what I’d been waiting for. And man, was it worth sitting through half-a-dozen characters and their half-baked stories for. AB really does reign supreme; he makes even the most ludicrous sequences work because, well, he’s Amitabh Bachchan. And here’s a legend that’ll never really grow old.

In its finest moments, Bbuddah… Hoga Terra Baap brings on the nostalgia, and then some. So if, like me, you’ve grown up watching AB deliver one electrifying performance after the other in reverent awe, watch BHTP and then make a trip to your local DVD shop and bring home his classics. Because there never was, and never will be, another Amitabh — Osman Khalid Butt

Rating – 3 out of 5

Cast and Production Credits

Year – 2011, Genre – Action, Country – India, Language – Hindi, Producer – Viacom 18 Motion Pictures, AB Corp AB Corp, Director – Puri Jagannadh, Music Director – N/A, Cast –
Amitabh Bachchan, Hema Malini, Sonu Sood, Sonal Chauhan, Prakash Raj, Makrand Deshpande, Vishwajeet Pradhan, Charmee Kaur, Mahie Gill, Subbu Raju, Shahwar Ali, Rajeev Verma, Rajiv Mehta, Atul Parchure, Raveena Tandon

Game (2011)

When it comes to films starring Abhishek Bachchan, one is somewhat wary. Often times it’s because despite the hype, many (if not most) of AB Junior’s films turn out to be duds. For every Yuva or Guru, there is a Raavan, Bus Itna Sa Khwab Hai etc.

Having said that, it must be said that Game did look appealing. For one thing, it isn’t a regular Abhishek Bachchan film. Plus it comes from Farhan Akhtar’s banner that has a history of producing modern and entertaining films.

Our introduction begins with some key players through a series of meetings set by Kabir Malhotra (Anupam Kher). A billionaire who resides in Greece, he writes a letter to four people and invites them to his private island under the pretext of helping them with their various problems.

Abhishek Bachchan comes in from Turkey as Neil Menon, a casino owner in some serious debt from loansharks who are lethal as they are dangerous.

Vikram Kapoor (Jimmy Shergill) comes in from Mumbai as an actor with a deadly secret (namely murder) and three back to back flop films. With his career on the low, Jimmy takes the offer from Kabir Malhotra and comes to Greece with the hope that his career will eventually fly from some help from the tycoon.

The third player is OP Ramsay (played superbly by Boman Irani), Prime Ministerial candidate for Thailand. A corrupt politician to the core, PM comes in to protect his seat in power. Hoping to gain some cash from AK, he too arrives to the secluded island.

And finally there is Tisha Khanna (Shahana Goswami), a journalist who drinks too much and has no real credibility.

Once the four players arrive, Kabir Malhotra reveals his real reasons for inviting them. And that is getting them arrested for the death of his daughter. But before he can prove their guilt through some evidence, Kabir Malhotra dies. What looks like suicide turns out to be murder. And so enters Kangana Ranuat as Sia Agnihotri a member of International Vigilance Squad (IVS). She begins her investigation and so begins the chase.

During the first half of the film, the plot thickens quickly. The frames move quickly and we travel to Istanbul, Mumbai and back to Greece in quick succession. It’s thrilling and exciting. One reason is perhaps because the plot is hard to decipher and predict. And that really makes a difference, especially if the flick is dealing with the genre of thriller.

But it’s the second half where the film looses momentum and completely changes gear: from a smart urban thriller it delves into a typical Bollywood film where there can be no gray shades to the star of the show. In this case, it’s Abhishek Bachchan. You’ll have to watch the film to understand fully what I mean.
From an acting viewpoint, the real star is Abhishek Bachchan. He looks suave and cool and plays it so. As a casino owner, he has shades of nasty grey but Abhishek plays it so well. Neil Menon is neither a good guy nor bad. He walks somewhere in the middle and Abhishek walks that line like a complete pro. The script doesn’t do his performance justice.

The other actor who is absolutely brilliant is Boman Irani. As a corrupt politician who will do anything to get to power, he is delightful to watch. Boman really makes you hate his guts and he does it conviction and class.

Kangana Ranuat is adequate in most scenes. Jimmy Shergill once again proves that he is a great actor, desperately in need of some meatier roles. His role is relatively small but it is significant. As an actor obsessed with successes, Jimmy’s Vikram Kapoor is brilliant.

Ultimately, Game loses points because of its script. What started out as an interesting and entertaining film eventually slows down and becomes predictable. Game falls short of being edgy. And that is its biggest flaw – Maheen Sabeeh

Rating – 2.5 out of 5

Cast and Production Credits

Year – 2011, Genre – Action/Drama/Thriller, Country – India, Language – Hindi, Producer – Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Director – Abhinay Deo, Music Director – Shankar Mahadevan, Ehsaan Noorani, Loy Mendonsa, Cast – Abhishek Bachchan, Sarah Jane Dias, Boman Irani, Jimmy Shergill, Gul Panag, Soniya Jehan, Shahana Goswami, Kangna Ranaut, Sikander Kher, Anupam Kher, Gauhar Khan

Dum Maro Dum (2011)

“Goa meri jaan, jannat ki shaan,” are the opening lines of Dum Maro Dum and the opening scenes of the movie show you Goa like you haven’t probably ever seen before.  The first few scenes tell you that this movie is going to have great cinematography, which it indeed does. However, your expectations are going to be let down if you are looking forward to a glossy romantic movie set in the scenic Goa because this is an action packed film and will only be enjoyed by those who appreciate thrillers.

Dum Maro Dum is based on the issue of drugs and it shows that ACP Vishnu Kamath (Abhishek Bachan) is chosen to chase all the corrupt businessmen who deal with drugs and completely eliminate them from Goa. Lorsa Biscuita aka Biscuit (Aditya Pancholi) is  chief drug dealer in Goa who picks innocent but needy young people from middle class families to smuggle drugs. Lorry (Prateik Babbar) is one of the innocent young boys who fall into Lorsa’s trap. In another story going on in the same film, Joki (Rana Daggubati) is shown wandering aimlessly through life after an encounter with the drug mafia, which cost him the love of his life, Zoe (Bipasha Basu). However, when Lorry gets caught in the trap Joki (Rana Duggubati), his well wisher helps him get out of the web. ACP Kamath is supposed to find Michael Barbusa, a hidden man who runs this racket through Biscuit. How ACP Kamath takes the uphill task and completes it with the assistance of Joki and Lorry makes the rest of the story of Dum Maro Dum.

The movie takes a while to start and hence it might be slightly boring initially. It takes its time to introduce all six main characters and show their own stories, which also seem confusing initially. Also, there is a point in the film when the protagonist is completely ignored and the film focuses on the story of a side actor. This is where the director seems confused himself and creates ambiguity in the mind of the viewer too. Hence to say that the screenplay of Dum Maro Dum could have been much better wouldn’t be wrong. It has a fantastic story but the director failed to translate that interesting concept into an equally engrossing film. That’s one of the main lows of the movie. Some viewers might just lose their interest in the first half and not proceed with it. However, once the characters and their stories are introduced, it catches its pace and the screenplay becomes more gripping, making the movie exciting. Yet a lot more was desired from an action packed film.

The background score brings life to Dum Maro Dum while the music is just okay. Apart from the title track none of the songs stay in your head for long but it’s acceptable because great music is not something we expect from art movies and thrillers.

Dialogues are a great strength of Dum Maro Dum and they make quite an impact in this film. The writer Shridhar Raghavan must get due credit for them. The actors have done a good job delivering those dialogues and performing overall too. Abhishek Bachan gives a powerful performance and is very close to perfection in the role of a cop. Many say that he has delivered one of his career’s best performances in Dum Maro Dum.

Bipasha Basu is apt for her role but it is nothing too extraordinary while Rana Daggubati makes quite an impressive debut. The way he fuses into his character and plays it is remarkable and needless to say, he looks very natural in the role.  Govind Namdeo also managed to do justice to his character and role. However, Pratiek Babbar and Adtiya Pancholi failed to make a mark.

The item song by Deepika failed to create the spark which was expected! When you hear Deepika is being hired for an item song in a film which already stars Bipasha Basu, expectations are bound to rise but clearly she didn’t meet those high expectations in Dum Maro Dum’s title track.

To sum it up, Dum Maaro Dum is a thriller with its highs where it looks brilliant and its lows that disappoint you but if you are a diehard thriller fan who loves action and crime films, you will enjoy this one! Don’t bother watching it if you’re looking for a candy floss romantic flick because this one’s far from them – Hafsah Sarfraz

Rating – 2.75 out of 5

Cast and Production Credits

Year – 2011, Genre – Action/Thriller, Country – India, Language – Hindi, Producer – Ramesh Sippy, Director – Rohan Sippy, Music Director – Pritam Chakraborty, Cast – Abhishek Bachchan, Aditya Pancholi, Bipasha Basu, Rana Daggubati, Prateik Babbar, Govind Namdeo, Anaitha Nai, Mariah Pucu, Bugs Bhargava, Gulshan Devaiya, Muzammil S. Qureshi, Gantois Gomes, Harry Key