December'08 set in with the usual wave of chill...Only this time it brought in some really horrible tidings instead of the usual year end festivities we associate with this month.....The whole nation was still trying to come to grips with the gruesome audacity with which a few "Kasabs" had brought the ever bustling aamchi Mumbai to its knees(literally)...
One could almost feel the palpable dread that had crept in..With the India-England series having been cut short,we had little else to look forward to...Yes,Bollywood's two biggest Khan's were soon coming out with their dose of popcorn guzzling entertainers...Yet even the industry insiders were apprehensive about the fate of these big budget ventures considering the sombre mood of the viewing audience....
Dec 12 brought with it a certain decrepit Surinder Sahni Ji into our consciousness...Punjab Power ka to pata nahi par Sahni ji certainly did light up more than a few lives with his wierd yet unassuming ways...Shahrukh's subtle portrayal of the simpleton Surinder Sahni, who, through an unfortunate turn of events,gets married to a vibrant and petite Taani Ji, was a welcome addition to the already remarkable repertoire of characters the King Khan has lent his voice and consciousness to over the years...
Aditya Chopra's return from his self imposed sabbatical as the 'nirdeshak' brought some much needed respite to Yash Raj films who were reeling from a string of unanticipated flops..Rab Ne sent the cash registers ringing on its way to becoming Yash Raj's biggest opening ever...The enormity of its success surprised quite a few who didn't quite like its cliched approach...
Yet how did Rab Ne manage to bring the viewers back to tha theatres??I think i have the answer...Rab Ne, through the lovable Surinder Sahni as its protagonist, brought the focus back to the common man...His sweet love story lacked the flamboyance and larger than life ambience that you would normally associate with a bollywood love story...Indian film makers of late had been selling dreams and doling out fantasies for the so called elite 'multiplex viewers'...It is here that Rab Ne was different...It may not have had the brilliance to satiate sophisticated appetites, yet it was meant for the masses,for the aam aadmi who far outnumbers the sparse multiplex viewership,for the nukkar wale picture hall ki junta...
'Taani Partner' became a hit n 'Macho' more than a mere motorcycle accesory...The Surinder/Raj combo had us all crooning 'Haule Haule ho jaega pyaar' haule haule se... :) :)
Those who know me well,will now understand why i loved Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi... :)
Not more than a fortnight later, we had the perfectionist Khan dabbling with some masala entertainment of his own...Ghazini was not a mere flick..It turned out to be an emphatic statement from Aamir..'If Akshay n Shahrukh can do it,I can do it better'...Bollywood's best bet for an Oscar took a break from thought provoking cinema and set about becoming the '8-pack' hunk in his own meticulous manner...His rugged bald look attained an almost cult following and we now have scores of young wannabes vying for their share of his muscular 8-pack frame...The scary intensity with which Aamir portrayed his amnesiac character was a treat to watch...The newcomer Asin with her incessant yet cute "kachar pachar" endeared herself to millions of hearts..Ghazini,quite understandably,turned out to be the biggest money-spinner in years and is still going strong...
For all his success,Aamir's 'Guzarish' still went unheard as 'Taare Zameen Par' failed to make it to the final nominations for the Academy Awards...It seems this charmer will have to wait a while longer before he adds another glittering feather to his star studded cap..
All said and done,the best thing about both these movies was that they gave all of us something to cheer about..Some much needed frivolity in trying times....
As I end on a lighter vein,how I'd love to hear this dialogue more often..."Picture abhi baaki hai mere dost.." :P :P :)
2 comments:
gud one!!!
well since i've seen none of the movies mentioned and keep no track of how they fared in the market it would be unwise of me to says something about the flicks ...but nonetheless the article was a good read. Great job
Post a Comment