My moment with a Martian ( on screen )

My moment with a Martian

I was invited for the life movie premiere which was presented by Sony Pictures in association with Rubin Raj Productions in a city which prides itself in being second to none  in terms of technology and I might just add in vehicular density. The movie premiere was a star studded affair with people from the creative space converging in an hour before this science fiction thriller was showcased at Fun Cinemas in Bangalore City . The backdrop , the selfie station and needless to say Sony Pictures and Rubin Raj Productions were head and shoulders above the rest . The people selected to come and watch this thriller were a right mix of the enterprising community of bangalore .

Life - the movie in a nutshell tells the story of six brave scientists aboard an international space station who have just discovered extra terrestrial life on Mars . All six of them have a destiny of their own which is unravelled as the movie orbits on a course of its own . Let's just say The extra terrestrial from Mars who is named Calvin for all sorts of friendly reasons doesn't turn out to be as friendly as the name would sound . There are lot of defining moments in this thriller and the first encounter the lead doc has with the extra terrestrial in a controlled environment is a scene  to watch out for. This movie keeps you on the edge of the seat and tells how life really is in outer space through the eyes of these passionate and emotional scientists dealing with an enemy from "within ". The movie ends on an open note and whilst you leave the theatre .. you are thinking what if this really happens and thank your stars that at times being too emotional might just not be a good thing whilst dealing with extra terrestrials from Mars.This thriller  was more of a emotional ride than a scientific one for me and on that note I would rate it as 3.5 / 5 with 0 being the lowest and 5 being the highest .

See you at the movies

Trappedthemovie - the review

Rajkummar Rao has bled literally , figuratively and metaphorically in this movie . Trapped the movie works on the premise which has happened with all of us .The lead actor quite interestingly goes by the name of Shaurya and from the looks of it the only brave deed he would have done is asking the girl in his office out for for a butter soaked pav bhaji which becomes an inspiration in the end .Rajkumar through a sleigh of misfortune  gets stuck with a tricky situation which is a test of character for him on all levels . The movie shows how the protagonist navigates his way through this ordeal dealing with a power struggle , deaf people around him and under him and a rat  . One particular scene where Rajkummar Rao goes through the entire gamut of emotions whilst dealing with the aggression of fire and the calming influence of water stays with you .  This movie is not for the faint hearted ... catapults , cardboard boxes , cockroaches and pigeons have more than a passing shot in this thriller. As a viewer you see the film through the tiring but brave eyes of Shaurya .. and let's face it .. if you are stuck in a similar situation what would you do ?This movie is similar and dissimilar with films like castaway and 127 hours as they dealt with nature .. here he is right in the middle of a concrete jungle
and trapped . That's the irony of it . The movie is edited in a crisp manner with the background score adding it's own flavour .It goes without saying Rajkumarr Rao brings blood , sweat and toil in this role .

Trapped - the movie and the media interaction

From the time the trailer of this movie released .. it has intrigued me and as luck would have it .. I was invited for an interaction with the versatile lead actor Rajkummar Rao and the interprid Vikramaditya Motwane at Inox leisure Ltd ( Garuda Mall) by Rubin Raj . The movie in question is Trapped and quite unlike the name the actor and the director answered all the questions with consummate ease and tact ensuring they did not reveal the storyline at any given point. In a nutshell the movie #trapped is all about a man's endeavour to get out of his newly furnished apartment which is set in a high rise somewhere in the far flungs of maximum city aka Mumbai. This movie has tones of castaway meets 127 hours and to know more watch this thriller on 17th march at a theatre near you and on a side note if you hate tea /coffee / popcorn .. go for green tea . Stay fit .. stay healthy whilst watching this edge of the apartment survival thriller !!!!

Rangoon - the movie review

rangoon the movie - bloody hell and kiddo that's a catch phrase used irritatingly throughout this flick. The movie is a tad too long , first half has good moments  .. the second half never ends ..it has unnecessary songs, a Brit actor high on Hindi and it's pronunciation ( I so missed bob Christo here ) and there is a tip off to inglorious bastards for the story and Sholay for the fight sequence.. Saif throughout this movie calls Kangana "kiddo "for some strange reason .. guess he must be doing the same thing at home .. the movie ends with Saif doing a tight rope walk with a sword in his hand .. yeah that kind of movie and there are a lot of things you could do with that sword .. you might just walk out of the theatre muttering bloody hell .

Ghazi Attack - the review

The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting so says Sun Tzu in the Art of War. T

Ghazi Attack is a different movie not just for the approach it takes but for the first time in Hindi films a movie on military warfare is shot under water. The movie has a stellar and a very able star cast in Om Puri , Naseer ( albeit in a short but a " politically " motivated role ) Atul Kulkarni who literally speaks from the gut, the tall presence of Rana Duggapati and the smouldering intensity of Kay Kay Menon. This movie keeps you on the edge right from the start . You know you are in for a submarine ride through the choppy waters of the Bay of Bengal with very able Naval officers doing whatever they can to keep their nation's flag flying high at all costs. Drills have a new meaning in this flick and one particular scene about the egg and the water drives home the point that the deeper you go , the heavier you feel. I was never a fan of geometry but the way the scenes were shot around geometric  lines and angles .. I would have fallen in love with it if given a chance again . Water here seems to add not just flavour but also becomes another character in this movie when it sees so much of action happening down under. The radio operators played by both the Indian and the pakistani counterparts don't just have an ear for detail but also have insightful eyes.This is a movie which deserves more eye balls as its a grim reminder of the heroes we have who lay down their lives  without expecting anything in  return . The film has been shot well , the jerky camera movements  adding more than just a visual appeal in every scene . This movie talks about honour , ambition , valour in equal terms and the national anthem has never sounded so sweet even at 300 metres below sea level .
General Patton might just love this movie for the values it expounds  

Jolly LLB -2 review

Courtroom dramas always have a sense of drama in them and this flick has quite a bit of it.Jolly LLB sets the premise straight with Jogeshwar Mishra a resident of Kanpur trying the odd even formula which would make a certain trigger happy leader in helping out students crack the English exam .Jolly is a 12th assistant to a leading lawyer and knows all the tricks in the books to get his work done . Akshay Kumar as Jolly is endearing , goofy ,winsome and quite a revelation as a lawyer who grows into the role which is not all black and white initially. This movie is all about a staged police encounter with justice being shown the door.Jolly is waiting for that one moment when he can land a fat case which is worth arguing for and ensure his family lives happily ever after. Due to an untimely death of a pregnant mother which leads to a precarious situation in the courtroom ...Jolly ends up fighting for what is right . The movie has its moments . The courtroom scenes between a top lawyer played by the man who is as animated in Antakshari as he is in the courtroom.. Annu Kapoor and Akshay kumar are whistle worthy . Umud Mishra plays the cop who orchestrates the entire fake encounter to land himself a promotion and his eyes talk more than his dialogues . The judge played by Saurabh Shukla does a mean Shandaar dance and makes his heavy presence felt standing out in one scene where there is a slap , gun shots and a hammer . Huma Quereshi as Jolly's wife knows how to gulp down a glass of whiskey in the neatest manner and that's about it and yes she likes her Gucci dress. This is an Akshay Kumar movie all the way . He wins you over with his sincerity, street smart cred and his ability for standing against a system. The movie has loopholes , a tad too long and the songs are unnecessary but the supporting cast does their job well. If you like Akshay and for the versatile choices he makes which is quite different from the rest.. you will like it .

Breakfast with champions - a review

The Caribbean flavour

By the end of this episode you might just end up humming the champion song which works at all levels because of its really simple singalong  lyrics . Gaurav manages to remove the sheen from the cricketers and make them more humane like all of us . Bravo a teetotaller reveals during the freewheeling conversation that Cricket unites West Indies as against other sports . The breakfast is shudh Gujarati vegetarian fare and as expected Bravo is game enough to try a little bit of everything  revealing a side of him which says it's better to try and fail rather than not try at all.

The Chandni Chowk connection

What happens when an immovable object meets an unstoppable force .. Danny Morrison is in Chandni Chowk .Dan the man  gets a crash course on the gastronomic history of the paratha Wali galli from Gaurav whilst walking through the crowded alleyways . An animated Danny shoots the breeze with Gaurav over puri aloo and a dry hair massage and answers some very interesting questions on his debut match and his desi connection with India

Master class with the tweaker

Bishen Singh Bedi - the man who could deceive you with his guile and loop as a bowler is an interviewers delight . He is frank , outspoken and calls a spade a spade . Gaurav - charming and easy going gets Bish to talk and one feels like a fly in that sprawling garden listening to his incredible stories . He speaks about the inspirational Tiger Pataudi, his moment with Sir Donald Brahman on integrity ,his fellow tweakers .. and that moment when Shane Warne  sought his advice  out before bowling to Sachin Tendulkar. There certainly was sukoon and junoon in this episode

The Rawalpindi express
Picture this .. Shoaib Akhtar running with a f-16 ... with the kind of speed he used to bowl its quite a possibility. In this episode you get to see a side of Shoaib Akhtar who is raw , impulsive , candid and hard working . Gaurav through the course of the conversation over croissants and waffles gets us to know what makes the Rawalpindi tick- that madness and that animalistic run .

The correct man

There is something about Ajinkya rahane .. the way he let's his bat do the talking and then digs into that big omelette of his giving a glimpse of his mindset whilst batting ,his take of what marriage is all about vis a vis the non striker in cricketing parlance and his immense respect for Rahul Dravid.


Bakbak with Zak

It's always tough for bowlers says Zaheer khan nonchalantly .. he with his left arm swing might give the impression that he means business from the word go but during this freewheeling conversation you get to see a side which is nostalgic and has come to terms with the fact that he was a part of a World Cup winning squad in   2011.. and he loves his cheese cake and ghee in no particular order.They say fast bowlers hunt in pairs .. but fast bowlers as next door neighbours ....Ajit Agarkar stays right  next door and he makes an appearance in this episode talking about the size of bats and the Caribbean drawl of Michael Holding aka whispering death  who just loves the IPL ( nudge nudge wink , wink ) and that line summarises this episode pretty well - the mind is writing cheques which the body can't encash anymore